I juggle several notebooks in my arms and try to catch my laptop bag from slipping off my shoulder. I should’ve looped it over my neck, but I didn’t think I’d have this much trouble walking the few feet to Troy’s place from my car. I should’ve known better than that.

The bag slides down, and in my fumbled attempt to save my laptop, I end up dropping my notebooks, loose paper flying out everywhere.

“Fuck,” I mutter, bending to collect my notes.

Troy’s door swings open in front of me. “I can’t take you anywhere,” he comments with a chuckle.

I shake my head, but he’s right. I’m a mess. There’s no universe in which I won’t screw up this meeting to get sponsors for our game. Troy kneels and helps me gather the loose paper, and once we have everything back in order, we head into his place.

“You want a drink or anything?” he offers as I sit at his kitchen table and pull out my laptop.

“I’m good, thanks.”

While Troy gets something to drink, I make sure my notes for the presentation are in order. I’m not sure why he thinks it will be a good idea for me to say anything. We’d be better off if Troy gives the whole presentation and I just sit there and do my best not to spill anything.

“Are you sure I should do half the presentation?” I ask Troy for the umpteenth time.

“I’m positive. I can talk about a lot of the monetary and marketing aspect, but you and I both know you’re better at describing the specs and design aspects of the game. I can code, but I’m shit at explaining game design.”

“I’m going to screw it up,” I warn him with a sigh.

“No, you won’t,” he assures me. “Now, let’s run through this presentation from the top to see where we need some work.”

I sigh again and pull up the power point we made, sitting back to listen as Troy goes over the first half. Three hours and countless re-writes later, my stomach is grumbling, and I’m starting to get a headache.

“I’m starving; can we take a break?” Troy suggests, and I readily agree. “I’ll order a pizza, and then we can get back at this after we eat.”  

I groan and let my head fall against the table. “Do we really even need sponsors?”

“If we want to take this game to the next level, we need sponsors. Think of how good this is going to look on our resumes. Trust me, I’ve been applying at game studios for months now and haven’t gotten so much as a nibble yet. If we can make this game happen in a big way, it’s going to be huge for both our careers.”

“Yeah, okay,” I agree, hating him a little for being right. This game is getting some decent downloads so far, but if we can get sponsorship, we’ll be able to do a lot more with it and get more eyes on it.

Troy places the order for pizza, and we head into the living room to play video games while we wait for it to be delivered.

“How was your date?” Troy asks, and I’m glad he’s focused on the game on the screen so he doesn’t catch my blush.

“Good. It’s been two dates now, actually.”

Lucky called me a few days after our first date and invited me out for drinks at this nice little bar with live music and a really relaxed vibe. The second goodnight kiss was even better than the first, because my nerves weren’t nearly as bad.

“That’s it? Good?” Troy complains. “Tell me about the guy. What’s he do? What’s he look like? Does he have a huge dick?”

I sputter at the last question. “Oh my god, it was two dates. How would I know what his dick looks like?”

“Oh, my sweet summer child.”

“Just because you’re a slut doesn’t mean all of us put out on the first date,” I tease.

“Fine, but you totally could’ve put out on the second date. Besides, I’m not a slut anymore. I’m boring and settled into a committed relationship and shit,” he points out.

“We’re boring?” Rebel asks, coming into the living room. “Gee thanks. Maybe we should look up that cute twink, Byron, and see if he’s still up for a threesome,” he suggests with a smirk, sliding onto the couch on the other side of Troy and putting his feet up on the coffee table.

“Seriously?” Troy asks, looking away from the screen and giving me the perfect opportunity to annihilate his avatar.

“If you want,” Rebel shrugs. “I’d hate for you to be bored with me.”

“How could I possibly get bored with someone who rims like you do?”

“Dude,” I complain, wrinkling my nose at the unwanted image.

“Don’t knock it until you try it,” Troy counters.

My mind conjures images from a recent Ballsy video where Heart rimmed Pixie, and my cock starts to plump in my jeans. Heart and Pixie sure looked like they were both enjoying the experience, but it is porn, so there’s a good chance they were faking. Who really likes licking someone’s ass? Plus, that must be so awkward to have your cheeks spread, asshole on display for someone. So why is the thought making me even harder? I shift, hoping to hide my growing bulge.

“Isn’t it awkward?” I ask.

“Maybe with someone you don’t know, I guess.”

I nod, keeping my eyes trained on the screen. I wonder if rimming is on the list of things Heart’s planning to teach me. My hole flutters at the thought. I guess if he suggests it, I’d be up for trying it.

The pizza arrives a few minutes later and we all dig in.

“Hey, you totally distracted me from getting the details on your dates,” Troy realizes as we eat.

Damn, so close.

“It was fun. Lucky seems like a good guy. He’s a parole officer, and he’s really hot and nice. I’m not sure what he sees in me, but there’s no accounting for taste, I suppose,” I joke, the self-doubt niggling at my mind.

“You’re a catch,” Troy insists, and Rebel nods his agreement. “So, do you have another date planned?”

“Not yet, Lucky’s supposed to call. I don’t know what I’m going to do about Heart though if Lucky and I keep dating.”

“What do you mean? Did you and Lucky already talk about being exclusive?”

“No, actually I told him about Heart, and he seemed fine with it. But it seems kind of wrong. I like Lucky, and I like Heart, isn’t it shitty to lead them both on?”

“But you’re not leading anyone on. Everyone is aware of everyone else and is in agreement about things being casual, right?” Troy checks, and I nod. “That’s all above board.”

“Yeah,” I agree reluctantly. “It’s just so not me.”

“Maybe that’s not the worst thing in the world. Not that you shouldn’t be you. You’re awesome and should totally be yourself. But sometimes it’s good to step out of our comfort zone and just experience life, you know? Look at me with Rebel, if I’d stuck to my usual MO, I’d still be a lonely, miserable asshole. Now I’m a happy, committed asshole.”

I snort a laugh. “I guess that makes sense.”

“Of course, it makes sense; I’m a genius. Relax, have fun, and see where things go.”

“Yeah, okay,” I agree, feeling a little lighter after his reassurances.

“Ready to get back to this presentation?” Troy asks as we polish off the last of the pizza.

“As I’ll ever be,” I reply reluctantly.

After a few more hours of torture, Troy eventually agrees to call it a night. He’s lighting up a joint as I head out of his place, and I shake my head, wishing I had an easy way of relaxing like he does. I’m jittery and wound tight after spending the entire day imagining giving a presentation in front of a room full of people in suits.

I don’t live far from Troy so it doesn’t take long to get home. I kick off my shoes and head straight for my couch to spend a few hours gaming to unwind. Before I can get a game going, my phone rings in my pocket. My heart flips, and I can’t decide if I’m hoping for it to be Heart or Lucky calling. It’s been a few days since my second date with Lucky, and I’m starting to doubt he’s going to call, so when I see his name on the screen, I smile.

“Hey,” I answer in as nonchalant a tone as possible.

“Hey,” Lucky replies, his voice smooth and deep. “Sorry it took me a few days to call, I’ve been buried under work.”

“I understand,” I assure him, a smile stretching across my face. Silence stretches between us for a few seconds, and I start to wonder if there’s something more I’m supposed to say. Or is it his turn to talk again? Wait, should I have tried to call him sooner? Am I supposed to apologize too?

“How’ve you been? Up to anything interesting the past few days?” he asks conversationally. There’s a rustling in the background that sounds like he’s getting comfortable, so I do the same, leaning back on my couch and folding my legs under myself.

“Nothing too interesting. I spent the day today working with Troy on a presentation for potential sponsors for our game. That’s coming up in the next few months, and every time I think about it I want to puke,” I admit. I know it seems overkill for us to spend so much time going over our presentation so far ahead of time, but Troy is indulging my need for excessive preparation.

“Yeah, public speaking is not something I’m a big fan of either,” Lucky agrees.

“Really?” I can’t imagine Lucky feeling nervous or panicked about anything; he seems like the type to always keep cool under pressure. Being a former Marine, I suppose that’s an important quality.

“Oh yeah, public speaking and elevators are my top two fears.”

“Thank you for telling me that, it makes you seem much more human.”

“More human?” Lucky chuckles. “What was I before?”

“I don’t know, some sort of demigod?” I smile and fiddle with a little string coming out of the arm of the couch.

“Which one?” Lucky asks with humor.

“I’m thinking Achilles, conquering hero and all. Although, I suppose even with your fear of elevators you could still be Achilles, it’ll just be your Achilles heel.”

Lucky barks out a laugh at that. “I’ll have to watch out for being shot in the heel with an arrow then.”

“Probably a good idea,” I agree with mock-solemnity.

We talk for a while longer about video games we’ve both been playing lately and what the rest of our week looks like.

“I’ve had a lot of fun hanging out with you lately. Can I take you on another date this weekend?” he asks, and I do a little happy dance in my seat.

“That sounds nice,” I agree, doing my best to sound indifferent.

“Great, how does Sunday sound?”

“Perfect.”

“Okay, I’ll text you with details later in the week,” Lucky says and then pauses like he’s considering his next words. “I like you, Mason. I feel like we really connect. I hope you feel the same?”

“I do,” I rush to assure him.

“Good.” I can hear the smile in his voice and it warms my insides. “Have a good night.”

“You too.”

My heart is still pounding when I hang up the phone. I don’t think there’s been a more perfect conversation in the history of dating.

With a happy sigh, I finally start up the game I decided to play and spend the rest of the night alternating between thinking about when I can spend more time with Heart and what my third date with Lucky will be like, too giddy about both men to even feel guilty about how much I like both of them.