I know, I know, I've got too much time on my hands - this actually fitted in with my revision though! I've been practising writing three pages in 45 mins and I thought if I'm gonna be writing I may as well write a bit of Howince - it's a bit angst thought because I think the pressure of writing quickly got to me, lol.

Anyway, here's the finished product.

D/C: I don't own them, though I am trying to rectify this situation!

It had been stupid and Vince knew that. He'd been drunk but he hadn't been so drunk he could blame the alcohol. He'd been fuelled by some crazy need to prove himself because it wasn't often that Vince didn't pull the person he kissed at a party.

It had been late and Howard had been a bit depressed. His party hadn't gone exactly as he would have liked, the pencil case girl had left fairly early and other people had drifted away slowly until he was left alone to pick up the rubbish. It had been a relief when Vince had stopped him with a gentle touch to the arm. It had been strange when Vince had kissed him and been sickening, but in a strangely good way, when he felt himself being led gently to the bedroom.

Vince hadn't been sure why he'd suddenly had the urge to sleep with Howard. He'd felt like he'd somehow be doing the older man a favour, as though if Vince took that blasted virginity then Howard would be free. But as he looked up at Howard, sweaty and groaning above him, Vince knew deep down that a part of him was very glad that once Howard Moon crossed the physical boundary it would be forever. He pulled Howard down and kissed him for all he was worth, moaning and gasping with pure ecstasy and, quite frankly, when Howard collapsed onto the bed beside him, Vince thought forever with Howard might not be long enough.

Vince woke up late the next day. He got up slowly and went to make tea, grinning to himself at the memories of last night, of him and Howard making love - because that's what it had been. He padded down the stairs with two mugs of tea and stopped as he was just about to round the corner. He gasped. The room was full of people from the scene and they were all pouring over Howard.

"Can I have your number?" one girl asked, blushing and fluttering her eyelashes up at him. "You're so strong and sexy."

"Why don't you come back to mine for coffee Howard?" another girl asked.

"He's coming back to mine. Aren't you Howard?"

"Howard! Howard!"

Vince visibly cringed when Howard said,

"Calm down ladies. There's enough of the Moon to go around." and his jaw dropped, when everyone giggled with anticipation. Vince slipped down the stairs and pushed a mug in front of Howard and slipped back upstairs. No one, not even Howard, even noticed he was there.

--

"Where were you today Vince? I was on fire. I sold fifteen jazz LP's and four jazz pencil cases and one girl gave me a hundred euros to kiss her."

"Oh."

"So I'm keeping that as a tip."

"What? Like a kiss whore?"

"No, no. Like someone with money. I could reassemble stationary village with that."

"Reassemble?"

"It was destroyed by the mêlée of people all trying to get to me first. They're all after a bit of Moon loving. Found out how good I was last night and now, they can't get enough of me."

"Yeah, I've been meaning to talk to you about that."

"Well," Howard looked at his watch, "Hurry up. I've got a date."

"What?"

"Yeah, with a pretty young lady named…" he checked the back of his hand "Michelle."

"I thought you said that when you crossed the physical boundary it would be forever."

"I don't think I said that." scoffed Howard, "I'm the Moon machine. No woman, or man, is free from my potent, powerful love making. You've gotta spread this kind of gift around Vince."

"You weren't that good." muttered Vince angrily.

"What was that Vince?"

"I said, I've had better."

"Oh." Howard looked crestfallen and a little… was that sympathy in his beady, shifty eyes? That better not be sympathy, Vince thought. But it was. "Oh Vince. Jealousy's a horrible thing."

"Jealous of you! Don't make me laugh. You're a freak, a big, jazzy freak! She'll see straight through you. What time you going out?"

"8.00pm. Dinner and a movie, then, back to hers." Howard said, doing some kind of dance so he wiggling about like some kind of disgusting, brown jelly.

"You're going out at eight? Okay, I bet a tenner that you'll be home by 9.30. You'll have dinner and suddenly she gets a phone call. Oh no. Her friend has been taken ill and she just has to rush off."

"Has that happened to you?"

Vince shook his head furiously but his blushing cheeks gave him away.

"Well, I'm not you Vince. No ones turned the Moon machine away yet."

"Because it's only been me." Vince cried.

"Oh Vince." Howard ruffled his hair. "Don't wait up, eh?" He winked and left. Vince felt angry. This wasn't the way things were supposed to be. Last night was supposed to have brought them together, not pushed them apart. And even if it hadn't worked quite like, that in didn't change the fact that, he, Vince, was the one who went out and Howard was the one who was supposed to mope around indoors, watching television and listening to music. He threw the remote angrily and went to get ready. He wasn't the kind of guy to stay cooped up inside just because his heart was broken.

--

Vince was hammered. He drank and drank and drank. He'd played the games, he'd flirted and he'd danced. He'd had his pick of anyone in the room but he'd gone home empty handed. He'd climbed into bed and curled up onto his side just staring at Howard's empty bed. Imagining where his friend was now made him feel sick and he just watched the empty bed until his eyes drooped shut and he dreamt of Howard holding him and caressing him.

When Vince woke in the morning, Howard was in his bed. He was fully clothed and the room stank of alcohol but there was a smile on Howard's face that Vince recognised as an I-got-laid-last-night smile. Vince scowled and eyed the glass of water on Howard's bedside table. Without really thinking, he picked it up and threw it over his friend. Howard woke with a gasp.

"Morning." Vince said sweetly.

"Huh? Wha? G'mernin."

"Pardon?" Vince asked in the same sickly sweet tone.

"Nothing. What time is it?"

"Just gone nine o'clock."

"So why are you waking me up?"

"Because you need to open the shop."

Howard groaned loudly. "Can't you do it. It was a big night last night, if you know what I mean."

Vince cocked an eyebrow disbelievingly. "Whatever. I reckon you passed out by a bin like a common tramp. You stink."

"That'll be the manly odours of a deeply sexual man, Vince. That girl last night, she couldn't get enough of the old Moon magic."

"Whatever. Get a shower and hurry down to the shop."

"Ah, ah, ah" Howard said as he pushed himself up into a sitting position. "Remember our little wager. I think you owe me ten euros."

Vince scowled but he fished a tenner from his money box and threw it at Howard.

"Happy?"

"Ecstatic." Howard grinned, pocketing the money proudly and then groaning as he tried to get up. "Oh Vince. You couldn't make me a resolve, could you?"

"No. Do it yourself!"

--

This started to become a regular occurrence. They'd both go out, Howard would pull, Vince wouldn't. It wasn't through want of options, just none of them were ever good enough. Whereas all Howard's standards and long chats about finding the one and how relationships were crucial had gone out of the window. Now, he was just sleeping with anything he found. Day in, day out, they go to separate clubs and only Vince would return home.

Then, one night, Vince got too drunk to care. He put on the beer goggles and forgot about Howard. He danced all night and drank more and more until he was leaning heavily against the man he was going home with. He could hardly focus on this man's face. He thought he had long hair and he seemed to be wearing some very, very high shoes - that, or he was tall. Vince gave the taxi driver the address and fell heavily against this man, kissing him furiously. He giggled a bit as he whispered into the man's ear,

"I think I'm a little bit drunk."

"Mmm." The man agreed as Vince dived back in and kissed him harder.

"D'you know why I'm drunk?"

"Because you drank too much?"

"No, because I want to forget someone."

"Who?"

"Howard."

"Oh?"

"Because he's become a man whore."

"Oh?"

"And he doesn't seem to care that I love him. Loved him. Not anymore. I hate him now."

"Right."

"You're sexy." And Vince stroked the mans hair and leant in to capture the strangers lips again.

Vince flopped, boneless, onto his bed. He was in no fit state to do anything but that didn't stop him holding his arms out to the stranger in his room and shouting lewd commands at him.

"Just sleep, little man." the stranger said. "Just sleep."