Popular Ch. 03

"Right." Leo quietly muttered. Hayden had easily put him in his place.

"Look, it's late. We're gonna head back to our dorms, Benji." He gave his old friend a hesitant smile. "We'll catch you around campus sometime. We can talk, hang out, whatever. See if maybe we can be friends again."

"I'd like that, Hayden. I'd like that a lot." Benji smiled brightly at Hayden. "Let me give you my cell phone number."

They exchanged numbers before heading off in different directions. Leo wasn't sure if Hayden was upset at him or not for what he had said. As the three of them were walking across the Court he felt Hayden slip an arm around his waist. Leo looked over and saw Hayden smiling at him. The three of them decided to hang out in Lexie's room for a bit and unwind.

"He was freaking hot, Hayden." Lexie said as she collapsed onto her bed. "Why is it that all the hot guys are gay?"

"Quit your whining." Hayden laughed and hit her with a pillow. "He definitely was hot, though. Time has been good to him."

"Hey!" Leo pouted at his boyfriend.

"I can look at the dessert tray, baby, just as long as I'm don't plan on eating any of them." Hayden pulled Leo against him and gave him a quick kiss. "Do you know how cute you are when you're acting all jealous?"

"Then you should hear the thoughts running through my head." Leo winked. "You'd think I'm sexy as hell."

"I already do think you're sexy as hell, guy." Hayden captured Leo's mouth in a hot kiss.

"Not that I don't mind the display, but since I haven't been laid in way too long, could you two cool it?" Lexie laughed.

"Sorry bout that, twin." Leo murmured as he saw the fiery look in Hayden's eyes. He knew what was in store for him later that night.

"I think it's cool that you're willing to give Benji another chance, Hayden." Lexie said with a smile. "You're such a sweetie pie."

"I still can't believe that you're letting him off so easy." Leo muttered.

"I let you off just as easily about the bet didn't I?" Hayden shot back.

"Oh calm down, you drama queens!" Lexie snorted at the look her two best friends gave her. "Look at it this way, Leo, at least Hayden will have someone to hang out with when we're at your parents the next few days."

"You guys are going away?" Hayden quickly asked.

"You didn't tell him yet!" Lexie glared at Leo. "You were supposed to talk to him about this last week, you ass!"

"Wait a minute. You've known since last week that you two were going away, and no one told me?" Hayden couldn't help sounding hurt.

"I've been meaning to talk to you about, baby, but there just hasn't been time." Leo glared at Lexie as she snorted at him again. "Things have just been so busy and…"

"And maybe you were waiting to the last minute." Hayden crossed his arms. "You didn't want me to know that you were going away?"

"It's just there's going to be so many people there, and all my family, and I just…" Leo ran his hand through his hair. Shit, things weren't coming out the way he wanted them to.

"Just didn't want me to embarrass you in front of your family?" Hayden couldn't help it as old insecurities welled up inside of him.

"Baby, that's not it at all. You'd never embarrass me." Leo was quick to explain. "It's just that I'm not out to my family yet, and I'm kinda nervous about it, and I knew if you were there I wouldn't be able to keep my hands off of you." Leo knew he was babbling and backtracking, but he couldn't stop himself.

"And since I have no self control you just figured I would end up fucking you on the dining room table?" Hayden's eyes had gone from being on fire to being ice cold. "You could have just explained the situation to me, Leo. Did you think that I wouldn't understand? I know all about having a difficult time coming out. You heard proof of that tonight."

"And if Benji hadn't come along tonight then we wouldn't have known about that at all, would we?" Leo's voice was cold as he muttered the name. "We should be thankful it takes a stranger to get you to open up."

"Drop your fucking attitude." Hayden spat as he stood up. "I was planning on telling both of you everything, but you don't have any idea what it's like. The type of pain and anguish that coming out causes. How could you know? You've never come out."

"I think we should all take a deep, calming breath. There's no reason for you two to fight." Lexie quickly intervened. She didn't want to see her two best friends start ripping each other apart.

"I had ‘faggot' written on my locker a million times that year. I had people sneering and laughing at me as I walked down the halls. I got beat up at least once a week. You have no clue how fucking painful it was, and EXCUSE me for having a difficult time talking about it." Hayden couldn't stop the tears that slipped down his face. "I wouldn't have cared that the two of you were going to your parents' house, Leo, but you couldn't even tell me about it. When are you even leaving?"

"Tomorrow." Lexie quietly said since Leo didn't answer him.

"I…you…I can't even fucking believe you." Hayden made his way towards the door. Leo grabbed onto his arm, but he shrugged his boyfriend off. "Don't fucking touch me, and don't bother coming back to the room tonight. I'm sure Lexie wouldn't mind if you bunked here with her, and if she doesn't let you, then have fun looking for a place to stay. I'll talk to you when you get back, if you're lucky."

Before Lexie or Leo could stop him Hayden stalked through the door and slammed it shut behind him. Lexie sat on her bed and glared over at Leo.

"What?" He asked when he noticed that she was looking at him.

"You're the biggest asshole, twin." Lexie put up her hand as Leo opened his mouth. "You should have talked to him about this when we found out about your mom's birthday party. I still don't understand why you're so freaked out about taking him along, but you should have at least explained the situation to him. You do realize that you kept this a secret, just like you kept the bet a secret."

"I've fucked up pretty bad again, haven't I, twin?" Leo sighed and sat down on the extra bed in Lexie's room.

"You're getting pretty good at that. Hopefully, Hayden will think things through while we're gone. You better pray that he's willing to talk to you when we get back." Lexie sighed as she sprawled back on her bed. "You know we can't get out of going either. Your mom is expecting us, and you'll have even more explaining to do."

"I'd have to come out to her to explain the fight with Hayden." Leo sighed deeply. "I just don't know if I'm ready for that."

"You might not have the time to be ready, twin. Time's running out." Lexie told Leo good night and left him to his own thoughts. She hoped that things would work out like they always did.



Hayden didn't even notice the music that blared in the tiny bar as he took another pull off of his beer. He saw Leo and Lexie drive off campus that morning, and his temper was still pounding through his veins. Hayden knew that he was the one that told Leo not to come back to their room, but he couldn't believe that Leo hadn't even tried to talk to him before they left. He ordered another drink from the bartender to continue his quest of getting totally smashed.

"It's no fun to drink alone."

Hayden turned to see who the voice belonged to and saw Benji standing next to him. He motioned to the empty seat next to him. Benji smiled and sat down.

"Looks like I'm not alone anymore." Hayden tried to smile.

"What's wrong? You look pissed." Benji asked after ordering a drink.

"I had a fight with Leo." Hayden answered. He hadn't meant to say anything about it, but he couldn't help but feel comfortable around his old friend.

"I hope it wasn't because of me." Benji's worry was evident. "I didn't mean to cause you any trouble, Hayden."

"It wasn't your fault, Benji." Hayden gave him a reassuring smile.

"Good. I've caused enough problems for you before." Benji stared down into his drink and wouldn't look at Hayden.

"Water under the bridge, buddy." Hayden reached out and squeezed Benji's shoulder. "I understand what you did, and it's okay."

"You shouldn't let me off the hook so easily." Benji laughed. "Not that I'm complaining though!"

"Well you can buy drinks the rest of the night. Will that make you feel better?" Hayden grinned.

"Deal!" Benji immediately responded.

The two old friends spent the next few hours drinking and catching up with each other. Hayden was happy to find out that Benji wasn't the one that had told the school about him. He always had the feeling that his friend wouldn't do that to him, and he was glad to find out it was true.

"So you had a crush on me?" Hayden was definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol.

"Hell yeah. Though it's a bit embarrassing to admit now. You were a cutie back then." Benji glanced over at Hayden. "Though you're definitely even hotter now, Hayden."

"Thanks buddy. You're not so bad yourself either." Hayden ran his hand over his face. The bar was getting very hot, and his vision started to shift around. Hayden shook his head trying to clear his eyesight.

"You okay, Hayden? You're face is getting all white." Benji placed a hand on Hayden's shoulder to steady him.

"I'm not feeling to good. I think I better get back to my room." Hayden stood up, but his body swayed from the sudden movement.

"Where's your dorm? I better walk you back." Benji put an arm around his friend's waist and lead him out of the bar.



Hayden woke up a few hours later and saw that he was lying in his bed. Sunlight streamed through the open window, and it made his head pound with a wicked headache. He was definitely dealing with the world's most intense hangover. Hayden blindly reached out for Leo, and when his hand came up empty he remembered that he was alone.

"Fucker." Hayden muttered as he covered his eyes.

He was still pissed off at Leo. If Leo had told him what was going on then there wouldn't have been any problems at all. Hayden completely understood that coming out was one of the most difficult things, but he couldn't understand why Leo would keep it from him. It was almost like the situation with that damn bet. If Leo had just explained things right off the bat, then there wouldn't have been any problems at all.

Hayden eased himself out of bed and grabbed his pack of cigarettes out of his desk drawer. He didn't smoke as much anymore, but after everything that had happened in the last few days he needed one. Hayden sat down by the open window and let the sun soak into his skin. Its warmth was comforting, and it helped ease the headache that was pounding its way through his head.

There were so many things Hayden needed answers too, and he wasn't sure when he would be getting them. He knew that when Leo got back the two of them would be having a very long talk. There were just so many things that confused him. A cool breeze drifted through the open window, and Hayden realized there was one thing that was more confusing than anything else. Why the hell was he naked?

Chapter Eleven

Leo didn't have the patience to wait for the elevator, and he took the stairs two at a time. He was excited to be back on campus after such a crappy weekend. He had tried to enjoy his mom's birthday party, but his argument with Hayden weighed heavily on his mind. Leo had started dialing their number at the dorm numerous times, but he just couldn't hit send. He knew that he had a lot of explaining to do to Hayden, and he had no fucking clue where to start.

Leo quickly unlocked the door to their room and stepped inside. He kept the dozen roses he had brought with him behind his back. Leo's smile faded as he realized that the room was empty. He mentally checked their schedules and knew that Hayden didn't have class that afternoon. Leo laid the roses on their bed and started unpacking his stuff.

It took less than twenty minutes to get everything taken care of and Leo was starting to get impatient. He turned his laptop on to check his email to hopefully pass the time. Leo logged into his home email account and tapped his fingers as he waited for the page to load. His eyes bulged as he saw the hundreds of emails that waited for him. Leo didn't even want to think about how much more mail would have gotten through if his junk email weren't setup.

There was an email that was titled: URGENT and he would have deleted it, but Leo noticed there was an attachment. The body of the email contained only one sentence: Thought you might be interested to find out what happens when the cat's away. Leo had a high tech virus program, so he scanned the attachment. Once it was clear it was free of any virus Leo started the download.

The download lasted only a few minutes before automatically opening on his desktop. Leo looked at his computer curiously, but in a matter of moments his eyes bulged in shock. His throat closed up in anger, and he had to force himself from throwing the computer against the wall. Just as he snapped the laptop shut the door to their room opened.

"Where've ya been?" Leo quietly asked. He didn't have to look over his shoulder to know that Hayden had entered the room.

"The frat is holding a talent contest to help raise money for a local charity." Hayden replied after a moment. "I was practicing over at the music hall."

"You never mentioned that you could play anything." Leo finally turned around and locked eyes with his boyfriend. "Any other secrets you care to share?"

"Are these for me?" Hayden asked as he picked up the roses. His emotions were totally torn in different directions. On one hand he wanted to forgive Leo for what happened, but his pain still ran deep.

"No." Leo walked over and snatched the flowers out of Hayden's hands. "How could you?"

"How could I what?" Hayden sensed the building anger in Leo, but he had no clue where it was coming from.

"Don't even play coy with me, Hayden." Leo tossed the bouquet of flowers into the garbage can. "You know what the fuck I'm talking about."

"Wait a minute." Hayden crossed his arms and stared at Leo. "Don't even try turning shit around on me. I have every right to be pissed off at you. I'm not gonna play this game where you get mad at me when I'm mad at you just so I'll apologize."

"Did you have fun with Benjamin this weekend?" Leo spat.

"We shared a beer at the club Saturday night, but I didn't plan it." Hayden raised an eyebrow at his boyfriend. "I was at the bar drinking, and he showed up. Simple as that."

"Oh this is far from simple." Leo took a step towards Hayden, but stopped and took a deep breath. "Stop with the bullshit, Hayden. I fucking trusted you."

"What the FUCK are you talking about?" Hayden demanded.

"You slept with Benjamin, you fucker." Leo was barely containing his anger. "You got fucking piss ass drunk and then came back here and had sex with him…on OUR fucking bed."

"No, I fucking didn't!" Hayden exclaimed.

"LIAR!" Leo stepped forward and roughly pushed Hayden. He watched as Hayden stumbled for a moment but finally got his balance. "I fucking saw it, Hayden. There's fucking video footage. I can't believe that you cheated on me, let alone be dumb enough to tape it."

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Hayden paled visibly. He knew that he woke up naked Sunday morning, but he would have remembered sleeping with Benjamin. Wouldn't he? "I wouldn't cheat on you, Leo. I love you."

"Bullshit." Leo started towards the door, but Hayden grabbed his shoulder to stop him. His careful grip on his anger finally slipped, and before Leo knew what he was doing his fist connected with Hayden's face.

Hayden fell backwards reeling from the pain the erupted across his left check. Thankfully he landed on the bed, but he was too shocked to realize it. Tears filled Hayden's eyes as he watched Leo glare at him, and then slam the door shut as he left. Thoughts flew through his mind too quickly for him to even comprehend. There was one thing he knew he had to do. Talk to Benji.



"I can't believe it." Lexie muttered in shock. Leo had barged into her room minutes before, and hadn't said two words. He just sat down at her computer and then pointed at the screen after a few minutes. Lexie couldn't even watch the entire video. It hurt too much to watch Hayden with Benjamin. "Why would he do this?"

"He fucking claims that he didn't, but it's kinda hard to deny it. Don't ya think?" Leo growled. The tears that he had been holding back quietly spilled down his cheeks. "Why did he do this to me?"

"I can't answer that, sweetie. I wish I had the answers." Lexie engulfed her best friend in a huge hug.

Lexie rocked Leo back and forth as he cried and told her everything that had happened. It was only a matter of time before she realized that he had cried himself to sleep. Lexie gently eased Leo down onto the bed and covered him. She sat by the window while keeping an eye on her sleeping twin. Lexie was finally able to give into her own emotions as tears traced paths over her cheeks.

Lexie took a deep breath and decided she had to get to the bottom of things. She checked on Leo one last time and quietly left the room. Lexie practically ran across the Quad to the guys' dorm. She pounded on their door until Hayden finally opened it.

What she saw took her breath away. Hayden's eyes were red and puffy, but it was the dark bruising around his left eye that shocked her. She knew that Leo was upset, but he never mentioned that he had punched Hayden.

"Are you here for a piece of me too?" Hayden mumbled.

"I came to find out your side of this." She quietly replied. Hayden stepped aside and let her into the room. Lexie noticed the roses that Leo had bought lying on the bed. The flowers were practically destroyed, and she realized that Hayden must have rescued them from the trash. "What's going on, Hayden?"

"I don't know what's fucking going on, Lexie." Hayden sat down on the computer chair since Lexie had plopped down on the bed.

Hayden took his time and told Lexie about his weekend, including the fact that he woke up naked. She didn't say anything, but she thankfully didn't look like she was ready to kill him.

"You don't remember anything else after leaving the bar?" Lexie asked.

"Not a damn thing." Hayden sighed and haphazardly ran his hand through his hair. "I remember feeling sick at the bar, and Benji asking which dorm was mine, but everything after that is totally blank."

"How much did you have to drink?" Lexie was afraid that Hayden had been drowning himself in alcohol to forget about the fight.

"I only had like three of four beers, Lex." Hayden stood up and walked over to the window. "That's what I don't understand. I grabbed something to eat before I even went to the bar. Maybe I just got sick from all the stress."

"Could be, but that doesn't explain why you blacked out." Lexie sighed. "What does Benji have to say about all this?"

"I have no clue." Hayden lit up a cigarette. "I've been trying to call him ever since Leo left, but his cell phone is off. I looked up his dorm room through the online directory, but there's no answer at his room either."

"Something just feels off here, Hayden. I know you were upset at Leo, and rightly so, but I don't think you'd cheat on him." Lexie gave him a small smile.

"Thanks, sweetie. I appreciate the vote of confidence, but how do you explain the video?" Hayden took a deep breath to keep his tears at bay. "I found the video on Leo's desktop. I could only watch the first minute or so, but it's me. I don't understand what the fuck is going on. I would never fucking cheat on Leo. I love him so much."

"I know." Lexie couldn't think of anything else to say. She knew what her eyes saw, but she couldn't stop what her heart was telling her. Lexie glanced down at her watch. "I better get back to my room. Leo could wake up at any moment. I'll do whatever I can to help you, Hayden. I promise."