Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2011 04:15:09 -0600
From: Mathew Davidson <matt-k-d@hotmail.com>
Subject: The Couch, Part 17

Should you be reading this? This story contains descriptions of sexual
interactions between consenting underage males and if its illegal where you
are then, don't do it! If someone says you cant and doesn't have a good
reason however, then I quote my favourite author on this site, "Fuck Em"
try it, you never know! I do occasionally use derogatory terminology in my
work, and I apologize if this causes offence to anyone. It's not meant that
way at all. Also sorry for any spelling mistakes, I get a little dyslexic
at times.


AUTHORS NOTE:

Eight months... Wow. That's a hell of a long time to wait for anything, let
alone a crappy story! Im sorry It took so long to get this story out. I
wont bore anyone with the melodrama of my life, mostly because I don't
think anyone cares that much, but life throws you curve balls sometimes,
and trying to keep up with everything, doesn't always leave room for the
more "optional" things in life, such as writing :P

Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this chapter, it's the last of this series,
and maybe even the last thing I'll ever write, who knows.


The Couch: Part 17


"Time to wake up honey."

Matt tried to open his eyes but they refused to cooperate. The warm voice
once again urged him to get out of bed but he was so tired, and he knew he
would be cold if he crawled out from under the covers.

"Mathew, we have to go." That voice... he hadn't heard it in so long. So
familiar, yet he couldn't place it. It made him feel warm inside. It was
the voice of a long lost friend, a protector and provider, the voice
of... his eyes shot open and he sat up.

"Mom? Mom where are you!"

He looked around and realized he had no idea where he was. The large white
room was totally featureless and he was standing... no he had been laying
down, how was he standing? The thought slipped out of his mind like water
under a bridge and he again cast his eyes around looking for his mother.

"I'm right here sweetie." The voice came from the air all around him, and
he felt a distinctly warm breeze ruffle his hair. But then the air was cold
once again and he felt utterly alone. The light in the room began to dim
and he cast his eyes about looking for some way out. He turned around and
saw a red door amidst the white of the wall, which he started walking
towards without question. When he arrived at the door a dark sense of
foreboding swept over him, chilling him even further. He touched the door
handle and pushed through, unsure of what to expect.



Immediately the feeling changed, and any lingering sense of security he
felt was swept away. He was very young again, and his dad was in the
room. He looked at the man and saw him as he had that long ago
day. Angry. The rage emanating from the man was palpable and Matt trembled
in fear, crouching down to the floor with tears starting to run down his
face. His father took one step towards him with a raised fist and Matt
closed his eyes, sure that pain was about to come. After several moments of
silence he opened his eyes enough to realize he was in a different room,
his basement bedroom in his Moms old house. Ian was on the couch naked,
with his arms open welcoming Matt in for a hug. Matt felt himself smile and
started running towards Ian. The couch was only a few steps away, but for
every stride Matt took, it drifted farther and farther. Matt saw Ians face
change, and suddenly he was scowling and his arms were crossed, still
racing further and further away. Matt felt his smile fade and tears once
again poured out of his eyes and eventually Ian faded from sight. Matt was
alone once again in a long white hallway. He began to feel depressed,
sadder then anything he had ever felt, and he noticed the walls starting to
leak a red liquid. He walked up to one wall and tentatively touched the
thick sludge. It was blood. He tried to scream but no sound came out, and
with no other options he started running to the end of the hall. There was
a door there. He had to get to the door. The door was strong, warm and
welcoming. As he got nearer he noticed it was cracked open a little, and a
warm breeze was flowing out of it carrying a familiar scent of cologne and
something else...



But the blood was up to his ankles now, and rising fast, and the door was
so far, he would never make it. Matt slowed down, the blood was up to his
waist and he was still at least 10 steps away from the door. It was at his
neck now and he knew he wouldn't be able to make it on his own, he was
going to die. Die in his own blood, for somehow he knew that this blood was
all from him, was his fault.



Suddenly a blinding light shone through the door and it flung itself open
and Matt felt a strong hand grasp his own, pulling him through the doorway
into the safety of an embrace. Matts eyes burned and he couldn't open them,
but he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt he was safe with this person. This
was the one he had been waiting for all along, the one person he could rely
on no matter what. He felt his eyes start to hurt less and was struggling
to open them when suddenly gruff hands grabbed him from the back and flung
him onto the ground. Pain erupted everywhere and Matts eyes shot open, to
see his dad standing above a crumpled form. The form of his saviour. Matt
screamed soundlessly and charged at his father, brandishing a knife he
didn't remember having before. His father laughed and plucked the knife out
of his hand, his eyes glinting with madness. He thrust the knife into Matts
belly and it felt like nothing Matt had ever thought possible. Matt
crunched his eyes closed and wished the pain would stop, and amazingly, it
did. He opened his eyes again and saw he was in a bar. He looked down and
saw a woman flirting with a man. He instinctively knew that this man was
the one who had saved him. He felt his insides start to hurt again, but it
was a different pain. It felt like his heart was about to burst from
sadness, and he watched the man leave with the woman. He had to get away,
had to run, this couldn't be real. He turned and ran as hard as he could,
dashing down side streets and alleys, anxiously casting his eyes behind
him.



Suddenly he was falling, falling into an interminable blackness that had no
end, and no escape. He looked in the direction he thought was down and saw
a bright light coming towards him. It was a long way away though, but he
knew that if he reached that light, everything would be better. He wouldn't
have to fight, or hurt anymore. He willed himself to fall faster, wanting
nothing more then to reach the light.

"Matt..."

He cast his eyes about but saw nothing, then the voice came again. "Matt, I
cant follow you there. Come back to me."

Once again he looked around him but encountered only the crushing blackness
of solitude.

"Come back to me."

Who was speaking to him... it was a different voice then that of his
mother, but was equally as comforting. He wanted that voice to keep talking
to him. Wanted it to tell him that everything would be ok. It was so
familiar but...

"Arthur!" Matt did scream this time. The light was growing nearer, but he
didn't want to go there anymore. Arthur wasn't there, he had to find some
way of stopping. He summoned all the willpower he could and focused on
stopping, focused on Arthurs pained face. He closed his eyes tight and
visualized his lover, and he knew that there was no way he would ever give
up as long as Arthur was waiting for him.



The air grew cold and he felt the pain in his chest intensify. With a half
cry, half gurgle he screamed again and his eyes shot open. He looked around
and realized he was in the freezer, and suddenly he remember
everything. Shakily he stood, and only then realized how much pain he was
in. He tried to call for help but all that came from his mouth was
blood. He leaned over and coughed for several long minutes before stumbling
to the freezer door and pushing it open. Shocked faces looked up at him,
and from the look of it a great many of them had been crying. From his
position across the room Jacob stood slowly and looked at Matt with large
eyes.

"But I just checked... you were... How are you alive?"

Matt began to speak a few times before finally managing to get a few words
out.

"How long have we been in here?"

"3 days." Jacob said without hesitation.

"Long enough, we have to get going. All of you, I know you've seen a lot,
but what happens when we open that door is going to be scarier then
anything you've been exposed to so far. Just stick together, and follow my
lead."

Eight pairs of wide eyes looked back at Matt, and slowly they all nodded
acquiescence.

"Good, Now stay here while I check things out."



Matt turned to the fridge door, and gently lifted the locking bar out of
its place, careful to make as little noise as possible. Taking a deep
breath, he pushed on the door until it was open wide enough to let him
through. Slipping through the crack he didn't see anything out of the
ordinary, so he closed the fridge door behind him.

As he closed the door he looked at the outside of the fridge. The frame
around the door was scorched and gouged, and there were numerous dents near
the door handle where someone had obviously tried to get in. He smiled
thinly, pleased that he had managed to keep the boys safe. And then he
heard it.



Silence.



There was absolutely no noise in the entire house that he could hear. Not
willing to risk it however, he decided to do an entire search before
allowing the boys to roam freely. He opened the fridge door and told Jacob
as much, telling him to lock the door and wait one hour, and if Matt hadn't
returned by then, make a cautious run for the American Embassy in the
nearby town. Matt started in the basement, looking in every room for any
sign of life and working his way up the house. It wasn't until the second
floor that he discovered anything amiss. As he opened the door to the
guards quarters, he smelt the cloying smell of fecal matter and minor
decay, like when a steak was left out at the restaurant for a few
days. Cautiously he opened the door all the way and gazed at the carnage he
had wrought. There had been over 20 guards employed by Kahlim, and 17 of
them were in this room. Most were on their beds, but some were on the
floor, or sprawled out with their heads in garbage cans.

Matt steeled himself and acknowledged that what he had done was
necessary. He searched the rest of the floors and found that nearly
everyone was dead, up to and including the guests that had been in
attendance that night. Finally he came to Kahlim's room. The giant gilded
doors seemed to beckon him closer. Taking a deep breath, Matt heaved and
pushed both doors open.



The bane of Matts existence lay on his bed, unmoving with eyes shut. Matt
was about to turn when he heard a faint noise. Kahlim was still alive. The
man slowly opened his eyes and looked at Matt, he opened his mouth to say
something, but no words came out.



Looking at the man laying on the bed, on the very edge of life, Matt felt a
surge of pity. What right did a nobody like him have to dispense death to
so many? Shuffling his feet a little, Matt felt a tinge of pain in his
thigh. Looking down he saw the thin white scar on his inner thigh, from
knee to groin. Kahlim had tied him to this very bed and run the knife from
the base of Matts shaft to his knee, just to try and make Matt scream. Matt
hadn't. Looking up, Matt realized he didn't care what "right" he had.



Turning from the man on the bed, he made his way back down to the
kitchen. Knocking five times on the fridge, he waited for Jacob to unbar
the door. Once he heard the bar removed, he stepped into the fridge and
looked at the eight boys he had killed more then thirty people to
protect. A single tear rolled down his face. The silence stretched and
finally the youngest boy spoke up. He was only 10 years old, and despite
all he had been through, his face still retained a look of hopeful
innocence.

"Matt... are we safe now?"

Matt wiped the tear from his cheek and coughed. He saw the blood on his
hand from where he covered his mouth and hid it quickly.

"Almost bud. All of you, go to our rooms, and shower and change as quickly
as you can, everyone stay together, no one go upstairs."



Less then thirty minutes later, the boys gathered in the main entry way,
all freshly cleaned and in new clothes. Matt led them out the doors and
they all stood basking in the sunlight for a moment. Matt cast his eyes
around and found the large van that the guards used to transport new
recruits, and new slaves, and he walked up to the door. Opening it, he cast
disbelieving eyes on the keys dangling from ignition. Finally a stroke of
good luck. Matt told Jacob to load all of the kids into the back of the
van.



As the boys loaded into the confines of the van, Matt turned and trotted
back into the house, and walked into the kitchen. Turning on all of the gas
burners he then left and went to the garage and took the jerry-can of
gasoline and poured it liberally on the floor everywhere he could until it
ran out. He then found the pack of cigarettes and a pack of matches the
guards always kept in one of the drawers in the entry hall. He lit a
cigarette and tucked it into the match pack then placed it on the table
next to the stove. The cigarette would burn down slowly, then eventually
ignite the matches, starting the fire that would hopefully destroy the
house that had been nothing but a prison to all the boys for so long.



Matt exited the house and walked up to the van, hopping into the drivers
seat next to Jacob. He looked at the smaller boy and smiled, and Jacob
beamed back at him. Matt started the van and pulled out of the drive,
taking the road that led to the nearest city, where he hoped salvation
would be waiting at the American embassy.







Arthur woke with a start. He had dreamt something, but couldn't quite
remember what it had been about. He knew Matt had been there, but it had
been different then all the other times. Somehow, Arthur knew that if he
hadn't been there, he would have lost Matt forever. The police said he was
dead, but Arthur couldn't believe that Matt could have left him without him
feeling anything. In fact, for the first time in almost six months, Arthur
felt hopeful. Without knowing why, Arthur got up and showered, shaving for
the first time in weeks and styling his hair for the first time in
months. It was six AM, but he didn't care. He quietly went downstairs and
made himself a cup of coffee, the parked himself next to the phone in the
kitchen and willed it to ring.







Nate sipped his coffee and read his paper. He still couldn't believe he had
been assigned to the embassy in this shit hole of an African town. He had
wanted to travel the world, now all he ever saw was the same damn office
where no one ever came. Nothing ever happened here, he didn't even know why
there was an embassy at all. He heard a faint buzzing noise and looked at
the window overlooking the front of the embassy. There was a large van at
the gates, and a young man pressing the buzzer repeatedly. He pressed the
button to open the gates and the boy ran back to the van and drove it into
the compound. Once parked, the back doors opened and a gaggle of young boys
emerged. They walked up to the door purposefully, the older one leading
them, and waited patiently for him to open. Dashing out of his office he
ran to the door and opened it.

"Whats going on here? Who are you kids?"

The older boy in front started talking, and as he told the story, Nate's
eyes widened. The boy finished and he stood there for a moment dumbly,
before finally managing to squeak "I need to make a phone call..."







Levi rolled over and swung to turn of his annoying alarm that had woken
him. Hitting the snooze button he realized the noise was still
going. Groggily he noticed that the sound was coming from his bedroom door,
someone was pounding on it and shouting his name. It was Arthur, but Levi
had never heard Arthur yell before. He rolled out of bed wearing nothing
and opened the door. Arthur didn't even look at Levi's perfectly toned body
but instead met him eye to eye.

"We need to go to the airport. Now."





Matt sat with the eight boys in the waiting room of the embassy in
Africa. He watched the boys in turn run up to the telephone and call the
people they needed to. Greyson, the youngest called his mother in France
and told her teary eyed that he was going to be home soon. Her crying could
be heard throughout the room. Jack and Jason, the twins from Germany called
their grandma and told her they would be joining her in time for Christmas
this year. Sven called his parents in Vancouver and could barley hold it
together as he told them it was over. Craig and Ryan called their
respective parents, and Ian cried when he told his dad he was on his
way. Jono could barley tell his mother he was coming home, but without his
brother, which caused everyone in the room to shed a few tears. When it was
Jacobs turn, the boy stopped and looked at Matt.

"I don't have anyone to call..."

"Which is why your coming with me." Matt smiled as he said it, trying to
reassure the boy that everything would be OK.

"But... You have Arthur to go home to, won't he be mad that we... ya know?"

"We'll deal with that as it happens Jake. What's important is that the
worst is over."

Jacob smile and hugged Matt fiercely.

"Do I get my own room?" Matt felt tears well up behind his eyes, but held
them back, doing his best to be strong for everyone.

"Yeah bud, you get your own room."

Matt started to walk towards the phone to call Arthur when the embassy
worker, Nate, burst in.

"Come on kids! We need to get you to the airport, and it's a two hour drive
from here. The government has arranged for flights for all of you to where
you need to go, but we need to get a move on."

Matt cringed but followed everyone out. Several hours later Matt was on a
plane with Sven, Craig, Ryan and Jacob. Ryan and Craig were seated behind
him and were cuddling and laughing and crying all at once, while Sven was
fast asleep on his own world. Jacobs head was in Matt's lap and he was
sleeping peacefully. The plane landed in Montreal where Ryan and Craig
lived and the boys left, exchanging teary farewells and phone numbers. Four
hours later, the plane descended into the Calgary airport, and Matt and
Jacob said their goodbyes to Sven. Matt walked as calmly as he could off
the airplane. His mind wracked by sudden fear and nervousness. Where was
Arthur???







"No, you don't understand, I NEED to get through, my boyfriend is on that
plane and he needs me right fucking now!"

Arthur was nearing the point of tears. He wasn't allowed through to the
tarmac where he could see Matt's plane coming to a stop, because some
homophobe security guard wanted only immediate family to see him, due to
"security regulations". Arthur was about to pound the infuriating little
man into the cement when the police officer came to the rescue. It was the
same officer that had originally handled the case, and he glided in between
Arthur and the man and flashed his badge, shooing the guard away. He turned
to Arthur and smiled.

"Ready to go say hello to your boyfriend?"





Matt was practically shaking as he walked down the steps the of small
aircraft. He cast his eyes around but couldn't see anything, or anyone
familiar. Across the tarmac, he saw a door open up, and a tall police
officer stepped out, and not a step behind him, Arthur was there. Matt felt
himself go limp for a moment. Then he started running down the stairs two
at a time towards Arthur.





Arthur pushed past the officer and ran across the tarmac, he met Matt
halfway and swept the smaller boy into his arms. Had he looked closely, he
would have noted Matt's greasy hair, his incredibly pale complexion and the
fact that he had lost about fifty pounds, but all Arthur was capable of
seeing was Matt, Matt falling into him and the smile that lit up Arthur's
life again.

"Matt Im so sorry, it's all my fault if I hadn't-" Arthur started
blubbering but Matt put a hand over his mouth and looked him in the eye.

"Shut the fuck up and kiss me."

And Arthur did. He held Matt close and kissed him like it was the first
time all over again.









A few days later Arthur and Matt lay in bed. Matts back was to Arthur, his
body contoured against Arthurs. Arthurs strong arms were wrapped around his
love, and he never planned on letting go again. Matt and Jacob had finally
been allowed to come home from the hospital after they had decided they
were all ok. That Matt was alive at all was a mystery to the doctors, who
didn't believe that he had ingested anthrax and lived, until the tests had
come back. Now he and Arthur were truly alone for the first time since his
return. Jacob was asleep in the room next to Levi's, on the bed that Matt
had told Arthur to set up. Matt had told Arthur all about what had
happened, even every little detail about the relationship him and Jacob had
shared. Matt had been agonizing over what he would do if Arthur told him
Jacob couldn't stay, but it was all for nothing. Arthur had accepted Jacob
into their little family with love, with no hard feelings or judgement.



Matt knew that things wouldn't be easy. He had been raped, been forced to
rape other boys, he had killed people and almost died himself, the
psychological ramifications of what had happened were baffling and unknown
as of yet, but he knew that with Arthurs help, he could overcome it. He had
to go back to school eventually, and still had yet to call his old chef to
see if he had a job, and Jacob needed to be set up with everything he
needed. But laying in his mans arms, he knew that everything would be ok.

"Arthur?"

"Yeah Matt?

"I love you."

"I love you too, more then you will ever know."



And that's that folks, matt-k-d@hotmail.com, tell me your thoughts and
opinions!