Friends, Sexcapades and Love Affairs Ch. 01

Summary:

Jared, Mike, and Adrian are like brothers from different mothers, and, like all siblings, whether by genes or chance, they like different things.

Jared wants a relationship, preferably one that lasts beyond a one-night-stand, Mike hides his vulnerable self under the pretense that he is into a niche fetish, and Adrian just likes to have fun.

In their quest to find the particular things that they believe would make them happy, they hook up, meet lovers, strike new friendships, and learn the taste of love and betrayal.

Whether they find what they're looking for or not, is all a matter of perspective. Or, in other words, as that adage goes, be careful what you wish for.

Chapter One - Meet The Boys

Jared pressed his index fingers against his temples and stared dejectedly at the non-alcoholic drink in front of him.

"Are all your ships sinking right now or something?" A heavy hand landed on his back, making him wince and straighten up.

"How come you're not already hooked up?" Jared questioned Adrian, his longtime friend.

Adrian shrugged and took a seat next to him on a high stool.

"I have yet to see something I like," he said, grabbing a handful of peanuts and throwing them into his mouth with perfect skill.

At six point two, with the body of a Greek god, and the face of a sinner, Adrian never lacked bed partners. The guy knew his longish black hair and olive complexion were putting him in the same category with celebs on the dance floor and not only, and he took advantage of that, whenever and wherever he could. Also, as many times he could.

Jared eyed the way Adrian's tank top stretched over perfect pecs and sighed. He wasn't exactly a twink, but there was no way he was in Adrian's league. Also, he was still not over his rock phase, so he was still keeping his brown hair too long, which might not have drawn as many prospective partners as he wanted. Everyone wanted a picture-perfect partner, with perfect abs, perfect pecs, perfect haircut, perfect everything. Jared had a bit of a thing for flawed things, or so he wanted to flatter himself.

Not that Jared liked sleeping around. He wanted to go steady with some dude, at least for a while. Well, his problem was probably that he kept frequenting the same places as Adrian, who was the king of hookups. There was no way he would find the love of his life in a place like that.

He almost missed Mike, his other best friend, taking a seat by his right. At least the redhead was in as much a foul mood as he was. Mike, just like Jared, was searching for something. Not the same thing, mind you, but still, he was as unsuccessful as the more unfortunate of his two friends.

Mike was, unlike Jared, the perfect twink. Also, he was insecure about his looks, and that made him cute. Jared had pointed that out on more than one occasion. Adrian had been a bit blunt, touching Mike's butt, and telling him he had a perfect ass and he would likely tap it.

Of course, right after that, Mike had pushed Adrian playfully aside and told him that he wasn't into incest. That because the three of them were like brothers from different mothers, no matter how different they were, at first glance.

"So, no alpha top in the mood to get screwed by a cute twink?" Adrian asked Mike over Jared's head, giving voice to what both of them were thinking.

Mike pouted and leaned over the bar to draw the bartender's attention. "What can I tell you, man?" he complained after, finally, the bartender took his order. "That's what I get from being into such a narrow niche fetish."

"Maybe you don't have the right approach." Adrian grinned. "Thought about Grindr?"

Mike made a face. "C'mon, man, do I look like I need some dating app to get laid?"

Adrian seemed to examine Mike for a while. "Yeah." He nodded, and Mike stood up so that he could punch Adrian's shoulder without hitting Jared in the process.

"Can the two of you act more like your age, for fuck's sake?" Jared protested as the stool shook under his ass, due to what soon degenerated into an exchange of punches between his two best friends.

"Oh, sorry, grandpa, is past your bedtime or something?" Adrian joked. "Seriously, by your sour face, people would think you're ninety-three or something."

Jared pouted. "I'm younger than you."

"By three months," Adrian replied.

"You're already twenty-five, Adrian." Mike snickered. "Ancient. Ah, is that why you don't seem to score that easily lately?"

"Shut the fuck up." Adrian pretended to be upset over the friendly jab. "It's just that I'm picky, that's all."

"Sure, sure." Mike nodded like he didn't mean it. "At least Jared and I are owning up to our failures. C'mon, old man, admit it. You lost your shine to this young crowd."

"You and Jared want the impossible," Adrian said as he linked he fingers and placed his chin on them, elbows set on the shiny counter.

"Really?" Mike glared.

"Seriously?" Jared exclaimed, almost at the same time.

"Yeah," Adrian continued, sure of his opinion. "Jared, stop thinking about getting some house in the suburbs and settling down with a husband and two kids from two different surrogate moms. Gay guys still in their twenties don't do that. Seriously, you're making me wonder if you're not some crazy result of plastic surgery and you're actually eighty."

"We've been in kindergarten together, fucker," Jared said, amused by his friend's assumptions. "And I don't want a house and kids, what the fuck? I want a relationship."

"And?" Adrian shrugged. "You can have a relationship. Only that it might last between the time you say 'hello' to the guy and 'bye' after a crazy one night stand."

"Ugh." Jared rolled his eyes and pushed his hair back. "You're clearly not the right guy to go to for relationship advice. I want at least a three-week relationship. Or three days! Is really that much to ask?" He opened his arms and looked at the ceiling, only to be met by stroboscope lights.

"What can I tell you, man?" Adrian stretched and yawned. "Everything happens fast in this day and age. We have fast food, fast news, speed dating -"

"Speed dating?" Mike intervened. "Have you ever been to one of those?"

Adrian stared at his friend as if he had trouble understanding the question. "Of course I haven't, what the hell? When you look like me, you don't go to speed dating." He pointed at his body as if it was unfathomable how anyone could ignore it and assume such things about him.

"Well, not everyone's lucky like you, Mr. I-Top-Everything-From-Top-To-Bottom," Mike said with a grimace.

Adrian smiled at the compliment. Jared was sure that if he rolled his eyes each time Adrian was smug about himself, he risked developing some eye condition. But Adrian did have a reputation of being an uncompromising top, and that, of course, had triggered many conversations around the subject. Adrian even liked topping other guys pretending to be as incorrigible as him. And he had many notches on his belt to prove his prowess on the matter.

"Hey," Mike exclaimed. "I know! You could lure one of those alphas for me, convince him to bottom, and then switch with me! Then I'll manage the impossible!"

"Sorry, man, I don't do charity work." Adrian flashed his signature smile at his friend. "Ah, sorry, gentlemen, it looks like the perfect candidate for the position had just entered the door."

"The position?" Mike questioned.

Jared needed to promise to himself that it was the last time he rolled his eyes at Adrian's expense. "The 'blowjob provider' position," he explained, and Mike, as expected, made a sour face.

"How that must feel," Mike said regretfully while watching Adrian sauntering away. "Being able to nail anyone you want."

Jared sighed, too. "I wish I were as uncomplicated as Adrian," he said, mirroring Mike's dejected tone. "Maybe I should." He pondered for a second and then reconsidered. "Nah, I'd better not."

"So, what do you want to do?" Mike questioned.

"Probably not waste my Friday night like this," Jared said with conviction. "I know I said that I'd be the designated driver, but do you think you and Adrian could catch a cab or something?"

Mike nodded and patted his shoulder. "No problem, man. I'll tell Adrian you went home. But really, do you want to go home and sleep?"

Jared shrugged and pushed away the non-alcoholic drink he hadn't touched. "I should maybe consider some honorable dating app," he said with a forced smile.

"Honorable?" Mike snorted. "If you find such a thing, let me know."

Jared smiled. "Have you tried forums and stuff? You know, for your particular fetish?"

Mike shivered as if attacked by a cold. "I'd rather not end up on the next day's six o'clock news. Me and dumpsters used for hiding corpses don't agree."

Jared laughed. Mike secretly wanted to go the old fashion way about his conquests. That might have explained his lack of success in the age of technology. One didn't just meet the man of his dreams by walking down the street and buying bread, or doing something mundane like that.

He bid goodbye to Mike and headed for the door. He didn't need to look for Adrian with his eyes. He was probably already with his 'blowjob provider' right now, and having the time of his life.

***

Adrian knew a confused guy when he saw one. And he was the best prescription and treatment for curing confusion. The newcomer looked like a jock and was throwing nervous looks around. All right, the prey was to approach with care, but Adrian wasn't one to waste an opportunity when he saw one.

The jock had sweet pouty lips, from what he could glean from his vantage point. A flight of stairs was the only thing between him and the current object of his interest.

For the love of all that was holy, he couldn't get Jared and his idea of being in a relationship. All summer, the city was a real fuckfest, an all-you-can-eat-buffet for a guy with an appetite like his. And with his looks, it was no problem for him to devour everyone in his path.

Adrian knew his friends were teasing him. There was no one to work as hard as him at the gym to look the way he looked. The jock threw a look up from the foot of the stairs, and their eyes met for a second.

That was enough. Adrian smiled. The newcomer was skittish as a young colt, but he had gathered enough courage to enter a gay club. From this point onward, it would be easy. And Adrian was happy to offer him a proper introduction to the delights of an alternative lifestyle.

His eyes trained on his target, he failed to notice someone climbing at the same time he wanted to descend, and his shoulder connected hard with the solid mass of another person.

"Watch it," he growled, without looking at whoever crashed into him.

A firm hand was soon on his bicep, keeping him in place. Annoyed, Adrian stopped to look who the fuck dared to do that.

"Hey," he tried to break his arm free, but the other steadied his grip even more.

His eyes clashed with a pair of eyes dark like a mountain forest, in the club's lights. So the fucker was as tall as him if they could stare at one another like that. His curiosity piqued, Adrian examined the other.

Hmm, everything about this one spelled like he didn't belong there. Starting with his clothes. Clearly, designer signed, but a suit, even if casual, was not exactly the type of getup ideal for a gay club populated night after night by guys in their twenties.

Adrian took in the wavy light brown hair, artistically arranged by a practiced stylist's hand, the regular, yet a tad harsh features. Perfect cheekbones balanced the angular face, and the thin lips were arched in a snarl.

The fucker was attractive. But way too aristocratic for Adrian's taste. Lean, yet strong, if he could tell by how firm the guy was keeping him in place with just one hand. He answered with a snarl of his own. For long seconds, the two adversaries measured each other.

"I believe you owe me an apology," the man said, and the way he enunciated every word confirmed Adrian's suspicions once more.

He was a bit too far from home.

"An apology? Seriously?" Adrian snorted, still annoyed that he could not shake off the grip, without getting really forceful.

The long fingers continued to dig into his arm.

"Yes. Let me help you. You start by saying 'I'm sorry' and then you continue by admitting to what you just did."

Adrian could not believe his eyes, nor his ears. Also, as the other spoke, he leaned into Adrian, making the words a whisper.

What the hell? He could smell expensive cologne. That meant they were way too close. Who did the fucker think he was? Royalty? He did look the part; Adrian had to give it to him. But otherwise, he was way out of line. Plus, why the hell was his pulse quickening?

Because he was pissed off. There was no other explanation.

"In your dreams." He hissed, and this time, he pushed the other away, without caring that he might send the idiot flying on his ass.

The stranger stood his ground, but he loosened his grip on Adrian's arm, and his hand eventually slid away. Adrian took a look around, but the jock was nowhere to be found now. He huffed in annoyance. "You," he stuck one finger in the stranger's face, "owe me a blowjob."

The thin lips pursed in displeasure. "You certainly have the manners of an ape," he commented, and this time, turned on his heels to walk away.

Adrian had a mind to go after him and find out what the hell he meant by that. But deciding that the guy was not worth the trouble, he began searching for the jock from earlier with his eyes. He went to the dance floor, scouting.

"Hey," a shaky voice came from one side.

Adrian had every reason to smile with satisfaction, seeing the confused jock approaching him.

"I saw you looking at me earlier," the guy said.

Ah, wasn't he sweet? Adrian thought. "You look a little lost." He threw one arm over the other's shoulders and pulled him close.

The jock didn't protest, nor did he make any sign that he didn't like being treated with such familiarity by a stranger. Seldom was Adrian wrong about this type. He was looking for it, and that 'it' was precisely what Adrian would give to him.

"I believe you need someone to show you a good time," Adrian continued, guiding his partner toward the bar, back up the stairs.

***

Jared walked over to his car, lost in thought. Going early to bed on a Saturday night sucked big time, but what sucked much more was to go alone to bed. Maybe Adrian was right, after all. He was trying too hard, and maybe that was why he couldn't get a boyfriend. Perhaps he needed to let such things happen. After all, the more he tried, the more he seemed to fail.

"Hey," someone from behind called.

Jared turned to see a man in a slim-fitting jacket and dress pants watching him intently. In the streetlight, he looked like someone in his late thirties, handsome and well dressed. His stature was not particularly impressive, but he had a presence, Jared could tell, by the way he was carrying himself. Probably, he worked some top management position. His friends often teased him over his Sherlock Holmes deductions but were also impressed with how right he was more often than not.

"Um, hi," Jared replied, unsure what the stranger wanted.

There were people outside the club at that hour, laughing and talking loudly, but suddenly Jared felt like he and the stranger were the only ones there. The man moved and extended his arm. "I'm Chris. I thought I missed my chance."

"Um, chance?"

It wasn't like him to be a parakeet, Jared thought, but his throat became dry as Chris took his hand and shook it firmly. Chris's hand was smooth and pleasant, and it was also warm and steady. Instantly, Jared felt a pull toward him. He shook his head.

"I saw you inside the club, and I was trying to gather some courage to come to talk to you, but then you disappeared."

"Ah," Jared replied, realizing, with some latency that he probably made the wrong impression by acting like he was dim-witted.

Chris laughed, and even the way he did that had something lazy in it, the quality of a feline, and Jared shook his head again. He had always known he liked men, but this instant attraction was strange.

"I'm sorry for calling after you like this. Are you leaving already? I was hoping I could dance with you, at least once."

"Well, there wasn't much for me to do there, I mean inside the club," Jared said, finally finding his words and the ability to talk.

"May I offer you a drink? Not here, but somewhere else?" Chris asked.

"I'm driving ..." Jared swallowed his words. A good-looking guy, not that he could see Chris clearly, but that was his impression, was asking him for a drink. "How about we have that drink at my place?"

He needed to stop talking. What was wrong with him? How could he propose that? But it was what guys did, right? Guys like Adrian, who didn't wait for Mr. Right when they could have plenty of Mr. Right Nows.

Chris appeared a bit taken aback by that sudden offer.

"Sorry. Really," Jared said. "I thought you wanted to hook up and -"

"Okay. I would love that," Chris stopped the avalanche of stupid words threatening to pour out of his mouth.

Love what? Hook up? Have a drink at Jared's place? Should he worry about acting out on an impulse?

"I would like to know your name first," Chris said.

"Jared," he said quietly.

"Jared, I'm pleased to meet you. And since I can sense apprehension from your part, I'm not known for dropping my partners' corpses in dumpsters. It makes for a bad way to start mornings. Sorry, it was a lame joke. I heard you talking to your friend earlier."

Jared started laughing. "For the record, that's Mike who's worried about that. This area is not known for high crime. But he wants a reason to justify not going for what he wants directly."

Like you? A little voice whispered in his mind.

Chris came closer, invading his space, but Jared didn't step back. From up close, Chris's face came into focus better. Jared stared appreciatively at the strong jawline and took in the thick dark furrowed eyebrows. "I'm going to be honest with you here, Jared. I want that drink at your place. Also, to hook up, too."

The last words were whispered and somewhere to the side, floating to his ear. Jared inhaled the smell of expensive cologne and decided he would do something stupid tonight, after all. Adrian wasn't always wrong. If it was with this man, Jared wanted to hook up, too.

***

Mike stretched his arms on the bar and let his head drop. Jared had gone home. Adrian was somewhere, getting his dick sucked and doing other Adrian-like things. And he was sitting there, not even masturbating, he remembered that stupid meme. How did one go to a muscular alpha dude and suggest him to bend over and take it up the ass?

Jared would say he was superficial. Adrian would tell him to just do it. But Mike was afraid to admit that he thought himself too bad-looking to score with anyone, let alone the man of his fantasies. He was lanky, hairless, and the shock of curly red hair on his head probably put off most people.

Twinks had it tough, he admitted inwardly. And he was superficial. It was just that there wasn't even enough porn to satisfy his curiosity and appetite for twink on alpha top fetish. Even as a twink, he wasn't much to look at, Mike was sure. It was enough for a guy to approach him, and he started shaking in his boots.

He was too strung. He had little experience. And he was hiding behind a stupid fetish just so he didn't admit that he had a hard time scoring, period, regardless of how prospective partners looked like and what position in bed they preferred.

"Hey, man," the bartender called.

Mike pushed himself up. "I know, I know, I'm scaring customers."

"Don't worry about that," the bartender said and flashed a cute smile at him.