Chalk Butterfly: Part One (First Time Erotic Romance)

by Audra Red

  Alexander let out a tense breath and nodded tersely.

  “Here he is, then,” she said, handing Alexander the phone and giving him a curious look.

  Alexander took it quickly and pressed the receiver to his ear. “Hello?”

  “Well, that was interesting,” came Daniel’s warm, low voice. "I'm Elijah's love interest?"

  “Just a moment,” Alexander said. He pressed a careful hand over the mouthpiece. “I’ll be in my room, Mum.”

  Natalie looked up from where she was digging through the refrigerator and nodded, a jar of old jam in her hand. "He said he doesn’t fancy Elijah,” she mentioned, just as Alexander was about to leave the kitchen.

  “Different Daniel,” Alexander said, and she made a silent “oh,” and went back to foraging through the refrigerator. Alexander slipped through the living room and then into his bedroom. Once he was settled in, he pressed the phone back to his ear.

  “Daniel?”

  “Alexander.”

  “Sorry about my mum,” Alexander said, flushed from the embarrassment.

  “She seems like quite a handful, but I didn’t call to talk to your mother.”

  Alexander smiled at the low undertones in Daniel’s voice. No matter what he told himself, he liked this man.

  “Why did you call then?”

  “I wanted to make sure you were all right,” Daniel said.

  “If there’s one thing that I don’t need today, it’s another person concerned for my well being,” Alexander said, a touch of humor in his voice.

  A moment of silence passed, and Alexander was about to apologize for his remark, when Daniel spoke. “I hope you don’t regret opening up to me last night.”

  Alexander bit at his lip and looked down at his wrapped hand. No, he wouldn’t think about that now. “I don’t,” he said softly. “I’m glad I told you. I want us to be friends.”

  “What about--”

  “Friends,” Alexander repeated. “I don’t think I have more than that to offer you.” He could hardly believe that he actually had the strength to utter those words.

  “Is it something I did or...?”

  Alexander could hear him shifting around, perhaps stepping out onto his balcony. “No,” he said honestly. “Things are busy now, and I’m… unsure of things.”

  “Alexander, I really like you,” Daniel said.

  The tone of his voice sent shivers down Alexander’s back, but he couldn’t give in, not when he had made it this far.

  “I like you too, Daniel. We can still do things together, but I’m not really in the right place for anything...” He trailed off, feeling something hot spike in his belly. “Intimate.”

  “All right,” Daniel said. “Then have lunch with me on Monday, as friends.”

  Alexander frowned, pressing the phone to his ear. He’d thought Daniel wouldn’t want to talk with him again, especially after the way Alexander had reacted the night before. He'd thought Daniel would jump at his rejection, that he would quickly pull himself out of Alexander’s life.

  ‘Not that I’ve allowed him in very far,’ Alexander thought. ‘But a lot deeper than others.’

  Somehow, out of all of the people in New York city, Daniel affected Alexander. It seemed that Daniel would fight Alexander. He would hold onto the smallest offer of friendship, and Alexander would be hopelessly lost.

  “On Monday?”

  “Yeah, and I’ll bring the pen.”

  Alexander’s frown curled up into a smile. This man would be nearly impossible to shake off, especially since Alexander began to grow attached. All of these new feelings frightened him, but they weren’t bad, not necessarily.

  He took a deep breath, things were about to change.

  “My lunch break is at twelve.”

  ***

  Natalie held Alexander’s wrist firmly in her hand, rubbing the corded tendons with her thumb as she pulled off the last strip of gauze.

  “There you are,” she said softly, tossing the gauze into the trash. Alexander sat on the side of the tub, his head resting on his mother’s shoulder. The blisters were especially tender that night, and he could hardly turn down the offer of help with removing them.

  His mother was extremely gentle at removing the bandages, a skill gained after years and years of practice looking after Alexander. Any other time he would have been on the defensive, pushing his mother away so he could prove to her that he was strong, that he could take care of himself.

  But he was tired, and his hands were exceptionally sore.

  “Sweetie,” Natalie whispered, looking down at the abused skin. “Your hands. What happened?”

  “I slipped a few days ago, grabbed hold of the counter,” Alexander said into his mother’s shoulder, color brightening his face as he admitted to his accident. He always felt silly owning up to his mistakes. “They haven’t quite healed yet, and they’re still worse than usual.”

  “You seem stressed,” Natalie said, lifting Alexander’s chin in her hand. Alexander lowered his eyes. “Who was that Daniel?”

  “Just a friend,” Alexander said, pulling his hands close to his stomach.

  “Don’t hurt yourself, Alex,” his mother chided, bringing his hands back out. She looked at him seriously. “He sounded older.”

  “Older than what?” Alexander asked, wincing as some stinging ointment was massaged gently into his skin.

  Natalie carefully eased a sterile needle into one of the blisters, quickly covering it in the salve.

  “Older than you,” she replied. “My age, maybe. How did you meet him?”

  “Why does it matter?” Another blistered was popped, and a fat tear rolled down Alexander’s cheek.

  “Only a few more,” Natalie said quietly. She finished his hands in silence, and it was times like these when Alexander really appreciated his mother. She could be overbearing, but she helped him without comment and was always there when he needed her.

  And she’d dropped the subject of Daniel.

  “I’m worried about these blisters,” she finally said, reaching over and turning the faucet of the tub on. “Soak in here for a bit and reapply the salve when you get out. Wrap your hands before you go to bed. And don’t try to skip it. These sores could get infected if you leave the bandages off during the night, especially these ones. You’ve been doing so well on your own up until recently.”

  Alexander nodded. He knew it would help to reapply the bandages every evening and wear them when he slept, but it was just one more pain he didn’t have time for in the morning. He tried to minimize his pain throughout the day, and grow accustomed to the pain that couldn’t be helped.

  “Maybe you should see Dr. Holmes about these, I’m worried,” she said.

  “Mum, I’m fine, really. I’ll just be more careful. They’ve been far worse.”

  “A few less days at work might clear up some of the stress for you,” she added. “I don’t know if the situation with you and Elijah is the best.”

  “Mum, I don’t have a thing for Eli,” Alexander whined, scrunching his nose up.

  “Oh, there’s my little Alex,” Natalie said with a smile. “All right, you tell me whatever you want, but a mother knows.”

  Alexander sighed.

  “I’m not talking about Elijah. Don’t look so shocked, we mothers have women’s intuition.”

  Alexander smiled then, blushing. “I don’t--”

  “Want to talk about it. I know sweetheart. Give us a kiss.” Alexander kissed his mother sweetly on the cheek and leaned back into her shoulder. She was the one person he felt comfortable embracing. “Goodnight, darling.”

  “’Night, mum. I love you,” Alexander whispered.

  “Love you too, Alex.”

  Natalie padded quietly out of the room and Alexander carefully turned the faucet off. He was facing the bath again.

  Very slowly he slipped out of his clothes, feeling lazy with his motions. It had been an absurdly long day, and he was ready to just dissolve into the water.<
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  He flicked the overhead lights off, leaving the room dark and hot with the steam rising off the tub.

  Settling into the water, he sighed. His mother had the water set to the perfect temperature.

  But his mother wasn’t on his mind.

  It seemed thoughts of Daniel were to monopolize Alexander’s bathing time. It was somewhat obscene, Alexander’s skin wet and bare. It took little time for Alexander to feel that familiar ache in his belly, coursing through his thighs and groin.

  He had to but think of Daniel’s voice and he was lost.

  Daniel liked him. He hadn’t been upset with Alexander’s outbursts, or his near breakdown.

  And he hadn’t pushed him.

  Alexander let his hands soak as his eyes adjusted to the darkness. He could see down his body, watch the way the water played off his skin.

  What would Daniel say if he saw Alexander this way? What would he do?

  Alexander wanted to know, in some deep dangerous part of his mind he wanted it. But he would never tell Daniel or act on his feelings.

  Daniel was kind to him, but he didn’t know even half of what Alexander went through on a daily basis. He wouldn’t want what Alexander had to offer, because it was all grief.

  Alexander let out a long breath and settled in deeper, the water touching his chin. The water embraced him intimately like no other, kept him warm and safe.

  He wondered if Daniel would feel liquid too.

  ***

  Daniel crossed out an entire section of the notes and scowled.

  “Owen, dancing girls are out of the question,” Daniel said, giving his friend a wary look.

  “Hey!” Owen said in defense, putting his hands up. “Madeline wrote that in.”

  Madeline leaned in between the two men, her elbows on the bar. “It’d bring in new clientele,” she said, pouring Owen a shot.

  “Don’t be getting him plastered just yet,” Daniel said, pushing the shot down the bar. “I need another few hours out of him.”

  “Fuck all, Daniel, it’s ten o’clock,” Owen said, rubbing at his eyes. “The restaurant closes in two and we’ve been at this since nine this morning.”

  “We’ve only got a few months before the list goes out, Owen,” Daniel said seriously. “And we haven’t got one decent idea here to up City Lights Over Park Place on that list.”

  “That bleedin’ list,” Owen said gruffly. “Seems like a waste of time.”

  “It’s something to aspire to,” Daniel said resolutely. “We could use a few more folks in here, too. Especially on those slow Sunday nights.”

  “The first logical step,” Owen said, popping a pretzel in his mouth, “is to stop filling up other restaurants.”

  Daniel raised an eyebrow and Owen chuckled.

  “You brought some sweetheart to Roberto’s last night,” Owen said, smirking. “Checking out the competition, or checking something else out?”

  Daniel rolled his eyes. “It’s not like that, and what, are you… following me around?”

  “Again?” Madeline added, sauntering back up to the bar.

  “My cousin’s dating the Hostess,” Owen said. “So, who’s the lucky boy?”

  “Boy?” Madeline asked, shooting Daniel a shocked look. “How old is this one?”

  “Excuse me,” Daniel interjected. “We’re not even dating.”

  “But you took him out,” Owen said. “That’s not your style.”

  “He’s got you there. When’s the last time you went on a casual date?” Madeline asked.

  “When’s the last time you minded your own business?” Daniel shot back, not unkindly. Madeline gasped, and swatted Daniel upside the head.

  “He’s got you there,” Owen said, giving her a leering wink.

  “So, Daniel’s fallen for some kid, then?”

  “Looks like it, Madeline,” Owen agreed. “What do you have to say for yourself?”

  Daniel cocked his head to one side and sighed dramatically.

  “I’ll have a scotch.”

  ***

  Alexander stepped out of the tub carefully. He pulled the drain plug and almost enjoyed the numbing sting that followed all up his fingers

  Anything to distract from the coiling madness in his belly.

  Alexander had the knack for working himself up to a near frenzy of arousal, just by the simple task of thought. No touch had excited him to the state he was presently in; hard and trembling.

  He had trouble releasing the ache, his hands were useless and other methods were more frustrating than relieving. So why did he do this to himself?

  When he’d wake up in the morning, that kind of arousal was unintentional…

  He wrapped his hands, naked and hot.

  Soft whimpers filled the bathroom as he eased the last piece of gauze in place. The pain helped, helped to calm his body.

  Slipping his pajama pants on, he let the soft material drag across his cock and nearly groaned aloud at the friction. It was the type of sensation that almost burned in its raw pleasure. He leaned into the sink and panted against the mirror, watching the condensation trickle down.

  He had to stop this.

  Alexander pulled his shirt on and exited the bathroom, blushing when he caught sight of his mother asleep on the pull out couch. He carefully crept to his door, turning back to see Cat curled up cozily with his mother.

  “Traitor,” he whispered, and slipped into his room.

  The room was cool, and he pulled the blankets down and crawled into bed.

  His eyes would not remain shut and he stared blindly up at the ceiling. His hips pressed up once into the heavy blankets, a low groan escaping his throat.

  This wouldn’t be enough, not by far.

  “Daniel,” he thought, and his eyes flickered shut.

  Chapter Ten

  back to top

  Daniel woke with a start, jumping from dreams to consciousness abruptly.

  Startled but moreover drowsy, he stumbled from bed and leaned heavily against the large windows in his room. The blinds kept the light out, and the slats pressed into his palm.

  Something felt subtly different that morning.

  Smiling at the new feeling, he made his way into the kitchen, which was open completely to the living room. His apartment was filled with choked light.

  He padded into the living room, feet bare on the cold hardwood.

  Daniel drew open the long closed curtains and invited the light in. The apartment, bone white and sterile, glowed warm yellow in the morning.

  The change set an instant spark in Daniel, starting at his fingertips and working all across his skin to the deep insides of his body.