I like it - I'm not gonna crack
I miss you - I'm not gonna crack
I love you - I'm not gonna crack
I killed you - I'm not gonna crack
-Nirvana, "Lithium"
***
Portman
I hate alarms! I really hate them, especially when they wake me up, like the one on the radio next to my bed. I'm not exactly the morning type, and it's 6 AM. Usually, Fulton wakes up almost always a half hour before me, so that he could wake me up in his way, usually by attacking me with kisses or water or even a good spanking. Otherwise, I'd doze off to Sleepyland, not giving a care about the day. I have to get up, though: Both of us have a plane to Calgary to catch at nine. It's just that I don't have the forces to do it.
Oh, Fulton, where the hell are you?
I smash the alarm button with the palm of my hand, leaving the radio on to my favorite morning talk show. Surely enough, they were talking about our game with the Flames early tomorrow, and they were going about their little analysis, which was nothing more than a bunch of retarded sayings about how we'll beat their asses and how everyone else should watch out 'cause there's a Bash about, or some stupid shit like that.
It was a long night last night, now that I remember it. After Fulton's little bitchslap, I stayed with Amber at that Japanese restaurant. It was pretty cool to see the waitresses to duke it out in the kitchen while we were eating sushi or whatever. While we were eating, I told her about what happened with me and Fulton. To that, she asked, "Portman, why do you keep hanging around with him, if he treats you like that?"
I thought about that for a minute, not believing that I actually did. "Because we're friends, and he puts up a lot of my crap, just as I put up with his."
"Why?"
"Give him a break, will you? He saved my life today."
After telling her the details, Amber was amused, but not totally impressed with my ode to Fulton. "It's okay, I guess, but I think the guy has issues."
"What issues? He's okay!"
Now really annoyed, Amber went, "Then why did he walk off like that?"
I gave a big sigh of cluelessness as I went, "I don't know. He didn't tell me." Then again, of course I knew what was wrong, if it was wrong at all, but she'd have a field day if she knew.
"Well, your best friend obviously has issues! Oh wait," she lightens up as she fixes her makeup, "I saw him just before he left. He had this look as though he was jealous. That must be it! He's jealous."
Now I was getting annoyed. "And who would he be jealous of?"
"You, duh! You know what my friends say about the guy?" Note that she didn't lower her tone while she was saying this. "The guy has some major 'sex problems', and he's jealous of you because you're getting married with me because you obviously don't have 'sex problems'!"
My jaw dropped. With that kind of logic, she should stay away from math, like I did at school. I told her to just drop it and order something. I dropped her off later that night in my red hot Porsche.
Now that I remember that, I kinda wondered why I am hanging around with her. Yeah, she was pretty and all, but I don't know. Maybe Fulton's right. Maybe I'm rushing it a little. Maybe I should've been a little more choosy about who'd I marry.
No, it's something else, I know it.
Just then, on the radio, the DJ takes this phone call from some guy. Instantly, I recognize the voice as it gives the code name, "Reed." Then, as the DJ asks for his dedication, "Reed" goes, "Uhm, I want to dedicate it to my best friend. He knows who he is, and I know he's trying to go back to sleep now. I love you; you're the coolest, and I'm sorry about last night." Then the voice disappears, and the song plays. It was "Lithium", by Nirvana.
When the song started, my head began to bop. Bit by bit, I was waking up, and when Cobain hit the chorus, my feet were already on the floor. I get up to play my famous air guitar, following all the riffs and chords, banging my head into the air, singing to every lyric, and giving this happy grin all the way to the shower. It was the perfect way to start the day. Fulton knows how to get me up out of bed with a smile on my face.
As I'm in the shower, singing to a song that was long over, I realized that all the things I wanted in a friend were also the things I wanted in my... wife?
Husband?
Then it hit me: I've been totally okay about me and Fulton being boyfriends, but the thought of marrying him, if that was even possible, or at least committing my entire life to him, scared me. I mean, you wouldn't be totally committed to him, not legally anyway, so you wouldn't have to mess around with divorces and all that shit, but girls and guys marry each other all the time and look at what happens. But if I loved him and really mean it, then the idea of two guys committing to each other for all their lives might work. It's too much of a trip. What would people think?
Then, I think, why the fuck do I care what people think? I'm Dean Portman, a Bash Brother, and I can do whatever the fuck I want! Maybe the better question was why I'm suddenly giving a fuck about what people think.
I mean, if I could find a girl who was just like Fulton Reed, I'd marry her in a hot second, because to me Fulton has it all. He's hot and cute, but he never wants to admit it. When I waked up every morning, I just had to look towards that pudgy round face and small but sure smile of his to find my reason to get out of bed, and when we made love in the evening, his touch would excite every fiber of my body and send me to a world of pleasure and passion. He loved watching football in bed with me, always went to NASCAR races with me, and jumped in the fight when I was down for me. He does a lot of things with me. Plus, he was patient, romantic, smart (though he never wants to admit it), and he has this humor of sherry, extra-dry. When something bad is afoot, he always had some smartass thing to say. But above everything else, Fulton is loyal, the kind of guy who'd take a bullet for you, just because he wants you to live, probably as opposed to wanting himself to live. He'd die for me. He proved it to me yesterday! Oh crap, I didn't even thank him for it. Man, I'm suck a jackass! No wonder he's pissed at me!
Man, I missed it all, so I jump out of the shower and make the phone call.
"Dude, please come down. We need to talk." I couldn't contain my excitement.
"I want to talk to you, too." He sounded a little desperate.
"Please haul your ass down here, 'cause I want to tell you something, too. It's super important!"
So he hangs up, and a few minutes later, with the key that I gave him, he opens the door to my apartment. As I could tell, he was already ready to go to the airport, wearing his camouflage coat, that scarf of his, his cut-off black gloves, the boots, the bandana, the black undershirt sporting some band's name, the whole bit. As for me, I'm wearing nothing at all. Fulton closes the door behind him and sees my nakedness. A big grin grows across his face.
"Mr. Portman, I think you're trying to seduce me."
We both walk towards each other and hold our hands.
"Dude, I'm so sorry about last night." Fulton goes.
"Dude, I'm so sorry about everything else." I start kissing him on the cheek. I couldn't contain myself. Just the sight of him in that get-up gives me a hard-on, and with it, I could tell he was getting one too. He starts kissing me back, and our lips were pressed against each other once again after five long months.
As I undressed my Bash Bro, I go, "Did you know that you're one helluva great kisser?"
"I always forget. That's why I need you to remind me."
Whoa! With that, he moves his lips to my shoulder. That did it. Once he's there, my hormones unleash with rage and obsession. I don't even hesitate to pull him towards my bed. I don't care if we missed our flight. This was our moment!
Fulton
And with those big yelps we gave out throughout that one passionate hour of wine and roses, it was pretty clear that we missed each other rather badly!
***
Author's Note: Sorry for such a short chapter. I hope this come-together wasn't too fast for your tastes. Hopefully, however, you're keeping up with the suggested songs as well. They're really good, and they give a wonderful mood to each chapter. Thanks for reading, and more will be on the way, I promise!