Chapter Fifty-Three – Making Plans
Rusty rubbed with violence at the stained costume and then stared at it critically. Matty walked over to embrace him from behind. "Come on, I told you I should just get another one. This one's as good as gone."
"No, no, no, even if you get another to dress up in, I have to have this one as a souvenir," Rusty insisted. "You seduced me wearing this."
"Some people hold onto their wedding gowns and the like," Matty commented and pushed his chin into Rusty's shoulder.
"We'll keep everything," Rusty declared while scrubbing away at a particular spot again and again. "Do you think this is the right way to go about washing this kind of material?"
"I have no idea. Wasn't that the kind of thing we should have checked before you started washing?"
"I guess so."
Matty laughed and wrapped his arms tightly around his boyfriend. No, not boyfriend, fiancé. Was that the correct term? Yes, it definitely was. He had a ring on his finger to prove it. Like they said in books and movies, it was like a dream come true. Even more than that, like complete happiness. Still, there were so many things they needed to talk about and put in order.
"Rusty, how's your mom?" he asked, hating that he was probably spoiling the mood but not wanting to brush over the hard times Rusty was having with his family and what had happened lately.
"She's being moved to another facility. My dad told me he would pay for all the expenses." Rusty stopped his washing and stared at his hands covered with suds. Apparently, the small sink and whatever counted as cleaning supplies had failed Slicky's costume already. Matty reached for the faucet and took it upon himself to take Rusty's hands in his and rinse them.
"You're not blaming yourself, I hope," he said as he took the other's hand and pulled him back into the room.
"That's one very hard thing to do," Rusty admitted. He looked at his hands and sighed. "I suppose we've always had this dysfunctional way of dealing with things in my family. That's one thing I don't want in my future. Do you think you can help me, Matty?"
Matty moved to kneel in front of him and held his hands. "We'll be married... How am I even going to get used to this? Anyway, I'd say that it comes with the territory. Can you tell me what you're worried about? No, I think it's even more. What are you afraid of? Like when you couldn't take the confession of my feelings for you."
Rusty looked up and his eyes had a naked quality to them, as if Matty only had to look to let himself see deep inside the other's soul. "I don't want to turn out like them, twisted and unhappy. I mean, like my mom. My dad saved himself. I want to blame him for it. He told me that he didn't fight for having full custody because he didn't want to leave my mom all alone. Does that sound like a lie to you?"
"A lie? I don't know," Matty admitted in all honesty. "How do you feel about it? What do you think?"
Rusty laughed softly and blinked while his chest rose and fell a couple of times. "You're not making this easy for me, are you?"
"You wouldn't want that anyway. As well as I've come to know you, I think you're the kind to fight your own battles. I'm the support character. But let me tell you this: I will help you choose what battles are worth fighting."
"Then what do you think about this whole mess with my family? For so many years, I've hoped that my father would come back. Even when it became so clear that he had no reason to come back because he was already happy and had no need for mom and me, that hope, I guess, still continued to live on."
"No one can blame you for that," Matty said gently. "I can't even begin to imagine how I would feel if mom or dad ever decided to leave me behind. That's not something you can get over just like that." He squeezed Rusty's hands. "I can promise you this. It won't happen to us. I told you. You're on a short leash. You may feel as tempted as you want to stray, but you have a master, and I'll remind you of it as often as possible." He was using a light tone because he knew that Rusty needed it, with everything happening in his life to date.
"That's very reassuring, actually. I might tend to suffocate you, you know? I mean, I'm going to be in your hair all the time. You won't be able to chase me away. I will stick to you like glue."
"Fine by me. But you'll have to live by several rules. No more of this running scared."
"Running scared? Really?" Rusty snorted, but his eyes shone with happiness. "Are you going to set me straight?"
"Not straight, no. But I will take care of you. Damn, your voice, Rusty, I mean, I'm no expert, but you sound like a star."
"Not yet. Mrs. May believes that I still have a long way to go. I have to apply myself."
"You will succeed, I'm sure. So, are you going to be an opera singer?"
"That's the plan. I might have to work for a long time to become that, and that means that I will have to get a job that has nothing to do with it for a while. I'm sure your parents won't be that thrilled to learn that you're marrying an artist. Probably a starving artist," Rusty said and laughed.
"Starving? Not on my watch. And don't worry about my parents so much. We can always tell them you're royalty, right? Which reminds me, what are we going to do, king of Sunny Hill? The moment we leave this room, I'm afraid all hell will break loose."
"I will announce our engagement," Rusty said. "Very publicly, so that there are no doubts about the news being as real as they come. Xpress won't be able to spin it and twist it."
"I beg to differ, but I don't care anyway. You know, there's an entire world out there, ready to gawk at us. I'm still getting used to the celebrity status. Truth be told, it's sort of annoying. I've got so many indecent proposals these days that I'm starting to wonder if I might be missing my vocation by following a career based on my studies."
"Don't even think about it," Rusty said so sternly it sounded comical. "I'll chase them all away with a stick. What about Jamie, Matty? How are we going to get rid of him?"
"Are you asking me?"
"Only because I'm trying not to sound like a possessive jerk. If it were up to me, I'd walk over to him and punch him in the nose. And tell him that he's not allowed within six feet of you."
"That wouldn't be very nice," Matty said and nodded.
"I knew you'd say that, so I won't do it. That doesn't mean I don't want to. I totally do. Especially since I thought he was my friend, the asshole. Yeah, yeah, I know what you're going to say, that it was me who let you go. And that's true. It doesn't hurt less."
"Let me get this right," Matty began. "You're pissed at him for making a move, but not at me for letting him do it?"
"I can't be mad at you. I practically pushed you into his arms. I have no right to say anything. So, I won't punch him in the nose, and I won't say anything to him if you don't want me to. Still, Matty," Rusty said, sucking in a breath, "you need to break up with him."
"Hmm, and I thought you were the adventurous type when it came to relationships. I remember quite distinctly how you kept asking me about whether I'd be against or for a threesome."
"A threesome with the other you," Rusty pointed out.
"You didn't know that at the time," Matty shot back at him and then grinned. It was quite fun to have Rusty squirm a little over his past transgressions. However, he didn't want that to lead to hard feelings between Rusty and Jamie. "So, no threesome? You, me, Jamie?"
Rusty made a face as if he had just licked a lemon. "The asshole's a looker, true, but I'm not into sucking his cock or bending over for him."
Matty laughed. "You can only see yourself as the bottom when it comes to Jamie? Do you know him that well?"
Rusty pondered for a bit. "Not really. But he strikes me as an incorrigible top."
"What if I told you that's not true?" Matty leaned over and let his voice drop to a whisper, while biting his bottom lip and giving Rusty an all-knowing look.
Rusty's eyes grew wide. "What? Did you top that alpha dog?"
"I think they're called alpha… wolves?" Matty teased.
"No way that mutt's a wolf. He's a dog, that's what he is. How was his ass?"
Matty giggled, having way too much fun with this to be healthy. "Not telling."
"Come on," Rusty begged. "Was he better than me at bottoming? What kind of moves did he use? Did he choose to stay on top and ride your cock? I can be better. I only need to practice."
Matty laughed out loud and didn't stop until Rusty began to eye him, as he appeared to grow more and more suspicious.
"What aren't you telling me, Matty?"
"You should see your face. You're so cute when you're jealous. Ah, just your luck that I'm in such a generous mood today seeing how you offered yourself so nicely to be put on a leash."
"Hmm, it feels like you're saying… what are you saying?" Rusty asked, a smile beginning to curl his lips upward.
It was the kind of sight Matty wanted to stare at forever. "Nothing happened between Jamie and me. We just hung out together."
"What? Are you pulling my leg? Are you protecting that mongrel dog?"
Matty laughed and shook his head. "No, not at all. It's the truth, Rusty. Let's just say you're a tough act to follow."
"Good. Because there's not going to be anyone else after me in your life."
"Excellent. Just what I wanted to hear."
Rusty pulled him into a kiss, and they indulged in it. Matty couldn't help himself and his hands found their way under Rusty's shirt.
"So naughty," Rusty said in a raspy sigh. "Are we really ditching classes altogether today?"
Matty pulled away. "It's tempting, but--" He pointed a finger at Rusty, inviting him to continue.
"Now we're the straitlaced dudes," Rusty added. "Okay. We've already missed the first hour, you know?"
"We'll just say that we had a very short after-engagement party and that detained us."
"Detained us?" Rusty guffawed. "That's just like something Jonathan would say. By the way, I am so going to exact my revenge. Once Francine and Mrs. May made me understand how much I was in love with you and music, I went back home and jumped their bones. Yeah, I smooched them all. Afterward, Dex acted as if his tongue got hairy or something."
"You did what?" Matty asked, feigning shock. "You mean, I'm not allowed to fool around with Jamie, but you kiss all your friends. With the same lips and tongue you're kissing me?"
Rusty did a perfect impersonation of embarrassment. "It seemed like such a great idea at the time. You should have seen their faces, though. But I'm not going to kiss them anymore."
"Good. That's settled. Now, are you ready to face the world? Xpress gossip? The Implacables?"
"For that kind of stuff, I was born ready," Rusty replied with enthusiasm.
As long as he was so sure, Matty couldn't argue. They would just figure out things as they came.
***
What? What? WHAT?! Guys and gals of Sunny Hill, it's over! It's officially over! Our reputation has taken a major hit. Rusty Parker is Rybalt, Matthew Han is Slicky Coolplums, and… they're engaged?!
It is the curse of the times to believe yourself invicincible, is it not? Such was our case, but now... Now, we don't have words to put on virtual paper for you to read and have a little laugh.
Rusty Parker, Matthew Han, you two scoundrels, have played us magnificently. Good thing you're graduating soon, or else, we'd feel tempted to throw in the towel. And now that we got that out of the way, anyone with information about how long this illicit affair - we can call it that since only recently our king put on a ring on it - has been going on? Such coordination and tactics cannot have been achieved overnight. We obviously contributed to making Matthew Han into a consort worthy of royal interest.
Our bad. The cat's out of the bag. Yes, cheap pun, we know. The thing is there's no way to stuff it back in.
It will take us until tomorrow to recover from the shock. Unless... It is all a ruse and Rusty Parker is pranking us - and all of you - big time. What do you think? Has our local womanizer really laid his weapons down? For a guy?
We're just as astonished. But alas, students of Sunny Hill, even the greats have their bad days on occasion. So, nothing gained, nothing lost.
(We reserve the right to be reserved about how genuine this relationship truly is until we see the wedding photos.)
***
Maddox slammed into him the moment he set foot inside their shared house. He was squeezing him so hard it was hard to breathe. Rusty resisted for like half a minute, and then, he had to beg for mercy.
"Engaged? For real? And we had to learn about it by reading Xpress?"
It didn't look like the rest of the guys were around, but Maddox was speaking for all of them, it seemed.
"Sorry, but you all pulled a fast one on me by scaring me and making me believe that Matty was getting a transfer. I'd say it's only fair," he said with a large grin. Of course, that wasn't it, but to dispel all possible rumors he had told everyone he had met on his way to classes - while holding Matty's hand tightly in his - that he had gotten himself a future husband and anyone who didn't buy it could go suck it. Not in those words, of course. Sucking was a thing to do with a former boyfriend, current fiancé.
"We had to push you into action," Maddox said and began pushing him toward the sofa to make him sit down. "You were taking too much time. So unlike you."
"Where is Jonathan? What about Dex and Kane?"
"They got it into their heads that they have to get you two an engagement gift. They left me here to keep you in the dark."
"I'm not in the dark at all. You basically just told me all about it."
"Only what I know," Maddox said with a grin. "So, it's for real. You weren't joking about wanting my mother-in-law to walk you down the aisle."
"No, I've never been so dead serious in my entire life. And I hope you and Johnny boy don't get mad at me if I'm stealing Francine for this. I wouldn't have anyone else... Except your mom, but she's going to be busy with you, I bet."
Maddox squeezed the back of his neck. "Damn, I have so wanted to strangle you over the last few days. But all's well when it ends well, right? I mean, he took you back. We all worried that he might give you the boot."
"That's because you don't know him the way I do." Rusty smiled to himself and then turned to face his friend. "Actually, I was pretty scared he wouldn't take me back. But that's Matty. Loyal to a fault. I'm a lucky mofo, ain't I?"
"You totally are. But we would have made a case for you if you had failed to convince him. But seriously, was that other part real, too? About the stuff Xpress said?"
"He hasn't sold one drop of bathwater," Rusty said in a deadpan voice.
"Come on, you know what I mean? Is he the cat boy? For real?"
"Yeah. He actually did it for me."
Maddox took a moment to digest the information. "Wow. I mean, he looks so... You know, not exactly like the type of dude who'd put on a latex suit and roam the campus. Is that the real story? He turned into a cat boy to catch you?"
"I'm no mouse, but consider me caught," Rusty agreed.
"Well, I'm glad, because you guys have your work cut out for you."
"What do you mean?"
Maddox moved only so that he could pull out his phone. "According to the latest news, Connor is over the moon that he finally got vindicated for pointing out that you're Rybalt when no one cared to listen. He's on a high horse and now he's threatening that he's going to take this – how did he call it? - masquerade to the powers that be." He kept scrolling through his phone, so Rusty peeked over his shoulder.
"Are you reading their shitty publication?"
"Someone has to keep an eye on Connor. He's bent on sending Preston home in tears, and now his vendetta is personal. And I thought he was an asshole when Jonathan gave him the boot because he just couldn't keep his hands off me."
They traded a knowing grin.
"Screw Connor for a moment, Maddie. We're getting freaking married."
"Don't you look happy?" Maddox grinned at him. Then, his smile faded some. "Are you going to tell your dad?"
Rusty took a deep breath. "Yeah. I'm not going to keep a thing this big from him. But I need to prepare for his being an asshole about it."
"Are you going to tell him about the singing, too?"
"Yeah, that, too. I bet he's going to think that he really wasted his money sending me to college. That's why I'm going to put aside money each month and pay him back. Once I have a job, obviously."
"Do you think he's going to accept it?"
"The money? I guess so. I mean, I don't want to remain indebted to him."
"It won't be easy. And if he tells you to keep your money? In exchange for feeling it's his right to show his disapproval?"
"Double it with disappointment, and you have the whole picture. Don't worry so much about me, Maddie," he said and patted his friend's knee, "I feel liberated now that I know what I really want from life. And his approval is no longer among those things."
Maddox nodded, his face serious. Rusty felt the need to lighten the mood.
"Come on, you're going to be able to tell everyone you meet that your bestie is a megastar."
"Megastar? For real? Are you planning on acting in the movies, too?"
"I could, but two passions are enough for any man. Matty and opera. I don't need anything else or anyone else for that matter. Although, I do have a confession to make. I'm really scared about meeting the in-laws. I mean, look at Matty. He can kick my ass at every moment and even threatened me that he won't take my lack of interest in studying lightly. His parents must be really stern."
"Something tells me that you're going to be fine," Maddox said with a smile.
"You only say that because you like me. Ah, I know. I'll get Francine to whip me into shape. I'm sure she's full of ideas. I might get a cowlick."
Maddox laughed and leaned back, stretching his legs. "You really caught a good one, Rusty. Don't ever let him go."
There were many things he could say, including how he hadn't been the one chasing after Matty in the end, and that he'd had no idea he'd been caught before it was too late to realize it. But all those things seemed of little importance.
"Was it the same for you when you fell for Johnny boy?" he asked. "I mean, you were quicker to get what was happening to you, right?"
"It was sort of weird, at first, but since he was so incredulous about my really liking him that it only made me more stubborn."
"I thought you were just exploring your bi side, some side you didn't know existed." Rusty had attempted it as a joke, but it came out more serious than intended.
"While you played it off as if getting naughty with your tutor was completely natural," Maddox pointed out. "I suppose that, between the two of us, I was the one who walked into it with my eyes open."
"What do you mean?" Rusty asked. There was something vague, like a memory, nudging him, but he couldn't tell what it was.
Maddox's hand on the back of his neck was warm and pleasant. Throughout this conversation, his friend hadn't let go of him, and Rusty chewed on the realization. There had always been a certain degree of intimacy between him and Maddox, different from what he had with the others.
"Do you recall that night? When we got really drunk for the first time in our lives? Before leaving for college?"
"Yeah," Rusty said and swallowed for a moment. "I challenged you to see whose dick was bigger. Just to establish the pecking order."
"Not just that, though, right, Rusty?" Maddox said and sounded serious. "I guess that was our bi side rearing its head right then."
"It's so damn brave of you that you can talk about it," Rusty said with a smidgeon of pique.
"Well, we never did, so maybe we're finally old enough to bring it up and clear the air. I thought about it when I started having the hots for Jonathan. Only briefly, but... Whatever, maybe only I found it weird getting so hard over having a dude touching my dick."
"No, it wasn't only you. Maddie, I have to tell you since you were so keen to bring it up. For a moment there, I wanted to kiss you."
"What? For real?"
Rusty nodded. "But you moved your head so fast, snapping it up after staring at our dicks and mumbling something about how yours was thicker, anyway, that you hit me in the chin so hard you almost knocked me out cold."
"Ah, don't tell me," Maddox said, trying to make his voice sound light, "the magic was gone."
"Yeah, it was. But I'm glad it happened. Because you're my bro, and I love your ass, but not like I'm hot for Matty. That's special."
"Phew, that's a relief, then. I wouldn't want to be your unrequitted crush."
"Not a chance of that. For the sake of an intellectual exercise, though, if I had kissed you, what would you have done?"
"Probably socked you in the face. Because of the shock. I don't think I was ready for that kind of thing before Jonathan."
"That's what Matty and I talked about, too," Rusty said, feeling a weight lifting off his shoulders. "How we wouldn't have worked out if we had met during freshman year. I had a head full of empty ambitions then."
"Well, we've had fun, one way or another. But it's awesome and special to have someone like that, isn't it?"
"You don't have to tell me twice. How about we wrap up this talk, though? I feel old already."
"Really?" Maddox teased. "And I thought you might feel tempted to kiss me again."
Rusty made a show of shivering at the thought. "When I kissed all of you a few nights ago, that was the last time, Maddie. Live with it. I promised Matty he's going to be the only one I'll ever kiss, all the rest of my life."
"It sounds like a good commitment. Great, then. Make sure to let Dex know, though. He might live in fear otherwise."
"And what would be the fun in that?"
They laughed at the same time.
"So, when are you planning on having the happy event?" Maddox asked.
"As soon as it's possible," Rusty said. "I need to face the dragon first. Apparently, Matty's mom goes by that name."
***
Matty's face broke into a big smile as soon as he spotted Jamie in the crowd of faces. He got a grin back and then Jamie was by his side, grabbing his hand and staring at the ring.
"I can't believe that guy. He really went on one knee and all that?"
"As hard to imagine as that might be, yes," Matty confirmed. "I have to apologize to you."
"What for?"
"Just for the sake of teasing Rusty, I let him believe that we got freaky. I did try to clear the air finally, but something tells me that he might still be a little jealous of you."
Jamie laughed, looking as carefree as ever. "Let him bring it on. I don't mind a little bit of sparring. And it would all be worth it since it's Rusty Parker we're talking about. Not many things can rattle that guy."
He barely finished that phrase when something, or better said, someone, crashed into him from one side and transported him, willy-nilly, several feet away. Matty watched as Rusty put himself between him and Jamie, his arms stretched wide. "That is my fiancé, if you didn't get the memo. Hands off, punk."
"Punk?" Jamie laughed and began fighting Rusty to reach Matty. "In case you haven't realized it yet, butthead, it was only because of me that your fiancé's chastity was kept safe in good hands."
"No really? Good hands? These hands?" Rusty grabbed Jamie's arms and hoisted them up into the air, making the other look like a puppet on strings.
Over Rusty's shoulder, Jamie winked at Matty. Around them, people had started to stop and stare, so some measures had to be taken. Matty hurried to grab his boyfriend and pulled him away from Jamie.
"You promised," he chided him lovingly. "And nothing happened between me and Jamie."
"Hey, not so loud," Jamie protested and stole glances around. "I have a reputation to uphold."
"Sorry, sorry," Matty agreed. "Rusty, let go of Jamie. He did nothing wrong."
"It's hard to believe, but I trust you," Rusty said and released Jamie reluctantly.
Jamie made a show of smoothing invisible wrinkles away on his tight t-shirt, just an occasion for him to flex his muscles and put himself on display a little. The appreciative glances thrown his way were enough to confirm that whatever he was doing was working.
"Matty here is a tough cookie," Jamie said and grinned, while he ruffled Rusty's hair only to make him bristle and throw him murderous looks. "He made it very clear from the start that he's one guy's man. Just so you know, fucker, you were on borrowed time." He wagged a finger at Rusty to make his point clear. "I mean, there was only so much time I was willing to let Matty wallow in despair over losing your sorry ass."
"I didn't know that," Matty said.
Jamie measured him up and down with his eyes, blinking slowly like a lazy cat. "Well, since it became public knowledge that you like prancing around in a latex suit that shows your ass, I'd say that you have a kinky side, Mr. Goody-two-shoes. And that means that for the sake of this asshole, I missed my chance with you." He grabbed Rusty by the shoulders and bumped him gently in the chin. "Don't ever make this guy cry again, hear me?"
"When have I cried?" Matty protested.
"When I wasn't looking, I'm sure."
That was one point he couldn't argue. But now Rusty was searching his face and he felt the need for a little white lie. "I'm not the kind to cry, you know that."
Rusty was, however, all over him now, hugging him and kissing the crown of his head. Jamie applauded and laughed. "Matty, you're one hell of a guy. You caught the legendary Don Giovanni." They both turned to stare at Jamie. "Yeah, I've heard what aria you performed for your beloved here. If you're asking me, so very on the nose. But as long as you have surrendered, I think all's well. Right?"
Matty held Rusty close while watching Jamie. "Thank you for being such a friend. To both of us. And rest assured. I'll never let him go."
"Okay, okay, enough of this romantic stuff," Jamie said and put his hands up. "I'd rather not be seen with the two of you, as that might also hurt my reputation."
"You didn't think about that when you hung out with me until yesterday," Matty said and laughed.
"Yeah, but yesterday you were about as good as a porn star. Today--"
"Today, he's mine. And forever," Rusty said in an irritated voice.
"He's just playing," Matty explained.
Jamie grinned and threw them a mock salute while backing away and then turning on his heel.
"I can't believe it. He really didn't touch you," Rusty said and embraced him more fervently. "Everything's perfect."
"HA!"
The sudden exclamation made them both turn their heads. Connor was there, pointing at them with an outstretched arm. "You two should be ashamed of yourselves!"
Matty rolled his eyes. Rusty looked at Connor for a moment, and then at Matty. "It does look like we have our work cut out for us."
TBC