Date: Thu, 11 Apr 2024 21:54:47 -0700 From: Jeremy Taccone Subject: Dylan and Alex Every now and then I get an idea for a new story that I can't get out of my head. Here it is, part one anyway. There might be a part two and so on, or I might get a new idea. All characters are imaginary and fictional. It was a hot muggy summer afternoon in Dayton, Ohio, and I was between eleventh and twelfth grade. I was lying out by our backyard pool like I did every day when suddenly I heard a big truck pull up in the driveway next door. I was bored, so I got up to check it out. It was a U-Haul truck. Hey! Someone finally bought that house. Cool! New neighbors. A man, maybe about 40 years old, got out of the truck, looked around, spotted me peeking over the fence, smiled and waved at me. I waved back. "Wanna make some extra money?" he asked. "Can you help me move in?" More money was always a good idea, so I went over to help him wearing only my speedo and flip flops. Hey, I wasn't about to put anything else on in this weather! "Wow!" said the man as I walked over to him. I'm not sure what got his attention the most -- my wavy blond hair, my blue eyes, my shaved pits as I reached up to pull myself into the truck, my summer tan, or my smooth slender six-foot tall body, but he made no secret that he was checking me out. I didn't mind. He was okay on the eyes for being at least twice my age, but his skin was paler than mine like he needed to get out in the sun more, and his hair was shorter and dark brown. "I'm Alex." "Dylan." "All this stuff needs to go in the house," he said. "I'll give you a hundred dollars if you'll give me just a few hours, and I'll throw in pizza for dinner. How does that sound?" "Awesome!" I replied. "Where are you from, Alex?" "Boston. My job transferred me here." "What do you do, if you don't mind me asking?" "Not at all my boy. I'm an architect. I'm heading up a new division here." "I love designing houses, but only on SIMS so far." "Hey, we all gotta start somewhere." Over the next few hours as we were moving his stuff into the house, he would sometimes just stop, watch me, and smile. I smiled back but didn't stop to chit chat much because I wasn't sure what he had on his mind, and I wanted my hundred dollars. Both of us were working up quite a sweat, and when the truck was finally empty, he suggested we go for a quick dip in his pool. Yeah, it was a nice neighborhood. Most houses had pools. That sounded great to me, so I jumped in while he ordered pizza. After a few minutes, he came out wearing a pair of trunks and jumped in too. "I'm glad the real estate company was taking care of this house and pool while it was on the market," he said as he swam up to me. "I've never had my own pool before." I was in the deep end holding onto the diving board above me, and he rested one of his arms over the edge of the pool, and with his other hand he reached up and traced his finger down across my armpit and said, "I bet you're on a swim team." "Yep. I'll be a senior next year. In fact, my 17th birthday is next week." "Well, well, well," Alex said mischievously. "Let me know if you want a birthday spanking." "Okay," I replied with a smile. I couldn't tell if he was joking or serious. "How old are you?" I asked. "forty-one," he replied as he moved from the side of the pool and grabbed the board with both hands. Now we were hanging about a foot apart facing each other. Our knees were bumping together. Suddenly I felt shy, and he said, "Pizza's gonna be here soon." "I'm starving. What kind did you get?" "Both kinds -- meat and veggie, both with extra cheese. You're not lactose intolerant, are you?" "No, thank God! I love cheese!" "Take some leftovers home with you," Alex said, both of us still hanging from the diving board. "Does your family like pizza?" "It's just my mom and me, and she loves it too." "What does she do," Alex asked as his legs wrapped around mine and playfully pulled me close. "She's an agricultural economist, and always works late because her projects are intense -- budget cuts, not enough staff. She mostly does subcontracting work for the government. What about your family?" "Just me," Alex said with a wry grin at which I smiled back. I could feel his feet working up my legs where his toes hooked under the waistband of my speedo and pulled it down to my ankles. "Whaaaa!" I yelled with laughter as I tried not to let go of the diving board. Okay, this guy's gay, and so am I, but I'm half his age! However, Alex was fun and playful. He had a good sense of humor and made me laugh. I felt comfortable with him, so I was a good sport and went along with it. I knew his trunks had a drawstring, so there was no point in me attempting to get him back. I'll do that later. After pizza, Alex gave me a crisp one-hundred-dollar bill and asked if I had a job. I said I didn't, so he offered me a job as a houseboy. How could I say no? I knew the money would be pretty good, and it was right next door. The real estate agency wasn't going to take care of the place anymore, so Alex needed help with the pool and other stuff around the house. He got my number to send me more details later. "After all that work and pizza, I think we're both going to sleep well tonight," Alex said as we said goodbye. "I know I will," I replied. Just before midnight as I was getting ready to go to bed, Alex texted me: "I can't sleep. You wouldn't know how to give a massage, would you?" "Funny you should ask," I texted back. "Be right over." If you enjoyed part one, let me know, and probably I'll be inspired and motivated to create more parts.