Date: Fri, 14 Jan 2000 07:39:27 -0800 (PST) From: Willie Hewes Subject: The learning years (9) Finally! Part 9. To refresh your memories (and mine) I've made a little summary of the first 8 episodes. If your memory is fresh enough, you can skip to the story. Enjoy! Willie Hewes (http://www.geocities.com/willie_hewes) =====================Parts 1 to 8===================== During the Introduction Days of the Leiden University Eduard (Eddy) meets Charlie a second year student of biology. (1) They meet again the next day, but Eddy gets a bit nausious, (2) and they spend the rest of the night watching a video at Charlie's place. Charlie says he does not want to rush things, but when they say goodnight, they kiss. (3) Eddy goes home and learns that his sister already knows he's gay. Luckily, she won't tell his parents. (4) During the next week, they hang out together, and on the first day of college they go home to have dinner together. Charlie's roommates are not there. (5) Eddy want's to surprise Charlie and changes all his clothes for only Charlie's coat when Charlie is out of the room. But Charlie doesn't want to do it YET, and Eddy, although disappointed, accepts this. After dinner, one of Charlie's roommates (Menno) comes home, and reminds him of an important meeting he has to go to right now. (6) With Charlie gone, Menno tells Eddy all about what a slut Charlie really is, or used to be. He turns Eddy on with graphic descriptions of what Charlie does with his other dates. Eddy, who does not realise where this is going, suddenly finds himself with Menno's mouth on his dick. (7) Charlie has seen everything through the window, and is very upset, though more upset with Menno than with Eddy. In a short argument everything is decided, Menno get's the blame for Eddy's infidelity, Charlie has to move out of Menno's house, and Eddy's parents can expect a guest tonight. (8) Part 9 We were sitting in the bus home. He hadn't said anything in a while, and neither had I. I knew he was upset, and so was I. Too much had happened. I had had sex. The thought shocked me, but it was true. I had had sex. That was my first... No, it couldn't be. Feverishly, my brain sought for another instance, some way out of this conclusion, but there was no way. This was my first time. My first time was with someone I neither loved nor lusted after. I didn't know more about him than his name, and I never saw him afterwards. That's the story I'll be telling people from now on. Life can be cruel. And life wasn't about to stop being cruel, as Charlie suddenly asked: "So, did you like it?" I was stupefied. Like I said, we were in a bus, there were other people, though not very many. But it was quiet, and I felt sure they had heard him. Slowly, he turned his head to look at me. "Well?" he asked in the same, loud voice. "Yes," I whispered hastily, "I mean, no, I mean... He made me, Charlie." I looked at him pleading, but he looked grim. "Are you still mad at me?" I asked in a small voice. "Of course I'm still mad at you, you idiot!" he hissed. His words hit me like a painful heatwave. "But, but..." I stammered, "I'm sorry. He did it, I was only... It was him. It was his fault." "So you told me." "I love you." "So you told me." His face showed no mercy. I was starting to feel afraid. "I want you to tell me about it, Eddy." He said slowly, and very distinctly. "I want you to tell me what happened, and why it was all his fault." "Can't I tell you about it later?" I tried, but he shook his head. Patiently, he waited for me to start talking. "Why?" I asked him. "That's your punishment. You did something wrong, now you're punished, and then I can forgive you. 's A very old system, works perfectly." "But why are you here on the bus with me if you didn't forgive me?" "Because I'm going to forgive you," he explained impatiently, "now *Start talking!*" "He... we were watching TV," I started, more whispering than talking. "So they can here you," he said quietly. I swallowed. Pretty heavy punishment, I thought. He wanted me to be humiliated, and he was going to have his way, too. What choice did I have? "We were watching TV," I said more loudly, trying to sound casual, so people wouldn't pay too much attention. I still knew they would, though. "And he was telling me all sorts of stuff about you. You know, about the other guys you dated, and how you treated them and all..." "And?" he asked. I looked to see if anyone was looking at us. From what I saw, I guessed people were trying hard Not to look at us. "Well, It confused me. Why didn't you ever tell me you and Menno had been lovers?" I was turning crimson. Everyone was listening, they had to be! "I have never told you we weren't," he said simply. I felt miserable. I knew I was guilty, and I knew he had every right to rub it in. "Look, it just happened, alright? I didn't want it to happen, at least not with him, but I couldn't stop it. I love you. Please stop this, you don't want to hear about it!" "Do you, really?" he said, suddenly lowering his voice. For a moment I didn't understand what he meant. "Do you really love me?" I nodded. "Yes." He straighted his back and said softly: "Then get up from your seat and shout it out to the whole bus". "What?" "If you can do that, I'll know for sure. Go on, tell them." He was doing that thing with his voice again. I shifted in my chair. I thought of kissing in the department store. I thought of my old classmates sitting in the same bus. "Will you stop punishing me then? I mean, will that be my punishment?" "Maybe," he said with a sly smile, "depends on how quickly you comply." *** I was getting up. I was holding on to bar and turning to face the people behind us. I was not thinking. In fact, I think I was enjoying it. "Excuse me, everyone," I started. Almost everyone looked. I felt insanely happy. "I have an announcement to make. I am Eduard Barken, and this is Charlie." Charlie turned in his chair and looked over the back of his seat. "And I love him!" I blurted with a dramatic sway of my arm. I felt like a stage actor. Some people were ignoring me. A woman turned to the person next to her and mumbled. A man sitting in the back gave me a thumbsup and said: "Good for you!" I was tingling all over. They all laughed at me, and I loved it. I was making a complete idiot out of myself, and I didn't even mind. If Charlie hadn't pulled my jacket, I don't think I would have sat down. Charlie studied my face. "You enjoyed that, didn't you?" he asked. "I think I did," I said, trying not to giggle. I put my hand before my mouth. He patted my knee. "You liked it," he said, "that's good." I was smiling, still trying to understand what had happened. Suddenly, the voice of the busdriver rumbled through the bus. He was just saying "Oranjelaan", the name of the next bus stop, but I knew that what he was really saying was "This is authority speaking. Act Normal." Again, I did as I was told.