Queer as Muke

1.2.6 Queer, There and Everywhere

Michael checks his appearance in the full length mirror, fiddling with his hair to get it right, making sure that the black tee he has on matches the shade of his black jeans perfectly.

Walking to the door when his buzzer sounds he presses the intercom button, "Come on up, top floor" and let's the person in. The whir of the lift outside his door tells him they're on their way up and he slides his door open with a flourish, his face falling when he sees Luke standing there.

"Christ what are you doing?"

"Sorry, I don't want to..." Luke stammers, looking at the floor. Now that he's here he doesn't know what to say. Michael's looking hot, even hotter than he did earlier and Luke's here, at Michael's front door again, looking into the apartment where they did it, the furniture all put back to how it was, knowing how it had come to be so messed up last night.

"You can't just turn up unannounced."

Stung, Luke retaliates, "I just want to talk!" He'd walked to Michael's place, having memorised the route yesterday and this morning, full of plans about how Michael would pull him in and kiss the fuck out of him again...

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Please." Luke realises he sounds desperate but he doesn't care. "I won't stay long. I just..can I...?"

Trying to get, in he's stopped by Michael's hand. "No."

"Oh shit." Turning around at both the look on Michael's face and the sound of feet behind him, Luke sees a man in a leather vest climbing the last set of stairs.

"The door was about to shut so I just slipped in," he tells Michael as he walks in, eyeing him up and down way too closely for Luke's comfort. Luke's unimpressed and jealous, hating how he's cosying up to Michael in such a creepy way.

"Who's this?" the stranger asks, turning around once he's in the apartment, seeing Luke still standing at the door.

"No-one."

"I have to see you." Luke begs, ignoring Michael's slur.

"I'm busy."

"I don't mind a threesome, although he's kind of young." The guy interrupts, looking at Luke like a piece of meat. Michael decided to ignore the offer.

"He's also kind of leaving..." Michael looks pointedly at Luke, who ignores him.

"Who's he?"

"Forgive me for not introducing you. Luke, this is Mr Goodfuck, Mr Goodfuck may I present Luke."

"My name's Henry."

"Sorry," Michael turns back to Luke, "Henry. Goodfuck."

"You don't even know him." Luke can't believe Michael's choosing this creepy guy over him.

"Well I was hoping to get to. Now why don't you just scamper on home?"

"He's my stalker," Michael explains to Henry once Luke's turned tail to run down the stairs, slamming the door shut behind him.

"That wasn't very kind, sending him off, a kid that age. By himself at this time of night?" Henry points out. By the look on his face Michael's knows he won't get anything from him until he's sorted this mess out.

Michael sighs, his jaw setting at the delay. "Alright, make yourself comfortable."

Pulling the door to the apartment building open Michael sees Luke standing outside, leaning against a pillar. He hears a loud sniff as he lets the door bang shut behind him which alerts Luke to his presence. Setting off at a pace, Michael calls after him, "Hey. Hey!"

"I just left a complete stranger alone in my apartment to come talk to you so don't run away from me," Michael places his hand on the car door just as Luke unlocks it, stopping him from opening it. "We need to get something straight."

"You don't do boyfriends." Luke already knows what he's going to say.

"Cal's been talking to you." Michael says it so matter of factly that Luke finally realises it must be true. He'd tried so hard to deny it, to wish that there was something between them but that's all it was, childish and wishful thinking.

"You'll fuck anyone!" Luke shouts angrily at Michael, upset and wanting to hurt him like he's hurt Luke. Leaning, one hand on the car roof, Michael lets him vent. "He's ugly. You don't even know him. And I...I really..."

"Luke," Michael softens his voice; the lad's really upset, tears pricking at his eyes and he doesn't want to hurt him more than he has to. "I've had you."

Luke tries to compute what he's hearing. Was it really just a one night stand? But what about all the things they did? The things they said? The way he feels? His face crumples the more he hears.

"What happened last night...it was for fun. You wanted me and I wanted you. But that's all it was."

"A fuck!" No, no, it can't have been just a fuck. What about how they'd kissed?

"Well, what did you think it was?" Michael tries to be as straight as he can be with the boy, because he's nearly keeling over with the brutality of it. Every word seems to be striking him hard, "Look, I don't believe in love. I believe in fucking. It's honest, it's efficient. You get in and out with the maximum of pleasure and a minimum of bullshit. Love is something that straight people tell themselves they're in so they can get laid. And then they end up hurting each other because it was all based on lies to begin with."

Luke sniffs but it doesn't stop a tear from falling down his face. "If that's what you want, then go find yourself a pretty little girl and get married." Michael concludes.

"That's not what I want, I want you." Luke's voice breaks as he looks Michael full in the face, his blue eyes locked onto Michael's green ones. Fuck the fact that he's full on crying, he needs Michael to know how he feels.

"You can't have me, I'm too old fo..." Michael checks himself just in time. "You're too young for me. You're seventeen, I'm twenty eight."

"Twenty nine," Luke corrects him.

"Fine," Michael glares at him. "Twenty nine. All the more reason. Now go do your homework." Backing off, Michael walks away, but not before the hurt look on Luke's face sears itself into his brain.

Opening the car door, Luke gets in slamming the door shut and revs the engine, leaving Michael standing, watching him drive away this time. Michael's face is inscrutable, except for a locked jaw and soft, tender eyes, you'd think there was no emotion there.