by A'zayler
Versus playing the staring game with Damien, Alex focused all of his attention on Troy. They ordered their food and enjoyed each other for the next two hours. When they were finished, Alex tried his best to get out of the building before Damien and his friends. Initially, he had planned to wait them out, but the fresh pitcher of beer on their table let him know they had a while before their departure.
Troy was still watching the game on TV, but he agreed to leave when Alex told him he was ready. He paid their ticket and grabbed Alex’s hand as they got up from their seats. The simple gesture made Alex smile. It had been so long since he’d been in public with someone who wasn’t afraid to show their love for him.
He held his head down as they passed Damien’s table. He was almost to a breath of fresh air when Troy went sliding across the floor. He was on his face and pushing himself from the floor when Alex realized that he had fallen. He rushed to him and tried to help him from the floor.
“You okay?” He looked at Troy’s lip that was bleeding. It looked like his teeth had nicked it when he’d fallen. “How’d you fall like that?” Alex was looking around at all of the people looking at them.
Damien and the niggas he was with were laughing so loud and hard that they were falling all out of their chairs and holding their stomachs. Troy stood to his feet and looked back at Damien’s table.
“One of them tripped me.”
Alex’s head spun over his shoulder in the direction of their table. “They did what?” He could feel his blood pressure rising. His whole body was hot as he tried to stop his hands from shaking.
“When we walked past, one of them stuck their foot out. I don’t know which one of them did it, but it’s cool. Let’s just go.”
“Fuck no.” Alex spun around and walked toward the table of men. “Which one of y’all punk asses tripped him?”
Troy grabbed Alex’s arm and tried to pull him away from the table. “It’s cool, Alex. Let’s go. I’m good.”
“Hell no. I’m not going nowhere until one of their bitch asses tell me who tripped you.”
Alex stared each one of the men down. If it was one thing he didn’t like, it was when people picked on others. Especially sweet and easy going people like Rain and Troy. They were two of the sweetest people he’d ever met, so he always found himself taking up for them.
“Yo, nigga, you better get your faggot ass away from this table,” one of the men said.
“Or what? Y’all niggas kill me. Love to act like y’all so hard, but y’all immature asses find time to fuck with people that ain’t thinking about y’all. I may be a faggot, but I bet I can beat every last one of y’all asses at this table.”
Alex looked from the dude that had just said something to him, over to Damien, then to the two niggas behind him. It wasn’t until then that he realized one of the other men was Stacey’s punk ass.
“Alex, let’s go, bae.”
It was as if Troy calling Alex bae set Damien off because he stood to his feet. “I tripped this sissy ass nigga.” He looked at Alex. “What you trying to do?”
Alex turned his nose up at the drunkenness that oozed off of Damien. It was clear by the way he was trying him in public that he was drunk, because no straight nigga that he was fucking would do some shit like that. Damien had officially lost his mind.
“Well, let me tell you something, you drunk bitch. If you want to pop some shit off, I advise you to do that shit with a sissy that won’t fuck you up because you got the right one tonight.”
Anybody in close enough range to hear Alex and what he was saying laughed or said something under their breath. Alex couldn’t care less. All he cared about right now was letting Damien and his drunk clique of idiots know that he would not tolerate the shit they were trying to do. Damien stepped closer to Alex and glared down at him.
Alex didn’t even budge because he wasn’t scared of Damien’s gay ass. He didn’t want to, but he would fuck him up in front of the whole restaurant if he had to. The only reason Damien was even doing that bold shit right then anyway was because he knew Alex loved him. He knew his secret was safe, or else Alex was more than positive he wouldn’t be acting as bold as he was right then.
“How about you and your bitch ass boyfriend take that shit on up out of here.”
Troy stepped up next to Alex and stood in front of him. He looked Damien up and down. Alex was shocked by his gesture, but clearly Damien invading his space had pissed him off. Damien started laughing and raised his hand to push Troy, but a short man dressed in all black walked over to the table.
“Is there a problem here, gentlemen?”
Damien looked from Troy to Alex with a sinister grin on his face and held his hand up in surrender. “No sir, we’re good. This dude just doesn’t know how to fucking walk.”
Troy sucked his teeth and grabbed Alex’s hand. “Let’s go, bae.”
Alex rolled his eyes at the men. “Y’all niggas think y’all so hard, but I would fuck every last one of y’all in the ass and have y’all pussy boys calling your baby mama’s talking about you think you’re gay.”
There was a bit of an uproar from the men at the table as Alex smiled and walked away. He could hear obscenities and conversation from behind him as they exited the building. Troy held his hand as they walked to the car. In another situation they might have needed security after pulling a stunt like that, but the same way Damien knew Alex wouldn’t blow up his spot, he knew Damien wouldn’t let his friends do anything to them.
The ride home was quiet. Alex could tell Troy was feeling some type of way, but he didn’t know what to say, so he didn’t say anything. They rode in complete silence, not saying anything until they pulled up to Alex’s house. Troy got out and walked Alex to his front door and stood against the railing.
They looked at each other, neither of them saying anything. Troy was the first to break the silence.
“How long have you been dealing with the guy from the restaurant?”
What in the fuck? Alex wondered to himself. He tried his hardest to keep a straight face. How in the hell had Troy picked up on that?
“What?”
“Come on, Alex, you don’t have to lie. I know you have your other friends on the side. You’ve told me on more than one occasion that you have a few friends that are on the down low. So I’m going to ask you again. How long have you been involved with him?”
“A while.”
Troy nodded. “So I guess that’s why I got tripped, huh? He saw you with me?”
Alex nodded.
“It’s no reason to feel bad, Alex, I’m cool. That’s not the first time I’ve been picked on by a group of straight men and I’m pretty sure it won’t be the last. Just like I know you have people on the side. I’m cool.”
“How did you know?”
“I know a gay man when I see one, Alex. You should know that. Plus, the way he looked at you gave him away. If his friends hadn’t been behind him they would have known too.”
“The way he looked at me?”
Troy nodded. “He looks at you the way I do.”
Alex’s chest felt heavy again. He didn’t even know what to say to that, so he said nothing.
“Is he the person that was here that morning we broke up?”
Alex nodded.
Troy snorted and grabbed Alex’s hand. “You need to take care of that. He’s an angry one and that’s not safe.” Troy kissed Alex’s forehead. “Be safe. I love you.”
He was about to walk away, but Alex grabbed him and he turned back around. Alex wrapped his arms around him and hugged him tightly. “I love you, Troy.”
He kissed Alex’s forehead again. “I know.”
“I want you here with me.”
Troy looked down into Alex’s face. “You sure? I’m sure he’ll be over here shortly.”
“I don’t care. I want you here.” Alex was telling the truth. For once, he would much rather be with Troy than Damien.
Damien’s behavior at TGI Friday’s s
howed him how much he really didn’t want to be with him anymore. He wasn’t the type of person he wanted. Troy had been sweet, understanding, embarrassed, and noble all in one night, and he wasn’t ready to give that up yet, especially not to fight. He could almost bet Damien was going to come over and want to fuss and fight until it was time to fuck and make up.
He was in no mood for that tonight. He just wanted to be held and get a peace of mind. He would most definitely find that with Troy.
“Can I go home with you?”
Troy kissed his forehead again. “Get you some clothes.”
Alex hurried to open his door and go into his house. Troy sat at his kitchen table as he scurried around his room packing an overnight bag. When he was finished, they left his house hand in hand. On the ride over to Troy’s house, Alex ignored every text and call he got from Damien. When ignoring his calls became too much, he texted Summer, letting her know that he was about to cut his phone off and to call Troy if she needed him.
Rain was still so busy being a newlywed she hardly answered her phone anyway, so he wasn’t worried about her calling. After Summer texted him back, he turned his phone off and stuffed it back into his purse. He would deal with Damien and his tantrums another day.
*****
Damien pounded on the door of Alex’s apartment to no avail. He had been banging on it for almost ten minutes and still no answer. Alex’s truck was parked out front, but he wasn’t answering his phone or the door. He didn’t know what kind of games Alex was playing, but he wasn’t feeling them.
His head was starting to spin, so he leaned against the door in an attempt to make it stop. He knocked on the door as he leaned against it. Damien pulled out his phone and dialed Alex’s number again.
You’ve reached celebrity stylist Alexander Crist, please leave a message and I’ll return your call at my earliest convenience. Thank you and have a blessed day.
“I know your ass is somewhere with that pretty ass fuck boy. You better answer my fucking calls before I beat your ass… the fuck you at Alex?” He sighed into the phone at the end.
When Damien finally realized that he wasn’t about to see Alex tonight, he stumbled back down the stairs and to his car. He was way too drunk to be driving, but he figured now that Alex wasn’t answering his door, he had to make that drive home. He slid into his driver seat and slammed the door shut in frustration.
Alex not answering the door really had him in a bad mood. The main reason being because he knew he was with another nigga. Damien wasn’t a fool to think that Alex didn’t have a life outside of him. He knew he did, but seeing the shit with his own eyes had him mad as fuck. When he’d first starting fooling around with Alex he hadn’t meant to form feelings for him.
It was just something he wanted to do, but now he was way past that. Alex was constantly on his mind. On some days he felt gay because all he could think about was fucking Alex, then on other days he wouldn’t even think about him. The sad part about it all was that he had more gay days than straight ones.
Damien cranked his car up and headed home to Iesha. He really didn’t feel like arguing with her, so hopefully she wouldn’t be on no bullshit when he got home. Damien fought to keep his eyes open as he drove. He felt himself swerving a few times, but somehow he was turning into his driveway twenty minutes later.
He erased Alex’s number from his call log and out of his text conversation before getting out and heading for the house. He used his key to let himself in. It was after one o’clock in the morning as he stumbled into his house. He dropped his keys on the table next to the door and headed down the hall.
Iesha was sitting up in bed with the light on. She was painting her nails when he walked in. Her eyes rolled as soon as she saw him.
“Fuck is yo problem?” he slurred.
“Your drunk ass. Where you been? That game been gone off for hours now.”
“I sat around and chilled with my niggas. Damn, fall back, girl.” Damien removed his clothes and climbed into bed.
He could feel Iesha looking at him, but he closed his eyes anyway. He gritted his teeth when he thought about Alex being laid up with that soft ass nigga he was with. He tossed and turned trying to get the thoughts out of his head.
“I’m surprised you even brought your ass home.”
“With the way your mouth running I’m about to run back up out this muthafucka.”
Iesha hit his arm, only pissing him off further. He sat up and pointed his finger in her face. “What I tell you about putting your damn hands on me?” His head started spinning again, so he lay back down.
“Goddess must have made you mad tonight. Your attitude is fucking ridiculous.”
Damien blew out a frustrated breath and stood up. He snatched his boxers off and threw them on the floor. He snatched Iesha by her ankles, pulling her to the end of the bed. He wasted no time snatching her panties off and pushing her face down into the mattress. He spit on his hand and rubbed it on his hardening length before placing it on her butt.
“I don’t want to do it like that, Damien, it hurts.”
“Shut up. You was just talking all that shit, so close your mouth and take this dick.” He made sure her butt was lubricated enough with his spit before pushing just the tip in. “You talking about Goddess being mad with me.” He eased more of himself into her ass. “Well guess what? She is. So I’ma take my anger out on your ass. Now tell me how much you love this dick.” Damien pushed the rest of himself into Iesha’s butt and moved slowly.
He didn’t really want to hurt her, so he was sure to be careful and go slow. She was his girl, and loved her, but tonight he wanted some ass. He couldn’t get the one he wanted, so hers would have to do. He closed his eyes and imagined it was Alex beneath him and not Iesha. It was as if he got harder at just the thought.
He sped up a little more when she began to moan. “It feels good to you?”
Iesha moaned something that sounded like a yes, so he kept going. Getting harder and harder with each stroke. Images of Alex and the sex they had crossed his mind as he pounded Iesha hard from the back. He slapped her butt hard before releasing himself and pulling out. Iesha hopped up from the bed and ran to the bathroom.
He could hear her using the bathroom before flushing and coming back out. She brought a rag to give him before going back in the bathroom and turning the shower on. He cleaned himself and grabbed his phone. He tried to call Alex once more, but he still didn’t answer, so he texted him.
Goddess: I just fucked the shit out of my baby mama when it should have been you…fuck you. Call me!
When no response came, he erased his text and calls again before placing it on silent and sliding it back into the pocket of his jeans. When Iesha came back out of the bathroom she snuggled close to him and laid her head on his chest.
“Goodnight.”
“Night.”
Chapter 6: Bullseye
Rain wrapped the towel around her body as she stepped out of the shower. She and Love had just gotten back from their trip to Jamaica and she was in desperate need of a shower. After all of their traveling, all she could think about was a hot shower. Love, on the other hand, didn’t care about a bath.
He’d come in the house and went straight to bed. Rain tucked the top of the towel so that it would stay around her body and walked to the mirror. She brushed her teeth and snatched her shower cap from her head. With the way her head looked, there really was no point in even putting her shower cap on.
Her head was a mess, so a little water wouldn’t have made it look any worse than it already did. When she finished handling all of her necessary hygiene, she left the bathroom. Not bothering with any clothes, she lay back on the bed still wrapped in her towel. With her phone in her hand she settled in and snuggled next to Dakota.
She scrolled through her phone for a few minutes before pushing it to the side and grabbing her computer. She had so much work to catch up on that it was a shame. With everything that had been going on, she had been ne
glecting her writing. Now that she had gotten her mind back, she was ready to put in some work.
She opened her most recent document, grabbed her glasses, slid them on her face, and got down to work. Her fingers were gone to work when her phone vibrated. It was a text from Fallon asking her were they back yet and did she want to meet for lunch. Rain looked at the time before texting her back telling her to give her an hour and she’d meet her somewhere.
Just as fast as she had been in the mood to write, she got out of it. She jumped from the bed and went into their closet. She grabbed an all-black romper and her black moccasin sandals and got dressed. Once she was completely dressed, she brushed her hair into a neat bun and sprayed on some perfume.
She kissed Love’s face and let him know she was going to meet Fallon before leaving the house. She grabbed his keys and was on her way. On the way over, she decided to invite Summer. Summer told her to come pick her up from home, so after doing that, they headed to the restaurant.
Fallon was already seated when they got inside. The waitress took them straight to where she was sitting.
“Hey y’all.” She smiled.
“Hey, boo.” Rain hugged her while Summer just waved. “I hope you don’t mind me bringing Summer.”
Fallon waved her hand dismissively. “Girl, no. Y’all both look so pretty.”
Summer’s hair was pulled back into a bun as well. The olive green sleeveless bodycon dress she wore fit her nicely, as did all of her clothes. She wore big gold earrings, a watch, and gold bangles.
“Thank you, girl. I try.” Summer smiled.
“Well, you representing for the dark skinned women, baby.” Fallon high fived Summer across the table.
“So, how was Jamaica, married lady?”
Rain smiled and told Fallon and Summer all about her trip. Fallon apologized over and over for not being able to make it to the courthouse for the union. Rain tried to assure her it was fine, but she continued to apologize. After they moved on from that, they talked about a little bit of everything. Lunch had gone by relatively fast, and a lot better than Rain had planned.