章 2: Irresistible Fantasy

[Johan's POV]

Johan kicked off his shoes and slammed the door of his apartment shut. Technically, it was the apartment his uncle rented. But after getting married, they moved somewhere closer to his wife's family, leaving the house in Johan's care.

It worked in his favor because it saved him the trouble of spending money on rent until the end of the year. Also, his aunt-in-law was a bitch and they just don't get along well. This could be due to his uncle, who favored him on more occasions than her. What can he say? He's the favorite nephew and her pride just can't suck it up like how she sucked his uncle's dick.

Grunting, Johan picked up his shoes and placed them on the shoe rack beside the door. He ventured inside the cramped living room, wriggling the cross-body bag off of him before he dropped on the leather sofa.

"What a tiring day," he mused to himself as he plucked the buttons of his shirt and used it to wipe the beads of sweat dribbling on his chest. "Glad it's the weekend."

His wall clock flashed 7:07 AM. Most people would start their day in the morning, but his ended at sunrise. Working in a night shift schedule has taken a toll on his body, yet he can't have it any other way. He preferred being awake at night.

Johan picked the aircon remote on the coffee table and pressed a button.

Nothing.

Scowling, he hit the remote with his palm a few times and pressed the ON button again.

Still Nothing.

"Oh, right. I unplugged it," he said, dropping the remote to his side. He'd picked a habit of unplugging devices every time he went out after his uncle accidentally left a rice cooker that almost burned the house.

Johan sighed and laid his head on the armchair. The living room felt like a sauna, but he can't bring himself to plug the air-conditioner as exhaustion anchored him to the couch. Instead, he stretched his legs on the sofa and fished the smartphone from his bag.

A smiling Jack Frost wallpaper greeted him. He liked characters with ice powers, okay? He liked Elsa. He liked Gray Fullbuster. He liked Shouto Todoroki even though he's only got half-ice powers. Why? Because they're cool. And anyone who thought otherwise can go burn in hell.

One message cut him off from admiring his fictional crush. It was from Thesa. Begrudgingly, he tapped the message icon.

'Let's go drinking tonight,' it read.

Johan typed a quick reply. 'Sorry I'll pass. Tnx 4 da invite tho.'

'It's on a karaoke bar,' came her response a few seconds later, followed by another. 'Adrian will come.'

Karaoke bar? Tempting. Adrian will be there? Fuck. Why does she have to tell him that guy will be there? Is she hoping he'll change his mind if Adrian will attend?

'I'll try but can't promise, ok?'

Johan groaned when he hit the SEND button. Saying 'no promises' was futile. They'll expect he'd come because he said he'll try. Because Adrian would be there.

His face flushed when his traitorous brain flashed back to the awkward moment they had earlier. Adrian's unique scent, his subtle touches, and the indirect kiss they shared through the paper cup.

Shaking his head, Johan opened his phone's data and browsed through his social media to distract himself. It's his day off anyway, so staying up late wouldn't hurt. Or should he say staying up all morning? Damn it, his sense of time was fucked up.

All his social media accounts were strictly on private. The only people on his friend list were those he knew personally; family, relatives, friends, former classmates, workmates, and a few people that didn't fit any of the categories but he knew in person. He can't be followed, all non-friend messages were filtered, and his posts can't be shared and non-public.

Can somebody tell him the purpose of social media again?

His thumb scrolled through the phone's screen, reacting to posts now and then, until he stopped on a photo of Adrian lifting his black tank top to show his six-pack abs.

The device fell flat on his face.

Johan cursed like there's no tomorrow. He rubbed the bridge of his nose as he lifted his smartphone with his other hand.

The LIKE button of the photo had turned blue.

Johan gulped, eyes trailing the line of hair below Adrian's navel until he stopped on a prominent bulge in his gym shorts.

He closed the application.

Hell had been summoned to his living room as pellets of sweat rolled down his reddened face. His blood rushed southward, and the dress pants he hasn't removed yet tightened.

What was he thinking? He shouldn't have opened Facebook. He shouldn't have looked at that photo. Twice! And he shouldn't be lusting over someone else's boyfriend.

It was just wrong.

But when his hand brushed against the bump swelling in his pants, an unstoppable moan escaped past his lips. "Oh, God."

His bag fell on the tiled floor.

The metal of his belt clinked as he fumbled over its lock, feet kicking the pants to his ankles. Johan released a shaky sigh as he pulled down his boxers next, and his arousal sprung after being freed from its constraints.

Sultry groans filled the living room as he relieved himself. Adrian's smirking face appeared under his closed eyelids; hands replacing his own, fervent lips caressing, trapping him under his perfectly sculpted body.

Forgive him, for he had sinned.

His hips buckled upward as he reached his climax, lips parting to release a stifled sigh.

He felt dirty.

Panting, Johan reached for his abandoned shirt to wipe the sweat off his face and the sticky fluid that pooled over his abdomen.

The door to his bedroom creaked open, and a white cat with black patches emerged. Johan covered his private area with the crumpled shirt, scandalized that his cat walked in on him after committing such an indecent act. "You heard nothing."

The feline meowed, its blue eyes giving him an accusing stare.

"What? Don't look at me like that, Scythe. Or I'm not giving you fish."

Scythe's ears folded, and his eyes narrowed, meowing with threats that only a cat can do.

"All right! All right! You can have your mackerel." Johan used his foot to grab his boxers and pulled it on. He walked towards the kitchen, opened a drawer, and picked a sachet of cat food. "Don't you dare tattle me to your friends, okay? Or I'm selling you to a siopao vendor."

Scythe only raised his crooked tail that resembled a sickle, jumping to the tiled sink. He gobbled the mackerel the moment Johan put it in his bowl.

"You're such a glutton," Johan said, pouring water to a separate container before he ambled back to the living room to gather his soiled clothes. After putting them in a hamper, he picked up his bag and phone and walked inside his bedroom.

His smartphone vibrated in his hand, signaling another message. It was from Adrian.

'Come later, Han. You can't leave me with just the girls or Rhia won't let me come.'

Johan could only rub his face. If only Adrian knew what he did while imagining him, he wouldn't want to see even just a strand of his hair.

And what's with that 'Han' nickname?

"I'll drop by," he replied, dropping on the side of the bed in defeat. Johan's not good with alcohol, and it troubled him.

The dreams he had after hitting the bed were all muddled, and the moment he woke, he couldn't remember any of it. Johan dragged himself out of the bedroom around five in the afternoon, dressed in a burgundy shirt and grey shorts.

The sun would set in about an hour, and it's the perfect time for a stroll on the beach with Scythe. His apartment was literally just beside the shore of Subic. With a leash to keep the cat from going off on its own, Johan took a leisure walk, enjoying the sound of his flip-flops against the grains of sand.

He found a spot to sit on and plopped down. The sand was especially warm in the afternoon, and he enjoyed dipping his feet in the warmth as he watched the sun's slow descent over the horizon.

"Should I feel guilty?" he mused, looking at Scythe who ignored him and played with a small crab crawling on the sand. "I mean, other people would fantasize with celebrities while doing it, right? It's kinda the same."

Although Adrian wasn't a celebrity, he certainly had the looks to be one. And like any celebrity, he's a man he could never attain. Especially when he's already in a relationship with someone.

The sloshing of waves calmed his troubled mind. He watched the water curl and crash onto the shore, leaving foamy glitters as it ebbed back towards the sea.

Johan smiled, hands weaving patterns across the delicate sand. "It's just a fantasy. As long as I stay out of his bounds in reality, I guess it is okay."

A gentle breeze blew over his face, ruffling his hair as if the sea just agreed to him.