by JC Holly
Micky woke to the throb of a headache three sizes too big for his head. Normally hangovers were only things that happened to other people, thanks to his ritual of drinking his bodyweight in water before bed, but last night had been a late one, and he’d simply collapsed onto his bed as soon as he’d walked through the door.
The sound of the television and a clanking bowl and spoon reminded him that Laura had crashed at his place last night, and he shouted an incoherent stream of obscenities that should have been, “Would you please keep it down?” In reply he heard a chuckle and then the increasingly loud thump of footsteps.
“You look like shit.”
Micky opened one blurry eye and regarded the woman leaning against the wall of his bedroom. Laura was one of his oldest friends. They had gone to high school together, and she had been the first person he’d come out to. The grown woman in his room now had the same upbeat and sarcastic attitude she’d had the day he’d met her. Same enviably curly brown hair, too.
“Time is it?” he managed to mutter, as he sat up in bed.
“Little after nine.”
“Nine?” He rubbed at his eyes. “What the hell are you doing up at nine the day after a night out?”
“Well I was watching the news and eating cereal.” Laura smirked and sat on the edge of the bed. “And either put that thing to use or put it away.”
Micky frowned and then followed her gaze down to his crotch. His uncovered crotch. He cursed and whipped the blanket over himself.
“I swear,” she said as she stood again. “It’s such a shame you aren’t straight.”
He rolled his eyes. “And it’s such a shame you have tits and no cock. Now go and make me toast, woman.”
She laughed and sauntered out of the room, leaving him to piece together the previous night in privacy. The words, “I owe Rhys $50” written on the back of his hand in black Sharpie helped jog his memory somewhat.
“Fucking Rhys,” he muttered as he climbed out of bed and headed to the bathroom. “Like I’m going to pay him.”
The water from the shower hit him like a bag of ice cubes. The damn thing took forever to warm up, but he gritted his jaw and waited it out, rather than jumping out of the stream. It would wake him up quicker this way.
His head still throbbed, but as the water warmed, the pain dulled, and after a few minutes he felt a lot better. As he scrubbed at his hair, he thought back to his exchange with handsome Hudson. Looking back, it had been a pretty embarrassing display. Micky usually handled such things with more aplomb, but booze had shifted him from quietly confident to brash.
Not that it mattered. It wasn’t like the guy was going to call.
Laura was sat on the sofa in the front room and turned as Micky walked into the lounge, still rubbing his hair dry with a towel.
“You jack off in there?” she asked. “Only I need a shower and don’t want to come out pregnant.”
Micky snorted and tossed his towel at her. She deftly dodged it and flipped him the bird. He laughed and shook his head and then dropped onto the seat next to her and grabbed her half-finished coffee, downing it in one.
“Hey!” She batted at his arm. “I wasn’t done with that.”
“Consider it rent. You’re here more than you’re at your own place.”
“I come in the hopes you’ll bring home some hot guy that I can accidentally walk in on while he’s getting changed.”
“Chance would be a fine thing,” Micky said, as he shook the coffee mug. “Get me a fresh one? Any more movement this morning and I may die.”
“Drama queen,” she said, though she snatched the mug and headed to the kitchen. “You have a missed call, by the way. While you were in the shower.”
“Why didn’t you answer it?”
“Couldn’t find your damn phone,” she called from the kitchen. “Just heard it ringing.”
Micky bit back a headache-induced retort. It was his house, his phone, and his fault for not being remotely tidy after all. With a sigh, he slowly stood and then started to flip cushions and look under chairs. No luck.
“Can you call it from yours?” he called.
“Hang on.”
After a few moments the ringing began, but it wasn’t immediately helpful. It was certainly coming from the lounge, and from nearby, but he couldn’t figure out precisely where. He closed his eyes and listened, turning his head to better locate the sound. It helped and directed him to the back of the room and finally to a large plant pot containing a leafy green thing he’d forgotten the name of. The phone was sat behind it.
“Okay, found it.”
The ringing stopped and he bent to grab the phone. As he did, Laura slipped up behind and goosed him. He straightened fast with a yell, then spun to curse her out. She grinned and held out his coffee, and he grabbed it instead, downing too much of it at once, given its current temperature.
“So, who was it?” Laura asked as she took up her seat on the sofa once more.
Micky flipped through the call history. “Some number I don’t know.”
“Ooh, maybe it’s Depp. He heard you were single and wants to plow you.”
He snorted. “Not in this lifetime. No, it’s probably just someone who found my card and wants some work done.” As he said it, he remembered that he’d given his card to a certain bartender last night. “I’ll, uh, I’ll call it later.”
The chances of it being Hudson were slim, but he didn’t want to have that conversation in front of Laura. He’d never hear the end of it.
It appeared that it wasn’t his lucky day, however, as just as he put the phone in his back pocket, it began to ring again. After glancing to make sure it wasn’t Laura pranking him, he pulled the phone out once more and answered it.
“Hello?”
“Micky Silvers?”
There was no mistaking the voice on the other end of the call. Hudson. Micky’s mouth went dry, and he licked his lips.
“Hello? Micky?”
“I’m here,” he managed to croak out. “Sorry. Heavy night. How are you, Hudson?”
Laura’s reaction was straight from a cartoon. Her eyes widened to a ludicrous degree, and her jaw dropped. She mouthed, “The bartender?” and Micky just grinned in response.
“How did you know it was me?” Hudson asked.
“You have quite the memorable voice,” Micky replied, his confidence ebbing back after the surprise.
Hudson chuckled. “I guess I do. Anyway, I was wondering if you’re busy today?”
Holy crap! “Sure. What did you have in mind?”
“Well, it appears I’ve killed my laptop somehow, and since you gave me your card last night, I figured you were the guy to go to.”
Disappointment started to chip away at Micky’s grin, but he fought to keep it from his face. Laura didn’t need to know, after all.
“Oh, sure. I’m free for the morning and most of the afternoon, if that’s good for you?”
“Perfect. Can you come over at around eleven?”
“No problem.” He grabbed a pad and pen and jotted down the address Hudson gave him. “See you then.”
The moment he hung up, Laura squealed loud enough to remind Micky he was still hungover. She jumped to her feet and started dancing around the sofa.
“You got a date with Hudson!” She clapped her hands. “Oh, I have to call everyone!”
“Don’t you dare,” Micky said, glaring. “I don’t want to jinx it.”
In actual fact he didn’t want the news spreading if it turned out to be nothing more than business, and that’s what it sounded like to Micky. Sure, there was a chance it could turn into something else, but that chance was damn slim. Much like the chance of him calling in the first place? He smirked at the thought but pushed it from his mind. If he went into this expecting anything other than a wonky laptop, he’d be setting himself up for disappointment.
Laura still wanted to call people, telling Micky to not be so wary, but after a few minutes, he managed to talk her out of it. She sat ba
ck down again with a thump and feigned a pout that lasted for a whole three seconds before turning back to a grin.
“On the bright side,” she said. “This means I know something nobody else knows. That’s almost as fun as gossip.”
Micky half-smiled, then jumped to his feet. “Crap.”
“What?”
“I’m meeting him at his place at eleven, and it’s already ten. I need to get changed, fast.”
Laura shrugged and lay back on the sofa. “What’s the big deal? Just turn up in a pair of speedos and a smile. It’s what I’d do.”
Micky ignored her and flew up the stairs to throw on something less slouchy. On the bright side, his computer repair stuff was in the trunk of his car, so at least Laura would be none the wiser. As he tossed his clothes onto the bed and rifled through his drawers, he considered the possibility that the meeting would involve more than a tune-up. His gaze flitted to the dresser beside his bed where he kept his condoms and lube.
“Wouldn’t hurt to go prepared,” he muttered.
* * * *
As soon as Micky had ended the call, Hudson headed to the bathroom to check his hair. He stopped halfway up the stairs. What was he doing? This was a repair job, not a date. Wasn’t it? He stayed on the stairs tapping his fingers on the wood of the rail as he tried to sort out his thinking.
On one hand, his laptop was broken, and he needed someone to repair it. On the other hand, that someone just happened to be a cute guy that was interested in him. Maybe it would lead somewhere other than the table where his computer currently sat. Maybe I’ll pay him with something other than cash. He smirked and shook his head, then turned and walked back down the stairs. This was all business, he told himself.
“Which is why I’m in my best jeans and lucky boxers,” he muttered as he realized. “Damn it.”
Life was a lot more complicated than it used to be. He could see why many older shifters retreated from civilization entirely. That wouldn’t be him of course. He liked people too much. But sometimes the “rules” were more of an irritation than anything else.
He remembered a time when a “line” was nothing more complex than, “My name is Hudson.” Half the guys in the bar these days came up to him with such absurd opening gambits that any possibility of him heading home with them was gone in the space of the first sentence. He’d actually had someone ask him if it hurt when he “fell from heaven.”
Micky had been a breath of fresh air. He’d directly asked for Hudson’s number, then when that had failed, given him his own. No dumb comments, just honesty and a smile.
If the guy was interested in something, perhaps Hudson would consider it. It had been a long time since his last relationship, but he’d had a lot of practice in the past. He’d pick it up again soon enough.
As the hands of the antique clock on his mantel inched closer to eleven, he found himself becoming more and more nervous. He should have picked a later time, he decided. If he’d asked Micky to come in the afternoon instead, he’d have time to head into the woods behind the house and spend an hour shifted. Nothing calmed him easier than that. Not even sex, though it came a close second.
A few minutes later, something made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, and he turned to his senses to find out what. A car had just pulled onto his driveway, and a man was walking up to the door. He recognized the scent from last night and stood, rubbing his suddenly sweaty palms on the back of his jeans.
The doorbell rang and Hudson fixed his smile, then opened the door. “Hey. You’re early.”
“Yeah, sorry about that. Misjudged the distance.”
“No problem. I wasn’t doing anything anyway. Come on in.”
He stood aside to let Micky in and couldn’t help but check out the man’s ass as he walked past. He wasn’t kidding when he said he could bounce pennies off it. The urge to grab the man’s cheeks was great, but Hudson held back and turned to close the door.
For a technician, he certainly hadn’t dressed the part. Instead of the cargo pants and work shirt Hudson had expected, Micky was dressed in a pair of tight jeans and a T-shirt. Granted, repairing a computer wasn’t exactly messy work, but the attire still didn’t seem practical.
Perhaps it’s for me. Given his own choice of clothing, Hudson could hardly judge.
“Nice place,” Micky said, admiring the hallway. “Lived here long?”
Longer than you’ve been alive. “It’s been in the family for a long time. I doubt I’d be able to afford it, otherwise.”
Micky held a small plastic toolbox in one hand, which he tapped with his other. “Where’s the laptop?”
“It’s through here.”
Hudson led the man into the kitchen and pointed to the offending device, which sat on the table, amid a sea of cables and disks that had originally come with it.
“I wasn’t sure what you’d need,” he said. “So I grabbed everything.”
Micky smiled and took a seat beside the computer, then slid it toward him. “Probably just the laptop itself, but we’ll see.”
Hudson nodded, then gestured to the coffee pot. “Coffee?”
“No, thanks. I’ve already drank too much of the stuff today.”
“Hangover?”
Micky nodded and rolled his eyes. “I really need to stop going out with so many friends. If I’m by myself, or on a date or something, I barely drink at all.”
“I have just the thing.” Hudson opened his fridge and pulled out a carton of orange juice. “I don’t drink much, but when I do I swear by a glass of OJ.”
He poured two glasses and handed one to Micky, who thanked him.
“Aren’t you tired?” Micky asked. “I mean, you called me at nine or so, and you got off work early that morning, right?”
“I’m fine. I don’t need a lot of sleep.”
The idea that people needed less sleep as they aged certainly applied to him, and thanks to his current age, he could go a very long time without any sleep whatsoever. That said, he generally got a few hours in each night, just to relieve boredom.
“So, what happened with it?”
Hudson shrugged. “I left it on and charging when I went to work, and when I came back, it was just blinking at me and wouldn’t work. That’s all I know.”
Micky nodded and turned his attention to the laptop. After some fiddling with the underside, he pulled out the battery and then removed a gadget from his toolbox. He frowned at the readout on the device, then turned his attention to the charging cable.
“Is it bad?” Hudson asked, unsure of what else he could say.
Micky fiddled with the cable for a moment, testing that, too, then grinned. “Your charger is dead. It’s no longer charging your laptop, so the only problem is that your battery is flat.”
“Really?” Hudson laughed. “Thank god for that. I didn’t want to have to shell out on another computer.”
“I’ve probably got a compatible charger in the car. Let me check.”
Hudson watched the man leave through the front door. The news that he didn’t have to spend five hundred dollars was great, but if he was honest he’d hoped that the repair would be a little more time-consuming. Now that Micky was in the house he wanted to get to know him a little.
You could always come out and say that. He dismissed the thought. He didn’t want to seem like he was coming on too strong. With a sigh he drummed his fingers on the counter. This was dumb. It wasn’t that long ago that he was telling himself he wasn’t interested in a relationship with anyone, and within five minutes of interaction with Micky, he had completely flipped.
Micky came back inside and closed the door softly behind him. As he caught Hudson’s eye he held up a packaged cable.
“You’re in luck that you’ve got a popular model.”
“Great.” Hudson smiled. “Though I feel like I’ve wasted your time.”
Micky shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. You’d be surprised how many call outs end up being something simple.”
The man sat again as he unwrapped the cable, then bent to one side to plug it into a wall socket. As he straightened, he plugged the other end into the laptop, waited a moment, then switched it on.
“See?”
Hudson walked over and stood by the man to see his computer spring to life. “Wonderful.”
There was a moment of silence between them, and Micky seemed to be as uncertain as Hudson. One of them had to say something, though. Hudson took in a breath and was about to make up an issue with the laptop when Micky spoke.
“You know what, screw it.” He took a breath. “I know you turned me down once, but I’m a glutton for punishment. Do you want to maybe go out sometime?”
Hudson fought to hide his involuntary smile. “Sure. Though I have to warn you, it’s been a while.”
“That’s great. Uh, the first part. Not that I have an issue with the second part, either.” Micky blew out a breath. “Okay, now I’m babbling. When are you free?”
“I’m busy tonight, but I’ll be free tomorrow night, if that’s good for you? We could see a movie or something.”
He smiled. “I’d like that. Since I’m already here, I can give you a tune up if you like?”
Hudson frowned. Tune up? Was that some slang he didn’t know?
“The laptop,” Micky said, pointing. “I noticed it’s slow to boot.”
“Oh! Sure.” It didn’t escape Hudson’s notice that the man’s cheeks had reddened slightly. “It’s probably all the porn I download.”
He’d meant it as an offhand joke, but as soon as the comment left his mouth, he cringed. Here they were, setting up their first date, and he brought up sex. Just shoot me like the old dog I am.
Instead of embarrassment, however, Micky laughed aloud and then grinned at Hudson. “That’s what the internet is for, isn’t it? That, and Facebook.”
Hudson grinned back. “So, uh, you think you can speed me up?”
His attempt to wrench the conversation back to the topic at hand worked, and Micky nodded, though his smile remained.
“Usually I can make a difference, sure. It can take a while, though.”
Hudson hid his smile. “No problem.”