Catching Feelings Ch. 01

****This is written with the help of @wanderer0075 on here. He is my partner and the stories connected to this series are all written with him. We hope you enjoy! I promise I'm working on another chapter of Songs of You too. I've hit some writers block with the other stories.****

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Chapter 1

Jeremy Thayer walked across the campus of Kent State University, looking around at the student center like it was a new lease on his life. He was transferring here for his junior year of college, after a particularly nasty ending to a tryst with a Senator's son in New York. After the media circus had died down, his parents decided that sending him to a college in a different state was the best way to avoid more of this issue, and thus, here he was in Ohio, trying to finish up his degree in Political Science, though it really wasn't what he wanted to do.

Jeremy was so sick of being the gay son of rich and powerful people. Everything he did was under scrutiny, and everything he planned for his future was not what he wanted. The only good thing about going to school here was that they had a swimming pool so he could keep swimming, and he was still able to play soccer. At least some of his own passions could be attended to.

Luckily, KSU was where his two best friends already went, having forgone going to a college in the state in order to get away from their families. They had wanted him to come with them but Jeremy had cracked under the pressure from his father to stay there for his undergrad. His dad was probably regretting that pressure on him now. He saw Chloe Wright and Ethan Morrow standing near the student center, out on the steps talking to each other. They both smiled as he made his way over to them.

Chloe was all of five feet and two inches tall, and was an absolute bombshell of a woman. Her facial features were delicate, and though she looked as white as could be, her eyes were slanted slightly from Taiwanese genes from her grandmother. Genes are funny things, though, because that was the only telltale sign she had any Asian in her at all. Her hair was blonde and curled softly around her features, reaching down to her middle back, and her blue eyes were fierce and sparkling. She had the body of a dancer, so her breasts were on the smaller side and she was thin but she had curves where her hips were.

Ethan, on the other hand, was taller than Jeremy, standing at just a hair over six feet tall, and had short cut auburn hair and turquoise eyes. Right then those eyes were warm and welcoming, but Jeremy had seen them turn into a cold blue color like the deep sea when he was angry. He used to play baseball in high school, and had always trained in martial arts as long as Jeremy could remember, so he had a lot of lean muscle to him. The smile he gave was big and bright, one he only really gave to his friends, and it made Jeremy smile back at him.

"You're here!" Chloe cried happily and hugged him.

"Yeah, finally settled," Jeremy said with a nod.

"Are you living in the dorms?" Ethan asked him.

Jeremy shook his head. "My parents paid for a one bedroom apartment. It's just right off campus, near downtown."

"We were thinking of going to a club tonight or something," Chloe commented. "You know, celebrate the fact that you're finally here on campus with us! What do you think?"

"Yeah, we can do that," Jeremy shrugged as he spoke. Dancing would be fun, but he wasn't going to focus on finding more than dance partners. Men were trouble.

"Gay club or regular club?" Chloe asked.

Ethan gave a look that said he really didn't want to go to a gay club, which was lucky for him as Jeremy said, "Regular club. I'm swearing off men forever."

"Oh it's not that bad, is it?" Chloe asked.

"It was in the papers, Chloe! Every single blog dedicated to society and politics!" Ethan cried to her.

Jeremy gave a sigh. "It was bad. I think if Jasper had just admitted that he was gay and didn't try to say I seduced him, then it would be different. Now in all of our circles, I'll be forever known as the guy that seduced a Senator's son to the dark side."

Ethan grinned at that. "It's not like you sucked off the actual senator."

Jeremy gave Ethan a flat look. "That's disgusting."

Ethan laughed. "If you were so good at turning a senator's son, then why haven't you seduced me over to the supposed 'dark side' yet? I'm just as affluent, handsome, and interesting, and yet. I'm feeling left out, Jer."

Jeremy rolled his eyes. "I'll get right on it, Ethan."

His eyes tracked to some students tossing a football back and forth but he put them out of his mind, determined not to appreciate the tight jeans and letterman jackets of the Football Jock crowd. That was a dangerous road to go down and Jeremy knew it. Just as he'd decided they were out of sight and therefore out of mind, a football introduced itself to the back of his head, rather rudely. This was met with cheers and jeers from the Footballers as one of them ran up to retrieve their oddly shaped excuse for a ball.

"Hey, sorry about that," a tall, dirty-blonde, clean-shaven pair of slate-gray eyes said to him before stooping to pick up his prize and running back to his teammates, with a few backward glances. The man was close to Jeremy's height at five foot eleven, and absolutely gorgeous, which just flamed the fires more of Jeremy's frustration with the man.

"I'm fine, by the way!" Jeremy yelled at the guy with deep annoyance in his voice, partly because his head hurt but mostly because the guy was gorgeous and he had just sworn off men forever. "So glad you asked!"

Chloe was grinning at him. "He's cute."

"And straight," Jeremy commented as he watched the guy, hating that he was letting himself look at his muscled body in that jacket and jeans, but it was hard not to look.

"You can't tell just by looking at him," Chloe complained.

"No, that's James Sparks," Ethan said. "Definitely straight. He's not a slut, per se, but he's like the big catch for all the girls here. Not a slut like you, anyway, Jer."

"Oh shut up, you're even worse than me!" Jeremy said as he shoved his friend. "And I have not only sworn off straight boys, but men in general, forever, remember?"

"I dunno," Chloe pointed out, "He does keep looking over at you."

"Probably because I'm the only person who has ever told him off," Jeremy snorted, and then turned back to look at him. "Or he's looking at you, because you have curves in all the right places, according to every guy we've ever known."

Chloe shook her head at that. "No, definitely looking at you."

Jimmy ran back over to his teammates, juggling the football thoughtfully. He had never in his 20 years of life had reason to wonder if he really was straight but there was something about that transfer student that had stopped him in his tracks. From the way his black hair fell over his left eye in a mysterious way, to his sage green eyes that had been looking at him with annoyance, and the long lean lines of his body that showed he was definitely an athlete. He had a chiseled jaw that had just a little bit of stubble and led to smooth lips that Jimmy thought about biting down on as they kissed. His voice had been a smooth baritone, even when chastising him, and sent a shiver down Jimmy's spine.

He shook himself out of his reverie and tossed the pigskin to Wayne Davis, their quarterback and his best friend, a well muscled and tall black man who everyone at the school adored, and excused himself from the group. He jogged uncomfortably across the grass to the dorms, where he chased his roommate from the room and settled down at his computer. It was time to do some research and see if this (and the growing issue in his jeans) was normal for straight guys.

A quick internet search was almost immediately interrupted by locking the door and a quick wank job to clear the pipes, and his head. Cleaning up, he logged back onto his computer and did some more digging around. It turned out this was completely normal and people explore their sexuality occasionally in their youth. He never thought he'd be one of those confused kids, but given where his mind had been going, it looked like he needed to rethink some things.

Jimmy got a text after he was done with his research from Wayne. Apparently everyone wanted to go out that night to a club in the Akron area to dance and drink. Fake IDs of course were a must, but everyone underage on the football team of course had them.

Jimmy changed his clothes and grabbed his "club wallet" from the drawer it lived in. He unlocked the door and headed out to catch the truck his buddy was going to be driving. He wanted to get there soon enough to ride shotgun. He also secretly hoped the new kid would be there.

Jeremy met Chloe and Ethan at the apartment they shared, which was two rooms on opposite sides. This was a way they could have an apartment their parents paid for but on their own terms. They all had always planned to be roommates with each other like this, but life got in the way for Jeremy. Now they weren't too far from each other though.

Jeremy had gotten dressed for clubbing, with black skinny jeans that were tight enough to show what a great ass he had, black dress shoes, and a merlot colored silk button up shirt that he left the top three buttons open on that showed off the black leather cord around his neck that held a decorative silver compass pendant. It showed the black chest hair that went down his chest. He left it untucked so that when he moved in certain ways, people could see the black hair that led down to the well trimmed bush around his dick. He may have sworn off dating, but if he came across an openly gay man he wouldn't say no to sex. Casual sex was his way around not getting involved with men anymore. It was quick, easy, and done as soon as everyone cums and is happy.

Chloe was in a tight, short black dress that went mid-thigh, with winged eyeliner and red lipstick, and her golden blonde hair pulled up in an elaborate bun while Ethan was dressed as most straight men would: jeans and a dark henley shirt that showed off his tattoos and chest hair. Not fancy, but it would work.

"Let's go," Chloe cried. "I found out where most of the athletes are going. I'm scoring tonight."

Ethan and Jeremy both laughed and followed her to the car. They parked a few blocks away and then walked down to the club, where Ethan was able to get them in easily, using money and charms at the same time. Money talked, and they all had fake IDs that meant the drinks would be flowing all night.

The club was playing dance songs and as soon as Jeremy had a drink in hand and could see people dancing, he started to relax. He hadn't realized how tense he had been since he got on campus until right then. All of the pressure of behaving exactly the way he was expected to had been a lot, and it would come back, but for right now, it was just them and the club.

"Show us those seductive moves, Jer," Chloe said loudly in order to be heard over the music.

Ethan jokingly held out his hand, and Jeremy grabbed both his and Chloe's hands to pull them out onto the dance floor. He had never cared what gender he danced with. Dancing was just dancing, having fun. So he happily danced with both Ethan and Chloe, both together and alone, and then anyone else who was happy to dance with him once he was there.

Jimmy nursed a vodka and cranberry juice at a corner table in the club. He was taking a break from the dance floor. He always felt awkward out there, but it kept the ladies happy that he put forth the effort to try to dance, so he generally did what he could. As he was scanning the club, he saw a familiar trio make their way onto the dance floor. He smiled and watched them. The new kid was definitely an athlete, his natural grace lent him an edge on the floor and he was dancing with anyone who wanted to. Seeing his chance to explore, Jimmy downed his drink and left the glass on the table, making his way onto the floor.

He danced over to the new kid and soon found himself in Jeremy's orbit. He was careful not to dance directly with him, just teasing around the edges of his sphere of influence among the other dancers.

Jeremy noticed him when he showed up, especially because Chloe gave him a look that would be hard to mistake. Jeremy tried to focus on his current partner, which was a man who was getting particularly handsy, not that Jeremy was necessarily complaining about it. His attention kept going back to Jimmy though, and the way his muscles contracted and flowed as he danced. He wondered what it would be like to have those arms around him, feeling those muscles, and then he turned away, immediately angry at himself for taking interest in another obviously straight man.

Jimmy turned from a particularly athletic dance move and found himself face to face with the new kid. He became painfully aware of how well his jeans fit, his eyes dipping down to where the fellow he was dancing with was rubbing all over his ass. Smirking slightly as if this was on purpose, he made Jeremy into a sandwich, leaning in close and saying, somewhat loudly, in his ear, "Sorry again for hitting you with my ball. Where'd you get these moves?!"

Jeremy chuckled at him, giving him a once over. "Any gay man worth his salt should know how to dance. Dancing is akin to sex, after all." He said it in a flirty tone, and then immediately wanted to kick himself.

Jimmy's eyes went wide immediately as if he hadn't considered the, now somewhat obvious, reality that the new kid might be gay. "So I've heard!" Jimmy awkwardly extended his hand, "Jimmy Sparks!"

"Jeremy," he replied back, not willing to just hand over his last name. It would be too easy to Google that way, and he wasn't sure he wanted Jimmy to see his recent failure all over the papers yet, though it would be possible to find him by face alone if Jimmy read the paper constantly.

"Good to meet you! Can I get you a drink or has the octopus behind you already asked?" Jimmy said, getting ready to run if he got turned down. The alcohol burning through his system was lending him some courage, but only so much.

I'm a goddamn idiot, Jeremy said to himself, but those gray eyes were pulling him in. It was a little like watching a train travel towards a car stopped on the tracks and being unable to stop himself. "Sure, I'd love a drink. I'd hate for the octopus to think I'm an easy lay anyway."

Jimmy ignored the open door that would normally prompt him to ask about whether Jeremy was an easy lay. He walked over to the bar and flagged down a bartender. When she arrived he ordered another vodka-cranberry and asked Jeremy what he was drinking. Jeremy ordered a bourbon, straight, and thanked the bartender before she went over to get the drinks.

While they waited, Jimmy asked, "Where are you transferring from? I grew up around here, so new people are always the talk of the town."

"New York area," Jeremy replied, his tone casual even though he didn't like talking about this. "The city, mostly. School there...well, I needed a change of pace, so here I am."

"That's cool! I've never been to the City but I'd love to go some time. You're obviously an athlete, what do you play?" Jimmy said, sticking to his strengths.

"I swim, and I play soccer," Jeremy said and then took the drink as the bartender came back. "I see you play football, obviously."

"Yeah. It was a real eye-opener going from being the star player on my hometown football team to playing college ball. I'm second string here and that took actual effort!" Jimmy supplied.

Jeremy chuckled at that. "That's surprising, considering my friend said all the girls are chasing after you. I would have figured you were the college's star player here too."

"I started at the beginning of the season but I got benched for grades. I got them back up but I have to wait to get off the pine until grades come out next week. I do okay with the ladies, but I've found I'm more comfortable in a relationship than hooking up." Jimmy mentioned.

"Honestly, same," Jeremy commented, thinking of how empty some of the hookups he'd had were, though he kept reminding himself he was determined to only hook up this time around. His determination was dwindling around this man though. "Not that men have been a good use of my time lately. My last...relationship...went up in flames, so I'm kind of soured on it."

Jimmy nodded. "I can understand that. Can I ask you a personal question?"

"I suppose so, sure," Jeremy said with a nod.

Jimmy tossed his drink back, clearly screwing up some courage. "Did you know right away that you were gay or did it sort of... come out of nowhere?"

Jeremy looked a little surprised and he leaned against the bar, a little closer to Jimmy. "I figured it out in high school. I tried to do the whole dating girls thing in middle school and the beginning of high school, but it never quite clicked, if you know what I mean? They were nice, but I never really desperately wanted to kiss someone before Connor Woodworth. He was dreamy, and very bisexual in the closet, but boy did I like him. I've heard of some people not realizing it until middle age, though."

Jimmy nodded, asking for another drink. "Thank you, for that. I'd never really thought overly hard about dating a guy before... well, before today, honestly." He wasn't making eye contact but Jeremy had seen enough guys trying to adjust their thinking that he knew the signs.

"Ah," Jeremy exclaimed as he looked at Jimmy, his tone making it clear that he understood what he was saying. "So, you thought you were totally and completely straight...until today."

Jimmy nodded, not trusting himself to speak. He looked for the bartender and downed the drink that she brought him. He put his money on the bar and said, somewhat inebriated now, "Would you meet me outside?"

Jeremy bit his lower lip, not sure if it was smart to go with a supposed straight guy outside, especially not a tipsy one, but he also felt for Jimmy if he was questioning his sexuality now. He gave Jimmy a nod and finished his own drink before making his way out the door and to the side where it was quieter and darker.

Jimmy immediately went to the bathroom and urinated, taking the time while washing his hands to splash some water in his face and give himself a little pep talk before going outside. The cool air on his still-damp face helped to lessen some of the fog of the alcohol clouding his thoughts. He looked around and when he spotted Jeremy he went over to him. He approached awkwardly and leaned up against the wall.

"I just can't get you off my mind. Is that normal?" Jimmy asked, rather more directly than he normally would have.

Jeremy swallowed hard, looking away from Jimmy for a moment. "I mean, for someone who was interested in guys, I'd say it's pretty normal. It's possible you're bisexual, and I've just kind of piqued that particular interest."

"I have never thought about guys like this before. I've recognized people for aesthetic beauty but I can't stop wanting to kiss you and that has never happened before for me at all." Jimmy said, leaning back against the wall in frustration.

"What about with women?" Jeremy asked, and a big part of him hoped that Jimmy hadn't, but he wasn't going to show it on his face. He kept his eyes on the ground, leaning against the wall right next to Jimmy, close enough that their arms could almost touch.

"I mean, sure, but it was puppy love. You know how you felt about your first time? Then you spend all the other times chasing that same rush only you can't catch it." Jimmy said. "Anyway, I am very unsure about my sexuality right now but I have enough liquid courage in me to be honest with you."

"I don't exactly chase my feelings of my first time, but maybe it's different when you grow up...the way I did." Jeremy let out a sigh and looked at Jimmy again.