Kyle ran his hands through the inner edge of the vase. His fingers were stained a muddy brown as he smoothed the clay between his nails. A worn tank top hung loosely on his frame like the dying leaves of an autumn tree. A certain unchained melody in the jukebox across the apartment composed itself softly as the lad soothed the dirt into symmetry. His eyes faltered slightly and he could barely hear the footsteps coming from behind him.
"What're ya doin'?"
"Couldn't sleep," he answered to no one in particular.
"Well, I must'a passed out," Jimmy grumbled. He grabbed a stool and set it down behind the boy. "What time is it?"
One hand on the brim of the vase, the other at the bottom, Kyle leaned back and gave the him a quick peck before working his hand through the inside of the vase. Jimmy rubbed his eyes awake, watching him perfect his piece of art, and things felt right. He placed a hand on Kyle's waist, the boy shivering him off, and things felt even better. Kyle watched the top of the vase cautiously fold in on itself until it fell into a heap of wet mush. Jimmy chuckled, running his arms around the boy's waist and pulling him into his chest.
"I hope it wasn't a masterpiece," he breathed.
"Not now," Kyle hummed as he molded the ruined clay into a spinning heap.
"Can I help?"
"Yeah." He took Jimmy's hands and ran them along the swirled mess. "Gotta get 'em wet." The boy ran his clay coated fingers along the back of Jimmy's hands, camouflaging them with the twisting dirt. Shivers trickled down his spine like rain down a car window as Kyle whispered, "Just let the clay slide between your fingers." The melody pulsed softly between their palms as Jimmy ran his hands across Kyle's wrists, spreading the clay farther down his pale arms.
Kyle tilted his head back slightly, bobbing it to an ambiguous rhythm. Their hands met again, fingers tangling together at the top of the clay cone. Jimmy's fingers ran up and down the boy's thinly coated forearm, the latter's fingers coiling over the pillar of dirt. The vintage melody rang on as Jimmy pressed a warm kiss against the nape of Kyle's neck. The boy whimpered as he molded the clay higher on the pedestal, Jimmy's slick digits spreading chills across his skin. He fought playfully against his love until their hands were locked together and their lips met.
His fingertips were charged with energy as Kyle pressed his palms against Jimmy's chest. They kissed slowly, their lips a dance floor where their tongues could two-step in time with the smooth beats of the jukebox. Kyle placed his arms on either side of Jimmy's neck as they spun around the living room. He ran his fingertips up and down his love's lower back, ran his hands down his love's finely toned chest, placed softly passionate kisses on his love's rugged lips, and they stepped softly in a circle on the hardwood floor beneath their bare feet.
The boy's face was buried in his love's chest. He pulsed thick rhythms into Jimmy's body, his legs wrapped loosely around the latter's waist. Their noses met and Kyle pushed deeper into the lad. His clay-covered hands matted their way through Jimmy's hair, and the pair fell swiftly down onto the corduroy cushions of a crisp loveseat. The record spun slowly to a stop as Kyle fit himself deeply in the grooves of his love's body.
The jukebox blinked to sleep as the brittle air of New York carried the unchained melody into perpetuity.