In the Silks (17 page)

Henry: Excuse me?

Pat: Oh pleaseeee, ma is trying to talk to you and ur looking at the phone like you’re watching porn.

Henry: You’re nuts!

Pat: Uh huh, who is she??

Henry: No one mind your business.

Pat: I’ll find out, wait is it Jackie!!!

Henry: What are you out of your mind!

Pat: Thank God, don’t tell Tara I said that

Henry: then leave me ALONE!

Ryan texted then and it was a silly picture of him on the T; he couldn't help but smile. No matter what, when he saw Ryan smile, he smiled it was automatic.

Pat: SEEEEEE

Henry quickly changed his facial expression to a scowl and closed his messages without responding to either of them, he had been known to mix up text messages in the past and he wasn’t taking any chances here.

He sat and talked to his mother a few more minutes, kissed his father goodbye, then got up to leave. Pat was sitting at the dining room table chomping on an apple and gave his brother the most idiotic grin, so smug that apple juice was dripping from his mouth.

“Slob,” Henry said as he passed by.

“Yeah, yeah,” Pat said, wiping his chin with the back of his hand. “Run off to your new girlfriend.” Pat said with an exaggerated sound. Pat was taunting him and it was working.

Henry stopped in his tracks, “You don’t know what you're talking about,” punching Pat in the arm as he continued toward the door.

“Yep, whatever.” Pat said around another mouth full of apple.

Henry shook his head and walked out the door eager to get home and change so that he could go meet Ryan.

Chapter 17

H
ENRY met up with Ryan and his friends just a little over an hour later. When he arrived at the restaurant they had already been drinking and ordered some appetizers. They made room in the booth for him and Ryan immediately put his hand on Henry’s thigh. Henry wanted to kiss him; he hoped Ryan would try, but he didn’t. Maybe because he knew that Henry might not be comfortable with it. While that was a thoughtful gesture, he couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. He was mulling this over when Ryan snapped him out of fit.

“Hmmm,
what?”

“I asked what you wanted to drink.”

“Oh Sam Adams, whatever’s on tap. Thanks.”

“Would you like to order something to eat?” The waitress asked.

“Not just yet, thanks.”

“Okay, well, you let me know when you’re ready.”

One of Ryan's friends scoffed when the waitress walked away.

“What?” Henry asked

Ryan rolled his eyes, “She wants you.”

Henry looked over to where the girl was leaning over the bar talking to the tender.

Ryan gave his thigh a squeeze.

“She does not,” Henry said.

“She does and she better watch herself if she wants a tip,” Ian said in a snooty dramatic tone.

Ryan laughed, “I have a tip for her.”

“Oh yeah? What’s that?” Henry leaned in and asked him.

“I’m not opposed to a bitch slap or two, so flirty girl should keep herself in check.”

Henry chuckled at that. It gave him the warm and fuzzies to think that Ryan might be a little jealous.

“Flirty girl” as Ryan had nicknamed her, brought over Henry's beer and asked if she could get anyone anything else. They all agreed they were all set and she gave Henry another glance before walking away from the table. Kev shooed her with his hand when she had her back turned. They all laughed, Henry blushed. Ryan leaned into his ear and asked, “Are we embarrassing you?”

Henry shrugged, wanting to change the subject. He noticed that Ryan's breath smelled fruity.

“What have you been drinking?” he asked.

“Apple martinis, but I’m done, moving on to something different, I'm thinking some shots.” Ryan responded with a raise of his eyebrows. His friends all seemed to agree.

Henry’s brain made the association then of Ryan’s drink and Pat and his apple from earlier. Also his comments and texts…
pussy whipped
, dick whipped maybe.
Hell yeah
, was that even a thing?

He chuckled under his breath and chugged his beer, getting dick whipped was quite the image.

Eventually, Henry ordered a steak stir fry dish. He ate, letting Ryan pick off his plate and several times feeding him right off his fork when Ryan moved in mouth open. Henry took the hint. Sharing food with Ryan out in public was almost as exciting as PDA. They ate, they drank, and Ryan and Kev stepped outside a few times to smoke. Henry was having a good time. When they were ready to go, Henry attempted to help with the check but Ryan refused and picked up the entire tab, so Henry and the others left the tip.

They had decided to go to a club that wasn’t far from where they were so they walked over. Henry wasn’t a big fan of clubs; he would go, but not often; he would make the sacrifice to be with Ryan. He would much rather be at a sports bar, with pool tables, dart boards, TVs playing sports and some rock music playing from an old jukebox that had been magically transformed into a digital music player. When they got there, they ordered drinks and Henry added a water to the order for himself, he also insisted on buying the first round.

They all walked out to the dance floor together, Ryan semi-dragging Henry. He didn’t really dance, probably why he preferred the sports bars, too. Henry opened the water and took a few sips. He was just kind of swaying from side to side. The other guys jumped right in dancing with complete strangers and seemed to be carefree. Ryan had one arm around Henry’s waist and leaned up to lick his neck discreetly when Henry had his head back to take a drink. He moaned and Ryan snaked his other arm around Henry's waist and under his jacket. Henry looked at him.

“Are you going to dance with me?” Ryan asked with a cocked brow.

“I don’t really dance,” Henry told him with a shake of his head.

“Come on, just a little please.” Ryan pouted and then added with a sly grin, “Do this for me and I’ll do something for you later.”

Henry groaned, “How can I say no to that?”

“You can’t!” Ryan said gleefully, then sipped his drink.

Henry wrapped an arm around Ryan's shoulders and held him to his chest. Ryan moved them and Henry just kind of let his body sync up with Ryan’s.

He looked over their shoulders and saw Ryan's friends dancing their asses off. He was envious, not of their moves but their confidence. Henry looked back when the song changed and Ryan nodded his head toward his friends.

“Let’s go,” Henry told him.

Ryan took a long pull off his beer and when he finished it, Henry offered him some water. Ryan took it.

Henry was pacing himself. It had been clear when he met up with these guys that they were feeling no pain. Someone needed to be semi-sober.

They moved closer to Ryan’s friends. They all danced, while Henry mimicked dancing. He thought of all the times his friends and siblings made fun of his attempts.

If they could see him now!
Well…they would still make fun of him he supposed.

After a few songs, Henry stopped dancing and gripped Ryan’s hip to get his attention.

“I need to hit the head.”

Ryan nodded and turned to head off the dance floor.

“No, stay and dance. I’ll be right back,” Henry assured him.

When Henry came back a few minutes later, Ryan was dancing with some girl. Nothing inappropriate, but he was still a bit jealous. Henry stood at the edge of the dance floor watching Ryan and the girl dance for a minute. Admiring the way Ryan moved, when his cell phone began vibrating in his pocket.

Henry covered one ear and placed the phone to his other after answering.

“Hello,” he said as he walked back toward the restrooms.

“Hey Henry, its Annie, where are you in a club?”

“Yeah, actually I am. What’s up?”

“With who? Never mind. Listen, we just called an ambulance for dad. When the visiting nurse came she was concerned about possible pneumonia. Can you meet us there?”

“
Shit, of course. I’m leaving now.”

He hung up without another word. Then realized he hadn’t gotten the name of the hospital. He was texting Annie to get it while he walked back over to find Ryan. He found him still dancing, but with his friends now and the girl was gone. Henry tapped him on the shoulder. Ryan turned around and grabbed Henry’s hip and started dancing up on his thigh. Henry gave him a tug by the hand off the dance floor over near the bar.  He leaned into his ear, “I have to go.”

“Where?” Ryan looked confused.

“Family emergency,” Henry replied. Ryan had a look on his face that he couldn’t read. It made Henry nervous for some unexplainable reason.

Henry got brave then and gave him a quick kiss on the lips, “I’m so sorry. I really need to go now, have fun okay and be careful. I’ll call you later. Promise.”

“Yeah, okay. Do you want me to go with you?” Ryan said with concern clear on his face.

“No, it’s fine. Stay with the guys. They came here to hang out with you.”

“Henry, they would understand, let me just give them my keys.”

“No, seriously stay and have fun. I’m going to call you in a bit. Maybe I can come over after if everything settles down?”

“Of course,” Ryan smiled but he still looked a bit saddened.

Henry gripped Ryan’s upper arm, smiled and then headed for the door. In another life he would have loved nothing more than to take Ryan with him.

When Henry got to the hospital, his mother and siblings were already there and they had already admitted his father. He greeted them all with hugs and got an update on his dad. They definitely found fluid in his lungs, so he was staying. They were going to run a few more tests.

They were all sitting back down when Annie suggested a coffee run.

“Come on Henry, come with me.”

Henry looked at her skeptically, but nodded and went along anyway.

While walking down the hall Annie leaned in and sniffed Henry.

“
Umm
, excuse me?” He looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

“You smell like something?”

“
Ahhh
, and that would be? Wait, are you telling me I stink?” Henry lifted the collar of his shirt to his nose and inhaled.

“No, you don’t stink, but it’s like a mix of tobacco, maybe alcohol, something else,” she said as she kept walking; her arms folded in front of her.

“I did say I was at a club, so that would make sense, don’t you think?” Henry said dropping his collar back in place, but unintentionally leaving it slightly askew.

Annie stopped walking and put her hand on his chest to stop him.

“What?” Henry asked nervously.

“Is that…oh my God, it
is
! You have a hickey!”

“I do not,” he protested rubbing at his neck.

Annie batted his hand away, yes you do and she pinched the spot where she claimed there was a mark.

“
Oww
, shit. Annie, what the hell?”

“Spill. Now!”

“Nothing to spill.”

“Oh really? I suppose it was the curling iron or maybe the vacuum? Or you fell and hit it on the corner of the table.”

“I can’t believe Pat tried to feed Ma that line,” Henry laughed.

“Pat’s an ass. Stop trying to change the subject.” She said and started walking again, Henry followed a step behind her.

“It is what it is, I guess. I’m not telling you any more than that. Just make sure I keep it covered in front of Ma okay?”

“It wasn’t Jackie was it,” Annie said as she stopped in her tracks and turned to him, a look of disgust on her face.

“Are you insane? Hell no! What is with you and Pat?  I have had no contact with Jackie and I plan to keep it that way!” Henry said, with a nudge to her shoulder to keep walking. Henry stayed a step behind her and rubbed his neck. He couldn’t remember when that had happened. He knew who must have done it, obviously; the very thought caused his cheeks to heat up.

Henry needed a subject change A.S.A.P. “So, where is Louis?”

Annie sighed, “With the ass-hat.”

“Enough said,” Henry nodded.

They walked into the cafeteria and worked together making trays of coffee for their family.

Henry and his family stayed at the hospital only long enough to be sure that his father was settled and then they left. They all went back to his parents’ house for a few hours before dispersing to head home. It was after two a.m. when Henry finally got home. He’d texted back and forth with Ryan a few times over the course of the evening. Henry hadn’t volunteered much information and Ryan hadn’t pushed for it, thankfully. But he had let him know that everything was okay. When he got to the privacy of his own home he called him.

“Hey you, on your way over?” Ryan asked, slurring the words slightly.

“Actually, I’m home. I hope you don’t mind. I’m just exhausted and I wasn’t sure if you would still be out.”

“Nope, we’re back at my place. You sure you won’t come over?
Pleaseeeee
.”

Henry chuckled, Ryan sounded like a little kid begging. It was endearing.

“I miss you, come over here. I’ll make it so worth leaving the house again,” Ryan crooned.

“Oh my God, you’re killing me. That sounds really fucking good, but did you forget that you have company?”

“So?”

“And no bedroom door,” Henry said flatly.

Ryan laughed into the phone, “Oh come on! They’ll be passed out before you even get here.”

The offer was tempting, but that was a boundary Henry couldn’t fathom crossing. “Why don’t I bring over breakfast in the morning?”

“Why don’t you come here now and we can go out for breakfast together in the morning?” Ryan pleaded.

Henry snickered,
he was persistent, wasn’t he?
“Ryan, go get some sleep, I’ll be there first thing in the morning with breakfast.”

“What if I just get in a cab and come to your house right now?”

The smile Henry was wearing fell. He would love to have Ryan in his apartment but the fear of someone showing up there and finding them. Nope, couldn’t do it.

“No, I don’t want you leaving the house. You sound wasted. Just go to bed and I’ll see you in the morning.”

“You can’t see this but I’m pouting right now.”

“Don’t pout, you’re too cute for that. So, I’ll see you in the morning?”

“Yeah I guess so. I’ll think of some way for you to make it up to me.”