Founders School for Boys

By bottomboy1011@yahoo.com

Also find FSB and other stories my website

https://storiesfromthebearcave.wordpress.com/

I am a little ADD so it is hard for me to sit down and write. I will not do it if I do not get feedback. Nifty give us an outlet to write things that we cannot talk about in the real world, so donate http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html  and be sure to give the authors feedback on what you think after you read their stories..

 

CHAPTER 38

A NEW LIFE BEGINS

 

I know I should have felt weird walking back to the house naked with my little brother, and I had to fight myself not to slip on my pants. As for Art, I don't think he even remembered that he was naked. He just went on talking about how much fun he had with his new friend Ben, and how he loved getting thrown into the pool.

We got to the house, and I started feeling self-conscious about going into the house naked with Drew and Roger there. I know it was stupid, I mean they have seen me naked a few times, but still. We walked in and Art ran into Drew's arm and started telling him about all the fun he had. I walked past them and up to my room where I slid on some boxers.

I turned to the sound of a knock on my door, "Hey kiddo, that was unexpected." I sat on my bed looking at my hands. I just could not look into Rogers eyes. He sat on the bed next to me, "Are you ok? I didn't figure you were anywhere near the walking through the neighborhood naked stage."

"I'm ok, it is still weird, but I guess I have to get used to it."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Yes, but would it be ok if we talked about it some other time. I need time to think about everything, then I will know what I want to talk about."

"That works for me. I won't bring it up again until you do. Just know that you can come talk to me any time."

I gave him a hug, "Thanks Roger, I am sorry to be such a pain."

"You are not being a pain. This is a big transition, and one you are not sure you want to make. Thank you for at least trying it for a while."

Roger left and I just laid down on my bed, trying to understand all the feelings I am having. I didn't get to lay there long before Drew called us down for dinner. One thing I can say about Drew, he sure knows how to cook. After dinner I went back to my room and finished my homework. When I was done I went looking for Art. I found him in his room, sitting at his desk drawing. I knocked on the door frame, "Hey little brother, can I come in?"

He giggled, "Of course you can silly. Your my brother, you can come in whenever you want to."

"I think that knocking is always better than just walking in. What if you just want to be left alone?"

He giggled again, "In that case you would come in anyway, to find out what was wrong."

I had to think about that for a second, "I guess you are right." I laughed, "What ya doing, homework?"

"You know I don't get homework yet silly. No, I am just drawing about my day."

"Can I see?"

"Sure."

I looked over his shoulder at some really great drawings. For a five-year-old, he is very talented. "These are great Art. I can tell from your drawing who everyone is."

This got him excited, "You mean it Rob, you really think that they are good?"

"I would never lie to you little brother. Just when I think you can't get any more amazing, you go and do it." I wrapped him in a hug and carried him downstairs to watch a little TV before bed.

The Next day was Wednesday, and like any other day we went to school, but when we came home Drew said, "Go get your homework done, and relax for a little while. When Roger gets home we will all go to the Rec Center."

"But what about dinner?" Art asked.

"We will be having dinner at the Rec Center, before the celebration."

"What celebration?" I asked.

"You will have to wait and see." He said with a smile.

When Roger got home, he went up and took a shower. When he was finished, we all headed to the Rec Center. There were a lot of people there that I had never seen before. I finally found Mikey and Lewis at the buffet table. We all got something to eat and sat at a table with a few other kids. I looked around to find Art at another table with five other kids his age. They all had food and were having a good time. I looked at Mikey and asked, "Do you know what this is all about?"

Laughing, Mikey said "Sure I do, it is all about me."

"Oh, is it your birthday? Wait a minute, you said your birthday was last week."

"No dude, this is my PCU party."

"I know that should mean something to me, because I've heard the name before."

Lewis said, "He gets his dick caged tonight."

"Ok, I remember you saying something about it, but a party for it? I don't get it."

"Just relax and listen to what my dad says, and you will understand it."

We finished eating and heard a tinkling of a glass, "Hey everyone can I have your attention." Everyone quieted and Mikey left the table to climb up on the stage and stand next to the man that was talking. "My wife and I are so very proud to be sharing this exciting event with you this evening. My wonderful son Michael Xander Turner turned twelve this past week and now he is ready to take the second big step as a Crossman boy."

The people started clapping and the kids were yelling, "Yea Mikey"

"Before we get to the main event, Michael asked me to talk a little about why we do this as Crossman, to our sons. He has some new friends here, that don't understand what it means. The PCU is something that has been worn by Crossman boys from twelve to eighteen for more than fifteen generations. The wearing of the PCU started out as just a way to keep the boys and therefore the girls pure until marriage."

I have to figure that this this question was just for my benefit since a man in the audience asked a question that I figure he already knew the answer too, "I am sorry sir, but isn't this just barbaric to make a child wear one of these devices?"

Everyone laughed, but for the life of me, I could not figure out what was funny. "The answer to your question is no sir, they are not barbaric at all. The PCU in no way harms the boy wearing it, but instead keeps the rate of childhood pregnancy down to a whopping zero percent. We as Crossman, are not embarrassed by sex, on the contrary, we believe that sex is a beautiful thing. However, and history proves this out, not having sex with a girl before marriage improves the odds of that marriage lasting forever. However, above all that is the boys commitment to the Crossman traditions and its glorious history."

Another man said, "I don't understand what you mean. How can a boy wearing a PCU show a commitment?"

"I am glad you asked me that sir. When a boy allows himself to have a PCU attached to his penis, he is saying to all of his fellow Crossman, "I respect our beliefs and traditions." It also says, "I respect the Crossman girls enough to wear this PCU, so that there is no chance of cheating you or me out of our childhood and future by bringing a child into the word, only to be raised by children. However, it does tell the future children they will have, that I loved you enough to wait until I was educated and found the right woman to be your mother."

This was met by a very loud round of applause. I guess what he was saying made sense. I knew of three girls that are pregnant in my school, and I am in middle school. I watched as Mikey's dick and balls were forced through this ring. He cried out once, so it must have hurt. Then I watched as ice was rubbed over is dick to make it soft, and this metal case was slid over it. Once the tube was on the way it was supposed to go, it locked in place when it came in contact with the ring. Once it was done another loud cheer sounded as the event came to an end.

As Mikey came down off the stage, he had his shoulders back, stomach sucked in, and strutted around showing off his PCU. He got to me and asked, "Does it make a little more sense now?"

"I guess, and I understand the reasoning behind it, but I am still not sure."

"That is ok, but if you let yourself look at it with an open mind, I have no doubt that you will join us. I mean, you are standing there naked in front of all these people, you would have never thought you would be doing that a few days ago."

The rest of the week was pretty much the same. We would go to school, come home, run over to the Rec Center, hang out with the guys until the whistle blew, come home, have dinner, do homework, watch TV, and then to bed. On the weekend we spent most of it at the pool. Art and Ben were excited when they got to go with Drew shopping. I just can't remember when I have had more fun.

On Monday we went off to school, did our thing there, come home, and headed to the Rec Center. I looked back, because I thought I heard Drew yelling for us, but didn't see anything. When we got to the Rec Center it was a ghost town. We walked in and it was kinda dark and no one was there. Art said, "I want to go home, this is scary without all the other kids here."

"I agree, let's go home." When we got home we found Drew in the kitchen cooking. I said, "Drew, we went to the Rec Center and there wasn't anyone there."

"I know, I tried to catch you before you left, but you guys are quick. All the kids are back in school."

I was confused, "I just figured that they were already out for the summer."

"Nope, they still have three weeks left just like you do. They get one week off, before they have to start hitting the books. They have finals coming us soon."

"Oh, so what time to they get home."

Now it was Drews turn to look confused, "Not until Friday night. I thought you knew that."

"You mean they live at the school?" I asked very surprised.

"Of course, it's a boarding school."

"Oh, so it is like really far away?"

"Not really, about a fifteen-minute walk from here."

"I don't understand, if it is that close, why do they need to live there?"

"FSB is about more than just educating the students in the classroom. It creates a place where the kids can bond and learn to live together. They are building relationships that will last them a lifetime. There is nothing like living with other boys all around you, to make you appreciate coming home." He said with a smile.

Over the next few weeks, I learned all about FSB and what it would be like to go there. That is when I knew that I needed to talk to Roger.

It was just before dinner and Roger came to my room, "Hey buddy, Drew said you wanted to talk to me."

I looked up at him, "Roger, you know me, I am not one that follows others to be cool or anything..."

"But?"

"In the beginning I could not understand why these kids would want to be naked in front of each other, and we won't even talk about the sex, but I think I understand more today than I did when you asked me if I wanted to talk."

"So, what happened a few weeks ago that started your thinking.

"I guess it started with Art."

"What about Arturo?"

"A few things really. Watching him walk naked out in public was the first thing. Dressed or naked he just don't care. He was naked in front of everyone, even girls and it just didn't matter to him. I was having a hard time wrapping my head around that. I was so scared to be naked in front of all those people. How stupid is that? I was scared to be naked in front of a bunch of naked people."

Roger laughed, "I get that, but Arturo is young, he still has his innocence. He doesn't see naked or dressed, for that matter he doesn't even see black or white. All he cares about is if the other little kid would want to play and be his friend. He will never even notice that the kid is black, brown, or yellow. You on the other hand, are seven years older than him, and have learned to see these things by the way people you are around see them."

"Hey, wait a minute, I don't hate people because of the color of their skin." I said defensively.

"No, I know you are not like that, but you have seen it haven't you? You have heard the jokes you have witnessed the teasing?"

"Yes I guess so."

"Your brother hasn't. What little he may have seen just confused him. Your dad told me a story about how Arturo came home from daycare, crying about how the other kids were teasing this little boy that he was friends with. Your dad went over the next day to investigate and found out that the boy was Asian. He informed the center about it, and it was dealt with. The point of that story is that Arturo never even noticed that the boy was Asian. He just knew that the boys feeling were hurt by what the other kids were saying. Because your dad was not the kind of guy to tell those jokes or allow anyone at work to talk like that, it was never a topic in your home.

"Yeah, I guess that's true."

"So, you said there were a few things about Arturo?"

"Yeah, this has been a bad year for us. There has not been a lot of laughter in our lives. That day you asked me what was going on, well, for the first time in I can't remember how long, Art laughed. I am not talking about the laughing he does when you tickle him, I mean real laughing. As he was playing with his new friends, and being thrown into the pool, I could see him moving past all the bad stuff and being my happy little brother again. Seeing that made me so happy, I cried. That brought on new stuff that I guess was causing more confusion."

"I am so glad to hear that Arturo has started on the road to recovery. Yes, it has been a bad year for you guys. Drew and I suffered in our own way right beside you. I lost my best friend, and unfortunately it was not a quick death, we all had to watch him suffer through that, and were helpless to do anything about it."

"If I tell you something, do you promise that you won't hate me?"

"I could never hate you, but I promise."

"I often stood by my dad's bed, seeing the pain he was in. I came close to giving him all of his pain meds, so he would not have to suffer anymore. I know you hate me know, even though you promised you wouldn't"

I started crying, feeling the shame for even thinking about it. Roger pulled me into a hug and said, "It's ok, Drew and I had the same thoughts many times ourselves. We were not ashamed that we were thinking them, only deeply saddened that we didn't have the guts to do anything about it and stop his suffering."

I pulled back in shock, "You really thought the same thing?"

"I think everyone that went or is going through what we did thinks about it. No one should have to suffer like your dad did. It never made any sense to me that you can put a dog to sleep when they are in pain and call it humane. However, if we do the same for a human, it is called murder. Moving past that, you said, that you cried and that caused some real confusion for you."

I grabbed a tissue and dried my eyes. I turned on the bed, so I was facing him, "When I started crying after seeing Art, I dove under the water and swam to the wall on the other side of the pool. I thought I hid my tears with the water, but Mikey and his big brother Alex, came over to talk to me. I tried to tell them that I would be ok, but they would not leave until I told them what was wrong. When I did, instead of making fun of me, they hugged me and stayed with me until I was ready to go back to playing."

"So, why is that confusing?"

"I don't understand these people."

"Ok, I get that you are not used to seeing others outside your family care that much about you. Sometimes it is not so much about the words as it is about the contact with another person. Now, let me ask you a few questions. Over this last year, how my times has Arturo climbed into your bed crying?"

"I don't know the number, but lots of times."

"Right, and of all of those times, how many of them did you talk about the problem versus just holding him to make him feel better?"

I thought about this for a bit before answering, "I think most of the time he just wanted to be held."

"Of course he did. He knew that he was safe with you and in your arms. That was good for him, but how did it make you feel with him there?"

"I guess it made me feel less alone. So, we helped each other huh?"

"I would say so. Ok, now let's talk about Jarod. You have been best friends since kindergarten. Prior to your dad getting sick, how often did you two hug?"

"Hardly ever, we are boys and that is a gay thing."

"So, you are telling me you are gay."

I got defensive, "I am not."

"Ok, then don't say silly things like that. From the time your dad got sick, until the day of the funeral, you guys hugged all the time. Not in a "gay way", but he held you in his arms while you cried, or just because you needed it. He is your best friend and would do anything for you, in fact he is not your best friend, he is your brother, you guys are family."

I was thinking about that when Art came into the room and saw that I had been crying again. He got a worried look on his face and climbed onto the bed. He put himself into my lap and wrapped me in a hug, "What's going on? Are these happy tears or sad tears?"

"I guess a little of both. Can I ask you something?"

Smiling now, "Sure you can."

"Do you think that Jarod is my best friend, or my brother?"

He thought for a second, "Well I am your only real brother, but I think that Jarod is your brother also."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because he is always with us. Sometimes when you got so sad that you just wanted to be alone, instead of going home, Jarod would come into my room. He would lay down on my bed, and I would grab a book and go laydown with him. Then he would read to me. Sometimes we both fell asleep." He said with a giggle, "Sometime he would even play games with me, and sometimes when dad was bad and you were in you room being sad, I could call him, and he would come over and stay with me. No, he is our brother."

"I didn't know that I am so sorry, I never meant to leave you alone. Please forgive me."

He laughed, "You didn't silly, Jarod was there."

I looked at Roger, "I never knew any of this, why didn't Jarod ever tell me."

Not even realizing he was there, Drew was the one that answered, "Because he is your brother and loves you. He was not looking for praise, or for you to feel guilty, he was not able to take away your sadness and pain, so he helped you by not leaving your little brother alone."

Roger said, "As for Mikey and Alex, if you chose it, they will be your brothers, and they will always be by your side."

I had a lot to think about now. The next day at school, I didn't see Jarod until we were out on the playground after lunch. I walked right up to him and wrapped Jarod in a big hug. Of course this got the bullies going and we got surrounded by kids making fun of us. One big kid asked, "Are you fags, now?"

That made me mad, and I got right in his face, "You think what you want Fred Johnson, but he is a true friend." I looked around and saw other kids watching what was going on. I even saw Mr. Wilson the Math Teacher watching. I guess he was making sure nothing bad was going to happen. "Do you know what this guy did for me?" I asked, pointing at Jarod, and looking at the crowd of kids, "I just found out that while my dad was dying, and I was too sad to do anything but cry, this guy was making sure my little brother was not alone. He was there with me through the whole thing. He never made fun of me for crying or anything, he was just there."

Jarod put his arm over my shoulder and said, "It's ok Rob, let's go sit down."

I pulled away from him and looked at the crowd of kids and teachers standing there listening to me. I took a deep breath, "Can you imagine having a friend that cared about you, so much that they would put themselves through that for almost a year. I am so glad that I don't have to imagine it, because I have that kind of friend right here. No, we are not "fags", in fact that is the kind of word only a bully would use. Is that it, you are nothing but a bully Fred Johnson? Does it make you feel better to pick on kids smaller than you?" I was really getting angry now, and so was Fred. "What is your problem, is it because you see what great friends we are, and you can't stand it?"

That was it, now he was mad, but so was I. I was ready to fight when the crowd of kids suddenly moved between him and me. I could see Mr. Wilson and the other Teachers start to move towards us, then stop when they saw what was happening. Before I knew it I had a girl that everyone called Sam, talking to me, "I lost my mom two years ago, and yes, I do know what it is like to have a friend like that." She pointed to another girl named Amber, "She was my Jarod. I would have never survived without her. Like Jarod, she was there for me when my world was crashing around me."

I looked over at Jarod, who was surrounded by kids patting him on the back and telling how cool he was. Before today, no one ever thought Jarod was cool. The anger left me right then, but my head started spinning, and everything went black.

I woke up in the Nurses office with Jarod, Sam, and Amber standing there like bodyguards or something. "What happened?"

Sam sat down on the bed next to me, "You're ok, you passed out. The Nurse said you were so stressed out by what was happening that something called dopa... something was running through your blood. She thinks that there was so much of it that when you calmed down, your body turned out the lights and said goodnight Rob." She said with a giggle. Then she leaned down and kissed me on the cheek.

"Hey, what did you do that for?"

She got a very serious look on her face, "Rob, what you started when you hugged Jarod, and then said all of that, was incredible. All of those kids gathered around to watch a fight, but instead banded together to stop one." She bent over and kissed me again, this time I didn't complain. I was glad that I had a blanket over me, but I still had to pull my knees up.

I saw Jarod watching me and quietly laughing. He knew exactly what was happening. Then it was my turn to laugh when Amber kissed him on the cheek. That is when Roger walked in with the Nurse, "Roberto, are you ok?"

I could tell he was really worried. Sam moved over when Roger came to sit by me on the bed. The Nurse said, "I think it is time for you to go back to class children." They all headed out the door, but the Nurse stopped Jarod, "Not you mister, the Principle said to keep you here."

Sam and Amber left, but Jarod stayed. Roger still looked worried, so I said, "I'm fine, but you didn't need to come, you have work."

"Don't be ridiculous, of course I would come. For better or worse, now, you are my son."

Jarod came up behind Roger and hugged him, "Since Rob and I are brothers, does that make me your son too?"

Roger grabbed his arm and pulled him quickly around in front of him and pushed him on the bed, "What a minute, you mean if I take him I have to take you too? Now I am not sure I want him." He said tickling Jarod.

Through his laughter, Jarod said, "Yep, thems the rules."

Just then we heard Principal Edwards say, "Thems? I know my English Teachers didn't teach you that word."

Caught by surprise at hearing the principals voice, Jarod straightened up, "No Sir, they did not."

"I would think not." He said with a laugh. As for you having to take both of these two as your sons, Sir, I think you are getting the short end of the stick on that one."

Roger stood up and shook hands with the Principal and said, "You may be right Adam, but I will take it."

He laughed, "Well, because Jarod was involved in what happened today, I had to call his mom. She would like you to call her when you can."

"Sure, no problem Adam, but can you tell me what happened?"

"Why don't you step into my office. Leo Wilson, our Math Teacher is there, and he witnessed the whole thing."

"Ok kiddo, I will be right back."

They both left and Jarod asked, "Do you think we are in trouble? I have never been to see Principal Edwards because I was in trouble."

I could tell he was a little nervous, "Don't worry about it, it was my fault. I am sorry for hugging you in front of everyone." I went from looking at the ceiling to looking at him, "Why didn't you say anything to me about taking care of Art when my dad was dying?"

"Why would I?" He got serious, "If I would have said something, you would have felt guilty about it. I know you and how much you love Art. I love you like a brother, why would I have put that on top of everything else you were going through at the time? That would have just been mean."

"Just so you know, I am working really hard not to hug you again."

"Let's hold off on that until we are off school grounds." He said with a grin.

"I really am sorry about that."

He got this confused look on his face and shrugged his shoulders, "Why, I'm not. Going through all of that with you over the last year, was really hard for me. I talked to my dad a lot about what I was feeling. It started out the day you found out that your dad was terminal, and you wrapped me in a really tight hug for a long time. You were really upset and just needed someone to hold you, and I was there. I was confused and told my dad that we should not have done that, I mean were guys." My heart sank thinking that I upset him like that, "Do you know what my dad said?"

I shook my head, looking anywhere but at him. He grabbed my shoulders, so I had to look at him, "He said, "The mark of a real man is putting the needs and feelings of someone else over our own." Than he sad, "I have always been proud of you Jarod, but never as proud of you as I am today." Can you believe it, here I was worried that he would think less of me when he found out his son was in an hour-long hug session with another boy, but instead he was proud of me? My mind was blown, and after that I knew that I could hug you or him and be very ok with it. So, what happened out on that playground didn't bother me one bit."

I sat up all excited, "Really, you're not mad at me?"

"Heck no. After all, for fags, we did both get kissed by the two prettiest girls in the school." He said with a grin.

I smiled thinking about that, " Still a bad word." I said, "but heck yeah we did." We high fived each other.

Jarod pulled a big stack of playing cards wrapped in a rubber band out of his backpack. There were four decks in that stack. He smiled and said, "I think it is time we went to war."

When my dad got sick, Jarod found this card game online called War. He found out all about it and then taught me to play. I can't tell you how many hours we have played, or how many decks of cards we have gone through. That game allowed me to forget about what was happening around me, at least for a little bit. "I am willing to play, as long as you don't cry when I beat you."

"In your dreams hug boy." He laughed.

Part of what made playing games with Jarod fun was the trash talk. We never took each other seriously, so no one ever got their feelings hurt, we just had fun. We had been playing for a little while when Roger came back in with my backpack, "Where did you find that?"

"One of the kids at the riot gave the backpack to Mr. Wilson."

I got all nervous, "I swear Roger, I didn't' mean to cause trouble. I have to tell Principal Edwards that is was all my fault and Jarod didn't have anything to do with it."

I started to head out the door and Roger caught me, "Relax, no one is in trouble. However, I am sure it was all Jarod's fault, and not my sweet innocent son."

Jarod acted like he was getting shot in the heart with an arrow and fell back on the bed. He was doing a horrible job acting like as he was dying. Just before death set in he said, "It was... It was... Art's fault." Then acted dead but was smiling.

Roger got to him quick and started tickling him again, "Now you've gone and done it, picking on my darling little boy."

Through his laughter, "Help me brother." He said holding out his hand.

"Sorry dude, I was feeling guilty until you threw Art under the bus. Of course it was Art's fault, but you should not have done that."

Before I knew it, I was laying on top of Jarod while we were both getting tickled. When he stopped Jarod and I were both out of breath. Roger said, "Ok, grab your backpack and let's head out."

Jarod said, "See you later Rob, you are so lucky getting out of here early."

He grabbed his backpack and headed out the door when he was pulled back in. Roger asked, "And just where do you think you are going?"

Giggling, "Back to class unless you want to take me with you." He said while giving Roger his best puppy dog look.

"Well, I did ask your mom if you could come with us, but you know moms."

"Yeah, I know, back to class."

He started heading out the door again just to be pulled right back, "I was wrong, you don't know moms"

"Wait, you mean I get to go with you?"

"Yep, she said that she would like you back eventually, but it was nice and quiet around the house right now, so there was not a rush."

Jarod smiled and laughed, "No she didn't, that woman loves me. I am her little angel."

Roger gave him a stern look, "Now Jarod, don't be making fun of your mothers mental issues."

He laughed at first then stopped, "Hey, that's not funny."

I said, "Yeah, it kinda was." We stopped in the office, so Roger could sign us out. Once we were all in the car I asked, "Where we going?"

"Oh, I thought we would head over to the park and throw the football around."

"But Roger, don't you have to get back to work?"

"Nope, it's good to be the boss."

We went to the park and threw the football around for a while. When we got tired we sat down at a picnic table and talked. Jarod asked, "Roger, when can I come see where my brothers live?"

"I am not sure we are ready for that discussion yet."

"If you are worried about the naked thing, I am good with it."

"I am glad to hear it, but that is only one aspect of what you will see there. Crossman boys are very different than you understand yet. Roberto is getting there, but it would be a lot for you to take in all at once. I think Roberto needs some time to figure it all out before you get there. However, anytime you want Roberto to come to your house for the night of weekend, I will get him there."

Jarod tried to ask all kinds of questions about the Crossman, but Roger kept changing the subject. We went over to McDonalds for dinner and then to deliver Jarod to his parents. As soon as we walked in the door, Jarod's mom asked all kinds of questions about what happened at school. When we explained it all, his mom said, "How come I didn't know what you were doing? You know I would have done anything I could to help."

I started crying again and ran into her arms. "What are you talking about. All those meals you cooked us and letting Art and me stay here when my dad was in the hospital, so Roger and Drew could be with him. All the times I woke up to find Art missing, just to find him in bed with you getting all the love and hugs he needed. I don't know how we would have made it through without this family. Art and me never felt alone between you guys and Drew and Roger."

Once I got myself back together, it was Jarod's turn to get smothered by his mom. "Mom, can you please tell Roger it is ok for me to stay over at his house?"

"Of course it is, why wouldn't it be."

I could tell Roger was a little nervous about how to answer this. "I told Jarod, that things are different on the Crossman ranch than in the world he is used to. It would be something that you guys would have to know about before he could come, and I am not sure how to explain it to you?"

This caught Jarod's dad's attention. He sat forward, "Was Pete aware of what those differences were before he chose you to take his boys?"

"Absolutely, we had long talks about it. I am proud to be a Crossman but was born into it. However, it is rare for outsiders to become part of it. I would have never brought Pete's boys into it without Pete being on board."

He then looked at me, "Rob, are you ok with living there?"

"Yeah, it is different, and I am still adjusting to it. My dad wanted us there, so that is where we will be.

"Roger, can you tell us about it?"

Roger took a deep breath, "I guess the part that Jarod already knows, is that the ranch is clothing optional. None of the kids wear clothes when they are within the ranch. The women rarely do, and the men are kinda hit and miss."

Jarod's moms eyes got real big as she looked at me, "Are you walking around naked?"

I am sure I turned twenty shades of red, "Yes mam."

She looked at Roger than back at me, "Are you being made to be naked?"

At first I was not sure what she was asking, but then it hit me, "No mam, in fact," I showed her my red band, "Drew put this on Art and me the first day. This tells everyone that we can wear clothes if we want to. They would never make us do anything like that. Drew says that our bodies belong to us, and no one has a right to tell us what to do with them. I think that is only a little true though, because they have no problem telling us to go wash them." I said with a giggle. This eased the tension.

Jarod's dad asked, "Can I ask why that is?"

Still trying to keep it light Roger said, "Because the boy gets stinky."

That got a laugh out of everyone but me, "Hey I do not... Ok, maybe a little."

"No I mean the nudity?"

"I know that in the beginning it was because clothes were a luxury most people could not afford in excess, so they spent little on clothing and only wore them when a situation mandated, like being outside of the ranch.. Now, I think it just puts us on an even playing field. Crossman kids are not looking for name brand clothes, or crazy priced shoes. Most of those kids would not know the difference between a Wal-Mart brand tennis shoes and Air Jordans. They just don't care. Clothes are something they have to wear in the outside world so as not to upset others."

Jarod's mom said, "That makes a lot of sense. We spend a lot of money on Jarod's clothes, not so much because he cares, but because we don't want him to be picked on by others."

I could tell that Jarod was not aware of this, "Hey, that's not right, I never knew that. I don't care about that stuff. I never even realized it. I just wore what you gave me."

"I know sweetheart, I guess it was more about me than you."

Jarod's dad asked, "Are there other things that we should know about before we allow Jarod to visit you?"

"Well yes, there are. Crossman to not use profanity, ever. It is not permitted at any time by anyone. The Crossman consider themselves well educated and believe that a person that can't control their vocabulary, is a person that is not worth our time."

She looked at me, "Now I have heard you cuss many times and yelled at you for it. How are you handling it?"

"It is hard, but the other kids let me know right away when I have used them. I just used the word fag, and my friend Mikey told me that it was a word used by bullies and not acceptable at all."

"Hey, that is what you told Fred today."

"I thought Mikey was just being touchy, until I heard Fred say it. Then it became clear what a nasty and mean word it is.

Jarod's dad said, "I feel like you are holding back some things."

"Yes I am. There will be things that Jarod would see that of course he would tell you about."

Jarod's mom asked, "Are you going to ask him to keep secrets from us?"

"Never, there will never be anything happening around your son that he is not free to tell you about. For example, he will see boys and girls of all ages with no body hair. We like the children to be children for as long as possible. Their bodies do not have hair on them, again, it keeps everyone on and even playing field."

Jarod's dad asked, "How do you do that? Make them shave every day?"

"No, it is the soap they use. It has a depilatory in it, and they just use it like they normally would."

Jarod's mom looked at me, "Did you know about this?"

"Yes mam."

"Are you being required to use it?"

"No, Drew said that it had to be my choice."

Jarod looked at me, "Are you going to use it?"

"Probably."

"Really?"

"Yeah, all the other kids don't have hair, even the older kids. I guess I feel weird being the only one with hair, even though I don't have much. After swimming once, I reached for the special soap, and Mikey took it away from me. He said that I had not been there long enough to be sure that it is what I wanted to do. Lewis told Mikey to let me do it, that if I didn't like it, it would grow back, but Mikey refused and handed me the adults soap."

Jarod's dad said, "Wow, it that it?"

"No, the last thing Jarod will tell you about is the PCU's."

"What is a PCU?"

Roger took another deep breath, "The Crossman have a very strong belief that there should be no intercourse between our naked boys and girls before marriage. To ensure this, the boys wear Penis Control Units from the time that they are twelve until they are at least eighteen. Some will wear them all through college."

Jarod's mom looked confused, "I don't understand."

Jarod's dad laughed, "All the boys were cock cages."

"I still don't get it."

"All the boys wear a tube over their pricks, so they can't use them for anything but peeing."

"Oh my god, that's so cruel."

Roger said, "I wore one from the time I was twelve until I was nineteen. Sure, they could become uncomfortable at times, but I am still here, and I, like every other Crossman, am happy with the way I turned out. The main thing to take from this is that none of our kids had to give up their dreams to take care of a child. They were never forced into a marriage because they were carless one night. They were able to take the time to find the right woman or man that they wanted to spend the rest of their lives with. Just so you know, ninety nine percent of all Crossman boys and girls go to college. Less than one percent of all Crossman get divorced, so this may sound strange to you, but it has worked for over fifteen generations."

"I know this is going to sound strange, but I was always told that if boys don't ejaculate regularly, they will get blue balls."

Jarod's face got all kinds of red, "Mom!!! Please don't talk like that."

Roger said, "No Jarod, that's a valid question based on the topic. To answer it, for the most part, blue balls is a myth. There are times when the sac my change color, but that never lasts long. If a boy's, or man's body needs release, it will release, it is called a wet dream."

Jarod's mom looked at Jarod, and said, "We will have to talk about this as a family before we will allow you to go."

"Would we be allowed to go see the Crossman ranch? I think I would have to go see it before we let Jarod go there." His dad asked.

"I am sure that can be arranged."

We left there and on the way home I asked, "Roger, do you think that it would be ok for me to use the kids soap?"

"Are you sure?"

"I have been thinking about it a lot since that day with Mikey and Lewis. I just feel out of place with the hair."

"Don't you have Gym class at school?"

"Yes."

"Don't you have to take a shower afterwards?"

"Yes, so... Oh, I get where this is going."

"I think it would be best if we waited until you are out of school for the summer."

"I forgot about school." I said a little sad.

"It's ok, you can change soaps after school ends, it is only a few more weeks."

"I know, but what about next year, I was thinking that I might do the PCU maybe. I guess I can't because of school next year."

"Ok, a few things. First thing is that if you chose to be a Crossman, you won't be going to that school next year. You will go to FSB with the rest of the kids. Second, the PCU becomes a much bigger deal for you than just slipping it on."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you are uncut. In order to put you into a PCU, you will have to be circumcised first. Keeping the penis clean and free from infections is extremely important. When you clean yourself now, you pull the skin all the way back and wash around the head. When you have a PCU on, you can't pull back the skin. Most of the washing is done while the PCU in still on."

"You mean they are going to cut off part of my dick?" I said louder than I meant to.

He laughed, "No boy, relax, your dick is safe. All they do is remove the extra skin you have on the end. This way your head is uncovered all the time and can be cleaned while wearing a PCU."

"Is it going to hurt?"

"A bit for about a week, and then you will never need to worry about it. You will be asleep when it is done, and on pain meds for a bit as well."

"I think I can do it, but I have to think about it a little more."

"There is more to it than that. You have to understand that it is just not you that will go through it. Arturo will have to have it done as well."

"Why, he is just a little kid."

"That is true, but you are the lead on all of this. If you choose not to be a Crossman, Arturo would not be one either. If you are choosing to become one he will become one as well. You two are connected, and you will have to make this decision. As for Arturo, he will follow you down this path, because he has already accepted being a Crossman."

"All of this is making my head hurt.