Date: Sun, 12 Aug 2018 15:03:23 +0000 From: Dylan Greene Subject: Black Creek Boys: Chapter Eight DISCLAIMER: M/m This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This story contains descriptions of explicit sexual acts of boys and men. It contains graphic scenes of sex between consenting underage boys with adult males. If this type of content offends you or you are under the age of 18, do not read it. If it is illegal to read such material where you live or if you find the topic distasteful, then please stop reading now. You have been warned. This story is the property of the author. It can be downloaded for personal reading pleasure or sending to a friend, but if you wish to re-post them at your own site, please contact the author for permission. Author's Note: This will be my last chapter for a week or two as the past few chapters were written in advance. If you have enjoyed this or other stories on Nifty, consider donating to keep the service free. http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html If you would like to contact me at greene_d_1987@hotmail.com feel free, feedback is, of course, always welcome. Chapter Eight I was dressed and ready to head out to work. Alex was yawning so I kissed him and we said our goodbyes. I made sure to check in on the other boys but they were both sleeping soundly so I gave them each a kiss on the forehead and whispered my goodbyes while they breathed softly. I made sure to leave my work number next to Rosietta's on the fridge before I warmed up some tea from the fridge and was on my way out the door to start the truck with a bagel in my mouth. A part of me didn't want to leave the boys so soon after everything that had happened in the last few days, and I knew they didn't like the idea much either, but as they say, life must go on. I finished the bagel before I made it to the highway, and I sipped the rest of my tea on the way into Savannah. By the time I parked the car in front of the office building and made my way up the elevator to the fourth floor, I already missed the boys dearly. The morning crew was already there, though they were still walking around and just starting to get into the flow of the day. It wasn't until I walked past my assistant who was bent over rummaging through her purse that I'd gotten anything other than a "Good morning." "Dylan Streetman!" The woman practically caused the windows in my office to vibrate. "Now you know every Monday is a rush because you don't work on Sundays, but do you know how much we had to reschedule after you didn't show up Saturday?" My assistant, as dolled up as ever, was standing in front of my desk, glaring down at me as I logged into my computer to check my emails. "Actually I do, since I don't take meetings on Saturdays, not to mention I finished the Talon project on Friday, so you had nothing to reschedule. Correct?" I asked sarcasticlly, knowing full well she was just mad at me for not coming in, not that I'd inconvinced anyone other then her. "Yeah well, still. That consultant from that Greenfeild company called Saturday to confirm on the Talon project and I had to tell him to call back Monday, I scheduled the call during your lunch, just so you know." I couldn't help grin at that, knowing full well she'd scheduled it during my only break of the day for no other reason than to spite me. Sometimes I really loved this woman. "Would you like to know why I wasn't in Saturday Julia?" I knew she did, she just had enough class not to pry openly, she'd wait and try and get the information in a roundabout way if I just left her to her own devices. "I was told it was a family emergency of some sort, that brat you hired to take the office calls really doesn't know how to give specifics." Julia huffed. "I believe she's following the office's code of conduct concerning personal privacy." I retorted with a grin as Julia shook her head, clearly becoming frustrated but I could also tell she was glad to have me back. "Well, when you decide to tell me when you started having a family, you just buzz me and I'll call the psychiatrist cause I know for a fact you don't have any relatives." Julia said, with a cheeky grin of her own. "Why must you always threaten me with mental doctors? Plus, I've told you about my sister, the one I hadn't seen since I was a kid right?" Julia managed to cut me off before I could continue, clearly missing that the question was rhetorical. "Yes, yes. So I'm guessing she showed up and you spent the whole day drinking and getting to know her all over again instead of actually doing your job." She'd said the last bit as if me not coming into work was the only important part of the scenario she'd laid out in her mind. "Actually, she woke me up in the middle of the night Friday, stole ten grand while her boyfriend held me at gun point. Oh, and she abandoned two of my nephews before leaving, hopefully to never be seen or heard from again." The look on Julia's face was a mixture of disbilief and the clear confusion of not knowning if I was messing with her or not. "I, wait what?" She stammered. "Their names are Alex and Daniel, I spent Saturday tracking down my oldest nephew Zack, my sister Sarah kicked him out of the house about a year ago because she found out he was gay. That's what I was doing Saturday." I cast the occansial glace in Julia's way while I was reading through my list of emails I needed to respond to. "My god Dylan. How, uh, how old are they?" She finally seemed to gather her thoughts after realizing I wasn't just messing with her. "Zack is the oldest, he's just fourteen, Alex is eleven, and Daniel is eight years old, though he'll be nine in about two weeks if I remember the date correctly." I offered back. "How are they holding up?" I couldn't help but to smile at that, I'd just knowned she'd be more interested in how the kids were doing. Ever since she'd lost her son two years ago, Julia simply wasn't able to handle children being in any form of distress. I'd seen how she'd turned all of her motherly love over to her two nieces after her son's death. Despite Julia's hard sarcastic nature in the workplace, I knew she was warm and fuzzy on the inside. "They seem to be a lot happier then they were when their mother had them. Seems her boyfriend liked to hit Zack before his mother threw him out, though he'd turned that anger towards Alex after that, you know the good old classic shitty childhood type deal. I'm just glad I have the chance to show them what a safe and loving home looks like." I paused midway through an email I was typing to look at her as she sat down in the chair in front of my desk. I hadn't expected her to start crying. "That's good then," She managed to choke out through the tears. "At least they're safe now." She finished. "It's okay Julia, we went to CPS yesterday, my sister already had a warrant out for her arrest for various crimes, and when I reported her missing the officer I spoke to seemed relieved someone had actually seen her. I've already got gaurdianship of the boys and I'm set to start the adoption process any day now. Until then I have full custody of the boys. They're safe." I reached out and grasped her hand to reassure her. I couldn't help but be reminded of the memory of the day she'd walked into my office and told me her son had died. Julia had walked calmly into my office after recieving the phone call. It wasn't until after she asked to have the rest of the day off that she'd started shaking uncontrolably. I'd known the moment she started screaming her son's name over and over, something was deeply wrong. That had been a horrible day. I'd gone with her to identify the bodies of her son and husband. They'd been crushed to death by a drunk semi driver. The images of the tiny body laying on the autopsy table haunted me nearly the same way as the horrors I'd seen in Iraq tormented my dreams. "Julia, my nephews are safe okay?" I tried to reasure her, knowing full well she wasn't good at handling children in danger or pain. "Good. Good, you keep them safe okay Dylan? Otherwise I'll have that good friend of your's, Ms. Ross if I recall, well, let's not think of such things." She grinned at me, causing me to grin back at her. "Deal, oh and should you be interested in meeting them at some point, shall we say Saturday night after work, we could have an early dinner, my treat." I offered since I knew how much Julia truely loved children. With dinner set for this Saturday, Julia and I talked a bit about the boys while I contiuned to type my way through the list of emails. Around ten or so I called the boys to see how they were doing and let Julia talk to each of them so she could make sure I was treating them well. They hadn't been awake for all that long though, and from what I could piece together, it seemed they were having ceral for breakfest in the living room at the time. I had a meeting around eleven and afterwards I noticed Alyssia had texted me saying she was gonna be around my place by three so she could get the grill ready, though I figured she was just saying that so she could come over a little early to see the boys some more, not that I minded. I half hoped that Daniel would run out to my truck as I parked just to tell me the big scary woman broke into the house again. I finished up my second and final meeting for the day, rechecked my emails, made sure to call the Greenfeild consultant to finalize the Talon project and I was out of the door fifteen minutes early on my way back to the boot store to pick up mine and Zack's boots we'd ordered before I headed on home. I was really looking forward to getting home and seeing the boys again, but as with all things, I recieved a call. I checked the caller ID, seeing it as the Savannah police department, I instantly picked it up as I pulled over into a nearby parking lot. "Dylan Streetman? This is Officer Gary Blackwell, I just wanted to let you know, your sister has been picked up at a highway rest area about seventy miles south of Savannah." "Gimme a second while I park my truck." I said in short order before turning off the engine. "Sorry about that." "No problem Mr. Streetman, as I said, we have your sister in custody." Officer Blackwell continued. "I'm hoping this is all good news then." I responded with an uninterested tone, attempting to feel nothing but I could feel myself holding my breath. "Well, I hope so. She had a few minor bruises here and there, seems Pual Matterford beat her up and dropped her off. She's been asking to speak with you." Officer Blackwell continued. "Am I legally obligated to speak with her officer?" I asked, still remaining calm. "No, I doubted you'd want to, but I figured I'd give you a call and let you know." I could tell Officer Blackwell was really just trying to be courtious to me. "I appriciate the thought, and tell Sarah I found Zack. He's her oldest son, she threw him out of the house last year for being gay. He's only fourteen, so that's another crime you can add to her record Officer Blackwell." I was starting to get anxious, and angry, though I wasn't sure why. "Of course sir, and thank you, I'm glad the boy is safe. I just have one last thing I need to ask, and while I'm opposed to the idea myself, your sister is demanding to see her children." Officer Blackwell sounded as about as weary as I felt as he asked that last one. "I'll have to ask the boys, I don't much like the idea either, but it isn't for me to decide. Those boys are old enough to make this choice on their own and since she doesn't have custody of them anymore, she can't really demand anything of them." I wasn't sure how I would bring this up when I got home, if anything I'd ask Rosietta for her imput first. "Understood, I hope you have a good day Mr. Streetman, I'll relay what you said to your sister. Would you like me to keep you up to date on her case?" I found it interesting that he was speaking in an easier manner to understand than he had been the other day, it reminded me of military interogaters that would ask you questions in rapid succession using similar choppy phrases in an attempt to trip you up. "Yes, and thank you Officer Blackwell, I do appreciate everything you've done. I can't repay you for the peace of mind I'm sure this will bring both myself and my nephews." I'd figured it'd take months for the police to actually track Sarah down, or worse she'd show up dead or looking for more money to steal. I thought about calling Rosietta right on the spot, but as I was going through my contacts to the R's, I actually got a phone call from the house. Slightly on edge after speaking to Officer Blackwell, and fearing the worse, I immeditely picked up the phone. "Hello? Is everything alright?" I asked as I started up the truck again. Traffic laws be damned, if one of my nephews were hurt I would drive on the phone the whole way home. "Hey Uncle Dylan, I just called to let you know that the tall woman from last night is here and asking for me to let her in." Daniel said with a hint of wicked laughter in his voice. "It's okay Daniel, you can let her-" I started, cracking a grin at my youngest nephew's tenacity. "Wait how'd you-" I heard Daniel cry out as the phone fell from his grasp. "Ah, Dylan, this little peckerhead of your's stood in the window and laughed at me and Rosietta without letting us inside. I had to use my spare key." Alyssia and I laughed together for a few moments. "Well, I'll be there soon, I'm just leaving Savannah now, tell Rosietta I'm gonna need to talk to her about something important when I get home. Oh, and don't pick on Daniel, he'll win." I said laughing all the harder. "Hah! For that I'll make sure he gets it good then. Drive safely, see you soon." Alyssia laughed along with my antics. I couldn't wait to hear from Daniel how horrible she'd been to him. I found it difficult to focus on the road as I kept thinking about everything that might happen if the boys went to see thier mother. Part of me really wanted to talk to her myself, finally get to have a conversation she couldn't just run away from. As I came into Black Creek, I made a short stop at the local gas station. They made these little pies from scratch and I loved their lemon tarts. I picked up a small assortment for the boys, a cherry, lemon, blueberry, and pecan pie for each of them. I also picked up a couple two litter bottles of soda since Alyssia and her family liked soda and I didn't know if the boys did or not. I saw Alex sitting on the porch with Rosietta as I drove up to the house. By the time I stepped out of the truck, I had a warm boy in my arms. "Well Alex, did you miss me?" I asked with a smile, fully knowing he had. He didn't say anything at first, just stood there giving my rips a run for their money. "It wasn't so bad, I'm just glad your home." Again with those big brown eyes of his. I swear one day he'd make a number of men or women swoon with those little weapons of his. "I'm glad I'm home too." I picked him up to return his hug properly. "Hey, Uncle Dylan, where should I put these ribs?" I heard Zack call out from within the threshold of the front door. He was holding a set of massive pork ribs. "Just sit them on the counter in the kitchen dear, Alyssia will be cooking them shortly." Rosietta stepped in before I could even say hello. Alex and I walked up to the porch, his hand in mine before I told him to go find Alyssia and ask for something to do so I could talk to Rosey for a moment. "She's playing with Daniel, she brought some waterguns but Zack didn't want to play and I wanted to wait for you." Alex said before going into the house. "Waterguns huh? Did Daniel really make that much of an impression on her Rose?" I asked with a grin, I knew Alyssia only brought out the waterguns when she really wanted to show off her military training. That woman could enter a backyard during the brithday of a pair of twins, walk out completely dry, having won her own little war against twenty children. It was impressive to say the least. "She told me you wanted to talk, said it might me serious. You should know I already heard from Officer Blackwell. Don't worry, I didn't say anything to the boys." Rosietta began, I should have known since she was their case manager and of course the police would have notified CPS. "She's been asking to see them. I don't know if that's such a good idea. I told the officer I'd have to see what the boys decided since they're old enough, but I'm not so sure myself." I could tell by the look in Rosey's eyes that while her response would be that of a friend, the thoughts behind it would be from her perspective as a child social worker. "Zack and Alex are indeed old enough to make that decision on their own, but it's different with Daniel. If he really wants to see her, I'd lean more towards the side of letting him. If not, I'd still take him if his brothers wanted to go, that way he could change his mind if he wanted to. Depending on how his brothers and your sisters get along, it's a toss up. If she or they respond negatively, I wouldn't let Daniel see her." As always, Rosietta made perfect sense. "I'm kinda worried about what Sarah might say to them. She's done so much to hurt them already. Throwing Zack out into the street, and with what she told Alex to do, I just don't know." I wanted to give the boys the choice, I knew I'd tell them she'd been taken into police custody, but I wasn't sure about telling them she'd asked for them. "What did she tell Alex to do?" Rose quickly refocusing on the conversation. "Sarah, I-" I hesitated, I'd spoken to Alyssia and Rosietta about the relationship my sister and Aunt Deneice had shared, and everything that led to my sister running off the way she did. I knew Alyssia had shared a similar relasionship with one of her cousins when she was young and that Roseitta had done many things to survive on the streets when she was a teenager, but I didn't want to bring up the subject of mine and Alex's night time playtime. "Dylan, if she's done something to hurt these boys, I need to know about it. The more I know the better I can help them recover." Rosietta pressed on. "The night she and the boys arrived, Alex asked if he could sleep in my bedroom with me. Something about nightmares." I could feel the way she was looking at me, as if she already knew where the conversation was headed. "Sarah told him I was gay, I didn't realize why Alex had done what he did till Saturday morning when Daniel said something." I took a moment to breath easier. "What did Daniel say then?" Rosietta asked, seemingly curious in tone, though her gaze was far sharper. "Sarah had told Alex to distract me while she stole the money." I finally said. "And? Did he distract you?" Rosietta pried, sipping her glass of what I assumed was tea. "No, not like that. I let him sleep in my bed, but nothing happened. I didn't even realize he was suppose to be seducing me until Alex told me his mother told him to do it." Rosietta didn't respond for a few moments, and I was more than willing to let the sounds of the summer afternoon settle in around us. "After everything these boys have been through, it wouldn't hurt for them to have someone they could trust, someone to guide them on the path to manhood. You understand what I'm saying Dylan?" I couldn't beileve what I was hearing, I'd known Rosietta and Alyssia were open minded, but damn, I wasn't expecting this from someone that worked with CPS. "Rosietta, I'm not sure what to say to that." I wasn't going to admit Alex and I had already done stuff together, not to mention all the things Zack must have done on the street or at Romeo's. "Dylan, I've seen case after case of sexual abuse. Trust me, most children who experience sex with someone who truly loves them are normally better off because of it. It's normally only with someone who doesn't love them that it turns abusive." I could tell Rosey was being sincere with me, and I really appreciated that, but I felt like this topic was better left between me and my nephews. "Well, thanks for talking with me I guess. Do you think I should wait to tell the boys about their mother till after you guys leave? Or should I tell them now?" I asked, trying to get back to what I'd initially wanted to talk to her about. "I'd wait, let the boys be themselves for a few more hours before they have to deal with the world again. We all need a break every now and then as it were." She replied, slapping a bug that landed on her knee before getting up to go back into the house. We made our way inside to find Alex watching TV. As soon as he saw me he got up and silently followed me and Rosey into the kitchen. I gave him a side hug and ran my hand through his hair, enticing a soft giggle from him, before I went to inspect the ribs and pull out various ingredients. Rosey went out back to call for her wife, Missie, and Daniel to come inside and dry off from their watergun fight. Of course, Alyssia came in dry as the desert, Missie had a few wet spots on her back where her mother had no doubt went rogue with the friendly fire. Daniel on the other hand was soaking wet, and exhausted by the looks of it. "Come on Daniel, let's go get you dried up and find some new clothes." I told the boy, giving him a cautious hug so as not to get my own clothes wet. I was starting to wonder where Zack had run off too, but Alyssia told me he hadn't gone outside. Daniel left his wet shoes and socks out on the back porth while he and I went to his room in search of dry clothing. I stopped on the way to get a towel from the hall closet before helping the boy strip out of his wet jeans and into the towel. "Alyssia is so good, neither me nor Missie could get a shot on her." Daniel explained, sitting on the bed while I search for clothing. "Yeah, she was in the military you know, they trained her how to win in a gunfight." I replied with a smile. "Well, I still don't know how she climbed into that tree so fast, one minute she was there, right in front of me. Just like that she was gone. Then she was shooting at me from above." Daniel seemed more happy he'd found a friend to play with then upset about getting slaughtered. Once I found where he'd stuffed all of his new clothing in a single dresser drawer, as well as sorted through it to find everything we needed, I got Daniel dressed in some loose shorts and a tank top, no reason for him to not be ready for bed yet, even as early as it was. By the time Daniel and I made our way back into the kitchen, Missie was showing Alex how to peel potatoes while Rosietta was preparing some salad. I went about finding something for Daniel to do to help Rosey before I asked her if she'd seen Zack. She pointed upstairs and I immeditely knew where to find my oldest nephew. "Hey Zack." I said once I'd made my way upstairs. "Hey Dylan." He replied as I moved his legs out of the way so I could sit down on the window seat with him before putting his legs back over my lap. "You doing okay?" I asked, he didn't seem upset or anything, just a little tired and quiet, though I guess I hadn't known him long enough to know if he was normally quiet or not. "Yeah, I tried to clean the house as best as I could, I vacuumed the living room and cleaned the kitchen and the hallway bathroom. Alex and Daniel had a bit of a fight though, Alex locked himself in your room after I yelled at him for pushing Daniel." Zack's eyes seemed to darken a bit as I noticed he was definitely tired. "Should I talk to the boys about it, or do you think you dealt with it?" It was clear that Zack had a handle on his brothers, but I could tell it took more out of him then he'd be able to deal with long term. Having him babysit everyday wouldn't work forever. "I don't know, Daniel got over it almost as soon as Alex left him alone, but Alex, I'm just not sure." Zack looked away from me trying to hide the tears coming to his eyes. "He said a lot of hurtful things when I tried to get him to apologize to Daniel." I was actually rather suprised, since the boys seemed to get along great and Alex hadn't said anything about any of this when I got home. "What did he say?" I asked, resting my hands on Zack's knee and shoulder, trying to offer him a hug if he wanted it. "Just some old things Paul would say to me from time to time is all, I know he didn't mean any of it, I just, I don't know." Zack finally broke down, he cried quietly as I pulled him into a hug. Whatever it was that Alex had said to him, I could tell Zack had been hurting because of it for a couple hours now. "Come here." I said, holding Zack to me. "I don't know what Paul use to say to you, and I don't know why Alex would have repeated any of it, but whatever it was, it isn't true okay?" I offered as Zack nodded his head against my chest. After a few moments, I asked him, "You ready to go back downstairs and help me with some stuff from the truck?" Zack nodded and I helped wipe some of the tear residue from his face before we went to get the soda and stuff I'd picked up from the gas station. I also showed Zack his pair of boots I'd picked up on the way home, and once he put them in his room and my pair on my bed, we met up in the kitchen where everyone was laughing and preparing food together. "Ah, Zack, would you mind running these sausagues out to Alyssia?" Rosey asked him once she saw him. She cast me a curious glance when she saw the tired look on his face but didn't say anything when I shook my head gesturing for her to drop it. Alex and Missie had peeled all the potatoes and set them to boil, so they were wrapping some corncobs in foil after covering them in butter and black pepper. Rosietta had moved on from the salad and was putting some bacon on to cook while the greenbeans warmed up. Once the bacon was done, I knew she'd cut it up and throw it in with the greenbeans, but I also knew she'd made extra for whoever wanted to sneak a snack before dinner was ready. I made my way over to stand between Alex and Daniel, the younger one who was trying his hardest to mix a bowl of brownie batter without spilling it. As Daniel, Missie, and Alex were all sitting at the kitchen table working on their respective tasks, I let out a sigh before speaking. "Missie, would you mind if I barrowed Alex for a couple minutes, there's something I wanted to talk to him about." She gave me a look, I'm sure since she was seventeen and had known me for years, she picked up on the undertones of what I'd said, even though Alex hadn't noticed he was in trouble yet. "He's all your's." Missie responed as I tapped Alex on the shoulder and gestured for him to stand up. "What do you need Dylan-" Alex started as I put my finger to my lips and put my hand between his shoulder blades to lead him out of the kitchen. At this point, Alex was very aware he was in trouble. I led him to my study, shutting the door behind me and pointing to a chair opposite the sofa he'd sat on the other day. I just stood in front of him for a few moments before I said anything. I could tell he was growing more nervous by the second and at some point he stopped looking at me entirely. "I'm sure I don't need to tell you why I pulled you aside." I started, causing the boy to shift before tensing up as he cast a glance at my face through his hair. "Though, just so I know we're both on the same page, why don't you tell me why we're here." I tried to turn the tables on him. "I, I umm." He began to muffle under his breath. "Speak up Alex, I want to get this conversation over with just as much as you do." I responded sternly. "I hurt Daniel and I yelled at Zack." He finally said, his right leg began to tremble where he sat. I knew he was only afraid of me right now because of how his mother and Paul would have punished him in the past, but I had no intention of hurting him like that. "While I'm sure you already know you shouldn't be pushing people around, especially someone smaller than you, boys will be boys, and brothers for that matter tend to be rough with each other from time to time." I watched Alex closely, he bit his lip as I started with the lesser of the two crimes he had comitted, but I could tell he knew he wasn't off the hook. "Your lucky you didn't actually hurt Daniel, I'm not entirely sure what I would have done if I came home to find one of you boys injured." I let that stew for a few moments, giving time for Alex's mind to wonder. "That being said, you did hurt Zack." I finished, waiting to see if Alex would say anything about his actions. "I didn't mean it." Alex said, finally going misty eyed. He pulled his arms around his stomech and leaned forward in an attempt to further hide his face from me. "You'd be in more trouble if you had meant whatever you'd said, but Zack already told me you didn't mean it Alex. What I want to know, is what exactly you said to him. Whatever it was it was enough to bring your older brother to tears when I asked him about it. Is that the type of brother you are Alex?" I asked him, purposely trying to push the boy over the edge. While I had no intention of hitting or spanking him, I still wanted to make sure he knew his actions hurt those around him and making him feel the pain he'd caused was the only way I could see to make sure he wouldn't continue with this type of behaveor. "No! I'm not like Paul." Alex started crying, pulling his hands up into his eyes and finally looking at me. "What did you say to Zack, don't make me ask a third time Alex." I pressured him. "I called him a faggot!" Alex finally relented. I really had to focus on keeping my composure at hearing this. It took me a few moments to collect myself. As it was, I found it a bit ironic to say the least. "Why would you say that, of all the things you could have said, why faggot?" I asked, mostly retorical. "Yes, your brother is gay, so am I, so is Alyssia and Rosietta, even Missie is bisexual. Would you walk into the kitchen right now and call them that word?" I asked, causing Alex to pause even as he continued to attempt to catch his breath through the sobbing. "No!" He whined, as much as I knew it would hurt him I knew I had to press on and prove my point to the boy. "Would you call me a faggot?" I asked, no longer with an air of authority but feigned vunerability. Rosey might not approve of me manipulating Alex's emotions like I was, but I figured it'd be better than hitting him. Spanking was only something I'd ever do in very extreme cases. I felt something in my heart break when Alex looked at me after I said it, the look of shear pain in his eyes told me I'd gone too far. He wasn't able to say anything as he let out a wounded cry and seemed to crumble into himself as I moved to pick him up. I pulled him to me as he cried, he mostly went limb as I held him, occasionally turning his head to face the other way as he continued to cry. "I love you Alex." I said attempting to calm him down, but my words only seemed to cause him to whimper in my arms. Alex had been crying for about five minutes when Zack knocked on the door and stepped inside. He let us know that dinner was going to be done soon. He seemed to linger for a moment, hesitating slightly before asking if Alex was okay. "He's fine Zack, he just needs a few more minutes is all." I offered in response. Zack nodded at me but came over to give Alex a kiss on the head before leaving Alex and I to ourselves. Eventually I moved us to the sofa so we could lay down, however uncomfortably. Alex was still crying, though he'd regained control of his breathing. He'd laid on his stomech, facing away from me while I slipped my hand under his shirt to rub his back to comfort him. We'd been there for another ten or fifteen minutes or so before I felt Alex had calmed down to a point. "How you doing?" I asked the sniffling boy. "I'm sorry." He said, reviving his tears as another round of sobs choked their way through him. Luckily they came and went in short order and Alex was able to relax again. "You ready to go join the others, or do you want to stay in here for a little while?" I asked him, still rubbing his back. "Are you still mad at me?" Alex asked, finally looking at me. His face and hair had become a mess of tears and weird marks lined his face where he had been laying on the seam line in the sofa. "Not mad, a little disapointed though." Alex turned over so his body was facing mine as he cuddled into me, clearly not happy with my awnser. "I'm sorry." He said, again choking on his tears as they continued to slowly fall from his eyes. I pulled him into my embrace as I wrapped both arms around him and kissed his forehead. "I know siblings say things to hurt each other when they're upset, I just don't understand why you said it." Something had to have upset Alex before he'd started fighting with his brother, from what I understood, he'd been fighting with Daniel about something before Zack had even stepped in. "I missed you." Alex finally said, breathing easier now. "I missed you too Alex, and I'm sure that Daniel and Zack missed me as well, but what right does that give you to hurt your brothers?" I'd figured his misbehavior today had been caused by my absense in some way. "Daniel kept saying how much he couldn't wait for you to come home, he was sitting there writing down all these things he was gonna ask you for. I just got so mad, I, I hit him." Alex finally admitted. I moved to sit up, pulling Alex up into my lap as I did so. Alex was still a little teary eyed, but he seemed to be far better than he had been. His outburst today might have been fueled by him missing me, but it sounded like he'd been a little jealous of Daniel missing me too, as backwards as that seemed to me. "Next time, perhaps rather than hitting your brother and starting a fight, join him. You could have sat down with him and helped him come up with ideas." I said, hugging Alex to me and kissing him on the forehead again before standing up. "Are you going to beat me when Ms. Rose leaves?" Alex asked, a hint of fear in his voice again. "No, if Daniel had been injured I might have spanked you, but I wouldn't have beaten you. I don't hit children just to hit them Alex, a spanking and a beating are two very different things." This seemed to cause the boy to relax. "Besides, I wouldn't have waited for Rosey to leave, if anything she would probally want to spank you after I did." This seemed to cause Alex to blush a deep crimson as he looked at me in disbelief. "But she can't do that, can she?" He asked. "Your lucky Zack didn't say anything to Alyssia when they got here, she'd have whooped your but for what you said to him." I knew she would have too, Missie had been about Zack's age the last time Alyssia had had a reason to spank her daughter. I couldn't remember what Missie had done or said to anger her mother, but the poor girl had been grounded all summer for it. "You ready to go eat? It smells like the food might be done." I asked Alex, He nodded his head and we left the study. He'd made a beeline for his older brother, fiercely hugging the teenager and nearly causing him to drop the plate of food he was about to give to Daniel. Luckily, Alyssia had been next to him and took the plate from his hand before it fell. Both Alyssia and Rosietta gave me a look as everyone paused to see what the boys were about to say. "I'm sorry Zack, I shouldn't have called you a faggot." I saw the dirty look Alyssia shot me, but both Missie and Rosey went back to what they'd been doing. "I know you didn't mean it Alex, it's okay." Zack said with a smile as he hugged his little brother. "I didn't mean to hurt you Zack, I love you." Alex said as he started to cry again. Zack only responded by kissing his brother on the forehead and telling him to go make his plate. It wasn't long before we were all sitting around the large kitchen table, the green beans and mash potatos had been done to perfection, the ribs just as succulant and falling off the bone as ever, the sausuges popped like spicy cherry tomatoes with every bite, the salad was as fresh and crisp as could be, and the smell of the corncobs drew me salivating to them. "Dylan, I just remembered, did you finish up that Talon project like you mentioned last week? I know you've been working on that for months." Rosietta began some friendly conversation. "Yes actually, the renovations were done weeks ago but the landscaping team from the Greenfield company were dragging their feet. Now that they've finished, the buyer is set to sign the paperwork sometime this week." The Talon project was this old convention center that had gone on the market last year. "How much did your company buy it for?" Missie asked as she passed a cob of corn to Zack. "$1.7 million, the previous owner died last year and without any relatives or a will, the state was trying to sell it on the cheap." I responed. I'd started a small scale retail company after getting out of the military, fliping homes and such. It wasn't until one of my customers asked me to help him sale a small strip mall he owned that I'd gotten into the more commerciel type retail. With the housing market going the way it was, it'd been easier to flip some high value homes that had been forclosed on. With housing going a little shakey the last year or so, I'd really started leading my company into commercial, and so far it was paying off wonderfully. "How much will you be selling it for?" Missie inquired. "A little over five million or so, after the costs of the renovations and legal fees, not to mention taxes, or buying the place to begin with, my company is set to make a profit of around two million." I offered with a smile. The Talon project was my company's first major sale of this size and with only a dozen employees, everyone was set to recieve a rather large bonus, myself included. "I'm glad to see your buisness doing so well Dylan." Alyssia said with a nod in my direction. "That means a lot, thank you." I returned the nod, after all Alyssia had been the one that suggested I use the three million from my mother to start the buisness. She'd helped me figure out the legal stuff as well as put me in touch with a couple of my first employees, including my assistant Julia. "How much money do you have Uncle Dylan?" Daniel asked, a little pale in the face. "I have enough to get by, and then some more to have fun with." I grinned at him. In truth I had enough for a lot of people to get by and some more to have fun with, but I wasn't going to tell an eight year old I had over six million sitting in the bank, and millions more in assets. My company alone was worth well over eight million, and that was just set to rise once the paperwork for the Talon project went through. "I think that's enough money talk at the dinner table." Rosietta began, knowing she'd been the one to start us all down that path. "Agreed, so boys, any plans for the summer?" Alyssia asked, trying to change the subject. All three of them just kinda looked at her like they were deer lost in the headlights. "Well, I was thinking about taking a week or two off, we might take a vacation down to New Orleans. You guys would be welcome to join us, assuming you could find someone to mind the farm Alyssia." I awnsered for them. "Wait, New Orleans?" Zack's eyes got real big. "Any chance I can go see the Foxx Lounge?" Zack asked. I wasn't real sure what that place was, but I had an idea. "The Foxx Lounge? Where'd you hear about that place boy?" Alyssia asked with the largest smile I'd seen on her in a while. "It's Old Momma Foxxy's place, Romeo-" Zack caught himself the moment he'd said his lover's name. Realizing Ms. Rose from CPS was here, he went silent. "So you know Romeo Love?" Alyssia asked with a knowning grin. "How do you know him?" Zack asked, growing visibly nervous. I had to admit, I was growing a little nervous myself. "He and I practically grew up together. I still remember the first time he brought his hot young lover to the Lounge. What was that queen's name again?" Alyssia asked herself. "Foxxy Roxxy." Zack awnsered her in a hushed tone, I could see the new found admiration for the woman in his eyes, neither he nor I had expected Alyssia to actually know Romeo. "Yeah, now I remember. Man, that was a long time ago." Alyssia chuckled to herself a bit. "I guess if Alyssia approves, I'll make sure we make our way to the Foxx Lounge." I cut in, trying to put an end to this conversation before anyone learned of the nature of Zack and Romeo's relationship. "It'll be difficult to get someone underage in, I can always see about calling a friend of mine. Hell, I might just take you up on that offer Dylan, I'd love to visit the Lounge again." I was glad to see Alyssia was happy about the idea. "Did you ever preform?" Zack asked her. "Did she? Your looking at one and only, Brey Kin Harts. The reigning Drag King of the Foxx Lounge and all of New Orleans, from 1974 till 1978." Missie proudly stated. "Wow, how the years have just flown by, you would have loved it back then kid, though I hear the Foxx Family is still running strong. I wish you could have met some of the greats, Ben DoverSon, Miss Bona Fyde, and not to mention BJ Hardick." Alyssia let out a hearty laugh. "Ben DoverSon?" Daniel repeated. "That's naughty, right?" He asked me. Those of us at the table who were either adults or near-adults had a good chuckle at this. The rest of the meal came and went with laughter echoing in the air around us. The food was good, the company better, but the thing I liked best was seeing everyone I considered family in one place. It amazed me how my sense of family had doubled since I first met the boys. It was almost like all the love in my heart doubled as well, and I soon found myself unable to hold back my tears of joy. "What's wrong?" Alex asked, reaching to hold my hand as the rest of the table came to a standstill. "Nothing honey, I'm just so happy you boys are in my life." I said, sharing a glance with each of my nephews. Daniel was the next to start crying tears of joy as he ducked under the table to come up into my lap and give me a hug. Alex was next to enter the hug but he didn't do anything more than tear up. Zack remained where he was but he had a small grin he was trying to hide behind his indigo bangs, well, till Missie playfully slapped him on the shoulder and told him to hug me as well. "You boys truely don't know what it means to me to have had the chance to meet you three, not to mention getting to know you and have you guys live with me." I somehow managed to wrap all three of my nephews in a bear hug before setting them down. Missie and Zack set about clearing the table while Rosietta divided up the brownies for everyone. Alyssia and I moved to the counter to divide the leftovers between our two families. Once most of us had resettled around the table, I pulled two bottles from the high cabinet, pouring myself and Alissya a glass of burbon, and pouring a glass of wine for Rosietta, Missie, and Zack, then half-glasses of wine for Alex and Daniel. The two younger boys were slightly giddy about being allowed some wine with their browies, though it was mostly suger anyway. I figured Zack was old enough and I knew Alyssia allowed Missie to drink every now and then and tonight had an air of celebration, at least for me. "Hey boys, when you guys are done eating, I want the three of you to go get those new boots I got you so we can have a photo taken of the four of us." I reminded the boys, plus I knew Rosietta would just find it adorable. Missie went outside to call someone, the look Alyssia gave me told me it was the boy from Greece who had spent the last couple months here in the states but was now back home. "Don't tell Rosietta, but I was thinking of letting Missie take a summer vacation to see her boyfriend. It'd do her some good to see more of the world." Alyssia began. "I hear Greece is beatiful this time of year." While I agreed it'd do Missie some good to visit other countries I could tell Alyssia was hiding something. "I had planned on asking you to go with her, but with the boys and your plan to visit New Orleans, I'll have to think of something else." Well, there it was. "You and Rose could always take her, you could use a chance to relax and get pampered, plus Rosey's never been out of the States." I offered, hoping she'd take the bait. "I have to tend the farm and Rosietta won't be able to get off work, as you know she's picked up a new case recently." Alyssia said, grinning at me. "I'm not taking the boys to Greece Alyssia, New Orleans is far enough away to give the boys a chance to have fun without worrying about everything with their mother. It's also close enough not to overwelm them." I responded with a noticable lack of a grin. "Well I guess I could see if her boyfriend can travel stateside, I wouldn't mind setting up a little vacation for them somewhere. I know both of them want to visit New York." Alyssia finally resigned the conversation. Once everyone was gathered in the living room, the boys and myself all wearing our new black cowboy boots, Rosietta couldn't stop smiling at the simplicity of the tradition, but nonetheless approving, both as a family friend as well as the boys' case worker. We took a few photos but Missie had the idea of getting a few more on the front porch. It was only around seven in the afternoon, so the sun was still high enough in the sky. My favorite shot ended up being one with the four of us lined up on the steps, one foot on the step above the other foot to show off the boots. Both myself and Zack took our place above Alex and Daniel who had one boot on the ground and the other on the bottom step each. The four of us stood opposite each other, like we were suppose to be looking at the person next to us even though we were facing the camera. "That last one is the one I'm gonna put in the photo album." I said absentmindedly to Missie as she was flipping through the photos on her phone. "You have a photo album?" Zack asked. "Of course, I'm sure I told you guys that it was tradition for our family to get their photos taken whenever we buy a new pair of boots." I really did need to find that album, most likely it was in my mother's old trunk of family stuff in the attic, though it might have been stuffed in one of the two rooms used for storage. "Well, Missie, send the photos to him and let's get a move on. I need to give the hogs some more feed before night hits and I want to check on the newborns too." Alyssia said, bringing the afternoon's excitements to a close. The boys helped Alyssia and Missie gather their half of the food and put it in Alyssia's truck while Rosietta pulled me aside for a word. "You handled Alex better than Alyssia would have today, well done." She started with a smile. "The boys seem to be adapting well, though children are like that most of the time." She commented. "To be honest, I'm worried about Alex and Zack." I started. "Why so? Zack I can understand, but I wouldn't worry over it. He's hitting a bit of rough patch now that he's back with his brothers, having to step up a little and assume responsibility while your out of the house, allow him a little authority over his brothers and he'll find his footing." Rosey had a point about Zack, but I was mainly worried about Alex and how his behavior would effect his older brother. "Yeah, I guess. Truthfully, I guess it's really Alex that worries me, if he remains so emotionally dependent on me that he starts fighting with his brothers when I'm not here, how am I suppose to deal with that?" I asked her. "You have to remember that despite everything their mother did to them, she was still their mother. On some level all of those boys loved her and wanted nothing more than to be loved by her in return." Roseitta began. "She might have failed them, but that doesn't change the fact that they want to be loved by her. With their mother out of their lives, each of them will have to learn to cope with that loss of love in their own way." I understood everything Rosey was saying, but I didn't pick up on what it had to do with my question. "Have you noticed the way Daniel pokes and prodes at Alyssia? The way Alex hangs on every word you say, or the way Zack has taken a semi-parental role towards his brothers? It's just how they are trying to cope, even if they don't realize it. If anything, let Alex depend on you emotionally for the time being, in the process show him how to control his emotions and in time he'll figure out how to deal with the world, just like any other child." Rosietta's idea that I should basically just wait out his misbeavior was not helping me. "And how do I help him stop hitting Daniel or saying horrible things to Zack all because he misses me when I'm at work?" I asked her. "Buy him a cellphone, tell him that if he needs to speak to you and it isn't an emergency, he can call you. Tell him what times of the day it's okay for him to call you and what times you won't be able to chat. Knowing he'll be able to hear your voice will keep him distracted from fighting with his brothers, and soon enough he'll get to the point where he doesn't need to call you because he knows he can." She responded. "How would knowing he can call me mean he won't?" I asked confused. "Think of it like this, sometimes you don't need a glass of water in the middle of the night, but you keep one on your bedside table just in case you get thirsty. Don't worry, at first he'll call you whenever he can, but soon enough he'll realize your just a call away and he'll learn not to be so anxious." Rosietta was a genius, there was no doubt in my mind about it. I made sure to give Missie, Rosietta, and even Alyssia a hug before they left. The boys followed suit, with Alyssia picking each boy up into a bear hug, which was particularly funny to watch when it was Zack's turn as he wasn't expecting it. As I followed the boys back into the house, telling them to return their boots to their rooms, we eventually found ourselves back in the living room. "I'm gonna go clean up the kitchen boys, you three need to get your showers, once we're all done we can watch a movie or find something on TV to watch okay boys?" I ordered. Luckily Rosietta had made sure any messes made while we we're all cooking were also cleaned up, she'd even cleaned the top of the stove and the counters. The only real thing I needed to get cleaned up was the dishes and the kitchen table. Once I was done in the kitchen, both Zack and Daniel had already showered and Alex was part way through his own in the hallway bathroom so I made my way into my private bathroom to take my own shower. I could hear some minor bickering from the boys in the living room a few minutes later, but I didn't think anything of it until Zack appeared in my bathroom door as I was getting dressed. "I swear to god, if he hits Daniel one more time, I'm gonna hit him so he knows what it's like!" Zack was shouting and I could hear Daniel crying not far behind him. "Where's Daniel?" I asked, slipping on the shorts I wore to bed and stepping into the room to find Daniel sitting on my bed with a huge hand shaped welt on his face. "I didn't even do nothin." Daniel sobbed as he held a hand to his swelling face. I picked the small boy up and carried him into the kitchen where I sat him down on the counter next to the fridge. I'd seen Alex sitting on the sofa along the way, but he hadn't said anything and I didn't think I had it in me to talk to him just yet. "Well, it looks like your gonna make it buddy." I told Daniel once I'd looked him over. I asked Zack to get a hand towel from the hall closet so I could wrap up an ice pack. After I showed Daniel how to hold it against his face with the right amount of pressure before telling the boys to go back to the living room. I waited for a few moments as I heard Daniel say some snarky comment to Alex before I took a breath. "Alex!" I yelled, trying my best to summon my inner Alyssia. The boy didn't come running as I'd hoped, and it was clear to me he was upset about something again, though I didn't know what since I'd only been in the shower and not at work this time. "Yes?" The preteen demanded. I simply snapped my finger and pointed at the floor in front of me, wordlessly telling Alex to make his way front and center. "First of all, when I call you, you say yes sir, speak to me in that tone again and you'll get a swift swat on the ass young man." I started. "Now, why don't you tell me why you hit your brother, again." I added that last word with a bit more attitude to remind the boy about our previous conversation on this topic. "I-" Alex's face went flushed with embaresment as his eyes began to mist over. "He wouldn't stop picking on me." Alex said. "You left a welt on that boy's face because he made a joke at your expense?" I asked, clearly not finding his reasonings to my satisfaction. "He kept saying I had a crush on Missie and that I was playing with myself in the shower thinking about her!" Alex stammered, clearly still angry. "So what? I promise you Zack plays with himself in the shower, I do it, most men do. Your becoming a man, if your brother picks on you for it, even if your not doing it, just laugh and tell him he's too young to understand." My response obviously wasn't what Alex was expecting. "But I don't have a crush on Missie!" Alex persisted. "And? Maybe Daniel was just saying that because he has a crush on her, or did you not notice how much he kept bugging her all day?" I asked him. "I-" Whatever Alex was about to say got stuck in his throat as Zack came in the room asking for me to come check on Daniel. "Stand right where you are young man, and when I get back I want at least three ideas on how you think I should punish you." I walked off into the living room to find Daniel crying on the sofa. I sat down next to him and moved the ice pack to see that his wilt was already starting to bruise around his left eye and it seemed there was a little bit of blood coming from the boy's nose. Something inside of me snapped and I started gasping like I couldn't breath. I pulled the child into my embrace and turned to Zack. "Go get some toilet paper from the bath room, his nose is bleeding." Daniel didn't look like he had a broken nose and other than the bruise on his eye, most of the welt was fading, but him bleeding meant Alex;s punishment was going to be even more savere. Once Zack returned and I'd calmed down, we managed to get Daniel's nose plugged and I carried him over to the recliner where Zack was sitting so the older boy could comfort his brother while I delt with the middle child. I walked back into the kitchen to find Alex still facing the fridge. I paused to stare at the back of his head, giving my anger a moment to subside before I said or did anything I'd regret more than I already hated this whole situation. "Is Daniel okay?" Alex managed to ask in a fearful tone, the sound of crying evident even though I couldn't see his face. "I don't know Alex, he has a black eye and you might just have broken his nose." I lied, fully knowing Daniel's nose was not broken. "What, I didn't mean to!" Alex sobbed, covering his face with his hands. "Yes, you did. If you hadn't wanted to hurt him you wouldn't have hit him Alex. Now follow me." I spoke coldly. "Your just like Paul!" Daniel shouted as Alex and I passed the living room, causing Alex's sobs to turn into full on weeping. It was slightly cruel of Daniel to say that, but given the circumstance I didn't say anything as I led Alex to my bedroom. "Take your clothing off and sit on the bed." I told Alex while I moved to the closet to retrieve one of my belts. I took a moment to run the leather through my fingers. I wasn't going to use it on him, but Alex needed to understand how serious what he'd done was. "My father use to get drunk and beat me the way Paul would beat you and Zack. He'd started doing it when I was four, but when he was really drunk he'd beat me even if I didn't do anything wrong. I think he just like hurting people. I met a few men like him in the military, they enjoyed hurting people for no other reason than to watch them suffer." I said as Alex slowly took his clothing off, stalling for time it seemed. "I'm not like Paul, or your father." Alex whispered as he sat down on the bed just as I'd told him too. "I told you to think of ways for me to punish you, three ways." I said as I tossed the belt next to the boy. "Well then?" I asked Alex. "You could spank me." He said hesitantly, tears still in his eyes as he looked at the belt. "I could. What else." I asked sternly. "I don't know." Alex sobbed. "Do you really think me hitting you with that belt would make you stop hitting your brothers?" I demanded. "If it means you'll stop then I'll spank you, but I don't want to hit you." I said with a far less stern voice. "I'm sorry." Was all he could think to say, as if apologizing for the fact I had to spank him would make it easier on me somehow. That's when a thought came to me. "Stand up." I said as I reached for the belt. I could tell Alex was waiting for me to tell him if I wanted him to bend over or stay standing while I spanked him. He was not expecting me to hand him the belt though. "Twice you've hit Daniel today. I want you to understand how much it hurts me when you hurt your brothers." I said as I knelt in front of Alex so I was on his eye level. "No." He whispered as he started to tremble. "If your going to live your life hurting people, then the people you'll end up hurting the most are the ones that love you. You know I love you Alex, your behavior today has hurt both your brothers and me. I'd prefer it if you just hit me, it hurts less." I could see the moment Alex lost it, naked as he was, he leaned forward into me, resting his head against my left shoulder as he cried. "I can't." Alex sobbed as he dropped the belt to the floor. I picked up the belt, tossing it towards the closet as I sat on the bed. Turning him around to face me as he sat in my lap. Alex's tears and sobs grew iregular as his emotions continued to twist and turn within him. "I can't do it either. I can't hit you Alex." I said, my own tears starting to fall from my face onto Alex's naked skin below. "Please stop hitting your brothers, I'm new to this stuff, and I'm not prepared to punish you guys like this." I asked him, my own voice trembling ever so slightly. I was starting to become disgusted with manipulating the boy's emotions the way I was, but it wasn't like I'd ever really had a adult to show me how to deal with this sort of stuff. The only real example I had was Alyssia, and I refused to spank the boys the way she'd done Missie over the years. The only thing I could think of that would show Alex just how bad what he had done was, was to literally show him. After I helped him redress, I took him into the living room even as he was still crying. "Daniel, I want you to show Alex what he did to you." I spoke, my hands resting on Alex's shoulders as I stood behind him. "You gave him a black eye." Zack said as he moved the ice pack from Daniel's face. "I didn't mean to hurt you, I-" Alex started to stammer. "That doesn't sound like an apology Alex." I said quickly, cutting the boy off. "I'm sorry Daniel." He finally said as he reached forward to hug Daniel, who flinched and started to cry himself. Luckily, Zack still had his youngest brother sitting with him in the relciner so he could comfort him. "I think it'd be best if you leave Daniel be for a while Alex." As I started to lead him back out of the living room. "I'm so sorry Daniel." Alex said again, this time causing Daniel to start crying even harder as he turned away from Alex to sob into Zack's night shirt. "Zack, try and be in bed by ten, but Alex will be going to bed now and I have work in the morning as well." I asked. "Why don't you just take Alex to work with you? At least he wouldn't be here." Zack said, a little pissed off himself. That thought mulled around in my head as Alex and I made our way into my room and I shut the door. I knew Julia would find a way to keep the boy entertained, though watching me work all day in silence could serve as a secondary punishment. It'd also give Zack and Daniel time to cool down from it all and I wouldn't have to worry about a repeat of this morning while I wasn't here to deal with it. I was pulled out of my thoughts as Alex grapped one of the pillows from the bed and made his way to my bedroom door and into the hall. I waited to hear the sound of his bedroom door slamming before I grabbed my own pillow and followed after him. "We sleeping in here tonight?" I asked, walking into the room and sitting on the bed where Alex had already hidden under the covers. "Just go away." He said, still crying. "You sure you want to sleep alone Alex?" I asked him. "What else am I suppose to do? You all hate me!" Alex sat up and yelled at me. "Watch your tone." I said, reaching over towards him and swatting him lightly on his thigh through the blanket. "I don't hate you, and neither do your brothers. Remember what I said about how hurting people means you'll end up hurting the people who love you?." I asked, moving closer so I could sit next to him. "But Daniel said I was like Paul." Alex sobbed as he hugged me. "He said that because you scared him, if he really thought you were like Paul he'd be hiding from you, not yelling at you. I think if you went to work with me tomorrow and let your brothers calm down, everything will be okay, deal?" I asked, trying to reassure him. "So I can still sleep with you?" Alex asked wiping his tears. "I'll always let you sleep with me Alex, no matter what." I told him as I kissed him on the forehead. It was a little after eight when we settled down back in my room. Alex choose to sleep naked though I made it clear to him we weren't going to be playing around tonight, and he didn't protest as he knew why. Still, I couldn't deny the feeling his bare ass was making me feel everytime he wiggled or moved it against my crotch. Alex used my arm as a pillow while we continued to spoon, and even though we both ended up with erections, neither of us made any move to do anything with them. He didn't say much more then telling me he loved me before drifting off to sleep and I soon followed him. It was three quarters passed eleven when I heard Alex yelp in pain as something heavy stepped on my stomech. I reached up to feel Daniel's ass above me, earning a giggle from him before the small boy plopped down on the opposite side of me from Alex. "Can I sleep with you tonight Dylan?" He asked sweetly, cuddling into the side of my body. "Uh, sure, next time walk around the bed and not over people." I told him. "Yeah, and don't kick me in the face either." Alex added before laying back down and getting back into position. "I did that on purpose, I want to sleep with Dylan, not you cause your a meanie." Daniel said, not as sweetly. "Hush, the both of you. Go to bed." I told the both of them. Within minutes both of the boys had fallen asleep again, leaving me with two boys to cuddle, which was even more fun then just one. I soon found myself with a raging erection as Alex's own erection was poking me in the hip and he moved his hand to my crotch in his sleep. Daniel on the other hand kept making these soft whimpering moans in his sleep and I soon became aware that he had his hand in his shorts as he slept. I was left wondering what I was gonna do with these boys as I drifted off. It wasn't even a quarter after midnight when Zack came tearing through my door. "Dylan, have you seen Daniel? I woke up and he was gone?" The boy asked franticly. I pulled Daniel's unoccupied hand up for his elder brother to see. "Thank goodness, I was worried when I didn't find him sleeping in the living room." He said before turning to go back to his and Daniel's room. "Why don't you join us? The bed might not have been made for four, but we'll make room." I said, causing my oldest nephew to pause and consider the options. "Sure." Zack finally said after a moment's hesitation. I moved Alex over and pulled Daniel with me, which caused him to moan loudly as his hand, which pulled on his little erection, got caught in the blanket along the way. "Don't say anything about him doing that, he's real subconsious about it. That's why he's always talking about me and Alex playing with ourselves." Zack said as he pulled Daniel to him. "Were you boys not allowed to play with yourselves when you lived with your mother?" I asked him with my eyes closed. "Well, so long as we did it privately no one said anything, Momma was always yelling at him for it cause he does it in his sleep and we shared beds." Zack explained. "Well, make sure to let him know he won't get in trouble for it here. I'm assuming you don't mind him doing it when you sleep with him, and as far as I'm concerned, it's natural." I told him, shifting to kiss Daniel on the forehead as he slept. "We could always wake him up and you could tell him yourself." Zack said with a cheeky grin as he reached for Daniel's crotch and goosed him, eliciting another whimpering moan from the sleeping boy. "I don't mind if you boys want to play together Zack, but no touching while their asleep. I'm sure I don't have to tell a fourteen year old about consent." I paused before adding. "Or do I?" "No, I understand. But I have to ask, does that mean your open to the idea of playing with the three of us? Or is Alex more your type?" Zack asked coyly. "Alex and I were talking about that yesterday. He didn't seem to keen on sharing me, so I was gonna try and convince him to ask if he could play with you and see where things went." I responed. "Oh really?" Zack asked with a serious expression this time. "There's two spare beds across the hall, we could let the boys sleep here tonight." The horny teenager suggested. "And what would Romeo think?" I retorted. "Romeo isn't in a place to complain, he knows if he doesn't give me what I need I'm still gonna get it from somewhere." Zack said. "Not tonight, I'm tired and Alex and I have to get up soon." I responed. Zack seemed to accept this as he soon drifted off to sleep and Daniel continued to play with himself in his sleep. Alex ended up with a hand wrapped around my limp cock. I drifted off to sleep a content man, surrounded by beatiful boys. To Be Continued...