It's Who You Know Ch. 04

"Makes me look tough, innit?"

He erupted into such a fit of laughter that he cried.

We couldn't stop giggling about everything else after that, and I was slowly making a spectacle for everybody there to watch. We were being gay. So gay. I really wished Darren could just take it up a notch into a camp act, and break out the 'darlings'.

I was having way too much fun strutting about like it was a catwalk. Darren needed to learn that these things happened if he took me out in public.

There was one lad there with his girlfriend, who already looked uncomfortable enough before I started my display. Two women with young children who were wheezing and laughing while somehow looking horrified at the same time. A girl who barely looked 18, giggling and clasping a hand over her mouth with pink cheeks.

I'm not sure when it stopped being a catwalk and started turning into stripping, but it kinda did.

"Do you feel sexy?" Darren asked, when I finally emerged from the curtain fully-dressed in the clothes I had arrived in.

"Fuck yes. You can choose everything I wear from now on."

He chuckled and looped an arm around my waist, giving me an affectionate forehead bump.

"Oh wow," I heard the girl say. Apparently I had made Darren look embarrassed enough that she hadn't twigged why I was doing my mating display in the first place. She looked me straight in the eye as she walked past me, despite her blushing. "Cute."

What was cute? Me? Or the fact that I was in love with a man?

Wait, what.

I had the realisation hitting me like a brick while I walked towards the till with a bundle of clothes. It was a bit like trying to act sober. Almost as if I was about to break into one of Darren's panic attacks. I just needed a moment, and I wasn't getting one.

"Just need a piss," I said as we walked past some mall toilets outside, shoving the bags into Darren's hands. I went into a stall, locked it, and took a few deep breaths, letting that sudden tension come out, then disappear.

I spotted him again instantly outside. He was leaning one arm against some railings, one foot slightly crossed over the other, thumb of one hand hooked in the pocket of his jeans. Shit. He really was making my heart flutter. It was as if everything was in black and white and he was in colour.

I didn't know what to do with this feeling. So I ignored it.

We picked up some sandwiches from a Subway and headed for my car, finishing them off while sitting inside. Darren had insisted on having sweetcorn without mayonnaise to hold it all together, and he was making a mess.

"Jesus Christ, Darren. You swallow cum but a bit of mayo makes you sick?"

He almost spat out his mouthful and sat there chuckling without a comeback. "I hate mayo," he finally managed.

I reached down to remove the bags of clothes from his feet and tossed them onto the backseat.

"That girl fancied you pretty bad," he said.

I folded my hands behind my head and grinned. "Yeah? Too young for me."

"That's all right, I'm sure those mums wanted a piece of you too."

"Everyone wants a piece of me." I turned my head. "But I'm all yours."

He glanced at me before going back to his sandwich. "All mine?"

"Yep." I seriously considered saying it, but I didn't have any idea how. It wouldn't exactly be romantic, would it? Sitting in my car with him dropping sweetcorn all over his lap. So I'd use a more comfortable subject instead. "If you ever want to consummate this ownership you can just, you know, finally fuck me."

"A very tempting offer."

I sighed and thudded my head against the wheel. He chuckled again.

"Darren?"

"Yes?"

"Are you a top or bottom?"

He frowned at me. "You've not figured out yet?"

"I thought I had it all figured out then you started confusing me."

"How?"

"I don't know, just... comments you make."

"Mhm."

"And you really like it when I finger your arse."

"Mhm." I could swear he was paying more attention to that damn sandwich than me.

"But you're normally so..." I actually had a bit of a hand wave as I tried to think of the word. He was rubbing off on me. "Dominant."

He tossed me a look. "You think a bottom can't be dominant?"

"Well I-"

"I used to know a dominant bottom. He was completely in control, you just thrusted when he told you."

I blinked, folding my arms on the wheel. "Darren, seriously. What are you?"

"I'm a top."

I fucking knew it. "But you've bottomed before?"

"Yes."

Damn. "So what are you? Like ninety-ten split?"

"Eighty-twenty."

Double damn. I was grinning like an idiot again, he just smiled at me. He still hadn't finished that stupid sandwich so I started the engine. "You can top me any time."

"Maybe I'll bottom."

"Stop it."

*

There was a big event coming up. Darren called it 'networking'. He and Amelia both thought it was a good idea if I attended.

Apparently this networking meant lots of business owners all meeting up at a stupidly expensive restaurant in London.

"I can't, Darren. I'll stick out like a sore thumb. You just can't take me to places like that."

He frowned at me across the desk. "What are you worrying about?"

"I just can't do that environment."

"You'll find it easier than you think. You're beautiful, Tyler. Rich people will always receive you well when you're beautiful."

I wasn't sure how I felt about that.

"You own a suit?" he asked.

"Yes."

"I'd like to see you in it."

I smirked. "I should probably be babysitting David if Zack and Lia are going anyways-"

"No. You're going to come, Tyler."

I only realised the day before that Darren's whole family was going to be there. Or at least, whatever was left of his family that hadn't been killed...

Shit. What was this? Like the rich cunt version of taking me home to meet the parents?

I was having a nervous freakout to Zack and he cuffed me over the head, shutting me up in an instant. I stared at him, he stared back. I don't even know how the wrestle started, we hadn't done something like that in years. An explosion of pent up childish energy. It was like we were at college all over again.

He was just as monstrously heavy and strong as I remembered him. I had barely got out of a headlock when he lifted me off the floor and body slammed me. Fuck my life. In this weird mixture of coughing, gasping for breath, and laughing, I fought back until he had me completely pinned. He laughed more and more every time I struggled.

"Zack," I wheezed. Please, nobody come into his office right now.

"If I can attend these stupid things, so can you."

For all he had settled into this corporate lifestyle, he was still the Zack I'd always known beneath.

*

We all left early that Friday. I dropped Darren off, then went through a carwash before arriving home myself. I found that damn suit and put it on, staring at myself in the mirror while I adjusted the tie. The last time I remembered legitimately wearing the thing was at the wedding. I was glad it still had a tailored fit.

It was like I stared at another version of myself in that mirror. A version I would never quite be. I could stay in this company for the rest of my life, but I was happy to be down in the labs, in jeans and white coat, shocking my fingers on faulty bits of equipment.

I pulled up at Darren's house and waited at the gates, revving the engine. My phone buzzed with a text.

"Coming."

He approached a couple minutes later, dressed in a different suit to what he normally wore at work. Dark navy blue jacket and trousers, grey waistcoat, silver tie. I might not have liked the formal look on myself, but I really, really, liked it on him.

I got out to act like some chauffeur and open the passenger door for him. He looked me up and down, smiling.

"Fantastic," he said, and touched his lips to mine.

"Am I pulling it off?"

"Yes, you are."

It was quite a drive into London. Darren's phone kept going off the whole time. He took countless calls, spoke countless names, exchanged all sorts of pleasantries and small talk, before hanging up and going through it all over again the next time it rang. The general vibe of each conversation was the same - 'I'll see you there'.

I just let his voice soothe me while the traffic crawled along the M25. At one point he was leaning on my seat, watching me a little vacantly while his mind focused on the call, gently stroking my cheek with his knuckles. When he brushed my neck I shivered.

He was already leaning further towards me as he said goodbye to whoever it was. His fingers hooked in my collar and he kissed me. It was... passionate. He forced my lips apart and slid his tongue into my mouth. My chest tightened. I got so into it that I didn't move with the traffic and someone honked at me. He bit my lip when I pulled away.

"Jesus Christ," I breathed, quickly moving the car. His eyes were intense. "Is this suit doing something for you?"

"I think it is." His phone rang again and he looked at it like he wanted to throw it through the window, but answered it. "Hello, Andrea. Yes... Yes, of course." At least it was brief. He hung up again quick.

"Are we allowed to be gay at this place?" I asked.

He smirked. "I don't hide what I am. Just don't overdo it."

"You're gonna be the one overdoing it if you go kissing me like that."

We waited briefly in the carpark and I studied the building. It looked the sort of place to have chandeliers made of diamonds. Big pillars marked the entrance. Zack and Amelia pulled up next to us a few minutes later, then the last car with another couple, who I was introduced to as Harry and Andrea.

The six of us joined the trickles going inside. There were more clusters of people waiting around the steps leading up to the pillars, greeting each other and chatting away. Someone moved into Darren's path.

I knew who he was in an instant. His eyes were even colder than Darren's, such a light blue that they almost looked entirely white, broken by the black dots of pupils. His hair had greyed, but everything about his expression and posture suggested he hadn't accepted that he was old yet.

There was a younger man with him, with darker hair and eyes, who still had the face structure to look related. Marcus. Three women, one of whom was obviously Darren's aunt. A similar looking younger one - another cousin? The other was Marcus' wife? Oh wait, someone else was there too. The female cousin's husband?

The uncle was suddenly before me, looking through me with those eyes. He held a hand out.

"Vincent," he said. The handshake was quick and rough, just something he wanted over with. I glanced over my shoulder and saw that he was the same with everybody, but Amelia laughed and leant in to kiss his cheek.

"As grumpy as always, Vince," she said.

We were seated at a table inside, then the night began. I knew how it would be, but I still felt unprepared for it. A congregation of so many CEO's of various enormous companies, with friends and families. There were people there many, many times richer than Darren.

People sat at tables. People walked around the bar. People talked. People talked more. Some people started laughing, loud. Wine and champagne went all around. People moved along tables, greeting old friends, introducing themselves to new ones.

There was lots of showboating. People pitching themselves to potential new clients. Discussing possible deals. At some point Darren had to get up and do some performance with his uncle, acting like they were deeply close family members. Someone that I vaguely recognised greeted Amelia loudly and heartily, and she disappeared for a while too.

Zack smirked at me across the table. I shrugged back. What the fuck to do at something like this? At least I was getting to try some strange and expensive food for free. They had zebra on the menu. Zebra.

Darren finally came back, still grinning and waving off someone who was calling after him. I could see that the smile was barely above a grimace and his laughter was fake. He sat down heavily.

"Kill me," he said to Zack and I.

"Are they bringing up the shit from last year?" Zack asked.

"Yes."

I got dragged into something eventually. Someone from a meeting with Amelia recognised me, and I found myself standing with a cluster of other people, smiling and nodding, wondering at which point I was supposed to say something.

It was a long, long evening.

Darren disappeared again and Amelia asked me to go find him. I thought he was probably outside, taking a break from all the buzz and noise.

I found him, but he was talking with his uncle.

"Should I be flattered that you're taking such an interest?" I caught Darren saying.

"Do you have to be such a faggot?"

Shit.

"You seem to be the only person here who cares."

A throaty scoff from Vincent. "At least this one isn't a fucking twink."

"Is he manly enough for you?"

"Well, he doesn't scream 'fag' at me."

"There you go, now you can sleep at night."

"If you kiss him again in front of me-"

"You will look away. I'm tired of your shit, Vince."

"You expect to land business when you strut around like a raging homosexual?"

I wanted to interrupt. I needed a perfect moment where I could quip.

"I wasn't aware that we pitched private lives," Darren continued.

"You once again turn up without a wife, and this time in the company of a man."

"Yes, and jaws have been dropping to the floor, haven't they?"

"Darren, I cannot condone it. You are an abomination in the eyes of God. 'Th-'"

"Do not quote that fucking book at me." Shit, Darren's voice went sharp. I could feel how livid the silence was. What did it look like, when two pairs of eyes as cold as theirs were glaring at one another?

"When you piss about being a fag it affects my business too."

"I'm sorry, that must really be hurting those empty pockets of yours."

I felt like Darren was about to be struck. Something in the air and the way his tone jumped. My legs carried me into view before I had time to think.

"Mister Sörensen." They both snapped around to me. "That's some unattractive language." Wow, the glare. It was like he thought he could kill me with his eyes. I wasn't going to be fazed by it. "Will it make you feel better to insult me to my face as well? Don't be shy."

There was a long silence, then Vincent's grey head turned back to Darren. "You found one with balls. Well done." He stalked off, nearly bashing my shoulder had I not moved, muttering about 'bloody fags' as he went.

Darren let out a deep sigh. "Tyler."

"Is he always so charming?"

"You've stood listening?"

"Since he called you a faggot."

He rubbed his brow with finger and thumb, then his eyelids. "I'm sorry. This is... This is my uncle." I had expected him to look more hurt after such an exchange, but he didn't. He just looked tired.

"You're okay?"

"He tries to get me to repent about once a week. You're going to see more of this. You're going to have to put up with a lot of this if you're going to be involved with me."

There was something in his eyes now. I couldn't quite decipher it. I stepped closer and touched at his waist. "I'm a proud fag if it means I get to be with a man like you."

The kiss was one of those slow, lingering ones, that felt as though he was trying to control himself and not repeat what happened in the car. Why couldn't I say it? Right then would've been romantic as fuck. I was hopeless. We parted, but he pulled me back and held me tight, chin resting on my shoulder.

"When can we go?" I asked.

"Another hour."

---

Darren

He pulled the car up, headlights shining onto the metal gate, and stopped. Here would be where I gave him a kiss and got out. He was looking at me expectantly. I stared ahead.

I reached for the door and sensed that sudden twinge in him.

"Darren?"

"You're coming in."

I don't know what expression he pulled, I didn't look at him. Just a minute or more under control. I stepped around to the pad, opened the gate, and watched him roll the car into the driveway, tyres crunching on loose gravel. He had parked and was getting out as I reached the front door. Behind me as I turned the key in the lock. On my heels as I stepped inside.

I had already slammed him into the wall when the door shut. It was burning in me, not just lust, but so much more. Something uncontrollable. He gasped for air and I kissed him harder. The only thing better than seeing him in that suit would be seeing it come off.

He staggered forward when I pulled away. I headed through the foyer for the stairs and he followed. The footsteps sped up, like I was being chased. He collided with me on the landing and we bounced off the wall before tumbling to the floor, wrestling, laughing, the weight of his body on top of me as he kissed me. I pulled his hips against mine, letting him feel me, and he moaned.

"Where the fuck is your bedroom?" he breathed in my air.

"If you'd get off me."

He chuckled and I shoved him over, hearing him thud against the wooden floor. I bit his lip before I got to my feet.

The room's light was a sharp pierce after the dark of the house. That expression was almost fixed on his face, like he was overtaken with boyish, giddy excitement. I didn't know how I was going to get him off me, to get the clothes off him. He was so forceful, as if he was challenging me. It set me on fire.

The heat surged through every muscle in my body. I had him on his back on the bed, he struggled. My lips finally found the skin of his neck. His grip on my suit weakened.

He moaned something when I ground against him. Was he going to behave?

The jacket came off, then the tie. I resisted the urge to rip his shirt open. The fabric seemed so delicate beneath my hands, the burning heat of his body glowing through. He unbuckled his own belt, legs wrapping around me to kick off his shoes. I pulled everything off.

My heart was racing. His perfect body, naked on my bed. What was the hurry? I had all night. He leant into the touch of my fingers, then his fist clenched in the material of my suit.

"Is this fair?" he growled.

I started to undress. His hands were on my bare skin in an instant, moving up my stomach, squeezing my chest, then straight to my nipples. The pinches of his fingers sent jolts through me, straight to my cock.

I pressed him down on the bed, wanting to feel every inch of his body against mine. The hair of his chest brushing against mine, the line down his stomach, passing the threshhold at his navel and darkening. The smooth skin of his shaft against mine. His hands that kept feeling my back and shoulders. His firm lips, the taste of his mouth, the soft underside of his tongue.

I could almost hear his heartbeat. I felt the pulse on his neck. He ground against me, slow and sensual movements, rubbing his legs against mine. His body shuddered and groaned beneath me. The tastes and smells of an evening's worth of sweat, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

"Darren," he breathed. "Fuck me."

I sucked on his neck, feeling him tremble one more time, before pulling away. I went to the drawers and he moved up to the pillows. His warm eyes followed my every move, and I only took out the lube. I was intent on going bareback, and there were no comments of objection from him. He was grinning.

I knelt between his legs and kissed him again, letting my hands run down his torso. I couldn't get over how perfect his body was, lean and tight and built in all the right places. The lines of his hips led me to his crotch and I gave his hard length an affectionate stroke. A chuckle rolled from his throat that broke the kiss.

"Please don't tease me for an hour."

"I don't think I could last another hour."

"I've been a good boy."

"A hot boy."

"You know what else is hot?" He gave a little coaxing buck, raising an eyebrow, biting his lip. "My insides." Stupid little comments like always. I loved it. I loved him.