'Til There Was You - Jerry Cole Page 0,14

went, it seemed par for the course.

Chapter Five

What would Dakota Jim do? Dakota Jim was the most active, charismatic, courageous, outgoing character in film history and whenever Austin found himself down in the dumps, or needing to solve a problem, he’d often lay back in his bed, stare at the large poster of Raiders of the Last Ark hung above his bed and ask that exact question, hoping it might provide an answer to whatever dilemma he was currently facing. What would Dakota Jim do?

Austin’s current problem was simple, he wanted Freddy back. So again, what would Dakota Jim do? Most likely, Dakota would simply go and get his man. He’d put on his hat, strap his whip and gun to his side and do whatever it took. And most importantly, he wouldn’t take no for an answer. That was why Indiana was such an endearing, inspiring character. It also helped that he was ruggedly handsome, successful and the kind of guy that women – or in this case, men – swooned over.

Austin sighed, rolled over in bed and instead focused on the Pirate Bride poster that hung on the other side of his room. Again he asked, what would Dakota do? The answer to this question was baked into the movie itself. In the film, Westley did all manner of things to get his love back. He fought giant rodents, he climbed the cliffs, he was tortured to within an inch of his life! All in the name of love. Could Austin do that?

Austin’s entire bedroom was covered in posters and knick-knacks and other pieces of memorabilia from film and television, and everywhere he looked he thought of the main character from that particular film and tried to channel them into his own resolve, to inspire him to go and get Freddy back.

And all the while, Austin tried to ignore the obvious problem that kept creeping itself into his mind’s eye: What if Freddy didn’t even want him back?

This was all Charles’ doing; Charles and those horrible, filthy lies that he spouted as if they were fact. Austin knew them to be false of course, but now they were in his head, buried away like fucking tumors, and he couldn’t get them out. What the heck was he going to do?!

“Yoohoo...” Cassidy slowly pushed open the door and stuck his head into the room. At the sight of Austin still in bed, he rolled his eyes and threw the door the rest of the way open. “What do you think you’re doing?!” Cassidy hollered in that usual high-pitched way that he spoke.

“Jerking off. Get out!” Austin pulled the covers up further, as if trying to cover his fake-erection.

“Liar! I don’t believe you for a second!” Cassidy leapt forward and grabbed at the covers.

“What the fuck are you—”

“Show me that cock!” Even though Cassidy was smaller than Austin, he easily overpowered him and yanked the covers free. This, of course, revealed Austin to still be fully clothed. “I knew it! Pay me.”

Cassidy Bowers was both Austin’s roommate, his oldest friend, and his best friend. They’d known one another for as long as either could remember, having grown up on the same street. Friends right from the get-go, Cassidy came out years before Austin was brave enough to. It was always a little more obvious for Cassidy though; it was said he danced his way from the womb, singing a chorus number as he jived.

“Will you please leave me alone,” Austin groaned and turned his back on his best friend. “Can’t I just wallow in self-pity alone... the way it’s supposed to be.”

“I thought you had work?” Having just showered, Cassidy was dressed in a pure-white bathrobe with pure-white slippers; they were the only things of non-color he owned. He held the edges of his robe as he climbed on the end of Austin’s bed and sat cross legged to face him.

“I called in sick,” Austin shrugged.

“Oh good!” Cassidy exclaimed happily... with just a hint of sarcasm. “So, you’re going to do some work on your book – what's it been now? Three months since you last touched it? Looking like you do now by-the-by, it’ll probably be about that long again until someone touches your cock—”

“Are you done?” Austin rolled over and shoved his head into his pillow. He hated when Cassidy was in this kind of playful mood. It only ever happened when he was either going to get laid, or just had. Which, to be fair, was often.

“Not