Chapter 16
Colton
Practice had ended and Colton couldn’t get out of the facility fast enough. It had been a rough day. The team watched film from last weekend’s game and the coaches ripped them to shreds.
It went on for hours. It had been a pretty dismal performance all around, and the coaches took the time to point out every flaw, every bad play, by every single player. Colton reeled from the reaming. He needed to get away from the facility and relax. He needed to laugh, and fast.
Immediately, he thought of Dean, and reached for his phone in his bag…
Colton: Hey Dean! I’ve had a pretty shitty day. I need to relax and laugh. Want some company?
Dean: Aww, I’m sorry to hear that! You bet! Come over whenever.
Dean answered the door with a sympathetic smile and Colton stepped forward, dropping his forehead on his shoulder. He felt Dean take a sharp breath, and his body temperature immediately increased by about 100 degrees.
Dean gently rubbed the back of Colton’s head, running his fingers through his hair. “Bad day, huh?”
Fuck, he smells good.
The moment Dean started rubbing the back of his head, the tension in Colton’s body immediately floated away. Resting against Dean’s strong, warm body, with his hand gently holding his head, Colton could exhale, let the stress release, and feel safe and secure.
“The worst!” Colton dropped his bag in the entryway. “The coaches tore into us for hours. I’m gonna be walking funny for days from the ass reaming I just got.”
Dean cackled and patted his shoulder, leading him to the sofa. “Sit. Relax. Let’s have some fun.”
Colton fell into the cushions of the sofa, burrowing himself amongst the blue pillows. “Thanks, man. I’m so glad you were home. And I’m so fucking glad we have a bye week this week so I can have a few days off from the facility.”
“Oh, you’re off for a few days?”
“Yup. And I need a drink, or three!”
Dean flashed a devilish grin. “I’ve got just what you need.” He walked over to the bar along the wall, rummaged through the bottles, and turned to present 2 unopened bottles of Patron tequila. “Anejo or Reposado?”
“Fuck it! Why not both?” Colton grinned back.
“I like the way you think, my friend.” Dean winked, grabbing two fancy tasting glasses from the shelf.
Dean poured the drinks and passed a glass to Colton, who took a healthy sip. “Fuck! That’s good shit!”
Dean winked and swirled the golden liquor in his glass. “That’s the Anejo. The Reposado is even better. Wait ‘til you taste that one.”
Colton dropped his head back onto the sofa and sighed deeply. “I feel better already. Thank you, Dean.”
Colton still couldn’t pinpoint it, but there was something about Dean. A wave of calm washed over him whenever they were together. One look into Dean’s eyes, or his smile bright enough to fill a room, and Colton felt immediately at ease, at peace.
“You’re welcome, Colton. Like I said when you were sick a while back, Mi casa es su casa…and now mi tequila es su tequila.” He joked, flashing a big goofy grin.
Colton cackled and slapped Dean’s thigh. “I knew you’d make me laugh!” He sighed again, dropping his head back onto the sofa.
Dean smiled with a little chuckle before grabbing the iPad off the coffee table and starting some music.
“Hey, wanna order a pizza?”
Colton smiled, hugging one of the pillows. “Fuck yeah! That sounds amazing.”
After a large pepperoni pizza, several glasses of tequila, and sparkling, effortless conversation, Colton was in heaven.
Buzz or no buzz, he could seriously talk to Dean all day and night.
Their conversations were relaxed, effortless, naturally flowing like a lazy river with no end, with endless amounts of laughter.
Over the years, he’d had tons of friends, mostly bros from his team, but he’d never felt a connection with anyone like this before.
He was completely comfortable, he could talk about anything with Dean and he knew there’d be no judgment.
The agave infused chat landed on the topic of personal theme songs.
“Alright, Dean, if you had to pick one song to be the theme song of your life, what would it be?”
“Oh, damn. That’s a tough question. It would really depend on the day and how I'm feeling.” Dean paused, tilting his head in thought and biting his lip. “But, if I had to pick one, I guess it would be ‘Music gets the best of Me’ by Sophie Ellis Bextor.”
“Never heard of it.” Colton took another gulp of Reposado.
“Basically, the song says music is my first love, thus the title. But she’s willing to share her love with her man if he can handle music being her first love.” Dean grabbed his iPad and began scrolling through his music library. “Here, I’ll play it for you.”
Colton listened as the song filled the loft. It was a slower, groovy song with a catchy melody. He could totally see this as Dean’s theme song.
“Alright, mister.” Dean took another sip of tequila. “Your turn…what’s your theme song?”
“Hmmm.” Colton pondered. “I would say ‘Eye of the Tiger’.”
Dean spit through his lips, doing his best to hold back a laugh, then Colton laughed. “Okay, I guess that’s a pretty lame one.”
“Yeah, pretty lame.” Dean chuckled.
Dean smiled a sinister grin and flipped through the iPad. “Here. I’ve got your theme song right here.”
‘Baby Got Back’ by Sir Mix-a-Lot began playing throughout the loft.
Colton guffawed loudly. “This is my theme song?”
“With your ass? Fuck yeah, this is your theme song. I mean, listen to the words. It’s like it was written just for you.”
"L.A. Face with a Oakland Booty" Dean sang, and pointed at Colton. “That’s you!”
Colton howled with laughter, tears beginning to stream down his face. “You are a fucking idiot!”
Dean laughed and poured another round of tequila. “Here. You look thirsty.” He shoved one of the glasses toward Colton.
Colton finished his sip before Dean took his drink from him and put it on the table. He jumped up and grabbed Colton’s hand, jerking him up to stand.
“Now, come on, shake it, shake it…shake that healthy butt!”
Dean began dancing in front of Colton. And Colton, feeling the effects of the tequila, couldn’t help but laugh and dance, shaking his ass for Dean.
“There you go!”
"I want ‘em real thick and juicy…"
"L.A. face with a Oakland booty…"
"You gotta pack much back"
"Shake that healthy butt."
Dean sang and smacked Colton repeatedly on his ass. Colton could only giggle in drunken delight.
They plopped back onto the sofa and Dean scooped up their glasses, handing Colton his before lifting his own in salute.
“Cheers, Colton. Is your day better now?”
They clinked and sipped.
Colton looked at Dean with a wide grin and tipsy, sappy eyes.
“My day is much better now, thanks to you. My fucking cheeks hurt from laughing!” He stared at Dean, still smiling.
He didn’t really know what to say. He just smiled, appreciating Dean for everything that he was…
a superstar, a comedian, a calm in the storm, a friend.
“What is it?” Dean asked, taking another sip of tequila.
“Nothing. You just completely turned my day around, and I’m grateful.” Colton sobered a bit, feeling slightly embarrassed at how he was staring at Dean like a lovesick kid.
“Happy to help! But I think the tequila should get most of the credit,” he joked and elbowed him in the ribs.
But then, Dean reached down to gently take Colton’s hand. He lifted it to his face, and softly kissed the back of his hand. “I’d do anything for you, Colton,” he said in a soft, quiet voice.
Colton smiled, feeling a wave of warmth across his cheeks that was certainly not from the tequila, and rested his head on his shoulder. “Thank you, Dean.”
A few hours later, Colton woke with a monstrous hangover.
He shook the sleep from his eyes and assessed the situation.
He was sleeping on Dean’s sofa, still in his clothes from the night before.
He could smell coffee brewing, but Dean was nowhere in sight as he sat up and looked around the loft.
He could make out the sound of a shower somewhere near the bedroom, so he slowly stood and made his way toward it.
Walking through the bedroom, he noted that the bed was still made.
Maybe Dean had slept, or passed out, on the sofa too?
He reached the door of the bathroom and called out, “Dean?”
“Hey! Come on in.”
“No. It’s ok. I‘m good.”
“Colton, for Christ's sake, you’ve already seen me naked. What’s the big deal? Come in.”
Colton took a breath and reluctantly entered the bathroom.
Dean was showering, the morning sun flowing through the window behind him, engulfing him in a golden silhouette. The glass-enclosed shower sprayed Dean’s body from multiple angles as water rolled down his beautiful, muscular body.
His wet hair hanging in front of his face made Colton skip a breath. The water dripped from his bangs and the tip of his nose; so fucking sexy.
Colton had seen hundreds, probably thousands, of naked men in his life…all shapes and sizes, showering just like Dean was now, but never before had it elicited this type of response.
Dean was different.
Dean was…spectacular.
And Colton could only stare and appreciate the beauty before him.
Dean turned and pointed to the mirror over the sink. “Pain relievers, medicine chest, top shelf.”
“Thank you!” Colton opened the cabinet, fumbled with the cap, and gobbled up two extra-strength acetaminophen.
“I’m almost done here. I’ll leave the water on for you.”
Dean stepped out of the shower and Colton suddenly couldn’t concentrate, with Dean’s thick cock flopping around while he dried off.
He couldn’t look away. It felt like everything was moving in slow motion.
When Dean wrapped the towel around his waist, time reset to normal, and Colton could finally focus.
“How you feeling?” Dean stepped to him and patted his shoulder.
“Like hammered shit.” Colton did his best not to notice the little drops of water on his friend's skin.
“Same. Gotta love tequila.”
“Ooh! Don’t even say that word, Dean!” Colton pressed a finger to his temple.
Dean moved really close to Colton’s face and muttered. “Tequila, tequila, tequila, tequila.”
Colton laughed and shoved him backwards. “Dumbass!”
“But we had fun, right?”
“We did.”
“Alright, you grab a shower. I’ll make us some breakfast.”
***
Dean
Colton began to disrobe and prepare for his shower. It took every bit of Dean’s resolve to not stand there and watch him get naked. Maybe Colton needed some help scrubbing his back?
He shook away the dirty thought and hustled to the kitchen before he could stop himself.
Showered and refreshed, Colton joined Dean in the kitchen. “Man, that shower is legit!”
Dean smiled and poured him some coffee. Colton looked stunning, still slightly rumpled, his hair still wet after his shower. He smelled of Dean’s shower gel, and Dean found himself wishing he could have that every morning.
“I’m making my famous Hangover Helper breakfast,” he proudly boasted.
“Does it work?” Colton took a sip of coffee.
“Oh yeah! I’ve had this many a morning after a hard night of partying. Perks you right back up!”
“I didn’t think you were a hard partier.” Colton took another sip of coffee and hummed. “Great coffee, by the way.”
“I'm not anymore, but back in the day, I was a little out of control. Too much drinking, drugs, and late, late nights. I used to get absolutely sloshed during my sets, and it negatively affected my performance. Sometimes, being young with unlimited money isn’t a good thing.” Dean sighed.
“I still drink beer or wine while I’m spinning, but nowhere near the amount I used to drink. If I’m in a bar or a venue, I’m working, on the clock, I have an important job to do. And if I’m on the clock, I’m not partying.”
Dean rested his elbows on the counter facing Colton. “We partied hard last night! That’s the first time in over a year for me, but I felt like you needed it.”
Colton smiled. “I did need it. I feel like shit, but I also feel so much better.”
Dean finished his Hangover Helper…a concoction of scrambled eggs, chorizo, beefy chili, and cheddar cheese, piled on top of hash browns. He joined Colton at the island and placed a plate in front of him.
Colton took a bite and moaned in delight. “Holy shit, this is delicious! I didn’t know you were such a good cook.”
Dean sipped his coffee before responding. “I’m just full of surprises.”
Colton smiled, but then his expression dropped. “Dean. Did we…do anything last night?”
Dean furrowed his brows in confusion. “What do you mean…Do anything?”
“Well, I remember you kissing my hand —totally fine, by the way…I liked it— but after that, I don’t remember much. I'm not sure if we went any further?” Colton timidly looked at Dean.
Dean put down his fork and leaned forward onto the island.
He looked deep into his eyes, his gorgeous soul capturing eyes, blue like the Caribbean Ocean and sparkling like diamonds.
“Colton. I would never take advantage of you. Look. If you want to fuck me, say the word and we’ll get to it.
I’ll have you screaming my name in ten minutes.
But I would never make a move on you while you were drunk.
You have to know me better than that, right? ”
Colton sighed, his shoulders dropping. “I know. I just wanted to be sure.”
Dean shot an intrigued look toward Colton. “Did…you…want something to happen last night?”
Colton sputtered. “What? No. But…I just…I mean, we had a nice tender moment.” He shrugged. “And if something else did happen, I wanted to be sure I remembered it…you know?”
Dean melted. Sweet and timid was a look he kinda liked on Colton, but he could also tell he was conflicted as he tried to process his feelings and his recollections.
He decided to keep the mood light. “I know. I mean, if you’re going to get into my pants, you want to be damn sure you remember the experience.” Dean stuck out his tongue and chuckled.
“You’re a fucking ass!” Colton laughed and shook his head.
Dean patted his hand reassuringly. “No, but seriously, Colton. You put your head on my shoulder and fell asleep. Then, I fell asleep about ten minutes later. That’s what happened.”
Colton sighed deeply and picked up his fork. “Thanks, Dean.”