Broadway Beginnings

"And you had fun?"

"So much fun," Ty said, "That weekend changed me for the better."

"Ty, I can't help but wonder what it is you're not telling me."

Ty shifted and started to speak but Tony stopped him.

"I would rather you didn't tell me than lie, but I'm worried. Are you okay?"

Ty sighed and met Tony's eyes, which were watching him with concerned patience, "I wouldn't lie to you, Tony."

He bit his lip and fidgeted a little, "I told you about Oxley and my first time, him being so amazing. The truth is that was my first consensual time."

"Oh, Ty," Tony's eyes were instantly damp and full of pain.

"I don't want that here today. I don't want to let that in today, Tony," Ty's eyes by contrast were hard and fierce.

"Okay," Tony blinked rapidly and reached up to kiss Ty, smoothing his hair, "It's okay, not here today, that's okay. Whatever you want. Whatever you need." He pulled Ty down against his chest and continued stroking his hair, "Whatever you need."

"I need you," Ty said roughly and yanked Tony up, "I need you again, right now."

Tony's eyes were wide, as was his smile, as he nodded.

"Hands and knees, I mean it this time," Ty growled, and Tony complied, scrambling up and pushing his ass up like an offering.

Ty grabbed a condom and checked that Tony was still slick and open. He was, and he groaned deep and long as Ty gently but firmly slid deep.

"Ohhhhhhhh, fuck me!"

"All day, all night, Baby," Ty muttered in his ear, as Tony laughed breathlessly and they started to move together, "All day and all night."

-X

Tony wasn't sure how long he had slept after Ty had taken his ass for the second time, but he woke up stretched across the bed on his stomach, covered by a light sheet.

It was dark and he thought that he had heard thunder. Then his stomach growled deep and long again, and he became aware that the apartment was flooded with the most amazing smell.

He rolled over, taken by surprise when his ass took his weight, "Ohhh!"

Ty looked over from the kitchen area, where he was tipping pasta into a drainer, surrounded by steam, "You okay?"

"Yea!" Tony laughed as he pushed to his feet, "Little bit sore, I guess," he indicated the bathroom, "I really need to um, excuse me," he stuttered and wriggled into the bathroom.

"You've got ten minutes if you want to grab a quick shower," Ty yelled.

"Thanks," Tony yelled back and gratefully took advantage.

It hadn't escaped his attention that Ty had done no more than sling a towel around his hips, so Tony came out similarly attired.

He was also wearing a scowl and cursing, "Oww, shit, fucking hell."

Ty was next to him in a flash, hands all over him, "Are you hurt, where? Oh shit, Tony I'm so sorry. It's normal to be a little sore but you shouldn't hurt, is there any blood? Jesus, I'm a fucking asshole," Ty stopped abruptly when Tony grabbed his face and kissed him.

"Christ, calm the fuck down, I whacked my elbow in the world's smallest shower!"

"Oh!" Ty let out a breath of relief.

"How the hell do you even fit in there, you've gotta couple of inches on me?"

"Six-two."

"Okay, three inches," Tony admitted, still rubbing his elbow.

Ty smiled and walked Tony towards the kitchen, "I do it like a dance."

"What?" Tony slid, a little gingerly, onto a stool.

Ty watched him closely, "I shower like a dance. Every move is practiced and the same every time, so my movements are controlled. I was permanently covered in bruises until I figured that out."

"That's so clever!"

"Uh huh," Ty nodded as he dished out pasta, "Are you sore?"

Tony closed his eyes and inhaled the steam rising from his plate, garlic and spicy tomato sauce making his head spin. He grabbed his fork and moaned around the first bite before looking at Ty, "This is amazing, Ty."

"Hmmm, something else I learned from Oxley. That I love to cook."

"Really?"

Ty nodded but didn't eat. He was waiting for an answer.

"A little sore maybe, but does it make sense if I say it's more like I'm ultra-aware."

Ty grinned and started to eat, "Yea, that makes sense."

Both of them were famished so probably overindulged in the pasta and it was with less sexy groans that they rolled back into the bed a little later.

They continued their conversation around casual kisses and ended up snuggled together, their fingers intertwined. Relaxed and cosy.

"So," Tony started, "You asked me yesterday if I was bi. Are you?"

"No, why do you ask?"

"You and Polly?" Tony suggested.

Ty cracked up, "Hell no. Oh God. Polly's amazing, we roomed together for a while. She a close friend, but no."

"She fancies you."

"I know. It's fine. Anyway, Polly fancies anything with a pulse, she's pretty open about that sort of thing. Whereas I'm the opposite," Ty admitted.

Tony thought back over Ty's behavior the past couple of days, "But you're out, right?"

"Totally out," Ty agreed, "but I'm not a particularly open person. My nature is to be discreet. That's just me, nothing to do with being gay."

Tony just waited; he was learning there was always a little more with Ty.

"Growing up, my grandparents were amazing, driving me to dance class, encouraging me. Supporting me and trying to guide me when I was being bullied, but we were all finding our way, I guess we all made mistakes. But I was probably more open as a kid than as a teenager and adult."

"Was the bullying bad?" Tony asked carefully.

Ty shrugged, "It got bad at high school. They used to call me Ty Pinkfeather."

"So they managed to be homophobic and racist at the same time. Damn, kids are a pain in the ass."

"It wasn't just the kids," Ty admitted.

Tony considered that for a moment, feeling bad for Ty but knowing he wasn't ready to take it any further. Not with him, but maybe one day he would be.

"I have to admit," Tony suggested, sending Ty a wicked grin, "It would make a great stage name!"

Ty's laugh was instant and loud. He gave Tony a squeeze and asked, "How about you, were you okay at home. Your parents?"

"Yea, they've always been great. Since I came out," Tony admitted laughing a little.

"What," Ty asked, smiling at Tony's amusement.

"The way my parents handled it."

"Tell me," Ty insisted.

Tony was still grinning, "It's just, I had never actually come out. I mean talked to them about it, and then suddenly I had to tell them, and I was so scared and," Tony stopped, his face falling, "I've just realized I'm being an insensitive asshole, talking about this."

Ty frowned, "Why? What are you talking about?"

"Polly told me that you were raised by your grandparent's. She said you lost your parents young. I'm sorry, I'm an idiot."

"No, Tony. It's okay, I want to hear your story. Yes I lost my parents, but it was a long time ago," Ty paused, seeing that Tony still looked uncomfortable. "Tell you what," he continued, "I'll go first shall I?"

"You don't have to tell me, Ty."

Ty pushed himself up a little in the bed, his dark eyes serious, "The thing is, Tony. And this has never happened before, but I think I want to."

"Really?"

Ty nodded.

"Then tell me," Tony said simply and waited.

Ty shoved his hair back and blew out a breath.

"I guess I'll start at the beginning. You see my Mom got pregnant by accident. They were married but had this amazing career and were working and travelling together. The pregnancy was about four or five years before they had planned to settle and start a family, and they weren't in a position to raise a child, so it threw them."

"What did they do, career wise?" Tony asked.

"They worked for charities, making documentaries about people's struggles. Women, old people. People with no power impacted by events they had no control over. They spent most of their time in war zones and disaster zones. Mom behind the camera, Dad in front of it. Weeks or months to film and then back to edit and polish before going off on the next adventure."

"Not the best environment for a child!" Tony agreed.

"Their work was important, and award winning, but Mom was torn because she didn't want to have an abortion."

"That's a tough decision."

"Yea" Ty's eyes were deep, looking back "It was. But my grandparents stepped in. Said they would take the baby, and once my parents had their four or five years they could come back. They lived with my grandparents anyway when they were in the States, doing their editing and kids don't really remember stuff from the first few years."

So your grandparents raised you from a baby?"

Ty nodded, "Three months old. My Mom had stayed for six months to keep me safe and safely delivered, then they went off and continued their adventures. But they came back more often, every few weeks, never more then two months away. They didn't want to miss my growing up."

"They sound pretty cool," Tony said quietly.

Ty smiled, pleased that Tony wasn't judging them badly, "Yea, I think so. They were doing important work. I think they did the best they could."

"So?" Tony left the 'what happened?' unspoken.

"They died when I was three. Not in a conflict or plane crash or anything like that. They were home to spend Christmas with me. It was snowing and a car coming the other way spun out of control. They wouldn't have had time to even realize how bad it was going to be."

"Ty, I'm so sorry."

Ty smiled at Tony's hand on his arm, he took a breath, "It's too long ago for me to remember or be devastated. I would have like to have known them, but I'm glad that it was fast, and they were together. I looked up pictures of the accident once when I was a teenager, going through an angry stage," he paused and shook his head, "You wouldn't think anyone could have gotten out of there."

Tony's mouth fell open, "What? Ty. Were you in the car?"

Ty huffed out another breath, "Yea."

"Jesus," Tony amused Ty by running his hands over him like he was checking for injuries, "but you're okay? Were you badly hurt?"

"Tony. Chill. It was almost twenty years ago!"

Tony sat back, "Sorry. And you don't remember anything?"

"No, never had any memory of it," he wiggled his head at Tony and grinned, "But, there is a little more to the story. If you want?"

"I want. What is it?" Tony demanded.

"A couple of years ago when I graduated, we had our final show. One of the girls, she was excited about her aunt and uncle attending the performance. After the performance she's running down the corridor after me, 'Ty, you gotta come meet my uncle. He thinks he knows you.'"

"Yea?"

Ty shrugged, "I'm like, 'I don't think so, but okay,' and I go off to meet her uncle."

"Did you know him?" Tony was intrigued.

"I didn't think so, but then he asks me if I'm from South Dakota. Which, yea. That's where my grandparents lived. Then this huge guy gets all teared up."

Tony laughed, "He's huge? You're not exactly small."

"I'm only six-two," Ty said, and lifted a hand over his head, "This guy was like up here. And he's really emotional and it's weird. I've got no clue what his deal is. He looks at his wife, 'It's really him. It's Ty Maka.' Then he starts choking up."

"I bet you were so uncomfortable," Tony grinned.

"Just a bit," Ty admitted, "but his wife steps in, says that her husband had been a firefighter in McCook. Well that's just a couple of towns over from where I grew up. Asks me really gently if I was in a car accident when I was little."

"Oh wow!"

"I told them, yes. My parent's had been killed in an accident when I was three. She was really nice, worried that they were upsetting me, but it was cool. Then he told me what happened."

"What did he tell you?" Tony's voice was hushed.

Ty let himself go back to his graduating performance night, drawing the man's words from his memory.

"It was freezing, almost a blizzard, but the road was swimming in gas. The whole lot could have gone up with the slightest spark, so we had to work slowly. Hand tools only. It was hours before we were able to pry the roof away from the rest of the wreak. We knew by then that there was a child in the car. Children are always the hardest. The worst part of the job."

He paused and cleared his throat.

"Then suddenly the roof came free and you were revealed. Strapped into the car seat. You looked untouched. Not a scratch. Just a little blue around the lips. This beautiful, perfect child. You looked like a sleeping angel and my heart just shattered. I knew in that moment. That was it for me. I couldn't do that job anymore. I couldn't face something like that again. Seeing something so pure and precious destroyed."

He took a shaky breath, "And then you opened your eyes. Blinked and held your arms up to me."

Unashamed he wiped his cheeks and looked into Ty's dark eyes, also swimming with emotion, "I did another ten years before I retired, and now we're in New Jersey I'm still involved with the fire service. Raising funds and such. Whenever it was hard, whenever I had a bad call out, I would remember that child. That miracle, cold but unharmed in my arms, and it would get me through."

"My grandparents told me I didn't even have a bruise. Three days in hospital with hypothermia but otherwise fine."

"I can't tell you, Ty. I can't explain to you what it means to me to have seen you up there on stage tonight. An athlete. Strong and whole and talented. It means the world."

Ty was frowning slightly, and his classmate's aunt looked concerned as she rubbed his arm, "I'm sorry. We have upset you?"

"No, No I was just thinking," he looked at them, "I have a bear. A teddy bear in turnouts and a little helmet. I've had it as long as I remember, and my grandmother told me it was a present from the man who pulled me out of the wreck."

"You still have the bear?" the man whispered hoarsely. Smiling back when Ty grinned at him.

"Of course I do."

Ty pulled himself back to the present to see that Tony's cheeks were wet.

"That's possibly the sweetest, saddest, most beautiful story I've ever heard," Tony said.

"Which is why you're crying?"

"Well, excuse me for having emotions!"

Ty grinned and kissed him before pointing at a corner shelf, "Over there, see?"

Laughing when Tony gave a cry, leapt naked from the bed, and dashed over to the shelf grabbing the little bear and hugging it to him, "You really do still have the bear."

Ty laughed out loud again when Tony kissed the little nose before setting the bear safely back on the shelf. Laughed harder when he climbed back into the bed and gave Ty's nose an identical kiss.

"Go on then," he said, "Your turn."

"My story's not nearly so dramatic."

"But I'm hoping it's funnier!"

Tony grinned and settled in next to Ty.

"It was just before prom. I was seventeen, young in the class and quite shy."

"No shit! You. Shy?"

Tony flushed a little, "Well, imagine how extra shy I was when Dexter Buckfield asked me to go to the prom with him."

"And who was Dexter Buckfield?"

"Captain of the football team," Tony admitted with exaggerated smugness.

"Ohhh. A jock! Was he hot?"

"So hot," Tony swooned, fanning himself.

Ty laughed, "So how did he ask?"

"He just came up to me at school and asked me if I was out. I was completely panicked, but Dex explained that he was only asking because he wondered if I wanted to go to prom with him, but he wasn't sure if I was out."

"So you weren't!"

Tony shook his head, "I did not know what to do. Dex was cool, he said he wasn't asking me to marry him or go steady. He just thought it would be fun to go together, dance together, maybe make out at the end of the night. Nothing heavy, just for fun."

"How long did you panic for?"

"Ten seconds. I couldn't walk away from the chance to make out with Dex. I'd never kissed anyone before. But I told him I had to tell my parents. He was super confident. We swapped numbers and I floated home."

"So cute."

"Shut up."

"So you had to tell your folks. Were you worried?"

Tony shrugged, "I didn't really know what to expect from them. But I sat them down that weekend. All serious, in private. Away from my nosey sisters."

"You have sisters?"

"Two. Both older."

"Now why does that not surprise me," Ty teased.

Tony just rolled his eyes, "Mom's sat there looking at me sort of calm, interested, and all knowing. Mom's always know everything."

"I've heard that," Ty agreed easily.

"Dad has this really serious expression on his face. So I just dived in. 'I need to tell you something. I'm gay.'"

"And," Ty prompted.

"They just sat there. No change in expression. So I'm like, 'I'm gay as in I like boys and nothing. Until Dad, still deadly serious says, 'Do you like dressing in women's clothing?'"

Ty snorted.

"I don't know what to say, it's like, 'No. What? I just said I'm gay' and Dad's still looking at me with this weird serious expression and he's like 'Yes, but I've been worried about this, because your sister's liked dressing you in their doll's clothes when you were a baby and I always worried about what effect it might have.'"

Ty was shaking with laughter now, "Please tell me you have pictures."

"I burned them all," Tony grinned, "Then Mom looked at him and calmly says 'There's nothing wrong with wearing women's clothing if it makes him happy,' and Dad's all 'No son of mine is wearing women's clothing,' and I'm thinking, shit my parents are gonna get divorced and it's all my fault."

He shook his head, "So I tried again, 'I'm not a transvestite, I'm gay' only for Mom to tell me there's nothing wrong with being a transvestite."

Tony sighed, "And then I realized."

"They were messing with you," Ty was laughing hard now.

"Yep," Tony nodded, "They were winding me up. One of the most important moments in my life and they're taking the piss."

"I love that. They already knew."

"Of course they did. Dad stood up and yanked me into a hug. He was laughing so hard, 'Isn't he so sweet? Thank you for telling us.' Then I'm laughing too, and we're all crying a little, and it was perfect."

"Did you go to the prom with Dexter the Jock?"

"Yea, it was fun. The school wasn't thrilled but my form tutor and my parents and Dex's parents went and told them how it was."

"That's cool."

"Yea, it really was. Oh, and Dex told me that the coach had cornered him after practice and started offering him advice on safe sex. He said the man was obviously so embarrassed and awkward and Dex had to take pity on him and tell him that he really wasn't ready for that and it wouldn't be an issue in the near future."

"Let him off the hook," Ty grinned.

"Yea."

"It was nice of him to try though, that's actually really sweet."

"In my experience Coach Hawkins was the opposite of sweet, but yea. I guess if you're the football star then he makes the effort."

"And did you and Dex stick at first base?"

Tony blushed, "We were gearing up to give third a try before my Dad decided it was time to enjoy a beer on the porch. Yea laugh," he said as Ty cracked up again.

"And was he as good a kisser as me?" Ty asked, still laughing.

"Way better," Tony claimed, and then giggled as Ty pounced and danced his fingers over Tony's ribs.

Soon they were both breathless.

"I love that you are so ticklish," Ty said, before he lowered his lips to Tony's.

Tony threaded his fingers through Ty's thick hair, and then giggled into his mouth when Ty tickled his balls.

"Christ!"

"Ticklish everywhere. Awesome."

"Ahhhh. Stop!"

Ty grinned and pushed Tony gently back down on the bed, reaching for where he had left the lube and waggling his eyebrows in an overly salacious manner.

"You gonna fuck me again?" Tony asked. Game, but a little nervous as he was tender.

"Not quite," Ty advised him, "I'm going to further your education."

Tony just grinned.

"Touch yourself," Ty ordered.

"What?"