This is a love story following the life of a young man who has a hard life at home and is told to leave when he comes out as gay. All the characters are fictional.
Warning - it contains m/m sex.
People Like Us Aren't Queer
"Do you fancy going to the White Swan tonight?" Tony asked whilst they were eating their cereal and toast at breakfast.
"What's that?" Kyle replied.
"Fuck man, where have you been? The White Swan is one of the oldest gay bars in London and every Wednesday they have an amateur strip night. Since today is Wednesday I thought it'd be fun to go. Who knows I might even decide to take part."
Kyle was intrigued, he vaguely remembered reading something about the bar in the gay press but it hadn't really sunk in.
"So anyone can take part and do a strip?"
"Yeah, and all those that enter get ten pounds and the winner gets a hundred"
"A hundred quid for stripping" Kyle exclaimed, "Fuck, that's not bad, yeah count me in."
"What, you want to take part in the strip contest?"
"Yeah, why not, it doesn't bother me showing off my bits to all and sundry."
"You're on, and if you do it I will too" Tony giggled. He'd taken part on a couple of times before but with Kyle there it would be even better.
"How do they judge it?" Kyle asked.
"The drag queen who leads it gets the onlookers to applaud each stripper and if the level is not as high as previous guys then that person is told to get lost. The best three then parade again and the audience shows their appreciation for each guy. The loudest wins" Tony laughed.
"Be prepared for the drag queen to hold your bits though; he invariably does!"
"The bar doesn't open until nine and the strip is not until midnight so we've got plenty of time to have a meal this evening; just be prepared for a late night" Tony chuckled.
When they'd cleared up breakfast, Kyle said he had to go and meet Bob at the new project he was doing. Now the Planning Officer had approved his plans it was all systems go. David's project was finished and he took great delight in showing Kyle round before taking him back to his apartment for a good long session, for which Kyle only charged two hours because he liked him.
The new project was not far from the Albert Hall. It was in an old style apartment block and had been owned by the same person for years. She'd now died so the apartment had been sold by the family. Nothing had been done to it for years so the whole place had to be renovated. The new owner also wanted walls knocked down and an en suite bathroom installed for the master bedroom which involved converting a box room that adjoined it and knocking a doorway through.
The job involved a load of electrical work since the whole place needed rewiring, new electrical outlets installed in all the rooms as well as for the new kitchen and bathrooms. Bob had also invited the plumber he normally used and the builder who'd do the knocking down of walls and plastering.
"This is Jason" Bob said when Kyle walked into the large living room, "He does all my plumbing work so you two will need to liaise with each other because a lot of what Jason is doing needs electrical fittings."
Jason turned and offered his hand to Kyle. For a moment Kyle's heart stopped. He held Jason's hand far longer than necessary because Jason was drop dead gorgeous. In an instance, Kyle knew that this was the guy he was looking for. He ticked all the boxes on Kyle's list except one and that one was one he couldn't judge at present since it involved having sex with the guy!
"Hi, I'm Kyle" he eventually managed to say. Even Jason was awestruck by the gorgeous black hunk of guy whose hand he was still holding. He too felt the same shivers of excitement shoot through his body. He grinned and said "Hi, good to meet you". He wanted to say more. He wanted to say `Do you have a boyfriend and are you free tonight?' but he knew he couldn't do so.
"Right" Bob announced bringing the pair of them out of their trance and to the moment, "Let's go round each room and I'll tell you what is planned; Bert should be here shortly so he can catch us up".
Jason and Kyle followed Bob round each room and each tried to concentrate on the job in hand without looking at each other but it was difficult and several times Bob had to ask if they were with him. He'd often wondered about Jason as to whether he was gay or not but since he hadn't even been sure about his own sexuality until the session with Kyle, he'd not broached the subject but seeing him with Kyle and the way they looked at each other, he began to realise that something had sparked between them.
`Lucky sods' Bob smiled to himself, he'd certainly drooled over Jason as well as Kyle but neither would be interested in him. The two guys were much the same age so it was no wonder they'd connected.
"So, this doorway is being closed up and a new one made on this wall here to connect to the master bedroom. The client wants a walk-in shower installed in this bathroom and a Jacuzzi bath in the main bathroom" Bob explained whilst Jason and Kyle made copious notes even though they'd both been given drawings showing exactly what was being done.
Jason could see that all the current pipe work was old and had to be taken out which suited him since it was easier to start from scratch and use new.
"The client also wants a lot more electrical outlets in each of the bedrooms as well as the living room" Bob told Kyle.
Suddenly the front door opened and Bert came in. Both Kyle and Jason had met him before on separate jobs so they just nodded their acknowledgement of his arrival. Bert was a typical red bloodied man. He'd probably have a fit if he knew he was working with three gays!
"Ah here you are" Bob said impatiently.
"The fucking van wouldn't start" Bert moaned nodding at Jason and Kyle.
After an hour of going through things and pouring over technical drawings, everyone seemed satisfied they knew what they were doing. They also discussed the sequence of work and agreed that. Once finished, Kyle and Jason packed a copy of the plans plus their notes into their bags and told Bob they were off. Bert just sat there as if he had all the time in the world.
"You know what you're doing then Bert" Bob was saying as Jason and Kyle made their way out of the door.
"Yeah, yeah" they heard Bert reply.
"Where are you off to now then?" Jason asked having decided to make the first move.
"Um, back home I think to work out what materials I need for this job."
"Mm, I like guys who are keen but how about we go for a coffee first?"
Kyle almost jumped with joy. He'd hoped Jason would say something to indicate the interest shown earlier was real.
"Yeah, that'd be great" Kyle replied beaming into Jason's emerald green eyes.
Jason almost jumped with joy as well and placed a hand on Kyle's back as if to lead him on. He said he knew a great coffee place nearby so led the way.
Once they'd got their coffee and chosen a cake to go with it, they moved to the end of the cafe where there was a table on its own in the corner.
"This okay?" Jason asked wondering if Kyle might wonder why he'd not chosen a table more in the heart of things.
"Yeah, great" Kyle beamed feeling a stirring down below which he hoped would not become too obvious.
Jason beamed back as he sat down opposite Kyle. He then asked how long he'd known Bob and what other of his jobs he'd worked on.
"Do you reckon he's gay?" Jason suddenly asked.
"Who, Bob?"
"Yeah, I've heard him talk about a wife and kids but I think she left him."
"She did" Kyle replied, "I think it was when she found out he was gay!"
"Fuck, that must have been a difficult situation; has he told you this then?"
Kyle hesitated for a moment. He wasn't sure how much he should tell Jason.
"Come on spill the beans" Jason giggled placing a hand over Kyle's which was resting on the table. Kyle's body shivered with excitement at the feel of Jason's warm hand over his. He also noticed that Jason kept it there and appeared to have no intention of taking it away.
"Well, he did let on that he was confused about his sexuality and that he was married with two girls; it seems they are now separated."
"Wow, how come you know all this then?" Jason asked somewhat jealous that Bob had confided in Kyle and not him.
Kyle grinned again not sure how to answer.
"Well?" Jason grinned, which melted Kyle yet again.
"Well, I used to be a male escort so Bob and I got together as it were and he told me everything."
"Fuck, what you sell yourself for sex?" Jason exclaimed not really sure whether or not he liked the idea or not.
"I needed the money" Kyle replied defensively, "I no longer advertise but I do have three or four clients who like to see me every so often"
"And Bob is one of your clients" Jason grinned.
"You could say that" Kyle replied not letting on that Bob didn't pay him.
"You lucky bugger, I bet he's a good fuck isn't he, or is he the top?"
Kyle laughed and tapped his nose as if to say `that's for me to know'.
"Are you a top?" Jason asked deciding that would answer his other question.
"Yes, in the main" Kyle replied with a smirk, "But I don't object receiving as well".
"Ah, versatile like me although I'm the reverse, I prefer taking to giving so that makes us very compatible!" Jason chuckled and squeezed Kyle's hand before removing it.
"So do you want to meet up sometime?" Jason asked when they'd finished their coffee and cake.
"Yeah, that'd be great" Kyle replied almost too quickly.
"How about tonight?"
"Ah, sorry, can't tonight; have promised to go out with my roommate."
"Oh, what's he like?" Jason asked wondering if they were a couple.
"He's a nice guy"
"Gay?"
Kyle nodded.
"But not boyfriend material then"
"No, he's a good friend"
"And a good fuck?" Jason giggled pushing the matter further.
"Not bad" Kyle smiled.
"Sorry, didn't mean to pry so much but I like you Kyle and want to know all about you."
"It's okay, I don't mind; I like you too" he added with a slightly embarrassed look on his face.
"You're a gorgeous guy with a gorgeous personality, and that means a lot to me; I do hope we can get together sometime."
"How about tomorrow evening; I've got nothing planned."
"Yeah, that'd be great" Jason replied excitedly, "How about coming round for a meal and we can take it from there".
Kyle said that suited him fine and made a note of Jason's address which was in Islington. With that agreed they left the cafe and walked together to the tube station. As they did so they talked about the job that lay ahead of them and how to proceed since the wiring and piping had to be co-ordinated. In the end they agreed that Kyle had to do the rewiring and put in a modern ring main system and Jason had to remove all the old pipe work.
"See you tomorrow evening around seven then" Jason said placing a hand on Kyle's shoulder.
"Yeah, look forward to it" Kyle replied feeling a sense of excitement rush through him as he walked away from Jason.
On his way home he had to call into one of Bob's other properties to carry out a maintenance task. The apartment was occupied by a sweet little old lady who must have been in her eighties. She needed three bulbs replaced. When she opened the door and Kyle explained who he was, she gave him a big smile.
"Oh thank you so much young man, do come in"
Kyle followed her into the living room which was very tastefully furnished even though it wasn't Kyle's taste. There were photographs of a young woman dancing scattered round the room on various flat surfaces.
"I was a dancer" she explained having seen Kyle looking at one of the photographs, "You'd never believe it now would you" she laughed.
"You are beautiful" Kyle said moving nearer to the photos.
"Ooh, you flatterer" she giggled.
"No, I mean it, you really were a beautiful woman" he repeated before realising what he'd said, "And if I may say so you still are".
"Now you really are flattering me" she laughed, "But I don't object; it's been a long time since a young man told me that so thank you; you're very sweet; I expect you have to beat off the young ladies".
Kyle looked at her for a moment trying to decide whether or not he should say any more.
"I'm afraid it's young men I have to beat off" he grinned hoping she would not be offended.
"Ah, that explains it" she smiled, "I've always found gay men are more able to give compliments than straight men".
"Is that so?" Kyle asked not having thought about it before.
"Oh yes; well having met several lovely young men of your persuasion when I was a dancer I always found they were far more complimentary than the others."
"So, which bulbs need replacing?" Kyle asked wanting to change the topic of conversation.
"There's one in the kitchen, another in the bathroom and the third is in the bedroom" she explained, "And whilst you're doing that I'll make a cup of tea".
Kyle didn't really want to stay drinking tea but he didn't have the heart to say no so he just thanked her and said milk with no sugar for him.
The three bulbs took him all of five minutes to change so he was soon standing in the kitchen waiting for her to pour the tea from the teapot she'd made it in. He smiled to himself realising that teapots were so seldom used these days. Most people tossed the tea bag into the cup and poured on the hot water. He rather liked the idea of a teapot.
"There we are; is there enough milk in it?"
"Perfect" Kyle said taking the cup from her.
"And do have one of my flapjacks; I made them this morning."
Kyle thanked her and took one from the plate being offered. They were indeed delicious and he was tempted to have another but decided against the idea.
"So are you Bob's regular electrician now?" she asked.
Kyle nodded as he took another sip of tea.
"Oh good, the previous man was most unpleasant and always took two or three weeks to come after I'd reported lights needing to be replaced; it was most inconvenient; on one occasion I only had one bulb working in the living room and could hardly see; I think he thought I should climb up and do it myself but I'm afraid my days of balancing on steps are well and truly over."
"It's a pleasure Mrs Grant; I never mind coming to do it."
"Thank you; my husband, god rest his soul, would have told the other electrician a thing or two; does he still work for Bob?
"No, he's been removed from Bob's list of sub-contractors"
"Oh goody; nasty man" she chuckled more to herself than to Kyle.
"Well, I must get on I'm afraid but thank you for the tea and those gorgeous flapjacks" Kyle smiled as he got up and picked up his tool box.
"It's a pleasure young man; I look forward to seeing you again."
Kyle showed himself out and walked down the road toward the bus that would take him home. He smiled to himself. He enjoyed helping people like Mrs Grant. It made him feel good and worth doing the job he did.
`How life has changed' he exclaimed to himself as he reached the bus stop; he'd been in London for almost nine months but it seemed more like nine years. For the first time in his life he was truly happy and for the first time ever he was in love. He just hoped it would last!
The next part of 'People Like Us Aren't Queer' will be available shortly.
I welcome comments so feel free to do so by sending me an email.
Don't forget that Nifty needs donations to host stories like these. See the Donate link to make your donation. Thanks.
See Prolific Authors for a list of other stories by Adam Stewart