Chapter One of 'Always'

'Always I want to be with you,

Make believe with you,

Live in harmony...'

Always by Erasure

Chapter One
JPOV
For a split second, I thought I had finally found him, the man of my dreams.
As he sat smiling at his friends, I took in his glorious tousled copper hair. His emerald eyes glinted as his face lit up and my eyes fell upon his...jaw. Holy jawporn!
But as he moved and talked, I realised that he was far too...what can I say?...effeminate for me.
He was definitely gay.
Very obviously gay.
Far too camp.
An out and out queen, in fact.
His hand movements and the way he flipped his head to the side and lifted up that chiselled jaw were just so flamboyant.
"Jasper," Emmett called drawing my attention away from his beautiful face, "I'm so glad you could make it tonight. Everyone this is Jasper. He's in my History class this term."
I walked towards the group of guys seated around the large table in a booth in this rather rundown coffee shop.
"Let me introduce you to the gang, Jasper. This is Riley," he said pointing to the person furthest from me. "This is Jake and this is Seth."
"Hi guys," I said as I glanced in their direction, "pleased to meet you all."
"And this is Edward," he said rather dramatically drawing my attention back to definitely the hottest guy in the room. "He's my younger brother, but because he's so brainy he moved up a year in high school and has come to university with me."
"Hello, sweetie," he drawled, taking my hand in his, "so pleased you could join us tonight, Jasper." And he actually kissed my hand before shuffling over on the bench to make room for me and tapping the seat next to him.
"Sit next to me, honey," his voice was slow and with an accent which could almost have been English.
I couldn't think of an excuse rapidly enough, so I slunk down next to him and Emmett sat down in the space next to me.
"So Jasper, where are you from? I detect a hint of southern twang in your sexy voice," Edward asked tilting his head towards me.
Before I could answer, Emmett chimed, "I told you, Edward, to leave the boy alone. Don't scare him off."
"Just being friendly, bro," Edward huffed and lifted his chin away from his brother.
I could handle myself. I've had to deal with a lot worse than Edward before. "Yeah, I'm from Texas originally, but spent time in Jacksonville and Chicago in my early and mid teens."
Edward smiled at me and then raised an eyebrow at his brother in defiance.
I found it difficult to take my eyes off him. He was so good looking and despite his mannerisms, there was something about him which kept drawing my attention back to him. His fingers were playing with the collar of his rather loud and slightly too patterned shirt. He had some sort of scarf knotted around his neck and I noticed a single diamond stud in one of his ears when his extremely long fingers went to run through his hair.
"So, beautiful, you're going to major in History then?" Edward enquired with interest.
"Yep, it's always been a favourite subject of mine. How about all of you?" I tried to open up the conversation to include everyone seated around the table.
Emmett took the lead. "These three are all taking Maths and Physics," he said nodding to the guys facing us.
"Music and Literature are my subjects, darling, if you're interested. I'm the creative one." Edward interrupted his brother once more. There was obviously some rivalry between the two of them and I was now playing 'piggy in the middle'.
It suddenly struck me that Emmett had invited me here for a specific reason and if it wasn't to meet Edward, had he intended to set me up with one of the three guys opposite who were now staring intently at me? Or was it a prelude to Emmett actually asking me out on a date?
I forcibly swallowed and tried to remain calm. Emmett had been the one to seek me out in the lecture theatre, his 'gaydar' obviously zooming in on me, and he had introduced himself within minutes of sitting down. I thought he was just being friendly and welcoming, with his invite to meet 'like-minded' students for coffee.
Emmett was definitely not my type. He reminded me of a beefy ex-boyfriend who had become too possessive and too controlling. I hadn't seen the similarity until now. And his brother, who was currently sitting a little too close for comfort, was not my type either, despite his ravishingly beautiful face.
I leant forward and put my arms on the table in an attempt to put some distance between my neck and Edward's fingers, which had started to play with the hair on the back of my neck.
I scanned the three faces sitting across from me just as the waitress came to take our order.
Jake was probably the one I'd choose if I was ever given a choice. His body was lean and the muscles bulged under his tight black tee-shirt. His long dark hair was pulled back into a ponytail and he had a glorious smile with dazzling white teeth. As he hadn't said a lot yet, I thought I'd reserve my final judgement on him just for the moment.
Riley was sweet in his own way, but there was something a little creepy about his eyes. I couldn't put my finger on it, but there was no instant chemistry between us.
Seth was cute, I suppose, as well as good looking and seemed to have a wicked sense of humour.
"And what would you like?" the waitress was talking to me.
"Oh, just a plain black coffee, please," I managed to blurt out.
Edward nudged me. "He likes it strong...just like his men," he smirked and winked at me as well.
I just shook my head and decided not to comment.
"So who's up for a game of pool when we've had our coffees?" Emmett challenged, changing the subject.
We all nodded our agreement.
"I think I can bend over in these jeans," Edward informed us all unashamedly and I looked down at his lap to see the denim was hugging his lower half very tightly. My eyes fixed on the bulge at the front for a few seconds longer than I should and only looked away when he leaned in close and whispered, "See something you like, baby?"
I blushed immediately and was fortunately saved from further embarrassment as the waitress arrived and served our coffees.
We all chatted amiably as we sipped our hot beverages and I decided that these guys were going to be fun to hang around with whilst I was at university. I hadn't managed to connect with any of the guys in my halls of residence as I was the only gay male in our corridor and most of them had given me a wide berth.
"So what do you say to three teams for pool?" Riley suggested.
"I'll go with Jake," Seth offered eagerly.
"Emmett's usually my partner," Riley added.
"In more ways than one," Edward grinned. "So that leaves Jasper all for me then."
"Just for pool, Edward, remember," Emmett seriously warned his brother.
"Well that's entirely up to us, isn't it Jasper?" Edward said with a twinkle in his eye. "We'll play last as I've got to pop to the little boys' room."
So as we all headed over to the pool table, Edward minced in the opposite direction.
"Sorry about Edward, Jasper. He gets a little over the top when he's nervous or excited. He'll calm down a bit by the end of the evening," Emmett assured me.
"Don't worry about it. I can handle him."
I perched myself on a nearby stool and watched as the two teams each took turns to take shots at the balls.
Edward soon returned and headed straight towards me. I took in his full appearance for the first time. He was tall, probably an inch or two higher than me. He was slim but with broad shoulders; his tight fitting shirt emphasised the shape of his chest. His skinny jeans hung low on his hips and his legs appeared to go on forever. God he was gorgeous and, despite the way he walked, all swaying hips and limp wrist, I felt stirrings in my loins.
I closed my eyes briefly as he perched on the stool next to me.
"You okay, honey?" he asked with concern. "Don't worry, I'm a perfect shot. We'll win, you'll see."
I shook my head slowly. If that was all I had to worry about this evening. I tried to convince myself that I wasn't really falling for Edward. He just wasn't my type, I told myself once more.
Emmett and Riley won the first game and Jake appeared to be a sore loser. Seth consoled him with a kiss and a cuddle and as the night wore on it became obvious that these two guys were an item. But now, I didn't feel any disappointment that Jake was already spoken for.
Edward and I played Emmett and Riley next.
"I'll break for us," Edward offered and as he leant over the pool table, his shirt rode up his back and exposed a sprinkling of stars which were tattooed over his hip and across his lower back. Against his pale smooth skin, they stood out like stars in the Milky Way.
As he stood up to face me, I caught sight of a piercing through his belly button and for some reason I wondered where else he was tattooed and pierced.
As Edward predicted, we did win this game and the game against Jake and Seth. We were about to start the second round of games, when I noticed a figure walking into the coffee shop. I had to do a second take just to make sure.
"Oh shit," I hissed loudly, attracting my new friends' attention.
"What is it, sweetie?" Edward asked as the colour must have instantly drained from my face.
"Oh God, don't let him see me," I said pulling Edward by his shirt so he was standing between my legs as I sat on the stool.
"Who are you talking about?" Edward whispered into my ear as he looked down at me.
"The guy who just walked in," I said quietly against Edward's hard chest.
I felt Edward turn his head to look over his shoulder.
"The guy with the dirty blond hair scraped back into a short tail?" he asked.
"Yes, he's an ex of mine, in fact, a rather nasty ex-boyfriend. Edward, would you do me a favour?" I asked in my panic without really considering the consequences.
"Anything for you, baby," he promised.
"If he catches sight of me, can we pretend that we're together?"
Edward gives me a gentle smile, "No problem, honey."
I risk a peak over Edward's shoulder and instantly freeze when I see him heading towards us.
Edward gets the message and puts his hands on my waist and steps a little closer. I look up at him and blink.
His fingers reach up and caress my cheek, gliding down to my chin. He slowly lifts my face upwards so that we are now a matter of inches from each other. His pink tongue peaks out and before I can stop him, his lips connect with mine. I just surrender to the moment and let my jaw go slack. Edward's warm yet soft lips move softly over mine and his moist tongue seeks entrance into my mouth. I open up for him and tentatively flick my tongue over his. He hums with pleasure I assume, although he may just be acting the part.
When we pull apart, I open my eyes to see another pair of dark eyes glaring at me.
"Jasper," he growls, "can I have a word with you...in private?"
"If you've got something to say, you can say it in front of me," Edward says in a tone I have yet to hear him use.
"And all of us as well," Emmett steps forward making his presence known.
"Okay...if that's the way you want it," my ex sneers. "Jasper, I've been looking for you these last few months and now I've finally found you, I want you to come home with me," he says in a familiar sweet voice. But I've learnt my lesson and I don't accept this pretence of niceness.
"We finished a long time ago and I'm not going anywhere with you ever again," I say as firmly as I can muster.
"We just had a misunderstanding, Jasper. I promise you that things will be better between us this time," he tried to smile and I remember how he would have almost convinced me in the past, but not this time.
I sighed, but pulled Edward closer until I could feel his heart beating in his chest. He no doubt could feel mine pounding as well and my shaking hands as I wrapped my arms around his waist.
"He's with me now," Edward said confidently holding me tighter to his body.
Ignoring Edward, James looked at me, "You've got one chance Jasper before I start to get angry."
"I think you'd better leave now," Emmett snarled.
Jake stepped forward too and as he overshadowed James, he wisely retreated, turned and headed out of the door.
"That's the last we'll see of him," Jake gloated but I was not entirely convinced. I collapsed in relief for now and my head rested on Edward's chest.
"Thanks for that," I muttered into his shirt.
"Anytime," he said as he took a step back. "Are you sure you're okay, sweetie? He was a nasty piece of work. Whatever did you see in him?"
"He was really good to me at first and we got on well, but after a few months he got all possessive and I saw a jealous and vicious side to him. Thank goodness I got out while I did. I don't know what would have happened if I would have stayed with him."
"You would have been a battered husband and another statistic," he replied sardonically.
Edward and I lost our next two games as neither of us could seem to concentrate fully on the game. On my part, I'm not sure if it was due to my unexpected encounter with James or the fact that I wanted Edward to hold and kiss me once more.
Edward seemed to quieten down just as Emmett had predicted, but that didn't stop him starting to dance when the background music was turned up a few notches.
So while the other two teams played their final games, I sat and watched Edward gyrating and singing to some cheesy love songs.
"Always I want to be with you, make believe with you, live in harmony, harmony, harmony...," Edward sang in tune and didn't take his eyes from me.

To read the rest of the story please use the link:

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7073954/1/Always

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