It is not my intention to offend anyone or to get you in trouble.

The author retains all rights to this original story. Please do not publish without explicit authorization from me.

Disclaimer:
This story is completely fictional. Most of the places mentioned, and none of the characters exist in real life. Some may possess physical or personality characteristics of people I know or have known. But if you see yourself in this story, your imagination is better than mine!

All best, Jon

If you like my story, drop me a line. I'd love to hear from you: seperatepiece@hotmail.com

Matt and Jon

Chapter 18

New Beginnings II

After Tom left with the boys to collect Eric and head to Maryland, the realization that Sam was headed off to college began to sink in. Dan was going to follow Sam in his car because all of his things wouldn’t fit in the VW, so the boys helped them load up for the trip. Nothing much was said as they carried the boxes from Sam’s room out to the driveway. Finally, they stood in Sam’s room which was now devoid of his possessions and his personality. His sports trophies and a few of his books remained on the shelves but somehow it seemed so empty.

Dan came into the room and looked around. “It’ll always be here for you son.”

“I know dad. I love you.” Sam said as he gave his father a hug.

They walked out into the hall and as Sam closed the door to his room, he felt as though he was closing the door on a chapter of his life, and beginning a new one.

They stood in the driveway and said their goodbyes. He hugged each member of his family again.

Shelley kissed him on the cheek. “Sam, I know you’ll make us proud.”

Sam got in the bug and waved to them as he pulled out of the driveway. He didn’t want them to see him cry. By the time he’d gotten on the expressway, he’d decided he was being ridiculous. He got a tissue out of his pocket and blew his nose. This should be an adventurous time of his life. He began to think of all the positive things and before long, he was looking forward to the experience. He looked in the rear view mirror and saw his father behind him and smiled.

When they reached the campus they joined hundreds of other kids and parents wandering from building to building, checking in and getting dorm assignments. When Sam overheard a mother asking a red faced son if he was sure he had enough underwear, he was glad that there had been no room in the car for his mother to come.

Finally, they found his dorm and began to unpack. It turned out to be a four man suite with a common kitchen and living area and four separate bedrooms. The room was small, but it had a good sized closet, a desk and a fairly comfortable bed.

When Sam had carried in the last box, he emerged from his room to see two other guys carrying in their possessions. They put down the boxes and the taller of the two extended a hand to Sam.

“I’m Jack, and this is Cory.” He said indicating the other boy. “I guess we’re going to be roomies.”

Sam introduced himself and his father. He was relieved. He seemed to take an instant liking to the two of them.

Cory indicated one of the bedrooms. “We’re only going to use one room. You might as well know, we’re a couple.”

Sam smiled. “Cool. We can use the fourth room for storage, or maybe if we have guests. My little brother and his boyfriend are excited about seeing the campus. Do you mind if they use the room sometime?”

Jack and Cory relaxed when they realized that their orientation was not going to be a problem with Sam. “Sure. Anytime!”

Dan watched for awhile as the boys went about unpacking, and discussing their new living arrangements.

“Did you guys bring a TV? I could put mine in the common area.” Sam offered.

“That’s cool, we didn’t bring one. We’ll put our microwave in the kitchen. You can use that too.” Jack added.

“Hey, have you guys heard anything about the fourth guy yet?” Sam asked.

The others shook their heads in the negative. Just then, a somewhat shy looking young man entered the suite with his father and mother behind him.

“Hi. I’m Damien.” He said, looking at the floor.

The others introduced themselves while Dan and Damien’s parents shook hands.

“We’re done with our stuff, do you want a hand with yours? Then we can figure out where everything should go.” Sam said brightly, trying to put Damien at his ease. Damien met Sam’s eyes briefly and returned his smile.

“Okay, thanks.”

Damien didn’t have much to bring in. In fact it was little more than his clothes and a few personal items. When the four of them had Damien’s belongings in the suite, Dan came over to Sam.

“Well son, I guess you don’t need me hanging around. I’d better start home.”

Sam gave his father a hug while the other boys looked on. “Thanks dad. I’ll miss you.”

“I hope you’ll be having such an exciting time that you’ll forget all about us.”

Sam held him at arms length and smiled at him. “Not a chance!”

Damien’s parents announced their own departure. Damien glanced shyly at his new roommates, and awkwardly hugged his parents. “Thanks mom, dad…for everything.”

His mother kissed his cheek. “You’re welcome son. We love you. Make us proud!”

With that, the boys found themselves alone in the suite, and began to unpack the boxes. Sam was curious as to why Jack and Cory didn’t come with their parents, but he thought better of asking about it. He knew all to well the different family situations that could exist.

Sam unpacked the TV. “Maybe it would be good over here.” He said, indicating a low coffee table near the couch.

Cory went over to him shaking his head. “Sam, Sam, Sam…perhaps we should leave the decorating to us, shall we?”

They all shared a laugh, with the exception of Damien, who thought they had all gone nuts. When the laughter subsided, Jack put his arm around Cory and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

Damien’s jaw dropped and the others noticed his astonishment. “Damien,” Jack began, “we forgot to tell you about us. Is it going to be a problem for you?” He had a slight edge to his voice as he stared at the flustered boy.

“Gosh! Nno! I, I…it’s just that…” Damien sputtered.

“Relax, we don’t bite.” Cory said with a welcoming smile on his face.

“Gosh! I don’t want you to think I’m…homophobic. I was just surprised. I’ve never met anyone who’s…you know.”

“It’s okay, Damien. You can say ‘gay.’” Cory said soothingly.

Jack crossed the room and stood facing Damien and put his hands on his shoulders.

“And another thing, Opie. If you say ‘gosh’ one more time…”

Damien was terrified until he saw the warm and friendly smile that spread across Jack’s face.

He looked right at Jack and returned the smile. “Golly?”

Jack threw his hands in the air. “I give up! He’s absolutely hopeless!”

This time all four roommates joined in the laughter. They went back to unpacking with a true feeling of camaraderie, and in a short time they had the place looking quite homey with what they had to work with.

Sam settled in to set up his own room. The first thing he did was put the pictures of he, Jon and Matt from the prom night, and the formal one of he and Sara on his desk. When he’d finished setting up his computer, he decided to fire off a group email to Sara, Jon, Matt, Ryan, LittleTom, Gary and Chet. He didn’t know Eric or Todd’s email addresses, so he’d have to get Jon to forward them.

He wrote a detailed account of his first day, along with a description of his roommates, and his new surroundings. He read it over and changed a few things here and there, and finally added to the end: I think I’m going to like it here, even though I miss you all a lot. All my love, Sam.

He was about to send it when he wondered if Sara would be offended being lumped in with all of the guys. He almost separated her out, but finally decided she might get a kick out of being “part of the family.” After he sent it, he sent her a separate one of a more personal nature. By the time he finished, he was quite aroused, and was grateful that he had a private bedroom, and with a smile on his face, he locked the door.

Matt and Jon were relaxing in Matt’s room. Jon was on the bed reading a book while Matt was doing some surfing. When AOL cheerfully announced: You’ve Got Mail, Matt minimized the browser and checked it out.

“It’s from Sam!”

Jon dropped his book and scrambled across the room as Matt slid over so he could perch on the edge of the chair with him.

“He’s my brother. He better have written me too!” Jon exclaimed.

Matt chuckled. “Doofus, it’s to all of us.” He said as he indicated the header with his mouse.

They read together in silence except for the occasional laugh. When they both finished, Jon put his arm around Matt’s shoulder.

“Matt, before you were in my life, I dreaded losing Sam so much. Now I can be truly happy for him. I love you so much, Matthew Barker.”

“I love you too, Jonathan Ryan Kent.”

Jon stood up and took Matt by the arm and led him to the bed. He gently pushed him down and lay down beside him and began nibbling on his earlobe. He planted soft kisses on his cheeks, eyes, forehead, and the tip of his nose before his tongue demanded entrance to Matt’s mouth. The kiss deepened into a sensual ecstasy, as Jon rolled over onto Matt and began grinding into his body. After five minutes or so, Matt let out a whimper as his body shuddered involuntarily.

Jon broke the kiss and looked down at Matt with a twinkle in his eye. “What’s the matter? Did Baby Snookums wet his pants?”

Matt grinned and nodded his head. “Uh huh.”

Jon kissed him on the forehead. “It’s okay, daddy’s not mad.”

He went to the bathroom and returned with a damp washcloth and a towel. He knelt on the bed and undid Matt’s belt and fly and pulled his stained pants off of him. He then peeled the cum soaked briefs off and tucked them inside the jeans. He lovingly cleaned him off with the cloth, and dried him with the towel. He went to Matt’s dresser and got a clean pair of underpants and jeans. As he slid the briefs up Matt’s thighs, he leaned down and kissed his penis before tucking it in. He then helped him on with the jeans.

“There. All better!” He said as he zipped him up. “I love taking care of you.”

“But what about you?” Matt asked as he pointed to Jon’s distended crotch.

“Oh? Does Baby Snookums want his pacifier?” Jon asked with arched eyebrows.

Matt nodded. “Uh huh!”

Matt sat up on the bed and pushed Jon back. He pulled his pants and underwear down to his knees and began to lovingly suck Jon’s straining cock, swirling his tongue around the shaft and head all the while. Jon squirmed around when Matt started to gently moan on his organ. It didn’t take long for Jon to send his load into Matt’s eager mouth. He drained every drop before he kissed Jon’s softening dick and fastened him back into his clothes.

They sat on the edge of the bed and hugged each other tightly.

“You’re my world.” Matt whispered into Jon’s ear.

Jon sighed blissfully. “And you’re mine.”

“Jon, I know we were just kidding around about the baby stuff, but I know that when the time comes, you’re going to be a great dad.”

Jon kissed him on the cheek and leaned his head against Matt’s shoulder. “I know you will be too.”

Ann and Bill were in the living room when the boys came downstairs. Bill looked up as they entered the room.

“So, what have you two been up to?” He asked innocently.

The boys blushed slightly, but Matt quickly changed the subject. “We got an email from Sam. He likes Stonybrook so far, and his roommates are cool. He wants us to come visit him there. They have an extra room in his suite.”

Ann smiled. “I guess it’s not too early for you to find out what college is all about. I just hope they don’t have a wild party while you’re there.”

“Mom, it doesn’t seem like that kind of situation.”

“Well, we both went to college, you know.” Bill added with a wink.

Ann punched him playfully on the arm. “No one wants to hear your old war stories Mr. party animal!”

The boys laughed at the thought of Bill being a wild man on campus.

They sat down on the couch opposite Bill and Ann. “Dad,” Matt began, “How long do we have to wait until we can go out by ourselves again?”

Bill put down his paper and regarded them thoughtfully. “I don’t really know how to answer that. I spoke to the detective yesterday, and they found a witness who saw a car speeding in the vicinity on that morning. The guy was almost run down, but he only remembered part of the license plate. The police have a pretty good idea who did it, but not enough to make an arrest. They’re keeping an eye out for any further attempts.”

“It’s just that we feel like we’re sort of grounded, and we didn’t do anything wrong.” Matt insisted.

“I know dear,” Ann commiserated, “We know it’s not fair, but it’s a matter of your safety. We’ll do our best to see that you have someone to take you where you want to go for the time being. It won’t last forever, I promise.”

Jon had a thought. “If Chet agrees, is it okay if we go running tomorrow morning with him?”

Both parents were quick to agree, so long as Dan and Shelley knew where they were going to be. That being settled, Ann adjourned to the kitchen and took up dinner while the men set the table.

Once they were seated, Ann said grace and they began the meal. They ate for awhile in companionable silence until Bill spoke.

“Ann, what was in that letter from the school district? Anything important?”

Ann shrugged. “Not really. They did some re-districting. It doesn’t affect the boys, though. They’re both still going to be at Jefferson.”

Matt and Jon heaved a sigh of relief. “Wow, can you imagine if they split us up with some stupid arbitrary decision? That would su…be terrible!” Matt managed to recover with a lopsided smile in Ann’s direction.

Bill laughed. “If that had happened, we would have fought to keep you two together, even if we had to put you in a private school.”

He took a few more bites, and continued in a serious tone. “Boys, we’ve discussed this with Shelley and Dan, and that’s still an option if things at school are…uncomfortable for you.”

Matt put his fork down. “Thanks dad. We know you worry about us, but I don’t think it will be that bad. We have a great circle of friends, and I don’t think it will be any big deal. We expect a little teasing, but I think once everyone sees that we’re just normal kids, they’ll get used to it.”

“Yeah,” Jon added, “maybe we’ll be a good example for other kids who are going through the same thing. Someone has to be first, and we can handle it.”

Both parents looked at the boys with pride and admiration. They knew that they would be alright, as long as they were together.

Jon suddenly had a thought. “Do you mind if I look at that letter?”

Ann was a little puzzled. “Sure dear, it’s on the sideboard with the rest of the mail.”

Jon got up and found it. He read the new cut-off points and consulted the enclosed map. He then went to the telephone table in the living room, and got the local phone book and began riffling through the pages. When he found what he was looking for, he let out a whoop, and waved the book and the letter triumphantly over his head.

“Jon, what is it?” Matt asked excitedly.

“I wasn’t sure of the exact address, but according to this, Eric is going to Jefferson!!!”

Matt jumped up from the table. “We have to email Ryan!”

As they bolted from the dining room, they both stopped in their tracks and sheepishly looked back at Bill and Ann.

“May we please be excused from the table?” Matt asked humbly.

Bill and Ann dissolved in laughter, and Ann, trying to catch her breath gave them a dismissive wave.

When they started AOL, Ryan was signed on. Matt opened an IM window, and typed frantically.

MattMan0621: Ry, is Eric with you???
RyansWorld1990: Yes, he’s here. Hello to you too!
MattMan0621: We’ve got great news!!!
RyansWorld1990: what???
MattMan0621: they switched the school district borders around…
RyansWorld1990: what’s so great about that?
MattMan0621: oh nothing, just that E is going to Jefferson with us!!!

There was a long pause.

Jon smiled at Matt. “I wish we could be there, they must be flipping out!”

MattMan0621: r u still there?
RyansWorld1990: sorry, *celebrating*
MattMan0621: I’ll bet! ;)
RyansWorld1990: dad and l.t. went to pick up pizza ;)
MattMan0621: OOoooooo! We’ll leave you alone then, just wanted to give you the news.
RyansWorld1990: thanks. We love you. See you in a few days!

Ryan’s away message popped up next to his name, and the boys signed off. When they went back to the dining room, Ann and Bill sipped their coffee, as the boys finished eating.

“So, were they happy?” Bill asked.

“Yeah, you could say that.” Matt answered with a grin.

After dinner, Bill and the boys did the dishes, and Matt and Jon excused themselves to answer Sam’s email. They told him all about Eric’s attending Jefferson, and how they felt about starting school. They mentioned that they were running with Chet in the morning, and how they hated to have to impose on people. Jon told Sam how happy he was that the roommates were cool, and that he looked forward to meeting them and seeing the campus in the near future. They closed the email with lots of love, and dutifully forwarded Sam’s original to Todd and Eric. When they shut down the computer for the night and began to get ready for bed, Matt noticed that Jon was getting some muscle definition.

“Hey, I’m really starting see the results of your working out.” Matt said as he ran his hands appreciatively over Jon’s brief clad ass.

“Flattery will get you nowhere! We’re going to need our strength for running tomorrow morning!”

“Okay,” Matt agreed with a laugh, “I’m really tired anyway.”

They climbed into bed and pulled up the covers. After a goodnight kiss, they rolled away from each other and tried to sleep. After about 20 minutes in the dark, Matt whispered,

“Jon, are you still awake?”

“Yeah, I can’t sleep either.”

They rolled onto their backs, staring into the darkness. “What do you think we should do?” Matt asked.

“Well, I AM really exhausted, and I know if we get our hands on each other, it’s going to be a marathon. You wanna just jerk off and call it a night?”

Matt giggled. “It’s been awhile since I’ve done that.”

“Me too!” Jon agreed as he shimmied out of his briefs. “I’ll race ya!”

“You’re on!”

Both boys furiously pounded away at their cocks in the dark.

Jon panted breathlessly, “here it comes!”

“Yeah, me too!” Matt rasped.

Both boys dicks exploded right on cue, sending their sticky hot juice up to their chest, the last few spurts pooling on their bellies.

After he caught his breath, Jon whispered, “I guess it’s a tie, huh.”

Matt snickered as he cleaned himself up. “Yeah. That was fun. Kind of like visiting an old friend.”

They pulled up their underwear, and the covers, and shared a brief but loving kiss on the lips. They rolled over and fell in to a deep contented sleep.

_______________________________________________________________________

Ryan awoke early the next morning in the room where he had spent his childhood. Eric was at his side. He kissed Eric, who stirred lightly in his sleep. Ryan propped himself up and looked around at the boxes that contained his possessions. The bare walls looked foreign to him. He remembered his mother tucking him in and reading him bedtime stories.

He looked down at his sleeping boyfriend and smiled. He thought about how much his mom would have loved him. He knew that she was looking down on them, and that somehow she had made all this possible. It was just too much to be coincidental. His meeting Eric, the move, the school re-zoning. He felt a warmth spread throughout his body and for a brief instant, he thought he could feel her presence. He even thought he got a whiff of her perfume, and then it was gone. He smiled as a tear escaped his eye.

“Thanks mom, I love you too.”

LittleTom was already in the bathroom brushing his teeth when Ryan walked in.

“’morning.” Ryan croaked.

When he finished relieving himself, he joined LittleTom at the sink. LittleTom was running the shower as Ryan rinsed his mouth.

“Is everything okay?” He asked his little brother.

“Yeah, fine. Why?”

“Uh, because you haven’t said one word to me.”

“Maybe I’m just waiting for you to leave so I can take my shower in peace without you staring at my dick!”

“Wha… LittleTom! You’re my brother! I never looked at you that way!”

“That’s another thing. From now on it’s Tommy. It’s bad enough I have to be the new kid in school just so you can be with your boyfriend. I don’t need the other kids knowing my geeky baby name!”

Ryan just stared at his brother, his mouth moving, but no words came out. LittleTom turned his back on him.

“Just leave me alone, okay?” LittleTom intoned in a flat, emotionless voice.

Ryan did as he asked, closing the door behind him. He went back to his room and tiptoed over to the bed. Eric was still sound asleep. Ryan put on his robe, and headed down to the kitchen where he found his father pouring a cup of coffee. He told him about his encounter with LittleTom.

Tom sighed and slumped into a kitchen chair. “I know what you mean. He and I ‘had words’ yesterday when we were packing up your mother’s clothes to give to Good Will. I should have done that long ago, I just couldn’t bear it. I guess it’s hard for all of us to move on. We have so many memories here.”

“Dad, it’s just that I feel so bad. I was so excited about moving, and being with Eric that I never stopped to think how hard this was going to be for him. I feel so…selfish.”

“I wish you wouldn’t feel that way son. Moving to New York was my decision. I didn’t even know about Eric when I made up my mind. No one can blame you for being happy about it.”

Ryan smiled weakly as his father continued.

“This is the only home he’s ever known, and on some level he feels that by moving, he’s abandoning his mom. Don’t take it personally. You know he loves you. I’ll try and talk to him again, but I think we’re just going to have to give him some time.”

LittleTom came in to the kitchen and flung himself into a chair.

“What’s for breakfast?” He asked, staring at the table.

Tom laughed, “Just cereal I’m afraid. We packed most of the cooking utensils. Guess we should have done that last.”

LittleTom snorted. “That would have been smart, huh.”

Ryan watched him pour a bowl of cereal. “Uh, Li…Tommy, if you want to talk about what’s bothering you…”

“You’re the only thing that’s bothering me!” LittleTom snapped.

Ryan sighed and went upstairs to get dressed. He found Eric emerging from the bathroom freshly showered, with a towel around his waist.

“See you in a minute.” He mumbled, as he went in to shower.

When he got back to the room, Eric was almost dressed. He fished out a clean pair of boxers, and let his towel drop to the floor.

Eric grinned. “I love a room with a view!”

“Down boy!” Ryan quipped. “We’ve got work to do.”

As he dressed, he told Eric about what had been going on with LittleTom.

“If he says anything mean to you, he doesn’t mean it.” He concluded.

Eric looked thoughtful. He couldn’t imagine that the cute kid with the sunny personality that he had come to love as a brother could have a dark side.

“Poor kid. Is there anything we can do to help?”

Ryan shook his head. “Dad and I decided that the only thing we can do is be there when he’s ready to talk. He can’t keep this bottled up inside forever, it’s not like him.”

When he’d dressed, they headed down to the kitchen and attacked the cereal and milk. They were both starving. Tom had left a note saying he’d be in the garage packing up his tools. LittleTom was nowhere to be seen. When they finished eating and clearing away the bowls, Ryan announced that he was going to give his dad a hand. Eric said he’d look around upstairs for boxes to bring down.

He’d carried several loads from Ryan’s room and was looking in the master bedroom, when he noticed another smaller room beyond. He went in to find LittleTom sitting on the floor staring straight ahead. He looked up at Eric as he came in.

“What are YOU doing here?” He asked sullenly.

“Just looking for stuff to bring down.” Eric answered as pleasantly as he could.

“Well there’s nothing here…not even the rocking chair.”

“Do you want me to leave?” Eric asked tentatively.

“Suit yourself, it’s a free country.”

Eric walked over and sat down next to him and leaned against the wall.

“This was the crib room, huh?” He said, as his gaze wandered around the empty room.

LittleTom nodded as hot tears stung his eyes. Eric carefully put a hand on his shoulder. That was all it took for the damn to burst as LittleTom crumpled against his chest and sobbed.

“She used to rock me to sleep here. And sing to me”

His next words were lost as his body heaved. Eric rubbed his back with slow circles as LittleTom cried in his arms.

“It’s okay…just let it all out.” Eric cooed softly in his ear. “I know how hard it must be for you.”

He felt LittleTom go rigid in his arms. “What do YOU know about it?” LittleTom demanded, but he stayed right where he was in Eric’s embrace.

“I know enough to know that she loved you very much. Ryan and your dad do too. That love is something that lives in your heart…not a room or a house.”

LittleTom’s sobs had settled down to gentle crying as Eric continued.

“I also know that if anything happened to my mom, she’d want me to get on with my life. Look at all that Todd has been through. I’m sure he still loves his dad, and he’ll always be a part of him, but he and his mom are making a fresh start. He’s got good friends and he’s moving forward. You can too, I know it! We’ll all be here for you LittleTom, I promise. No matter what!”

LittleTom hugged him so hard that he thought his ribs might break. Eric looked up to see Tom and Ryan standing in the doorway. Tom mouthed the words “Thank you” as they silently withdrew.

Fifteen minutes passed before LittleTom and Eric came downstairs. Ryan and his father were dismantling the bookcase in the living room when they found them. LittleTom stood in the middle of the room with Eric behind him with his hands on his shoulders.

“Um, LittleTom has something he wants to tell you.” Eric said softly.

LittleTom cleared his throat as the other two looked at him expectantly. “Look, I know this isn’t easy for any of us, and I made it all about me. I’m sorry I acted like a jerk. I love you both so much.”

Tom and Ryan crossed the room and gathered him in their arms. “I’m sorry too, Li…Tommy. I was so excited about being with Eric that I didn’t think what it was like for you.”

After they hugged, LittleTom smiled up at them. “When it’s just us guys around, would you call me LittleTom? Please?”

Hi All,

Well, so much for posting again before Christmas, but anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of the new year.

I guess my whining at the end of the last chapter paid off, because I've heard from many old friends as well as some new ones. Since chapter 17 went "on the air," I've heard from:

Jerry, Brian, Barry, James in Oklahoma, Zhue, David, Dennis B., Shawn and Sergey, Louis, Vijorge, Henk, Lukas and Tay (who shared with me their remarkable story), Kevin, CharlieChasBoy (who re-read it from the beginning! Quite a compliment!), Bill, Rob, Xander, Richard, Pete, Rad, Vivian, Jake, and Paul.

I have enjoyed getting to know all of you. Some a little, some a lot. It's truly a pleasure to hear from you all.

I keep saying that I have to get the boys back to school, but things keep coming up along the way. At this rate, they'll be celebrating Christmas in August! I admire those writers who can stay current with the time of the year!

All the very best to all of you for the new year, Love, Jon