called the iron horse and reach his destination in approximately thirty minutes. There was a reason it was known as the "city that never sleeps,” folks were always in a rush. He shot Cameron a text letting him know he would see him later. He desperately wanted to stop for a coffee but he was already so late. Ryan pulled his knit cap down tighter on his still wet hair, and flipped the collar up on his pea coat. He’d left his scarf and gloves home and it was bitter cold, despite the sun being out. Looking at the time on his phone he picked up his pace. He wondered why they hadn’t stayed at Cam’s place the night before, it was so much closer to the studio.
On his ride to the studio, he recalled the night before. They had gone out to dinner and to a club where they met up with some friends. Cameron took it upon himself to invite them back to Ryan’s, which was fine except he didn’t know two of the guys. They were friends of friends. Yes, he had hung out with them and danced at the club, but that wasn’t enough to make him comfortable with having strangers at his place. It was all good though, at first at least. At the club, Ryan had used poppers and taken E; he got it from his usual source but with the way he was feeling right now he wasn’t so sure that that was what it had been. He was feeling no pain and they were having a great time. Then one of the guys he didn’t know and couldn’t remember the name of, starting suggesting that he stay with Cameron and Ryan for the night, making it clear that he wanted to be between them. Ryan was not a prude by any stretch of the imagination, but he wasn’t into it. It wasn’t so much the idea of a third, it was more that the guy did nothing for him. He had gotten the impression though that Cameron wanted to do it more than he was willing to admit. He made a mental note to address that later. He wouldn’t be mad if that was how Cameron felt, but it would definitely be a discussion. The closest Ryan had ever come to a threesome was having sex in the same room at the same time as some of his other friends in high school. Lights off, of course.
When Ryan finally got to the studio he didn’t miss the perturbed glares he got as he flew by and into the bathroom to change. He made quick work of changing into a pair of compression shorts and changing his loose fitting tank for one much more form fitting. He felt groggy and a little off, most likely thanks to that whatever it was pill that he had taken the night before. He ran his fingers through his hair in the mirror then went to put his bag away. While walking over to the door he paused, dropping the bag he made sure that the door was locked. Opening his bag, he pulled out a small zippered pouch, pulling out a small plastic bag and a rolled up dollar bill. He haphazardly shook some of the white powder out onto the counter top and leaned over to inhale it, dragging the makeshift tube across the counter until all that remained was tiny remnants, barely visible. Taking his finger tip, Ryan scooped them up and rubbed the finger across his gums. Ryan dropped the bill and threw his head back, rubbing at his nose that was already becoming numb and sniffling as the rush of relief and euphoria began to tingle beneath his skin. A bitter taste was prevalent in the back of his throat, warmth spreading through his chest and then through all of his extremities. Thoughts that he was having moments ago, any and all, began to dissipate. Ryan began to hop in place and shake out his hands. Looking forward into the mirror he smiled at himself. He felt better already. That was all he needed, a small pick me up, no big deal. He might be late but he was going to go out there and kill it. With renewed confidence, Ryan put his things back in his bag, unlocked the door and walked out.
Twenty minutes later Ryan was in the middle of doing a slack drop; measuring out a length of fabric so he could then fall that distance. However, now he was hanging
Reshonda Tate Billingsley
Angela Andrew;Swan Sue;Farley Bentley