Petrichor

by L. J. Hamlin

  “That was a nice hello.” It’s the sweetest kiss he’s ever experienced.

  “Is it weird to say I kind of missed you?” Ash asks.

  “No, I know what you mean.” He’s been wanting to see Ash for days now.

  “First time I’ve seen you not wearing your uniform.”

  “Well, I’ve never seen you in yours.” Levi pouts slightly.

  “You telling me you have a thing for a man in uniform? If I’d known, I’d have gone with that instead of worrying about what to wear.” Ash smiles and Levi wants to kiss him again, but he thinks if he kisses Ash now he’ll never get inside the restaurant, and he wants a date.

  “Well, firemen are meant to be sexy.” Levi grins.

  “I never thought scrubs were sexy till you walked over to me in the hospital. Somehow you make something shapeless and ugly work.” Ash sounds like he honestly means it.

  “You have a nurse kink.” Levi snorts.

  “I’ve never dated a nurse before,” Ash says firmly.

  “How about a doctor?”

  “Nope, no doctors. So can I take you to dinner now?” Ash asks.

  “Just making sure there’s no medical kink I should know about. Now, yeah, let’s go get some dinner.” Levi nods. He likes that Ash finds him sexy in his scrubs, but he would hate for Ash to like him solely because he’s a nurse. Some guys have asked him out just because they have a fetish for nurses.

  He doesn’t think Ash is like that.

  “Needle phobia, remember? Your profession terrifies me.” Ash laughs and he takes Levi’s hand as he leads the way into the restaurant.

  They go in and sit down, order their food and just talk. It’s simple, but nice. Just like when they’d been in the coffee shop, the time seems to fly by as quickly as water passing through cupped hands. It has Levi wishing he could slow down or stop time altogether. He doesn’t want this date to end.

  But it seems like they’ve hardly sat down before they are being asked to leave. Someone needs the table.

  “I don’t want this date to end,” Levi admits as they walk outside.

  “Doesn’t have to. There’s a park near here. Let’s go for a walk,” Ash suggests.

  They walk and they talk and cut it as close as possible, but work won’t wait for either of them.

  Ash insists on walking him home, which is sweet, but it makes Levi wish he could drag Ash inside, take him upstairs, and keep him up all night.

  “That look on your face—what are you thinking?” Ash asks.

  “You don’t want to know,” Levi says darkly.

  “Tell me on our next date?” Ash suggests.

  “I’d like that.” Though waiting for another date might just kill him.

  “We could meet for lunch tomorrow?”

  “I can do that.”

  * * * *

  Over the next two weeks they manage to fit in seven dates, three phone calls, and countless texts. And now they finally have a night off and neither of them has to work in the morning. So Levi is cooking dinner in his apartment because he lives alone, whereas Ash has a roommate.

  Levi ditches his scrubs, showers, and then gets cooking, his stomach bubbling with excitement when Ash calls to say he’s downstairs.

  “You’re shirtless,” Ash says the moment Levi opens the door.

  “You were hoping for my uniform?” Levi jokes. He always cooks with his shirt off. He’s ruined way too many shirts while cooking. He should get an apron, but he’s just never gotten around to it.

  “No, this is good,” Ash drawls, looking Levi up and down with heat in his eyes, and then Levi doesn’t know who starts it, but they’re kissing, stumbling back into the apartment, and Ash kicks the door shut behind him.

  “What’s for dinner?” Ash asks against his lips.

  “Fuck dinner, let’s go to bed.” Levi growls, and Ash grins at him, and it’s definitely Ash who starts the kiss this time, and they’re tangled together again.

  Somehow Levi gets them to the bedroom, and he gets Ash’s shirt off before they tumble onto his thankfully made bed. They kiss deeply, and Levi finds himself taking the lead, pinning Ash to the bed beneath him, kissing his mouth, his neck, his collarbone and then sucking on his nipples.

  “Fuck, pants off,” Ash groans, and Levi has no arguments. He strips them both as quickly as possible, only getting caught up on a shoe once, and then he captures Ash’s mouth again, moaning at the feeling of all of that bare skin, the heat of Ash’s cock against his stomach. It’s all so much, but he wants more.

  “I want to fuck you so badly. Tell me if this is too fast, if I’m rushing.” Levi wants this, but he doesn’t want to be a pushy asshole.

  “Yes, please,” Ash hisses, arching beneath Levi.

  Levi reaches over to his night stand and finds the lube he’s only used on himself and settles between Ash’s legs. He slides one of Ash’s legs over his shoulder and kisses the inside of Ash’s thigh. Levi slicks up his fingers and warms the lube a little before he strokes over Ash’s hole, pushing the tip of his finger inside.

  He takes his time fingering Ash open, pulling moans and other sweet, sexy noises out of Ash. It makes him harder than he can remember being in a long time, and by the time he rolls a condom on, he’s panting. He kisses Ash hard, trying to let out a little of his passion that way.

  “Ready?” Levi asks, coating his cock with lube.

  “Never been more ready,” Ash says with a cocky grin, and Levi just has to kiss it off Ash’s lips before pressing the head of his cock to Ash’s entrance, pushing in slowly until his hips are pressing against Ash’s, and he’s surrounded by heat.

  He kisses Ash again, holding Ash close and thrusting shallowly to begin with, going easy till Ash digs his nails into Levi’s back and starts making demands. “Come on, more, I can take it harder.”

  “I don’t want to hurt you.” Levi kisses Ash gently, holding back even though his body is screaming for more, harder, faster.

  “Not made of glass. Give it to me,” Ash orders, and he looks so sexy, face flushed and eyes flashing, sweaty and desperate, and it is clear that he knows exactly what he wants.

  Levi gives into Ash and his own body’s demands and thrusts harder, the sound of Ash’s moan shooting straight up his spine.

  “Fuck, fuck me,” Ash gasps, and there’s no holding back after that. All he can do is move.

  Levi has enough of his mind still working that he remembers to wrap a hand around Ash’s cock. It’s hot and hard in his hand, and he tries to match the speed of his hand with his thrusts. He loses himself to sensation: the feel of Ash beneath him, the sight, the scent of them together. It’s all almost too much, but at the same time, it’s not enough.

  “Please,” Ash whimpers, arching up, his eyes hazy with pleasure.

  “Please what, baby?” Levi teases.

  “Make me come. I want to come.” Ash groans.

  Levi kisses him, hard and fast, speeding up his hand, rubbing his thumb over the head of Ash’s cock, loving the way Ash gasps into his mouth, the way he clings to Levi like he’s the only solid thing in the world.

  The pleasure builds and builds, and Levi is determined to make Ash come first, so he thrusts harder, moves his hand faster, and Ash cries out suddenly, head back, Levi’s name on his lips as he comes over their skin.

  He keeps thrusting, chasing his own ending, and pleasure shoots through his whole body, stealing all of his strength. For a moment it even takes the breath from his lungs. Levi collapses on Ash, who doesn’t seem to mind. All he does is wrap warm arms around Levi, petting his back gently as he comes down from the best high Levi’s ever had.

  “That was…Damn, I’m not good with words, but that was, it was something, right?” Ash asks softly.

  “I can’t think of anything that wouldn’t sound like a cliché, but we’re a nurse and a fireman dating. Clichés have been working so far. That was special, like more fireworks than the 4th of July.” Levi pulls out and rolls to the side so he isn’t cr
ushing Ash, but he cuddles close to Ash’s side, wanting to stay close, to be skin to skin.

  “Firemen do like sexy nurses. I’d forgotten that. I’ll have to tell the guys I have a hot as hell nurse in my bed.” Ash grins.

  “We’re in my bed,” Levi replies.

  “So we are. Can we stay here? Nothing’s changed. You don’t have work in the morning, right?” Ash asks, and he looks a little vulnerable.

  “We can stay. No work. And even when our jobs keep us busy, we can make this work, right? We’ve been making this work.” Levi loves being a nurse, but he thinks he’s starting to love Ash, too.

  “It works; we work.” Ash nods firmly and then leans in for a sweet kiss.

  * * * *

  Two months later

  “You look excited,” Jenny says as they put away their things in the locker room. She’s going on shift, and Levi’s is just ending. But they’re both in scrubs because Levi isn’t wasting time getting changed.

  “I have a date.” Levi grins as he closes his locker.

  “Things still going strong with the fireman?” Jenny asks.

  “Ash. Yeah, they are. We’re doing dinner and a movie tonight, and we both have the morning off,” Levi says happily.

  “It’s not like you were grumpy before you met him, but you’ve been so happy these last few months. I’m really happy for you,” Jenny smiles.

  “Well, I have you to thank.” Levi points out.

  “Why?” Jenny asks.

  “He was your patient. You gave him to me, remember?” Levi certainly remembers that day.

  “I do. He was the one who got hurt saving a kitten right?”

  “That’s my guy,” Levi says as his cell phone beeps with a text. Ash is waiting for him outside of the hospital.

  “You get going. You spend enough time in this hospital. Go have a social life.” Jenny shoos him, and Levi doesn’t have to think twice about leaving.

  Levi leaves the locker room and heads out of the hospital and quickly spots Ash waiting for him. As he gets closer, he notices that Ash has his coat zipped all the way up even though it’s pretty warm out.

  “What’s up? You have a cold?” Levi asks.

  “Umm, no,” Ash says, looking sheepish, and a lump in his jacket moves.

  “What did you do?” Levi frowns.

  “I saved her. She doesn’t have an owner.” Ash unzips his jacket a little and reveals a small, furry tabby cat.

  “Your roommate is allergic to cats,” Levi points out.

  “Yeah, I was hoping…”

  “You want me to take him home?” Levi guesses.

  “It would be a huge favor.” Ash looks worried.

  “Of course, I’ll take him.” Levi reaches out, and Ash hands him the kitten.

  “It’s a little girl. I don’t want to fight with another man for your attention.” Ash grins, and while he’s cuddling his new kitten, Levi gets pulled in for a kiss.

  “No worries there.”

  Will You Be the Wolf to My Captain Dee?

  There are so many people, and so many of them are in costume, that Bennett doesn’t think he sticks out. He’s dressed in a genderbend of his favourite character from the best science fiction show ever, Wolf Girl Galaxy.

  It’s a futuristic show set in space, about a werewolf and the crew that take her in. Bennett normally looks like a tall, lanky geek, with short brown hair and gray eyes, but today he likes to think he looks like a badass. He’s wearing black leather pants and huge creepers add to his height. He’s got claws on his nails, fur stuck to his arm, and a fake fur vest made to look like a furry bare chest. He has wolf eye contacts in, fake teeth, and his face painted to look like a wolf.

  He’s wandering around, looking at all the different comics and TV show stuff, when he spots a short guy in Captain Dee cosplay. He’s in red leather pants and a red leather jacket with a yellow wolf’s head on the back. Black hair and green eyes, Bennett can’t help but stare. Wolf Girl Galaxy has a really small fan base, so to see someone else dressed as one of the characters is a pleasant surprise.

  The guy looks over, and instead of looking pissed that Bennett is blatantly staring at him, he smiles. Bennett’s nerves flutter as the guy walks over to him.

  “Hi, genderbend of wolf girl, right? From Wolf Girl Galaxy?” the guy asks, pointing to the blue wolves howling on the black leather cuffs around Bennett’s wrists.

  “Yeah, and you’re Captain Dee, right?” Bennett asks.

  “Yei didn’t think I’d see anyone else dressed from the show. My name’s Hartley Bonnor. I always forget to introduce myself, but I got excited when I saw your costume,” Hartley says in a rush.

  “My name’s Bennett Truman. And no worries. I’m not that great at remembering to introduce myself to people. Drives my mama crazy. She says she raised me with better manners.” Bennett smiles.

  “My mom’s the same. I’m twenty-six, and she still reminds me to play nice with others. I know this is really out of the blue, but I have a spare ticket to the science fiction writers’ workshop. My friend blew me off for some girl. Would you like to come?” Hartley asks, looking a little nervous.

  “Really? I wanted to get into that one, but it was sold out. The guys Rocket draws are always so hot. Like nightwing Em, but just so you know, I’m hella gay. If that makes you uncomfortable, I get it.” Bennett doesn’t want Hartley to freak out when he realizes he’s invited a gay guy someplace with him.

  “Kinda really gay here, too. I got a sense you were, so I thought you wouldn’t mind coming and keeping me company. I ask a straight guy or girl, and they assume I’m trying to get in their pants. You didn’t jump to that.” Hartley smiles.

  “You’re way hotter than me. Of course, I didn’t assume you were hitting on me. And I really just said that, didn’t I? I get it if you want to walk away and find someone who isn’t a total loser,” Bennett says, feeling himself blush.

  “You don’t seem like a loser, at least not in a bad way. I’m doing a degree in mathematics. People call me a loser for that. And, dude, we’re at a Con. All the ‘normal’ people think that makes us losers, too. But I think those things make us awesome. So don’t stress so much,” Hartley says with this warm grin that has Bennett feeling butterflies in his stomach.

  “Maybe I should start over. I’m Bennett, I’m twenty-five. I’m doing a degree in history, and I’m a total Wolf Girl Galaxy geek. I’d love to hang out with someone who loves the same show, and it’d be really cool to go to the writers talk with you.” Bennett offers his hand, claws and all, for a handshake.

  Hartley reaches out and takes Bennett’s hand, giving him a firm shake.

  “Hello, Bennett. History geek? Cool, my older brother is a history teacher. Is that what you want to be, a teacher?” Hartley asks.

  “I’m not sure. I love history. I’d like to work in a museum, maybe. I know. Boring, right?” Bennett laughs.

  “Dude, I want to be a math teacher. That’s like the opposite of cool. But I kind of got over trying to be cool a long time ago. And I prefer guys that let their geek flag fly, as it were,” Hartley says with a flirty smile.

  “I’ll keep that in mind. Want to look around, maybe grab a drink before the talk?” Bennett suggests, feeling bold. He’s not a blushing virgin or anything like that. He’s dated and hooked up plenty, but he hadn’t come here expecting to run into a cute guy, someone who’s into the same show as him. Bennett really hopes Hartley doesn’t turn out to be an asshole, because if things stay as they are, Bennett thinks they’re going to have a great time here.

  “Yeah, it’s about an hour until the panel. There’s a stall not far from here making cocktails based on people’s cosplays. We could get a drink—if you drink, that is.” Hartley suggests.

  “That sounds really cool. And yeah, I drink. Just don’t let me get drunk, otherwise I’ll embarrass us both in the sci-fi talk,” Bennett warns.

  “Embarrass us how?” Hartley asks as they start walking off to find the cocktail bo
oth.

  “I get giggles,” Bennett admits.

  “That’s not so bad. It’s cute.” Hartley smiles.

  “A grown man giggling like a little kid is not cute,” Bennett says firmly.

  “Well it doesn’t bother me, but if you don’t want to get giggly, we’ll just have one drink. I want to be sober for the talk, anyway. I think it’ll be really interesting,” Hartley says happily.

  They get to the right booth and join the line for people getting drinks. While they’re in line they talk. They’re both New York boys, but at different colleges. They both enjoy learning, and Bennett loves seeing the way Hartley lights up when he talks about solving math problems and helping his nieces and nephews with their math homework.

  The bartender makes them both a cocktail he calls ‘The Werewolves Howl.’ It’s purple, and Bennett lost track of what was put in it. When he sips it, it tastes like fizzy grape juice, sweet, but there’s a kick behind it, and Bennett knows straight away from just one sip not to even try drinking more than one. It’s a deceptive drink: so nice, but drink a few and you’ll be flat on your ass.

  Bennett has no plans to end up being a sloppy drunk. He doesn’t want to embarrass himself in front of Hartley. He wants the opposite—to make a good impression, to impress Hartley. They find somewhere to sit while they drink their cocktails, and they keep talking. It’s nice, not love at first sight. This isn’t one of the shows Bennett watches, but for him, at least, it’s lust at first meeting.

  They finish their cocktails and then get in line for the writers talk. It’s a while before they’ll be going in, so they take a seat on the floor, legs crossed like they’re kids, and Bennett can feel a slight buzz from the alcohol, but he’s not drunk. He’s in full control. He just feels warm, maybe a little more confident.