canwrestle's blog

Bonded Like Brothers Part 3

I closed Danny’s beat-up copy of Marley and Me and threw it on the couch beside me. I was three chapters in and already engaged in the story, if I kept reading, I’d end up at the pound picking out a puppy we could not afford, nor would our lease allow.

I looked around for something else to do. We had a big old-fashioned TV that I’d picked up at a pawnshop for twenty bucks. It worked, but we didn’t have cable. Danny had rigged up a coat hanger to act like an antenna, and you could sometimes get a local station, but it was shitty quality and there wouldn’t be anything decent playing on a Friday night anyway. I dismissed that as an option. We did have a DVD player, also from the pawn shop, and a pile of movies, mostly from the two-dollar bin at the CVS. They were pretty terrible though and I’d seen them all at least a dozen times.

The apartment was deathly silent. Robbie was at work and Danny was handing out sandwiches to homeless people with a group from a shelter he volunteered at.

I was bored, or maybe antsy was a better word – I’d been that way since the trip to the frozen yogurt place. Recognizing how much I’d been avoiding any place I might run into Hunter had me feeling like a scalded cat. I wanted to head to "The Paradise" to find out what I’d feel if I saw him again. There was fear though, what if I found myself falling back into the same self-destructive behavior, ignoring all the red flags and the abuse, and running back to him like some sad battered housewife… like my mom. How long before I picked up the bottle, or something else to dull my senses like she did?

“FUCK !” I grunted. I felt like I was coming out of my skin.

I went into the shower, hoping it would settle me down. But as I stood under the water it occurred to me that I’d never been to see Robbie at work. The club he danced at, "Ruby Tuesdays", catered to a much younger crowd. As far as I knew Hunter didn’t go there. I reasoned it would be like taking a baby step, low risk of a confrontation but still a move in the right direction. I got out of the shower, dressed quickly, and left the apartment before I could have second thoughts.

It was still early, and the bar was not quite full when I walked in. The dance floor was mostly empty and the four go-go boys on raised platforms were moving listlessly along to the thumping disco music – obviously saving their energy for when the place would be packed, and the tips would be flowing. Robbie was on the far end, in a pair of gold square-cut briefs, black socks, and black hi-tops. I made my way across the floor toward him, and a huge smile broke across his face when he spotted me.

He immediately picked up the pace, wiggling his ass, dropping it like it was hot, holding the pole that ran up the center of his platform, and thrusting his hips in my direction. I pulled a five out of my pocket and stuffed it in the waistband of his briefs. He bent low and tea bagged my forehead with his amply stuffed pouch as a thank you. I swatted at him, he giggled, stopped dancing, and jumped off the platform.

“You guys came!” he yelled.

“Just me, Danny is out doing good.”

“So you came to do some bad !! It's about dam time. Matt is out of the house... this calls for shots!” He yelled to no one in particular.

We walked together across the dance floor, and I couldn’t stop myself from doing a quick scan of the place. There was no sign of a bleached blond head.

“JJ, two tequilas, and a Bud for my compadre,” Robbie ordered.

The bartender, a burly guy with a full furry chest and a wiry tangled beard, gave us an eye roll but started making the order.

“You are going to dance, get drunk, pick up, and get your rocks off… And then you won't be such a grumpy ass at home,” Robbie enthused.

“I wouldn’t count on it,” I responded just as JJ poured the shots and plunked down the bottle of Bud in front of me.

“C’mon Matt, you are too young to be so old.”

“You paying for those?” the bartender grunted at Robbie.

“Start a tab.”

“I got this,” I said reaching for my wallet.

Robbie put his hand on my arm. “Fuck off JJ, go water down the vodka before it gets busy.”

“It’s coming out of your cheque this time,” JJ growled then moved down the bar to serve someone else.

“Pinche redneck bolillo,” Robbie grumbled watching him go, but then turned to me and picked up his shot. “Pa’riba,” he said, lifting the glass and waiting for me to follow. I matched his movements. “Pa’bajo,” the glass came back down, “Pal’centro,” he gestured toward me, “Pa’dentro,” he knocked it back.

I followed and felt the liquid burn as it moved past my tongue, but then warm my throat and belly when I swallowed. There was no lemon or lime slice, that was for gringos.

“So seriously, why’d you finally come?” Robbie asked, watching me grimace with a wry expression.

“I was bored.” I took a sip of the beer to clear the taste of the tequila.

“Yeah, yeah, but you’ve been hold up in the apartment bored, every weekend since we met. Why now?” he pushed.

I hadn’t talked about Hunter to the boys before. While I was trying to come up with a decent deflection I heard a voice behind me.

“Hose? Is that you?”

I froze. True to his word Hunter had continued to call me Firehouse after the incident in the bathroom. Eventually, it got shortened to Hose, and when he started taking me to parties it was how he introduced me. The voice I’d heard did not sound like Hunter, but it had to be somebody who knew him cause only people in his circle called me that.

I took another gulp of beer and slowly turned, unsure what to expect.

The person smiling at me turned out to be a guy named Kevin. He wrestled for AW a few times and hung around the same crowd as Hunter. He was my age, or close to it, a bit cocky but generally decent. He had short, very neatly parted and styled, honey-brown hair, a square jaw, and a naturally slim muscular build. He looked like a straight jock you’d meet at any college campus. His one distinguishing feature was an extremely wide mouth. It stretched across his face giving him a slightly Jokeresque look. When he smiled he had equally large white teeth. He was the only guy I knew, besides Robbie, who could take my entire dick, tip to base, without gagging, only with him I would guess he could probably fit a few more in at the same time.

“Kev,” I nodded.

“Shit ! Hose! Where the hell have you been? I haven’t seen you in months.”

“Around, you know… working, nothing special.” I was painfully aware of Robbie standing just behind me listening eagerly.

“Is Hunter back?” Kevin asked.

I registered the back and all my embarrassment about being exposed disappeared. “Back?” I asked.

“Oh weren’t you with him? Kevin chattered, “Hunter left the city six or seven months ago. Rumor is, he had to. He owed some money to the wrong people, you know. I heard he’s laying low in Florida. When you stopped wrestling for AW I just assumed you were with him.”

I had a strange dual reaction to hearing this. Relief that he was no longer in LA, but perversely mixed with worry about his welfare.

“Hi, I’m Robbie.”

Kevin looked slightly taken aback by Robbie popping up over my shoulder and introducing himself. But he recovered quickly when Robbie moved around to stand beside me, and Kevin got a look at his tightly muscled body in just the gold briefs. His huge mouth broke into a smile and there was a definite lustful spark in his eye.

“Hey, I’m Kevin.”

“Yep, I’ve seen you around,” Robbie answered, with a smile of his own.

“Is this what’s been keeping you busy Matt? You’ve been hanging out south of the border?”

“Robbie is my roommate,” I answered. The smile had dropped from Robbie’s face at the border crack, and I sensed some danger.

“Sorry, I gotta ask… Have you ever tried to find out how many marshmallows you could stuff in your mouth at once? It's gotta be a lot… I bet you could get into that… what do you call that book thing… the Genius Book of Records.”

Kevin’s lips clamped shut and the lustful twinkle disappeared. He ignored the comment and turned to face me.

“AW was asking about you, he wants you to film again. You should call him.” He gave Robbie a final glare then turned and walked away.

“Pinche mamón,” Robbie muttered, “You ever see one of those nature videos with snakes that can unhinge their jaws?”

I couldn’t help but laugh, his description was accurate.

“So who’s Hunter?”

“Just a guy I was living with before I met you.”

“What like a boyfriend?”

“Yeah, sort of…”

“Matt?” Robbie pushed, but I was saved by JJ returning.

“Roger says break times over, get back on your box.”

“Roger can suck my cock,” Robbie shot back.

“Isn’t that how you got you this job? he sneered.

“HAHA, yeah... but at least I didn’t have to suck his.”

The part of JJ’s face that wasn’t covered in beard flared red, he turned and stomped away.

“Go dance… you’re going to get fired,” I told him.

“Filming for AW huh?” he gave me a hard stare.

I looked down. I hadn’t told the boys about the wrestling videos either.

“I know who AW is… he’s the skinny dude who’s always dressed like he’s going on a safari, he makes porn. Is that where you learned all those wrestling moves?”

“I only made a few,” I answered.

“I should be pissed at you,” he said after a pause. “All that shit about no turning tricks and no more porn. You’re a total hypocrite you know that right?”

“I just wanted you to be safe, there are some crazies out there.”

“I can handle myself… Been doing it since I was eight. I don’t need a mother.”

“I’m not trying to be your mother… big brother maybe, and I'm sorry. I should have told you.”

“Yeah you should have,” he paused for a moment then continued, “You know the brakes on your car are shot.”

I nodded.

“And Danny’s talking about college, he wants to be a social worker.”

“Yeah, I heard.”

“So give AW a call… I like having a big brother. I don’t want to lose him 'cause he tried to brake and ended up squashed under a semi.”

His words generated more heat in my belly than the tequila.

“And mention my name. I wanna wrestle big mouth and see if I can get my whole fist in there.”

With a wink, he trotted across the now crowded dance floor then turned back and yelled, “Oh and I like the nickname, Hose, I’m gonna start using it.”

“You better not,” I threatened.

He laughed then climbed up onto his box and began to gyrate his hips vigorously.

…

I paused at the glass door that led up to the second-floor offices above a row of shops on Ventura Blvd in Studio City. I knew this building. At the top of the stairs was a long corridor with a tax attorney’s office at one end, and a martial arts school at the other. Arnold Wexler was friendly with the owner of the studio and he used it to film some of his videos. The last time I’d been here was with Hunter.

“You good?” Robbie asked, coming up behind me.

“Yeah, just making sure we have the right place. Some of the stores are different… That bookstore was a bridal shop last time I was here.”

I went in and headed up the stairs with Robbie following.

I called AW the day after my night at Ruby Tuesdays and my encounter with Kevin. It hadn’t been a hard decision. I might not have been aware of it before but after my time with Hunter, I’d developed a strong kink for wrestling. Roughhousing with the boys was cool, but I missed the full-on erotic battles I’d had making the videos and I looked forward to the chance to do it again. And there was the money. I did need to get my car looked at, it wasn’t safe. Also having some extra cash for food and other expenses was not a bad thing, especially if I earned it doing something I liked.

Plus I couldn’t deny that knowing Hunter was on the other side of the country made the decision easier.

Including Robbie when I called was also a no-brainer, I didn’t have much choice, if I’d refused, he’d have found a way to contact Arnold anyway.

Telling Danny and convincing him that he couldn’t join us was much harder. I was all for not saying anything, but Robbie convinced me that was a mistake. Danny was enthusiastic and wanted to be included, but I argued he was still too young and needed to wait till he’d passed his GED at the very least. Robbie backed me up. After some arguments we got him to agree, but he was punishing us by sulking. When we left the apartment, he was still speaking only in grunts and growls. I’d half expected him to stow away in the car and then pop out of the trunk when we arrived.

At the top of the stairs, I hesitated again before turning left. The memories of being here with Hunter were a bit overwhelming.

“You sure you’re good?” Robbie asked bumping into me, “You seem nervous? Are you worried about getting your ass kicked on camera? Cause I can hold back, take it easy on you, and not make you look bad big bro.” He winked and wiggled his eyebrows. He'd taken to calling me Big Bro since I referred to myself that way at the bar, it was better than Hose.

“You wish,” I shot back. “The day hasn’t come when I’d tap to you, little brother.”

“We’ll see compadre, we’ll see,” he smiled, then moved past me and headed down the hall to the office marked Shaolin Martial Arts.

Nothing had changed on the other side of the door, it was still a tiny little reception room. There was a desk, a few plastic chairs, a rack for shoes that was currently empty, and a small single-person toilet. I wondered if the school was even still running as it all looked very unused. There was an inside door that led to the actual mat room and coming from the other side we heard grunting and moaning. It didn’t sound like the noises you’d make wrestling, more like what you’d hear when someone is jerking off. The videos that Arnold made at this location usually ended with masturbation, so I figured he was just wrapping a shoot. I indicated for Robbie to be quiet, and we both sat on the chairs to wait.

A few minutes passed, the noise picked up tempo and volume. They were going to be done soon.

Robbie was tapping the heel of his runner rapidly. His jaw was also clenched tightly, and I figured, for all his bravado and smack talk, he was nervous.
When I mentioned Robbie to Arnold I asked if we could film together. I figured it was a good place for him to start, and for me to pick it up again. I’d wrestled with Robbie at home a few times and although I was able to beat him, it was a close call. He was tough and strong, and although he was anxious, I knew he’d forget the nerves and give me a hard fight once we got going. He was a brawler, and it would be rough, he wouldn’t hesitate to cheat to get the win… my dick twitched inside my jeans thinking about it.

We heard a loud grunt from the other side of the door, Robbie turned to me and giggled… at least one of the dudes in there was finished. I smiled and then he turned away and resumed his manic foot-tapping.

The inner door opened, and a guy walked out, naked and sweaty, with cum drying on his stomach. He was startled, not expecting to see people, but recovered when he recognized me. It was another guy I’d wrestled, Kyle. He was older, in his forties I guessed, handsome with a ripped lean physique. He wasn’t much of a competitive wrestler from what I recalled, but an excellent jobber, and a master at the erotic stuff. He suffered beautifully in whatever limb-bending hold you put him in and stayed hard the entire time. Once I’d witnessed him ejaculate while being held in a bear hug without even touching his dick, it was a rare talent.

“Hey Matt, good to see you. How have you been?” he smiled. He had never used my nickname. He hated Hunter, and the feeling was mutual.

I stood to meet him, completely ignoring the fact he was naked and still semi-hard with his hand out ready to shake mine like we were work colleagues at a sales conference. I suppose in some way we were.

“Hey Kyle, doing good thanks,” I answered.

“You’re up next I take it?” He looked over my shoulder at Robbie whose eyes were glued to Kyle’s cock.

I nodded. Kyle looked back at me and grinned, “have fun,” he said, then grabbed a sports bag from under a chair and went into the washroom.

“Órale! Do you know every fucking one?” Robbie grunted.

Another guy came out, this one I didn’t know. He was just as sweaty as Kyle but had his underwear on already. He blushed seeing us and quickly grabbed his shirt from a pile of clothes on another chair and threw it on. From his reaction, I figured he was one of the many straight dudes who wrestled for Arnold to make a quick buck. Probably fresh out of the army – or prison.

“C’mon,” I told Robbie and headed into the studio leaving 'straighty' to his shame.

The studio was one room, covered entirely in a blue vinyl mat. The wall that faced the street was covered in a heavy black curtain; another was mirrored floor to ceiling. The other two were plain white plaster. It wasn’t an enormous space, but it was plenty for wrestling. I knew that Arnold, who did the camera work himself, would stay positioned by the door with his handheld camcorder and shoot the action, sometimes using the mirrors to get a better angle. He was quite talented, never accidentally getting himself in the shot or getting in the way. Hunter had told me that he learned his craft as a cameraman for one of the major TV studios before he started his own business. It was how he and Hunter, whose day job was as some kind of grip or stagehand at the same studio, had met.

He was currently on his knees wiping the mats down with a cloth.

“Arnold?”

He turned and his face broke into a warm smile. “There he is! The elusive Firehose,” he teased.

“Just Matt, if it's okay with you,” I answered.

“Of course,” he got to his feet, threw the rag into a corner, and walked toward us. He was dressed as always in loose cargo shorts with multiple pockets, a long-sleeved plaid shirt, and a tie. He had taken his shoes off though and was just in beige socks. I blushed, realizing I’d forgotten one of the golden rules of being on the mat, no outdoor shoes. Hunter would have ripped me a new one. I quickly bent down and pulled my sneakers off, then grunted at Robbie to do the same.

“Good to see you Matt, glad you called. I heard about you and Hunter. I don’t suppose you’ve heard from him?”

“Ah no sir, I didn’t know he was gone till a few days ago,” I answered with my shoes now in hand.

“Trouble follows that guy, gonna get himself killed one day. If he wasn’t such a damn good wrestler I wouldn’t hire him.”

I didn’t have an answer, I wasn’t sure Arnold knew why I’d left Hunter, and I didn’t feel like getting into it, so I just nodded my agreement.

“And this must be Rob right?”

“Robbie,” he corrected.

“I’ve seen you before haven’t I?” Arnold asked. “You film other stuff?”

“No sir. I dance at 'Ruby Tuesdays' though.”

“Ah yeah that’s it, you’re an excellent dancer son, can you wrestle too.”

“I do alright, Matt has shown me some stuff.”

“Good to hear, good to hear,” Arnold smiled, “Matt has been one of my best sellers so I’m expecting good things.”

“I’ll do my best,” Robbie answered. I’d never heard him speak so politely.

“Okay, give me five minutes to finish setting up. Go get undressed and we’ll get started.”

Back out in the little lobby, the straight guy was already gone, Robbie and I chose a chair each and started to strip. This video was part of Arnold’s 'Naked Fight' series so there was no gear to put on. I’d just dropped my jeans when Kyle came out of the washroom.

“Me next,” he whistled, eyeing my cock hungrily, then turned to Robbie and told him “Good Luck,” before leaving.

Robbie looked at my cock and his brow furrowed. His was a decent size, but looked on the smallish side next to mine. He gave his dick a few tugs and muttered something in Spanish I couldn’t make out.

“This is just for fun right,” I said.

“Hell yeah, gonna be fun kicking your ass big brother,” he winked and made his way back into the mat room.

Arnold was ready to go, the mats were wiped, and he was holding his camcorder fiddling with some buttons.

“So, Robbie, I assume Matt has given you some instructions on how this works?” he said.

We nodded.

“Good, twenty minutes of wrestling, I don’t care how it goes, just keep it up till I give you the signal. Then we switch to jerking off. Is that okay with you both?”

We nodded again.

“You need anything before we start? I got a few of the little blue pills here?”

We both shook our heads. I knew I’d be hard wrestling, I didn’t need help, and Robbie was a horny little bastard, he always seemed to be sporting an erection.

“Okay then, let's get it on boys.” He lifted the camera to his eye and waved for us to begin.

I turned to Robbie. He looked at me, gave one last smile, then his mouth turned down and he put on his tough guy face. I’d seen it before. His chest puffed out, his shoulders went back, and I saw all the muscles in his upper body tighten. There was a spark in his big brown eyes, he was ready to fight. I matched him and used the inches of height I had to try and intimidate him.

We circled, not breaking eye contact. I waited, tense and ready, knowing he would not be able to control his exuberance and any second he’d launch himself at me with everything he had. Already the camera and Arnold were forgotten. It was just me and him, the little brother out to prove he was tough enough to take down the big brother. I was going to do my best to make sure that didn’t happen.