Cute, Cozy, Queer Stories

Part 31: Aaron & Grayson

Still breathing hard from the mostly-uphill hike through the woods, Aaron struggled with the tent rods. Feeling a pinch on his neck, he made a wild slap. The black fly that had been harassing him for what felt like the last hour buzzed into his face in retaliation.

Balanced precariously on the toes of his hiking boots, he fell over, slapping the air. "Fuck!"

The half-constructed tent slipped from his grasp. The rods fell in and the canvas collapsed.

"Shit, fuck, goddamn it," Aaron growled through his teeth.

"You need some help?"

Aaron looked up. Glen stood over him with a doubtful look staining his chiseled face. With one hand on the sheathed hunting knife clipped to his belt, he stood with his hips cocked, his fitted camouflage shorts straining over his ridiculously muscular quads. His white tank top was barely sweaty at all, leaving just a slight gleam over his mountainous shoulders and pecs.

Of course Glen wasn't bothered by the bugs or the long hike. Glancing behind the enormous man, Aaron saw that his tent was already set up, a neat camouflage dome. Of course he already had it done.

"No," Aaron snapped, his voice squeaking. Clearing his throat, he dropped his tone four octaves into a voice almost no man actually possessed. "I'm fine. I've got it."

Glen raised his brows, smirking. "Oh-kay."

Glen was not only horribly gorgeous, but he was apparently good at everything. Or, at least, he had been on the hiking trip. And, it seemed like he had slept with just about every other man on the hiking trip, except...

"Hey guys." Grayson, a shorter, thinner man with a thick, trimmed beard and large, gentle brown eyes approached, holding two water bottles. He saw the collapsed tent and paused. "Need some help?"

"No, she—he's got it," Glen responded smugly, turning.

Aaron clenched his teeth behind his lips, glowering at Glen as he turned. The big man muttered something to Grayson that Aaron couldn't hear. As he passed, he smacked Grayson's ass. Grayson frowned, shaking his head.

Crouching down, he handed one water bottle to Aaron. "You okay?" he asked.

"I fucking hate him," Aaron said through his teeth. "He's been doing that shit all day."

Grayson gave a sympathetic look. "I know. I'm sorry. I didn't think he'd be like that." He rubbed Aaron's back.

Feeling Grayson's hand skimming over the back of his sweaty sports bra, Aaron pushed his hand away. He hated leaving the binder at home, but he knew he would've suffocated during the hike if he'd worn it. But it felt like everybody was always staring at his chest. And, on a hiking trip with all gay men, they certainly weren't staring out of attraction.

"I know it's buggy and sweaty," Grayson consoled, kneeling down and taking up the tent rods. "Why don't you go down to the river? The water is super clear."

"I'm fine." There was no way he was going down to the river by himself. Most of the other guys had been pretty nice, but a few were particularly obnoxious; they either had a problem because he was trans or had a problem because he wasn't a hiker, and neither made him feel particularly welcome.

"Okay. That water is clean, if you want some. And there's peanuts in the bag." Grayson started constructing the tent with practiced ease.

Sitting down in the dirt, Aaron drank deeply from the water bottle. As he caught his breath, took in cool, clean water, and rested his throbbing feet, the sweat, the bugs, and some of the unpleasant men didn't seem as bad. The air was crisp and clean, the towering trees around them rich with emerald green, and the quiet, broken only by crickets and bird calls, relaxed his usually tangled mind.

Unzipping the tent and unfurling the sleeping bags inside, Grayson took off his shoes and socks and crawled in. He gave Aaron an innocent smile, almost hidden in his beard. "Wanna come in?"

Aaron couldn't help but smile. He took off his hiking boots and socks too. Climbing inside the tent, he zipped it up. Both of them smelled of sweat, dirt and bug spray, but it didn't keep Aaron from snuggling close.

"I'm sorry I'm not very outdoorsy," Aaron said quietly against Grayson's chest.

Grayson kissed his head. "You're doing fine. Are you having fun? Or is this total torture?"

"No, no—it is nice. And I did want to go. It's so quiet out here. And most of the guys are really cool," Aaron replied. "I was just getting thirsty and bug-bitten."

"I'm really glad you're here." Grayson squeezed him. "I always feel like the odd man out at these things."

"You?" Aaron looked up at him.

"Yeah. A lot of the guys are really, I dunno, social? And I guess I'm not."

Aaron scoffed quietly, lowering his voice. "Is that code for, 'they all fuck each other'?"

Grayson chuckled. "I mean, there's some of that, sure. And I'm not really into that either. But, you know what I mean." He squeezed him again. "I dunno. I'm glad you're here."

Resting his head against Grayson's chest, Aaron tried to enjoy his close embrace and the rest and being far away from everything. But, as much as Aaron wanted it all to feel right, it didn't.

To be continued...

....

Author's note;

More to come on this! We haven't seen the last of Super Macho Glen. (And, this isn't going to be a sexy episode—pop into Suber for that action!) But, per the title, there will be a snuggly ending :)  Pop in next week for Part 2!