David waited until Stavros stepped from behind the curtain before getting up and walking over to him. “You were amazing,” David said. “The photographs will be extremely powerful.”
David saw Stavros look toward the door to the apartment. “Do you really think so?” he asked haltingly. “Yes. I haven’t seen them all yet, but what I have looked at are incredible.” David walked Stavros toward the studio door. “Please take as much time as you need before leaving.”
Stavros looked at the floor, obviously uncomfortable. “Is it always like this?” he asked, and David nodded his head slowly.
“Christian always pulls a great deal of emotion out of his models. They always feel the way you are now once the session is over. Go outside and get some fresh air, take a walk to clear your head and you’ll feel much better, I promise you.” David had said this same thing to many of the other models that had worked with Christian. Whether there was sex involved or not, they all seemed to leave a little disoriented because he pulled so much from them while they were in the studio. “If you need some time before you leave,” David motioned to the sofa by the door. “Please have a seat and I can bring you some water if you like. You don’t have to leave until you feel ready.”
Stavros looked toward the apartment door once again.
“Will he come back?”
David shook his head. “He won’t be back in the studio at all today.” Christian never returned to the studio once he was done with a session. Probably so he wouldn’t have to face the insecurities of his models. He’d told David once that after a photo session, both his and the model’s emotions were too close to the surface and they needed separation. At first, David had thought that was just a copout on Christian’s part to get away, but he’d come to realize that maybe it wasn’t. “Like I said, take your time. Would you like something to drink?”
“Maybe water,” Stavros said, and David got it for him as Stavros settled on the sofa.
“I’ll be at the desk if you need anything,” David said, walking across the studio to the corner to give the young man a chance to collect himself.
David went back to work cataloging and organizing the photos according to Christian’s system, which he was still learning, because it wasn’t based on the type of image, but on the emotion being conveyed. It had been daunting at first, but David had pretty much gotten the hang of it, which was a little scary in itself because it required him to think a bit like Christian, and that could be a strange place to visit. “Thank you,” he heard from the other side of the studio, and he looked up from his work. Stavros was standing near the door, and he sounded much more like the man who’d walked into the studio earlier.
“No problem. Take care, and we’ll be in touch,” David said as he lifted his hand in a wave. Then he heard the studio door open and close. David continued working for a while before saving everything to the server. Then he shut everything down and turned off all the lights before opening the door the Christian’s apartment.
He knew where he’d find him: on his bed. David walked into the bedroom, and Christian opened his eyes, shivering slightly, so David pulled the blanket from the foot of the bed over his boss. “Is he okay?”
“Stavros is fine. He left just a few minutes ago, and I’ve begun sorting the photographs. You can start accessing them when you’re ready.” David walked through the room, turning off the lights. Walking into Christian’s sparkling kitchen, David put together a light dinner, leaving it in the refrigerator for when Christian got hungry later, and then left his boss’s apartment to begin the cross-town trek to his own.
The evening was nice, so the walk wasn’t bad, but David couldn’t help wondering what he was going to do when the weather began to get cold. He figured he’d have to take the subway, but on an evening like this, it was great to be outdoors. He could clear his head and hopefully let go of all that stuff with Christian. Arriving at his building, he walked up to the fourth floor and fished his keys out of his pocket.
The door opened before he could put the key in the lock, and his roommate Javier smiled at him. “I heard you come up,” he said as David entered the tiny apartment.
There were just two rooms, a living room/kitchen and a bedroom that they shared. It wasn’t much, but it was what they could afford. “So how was your day in pornland?”
Javier asked, and David rolled his eyes. Javier had been picking on him about his job since he’d gotten it and he hadn’t let up one bit.
“It’s not porn,” David retorted without conviction, knowing it wouldn’t do any good anyway. And after the things he’d seen in the last few months, he was beginning to wonder what it really was. “The shoot today was great.
We got some amazing pictures.”
“Did you put him to bed and make his dinner before you left?” Javier quipped, and then his mouth dropped open.
“You did,” Javier accused. “Just yesterday you said you weren’t going to be his nursemaid anymore, and here you are doing it again. What did he do this time, swing from the ceiling as he peed on him?” Javier flopped onto the sofa. “Javier, stop, please,” David began as he held his head.
He could feel the ache starting behind his eyes. “I’ve had an exhausting day, and while Christian may be unorthodox, the pictures he gets are stunning and I’m learning so much from him.” He went to the bathroom and got some Ibuprofen, taking two pills before flopping on the sofa next to his roommate. “He needs me, and he didn’t ask. I just did it because otherwise he won’t eat.”
“He doesn’t need to ask, does he?” Javier said, and David knew he was right. David did the things he did because someone had to, and because of the way he felt about his boss—not that he could ever say anything, so he showed him. Granted, Christian never noticed, but David knew he’d at least made an effort. “You’d do anything for him because of how you feel about him.”
David looked at Javier, about to deny it, but he couldn’t.
Javier knew him too damn well. They’d gone to high school and then college together, and they’d both escaped the same small town in the middle of nowhere South Dakota.
Together they’d moved to New York less than a year ago.
“And how is that?” David challenged.
“Jesus, you’re acting the same way you did with Bobby Martin when we were seniors. You mooned over him for months, and he was straight, but he let you think he was interested because you did all his shit for him.” Javier shifted on the old sofa, tucking his legs under him. “You deserve more than what guys like Christian can give you.