These Days

Smiths only really woke up under the heat of the shower. He washed his body with the minty soaps and scrubbed his hair with a bit of shampoo but tried not to take too much time. He stepped out of the shower and grabbed the neatly square-folded towel to pat the water off of his soaking body. The bathroom was rather small, just large enough to accommodate the single sink, toilet, shower, and cabinet mirror. It was odd for a house to seem larger on the outside than on the inside but that was his impression exactly. Compact and easily accessible, everything was easy to reach and use but there wasn’t a whole lot of room to move or for more than one person to occupy.

Grabbing his clothes he wandered into the bedroom to find brand new boxers and a worn t-shirt waiting for him. Smiths put them on gladly, along with his old jeans, and decided to leave the question of why Tyler hadn’t kicked him out the moment he woke up for later.

As though the thought of the other man heightened his senses Smiths could hear a muffled voice coming form the other room. Taking a deep breath and mentally drawing up his balls, Smiths moved into the living room.

Tyler was sitting at the kitchen table, two mugs of coffee and two plates of toast set out, talking excited into the small cell phone pressed to his ear. Smiths caught the last of it: “ – really love to! Normally I accept all my contacts through the company but it's a pleasure to hear directly from a client. I need a week or so to set my affairs before making the trip up to see you, I hope you understand. Of course. Yes, for a while now. No; nothing serious. I’m happy to accommodate you, please thank Mr. Steinman for his recommendation. Yes, that’s fine. I’ll begin clearing a week off. Its no trouble. Goodbye.”

Smiths moved to the table when Tyler finally hung up. The other man was nursing a mug with his eyes distant until Smiths accidentally rattled the table as he tried to sit down. Tyler shot him a quick smile before a nervous quirk overtook his lips, “Ah, I’m glad you found the things. Thanks again for taking me home, I don’t usually get that drunk.”

A tremor thrilled Smiths’ stomach at that the faint nervous gestures Tyler was making, “Ah, no problem. I’ve had those days too. But I’ve gotta say, I never had someone react so severely to my ‘little fuck buddy.’ But I’m almost flattered.”

Tyler covered his face with his free hand, concealing his eyes and nose best, “Oh-my-God. I can’t believe I said something like that to you. Jesus, you must think I’m some kinda loony, huh?”

“Naw, alcohol leads to loose tongues and even looser sense.” As far as consolations went it was rather weak, but Tyler laughed and brought his hand away from his face, continuing to sip from his mug while Smiths wolfed down the thin pieces of toast. “I’m Smitherson, by the way. I introduced myself last night but I don’t expect you remember. You can call my Smiths.”

Tyler shot him a glance then nodded and said, “Tyler.”


On seeing how quickly the meager meal was going Tyler moved around the kitchen putting the final touches on his breakfast soup and brining a bowl of it and warmed rolls to the table. Smiths seemed only too happy to indulge in the offerings placed before him and worked out a ‘thank you’ around bites of warm bread soaked in the creamy cheese soup.

Tyler joined him at the table with his own breakfast and watched the man form the side of his eye, “So I haven’t seen you around but you seem pretty chummy with the fellows. May I ask where you’ve been?”

“Oh, don’t ask me where I’ve been,” Smiths said, “It could take hours to list them all. But I’ll tell you what I’ve been doing. For some thirteen or fourteen months I’ve worked as a sailor for a private barge company. Its relatively small but good work and good experience,”

“Hmm, barge? Like cargo ships? That’s heavy work.” Tyler said.

“No more so than lumber jacking,” Smiths returned.

At this Tyler’s easy expression slipped a but and Smiths hurried to preserve himself, “I was interested in you last night, didn’t know where you’d come from, so I asked a chum of mine about it. He said you’ve been working with them for a year or thereabouts. I was coming over to introduce myself and talk to you when I found you drunk. I’m not a stalker to anything.” Privately, Smiths winced at this thinking of his behavior the day before but it seemed sufficient for Tyler because he smiled and went back to his tea.

Their breakfast continued in calm repose until all of Smiths soup was gone and Tyler stood to refill it. Given this moment of distraction, Smiths glanced around and landed on the two large brown packages that still lay unopened on the table. Picking one up he turned it in his hands and felt the solidity of maybe a book or a file inside the manilla envelope.

Tyler set down his filled bowl and said, “That’s a commission from the company in Baltimore. I work as a creative designer in the advertising firm. I was lucky enough to have as friend up top that let me move and still work there.”

“Advertising? What do you do?”

“Oh, most of anything, from animated commercials to posters to product cover designs. Just about anything that can be done on a computer I do it.”

“Is that what the phone call was about? I mean the one I just walked in on?”

“Oh, yes. I’m going all the way up to Boston to meet a client. Actually, I should head over to the boss’s office and see about getting that time off. You finish eating. I’ll give him a heads-up call.”

Smiths complied and worked through his soup at a more sedate pace than he had the first one and watched Tyler pick up his cell and wander onto the porch where he paced while talking to the manager. It was endearing how he indulged in soft little touched to his person, the slightly citrus-mint smell that rolled of him, the well-cared for hair, his smooth face, those elegant – and no doubt worked – hands resting on his hip or perching the phone at his ear. Not to mention his cooking and hospitality skills. Smiths had never even gotten to ask why he hadn’t been thrown out.

By the time Tyler came in looking a bit exacerbated but not the worse for wear Smiths had cleaned up the kitchen as best he could and was lounging at the table turning the closed brown package in his big hands.

Tyler glanced at it, a small smirk coating his features, and said, “Why don’t you open it? You’ve been interested in that for a while, right?”

“Really? You don’t mind?”

Tyler almost laughed at the boyish excitement, “No, I know, generally, what’s in there. You’re welcome to peruse.”

Smiths smiled and promptly ripped open the package. From inside came another envelope as well as formal letter and several notes and glossy, high-quality, prints. The letter was a formal address from L– Company to Tyler requesting that he accept this client and outlining the deadline and product. The glossy prints were most recent previous advertisements and the notes contained comments from the client as well as idea sketches from some assistant design members. Looking over it all closely Smiths determined it was an advertisement for sneakers and that it would be aired in just a few months. He looked up to ask Tyler if he did the commercial or just the design but Tyler was stretching up to grab something off the top shelf of his bookshelf. A long sliver of skin showed just above his pants. The dip of his spine was just visible and the curve of his hip jutted out when he arced up on one foot to try and get taller.

Swallowing and scrubbing his hands against his jeans, Smiths moved over to him and reached up behind him, easily touching the top shelf, “What were you looking for?”

Tyler jerked back against Smiths and stuttered out, “Oh, the jar, up there, the clear one.” Smiths plucked it up by the top rim and pulled it down carefully. He held it towards Tyler who had turned to face him having no escape.

Tyler shot him a look then reached in and plucked something out, “Can you put it back up there?”

Smiths nodded and moved the vase back. Tyler didn’t move and his chest brushed against Smith, his arms moving as though to brace him.

As soon as the vase was settled Smiths took a step back hoping his reaction to being so close to Tyler wasn’t visible and not daring to look incase it was. “Ah, so, what do you keep up so high you can’t even reach it?”

Tyler shrugged and fiddled with the object in his hand, “Its just a place I keep my old thumb drives. Otherwise I loose them too easily. I wanted to bring this one with me when I go up to New York and it also happens to have a copy of the contract I signed with the lumber company so I’m going to review it and see how vacation time works.”

Smiths nodded and moved back over to the table and organized the papers he had been shuffling through, “So this says it for a commercial. Will you do the animation and stuff or just the design?”

Tyler followed him and read the paper over his shoulder, “Hm, probably I’ll do the animation and stuff but depending on what they decide it may also have to go to a director. Actually for this one,” here he picked up the envelope that was included in the package, “probably they have filmed it and I’ll supplant the animation into it.”

With a flippant shrug Tyler dropped the envelope and leaned back to look at Smiths better, “So, how about a ride into town?”

Smiths nodded and stood up leading the way to his truck, his keys were still in the truck, dangling from the ignition. The drive was quiet and Tyler spent most of it staring out the passenger window lost in his own head. Just as they hit main street Smiths swore and pulled down a small street, “Sorry but do you mind if we make another stop real quick? I left my mutt in my room, it completely escaped me.”

Tyelr looked at him with raised eyebrows, “Sure, that’s fine.” Tyler didn’t say anything else but he continued to watch Smiths and when the big man parked in front of a quaint little bed and breakfast and hopped out of the truck Tyler followed without question.

Smiths was surprised when he got to his room to find Tyler standing beside him. With an apologetic smile he snapped open the room the juggernaut of a canine that he called a pet came barreling out, bypassing Smiths completely, and planted both forepaws on Tyler’s shoulders. Tyler had only a moment to stagger back before the full weight of the hound was on his chest.

Smiths jerked in shock as Tyler fell back against the floor and the dog on top of him covered every available inch of skin in slobber.

When he recovered, Smiths grabbed the collar of his mutt and drug him back. Tyler was on the floor, face contracted strangely, and pressing his hands over his eyes.

Smiths shut his dog back in the room before kneeling next to Tyler who had managed to sit up but still had a strange contraction on his face. “I’m sorry Tyler, I didn’t know he would do that. He’s normally very calm. I don’t know what got into him.”

Tyler was shuddering, still covering his face, but just as Smiths was thoroughly discouraged with his attempts to calm him Tyler rolled back onto the floor, one hand resting on his stomach, the other lifting his hair off his face and tears were streaming down his cheeks with laughter, “That…was the biggest…fucking dog…anyone has ever…tamed…I swear!” He managed to gasp out between dying fits of giggles.

Smiths let out a sigh and rolled onto his haunches before examining Tyler clinically. There were slightly dirty pawprints on his shoulders and his shirt was generally rumpled but he seemed fine other than that.

Smiths stood and had a mind to let the beast out again while Tyler was still on the floor but managed to regain enough sense to tug Tyler to his feet and behind him before opening his door again and trying to snatch the collar of his beast. When he had him secured on a leash Tyler bent down and smothered his head in pets. The big dog whoofed happily and spread his stick tongue across Tyler’s hand and arm.

Privately, Smiths wished he could get a petting. Even just a little one. But Tyler was whole occupied with the mutt until they made it out side to let him “do his business.” Tyler turned to him, almost embarrassed, and said, “Really, he’s awesome. That’s the best laugh I’ve had in a while. What’s his name again?”

“Oh, its Heloise. One of the sailors named him for me.”

“Heloise. Heloise. I like it. It suits him.”

They took him out the stairs, Heloise almost pulling Smiths flat of his face, but years of brutal labor hadn’t been wasted on the man. Tyler was duly impressed with his control over the mutt. There was something gut-thrilling about seeing all those muscles taught as Smiths hauled back on the leash and his arms flexing sharply to keep Heloise in constant check.

Biting his tongue at the train of his thoughts until bitter blood coated his taste buds, Tyler hung back near the kitchen door as Smiths let Heloise run loose in the empty back lot. Smiths joined him on the wall and they watched as the big dos rushed around the yard barking like mad then stuttering to a halt to squat and relieved himself.

Tyler twisted his lips up at this crude display in a half-smile half-disgusted look. Smiths dropped onto his haunches and twisted grass between his fingers, “So what are you up to today? I guess your not working in the lumberyard. Ya gonna spend your free day relaxing?”

Tyler glanced down at him before answering, “No, after I see the manager I’ll go back to work on these projects I got in the mail. If I’m going to see another client for an entire week I probably won’t have enough time to finish those so I need to work on them now. Particularly since I don’t have a team, just myself.”

Smiths nodded and whistled for Heloise to return after it appeared that he was done.
They left the dog in Smiths’ room again and drove the short distance to Tyler’s truck. A quick swing down had Tyler safely on the side walk and prepared to get into his truck but Smiths’ hand grasped his wrist loosely, “Hey, wait a second. Can I,” Smiths shifted uncomfortably and ran his free hand through his hair, “Can I take you out? Sometime?”

Tyler paused, his heart vibrating in his chest before it began to thump again. He felt an odd tremor pass through him ad nauseum and finally choked out a forced, “Yea, yeah, that’s fine.”

“Tomorrow?” Smiths pushed, moving a bit closer, “I’ll pick you up before lunch. Okay?”
With that Smiths bent down just long enough to plant a tiny, teasing kiss on Tye’s surprised cheek. As soon as he was freed, Tyler rushed into his truck and drove back to his quiet little house. Hot oil churned in his stomach the whole way and those surprisingly soft and gentle lips bleed across his skin.

Tomorrow. He was going on a date with Smiths. Tomorrow.