Jeremy was flipping around Max’s various video streaming options, trying to settle on something to watch on his night off, when Max came home from work.
Max tossed his bag into its place in the living room and dropped into the chair. “Trouble making a decision?”
“Too many things to watch. I’ve been browsing for, like, fifteen minutes, and have seen about eight things I’m interested in, but I’ll probably just watch the last season Great British Bake Off for the third time.”
Max laughed. “Oh, hey, there’s that Mark Taupin movie. He’s the guy who wrote See the Light, right?”
“Yeah.” The movie was a big-budget musical in the old Hollywood mode. “I haven’t seen it, but I guess the plot is loosely based on 42nd Street. A girl moves to New York to seek her fortune on Broadway.”
Max took the remote from Jeremy and pointed it at the screen, selecting the movie. “That sounds perfect.”
“Should I make popcorn or something?”
“Sure, it’s in the cabinet over the fridge.”
Jeremy got up and walked into the kitchen. He found a box of microwave popcorn just where Max said it would be, so he set it to popping.
“I don’t really remember the plot of 42nd Street,” Max yelled over the popping.
Jeremy nodded. They’d gotten rush tickets to it when it had been on Broadway. On the one hand, their seats were in the first row. On the other, they were so close to the stage, the angle of it prevented them from being able to see any of the dancers’ feet. And since the show was full of big tap dancing musical numbers, that was a bit of a disappointment. There’d been a woman sitting next to Jeremy who had been an actual tap dancer who stood up at one point so that she could actually see the dancing.
“The gist,” Jeremy said, as he pulled the popcorn bag from the microwave and dumped its contents into a big mixing bowl, “is that a girl from Allentown, Pennsylvania, wants to make it big on Broadway, but runs into challenges along the way. Then she stars in a show and becomes a big star. The end.”
Max laughed. “Sure, okay.”
“The musical is based on a movie that was based on a musical.”
Max’s gaze followed Jeremy from the kitchen back to the couch. “I love how much musical trivia is in your head.”
Jeremy shrugged, a little embarrassed. “I love this stuff.”
“I know. That wasn’t a dis. I totally love that you love musicals. I love your enthusiasm for them.”
Jeremy grinned. “I’d worry for you if I didn’t. Because that’s kind of all I know. Encyclopedic knowledge of Broadway musicals. But would I know what to do if, say, I was in a car that got a flat tire? Could I solve a calculus problem? Nope.”
“You ready for this movie?”
“Do your worst.”
Max hit Play. As they settled into the sofa and Max reached over to snag some popcorn from the bowl, it occurred to Jeremy that they were basically a couple now, so he could sit closer to Max. He could throw an arm around Max and snuggle up a little. He did those things, eliciting a smile from Max. Their fingers tangled in the popcorn bowl. It was all first date cliché, and Jeremy loved every minute of it.
The movie was...okay. The music was great, and the songs were catchy, but the plot was thin and a little silly. This movie won the Oscar?
On the other hand, Jeremy understood what the filmmakers were going for. It was an old-school movie musical, where the focus was on the music and the production numbers. The plot wasn’t supposed to be edgy or challenging, but then, it lacked the punch of some of Jeremy’s favorite movie musicals. He loved the Kander and Ebb shows—Cabaret and Chicago had things to say about society and culture, and they tackled big issues. Though the ending of the Mark Taupin Oscar winner was satisfying, the movie lacked some punch.
Still, Jeremy enjoyed snuggling with Max—they were practically in each other’s laps by the time the movie ended, the popcorn bowl on the floor and long forgotten—and they touched and kissed frequently throughout the movie, although every time Jeremy tried to escalate it, Max pointed out that the movie was still rolling. So it was possible the movie had a deeper message, but Jeremy was too busy working out how to get into Max’s pants to notice. He doubted it, though.
“Hmm,” Jeremy said as the credits rolled.
“Were you also kind of disappointed by that?”
“Yeah. Did that really win the Oscar?”
“It did. I was kind of thinking as I watched it that this is basically tailor-made to appeal to the sorts of Oscar voters who like those ‘magic of the movies’ montages they always do during the ceremony. You know what I mean?”
“Yeah. The music was good, and Mark clearly knows how to write a song you’ll be singing in the shower three days from now, but the plot felt like it was engineered in a lab. Like they threw in parts of 42nd Street and, like, On the Town and Singin’ in the Rain and Guys and Dolls into a machine, and this is what popped out.”
Max snuggled closer to Jeremy, putting an arm around his torso. He sighed, and the sound was happy.
“Am I talking too much?” Jeremy asked.
“No. I like hearing you talk.”
“Really? I feel like half of what I say is gibberish.”
“No.” Max pressed his face against Jeremy’s chest, then he sat up a little. “Well, I enjoy it. You listen to me prattle on about makeup sometimes.”
Jeremy smiled and ran a hand along Max’s jaw. Man, he enjoyed touching Max more than he ever thought he would. He liked how rough Max’s face was with a couple of days of beard growth. He loved Max’s eyelashes, the color of his eyes, the little birthmark near his jaw.
“We never do this,” Max said as he fiddled with the remote. “We’ve both been so busy, we never just, like, sit and watch a movie. Not like we did when we were kids.”
That was true. In high school, they had often sat on the ugly plaid sofa in Jeremy’s parents’ basement and watched movies until all hours of the night, talking and eating junk food and commenting on the movies they watched. Sometimes they’d invited other people over, too, but often it was just the two of them.
How had Jeremy been so blind as to not see what was right in front of him?
Max’s body was warm against his on the couch now. Jeremy ran his fingers through Max’s neon hair, noting the stiff, dry texture of it but liking it anyway. Max lay his head on Jeremy’s shoulder, and they sank a little deeper into the sofa together.
Jeremy felt...content. Max seemed a little sleepy, so Jeremy took the remote from him and clicked around until he found another show he wanted to watch. Something in Jeremy’s chest swelled when Max tightened his arm around Jeremy’s waist. Jeremy closed his eyes and leaned his head against the top of Max’s. He liked how their bodies fit together, how they fit together. He could be himself around Max, no need to act or keep up pretenses. Max knew him, knew his tics and eccentricities, and cared about him anyway.
Max snored softly for a few minutes, then jerked awake. “No more musicals?” he asked.
“Even I need a break sometimes.”
Max chuckled. “I could stay like this forever.”
“I know. Me too. You don’t actually have anything to do tomorrow, do you? Because I’m so comfortable right here, I’d be happy to just snuggle with you and watch whatever we can find in the depths of Netflix.”
“Alas, I have to work tomorrow.”
“I know, me too. But we can sit here a little longer, right?”
“Yeah. Totally.”
Jeremy took Max’s hand and threaded their fingers together. He looked at their merged hands and smiled to himself. They had this moment, but who knew what would happen tomorrow?
The next morning, Max was in the shower when Jeremy poked his head in the bathroom door.
“Crazy idea,” Jeremy said.
Max’s first instinct was to cover himself, and he did put a hand over his crotch, although the shower curtain was still between them and it wasn’t like Jeremy hadn’t seen everything now. “What?”
“I was sitting in your room thinking that I had better get in the shower if I have any hope of being on time, but you were in here. So I was waiting for you, but then I thought, ‘why wait?’ We can conserve water, if you know what I mean.”
Max peeled back enough of the shower curtain to peer at Jeremy. “Really?”
Jeremy hesitated. “Was it a terrible idea?”
Max looked around. Jeremy already had one leg out of the sweatpants he’d put on that morning. He apparently had no qualms about walking around naked despite the huge window in the living room through which half of Brooklyn could probably see, but he’d followed Max’s lead when Max had gotten out of bed that morning and put on a pair of pajama pants.
“No, it’s fine. Come on in.”
Jeremy finished pulling off his sweatpants and walked toward the shower. Max watched him intently, always intrigued by the lines of Jeremy’s body. Naked, he was all muscle and sinew and grace, even as he was half hard and crossing the very short distance between the sink and the shower.
“God, you’re sexy...” Max said with a little bit of a wheeze, caught off guard by how arousing the sight of Jeremy walking toward him was.
Jeremy smiled and winked. Then he grabbed the shower curtain and yanked it aside. He looked Max up and down. “You’re pretty hot, too, you know. And I actually have a little bit of time before I leave.” Jeremy waggled his eyebrows.
Max laughed. “Get in the shower before you flood the bathroom.”
Jeremy stepped into the tub and closed the curtain. Max wasn’t sure what to do. He understood what Jeremy was implying, but he had also been in the middle of washing his hair when Jeremy had stepped into the bathroom. He dipped his head back under the spray so the rest of the shampoo would rinse out.
“How many pillow cases have you turned hot pink?” Jeremy asked.
“Why do you think I have dark bedding?”
Jeremy laughed. He stepped forward and grabbed Max’s waist, then pressed their hips together. Max was hard, and in the bright bathroom lighting there was no way to hide that, but Jeremy’s enthusiasm was catching.
Max didn’t have a body like Jeremy’s. He watched his diet, but he didn’t dance every day the way Jeremy did, didn’t make it to the gym with any kind of regularity.
And yet, here was Jeremy, running his hands up Max’s chest, the expression on his face showing he enjoyed doing it. Jeremy never hesitated, didn’t seem to think twice about anything, always dove in headfirst. And now he was running his hands over Max’s body with an expression on his face like he thought Max was the most precious, beautiful thing he’d ever seen.
Max kissed him. The water cascaded down his back, and he could easily see the potential to drown if the water rained down on them any faster, but he didn’t care. If his end came while he and Jeremy were wet and pressed against each other, that was just fine with Max.
But then shampoo got in his eye, so he turned around to rinse it off.
Jeremy hugged him from behind. Max could feel Jeremy’s erection pressed against the small of his back.
“You’re not one of those ‘the shower is only for showering’ people, are you?” Jeremy asked.
“Is that a thing?”
“Yeah. Guy I dated in college didn’t like shower sex.”
Max didn’t love the invocation of one of Jeremy’s exes, but he shrugged it off. “I’ve never had shower sex, so I don’t know.”
“Are you serious?”
Max turned back around to face Jeremy. “Yeah. I mean, this shower isn’t very big, but...”
Suddenly, Jeremy shoved Max backward and covered his mouth with a searing kiss. Max hit his head against the metal rack that held his soap and shampoo, but he didn’t care. His blood rushed through his body, and he ran his hands over the slick heat of Jeremy’s wet body, and his cock had never been harder. But then water found its way into his nose and he sputtered.
“Maybe not right under the spray,” Max said after he coughed out the water.
Jeremy grinned and tugged Max back toward the wall opposite the spray. He put one leg up on the side of the tub, then invited Max to press against him. Max pushed Jeremy against the wall and kissed him. Jeremy thrust his hips forward. Standing, the difference in their heights made it difficult for them to rub their cocks together, but they both thrust against each other. Even grinding against Jeremy’s wet leg felt amazing. When Max leaned away to breathe, Jeremy panted. Jeremy was beautiful, wet and helpless in the face of his own desires, and Max wanted to touch him everywhere, wanted to kiss and touch and lick him, wanted to be inside him.
Max got an idea.
“That look on your face says you have a nefarious plan.”
“Turn around.”
Jeremy raised an eyebrow, but complied. He turned around and braced himself against the wall, then stuck his butt out a little. Max ran his hands over it, marveling that Jeremy trusted him enough to just do this without hesitation. Max couldn’t fuck Jeremy from this angle, especially not without lube, but he sure could do some other things.
“I love your ass,” Max whispered.
Jeremy turned his head and shot Max a sidelong glance. “Are you an ass man?”
“Sometimes, yeah. Yours is perfect.”
“Thanks. What are you up to back there?” His tone was light, curious. Max knew Jeremy trusted him, but he wanted to keep a little suspense here, and to make Jeremy feel good. To make them both feel good.
“You’ll see.”
Max reached back and grabbed the body wash. He got some on his hands and rubbed them together to make suds, then he smeared them all over Jeremy’s back. Jeremy arched toward the wall, the long line of his back going concave before Max’s eyes. Max smiled and leaned forward, tucking his cock into the valley made by the top of Jeremy’s legs.
“Ooh,” Jeremy moaned, sounding a little like he just understood the punchline to the joke. “Oh, yeah. Do that. Thrust against me.”
Max complied, thrusting his cock in and out of the tight space made by Jeremy’s legs. He reached around and ran his hands down the long plane of Jeremy’s chest, then he wrapped them around Jeremy’s hard cock. Jeremy groaned, throwing his head back, brushing against Max’s hair.
“God, yes,” Jeremy said. “So good. Stroke me.”
Max loved having Jeremy pressed back against him like this. He loved how open Jeremy always was, how trusting he was. Max held him close for a moment, until his own body begged him to thrust, to move.
All the water and slickness and warmth aroused Max beyond belief, and he marveled at the fact that he had his hands on a wet, naked Jeremy, that he could thrust into the space behind Jeremy, that it could feel this good. Max’s skin tingled and his chest warmed, and he was so aroused it almost hurt. There was no way on earth he could stop, his body taking over for his brain and his heart. He kept thrusting, and he stroked Jeremy’s cock. Max was getting close, and he wanted Jeremy to be close, to come with him, to feel this the way Max felt it. He kissed Jeremy’s shoulder, licked along the side of his neck, nibbled on his earlobe. Jeremy groaned when Max scraped his stubbly chin along his neck, a spot that was clearly sensitive. Max kept touching Jeremy, kept learning what Jeremy reacted to the most. Jeremy rewarded him by thrusting back, rubbing his ass against Max’s hips, pressing his legs tighter together.
“Jesus,” Max said, that last bit of pressure nearly pushing him over. “I’m gonna come.”
“Oh, keep doing that. Just like that. You hit my balls every time you do. Love how that feels.”
That was what Max wanted. He wanted Jeremy writhing and helpless in his arm. “Come for me, Jer,” he whispered. “I want to make you come.”
Max held out as long as he could. He tried not to focus on how good this felt, how much he loved the slick slide of their bodies together, but biology got the better of him. The orgasm started somewhere in his legs and traveled up, spreading through his body until he succumbed to the inevitable. He bit Jeremy’s shoulder as he came, grasping on to Jeremy, wanting to be inside him and a part of him, and Jeremy cried out as Max continued to stroke him, spurting into Max’s hands a few seconds later.
They stood like that for a few moments, Jeremy’s hands pressed against the shower wall as Max leaned against him, wrapping his arms around him from behind. He pressed as much of himself as he could against Jeremy’s back, his thighs. The water still beat against Max’s lower back and legs.
Finally, they moved and peeled off each other. Jeremy turned to face Max. “So...verdict? Shower sex?” Jeremy asked.
“Two thumbs up,” Max said, unable to keep the smile off his face.
Jeremy laughed. “Mmm. So glad. Let’s do it again sometime. Or every morning.” He slid his arms around Max’s shoulders and kissed him tenderly. The kiss was slow and sweet and perfect, and Max could do this every morning.
Yeah, he could do this every morning.