Chapter 05

"Where's Tucker?" Sam asked as she sat across from Danny in the booth at the small diner on campus.

"I'm not sure how he'll react to what I need to talk to you about," Danny said, staring into his drink like it was more fascinating than Sam. "I wouldn't want him to spread this around."

"Wow! This must be serious," Sam said in surprise. She leaned forward on the table between them. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

Danny sighed and raised his gaze to Sam. She looks as beautiful as always, Danny thought with a grim smile. No, we tried already. We can't be anything more than friends. Plus, she's happy with Tom. Danny gave a slight shake of his head of his head to rid him of past feelings.

"Last night, I went on a date with Miranda from my history class," Danny started, still trying to figure how to say what he wanted to tell her. The idea of telling Sam had been so much easier in his head.

"Miranda? That red head? But she has a major crush on Dash. Why would she go on a date with you?" Sam raised a brow; confusion plastered on her face.

"Yeah, I unfortunately didn't realize that until after going on the date with her. She planned to use me to get Dash." Danny took a long sip of his drink. "The first time a girl says yes to me since our date, and it was only to use me." Danny released a bitter laugh. "I tried to blame it on Dash. I'm so sick of being the loser, the guy no one likes."

"Danny, what did you really want to talk to me about?" Sam questioned, placing a hand over Danny's hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"I," Danny mumbled, staring at their hands. Hesitantly, he withdrew his hand. "I was wondering if you would go to a gay club with me." He had done a little researching and discovered there was a pretty well known club not too far off campus.

"Did you just say gay club?" Sam's brow knitted, and she wondered if Danny was feeling okay.

"I would go by myself, but I would probably chicken out." Danny poked at the knife on the table with a fork.

"Why do you want to go to a gay club?" Sam didn't mind the idea of homosexuality, but she never imagined Danny would consider it.

"Well, um," Danny scratched the back of his neck. "After the date, Dash and I got to talking about some things. And Dash suggested that maybe I should consider getting a boyfriend since I have such rotten luck with girls."

"Dash put this idea into your head?" Sam stared at her friend with wide eyes when Danny nodded. "I never would have thought Dash was so open-minded."

"Yeah, I was shocked too." Danny chuckled. "But since last night, I haven't been able to get the idea out of my mind. So I thought maybe if I checked out a gay club, I might get a better idea of whether or not I'm gay."

"Just because you can't get a girlfriend doesn't make you gay, Danny," Sam told him seriously.

"Well, it's not entirely about the girlfriend thing." A light blush tinged Danny's cheeks. "Right before I left last night, I looked into Dash's eyes and got this weird feeling. It reminded me of something that happened last year." He sighed and raked a hand through his hair. He had never actually told Sam about what happened. "Dash returned my missing yearbook to me. He was standing really close to me, and for a moment, I really thought he would kiss me. The idea scared me, but a small part of me felt really excited about it."

"You're not falling for Dash, are you?" Sam asked with a frown. "He was such a jerk to you in high school."

"He's not that bad anymore," Danny argued. He blushed again when he realized he had just defended Dash. "But that's not the point. It really got me thinking that maybe I am attracted to guys. So will you help a friend out here? I just want to check it out."

"I don't know," Sam said uncertainly. "I don't think that's the best way to find out if you're gay or not."

"Just this once," Danny pleaded. "We don't even have to stay that long. It'll just be a quick visit."

"Fine," Sam replied, sighing in defeat. "But don't expect to find anyone to have an actual relationship with while you're there."

"You're the best, Sam!" Danny grinned as he leaned over to kiss Sam on the cheek. "I'll see you later tonight then." He waved to her before leaving the diner.

Sam shook her head. "This is the last thing I would have expected Danny to ask me to do."

"Are you sure I look okay in this?" Danny asked uncertainly as they walked through the dim hallway to the club's main room. He hated tight clothes, and that was exactly what Sam forced him to wear. The low cut leather pants hugged his hips uncomfortably, and the navy blue shirt felt like a second skin.

"Danny, don't worry so much. You look great," Sam assured him. "The guys will be lining up to ask you out, so don't be shy." She grinned and pushed him into the crowd of dancing men and women. She watched in amusement as Danny struggled not to get trampled on by everyone. She hoped this wasn't as terrible an idea as she believed it was.

Danny weaved his way through the crowd, apologizing when he bumped into people. Maybe Sam is right, he thought before feeling someone grab his hand.

"Are you new here, cutie?" the man asked as he dragged Danny away before he got squashed amongst the crowd.

"Uh, yeah," Danny whispered, but it went unheard because of the loud music.

"Mind if I cut in?" another man asked as he grabbed Danny's arm.

"No way, Brad! I spotted him first," the first man said angrily, yanking Danny back to him.

"Choose another victim, Derek," Brad stated with a glare. He ripped Danny from the other man's grip. Leaving Derek standing alone and angry, Brad dragged Danny toward the other side of the club. "Sorry about that," he apologized. "I'm Brad."

"Da-Danny," he mumbled, unsure of what he should be feeling at the moment. His head spun over the idea of two men fighting over him. He never had women fighting over him, except that one time when he was chosen to be a judge at the beauty pageant.

"Well, Da-Danny," Brad said as he grinned. "I've never seen you here before, so I assume you're new to the whole gay scene." Danny nodded, blushing like mad at the sight of Brad's smile. "Then it's a good thing I came to rescue you. Derek's a bad choice for a newbie. He would just use you for a quick lay, and he wouldn't be gentle with you. So how old are you, Danny?"

"Nineteen," Danny answered, a little distracted by Brad's arms wrapping around him.

"You're still pretty young then." Brad placed his hands on Danny's hips, making them sway a little to the music. "I turn twenty-eight next week."

Danny blinked wide eyes. He was getting hit on by a man nearly a decade older than he.

"I see you're shocked. Didn't think someone so much older than you would find you attractive?"

"I haven't had many good experiences in the romance department," Danny explained with a weak smile. "I've been shot down by a lot of girls."

"Well, I think you're very attractive," Brad whispered into Danny's ear.

Danny blushed as Brad's breath washed over his ear. When their eyes met, Danny felt his heart beat faster. It was different than when he caught Dash's gaze the other night. Brad leaned closer. Their lips barely brushed together before Danny turned his head away.

"But I guess you don't find me to be the same," Brad mumbled, sounding disappointed.

"No, that's not it. You are really attractive," Danny assured the older man.

"Am I moving too fast for you then?"

"No," Danny replied as his brow knitted in confusion.

"You have another guy in mind?" Brad asked as he stroked Danny's cheek.

"I'm just not used to this, I guess," Danny answered with a shrug. For some reason, he felt guilty about being in this situation.

Brad tried again, and this time landed a kiss on Danny's lips. Danny's eyes slipped shut as he returned the kiss. But the guilt kept nagging at him.

"Danny, it's getting late," Sam told her friend when she finally found him. Danny looked at her from his seat in one of the booths. He glanced at his watch, eyes going wide when he saw the time.

"I gotta go, Brad," Danny said, turning toward the man who he sat with at the booth.

"So soon?" Brad questioned with a frown.

"I have class in five hours, and I really need to sleep," Danny told him as a pout formed on his face. He was having fun talking with Brad with a few kisses here and there.

"I understand. Stop by the club again sometime," Brad said. He pulled Danny into a kiss before letting him leave. Danny waved, a little giddy from all the kisses, while Sam dragged him away. They left the club, and Danny sighed as a refreshing burst of cool night air hit him.

"So are you?" Sam inquired, nudging Danny in the ribs, as they walked back to the university.

"You're not going to hate me, are you?" Danny asked nervously.

"Danny, I just spent five hours fending off women while you had a make out session with a guy who looked like he was ten years older than you. Do I look like I hate you? So you are then?"

"Yeah, I think I am," Danny answered, blushing as he finally admitted the truth.

Sam smiled happily for her friend before it turned into a frown. "So are you going to see Brad again?"

"I don't think so." Danny shrugged. "I mean, yeah, we had a great time, great kisser, but he's twenty-eight. I know age shouldn't make that much of a difference, but he kept talking about stuff I don't know anything about. It kind of made me feel stupid. I think I want to find someone closer to my age, someone who has more things in common with me, not just a physical attraction."

"Good for you, Danny," Sam said as she patted him on the back. "I'm glad to see you're over the Paulina complex."

"Ha ha, very funny, Sam," Danny muttered but still laughed. "Thanks for coming with me though."

"Anything for my friends. I'll see you later." They parted ways, heading in opposite directions toward their dorms.

When he got back to his dorm room, Danny collapsed onto his bed. He buried his face into his pillow with a silly smile plastered on his face. It felt like a weight had been lifted now that he discovered the real reason he couldn't get a girlfriend.

Wrapped up in his own happy little world, Danny didn't realize his entrance had woken up his dorm mate. Dash stared at the back of Danny's head with a frown set on his face. He hadn't seen Danny all day, which had worried him, and then Danny didn't return until four in the morning. In two weeks, school would end for the year, and they would no longer be dorm mates. With a miserable sigh, Dash rolled over and went back to sleep.