Living Your Lie (boyxboy)

Chapter 9

My phone was incessantly buzzing and ringing at the top of it's speaker level from the floor. I groaned and rolled over, prying my eyes open to locate the device where it was on the side of the bed nearest to me. I quickly slid off the mattress to dig it out of my jeans.

Feeling successful, I smiled before hitting the answer button. "Morning," I said. My voice was scratchy and I had to clear my throat.

"I love your voice when you just wake up," Dante commented. He sounded slightly groggy, which wasn't uncommon for it being half-past five.

"Yours isn't half bad either," I teased sleepily.

I turned around to go back to my bed but I froze and the phone nearly dropped from my hand when I saw that my bed wasn't empty. Instead, a nearly naked Dakota was just propping himself up on his elbows, and opening his eyes. And the entirety of the previous night came rushing back to me. The kisses with Dakota; the soft touches and us falling to sleep together in a tangle of legs and arms after staying up and talking for a good hour about whatever came to mind.

"Thanks," Dante muttered through the phone, dragging me back to him. There was amusement clear in his tone and if I wasn't in panic mode I probably would have laughed. "You should go shower. If my sisters haven't already used all the hot water, I'm gonna do the same."

I watched Dakota like a hawk and when it looked like he was going to say something, I quickly gestured for him to stay quiet. Into the phone's speaker, I simply said, "Okay."

"I'll text you when we're about to leave. Make sure you eat something for breakfast."

"Alright, bye."

I hung up, dropped the phone onto the bed, and my hands flew to my face instantly. "Oh my God," I muttered angrily at myself.

I honestly didn't think there could have been a worse, more awkward situation for me to have put myself into. Not to mention for Dakota--who I peeked at through my fingers--with his dark stubble and confused just-woken-up expression on his face. He propped himself up onto his elbows and, jesus, he looked sexy. I felt like a fool.

"Hey..." Dakota said cautiously. I tore my hands from my face to look at him. In all fairness, this wasn't his fault in the least, and he did look pretty worried. "What's going on?"

I hesitated for a minute. I didn't really know how to do any of this. I'd never been with guy who wasn't Dante, and with him it had always been the same; I knew his personality like the back of my hand, but with Dakota I didn't know anything. I didn't know how he felt after messing around with a guy and then sleeping next to him in bed afterwards.

"Uhm, I'm supposed to go on a camping trip hundreds of miles from here for the next three days," I said evenly, testing out the words and scrutinizing his expression as I continued. "With Dante and his family."

He tried not to show it, I could tell, but his eyes betrayed something akin to disappointment before he snapped his features into a controlled and neutral expression. "Oh."

Wanting to kick myself for everything I was doing wrong, I crawled onto the bed to sit next to him. I touched Dakota's arm gently and took his hand in mine.

"Look," I said softly. "I'm sorry about how messed up this is. I mean, I know last night was new for you and all that, but...I have to go on this trip."

Dakota sat up the rest of the way and shook his head. "Nah, man. It's cool. I get it." He surprised me then, by leaning in and kissing me on the lips. When he pulled back, he looked me in the eye and said, "We'll just talk later or something."

He had spoken so firmly, so calmly, that I wasn't sure if he was trying to convince me or himself that everything was normal. I intently watched him as he got off the bed and started to find his clothes. We'd already put our boxers on last night before falling asleep, so the first thing he pulled back on were his jeans. I watched the muscles in his back flex as he got dressed.