***

***

***

Brady was staring at that last message as he had been for the last twenty minutes, his eyes locked on those words frozen on the black screen. It was Sunday the 22nd of December and that day was, officially, his first day of vacation. The semester was over at college and yet there he was, still in bed, staring at his phone.

It was then that he heard a knock on his door. Brady didn't even bother to put clothes on, he opened the door with a blanket over his shoulders, around his body, and wearing nothing but his boxer briefs underneath.

"Brady, oh, my, my, you're already naked? I see you are a straight to the point guy, eh. Takes a little of the fun away, I must admit, but I'm not complaining, saves me time."

"Hey, Cowboy," Brady moved aside to let his guest come inside.

"You know, at first I thought you were only calling me Cowboy because you didn't remember my name and it was a little annoying, kinda weird too," the golden haired boy took a seat on top of Brady's unmade bed. "But I confess that I'm starting to like it. I'm not sure why, but Cowboy sounds kinda dope."

"Maybe because no one else calls you that and it's like our little inside joke?" Brady closed the door and walked towards his friend.

"Maybe," Cowboy shrugged. "Now, where were we?" Swiftly, Cowboy opened Brady's blanked as if it were a robe, revealing his almost naked body underneath, and started to feel the red haired boy through his boxer briefs.

"Wait, no," Brady said but didn't make an attempt to stop it. Cowboy stood still, looking up at Brady's eyes while his hand was completely grasping Brady's erection. "We can't right now. I am... I am dating someone."

"You are?" Cowboy asked, still holding Brady's erection.

"Is that so hard to believe?"

"I only ask because you don't sound so sure yourself," Cowboy raised both his eyebrows. "Did you get back with that Ness guy you were dating, your best friend's little bro?"

"No, no, I'm dating another guy, didn't I tell you? It doesn't matter, it's recent," Brady let the blanket completely fall from his shoulders. "He's... he's fourteen by the way."

"That young, eh? Again?" Cowboy seemed excited by that, maybe too excited. "Seems like you found your type."

"Oh, shut... wow, actually you are not the first one to tell me that."

"Maybe cuz it's true," Cowboy tilted his head. "But tell me, what's the problem?"

"Is it that obvious?" Brady let his body fall to his unmade bed, face up.

Next to Brady, Cowboy also lay down, his hand still feeling up Brady's erection through the cotton fabric. Slowly, almost delicately, and sweet, Cowboy was massaging his friend's boner.

"Well, since it hasn't even been a month since that whole fiasco that happened with Ness," Brady placed both of his hands over his chest as if he was in a therapeutic session. "I've been asking myself if this new boy is..."

"A rebound?" Cowboy completed.

"Yeah, a rebound," Brady echoed. Un clavo no saca otro clavo he remembered. "I was dealing with that fact in an okay kind of way, but it's been like, what? Four, maybe five days since I saw him and every day since then I've asked him to go out again but, while he says he does want to, he says his parents don't give him permission. Can you believe that? Permission, he needs permission to go out!"

"Well, that's what happens when you date a kid," Cowboy grinned.

"Ha-ha," Brady rolled his eyes. "I mean, I get it, he is a teen. But dude! He is a freshman at highschool, I'm a freshman at college! Am I not supposed to be the one who is busier, more unavailable? I am the one drowning in exams, projects, and essays, right? Then how am I also the one begging him to go out and not the other way around?!"

"Okay, okay, I get it," Cowboy finally let go of Brady's boner and instead placed his hands on his naked chest, and looked him straight into his eyes. "I get it, I do. I told you, I've dated green boys before."

"And you weren't annoyed by having to date someone who needs to ask permission to go out?"

"Of course I was!" Cowboy waved his hands in the air. "It's a fucking pain. I mean, I'm not in college like you are but hey, working and high school are two different beasts."

Brady sat up. "So? How did you deal with these fucking messes?"

"Well," Cowboy shrugged. "Look, Brady. I could tell you that it all comes down to being a bit more understanding, that you need to understand that he is fucking fourteen and isn't in charge of his schedule like you --a fucking adult I might add-- are. But you already know that. So, I'm going to be even more straightforward with you: dating teens has tons of cons. Tons. I'm not saying you shouldn't date them, I'm saying you need to ask yourself if the pros are, to you, worth the cons."

Brady stayed silent for a moment.

"As to the matter of: is Andy a rebound for Ness... well, of course he is!" Cowboy said it in such a plain, direct way, as if it was something obvious.

"He is? Andy is a rebound?" Brady was dumbfounded.

"Of course!" Cowboy rolled his eyes. "But what's the matter with that? A rebound only means that you started dating someone to get over your ex. But the why you started dating someone shouldn't matter, only the reason you keep dating them."

Brady frowned, dubious. "Really?"

"Brady, do you know how many guys I've met just to have sex that then became people I wanted to date?" Cowboy moved his hands, full of energy, his voice passionate. "That idea that you have to meet your partner in some magical, virginal, pure way is some fucking Disney-vanilla-nonsense. I mean, just look at Chandler and Monica! Have you ever seen Friends? What am I asking, of course you have! Then remember Chandler and Monica, they are the OG couple of that show and do you remember why they started dating? Yes, that's fucking right! They started dating because Chandler's best man speech bombed and Monica thought she'd never find a perfect man to marry, they were both fucking sad and depressed so they decided to have spontaneous make-me-feel-better sex and guess what? True fucking love!"

"That's just one case..."

"Okay then, what about Charlotte and Harry in Sex and the City?"

"Those are TV shows..."

"Okay, then what about us?" Cowboy insisted. "You and I met on a dating app, for crying out loud! Now look at us, wouldn't you say we are genuine friends now? Or is our friendship worth less just because of the way we met?"

Brady was starting to see the point. Yeah, he enjoyed having sex with Cowboy but even he had to admit that Cowboy had performed duties well beyond those expected from a simple sex-friend. Right now, even, he was there, advising him. Was Andy worth the cons? Did it matter why or how they met?

Suddenly smiling, Brady went to his nightstand and took his phone.

"What are you doing?" Cowboy asked.

"Surprisingly," Brady started texting. "I am listening to you. I am following the dating advice from someone who calls himself online: ThreeLeggedCowboy."

And with that, Brady hit sent, it said:

***

Brady sat patiently on a bench at Santa Fe park. It was funny how all of his encounters with Andy seemed to be taking place near or at that specific spot, even the made up story he told Coan had taken place there. He didn't complain, it was a beautiful spot to be honest: a park filled with trees, grass, rivers, a lake and bridges, only of course right now it was all covered under a layer of snow. Above it all, surrounding the park, there were tens of buildings, tall structures of metal and crystal, contrasting in a harsh but delicate way with the nature below.

Not ten minutes had gone by when a group of people gathered near a small kiosk. Brady watched as they all took out their songbooks and, after a warm up round, they all started singing.

Brady stood up and moved closer. There, standing between the carolers, front and center --probably due to his short stature-- was of course Andy. His voice resonated through the crisp noon air, carrying the melody with warmth and cheer. To the college boy's surprise, Andy wasn't half bad, at all, on the contrary, he was good, great indeed. He never doubted the young boy but he never thought he had such a great singing voice, so calm and warm.

In a blink, the carolers paused for a second before launching into Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. The hauntingly beautiful melody wrapped around the chilly atmosphere, drawing attention from passersby who, while jogging and walking through Santa Fe park, stopped to listen to the carolers.

"Throoough the years, we all will be togetheeer... if the fates allow," Andy beamed, his cheeks flushed with both the cold and excitement. "Hang a shining star upon the highest bough and have yourself a merry little Christmas noooow"

The college boy watched, captivated by Andy's passion and the way he so effortlessly connected not only with the song but with the people all around him, and even with the city through the holiday spirit.

"Here we are as in the olden days, happy golden days of yore. Faithful friends who are dear to us, gather near to us, once more..."

Brady smiled for a second as the song came to its end, and Andy, for the first time, looked up from his song book, his eyes connecting with Brady's.

"Through the years, we all will be together..." Andy sang.

"If the fates allow," Brady completed, softly exhaling each word. "Have yourself a merry little Christmas, now."

Brady clapped as much as he could with his gloved hands, leading the round of applause that surrounded the carolers. Brady took advantage of the pause and walked to the kiosk.

"You are good at this, really, really good," Brady remarked. "I mean it, Andy, I really had no idea you could sing like that."

Andy chuckled humbly. "Thanks. It's always been a... hobby? I don't know what to call it. It's something I do that makes me happy."

Then, the carolers opened their songbooks and started humming the next melody. Brady looked at them, then at Andy.

"Aren't you going to join them?" The college boy asked.

Andy waved his head from side to side before taking Brady by the arm and leading him into the kiosk, behind the carolers, where several backpacks, water bottles, and backup songbooks were stacked, a few meters behind the carolers.

"I told them I was only going to join them in the first couple of songs," Andy explained. "Your plan worked; my parents didn't suspect when I said I wanted to do caroling. But they didn't let me stay out until nine, they said I only have until six. They are going to pick me up here then."

Brady sighed, frustrated but really there was no point in arguing. He couldn't ask for much, Andy was only fourteen. Instead, the college boy took a deep breath, and forced a smile into his face in the hopes of capturing some of the joy in the air.

"So... pokemon, books, and you have a great voice, what else do you do?" Brady asked, trying to start a conversation.

"What else do I do?"

"Yeah, I mean, you can't be perfect, right?"

"Oh, I can't?" Andy placed a hand on his chest, half-joking. "And here I was thinking I could be perfect to someone but oh, Brady... you pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope."

"Was that last part a quote?" The college boy raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, Persuasion," Andy smiled proudly.

"Oh, right, you love Jane Austen. To be honest, I've only read a few of her books but from what I can tell, she..." and right then and there, Brady was forced to break mid-sentence, his lips sealed, and his expression suddenly shifted as the air turned heavier, sharper, colder.

Walking through the main snow-covered path, heading towards them was none other than Ness. Brady held his breath, not even realizing it. He hadn't spoken to him, not even texted to him since Thanksgiving, and now there he was.

"Are you alright?" Andy asked, confused.

Ness was walking with his eyes stuck on the floor, his hand up to his face, holding his phone. He looked almost the same as Brady remembered him, the same type of jeans, the same style, even the same haircut. Yeah, not much time had passed but Ness seemed so unchanged as if no time had passed at all, even his voice was as loud as ever. He was talking to someone on the phone; he didn't seem neither happy nor sad. He just walked.

Brady moved closer to the back of the group of carolers, hiding behind them. Andy followed suit, a little bit confused. It lasted only a couple of seconds, yet Brady felt every step Ness took like an unending, growling torture. And before he knew it, Ness was walking away. He hadn't even seen them.

Returning to where he was, Brady stared at Ness back as he walked away and disappeared into a sea of people in the distance.

"Who was that?" Andy asked.

Brady didn't reply, he just stood there. "My ex."

***

"So you dated him a month ago?" Andy asked in a voice barely louder than a whisper, slowly and timid, almost as if he was afraid of waking up someone. "That means you and him were dating when we met at the Halloween party?"

Brady crooked his mouth, as if tasting a sour candy. "Yeah, pretty much."

"But when you texted me on that dating app you two had already broken up?"

"Oh, yes, yes," Brady stared at Andy, making sure to look right at the boy in his eyes. "That guy and me were not dating when I texted you on the app. Okay? He and I were already done when you and I started."

Andy nodded mindlessly, his head hanging low, before returning to his usual quiet. Brady hoped he would say something else but nothing, he stayed like that, silent.

"So, he is..."

"Do you mind if we don't talk about my ex?" Brady cut him. "It's not like it is a sore subject or anything, it's just that... it's kinda weird, isn't it? Talking about the ex with the guy I am dating right now."

Andy looked up for the first time in the entire conversation. "We are... dating?"

Brady couldn't help but smile at the innocence of it all, at the way Andy's face lit up, as if hit by a beam of sunshine. "Well, of course we are, what else would you call this?"

"I don't know, I guess I just didn't know what to call it." Andy shrugged, unable to stop smiling. "I had never... you know... you are the first guy I date."

"I figured," Brady leaned backwards, trying not to sound cocky. "Last time when you told me you didn't know how to kiss... well, I figured I was your first date too."

Andy's face was a stunning mix of embarrassment and excitement, both happy and timid, almost as if he couldn't decide what exactly to feel. It was an interesting, and adorable sight to witness, almost as cute as seeing a puppy run in circles, chasing its own tail.

In the meantime, right next to them in the kiosk, the caroling group kept singing sweet tunes, filling the air with a little bit of magic and winter meaning, turning a cold afternoon into a cozy, fairy-tale one.

"About that..." Andy spoke again, his voice once more was no louder than a murmur. "Do you think we can... you know... do that again...? What we did last time?"

Brady looked at the backs of the carolers, who even if they hadn't stop signing, and wondered how many of them where listening to their conversation. He decided to play coy, have some fun.

"What we did last time? You mean skating?" Brady asked, tilting his head.

"Eh... no, no, I mean what we did after skating," Andy's cheeks were starting to flush, turning into a light shade of pink.

"You mean walking a bit on the park?"

"Brady!" Andy was fully, totally, completely blushing now. "Stop playing dumb!"

"Oh, you mean when we said goodbye? Is this your way of saying I should leave?"

"You really want me to say it?"

Brady couldn't hold back, he started laughing. "Why not? Is there something bad about saying it?"

"No," Andy looked away as if searching for something and, after a few seconds while still looking away, in something barely louder than the wind, he said: "can we kiss again, please?"

Brady didn't wait, as soon as those words came out of Andy's mouth, Brady's lips went all over it. Andy was taken by surprise but didn't move away, he stayed still for a moment before finding the rhythm, slowly at first but fiercer by the second, copying Brady's movements, making out.

Andy's lips were sweet, delicate and soft, there was a slight trace of ChapStick on them, maybe cherry or blueberry. Almost as soon as Brady did a movement, Andy copied it. The kid may have never kissed anyone before but he sure was learning by the second.

That's when Brady decided to go for it... slowly but surely, he started to let his tongue get in on the action. First licking Andy's lips, then poking it slowly into Andy's mouth until the young boy got the message and opened his mouth. Brady let his tongue in, finally making the two young boy's tongues meet, touching each other, almost as if it was a wresting match on their mouths.

Brady started to feel the heat get into his body as they made out. The could around him suddenly didn't feel as cold, his boner growing inside his pants, begging him to let it out. His hands reached Andy's back, pressing his body closer and closer and...

The college boy stopped. He was getting horny, so much so that following that road could only lead to trouble, so he stopped. Eyeing Andy, the young boy was also panting and, on his pants Brady, could also made out the shape of his boner. Gently, Brady placed the songbook on top of Andy's lap. In response, the young boy laughed nervously and turned pink once more.

"That was..." Brady took in a deep breath. "You really are getting the hang of this."

"I am?" Andy's eyes shinned like stars.

"Yeah, you are, totally," Brady gave Andy a peck. Then looked around: they were still sitting at the kiosk behind the carolers. There was no way they hadn't realized the two boys behind them were making out. Brady couldn't imagine how awkward it must've been for them so finally, he stood up. "

"Yeah... but I must be back here at 6:00, remember? My parents are picking me up here," Andy placed his songbook back on the kiosk floor.

Brady looked all around him for an idea. The ice-skating rink was close by, but they had already done that, they could always just stroll by the park or go to that library again like last time. However, none of those ideas fully convinced Brady. But then he saw a big building on the edge of the park, signs over the main door announcing a bunch of titles, it's shimmering warm lights promising at least a couple of hours of joy. Brady stood up.

"Wanna go to see a movie?"

***

The movie was fine. Only the first twenty minutes had already gone by, but it was already evident that it was going to be a fine movie, an okay movie, nothing more, nothing less. Brady was starting to regret his decision when, Andy leaned closer to him.

"Hey," the young boy whispered. "I know you said you didn't want to speak about your ex but... can I ask why you broke up?"

"What?" Brady said out loud. Someone, a couple of rows ahead shushed him. Brady leaned closer to Andy and whispered. "What? Right now?"

Andy shrugged. "I've never had a boyfriend before, much less and ex... I don't know, I guess it just makes me curious."

"Yeah, I can see that," Brady murmured back.

There was a moment of silence, an instant where the movie kept rolling and the only sounds were the explosions and special effects coming from the speakers. Yet, it didn't last long. "Did you and him ever went to the movies?" Andy asked.

The college boy sighed, completely giving up on trying to watch the film. "Actually no, he and I never went to the movies," it was weird, going to the movies was such a common thing Brady was almost surprised to realize he and Ness never did that. "Most of the time he and I played video games, talked or..."

He was about to say had sex but stopped. Andy was still looking at him, relentless in his curiosity, almost as if he had never talked about those subjects with anyone before. Although, now that Brady thought about it, in all likelihood, Andy was so curious because this was the first time he was able to talk about sex stuff in a causal, non-educational kind of way.

"Or...?"

"Or..." Brady decided to go for it, what was the harm? "...or, you know, doing it."

"Oh," Andy said and stayed quiet. Even though the young boy's lips were sealed, Brady could imagine a whole hurricane of thoughts flying through his impressionable mind, ideas and more questions pouring down like rain in his mind's storm.

"We weren't that wild," Brady added, not entirely sure why he was saying that. "We mostly did it in bed, well once we did it outside when we went to a cabin in the forest. Oh, and I once took a picture of him after I made him... you know, finish."

"You have a photo of him naked?" Andy repeated almost a bit too loud.

Brady looked around him, hoping no one had heard that, luckily for him, either no one had or if they did, then they didn't care enough to react.

"Can I see it?" Andy asked then.

"You want to see a naked picture... of my ex?" Brady wasn't sure he had heard right but there he was, on a cinema no longer watching a movie, with Andy sitting by his side, starring at him with puppy eyes.

Truth be told, Brady wasn't sure if he should. Yeah, the photo was his and he and Ness didn't request it to be secret as far as he could remember. Truth be told, they didn't even talk about it at all. Although Brady was sure Ness, far from being angry, would delight himself in the extra attention the photo would get him.

"Okay, I'll show it to you," Brady agreed. "But you have to look at it on my phone, I don't think he would be happy if I send it to someone."

"Okay, just on your phone," Andy nodded in the dark.

Both were almost invisible in the cinema's darkness, the conversation was nothing but a faint whisper while, in the background, the movie kept playing, completely forgotten. The college boy turned his head, making sure the seats behind them were empty; the place was almost empty and yet, Brady felt a thrill for being in a public place, talking about that stuff but also showing a picture like that.

Slowly, the college boy took out his phone and searched for the photo. "You know, I took the photo on the same day he and I broke up," Brady suddenly remembered. It had all been part of the Thanksgiving fiasco. "After I took it, I had dinner with his family and he and I... well, we fought. It didn't end well."

"So it's like... your last happy moment together?" Andy asked.

"I... well, I hadn't thought of it like that but yeah, I guess it was," Brady finally found the picture and, slowly, showed it to Andy, he too leaning forward to see it.

It was different that he remembered. The image was split in two: on the right half, covered in light and shades of yellow, was an opened door, exposing an ample view of a large hallway where, at the end, you could make out parts of a kitchen and you could even see the silhouettes of two adults, a man, and a woman, in the middle of cooking dinner. On the other half, the left one, characterized by hues of shadows and blues, was a gray wall on which Ness was leaning against, his entire body exposed before the camera. On the top you could see his messy hair, and on the bottom his underwear between his ankles. However, it was the middle what was interesting: naked as the day he was born, and with his dick as hard as a straight pole, Ness was covered in white, milky, thick cum, spread all over his chest.

When Brady finally looked away from his phone screen, he noticed Andy beside him, touching the front of his jeans, massaging his groin through the fabric.

Instead of saying something, Brady stayed still and watched as Andy touched himself over his clothes, unable to look away from Ness' naked body. It was a mesmerizing sight: his date touching himself while looking at a picture of his ex.

Brady looked around as a precaution. No one was watching and even if they were, he wouldn't have cared: Brady placed his hand on top of Andy's leg, leaving it there at first before moving it closer and closer towards the boy's groin, inch by inch until Brady's hand was fully resting on the front of Andy's jeans.

Andy said nothing, he was still watching Ness cum covered body.

With careful, subtle movements, Brady took hold of Andy's zipper and slowly but surely he pulled it down all the way, allow him to stick his hand inside the young boy's jeans.

For a moment Andy didn't react, his eyes still mesmerized on the screen. But then, slowly, he lifted his butt a few inches from the seat. Brady understood and, obedient, he slipped Andy's pants down until his knees. Not too much to make it obvious but enough to expose the boys underwear.

Brady could only witness the scene with the light from the movie screen. Andy wore a beautiful pair of stripped pink and purple boxer briefs, the fabric so thin it barely hid anything: the bulge on front was bigger than Brady had imagined.

In no time, Brady started feeling up Andy's bulge through the fabric. The young boy was moaning softly, no longer looking at the picture, he now had his eyes closed, and his head back over the seat.

Andy's bulge felt incredibly soft on Brady's palm, his dick pulsating inside as if it was a living thing. Then, Brady felt a little bit of wetness on his hand. Taking a look, a wer spot had formed on Andy's boxer briefs right where the head of his dick was. It was precum.

Andy was moaning deeper and a bit louder. Brady should've covered his mouth but honestly, hearing him moan, and watching him wet himself was too hot to even dare stop it.

Slowly, Brady started teasing the waistband on Andy's boxer briefs, daring his hand to go under, to feel the boys boner. Brady let his heart finger in, then his index, then... In front of them, the credits started rolling, a second later the lights turned on.

Both of them froze for a second, their face that of the classic deer in the headlights. Andy quickly pulled his jeans up and buttoned them while Brady put away his phone. Inmediately after, they both got up and started to walk towards the exit.

Outside the air was fresh and cold. They both stood, perfectly still on the sidewalk for several seconds before exchanging glances with each other, smiling devilishly.

Neither said a word. Andy's eyes went from Brady's eyes to his lips, then to his eyes again. Brady didn't need to be asked twice.

What a wonderful sight: two boys kissing, in front of the cinema as a light snow fell from the sky. Their faces red with excitement, the cold, and the desire. They kissed for as long as they could, their tongues dancing in each other's mouths as they made out. Two boys kissing on a wonderful winter afternoon.