Date: Mon, 24 Jul 2006 15:43:58 +0000 (GMT) From: Nathan Me Subject: James chapter 23 'James' by Nathan Email address nathan7new@yahoo.co.uk My stories are now archived at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nathansstories/. This story contains material of a sexual nature and describes sexual acts between adults and children. If you find this kind of material offensive, if you are under the legal age to read such material or if it is illegal in your country, please do not read any further. My stories may contain some factual or autobiographical elements, but they are works of fiction and any apparent similarities of my characters to real people are not intended. This story is protected by copyright. It may not be downloaded, copied, printed or otherwise reproduced in any way other than for your private enjoyment and may not be changed in any way without express written consent of the author, me! I hope you enjoy this story. James: Chapter 23 Apart from a few references on the TV news to several arrests, the boys heard no more about what had happened for several days. They had held a private meeting in Andy and Philip's room and decided not to disclose the reason for their being here to others, but several children seemed to have worked it out and before long everyone seemed to know that these were the six kids from the TV. Several more children had been removed into Social Services care, but Mrs Daniels had obviously found other homes to place them in. All of the children here had a story, so most left them alone and didn't give them any grief, but one afternoon, when Danny was unusually without his brother's protection, a thirteen-year-old boy bullied Danny and told him that he wanted a blowjob. The end of lessons bell had only just gone. The older teen from the changing room came in just as the bully grabbed Danny's hair and he lifted the thirteen year old of his feet. "You touch my friend again and it'll be the last thing you do. Understand?" The boy nodded meekly and the older teen let him drop into one of the soft chairs. The kid slowly got up and skulked off to the other end of the room, watched by Danny's new hero. Danny looked up with tears in his eyes and asked, "Are you my friend, really?" "Yep, absolutely, little man. What's your name?" "Danny." "Well I'm Anthony, Tony to you, big Tony to little gits like that piece of shite." "Why did you do that?" "What, stand up for you?" "Yeah." "Well, I wasn't always big and when I were right little like you, I got bullied all the time, so I think it's shite when I see it happenin' to others and now I'm so big I can stop it, sometimes. Anytime you need someone to step in, you just come and find me, little man, sorry, Danny." He sat down on a sofa. "Ok. How long have you been here?" Danny asked, sitting beside him. "Hmmm. Must be almost four years now." "Why?" "You ask a lot of questions, don't you?" "Sorry." Danny looked down at his feet. "No, no, it's alright. I didn't mean, well... My mum's a drug addict and I aint got no dad, so the judge put me in here 'til mum were fit to look after me, but she aint. So here I am, and it's not that bad. I've been in other places before I came here and they were bad, but they try to make it nice here. So is it true that you're the kids they have been talkin' about on the news, that were held prisoner?" "It wasn't like that." Tears welled up in his eyes as he thought of his dad. "Sorry, little man." Tony put his arm around Danny and Danny allowed himself to fall against the young man's side. He sobbed a little, but soon settled again and that was how Chris found them a few minutes later. Chris, seeing the young man holding his little brother virtually ran across the room to them and almost launched an attack on the older boy. "What are you doing with my brother?" He shouted. "Chris, no! He just helped me. Don't shout at him." Danny had leaped up and was trying to push Chris back, standing between him and the teen. "He stopped another boy bullying me." "You did?" Chris sounded as if he didn't really believe it, but broke his advance. "Yeah. Another kid was being a bastard to the little man, so I just stepped in cause I'm big and most don't mess with me. Although, it looked like you thought you might have ago." "Sorry. He's my brother and I just have to look after him, even if you are like a mountain." Tony laughed. "Not quite that big. I'm Tony." "Chris." "Hello, Chris. I told Danny that if he gets any grief and you're not around, he can come and I'll sort it for him. Is that ok?" "I guess." The three of them sat talking until Sam and Philip came in. Chris introduced them to Tony and the four older boys started a game of pool. Danny was content to eat an apple and watch, as he couldn't control the cue or quite reach far enough over the table. James had gone up to his room to change and met Sam on the stairs. He had been increasingly subdued and James was beginning to worry about him. Something was eating away at him. Sometimes he wouldn't eat or even talk to James. When James had reached out to put a friendly hand on his shoulder, the young teen had recoiled as if James had stung him. When they got through the door, James turned and pinned Sam against the wall physically. The teen didn't even resist. His eyes were damp and focused on anything but James. James felt the boy shudder in his grasp and immediately released him. "What the fuck is goin' on, Sam? When I talk to you, you ignore me; when I touch you, you act like I got some disease and now you won't even look at me. What is it?" James pleaded. Tears rolled down Sam's face. He slid down the wall, collapsing into a heap, his arms covering his face as he convulsed with each excruciating sob. James didn't know what to do, get help or grab Sam and just hold him. He watched the older boy for a few minutes, then knelt beside him and tried to pull the tangle of arms away from the teen's head. Sam looked up, his eyes red and his face streaked by the tears. James reach a hand to the boy's cheek and wiped a stream of tears aside with his thumb, his hand cupping Sam's cheek as Sam had done to him that first night. Sam froze. James took him by the hand and pulled him up. He led him over to his bed and allowed him to sit down. James sat next to him, facing him. "What is it Sam?" "I can't." "You can't what?" "I feel so crap all the time. I miss me dad and even Trev, but I hate everything. It was all so, so..." "It's over though, Sam." "No it's not. Now I'm here and nothings different. It's like I have a sign sayin' use me." "What does that mean, Sam?" Sam broke into floods of teas again and it was a few minutes of hugging and soothing before James could get any sense out of him. "It's all my own fault anyways." "What is?" James' question was met by silence. James and Sam had spent a lot of time together over the last few days. The affection they had for each other was obvious to everyone and seemed only to be growing. Apart from a bit of play wrestling over who left a toffee wrapper on the bedroom floor, most of their interaction had so far been non-physical. They often sat together in the common room watching TV, cycled through the grounds and sat together at meal times, frequently joined by Chris and Danny. Chris had been a little bit jealous to start with and had said a couple of nasty things, but that ended and they made up. James had no idea what was going on. "I can't do this any more?" "What?" "I want to be with you." "You are with me, Sam. We are sitting here on your bed together." "That's not what I mean." "I thought if I let them do it then I wouldn't still want to do it with you, but then I didn't want to so they got angry and made me." "Who made you do what?" After much cajoling, Sam eventually conceded and admitted that at night he lay there, wanting to get into bed with James. He wanted to be with James. He thought about James all the time, but then he thought that that must be so bad, so wrong because that was why his dad and Trev had been arrested and Sam felt like he was being punished because he was a pervert. This weighed so heavily on him, the guilt and the shame and the realisation that for years he had said nothing so it must all be his fault anyway. Then another teen, the same one who had tried it on with Danny, that big Tony had sorted out, had asked him if he wanted to go up to his dorm with some others. Sam was glad to feel included and went with them. They sat eating sweets, drinking coke and talking about the normal things teenage boys talk about: football, video games and girls. An older boy, about fifteen, produced a porn mag and suggested they had a wank and as the other three boys present agreed, Sam played along and soon all five of them were wanking themselves. Then they started wanking each other. Sam had wanted this kind of contact with James ever since they were given a room together, but he was afraid and ashamed of all the thoughts and feelings. He couldn't bring himself to talk to James about it, but here he was doing it with these other boys. Then they had wanted him to give them blowjobs. They started teasing him that he must be an expert. Two of the older boys made him do it to them and then forced him to do it to the others too. He told them he didn't want to, but they made him do it. They said he was a rent boy, a prostitute and this was all he was good for. That was two days ago and it was eating him up inside. By the time Sam had sobbed his way through his story, James too was in tears. The boys sat hugging each other. James knew Sam liked him, but had no idea just how much. James sat hugging Sam until Sam had cried himself to sleep. James could only think of one thing, Mr Chester. He left Sam sleeping in their room and went down to the school office. Someone else was already in with the headmaster so James had to sit and wait. Half an hour later, Mr Chester and another man came out shaking hands. The head said his goodbyes and turned to see James sitting beside his office door. "Hello, James. I didn't expect to ever see you sent to my office." "Oh, I wasn't sent here, Sir. I want to talk to you about Sam." "Oh dear. Come on in. Mr Spiller said we might need to... well, you go first." James sat in front of the headmaster's desk, but instead of sitting behind it, Mr Chester came and sat next to him. "Sam has been very upset about his dad, but he also feels guilty about everything and some boys made him give them blowjobs even when he didn't want to." It all came out so fast that it seemed he hadn't even taken a breath. "Oh dear. Two of Sam's teachers told Mr Spiller this morning that they thought Sam was very unhappy and seemed even more so today. He was going to have a chat with him tomorrow morning. Where is Sam now?" "He cried himself to asleep on his bed." "Did you see any of this with the other boys, James? Has anything happened to you or the others?" "I didn't see anything, but I know Big Tony had to rescue Danny the other day." "Rescue him from what, or whom?" "From a boy who was bullying him. He wanted a blowjob." James blushed as he said it. "Don't worry, James. Don't be embarrassed. Who wanted the blowjob, Danny or the boy?" James thought that was obvious. Suddenly it occurred to him that everyone might assume they wanted boy-boy or boy-man sex because that was where they came from. He became angry and almost shouted at Mr Chester, "The other boy, of course." Mr Chester recognised intuitively what had caused this outburst. He waited while James cooled a little. He had spent many years teaching and caring for youngsters and was a very patient man. He sighed. How damaged these boys were. It was going to take a long time for them to heal emotionally. "James, it might seem to you that everybody assumes you and the others are at fault here, but I do not. I was just asking, because I didn't know. I do know that all six of you must have been extremely strong and brave to have been through what you have and survived it. I admire that in you and in the few days you have been here, your teachers and I have seen so many good things in all of you. I want to protect you from any more of this and so I need to know who these boys are. That may upset Sam even more, but we have to stop it now. Do you know who they are?" James thought. Sam hadn't told him any of the boy's names, except that one was the same boy who had bullied Danny. He tried to remember that boy's name. He was in Sam's class. "Colin Carter. He was the one who bullied Danny and invited Sam up to the dorm. I don't know the other 'cause Sam didn't tell me their names." "Alright. I'm going to get young Mr carter in here now. You go back and sit with Sam until dinnertime. Try to keep him in your room until then. Either Mr Spiller or I will come and get you, but if you don't see either of us before dinner, just come down as normal." "Ok." James said standing to go. "And James," James turned back to the headmaster, "I always assume the best about anyone until they show me otherwise. Please do not assume that what you and the others have been through in any way disqualifies you from my respect or protection. What you did today just proves how strong and courageous you really are. I am sure that we will get through this and that one day you will be a very courageous adult and go on to achieve great things. I see great potential in you and the others, James. Now go and check on Sam." The boy left and Mr Chester immediately called through to Mr Spiller. Once Mr Spiller had finished with the boy he was talking to, they went on a search for Tony Roberts, or Big Tony as some of the younger kids called him, and once they had spoken with him, they searched for Danny and got his version of things. Then they went in search of Colin Carter. They found him in one of the common rooms. Although they had a rough idea who the other three boys might be, they didn't assume they were correct and only invited Colin to accompany them. Once back in the Headmasters office, Mr Chester took his seat and Mr Spiller stood beside the desk, looking at the boy. Colin stood cocky, but unsure why he had been summoned. He didn't believe for one moment that the 'gay-boy' had said anything, so he couldn't imagine why they had come for him. "Well, Mr Carter. I have had some very troubling news this afternoon. You seem to have been bullying and forcing other boys to do thing they don't want to do. It sounds very serious indeed." Colin looked from the headmaster to the counsellor and back again. He couldn't believe that he was in trouble because of those perverts. He didn't know what to say. "Well, Colin, what have you to say?" He stood silently, defiantly. "Ok. Firstly, I have spoken with Tony Roberts and Danny Macey. I know about what happened in the common room, so why don't you tell me your side of the story." The boy sat in disbelief. He had not believed for one moment that either boy would have had the guts to go to the teachers. "Come on Mr Carter, I need to know what you believe happened before I decide how far to take this." Shit! Colin's lip quivered. His bravado deserted him. He looked at the floor trying to disappear. He just couldn't believe this was happening. Eventually he gave a potted version of his attack on Danny, trying to portray it as a joke, not serious. Mr Chester and Mr Spiller however, did not see it as a joke. This thirteen year old had attacked an eight-year-old boy in their care. Fortunately that had not gone any further because of the intervention of Tony Roberts. Tony was a good boy and an excellent student. "Thank you, Colin. Now we need to discuss what happened in your dorm with Sam and the other boys." Oh, double shit! How much did they know? Who had blabbed? "Come on, Mr Carter. There is nothing to be gained by silence. This situation will not go away and as you were involved in both incidents, at the moment I can only assume that it was all your idea to lure Sam to your room and..." "No it fuckin' wasn't!" The boy exploded. "It were Ross' idea." He went red in the face, realising he had now squealed on his roommate. "So Ross Kennet suggested something to you all, what was it he suggested?" "He said to us..." "Who is 'us', Colin?" Colin hesitated. "Colin, how much trouble do you think keeping silent will avert? It is all going to come out anyway, so the only question is, do you want to be helpful or make it worse?" The boy stood quietly considering the headmasters words. There was no promise of leniency, but certainly there was a threat. He struggled for a way out, but there was none. He burst into tears. He wasn't sorry for what he had done, just that he had got caught. The two adults watched in silence. Neither was inclined to make this easy for the boy. Once they had the truth, them they had to decide how far to take this. It could end up with charges being brought against them. It took almost an hour to get what they thought was close enough to the truth. They moved Colin into another room and one by one summoned the other three boys. Each at first denied, then minimised, then eventually confessed to their part, always blaming the others as instigators. It was dinnertime by the time they had finished. Dinner was brought for the four perpetrators in separate classrooms. Mr Chester had dispatched Mr Spiller to fetch Sam and James. Now they sat in the headmaster's office waiting for him to return. Sam still did not know what James had done as he had been asleep until Mr Spiller had come to their room, just as the dinner bell went. The door opened and Mr Chester came in with the most serious face James had seen him wear. "Well, James, Sam, the last couple of hours has been extremely difficult." Sam looked from one adult to the other, plainly puzzled. "Ah. I see James hasn't yet told you, Sam. He came to me this afternoon with information about how you and Danny had been attacked here in the school. I was horrified that any of my children would do such horrible things to you and Danny, but they have confessed and what remains now is to decide what to do with them. I will have to report this to Mrs Daniels and she may decide to take the matter to the police. That would be the right thing to do. After everything you have had to deal with, I am really sorry you had to go through this as well. I need you, Sam, to tell me everything that happened to you and anything else that has happened during the last few days." Sam sat silently. He looked at James, who was looking at him as if to say, 'sorry'. Sam began to tell them everything. It tallied in may points with the combined story they had received from the other boys, except that Sam had clearly been forced and not, 'up for it' as two of the others had claimed. The men were dismayed. They supported Sam as he revealed everything to them, including how awful he had been feeling and how that their initial interest had seemed like they were at last accepting their new classmate. Mr Spiller arranged for dinner for them to be brought to his office, where they had moved to so that Mr Chester could make some calls. By the time they had finished, Mrs Daniels could be heard across the hall shouting and screaming at the headmaster. James was amazed that she had arrived so quickly, but later found out that she was the duty officer and her office was only twenty minutes away. She could not pass up the opportunity to show that for all their resources and money, these Christians just had no idea how to look after children. She was going to get the home closed down and Mr Chester prosecuted for negligence. The boys heard snippets of the conversation, even though both Mr Spiller's and Mr Chester's doors were both closed. The woman was in a real rage. Finally she came through to them and stood in front of the two terrified boys. "So, Sam, I'll arrange for the police to interview you about what has happened here and we'll get this abomination closed down. You obviously are not safe here." James was gob-smacked. The woman didn't really care about them; she just wanted to use this as ammunition. He looked at Mr Chester, then at Mr Spiller and finally at Sam. Sam seemed to read his thoughts. From somewhere deep inside, some extraordinary reserve of resilience and composure overcame Sam's previous feelings off depression and desperation. He knew what Andy had told him about this woman, and despite what had happened; this wasn't the fault of Mr Chester or the staff. He looked at James again. James shrugged as if to say, "I don't know what to say." "Mrs Daniels, I don't know what you mean." Sam pulled himself up to his full height, but standing there in his crumpled school shorts and polo shirt, he wasn't very intimidating. However, there was strength in his eyes that James had never seen before. "I don't know what these people have told you, but I have nothing I want to talk to the police about." Mr Chester did a double take. "Now Sam, this is serious and you should talk to the police about this. Mrs Daniels is right about that." "I'm sorry, Sir, but I have nothing to talk to them about." "Sam," Mr Spiller put a fatherly hand on the teens shoulder, "it's very commendable to want to protect the school, but if that's why you're doing this, that's not a good enough reason. Those boys broke the law and attacked you and the law says they have to answer for that. Mrs Daniels, Mr Chester and I are all charged with upholding those rules and so far we haven't done very well protecting you." "I feel safer here than I have ever felt and I have nothing to say to Mrs Daniels or to the police." The conversation went round in circles for another 10 minutes, but it was obvious, Sam had made his mind up. Mrs Daniels left promising to call the police. Even Mr Chester failed to persuade Sam. Finally Sam and James were allowed to return to their room. Mr Chester and Mr Spiller gathered the offenders from their solitary confinement in various classrooms. Each had endured their own private torture of fear over the last couple of hours and were certain they were in for it. They were all sent to their rooms with instructions to remain there until morning and to have nothing to do with the Sam or the others. None of them knew what Sam had done had probably saved them. That they would only find out later that week. More to come...