Roy & Drake

( I have a few images of Kenta in my gallery :))


5.

The Netherlands was cold and gray compared to Greece. Roy stared out of the window of the train, to the landscape flashing by, sighing once again. He sniffed, fighting back his tears. He missed Drake already. It would take a while to get over him. At that moment, Roy couldn’t imagine he would ever get over him at all.

Sander and Kevin were quiet too, for different reasons. They didn’t tell Roy what had happened between them. Roy wouldn’t be interested anyway, with his broken heart and sadness. They didn’t sleep together again after their first experiment, much to Sander’s disappointment. He had enjoyed it very much. Kevin had enjoyed it as well, but not enough to try and do it again.

Still quiet, their paths parted at the train station. Each went to their own home. Roy didn’t even unpack, immediately phoning Drake on his cell phone. He felt much better after he’d heard the sweet, soft voice again. Drake missed him just as much.

After a week of radio silence between the three friends, they finally got together again. Roy was excited, as Drake was home in London. England was a lot closer than Greece. He had already planned a visit to the other side of the canal, and he could barely wait.

Kevin had news too. One of the girls they had met in the nightclub had sent him a message on his cell phone, and they would meet later that week. Sander pouted a bit. He felt left out. No one had sent him a message, and he had given his cell phone number to a handful of girls in Greece. Frankly, he was glad they didn’t contact him. He didn’t want to go out with a girl. When Roy went to his kitchen to get something to eat for them, he followed him.

“Roy…”

“Hey. What’s up, man? You look like shit…” Roy gave him a bowl and a bag of crisps, and opened the fridge to get sausages and cheese.

Sander spoke quietly, so Kevin wouldn’t hear him. “Roy, you know clubs, right? Where you can dance and look at people?”

“Of course I do…” Roy frowned, observing his friend critically. “But what do you want with those? They’re gay clubs, San. You won’t find anyone you like there.”

Taking a cucumber and a knife, Sander didn’t look back. “I want to go to a gay club, Roy,” he said, even quieter.

Roy almost cut in his finger. “What? Why?” He stared at his friend, eyes spread wide, whispering urgently. “You’re kidding me! What happened?”

“Shh! Keep quiet, please… I can’t tell you what happened. I experimented and liked it, okay? But it was only once, and I want to try some more. I want to know if I’m looking in the wrong direction. So please help me, Roy… Where can I go?”

“You experimented? With whom? Alright, alright… Don’t tell me. But do you really think you should go to a club to meet someone? It can be quite dangerous to pick men up, you know… Especially when you’re inexperienced like you. You never know what you meet. Please play safe? Don’t just go home with someone?”

“Roy… Calm down,” Sander laughed. He raised his hands defensively. “Thank you for your concern. I promise to be careful, alright? I would just appreciate the name of a nice club…”

Roy gave it to him. It was one of his favourite clubs, with good music and hot men of all sorts and conditions. If Sander wanted to experiment, that was the place to go.
Still, Roy wanted to know who had fucked him, but Sander didn’t tell him. It was intriguing. At least it kept him occupied with something else than Drake.

Sander didn’t wait long before he went out. That very weekend, he dressed up in tight, hip-low jeans with flaring bottoms, sneakers, a tight tank top and a jeans jacket. All his tattoos were visible, one more than the other. Hopefully he would have more success with them than he had in the straight scene.
He brushed his red-brown, sleek hair. It made him look young. He had matching brown eyes, and was still tanned from the vacation. He looked good, in his own opinion. Hopefully others would think the same.

The club was large, with a round dance floor and a balcony around the whole room. It had two bars at either side, and a DJ booth in between. The music was loud, modern, and easy to move on. The dance floor was packed. Sander was surprised… He had never seen such a large crowd moving at the beat, let alone so many men. Suddenly it seemed like an impossible mission to find someone nice here. But on the other hand… He had enough choice.

First, like he always did, he took a drink at the bar to loosen up a bit. He was more nervous than he had expected, and was very aware he was alone in a club full of unknown men. As he looked around, from his safe, dark corner at the bar, he wondered if it was such a good idea after all. What did he know about being gay, other than that his only experience had been pleasant?
To make matters even worse, he noticed he drew quite a bit of attention…

“Great artwork…”

Sander almost jumped off his stool, and he spilled his drink. He jerked around, staring at the man behind him. First, he noticed the tattoos; full sleeves. He was wearing jeans and sneakers, and a white tank top, just like Sander, steel bracelets and rings. Sander couldn’t help comparing it to his own left arm, where he was wearing almost the same. The biggest difference was the man’s hair; it was almost white against his tanned skin. Perhaps he was a lot older, but his face had only little wrinkles. He had pale blue eyes. And he smiled at him, slightly mockingly.
“Thanks,” Sander managed to reply. It didn’t come out right. It sounded more like ‘nsh’.

The man’s grin broadened. “Can I offer you a new drink? I didn’t mean to startle you…” He took a clean handkerchief from his pocket, and gave it to him.

Sander was shaking the drops of his wet fingers. He gratefully accepted the handkerchief, and dried his hand. He mumbled a ‘thank you’ again.

“Welcome. You can keep it.” The man took Sander’s empty glass, and smelled it. “Whisky. Irish malt, if I’m not mistaken. No ice? Good.” He yelled at the bartender and ordered two new glasses. “Cheers, handsome… Now try to relax, alright? You look like a deer caught in headlights. I won’t bite, unless you ask me to.”

His next ‘thank you’ made the man smile and wink at him. “My name is Sander,” he said, just to say something else.

“Nice to meet you, Sander… My name is Kenta.” He even bowed a little.

“Kenta,” Sander repeated. “What a nice name…”

“You think? Thank you. It’s Japanese.”

Sander looked at the tattoos. Some were Japanese, but the man looked very western to him. He blinked, and pulled one eyebrow up.

“My mother is Japanese,” Kenta explained with a grin. “My dad is Dutch.”

“How often do you have to explain it…?” Sander asked shyly, almost apologetically.

“Oh, about every time I tell my name. Don’t worry about it. Here, you only have to say it if you want me to go away…”

“But I don’t want you to go away,” Sander blurted before he knew it. He instantly felt how a horrible blush turned his cheeks into tomatoes. He quickly sipped his drink. Kenta stood close so they could hear each other over the music, and he could feel his warmth. He saw how the man tilted his head, observing him. Feeling terribly insecure, he glanced up. “I’m just… not really… Uhm…”

“You’re just not really uhm,” Kenta teased, poking him in his side. “Shall we dance, Sander? Or did you plan to sit at the bar, getting pissed until closing time?”

“Dancing is okay,” Sander nodded. He tried to sound confident, but didn’t really succeed. At least he knew how to dance to this music; he wouldn’t make a fool of himself.

Kenta could dance as well, Sander noticed, even on a crowded floor like that. They were forced to stand close together. He didn’t pull away when Kenta put a hand against the small of his back, but he lost his rhythm as he felt him against his front. Kenta took lead. He smiled at him, winking reassuringly. Slowly, Sander felt a little better, and he even smiled back.

“Let’s get some fresh air,” Kenta said in Sander’s ear. They were both sweating. He didn’t wait for a reply, and took his hand, leading him to the exit. He stopped at the cloakroom to get his jacket, and Sander did the same. The night air was cold and welcome. They both breathed in gratefully.

“Nothing works better than a stuffed club to appreciate fresh air,” Kenta commented. “Come, let’s walk. Are you hungry?”

Sander shook his head. “Thirsty, to be honest…” He pulled on his jacket and walked next to Kenta through the silent streets. The man led him to a snack bar, where he bought two bottles of water.

“You’re different, aren’t you…” Kenta looked at Sander, leisurely loafing about the streets.

“Different than what?”

“Than the other guys. Are you shy? If you’re insecure, you shouldn’t be. You’re very handsome, you know.”

“Thank you,” Sander mumbled, looking at his feet. “So are you. I guess I’m just not like the other guys.” Actually, he didn’t expect it to be like this either. He had expected to be seduced by a dominant man in leather or something…

“I like that, Sander…” Kenta stepped a little closer, and took his hand. “You’re not looking for fun for a night, are you? Me either,” he smiled as Sander shook his head. “You have to forgive me if I say something wrong now, but you were in the club, and alone… It doesn’t match, does it? Most guys who come alone are looking for someone to take home…”

“I’m not,” Sander said, he looked up, straightening his back. “I’m not desperate.”

Kenta laughed softly, pulling him close. “It has nothing to do with being desperate,” he said. “It has to do with testosterone and being horny.”

“Oh.” It felt sexy, the way Kenta played with his fingers. “Then I guess I’m not horny…?”

The man took a large step, and stood before him. He took both hands. “That’s not entirely true though, is it? Because I felt how you grew harder when we danced…” He looked around, making sure they were alone in the dark. Leaning in, he pressed a soft, lingering kiss on Sander’s lips.

Sander closed his eyes. When Kenta finished the kiss, he slowly opened them, looking into the man’s pale blue eyes. He had to repress the urge to giggle nervously, and bit his lip.

“Nice?” Kenta asked with a whisper. His thumbs caressed the back of Sander’s hands.

“Yeah,” Sander said under his breath. His nervous grin broke through. “Very…”

“Shall we do it again? A bit longer and deeper, perhaps?”

Sander licked his lips, nodding. “Yeah,” he sighed again. He slipped his arms around Kenta’s waist as the man pulled him close, and tilted his head to receive the long, warm kiss. It tasted marvelous. This was the second man he kissed, and both were much better than the women he ever had. Sander knew he had made the right decision, right there and then. He relaxed, and moaned pleased. They parted with a satisfied smack.

“You’re a great kisser,” Kenta smiled at him. He brushed the back of his fingers along Sander’s cheek, pushing a few strands of hair aside. “And don’t say ‘thank you’,” he added, winking. “You’re cute…”

“You’re beautiful,” Sander said before he knew it. “I mean it,” he said as the man laughed softly. “Have you heard it all before?”

“Yes… But it sounds so sweet when you say it; almost like a confession. You’re such a shy bunny…” Kenta slowly shook his head, looking at him with a warm smile. “Shall I get you a taxi?”

“And then what?” Sander asked, suddenly nervous again.

“And then you go home,” Kenta laughed. “Unless you don’t want to go home yet?”

“Actually, that was not what I planned to do,” Sander said quietly, looking away. “I wanted to be with a man tonight, you know…?’

“Oh? You just said you weren’t looking for fun for a night… Are you lying now?”

“No! Ah shit,” Sander cursed softly. He sighed, shaking his head. “This is new to me, Kenta… I’ve never been in a gay club before, and… Uhm…”

“How old are you, Sander?” Kenta helped him in his awkward struggle to find the right words.

“Twenty-two,” he replied almost inaudible. He still looked down, and played with Kenta’s jacket.

“Are you a virgin?”

“No.” It was strange to say it. At one side it made him proud, but at the other hand very awkward. “I had sex with a guy,” he added. “Once.”

“Ah. That explains a lot,” Kenta said with a soft laugh. “Oh dear…” He pulled his arms around Sander’s shoulders, and pecked a kiss on his nose. “You’re still in the experimental stage, hm? I’m not too sure I want to be part of that. What if you decide you like girls better after all?”

“Huh? You’re joking.” Sander finally looked up, and scowled. “I’m discovering, yes. But going back to girls…?”

Kenta laughed out loud at his expression. “Okay!” he chuckled. “They weren’t that bad I hope? Mh... Are you sure you’re not hungry? I don’t want to go home either...” He toyed with a lock of Sander’s hair, still standing close against him. “Shall we grab a burger and a shake? Then we can talk some more, if you like...”

“Strawberry,” Sander nodded. He would like to talk some more. Kenta was beautiful, he really was. He seemed very kind too. Roy could be proud of him; he would be careful that night. He wouldn’t have sex at all, apparently. Or... Well, who knew. Leaning up, he pressed a gentle kiss on the man’s lips.

Kenta smiled at him. “You are different,” he said quietly. “I like that very much...”