I returned home a little after ten. I put the leftover casserole in the refrigerator and went looking for Alex. I found him sitting on the floor in the bedroom, listening to his iPod with headphones, so he didn’t hear me come in. He jumped a foot when he looked up and saw me staring at him from the bedroom doorway.
“Jack, you’re home!” he exclaimed, yanking the ear buds in a single pull. “How was your dinner?”
“Fine. There’s some leftover Mexican casserole in the fridge for you. I see you got in okay. Find a place for your stuff?”
“Yeah. I just have my suitcase here in the corner for now. I wasn’t sure what you still have to pack or whatever. I can do my unpacking tomorrow. I just needed a place to crash for tonight.”
“Speaking of which, where are we going to put you tonight?” He was sitting on a pallet of sheets and blankets, which I knew were not mine.
“I thought I’d just sleep in here on the floor. I have my own blankets and shit, so is it cool with you?” It was.
“Sure, no problem. I’m gonna get ready for bed. I’m beat. I’ll be out of the bathroom in a few.”
I went in and did my usual evening prep for bed. All my toiletries were packed in my travel kit so it felt like I lived in a hotel now, not really my apartment. I finished up and started to step out the door when I realized I was naked. Force of habit. I fished around on the floor where I had thrown my dirty clothes and put my underwear back on. I figured those would be okay. I didn’t have pajamas or sweats. And my two pair of gym shorts were packed. I needed to remember to pack the dirties in the morning.
I got back into the bedroom just as Alex was undressing over by his suitcase. His shirt came off, and I was struck by all the muscles in his back. They rippled as he moved about. He shucked his jeans, and his ass popped out, naked and hard. Obviously, Alex went commando. Interesting. And hot. My dick started to rise. This could only go nowhere. Get a grip, Jack.
Then he bent over to get his toothbrush and toothpaste and I had to put my hand over my mouth to stifle a squeal. I could see his puckered hole just winking at me while he rifled through his suitcase. I was starting to sweat, and my dick was now rock hard. I sat down on the bed and tried to cover it up with the comforter.
He found the missing toothpaste, grabbed a towel from another pile, and turned to head to the bathroom. As he walked in front of me past the foot of the bed, I saw his cock in full profile. Had to be six inches hanging—soft, not too thick, with a dense patch of dark black hair spreading out up his torso and then across his chest. This was a hairy guy. He had a swarthy, olive-skinned Mediterranean look about him. Sexy man. Rose was a foolish girl if she let him get away.
I heard the shower start, so I did what I needed to do. I ripped my underwear down and started stroking hard and fast. With the visual I had just feasted on, in less than two minutes cum was hitting me on the chin and spreading down my chest. I sat there trying to catch my breath while enjoying the after effects of a great orgasm.
I heard the water shut off so I quickly cleaned myself up with my dirty towel and hoped the room didn’t reek of cum. There was no way I could have slept if I hadn’t jerked off. Alex finally came out of the bathroom, still naked, still gorgeous, still making my dick swell.
“Are you okay if I sleep naked, Jack? I don’t really have anything I wear to bed.”
“Whatever floats your boat. Good night. I’ll try not to wake you in the morning.”
“No biggie. I’ll want to say goodbye anyway.”
He settled face down on his pallet on the floor, and I reluctantly turned out the light. I couldn’t see him anymore but I knew there was an incredibly hot naked man a few feet away. I almost had to go into the bathroom and beat off again, but I finally managed to fall asleep.
The next morning, I woke up with a raging hardon—nothing unusual. But there was a naked man lying on the floor beside my bed, also with a raging hardon—very unusual. It was beautiful. Not much bigger than it was soft, slightly longer and a little thicker. But a whole lot harder. His foreskin had pulled off the head, leaving it more than half exposed.
I smiled to myself in the dim light. Finally got a naked guy into my bedroom. Now if I could only get one into my bed.
Alex may have sensed me staring at him because just then, he woke up. At first he was a little disoriented, waking up in a strange place. But then he looked down at his hard cock and it seemed to center him somehow. I understood the feeling. He then looked up at me.
“Morning, Jack. I see we both have the same problem this morning.” He was smiling and pointing at my crotch. I hadn’t noticed the comforter was no longer covering me and my hard cock was clearly evident in my underwear. I blushed all over.
He got up and headed right past me, his hard cock leading the way straight into the bathroom. I heard him pissing in the toilet, and then he popped right back into the room, now somewhat less hard, scratching his belly and chest absentmindedly.
“I didn’t flush since I figured you needed to do the same thing. Saves water.” He smiled and bent over to find some clothes to put on. There was his asshole, pink and shiny, staring at me. This guy was totally not self-conscious at all. I had to get out of there quickly before I made a total fool of myself with him.
I plodded to the bathroom and shut the door. It took a while, but I was finally able to get my dick down enough to pee. I flushed, then started the shower. I jacked off again under the hot water hoping it would help keep my mind off of Alex’s body long enough to get dressed and get out of there without causing real trouble.
Now back in some semblance of self-control, I completed my morning grooming and repacked all my toiletries into my travel kit. I put on a clean pair of underwear and hung up the dirty towels—I was leaving those for Alex.
I went back out into the bedroom where Alex was now sitting on the floor, fully dressed in jeans and a dark t-shirt, listening to his music. He looked up at me and smiled, then went back to listening. Trying not to be self-conscious, I got dressed and repacked my dirty clothes from yesterday. I was all set.
“Well, Alex, this is it. The apartment is all yours now. I hope everything goes well for you here and you work things out with Rose.”
“Already working on it. I think your plan’s gonna do the trick.”
He helped me get the bags to my car, we shook hands, and I drove away.
As planned, I drove to my office and parked the car where Stewart could get to it easily. I grabbed the envelope containing the title to the car, a bill of sale for a dollar, and the keys. I punched in the code at the door, then put the envelope in Mary’s top desk drawer, along with the keys. Mission accomplished.
Back outside, I pulled my luggage from the car, locked it up manually, and waited for my taxi. When it arrived just a couple of minutes later, I took one good look around the lot and at the building where I had toiled for over two years. I had enjoyed my time there, but it was time to move on.
***
The drive to the airport was quiet. I stared out the rear window of the cab as we buzzed past cars and buildings and people living their lives. I knew now I hadn’t been living mine. I had acquiesced to being who everyone else thought I should be, all the while wishing I could just be me, whoever that was. Maybe I would find myself in Hawaii. It certainly wasn’t happening back home with my family.
I smiled. Everything had changed with that one phone call. Amanda Franklin left me millions, but all the money in the world was worthless compared to her priceless wisdom. Love fully and live for others.
I was ready to love. First up—myself. It was slow going, stepping away from my self-imposed exile and venturing out into the world. And doing it as a gay man. I didn’t really know what I was doing, but I had to try. Hopefully I wouldn’t have to do it alone. Sharon and Billy had accepted me for who I was. Maybe others would too.
I wanted to love someone else, too, like Amanda had loved Patrick and Phillip. Spending even a little time with Billy had convinced me a gay man could have a normal life with a forever love of his own. I needed to love and be loved like that. I wanted more than sex. I craved a real family, a place where I belonged, where I was wanted, with someone who needed me in his life.
I was ready to live for others. I had tools, now. More than I could count. I also had people in my life who believed in me. I just needed to believe in myself. It was still a strange thought, that I could somehow do good things and change other people’s lives for the better. But this new purpose sparked a great hope in me—that I could make a difference, just like Amanda.
My stomach churned, and my hands trembled where they rested on the seat. Such lofty dreams scared me. What if I stepped out and failed? What if I never found a forever love? What if I couldn’t make a difference?
I shook my head and gritted my teeth, my hands morphing into fists. Enough was enough. I had lived in fear of one kind or another all my life, but no more. It was time to channel those fears into forward progress.
I was ready to do it afraid.