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 Please do not publish without explicit authorization from me.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

This chapter is a bit longer than previous ones and the spicy part comes toward the end, so if your need is urgent along those lines, maybe you should read something else first. Be sure to drop back by, though! LOL Enjoy!

This chapter is dedicated to Jordan, who I'm sure can use the distraction.

Matt and Jon

Chapter 20

School's Open, Drive Carefully

On the first day of school, Dan drove Jon and picked Matt up at his house. They were both wearing new clothes. They knew they would be under some scrutiny today, and wanted to look their best. Tom had gone earlier with his two sons because it was their first day in their new schools and he wanted them to walk to all of their classrooms. Sort of a dry run.

When they arrived at school, a crowd had already gathered, and they were having a reunion on the front steps.

“Be careful today guys. Try and stay around faculty members as much as possible, okay?” Dan said with a reassuring smile as the boys climbed out of the car. He watched them as they went to join their friends with their heads held high.

Trevor, Stacey, Andy, Marla and Todd were on the top step near the door waving to them. As they approached the top of the stairs, they passed by Charlie Pierce who was hanging around with some girls they didn’t know very well.

Charlie leered at them as they passed. “Well, look who’s here. Jen and Mattilda!” He roared with laughter at his own joke.

Jon saw Matt flush with anger. He put a hand on Matt’s shoulder. “Forget it Matt. It is kind of funny when you think about it.” He reassured him with the goofy grin that never failed to put Matt at his ease.

As they turned to continue up the steps, Charlie shot back, “you think that’s funny faggot? Well I got just one question. When you guys butt fuck, which one of you is on top?” This drew giggles from the girls he was obviously trying to impress.

Jon spun around on him. “Now that’s NOT funny! Words like that are not tolerated at our school.”

“What are you going to do about it, dick breath?” Charlie demanded, balling his hands into fists.

“Nothing this time, but if it happens again, I won’t hesitate to go straight to Dr. Garvey and have you suspended…maybe even expelled.” Jon said, trying to make his words sound calm and even.

“Figures a pussy would go running to the principal instead of fighting like a man.” Charlie sneered.

“We vowed to follow the example of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We’re non-violent, but that doesn’t mean that we’ll stand for intolerance. And another thing. It’s extremely rude to ask personal questions about someone else’s sex life. I’d never dream of asking you, for instance, which hand you use!”

This brought titters from the girls and caused Charlie to go red in the face. “This ain’t over Kent!”

“Why don’t you just leave them alone, Pierce!” A squeaky voice piped up from behind them.

Jon and Matt turned around to find, much to their surprise, Joel Salinski standing there trembling with either rage or fear. They weren’t sure which.

“You always pick on everyone for no reason, and we’re sick of it!” Joel stammered in a cracking adolescent way.

Charlie’s malevolent gaze fixed on the gangly looking kid who’d been the butt of his jokes on many occasions.

“Who asked you, you little Jewboy spaz!” Charlie spat at him just in time to be heard by an approaching Miss Selwitz.

“Charlie Pierce! My room. Right now!” She ordered.

Everyone was a little shocked at the sound of her voice booming out like a drill sergeant. Charlie went white as a sheet and hung his head as he meekly followed her into the building.

Matt and Jon turned to the awkward kid that they’d gone to school with for most of their lives but never really had gotten to know.

“Thanks for standing up for us Joel.” Matt said as he extended a hand.

“Yeah, that took guts.” Jon agreed.

Joel blushed at their praise. “I just couldn’t take another year of listening to his crap.”

“Yeah,” Jon nodded his head in understanding. “I thought since I lost weight he’d have to stop the fat jokes…now being on the news and all…” he trailed off.

“Hey, I think that was cool! Ever since I saw you guys on TV, I’ve been…thinking. What I said to Charlie before was for me as much as for you. I don’t like those words anymore than you do.”

“We understand.” Jon said, and Matt nodded agreement.

“Anyway, I don’t know if I’m ready to tell the world, but I wanted you two to know. My dad said he admired your courage when we saw you on the news, so maybe I’ll get up the nerve to tell him soon.”

“You’ll know when the time is right.” Matt told him with a smile.

They went up the steps and joined the gang.

“What was all that about?” Andy asked.

“What do you think?” Matt answered, rolling his eyes. “It’s no big deal. Just Charlie being an asshole. Jon told him off pretty good!”

“Yeah, that was sweet!” Todd laughed, having seen the whole exchange from a distance.

“Oh, Todd. This is Joel Salinski, Joel, Todd Austin. We met over the summer. He’s new in town.” Matt said, making the introductions.

Todd shook hands with Joel. “That was awesome…what you said back there.”

Joel’s oversized ears wiggled as his face scrunched up in puzzlement. “Do you have super hearing or something?”

Todd laughed. “Just the opposite. I read lips. I don’t mean to snoop, but it’s just like overhearing a conversation. I can’t help it.”

As they walked into the building and began to break up to go to their various homerooms, Joel pulled Todd aside.

“So…did you hear everything I said?” He asked with a concerned look on his face.

Todd nodded. “It’s okay Joel. You’re in good company. I’ve known that I’m gay for years and finally decided to stop hiding it. You’ve got my word that I won’t tell anyone until you’re ready to take that step. It’s a very personal decision. I just want you to know that I’ve gotten a lot of support from my friends and we’ll all be here for you too.”

Joel relaxed visibly and let out a sigh of relief. He looked like he was on the verge of tears, but he managed to get himself under control. “Thanks Todd. That’s really good to know.”

Joel helped Todd find his homeroom, and was about to leave for his own when Todd asked, “a bunch of us are going to the sweetshop after school. You wanna join us?”

Joel’s face lit up. “Yeah, that’d be great! Meet you on the front steps?”

Todd gave him a thumbs up sign and watched Joel’s departing form. A smile formed on his lips as he realized that he was paying particular attention to his cute little butt. The homeroom bell brought him back to reality just before an embarrassing situation had the chance to arise.

While everyone else was getting reacquainted and enjoying each other’s company, Charlie was having a very different kind of homecoming with Miss Selwitz.

“Sit.” She indicated a desk in the front row as he came into the room behind her. She closed the door and took a book out of her desk drawer. She leafed through the pages until she found what she was looking for. She put the book down on the desk in front of Charlie open to a picture of inmates in a concentration camp. They were practically skin and bones. The hollow sunken eyes stared back at Charlie across the decades. He thought he was going to be sick.

“Do you see the stars on their uniforms, Charlie? Do you know what they mean?”

“That they’re Jewish?”

“That’s right Charlie. These people were persecuted, put in camps to die of disease and starvation. Some were killed outright because they were too young or too old to work.”

She flipped the page to a picture of a mass grave. “Let’s talk about Joel Salinski. He’s a good student. He’s active in his temple and he’s a candidate for Eagle Scout. He’s always kind to people and treats everyone with respect. Is this how you’d like to see him? Or me for that matter?” She tapped the page with her finger.

“No! Miss Selwitz, I...I NEVER…I…”

She held up her hand to silence him. “If I thought for one minute that you did, you’d be in Dr. Garvey’s office right now.”

Charlie fought hard to hold back the bitter tears that were burning behind his eyes.

She once again flipped the page. “You see these men? Do you know what the pink triangle means on their uniforms?”

Charlie shook his head mutely.

“Read the caption, Charlie.” She watched as Charlie’s eyes went wide.

“That’s right. These men were persecuted the same way because they were suspected of being homosexuals. Let’s talk about Jon Kent, shall we? He’s a straight A student and a fine musician. He shares his gift through his church choir. He’s fought an amazing battle over his weight. Do you have any idea how tough that is? Is this how you think he should end up? Take a good look and imagine Jon and Matt in that photograph, Charlie.”

Charlie’s head slumped on the desk as he began to sob uncontrollably. Miss Selwitz moved behind him and rubbed his back. She knew what it was like to be confronted with evil for the first time face to face.

“Charlie, after what I heard you say on the steps before, I wouldn’t even bother with you, except that I know your secret. I know that you’re really not like that. You hear your friends say things like that and you think it makes you sound tough. You’re a good student, even though you’d probably not want your friends to know that. I’ve read your papers. I know a little bit about what’s in your heart. I could have had you expelled, but I wanted to give you a second chance to start being the kind of person I know you can be. I think a good place to start is by apologizing to those boys, don’t you?”

Charlie nodded his head in his folded arms.

“I’ll write you a pass for homeroom. Go to the boy’s room and fix yourself up.”

She smiled at him as she handed him the slip of paper. He gave her a crooked grin.

“I’m sorry I got tears on you book.” He said.

“That’s alright Charlie. Make me proud of you and it will make it all the more special to me.”

Charlie nodded and left the room.

Miss Selwitz sighed. “Oy, it’s going to be a long year!” She said to herself as the first bell rang.

Ryan and Eric had the same homeroom. They couldn’t wait to compare schedules. They found that they had the same lunch period, and two classes in common. They would have been happier if they’d been identical, but they knew the chances of that were practically impossible, so they were happy with what they had. They were a grade ahead of the others, and were both new to the school. Ryan was now glad that his father had insisted they take a look around so he would know where they were going.

Everyone was nice to them mostly, but they still felt awkward being the new kids. They were glad that they had each other for at least some of the day. At lunch, they met up with the others and compared notes.

Lunch was almost like a party. The gang had expanded to two tables, and they frequently visited back and forth. Marla was in her element as the hostess. The conversation mostly revolved around the reactions that Matt and Jon had gotten from the other students. It was mostly positive, or no different than before with a few minor exceptions. The negative comments were mostly dumb jokes, and were shrugged off easily. Jon had the group laughing with an account of a conversation he had before English class.

“You know Angie? She goes to our church. So she says to me, ‘It’s not fair! You lost all that weight, and turned into a hunk and you don’t even like girls!’ She was laughing when she said it though. She’s pretty cool. What I really hate is when people won’t talk to me at all. That’s really weird.”

“Yeah,” Matt agreed. “At least we have great friends and family. No kid should ever have to go through this alone, but so many do. A few people wouldn’t even make eye contact with me.” He sadly observed.

Trevor thought about it for a minute. “Maybe they’re just nervous around you for reasons of their own. Anything that remotely has to do with sex makes some people act weird. I don’t think it’ll last. They’ll get used to it.”

“Yeah, but it didn’t help when Hanson announced to the class ‘Look everyone, here comes the TV star!’” Matt said in his famous imitation of the teacher.

Todd sighed. “I was wondering why everyone was laughing. I was going to ask you. He has a bad habit of talking when he’s not facing the class. All of my other teachers have been really good about it so far without making a big deal. I guess I’ll talk to him about it after school.”

The rest of the day passed without incident until the final period. Matt and Jon were in the same gym class. They greeted each other cheerfully outside the locker room and went in to change. They picked two lockers next to each other and started to take off their shirts.

There was a guy named Marco in the class. He was taller than average, and an all around jock. He was friendly enough, and was by no means one of the jocks who liked to push the smaller kids around, but he wasn’t known as the deepest thinker in the class either.

“Hey, no way you guys. You ain’t chekin’ out my goodies. Why don’t you change over in the last row of lockers by yourselves.” Marco barked in a slightly intimidating manner.

All eyes were on Matt and Jon as they sighed and picked up their things and started over for the deserted row of lockers. Andy jumped up wearing just his underwear, and stood in Jon and Matt’s path.

“Hey, you guys aren’t going anywhere! Geez Marco. Everyone checks each other out in the locker room, gay or straight, and don’t bullshit me either. I’ve seen you dude. It’s perfectly normal to be curious.”

“Yeah, well it’s one thing to want to see how you measure up, but these guys get off on it!”

Jon looked pleadingly at Andy. “Andy, we don’t want to make a big deal of this. If he’s uncomfortable with it, we don’t mind changing separately. It’s okay.”

As they started to brush past him, a boy named Morgan spoke up. Morgan was one of the most popular boys in the class. He was a good student, proficient in most sports, and confident enough in his masculinity to sing in the choir and go out for the school musicals. He also had a reputation for fairness, and was admired by everyone.

“Look, you guys. I played soccer with Matt, and sang in choir with Jon. They’re team mates. That’s good enough for me.”

There was a chorus of approval among the others. Andy looked Marco right in the eye.

“No one else seems to be complaining, so if it bothers you so much, Marco, why don’t YOU go change by yourself.”

Marco muttered something under his breath and went back to changing into his gym uniform. The others followed suit, and soon they were sitting in the bleachers paying attention to Coach Morrison.

The coach consulted his clipboard and looked around the group. When his eyes fell on Jon, his jaw dropped.

“Wow, Kent. You look great! What did you do over the summer to lose so much weight!”

Jon beamed with pride. He’d never been singled out in a gym class for anything positive in his life. “Well, I just started watching what I eat and trying to exercise more.”

A voice piped up from the back of the group. “Yeah, the horizontal mambo!”

Jon and Matt blushed deeply, but they laughed along with the others. Since Morgan had been the one to make the comment they knew that it was in the spirit of good natured ribbing, and in a way, it made them both feel like “one of the guys.”

When Coach Morrison saw that no offence was taken, he continued. “Well, whatever you…uh, did. It sure seems to have agreed with you.”

This elicited more laughter and some cat calls from the testosterone charged teen males. When the coach got control of them, he paired them off to practice wrestling moves. Jon was paired with Morgan, and Matt with Andy. The rest of the class went well, and both of them enjoyed the activity. Just before heading to the locker room, Jon and Matt stopped to talk to the coach.

“Coach Morrison?” Matt began, “is there any reason you didn’t pair Jon with me for wrestling? We’re about the same size, so I was just wondering.”

The coach smiled at them. “Your…uh…situation came up at the faculty meeting and most of the teachers here are cool with it. Even though there are some who are less than enthusiastic, the principal laid down the law on no uncertain terms. You two are to be treated no differently. For what it’s worth, I agree one hundred percent. I knew some gay guys in college, and they were some of my best buds. The reason I didn’t pair you guys up for wrestling is because I thought you might have trouble being physically competitive with each other, and I wanted you to have the chance to give it your best shot. Okay?”

Comprehension dawned on the boys, and they had to admit the coach was right. They’d be too afraid of hurting each other to try their best. The boys high fived the coach and headed off to the locker room as he called after them.

“Anyone gives you any crap, you come to me.”

In the locker room, they stripped off their uniforms and headed for the shower room where the others were already horsing around and rinsing off. They chose two shower heads in the corner of the open space and faced the wall and showered quickly and dried off. They went back to their lockers and dressed. As they left the room, Marco came after them.

“Look guys, I’m sorry about before. I noticed you made a point of not looking around in the shower, so I guess I was wrong about you. I guess I had a stereotype in my mind and it made me kind of nervous. Are we cool?”

Matt and Jon exchanged one of their telepathic glances. “Yeah.” “Yeah, we’re cool. See you tomorrow Marco.”

Marco shook their hands. “Oh, and…uh, if you ever do want to check me out, it’s okay I guess.”

Jon grinned sheepishly. “Marco, I…uh, checked you out last year.” Matt blushed. “Yeah, me too.”

Marco laughed. “Okay, so I checked you guys out too. You got a fat one, Kent!” He said as he gave him a friendly slug on the arm.

Jon shook his head as they watched him disappear down the hall. “That was a strange little male bonding ritual, wasn’t it?”

“I’ll say. I guess even if you’re straight, there’s something kind of…well…intimate about taking showers together. In a friendly way, I mean.”

They met up with the rest of the gang on the front steps as planned. They were anxious to get to the sweetshop while there were still tables left. Todd hung back from the rest of them.

“You guys go ahead. I want to talk to Mr. Hanson. All of my teachers were supposed to be told about my lip reading, but maybe he didn’t get the memo.” He said with shrug.

“I’ll wait for you Todd. I’ll be out here on the steps.” Joel said, trying not to sound too eager.

Once they were settled in at the table, they all studied the familiar menu. After they ordered, the banter began. Matt and Jon told the gang about gym class, with Andy taking over the story from time to time. They told them about Marco’s apology, but left out the other part. For some reason, it seemed to them to be a private moment that should remain between them and Marco.

“Marco’s cool,” Andy agreed, “He’s just not that bright.”

Coming from Andy, this brought laughter from the rest of the table. Andy pretended to look hurt. Marla put her arm around him and kissed him on the cheek.

“I love you just the way you are, baby.”

Back at the school, Todd knocked on the door of Mr. Hanson’s room. He had no way of knowing if he’d been given permission to enter, so he opened the door and stuck his head in the room.

“It’s Todd Austin, sir, may I talk to you for a moment please?

“I said come in, what is it?”

“Well, that’s just it sir, I couldn’t hear you say that with the door closed. I’m deaf, and I read lips. If I can see someone’s face, I have no problem, but when you say something facing the board or looking out the window, I have no idea what you’re saying.” Todd smiled, trying not to be confrontational.

Mr. Hanson spoke slowly and condescendingly. “I’m aware of your handicap, Mr. Austin. All of your teachers were informed. My teaching style has evolved over the last 20 years and I see no reason to alter it for the benefit of one student. Talking while writing on the board allows me to disseminate more information in the allotted time. If you can’t keep up with the rest of the class, perhaps you should go to a special school. Now if you don’t mind, I have a lesson plan to work on.”

He dismissively bent over his paper work. Todd could feel his lower lip quivering involuntarily. He didn’t trust his voice, so he left the room without a word. Joel was sitting on the steps outside, and rose to his feet when he saw his new friend burst out of the building. The smile quickly vanished from Joel’s face when he saw the tears streaming down Todd’s cheeks. Todd walked right past him and took off across the parking lot. Joel ran clumsily after him, putting a hand on his shoulder when he caught up.

Todd spun around. “Please Joel, just leave me alone, okay?” He pleaded, wiping his tears on his sleeve.

“No, I won’t. Not until you tell me what’s wrong!”

Todd’s face contorted in anguish as fresh tears filled his eyes. Joel instinctively stepped forward and took him in his arms. Todd buried his face in Joel’s chest and sobbed.

“Oh Todd. What did that bastard do to you?”

Todd couldn’t tell what he was saying, but was comforted by the vibrations of his voice in his chest. When Todd had practically stopped crying, Joel lifted his face to his.

“Tell me what happened Todd.”

Todd managed to relate to him what Mr. Hanson had said. Joel shook his head in disbelief. “I didn’t think that even Hanson could be that much of a jerk. What’s his problem?”

“I don’t know, all of my other teachers are great. I don’t know what I’m going to do. Maybe he’s right. Who am I kidding if I think I can be normal.”

“Don’t even talk like that! There’s nothing wrong with you. You proved that in all your other classes. It’s Hanson’s problem, NOT yours!”

Todd smiled weakly at Joel. He couldn’t help thinking how cute he was with those big ears sticking out from his head. “I’m sorry about your shirt, I guess I really soaked it.” He said with a sniff.

“That’s okay. It’ll dry. Let’s go meet up with the others. I could really use a root beer float right about now.”

They walked in companionable silence until they were just outside the sweetshop. Todd happened to glance at a parked car across the street, and caught a stray piece of the conversation between the two men inside. Todd froze in his tracks and flung his arm out to stop Joel. They ducked into a little alleyway beside the sweetshop.

“Get a pen and paper and take down everything I say.”

Joel was surprised, but he didn’t argue. He rummaged in his bag and came up with the necessary items. Todd seemed like he was in a trance as he recited the conversation in a monotone voice.

“Those little queers are in for the surprise of their lives.”

“Other guy is saying: Yeah, they’re gonna wet their panties.”

“First guy is saying: Wish we could’ve seen their faces when they saw the bricks we tossed through their windows.”

“Other guy is saying: Yeah, I wonder if they cried when they saw the bike and car. Serves them right, though. They should move the fuck to Greenwich Village if they want to suck each others cocks.”

“First guy is saying: Right we don’t need no fuckin’ fags around here, that’s for damn sure.”

One of them switched on the radio, and the conversation stopped. Joel looked at Todd in disbelief.

“Oh my God. We’ve got to warn Matt and Jon.” Joel said, as he wrote down the license plate number of the car.

They walked into the sweetshop and the others were smiling and joking around. Matt waved them over. The smile vanished from his face when he saw their expressions.

“What’s wrong?” Matt asked with concern.

Joel tossed the pad on the table. “Todd just saw two guys in a car across the street. I wrote down what they said.”

Matt read the vile words of hate with Jon peering over his shoulder. Matt took out his cell and called Detective Gordon and explained the situation excitedly. Within minutes a squad car pulled up outside the sweetshop. Before the officers could get out, the car across the street pulled away from the curb and drove away. The officers were under strict orders to stay with the kids, so they didn’t pursue them. Todd came running out of the sweetshop.

“That’s them, they’re getting away!” He said frantically as the car vanished around a turn.

The older of the two smiled reassuringly at him. “Relax kid. We ran the plate number and we know where to find them. They’re known trouble makers. I arrested them a couple of years back for bar brawling. They’re not going anywhere.”

The others had come outside, and formed a circle around them.

“Who are they?” Todd asked.

“It’s better if I don’t tell you. You may have to pick them out of a line-up. Detective Gordon is getting a warrant right now, so we’ll pick them up later. There’s nothing to do now, so you might as well go have some ice cream. We’ll wait until your parents show up.”

He patted Todd on the shoulder. “You did good kid.”

As they were filing back into the store, Chet’s car came to a screeching halt across the street where the other car had been. He had been on his way home from football practice when he saw the gang and the police car. He jumped out of the car and came running toward them.

Matt was quick to allay his fears, telling him the whole story as fast as he could. A smile broke out across Chet’s face as he scooped Todd into a bear hug and swung him around like he was a rag doll.

“Todd, you da man!”

Joel turned the transcript of the conversation over to the officers and followed the others back into the sweetshop. As Chet was about to follow, the young officer stopped him.

“Uh, Chet, isn’t it? I saw my cousin today and he said the tail light lenses for your car came in.”

“Oh, thanks.” Chet answered. “I guess I’ll stop by tomorrow after school.”

“Cool.” The young cop said with a smile as Chet joined the others in the sweetshop.

When they were all seated around the table, Matt gave Jon a quick squeeze. “Oh man, I am SO glad this is over with!”

“Well, It’s not quite over yet.” Jon pointed out. “I guess there’ll be a trial.”

“Yeah, but at least we can walk down the street without having to be afraid.”

“Yeah, I think you should call your mom for a ride today, though. They haven’t caught them yet, and I doubt the cops would let us walk home anyway.”

Matt agreed that this was sensible, and when they’d finished their ice cream, Matt called home and filled Ann in on everything. Matt grinned into the phone.

“Todd, she says she can’t wait to kiss you!”

Todd blushed and giggled, much to the delight of Joel, who is the only one who knew how much Todd needed this boost to his ego after his meeting with Mr. Hanson. While waiting for Ann to pick them up, the conversation turned to the episode with Charlie Pierce.

“Ah, he’s all talk. Did you notice how quiet he was all day? I’ll bet Miss S. gave it to him good! The funny thing is, Charlie and I used to be friends until he started hanging out with that loser Shade. That’s when he started picking on everyone.” Matt pointed out.

“Yeah,” Joel agreed. “He rags on me all the time. Usually I just ignore him, but sometimes it really gets to me. I guess it’s because he hits too close to home.”

“What do you mean?” Todd asked defensively.

“Well, I’m proud of being Jewish. If anyone’s got a problem with that they can kiss my Jewish…well, you know what I mean. But when he calls me Dumbo because of my big dopey ears, or calls me a spaz…well, I can’t deny that I trip over my own big feet all the time.”

“Look,” Todd interrupted, “You could find something to pick on in anybody if you tried. This Charlie guy just seems to make it his life’s work. I like your ears…and you know what they say about guys with big feet!” Todd grinned mischievously.

They all laughed at Todd’s remark. Marla leaned back in her chair and put her arm around Andy.

“That’s right, Joel. Andy wears a size twelve!”

Suddenly Matt had an Idea. “Joel, I just thought of something. Give me your email address!”

“Sure Matt,” Joel answered, scribbling his email address on a napkin. “What’re you going to…”

“Trust me, you’ll like it.” Joel shrugged and slid the napkin across the table.

Jon looked at Matt quizzically, but he just smiled an inscrutable smile.

Jack, Cory and Damien sat around the common area of the suite. Sam was locked in his room studying for his first big test of the semester. They had gotten to know each other a little, and they all felt relaxed with each other.

Damien had shared with them that he was the oldest of four children and the first in his family to go to college. He came from a long line of potato farmers until his grandfather had been forced to sell the farm in the 1970s. His father worked at a factory. If Damien hadn’t worked really hard in high school and gotten a partial scholarship, he would have had to go to work instead. Even with the scholarship, his parents had to re-finance the house to make it possible. He felt under a lot of pressure to do well.

Jack and Cory had been best friends for years. Both came from fairly affluent middle class suburban families. One day in their junior year, they went over to Jack’s house after school. They were playing a video game in Jack’s room, and when the game was over, they looked at each other and their eyes locked. Jack impetuously kissed Cory on the lips briefly. He tried to stammer an apology and cover it up as a joke, but Cory silenced him with a kiss of his own. After kissing for five minutes and holding each other in their arms, Cory told Jack that he’d wanted to kiss him for so long. Jack admitted the same to Cory. Cory spent the night, and they kissed and cried in each other’s arms until they fell asleep.

The next day, they had a long, serious talk about their feelings for each other, and they’d been together ever since. They’d managed to hide their love from their families until one day when Jack’s father came home from work early and caught them in bed together. He was furious, and sent Cory home on the spot, and told him he was no longer welcome. He screamed at Jack for half an hour, and they’d barely spoken since. He told him that he felt obligated to pay for his college tuition and living expenses, but after that he was on his own.

By the time Cory got to his house, Jack’s father had already called them. Cory’s parents were much better about it. They allowed Jack to visit, but they had to keep the door to Cory’s room open, and when he slept over, Jack had to use the guest room. Even though they were essentially forbidden to be alone together, Cory’s parents accepted them as a couple. They found many occasions to explore their passion, thanks to an understanding friend whose parents both worked.

As Damien sat on the couch he was only half watching the TV. He kept stealing glances at Jack and Cory, who were cuddled together sharing an armchair. Cory noticed his furtive glances.

“Damien, does this bother you?”

“No. It just sort of makes me with I had someone special.”

Jack clicked off the TV. “Hey Damien, you’ll meet someone who’ll be right for you. You should get out of the suite more, you know, socialize. You’ll never meet anyone just going to class and here.”

“It’s just that I wouldn’t know what to do if I did. I’m so damn shy! It’s different with you guys, and Sam. You joke with me and make me feel good. I feel like I could tell you anything.”

Cory looked at him thoughtfully. “Is there anything you want to tell us?”

Damien blushed bright red and stared at his fingertips.

“Damien,” Jack whispered soothingly, “We’ve seen the way you look at us…and Sam. We already know, but it’s important that you say it.”

Damien willed his mouth to form the words. “I’m gay.”

Jack and Cory untwined themselves from each other and came over to the couch, sitting on either side of their roommate. They hugged him and kissed his cheeks.

“That wasn’t so hard was it?” Jack said, smiling at him.

“How do you feel?” Cory asked.

“Amazing!” Damien said, a smile lighting up his handsome features.

The three of them laughed, breaking the tension.

Jack leaned back on the couch. “Now we just have to find you a boyfriend. There’s a LGBTSA meeting tomorrow. Why don’t you come with us?”

“LGB…what’s that?”

“Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgendered, Straight Alliance. It’s a group that promotes tolerance and acceptance.”

“No way! I had to tell you guys, but I’m not ready to tell anyone else. My family is very conservative and I can’t risk them finding out. They invested a lot in my future. I can’t let them down.”

“Damien,” Jack said soothingly, “By doing well in school, you’re fulfilling your end of the bargain. It doesn’t mean you have to live a lie. Besides, when I met your parents that first day, they seemed a lot more loving than mine ever were. Even before they knew about me. Besides, at the meetings, your identity is confidential, there are no membership forms or anything. You don’t have to tell your parents yet. This is a place to meet other people and share your experiences.”

“Besides,” Cory continued, “lot’s of straight people come to the meetings. No one assumes anything about you. Sam came to the last one.”

“Sam? Why? He has a girlfriend!”

“He also has a gay brother that he loves very much. He wants to do everything he can to promote understanding and acceptance. He did have to gently discourage one guy, but it wasn’t a problem. It’s a very cool group.”

“Well, I’ll think about it, but as for meeting someone, I’m kind of, well…naïve. I wouldn’t have a clue.”

Jack suddenly stood up. “Damien, would you excuse us for a minute?” He said, gesturing for Cory to follow him to their room.

They emerged a few minutes later with smiles on their faces.

“Damien, Cory and I talked it over and we decided that it would be cool if you want to watch us make love. That way, when you find someone, you’ll know what to expect.”

Damien’s jaw dropped. “I…um…I’m…uh...”

Cory smiled at him. “What Jack and I have is very beautiful. We really want to share it with you. Please don’t say no. Besides, I know you want to.” Cory giggled, pointing at the tent erected in Damien’s sweat pants.

Damien blushed as he got up and followed them into their bedroom. As soon as the door was closed, Jack and Cory fell into a passionate lip lock, letting their hands roam all over their bodies. They slowly undressed each other, taking time to explore the newly exposed flesh with their mouths.

They moved naked to the bed, which was actually two twin size beds pushed together. They kissed deeply, grinding their crotches together. Damien’s eyes bulged from their sockets as Jack slid down the length of Cory’s body and began to alternately lick his balls and shaft. Cory moaned as Jack took his cock into his mouth and began to suck it slowly.

“Turn around baby, I want yours too.” Cory moaned, as Jack turned around and moved seamlessly into a sixty-nine position.

Damien looked on wide eyed as he watched his two roommates bob their heads and gently hump their dicks in and out of each others mouths. After about five minutes of sucking and moaning, Jack got up and kneeled between Cory’s open legs and retrieved some lube from the nightstand. He lubed his fingers and Cory’s anus and effortlessly slid them in and massaged back and forth causing Cory to writhe with pleasure.

“We don’t really need to do this part anymore, but when you first start, it’s essential to loosen up your partner. When we do it, it looks easy, but your first time takes some work. It’s painful at first, but it’s worth it.” Jack withdrew his fingers and addressed Damien seriously. “Also, Cory and I have never been with anyone else, so we don’t use condoms. I want you to promise me you’ll use them though, okay?”

“I promise!”

Cory had all but forgotten that Damien was in the room. “Okay baby, class is over. I need you in me NOW!”

Jack smiled as he leaned down and kissed his impatient lover tenderly on the lips. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too.” Cory sighed.

Jack kneeled once again so Damien could get a good view as he positioned the tip of his penis at Cory’s opening. Damien was transfixed by the sight of Jack’s dick disappearing into Cory’s hole. Jack leaned down and resumed the kiss as his hips began to slowly gyrate. Cory began to moan and grab handfuls of the sheets as Jack gradually increased the pace, his balls gently slapping against Cory’s butt cheeks. Damien was mesmerized by the muscles flexing in Jacks ass as he pumped back and forth, giving his lover what he so desperately needed. He wasn’t sure how much time had passed when Jack’s body went rigid, and with several grunts he sprayed Cory’s insides with his offering. Seconds later, Cory’s entire body shuddered and he cried out through clenched teeth as his own orgasm erupted between their bodies. They just clung to each other for a while, catching their breath, until Jack withdrew his softening cock from Cory’s body, and licked away the remnants of his cum.

When he’d finished, he smiled up at Damien. “That’s about as good as it gets.”

“Oh yeah.” Cory agreed. They were both conscious of the fact that Damien’s presence had heightened the experience for them.

Cory swung his legs over the edge of the bed and went over to where Damien was sitting. “Damien, we talked it over and we decided it wouldn’t be fair for you to watch this and not get some…relief.”

Damien’s face twisted in a look of uncertainty. “I’d never want to come between you two.”

Jack laughed at the double entendre. “Don’t worry, if we’re together and we both agree to it, it’s not like we’re cheating. We really want to give you a little coming out present.”

“Yeah,” Cory urged, “besides, we’ve wanted to try it with someone else for awhile, and we can’t think of anyone we’d rather be with.”

Damien smiled as he took Cory’s outstretched hand and they moved wordlessly back to the bed. Damien lay on his back with Jack and Cory on either side. Cory slid Damien’s sweatpants down as Jack buried his face in the bulge in his briefs. Cory began sucking the pre-cum from the tip of Damien’s dick right through the cotton fabric. Damien watched as Jack slipped his fingers in the waistband and began to lower his underwear. Damien had always been shy about exposing himself, but at that moment, he couldn’t have cared less. He watched in awe as the other two began to lick at his shaft. It was like they we tongue kissing with his dick in the middle. His breathing became rapid as he gave himself over to the incredible sensations that the two lovers were causing in his groin.

Damien was a little concerned when Jack paused to reach for the lube. He needn’t have worried. Jack applied some to his finger, and as he licked and sucked Damien’s balls, he inserted it and gently massaged his happy button. Damien was moaning and thrashing around on the bed. When Cory took his cock into his willing mouth and began bobbing slowly up and down, it took all of 45 seconds for Damien to send copious amounts of his nectar down Cory’s throat. Cory was a little startled by the volume of Damien’s ejaculation, and it was a bit of a challenge to swallow it all.

Both Jack and Cory had to struggle not to laugh when Damien shouted out, “Oh Gosh! Oh Gosh!”

When they’d all calmed down, they joined Damien and kissed him lovingly on both cheeks. Cory whispered to him. “Damien, I’ve never felt closer to anyone but Jack than I do right now to you.”

“Yeah, Damien. Me too.” Jack agreed.

Sam was sitting at the table contentedly munching on a sandwich when the other three roommates emerged. Damien swaggered confidently over to the table and sat down opposite Sam. He reached over and snagged the other half of his sandwich from the plate.

“Man, I’m starved!”

Sam laughed. “Sounded like you were working up an appetite in there.” He said with a wink.

Damien blanched. “You heard?”

Sam regarded him with a twinkle in his eye. “Damien, the whole floor heard!”

The other three had a good chuckle. “Look Damien,” Sam continued, “It’s okay. I’m not really surprised. I have pretty good gaydar for a straight guy. Besides, I don’t shock easily. I guess I’m out numbered…again!” Sam sighed in mock exasperation.

“Sam,” Damien said a little timidly. “I don’t want you to think we were doing anything…kinky, it wasn’t like that. They just wanted me to see how loving it can be. It was really a beautiful experience. I’ll never forget it.”

Sam smiled and squeezed Damien’s hand. “That’s what college is all about, I guess. Having a safe place to find yourself. I’m really glad it was a good experience for you.”

When Ann pulled the car into the driveway, Matt raced upstairs and booted up his computer. He started AOL and began typing frantically.

“Who are you writing to?” Jon asked, as he came into Matt’s room.

“You’ll see.” Matt answered.

Jon shrugged and went to get them some sodas. When he returned, he handed Matt a glass and sat on the bed, looking at Matt with a wry smile.

“This has something to do with Joel, doesn’t it?”

“Yup. If I get the reply I’m expecting to the email I just sent, you’ll see what it’s all about soon.”

Just then, the familiar “You’ve got mail” announcement blared out of Matt’s desktop speakers. Matt opened the email which read simply “Happy to help!” He downloaded the attachment and gestured triumphantly at the screen.

Jon came around and peered over his shoulder and burst out laughing. “What’s that? The poster for Ratboy?”

“That happens to be someone you know quite well!”

Jon’s eyes went wide. “Oh my God, that’s Tom! He sure wasn’t kidding when he said he was an ugly duckling…still, I can see what Stuart saw in him. He’s got a certain spark doesn’t he?”

“Yeah.” Matt agreed as he scrolled down to reveal a second picture of Tom and Stuart standing on a Caribbean beach wearing Speedos and looking drop dead gorgeous.

The proverbial light bulb went on over Jon’s head. “You’re going to send those to Joel aren’t you? Sort of like the coming attractions? Matt that’s so sweet of you!” He wrapped his arms around him from behind and kissed his cheek.

Matt composed a brief message to Joel and attached the pictures. When he finished, he patted his lap for Jon to sit. They just sat there for a minute, forehead to forehead and enjoyed the closeness.

“Did you notice how Todd looks at him?” Jon asked with a smile.

“Yeah. I could hardly miss it. Kind of like I’m looking at you right now. I think they’ve got a real chance.”

Hi All,

Well, this took a little longer than I originally thought, but it's longer than usual, so I want full credit for that!

Thanks to all of you who have written. I answer each of your emails personally, so drop me a line and say hi. I hope this finds you all well, and that you like where I'm going with all of this.

All the very best, Jon