2. Camden
Camden
I couldn’t help but drop my bag. I barely got five words out and my eyes went straight to his dick. Luke’s dick. It was hardening and the part of me that was curious why was growing by the second.
Kind of like my other part.
I shifted my weight and hoped no one would notice. I didn't think he'd be here. I thought his coach would have kept him away somehow.
“Cam Cam!” came out of Colton’s mouth, forcing my eyes away from Luke’s crotch, and over to my hunk of a best friend.
He barely shut off the water and wrapped a towel around his waist before crushing me in a bear hug, my head trapped against his bare, wet chest. I thought I noticed Luke staring, but did a quick double take and he was washing his arms, ignoring us.
You were just imagining it.
“Glad you could make it,” Orion said.
Alex waved and said, “Hey Cam,” before turning to rinse off.
Luke made eye contact with me and nodded.
That’s it? A nod?
“What took you so long?” Colton asked, keeping one arm around me.
I turned to follow him to his locker, where he dried his hair, then stayed completely naked to listen to my answer, one leg up on the bench. I knew what he was doing. Bless him. He was trying to make Luke jealous, or angry, or both.
Colton had become my best friend over the last few years, and he knew everything that happened at the last games. If it weren’t for the fact that I was still hung up on Luke, we probably would’ve become more than best friends when we met.
He was a fan and had read about my mom’s flower shop in one of my interviews, so when his family was vacationing in Clearwater, he took a short drive to the shop to see if I was around.
As luck would have it, I was working that day and after getting permission to cut out early, we spent the rest of the day getting to know each other.
He was a great listener, and since I hadn’t talked to anyone other than Erika for months, I ended up oversharing by coming out to him.
I must’ve known somehow that he would be fine with it, because he came out to me a minute later.
I was the first person he told, and that helped cement our bond.
After Brisbane, I hadn’t pushed coming out as a priority. I thought it would only further complicate things with Luke, so I could still relate to Colton being in the closet.
“Our flight kept getting delayed, and we missed the connection in New York. Had to stay there an extra night.”
Colton nodded, his back towards the showers, and dropped his towel on the bench. With both feet back on the floor, he stretched his arms above his head, presumably flexing every muscle he had, and winked at me. His frame was blocking me from the other guys, so I smirked and shook my head.
He definitely knew what he was doing.
I’ll admit it was a nice body and there was a time we had fooled around a little - teenager stuff, really - but I wasn’t into it and we didn’t go any further. Of course, we’d still flirt, but it was mostly innocent.
Colton started getting dressed as the other guys finished in the showers.
“How’s our room look?” I asked Colton.
“Pretty nice. We have a TV in our living room."
“That’s new.”
“Excuse me,” Luke said to us. Apparently, his locker was right next to Colton’s.
I apologized, moving out of the way, and couldn’t help but notice his muscles. Up close, it was more obvious. Luke was bigger. And he had stubble and more body hair.
Damn.
I had seen him at recent competitions, but not with so few clothes or this close.
His coach was always hovering. One time, she almost tackled me at a meet.
That was during the first year. Luke wasn’t doing well, and it was obvious from his gymnastics.
After I won the national championship that year, he seemed to get better.
His body certainly had. Colton, now fully dressed, must’ve noticed where I was looking.
“You hungry? Wanna grab some grub, Cam?”
“Uh, sure, Colton. See you guys later.”
“Are we going to the village or into the city?” I asked, happy to be walking away from the temptation that was Luke’s body.
“That’s up to you, partner. I’m guessing you’re beat after your flights.”
“I am,” I said, sighing. “The village okay?”
Colton nodded. “Sure thing. The shuttle’s just up here. We’ll have plenty of time to see the city later.”
I followed him, and we boarded. London was enormous.
I was hoping Colton was right, and we’d have time to see some of it.
Being late hadn’t helped. Most of our pre-games training was at a gym in the northwest corner of the Olympic village.
The official gymnastics events were at the O2 Arena along the Thames, a ten-minute drive south of the Olympic Stadium and the village.
Most of the events were in and around the stadium, but a few, like gymnastics, were in other locations.
“I wasn’t too obvious, was I?” Colton asked.
I had been watching the scenery out the window, but I smirked and turned to say, “You could’ve grinded against me a little.” I raised my eyebrows as Colton laughed. “And it was obvious to me, but I’m not sure what Luke thought about it.”
“Hey, I was just trying to do y’all a favor. His coach wasn’t around. Just trying to spread a little cum in the water.”
“I think you mean chum,” I corrected. “And I don’t need help.”
“Chum gets sharks. Cum gets gay boys.”
I laughed. “So you’re the expert in getting gay boys?”
He coyly answered, “Maybe?”
I practically jumped from my seat. “He’s still texting you then?!”
Colton couldn’t contain his excitement anymore and nodded enthusiastically. “Yes! Almost every day now.”
I tried to keep my squeak at low volume since there were a few other people on the shuttle. Thankfully, not the rest of the team, so we could talk a little more freely.
“Well, any new developments?”
“It’s mostly been a lot of howdies and heys and what we’ve been up to, but I told him I couldn’t wait to hang out again and he sent me a heart emoji!”
“Oh, that’s so sweet.”
Last year, I got a part-time job with the NFL’s Tampa Bay Thunder as an assistant to the team’s physiotherapist. I worked with most of the guys on the team, keeping them flexible, helping to increase their speed and strength, and also rehabilitating any injured athletes.
One such athlete, Zephryus Jones, had recognized me from the Olympics and we became friends over the few months we worked together.
Colton, a huge football fan, had been begging me for months to let him visit so he could meet some players, and the day I finally relented, I was working with Zephyrus.
I could see their connection almost instantly, and I practically slapped myself for not noticing Zephyrus was gay before then. A part of me felt slighted he hadn’t hit on me, but I was happy for Colton, and in the private moments I had with Zephyrus, it was clear he was happy to have met Colton.
“Anything more risqué?” I asked.
“No, not yet. I’m fixin’ to, but I don’t know if Zeph’s ready.”
“That’s fair.”
“I don’t want to scare him off.”
“Colton, that,” I said, gesturing to his body, “will do nothing but bring him to his knees for you.”
Colton squirmed in his seat. “You reckon?”
It was sad how much the closet could make you insecure about yourself. I knew all too well.
“Trust me, Colton. You’re a catch.”
“Aw, thanks, Cam,” he said, leaning his head against my shoulder. “I’m a tad nervous. I haven’t done much with a guy.”
“Just let it progress naturally.” I patted his arm. “We know he’s interested. It’s probably harder for him than we know.”
“Well, it’s definitely harder for me right now.”
I laughed, pushing him off me. “Is it ever soft?”
“Occasionally.”
“Doubtful.”
A comfortable silence descended, and I saw Colton checking his messages, so I took my phone out.
Cam: It’s weird being here, knowing you’re not.
Erika: I’ll be there in a week.
Cam: Still won’t be the same.
Erika: You see him yet?
Cam: Yeah. He looks good.
Erika: Good luck, Cam.
Erika: You have Colton at least.
Cam: :-*
Erika didn’t make the Olympic team this time.
She was an alternate. The alternates didn’t train with the team, so they could stay home if they wanted to.
She decided against that and was coming to support me and her teammates.
I wasn’t sure if her fiancé, Isaak, was coming though.
He seemed nice, though I had only met him a few times.
I was happy for her. They met while she was visiting me in France, where I studied for a semester abroad.
He was Dutch, though not a pole vaulter.
We had a good laugh about that at the engagement party.
“How’s Erika?” Colton asked, leaning in.
“She’s good. She’ll be here in a few days. When is your family coming?”
“I think they’re flying over with your mom, actually.”
I supposed it made sense. She didn’t know Alex or Orion as well as she did Colton, and by extension, their families.
And while I didn’t tell her everything that happened between me and Luke, she knew enough not to ask about him anymore.
I hoped his parents weren’t coming this time.
My mom certainly would hope the same. As should everyone else.
“Did Noah fly in with you, too? He wasn't in the locker room.”
“He went to check into the hotel with Shane.”
“Oh, that makes sense. They’re probably knockin’ boots.”
“Thanks for that mental image.”
“What?! Shane’s cute.”
“You like ‘em older now? I thought you were into Zeph?”
“A boy can look!”
“Mm-hmm.”
"And Zeph is older.”
At the fourth stop, Colton told me it was time to go, so I stepped off and waited for the driver to get my bag from the back. I turned to Colton to ask, “Where to?” and looked around, awestruck by all the gleaming white towers around the central green space.
“The big one to the left,” he said, gesturing to one of the taller buildings. “It’s mostly Americans, but there’s a few smaller countries mixed in with us as well. Not many people are here yet, though. We’re on the seventh floor.”
“That’s the floor I was on last time!”
Colton smiled. “Orion and Alex are on the third.”
“Where’s Luke staying?” I asked before I could stop myself.
“Uh...I think he’s staying at a hotel with his coach.”
Of course he was. “Why wasn’t she hovering around in the locker room then?”
“She can’t go in there. Something about a lawsuit last year.”
“Hm.”
“Gotta be happy about that.”
“What?”
“She can’t go into the locker room. It’s the one place y’all can be alone.”
I sighed. “I don’t even know what happened. Why should I care this much still? He ghosted me.”
“You know there’s more to the story, sugar. I’ve already seen how he acts around you. You need to talk to him. Even if you don’t want to be with him, it’ll give you closure.”
Colton was right. I’d have to try, or I’d never be able to focus.
Our room was a lot bigger than I expected, with the bathroom on the left immediately upon entering.
The first bed was next to that and separated from the living room by a short wall, offering a little more privacy than last time.
The other bed was behind a second short wall on the other side of the living room by an enormous window.
There wasn’t a kitchen this time, but there was a mini fridge next to the couch.
The whole thing was quite charming, actually.
Not that Brisbane hadn’t been, but this window overlooked the central courtyard below, which was beautifully landscaped, and instead of white and grey, our room had some blue and green accents.
They had also added a room darkening shade, which would come in handy when trying to catch up on sleep.
Not that I had too much trouble with that, but I knew Colton did.
“I took the bed away from the window, but we can switch if you want.”
“No, that’s fine,” I answered. “I’ll take the bed with the view.”
I dropped my bag on the bed and turned to Colton. “I’m starving. Take me to the food.”
I hadn’t looked at the map yet, so I was happy to have Colton there to help.
Everything seemed similar to Brisbane, but it was just a little different.
It was like my first visit to Disneyland when all I knew growing up was Disney World.
I could feel the magic, but the castle wasn’t as big and everything felt just a little off. I laughed at my silly comparison.
“What?” Colton asked as we walked across the courtyard, heading towards a large white building opposite the dorms.
“Just thinking about the last games. It’s crazy to be back.”
“You deserve it, Cam.”
“Barely,” I said.
“Hey, don’t do that to yourself. You worked hard and you deserve to be here.”
“I know. I know.”
He was right. I had poured myself into training when I got back from Brisbane.
I needed to be the best. Anything to distract myself from my broken heart.
But after winning the title that first year, I started to slip.
I knew it was because I was lonely, and it was harder to see Luke each time, especially when he started doing well.
And even though I told Noah I didn’t mind Shane being around, I eventually did, and then I felt like an asshole for feeling like that.
I had the support of Colton and Erika, but it wasn’t enough.
I got preoccupied with thoughts that maybe I could try with another guy, but I always went back to Luke.
When Colton and Zephyrus started texting, it gave me the distraction I needed to get through the past year and honestly, if that hadn’t happened, I might’ve not made it back to the games.
And maybe my only chance to get some answers.