A Foolish Plan

by Casper Graham

“More like zero sex,” Jared muttered softly, but his voice must have been audible to Isaac and Dexter because they were now staring at him, and the astonishment was written clearly on their faces. “What?”

  “Why not?” Dexter asked. “Are you having any trouble getting it up?”

  Jared scoffed at Dexter. “I have no such issues. Thanks, jerk.”

  “Steve then?” Dexter persisted, and Jared rolled his eyes.

  “Perish the thought. I could feel his hard dick throbbing inside his pants whenever we made out with each other.”

  “I don’t understand what the problem is.”

  Isaac appeared to be really confused, and Jared had to refrain from snapping at the younger man. It wasn’t Isaac’s fault that Jared was feeling more than a little desperate for sex at the moment.

  “I…I don’t know how to ask Steve for it.”

  Then Jared was taken aback when Dexter and Isaac burst out laughing almost at the same time. At first, he was bewildered. Then he grew mad at Isaac and Dexter. Before he could utter a single word, Dexter beat him to it.

  “Imagine being frightened of discussing your sexual needs with your boyfriend.”

  Jared was irritated to note the heavy sarcasm in Dexter’s voice. “Shut up, Dex.”

  Dexter simply snorted in retaliation. Isaac looked more serious, though.

  “Is there something wrong between you and Steve? The two of you are best friends first and boyfriends second. Besides, you two have been sexually intimate with each other in the past.”

  “That’s the problem. Steve is no longer just my best friend. He’s my boyfriend now!”

  “That doesn’t make any sense to me.”

  “I don’t get it either,” Dexter interjected while scratching the back of his head. “Explain.”

  “When we were only best friends, I couldn’t care less if Steve didn’t feel like having sex with me. Things aren’t the same now.”

  “So, you’re afraid of being rejected by him?”

  Jared nodded at Isaac. “Yes! Besides, I could feel his excitement every time we were kissing hot and heavy. Why didn’t he make the first move?”

  “Why didn’t you?” Dexter shot back, and Jared couldn’t answer that.

  “Jared, maybe Steve is just as frightened as you are. He is kind of…well, a lot more sensitive than you and Dex. He’s probably waiting for you to give him some sort of signal.”

  “He could feel my erection when we kissed and rubbed against each other. What other hints does he need from me?”

  Isaac chuckled. “Try using your words maybe?”

  “Are you asking me?”

  Isaac rolled his eyes. “My sarcasm is lost on you. Never mind. Listen. Just talk to him. You and Steve seriously need to communicate with each other. Period. I think you’re both assuming a lot of things without ever hashing things out in the open. You’ve been best friends for decades, but a romantic relationship requires something different sometimes. After all, I don’t know many best friends who have sex with each other. You and Steve need to realize you have this whole other level of intimacy between you now. You’re no longer just best friends with each other. You’re each other’s romantic, lifelong partners, and that comes with its own set of complications that may or may not be present in your friendship.”

  “I agree with Isaac,” Dexter said. “When are you meeting him next?”

  “Tonight. He’s busy attending a shareholders’ meeting at the moment. He and his parents own so many stocks everywhere, I don’t know how they manage to keep up with everything and everybody.”

  Isaac nodded at Jared. “Get the conversation rolling. You can’t just wait for Steve to do that. Besides, you’re the more direct and straightforward one. If you leave it to Steve, the two of you will probably be seconds away from dying before you eventually discuss this issue, and it will be too late then.”

  Jared was horrified now. The thought of being sexless for the rest of his life was terrifying to him.

  “I’ll do that for sure.”

  Dexter snickered while glancing downward in the direction of Jared’s crotch and waggling his eyebrows. “Better do that quickly, man. I have a feeling your poor balls are mere minutes away from shriveling up and decomposing from the lack of sex.”

  Jared raised his middle fingers at Dexter. “Fuck you.”

  “No, thanks. I have more than enough sex from my lovely boyfriend here,” Dexter retorted with before kissing Isaac on the neck.

  Isaac chortled and slapped Dexter lightly on the chest at the same time. “Play nice, babe. Don’t be mean to your best friend.”

  “He started it.”

  Jared mock-gagged in Isaac and Dexter’s direction before turning his attention away from them. He couldn’t stand looking at them for another second. He was horny enough without any additional visual stimulation. Isaac and Dexter were right, though. Jared knew he and Stephen had to get past this hurdle in their relationship. Sex might not be everything, but it was a form of intimacy. Moreover, he liked sex. So did Stephen. Jared was certain of it. The two of them had to converse with each other about that topic as soon as possible. They couldn’t avoid it for the rest of their lives together. Jared hoped Stephen was on the same page as he was about sex, though. Otherwise, he wouldn’t dare to imagine what his and Stephen’s future together would be like.

  * * * *

  Stephen felt that dating Jared wasn’t that much of a shift from the two of them being best friends with each other, but there was a whole other layer between them now that put them in a different league of intimacy in comparison to the time when they were only best friends with benefits. The moment the two of them started dating each other, there were things they simply couldn’t share with Dexter. Stephen had no doubt there were things about Dexter and Isaac that he and Jared weren’t privy to. It didn’t mean he and Jared were no longer close to Dexter. The three of them would always be the best of friends. However, all types of relationships had to evolve sooner or later, and they had to adapt to the changes. Stephen’s conversation with Jared that evening during their dinner date at the new hot pot restaurant in Hell’s Kitchen was an excellent example of that.

  “Hey, Jared.” Stephen bumped his right shoulder against Jared’s left one before picking up a plate of thinly sliced raw beef. “Are you okay?”

  Jared seemed rather taken aback for a second or two. “Yeah, babe. What’s up?”

  Stephen could feel the blush forming on his cheeks as they grew slightly more heated than before. Or maybe it was the rising steam from the simmering pot of beef soup that was causing it. He had always known Jared would be a lot more direct and impulsive. He should have expected for Jared to give him a term of endearment first, but it was still surprising to him. He quickly averted his eyes from Jared and used his chopsticks to push the beef on the plate into the soup, swirling them around inside the soup and pretending to be fascinated by them as they began to cook inside the hot liquid. Then he adjusted the temperature of the portable electric stove underneath the pot because he didn’t want the soup to boil over. He was about to reach for the enormous plate of leafy green vegetables, various kinds of mushrooms, cubes of tofu, and many other items when Jared caught his wrist and gazed into his eyes. He gaped at Jared for a brief moment, feeling weirdly stunned by his boyfriend’s handsome face even though he should have been used to it by now.

  “N-nothing. Y-you’re just too q-quiet. Anything on your mind?”

  Jared didn’t respond immediately, but he relinquished his hold on Stephen’s wrist. Then he leaned his head down gently on Stephen’s shoulder. Stephen stiffened before relaxing in the next instant.

  “The usual shit, and some…other stuff,” Jared responded with eventually.

  “Okay.”

  Jared didn’t have to clarify himself. Stephen knew what Jared was referring to. Being the youngest child in the family, Jared was very much loved and pampered by his parents and older brothers. They coddled and protected him as if he
was the most precious angel from heaven. Jared could get away with murder because his parents and brothers would cover up for him. Stephen knew Jared had already informed his parents and brothers that the two of them were now dating each other exclusively. He wasn’t astonished to know Jared’s family accepted their relationship. With so much love and adoration, Jared should have grown up perfectly fine. However, that wasn’t the case. He was overly sheltered, and he felt suffocated nearly all of the time. That would explain his mischievousness and rash behaviors. Stephen waited for Jared’s ranting to begin, and it came a mere twelve seconds later.

  “I hate my family sometimes. ‘Oh, poor baby Jared. He sneezes. He has a cold. Quick! Someone call the doctor now. Or maybe we should take him the emergency ward.’ ‘Jared, you shouldn’t work so hard. Your mom and I can handle everything at work just fine. Besides, Jeremy and James can take care of the rest.’ I’m not a fucking invalid. Fuck! If I breathe a bit harder than I usually do during our weekly family dinner, they will send the family doctor to make sure I’m not having an asthma attack, or worse, a heart attack. Damn it! I don’t need them scrutinizing my every move. I’m fucking thirty-two years old. I can look after myself just fine. The worst argument I had with them was when I insisted on getting my own house and living on my own. My parents didn’t protest at all when Jeremy and James did that, but when it was my turn, you would think I’d just announced that I was going to purchase a nuclear bomb and kill every living thing on this planet. They only relented when I promised I would come home and have dinner with them once a week.”

  “They all love you.”

  “I know.”

  “I’ve always envied you. Your parents actually care for you, and your older brothers are your most loyal protectors. Your older brothers may be married now, and they already have kids of their own, but they still keep track of you.”

  “All of the fucking time,” Jared said while scowling at the steaming soup.

  “Better than my parents.”

  Stephen didn’t mean to sound bitter. He knew his parents probably cared for him in their own fucked-up, detached manner, but he couldn’t help it. When he’d still lived at home, he would be lucky if he got to see his parents’ faces in real life at least once a month. It was so much worse now that he was living on his own. There were times when he wouldn’t hear from them for six, seven months in a row. In all honesty, he couldn’t be certain at any given time if his parents were still breathing and alive. In fact, he would probably find out about their deaths someday through the lawyer or someone else. He squashed the strange, unexpected anger deep inside his gut when Jared slipped one arm over his shoulders and stroked his head tenderly.

  “I’m sorry. I was so focused on my own shit, I forgot that your parents—”

  “It’s fine. Let’s just eat.”

  Stephen knew he was being brusque and snappish, but his hypersensitivity became so much worse whenever the subject of his parents was brought up in his presence. Or when he was reminded of them. He simply hated remembering the reality that he had grown up without his parents around for most of his life. It had been a lonely existence. The only happy childhood and adolescent memories he had were the times he had spent with Dexter and Jared. He was thankful when Jared nodded at him instead of prodding him to open up and communicate. This was the great thing about dating his best friend. They knew a lot about each other. Words were unnecessary sometimes.

  “This smells really delicious,” Jared spoke up a few minutes later when all of the vegetables, beef slices, and some other items had been mixed inside the boiling soup.

  Stephen was grateful for the change in topic. “I agree. Do you still want the rice? I can ask the server for it.”

  Jared studied the pot, which was almost overflowing now, and shook his head. “Nah. I think I’m good. We may have ordered way too much beef, and look at those vegetables and mushrooms. Don’t forget the tofu, as well. Even without the rice, we will be really stuffed by the time we finish this meal.”

  Stephen couldn’t argue with that. For the next several minutes, he and Jared ate slowly while they chatted about their day. Not that he had much to share. After all, he didn’t really do anything during the day unless he counted those boring hours of going through all of his investments to make sure they were doing all right. Jared’s day was definitely a lot more exciting. He got to meet with the restaurant managers and some of the other employees, hearing them talk about the progress at the restaurants and what improvements could be made on the menus from the various restaurants that fell under Masters Group, Incorporated. By the time dinner was over, Stephen felt a little bloated from the amount of food that was inside his stomach. He knew Jared would drive him back home now, but he wasn’t ready for the evening to be over.

  “Do you want to watch a movie with me?” Stephen blurted out halfway through the conversation he and Jared were having while they were on their way back to his house.

  Jared seemed rather taken aback by the offer. “Yeah. Sure. Like old times. Right?”

  Stephen’s head was immediately filled with sexy images of Jared and him, being naked together and having sex together, either just the two of them or with other people. His heart pounded really hard now, but he pretended to be unaffected.

  “Absolutely.”

  “Cool.”

  “Awesome.”

  “Perfect.”

  Stephen didn’t bother to respond any further. He had a strong feeling he and Jared were on the same page about the thing that was going to happen later. They might pay attention to the first two, three minutes of the movie. After that, they would most likely end up having sex with each other, and Stephen was more than ready for it. He craved it even. It had been too long since the last time he got laid. The evening was turning out to be even better than he hoped it would be.

  Chapter 10

  Jared couldn’t be certain how he ended up naked in Stephen’s living room. His hazy memory provided him with blurry images of Stephen and him watching something on the television for like a minute or two. After that, he couldn’t remember much. All he recalled was that they had suddenly pounced on each other. Their shirts had quickly been torn to shreds, and the buttons had flown everywhere. Then Stephen had manhandled Jared and pushed him to lie flat on the large couch before removing his pants and trunks. Seconds later, Jared had groaned loudly and blissfully as Stephen began to suck on his dick, licking everywhere and deepthroating it as if it was the last available meal on earth.

  “Fuck, baby,” Jared mumbled almost incoherently while gripping tightly onto Stephen’s hair and bucking his hips upward.

  Stephen choked a little in surprise, but he continued to slobber all over Jared’s cock like a wanton, desperate slut in heat. That only turned Jared on even more. He had always known Stephen had almost no gag reflex, so he pumped his cock in and out of his boyfriend’s mouth and throat rather forcefully. He gasped and moaned much louder than before when he felt the wet warmth of Stephen’s mouth and throat all around the entire length of his cock. He also enjoyed the sight of Stephen sucking on his cock. There was something filthy and obscene about fucking another man’s mouth. It felt as if he had beaten another man into submission. His pleasure intensified because the man who was sucking his cock was Stephen, his lovely, gorgeous boyfriend. That only served to heighten his lust and love for Stephen. He whined in surprise when Stephen abruptly released his cock.

  “Fuck my mouth harder. Don’t take it easy on me. I want it rougher than that. I need to be reminded that I’m getting throat-fucked by a real man, not a fucking wimp.”

  Jared knew Stephen was goading him. He was fully aware of it. However, Stephen’s challenging tone angered him, and he grew really pissed off at his boyfriend. If Stephen wanted to play it that way, Jared would be more than willing to give his boyfriend exactly what the man was asking for. He grabbed onto Stephen’s hair, dragged his boyfriend’s head hard against his crotch, and rubbed the man’s face all over it. After
that, he shoved his cock brutally back into the tight, wet warmth of Stephen’s mouth and throat in one smooth stroke. His cock wasn’t the longest in the world. It barely reached eight inches in length, but it more than made up for it in terms of girth. Jared sneered at Stephen when he noticed his boyfriend’s eyes tearing up.

  “Is that what you want, bitch? You must be really hungry for my cock. Come on, pussy boy. Suck it good. Show me how much you really love my cock,” Jared said while hammering his cock mercilessly in and out from Stephen’s mouth and all the way deep down inside his boyfriend’s constricting throat. “Do you like the taste of my fucking cock? What does it smell like? Good? Yeah. That’s it. Suck it harder, bitch.”

  Jared thrust into Stephen’s mouth over and over again. He was in control. Or so he thought. Hence, he was taken aback when he felt one of Stephen’s finger being pushed into his dry ass. His eyes widened further when he felt Stephen’s finger jabbing against that magical spot inside his ass. He huffed and puffed as he attempted to get away from Stephen, but he couldn’t. Stephen clamped down harder on his cock, refusing to let it go. The suctioning around his cock was too much and too incredible, and there was the additional, amazing feeling from inside his ass. He grunted and thrashed helplessly. He was going to come whether he wanted to or not. He was far too close now. He tried to scream, but the sound died in his throat. He was now mere seconds away from being pushed over the edge. He had forgotten how skillful Stephen was sexually. He promised he would never underestimate Stephen ever again. Then he was surprised when Stephen abruptly released his cock. However, Stephen’s finger remained inside his ass. Stephen was fucking him with that one finger, rubbing against that pleasurable spot repeatedly.

  “Who’s the fucking pussy boy now?” Stephen taunted.

  Jared glared in Stephen’s direction, but the fierce look on his face wasn’t as effective as it usually was. He was gaping and gasping at Stephen, and seconds later, he felt something bursting deep inside him, and he watched in amazement as his cum spewed out from the slit of his dick. It was like a fountain of cum. There was too much of it, and it sprayed everywhere onto him and Stephen’s face, chest, shoulders, and arms. Some of his cum even landed on the couch.