Homefront

By: David H
(© 2011 by the author)

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

 Chapter 1

Matt spent his first week at home getting reacquainted with the town where he'd grown up. There were a few new businesses and places around, but, for the most part, it was the same place he'd left. The Courthouse still majestically sat on the Square, surrounded by businesses, institutions that Matt could vividly remember vividly from his youth into his adulthood. All the ladies that worked for his dad and Derek were happy that he had made it home safely, just as his mother had been. All the men were as well, but few were as vocal as the ladies.

He spent one day on the campus of Parsons, visiting professors in both his major department, the Department of Music, as well as his minor department, Spanish. Dr. Phillips was happy that he'd returned, for it meant that he'd have another senior in the choir in the fall. Seniors were always important for the group, as they helped acclimate the incoming Freshmen to the way things were done. Of course, to visit friends that he'd made over the years was also a good thing, for it allowed him to connect with those people who had insisted the choir perform at Dan's funeral and leave Matt's spot in the section of tenors open to pay homage to him and to the family. His meeting in the Spanish department didn't go as well, though, as his minor professor wasn't as convinced that spending a year in Latin America had improved his accent all that much. In fact, Dr. Martinez even commented that it sounded as though it had gotten a little worse, what with the mix of a few Quechua words that had come into his vocabulary. The two left in agreement, though, that the fall would have him realizing the completion of that part of his matriculation, leaving him the spring of '09 to explore nothing but music. Regarding his schedule for the fall, though, nothing had been decided. That would be saved for a summer meeting at some point after the Department of Music returned from their collective summer vacation.

On Friday of that week, after Seth finished the very last exam of his college career, he and Matt went to lunch at a nice little sandwich shop just off the Square that had opened in Matt's absence. Called "Kev's," it was filled that afternoon, with all kinds of people, from students to faculty from the university alongside locals whose professions obviously ranged from day laborers to judges. Matt hadn't seen a couple of people who knew that Dan was there; they made it a point to greet him, taking a few moments to talk with him about how he was doing and how Peru had been. For the most part, though, it was just polite conversation among neighbors.

As Matt and Seth sat at a table, they quickly ordered two teas from a waitress that had brought them their menus after they'd assumed their positions. Seth quickly ordered a Patriot, a sandwich with slices from a prime rib roast cooked medium rare and a blue cheese sauce on a Kaiser roll. Matt looked over it only to end up ordering a turkey and cheese on a pumpernickel roll and a side of homemade potato chips.

"So I'm sorry I haven't been around a lot this week," Seth said.

"You've been studying for exams," Matt scoffed. "There's no need to apologize."

"Still, though," Seth said. "Since they're over, and all I've got to do is find out if I graduate next weekend or not, you wanna go out tonight?"

"Your usual place?" Matt inquired.

"I'm sure we'll end up there!" Seth said.

It had been a year since their last excursion. On Seth's 21st Birthday, the two had decided to go to a place called "Blind Jim's," a little bar right off the Square on the corner of South Cossart and Harrison. Because of Dan's infirmity, they'd only gone to the place, together, once, yet they still referred to it as "The Usual" because it had become a favorite haunt for Seth and a few of their mutual friends from both high school and college in the year and a couple of months since then.

After lunch, both guys had a few things to do before they could even consider starting to get ready for the evening. Seth had some work to do for his dad, and after he got his bi-weekly paycheck, he had to get it cashed and pay his mortgage payment before he could do anything else. Matt, on the other hand, was going to see his doctor for a checkup and then visit his mother in her office right next door. Afterwards, he was going to go by and mess with his dad and Derek for a little while, to joke with them by telling him he was there to check and see if they were running his businesses into the ground. They agreed, though, to meet back at Seth's place at seven to get ready for their night out on the town.

***********************************

Meanwhile, Jenny was finishing her very last final as well, in a senior-level political science class that had, for lack of better phrasing, kicked her ass all semester. She was happy that it was over, though, and hoped that she'd done well enough to earn a low 'C' in the class. Walking out with a couple of people, they all discussed the exam for a moment as they walked from the Bishop Social Sciences Building.

"So what do y'all have going on tonight?" Jenny asked her classmates.

"I'm going to SLEEP!" one of them said, recalling that she was running on virtually adrenaline and Red Bull.

"I'm going to propose to my girlfriend, and then we're going to make love," the guy said, "for as long as she wants it!"

"Congratulations!" Jenny smiled.

"She really is a lucky girl!" the girl standing with them noted.

"Trust me," he said, a certain cocky edge in his voice, "she knows it." The girls laughed as he smiled widely in their directions.

"What about you?" the girl asked Jenny.

"My cousin is coming up from Jackson to spend a few days with me," she proudly announced.

"How's he doing?" the guy asked.

"He's alright. He's getting better and better with each day," she told them, referring not just to his physical health but also his mental state.

"That's good. Let him know that if there's anything I can do for him, that I'll do my best!" the guy said as the girl agreed.

"I will," Jenny smiled.

"So are y'all just gonna hang out and such?" they inquired.

"Probably so. I'm gonna leave that all up to him!" she said.

"Cool..." the girl said just before they said their goodbyes and parted the others' company.

As Jenny walked in the direction of her apartment, she pulled her cell phone from her pocket and dialed Nick's cell phone number. Just after his mother passed away, HiTelCo had given him a cell phone for which they comped all the charges, to that end, he'd kept the same New York number for years, just replacing the phone as necessary.

"Hello?" he asked.

"You on your way?" she smiled. It was a smile that he could both hear and feel, despite the miles and miles that separated them.

"I've got my bag packed for a week of fun in Eudora," he said, "and I just got out of the shower and pulled some boxers on."

"Are they sexy as hell?"

"I'm your cousin, why would you care?" Nick joked with her. It was good for her to hear as well, since it showed that, despite the things going on his mind, he was, in fact, learning to cope with things a little better than he'd previously been able to do.

"I'm just saying, you might find a hot college guy or something that wants to... you know..." she said, passing an older lady and forcing herself to use polite speech.

"Cause that's my whole reason for coming to Eudora," Nick smiled as he pulled on a pair of Carhartt shorts that his cousin had bought him a couple of weeks earlier that were, in his opinion, the single most comfortable article of clothing that he'd ever owned.

"Right!" Jenny noted.

"I was actually gonna call you as soon as I got on the road," Nick told her, and then quickly added, "...which should be shortly."

"That works. That gives me a couple of hours to make sure that your room is clean and everything," she told him, referring to the two bedroom apartment that she'd be vacating as soon as her lease expired at the end of June. Her roommate, Maria, had already left, having closed on a house in Memphis with her girlfriend in the middle of April.

"Are you sure you don't mind me coming up?" he asked. "I mean, I just invited myself."

"Nick. I love you, and I love my Mom, but y'all both need a weekend away from each other," she said. "And besides, you know that my home is ALWAYS open to my cool, older cousin/big bro/favorite Marine on the planet."

"Cool..." Nick injected into the conversation as he took a moment to pull on a t-shirt that fit him nicely, loosely across the chest, and through the shoulders and arms.

As Nick finished getting ready, the two discussed plans for the evening, and while he wasn't quite sure about going out that evening, he didn't immediately dismiss the idea. He'd have time to think about it, though, as he drove up I-55 from Ridgeland, one of Jackson's northern suburbs, to Eudora. Their conversation came to an end just after he grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and walked from the kitchen of the three-bedroom house that had never quite been home for him, into the garage to his car.

It was an '08 Ford Mustang GT, black with rims and darkly tinted windows. It had a sunroof and a leather interior. What most couldn't see but that Nick could feel, though, was the 4.6-liter, 3-valve, V-8 engine that produced a lot of power. It had a six-speed manual transmission and dual exhaust. In short, it was a car to envy, and it was his, despite how he'd come to own it. That was his aunt's doing. Over the years, he'd sent her money to help out with household expenses. In his mind, it was the thing to do since she'd driven to New York on 9/11 to be with him. She'd brought him back to her home and wouldn't let him lift a finger the entire time he was there. What she'd done, though, was put the money into a savings account for him. By the time he got home, there was enough money in the account to buy that car and still have some left over. There wasn't much, mind you, but there was just enough to pay to take a few classes at a local junior college once his discharge from the Corps was finalized.

He started the car to the sound and fury that it always produced and pushed a button that raised the garage door behind him. Carefully, he backed out of the garage and then onto the street. Pushing the button back and making sure the door closed immediately before, he sped down the street that Jenny had grown up on and headed away.

***********************************

Matt got to Seth's house just after seven o'clock, pulling into a space beside Seth's car and grabbed his bag from the backseat. He pushed the little button on the remote control and locked the door to his grandfather's Cadillac CTS, a car that he'd purchased just a few months before his death that, while he was away, his father had kept up. It wasn't exactly what Dan had wanted him to do, but the car was better than the one he'd been driving for years. To be honest, Matt was in no hurry to spend the money on a car, as he'd not become completely comfortable with the fact that he had it to begin with.

Walking into Seth's place, he found it immaculate as always. There was a shine to the hardwood floors and not a single particle of dust on the granite countertops in the two-bedroom condo that Dan had helped him purchase in 2006. Much to Matt's surprise, though, Seth wasn't there yet, so he went into 'his room' and started getting ready for the evening out. From the small suitcase in which he'd placed enough clothes for the weekend, he pulled out a pair of khaki cargo shorts and a blue polo shirt that he'd gotten early in the week from Old Navy. A pair of red boxers with little white moose on it that he'd had forever, was placed beside the shorts as he prepared for the evening.

From his head he pulled the same baseball cap that he'd been wearing for years. It was the same one that he'd received with his admissions packet to Parsons so many years before, The Freshman Cap. Almost respectfully, he laid it on the bed away from everything else. He had other caps, newer caps, including one that he'd purchased the day before, but this one was the one that he preferred, just because it fit him better than any of the others, probably because it was practically worn out.

The clothes he wore were another story, though. Slipping himself from the white and grey Pumas that he'd worn to hell and back, he lifted his legs just far enough to pull off the ankle socks that covered them. His shirt was next, followed by the shorts he'd been wearing all day and the boxers that separated them from direct contact with his skin. Naked as the day he was born, he walked into the bathroom adjacent to the bedroom and turned on the shower.

One of the things he'd missed when he was in Peru was the shower in Seth's spare bathroom. It was powerful and always seemed to have enough scalding hot water to make his skin feel clean. As he stepped beneath it, he audibly expressed all the relief that being there, in that place, had brought to him. "Ay dios," ("Oh, God") he said as he rinsed off his skin, still mostly tanned from the hours he'd spent in Northern Peru's equatorial sun. As he ran his fingers through his dark brown hair, he thought for a fleeting moment about needing a haircut, but it was just a fleeting moment as he was enjoying the flow that much.

It took several moments for him to get started with the shower, but after he did, it wasn't long before his body was completely lathered. Starting by putting shampoo in his hair, he let it stay there for a moment as he washed from the bottom of his size 13 feet to his face. His body wasn't anything spectacular, but it fit him. He was average weight and height, with a body that was neither skinny nor fat. He was the proverbial final bowl of porridge, as far as men go. Just before he turned off the water, he rinsed the shampoo and conditioner from his hair. Without the water, for a few seconds, his body felt like something was missing. Dripping wet, though, he stepped out onto the rug and grabbed a towel to whisk it all away from his body.

As always, he left the towel in the hamper in the bathroom, out of respect for Seth's needing everything to be neat and tidy, and walked back into his room to dress for the evening as he waited on Seth to get back from wherever the hell he was. When he was finished, he looked cute in his shorts and solid colored polo, topping it with his cap and a pair of flip-flops that he'd brought with him. Walking out of the room, he went into the living room and turned on the TV as he continued to wait on his best friend's arrival.

***********************************

After driving for a few hours up the interstate and then for an hour around Eudora as he struggled, seemingly in vain, to find Jenny's apartment, Nick finally arrived at her place at around five in the afternoon. The two sat around for a while as they, themselves, took a while to catch up. They fixed dinner for the two of them and enjoyed a couple of adult beverages before starting to get ready to go out at around eight o'clock. Jenny went into her bathroom on one end of the apartment while Nick went to 'his' on the other.

The bathroom itself was decorated rather plainly, but it was adequate for Nick's purposes, as it had a nice shower, a toilet, a single sink, and a mirror. In a little cubby that served as the room's linen closet, Jenny had placed a couple of clean towels and some washcloths for him to use, but all the soaps and shampoos were his responsibility. Having stopped at Wal-Mart before leaving Jackson, he'd picked up those few things, though, and had them ready to go as soon as the water was hot enough to enjoy.

It was as that was happening that Nick disrobed. Quickly, he removed his clothes and set them neatly on the counter. Looking at himself in the mirror, he inspected his nicely shaped, muscular body as he always seemed to do before climbing in. The one thing about that place, though, as opposed to his bathroom, was that the mirror was bigger and, somehow, didn't seem to fog over as the water heated. On his left arm, he looked for a second at the Marine Corps tattoo before brushing his hand along his chest and torso to make sure that manscaping wasn't necessary. He would have done that earlier in the day, but his shower before departure was more or less to rid his body of the sweat that had accumulated after his mid-day workout. It was that shower that evening that he knew would really count.

Settling in beneath the flow of water, he quickly started the process of cleaning. As he'd done for years, he started with the hair that topped his head. Even though he was no longer in the active service of his country, he still kept his hair cut to regulation length. To that end, it didn't take long to ensure that the black hairs that were just a little longer than stubble, were clean. He rain over his skin, which wasn't as tan as it had been at one point, with a bar of Ivory that would leave him smelling clean and fresh.

As he exited the shower, out, he quickly wiped the water from the defined ridges of his body and left the towel on the floor, as Jenny had instructed. Walking into the room, he quickly pulled on a pair of boxers that should have been a size larger, and donned a pair of jeans that nicely fit him from just below his waist all the way through his legs. The top of his body he covered with a polo that Jenny had bought for him and hung in the closet. It was nice, comfortable, black, and would leave little to the imagination of those who found themselves, over the course of the evening, gazing at his upper body. With an almost-new pair of Nikes on his feet a moment later, he was ready to go, walking into the living room to wait on Jenny as she put the finishing touches on what she'd be wearing out that evening.

***********************************

In Eudora, over the years, the concept of clubbing had become somewhat of an art. Even if one were planning to go to his regular joint for a pint with friends, if he said he was 'going out' that meant that several other places would be patronized beforehand. Given the proximity of all the coolest places in the town, though, that wasn't a difficult task to do.

For Matt and Seth, it started with a bar called "The Bibliotheque". They had a single shot there and checked out the scene before heading to a bar right on the Square called "Roosters." After another round of tequila shots and a moment of checking out the animate scenery, they found no reason not to go on to Seth's usual haunt, Blind Jim's. Arriving just after ten o'clock, they found themselves in a line of people to get in. Waiting behind them was a group of girls that Seth had no problems talking to, as they were all beautiful, while Matt avoided talking to their gay friend. It wasn't that Matt felt he was better than him, for he knew that he wasn't, but the guy was that annoying kind of gay guy that was loud and relatively obnoxious, that was a fan of Madonna and held her as a goddess. He had a high voice and seemed to be high on something else. The guy was all about Matt, though, telling him several times that he was cute and had a great voice and a nice smile. He made a comment or two about his ass as Matt stood there, waiting on their chance to go inside the crowded bar so that Seth's attention would be drawn away from those girls so that he could gracefully exit the situation in which he found himself.

As they waited, though, Nick and Jenny were walking up to another place from her apartment. Rick's, a sports bar with a very high energy, was filled with frat boys and sorority girls with huge fake tits and designer clothes. They had a single beer each before heading on to the Biblioteque and then to Roosters. As they walked to Blind Jim's, which would probably be their final destination of the evening, Nick found himself enamored by the grace and beauty of the Square.

It was the kind of place in Eudora that served so many purposes. For one, the courthouse, while built shortly after the Civil War to replace the one that the Union soldiers marching through Eudora had burned to the ground, was still in use by the county government. During the day, one might find judges and day laborers rubbing elbows as they went about their personal business, while in the evenings, the aroma of several different world cuisines was often mixed with the smell of bourbon as it reminded all of the history and tradition of that small Southern town. At night, the place came alive as the center of the area's social universe, with its lively bars, amazingly high class restaurants, and a few bookstores and coffee shops just to spice things up a little differently.

In that moment, the place to him felt right. Maybe it was Jenny, and maybe it was just that the air was different, cleaner, friendlier than in Jackson. Either way, though, Nick felt better in that moment than he had in a long time, and it wasn't the alcohol that he'd already imbibed talking.

From Nick's perspective, Blind Jim's was different from the other bars that they'd been to that night. Number one, there was a line to get in, which meant that it was a very popular place, and just in the line there were people of all different shades and persuasions. There were gays and straights, whites, blacks, men, and women. There were some quiet, nerdy looking people standing in line next to jocks and frat type guys. It was as if, in his observation, this was one of the few places in America where people really could get along, despite their differences. Jackson certainly wasn't that way, where he found himself to be one of the few people that could associate with people of other races and cultures.

Jenny looked at him as he took stock of his surroundings. With a smile she was sure that Eudora was in his future, although she didn't know when or in what circumstances. It was good to see, though, because she hadn't seen him excited about anything, really, in a while. When they got to the door, Jenny paid for both of their cover charges with a $20 bill and they walked inside. Nick grabbed his debit card from his wallet as the two waded through the massive crowd of people that had assembled at their final destination for the evening.

When they got to the bar, Nick, given his height, towered over Jenny, who stood barely five feet tall. Not to be confused, though, she was a firecracker of a person who really could hold her own in most any circumstance. With that being said, though, he was able to get the attention of Natalie, the bartender, to get their beers ordered. She took his card from him and got his tab started before handing the card back to him along with two open Bud Light bottles.

Meanwhile, Matt and Seth were sitting close by, having just ordered their second margaritas of the evening. They'd decided to slow down a little bit and add some lime juice and ice to their tequila instead of consuming it straight. It was Matt that first noticed Nick standing close to the bar. He had to force himself not to stare at this guy with the military style hair and a pair of shoulders that were driving him insane.

"Matt!" Seth said in a second, grinning and shaking his head. "Instead of staring a hole through him, why don't you just go talk to him?"

"He's way out of my league," Matt told Seth as Natalie brought their margaritas to them.

"Matthew," Seth looked at him as if to say 'what-the-fuck?' "Seriously?"

"Seriously. I'm a five, and he's got to be a twelve or so," Matt told his best friend. "Beside, from the looks of him, he's straight."

Seth turned and glanced, knowing Matt's type well enough to know which of the guys huddled at the bar Matt was checking out. "I've been a fag stag all my life, and I can tell the difference between straight, gay, and metrosexual. Dude ain't the first or last."

"You've been wrong before," Matt reminded him.

"Once... one time..." Seth reminded him of a guy that they'd met years before that gave every indication that he was a homosexual only for the two of them to find out that he was straighter and more sexual than Seth himself, which, honestly, was never a very small feat to accomplish. He looked again, only on his second glance, he noticed Jenny standing with him. "Holy shit!"

"What?" Matt asked.

"You remember that girl from Econ class in the fall that I was telling you about... the one with the huge knockers and the smoking body?"

"Yeah..."

"The girl with him is her... Jenny Sheffield," Seth said as he turned, motioning for Matt to go with him as he went over to talk to her.

"JEN-NAY!" he yelled as she turned and smiled. "SETHY!" she exclaimed as Seth bent down so that she could wrap her arms around him. "Oh my god! I was thinking about you the other day. How are you?"

"Good. Horny, but what's new?" he asked.

"With you, Seth Bentley, not a damn thing!" she said. "Nick," she turned to her cousin. "This is the guy that I was telling you about could... keep up with me."

"Damn," Nick smiled. "Nick Russo," he said as he shook Seth's hands.

"And this is my best friend, Matt..."

"MATT HARPER!" she said as she greeted him the same way that she greeted Seth, with a huge hug around the neck. "How was Peru?"

"It was good," Matt answered. "Glad to be home, though."

"We are glad to have you home," she said. "Eudora needs more sexy gay men," she said, telling Nick indirectly, that Matt was fair game. She knew, from just the first look at this guy that Matt was Nick's type. He wasn't a gym rat, but he took care of himself as best he could. He had a cute smile and a deep, masculine voice.

"Thank you," he blushed a little bit as he thanked her for the obvious comment.

"Nick just got home, too. He was in Iraq..."

"Oh yeah?" Matt asked, looking at him. "What branch?"

"Marines," Nick answered, plainly and simply.

"Magic words for Matt!" Seth smiled at Nick.

"And not in the way he implies," Matt told him.

"Why not? Marines need love, too," Nick joked, quite uncharacteristically. Jenny knew, though, that he made jokes when he was nervous, and Matt, for whatever reason, was making him nervous enough to crack at least one, but probably more. "Not that I wouldn't give you love, man," Matt smiled at him, winning him over in that moment, instantly. "Hey Nat," Matt called the bartender, with whom he and Seth had gone to high school at St. Xavier's Episcopal School there in Eudora. "Will you set up a round of Semper Fis for us?"

"Sure," she smiled as she went right to work after delivering the beers to some frat boys waiting at one end of the bar. She brought them back four small drink glasses each filled with tequila.

"My grandfather," Matt explained, "was a Marine during World War II in the Pacific, and he always said that if I ever encounter a Marine in a bar, that I should by him a drink."

"What's his name?" Nick asked.

"Dan."

"Here's to Dan, then," he said, handing Matt a shot glass as Jenny handed one to Seth.

"Semper Fi!" Matt declared.

"Hoo rah!" Nick went on as they each turned up their glasses and took the whole damn thing. Little did Nick know, though, that by toasting the single most influential person that had ever graced Matt's life that he was winning him over as easily as he had unknowingly won Nick with just his smile and his voice.

"So Seth," Jenny started, "you wanna fuck tonight?" It was as if, for her, asking such a thing was nothing at all.

"Please..." he said. "Like you even have to ask that!" he declared, setting up his evening booty call right there in front of the two of them.

"So are you still active?" Matt asked Nick.

"Technically, I'm on the TDL," he said as Matt understood exactly what he said. "I'm hoping that my discharge comes through sooner rather than later, though."

"Cool. Well, thank you for your service, man."

"It's nothing," Nick said as Jenny looked at him, remembering what an ordeal it had been when he joined. She looked at Seth who, with his eyes, said that he was happy that Matt was actually talking.

"You're certainly a credit to the uniform," Matt noted.

"Oh yeah?" Nick smiled. "I do look good in fatigues, though."

"I can imagine..." Matt told him before the two of them started laughing at each other.

"Although," Nick started, "I'm glad you're not a Marine, cause I don't know if I could have kept my sexuality a secret if you had been."

"You're gay?"

"Yeah!" Nick smiled.

"Told you!" Seth added.

"Wow..." Matt said in a moment.

"What? A Marine can't be gay?" Nick asked in his Brooklyn accent, holding out his arms as best he could without hitting Seth or Jenny, who were standing beside him, as if to say something like 'what's the big deal?'

"I've just never met one," Matt explained as he hoped, with everything, that his growing 'problem' wasn't all that obvious.

"Well now you have!" Nick winked at him.

"And I'm all the better for it," Matt pointed out as Jenny and Seth looked at each other and quietly shook their heads.

"So what did you end up getting in Dr. Brady's class?" Jenny asked him.

"B! And I was so fucking happy!" Seth told him.

"How the fuck? I got a D!"

"WHAT?!" Seth asked, genuinely surprised by her response as she nodded.

"I was so fucking pissed!" she said. "I went to him in January and told him to justify it. Apparently, his scantron machine said that I got an F on the final!"

"It was 25 questions that were obvious!"

"RIGHT!" she said. "I almost called you just to give me head."

"Why didn't you? I would have gladly buried my face..."

"So can we smoke inside?" Nick asked, looking at Matt, who was also not enjoying the level of hetero-energy around them.

"Nah man. We have to go to the patio."

"You wanna go to the patio?" Nick asked.

"Please!" Matt said as Jenny and Seth smiled.

"We're gonna stay in here and catch up," Jenny said, looking at Nick. With her eyes, as she had been doing with Seth, she asked if Nick was going to be OK. He responded affirmatively with his smile, knowing that this Marine's grandson wouldn't let anything happen to him.

A moment later, Nick excused himself from Seth as he and Matt walked through the crowd of people to a door on the side of the bar that led outside. As they walked through, it seemed as though there were as many people out there as were inside, but the pair found a quiet corner where the other conversations wouldn't spill over into theirs.

"So are you a student?" Nick asked after he lit the Marlboro light and stood a bit away from Matt so the smoke wouldn't bother him.

"Technically. I've been off for the last year, doing some volunteer work in South America."

"Oh cool," Nick said. "What's your major?"

"Please don't laugh, cause it's kinda gay."

"OK," Nick confidently said. "Do you enjoy it? Do you have a passion for it?"

"Yes," Matt answered.

"Then how could I laugh?" Nick asked.

"Vocal Performance," Matt answered.

"See. That's kinda hot. A guy that can sing is sexy as hell," Nick admitted.

"Shit. If you're trying to get laid, you don't have to work so hard," Matt told him.

"I'm not, though. Just being honest," Nick told him. "Besides, if I wanted to just get laid, I wouldn't have to do very much."

"How do you know?" Matt asked.

"I can just tell that you're into me," Nick told him.

"You give yourself too much credit," Matt smiled at him.

"Maybe so," Nick smiled. "Besides, you're out my league for real."

"Fuck! What?" Matt asked.

"You're fucking hot, dude. If I could find a guy as hot as you..."

"I'm not believing this!" Matt smiled. "When I first saw you, I told Seth that same thing. That you were way out of my league." Nick just smiled as he took a drag from his cigarette and a drink from his beer. On his face was a huge smile, similar to the one that Matt had on his. "So what do you think of Eudora?"

"This is a great town!" Nick answered. "It's small, but it's got so much life, if that makes sense."

"It does. I've been a lot of places, and Eudora is my favorite," Matt said.

"So are you from Mississippi?" Nick asked.

"Eudora, actually. Born and raised," Matt smiled.

"Sweet!"

"And what about you?"

"Brooklyn," Nick answered. "My mom was from here, though," Nick answered, realizing that, for one of the first times in his life, he'd been able to refer to her in the past tense. "Well... Jackson."

"Ahhh..." Matt said.

"I used to spend my summers in Mississippi when I was little," Nick said. "I love it here."

"Cool."

"I'm sorry," Nick smiled. "I'm just going off at the mouth."

"No. Please. Continue," Matt smiled. "It's giving me a chance to take in the whole picture."

"Well. If you're taking that in, then I should turn a little bit so you can look at my ass," Nick joked as he half turned around and as Matt laughed.

"Nice," he said.

"Oh yeah. It's kinda tight, too," Nick winked.

"Shit..." Matt said as he blushed. Nick smiled as he returned to his previous position and took the final drag from his cigarette.

"Man. I'm sorry. I'm a little buzzed, and I don't know what I'm saying," Nick told him.

"It's fine," Matt mentioned. "Like you..."

"Like you," Nick smiled.

The next moments between them were comfortably quiet. Nick continued taking stock of all the things going on around him as Matt relished the fact that he was standing with a guy that seemed to be really, really awesome.

"So now that you're on your way out," Matt started, "what are your plans?"

"Ya know. I haven't really thought about it," Nick answered. "Since I joined, the Marines have been my life. Would your grandfather have any advice for me?"

"I'm sure, that if he were with us still, he would tell you to do what's in your heart," Matt told him.

"And if my head and penis were the same organ?" Nick joked.

"Then he'd be like," Matt started as he put himself into 'Pa voice'. "Matthew, bend over and let this man have his way with you. He's a Marine goddamnit." Nick laughed his ass off. "And you think I'm joking," Matt returned to his normal voice as Nick heartily laughed, "but the one and only pride celebration I've been to was with him and Seth, and he was trying to pimp my ass out the whole time!"

"Shit! That is priceless!" Nick continued laughing his infectious laugh.

"He told this one... super hot guy... 'Matt's ass is grade A'."

"It's not bad," Nick grinned.

"It's exit only," Matt told him.

"Shame..." Nick made a 'tsk' sound and shook his head.

"Top too?"

"Versatile," he told him. "Sometimes, it's good to be 'taken care of', other times, it's good to take care..."

"Makes sense," Matt told him. "I've just haven't met a guy that I trusted enough to let him..."

"That makes sense, too. I've only ever trusted one guy enough to let him top me," Nick explained.

"Still in your life?" Matt asked.

"No," Nick answered, honestly but shortly. "Not anymore," Nick said, a sad expression on his face that told Matt more than he needed to know.

"I'm sorry to hear that, man," Matt told him.

Nick smiled. "It's in the past," he tried to play things off, but Matt knew that the issue should be dropped. "So I wonder if my cousin and your friend are having a good time."

"If they're still here, probably so. If they're not, probably so!" Matt joked.

"Can I be honest with you?"

"It's expected," Matt answered, getting to another level of respect from Nick in the process.

"Jenny's acting oddly."

"How so?" Matt inquired.

"She's... It's almost like she likes him," Nick said. "Like beyond the sexual."

"OK. So I'm not just picking that up from Seth, then," Matt mentioned.

"They do make a cute couple," Nick mentioned.

"Yeah..." Matt smiled.

"Not as cute as you, though."

"Or as hot as you," Matt went on as they looked at each other. It was the first time that the two of them looked into each other's eyes. Matt saw a painful past in Nick's, while Nick found a sense of uncertainty in Matt's. "So how long are you in town for?"

"Just for the weekend, more than likely," Nick said. "Why? You wanna ask me out or something?"

"You want to?" Matt inquired.

"I would be nice to go out with a cool guy," Nick said. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket a moment later and smiled. "It says: 'Tell Matt that we're going to Seth's for a little while and that he better keep you company'."

"Not a problem with me," Matt said.

"I'm not complaining either," Nick smiled at him as he responded quickly and put the phone back in his pocket.

For over an hour, the two talked about nothing important. As they continued to stand around talking, Jenny and Seth returned from their momentary rendezvous with wide smiles. "Y'all have fun?" Matt asked as Nick snickered a little bit.

"Twice," she winked at him as Nick shook his head. "So Nicky... you about ready?"

He took a deep breath, part of him wanted to say no, but another part wanted to climb into bed and drift off to sleep. "So can I call you tomorrow?" he asked Matt.

"You need my number, don't you?" Matt smiled.

"Yeah," Nick shook his head, almost punishing himself for not realizing it before. "What is it?"

"662-555-1991," Matt answered.

"Got it," Nick said as he sent Matt a number so that he could save his number into his phone. "So I'll call tomorrow."

"Alright," he said as the two men shook hands, wanting to do more but not giving themselves the chance.

Seth and Jenny said goodbye with a kiss each on the cheek just before she hugged Matt goodbye. With that, the two of them were off. Walking back into the bar, Nick turned and smiled one last time. Before long, they were walking back toward Jenny's apartment. A moment after they left, Seth and Matt did as well, going back to Seth's to pass the evening.

"So did you have a good time?" Jenny asked Nick.

"Yeah. I did," Nick told her. She asked for no details, though, knowing that they would come out in time.

As they entered, Seth wanted all the information he could get. Matt wasn't very forthcoming, though, offering only that he'd had an amazing night and that he was glad that he'd had the chance to meet a guy that was as cool as Nick had been.

To be continued...

Posted: 08/06/11