Date: Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:56:56 -0800 From: fritz@nehalemtel.net Subject: I Love Corey, Chapter Forty-seven Here we go again. All young people leave immediately. You know you don't belong here. Return when you have reached the age of majority. Until then, obey the law and be good little boys and girls. At least try to act like good little boys and girls. Ah what the hell, I don't really care if you stay or how you act. That is between you and your parents. I refuse to get involved. Those of you who find descriptions of gay sex acts offensive, leave before you get to such descriptions. I know that sometimes it goes quite a while before I remember to put any of those types of descriptions in, but, you never know when or where they will pop up. If you leave now I don't have to worry about you. By the same token, you don't have to worry about being offended. Seems fair to me. On to you poor abused souls who happen to live in an area that prohibits the reading of stories such as this one. Either Leave, hide your tracks so no one will know, or move. Sorry, I see no other solution. If anyone knows of a better solution to this problem, email me and I'll share it with the readers. Waving your magic wand and getting rid of bigots is not considered a valid solution, although I wish it was. Since this story is not based on anyone, living or dead, it should be considered fiction. That means it isn't true, for any dim-bulbs that might have snuck in here. Anyone who thinks differently has a large empty space in his head. None the less, since it is my story please grant me the right to control where it is posted by asking and receiving permission before doing so. Also, please attribute any quotes from it to me. Of course anyone who wants to use quotes from it probably can't spell "me". Think about it and you'll see what I'm up against. Poor Ernie. Once again he is like Herakles. He has some great labors to struggle with in editing this story. Sadly, there are more than twelve chapters. Even the ancient Gods were not as cruel as I am. He deserves your thanks, as well as mine. Once again feel free to comment, question, debate, argue, or just plain vent. Put all such thoughts in an email and send it to fritz@nehalemtel.net I try to answer all of them but if you fail to put I Love Corey in the subject line, I likely will not receive it. Unless I recognize the sender or see I Love Corey in the subject line, I delete. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Well, you could write about one of my other stories. Two can be found in the high school section. "A Promise Kept" was posted on July 14 and "The Summer of my Fifteenth Year" was posted on July 28. The third story was posted on July 5 under the title of "Dark and Stormy Night" in the science fiction section. Just remember to put the story title in the subject line. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the following chapter. Fritz ************************************************************************ I Love Corey, Chapter Forty-seven Mr. Stanton finished his coffee and we left. He wasn't saying anything but appeared deep in thought. By the time I pulled up in front of the Collins' home, he had not said one word to me. Granted it was only a ten minute drive but I had really expected some kind of response. He opened the door but was stopped from exiting because of his still fastened seatbelt. That seemed to bring him back from wherever his mind had been. "Sorry, I'm trying to figure out what to say," were his first words since we had left the coffee shop. I didn't have anything I wanted to say so I just nodded to him. He made no effort to unbuckle his seatbelt but just sat there with the door open. Since the outside temperature was in the mid twenties, the car was quickly cooling off, even though it hadn't fully warmed up. Finally he spoke. "Why?" was all he said. "I beg your pardon?" "Why are you doing this for me?" After asking that, he turned to face me. "Well, I guess you might say I think Lee deserves a good home." After thinking a few seconds I continued. "I guess it's my way of passing on the help people have given me." I got no more words from him but he did unbuckle his belt and get out. He closed the door and headed inside. I was left wondering what was going through his mind. I gave up and went back to the motel. His reaction was so strange that I had no idea of what to make of it. A thank you or something I could have understood but his silence somewhat pissed me off. Even a show of anger for meddling in his life I could have understood but his nothing had me puzzled. Jeez, I should have stayed away. The second I stepped through the door JJ was on me. He was once again whining about Kathy. "Well, what did she do? Try to steal your lack of virginity?" Boy that really set him off. I was having a hard time treating the whole thing seriously. When Corey started snickering, JJ whirled towards him. "She isn't trying to get in your pants. Why are you laughing?" he snarled. That broke Corey up. He was flat on his back in the middle of the bed and laughing his ass off. I didn't help things. "What? You can't fight off a twelve year old girl? What kind of a man are you?" He whirled back to me, his fists balled up. I realized maybe I'd gone a little too far. "Calm down Jason, we just like to tease you. You fall for it almost every time." I grinned at him. "Besides, your revenge is always worth waiting for. Remember when you sewed the front of my briefs shut. I damn near pissed my pants trying to get them open. I never would have figured out who did it if you hadn't asked if you could mend your jeans." I grinned some more. "Or how about the time you put the Tabasco in my orange juice?" The briefs had been bad enough but he must have used half a bottle of Tabasco. I will say it woke me up. He snickered the whole time he was mopping the mess up. Thinking about what I'd said calmed him down somewhat. It still didn't solve the problem. "But how do I get her to leave me alone?" he whined. I figured it was time for a lesson in life. "Listen up guys. Jason has a problem and I think I need to say a few things." I turned to Jason. "Look, the fact that she's coming on to you is a form of flattery. She thinks you're cute and she'd like to get to know you. You should always consider that a compliment, even if you don't care for the person doing it. Now you need to understand that she has no idea that you're gay. I wouldn't tell her that either, if I were you. Still, you need to think of someway to let her down gently. She's sincere in her feelings and doesn't deserve to not be treated with respect. She's still pretty young yet and hasn't learned how to be a little more discreet. What you need to remember is she is flattering you by her feelings. You need to come up with a way to accept that flattery and still not make her mad or hurt her feelings." I turned to LT "Now as for you LT, you need to accept the fact that there is another person who agrees with your choice. While you may not think so, the fact that Kathy likes your boyfriend means that you have good taste, at least according to her. That means you shouldn't be glaring at her anytime she gets close to JJ. She is, in fact, affirming your choice. You should feel grateful for that. It should reinforce your judgment." "How should I get her to quit bothering me when I don't want her?" JJ asked. At least he wasn't whining this time. That started a discussion. Several ways came up and we kicked them around. Corey suggested that JJ tell her he already had a girl friend but I pointed out that lies sometimes came back to haunt you. I also managed to expand on the lie theme by pointing out that you had to remember all your lies so you wouldn't get caught. I pointed out that it is much easier to tell the truth although you don't have to tell all of it. Sometimes, when you tell only part of the truth, people take it to mean something else but you haven't told a lie. That got them thinking a little differently. In the end, they came up with the idea (with a little subtle prodding on my part) that JJ might tell her he wasn't ready for a relationship with a girl yet. After all, it was the truth, just not the whole truth. He could add that long distance relationships rarely worked and he didn't want to start something that wouldn't work. Other things he could use were that he didn't want her to feel committed so she couldn't date someone else or feel she had to be faithful to him. I figured that was about the best I could do with them at this time. I had managed to get them thinking about how to try to respect other people's feelings without letting those people control your life. We had managed to spend the rest of the afternoon talking about JJ's problem and I still hadn't gotten my jog. Oh well, at least I hadn't been drinking any coffee and my nerves were calmed down. All the time the conversation had been going on, Lee just sat and listened. That made me wonder if anyone had ever just talked with him and tried to explain some of the simple rules of getting along with people. I vowed to find time to talk to him. He seemed like he needed it. By now it was time for dinner. I was purposely trying to give the Collins and Stantons some time alone. That didn't leave us much to do but I thought they needed it. When I suggested we go eat and then maybe see a movie, the idea was more than well received. It only took the boys about ten minutes to find out what movies were playing and where. They grabbed my laptop, plugged it in to the phone line, and checked things out. It's amazing how quickly hotels and motels have come to accept that internet access helps sell rooms. Once the movie was decided on, then there was the problem of what and where to eat. The movie required driving back to Cincinnati so that increased the choices for dinner. We decided to check out Indian cuisine. I'd only tried it a couple of times and none of the boys had ever eaten any of it. We picked out a restaurant called Tandoor's and I jotted down directions on how to get there. I enjoyed the meal. The boys were a little surprised with it but that didn't stop them from eating it. I hadn't tried enough Indian cuisine to really know if it was authentic but I liked it. The lamb dish I had selected was excellent. We only made a couple of wrong turns getting to the theater. We still made it with about twenty minutes to spare. Why do boys like those stupid martial arts movies? I swear if I see the bad guys wait to take their turn being whipped by the hero again, I'll tear my hair out. They munched down popcorn and drank lots of soft drinks and enjoyed the movie. I tried to doze during it. As far as I was concerned, the movie sucked. The only good thing about it was that even Lee seemed to enjoy it. A couple more wrong turns on the way back to Walton and we were finally headed in the right direction. Then Corey had to ask a question. "Wouldn't it have been easier to ask directions?" Grrrr, they had been ribbing me over those wrong turns for the last few minutes. "Lizten mine young friendz. Ze true man doeze not ask zee directionz. He just drivez around until he runz out of gaz." My horrible fake German accent brought lots of laughter. LT told me I had better not give up my day job if I couldn't do better than that. Accompanied by lots of laughter, I just continued to drive. There wasn't much I could say to that. I was even told I probably couldn't make it on Saturday Night Live. What a low blow. I thought my accent was at least as good as some of the ones I'd heard on that program. After all, that's where I'd gotten the idea for it. We kept trading wise cracks on the way back to the motel. By the time we got there, even Lee was trying to enter into the fun. This was the first time I had ever seen him loosen up any. He was pretty tentative but at least he was trying. When we finally got in our room, there was a sparkle in Lee's eyes I had never seen before. He was even grinning slightly. The boys wanted to watch television but I told them to get their scrawny asses in bed before I kicked them. Corey mooned me. Well, he didn't actually moon me; he didn't take his briefs off, just pulled his Dockers down and waved his ass at me. LT and JJ started laughing and I attacked Corey. Lee wasn't sure what to think of what was going on but I soon had Corey on the floor, giggling so hard he couldn't fight back. After all, I knew where all his ticklish places were. When things calmed down a little, we all took our showers and fell into bed. I was in that in between stage, neither awake nor asleep. I could feel Corey snuggled up to me and smell his hair. My cock was pressed against his crack and I just wished we didn't have briefs on. My arm was draped across his midriff and things just felt so good. I thought of going to the bathroom and relieving myself but it could wait. Snuggling with Corey was better. Actually, snuggling with Corey was great. It gave me a sense of peace and contentment I had never known until I met him. He just felt perfect in my arms. His hair still smelled slightly of the shampoo we used but under that odor was pure Corey. I just floated there, enjoying the smell and the feelings going through me. Finally I began to notice other things. I could hear some soft snores which I recognized as JJ and LT. While LT had the deeper voice, his snores were the higher pitched ones. His voice was going to be what would be called a baritone and stayed there most of the time but his snores sounded more in the tenor range. JJ had a true tenor's voice. He even sounded good when you could talk him into singing. It was just a little lower than an Irish tenor but still it was definitely a tenor. Yet his snores were the lower pitched of the two. Two different snores for two different people. LT tended to be the more happy and easy-going of the two. JJ was frequently depressed and sad. He still hadn't gotten over his folks treatment of him. It still amazed me that LT had managed to pick himself up so quickly after his problems with his parents. We had tried to talk with them a few times but that was a disaster. I just couldn't understand how they could quit loving him. He was everything they could ask for in a son except he was gay. How could that one little thing be such a big problem for them? I just couldn't imagine why they let that single item influence them. He was smart, fun loving, and just generally a nice person. All I could do was hope that someday they would realize their mistake and take steps to correct it. Based on the last time I had talked to them, it probably wouldn't be anytime soon. In the meantime, I would just have to do the best I could to help him. As for JJ, I'd been spending as much of my time as I could, trying to get him to understand that he was a great person; in some cases, even neglecting Corey and LT. Corey seemed to understand and LT didn't seem to notice. Of course, having Corey in my arms each night helped with him. Also he was starting to open up a little with other people. He was no longer the silent and quiet boy I had first met. I think that having the other boys around was teaching him how to interact with and treat people. I might not be devoting as much time to him but the lessons were there for him to see. He was probably better off since JJ and LT had started living with me. He now interacted with the boys that stopped by to play ball and was even doing much better in school. It was amazing what a few months could accomplish. About then I realized there was a cock against my crack. There was also a soft, warm breath on the back of my neck. While there might have been two layers of cloth between that cock and my crack, I still knew exactly what it was. My mind drifted on to Lee. I still wasn't sure what to do with and for him. Last night has been the first time I had ever seen him laugh and seem to have a good time. He had been badly abused and just retreated into himself. I needed to devote some time to him and try to get him to see that he deserved to be loved and was a good person. I still wasn't sure just how to do that. It amazed me that after all the things that had happened to him, he felt comfortable sleeping in the same bed with me. I would have thought that he would have been scared to even let any man close to him. He still wasn't letting anyone except me close to him but somehow he had accepted me as a sort of protector. I wasn't really sure why but I knew I had to be careful and never give him any reason to doubt that I cared for him and would help keep him safe. Minds are funny things. They sometimes react in the most unexpected ways. The sexual abuse he had received should have made him afraid to be around any gay man but he didn't look at me that way. I hoped he would not tell anyone about me but so far I was afraid to really talk about that with him. I didn't want to upset him or remind him of things. Of course such feelings of fear of gays are silly. Sexual abuse is no more common among gays than it is among heterosexual people; at least the research I'd seen seemed to bear that out. Sure there were those people who set out to prove something bad about gay people and twisted the facts to suit their purposes but true research seemed to show it was about the same. That just went to prove my belief that people were people. There were some bad ones in any group but the averages pretty well balanced out. If a given percentage of the people were destined to be crooks, then it didn't make much difference what ethnic background they had. People pointed to the prison population and tried to say blacks committed more crimes but good studies seemed to suggest that the imbalance was created more from poor attorneys and jury attitudes. In fact, one study had said that one should look at crime more based on poverty, rather than race. I didn't have the background to really understand his study but it seemed pretty logical to me. In the meantime I just continued to lie there, enjoying the warmth the two boys shared with me. One I loved deeply and the other I wanted to help. Lee started to stir. I could feel he was waking up. Suddenly he was trying to get away from me. His arm had been across me and gotten between me and Corey. Then my arm had sort of trapped his arm there. I picked my arm up and he jerked his arm loose and rolled away from me. I rolled over and whispered to him. "What's the matter Lee?" He was incoherent. He stammered and stuttered and I couldn't make any sense of what he was saying. It finally dawned on me what the problem was. "Look Lee, all males past the start of puberty wake up with a hard-on. The fact that yours was pressing against me doesn't mean anything except that you need to take a leak. You need to get over the embarrassment of that. It happens to all males. I've got one right now, Corey has one, I'm sure JJ and LT are hard if you check them, and you have one. It doesn't mean anything so don't worry about it," I whispered. "I have no idea how long that lasts but my father was in his fifties when he was killed and it still happened to him so don't worry about it," I continued. "You'd have had one whether you were in bed with someone or in bed by yourself. That should tell you that it's something you can't control and means nothing." I couldn't think of more to say so I stopped. Lee's breathing steadied and he was silent for a while. He finally whispered thank you and got up and headed for the bathroom. Glancing at the clock radio I saw it was about time to get up anyway, so I did. About then I realized I should have gotten up earlier. My bladder was about to burst. Lee had started brushing his teeth, from the sounds of things, and I finally couldn't stand it. "Sorry," I told him as I rushed past him. Then there was the usual problem of getting the damn thing to point where I wanted it to point and finally, blessed relief. When I finished, Lee was staring at me, his toothbrush still in his mouth. "Don't try to tell me you don't have the same problem in the morning," I said grinning at him as I shoved him aside so I could wash my hands. He blushed a bright red but at least went back to brushing his teeth. Lee was just rinsing his mouth when Corey charged past him. I knew Corey would have the same problem that I'd had and just ignored the whole thing. Lee came out with a surprised look on his face but after glancing at me he grinned. I gave him the okay sign and started the in-room coffee maker. It wasn't very big but at least it would get me started. The motel really needed to get a better brand of coffee; however it would get me by until breakfast. I had my teeth brushed and was just starting my first cup of coffee when Corey turned on the television. The volume was a little loud and groans started coming from JJ and LT. LT bailed out of bed and dashed towards the bathroom, his boxers obviously tented. He was quickly followed by JJ in the same condition. I grinned at Lee and got a big smile in return. That smile was accompanied by a little blush. We had all dressed and were discussing where to eat breakfast when the room phone rang. It was Mrs. Collins inviting us to breakfast. I tried to beg off, not wanting to bother them, but she insisted. Since she didn't want to take no for an answer, I acquiesced. We headed over to the Collins and were soon there. Breakfast was okay. I'm sorry, that's about the best I can say about it. The hotcakes were doughy and the ham undercooked. It wasn't so bad you couldn't eat it but it wasn't the best either. Lee didn't seem to notice but the other boys did. They didn't eat nearly as much as they normally would. As far as that goes, I didn't exactly try to fatten up for a long winter. Let's just say that I was looking forward to lunch. After breakfast I learned why Mrs. Collins had been so insistent. Mr. Stanton wanted to talk and ask questions. Mr. Collins joined him. I ended up telling them a lot of things I didn't know that I remembered. Mr. Downie had been complaining for years that he needed to find some more help. He'd had a retired part-time man before I moved to the area but I had never met him. I remembered hearing that Mr. Downie had bought the store as a kind of retirement job when he moved there but didn't know much about it. Whatever he had retired from must have been profitable because he was only in his early fifties now. The building had originally been a separate meat market, grocery store, and dry goods store. When he had bought it, he had remodeled it into one store. That made it bigger than his business might have warranted but made for roomy aisles. He had even bought the building next door to the store and had it torn down and converted the space into a parking area for the store. The Downies seemed to have some money but I had no idea how much. I also knew that the business had slowly been growing all the time I had been there. Of course the storm had produced a big jump in the business and just brought the problem of help to the forefront. All this and a lot more I could tell them but there were a lot of things I couldn't. I couldn't tell them much about the smoke-house part of it because I had never been in it. I did know that, before it got so busy, there had always been several different kinds of sausages that no longer appeared in the case. I really had no idea of what kind of person Mr. Downie was to work for and could only talk about him as a friend. I could tell them a lot about the area. Of course the answers to questions about schools were easy and the ones on property values were only a little out of date. There were also questions about recreation, distances to shopping areas, attitudes of the people in the area and other things that sometimes surprised me. Three hours later I felt like I had been through an inquisition. At least Mr. Stanton had finally reached the end of the list he had his questions on. With that, Mr. Collins got us all a beer. Ten minutes of so of sipping on the beer with not much being said suddenly ended. Mr. Stanton looked up and sighed. "Boy I wish it was a little closer. I'd really like to talk to him and see if we could work something out." "I take it that means that you're interested," I commented. "Yeah, it's just that it's so far away." I thought for a little while. "Is it because you're worried about moving to a different area or because it's so far to go for an interview?" "Both. I'm scared that the offer might not be genuine. I'm scared of moving away from all the people I know. I don't know how the kids would like it..." he trailed off. I couldn't help it. I kicked into teacher mode. "A teacher once taught me that to solve a problem that looks over-powering, break it down into pieces and try to solve the pieces. As I see it, you have to figure out if the offer is good enough to satisfy you, you need to figure out if you could move across the country and be happy, you need to ask your kids if they think that they would be happy moving to another area, you need to think through how moving that far away would affect your family, and you need to come up with a way to look things over out there. There might be other things but those are a good start." He thought for a few seconds before saying anything. "The offer's plenty good, in fact probably better than the job I had." There was another pause. "I'd have to ask the kids, I think they'd accept it but I don't know." He looked at his father-in-law. "I'd miss you and Jess, you've been a Godsend. I don't know how I could have gotten through all this..." his voice broke and I could see tears in his eyes. He took a couple of breaths before continuing, "Without your help." He fell silent except for a few sniffles. A couple of minutes passed before he looked up again. I interrupted him just as he was about to start. "Why don't you think about it and talk it over with your kids. We can discuss it some more before I leave." They agreed to that. I was trying to gather up the boys when Mrs. Collins started insisting that we join them for dinner. Based on breakfast I wasn't real fond of the idea. I was trying to weasel out when I got an idea. "We'll accept but only if you let me do the cooking. I've already put you out more than I should have." That took some more arguing but I eventually prevailed. After looking over a few things and asking if there were any things they wouldn't eat, I managed to get the boys and escape. It was about lunch time. At least JJ had managed to convince Kathy to back off a little. I got a full blow by blow report on that along with some whining about breakfast. When I told them we were going to dinner at the Collins, you'd have thought I was going to kill them. Lee didn't complain but the others more than made up for it. Whining comments like `do we have to' and `that sucks' filled the car and were accompanied by rolling their eyes up before I managed to tell them I was going to do the cooking. That calmed them down. Lunch was okay. I mean it was better than breakfast. When we were finished I headed for a market. If I was going to fix dinner, I needed to see what was available. The selection wasn't as good as I had hoped. It wasn't that there weren't lots of things for sale; it was just that nothing really looked good. The chickens didn't thrill me and the seafood was even worse. I had thought maybe Chicken Cacciatore or Cioppino might be good but those seemed out. I could get by with the chicken but there were not enough different things for a good Cioppino. We tried another market. It wasn't much better. The seafood selection still sucked. Some fish that had been frozen and some of those packages in the frozen food section covered it. The chickens were still kind of scrawny looking. However, the beef department was better. I finally pushed the button for the butcher and requested some New York strips cut thicker than those in the case. He didn't have any prime beef but his choice looked pretty good. A few minutes later I had the steaks. I grabbed a few other items and we headed back for the motel. The cheap chef's knife I'd purchased was dull but I managed to peel and dice some onions and garlic. Some olive oil, wine vinegar, and a few spices went in a plastic bag along with the steaks. They would have a few hours to marinate. The el-cheapo pepper-mill about drove me nuts. It seemed like it took forever to get enough ground. It and the knife wouldn't compare to what I was used to but they had been about my only choices at the store. I stuffed the steaks and the salad makings in the little refrigerator the room had. It didn't really look like it would hold over a couple of six-packs but I got everything in. The boys had found a football game and were watching it so I decided to take a jog. I was somewhat surprised when they decided to join me. With all the sitting around we had been doing, I just needed to work up a sweat. Even with a couple of tee shirts under my sweats I still didn't work up much of a sweat. It was just too cold. Still I think we all felt better afterwards. By the time we were all cleaned up, it was time to head for the Collins'. The first thing I did was put the potatoes in to bake. Then Robert took pity on me and sharpened the knife. That was a big help. At least it cut now. While the potatoes were baking we had another beer. Finally Robert told me he was going to have to pass on the job from Mr. Downie. When I pressed him, I finally figured out it was because he couldn't afford the trip to check it out. I also learned the kids thought it would be kind of neat to move to California. By the time I got all that information it was time to start cooking. I cut up the salami and cheese for the salad. "After tossing the cheese in a little olive oil to stop it from sticking together, I set it aside. The lettuce, diced green onions, sliced radishes, and other things went in a bowl. Now it was time to work on the potatoes. I scooped the centers of the now cooked potatoes into a bowl, added a couple of bunches of diced green onions, a couple of dollops of sour cream, a quarter pound of butter, some milk, and a couple of jars of drained, diced pimentos. Those things, along with some salt and pepper were whipped together. Then I put the whipped potatoes back into the potato skins. They were now ready to be reheated. I had some green beans with diced bacon and onion on the stove. They were almost ready so I put the frying pan on and started heating it. I also had the oven cranked up to four-fifty. While the pan was getting hot, I diced a couple of shallots. The pan was starting to smoke so it was time to get started. Mrs. Collins was scowling at me over the way I was treating her frying pan. It was a nice big cast iron one and I was almost in love with it at first sight. It was bigger than any I had ever seen before. I knew I needed to check and see if I could find one that big. I had everything ready by the time I started on the steaks. It didn't take long to brown them and into the oven they went to finish cooking. Mrs. Collins had a nice big broiler pan that was just right for that. As soon as all the steaks were in the oven, I threw the shallots, a couple cloves of diced garlic, some wine, a little au juice, and some salt and pepper in the frying pan. A few squirts of Worcestershire sauce followed. When it was cooked down enough, some butter completed the sauce for the steaks. A simple oil and vinegar dressing completed the salad. It was time to eat. I opened the oven and pulled the French bread to which I'd applied a mixture of butter, chopped chives, a little olive oil, some parmesan cheese, and lots of garlic out and cut it into serving pieces. A few minutes later the steaks had rested long enough to serve. The Collins and the Stantons wanted their meat cooked more thoroughly than my bunch did. Their steaks had been the first in the oven and they were done all the way through. The other five were just right, nice and pink in the middle. Mr. Collins said a nice Grace. It had taken about all of the glasses Mrs. Collins had to get enough for the boys and all of the adults to have wine. It didn't look real elegant in water glasses but who cared. Kathy and Derrick glared at me because they didn't get any but I was only following their father's orders. They need to take it up with him. Mrs. Collins had been glaring at me when I was cooking but, as soon as she started on her steak, that ceased. I spent half of the meal explaining that the pan had to be real hot to get enough fond on the bottom of the pan for the sauce. I also explained that you had to finish them in the oven so that you didn't burn or dry them out and still got them as done as you wanted. The steaks had averaged almost a pound apiece and they disappeared like they had never existed. For that matter, so did the rest of the dinner. The only things left were a few beans and a little salad. While the steaks weren't quite as good as those I got from Downie's, they were still excellent. Derrick took the boys off to play some video games and Kathy went to a friend's house. That left the adults alone so we could talk. I poured the last of the second bottle of wine and got started. "I don't really know how to start this. If you could, would you like to take on raising Lee?" There was a pause for a short while. "I don't know. I don't know him. He probably hates me." "I don't think he hates you. He was pretty upset the night of the fight but he thought you hated him. I really think he needs some family. Granted you two don't know each other but I think he would really like a chance to get to know you. His life has been pretty shitty and having some family to love him would definitely help." There was another pause before he spoke. "I guess I would if he was willing. As soon as I get a good enough job maybe I can get it worked out." I wasn't sure how to go about the next thing. "Look, does the job offer from Mr. Downie sound good enough. I mean do you think that you would be able to make it on that and raise Lee?" "Oh yeah. The job offer is plenty good. It's a hell of a lot better than my old job." I wondered how to proceed. Finally I just plunged ahead. "Look, you can stay with me for a couple of weeks. That way you can meet the Downies and look the area over. I've got an extra vehicle you can use and plenty of space in the house. You could also meet Lee's case worker. You could fly back with us if Dale and Jessica are willing to watch your kids for that period." "I can't afford it." His head was down and he looked like he was about ready to cry when he said that. "My unemployment's run out and so far, I haven't been able to get any other assistance. They keep shuffling me around." Dale jumped in. "We can't help him either. Betty's medical costs have wiped us all out." Robert added some more. "When I had to take time to take care of Betty, that created problems. The welfare office thought I was trying to get out of work and so far I haven't got that straightened out." He sounded bitter when he told me that. Now the ball was in my court. I wondered just how far I was willing to go. I didn't owe him anything but I still wanted to help Lee. Lee deserved some help. I took a sip of the wine, and then another while the silence just seemed to keep growing. I could hear the sounds of some video game from another part of the house while I contemplated what to do. "Look," I started. "I'll buy you a round trip ticket. The only problem is that the closest airports are about four hours from my house. You'd have to fly back with us because I can't take the time off to pick you up. I was going to fly back late Monday, after the funeral, but I can probably get the tickets changed to Tuesday. I know its short notice but that's about the best I can do. I might have to put you on a bus to get back to the airport for your return flight." There was a lot of talk after that. In fact, there was about three hours worth. Not only that, several relatives that were going to attend the funeral showed up. Dale and Robert and I ended up in the kitchen, talking, and Jessica entertained the relatives in the living room. They were all from Betty's side of the family. Still, Robert had to greet them. In the end, I dug out my cell phone and called Delta. I got a sympathetic reservation's clerk and I guess those high priced tickets I'd bought were worth it. We could all fly out at 8:40, Tuesday morning. We would again change planes in Salt Lake and get to Oakland shortly after noon, California time. We could have left earlier but would have had to wait longer in Salt Lake and would have ended up on the same plane from Salt Lake to Oakland. At least this time, the time zones were helping us. Since Robert's ticket was also open-ended, it wasn't cheap. What the hell, its only money. If things worked out, it would be worth it. I was still wondering if I was doing the right thing. I'd gotten myself a lot more embroiled in this whole mess than I had planned on. There wasn't much to do between breakfast and the funeral. Lee was pretty sad, even though he hadn't really known his mother. The rest of us tried to be quiet and help him in any way we could but it was still kind of awkward. No one was sure what to say to Lee and he wasn't saying much to us. Finally we were all dressed and at the funeral parlor. It was a nice service. You could see a few places where the family had tried to cut costs but you had to look closely. I'd ordered a nice flower arrangement which ended up on the casket. The crowd was somewhat small but most of them were relatives in one way or another. I even met the attorney from Lexington. Since my Gaydar was almost non-existent, he didn't set off any alarms but all the rest of the family talked and joked with him as much as ever happens at things like these. He got lots of hugs from almost everyone who attended so the statement Mr. Collins had made about him being accepted appeared accurate. Then there was the reception or whatever you call it afterward. I can think of a lot of things I would much rather do. I knew almost none of the people and the Collins were trying to treat me like I was part of the family. The boys escaped with Derrick and I was left to fend for myself amongst a bunch of strangers. They all knew each other and were visiting and about the best I could do was find a corner and sort of hide out. About midway through the afternoon I managed to get the boys and get out of there. We might as well have stayed. There was really nothing to do. Daytime television sucks and since we had to go back over to finish making arrangements to pick Mr. Stanton up in the morning, we couldn't even go somewhere or do anything. Finally it was late enough to eat dinner. A pretty nice looking restaurant, wasn't. We didn't get sick or anything but the food could have used a lot of improvement. Very over-cooked and tasteless would be a fair description. At least the prices weren't too bad. If I'm ever in Walton again, I won't eat there. Any one of the fast food chains would be an improvement. We should have eaten at the on-site restaurant. The meals we had eaten in it were much better. I really felt sorry for Robert's children the next morning. Their mother had just been buried and their father was taking off for a week or two. Now that the funeral was over, everyone just seemed drained and Kathy and Derrick appeared to be the most affected by it. At least they had been living with their grandparents and been enrolled in their current school for almost a year. Still, it was going to be hard for them. It always helps to have stability in a child's life and theirs had been anything but stable recently. Fortunately Mrs. Collins didn't cook and we just had cereal instead. That got us going and we headed for the airport. The rush hour traffic was a pain but we had allowed ample time for it so that wasn't a problem. Check-in took a little longer this time but still wasn't as bad as some of those horror stories you hear about it. It wasn't as nice from Salt Lake to Oakland this time because they didn't have a first class section. I could have gotten first class but the times would have been worse and through Atlanta. However they did their best to make us happy and I'll have to say that they did a pretty good job. I'd never flown with Delta before but would certainly use them again if conditions were right. They were fully as good as the other airlines I had used. By the time we got our luggage and gathered up and in the Gator it was almost one o'clock and no one was hungry. We decided to head home and pick up some burgers on the way. With a little luck we should make it around five. Burger King got our business this time. I like their burgers a little better but McDonalds has better French fries in my opinion. However it was a quiet trip. Mr. Stanton wasn't talking and neither was Lee. The rest of us tried not to disturb them. When I stopped to pick up something to eat, pandemonium reigned. Downie's was swamped. The parking lot of full and the store was even worse. When Ellen saw me, her face lit up and she rushed over and gave me a kiss on the cheek. "What's going on? You having some big sale?" I asked. "Carter's burned down Sunday night." She didn't have to say any more. Charter's was the other full service grocery store in town. "While the investigation isn't done, they think there was some kind of a mistake with the repairs from the storm or some damage they missed," she finished. The next thing I knew, the boys were working and Robert and I were back in the meat department. When Mr. Downie saw me, he ran over and hugged me. To say I was surprised doesn't even come close. He had never done more than shake hands before. He pleadingly asked me if I could help for a little while. The next thing I knew I was putting hamburger in those thingies again, and then running them through the wrapping machine and putting the price stickers on them. I hadn't even had time to introduce Robert. I guess I didn't need to introduce him because when I looked up, he was busy cutting steaks. We didn't get a chance to talk but instead were busy trying to get some meat in the case so it could be sold. For the next two and a half hours all I did was package, price, and put stuff in the display case. When quitting time finally rolled around, the case was still almost empty. People were grabbing stuff off of the cart as I rolled it over to the case. At least I didn't have to worry about making the case look nice. Carl and Robert had disappeared and the boys were busy refilling the shelves with canned goods. I started cleaning up those things that I had learned how to do. This wasn't what I had planned for the evening. I dug out my cell phone and let Jerry know I was back and would be in tomorrow. I was about done cleaning when Carl and Robert returned. They had been in the smoke-house. They were chattering away like old friends. We finished getting the place cleaned up and left. What a mess. It was now almost ten and we still hadn't had dinner. I threw a bunch of chili in a pot while everyone else packed stuff in from the Gator. Some grilled cheese sandwiches joined the chili and then it was time for bed. I showed Robert the sex room and headed for the shower. I'd already given Lee the guest room. Robert could sleep there until he went back. He just thought it was another bedroom and I didn't bother to tell him anything different. Besides, since I had taken all the wild stuff out, that's what it was. Sara and Bruno had complained about it no longer looking like something that, they said they imagined, would be in a whore house. I will admit to wondering if it was all their imagination or if they had something to compare it too. My questioning on that subject hadn't been very successful. Bruno had just looked innocent and asked why I thought he would have ever gone to a whore house. Sara had acted insulted but I still wasn't convinced. They had exchanged too many looks. The snickers I heard floating after me when I left the room that time, made me real curious. Corey was asleep by the time I finished my shower. I got into bed and he soon assumed his usual position. A few kisses to the top of his head produced a soft sigh but nothing more. It was good to be back in my own bed with Corey beside me. I couldn't help but think that all was right in my world as I drifted off to sleep. Lee woke me up when he got into bed with us. He was breathing sort of ragged and I managed to rouse myself enough to ask what was wrong. He said he'd had a bad dream. He curled up on my other side and soon we were once again asleep. The morning was somewhat interesting. That was when Lee learned that Corey and I slept in the raw. He eyes almost bugged out when Corey started stretching after the alarm went off. When I headed for the bathroom, led by my slightly over six inches, he turned red as a beet. Corey let his five inches lead him behind me. Lee got even redder. With Kevin and Kristen in the house, Corey and I had been sleeping in our briefs but with them gone, it was back to normal. I didn't even blush; I still wasn't awake enough to do so. I gave Robert a code for the alarm, the keys to the pickup, showed him where the phone book and phone were, and told him he was on his own until I finished work. He left at the same time I did, telling me he had agreed to meet Mr. Downie early. Kids are gruesome little monsters. As soon as I got in class, they started asking me if it was true that I had saved Lee from killing himself. I was trying to downplay what had happened but some of the comments about splat on the rocks and things like that seemed a little strange. In the end, I decided it would be better to be honest and told them that Lee was being abused at home and didn't know he had anyone that would help him. I threw in that they could always call on me for help. When all was said and done, maybe that was the best way to handle things. It wasn't what I had planned on but when the rumor mill had gotten going, the word was out and it was probably better to meet it head-on than any other way. Hopefully, the time I spent talking, about not having to commit suicide, was time well spent. I didn't have a single class in which we got to cover much math. The kids were all curious about what had happened with Lee and I ended up going over the whole thing four times. During lunch, Mr. Mathers and I discussed if we should hold an assembly about the subject but decided against it. What I told my classes would be all over the community before nightfall, not that I was really adding much to what was already going around. At least the part about the sexual abuse wasn't yet common knowledge. I really hoped that didn't get out. Lee didn't need to try to cope with that. When I told the kids about Lee's having been kidnapped and just barley getting to know his mother, they all thought that was a bummer to use their word. I think I managed to make them feel sorry enough for Lee that they wouldn't think of him as some kind of freak. I wondered how it was going for him in the high school. When I had all the boys gathered up to go home, I told Lee what I'd done in school. He told me that some of the students had looked at him pretty strange but not much had been said. However we didn't make it home right away. Once again we got sidetracked at Downie's. Robert was busy cutting meat and Mr. Downie got me aside and told me that he had four new employees starting tomorrow. He also told me that Robert was even better than he had hoped. He was also going to hire a friend of Robert's and that should give him enough help. Roberts's friend was flying out and would get in over the week-end. I also learned that Mr. Carter was not planning on rebuilding. He was ready to retire and the store hadn't been fully insured. With what he had, and the insurance money, he wouldn't have to work. Since Carl and Robert seemed to have the meat department under control, I started stocking shelves. They weren't as bad as last night but still were getting low on some things. Lee was tagging along with me when Ellen spied him. She came over and was talking to him about mopping floors. He looked a little less than thrilled until she mentioned what she would pay him. After that I didn't see him until I got close to the produce section where he was busy mopping the floor and he had a grin on his face. It was getting close to closing time when Ellen came back over to Lee. I was close enough to overhear her. Lee started blushing when she praised his work and that grin got even bigger. She explained how and when he would be paid. It suddenly dawned on me that this was the first time I had ever seen him truly happy. It made him almost look like a different person. There was a sparkle in his eyes and his shoulders were higher. It was very apparent he was starved for attention and praise. The way he had been being treated since he called me was starting to sink in. He was beginning to think better of himself. You could just see it on his face. I found myself grinning right along with him. Things looked like they might work out pretty well. A couple of chickens from the deli section, which for the first time in a while actually had a bunch of stuff in it, and home we all went. Robert followed us. He was grinning almost as much as Lee when he got inside. While we ate he was telling us how great the job looked. Not only that, when Mr. Downie had learned the level of his skills, the salary had gone up. He was about as happy as it was possible to be. His black eyes still showed a little but so did mine. You really had to look to spot any sign of Corey's. At least the swelling in Robert's nose had gone down. Billy and Larry were there so things were pretty well back to normal. As soon as dinner was done I made the kids start on their homework while I corrected papers. Billy and Larry soon headed for home and Mr. Stanton couldn't stand it any more. He just needed to talk and tell me more about how good things looked. I didn't get much more done that night as I listened to what a nice guy Mr. Downie was and how, as soon as Robert's friend got there, they were going to get the smoke-house operation back in full swing. He was busy telling me about all the different sausages and things they were going to make. I couldn't get Robert to shut up and go to bed. The boys headed off about ten and it was after eleven that I chased Robert to bed so I could get some sleep. I had wanted to play around a little, all right, more than a little, but Corey was asleep when I finally got to bed. I grumbled to myself and joined him. In the morning, Lee was once again beside me. At least this time he didn't blush when Corey and I got up. He still had his briefs on but he seemed to ignore the fact that Corey and I didn't. I didn't have much time to talk with anyone before I had to leave but everyone seemed happy. Ellen grabbed me when I walked in with the boys. The boys managed to escape to their jobs but I wasn't so lucky. Besides, there were a bunch of people, I didn't know, that were working and things looked under control. I swear that Ellen looked ten years younger and she was positively bubbling. They finally had enough help, either working or hired, and things looked like they were getting under control. She went on and on about what a great guy Robert was and how happy she was I had found him for them. I didn't even have to tell her what was going on at school. She was too busy telling me how things were going at the store. They had hired the best of Carter's crew. When I asked if they had hired any other meat cutter, she laughed and told me that Charter's had bought all their meat pre-cut, all they had done was package it. Mr. Carter had done what little cutting was necessary so there had been no one to hire. Mr. Downie had hired one of the people who had packaged and put him to work doing the same. After listening to Ellen for a half hour, I bought some groceries and headed home. There were several neighborhood boys wandering around when I got there and I explained that the boys were working. I ended up getting the groceries inside and then playing basketball with them. Several others showed up and we had a pretty good game. By the time it was over, I needed a break. If I'd do that all the time I wouldn't need to jog. The basketball players didn't turn me down when I invited them to raid the refrigerator. I had a big stew cooking by the time I had to pick the boys up. I knew Mr. Stanton would be later and it would only get better for him. The boys inhaled their usual amounts and started their homework. Mr. Stanton came in and, as soon as he was cleaned up, started on the stew. Corey came in to show me his homework about the time Mr. Stanton said, "You're a better cook than Jess." "Yeah, a lot better." About that time Corey realized what he had said and turned bright red and fled the room. Robert started laughing. "Well, he's right. Jess isn't a very good cook. Neither was Betty." As soon as he said that, all the sparkle left his face. I could see tears start to run down his cheeks when he continued. "I loved her but she couldn't cook worth a damn," he choked out. I made myself busy at the sink while he got himself back under control. I couldn't think of anything to say. About then the phone rang and it was Mr. Besslor wondering if LT would mind missing a lesson. Since he hadn't had time to practice, I said I didn't think so. Then I had to listen about how well things were going for the Clammers. Mr. Besslor had no more than hung up when the phone rang again. Bob wanted to know if Corey wanted a lesson on Saturday evening. I told him it sounded good. I was sure Corey had been working on his lesson and was ready for another. We talked for a few minutes, catching each other up on what was happening. Robert didn't say much after that and soon retired to bed. The rest of the boys soon headed for their beds and finally Corey and I were alone in my bedroom. It really started off kind of slow. We were both so glad to just be with each other that we couldn't seem to get past the gentle kissing stage. You know what I mean, those little soft kisses that you can barely feel but mean so much when you give and receive them. There is so much love wrapped up in them. It's as if you were kissing something very fragile and you had to be careful or you might break it. Those kisses had so much love wrapped up in them that they couldn't break anything except a heart, and then only if you refused to share them. First I'd kiss for a while. I'd kiss his eyelids, his nose, his lips, and even his chin. Then I'd work around and kiss his neck and throat. Then it would be his turn. The kisses he gave me were as soft of flower petals. If they hadn't been so warm, I might have thought he was touching me with a feather. Then it was my turn again. I lost track of the number of times we changed back and forth from kisser to kissee, but it was really nice. It just seemed to bring a warm feeling of contentment over me. My troubles seemed to melt away and the world was a wonderful place. My heart was so full of happiness that I thought it would explode. While it wasn't speeding up that much, it seemed to beat much more strongly. It felt like it was almost pounding in my chest. Those gentle kisses gave way to a little nibbling. I started it when I was close to his ear. I just couldn't help myself. That perfect earlobe was so inviting that I just started nibbling and he turned his head so it was easier to reach that ear. I could hear a sigh. Some nibbling and a few licks and I started licking my way across his throat. It wasn't long until I found the other earlobe. Some nibbling and licking there and I heard more sighs. God he tasted good. Well actually he didn't have much flavor because he'd just had a shower but I still thought he tasted good. I know he smelled good. Soon it was again Corey's turn. When he started nibbling my earlobe it felt great. Then I could feel him gently suck on that earlobe. That felt even better. I couldn't seem to remain still. I could feel myself trying to squirm around, giving him the best possible angle at that earlobe. As his tongue worked it way across my throat, I shivered. It was like little bolts of electricity were shooting through me. I was just twitching and shivering. This was so much better than that hurried encounter on the floor in the hotel. Corey paused and it was my turn again. I rolled him on his back and there was his chest, surmounted by those two nickel sized nipples. I started on the first one and I could hear a hiss of breath. Nibbling and sucking and licking of that nipple brought lots more of that hissing, accompanied by more sighs. It was time to move on. The other nipple brought just as much pleasure to me as the first one. The Corey noises, that nibbling and kissing that nipple were evoking, were turning me on, as if I needed turning on. By now it had to have warmed up ten or twenty degrees in the bedroom. My heart was still pounding only now that pounding was a little faster. I don't remember what happened next. Suddenly Corey was on top of me and it was like I was plugged into a high-voltage line. My whole body was shaking. We were kissing and rubbing. Somehow my cock got between his legs and was trapped there. Every time we stopped kissing long enough to breathe, there was a bunch of groans and things like that. I could feel his hard cock rubbing on my abdomen, just below my belly button. Mine was rubbing against his perineum. We'd kiss for a while, pant a few times and kiss some more, all the time humping together. Those gentle little kisses were long forgotten and our hands were grasping whatever part of the other we could get our hands on. I had two globes of flesh in my hands and was kneading them like crazy. I felt like I was on fire. His body was shooting electricity into me wherever it touched me. Of course we couldn't last long when we got to that stage. His legs clamped even tighter and he arched his back. There was some kind of a loud noise but too many things were happening to me to figure out what that noise was. Suddenly it felt like every muscle in my body was trying to tear itself apart. I couldn't begin to take a breath and I really needed one. Corey collapsed on me and I fell back on the bed. The only sound left was the sound of both of us panting. It sounded like the end of a long race. I wanted another kiss but could no more move my head to get one than I could control my racing heart. When Corey's breathing was almost back to normal, there was a long soft sigh. After that he went totally limp. I could feel his gentle breathing and knew he was asleep. I thought about waking him and telling him he had no staying power but fell asleep before I could decide. I had such a warm blanket. To be continued... The basic recipe for the potatoes is to take about three large baking potatoes (those big ones sold separately at the store) for amount. I use four or five smaller ones but that should give you an idea of amount. Bake and then scoop the center of the baked potatoes out, being careful not to tear the potato skins. When the skins are empty, set aside. Take a four oz jar of pimento and drain and then mince very fine. Add to the potatoes. Finely dice one decent sized bunch of green onions (both white and green parts) and add. Add about half a stick of butter and enough milk to whip. Be sure to use plenty of salt and pepper. The potatoes should be very pink. Place the whipped pink potatoes back in their skins and reheat before serving. You can add a little sour cream, some parmesan cheese or whatever sounds good. I've also used a couple of tablespoons of horseradish. A little grated sharp cheddar cheese is also good but they are excellent when just the basic recipe. I probably use the basic recipe 90 per-cent of the time. When fixing them for myself, I frequently just peel and boil the potatoes. They aren't as nice to serve but you don't have to have any gravy. Make a big batch and freeze. You can reheat them in the micro-wave. It is an excellent way to use up those little potatoes that come in a sack if you don't mind just serving them from a bowl. It does make a nice presentation when you bake them and serve them in the skins. Be sure and make lots. I make a double batch just for myself and freeze the excess. Then when I get home from work, nuke them a little and add a steak and salad. That makes a quick and easy dinner. I really can't say how long they will keep in the freezer because they have never lasted more than a few weeks. Really great for a barbeque because you don't have to have any topping for them. Like I said, be sure to add enough salt and pepper. They should not require any salt and pepper when served. I have even added such things as sauteed mushrooms. Depends on what I have in the house. Chopped chives are good. Just add what you like to the basic recipe. Really nice for guests because you can make them ahead of time.