Ginger: How it Concluded

Our eyes were locked the whole time.

Rory lifted his hands and placed them on my cheeks.

"Are you mine?" I whispered.

"I am yours," he whispered breathlessly.

We kissed, slowly, sensuously, sucking gently on each other's lips. I loved his upper, somewhat fuller lip, which gave him that cute, slightly offended expression.

I moved my hand to the side of his head and took a handful of his hair, pulled it up to my nose and took a deep breath. It smelled like shampoo and Rory.

He watched me with a very subtle smile.

"Do you like my hair?"

"Do you even have to ask?"

I slowly took his slender hand and pulled it up behind his head, looking at his armpit and the little red tuft there.

"I love that you are a natural redhead," I smiled.

And I slowly leaned down and sniffed there, as we had showered an hour and a half earlier, it still smelled of shower gel with only a subtle hint of Rory's sweat, which strangely enough, wasn't unpleasant to me, but had a nice and masculine scent.

I licked over it and Rory giggled.

"Hey! Are you into armpit smells?"

"I never was, but with you... everything's more exciting." I lifted my head and looked into his eyes. "I wasn't lying, Rory. I've never wanted anyone as much as I want you..."

He was silent for a while, his breathing almost stopped.

Mind you, I was deep inside him during the whole conversation! I've always been more into 'silent sex' and I didn't like to talk too much during it, it was just too distracting, but somehow this conversation, with my dick immersed in him, was quite... pleasant.

"Why? What is different about me?"

"Everything. Your energy, your body, so... slim and smooth, the translucent skin, the golden dots, your... vulnerability... it all screams for me... take me and never leave me..."

Rory listened to me, his breathing a little faster. I leaned on his arm and sped up my movements a bit, discovering with some surprise that something was poking me gently in my abdomen as I slowly thrust into him.

I put my mouth close to his ear and whispered, "Did you bone up again, baby?"

"I guess I did..." He chuckled slightly.

"Who's a horny little twink?" I winked.

"I guess it would be me..." he made a flirtatious face.

"But you were sore..."

"It's subsided, it's nice now..."

I felt a rush of arousal and sped up even more, rocking inside him, sliding deep into his inviting private place.

Moving there, I showered Rory's face with soft, light kisses, finding his lips now and then and nibbling on them, then moving to his cheeks and temples, licking over his small earlobes and down his neck. I noticed that he was closing his eyes and immersing himself in this shower of caresses, his breathing accelerating, his lips parting, his hands clasping my neck, pulling me close.

So I continued along this line, leaving wet trails down his neck and back to his face, where I just gently pecked at his cheeks, lips, and temples.

Every time I returned to his lips and made little nibbles on them, he made short gasps and moans and responded by trying to catch my lower lips and suck on them, but I didn't stay in one place too long, just showered him with kisses for long minutes, and... how strange! It seemed to work! His dick was now fully hard and rubbed over my lower abdomen with every thrust.

It was a bit weird, I wasn't even fucking him that hard, it was just a regular, normal - medium tempo, but for some reason I was getting closer and closer to my climax and Rory - miraculously - looked like he was about to do the same!

"Dallas, Dallas, Dallas... so good," he murmured, tensing a little under me. His hands stroked my back and my neck, he pulled me even closer, so that we were just rubbing against each other, body against body, skin against skin, I couldn't remember ever being so close to someone, so close to someone's body.

It was so pleasant and sensual to be connected with another human being in an intimate act, it's hard to describe what I felt, touched and happy and fulfilled. I was never into hookups and meeting Rory made something so much out of my character and yet... my intuition was correct. It was the right direction for me.

Then I felt it... a small, thin smear of wetness on my abs. Rory really didn't have much in his balls at this point, and yet I could feel his orgasm making him tremble, his hole clenching around my dick, pulsing and squeezing me.

"Oh Rory..." I whispered, speeding up a bit to join him in the pleasure he was now feeling, and soon I was following him as well, filling his hole with my load, quite a lot of it to be honest.

The orgasm was intense and somehow short-circuited my brain for a while, I just fell on top of him and closed my eyes.

"I really don't want to go to this dinner, I would just... rather take a nap..." I mumbled.

"No problem, I'm super tired too..." Rory mumbled, and...

We both woke up at 8:00 in the morning!

We had slept almost 11 hours!

I sat up feeling strange, my head seemed swollen and heavy, and my temples were a little sore.

"Wow, I really overslept this time," I muttered.

Rory was also sitting. He looked even worse than I did. Puffy eyelids, swollen lips, dark circles under his eyes.

"Fuck, my head is killing me..."

I stood up and got a bottle of mineral water out of my suitcase. I handed it to him, and he drank half of it in a few seconds.

"God, sleeping too long is not so good. I really need a shower..."

He looked down at his flat stomach, which was covered in a crust of semen.

I smirked but didn't comment.

When he stood up, we were both naked, his eyes wandering over my body.

"Yesterday was really intense... I hope today will be better. Martin is out of the picture."

"Yes, we can try to relax and actually learn something from the lectures..."

"Yep!"

We took separate showers since we realized we were running late for breakfast. Afterward, we quickly headed downstairs to the hotel restaurant, where we unexpectedly ran into Adam. Of course, he immediately inquired about the Martin situation.

After explaining what had happened, Adam was in shock. He stared at us, shaking his head in disbelief the entire time.

"Wow, I didn't expect it to escalate so quickly! The guy seems seriously disturbed. What's the plan now? Do you need to go to the precinct?"

"I have to go today. If I want a restraining order, I need to file a petition and an affidavit explaining to the court what happened and why I need the order. I have to sign it in the presence of a notary, and I'll get a temporary restraining order until the hearing. After that, the judge will decide."

Adam hesitated. "Sounds like quite a process. Are you up for it?"

Rory nodded firmly. "I know him all too well to ignore him. If I don't clearly say no, if I don't establish a firm boundary, he'll be back. I need to take action."

"That's good." Adam murmured, looking around as if feeling a bit dazed, "Excuse me, I'll get some more salad," he walked away, providing the opportunity for me to say what I wanted to.

I leaned in closer to Rory's ear. "I'll support you every step of the way and be with you at the precinct."

"Thank you." He smiled ruefully.

However, there was a hint of tension in his expression, so I gave his hand a reassuring squeeze.

"I just need to close this chapter," Rory sighed. The weight of it was evident in his demeanor.

After breakfast, we attended lectures separately. Luckily, Martin didn't show up, so Rory sat with just Adam.

The rest of the day unfolded similarly. We were all in our respective lectures and labs until after the final lectures when we met outside the building next to Adam, who was smoking.

We agreed to have dinner together.

Suddenly, some women approached us.

It was a young, attractive brunette with a very curvaceous body that straight men probably found appealing. For me, her beauty didn't hold much allure; I preferred the smooth, flat, and toned features of Rory's young male body. I guess I was quite gay.

The woman's gaze fixed on Rory.

"Hello, Rory. You probably remember me, don't you?"

Rory crossed his arms over his chest. "Ah, yes. The woman who took my man. Of course, I remember you, how could I forget?"

"It's funny you put it that way. Now you're attempting to do the same? I heard you were all over him yesterday and even sent the police after him. Is this some kind of twisted revenge?"

Rory smirked and pulled out his phone. "Yep, please, see for yourself how I was all over him and how I dragged him into my hotel room." He played the recording for her--first, the recording from the lecture hall, and then the one from the room.

She watched it in silence, then straightened up. "You know how to play him. Tease him. Make him come to you by playing hard to get. Push his buttons to grab his attention again!"

Blinking in disbelief, I protested, "Seriously, lady? I was there, and Rory didn't do anything to attract Martin's attention!"

"But he did. By NOT giving him attention! You know it works. Martin is easy to figure out."

"How messed up do you think I am?" Rory spread his arms. "I'm in a relationship with another man, Veronica!"

"Could that stop you?"

Rory closed his eyes and sighed. "I have feelings for him, so... I would argue: yes."

I swallowed hard, feeling a strange fluttering of butterflies in my stomach.

Veronica pursed her lips. "Just leave him alone!"

"I intend to. I'm in the process of getting a restraining order. So, hopefully, that will put an end to it."

Her face turned crimson, and I wondered if she had a burst blood vessel. She fixated her eyes on Rory with such intensity that, if looks could kill, he'd be dead in seconds.

I decided to speak up. "I don't know you, but I suppose Martin manipulated you into believing he's innocent. I feel sorry for you. He's a toxic person, and we should all keep our distance from individuals like him."

"You don't know him..."

"Oh, but I do. He gives intense focus to those he pursues, making them addicted to his fickle attention. Pull and push, pull and push. And you all crave the pull, but the more you crave it, the more he pushes. It's toxic. You deserve better." I looked her squarely in the eyes as I spoke.

She clenched her jaws but remained silent.

"Maturity is knowing when to let go."

She muttered curses under her breath, spun on her heel, and left.

Rory observed me attentively.

"How does it feel to be caught up in a cheap soap opera drama?" He suddenly asked with a bitter grimace.

"Well, when is life anything other than that?"

Rory sighed. "Thank you, Dallas, for taking it all so calmly and not giving up on me. Any other guy would be running away from me, thinking I have just too much baggage, it's too much of a hassle."

"And he would be foolish. Good things are worth the hassle."

He watched me in silence for a while.

"I really want to forget about him. I want it to be just you and me. Getting to know each other without external factors."

"But we are getting to know each other even better. An accelerated course." I winked. "Rory, just relax. Stop sweating about it. Let's finish what needs to be finished and move on. You worry too much. I have a proposition for you--let's go dancing somewhere this evening. What do you say?"

Rory smiled. "To a gay club?"

"Not necessarily. They can be a bit intense and very...sexually charged," I chuckled. "But I saw a poster in the hotel lobby about a festival on the beach. Want to go?"

"Sure, we can go," Rory grinned.

For the first time in a while, I saw his face light up like that.

And that made me weirdly elated.

That day we went to the precinct and completed the formal part of his process to obtain a restraining order. Rory tried to keep it cool; I could see that.

We didn't discuss it any further.

In the evening, we changed and drove to the beach. There was a large dancing area with bars and tables, and loud music playing all around. I noticed that there were actually some gay and lesbian couples on the dance floor, which put me at ease that we wouldn't be drawing too much attention to ourselves as the only gay couple.

So I led Rory to the dance floor, holding his hand. It was pleasant to feel him close to me as we started to dance, tightly embracing each other.

I heard Rory exhale deeply, almost as if in relief, and he rested his head on my shoulder. I could feel his firm, hard body pressed against me, and it was very... arousing. My hard-on was probably brushing against his hip, but he tactfully remained silent.

We swayed to the rhythm of the music for a while, just relaxing and being together.

"Tomorrow we're going back to LA," he murmured, his face hidden in the nook of my shoulder and neck.

"Yeah. Wish I had learned more about Java," I chuckled.

"I can teach you, private lessons, you know," Rory whispered in my ear.

"But I would have to pay you somehow, right?"

"I have a couple of ideas," he responded, gently kissing the side of my neck.

"I'm always open to new ideas," I replied, reciprocating his kiss by planting kisses on his temple and cheek.

Suffice to say, we didn't linger long on the beach. Upon returning to the hotel room, we engaged in passionate lovemaking for two straight hours. The next day, which happened to be the last day of the course, Rory appeared to be experiencing some discomfort when sitting, but well, that's life, isn't it?

***

I was the one driving on our way back to LA, and the conversation was light and pleasant. We discussed our college years and our families. Surprisingly, both sides of our families were generally supportive of our sexual orientation.

We parted ways only in the evening, deciding to discuss our future living arrangement the next day.

And finally, the following morning, we returned to the company.

The moment we entered the office, Adam appeared from a side corridor, welcoming us, but soon he murmured, "Hey guys, Director Ashen wants to talk to both of you."

We both froze, Rory's face turning pale. As we headed to the director's office, the weight of the moment hung heavily between us.

"What's that all about? What could he want?" I asked uncertainly.

"I can only guess," responded Rory, his face very tense, almost contorted.

Feeling annoyed that, because of Martin, we could now face additional troubles (as if being at the precincts wasn't enough!), I followed him.

We didn't exchange any more words.

Upon entering Ashen's office, the director's gaze fixed on us, and he gestured toward the chairs. With unchanging expressions, we took our seats.

"Soooo. We received mail from another worker in our San Francisco branch..."

"Was this Martin Dash?" Rory asked with his head low.

"Yes."

I could literally sense Rory's mood spiraling downwards.

"Let me guess, Director Ashen. He's warning you about a dangerous pattern of mine, dating my colleagues..."

Director Ashen raised his eyebrows.

"No, nothing of the sort."

"No?" It was Rory.

"No?" It was me.

Ashen blinked and explained, "The personal lives of my employees are not of any interest to me, as long as it does not interfere with work. The San Francisco branch was working on an additional version of the Xen app for their VIP customers. He informed me that he would not be able to fly to Sydney to attend a meeting with our clients regarding the database architecture for their part of the app. He's dealing with some personal problems. However, since you've already discussed the same topic with our clients and are familiar with their team, I thought it would be beneficial if you flew there and met with them. I also learned from Dallas's CV that he's been working on some freelance commissions for their director of communication. So, I had the idea that maybe the two of you could fly there and make a good impression on them. He would feel more trusting of our company if he knew both of our employees personally."

Rory and I sat there with our gaping mouths, probably looking stupid.

Director Ashen blinked. "Is there a problem, gentlemen? You both seem very surprised... I understand you just returned from the course, and I know it's rather sudden, but it's also a really urgent matter. Martin just let us know, literally one day before the planned flight!"

"Wow... I'm sorry, of course, I will fly, if there is an urgent situation..." Rory started to say, and I inserted myself also.

"And me too, of course!"

It was just too fucking unexpected!

Ashen snorted, "Good, you got me worried for a while. Your faces looked really strange. Is there something I should know?"

Rory's lips pursed into a single line.

"Yes. There is something you should know..." I glanced at Rory nervously. "I'm dating Dallas."

Wow, wow, wow. So Rory went into a fully open/disclosed relationship policy! He was not gonna hide it, obviously...being... himself; a good and honest man.

Ashen didn't even look at us; he was checking something on his laptop.

"Just fill out a statement on this matter so that the girls from HR are informed, and that will suffice. There are couples in several departments; it's not the Middle Ages. People get to know each other at work, and these things are normal in corporate environments..."

"But I'm his supervisor; there could be allegations of preferential treatment, or..."

Ashen sighed. "If they arise, we'll move Dallas to another department. If not, there won't be a need for it. Unless you both decide to report it yourselves."

He raised an eyebrow, glancing at us.

"We understand," Rory said quietly.

"Keisha will send all the flight details to both of you, and I'm also sending all the files you need to get acquainted with before the meeting. Rory, you probably already know most of it, as it's essentially the same architecture, but their team may need some guidance. Assist Dallas in getting familiar with the materials."

As we exited Ashen's office, we both looked equally stunned.

"Is that really all? I just can't believe that... my crappy life didn't become crappier for once, just when I didn't need it to be crappy!" Rory chuckled, leaning on the wall and releasing a sigh.

"To be honest, I'm also a bit shocked! How come? They have no problem with us dating?"

"It seems that way. The corporate environment really is different nowadays... nobody seems to care that much, I guess," Rory sighed, rolling his eyes and shifting his gaze to the ceiling.

Then he slowly redirected his gaze toward me. "But I'm happy, for once... I can finally relax..."

I smirked.

"And on top of that... we have another flight ahead... I must say, I have exquisite memories from the other flight that started it all..."

Rory bit his lower lip.

"Yep..." And he responded with a smirk.

***

I sat next to Rory on the plane, and my mind was filled with only one vision. A replay of where our acquaintance had started. I glanced at him from time to time, actually since the moment we boarded the plane and found our seats.

Rory was looking at something on his tablet for a while, but I think he sensed that I was staring at him because he sent me meaningful, brief looks from time to time. I observed his profile, just as I had done on that day when we met during the flight from Sydney to Los Angeles. I remembered that even then, I had trouble tearing my gaze away from his charming lips, with the upper one slightly larger than the lower, giving his face that pleasant, slightly pouting expression.

I really liked his looks, I had to admit... My attraction toward him just didn't seem to fade. I gazed at him, his fair, typical for redheads complexion, the reddish strands escaping from his ponytail, and I looked at his slender, pale fingers gliding over the tablet screen.

I could feel myself getting hotter and hotter...