He gave Rusty’s tummy a loving pat, and Rusty scowled. “My what?”
“What?” Gem echoed vacantly as he snuggled back down, head against Rusty’s belly.
“Did you just call my stomach a snack pack?”
“No,” Gem said dubiously.
“Yeah, you did,” Rusty insisted, and Gem shook his head, turning his face into Rusty’s belly completely.
His voice came out muffled as he said, “I would never call your tummy your snack pack. Or your cookie jar. Or your cupcake clutch. I would neversaythat. Even if I think it,” he added quietly at the end, like he thought Rusty couldn’t hear him.
He probably should have been offended, but he was too distracted by the light gleaming off of Gem’s curls and the vibration of his voice in his belly fur. It… did things to him, and he wasn’t ready to decipher what those things were.
“Did you still wanna watchChainsaw Man?” Rusty asked as a distraction, and Gem shrugged, then nodded.
“Sure.” For a moment, he nuzzled deeper into Rusty’s belly, and for the first time in a very,verylong time, Rusty’s cock twitched. All the warm, gooey feelings fled in an instant, and every muscle in Rusty’s body locked as Gem sighed and slowly sat up. “We probably should before it gets too late. I think I need another hit, though. For courage.”
Rusty tried to laugh along, but it came out strangled as he fought to banish the tingles taking up residence in his lower stomach and dick. He hadn’t reacted to another person like this in… He couldn’t remember. Maybe the last time he’d actually had sex, which had been years ago now.
As Gem lit the joint anew and inhaled deeply, Rusty closed his eyes and counted, refusing to give his dick or the tingling nerves a single encouraging thought. It was probably just the weed anyway. Maybe it was an aphrodisiac? Drugs tended to make people think things they wouldn’t normally think or want things they didn’t normally want, right?
Yeah, that made sense. It was just the weed. Rusty would sober up, and the confusing boner trying to form in his jeans would fade and never return. Because he and Gem were friends, and anything else, anything more, was a terrible idea.
When he’d reached a hundred and eighteen, he felt a hand flit over his shoulder, and his eyes shot open. Gem sat beside him, grinning down at him as he offered him the smoldering end of the joint. His eyes were hooded, his gray tongue tracing the tip of a small fang, and Rusty’s dick gave another twitch.
Well… shit.
Chapter eleven
Crazy Cow Closet
Gem
Gem was feeling good.His head was floaty and so blessedly quiet, and he was snuggled into Rusty's side, legs draped over the Pyclon’s lap as they watched the first episode ofChainsaw Man. Well, Gem wasn’t exactly paying attention because it was rather bloody and sad so far. There wouldn’t even be any anime boys kissing, so, like, what even was the point? So he hugged Rusty’s left arm with all six of his—under the guise of being scared—as he took brief glances at the screen.
Ever since Gem had situated them in this position—because, sue him, he got snuggly when he was high—Rusty’s hand had been hovering over Gem’s thigh, not quite making contact, like he wasn’t sure if he should actually touch Gem or not. His hesitance was cute and a little funny, but eventually, Gem took pity on him. He covered Rusty’s hand with his lowest one and guided his clawed fingers to splay on his knee.
When Rusty’s thumb hesitantly dragged along the top of his knee, Gem sighed in pleasure and rested his head on Rusty’s shoulder. The rough hideof Rusty’s paws and the prick of his claws on his skin had Gem’s leg and arm fur humming in satisfaction. He felt Rusty’s gaze on the top of his head, but when he glanced up, the Pyclon seemed entirely captivated by the TV.
“You know,” Gem said as he blanketed the top of Rusty’s hand with his to show the size difference, “your hands are kinda small.”
“Maybe you just have big hands,” Rusty countered, voice thin and a little breathy.
“I have big everything,” Gem said before he’d thought better of it, then he wrinkled his nose and shuddered. “Ew, that sounded gross. I swear, I did not mean that as an innuendo. My dick’s not that big. Honest. If anything, it’s smaller than average.”
“Oh, well, that’s—” Rusty cleared his throat awkwardly. “That’s okay. There’s nothing wrong with… that.”
Chuckling, Gem nuzzled Rusty’s shoulder, inhaling his wild musk and spicy tobacco scent mixed with the sweetness of the weed. “I know. I’m not self-conscious about it. It’s just how my body is, and I’m not gonna waste time and energy being insecure about something I can’t change. Plus, it’s less about size and more about how you use it, and I’ve never had any complaints. I’m a good top, even if it’s not my favorite—oh my gods, his head just turned into a chainsaw!” he cried, cowering away from the television. “What the fuck is this show?”
With a tense laugh, Rusty patted Gem’s leg. “It's calledChainsaw Man. What exactly were you expecting?”
“I don’t know, but it wasn’t his face literally turning into a chainsaw,” Gem said, angling his head to glare up at Rusty. It brought their faces unexpectedly close, and Rusty inhaled sharply, pale eyes widening. His gaze dropped momentarily to Gem’s mouth, and something tightened in Gem’sstomach. He was too high to name it, but it sent a shiver down his spine all the same.
“We can turn it off,” Rusty offered, his breath fanning over Gem’s cheek. “We can watch anime boys kiss instead.”
Gem shook his head, giving Rusty’s arm a squeeze. “It’s fine. I’ll be super brave.” That brought a bark of laughter from the Pyclon, and Gem lifted a hand and scratched behind his ear. “I’m glad you’re here, by the way.”
An odd chitter vibrated in Rusty’s throat, not quite a purr but almost, and he turned back to the TV, hand flexing on Gem’s knee. “Uh, me too,” he whispered after a stretched silence, and the admission had Gem’s stomach somersaulting.
