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“Hello, this is NBHQ - Byrne speaking.“
Nicky answered the call with a proud smile. More than twenty episodes in, his very own podcast had become quite a success and he received a lot of messages of support, feedback and requests on a daily basis, but proper business phone calls on his brand new business number were still somewhat unusual.
“… hello?“ Nicky prompted two seconds later, before he heard a muted giggle from the other side of the line, “Who’s there?“
“Hi, this… this is Shane Filan from Sligo,“ Shane said in a serious tone, but Nicky could hear the smile in his voice.
“Hi baby,“ Nicky replied fondly, pushing his chair back and putting his feet up on the desk in front of him, “What’s up? Why are you calling me on this number?“
“Hey you…“ Shane began, “for a start, I know you told me you’d be super busy today podcasting away and editing yesterday’s interview, but… well, I kinda missed you and wanted to hear your voice… and… um… I actually really like your professional presenting voice!“
“Naw, you old softie! Well, I just finished editing next week’s episode and now I’ve got to prepare tomorrow’s story and I need to call-… well, anyways, I miss you, too… How are things in Sligo? And, uh-“ Nicky stopped himself, remembering what Shane had just blurted out, “What was that? You like my… presenting voice?“
“Yes, I do!“ Shane replied, not missing a heartbeat, “I can’t help it, but… listening to your podcasts, you picking up the phone all business-like, sounding so… serious and smart… it gets to me, ya know…“
“What the fuck, baby?“ Nicky chuckled, before putting on his radio voice again, “So, next up on the NBHQ, we’ve got a very special guest from Sligo… someone I happen to know very well, even though I am still learning new things about him and… dear listeners, you won’t believe I only just found out that my professional business voice seems to be a big turn-on for him…“
“Aarrghhh, Nicholas!“ Shane growled in frustration, “Don’t do this to me! I haven’t seen you in two weeks!“
“Oh, my guest just informed me, he has trouble focussing now and he seems rather agitated… if you ever wondered how to really take his mind off something, you may want to try placing your lips on his neck, right where his jaw meets the ear…“
Nicky could hear Shane exhale loudly, before he groaned into the phone, “Nicholas, stop that! You… you… you… can’t.. I’m in the car and I… I… just wanted to ask you if you fancy a night out tomorrow!“
“Huh? tomorrow?“ Nicky repeated, forgetting his favorite game of getting Shane all hot and bothered.
“Yes! Well, like I said, I haven’t seen you in two weeks and I miss you and Gillian needs a lift to Dublin to meet a friend and I thought I could also… um… meet a friend,“ Shane explained quickly.
“Oh, I like the sound of that!“ Nicky replied happily, “speaking of nights out… I told you Shay Given was in for the podcast yesterday, didn’t I? We actually ended up talking about that one night out in Liverpool! Do you remember? That was ages ago!“
“Oh God,“ Shane groaned, “Please don’t remind me of that night…“
******
Flashback: Liverpool, May 2010
“You’re so hot…“ Shane breathed into Nicky’s ear, his hand lingering on the small of his lover‘s back as they were moving along to the music in the corner of a crowded dance floor, the bass pounding in their chests, their steps becoming clumsier with every drink they had had so far.
Earlier that night they had performed yet another sold out “Where We Are“ show in front of an ecstatic crowd at the Echo Arena. Kian and Mark had made plans for a double dinner date with their partners after the show, but Nicky and Shane were enjoying a few days without their wives and young children, which meant they had a lot of time to spend in each other’s company, in each other’s arms and in each other’s beds.
Tonight, though, their good friend Shay Given, whose football team happened to stay at the same hotel, had decided to join them on a rare night out in a club nearby. At the moment, he was off to the bar to get some more beers, so Shane and Nicky could finally let their guard down and be just that bit closer, especially as no one else in the club had seemed to recognize them. Flirting and doing couple-y things in front of friends and family was a strict no-no in their secret relationship, but the drunker they got and the stronger the sexual tension between them grew, the harder it was to keep their hands off each other now.
“Mhh… I can‘t wait to have you to myself,“ Nicky murmured, his lips dangerously close to Shane‘s ear, his husky voice barely audible over all the noise. His hips were swaying to the music, his groin brushing Shane‘s every few seconds - not entirely accidentally. He could feel Shane‘s interest and hoped they could make their excuse to get back to their hotel rather sooner than later.
“God, Nicky…“ Shane was biting his lip, his glazed eyes visibly darker now, “What… are you gonna do when you have me to yourself then?“
“I‘m gonna,“ Nicky began, licking his lips, his leg sneakily moving between Shane‘s thighs now - a move he would never have dared in public if he had not been this drunk, “I‘m gonna touch you in all the right places… with my hands… with my lips… with my tongue…“
Shane had his eyes closed now, shamelessly grinding against Nicky‘s leg, clearly imagining what was to come, “Been wanting you all night,“ Shane was breathing hard, “Can‘t wait any longer… I want-“ He broke off with a frustrated groan, when Nicky quickly pulled away his leg and removed his hand from Shane‘s bum.
“Shay‘s coming back,“ Nicky muttered, nodding in the direction of the bar.
***
It was more than an hour and two more drinks later, when Shane finally, finally shut the door to Nicky‘s hotel room behind him and instantly pulled the blonde into a messy kiss, his shaking fingers already fumbling with his belt.
The walk to the hotel and the lift ride up to their floor had been especially excruciating, because they had still been accompanied by their friend, whose hotel suite was just across the hall from their own suites. So, they still had had to keep up the pretense and make more drunk small talk, when they had practically been buzzing with suppressed arousal and all they had wanted was to finally kiss and touch each other.
As much as they loved sharing hours of tender and slow love-making, tonight they were both too keyed up, too horny and too drunk for anything tender and slow. A few minutes of intense snogging, fumbling and clumsy undressing later, Nicky was already on the bed on all fours, Shane was right behind him and the only sounds that could be heard were their breathless panting and gasped moans, mixed with a few grunts and the occasional creak of the bedsprings.
“Harder… I…“ Nicky demanded breathlessly, meeting every one of Shane’s thrusts, “I need…“
After all those years together, Shane knew exactly what his lover needed and gave it his all, increasing the intensity of his movements, trying to hit that magic spot just right, at the same time as he was stroking Nicky just the way he liked it, feeling him getting closer and closer with every thrust, squeezing him just right and fuck, Shane could already see the stars of his own much needed orgasm in the distance, sparks of heat shooting through his body.
“Been wanting to do this all day… all night,“ Shane managed to pant, his hips moving on their own accord now, his fingers rubbing just that bit tighter, “Been thinking about this on stage… at the club… thinking about being deep inside you… the best feeling… feeling you come…. just… for me…. mhh, Nicky….. God…. I-“
Feeling Shane explode and shudder against him, was the final straw for Nicky. He had also been waiting for this all day, all fucking night, wanting to be with Shane, wanting to feel Shane, wanting him to- Oh God, his thighs tensed as his orgasm was building, building and then crested, Shane’s name leaving his mouth in a strangled moan, fireworks exploding in every cell of his body, his whole body lurching forward until- ARRRGH, his head collided with the corner of the bed side table with a bloodcurdling cracking sound.
For a moment neither of them moved, not even daring to breathe, before Nicky gave a howl of pain at the same time as Shane chanted, “Fuck, fuck, fuck,“ and awkwardly slipped out of Nicky, “Are you okay?“
“My…. my head… ouuu…“ Nicky whimpered and turned around to face Shane, his vision slightly blurred, a sharp pain radiating from the spot that had hit the table.
When Shane looked at his lover’s face with concern and saw bright red blood running down his temple from an impressive gash on his forehead, he felt his stomach drop and his heart miss a beat as it seemed to be struggling with the sudden transition from post-sex-bliss into panic mode.
“Baby, don‘t- don‘t panic,“ Shane‘s voice was shaking, “but- but you‘re bleeding.“ He just about managed to stop himself from adding “a lot“.
“What?!“ Nicky began, before he carefully touched his forehead, winced in pain and looked at his bloody fingers in horror. Within two seconds his face turned alarmingly white, which only made the blood look even redder and the blood wasn‘t fucking stopping. Alright, okay. Shane needed to do something. He needed to do something before Nicky passed out or… or died. What had he learned in school when they had done that first aid course 15 years ago? Should he position Nicky on the floor? On his right side or on his left side? Why couldn‘t he remember? Why had he drunk so much?
“Shane, do something!“ Nicky wailed, pulling Shane out of his revery, the blood about to drip onto the white bedsheets now. Fuck, what would they tell the hotel staff?! Shane shuddered, before he finally jumped into action and got out of bed on rather unsteady legs. “Come on, I’ve got ya… it’s gonna be okay…“ Swallowing hard, he helped Nicky up and carefully led him into the bathroom.
When the blonde caught sight of his reflection in the mirror, his knees buckled and Shane caught him just in time. “Woah, steady there!“ he yelped, quickly moving Nicky away from the mirror and placed him on the toilet lid. “It‘s… it‘s better if you don‘t look at it!“ Shane stammered helpfully, wishing he didn‘t have to look at the gash on Nicky‘s forehead, either.
“My… my head… my face…“ Nicky was on the verge of tears now and Shane‘s heart went out to him. “It… it really hurts…“
“Shhh…“ Shane tried to soothe him, gently stroking Nicky’s other cheek with trembling fingers, “It‘s gonna be alright… it will stop bleeding in a minute…“
Well, it still didn‘t seem to be stopping a minute later, not even after Shane had reached for a clean towel and carefully pressed it to Nicky‘s forehead, the fabric slowly turning disgustingly red. Alright, okay. What now?
“This is your fault,“ Nicky mumbled with a sniff, his lips quivering, tears rolling down his cheeks and mixing with the blood on his face.
“What?!?! How is this my fault?!“ Shane asked, gently dabbing at Nicky’s forehead, taken aback by his accusation.
“You made me come,“ Nicky replied sulkily with a pout.
Shane blinked at him in disbelief, “What the fuck?! You… you… wanted to come!“
Before Nicky could retort, there was a knock on the door. “Nico, is everything alright?! I heard something crash!“ Their drunk friend asked through the door. Fuck.
“Uh,“ Shane looked at Nicky helplessly, before he called back, “Nicky tripped and bumped his head!“
“Shane, is that you?!“ Shay‘s voice came through the locked door again. Fuck, fuck, fuck. “Do you need any help?!“
“Umm… just… give us a minute!“ Shane called, a slightly panicked edge to his voice, as he slowly realised that not only was his secret lover still bleeding and on the verge of passing out and he needed to explain why he was there in the first place, but both of them were also stark naked, their bodies still covered in sweat and other bodily fluids and their clothes were scattered all around the room. Fuckety fuck.
“Umm…. baby, can you hold that towel against your head for me?“ Shane whispered with a sense of urgency, as Nicky - obviously too dizzy to keep up - looked at him in confusion, “We need to get dressed!“
Hastily, Shane stumbled through the hotel suite and picked up all the pieces of clothing they had feverishly torn off each other only minutes before. Looking down at himself, he briefly wondered whether they had time for a shower or at least a quick wash. Well, probably not. Once he was dressed, he tended to his injured secret boyfriend again, who luckily still had not bled to death or slipped off the toilet lid in the meantime. Quickly buttoning up Nicky’s worn shirt and helping him into his jeans, Shane could not help but wonder how they had ended up in this predicament and how the night could have gone so... wrong.
“This is not my sock,“ Nicky muttered tearfully.
“Huh?“ Shane looked up in confusion, wincing when his gaze met Nicky’s bloody face once more.
“I said, this is not my sock,“ Nicky repeated and pulled a face, but Shane just gave him a now is not the moment, Nicholas-kind-of look.
“Okay, listen, baby,“ Shane said in a low voice but with a sense of urgency, “this is important now. Shay is outside the door and he mustn’t know what happened. Like, what really happened, I mean. We will tell him that you tripped over your suitcase and fell into the table, okay?“
“But, I didn’t trip-“ Nicky began, blinking slowly.
“I know, I know,“ Shane interrupted him impatiently, squeezing Nicky’s hand in a reassuring manner, “Nicky, baby… remember that Shay doesn’t know that we’re… well, that we’re in love and together and all that? And you can’t tell him that we are and you can’t tell him that you hit your head because-“
“Because you made me come!“ Nicky piped up loudly and looked at Shane reproachfully.
“Nicholas, shhh!“ Shane groaned in exasperation, running his hand through his own hair. God, things would have been messed up enough as it was and being as drunk as they were certainly didn’t help.
“Okay, okay,“ Nicky sighed, trying to frown and winced in pain, “I get it. I can’t tell Shay that I hit my head because you made me come, because.. because he doesn’t know that I love you and fancy you and… and I will tell him that you’re just an amazing friend that I really like in a platonic way and that-“
“Right, maybe you’d better let me do the talking,“ Shane interrupted him with a grimace, before he quietly added, “I love you, too, though.“
***
Truth be told, Shane was impressed with how well their drunk footballer friend handled the situation. Not only did he not seem to mind the state Nicky was in and didn’t mind looking at his wound, but he also actually knew what to do. Shane was watching in awe (and relief), as Shay brought over a travel first aid kit and expertly covered the (still bleeding) gash with gauze that he wrapped tightly around Nicky’s head. Well, as a footballer he was bound to have more experience with these kinds of wounds, but still Shane could not help but feel a tiny pang of jealousy, because he had not turned into Doc Filan, saving Nicky’s life like a true hero. Anyways, Shane made a mental note to buy a travel first aid kit for future accidents - should he and Nicky ever have sex again. At the same time, Shane was relieved that Shay seemed to be drunk enough not to question their story and that he did not seem to wonder why there was no blood on Nicky’s shirt. Phew.
It took a bit of persistence to convince Nicky that he needed to go to hospital to see an actual doctor and that no, he could not just take a few painkillers and go to bed like that. Fortunately, there was a hospital just around the corner from their hotel, which meant they could avoid calling an ambulance or a taxi and making an even bigger scene. It must have been quite a sight, though - three drunk Irishmen, a famous goalkeeper and two boyband members, stumbling through the streets in the middle of the night, one of them with a bloody gauze wrapped around his head and being supported by the other two, repeatedly telling them that he just wanted to go to bed and sleep.
Some thirty minutes later, the trio found themselves in a private A&E room that was equipped with two beds. Their footballer friend immediately collapsed on one of them and started snoring loudly, so that left Nicky on the other bed and Shane in the chair right beside him, secretly holding his hand and grasping a cup of black coffee in his other hand (the effects of the alcohol were fading and making way for a pounding headache), waiting for the doctor to treat Nicky’s wound. It was no secret that Nicky hated hospitals and as he was slowly sobering up now, Shane could see the distress in his bleary eyes.
The door opened and a nurse stuck her head in, “Mr Byrne, I’m sorry for the delay,“ she smiled apologetically, “The doctor will be with you shortly to stich you up.“
Before Nicky could object, she closed the door and the blonde looked at Shane in alarm, “Wha-…. stitches… I… I… don’t want stitches!“ he spluttered.
Shane did not know what Nicky had expected, but then again Nicky had not actually seen how wide and deep his cut really was and did not know that a small plaster with pink unicorns would probably be rather useless. He squeezed Nicky’s hand and smiled reassuringly at him, “You’re gonna be fine, baby… I won’t leave your side.“
However, Nicky was having none of it, his face quickly turning a nasty shade of green, “I think I’m gonna be sick,“ he gasped, just in time for Shane to grab one of the medical bowls beside the bed, before the blonde was violently sick. Shane made soothing noises until Nicky was finished and finally leaned back, paler than ever, tears of exhaustion and fear in his eyes.
Shane quickly glanced at their friend in the other bed - still out -, before he handed Nicky a glass of water and quietly began, a worried edge to his voice, “Listen, baby… I know that you’re scared and I know that you’re in pain and I know that you hate needles and… and… all of this… and I also hate that you’re going through this, but... but if you pass out now or have a nervous breakdown or anything like that, they will probably keep you here in hospital and… you wouldn’t want that, would you?“
Nicky slowly shook his head, his lips quivering at the thought. “See, I thought so,“ Shane grimaced sympathetically, kissing Nicky’s clammy fingers, “So, here’s what you’ll do… You will be really brave and let that doc stitch you up and I will be right here, holding your hand… and when they’re done, we can go back to the hotel and,“ Shane’s voice was barely a whisper now, “and then we can finally go to bed and I will hold you tight and stroke your back and kiss it all better, okay?“
The blonde took a shaky breath and nodded in agreement, knowing he was going to be safe with Shane by his side. Really, in sickness and in health was going to have a whole new meaning after this night and Shane surely deserved an award for “best secret boyfriend in the world“.
In the end, Nicky had been brave and Shane’s pep talk and his presence had definitely helped him through his agonizing treatment. To Shane’s relief (and honest surprise), none of his fingers had been broken during the procedure, despite the fact that Nicky had held his hand very, very tightly. Shay had eventually woken up at some stage (possibly when Nicky had accidentally squealed loudly at the sight of the needle) and had already made his way back to the hotel. So it was just Shane and Nicky now, who needed to rest for another 30 minutes before he was allowed to leave. Outside the window, the night sky was slowly taking on a faint pink tint. Still lying on the hospital bed, a drip connected to the back of his hand to nurse him back to a bit more strength and ease the pain and sporting five impressive stitches on his forehead, Nicky sighed loudly, “What a night…“
“What a night indeed,“ Shane agreed, stifling a yawn.
“Thank you for… being with me… and putting up with me and… well, for being my hero,“ Nicky said thickly, squeezing Shane’s hand again (gently this time).
“Nah, stop it,“ Shane smiled at him fondly, before he added, “I guess, I am partly to blame for what happened, eh? I’m really proud of you, though. That is going to be an impressive scar, baby…“
Nicky smirked, almost a bit proud now, “Ah well, it would be quite a story to tell, eh? Hang on-“ the smirk was fading from his face, “what is the official story?“
“Um, well,“ Shane was scratching the back of his head, “we could stick with what we told Shay earlier? You tripped and fell into the table?
Nicky seemed unimpressed and huffed, “That sounds boring…“
Shane rolled his eyes playfully, but he was actually relieved to see that Nicky was his usual self again, “Once the drama queen, always the drama queen…“.
“Haha,“ Nicky retorted and rolled his own eyes, which made him wince in pain. No more eye rolling in the foreseeable future. “Come on, Shaney, think of something more interesting! Some story to tell the fans!“
Shane could not help but smile and shake his head in disbelief at the actual excitement in Nicky’s voice, “Hmm… I guess….“ he mused, grinning now, “coming to think of it… Kian still owes me a favour, because I helped him pick a gift for Jodi the other day, so… how about…“
END OF FLASHBACK
******
“That was a wild night, eh?“ Nicky grinned into the phone.
Shane sniggered at something he just remembered, “Do you remember that you blamed me for the accident?! Because I had made you come?!“
Nicky chuckled at the memory, “Well, you actually had!“
“That’s true, that’s true…“ Shane wiped tears of laughter from his eyes, “When I pointed out that this would mean that we should never have sex again, as a safety precaution, you changed your mind surprisingly quickly, though...“
“That would have been a real waste! Just imagine all the things we would have missed out on! Never mind that one scar!“ Nicky exclaimed, still smiling.
“God, the things we got away with…“ Shane sighed, lost in thought, “I still can‘t believe no one has ever questioned the story that you and Kian were involved in a play fight…“
Ah, well.