Once a Nerd Ch. 11 - Sex Stories

Once a Nerd Ch. 11

... that wanted this sidebar, and I appreciate the candor. However, this guy's only known Sam for...three months? It's not as though they're lifelong friends, and while Sam can be fragile, he's not a damsel. I'm wary of the intention.

"Why are you doing this with him?"

Casey cuts to the heart of the matter after two prolonged drags. His wide frame is propped against the brick, lax, and his tone suggests simple curiosity. I'm facing him, two paces away, one hand tucked to the pouch at my stomach—pinching the leg of Sam's glasses between a thumb and forefinger.

"You mean, is my heart in the right place?" I laugh without humor, leaning into the urge to be antagonistic. "How chivalrous."

"Yeah, that's what I mean." He's unruffled. "I haven't known him long, but Sam's a good guy. He's got a good heart, and he's...sensitive. I'd hate to see him get hurt."

Our eyes connect through whispers of smoke twisting in the stagnant air, and it goes all through me, a bitter burn in my gut. The implication, the subtle attempt at a pissing contest. He might be coming from a place of platonic concern, but it means fuck all to me. Tension in my jaw sets the vein in my neck to bulging, and I feel its press against my skin.

"I appreciate the concern. Sammy needs good friends, people who'll worry about him and watch his back while I'm unable to do it." Taking a long, rolling inhale of cheap tobacco, I step half a pace in his direction. While he's got me squarely beat on bulk, we're ...

... the same height. "But, the distance is temporary, so there's no need to work too hard at filling a vacancy that doesn't exist."

Casey gets this small, thoughtful smile. "I'm not sure how you're going about it, but you're serious, huh?"

Hardening my face, irritated by the suggestion I'm anything less: "what thefuck do you think?"

He hefts his big shoulders in a shrug. "That's all that matters to me, man. Sam feels—"

"—guilty."

"Right, but the dynamic is pretty obvious here. If anyone's being taken advantage of, it's not you."

"You think that's how he feels? I'm taking advantage of him?"

Casey studies me earnestly. "...no, I don't think he feels like that. He...likes you."

"I know, and there's nothing I won't do to keep it that way. You get me?"

"Loud and clear. I won't patronize you more than I already have." He chuckles.

Satisfied with this mutual understanding, we snuff our butts and toss them in a nearby bin. Once back in the bar, Sam and John look to be having their own quiet, somber exchange. Sam's got a good sense of his limits, so he pumped the brakes after that second whiskey. Casey suggests they top off with a tokkuri of hot sake, and Sam takes to the idea like it's the best he's ever heard. He's pleasantly buzzed by the dinner's end, and it concludes on a note I'm content with. Now, it's time to part ways, and I'm once again put at a disadvantage by my lack of a vehicle.

I came with John, and Sam and Casey rode together in Casey's car. ...