Chapter Nine

Tommy

Five years ago

I winked at Blake as we walked into the Canfield movie theater, the scent of buttered popcorn filling the air. I was exhausted from staying up late with him last night and getting up early to practice with the Canfield hockey team this morning, but it was worth it. Being around Blake was always worth it. He just had this aurora about him. Happiness glittered around him like magic, and it just pulled you in. Everyone felt it.

“Hey, guys.”

Matthias Fuller stood behind the snack counter, his face covered in bruises and cuts. Sure, that was a surprise, but we had been friends with him long enough to know that his dad liked to take a fist to his face when he got into the bottle. It was the fact that his neck was covered in a mess of hickeys that really caught me off guard. It was about time he started seeing someone. He was hot as hell with those big hazel eyes and dirty blond hair. I mean, he wasn’t for me, and Matty had been hung up on Killian Hampton for years, but still... Good for him.

I tilted my head. “Hey? Hey? That’s all you got to say for yourself, Matty?” I wiggled my brows. “Who’s the lucky guy?”

“What?” His entire face turned bright red, then his hand shot up to his neck. “There’s no... it’s no one.”

Blake elbowed my side. “Tommy, stop.” He smiled at Matthias. “Good for you, though. You deserve some happiness. We all know Killian isn’t going to fall in love with you, even though we’d like for that to happen.”

“Yeah, uh, right...” Matthias dropped his gaze, then grabbed two boxes of Skittles and placed them on the counter. “The usual?”

I grinned. “Of course.” I reached into my pocket for my wallet only for Blake beat me and slip Matthias a twenty.

“Oh, no, this is on me,” Matthias insisted. “You know I get free snacks since I work here. Plus, you’re my friends.”

“Are you trying to bribe us? Because of your hickeys and your new boyfriend?” I grinned.

Matty turned even redder. “He’s not my boyfriend.”

“Tommy, let it go,” Blake hissed, then turned back to Matty. “Are you sure? We don’t want to get you in trouble.”

Matthias nodded. “It’s fine, really. It’s for friends and family, too. I don’t have many of those.”

“See, Bug? We’re his friends and his family.” I reached across the counter to squeeze his hand. “I am happy for you, Matty,” I assured him.

We had all seen the way Matthias had pined for Killian all through high school, while Killian just acted like he didn’t exist. It was kind of heartbreaking to watch the way Kill jumped from girl to girl in front of him. Maybe now he could truly move on.

Once we sat down in the empty theater—most people these days went to the bigger cinemas a few towns over—and as the lights dimmed, I reached over to grab Blake’s hand. We had agreed to keep our relationship quiet. Boyfriends when we were alone, best friends when we weren’t. Not because we were ashamed, we just didn’t want to deal with everyone’s questions. Right now, I didn’t care. Not after I saw the way Matty was reacting about the hickeys. I didn’t want Blake to think I was ashamed of him or that I would hide him from anyone. He was my bug.

Blake didn’t even flinch when I laced our fingers together. He squeezed my hand tightly and yanked it into his lap like we did this all the time.

“This is nice,” he commented.

He popped a Skittle into his mouth, then reached over and pressed one against my lips.

“Feeding me now, Bug?” I grinned, making sure to drag my tongue over the tip of his finger. A soft gasp escaped his throat. “You just wait until I get you home.”

He raised his chin, then leaned close to my ear. “Promises, promises, Gretzky.” A smile spread over his face.

“Tease.” I pulled his hand into my lap. “Feel that? It’s because of you.” My cock had thickened inside my jeans.

He stared at me with hooded eyes before he looked around the still empty theater. Then he leaned over to slide his lips over mine.

“You want me to take care of that for you, Tommy?”

I didn’t stop Blake when he released my hand and popped the button on my pants. I didn’t stop him when he reached inside for my dick or when he wiped the precum from the tip to swipe it down the shaft. I dropped my head back as he started to slowly work me over, my breath coming in short, quick pants. I hoped nobody walked in, because they were going to know exactly what was going on: Blake Duncan was giving Tom Olson a hand job in the middle of theater two.

I gritted my teeth as pleasure rolled through my body and my hips canted. I bit back a groan when Blake leaned over to press his lips against my neck and dragged his teeth against my skin.

“You like that, Tommy?” he whispered in my ear. “You wish you were fucking me? You want to stick your big, fat cock inside my tight little asshole?”

“Jesus Christ.” I pulled back to stare at him. “Keep talking dirty to me.”

I grabbed his face to smash our mouths together. I shoved my tongue between his lips and sucked hard on his. The soft moan he released had me coming in my jeans seconds later, and I was glad Blake’s mouth was there to capture the sounds I made.

He pulled back to stare at me, a smile spreading over his handsome face.

“More clothes to add to the laundry pile.” He chuckled. He dragged his hand from my pants and licked it clean as I buttoned myself back up. “Promise to return the favor when we get back to your place?”

“I can return the favor now,” I told him just as the theater door opened and two people walked inside.

Blake leaned his head on my shoulder. “Your place,” he whispered.

***

Two nights later, I was sitting on the couch in the family room waiting for Blake. I had Netflix already queued up and Stranger Things ready to go, but he was late. That wasn’t like my best friend. Normally, he was always on time, and if he wasn’t, he would text me to let me know what was going on. I checked my phone again to see he was nearly an hour late and climbed from the couch. It wouldn’t hurt to go check on him. Make sure he was okay.

I rushed up the steps and into the kitchen to find my mother standing there. “Hey, sweetie.” She smiled at me as she put groceries away. “Going to see Blake?”

“I was, but if you need help...” I gestured toward the bags on the floor.

Mom shook her head. “Go on, spend time with your friend. Don’t forget we’re going up to Boston this weekend. Blake’s invited, too.”

I was more than excited to watch my brother play his first official game. “I think Mulligan has a show, but I’ll double check.”

After saying goodbye to my mother, I rushed out the door and across the street to Blake’s house. I knocked on the door, and as I waited, I wished I had brought a jacket. It was freezing out here. When there was no answer, I knocked again, only for Blake to whip the door open and stare at me with surprise on his face before it morphed into realization.

“Something came up. I can’t come over tonight.”

“So, you didn’t text me?” I asked before I shoved my way inside. “I’m freezing my nuts off out there.”

Blake pressed his lips together. “It’s not a good time, Tommy. I’m sorry.” His brows dipped before he looked over his shoulder. “You can’t be here right now,” he murmured.

“I can’t... What’s wrong?” I gripped his chin to force him to look at me. “Bug, talk to me. We’ve been friends for years.”

Tears filled his olive-colored eyes. “Please, I need you to go home. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay? We can hang out after band practice.” He started to move away from me, but I wouldn’t let him. “Don’t.”

“Blakey, who’s here? Is it Tom? Invite him in, honey. I haven’t seen him in a long time,” Monica Duncan called out to her son, her words slurred. She mumbled something incoherent under her breath as Blake tried to push me away.

I shouldered past him. “I should at least say hello to your mom, Bug. It would be rude not to.” But I wished that I had listened to Blake when he told me to leave.

Monica was lying on the couch, a blanket wrapped around her small frame. I hadn’t seen her in months, and she looked like half the woman I remembered. Her blonde hair was pulled back, her green eyes sunken into her skeletal face. Her skin had taken on a yellowish color that I didn’t think was healthy. Scattered around the floor were bottles of booze, water, and a bucket that I was afraid to even look at.

“Tom, it’s wonderful to see you.” She smiled at me with dry, cracked lips. “I feel like you haven’t come to visit Blakey in forever.”

Blake huffed. “Mom, I see him every day.”

“Well, not here. It’s like you’re embarrassed of me or something.” She winked at her son before she reached for a napkin and wiped her mouth. “You boys don’t have to babysit me. I’m fine, Blakey, I promise. Go upstairs. Play some video games. I’ll let you know if I need anything.”

Blake started to protest, but I cut him off. “Sure thing, Mrs. Duncan. It’s wonderful to see you.”

“It’s Monica!” she called as I nearly carried my best friend up the stairs to his room.

I glared down at Blake the moment the door was shut behind us. “She’s sick,” I hissed through clenched teeth. “Like really sick.”

“She’s an alcoholic, Tommy.”

“I can see that, Blake. How long has this been going on?”

He dropped his eyes to his feet. “Uh, my entire life.” Blake dragged his toe across the carpet before he glanced back up at me with tears in his eyes. “It’s why my parents divorced. Why we moved here. I had the choice of which parent to stay with, and I picked my mother because she needed someone to take care of her.”

“Why am I just learning about this now?” I growled before I shoved at Blake’s chest. “Huh? Why now? I’m your best friend, Bug. I could help you. We can get her help. Is this why you never want to hang out here? Why we’re always going to my place?”

He nodded.

“Jesus Christ.”

Blake grabbed my arm. “Why are you so mad? It’s not like you have to live with this. You’re not scared she’s going to choke on her vomit or lose another job. Or worried about how the mortgage is going to get paid or if your mother remembered to buy groceries or that the electricity might get shut off. That’s me, Tommy, that’s all my shit.”

“I could help you!” I exclaimed. “She could go to AA or one of those things.”

He shook his head. “Nope, tried that. We’ve tried everything. Dad went with her before the divorce. She’d stop drinking for a little while, and things would be okay, but then she’d start again.”

“What about rehab?”

“We can’t afford that. Mom can’t even keep a job long enough to get health insurance. It’s why I’m on my father’s.”

I wrapped my arms around Blake and yanked him against me. “I’m your best friend.”

I felt him take a deep breath, and when he let it out, his entire body shuddered.

“She’s right.” He leaned his head on my chest to look up at me. “I’m embarrassed. I didn’t want you to see this, what I have to live with. It’s a lot.” Tears slipped down his face, and he buried his face in my neck.

“You have me now, Bug,” I promised as I rubbed his back. “You’re not alone anymore.”