A Night at the Ariston Baths

by Michael Murphy

  “I want to hear all of it, but let’s go get something to eat, and you can tell me the story there.”

  Martin threw on a shirt, grabbed his shoes and coat, and led Theodore out to a small dining place nearby. Once settled, Theodore started from the beginning and told Martin everything about Micah, the change in Mr. Hoffman’s behavior, and Theodore’s sudden and unexpected termination.

  “I am appalled by the way Mr. Hoffman treated you after so many years of loyal service. The next time I’m back there, I intend to give him a piece of my mind. The man is an idiot.”

  “While I can’t disagree, I’m also grateful because I needed a kick in the pants to take this plunge and to try something new and scary. If my being here is not convenient, I can go elsewhere—assuming you can help me,” Theodore chuckled as he said that, since the possibility of him finding some other accommodation on his own was not very great.

  “Your presence is most certainly not a problem, not a problem in the slightest. I’m just so surprised. I’m so happy you’re here, Teddy.”

  Theodore was exhausted from the nonstop excitement he’d been experiencing all day, but the smile on Martin’s face made the entire trip and all the events of the past forty-eight hours worthwhile.

  Chapter Nine—Sleeping Arrangements

  THEIR DINNER completed, Martin led Theodore back to the house where he lived.

  He didn’t know if it was the proper thing to do or not, but Theodore looked at everyone who passed them on the walk. It was his experience, growing up in a tiny, rural settlement, to meet a man’s eye and to extend his greetings, even if he didn’t know the person. He quickly learned that this was not the custom in the big city.

  When Theodore saw Martin seemingly ignore the dozens of people they walked past, he did the same, even though it felt simply wrong. Martin was a product of the same environment as Theodore, so if this was the way Martin behaved in the big city, then it was the manner in which Theodore knew he was to behave as well, no matter how much it went against his upbringing.

  Martin was very animated, talking excitedly nearly the entire way back. Theodore had left his bag in Martin’s room when they’d gone out for dinner. Once they were back, his methodical nature required that he sort out details for the night.

  “How much does your room cost here?”

  “Five dollars per week, which includes breakfast and dinner each day.”

  Had Theodore not been sitting when Martin answered his question he might very well have fallen off his chair. Martin hadn’t blinked; he’d been serious. Theodore knew life in the big city was more costly than in his small hometown, but still…. Perhaps his nest egg wasn’t as large as he had thought it to be. Just that one little bit of news suddenly had Theodore rethinking everything.

  In an attempt to try to hide his shock, Theodore immediately asked another question. “Is the position in your office still available?”

  “Yes, it is. But best not to dawdle. I’d advise that you come with me tomorrow morning and apply forthwith.”

  “Excellent,” Theodore commented. “What time do you leave for work in the morning?”

  “I leave here at seven thirty so I’m there by eight when the office opens.”

  “Eight o’clock? And what time does your day end?”

  “Six o’clock.”

  The hours were the same that Theodore had worked back home. When he thought of it in those terms, though, he realized that the place back in Pennsylvania was no longer his home but was just a place he had lived earlier in his life. Home was… well, he wasn’t sure where home was at the moment. And he suddenly thought, I don’t have a home. Every fear, every worry, every insecurity he’d had over the last twenty-four hours came slamming back into the front of his mind anew.

  “Stop that!” Martin ordered sharply.

  “Stop what?” Theodore asked, startled by Martin’s tone and his instruction.

  “I’ve always been able to read you so well. You’ve never made the job difficult because your face is so adorably expressive. So it was not at all difficult for me to see that you just nearly threw yourself into a panic over something. No doubt some insecurity you’re feeling that is completely unfounded. You’ve never trusted your own abilities nearly enough, always assuming you can’t do what I know you can.”

  Theodore wanted to have a comeback, but he didn’t have words to argue with what Martin had just said. That was one thing he used to know—that Martin could read him like an open book—but their time apart had led him to forget that fact.

  The hour was growing late, and it was time to work out sleeping arrangements. “Do you have a spare blanket or two?” Theodore asked. “I can sleep on the floor tonight if it will be no bother.”

  “Nonsense. You’ll sleep in the bed with me.” Theodore looked toward the bed, wondering if the bed he saw earlier had somehow magically transformed into a larger bed. But no. It was still the same—a bed for one adult.

  “How?”

  “You’ll just have to sleep cuddled up with me,” Martin explained with a mischievous smile.

  Theodore smiled at Martin. “Fine. But you and I both need to sleep so you can work in the morning and I can be fresh to make a good impression on your boss.”

  “Oh you adult, you,” Martin jokingly scolded. “Fine. Very well. We’ll only mess around for an hour or two before going to sleep.”

  “We will do nothing of the sort,” Theodore said.

  “You’re so responsible,” Martin said as they disrobed for sleep.

  Theodore tried to pay no attention, but he wasn’t able to resist taking a quick look in Martin’s direction as he removed his clothes. He’d always adored the sight of his best friend without his clothes on. Martin had always been a dashing young man with such a tight, muscular body. As Martin shed his clothing that night, though, Theodore could see that life in New York City had robbed him of some of his former trim figure. He had not noticed it over Christmas, but Martin had gained a few pounds while living in the city. He wasn’t portly or overweight, by any means, but he was more… ample… than he had been previously. Even ample wasn’t the correct term, since Martin had probably only gained maybe ten pounds or so since Theodore had last seen him without his clothes.

  “You sure I can’t—”

  “Quite sure,” Theodore said before Martin could even finish his question.

  Martin lay sprawled on his back on the bed, one hand on his penis. “Positive?” Martin tried again.

  “Martin!” Theodore scolded.

  “What? It’s a simple question.”

  “And my answer is equally simple. I need to sleep.”

  “Fine,” Martin huffed in mock outrage. “But tomorrow you owe me.”

  “Fine,” Theodore said, imitating Martin.

  Martin extinguished the lamp, plunging the room into… shadows. Theodore was confused. What was that light? As a child of the country, he was accustomed to turning off a light and being in complete darkness. But there was light coming in through the window in Martin’s room.

  And there was noise. Voices of people passing by on the street below. Noises of carriages, of horses’ hooves clomping on the frozen ground, and sounds Theodore could not begin to identify.

  “How do you stand that?” Theodore asked as they snuggled together in Martin’s bed.

  “Stand what?” Martin asked.

  “That noise?”

  “What noise?”

  “Out there,” Theodore said, shaking his hand toward the window. “And the light.”

  “Oh, didn’t even notice. It’s just background. You’ll learn to tune it all out.”

  Martin seemed to have a better ability at that than Theodore, but eventually he, too, fell asleep.

  Chapter Ten—Getting a Job

  IN THE morning, Theodore was awake before Martin. Their sleeping space was so confining, though, that he didn’t dare move for fear of waking the sleeping Martin.

  With one eye on the clock, though, Theodo
re knew he had to try to wake Martin.

  “Martin?”

  Nothing.

  “Martin? It’s time to get up. Come on.”

  Nothing.

  “Martin. Come on. We’ve got to get ready.”

  Theodore sighed when once again there was no response.

  But just when he was about to try again, Martin said, “I’m awake and I heard you the first time. You are so adorably cute when you’re impatient.”

  Martin had not prepared wisely before saying that, so when Theodore, who was behind him, wrapped his arms around Martin’s waist and tickled him mercilessly, there was little that Martin could do to escape. He begged Theodore to stop, which Theodore finally did.

  “Be careful, my friend,” Theodore cautioned. “I know all of your weak points.”

  “I understand. I… I’m yours.”

  “Come on. We need to get up and get ready for work.”

  “Okay,” Martin agreed. “On one condition.”

  Theodore was sitting up. He looked down at the smile on his friend’s face and grew worried. “Yes?”

  Martin rolled over onto his belly and spread his legs.

  “There’s no time!” Theodore protested.

  Theodore took advantage of Martin’s vulnerability from leaping from the bed and slapping Martin firmly on his backside.

  “Hey!” Martin complained, rubbing where Theodore had slapped him.

  “You can have what you request, but only at the end of the workday, as a reward. At the moment, we need to prepare to leave so I can go obtain a job.”

  Together they washed up at the basin in Martin’s room, several times Martin trying to derail Theodore’s preparations by grabbing for his penis and trying to work it back to erection.

  “Martin! No! Later fine, but not now. We’ll be late.”

  “But what’s the risk in that?”

  “Risk?”

  “Sure, haven’t you ever wanted to do something that was risky? Let me tell you, it is so exciting. It makes something you’ve done a thousand times seem so much more alive and vibrant.”

  “What in the world types of things are you thinking of?”

  “You know, pleasuring a man with your mouth with others nearby, letting a big bruiser take you where you could just as easily be discovered as not.”

  “Are you insane?” Theodore demanded.

  “No, I just get bored with the same old thing all the time. I like to spice things up a bit.”

  As he pulled on his clothes and straightened his tie, Theodore asked something he almost didn’t want to know the answer to. “Does that mean you would get bored of… of being with me?”

  “Probably,” Martin answered directly with no hesitation. “I like some variety. All men do. We’re made to have sex… lots and lots of sex with as many partners as possible. And let me tell you, this city is full of potential partners. My goal is to do as many of them as humanly possible while I live here in the city.”

  Theodore didn’t have a clue what to say to that. His tie only partially tied, he stood unmoving, mouth agape at Martin and what he’d just revealed.

  “So, that means you don’t want to live with a man and be only with him?”

  “Good Lord, no! Why in the world would I ever want to do something so crazy?”

  Theodore looked but did not speak.

  “You haven’t seen it yet. This city is full of our people. I may not get the chance to live here forever, so while I’m here, I’m going to find and bed as many of those men as possible.” Martin paused for a moment, looked thoughtful, and asked, “You weren’t thinking… that you and I—”

  “No!” Theodore quickly denied, even though it was precisely what he had been thinking. Yes, he wanted to be with Martin. They’d been friends forever. And the truth was that yes, he wanted that type of relationship with Martin. He wanted what his parents had, just with a man. And he’d thought Martin was that man. Martin’s words were simply devastating to him.

  Theodore turned his back to Martin to pull on his shoes and then checked his appearance in the mirror.

  Martin led him downstairs for a quick breakfast served by the landlady of the house. It was not elaborate, and it was not what Theodore would call a farm breakfast, but it was good.

  The walk to Martin’s office was significant, and even though the previous evening he had seen many new things, their walk that morning was even more impressive. New York City was huge. It was possible to read about it in books, in letters, in newspaper articles, but it was necessary to see it to fully understand.

  The pace of their walk was brisk, which was just fine, because it was a very cold morning with a stiff wind. The only good thing was that the wind was at their backs. Inside the ornate lobby of the office building, Theodore had another first—he rode on an elevator. He watched very closely as a young man in a tight-fitting uniform closed the elevator door and poked buttons before pulling a lever to make the little box lift to higher floors.

  Theodore had heard of such things but had never seen one before. He watched the elevator operator very closely, admiring the way uniform pants wrapped around his beautiful behind. When Theodore unconsciously licked his lips, Martin leaned in and whispered, “I’ve had him—lovely experience.”

  A deep red blush covered Theodore’s cheeks as they rode the remainder of the way to Martin’s floor, but he did notice that when they exited the lift that Martin and the young elevator operator shared a particular smile. He also heard the young man ask, “Who’s your friend, Martin?”

  “This is my best friend, Theodore McCall.”

  “A pleasure to meet you, Mr. McCall,” the elevator operator said as he blatantly stared at Theodore’s pants. He dropped his gaze and tried to decide if he wanted to interview for the job or merely turn, find a staircase, and run for his life.

  It had only taken a matter of hours, but to Theodore it felt as if he’d left the world he’d known and transported himself to an entirely new one where everything was different, and most importantly where there were other men like himself who did not hesitate to acknowledge that fact. If he could recover from the shock, Theodore might just be able to enjoy this place.

  When he was introduced to Martin’s boss, Theodore’s first impression of the man was of a gruff, foul-tempered person who appeared to be annoyed at Martin, at Theodore, and at life in general.

  “Mr. Sullivan,” Martin called as he knocked on his boss’s door that morning. Sullivan was already in and was hard at work with ledgers and reports spread all over his desk. He had, to Theodore’s eye, the look of a man trying to do too many things and in the end succeeding in doing none of them well. Theodore had always been good at quickly assessing people and their situations, but he remembered that he was in an entirely new world, so perhaps his split-second analysis would not prove true in this case.

  “What do ya want?” Sullivan asked without raising his gaze from the figures in front of him.

  “I’ve brought something for you,” Martin said with a smile.

  Sullivan raised his head and looked at Martin. “What?”

  Martin grabbed Theodore’s arm and pushed him toward Sullivan. Theodore extended his hand toward Mr. Sullivan and said, “Theodore McCall, sir. It is nice to make your acquaintance.”

  Without standing, Sullivan shook Theodore’s hand, something that would have been considered an unpardonable etiquette sin back home, but apparently not here. Theodore had been raised to always rise to shake a man’s hand as a show of respect. He wondered if perhaps it meant that Mr. Sullivan did not respect him. He guessed that it would not take long to find out.

  “Fuller, I don’t have time for games. I’ve got too much work to do, and that doesn’t even count my own work, which has suffered while I’m doing all of this ledger crap.”

  “Theodore is your solution, sir. There is no one else as adept with numbers as this man. He can work numbers in his head and can calculate rings around anyone else. Theodore is the man you need to sol
ve your problem. Hire him for the vacant position, and you can get back to your own job.”

  Martin’s last statement had finally succeeded in getting Mr. Sullivan’s full and undivided attention, which was clearly demonstrated when a few seconds later, he stood and shook Theodore’s hand.

  “So you are good with numbers, are you?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Most people aren’t.”

  It wasn’t a question, but Theodore knew a response was called for. “I don’t fear them, sir. I like numbers. I like what they can tell us about things.”

  “That’s nice, but what about basic arithmetic?”

  “Not a problem in any way, sir.”

  “Here,” Mr. Sullivan said, grabbing an open ledger from his desk. “Sit here”—he indicated, patting the back of his chair—“and add up all the numbers on the page on the right.”

  Theodore did as asked and reached a conclusion quickly. As was his custom, though, he repeated the exercise to verify that he had reached the correct solution.

  “Would you like me to write my answer in the ledger, sir? Or just tell you what I got?”

  “Tell me.”

  “Twelve thousand, eight hundred and seventy-eight dollars and twenty-one cents.”

  Sullivan checked a piece of paper he held in his hand. “Correct. And you did it quickly. But are you sure of your result?”

  “Yes, sir. I did the calculation twice, the second time to verify that my initial conclusion was correct.”

  “You added all those numbers two times while I’ve been standing here?”

  Theodore didn’t understand why the man was asking the question with such intensity, but he answered, “Yes, sir. I always do. I want my work to be accurate, and the only way to verify that is to always do the calculation twice and verify that the result matches both times.”

  “If you added those numbers up twice, why didn’t you write the sum down after the first time?”

  “I didn’t need to. I remembered the number.”