Date: Sun, 23 Feb 2003 18:06:44 -0800 (PST)
From: tag michaels <tag_m@yahoo.com>
Subject: Majah And the Amazing Foot Long pt 3

As usual all the regular warnings apply.  I'm not sure just where this
story is going so if you have input, please feel free to offer it, And
thanks for reading my stuff.  Hugs, Tag


A few days later, as we were working in the garden, Majah's mother came
home from work early, being dropped off by a cab at the front gate. She let
herself in through the locked wrought iron gate and came straight over to
where Majie and I were working, up to our elbows in dirt.

"Majie," she said unceremoniously, "I have to leave for San Francisco this
afternoon for three days, you'll be okay won't you?"  Not waiting for an
answer she rapidly walked away headed for their apartment. As I had
commented before, she didn't seem to have a great deal of brains, or common
sense, whatever you want to call.  I mean, no hello how are you, no I, S,
no boo, no kiss my ass fuck you or anything. Hello, I'm going, goodbye.
Majah looked at me and it was hard to read his expression. It could have
been concern but also resignation.  Without a word he got up and followed
his mother to the apartment. I kept on working at inserting the new plants
into the holes we had dug.

Ten minutes later he appeared at my side to go back to work. I asked if he
was okay and he replied that he was, that she was going, there was nothing
to be done about it. He'd been left alone before, no big deal. We worked
for a few more minutes and I said,

"You know Maj, you can stay with me if you like. There's no reason for you
to stay alone."  He looked at me, his face breaking into the smile that I
loved so much,

"You mean it Eli, I can stay with you?" Then his voice dropped
conspiratorially and he added, "Does that mean we can sleep together too?"
I chuckled and told him that I wouldn't have it any other way and he
laughed.

Twenty minutes later his mother came down with two suitcases, the big kind
on rollers with retractable handles.  'Awful lot of clothes for three days'
I thought but then dismissed it. Like I said, brainless. A cab had pulled
up out front and the driver opened the trunk but made no move toward
helping the woman get the bags to the car.  Lazy fuck. She turned and waved
to Majah as she climbed in the car and it sped off. I'm sorry but I found
that irresponsible, disrespectful, strange, and downright heartbreaking
that she said nothing, gave him no hug or words of advice. Majah didn't
seem fazed about it but waved back and went back to work so I decided to
hold off on any comments. We worked slowly, making small talk usually
related to some question that Majah had about the plant we were working
with at the moment or gardening in general and quit about 6 pm.

"What do you say about going out for dinner Maj."

"That would be okay Eli," he said without a great deal of enthusiasm. I
figured that he needed to process the afternoon's events so let it go for
the moment. "Well, let's get showered and we'll figure out where we want to
go eat. You want to grab some clean clothes and come over and shower at my
place or do it all at your apartment and come when you're ready?"  He
pondered that for a moment then said he'd grab some clothes and come over
to my apartment. I patted his back and we parted ways.

Ten minutes later the bell rang and I buzzed him in.  We decided to shower
out on the lanai, stripping our clothes off and sharing the single
showerhead. I washed his back for him and when I got to the slender
delicious white orbs of his boys butt he said thank you and turned back
around. His cock was completely soft, swaying as he moved and it was clear
that he wasn't in the mood for playing around or doing anything that even
hinted at it. And that was okay with me. The boy needed to be and do
whatever he needed to do and be and if I honestly cared about him, and I
did, then I was prepared to allow him whatever space he needed.

  We discussed dinner and what would he like. Since he had not had Chinese
food more than a few times on the mainland and that probably not very good,
he said he wanted to try that so we dried, we dressed, climbed on the bike
and left for a nice place I knew in Chinatown. Dinner was good but
uneventful, even when Maj discovered that he was eating squid. Afterwards I
asked him if he wanted to go to a little park I knew of that was close by
and watch the sunset. He smiled and nodded his head so we did just that,
arriving and finding a spot on an unattended knoll of grass that offered a
fully unobstructed view of the water. We sat quietly for the five minutes
that it took for the sun to sink to the horizon and as we watched it slowly
disappear, Majie reached across the narrow gap between us to take my hand,
gripping it gently while nature's daily spectacle left us un-disappointed
in it's beauty.  We remained sitting quietly for a few minutes after the
show was over.

"That was nice Eli, thank you for taking me to dinner and sharing this with
me."

"Oh it was my pleasure Majie. It's not every day I get to have dinner and a
date with a boy as cute as you are."  He smiled and leaned his head on my
shoulder and we stayed that way for another five minutes before he
suggested that we should head home, as it was getting colder. He was right,
it was, but it was still in the high seventies.

 Even though we took a long leisurely route home it was still early so I
asked him what he wanted to do. He asked what kind of movies I had so we
looked through my large collection and he settled on A Beautiful thing.
Although he was getting there, he was still filled from dinner and wasn't
quite ready to eat popcorn so I told him to let me know when he was and I'd
throw some on. He stripped to his underwear and curled up with me in one
corner of the sofa and we watched the gay teenage angst flick on my thirty
five inch screen. He enjoyed the film immensely and when it was over
allowed as how he was hungry. I suggested popcorn and another movie which
he felt would work. I threw in The Birdcage and brought the popcorn and
Raspberry iced tea out and we gorged and drank while Robin Williams and
Nathan Lane made us laugh. Maj didn't have a great deal of experience with
older movies, any movies, let alone gay movies so the whole situation was
quite novel to him.

Just about the time that the son's fianc^Â and family were showing up
for dinner I discovered that Maj was sound asleep. I extricated myself then
picked him up and carried him to my bed where I covered him up and returned
to the living room, shut everything off and crawled into bed along side
him. I spooned up behind him, held him to me and fell asleep.

I woke about two in the morning, acutely aware that my bed was empty, got
up and nosed about looking for Maj. He wasn't in the apartment so I went to
my front gate and found a chunk of paper blocking the lock mechanism so
that he could come back in without waking me. I slipped out the gate and
headed for Majie's apartment, figuring that's where the boy went and as I
approached, I could see the front door about half way open. I peered inside
and saw Maj curled up on the living room carpet and could hear his soft
sobbing.

I went to him and knelt behind him, gently touching his heaving back and
whispered,

"What is it Majie, tell me what's wrong."  He rolled over and sat up in one
motion and was in my arms before I could move.

"Oh Eli," he sobbed into my shoulder, "I don't think she's coming back, I
think she's gone Eli what am I gonna do?"  I held onto him, hugging him
close as he continued to sob.

"Why do you think so Majie, what makes you think she's not coming back?"

He pushed away from my shoulder to look at me in the dim light provided by
a street light outside. His crying slowed down considerably as he said,

"All of her clothes, her makeup and her jewelry, everything is gone Eli,
everything of value that she has. There was a picture of me when I was ten
that she kept in a frame next to her bed, that's gone too Eli. Why would
she take everything if she was planning on coming back."  What he said
could be quite possible since I had rented the apartment completely
furnished and the only thing they had brought were their personal effects.

"Majie, there might be some explanation for what you think has happened. I
mean, you may be right, but you might also be mistaken. I think the best
thing is to wait and see. If she doesn't come back, we'll figure something
out don't you worry about that part. I'm not going to leave you stranded or
throw you out on the street, okay? Meanwhile why don't you stay with me and
we'll wait it out together okay?"

He nodded his head, wiped his eyes and running nose with a sleeve of his
shirt and stood up, with me following him. He went into the bedroom and
grabbed a few more of his things and we headed back to my place and to bed,
where he snuggled in close to me and fell back asleep.

The next few days seemed to creep by. Maj was understandably a little
withdrawn, conversation was limited and stilted. The first day whenever a
jet passed by he looked up as if expecting to see his mother waving to him,
which of course was impossible as well as improbable, but it seemed that
way.  There was no sexual activity over those few days either. I was not
prone to initiate sex at any time but this was a particularly difficult
time for the boy and to attempt sexual activity seemed to me to be crass
and just plain insensitive. We did shower together and washed each other's
back but that was the extent of it. Majie still curled up with me if we
watched TV and he snuggled in bed but he always wore underwear and so the
only time he was naked was in the shower.  As always, I followed Majie's
lead and since he wore underclothes, I did as well.

His mother had said three days, so the third day was wrought with anxiety
for the boy. His dialogue was mostly limited to what time I thought her
flight might get in, what airlines did I think she might be on, that sort
of thing. By bedtime that night Maj was a bundle of raw nerve ends and he
tossed and turned in his sleep.  Day four was much the same and by day five
his demeanor was much more subdued.  While we lay on the sofa together
watching some mindless drivel he started sobbing. I had wanted to discuss
the subject of her not coming back with the boy but I needed for him to
broach the subject in his own time, allowing him to have some faith in her
return.

I hugged him close to me and he responded in kind. When he finally settled
down he sat up and looked at me.

"She's gone isn't she Eli?" he asked.

"Well, I don't know that she is Majie, but just for a moment let's suppose
that's true. What would you like to see happen to you, where would you like
to go?"  He pondered that for a moment and shook his head, which I took to
mean that he didn't have a clue.

"Okay then, let's look at the possibilities. First and foremost we should
contact your grandparents and get their thoughts. I'm sure that the logical
step would be for you to return to them. Another option is to get the state
involved but that takes any control away from you. That usually means
foster care and all that sort of thing."

He shook his in a forceful "no" so essentially that left the grandparents.
I had already given the situation a lot of thought. Although I never
imagined myself as a parent my heart went out to the boy. He was a nice
kid, easy going and pleasant natured. I was prepared to take custody of
him, that is, have him live with me, at least for the duration of the
summer. We could figure the rest out as school approached.  I had chosen
not to bring that up at this point, preferring that Maj reach that option
on his own.

We decided to call his grandparents in the morning and seek their input. We
showered inside the house, doing each other's backs as usual only this time
when Majie washed me, he reached around and soaped my cock and balls, as
well as taking a swipe at my asshole. Since I had washed him first I didn't
have an opportunity to respond in kind. It was just as well because when we
left the shower a few minutes later his monster cock was still fully soft
and had not risen an iota. We dried off and crawled into bed, Majah
snuggling up to me face to face.

His long boy cock flopped over and lay against my upper thigh, rather like
a dogs tail if the animal were laying against a wall, and I wondered
briefly what would happen if I were to roll over on it in the night. What
the hell, the thing certainly wouldn't be contained like mine would have
been and I was concerned that I might injure the boy. You ever notice that
cats and dogs curl their tail up around them. It's so people don't step on
the thing.  Majah's extra large cock was no exception except that he didn't
have any control over it, to move it about on it's own power. So I asked
him about it.

"Majie, what happens if you roll onto your cock in the night, or if I
do. Doesn't it hurt you, would I hurt you somehow?"  He chuckled for the
first time in four days,

"No Eli, it doesn't hurt when I roll on it, specially if it's soft like
now. If I'm laying on my back and it's dropped off to one side and I roll
on it, it sort of just kinda adjusts to my body and weight. It doesn't hurt
me.  I've never slept with anyone else before so I don't know if it will
get in the way or not or if you roll on it, if it'll hurt. I guess we'll
find out huh?"

"I guess we well sweet boy."  I paused a moment then added, "I'm glad to
see you laugh Majie, it makes my heart lighter."  He hugged me even tighter
for a moment.

"I thought about what you said Eli, and my mom's been in and out of my life
so much that I guess it really doesn't matter all that much. I guess I sort
of expected it again this time, it's just that I'm so far away from
home. It's a little scary for me but I figure that, I have you to help me
out Eli and I know that you'll help me figure it out and that it'll be
okay, no matter what." Our genitals were sort of pressed together in the
moment and I was acutely aware of his against me, especially the garden
hose of a cock. My own cock started to twitch as I rubbed the boys soft
back and down onto his slim little ass. I felt his cock stir against me and
as I continued to rub him it grew even harder between us. My cock was
growing right along side of his.

It wasn't long before Majie's hosepipe was sticking up between us almost
like a fucking periscope while my smaller, more insignificant but equally
hard, appendage was pressed between us.

"Oh gosh Eli, look what popped up," he said with a chuckle. "What do you
suppose we should do with it, and the other one that's hiding down there."
The last was said with a squeeze on my dick.

"Hhhmmmm," I said slowly, "I suppose we could beat them till they spill
their guts." Majie laughed harder at that one, his gaiety causing me to
laugh along with him.

"I'm so glad I have you Eli," he said softly, leaning in to add emphasis
with a long kiss. After he pulled away from me, I slid down and inch or two
and came eye to eye with the invading snake but I struck first, licking the
precum off the swollen head then taking it and three inches of boy cock
into my warm mouth. Maj fell off of his elbow and backwards onto the bed
with a loud moan as I bobbed on his knob, sucking on the head with force,
my tongue licking at his piss slit and my hand playing with his balls or
stroking on the fleshy pole. It had been almost five days since the
youngster had spermed and he reached maximum readiness in record time.

"Oh god Eli I'm gonna squirt out I think real soon, oh man, oh gosh
OOOOOHHHHHHHHH," he moaned as he bucked his slender hips into the air and
shoved another inch of his thickened cock into my mouth. His hands gripped
my hair as he shot his young cum into my mouth in three gelatinous globs
which I swallowed greedily.  I continued to stroke on the flesh tube but
ceased movement on the head, knowing how sensitive it would be for him.
That lasted all of a minute before he started squealing and wiggling and
pushing my head away.  I took my head off his dick and lay back beside him
and he rolled into me hugging and kissing me and telling me how much fun
that had been and how he felt so good letting his sperms come out.

"I want to make your sperms squirt out Eli, I want to watch escape from
your big thing," he said, gripping my hard shaft about the middle and
beginning to stroke it. I laid back and allowed him to do what he wanted
with me which included kissing my lips and telling me quietly how nice my
cock was, how big and hard it was, how it felt so awesome big in his little
hand. All the time he talked, he stroked, his warm hand feeling
terrifically good to my body. He ran his thumb over the tip collecting a
bunch of precum and went back to stroking, his lubed thumb grazing up
underneath the head of my cock and stimulating the glans. It didn't take
long. I mean, it usually did but this time, being five days without sex,
five days without sex with Majie, and the boy being who he was, well, it
just didn't take long. And I told him so. He stroked all the faster when he
knew I was close, every ten or so strokes adding more lube to his thumb and
continue to work the sensitive underside of the head of my dick.

"There it is Majie, there is it, oh god," and I came in a thunderous
explosion of frothy white cream that blasted to my nipples in a ropey
string created by six full squirts. As soon as my cock quit squirting,
Majie climbed on top of me, aligning his long cock up my belly to my chest
and lay on me, rubbing my cum into his slim firm little body.

"I love rubbing in your sperms Eli, it feels sexy to me and it makes it
slippery to rub on you from it," he said as he began grinding his hips and
cock into me. His young cock had hardly lost any of it's tumescence so
rubbing it in my cum between our bodies returned it to full youthful
rigidity. Majah placed his hands on my shoulders and used them to hold
himself in place as he made love to me via the method of frottage,
eventually becoming quite hot from the experience and moaning loudly.

"Gosh Eli that feels so so good rubbin on you like this I could stay here
forever I sure hope it feels good for you too." Indeed it was. The feel of
his firm young body on mine, the look of rapture on his beautiful smooth
face, and knowing that the sexual feelings so new to his body were of the
utmost intensity. Yes, it was hot for me but differently than how it was
for the boy. "Ohhhhh gosh it's gonna squirt Eli here it OOOHHHHHHHHH," he
moaned, unable to finish his sentence as his hot hard cock gave up another
two squirts of his cum. It was over quickly this time and Maj laid his head
on my chest, humming softly to himself as he continued to move his light
weight little body on mine, although much slower, much more gently. I held
on to him, again rubbing his back and shoulders down and over his little
butt which in turn probably helped to relax him and keep the after glow
going for the boy.

He finally stopped, raised up and inched forward enough to kiss me gently
on the lips, telling me that he thought we needed to take another shower, a
fact that I agreed with whole-heartedly. Majie rolled off of me and this
time around he decided to shower out on the lanai, something we both liked
to do in the warm summer evening air. His wonderful cock had finally
returned to it's deflated but no less large state, hanging gently between
his legs, a constant anomaly on his small frame. We washed each other with
tender loving care, quietly, with Maj humming tunelessly to himself. What a
strange and wonderful boy I thought to myself.

Finished, we went into the kitchen and Maj pulled out some cookies I had
purchased the day before while I poured milk and we returned to the lanai,
sitting at a small, glass toped table to snack while we watched the lights
of the city.

"What's gonna happen to me Eli?  We're gonna call my grandparents
tomorrow. I'm sort of scared about what will happen. I know that they had
hopes that my mom would finally settle down and raise me. Not that they
don't love me or anything they do, I mean I'm more of a son for them than a
grandson but I think they were hoping for me to go to a bigger school to
get a better education, to start seeing more about what life is like away
from the farm and the small amount of people that we know there.  It isn't
like I was gonna grow up and take over the farm or anything.  I just don't
know Eli."

I had given this a lot of thought over the past few days. Although I had
never considered parenting as I said, I thought long and hard about whether
or not I could. Of course the situation was complicated since the boy I was
considering parenting was also my lover, and I did view us as lovers. There
were many considerations in the scenario and I was sure I hadn't thought of
them all. But I was prepared to take on the task of having Majah stay with
me for the summer at least. Hopefully by August a plan would emerge
resolving the issue.

"I've given this some thought Majie and I was wondering how you would feel
about maybe spending the summer with me, that is, if your mom doesn't show
up. When we talk to your grandparents tomorrow I can suggest that plan and
we can play it by ear from there. I am guessing that we'll know by August
what the plan is. How does that sound?"

"That would be okay Eli. It would be more than okay, it would be great, I'd
like that." He got out of his chair and came to my chair, leaned over the
arm and hugged me, the base of his cock rubbing against my arm. I slipped
my arm out and around his boy-ish little ass and hugged him back. "Yeah,
I'd like that Eli, a lot," he said into my ear.

We cleaned up our snack mess and went to bed, Majah spooned in front of me,
his cock curled up in front of him like a pet ferret.  I woke in the middle
of the night to find Majie laying half on top of me and his soft cock
somehow wrapped under and around my hardon like a creeping vine. I have no
fucking idea how that could possibly have happened but there it was. I
chuckled to myself, rubbed his tender little butt and went soundly back to
sleep.

After breakfast Majah called his grandparents and I of course listened to
his side of the conversation. He told them about me, who I was and that he
was staying with me for now. I spoke with the grandmother and explained
that I was prepared to keep the boy through the summer, that it was no
inconvenience what so ever, that I had the space, owned the building we
lived in and in fact Majah was helping me around the place sort of paying
for his keep as it were. They apologized for their daughter's behavior and
thanked me for helping to look after Majie for the time being. They wanted
for the boy to gain some experiences out and away from the small community
that he'd grown up in. There was also their concern about their age and
being able to adequately be the kind of parents or adults that any boy
might needs in his life. I told them that I understood and agreed with
them. They said they'd send money each month for his upkeep and I told them
that was unnecessary, that I could manage. They said that they could very
easily afford it and hoped that my decision wasn't based on some thoughts
that supporting their grandson would burden them.  I assured them that it
wasn't and that if something longer term came into play we could discuss it
at that time. There was a noticeable pause and then his grandmother said
that would be fine. Majah had stepped away and didn't hear that statement
and I was a little shocked that I had even said it. We agreed that they
would call us in two weeks to see how things were going and we hung up.

Majah smiled and hugged me, saying that he felt a little better about his
future, that at least the next month or so were figured out and that we'd
figure the rest out as we went. I hugged him back and agreed. He stepped
away from me and stood for a moment, then scratched his smooth fat balls
with a total lack of self-consciousness. The itch went away but Majie's
hand continued to casually fondle his sperm makers, gently tugging at them
or moving them about, his soft cock moving slightly from the motion at its'
base. He seemed lost in thought so the action was more like doodling than
anything else. He finally stopped and walked toward me, the snake moving a
little more as his body moved. He slipped into my arms and thanked me again
and asked what we were going to do for the day since it was only nine
o'clock.  I didn't have a clue. I did know that yard work was going to be
out of the question as some nasty looking clouds were filling the sky
overhead which mean summer showers.

"How about a movie Maj. It looks like we're gonna get rain most of the
day." He was excited about that. He'd only been a few times so it was a
totally novel experience for him.

"Oh yeah let's do that Eli that would be the best thing," he said, all but
jumping up and down. "Well let's see what's on okay?" We went over and I
flipped on my computer and looked at the various theatres, settling on a
multiplex that was only a mile or so from the apartment. Majah wasn't all
that familiar with the popular actors or actresses so I decided that a
comedy starring a very popular martial artist might be fun for him. We had
some time to spare so I suggested a shower and of course that turned into
play time.

I was rinsing his little body after having soaped and fondled it, causing
his cock to harden up to its' fullest.  Once he was all rinsed I got to my
knees and began sucking and licking on his smooth hairless boy balls,
causing moans and groans to echo through the shower. I turned him around
and licked up and down his butt cleft then finally opened him up like a
clamshell, exposing that delicious virgin hole to the air. I stuck my
tongue in and tasted his boy asshole for the first time. The boy almost
fainted as my tongue paid homage to him, licking and slurping all over the
small pink bud of muscle that marked his inner core.

"Oh my god Eli that feels so damn good oh man," he moaned. I was surprised
at his swear word but kept on, trying to get my tongue up inside his warm
body and failing that, working his little hole like an ice cream cone in
the hot sun. I stopped and told him that perhaps we should adjourn to the
bed where it was much more comfortable. We both dried off quickly and went
straight to my bed, Majah laying on his back, which I thought was about
perfect.

I got between his legs, spread them apart and pushed backwards, rolling his
slim little butt in the air and placing his weight more on the small of his
back. I asked for a pillow and placed it under him, allowing him to relax
at least a little bit but keeping him in the air. His tender virgin hole
was all but looking at me and I hunkered down and began licking at it again
only this time I had his fat hairless boy's nuts to work on as well. I
licked at his hole then licked along the seam of flesh that ran from there
up onto his ball bag. He went wild from the feelings tearing through his
small body, feeling things he never felt or ever thought he might
feel. After licking his nuts and moving them about with my tongue I went
back down to his tight little pink hole and worshipped it some more.

Amidst his moaning and groaning and "oh gosh-ing" he said, "look Eli, I
could suck on my own thing." and when I looked up I saw that the head of
his long hard cock was indeed at his lips. All he had to do was raise
himself a little bit and he could realize a dream that most boys had at
some point in their teenaged life, to suckle their own young cock.

"Do it Majie, suck on your hard boycock for me," I panted to him. I stopped
and watched as he raised himself and took the swollen head of his own young
flesh into his mouth and began sucking it. Fuck oh god it was so hot to
watch this cute as hell young boy sucking his own dick. I concentrated on
licking his balls and the lower part of his shaft so I could continue to
watch him, his eyes closed but a look of rapture on the rest of his face,
his voice mumbling around the flesh in his mouth indicating to me that he
was deriving a great deal of pleasure from his self ministration. I wiped
some of the precum which was pouring out of my cock onto a finger and
slipped it into his hole and began fucking him with it while I licked and
he sucked. Ejaculation came in a rush at that point. His groaning became
louder though still muffled. I felt his little prostate harden under my
finger and the bottom part of his cock thicken as well beneath my tongue as
his young balls squirted their boy nectar into his suckling mouth. I quit
what I was doing and knelt fully between his legs, fondling his balls while
I jacked off, coming in a huge rush myself and squirting my hot sperm out
onto his cock shaft, his balls, into his small patch of pubic hair. Majah
had opened his eyes at the feeling of my sperm landing on him and watched
with rapt attention as I spilled my seed all over his groin, smiling in
pleasure and immediately rubbing his fingers in it, tasting some but
rubbing most of it into his flesh, spreading it around on his body.

"Goddamn Eli that was the hottest thing ever he said," while his fingers
continued to move like he was finger painting.  "My sperms tasted okay Eli,
I didn't mind it at all and sucking my own cock was way hot too.  Was it
fun to watch it Eli, did you like seeing me do that?" he asked.

I assured him that it was very hot as evidenced by the amount of my cum on
his body. He said he loved seeing that, seeing my sperms splatter out onto
him like that, and seeing my face so mixed up in the feelings of it.  When
everything died down a little more, and his body went back to a supine
position I suggested that we hurry through the shower and clean off or we'd
miss our flick.

Hurry up we did and managed to make the movie with time enough to grab
popcorn and a soda, which no movie should ever be viewed without.  Maj
seemed to enjoy it immensely, laughing hard in all the right places.
Afterwards we just cruised on the bike, the threatening rain having come
and gone, leaving the afternoon cloudy and muggy. We rode up the west side,
stopping for a supper of local food from a well-known chain. It was dark by
the time we got back home but still quite muggy so Maj stripped as soon as
he got through the front gate and went straight into the swimming pool. I
followed his lead and we spent the next half hour splashing about and just
generally staying comfortable. We finally climbed out and lay side by side
in chaise lounges and dried off in the heat of the summer evening. Majie's
hand sneaked out and found mine and he held onto it gently, as though the
contact was enough to remind him that he was safe.  I was drifting off to
sleep when I heard Majie say something and mumbled back to him.

"What sweetie?"

"I been thinking a lot Eli," he said softly. "I might be wrong or silly but
I think I love you Eli. I can't explain it; it's just what I feel. I hope
that's okay."  I became much more awake, and sat up. Looking at him I said,

"No baby boy, it's okay and you never need to feel badly or silly about it.
Maybe what you feel is love Majie, I don't know, but whatever it is, it's
alright with me. From my side, I'm not real sure about what love feels
like. I know that being around you and having you in my life makes me feel
better than I have in years. I love waking up and knowing that I get to see
you and now, it's waking up and knowing you're there next to me. So, I
can't explain it either Majie, I just know how it feels and I like how it
feels."

Majah got out of his lounge chair and came to mine and lay down on top of
me, his face all but pressed into mine.

"Gosh Eli, I feel so good when I'm with you I can't imagine not having you
near me. I love waking up next to you too, even though I haven't been in
the best mood the past few days, waking up with you has made it better for
me. I been wondering if maybe.."

"Wondering what baby boy," I asked him quietly

"Well, maybe it's not fair to ask or even talk about but I was thinking,
maybe when school starts not going back to the mainland but staying here.
I bet my grandparents would let me. What do you think Eli, am I askin to
much?"  His voice had become small, clearly he was uncomfortable making
such a presumption and request.  Fortunately I had entertained similar
thoughts so I smiled my biggest welcoming smile and said,

"I've thought about that already Majie boy and that is a very possible
scenario, you living here with me. of course it might present a different
set of problems but it's nothing that can't be worked out if we're both
willing to work at it."

I think he was a bit thunderstruck by my statements because he didn't say
anything for a moment then his face split into his Majie smile.

"Oh Eli that would be so awesome. I'd be the best boy ever I promise I
wouldn't be any trouble at all and I'd do everything you tell me honest Eli
I would," and he hugged me as fiercely as he ever had.

"Of course," he added, "my mom could come back and then I have to live with
her but it's nice to know that I have something else to look forward to if
she doesn't."

"Indeed you do Majah. I told you, I wouldn't throw you out on the street so
yes my sweet boy, you have something else to look forward to."