He settled beside Alex, the heat from his body a palpable wave.On the couch, the surrounding space emphasized their closeness, a stark difference from being crammed into the backseat of a car or squeezed into a diner booth.
As the movie played, Ry relaxed, the gentle rumble of the speakers lulling him as he rested his head on Alex’s shoulder.Which he’d also done a lot of, too.Ry felt Alex wanted him to just be himself, not a stressed-out mess.He had to try for Alex’s sake.
After a good twenty minutes in, Alex wiggled around and poked Ry a few times.
“Hey, scooch over.I wanna get comfy and lie down.Got the shoes off, don’t worry.”And then Alex’s legs were over Ry’s.
“Come on, lie down too.”
And Ry didn’t know why, but he knew if he lay down with his head at the other armrest, it would have been unacceptable.So he lay on top of Alex, his head barely reaching Alex’s chest.He had to admit, it felt amazing.He could feel Alex’s breath, could feel his body, rock hard under him, and tried to stop thinking about that.
But that was impossible.
Ry couldn’t pay attention to the movie no matter how much he wanted to or thought he should.It was noise that he tried to concentrate on, but Alex was right there, and by god he wanted to do so much right now.He briefly wondered if this might be the definition of torture.
“You sure you’re comfortable?”Ry mumbled.“I mean, I’m not that heavy, but I’m not that skinny.”
Alex grunted.“Yup.I’m fine.”And then Alex wrapped an arm around him.
There was absolutely nothing he could do about his boner.It just popped up.Right into Alex’s thigh, and it was super uncomfortable.Ry had to pull a stealth adjustment.There was no way that Alex couldn’t feel it unless his whole damn leg was numb.
Ry tried to will it away, but it remained, throbbing.He turned beet red, thankful that Alex couldn’t see his face.He opened his mouth twice, but the words caught in his throat, and the heat of his embarrassment made him falter.Alex remained still and quiet, as if unaware.Then, an explosion came on the screen, and Ry jumped.
“Scared?”Alex said.
“No, just startled.”Ry sat up, trying to move lower, using the jump as an excuse to extricate himself from the embarrassing situation.
“Where are you going?”Alex also sat up and stretched.
“I don’t know.It’s just weird?”Ry avoided looking at Alex.
“Weird?”
Ry’s face burned.“I mean, how could you not feel it?”
“Oh, that?”Alex laughed, waving away Ry’s concern.“It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
“Oh my god.”Ry’s face flushed with heat.He shifted away from Alex and crossed his arms.
Alex paused the movie and moved next to him.“Hey, sorry if things got weird for you.I mean, I know you like guys, so it’s not like it’s a big secret.It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not,” Ry said.
Alex sighed, folding his hands in his lap.“Sorry.I didn’t mean to make you feel weird.And, well, maybe—I like guys too.”
“What?”Ry glanced over at Alex.Despite the dim light, a blush spread across Alex’s face.
Ry felt a large hand on the back of his head, Alex suddenly close.Hot lips kissed him awkwardly.And then his “problem” got worse and painfully hard.He kissed Alex harder than he meant to.
Ry wanted to take so much of what Alex now offered.As teeth clashed and lips met, their tongues explored each other in a slow, hesitant dance.But to Ry, it was as perfect as it could be.
“So,” Ry said after a moment.“Um, that was totally your idea by the way.”
“Yup.”
Then Ry kissed him.This was better.Less awkward than the clumsy fumbling that had preceded it.A gentle exploration, and a promise of more.Ry carded one hand through Alex’s hair; with the other, their fingers entangled gently.The world seemed to fade away.But then, just as the kiss deepened, just as the emotions threatened to overwhelm him, Ry pulled back.
“And that was my idea.”
