-Devin-

He followed Mitch into the main building and into a room full of people he presumed he'd be working with. There was a brunette white woman, an older white man with a salt and pepper beard, a younger black woman with hazel eyes that matched his own, another white man with dark brown hair - that one was hot but definitely straight, what a shame - and then a smiling young white guy that Devin could immediately tell was gay.

The guy had honey brown hair and big eyes that were the same shade of blue as a perfect summer sky - sunny, with large, puffy clouds drifting lazily across the endless blue. It's too bad those eyes belonged to someone he wouldn't have taken a second look at under any other circumstances. The guy was attractive enough, but he was attractive in a cute way, and Devin didn't do cute. 

This guy looked like he'd be sweet and eager to please, which meant he wouldn't have a clue how to please Devin. He liked to fuck - to throw a guy around and bite him and pin him down, and then have the same done to him. None of that tender, making love shit, which was probably what this guy preferred.

His eyes wandered down the guy's body. He wasn't big, or stocky, or muscular, but he wouldn't exactly consider him a twink either. Although he was tiny, the guy had some muscle on his frame, which was probably due to the type of work he did rather than any kind of effort in a gym. Devin wasn't interested at all, but the guy would have to do. He knew he should consider himself lucky that there was even another gay guy in this place.

"Everyone, this is Devin," Mitch said, addressing the room. "He'll be with us for four months and will work with each of you at some point or another." 

Mitch introduced each person in the room, and Devin stepped forward to shake their hands. When he shook the hand of the small gay guy, named Avery, he noticed the guy swallow hard, despite his smile. He clearly found Devin hot, and he was probably intimidated. This would be fun.

"Devin," Mitch continued. "For the first month, I'd like you to shadow Avery and work with him. He's been with us for two years, knows a hell of a lot, and is the most patient teacher we've ever had. You'll be in good hands."

He couldn't help but smirk. He'd definitely be in good hands alright. The others began to leave, and he turned towards Avery. "So, boss, where to?"

Avery was several inches shorter than him, and had to look up at him to make eye contact. "I'm going to spend the first day just showing you around and explaining some of what we do," he said cheerfully. "We won't get to work until tomorrow. You can leave your bag with Mitch and I'll show you your cabin when we get back later this evening."

He walked with Avery out of the building and over to one of the older, white pick-up trucks. Avery unlocked the door on the passenger side, and then walked around to the driver's side to unlock his own door. Devin followed, figuring now was as good a time as any to establish how things were going to go. As soon as Avery opened the door, he stepped close, placing one hand on the door and the other on the door frame, trapping Avery. Avery was visibly startled when he turned and noticed Devin.

"Figures they'd put the two gay guys together," Devin said, his voice low.

"You're gay?" Avery sputtered.

"You didn't pick up on that?"

"Um, I don't assume. And I just met you."

He leaned forward and ran a finger down Avery's chest, enjoying watching the guy squirm. He let his gaze linger on Avery's body, and then turned and walked back around to his side of the truck.
   

-Avery-

He tried to regain his composure as he started the truck, but he was well aware of Devin sitting just a foot away in the passenger seat. He tried to push any thoughts of Devin's body out of his head and pretend he was any other person. As he drove Devin to a few of their project sites and explained the types of things they worked on, his enthusiasm for the outdoors took over and it became easier to focus. Devin, however, wasn't saying much. He seemed to be bored and barely listening.

"Do you hike and camp often?" he asked, hoping that a conversation would get Devin to be a little more engaged.

"If by camp, you mean stay at a cabin, then yeah. My friends and I stay in cabins a couple times a year, and I've been on a few short hikes just for something to do. But I'd rather be in the gym or at a club."

"Oh," Avery responded. He couldn't quite relate to that, since he'd only been in a club a handful of times in college. He preferred the outdoors.

"I take it you don't get out much, seeing as you're stuck here."

"No, but I enjoy it here. It's a great place to work and everyone is awesome and really cares about the forest and getting people outside. And it's great to be outside so much of the time."

"If you say so," Devin replied, rolling his eyes.

Devin's attitude didn't improve much by the time they pulled back up at the camp. He showed Devin where the kitchen and dining area were and where they stored a lot of the equipment they'd be using. Then, they got Devin's bag and walked out to the cabins.

"There's a creek not too far back that way," he said, pointing behind the row of cabins on their right. "It's a great place to go sit and just hang out." He gestured to a cabin they were walking past. "This one is mine. Yours is just across and one down, so if you need anything I'm not far away."

As they walked up the four steps to the front of the cabin Devin would be staying in, Avery pulled an extra set of keys from his pocket. "These are yours. Don't lose them, but if you do, Mitch has an extra set."

"I feel like I'm at summer camp," Devin remarked.

"Well, this used to be a camp before the forest service took over."

"Do we even need to lock our doors? We're in the middle of nowhere."

"If we just had to worry about ourselves, no. Everyone here is great. But we have had people wander onto the property in the past, so it's better to be cautious."

They stepped inside, and he watched as Devin surveyed the room. Each cabin had a twin size bed, a small dresser that also served as a nightstand, a wardrobe to hang clothes in, and a tiny round table with two chairs. A door near the bed led to a bathroom with a shower, toilet and small sink. Avery thought it was cozy, but he could tell Devin was not impressed.

"I can't believe you all live here most of the year," Devin said, disdain apparent on his face.

"Well, some of my coworkers that have been here for years have brought their own furniture and done a lot to decorate, so their cabins feel a lot more like home."

"But there's not even a kitchen."

"That's why we have the dining room and kitchen in the main building. We all cook our food there, and most of the time someone will cook dinner for everyone else."

Devin groaned and flopped down on the bed.

"You'll get used to it," Avery said, trying to be optimistic but feeling a bit bothered by how much Devin obviously hated the place. He knew the guy didn't want to be here, but he could at least try to make the best of it.

Devin sat up, his gaze shifting to Avery, and then to the cabin door. "How soundproof are these cabins?"

"Uh, soundproof? Why?" he asked.

Devin smirked at him. "You know what I mean. Come here."

He kept the smile on his face, but his heart began to beat hard in his chest. "I'm here to get my job done. We both need to be professional."

"Aren't we off the clock right now?" Devin asked, getting up from the bed.

As Devin approached, he took a step back. Of course he was tempted, but it wasn't the time or place and he wasn't too sure about Devin as a person.

"We are. And I said I'd meet the others for dinner, so I'm going to head over there. You should join us."

Devin rolled his eyes. "You're no fun."

"Well, uh, if I don't see you at dinner, I'll see you tomorrow morning. Meet me out by the truck at eight." He turned and left, needing to get out of the situation. He didn't want to encourage Devin, or give himself the opportunity to change his mind. 

Besides, he'd be way too intimidated to do anything with a guy like Devin. His boyfriends had been a lot like him - kind, hard working, and tending to follow the rules. Devin was nothing like that. He seemed like trouble.

-Devin-

After laying in his bed for over an hour scrolling through social media on his phone, he got up. He was already bored out of his mind. He'd be a lot less bored if Avery had wanted to hook up, but the guy seemed to have a stick up his ass about being professional. Although Avery had invited him to join everyone else for dinner, he hadn't been interested. He didn't feel the need to spend any more time with these people than necessary. It definitely wasn't his crowd. 

He was getting hungry though, so he wandered over to the main building, hoping there would be something to eat. No one was there, so he opened the fridge and pulled out a Tupperware dish with some kind of meat and rice in it. It looked like beef, which was good enough for him, and he popped it in the microwave. Avery had said that they often cooked one meal for everyone, so hopefully this was leftovers from one of those meals. But even if it was someone's personal food, they should have put their name on it. Not like that would have stopped him anyway.

After finishing off the meat and rice dish, which was actually pretty good, he looked around the kitchen and grabbed a banana and an orange from a basket on the counter. As he walked back to his cabin, he texted his cousin Carter to give him the rundown. He was going to need all the support he could get to make it through this God-awful experience.