Chapter Four - Alec
The next week started off hectic for Alec. He had several delivery problems and had to let Jane open the gym for him. When he came in on Wednesday, he saw that Jane was doing attending to Neil and had invited Sean to do a duo work out. The young men seemed to be having an enjoyable time and it made Alec smile. He felt a little relieved that he’d get a break from his inner struggles. He could sense that Neil also felt the tension from his desires. And it was leading both of them into a dangerous arena.
Alec kept finding reasons to come in later than usual so that Jane would be running the shop. He made more trips to the non-profit he was associated with which also kept him away from the gym. That meant Jane being part of Neil and Sean’s training too. From what he could see and what Jane had told him, the two had started a friendly rivalry and were both working their asses off.
“Thanks, Janey. I didn’t mean for you to take up the slack there,” Alec told her at lunch one day. She shrugged.
“You had boss things to do so I figured I’d step up. It seems to be going alright so why upset the apple cart, you know?”
He couldn’t deny it. “Good point and it’s easier on me too. I hope it doesn’t mess up your schedule though,” he said a little worried. She laughed.
“Not a bit, man. My early morning guy flaked out over a girlfriend and went on an unscheduled vacation. I’ve got the time,” she said, and he laughed with her.
“How is Important Youth going?” she asked, changing the subject.
Alec smiled. “Great, we got some more kids placed and safe. That always feels good.”
Jane nodded. She volunteered there as and when time permitted. Alec definitely appreciated whatever little help she offered.
Important Youth was a place for young men who had housing problems due to their sexual orientation. It was a safe house for them to get help. Alec partnered with them permanently and would offer help in any way possible. In fact, Alec had met and adopted Sean through the organization. He felt it was the most important thing he’d ever done, helping Sean like that. Being a father was a rewarding experience he’d never thought he’d have.
That alone was an incentive to avoid any relationship with his son’s friend.
The next day, when he heard Jane sneezing in the back room, he knew it was a sound of trouble. By the end of the day she wasn’t feeling great at all. It was the only time he’d seen her get sick and he wanted to make sure she took care of herself.
“Go home, darling. Take tomorrow off and focus on getting better, okay?” he told her.
She looked embarrassed and sniffed her running nose into a tissue. “I don’t know, Alec. I’ve never missed a day. Hell, I’ve never gotten sick!” she said exasperated, just before sneezing mightily.
He chuckled. “You have now. Honestly, Janey, you’re looking a little pale and taking off tomorrow will guarantee you get better quicker. Trust me, I don’t get sick much either, but when I do, look out! Just take care of yourself, okay?”
“You're right, I know. Alright, I’ll go. One thing, though, Alec?” she said.
“Yes?”
“Never tell a woman she doesn’t look good,” she said with a grin.
“Noted,” he said and got a laugh out of her before she started coughing. She waved and gathered up her bag on her way out. Alec worked until seven that night and his new night guy, Joey, took over after that. He’d watch the gym until eleven in Alec’s absence.
“See you, boss,” Joey said.
“Later, Joey, have a good night.” Alec was relieved to be on his way home. It had been a long day. He was a bit worried about Janey. So, when he got home, he sat in the driveway texting her.
Don’t worry, mother hen! Janey texted back. That made him smile. He got out of the car and went in.
Alec hung up his jacket and heard coughing in the kitchen. Concerned, he went through the doorway and Sean was bent over with a heavy cough. He finished and straightened up.
“Damn,” he said hoarsely, and Alec hurried to get to his side.
“Jesus, son, you okay? That doesn’t sound good,” he said, and Sean gave him a weak smile.
“I’ll be okay, I’m sure. I thought it was just a cold earlier today, but then it came on like gangbusters,” he said. Alec had him sit down.
“Janey’s got a bug too. There must be something going around. Did you get something to eat?” he asked, automatically falling into his role as a father.
“No, not since lunch. Nothing sounds good,” he admitted.
“I hear you. You must get protein into you to fight the virus, or whatever it is. How about I make you some broth? All you need to do is drink it, and we’ll get you into bed. How does that sound?” he asked, and Sean nodded then shivered slightly. Alec snorted and went to get his son a blanket from the couch. “Here, wrap this around you. I’ll get that broth going,” he said and got to work immediately.
He got his son sipping on the broth pretty soon and also made sure he ate some crackers along with it.
Alec decided to make a quick call to the gym. “Hey Joey, everything cool?” he asked.
“Yeah. Slow tonight. There’s no one here now; what’s up?” he asked.
“It looks like a couple of people who have been through the gym are coming down sick. Could you be extra careful with the disinfectant on the equipment tonight? Just a precaution,” Alec said.
“Sure, I’ll get on it now. I hope it’s nothing too bad.”
“It's a cold—fluey thing. Janey’s got it and now Sean has it too. I just wanna cover all the bases,” he explained.
“Okay, tell them I hope they get better,” Joey said. “Anything else you need done?”
“Nope, that’s all. Thanks, Joey, I’ll see you tomorrow,” Alec said, and hung up.
“Hey son, when you're done with that I think you should take a couple of aspirin and call it a night, okay?”
“Yeah, dad. I was actually thinking the same thing.”
Alec nodded and went to change out of his gym clothes. He knew he would be up worrying all night. He took his fatherly duties seriously. He made sure Sean got tucked in for the night but couldn’t help asking about his workouts with Neil.
“How has your training been lately, son? I’m sorry I’ve been too busy to be in on them. Is Janey treating you right?” he asked. That got a weak chuckle, but at least Sean perked up a little.
“She’s a hard ass, Dad. It’s going great. Neil and I’ve been getting a lot done and having fun. We miss you there, but Janey is good. She has us doing different things every day,” he said.
“Switching things up can put a new excitement into a routine. I need to keep that in mind,” Alec nodded. “I’m glad you’re having such a good time with Neil, son. Now get some sleep, and I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Night,” said Sean. Alec shut off the lights and closed the door quietly. He felt a little strange. He was glad Sean was enjoying the workouts, but part of him was jealous. He wanted to be the one spending time with Neil. It was pathetic that he’d be envious of his own son. But that’s how he felt at that moment.
Alec sighed and went to get a drink.
He checked on Sean twice before going to bed and found the young man sleeping soundly. When Alec went to bed, Neil came to his mind pretty quickly. As much as he tried to shoo those thoughts away, they came back with force. Once he let go of his struggle, images of a sweaty Neil flashed through his eyes. He closed his eyes and his hands crept under the sheets. It took only seconds for him to get rock hard. He imagined Neil walking up to him. First, he wore his sexy gym clothes that showed off his round bottom in all its glory. Later, though, his imagination ran wild and he thought of the young boy naked taking a shower. Touching himself. Running his long fingers over every inch of his body while his eyes stared sensually at Alec. They implied something naughty. Suddenly, Alec increased the pace of his strokes and envisioned Neil doing the same. Neil’s chest rose and fell and Alec knew he was close.
Alec was pulled back to reality when he climaxed. He quickly cleaned himself up fearing his son might walk in on him like that. Thoughts of sexual longing were now replaced with immense regret. Alec drifted off into a dreamless sleep reminding himself that this was wrong.
The next morning, he went in and opened shop. Janey was out and his son had decided to stay home for the day as well. He did some extra cleaning to back up what he was sure Joey must have already done and then turned everything on. He got a rare rush first thing that kept him busy. Four guys trying out the gym. It turned out to be a good thing because when Neil came in unexpectedly, he was able to keep himself busy. Not having Sean there left a big opening for him and Neil. He knew part of his ability to show resolve around Neil had always been the presence of his son.
Alec had figured since Sean was Neil’s ride, he’d have skipped the gym that morning.
“Hey, Neil, why don’t you get going on the triceps routine Janey had you doing? I’m showing these new clients the equipment right now, okay?” Neil agreed, and Alec threw himself into the new clients’ needs. He managed to avoid looking over at his crush too much.