They were going to kill him.

He’d die happy, but that was beside the point.

It had gotten to the point that Gerard exhibited a Pavlovian response while looking out the window. His heart started beating faster as he approached the blinds, which he always kept angled to let the sun in as much as possible without letting anyone else see in.

He was certain some of his neighbors had no such compunctions. That was the problem.

As he peered through the blinds, other physical reactions began to manifest. He felt his face flush, then the tightening in his lower stomach that signaled the onset of arousal. He wasn’t hard yet, but it wouldn’t be long.

It always happened this time of night, when the sky darkened enough to require lights inside. Their blinds never closed. The effect was like a spotlight, or his own private peep show.

The apartment building was an open square, with a courtyard in the center that held a small pool and some greenery. Gerard had moved in just two months ago and still had half his stuff in boxes. He didn’t know many of the neighbors.

Well, except for them. Not that he knew them, not by name. He’d never spoken to them. He knew parts of them, though. He knew what they did for fun. He knew they wore very little clothing around the apartment.

He knew they were beautiful. He knew they were gay.

The first time he’d glimpsed them, he’d thought they were women. From a distance, it was an easy mistake. They were both very slender, with tiny frames and longish hair. They wore stylish clothes and moved gracefully. But, more than a glance assured him they were both male.

He was quite certain of this because they tended to strip off their clothes with very little provocation.

They looked like models, and he found out later that was exactly what they were.

He could still remember the first time he’d seen them. He had been attempting to unpack but got sidetracked. He’d noticed the glorious colors of a spectacular LA sunset and gone to the window to look at it. As the colors faded into the dusk a light went on across the courtyard, and his attention was drawn by movement.

The two men were both slender and dark-haired, but that was where the resemblance ended. They looked about the same age, early twenties. The taller one had longer hair that Gerard later learned he sometimes spiked up into a faux hawk, but usually wore loose and straight. The other had shorter hair that came to just below his ears and was cut in the type of asymmetric style that was designed to fall over one eye.

The taller man wore makeup almost all the time, and favored tight, designer type clothing while the other dressed in a more punk style, often in a leather jacket when the weather was cool.

He didn’t see all this at once, of course, but over the course of time he’d seen them in the underground parking garage, or by the mailboxes. They’d never spoken to him, but he had smiled once or twice at the pretty men. He’d gotten smiles back from behind dark sunglasses, and he’d felt strangely elated.

He’d been fascinated at first sight; only for a moment had he thought they were women. They’d stood in front of the window for a moment, then the taller man disappeared from view only to appear a moment later, shirtless.

He’d swallowed hard and tried to make himself move away from the window, but couldn’t. Especially when the other man removed his shirt, tossing it carelessly to the side.

Both appeared quite pale, though the shorter man was the lightest. He caught a glimpse of metal from the taller man’s nipple rings, while the shorter one had several tattoos on his arms and chest.

The taller man stepped closer and reached out, and Gerard gasped softly. They’d looked like they were about to…but then he just turned the smaller man away from him. He began to massage his roommate’s shoulders, and the shorter man’s head fell back in evident pleasure.

Gerard tried to tell himself that it was just a friendly massage, but something told him these two were more than friends. There was something in the familiar way they touched. Sure enough, the massage turned more sensual. The taller man pressed up against the shorter, and his hands strayed from his shoulders down over his chest.

As Gerard watched, stunned, the shorter man turned and they kissed, lithe bodies rubbing against each other languidly. He’d stumbled back from the window, cheeks burning. The image didn’t leave his mind for a long time, though.

It wasn’t that he was shocked. Living in Hollywood, he saw same sex couples all the time. He’d seen every flavor of porn imaginable at one time or another. He wasn’t homophobic. He knew what men did together, but it just had never appealed to him. All the gay porn he’d seen had featured big hairy men and had done nothing for him. Shemales were slightly more interesting, but still not too exciting. He’d never imagined two pretty, slim men together like this.

He was amazed to find that he was fascinated by the image in his mind.

The image wasn’t just in his mind, though. Gerard didn’t return to the window for a couple of days, and when he did chance it, he’d seen nothing. No one was home in the apartment across the way.

The next night, he’d happened to glance out, and there they were. They were dancing; Gerard couldn’t hear the music but it looked like something really danceable because the men seemed to have a great time. They danced close to one another, and as he watched they stripped off their shirts and began to dance dirty.

His mouth went dry as he watched; the men knew how to move. They weren’t at all shy with each other, that was clear. They ground against each other, hands roaming, lips parted. They were beautiful together.

That was the first time Gerard thought that perhaps they wanted an audience. Two creatures that gorgeous were made to be watched.

One thought led to another and Gerard’s mind strayed to what else he might watch them do.

Once again, he forced himself away from the window. He felt like a voyeur even though he wasn’t going out of his way to watch.

He wanted to watch, though. He wanted it badly. He wanted to see what came after the dancing. Half hard, he went to the spare bedroom to work out. He pushed himself hard, trying to exorcise the vision of the two young men.

He worked out every day. He liked the way he looked, the way it felt when he was in good shape. He was thirty-five but looked younger. The only indication of his age was a sprinkling of gray hairs that had appeared in his close-cropped brown hair. He refused to color it.

Since he was new to the area, he hadn’t done much besides work and unpack. He’d been out with a few colleagues from work but he hadn’t bothered to date yet. He always found dating awkward; he’d stayed in an unfulfilling relationship for too long because it was easier than dating again. He didn’t want to get into a situation like that again. He wasn’t the kind of man who needed to be with someone all the time. He missed sex, of course, but he always had his hand.

He wondered if his new fascination had something to do with the fact that he hadn’t had sex in a couple of months. He didn’t think so. He’d gone longer without it before. All he knew was that whenever he thought of sex, the image of his sexy neighbors came to mind.