Marc had put the list of all the gay sex acts I was supposed to complete by the end of the year up on the fridge. He affixed it using a heart-shaped magnet. Nice touch, I thought.
A few days passed without anything happening between me and Marc. Given our work schedules, we really didn't even see each other much for a few days after he had made The List. Every time I walked through the kitchen or opened the fridge, though, I noticed it. It was posted prominently there, as if accusing me: "Come on, there's so much more for you to explore. You know you want to." The truth was, I didn't know where to start. Sure, hooking up with Marc and exchanging blowjobs had been exciting and sexy, but some of the things he had committed me to were pretty intimidating for a straight guy. Fuck, was I even straight anymore? Was I just experimenting? Bicurious? Gay? I didn't even know.
Three days after Marc made the list, I was sitting at the kitchen table eating a bowl of cereal and scrolling through instagram on my phone. Marc came into the room wearing a suit and rolling a suitcase.
"Hey Nick - I'm heading to NYC for work this week, so you'll have the place to yourself until Saturday."
"That's cool, man. I hope that you have a good trip!" I said.
He paused as he straightened up some things on the kitchen counter.
"You know, Nick, maybe you should use this time while I'm gone to make some progress on your list." Marc said, nodding in the direction of The List on the fridge. "I bet you could check a few things off while I'm gone...maybe go ahead and set up a Grindr profile." He smirked as he said this.
My face reddened when he said this. I hadn't really expressed my anxieties to him about continuing to experiment with the gay desires he had awakened in me.
"I dunno Marc," I said, fiddling with my phone. "Maybe this is all too much, too fast. Don't get me wrong. I loved when we hooked up - that was hot and fun...but some of these things seem pretty advanced for me."
Marc sat down in the chair across from me and looked into my eyes. "Nick, I know all of this seems new and a little bit intimidating. But you were the one who told me that you thought you needed to broaden your sexual horizons. All of this is part of that. Before you let me suck your dick, you had never contemplated doing anything sexy with another man. Like I said, you may find there are things you don't like, but if my suspicions are correct, you'll find a lot more things that you DO like. You just need to take the first few steps."
I looked down at my phone, not wanting to make eye contact. Deep down I knew he was right. My curiosity about sex with men had been piqued and I knew that I needed to go further down the rabbit hole.
"You're right, Marc. It's just that this is new to me, and a little scary."
"I know it is. But that's also what makes it fun! Being a little scared, exploring new things. Giving up control...not quite knowing what's going to happen next. The thrill of the chase...or being chased. Now, I've got to head out. But I hope you have a great week."
Marc gathered up his things and rolled his suitcase to the door. He pulled out his phone to order an uber. I got up and put my cereal bowl in the sink. I wandered over to Marc.
"OK, bud. I'm off!" Marc. pulled me in for a bro-hug, slapping my back as he hugged me. As he leaned in, he whispered in my ear: "Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" and then he bit my earlobe and gave my cock a playful squeeze. With that, he was gone.
I wandered aimlessly around the apartment for a while. I turned on the TV and flipped through channels, but I couldn't find anything that interested me. I messed around on my phone, scrolling through instagram. I was just restless. With Marc gone, I felt like I was just rattling around the apartment.
Idle hands are the Devil's workshop, as they say, and my idleness and curiosity started to get the better of me. I wandered down the hall to Marc's room. I surveyed the scene. I hadn't really taken note of my surroundings the last time I had been in here. Marc's room was so neat. The bed was perfectly made, with a slate-gray duvet cover. There was a bookcase in the corner. There was a tasteful mid-century dresser with a leather tray on it containing some spare coins. A scented candle. I noticed again the tasteful black and white photographs of male torsos that adorned his wall that I had seen when I had first toured the apartment. It was very much the room of a modern, fashionable and moderately well-off gay man.
I browsed the titles on his bookshelf. An eclectic mix of stuff for sure. Some science books. A few historical biographies. Some fiction. Tucked near the end of the shelf, pushed back a bit was something interesting: "The Joy of Gay Sex - Fully Revised and Expanded Third Edition." I took it off the shelf and sat down on the bed while I paged through it. There were illustrations of guys in all sorts of different positions. Guys blowing each other, guys getting fucked in the ass, a guy blowing two dudes at once. Unconsciously, my hand moved to my rapidly-hardening dick as I flipped through more of the pages. I stopped myself. I didn't want to make a mess in my pants in Marc's room. I made a mental note to come back for the book later so I could enjoy it more.
I stood up and continued my snooping. I opened up his closet. Nothing especially interesting. Some dress shirts and two suits. I checked the drawers in his bureau. Pants, t-shirts, socks. All neatly folded. I opened another drawer. It was his underwear drawer. Now this was a bit more interesting. He had some tighty-whiteys, some boxer briefs, and three skimpy Y-backed thongs in different colors. I chuckled as I caressed the soft material. An image of Marc's muscular body wearing one of these thongs flashed through my head and I felt my cock jump a little bit.
I put everything back as neatly as I had found it, not wanting Marc to find anything amiss and feel that I'd violated his trust. I returned to the bed and snooped through the drawer in his nightstand. Half a dozen condoms and a medium sized bottle of lube. I imagined Marc bringing different guys back to his room, seducing them, removing their clothing and underwear, laying them back on his bed, his partner rolling a condom onto his cock, and Marc lubing himself up and gently entering his lover, who moans softly as Marc's girthy dick opens him up. I imagined how Marc might feel, his rock hard cock invading yet another tight hole - maybe a new one, maybe one that he has fucked many times, the pleasure centers in his brain lighting up as his dick pushes deeper into his partner. I imagine his muscles rippling as he finds his rhythm and begins pumping in and out, his lover moaning uncontrollably and writhing in ecstasy as Marc holds him down firmly and takes his pleasure.
My breathing was shallow as I imagined the scene. I closed the drawer to his nightstand and hastily exited his room. He hadn't been gone for a day and I was already snooping through his things. I decided I needed to take a walk to calm down. I was going crazy just being in this apartment by myself.
I put on my shoes and headed out. It was an unseasonably overcast and chilly day in Los Angeles. I walked for what seemed like hours, thoughts swirling in my head. Was I horny? Definitely. Ever since Marc and I had hooked up for the first time, I had been in a state of elevated sexual arousal. I needed something to distract me. When I got back to the apartment I decided to call Carole to see if she wanted to hang out or get a drink.
Carole arrived about twenty minutes later. A knock on the door signified her arrival.
"Hey Nick!" She said brightly as she came through the door. She took off her coat and tossed it onto the sofa.
