Chapter 18
"Is he really called Wizard?" Arthur asked, after my old friend had left us and gone back to his cab.
"No, his name's Martin."
"So, why do you call him Wizard?"
"Everybody does. He sees a lot and knows a lot. He's always got an answer for everything."
"Are you worried about him seeing you with me?"
"He never made any secret of what he thought about people like us."
"Oh." Arthur shrugged. "I'm used to that. I thought you might be worried he'd seen me on the TV. Maybe he saw me kill Murray."
"That, too." What would Wizard think of me hanging out with a murderer, I wondered? He'd probably be less concerned about that than me "turning gay." He knew I'd killed Sport and those other guys, and he'd said pretty much the same as everybody else—that I was a hero for helping Iris.
"I'm sorry, Travis. Maybe we shouldn't go out together like this. I don't want to make things difficult for you."
I pulled myself together. I didn't want to hurt Arthur, no matter what Wizard or anyone else thought. "No, I'm sorry. I was just unnerved when he turned up, that's all. I'm with you, okay? If he finds out, then he finds out. I'll deal with it. I'm not gonna hide you away."
"Shall we go home?" Arthur finished the last of his coffee and lit two more cigarettes.
I took one and pushed my chair back. "Let's go."
We walked home, smoking and not talking. I got lost in my own head, wondering if it would really matter that much if Wizard found out I was involved with Arthur. It wasn't as if we spent any time together anymore. We didn't work together or hang out. The greater concern was if he realised Arthur was the Arthur from the Murray Franklin show. He was wearing the same clothes, apart from the waistcoat. The face paint had disguised him well enough, but Wizard wasn't stupid. Arthur's laugh was distinctive, and he'd probably remember the sound of it from the TV show.
"You're thinking so loud I can hear it," Arthur said as we walked into the apartment.
"Sorry." I shook myself and pushed my thoughts aside. There wasn't anything I could do about it now. I'd deal with it if Wizard spoke to me again and said anything, whether it was about who Arthur was or what I was doing with him. I opened up my bottle of anti-depressants and swallowed a couple. Arthur did the same, then took his anti-psychotics, too.
I leaned against the tiny kitchen counter and stared at him, taking in every little detail. He was nervous now, and fidgety, running his hands through his hair, shuffling his feet, putting his hands in his pockets, taking them back out.
"Arthur, come here." I gave him a reassuring smile and waited for him to approach me—a whole four steps across the room. "Everything's okay."
"Is it? What if he realises it was me and calls the cops?"
"He wouldn't do that." Wizard wasn't a grass. If he had anything to say, he'd say it to me. I was sure of it.
"Okay. That's good."
"Forget about him." I rested my hands on Arthur's waist and tugged him against me. "We haven't finished our date."
"Oh, I, um—" He laughed, bordering on screechy.
"We don't have to do anything. You gonna let me kiss you, though?"
"You didn't seem like you wanted to. You're distracted."
"Not anymore." I cupped his face in my hands and pressed my lips to his. He slid his arms around me, and his lips parted, inviting me in. All thoughts of Wizard and what he might think went out of my head. It was just Arthur and me in our little room, clinging to each other, kissing each other breathless. My dick stiffened and Arthur's hardness pushed against my thigh. I broke the kiss and met his eyes, the irises deep moss green and the pupils wide. "You want to get undressed?"
He didn't answer but smiled as he backed away and shrugged off his suit jacket. I took off my jacket and shirt, not taking my eyes off him as he began unbuttoning his shirt. Colour flooded into his face, and he chuckled awkwardly as he pulled the unfastened shirt free of his trousers.
"Don't be embarrassed," I murmured.
"You're staring."
"I like looking at you."
"I'm not much to look at."
"You are to me. You turn me on, Arthur."
He snorted, his gaze dropping to the front of my pants.
"Yeah, I know, it's pretty obvious." Unconcerned, I shoved my trousers and underwear down, toed off my shoes, and kicked the garments off. My erection slapped against my belly. I bent quickly to take off my socks. When I straightened, Arthur's shirt was off, and he was taking off his trousers. His dick strained against the front of his underwear. While he finished undressing, I unfolded the couch and made up the bed. I got into it and he joined me moments later, pressing his naked body against mine. I rolled him onto his back and kissed him heatedly, plunging in with my tongue. Eventually, I stopped to breathe. He opened his eyes and met mine.
"Can we, um, can we—?" Colour flooded his face.
"What? Tell me what you want."
"You know that other time, when I freaked out?"
"I don't think we should try that again."
"No, I meant—" He pulled my head down and whispered in my ear. "It was okay with your finger."
My dick pulsed at the thought of touching him like that again, but I was still wary. "Are you sure about this?"
"Yes."
I reached for the lube. "Okay, but if you want me to stop, let me know. Don't force yourself to do stuff because you think it'll please me."
"I'm not. I want to." A short laugh escape from him and his brows furrowed. "Ignore that. I'm nervous but I want to try it. Some day I want to be able to have sex."
"Every time we get each other off, we're having sex," I pointed out.
"You know what I mean. Fucking. I want to be able to do it without bad memories spoiling it."
"Okay, Arthur. One step at a time." I squirted lube in my palm and wrapped my hand around his erection. He closed his eyes and groaned. I stroked him lightly, ignoring my own longing to be touched. He squirmed against me and rocked his hips to drive himself harder into my fist. I loosened my grip, and he grunted in frustration. "Don't be so impatient."
"I can't help it. You make me so hard, Travis."
The ache in my groin increased, and I bit back my own groan of impatience. I took my hand off Arthur and grabbed the lube again. "Put your leg over me."
He slid his leg over my hip and shuffled forward until his dick rubbed against me. Slick with lube, it slid against my thigh. He hummed with pleasure and continued gently rolling his hips to give himself some friction.
"You're humping my leg," I murmured. He laughed, soft and amused. With more lube on my fingers, I reached down and ran one fingertip down the crack of his arse. He stilled, his rapid breaths warm on my neck. "Relax. I won't hurt you."
"I know." He slipped his arm around me and held on tight.
My heart thundered in my chest as I touched him, finding the small area of puckered flesh and circling it. Arthur shivered and dug his nails into my back. Then he breathed out, long and slow, and the tenseness went out of him. I pressed in, slowly, carefully, until tight heat gripped my digit to the first knuckle. "Okay?"
"Yes," he whispered. "Keep going."
I slid my finger deeper into him, as far as it would go, then gently pumped it out and in, twisting it a little. The tip brushed a small bump about the size of a walnut, and Arthur gasped. His dick jerked against my leg. "Oh God. Fuck. Do that again."
I nudged the spot again and again. "What is that?"
"My p-prostate." He began humping my leg again, grinding his dick against me as I fucked him with my finger. His grunts and groans of pleasure filled the room. Although I wasn't getting any friction myself, my erection twitched and throbbed with the pleasure I got from seeing and hearing Arthur getting off. He came hard, his fluid spurting over my thigh, and his arse clenching tight around my finger. I waited for him to relax again before I withdrew it.
"Okay?" I whispered.
"Fuck. That was—" He shook his head and giggled. "We have to do that again."
I chuckled. "Any time you want."
He slipped his hand between us and wrapped it around my shaft. "I'm sorry I didn't do anything for you."
"It doesn't matter."
"Can I try something?"
"Like what?" I imagined him sticking his finger up my arse, and involuntarily clenched. Despite the obvious pleasure he'd got from it, it wasn't on my list of things to try anytime soon.
"You'll like it, I promise."
I tensed even more. "Arthur—"
"Just wait and see." He slid out of my arms and pushed the bed covers back. "Close your eyes."
I did as he asked but I held my breath, anxiously awaiting the first touch. After a moment, it came—a warm wet brush across the crown of my dick.
"Shit!" My eyes flew open. He was bent over me, his tongue extended. He grinned, then licked his way down to the root and back up. "Oh fuck, Arthur." I relaxed and closed my eyes again. I'd never had oral sex, either giving or receiving, and it hadn't entered my head that we could do this.
Arthur wrapped his hand around me and began stroking up and down, while he licked and nibbled at the head, and eventually slid it into his mouth. I squirmed and cursed, clenching my fists at my sides. I wanted to push my hips up and drive myself into his throat, but I forced myself to lie still. He started to suck and lick at the same time, while he carried on jerking me frustratingly slowly. My balls pulled up.
"Arthur," I gasped. "You'd better stop. I'm gonna come soon."
He released me for a second. "Stop talking."
"I was just warning you."
He laughed and took me in his mouth again. I closed my eyes and went with it, letting the incredible sensations of being sucked take over. My pulse raced and I felt my orgasm approaching. I expected Arthur to stop then, but as I started to shoot my load, he merely slowed his hand movement and gulped around me, swallowing every drop. When he pulled off and I opened my eyes, he was grinning in a self-satisfied way as if he'd won big on the lottery.
"Jesus. How'd you learn how to do that?"
He sniggered and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I just have a good imagination. I know people do that, so I thought I'd try it. Was it okay?"
"It was fucking amazing." I pulled him down against me and wrapped my arms around him. "You're fucking amazing, Arthur."
"I love you," he said clearly. It wasn't whispered or muffled this time, but firm and determined. "I don't expect you to say it back. But that's how I feel, and I'm not keeping it to myself."
I brushed my lips across his and caught a faint taste of myself. Surprisingly, it didn't seem that bad. "One day I'll say it back," I said. "And I'll mean it."
He hugged me tighter. "You make me happy, Travis. I've never been happy before."
I held him tighter in return. I'd never been a very happy person either, especially not since Vietnam, but Arthur made a difference. I'd saved him from arrest because I was fascinated, and I hadn't expected any of what had happened after that night. Now, I was so glad I'd gone looking for the killer clown. I couldn't imagine my life without him anymore.
