“If you’re not lonely, perhaps you’re in need of some cabbage?”
Nick froze.
No. Just walk away. This ain’t the way to do it.
“That sound more enticing? I’ll tell you what—that worthless hussy cost me five bucks tonight, and she probably wouldn’t even know what to do with a cock anyway even if it walked up and slapped her across the face. So how about I give you five bucks to do the job better than she would’ve anyway?”
It seemed to Nick as if his feet were stuck to the sidewalk. He needed to just get away from this guy.
Five dollars could buy us a little more time if things didn’t work out at the studio in a couple of days.
“I gotta guy already. It ain’t right.”
“I’m sure you do—nice-looking man such as yourself. But this isn’t about that. This is a business deal, nothing else. You can buy your fella something nice with the money.”
Like food.
Taking a deep breath, he turned around to face Ricky.
“We can’t just do it out here on the street, and I ain’t goin’ nowhere with you.”
Ricky smiled, looking completely satisfied with himself.
“Of course not. Let’s just duck behind here in the alley. No one will see us there.”
Nick shook all over. A little over a week ago he’d never put his lips on a man’s parts before and now he was doing it all the time—except this was with a stranger for money. He needed to stop thinking about it and just get it over with. It was only a business deal like the man said. It was a way to make some quick cash so that he could take care of Jack.
Jack.
He couldn’t think of his sweet, innocent Jack. He could never find out about this.
“Come on, Nick, behind these garbage pails.”
They went to the darkest part of the alley, and Nick had a flash that Ricky was luring him in there just to rob him. But he began to unbutton his pants, and Nick realised he was going to have to go through with it.
“I want the money first.”
Ricky nodded, and seemed to have a sly look on his face from what Nick could tell in the almost non-existent light.
“See, Nick, I’m making you smarter all the time. You’ll thank me later. Get on your knees first. I don’t want you running off with my cash the way I got left earlier.”
Nick lowered to his knees, his mouth just a few inches away from Ricky’s crotch. Ricky reached into his pocket, pulled out a five-dollar bill, and tossed it onto the ground. It floated just out of Nick’s reach, and he went to grab for it.
Ricky grabbed him by the hair.
“Oh no you don’t, you nelly. Suck now, cash later.”
Ricky held Nick’s hair fast in one hand, and fumbled with the opening of his pants with the other. He pulled his semi-erect penis out, and waved it in Nick’s face.
“Come on now. Open your mouth. No teeth.”
Nick closed his eyes, and parted his lips. He tried to place his mind elsewhere. He would’ve given anything for a swig of gin right then. Ricky’s cockhead slid into Nick’s mouth, and he licked it, trying to remember what he did when he sucked on Jack’s dick.
But that act was instinctual, it required no thought. When he was with Jack, he yearned to taste him, feel him ramming down his throat, and to make him come. This was nothing like that.
“Come on, bitch. I’m paying top dollar for this.”
Nick didn’t dare lose out on the money now that it had gone this far. He ignored the way Ricky ground his half-limp shaft into his face, how he pulled on his head and the pain of his knees smashed in the gravel of the alley. The worst part was how he smelt. It wasn’t necessarily a bad smell—the man had obviously bathed recently—it was just not alluring to him at all. It didn’t drive him crazy with desire the way Jack’s aroma did. It only made him want to get the whole act over with as quickly as possible.
To that end, he put some more effort into it, sucking and bobbing his head up and down on Ricky’s erection that finally seemed to be reaching full mast.
“Yeah. That’s what I’ve been waiting for all night.”
Nick picked up the pace of eating Ricky, hoping that he was almost there. His lips were numb, and his neck was killing him. But this guy seemed to be taking forever. Nick almost wondered if he was doing it on purpose to get his money’s worth. Thankfully Ricky took over control by holding Nick’s skull still, and just ramming into him. Nick gagged a little because Ricky was being so quick and forceful, but he could sense that he was near release, and that was all that mattered to Nick right then.
The first stream of warm cum shot down Nick’s throat, and he tried to pull away to avoid swallowing any more. But Ricky pushed himself even farther into Nick’s mouth, and held Nick in place tightly against him, his shaft continuing to shoot more of the warm salty fluid into Nick.
“Oh yeah. Swallow every drop.”
At last he let go of Nick’s head and pulled out. Nick fell back a little, coughing and spitting, throwing his hand back on the ground to stop himself from falling. He felt like gagging. He could still taste the spunk of this stranger on his tongue, and smell him in his nostrils. He dragged his sleeve across his mouth and chin whilst Ricky buttoned himself back up. Nick reached for the five-dollar bill on the ground. He couldn’t deny it was the quickest five bucks he’d ever earned in his life, but that still didn’t change how disgusted he felt with himself.
Nick picked up the money and shoved it into his pocket before Ricky could try to snatch it back. He stood up, and brushed the dirt off his knees, unable to look at the stranger who had just paid him to suck his cock.
“Well, Nick. It has been my pleasure. As I always say, don’t ask a girl to do what a queer does so much better.”
A swell of utter rage rushed through Nick. He grabbed Ricky by his collar and slammed him against the wall.
“What did you call me?”
“I suggest you let me go immediately, you big, dumb homo, or you’re going to be very sorry.”
“That’s a good one. You’re gonna be the sorry one, mister!”
Nick felt something hard jutting into his side.
“There’s still a bit of the Wild West out here in California, and I don’t play games. That’s a gun pointed at you, so I suggest you let go of me now, or your fella is going to be all alone in the world, wondering why his guy got plugged out on the streets.”
Nick slowly released his grip on the maniac, using every bit of his strength to keep from just coming completely unhinged on Ricky, and pounding him into a bloody pulp.
It’s not worth it. I just have to get home to Jack. He’s my reason for living. He’s my everything.
As soon as Nick let go of Ricky, they stood squared off, waiting to see who would make the next move. Ricky smashed him across the face with the butt of his gun, and Nick barely had the time to process it before he hit the ground. He thought he heard Ricky say something else to him, but he wasn’t sure of anything. It was all blurry and grey. There was a sharp kick in his ribs from those shiny patent leather shoes, and Nick gave into the nothingness.
Chapter Ten
It was after midnight and Nick had been gone for over four hours. Jack was frantic with worry, and at a complete loss as to what he should do.
I’m so pathetic. I need to act like a man. Nick might need me. I can’t just sit here.
He resolved to go out and look for him. He would leave him a note so that if Nick showed up, he wouldn’t think Jack had run out on him. That gave Jack pause, and made his legs a little wobbly. What if Nick had been the one to run out on him instead? Maybe he’d had enough of Jack pestering him all of the time, and wanted to make a clean break. He’d paid the rent for the week, and left him with ten dollars and a couple of smokes. Maybe he felt he’d done all he could do by Jack, and was ready to start over somewhere else.
Jack sat on the bed and pondered this. He shook with a raw fear that was born of his own insecurities. There had been nothing sa
id of Penelope, yet she was the ghost that always crept in between them. Jack was certain that Nick would eventually get tired of being with another man, and want to go back to his normal life. One of the musicians back in New York had warned him about that one time. He’d told Jack that there were guys who liked to play around for a while—sow some wild oats—then they would go and take up with a gal to have a family. He had mentioned it to Jack, telling him that he’d had his heart broken like that, and he could see how much Jack was pining for Nick.
Despite all the worry Jack had held in his heart over Penelope, he hadn’t been able to halt his feelings for Nick. How could he not love him? Nick was handsome, strong, smart and always made sure Jack was taken care of. They were best friends. And ever since their relationship had become physical, Jack had never felt so alive.
Oh God Nick. Please don’t leave me.
Jack heard some stumbling on the stairs, and he felt a surge of relief. It must be Nick, but he sounded like he was drunk or something. Had he gone to a gin joint just to get away from him?
Jack ran to the door and yanked it open just as Nick arrived at the top of the stairs. Jack gasped at what he saw. One of Nick’s eyes was almost swollen shut, and there was swelling and a cut on his cheek. His shirt was torn and dirty, and his hair dishevelled.
“Oh my God, Nick! What happened?”
“Shush, Jack. Get me inside before we wake anyone up. You’re makin’ a ruckus.”
Jack helped Nick into their room, wrapping his arm around Nick’s waist, and helping to support him the best he could. Jack led him over to their bed, and eased him down. Nick lay down immediately, covering his forehead with one arm and wincing in pain as he lifted his legs up onto the mattress.
Jack wanted to cry. This was the worst thing that had ever happened to them. They’d never even been robbed before in New York. And even though he’d seen Nick get into a couple of tussles with guys at the speakeasy, it had been nothing like this.
“Let me get you a wet towel for your face. We ain’t got no aspirin, but I’ll go and get you some in the mornin’, first thing.” Jack soaked a towel with cool water, and called out from the bathroom. “Too bad we can’t get a bottle of gin from somewhere.”
Nick grunted. “Don’t tease me, Jacky boy.”
Jack came back into the room with the towel, and laid it gently over Nick’s eye and swollen cheek. He pushed against Nick’s side, and he cried out.
“Watch out!”
“What, Nick? Are you hurt there too? What happened? Should we call the police?”
“Jesus Christ, Jack. Always with the questions. No police, okay? I don’t want no trouble.”
“But Nick… I don’t understand. Should I take you to the hospital? Are you okay?”
“Fuck. We can’t afford no hospital. Look—I’m all right. I just need to rest. Some guy tried to jump me is all. I fought him off, and that was it. There’s nothin’ else to talk about.”
Nick closed his eyes and Jack felt confused. It seemed there had to be more to the tale, but Nick looked so miserable that he didn’t want to push him.
“Here, I’ll get you a drink of water, then shut out the light so you can rest. I’ll sleep on the floor so I don’t bother you.”
Nick removed the arm that had been shielding his eyes from Jack.
“You’re not sleepin’ on the floor, Jacky boy—got it? Just maybe sleep next to the wall, away from this side.”
He covered his eyes again, and Jack went to get the water. Conflicting thoughts swirled in his head. He was filled with concern for Nick, but also wondered why he’d been gone so long, as well as where he’d been. Something seemed a little off. He didn’t smell liquor on him, so he couldn’t have been at a gin joint wasting their money. He was also wondering what they were going to do now about getting work with Nick so messed up.
Stop being selfish.
All that mattered was getting Nick better. They could worry about everything else later. He came out of the bathroom, and handed Nick the cup. He helped raise his head so that he could drink from it. Nick took several gulps, then laid back down.
“Shit. I need to brush my teeth.”
“I’m sure it won’t hurt to miss one night.”
“No. I really need to rinse my mouth.”
He moved to get up, and cried out.
“Geez, Nick, stay there. I’ll go get the brush and paste. Here’s the cup of water, you can use it to spit in.”
Jack helped him get his teeth clean, and put the items back in their bathroom. After that, Jack got him as comfortable as he could—Nick would only allow him to remove his shoes—then he shut out the light and carefully climbed into bed with him. He moved as close to the wall as he could so that he didn’t bother Nick, but Nick pulled him to his side, squeezing him tenderly, wordlessly conveying his love. Jack could feel it this time. He didn’t need to ask.
Nick had never been so completely laid out. It wasn’t just physical, it was also very emotional.
Was all of this worth the five bucks?
He tried to imagine what his feeling about the experience would have been had he not been beaten up. He wouldn’t have felt good about it to be sure, but maybe he wouldn’t be so wrecked inside.
And there was Jack. Amazing, wonderful Jack. So much like an angel.
I don’t deserve someone as pure as him.
In his mind’s eye, all he could see was Ricky’s crotch and his swanky pin-stripe pants as he’d slammed into him. He was sure he would never be able to get that image out of his mind for as long as he lived. Suddenly, he wanted to go down on Jack. He wanted to erase the memory of the earlier encounter. But his head was pounding, and his body felt as if it had been hit by a train. He listened to Jack’s light snores as he lay sound asleep on Nick’s chest. So trusting, so loving. So willing to place his entire life and well-being in Nick’s hands.
Nick sighed. The terrible truth was that if there ever was a situation again where he could make quick money like that—he would do it. He’d just have to be smarter about it. No meeting strange guys in alleys, and no getting angry if they called him names. That didn’t matter. His future with Jack was the only important thing he had in life, and he would do whatever it took to keep it.
* * * *
It was time to head to the studio again. The foreman there was named Wilson, and Nick wasn’t even sure if it was his first or last name. His head still hurt, and the cut on his cheek was surrounded by an angry purple bruise. His eye looked a lot better—at least he could open it most of the way. Although his ribs were still very tender, they didn’t seem to be broken. The bruise there was massive, and he had tried to be careful not to let Jack see.
There hadn’t been any sex until the night before when Nick had insisted on sucking Jack off. His head had still hurt, and his face was sore from working on Jack’s dick so hard, but it had been cleansing in its own fucked-up way. It moved Nick further and further away from the incident in the alley. Jack had wanted to please him too, but Nick had told him he was still hurting too much. Jack had looked like he was going to cry, so Nick held and comforted him. Jack had still been in his arms when they’d awoken.
As Nick stepped out of the shower—having insisted on taking it alone—his current concern was how his beat-up face would look to their potential new boss. Would he assume Nick was nothing but trouble? Nick was sticking to the story that someone had tried to rob him. Maybe that would get them some sympathy.
Nick fluffed his hair with the towel, finished drying off and put the new shirt and overalls on in the bathroom. He had been grim around Jack the other night, and he could see it was taking a toll on his mood. Nick couldn’t stand it when Jack was gloomy. He needed to put on a jolly face and get Jack cheered up before they went to the studios. He opened the door, and strutted out as if he were a dashing swell at a society ball.
Jack looked up from the bed where he was staring at his torn-up scandal sheet and giggled.
“Geez, Nick. Ain
’t you the bee’s knees.”
“Damn right, Jacky boy. Now you go put on your shiny new duds, and we’ll be ready to storm the gates of the studio!”
“All right. We’re gonna have great new jobs today!”
God, I hope so. Otherwise, it might kill the kid.
After Jack got ready, they both smoked a cigarette each to calm their nerves and to fortify them for their foray over to Global. As the entrance was just across the street, and around the corner a couple of blocks down, it wouldn’t be long before they were right there. Nick couldn’t deny he was as nervous as hell. It had to work out. They were running out of options. If only one of the odd jobs had come through, it could have bought them some more time. But there hadn’t been anything.
Except for that extra five bucks.
Nick smashed his cigarette into their ashtray on the dresser.
“You okay, Nick?”
He forced himself to smile as sincerely as he could.
“Sure, Jack. Just can’t wait to get goin’ is all.”
They headed out the door, and Nick couldn’t stop himself from obsessively adjusting and readjusting the cuffs on his sleeves.
“You look great, Nick.”
Jack grinned up at him in adoration.
“You look pretty good too, Jacky boy.”
Nick resisted the urge to ruffle Jack’s hair. They were out strolling on the streets and about to ask for a job. He needed to stay focused.
Nick sucked in a deep breath as they approached the front gates. The same man that had greeted them the last time they were there looked up from his newspaper.
“You the guys from last week sniffin’ around for work?”
Nick cleared his throat.
“Yeah. That’s us. Wilson told us to come back today to see if the new picture had got a green light.”
Nick tried to sound confident and like he knew all of the proper studio jargon.
“He did, did he? Well, I know they’ve been talkin’ about a new one over on soundstage twelve, so that could be true. I’m lettin’ you guys in, but if it gets back to me that you were pullin’ my leg, you’re banished from here for good, got it?”
Hollywood Bound Page 9