I've been looking for a lover

Thought I'd find him in a bottle

Chapter 16 ~ Bloodstream

Scar Patterson

"A gay club?" If my mouth could have hung lower than it already was, it would have touched the floor.

When I typed the address of this unknown place into my phone's GPS, I thought it would lead us to a fancy restaurant of some sort. But no, the address led us to a gay club by the name of Ice all the way at the edge of town. I had always heard about gay clubs and bars, but I never thought they actually existed.

"Why are we here?" I asked Jamie, turning to face him. He had a tiny, suggestive smile on his face as he overlooked the men standing in line and awaiting entry into the bar. Most of them were wearing tight t-shirts, short t-shirts, or simply no t-shirts at all. Some even made out with each other while they waited in line. "This is so gross."

"Hey," Jamie snapped at me. "Gay people are not gross. Ice is the best gay hookup spot in town, and probably the only gay hookup spot in town. But whatever, it's gonna be fun. We'll buy a couple drinks, dance a bit, and let loose. Sound cool?" There was an eager grin on his face as he waited for my response, and the only reason why I agreed was because I had already driven this far.

"Sure," I said reluctantly, "but how are we going to get in? Don't we need to be twenty one, or do gays not do that?"

Jamie threw an arm around my shoulder and pulled me closer to him. "Why don't you let me worry about that?" He glanced down at me under his light lashes and planted a quick kiss on my cheek.

I could already feel the heat rushing to my face, so I buried my face in my shirtsleeve. "Just hurry up," I mumbled. Something in the back of my mind told me that this wouldn't be a great experience, but if this was what Jamie wanted ... Then so be it.

Ever since he went through his mental breakdown earlier in the car, I've learned to not piss him off. Instead, I would just keep my thoughts to myself and hope for the best. There was no question that Francesca was going to run her big mouth and tell everyone about what she saw. I'd already considering denying it, but I knew that would hurt Jamie.

In theory, that would mean that I would try to embrace my new found relationship with Jamie. But no one has ever heard nor seen a successful openly gay football player. It just didn't go together. Like oil and water.

Jamie laced his fingers through mine and dragged me towards the line, except he didn't join the end of the line like everyone else. He wiggled his way past the existing men of varying sizes - most of which were big and scary - until he arrived at the front of the line, having no remorse for all the men who whined and complained in the process.

The bouncer, who was probably gay too, looked down at Jamie. "Well, well, look who we have here. Long time no see, James." His lips stretched into a full-on grin.

Jamie propped himself up against the wall while pulling his lips into a slight smirk. "Ah, you know, Craig. I've been trying to focus on school and what not. Oh, and I got myself a little boy toy too." He glanced at me with a forced smile on his face that practically said go along with it.

The bouncer's grin remained on his face as he switched his attention to me. He was giving me such a weird look that I was sure he would eat me. "He's a cute little twink," he told Jamie. "But I'll still need to see some ID."

I felt my throat getting dry. I really hoped Jamie knew what he was doing.

Jamie rolled his eyes as he fished into his pocket for his wallet. "I didn't want to tell you this, but my boy toy is still in high school. His mom wouldn't let him out of the house and I sorta stole him to show him a good time. I told him Ice is the best place to go to let loose," he spoke in a soft, hushed voice.

The bouncer was still unconvinced. "You know the rules, James. I can't let minors in here. If it was just alcohol, maybe. But you know how hot and steamy it gets in there. I don't want to lose my job if your little twink gets accidentally fucked up the ass."

I frowned and gave Jamie a worried look. What the hell did he mean by twink and me getting accidentally fucked? What kind of club was this?

Jamie released a heavy sigh and tugged out a hundred dollar bill from his wallet. "I'll keep him on a tight leash," he said with a smug grin, as he slipped the cash in the bouncer's pocket. "Promise."

The bouncer gave me a skeptical look before sighing. "Get in there and stop holding up my line," he snapped at us as he settled his attention on the men behind us.

Jamie tipped his head to show his gratitude, wrapped his hand around my wrist, and pulled me into the double doors, fully immersing me in the loud techno music and sweaty bodies.

Strobe lights bounced off the walls, emitting several different colors and white spotlights shone on selected men wearing nothing but white underwear. They danced like their lives depended on it, allowing themselves to get lost in the beat of the music as other men shoved dollar bills into their briefs.

I could already feel my heart starting to tighten in my chest. Jamie tried to push his way through the crowd and I latched onto him because I didn't want to get 'accidentally fucked' like the bouncer said earlier. "Hey!" I shouted over the music. "Why didn't he ask for your ID?"

"Because he thinks I'm twenty two," he yelled back, not glancing back at me but instead trying to find an empty seat at the bar. The place was so packed with people that I was surprised that Summer Hill had this many gays.

"Hey!" I yelled again, tapping his shoulder. "What's a twink?"

Jamie had successfully pulled us out of the sea of people and led me to one of the bar stools. He ordered a drink for us - something called Sweet Cream - and finally turned his attention to me, a slight smile on his face. "A twink is basically a young, effeminate, gay guy who has a thin build, no facial hair, and that pretty boy look."

I gasped. "What? I'm not effeminate. I am totally masculine, and I've got muscles, see?" I pulled up the sleeves of my shirts and flexed my muscles to show him. "Football isn't cut out for non-muscular people. If anything, you're the twink. Not me."

The bartender returned with our drinks and set the tall glasses down in front of us. It was a milky, cream liquid, which was probably why it was named Sweet Cream and considering that it was a gay club, they liked that sorta stuff.

Jamie brought his drink to his lips and took a sip of it, allowing the creamy drink to give him a mustache. In a very subtle but very seductive way, his tongue swiped over his lips. "Twinks are usually bottoms. Everyone in this club knows me to be a top."

I frowned. That sounded like a backhanded insult. "So, you're saying that I'm a bottom?"

Jamie took another sip. "You said it, not me."

"Whatever." I rolled my eyes and decided to try the creamy drink, bringing the glass to my lips. It tasted like a vanilla milkshake with a bitter twang to it. But after I got used to the bitterness, it actually tasted really good. "This is great! What's in it?"

His ice blue eyes burned into mine as he said, "Jizz."

My eyes snapped open at that very instant and I slammed the glass down on the bar, shoving it away from me. "What!"

Jamie looked at me as if what he was saying was common sense. "Why do you think it's so popular?"

I was certain that all the color had drained from my face and I just sat there with a more-than-disgusted look on my face. "That's fucking disgusting!"

He cocked his head to the side, giving me a perplexed look. "You just said it tasted great."

"Yeah, well, that was before I knew it was some random guy's load!" I knew there was something off about this place the second I walked in here.

Jamie stared at me with his confused look for a little while longer, before he erupted into a series of loud laughs. He laughed like he had never laughed before, clutching his stomach and doubling over in an attempt to contain his laughter.

Now it was my turn to be confused. "What? What is it?"

He rested a hand on my shoulder. "Scar, I was just kidding! Oh my god, you should've seen your face. That was beyond hilarious!"

My lips turned down into a slight frown. I probably should've known that he was just messing with me from the start, but it's not like I've ever been to a gay club to know what they put in their drinks. "You're an ass," I blurted out as I took another sip of my creamy drink.

"Aw," Jamie cooed while cupping my cheeks in his hands. "You know you love it, babe."

My body stiffened. "Babe?" I questioned, raising an inquiring brow.

Jamie's lips fell open just as his light colored brows shot up. "N-no," he stammered in response. "I didn't mean it like that. I just, uh, it's the, um, the alcohol talking. I know that we're not-"

"It's okay," I reassured him as I slid my hand down the counter and briefly brushed my fingers against his. "I like it."

My attention drifted away from Jamie when I saw a man, who looked to be not that much older than me, with platinum blond spiky hair. He was wearing nothing but bright pink underwear. He swayed to the beat of the current song playing and when he turned around, I realized his bright pink underwear was, in fact, girl underwear.

I tapped Jamie on the shoulder. "Is he wearing a thong?"

Jamie's gaze followed the direction I was looking to. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see his lips twitching into his signature smirk. "Why, yes he is," he said while shrugging his shoulders as if it was no big deal, which got me thinking...

"Do you wear thongs?" I asked suddenly.

Jamie's smile grew more menacing as he lifted a brow. "I don't know. Why don't you check?"

My eyes bulged out of their sockets. "Jamie!"

He laughed again, and I was starting to think he took joy in making me uncomfortable. "No, I don't. Why? Do you want me to?"

An image of Jamie wearing a thong involuntarily popped into mind and I tried to shake away the thought. Here I was, fantasizing about another dude wearing a thong. What the hell was wrong with me? "Why'd you bring me here?" I questioned, switching the subject.

"Because this is the only place you can go where you won't be judged for kissing another boy," he said coolly, standing up abruptly. He snagged his drink from the counter and drained it with a speed that I haven't even seen my mom do before. Slamming the empty glass on the counter and smiling cheekily, he grabbed my hand. "Now, let's dance."

I knew better than to protest, because before I knew it, Jamie was already pulling me along with him. He brushed past plenty of men and they all let him without complaining, like they looked up to him or something. Now that I thought about it, he was on first-name basis with the bouncer, he mentioned that everyone in the gay community pretty much knew he was a top, and he was pretty familiar with the drink menu. How many times has he been here?

I had so many questions to ask him but he dragged me to the center of the dance floor where the music was the loudest, so I decided to just shut up for now.

Jamie's arms snaked around my neck as he began to rock back and forth to the music. He threw his head back, his long blond hair following the movement, and let himself get lost in the music. He projected a carefree aura when he danced. Part of me thought it was because he felt comfortable in his surroundings, but then I realized that was just who Jamie was. He didn't have a single care in the world. He just liked to have fun anywhere at anytime.

A bright white light shone down on us and I noticed that all the other males had created a circle around us. Their eyes were glued to Jamie, like they were entranced by the way he moved or maybe it was just because they liked him. Because who couldn't like Jamie? I had tried so hard not to, but I ended up developing feelings for him. If he could do that to a straight guy, imagine what he could do to a gay guy.

Everyone started to chant Jamie's name and it confirmed my original thought that he had probably been here several times.

It bothered me that everyone's attention was on Jamie. Not that I wanted creepy gay men to fantasize about me, I just didn't want them to fantasize about Jamie. Besides, I felt awkward just standing there like a stiff board, so I did the bravest thing that I never thought I would do.

I grabbed onto Jamie's hips and pulled him against me.

The crowd erupted into a series of hollers and screams as my hands trailed down to his ass, giving his cheeks a slight squeeze. I had no idea what compelled me to let everyone know that Jamie belonged to me, but I didn't like the looks they were giving him. So in addition to feeling him up, I pressed my lips to his and fisted my hands into his slightly messy hair.

The crowd screamed some more, showing us they approved of our relationship. Jamie wasn't kidding when he said we wouldn't be judged for kissing each other, and I really wished that the real world was like that.

When the song ended, everyone returned to their dance partners like nothing had happened. Jamie was breathing heavily and some of his hair was sticking to his forehead from all the sweat. "That was fun," he breathed out. "Wasn't it?"

"Yeah," I agreed. "It was."

He wiped the sweat away from his forehead and smiled at him. "Come, let's go somewhere a little more private." He didn't wait for an answer when his fingers found mine and he was dragging me across the dance floor once again.

We arrived at a hallway that resembled a dark alley. The only difference was that the black lights on the ceiling gave the room a neon green glow. It was hard to see clearly, but I could see skin - a lot of skin - and I could hear soft disgruntled moans. That was all I needed to know.

"This is disgusting," I commented in a soft whisper, just in case one of them heard me and decided to rearrange my face.

Jamie chuckled beside me. "You're such a hypocrite, Patterson." Before I could register it, he pinned me against the nearest wall and started kissing my neck.

Maybe I was a hypocrite, but I just couldn't help it. Every time I heard a male groan, it made me cringe. But the way Jamie was sucking on my neck and letting his hands travel all over my body wasn't making me cringe. I wasn't at all disgusted when it came to Jamie. It was hot when Jamie did it.

He lifted the hem of my shirt to expose my toned chest and moved his kisses from my neck to my abdomen. Without even recognizing it, my hands worked their way into his hair as he moved lower and lower until he stopped at my navel. He glanced back up at me with lustful eyes, as if asking for confirmation.

I nodded slowly with a small smile.

He smiled too as one of his hands caressed my torso while the other unbuttoned my jeans. He pulled them down to my knees and returned to my midsection, his lips curling into a satisfied smirk. "Hard, already?"

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up."

He stood to his full height and captured my lips into a long, gentle kiss. I could practically taste the desire on his tongue, and I secretly hoped he could taste mine.

Before I could get too comfortable with our kiss, Jamie pulled away and lowered himself to his knees again. His fingers slipped past the waistband of my boxers, but he still didn't touch me yet. If anything, he touched me everywhere except where I wanted him to touch me the most.

Just when I thought he was going to make some progress, a very loud, feminine voice arose from the midst of all the moans, "No! Stop it! I said I don't wanna do that!"

I expected Jamie to ignore it, just like I chose to ignore the gay couple next to me who were really going at it. But no, Jamie completely stopped what he was doing and shifted his attention to the voice.

"Jamie," I said in a slightly annoyed tone. "Why'd you stop?"

He was silent for a few moments before he turned to face me. "I know that voice."

I sighed heavily. "Okay, but can you, like, I don't know ... Do something? You got me all excited."

Jamie narrowed his gaze at me. "Don't be greedy," he ordered, before he took off into the direction of the voice, leaving me hanging.

I tried not to be irritated, but it didn't work. There was no doubt that I was absolutely feeling the moment and Jamie had to ruin it by caring about a stupid voice that he thought he knew. But regardless, I pulled up my pants and followed him further into the sex tunnel, or so it should be called.

Jamie stepped up beside some tall shirtless dude and a smaller shirtless dude. "Leave him alone," he ordered, "or I'll beat you shitless."

The tall dude seemed to take Jamie's threat seriously because suddenly he was all apologies. He took off through a gap in the mass of people sexing each other and Jamie turned to face the small guy. "You okay?"

The small guy nodded and threw his arms around Jamie, burying his head in his neck.

I could feel a low growl bubbling in my throat. "Jamie," I called out again. "Can we, uh, get back to what we were doing?"

Jamie snapped his eyes to mine. "No," he spat. "We're leaving." He wrapped an arm around the small boy and pulled him along with him.

"What?" I questioned. "Why?"

When the two of them got closer into view, I recognized the small boy's ridiculously neat black hair and pallid skin color. It was that creepy kid, Max.

"Because of this idiot," he said in a fiery tone that told me he was more than pissed off. "What the hell are you doing here anyway, Max? Craig couldn't have possibly let you in." He carried Max along with him as we both exited the sex tunnel and immersed ourselves in the chaos that was the dance floor.

Max rolled his eyes. "I wasn't following you, if that's what you're asking. I was here with my boyfriend." He paused to think about it. "Well, ex-boyfriend."

Jamie's eyes widened. "That asshole was your boyfriend? Max, he's like ten years older than you."

Max simply shrugged. "So?"

"So, you need to find someone your own age. Older guys are going to take advantage of you."

Max gazed at Jamie with distant, but deadly eyes. He wasn't as eccentric as he usually was, which led me to believe that he had been drinking. "I guess I just have a thing for older guys who take advantage of me."

I didn't know much about Max and Jamie's relationship, but I knew that was an indirect insult to Jamie.

Jamie released a heavy sigh and proceeded to carry Max out of the club. Originally, I had been pissed that our intimate session had been cut short, but now I was just as worried about Max's safety as Jamie was.

When we finally exited the club and the music wasn't pounding loudly in our ears anymore, Max tore himself away from Jamie and struggled to stand up on his own.

"We're gonna get you a cab, okay?" Jamie told him, but Max wasn't having any of it.

"No. I want you to drive me home."

"I can't," Jamie said. "I've been drinking."

Max lifted his dark eyes to mine. "Of course you were. If you just wanted to suck off your stupid boyfriend, that's all you had to say. You don't have to lie about it."