Best Friend's Journey Pt. 04

***

It was good to be home, but after less than a month I was chafing to return to the city. It seemed like the same was true for the others, as when I told them I was going back, they all decided to come with me.

The drive back to the coast was tense. I had seen Carl while we were both back home, but it seemed as though he was avoiding me; our meetings were often brief and he always seemed to be on his way somewhere. I had only seen Jess once, fleetingly, when bumping into her and Carl at the local pub.

Abby and Jess were sitting in the back, talking animatedly together, even though they had spent a bunch of time together over the last couple of months. Carl just sat in silence next to me, responding, but never initiating conversation.

Around halfway through the journey, Abby guffawed suddenly and spat out, "Oh my god, this is the first time you've all been together since Sam fucked her! That's why you're so quiet!"

I saw Jess turn bright red in the rear-view mirror. Carl's hands clenched into fists, but he seemed to relax as he responded.

"Yeah, it's been a busy summer..." he sighed. "Can you try not to say it like that? It was a... It was a threesome."

"Yeah, but Sam's willy was inside Jessica, and not just her mouth," Abby replied nonchalantly.

"How do you even know?" Carl demanded, turning in his seat.

"Obviously because she is my best friend. Anyway, you put your dick in me, so it's all fair, right? Stop being so sallow."

"Abby! Seriously," Jess hissed at her, face still burning red.

"So, everyone knows?" Carl stated, more than asked.

"Well, Zach does, but that's it," Abby responded innocently.

"Fucking Zach!?" Carl spluttered. "Why does he know?"

"He was there..."

"He wasn't in the room! He can think whatever he wants, but he can't 'know' anything!"

"Oh my god!" Jess cut in, eyes widening as she turned to look at Abby. "You-"

Before Jess could finish whatever she was about to say, Abby spoke over her, her words blurted out quickly, with no pauses for breath, "Yes-I-did-and-you-were-right-it's-like-a-rounders-bat."

"What the fuck?" Carl and I exclaimed simultaneously.

"You dirty slut!" Jess laughed. "Is that why he's moved in with us?"

"It's not with us!" Abby responded, skin darkening. "And daddy gets more money because he's an international student, so thank Zach for your discount!"

"I thought he was only here while looking for a place?" I asked.

"Well... He's bringing in money... So..." Abby responded, open-endedly.

My stomach dropped. Was this jealousy? Over Abby? No, surely it was because of her 'rounders bat' comment. Or was it unease about Zach being around them constantly? I didn't know, but it seemed to take over my thoughts as I missed the following conversation until hearing my name pulled me out.

"- Sam's body," Carl finished.

"Oh, come on. You must have an opinion after what you did?" Abby said, the teasing tone obvious in her voice.

"He was just a dildo for me," Jess replied.

"I'm right here," I objected.

"And you don't mind being a dildo for sexy girls like us," Abby giggled. "I just want to know what it was like!"

"It was good," Carl said simply, turning his head to look out of the window. "Jess liked it."

"We both did!" Jess cut in. "Don't make it seem like it was just me."

"Don't say it like that!" Carl exclaimed, turning back to face them. "I liked what it did to you! Don't make it out that I... You know!"

"Maybe I need a boyfriend to try it with," Abby said wistfully.

"Why do you need a boyfriend?" Jess asked. "Just bring someone back and knock-on Zach's door. It's not like he'd turn down a woman ever."

Again, my stomach turned. Why would Jess have said Zach, instead of me?

Abby just made a non-committal noise and both of them started giggling. I looked at Carl briefly, seeing the same expression on his face as I felt on my own, before returning my gaze to the road.

***

Within a few days of being in our new home, things seemed entirely normal again; all tension and awkwardness removed, or at least hidden away. We had a few weeks before our second year started, and we were trying to make the most of it.

Jess and Abby never seemed to be lacking the money to do things, even though they never seemed to be working, but that didn't extend to Carl and me, even with the discounted accommodation and maintenance loan.

Fortunately for Carl, one of his classmates had tipped him off about some kind of work that he could do in his own hours, from his laptop. The part time jobs around the area were okay but didn't really fit my schedule or work ethic - filling people's coffee cups was not something I aspired to.

Zach, being a lazy fuck, seemed to be coasting by on his parents' money, but mentioned to me that he had been asked to take a short course to help out with things at the gym for a bit of extra cash. Apparently, it was flexible work, but he couldn't be bothered, so I took them up on the offer.

With our incomes assured, we were free to enjoy what was left of summer to the same excess as the previous year.

The house was old, so the noise insulation wasn't amazing. Something the previous tenants obviously hadn't mentioned to Abby or Jess, as I found out the first time Abby brought someone back from a night out.

Waking up to her muffled moans gave me a strange feeling. She wasn't my girlfriend at all, and we had a happy arrangement that we would sleep together but take it no further than that. Even so, hearing her with someone else in the room below caused my stomach to roil in jealousy. Although maybe that was just because I was alone that night.

The following night, I engaged in my own excess and brought back some first-year girl who had latched on to me at the student union bar, to make a point. In the morning, Abby gave me an evil smile when we passed each other at the door and asked if I slept well. I laughed it off and expected things to quieten down in future.

***

I grabbed my phone off the nightstand next to the bed, trying to light it up so I could see the time. 03:22.

I rolled onto my side, pulling a pillow from elsewhere on the bed, and slammed it over my head. It barely softened the noise that had woken me.

"Aaaah!" Abby's muffled voice came from the floor above, almost sounding like a scream of pain.

The sound of squeaking metal on wood had slowed down, but the human noises only seemed to be rising in volume.

"Oh- oh- oh- fuck..." I heard, muffled, from above.

I slowly sat up and pivoted my legs off the edge of the bed.

"Ahh!" Abby screamed again, followed by a deeper grunt.

I pulled my duvet off, dragging it with me as I walked to the living room, hoping it would be quieter. I considered going up there and saying something, but that would mean Abby had won, plus I was too tired to fight, and had an appointment at the gym in four hours. I needed to just get back to sleep.

The sound was quieter on the couch, but still perceptible. I couldn't make out the words, but the generic noises of pleasure and the creaking of the bed was still noticeable. I concentrated on the hum of the fridge to try and drown it out.

Before I could sink into unconsciousness, I shifted my head to the side, attempting to find a cold part of the pillow, and another sound pricked at the edge of my awareness.

"Oh, for fuck's sake," I said aloud to myself.

The squeaking and moaning from above reasserted itself in my mind as I lost focus, but now a quicker slapping and squealing sound joined it.

"Ah! Harder!" I managed to pick out from the cacophony of muffled sounds.

Was that Jess, too? What the fuck? I sat back up and tried to focus on the ceiling, to see if I was hearing things correctly.

"Please!" I picked out from the moaning in a higher pitch than Abby.

I felt a wave of nausea. Was Abby doing this to punish me? Did Carl know his girlfriend was up there too?

I got to my feet, hands shaking, ready to go up there and confront them. As the covers fell from me, I glimpsed the door to Carl's room, triggering a memory from earlier that night.

Carl and Jess had stayed in, while Abby and I both went out. Was Carl staying in Jess's room tonight? No, that wasn't right. He said that he and Jess would stay in our place so Abby and I wouldn't wake them up, stumbling back in the early hours, drunk. They hadn't anticipated that we would be returning separately though...

I cocked my head, listening.

"Ah-uh-uh-uh-uh..." a guttural ragged sound came from upstairs, accompanying a particularly violent series of squeals from the furniture.

Immediately after it ended, a loud sigh came from the direction of Carl's room, and I collapsed back onto the sofa in relief. But why was I so relieved? For Carl, that his girl wasn't cheating on him... Or because this meant Zach wasn't 'winning' against me.

"-want that!" came a hissed whisper from Carl's room, snapping me out of my head.

The sounds of moaning had stopped, but the low rumble of Carl's voice rattled back and forth in a rhythm with Jess's higher-pitched whispering, almost hissing even.

"-real man would," I picked up from Jess's hissing, before the rest was eclipsed by another cry from above.

I was suddenly intrigued by Carl and Jess's hushed conversation, but the sound of Abby being slowly skewered above seemed to be echoing through the room, preventing me from focusing on anything else.

I struggled for a moment between my desire for sleep, my anger at Abby and my curiosity. The need for sleep won out and I laid back down, pillow over my head, as if that would help block out the sounds.

Almost immediately, I discovered, it had. Abby's moans were now a distant, muffled noise that barely registered in my consciousness. Unfortunately, somehow, my ear pressing on the couch cushion was somehow amplifying the conversation from the room next door.

"-want me to fuck him?" Jess's voice came, clearer, but still hushed.

"No!" Carl responded, voice clearer, a note of panic perceptible. "I don't know what's wrong..."

They continued speaking more quietly now, just about clear enough for me to make out, other than the odd word here and there.

"-this place... these men..." Jess was saying. "... you jealous?"

"Not that... Nice seeing you like that..." Carl whispered. "... my girlfriend though!"

Jess seemed to laugh at whatever he had said, before continuing.

"... and I love you... can't perform for me... who can."

"... expect me to be okay with that?... or twice is... but... not healthy!"

Jess responded with a single quiet syllable, before Carl began whispering back to her, slower now, as if measuring each word. I strained my ears but could barely pick out the words.

"... want... share... only Sam... alone," I managed to pick out.

Jess's response seemed more upbeat, "We've talked about this... comfortable with it... helped you last time... love you so much."

Their murmuring became quieter, or the heartbeat now pounding in my ears just seemed to block it out again. I didn't want to make assumptions, but it sounded like I was going to get another crack at Jess!

The surge of excitement kept me from falling asleep for what felt like hours, all the while, the sounds of pleasure rang out from above me, and after a short while, the room opposite me too. But I didn't care anymore.

***

A couple of days later, Carl and I were at the beach together, waiting to meet some friends to enjoy the last few weeks of summer.

"Are you okay about Abby?" He asked me between bites of a doughnut.

I looked at him quizzically, "Is this about Zach and her?"

He nodded, and I inclined my shoulders in a dismissive shrug.

"They're not together, and there was never any expectation for us. We're both happy being single."

"Yeah, but..." He blushed. "The noise. The house is worse than our dorms for it. Did you ever hear them there?"

"Well, no. But that's because Zach never managed to bring a girl back to his place ever," I smiled. "More importantly: they only started having a thing when we were leaving there."

Carl half shrugged in agreement.

"But it can't be good for you hearing them so often?" He asked, blushing still.

"As I said, we're both consenting adults, free to do as we like. We're not together. Never were."

After a tense silence, he spoke again, eyes widening.

"Are..." he swallowed. "Are me and Jess... Can you hear us?"

I snickered, and saw his blush deepen, making me laugh even further.

"Do the maths, mate," I said, when I could breathe again. "If you can hear Abby, even if she's exaggerating, and if you can hear girls with me... then... well, what do you think?"

He grimaced, "Please don't tell anyone."

I laughed, although slightly confused at what he meant.

"It's easy money though," he went on, not waiting for me to stop. "It's just a few pictures or videos now and then."

"Wait, what?" I asked, laughter abruptly ending.

He looked at me with wide eyes and began to stutter, but I couldn't interpret his scattered words.

"Mate, calm down," I said, grabbing his shoulder. "It's alright. I won't tell anyone. But you need to tell me what I'm not telling them, as it's starting to sound a bit dodgy."

He gulped, actually audibly gulped, before taking a breath and looking me in the eyes, "Jess makes her money online. She models... for fans on the internet."

"What!?" I gasped. "Are you taking the piss?"

He shook his head slowly, "No. She makes more than me."

"Does Abby too?" I wheezed.

He shrugged, "Look, you can't tell anyone!"

"Mate, with her body, someone is bound to discover it!"

"That's what I keep saying. But she's got no tattoos and she keeps her face hidden. She doesn't do audio much, so people don't know her language or accent, and she keeps the anything out of the shots that could identify where she's from, let alone who she is."

"And she actually makes money?" I gaped.

"Fuck you!" Carl laughed, punching me lightly.

Seeing my bewilderment, he carried on, "I know what you meant. Yes. It's up and down, but it's more than I make. I'd go as far as to guess that it's more than you and I make combined."

"Fucking hell," I sighed. "Maybe I should sign up?"

Carl and I looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"So, what does she do?" I asked, intrigued.

"Fuck off, I'm not telling you anything more," Carl grinned, blush finally fading. "You'll try to find her, and then it will get out."

I tutted, shaking my head, "Mate, do you think I really need to find her online?"

Carl's expression hardened and the fading blush seemed to rise again. Seeing his reaction, I quickly continued, "I meant; I get to see her every day. I don't need to see pictures of her online."

He relaxed, but his face stayed a shade of red.

"I don't like her doing it," he sighed. "I mean, it's not much more than nude shots at the moment, but... it feels wrong."

My mind went back to the other night. Were they arguing about this, not about another chance for me to get with her? I suddenly felt deflated.

"Well, she's your girlfriend, mate," I said without inflection. "Shall we get a drink?"

***

Several hours later and we were all wankered.

It was still hot and light out, the pubs and bars were still packed, and nowhere near closing, but we decided to push our way out of the bar and back onto the beach again, plastic cups of booze in hand.

Our friends had arrived a short time after we ordered our first drink. The group included Zach and our old neighbour Jim. Zach had wasted no time in telling Jim that he was fucking the 'hot chick with the fat ass that hung around with Sam', which Jim found hilarious, although looked at me with something like pity.

A short time later, said girl and Jess both showed up, much to the chagrin of some of the girls with us.

The stony beach was less comfortable than the bar but gave us the freedom to be rowdier. Abby seemed to be delighting in teasing Jim, after finding out that Zach had implied there was more to their relationship than there really was. While the rest of us had sat down on the pebbles, Abby had decided that Jim's lap would be more comfortable.

I was sat nearby, Jess and Carl huddled together between Jim and me. I had been flirting with some of the girls at the bar, who had delighted in getting back at their boyfriends gawking at Jess and Abby, but they had all collapsed further down the beach, obviously mutually avoiding temptation. This left me as a lone spare part, but I couldn't muster the energy to do anything other than bask in the dying sunlight.

The laughing and squealing from next to me occasionally dragged me into conversation, but mostly I was in my own world until I saw Zach stand up and storm off suddenly.

Abby laughed uproariously and Jim seemed to blush.

"What was that about?" I asked Carl.

"He couldn't handle Abby flirting with Jim," Carl shrugged.

"She called him a cuck," Jess added. "And he clearly didn't take it well."

Zach didn't seem to be stopping, as he had now stomped his way off the beach and back onto the promenade.

"What is a cuck?" Jess asked, looking over at Abby. "Why did he get so offended? I thought it was just some kind of American insult."

Jim responded, still almost glowing red, "Forgive me if I have this wrong, but I believe that Shakespeare used the word 'cuckold' to mean a man who has an unfaithful wife. It comes from the cuckoo bird that lays eggs in other birds' nests and has some roots in the horns that-"

Carl and I kept similarly straight poker faces as Jim went on, clearly having seen the term used on the internet when browsing certain video sites, but Abby burst out laughing at the pink flush creeping up Jess's lightly tanned face.

"Yeah, he was always using it on other people," she said through almost tears of laughter. "How he wanted to be a bull for all the cucks here with wives too hot for them. Clearly, he didn't like it when 'his' girl was 'cucking' him."

Jim seemed to get even redder somehow, and he began to stammer, "I- you- I... what-"

"Oh, I see that the thought's got you excited," Abby laughed, visibly grinding against his lap.

"Abs! Stop teasing the poor boy!" Jess chided; her blush now faded. "And please explain to me what you just said, in English?"

"Hmm?" Abby said, still grinding on Jim, her face seemingly pinker. "Oh... Erm... He thinks he's all that. It's one of the reasons he goes to the gym all the time. He wants to fuck other people's wives, or girlfriends I guess, so that he can have 'all the fun and none of the responsibility'."

"Is that a bully?" Carl asked.

Abby took a moment to answer, eyes seeming to be glazed over slightly.

"A bull is the one who fuck's the cuck's girl, I think," she said absently.

"And that's a thing?" Jess asked, suddenly more animated. "People actually do that?"

When Abby didn't answer, I spoke up, "I guess it has the same appeal of being single and having one-night stands. You can find a girl and fuck them, then not worry about all the stuff like buying flowers and taking them out on dates."

"Then why not just do that? Why all these names and stuff?"

Abby seemed to cut out of her trance then and responded, "I don't know. I think Zach just had a superiority complex. He like to be thought of as being better than the husband. Like... he's so sexy or tempting or something that a woman would throw her relationship away just to fuck him."

"But if it has all these names, these people aren't throwing away relationships, right? The... men are staying with their partner even though they're cheating? Do the husbands not know?" Jess continued.

Abby looked at her levelly, "I don't think it's cheating so much these days. I can see why the wives would do it, and the 'bulls', but that's it. I don't know what the other guy gets."