This Story is intended for a mature audience only. Redistribution without permission is forbidden. This is a work of fiction for artistic enjoyment, feedback welcome at vlad885 @ hotmail.com
Jamie rode the bus to the subway station and then took that downtown. He lugged his backpack of meagre possessions with him, wondering just what he might find when he got to the shelter. The first thing that struck him was the smell, as he entered; it stank of unwashed teenagers. Jamie was stunned by what he saw; it looked more like an evacuation centre than a shelter, with row upon row of beds tightly packed.
Jamie noticed a fat old guy sitting behind a desk, motioning him over.
"You're lucky kid; I got two beds left for tonight," the city employee snapped, as though doing his job was more like doing Jamie a favour.
"You sure you want to stay here? Don't want to go back home to mommy?" the man teased, as he noticed the boy's stunned expression.
"I can't," Jamie admitted. He felt so embarrassed to be there with all the other unwanted kids. He was from the suburbs and had little exposure to this type of thing and so, had no idea how it all worked.
"Ok, well this shelter is for boys 16 to 21; you under 21?" the man asked.
"Yeah," Jamie snapped, getting tired of the man's flippant tone.
"Ok. So, now, you over sixteen son?" the man continued.
"I'm sixteen," Jamie confirmed.
"Cuz I can't have anyone under sixteen in here," the man explained.
Jamie pulled out his driver's license and handed it to the man. The old guy examined it carefully while occasionally looking at Jamie.
"Now I'm no expert at fake ID, so I have to verify this. If it's fake, I gotta call the cops. So tell me now and you can be on your way," the man explained.
"It's real," Jamie replied softly, growing weary of his constant requirement to prove his age.
The man left the desk and disappeared into what Jamie thought was an office. In fact, it was just the staff break room, and the man had no ability to verify the license. He just scanned the photos of kids reported missing, and then returned to Jamie.
"Ok, you're fine to stay. You can have this bed here," the man said, pointing to a bunk right next to the desk. "You're out of here at 8 in the morning. Showers and bathroom are over there. Always take a buddy; I can't watch everything. Any shit happens and everyone involved is kicked out. Clear?" The man finished his orientation.
"I don't have a buddy," Jamie replied, embarrassed that he now found himself friendless.
"Pick anyone your age. Don't go with the older kids; it's always trouble," the old guy explained.
"I got one bed left," the man said, as three kids came through the door. "First one in gets it"
Jamie sat on his bed as the old guy went to serve the next customer. It wasn't bad; comfortable enough he figured, although there was no privacy. Jamie scanned the room until he found another young looking face. He went over to the kid and stood at the foot of his bed, not sure what to say exactly.
"You want to go to the bathroom?" was all he could come up with. "I need a buddy," he added, when the kid gave him a puzzled expression.
"Yeah, ok," the other teen replied softly.
As the walked to the bathroom, Jamie thought the kid was even meeker than himself. He was taller than Jamie, but just as skinny, with dark hair and an angular face, likely only 16 or 17, Jamie figured.
"I'm Jamie," he formally greeted.
"Nat," the other teen said, as they entered and both did their business. The two then returned to their bunks without further conversation. Jamie was embarrassed to have disturbed the boy. Clearly Nat wasn't interested in being friendly, or maybe that's just how it was here, he wondered.
***
Jamie wasn't sure that he got much sleep at all, as morning seemed to come far too early. He sat up, feeling a bit stiff as the half hour warning was given and the lights came up to full brightness. He wondered what the procedure was. Should he change his clothes or take a shower? He noticed that Nat was still lying with his eyes shut, seeming to get every ounce of rest available.
A younger staff disturbed Jamie's morning daze as he knelt down in front of him holding a clipboard.
"You're James Daniels right?" the man asked.
"Yeah," Jamie responded suspiciously.
"Do you want to see the social worker? There are a lot of options besides staying here?" the young man suggested.
"Ok," Jamie replied.
"Great! Take a seat over there by the wall and she'll call you in when it's your turn," the man directed before he moved on. Jamie stood and looked over at Nat's now vacant bed. The kid had slipped out and was gone before eight. Jamie was a bit disappointed; it might have been a chance to say something to him, maybe even make a friend. Jamie got up, went over to where the man had directed, and sat against the wall, as there were no chairs. He wondered why the guy said `take a seat' when there were none.
Jamie watched as the masses of young males were herded out of the shelter before the staff began cleaning. The place was dirty compared to what he was used to. The strong smell of antiseptic began to bother him as they started mopping the floors.
He was the only one waiting for the social worker and so, wondered why it was taking so long. Finally, a middle-aged woman came in and went into a room that Jamie assumed was her office. She didn't even acknowledge him sitting there. He was depressed at being snubbed; the whole shelter experience seemed so impersonal.
Thankfully, she didn't keep him much longer, motioning him into the small room. Jamie wondered if it might have been a closet at one time; it was so tiny.
"James Daniels," she said, looking at her papers.
"Jamie," he confirmed cheerfully.
"How long have you been on the street?" she asked in a monotone.
"This was my first night," Jamie answered.
"Kicked out or ran away?" she continued the interview.
"Kicked out," Jamie responded.
"Why?" she quizzed.
"Huh?" Jamie replied, as he didn't really have an answer.
"You were kicked out for what reason? Drugs? Stealing?" she continued.
"My mom found out I'm gay," Jamie answered quietly, not sure of how accepting the woman might be. Given his mother's reaction, he wasn't really keen on telling this woman, but there seemed no point in lying.
"Your mother kicked you out for being gay?" she confirmed with a disbelieving glance.
"Yeah," Jamie sighed.
"What about your father?" the social worker asked.
"He doesn't live with us," Jamie responded.
"Do you know who he is?" the woman asked.
"Oh, yeah. They divorced, but I still see him every now and then," Jamie said, somewhat insulted that he might not know who his father was.
"So can't you go live with him?" she asked.
"He doesn't want me," Jamie replied quietly.
"Do you have any other relatives, grandparents, aunts, friends of the family that might take you in?" she asked.
"No," Jamie replied, hanging his head. The more she asked about things, the more Jamie felt alone in the world - unwanted and embarrassed about it.
"What's your school situation?" The worker, thankfully, changed subjects.
"I passed grade 11," Jamie said proudly; barely, but still he'd passed.
"So you want to finish high school?" she confirmed.
"Yeah, if I can," Jamie replied, thinking all thoughts about the future seemed irrelevant.
"Do you have any charges pending?" she asked
"I don't know?" Jamie replied, thinking maybe he was supposed to pay to stay in the shelter.
"Have you been arrested for anything?" The worker tried again.
"Oh, no!" Jamie said, surprised by the question.
"Ok. I'll put your name on a list for a place in a group home. Hopefully, something will open up before September so you can go back to school. Here's my card. Call my office at least once a week to see if anything's available for you, and I'll leave any messages here," the worker explained, as Jamie nodded his understanding.
As he looked at her card, he got one last question.
"So you really are gay? Not just that your mom thinks you're gay?"
"I'm gay," Jamie said forcefully, as he wondered why it was an issue, thinking perhaps it would be a problem for the group home.
"There might be another option for you. The city has foster homes, but there are very few couples willing to take in teenage boys, so we don't bother to wait list you guys. There are gay couples though, that we do place kids with; mostly gay teenagers," she explained.
"I'd be ok with that," Jamie said, excited by the idea of gay parents.
"There isn't much funding for that. A lot of it comes from donations, so don't get your hopes up, but I'll put your name down for that, too," she said, still speaking in her monotone voice. Jamie didn't blame her for it. He just assumed that she'd talked to a thousand kids in his same situation. Maybe if he'd told her that his mom beat him and his dad raped him, then she might get sympathetic, he thought.
"Ok Jamie, check in regularly. I can't hold a spot if it opens up; the next kid will get it," she reminded, before ushering him out the door.
***
Jamie walked about in a daze. He had no particular plan, other than to get something to eat. He had incorrectly assumed that there would be food at the shelter and so, had to use what little money he had to buy a fast food snack. As he examined his finances in the palm of his hand, he knew that he'd have to get money somehow. Jamie found his way out onto a bridge, and stopped to look down at the roadway below. He wondered if it would hurt if he jumped off. It wasn't as though he was planning to do it, but he just wondered. He'd hate to actually jump off and end up laying there in agony, perhaps to be finished off by a passing car.
His morbid wonderings were disturbed when Nat passed him on the bridge.
"You gunna go spare change?" he asked.
"What?" Jamie quizzed.
"You coming to beg for spare change?" Nat repeated.
"I guess," Jamie replied, hoping it was an invitation. It would break up the boredom, and get him some money.
"We can go splits," Nat said cryptically, as the pair headed across the bridge away from the shelter.
Jamie assumed splits meant they'd share the money, as he really didn't want to ask more questions and seem stupid. When they arrived in the shopping district, Nat seemed to know exactly where he was going. He pulled of his shirt on the warm summer's day, and starting asking for change as people passed by. Jamie held out his cap and started begging too.
"Why did you take your shirt off?" he asked.
"I want them to see how skinny I am. I usually get more when I do it," Nat explained.
Jamie decided he'd leave his shirt on. He wasn't ready to do that, and he wasn't as skinny as Nat; so perhaps the effect wouldn't be the same. They begged for about an hour, and collected more than twenty dollars. Most of the people ignored them; a few said rude things, but there were some that put coins into their hats, making the time well spent.
"Nat, why do you say `god bless' when they give you money?" Jamie wondered.
"They like to hear it," Nat replied pragmatically, as he pulled his shirt back on.
"But they already gave you the money," Jamie insisted.
"The next person hears me say it, and maybe they'll give me money, too," Nat explained.
"We getting some lunch now?" Jamie asked.
"Yeah, but we aren't wasting our money. Come on," Nat suggested.
Jamie followed him to an alleyway, where Nat started checking the garbage from the restaurants. He'd obviously done it before, but it horrified Jamie.
"There's nothing wrong with it; it's just wasted," Nat noted, as he pulled up a half eaten burger. Jamie wasn't hungry enough to do that just yet, but before he got the chance a police car rolled into the alley.
"Cops!" Jamie shouted, as he turned to flee.
"Don't run ... stay here ... they'll beat you if you run," Nat explained.
Despite his better judgement, Jamie stood beside Nat as the cops got out of the car.
"So boys, what are we doing back here?" the cop asked.
"Scrounging sir," Nat answered.
"Got any weapons or drug on you boys?" the second cop asked
"No sir," Nat answered.
"No sir," Jamie repeated, as the cop looked at him.
Both boys allowed themselves to be pushed up to the car and aggressively searched. Jamie was surprised, but didn't complain, as he was afraid that what Nat had said would come true and they'd be beaten. His only fear of the cops had been that they'd take him home to his mother, but now he had something else to worry about.
"I've seen you around here before," Nat was told.
"Yes sir," Nat replied meekly.
The cop pulled Nat's arm up into a painful position, exposing his side. The officer pulled out his baton and tapped the boy's flank.
"I don't want to see you around here again; got it?" the cop ordered.
"Yes sir," Nat whined, clearly in discomfort from the hold he was in.
The cops released the boys and watched them walk out of the alley.
"You ok, dude?" Jamie asked
"Yeah, I'm fine. I saw them beat another kid once; put him in the hospital," Nat related.
"What happened to him?" Jamie wondered.
"He ended up pleading guilty to a bunch of thefts. I don't know if he did them or not," Nat explained.
"Did the cops get in trouble?" Jamie hoped.
"Who's going to believe kids like us?" Nat asked rhetorically.
The pair wandered around through the afternoon, and ended up using their money to buy food later in the day. Jamie was happy to have the company, but he didn't really feel a friendship to Nat; just camaraderie.
"Should we head to the shelter soon?" Jamie asked, as the sun began to get close to the horizon.
"I'm doing something else tonight; you can come if you want," Nat suggested, as they lounged on the play set meant for little kids in a vacant park.
"Ok," Jamie replied, happy to be included.
"You know hustler hill? It's not far," Nat said casually, looking away.
"Yeah, I heard of it," Jamie responded.
"I'm not gay. I suck dick for cash," Nat explained, not making eye contact.
"That's cool," Jamie said, as he wondered if going with Nat would be a good idea. "I think I might just go to the shelter."
"Ok, but it's easy money," Nat suggested, "and it's safer with a buddy," he added.
"Where would we sleep tonight?" Jamie asked, reluctant to abandon his newfound friend.
"In the park. Sometimes I'll go to a hotel with a guy; depends," Nat explained.
"Ok, I'll go, I guess," Jamie gave in. He liked Nat and, at least for now, needed him as a guide if he was going to be on the street until at least September, judging from what the social worker said.
It was just getting dark as they walked up to the public bathroom on the hill. There were two other boys their age already there. Nat didn't seem to know them, and kept his distance, as the pair sat on a picnic table. The teen took off his shoe and pulled out a baggy of pills. Jamie wasn't sure what they were, but he figured they had to be drugs.
"Want one?" Nat offered.
"No, I'm not into drugs," Jamie replied, suddenly regretting his decision to come. He wondered if it was too late to get a bed at the shelter.
"That's cool; it's just to kill the pain dude," Nat suggested, as he took two.
The pair sat in silence for a while, as Jamie thought to find a reason to leave. He figured once Nat had a customer, he could slip away relatively unnoticed. He was just freaked out by the place, and Nat's drug use.
"You got condoms?" Nat asked.
"No, I don't plan to let anyone fuck me," Jamie snorted.
"I don't usually, but you should always have a couple; you never wanna get fucked without one," Nat explained, as the effects of the pills he took became apparent.
"I'm not stupid," Jamie snapped, wondering how he'd got himself into this mess. His buddy had only mentioned sucking, and now suddenly, had a plan for getting fucked, too.
Jamie kept his distance, as new boys arrived for work. They sat near the washroom and went in with the men, as they were chosen. Some went back to the men's cars and drove out into the treed area beyond the baseball field.
A man standing next to him suddenly startled Jamie.
"You working tonight, Daniels?" the man asked.
"Mr. Burns?" Jamie said, shocked that he'd find his Vice Principal here.
"Congratulations on passing your year, barely," the man noted.
"Thanks ... I was just waiting for a friend." Jamie answered the original question.
"Right; a friend!" the man laughed. "I suppose servicing someone you know might seem awkward, but it would be extremely erotic for me."
Jamie just stood dumbfounded, by the suggestion that he go have sex with the very man who'd scolded him for a bad report card.
"I despise the toilets, Daniels. Lets go to my car," Mr. Burns ordered.
"Come on! Lets go!" the man snapped, as Jamie stood still.
He suddenly found himself moving forward, following the man. He really wasn't sure about all this, but he knew he could use some money, and he figured Mr. Burns wasn't likely to hurt him. After all, if this got out at school, the man would be finished.
Jamie got into the car and sat silently as Mr. Burns drove to the forested area along the access road. Cars came down here for one reason. Jamie noted four other cars parked there; he could clearly see the telltale motion of fucking going on in the car next to them.
"Ok, Jamie get in the back," Mr. Burns said softly.
He did as he was told, and joined the man in the back of the sedan.
"Clothes off," Mr. Burns ordered.
Jamie slowly undressed, as he sat in his Vice Principal's back seat. He still wasn't sure about it, wondering if he could bolt and just run through the trees. Mr. Burns wasn't likely to follow him, now that they both new each other's secret.
"I always thought you were in good shape, Jamie," the man said, as he ran his hands all over Jamie's body. It was strange for the teen - being felt up by someone he respected. It was a respect of fear, but still it felt odd. The man pulled Jamie's pants down, making an escape more difficult, and then touched Jamie's cock with one hand as he continued to feel the boy up with the other.
"Cum for me, Jamie," the man ordered quietly.
Jamie let his mind drift to all types of sexual images, in an attempt to comply with the man. He felt Mr. Burns pinching his nipples, as he began to grunt his orgasm. Thick streams of cum landed up on his belly and chest. Jamie caught his breath, as he watched the man wipe him down with a ready towel. Clearly this was not the first time.
"Am I the first student you've had?" Jamie asked, mostly out of curiosity. Perhaps it was more common than he thought. He'd always seen his teachers as incorruptible.
"No, you are not, and I will not tell you how many, or whom has gone before you, Daniels," Mr. Burns said firmly.
Jamie watched as Mr. Burns slipped his pants down, to reveal his hard cock. It was man-sized to be sure, but not nearly as thick as Duncan's. Jamie figured he was going to be expected to suck it. He certainly wasn't going to let the man fuck him, and he knew in the back of his mind that Mr. Burns wouldn't force him. He knelt down on the floor and began his work. He felt degraded, kneeling on the floor of the car with his pants around his ankles. It wasn't like doing it for Duncan or Todd. In fact, Jamie really didn't want to do it at all.
"Oh, yes, Jamie; just like that," the man sighed. Jamie worked quickly, in order to get it over with, and was rewarded with the man's warm fluids filling his mouth. Jamie grabbed the towel and spit the man's cum into it.
"Very good, Jamie," Mr. Burns praised.
They both dressed quickly. Jamie was embarrassed to have prostituted himself, and Mr. Burns seemed to want to get him out of his car. He quickly drove back to the bathroom, and thrust fifty dollars into Jamie's hand.
"Goodbye, Jamie," he said, meaning get out.
"Thanks," Jamie said, as he got out. He wasn't sure why, but it seemed like the right thing to say when someone gave you money.
As he walked up the hill, Nat was waiting for him.
"You did it, dude!" he called out.
"Yeah," Jamie sighed, as he showed the money in his hand.
"Cool! You'll have a couple of hundred by tomorrow," Nat suggested, happy to see his friend joining his profession.
Jamie sat on the bench, confused as to why he'd gone with Mr. Burns, and wondered if he could still get one of those pills from Nat.
The last chapter will be up in a week or two.