Intersex: Noun
1: a term used to describe people who are born with biological sex characteristics that don’t fit the binary of male or female. These characteristics can include reproductive organs, anatomy, hormones, or chromosomes. Intersex traits may be apparent at birth, or they may not appear until puberty or adulthood.
Trevor
I met Alejo in the parking lot and we made our way inside Banner University Medical Center downtown. The lady behind the Emergency Room desk directed us from the main waiting room to another, smaller waiting room in the back, where we met others whose friends and loved ones were being seen. They looked as shocked and as worried as I felt. I sat with my knee bouncing anxiously while Alejo prowled the floor like a caged tiger. He paced back and forth, glared at the door leading to the trauma ward, muttered something in Spanish, then went back to pacing. Back and forth… glare… back and forth… glare… back and forth… On and on he went until I couldn’t take it anymore.
“Dude!” I hissed at him, keeping my voice down. “You need to chill. Pacing a rut in the floor and staring at the door like Darth Vader ain’t gonna make the doctor come out any sooner.”
Alejo found another outlet for his anxiety–me. “Can you believe it, a fucking heart attack! Ash is only what–18?”
“19–” I started.
“Whatever, he is too fucking young to have a heart attack!” He snarled. I’d never seen Alejo so upset. I tried again to calm him down when somebody interrupted from nearby.
The woman looked about our age, maybe a few years older. She was fair skinned, pretty in a natural, approachable way; about my height, stocky of build but not fat, with light blue eyes and dark blonde curls bound up into a knot with a wooden pin. She wore an X-Men graphic tee under an open, light blue denim button down shirt, with sleeves rolled to her elbow. Down below she wore black stretchy leggings with buff sandals. I caught sight of a pin fastened to her placket, gay pride stripes backing a purple ring inside a yellow circle–the intersex pride emblem! I gave her my full attention.
“I’m sorry to interrupt but you wouldn’t by chance be Asher’s roommates, would you?”
Alejo looked her over, “Yes, who are you?”
“My name is Shea McDaniels, I work with Asher. I rode in the ambulance with them.”
My eyes lit with recognition. “Shea, right, Ash mentioned you! He said that you gave them your intersex pin.”
“That’s me!” She smiled.
We introduced ourselves with Alejo following up, “What happened?
She described finding Ash barely conscious at their desk, their red face, and fever. “Their pulse rate was fast and their blood pressure was dangerously high. The EMTs decided to bring Ash in just in case he had a heart attack.”
“Ash has been dragging for days but I saw nothing like that when I dropped them off this morning.” Did I miss something? I wondered. Is he here because of me?
Could it be the hormone thing?” Alejo looked at me.
“Maybe? Hell, I don’t know!” I threw my arms up in exasperation. Now I was pacing the floor.
Shea looked back and forth between us. “The ‘hormone thing’?”
Alejo and I looked at one another. I didn’t know if Ash wanted us to talk about their private medical information with a coworker but Shea was like them. She might have known something we didn’t.
“Ash hasn’t had their hormone shot in over a month.” I said. “He arranged to see a doctor but they dumped Ash at the last minute and refused to refill their prescription.”
“Oh, shit.” Shea looked horrified. “That explains it.”
“He scheduled to see another doctor but the earliest appointment was next week.” Alejo stressed his last words with disgust.
“He was trying to hang on until next Thursday–” I started.
“Like he had a choice!” Alejo cut me off angrily. “None of this should have happened!”
We quieted down when an orderly in blue scrubs stepped out from the trauma ward. “Asher Morrison?”
We stepped up along with Shea. The orderly gestured for us to follow. “He just needs to sign a few things and he’ll be ready to go.”
“Go, already?” What a relief! I thought. My relief crashed and burned when I got a look at Ash.
We stepped through a door into a small examination room to find Ash sitting on the side of a hospital bed, tugging on their clothes. He looked pale and drawn, listless. He looked up with glassy, heavily drugged eyes. He recognized us with a start, “What are y’all doing here?”
“Hello darling, it’s wonderful to see you too!” I quipped with fake cheer. Alejo didn’t play along.
“Seth called us.” He crossed his arms, seeming awkward or maybe upset about something. “He said you might have had a heart attack. We rushed right over.”
“Oh,” Ash hung their head in shame. “I’m sorry y'all had to leave work.”
“Fuck work,” Alejo blurted out and yanked Ash into a hug. He relinquished it to me a moment later.
Shea stepped up with a smile. “It just so happens that your friend here is only mostly dead. There is a big difference between mostly dead and all dead.”
Alejo and I gave Shea matching looks of ‘what the fuck’ when Ash smiled. “Mostly dead is slightly alive.”
Shea picked up, now grinning. “Good, because I’m not checking your pockets for loose change.”
“This is a nerd thing, right?” I laughed and Shea looked affronted.
“Oh sweet summer child, you’ve never seen ‘The Princess Bride’? Asher, have you been neglecting your boyfriend’s education?”
“It’s on the to-do list.” He smiled.
“What did they find?” Alejo brought us all back to the point. A woman came in with papers for Ash to sign. She answered the question.
“The good news is that we ruled out a heart attack and there is no sign of infection. We followed up on a note from Mr. Westin-Hall and checked your testosterone level. You can see the results on page two. Your level is currently two. That is functionally undetectable.”
“Which means?” I asked.
“Most understand that low testosterone can lead to a lower sex drive and erectile dysfunction but levels this low can lead to a number of acute, but not life-threatening, symptoms that are commonly associated with menopause. Things like: hot flashes–that is, redness in the face and neck, hypertension, a rapid pulse, and fever. It also includes chills, depression, impaired mental focus and clarity, moodiness, and lethargy. Thankfully, all of Asher’s symptoms should fade within a few days after his testosterone levels have returned to normal.”
“So, you gave Ash his shot?” Alejo’s happiness faltered at her awkward expression.
“That is the bad news. The Trauma Center is forbidden by law from prescribing or administering hormones. We recommend that you follow up with your primary care provider as soon as possible.”
“Why?” Alejo raised his voice. “We are here now! We are surrounded by doctors right now! You have a pharmacy right here!” He scrubbed his face in exasperation. “The earliest he can see a doctor is next Thursday. Does he look like he can go back to work Monday morning? Do you think he can afford to take a week off from work? Ash needs that medicine now!” Alejo growled through his teeth. “You aren’t the doctor, are you? Where is the doctor? Get me the doctor.”
“He is currently seeing other patients–”
“So, the coward can’t even look his patient in the eye and deny care! Oh, fuck this. If we were a family of means you would’ve already given Ash that shot. This is unacceptable!” He spun away to spit a rapid fire stream of Spanish epithets before whirling about furiously. “When the coward is done with his next patient, send him in here, we’re not signing Ash out until the doctor looks them in the eye and says, ‘I am denying the care you need.’ Get the head administrator while you’re at it. We aren’t going anywhere until this is settled. We might not be a family of means but we have a voice–it is very loud and speaks multiple languages!”
The lady looked like she swallowed a frog and left posthaste. It took a second to recover but I said what everybody thought at that moment.
“What was that? What did we just watch?”
“It looks to me like Asher has a badass protector.” Shea beamed at Alejo.
“I haven’t done anything save maybe gotten us thrown out,” Alejo joined me and we hugged Ash between us. “Ready your phones to take video. They hate being recorded but we have to leverage every bit of pressure we can.”
“What good is that gonna do? Ash wondered. “You heard them, it’s illegal for them to help me.”
“I don’t believe that for a second. Hospitals are forbidden from denying care. Besides, I can’t stand by and watch you suffer,” Alejo placed a tender kiss on Ash’s brow. I moved in to give them a peck on the lips and squeezed them a little tighter. I looked up just in time to see Ash’s friend, Shea grinning at us. She caught me looking and pretended to find the anatomy chart fascinating. I finished my thought with Ash.
“Let the big dumb guys protect you, Princess. That’s what we do best. We like it, right?” I met Alejo’s gaze.
“Who are you calling ‘dumb’?” He peered suspiciously. I opened my mouth to retort when the door opened. Shea and I raised our phones with the red “record” lights blinking.
A man in his late 30s with pale skin and short dark hair and brown eyes entered the examination room. He wore blue scrubs under a white smock with a security name tag on his placket. He immediately took notice of our upraised phones.
“I’m Doctor Cross, I understand there is an issue?” He looked between us.
Alejo took a deep breath but Ash put a gentle hand on his arm. “The hospital is releasing me without treatment,” he said.
“Yes, the Trauma Department is legally unable to provide patients with hormones. You’ll have to follow up with your primary care provider.”
“That is next Thursday!” Alejo snapped. Ash patted his arm and Alejo settled, if restlessly. The doctor frowned.
“Why can’t you see your doctor first thing Monday morning? They should be able to see you even as a walk-in.” He asked.
“I asked but they said it was because I was a new patient. I just moved here from North Carolina.”
“I see,” Cross looked troubled. “The Trauma Department is legally bound as I mentioned, but given your circumstances I think we can refer you to our outpatient clinic Monday.”
“You can’t turn anyone away!” Alejo gnashed his teeth.
“I understand your situation.” Cross raised a calming hand. “The Trauma Department cannot deny care to anyone with a medical emergency. Asher’s condition, while debilitating and certainly uncomfortable, isn’t life-threatening. A referral to our clinic Monday morning is the best we can do.”
“Thank you, Doctor.” Ash nodded glumly.
“We want the referral in writing before we leave.” Alejo insisted.
“Of course,” Cross agreed. “I’m sorry that I can't do more. The law ties our hands and we get used to it. It isn't an excuse but it is the reality we live with until the law changes.”
He smiled to show that he did not mind being pushed on the point. Alejo calmed and shook hands with the doctor. “I'm sorry for yelling and for calling you a coward.”
“I understand, you do what you have to do. If only everyone had friends like you to advocate for them.”
The administrator was less enthusiastic but we got the referral in writing. We made our way out when I patted Alejo on the back. “Damn, dude! We should rename you ‘Bulldog’!”
“They got off too easily. I know for a fact that doctors and hospitals overlook ‘inconvenient’ laws when a patient’s family can make a generous donation.”
“Money makes the world go round. Too bad we’re fucking broke.” I sighed.
“That was just a taste of things intersex and trans folk go through. Ash mentioned how their original doctor dumped them without warning or offering a referral.” Shea met Ash’s gaze. “I’ve had doctors ask me if I had Jesus in my life. Others were convinced I was hysterical and imagining things. It’s unsettling to think that doctors are as fallible as everyone else.”
I rubbed Ash’s back soothingly. “Monday is better than Thursday but this weekend is still gonna suck.”
“It might take longer than that.” Ash rubbed their forehead with a hopeless expression. “It can take weeks, months even, before my prescription clears the pharmacy.”
“WEEKS?” I scuffed to a stop, appalled.
“MONTHS?” Alejo echoed me and Ash nodded.
“The only time I got my medicine on schedule was back in Wilmington.”
“Maybe you can call Seth?” I offered but Shea spoke up.
“If the pharmacy gives you shit then tell HR at the job.”
“Really, I thought that was only for job-related stuff.” Ash perked up.
“You get your insurance through the job–so it is job related.” She pointed out. “Also, don’t hold me to it but I might get you in to see a doctor before Monday. Let me make a few phone calls.”
“It’s enough that you’re willing to try! Thank you!” Ash hugged her. Shea was shaping up to be a great friend.
Alejo
Trevor drove Shea back to her job to pick up her car leaving Ash to ride home with me. We spent most of the day at the hospital so by the time we arrived home we were both tired. I texted Trev and offered to pay if he picked up dinner on the way home. I called Seth back and updated him about the situation and after that, I brewed some chamomile tea to soothe my frayed nerves. Ordinarily, I sipped it while I soaked in a hot bath but I didn’t want to leave Ash alone. I found them curled up on the sofa, apparently sleeping. I set a cup in front of them and checked their forehead. He was cold and damp, clammy to the touch.
“Here, drink this. It’s warm and I sweetened it with honey.” I offered their tea. He sat up and sipped.
“It’s good, thank you.” He smiled. We drank quietly and after a while I saw their teeth chattering.
“Still cold?” I asked. At their nod I drew them into my lap and cuddled them. “We can get under the covers if you're still cold.”
“I’m tired of beds for a while, thank you.” He nuzzled under my ear and settled down. Their shivering calmed after a time. I rested my cheek against their hair and brushed their arm gently with my thumb. We dozed for a time but having Ash’s hot breath fanning across my neck and chest had a predictable effect on me. I squirmed in place, tugging on the seat of my pants to get some relief for my squashed polla, my cock. I tried to be circumspect so as to not wake Ash. I should have known better. Ash put their hand on top of mine “how long has it been?”
“Since you've been sick,” I confessed.
“I'm sorry,” he breathed sadly.
“Don't be, it isn't your fault.”
“You and Trevor aren't sick. Why haven't you…?”
“It didn't feel right without you.” I hugged him.
“You could have gone out” he persisted.
“I didn't want to,” I kissed his brow.
“Why not?” He looked up and our gazes met.
That was the question. Trevor and Ash were a couple. I was their roommate. We had a great “friends with benefits” arrangement but that changed after Ash got sick.
As my ‘player’ friends might have said, I ‘caught the feels’ for my roommates. We were emotionally compromised now. I knew better but I let it happen anyway.
I saw why Ash was confused. I had my own life. Nothing stopped me from going out and hooking up with guys while he was down. I was not beholden to anyone. I could have hooked up with Trevor in the other bedroom while Ash slept. Trevor needed it as much as I and I knew Ash would not have minded. Ash broke me from my ruminating. I looked down when he said “thank you.”
“What for?” I asked.
“You fought for me. You got me a better doctor appointment. You didn't have to do that.”
“I did” I countered without thinking. Ash looked on expectantly while I wrestled with what to say.
“You are more than my roommate. You're more than my friend. You have become–” Mi Dios, I was going to say it. Fuck.
“You and Trevor are–you're my family. Family takes care of each other.”
Ash smiled. Their cheeks flushed a sickly red color against their pallid skin but their smile touched my soul. “I love you too, Alejo. Mi amor, mi corazón, mi león.”
My chest squeezed as he said “my love, my heart, my lion” in Spanish. He touched my lips and I kissed their fingers. He then touched their lips. We leaned closer until our noses nearly touched and our words carried softly between us.
“How did you know to say that?” I asked and Ash broke into a bashful little smile.
“I used Google. I hope I got it right.”
“You did,” I nodded. “You don’t have to use Google anymore. I’ll teach you how to speak in Spanish.”
“What if I want to say something incredibly dirty?” Ash beamed impishly.
“Then we’ll both have a good time.” I grinned but then I felt a familiar tug at my jeans clasp. I placed my hand on top of Ash’s.
“You don’t have to” I pushed them away but they persisted.
“I know” he unzipped me and fished mi polla, my cock out to breathe. God, but that felt glorious! I started filling out and hardening immediately. Ash leaned close to kiss me while pumping my cock nice and slow. He smiled, “Family takes care of each other.”
I sensed my resistance crumbling in the face of nearly a week of pent up sexual frustration. “I thought you weren’t, you know, able?”
“I’m not but I can do this. Alejo,” he fixed me with those pretty blue eyes and I was gone. “I’m clear at the moment. Lucid, I mean. I want to help while I can. Let me have this, please?” He stroked me faster and I oh, so, wanted to lay back and let Ash have their way but I saw how he struggled after only a few minutes. I took them by the wrist.
“Wait.”
I sat up and pulled my shirt off, balled it up, then used it as a pillow on the armrest. I kicked my jeans off and repositioned so that Ash now rested their head on my shoulder. I tipped their chin up so that I could nibble and kiss their soft lips while I took my big pitón in hand.
“I’ll do all the work,” I instructed. “Play with mi huevos. You know how much I like that.”
Ash giggled, “Your huevos, eggs? You mean your balls?”
“Yeah, my eggs! They’re big enough, you think?”
“Grade ‘A’ jumbo sized.” He laughed. “I’ll never look at breakfast the same way again.”
Ash and I kissed as my hand cranked faster and my breathing deepened. He milked and scratched my balls perfectly and they drew tight against my thick shaft, primed to fire. I used every dirty trick I knew to delay my orgasm but I labored against a week’s worth of pressure. It wanted out and I wanted it out, so I let it happen. I stroked my big cock until I triggered that moment of exquisite release. I threw back my head and shouted out full-throated, lusty “FUCK!”
I grunted harshly with every orgiastic jet fired from my cock until I collapsed in a heap of spent satisfaction. I looked down with an amused huff. My lustful emission glistened wetly from my hair, my stubbly cheek, all the way down to soak my curly dark pubes. Ash swiped some from his nose and hair and I laughed.
As I watched, Ash painted their lips with my pearly secretions. We then kissed, savoring the taste. He continued feeding my gooey load between our sucking, licking, kissing lips until we heard a key turning in the lock of the front door. A few moments later we looked up at Trevor standing loaded down with bags of Chinese food. He pouted hard enough for a bird to perch on his bottom lip. “Aw! Why didn’t you wait for me?” He sulked.
Ash settled on their side using my shirt as a pillow (I caught them sniffing it when he thought I wasn't looking). He gave Trevor a sleepy kiss and that gave me an idea. I directed Trev to put the food on the coffee table then pulled him over by his belt buckle. I shucked him out of his pants and socks posthaste and looked up at him. “Ash can’t do anything yet so maybe we can give them a little show.”
“Ha! There ain’t anything ‘little’ about this show.” Trev slapped his hardening cock on his hips like a bell clapper, a teasing smile on his lips. I chased him down and sucked his shaft between my lips.
I loved bringing a soft cock to life in my mouth. I’d had all shapes and sizes but Trev got props for being the thickest. I swished his meat in my mouth until it was soaking wet and once he was hard, I slapped my cheeks with the head. I looked up and saw that he had gone into that glassy-eyed zone where all he thought about was getting off. I wet my finger with spit and slipped it inside his rear channel. He rose to stand on his toes, whining with need. “Jesus, fuck, but you have no idea how much I need to get plowed! But then, maybe you do.”
“I’ll fuck you after dinner if Ash is up for watching us.” I offered and Ash smiled.
“If I can keep my eyes open, sure.”
“YES! You guys are the best!”
I looked over and saw Ash watching avidly. He looked like he might be fighting sleep so I sucked Trev off quickly.
“Wait!!! No-no-no not so–OH!” His head lolled back with a cry of guttural bliss. He pinched his eyes shut, he clenched his fists and strained with all his might to stave off his climax but that only made it feel more incredible. I rolled his warm, creamy essence on my tongue and kissed him, then shared with Ash before swallowing.
Trev smacked his lips at Ash. “Heh, too bad it doesn’t work or else we’d be giving you testosterone injections every fucking night!” he waggled his eyebrows. I laughed.
“That would be convenient.” I admitted. Ash reached for us and we converged for a group hug and kiss. He held on to us.
“Thank you,” he said.
“Hey, you'll be back on your feet soon and giving me blow jobs in the middle of the night. That’s a request, by the way.” He winked, then dug into the bags. “Who wants pot stickers?”
We settled down to eat and I thought about Shea. She mentioned getting Ash in to see a doctor before Monday. I counted down the hours until she called, hopefully with good news.
AUTHOR NOTE: No two intersex people are alike. Ash’s symptoms reflect the experience of one person save where mentioned.
SPECIAL NOTE: I write in an imaginary world where sexually transmitted diseases do not exist. Sadly, they do in the real world. Stay safe. PrEP before you play and glove it before you love it.
