Josh feverishly stirred the mixture, letting the fire heat the damp grains and dry them into fine bits of dry grains. After five minutes he poured the grain into a mortar and ground the bits into powder with his marble pestle. It was almost done.

Once the grain was all mashed into powder, Josh poured it into the little metal box he had prepared on the side. He had the whole box enclosed except for a little hole on the side. When the powder was in the box, he put a mask over his face and sprayed a queer blue liquid all over the powder, via the hole. He then plugged the hole with a rubber stopper and let the box sit for fifteen minutes.

When he was sure that the powder and liquid had mixed, Josh poured the powder into ten different vials, via the hole, once again. He kept the mask on, for if he inhaled any part of this powder... well, he wasn't supposed to inhale it. That was Kyle's job. He just didn't know it yet.

Ding dong! Ding dong!

Kyle smiled, as he knew who would be at the door for this first date in winter. Josh. His best friend. His smile faltered as he remembered the strange behavior of his companion in the past few weeks. He was worried, and it sucked. He had told Josh of his one big secret in the weeks before he had started acting weird. He had a fetish. This fetish was a fetish for sneezing, but mostly colds. He thought he ought to tell his best friend, just because he wanted to be honest. And he wanted Josh to tell him his secrets. So far, nothing had come out. But, hopefully it would tonight.

Kyle shook out of his stupor as he opened the door for his friend. Josh smiled at him and stepped inside the cozy apartment. He shrugged off his coat and left it by the door, making sure to keep the two vials in his pockets. They were crucial for tonight's revelations.

Kyle led Josh to the living room, where two boxes of pizza, some soda, and the TV lay waiting for them. It was time for their monthly movie-thon. Every month, on a Friday night, they would get together and watch a bunch of movies, predetermined the day before. Usually they would get through two or three, making wise-cracks or sounds of awe during whatever action/adventure, comedy, horror, or stupid tragedy movie they saw.

Josh sat down on the couch, next to Kyle, reveling in their closeness, before starting a conversation.

"Hey, which movie should we watch first?" asked Josh. Kyle suggested Dude, Where's My Car, to which Josh readily agreed. Kyle popped the movie in and was about to sit and grab some pizza when Josh suggested that he go get some beer, since it felt appropriate with the odd movie.

Kyle laughed and agreed, so while he went to his kitchen to get a few beers, Josh opened the first vial, holding his breath. There were two slices of pizza on each paper plate, so Josh sprinkled the powder on top of Kyle's pizza. As soon as it touched the food, it turned invisible, or so it seemed. The pizza appeared normal. Josh quickly corked the empty vial and stowed it in his pocket. Not to soon, for Kyle showed up with the beers.

Throughout the movie, Josh and Kyle joked about its stupidity and laughed at the sick innuendos between the lines. Josh was tense, however, occasionally glancing at Kyle oddly, waiting for the first sign of the working powder. When the movie finished, Kyle got up to go to the bathroom, leaving his half-full beer out on the table. Josh poured the other vial of powder into the beer. He used a straw to mix it and threw the straw out when finished.

To keep from being suspicious, he went to the VCR and popped in the next movie, Napoleon Dynamite. He started watching the credits, waiting for Kyle to come back for his drink. The powder should start to work in a few minutes, he was sure of it.

Kyle plopped back down on the couch, reaching for his beer with a covered sniffle. Josh's finely tuned ears heard it and he smirked. It was time. With a few gulps, Kyle finished the beer and he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

Josh focused on Kyle, while Kyle focused on the movie. It wasn't long before the powder started to work; Josh's invention was successful.

It started with Kyle's nose. It got itchy, and the young man rubbed it with a fist, trying to stop the tickle from the outside; when it was really on the inside, irritating his sinuses, teasing them, into letting liquid slowly seep from its ducts and out into his nasal cavity. To get his sinuses to let that lovely, germy liquid seep out, through his nose and to the open nostrils, where Kyle would be forced to sniffle to keep the annoyingly thick liquid back.

Kyle sniffled. It was a wet sniffle, resulting in Josh's ears hearing it. Josh pretended to ignore it and watched the movie, laughing at the stupidity of Napoleon's uncle, the failed football moron.

Kyle rubbed his nose again. It was turning pink from the rubbing, and still would not stop itching! Kyle sniffed again, feeling the mucus slide down his nose. He could feel it gathering, just above his nostrils, waiting until there was enough, before it could slide down and out his nose, forcing him to blow it before it dripped messily. Kyle rubbed it again and sighed. There was a little wet spot from his hand; it came from his nose. Kyle excused himself and went for a tissue box.

Kyle opened the box and pulled out a fresh tissue. He was in the bathroom, so he felt safe enough to give a long, wet blow into the tissue. He felt his sinuses clear for a moment and sighed in relief. He put a fresh tissue in his pocket and threw the wet, balled up one into the trash can. He left the tissue box in the bathroom and went back to the movie and Josh.

But the tickling came back. It was behind his nose, but the tingling tickle spread, making his whole nose tickle with a sneezy feeling. The tickle slid into the back of his throat at the same time, making him want to scratch it with his hand. He settled with scraping it with his tongue. He swallowed. Ouch, that hurt. The tickle was giving him a sore throat, as it was plain to see. Of course, it was even more obvious that the tickle had opened up his sinuses again.

It was worse this time. The liquid in his nose slid down, faster and thicker than ever, running out of his nose with no care to building up. There was no doubt about it, this tickle felt like a cold tickle. These cold tickles spread through one's nose, causing it to run, stuff up, and sneeze. Kyle felt a flush of elation at the thought of this cold. Oh, a lovely blossoming cold that had appeared within his nose. It was bliss.

Josh smiled again when he noticed that Kyle had caught on to what was happening in his nose. He smirked in ecstasy, as he knew that he had given Kyle this elation. He had given Kyle this cold. He watched as Kyle rubbed the tissue from his pocket against his pinkish, runny nose. He glanced as Kyle got up to go to the bathroom for the tissue box. And he watched from the corner of his eye as Kyle gave a loud, wet blow into the tissues, filling them up with the mucus running from his nose.

After a few minutes he noticed that Kyle was not paying attention to the movie. He was too busy attending to his nose. It was running nonstop, dripping messily into tissues that Kyle had to keep at his nose. He kept sniffling and blowing, but the incessant dripping would not cease. His nose had very quickly become red and chapped at the corners with all of the rubbing he was doing.

Josh turned off the movie. It was time to reveal his secrets. He only hoped that Kyle felt the same when he was finished.

"Kyle? I need to tell you something," Josh started nervously. Kyle's attention had been reached when the movie was turned off, but when his friend started fidgeting, Kyle focused on him. He quickly blew his nose and wiped it so he could pay attention to his friend.

"Go ahead Josh," prompted Kyle when Josh was silent.

After a pause, Josh began. "Okay... I first want to tell you that I found out a few months ago that I am gay. I'm not attracted to girls, only guys. A-and... the second thing is that I have been working on a powder for the past few weeks. It is a present for you. T-this powder can give people colds. I put the powder in your food tonight, and that's why you have a cold.... And the last one is that.... I am attracted to you... romantically, I mean."

Josh said this speech quickly, closing his eyes to keep from seeing the horror in his best friend's eyes. He twisted his hands in his lap, the palms sweating from nerves, hoping that he could still be friends with Kyle even after he had told his secrets.

Josh's thoughts were stopped, though, by the feeling of warm, soft lips on his. He leaned into the feeling and pushed into the lips. He let his tongue brush against the lips and felt them open. He was given entrance and closed the distance between himself and Kyle. He slid his tongue in and let it dance and intertwine with Kyle's. The two kissed for another few minutes until they had to break apart for air. Josh's cheeks were flushed from pleasure and Kyle blew his nose to enable him to kiss more.

Josh and Kyle leaned in, about to kiss again, when Kyle backed off, putting a hand in front of him. Josh felt hurt for a moment before he recognized that expression. Kyle's eyelids were half-closed, his jaw dropped in expectation. His breath hitched and gathered as the tickle in his nose got stronger and stronger.

Finally, Kyle pitched forward with a heavy, "HUHRACHOO!" into the handful of tissues he had clutched in his hand. This one sneeze was followed by a heavy sniffle and blow. He sighed as his nose blocked up once again, with mucus, and the tickle renewed its adventures in his nose.

"I'm sorry Kyle. I didn't mean to make you so miserable. I just wanted to make you happy," apologized Josh. He felt bad that he made his love ill and miserable.

"I'm not mad Josh. I just don't want to get you sick with this cold. It comes on pretty quickly and all," said Kyle reassuringly.

"If it means being together, I don't care about getting sick. After all, I gave you the cold in the first place!" said Josh excitedly.

Kyle wiped his nose with a wet tissue and brightened up with excitement as well, "Then let's go explore this new relationship in my bed, shall we?"

Kyle lay down on the bed next to Josh, both men breathing hard. Kyle's nose had begun tickling fiercely again and the two were rewarded with many messy sneezes during their nighttime activities.

"Huh-SHOO! ISHOO! HURASHOO!" sneezed Kyle weakly as he was tired out from his activities. Josh helped him sit up and held a tissue over Kyle's nose. The man smiled exhaustedly in thanks and blew heartily, filling up the tissue quickly. When the tissue was saturated, Josh pulled out another one and held that over Kyle's nose.

When Kyle's nose felt clear for the time being, Josh threw the dirty tissues into a trash can and snuggled up to his lover. The two were officially boyfriends and were content to sleep together.

With Kyle's sneezes and blows going off once in a while, the two fell asleep, enjoying the other's company.