Collateral (BL, 18+)

Collateral

Chapter One

Jake had never been the type to fear anything for too long. It was either that way or his way. It was how he had been taught to think from an early age. His brother was in charge now, and that meant more responsibilities for the 21-year-old who was supposed to find a way in life, away from his family. Well, Diaz was his only family, if he were to think right.

But the gang was like a family. And they were not just punks. They were The Outsiders. A name many feared. A name Jake and his brother took pride in. But Jake knew he could not stay, no matter how much he wanted to. The last thing he needed was to let anyone know about his ... weirdness.

He snorted, mostly in self-deprecation. He was a strange one all right. He had never been like the others. This was a little something he only knew. When his brother and the others talked about some girl's boobs and ass, he could only think of strong arms pinning him down, sinewy legs forcing his own wide open and ...

He shook his head. Now it wasn't a good time to play with the fantasies in his mind. He feared what the others would think. Hell, he could picture them yelling at him, "Fag!" and most probably many other names that he did not want to conjure in his mind at the moment. And the yelling would not be the worst thing. Probably he was going to get a real beating to the death on top of everything else.

So, since it could not be his way, it had to be that way, which meant he had to go away and find something to do on his own, outside his brother's protection. Away from the gang and everything that meant.

He had to think of a reason, though. He could not flee, just like that. Diaz would not understand. He was bound to say something, at least.

Kicking a rock with his foot, he watched it roll on the humid sidewalk, glowing faintly in the dim street lights.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here? A mutt straying too far away from home?" he heard a mocking voice, and he froze for a moment.

"What? Ain't no one allowed to take a piss on no man's land no more?" he shrugged, watching the owner of that voice coming out of the dark. If it was just one guy, it wasn't going to be a problem. Even two or three. After that, he didn't really know.

He felt his stomach clenching as five guys all dressed in white jumpsuits appeared in front of him. Maybe he could throw a punch and run away. He was known to be a good sprinter.

"No longer no man's land," one of them spoke, with an ugly smile on his face. "It's ours."

"All right," he raised his hands in defeat. There was no point in playing the hero. "Sorry, didn't get the memo," he joked.

"The what?" another asked, earning a slap upside the head from the one who seemed to be their leader.

"Nothing, stupid mutt here thinks he owns the place and he's smart about it, too."

"I don't think that, really," Jake moved backward, his eyes darting in all directions for a fast exit. He was not one to play the hero. He liked himself with all teeth.

The move almost took him by surprise. The first to talk swung a chain with the clear intention to wipe out his feet. He jumped just in time.

Damn, he was fucked. If he was going to get out of there with just a few broken bones, he was going to be lucky. Cold sweat was pooling on the small of his back. He took a defensive stance, scanning his opponents, searching for an opening. His eyes darted to the left. The man on the extreme right was short, and he was nervously clasping a baseball bat.

He swung fast in that direction, pushing the little man against the one next to him and making both stumble and fall to the ground like two crash test dummies. He started running, with the other three after him, while the two were scrambling to get back to their feet. When the chain connected with his shoulder, he groaned. Apparently, he was not that great a sprinter.