rareslash | First fic post, yay!

So, er, I know that this has never been done before, but I'm always one for pioneering new ground. All blame and love goes to

gennia, who started it and makes me continue writing this thing. Title is temporary, as I cannot think of anything else. It is a work in progress.

Title: Very Bad Jockey Slash Fic, 1/?
Author: Luce
Archive: Yes, just ask me first.
Fandom: Horseracing
Pairings: Gary Stevens/Alex Solis, Corey Nakatani/David Flores
Rating: R, for swearing and references to sexual situations
Disclaimer: The jockeys mentioned in this fic are not gay. I do not really think they are gay. I only pretend they are because, well, it's fun.
Summary: Alex realizes he is in love with Gary, and Freaks Out.
Warnings: This is real person slash, boys and girls. Don't like it, don't read it.

Part 1: Revelations

When Gary walked into the jockeys' room on Monday, Alex thought there was something different about him. It made his stomach feel funny and his head kind of dizzy.

He turned to David, who was changing into his silks for the first race of the day.

"Hey David," he said, eyebrows furrowed.

"Yeah?" The other man didn't stop his movements, only paused momentarily to give Alex his attention.

"Does Gary seem different to you today?"

David turned his head to glance at Gary, then gave him a strange look. "No..."

"Look again," Alex persisted. "I swear, there's something about him today."

David gave him another look, this one clearly saying, "You're out of your fucking mind," and went back to dressing.

Alex surreptitiously tried to catch glimpses of Gary all morning, and they only confirmed his notion. Something was different about the man. It was making him uneasy, and he was going to find out why.

*

By afternoon, Alex was fed up. He hadn't placed higher than fourth in any of his races all day, he was tired, and dammit, there was still something funny about Gary. He still got that strange feeling every time he looked at him, and it wouldn't go away. It was time to confront him about it.

It was after the last race that Alex made his move.

"Hey Gary," he said, catching up with him as they walked back to the jockeys' room.

Gary smiled at him. "Alex! Haven't talked to you all day, buddy."

"Yeah. Listen, I--" And then Alex couldn't talk any more, because Gary's eyes met his, and he was drowning in an electric sea of blue blue blue, and Christ, he couldn't breathe or talk and he was just standing there like an idiot with his mouth hanging open and--

"Alex?"

He fumbled for air and laughed falsely. "SorryGarytalktoyoulatergottago."

He all but ran the rest of the way to his locker. Shit. Fucking goddamned shit. He'd just figured out why Gary seemed different today.

Alex was in love with him, and that put a whole new slant on things all together.

*

In retrospect, he didn't know why he hadn't figured it out sooner. Alex pondered his obliviousness while nursing his fourth bottle of beer, brain fuzzy and body warm with alcohol.

I mean, he's funny, he thought drunkenly. And smart. And really nice. Too damned nice, actually, but that was what made Gary...well, Gary. And he was one hell of a jockey.

Oh yeah, and he was really fucking hot. Nice butt, Alex nodded to himself. Very nice butt. In fact, nice body in general.

Then his thoughts took a Very Bad Direction, and the author can't share the events that followed without blushing, so she will move on.

*

The next morning, Alex woke in a foul temper. Finding yourself lying on sticky sheets and being reminded that you were in love with someone who was probably straight and, oh yeah, married, can do that to a person. He rushed through "breakfast," which consisted of a fifteen vitamin tablets and one-sixth of a banana, and drove like a maniac to the racetrack. When a driver honked at him for cutting him off, Alex flipped him off and stepped on the gas pedal.

His mood hadn't improved by the first race. When David expressed concern, he only snapped at him to mind his own business. David reacted by queening out and turning to Corey for comfort, muttering about ungrateful fuckers who didn't appreciate their friends. Corey, for his part, indulged David in his drama princess mode. He patted his back and shot glares at Alex over his shoulder.

Oh, whatever, Alex thought darkly. It's not like no one knows you two are screwing like rabbits.

His riding was even worse than yesterday's. Gary, because of some ironic twist of fate, rode in all of the races Alex did. Meaning for every race, Alex was treated to the sight of Gary's tightly-clad ass waving in the air, taunting him.

Life was a bitch, and she hated Alex. He went to the showers at the end of the day even more tired than the day before, with a raging hard-on, to boot.

No thanks to a certain someone. Alex scowled, and tried to hate. Blue, blue eyes filled his vision, and the hate was trampled by an onslaught of love. This really wasn't helping the problem at hand (no pun intended).

By the time he finished showering, among other things, the room was mostly empty. He was feeling strangely calm. Well, calm except for the dull ache that centered on his chest since he realized he was in love with Gary. It spiked into a euphoric mixture of happiness and want and pain whenever Alex looked at him.

It was the most addicting thing he had ever felt in his life. This was probably going to kill him. If I don't do it first, Alex amended morbidly.

He slowly realized that there was only one other person in the room with him. He looked up. It was Gary. His heart stopped.

Breathe, Alex, breathe, he chanted to himself. He was calm. He was cool. He was going to act like the straight friend he had always been, not a suddenly gay guy who's in love with one of his best friends at all! Alex swallowed nervous laughter.

"Good job out there today, Gary," he said, voice squeaking only a little.

"Thanks," Gary said.

Alex took another breath. See, it wasn't that bad. He was doing good. No tip-offs at all.

"Gary, I'm in love with you."

Oh, shit. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck.

Gary blinked at him. "Oh. That's...wow..."

Alex wanted to die of mortification. He wanted to curl up into a fetal position and shoot himself. Now Gary knew and oh shit Gary fucking knew and hell was about to break loose and he'd just fucked up a decades long friendship and Gary was going to punch him in disgust any second now--

"Took you long enough."

--and it was over all over and he was going to go back to his house and commit suicide so he didn't have to face the world again why was he such a stupid fuck--

Wait. "What?" Alex asked, dazed.

"I mean," Gary said, walking up to him with an amused expression on his face, "that you are one stupid jockey, Alex Solis."

Alex did the only thing one could do in such a situation. He kissed Gary.

And yes, he saw stars and white light and fireworks. It was like flying. Kissing Gary was better than winning ten thousand Dubai World Cups. He tasted of wind and home.

When Alex broke the kiss, he had a huge, idiotic grin on his face.

"You know, this doesn't help that rumor that all jockeys are gay," he said.

Gary raised one eyebrow. "There's a rumor that all jockeys are gay?"

"Yep." Gary continued to look at him questioningly. "I heard Chris McCarron talking about it on one of his Seabiscuit tours," Alex explained. "Some strange girls were asking about it."

"Oh. Well, you realize that our relationship is going to be very difficult, right?"

"Yes."

"And that we'll have to be secretive and lie about it?"

"Yes."

"And that I can't leave my wife and kids?"

A pause. "Yes."

"And that I've never really had gay sex before?"

Alex grinned. "That's okay. I haven't either. Let's fix that right now."

Gary laughed, and then things really moved in a Very Bad Direction, and the author will end this segment of the Very Bad Jockey Slash Fic.

~TBC

[cross posted to