Oscar laughed at his girlfriend’s pout before speaking. “You better tell me whatever it is. Let me know if you need my help. I keep telling you I can sing.”
Both Grayson and Eleanor looked at one another, refusing to say a word.
Hell no.
“What’s up with you two, though? Meeting the families for Christmas or what?” Grayson asked. He knew that if he didn’t change the topic, Oscar would position himself in the center of their living room and begin his rendition of “If I Could Turn Back Time” by Cher.
Oscar went quiet. Eleanor looked at him.
“I’m quite certain my boyfriend is ashamed of me.”
“I’m no such thing,” he answered.
“I’m sure he isn’t,” Grayson added. “You’re smart and beautiful. Everything Oscar isn’t.”
Oscar gave him the finger. He was smart and beautiful, too. Eleanor was on a whole new level but Oscar was at least in the game.
Grayson smirked at his friend’s insult. “There’s no way he’d be ashamed to take you home.”
“Well we aren’t going to his place for the holidays so I don’t think you’re right, Sonny.”
“Neither of us have the money to fly out of state right now,” Oscar said, not sure if he was explaining himself to his girlfriend who already knew this or to Grayson. “I said we can aim for the summer. I’ll have more than enough saved, and we’ll still be together then, right?”
Eleanor smiled. “I would like to be.”
Grayson looked down at the phone as they continued to bicker. It wasn’t yet 10, and he wanted to use the next hour or so to get to work on his idea. He knew that if he could get this done, not only would his father respect him as a businessman, but others in Millennium Records would as well. For now, he wanted to keep everything under wraps – at least until he got a venue and could make things happen. The last thing he wanted was to let people know of his intentions and then fail. They’d think he wasn’t capable. Grayson wanted to prove that he was capable.
He stood up and yawned, stretching a bit as the two continued.
“– saying that you got to talk to my mother on the phone but I haven’t ever spoken to yours. I’m not even sure they know I exist.”
“They know you exist, Ela.”
“Well while you lovebirds work this out, I’m going to head back to my room and get started on my project. I doubt I’ll get that much done since it’s so late, but the least I can do is brainstorm and find options.”
Oscar laid his head on his girlfriend’s lap as she ignored him. He smiled. “Well. Good luck with that. You know where I am if you need me.”
“Yeah. Goodnight, Eleanor. Night, bro.”
“Goodnight,” Eleanor said. “Text Elijah.”
“No.”
“Yes,” Oscar said with a smile. “Love you.”
Grayson continued to ignore them as he walked through the penthouse and towards his room. Elijah may have been alone when his two creepy friends found his Facebook profile and read through his posts, but he could’ve easily invited someone over since then. Grayson wasn’t going to embarrass himself by texting. They made an agreement for a reason.
He pulled his shirt off as soon as he walked into his room and headed over to his workspace. His desk was currently covered with demos from musicians that his father had been ignoring. Grayson wanted to check them out but hadn’t yet gotten around to it. Maybe he would find the act for the show he intended to plan somewhere in the pile.
The idea was to throw a mini-concert for The Pretty Committee. Grayson grabbed his MacBook and a pen and pad. Right now, The Pretty Committee hadn’t even finished recording their album, but a week from now it would be done. They’d be preparing to go on promotional runs performing their first single. They’d need to get into the habit of singing live in front of an audience. What better space to showcase the girls than at their very own Christmas show?
Grayson needed a venue. Somewhere in the city was a good idea. He sat back and started to think of places. A club wasn’t right. They were young girls and had a younger fan base. Somewhere public where people could bring their children to watch would work best. Grayson started writing down ideas. He didn’t want this to be just a performance. It was the holiday season after all, and he hoped to incorporate that factor into this. They didn’t need to sell tickets at this event, but it would be a good idea to do a charity of sorts. It would work on The Pretty Committee’s public image at the same time.
He started to make a list of what could work in lieu of charging for admittance. He considered having a contest, but didn’t think that they had enough exposure to garner interest. Besides, he knew people would enter just for the hell of wanting to win something free and Grayson didn’t want random people taking up a spot from actual potential customers. In the end, he decided to find a Toy Drive to partner with. Bring a present and get admitted into the performance. Doors could open for as long as the performance went on. That worked.
Grayson considered places for this to happen, and he tried to shake his head of the first thought.
Washington Square Park.
He couldn’t shake the thought quickly enough. Immediately he remembered the night before when he was in that park with Elijah. They were at the piano; a crowd around them, and Elijah was singing him one of his favorite songs.
Then that Tony guy popped up.
Grayson recalled how dismissive Elijah was of Tony. He compared his behavior with Tony to the way that Elijah had been treating him. Even though they were only messing around too, Elijah was being respectful. He hadn’t gotten the cold shoulder from him.
Hopefully this whole thinking about the guy I had sex with twice thing wouldn’t last as long as it seemed it would. Grayson sighed. Yes, stalking someone’s Facebook was creepy to him, but he needed to know. He just wanted to make sure that Elijah was back to being himself so that he too could move on. You know. Seeing Elijah be Elijah would justify Grayson in his concerns, and he’d be able to move on without feeling like he made a huge mistake.
He opened up the Facebook app – an app he rarely used unless it was time to wish someone a happy birthday or look at cat videos. Facebook became less fun when he logged on to message after message from ‘friends’ asking him to help get them into a party or help them meet one of the artists at Millennium Records. Tonight, he ignored his inbox altogether, instead going to the search bar and typing in Elijah Dawson. His was the first name to pop up.
Grayson tapped the pen he was using against his lip. Elijah’s profile photo was hot. The big guy with the beer in the back was a distraction, but Elijah looked sexy. Grayson clicked the profile and told himself not to go through Elijah’s photos as he scrolled down the page.
Surely enough, the last thing Elijah had written was about the ice cream and the Christmas movies. But, when Grayson clicked on the comments, he realized that he’d been replying to some responses. Well. He was responding to a chick named Fallon. He’d been ignoring all of the guys, it seemed.
Still, everything was pretty PG. Elijah was watching holiday films in bed. He told his friend Fallon that they’d go out tomorrow night because he wasn’t ‘feeling it’.
Maybe tomorrow he’d get his mojo back.
Grayson put the phone down and dragged a hand down his face. He hated that Elijah looked like… that. His beautiful face made this so much harder.
He had to get back to work.
Grayson circled Friday, December 15th on the calendar. That would be the date he was aiming for. Kids wouldn’t have school the next morning, and the girls could rest up over the weekend and get back to work on Monday. It would work out perfectly.
For now, he’d see if he could get a permit in either Bryant Park, Central Park, or Washington Square Park. When he did, he’d use the girls’ social media for promotion – bring a present for the toy drive and get to see the girls perform songs from their upcoming album. In the middle of their act, he’d sneak in his potential new artist an
d let everyone see him or her perform. Hopefully they’d kill it, and his father would be impressed, along with the rest of the world. Best of all, working hard on this would help distract him from how good it’d feel to kiss Elijah Dawson right now.
Chapter 11
Elijah usually loved Friday nights. It was the end of the work week and it meant he got to unwind for a couple days. Unwinding for Elijah typically included lots of alcohol, partying with his friends, and taking home a pretty boy or two.
This Friday night, he was hoping to make just that happen.
The day before involved him saying goodbye to a fun and casual hookup with a guy he thought was cool. Grayson was beautiful, actually. Not only did they have hot sex, but they were enjoying their time together. Elijah knew Grayson was right to slow things down. He didn’t like that they ended it altogether, but it did make sense.
He guessed.
Grayson said that although he had a good time, he wasn’t the type to just fuck around with a guy. Besides, he was a busy man who actually had a life. Elijah on the other hand had tons of time to waste. They weren’t that compatible on paper. They had very little in common, well, besides a love for music… and of course a love for cock. But take those two things away and nothing remained.
Still. Something wasn’t right.
Elijah spent all of Thursday after leaving Grayson’s office trying to shake him. He got back to work and thought about how he didn’t stop the kiss. He got home that evening and sat on the sofa, remembering what they were doing there the night before. He’d deleted Tony’s number from his phone after the boy texted him, and afterwards he found himself smirking at the picture Grayson sent him with his middle finger in the air.
He only looked at it for a few seconds, though.
This wasn’t happening. Elijah was not developing feelings for a cute guy whose cell phone he found one cold morning in December, and he wasn’t spending his time thinking about him after they called their limited time together quits. Elijah wasn’t the type to feel things. Elijah wasn’t the type to lay in bed with ice cream because he was sad. He liked not feeling things. It helped him live a drama-free life while everyone around him sobbed over exes and fretted over what to wear on dates with people they’d probably divorce in five years. It was time for Elijah to get back to what he knew.
That’s why he was standing in a seedy club Downtown with his friends Mark, Abram, Fallon, and her friend Selena. He had a drink in his hand and Mark by his side – the man pulling at his beard as he stared at a chick dancing on the other side of the room.
It had been a couple weeks since he got to go out with his buddies. Everyone was caught up in their individual lives and the happenings of being someone trying to make a living in New York City. He himself liked laying low and passing the days, but neglecting his friends had gotten him in big trouble recently. Besides, spending a little time with them could potentially help him take his mind off of things.
Elijah turned and looked at Mark, shaking his head when he saw where his friend’s eyes were focused.
“You should just go talk to her,” he told him over the beat of the music.
Mark shook his head no.
He behaved this way every time they came out. The guy basically looked like a young Denzel Washington, yet he still didn’t have the heart to talk to girls. It made no sense to Elijah. Well, he guessed he could understand that it was difficult having social anxiety, so it was a good thing he was even willing to go into a night club, but Elijah didn’t want that to control Mark forever.
“You haven’t talked to anyone yet either,” Mark said.
Elijah smiled as he took a sip from his glass. He couldn’t deny that.
“That’s very unlike you.”
“I haven’t seen anything I liked yet,” Elijah told him.
That wasn’t entirely true. He saw a few hot guys here and there. He wasn’t convinced they were gay, but that never stopped him before. Never stopped some of the guys, either. But despite them being attractive and maybe even interested, Elijah wasn’t feeling it.
He told himself it had nothing to do with Grayson, but that probably wasn’t true.
“What’s up with you?” Mark asked him. “You never hang out with us for this long when we go out to party. By now, you would’ve been hand-in-hand with some pretty boy on your way back to one of your places.”
Elijah chuckled. He never held hands. “I don’t hold hands, Mark.”
Mark shrugged, not caring to keep up with all of his buddy’s rules. They wouldn’t be applying to him anytime soon. “You do disappear by now though,” he said.
“Fallon yelled at me yesterday for neglecting you all for guys, and she was right. I’ve been with someone almost every night for the past couple weeks. That’s a little excessive, even for someone like me. Maybe I’m just trying to spend some time with you…”
Mark rolled his eyes. “If you say so.”
“I’ll hook up with someone later if it matters that much to you.”
“There’s something you’re not telling me,” Mark repeated.
Elijah wanted to laugh. There was always something he hadn’t told his friend. He didn’t talk to anyone about boys, except for Fallon really. That was starting to backfire. But there was usually nothing to talk about. Now, he didn’t want to talk about Grayson. It didn’t make any sense to. That was done.
“I promise there’s nothing to discuss.”
Mark looked at the girl he’d been watching and took a deep breath. Elijah was about to go over there and be very fifth grade about this. If he had to point at Mark and ask a girl if she was interested just to help his buddy out, he’d be about that life.
“Just so you know, Fallon told everyone that you had a coffee date with Grayson ‘Millennium Records’ Paul.”
Elijah tensed as the words hit him. She fucking would. Mark turned to face him, and Elijah could feel his eyes piercing through the side of his head.
“She even told us that it was him that you were screwing instead of coming to her little party the other night,” Mark continued. “So, I don’t know. I thought maybe that would be the cause for your change in behavior.”
Elijah finished off what was in his glass. The cocktail didn’t have nearly enough vodka in it. He licked his lips and looked around the club. “I don’t know why Fallon felt obligated to tell you guys any of that. He and I fucked and that was that.”
Mark leant back against the wall, and Elijah could tell by the look on his friend’s face that he didn’t exactly believe him. “If that’s true, what was the deal with the coffee date? I didn’t know Elijah Dawson was the type to take a guy he’d banged out for coffee the following day…”
“Elijah Dawson isn’t,” he told him. “We didn’t go out for coffee. It was just a fling that’s now over.”
“Yet it affected you obviously,” Mark replied. “I mean; you’re standing against the wall with me instead of getting out there like you always do.”
Elijah shook his head. He was tired of everyone telling him that something was different with him. Grayson, Fallon, and now Mark. He just wanted to do what made him feel good without the questions or observations.
He was going to prove that nothing had changed. He was still Elijah, and no guy could possibly change that, not even the mighty Grayson Paul. Elijah had always been Elijah.
“Since you’re so concerned about me, bro,” Elijah handed the empty glass to Mark as he continued. “I’m going to go find someone to fuck and then I’m going to go home and get some rest. Lily’s spending the day with me tomorrow.”
Mark didn’t look entirely convinced, but he nodded as he accepted the empty glass. “Have fun with that, Eli.”
Elijah turned to look at the girl. “The least you could do is say hello to her if you’re going to stand here and be a creep. Goodnight.” He patted his friend on the shoulder before walking off.
Mark shook his head.
Elijah moved around the dance floor in search
of someone. This person would have to be someone great if they were going to help take his mind off of the other guy.
See? He was forgetting about him already.
“I think you’re looking for me.”
That was quick.
Elijah turned around. The man smiled at him. He was decent looking. They were about the same height and he was tanned with medium-length hair and a small gap in his smile. His voice was deep when he spoke again.
“My name is Will. I saw you over there in the back but I didn’t want to interrupt your conversation.”
Elijah nodded. “Well we’re talking now, Will. My name is Elijah.”
“Nice to meet you,” he said, smiling in a way that could easily be perceived as bashful.
“Can I get you a drink?” Elijah asked him, moving in a little closer.
Will smiled at him and gestured over to the bar. “That’d be nice.”
∞
They ended up in the back of Will’s car after spending a few minutes at the bar. At first they were talking, and it was terrible. Elijah didn’t know how to tell him he didn’t give a fuck what he did for work, and that there was nothing interesting about these accounting firm stories. But somewhere in the back of his mind, he wondered if listening to someone else talk would ease his thoughts about Grayson.
So far, it had not been working.
After about five minutes, Will tried to change the conversation to Elijah. He asked about what he did for work and then what he did for fun. Elijah explained that he wasn’t really the talkative type and that liquor tended to make him horny.
Will laughed nervously.
It was when the man leant in and tried to kiss him to get things started that Elijah laughed.
“I’m sorry. Can we not… do that?” he asked. “Just. I know I’m being kind of particular right now – and I hope I’m not being a jerk – but let’s keep this simple.”
Will nodded, though Elijah could see the confused look on his face. “What do you mean? You do want to hook up right?”
Something Real Page 17