WARNING:

This is a story of friendship, commitment, love and trust. It is not a sex story. However, this story deals with love between male teenagers. If you are offended by stories involving love between two teenage boys, please do not read this story. There may be some sex scenes in this story; however, sex is not the main theme. If you are under age 18 or 21 or it is illegal to read this story where you live, don't read it. Reproducing this story for distribution without the owner's permission is a violation of that copyright.

Author's Message: Hey peeps! I decided not to wait. :P Oh, yeah listen to the two songs when you read this story - it will help you to get the full impact of the story.

LAF,

Sam (sam_lakes@hotmail.com)

Billy Lancaster's Gift

by Sam Lakes

Chapter 4

As they say the best laid plans of mice and men…When we met the boys I was suppose to say something like come on sweetheart let’s get going and he’d say alright babe. But just as Ely met us my beeper went off – it was a 911 message from Tony, which meant it was absolutely important.

“It’s from Tony an emergency! Dudes, I’ll be down at the 7-11. Got to jet!” I said and took off for the 7-11.

“Tony what’s the prob?”

“No real problem, Ethan, but you need to get over to the lawyers office before five because they got your debit card.”

“Oh! Man! This has been the greatest day in my life and you have made it better!”

“Yeah, I hear you skipped school,” he laughed.

“Yeah, he loves me, Tony! And I love him! I LOVE JUSTIN WASHBURN!” I shouted into the phone.

“You what!” I heard Ely and Nathan exclaim.

I turn to see the shocked faces of Ely and Nathan. Justin was beaming.

“I love Justin Washburn. Guys, I’m gay and Justin is my boyfriend.” I looked at Justin, “And I love you with all my heart and soul for now and forever.”

“You’re gay?” asked an almost disbelieving Nathan.

I nodded.

“YES!” ejaculated Ely, “YES! YES! YES! So are we!”

I heard Tony saying something on the phone.

“Huh? Sorry Tony.”

“I’m happy for you, boy. So, you better go get your cards. Where do I pick you up and when?”

I thought for a moment, “The mall definitely the mall at nine o’clock.”

He laughed saying, “Dude, you are so gay! See you at nine.”

We ended up at the lawyers with five minutes to spare and Mr. Pasley gave me my cards and the taxi took us all to the mall.

“Why are we going to the mall?” asked Ely.

“Shopping! And dinner for us,” I replied.

I ended up buying new clothes for the twins and a couple of new things from A&F for me. Justin just kept saying no when I’d try and buy him something saying he had a closet full of clothes. But I wanted to buy him something special so I got the twins to keep him occupied while I snuck off and bought something, which I knew he wouldn’t refuse. Plus I made a few phone calls to invite Anna and Robert, Justin’s parents and Tony to dinner at The Steak House – a really posh restaurant.

I called Carolyn. “Hi, Carolyn, it’s me Ethan. I wanted to invite you to a special dinner at eight.”

“I’d like that Ethan. What makes it special?”

“Uh, umm, well, you see I told Justin today that I, uh, that I love him and I’m gay.”

“Well, it’s about time you found someone! I was hoping it would be Justin. It was so obvious to me that he was head over heels in love with you. So your out I assume.”

“I guess I was the last one to realize how much he loves me…did you know I was gay?”

“Well, I suspected it when I saw you with Justin,” she giggled, “Ethan, could you get my sons to come out to me? I’ve known they are gay because I overheard them talking about a year ago. I just figured I would wait for them to tell me.”

I guess I lost track of time talking to Carolyn and everybody else. It was 7:30 by the time I found the twins and Justin was not with them.

“So, where’s Justin?”

“He went home. He was really upset – pissed off,” said Ely.

“Yeah, really pissed off and hurt. You were gone too long Ethan and he went looking for you which was when he got pissed off. I think he was a bit worried at first and then he found out you bought him a bracelet,” said Nathan.

“But how did he find that out?”

“He went to every jeweler and asked if they’d seen his brother he was buying a present for his boyfriend. And then he said ‘I am out of here and you can tell Ethan when he’s ready to have a real relationship then think hard and maybe he’ll remember where to find me’. I’d call that pissed.”

“Fuck! I just spent an hour arranging for dinner at The Steak House for everyone, Tony, your mom and Justin’s parents!”

***

Justin’s POV

I think I broke out of my euphoria when I found us in a taxi on the way to Ethan’s lawyer’s firm. I mean it was a surprise to me that he would have a lawyer. Next the lawyer gave him two debit cards and then the shopping spree or whatever you want to call it.

I know that I had told him I hate people buying me things, I’d always rather they just give me the money but no surprises. I have always been like that even as a little kid. The last time we’d celebrated Christmas with presents and stuff was when I was thirteen. And yet he kept trying to buy me something and the more he tried the more pissed I became.

An hour ago life was wonderful. I thought we’d spend time doing something like just being together and getting to know each other better. But as the day progressed I realize I still didn’t know him or anything about him except that he love me and it began to dawn on me that maybe all the sex wasn’t so romantic and was more like two horny teenagers getting their rocks off. I began thinking that maybe it was just the physical side – the fact that he was so beautiful physically that drew me to him. Maybe I was wrong maybe queer life was accurately portrayed in the gay soap opera Queer As Folk. That all there is, is just sex. Was Ethan to be the first of many and was I to be just a good fuck to him.

I caught a bus home. Went to my closet grabbed by blades and mp3 player then left for the skate park at the Y. It would be open until 11 because it was a Friday. My weapon for depression was skating. It had been months since I skated. I was pretty good at it and the music turned up loud enough that I could just tune out the world. I was never a team sport person but I really loved skating and biking. The weather was beginning to get cold and soon skating would be over, but then I could snow blade.

It was 7:30 so I had three and a half hours to totally exhaust myself so after I warmed up for fifteen minutes I started skating hard and fast and going absolutely mad and crazy and totally getting into what I was doing and showing-off. I liked showing-off. I like hearing the other skaters saying things like “Dude, you are like totally awesome!” Of course I wasn’t perfect and I also wiped-out a few times and that always hurts. I think at some time or other in the last five years I have cracked or broken every rib. By eight o’clock I was skating shirtless in the fifty-degree weather and sweating like mad.

By nine I was pretty well skating alone except for Teddy Dinster. He was a good skater. Some kid had a boom box and was playing 'Everybody' by BackStreet.

“Hey kid, start that over and pump it up so the whole world can hear and I’ll show you some real skating.”

He smiled and did what I requested. I had choreographed this song many times in my head. Probably if there had been a lot of people there I wouldn’t have even thought of doing this but it was just Teddy, the kid and me so I started dancing and skating at the same time in perfect time to the music. Of course the loudness of the music started drawing attention. When the song finished Teddy said, “Hey, Justin you are really incredible! Cyou show me how to do that?”

“Sure.”

I first went through it with Teddy for about half an hour without the music. Then we practiced hard for twenty minutes or so with the music not cranked up to loud. We actually had a really nice routine down.

“Hey, Bobby!” said Teddy and gave him a sign to crank up the volume.

The music started and we started both skating in sync with the music. It couldn’t have been more perfect and we skated hard until the music end and I was getting to that point of exhaustion that I had wanted.

I skated around to cool down a bit while Teddy talked to some of the people had been watching – I wasn’t really paying attention to who had been watching because when I do this sort of thing I sort of really get into it. All evening I’d been trying not to think about Ethan and about our relationship and all the doubts and fears I guess I had about any relationship.

The next song started playing and it was sort of slow it was ‘I Promise You’. At first I was just listening to the rhythm and moving to it and letting the music flow through my body and me. I started really putting myself into it and when it finished I looked over to Bobby and gave him a sign to play it again and it started again.

I continued skating again oblivious to the people watching but I made a mistake this time started listening to the words and the only thing I could think of was Ethan. Was it just physical? I didn’t want it to be – I needed it to be more. I started trying to think of why I loved him and were there any reasons I loved him that had nothing to his physical being the music stopped and I again signaled Bobby and started again. And I skated from my heart if you know what I mean and if you don’t well – I can’t explain it more than say I become the music. I thought about the way he handles the twins and his commitment to the others in the apartment sure they paid him but he put his whole beingness into whatever he did. It was like the money was only secondary to doing a good job and most of all making them happy. I thought about him taking old Dan out for a weekly walks so Dan could get his exercise. I realized that to him his past was little concern to him and that why he never really talked about it. What made him the happiest was giving. I had denied him that happiness.

I started listen to the words and music and I knew that there was so much more to Ethan and as the music finished no one could have missed the tears pouring from my eyes. I was exhausted physically, mentally and emotionally as I slowly crumpled to the ground silently sobbing.

I felt a pair of hands on my shoulders as the music began to play ‘This I Promise You’. I got myself a bit more in control before I looked up to see who was there. Slowly I looked up into Ethan’s eyes, which had been doing much the same as mine. And he took me in his arms and held me and whispered the words of the song to me. Then he stood me up and we left the skate park.