CHANNING
Okay, just stay calm.
Don’t let Max get under your skin again.
And don’t let him excite you too much either!
Whatever his exact age, Max was looking incredibly dashing, and his body was in better shape than ninety-nine percent of men half his age.
Max’s getting sexier with ever year that passes.
He seems more like a Daddy than ever.
And yet he’d still never want to settle with me either…
Channing picked up one of his large, super-cozy white towels and wrapped it around his waist and walked out of the bathroom and into his master bedroom.
With its clean aesthetic and high ceilings, Channing’s bedroom was a place of sanctuary.
Of course, Channing had entertained the occasional guy in there, but somehow none of them had ever quite lived up to expectations. It wasn’t that Channing was freakishly fussy, it was just that he needed something extra to truly get him going.
Max needed a Daddy to dominate him and then snuggle up with him and Billy afterward.
It felt like a distant dream, but it was one that Channing wouldn’t give up on or compromise.
So, all in all, Channing’s bedroom was mostly a place of rest and relaxation rather than any steamy late-night fun for most of the time.
Channing padded over on the soft carpet toward his wardrobe. Despite wanting to appear as casual as possible around Max, Channing couldn’t help but find himself deliberating over what to wear.
‘Stop it, dude!’ Channing said, berating himself as he scrambled to pick out his favorite t-shirt.
‘Nothing is going to happen with Max this time. He’s obviously in a bit of trouble and needs support.
There will be zero action between us of the bedroom variety.
I’ll be a friend but no more than that.’
Feeling pleased with himself that he had managed to put a stop his wandering mind and any burgeoning rekindling of romantic feelings toward Max, Channing got himself dressed.
If there was one thing that Channing was good at, it was helping others.
Max had clearly come to him in need of assistance, and Channing was determined to do just that.
Now all that remained was getting to the bottom of whatever it was that had led to Max showing up so abruptly.
But before that, Channing had a date with the best Little friends a boy could ask for…
* * *
Beach Babies was a wonderful place.
Being the only specialist Little hangout in Los Frisco, it could sometimes get quite busy. But not today. Pleasingly, Channing and his two Little friends Tommy and Rick were the only people in.
Maybe it was too early for Los Frisco’s other Littles, but it certainly wasn’t for Channing and his best friends.
With its calming, pastel-colored walls and super-cozy furniture and fluffy rugs, Beach Babies was the perfect place to come for a morning milk feed…
‘Burrrp!’ Channing said, realizing too late that he was drinking his perfectly white milk just a little bit too quickly. ‘Hehe, I think I’m going too fast!’
Channing was wearing nothing but his multi-colored duck patterned briefs over a snug pure-white diaper. As he lay on his back and looked up to the turquoise ceiling, Channing felt so warm and cozy and most importantly – safe.
‘I love this place,’ Channing said, feeling himself perfectly in Little space.
‘Me too,’ Rick replied, suckling on his milk with a look of sheer pleasure on his face.
‘Me three,’ Tommy added, kicking his legs up in the air and pretending to cycle as he lay on his back.
‘I think we’re three lucky little babies,’ Channing squealed before gulping down some more milk. ‘My tummy is getting super-full. I think I might need to go pee-pee.’
The three friends giggled and allowed themselves to enjoy their milk, the perfect nursery rhymes as the played on the speak system, and the general feeling of total relaxation.
Being in Little space was something that Channing adored.
As much as Channing enjoyed his day-to-day life, nothing quite matched up to the sensation of feeling himself regress and become his most authentic Little self.
Rick and Sam felt the same way too and Channing felt blessed to have them both in his life as good friends.
‘Who wants to have a stuffie race?’ Rick squealed, rolling over and picking up his super-cute giraffe stuffie.
‘I think my Teto might win!’ Tommy giggled, parading his T-Rex stuffie with pride.
‘Naaaaw, good try but Billy will be the champ!’’ Channing smiled, before realizing that his diaper was fit to burst. ‘But first I think it’s time for me to call for Miss Applebottom to come change me. I’m all wet!’
The three friends giggled and cooed in delight as they waited for the Beach Babies nanny to arrive to change them.
Excitement for the stuffie race was building, but first there were three sets of heavy, fluffy diapers that needed changing – and fast!
* * *
The seated area out front of Drink Devine was one of Channing’s favorite local hangouts. Drink Devine was an all-purpose wellness space that covered everything from sound therapy to the comparatively commonplace yoga Pilates.
The fact that the café served up some of the tastiest and freshest juices in all of Los Frisco was the cherry on top of the gluten-free cake.
But as much as Channing was in heaven at Drink Devine, evidently the same could not be said for his old college flame Max…
‘What the actual fuck?’ Max said, his impossibly handsome face all scrunched up as he just about managed to swallow down the wheatgrass shot that accompanied his berry smoothie. ‘I’ve tried a million different shots in a million different bars, but none of them tasted like… that.’
Channing rolled his head back and laughed.
It felt good to be getting a little enjoyment out of seeing Max suffer. After all, it was Max who showed up so abruptly and without and warning. It was only fair that Channing was allowed to indulge in a little bit of payback.
‘It’s good for you,’ Channing said, a big smile on his face. ‘But seriously, wheatgrass is genuinely incredible when it comes to healing aches and pains. I swear by it.’
‘It’s early evening, we should be pounding the beers!’ Max said, the disgruntled look on his face showing no sign of going anywhere. ‘Anyway. Dude, I probably owe you a bit of an explanation…’
At this point, Channing assumed that Max was going to explain why he had shown up unannounced in what looked to be quite a distressed state.
As reliably rugged as Max had looked, on reflection Channing had realized that there was something not quite right about him. There had been an edge, a slight haziness to Max that wasn’t how Channing remembered him at all.
But rather than explain what was going on right now, what Max wanted to set straight was something from a long time ago…
‘You know, I always felt bad about how we left things in college,’ Max said, taking a sip of his berry drink. ‘I know we’ve seen each other since, but it’s always felt like a cloud above us, you know?’
‘Yeah, that’s a fair comment,’ Channing said, a wry smile on his face. ‘I guess the last thing you needed was a Little clinging on to you…’
‘I figured you’d say that,’ Max continued.
‘Well, I want to own it. I’m sorry. I’m sorry for leaving without giving you a proper explanation.
And I’m sorry for waiting until now to sit down and have this conversation.
I fucked up. I failed college and knowing that you were so focused on your studies, I just didn’t want to drag you down with me.
But rather than have an adult talk about things, I just cut loose. ’
‘Yeah, but you were also afraid of commitment,’ Channing said, his voice quivering just a touch. ‘You knew how much I liked you. When you left town it hurt.’
Max nodded and appeared to be contemplating something.
Channing noticed that Max was still wincing a little if he moved his shoulder too much, but rather than try to press Max for any further details on his current situation, Channing decided that it was better to keep the conversation flowing.
‘So… tell me,’ Channing said. ‘Have you managed to find your Mr. Right since we last hung out?’
‘Hmmm. What do you think?’ Max said, a wry grin back on his face.
‘I think you’ve probably found plenty of Mr. Right Now’s,’ Channing said. ‘But anything longer than a weekend? I’m guessing not.’
‘You’d guess correctly too,’ Max laughed. ‘And you? There must have been a Daddy to catch your eye’
‘Still single. Still working hard. Still…,’ Channing said, trailing off.
‘Yeah?’
‘Still trying to find my happy place, I guess,’ Channing said, suddenly feeling a pang of emotion. ‘Hey, I’m volunteering again.’
‘Oh, great. Doing what?’ Max said, his interest piqued.
‘A dog shelter,’ Channing replied, smiling. ‘It’s called Bark Buddies. Honestly, I know you’ve always liked dogs. It’s incredible how many super-sweet little mutts they get in there. I’d take them all home with me if I could.’
‘I bet you would!’ Max laughed. ‘You’ve got a thing for scruffy, charming strays…’
Channing giggled.
Suddenly, there was that old electricity between them again. It was undeniable. Despite being so different, the pair of them had a lot more in common than appeared on the surface.
Ever since he first met Max on campus as a nervous twenty-one-year-old, Channing had felt a connection between them. And now, if it was ever in doubt, it was clear that this very same connection was still there.
Despite being a little bit self-conscious at times, Channing never found it difficult to act flirtatious with Max. It just came super-easy to him. It was as if Max just had that special something in him that unlocked another side of Channing that so many other people just couldn’t get to.
Max, of course, never found it hard to flirt in even the wildest, most inappropriate settings.
The rumors around campus had been that Max had managed to work his way through at least half of the Literature faculty in the first semester alone. Max had always denied this, but Channing never quite believed him.
‘Okay, okay,’ Channing said, the pair of them spending a little too long staring thirstily at one another. ‘I need to know something else.’
‘Shoot, champ,’ Max replied, now seemingly enjoying his berry drink far more than he had anticipated after the wheatgrass experience.
‘I want to know what your deal is,’ Channing said, a hint of steely insistence in his voice. ‘You can’t honestly expect to show up looking a hot mess and ask to stay with me and then not explain what’s up. Come on, even for you that’s pushing it…’
Channing paused and waited for an answer.
Suddenly, Max’s facial expression turned from one of flirtatious banter to something altogether sadder.
This was really something, Channing could tell.
‘It’s okay, you can trust me,’ Channing said, reaching over and placing his soft hand on Max’s far more rugged, not to mentioned tattooed, hand.
‘Well, it all began about nine months ago…’
Max proceeded to explain that he had built something of a debt. He was gambling and losing. But instead of quitting while he wasn’t too far behind, Max had decided to try and gamble his way out of the debt. Of course, this only led to more financial woes.
It turned out that Max had got himself into so much debt that he had ended up homeless. His car was all he had left in the world. And speaking of his car…
‘I had to leave it,’ Max said. ‘I was so fucking scared that the cops would show up. I mean… I’m not even insured currently.
I’m screwed. The whole situation is fucked up.
I could have been arrested. Maybe even ended up in county jail for a short sentence.
Or worse. It was the way I just had no memories beyond winning that God damned drag race. It just makes no sense.’
‘Oh boy,’ Channing said, moving closer to Max and putting his arm around him. ‘You’ve been a in a bad situation, that’s for sure. Don’t worry though, I’ll help you through it. That’s what friends are for.’
Max nodded and the pair of them shared a moment.
There were deep feelings between Channing and Max, there was no questioning that. Even in the times where their friendship had slipped off the radar, or where the lines had been blurred, it had never been in doubt that the pair of them cared about one another.
But as much as he wanted to be there for Max, Channing couldn’t help but wonder whether being associated to someone with a dubious criminal record might actually hamper his career at Green Sky Future.
Channing felt guilty for even thinking this, but his career was important to him.
Channing would have to tread carefully with how he handled this.
Channing’s only hope was that, for once, Max might be ready to play it safe and stick to the rules…