Page 4 of Dreamers Often Lie

“I think we have to believe so, for now. Tell your house. I’m sure our bosses will have a lot to say.”

2

Merc

“You gotta bounce higher than that!” I screamed as I fell back down to the mattress that Ben and I were pushing to its limits. “Get your knees into it.”

“I’m already fucking flying!” Ben screamed as he almost fell off. “You’re going to hard.”

“No such thing, Benny Boy! Now, just take it and let yourself go!”

I fell back to the mattress, but he was not ready. I launched him up into the air, but he was too far forward. I jumped off the bed as fast as I could and grabbed hold of him as he fell too far off the bed. It would have sucked if he had smashed into my dresser. He landed on the floor in a pile of arms and legs.

“Oof! Fuck!” He cackled as he rolled over to his back. “You’re fucking dangerous.”

“I mean, this bed is like a goddamn trampoline, Ben. What’s the point of having it and a huge loft ceiling if you’re not gonna have fun!” I walked over and gave him my hand. He grabbed it, and I hauled him up off the floor.

“Merc, I’m sure you’ve pushed this mattress to its breaking point in many ways.”

“Well, you know I have,” I said slyly.

“Yep! I still walk funny after our last scene.” He slapped me on my cheek gently and walked over to the bed. “Sex with you is like a fucking rodeo.”

“I don’t remember you complaining.”

“Your memory is fuzzy at best. You’re too fucking wild.”

“Well, we were the highest watched video in that quarter. I bet that made Roam lose his fucking mind.” I was always happy to beat him in the ratings. Roam was the biggest star we had at Monty’s, but I was always right behind, nipping at his heels.

“Have you seen him today?” Ben lay back on the bed and rolled over to his side.

“No. How can you see someone that doesn’t want to be seen?” I walked over and pulled my curtains to the side, letting the sunlight stream in. “He’s off moping around, trying to gain sympathy. I’m sure you could check out Monty’s Instagram and figure it out. He’s been posting the most emo bullshit I’ve ever seen over the last few days. He’s gonna lose his posting privileges if he doesn’t get his shit together.”

“Are you kidding? People are loving it. They want someone sympathetic, and right now, Roam is all they're talking about.”

“Oh, I can imagine. How brave he is, right? How hard it must be for someone like him to find love and not have it returned? Am I right?” I chuckled and walked over to the bed.

“You called it, bro.” He winked.

“It will get old fast, and then they’ll turn on him.” I sat down and laid on my back, crossing my arms behind my head. “What did he expect, they will say. He’s a porn star – why would Ross ever want to get into a serious and committed relationship with someone who bangs other people for a living? Just look at how he lives in that house with all the other whores. It’s whatthey’ll all say when they get tired of his moping around. It’s the inevitable outcome,” I sighed heavily. “People see us for what they want to see us for. They don’t really want to know the person behind the persona. They want to watch us fuck. They want to know us because they want to fuck us. It ends there. Roam thinks he’s an actual internet celebrity, but if he weren’t doing this, no one would give a shit about him or any of the rest of us.”

“You’re fucking depressing.”

“I’m truthful because I’ve been in a bad mood. I’m tired of being told what to do all the fucking time. I want to… I don’t know… make my own decisions for once. I want to be able to walk around in my own house without running across people filming scenes, and Monty made me join them because I happened to walk by. I was one of the biggest influencers in the house… I wish I could say no, you know? I wish I could have a bed that didn’t belong to this fucking house, and I could choose who I banged in it.”

“Ok…” Ben chuckled dryly. “We have to get you out of this shit show you’re in.”

“I know, I’m… I like Roam. You know that. But he buys into the bullshit of all of this too much.”

“He buys into his own bullshit enough, that’s for sure.”

“No kidding. What did he expect? Ross is the son of a senator. Roam was great for a little fun, but it could never be serious. It’s not the worldwelive in. It would tarnish Ross, and if Roam isn’t careful about all these shit posts, he’s gonna wind up getting himself really fucked up. You don’t mess with powerful people when you don’t have any power.”

“I should talk to him.”

“Someone should. He doesn’t ever listen to me. I’m just the fun guy he turns to when he wants to get into trouble.” I groanedand rolled over to look at him. Ben was beautiful in every way and had become one of my best friends.

“You are really good at getting in trouble.”

---