"Ohmygod I'm
so
sorry!" Tucker said, almost shouting, "I don't know why..."
Bud cut him off: "Don't be sorry. It was great."
Tucker and Bud
By RalphyNJ
[This story is fiction and includes depictions of unsafe sexual practices. Such practices would be reckless in real life, and the author cautions strongly against them.]
==========
When Tucker floated up out of sleep, he found himself sitting upright with his head resting against a meaty shoulder. A supporting arm was around his back, and a blanket was wrapped around him.
He looked up and saw his friend Bud smiling down at him.
He was on Bud's lap.
He had no idea why he was there, how he had gotten there, or even when he had fallen asleep.
Bud brushed a vagrant lock of hair from Tucker's forehead and said softly: "Hey, Tucker. You gave me quite a scare. How are you feeling?"
Now that Tucker thought about it, he was feeling very cozy. However he said only: "Hi, Bud. Pretty sleepy."
Tucker and Bud had been friends since high school. The friendship had mystified their classmates, because Tucker was a handsome jock and although Bud was equally good-looking and athletic, he was widely rumored to be gay. In that school, straight-gay friendship was an alien concept. In fact anyone who was even suspected of
being
gay did not have an easy time of it.
Except for Bud: Refusing to deny or confirm the rumors, he parried the occasional taunt with laughter and a stinging rejoinder, and he responded to inquiries by asking why his orientation was of such great interest to his would-be interrogator. His attitude frustrated and angered some of his classmates but no one dared attack him physically, because he was bigger and stronger than any of them and knew how to use his fists when it was required.
Bud had no known relationships other than his friendship with Tucker, so all the curiosity was left unsatisfied.
Tucker wasn't put off by the rumors. On the contrary, he admired Bud: For one thing, Bud never took advantage of his size and strength to bully anyone. For another, his supreme self-confidence was never manifested as arrogance. And perhaps most important, when not forced into physical conflict he was a truly gentle person.
Following high school, Tucker and Bud had gone to the same college, where their friendship had grown closer. After obtaining their degrees, they pursued separate careers, which limited their contact during the week, but the friendship remained solid and they spent almost every Saturday together. The question of Bud's orientation remained unresolved in Tucker's mind, but that did not lessen the fondness he had developed for his friend. And now, drowsily looking up into Bud's smiling face as Bud held him, Tucker was feeling not just fondness but affection.
Nonetheless, he was perplexed. "Uh ... Bud? What am I doing here?"
"I'd say offhand" Bud replied, "that you're just waking up."
"No I mean ... how did I get here?"
"Don't you remember? I guess you're still half asleep. Your car is in the shop so I drove you."
"Yeah, I know all that. I mean ...
here
."
"Oh. On my lap."
"Yeah."
"I carried you from the guest room" Bud told him, and grinned as he added: "You know, you're heavier than you look."
"Carried me from the guest room? What happened? How did I get
there
? The last thing I remember is we were sitting and talking."
"That's right, we were, and you didn't say anything about not feeling well but all at once you got a funny look on your face and you keeled over. I couldn't rouse you; you were out cold. I panicked and called a friend who's a physician. I told him you had passed out and were unresponsive. I asked if I should put you in the car and rush you to the emergency room or if it would be better to wait for an ambulance. He got me calmed down and told me how to check your vital signs. Based on those he said you weren't in any immediate danger. Then he walked me through an examination so he could decide what should be done next."
As Bud was talking, Tucker became aware that he could feel the fabric of the blanket on his skin.
Everywhere
on his skin. He was naked. "Who undressed me?" he asked. "The doctor?"
"No" Bud said. "The doctor wasn't here. I told you, he guided me by phone.
I
undressed you to do the exam."
Bud did not notice the emerging color on Tucker's face as he continued: "He had me look you over for bug bites or anything else that might have injected a toxin and made you pass out. He was very thorough; he even told me to look between your toes. After that he had me take your temperature and listen to your heart and lungs."
By now, Tucker's face was quite pink.
Bud finally noticed. "Hey, no need to be embarrassed" he chided. "We both have the same equipment."
That didn't help. Tucker's face became almost red, and suddenly Bud understood the fundamental cause of his unease: "Oh, the high school rumors. Are you afraid I might have done unspeakable things to you while you were unconscious?"
Tucker didn't reply, but his silence gave the answer.
"Oh Tucker, I would have thought you knew me better than that. You're the last person in the world that I would take advantage of, in that way or
any
way. My activities were confined strictly to collecting medical information. I gathered the data the doctor asked for, and that's all."
Tucker's blush began to subside.
Bud went on: "When I told my friend I didn't see any bites or scratches but you had a fever, he said you've got a virus that's been going around. He told me that ordinarily his advice is just to let it run its course, but in view of the fact that it knocked you out it should be treated. He called my local pharmacy and they delivered some things I need to give you. He said you should be fine in about a week if you get enough rest."
Tucker was baffled: "I've got a virus? I don't
feel
sick."
"You have a fever of almost a hundred and three, aren't you hot?"
"Yeah, but I thought it was the blanket."
Bud reached over to a small nearby table, picked up a mirror, and said: "Look at your eyes. See how glassy they are?" He put his hand on Tucker's face. "Now feel your face and then feel mine."
Tucker looked, and felt.
"See?" Bud asked.
"Oh. Yeah. Is the fever why my head feels ... I don't know ... cloudy, and I'm groggy?"
"Your fever is the reason for the cloudiness, but you're groggy because of the sedative I've been giving you. It's one of the meds the doctor had them send."
"You've been giving me a sedative when I was asleep already?"
"At first you were unconscious. It's not the same thing. He said to wait until you showed signs of coming around and then begin the medication. When you began to move, I gave you the first dose of sedative.
That
put you to sleep. I also started you on an antiviral drug. You get them every four hours, day and night."
"I don't remember taking anything" Tucker said.
"I give you the medicine each time as you're just starting to wake up" Bud told him. "You're barely conscious. You wouldn't remember."
Tucker thought for a moment. "Bud?"
"Yes?"
"Can I ask you something else?"
"Sure."
Tucker hesitated, and then said: "This is really nice, so please don't think I'm complaining. I'm just curious: Why do you have me on your lap?"
"Originally, I put you to bed in the guest room" Bud told him, "and I planned to be there when you woke up so that when you opened your eyes the first thing you saw would be a friend. That way it wouldn't be so scary waking up in a strange place and not knowing why. But then it occurred to me that if you turned in your sleep, the first thing you'd see would be the wall. So I decided this was a good way to make sure."
"That was really thoughtful."
"I wanted you to have as easy a time as possible."
"Well I did. It was really good waking up this way."
Bud took mental note of two things Tucker had said: That being held on Bud's lap was "really nice," and that it had been "really good" to wake up there.
Actually, the first word that had come to Tucker's mind had not been merely 'nice' or 'good'. Instead, the word he had been thinking was '
wonderful'
. He didn't say it because he was afraid to admit having such strong feelings for Bud. In fact, he was disconcerted to realize that he had them.
Notwithstanding his concern, he would have been happy to stay where he was. He tried to think of additional questions so that Bud would continue to hold him. But as he was thinking, Bud consulted his watch and said: "Time to check you over."
"Check me over?"
"Every four hours I have to examine you for a rash and take your temperature, before I give you your medication."