Tossball night
14 November 2019
2145 words
Rated E for sexual content
Max and Felix watch a game of tossball together.
“What was the score on last night’s game? I missed it.”
“I didn’t know you still cared about tossball, Max. What with your grand spiritual awakening and whatall.”
“I don’t. But I know you do.”
The unexpected sentiment in his answer took Felix by surprise.
They were outside a small house, waiting for the Captain to take care of their business. Getting along with Max was nice enough, albeit a bit boring now that he no longer had a convenient outlet for all his rage against the Board. But at least doing small talk with him was much more enjoyable.
“You know me, Max. I’m satisfied so long as the Darlings get a proper clobbering. Which they most certainly did,” Felix replied, avoiding the weird part about Max caring about his interests.
“How would you like to watch together sometime?”
Felix hesitated. He hadn’t expected this. Felix almost wanted to make a stupid escape, reject him in some ridiculous fashion like mocking him for making a move. But on the other hand, he was curious to see where this would lead. He’d never had an abundance of meaningful relationships, let alone good friends who shared his interest in tossball. And he’d lie if he said he hadn’t started to get interested in Max. As a friend, of course.
“Sure. We can watch a game next time we’re both free,” he answered, trying his hardest to sound casual. Something in Max’s newfound kindness made him weirdly uneasy, almost as Max had broken some unspoken rule by being nice to him; forcing him to re-evaluate his own perception of their relationship and admit they were probably more or less what you’d call friends at this point.
For the next couple of weeks, the two had barely any free time at all. By the time Felix finally did have time to pop open a Zero Gee and get ready for a match night, he had forgotten all about the seemingly throwaway proposition Max had made.
“Still interested in watching the game together?”
Max had appeared next to Felix while he was busy relaxing.
“Uh, sure. Take a seat,” he said, surprised, and moved over to make room for Max. Max sat down beside him, and Felix could swear the couch somehow narrowed to half its length in that very moment. He tried to make himself comfortable again, but his legs didn’t quite fit anywhere, and he didn’t know what to do with his free hand. Frustrated, he took a big gulp of his drink, then almost choked on it.
“Are you all right, Felix?” Max asked. Felix wasn’t sure if he was poking fun at him, but it irked him nevertheless, and he replied with a mere “I’m fine”.
So far, it had been the lousiest night of watching tossball Felix had ever experienced, and that was saying a lot. For someone who claimed not to be interested, Max sure was glued to the action, whereas Felix was just barely keeping track of the score. He was on his third, or was it fourth Zero Gee and had no intention of slowing down, even though he recognized his pace was rather fast.
It was when he got up for a bathroom break that Felix realized he was much woozier than he’d initially thought. Trying his hardest to act sober, he managed to walk to the toilet and back without stumbling too noticeably.
When he came back with a big glass of water, his half of the couch had further shrunk. Despite being fairly drunk, Felix was sure that this time it wasn’t his head playing tricks on him.
“Can you move a bit?” Felix asked reluctantly. “Of course,” Max said and shifted towards his end only just enough so that Felix couldn’t complain. Felix sat back down, trying his hardest to avoid accidentally brushing Max’s thigh while doing so—easier said than done, when his head was spinning.
Felix started belting down his water in hopes of sobering up, and was finally ready to enjoy the game when Max casually put his arm behind him on the back of the couch. Felix struggled to keep himself from spewing a mouthful of water out of his mouth, but Max paid him no attention.
That settled it. Enlightenment, my ass, Felix thought. Max was clearly messing with Felix, and, judging by the poorly concealed smug smile on his face, enjoying it immensely. Felix probably deserved it after being such a pain in the ass before, but then again Max also deserved to have such an ass-pain for being a total ass. In short, by Felix’s logic, this was unfair.
“What’s your problem?” Felix asked, a bit more harshly than he’d meant to, when he noticed Max beginning to creep closer again. To his surprise, Max looked slightly abashed before a most annoying smile appeared on his face.
“I’m watching the game. But if you’d like to do something else, we can,” Max said innocently.
“I thought you were above messing with people at this point,” Felix said.
“I’m not messing with you, Felix.” Felix noticed Max’s thigh was now almost touching his, and that he could hear Max’s breath way more clearly than he should’ve.
“Then why are you doing this?” Felix asked. He was uncomfortably aware of his pulse rising, his cheeks reddening, and his breathing becoming harder.
“Doing what?” Max asked in a deep, suggesting voice. He was playing a cheap game, and Felix was losing miserably.
“Getting closer.” Another point for Max, and another couple of centimeters off the distance between them.
“Do you not want me to?” Max was whispering at this point. Felix was cornered, in both literal and figurative sense.
“Is this really the right place to do this,” Felix whispered back in a desperate attempt to avoid the real question but not to flat out reject him, either.
“Say what you want to do with me,” Max whispered voicelessly. His open lips were hovering over Felix’s. He was leaning over Felix, one arm arching over his lap and one resting behind him.
“Oh, fuck,” Felix whispered and slowly leaned in for a kiss, his head getting dizzy again. But Max withdrew ever so slightly, not letting Felix touch his lips.
“I thought so,” Max grinned.
“You haven’t changed one bit,” Felix said, trying to keep his voice down. “You’re still an insufferable asshole.”
Felix’s insults only served to amuse Max. Felix would have said something, but it was a losing game, and he was getting aroused.
“Stop teasing me,” Felix pleaded.
“Beg me.” Max’s voice was deep and low, assertive but not without haste. Felix could tell Max was just as into it as he was, but Felix didn’t have the same restraint and gave in.
“Please,” he swallowed.
“What do you want?”
Felix hated to admit it, but the vicar teasing him mercilessly only made him feel hotter inside, not to mention his pants significantly tighter. Max ran his hand through Felix’s hair and slowly moved his free hand in Felix’s lap to fiddle with his zipper.
“That’s pretty good, for starters,” Felix groaned.
“Good,” Max rasped and bit Felix’s lip hard enough to make him moan embarrassingly loud.
“Max,” Felix interrupted. “Can we—” Felix struggled to find the right words. Putting his reservations aside, he leaned closer to Max, stopped briefly to savor the warmth of his breath, and kissed him gently. Max took the hint and kissed him back softly. Max buried his hand deeper into Felix’s hair while wrapping his other arm around his waist and pulling him into an embrace.
Max pushed his forehead against Felix’s, breathing into his open mouth. Felix’s face was simultaneously numb and burning hot, and his slick, swollen lips tingled and tasted pleasantly foreign. He touched Max’s neck and hesitated.
“I’ve never been with someone I… It’s been mostly strangers,” Felix confessed. The alcohol in his blood made the words flow easier but didn’t take away the regret. “And it’s not always been the nicest conditions.”
“It’s all right,” Max said like it was no big deal to him and kissed the corner of his mouth. “We don’t have to go further than this.”
“That’s not it. I was never forced or anything—just… Wasn’t like this. None of this cute and cuddly stuff.” Felix averted his eyes and mustered up all his courage to finally say it. “I’ve never done this with someone I care about,” Felix swallowed. “So… can we go slow?” His body got tense and his mouth was suddenly dry.
“Of course. And I do adore you, Felix,” Max replied to the question Felix didn’t quite have the guts to ask.
All his senses rushed back to Felix at the same time, and he exhaled deeply, as if his body had just remembered how to breathe again. Gradually, his muscles relaxed more and more, and his body sank on the couch as he pulled Max closer. The blue fabric covering Max’s back felt luxurious and smooth, a stark contrast to his own coarse and worn-out clothes.
The idea of having all the time in the universe made him far more intoxicated than all the beer he’d drunk. Felix touched Max’s back through the cloth, tracing his spine all the way down to his hips, making note of every bone and muscle along the way. Once there was no uncharted area left, he craved getting deeper, feeling his skin and studying the smallest, most obscure of details.
Felix tugged on Max’s vestments, and Max responded by pulling them off along with his undershirt, then doing the same for Felix. Cool air filled the temporary gap between their bodies, making Felix feel chilly until Max put his warm palm on his skin.
Fighting their way through the wilderness, not to mention countless dropkicks, had left bruises of all size and colors on Felix’s body. Compared to Felix, Max’s skin looked pristine. A couple of old scars stretched across his chest, and he had his share of bruises—but somehow they looked more refined than Felix’s clumsy injuries. Not signs of reckless maneuvers, but indication of tough situations and worthwhile opponents.
Despite the imperfections, the toll of weeks upon weeks of harsh conditions, and the years Max was ahead of Felix, Max’s skin still managed to match the fine softness of his clothes. Under any other circumstances, such unfair perfection would have embittered Felix, whose skin had hardened and permanently stained at a young age. But he couldn’t but worship Max.
“How do you want to do this,” Max asked him.
The technicalities didn’t concern Felix all that much. Simply introducing care and affection had already elevated the encounter, transformed it to something completely different from a crude toilet fuck with some stranger, sometimes involving money but never any feeling. But since Max did offer him a choice—
Felix could hardly hear his own voice, overpowered by a pounding hum in his ears, as he whispered in Max’s ear. Felix definitely didn’t consider himself bashful, but the intimacy made voicing his wishes feel awkward yet highly exhilarating. As if as a sign of agreement, Max kissed his neck and slid his hand down his body. As confident as Max was in leading him, Felix could hear his breath quickening and his hand slightly quivering as he unbuttoned Felix’s pants and pulled him out. Felix gasped as he felt Max’s hand gently but touching him. Felix swallowed hard before he returned the favor, forcing Max to let out a loud groan and drop his forehead into Felix’s chest.
“I can hear your heartbeat,” Max rasped and kissed his skin, quickly causing Felix’s already fast pulse about double in speed. Praying no one would walk in on them, he started moving his hand, steadily increasing the pace as he went.
“I need to get closer to you, Felix,” Max panted. Too impatient to wait for Felix to answer, Max grabbed and pinned down Felix’s wrist with his free hand, and used the other one to hold their shafts together. He pressed his body firmly on Felix, both slick with sweat and pre-cum, and started to move his hips. Felix gave out a long moan as he felt his body melting into Max’s.
“Max—I’ll—” Felix panted, and Max picked up his pace, moving frantically and leaving marks on his shoulder. His breathing was shallow, and he let out low voices which only made Felix reach the top even faster. Felix clutched Max’s back, driving his fingers into his skin, finally reaching the climax. His body jerked as the shock wave washed over him, leaving him blissfully calm, and it didn’t take long after him for Max to finish and collapse on him, sweaty and panting heavily.
They ended up falling asleep on the couch mostly naked, covered by a thin blanket, holding each other.
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on AO3