Chapter Six
Chad scanned the faces of the restaurant's customers, all animated in conversation with each other. Towards the back, in a less well lit corner, he caught sight of a recognizable hat, just visible over the top of a menu.
He almost backed out there and then. After all, it would be so much easier to simply turn around and head home. On the point of making that decision, a voice to his left startled him,
"Table for one, sir?"
Finding his voice, he managed to answer,
"No, thank you. I'm meeting someone."
Chad nervously wiped his hands on his jeans and wended his way between the other tables. He reached the back of the restaurant and slid quietly into the empty chair, signaling to a passing waiter,
"A bottle of wine, please. Red."
Hearing his voice, Ryan lowered his menu in surprise. When he didn't comment straight away, Chad shifted uncomfortably in his chair.
"Sorry for just barging in. You said you'd be here and I was passing by, so – "
"I'm really glad you came," Ryan interrupted. "It was getting a little lonely sitting here by myself. Smooth entrance, by the way."
Chad chuckled softly, blushing.
"I wasn't really that confident. It was...Hey, watch it! You're going to set the place on fire!"
The edge of Ryan's menu, left too close to the candle, was smoking as the flame spread. Frantically, both he and Chad tried to smother it with their napkins. The waiter bringing their wine was able to assist them and clear the charred cardboard from the tablecloth. Taking a sip from his glass, Ryan's cheeks became the same colour as his drink.
"I guess I'm not quite as smooth as you."
Chad opened his mouth to respond but no witty comment came to him and suddenly it struck them simultaneously how ridiculous the situation was. The ice, if that had been any, was well and truly broken as they laughed together, wiping the tears from their eyes.
Several customers turned in their seats to stare at the pair of them; two adult men giggling like teenagers, and asked the head waiter to either quieten them down or eject them from the restaurant. Realising that their table was at stake, Chad and Ryan bit down on their bottom lips, desperately trying not to catch each other's eye, and placed their order.
Taking a gulp of wine, Chad tilted back in his chair, observing the man opposite. The blush, which had never disappeared entirely, bloomed once again on Ryan's cheeks as he asked,
"Why are you staring at me like that? Is there something on my face?"
Chad simply smiled and shook his head.
"No, no, there's nothing there. I was just......observing you. Trying to pick out any changes."
"And are there any?"
Again, that quiet smile as he replied,
"You're taller, for one thing, and you've let your hair grow slightly longer. Other than that; no, you look exactly like the Ryan I knew at high school."
Tracing patterns on the tablecloth with his finger, Ryan murmured an answer,
"You appear not to have aged since graduation at all. Still the same energetic, exuberant Chad from the Wildcat team." He looked up quickly. "I meant that like a good thing, though, not as if you – "
Chad raised a hand and silenced him immediately.
"Calm down, man. I took that remark as a compliment, don't worry. Now, if I recall rightly, we were going to meet up to talk, so spill. What's been going on in the world of Ryan Evans recently?"
Grateful that Chad hadn't let him continue with his nervous chatter, Ryan paused, considering where to begin, and then spoke.
"As you know, I've just moved out of my apartment in New York to come back here. I was sharing with Kelsi and......you know how things get........."
Chad nodded encouragingly to show he understood and motioned for Ryan to continue.
"Anyway, it's probably better that way, rather than arguing later and ending our friendship completely. Everything seems different at home, though. My parents don't seem to be talking as much, especially as my father is always away doing business or something, and Sharpay is.......well, to tell the truth, she's broken down."
Whilst Ryan spoke, Chad had been watching the shadow of the flickering candle flame dance across his face, reflecting pinpoints in his eyes. When his voice ceased, Chad blinked, shocked by the news.
"Broken down? Sharpay? I never imagined that happening."
Ryan sighed.
"I don't think anyone did, to be honest, and yet the signs were there. You must have lost contact with her, even though you were both at the U of A, but she only scraped through. After that she went to various auditions; starting from Broadway casting and ending up at TV commercials. I guess she never was a real star, not outside East High anyway, and now she's too vain to find a job and forget about acting."
His brow furrowed as he stared into space, his expression so pensive and melancholy it was all Chad could do not to reach out and cover the pale hand with his own.
Before he had the chance to form suitable words of comfort, their pasta dishes arrived and Ryan snapped back into the present with a grin, laughing as Chad accidentally dripped tomato sauce on the pristine white tablecloth.
The meal passed far too quickly for Chad's liking as they swapped outrageous rumours that had populated the corridors of East High concerning the Wildcat team and the Theatre Club.
In the midst of recounting one particular tale which featured several jocks being found in compromising positions, something which Chad brushed off as slander and refused to admit having had a part in it, Ryan began to cough violently, choking on a piece of bread. Chad reached across to pat him on the back, then realising that it was having not effect whatsoever, pushed his seat back and hurried round to the other side of the table. He grasped Ryan firmly around the chest, trying desperately to remember any scraps of information about first aid, when the bread became dislodged and Ryan breathed more easily.
"Are you alright? You really scared me there."
"Sorry....been laughing too much....." Ryan replied, gasping slightly as he drank a mouthful of water.
Chad released his grip on Ryan's slender, almost fragile chest slowly and sat back down in his own chair. The bill arrived rather quickly and after a semi-serious argument about payment (Ryan was allowed to use his card with the agreement that next time, he was emphatic about there being a 'next time,' Chad would be the one paying), they found themselves standing outside the restaurant in the light, drizzling rain.
"Why don't you," Ryan's voice was hesitant, "come back to mine for a coffee, if you want to continue talking......"
Chad didn't hesitate, putting the possible consequences out of his mind completely, as he interrupted.
"Yes, I'd love to. Please tell me you didn't bring the Vespa, though."
Laughing, Ryan directed him to a silver convertible and with a squeal of brakes, swung out of the car park and towards the Evans' family home.
****
The house was exactly as he would have pictured it: expansive, expensive and rather uninviting. He stood for a while, staring down the length of the lounge and out of the windows looking onto the large garden, as Ryan boiled water for their coffees.
"Here you go, milk and two sugars."
Chad took the cup with a smile and inhaled, his eyes widening as he took a sip.
"What is this stuff?"
"Fairtrade and organic, we only keep the best," Ryan replied smugly, obviously pleased with the reaction. "Come on, we can sit more comfortably upstairs."
Ryan led the way along the elegant hallway, Chad following slowly as he took in the paintings and delicate ornaments. Compared to the home he grew up in, this was a museum, the very image of a model home which did not lend itself to the rough games he had played with Troy and the others. It was no wonder, he thought smiling to himself, that Ryan and Sharpay excelled in Theatre when their childhood home was practically a movie set.
The house itself was eerily quiet, although when he asked, Ryan informed him that both his mother and sister were in despite the only sound being their footsteps muffled by the thick carpet. They passed a door painted a vivid pink, emblazoned with a sign reading, "Sharpay's Room – Always knock before entering," and turned right down a corridor to a plain white door marked, "Ryan."
Chad breathed a sigh of relief at the normality of the room, glad that while everything oozed wealth and expensive taste, it felt lived in rather than preserved to perfection. Ryan cleared his throat anxiously, kicking a pair of balled up socks under the bed, unsure where to put himself. Flicking idly through the large, well ordered CD collection Chad realised that Ryan was waiting anxiously for his verdict and tried to put him at ease.
"It's great, Ry. If I'd known your room was as cool as this, I would have been round here all the time when we were at school together."
Grinning, relieved, Ryan gestured at the shelves filled with DVDs.
"Want to watch a movie or something. I haven't only got musicals, there's......."
His voice tailed off has he tilted his head to read the titles. Selecting a couple he turned, saying,
"How about – "
The words caught in his throat as he stood only inches apart from Chad. A blush crept up from his neck to his cheeks and, averting his gaze, he stuttered slightly,
"If....if you want there's......"
Chad lifted his arms to cup Ryan's face, waiting until the striking blue eyes looked up and caught his gaze. No longer able to resist, Ryan glanced up quickly but before he had a chance to break their eye contact, Chad crushed their mouths together in a bruising kiss. Ryan stood motionless in shock until Chad pushed himself away with what appeared to be great effort. Unable to prevent himself, Ryan inhaled a shallow breath as Chad took a step back, his expression filled with confusion. He moved further away slowly until his legs hit the back of the sofa.
"I.......really don't know what just happened. I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to......"
His voice halted when Ryan walked towards him, reaching a hand forward to brush his lips and trail his fingers through the tightly curled hair. The touch was intoxicating, sending a chill down Chad's spine and any attempts to protest where soon squashed when Ryan pressed their mouths together once more.
Unable to resist, Chad knocked the signature hat onto the floor, wanting to feel the fine, blond hair beneath his fingers and the soft skin at the back of Ryan's neck as he pulled him closer.
Ryan deepened the kiss, his tongue pressing insistently against Chad's teeth until he was granted access to explore fully. He pushed forward, one hand firmly rooted in Chad's hair whilst the other gripped him around the waist, enjoying the feel of each muscle moving under the skin as they both fought for the upper hand. As he slipped a hand beneath the thin cotton tshirt and trailed his fingernails along the warm skin, Chad's knees buckled, tipping them both over the back of the sofa.
They landed in a tangle of foraging hands and bent limbs, not allowing the kiss to break as it become more frantic and rough. Leaning back for just a second to catch his breath, Ryan hastily removed his shirt, showing complete disregard for the expensive fabric as it landed on the floor. Chad followed his example and wrapped his arms around Ryan's lithe torso, his eyes closing as their chests were pressed together, the heat becoming almost unbearable.
Sliding his hands under the waistband of Ryan's trousers, he groaned as the other man began to roll his hips, creating a glorious friction between their growing erections. Ryan trailed kisses along his jawline, searching for the throb of Chad's pulse in his neck. Finding it, he bit down hard, sucking on the skin as Chad's eye flew open. Breathlessly, he whispered,
"I'll be right back.......Need to fetch things......."
Chad allowed him to clamber off the sofa, not entirely sure what had agreed to. Painfully hard, he awaited Ryan's return impatiently, trying desperately to force the feelings of guilt somewhere in his stomach out of mind. It was wrong; completely and utterly wrong what they were doing and he entertained a brief idea of making a hasty exit, but Ryan soon reappeared and the moral voice of his conscience became distorted and easier to ignore.
Ryan sat on the edge of the sofa, unopened box of condoms and a bottle of clear liquid in his hands, looking for the first time since Chad had kissed him, embarressed.
"I....I'm not normally like this, really......I'm not sure what got into me, if you want to stop......."
Chad sat up, resting on his elbows, his voice unsteady as he caught sight of the bulge in Ryan's trousers.
"Don't stop.....please......I need....something.....this...."
Words failed him so he grabbed hold of Ryan's waist and reversed their positions, pinning him to the sofa. Tracing circles around the pale pink nipples, he bit gently and shook his head as Ryan asked,
"Have you done this before?"
Stripping both their trousers and, with no less speed, their boxers off, Chad groaned as their erections brushed and allowed his fingers to be coated in the cool liquid. Ryan rolled over and, using guesswork and whatever information he had gleaned from university, he inserted one finger, two fingers, scissoring them and hoping he was doing it right. Judging by Ryan's increasing moans, he was on the right track and removed his fingers quickly to search for the box of condoms. His hands shook as he ripped the foil wrapper and rolled it down his erection and, with encouraging noises from Ryan, he grasped the slender hips and pushed himself inside, praying he wasn't causing any pain but unable to enter gradually.
The heat was unlike anything he'd ever felt before as he began thrusting in and out, Ryan clenching around him so the tightness increased. Before long he had lost any sense of rhythm and concentrated instead on moving faster and deeper, his nails grazing the pale skin of Ryan's thighs.
He noticed Ryan frantically stroking himself and reached around to take over, matching the movements of his hand with the thrusts. Feeling a gathering pressure signaling his orgasm, he jerked Ryan as fast as he could, feeling the smaller body shudder beneath him. Temporarily blinded, Chad came, finally, and tried to ride it out for as long as he could, unwilling for the feeling to end.
He collapsed at last and withdrew as Ryan rolled over onto his back. Leaning in, Chad kissed him gently, pressing their sweat-soaked bodies together. Ryan brushed the stray curls out of his eyes, a wide smile threatening to split his face in two. Chad mirrored his expression and, laughing for no other reason than the immense feeling of post-orgasm joy, pulled Ryan into a tight hug.
Chad rested his head on the angular shoulder and allowed his gaze to wonder around the room. With a start, he noticed the clock and his temporary bubble was burst, bringing him sharply back to earth.
"Ryan, I really need to get back now. I'm sorry, but it's kinda late and I have work tomorrow."
With a sigh, Ryan pulled away, adding hopefully,
"You can stay here if you want. There's a spare room made up next door if you don't want to sleep in this room"
Reality sinking in painfully, Chad shook his head and gathered his clothes, the heavy feeling in his chest growing by the minute.
Both fully dressed, they stood in the hallway, Ryan kissing him softly goodbye as he promised to arrange something soon.
****
Taylor was sleeping soundly when he returned, not stirring an inch when he fell into bed, exhaustion washing over him. Rolling onto his side, he stared at the narrow beam of light from the street lamp shining through a chink in the curtains.
Behind him, the mattress rustled as Taylor shifted slightly, sighing as she pressed herself against his back. Chad tugged the duvet up under his chin, trying desperately to close his eyes and sleep, but unable to put images of Ryan, his pale skin flushed as he kissed goodbye, out of his mind. The leaden weight in his chest grew heavier as Taylor slung her arm over his waist while he watched the hands on the clock face tick closer to dawn.
A/N: I've noticed quite a few people adding this fic to their alerts/favourites without reviewing. Please could you leave something, even if it's very short, because it really encourages me to continue writing. Thank you.