Date: Fri, 23 Jul 2004 01:58:44 EDT From: Bwstories8@aol.com Subject: The Castaway Hotel-book8, chapter 4 Legal Notice: The following story contains descriptions of graphic sexual acts. The story is a work of fiction and has no basis in reality. Don't read this story if: **You're not 18 or over, **If it is illegal to read this type of material where you live, **Or if you don't want to read about gay/bi people in love or having sex. The author retains copyright to this story. Placing this story on a website or reproducing this story for distribution without the author's permission is a violation of that copyright. Legal action will be taken against violators. I wish to extend my thank you to Emoe57 for his editorial assistance with this chapter, and Art, the real Vinnie and John for their additional input on each chapter. E-mail responses to the stories, story suggestions, or other 'constructive' comments or advice may be sent to: bwstories8@aol.com. * * * * * * * * Although the boys in these stories have unprotected sex, I strongly urge all of you out there to be smart and protect yourselves from various sexually transmitted diseases by using condoms when having intercourse. * * * * * * * * The Castaway Hotel-Book 8-by BW (Young-Friends). Copyright 2004 by billwstories Chapter 4 - The lost is found. February 2004 "Vinnie! Where the hell are you and where have you been?" I screamed into the phone, bringing Kevin running toward me. "Right now I'm in Altoona," he told me, before Kevin cut him off. "Vinnie, I'm so sorry," Kevin yelled over my shoulder and into the receiver. "I love you and I was a fool. Please forgive me and come home." He was crying again by this point. "Pop, I'm not sure I'm ready to talk to Kevin yet," Vinnie advised me, "but I just saw a missing poster with my picture on it, so I realized I'd better call home." "I'm glad you did, because we've been frantic for two weeks. Can we come pick you up?" "Yes, I think you'd better. I'll have the guy I'm with leave me here and I'll wait for you. I'm at a rest area on I-99, north of Altoona." "Okay, wait there and I'll get to you as quickly as I can, and you have a lot of explaining to do." "I know," he replied, sounding very timid, like a small child who knew he was going to get punished for his transgressions. "You know Kevin will want to come with me," I warned him, realizing that Kevin probably wouldn't be denied, now that he knew Vinnie was all right. "I know, but I'm not sure I can deal with that. I still love him, though I'm still hurt and angry with him because he cheated on me, but I'm also kind of embarrassed, because of what I did afterward." I assume he meant disappearing like he did, but I could tell he was trying to be honest with me. "Well, Kevin feels much the same way," I added, "so maybe you two could work it out alone, if I bring him with me." He didn't say anything for quite a few uncomfortable moments, but then he finally answered me. "Okay, if he wants to come and work things out, then I'll try to meet him halfway." "That's good, and I'll pass the message along. It will probably take us a couple of hours before we get to you, so see if there's someone on duty there, who you can stay with and wait for us." "Okay, I will. Thanks, Pop, and I am sorry for making you worry." I hung up the phone and turned toward Kevin, whom I had been trying to hush during the entire conversation, so I could hear what Vinnie was telling me. "Why didn't you let me speak to him?" he challenged. "Because Vinnie wasn't ready for that yet, but he did agree to let me bring you, so you can work things out in person." He began to calm down after hearing that. "Grab your coat, go the toilet, and grab some drinks and throw them in the small cooler, so we can take them with us, and we'll be on our way. I just want to tell Jake what's going on and then we can talk more about this in the van." "K," he responded, simply, though I can tell he probably still had a thousand questions he wanted to ask. Once we were in the van and on our way, Kevin began to interrogate me. "What did Vinnie have to say? Where has he been and who was he with?" "Slow down, and he didn't tell me much at all, except to say he was all right and would wait for us at the rest stop. He said he'd explain it all later." I could tell Kevin wasn't satisfied with what I told him, but I think he also knew that's all the information I had. Therefore, he just settled into his seat for the long ride. I looked over at him as I drove along and I saw his legs were twitching up and down, as if he was suffering from a bad nervous condition. He was also fidgeting in his seat, most likely his response to being uptight about how he was going to apologize for what he'd done. I decided it was best not to say anything to him at this point, so I let him continue to try to work things out for himself. Even though it was a cold winter's day, the road was clear, but the surrounding countryside was still covered with the snow from previous storms. The sun was also shining brightly and I would have considered it a perfect day for a ride, if our minds had been able to focus on the day and not what we were going to do after we got to where Vinnie was waiting for us. After about an hour of traveling like this, I asked Kevin to open a drink for me, as my throat was beginning to feel quite dry. I guess that had been caused by a combination of nerves and being in the dry heat of the house and the car, but I needed to moisten my lips, mouth and esophagus. Kevin handed me my drink and then opened one for himself, but we continued to sit in silence, as we got closer to the place where we'd be reunited with Vinnie. Watching him more closely now, I realized I'd never seen him this nervous or worried before, not even when he was going through his medical problems. "Okay, what's up?" I asked him. The sound of my voice caused him to look up at me and the sad expression I saw plastered across his face nearly broke my heart. "I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to get Vinnie to listen to me and forgive me for what I did," he told me. "I'm really worried he won't listen to what I have to say or want anything to do with me." "I know he's probably still a little disappointed and possibly even angry at you, but I think he still loves you and will most likely forgive you, over time. It may not be easy, but I think you can work things out." "Did he tell you that?" he asked, hopefully. "No, Kevin. As I told you, we didn't have time to discuss much, but I know Vinnie and I know you, and I'm sure you can smooth this over in time." I hoped that would hold him over until he and Vinnie could get together and begin to iron out their problems, but I noticed his legs where still bouncing up and down, like they were before. I took this to mean my words had brought him little comfort. As we finally approached the rest area, Kevin began to lean forward in his seat, as if this would help him see Vinnie sooner. Driving along the long service road, Kevin's head was snapping from side to side, as he sought some sort of sign of his boyfriend. I pulled into a parking space and turned off the engine, causing Kevin to immediately open his door. "Hold on there sport," I told him, causing him to stop with the door half opened. "I want to go find Vinnie by myself and talk to him alone. I think it's best I find out where he's been and why he didn't call us, before you and he begin to work out your problems. That's why I need you to wait here, until I get back." "But, Dad." he wailed, like I had just stabbed him. "No, it has to be this way, Kevin. I have things that I need to handle before he gets distracted with your concerns. I know this doesn't make you happy, but we have to do one thing at a time." "But I've waited so long to tell him I still love him," he whined again. "He knows that. He heard you shout that when he called home earlier today, and I'll make sure I let him know that too, but there are more important issues to be dealt with here. The fact that Vinnie just disappeared was totally uncharacteristic of him and could have had disastrous results, so I need to talk to him about this, so I can be sure it won't happen again." Kevin let out a very audible sigh, folded his arms across his chest and slumped down in his seat, in a defeated posture. I took that to mean he wasn't going to continue to argue with me for now. I got out of the van and walked toward the main structure, wondering where Vinnie might be. Finally, I saw him emerge from a small room, where he had obviously been waiting, along with someone who worked there. He didn't say anything at first and just walked out with his head down, occasionally lifting it slightly, to glance at me. I was sure he was trying to read my expression, to see if he could tell how much trouble he was in. "I'm sure glad to see you," I told him, to break the ice. He didn't answer me right away, but then timidly lifted his head to reply. "I'm glad to see you too," he mumbled, "and I'm sorry I made you worry and run all over looking for me." After telling me that, his chin dropped back down against his chest, like a puppy that knew it had done something terribly wrong. Seeing his reaction, I walked up to him and gave him a hug, though this was awkward to do, with his arms stiffened against his crutches to help support himself. "I'm glad you're all right," I told him, causing his body to relax slightly, "but we need to go somewhere to talk." "Okay, I'll go with you to the van and we can talk there," he advised me, but I quickly let him know that wouldn't do. "Kevin's in the van, and I have things I want to talk to you about first, before you two begin to work out your problems." He looked up at me and just stared for a few seconds, before he said anything else. "I guess the guy who works here might let us use the room where I waited for you. Give me a second and I'll ask him." He wheeled about and went back into the room, and before long another man came out. "Go ahead and use that room, if you want. I have some things I need to do anyway, and it will take me a while before I finish." I thanked him and then he disappeared, so I followed Vinnie into the room, to confront him. "Okay, I want to know what happened, from the beginning," I demanded. "And I also want to know why you didn't contact us during that whole time." He hung his head again, before answering me. "Well, I guess Kevin's told you what I saw when I opened his dorm room door," he began, looking up at me. I nodded, so he continued. "I was so upset I couldn't even say anything and I just left. As I was driving away, I saw Kevin run out after me and I heard him scream out for me to stop, but I couldn't face him then. I started driving home, but I was so hurt and crying so hard, I could hardly see, so I pulled over at a rest area. I really don't remember a lot about what happened after that, but I will tell you as much as I can remember." "And why don't you remember what happened?" I asked him. "I don't know. Maybe my mind is blocking some of it out or maybe it was just because I was so angry that I can't remember what I did, but I do recall bits and pieces." "Okay, tell me what you can then," I advised him. "Well, after sitting in the 4Runner and crying for a long time, I finally got out and went to the men's room. There was hardly anyone around at that time and it was dark out, so I hoped no one would see my red eyes or ask any questions. I think I washed my face and then I think I went and sat on a toilet for a while, not because I had to go, but just so I could think about what to do next. When I finally went back outside, I couldn't find the 4Runner, and that's when I began to feel even more stupid. I guess I left the keys in it and someone had stolen it and all my things." He looked at me, like he was waiting for me to begin yelling at him or telling him how dumb he was, but when I didn't, he continued his story. "That was too much for me and I guess I must have broken down and started crying again. I kind of remember some guy asking me what was wrong, and I think I told him that my car was just stolen, so he asked if he could help. He said we had to call the police and tell them about the car being stolen, but I told him I'd get in big trouble if I did that, so I'd wait until I got home, so I could tell you first. He kept arguing with me that I had to report it or call home first and tell you, so you could report it, but I think I told him you were away on a trip or something." Vinnie paused in his story, trying to remember what came next. Moments later, he began again. "I think he was mad because I wouldn't call the police or home, but he asked me where I was heading. I think I told him I was going back home and could use a ride, so he said he'd give me one." He paused again, and I almost used this lull to tell him how foolish he had been to accept a ride from a total stranger, but I think he had probably figured that out for himself already, so I remained quiet. "I got in his car with him," Vinnie continued, "and he started driving. He asked where I wanted him to take me, and he said later I told him I'd let him know when we got there, but I guess I never did. I was thinking so much about Kevin and what had happened that I didn't even realize we had gone past the exit I would have taken to get home. I didn't even think anything about it until he got off an exit and stopped at a restaurant to get something to eat. It was a good thing I had kept my money on me and hadn't left that in the 4Runner too." I nodded, letting him know I agreed, but I didn't want to stop him from continuing his tale. "Now that I knew we'd already gone by the exit to get home, I didn't know what I should do, so I didn't say anything to the guy who was giving me the ride. I didn't need for him to think I was dumb too, but in the restaurant he asked me again where I wanted him to drop me off, and he told me later I told him something like, 'it doesn't matter...I've lost my love...so I've no place to go.' I guess that's when he decided to just take me home with him, until I figured out what I was going to do." He stopped and looked at me again, trying to gauge my reaction and see how upset I was with him. His eyes were moist, and I know it pained him to tell me all this information, but I wasn't about to let him off the hook so easily, primarily to pay him back for causing us more than two weeks of worry. "So what happened next?" I prodded him. "He asked me lots of questions, I guess, like if I was still in school, where I lived, what I was going to do now, and things like that, but I guess I didn't tell him much. He said he'd let me stay with him for a few days, until I decided what I wanted to do next. I guess I did tell him I was eighteen, so he wasn't worried about getting into legal problems by letting me stay there. Anyway, I don't remember much after that, except he kept trying to get me to call the police to report the 4Runner being stolen or call home and let you guys know where I was. I faked a call home one day, so he'd leave me alone, and I guess he believed I had, so he quit bugging me about that. But he didn't stop telling me I had to get over whatever it was that was troubling me and go back home. "Vinnie, didn't you think we'd be worried to death about you and wondering where you'd been. Didn't you think we'd be frantically out looking for you, thinking something awful might have happened to you?" He looked at me sheepishly. "I really didn't," he admitted. "I was only thinking about Kevin - what he did and what I was going to do next. That's all I could think about." His head dropped down after he said this, so he was looking at the ground. At that point I decided to move on, pulling him away from thinking about that, before he shut down completely. "Who's this guy you've been staying with?" "His name is Don, but all his friends call him Duck. I guess when he was little his family called him Donald Duck to tease him and the Duck part just stuck." "Yes, I've heard that happening to other guys named Don," I concurred, "but tell me a little more about him." "He's in his twenties, but only a few years older than me, he lives alone, but has a girlfriend, and he's not much bigger than I am either. That helped, because he let me wear some of his clothes, because I had nothing besides what I was wearing." "Had you taken enough money with you, to pay for everything you needed during that time?" "Not exactly, but Duck covered for me a lot." "We'll have to reimburse him for whatever you cost him then." "Yeah," Vinnie agreed. "That and more." "So what made you finally call home then?" I asked him. "Duck was going to the Penn State campus to go watch some sporting event, so I thought I'd go there and find Danny, so I could spend some time with him. I planned on telling him what had happened and then ask him what he thought I should do next," Vinnie admitted. "So why didn't you go ahead with that plan?" I asked. "I was going to, but after we got on I-99, I had to take a leak, so Duck pulled over at the rest stop. While I was in the toilet, I guess Duck started checking out the bulletin boards and things while he was waiting for me. When I came back out, he called me over and showed me the poster I take it you guys had put up." He hung his head slightly again. "You know, it was Kevin who made us go out and put those up. I would never have thought about putting them along I-99." "How did he happen to think of doing that?" Vinnie wanted to know. "He was just frustrated from sitting around doing nothing, so he grabbed the atlas and studied it. That's when he announced that we needed to put the fliers up along I-99 and I-79 too, seeing we'd already put them up along I-76 and I-70." "Neat," Vinnie commented enthusiastically, after concluding that Kevin must still loved him, or he wouldn't have gone through all that trouble for him. After I prodded him, Vinnie kept going. "So, Duck called me over and pointed at the poster and told me, 'Dude, I THOUGHT you called home.' I told him I did and you must have put that up BEFORE I called, and he bought it. Then I told him maybe I should call home and arrange to get picked up this time, so he handed me his cell phone and told me to call right then." "I'm glad he did," I responded, "and I owe both him and Kevin for getting you back safely to us." I hugged Vinnie again, but it was slightly easier this time, since he had been sitting on a table and his crutches we're leaning against the wall. This time as I hugged him, he hugged me back. "I'm really sorry for making you worry," he told me again, "but I guess I just wasn't thinking straight after that happened." I just hugged him a little harder, letting him know all was forgiven. "I really don't remember much about my time with Duck, except he would continue to try to convince me that I could make up with my lover and get past our problem or I could move on and find someone else. I did listen to him, but I wondered what he'd have said if he found out my lover was another guy. Anyway, most of the time I'd just sit or lie around thinking about Kevin, but mostly I kept seeing him and that other boy sucking each other off. I also kept remembering how much it hurt to know my plans to spend a romantic Valentine's Day with him had crashed and burned." He was sobbing now, as those memories reopened the wounds that had not yet healed, releasing the torrent of water previously held back by the dams in his eyes. I gave him some time to purge himself of these feelings and then I tried to comfort him, as much as I could. "Look, I can only imagine how much that must have hurt and how angry you must have been, but I can only tell you I also saw how badly Kevin felt about what had happened. I won't try to defend his actions or make excuses for him, and you two will have to work that out on your own, but I can tell you he's been in a world of hurt for the past couple of weeks, since you took off." "Really? He felt bad? Do you really think he still loves me then?" Vinnie was asking these questions to make sure he wasn't misreading what I said, still hopeful that Kevin hadn't tossed him aside for someone else. "Yes, Vinnie. He felt terrible and I believe he still loves you. In fact, I'd bet he's probably about ready to start ripping the interior of the van apart, because we're taking so long." Vinnie looked a little relieved, yet I could tell he had many more questions he wanted answered. "Then why did he do that? Why was he with that other boy?" he managed to get out, but I squeezed his shoulders comfortingly. "I told you I won't try to explain things for him, but I will say that we all make mistakes. I think he was missing you and thinking about you made him horny. When it occurred to him that he was going to be alone on Valentine's Day, well his hormones led him to someone else and made the decision for him. At least that's the way he explained it to me. He said the other boy meant nothing to him, but he was available and provided Kevin with a chance to get his rocks off. I think if you two talk this out and don't overreact, you'll be able to work things out amicably." I now saw a spark of hope in his eyes. "I really want to forgive him, and I really do love him, but I just don't know if I can. Every time I close my eyes, I can still see him and that other boy sixty-nining." I nodded slightly. "And I'm sure you will continue to see that for quite some time to come. The thing is, do you love him enough to forgive him? You know, when I have questions about whether or not I can forgive someone, I think of a phrase by Alexander Pope. He was an eighteenth century English essayist and poet, and the one who wrote the famous line, 'To err is human, to forgive, divine.' Whenever I get mad at one of you boys for something you've done, like now, about your running away and not calling home, I think of that line and then I decide I love you enough to forgive you your mistake." Vinnie looked up at me timidly again, when I mentioned him specifically. I think that by tying my forgiving him for what he had done with his possibly forgiving Kevin for what he'd done, the message began to sink in. After considering my words briefly, he finally responded. "So you don't think he loves that other guy he was with?" "No, not at all. He just happened to be there and provided Kevin with a chance to get some sexual relief. Thinking with the wrong head, Kevin went for the easy solution to his problem. There was no emotional attachment or love involved, from what Kevin told me, and I believe him." Vinnie's body began to relax even more. "Okay, I think I'm ready to talk to Kevin about this now." He started to get up, but I stopped him. "Before you do that, I have a few things I want to talk over with you." Now his expressive changed again, and I could see he was apprehensive about where this might be heading. "I understand what happened that night," I told him, "and I can even agree that you might not have been thinking straight for another day or two, but you were gone for over two weeks. Are you telling me you never thought to call home and let us know you were all right?" If ever I saw a guilty expression on a person's face, it was plastered all over Vinnie's mug at that moment. He wiggled and squirmed a bit on his crutches, struggling with how he was going to justify what he'd done and rectify the situation. Even though I had told him I had forgiven him and was happy nothing bad had happened to him, it was clear to him now that I wasn't going to let what he had done slide. "I hardly remember anything about the whole first week," he explained. "Like I told you, I was kind of in a daze. I can't even believe Duck let me stay with him that long. I guess he felt sorry for me, knowing the 4Runner had been stolen and I'd caught my love cheating on me. Of course, I didn't tell him it was a guy who had cheated on me though, cuz I wasn't sure how he'd take that. But he took care of me and he even made me eat and everything." "I'm glad he did all of that for you, but that still doesn't explain why you didn't call home," I told him. "Well, it wasn't until last Sunday that I even started to realize I wasn't any place I was familiar with, but once I understood that, Duck began to explain what had happened since he first found me. He made sure he filled me in on all the details that I'd kind of blocked out of my mind. After I realized what I had done, I kind of panicked. I knew it was my fault the 4Runner got stolen, along with my clothes and cell phone too, which made me feel like a damn fool and I figured you'd be really pissed at me for doing that. Now I had two things to worry about. Not only was I was still upset about Kevin, but I had all this other shit to deal with too. Even though I thought about calling you then, I was scared about what you were going to do to me, because it was all just dumb. Besides that, I wasn't ready to face everyone and answer their questions about Kev and me." Talk about a guy looking like the proverbial kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Vinnie looked about as scared and uncertain as I'd ever remembered seeing any of the boys react when I cornered them about their actions. "Okay, when did I become this ogre that everyone is scared of coming to now?" I asked him, trying to get a response in a light-hearted manner. "What do you mean?" he asked, confused by my approach. "Well, you said you were scared of what I'd do to you, so which kid did you see me murder or maim? You must have caught me doing something like that," I teased, hoping this would take some of the pressure off of him. "What the heck are you talking about?" he asked me, still confused. "If you were that scared of me, you must have had a reason for thinking I was going to do something awful to you. So, what had I done in the past that made you think I was going to torture you or something?" Slowly his face began to brighten, like a light had gone off in his head. "Oh, no. It was nothing like that. It was just that I still wasn't thinking clearly. I wasn't really scared of you, it was just that for some reason I kept thinking I was going to get punished hard." "Well, I'm not sure I understand your reasoning, but I'll leave it alone for now. So, tell me why you didn't call before deciding to go talk to Danny?" "Well, for some reason I still thought you were going to be really mad, and I thought Danny could help me figure out how to keep that from happening. I guess I was more concerned about you having a heart attack after you found out what happened, rather than your just being so mad at me." He looked at me now, like he was worried about how I'd take that disclosure. Actually, I was touched that he would even consider my health as a factor, but I had to dispel his concerns. "Look, even though I had that one heart attack," I told him, "you boys don't have to keep worrying about it happening again. I'm watching my diet, taking care of myself, and I have nitro for emergencies." "But we don't want you to get to the point where you have to use it," he blurted out, "because the might mean we'd lose you, like Little Ricky lost his dad. That's the biggest reason I didn't want to have to tell you about everything that happened." "And you thought my worrying if you were all right or wondering what had happened to you wouldn't be worse?" I think I missed a bit of his logic here. "I guess I never thought about that, just that you would get really upset if you heard about the car getting stolen and everything else." "Well, that hasn't happened and it won't, so I think it's time we got things back to normal. If you weren't eighteen, I think I'd be having serious second thoughts about giving you any more freedom. However, I will think twice before I go along with any more of your proposals, mainly because you have shown a grievous lack of judgment throughout this whole process." "But, Dad, it was just because I was so upset," he pleaded. "I would have let that cover a few days of bad judgment, but not over two-weeks worth." I think he was starting to get my point now. "I think it's time you started to work things out with Kevin, so we can finish our discussion later. I still love you, but I do think you showed a severe lack of maturity throughout all of this. Let's not have it continue when you and Kevin start to hash things out." I knew he understood my disappointment in him, because if he were a dog, I would say he had his tail between his legs and was slinking away, as he headed for the van. I didn't want him to feel defeated, but he had to know how badly he screwed up too. It wasn't just Kevin who had made mistakes here. I hoped by putting him through some discomfort, he wouldn't be so apt to make a similar type of mistake in the future. However, now I had to bring him back to the present. "Vinnie, do you want to talk to Kevin alone, where you will have some privacy, or do you think you and Kevin can talk as I drive us home?" "I'm not sure," he responded. "Let's go ask him. I think he needs to be part of this decision too." I walked back to the van with Vinnie and I saw Kev sit up as we approached him. As we drew closer, he opened his door and walked to meet his halfway. Both boys walked very tentatively toward each other, so I positioned myself between them. "Do you two want time alone to solve your problems, or can you do it on the ride back?" Kevin looked at Vinnie, who gawked back at him, before they both turned toward me. "I'm willing to do it on the ride back," Kevin stated, "as long as we can do it face to face." That seemed to be enough to get things started, so they both hopped in the back of the van, as I got into the driver's seat. * * * * * * * * If you have enjoyed reading this story, you will find other stories by me at 'BW's Rainbow Youth Connection,' at http://bwsryc.gayauthors.org/ You can also locate my stories by clicking on the Nifty author link and scrolling down to "BW". This will give you the links for everything I have posted there. I also love to hear from my readers and get their reaction to my stories. If you don't mind, please share whatever information you feel comfortable with, because it helps knowing my readers better when I decide what to write or how to gear it. Please email me at bwstories8@aol.com and let me know what you thought, so I can do even better in the future. Thanks, Bill.