Chapter Thirty-Three – Rehearsal
As someone who appreciated excellent organization, Lyn had to admit that he was impressed by Bella's skills. Everything looked fantastic, from the rows of white folding chairs to the placeholders used for the flower arrangements. Although this was only a mockup for the actual reception, Lyn couldn't help feeling a familiar squeeze in his chest. Although it was no longer as terrible as it had been during his college years when Brad's display of his latest crush or conquest made him feel like listening to Satie's Gymnopédies on repeat until his soul went numb, it was still there. And it made him wonder about his earlier conclusions and whether he should be quick to jump to them or not.
After scolding Alexander for approximately half an hour before their arrival regarding his roommate's lack of interest in the other guests, the demon had abandoned him in favor of mingling with the rest of the party, not without throwing pointed looks in Lyn's direction, however, looks that were reproachful and playful at the same time.
Lyn touched his throat, expecting at least a slight roughness from chafing. That reminded him he'd forgotten to scold Alexander about the hickey Brad had noticed during their hike earlier today. Strangely enough, he was succumbing to a familiar rhythm with Alexander, and such lapses in his judgment weren't his style. He'd have to be more careful.
Dressed in a light dress that hugged the perfection of her body with each quirky twist of the evening breeze, Bella was pacing under the altar arch, clutching a clipboard in her hands as if the poor thing had killed her family.
Lyn tried to catch her eye to give her a reassuring and sympathetic smile, but Bella appeared to be lost in her own head, her lips pursing and opening as if she was rehearsing a lesson before a big exam.
"Dearly beloved," someone spoke in a nasal tone from a nearby garden wall, "we've gathered here today to unite in holy madness two consenting adults--"
"Luke," Bella exploded, brandishing her clipboard like a weapon, "could you please stop being such a clown for like a minute? We're in the middle of the walkthrough--"
"Hey, sis, chill," Luke cut his sister's words short. "Isn't this supposed to be the best day of your life or something? The way I see it, you're on the path to ruin it from the start."
Gone were the perfect designer garments and brushed hair. For the rehearsal, Luke had truly chosen to get on his sister's nerves, arriving late and wearing beach shorts and flip-flops.
"Luke," Bella warned him again, her beautiful eyes narrowing.
"I'm just trying to lighten the mood, geez." Luke held his hands up. "Everyone around here is so damn tense, you'd think we were rehearsing for a funeral, not a wedding."
"Yes, everyone is damn tense because there are people who understand what responsibility means," Bella said cuttingly.
"And I don't?" Luke challenged his sister, stepping closer.
A few guests were already throwing the two siblings startled glances. A few looked away awkwardly, while others chose to pay closer attention. The light conversations around them were dying out.
Lyn stepped up before even processing his decision. "Hey Bella," he said in an open friendly tone, "the setup is fantastic. You're great at this."
"Thanks," Bella replied, her pretty face still tight with tension, "but what I need right now is not a pep talk, but people to take this seriously."
Lyn positioned himself between Bella and her kid brother before another exchange of virtual daggers could begin. "I get it. You want things to be perfect, and trust me, I understand completely. Come on, you're way more beautiful when you smile. War goddess is really not your look."
Bella unclenched visibly, although she still didn't crack a smile, as she had been encouraged.
"And you know your brother," Lyn continued, building on his small victory. "He's the court jester. Guess who the queen is?"
Bella relaxed for real this time. She rolled her eyes and let a smile quirk her lips. "I thought Alexander was the one with all the charm in your fantastic trio. But you're not bad yourself, Lyn."
"Right," Luke snorted, "he's like a fairytale prince or something. Lame jokes included."
Lyn prevented Bella from looking over his shoulder at her brother. "How about you tell me what you need? I'll help you out. You don't have to shoulder all of this yourself."
"I'm starting to understand why Brad keeps saying that he wouldn't have been able to survive college without you."
Lyn had a mind to ask where the groom to be was, but he liked it better when the host of the event he was attending wasn't a bundle of nerves. "Come on, let's do this together. And if your brother keeps acting up, I have just the plan for him."
"What's that?" Luke asked, from directly behind Lyn. He was standing uncomfortably close.
"I," Lyn continued, not turning an inch, "will personally see to putting him in a tutu and getting him on petal duty."
Bella laughed out loud, a pleasant sound that seemed honest, while Luke snickered like a schoolkid.
"I'd suggest not," she said, pressing a hand over her chest to control the laughter that must have surprised her, "because he might just do it. In case you didn't notice, Lyn," she said, leaning forward to share a conspiratorial whisper, "Luke likes you quite a bit."
"I do," Luke announced happily, while still being ignored by the two grownups nearby. "How much do you charge for babysitting services, Lyn? My sister is paying, so money's no object. The sky's the limit."
"Go find Brad, Luke," Bella ordered, back in charge with grace and poise. "Lyn, I hope you're not going to regret this. I could use your help."
"I'm the one offering it. So, no regrets. I assure you," Lyn said with a big smile.
"Great. Gosh, I envy Brad for having a friend like you." Bella took his arm possessively. "I mean, look at all my girlfriends. All so quick to shirk their duties. I know I'm a lot and a perfectionist, but that's not a bad thing, right?"
"I assure you it's not. I'm a bit of a perfectionist myself," Lyn said.
Bella shook her head and began checking her clipboard. "You know what's crazy, Lyn? I thought Brad was giving me the weirdest compliments when telling me that I reminded him of this Lyn person he used to know in college. For the longest time, I thought you were either imaginary or, worse, a girl Brad must have crushed on, never to have his feelings requited. Shall we start?"
"Definitely," Lyn agreed automatically, while Bella's words lingered in his mind.
What the hell had she been trying to say?
***
"I see that you're enjoying cozying up to the bride to be," Alexander whispered in his ear as they sat at the dinner table following the rehearsal.
Lyn scoffed. "Why does that sound like I'm doing something bad? In your mouth, I mean."
"You're getting way too involved in this wedding. Are you sure that's the wisest thing to do?"
Lyn pondered Alexander's words while sipping from his glass of wine. "In light of what? Speak now, my friend, or forever hold your peace."
"Interesting choice of words," Alexander murmured, his lips twitching in amusement. "Well, I will not keep you hanging. In the light of your lingering feelings, of course."
"There are none," Lyn said, carefully patting his lips with a napkin.
"Then why," Alexander whispered right into his ear, "don't I get to fuck you yet?"
Lyn was grateful for having already swallowed his sip of wine. "Geez, I don't know," he lowered his voice, "maybe it's because you don't seem to want it badly enough."
He locked eyes with Alexander, feeling quite proud of his comeback. What a terrible mistake. His friend's eyes burned with so much desire, Lyn feared for a moment that they might do something ludicrous such as tearing each other's clothes off and starting to make out on the dinner table.
Because the desire wasn't Alexander's alone. There was a similar pit of gluttony and lust yawning inside him, too. Brad had looked terrific tonight, with Bella on his arm. And Lyn had thought, repeatedly, of how much he wanted to be back at the cottage he shared with Alexander already and doing as many things as necessary to forget about it all.
"Oh, and I thought if I showed how much I want to fuck you senseless, you'd run for the hills. My bad, I suppose." Alexander turned with his usual grace and continued his dinner, as if nothing had happened.
"What are you going to do?" Lyn whispered.
"Did I say that I was going to do something?" Alexander asked, his tone relaxed and even.
Lyn scoffed. "Running hot and cold. That's so like you."
He gasped as Alexander caught his hand and pulled it down, out of sight of the others, underneath the tablecloth. Then, the same hand was unceremoniously slapped over an obvious semi. Lyn had a mind to withdraw his hand but thought better of it. Using his other hand to wield his fork, he pretended to enjoy his meal while he curled his fingers around Alexander's crotch.
"And what's this?" he whispered.
"That's me around you," Alexander whispered back.
It was insane and if anyone suspected them of only a fraction of what they were getting up to as if they were hormonal teenagers, it would most likely be so mortifying that Lyn envisioned dying of shame in the near future.
But he couldn't stop. Wouldn't stop, he corrected himself as he enjoyed playing with Alexander's partial erection, palming it and squeezing lightly.
"You're lucky I'm ambidextrous," Lyn said lightly.
"Oh, yes, you're a man of many talents."
"Lucky you, right?"
"The luckiest," Alexander commented. His voice had grown deeper, not so steady anymore, giving Lyn all the satisfaction he was looking for.
A sudden slap on his shoulder made him jerk his hand from Alexander's crotch as if he had been burned.
"And how are my two most favorite guys tonight?" Brad asked cheerfully, while seemingly balancing most of his weight on Alexander's left shoulder and Lyn's right.
"Amazing," Lyn said brightly. "The rehearsal was perfect."
"It couldn't be otherwise with you involved," Brad said. "Bella is crazy about you. I gotta say, Lyn, I'm getting a little scared that she might elope with you before the wedding."
"No chance of that," Lyn said. "I'm your ride or die, remember?"
"What about you, Alexander?" Brad turned his whole attention to his other friend, his tone lacking the playfulness from before. "Would you steal your best friend's gal, given the chance?"
What the hell was that about? Lyn stared, without hiding his surprise, first at Brad, whose face was a frozen mask, then at Alexander, who appeared slightly amused by the not so veiled accusation.
"Hey," he intervened, ready to disarm whatever bomb Brad was preparing to drop on Alexander's head, "were you two stealing girlfriends from each other when we were in college? I can't believe you two hid that sort of thing from me. I'm entitled to know all your mistakes."
Brad's cold mask dropped, allowing a goofy smile to replace it. "As if stiff up a lip incarnate here could even do that to me."
"I would never," Alexander added cordially.
Lyn narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "You two are acting so weird tonight. If you ever fought over a girl, just leave it in the past where it belongs. Come on, that must have been at least eight years ago."
He searched for Bella with his eyes, feeling an unpleasant, unsettling jolt in the pit of his stomach. Bella was rich, so rich that she made Brad feel inadequate and inferior. She could very well have known Alexander from before, since they both belonged to the same tax bracket, so to speak. Could it be that they had had something going on before Bella met Brad? But they behaved as if they had just met.
His mind was so frantic he missed Brad telling him something. He started when Brad called his name, a little too loudly.
"Sorry, I'm a bit tired," Lyn quickly excused himself. "What were you saying?"
"I was saying that Luke told me you're the one to blame for him placing an overnight shipping order for a tutu." Brad seemed amused beyond belief by the idea.
"A tutu?" Lyn repeated, without processing the word.
"Yeah. Man, you must be wasted. How much wine did you have tonight?"
"Oh, yes, a tutu," Lyn said, as if it had just hit him what Brad meant by that. "Oh, no, please, stop him. It was just a joke."
"You better stop him yourself. When Luke gets one of his crazy ideas, he's hard to turn from his course. And tomorrow, our folks are landing. As much as my future in-laws seem to be open minded, I have a hunch that they will suffer a shock seeing their youngest in that getup, spreading petals around."
"Do you like ballet so much that you'd put a strapping young man like Luke in a tutu, Lyn?" Alexander interjected, only to add fuel to the fire.
"Gosh, you two are blowing things all out of proportion," Lyn complained, shaking his head.
Brad laughed good-naturedly. He smacked his palm a few more times on Lyn's shoulder. "If Alexander keeps you awake at night, Lyn, just tell me. I'll put him in his place."
"He doesn't," Lyn replied right away. Damn, why did he sound so guilty? "He's a doctor and has impressed upon me repeatedly the importance of a good night's sleep. I'm just my usual insomniac self."
"Usual?" Brad asked, seeming surprised by that tidbit Lyn had carelessly dropped.
"It's nothing. Just the result of getting used to studying too hard, too late into the night. No rest for the wicked," he added with a strained smile.
"I knew you should've had more beers and more fun with me while we were still in college." Brad tsked, as if he was an overbearing parent fed up with telling their kid the same thing over and over again. "But we'll have more. No more of that being strangers stuff from now on. Okay, Lyn?"
"Yeah, of course."
He stole a look at Alexander and warned him with his eyes. It looked like the demon had plenty of things to add, but a subtle nod of the head confirmed that he had received Lyn's plea to keep his mouth shut.
***
Lyn snickered and looked over his shoulder as Alexander caught him from behind and went straight for the prize.
"Alexander," he hissed, without putting too much heart into his reproach, "we're in public."
"What public?"
They were on their way back from dinner, and clearly both in a naughty mood.
"Someone might see us," Lyn insisted.
"We're two consenting adults."
Two consenting adults. Luke's playful words from before rang in his head. With more decisive moves, he pulled Alexander's hands away from his body. "Let's not cause a scandal, though." He tried to sound casual, but his usual emotional cramps were shining through just fine.
Alexander moved so he was walking by his side. "Do you truly believe he'd be shocked to learn that you're gay? It wouldn't be news."
Lyn set his jaw hard. "I suppose," he said through his teeth. "But it's their wedding. Brad's and Bella's. The last thing I want is to make it about me."
"It? What's this 'it' you're talking about?"
Of course the demon would insist. He wouldn't be himself otherwise.
"Okay, you're right," Lyn admitted with a huff. "I'm just protecting myself."
Alexander's silence could be interpreted in so many ways.
"You're not very good at it, though."
"What do you mean?" Lyn stopped and turned, grabbing Alexander's arm.
A shrug followed. "The walls you build, Lyn. That's what I'm talking about. They are so thick, you've left no room inside for breathing, let alone living. That's not protection – that's a prison."
"Are you a shrink? Last time I checked, you were a heart surgeon."
"When did you check, though?" Alexander's tone turned somber and heavy.
"Point taken." Lyn snuck one hand in Alexander's, linking their fingers. "I've always managed to do wrong by you, right?"
"So, you don't want to talk about yourself. That's fine," Alexander replied, pulling Lyn closer. "As for your question, any moment's good to start doing right by me."
Lyn stole a look around. Their cottage was out of the way, so no one else was there on the way back to their accommodations. He acted fast, wrapping his arms around Alexander and kissing him hard on the lips.
Yes, it was exhausting to be himself on most days. And here, under a tropical moon, with only the sound of waves brushing against the shore as company, he would allow himself the space to breathe.
If it could be called that. Alexander allowed himself to be the passive participant for only a few moments. His long fingers were soon tangled in Lyn's hair, making a mess out of it.
Lyn didn't care anymore. Alexander could mess him up all he wanted. Tonight, he was too tired to do anything, but maybe tomorrow he'd nudge his strange bedfellow in the direction he so wanted him to go.
Even at the mere thought of it, his body froze.
"Are you cold?" Alexander asked, hugging him and rubbing his back.
"A little. And I guess I am tired, after all."
"Let's go, then. Don't worry. You don't have to do anything. But I'll blow you before you go to sleep. If I'm not asking too much."
Lyn snickered and butted his head playfully against Alexander's shoulder. "You're offering me a favor. How can that be considered asking for too much?"
"I'm walking on eggshells around you, in case you didn't notice."
"Walk heavier, then," Lyn advised, filled with a sudden desire to risk more than allowed. "If it's you--"
"Why did you stop?" Alexander asked.
Lyn sighed. "You have to make me say it, don't you, Alexander? I've always trusted you."
"You didn't trust me then."
Alexander didn't have to spell it out for Lyn to know that he was talking about the night when everything had fallen apart between the three of them.
"I did," he said, "but I hated that I had to trust you even when I didn't. I hated how you were right, and I wasn't. You are still right all the time. Don't let it go to your head, though," he warned.
"I wouldn't dream of it. I'm older and wiser now," Alexander promised.
"Then maybe we should stop fondling each other with unsuspecting polite company around." To show he didn't truly mean that, he grabbed Alexander's crotch and laughed.
"That is something I can't promise," Alexander replied, cupping Lyn's ass with both hands and kneading it through his dress pants.
They didn't make it to the bedroom. Alexander dropped him on the sofa and pulled out Lyn's cock with expert moves. A straight guy like Alexander who, supposedly, was just waking up to his new bisexuality, wasn't supposed to be this good at sucking cock right out the gate. But he was.
Lyn ran his hands through Alexander's silky hair, tugging at it while hissing his encouragement. The feel of that talented tongue on the length of his cock was almost too much to bear. When he came, the sounds he made could very well put a cohort of porn stars to shame.
But it was worth it. Because the look in Alexander's eyes was all the confirmation he needed.
He was allowed to let go once in a while.
The sky wouldn't fall.
TBC