Hedon

Hedon - Chapter 23

  Caston wasn't the most thrilled to see Malachi's family again, but he wasn't upset by it either.
  He suddenly wondered if he should've stayed in the truck and left Malachi to do his family stuff by himself. The thought oddly fizzled out when Malachi's knuckles brushed against his.
  The door in front of them opened and Russell appeared, looking as disheveled and attractive as he did a year ago.
  "Malachi." He brought his son into a hug and rubbed his back. "And Caston. Good to see you again. You look different."
  Caston nodded at him. "I'm eighteen now."
  Russell laughed. "Why am I not surprised that that's the first thing you said to me?"
  "Because Caston's quite predictable." Malachi smiled, then turned to Caston.
  "Am not!" They both chorused, the synchronization making Caston glare at the boy next to him.
  "So, are you two staying here? You're more than welcome to. Make yourselves at home and all that." Russell said, motioning the boys into the house and closing the door.
  "Thanks, dad. Only if it won't put you out too much."
  "Not at all. You're my son and I barely get to see you. Stay as long as you'd like." Russell smiled, flicking his eyes to Caston for barely a second.
  "Did I here Chi?" Hunter's words were backed by the sound of his bare feet on the hardwood.
  Caston looked over to the boy, his tan skin lacking a shirt per usual and his shaggy blond hair now well past his ears, half of it contained in a messy bun atop his head. He looked significantly older, his Malachi-like features seeming to almost completely fade. He could see Hunter's relation to Miss Jameson now more than ever before.
  Hunter's eyes landed on Caston and his mood seemed to change. He nodded ever so slightly, the action just a simple tilt down of his head.
  Malachi and Hunter sprung into a conversation, leaving Caston and Russell to stand and look at each other awkwardly.
  "So...are you just friends with Malachi the same way you were with Hunter?" Russell asked, crossing his arms and reminding Caston that he's not just a hot middle-aged man, but he's also a dad.
  "Um.." Caston glanced over to the two boys, who were exchanging conversation and smiles. Malachi's face was being hit by the setting sun and Caston wondered what he'd look like with a California tan.
  He looked back to Russell when he realized he left silence in the air too long. "Not exactly."
  "Meaning?"
  Caston rolled his eyes. "You parents and your labels. It's the twenty-first century, he's Malachi, I'm Caston. We hang out. If you need to label it to be comfortable with it, I think that's a you problem, Russ."
  "Not much has changed with you, I see."
  "Can't say the same for your son. He's growing like a weed, isn't he?" Caston said, his voice light and bouncy, almost cooing.
  "Are you on drugs?"
  "I'm flattered, but this is just me. Sober, raw, and in the flesh. I'll try to turn down the charm as to not tempt you so much." Caston winked.
  "The fact that you've been with both of my sons and the fact that you are two decades younger than me both keep me at bay." Russell said.
  "Who says I've been with both of your sons?" Caston crossed his arms, mirroring Russell.
  "The hickey on your neck." Russell gently raised his eyebrows, then slightly pushed his head forward. "Kind of telling."
  "Kind of..forgot that was there."
  "Just don't go parading it or anything else in front of Hunter. You really hurt him last summer. He's seemed so much better these past few months and I would hate to see him in that place again." Russell's voice was hushed presumably so his words wouldn't carry over to either of his sons. "I hope you're not doing the same thing to Malachi. Neither of my boys deserve to be treated like shit, but I can tell you right now that of the two of them, Malachi is not the one you want to screw over."
  "Thanks for the talk, Russ." Caston said, clapping the man on the shoulder, then walked over to Malachi. "Give me your keys. I'll get our stuff."
  Malachi pulled the keychain out of his pocket and dropped it into Caston's outstretched hand.
  Caston somehow managed to get everything by himself and in one trip, having two bags on his body and two in his hands.
  "Where's the guest room?" Caston asked.
  "The layout didn't change since you were here last." Malachi chuckled.
  "Doesn't mean I know where the guest room is."
  "Didn't you sleep in there?"
  "No, I stayed in Hunter's room." Caston said, somewhat motioning to the door on their right.
  Everyone was quiet, but the glass doors in the living room still provided the house with the distant sound of waves. He could feel Russell's eyes on him. He could see Malachi's face. Hunter, however, had his head tilted toward the ground and his eyes subtly flicking between Caston and Malachi.
  "So..the guest room? Kinda holding a lot of shit here." Caston said.
  "Down the hall. First door on the left." Russell said.
  Caston walked past the kitchen and down the hallway that he once saw an underwear-clad Russell imerge from.
  He threw the bags onto the floor at the end of the bed, then took the duffel bag and backpack straps off of his shoulders. He placed his hands onto his lower back, stretching and sighing deeply. All the hours in the car were finally catching up to him.
  The door clicked shut behind him, making him turn and come face-to-face with Malachi. Before Caston could even make a comment about how his face looked different, Malachi stepped forward.
  "So...you have spent the night with another guy before."
  Caston wasn't sure what he thought Malachi was going to say, but that was definitely not it.
  "What?"
  "You've told me countless times that you don't like to spend the night. You just fuck and leave. I'm the only one you can do it with. And that whole fucking time, you had done it with my little brother?" Malachi's tone was firm, but his voice was somewhat quiet. "How many fucking lies do you tell me, Caston?"
  The dictionary in Caston's head was spinning too fast and he tried to figure out what he could say that would be appropriate in this moment.
  Words suddenly formed in his mouth and fell off of his tongue. "I just did it to get sex out of him. It was for convenience. I don't sleep in the same bed with you for sex or convenience. I do it because I have to."
  "Gee..thanks, Cas! That just means so much I am so fucking touched." Malachi placed a hand on his chest dramatically.
  "You ask me to tell the truth and then you get mad when I do. What the fuck is it that you want from me?"
  "I do want the truth. I accept it, but you also need to accept that sometimes it fucking hurts me. You just rip off bandaids like it's nothing because to you, it is. But to me, Caston, it's fucking something. Just because the truth hurts me doesn't mean I don't want it. You have to let me feel just like I let you not feel."
  "I don't understand."
  "What don't you understand?"
  "How it hurt you. I said I have to. That's not a bad thing. To need something. Right? Sleeping alone is cold. But with you, it's warm and comfortable. I don't like to sleep cold anymore, it keeps me awake. I sleep with you because I have to. How is that a bad thing? How does that hurt you?" Caston tilted his head.
  Malachi was silent for a moment, then he took a step forward. "Cas...you really need to start being more specific with your statements."
  "I try. I say exactly what I think and I mean it, but it's like other people take it in differently. Why is that?"
  "Because you're a textbook definition type, Cassie. Everyone else dances around their points and says stuff they don't mean or something that they hope the other person will read into. I love you because of your straightforward tendencies, not in spite of them." Malachi said, now standing in front of Caston with his hands on the boy's waist.
  "Then what was your little fit about a second ago?"
  "Don't you listen? I wasn't telling you to not tell the truth and spare my feelings; I was telling you to let me have them."
  Caston nodded. "So you're not upset anymore?"
  "Not about that, no."
  "But...you're still upset about Hunter?"
  "I wouldn't say I'm upset. It's just weird knowing that you were with my brother the way you're with me."
  "But I wasn't."
  "How so?"
  "He never fucked me the way you do."
  Malachi seemed to bite back a smirk. "Yeah?" He backed up slowly, pulling Caston along with him. He turned Caston around, grabbed his wrists and shoved him against the dresser, looking at him through the mirror. "Cause he never fucked you, right?"
  Malachi pushed Caston harder against the dresser. "Right?"
  "Right." Caston said, looking up at Malachi with hooded eyes.
  "You only like it when I fuck you, right?" Malachi slowly slid his hands around Caston's waist, tucking his fingers into the front of his jeans and gently rubbing his thumb over Caston's stomach.
  "Mhm."
  "What did I say about words, Cassie?"
  Caston sighed and leaned his head back against Malachi's shoulder. "You know words don't come easy to me."
  "Being gay never came easy to me until I met you."
  "Gosh, you make every conversation gross and sappy." Caston rolled his eyes and leaned his head up.
  "How can I not with you relaxing in my arms like this?" Malachi smiled.
  "Your hand is in my pants, I'd do just about anything you tell me to."
  Malachi kissed Caston's neck, his teeth grazing the skin for a second. "Right now, we should just go to bed. I can tell you to do something more fun tomorrow."
  Caston rolled his neck and turned around between Malachi and the dresser. Malachi kissed him before he could even think of a sassy retort.