Title: Maturing the Kid

Maturing the Kid
by Gail

Crash got out of the bathroom and sighed. The kid was sprawled all over the bed, headphones on, tapping away at the bedspread. What the hell had Skip done to him? Bad enough Nuke was Annie's lover instead of him; having to share a room and listen to Nuke crow about that was going to be murder. Mature the kid, Skip had said. Right now Crash doubted that it was possible. Maybe Nuke could learn to control himself better on the field, but off it he was a spoiled brat with a wild arm and an attitude.

Nuke rolled on to his front and played a drum solo on the headboard. Crash couldn't help smiling at that. He was a cute brat in an annoying way. At least there were two beds. Some road
trips he'd had to share a bed with his roommate of the night. Not that that was always a bad thing. Sometimes it was a very good thing. Hadn't happened in a while, but that was all right, too. That was life.

He went over to his suitcase and pulled out the flask he had with him. It was after the game, so it was all right to drink. He was too beat to go find a bar. He'd just have a quiet snoot here, then hit the sack.

He'd already gotten some ice, so all he had to do was get one of those plastic cups from the bathroom, unwrap it, then pour the scotch over the ice. He sniffed and smiled. Yeah. That was more like it.

He sat down on his bed and took a sip. His eyes closed, and he started letting go. Nice feeling. Very nice.

"Hey, whatcha got?" Nuke was sitting up, headphones off and blaring some kind of loud music. Crash tried to block it out. He didn't need a headache.

"A drink." Like it wasn't obvious.

Nuke grinned. "Hey, let me have some." He reached for it, but Crash held it away.

"This is mine."

"I want one, too. Please?" Eager eyes, and Crash could see enough of himself in them that he nodded and got up. "Thanks, Crash."

"Ice?"

"Sure."

Crash put together the drink and handed it to Nuke. "Turn off the music if you're not going to listen to it." God, now he sounded like a damned grown-up, like his parents. Last thing he wanted to be. He tried a smile, but Nuke had already shut off the tape player.

"Not your stuff?"

"Not really." Not even close. He liked music that was more than noise. He *was* getting old. Christ, he was going to have to think about what he was going to do after baseball. He took a
reckless gulp. Not tonight. He wasn't going to think about that tonight. He'd hit a dinger, and they'd won the game. Good one. A few more like that, and it would be even more fun to go to the
ball park. No fun playing when you think you're always going to lose.

Nuke started telling him about his car with its quadrophonic speakers, and this time it felt all right to listen. What the hell; sometimes it was good to forget about baseball. They'd won the game; they were off for the night; Nuke wasn't pitching tomorrow; and he wouldn't have more than this one drink. It would be fine.

*****

Crash had switched to water after his third drink, but Nuke was still drinking Crash's scotch and talking away. He was relaxed, Crash thought with a grin. And even cuter this way.

"So then my buddy said he'd take the blonde with the long hair, but when he got her in the backseat, she slapped him, I think 'cause he went right for her boobs, and the other blonde saw that and said she wanted to go home, so we dropped them off. Then we had a couple more beers and ended up in bed together."

What the fuck? Had Nuke just said that? Crash blinked. "Oh," he managed.

"Yeah." Nuke was grinning. "It was fun. You wanna?" He held out his hand. "Come on, Crash, won't hurt anything."

And this was the kid he was supposed to mature. Right now he seemed pretty damned matured to Crash. "What about Annie?"

"She's not here. Plus, she'd probably think it was right up there with that guy Whitman's poetry and dopey stuff like that."

Annie. Crash smiled at the thought of her. Yeah, she would probably think it was a good thing the two of them had sex, probably come up with some weird long-winded cosmic explanation. When he thought about Nuke's words, they didn't add up, but then Nuke's body was up against his, and it had been too long since he'd been with... anyone, dammit. Crash could feel himself getting hard. The hell with figuring out what Nuke was trying to say. "What did you and your buddy do?"

Nuke's hand slid down his chest to his crotch. "Jerked each other off. It's fun. You ever done it?"

"Yeah." He had to swallow. "Done more than that."

Nuke pulled back and took his hand away. "Like what? Fucking?"

Yes, but the look on Nuke's face told him that wasn't something he'd considered. "Like sucking a friend off."

"Wouldn't that be weird?"

Somehow the conversation had turned around. Now he was the expert. Well, he ought to be. There were some things that were constant, and one was that catchers knew more than pitchers.
Especially rookie pitchers.

"So we don't do it." He grinned back at Nuke. "You want to go first?"

"Maybe I want to." Nuke had a belligerent tone in his voice that was very familiar to Crash. He felt dared. Good sign.

Crash just grinned and reached over to stroke Nuke's nipple through his t-shirt. Nuke let out a surprised gasp. "This O.K.?"

"Never done that."

Big surprise. "Want to let me show you how good I can be?" Crash kept rubbing the nipple, feeling it harden. Nuke was licking his lips.

"Nothing weird." Crash could tell that Nuke was trying to glare, but he wasn't doing a very good job of it.

This wasn't weird? "Fine, Nuke. Nothing weird."

Nuke stopped trying to glare and closed his eyes. Crash grinned even more. This was going to be fun. He brought up his other hand and slid it around Nuke's neck, then pinched the nipple between
his fingers as he pulled Nuke's lips to his. Kissing was one of the best parts of sex, in his opinion, and if he wasn't going to get to show Annie how good he could do, he'd show Nuke. Long, slow, soft, and definitely wet, since Nuke opened his lips after a moment, but he couldn't last anywhere near the three days he'd told Annie he believed kisses should last, not with Nuke's hands on his back and ass. He broke the kiss and brought up his other hand to Nuke's other nipple, which hardened as quickly as the first one had.

"Jeez, Crash."

"That too weird for you?" Crash slid his hands down Nuke's sides, getting a gasp out of the pitcher.

"Nah," Nuke got out. "Now what?"

"I'll show you." Crash was enjoying himself, but it felt like time to get out of his clothes. He decided to start with his shirt, then get Nuke's off.

He ended up not having to. As soon as Nuke saw him unbutton his shirt, his eyes lit up, and he stripped off his t-shirt. The kid looked good stripped. He'd seen him without clothes before, in
the locker room, but he hadn't been thinking of sex then. He was now.

Crash wet his lips and saw Nuke's eyes lock on them, then stood, undid his jeans, and pushed them down. He wasn't wearing any underwear, and his cock sprang out.

Nuke's eyes went down to that. "Wow," he breathed.

Crash grinned. "Your turn." He wanted to keep it light, but keep it going.

Nuke swallowed and reached down to the top button of his jeans. "You'd suck me off?" He worked his jeans off and stood by the bed in bright red bikini briefs with a definite bulge. Crash thought about telling him to take them off, then Nuke grinned and shoved them down and off, leaving them in a pile on the floor with his jeans.

Crash stared. Nuke was pretty well-hung himself, and the thought of sucking on that sculpted cock made him harder.

"Yeah, but not yet." He wanted to ask Nuke if he'd reciprocate, but didn't. Nuke would get him off, that much he was sure of, and that was what mattered.

"C'mon over and kiss me some more, then." Nuke fell backwards on the bed and grinned at Crash. "You kiss better than Annie."

Crash's eyebrows raised at that, but he said nothing, sat down on the bed, and leaned over to kiss Nuke again. Hot mouth, wet tongue that had no problem sliding against his. Nuke kissed damned well.

Nuke's arms came around him and pulled him down against his hard body. Strong arms, like pitchers always had. After a few more deep, hot kisses, Crash pulled back from Nuke's mouth, and Nuke gave him a hurt look.

"Hey, said I wanted some more kissing."

Crash bent his head and licked Nuke's neck, and Nuke shivered. "You'll get it."

Nuke's arms fell away. "O.K."

Crash kept licking Nuke's neck, each time closer to the shoulder, then his tongue dipped into the hollow of Nuke's throat.

Nuke was twisting against the bed. "Crash, c'mon, more!"

Of course he was impatient. Crash smiled to himself and reached down to take Nuke's cock in his hand as Nuke jumped. "Settle down, rook."

Nuke just whimpered and thrust up into Crash's grip, and Crash got his mouth on Nuke's near nipple and sucked, working Nuke's cock in a slow rhythm that he was sure wouldn't be enough to get him off. When Nuke came, he was going to be deep in Crash's mouth.

"Crash," Nuke moaned, and Crash lifted his head. One look at Nuke's tight face convinced him it was time to show the rookie pitcher how good a guy could really be.

He slid down the bed, still holding Nuke's now-leaking cock, and flicked his tongue over the tip.

"Jesus!"

Crash grinned and let his tongue swirl around, getting the taste of precome in his mouth. Bitter, but not too bad. Nuke was making incoherent sounds, and Crash let himself enjoy those as much as
the velvety feel of Nuke's cock when he opened his mouth and took the head in.

"Ah..." Nuke thrust up into Crash's mouth, and Crash got his mouth relaxed in time to take it. He ran his tongue up and down the shaft, getting all the flesh he could reach, and pumped with the hand still around the shaft.

Nuke was trembling and moaning, and Crash knew he wouldn't last long. That was fine. He was ready to come himself with some attention. He got his free hand down between Nuke's legs and ran a finger over his balls, then down to the sensitive skin under them, and even flicked his nail over Nuke's hole. Nuke groaned and spurted into Crash's mouth, and Crash swallowed over and over again, then pulled his mouth away and got up.

"What?" Nuke's head lolled against the bed, and his eyes were glazed when Crash looked over at him. "Come back."

Crash had to smile at that. "I'll be back." He took out his flask and gulped a quick shot to cut the taste of the come, then stowed the flask again and went over to Nuke. "Good?"

"Yeah." Nuke was still breathing hard. "C'mon, I'll get you off now."

Crash sat down next to him. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." There was bravado in the kid's voice, but Crash wasn't worried. Nuke would do what he could, and Crash would get off. He'd jerk himself off if he had to, but he didn't think he'd have to. "Get comfortable so I can get going."

"All right."

He gestured at Nuke to move over, and when Nuke did, Crash swung his legs up and grabbed a pillow, shoving it behind his head to cushion it against the headboard. Nuke had gotten off the bed and was holding his red briefs. When he saw Crash looking at him, he flushed.

"So you ready?"

Crash didn't smile, even though it was funny, and let his hand rest on his thigh, next to his erection. It would be harder to be more ready, but it didn't look like Nuke was. "It'll be easier if you come over here, Meat." He hoped that the goading would get Nuke out of his head. It had worked before, when Nuke was on the mound.

"Stop calling me 'Meat'."

Crash shrugged, allowed a small smile, and waited.

Nuke tossed away the briefs and jumped on the bed. "Old man," he growled, and Crash opened his mouth to deny that, but then Nuke's lips were wet and hot around his cock, and he groaned instead.

Nuke sucked like he'd been pitching: not much control, but a hell of a lot of enthusiasm. Teeth scraped against Crash's cock, and he didn't even care - he was going to come soon no matter what Nuke did.

Nuke's tongue swept under the head of Crash's cock, and Crash groaned again. Hell, yeah, he was going to come, and he'd damned well better get his cock out of Nuke's mouth before he spurted. Coming in a guy's mouth without asking - bad idea, could lead to a pissed Nuke who'd never listen to him on or off the field again.

He grabbed Nuke by the hair and held him steady as he jerked his cock out with his other hand. Nuke made a noise, but he couldn't make out what it was and didn't have attention enough to care. So close, and he had to hang on, had to wait, didn't want to, had to... and then cool air and his fingers working furiously and a glimpse of Nuke's big big eyes watching and Crash was coming, oh, yeah, finally.

When he finished, he cracked open his eyes and saw Nuke still watching him. He'd better say something, and it better be light-hearted.

"Not bad - for a rook."

"Not bad for an old guy." Nuke was smiling now. "Gimme another drink."

"Get it yourself." Crash sat up. He didn't want to move, but it was Nuke's bed, and he hadn't been invited to sleep there.

Nuke grabbed the bottle, poured himself a shot, drank it, then yawned. "I'm tired. Gotta get some sleep."

He headed into the bathroom, and Crash waited until he came out to go in.

By the time Crash had taken another shower and came out with a towel wrapped around his hips, Nuke was sprawled over a bed, snoring, and buck naked, ass up and tempting as all hell. Crash tore his eyes away and pulled back the covers of his bed.

Fucking the pitcher he'd been told to mature without said pitcher's consent would lead to more trouble than he wanted to deal with, like getting him kicked off the team.

But oh, that ass looked fuckable.

Crash squeezed his eyes shut and breathed in and out until he fell asleep.

*****

Crash opened his eyes, stretched, rolled over, and smiled. He felt like he could catch a doubleheader, block the plate, and hit a few dingers. Good sex did that to him every time.

But how was Nuke? Was he all right? And would he let himself remember last night, or would he -

"Never drinkin' with you again. What the hell'd you give me?"

Crash was sure that if he asked what Nuke remembered from last night, he'd say that he'd been drunk and didn't remember a damned thing. Not that this was the first time he'd gotten that response from a guy he'd had sex with.

*What you wanted.* He couldn't resist thinking the jab, but held it in. Nuke was staring at him, and he was pretty sure that he saw fear in Nuke's eyes. Last thing he needed was his pitcher
thinking he couldn't be trusted. "Scotch."

"Yeah, right."

"You emptied my flask. Next time you can get your ass to a bar and drink there."

"Yeah." Nuke turned away from him. "Next time I will." He headed for the bathroom.

Crash pushed himself off the bed. Time to get some breakfast, then go to batting practice.

Maybe there'd be a next time. The kid was young, and he'd brought up having sex first.

Yeah, and he'd go to the big leagues next week and stay there.

He sighed and pulled on his jeans.

"Hey." Nuke had the bathroom door cracked enough to put his head through. "Thanks. For the drinks."

"You're welcome."

Even if Nuke wasn't going to let himself remember this time, he was welcome. And maybe there would be a next time.

He found himself whistling as he buttoned his shirt.

The End