Impractical Magic

by M. J. O'Shea

  “It was fun. Good. Went golfing with Jeremy. Rory and Ben are finally back together.”

  “Wait, what?” Kevin looked so adorably excited for someone who’d never even met Rory or Ben. Yet. Fen thought it might be time for him to at least meet one of them.

  “Yeah. I guess Ro just got on a plane and went down there to get his man. Finally.”

  Kevin laughed. “I feel like these guys are characters on some TV show I’m addicted to. I practically cheered when Castle finally kissed Beckett you know.”

  Fen burst out laughing. “I’ll let Rory know you just compared him to Beckett. I’m sure he’ll be flattered.”

  “Oh God. Please don’t.”

  “I won’t. Especially since I think you should meet them. Well, everyone but Ben. The guys would love you.”

  “It won’t be weird for you? Since we’re….”

  Fen shrugged. “I don’t know what I’m going to tell them. I haven’t quite rehearsed that conversation in my head yet.”

  “Tell them we’re friends. I mean, obviously they’re not going to care about… well, that. But I don’t go around telling my friends about what happens in my bedroom. You don’t have to either. We are friends, right?”

  “Of course we are. I don’t share my Toblerone with just anyone, you know.”

  Kevin hip-checked him. “I feel honored.”

  “As well you should.” Fen tipped his head again and pursed his lips like a little kid. “Kiss?”

  Kevin obliged him. Instead of short and smacking like Fen expected, the kiss was gentle and a bit searching. It left him breathless and fighting the butterflies in his belly.

  “If you want to get the movie set up, I’ll be in with the food in a minute.”

  It took him about twice as long to collect himself from one tiny little kiss as it did to get their tray of snacks ready.

  Chapter 5

  FEN TRIED to tell himself he wasn’t nervous. Dude. Knock it off. It’s just the boys. Yes, the boys. And Kevin. He’d told them Kevin was a new friend from his building, that he was just in town for the summer, that he was a firefighter, that he was cool and laid-back. All true. Except for the “just a friend” part. Kevin got it, he thought. He’d seemed to the other night. They weren’t anything, right? They were friends… who liked to make out. Friends who gave the best damn—ohhhhkay. Time to stop thinking about that. Not the best time to be contemplating mind-altering blow jobs when he was in public and about to be seen by his friends. What if he had to stand? What if he couldn’t stop remembering the feel of Kevin’s mouth and his hands while his friends watched him slowly turn into a little pile of lava on the bench? Fen told himself to calm the hell down. It was just the guys. And Kevin. Yes.

  He still couldn’t believe it, though. That he’d actually done it—hot sweaty skin, touches and kisses and the taste of Kevin’s skin—oh yeah. He had. More than once. More than once last night. And he was still reeling over how fucking amazing it had all felt every damn time. Fen didn’t know if it was because Kevin was a guy, or someone new, or they just clicked that well physically. But, damn. Just… damn.

  Rory was the first to arrive. He slid into the booth. They traded matching dorky smiles.

  “What are you so happy about?” Rory asked through his grin.

  Fen tried to come up with something. Yeah. Best sex of his life didn’t work. Then he’d have to explain. That would be nice and awkward with Kevin about to walk through the door, and it’s not like he didn’t want his friends to know, he just didn’t want them all involved like he knew they would be. Like he would be if it were any of them.

  “In a good mood, I guess. Don’t have to ask you why you’re so happy.” Rory had just returned from his week in LA with Ben. “I’m happy for you guys, dude,” Fen said. He covered Rory’s hand on the table with his own for a minute and squeezed.

  “Me too.” Rory shook his head wonderingly. “Sometimes I still can’t believe it’s happening. I mean, it’s Ben. Part of him is just, you know, my oldest friend and it’s like it always was, but then at other times it’s….”

  Fen watched Rory try to explain what it felt like to fall in love. He’d never been there himself. A few crushes, his high school and college girlfriends, the women he’d dated on and off since. Nothing for the storybooks. He’d never missed it, to be honest. But the look on Rory’s face made him wonder if he was missing something after all.

  “Kind of like magic?” Fen asked.

  “Yeah. Jesus, I’m a cheeseball. What happened to me?”

  “Pfft.” Fen rolled his eyes as big as he could. “You and Ben were cheeseballs from the start with each other. Even when you were shooting him death glares, you’d still whip out the puppy eyes when you thought he wasn’t looking.”

  Rory reached across the table and slugged Fen hard in the shoulder. “Shut up.” Still couldn’t stop grinning. Fen chuckled.

  Jeremy was the next to arrive, and only a moment after him, Kevin slid through the door, black hair damp from the shower, straight from the firehouse. He’d dressed casually like Fen had suggested, in navy blue cargo shorts, flip-flops, and a fire department T-shirt that was worn in and soft and looked like it smelled like everything Fen all of a sudden associated with sex. He looked nervous too, even though they’d already decided tonight was no big deal, just some beers between friends.

  “Jer, Kevin, over here!” Fen called from their corner booth. Jeremy slid in next to Rory while Kevin smiled his sweet unassuming smile and dropped into the bench next to Fen. Unassuming my ass. Fen had already gotten quite the taste of what adorable, sweet Kevin was like when nobody else was watching.

  “So, Kevin, this is two of the three. Jeremy and Rory.” He gestured at his friends. “Like I told you, my other half has deserted us to work in LA for a year.”

  Rory looked outraged. “Hey, I think he probably counts as my other half now, not yours.”

  “I’ll fight you for him,” Fen growled.

  “Please, physics boy. I’ll win.”

  “Says the chemistry teacher. If there’s one thing in the world that’s dorkier than physics….”

  Rory reached over the table and punched Fen in the arm. “I’d still kick your ass.”

  “Ow! Besides, you know Ben would probably take your side now, and he’s totally Sporty Spice, so this argument isn’t even fair.”

  Kevin looked back and forth between the two of them. Fen wanted to tell him that, no, they weren’t always like this, and they were normal most of the time, but it would be a lie. Rory just brought it out of him somehow. Especially now that Ben was gone. Okay, maybe everyone brought it out of him. He was funny, okay? At least he thought so.

  “I forgot the most important part,” Fen said, suddenly remembering the whole reason for the night other than his slip of the tongue the other day. “This,” he said, gesturing around, “is Beaver’s. Our home away from home, and purveyor of the best nachos on the west coast.”

  Kevin laughed. “I’ll have to see about that.”

  It was settled. They ordered nachos, just to prove to Kevin that they really were the best. They had to get both southwest and original nachos, beers, and a round of tequila shots just to loosen everybody up—although in the end, that wasn’t a problem.

  There was a Giants game on the TV, and between Kevin and Jeremy’s shouts at the umpire, Rory’s sarcastic comments, and, well, everything, Fen couldn’t have asked for a more perfect night.

  “This is fun,” he said quietly to Rory when Jeremy and Kevin had gone to the bar for more beers and a manly bonding moment.

  “Of course it is,” Rory said back. “I like Kevin. He’s a nice guy. Chill.”

  “I like him too.” Fen couldn’t help his smile. “Still weird without Ben, though.”

  Rory made an exaggerated stabbing motion to his chest. “Thanks for reminding me. Here, come on this side for a second.”

  Fen scooted around to Rory’s side of the booth. Rory turned the camera on, held his phon
e up and they made dorky faces into the flash. He texted it to Ben with a we miss you!!!!! Xoxo.

  About thirty seconds later a message came back.

  Beaver’s without me?!?! You guys SUCK ASS.

  Fen grabbed Rory’s phone and texted back a long string of heart emoticons followed by the tempura prawn, a jack-o’-lantern, and a Christmas tree. He added a firework for good measure, since Ben was a bitch who hadn’t come home for the Fourth. He wasn’t surprised when Rory’s phone started to ring only a few seconds later. Rory laughed.

  “Hi, babe.” He paused for a few moments and laughed again. “Yes. That was Fen.” He put his phone against his chest. “I’m going to go out on the deck for a few.”

  “Wait, I wanna say hi first.” Rory handed over the phone. “Hiiii!” Fen crowed into the phone. His voice sounded totally normal, right?

  Ben laughed, so probably not. “How drunk are you?”

  “Not at all. I had two beers and a shot but like a metric shit ton of nachos, so I’m good.”

  “You sound different. Happy, I guess. Ro said that your friend Kevin’s cool.”

  “He is cool. And I’m better than before. A lot better.” Ben knew the first couple of weeks of summer had been weird for him. They’d been weird for Ben too, down in LA all alone moping over Rory.

  “You better not be replacing me, asshole.”

  “No more than you replaced me with Rory.”

  There was a moment of silence. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  Wait, did I just say Kevin was like my Rory? Rewind. Backtrack. Shit. “Oh, you know. You’re just always with him and it takes up my cherished cuddle time. So I found someone to hang out with. Maybe he’ll cuddle with me now that you’re gone.” Good, you made it into a joke. Go with that. It wasn’t that he hated the thought of Ben knowing, it was just, on the phone in the middle of Beaver’s? Not the time or place.

  “You’re a dork, nobody’s a better cuddler than me. Can I please have my boyfriend back?”

  “Ooooh, your boyfriend,” Fen teased. “Fiiinnne.” He handed the phone back to Rory, who smirked at him and gestured that he’d be outside.

  Fen wasn’t alone long. Kevin and Jeremy came back with another round of beers.

  “Where’d loverboy go?” Jeremy asked.

  “Guess.” Fen snickered.

  “Ben call?”

  Jeremy rolled his eyes. “I’m happy for them, but they’re kind of disgusting.”

  “Disgusting?” Kevin looked concerned.

  Fen’s heart raced for a moment. He elbowed Kevin. “Not like that. Finchy’s not an asshole. He just means like sickeningly happy. You know. Disgusting.”

  Kevin seemed happy with that answer. “Finchy?”

  Jeremy leveled Fen with a glare. “I hate you.”

  Fen just giggled and laid his head on Kevin’s shoulder. Yes. Giggled. Might be time to lay off the beer before he batted his eyelashes or some shit.

  Rory got back after a few minutes, a sweet little smile on his face, and after that it was back to loud jokes and punches. Kevin hung back a bit, but not in a bad way. He was just… quieter than the rest of them. That wasn’t exactly hard to accomplish. He sat there, leg squished up against Rory’s under the table, and smiled, laughed at their jokes, and added something when he could contribute.

  Every once in a while, Fen would reach under the table and touch Kevin, cup his thigh, curl their pinky fingers together, something little to connect them, just for a moment. The guys didn’t seem to notice and he didn’t know why he felt the need to do it. He just did. Like touching Kevin the night before, as if falling asleep naked with him, hands and legs and arms twined together wasn’t enough. He needed more, and constantly. Fen scratched his nail lightly across the back of Kevin’s hand; he traced his knuckles and dipped into the sinewy flesh between his fingers. Above the table, Kevin laughed at some joke Rory had made, but he hooked his sandaled foot around Fen’s ankle and brought it between his. Fen laughed, tried to act like he had a fucking clue what they’d been joking about. He didn’t.

  Jeremy checked his watch.

  “Hey, it’s time for me to head out.”

  “Yeah, yeah. Something’s on that Delia DVR’d and you can’t possibly miss it to be with us.” Rory rolled his eyes. “Married people.”

  “Like you can talk.”

  Rory winked at him. “I’ll let you know when Ben and I start watching TV. Right now it’s only… background noise.”

  “Oh, God!” Fen groaned he covered his ears. Rory and Kevin broke into laughter.

  Jeremy hopped up from the table, probably hoping to leave before someone said something else about one of his friends and sex. “I am so outta here. Kevin, it was awesome to meet you. I hope we all do this again very soon. Don’t let these two get us eighty-sixed or something. I’d miss my nachos.”

  Kevin smiled. “I’ll keep ’em under control. Tie them up if necessary.”

  Fen gulped. Interesting….

  BY THE time the three of them left Beaver’s, Fen was totally sober. At least from the alcohol. His body still hummed, though, his skin felt all rushy and hot, and the drive home following Kevin’s Jeep was long. He knew what was ahead. At least he hoped. More kissing and touching, and Kevin’s crazy-good mouth all over him. Maybe he’d get the courage to put his mouth on Kevin again as well. Maybe they’d do even more.

  Fen was past the point of being scared; he was at pure want. He wanted to be inside Kevin. Kevin had hinted the other night that he might want it as well. Fen could barely even stand to think about how good it would feel. Actually being there, experiencing Kevin’s tight, hot body, might send him over the edge.

  The trip up the stairs felt even longer than the car ride home. Maybe it was because he and Kevin were tripping over each other, kissing and slipping their hands under each other’s shirts the whole way.

  “Clothes off,” Kevin groaned as soon as they got in the door. “Now.”

  “Yeah. Now,” Fen muttered. He pawed at his shirt, which suddenly felt tight and weird and like it needed to go, go, go. His pants too. Off. Kevin was doing the same, tripping out of his shorts and pulling his shirt over his head.

  Fen slid his fingers into the elastic waistband of Kevin’s briefs and dragged him down the hall into his room. Kevin lunged for Fen’s briefs too, tugging them down and off before pushing him onto the bed.

  Yes. Fen always seemed to forget just how good it felt. How hot and smooth Kevin’s skin felt against his, the textured brush of their legs, how Kevin seemed to surround him with his broad shoulders and muscled thighs. Their hands were everywhere. He couldn’t remember anyone else ever feeling so warm, so solid. So there. Kevin traced Fen’s skin with wondering hands, like he’d never seen it before.

  Fen had always been jumpy, the impatient sort, but he wanted to slow the world down, wanted the moment to last forever. Kevin leaned forward for a kiss. Fen wound his fingers in the soft down at his nape and held on. His breath caught in his throat.

  “Why’s it feel so good?” Kevin asked. “It’s….”

  Fen gulped in about a gallon of air and let it filter out from between his lips to fan against Kevin’s neck. “I thought it was just me. ’Cause everything’s new and you’re so hot.”

  Kevin rolled his hips against Fen’s thigh. He was hard and damp and so thick. Fen reached down and curled his palm around it. He couldn’t help wanting to touch.

  “You’re gorgeous. Don’t know why you can’t see that.” Kevin leaned in and sucked a bruise into Fen’s pale inner arm.

  “You like to do that.”

  “I like how you taste.” Kevin grinned. “And I kind of like to mark you. Give you something to remember me by.”

  “Pretty sure I’m not forgetting this any time soon.”

  Fen slung his thigh over Kevin’s hip and they ground together, skin sliding, growing damp with the summer night’s heat.

  “I just want…,” Kevin whispered.

  “What? Anyth
ing. I swear.” Fen knew those were big words but he meant them.

  “I want you inside me. You think you’re ready for that?”

  Fen’s belly tightened, so hot it nearly hurt. “Y-yeah. Just tell me what to do.”

  “Hold on.” Kevin slid out of bed and sprinted for the living room, his ass a pale shadow in the night. Fen stared after him, enjoying the view. He came back with a few packets in his hand.

  “Really?” Fen couldn’t help flipping him shit.

  “Hey, you know what the Boy Scouts say.”

  “Never leave home without lube?”

  Kevin snorted. “Yes. That’s exactly what they say. It’s written on their badges and shit.”

  “Come here, you dork.”

  Kevin flopped down onto the bed and into Fen’s arms, tilting his head for another kiss. It always amazed Fen how they could go from teasing to fuck, damn in about two seconds flat. A minute later and he was about to do anything he could to crawl into Kevin’s body just so he could feel closer.

  “Let me get myself ready. Hold on for a minute.”

  Fen hadn’t thought about watching a guy get himself ready. He’d seen it a little in porn. Yeah. Porn wasn’t Kevin. It wasn’t even close to watching Kevin straddle his hips and sink first one, two, and then three fingers inside himself, making little hiccupping groans the whole time.

  “Jesus,” Fen groaned. “I could come just from watching you do that.”

  “No.” Kevin laughed a little and moaned himself. “Not yet. Want you.” He nodded at the condom. “I’m almost ready.”

  Fen’s fingers shook a little. I’m really doing this. He was a lot more nervous than he’d been when he was a kid. A few beers and a girl from his calculus class in the back of his truck didn’t come close to, well, this.

  Kevin took hold of his cock and lined it up. Fen held his breath for a minute until he slipped in and then it was tightness and heat and too much to last. He cupped Kevin’s hips gently.

  “Hold on.”

  Breathe deep. In, out, in….