Title: Just A Guy Thing

Author/pseudonym: Caroline Crane

Fandom: Big Wolf on Campus

Paring: Tommy/Merton

Rating: NC17

Status: new

Archive: yes to list archives

E-mail address for feedback: caroline_crane@hotmail.com

Series/Sequel: God no

Other websites: http://www.geocities.com/carolinecrane

Disclaimers: Don't own em, making no money, yadda yadda. You know the drill. If you read this you'll know WHY I'm making no money.

Notes: I have no clue where this idea came from. It just happened and I was powerless to stop it. A few times a plot tried to sneak it, but every time I beat it until it was dead. It's inane, cliche-laden, and hopefully will be taken for the parody of my usually overly romantic writing style that it was intended to be. Also my muse is evil. Evil, I tell you.

Summary: Boys will be boys. It's PWP about porn, how much more can I say?

Warnings: outrageous smut about a show intended for children. Blasphemy! Cliche warning, possibly underage sex. They could be 18, they're seniors. They've been seniors for three years on the show, they must be 18 by now, right?

When no one answered the door at Tommy's house Merton checked his watch, glanced down the street for any sign of his best friend and then turned back to the closed door. He was sure he'd gotten the time right, Tommy told him to come over around 8:00 and they'd hang out and watch movies. He wouldn't have forgotten, would he? They'd just talked about it that morning at school, after all, and Tommy had specifically requested that Merton bring over his copy of *Phantom Menace*. Personally Merton felt that the movie was far inferior to the original spirit of the first two films in the series, but try telling Tommy that. All he cared about was expensive special effects and the fact that "it's got cool explosions". Merton grinned at the memory of Tommy's face when he'd said those very words and glanced at his watch again just as the door swung open.

"Oh, hey, Merton. Sorry about that, come on in," Tommy said, clearing his throat and standing aside to let his best friend brush past him.

Merton frowned as he took in Tommy's flushed face and the slightly unfocused look in his eyes. "Are you okay, Tommy? You don't look so good."

"No, I'm fine, really. I was just.uh.here, let me take your stuff." Tommy reached out abruptly and grabbed Merton's backpack, tossing it over his shoulder and bolting upstairs. Merton watched him go as he closed the front door, his mind racing as he wondered what had gotten into his best friend. He hoped Tommy wasn't sick or something, the whole reason he was spending the night at the Dawkins' house was because Becky was having a slumber party and the last thing he wanted to do was go home and deal with her and her friends.

He wandered into the living room to see what Dean was watching, figuring he'd give Tommy a few minutes alone to get a handle on himself before he went upstairs and tried to get his friend to tell him what was wrong. When he reached the living room he stopped short, his jaw dropping open at the scene on the TV. Dean was seated in his usual spot, snacking on Cheetos as he watched the scene was apparent disinterest. "You know, they just don't make porn like they used to," he said suddenly, and Merton jumped and flushed much the same shade Tommy had been when he answered the door.

"Excuse me?" he heard himself say, barely aware of his own voice as he watched the couple on the TV going at it with unparalleled enthusiasm.

Dean didn't even look up at the new voice, his eyes still fixed on the screen as he gave a critique of the action. "This is nothing like the classics. I mean *Deep Throat*, that took imagination. This.this is just pathetic. Look at her, she looks bored. And I swear the guy in the last shot nodded off for a minute while she was going down on him."

Merton stood frozen in the entrance to the living room, heat creeping up his neck all the way to the roots of his hair. He couldn't bring himself to look away from the picture, though, he'd seen porn on the internet before but he'd never actually watched it unfold in front of him on the television. The only person that had ever touched him *was* him, and half the stuff
going on in front of him he didn't even recognize. As he lost himself in the images he realized Dean was right, though - the woman did look bored, and there were a few shots where she actually looked like she was annoyed. He tilted his head to the side and sank down onto the couch without even registering that he'd moved, falling into a slack-jawed silence as he stared at the television.

He didn't even notice when Tommy walked back into the room a few minutes later, but when he felt his best friend's hand close around his arm and pull him forcibly off the couch he blinked and did his best to focus on the person pulling him out of the living room. "Come on," Tommy hissed, and Merton felt a wave of almost fear as he registered the tone that told him his friend was struggling to retain control.

"Yeah, sorry," Merton muttered as he followed Tommy up the stairs to his bedroom. "I didn't know you guys got those channels."

"We don't," Tommy answered, relaxing his grip on Merton's arm as they reached his room. "The cable's screwed up or something so everything's unscrambled and my parents are at some fundraiser so Dean's taking advantage."

"He didn't really seem that interested," Merton said, slowly easing his coat off and looking everywhere but at his best friend. Once the mesmerizing images were gone he remembered where he was, but that didn't ease the embarrassing arousal steadily growing in the pit of his stomach. He was as hard as he'd ever been, he was standing in Tommy's bedroom and dying to do
something to ease his discomfort but he couldn't just whip it out and take care of it. He couldn't even excuse himself and go take care of business in the bathroom because Tommy would know exactly what the problem was.

"Dean's not that interested in anything," Tommy answered, settling on his bed as he watched Merton studying his CD collection. "Merton, you okay?"

Merton flinched at the question and blushed a little harder, cursing his pale skin as he glanced over his shoulder and flashed Tommy what he hoped was a casual grin. "Sure, just checking out the music. You know. So I brought that movie you wanted to watch."

Tommy watched him staring at his small collection of CDs without really seeing them for a few more minutes, taking in the way Merton shifted his weight and the unmistakable scent of arousal. He stifled a groan as his body reacted to Merton's scent, the wolf begging to be let out. "Have you.uh.you know, have you ever watched that stuff before?" Tommy finally managed to choke out.

Merton's face was going to burst into flames if he blushed any more, but there was nothing he could do but answer the question. It was either that or fake a sudden illness and go home, and the choice between discussing porn with Tommy and listening to Becky and her friends all night wasn't that hard. "Nope," he answered, taking a deep breath and turning around. He walked carefully to the edge of Tommy's bed and sat down next to the other boy, but not close enough to actually come in contact with him. "I mean I've seen it on the internet, kinda hard to avoid online. But no, I've never actually seen it.you know.in action."

"Yeah, me either," Tommy confessed, stealing a quick glance over at his friend as he tried to decide whether to drop the subject or go for broke. He watched as Merton shifted again, obviously trying and failing to find a comfortable position. "Listen, Merton, we're friends, right? I mean if you wanna.you know. I don't mind."

He watched as Merton's eyes got a little wider, all the blood that had been pooled in his face rushing back out again as he caught himself glancing over at Tommy's crotch. As soon as he realized what he was doing he turned away to stare at his own lap, but that seemed to make him even more uncomfortable. Tommy realized that maybe suggesting that to Merton was a
mistake, but it wasn't like he could take it back now. "It's no big deal, really. I mean the guys in the locker room do it. It doesn't mean you're gay or anything. It's just a guy thing."

Slowly realization dawned on Merton and he found himself looking over at Tommy again, searching his best friend's face for some sign that he was joking. Merton would die - he'd fall over dead of humiliation if he actually said yes and Tommy was just kidding. But Tommy wouldn't kid about something like this, would he? "You seriously.with the guys on the team?"

Tommy shrugged noncommittally - it wasn't a denial, but it wasn't really an answer either. He didn't mean to actually lie to his best friend, but Merton seemed kind of nervous and Tommy was just trying to help him out. He desperately clung to that explanation and leaned back a little on the bed, bracing his hands on the mattress as he waited for Merton to make a decision.

This was too much - Tommy stretched out on his bed, his eyes tinged with the tell-tale yellow that signaled his baser instincts were fighting for control of that body. And he was looking at Merton, into Merton, through him, whatever. The point was Merton could feel his best friend's eyes on him as though his gaze was palpable, and suddenly it wasn't memories of the porn
Dean was watching keeping him hard. He swallowed hard in an effort to keep some semblance of control over his body's reaction to his best friend, hoping that at least if Tommy could tell how turned on he was he wouldn't guess *why* exactly. After all they were teenage boys, their hormones pretty much ruled their lives and there was nothing wrong with a little experimentation. Tommy was right, it was just a guy thing. He'd read enough about guys doing stuff like this to know it was a natural part of growing up. He never thought Tommy would want to do it with *him*, but he wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Hey, if you don't want to it's okay," Tommy said, his gaze wandering down Merton's body to rest on his groin as he raised one eyebrow. "It's just that you looked a little uncomfortable so I figured I'd offer to help you out."

Help.help him out? Jesus, what the hell had he gotten himself into? It was one thing for Tommy to know he was hard, it wasn't even so bad that he'd suggested they jerk off together. But helping him out? Merton's cock twitched, giving him a painful reminder of its unfortunate present circumstances. The thought of Tommy actually touching him just made him harder, and he practically screamed when he felt a hand land on his thigh. "Jesus," Merton hissed through clenched teeth as he looked over at Tommy and found his best friend watching him.

"That mean you wanna.?" Tommy let the question trail off, still not quite capable of actually saying the words out loud.

All Merton could do was nod as he reached for the button of his jeans, getting his zipper down as fast as he could while Tommy opened his own fly and reached into his boxers. With a low groan he closed his fist around his erection and pulled it free of the cotton, running his fist along the length as he watched Merton mirror his actions. He wished he could push his pants off all the way so his legs wouldn't be constricted, but that would be a little too much like actual sex and he didn't want to scare Merton. After all, as far as he knew Merton was into girls and for him this really was just a guy thing. He ran his thumb over the head of his cock and hissed at the contact, looking over at Merton and smiling to himself as he found his best friend watching him with rapt attention. Well, that was promising. Maybe he wasn't as clued into Merton's sexual tendencies as he thought he was. Still, he wasn't going to push it, not until everybody was on the same page. For now this was enough, and if he played it off like it wasn't a big deal maybe he'd get to touch Merton and not just watch him.

Tommy ran his hand lazily over his throbbing erection a few more times, keeping the pace slow as he watched Merton do the same. He changed up the rhythm as he realized Merton was watching him and copying his movements, stifling a groan as Merton changed his pace to match Tommy's again. As soon as he was sure that Merton as too far gone in the amazing friction to care Tommy ran his palm over the slick head of his cock then lifted it to his mouth, tasting himself on his skin as he slicked his hand with his tongue. He moved a little closer to his best friend, noting that Merton's own fist had stopped moving as he watched the progress of Tommy's tongue across his palm. Tommy held his breath and reached over, pushing Merton's hand away and closing his own fist around his best friend's throbbing flesh as he started stroking himself with his other hand.

Part of him expected Merton to argue, to push him away or tell Tommy that he knew what he was doing, thankyouverymuch. He was pleasantly surprised to look up and find that Merton was watching his hand slide up and down his length, his lips parted and his eyes glaze with lust. Tommy bit back a groan and began working his fists up and down both their lengths, but the
angle was awkward and after a few false starts he let go of his own shaft and turned so he was facing Merton. He wished he could think of a way to kiss those parted lips, but there was no way he could pass that off as a guy thing.

Still, Merton's expression was more gratifying than he'd really been hoping for, and he wasn't sure he'd really need to touch himself again before he came. He could get off just watching Merton groan and thrust into his hand, it was the hottest thing he'd ever seen and that included all the movies he'd been watching on the cable in his own bedroom. He was pretty sure Dean wouldn't understand why Tommy wanted to watch guys going down on each other, but there was always the chance that Merton might be interested in a different kind of porn than what he'd watched with Dean.

"Tommy," Merton gasped, blue eyes locking on Tommy's face for the first time since this had started. "I can't."

"So do it," Tommy whispered, sounding a lot braver than he felt as he sped up his strokes and twisted his wrist just a little. "Come on, come for me."

Merton's blue eyes opened impossibly wide and he thrust convulsively into Tommy's grip, moaning his release all over Tommy's hand and his clothes. By the time Tommy realized that keeping their clothes on was probably a mistake it was too late, but it didn't matter anyway. That had to be the hottest thing he'd ever seen, and his own cock twitched in agreement. He released
his grip on Merton and wrapped slick fingers around his shaft, pumping hard as he kept his gaze locked on Merton. He watched his best friend's breathing slowly return to normal as he watched Tommy finish himself off, his lips still parted and his face flushed.

Tommy came with a muffled grunt, his eyes closing as he rode out the wave of pleasure spreading through his extremities. He took his time coming down from the powerful orgasm, focusing on the sound of his ragged breathing as he slowly opened his eyes and looked right at Merton. At the time this had seemed like a really good idea, but if he'd known how hard it was going to be to resist shoving his best friend onto the bed and kissing him senseless he might have rethought it. Still, it was worth it just to see the dazed, sated expression on his friend's face as Tommy stood up and pulled his shirt over his head. "You wanna jump in the shower?" Tommy asked, part of him hoping Merton's brain would add the unspoken 'with me' to the end of the question.

"Uh.you go first, I'll wait," Merton stammered, his eyes roaming over Tommy's chest and down to his waist as the other boy slid his jeans and boxers down his legs. Tommy had no idea where he'd found the courage to strip right in front of his best friend, but after what they just did it didn't seem like it would matter much.

"Alright," Tommy said, tossing his clothes in the direction of the hamper and grabbing a towel off the back of his chair. "I'll be right back."

Merton nodded as he watched Tommy walk out of his bedroom, his eyes glued to the sight of his best friend's solid body as he disappeared in the direction of the bathroom. As soon as he was gone Merton remembered to breathe again, looking down at the wreck of his clothes and his spent cock still resting against his stomach. He groaned and tucked himself back into his boxers, falling back against Tommy's bed as he tried to quantify what the hell had just happened. It was a guy thing, those were Tommy's exact words. Just a guy thing, no big deal. He'd even done this before, he said so himself. Suddenly Merton's brain was flooded with images of Tommy and various members of the football team, a powerful surge of jealousy hitting him at the same time as a fresh wave of desire.

He sat up abruptly and shook his head, willing the images away. It didn't mean anything, he couldn't start thinking it meant something. Tommy liked girls, he knew that. He'd dated Stacy and Lori, granted neither relationship really went anywhere or lasted very long.as soon as his mind started wandering down that path he shut it down, telling himself he was not going to start imagining things that weren't there. He reached for the remote and turned on the TV across from Tommy's bed, hoping it would provide enough of a distraction to help him at least fake some kind of composure before Tommy got back from the shower.

As soon as he turned it on he gasped and leaned forward, blinking to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Tommy's TV was tuned to one of the temporarily unscrambled porn channels, only this was nothing like what Dean had been watching. That was a guy, and he was.Jesus. Holy shit, he had his lips wrapped around the shaft of another guy and he was sucking like a starving man. He got hard again almost instantly, his hand closing around his own shaft as he watched the two guys on the screen. That was definitely not a 'guy thing', that much was for sure. It was one thing to jerk off together, he wasn't even sure if Tommy getting him off qualified as crossing the lines of heterosexuality. Watching gay porn, though.Merton got a sudden flash of Tommy's flushed skin and his glazed expression when he'd answered the door and got even harder.

He had no idea what was going on, but he had a feeling Tommy wasn't telling him everything. Before he had a chance to explain away the fact that the best friend he'd assumed was straight was watching guys having sex he heard Tommy making his way back down the hall. He winced and tucked his erection back into his jeans and managed to flip the channel to the Sci-Fi network just before Tommy walked into the room, a towel wrapped around his hips and a few beads of water dripping invitingly down his chest. Merton swallowed hard and stood up, taking the towel Tommy held out for him and doing his best to ignore the questions in his friend's eyes.

"Thanks," he mumbled as he brushed past Tommy, ignoring the feeling of solid muscle as his arm collided with his friend's bicep. After a cold shower Merton managed to calm down enough to go back to Tommy's room, thanking whoever was listening that Tommy had put on clean clothes while he was gone. Part of him was dying to talk to Tommy about what happened, ask him if there was something Tommy maybe wanted to tell him. He couldn't bring himself to do it, though, there was way too much to lose if his friend denied it. Things were probably going to be weird enough between them as it was, he couldn't accuse the guy of being gay and expect them to still be friends. Hell, he wasn't even sure what he was, he'd wondered what it would be like to be with a guy and Tommy was one of the faces that appeared in his fantasies from time to time, but he didn't know if that meant anything.

He reached for his backpack and wished to God that Tommy would excuse himself while Merton got dressed, but his friend was stretched out on his bed flipping through the channels and he didn't look like he was in any hurry to go anywhere. Merton kept his back to Tommy as he pulled the boxers he'd brought for tomorrow over his hips, suddenly painfully aware of the
difference between his physique and his best friend's. Tommy was beautiful, he was a walking wet dream for half of Pleasantville High and Merton couldn't help feeling self-conscious next to that. He pulled his other pair of jeans on and got his shirt over his head as fast as possible, never looking over at Tommy until he was completely dressed.

When he did turn around he sucked in a sharp breath and felt himself blushing all over again, checking the urge to roll his eyes as he wondered if his skin was ever going to return to its normal color around Tommy. His best friend was still stretched out on his bed, but he'd obviously been watching Merton get dressed. His gaze wandered over Merton's body as the smaller boy walked toward the bed, sitting awkwardly on the edge and digging around in his backpack. "I brought the movie you wanted to watch," he said, dropping the tape on the bed as Tommy sat up and leaned toward him.

"Cool," Tommy said, picking up the tape and swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. Merton did his best not to react to the warmth of Tommy's body heat radiating toward him as his best friend stood up and set the tape on top of his TV. "You wanna go find something to eat and then watch?"

"Yeah, I'm starving," Merton answered, grateful for any excuse to get out of the room. The smell of sex still hung in the air, mingling with the scent of soap from both their showers. The strange combination only made the memory of what happened seem more erotic, and Merton stifled a groan as he followed Tommy out of his bedroom and down to the kitchen.

They found some leftover pizza and Cokes in the fridge and by the time they were done with dinner some of the tension was gone. Merton hadn't stopped thinking about what happened and what it meant but it was still Tommy, they were still best friends and he let himself relax enough to laugh about the story Tommy was telling him about one of the guys on the team. After dinner they grabbed a bag of popcorn and headed back to Tommy's room, Merton busying himself with putting the movie in so he wouldn't have to think about sitting next to Tommy on his bed while they watched it. Suddenly he wished more than anything that they were back in the lair where he had a nice, safe couch to stretch out on. A sudden image of Tommy stretched out on his couch, naked and panting, hit him and he groaned audibly, shaking his head to chase the dangerous image out of his brain.

"You okay, buddy?" Tommy asked, and Merton glanced over his shoulder to find Tommy already stretched out on his bed, propped up on a pillow. It was obvious from the fact that he'd left half the small bed empty that he expected Merton to stretch out next to him, but suddenly Merton found himself wondering if Becky's slumber party really would have been so bad. Not that he didn't want to share Tommy's bed, but he knew he wasn't going to be focusing much on the movie.

"Fine," Merton squeaked, rolling his eyes at the strangled sound of his voice as he pressed play and crossed the room to meet his doom. He lowered himself onto the bed carefully, doing his best not to come in contact with any part of Tommy's body as he settled back against the extra pillow and focused on the opening credits.

They sat that way for nearly half an hour, neither of them moving a muscle for fear of coming in contact with a body part that didn't belong to them. Finally Merton had to move, though, he was so tense from trying not to that his spine was threatening to break in half. He shifted as carefully as possible, but regardless of how hard he tried his arm brushed against Tommy's. The other boy sat up automatically and looked over at Merton, his expression unreadable in the dim light of the bedroom. "Listen, Merton, about before," he began, his body shifting a little closer to the center of the bed as he turned, "I hope I didn't freak you out. I mean, we're still cool, right?"

"Yeah, sure, Tommy," Merton answered, his heart pounding against his ribcage and reminding him of what a liar he was as he met Tommy's gaze. "Don't mention it."

"Good," Tommy said, swallowing the rush of disappointment he felt when Merton turned back to the movie. He wasn't sure what he'd been expecting, but obviously Merton had already put it behind him. As much as Tommy wanted to press the issue he couldn't without risking costing them their whole friendship, so he turned back to the TV with a sigh and focused on Ewan
McGregor instead of his best friend's profile.

Neither of them said anything else until the movie ended, but Tommy couldn't ignore the shivers that ran up his spine as Merton's arm accidentally brushed his whenever the other boy shifted on the mattress. He wished he had the right to pull Merton into him, to still his constant movement by draping an arm around him and tangling their legs together. Thinking about
stuff like that just made lying next to him worse, though, and by the time the movie was over Tommy practically shot off the bed to turn off the tape. He stood with his back to Merton while he waited for it to rewind, only turning around when he didn't have any other choice.

"Here," he said, handing the tape back to his friend. "Thanks for bringing it over. Gotta love that Darth Maul, he kicks ass."

"Please, you mean he gets his ass kicked," Merton said, rolling his eyes good-naturedly as he dropped the tape into his backpack. "Come on, Obi-Wan totally takes him out. He doesn't even put up a fight."

"Yeah, but.but.he looks cool," Tommy shot back, his face flushing as he listened to himself babble possibly the lamest argument ever. He knew better than to argue sci-fi semantics with Merton, that was like trying to tell his best friend that Michael Meyers was a cooler horror movie killer than Pinhead. He grinned as Merton straightened up to stare at him, reading his friend's reaction in his eyes before Merton even opened his mouth. "I know, I know, I bow to your superior knowledge," Tommy grumbled.

Merton nodded and didn't bother to check the smirk that formed as he leaned back on Tommy's bed again. "Thank you."

"Yeah, well, we can't all be sci-fi geeks," Tommy teased, glancing over his shoulder to gauge Merton's reaction as he crossed his room to drop his watch on his desk.

"Hey, that hurts," Merton said, working up a fake pout as Tommy turned back to him.

"Sorry, buddy." Tommy grinned again and reached for the hem of his shirt, yanking it over his head and tossing it on the back of his desk chair. He had his fly halfway open when he glanced up to find Merton staring at him.

"Wh.what are you doing?" Merton stammered, his gaze locked on Tommy's hands as he eased his zipper down.

"Going to bed," Tommy answered, struggling not to react to the way Merton was looking at him. "I'm tired, been a long day."

"Yeah, I guess it is getting kinda late," Merton muttered half to himself, his gaze never straying from Tommy as he pushed his jeans down over his thighs.

Once he was standing in front of the bed in only his boxers Tommy looked over at Merton again, his hands on his hips as his gaze wandered over his still fully clothed friend. "You gonna sleep in your clothes, Merton?"

For a second Merton considered doing just that, but if he did Tommy would definitely think something was up and he couldn't stand to have his best friend thinking he was attracted to him. Even if it was true. Even if the sight of Tommy standing there in just his boxers was making Merton's mouth actually water. He blinked and shook his head to chase the thought out of his brain and stood up, working open the buttons of his shirt with trembling fingers. He kept his back to Tommy while he slid out of his jeans again, taking a deep breath and doing his best not to think about the lack of muscle tone in his chest. Tommy had spent the night at the lair before, this was no big deal. It was just two guys crashing in the same room, nothing to it. Definitely nothing to get worked up about. He directed the last thought at his protesting groin and turned around in time to watch Tommy slide between the sheets.

"Um." he began, not really sure how he was going to phrase the question he wanted to ask. Sleeping arrangements hadn't really dawned on him until that moment, but suddenly Tommy's double bed looked even smaller than it had felt while they were watching the movie.

"It's either here or the floor, and I guarantee the floor's not that comfortable," Tommy answered before Merton even got the words out, his voice already heavy with the first stages of sleep.

Well at least he was already falling asleep, if Merton was lucky he wouldn't notice how jumpy the smaller boy suddenly felt. He wasn't sure if he could lie next to Tommy all night after watching his best friend jerk him off, though. Then there was the sight of Tommy's hand wrapping around his own shaft while it was still slick from getting Merton off.he never would have come up with that particular fantasy on his own, but he was pretty sure it would feature prominently in his wet dreams from now on. He realized he was still standing next to the bed staring down at Tommy when the other boy rolled over and pushed himself up on his elbows, staring up at Merton expectantly. "Merton, are you sure we're cool? I didn't mean to freak you out or anything, it's just that I could tell you were in the same position as me and I figured we could help each other out."

"Right. And you've done that.with guys from the team?"

Tommy swallowed and looked down at the sheet covering his lower body, trying to decide whether to stick with the lie or come clean. When he looked back up at Merton again he knew there was no use lying, though, if the way Merton was looking at him was any indication he already knew the truth. "I kinda made that part up," Tommy confessed, sighing at the flash of hurt in Merton's eyes. "I just figured you'd relax a little if you thought it was no big deal."

Merton bit his lip and crossed to the bed, sinking down on the edge of the mattress. He was careful not to get any closer to Tommy than he had to, not trusting himself to keep his hands to himself when Tommy was looking at him that way. "But it was just a guy thing - you wanted me to relax so we could help each other out."

"Yeah," Tommy answered, realizing that was more or less a lie too as he heard the single word escape his lips. "More or less. I just.man, Merton, I really messed up here, didn't I? Do you like, totally hate me?"

Merton shook his head and inched a little closer to Tommy on the mattress, his heart in his throat as he told himself not to start reading into anything. Tommy hadn't actually said that he wanted Merton, all he'd admitted so far was that he wanted to get off. That was definitely a guy thing, although doing it with your best friend tended to blur the edges a little. "No. I'm not mad, Tommy. I'm just wondering why you.you know. I mean jerking off together is one thing, but you didn't have to."

There was that moment of truth Tommy had been alternating between wishing for and hoping to avoid at all costs. He squared his shoulders and leaned back on his mattress, giving Merton as much space as he could before he answered. "I wanted to. Not just because the cable's fucked up, I mean okay, you probably figured out what I was watching before you came over but it wasn't just that. It was knowing you were turned on, I could smell it and I just wanted to feel it too, I guess. You're my best friend, Merton. I'd do anything for you."

"Yeah, but that pretty much goes above and beyond friendship," Merton said, some of the tension easing out of him as he focused on trying to read between the lines of what Tommy was telling him. This was huge, this could make or break things between them and suddenly Merton needed to know more than anything he'd ever needed whether or not Tommy wanted *him* specifically or if he was just horny.

"Merton, you're.you don't even know what a great friend you are. I mean you're always there when I need you, you've helped me out of more jams than anyone and you stick by me even when I'm being an idiot. Like that whole thing with Lori, that was just dumb but you rode it out, and when she finally saw through my act and dumped me you were right there waiting. You're smart, you're funny, you're cute." Tommy trailed off and let the words hang in the air, not even daring to breathe as he waited for Merton to either bolt or say something.

"You think I'm cute?" Merton asked, the shock of that confession making him forget to be nervous.

Tommy smiled and pushed himself up on the mattress again, stopping just short of actually touching the other boy. "Yeah, I do."

"Have you looked in a mirror lately?" Merton continued, barely registering Tommy's expression as his best friend inched ever closer to him. "I mean cute.that doesn't even begin to cover it. You're.you, my friend, are hot." Merton nodded, pleased with himself for finally settling on the perfect word to describe Tommy.

"Thanks," Tommy said, a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth as he reached up to rest one hand on the back of Merton's neck. He still wasn't entirely sure if Merton was going to shove him away or if he was reading the other boy's signals right, but those lips were parted again and there was no way he was passing up another perfect chance to taste them. He leaned forward another inch just as Merton leaned into him, and before he knew it his best friend's lips were moving under his. Tommy groaned as the last of his iron self-control dissolved, flipping them over on the bed so Merton was being pressed into the mattress by the weight of Tommy's body. He never broke the kiss as his hands found their way to Merton's hips to shove his
boxers down, smiling at the gasp that escaped the other boy's throat when he realized what was happening.

It only took Merton a few seconds to catch up, and soon his hands were inside Tommy's boxers and pushing them down his thighs. Merton tore his lips away from Tommy's, ignoring the whimper of loss from the boy on top of him as he flattened his hands against Tommy's chest and pushed. "I saw this thing on TV," he said, grinning mischievously as Tommy stared down at him. "While you were in the shower. Wanna try it?"

"Whatever you say, you're the brains of the outfit," Tommy answered, letting Merton push him onto his back and letting out a moan when the smaller boy straddled his hips.

"It's so nice to be appreciated," Merton purred as he leaned over Tommy and brushed their lips together again, only lingering for a moment before he started moving down Tommy's broad chest. He kissed a wet trail down Tommy's stomach, his senses on overdrive as he tried to convince himself this wasn't just some vivid dream. He had no idea what he was doing, he didn't even have the benefit of his own experience but he figured enthusiasm had to count for something. He grinned at the thought and glanced up at Tommy's face, their eyes meeting for a tense moment before Merton looked back down and closed his mouth around Tommy's length.

"Holy shit," Tommy gasped, his hips practically lifted them off the bed as he arched into the sudden warmth engulfing him. Nothing could have prepared him for how this felt, no matter how many times he imagined it there was no way he could have known how amazing it would feel to have Merton's mouth working up and down his cock. He squeezed his eyes shut and focused whatever brain cells hadn't fried on impact on not coming the second Merton's mouth closed around him, but even though he never wanted it to end he knew it wouldn't last long. There was no way it could, it felt way too good and he'd wanted this for way to long. He reached down and buried his fingers in his best friend's hair, a gasp escaping his throat as Merton's tongue slid across the head of his erection.

"Jesus, Merton," was the only warning he managed before his hips thrust one last time, moaning his release and filling the mouth still moving on his painfully sensitized flesh. Merton swallowed around him, taking as much as he could before he pulled back and looked down at Tommy.

"So?" he asked, a shy half-grin tugging at the corners of his mouth as he waited for an appraisal of his performance.

"Can't move," Tommy murmured, his arms collapsing at his sides as he struggled to regain enough motor function to open his eyes. Finally he managed to get his lids to work with him and looked up, grinning at the sight of Merton sitting back on his heels waiting for a verdict. "Damn, Merton, that was amazing. Where'd you learn to do that?"

"Well it's not like I invented it, Tommy. I've never done it before but I'm pretty sure everybody's heard of it."

Tommy closed his eyes and grinned weakly, his chest still heaving but not caring if he ever caught his breath. All he cared about was that Merton actually wanted to be with him, and that he'd never actually done that with anyone else before. "C'mere," he muttered, reaching up with one boneless arm.

Merton smiled and slid down next to the other boy, a moan escaping his throat as Tommy slid one leg between Merton's and rocked their hips together. And he could die happy now, because there was no better kisser than Tommy Dawkins in all the world and Tommy's mouth was moving against his again. He parted his lips and let Tommy explore his open mouth, tasting himself on Merton's tongue. Somewhere in the back of his mind he remembered reading something about knowing he loved you if he kissed you after you went down on him, but he shook off the thought and made a mental note to quit flipping through his mom's Cosmo.

"What?" Tommy asked, pulling away to look at Merton as the other boy shook his head.

"Nothing, sorry. Resume kissing," Merton answered, leaning forward in a futile effort to find Tommy's mouth again.

Tommy grinned and took hold of Merton's hips, flipping him over so he was pinned against the mattress for the second time that night. "Can't," he murmured against Merton's skin as he pressed his lips to the soft skin of his best friend's throat. "Busy."

Merton gasped as Tommy's voice sent shock waves of pleasure through his body, his toes curling in anticipation as the other boy moved further down his body. And there was something he never thought he'd actually experience, toe curling always seemed like one of those stupid things people just said because they couldn't figure out how to describe the intensity of the sensation. Sure enough, though, his toes were curled and he flushed so hard he could actually feel it in the roots of his hair. His *hair*. Then Tommy finally reached his goal and Merton's brain shut down completely, his senses fried as a whole new level of pleasure rocked his body.

He opened his mouth to moan, to spit out some of those words of encouragement or approval he was always reading about on the internet, but all he could manage was a stream of senseless babble that he wasn't even sure he was actually saying out loud. Tommy's mouth was like hot velvet wrapped around him, and it turned out the tongue really was the strongest muscle in the body. Somehow Merton managed to get his neck muscles to work with him long enough to look down, but as soon as he caught sight of Tommy's mouth sliding down his shaft he lost it. He came with a startled gasp, his orgasm taking them both by surprise. Tommy gagged and pulled back a little, catching what he could in his mouth and then pulling off to pump his fist over Merton's length as he twitched.

When Merton came back to reality it was to the soothing feeling of Tommy wrapping him in his arms, raining down soft kisses on Merton's jaw as his breathing slowly evened out. "Tommy?" Merton murmured, not even bothering to try to open his eyes.

"Yeah?"

"Just checking."

"Just checking what?" He felt Tommy push himself up to look down at him, his fingers carding through Merton's soft hair.

"Making sure I didn't die and go to heaven," Merton answered, smiling at his own joke.

Tommy snorted and settled back down on the pillow, draping an arm over Merton's chest and closing his eyes. "I think that was the corniest joke you've ever told."

"Hey, you laughed," Merton shot back, snuggling a little closer to the warmth of Tommy's chest.

"Yeah," Tommy murmured as he molded himself against the body pressing into his chest. "Must be a guy thing."

THE END