Disclaimer:
The following story is the twenty-seventh installment in an on going series about Stephen Gately from Boyzone and what I imagine to be the story behind the beginning of his relationship with Eloy de Jong from Caught in the Act. I have no contact with either person, nor know any of the members of either group.
As you can no doubt figure out from the email address above, I've changed my email, having lost my email on my subdimension account. Hopefully this one will prove a bit more stable. I beg the forgiveness to those people who have written to whom I haven't had a chance to reply. When the server lost the email, I also lost my addresses. I do apologise. In the meantime, please enjoy the next installment of my story.
Cheers,
Musicfan
Laughter followed their group out of the bar that night. Keith and Mikey were holding each other up, followed by Stephen, Shane and Ronan who were laughing at the way they were walking.
It had been a good day. Stephen had had a blast with Keith and Shane. Later in the evening, they had met up with the rest of the lads and gone out to dinner, then hung out in the pub with some fans. It was the fans who were laughing as they made their unsteady way out of the bar.
"Lookit those idjits," Ro slurred as he draped an arm around Stephen's shoulders. Stephen staggered slightly under his weight and they swayed to one side before righting themselves. He looked to the side and saw their reflection in the mirror. They weren't looking too good themselves, but he forbore any mention of it to Ronan. "Where we going?"
"That way," Stephen said, pointing towards the lift. They made their way across the quiet lobby. It was late, and the pub was shutting down for the night. For some people that just meant relocating with whatever drinks they could carry to the lobby area. Already some group was singing some song and people were gathering around them. "Let's get away from that crowd. Last thing I want is to get pulled into a group singing patriotic songs!" They lurched over to the lift where Ro punched around the area of the call button until hitting it on the sixth try. Shane followed them over, none too steady on his feet.
"You's is all rappid." He said, leaning against the wall and grinning at his friends. They laughed at him, both thinking about how pissed he looked. The doors opened and they tripped inside, giggling like mad. "No, I really, really mean it." Shane said solemnly.
"That's okay, Shane. Thanks for the compliment." Stephen said while trying to stop from giggling again. They all fell against the wall when the elevator jerked to a stop on their floor. Shane held open the doors and let Ro and Stephen pass before getting out himself. They made their way down the hall and paused in front of Shane's room first. "You going to be okay?" Stephen asked him.
"I'm grand," Shane assured him while he tried unsuccessfully to fit his key into the door lock. Finally, Ronan took it out of his hand and with a deliberate movement, slowly inserted it into the lock. He was quite proud of himself for accomplishing this and bowed with a flourish to let Shane in.
"There you go, Shanno, m'lad." Ronan laughed as he stood upright and swayed slightly before grabbing hold of Stephen again. Together, the two of them giggled as Shane made his way into the room. He closed the door with a goodnight while they stood there. Ro turned the key in the lock again and opened the door enough to toss the key inside before closing it again. "Yeah, he's pissed all right. Where'd the other two go?"
"I have no idea," Stephen said. He looked down the hall, but there was no sign of the other two lads. He shrugged. "I'm sure they're happy as larry somewhere."
"Right enough," Ro agreed. He steered the two of them down the hall before stopping in front of his door. "Stephen, I bid you g'night. I love you, but not enough to sleep with you."
"Same here, brother. Sorry, you're not my type." Stephen said with a grin. "Sleep tight." He made his way down the hallway and carefully fit his key into the lock. The phone was ringing when he entered, and he stumbled through the dark to the phone rather than stop to turn on the light.
He winced as he stubbed his toe on the dresser. "Hello?" He squeaked as he picked up the receiver.
"Stephen?" He stifled a groan as he recognized his sister's voice.
"Yeah, it's me. Just stubbed me toe coming in, Shel." Stephen said. He sat down with a sigh and rubbed his foot. "How are ya?"
"A mite bit better than you sound," she said tartly. "Have you been out drinking with the boys again?" She was a bit miffed that he hadn't called her like he had promised. She knew he was busy, and was willing to cut him some slack, but still, he could follow through on his promises occasionally.
"Just had a couple," he mumbled defensively. He kicked off his sneakers and curled back onto the bed with the phone. "Not much else to do here."
"How about coming home at a decent hour and calling your family occasionally?" She retorted. He winced again and groaned.
"Ah, please, Michelle. Not tonight. My head can't handle it." Stephen moaned. With one hand, he unbuttoned his shirt and shrugged out of it. "I know you're right. I should have called you back. I know. It's just that this whole thing has been such a mess the last couple of weeks that I haven't been thinking straight."
Immediately Michelle felt bad about taking it out on Stephen. "Ah, I know sweetie. I'm sorry. I just feel like I'm missing out on so much right now."
"Not much to miss out on, Shel," Stephen said with a sigh. "It's gotten a might bit better, but I can't tell you how much I'm missing him right now. I haven't slept well the last couple of weeks. Keith was just on me today for not eating. I'm just not interested, you know."
"You have to eat though," she said quietly. "No point in just starving yourself to death." She was a bit worried about the way he sounded, though she knew a bit of it was probably the drink talking.
"I do eat," he sighed, twisting the phone cord around his finger. "It's just not appetizing is all. Anyhow, on a better note, I'm waiting to hear back from Eloy about when he has some time free so I can go over for a weekend."
"Oh?" Michelle asked, surprised. "How did all that work out?"
"Ro gave Louis a call and told him we all needed a break. He didn't even bat an eye. Told him to go ahead and do whatever." Stephen growled into the phone. "When I think of all the time we wasted, waiting for him to do something when we could have done it anytime we wanted, it just makes me boil."
"I told you that man is an idjit. He's only looking out for number one, that one." Michelle sniffed disdainfully. "Well, don't waste any thought on him. Work on the fact that you now can go for a holiday and enjoy yourself. Lord knows it's well deserved. Any idea on when you'll hear from Eloy?"
"He said he'd call when he knew anything. The problem is that the timing couldn't be worse. His group is just getting into the promotion on their album. He's in Germany today and was hoping to find a time to talk to the others in a group about when there might be some time free scheduled. I'll just have to sit tight and wait for him to call." Stephen sighed again. He was trying so hard to be patient, but now that he had some go ahead, it was all he could do not to jump on the next flight out to Holland.
"I'm sure he'll let you know as soon as he can," Michelle assured him. "I'm sure it's been hard on him, too."
"I suppose." Stephen said. "Did you ever have this problem with Alan? Like there's some kind of comedy of errors going on where no matter what you do, nothing seems to go out the way you want or hope?"
"Well, we've had our moments," Michelle admitted wryly. "Of course, it's not like what you two have to go through. But there's always that time when you're planning something and it all goes wrong, or just not the way you plan. It all comes out in the wash though. Just have to be patient and ride it along. And remember, you can always come here if you need a place to come. I'll find a place for you two to have some time together."
"Thanks, hon. You're the best. Though I can't for the life of me see how the hell we'd hide something like that back home. Best we meet someplace neutral, like here in London. But if we need to go that route, I'll definitely call and let you know." Stephen stared up into the darkness of the room. Light filtered through the drapes and he followed the faint patterns they made on the ceiling. "I think it's the waiting that's the worst part."
"Just think of the day when you won't have to wait. And it will come." Michelle promised. It worried her to hear him being so down. Sometimes it made her realize just how much she didn't understand about her brother's life. A soft sigh was the only response she got for a bit. She knew he was lost in thought.
"Shel, I can't afford to think that far ahead. It would be years away, if I'm lucky. I don't even want to think of what would happen if any word ever leaked out. I'm losing enough sleep as it is." He closed his eyes, not wanting to think about that.
"Let me ask you one question, Stephen." Michelle said quietly.
"Yeah?"
"Can you imagine life without him right now?" She asked.
"God no!" Stephen exclaimed. "I can't deal with even a few weeks apart. I can't imagine going back to what it was like before. That's not living, Michelle. That was just existing."
"Then do what you have to. Make the time to get together. I think you owe yourself that. There's more to life than what you're doing right now. Even the other guys see that. Didn't you say that Ro's gotten himself sweet on some girl? I'm sure he's in the same boat as you at the moment. The last thing Louis wants is that one involved with anyone. He'd probably wet himself if he found out. Taking away his potential attraction with the girls and all. And after talking with her, I know Lisa was a bit ticked off at the schedule Louis had you all on. It's not right, honey. No one can do that pace for long without just losing it all. You need to step back and give yourself some time off."
"I know that, Shel. That's what we're working on." Stephen said. He loved it when she got all protective on him. "You're the best, you know that?"
"Well, someone has to look out for you. You certainly can't seem to do it for yourself, I think!" She said indignantly. Stephen started laughing and after a few moments she joined in. She knew that sometimes she went overboard, but there were plenty of times that Stephen would let people walk all over him rather than complain. And she wanted to make sure that he took the time he needed and deserved. "Promise me you'll call when you know when you're going?"
"I will. And I am really sorry I haven't been so good about calling lately. It's just that my head has been in such a whirl over this that I haven't been thinking straight recently." Stephen said apologetically.
"I know, honey. And it's not like you're just sitting around, watching the paint peel or anything like that. But I do miss you so," Michelle said. "I feel like I need to know what's going on. Now get off the phone and call that man of yours."
"Well, he said he'd call..." Stephen said doubtfully. The last thing he was going to do was hound Eloy when he knew how busy he was at the moment.
"Nothing wrong with giving him a ring on his mobile and just saying goodnight, is there?" She asked. "And he can't be doing anything this late at night, other than sitting around a bar himself."
Stephen thought about it for a moment and saw she had a point. "Well, maybe."
"Why not give me his number and I'll ring him up if you don't want to." She suggested with a laugh. Stephen rolled his eyes.
"Oh god. The last thing I need is you two conspiring together." Stephen groaned to himself. He could only imagine that happening. "I don't think I'd survive it." That just made her laugh all the more. "No, I'll do my own calling, thanks."
"You're no fun," she said reproachfully. He just laughed her off, and after promising to give her an update when he knew more, they rung off. He lay in the bed for a bit, still debating whether to give Eloy a call. He looked at the clock and saw that it wasn't as late as he had thought. He tended to forget that the pub in this hotel shut down earlier than was normal for most places, and that's what made him think it was later than it was. He hung up the phone and reached for his mobile. In the dark, the face of his Nokia was softly illuminated with a green light. He finally settled for calling Eloy at home. That way if he was still out, he could just leave a message.
Eloy picked up on the second ring. "Hallo?"
"Hey, you're home!" Stephen said in surprise. "I was just going to leave a message because I thought you hadn't gotten back yet."
Eloy smiled into his phone as he heard Stephen's voice. "I just got back home less than a half hour ago, actually. I'm glad I did."
"Did you have a good trip?" Stephen asked him.
"Ja, it was goed. Long day, though." Eloy sighed. "You know how it is, doing a dozen interviews with people all asking the same vapid questions." Stephen laughed. He knew exactly what Eloy meant. "How was your day?"
"Good. Keith and Shane dragged me out around town today. We had a lot of fun. And I just got berated by my sister for not calling her like I had promised. She then told me to call you, so I figured I'd leave you a little hello message." Stephen was in a good mood again. Just hearing Eloy's voice on the other end of the phone was enough to set him to rights.
"You should always listen to your sister," Eloy said. "Big sisters always know what's best for you."
"No, I don't think so." Stephen laughed. "If I always listened to her, you'd be talking to her now instead of me."
"Oh?" Eloy asked. He pulled the cork out of a bottle of wine and poured himself a glass before heading to the bedroom with the receiver tucked under his chin. He loved hearing Stephen laugh. "What is your sister up to now?"
"Well, she figured if I wasn't going to give you a ring, she would. Figured you two would have a grand old time chatting together," Stephen said mirthfully.
"I'm sure we would," Eloy said with a chuckle. He placed his glass on the table next to his bed and sat on the edge. "Maybe I should give her a ring one of these days and get all the stories about you from her."
"Don't you dare!" Stephen admonished him. "I'd have to beat the two of you if you did something like that."
"Oh, promise?" Eloy asked hopefully. That got Stephen giggling and they laughed together. "Hey, got some good news for you, liefste."
"Yeah, what's that?" Stephen asked him.
"I talked to the group today. On the plane back, we got out the schedule and I think I found a time for when we can get a few days off together." Eloy said. He was eager to share his news with Stephen and see when they could arrange to meet again.
Stephen sat up and turned on the light next to the bed. "Yeah? When's that?" He looked around the clutter on the nightstand, trying to find the hotel notepad in case he had to write down some dates.
"Well, we have a couple of choices," Eloy said with a chuckle. "Week after next, but it's not a weekend, it's in the middle of the week. Or two weeks after, where there's a long weekend."
"Which would you prefer?" Stephen asked. He felt a thrill of anticipation at the thought that they would finally be able to get together again.
"Both?" Eloy said hopefully. He was only half joking. At this point, he wanted to be able to spend as much time as they could together. He was still trying to figure out how the hell they were going to accomplish it, though. But his mother was always fond of the saying "where's the will, there's a way." Between the two of them, they certainly had the will. The way would come along by itself.
"Wouldn't that be lovely?" Stephen sighed. "I could only wish. Let me get the dates and I can see when the rest of the lads want to make some plans. I have a feeling that they might want more time off. So maybe it might not be so impossible. I know Mikey is pushing for a longer break of maybe a few weeks or so. It all depends on Louis, of course."
"Ja, of course. Well, at least things are moving along now." Eloy said.
"True enough. But as I was saying to my sister, the more I think about the time wasted, the more ticked off I get." Stephen said.
"But you know," Eloy said thoughtfully. "What's done is done. The key to all of this is that we can't dwell in what might have been. Let's focus on what we can do, rather than what we couldn't do. Alright?"
"Yeah, I guess you have a point," Stephen said reluctantly. "I have to work on that. I've been told before that I worry too much about that kind of thing."
"Definitely something that you have to push away. Who needs that kind of negative energy?" Eloy said practically. He reached for his glass of wine and took a sip. "Now that we got that out of the way, how about we get down to some serious talking about some loving phone sex?" A low chuckle met his comment.
"You never learn, do you?" Stephen asked with a laugh. He loved the way Eloy teased him like this. It always brought a smile to his face.
"Not at all." Eloy confirmed with a grin. "Besides, one of these nights, if I keep on trying, maybe I'll get lucky." He laid back against the pillows and propped himself up.
"Keep on trying, love. Maybe I'll surprise you one of these days," Stephen said with a mischievous note in his voice.
Eloy's eyebrows raised up to the ceiling in surprise. "Oh? So I just need to be persistent, is that it?" He finished off his wine and placed the glass down on the table next to him. He wasn't sure if Stephen was going along with him this time or not. Personally, he could see it as a good way to relieve a lot of stress, though Stephen didn't seem to see it that way. "What are you wearing right now?"
Stephen chuckled. He knew better than to encourage Eloy, but he also knew that he wasn't too sober at the moment. Though a lot better than he had when he had stumbled into the room. "Hmmmm, let's see. Undershirt, jeans. Boots. Oh, and me hat."
Eloy closed his eyes so he could get a mental image of how Stephen looked. "You on the bed right now?"
"More or less," Stephen confirmed. He was being deliberately evasive.
"Ah. More or less? Do me a favor, zusje?" Eloy said as he kicked off his own shoes and stretched his legs out on the bed. "Take the hat off."
Stephen laughed. "Why?"
"So I can picture myself running my fingers through your hair," he said softly. The wine was beginning to lull him, and he stared out the window with half-closed eyes, trying to picture what he was saying. "And take those damn boots off before you make a mess of the bed." Stephen continued to laugh, but complied with Eloy's wishes. When he was in his socks and the hat had been carefully placed on top of the lamp, he told Eloy that he was ready.
"What are you going to do, ravage me?" he asked recklessly.
"Oh, most definitely!" Eloy growled, which caused Stephen to laugh all the more. It wasn't exactly the response he was looking for. He smiled wryly to himself. Obviously Stephen was in a bit of a giggly mood. "Shut off the light and lie back, please."
Stephen was feeling very accommodating, so he agreeably turned off the light and lay back on the duvet. "All set. Now what?"
"Now listen to me," Eloy said, his voice dropping lower. "I'm going to kiss you, zusje. Are you ready?"
Stephen was slowly drifting in a haze between the continued affects of the alcohol and Eloy's mesmerizing voice. "Mmm hmmm."
"Goed. Because I can feel your lips against mine, liefste. Mmm, you taste so goed." Eloy rolled over to his side as he imagined Stephen lying next to him. A sigh was his only answer from the other end. "I'm now going to put my hand under you shirt. I'm pushing it up. Oh, you feel so warm, baby."
Stephen thought he could feel a feather light touch over his abdomen as Eloy spoke and he shivered in reaction. "Uh, Eloy..."
"Hush, honing." Eloy whispered. "Ah, this feels good. So right."
"I can't..." Stephen said softly. He stirred restlessly in the bed, but couldn't get himself to force Eloy to stop what he was doing. He really thought he felt Eloy's fingers stroking his stomach.
"You know what I want to do now?" Eloy continued, brushing Stephen's faint protest away. "I think I'm going to lick my way up. How does that sound?"
"Oh..." Was the only reply he got from Stephen. He closed his eyes so he could picture what he was talking about more clearly. "I'm starting at your belly. Mmmm, moving up. Oh, you taste good, baby. I'm circling around your nipple. Just a taste. Just a lick. Oooh, darling. You're reacting to this, aren't you?" He could hear Stephen's breath shuddering in response. "Ja, this is good, isn't it?"
"Shite, yeah." Stephen panted. He couldn't believe they were actually doing this. On one hand he felt rather wicked for allowing Eloy to excite him this way. But on the other hand, he just wanted to let it go on. It felt so damn real to him, despite the fact that Eloy was at the other end of the phone.
"Shall I continue, kindje?" Eloy asked softly. He had his hand on his crotch and was rubbing himself. His own nipples were rubbing against his shirt and he ran his hand up his chest to tease himself. "I really want to go on."
"Do it," Stephen said in a low voice. "Go on."
"But I'll need your help for this part. Would you like to help me, baby?" Eloy asked. When Stephen murmured his assent, he continued. "Put you hand on your stomach, honing. Think to yourself that it's my hand touching you now. Can you do that?"
Stephen felt entranced by Eloy's voice and complied. "Yeah." He placed his hand on his stomach and started touching himself when Eloy asked him to. Eloy kept on his soft talk, describing what he wanted to do and asking Stephen to follow with his hand. He had Stephen trace back up to his chest and touch his nipples. Stephen gasped softly. He then had him drop back and trace the waistband of his jeans.
"Unbutton them, baby," Eloy whispered. "Feel me pull the zipper down. Are you doing it, baby?" He had already pulled his own jeans down and was stroking himself as he talked to Stephen.
Stephen hesitated for a moment, but he felt himself straining against his jeans and the need to free himself was greater than his own reticence. He slowly reached down and pulled at the top. The zipper caught as he tugged it slowly down. Soon he was lying on the bed, legs spread and his fingers still clutching the end of the zipper. "Yeah."
"You got any briefs on?" Eloy asked.
"No," came the whispered response.
"Ah, so I see. I'm reaching in and touching you now. Oh, you're so hot. So hard. It feels so good as a wrap myself around you and pull you out. Doesn't that feel goed?"
Stephen matched Eloy's words with actions. He gasped as he circled his penis. "Yeah, it feels great, baby."
"Goed. I'm going to keep on doing it then," Eloy said in a gravelly voice. He kept on whispering encouragement to Stephen, talking him through pulling his jeans off and touching himself. Stephen was panting, lost in a world that consisted of Eloy's voice on the other than of the receiver. It wasn't long before Stephen came, rather messily.
Eloy cocked his head to one side, propping the phone up against the pillow as he stroked harder. The sound of Stephen gasping on the other end of the phone was satisfying to hear. Unfortunately, he was still a bit far from completion himself. But his main objective, which was to get Stephen to go along with this, was finally accomplished. He figured that one step at a time, he would make Stephen more comfortable with himself. After a while, Stephen's breathing slowed down.
"How was that?" He asked.
"Jaysus!" Came the soft reply. "I can't believe I just did that."
"Ja, I know. But how was it?" Eloy asked again with a suppressed laugh.
Stephen thought about it for a moment, weighing his thoughts. He was a bit embarrassed, but the more he thought about it, it was just the two of them. And it had been awfully satisfying. More so than he had originally thought. "Well, can't compare to having you here with me, but... it wasn't bad."
"Good. I'll keep on corrupting you, then." Eloy laughed.
"Oh shite!" Stephen exclaimed a moment later. Eloy was a bit concerned at the tone of his voice.
"What? What is it?" He asked.
"Did I call you on that line that charges by the minute?" Stephen asked. Eloy paused for moment before collapsing into laughter. Stephen giggled along with him.
"Oh honing, you're priceless!" Eloy crowed. "Absolutely the best!"
"Thank you," Stephen said with a laugh. "I just want to make sure I keep you on your toes."
"Well, you certainly managed to do that, liefste. Damn, I can't wait for you to get here." Eloy said longingly.
"With luck, it won't be much longer," Stephen said, happy to be able to know that things were moving along at last. "And speaking of which, I should really let you get some rest. It's getting late."
"Ja, just a bit," Eloy admitted. "But well worth the effort of staying up late to chat, eh?" Stephen's chuckle was rich with meaning in response to his comment.
"Well, I don't think I'd be much good on the return side, I'm sorry to say." Stephen said. "And I don't want to think of you bring frustrated."
"Don't you worry about me. I'll be fine," Eloy assured him. "It was important to me that you enjoyed yourself. You did, didn't you?"
"Yeah, you were fantastic, honey." Stephen said warmly. "Thanks for corrupting me."
"Any time," Eloy responded. "Always happy to contribute to the education of youngsters."
Stephen paused for a minute before responding. "Youngster? Who are you calling a youngster?" He growled menacingly, which caused Eloy to break into laughter again.
"Well, you're younger than me!" Eloy said. "That makes you a youngster. You got a problem with that, come on over and do something about it."
"I think I might just do that," Stephen promised. They laughed over that. As they slowly wound down, Stephen promised to call him once he found out about the two dates. But he had his hopes pinned on the first date. He didn't think he could wait any longer than he had to. They bid each other good night and rung off.
Stephen lay back on the bed, exhausted. It had been one hell of a night, and a totally unexpected one. He still couldn't believe that he had allowed himself to do what he had done. After a few moments of musing to himself, he finally dragged himself out of bed and into the bathroom to wash up. He stared at his reflection in the mirror for a bit, thinking on what he had done. Finally, with a sigh he turned off the light and returned to his bed. He lay back down and closed his eyes, thinking of the next few weeks into the future, and a time when he'd be seeing Eloy again. A smile curved across his lips as he drifted off to sleep.