stomachache's blog

(This is the first of a new series involving Wyatt from the Sam stories, mostly focusing on him being shirtless with the odd gutpunch elements thrown in there from time to time. These will be a combination of my previous works and the slice-of-life genre. Punk Show takes place on the same night as Repayment, while Sam was attacked by the "debt collector".)

"Is he cute?" Melissa was Wyatt's friend since high school, and she was also the second member of their band. Durk, the third, was the drummer, and relatively new to both of them. They were all at Melissa's apartment, stalling a bit before heading to a show.

"Actually, yeah. He's nice and chubby." Wyatt was talking about Sam, his current college roommate.

"Bet you wanna suck on his titties."

"You're the one obsessed with nipples! Yours, mine, Durk's."

Durk laughed. "Hey, if someone throws me money, I must just show off my naturals tonight." He was buff and in his late twenties, with a perpetual five o'clock shadow.

"Eh, good chance I'll take mine off either way. It's freeing, and vulnerable."

"You're a slut." Melissa lamented. "Unlike you, I don't have the privilege to show my nipples."

"You know they probably wouldn't care if you took your bra off, right?"

"I mean..." Melissa rubbed her arms, anticipating the sense of exposure. "Maybe some other time."

They all laughed, and to that, they left Melissa's apartment for the venue. In proper fashion, it was a small house by the railroad tracks, populated in and out by various punks, goths, and their friends. The vibes were well enough; most people were there to either drink or play, or both. Wyatt's unnamed band was on first, and when they went on, they all looked at each other and removed their shirts, earning playful whistles from the audience. Melissa still had on an pink bra, and Durk was surprisingly muscular, sporting a six pack and huge arms.

They only played a couple songs, plus a prototypical track, all original, if a bit usual. Wyatt sung and screamed, Melissa played the guitar, and Durk drummed, all sweaty in the packed living room. After their set, they packed up their equipment and joined some of the folks in the backyard.

"I'm glad it's almost fall." Wyatt wiped the sweat from his face and chest. "It's so fucking hot in there."

Melissa joined him, followed by Durk. "Nice set tonight. You also sang well."

Wyatt thought for a minute, then laughed. "Funny." He looked at Durk. "Also, holy shit, I did not know you were ripped."

Durk laughed and hid his face a little. "Yeah, I recently started eating better, and I've been doing at-home workouts a lot. Prepping for a thing I'm doing with some guys."

"What kind of thing?"

"Uh, a recreational thing. Buncha guys, and others, get together once a week."

Melissa raised an eyebrow. "It's not an orgy, is it?"

Durk laughed. "Nah, nah, nothing like that. Besides, you wouldn't need to work out for an orgy. Nah, just some hand-to-hand combat. Think a fight club, but more tame."

Wyatt thought for a minute. "Are there any requirements?"

"Just that you gotta be comfortable hitting and getting hit." Durk slapped his six-pack. "Sometimes, during half-time, they tie somebody to a pole and take turns punching them hard in the abs. I volunteered this time, so I'm gonna get hit. People place bets on whether you give up, whether you throw up, that kind of thing."

Wyatt didn't want to admit it, but he was intrigued, having to cross his legs a little to hide his growing erection.

Melissa had been friends with Wyatt long enough to recognize his body language. "Do you think we could come to the next gathering?"

"Oh yeah, if you want. Just behave, and keep all fights in the ring. You could even go topless if you wanted. Some guys do naked fights, but I like to keep my pants on. Oh, and no shirts or shoes. That's the other thing. So if you go, better be comfortable shirtless and barefoot. They're doing it inside, so don't worry about glass or anything."

"Well, that's not a problem, is it, Wyatt?"

Wyatt shot her a half-glare. "As a matter of fact, it's not. I'm very comfortable with myself. I don't know if I could do that pole thing, at least not yet, but a good match doesn't sound too bad."

"That's what it's about." Durk looked at Wyatt and his partially defined abdomen. "I could teach you some conditioning, or at least hit you a few times just to give you an idea of how it feels."

Wyatt thought about it. The prospect of Durk punching him in the gut was strangely alluring, and he was excited to see him getting worked over at the gathering. "I dunno, I'm a little worried you're gonna impale me with those arms."

"Up to you." Durk shrugged. "I know how to pull punches, and I'm definitely not gonna hurt you on purpose."

Wyatt thought some more. "You know what, yeah. Why not?" They both went to the corner of the backyard and Wyatt prepared, stretching his body and tightening his abs. Melissa hurriedly got out her phone and started recording with a shit-eating grin on her face. Wyatt glared, then flipped off the camera. Durk joined him and readied his fist, then punched him directly on his navel, Wyatt absorbing it well enough.

"That wasn't so bad."

"That was a light hit." Durk raised his fist a little higher, then hit him a few more times, resulting in some grunts and hisses. "You're taking hits pretty well, but you should also be able to take some hits unflexed, just in case you can't anticipate an attack."

Wyatt sighed and raised his head. "Alright, if you insist." He relaxed his abs, leaving his belly completely vulnerable. Durk pulled back and sent a light jab into him, which smacked into the center of his belly and went in a little deeper, forcing some wind out of him and causing him to bend a little.

"Not bad." Durk patted Wyatt's back in congratulation. "It's important to keep in mind where your organs are in your body. The lungs and heart are protected by your ribs, but they can break if hit hard enough. The gut is soft and malleable, but your stomach and intestines are in there and vulnerable to damage if you aren't careful. You don't wanna have to explain to a doctor that you're bleeding on the inside because you and your sparring partner got a little too excited."

Wyatt laughed, then smiled. "Guess my intestines must be pretty strong on their own." He looked over at Melissa, still holding the camera. "You should try this!"

She laughed. "Now you should see if you can take a full-strength hit from him."

Wyatt's eyes widened and he guarded his stomach reactively. Durk laughed and shook his head.

"Nah, you'd definitely pop something. You need a lot more training before one of those."

Wyatt took some offense to the statement. "I mean, I'm not that weak. I'm pretty fit."

"Fit for consumption." Melissa barely bothered to mutter. "It's okay, you don't have to be strong. We love you just the way you are."

Wyatt glared again. "I could probably take you, and I wouldn't go down just from a thump in the tummy. I'm not that skinny."

"You don't have anything to prove. Just do some sit-ups and practice with a partner and you'll be fine." Durk stretched his own body, showing his hairy pits and pulling his nipples further up his pecs.

"Well, now I feel like I do. Go ahead and hit me as hard as you can, right in the belly." Wyatt smacked his gut where his belly button was.

Durk looked him up and down. "Yeah, I'm not doing that, but I'll hit you at about fifty percent."

"Fine. But I'm not flexing."

Durk sighed. "Have it your way."

He grabbed Wyatt's sides, positioning him properly for a wind-up. He pulled back his fist, and Wyatt just stared at him, not wanting to instinctively flex when he saw the fist coming. After a few practice wind-ups, he finally threw the punch. His fist buried itself briefly in Wyatt's unprotected gut, smacking into his intestines and pushing them backwards or to the side. His cheeks swelled up with air as it was expelled from his body. His mouth was agape, and he clasped his stomach as soon as Durk withdrew his fist.

He fell on his knees for a moment, inhaling painfully and trying to survey the damage to his innards. He could feel his intestines squirming in his belly from the blow, but apart from the pain, he felt normal. He continued to grasp his belly as if he had been stabbed in it.

"Oh shit, are you okay?" Melissa had begun to regret goading him into accepting the punch.

Continuing to focus on his breathing, Wyatt nodded, then, reconsidering, shrugged.

Durk walked over to and stood behind him. "How's the pain?"

He slowly looked up at him. "F- five."

"Out of ten?"

Wyatt nodded, frowning.

Durk laughed. "Yup, that sounds about right." He patted his back. "You'll be fine. Just ride it out."

Melissa was relieved by his prognosis. "Do you feel proven yet?"

Wyatt removed one hand to hold up a middle finger, then to push himself back up to his feet. He was hunched, and he leaned himself on the wooden fence for support, but he was upright.

Durk put his arm around his shoulders. "The last guy I did that to had to drink smoothies for a week. You look better off than he did, so maybe you do have some strong guts."

Melissa brought the camera down to Wyatt's belly, observing the redness around it. "Yeah, if they're still intact."

Wyatt looked at both of them and smiled, holding up a peace sign. Once again, his legs were closed, hiding a massive hard-on. "Man, that was, something else. Definitely not gonna drink anything tonight."

"Oh yeah, water will do you some good." Durk went to a nearby cooler and grabbed a water bottle. "We've all been there."

Wyatt drank little sips of cold water which traveled down into his stomach, cooling his body and soothing his bellyache. He periodically massaged his gut in an effort to encourage his insides to recover. Melissa stopped recording and put her phone back in her purse with the cadence of a thief storing a freshly stolen diamond.

Wyatt laughed. "You're sick, you know that?"

Melissa glanced at his red belly. "Not as sick as you with that tummy ache."

"I learned my lesson."

The rest of the night was spent drinking water and hearing the other bands play in the background before they headed back to Melissa's apartment. They all had a sleepover and fell asleep cuddling on the same couch; Wyatt laid on the space between Durk's legs, and Melissa laid her head on Wyatt's stomach, using it as a pillow.