Breaking Masks

by Josh Aterovis

  Jake asked for more details about my family, and I filled him in on Dad and Charlie. I told him how Charlie had been asking about whether I was going to ask Jake out or not, and he just smiled. I wondered if he'd had a similar discussion with Killian. My curiosity was killing me on that. Who did he confide in? Then I realized that Roy seemed to know an awful lot. What does that mean? Where does Roy fit into all this anyway?

  “So, um,” I began. “I know this is probably none of my business, but I am guessing Roy is your confidant here, since you have no access to Killian?”

  Jake chuckled before replying, "I don't know if I'd say confidant. Roy's just always there these days, so I talk to him. Sometimes it's almost like talking to myself. He's an okay guy though. I wish I could talk to Killian more, but he's really busy. He's a private eye and he's on a big case right now."

  “Oh, I guess that must be tough on you since you guys are so close,” I said. I felt sympathetic, but I also wondered how close they really were. Or maybe I just didn't rate a call to the best friend. I hate when I do this to myself. Self doubt seems to be something I store in bulk, for just such an occasion.

  “That's the great thing about us, we don't have to see each other all the time to know the other cares. We can not talk for a long time, but when we see each other it's like no time has passed at all. You'd like Killian, I think.”

  “I hope I get to meet him, especially if he's so important to you,” I replied with a smile.

  “You know what's funny? I think he'd say the same thing about you.”

  I was feeling pretty damn good right then, and I don't think anyone could blame me. I had this gorgeous guy in my house, I didn't burn dinner, and we were getting to know each other. But the best part was...I liked him. I liked spending time with him, not just staring at him and wondering what he looked like under his clothes. He could make me laugh, carry on a good conversation, and we seemed to have some real chemistry.

  Life is good.

  I noticed his glass was empty. “More Coke?”

  “Please.”

  I stood to get his drink and felt a small tug near my waist. Too late I realized it was because the tablecloth was stuck to my belt buckle, caught by loose threads. The same loose threads I had carefully put on my side of the table so he wouldn't see them. I turned quickly and reached for the main dish as it toppled past my grasping fingers, followed quickly by damn near everything on the table.

  So there we were in the kitchen, Jake at the table, fork in hand, and the rest of the meal on the floor at my feet.

  Life sucks.

  I sadly bent down to pick up the remnants of what had been a great evening when I noted Jake bending down next to me. As we picked up the dinner, he started giggling a bit. After a few seconds, I was unable to resist joining him.

  “You know,” Jake said as he wiped up the chicken sauce, “this seems familiar.”

  “Yeah, you and me cleaning up my messes.”

  “I was going to ask you out that day.”

  I stopped and stared at him. “You were?”

  “Yeah. That's the day you smiled at me the first time.”

  We were both kneeling on the floor, the mess between us, our eyes locked. Strangely, for me, I held his gaze without becoming embarrassed. It must have looked silly, dinner on the floor and us staring into each other's eyes. He smiled at me, and I returned it. He began to lean forward hesitantly. It's about to happen! He was getting closer, his face less than a foot from mine. I leaned in slightly, my lips parted. Suddenly, he lurched forward, crashing into me. The next thing I knew, I was looking up into his face in surprise, on my back with his chest on mine. In retrospect, I think he must have overbalanced and slipped on the sauce.

  He started to giggle. I joined him and soon we were laughing loudly, lying on my kitchen floor in the remains of dinner. He looked down into my face and the laughter slowly faded away. He leaned in slowly, resting his lips on mine, soft, warm and fitting perfectly against my own. I kept my gaze on him. I wanted to remember every detail. He began to lift away, a cloud of self doubt in his eyes. I slid one arm behind him and placed my other hand on his neck. I gently pulled him towards me. The feel of his warm, smooth skin registered in my mind as his hair brushed across my face, tickling my cheeks.

  His lips met mine once again with a renewed sense of purpose. There we were, entwined, my first kiss on the kitchen floor, holding a boy I was sure I was falling head over heels in love with, lying in the mess of my cooling dinner. I knew I'd never forget my first kiss!

  Chapter 13

  Breaking Masks

  Josh Aterovis and Dave Dabeagle

  © 2004

  "Jake"

  My first kiss with Kody wasn't quite the way I'd imagined it, but it was better than anything I could have ever dreamed. Sure, we were lying in a splattered mess of chicken, sauce, rice, and vegetables in the middle of the kitchen floor, but that didn't matter. All that mattered was the feel of his lips against mine, the feel of my body pressed against his. I didn't want the moment to end, but, of course, like all good things, it had to eventually.

  I gently broke the kiss and pushed myself up on my elbows so I could look into his beautiful face again. His eyes were shining, his lips wet, his cheeks rosy—he was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. And then he spoke.

  “The sauce is soaking through my underwear.”

  I snorted and started giggling again.

  “No, seriously!” he protested. “It's kind of sticky and...well, wet. It feels really nasty.”

  I kissed him lightly on the nose and used the table to pull myself up off of him, then extended my hand to pull him to his feet. We were both a royal mess. I had food on the knees of my brand new black jeans and down the sleeves of both arms. Kody was even worse. When he turned around, I saw he was coated from the center of his back to below his pert little bum. He twisted around to get a look at the mess and grimaced. I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing again.

  “Great,” he muttered. He looked back down at the floor and he appeared as if he might cry at any second. “I'm so sorry. Everything is ruined—”

  “No,” I said quickly, cutting him off. “Nothing is ruined. We had a great dinner—well, most of it anyway—and great conversation, and I found out that you're a great kisser.” He blushed scarlet and ducked his head to hide a pleased smile. “And the night is far from over.” He looked up with a surprised expression.

  “But we're a mess...”

  “So we change,” I said with a shrug, then added playfully. “Come on, I'll help you.” I grabbed his shirt tail and tugged it up. He giggled and spun away with a squeal. I chased him around the table, almost slipping on the sauce again. I grabbed him around the waist from behind and swung him around. His shirt bunched up under his arms and I couldn't help but take a peek at his flat tummy. His underwear was sticking out above the waist of his jeans in that way that I find ever-so-sexy. I did a double-take.

  I set him down and spun him around to face me, my arms still tight around his waist.

  “Is it my imagination, or is my name on your underwear?” I asked with a teasing grin.

  Kody's mouth and eyes flew open in abject horror. “I...it's...they...” he sputtered.

  I squeezed him even tighter and leaned into whisper into his ear, “It's okay. I'm wearing Kody boxers.”

  He blinked. “Really?”

  I laughed. “No, but I think it's sexy as hell that my name is on yours.”

  He flushed red again and tickled my sides so I let go of him with a yelp.

  “This sauce is getting cold now and it's even grosser,” Kody said with as much dignity as he could muster. “I've got to go change. What are you going to do?”

  I started to answer flippantly with “Watch,” but realized that might be pushing things a bit too far. While Kody certainly seemed to catch on quick when it came to this whole flirting business, I had to keep reminding myself that he was really innocent and inexperienced. How inexp
erienced I wasn't sure, but it was obvious that this was all new to him. He was so adorably awkward, yet so very earnest. “Maybe I should go see if Nick has something I can wear,” I suggested. “He's a little taller than me, but it should be okay.”

  Kody pulled a face. “Great. I'll never hear the end of this from him. Can you tell him that we had an earthquake or something and he just missed it?”

  I laughed. “I'll make sure he doesn't give you a hard time.”

  Kody rolled his eyes, but turned towards his bedroom without a word. I wanted to follow him, but I made myself turn around and walk to the door. I knocked on Nick's door and waited. The sauce really was starting to get cold. It was quite uncomfortable.

  Nick swung open the door and looked surprised to find me standing there. “Uh, hey. Aren't you supposed to be having dinner with Kody?”

  “I am. Or I was. But then we had a little incident.”

  “Oh shit, man! Is everything all right?”

  “Oh yeah. I just...could I borrow some clothes?”

  “What?” He looked utterly confused. He took a step back to allow more light by, and took a closer look at me. “Dude! What happened?”

  “Long story.”

  “You can't have my clothes unless I get the story.”

  “Fine, just let me get out of these. The sauce is getting cold and let me tell you, it does not feel good.”

  He stepped back a little more to let me walk in. He took a better look at me after he shut the door.

  “You know, I've heard some crazy shit, but this is really kinky.”

  I laughed. “Clothes, Nick.”

  “Story, Jake.”

  “I knocked the food off the table and then slipped in it, okay?” He gave me a skeptical look. “Ask Kody!” I insisted. I'd have to be sure to tell Kody what the new story was, just in case he did ask—which I was sure he would. “Clothes?”

  He shrugged. “Jeans okay?”

  “That's fine.”

  He disappeared into the bedroom and I quickly toed off my shoes, peeled off the soiled jeans, and started unbuttoning my shirt.

  A sharp wolf whistle announced Nick's reappearance. “Damn, Jake,” he said appreciatively. He stood in the doorway and ogled my body.

  “Five bucks a minute, Pederson. Cash only. Keep staring, I need the money.”

  Nick shook his head and grinned as he tossed me the jeans. I pulled them on, then looked at him expectantly.

  “What?” he asked.

  “Shirt?”

  “Oh yeah. You sure you need it? I'm sure Kody would like it better without one...”

  “Shirt, please?”

  He grinned and disappeared into his bedroom again. He came back out a minute later and handed me a red pullover.

  I pulled it over my head and ran my hands down the soft material. It fit snugly. “I like this,” I said.

  “Keep it. It's a little small on me.”

  “Really?” He nodded. “Thanks!” I put my shoes back on, then bent to pick up the dirty clothes.

  “Leave them. I'll wash them and get them back to you.” I looked up with surprise. “Hey, consider it my part in helping this little love affair along. Now get back to your boy. I know how hard he worked to make this night perfect. Try not to mess it up, huh?”

  I quickly crossed the room and gave Nick a brief hug before heading back to Kody's apartment. I gave a brief rap before walking in. Kody was on his knees in the floor cleaning up the mess. Like me, he'd changed into another pair of jeans, but his polo shirt was a smoky blue-gray that reflected the color of his eyes perfectly. He looked up as I approached and gave me a crooked grin.

  “How about if you stay where you are?” he quipped. “I think we'd all be safer that way...and besides, I can look at you better from here.”

  I smiled and did a little pirouette. “Like what you see?”

  “Oh yeah. Don't tell him I said this, but Nick's clothes look better on you than they do on him.”

  I laughed. “By the way, in case he asks, the story is that I knocked the food off the table and then fell in it.”

  “But that's not what happened!”

  “I know that, and you know that, but Nick doesn't.”

  “You didn't have to do that!”

  “I know, but this way he won't ride you about it.” I edged closer to where he was kneeling.

  “Jake...”

  “Kody, it's not a big deal. I feel stupid just standing here watching you clean up. Isn't there something I can do?”

  “I'm almost done. You can hold the trash bag so I can throw all this crap in there. Just don't get too close. I don't want you to slip again.”

  “I'm a little more prepared now.” I picked up the trash bag and held it open while Kody tossed in the food and paper towels he'd used to clean up.

  “So much for dinner,” he said with a sigh.

  “It was really good, Kody. I can't believe you cooked it yourself. I can't wait to see what's for dessert.”

  His face registered dismay. “I forgot dessert!”

  I tried not to laugh at his pitiful expression. “It's okay,” I soothed. “In fact, it's good.”

  “Good? How can it be good? I forgot dessert! Everybody knows that's like the most important part of dinner. God! What else can I mess up?”

  “This is my chance to thank you for dinner. Now I get to take you out for dessert. Where should we go?”

  “I don't know.” He was still visibly upset, so I squatted down next to him.

  “Kody, we could have had Big Mac's and apple pies from Mickey Dee's and this night would have still been perfect. I don't care if dinner ended up on the floor and you forgot dessert. So what if things didn't go exactly as you planned? We got to spend time together and that's what matters. Right?”

  A smile slowly spread across his face, transforming him into one of Raphael's angels. “Right.”

  I couldn't resist any longer. I bounced to my feet, pulling him up with me. I drew him into me as I slid my arms around his waist. Kody's arms snaked around my neck and we met halfway. The kiss was amazing. It lasted several minutes and I thought my knees would buckle. There was no doubt about it; this kid was a quick study. We broke reluctantly apart, both of us panting. I wondered if Kody could feel my erection pressing into his body. “Or we could just skip dessert and stay here,” I said in a husky voice.

  Kody pretended to pout. “I wanted chocolate cake.” I raised an eyebrow and he grinned. “But I think I can live without it.”

  He stepped back, sliding his hands down my arms and slipping them into my hands. He pulled me towards the couch and uttered the time-worn but never unwelcome words, “Let's get more comfortable.”

  I was ready to do whatever he said, anything to taste his lips again. I let him lead me across the apartment and onto the couch, where our bodies slid together like two pieces of a puzzle, a perfect fit. For a few moments, I just lightly traced the outlines of his face with my finger tips. He was so beautiful, so pure...and he wanted me. The idea blew my mind, made me deliriously happy and unspeakably terrified at the same time. Would he still want me if I told him everything? He'd surprised me over and over so far, but how much was too much?

  He must have seen the uncertainty in my eyes, because he gently reached up and stroked my cheek. “Don't be scared,” he said in a barely audible voice. “I won't hurt you.”

  My breath caught in my throat. I couldn't look away from his eyes. I was lost in their smoky depths. I don't know how long we stared into each other's souls, but the spell was suddenly broken when the phone rang. Kody shot an exasperated look in the direction of the ringing instrument. I was surprised it didn't melt into a pool of molten plastic from the intensity of his stare alone.

  “I'm not answering it,” he said through clenched teeth.

  “Why not?”

  “Because I just know it's Dad or Charlie.”

  We watched the phone as it rang about ten times then finally fell silent. Kody turned back to me with
a smug smile. He opened his mouth to say something just as it started up again.

  “Arg!” he yelled.

  “You better get it,” I said, rolling off of him. “It could be an emergency.”

  “Emergency my ass,” he grumbled as he got up and stomped over to the phone. “Hello?” If I'd been on the other end of the phone when he answered in that tone of voice I would have promptly apologized and hung up. Whoever it was had a stronger constitution than I, however. Kody listened for a few seconds then rolled his eyes.

  “Dinner was fine, Dad. Thanks ever so much for calling to check.” Pause. “Yes, it was delicious...until I dumped it in on the floor.” Pause. “I'll tell you later.” Pause. “Yes, he's still here.” Pause. “No, you can't talk to him.” Pause. “Dad! I have to go. I'll call you later. No, wait. Tomorrow. I'll call you tomorrow.” He hastily hung up and turned to face me, red-faced and tight-lipped. “Sorry about that.”