Unexpected Love (BOYXBOY)

Chapter 24

Yes, those were definitely slurping sounds I was hearing coming from Toby's room, and since Cody had come over just twenty minutes before, I had no doubt who was involved in making those sounds. It seemed like someone had an excess saliva problem, though.

Now, I typically wasn't one for eavesdropping, but when it came to what was going on between Toby and Cody, my curiosity got the best of me. Hence, I had pilfered one of Maggie's stethoscopes and was now standing with my ear pressed up against Toby's bedroom door -- well, more like it was the stethoscope pressed up against the door. But it kind of made me feel like James Bond, which was cool. I didn't really need it, however, as they weren't making that much of an effort to keep things quiet. They may not have even realized I was at home. And since I hadn't been getting any for a while, I had to live out my sex life vicariously through others -- and at the moment, those "others" happened to be Toby and Cody.

"Put it in," I heard Toby whine. "Hurry up."

That was odd. I'd never heard Toby whine before. And put what in where?

"Since when have you wanted to try being a bottom?" Cody asked.

"I never said I didn't like it. I just prefer being a top, I guess," Toby replied. "But I want to show you how much I like you. No, I mean, love you. And I want to show you, not just say it. That's the only way I can think of."

"You love me?" Cody asked. From the way his voice cracked when he asked that, he seemed to be quite taken aback. Cody wasn't the type to be caught off guard, but apparently he hadn't been expecting Toby to say that. In fact, neither had I. But of all the people I knew and cared about, there wasn't anyone who deserved to hear those words more than Cody.

It also reminded me how much I missed hearing them. Those three simple words -- "I love you" -- could be so powerful. Unfortunately, it seemed like many people just threw those words around carelessly. So, sometimes, saying them wasn't enough. Even at his young age, Toby seemed to know this instinctively. He had always been one to show love, not just say it.

"Yeah, I do," Toby replied. I was surprised at the conviction in his voice.

"What about Connor? Do you love him, too?" Cody prodded.

"It's not like that, Cody. I don't feel that way about him anymore. I want you to be my boyfriend. Please believe me," Toby pleaded.

"No, that's not what I meant," Cody interjected. "I want you to love Connor. I love him, too."

That certainly perked my ears up. How did they go from having sex to discussing their feelings for me? I was certainly intrigued, though.

"Of course I love Connor," Toby stated. "He's been a better brother to me lately than Ryan. He's probably the greatest thing that's happened to me over the past year. And it's hard to hate Ryan, even though he's been acting like a dick, because without him, Connor never would have come into our lives."

"Yeah, Ryan's the one who basically forced Connor to start hanging out with me, too," Cody agreed, with a chuckle. "It's amazing to see how much Connor's changed over the past few months, especially considering everything he's been through. I know he thinks I'm spiritually balanced and all, but I don't think I could have handled everything he's had to face. Sometimes, when I think about it, I just want to scream. It's not fair that anyone, especially someone as gentle and sweet as Connor, should ever have to deal with that."

It was a bit strange hearing those kinds of things from Toby and Cody. Sure, they'd said things like that before, but it's a totally different feeling when someone says something when they don't realize that you're listening. But anyway, they were right -- about Ryan, that is. I hadn't thought about that since we'd broken up. Maybe I should have. If it hadn't been for Ryan, I would never have had people in my life like Toby, Cody, and the twins. As for everything I'd been through, Ryan had been one of the main reasons that I'd survived. Thinking about that, it was difficult to hate him.