Left Side, Strong Side

Riley didn't want to get out of bed. He wanted to lay with Blake all day. He was genuinely happy for the first time in a very long time. He was glad that Blake was so caring and sincere. Blake didn't want to leave Riley either, but he had to go to his second job; the more important job. He was planning on quitting modeling so he could work full time at the office but he didn't want to do that until he was promoted.

Blake made good money modeling but he wasn't stupid, he knew he couldn't model forever. He would if he could; he loved it, but his body wasn't going to be fit for his whole life.

Riley whined and wrapped his arms around the tall man. "No, don't go. I'll bribe you, let's see..." he joked and buried his head in Blake's shoulder. "I'll make you breakfast if you trust me with your kitchen appliances?"

Blake laughed and hugged the small-framed boy. "I wish I could stay home. Don't worry I will be back before you know it." He kissed Riley's forehead before getting out of the bed.

Riley smiled and continued to lay in the covers. He told himself that he would get up for real once Blake was done showering, but he accidentally fell back asleep. When Blake came out of the bathroom all dressed and ready to go, he smirked at the still sleeping boy in his bed.

He tapped Riley on the back and sat down on the edge of the mattress.

"Riley wake up, you sleepy-head. On a serious note, when I come home later we'll go to your house and pack your stuff up, okay? You should call your dad and tell him."

Riley didn't tell Blake that he was going to tell his dad he was moving in with the imaginary Dean...but what Blake didn't know wouldn't hurt him. The whole situation was actually quite embarrassing for the teen.

Riley nodded. "Yeah, I will. I know he'll be cool with it. He's really supportive. Like, sickeningly so. But it's better than him hating me. Joy on the other hand...she's not happy about me leaving. I don't really care how she feels though."

Blake cringed. "Her name is Joy? Ugh, that just makes me even more angry. She's supposed to be a happy and cheerful woman with a name like that, and she...she's a monster. I'm so relieved that you're able to get away from her. But...you should really tell your dad what happened. I don't know him, which I hope I will one day- but it sounds like he loves you a lot. He deserves to know. He would want to comfort you and help you, Riley."

The brunette shook his head. "No, Blake. He doesn't need to know. He wouldn't believe me anyway. He doesn't even know about the drugs. I mean, he's great but he's completely clueless. And he's so in love with my mom. I never really told you the story but...I don't wanna make you late; it can be for another time."

Blake shook his head. "No I've got time. I want to hear."

There weren't many people who knew about the love story between Riley's parents. It wasn't anything straight from a movie but it was still cute and adorable. Well, it would be cute and adorable to Riley if he didn't hate his mother so much.

"Well It's sorta long but here it goes," Riley started. "My biological mom and my dad were childhood friends who were always together. They fell in love, got married, and then had me. When I was about 2 years old my mom died in a freak accident. The railroad crossing bars weren't working properly and my mom's car was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. My dad was devastated. He said the only thing that kept him going was me. he said I reminded him of my mother." Riley smiled for a short second. "He met Joy at a group therapy session. Joy was a widow. They bonded and shared the same pain of losing a spouse. They got married only a couple months after meeting and they've been married for almost 15 years."

Blake grabbed Riley's hand and squeezed it for support. "I'm really glad you told me about that. I wish that Joy didn't turn out so horrible. I understand that you think you can't tell your dad about what she did to you. But just remember, you're his son. She's his wife, yes, but you are his own flesh and blood. He will believe you and be on your side."

Blake didn't have exact dates but from what Riley just told him, he figured Riley was 18 years old. He never asked him because it didn't matter. It would matter if Riley was very young; but he wasn't. Blake was relieved to know that his relationship with Riley wasn't illegal.

"I feel like I was just waiting for her to mess up; I was waiting for something to happen. It never did. But anyway, I'm done talking about her, she's a waste of breath. I'm moving forward with my life now. I'm drug-free; for now, I'm happy...and I've got you."

Blake pointed a finger at Riley. "Drug-free for good. Forever. Don't give up on me now, Riley. You've come so far. You're feeling better, I know you do so don't try to lie. Okay?"

The teen smiled and nodded. "Okay. Well, I'll let you go now. Make sure you have fun at work, or try to. While you're gone I'll jump on your bed, raid your fridge, and mess up your house. Just kidding. Don't look at me like that I said just kidding! You really think I would do that?"

Blake laughed. "I'm not too sure. I really don't know much about you yet. But I absolutely cannot wait to find out more," he said, and with that statement he planted a kiss to Riley's lips. "I'll be home around 5. See you later."

After Blake left it hit Riley; that he didn't know much about Blake either. It didn't bother him a whole lot, but he was surprised at how little he knew about the older man. All did know was that Blake was a nice 21 year old that worked hard and had a lot of friends. Other than those things he didn't know much.

Riley wanted to know everything, just like Blake wanted to know everything about him. The only difference was that Riley led a very unexciting life. He didn't have any friends and he didn't have any talents that he could bring up. Blake seemed like he had it all. Riley was quite jealous.

The teen got out of bed and started to get ready, he didn't want to be a lazy bum, he actually wanted to do something nice for Blake since he had been more than amazing to him. But he didn't know what to do. He couldn't clean the house because it was already spotless; he didn't even know what Blake would want him to do. Riley knew from experience that Blake couldn't cook to save his life, so he decided to prepare some sort of dinner for when Blake got home.

It was too early in the day to start cooking dinner, so Riley had to find a way to pass the time. Usually he would just go scavenge for some money and buy coke, but those days were over. He still thought about going back to drugs but he knew he didn't want to be a part of it anymore. Blake was right all along; talking about what happened to him did make Riley feel better. Getting it off his chest and actually saying it out loud helped, but what really helped him was knowing that he wasn't going through it alone.

Riley smiled to himself as he thought about Blake, and soon he found himself daydreaming about their night of lovemaking. He wanted it to happen again, and he hoped that it wouldn't be long before it did. And it made him wonder what he and Blake were. They were doing things backwards...Riley was already moving in and they barely knew each other.

Putting a name to what ever they were wasn't necessary but the teen sort of wanted to. He never had a boyfriend before. He never wanted one, until now. He knew that Blake would be such an amazing boyfriend. The dirty-blond was already so caring and affectionate. Riley couldn't imagine why Blake didn't have a boyfriend. There was nothing wrong with him. And he was hot. Hot people usually had significant others. It didn't make any sense.

Riley soon found himself sad. He thought that maybe Blake got his heart broken by someone who didn't know what a good guy they had. Blake didn't deserve that. He deserved someone that would make him happy and treat him just as great as he treated them.

And then Riley felt like a fool because he had no idea why Blake was single; he just made something up in his head to justify it.

~

While Riley was searching Blake's house for a cook book, he heard someone knocking on the front door. He wasn't sure if he should answer it. It wasn't his house, but he was going to be living there, so it was a tough call. He decided to wait for a moment to see if the person would go away or continue to knock.

The stranger must have noticed that Blake's car wasn't there and realized he wasn't home. The phone rang shortly after the knocks stopped. Riley respected Blake's privacy and let the answering machine pick up, but he still listened in; he was bored and curious.

"Hey Blake, It's CJ. I know you're at work; well now I do, I didn't before, until I knocked on your door like an idiot when your car wasn't even in the driveway. Anyway, I was just wondering if you were okay. I talked to the guys and none of them have heard from you lately, including me. If you need to talk, we're here, man. You know that. Give me a call later, or call Greg B, he's smarter- but...what I'm trying to say is that we miss you. So fucking call us, asshole."

Riley felt bad because he was the reason why Blake wasn't spending time with his friends. They didn't even know about him. He assumed that Blake had to tell them eventually, because of him moving in soon. He hoped that they would understand, or else that would be a huge problem.

He tried to push the bad thoughts aside and focus on trying to find what he was looking for. He gave up shortly after, and decided to make something simple. He figured that would be his best bet.

"Pasta," he said out loud to himself. "Spaghetti is the easiest thing to make. Duh. Okay...let's just hope he has spaghetti..."