Obligatory Bun Joke

Mars was getting lonely again. It tended to happen when you traveled alone for a year. He hadn't expected it to happen at first, as he'd never been lonely before. He didn't think he liked people, but the more time he spent alone, the more time he realized he didn't like himself more than he didn't like people. Even as he sat at the Denny's at 11:00 at night, he spotted a few good looking people. Usually he could hook up with a truck driver if he was desperate. Often he didn't even sleep with them, but that's not saying he hadn't before. Though, those times were something he did not remember casually. They were all something he was very conflicted about, like most things in his life.

He moved to the table with the best looking guy seated in it, smiling warmly.

"Can I sit with you?" he asked, tucking stray pieces of hair behind his ears. He realized it was getting long again, but he couldn't bring himself to cut it quite yet.

"Of course," came the sunny reply.  The man, who had faint shadows under his eyes, beamed with the brightness of the morning sun.

"But in exchange, may I request your conversation?  I haven't had a good talk with someone in days."  There was an accent to his words, rather British in nature but not quite.

Mars smiled wider at that.

"Actually, that's why I came over here myself. I travel alone and my dog isn't much for company," he replied. He looked exhausted, as if he never slept well. Mars subconsciously touched the dark circles beneath his eyes, which he knew would go away if he got laid.

"So, you can call me Mars," he said, extending his hand, which was rough and worn for his young age.

The man shook it firmly, though his hand lingered for perhaps a second too long.

"Pleased to meet you.  Call me Priestly."  He sipped from the large mug of coffee in front of him.  "Tell me, Mars, would you like some coffee as well?  Perhaps some dinner?  I have money to spare, I've no problem with sharing."

Mars flushed slightly as he removed his hand, folding them in his lap. If he was lucky, he'd be getting rid of the circles under his eyes.

"Are you sure? I know money is tight with me. Gas is killing me," he replied, tucking more stray hairs behind his ears. Though his hair was pulled into a messy ponytail and bobby pins tried to contain it, strands continued to come loose. "If you insist, I won't say no. Coffee with milk sounds great right now."

"Excellent," he replied, waving over a waitress.

"Evening again, ma'am.  I'd like a cup of coffee and a cup of milk, please, for the young man."  The waitress, who looked as tired as they did, just scribbled it down and walked away with a grunt.

Priestly's eyes returned to Mars's face immediately; he sipped his coffee again without looking away.  His eyes were a distinct, golden hazel, like fields somewhere far away.

"So, Mars, what brings you to the area?  You seem awfully young to be travelling alone this late, if you don't mind me saying so."

"I'm not young," he replied, a twinge defensive. "I'm eighteen."

Mars smiled warmly as he gazed into the older man's eyes. They were certainly unique. He suddenly felt a familiar wave of self-consciousness as he realized that the man was actually more attractive than he'd initially thought. He cleared his throat and looked away, adjusting his tight fitting T-shirt. 

"I'm looking for something, but it's personal," he replied, not meeting Priestly's eyes. "And what about you?"

"Oh," he said, his eyes widening.  His coffee mug almost slipped from his slackened fingers, but he managed to catch it.  "...That young?  I didn't realize, I'm sorry."

He chuckled softly, hoping to laugh away the newly awkward atmosphere.  "Not that it matters much, of course--I've never been picky about age.  Good companionship doesn't have much of an age requirement."  He met Mars's eyes for a moment, before letting his gaze slip back down to his coffee.

"Ah, but I'm being rude--you asked me a question as well, didn't you?  Well, it's kind of complicated, but my job involves a lot of travel.  I don't mind, though--I love it.  New places and new people, all the time."

"Mm," he pursed his lips momentarily, thinking. "I don't mind age gaps myself. Not a lot of people my age tend to be out traveling this young. I wouldn't be either, but...things happen."

He coughed and then smiled. 

"Anyway, I like to drive and so does my dog so we make it pretty well."

"So you have a dog?  How lovely, you must not be lonely often."   He smiled at him, his eyes lingering on Mars's tight-fitting shirt.  "That's the only problem I have with the road--the loneliness.  I'm quite fond of company, you see."

"As much as I love Goliath, he's not a very good conversationalist," Mars admitted, grinning ever so slightly. "I miss people more often than I thought I would. I'm not very good with people, in case you didn't notice."

He wrung his hands as he spoke.

He laughed.

"I didn't at all, actually--you come off as charming.  The only odd thing I've noticed about you is why such a good looking young man is travelling alone."  He grinned, unashamed of his flirt.

Mars felt his face flush as he quickly tucked more hair behind his ears. 

"It's complicated," he replied almost immediately. "Though...I wouldn't say no to company for the rest of the night." He spoke almost quietly, testing the waters as he always did. He would know, soon enough, what sort of company this man would be.

He nodded, glancing out the window.

"Neither would I.  But perhaps we should find a quieter place to...talk.  There's a motel not too far from here."

Mars nodded as well.

"That sounds great," he said, unable to hide his smile. "Shall we?"

He winked and called for the check.

"Follow me in your car?  It's only about a fifteen minute drive, if that's acceptable."

"That's fine, I'm sure Goliath won't mind," he replied, standing up. "My car is the green SUV." He pointed out the window.

"Mine's the black one," he replied, pointing as well.  He glanced at the check and pulled a few bills from his pocket, slamming them onto the table.

"Come on, then--let's go!"

-x-

Mars was used to this song and dance, though he was somewhat loathe to admit it. It had become a familiar routine, a necessary one even if it didn't happen often. 

He entered the room and closed the door behind him, sighing slightly.

Priestly tossed his shirt on the floor, revealing a heavily tattooed torso.

"I didn't misunderstand you, right?  We're here to fuck?" he teased, chuckling.  "Not to be crude."

"Well, uh...yeah," Mars replied, both taken off-guard by the blunt statement as well as the tattoos. He glanced at the small ones on his wrists, the tiny crosses just below his palms and the words below. 

He removed his own shirt and tossed it onto the chair he'd placed his bag on. Mars knew he had an attractive body, if nothing else. He was in rather good shape despite his long drives because hunting demons turned out to be more of a workout than he thought. 

"I know we're going to, well... but I'm actually interested in your tattoos," he said, even as he unbuttoned his pants.

"Really?"  he asked, smiling.  He slipped out of his pants and underwear and laid down on the bed, fully naked.

"Which ones would you like to hear about?  Ask away."

Mars finished pulling his own pants off, and shoved all of his clothes into his bag. He tried not to feel self-conscious as he looked over Priestly's rather gorgeous body. He sat next to him, gently touching his chest and some of the tattoos.

"I don't know," he admitted, glancing up at Priestly's eyes. "Just tell me about one."

Priestly pointed to the script on his left arm.

"This is the Hail Mary, but in Welsh.  You see, I'm a devout Catholic--born and raised--and I was born and raised in Wales."  He chuckled, sighing softly.  "It's silly, but it makes me feel safer--as though my homeland's still a part of me, and she's watching over me.  Making sure I don't get my ass kicked in dear old America."

A Catholic? Like him, he supposed. Even now, Mars wasn't sure which part of himself he was supposed to be ashamed of; being gay or being a Catholic? He smiled nervously as he studied the tattoo. He rubbed his wrists with his thumbs, massaging the crosses and letters written there.

"...I-I see."