Parts of a Whole
Trey shifted his weight again in the passenger seat, and Jason finally burst out in giggles. The snow leopard glared across the small car at him. "I'm sorry," the arctic fox said, keeping a paw on the wheel, "but it's your own fault."
"Oh, is it?" Trey's long tail wrapped around behind the seat to rest on Jason's. "I'd say at least half the responsibility--and all the come--is yours."
"Ahem." Jason watched the road, maneuvering around a slow pickup truck. "You're the one whose idea of 'communing with nature' was 'getting fucked against a big sequoia tree.'"
"I thought you would use a condom."
"What, the ones you left on the bathroom counter? Or the ones in the glove compartment of your car, which we didn't take?"
Trey folded his arms and shifted his glare to the windshield. He clenched his teeth for a good ten seconds before squirming in the seat again. When Jason snorted, Trey pointed ahead. "There! Stop there."
"What? That's a rest stop, Trey."
"I know. I need to clean up."
Jason frowned. "They usually don't let you wash your butt in the water fountains. Emotionally scarring to the children."
"This one has a shower."
The arctic fox slid the car over a lane. "How do you know that?"
Trey slid one foot under himself, shifting again. "I'll tell you later. I'll just take five minutes, 'kay?"
The last time Trey had taken only five minutes to shower had been when he'd just jumped in to wash his cock after topping Jason. It was plausible that he could wash his butt in five minutes, just not likely. But Jason had learned that compensating for Trey's optimistic "planning" wasn't worth arguing over, so he pulled over into the rest stop and found a spot at the far end of the parking lot.
"Why so far?" Trey opened his door and looked down the lot to where the small buildings were.
Jason switched the car off. "Because we might need some privacy. Go."
Trey grinned, leaned over, and kissed Jason. "Always planning," he said. Then he jumped out the door and walked quickly down the pavement.
The arctic fox watched him go, leaning out of the open window with his muzzle resting on his arm. Trey had a gorgeous butt and nice flowing tail behind it, long and soft and spotted. Watching it reminded Jason how recently it had been wrapped around his hips, and despite his recent activity, he felt his sheath stir in response.
"Down, boy," he murmured. They'd be at the hotel in a couple hours. So he just watched the snow leopard until Trey disappeared into the wooden building, and didn't think about that body naked inside. Much.
The rest stop wasn't very busy. Two cars were parked down by the building, and a pair of trucks further along. The air was a mixture of the sweet scent of trees and the exhaust fumes from the freeway; wildflowers on the verge between the lot and the freeway added a splash of red and violet, if not much scent.
Already, it had been a pretty good vacation, driving north from Hilltown to spend a weekend in a small town on the lake. There'd be swimming and hiking, and at least one or two nice restaurants, and nice cool lakeside air to curl up together in at night.
Jason's eyelids drooped slightly in the afternoon sun. He watched the wind rustle the trees, and then saw a slinky shape detach itself and take one step toward him.
He lifted his head, but the wind was wrong to get the scent. The shape looked a little like Trey, with a long, fluffy tail, but the tail was striped, not spotted, and his large ears stood up over his head.
He took another step toward Jason, into lighter shadow so his long, shapely legs showed with more definition, the hem of his tight denim shorts barely visible below the hem of his loose t-shirt with the faded glam pop band logo on it. Another step, and another, brought the ringtail out into the sun, where his ears blazed with colorful metal.
Jason squinted. He'd have bet his post-doc that the guy had not hit his side of twenty yet, but there was a maturity and a kind of assurance--not confidence in himself, but assurance that he knew the situation--to the way he carried himself, the short strides, the curled tail. And the guy was definitely coming toward him.
It was too late to roll up the window; they'd made eye contact. For a moment, stories of hitchhikers killing drivers at rest stops flashed through Jason's head until he realized that the kid had literally nowhere to be hiding a knife, much less a gun. The jeans shorts were so tight, stretched across the kid's package, that Jason was surprised when the kid spoke in a low voice.
"Hey. I'm tryin' to get to Crescent Bay."
Jason forced his eyes upward. The ringtail had wide brown eyes and a hesitant smile, the adorable kind. "I don't have any money on me," he lied.
"I'll blow you for a ride north." The kid licked his lips. "I'm eighteen. I got ID."
"Look, I'm waiting for..." Jason gestured toward the rest stop.
"I saw your friend. He's pretty hot. I'll blow him too." The kid shrugged. "You can watch if you want. I don't mind if he doesn't."
"No, it's not that, um..." Jason searched for words. "Look, I appreciate it, but..."
The ringtail leaned down, getting his head closer to the window. "It doesn't make you gay. Just close your eyes and think about some girl you know. I'm really good, I promise."
Jason laughed. "It's not that. It's...I'm here with my boyfriend."
"Oh!" The ringtail grinned, shaking his ears so the earrings jingled. "No problem, then. I'm Danny, nice to meet ya."
"No, look, Danny."
"What's your name?"
"Jason. But--"
"Jason. That's a great name."
Jason didn't know why he'd told the kid--Danny--his name. Clearly they weren't going to be friends or anything. "Thanks. Look, you shouldn't walk up to strangers and offer them blow jobs."
Danny frowned, slightly. "Then why'd you park over here?"
"I didn't know--"
"And you sat in the car looking out the window. Shit, did you not know?"
"No." The arctic fox sighed. Trey knowing about the shower made more sense now. "I think someone else did."
"Look, uh, I'm sorry, man..." Danny started to back away. "No hard feelings?"
Jason's attention was distracted by Trey running back along the pavement. The snow leopard was naked from the waist up, carrying his pants in one paw and holding his shirt around his waist with the other. Dark, wet pawprints collected on the pavement as he ran, and drops of water sprayed out from his fur. He only hesitated briefly when he saw Danny, but made no move to go back inside.
The ringtail turned, ears perked to the running steps, and Jason had to stifle a laugh at his expression as Trey came running up to the car. "Pop the trunk? Please?"
"What happened?" Jason reached for the latch and flipped it. The trunk latch released with a thunk.
Trey ran around back. "Forgot to get a towel. Good thing you parked over here. Hi, I'm Trey."
This last was to Danny, who raised a paw uncertainly. "I'm Danny." He still looked about ready to bolt back into the shade of the trees. Jason had to be amused at how easily Trey was able to fluster a kid who'd just walked up to a complete stranger and, well:
"He offered to blow us in exchange for a ride to Crescent Bay," he told his boyfriend. At that, Danny's expression didn't change.
"Oh." Trey pulled out a towel and slammed the trunk shut. "We don't need blow jobs, but we'll give you a ride. Hop in."
Danny looked at Jason uncertainly, and Jason met his eyes, now somewhat off-balance himself. It had never occurred to him to offer the kid a ride but decline the blow jobs. He searched for reasons it wouldn't be okay as Trey came around the side of the car and forced a decision. "It's okay, right, hon?"
The snow leopard's easy confidence made Jason smile, nod quickly, and say, "Sure."
"Only hang on while I dry off." Trey went around the other side of the car, opened the passenger door, and draped his wet shirt over the window, giving Jason a nice view of his naked body as he toweled himself off in the sun. The fox leaned back and whistled softly, so Trey gave him a quick wink.
When the snow leopard had pulled his pants on (no underwear--"I'm sure you don't mind," he said to Jason), they let Danny into the back. "You have to promise not to knife us," Trey said.
Danny held up a paw. "I won't stick anything in you that you don't ask for."
He grinned, and Jason grinned back. Pulling out, he couldn't help looking over at Trey's relaxed smile, and thinking about how easily the snow leopard had made his decision. Jason often laughed at Trey's reckless nature, but sometimes the cat spotted the right thing to do and just went ahead and did it.
Danny had asked Trey where they were from, and the snow leopard was responding. Jason reached over and squeezed Trey's paw, where it lay on his leg. Trey gave him a curious look, and Jason just responded with a broad smile.
"Where d'you need to go in Crescent Bay?" Jason asked Danny.
"Ah, just drop me by the marina. I'll find my way."
"Don't you have someone to stay with?"
Trey nudged Jason. "Let him be. He's young, he's hitching around the country."
"Somethin' always comes along," Danny said.
Jason glanced sideways at Trey. "Like a rest stop with a shower?"
Trey's ears flicked back. "Hey, I just heard about it. Never stopped here myself"
"Right. All those gay guys at the fire station know where to get blow jobs and clean up after, right?"
Danny said, "You don't have to be gay to get sucked off."
"So how did you know about it?"
"Internet." Danny flashed his phone at them. "Got a whole list of places. This one guy from Crystal City got across the country with six blow jobs. I'm at four right now. 'Preciate you guys giving me a lift without one."
"See," Jason said to Trey, "he has a plan."
"Ah." Trey dismissed Jason's words with a paw. "Whatever. He's not planning out every single stop."
"Nah." Jason watched the road ahead. "Seems like a good mix. Little bit of planning, little bit of spontaneity. That could take a guy pretty far."
"Or two guys." Danny grinned again from the back seat, his ears up. Cleverer than he came off at first, Jason thought.
Trey didn't say anything, but after a moment he reached over and squeezed Jason's paw back.