Luca and the Long Hard Summer

Luca and Thomas hustled into the stalls and Thomas peeled off his jeans. He hadn't wanted to tell Luca, but he was actually dying for a piss. His arousal had confused the signal for a while. His cock was still achingly hard as he heard Luca's stream hitting the water in the stall next to him, but he had to give it a try. He angled downwards as much as he could, and pushed with his stomach muscles. A small spurt came out, and then another, and with the help of his muscles and a fair dose of desperation, he finally had a steady stream going. He almost groaned in relief. It wasn't an orgasm, but it was bloody good. After a minute or so, his erection was flagging, and he finally felt his body relax.

Relieved in more ways than one, Thomas pulled his jeans up, finally able to wear them the way he wanted to. He met Luca at the sinks, and saw him send a questioning glance towards his crotch. Thomas gave him a thumbs up, and Luca grinned.

"Time to check on the washing then," he said, and Thomas nodded and followed him.

The laundry door held an air of anticipation now, like it knew what was coming. He could hardly wait. It felt like he had been on the edge of coming all day, and to finally have an end date for his misery was a weight off his mind. Luca was right. Absolutely no one would do washing after midnight, and if they kept the room dark, and blocked the door, they would be free do do whatever they liked at whatever pace they wanted. He already had ideas as to both of those.

The washing was done, so Luca bundled it up into the washing bag with the detergent bottle and flung it over his shoulder. Half way back to camp, he could already hear Nim's voice above the sound of cars and ocean waves. She was shrill with excitement over something.

"Pleeeease? We have to go! - But it's only on for today!" Thomas managed to pick out one side of an animated discussion.

Luca put the washing bag down and went inside for the pegs and line.

"I think they boys might like to come too, so let's just wait until they get - Oh! You're back Luca. And Thom as well?" his mum looked up at him as he opened the caravan door.

"You have to come with us Lucky, it's going to be super epic!" Nim was practically dancing with excitement.

Luca looked between the both of them, bemused. "Where are we going to?" he asked as he searched through the cupboards for the washing line.

"There's a carnival in the next town over, and it has rides and show bags and everything!" Nim enthused.

"Apparently the neighbours went this morning, and they said it was worth a visit. There are a few good rides too if you boys wanted to come," his mum explained. Luca thought quickly. If they were all going, that would leave the caravan empty for a good hour at least. Maybe Thomas and him could skip the cue and get off before midnight after all.

"Who's coming?" Luca asked casually.

"Me!" shouted Nim immediately, at the same time he said "Nim, obviously."

His mum smiled patiently. "Nim and me, so far. Ma is having a lie down, so she'll stay behind and look after the camp."

Luca's smile became a little forced as he found the line and pegs. Midnight it was. "I'll ask Thom, but it sounds pretty good."

Luca ducked outside before his mum caught the edge to his smile. She was good at picking up stuff like that. His ma wasn't quite so pushy about it. She always said if he wanted to talk to her about something, then he could. Otherwise, she let him figure his own way through. And this problem was definitely not something he wanted to be bring up in conversation with either of them. He could just imagine how that conversation would go down. 'Hey Mum, Ma, could you please give Thom and I some time alone, because we've been dying for an orgasm for three weeks now, and we're about to commit a felony if we don't get our rocks off.' He shuddered at the thought of being forced to have that conversation.

Thomas was searching through his bag for a more comfortable pair of pants when Luca told him about the carnival. He said yes straight away. If nothing else, it would help to distract him from the ticking clock, that delicious count down till midnight. It might even be fun. Like the good friend he was, he let Luca hang up the washing while he changed into a looser pair of cargo pants. They were loose enough to move around in, but they had a tight waist in case of emergencies. He grabbed a longer shirt too, just in case, then went out to swap with Luca so that he could change clothes.

The ride to the fair was slow, but with the windows down the back seat turned into a hurricane. Luca and Thomas danced in sync to the songs that were blasting on the radio, and Nim sung along enthusiastically, trying to get them to join her. Thomas did for a bit, and Luca was not terribly surprised he knew the lyrics to S Club 7, though he'd deny it later.

At the other end, his mum walked around with Nim and Thomas and Luca walked in the opposite direction. The heavy disco bass of the carnival rides was carrying through the air. Thomas pointed out the dodgem cars at the same time Luca pointed out the hay bale maze. They rock paper scissored for it, and Thomas won.

"Fine," Luca threw his hands up in defeat, and reached for his wallet. At least they had holiday money to burn.

"One car, or two?" the attendant asked through a wad of gum. Thomas looked at Luca with a predatory grin.

"Two please," he answered, and Luca knew that the game was on.

They both climbed into their prospective cars, and eyed each other off. Luca blew a curl out of his eyes, and gave Thomas his best game face. Thomas smirked in return, his one, perfect dimple carving a line into his cheek. Fuck, he loved that dimple. He loved making Thomas laugh, just so he could coax it out and marvel at it. Luca shook himself out of his reverie when the car suddenly powered up with a subtle vibration and lurched forwards. Game on, then.

Thomas immediately began his game of chicken as the cars went around. Luca sped away, dodging past other cars to try and outrun him. But within seconds he was trapped by a young boy and his dad, and Thomas crashed straight into the side, laughing like a maniac. The attendant stepped on the hoods and cleared out the jam with a bored expression, and this time it was Luca on the hunt. He was closing on him, Thomas making sharp turns to try and confound him. But the platform was too small for that. Luca aimed straight for Thomas and his perfect dimple, and was crashed into from behind. The front end still hit its mark, but Luca was too busy looking backwards to see his reaction. Round and around they went, the bass pounding in their ears, and their necks snapping back and forth in the collisions until at last the cars powered down. Thomas' car slid slowly towards Luca's until it collided with a tiny 'bonk'. Thomas grinned and climbed out, holding a hand out for Luca who was trying to manoeuvre his stupidly long legs so that he could get out. He took Thomas' hand and climbed out like a baby flamingo.

"Now the maze," Luca said, dragging Thomas off the platform to the stacked hay bales. Thomas followed behind, feet slapping unenthusiastically as he tried to keep up. There was no line for the maze, and no fee, so they just walked straight in.

The music was dampened in the maze, the loudest sound becoming their footsteps on the grass and the sound of their breathing. Luca was only a head or two shorter than the bales, so he could probably cheat a bit by jumping. But he didn't want to. Thomas' hand was still clasped in his own, and he couldn't quite bring himself to let it go just yet.

"There's no one even in here," Thomas whined. "Looks like you've picked the most 'old man' attraction in the whole carnival."

Luca squeezed the hand in his and looked around to make sure they were truly alone. "True, it's not that exciting," he conceded. "But you can't do this on a roller coaster." Luca grabbed Thomas by the back of the neck and kissed him tentatively. He pulled back for a second, and saw the worried look in Thomas' eyes as he tugged his hand free of Luca's grasp. Shit. He fucked up. He should not have done that. So much for being romantic. Apparently they don't do that.

But Luca needn't have worried. Thomas looked left, the right, then left again, and suddenly lunged in, crushing their lips together. He kissed Luca like they might be dying, catching his fingers in the tangled, messy curls of his loose ponytail and pulling him closer. Tongues massaged each other, and teeth nibbled at lips and their breaths mingled in a frantic rhythm. Luca breathed him in, fingers clenched in Thomas' shirt, pulling him even closer. Their bodies aligned for one glorious second before Thomas pulled back, breathing hard.

"You're going to fucking kill me, Lucky. I'm going to die of frustration before I get anywhere near that god-damned laundry."

Luca could only nod by way of response, and pulled him in for another searing kiss. Arousal tightened in his groin yet again. He cursed himself for even starting it, but he couldn't help it. Thomas' smirk had done him in. The flash in his eyes, the dimple pulling his cheek, the curve of his lips - he'd wanted to taste them the moment Thomas had climbed into that bumper car.

Thomas' desire crashed into his as their bodies came together again. He could feel his hardness press into his hips, and it sent a bolt of pure lust straight down, making his cock twitch. He really was an idiot. He should have held himself back. Now they would be walking around the carnival totally horny and frustrated yet again. But he couldn't begin to regret kissing Thomas. He'd never regret kissing Thomas.

"Oh, sorry!" a middle aged woman apologised as she rounded the corner and Luca and Thomas sprang apart. "Didn't mean to interrupt!" she smiled an awkward but warm smile. Thomas studied the ground, red faced, and Luca gave a tight-lipped nod to the woman as she passed, and continued into further into the maze. Thomas stood silently, pulse high with embarrassment and arousal, the shock of being caught still running cold through his veins. I'm not gay, he wanted to cry out to the woman. It was irrational. He knew it was. She'd clearly seen them all but dry humping each other. What else was she going to take away from that? He wanted to chase after her and explain, but she was long gone. All that was left was the terrible silence, the smell of hay, and the throbbing ache in his groin. He saw Luca reach for him out of the corner of his eye, but he twitched away.

"Don't," he said quietly, and saw Luca flinch at his words, and withdraw his hand. He hated himself for saying it, but he needed to think. If there was one thing he couldn't do around Luca at the moment, it was think clearly. That much was apparent. Thomas strode off into the maze, leaving Luca to follow, or not. He thought he heard footsteps behind him, but he couldn't think about that right now.

It wasn't that he didn't want to be seen with Luca. He hadn't cared so much about the group of tourists at the beach seeing them getting heavy in the water. They were too far away to worry about. There was no way they'd have seen his face, and the girl at the rock didn't see anything, just a mark on his neck. But this was different. This woman had walked right by them, had seen them kissing, had thought they were a couple. Had wrongly thought they were a couple. In that moment, Thomas had wanted to prove her wrong. What the hell was the matter with him?

The crunch of hay several paces behind him made him bristle. Thomas walked a little faster. Luca and him were not together. They were friends. Best friends. There was not one part of him that wanted that to change. But best friends didn't kiss each other like that. They didn't go around dry fucking each other, or giving each other hand jobs, or sleeping in a pile either. But he and Luca had done those things. So what were they now? What would they be after all this was over? What happened when they went back for their final term?

Thomas stopped walking and dug his fingers into his forehead, hands covering his eyes. He wasn't ready for his life to change yet. He was not gay. His browser history would prove that much if anyone cared to check. But when Luca kissed him, or so much as looked at him with those smouldering eyes, he couldn't help himself. Something about this holiday had changed the way he looked at Luca. Suddenly, he wanted to touch him, and kiss him, and see what expression he wore as he finally fell over the edge into ecstasy.

But Luca was his friend first. He didn't want people to assume differently. Thomas felt tears of frustration prickle at his eyes, and his entire body grew tense in an effort to keep them from falling. Why did it have to be so fucking complicated?

Thomas never heard the footsteps get closer, so when he felt a hand on his shoulder, his first instinct was to slap it away.

Luca reeled as Thomas' hand caught him hard across the face. The shock was worse than the blow. Thomas, for his part, looked as horrified as he did. Luca rubbed his jaw like it was nothing, but he couldn't make himself believe the lie. It echoed and repeated under the surface of his skin like he was a hollow thing. His chest tightened until he could barely draw a full breath, but despite himself, he found himself reaching out his hand again, like an idiot. The movement broke Thomas' stupor, and he stepped back out of reach.

"Sorry, Lucky," he broke. "I can't -" his eyes shimmered for a moment before his expression closed down. "I just can't. Not now."

To Luca's shame, he felt a tear spill over and run down his cheek. Thomas tracked its path, his hands clenched white in his pockets, before he finally walked past him, back towards the entrance of the maze. Luca was alone again.

He felt a sob tear at his throat, and he fought it back. He didn't deserve to cry over this. He knew it had been a dangerous game from the start. Thomas may have initiated it, but was the one who had pushed it too far. And now, maybe, he had lost his best friend over it. The tears came, despite what he told himself, and Luca started to walk as they fell. He walked like a dead man into the maze, blindly choosing turns at random. It didn't take long before he hit a dead end, and then it all came crashing down on him.

He crouched down in the corner and cried. The weeks of frustration, the longing, the vulnerability he'd allowed himself to foster as his heart opened to the idea of -

"Sorry Lucky - I can't."

Luca tucked his head into his knees and covered his ears, but he couldn't un-hear those words, and he couldn't un-feel the sting on his cheek. He'd thought they had found something between them - something tentative, something new. Maybe it really had just been lust. Either way, none of that mattered now. The uncertainty had been bearable because Thomas had been along for the ride, right beside him. But now? He was alone. It might have been the first time he'd been properly alone for the past three weeks, and not a single part of him rejoiced in it. He'd pushed them too far. And they'd broken.

Luca sniffed as he sat cross legged, and wiped his eyes. He wondered what Thomas was doing. He needed to apologise. He needed to tell him that it was fine - that if they could just forget the past day had happened, and be friends again, then he could pretend to be fine with that. If he pretended long enough then eventually it might come true. He'd done it before. He'd do anything. But he couldn't lose Thomas. Not like this. Not ever.

Luca wiped the snot from his face, and dried his tears. His dragged his brown curls over his forehead to try and hide his shame, and then pulled himself to his feet. He had to find Thomas. They'd fought before. Not this badly, but enough that he had an idea of how to bring him around. He just hoped it worked this time. But first, he had to find his way out of this maze.

Thomas stalked back into the carnival, his eyes on the ground as he tried to reabsorb the tears that threatened to fall. He hadn't meant it. He hadn't meant to hit Luca that way. He'd wanted to apologise immediately, but he'd frozen, and then Luca had cried. He couldn't apologise now. He didn't deserve forgiveness, and he knew Luca would forgive him right away, because that's who he was. His friend was a soft idiot. But Thomas couldn't let himself off that easily. He'd kissed Luca. Twice. He'd started this whole horrible thing in motion, and now they were stuck.

He walked past the show bags stalls and past the camps, where he could find an empty tree to sit under. As he approached, he wanted to punch its bark, or kick at its roots, but instead, he just stuffed his clenched fists underneath his armpits and leaned. If only he'd had this much control over his lust, this whole thing wouldn't have happened. It was only three weeks. How could he let himself get so out of control over something as stupid and insignificant as three weeks without wanking? How could he lose his closest friendship over unsatisfied lust? Was he really that weak?

Thomas clenched his fists harder. He really wanted to punch something now, but he would control himself. And as for the lust, he would just have to control that too. It was just one more week. He could last that long. He would last that long. And then Luca and him could move past this, and go back to normal.

He took a shaky breath. He needed to apologise to Luca for hitting him, but more importantly, for kissing him. It was all his fault. Him and his lack of control.

"Thomaaassss!" he heard a high pitched voice call out a few seconds before Nim bounded up in front of him, a show bag swinging from her arms and a stick-on glitter tattoo on her face.

"Found you!" she shouted in glee. "Mum and I have been looking for you and Lucky. There's a really cool ride you need to go on! Mum won't go on it with me, so you and Lucky have to!"

"Hi Nim," Thomas finally got a word in edgeways, his hands slowly unclenching under his armpits.

"Where's Lucky then?" Nim looked around, and did a lap around the tree before looking up at him expectantly. Guilt surged through him like a kick in the gut.

"Oh," he stuttered, and pressed his lips together. No that wouldn't do. So he shrugged and tried to look natural. "Last time I saw him, he was in the hedge maze," he managed, just as Nim squealed and shouted "there he is!"

Thomas looked around to see Luca's lanky body squeezing its way between the crowds of people. He looked up as Nim called out his name in a voice that carried, running over to him. Thomas saw his expression change as Luca noticed he was there. He looked away quickly, to listen to Nim's description of the ride, but Thomas had seen the spark in his eyes retreat behind a wall the moment he'd seen him.

This was no good. Luca didn't look like himself. He had to apologise. Now.

Thomas walked over to the brother and sister duo, his eyes on Luca alone. Luca smiled along with whatever Nim was saying, her arms big and eloquent, but his eyes were flat. His face was making the right expressions, but he was just going through the motions. As Thomas moved towards them, he saw Luca's eyes flick briefly up to watch. With a brief smile, and a quick squeeze of his hand on Nim's shoulder, Thomas saw him start towards him. He stalked towards him with an air of suppressed fury, his long legs intercepting Thomas within three steps. He all but crashed into him, as a tense hand closed like a claw on his bicep. Luca turned him with bruising force away from his sister, and leaned in close.

"Don't you fucking dare," he spat. The words landed like knives. "Not in front of Nim." Thomas barely had the courage to look his friend in the face. His eyes were fierce as he fixed Thomas in his gaze. He felt like a mouse in the sights of a viper. Thomas felt the blood drain out of his face. He'd never seen Luca this angry. His Luca was soft, and nerdy, and awkward like a baby giraffe. His Luca let his his kid sister sew unicorn beads into his hair, and wore them until they fell out. He hadn't known he could even get this angry. Thomas swallowed his fear. He'd done this to him. He had to fix it.