Edd's head was pounding the next morning with a wretched hangover. With a groan, shifted around in his bed while cursing his luck and swearing to himself that he would never drink again. Rolling over, he realized suddenly that he was actually in Matthew's bed again and that he was nearly naked from the waist down to boot.
He shook Matthew who was sound asleep beside him; "Matthew? Matthew, wake up…"
"Mmm, what do you want this early in the morning, Princess?" Matthew groaned, stretching and cracking a few bones in his knees and back.
Edd then asked the question on his mind; "Did we do anything last night?"
"No, we were both too fucked up to do anything," Matthew answered honestly.
The relieved sigh Edd released morphed into a yawn before changing again to a gasp as he was hit with the dawning realization of what happened the night before.
"What am I going to do?" he mumbled, holding his head, "I can't face anyone at that party…What am I going to tell them? More importantly, what if they tell Eddy?"
"Relax, sweetheart. You can just tell them you were too drunk to realize what you were doing. The only ones who would know is you, me, and possibly Seth, but I doubt he'll say anything."
Matthew paused as he was suddenly hit with an eerie sense of deja vu, although he couldn't place where that feeling was coming from.
"I would hate to keep lying to everyone," Edd lamented, not caring at all that he was spilling his guts out in front of Matthew, "but…at the same time, I wouldn't be able to face anyone if the truth suddenly came out." He buried his face in his hands. "Oh dear…I've never been faced with such a moral dilemma in my life!"
Matthew shrugged; "It's not on you to have any guilt. It's everyone else who has a problem."
Hoping to lighten the situation and pick up where they left off last night, Matthew then reached over to pick up something off the floor.
With an impish grin, he revealed a leather collar and a metal leash connected to it: "Do you trust me?"
Edd grimaced at the collar and leash; "I'm not a dog."
"Seriously, was Pipsqueak that vanilla?" Matthew grin faded as he was forced to explain, "It's just a kinky sexual thing. It has nothing to do with dogs. A lot of sexually active couples use them, y'know. If I had to guess, it's probably how Seth ended up with that ankle-biter and another on the way. It had to have been hot to have made him forget to pull out of the bitch — twice."
Matthew then felt the hair on his neck stand up on end, that awful deja vu returning. What the hell? What was this feeling of dread that suddenly came up upon him?
"I find it disturbing how much thought you put into your friends sex lives," Edd commented dryly.
Matthew huffed, effortlessly returning to the moment; "Whatever, it's not like I haven't seen the man in action before. Are we going to do this or not?"
"I'd rather not…" Edd replied, rubbing his head, "I've a terrible headache and something as physically taxing as that might be a bit too much for me right now."
"Seriously?" Matthew scoffed, "Quit bein' a little bitch. Sex is always the best medicine."
"I'd rather have real medicine," Edd retorted.
Matthew groaned; "Fine. If I get you some pain meds after, will you play along?"
"Are you just going to continue pestering me until I do?" Edd asked.
Matthew smirked back; "What do you think?"
"Alright, fine," Edd relented, "but if it's too weird and I tell you to stop, I expect you to do so. Understand?"
"Fair enough."
With that, Matthew unbuckled the collar. Edd could see the dark pools of Matthew's eyes light up with unrestrained lust as he fitted the leather strap around Edd's neck. Edd was just about to voice the second thoughts he was feeling when Matthew spoke again.
"Fits like a glove. You have any idea how sexy you look in that?"
With a flick of his wrist, the chain grew taut and Edd was yanked closer to him with a gasp. Their faces were just barely touching. Matthew violently kissed Edd as if the twenty year old's saliva was a sweet, tangy glass of wine.
He tugged his boxers down as he made out with Edd, leaving him as naked as the day he came into the world, and coaxed Edd's hand down to touch his dick. Once Edd felt that familiar semi-hard flesh in his hand, he began tugging Matthew to full erection.
Matthew yanked Edd's tie off, eliciting a gasp from his paramour. He then pulled off the red tuxedo jacket and tossed it onto his messy floor. Next came Edd's white dress shirt, which Matthew unbuttoned rather hastily before it too joined the jacket and tie on the floor.
Last came Edd's briefs, which were rather easy to get off with Matthew having done so numerous times in the past. Once they were both naked, Matthew didn't waste a second getting some friction between them both. Matthew grabbed both of their erections and stroked his and Edd's cocks together. Edd twisted his body around in a sensual dance as he was coaxed to orgasm much too quickly for his liking.
Matthew didn't seem to mind as he used Edd's ejaculate as lubrication for what they were about to do next. He flipped Edd onto his stomach and coaxed him to bend his back by tugging on the leash.
He then wasted no time in penetrating Edd, causing him to let out a fervent moan. Matthew, of course, was enjoying the pleasure he'd been denied last night of Edd's ass gripping his dick in a sinful vice. Once he started to move, he let out a contented moan like a starving cat who'd finally been given some cream.
Matthew grasped the chain tightly as he pounded into Edd with his fat cock. Edd squealed as he was penetrated repeatedly, but that only fueled Matthew's monstrous lust.
"Oh - Oh, please, Matthew," Edd panted as he attempted to keep up with Matthew's pace, "I want you!"
To pull Edd closer, Matthew tugged on the leash again, fucking Edd as the slender back pressed flush against his hairy torso. Matthew couldn't last long, especially not with the way Edd was moaning so virginally — never mind that Matthew took that away four years ago.
Matthew's thoughts on that one particular event sent him into sensational overdrive and he spilled his seed inside of Edd. As he and Edd laid there, breathless and spent, however something kept gnawing at his brain, telling him that there was something terribly wrong and that this bliss fleeting in light of something more important.
The perturbed thoughts forced Matthew to rise from the bed and immediately start pulling on his clothes.
Edd shot him a strange look; "Where are you going? Is something wrong? Did…I do something wrong?"
"Oh, it's not you, sweetheart," Matthew replied, letting the words tumble out, unrestrained, "You were amazing. I just have to go somewhere for a little bit. I gotta bad feeling about something."
"Okay…?" Edd pouted, "Are you going to get me my medicine?"
"I gotta go now," Matthew shook his head, "I'm sure you'll be fine."
Edd groaned; "Typical…" With a sigh, he returned to cuddling with Matthew's pillow, leaving the collar and leash on. "See you later then."
Matthew fought the urge to take him again. He had to trust his gut feeling on this. Whatever it was.
ABABABABA
Matthew led Lucas into the forest near Park 'N Flush, having come to the conclusion that this was the place to be for some reason. Lucas was indulging himself on a box of doughnuts, drawing Matthew to side-eye the diabetic as if Lucas had grown a separate head.
"Hey, give me one of those doughnuts," Matthew ordered, looking around in the forest as he held his hand out to receive one.
"Excuse you, you uncultured fuckwit," Lucas snapped back, "They're not just doughnuts, they're Pączkis." Matthew gave him a blank look in return which led to Lucas continuing. "They're Polish doughnuts. They're a bit out-of-season, but I was able to bribe one of the bakers in the European bakery in town to make them for me. I paid twenty bucks for a dozen of them."
"Twenty bucks for a box of doughnuts?! Are you serious?! What a fuckin' ripoff!" Matthew shook his head and then reached to grab a Pączki. "But seriously, give me one."
Lucas moved the box away from him; "Get your own, asswipe!"
"Seriously? You're planning on eating all of those doughnuts?" Matthew asked.
Lucas helped himself to another one, eating it greedily. After finishing it, he responded. "They're Pączkis and what's it to you?"
"What's it to me?" Matthew gave Lucas a look of bewilderment before he snatched the doughnuts away, "You are a fucking diabetic and you are eating sweets. Should I remind you of what would happen to you if you continued to eat that shit?" He began to list the complications on his fingers. "You could lose a goddamn foot. You could go fucking blind. You could get kidney failure. You could end up in the hospital again with a 400 blood sugar level. But most importantly," Matthew stressed this part of the rant in particular. "You ain't fucking dying on me until I get my machine and my fucking revenge."
"Alright, I get the point," Lucas caved as they reached a clearing in the middle of the forest. He paused, looking around. "I know this place…Yeah! This is where you forced me to urinate on the ground when we were kids to see if my urine would attract ants, because you heard that's a thing that happens with a diabetic."
"That aint the only thing that happened here," Matthew informed him grimly as something on the ground caught his eye. "Now, shut the hell up, would ya?"
Matthew set down the box of Pączkis before approaching the piece of folded paper and picking it up. He took a moment to read it, after which he balled his fist around the paper, wrinkling it in the process. He was pissed. So pissed, he decided not to comment on Lucas picking up the box of Pączkis again.
"Stay behind me. That's an order!" Matthew barked.
Retracing the same steps he took so long ago, he fought back against the dread with sheer determination to stop this. He hoped he was wrong. A hope that fell short as he finally found what he was looking for.
In the exact spot where Roy had laid dead from a gunshot wound so long ago, Seth stood facing the trees. All Matthew could see was the back of his head and the gun in his hand.
Then Seth turned to face him, the blankest look on his face. Matthew didn't want to admit to himself, but it kinda scared him. He was a bit relieved to note that Seth's clothes were at least clean and free of blood. Then Seth spoke in a voice so monotone and numb that it had sent shivers down his spine.
"You can still see the hole in the tree where Uncle Roy shot himself."
"How much have you had to drink, Seth?" Matthew asked, unwavering. "Give me that fuckin' gun. I know what you're doin' — even before I read your goddamn note."
"And what is it you think you know?" Seth asked, his tone becoming a touch more spiteful.
"As if it aint obvious enough by the gun?" Matthew scoffed, "You're planning on killing yourself. You were gonna have Hien and the rest of your family take care of Nancy, your mom, Raven, and the kid on the way. And, I gotta say, that's fucking bullshit, Seth. Not to mention, you're tryin' to leave me alone with Lucas. Fuck you, you selfish piece of shit!"
"Selfish? I'm selfish?" Seth asked, miffed at what came out of Matthew's lips. "Do you have any idea what I'm dealing with?! There's just so much shit on my plate now between that fucker Ted and not knowing how the fuck I'm going to pay for two children. Then I gotta worry about how I'm gonna keep my fuckin' business afloat." His anger slowly ebbs to despair, "I'm just…a real piece of shit and I don't even know if my family would be better off without me."
Where to begin to unload on all of Seth's self-pity crap? Matthew started off with the obvious.
"First of all, fuck you! You aint turning your back on that damn promise you made to me. Not you and not Lucas." Before tackling the next issue, Matthew scoffed. "As for your business n' shit, I doubt you're doing that badly. Besides what would Nancy do to provide for your kids without your checks coming in? Start stripping again? Being the 'feminist trophy wife' to someone who treats her like crap?"
"I'm barely keeping afloat with raising one kid, now I've gotta worry about two of them," Seth argued. "What kind of dad would I be if I can't manage to take care of my kids?"
Matthew grimaced. "How the hell should I know? All I know is that you're not killing yourself while I'm around. I'm putting a stop to this right the fuck now."
Defiantly, Seth lifted up the gun, pointing it at his head. Before he could pull the trigger, though, Matthew lunged forward and knocked him to the ground. Grabbing Seth's arm, he pulled it back, almost popping his elbow out of place as the gun was forced from his grip, and pressed his foot against Seth's spine.
"I told you before motherfucker," Matthew spat, "your pathetic life is mine and I've decided that you aren't killing yourself. Period."
Ignoring Seth's whimpering, Matthew then reached into Seth's pocket and retrieved his cellphone. It's on silent and Seth had amassed 25 missed calls. Matthew concluded then that Seth had been away from his house since dawn. Knowing all too well who those calls were from, Matthew played the voicemail on Seth's phone:
"'Seth? Seth, honey, answer your phone. It's Nancy.'" The voicemail played. "'It's not like you to take off without telling me where you're going…Please, I'm worried about you…I'm trying not to freak out Raven, but I really need you to pick up!…Please just…come home or call me and tell me where you are. Please!'"
After listening to the messages for a moment, Seth began struggling under Matthew's weight.
"Let me see my phone," he sobbed, his voice small and meek. He repeated it after Matthew refused, his sneaker still in Seth's back. "Let me talk to my wife, damn it!"
"Fine, fine," Matthew relented, keeping Seth under his foot, "but you're telling your wife that you're gonna be stuck in Luca's panic room until we decide that you're sane again."
"Seriously?" Lucas groaned, as Matthew finally allowed Seth to get up, "Shouldn't we get him to a professional? My panic room isn't suited to treat suicidal friends."
"With his health insurance plan? Yeah right," Matthew scoffed back, "Aint now way in hell he can afford a trip to the nuthouse and his wife's prenatal care on top of it. Like it or not, we're the best he has right now." Matthew shot Seth a look when he hesitated to dial Nancy's number. "What are you looking at? Call up your damn wife."
"Right…" Seth sighed, pressing the call button and letting the phone ring.
"Hello, Seth? Is that you?" Nancy's apprehensive voice came in from the other end almost immediately, indicating she'd been waiting impatiently by the phone.
Seth bawled into the receiver after hearing her voice, unable to hold it back; "Yeah, baby, it's me."
"Oh god, what's wrong?" Nancy asked. "Where are you?!"
Seth sniffled and tried to explain the issue to Nancy without becoming hysterical; "I fucked up, baby."
"What do you mean you 'fucked up?'" Nancy lightly pressed, her tone weary, "Are you using again? Is…Is there someone else? C'mon Seth, I deserve to know what's going on with you!"
"I'm not using heroin and I'm not cheating on you," Seth mumbled, "I…I tried…to commit suicide using my uncle's old gun. And…if my friends hadn't shown up…I might have done it…"
Nancy was quiet for a moment, possibly trying to mull things over before speaking again, her voice hoarse and fighting to understand.
"Why Seth?" she wept, "I thought things were going fine…The family we've built together is growing we…we have a decent house. You're doing what you love to do! What…What could possibly be wrong for you to want to do this?"
Seth choked a bit on his words; "I'm scared, babe…The money…I…I don't feel like I can provide for my family."
"Seth, honey," he heard a soft sigh from her as she spoke as calmly as she could, "You should've told me. You can talk to me — you know you can. We can work this out. I can work part time — doing something other than returning to stripping, of course. I'll apply wherever I can. We can do this, but I need you here." She paused. "Raven needs you here. We'll figure this out, Seth. I promise."
Choking back more sobs, Seth nodded, ignoring the fact that she can't see him.
She then asked; "Are you coming home soon?"
"No…" Seth replied, "They're taking me…" He was overcome by another wave of sobs that refused to stay down.
"Where are they taking you?" Nancy asked, "Wherever it is, I'll be there for you. I'll have to wait until Raven gets up — you know how cranky she gets if someone tries to wake her up on the weekend."
"Yeah," Seth replied with a weak laugh, "she can be a little demon child if someone disturbs her weekend slumber." After another deep breath, he licked his lips. "They're gonna take me to Lucas' panic room til I come to my senses."
"Okay, I'll be there," Nancy swore, unwilling to hang up the phone, "I'll see you soon. I love you."
"I love you too," Seth managed before the phone cut out.
Once Seth lowered the phone, Matthew instructed Lucas to grab one of his hands while he grabbed the other to make sure Seth couldn't slip away.
"You know, you're kind of lucky that we bothered to save your ass," Lucas commented smugly, "I've been on plenty of gore sites and it's not a pretty sight considering how much blood is drained from the body from gunshots. In fact, there was one celebrity stalker suicide video I've seen that —"
"Read the goddamn room, Lucas!" Matthew growled, "Now aint the time for that bullshit."
Thankfully, they managed to get Seth out of the forest without incident and wordlessly loaded him into the Jeep. All the while, Matthew found himself reliving pieces of the memory of Roy's suicide. As soon as he climbed into the jeep, though, he silently cursed Seth. Not only was he forced to think about that god-awful time in his life, but this stunt had taken precious time away from his princess. Now he'll have to find some way of fulfilling his constant needs and tend to Seth at the same time.
A/N: Another thanks to my beta reader Scammychan for helping me out and adding in the bit where Edd agrees to have sex with Matthew in exchange for pain meds.
