To the movies

(Caution: very minor Thor: Love and Thunder spoilers in this chapter)

"Let's go to that movie place at the mall. I think they have Avengers out this weekend."

"You just want to ogle Chris Hemsworth, don't you?"

"Well, he is hot, but I was also thinking Natalie Portman."

"Must be nice being bi, or pan, or whatever it is you are," Ethan chuckled. "So many more people you'd find hot."

"Also so many more people who are turnoffs," Cedric pointed out. "You don't even have to think about how unsexy some guys are."

Ethan furrowed his brow. "Huh, you're right."

"Of course I am. I'm the one who has to spend time on it."

"So how much time do you spend thinking about how sexy I am?"

"Fuck off," Cedric said, his face colouring gently as he slapped Ethan across the back.

"You should've aimed lower," Ethan winked.

"Don't ask for something you can't handle."

"Oh really? You think I can't handle you?"

Cedric's hand snuck a little lower and gave Ethan's firm buttcheek a little squeeze. Ethan yelped. "Why, you..."

Cedric smirked. "Yes really, I don't think you can."

"... fuck off."

Half an hour later, after Cedric had cleaned up his perpetually messy side of the dorm (It wasn't as if Cedric tried to be messy. His belongings just seemed to go... everywhere), they headed for the theatre. Owing to how late they had booked the tickets, they were seated right at the back and right next to the aisle, which they were initially pretty disappointed with. However, that turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

Ten minutes into the film, Ethan let out a muffled yelp. Cedric turned to look. "What?" he whispered.

Ethan's head darted this way and that, but he quickly settled down. "Nothing," he dismissed, and Cedric refocused on the movie. However, it got increasingly hard to pay attention to as Ethan had started to fidget in his seat uncomfortably. He glared at Ethan, who had just managed to pull his attention away from Jane Foster wielding Mjolnir.

"What are you doing?" Cedric hissed, before taking a closer look at Ethan. Ethan's face was pale, his breathing slightly elevated; one hand gripped the armrest with deft, callused fingers, while the other rested over his crotch.

"I don't know," Ethan whispered back, voice betraying just a hint of alarm. "Feels like something's groping me."

"What do you mean? No one's even near you."

"I don't know. It feels like someone's fucking playing with my dick," he breathed.

"What, like some sort of ghost?" Cedric asked skeptically. "Don't be sil-"

"How would you explain this?!"

"Maybe you just wore the wrong underwear... and if it's real, then maybe just enjoy the free handjob?" Cedric said, unimpressed, turning his attention back to the movie.

Not five minutes had gone by before Ethan grabbed his wrist and hissed in his ear, voice now laced with the beginnings of panic. "Cedric, it's trying to get into my butt."

"A little assplay doesn't make you gay," Cedric said distractedly, his focus still on Chris Hemsworth's muscled ass.

"Cedric, this is serious!"

"Okay, now what d-" Cedric's tore his gaze away from the screen and turned to glare at Ethan, but his complaint died on his lips as he saw the state Ethan was in. Ethan was sitting on his left hand, his blue button up shirt half undone; the zipper of his jeans was slowly sliding downwards, revealing his tented gray boxers. As he stared, another one of Ethan's shirt buttons came unfastened, and Ethan's free hand immediately gripped the bottom of his shirt, trying to prevent any more exposure.

"Okay, what the fuck?" Cedric said incredulously.

"Keep it down, please," the lady in front of them admonished as she glanced over her shoulder briefly.

"Sorry," Cedric apologized. To Ethan, he hurriedly whispered, "The fuck is happening?!"

"I don't fucking kn- something just went up my ass! Do something!"

"Okay, okay, do up your shirt first," Cedric advised, "then we'll get out of here." He watched awkwardly as Ethan struggled with his clothing, his erection slowly burrowing its way out of his boxers. Cedric, too, felt his anxiety start to build when the moment Ethan's hands left his shirt to stuff his cock back in, the shirt buttons started to come undone again.

"The zip won't come up," Ethan said in a nervous whisper.

"What do y-"

"It just won't!" He yanked at it, but it resolutely stayed stuck.

"You can't be fucking se-"

The lady in front of them spun around. "Will you ple-!" She gaped as she saw Ethan's tented boxers, immediately misunderstanding what Ethan was doing. "Boys, I think you'd better leave." The man beside her turned to look as well.

"It's not what it looks like!"

"Leave now, before I call the staff."

More and more heads were turning around to look at them. Deciding that discretion was definitely the better part of valour, the two boys quickly got up and hastily made their way to the exit, Ethan desperately clinging to the front of his jeans with one hand and the bottom of his shirt with the other, their popcorn left behind on the cinema seat.

Cedric walked as quickly as he could out of the cinema, leading a frantic Ethan, whose face was pink as he battled whatever interloper had its grip on his clothes. The mysterious **** was becoming more and more insistent, the back of Ethan's jeans slipping downwards and revealing the top of his crack even as he valiantly struggled to keep them up. Both his hands were now on the denim as his shirt waved about. His shoelaces were coming loose...

"Sorry, excuse me, coming through..." The various passers-by made their displeasure heard as the two boys pushed their way through them, some exclaiming in astonishment as they saw Ethan's shirt flap in his wake. It was lunch hour, and the mall was jam-packed with all sorts of people - families and couples enjoying a weekend afternoon out, students from their college, and even the occasional white collar worker unlucky enough to have to return to work on a Sunday. "Nearly there..." Cedric muttered, spotting the door to the carpark up ahead.

Just then, Ethan's luck gave out. Someone trod on his freely flapping laces, and with an exclamation of dismay that made Cedric look back at him, he was sent sprawling. He used his arms to brace himself - and as he fell, his jeans and boxers were finally yanked down, leaving Ethan face-down on on the tiled floor, shirt bunched up behind his shoulders, naked ass in the air. There were audible gasps from the people nearby as they started to give him an increasingly wide berth.

Ethan scrambled to his feet, desperately trying to pull his jeans back up, his rigid member saluting Cedric who couldn't tear his eyes away from the sight. Neither, apparently, could the few dozen people who immediately started to react. There were a few cries of "pervert!", "he's crazy!", and a couple of wolf-whistles. One of the more daring girls in the crowd even reached out to give his butt a slap.

"Come on, let's get out of here!" Cedric urged. Ethan, relenting on restoring his dignity for the moment, hobbled out of the door and into the sunlight, his pants gathered around his ankles like a pair of legcuffs.

Once out of the mall, even the wind conspired to maximize Ethan's embarrassment, coming in strong gusts that exposed his muscled torso. It took two to three minutes for Cedric to locate his car, and for those minutes, Ethan was **** to be a grotesque parody of Marilyn Monroe as his shirt relentlessly billowed and his jeans resolutely refused to be returned to his waist. Several onlookers were openly pointing and laughing at Ethan, a few even aiming phone cameras at him, and it was a blessed relief when Cedric finally managed to yank his car door open and shove Ethan inside.

Cedric hopped into the drivers seat and started the ignition, but before he could drive off, he heard Ethan moan. His head whipped around to see Ethan, his arms somehow trapped behind his back by his shirt, his jeans and boxers on the floor, and his shaft piercing the air. It was a disturbing, yet totally arousing sight, and Cedric felt himself start to stiffen as he gazed upon Ethan's practically naked body. Oh, to have Ethan bound, naked and hard in front of me... It should be a crime for his magnificent body to be clothed, really.

Cedric jerked out of his reverie. "What the fuck is going on?!"

"I don't know!" Ethan gasped as he struggled to get his arms free, his abs flexing as he twisted this way and that. "Help, it's - a-a-ah - it's fucking me!" His body, especially his nipples, were pink with welts, as if he was being pinched all over, and his quivering cock was starting to leak. This seems like a repeat of earlier today, Cedric thought.

"Budge up a bit; I'll help you get the shirt off." Ethan moved forwards and Cedric reached behind, eventually managing to untangle Ethan's shirt from his wrists. Once free, Ethan's hands swatted at his body, trying to identify or deter his assailants - but to no avail. Ethan moaned once more, the tip of his head pushing out a small but steady flow of precum. Outside the car, a couple of girls had gathered, drawn to them by what they had seen earlier; they were now openly staring at Ethan through the window and giggling. Cedric slowly inched forwards, giving them a warning, before leaving the parking lot.

As they drove back to the dorm, Ethan's shirt draped over his crotch and giving him a small degree of modesty, a thought suddenly struck Cedric. "Try jerking off."

"Wha-a-a-t?" Ethan moaned, having given up on deterring his assailants, now just focusing on riding it out. His face was red, the embarrassment from being caught naked in public not having worn off yet, and he gave off little gasps of unwilling pleasure as his body was molested.

"Jerk off," Cedric repeated, his eyes focused on the road ahead. His mind returned to earlier that morning. Ethan had been stuck on the edge for half an hour or more, but whatever it was that had him then didn't continue after he had shot his load. Maybe that was the solution. "Seems to have worked earlier."

Ethan stared at Cedric with wide eyes. "If you wanted to... watch me - a-a-aah - jerk off, you can just... ask me normally," he joked weakly. "No need to -"

"No, you idiot, I'm being serious," Cedric gave Ethan's shoulder a loud slap. "Just don't get cum all over my fucking car."

"How's that... supposed to help?"

"I don't know, but d'you REALLY wanna continue being fucked by whatever for whoever knows how long?!"

A beat of silence passed, then...

"Honestly? Does - a-unh - doesn't feel so... so bad," Ethan panted in a small, wavering voice. "But... not gay... oohhhhh godddd...." He let loose a particularly loud moan, his eyelids fluttering and his eyes rolling back in his head, his hips thrusting forwards.

"Jesus!" Cedric cursed. "We have no rational explanation for this... this weird invisible groping monstrosity, and you're happy letting yourself get fucked by it? What's wrong with you?! I thought I was the one who liked taking things up the ass!" He glared at Ethan, who appeared to be caught in some sort of euphoric, erotic bliss.

Holy fuck. I wish I was the one making him do that.

"Introduced to prostate play and serviced by a horny ghost," Cedric muttered. "Aside from the whole ghost thing, which I'm quite freaked out about, can I say that I actually feel a little jealous?"

I could do without the indecent exposure, though. And certainly not while I'm driving.

"So... fucking strange," Ethan breathed. "Feels... so good... can't... see anything... touching... weird..." One of his hands was now firmly stroking his cock through the shirt draped over him, while the other played with his exposed nipples. "O-o-oooohhh."

Cedric watched Ethan jerking off as much as he dared while still keeping his eyes on the road, and regretfully looked away as he pulled into the dorm carpark. He turned off the engine and left his keys in the ignition before turning to Ethan, who was breathing heavily as he cupped his balls, palm swiveling about his head.

"I'm... I'm gonna give you some privacy, okay? Once you're done, CLEAN UP and give me the keys. We'll figure out some way to deal with this."

Ethan's only response was a needy moan, which resulted in Cedric's blood rushing south. Cedric grimaced, quickly shutting the door on Ethan, before heading back to his room.

Ten minutes later, a clothed Ethan shuffled into their room, head slightly downcast, and without even turning to look at Cedric, sat on the floor. His face was lined with worry and he appeared to be in the middle of a mental struggle.

Ah. I think I know what's going on. Cedric got on his knees and sat down beside Ethan. "Ethan? Look at me."

Ethan didn't look, but Cedric could still make out the unease and insecurity written clearly on his face.

"Talk to me?"

There was a moment of quiet as Ethan gathered his thoughts, the silence of the scene punctuated only by Ethan's breathing. Cedric slowly counted the seconds that passed.

Five.

Ten.

Fifteen.

After about half a minute, Ethan finally spoke. "I... I just don't know what to feel," Ethan admitted, his voice shaky.

"Why?" Cedric was pretty sure that he knew what Ethan was getting at and why he was conflicted over it, but thought it would be better for Ethan to hear and understand the words that were about to be spoken, rather than to have Cedric immediately rush in to reassure him.

"It... it..." Ethan struggled to get the words out. "It... fucked... me."

"Yeah."

"It's not like I could've done anything about it."

"Yeah. Seems that way."

Ethan looked at Cedric, confusion in his eyes. "I'm not gay. Or bi."

"You aren't."

"So... why... why..."

"Why did it feel so good?"

Ethan nodded mutely.

"Better than any handjob or oral ever made you feel? Better than any sort of sex with a girl, even?"

Ethan nodded again.

"It's okay to feel that way, Ethan. Liking butt stuff doesn't make you gay. It's a physiological reaction, nothing more."

"But..."

"You've heard of the g-spot, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, guys have a similar thing called the p-spot. It's the prostate, and it's located somewhere close to the end of the anal canal. So... having something up your ass stimulates it and gives you all those good feelings."

"Okay..."

"So you're not gay, you just like having your prostate stimulated. A lot of straight guys do. A lot of straight guys get pegged, even. It's honestly fine."

"Still feels like... everything I've ever known about myself is..."

"Out of whack? Turned on its head?"

"Yeah."

"Let's put it this way. Do you wanna be fucked by a guy?"

"... no."

"How about by me?"

Ethan cracked a tiny smile. "I love you, Cedric, but not in that way."

"Damn," Cedric joked. "And here I was thinking I might finally have a chance."

"Don't kid yourself... and I'd be the one fucking you anyway."

"Why, are you offering?"

"You wish." Ethan definitely looked better now.

"So, you wouldn't wanna fuck a guy either?"

"No."

"Still find your ex sexy?"

"... she kind of turned out to be an insane bitch. But... otherwise... I guess... yeah."

"Then no, you're not into guys at all, you're definitely still into girls, and as far as I can tell you're a hundred percent straight."

"Ced?" Ethan was openly smiling now, the worried frown on his face having dissipated. "Thanks."

"Anything for you, Ethan, you know that." Cedric grinned.

"Oh, uh..."

"Yeah?"

"You know I don't have anything against bi or gay people or anyone who's LGBTQIA plus, right? And if I were bi or gay, well..." Ethan scratched his head sheepishly, "I'd also be fine with that? It's just..."

"Don't worry, man," Cedric reassured. "You were just having a 'proper full-on gay crisis'... which reminds me, you HAVE got to watch Heartstopper with me at some point. But yeah, I've been there. No offense taken."

"Really, Ced. Thank you. So much," Ethan said, getting to his feet.

"Hug?"

Ethan's brilliant smile practically lit up the room as he reached out, pulled Cedric up onto his feet, and embraced him tightly.

They broke apart after about a minute, and as Cedric looked at Ethan once more, he was glad to see that Ethan certainly seemed to have regained some peace after his earlier mental turbulence.

"... so why's it after me and not you?"

Both boys pondered the question for a few moments, and it was Cedric who finally said the hitherto unthinkable. "Do you think... do you think it could've been... well... a ghost?"

"You know, prior to today, I would've said you were out of your mind."

"... but you know as well as I do that what just happened was far, FAR outside the realm of normalcy."

"... yeah. It does. And..."

"And it started back last night in the graveyard. Your clothes got fucked up there too. And then there was this morning..."

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but... maybe we should do some research into this... I don't want to be fucked all the time. Or have to jerk off like every hour or something just to get it to stop," Ethan shuddered.

"But who on earth would know more about this...?"

A/N:

Credits go to Alice Oseman for coining the phrase "proper full-on gay crisis", and for the fantastic webcomic and Netflix series Heartstopper. <3