Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 7

be gay, but it is not big." Giving a backhanded tap to Jimmy's stomach where his shirt was riding up. "It's one of my best features." Scott added petulantly.
    "So I've been told, princess. Now, let's see the damage out there before we go get little sis."
    Scott snorted another laugh but he stood up, shifting his clothes and straightening himself out before tripping over one of Jimmy's enormous shoes that were abandoned in the floor. "I don't know how you can call her that considering you hit on her the first time you met her."
    "I did not! I was just being friendly." Jimmy defended. It was an old argument, one that they laughed over every time Ruby's name was even mentioned. "You'd already told her all sorts of shit about me; I was just living up to her expectations. She would've been offended if I hadn't pretended to try."
    "Right…"
    "And you lied to the girl."
    "Lied, my ass." Scott was already making his way past the mountain that was his best friend, Jimmy topping him by a few inches and several more pounds of muscle.
    "Yes, lied. I don't mark notches in my bedpost."
    Scott arched a brow, "Since getting out of high school." he added as they made their way to the living room.
    "Yeah, well. You made it sound like I still do that. I've…matured since then."
    Scott couldn't help but laugh, shaking his head, "Yes, we're both pillars of maturity and decorum."
    "Practically saints." Jimmy agreed, dropping his arm around Scott's shoulder.
    They both stopped as if they'd walked into a wall. Their tiny living room/dining room/kitchenette was buried under a pile of beer cans, pizza boxes, and clothing.
    "It looks like a strip club exploded in here." Jimmy was great for stating the obvious.
    "Maybe… Maybe it's not as bad as it looks. I mean…"
    Taking an optimistic sniff, Jimmy said hopefully, "I don't smell anything too foul at least."
    As they began throwing everything into two giant trash bags—one for recycle and one for unidentifiable filth—Scott turned to Jimmy in alarm, "Did what's-her-name sleep over?"
    "Who's what's-her-name?"
    "Sharon…Cheryl… whatever her name was."
    "Oh, Christ," Jimmy muttered, stalking down the hall to his own bedroom. When he returned a moment later he was laughing. "She slept over, but, uh, so did Benny and Mark…"
    Scott was grinning at him, "Jesus, maybe you should marry her. She's the girl version of you ."
    "Makes my head hurt to think of the logistics of what went on in my room last night. There's barely enough room for me in that bed."
    Pausing as he dropped another beer can into the recycle bag, Scott narrowed his eyes, "I know," he said pointedly, "I've walked in on more than one of your little love-ins on the couch. Or my bed."
    "Well…your bed is bigger." Jimmy told him as they resumed their slap and dash cleaning, "And it's not like I don't invite you to join us…" he added with a winning smile.
    "One of these days I'm gonna take you up on it just to see the look of shock on your face. I bet your dick would shrink to the size of a peanut." They were both laughing, Scott picking up a stray pair of pink satin panties and flinging them at Jimmy.
    "They'd look better on you, sweetheart." Teasing Scott and tossing them back at him. When Scott's face flushed a pink to match the panties, Jimmy's grin turned evil, "Oh- ho ! Have we found a kink for baby?"
    " No ." he said firmly, adding the panties to a pile of lost and found clothing on the couch. "They're just…soft."
    "One of the nice things about girls," Jimmy told him, "You should try it sometime, just to see."
    "Yeah, well."
    Jimmy stopped in mid-motion then, staring at his friend, " What ?"
    Looking guilty, Scott continued what he was doing, unable to make eye contact, "Not one of my finer moments, okay?"
    "Okay, but we're resuming this conversation in the car." Glancing at his watch, Jimmy looked around the room as if deciding it wasn't great but it would do, "We better hit the road; we're gonna be late as it is."
    "Better get your room cleared out first." Scott reminded him, heading to his own room to find his keys and phone.
    ****
    It took a few minutes to take out the trash and make sure the apartment was free of vagrants, but they were finally trapped in the small confines of Scott's little hybrid and pulling out onto the main road toward I-5. Jimmy was scrunched up in the front seat next to Scott, fiddling with the settings and trying to make room for his (in Scott's opinion) excessively long legs. "If you hate