"Ain't anyone got the right to ask you to do more than you've done. Sounds like you're doin' right by your family." Even if they might not necessarily agree with that. "I'm an idjit for taking those two in, I know that. But ain't anyone else in the world left for 'em, so they're stuck with me."
And Bobby wasn't sure he could do right by them, but he was prepared to try. "I never wanted kids. Never thought I should--" He broke off, shaking his head. "Y'know. That chance of ruining people. I'm good at that. Much better with cars, don't you worry."
"It seems to me like you're good with people and cars. Most would isolate themselves in your situation if you really, truly thought it. Stay here with your cars, being one of those off the grid types. But you're taking in teens and not a single person at the motel had a bad word to say about you. It sounds like people quite like you. Seems like you do a lot for them." And Michael hadn't met anyone (outside of a cult) that gathered such high praise for how they helped and how they did business.
"I trust you with my car. About as much as I trust that if you had any confidence in yourself, you'd have slept with every woman in town." Michael smirked at Bobby. "I met a few gals with quite the crush."
A few what? There was that familiar feeling again, his face heating up. He was beginning to associate it with Aleister so much that soon he was simply going to permanently be blushing around the man for no reason.
"Bullshit," Bobby mumbled, shaking his head and nursing his drink, "They probably just wanted to get an in with you by agreein'."
Which kind of drew attention to how Aleister had kept hitting on him before again and Bobby couldn't even say for sure himself whether he had done that on purpose or not. He coughed and adjusted his hat. "Can't go around sleepin' with anyone in a town like this. People talk."
"No, I think even on my best behaviour, they're pinging me." It might also be because he wasn't a country boy and it seemed to put them on edge, it might be because he was European too but he liked to remind Bobby, in non-subtle ways, that he was gay as all hell and looking for a man. "I guess you're right though. You can't go sleeping around a small town like this."
He sipped his whiskey and then looked at Bobby with a grin. He made it too easy. "Guess you'll have to sleep around outside of town."
With a pointed look, he raised his eyebrow playfully.
"Never done that either," Bobby replied, thanking his wits that he had anticipated a line like that, which kept him from humiliating himself with another blush. Not that the blush from before had faded. Not that it didn't deepen anyway, given the grin and that eyebrow raise.
What was happening? Things like this did not happen to him. They happened in movies or television shows and no on any he would ever let himself get caught dead watching. "I reckon it's easier done in the city, yeah? Got a lot of people there. No wonder you're itchin' to get back."
"I'm not as desperate as I thought I would be. Don't get me wrong, I miss my apartment and the easy access to booze but -- it's probably been good to take a break from work. See the sights and sounds of Dakota. Especially the sights." He eyed up Bobby openly because they both knew what was happening here. "And being unable to reach work has probably done wonders for my blood pressure. I haven't had blurry vision until I saw Raphael."
And for him, that was impressive. No medication seemed to lower it but being around Bobby made his heart race comfortably for once. "I expected this trip to be entirely awful. Surprisingly, it was pretty brill."
"It's hard to sweat the small things out here in the dumps. You're too busy sweatin' from the heat." That wasn't exactly the state motto, though Bobby figured it might as well be.
Bobby knew what Aleister was doing and saying and implying and, frankly, outright stating. He knew that it was his turn and he had no idea what to do. No idea what he should do. He was an adult, he wasn't a virgin. He had never had a hook-up. Ever.
"If you don't fancy drivin' all the way back to the motel tonight, I could pour you another drink. And, y'know. We got enough space here. Your boy can share a room with Sammy."
"Given the motel told me they don't have rooms tonight, you have no idea how much you'd be saving my ass." He had already googled the nearest motel and it was half an hour away. He didn't fancy another car ride with Raphael. "I think I would appreciate your hosting. I'm sure my company will make it worth while."
And he had condoms in his car so he was ready.
"I don't know if Raphael can share a room with anyone but if he gives your boy fuss, he has permission to duct tape him to the bed all night." Michael offered as he looked out in the direction of the scrap yard. "They've been out there a while."
"Yeah. Sammy's gettin' to be a big boy, maybe he's sittin' on yours." Seemed like a valid theory, based on everything he had heard about Raphael so far. Bobby got up off the couch, partially because he was feeling flustered and wanted to cover for that. Seem more experienced and worldly than he was. Gayer? Whatever.
"SAMMY! C'mere." He waited by the door for Sam to walk up and, yes, there he was. Walking behind Sam. The short boy with the angelic curls. He looked sweet. That might spell even more trouble. "You're Raphael? I'm Bobby. Hey."
He gave a nod and then looked at Sam. "You two are gonna be sharin' a room tonight."
"He told me raisins are natures candy." Was all Raphael answered with as he gestured at Sam like he was insane, looking past Bobby entirely and only addressing Michael. "I can't share a room with him. He's crazier than the cult."
"Would do you some good to eat them, they've got at least some nutrition. Now stop belly aching and get your arse inside. You got a room with a bed. Say thank you to Bobby and shut up." Michael insisted as watched his younger brother look at him, almost pouting.
"I thought we were going to a skeeve motel?" He wanted to rent cheap porn and eat vending machine snacks. Not this.
"There's some pie in the fridge, Sammy. Give that to our guest, yeah? Leave some for your brother." Sam looked about as thrilled with this arrangement as Raphael, but he was polite enough not to comment on it. He simply headed for the kitchen to get the pie out for him.
"Come on, Raphie." Sam supposed he'd have to deal. Maybe he was more bearable with some pie in him.
Bobby watched them walk into the kitchen before turning and looking at Aleister. "Don't worry. If they don't get along, Sam can just room with Matty. Sam's all right, but he got on the health food kick. And exercising. It's freaky, honestly. Hope he grows out of it."
"Yeah, well, Raphael has never eaten a vegetable. Only corn on the cob. Sometimes. If he's in a good mood." So yeah, those two boys were very different. It was a bit concerning but he was sure they could all managed to make this work for one night. "Sorry to impose with another teen. I would rather he was at his school but he got expelled for setting fire to his tent."
He honestly thought a school for delinquents could handle what was essentially just an annoying little twerp.
"MIKEY!" Raphael suddenly yelled from the other room. "CAN I HAVE A COKE?"
"Ask Bobby and don't yell in the damn house, brat!"
"HAVE ONE AND SHUT UP!" Bobby yelled back readily, more than used to dealing with little shits. Sam included, he was just one in a different way. Matty had been textbook, more often than not. Ah, the many arguments over him not being his dad, back when he'd been little. Sometimes even now, honestly.
"He's gonna appreciate that you got him away from there one day." One could hope. "Anyway, I bet they'll end up bonding over some dumb kids thing. And, yeah. I can show you your bedroom later."
He was not sure if he was good at this seduction thing. Actually, he was certain he sucked at it.
He held up his drink in a mock cheers and then looked back. Raphael was in the kitchen, drinking his coke and looking at his phone. He should be occupied for a while now. Time to have the most of city life and truly see the sights. "I'm sure the kids will play and keep out of our hair for a while."
It felt as if his bluff was being called and Bobby also looked in the direction of the kitchen, hoping that Sam would need him for something, but no. Both of those boys seemed entirely self reliant, with Raphael eating pie and checking his phone and Sam preparing whatever the hell a smoothie was. Who drank spinach?
Whatever. No rescue from there, so Bobby tried to hide all insecurity and led the way, as instructed. Through the door and up the stairs. "That's Matty's door and that's Sam's."
He explained as they passed them. "Matty's got band practice. Or he's mackin' on some girl and bullshittin' me about it like I care."
It was a teenage ritual to lie to their caregiver. Bobby got it. He finally opened the door to the master bedroom, if one wanted to call it that, letting Aleister walk in first. "I know it's shit."
He was not good at sexy talk. It was true though, the room was small, the bed was a double, nothing bigger than that, and it was as ratty as the rest of the house. At least the bed was made though, some stuff was too deeply ingrained to ever be neglected.
"It's not bad. It has a certain appeal." It was trash but he was into slumming right now so he had imagined it would be and was oddly happy that it looked as it did. He closed the door behind him and looked about the place. Lots of t-shirts on various surfaces and all manner of papers scattered about. And there was frayings around the wallpaper. He hmmed a little and then turned to Bobby, standing in front of him.
Then he just went for it. He kissed him. They were vibing, it was now obvious it was going to go somewhere so why not just go for it? The worst that happened? Rejection. Oh well.
That was a very undignified sound that only got halfway muffled by the kiss. In spite of all the obvious vibes, Bobby was surprised by the suddenness and he had no idea how to handle it. Yet he didn't pull away or push Aleister backwards. Instead, after the first few moments, his mind caught on to the fact that he was kissing back. Enthusiastically. He hadn't kissed anyone in years, yet apparently it was like riding a bike.
Ah-ha, there is was. He was starting to think he had read something wrong here but no, Bobby was kissing back and yeah, there was a nice note of scotch there too so it was really quite perfect. He didn't expect him to be such a good kisser but he wasn't complaining. Especially not when he slipped tongue.
It felt wrong to compare this to what it had been like to kiss Karen. However, he didn't have much basis for comparison and it was a little startling just how reminiscent it was. Back to when he'd been so much younger and it had all been new and thrilling. When they'd literally tumbled in the hay.
There was some stubble, that was very different, and the cologne, all of it, was distinctly manly. Different, not unpleasant. He pulled back, but kept his hands around Aleister's hips, not entirely certain when they'd even ended up there. His eyes a little unfocused, he felt the need to inform him. "I don't do that kinda thing. Normally."
"Kissing guys? Oh, it's fine, don't overthink it. I'm just a tempter from the city, selling you sins. Just keep out of your head." The last thing he needed was to be cockblocked by gay panic. Not the first time and not the last. He heard that sort of talk all the time, especially when he was young and AIDS had scared a generation off want to admit that sort of thing.
"It's not normal. It's different. Different is good. If you did normal all the time, you'd get bored." And then he moved in for another kiss, just hoping to take his mind off whatever was in his head.
"No, no. I meant kissing anyone." Why was he clarifying that? Right, because he didn't want Aleister to think it was about the gay thing. Although, as he was doing that, it occurred to him that it would have been understandable for it to be about the gay thing whereas his relative inexperience of any kissing whatsoever was likely just embarrassing. At least to a worldly man like this. "Ain't about you being a guy. Just... I ain't ever done anythin' like this."
Kissing a near stranger. And yet, at the next opportunity, here he was. Kissing him again.
"Ahhh... okay, now I follow. It's the fling, isn't it?" He assumed it was that and honestly, it made sense. He wouldn't be his fun redneck fantasy if Bobby was just as open and horny for it as he was. He supposed it was endearing, in it's own way. He took a step back to give some space and smiled at him, unable to help himself. "Oh Bobby, Bobby, Bobby. You're very ... easy to understand. I like that about you."
He didn't need complicated. Complicated led to betray, upset and hurt. He liked him, he said what he thought. "I appreciate your honesty. Truly." So he was giving him space. "We don't have to. We have a few until you fix my car, after all."
"Yeah, you're right about that. Those Aston Martin pieces are harder to find than balls on a cow." Maybe that wasn't the sexy talk that he should be attempting here. It definitely wasn't. He glanced at the door and then looked back at Aleister, wishing he felt a bit more confident about all this.
"It ain't about the gay thing. Honest." He did want to make that very clear. "I don't-- I mean, turns out I'm fifty fifty on it."
"Bisexual. Welcome to the club. Though I think I'm more 80/20 on the side of men. There's something about tough, strong men that just gets my motor running." Maybe it was satisfaction of knowing his father would hate it, maybe it was instinct, maybe he was just horny for cowboys. Either way, he had his preferences. "There's no rush. I'm not going anywhere. Apparently."
He wasn't thrilled over it but at least it gave his hick time to warm up to this. "We'll steal some kisses until you feel like giving it the old college try."
"Never went to college. Maybe that's where I missed out." On those gay experiences, at least. Now that the immediate threat of failing to live up to expectation was averted, Bobby could joke about it a little. At least in his own way. "It just ain't really done here. Around here, back then, guys like me found a girl that'd have them before they finished high school if they were lucky. And if they were extra lucky, the girl was still around after the army."
Bobby shrugged and bravely reached for Aleister's hand. "Back then, couldn't even have imagined someone like you."
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And Bobby wasn't sure he could do right by them, but he was prepared to try. "I never wanted kids. Never thought I should--" He broke off, shaking his head. "Y'know. That chance of ruining people. I'm good at that. Much better with cars, don't you worry."
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"I trust you with my car. About as much as I trust that if you had any confidence in yourself, you'd have slept with every woman in town." Michael smirked at Bobby. "I met a few gals with quite the crush."
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"Bullshit," Bobby mumbled, shaking his head and nursing his drink, "They probably just wanted to get an in with you by agreein'."
Which kind of drew attention to how Aleister had kept hitting on him before again and Bobby couldn't even say for sure himself whether he had done that on purpose or not. He coughed and adjusted his hat. "Can't go around sleepin' with anyone in a town like this. People talk."
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He sipped his whiskey and then looked at Bobby with a grin. He made it too easy. "Guess you'll have to sleep around outside of town."
With a pointed look, he raised his eyebrow playfully.
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What was happening? Things like this did not happen to him. They happened in movies or television shows and no on any he would ever let himself get caught dead watching. "I reckon it's easier done in the city, yeah? Got a lot of people there. No wonder you're itchin' to get back."
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And for him, that was impressive. No medication seemed to lower it but being around Bobby made his heart race comfortably for once. "I expected this trip to be entirely awful. Surprisingly, it was pretty brill."
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Bobby knew what Aleister was doing and saying and implying and, frankly, outright stating. He knew that it was his turn and he had no idea what to do. No idea what he should do. He was an adult, he wasn't a virgin. He had never had a hook-up. Ever.
"If you don't fancy drivin' all the way back to the motel tonight, I could pour you another drink. And, y'know. We got enough space here. Your boy can share a room with Sammy."
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And he had condoms in his car so he was ready.
"I don't know if Raphael can share a room with anyone but if he gives your boy fuss, he has permission to duct tape him to the bed all night." Michael offered as he looked out in the direction of the scrap yard. "They've been out there a while."
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"SAMMY! C'mere." He waited by the door for Sam to walk up and, yes, there he was. Walking behind Sam. The short boy with the angelic curls. He looked sweet. That might spell even more trouble. "You're Raphael? I'm Bobby. Hey."
He gave a nod and then looked at Sam. "You two are gonna be sharin' a room tonight."
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"Would do you some good to eat them, they've got at least some nutrition. Now stop belly aching and get your arse inside. You got a room with a bed. Say thank you to Bobby and shut up." Michael insisted as watched his younger brother look at him, almost pouting.
"I thought we were going to a skeeve motel?" He wanted to rent cheap porn and eat vending machine snacks. Not this.
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"Come on, Raphie." Sam supposed he'd have to deal. Maybe he was more bearable with some pie in him.
Bobby watched them walk into the kitchen before turning and looking at Aleister. "Don't worry. If they don't get along, Sam can just room with Matty. Sam's all right, but he got on the health food kick. And exercising. It's freaky, honestly. Hope he grows out of it."
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He honestly thought a school for delinquents could handle what was essentially just an annoying little twerp.
"MIKEY!" Raphael suddenly yelled from the other room. "CAN I HAVE A COKE?"
"Ask Bobby and don't yell in the damn house, brat!"
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"He's gonna appreciate that you got him away from there one day." One could hope. "Anyway, I bet they'll end up bonding over some dumb kids thing. And, yeah. I can show you your bedroom later."
He was not sure if he was good at this seduction thing. Actually, he was certain he sucked at it.
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He held up his drink in a mock cheers and then looked back. Raphael was in the kitchen, drinking his coke and looking at his phone. He should be occupied for a while now. Time to have the most of city life and truly see the sights. "I'm sure the kids will play and keep out of our hair for a while."
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Whatever. No rescue from there, so Bobby tried to hide all insecurity and led the way, as instructed. Through the door and up the stairs. "That's Matty's door and that's Sam's."
He explained as they passed them. "Matty's got band practice. Or he's mackin' on some girl and bullshittin' me about it like I care."
It was a teenage ritual to lie to their caregiver. Bobby got it. He finally opened the door to the master bedroom, if one wanted to call it that, letting Aleister walk in first. "I know it's shit."
He was not good at sexy talk. It was true though, the room was small, the bed was a double, nothing bigger than that, and it was as ratty as the rest of the house. At least the bed was made though, some stuff was too deeply ingrained to ever be neglected.
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Then he just went for it. He kissed him. They were vibing, it was now obvious it was going to go somewhere so why not just go for it? The worst that happened? Rejection. Oh well.
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Oh Bobby, you little minx.
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There was some stubble, that was very different, and the cologne, all of it, was distinctly manly. Different, not unpleasant. He pulled back, but kept his hands around Aleister's hips, not entirely certain when they'd even ended up there. His eyes a little unfocused, he felt the need to inform him. "I don't do that kinda thing. Normally."
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"It's not normal. It's different. Different is good. If you did normal all the time, you'd get bored." And then he moved in for another kiss, just hoping to take his mind off whatever was in his head.
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Kissing a near stranger. And yet, at the next opportunity, here he was. Kissing him again.
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He didn't need complicated. Complicated led to betray, upset and hurt. He liked him, he said what he thought. "I appreciate your honesty. Truly." So he was giving him space. "We don't have to. We have a few until you fix my car, after all."
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"It ain't about the gay thing. Honest." He did want to make that very clear. "I don't-- I mean, turns out I'm fifty fifty on it."
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He wasn't thrilled over it but at least it gave his hick time to warm up to this. "We'll steal some kisses until you feel like giving it the old college try."
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Bobby shrugged and bravely reached for Aleister's hand. "Back then, couldn't even have imagined someone like you."
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