Karma Police

Chapter Nine

     "You're absolutely daft if you think for one iota of a second I'm going to allow you to keep that. I know you Brendon. Give me your phone or no GTA."
     Brendon jutted out his bottom lip and reluctantly placed his phone in Jon's open hand. Having a best friend that was wise to all of your sneakiest tricks had never annoyed him quite as much as it did in that moment. He also knew that no amount of pouting and whining was going to have any effect on Jon's resolve to keep Brendon from contacting Ryan. Brendon found the remotes for his xbox and handed the crappier one to Jon after he settled into the corner of his couch. No way was he gonna let Jon have to good remote after he took his phone hostage.
     Jon didn't really care about video games, but he fucking loved hearing all the crazy shit Brendon said in the midst of playing. That kid could make everything entertaining. So Jon let Brendon do his thing and got a belly ache from laughing at all the crazy voices and colored commentary provided by his best friend. After nearly four hours Jon's eyes began to droop. Fortunately for him Brendon's phone was secured in his pants pocket, so he let himself drift off. A few minutes later Brendon heard him begin to snore and decided to call it a night himself. He turned off the console and the TV, covered Jon up with a blanket, and shut out the lights on his way to his room.
     After he had brushed his teeth and washed his face, he crawled under the covers of his king sized bed and waited for sleep to come. He was not naive enough to expect it to come quickly. For some reason the more anxious he was, the more the ghosts seemed to find him. The best he could surmise was that when he had a lot going through his own mind it sent out some sort of amplified supernatural signal that alerted spirits to his abilities. It wasn't something he necessarily liked, but he had grown as accustomed to it as one possibly could. There was one respite for Brendon in times like these, she could also sense his anxiety and never failed to show up and soothe him.                   That night, after hearing about fifteen minutes of nonsense from random and unfamiliar cerebral visitors, he felt her arrive. After their years together she knew exactly what he needed. She didn't speak. Instead she sang to him. Brendon had learned early on that the song she always sang to him was one that she used to sing to her son when he was still young enough to need and want his mother's lullaby. She had also told him that she had taken certain artistic liberties and tweaked the lyrics to make the song about a boy rather than a girl. Brendon himself didn't think that Norah Jones would mind in the slightest, especially if she knew all the nights that her song calmed his troubled mind.
Spinning, laughing, dancing to
His favorite song
A little boy with nothing wrong
Is all alone
Eyes wide open
Always hoping for the sun
And he'll sing his song to anyone
That comes along
Fragile as a leaf in autumn
Just fallin' to the ground
Without a sound
Crooked little smile on his face
Tells a tale of grace
That's all his own
Fragile as a leaf in autumn
Just fallin' to the ground
Without a sound
Spinning, laughing, dancing to his
Favorite song
Well, he's a little boy with nothing wrong
And he's all alone
A little boy with nothing wrong
And he's all alone
     Midway through her third time singing the song, Brendon's eyes slipped closed and after a few deep breaths he was out for the night.
     The sunlight creeping through the curtains woke Brendon in the morning as soon as it found its way across the floor and up the side of his bed, eventually landing on his face. He should have made sure the curtains were drawn tightly closed when he went the bed the night before. Brendon rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and ran his hand across the comforter next to him in search of his phone. When he couldn't find it, he panicked for a second before remembering where it was and why it was there. He groaned, covered his head with his covers and rolled on to his right side in an attempt to squeeze a bit more sleep out of the morning as it was still quite early.
     Just as he was about to drift off again he heard a sound that made him fly out of his warm bed and sprint to the bathroom down the hall...he heard the shower running. This was his chance. He knew his phone was in Jon's pants pocket. He had to steal it back and call Ryan, this was fate. It's not like Jon would be wearing his pants in the shower...Jon must have wrongly thought that he was still asleep. This had to be some form of divine intervention. There simply was no other explanation.
     Brendon slowly turned the door knob, opening the door just enough to stick his arm through so he could feel around the tiny bathroom's floor to locate Jon's discarded pants and retrieve his phone. He accomplished the task with such dexterity and stealthness that every ninja ever born would stand in awe. He quietly shut the door and went back to his room to make his forbidden phone call. He completed his task and was waiting outside the bathroom door with the stupidest smile plastered on his face before Jon had even finished his female-length shower. He couldn't wait to brag to Jon for one second longer and decided to burst into the bathroom.
     "Guess who has a date tonight? I'll tell you. Me!!! He said he was glad I woke him up and he's perfect and I can not wait!!!"
     "Real happy for you Bren. Now that you thwarted my plans to make you seem more socially acceptable, would you mind going to the store for some milk so I can at least have some cereal before I leave?"
     "I'll do you one better and go get some donuts from that place you love. This is the best day EVER! Be back in a bit."
     Jon rolled his eyes and sighed. He needed to think of an exit strategy before too long or he would be stuck hearing about how his plan was a stupid one as well as an epic failure all day. It's not like he didn't already know that, and he really didn't need to hear about it from his adorably excited best friend. Hopefully Spencer didn't have any middle aged woman crafting plans for today. He hadn't seen much of his boyfriend lately and he was sort of starting to miss his bitchy attitude.
    After the boys ate their breakfast and Jon left to go to Spencer's, Brendon was left sitting alone in his living room with way too much nervous energy. He decided to do what all self respecting men did when they had an important date, go shopping for the perfect outfit. He spent his entire day going through every store in a couple different malls in Nashville before he settled on a new pair of black combat boots, ripped black skinny jeans, and one of those super long black and white striped tshirts he'd been eyeing for weeks. When he got home he realized just how close it was to the time he needed to leave for his date. He rushed through his routine a bit more than he would have liked to and arrived outside Chuck's without a minute to spare.
     As he rounded the corner from the parking lot he caught his first glimpse of Ryan. He was so absolutely breathtakingly beautiful that Brendon forgot how to breathe for a minute. Ryan stood under the window of the bar and the neon signs were casting a faint rainbow of colors down on his face. Brendon then noticed that Ryan was alternating between checking his phone and anxiously looking up and down the block. He decided he better get to him before he had a nervous breakdown, the poor kid looked almost despondent and Brendon would never forgive himself if he ever hurt Ryan in the slightest way. So he hurried over to him and tapped him lightly on the shoulder.
     "Hey beautiful. You look amazing tonight. You ready to go?"
     "As ready as I'll ever be. You're the one who looks incredible by the way."
     Brendon felt a warmth start in his gut and settle on his cheeks. He reached down, laced his fingers with Ryan's, and lifted his hand to his lips, planting the softest of kisses on the back of Ryan's hand. Without letting go, the pair headed toward the street fair.
     "What do you wanna do first? Rides, games, or food?"
     "You choose Brendon. As long as we get to ride the ferris wheel last nothing else matters to me."
     "Then I choose skee ball. Friendly wager time. Whoever wins, the other person has to tell their most embarrassing story."
     "Deal. You should really start thinking of what your story is gonna be though cause I'm awesome at that game. So you will lose."
     Ryan took an early and demanding lead as they played side by side. Brendon was doing his best to win fairly but soon realized he would have to resort to guerrilla tactics before he could even dream of closing the gap. So the next time Ryan pulled back his arm to roll the ball, Brendon slid up behind him and wrapped his arms around Ryan's slender waist. Being that close to him without kissing him was impossible though. So he began plant little kisses up the side of Ryan's neck. When he reached the spot where his jawline met his neck, he nipped lightly at the skin. Ryan let out the softest of moans that encouraged Brendon to bite a bit harder the second time. He soothed the tender skin with a lick of his tongue and a wet kiss before a sharp pain in his toes distracted him. He realized that the pain was caused by the skee ball that Ryan had dropped. Before he could get back to enjoying the taste of Ryan's skin he was rudely interrupted.
     "Y'all need to finish your game. There's lots of people who are waiting to play."
     "First of all fuck you..."
     "Dan. My name is Dan and that guy over there is my homosexual life mate Tim. So trust me I get it. What you don't get though is that we need to make as much money as we can so we can retire from the carnie life and settle down on a small farm in Texas. Which means we need to get as many people to pay to play as we possibly can and you getting your pretty date here all hot and bothered is not helping me..."
     "We're sorry. That was actually my last ball, so we were just gonna go anyway."
     Ryan was entirely too polite to that douchebag. It was annoying and absolutely admirable at the same time. Brendon was stunned by all the new ways he was learning about Ryan's perfection. He was quicly becoming convinced the man had no flaws. He reached out for Ryan's hand again and began to lead him towards the food vendors.
     "That guy was an asshole. Did you see that ridiculous fringed leather jacket and stupid fucking cowboy hat he had on? Also his life mate Tim??? Total tool. I hope I never see them ever again."
     Ryan just squeezed his hand and laughed at his jokes because Brendon was not wrong. Those two were dumb. Brendon bought a funnel cake and a couple of sodas and they sat down across from one another at the nearby picnic table.
     "I believe you owe me your most embarrassing story, sir."
     Ryan was not about to let the bet be forgotten. He followed his comment with an evil smirk that left Brendon's heart pounding in his chest. Well, fuck. Here goes nothing. Brendon thought to himself. His story was either gonna cause Ryan to piss his pants cause it was so funny, or leave him wondering just how in the hell he ended up on this date and how could he get away.
     "Okay, so back in high school I was in this real shitty band, only no one bothered to tell us how much we fucking sucked. So we signed up for the talent show. Which was not the worst part of this story. I wasn't out at the time, but I was harboring a massive crush on my drummer. My adolescent mind convinced me that outing myself on stage in front of the entire school and letting him know I loved him was quite possibly the most romantic thing ever done. I had it all planned out. We would play our song and then I was gonna turn to him and confess my undying love to him. Only thing was I was so nervous that day that I ended up eating a shit ton of candy to keep myself from blurting out my secret plan to my best friend Jon cause I knew he would talk me out of it. So we played our song while the school booed us and even resorted to throwing trash on the stage. When the song was over, I took my chance. I turned around and stood in front of his drum kit and opened my mouth to tell him I wanted him to be my boyfriend. Only when I opened my mouth, I puked. I fucking hurled a day's worth of binge eating all over his drums and some of it ended up splashed on his face and the rest dripped off the drum heads and landed on his shoes. Needless to say, I didn't tell him anything and ran off the stage. I didn't come out until after I graduated and I knew I'd never have to see him again."
     Ryan looked at him with a pitying look on his face.
     "That's fucking awful. I'm so sorry you had to go through that. But I'm not gonna lie, I would pay good money to see a recording of that and I would laugh my ass off."
     That's when Ryan lost his composure and began laughing hysterically at poor Brendon's tale of high school misfortune. Hearing the beautiful melody of Ryan's laughter and seeing the joy on his face caused Brendon himself to start laughing. Tears were rolling down both of their cheeks before either one of them could control themselves.
     "Now that you've had a good laugh at my expense are you ready for that ferris wheel ride?"
     "I thought you'd never ask."
     The line for the ferris wheel was rather long but it allowed Brendon and Ryan to get to know one another a bit better. It was when they were almost to the front of the line when Ryan noticed that Brendon seemed to have lost his focus. He apologized profusely for seeming distracted but all that accomplished was making Ryan feel as if Brendon no longer wanted to be there.
     "For fucks sake, not now! Please make them leave me alone."
     Brendon begged under his breath as soon as he found a convenient reason to turn his back to Ryan. It wasn't the best excuse, but throwing his cup away in the trash can next to their spot in line would have to do. This date had started out so fucking good and like always, the ghosts were ruining his life. He felt so defeated in that moment. A single tear made it's way down his cheek when he felt Ryan's hand tentatively grasp his elbow.
     "Is everything okay? Cause like if you don't wanna be here with me anymore, you can leave. I don't want to make you feel like you have to spend time with me..."
     Leave him be. Can't you see he's trying to enjoy his life for once?!? Now all of you get away. Sorry dear, I shouldn't have let them overwhelm you. I'll do my best to keep them away for as long as I can.
     "Oh god no!!! Please don't think like that. Trust me when I say that there is no other place I'd rather be than here with you. It's just sometimes I get distracted. It's absolutely not you. I've never met anyone quite like you Dr. Ross. I've only had the pleasure of spending a small amount of time with you and I already have this insatiable desire to know everything there is to know about you. You fascinate me. It's merely a bonus that you're a complete stunner and I already know we have great sexual chemistry."
     When Brendon paused to take a breath he looked up to find that Ryan's face was now a deep shade of scarlet and the was nervously wringing his hands. So he took Ryan's hands into his own, looked him dead in the eye and said, "I'm sorry. I'm here now and I won't be distracted any longer. Please don't run away from me."
     Before Ryan could properly respond they were being ushered into the ferris wheel and had begun their ascent to the top.
     "It's ok Brendon. I forgive you, I'm just insecure and afraid of being hurt. So I get scared very easily and you were kind of freaking me out down there."
     The ride stopped and they had only made it a quarter of the way around. Brendon took this opportunity to slide right next to Ryan and put his left arm around Ryan's shoulders. His gently ran his right hand through Ryan's soft, slightly curly hair just as Ryan leaned in and kissed his lips so meekly that Brendon wasn't sure it had really even happened.
     Before Ryan could turn his head away, Brendon put his hands on his either side of his face and kissed him back. He kissed him like he'd never kissed anyone before. He needed Ryan to feel how much he was wanted and needed. As the ferris wheel continued to turn, their kisses got more and more intense. Brendon couldn't get as close to Ryan as his body was begging him to be, so he had to settle for exploring as much as he could with his hands. Ryan was having the exact same issue, and he soon found his left hand wandering up Brendon's thigh. Both men moaned when he unintentionally ran his palm up the length of Brendon's very apparent erection. Almost as if it was beyond his control to mirror Ryan's actions, Brendon found himself working his hand down the from of Ryan's pants.
     They were stopped again, only now they were at the very top and nobody could see what they were doing. Brendon unbuttoned Ryan's pants so he could get a better angle and began to slowly jerk Ryan off. In response, Ryan undid Brendon's jeans, pulled the zipper down and paused. When Ryan pulled away, Brendon was confused. He was about to say something in protest when he felt Ryan's tongue lapping at the pre come that had gathered at the tip of his cock. Ryan began to suck on him like it was the only thing he was put on earth to do. Why had he not done this the first time they were together? He was incredible. Brendon was trying to come up with a strategy to not let himself come when he dared to open his eyes. Ryan was jerking himself off as he swallowed Brendon down. Brendon unashamedly watched this little show. He reached around Ryan's slender body and ran his thumb across his leaking cock. Ryan groaned around him as he came all over his own hand. The sight of the white come running down his knuckles combined with the sensation caused by his moan tipped Brendon over the edge. Both men realized that they were now dangerously close to the bottom. So the hastily put themselves back together and Brendon was licking up the evidence from Ryan's fingers when the ride stopped. As soon as their feet hit solid ground they smiled knowingly at one another and made their way back towards Chuck's.
     Ryan decided to accept Brendon's offer for a ride home. They laughed and talked for the entire short ride to Ryan's house. When Brendon parked his car in the driveway he noticed a man with curly hair staring out the front window.
     "Um, who's that?"
     "That would be my best friend Joe. He must have been waiting for me to get home and saw your lights as soon as you turned into the driveway. He's harmless, a bit creepy at the moment, but he's just happy for me and no doubt dying to know how things went. I better go before he decides to come out here and interrogate you."
     "When can I see you again?"
     "I'll call you soon and we'll figure something out. Thank you for the best date I've ever been on."
     Ryan quickly leaned over and kissed Brendon's cheek before getting out of the car and walking towards the front door. As soon as Brendon saw that he was safely inside he put his car in reverse and started his drive home to his own apartment. He found the perfect song less than a block down the road, turned the volume up loud, and scream sang along.
But I'm not too sure, and I'm not too proud
Well I'm not sure, and I'm not too proud to say

Aha, it was good
Living with you, aha, it was good
Ah-ah-ah-ah-aha it was good
Living with you, aha, it was good
Ah-ah-ah, so good

Aha, it was good
Living with you, aha, it was good
Ah-ah-ah-ah-aha it was good
Living with you, aha, it was good
Ah-ah-ah-ah, ah-ah-ah-ah

Yeah, you were so good
Yeah, you were so good
(Yeah, that's right)