Tyed - Chapter 2: Chapter 2

"Well, it's the same thing as my story, so lemme just explain." Lachlen downs a shot he'd just ordered in one go. "Right. So there's a lot of background as to how this conversation happened, but my friend Paige, ze introduced me to this place. It's out in the Eastern suburbs, a bit well hidden, and mostly spread through word of mouth. And what it is, is it's kind of like a club, I guess, but the whole point of it is... well, rich people who want to date pretty people, except it's not just for older men and younger women. It's for all sorts of people. I went there maybe eight months ago, and because of it, I've met Levi."
"You're telling me you got a sugar daddy?" Tyler's eyes narrow as he tries to make sense of the words. Lachlen laughs.
"I mean, it's not just that. It sounds like it but it's a whole lot different to what it sounds like when you go there." Lachlen grins like he's making complete sense, unaware that he's not. "It's a whole negotiation. You know what BDSM is, right?"
"Shit, it's not one of those weird places where they get busted because there's one dude abusing a bunch of underage girls or something, is it?" Tyler asks, blurting it out as his first association with those kinds of things. His second association is his mother comparing it to being gay and having sex with animals. To be fair, this was several years ago, fresh out of the helltown both generations grew up in, and she's at least tolerant of Tyler's bisexuality these days. Those words still stick in his mind years later, though.
Lachlen scoffs. "What? Stop watching the news. No. It's like... you go there, and as long as you know what you want, you can find someone who wants exactly that, but like, on their end. Usually it's pretty kinky, and usually it's like a sugar thing, but it doesn't have to be. I met Levi there and it's been plenty of both those things."
"So Levi is your sugar daddy? Where's he?" Tyler asks, looking around the room like he could find a man he'd never met by sight alone. Lachlen elbows him in the ribs, and Tyler gives him back his attention.
"He's not here, and you look like a twat," Lachlen says. "He's working, but I'm meeting up with him after this. I'm sure he won't mind if we meet up somewhere else, so let's go. If you stay with me for more than, like, an hour, you'll meet him. Come on."
"I don't really care, but sure," Tyler offers, and Lachlen rolls his eyes at his ex's drunken honesty. "Where exactly are we going?"
"Shit, I forgot to ask if you wanted to go to the club. You're coming, right?"
"Wait, we're actually doing this?" Tyler blinked through his surprise. "Am I going to go get a sugar daddy to solve my money problems? Is that what you're suggesting I do?"
"I mean, you don't have to." Lachlen shrugs as he gets up out of his seat. "But you want to, right? I don't know, I don't want to be weird."
"You're always fucking weird, Lachie." Tyler doesn't mean anything bad by that, and his ex knows. When Lachlen stands, Tyler finds himself following. It doesn't quite feel real; it's like he's just standing in a dream, ready to follow wherever the dream takes him. "But like, we're seriously, actually doing this?"
When Tyler had known Lachlen, he knew him to be cautious, careful, but optimistic. He knows Lachlen wouldn't take him somewhere that isn't safe, and he also knows that Lachlen truly does think this will solve Tyler's problem, or else he wouldn't be so eager to try it. So eager he didn't even think to actually ask until after getting ready to leave.
On the other hand, Tyler hasn't seen Lachlen in two years, and people can change. That, and Lachlen's already implied it's kind of a BDSM thing; Tyler certainly hopes that aspect of it is avoidable, if this is to work out. He's not cut out for that kind of thing. He could probably do the dominant stuff, if he really wanted to, but no way is anyone telling him what to do. He has that much set in his mind; he can play a role, maybe, if he tries, but there's only so far he's capable of pushing it.
Despite that, Tyler considers the possible upsides. Some boring guy is going to ask him to pay the bare minimum amount of attention he can and pretend to be into him for a day a week, and in return, Tyler gets to stay in Melbourne. Going back to Gem Varily with his mother isn't the absolute worst thing that could happen in his life- going back to Darkfilly Copse would be, if that shithole in the middle of nowhere still exists- but dealing with a sugar daddy is a far more pleasant idea than his mother's house is. It's not just her presence, or his stepfather, or any reminder of his brother or father at all; it's also just the principle of it. Tyler hates being around his family, that's part of it, but she also told him he'd never make it on his own, and he wanted nothing more than to prove her wrong.
"Are you coming?" Lachlen says, and Tyler swallows his fears and nods.
Lachlen grabs his hand, and for a moment, Tyler's in high school again. Lachlen's hand isn't anywhere near as sweaty as it was the first time the two of them held hands, though. Tyler hears Nancy call something out to him, but the general tone is something like a congratulations, so he doesn't worry too much. She knows who he's with, if not where he's going. He'll text her later.
"It's not far from here," Lachlen assures him. "Like, the trams'll get us there in like, ten minutes."
"Shit, I can't believe I'm doing this," Tyler mutters as Lachlen drags him along. The street is lit by soft yellow light, creating contrasted, harsh shadows on the pavement. Half-drunk partygoers mull around, talking and laughing, and something about the neon signs blurring in Tyler's vision makes it all seem even more surreal than he already feels it is. This, surely, is another fever dream he has, half-woken when the nightmare still grips, but not quite as tightly as it did.
Sometimes, Tyler's grip on what's real and what he imagines slips a little. For a moment, he's sure he's imagining all of this.
Lachlen's hand slipping from his breaks that illusion, though, as he's forced to meet Lachlen's eyes and sees a look of anticipation. "Are you good? We don't have to go."
"Nah, Lachie, I'm curious." That's something Tyler is sure about. "I want to at least see what's going on in this place. I mean, you seem to like it and it's a chance, so. Is it just to like, meet people, or...?"
"It's easier if you see. But don't worry, people'll leave you alone if you want them to." It hadn't even occurred to Tyler that he would have to talk to people he hadn't met before. It sinks in just at that moment what he's about to do; even without details, having just the vague idea of what this might be, it's a scary thought. He pushes it down, like all things that scare him, and gives Lachlen a smile. When everything in life leaves an empty feeling inside Tyler, he's not afraid of this one thing any more than he is anything else.
They board the tram when it comes, and it's nearly empty. Lachlen kicks some trash aside and leads Tyler to sit down. Tyler follows in a daze.
"Why are you helping me?" Tyler asks softly as he meets Lachlen's dark eyes. "Is this going to help?"
"Odd questions to ask together," Lachlen remarks. "It should help, if you meet someone who can help you and you can actually stand them. Knowing you, it won't be a problem."
"Okay, and why are you helping me?" Tyler asks, not sure how much he believes Lachlen's words.
"Hey, we're friends." They're not, not anymore. "I know you as a person. This'll be an easy thing for you to do, and I think you'll prefer it to a job. The emotional labour might be hard, but still."
"You think I'd like this?" Tyler asks, not necessarily denying that Lachlen's correct, but confused as to how he got to that answer. Lachlen is incorrect as far as Tyler's concerned, but he's not very invested in that fact in his drunken state.
"Not to be blunt," Lachlen says, "but you have a lot of sex with a lot of people. I assume you can do so for a reason other than attraction, right?"
"Yeah," Tyler agrees with a shrug. "Maybe, I don't know. Never tried."
Tyler doesn't comment on the implication of Lachlen's words, the bitterness that could be there but isn't. Lachlen's a forgiving person; of course he got over Tyler cheating on him. It's also been two years, but somehow, Tyler feels like Lachlen should still hate him for it.
"Well, I mean, don't if you hate it," Lachlen suggests casually. "But you are coming with me for a reason, I assume."
Tyler nodded. "Yeah. I guess I am."
They get off the tram in a corner of the city which is so close to the familiar loop of streets that Tyler's been through, but the road and the buildings themselves are new to him. It's a corner filled with older establishments, banks, hotels, offices; a wall of plaster, bricks and windows that don't have clear purposes as far as Tyler can see.
Lachlen knows exactly which door to head towards. Tyler's heart begins to race when he realizes this is about to happen, but he puts on the defensive look and prepares for anything at all. Lachlen could be taking him to get murdered. Whatever he's about to enter into is probably going to be better than that, he supposes.
The door itself is inconspicuous, peeling black paint on wood. It's not locked; Lachlen pushes through it, and Tyler steps across the threshold into a small room, a reception, with another black door right behind a desk. At the desk sits a rather bored looking woman, but even making eye contact with her, Tyler feels nervous. There's nothing in this room to indicate that anything about this building is strange, but Tyler knows. He doesn't know what he'll find behind that door, but he does know something about the nature of it that changes everything about the way the woman sounds when she says, "...good evening, you two."
"Hi," Lachlen grins, clearly comfortable here in a way Tyler's not sure he'll ever be. "I'm just introducing my friend here to this place. As a sub."
Tyler feels a shiver pass up his spine at that word. If that's what this is, Lachlen did a horrible job of explaining, minimizing the BDSM element. Tyler gives him a pass because they're drunk and he can just leave if it's really that bad.
"Ah, so you're just here to take a look around?" the woman asks, and Tyler isn't sure what to say. When he's silent, she continues, "...I just need to know if you're open to invitations or not, so I know which ribbon to give you."
"What?" Tyler mutters, and she explains calmly, like she does this at least twice a night.
"Red means you don't want anyone to proposition anything to you, yellow means you're open for fun but nothing long-term, and green means you're open to any suggestions," she says. "There are other options, but most people stick to those three. Would you like a red one?"
"Uh," Tyler seems to stumble at the easiest hurdle. "I mean..."
"I'll take red," Lachlen says, swooping in to save Tyler. "I think he doesn't know what he wants, so maybe give him red and green?"
"I can speak for myself," Tyler snaps on reflex, before Lachlen turns to look at him and he feels bad. He bites back at the guilt. "But, uh, he's right, yeah."
The woman smiles and doesn't show any outward signs of judging him, but Tyler can feel the judgement in his soul. "Alright," she says, and hands them two red ribbons and a green one. "Black ribbons are the doms. They're assumed green, unless stated otherwise. Just let me check your ID real quick..."
Tyler tries to give her a smile as he hands it to her, but something about this whole thing has shaken his normal charisma. It takes a second attempt to give her the striking grin that usually comes so easily to him. Her smile in return is clearly the one she uses for every customer.
"General rules," she begins. "Get consent for anything you want to do, and when in doubt, leave people alone. If something makes you uncomfortable, walk away. If someone is personally approaching you and making you uncomfortable, call for Rye, and he'll deal with the situation. Honestly, though, that never happens. You'll be fine."
Tyler nods and doesn't think very hard about it; he's better when he just jumps in. He copies Lachlen and ties the red ribbon around his left wrist, tucking the green one into his pocket. The woman presses a button on her desk, and the black door audibly unlocks. Tyler takes a deep breath and tries to trust Lachlen as Lachlen leads him through and into the darkness.