It was only the first week of December, yet the snow had already started. Last night, when Jamie had gone to bed, there had been nothing on the ground, but on his drive to work this morning, the flakes were starting to fall. Over the hours that he was at work, the snow had begun to stick to the ground and it was gathering quickly. Already, there was a good three inches, and the heavy flakes did not seem to be slowing down.

Jamie shivered as he walked across the parking lot to his car. All he would like to do at this moment was go visit with his cats and then possibly head over to Luca's and curl up in front of the fireplace, with some hot tea while he cuddled with the other man.

However, his dream is an impossible one.

Once his car has slightly defrosted, Jamie starts the journey back to his house. It is only about an eight-minute drive. Usually, he walks or rides his bike, but it had just been too cold this morning and he couldn't work up the motivation to put himself out in the cold for longer than necessary.

Arry greets him, as per usual, when he walks in the door. She winds herself in between his legs, purring loudly all the while. Dragon just watches him from where he is perched on the cat tree. It has a heating pad on it, and Jamie wishes he could curl up with him.

"I can't stay for long," Jamie says, bending down to pick up Arry. She butts her head against his, and he gives her cheeks a good scratch. "Granddad has forced me into a date. Hopefully, it won't be so bad, hm?"

Arry just purrs some more, and Jamie takes that as agreement. She only stops purring when he places her on a different part of the cat tree, also with a heating pad.

"I wish I could cuddle you all night, Arry, but I can't." He walks out of the living room and into his bedroom, Arry following behind him. "Your Granddad would kill me if he did."

Slowly, he gets changed into some nicer clothes. The dark green sweater is one that Matilda had bought him for Christmas last year, and he didn't get to wear it nearly as often as he liked. He kept on the jeans he was already wearing, the dark wash material always made his ass look great.

His hair is a mess, he already knows this, but once he walks over to his mirror, he groans anyway. The blonde strands are standing every which way, the waves accentuated due to the melting snow that had gotten caught in the mess. Quickly, he passes a brush through the mess. It is truly a lost cause. His hair is stubborn, with multiple cowlicks. It was impossible to tame, and he was begrudging it once more as he set down the useless hairbrush.

"Do I look alright, Arry?" he asks, looking at the cat who was laying on his bed. She blinked at him, and he took that as confirmation. "Thank you."

After double-checking that the cats have food and water, he leaves the apartment. In the short time that he was inside, it has already fallen dark outside. It is enough to make his already declining mood turn sour.

He hadn't wanted to go on this date, had even tried to put up a fight. But once his dad got going, he knew there was no way to reign him back again. At least Luca had tried to help, saying he didn't know anyone. Jamie knew that was a lie. The man was a pediatrician for god's sake. He knew plenty of people.

But, Jamie is stuck going on a date with someone else he doesn't know. It makes him a little nervous, though, that Cally was the one to set this up. His parents liked to call him the wild one since he hasn't settled down, but Cally was the true wild child. Ever since the bitter break from her ex back in her freshman year at undergrad, she has been bouncing from partner to partner. It's about every six months that she has a new beau, seeming to get twitchy if she is with someone too long.

So, Jamie is expecting someone exactly like her when he shows up at the only nice Italian place in town. To say that he is surprised when he sees his date is an understatement.

The hostess leads him to a table next to the front window, the soft candlelight glow making it easy to see and enjoy the still falling snow outside.

The man sitting at the table, however, is who catches his attention. His blonde hair is thick on top, artfully disheveled, and he has a thin layer of stubble on his cheeks. Glasses, slightly rounded, rest on a long nose. When Jamie sits down at the table, he even sees that his eyes are startlingly blue.

He looks quite a lot like Luca, if he was being honest. It was what made him pause when he first laid eyes on him. For a few startling seconds, he thought that Cally had set him up with her own brother. But he quickly found out that was false, even if he looked a lot like Luca.

What had she said at the dinner?

I think you'll really like him.

At first glance, he really does get his heart pounding.

"Hi," he says, voice slightly higher pitch than Jamie was expecting. A smile spreads across his face, showing his straight teeth with a small gap between the front two. It's endearing. "You must be Jamie?"

"Ah, yes, that's me," Jamie says, scooting his chair in. "Raymond, right?"

"Just Ray. The only ones who actually call me Raymond are my mother and Cally."

"Annoying is one of her many qualities."

That gets a laugh out of the other man, and despite his earlier reservations, Jamie finds himself relaxing into the seat. The rest of the dinner goes off without any of the awkwardness that Jamie had been expecting. It passes by quickly, the two of them chatting an laughing while eating their meals and drinking some delicious wine.

In fact, Jamie is feeling so good about the date, he even invites Ray back with him to his apartment. It is only when they get in their separate cars, Ray promising to follow Jamie, that he starts to feel a little off.

His stomach turns when he thinks about what he knows will happen once they make it back to his place. And that feeling is shocking. He has always been one to be open to sex, loving the act. It gave a sense of closeness, even if only for a little while, that he often craved.

He loves sex, and he thinks that sex with Ray would be amazing. He just seems confident, but not cocky, something that Jamie has found to be a reliable sign that someone is good in bed.

But his stomach still turns.

Squirming in his seat, he focuses his attention back on the road. Hopefully, the odd feeling will pass once they make it back to his apartment. His mind will be distracted then.

The snow has slowed down some by the time they make it to his apartment. Ray parks his car next to Jamie's, and together, they shiver while walking up the stairs to his apartment.

Arry greets them at the door but soon bounds off to the cat tree when Ray tries to pet her. That just furthers the nausea in his stomach.

"Nice place," Ray says, looking around the apartment.

"Sure," Jamie responds, knowing that this isn't the nicest apartment. It was something he had gotten for pretty cheap when he graduated a few years ago, and the rent is low enough that he hasn't had the motivation to move. "But you didn't come here to admire my place, did you?"

A small smile spreads across the other man's face, and he takes a step closer to Jamie. "No, you're right, I didn't"

Arms wrap around his waist pulling him close against Ray's body, and Jamie forces himself to relax. Lips, thinner than he prefers, press against his. Jamie returns the kiss, closing his eyes as he does do. A tongue sweeps across the seam in his lips, and without thought, he allows the tongue entrance to his mouth.

The kiss is sloppy, but Jamie doesn't mind. He wants to get rid of that feeling in his body. He wants to not be reminded once more of his best friend who he can never have.

Ray crowds Jamie further into the living room and then down onto the couch. Together, they fall down onto the crappy piece of furniture, the springs and joints giving a loud creak at the sudden weight.

Jamie's mind wanders, thinking about what Luca and Noelle are doing at this moment, and not being able to put aside the wish that he was with them. Then, without his approval, his mind's eye changes the person he is kissing from Ray to Luca. The thought has him moaning, the kiss deepening.

His hands slip from Luca's waist up to his shoulders, and up his smooth neck. His hands continue the journey up to Luca's cheeks, and they falter at the smoothness. He can't remember the last time that Luca didn't have at least some stubble on his face. It isn't until his hands sink into the long, coarse hair that Jamie is ripped away from his fantasy.

His eyes spring open, and he is close to an unfamiliar face, the other's lips still moving against him. An erection is being pushed against his own dying one, until Jamie is completely limp.

Panicking, he pushes the other man away, and his thoughts come rushing back to him. The nausea from before becomes incredibly strong, his stomach turning completely. He doesn't even have time to stand up before he is leaning over and puking all over the ground. Some of the vomit splashes up, hitting the other man and Jamie, alike.

"Oh god," Jamie whispers, eyes fixed on the disgusting puddle on his floor. "Oh shit."

"Uh," the other man says, and Jamie looks up, remembering the other man is Ray. The one who Cally set him up with, because she apparently knows his preferences are anything resembling her little brother. "Would you, uh, like some water?"

"I'm fine," Jamie whispers, closing his eyes. "I think it would be best if you just left and we never spoke of this."

The couch groans again as the other man stands up, and Jamie cracks an eye open to watch him. "Yeah, sure."

Ray grabs the jacket he had shrugged off before quickly walking out the door and leaving Jamie to wallow in his misery.

"Shit, shit, shit!" Jamie mumbles again but forces himself to stand anyway and clean up the mess. Would he ever be able to move on past his best friend? It was seeming more and more unlikely with every passing hook up or date.

Arry cuddles with him once he is tucked into bed, shivering against the coldness of the sheets. "At least I have you and Dragon." She headbutts him, but this time, it doesn't make him feel any better.