Date: Sun, 09 Jan 2011 12:38:30 -0800 From: paramoe1954@hushmail.com Subject: A Caring Heart ***This work is complete fiction. None of the characters in this story are real. The events in this story have never happened. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Please send me comments! I want to know what you liked or disliked! paramoe1954@hushmail.com*** ***My other stories, Kissing Along His Neck – Posted 9-11-10 (gay/young-friends) Sweet Spot – Posted 9-18-10 (gay/young-friends) Working on the sequel Don't Do That – Posted 10-2-10 (gay/incest) Brother's Touch – Posted 11-8-10 (gay/incest) The Right Formula – Posted 11-16-10 (gay/sf-fantasy) (For a complete list, I am listed as Paramoe in the prolific authors roster on Nifty)*** I was so scared that I was shaking and no one around me would give comfort. I saw Stevie's terrified stare as he watched me inch my way closer to the toy car in the middle of the dark hallway. I looked down at my size seven sneakers that no longer wanted to move. "Do it Artie!" Carl demanded from what seemed like a mile away. "Do it or you're sleeping in the hall tonight!" My body began to shiver even harder as Carl prodded me on. He wasn't really in charge of us all, but at thirteen years he was the oldest and I was only ten years old. I knew he wouldn't let up on me until I did what he wanted. Somewhere inside I made the decision to get it over with. I needed to speak the words that the majority of my orphan brothers were waiting to hear. I forced my feet to take just a few more shaky steps until I was only two feet from the small wood carved car on the floor. My eyes carefully watched the old toy for the slightest movement and I felt like if it moved a hair, I would jump right out of my own skin. I took a deep breath while I began to utter the words that I swore I would never say. These words were what gave me nightmares. As I exhaled a shaky breath, the words came out, "Willy Nilly, I've got the willies, come to me." The last part came out in a weak gasp as I feared what would come next. Maybe it was the setting that made things so scary, since it was dark and all fourteen boys were holding their breath, peeking out of doorways, as they watched me in the moonlit hallway. I had seen Carl push too may boys into doing this and nothing ever happened, but when you're put in the hallway, things were creepy no matter what you were doing. I stopped breathing and shaking at the same time, becoming a statue that watched the toy in front of me. I waited a few seconds that seemed like a lifetime and I was about to turn around to walk back to the bedroom when 'it' happened. I heard the squeaking of the small tires as they moved on their own, creeping toward me. I watched in disbelief as the car approached my feet that couldn't move. Down the hall, I heard a collective gasp in terror followed by running footsteps of my orphan brothers. The hallway began to tilt and spin as I turned away to run and that is when the floor seemed to lift upward and smack the side of my head. Before I blacked out, I no longer saw Carl or anyone else peaking down the hallway and realized that I was abandoned. I wasn't out for very long before my eyes opened to see all of the lights on in every room down the hall. Mr. Menard was darting from room to room looking strange with his long thin body in pajamas. I could hear the man shouting things out at the boys, but I didn't know what he was saying. An all too familiar scent filled my nose as I tried to lift my head. It smelled like some one wet the bed, but I knew that some one must have pissed himself because he was so scared. I suddenly remembered why I was where I was and looked to see the tiny wood car touching my left foot. I gasped and quickly scooted across the floor away from the toy. That is when I saw that I was the one who had pissed himself from being so scared. My night pajamas seemed to weigh more and my hands and feet slipped on the newly wet floor. Mrs. Menard was thumping her fat body to different rooms trying to say things to different crying boys. There were too many boys to communicate with and only two people to handle them all. Finally Mr. Menard ended up standing in front of me in the lit hallway, looking from my sprawled body on the floor to the toy on the floor. I expected Mr. Menard to help me up but instead, he picked up the little car and shouted out something in German to his wife. It was embarrassing to have pissed myself in front of every boy in the orphanage, but it was even worse to have Mrs. Menard's sausage link fingers wash the piss off of my naked body. I wondered if Carl would make fun of me when I went back to my bed and after what happened, I wondered if it even mattered. It was clear that I had been in contact with an actual ghost and my new fear was of having to go to sleep in a dark room where the ghost would find me again. The hallway was dark again when Mrs. Menard walked me to my bed. Every room was only lit by beams of moonlight, but I knew that no one was sleeping. I knew that every eye in that room was on me as they pretended to sleep. Mrs. Menard took the towel off of me and I climbed into bed to sleep naked. As my eyes adjusted even more, I could see little Stevie's wide eyes on me and I think he was shaking under his covers. When I was sure that Mrs. Menard was downstairs, I sat up in bed and clicked on the wall lamp between our beds, then laid back down. I didn't hear any complaints from any of the other boys and it seemed to calm Stevie to have some light on in the room. Stevie was only seven years old and I felt a need to take care of him since he was the youngest on our floor and got bullied more than any other boy. I felt like I had failed at being a mentor because I had assured Stevie that nothing ever happened when they did the car toy trick and there was no reason to be afraid. It was only until I saw Stevie's eyes close, that I was able to relax into sleep. You would think that since I had gone through with what Carl had asked, maybe he would let up on me or even accept me as being an equal. There should have been some sort of credit in pride that came with meeting a ghost and pissing yourself at the same time. I felt like I should have a little recognition for doing something so frightening and living through it. However, as I walked the playground between classes, the other boys looked away from me when I met their eyes. The only person to even look at me was Stevie and he wasn't saying much. Everyone had been so eager to prod me into speaking those scary words in the hall, but in the daylight, no one wanted to talk about it. Steve was at my side at every chance he got and I cringed inside as I saw his scared little eyes peer terrified into dark corners of the orphanage. I mirrored the little boy's fear as I refused to go into darker places or even to venture into the dense woods that surrounded the orphanage. There were no more encouraging words for Stevie about how ghosts weren't real. All I could do was stick close to him and comfort him with my presence. At night, I slept with the light on between mine and Stevie's bed. Still, no one complained about the light being on, but they also stopped talking to me. Two days after the incident, I laid in my bed, pretending to read while I listened to the other boys talk. There were a lot of boys sitting on beds around Carl's bunk while he let them all see his pubes that he was so proud of. This was the first night where I wasn't invited over to listen to Carl talk about sex and what its like to touch a girl. My eyes kept glancing over as the other boys took part in something that I had always looked forward to. I watched my orphan brothers massage their hard-ons through their pajama bottoms while they talked about what it would be like to lick a girl 'down there'. I saw Stevie's confused expressions as he listened to all the boys chat about boners and tits, while he had no idea what any of it meant. My eyes stayed on my little friend in the next bed and I watched his eyes gradually droop closed until he was asleep. I was soothed by the slow rise and fall of Stevie's restful breathing. It was nice when I got to see the little guy when he wasn't scared or looking out for the next bully. Everyone gave Stevie a hard time before the ghost incident, but afterward, it all seemed to get worse. I couldn't help but feel that I had painted a target on my little orphan brother that he never deserved. The next day, at lunch time I tried to distance myself from the uncomfortable glances from my house brothers for a change. The temperature was nice out and it felt like a great time to go for a walk in the woods. I felt a smile on my face as I watched Stevie skip along beside me and acted like he was hiding from some unseen enemy in battle. The bright day light and warmer than usual weather made it much easier to deal with the fact that there was a real ghost out there. The brightness of the day also made me consider confronting my house brothers about why they were treating me so bad when none of it was under my control. I knew that the only person that I needed to confront would be the leader of all the bullying that went on, and that would be Carl. Although there were only a few years difference between myself and Carl, he seemed like a big beast compared to myself. But we had all seen Carl in more revealing circumstances that anyone wanted to remember. We had all felt strange when we saw Carl cry when he was scolded by Mrs. Menard for accidentally walking only two steps into her garden. It was the moment where we all understood that the oldest orphan wasn't the toughest person on the planet. I sat in the thick grass and looked up at the bright blue sky that was spotted by the vibrancy of cotton clouds. Stevie and I were just inside one of the grassy areas that was corralled by an elaborate design of hedges. Stevie jumped around and played while I laid back and kept my eyes up, at the sky. I could hear the footfalls of Sven, the groundskeeper as he clipped his way along the hedges. He sang a tune that I always assumed was a melody from the older days of the town. I had heard Mr. Menard and one of the other teachers singing the same tune and it always bugged me. It's not like what they were singing was awful, in fact I liked it and would like it even more if it sounded like a whole song. The person singing the tune would begin and would get to a good part and then he would stop singing abruptly. It was like having the radio turned off in the middle of your favorite song. Every one of the adults who sang the tune through out their day, stopped in the same exact place and I thought about asking if there was more to the song, but it was never important enough to take to the to find out. As I lay there on the grass, I sang along silently with Sven as he whistled the familiar tune. I heard Sven's humming become a bit louder just before stopping at the same spot as always. This is when I heard another voice coming from the same direction and distance as Sven. It was another boy's voice that picked up singing the rest of the tune. I couldn't see Sven or the boy, but I sat up as I delighted in hearing the unfamiliar finished to a familiar melody. I stood up and walked along the hedge where the boy and Sven were just on the other side of. I tried to peek through the hedges at the boy who was singing, but I couldn't see anything through the tall squared hedge. I followed the voice and footsteps to where I knew the wall-like bush would end. I immediately saw Sven's fat arms raised and ready to clip at the bush again. He gasped when he saw me and then showed me a half smile through his handle bar mustache. I walked past the groundskeeper's round figure to peek down the other side of the hedge at the boy. I was surprised to see that there was no one else there, only Sven. "Where did he go?" I asked, looking at the wide empty space. Sven's bushy eyebrows raised as he looked around, asking, "Who?" I immediately took a step back and searched the grounds keeper's eyes for truth. My eyes studied the space around us and I suddenly felt like I was being put-on and set up for a joke. I didn't say another word, but turned around to walk back toward the main cluster of houses at the orphanage. Steve stayed at my side asking if we could stay out longer. Of course Stevie was free to do what he wanted but lately I was the one who supplied the answers. I didn't answer little Stevie, and I ignored some of the other boys as they watched me enter the play yard. I was walking a little stiff legged and quickly toward one particular group of boys. "Carl!" I said, meaning to sound louder than it actually came out. I felt my pulse racing and my the blood rushing to my face. I was scared and becoming more scared with every step I took. When I came to a stop, only feet from Carl's surprised face, I stared at him trying to appear angry. "What?" Carl barked, standing taller than me. "I did what you said!" I breathed. What I was saying was supposed to come out thick with anger, but instead, the words came out with a shaky breath. I saw no reaction from Carl other than to glance sideways at the boys around him. "You told me to say those words," I continued, "And I did it." I stared deep into his eyes, wanting to look away but refusing to do so. "Yeah." Carl said, taking a step closer to me, "You did." The look in Carl's eyes changed from overpowering to soft. I flinched away as Carl's right hand went up to land on my shoulder. He jolted at my response but placed his hand on my shoulder anyway. "Sorry man." Carl said, lightly squeezing his hand on me. "Come sit with us." My jaw loosened a bit as I felt the comforting pats of hands on my back. It seemed that I was welcomed back into the group. This feeling of sudden and unexpected camaraderie seeped into me and even though I remained cautious, it felt wonderful. Carl walked me over to the bench in the play lawn where he had been sitting when I approached. I watched every boy that surrounded me, hoping that this wasn't the beginning of some cruel joke. I sat down next to Carl, who had never been so nice to me before. The older boy's reassuring hand felt great and comforting on me and I hoped deep inside that it was real. About six feet away, I caught Stevie's eyes watching the group around me with caution. I knew that he was unsure of whether he was allowed to join the group since he had always been kept separate before. Stevie didn't walk away, but kept a watchful distance like he had always done before the hallway incident. I watched the other boys around me with care and wondered why they weren't talking about the incident in the hallway. If I was back into the group, you would think that they would have questions for me about what my experience was like. I wondered if the situation was simply too awkward to talk about since everyone seemed to have been freaked out and because I had pissed myself. I watched every one of them looking for a telling answer in their facial expressions, but I found nothing. Supper time arrived and I found myself sitting at the same round table in the dining hall that I was used to. I was a welcomed brother in the gathering of boys who still talked to each other but not to me. I smiled at another table where Stevie sat and made shapes in his mashed potatoes while he waited for supper to end. There were five of us at the table and it intrigued me that the two quietest people were myself and Carl, who sat staring at the fork that he held in his hand. I watched Carl, stabbing his fork into his pork chop and I wondered what was going on. Carl suddenly dropped his fork onto the plate and that got the attention of the other boys close by. The hum in the dining hall was still somewhat loud from the other tables but our table was still and silent as we waited for Carl to speak. "Artie? We need your help." Carl said across the table. I looked at every boy at the table and saw that none of them were confused by the oldest boy's words. They all just sat in there seats and listened while Carl said what they had obviously talked about before. My shoulders slumped as I waited for the catch to this newly regained acceptance. I knew that there had to be something behind Carl's sudden change of heart and I waited, straight faced for him to tell me what he wanted. Carl leaned forward against the table, toward me, half whispering, "We stole the video camera from the library." Carl quickly looked around to be sure that no one had heard. My perplexed stare at the older boy across the table, made him lean over more as he continued. "We want to take a video of the ghost in the hallway." Blood surged through my body as my body contemplated the flight or fight response at having to say those words in the dark hallway again. I felt my arms hug in closer to my body as my mind tried to understand whether Carl was actually saying saying what he was saying. "Just listen!" Carl said, in an eager pitch across the table. "You're the only one that it has ever worked with." He watched my horrified face as I listened and did his best to make it sound like what he was asking was simple. "All we need is a few seconds of video and we'll be famous." My head began to shake in disapproval and it felt like some one else was controlling me as I started to get out of my chair. "Wait!" Carl pleaded. "Just hear me out and if you don't want to do it then you don't have to." I sat back down in my chair, more out of exhaustion than a will to listen. Although Carl and the other boys were so close, they seemed far away, or on a movie screen. Nothing felt real while my body simply wanted to escape this situation. "Think of it, Artie!" Carl continued, "We would have all sorts of money and we wouldn't have to worry about one of us being taken off to live with people we don't know." His eyes stared into me and begged me quietly. "We could have all the money we need and stay together as a big family forever." "Yeah." I heard Toby add, "You already did it once and nothing bad happened." At age eleven, Toby was the second oldest boy in the building and he was always riding Carl's coat tails. My heart was pounding out of my chest and I tried to breath deep to calm myself. I know that I was looking at every boy at the table like they were crazy. The whole idea of being rich sounded great but it also sounded too good to be true. I couldn't help but understand their urgency as I caught Stevie's restless figure in the corner of my eye. If we really could all stay together, it would take away all of my fears of being separated from Stevie forever. It hurt to think of my little surrogate brother all alone in some strange house that I couldn't find. Carl's plan was far out, terrifying and ridiculous but I wondered if the plan could help matters on a short term level. Once again, I was forcing myself to say words that I didn't want to speak. My mouth was suddenly dry and I took a sip of water from the glass in front of me. When I set the glass down, I interrupted Toby as he continued to try to encourage me. "I'll do it." I blurted out before I could stop myself. The table went silent again and each boy exchanged a glance with another, finally looking to Carl. I saw a smile grow on Carl's face that was only half comforting. "But you have to promise to be nice to Stevie from now on." I watched the grin fade from Carl's face and saw him hold a fake smile. "You have to include Stevie in everything from now on." I added. "If you agree to that, then I'll do it." I saw Carl's brown eyes glance at Toby, then back to me. He took a deep breath and then shrugged, saying, "Okay. Agreed." I breathed a bit easier, knowing that the road ahead would be simpler for Stevie. I really hoped that nothing bad would come from another encounter with the orphanage ghost and if that was the case, then the arrangement would be worth it. When dinner was over and we walked back to the bunk house, the other boys in Carl's group were genuine with their accepting me back. I got all sorts of pats on the shoulder and they were really including me in on the conversations about everything. As the boys broke up into their usual evening clicks, I sat with Carl's group around his bed. It made things easier that I could smile around my house mates for real again, especially knowing what I would have to do later that night. No one objected when I waved Stevie to come over and join us in our discussions. Stevie was hesitant at first, but when he sat down and saw that he was really welcomed, he was in awe of the older boys. There was such an excitement in the air from the small group and I think Stevie was starting to understand what would happen later on that night. Every time I felt my heart pounding in my chest from fear, I would pat a hand on Stevie's back, telling myself that it was worth much more than a few words in a hallway. The subject of the gathering turned to sex, as it always did. I caught Stevie giving me asking glances, wondering if he should go to his bunk for the 'grown-up' subject. I answered Stevie by hugging him close to me on the bed. My little buddy didn't take his eyes off of me for a while, and I hoped that he was staring at me out of gratitude. Most of the talk about balls and dildos went right over Stevie's little head, but he seemed to pick up on other things. When some one told a sex joke, Stevie laughed along with us like he knew what was funny. Nothing would wipe the smile off of Stevie's face and I felt bravery build inside of me. This wasn't just worth it, it was a steal to see him smile so much. As the night wore on, the discussions were more serious, talking about what kind of ghost could be haunting our school. Eric suggested that it might be a demon and David said that it was probably an evil mermaid that wasn't all the way dead. Both of the other boy's ideas were absurd, but as the darkness grew, so did the creepy feeling. I felt Stevie latch onto my arm while looking around the room with worried eyes. I pulled Stevie closer against me letting him know that I was there to protect him. The other boys on our floor were moving back and forth between the rooms and the wash rooms, cleaning up for bed. When Mr. Menard called 'Lights Out' down the hall, it was time for our plan to go into action. It became evident to every boy on the floor that we were going to try and capture the ghost activity on video. Most of the younger boys were huddled into the back of their rooms, refusing to participate out of pure fear of the ghost. Some of the older boys that were around my age came forward to peek out of their doorways to watch. I stood in front of Stevie, cupping his little face in my hands. He was crying and I was trying my best to comfort him and let him know how quick it would be done and over so that we could go to sleep. Nothing that I said could comfort the little guy and I finally had to tell him that he could wait here in the room with his eyes covered until I got back. I left every lamp on in the room since it seemed to comfort Stevie more. I waited for Toby to set the toy car down in the middle of the hallway and made sure that David had the camera at a good angle. My heart was pounding again and I was sure that everyone could see my chest thumping. My legs were weak and I was trying to comfort myself by thinking of the same things that I had just told Stevie. No matter how much I moved my own spit in my mouth, it felt too dry. My hands were shaking again and I paused, letting myself get a few deep breaths before I started down the hall. I heard movement in the doorway behind me and was alarmed to see Carl holding Stevie in a full-nelson. "What are you doing?" I demanded. "You said you were going to be nice to him!" I saw Carl grip harder on Stevie's arms, saying, "This is to make sure you go through with it." "Let him wait in the room!" I barked, "He's scared!" "Then you'd better hurry." Carl insisted. I saw Stevie stop struggling against Carl's stronger arms and close his eyes while he started crying. I did my best to show Carl a look of absolute hate and disgust and just when I was going to send a fist flying to break his face, I saw his grip tighten again, hurting Stevie. "Okay!" I said quickly, hoping Carl would ease up a little. "I'll be real quick Stevie." I tried to reassure him. I turned around, finding myself less scared of the stupid little car on the floor. The strength was back in my legs and my hands weren't shaking, but balled into tight fists. I walked forward toward the car and stopped only a foot away, speaking the words clearly and without falter. "Willie Nillie, I've got the willies. Come to me!" I said, in a demanding tone. I was hoping that the car would move across the floor and Carl would be satisfied with what he got on tape. For a few long seconds, nothing happened. All was quiet and as I began to repeat the words again, the car started to roll toward me. I could feel the heated expression of anger that was fixed on my face as I watched the tiny car roll forward. I felt the tiny car come to a stop when it tapped against the tip of my foot. I immediately turned all the way around to face Carl, who was still holding a very scared little Stevie in his grip. "There!" I growled at Carl, "Are you happy?" But Carl didn't respond right away. I waited for him to release my little buddy or I would have to get physical and rip my boy from his arms. I could feel the power of adrenaline coursing through me, making me feel the need to fight. My pumping fists were strong at my sides as I waited to lay a punch at Carl's jaw. However, Carl wasn't being defiant with me, he wasn't even holding onto Stevie as tightly as before. Both Stevie and Carl's eyes were wide with surprise and pointed at the floor below me. My eyes looked down and I saw the wooden car creeping its way between my legs, and moving toward Carl and Stevie. I heard Carl let out a scared whimper just before he released Stevie. I saw Stevie quickly run away and into the bedroom, leaving Carl there, petrified and staring at the moving toy. I had never seen Carl look so vulnerable and instead of being scared, I was glad. It was mass chaos in the hallway as boys shouted and ran to slam doors shut while the car creeped its way across the floor. Finally the wooden toy stopped about six feet in front of Carl's cringing figure, then launched into the air at a fast velocity bouncing off Carl's forehead with a loud clack. By the time the toy hit the floor, Carl was already running into a room, David had dropped the camera on the floor and I was alone in the hallway. I found myself surrounded by a hallway of shut doors, but one door opened showing a very angry Mr. Menard. The tall man looked from me to the camera and then he eyed the toy car on the floor. "Pick that up." Mr. Menard ordered, pointing at the video camera on the floor. He walked down the hall and picked up the toy, putting it in his pocket, then told me to follow him. The tall man walked wearing a disturbed expression. He was quiet the entire time and I was sure we were headed to his office, which meant that I was in big trouble. The door to Mr. Menard's office opened, showing me a room that I hadn't seen in years because I usually never got in trouble for things. The tall and skinny man, gestured for me to sit in the upholstered chair in front of his desk and I did so quickly. Mr. Menard removed his black night jacket and set it on the back of the chair behind his desk. I heard the man let out an audible and grumbling sigh as he stared at the floor. I watched quietly and waited. Finally, the man's long fingers fished the toy car out of his jacket pocket and set it on the desk in front of me. I looked at the little car then watched Mr. Menard reach up to grab something off of a shelf that was up high. My jaw dropped as I saw Mr. Menard set down two similar wood carved cars next to the first one. I heard the creaking leather as the man sat in his chair and tapped a lengthy finger on one of the cars. Mr. Menard had a deep throaty voice that made a grumbling noise just before he spoke and I heard this noise several times before he finally said anything. "You know," Menard croaked, "I was an orphan once too?" I shook my head in reply. The large man nodded his head and sat back in his chair, saying, "I had a best friend and I think you could call him somewhat of a father figure." He let out a deep laugh. "Of course we were only little boys and it was like you are with young Stevie. I looked up to him because he took care of me." The tall man reached behind his chair to pull a silver picture frame off of a shelf, staring at it in silence, then adding, "He took care of all of us." I was finally able to see what was in the frame when Menard set it on the desk next to the cars, facing me. I was looking at an old faded black and white picture of a boy who looked like he was my age. The boy's hair was short and he wore shorts with suspenders that he let his hands hold onto. I grew a slight smile as I noticed the dimples in the boy's cheeks as he grinned for the picture. It was always nice to learn stuff about the people around me, but I was still curious about the punishment that I would receive and I wondered if Stevie was okay after his terrifying ordeal in the hall. I hoped that he would be sleeping peacefully in his bed and not being mentally tortured by Carl and the other boys. Mr. Menard stared at me, plainly seeing my thoughts on my face. "You're wondering why I'm showing you this, instead of punishing you?" I nodded my head lightly, looking away. "I'm showing you," Mr. Menard explained, "Because this boy," he pointed to the boy in the picture, "Is your ghost." I felt my eyes widen and the blood run from my face. I stiffened back against the chair I was in, in an attempt to gain distance from the smiling boy in the frame. I gulped feeling like the boy was staring at me. Mr. Menard shook his head slowly. "Don't be afraid of him Artie. I'm showing you this so you'll understand who is sharing our school with us." He took the picture frame into his hands again, putting me a bit more at ease. Menard looked up at the picture, lost in thought. "His name was William Nealy." Menard looked at me for a response, but I gave none. "What's that phrase you boys say to get a reaction?" Menard asked, now meeting my eyes directly, "Willie Nillie," Mr. Menard said, "Sounds similar to Willie Nealy doesn't it?" I sat up in the chair, a bit more alert as I took in the information. I looked at the man behind the desk as he went back to staring thoughtfully at the picture. "He was the oldest boy in the orphanage and he took on the role with broad shoulders. You see, we were orphans during the depression when no one wanted to adopt and no one was able to donate money or toys." Menard paused, glancing at the toy cars on his desk. 'But Willie treated us like his own family and made sure we each got a toy car for birthdays. He spent days hand carving each toy just for us." I could see the moisture building in Mr. Menard's eyes as he remembered the boy that he looked up to. "He saved candy throughout the year and made christmas morning special when we got to have a treat while we sang songs together." Menard set the picture frame back on his desk, but facing him this time. "And each night," he continued, "when any of us was scared, we would call out to him 'Willie Nealy, I'm scared please come to me!' I felt my breath catch in my throat as I heard the man recite the well known phrase and give it a whole new meaning at the same time. Mr. Menard never took his eyes off of the boy's picture as he spoke. "He would come straight to my bed and sit with me, running his fingers through my hair to soothe me. He was there every night for all of us when we needed him. And as he made it all better he would hum a song to us." I felt chills run the whole length of my body as I heard Mr. Menard begin to hum the song that I had heard earlier that day and every other day. And as Menard stopped at the familiar spot he said, "And that's when we would take over and sing the rest of the song. Willie always insisted that it was hard to be scared when you were singing a good song." I saw Menard try to smile through a frown. He took a deep breath in then slowly exhaled, saying, "Sometimes I can hum the first part and I swear I can hear him finishing the rest of it." I was breathing slowly as I realized that the humming boy that I heard earlier was a ghost. I wondered if it was a good thing that I was also hearing sounds from this orphan who'd passed on. The right side of my mouth turned up a little as I took new joy in remembering the toy car that went flying to hit Carl in the head. I had gotten very angry at Carl and it seemed that this ghost boy was just as mad. Mr. Menard became quiet as he still looked at the photo. Finally he turned to me, shaking his head, "As you know, we were orphans during a tough time." His voice changed becoming slower and more sad, "And as boys got sick all around us." I heard Mr. Menard's voice crack as he tried to keep talking. He pursed his lips tight and his bottom lip quivered. "Willie tried to save us all, but he was just a boy." The tall man seemed to shrink in his chair. His eyes shut tight and released long streams of tears at the same time. "And," he continued, "all he could do was make sure that other boys received the medicine that he should have gotten." Mr. Menard couldn't talk normal anymore. His face screwed up and became red with free flowing tears that glistened on his face. I wiped the moisture from my own eyes and sniffled through my nose. Finally I heard Mr. Menard clear his throat and say, "Well, you can guess what happened. And, Artie, I've told you all of this because Willie was the only thing that I ever had as a parent and every day since his passing, has been empty." He paused, holding tight onto the picture, "He deserves peace in his after life and not to be hounded by the media." Menard pointed to the video camera in my lap. I jumped a little, hearing Mr. Menard's accusing voice. I placed the camera on the desk in front of me shaking my head slightly. "That was Carl's idea." The man across from me nodded his head, scooting the camera closer. "I figured as much. The little turd blossom doesn't have anything better to do than to poke his nose in everything." He paused, examining me for a minute, then said, "Thank you for letting me share, Artie. And please keep helping little Stevie out like you have been, he'll remember it for many years to come." I nodded and stood up. Before leaving the room, I turned the picture so that I could see the image of the boy one more time. The smiling face wasn't scary anymore, but he actually seemed happy and I think I even saw a bit of myself staring back. The walk back to my floor was different than before. I was alone, in the dark halls. As I walked, I peered into dark hallways, now hoping to see the ghost boy that I had just learned about. It was nice to think that some one who had done so much for so many was able to stay in the place that he knew as a home. Every light was on in the large room where my bunk mates were. Mrs. Menard sat her plump figure on a chair at the end of the row of beds. She nodded at me as I tried to be quiet about entering the room and walked over to my bed. I saw Stevie's scared little face staring at me from under his covers. The little seven year old was red faced with tears and a frown that made my heart sink. I looked carefully at Mrs. Menard, then sat on the edge of Stevie's bed. The large woman nodded her head briefly and then left the room, shutting the door behind her. I pulled the covers down to reveal the whole of Stevie's face. I placed my hands gently on either side of his face and wiped away the tears with the balls of my thumbs. Stevie opened his mouth is a silent cry, releasing his full emotion now that I was there. He tried to be quiet while I took one hand and ran my fingers slowly through his light brown hair. I caressed Stevie's hair and cheek while he let it all out and as he settled down and was breathing normal again, I hummed a soft tune to him that I had heard everyday since I could remember. My seven year old little buddy's expression turned from sadness to curiosity as I hummed the soothing song. "You're not scared?" Stevie asked between shuddered breaths. I smiled genuinely as I said, "No." I leaned in close to Stevie, whispering, "The ghost is our friend." I heard the breath catch in Stevie's throat and his eyes open wide when he asked, "It is?" "Yes." I replied. "The ghost is a boy just like us and he didn't like the way you were being treated. That's why he threw the car at Carl's head." The bed shook as Stevie let out an audible giggle. "He did?" Stevie asked. I nodded my head in answer as I laughed right along with my little buddy. It was always nice to see a frown turn into a smile, especially after such a difficult night. I kissed Stevie's forehead and continued running my hands through his hair. I watched the fear drain from the little boy's face and saw his eyes close more and more, but suddenly his eyes opened wide. "Carl." Stevie said, "Carl says he's gonna beat me up when I go to sleep." I sat up, examining Stevie's expression and feeling the adrenaline surge through me again. I turned around to see Carl's eyes watching me as he laid down. There was a large red knot at the center of Carl's head that marked the spot where the toy had hit him. "He says he's gonna sneak out and steal the video tape back." Stevie added. I turned back to show a reassuring smile to Stevie. I kissed his forehead again, then told him, "You don't have to worry about Carl." I got up from Stevie's bed and stood like a statue, meeting Carl's eyes. I made sure that he saw the anger in my eyes and the silent growl on my lips. I stayed there for at least two minutes until Carl took his eyes off of me. I watched Carl turn over in his bed, facing the other way. Stevie was still awake and watching me as I fished my hands under my bed to pull out my olive green army coat. I slid out another box from under the bed that had toys and trinkets and in the middle of it all was my silver flash light. I sat in the middle at the head of my bed with my back resting against the headboard. I was sitting on top of the covers with my shoes on along with all of my outdoor clothing. My knees were bent upward so that my hands were resting on them and holding onto my flashlight. To anyone who saw me, I was on guard and ready to move at a moment's notice. I glanced side ways to view the comforted smile of Stevie's sleepy face. I winked at the little guy, letting him know that he was safe and that I had his back for the night. I made a horrible guard. I think I was able to stay awake for a good twenty minutes before feeling the weight of my own eye lids. Fortunately for me, it didn't take long for Carl to succumb to sleep either. I heard a regular snore coming from Carl's bed and I think that put me more at ease with falling into slumber. I stirred awake in the middle of the night, being brought to consciousness by something so tranquil and soothing. I had never actually felt it before except in my dreams. I felt the gentle and caring touch of fingers brushing through my hair. It was what I did to comfort Stevie, but it is also what I craved for myself. My eyes opened quickly and what I saw, sent a shocking jolt through me. I would have jumped out of the bed if I hadn't recognized who and what was touching me. I felt my body go rigid as I tried to sink further into the mattress. At some point during the night, the majority of the lights had gotten turned off except for one that was across the room and I had scooted down into the laying position on my bed. Now, in the middle of the night, I looked up and saw a set of dimples along with a smile. Willie was only about six inches above me, hovering in the air. We were face to face and I looked down toward my feet to see the ghost boy's full body hovering and swimming in the air above me. I felt the abrupt tension drain from me as I realized that the boy was here to caress and not to scare me. I breathed easier as I allowed the set of ghost fingers to comfort me and give me the touch that I didn't know that I needed so much. With every soothing stroke of his hand, my eyes closed and then opened again. On the third stroke of the caring fingers, I opened my eyes and was startled to see that the boy had disappeared. I sat up on my elbows, searching the room for the figure of the boy that was just there. I saw the slow rise and fall of the other boy's breathing as they slept in their beds. Stevie was fast asleep in the bed next to mine. I smiled, feeling good about giving his a restful sleep. The silver flashlight rolled off of my chest to lay next to me. I adjusted my position on the bed to tug out a twisted piece of my jacked that I had rolled over in my sleep. That is when I felt a tugging on the gray scarf around my neck. I thought that perhaps I was laying strangely on the long piece of material, but it sat draped across my buttoned jacket. There was no mistaking it this time, the scarf was definitely moving by itself on my stomach. I grabbed at the gray cloth, holding it tight in my grip and then feeling my blood rush as the part of the scarf that was around my neck, snaked its way around and came completely off. I gulped, staring at the fist full of material in my hand. This is when I heard the unmistakeable humming sound that I had heard earlier in the day. It was the same boy that was humming and it made me smile. I let go of the scarf and watched curiously as the scarf seemed to pull itself off of me and drop onto the wooden floor. The soft humming stopped in the same familiar spot that I was used to. I knew that this meant that I should continue the song, but I had only heard the second part once. "I don't know the whole tune." I whispered into the darkness. A few quiet seconds went by and I heard the second part of the song being hummed with an echoing ghost voice that felt far away, yet close by. The front of my jacket began moving and tugging away from my chest. I lightly lifted my upper body off of the bed but felt chest being pushed back down on the bed. The metal buttons that held my army jacked closed, snapped open one by one. I felt myself gasp with every button that undid itself. When all of the buttons were undone, both flaps to the front of my jacket were flung open, draping over my arms at my sides. I began shrugging my right shoulder out of the right sleeve of my jacket, but I quickly felt the shoulder of the jacket, come right back up again. It suddenly became clear to me that the ghost boy wasn't helping me get comfortable for bed. I stopped trying to figure out how to help the boy and laid flat, trying to look submissive. "Go for it." I whispered. My breathing became shaky as I readied myself for the experience. I shuddered when I saw the green material on my old polo shirt, move around and gather near my belly button. I watched as my shirt lifted above the waist line of my pants, exposing my stomach. My tummy rose and settled unevenly and I gasped as I saw my innie of a belly button indent into me further. My hands gathered bunches of the top cover on the bed and I sucked in air as I felt what had to be a tongue probing into me. It was odd feeling moisture when there was no real wetness at all. I watched as little points of the skin around my belly button sucked upward. I heard kissing noises and held onto the covers even tighter as I enjoyed the feeling that made my dick move a little. I tried to be quiet, but I couldn't stop a quiet moan from escaping. The kissing on my stomach stopped and I held my breath while I waited to see what would happen next. My eyes searched the surrounding beds to make sure everyone was still sleeping and I was glad to see that they were. I saw the leather belt on my waist lift up a little. I jumped at the tugging and felt my heard beat speed up while I contemplated what all this would lead to. The brass belt buckle clinked while the loose end seemed to push itself out of the metal loop that held the belt on. The end of the leather strap tugged quickly to the right and I felt my waist line expand, giving into the loosened belt. I wasn't fat or anything but I still had some baby pudginess that collected around my sides. The belt loosened and undid itself, pulling the two ends completely apart from each other. The brass buckle made all sorts of loud noises and I checked the other sleeping boys to see that none had waken up. I huffed out a quick breath when I saw the button of the front of my pants, pull upward, shaking the bed. The button tugged twice more until finally I heard the snap that opened the fly of my jeans. I swallowed and felt my toes curling in my shoes as I watched the metal pulley for my zipper, pull itself slowly toward my feet. I didn't have a big dick or anything, but what I did have was slowly becoming hard and pushing my white briefs through the newly opened V at my crotch. I pushed my hips up slightly, liking the feel of the cotton against my hard-on and I heard my own uneven breathing as I watched the elastic band of my briefs raise up and away from my skin. The waist band of my undies was opened just enough that I could see my own skin covered dick head pulsing with my heart beat. The elastic made a quiet slapping noise as it was let go against me. I saw an indent push in on my right side pant leg and I watched it trace all the way to my shoes. It looked like my feet were twitching or something because my shoes moved around on the covers randomly. The brown laces of my right shoe began moving all over until I saw the laces untie, pointing straight up, then fell back down again. It was the same thing for the other shoe until both shoes felt loose on my feet. I wiggled my toes in the shoes that were ready to come off and that's when it felt like both shoes jumped right off of me at the same time. I smiled a little when it looked like the toes of my socks were becoming pointy. The tips of both of my socks stretched upward and gathered into balls in the air above my feet. Slowly, the cotton socks pulled off to join the bunched cotton until my feet were finally naked. I wiggled my toes again as I watched my socks land on the bed next to my shoes. I waited for a few seconds while nothing happened until I finally felt the left sleeve of my jacked tugging itself over my hand. I closed my fingers into a fist to allow the sleeve to slide over my hand. I shrugged my left shoulder up. It appeared that this was the right time to allow the jacket to come off because I wasn't stopped. I half helped as the left side of the jacket tugged off of my arm, leaving the right side still fully on. I felt the same tugging on my right sleeve and I knew what to do as I helped my right arm come fee of the jacket. All that remained, was the olive green jacket that I was now laying on top of. I my shirt bunched itself out of the way of my stomach and I controlled my breathing as I watched the indentations on my stomach and heard even louder kissing noises. As I watched the skin of my tummy move around, I saw my shirt raise even higher up until my nipples were exposed. My eyes widened as I viewed the skin of my nipples bunching together and twitching repeatedly. A loud moan escaped my mouth while I braced myself to keep taking in the intense feeling of my nipples being manipulated. I wanted the feelings on my chest to continue but Willie had other plans for me. The hem of my shirt jerked itself up, covering my face. The material moved up until I was forced to hold my arms above my head. I tilted my head back but the color buttons were clasped and that didn't seem to matter because my shirt just kept on moving past my head until I felt the material strain and then heard the buttons snap off. Finally the my green polo shirt lifted off of me and landed on the pillow behind my head. My eyes scanned the room again, making sure no one was awake to hear my breathing, which had picked up in pace quite a bit. I saw my throbbing boner, poking up like it was asking for help. I let my hips move up and down to brush against my undies with repetition. I humped slowly, wondering when I would finally get my dick touched by a ghost. I gulped, seeing the fly of my jeans flip open wider. Next, I saw the hem of my pants bunch up on my left leg and then on my right leg. I readied my self to feel my pants slide off of me, but instead, my legs lifted upward and bent with my knees against my chest. I stopped breathing when I felt my pants and briefs slide to expose my butt. I could feel a prodding at my cheeks that tickled and ran along my crack. I wondered if this is the part where I would have sex with the ghost boy and I was curious if it was even possible for Willie to reach a climax if he was...not living. My thoughts were interrupted when I saw my legs straighten to point up. The material of my jeans lifted up to my feet, bunching like an accordion. Inch by little inch, the legs of my jeans were released past my foot to hang down on either side of my leg, until the crotch of my pants were at my feet. I couldn't wait any longer and I took the liberty of kicking my feet, sending the pair of jeans to the floor next to the bed. There I was for all to see. If anyone woke up, they would see my legs foolishly jutting into the air, with my white briefs pulled so that my ass could be seen. I liked seeing my own nakedness while my boner was throbbing for more. Maybe it was because I was simply horny, and maybe it was because I was put in this position by a ghost orphan who knew what it was like to be lonely. Whatever it was, I wished that I had put on more clothes to be removed. My legs bent at the knees again and I could feel a probing touch running along my crack toward my balls. I tensed my legs against the tickling on a part of my skin that had never been touched in such a way before. I watched my legs slowly open wider as the tickle came closer to my hard waiting dick. The sensation on my skin, crept up slower with every second and I could see movement that shifted the white cotton of my underwear. The movement continued until I saw the folds in the crotch of my undies gather into two separate bunches. The white threads that covered my privates all day, strained against the stress and I heard the ripping sound loud and clear. I sucked in a quick breath as I saw my tidy-whities being ripped apart. When the material was in two separate pieces, I watched them slink down my legs toward my feet until they were all the way off of me. I was completely naked on my bed with a boner poking straight up. It felt naughty and amazing at the same time. Without thought, my right hand moved to touch my dick and give it the attention that it needed, but I stopped myself, knowing that this is what Willie wanted to do. I let my shaking hand rest only inched away from my skin covered boner and hoped that something would happen soon. I couldn't take my eyes off of my own dick and I felt like if it didn't get some sort of physical stimulation soon, I would orgasm without even touching myself. Finally, I felt the energizing jolt of a stranger's touch on my most private of parts. My hands moved away, grabbing onto the army jacked that I laid on. I watched the shaft of my dick squeeze in at the sides and carry the indentation upward and then down again. I straightened out my legs, laying them flat on the bed again, tensing my butt and jutting my pelvis upward. The outer skin of my penis shifted, bunching and twisting slowly in various circling movements around my pole. My legs twitched as I was stimulated and my breathing was like I was running a marathon. I wondered if Willie was uncut like I was. I asked myself if he knew how sensitive an uncut dick was and if he knew how to make it feel the best. The answer was an amazing 'yes'. My jaw tensed and my mouth opened into a tight 'o' as I watched the pucker of my little hood open only slightly, then close again. This happened repeatedly and I loved every second of it. Each time I saw the skin open a little, I felt a jolt shoot from the head of my dick and penetrating through my abdomen. My legs twitched and moved randomly on the bed while I took in a feeling that was way better than anything I had done to myself. I loved it all. It felt hot and sexy feeling the breeze of the room draft onto my naked skin. It felt amazing to have my torso move in obvious fucking motions while I was naked. I never understood how exciting it could be until now. Willie stopped moving so slowly on my foreskin, and began moving faster. I saw the sheath over my dick open wider as waves of indentations made my penis look like a dancing snake. Every time I saw the deep red head of my red head of my penis I could see the depression against the slit that send jolts of ecstasy shooting into me. My butt wasn't even touching to jacket underneath and I raised myself up to meet the ghost boy's touch. "Its gonna come soon." I tried to whisper into the air around my dick. "My good feeling is coming soon." I let a quiet yelp escape when I felt the movement on my dick speed up to an incredible rate. It was so much and it was too much to take on. It wasn't hurting so much as it was feeling too good. I sat up quickly, hunching forward as I watched my dick twitching all over the place at a high speed. "Go slower." I grunted out with a whisper. But as I looked down between my legs, my dick was jolting and twitching at the same speed as before. All I could do was tense every single muscle in my body while I took on more sexual stimulation than I had thought possible. My jaw clenched shut and I was able to gasp between barred teeth, "Here it comes." I felt my ass and abdomen tighten on their own and my legs opened a little and then closed. I felt the warm wave of the involuntary tensing in my body while my pelvis tried to jut forward with as much strength as possible. I felt my face scrunch tight as I watched the relentless fondling of my hairless crotch. I growled uncontrollably but quietly against the unending waves of pleasure that were unbelievably forceful and powerful. My butt cheeks unclenched momentarily, and I felt the stimulation on my dick lessen while my boy stick twitched and felt like it was trying its hardest to pump out some invisible liquid. As I convulsed, hunching forward over and over, I saw my ball sack shifting all over the place and I found that I liked the tickling feeling that Willie was giving my sack as I climaxed. The pleasure surges moved into longer and weaker intervals. My breathing calmed a bit more as I took in the last few tickled on my ball sack. When there was no more stimulation on my skin, I felt alone in a room filled with sleepers. I pulled my jacket from under me to cover myself and waited in the thick silence, hoping that it wasn't the last of my ghost friend. "Where are you?" I whispered into the dim room. My answer came in the form of invisible fingers combing gently through my hair. It felt amazing in my warm and hazy afterglow. I wanted to say more and ask questions, but all I could do was take in a long and peaceful breath with every stroke against my scalp. I felt a tiny panic surge through me, thinking that I might just fall asleep before I could clean up. I kept telling myself to just sit up, clean up and then go to sleep. I also kept talking myself into laying still for just a few more soothing strokes through my hair. I woke up the next morning with a jolt. It felt like I had just closed my eyes while Willie was soothing me, then all of a sudden it was daylight and the other boys were awake and talking. I looked down the bed to see that covers had been thrown over me. I peeled the cover down and saw that I had my green shirt on again. I was fully dressed, shoes and all. Toby walked past my bed obviously avoiding eye contact with me. Stevie still lay in bed next to me humming a random tune as his eyes looked upward. Something hard was pressing against my side and I saw that it was my flashlight. I got a dreaded sick feeling in my stomach as I asked myself if I had really experienced those awesome moments of pleasure last night. I couldn't remember getting dressed again last night and I sure didn't recall anyone else doing it. I thought about the intense feelings that shot through me last night and the amount of noise that I must have made. In the new daylight, the experience felt unreal and my mind told me that some one would have woken up through out the whole experience. I suddenly recalled the moment when I saw my own undies being ripped in two. I wiggled my butt in my bed, trying to feel if I was wearing any underwear at all, but it was difficult to tell. My right hand felt past the twisted material of my jacket and pulled my shirt up. I felt the brass of my fastened belt and lifted it up and reached my left hand into my jeans. The huge suffocating ball in my throat was immediate. I grabbed on to the intact elastic band of my own underwear, and then felt my way lower. The my briefs were whole and not ripped in two. I felt the hot moisture of tears that wanted to fill my eyes. My body felt heavy and I tried to fight the frown on my face as I told myself that it was just a dream. I laid in bed for a long time. I heard everyone get up and leave for breakfast, except for little Stevie, who waited patiently in his own bed. I finally sat up, hearing Stevie's excited greeting. My flashlight rolled against my moving body, letting me know that at least some of the things that I remembered, were real. The ghost was real, even though my brain thought of him differently because of a good dream. "Hurry!" Stevie yelped at me, "Its blueberry pancakes today!" Food didn't sound very pleasing to me but I knew that Stevie wouldn't go to the dining hall unless I was there. I rolled out of bed, seeing the multitude of wrinkles in my clothes from sleeping in them. I heard footsteps hurrying from down the hall. I felt the instant rush of anger when I saw Carl rush in to fish something out from under his bed. Before leaving the room Carl stopped to show a look of scorn to both myself and Stevie. I stepped in front of Stevie, meeting Carl's dagger eyes. "Is that all you're gonna do? Just stand there and look stupid?" I stepped closer until I was only a foot away. The difference in height was noticeable and any other day it would of intimidated me. I kept my defiant face on, letting Carl know that he wouldn't find weakness here anymore. Carl's face briefly flashed on confusion, then he walked out of the room in a hurry again. I released a breath that I didn't know I was holding and turned around to see the wide grin on Stevie's face. I stood a little taller when I smiled back at my little friend. I quickly pressed flat open hands on the material of my clothes, but the wrinkles would have to stay through breakfast. Food suddenly sounded good again and Stevie's jumpy little figure was telling me to hurry so we wouldn't miss out. My shirt looked like It had been wadded up into a tight ball for thousands of years and it bugged me a little so I asked Stevie to wait two seconds while I put on another shirt. When I had put on my favorite maroon t-shirt, I heard Stevie ask, "What's that?" He was pointing to my pillow. I walked to the head of the bed and lifted the pillow. My eyes widened and I felt the awesome power of a smile on my face. I was looking at a pair of briefs that had been ripped in two. The End ***My other stories, Kissing Along His Neck – Posted 9-11-10 (gay/young-friends) Sweet Spot – Posted 9-18-10 (gay/young-friends) Working on the sequel Don't Do That – Posted 10-2-10 (gay/incest) n Brother's Touch – Posted 11-8-10 (gay/incest) The Right Formula – Posted 11-16-10 (gay/sf-fantasy) (For a complete list, I am listed as Paramoe in the prolific authors roster on Nifty)***