An Unforgettable Summer (Good Guys Don't Date Bad Boys Bonus Story, Patreon Exclusive) - Ch. 7 (Patreon)

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Chapter Seven – Working Hard Or Hardly Working?

“Can I ask you something, just out of curiosity?”

Maddox leaned toward his boyfriend, ready to hear the question. “Shoot, babe.”

They were back home, pretending to be hungry after having pizza with Rusty, and now his mom was filling up their plates with the most delicious pot roast in the entire universe. That was the secret of his mom’s cooking. Even if you weren’t hungry, you couldn’t refuse a portion. He didn’t have that much trouble stuffing his face, but maybe Jonathan had a more sensitive stomach.

“How can you and Rusty eat so fast?”

Across the table from them, Rusty was getting busy with his fork, just as much as he was. In comparison, Jonathan was eating delicately, one bite at a time. Maddox felt like a bit of an uncultured ape. “Um, we’re just used to it, I guess?”

“Why the question mark?” Jonathan asked.

“What are you two whispering about?” Rusty asked when he took a break from stuffing his face.

“I’m just impressed by your ability to eat so fast,” Jonathan explained. “Both of you. Especially after we had--” He cut his own words short, when Maddox’s mom walked into the kitchen, where they were eating, since no one else was at home and there was no point in using a bigger table. “Florence, your food is absolutely exquisite.”

Good, Jonathan knew how to smooth over his mishaps.

“You barely touched it,” Florence complained right away. “Would you like something else, dear? I can cook something else for you. Just tell me what.”

“No, no, please,” Jonathan said alarmed. “I absolutely love it. I guess that I’m a slow eater. I was actually wondering how Rusty and Maddox can eat so fast.”

Rusty held his empty plate up. “Can I have seconds, Flo? Pretty please with a cherry on top?”

Florence kissed Rusty’s forehead and took his plate. “You don’t have to say ‘please’ every time you want a second helping.”

“He totally does, or he’ll turn into a complete animal,” Maddox said, determined to throw Rusty under the bus if need be, only so that his boyfriend wouldn’t think he also liked to eat like a famished pig.

“I guess it’s true that these boys are fast eaters,” Florence said. “I’ve told them enough times to chew their food, but in the end, I’m the one who got used to them cleaning their plates in the blink of an eye, I suppose. But you take your time, Jonathan. Would you boys like some pie after?”

Maddox could read real alarm on his boyfriend’s face. “That’s fine, mom. We’re going to have some at dinner, when everyone’s home.” He could tell Rusty was shooting daggers at him with his eyes. “Now, we’re going to play some ball. You know, all this food has to get put to good use.”

“A better place is my belly,” Rusty said with emphasis. He must have also caught on to Jonathan’s distress because he didn’t insist on the pie. If it have been just the two of them, he wouldn’t have minded begging, Maddox was sure of it. “Thanks a lot for the food, Flo.”

“Just sit and eat. Playing can wait a little.”

Jonathan took another bite. “I think I will have to ask you for the recipe, Florence. I haven’t eaten such a dish at home.”

“Your mom doesn’t cook pot roast?”

Jonathan patted his mouth. “Um, it’s actually Mrs. Day who handles the cooking.” Maddox was pretty certain his boyfriend was asking for the recipe so that he would be the one who could cook it later.

He watched his mom as what that meant caught up with her. “Ah, that’s your cook, right?” Florence said, without seeming to have been caught on the wrong foot. “Not a problem, dear. I’ll give you the recipe. And you make sure to eat at your own pace and ignore these two little piglets.”

“Just before, you were happy we were eating everything,” Maddox pointed out.

“Yes, but that’s no reason to give your boyfriend indigestion. Who’s going to do the dishes?”

“I will,” Jonathan said and put his hand up.

“I was hoping one of these two would step on each other’s feet for once to offer,” Florence said.

“It’s Rusty’s turn,” Maddox intervened.

“All right,” Rusty said with a long drawn out sigh. “I’ll do them.”

“That’s settled, then. Just show Jonathan which cupboard they go in, after he dries them.”

“Hey,” Rusty protested, “I said I’d do them.”

Maddox’s mom just rolled her eyes. “As if I don’t know how that kind of thing goes. Have fun, and don’t come back too late. Your dad would like to have dinner with you.”

Maddox saluted. “Yes, mom. We’ll be back in time.”

***

Jonathan wiped the plates carefully and handed them to Rusty, who was in charge of putting them back into the cupboard. Maddox was changing into some sports clothes, after they had decided that the kitchen was too crowded with the three of them in there. Jonathan was going to borrow some from him, as he hadn’t expected to be involved in any sports activities once they arrived at Maddox’s house.

Rusty had been adamant about playing in the same clothes. It was summer, so he only had a tee and shorts on. His footwear was somewhat questionable, but that didn’t mean that Rusty wouldn’t kill it on the basketball court, since that was where they were going. Jonathan had seen him running in crocs, so nothing was impossible.

“What are your plans for the summer?” Jonathan asked, once he was alone with Rusty.

A shrug answered his question. “I suppose I should work, but I don’t like working too much.”

“I don’t think that’s true,” Jonathan countered. “You’re great at basketball and music. Both involve pretty hard work.”

Rusty drew a long sigh. “Are you going to ask me if I went to see that vocal coach?”

Jonathan wanted to, although he didn’t want to seem too keen. His maneuver must have been see-through. “Well, it’s been on my mind, it’s true.”

Rusty pushed his hands through his messy hair. It made Jonathan want to grab a brush and put it in order, but then, again, a neat hairstyle wouldn’t be Rusty. “How long do you think I can postpone it? You know, like… years?”

“My mom said that it is not in any way constrained by time limits. Just go when you feel that you’re ready.”

“That’s not the problem. I mean, I want to, and I’m ready.”

Jonathan waited, but it looked like Rusty wasn’t going to volunteer any more information. “Can you tell me what’s keeping you from doing so, then?”

“It’s just a deal I made,” Rusty replied and appeared so absent-minded as his eyes glided over Jonathan that there was no point in insisting.

“When you do, I’m sure you’re not going to regret it. My mom knows how to pick the best professionals in any field. You can count on it.”

Rusty just nodded.

“So, what about the rest of your summer, then? If you don’t want to work.”

“My dad pays for college, in full and all that. So I don’t really need to work. But I’m bored,” Rusty admitted.

“You could hang out with us,” Jonathan offered.

“Maddox will have to work.”

“At the construction company, yes. With his brother. I’m sure he won’t mind if you join him.”

Rusty made a slightly pained expression. “I know. But Vern is just like Flo, he’d give me extra, you know, money I don’t really deserve.”

It became clearer and clearer to Jonathan that Rusty was quite a complicated person. Yet, he understood the place where he was coming from. “I’ll have to ask Maddox, but does Vern really need him at the company this summer?” A new idea was shaping in his mind.

“Not really, as far as I know. I mean, Vern could always use an extra pair of hands, but he’s very good at managing things. Why do you ask?”

“I have an idea, but I have to sit on it for a while. And of course, I’ll have to talk to Maddox first.”

Rusty nodded and handed him the last plate. “You know, it’s for real, right?”

“What?”

“You two getting engaged at the end of the summer.”

“That, yes.”

“That’s pretty awesome.”

“Well,” Jonathan said with a grin, “that’s high praise coming from you.”

Rusty put on his affronted face, but Jonathan could tell he was just fooling around. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Hmm,” Jonathan considered each word carefully, “you seem to be the polar opposite of someone wanting to become engaged to marry.”

“That’s true,” Rusty said brightly. “Frankly, I have no idea how you two do it. I mean, you’re that sure that you’ll only get it hard for Maddox for the rest of your life? And the other way around?”

Jonathan knew he should have expected the offhanded question, but it still made his cheeks burn a little. “I’m very sure of it.”

“Hmm.” Rusty seemed to ponder. “Because you’re both super-hot?”

“Thanks for the compliment, but I think that physical attraction is only part of it,” Jonathan replied.

“What are the other parts?” Rusty asked.

Jonathan let his eyes wander out the window for a moment. Could he really express everything Maddox meant to him in words? He could at least try, seeing how Rusty was as curious as a child. “I know that we share a bond. I don’t know if it can be explained, but we’re compatible, truly like halves of a whole. It’s what I feel for him. I can completely see myself talking about Maddox as my better half. What I lack, he has.”

“And the other way around,” Rusty continued. “Like table manners.”

Jonathan chuckled. “Those are not that important?”

“What’s important?” Rusty questioned while looking him square in the eye. “Size?”

It always had to be a slippery slope when talking to Rusty. Jonathan was still struggling with finding a way to get out of that carefully laid little trap when Maddox walked in, wearing shorts and a large basketball jersey that showed off his muscular arms. He found himself staring.

“Ah, it’s clearly the size of those guns, right?” Rusty commented, clearly catching on quickly as to what Jonathan was doing.

“Is this clown torturing you, babe?” Maddox asked and grabbed him by the waist for a quick kiss, which Jonathan reciprocated right away.

“No, not at all. Can I go change, too?”

“Yeah, I left clothes on the bed. Meantime, I’ll take care of Rusty.”

“Don’t scold him. We were just having fun.”

“Commenting on the size of your biceps,” Rusty supplied promptly.

Jonathan shook his head. He just couldn’t protect one who didn’t want to be protected. Rusty was his own man, owning to everything leaving his mouth without a second thought. Maddox laughed and patted him on the small of his back, close to touching his ass. Jonathan was a sucker for these small, affectionate gestures. They proved how much they wanted one another. It was an area he had to work on, since he still felt rather awkward displaying his affection when others were present. At least, when he was aware of it.

***

There was no wonder that Rusty was killing it, and them altogether. Jonathan waved to take a break and sat on the bench to catch his breath. That explained why Rusty could eat so much; he used all that energy to the last drop. Maddox proved to have more endurance than Jonathan did, and he was holding up to Rusty rather well. Of course, now he would be at a disadvantage since he no longer had a partner. The pro basketball player among them didn’t mind going as one against two. Jonathan believed that not even that was fair. To them, not to Rusty.

“Chest bump,” Rusty shouted after he sent the ball through the hoop, just as effortlessly as before.

“Chest bump my ass,” Maddox countered with a murderous look in his pretty eyes. “I should just give you the finger.”

Rusty laughed and walked close to Maddox, puffing his chest out like a rooster. Maddox rolled his eyes but did as he was told. Jonathan rubbed his mouth as he took in the scene. He truly thought straight young men were a bit more leery of such displays of touching each other’s bodies, but this looked like the norm for Maddox and his friends, or, at least, Rusty.

Sweat made Maddox’s developed shoulders glisten in the sun. Jonathan felt cheesy, corny, and all the other things people had used to say instead of cringe some time ago. Rusty had asked how he knew that he would only get hard for Maddox for the rest of his life. The answer was in front of him, in flesh and blood. How many hours had passed since their last lovemaking session? Rusty would scoff at that term, but Jonathan believed in it, no matter how the right kind of down and dirty happened between them. Maddox had insisted on trying to deepthroat properly, as he said, which had led to a long session of sweet torture, with Jonathan on the receiving end. By the time he had blown in his boyfriend’s mouth, his bones had turned into putty. Then, Maddox had fucked him slowly and made him come again. With someone like that by his side, forever was an easy possibility.

He really needed to pull his mind out of the gutter. The idea he had told Rusty about earlier required him to take action, so he took out his phone. He had a feeling everyone involved would love it, but he wanted to make sure they also got a good deal out of it.

***

“Your boyfriend is pretending to be tired only so that he can ogle you from over there,” Rusty pointed out.

Maddox felt exhaustion creeping in. Facing Rusty on the basketball court was tough. Not that he didn’t know it, but he wanted to prove himself in front of Jonathan in all ways possible. That was one of them, even though he was starting to regret it a little.

He had to admit that Rusty was right. Jonathan had no idea how he looked sometimes, when that fire lit in his eyes. Yeah, true enough, his boyfriend was ogling him, as Rusty had put it. It didn’t matter that they were fucking each other’s brains out on a regular basis. If he weren’t aware, he would totally get hard just from Jonathan looking at him like that.

“Rusty, he doesn’t pretend, trust me. It’s just that you can make anyone tired.”

“Just so that you don’t complain that you’re not getting your workouts,” Rusty pointed out.

“Believe me, we’re having enough of those,” Maddox murmured, as his eyes were continuously drawn to Jonathan. Now, his boyfriend no longer stared at him and seemed absorbed by something on his phone. Just earlier, he had talked to someone, and even seemed happy about it. Maddox was curious. Jonathan would surely tell him later. They didn’t have any secrets between them.

“Ah, is it some kind of sex calisthenics?” Rusty asked, pulling him out of his daydreaming.

“Sex calisthenics? No, just sex,” Maddox replied with a large grin.

“I’m so envious of you,” Rusty admitted.

“Why?”

“Until fall, when I’m back in action, it’s going to be a dry summer for me.”

“Right. Local girls are already well-aware they should stay clear of you.”

Rusty sighed. “I can’t help it if I’m a local legend. I could score anyway, you know?”

“I’m sure. So why the dry season, then?”

“I dunno.” Rusty offered a shrug with that. “I’m not in the kind to hook up with the same chick twice, you know me.”

The version of Maddox from before Jonathan would have totally gotten that. Now, he couldn’t even imagine why he would ever want someone else. It wasn’t the easiest thing to explain to Rusty. He could tell him that one day, he would feel the same about someone, but was it true? For everybody? Maddox thought he was lucky. He was not necessarily the kind to believe in star-crossed lovers or anything like that, but with Jonathan, he felt that he had found the person he would be in love with forever. That included the lust, too, the sex, the awesome feeling of fucking the right person. Damn, he needed to stop that train of thought. Jonathan was running a hand through his hair, his elegant fingers carefully arranging each strand. Maddox knew a lot about what those fingers could do.

“So, are you just going to wait until we’re back at Sunny Hill? Isn’t it going to be hard?”

“Plenty hard,” Rusty assured him. “But, you know, the wait is always worth it. That place is like a magnet for sexy chicks in the mood to party.”

“That’s good for you,” Maddox offered for lack of anything else to say. His days of hooking up seemed so far away now. He grabbed a bottle of water and threw one to Rusty, who caught it deftly. “Who knows? Maybe you’ll find someone, too, during senior year.”

“I’ll find someone, and someone else, and another someone else, and so on. There are still several chicks I haven’t managed to hook up with,” Rusty said. “And I’m sure the freshman year will be as generous as always in that department.”

Maddox drank from his bottle while eyeing Rusty closely. He used his usual bravado and empty talk when it was about girls, but something was amiss. Maybe he was imagining things; Rusty had put him through the wringer on the court, and now exhaustion was making him assume stuff that wasn’t true. Rusty was the same ol’ Rusty. “How about putting your mind to finding someone you’d like to spend more than one night with?”

“I’m hardly spending the night with them,” Rusty pointed out. “Sometimes, it all happens in one afternoon or so.”

Maddox shook his head in mirth. Was there a point in even challenging Rusty? “What would that someone have to be like? You know, hypothetically?” Sometimes, it was fun just to poke Rusty and see what he would come up with.

“Someone I’d like to spend more than one afternoon with? Like more than some one afternoon stand?”

“One afternoon stand,” Maddox repeated after him. “Sorry, Rusty, it doesn’t look like you still have it. It just doesn’t sound right.”

“It feels right,” Rusty said. “Wait, do you want me to get hitched, too? Follow you and Kane in your sanity?”

“I think you want to say ‘insanity’.”

“No, sanity.” Rusty sounded sure.

“I wouldn’t mind seeing you with someone like that,” Maddox said. “You know, see you all smitten and head over heels. Just so that I can laugh at you.”

Rusty smirked. “Nah, I wouldn’t give you the satisfaction.”

“So,” Maddox insisted as he observed Jonathan, who was still busy on his phone, “what would that special someone look like for you?”

“He should have a tail and claws, you know that.”

Maddox turned his head toward Rusty. “You’re still on about that cat boy, aren’t you? But why not a cat girl?”

“I have no idea. There’s just something about cat boys, you know, the ones that pull off the look well.”

“Is it because of that cosplayer that you thought was a girl?” Maddox asked. He had heard the story once, but he wouldn’t mind hearing it again.

“Yeah, I mean, his face was too cute for a dude’s,” Rusty explained. “I just thought it was some flat-chested girl under that cat suit. I wouldn’t have minded. I like all kinds of tits, big and small.”

Maddox didn’t pretend he understood everything about the enigma that was Rusty. “You didn’t exactly tell me what happened. Only that you went hard at that poor cat boy.”

Rusty looked away. “It’s just my usual MO, man, what can I say? Chicks usually dig my style.”

“So,” Maddox continued to prod, “did you scare him? What did you do? Grabbed his ass out of the blue?”

“I wasn’t that direct. I usually talk to them first.”

“That’s a surprise,” Maddox commented only to see Rusty making faces. “Come on, finish the story. You didn’t tell me everything.”

“All right, geez, you’re like a dog with a bone.” Yeah, right. Rusty was dying to recount whatever had happened that time. “I didn’t scare him. He scared me. I went to him, told him what a nice tail he had, and all that, but, of course, I talked to him like he was a chick. He stood there, staring at me with his pretty gorgeous eyes--”

“Oh, he had gorgeous eyes? What color?” Maddox asked. He counted on Rusty to remember every single detail.

“He had contacts, so they were, you know, cat eyes, the golden type.”

“That explains the gorgeous comment.”

“You know nothing, ignorant. Anyways, I asked him if I could touch his costume, and he just moved closer, you know, with one hip forward. I’m telling you, you could have mistaken him for a sexy skinny chick. Like, completely.”

“Did you touch his hip?” Maddox asked.

“It’s not like me to refuse a direct invitation. I stroked his hip and his belly. And then,” Rusty stopped and sighed.

“And then?” Maddox insisted.

“Then, he told me in the most dude voice you’ve ever heard in your life, ‘brave knight, why don’t you touch me lower?’ Bang, just like that.”

Maddox couldn’t keep it in. He turned his head to hide that he was laughing, but it was impossible.

“I was traumatized!” Rusty hit him in the shoulder. “It’s no laughing matter. I swear, my dick turned into a limp noodle on the spot.”

Maddox had to wipe his eyes with the back of his hands, while Rusty continued to torture his shoulder. “Ouch, you’re going to give me a bruise. I’ll tell on you to Jonathan. But really, Rusty, if you were so traumatized that it was actually a guy under a cat boy suit… Wait, why would a girl wear a cat boy suit?”

“Anyone can cosplay as whoever they want,” Rusty explained. “As long as you pull off the look, you’re golden. And there are many girl cosplayers that pull off a lot of male characters without a problem.”

“All right, I see. Still, the question remains. If your dick turned into a noodle, as you just said, why would you want to meet another cat boy?”

“Because I was surprised, that one time. But later, when I thought about it, I realized that I wouldn’t have minded petting him everywhere. I just couldn’t find him again.”

“There must have been other cosplay events, and other cat boys,” Maddox pointed out.

“Yeah, but it’s not a look everyone can pull off,” Rusty said with conviction. “I won’t pet just any cat boy.”

“Did you try to find the same guy?”

Rusty made a face. “His voice was too manly. I don’t want to pet a cat boy with a bigger dick than mine.”

Maddox ran one hand over his face. “Well, at least you have your priorities straight.” No, not exactly. Rusty apparently didn’t see that there was a certain homoerotic desire underlying his wish to pet cat boys, and Maddox thought it would just put the wrong idea in Rusty’s head to say so. Plus, that kind of thing seemed awfully specific. Maybe Rusty just wanted to explore something, and there was no point in bringing other complications to the table. Also, there was no bigger womanizer than Rusty in the known world.

“How is it going, guys?” Jonathan asked as he walked over to them. “Have we had enough of Rusty wiping the floor with us? Did you get enough, Rusty?”

“Totally.” Rusty stretched his arms over his head and smirked with superiority.

Maddox never held that against him. Rusty was good at what he was good at. End of story.

“Then, I have a proposition for the two of you,” Jonathan continued. “Maddox, how would you feel about another type of work this summer? Just in case your brother doesn’t really need you at the company.”

“I wouldn’t say ‘no’. I just have to tell Vern. But what do you have in mind, babe?” Maddox asked.

“Rusty was saying that he was bored, and I asked him about working,” Jonathan said promptly.

“And I told him what I think about working,” Rusty added in the same manner.

“So, I thought about finding something that would be a good fit for the three of us,” Jonathan continued. “Something that would involve hard work, but it could also be fun. You know, something perfect for a summer job, and for young people like us.”

Rusty threw a longsuffering look at Maddox. “Your boyfriend wants us to intern at some law firm, carrying papers and washing puke off the floors.”

Maddox wasn’t entirely sure what Rusty meant by that. Half of the time, he wasn’t asking. Jonathan hadn’t learned his lesson and wanted to know everything. “Carrying papers and washing vomit? Why?”

“Because lawyers use a lot of paper, and they probably puke all the time because they have to defend criminals and shit,” Rusty replied.

“I assure you lawyers have tougher stomachs than that,” Jonathan said airily. “No need for such extreme tasks for interns. But put your mind at ease, Rusty. I have nothing of the kind in store for us. No, I searched long and hard for the perfect summer job. And I think I found it.”

Maddox watched Jonathan with the same curiosity as Rusty. “Well? What job is that?”

Jonathan’s smiled broadened. “What do you guys say about working as stagehands for one month and a half?”

“Like, for a band?” Rusty shouted, obviously excited.

“Yes. A rock band,” Jonathan said and nodded his head, in response to Rusty’s enthusiasm.

“Wait, but what do we know about being stagehands?” Rusty asked.

“We’ll learn. It’s not very complicated, but it’s hard work, so we should be ready to do that.”

“Work hard? No problem,” Rusty continued. “It will hardly be working! Damn, I always thought that it would be so cool to be on the road with a band!”

Maddox felt the same, but he wanted to prove that he had a head on his shoulders. “Who’s going to accept us on such short notice? How much is the pay?”

“I pulled some strings,” Jonathan announced with a broad smile. “I made sure that it will cover what you need to make for your tuition. Rusty, I suppose you’ll have no problem figuring out what to do with the money.”

“Leave it to me,” Rusty said with self-importance.

“Don’t buy a cat boy,” Maddox warned him.

Rusty threw him an insulted look. “I wouldn’t pay for that. I want the cat boy to want me to pet him. Not like a transaction and stuff.”

Jonathan looked at him with stars in his eyes. “What do you say, Maddox?”

Maddox had the same dreams Rusty had as a child. But, still, he needed to be sure of something. “What about you? It’s not like you need to work now. Your parents might not like it.”

“They find my recent propensity for earning my keep quite endearing,” Jonathan said with a grin. “It was actually my mom through whom I found these jobs for us.”

“For real?” Rusty exclaimed. “Does your mom know rock stars?”

“She knows a lot of people. She might not wine and dine with rock stars,” Jonathan said, “but she knows plenty of managers and important people in the industry. She really loves music.”

“I know,” Rusty said. “Maddie, say ‘yes’, like right now!”

“Call me Maddie once more, and we’ll see what happens,” Maddox said without one drop of rancor.

Rusty wrapped his arms around him and forced him to bounce up and down. “We’re going on tour, Maddox, can you frigging believe it?”

“All right, all right, stop shaking me,” Maddox insisted. Still, he felt just as much like bouncing up and down as Rusty. “I just need to make sure that my very intellectual boyfriend isn’t doing this just for our sakes.”

“I assure you, I’m not,” Jonathan said. His smile was a good indication of the truth in his words. “Just say ‘yes’, both of you, and the day after tomorrow, we’ll have to pack our bags.”

“Totally, yes,” Rusty said again, as if there was any need for him to do so.

“It looks like I can’t say ‘no’ since you, kids, are so into it,” Maddox said with a grin.

“Then, it’s settled.” Jonathan pulled out his phone again. “Let’s hit the road, boys.”

TBC

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