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Noah was well aware that his current relationship was a sham. The man in bed next to him didn’t love him, and he didn’t love the man either. It was simply a way to deal with all the feelings that he was currently dealing with. Not a healthy way either.
The man in his bed was named José, and he was a rebound. Noah was under no delusions about that. José was likely aware of this as well. He sighed and looked up at the ceiling thinking of why didn’t ended up in his current sordid situation.
You see Noah had been dating this guy named Alejandro for a couple months. He hadn’t liked the Spaniard at first. He was full of himself, and two faced. Yet somehow over time he ended up falling for him. It was his first relationship ever. Perhaps one might find that odd for someone of his age, but it was nonetheless true. He’d really felt good about it.
Until this morning that is, when he saw Alejandro through the window of a restaurant. Kissing someone else. A pretty Asian woman. He was two timing on him? After how hard he’d had to work to win him over?
He doesn’t think when he storms into the restaurant but he’s smart enough to avoid making a scene. He simply stood a way behind their table directly in Alejandro’s eyesight. He knows when the Spaniard’s eyes see him. He can see the look in his eyes. Like a deer in headlights. Noah sneered and if he turned his heel to head out.
As he walks to the door, he hears Alejandro make an unconvincing excuse to his date. He began to walk faster wanting to avoid talking at the moment. He doesn’t quite make it as Alejandro caught him in the doorway. “Noah! I can explain-”
“You can explain what? How you didn’t mean to do it? How I mistook the situation? How she doesn’t actually mean a thing to you?! Did you really think I’d be dumb enough to never notice?” He asked.
“Noah, its not personal. I just, needed a front.” He replied.
“A front? A front for what?” Noah glared.
“Look, not everyone is okay with… You know.” Alejandro whispered.
Noah could feel himself almost vibrate with rage. He should have seen this coming. Alejandro was always very insistent on going out at night. Sitting in a back corner where no one could see him. On never kissing him in public. It was supposed to be because they were more romantic that way. But really he didn’t want anyone to know.
“You’re ashamed of me aren’t you?” Noah said. He half expected some honeyed bullshit in response. He didn’t get that, Alejandro simply stared a bit to the left of his eyeline. As though he couldn’t look him in the eye at the moment. He seemed incredibly guilty. Good he should be.
“Does she know about me?” Noah asked.
“...yes. She agreed to help me.” The Spaniard admitted.
“We’re done.” He told him.
Alejandro’s eyes widened in shock. “Que?”
“You heard me, we are done.” Noah repeated.
“Noah, please, I need-” The Spaniard began.
“Don’t even start! If you really wanted to keep me that much you wouldn’t have gone behind my back!” He hissed. “And I can’t believe you have the gall to not consider your little ‘front’ personal.”
He didn’t wait for Alejandro to continue. Didn’t wait for him to come up with some silver tongued words to make him stay. He ran off.
He didn’t answer the million texts he got after that. He blocked the number in fact. He wanted nothing to do with him at the moment. Of course this was easier said than done. He had stuff over at Alejandro’s house. Stuff he didn’t want to keep there. And he needed to get it as soon as possible so Alejandro couldn’t use it for leverage.
So the next day, after he spent the previous night sobbing into his pillow, he drove to Alejandro’s house. Specifically at a time he knew Alejandro to go to work. He could only hope the Spaniard had not decided to take the day off and lie in wait for him.
Luckily it seemed he hadn’t as Noah was easily able to find all of his stuff, mostly books, and get them in a box. He was going to head out without any trouble when he heard a familiar voice. “You’re here to pick up your stuff?”
Noah wanted to ignore him, but he knows better. He turned to face José. Alejandro's older brother. José was a lot like Alejandro. Both in appearance and personality. Same muscular body. Same carmel skin. Similar clothing with only a couple color differences. He was also charming, deceitful, and manipulative.
“No, I decided to break into your house for fun.” Noah scoffed.
José chuckled. “I suppose it was an obvious question. I hear you broke up with Al?”
Normally Noah would have gotten after José for using that nickname, but after Alejandro had broken his heart, he didn’t care. “Yeah, what’s it to you?” He asked.
José placed a hand on the wall next to Noah’s head. “Well I take it this means you’re available?”
Available? What the hell did José mean available? “I just broke up with your brother you cretin.”
The Spaniard smirked as though he was hoping for an answer like that. “Precisely. My brother, the one who hates me. You know? I was thinking you might want a little revenge on him?”
At first Noah didn’t follow his logic, but it didn’t take long for him to realize what he was getting at. Alejandro didn’t just hate José. He had a huge inferiority complex about him. One that José had definitely helped develop. If he were to start dating José so close to breaking up with Alejandro it would only fuel that complex. Not to mention devastate him.
“I think that might be a bit too much?” Noah frowned.
“Is it really?” José smirked. “I don’t think so. Besides, don't you think you deserve to hurt him? I know he hurt you.”
Alejandro did hurt him. A lot. More than he’d ever been hurt actually. Noah’s not a very nice person. He generally does what he wants to so long as he won’t get in trouble for it. And right now he wants to hurt Alejandro back. He’d actually had few revenge fantasies on the way over here, but they were all likely to get him arrested. He couldn’t get arrested for dating Alejandro’s brother.
“Okay, let’s do it.” Noah smirked.
“Bueno. Let’s say you show up here tomorrow around six pm? We’ll make a big scene of it.” José said.
Noah agreed and took his stuff home. He spent the rest of the time until his date with José the next day switching between feeling giddy about getting revenge on Alejandro and wondering if he was making a terrible decision.
In the end he went through with it. He stood at the door to Alejandro’s house working hard to get up the nerve to knock on the door. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how he was feeling, the door opened for him
“Ah, Noah. You’re right on time.” José smirked. Noah looked over his shoulder. Alejandro was peering in from beyond the doorframe into the foyer. His eyes were wide, shock and horror on his face. At the sight Noah’s mood steadied. He was filled with spiteful glee, all concern drowned out.
“I couldn’t be late.” Noah smirked. “I spent all day thinking about this.” It wasn’t a lie. He had. Granted he’d spent a lot of that time debating whether to go through with it or not, but Alejandro didn’t need to know that.
“Did you truly?” José smiled back. He leaned forward to brush his lips against Noah’s hand. “I am honored.”
“You should be.” Noah told him.
José gestured to the door. “Shall we?”
The two of them left and made their way to José’s car. As soon as they were driving away Noah finally let himself speak. “I saw him! It’s working! He’s so upset!”
“I'm glad to see you’re pleased.” The Spaniard said.
“How’d you get him to do that?” Noah asked.
“It was simple. I just alluded to my date tonight and acted secretive about it. I knew Al couldn’t resist.” José said.
They went to a nice restaurant. Perhaps nice was an understatement. It was really fancy. The food was delicious and served in small portions. Which was nice for Noah because he was never that hungry in the first place. They spent the date discussing what else they should do to get Alejandro’s goat.
“I want him to understand exactly what he did wrong. I want him to know how much he hurt me.” Noah explained.
“I know exactly what we should do.” The Spaniard smirked. He then proceeded to explain his plan to Noah. It was amazing. Until he got to the part about kissing him. “You want to kiss me?”
“Well, think about it. What would make Al more jealous than a kiss? Besides, if we really want to sell him on this, we need to milk it.” José smirked.
Noah was hesitant, but he agreed. He spent the rest of the meal and the subsequent ride back to José’s wondering if he was ready to kiss someone again so soon. He was nervous when they returned to the foyer.
“I really enjoyed that.” José told him.
Noah forced a smile on his face, though it wasn’t forced for long. As soon as he saw Alejandro peer around the door to the foyer it became more genuine. “I did too.”
“I am truly glad about that. I wanted you to have a good time.” The Spaniard smirked. A gentle look took his face as he began to toy with Noah’s hair. “You know? Al’s such a fool to give you up. And for that girl with the unattractive personality at that. You are worth so much more than he thinks.”
Noah struggled to avoid staring at Alejandro as he said his next words. He didn’t want to give the game away. “I thought so too.” He sighed and allowed himself to be truthful. “I just wish he wasn’t ashamed of me. You know?”
José drew closer. Noah could feel his hot breath on his cheek. It sent shivers through him. “I would never be ashamed of you.” With that José kissed him.
Noah thought it would feel strange. It didn’t though. It felt wonderful, but in a way he knew was toxic. Because it felt like kissing Alejandro. Not emotionally of course, but physically. His lips were just as smooth. His skin as soft, and his body felt the same too. The same taught muscles, the same broad shoulders, the same tight butt. In fact he could almost imagine it was Alejandro he was kissing.
When they pulled apart Noah wanted to kiss him again immediately. It takes him a moment to figure out what to say but he can see from Alejandro’s face in foyer’s door frame that its worked. He looks broken. Good.
He said his good byes and drove home that night.
Back in the present Noah looks at José in the bed next to him. They’d been dating for about a month now. They’d been on a date with a storm hit, Noah’s place was closer so they’d gone there. Hence why he was currently in Noah’s bed. They hadn’t done anything though.
He knows this relationship is bad. For José it's about messing with Alejandro’s head, and for him it was revenge. At least that was how it had been at the beginning. Now it was different. No they hadn’t fallen for each other, but their reasons had evolved. Noah’s reason was now part revenge, part rebound, part the strong desire to feel like he’s still with Alejandro. As for José, Noah thinks he finds a perverse pleasure in kissing his brother’s ex.
He sighed and got out of the bed. Maybe he just needed a short walk to clear his head. He exited the bedroom and headed for the kitchen. He ran the water and splashed some on his face. It didn’t do much. He was starting to debate whether he should try some hot chamomile tea when he heard footsteps enter the room behind him.
He turned around to see José framed in the doorway of the kitchen.. “You seem tense mi zorro.”
José had recently taken to using that pet name. Noah kind of liked it. Even if it was shallow. “I am. I can’t seem to calm down enough to sleep.”
The Spaniard smirked, and crossed the room with several long strides. He cupped Noah’s cheek tenderly. “I can fix that.” He leaned forward and kissed Noah again. Noah melted into it. He knows it's mostly lust from José’s side, but he doesn’t care. It feels nice, and in the dark he can easily pretend José’s Alejandro. He knows this isn’t healthy. He shouldn’t be holding on to Alejandro through his brother.
Still, at the moment he’s content with this. He’s content with shoving all his feelings into a drawer and drowning them out with physical things. He’s using José, and José’s using him.
They both know this is a sham, but neither is going to be stopping anytime soon.