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CONNOR

B etween classes, composing my thesis, and tutoring duties, I didn’t have much time for socializing. Spencer was in the same boat, and we didn’t get out much besides swimming every morning. We’d made a pact at the beginning of the term that would be a necessity to keep our sanity. I was the early riser, so I’d be his alarm clock. I’d walk down the hall and let myself in his room to get his ass out of bed. I was thankful he didn’t dawdle, and we’d easily get to the pool or fitness center to begin our day.

We were fortunate that we received similar dorm room assignments, not across from each other this year, but on the same floor, a few doors down from each other. It was nice that it worked out, and I knew Spencer was happy not to have too much change to deal with.

It was a rainy Sunday, and we decided it would be our day off from workouts and the pool. Once I got up, washed and dressed, I walked down the hall to see if Spencer wanted to go to breakfast. I was tired of protein bars or shakes every morning. It was mid-morning, and I figured he’d still be sleeping.

I knocked lightly before I opened the door and saw his sleeping form curled up in bed. I quietly walked over, evaluated his position, and then catapulted myself on top of him. I’d never done that, but I was in a childish mood for some reason. He yelped in surprise and flailed under my weight and the confines of his bedding.

“What the fuck?” he barked as I looked down at him. He did his best to get free, but the covers kept him pinned down.

I pushed myself off, not wanting to smother the man. “Good morning, sunshine! Wakey, wakey,” I cheerfully replied. He had a mark across his cheek from the edge of a sheet, and his hair stuck up from the hair product he’d probably used the day before. He squinted, tried to focus, then threw his pillow in my direction. I caught it and hugged it against my chest as I laughed.

“You’re an ass!” he barked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. I just smiled at him.

We acted like twelve-year-olds sometimes. “I know you are, but what am I?” It came from my mouth before I realized how stupid it sounded.

“Ugh…Why are you bothering me? We’re not swimming this morning,” he huffed.

“Well, I wanted to spend time with my best friend. We haven’t been out in a long time, and I thought we could walk to the diner for breakfast. Spend some time catching up.”

He lost all his frustration with me, sitting up in bed and glancing at his phone to see what time it was. He flopped back down, rubbed his hands over his face, and stared at the ceiling.

I frowned, still hugging the pillow. “You okay?”

He took a deep breath and looked in my direction. “Yeah, I had a long chat with Evan last night. I really miss him, Connor.”

I sensed his yearning, and I knew exactly how he felt. We were away from the men we’d gotten extremely close to. Who we’d fallen for, and it hurt.

With a sympathetic tone, I replied, “I know.” He gave me a crooked smile because he knew I was hurting too.

I didn’t want to dwell on how much we missed our guys, so I tossed the pillow back at him. “Get dressed, and let’s get some food. I need to run back to my room and get my coat. It’s raining, by the way,” I said as cheerfully as I could.

He sat up and put his feet on the floor as I walked to the door. “How do you do it? I mean, how do you handle not having Mason with you?” he asked when I stopped at the door.

I turned and saw the sad look in his eyes. “It’s hard, Spence. The best thing I can do is focus on school stuff, and I’m thankful it keeps my head straight. I miss Mason so bad it hurts, but we text or chat every day. I know he’s safe, and I take comfort in that. I can only look forward to when we’ll get to see each other again.” I gave him a reassuring smile and told him I’d be waiting in the hall.

It didn’t take Spencer long to get ready, and we walked in the drizzle to the diner. The rain had let up some, but the sky was still dark grey. It didn’t alleviate our mood much. It looked like other students and locals had the same idea, and a few folks were waiting for tables, so I grabbed a couple of menus so we could decide what to order quickly once we got seated.

We only had a ten-minute wait before a few tables and booths opened. I asked for a booth, and we were led there by an overly friendly young waitress. I chuckled to myself, thinking it was nice to get attention because we were friendly, usually smiled, and good-looking guys to boot. Of course, most of the attention came from women. They just didn’t know they were barking up the wrong tree.

Our coffee arrived quickly, and our orders were taken. Spencer was scrolling through his cell phone when I picked mine up. It was a habit, a time-wasting habit, to be exact. Our generation was so plugged into technology and social media it took away from face-to-face interaction. I think we were always aware of it but couldn’t tear ourselves away from the mind-numbing obsession. I finally set my phone face down on the table, and Spencer looked at me.

“Yes?” I asked, knowing he was going to say something. I lazily took a swig of coffee.

He leaned over the table toward me and perused the other tables before he whispered, “Have you ever been in a three-way?”

I almost did a spit take, fumbling my coffee mug when that came out of his mouth.

“What?” I said a little louder than I intended. The table next to us glanced our way.

“Shhhhh,” he replied. I was still in shock at his blatant question.

I looked at him with a wrinkled brow, but I kept my voice low. “What kind of question is that?”

“One a gay best friend can ask another,” he answered indignantly. I stared at him in disbelief.

I laughed, which brought more attention to our table, and I had to stifle it quickly. Once I got myself under control, I flatly said, “For the record, no, I have not.” My curiosity got the better of me, though. “Have you?”

Spencer nodded and whispered, “Yes, this past summer in Boise.”

I knew Spencer could be bold, but his willingness to tell me of his experience, especially in public, had me thinking this relationship with Evan opened a side of him I never expected. I’ve always enjoyed my golden retriever’s openness, just not here.

“Let’s…uh, table this conversation for when we’re alone. It’s weird to talk about it here in a diner full of people,” I whispered with conviction.

He said, “Okay,” and continued to eat. Then, after a period of silence, Spencer asked, “Have you made up with your brother yet?”

My stomach suddenly twisted. His question hit me like a brick. I closed my eyes, put my fork down, and tipped my head back. “No, not yet,” I replied sadly. “I know this has been going on for almost a year.” I felt guilty when I thought back to what had happened. “I wanted to talk to him when I got to Portland before the term started, but he was out of town with friends.”

I could tell Spencer thought carefully before he said, “I bet it’s been just as hard on him as it has on you. But you know the longer you don’t talk it out, the wedge will only drive you two further apart.”

He was right, and I sighed heavily before I spoke. “The holidays are almost here, and I plan on talking to him during Thanksgiving break. Mason will be on the road, so it’ll probably be best without him around.” Spencer gave me an understanding nod.

I’d lost my appetite and couldn’t finish the rest of my meal, but I knew Spencer would since he had in the past. When he finally finished what I hadn’t, we paid the bill and headed back to the dorm. I could tell he was itching to tell me more about his three-way experience.

“Alright, now you can finish the story we didn’t need other diners to hear,” I snorted. He skipped with excitement at my permission.

“The guy we met up with, his name was Nate and he was a fuck buddy that Evan knew from his gym in Boise. They had played on the down low for a couple of years. Evan asked me if I’d ever considered or fantasized about being in a three-way. And to be honest, I had.”

Spencer and I had never discussed sexual fantasies, or much about any sexual desires. I didn’t think it was weird, just surprised by the brashness. It seems my golden retriever was a bit of an adventurer. I don’t think it would be something I’d ever consider, and I felt it would be odd to bring this subject up to Mason. This story coming from Spencer was entertaining and I didn’t want to shut him down.

Spencer elaborated on their exploits with the guy until we got to the dorm. His story got me secretly aroused, and I couldn’t wait to have my video call with Mason tonight. We partook in sexy video calls every so often, and I even recorded a couple of them to play back during much-needed jackoff sessions.

I worked on my thesis most of the afternoon. I ate dinner in the cafeteria, finished quickly, and got back to my room to answer Mason’s call on time. I had stripped down except for a tight-fitting T-shirt. His call came in right on time, and I answered it on my laptop with eagerness.

I was rock hard and leaking precum, but he couldn’t see that…yet.