Devil's Effect

The Hardest Ask

It was already Thursday evening, and Mike was in a state of panic. He'd arrived at Joe's after work to find his friend loading two suitcases and a packable baby crib into the back of his SUV, ready with apologies. Joe's dad had fallen and broken his hip, and he was leaving with Heidi and the baby to go help his mother out at the hospital and afterward at their house. There was nothing Mike could say in the moment other than reassurances that he would look after the fish in their aquarium and take care of the house. Before he'd even had a chance to text Chester, Joe, Heidi, and Lola were backing down the driveway, and Mike was faced with a huge problem.

Jason gave me until the end of the weekend to get my stuff. How am I going to do that alone? What a mess. Mike sat down at the bar in the kitchen and looked over at Heidi's assortment of ceramic canisters. I know Joe felt bad, and it can't be helped, but not only do I not have any help, I don't have a car big enough anymore. What a mess. He blew out a long breath and dug his phone out of his pocket. It was Chester's night to spend with Ryan, and part of that agreement was that Mike would stay out of the way and let them have their time together to play video games and whatever else they wanted to do. Mike didn't want to interfere, or make it seem like he was trying to keep tabs on what Chester was doing, but he needed to tell someone, and Chester was the person he wanted to talk to more than anyone else.

Mike: So, I know you're with Ryan, but I've got a problem. Joe had to leave town for a family emergency. I don't have any way to go get my stuff this weekend. I just found out. I'm stressing.

He pressed send and stood up and paced in the kitchen. He didn't even know if Chester would answer him. The last thing Mike wanted to do was text Jason to ask him to keep his stuff for another weekend. He just wanted to go get his things, and for it to be completely over.

Sitting at Amir's, in his borrowed bedroom, Chester was on the bed with Ryan. His ankle was propped up on a pillow as he sat side by side with his friend. They'd already had dinner, and played over two hours worth of uninterrupted Space Invaders, and now they were sipping coffee and nibbling on a massive piece of pumpkin flavored cheesecake that Noah had plopped in front of them before he'd disappeared upstairs with Amir for the evening.

"I'm usually not much for pumpkin stuff," Ryan said as he spooned another bite from the plate they were sharing, "but this is fucking good."

Chester nodded, his own bite of smooth cheesecake going down his throat before he chased it with hot, sugary coffee. "I agree. It's fucking awesome." He looked over at Ryan with a shy smile. It was their second night in a week of being all alone, of spending the evening doing whatever they pleased as they freely enjoyed each other's company. It was a different feeling from before, when Mike would shame him after spending time with Ryan, or when he'd be met with a barrage of accusational questions from his boyfriend. They'd spent Tuesday evening together, and on Wednesday Mike hadn't asked anything other than if Chester had had a good time. It was nice. It was relaxing, and Chester was happy that his newly regained boyfriend was making such a nice effort to give him room to breathe.

"So you ready to tell me?" Chester asked, playfully nudging Ryan's arm with his elbow.

"Tell you what?"

"Whatever secret you're keeping," Chester stated, flashing Ryan a knowing look. "You can deny it all you want, but I know something is going on. Come on, I know you're dying to tell me." He flashed the other man his biggest eyes, and stuck out his piercing.

Ryan put his hand up immediately between them, blocking the view of Chester's pathetic face. "Don't even, Chazzy. When I'm ready to tell you, I will," he admitted honestly, his thoughts instantly turning to Jason. He'd yet to let the cat out of the bag about Jason's last night in L.A. or even that the two of them were still talking. More than talking. We text every day and we're reading a book together.