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Bing, bing

Chandler took out his iPhone to see who had sent him a text message. The quick smile appeared as soon as he saw who sent it…… it was Jeremy.  He quickly slid his thumb to unlock his phone to read Jeremy’s text message…

Sorry to bug u but u think I could crash on ur couch tmrw night until my furniture comes in?

Chandler shook his head in a chuckle and amazement as he sent a positive reply, because here was an incredibly famous and rich guy.  Instead of checking into a five star hotel he wanted to sleep on Chandler’s couch.  How can you not love such a humble, down to earth guy like Jeremy Lin… his friend and now his teammate once again?

Chandler had always liked Jeremy.  When he first arrived at the Rockets’ training camp, it was too bad Jeremy’s services were not needed by the Rockets and he got waived.  They still remained friends through Twitter and occasionally texted each other back and forth. Now Jeremy had returned and was a Rockets once again.

Chandler couldn’t explain the “feeling” he had at the moment.  It’s a tingling, butterflies-in-your-stomach kind of feeling.  What is this?  Chandler asked himself.  He knew the answer to that question… maybe it was fear that was holding him back from saying it out loud; or maybe the thought of it scared him.  Whatever it was, he felt it had to be buried away.  This couldn’t be happening to me, could it?  I like girls and have had girlfriends, Chandler thought.

The questions kept coming to him, yet the answers were all the same.  I need to get some sleep, he thought… maybe in the morning all will be normal again.

***

Bing, bing… a new text message arrived in his inbox.  Chandler had no idea what time it was or how long he had slept.  With glazed eyes he picked up his phone to see who had texted him… the instant smile spread across his sleepy face.

Hey, I just landed in H-town.  Heading 2 u now.

Shock came quickly after.  Shit, Jeremy is coming; I have to get the place cleaned and ready for his arrival, Chandler thought in a panic.

He rolled out of bed and jumped in the shower.  Hot running water washed over his body, warming and relaxing him, but that nagging feeling was back.

No, thought Chandler…go away, feeling, this isn’t what I need to think about now.

After his rinse, Chandler turned off the water, stepped out and dried himself.  He quickly put on a shirt and basketball shorts.  Heading towards his living room he began to tidy up, made sure all the pillows were fluffed and where they were supposed to be.  For some reason Chandler wanted everything to be perfect for Jeremy’s arrival.  Stepping back to scan his living room and kitchen, he gave himself a nod of approval.  Not before long the door bell rang.  Chandler opened the door to a fresh-faced young man carrying a bag in each hand and a backpack strapped behind him – his friend Jeremy.

“Hey buddy!  How was your flight?  Come on in.”

“Hey, Chandler…”

Jeremy entered the apartment and dropped his bags on the floor as he turned to greet Chandler with a hug.  Chandler couldn’t help himself but to deeply inhale Jeremy’s scent – fresh soap, so simple and natural,  yet so intoxicating.  He took another deep breath before letting Jeremy go.

“Hey, dude, how are you?  Thanks for letting me stay at your place.  Really appreciate it,” Jeremy rambled.

“No problem. Anything for you, man,” said Chandler with his trademark smile.

His smile has always been cute, Jeremy thought, …too bad he likes girls.

“You have a great place here, Chandler,” Jeremy said after a whistle.

“Thanks. Your place will look the same.  You tired after your flight?”

“Nah, it was a short flight.  I’m better now that I’m here,” Jeremy said as he smiled brightly at Chandler.

For a moment Chandler felt his heart race, his hands became clammy.  He quickly shook his head and realized that they were still standing in his foyer.  He’s your friend, Chandler; get a hold of yourself man, he told himself.

“Jeremy, would you like something to drink or eat?” Chandler asked.

“Just water, thanks.”

Chandler led him to the kitchen where he handed Jeremy a bottle of water.

“Let me show you around.”

He gave Jeremy a tour of his apartment.  It was a spacious, modern two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment that had a great view of Houston.  It was going to be fun having Jeremy live in the same building as him.  They clicked right away when Jeremy first became a Rocket.

They were the same age and had many similar interests.  Even though his time with the Rockets the first time was a short one, this time it would be different.  Chandler would like to get to know Jeremy better.  The thought of getting closer to Jeremy made him smile.

“What are you smiling about?”

“Huh?… Oh… I was just thinking how nice it’ll be having you live in the same building.”

“I know right!  I just hope you won’t get tired of seeing me.”

“Never!” Chandler grinned.

Never is right, Chandler, how can you get tired of seeing that fresh-faced, bright eyed and always smiling man? Shit!! Chandler thought, there you go again, wandering into uncharted territory.

“Hey, would you like a mini-tour of Houston?” Chandler suddenly asked Jeremy.

“Yeah, that would be great.  I need to know where the practice center and grocery stores are,”  Jeremy laughed.

He has an infectious laugh, Chandler thought.  His laughs were always bright and cheery, reached all the way up to his eyes and made them crinkle…so cute.  

They headed down to the parking garage towards Chandler’s car.  Chandler took Jeremy to their practice center and showed him the nearby grocery stores and restaurants around their area.

“Hey, Chandler, I’m hungry.  Can we get lunch?”

“Sure, where would you like to eat?”

“Hmm… some sushi would be good.”

Chandler drove them to his favorite sushi restaurant.  When they entered the restaurant wasn’t filled with the lunch time rush yet.  They opted to sit at the sushi bar.  The manager recognized them and asked if he could take a picture of them and they were more than happy to do so.

“How’s the sushi?” Chandler asked Jeremy.

“It’s good, I love sushi.”

“Good, I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself.”

Chandler happily watched Jeremy eat.  He knew Jeremy loved food, but seeing it first hand was a sight to behold.  Boy, can he eat.

“Are you excited about media day tomorrow?” asked Chandler.

“More nervous than excited, really, I’m still not used to all of that.”

“You’ll do fine tomorrow.  From what I can tell, the media loves you,” said Chandler with a smile and a reassuring hand on Jeremy’s shoulder.

After lunch they continued on their mini-tour as Chandler continued to show Jeremy around Houston.  Before heading back to Chandler’s, they made a quick stop at a grocery store to pick up a few things for dinner.

Chandler wanted to make streak, scalloped potatoes and green beans for Jeremy’s first dinner in Houston.  They ended up making dinner, joking around and just having a good time together.

“Shall I light some candles?”  Jeremy teased.

“If you like to dine in candle lights I can make that happen,” Chandler teased back with a laugh.

Dinner was delicious.  They cleared the table and threw all the dirty dishes, pots and pan into the dishwasher.  Jeremy was popping some popcorn for their after-dinner movie.  They chose to watch ‘Safe House’ because they both loved Denzel Washington.

The atmosphere in the apartment resembled that of a movie theater; all the lights were turned off, except for some scented candles flickering in the kitchen.  Jeremy and Chandler were on the couch, sitting fairly close to each other, watching the movie and sharing the bowl of popcorn between them.

Chandler had a slightly harder time concentrating on the movie due to the fact that their thighs were touching each other; Jeremy didn’t seem to mind.  His heart was once again beating faster, hands getting clammy and suddenly he’s feeling flustered. Taking his eyes off  the TV, Chandler quickly glanced at Jeremy who was busy chewing his popcorn.  Traces of butter were still on Jeremy’s lips which glistened in the light reflected off the TV.  He had plump, full lips for a guy, Chandler thought, and a very strong jaw line too.

Chandler mentally traced Jeremy’s jawline down to his smooth, long, lean neck.  His eyes lingered there for a while, wondering what it would be like to softly kiss Jeremy’s neck…

Whoa!! Where did that come from?  Chandler, get a hold of yourself, man.  Chandler was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn’t notice Jeremy looking at him.

“Chandler, you OK, man?”

“Whuh… hmm… what?”

“I asked, are you ok?  You were just staring off into space.  Everything good?”

“Uh…yeah, man, everything is good… sorry, was just thinking…” Chandler tried to brush it off with a small laugh.

Jeremy gave him a nod before turning back to the movie.  Chandler followed suite, but his mind was still thinking – he was still confused.  He reached into the bowl to grab some popcorn only to brush his fingers lightly against Jeremy’s hand.  That slight brush made his body tingle all over, as if a surge of electricity entered his body.  He didn’t know how to response to that – he just froze up with his hand still in the popcorn bowl.

“Dude, what’s with you tonight?  You’re acting strange!”

“Huh…I’m sorry, man. I must be tired…that’s all.”

Jeremy looked at the clock. “Well, it is 10:30 and tomorrow we have a long and busy day… let’s call it a night, huh?”

“Yeah, OK…”

Jeremy took the popcorn bowl to the kitchen as Chandler got up to open his linen closet door to pull out a sheet, a pillow and a blanket for Jeremy.  He went over to his couch to lay out the sheet and set up Jeremy’s bed for the night.

“Thanks man.  I could have done that myself.”

“You’re my guest, no problem at all,” Chandler replied.

“Well thanks anyways…”

“Yeah…”

Jeremy wished Chandler a goodnight’s sleep before he headed for the guest bathroom to wash up as Chandler entered his own room to get ready for bed.

Chandler was having a restless night – tossing and turning in bed.  His mind was running wild with thoughts and feelings for the man currently sleeping just a few feet away from him.  He turned to look at the clock and it read 1:25.  Shit!  Chandler turn off your mind and go to sleep, he scolded himself.

After a couple more minutes, he decided that maybe a warm glass of milk would do the trick.  It worked when he was a little kid; it could work now… he needed it to work now.

He rolled out of bed and headed for the kitchen, but before he could reach the kitchen he saw Jeremy sleeping peacefully… the blanket was bunched around Jeremy’s waist, his bare chest exposed.  His pale skin glowed in the dark apartment under the moonlight cascading into the living room.  His legs stuck out from under what little piece of the blanket was left to cover the rest of his body.

Chandler’s feet moved towards the sleeping body.  He slowly bent down until he was face-level with the sleeping Jeremy.  His eyes scoured Jeremy’s  body, moved over the defined abs up the smooth chest, continued up that long, smooth neck and stopped above those full, plump lips. Despite the dim light, Chandler could still see how rosy-red Jeremy’s lips were.

Jeremy’s sudden stirring terrified Chandler and caused him to loudly gulp.  He couldn’t move, his mind was telling his body to move away, but he couldn’t.  What will Jeremy think?  What will he say?  OMG!!! thought Chandler.  He’s bracing himself for the fallout… nothing happened. Jeremy was just stirring in his sleep.

He started to mumble something which Chandler couldn’t hear clearly.  He put his left ear closer to Jeremy’s mouth to see if he could make out what Jeremy was mumbling about, but to no avail.  He should have gotten up and left; but, he didn’t.  He was drawn to those rosy red lips again.  Jeremy’s mouth was slight parted.

Chandler slowly brought his head towards Jeremy’s lips and soon his lips were on Jeremy’s.  Jeremy’s lips were warm and full – Chandler wanted more of them.  His mind didn’t care about the consequences. He was enjoying this too much.  They kissed more passionately, urgency in each kiss.  His hand pressed gingerly against Jeremy’s chest – his skin was soft and warm to the touch, exactly as Chandler thought it would be.

Chandler felt his own heat rising within him causing his heart to beat faster, blood to rush to his head and his loins.  Surprisingly, through the heavy kissing, Jeremy was still asleep, but you couldn’t  tell from the way he was kissing Chandler.

This was getting too dangerous, Chandler thought.  He didn’t want to break the kiss, but he knew he had to.  He was afraid of it going any further, plus it didn’t help that he now had a raging hard-on.  Reluctantly Chandler parted his lips from Jeremy’s.

He rushed to his room and shut the door shut behind him.  When Chandler lay on his back looking at the ceiling a few minutes later, he still had his hands pressed against the sides of his head to stop the spinning feeling he was having.  He was more confused than ever before.

What just happened?  Am I dreaming?  Yes, this has to be a dream… I mean…how could I be?  No, no, it has to be a dream, Chandler thought as his eye lids became droopy and  sleep washed over him.

Continue to Chapter 2