Date: Tue, 9 Apr 2024 16:45:29 -0500
From: Keith Yates <keith.96@att.net>
Subject: Devyn's Struggle II Chapter 2

This is a fictional story involving sexual acts between two or more men.
If this offends you, why are you here?  If you are under the legal age to
read sexually explicit material then do not read any further.  This story
in no way represents any person living or dead.  Any resemblance to any
real person is purely coincidental. This story is the property of the
author and no copying or posting to any other website is permitted without
the author's written consent.

To argue with a man who has renounced the use and authority of reason, and
whose philosophy consists in holding humanity in contempt, is like
administering medicine to the dead, or endeavoring to convert an atheist by
scripture. Thomas Paine

Please help keep Nifty going by making a donation to this important
service.  http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html

Readers Note: Devyn's Struggle has grown far beyond what I had originally
conceived. I never imagined it having over sixty chapters. I thought that
since Devyn has grown and even taken a new name that starting Book two of
his story was a clever idea. The events in this second chapter of Book 2
are while Devyn is back at home and returning to school after his long
weekend away.

I'll be looking forward to your comments. You can send them to me at
keith.96@att.net. I do not believe that you have to read Brent's Struggle
to follow the storyline but it might help. You can find Brent's struggle
here: https://www.nifty.org/nifty/gay/highschool/brents-struggle/

Devyn's Struggle
Book 2
Chapter 2

Charlie barely made it to his class before the bell rang. He had not had
time to see Devyn or to talk to Sam. He had barely been able to make it to
school.

"I did not think you were going to make it," Stacy whispered as Charlie
slid into the seat next to her in their first period class.

"Me either." Charlie had overslept despite his mom telling him to get going
for school.

"Dang, but you look tired." Stacy could see dark circles under Charlie's
eyes and his hair was still wet from his morning shower.

"I didn't sleep last night," Charlie admitted. He had not been able to turn
his brain off. If he were not aroused by thinking about the totally awesome
sex that he and Devyn had then he was obsessing about what would happen to
his relationship with Devyn when Devyn went to visit Brent. How did someone
like him compete with Devyn's first love? Charlie did not think he
could. He had seen a picture of Brent and believed Brent was more
attractive than he was. He was also sure by now that Brent would have
filled out some and had a body like Devyn's. The two had made a striking
couple in that picture that Charlie had seen. He was sure they would be an
even more attractive couple now. There was also the fact that Brent had
been Devyn's first sexual experience. Charlie was certain that meant that
Brent would be better at sex than he was.

Charlie doubted there was any way he could compete with Brent for
Devyn. But there was the warmth that Charlie had felt last night. It had
felt so right being there in Devyn's bed and having Devyn in his
arms. Charlie had thought he had seen the love reflected in Devyn's amazing
eyes. Neither of them had used the "L" word but Charlie knew he was feeling
it. Had the emotion Charlie had seen in Devyn's deep brown eyes only been
what Charlie had wanted to see or had it been real?

Charlie could have stayed in that bed in that embrace all night long. How
good it would have felt to wake up with Devyn's naked body there next to
him. How good it would have been to kiss Devyn good morning. A lyric from a
song popped into Charlie's head "Good morning beautiful, how was your night
Mine was wonderful with you by my side." Charlie could not remember more of
the song. He thought he should look it up. Maybe the next time he and Devyn
spent the night together, he could sing it to him. That could be how
Charlie tried to let Devyn know he was in love with him. Was that just too
corny for words? Would Devyn think he was stupid? Charlie guessed he would
and that it was a stupid idea.

He was not that great of a singer anyway. Now that he had thought of the
song, he could not get those lyrics out of his head. He tried to remember
the next line. It was something about opening his eyes and seeing his sweet
face. Damn, now it was going to bug Charlie for the rest of the day.

Charlie jumped when he felt Stacy kick him. He looked over at her with a
puzzled look. Then he heard his name.

"Charles?" The tone was sharp and Charlie turned towards the teacher.

"Yes, you Mr. Atwood. I believe you are the only Charlie or Charles we
have."

Charlie could hear giggles from the other students. "Ur, um, I..."

"Would you like to join us here in the waking world?" There was more
laughter from the class. "No sleeping in my class. You do that on your own
time."

Charlie wasn't sure if he had been sleeping or not. He had definitely been
lost in his own thoughts. "I was, um, well..."

"Not paying one bit of attention to me."

Charlie could not argue that point. He had no idea why he had been called
upon or what the question even was.

"I think I'll be seeing you in detention this afternoon, Mr. Atwood."

That was just what Charlie needed, another detention. He had already
received one from Tanner for being late the day he had been trying to
unlock his phone.

# # # #

"What is wrong?" Stacy asked when the class had finally ended.

"Like I said, I'm tired." Charlie wanted to dash out of the room to see if
he could catch up to Devyn but he knew there wasn't time for that. Plus, he
did not want to appear as though he was a stalker or some sort of lovesick
twit.

"You do look tired. What kept you up so late last night?" Stacy had
gathered up her books.

Charlie could not tell her that he had been having the most awesome oral
sex ever. Or that he had been masturbating thinking about how good it had
been giving Devyn a blowjob or even more how good Devyn had been at giving
him a fantastic blowjob. "I, um, well just stuff."

"Well, I am glad we narrowed it down." Stacy's voice was dripping with
sarcasm.

"There is just a lot of crap going on right now."

"Oh, I know. The play is coming up and so is Homecoming. Are you going to
take someone?"

Homecoming...Charlie had not even thought about that dance. The only person
he wanted to go with was Devyn. He could only imagine how that would go
over. "Ah, Ur, no...I mean I hadn't even thought about it."

"It's only a few weeks away. You better start thinking about it."

Charlie did not want to think about it. He should just skip the whole
thing. Of course, if he and Sam and Devyn could just hang out together it
might not be too bad. "Yeah, I'll give it some thought."

"You know I think Heather would say yes if you asked her." Stacy seemed to
have a knowing glint in her eye.

"Heather, really?" Charlie knew Heather, of course. They had been in school
together since the first grade.

"She's very sweet, Charlie and she's pretty, don't you think?"

"Um, yeah, I guess she is." Like Charlie, Heather had blue eyes but her
hair was a strawberry blonde.

"You should ask her. I know so far, no one else has."

"Ur, I'll, um, think about that." Charlie thought it would be better to
just skip the dance. Maybe he and Devyn could spend the night
together. That would be so much more fun.

"Don't take too long. Someone else will ask her."

# # # #

Charlie did not get to see Devyn until their class together. Even then they
only had a few moments to talk.

"Hi," Devyn greeted when Charlie slid into the desk next to his. He could
not stop smiling at Charlie. It was good to see him and it made the
feelings of what they had shared stronger for Devyn.

"Hi," Charlie responded. He felt his heart rate increase. The image of
Devyn naked filled Charlie's mind.

"Were you in a lot of trouble when you got home?" Devyn had been concerned
about that. He felt bad that Charlie spending time with him had gotten the
other boy into trouble with his dad and mom.

"I'm grounded." Charlie had known he would be grounded but had hoped it
would only be for a day or two but his mom had told him two weeks. He
thought that was unreasonable but she had threatened to make it
three. Charlie had decided it would do him no good to argue with her right
then. He'd give her time to cool off and then see if he could get his
punishment reduced. Of course, if she found out about his second detention,
it was unlikely she would feel generous.

"I'm sorry about that," Devyn said.

"It's not your fault." Charlie sighed. He knew he had no one to blame but
himself. He should have called home as soon as he had gotten to Devyn's. Or
even before that from Devyn's phone.

"So, um could you come out after my rehearsal on Saturday?" Devyn wanted to
spend some more time with Charlie. He had not been able to stop thinking
about his friend. Charlie had been so understanding and sympathetic. He
made Devyn feel like their growing feelings were only going to become more
intense. "I think Joe will let me use the truck so I can just pick you up
after..."

Charlie was already shaking his head. "Um, probably not but I'll try. Mom
said two weeks."

"Wow, two weeks for just being a little late. Is she normally that strict?"
Devyn did not think they had been that late but then he was not used to
having much of a curfew. Oh, Joe had set some ground rules back when Devyn
was spending time with Terry and Dewayne but since Devyn had stopped
hanging out with them, Joe had not said much about Devyn being home at a
particular time.

"She's always been strict about being home on time and we were more than
just a little late." Charlie could remember that coming in late had been
some of his mom and Howard's big arguments. Howard had often come in
late. He had always said it was something to do with football. That answer
had normally gotten his parents to back off from grounding him.

Devyn guessed that was true. It had been a weeknight. Maybe they would have
been more understanding if it had been the weekend. "I'm sorry about
that. I should have..."

"No, it's all on me. Or really on Howard. He fucked up my phone. If it had
not been for that, she could have called and everything would have been
fine." Charlie had one more reason to be pissed with his brother.

"Well, I should have thought to ask you..."

"No, it is all my fault." Charlie had to whisper now as the class had
started. He tried to start paying attention to the teacher but could not
stop from looking over at Devyn. Whenever he did, then he would begin
thinking about what they had done last night. He could remember exactly how
Devyn had felt next to him. He could almost feel Devyn's hands on his naked
body. He could feel Devyn's tongue on him and then feel Devyn taking him
into his mouth.  Charlie could not stop himself from growing harder and
harder. The more he tried to concentrate on the teacher, the more he
thought of Devyn's naked body and how Devyn had tasted.

"Charlie, Charlie" Devyn repeated Charlie's name again.

"What?" Charlie pulled his mind back to the classroom from where it had
been thinking about sucking Devyn's cock.

"You alright?" Devyn's voice was filled with concern.

"Um, yeah, what..."

"The bell rang, man."

"Oh, I, um, was..."

"You were out of it."

"I guess I was." Charlie had been so lost in his daydream that he had
blocked everything else out. He had not paid any attention to anything
going on around him.

"We had better get going or we are going to be late for our next class."
Devyn did not want to rush off to class until he was sure Charlie was
alright. He was a bit concerned about the other boy. Could Charlie be
regretting what they had done yesterday?

"Right, I was just, um..." Charlie had been waiting for his erection to
subside. If he had stood up too soon, then the bulge in his jeans would
have been very noticeable. He thought now that he could get up without it
being too obvious that he was boned up.

Devyn, however, could not help but notice the bulge in Charlie's jeans. His
lips curved up at the corners. "Just try and stay behind me." Devyn hoped
the excitement in Charlie's jeans was because of what they had done and not
from something else.

"Ur, um, thanks." Charlie could feel his face turn pink but he appreciated
Devyn not teasing him about it.

# # # #

"Hi Devyn," Mr. Hanks greeted the teenager in the hall. "Are you on your
way to lunch?"

"Hi, Mr. Hanks. Yes." Devyn was hoping to catch up to Sam, Julie, and his
other friends. He was also looking forward to seeing Charlie. He wanted to
make sure Charlie was doing alright after the way the guy had zoned out in
class earlier.

"Could you spare me some time?" Mr. Hanks asked.

Devyn did not want to miss the chance to see his friends but he also could
not say no to Mr. Hanks. "Ur, sure."

"Then let's go to the Ag room and talk."

Devyn followed Mr. Hanks to the Ag room. He could not help but be curious
about what Mr. Hanks wanted to talk about. He did not believe he had done
anything to get in trouble with Mr. Hanks.

"How was your weekend?" Mr. Hanks asked.

"It, um, was fine."

"You made it an extra long one." They had reached the Ag room and Mr. Hanks
opened the door for Devyn.

"I, um, well had some personal things to take care of."

Mr. Hanks closed the door behind them. "Go on and take a seat, Devyn."

Devyn sat at the desk closest to Mr. Hanks' desk. He watched as Mr. Hanks
moved around the desk and took his seat.

"Look Devyn, Mrs. Jones and I know that Tanner has been hard on you."

"Um, well..."

Mr. Hanks smiled at Devyn. "It has been obvious to anyone that is
watching. Have you mentioned how he's treated you to Joe?"

"Look, Mr. Hanks, it is not as bad as you might think."

"I'll take that as a no. What you tell Joe or don't is between you and
him. I believe he's going to be upset with you if he learns you are keeping
something from him.

"There is really nothing to tell him. Yes, Tanner's a bit hard on me but
he's kind of hard on a lot of students. He's given me some detentions and
Joe knows about them. I haven't kept that from him."

"Well, that is something. Now as for what we can do to help you." Mr. Hanks
pushed a notepad to the edge of his desk.

Devyn stood and picked up the pad of papers. He realized it was a book of
hall passes.

"There is one for each day. Tear off one and keep it with you. Do not let
anyone see that but you."

"Ur, but..."

"This way you should never be caught without a hall pass."

Devyn flipped through it and noticed there was one for each day and they
were signed by several different teachers. Devyn guessed that it was not
only Mr. Hanks and Mrs. Jones who wanted to help him. "Thanks, Mr. Hanks."

"We are trusting you not to abuse this privilege."

"Oh, I won't, Mr. Hanks." Devyn would not disappoint Mr. Hanks. Mr. Hanks
was one of Devyn's favorite teachers.

"Honestly, I do not believe you would. Now Mrs. Jones would like you to see
her. She has set up some tutoring for you. Coach has several players that
need help."

"I'll go see her before my next class." It was obvious to Devyn that he
would not get to see Sam, Julie, Stacy, or Charlie.

"Devyn, if you do need more help, let us know."

"I will do that and thanks, Mr. Hanks."

# # # #

"Are you feeling alright?"  Sam asked Devyn as they were standing at their
gym lockers changing out of their gym clothes.

"Sure," Devyn answered. He put his gym clothes in his locker and took out
his shirt and jeans. "Why?"

"You've been quiet and you, ah, just seem down or something. I know it was
hard on you this weekend." Sam tried to check Devyn's body out and tried
not to look obvious about it. He was watching for other bruises. After
seeing those that Tanner had previously made on Devyn, he was concerned
that the man might still be being rough with Devyn.

"Yeah, I'm just tired and it's been a long day." Devyn was both physically
and emotionally exhausted. He had naturally enjoyed everything that he and
Charlie had done but had not been able to get much sleep.

Sam had paused in putting his shirt on. He wanted Devyn to understand he
was there for him. "You know I'm here whenever you need to talk. I won't be
able to really understand what exactly you went through over the weekend
but I can listen."

"Thanks, Sam." Devyn was sometimes surprised at how loyal a friend Sam
was. It was no wonder Sam and Charlie were best friends. The two of them
had many of the same qualities.

"I can only guess at how hard it was seeing your folks." Sam's voice was
low so the other guys in the locker room would not overhear them. "I'm here
if you want to talk.

Devyn had to swallow down a lump in his throat. "Thanks, Sam." Devyn had an
urge to hug Sam but that would only draw unwanted attention to both of
them.

"Hey, you could come over after school." Sam had finished pulling on his
shirt and pants by now. He took a seat on the bench to pull on his
shoes. "I'm sure Mom or Steve would give you a lift home."

Devyn had hoped to see Charlie after school but knew that was not going to
happen now that the other boy was grounded. Maybe he should go hang out
with Sam. The two of them had not done much since that weekend trip. Of
course, that had not been that long ago. It only seemed like months because
of all the other stuff that Devyn had going on in his life.

Devyn did not get a chance to answer as one of the guys that Devyn had
helped with math had stopped. "Um, Devyn."

Devyn turned to see one of the football jocks standing there. "Oh, um hey
Kevin." Kevin did not have the typical look of most of the other football
jocks. He was most likely the shortest guy on the football team. He also
looked a little more like a nerd with his glasses. He was, however,
muscular for his frame and a fast runner. Devyn could not stop his eyes
from gliding over Kevin's smooth chest and flat belly. Devyn knew he needed
to stop checking out every guy that stood near him.

"Mr. Parker told me that, ah, you are going to start helping some of us
officially...I mean with math."

"Right, Mrs. Jones got it all set up for us."

"That's...Ur...ah...nice of you. I...um...well...we..."

Kevin lifted his arm and nervously scratched the back of his neck. Devyn
could not help but look at how the muscle bulged as the guy flexed. Kevin
was holding his shirt but did not seem in a hurry to pull it on. Was the
guy purposely wanting Devyn to check him out? Was that why the guy was
nervous? "Do you need some help with today's assignment?" Devyn hoped that
the guy was just wanting some help with today's assignment and not
something else. Devyn had always figured Kevin for being completely
straight but there was always a chance that Devyn had not read Kevin
correctly.

"No, I mean maybe...I haven't looked at it yet." Kevyn paused and took a
breath. "Look, somehow I got voted spokesperson."

"Spokesperson?" Devyn was confused.

"For the guys. I mean the football team...well most of the football team."
Kevin knew he was messing this up a bit. "Look, I'm not good at this but
we're sorry for, um, how we treated you."

"You are?" Devyn was a bit surprised. He had learned that the attitude of
most of the players on the team was not that of Ted and Dale.

"Yeah, Randy told us we were being dicks and he was right. I'm sorry I
joined in with them by treating you like shit. I just didn't understand and
I guess I still don't understand you being..." Kevin's words trailed
off. He wasn't sure if he was messing up this whole apology or not.

Devyn felt a little relief that Kevin was just trying to apologize and
wasn't looking for something else. Although Devyn did find the guy cute and
with the boy standing there still shirtless, it gave Devyn a little more
time to check out Kevin's body. "The word is gay," Devyn said.

"Yeah, we didn't understand it. Hell, I still don't get how you can, ur, um
be like that."

"You mean being into guys." Devyn could tell Kevin was a little
uncomfortable but he had to give the guy points for stepping up.

"Yeah, it just doesn't make sense to me. I mean how you can be...well it
doesn't matter. I'm sorry for how I treated you and so are the other
guys. Randy said we were all being assholes for joining in with Ted and
Dale but...well..."

"You know if you put a but," Sam made air quotes, "in that statement, then
you aren't really apologizing."

Kevin shot Sam a look. It was obvious that Sam's comment had annoyed Kevin
but he also knew Sam was correct.

"Sam don't..." Devyn did not want Sam to make it harder on the other guy.

"No, he's right. There is no but. We were assholes to you and we are
sorry."

"Thanks, Kevin."

"So, you are speaking for the whole team?" Sam asked.

"Ur, well, most of it."

"So, which of the assholes aren't you speaking for?" Sam crossed his arms
across his chest and waited for Kevin to respond.

"Um, well Dale and Ted never actually agreed," Kevin admitted.

"I would not expect them to," Devyn said.

"But the rest of the guys did or mostly did."

"What the hell does that even mean?" Sam asked. "They either are sorry for
being pricks or they aren't." Sam's voice was hard as he glared at Kevin.

"Well, they, um, aren't exactly sorry but they agreed they would leave you
alone. But it's only a couple. The rest of us are sorry and want to make it
up to you somehow."

"Yeah, and just how are you going to do that?" Sam asked.

"Sam," Devyn wanted Sam to tone it down a bit. He felt good that Sam was
angry for him but he also did not want Sam to make this apology go south.

"Um, we don't really know." Kevin looked a bit sheepish and then looked at
the floor. "We are sorry though and I'm especially sorry. You helped me
even though I was one of those that was a jerk."

"I think you said asshole," Sam said.

Kevin glared at Sam. He was getting to the point where he wanted to deck
the other guy.

"You were not as bad as some," Devyn said. "I can forgive some name calling
easy enough."

"You're too nice," Sam said.

"Let it go, Sam." Devyn was willing to let it go.

"Thanks, Devyn," Kevin said and gave Devyn's bare arm a friendly punch. "We
don't understand how you can be, um, gay but I guess we don't need to."

"Just like I don't understand how you guys can be so into girls.," Devyn
said. "They just don't work for me."

"Not at all? But what about you and Mindy? I mean I know you two
were...ah...together." Kevin did not want to say he had seen Devyn and
Mindy going at it. It had definitely seemed the two were enjoying what they
were doing.

"Yeah, me and Mindy. That is something that I can't explain. All I can say
is sometimes you will do anything to fit in."

Kevin was more confused now. He knew he could not do something with a guy
to try and fit in. Of course, he had never needed to try and fit in as he
had just been accepted without question by the other football players. "You
know she is still like into you, man," Kevin said. "She told my girlfriend
that you...um...were the best."

"Fuck, I so wish she would shut up about that."

"Um...any chance you could tell me...um...how to do that...er...that thing
you do?"

Sam could not help but laugh at Kevin's question. "Sorry. I've asked him
the same thing."

Devyn could not believe this. Did Mindy never stop talking about their sex
life? He wondered if she kept talking about how good he was, was she also
talking about maybe how bad Dale was? Devyn could understand a little of
Dale's anger towards him. Of course, it should be at Mindy. "Geez,
Kevin. It isn't something I can teach. You can either do it or not."

"Yeah, but if you maybe just...um...give me some idea..." Kevin could feel
the heat creeping up his neck and onto his face.

Devyn could see Kevin was embarrassing himself now. "Sorry Kevin, it isn't
something I can explain...just try and work on...um...holding back. You
know."

"Ah...I guess." Kevin shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry,
this...er...conversation got odd. I never planned to ask about that or talk
about...um...you being...er...you know."

"Gay Kevin, the word is gay. It isn't a bad word and I'm not ashamed of
it." Devyn was looking Kevin squarely in the eyes.

"Um...and you shouldn't be. We...um...just have never had a gay guy around
before."

"Oh, I bet there are more around than you think. I'm sure they just don't
want anyone to know. The way you guys treated me at the beginning of the
term probably made anyone who is gay step even further away from being
out."

"We are sorry for being such assholes," Kevin said. He looked down at the
tile floor of the locker room. "We were dicks. That's all I can say and the
other guys feel the same. Well, not Dale and Ted, they're both pricks."

"Thanks, Kevin. Thanks for telling me and being the spokesman for
everyone."

# # #

The weekend was a blur for Devyn. He had the school play rehearsal on
Saturday. It ended up taking up his entire day. He had wanted to hang out
with Charlie but Charlie was still grounded. Joe let Devyn use the truck so
that Devyn could go to the movies with Sam. It was good getting to spend
time with his friend. Sam was always fun to hang out with.

"It would have been cool if Charlie could have come," Sam said after the
movie. "He's always been into those action-packed superhero movies. I'm
still not even sure why he's grounded. I never got a straight answer from
him."

"Um, wasn't he late for school or something?" Devyn knew why Charlie was
grounded but if Charlie wasn't telling Sam, then neither was Devyn.

"He was. That is all because his dick of a brother fucked up his phone." It
was obvious from the tone of Sam's voice that Sam did not like Howard.

"At least it's working now. I've been getting messages from him again."
Devyn had been glad he and Charlie could text each other again. It would
have been better if they could have spent the weekend together.

"Yeah, it was a pain in the ass. I had to reset it and then download
everything from his backup. I think Howard fucked it up on purpose. He's
such a prick."

Devyn glanced over at Sam and then back at the road. "You, um, don't like
Howard, do you?"

"Howard's always been a dick to me. Ever since I was a little kid." Sam
glanced over at Devyn. "Have you been around him much?"

"No, just a couple of times. He, um, doesn't like me either."

"I've guessed that. He's talked trash about Joe for a while so I can guess
he's also got issues with you being gay."

"Yeah, that seems to bother him."

"Just know it doesn't bother Charlie," Sam said. "He's cool with it."

Devyn had to fight hard to not laugh out loud at that comment. He knew
exactly how well Charlie was with it. "I know that." Devyn managed to say
without any hint of laughter.

"Do you think Joe would let you use the truck next weekend? We could get
Charlie and do something. Maybe another movie or something."

"I've got plans next weekend." Devyn had told Charlie about going to see
Brent but not Sam. "I'm, um, going to go see Brent for the weekend."

Sam looked over at Devyn. He could not read his friend's face. "You mean
your boyfriend?" Sam knew things had not ended well with Devyn and
Brent. Devyn had barely mentioned Brent other than during that overnight
camping trip.

"Former boyfriend," Devyn said.

"Are you, um, looking to start up with him again?" Sam knew Brent had hurt
Devyn and he did not want his friend to be hurt a second time by this guy.

"It's a long story. Brent was hurt and he wanted to explain everything to
me. We need to talk face to face and not over a phone."

"So, you are going to go to his place for the weekend?"

"That's the plan. It's a long drive so it didn't make sense to just drive
and turn around and drive home the same day."

"Wow, this is surprising. I guess his folks are better with you two than
yours."

"Well, actually he's not with his parents anymore either. I'm not exactly
sure what happened there. That is one of the things that I'm hoping he'll
tell me when I'm there."

"Wow, so where's he living?" Sam could not believe the kind of parents that
both Brent and Devyn had. No matter how much he might drive his mom nuts,
he did not believe she'd ever kick his ass out.

Devyn gave Sam the condensed version of what he had learned from Matt and
Bryan, which was not much. He was hoping that Brent would fill the big
hole.

"So, if Brent is terribly sorry," Sam began once Devyn had finished
speaking, "then do you want to get back with him?"

"I don't think it's possible." There were so many factors standing between
him and Brent. There was of course the hurt that Devyn felt. He might be
able to get past that but there was also their different lives. They no
longer just lived across the street from each other. They did not even just
live across town from each other. Devyn could not see Matt and Bryan moving
nor was he moving.

"You could make it work, you know," Sam said. "I mean you can drive and I'm
guessing Brent can as well. So, you could visit each other. You know,
taking turns."

"I don't know about that." In addition to the distance was the Charlie
factor. Devyn cared a great deal for him and he wanted to explore a
relationship with Charlie. Exploring all of those first times with Charlie
was like Devyn was getting to experience them for the first time too.

"I wish there were an out gay guy here for you. It would be cool if we
could all go out as a group."

"Well, you, my bud, would need to get a girlfriend for that to happen. How
are things with Gabby?" Devyn knew that Sam had liked the girl they had met
when they had gone to the concert but doubted the long-distance
relationship was going to work.

"We still talk but it isn't working out. I, er, asked her about coming to
Homecoming but she thought it was too far."

"I can understand that," Devyn said.

"How about you?"

Devyn's lips twitched. "Why Sam, are you asking me to Homecoming?"

"Dude, no, but you might be more fun than Lori."

Devyn chuckled. "So, you and Lori are going?"

"I haven't actually asked her yet but probably."

"She's pretty Sam. You should ask her before someone else does."

"Yeah, probably. I considered asking Stacy or Julie but they are friends
and it would be weird."

"Well, I think Stacy is going with Adam," Devyn said.

"He's in the drama club, right?"

"Yeah, he's cool." Devyn had liked Adam from the first rehearsal. The guy
had a dry wit and it worked well with the character Adam was playing.

"How's that going?" Stacy had tried to get Sam to join the drama club but
being on stage in front of people was not something he would find fun.

"The play has been a lot of work but it's been some fun too. Just don't
tell Stacy that." Devyn had enjoyed hanging out with Stacy's drama club
friends. They had accepted him with no reservations.

Sam chuckled. "I won't. If she thinks you're having fun, you will never get
out of doing another production."

"I know. That's why I'm trying to play it down. It is taking up so much of
my time."

"You dude have too many things going on. You're tutoring those jocks, in
the play, going on these weekend trips and I bet you still have a herd of
calves you're taking care of." Sam definitely would not want all the
responsibility that Devyn had. The guy acted more mature than he should for
his age.

"That's all true." When Sam said it all together it did sound like a
lot. Sam did not even know about the time Devyn wanted to spend with
Charlie.

"Damn, that is too much."

Devyn had to admit that it was becoming a lot. Hopefully, once the play was
over then he would have more free time. He and Charlie could really start
spending more time together.

"Well, you should ask one of the girls from the play to Homecoming. We can
all hang out together. Charlie is going with Heather."

"What?" Devyn's voice was sharp as he was surprised by the
information. Charlie had never mentioned going to Homecoming or having a
date.

"I know. Hard to believe, isn't it? A guy like Charlie going with Heather."

"Um, you sure about that?" Devyn couldn't believe that Charlie had not
mentioned this. He had never even mentioned going to Homecoming. Devyn had
not even thought about the dance until Sam just now brought it up.

"I heard a couple of girls talking, so I'm fairly sure. I haven't had a
chance to ask him."

Devyn wasn't sure how he felt about this. He knew Charlie was not into
girls. What they had just done a few nights ago was proof of that, unless
maybe Charlie was bi instead of just gay. If Charlie liked girls and guys,
then maybe he would rather have a relationship with Heather than
Devyn. Devyn remembered Joe telling him about Dan and how bad the two of
them had felt hiding their relationship from Dan's wife. Devyn had also
done that with Sue and he did not want to do that again. It was one thing
for him and Charlie to be secretive but he did not like the idea of Charlie
cheating on someone with him.

"There, just sent him a text while I was thinking of it," Sam said. "We'll
find out if he had the balls to ask a hot girl like Heather."

"Charlie is kind of shy isn't he." However, Charlie had not been too shy in
Devyn's bedroom the other night. The other boy had definitely gotten into
the fun. It even seemed like Charlie might be up for some role playing.

"He is sometimes. That's because of his brother Howard, the golden
child. Charlie's always been stuck in Howard's shadow."

Devyn glanced over at Sam. "You really don't like Howard at all."

"He's a two-faced dick." Sam could not keep the anger and loathing out of
his voice. "He'll put on a show for the right people but when you are alone
or out of sight of the people he wants to impress, his true colors show."

Devyn could agree with that. Howard had never harassed him when Mr. or
Mrs. Atwood were around. He probably did not want them to know what a jerk
he truly was. "It is surprising that he and Charlie are brothers. Charlie's
so different."

Sam glanced over at Devyn and was trying to determine if he heard something
in Devyn's voice. "Yeah, Charlie's a good guy. He's damn loyal and
supportive. When I've been going through stuff, he was always there, even
when it got us both into trouble."

Sam's words made Devyn wonder if maybe Charlie had known he was going to
get into trouble the other night. Had the guy been more concerned about
being there for Devyn, than being in trouble with his parents? Devyn had
enjoyed it so much being there in bed with Charlie and them just holding
each other. On one level that had been better than the sex they had shared.

"That's why I'm glad he's going out with Heather. She's sweet and just the
kind of girl he needs."

"I, er, don't know her well. I think we've had a couple of classes together
but she's quiet."

"She is," Sam agreed. "I think that is why she and Charlie will work. I
hope he doesn't blow it.

# # # #

Joe stepped from the cool autumn air into the warmer air of the hardware
store. He strode through the ails towards the counter.

"What do you want?" Howard asked.

Joe raised an eyebrow. He could hear the disdain in Howard's voice. "Good
morning to you too."

"It was until you walked in." Howard crossed his arms across his chest and
glared at Joe.

"You know, that isn't really the best way to build a customer base. You
might want to pay a little more attention in those marketing classes."

Howard placed his hand on the counter and leaned forward. "I don't need
customers like you in my store."

"Hmm, I thought it was your folks' store. That was who I came in to see. I
understood there were some new snowmobiles in."

"I'm taking over the store and we don't need your kind in here or in this
town."

"Oh, you don't need my business. I'll be happy to take it elsewhere. Of
course, a small-town business usually can't survive losing
customers. Especially customers that spend as much in here as I do."

"We don't need your filthy money." Howard sneered at Joe. "There is no
telling where it has been."

"Well, I think I'll check out those snowmobiles anyway. Are they in the
back?" Joe started to head toward the back where he knew the Atwoods kept
the larger items. He also figured he would find Howard's parents there.

Howard reached out and grabbed Joe to stop him. "Just go and tell that
little queer to stay away from us. He's hanging out with my brother and I
don't like it."

Joe looked at Howard's hand and then at Howard. "I suggest you remove your
hand."

"You going to make me?"

"If I did not respect your folks so much, you would have already lost the
use of that hand."

There was a glint in Joe's eye that caused Howard to release him. He took a
step back and knocked over a display that was next to the counter. "Fuck!
Look what you fucking did."

"No, that is all you." If Joe were not trying so hard to hold his anger in
check, he might have found Howard scrambling to clean up the mess amusing.

The loud crash of the display brought Howard senior from the back. "I knew
that thing was too close to the checkout," he stated.

"Well, he's clumsy," Howard stated.

Joe glared at the younger Atwood. "Sorry about this," he said, turning to
the senior Atwood.

"It's not your fault Joe. I told him that he was putting that too close to
the checkout. What brings you in?"

"I heard you had some new machines and that I should check them out."

"Charlie must have mentioned them. They just got delivered yesterday. Come
on back. I'll show you what we got."

Joe followed Howard into the larger room. "These are similar to the one you
bought a few years ago."

"Yeah, right after that big snow we had. It was an immense help. I was able
to track down some missing cattle."

"Well, these are almost the same." Howard started going over the features.

"Does sound the same but looks like the price has gone up." Joe was looking
at the list price on the tag.

"I'm sure we can give a returning customer a discount."

"Thanks." Joe paused and climbed off the snowmobile. He now wanted to get
into the real reason he had come into the hardware store today. "Howard, I
want to apologize for the other night. I had no idea that you and Barb did
not know Charlie was at my place."

"Yeah, Barb gets upset when she doesn't know where her boys are. I'm not
sure how she did not have a nervous breakdown when Howard was at college."

"I just never considered asking him if he needed to call home. I'm still
trying to figure out all of this parenting stuff."

"Don't worry about it, Joe. It isn't like the kids come with a damn
manual. How I wish they did. It would make raising them easier."

"Well, you're doing a damn excellent job with Charlie. After the weekend
Devyn had, he needed a loyal friend and Charlie was there for him."

"I'm glad to hear that," Howard said. "I haven't talked to Devyn much, but
Barb seems to think he's a good kid."

"He is," Joe confirmed. "We had a couple bumps in the beginning but worked
through them. That was more on me than him. I jumped into this quickly and
I'm not sure I'm cut out to be a parent."

"Don't be too hard on yourself, Joe. We all make mistakes with this
parenting crap. If children only came with that owner's manual that I
mentioned a moment ago. It would make it easier for all of us. Trust me
that Barb and I have made a couple of mistakes along the way."

"Well, I don't see that in Charlie. He's been there for Devyn. Heck, the
boy even jumped up to help Devyn with his chores the other night. That was
part of the reason they got such a late start on homework. I should have
done Devyn's chores for him but our agreement was he would take care of the
calves he's raising and get the profit from them."

"See, you're a natural parent," Howard said and gave Joe's upper arm a
friendly punch. "You're not just giving him a handout but making him earn
it. Plus, it's building character and a sense of responsibility."

"Devyn is one of the most responsible kids I've ever known. He takes on
responsibilities that aren't even really his." Joe was thinking of how
Devyn had taken on the responsibility of protecting Todd.

"It sounds like you're doing an excellent job with both Devyn and
Travis. If Charlie was going to be out breaking his curfew, I'm glad it was
at your place and not running around with the crew that his older brother
used to hang out with. I thought him going away to college would break him
from running around with them but it didn't. At least now the leader of
that little gang has been busted."

"Are you talking about Dewayne? Lee told me he arrested him."

"Yes, that's the one. The kid was always bad news."

"Yeah, Devyn started hanging out with him but it didn't last long." Joe was
glad that Devyn had come to realize how much trouble Dewayne and Terry
could be.

"I guess Devyn's a better judge of character than Howard."

"I think Howard still has some growing up to do." Joe had seen the junior
Atwood listening at the door. He hoped that the words would sting the boy's
ego.

"You might be right about that," Howard said. "So what are your thoughts on
the snowmobile? We'd be happy to deliver it for you."

# # # #

Joe felt good about the conversation with Howard Atwood. It appeared the
man did not have a problem with Charlie being around a gay man or having a
gay friend. Would Howard have a reaction more like his elder son if the man
knew Charlie was gay? Joe wasn't sure but he felt a bit more confident that
it would not be the trauma for Charlie that coming out had been for him or
for Devyn.

Joe walked behind his truck and stopped. He looked at the right taillight
and saw it was busted. He knew it had not been busted when he went into the
store. He looked at the left taillight and saw it was busted too. He had a
promising idea that it had not been random. He glanced across the street at
the bank. He then pulled out his cell phone. It only took his finger a
minute to find the contact. "Hey, I need a favor and I hope you can help."

# # # #

Charlie felt his phone vibrate. He pulled it from his pocket and looked at
the message from Stacy. "Here's Heather's number. You should call her. I
heard that Kevin might be asking her to Homecoming."

Charlie typed a quick reply. He wanted to spend time with Devyn and not go
to Homecoming. Why were girls so into this dance? He had no idea. He knew
the only person he wanted in his arms was Devyn. The only person he wanted
to kiss was Devyn. Well, there might be a couple of other guys that he
wouldn't mind kissing but Heather was not on that list. Oh, Charlie agreed
she was an attractive girl and she was nice. Perhaps if he were straight he
would be eager to ask her out.

"Do it soon!" Was Stacy's response.

Charlie already knew Sam was going with Lori. Stacy had told him she was
going with Adam. It seemed all of his friends were pairing off except for
him. Well, he kind of was paired with Devyn but no one knew that. Was it
time to just come out? Would his friends be alright with it? They were fine
with Devyn being gay. Would they accept him being gay?

Charlie was fairly certain that the girls would not have a problem learning
that he was gay. How would Sam react though? Would Sam start treating him
differently? Charlie could not bear the idea of their relationship
changing. He needed Sam as his best friend.

Charlie's thoughts were interrupted when his bedroom door was pushed open.

"Hey! Try knocking!" Charlie glared at his older brother who was standing
in the doorway.

"Look Bro," Howard began. "I'm here to tell you to stay clear of that
fucking little queer. I know you were grounded because you were out there
hanging out with him again. How you can stand to be around that filth is
beyond me."

"We were doing homework." That was Charlie's story and he was sticking to
it. No one else knew that they had not touched a book that night. Well,
maybe Joe knew that they had not opened a book but Joe was not going to
tell.

"Do your homework here or at school. Don't help that simple minded faggot."

"Shut UP!"

"I am trying to protect you. You will end up getting hurt if you're around
that pervert."

"Shut the fuck up and get out of my room!" Charlie wanted to punch his
brother. Why did he have to be gay and have such a homophobic older
brother?

"Look, Charlie." Howard moved into the room and closed the door behind
him. "I am only looking out for you." Howard moved closer. He placed a hand
on Charlie's shoulder. His voice was soft as he spoke. "I am trying to
protect you, little brother. I don't want you to get hurt."

"I'm not going to get hurt." Charlie's voice was more calm now.

"That guy is not right. Hell Joe came into the store and knocked over a
whole display."

"What?" Charlie found that hard to believe about Joe.

"Yeah, I told him Dad was busy and he just kicked it right over. They are
crazy."

Charlie had heard rumors about Joe's temper but he had never seen it
firsthand. In fact, what Charlie had seen the man was one of the nicest
people he knew. Charlie could feel his ears burn a bit as he remembered Joe
finding him and Devyn in bed naked together. He wondered if Joe had seen
the cum that had been on Charlie's neck and face. The man had definitely
had an impish gleam in his eye. How embarrassing that had been.

"So, you need to stay away from them. They are doing all kinds of kinky
shit out there. They even have that fucking cop involved in it. Why a hot
chick like Melissa stays with him is beyond me."

Charlie did not know how to respond to that. He knew that there was not a
lot of kinky shit going on out there. Of course, what he and Devyn had
done, Howard would probably consider that kinky. No, actually to Howard
that would have been perverted.

"They have orgies all the time. I know that because other guys have been
asked to partake in them."

"What?" Charlie's head had snapped up and his blue eyes met Howard's.

"See, yeah, they like random sex. That one guy from out of town always
brings other guys out there. Plus, what do you think they were doing when
they were out of town."

Charlie knew where Joe and Devyn had gone but he could not tell Howard
that.

"If you keep hanging out with that filth, folks are going to start thinking
you are into that sort of shit. I know you're not and we have got to set a
proper example. We're Atwood's and we have a business reputation to
uphold. We don't want Dad to lose customers because his son is hanging out
with losers and perverts."

"You're wrong about all of this."

Howard shook his head. "You are so naive," he said. "You need to get out
more. You need to start dating and finding a girl. Once you get with a
chick you'll understand better how sick they are."

"You've got this all wrong." Charlie knew he was never going to change
Howard's mind about Joe and Devyn.

"It doesn't matter if I am or not. The important thing is that you have as
little contact with them as possible. Now Homecoming is right around the
corner. Ted said his little sister hasn't been asked yet."

"What?" Was Howard telling him to ask out Ted's sister?

"She's a good-looking girl. She's got a nice smile and a nice set." Howard
waved his hand in front of his chest. "Her ass is also hot. I've seen her a
lot when I've been over there. She's too young for me but I have to say I
don't mind looking."

"She's a freshman and you're in college."

"Yeah, it would be a real treat for her to have a man like me but she'll
have to settle for you."

"You're a jerk!"

"Trust me, she's eager to go with you. You might even be able to tap that
hot..."

"Get out. I've already got a date." The words were out of Charlie's mouth
before he comprehended what he had said.

Howard's eyebrows went up. "You do?"

Charlie knew he could not back out of the lie now. "Yeah, I'm going with
Heather McDaniel."

"Who?"

Of course, Howard would not know who that was. She was quiet and sweet and
not the sister of one of his jock buddies. "She's in my class."

"Well, way to go little brother." Howard sounded pleased to hear that
Charlie had a date.

"Now I need to get back to my history paper." Charlie wished he had taken
history last year. He could have been in that same class with Sam and
Devyn. Maybe he and Devyn would have started their relationship back then.

"Alright." Howard playfully messed up Charlie's hair. "I look forward to
hearing all about your date. Maybe you can stick it to her."

"You're sick!"

"I'm a guy, little brother. That's what we do." Howard turned and left
Charlie's room.

Charlie could feel butterflies in his stomach as he looked at his phone. He
went to the message that Stacy had sent earlier. He took a big breath
before calling the number.

# # # #

Devyn could not believe how fast the week was flying by. He had missed
Charlie but it had been fun hanging out with Sam. He had hoped Charlie's
grounding would be lifted soon but so far his mom was being strict.

"She'll lift my grounding right when you leave for your trip," Charlie told
Devyn on Wednesday. "Is there any chance you could push that off?"

"I don't think so." Devyn wanted to push it off but he also wanted to see
Brent. He needed to know what Brent went through and he needed to know
where the two stood with each other. Devyn needed to figure out his
feelings for Brent so he could figure out his feelings for Charlie.

"There is just so much going on, that I'd like to...um...hang out this
weekend." Charlie wanted so much to be with Devyn again. He wanted to hold
his friend and kiss his friend. He also hoped that all that kissing and
hugging would lead to more.

"You may still be grounded," Devyn reminded Charlie.

"Yeah, I might be but the week after that is Homecoming."

"Yeah, about that," Devyn began. "I hear you have a date."

"Um, yeah, I do." Charlie could feel his neck burn a bit.

"Were you keeping it from me?" Devyn asked.

Charlie's eyes met Devyn's. "No, I, um, just hadn't had a chance to tell
you. I...er...asked...um...Heather."

"So, is this a girl you are attracted to?" Devyn needed to find out if
Charlie was gay or bi or what.

"Well, she's pretty and all." Charlie felt a bit weird telling Devyn that
he was going on a date with a girl.

"She is," Devyn agreed. "So, you are attracted to her?"

"Yes, I mean no. You know."

"Honestly, Charlie, I don't."

"I kind of panicked," Charlie admitted. He had asked Heather out because of
Stacy, Sam, and then the final straw had been Howard. He had just wanted
Howard to leave him alone. Charlie glanced around and there was no one else
nearby. He lowered his voice. "You're the only one. I just felt pushed into
a corner."

"So, you aren't attracted to her?" Devyn felt a little better now. He could
understand where Charlie was coming from. He had been there himself. It was
one of the reasons he had started dating Sue.

"She is cute and all but I don't feel for her like that. I'm going to be
honest with her that we're friends, I mean me and her."

"Good." Devyn wondered if he should tell Charlie now how he did not want to
go behind Heather's back. Devyn did not mind keeping their relationship a
secret but he did not want to be cheating with Charlie on Heather. In the
end, Devyn kept those thoughts to himself. It was one date and might as
well wait and see where things landed.

Between school, the rehearsals for the play, tutoring, and his chores,
Devyn was not left with much free time. It was a wonder he and Charlie
could find any time to have a private talk. He was going to be glad when
some of the school activities slacked off.

"Devyn, would you please step into the hall for a moment."

"Er, sure," Devyn said. He got up from the table where he had been helping
Jimmy, Kevin, and a couple of other students with the math homework.

"Were we being too loud?" Devyn asked once he was outside the room with
Mrs. Jones.

"No, I just wanted to commend you on how well you were doing."

"Oh, um, thanks," Devyn said.

"I'm glad to see the trust we've placed in you was not misplaced," she
said. "Do you still have extra passes?"

"Um, yes." Devyn always kept a couple in his back pocket. He kept the bulk
of them at home. He knew Tanner would not find them there.

"Have you needed them?"

"Um, yes, Tanner, um, caught me the other day on my way from the gym to the
Ag room."

It had been the first time that Devyn had been out of class without someone
else with him. It seemed that most of the time either he was with a teacher
or one of the other students. When he wasn't alone he could see Tanner
glaring at him. It was even keeping Dale and Ted at bay.

"I see you are cutting class yet again." Tanner had said when he saw Devyn
alone in the hall.

"I'm not, Sir." Devyn thought or at least hoped being respectful would help
keep things civil between him and Tanner.

"Don't use that tone with me, boy." Tanner moved closer to Devyn. "I'll
have your queer little ass in detention before you can spell the word."

"There was no tone intended." Devyn took a step back. He knew he could
defend himself but he could not do that here. Tanner was just looking to
have a reason to expel him.

Tanner moved closer as Devyn tried to back away. "How many times does this
make that I've found you cutting class?"

"I'm not cutting class. I've got a pass from Mr. Hanks. He wanted my help
with an FFA project." Devyn reached into his back pocket and removed the
pass he had put there earlier. He had wanted to make sure he had one with
Mr. Hank's signature. "As you can see Mr. Hanks gave me the pass to get me
out of gym."

"I don't know why he's taken such an interest in you. You're pathetic. You
got lousy grades..."

"My grades are fine. You should check my records." Devyn knew he should not
argue with Tanner but he had not been able to stop himself. His grades were
way better this year than they had been at this time last year. He had not
been trying at all last fall.

Tanner slammed Devyn back against the row of lockers. "How dare you talk to
me that way. "

The air was forced from Devyn's lungs. He felt the back of his head slam
against the metal of the locker. "Get off me."

"Don't think that just because that old fucking queen adopted you that
you're safe from me. I can bring an entire world of hurt down on you and
him. I know stuff about that son-of-a-bitch that would make your head
spin. You have no idea what he is really like."

"You don't know anything!" Devyn was trying to push Tanner off him but the
man was huge. He considered bringing his knee up and slamming it into the
man's crotch but he knew that was the kind of response Tanner was wanting.

"I know far more than you."

Devyn was finding it a little hard to breathe. Tanner had him pinned
against the locker and the man's forearm was across Devyn's throat. He
could feel his vision starting to grow blurry. "I, I can't breathe." Devyn
was not sure if it was the lack of oxygen or the evil sneer on Tanner's
face that made his legs feel weak. He tried to bring his knee up but Tanner
stomped on his foot. Devyn cried out in new pain.

"Er, Devyn, er, Mr. Tanner?" Adam's voice seemed to break the spell that
had been on Tanner. He released Devyn and backed away.

"Don't let me catch you out of class again!" Tanner strode away leaving
Devyn gasping and trying to catch his breath.

"Um, you alright?" Adam asked. Adam was concerned by what he had just
seen. He could not help but wonder if he had not been there that Devyn
might have been seriously hurt by Tanner.

"Yeah, thanks." Devyn was extremely thankful that Adam had come along when
he had.

"Devyn, that wasn't just because you cut class was it." Adam looked from
Devyn to where Tanner had disappeared down the hall.

"I'm not cutting class. I have a note." Devyn's voice was hard. Was
everyone going to think the worst of him?

Adam held up his hand in surrender. "Hey, I believe you. I just mean..."

"Sorry, Adam."

"You were, um I mean it looked bad." Adam had thought Tanner was truly
trying to injure Devyn.

Devyn had to admit that it had felt kind of bad. "It was a bit scary, I
guess."

"Should we tell someone?" Adam did not like the scene that he had seen. He
thought someone needed to know how abusive Tanner was being. "If he was
doing that to me, I'd tell my folks."

"It's alright. Don't worry about me. I'll take care of it." Devyn knew he
could go to Joe but what if Tanner did know something about Joe? Was there
something Tanner could do to break up their family even now?

"Alright. I've got to go. I need to piss bad. That's why I'm out of class."

Devyn watched the other boy hurry away. He had never noticed before what a
nice ass Adam had.  # # # #

So, the passes are coming in handy then." Mrs. Jones' voice brought Devyn's
mind back to the present.

Yes, they are." Not as handy as they could be but Devyn was going to avoid
being alone from now on.

# # # #

Devyn, you know how hard it is to get any time with you?" Julie asked. They
were walking towards the cafeteria. "Could we talk for a bit?"

Devyn sighed inside. It looked like another chance to spend a little time
with Charlie was going to be snatched away. "Sure."

Julie grabbed his arm and pulled him into an empty classroom. She closed
the door behind them. "You've been so busy that I haven't been able to
ask...how did things go with your trip? Are you doing alright?"

"Thanks. I'm fine."

"Are you?" Julie moved closer and put a comforting hand on Devyn's arm. "It
had to be really hard on you."

Devyn could hear the concern in Julie's voice.  "It was but, well, I
survived."

"Did it help you? I mean put stuff behind you?"

Devyn wondered about that. Did it allow him to put things behind him? He
had not talked to Frank but he and his mom, Judy, had seemed to have some
sort of connection. Devyn shrugged his shoulders. "Honestly I'm not sure
yet."

"That's understandable. I would think it would take time to figure things
out. I mean when my mom passed away a few years ago I was a mess for weeks.
I didn't know what I was feeling. I mean yes, sad, and depressed. But there
was also a part of me that felt some relief. She had been fighting the
cancer for so long."

Devyn could see tears starting to pool in Julie's eyes. He did not want her
to start crying. He stepped a little closer and put his arm around her.
"That sounds like normal feelings to me. I mean relief that your mom was no
longer suffering from cancer."

"I felt guilty for feeling that. I was also mad at her for getting sick
which is just stupid. It wasn't her fault. It isn't like someone showed her
a book and said pick one."

"Anger is a natural reaction. I felt a lot of that in both my parents. I
guess I still do. In a way, my parents passed away like your mom. As far as
being my dad and mom, that relationship is dead."

"Oh, Devyn." Julie threw her arms around Devyn and hugged him tightly. Her
face was pressed against his chest as she held him.

Devyn was not exactly sure who was comforting whom. He put his arms around
Julie and held her. Maybe they were just comforting each other.

"I'm so sorry Devyn," Julie said, after several long minutes of holding
onto Devyn. "I'm not sure what got into me."

"It's alright." Devyn released Julie and watched as she moved to the
teacher's desk and grabbed some tissues. She turned her back and softly
blew her nose.

"This is so not why I wanted you to talk to me." Julie dabbed at her eyes
and then tossed the tissues into the waste paper can before turning back to
Devyn.

"It isn't?" Devyn did not understand how they had gone down this road if
this was not what Julie wanted to talk about.

"I actually have a favor to ask you."

"Sure, what is it?" Devyn would do what he could to help Julie. He wondered
if it had to do with the upcoming math exam.

"You might want to hear what it is," she said.

"Then let's hear it," he said.

"I would like it if you would take me to Homecoming," she said.

"What?" Devyn asked. Had he heard correctly?

"I want to go to Homecoming with you," she said again.

"Are you asking me out?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "I guess I am. You don't have a date do you?"

"Um, no," Devyn admitted. He had actually never considered going. It wasn't
like he could go with Charlie. Especially now that Charlie had a date.
Devyn had never considered asking a girl. He did not want to go down that
path a second time. Well, actually it would have been the third time. He
had tried that with Sue and then a second time with Mindy.

"Then let's go together," Julie said. "It will be fun. We are friends.
There will be no pressure. It isn't like a real date. Just two friends
going to a dance."

"Um, I don't know," Devyn said. He wasn't sure about this. "Are you sure
you don't want to see if someone else asks you?"

"No," she said. "I mean there is one guy I am into but he hasn't asked."

"Well, I don't know," Devyn said hesitantly.

"Oh please, Devyn," Julie said. "I don't want to go solo and I don't want
to go with a loser."

"Well, at least I am not a loser," Devyn said.

"You definitely are not," she said. "If you were into girls, you could have
any of them in school that you wanted. Especially if the stuff Mindy says
is true."

"Ug," Devyn moaned and felt his ears burn. Mindy must still be spreading
the crap about how good he is in bed or the hay loft which was where they
had fucked.

"We can get dressed up," Julie said. "It will be fun. I will get to have
the best-looking date in school. Although you need a haircut," she said and
pushed his long hair back out of his eyes.

"Crap," Devyn muttered. "If you really want to," Devyn finally agreed. "But
if someone you want to really date asks you, I will be fine bowing out."

"Deal," she said and hugged him. "Thank you."

# # # #

You are doing what?" Charlie asked when Devyn had told him about taking
Julie to homecoming.

"I know it is crazy," Devyn said. "But you and Sam both have dates. I was
going to just stay home but Julie really wanted me to take her."

"I can't believe someone hasn't already asked her. I mean it's Julie."

Devyn chuckled. "Yeah, I know. The hottest girl and popular. I'm guessing
the guy she wanted didn't ask her."

"So, she just asked you?"

"Yeah, that is how it went." Devyn left out the part about the tears. That
was just between him and Julie.

"So, you are like picking her up and everything? Are you dressing up? I
mean how much of a date is this?"

Devyn could hear something in Charlie's voice. "Hey, you aren't jealous are
you?"

Charlie had to admit he was. He was jealous of Julie because she was
getting to go to the dance with Devyn. "No. I just wish, well..."

"Me too." Devyn dropped his voice so no one could overhear them. "I'd
rather go with you. At least this way, we will both be there."

"Right."

"Besides, if anyone has a right to be a bit jealous, it's me."

"What?" The disbelief filled Charlie's voice.

"Yeah, you are the one going out and asking girls to dances, not me."

"But, but..."

Devyn nudged Charlie with his elbow. "I'm just teasing."

"You know it's nothing, right?" Charlie did not have feelings for Heather.
The only person he had feelings for was Devyn.

"Well, I'm the safe date for Julie. We're friends and that's it."

"You sure?" Charlie asked.

"Of course," Devyn said. His voice was low so no one else would overhear.
"You know how I swing. I like Julie but I don't LIKE her."

"I guess," Charlie said. Charlie could not help his feelings of jealousy.
It seemed everyone from Brent to Julie was into Devyn. Where was that going
to leave him?


# # # #


Copyright 2024 by Keith yates (keith.96@att.net) all rights reserved.

Character is much easier kept than recovered. Thomas Paine

A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong gives it a superficial
appearance of being right.

Thomas Paine