Chapter 39

“Jesus.”

“Are you all right?Your ribs,do they hurt?”

“Well,just a bit,but not much.Honest,”Luke added when Andy didn’t seem to believe him.“Trust me;you have nothing to worry about.You were great.Are you sure you haven’t had a career in porn?‘Cause you were brilliant.”

Andy,much to his shame,blushed.“Piss off.”

Luke laughed.“You were really great.And yes,it’s a hell of a lot better when you’re in love with the guy doing the sucking.

Andy smiled.He knew Luke was telling him the truth.

“Now,come on,my turn.We’re not in a hurry this time round.”

It took Andy a couple of seconds to realise what Luke was talking about.He was so wrapped up in making sure Luke wasn’t hurt and had enjoyed it,that he’d forgotten about his own needs.“No,you don’t have—”

“Oh,yes I have to.Remember,tonight is supposed to be all about what I want.And I want—no,need—to pleasure my boyfriend.”

“Bossy bugger.”Andy rolled over onto his back,his hard dick slapping him on the thigh as he turned.

They decided,after a small amount of good-natured arguing and a lot of very pleasurable kissing,that Luke would give him a hand job.They were both tired,and there was a lot to do thenext day.

It didn’t take Luke’s talented fingers long to bring Andy to climax.Though Andy suspected the pleasure he’d got from loving Luke moments earlier had had much to do with how close he’d been to the edge.

Luke cleaned them both up with Andy’s T-shirt;then they were ready for sleep.

“Why do I always get the wet spot?”Luke mumbled a few minutes after Andy had turned the lightoff.

“What do you mean,‘always?’This is the first time we’ve…uh…”

Luke kissed him before starting to giggle.“Just getting into practice for the future.”

“Twit.”

“Bully,”Luke returned.

“Welsh leek.”

“English…rose.“

“Uh?”

“Well,roses have thorns.So you gotta be careful how you handle them.But they’re romantic and beautiful and—”

“I’m not beautiful,”Andy mumbled.

“You are to me.And,”Luke kissed him,“my opinion is the only one that matters.”

Andy tried to think up a counter-argument.By the time he’d come up with something,Luke was snoring softly.

****

After breakfast—which according to Craig,was“way too early”—the packing began in earnest.Though it soon became apparent that they needed cardboard boxes,and plenty of them.

“I’ll go to a supermarket for some,”Andy said.

“They don’t give them out any more,”Luke told him.

Andy grumbled,“You can get boxes at the village shop and in the supermarkets in Wakefield.”

“I’ll go online and look up moving companies,”Luke announced.Fortunately they hadn’t yetdisconnected his laptop and printer.

Within minutes,Andy and Craig were on their way to a removal company;Luke had even managed to print out a map with street-by-street directions.

Craig fiddled with the van’s radio,finding some God-awful heavy metal.“Cool,”he said,leaning back.

“You can sod off.”Andy turned the radio to a quieter station.

“Aww,”Craig sulked.

“When you learn to drive and get your own car,you can choose what to listen to.”

“That’ll be years away.”

“Hardly.You’ll be seventeen in a few months.Then you’ll start pestering me for driving lessons.”

Craig got a wicked grin on his face,causing Andy to groan.

Armed with more boxes than Craig thought they would need—Andy telling him it was better than not enough—they drove back to Luke’s,Andy grinding his teeth at the congested roads.

Luke was all smiles when they returned.“I got a phone call while you were out,”he said,kissing Andy on the lips.

“Don’t I get one?”Craig wanted to know.

“Craig!”Andy said.

Luke kissed him on the cheek,making the teen blush.

“So,who called?”Andy asked.

“Detective Inspector Summers.You know,the bloke we spoke to when we went to the police station.”

“Oh,yeah.”Andy remembered.

“Well,it seems they’ve caught them.The men who attacked me.”

Andy felt a mixture of relief and anger.He wanted to have some time alone with them.They’d think twice about bashing anybody else after he’d finished with them.

“They were arrested over something else,”Luke said,bringing Andy back to reality.“When they searched one of the men’s houses they found your jacket.It still had your army number stencilled in it.The DI said they tried to say they’d bought the jacket somewhere,but when he showed them the CCTV pictures…”Luke began to bounce on the balls of his feet.

“That’s brilliant,”Craig said,giving Luke a hug.

Andy found himself smiling,too,though he didn’t hold out much hope of them getting a long sentence.

“One of them has previous convictions,and two of the others have outstanding warrants out on them.I suppose they’ll also be tried for whatever it was that the police arrested them for in the first place.

“Will you have to be a witness or something when it all goes to court?”Craig asked.

“No,‘cause they admitted attacking me.”

Andy was relieved Luke wouldn’t have to go through giving evidence.He’d heard it was like reliving the attack all over again.

****

Luke’s good news buoyed them as they continued their packing,stacking the boxes in the livingroom,ready for putting in the van the next day.

“You know,I’d like to go back to Earl’s Court,”Luke said,when they broke for lunch.

Andy,who had crashed on the sofa,cracked open one eye.“Why?What’s there?”

“It’s where I was attacked.I would like to go back,to get closure,as the Americans call it.”

Andy groaned.He hated crowds.All he wanted to do that night was have a nice hot bath and an early night cuddled up with Luke.But what Luke had said made a certain amount of sense.

“Cool.They got night clubs there?You said you were hurt outside a gay pub.”Craig was winding himself up into a state of excitement.

“You won’t be going,”Andy said.

“Why not?”

“You’re not old enough,for a start.”

“I can pass for eighteen.”

“You’re still not going.These places are for adults.”

“Not fair.”

“Tough shit,”Andy said.Turning to Luke,he asked,“What time did you want to go?”He didn’t fancy driving,especially in London traffic.

“Well,things don’t really get going until after ten o’clock.”

Andy groaned.

“We don’t have to stay too long.”

Andy voiced his concern about driving on congested roads.

“Oh,we wouldn’t be driving there.No,we’d get a taxi,or the tube.It’s only a few quid,or a couple of stops on the District Line.You wouldn’t be able to park your van.Especially asit’s Easter,and there aren’t that many parking spaces and what there is are really expensiveand—”

“Okay,okay.”Andy held up his hand.He didn’t want to do this,but if Luke did,then he’d go.

“I’m going to go lay down for a bit.You’ve no objections to me doing that?”Craig said to Andy,leaving the room before Andy could answer.

“Moody little bastard.I wish we’d left him at home now,Dennis or no Dennis.”

“You know,we couldtake him with us.He has worked really hard today,and it would do him good to see some actual gay culture.”

“But he’s not old enough.”

“He looks it.And if we dress him right,no one will question his age.”

“I suppose,but—”

“Come on,are you telling me you never went to a pub,albeit a straight one,before you were eighteen?”

“Well,no,but—”

Luke seemed to be on a roll.“Isn’t it better that Craig’s first experience in a gay pub is with you and me,rather than him going somewhere on his own,or with someone you don’t trust?Besides,Earl’s Court is pretty tame compared to Soho.Poor Craig.His head would explode if he went to Old Compton Street,yours,too,probably.”