2001

North Las Vegas, Nevada

Virtue Studios, Inc

-1-

Maverick Daily smelled exactly like a new car.

Haley had noticed the pungent leather-y pine scent when he met Virtue’s newest addition that morning and it was becoming nauseating as their naked bodies rolled on top of each other.

Maverick’s unsteady hands rake through Haley's hair and he laughs on cue, pushing their faces together as the camera flashes.  He puts his arm under Maverick's tightly muscled lithe body and rolls them over so he is on top and pushes his sheet of hair to one side leaving Maverick’s  face visible to the camera. He touches his lips to the younger man's forehead, nose and finally to the corner of Maverick’s perfectly bowed rosy lips. The other man smiles, loops his arm behind Haley’s head and pushes his body upward, sealing their lips in a chaste kiss.

Haley closes his eyes and cringes.

“What ?” Maverick asks.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Haley whispers to him.

The studio lights  go up and Jean Dory clacks on to the white background , dressed in his favorite Gucci jacket and teetering on custom Manolo Blahnik stilettos.

Trailing Jean is the writer from Penthouse.

“That was a sweet kiss, love,” Jean tells Maverick and then slaps his shoulder lightly with a folded up fan. “But never fucking do it again. This is a softcore shoot, my love. You should almost touch, almost show your dick,  almost fuck, But don’t ever fucking go for it.”

Jean calls over an actress standing at craft services to demonstrate  something for him and Haley’s mind wanders to everything else he needed to do today. Jean had been putting on a bit of a show since the Penthouse writer arrived to interview him for a feature about  the explosive new world of virtual porn and how Virtue was leading the charge.

Jean's brisk hand clap brings Haley back to the moment.

“You know what, boys ? Let’s do a few close up kissing but make it extra dirty,” Jean grins, skipping back to his spot behind the photographer. “You two look good together and if the client doesn’t want them I’ll find other places.”

Haley had taken on so much work with Virtue that he'd been going on autopilot for the last year. He knew his best angles and how to make his body look desirable. Jean had started taking on contracts for erotic and x-rated stock photo vendors and Haley had more than once seen his face or body show up in a pop up ad on a porn website. 

“I like your tattoos,” Maverick says an hour later when their shoot finally ends.

Haley gives him a tight smile and wanders the set for his clothes.

He covered his smaller tattoos with makeup on set but he liked the feather angel wings tattoo, despite it being Maxwell’s creation. He lived in fear that Maxwell was going to send him a bill for it.

“Thanks,” Haley says, quickly pulling his underwear on. He was going to be late if he didn't get  outof here soon.

“So, anyway… ,” Maverick starts awkwardly. “I, um...I just wanted to tell you I saw you at men’s night at The Ranch last year and I saw that you--”

“Oh. Sorry, I don’t really do that kind of thing with people I work with--”

“Yeah, no,” Maverick says. “ I just meant…I saw you taking your meds in the bathroom and I think it’s cool Virtue has a performer with HIV. I have it too. It’s why I asked Jean if I could do my first shoot with you.”

“That was your first shoot ?”

Haley pauses and takes a good look at Maverick for the first time. “How old are you ?”

“18.”

“God, you’re a baby.”

It slips out and he can tell he’s embarrassed Maverick with his dismissive comment.

“I was on the street,” Maverick says defensively. “A guy told me I should try porn. I figured it was safer than getting in people’s cars…but it’s a lot harder than I thought. I feel like I did something wrong but like….no one gave me any direction.”

“They never do....And you fucked up a little,” Haley tells him. “Like you should never wear as much cologne as you’re wearing right now. If this was hardcore we might be in a close position for hours and people are sensitive about smell.”

“I'm not wearing cologne...it’s the stupid shaving cream,” Maverick corrects. “Jean said the client wanted clean shaven look. I had to use like two cans to get my entire body and I mean holy fucking shit I did not know testicle skin could bleed that much. How the fuck do you do that everyday ?”

“I don't. I had my body hair lasered off--”

“That’s insane--”

“Maybe. But porn bodies don’t look like real human bodies,” he tells him. “I workout everyday, get weekly  manicures and pedicures, spend thousands a year on my hair,  facials, anal bleaching, tanning--”

“Fuck, you bleach your asshole--”

“I mean…some users expect a certain look. Jean doesn't like to admit it, put the more unrealistic you look the more downloads you get Especially for younger guys. If I were you I’d just start with a Brazilian wax,” he says. “Be warned they will get everything and the first time hurts like a bitch--”

“I can handle pain. I got the exact same crazy dick piercing Jean has with no pain killers--”

Haley frowns. “Why have you seen Jean’s dick ?,” 

“We had sex,” Maverick grins proudly. “Jean said he offers it to all the talent if they want it.”

“And you…wanted it. Right ?”

“Huh...he never made that offer to me.”

“I thought it’d be weird because he’s kinda old or whatever but fuck…. I think I saw god  like three times,” Maverick laughs. A PA comes over and gives them a look that said they needed to get off set. “Um, do you want to grab a smoothie at that place down the street? I could really use some more advice--”

“I actually have someplace I need to be--”

“Oh. After ?”

“I have plans after. And I’m late so--”  

“Oh, okay. Cool.” Maverick shrugs doing a terrible job hiding his disappointment.

“But I’ll see you at the party tonight,” Haley adds quickly, grabbing his backpack and bolting out the studio.

-2-

Despite already being 10 minutes behind schedule  Haley slows his pace as he passes the production office.  He wanted to stage an impromptu run in with Luce Grace but the the computer programmer was busy talking with the  technician installing the new servers.

Haley heads for the exit and is about to go upstairs to his apartment when Charlotte Dory hooks her arm around his and pulls him back. She doesn’t look up from her Palm Pilot as she digs through her oversized  bag.

“Hi Charlotte, I’m running late for--”

“My assistant was supposed to give these to you yesterday,” she says taking a folder out of her bag and handing it to him..  “It has your bus ticket and hotel info for L.A tomorrow. A car will take you to the hotel and set. Don't be late. Any questions ?”

He shakes his head.

In another money making venture, Jean used his casting director connections to book Virtue performers in Hollywood productions that needed  background actors who were willing to get naked or have simulated sex. It was less fun than shooting on the Virtue set but the money was good for the amount of work and because it was all simulated it didn't matter he had HIV.

Plus it was a free trip to LA.

Haley still felt intimidated by Charlotte even though she was five years younger than him. Her husband had just taken the position of chairman of MBC Casino and the  couple had things like personal assistants, house staff and lunch meetings.

He, on the other hand, had fallen asleep last night while eating Ooodles of Noodles and crying over the children’s novel he was re-reading for the fiftieth time.

Charlotte walks away almost as quickly as she'd come  and Haley runs up to his tiny apartment, showers, twirls his wet hair into a low bun, slips on a Hard Rock Café t-shirt and bolts back out the door. The bus is running on schedule and he manages to make it to the Gay and Lesbian Center and slip into group therapy only five minutes late.

He’d been going to the group therapy for almost two years—Jean had made it a condition of his employment upon finding him purging in the bathroom. The group of 8, which had remained mostly the same over the years, gave him comfort and support he hadn’t known he was missing. He’d been held accountable for his eating and hearing the stories of others helped him process the childhood traumas he’d kept long buried.

He does more listening than talking in group and when it ends he goes to the cyber café next door and chats with Sky and some of his Virtue fans on AIM before catching another bus. This bus drops him off at the community college for the GED prep class he’d  signed up for after failing the test for the 4^th time.

He slips out of GED prep class early to get the bus back uptown for his volunteer shift at the Desert Rose HIV/AIDS clinic. Haley busies himself cleaning the bathrooms and refreshing the waiting room magazines. He’d come to the clinic as a patient when it was all he could afford and he’d come back as a volunteer to do his part and maybe get a letter of recommendation one day.

When his volunteer shift ends he slips into the clinic’s bathroom and trades his Hard Rock Cafe t-shirt for a tiny midriff baring burgundy halter top.  He takes down his bun, arranging the curled ends of his hair around his bare shoulders, ties a black bandana on his head and wipes the shine off his face with alcohol wipes.

He spritzes some vanilla glitter spray on his clavicle and then immediately regrets it but there was no undoing glitter. Or the navel piercing he’d gotten last week and couldn’t take out yet.

He'd officially done too much.

Or possibly not enough ?  

  -3- 

Haley puts on his portable CD player's headphones in anticipation of the assholes on the street and walks to the nearest bus stop.

He made a promise to himself to never get tired of seeing the lights of the Las Vegas Boulevard He takes them in as the bus rolls through, right before he pulls the string to get off and walk to Badlands-- a dance club that had been popular  in the 60s but had since fallen in disrepair.

Jean had rented the entire club out for Virtue’s 3^rd anniversary party.

Standing to Jean’s left was Charlotte, her husband Zacharias, Minnow, Alan Gray and an annoyed looking Luce. To Jean’s right where the performers who had been with Virtue since day one and Gaige, the professional Dominant--who smoldered at Haley as he came in.

“Everyone said we were crazy,” Jean says. “Well, I was crazy. But here we are three years later doing it our way.  And I couldn’t have done it without all of these beautiful people on stage.  I fucking love all of you. And of course, in absentia, Sara Grace. Who better be fashionably late or lying dead in a ditch.” 

He raises his fishbowl of alcohol up for a toast

“To always being yourself,” Jean quotes. “Because everyone else it taken. As said by the fabulous Oscar Wilde.”

The music turns up and crowd explodes into raucous shouts and dancing. Jean kisses Charlotte on the cheek,  leaps off the stage and goes directly toward Haley, with his arms extended. Haley returns Jean’s embrace and Jean rocks him back and forth.

“You know you should have been on that stage, love,” Jean says into his ear. He pulls back and offers Haley the straw from his fishbowl drink. “You were my first and favorite.”

“I wasn’t your first employee--”

“No, but you’re the first talent I poached. And you make me so much money.”

Haley takes the offered straw from the drink and sips the unsettlingly blue liquid. It tastes like sugar and sour candy.

“Is there alcohol in this ?”

“So much.”

“Hey, so Maverick told me you offer to 'show all your employees god',” Haley says.

“Did he say it like that ?,” Jean preens, clearly flattered. “Well, I have a reputation. It seems rude not to make the offer. Give the kids something to aspire to.” 

“How come I didn’t get that offer ?”

“Luce.”

Haley frowns. “What does he--”

“Luce!” Jean repeats walking open armed towards where Luce was lighting a cigarette at the bar. “Where is that mother of yours? I reminded her about the party yesterday, she promised me--”

“She’s not interested in this kind of thing,” Luce said pointing the lit end of his cigarette to the juggling Chippendales  Jean had hired to be cater waiters.

“Of course she is. Your mother is a straight woman,” Jean says making Luce cringe. “A very difficult one though.”

Maverick shyly steps up  to their group and Jean practically beams when Maverick asks Haley to dance.

Haley needed to talk to Luce but he’d felt bad for how dismissive he’d been to Maverick earlier. He follows the younger man out to the dance floor. He’d gone from his perfectly coifed boy-next-door look at the shoot to babyfaced  punk with his skinny tie, front swept bangs,  smudgy eyeliner and black piercings.

He had a sweet smile and confidence that Haley admired. Virtue’s third anniversary also meant it had been three years since he’d been intimate with someone. He should like Maverick. He should sleep with Maverick. But the idea didn’t excite him. And he wanted exciting.

By the 8^th Kylie Minogue song  they’d moved to one of the many stripper poles installed randomly throughout the club. Haley has his leg hooked around it and is showing Maverick how it spins when Luce steps up to them, a new cigarette in his hand.  

“Hey…,” Luce says looking up at him as he spun in a slow circle on the pole. “Um...did you still want that ride to the suburbs tonight ?”

Haley looks at his watch. It was almost 10 PM.

 “Yes, wow, I didn’t realize it was so late! Hey, I have to go,” he tells Maverick, dropping to the floor.. “I’ll be in L.A. next week but ask Charlotte’s assistant to give you my number and we can get that smoothie.”

Maverick gives him a confused smile as he follows Luce out of the club without saying any other goodbyes.

- 4 -

Haley checks his backpack out of the coat check and walks out to where the valet is already waiting with Luce’s black Ferrari. The flashy car was incongruous to everything he knew about Luce. Haley assumed the car was either a gift from Rias or his only spoil from their days playing  casinos. Either way, he secretly loved getting to ride in it. 

“Shit…this is insane,” Luce says when they are finally circling the packed parking lot of the suburban shopping center.

Haley pulls the wrinkled Hard Rock Cafe t-shirt out of his backpack and puts it on over his halter top.

“I told you it was a big deal,” Haley teases,  pining a Hogwarts crest pin to his t-shirt and holding an identical pin out to Luce.

“I am not wearing that--,” Luce scoffs

“Yes, you are.”

He puts up the pretense of a fight but lets Haley put the pin on his tight black t-shirt after only a minute.

The line for Borders wrapped around the shopping center and people of all ages were chatting excitedly in line. Their spot is behind two families with young children and Haley delightfully watches the kids make quick friends and then start making up games to play to make the time pass until midnight.

There was a similar release party in San Bernadino and he wondered if Lansing had taken Sky. He’d sent him the information and told him to take credit for the idea but Lansing didn’t seem like one for frivolity. Which was too bad because he seemed like he needed some.

Maxwell used to call Haley functionally illiterate because he could never finish  Maxwell’s favorite books. But he got through Harry Potter easily when Sky bought them home from school. He saw himself so clearly in the books and wondered what it meant that he connected so much with a children’s book. Then he’d come across a chatroom about books last year and discovered a world of other adult fans. 

“The class is helping... It's just been a decade since I was in a classroom. I’ll die if I have to  pay to take the test again after this.”

“I don’t know why you’re putting yourself through this,” Luce says.  “Ma didn’t graduate high school either and she taught me most of what I know. You already make good money--”

“Yeah but I…I might not be with Virtue much longer.”

Haley had been battling the thought all year. This was the first time he’d ever said it out loud.

“I thought you liked working for Jean ?”

“I do. But I…so this woman from the tech center came to my GED class and told us about this 18 month nursing programs that seemed interesting. I mean, first I have to get the GED--”

“You want to be a nurse? Since when ?”

“I don’t know…my first job was in a hospital cafeteria and when I had to bring Jello to a floor I'd always see the nurses and kinda thought they were so cool…I don’t know it’s stupid--”

“No. I think you’d be amazing at that.”

A cheer starts at the front of the line as midnight strikes and the line starts moving. When they reach the large double doors Haley turns and takes Luce’s hand.

“I don’t want to lose you,” Haley says, as if at  Luce didn’t tower over the crowd of  mostly women and children.

“More like I’d lose you,” Luce retorts squeezing his hand back.

His skin flushes. What did it mean that a hand squeeze could do that ?

When they get to the front Haley buys his book and Luce buys one too. They stick around the bookstore long enough to eat grocery store cupcakes and get fake lightning bolt tattoos on their foreheads to his utter delight.

“You want to read it together ?,” Luce asks when they get back inside the Ferrari.

“You can’t start with the fourth one. You have to read them in order,” he reminds him, “I’ve only been telling you forever.”

He spends the next 30 minutes of their ride back to the city explaining the basic plot, only for Luce to intentionally get it wrong or misunderstand just to annoy him. Haley had no idea why this was so funny to him but it was. He doesn’t even notice when they get back into North Las Vegas and the car stops in front of his apartment.

“Should I come up and get the other books ?,” Luce asks.

Luce was never going to read the books. Coming up meant  sitting on his mattress and watching a movie while jerking off without making eye contact. Haley was usually up for it but the day was catching up with him.

“Um, my train to L.A leaves  in…” he looks at his digital watch and cringes. “Five hours. I’ll be there for a week  and I haven’t even packed.”

“Right. Well, Good night.”

“Thank you for the ride, Luce. It means a lot to me--”

“Thanks for the pin--”

“If you don’t read the books in the next three months I want that pin back.” he threatens.

“I saw the movie--”

“Not good enough,” he sings getting out the car and closing the car door.

Luce revs the engine and smiles his dangerous smile, waiting until the light comes on in Haley’s apartment before driving off.

 ----

A/N

I know not much happens here but we're setting up and also...I love a good yearning slow burn ?

My chaptering got a little messed up because I posted 1998 in two parts. I'd planned for 2001 to be paired with the year 2000.  I promise the rest won't be this short....as far as I know. I'm currently gearing up to write what will be chapter 11 (or 12 depending on the numbering). We're catching up and it's freaking me out

CP!Shawna: Wow, SHV, you really don't think the brand of  nerds who read on the internet for fun don't know Goblet of Fire came out in 2000 not 2001 ?

In this chapter  I wrote Haley as having laser hair removal "for years" but apparently it wasn't really common thing until 1998...the things I've learned.

!