DISCLAIMER: This story in no way determines the sexuality or actions of any celebrities involved in it. The events of this story are pure fiction, and involve gay sex which should only be read by people interested in gay sex, if you don't like it, don't read it!

If you're underage or this is illegal where you live, please leave now. This is my first attempt, so please forgive any errors.

Liberty has been taken with the following work of fiction. The actual location used in the filming of Elizabethtown was Versailles, Kentucky.

Also, don't forget to support the archives. It's not easy to be free, so let's do our best to keep it that way.

I want to thank my dear friend Randy for his support and converting this to HTML. Also my thanks to other friends and you the readers.

This is dedicated to my beloved for many reasons and we both are fans of Orlando.

    There she sat on the floor groaning in pain. My poor, dear Gem. I knew it was another leg cramp, she'd been having a lot of problems with them for the past few years.

    My earliest memory of her was as my babysitter when I was maybe two. Reading to me and holding me.

    Back then it was Gerald, and he always seemed to be there. As long as I could remember, he'd been heavy. He worked at that, believe me. But he could never seem to drop it.

    He'd been my big brother growing up. It was him that helped me learn to ride a bike, toss a ball, even my first shave. I was instructed on the facts of life too. Not just the sexual ones.

    Gerald did his best to give me a positive look at the world. It didn't matter that the world treated him rotten, he kept trying to smile and not let his hurt show.

    My dad was a drunk and skipped out on my mom and me when I was only two. Gerald lived next door to us, so he was the only help we could afford. All mom had to do was bake sweets.

    He considered it a fair trade to looking after me. I was maybe four or so when he no longer wanted anything in exchange for it, I was his `little buddy'.

    Looking back on it now, there were very few people that accepted him, I just loved my big brother, unconditionally. He fixed my scrapes and cuts while I was growing up. The ones on the outside and inside both.

    I wouldn't find out until I was almost grown the hell he lived through at home. While his father didn't drink, he was still very abusive. Gerald was beaten and verbally abused by him. But he waited years before telling me.

    When he came to see me, that was his escape from it all. Some people turn into abusers themselves, but not Gerald. I can't remember a single cross word from him, unless I'd done something stupid.

    Then it was a different story. But he'd sit me down and talk to me about it. He'd get me to see what I'd done wrong and why it was wrong.

    It was when I was fifteen that he told me about himself. He was ten years older and still living at home until that day.

    He'd always explained away his cuts and bruises as coming from bullies. In reality, it was his father doing it. Each and every time!

    I was coming home from school, and I could see him walking from the other direction. He lived at the other end of the block. But something was really wrong this time.

    There was the bad limp and just the way he was all stooped over. I ran to him when I realized how badly he was injured.

    "Don't touch me, Charlie!" He somehow managed to say. His face was a scary mess.

    "Tell me who did this to you, Ger, I'll beat the shit out of them!" By this age I had already reached my six feet and thought I could beat most anyone if pushed enough. And this sure looked like the time to try.

    "No, Charlie, it's just not worth it." There was something in his voice that scared me.

    When we reached my house, he refused to come inside. He just wanted to sit on the back porch.

    "Charlie, I'm going away."

    "No, you can't just leave. I'll take care of whoever did this to you, I swear I will!"

    That's when he began to sob, deep heart-tearing sounds came from him. Again, I wanted to hold him as he'd done to me so many times when I needed it, but he rejected it.

    "I'm a faggot, Charlie! A worthless, fatassed faggot!"

    Oh dear God, I was starting to figure out what had happened before he even told me. Although I'd never seen his dad lay a finger on him, I'd seen the foul temper and hear him call Ger a fatass too many times and that word worthless too.

    "Ger, was it your dad did this?"

    "I'm a piece of shit now. A worthless, fat, lazy slob. And... I'm a Goddamned faggot, a queer!"

    At that age, I was still debating about if I was gay, but wasn't ready to admit to it yet. I sure wasn't going to think less of Ger though.

    "You're my big brother. I don't give a rat's ass who you want to have sex with, that's your business. Anyone that won't accept you, that's their loss!" I was so mad.

    He tried to look at me, only one eye could open enough to do that.

    "You don't hate me, Charlie?" He seemed stunned.

    "No, Ger, I could never hate you. No matter what!"

    At last he allowed my arm around him. I was gentle as I was sure he was bruised most everywhere.

    "My dad wants me gone. Said he wishes me dead too. Mom just stood there and let him do this to me. Why, Charlie, why?"

    All I could do was shake my head and hold him. "Tell me what happened."

    "Dad went into my room. He's been stealing from me, but I never dared to tell him I knew. I was stupid and left a magazine with guys in it in the same hiding place as my money. He just lost it. I was in the living room watching tv when he came in and threw the magazine at me. Can't remember much of anything after his fists started. When I ended up on the floor, he started kicking me as hard as he could. The whole time he was yelling at me. Guess I already told you what he said."

    "Ger, I'll be right back." I told him.

    When I tried to stand, he held me back. "And where do you think you're going?"

    "I'm going to kill that fucker!" Man, was I seething, almost seeing just red.

    "No, Charlie. Then you'd go to prison, and I won't have that happen."

    He stared me down and I finally relaxed some. My mom wasn't around much, so I had Ger stay with us for a few days. During that time I went down the street and got all of his things while his dad was away to work.

    I loaned him money from my savings, and he set out for Louisville. It had a profound effect on where my life went from there. The rumors spread quickly about him, as his dad was blabbing all over town.

    Yeah, I got branded as guilty of it too, just by association. It helped me to decide that I was gay. My love for karate movies saved my ass though. I'd gotten my blackbelt the year before. They could point and snicker at me, but not to my face.

    Mom didn't deal too well with it, so I went to live with her parents. They were more accepting of me at the time. As some years passed, mom got better about the whole thing.

    Ger and I wrote to each other at least once a week. It was over a year before I saw him again. By then Ger had become Gem. This was still the same person that I'd grown up with, I wasn't about to push him away.

    We always maintained a deep love between us. No, nothing sexual ever happened. We both knew that would be wrong. I was really the only family Gem had left, at least I still had my mom.

    Gem became a major star of the bars in Louisville, and made an adequate living at it. I was her biggest fan; we would always be close.

    I let those memories go back while we lifted her to the sofa and I helped her with another bad cramp. Jonathon's acceptance of her was fantastic!

    This man just kept winning my heart, over and over again.

    Now, I'll skip ahead to the scream and the gunshot. It scared the hell out of Jonathon.

    I couldn't help but laugh, which drew a really strange look from him.

    "That's crazy old Mrs. Kowalski shooting and screaming at the crows in her pear tree!" I explained.

    "You have a really unique group of friend and neighbors, Charlie!" He replied.

    "Yes, I guess I do."

    "Guess?" He had an astonished look on his face.

    My ribs hated it, but I had to laugh hard. "Okay, some are different, some are totally off the wall. I'll try to introduce you to more normal ones if you insist."

    "No, this is way too interesting. Bring them on!" He retorted, we were both laughing.

    "Just remember, you asked for it!"

    He danced his eyebrows up and down a few times and gave me that lecherous look of his. "Do I have to ask for everything, Charlie?"

    "No, not everything, baby." I replied with a wink. Taking his hand, I led him back to the bedroom once more.

    (To be continued?)

Thank you for reading!
Sincerely,
Jon Ryder

If you'd like to read more, I'll go for it. Please send all comments to jonryder1000@hotmail.com

    I am saddened to announce that I've had to take over the HTML work myself after this chapter and I'm a newbie at it. So, if you encounter errors, please email me and I'll correct them. Starting with Chapter 16, there will be a few changes to the look. I'd appreciate your feedback on it.

    Thanks again to all my readers.

    Your friend

    Jon