I was bored. Bored out of my skull. Why did Dave have to go on holiday with his girlfriend? Why did he have to have a social life? Why couldn’t he stay and keep me company? I sighed and stalked into the living room. What could I do? Annoying fans was always fun- and surprisingly easy when I put my mind to it- but it was better if you had company… Unless… My gaze landed on the computer. Unless I did it online… I turned it on, a grin forming on my face. Where could I go that there would still be Busted fans? Preferably more than one… I went for Busted fans, ‘cause they were always more laid back than Son Of Dork fans. The answer hit me as I connected to the internet. The Busted Boards. I typed in the correct URL and waited for it to load. There was only one user on. And, from what I could see from a quick scan, she only appeared to post in one place:

‘Fanfiction Forum’

Great. That meant I was gonna have to read some teenie story about how they met Matt and he fell in love with them straight away before they got married and moved into a pretty blue house where they had two kids and a dog called Dover. Bracing myself, I clicked on the link and the forum flashed up. Reading down the list of fanfictions looking for the user, I noticed that two certain words were used a lot, as a kind of warning, on the end of story names.

‘Standalone’

That must mean there was only one part. Therefore, it stood alone. See? And people said I wasn’t smart… The second word, however, I couldn’t work out. Not in conjunction with stories, anyway…

‘Slash’

What was ‘slash’? And why did there appear to be so much of it? I clicked on the one nearest to the top and began to read, hoping that that would enlighten me.

‘Their lips touched in what started as a gentle reminder of their love but soon built into a heated battle of the tongues. Matt shoved James into the wall, running his hands all over the smaller blond’s torso. James’ hands were tightly locked behind Matt’s head, holding his boyfriend firmly into the kiss. Matt nipped James’ lower lip with his teeth and broke away. Greeting his lover’s throaty moans with a cheeky grin and the coy suggestion that they might like to take this upstairs.’

I couldn’t help it. I was hooked. I didn’t get it: How could what I assumed were mostly female fans write about a relationship between two gay guys? And how could it be this hot…? I mused as I read on as they reached the bedroom. So this was what slash was? Putting two members of the band together- sexually? I’d noticed some weird words on my scan of the ‘fictions, too.

‘JayBourne’

That was a collaboration of my name and Matt’s, I guessed. Did that represent our slash pairing? I also saw ‘BourneWick’, as well. That was me too… But who with…? I couldn’t be bothered going to look. I was too absorbed in the hot, gay sex scene detailed on the page in front of me. It was bizarre, considering I was meant to be one of the people involved, but entertaining nonetheless. However, it was only a standalone, so I soon had to move on to another thread and a new story. Me and Matt again, I noted, looking at the information given at the top. Quite a few people on these boards seemed to get a ‘gay together’ vibe off us. We seemed to be a popular pairing… Only half a page in, there was a steamy kiss.

‘“I just wish that someone who I liked would like me back,” James admitted to me, his blue eyes wide and sad. “I always seem to fall for the ones I can’t get.”

“Me too,” I agreed. Then I did something that neither of us was expecting. I leaned forward and pressed my mouth to his soft, warm lips.

He jerked back, “Matt! What’re you doing?”

“What I should’ve done ages ago…” I recaptured his mouth with mine, but this time he stayed where he was. His hand cupped the back of my neck and he bit down on my bottom lip gently as a plea for access. I opened my mouth and his tongue slid inside, where it began to massage mine in a manner that had my brain turning to mush.’

Was a gay kiss really like that? I wouldn’t know, ‘cause I’d never kissed a guy, but it sounded a lot more exciting than a straight kiss ever could… Eugh! I couldn’t believe I was thinking like this. I had to turn of this computer, now. Maybe after this paragraph…

‘I couldn’t believe it. I was-’

The phone rang. I jumped a foot in the air and swore loudly. Looking from the phone, to the computer screen, then back again, I considered letting the machine pick it up. Then I groaned and got myself out the computer chair to go get the phone from the table next to the sofa. “Wha-? I mean: Hello?”

“Hey, James. It’s Matt.” Well, read of the devil…

“Hey. How are you?” I asked, scratching the side of my nose. I glanced at the computer and was glad Matt couldn’t see the smirk that came to my face. I wondered if he knew this kind of stuff existed.

“I’m good, thanks. Look, I have a night off tomorrow. Do you want to meet up? Have a catch up? I haven’t seen you in ages.”

“No sweat. You’ve been busy working on your new album. You need to commit to that. I get it.”

“Still, wanna catch up?” he asked hopefully.

“Definitely,” I assured him.

“Wicked.”

*****

Slash. It was on my mind for the rest of the night. I tried to block it out, but that stuff was addictive. I turned on the TV and began to surf the music channels, looking for something to distract me.

“Now, he claims his new material is a slash between-”

Click.

“I wrote the song after an old boyfriend of mine brutally slashed my heart in-”

Click.

“It appears people are just seeming more and more willing to contribute to charity nowadays. Slash- ex Guns N Roses, current Velvet Revolver- has offered to give up smoking for a-”

Click. I couldn’t get away from it. I turned off the TV and leaned back on the sofa. I was going to go to bed, I decided. Then I’d wake up and would have probably forgotten all about it.

*****

“You can’t choose a favourite guitarist of all time,” Matt said as we arrived back at my block of flats the nest night and he walked me to the door. “‘Cause there’s so many amazing ones. And also ones I’ve probably not even heard yet. To name a few: Linde, the guitarist from HIM, he’s incredible. Also Slash, you can’t deny he’s good.”

Damn it! And I’d done so well in not thinking about it all day. It was no use trying to avoid it now. “Matt? Can I try something on you?”

“What?”

“Just something. I’m curious.”

He frowned, but there was an amused quirk on the corners of his lips, “Erm… Okay. Sure.”

“Thanks. Just roll with it, okay?” I asked. He nodded, a confused look on his face. I moved closer to him and put my arms round his waist, pulling him closer to me.

“What are we doing?” he asked. I didn’t answer, but angled my head up and touched my lips to his. He responded with an equal amount of pressure and I flicked my tongue along his lips as a kind of hint. They parted and my tongue entered the warmth. It met his and the result was definitely sensuous.

Satisfied, I pulled back and turned to unlock the main door. “Okay. Thanks.” I pulled the door open and turned to him. He was staring at me. “I just wanted to see something,” I promised. “It was just an experiment. And you happened to be there when it took place.” I grinned at him, “Tonight was fun. Call me if you have any more time off.” Then I shut the door in his face and headed up to my flat.