Page 3 of Ravenous

It wasn’t fair. Not only was Finn stunning but he also smelled good. Ollie thought the pine and sandalwood scent from the car was a top-tier air freshener but it had been Finn the entire time. Ollie would need to pick up a cologne with that fragrance because it was enticing.

Leading Ollie by the hand, Finn brought them around the front of the car, and the picturesque landscape spread out before them. Glistening lamps lined the streets, reflecting the twinkling stars above, and store signs gave pops of color among the varying yellow squares of home windows, which fanned out in all directions. Ollie could even see The Pointe in the distance, lit in white, its spire looking over the rest of the town.

“This is beautiful,” Ollie breathed, realizing that his tears had dried. He was even sobering up but he was still dizzy and a little cold, so he leaned on the hood, trying to pull some of its warmth.

The driver’s side door opened and closed and suddenly Ollie had a slight weight on his shoulders, but it wasn’t oppressive; it smelled like piney old denim.

“Oh!” He looked down at Finn’s worn jean jacket, which had seen better days, but was another layer between him and the chill so he’d take it. “Thank you.”

“No problem! Would you like some coffee? I grabbed one from the convenience store before I picked you up. I haven’t drank from it yet so it’s brand new.” Finn held up a large cardboard cup and a paper bag. “But I could drink from it first because you barely know me and I just brought you out to the middle of nowhere.”

That was very kind but for some reason, Ollie trusted Finn. “I think if you were going to murder me you wouldn’t do it while I’m wearing your jacket.”

“Of course! And I wouldn’t want to get this shirt dirty. It’s a classic.” He gestured at his concert T-shirt for a band Ollie had never heard of, but the art indicated that they had been famous sometime in the eighties. “Honestly? I can’t even kill spiders.” Finn shook himself. “I hate them but the little guys don’t deserve to be squished.”

Ollie bit his lip. Could this manbeany cuter?

“So, caffeine? I have doughnuts too if you want.” Finn shook the bag.

Ollie wouldn’t touch a doughnut with a ten-foot pole; however, coffee sounded divine as long as there wasn’t any sugar or dairy in it. “Is the coffee black?”

“As my soul.”

Ollie grinned. “My sister says that.”

“One of my exes used to growl it at me whenever I asked.” Finn laughed, handing the cup to Ollie when he reached for it. “You have siblings?”

“Two older sisters and a little brother who’s in his second year of college.” Removing the lid Ollie sniffed it, sampled it, and raised an eyebrow as he warmed up a few degrees. Not bad for late-night corner-store coffee.

“That must be nice.”

“It is. Although that same sister is always butting into my life. She’s a few years older and she acts more like my mom than my mom does.” Ollie took a long sip this time, savoring the taste before swallowing. “Do you have brothers or sisters?”

“Naw, it was only me and my uncle growing up. I kinda always wanted a big family but it’s fine because my uncle is the coolest cat around. Are you sure you don’t want a doughnut?” Finn glanced down at the bag.

“I’ll pass. I’m stuffed from everything I ate at The Pointe.” Ollie watched as Finn tossed the offering back in the car and resumed his spot beside Ollie, a little closer this time. Finn’s body heat was distracting; Ollie had to remind himself to concentrate. “But thank you - again. You’re being super nice to me after I cried in your car.”

“Why wouldn’t I be? You looked like you could use a friendly ear and I thought this place would cheer you up.” Finn gestured at the glittering lights below. “In fact, you’re the first person I’ve ever bought here.” For a second, he sounded confused.

Ollie squinted at him. “Liar. I bet you say that to all the girls.” He punctuated the sentence by batting his eyelashes.

Warmth flooded Finn’s gaze, wiping away the confusion, and he laughed. “I’m not lying. I guess I think of this place as mine. I mean, it’snotmine and I’m probably trespassing every time I’m here, but whenever I’m lonely or feeling down, this is where I go. And you seemed down so…” Finn shrugged in this affable way that made Ollie bite his lip and forget about his coffee.

“Youfeel lonely?” How could someone as handsome, charming, and easygoing as Finn ever feel lonely?

“Sometimes.” Finn looked away, toward The Pointe, and Ollie studied how the wind ruffled his hair. “I come here because I can see the entire town. It reminds me that there’s thousands of towns like this all over the planet, and millions of planets in space.” He looked up at the sky, a soft smile on his face. “I can sense how big the universe is, how much is out there, and I’m a part of that. It helps me feel less alone.”

Ollie held back an incredulous bark of laughter because the vista below didn’t do that for him. Whenever he contemplated the universe and his place in it he only felt an impersonal coldness. In the grand scheme of things he was nothing, a single blip among billions; a list of horrors could happen to him and the universe wouldn’t care, which reinforced that he had little to no control over anything.

“Are you high?” His smile was sweetly sardonic, letting Finn know he meant no harm, and he bumped Finn’s shoulder, using any excuse to press against that much larger and very solid body.

“Not today.” Finn turned his gaze toward Ollie and there was something odd in it. Something like wonder. “But you have to admit that it’s a nice view.”

“It is,” Ollie said automatically, still staring at Finn, who blushed, and Ollie almost dropped the coffee. Was Finn gay? Ollie had been lowkey wondering about that but he had the worst gaydar in existence and had learned his lesson the hard way, leading to his newest rule - no more straight menever. But Finn might not be straight. To be honest, he’d been more than lovely to Ollie, acting like a perfect gentleman, and parts of the last hour had been perilously close to a date. He might just be a good person or he might be a double threat - both niceandhomosexual. But it was probably the former. Ollie had already embarrassed himself, his eyeliner was running, and he wasn’t dating material right now, so he shifted back, removing the jacket and handing it back to Finn. “But I should head back. It’s been a long day and I have to drive home tomorrow.”

“Okay.” Finn blinked and then snapped back to his upbeat self, tossing his keys in the air and catching them. “To the hotel it is! I hoped this helped, even a little.”

“It did.” Ollie smiled at him. Strangely, his dread had pulled away, leaving him with enough breathing room that he wouldn’t need to use the gym until morning, and Ollie wasn’t sure if it was due to the fresh air or the company.

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