Hate | Love

Waking Up Next to the Enemy (Part 1/2)

HICKEY

***

"This, my new friend will get my rocks off for the next several days."

Team slurred, holding up his USB keychain while trying to balance Oam on his feet. Both were inebriated as skunks, Oam more so since he drowned more glasses than Team who was a lot more interested in what was showing on the laptop screen. His flash drive filled with more of the porn videos from Tharn's folders.

"Dude, you are so cool," Team added, "Free drink, free snacks and I have all these to watch in the next few days," before ambling out of the room and slamming the door close.

Tharn just shook his head. Looked towards his bed where his roommate was sprawled, barely conscious. Techno was pulling on his friend's arm.

"Ai'Type, wake up," Techno was exasperated. He has been trying to wake the drunk young man for the last several minutes; all to no avail. "Type, come on dude, you're not on your bed!" There was panic in Techno's voice. He knew that his friend would have the shock of his life if he woke up and found himself in his roommate's bed.

"You know something," Tharn suddenly said.

"Errr, ummmm," Techno was not expecting Tharn to say anything, "No... I... errr... I don't know what you are talking about." Techno was flustered. He knew what Tharn was trying to ask, but his loyalty was to his friend, though he has come to realize that Tharn was a great guy, and there was really nothing that should concern Type. He still could not understand himself why his friend was so adamant about his revulsion towards the young, handsome drummer.

"Oh, c'mon Type,"Tharn gently said, looking straight at Techno's face who was trying his hardest to evade the stare that was aimed at him, "You know what I mean. What did he say?"

"Say about what?"

"I am gay!"

"Errr..."

"I know you know about it," Tharn was persistent, "Those other two don't have any idea, don't they?"

"Errr... no," Techno admitted. "Ummm, its just that Type really hates gay people. For as long as I can remember, he has hated your kind since we were young."

"My kind?" Tharn spoke, an edge to his voice.

"Oh no," Techno replied, "I didn't mean it like that. I personally don't have any problem with you or other gay people, I do think you are a great guy, but Type really does not seem to want to listen to reason. I don't know why he is prejudiced so much but he wouldn't even say why but just the mention of the word gay gets him agitated all the time."

Techno finally looked Tharn straight into his eyes.

"I am really sorry for all this," the gangly and clearly uncomfortable young man said, "Type is a really swell guy, but when it comes to gay people, he snaps and becomes this unreasonable."

"..."

Tharn did not know what to say.

"So, I'm asking you, " Techno was a little hesitant, "Err, you seem like a really good person, and I'm really embarrassed by what I'm about to say. But, can you please just move out? Let him have the room?"

"No."

"Please..."

"No Techno," Tharn sadly but firmly replied, "I have been bullied for what I am all my life, and giving in to your friend's bigoted views is basically telling myself that what I am is wrong, that I am defected. But I am not. This is who I am."

Techno looked at Tharn and slowly shook his head before dropping his gaze and looked at the sleeping figure beside him; on top of sheets that were not his, on top of the bed that was slept in by the person that he abhorred.

"I understand," Techno meekly said, "I knew it was a long shot, but I really had to ask. You know, for my friend. I am so sorry."

A grunt broke through the tension. Type adjusted his body in sleep. He looked so young, so innocent. Far from the angry young man that manifested as soon as Tharn was there. Gone were the creases on his brows and on his face. Gone was the ugly sneer. He was a beautiful man. Sleeping like an angel.

"Dude," Techno said, trying to pull at Type's weight to get him to wake up and off Tharn's bed, "It's late, my dorm manager will lock the doors any moment and I need to be in my room. You can't sleep here. This is not your bed."

But deaf ears received his almost pleading cries.

"Leave him there."

"What?"

"I said, leave him there," Tharn repeated.

"But he..." Techno was hesitant. He looked at the unconscious prone body of his friend who was so drunk he wouldn't feel anything if something was to happen to him.

"Oh, no no no..." Tharn suddenly cried out, looking at Techno's face and reading what the young man was thinking. "Sorry, but I don't do drunk people."

"Are you sure?"

"Why?" Tharn countered, "Have you ever had the tendency to sleep with the dead"?

"Hell, no," Techno cried out in horror. "Of course not, its just that..."

"It's just that, I am gay."

Techno looked at Tharn and slowly stood up.

"I am leaving now," Techno said. Looking at Type and slowly shook his head. "Please...please be gentle with him. He has classes tomorrow and it'll not look good if he shows up with marks on him."

"Don't worry about it," Tharn said, "I just need to teach your friend a lesson."

A shiver ran all over Techno's body. He glanced back at his friend but forced his legs to move towards the doorway and out into the halls.

Tharn surveyed the chaos that was their room. He cringed. He was always conscious about cleanliness and neatness and the disarray was getting him worked up. He glanced at the sleeping young man on his bed. Type looked so different from how he had been the past several days. He looked frail. That he could be broken any time. Tharn wondered what could have happened to him to have him such hatred. What could have made him so jaded that he becomes a monster in every waking moment that Tharn was there.

Tharn was suddenly mad. He was suddenly so furious at the unfairness of everything. He was also angry at himself, "Why do you have to be someone I really like," he whispered to himself before sitting himself down beside the sleeping figure.

Anger gripped at Tharn. He was angry at the world and what Type symbolized for him at the moment. The bigotry. The prejudices. The things he had to endure because people did not understand different.

There was no other outlet. There was nowhere else to divert his frustration but in the idea that Type had to be taught a lesson. A lesson that he wanted to teach everyone who has made him feel small.

Tharn gingerly opened the top button of Type's shirt. Bringing his face nearer to the neck that was smooth and unmarred. In sleep, Type pushed weakly, but Tharn grabbed the wrist and pinned it to the bed.

He could taste sweat. But underneath the salty taste on his lips, he could feel the throb of Type's heartbeat. He almost pushed himself off, but he remembered the state of clutter that their room was in, he remembered the taunts of everyone else when he was younger, he remembered every harsh words. And he continued to kiss; harsh, biting kisses across Type's chest; leaving kiss marks along the way, angry red marks that were unmistakably marks from teeth and lips. Trailing down towards Type's abs. Before going back up as Tharn cradled Type's face gently and finally kissed him on the lips.

"Good night,"Tharn whispered, "Room mate!"

...to be continued...