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It was astonishing how no one in the line could hear the sound of creaking teeth. The first half an hour Angel managed to get through on hidden eye rolls, but now that his escort John switched from Godard’s cinematography to Von Trier’s, he felt all the life evaporating through his ears. God, he hated these parties. It was that sort of fluffy afternoon meet-and-greet at the uptown villa of a well-to-do narcissistic fucker. No drugs, no proper alcohol. Just mimosas, terrible music, and endless pseudo-intelligent conversations. At least they had a pool.
The only reason Val booked Angel for this celebration of boredom was that he didn’t have enough girls to cover. To think that he, Angel Dust, the famous porn star, professional pole dancer, and the hottest person in the room had to come to this joke of a party was outrageous. However, if Val said “go”, he could only ask “where”. Apparently, “here” was the answer.
He could have at least found a fuck boy for the night, but all the normal guys were straight. This nerd was the only option. He didn’t seem broke though, maybe he’s a son of a not-so-famous actor or a director with one okay film. Angel could have gotten the best of his wallet, but putting up with his mouth was more than he could take. Unfortunately, even making out didn’t help. Although he hadn’t tried a blowjob yet…
Or maybe Angel could just fucking ditch him.
As his gaze once again wandered around to find anything more interesting, like a falling leaf, for example, he spotted something much more exciting. There he was, Husker. A handsome silvery threaded brunette with honey-brown piercing eyes, a beautiful square jawline, and strong hands. Aka the rude bartender by night and dealer-magician by day. The brunette was wearing a white shirt tucked in black pants and holding a jacket behind his shoulder. So simple and yet he managed to pull it off in the hottest way possible. What a jerk.
He was standing near the box with all the car keys. Killing two rabbits with one shot seemed more than pleasant. Angel may have pissed the older man today, but at that point, he would take any chance he could get.
“And you see, the changes in the frames are…”
“Husker!” Angel called at the top of his lungs. When he saw the man turning back in confusion, he screamed again waiving at the brunette, “Husker! It’s me!”
He could see the gears turning in the older man’s head. When the brunette finally understood what was happening, his face showed traces of hesitance. It was already too late to pretend he didn’t know Angel because everyone saw them looking at each other, but there was still a time gap for him to wave back and quickly retreat.
“Husk, can you please take my keys?” Angel watched with satisfaction how Husker’s hope died in his eyes.
“What?” He tried to play the deaf card, but the younger man was screaming so loud, that unless he truly had this condition, the act was unbelievable.
“The keys, Prius keys”
Husker let a heavy sigh and reached for the box only to find a myriad of keys with the same logo.
“Which one?”
“Pink ribbon, piggy pendant,” Angel grinned.
The older man rolled his eyes and slowly made his way up.
“Thanks! I am so glad ta see ya! John, this is my cousin, Husker. Husker, this is my friend John, a self-acclaimed expert in cinema,” Before John could understand the insult, Angel switched the attention to Husker, “How you’ve been? Geez, we haven’t talked in like… How long was it?”
“Not long enou…”
“Five years I think. Are you free right now? I really want to catch up”
Angel saw Husker’s mouth open to say “no”, but he interrupted the older man silently spelling “please” and looking pitifully. Husker’s stormy look shifted to a softer one under the charm attack.
“Yes, I’m free,” He said, retreating.
“Great! Baby, I’m so sorry, but I’m gonna have ta leave ya. I haven’t seen him in ages! I will call ya, alright?” He gave the stunned man a quick smooch on the cheek before the guy could realize that Angel didn’t have his number.
The young man took Husker by the elbow and steered them down the hill.
~
Husker still couldn’t believe he agreed to walk this ridiculous blond to his car. They have already spent about ten minutes looking for it, because of course the man didn’t remember where he parked. Husker was silently following him with heavy irritated sighs. After seeing another series of desperate clicks and “damnt it”s, he decided to help.
“Direct the keys under your chin. It will extend the radius,” When he saw the blond do that, he couldn’t help by mock him, “Might as well cause brain cancer, but who cares at this point”
Husker waited for him to turn back with fright, but he only looked at keys for a second, shrugged his shoulders, and continued intensely clicking. What was wrong with this guy?
“Thanks for savin’ me back there,” Husker didn’t say anything, which made the blond turn his head, “Oh, c’mon, are ya really still mad at me? Compared to what ya did, it was innocent”
“You made me perform fuckin’ card tricks,” Husker growled.
“Actually I hoped ya didn’t know how ta do them and would fail, but hey, things turned out yer way! Plus I saw yer tips after the game, and ya should thank me,” The blond got close to him and pushed the finger to his chest, “Ya, on the other hand, publicly told me ta fuck myself and didn’t even make my long-awaited cocktail”
“Don’t you think I did it because you hanged on me and made me spill your “long-awaited” cocktail?” He skeptically arched a brow looking up at the man.
“Those are irrelevant details to the story”
They walked a few more minutes until stumbling upon mesmerizing view. They saw a small cement bench in front of the cliff. As their eyes followed the curve of the hill, the whole city, spread out like on a plate. The low buildings were covered by the shadow of the hills, which fenced the last traces of sun away, so their silhouettes looked mystical, highlighted by the warm lights from the windows. It seemed as if the world went upside down, and the sky was looking up at them. Above the city and the bowl-like hills, the last line of sunlight was getting through. The beautiful mixture of bright red, and soft yellow was surrendering to the pressure of deep violet and dark blue. High above the men’s heads, the sky canvas already turned black, letting out the first shy sparkles. The picture-like view was framed by sprawling pine, which was almost trying to hide it from undeserving humans. It felt like the place was saying that meeting it was a miracle to be cherished.
“Wow. That is somethin’. A place tailor-made for two,” Husker was ready to remind the blond about his stance on the question, but the younger man quickly interrupted, “What a pity it’s just us. And, obviously, this ,” Angel pointed at both of them,”... is never happenin’. Such a waste of a lovely night”
“Weren’t you the one who suggested not longer than a week ago to do more than just sit on the bench in front of a good view?” Husker’s body radiated with malevolence.
“I can read the cues, Husky. ‘Sides, polyester suits are way beyond my level, baby,” The blond smirked at Husker’s gloomy face.
“It’s wool. And don’t call me that”
“Husky or baby?”
“Both”
The man giggled and sat on the bench. He unzipped his high heel boots and tried to take them off. After a few minutes of struggle, he had to admit that they were stuck and finally give up. Before Husker could mock the man again, he saw a mischievous spark glow in his eyes. The blond examined Husker from head to toe and suggestively lifted his leg with a smile.
“Are you serious?”
“Well, I can’t walk in this torture machine anymore. Of course, ya can leave me in pain, but then the process of findin’ my car will take much longer”
“Or I could just leave you”
“Yeah. You could,” The blond’s eyes changed. It felt like he was searching for something in Husker’s face, but couldn’t grasp it.
Finally, a minute of rest from his running mouth.
Husker couldn’t explain how he found himself in this situation. The right decision was to go to his car, leave the diva behind and get on with his life. For some reason, Husker didn’t move. Instead, he was standing there, looking at the long, elegant legs. He caught himself thinking if he and the blond would be the same height without these ridiculous high heels. Husker approached him, bent over, and pulled the boot to himself. With a bit of force, it successfully came out and Husker heard a lingering “fuuuck” with a moan, which, he assumed, was gratitude. After repeating the procedure with the second boot, he handed both of them to the blond and watched the man put them in his big pink bag. The elegant hand took out a pair of no-heels pumps. While the man was putting them on, Husker sat on the bench, facing the view.
“Thanks,” The blond lifted his legs and rolled to the opposite side to look in the same direction as Husker, “Must say, the city looks even better when yer wearin’ normal shoes. Years of practice and I still hate these torture tools”
“Why do you even wear them? You’re already tall as fuck”
“Well, guys like it,” he shrugged his shoulders.
Husker finally took a moment to actually look at the man. He was no older than thirty. His almost ash-blond hair was carefully put together into a pixie, with a long bang fixed above his forehead. Husker noticed that the man would touch it from time to time to check if it was sitting right. Just like he did now. He had a small gap between his front teeth, which made him look fervently. The blond’s face had sharp features, just like the rest of his body. It seemed like he almost had no fat at all, which was borderline unhealthy. He was wearing a green cotton dress with pink, white, and orange flowers, heavily inspired by the 60s boyish fashion. Husker also spotted traces of freckles under the man’s makeup and on his shoulders. When the blond turned his head, feeling someone looking at him, Husker saw the most distinct feature - his eyes. Their color was milk chocolate, so vivid he could almost taste it on his tongue. The right one, however, was a little darker than the left, which made it even easier to sink into the depth of those eyes.
“Ya know, people usually pay ta look at me like that,” The blond grinned.
Husker coughed and turned back to the city, finding himself at a loss for words.
“Name’s Angel Dust by the way”
“Like cocaine?” Husker smirked.
“Yep”
“I assume it was your decision, not the courtesy of your parents”
“It works well for a porn star”
Husker raised his brows. It was surprising how casual Angel was about his work. Husker didn’t have much prejudice, he wasn’t a frequent watcher of porn, but he did respect the genre. It wasn’t about what Angel was doing, it was more about how he presented himself. The man radiated with confidence.
They sat in silence for a while, until Husker timidly continued the conversation.
“So, umm, are the porn films your final goal, or do you have other plans?”
“Hey, I’m not only in porn. I strip, I do drag, and like today, for example, I escort. A multi-field professional so ta speak,” He smiled, “But no, that’s ain’t my end game. I want ta have my own club, something like burlesque. I will make somethin’ unforgettable, breathtakin’. I just need some money, and until I get it… I’ll stay here”
Angel’s face showed traces of frustration, but it quickly faded as he turned to Husker.
“And what ‘bout ya, big guy? Is yer goal to bartend or be a magician? Don’t know about the first, but yer quiet good with cards,” Angel smirked.
“Wouldn’t be so cocky if I were you. I didn’t forget your stunt,” Husker rolled his eyes. The older man looked at his hands, at the city, and suddenly words he has never said to anyone before got out of his mouth, “No, I have a different one. I want my own bar. This old-school place with green wallpapers and red break walls, a pool table, a wooden bar counter, and all that jazz. Seems Iike we have the same problem though - money neither is rainin’ on me. But before you, I was at least bartendin’ and dealin’, and today some guy asked me to be a magician at his kid’s birthday party. You ruined my reputation!” Husker playfully growled, but his act fell apart when he heard shrill laughter.
“Fine, I’ll say I’m sorry, but only afta ya”
“Hah, you wish”
They once again sat in silence, but this one was warmer and calmer. Husker hadn’t felt like that for a long time now. This bubbly fucker did know how to open somebody up.
When Husker sensed blond’s fingers gently touching his hand, he felt something pang straight into his core. He slowly turned his head to look at Angel. Husker felt the wind rushing through his hair as if pushing him toward the blond’s lips. They were reaching for each other timidly, giving themselves time to pull back. But no one did. Just as the men were inches away from each other, Husker’s telephone rang. He jerked back and accepted the call without even looking at the name. Anything to get as far as possible from these eyes.
“Khm, yes,” Husker tried to clear his throat, but his voice still sounded raspy.
“Husker, my friend! I heard about your today’s success. What a performance! People have booked you for five more nights in advance. Now, why did you hide such exciting talents of yours?”
“Because it’s not one of my job requirements, Al”
“Well, now it is! Ha ha! Oh, how much money will we get on your charms! Well, won’t keep you any longer, my friend. I will send you an email with all the information about future bookings. Once again, my congratulations! Have a pleasant evening, Husker.”
The call ended before he was able to say “bye”. That was a good representation of his boss - caring for no one, except himself, the money, and, of course, the entertainment.
Husker was pulled back to reality by the beeping sound. Looking at the surprised Angel he assumed that the chin trick actually worked. His car was about hundred and fifty yards away.
“Fuck brain cancer, this is worth it,” Angel said, looking like nothing happened. Husker wondered if the man had a good poker face or if his job just made things like this casual. In any case, he would act the same. Husker was forty-six and overthinking things like a teenage sucker was way beyond him, even though he might have already done it.
“Sooo, this is me,” Angel smiled, putting his hand behind his head and looking down at Husker. Even without heels, he was about two inches taller, and the older man was never considered short. He opened a door for Angel, ignoring the blond’s surprise. Already in the seat, Angel tapped on the wheel with his long fingernails. So he was nervous, “Do ya want a ride to yer car?”
“Nah, I’m good, mine is around the corner”
“Oh, okay. Well, thanks again for helpin’ with that douche, I was literally dyin’ back there. See ya later, I guess”
“See you. Drive safe,” Husker closed the door, and slowly went away, still looking at the leaving car. When it was out of sight, his shoulders finally relaxed and he turned back to the cliff. The sun has already set, so the only thing ripping through the darkness was the yellow lights from the windows. The view resonated with Husker’s mood. He felt like he was being torn apart by all the questions and unnecessary emotions boiling in his head.
Why did he stay with the man and helped him with the boots? How did he manage to share with him stuff he hasn’t told a soul yet? Why the fuck did he reach for the kiss, and furthermore, why did he jump away from it, like Angel was a fucking cactus? Husker had so many feelings, something he was sure never to experience again. Warmth, attraction, amusement, stress, frustration, and… fear?
Here he was, being a sad fucker.
“Ugh, I need a drink,” Husker said into nothingness.
He took the last look at the city and turned back to the road. Now he had to go all the way back to the party house, having his car parked right in front of the gates. Maybe taking a ride with Angel was a good idea afterward, but then again, it was too late.
That’s okay. He needed to clear his head anyway.