Predators - short story
13:15 Aug 23 2006
Times Read: 585
The barman rang the bell. “Last orders”. Steve looked forlornly at his last whiskey. The night still seemed young, but his empty pockets were ready to go home.” Dave read the look on his face, and made a suggestion. “hey, we could go back to my place – I’ve got loads of liquors and stuff in my drinks cabinet.
Steve had never seen Dave’s house, and felt pretty sure he hadn’t drunk nearly enough yet. Well, maybe he had drunk enough, but he hadn’t drunk too much yet, and that’s what really mattered.
Just a short car ride later, Steve was in Dave’s comfortable semi detached, and was immediately studying the book collection of the shelf by the sofa. Nothing seemed familiar, but then, the titles were far too blurred to read properly, and had a tendency to dance and jiggle about as most things did at this time of night.
“I’ve got something rather special that I picked up on the Med’ during my holidays” Dave said with a smile, “try it – tell me what you think.”
Steve accepted the shot glass, and sipped the sweet tasting liquor, feeling it burn inside his chest.
“Mmmm, that feels warm, tingly.”
“Doesn’t it make you feel sexy?” asked Dave. An odd question, Steve thought, not realising that Dave secretly fancied him. “No. why should I?”
Why should he? Dave was a man – a drinking buddy, at least fifteen years than is own eighteen years, and didn’t see anything like some of his more obviously gay friends. As far as he knew, Dave was just another drinking buddy.
Dave saw things quite differently, he saw a young tease who seemed perfectly at home in the gay setting of the Red Lion, and who drove him mad every night by refusing to pay him the attention he really wanted. Little did Dave realise that Steve wasn’t even gay, just a little more liberal in his attitudes than most of the young working class men in this town.
Dave sat down close to Steve, and gazed into his eyes. Steve looked back, confused, and starting to feel a little the worse for drink. His head was spinning now, and Dave’s face seemed to leer strangely as he shuffled up closer and placed a hand on Steve’s thigh.
“Don’t be daft” said Steve, starting to wonder what exactly was going on.
“Oh come on, you must have realised I fancied you?”
“No!, no idea at all!” could it be true? Was this a joke, or was Dave really gay? Steve knew a lot of gay men, but it never occurred to him that Dave was gay. He liked him, but never saw him that way at all.
Dave tried to hug him, Steve panicked and tried to stand up.
“I..I’d better go – I’ve got to get up in the morning.”
“Oh no, you little tease, you’re staying”
Steve’s legs buckled under him as he fell to the floor. Dave was on him in an instant, pinning him down under his massive bulk. Steve tried to struggle, to wiggle out, but Dave was too big, too strong, and the drink had gotten to Steve by now.
“No, don’t!” cried Steve.
“Oh yes” said Dave “Don’t worry, you’ll like it” Steve seriously doubted that I wanted out – but there was nothing he could do. He could feel Dave’s stomach pressing against his back, and then felt Dave’s hand loop under his pants and start to pull them down. There was no way out!
In his mind, Steve looked for strength, and out of nowhere, the image of a lion popped into his head. He concentrated on the lion, calling to it to help him. He could feel Dave’s body pressed against his, and his had on his arse, then everything went red.
The next second – no, less than a second – everything was different. For one thing, Steve’s eyes were open, but he didn’t recall opening them. Secondly, the scene was different, he was in a different place. No! same place, but standing or crouching by the door instead of lying on the rug near the sofa. And everything looked odd – reddish, but sort of glowing, like through a strange psychedelic filter.
Dave was gone – no, not gone, he was their, crouching down, curled up behind the arm of the sofa, with a terrified look on his face.
There was also a strange sound in the room, like some sort of motor. Slowly, his vision returned to normal, and he realised that the rumbling noise was more like the low growl of some sort of animal. That’s why Dave looked so scared, there must be a mad dog or something in the room. Steve looked around nervously, but couldn’t see any animal. He could hear it though, and feel it’s low rumble in his chest. That’s when he realise – the noise was coming from himself! He stopped, and looked down to see hands that were curled like claws, with long nails. He shook his head, and looked over to Dave, on the other side of the room, feeling dazed and confused. What was he doing by the door? How did he get there? Obviously, he was there because he wanted to get out, but how did he get there? How did he escape from under Dave.
“Please, I’m sorry” pleaded Dave, in a shaky voice. “don’t hurt me, I won’t touch you, I swear.” What on Earth had happened? Had that lion appeared and come to his rescue? That’s impossible. Yet Dave was clearly terrified. Steve had never seen such a look of horror and fear on a man’s face before.
Eventually, they both calmed down enough to talk. “I won’t hurt you” croaked Steve. Dave was still shaking, but looked relieved that Steve was once more human.
Eventually, they began to talk about what had happened. Dave was scared, Steve, a little shaken, but mostly just confused.
“What happened?” asked Steve.
“I…. I tried to rape you, but you changed.”
“What do you mean?”
“You turned into some sort of huge cat – like a tiger or something. I thought it was going to kill me. It threw me across the room. You leaped across to the door, growling and staring at me with those terrible eyes. Then you turned back into you again.”
They were both silent for a while, digesting what had happened.
“Please. I’ll get into terrible trouble if anyone finds out. If you don’t tell anyone I won’t” promised Dave. That seemed a good deal. Steve bore no animosity against Dave, and he certainly didn’t want anyone to know that he was some sort of werecat!
“Okay I promise not to tell anyone if you don’t either – this will be our secret. We must never tell anyone.”
“agreed”
Later, Dave nervously drove Steve home – he was still shaking.
“Has that ever happened before?”
“No, never”
“Haven’t you ever been raped before?” he asked, quite surprised.
“Never, well, not by a man.” Steve replied – keeping that other secret buried.
“Are you still a virgin then?”
“I’m not gay.” Steve insisted.
“Oh! But I thought…. I mean, you drink in the Lion, you hang out with the rest of us, and you act so …. well to be honest, you seem gay.”
“But I’m not”
“If it makes you feel any better, you ought to be – I mean, you’re quite dishy. Someone must have said that before.”
“Never”
“You should take it has a compliment.”
Steve turned and looked at him, and Dave looked scared again.
“No offence” he said quickly.
Dave thought he was a predator, but that night, he met a predator of quite another kind.
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