compensation.
stephen king {the long walk}; ray garraty.
pg-13. 640. :: Thinking about Jan leads Ray to contemplate his fellow walkers. // [[slashy themes]] i can't remember how long jan and ray had been together pre-book so i made that up. but really, this is the best book ever. if you haven't read it, find yourself a copy and prepare to enjoy.
Compensation
The sky was purple, the sun slipping below the horizon, and the thought hit Ray hard: He missed Jan. God, he missed her. He remembered him and her sitting outside on a day almost just like this one, the sky lavender and neon pink, kissing her and tasting an assortment of fruit - strawberries, raspberries, kiwi. It had been summer then. Yep, a day just like this, but it had been hot and Jan wore a sleeveless blouse and shorts that were gloriously short. His hand had been on her thigh and crawled up and up, his fingers brushing up beneath the hem with his tongue down her throat. . .
He sighed to himself as there was a familiar pressure in his lower abdomen and he suddenly felt painfully horny. He surpressed a small groan in the back of his throat and McVries gave him a side-glance, walking a few steps ahead, but mostly paid Garraty no attention.
He tried thinking of other things besides how smooth and perfect Jan's thighs felt, but everything led him back to touching His Girl, The Best Girl That Ever Was. His Jan. He would not be like Gribble. He would not get shot because of blue balls. He. Wouldn't.
Off-handedly Garraty wondered if kissing a boy, having him jack you off would feel anything like it did with Jan - well, she'd never given him a handjob, but he'd imagined it a bunch of times. And she had squeezed at him once or twice through the clothes in the heat of the moment. Ray wondered if any of the boys left - or even any already gone - had ever kissed a boy or done anything worse. He found himself wondering about McVries especially. His brain pictured an awkward scenario wherein he simply leaned on over to Pete, discreet and casual and when McVries turned his head to Ray, he pressed their lips together - both sets of lips chap - and pull away. It was tempting, just to see what it was like, what would happen, and something told him McVries would not throw a shit fit about it. But he didn't want to risk being ragged on by all the other guys. He could practically hear Barkovitch cackling on about how he'd not only dance on their graves, but their queer, butt-fucking graves.
Ray felt his face flush with the image of just kissing McVries. He wouldn't make it worse. Garraty decided enough was enough when Stebbins managed to crawl into his head, delicate and wiry but somehow indestructable. Not the manliest boy and Garraty wanted to let his mind meander and think of the awful, unspeakable, take-to-your-grave scenarios he could come up with, things he could do to the mentally elusive bastard. Somehow, he figured even for his smaller physique, Stebbins would use his annoying ability to mind-fuck you and gain control, make you the bottom. This wasn't something Garraty wanted to picture, so he twisted the cap off his canteen and poured its contents over himself.
His shoulder muscles clenched at the sudden cold of the liquid, but it made the queer thoughts leave his head.
He looked to Pete who was giving him an odd stare. There was a slight chill in the air - maybe the water hadn't been his brightest idea.
"What're you looking at?" Garraty asked him with a friendly grin and pulled ahead of McVries. He decided he couldn't stand to look at the scarred boy. Why chance more dirty thoughts? Why chance the possiblity of blue balls?
Busying himself with yelling for a new canteen and flicking his wrist to check his watch, he blockaded any and all sexual thought. Including those involving Jan. He just hoped his brain would keep up the barrier when he dozed later on that evening as he walked.
/ / / /