Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 05:17:56 -0700 From: Mike Subject: A Thousand Rainbows 20 Welcome back! There's still a little time to go before the Thanksgiving feast, some time for fun and some soccer play in th backyard. Thanks for for your support; you guys are the greatest. This story deals with adult themes, primarily same-gender sexual relations. Such relations have their basis in love and commitment, rather than sex for the sake of sex alone. In some cases they will use protection; at other times they will not. You and I should always use protection because we do not live in the world of fiction. If you are offended the idea of homosexuality or if you are under the age of consent or if you reside in an area where such things are considered illegal or immoral, then you should seek entertainment elsewhere. Comments may be directed to the author at thornado5@netscape.net This story is copyright 2004 by Mike Williams. All rights reserved. Thou shalt not steal. -0- A Thousand Rainbows by Mike Williams - 20 - While Todd studied his lessons in an adjacent office, Sarah strolled through the gallery with Brian and Bjorn, admiring the photographs of people and places. Being the day before a major holiday, there would be very few sittings in the studio. "Will and I have been laying plans for the agency, and the idea of expanding the business is right at the top of the list," she said. "And we want to include you guys." Brian was intrigued. "How so?" "Certainly there's enough to keep you busy in San Diego," Bjorn added. "Of course, there's more than enough," Sarah assured them. "And we're adding people and studio space to the San Diego office. But we've been studying the Portland and Eugene areas too. Now, with Bridgewater located right between the two metro areas, we think we can draw new faces and new clients from both cities. And the two offices can draw on each other's resources." "So Bridgewater would be a satellite office of Sterling-Becker?" Bjorn asked. "Completely autonomous. Will and I think it's a win-win situation for everyone." Sarah stopped before a black-and-white print of a swimmer just leaping off the starting block. It was part of Paul Miller's portfolio on Tyler Garrison. She marveled its composition. "Is this one of yours?" "Believe it or not, that was taken by the quarterback of the Bridgewater Mustangs football team," Brian answered. Sarah was amazed. "It's beautiful. I feel like that swimmer is just going to leap right out of the picture. What's the photographer's name? If this is any sample of his work, he's got some real talent." "His name's Paul Miller," Bjorn said. "We hope he sticks with it, but I think football is his first love." "He took top honors in last year's youth competition," Brian offered. "Magnificent work." Then Sarah was back into business mode. "So part of this visit to the old hometown is for Will and me to scout out some office space. If you're interested, we can talk more later, maybe after the holidays. We don't want to rush into this; we're just going to take our time." Brian smiled at his partner, then turned back to Sarah. "We'll give it some thought. But right now we have things to do. Bjorn is due at the retirement village to get some pictures for the newspaper, and I have a couple studio shoots before lunchtime." Sarah turned to Bjorn. "Are you going by the college? Do you mind if I grab a ride with you?" Bjorn grinned. "A beautiful lady riding in my car with me? I'd be honored, babe." "Why, thank you, kind sir." And Sarah took Bjorn's arm as they headed for the door. She turned and waved to Brian. -0- Brian and Bjorn closed the studio early that afternoon so they could have some extra time to prepare for the next day's Thanksgiving feast. Brian took over the kitchen and enlisted Todd's help peeling the apples for the pies he would bake. Bjorn was already working on the turkey when Will walked in from the garage, looking a bit haggard. "Welcome home, stranger," Brian greeted him. "Hi, Dad," Todd said, looking up from his peeling. "How's your grandmother?" Bjorn asked. Will sighed and leaned back against the door. "I swear ... if you could put cantankerous in a bottle, it would have her picture on the label." He smiled and looked at his son. "But you never heard me say that." Todd grinned. "Something you should know about your great-grandmother ..." Brian said. "She's ... well ... uh ... Bjorn, what's the word I'm looking for?" "Opinionated," Bjorn answered. "She's got her own ideas about how the world should be, and she's entitled to her opinion." Will stepped into the kitchen. "It took some slick talking, but she has agreed to put her attitudes aside for a couple of hours. And she would be delighted to sit for a family portrait." He punctuated his last sentence with a hugely fake smile. Brian explained, "Hannah thinks all gay people should be shipped off to a deserted island, and then the island should be bombed out of existence." "And she really didn't approve," Bjorn continued, "when your mom and dad agreed to surrogate a baby for us." "Especially when it turned out to be twins," Brian said. "She promises she'll be nice," Will assured them. "Speaking of which, where are the twin terrors?" Bjorn looked up at the kitchen clock. "They should be home from school any minute." As if on cue, the back door opened, and the twins appeared, still wearing their Bridgewater Academy uniforms. "Hi, dads!" they both chimed in. Amazed at the timing of events, Will looked at Bjorn and raised an eyebrow. Sensing Will's surprise, Bjorn grinned back at him. "Do we know our kids, or what?" The twins entered the kitchen, greeted their fathers with a kiss, and then headed straight for the cookie jar. Taking a break from the pie-crust he was working on, Brian smiled at Todd. "OK, kid, you are released from your indentured servitude." "My what?" Todd asked. Brian explained. "You're free to go. We just drafted your dad to finish peeling the apples, so that you guys could go kick the soccer ball out in the backyard for a while." "Thank you, sir," Todd said as he rose from the table and joined the twins as they raced up the spiral staircase. "Such fine manners," Bjorn mused as Will took over peeling the apples. "Yeah," Brian answered, smiling at Will. "How long do you think it will take to break him of that?" Will nearly doubled up with laughter while Brian and Bjorn grinned. In a moment the three boys were all back in the kitchen, having changed into gym shorts and T-shirts. Todd had not thought to bring such clothing from San Diego, so the twins had loaned him some of their own, which fit him well. "You know Paul Miller is back in school?" Jason asked. Brian brightened up, but there was concern in his voice. "That's great. How's he doing?" "He says his jaw will be wired shut for another two weeks," Josh answered. "And he's still a little sore from where Randy Carter beat him up. But he looks like he's doing okay." "Bridgewater quarterback," Brian explained for Will's benefit. "One of the opposing players didn't like the fact that his team got beaten in the last few seconds of the game, and he took out his frustrations on the kid in front of a packed stadium." "My god!" Will was aghast as he continued peeling apples. "I think I remember seeing that story on the national news. Wasn't there another kid who was injured in that game?" "Yeah, the opposing quarterback," Bjorn said. "He died on the operating table after his coach went ballistic." Will shook his head in disbelief. "Anyway," Jason continued, "Paul and his brother invited us to go horseback riding with them this Saturday. And you're invited too, Todd." Todd's blue eyes immediately flew open. "Horses? They got horses?" He looked imploringly at his father. "Please, Dad? Please?" Will smiled at his son. "Fine by me. I'll clear it with your mother." "Alright!" Todd practically jumped across the kitchen and threw his arms around his father's neck while the rest looked on. "You are the best, Dad! Thank you!" Will returned the hug and kissed his son on the top of his head. "I know better than to come between you and your horses. Now, get out there and work up an appetite for dinner." After a moment they broke their hug, and Todd skipped across the room to the backdoor, the happiest boy in the world. He stopped only briefly to look back at his half-brothers. "Well, you guys coming or not?" And with that he was gone, the twins hot on his heels. Will took Todd's place at the table, and the kitchen was quiet for a moment as the men went back to their work, the silence broken only by the sound of Will's knife peeling the apples and Brian's rolling pin rolling out the dough for the pie-crust. "So," Brian began, "I hear Todd likes horses." "So it would seem," Bjorn agreed. Without taking his eyes off the apple he was peeling, Will explained, "To say that Todd likes horses is an understatement. Sometimes I think he was born on a horse. Y'know, when he was just four years old, he begged Sarah and me to let him join the local stable club. Never cried or threw a tantrum or anything like that, he had thought out his request very logically, line by line. He had us right where he wanted us. And I think it's one of the best things we've ever done. When he's not at the studio or out on a shoot, he's at the stables, tending to the horses, helping out the ranch-hands and working with that organization that makes things happen for handicapped kids. He even takes us out riding a couple times a year." Will paused and put his knife down and looked up at his friends with a conspiratorial look in his eye. "Can you guys keep a secret?" Brian and Bjorn zipped their lips. Will continued, lowering his voice to a whisper. "Sarah and I have talked about this, and we're giving Todd a horse for Christmas. He has no idea this is coming, so we've got to keep this quiet, okay?" "He's one lucky kid, Will," Bjorn said. Will went back to his peeling. "Yeah, well, Sarah and I are two lucky parents." -0- Even though the afternoon air was cool, the boys worked up a sweat kicking the soccer ball around the large backyard. Jason and Josh had become quite skilled in kicking and passing the ball, and Todd seemed to get the knack, despite never having been serious about the game before. At one point Jason executed a hard pass to Todd, who made a dive for the ball, but ended up face first in the grass. He looked up at Jason with a sheepish grin. "Lucky shot!" he yelled across the yard. He jumped to his feet and went to retrieve the ball which had rolled to a spot near the far end of the vegetable garden. Without touching the ball with his hands he dribbled back across the yard, narrowly avoiding Josh's attempted steal, and gave the ball a swift kick that sent it sailing over Jason's head. "GOAL!!" they yelled in unison, hugging each other as if they had just won the world championship. As they broke apart, Todd asked, "Okay, now I go for the extra point, right?" And they all broke in laughter. Josh put his hand on Todd's shoulder. "Sorry, dude. You scored the goal, and that's all ya get." Todd played up the bit. "All that running around for just one point? Somehow that just ain't fair. It's no wonder the soccer game scores are always so low. Whoever invented the game should take a lesson from good old football." "I got a great idea!" Jason said. "Let's add a halftime show, some cheerleaders and a few more points for each goal ... and more people will watch the game." "And let's not forget the extra point," Josh added, as he went to retrieve the ball. As the sun began to set, the air became cooler under a clear sky, an indicator that the next morning would see some frost on the ground. The boys spent another half-hour kicking the ball and scoring a few more goals in their imaginary stadium. After one last goal and celebration, they left the backyard and returned to the warmth of the twins' bedroom. "I don't know about you guys," Josh said as he stripped off his t-shirt, "but I could use a shower before dinner." "No argument from me, bro," Jason added. "Yeah, just leave some hot water for the rest of us," Todd said, as he headed for his own room. When they were sure they were alone, Jason took Josh in his arms and gave him a kiss. "And there's something else I could use before dinner," he whispered. Josh looked into his brother's dark blue eyes. "Whadya got in mind?" he asked innocently. "Oh, just a brother helping out a brother, if ya know what I mean," Jason replied as he ran a finger down Josh's chest. Josh took Jason's hand and brought it to his lips. "Does it have something to do with ..." And he leaned in to whisper the rest of his question into Jason's ear. "Why, yes, it does." Then Jason raised an eyebrow. "How did you know what I was thinking?" Josh smiled smugly. "We're twins, remember? We think alike." And the two leaned in for another passionate open-mouthed kiss before heading to the shower. -0- to be continued in Chapter 21