Date: Mon, 25 May 2009 22:15:40 +0200
From: Egan e2 <egan44@gmail.com>
Subject: My Night With Joe - Part 4: The Distance

Hello again!

This is the fourth installment in the series "My Night with Joe"
called "The Distance". I know you have waited a very long time for
this fourth installment, but after reading it, you will understand why
it was a much more difficult chapter for me to write in the series.
Please drop me an email (egan44@gmail.com) with comments and let me
know what you think. They will be greatly appreciated.

This is an erotic gay story about two guys and involves themes of a
sexual nature, so if that offends you or you are not old enough to
read this, then hit the "back" button and leave! This story is my real
life experience, with names changed, of course! Enjoy!

Egan Sheridan

***

My Night with JoePart 4 - "The Distance"

Later on that afternoon, after having some lunch, Joe and I were lying
outside on the loungers next to the pool... The pool where it all
started a few evenings ago. Nothing was going to happen in it today
though, as Joe's sister and husband were at home, inside. It was a
really great day and the sun was smiling down on us. Unfortunately,
for some reason Joe seemed to be a bit down. He was not saying too
much, and wasn't himself. I didn't pick up on it at first, but as the
afternoon went on, I could sense that something was up.

After diving into the pool to cool off, I popped up at the side and
splashed a small amount of water onto him. He hardly moved except for
turning his head, looked over at me and smiled.

"Hey man! Why you so quiet today?" I inquired

"No reason..."

That was all he said... Something was definitely wrong! I started to
get worried. Was he starting to doubt what had happened between us?
Was he possibly having second thoughts? Or was it just the fact that
this was going to become more complex once my girlfriend got back in a
few days time. To put my feelings at ease, I assumed it was the last
one. In order to try put him at ease and get his mind off whatever he
was worrying about, I tried to change the subject.

"So dude. What we doing tonight? There is that cool new nightclub that
opened last week that we can go check out. What do you say?"

"I can't tonight. I already have plans. Sorry"

Quite shocked, I said after a slight pause: "Plans? What plans."

"Work stuff" he said quietly, as he lay there soaking up the sun, eyes
now closed.

"On a Saturday evening?" I asked puzzled

"Yeah, don't stress about it" he said sounding a bit irritated.

"OK then" I said as I kicked slowly away from the pool wall and
started to do a lap to the other side. He could just have well told me
to shut the fuck up. That was kinda how it felt anyway. But I didn't
hold it against him. I decided to just drop it, as he was obviously
worried about something.

After a few laps, I got out by the steps, grabbed a towel and while
drying myself I walked over to him and admired his great body as I
did. I took a seat next to him.

"Listen dude. Something is obviously bothering you. I am not going to
ask again, but I just want you to know if you want to talk about it,
please just say so. I'm all ears. But I will drop it now" I said as I
turned and lay down on my lounger.

"Cool" he simply said.

And that was that. He said nothing about it the rest of the day
really. Eventually we got up, had one final dip in the pool to cool
off from the hot afternoon sun, went back to his flat and got dressed.
Joe sat in front of the TV, grabbed the remote and started to flick
through the channels. I stood next to the sofa and watch the channel
flicking for a few seconds.

Without trying to sound too nosy about it, I said: "So, if you got
plans for tonight, I suppose I better start moving so you can get
ready... It is getting late"

Glancing at his watch, he looked at me and simply said: "Yeah,
maybe... I need to be going soon anyway".

"OK then. Enjoy, and give me a shout tomorrow if you wanna do
anything. I'll wait for you to call me" I said, slightly irritated. I
decided I was not going to initiate the next meeting. If, for whatever
reason, he didn't want me around, I was not going force anything. And
that was fine by me... It was just the fact that he didn't want to
tell me what was the issue. That is what really got to me.

He nodded and said, "OK, Cheers"

"Cheers"

I left the flat, got in my car and drove off feeling slightly worried
and frustrated. I wondered after all these days with Joe what I was
going to do tonight. My girlfriend was not there, my "boyfriend"
(sounds weird to say) was not there, and I was all alone tonight. Now
normally this would not be a problem, as I would take the opportunity
to go out with a group of some other friends, but after thinking about
all that was going on, I though about just being on my own tonight. It
was probably for the best. With my girlfriend coming back so soon, and
Joe in such a strange mood, maybe being alone was just what I needed.
Some "me time" (without sounding too "gay" or Oprah like). Maybe
thinking about everything that happened, and would happen, would be
good. But one can only think for so long, so after pondering my
options while driving, I decided that I would get some Pizza and a
movie and just vegetate by the TV. Something I had not done for quite
a long time. While in the DVD store, I smiled to myself as my eyes
glanced over at Brokeback Mountain. But I decided that heavy drama was
not going to be the order of the day... I eventually settled on an
action movie and a comedy (I can't remember which ones exactly, but do
remember that my choices were rubbish, as both movies turned out to be
really lame).

I got home, opened a beer, ate some pizza, lay down on the couch and
proceeded to watch the first movie. I wondered about Joe every now and
then, not focusing too much on the movie (maybe that is why I thought
it was rubbish). I wondered if he actually did have some "work
function" on, or if it was just an excuse to get rid of me for the
evening. Eventually my thoughts and the movie dissolved away, as I
fell asleep on the couch, as per usual.

About 4 hours later, I awoke with a fright, as my cellphone shouted at
me from the coffee table. I glanced up at the clock on the wall...
11:15pm. Who the hell was calling at this time? Half in a daze, I
stumbled to my feet and walked to the table. On picking up the
cellphone, I saw "Joe Cell" on the display... I answered.

"Joe"

"Heeeey buddy!" he shouted

"Hey. Whatsup?"

"Where are yoooou?" he kinda slurred... Definitely slightly drunk, I thought.

"I am at home. Where are you?"

"You need to come fetch me. I can't drive... A colleague took my keys.
She said I was too drunk to drive... Bitch! And I can't remember who
she was... hahaha" he laughed out loud

Smiling and rolling my eyes, I said: "OK... give me the directions"

He did, and I told him to stay put and that I was on my way.

He ended off with a comment that made me feel much better about the
day: "I can alwaaays count on you! You are my BEST friend! I will see
you now now buddy!"

I pulled on some jeans, sneakers and a warm long sleeve top and went
to go fetch my friend. He was at a hall in the middle of town. Strange
place for a function. And why didn't he want to tell me anything about
it. I would find out soon enough, i thought.

I stopped opposite the building, across the road. Joe was sitting on a
bench outside the main double door. It was definitely a function of
some kind, as there was lots of suits and ladies dressed smartly. And
Joe! He was dressed to the teeth! What the hell function was this? I
hooted, Joe looked and stood up as he saw my car.

Damn, did he look good! He was wearing a black tuxedo, a white shirt,
and black tie, that had been loosened to be more comfortable. Joe
hated wearing ties, I knew that, so he must have loosened it very
early on in the evening already.

As he started to walk towards the car, my mind's eye took over. I
slowed the whole scene down in my mind. As he walked (in slow motion)
towards me, he reminded me of Daniel Craig from the new James Bond
movies, just a bit younger. I even imagined the 007 theme song playing
softly in the background. He couldn't have been that drunk, as he
glanced both ways (still in slo-mo) before crossing the street. He
looked amazingly handsome! Definitely the smartest I had ever seen
Joe. As the music continued in my mind and he confidently strutted
towards me, the sexy scene was abruptly interrupted as he stumbled,
almost falling onto the pavement. The music was cut short as I
chuckled to myself and got out the car to help him the rest of the
way. Yep... confirmed, he was drunk!

"Hey, you drunkard!" I joked, taking his left arm

"Hey buddy! Thanks for coming to rescue me..."

"No problem dude." I said, as I helped him into the car, being careful
that he didn't knock his head.

Once in, I put on his seatbelt, walked around and got in, putting mine
on too, and we started to drive off.

"Damn, you look handsome. What the hell you so damn dressed up for?" I inquired

"We need to talk! Stop at the nearest pub!" he demanded

"Haven't you had enough already?"

"Just for a quick pint... that's all. I promise. I want to talk to you proper"

"OK then. I could do with one too I suppose", thinking that he was
already drunk, so it wouldn't do any harm. And besides, now he was
willing to tell me what was on his mind, and I needed to know.

We stopped at a little pub with a great atmosphere, sat at a little
table in the corner and ordered our drinks. After a little small talk,
he finally started to spill the beans.


"Tonight was my farewell" he said in a more serious tone, but still in
a sweet, drunk kinda way.

"Your farewell? What do you mean?"

"Nine of us at my work have been transfered to another city. We are
opening another branch and we have been tasked to head it up. Tonight
was the farewell function for all of us." he said, looking very
depressed.

"What the hell? You can't be serious?" I said, stunned.

"I am. We are leaving next week, apparently."

"Next week! Dammit dude! Why didn't you say anything earlier? This is
big!" I exclaimed.

He shrugged his shoulders, raised his eyebrows and said nothing for a
few seconds... Then he finally continued, quite a bit more serious
now, but still slurring a little. He was trying hard to act more
sober:

"A few reasons actually. One, we only heard about this two weeks ago.
Two, the reason how I managed to build up the courage to actually make
the move on you in the pool the other night was because of this. My
reasoning was that I was going away, and I would never forgive myself
if I didn't try tell you how I feel about you. Before I didn't want to
say anything about how I felt about you because I didn't want to ruin
our friendship if you weren't gay. But I took this as an opportunity
to try anyway. Because if you were NOT gay, and didn't want to speak
to me after I tried to make a move on you, I would be moving away
anyway, so it would be OK in the long run."

I sat there stunned not really knowing what to think.

"I hope you understand" he continued. "I really didn't mean to keep
you in the dark about this for so long. I just didn't know how to tell
you. Because after my long time dream came true that night in the
pool. When you confirmed that was how you felt about me too, I had
another problem: I finally had everything I wanted with our
relationship, and now I was been forced to move away from it all. It
was always going to be bitter sweet, no matter what happened. I felt
like shit for not telling you after we had that night. Like I
initiated it, and now that YOU too also had what you always wanted, I
was taking it away from you. I was so scared that just telling you
this would hurt our friendship too, so instead of confronting it, I
just said nothing... Selfish, I know, but I so hope you understand" he
said looking very down, as he just stared at his drink.

I fully knew what he meant, and why he had battled to tell me. And I
did understand.

"I do. I really do. I probably would have done the same thing." I said honestly.

"I see this move as a good and a bad thing. Initially good, as it
forced me to tell you how I feel about you. Bad because now that I
have everything I ever wanted, I have to leave it all behind. And that
really makes me feel sad... Angry and sad!" he said, raising his voice
slightly.

Not saying anything back, I felt exactly the same. I was pissed off
and sad all at the same time. Not with him, but with the situation.
Once again, the complications of life seemed to come in and fuck
things up just when they looked like they were looking up.

He then said quietly: "It is probably for the better, as I wouldn't
want to mess up the good thing you have going with your chick and
everything."

I didn't know how to react to that statement. Yes, I loved her, but it
was not the same as with Joe. He really understood me. She would never
be able to fully understand me without knowing how I felt about guys.
I loved her dearly, but I was not IN love with her. I was in love with
my best friend, Joe. It felt like a hopeless situation. And I had no
clue what to do... The scenarios had played over and over in my mind
many times before, and I could never see how they finally ended. It
was frustrating to say the least.

We just sat there in the silence for a while.

Eventually, after a few moments of feeling sorry for ourselves, I
patted him on the shoulder and said "Don't stress about it Joe. It
doesn't matter how far apart we are, we are still best friends. And no
amount of distance is going to change that fact. We will make a plan
and work it out somehow."

He nodded: "I feel better now that I have told you. Thanks for understanding"

"No problem buddy. Thanks for always being there for me too.", I smiled.

After a short pause, he continued: "Another thing... I am maybe
thinking about coming out once I have moved to the new joint", he
said, now looking me straight in the eyes

"Like in out the closet?!", I exclaimed

"Yeah", he nodded

"Wow dude! That is a big step!"

"Tell me about it! It might be easier though, not knowing too many
people there. Start off fresh, if you know what I mean"

It kinda made sense to me, and I envied him in a way.

"I know exactly what you mean..." I said, "But damn dude... you've got
guts to do that! Even in a new city... I certainly not at that point
in my life yet. I'm not sure if I will ever be!" I admitted

"No, I understand. I am not saying you need to worry about anything. I
will definitely keep your... well... our secret. You can be my
straight best friend when coming for visits... you can stay "pretend"
straight if you want hahaha" he joked

"I certainly will, dammit!" I joked back, wondering if I would ever
have the guts to do what Joe was contemplating right now. But I was
really happy for him, as he needed it. I thought it would help him in
the long run.

"You gotta keep me up to date with these developments, dude. Promise
me!" I continued

"You know I will! And if any gay basher wants to fuck me up, I will
just call my "pretend" straight friend to come fuck them up instead!"
he laughed loudly.

So did I. We carried on drinking a little and chatted about old times
and how things might change in the future between us. I didn't want to
put a damper on Joe's upcoming adventure, but to say I was
disappointed that he was going was the understatement of the century!

Later on, the Queen song, Great Pretender came over the speakers, and
Joe, even in his drunken state, immediately jumped up, pointed and me
and screamed: "Heeeeyyy! Your song is playing! hahahaha! How fitting!"
making a few people at the bar turn around and look, uninterested, at
us.

I stared at him, slightly embarrassed and pulled him down by his arm.

"Hey man! You said you would keep it under wraps!" I said, unable to
conceal my laughter anymore and just burst out laughing! He was so
damned cute when he was drunk, and I just couldn't help but find it
extremely funny and entertaining.

"Fuck them man! They have no clue what the fuck we are talking about!"
he shouted loudly, pointing at some of the onlookers at the bar, and
getting more than a few stern looks back.

Quickly downing the last of my drink, I stood up and said: "Okaaay...
You have defintely had enough... Let's get outa here".

"Yeah... I do feel kinda queezy" he groaned, finding his balance by
putting both hands on the table top... "Maybe you are right... Maybe I
have had enough for one night... My BEST BUDDY", he laughed loudly
again, now pointing directly at my face.

"Yeah... just maybe" I smiled back as I dropped some change on the table.

I put my arm around his waist and his arm around my neck and guided
him out of the bar, as the alcohol was really starting to hit him now.
The drive home was quite a quiet one, as we both didn't say too much.
I think the air hitting him as we had walked outside made him feel
slightly worse for wear.

"Just tell me if you gonna puke! You are not gonna do it in my car!" I
warned him... He didn't answer, but stared blankly at the road ahead.
I glanced over at him and smiled: "You hear me, buddy?"

He smiled slightly and without moving simply stated: "Yep! I dooo!"

As we drove in silence, I was wondering how things would be once Joe
was no longer in my city. Every now and then, Joe had the odd comment
about the other drivers on the road, people walking in the streets,
telling me that I was his best friend, etc. The usual ramblings of a
person who had way too much to drink. Although I knew he meant the
last one.

We got to his place, I helped him in, but Joe insisted he didn't want
to go get changed or go to bed yet, as he wasn't tired. I managed to
persuade him to at least take his jacket and tie off. I knew he would
pass out soon anyway, so I gave him his wish, and didn't push the
point of him going straight to bed. He was being quite a handful and
stubborn, like only a drunk best friend can be. I thought it was quite
funny actually, and just humored him. I decided I would put him to bed
once he was sleeping. I sat him down on the couch and sat next to him.
Within minutes, he put his head back and started to fall asleep. I was
also quite tired at this point and was just sitting there pondering my
thoughts. I soon started to fall asleep too. I was awakened by Joe, as
he moved to lie down and put his head on my lap and continued
sleeping. I looked down at him, put my hand on his head and smiled.
What a great friend he was. I didn't know how to feel about him
leaving, but I just knew I would miss him greatly. I fell asleep
again, with Joe sleeping and breathing deeply on my lap. It felt
wonderful having him sleeping so soundly with me. About 2 hours later,
I woke up due to my leg being totally numb. Joe had not moved an inch,
but was breathing even deeper than before. I slowly and gently lifted
his head and moved out from underneath him, replacing his head with a
sofa pillow. I stood up and moved around a bit to get the blood
pumping in my leg again.

I thought about moving Joe to the bedroom, but he was sleeping so
soundly, I decided against it. Instead, I moved the back cushions of
the sofa off, in order to make some more space for him. I gently took
off his shoes, fetched a blanket from the room and covered him with
it. I stared at him for a while. He was so peaceful and I could have
watched him sleeping all night, until my own tiredness started to take
over again. I thought about squeezing onto the sofa with him, but not
wanting to bother him, I decided against that too. Instead I kicked my
shoes off, lay down on the other sofa fully clothed and pondered
everything that had happened over the last few days.

The roller coaster of emotions had really taken their toll on me. I
was so glad that Joe had told me finally that he was going. It was a
big load off his shoulders. And for that, I was happy. We would
somehow work it out, I knew that. But at that moment, I just didn't
know exactly how. The only thing that I knew for sure was that a
friendship as strong as ours could not be damaged or weakened by any
amount of distance. And in that I took comfort, and promptly fell
asleep to the sound of Joe breathing peacefully.

***

End of the Part 4, "The Distance".
Look out for Part 5 coming soon: "Three-What!"

(If you are wanting to read about some hot sex, you definitely don't
wanna miss this one!)

***

Thanks for reading, and please comment (egan44@gmail.com), as I would
like what you guys think of the story so far. I enjoyed writing this
for others to enjoy and maybe get something out of.

Anyways, I'm done for now... Feedback please! Thank you all so much
for the huge amount of feedback so far. It is very much appreciated
and very inspiring! Special thanks to Jere for being a great friend!

And thanks for reading!
Until the next installment, Peace!

Egan Sheridan