Chapter 24

Content Warning: Sexual Content (Explicit) | Underage Drug Use (Minor)

It took half an hour, but the window of opportunity finally presented itself.

West thought about going to Kaspar first and letting him in on what transpired earlier, but he figured someone had to be kept in the mood for the party. Neil and his band had headed off somewhere after finishing two more songs, and now the team captain was on the chase for his rival. As he hurried through the crowd, briefly greeting and nodding at familiar and famous faces on the way, his green eyes swiveled right and left for that lightning blue. West had moved as soon as they got off stage, so they couldn't have gone that far.

A couple of minutes later, he was about to lose hope when he spotted Shaun, who was shaking his head with a grin to no one while he carried two guitars. For a second, West thought the dyed blond was laughing at him getting all twisted up and lost from trying to find Neil, but the latter wasn't even faced his way. In one hand was his guitar, and in the other was the one his noirette rival had strummed during their performance.

West took a deep breath, ridding himself of the memories of the moments thirty minutes ago, and pulled up his best, beaming smile before following the taller boy. Shaun spotted the shorter blond as he made his way toward him, his smile dimming just a bit.

"Shaun!" West greeted with a wave. "Hey, man!"

For a moment, Shaun's eyes widened in surprise, not expecting a warm hello, but his lips curled back up before nodding. "Kuttner. I hope our show was to your liking."

"Better than that. You guys rocked it out there!"

The taller blond blinked, stunned by the other boy's bright attitude towards him. "Thanks, man."

West shook his head. "Nah. Thank you for doing this. My brother loved every minute of it. Or at least I hope so before I left for the bathroom."

It was as if there wasn't any tension between the veteran Patriot High students and the ex-Wildwood kids. In another universe, this could have been a nice introduction to new friends from the other side. Shaun, probably not sensing any animosity or false companionship, humored him.

"Sure did. He and his friends asked for our autographs an' everything."

"Sounds like him. Consider Isaak Kuttner your number one fan."

"Noted," Shaun grinned before giving him a knowing look. "Though I'm guessing you had a particular signature in mind, and it ain't mine?"

West felt his face heat up but quickly played it off by pretending to search for something on his jacket. "I'm sure there's enough space on my football somewhere."

To the shorter blond's relief and delight, that got an uproarious laugh out of his rival's friend. "You… You're funny, Flower Boy. I'll give you that. He and Poly headed off toward the locker rooms, wherever that is, with a few stress relievers."

"Poly? That's the third guy's name?"

If he went to Patriot High, West couldn't place him. His mind usually only had space for Neil whenever he saw him.

"Yeah, he's a quiet one, that," Shaun's smile turned into a leer. "Well, unless he's under the sheets."

They shared a chuckle. Internally, West felt accomplished. It wasn't anything big, but this moment now was a small step in the right direction in trying to build unity. He just hoped this "Poly" guy was as cordial as Shaun was now.

"Locker rooms," West muttered. "Okay. I'll find that eventually."

Shaun turned and pointed, guitar still in hand, somewhere past the throne podium, where the crowd was thinning. "Just head down there, yeah? I don't think it's that far."

West nodded and took a single step before a thought occurred to him. "If you don't mind me by asking, why didn't you go with them?"

Shaun opened his mouth, froze, then smirked, nodding his head to something behind West. "The reason's right behind you."

Spinning around, the team captain recognized Nora running toward them. A proud smile graced her face as she passed by West to lock her arms tightly around his midsection, making the dyed blond snicker.

"Hey! You were amazing!" Nora said as she reached up on the tips of her toes and planted a chaste kiss on Shaun's cheek.

West's shock was evident for a few seconds as the latter's cheeks tinted red, his chuckling now slightly nervous.

"Cariño," he cooed to gain her attention and tipped his head at their audience.

Nora looked over and finally became aware of West's presence, who covered up his astonishment with a polite smile and a wave. It was her turn to blush, brushing her hair back in embarrassment. Although, she didn't move away from Shaun.

"Oh! West? I didn't see you there," she shook out of her flustered state and beamed. "Happy birthday! To your brother, I mean."

West laughed as he began to move past them. "I'll make sure to tell him. I need to head off, but good seeing you two. Have fun."

Shaun nodded. "Later, Kuttner."

"See you in school, West!" Nora waved.

Jogging away from them, West pondered what just happened. In the beginning, Nora always seemed to be hanging close with Neil than Shaun or anyone else in their group. Perhaps he hadn't been looking closely enough. That, or he'd been too busy looking at one person in particular just like this situation. It was an innocent peck and a sweet pet name, but he couldn't stop the bloom of hope in his stomach, praying he read their relationships wrong.

It took another ten minutes, but West thought he found a locker room judging by the absence of a door and the porcelain tile entryway. Standing on the outside of it to inspect his surroundings, the corridor it was located at was just as empty as the one he found Finn at, which meant that no one but he could catch the voices emanating inside, both male and female. Listening closely, he deduced three distinct ones, two of them high and sultry and the third low and raspy. However, it wasn't Neil. Focusing on that, he couldn't piece together the words of the conversation.

A couple of moments later, he couldn't at all because all talking seemed to cease.

And then suddenly, there was a moan.

A breathy, female sigh of pleasure reached West's ears and made him freeze. Then, there was another, this one hummed and overlapping with the other. A whole assortment of sounds followed.

Kissing. Smacks. Moans. And grunts.

All of them oozing out of the locker room, into West's head, and stirring something below. He had an inkling to back out and away from what sounded like a threesome, but the burning curiosity was too much to push away, urging his legs to walk deeper into the room.

Was Neil in there? The question sent a pang of jealousy to accompany the arousal. And that got him moving, his footfalls soundless underneath the rising noises of ecstasy. West placed both hands on the cold metal of a blue locker bank and peaked over.

And laid on a pair of eyes of lightning.

West flinched back, nearly tripping on his own feet, while Neil, sitting on a bench backed into the lockers, watched him blankly. The blond gaped, his voice lost as he glanced between his adversary and the scene in the middle of the locker room.

"Poly" was a boy of average height, but he was still taller than the two girls he was sandwiched between, eyeing the speechless blond as his shirtless torso was necked and caressed. Curls of his black hair lay damp across his forehead, a couple of beads of sweat trailing down his muscular, tattooed arms and well-toned, brown chest.

That sight shocked him, but it was the view on his left that practically sent his heart into cardiac arrest. Neil was sitting, not a part of the action, but he seemed to be enjoying it all the same considering that the fly of his ripped jeans was unzipped and pushed down just above the middle of his powerfully built thighs, revealing a long and thick length framed by a dark bush. The noirette's hand slowly moved up and down his shaft even as his hooded eyes watched his blond rival.

Said boy could only stutter. "I-I'm-"

"This your boy, N?" Poly questioned, his voice hoarse with amusement.

Neil didn't look or address his bandmate, asking West, "You come to join the party, Flower Boy?"

"Guess he's sick of that name," Poly chuckled before groaning lowly when the girl behind him reached around and dug her manicured hand down his jeans. "The Flower Boy gets deflowered."

West felt himself tremble, his mind too muddled to come up with a response other than "Um…"

"I need an answer," Neil's eyes narrowed, his voice almost menacing. "You wanna join or not?"

West's eyes went everywhere, trying not to ogle his rival or the threesome as he spoke. "I mean- I mean… I-I was… I was looking for you-"

"Shit, Flo," Neil waved him over and tapped the seat next to him. "Come 'ere."

The blond swore his body shut down for a minute. "Wha…?"

"Don't be a bitch," Neil growled this time. "I know you like me, right? Then, come here an' keep me company while we watch Poly get his prize."

West could not believe what he was hearing. The trio ahead was intensifying, Poly's pants and boxers now across his knees, making space for the two girls to lap at his hardened cock. He tilted his head back and released another moan, his Adam's apple bobbing. It only invigorated the two gorgeous females to go harder, squatting side by side as one's ruby lips sucked on his length and the other's tongue licked his low-hanging balls.

West could no longer control his legs as they took him toward Neil to sit beside him, the pack of cigarettes and the pile of beer cans a few feet away instantly an afterthought the moment he saw them. He was close enough to feel the heat waft off of the noirette's body, smoke and wood lingering under his nose and fogging his mind further.

"Are you going to do the honors, or should I?"

Neil's question had him looking back and forth, and suddenly he couldn't decide which sight he liked more – the two girls blowing Poly or Neil's calloused hand jerking himself.

"Here," Neil smirked.

And before West knew it, the lightning-eyed boy's right hand was fiddling with his zipper. The blond could only watch and shiver at the warmth of the fingers mining their way down his pants.

"We're a lil' wound up after a gig," Neil started explaining, "or after a recording session. Some of those girls you saw that one time over the summer? They were lucky that night."

West tried to pay attention to the words Neil was saying, but the second his hand was on his dick, already steel and aching for release, the team captain slipped into another reality. And when that hand started rocking, he knew there was no way back until he came back around.

No. There was no coming back from this. There was a door on the other side of this that contained a whole new universe, and West's vision was too blurred with lust to see that. Nothing would be the same after this.

"Goddamn, Flo," the noirette's voice rumbled as both his hands moved faster. "Look at you."

West slowly turned his head to Neil, his mouth parted a bit and pupils blown out. His rival was beautiful. The most beautiful thing he's ever laid eyes on. Other than his blue eyes, West flickered down to his lips, full, red, and wet.

God, he wanted them on his so bad, but the tiny part of his brain that wasn't a hot pile of sludge kept him from making what was most likely a grave mistake. Instead, he extended his arm and replaced Neil's left hand with his own right. His entire limb quivered at the feel of his adversary's huge dick. It was like touching hot iron, sizzling the nerves of his fingers as he dragged them up and down, producing an animalistic groan from his throat. West absorbed every decibel of it.

Poly, full-on naked now, was like a machine, manipulating the two women expertly to extract every drop of pleasure from each position.

The two girls caught West's attention, too. One had long, straight black hair that lay across her back, her dark skin glowing the more she arched her undulating back as Poly pounded into her from behind. The other girl, blonde and skin as white as cream, was tightly wrapped in the guy's other arm, kissing him deeply as his fingers twitched fast across her clit, the movement strong enough to make her bounce in place, and her boobs sprang with her.

West had always been attracted to girls, and the two before him were straight out of his wet dreams. In recent years, a few boys were able to get a second look. Poly would stick in his head for months to come after this. But nobody captured his body and mind like Neil Morterero did.

The girl Poly was fucking was the first to come apart with a loud squeal, her trembling legs threatening to drop her to the floor in a mindless, satisfied heap. The blonde was next, Poly's fingers getting the job done as she let out a long, shaky breath that made West's dick swell before sagging against Poly's side. Said boy finished almost immediately after, his relentless thrusting quickening for a moment before coming to a complete stop, his entire form shuddering while mumbling nonsense to the ceiling.

Watching the ending seemed to be too much for not only West but for Neil as well. Their moans were synced as they climaxed together, and through it all, their hands oscillated faster than ever. West couldn't stop as he shot out everything he had in him. He had his eyes closed, but he could imagine covering Neil's fist, a bit of his jeans, and the floor at his feet in his load. Though, his only regret was not watching his rival finish, only feeling the lukewarm ribbons of semen coat his left hand.

"Shit, Flo," Neil repeated in his ear, so deep and rough it only heightened his orgasm.

After it all, the only sound in the room that remained was heavy, labored breathing, the participants enjoying the afterglow. West was so content to be slouched like a slug in his bliss, he didn't see the lit cigarette in front of his face until it touched the tip of his nose.

West jolted up and turned to Neil. "Oh, I-I… uh, don't-"

The noirette rolled his eyes and lowered the stick to his mouth. "Come on, Flo. Just one puff."

The blond looked over to find a smoking Poly, with pants back on, and the two girls, the blonde laying beside him and the dark-skinned one sitting in his lap, waiting and watching eagerly. It seemed time sped by while he was pleasantly dead to the world.

Never in his life had West ever considered smoking. It always disgusted him, but then came the enigma next to him, urging him to sin just this once. And deep down, West couldn't figure out if he wanted to shed his innocence and commit or not.

Not wanting to disappoint, though, he tentatively wrapped his lips around the unlit end and inhaled, then immediately broke out into a coughing fit, bending over and spluttering as his lungs burned.

Poly, who was tying his filled condom up, chuckled. "Your boy really is a flower! Dude came like a fuckin' geyser! I saw it!"

West's eyes widened in shock prior to setting his sights on his lap. His dick was still out, leaking into his gray boxers and staining the crotch of his jeans. Not only that, but strips of white littered the spot in between his feet.

Perhaps he wasn't imagining his climax after all.

"Ah, shit…" West groaned, his face reddening as he hurried to tuck himself away.

The others laughed at his expense, and despite his embarrassment, he felt the corners of his lips turn up.

"Don't worry 'bout it," Neil said as he handed him some napkins.

As Poly flirted with the two girls, West, out of the corner of his eye, became aware of Neil staring at him, his expression unreadable. The former turned to look at him, his lips pursed in uneasy anticipation as he wiped away his and Neil's spunk. Was this going to ruin everything or be the start of something new? West hoped to God Neil wouldn't tell him to get lost. Unfortunately, it seemed in line with the noirette's character. However, because of this, everything he thought he knew was starting to rearrange themselves once again.

Assumptions appeared to have come too early.

"You're everywhere, man," Neil pointed a cleaned finger at his temple. "And I mean everywhere. We might as well take advantage of it, na' mean?"

West gawked at him. "Wait, so… does that mean…?"

His lightning-eyed rival smirked, those orbs heating up once more as they studied the blond. "Ain't afraid to get hot heavy with a guy. Never had been, and you've been stuck in my head ever since you've made it your mission to nail it in there."

So, Neil crushed on West just as West crushed on Neil. The blond felt like doing jumping jacks. His feelings were returned!

Neil leaned in close, bringing back the scent of burnt wood.

"Real talk. This ain't no trick. No joke. I'm dead-ass, okay?"

West only gaped his way, transfixed.

"Shit, Flo. Talk to me," Neil snapped his fingers in the other boy's face, making him wince and shake out of his stupor.

"Oh, uh, yeah. Yeah! I get you, man."

"You headin' out?"

Oh, right. Isaak's party.

"Shit! I guess!" West shot up out of his seat, briefly looking down to make sure he was back in his underwear. "Kas and the others are probably wondering where I am!"

Out of nowhere, Neil took out a black marker, grabbed West's left hand, and began writing on the back. "Here. For next time, ya lil' thirstbucket."

When he was done, the team captain inspected it.

Ugly Mug @8 9/15

September 15th. A week from now, they'll be doing this again. He'll hear Neil sing at what he could only assume was a pub, but after, this will happen again.

Or maybe something more.

"Oh," West breathed out. "Thanks."

Neil snorted. "Don't sound too excited."

A genuine smile couldn't be contained. West beamed appreciatively and enthusiastically at his rival. Neil rolled his eyes again and quickly faced away from the blond. After saying his goodbyes, West began heading out, elated and hungry for next week.

"See ya soon, Flo-Man!" Poly called.

And West fleetingly wondered how they weren't caught during all that.