Queer as Muke

1.1.8 Queer, There & Everywhere

"Michael!" Calum shouts, pulling up with a screech in front of his building. He feels like the whole of Sydney has watched him drive through the city this morning. Putting the car into park and removing his seatbelt all in one fluid movement, he looks up to the top floor through the open top of the Jeep as if expecting Michael to hear him from all the way up there.

Sliding open the heavy door, he's somewhat surprised by the devastation that is Michael's usually pristine apartment. Wandering through with his mouth agape at the sight, he makes his way to the bedroom, not seeing anyone up or even dressed.

"Christ. Didn't you get enough last night?"

Confronted by the image of Michael and Luke standing chest to chest, Michael's lips kissing the base of Luke's neck as he unashamedly pulls up the boys underwear, Calum looks away.

Michael, topless and still damp from the shower, with just his work trousers on, isn't embarrassed in the slightest. Nuzzling his nose up the boy's neck, Luke almost keeling over in a state of bliss with his eyes shut, he snaps the elastic waistband over the boys perfect pert creamy ass cheeks, covering them up with not a little regret.

Luke, who's morning has now been fully redeemed, turns and grins at Calum's obvious discomfort, enjoying the fact that he's blatantly and completely jealous of the position Luke's in right now.

"There is no such thing as enough," Michael notes, looking at Luke appreciatively before sighing.

Putting his hand around his best friend's shoulder, Michael leads Calum from his bedroom and away from the sight of Luke standing in just his underwear. "Besides, I couldn't send him off without a nourishing high protein breakfast. It's grrrrreeeeeaaat," he quips, rolling his r's right into Calum's ear in a low voice, making him shiver.

"Will you come on?" Calum barks angrily at Luke, sticking his head around the corner as soon as Michael's wandered off in search of the rest of his clothes. "I'm not going to be late because of you."

Luke, his hair and body still damp from the long shower, ignores Calum, turning instead to the bed where he spots Michael's underwear from the night before caught up in the sheets. Picking the item up in his hands and turning it over, he smiles to himself before jumping when Calum barks at him again.

"I said hurry up!"

Stuffing the underwear into his jeans pocket, Luke quickly gets dressed.

~~~

"Yeah exactly."

Chatting backwards to Michael as they emerge onto the street, Luke doesn't see what has caught Michael's eye until he turns around.

"Oh that's beautiful Cal," catching the keys Calum throws him, Michael gazes at the now hardened painted lettering on his car in somewhat bemused sarcasm. "Just beautiful," he reiterates, his voice going as hard as his eyes as he looks over to his embattled best friend for an explanation.

"It's not my fault!" Knowing how Michael would react, Calum tries to deflect his wrath, already defensive, "I told you about those two psychopaths down the street..."

"What? A couple of twelve year olds?!"

"They start early these days. What are you laughing at?"

Luke instantly wipes the grin from his face, "Nothing," he gulps, then changes his mind, looking between them both. "You. You both sound like my parents fighting."

Calum and Michael exchange a look. Neither, it seems, wants to be referred to or even placed anywhere near the same age group as a parent.

"Doesn't matter anyway, it's a company car." Michael says, clearing his throat and walking round to the driver's side. "Well come on, we have to get the child to school."

"In this?!"

"Do you care?" Michael asks Luke, who's just realised that the FAGGOT mobile is his only way of getting to school.

Quickly rearranging his face from quiet shock to a nonchalant neutral, he shrugs and shakes his head. "Fuck no!" he says, plastering a grin on his face which gains him a pleased and proud smile from Michael and creates a warm fuzzy feeling in his stomach.

Screeching around the corner because they're late, the Jeep nearly takes out a couple of students crossing the road and threatens a few more on the pavement when they pull up outside Luke's school, Michael going all out and almost doing a handbrake turn to come to a stop. Every single student up and down the street hears the tyres and Michael's horn and turns, wondering what's going on. Luke slides down in the backseat, his head almost in his hands. How's he supposed to get out and go up the path into school now? Everyone's seen the car, everyone's seen the huge bright pink, almost neon, lettering spelling out FAGGOT so nicely standing out against the shiny deep black of the Jeep. He can hear the nearest kids already laughing and talking and that's only a few people. What happens when the whole school hears about this?

"Here we are sonny boy."

"Be sure to come home right after school," Calum chirps up from beside Michael, grinning at Luke's discomfort.

"No lingering on the playground or in the locker room with the gym teacher."

"Oh you did not tell him about that?!" Calum reprimands Michael, knowing exactly what he's referring to, and looks back to Luke. Luke raises his eyebrows knowingly but says nothing.

"It's the most famous shower scene since Psycho," Michael boasts.

"Hey Luke, do you want to suck me off?" shouts a boy walking past in a large group, grabbing at his crotch for effect and making everyone laugh nearby. Luke sinks down even lower in the back seat.

"No! But I'll kick your tight little virgin ass so hard you won't sit down for a week!" Michael retorts loudly and forcefully, opening the car door to stand up and stares down the lad who, not expecting a reply let alone a dressing down in front of everyone, starts running up the steps to school.

Realising that everyone's now laughing at the fleeing lad and not him, Luke's courage returns and he grins as he swings himself out of the car, coming to a stop behind Michael who stares after the little shit, making sure he isn't going to say anything more.

"Can we get out of here?" Calum asks no-one in particular, his hand over his eyes, embarrassed by how his best friend's just verbally abused a child.

"When can I see you again?" Luke looks up into Michael's eyes, eager for his response.

"You can see me now," Michael adjusts Luke's jacket collar, unsure as to why he's doing it but knowing that he feels a need to touch him again, to protect him from people like that kid just then, and feels a little regret that they didn't get more time this morning in the shower.

"I mean later, tonight."

"Who knows where I'll be later tonight? Michael quips.

"We'd better go," calls Calum prompting Michael to get back in the car.

"Please?"

Michael runs his eyes over Luke's face, his expression softening the more he looks. His voice, previously hard from chastising the homophobe, softens considerably too.

"I'll see you in your dreams." He says with a little regret, knowing he's going to hurt the lad.

Luke looks downcast at the reply and doesn't move immediately when Michael drives off, instead he stands for a few seconds in the road, looking in the direction they left in. His friend Chloe, who's been watching the entire thing from the school steps arrives at Luke's side with his bag and uniform in her hand.

"Where have you been?! Your Mum called, I didn't know what to tell her..."

"I just saw the face of God..." Luke murmurs, still staring after Michael's Jeep with a faraway expression on his face before glancing at Chloe to see her reaction. He smiles to himself, remembering the events of last night and this morning.

"Huh?"

"...and his name is Michael Clifford."