The Barrier
By Wes
Leigh
This is a work of fiction intended
solely for the entertainment of my readers; any resemblance to any real people
or places is purely coincidental. Readers who would like to chat are encouraged
to contact me at weston.leigh@protonmail.com.
This story is the property of
the author and is protected by copyright laws. The author retains all rights.
No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent.
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A dark blue Audi A3 pulled up to the curb next to Jack. The
passenger window rolled down. Jack glanced sideways and saw Micah behind the
wheel. Micah was leaning over, looking out the window at Jack, concern on his
face.
Jack sighed. "How did you know which school I attend?"
Micah pointed at Jack's hoodie. "You're wearing that same
hoodie in your ZipChat profile picture."
Jack looked down and saw the school name printed across the
breast of his hoodie.
Micah studied Jack carefully to see how he was reacting,
adding, "It wasn't hard to figure out."
Jack found himself getting a bit miffed. Sure, Micah was his
friend, but at the moment, it felt just a little
creepy, almost like Micah was stalking him, so Jack asked, "What are you doing
here?"
Micah noticed the anger and frustration in Jack's voice. His
reply was gentle. "Hoping to talk to you."
Jack shook his head and continued walking down the sidewalk,
ignoring Micah, hoping Micah would catch the hint and leave him alone. However,
as Jack trudged along, Micah drove slowly down the street next to him, keeping
pace with Jack's slow steps.
Exasperated, Jack turned and snapped, "So you're following
me now?"
"Nah," Micah replied. "I'm escorting you home to be sure you
aren't kidnapped by terrorists and sold as a sex slave to a Russian oil
tycoon."
Jack snorted and laughed. "A Russian oil tycoon wouldn't
want me for a sex slave."
"Not from what I hear," Micah replied with a grin. "Cute
teens like you are a hot commodity on the black market these days."
Jack rolled his eyes. He definitely wasn't
in the mood for stupid dad jokes. He walked faster, but Micah sped up and
stopped a few feet ahead. Then Micah got out of the car and stood next to the
open driver's door, leaning across the top and gesturing with his hand. "Will
you please get in, Jack?"
Jack sighed. If they kept this up, people would notice and
that would be even more embarrassing. Reluctantly, he opened the passenger door
and slid inside.
͠ ͠ ͠
They drove around for half an hour, saying very little, then
stopped for drinks before heading out of town to the scenic overlook. It was a
beautiful place to sit and talk. High up above the city, looking down from far away,
you could pretend that your problems were also far away.
"When do you need to be home?" Micah asked.
"Around five. That's when Mom and Dad get home, and we'll
eat soon after that."
"Okay, I'll have you back by then."
"Why did you bring me here?" Jack asked.
Micah hesitated, thinking carefully about his reply. "I
wanted a chance for us to talk. To really talk. No more ZipChat. No waiting for
an answer. No trying to read between the lines and figure out what the other
person is really trying to say. Because it seemed to me that something was
seriously wrong. Something was hurting my best friend, and I had to take
drastic measures to help him."
Jack sat quietly, staring at his hands folded in his lap.
When Jack didn't reply, Micah continued. "Last night, I
didn't do a very good job of explaining myself. Jack, I have an affection for
you that can NEVER be tarnished by anything you could ever do or say."
Jack slowly shook his head. "This might," he said.
"I don't think so," Micah insisted.
Jack turned and stared at Micah, tears misting his eyes. "How
can you say that? You don't know what I've done."
Micah carefully reached over and took Jack's hands in his
own. Squeezing gently, he asked, "Why do you think I've always insisted that
the only contact you and I have is through ZipChat?"
Jack shrugged. "To protect our privacy?
I don't know."
Micah shook his head. "Maybe that was part of it, at first. But
there's more."
"What is it then?"
"I didn't want anything to dilute the friendship we were
developing, Jack. I wanted us to focus on the words we shared as we came to
know one another better. I didn't want my age to be a barrier that prevented
you from seeing me as your friend, as someone you could trust and talk to about
anything."
Jack snorted. "The barrier is destroyed now." He made an explosion
sound as he mimicked a detonation with his hand.
Micah nodded and chuckled. "Yes, it is."
Jack blinked, trying not to break down. "Why did you do it? Why
did you come to my school? Why couldn't we just stay friends, talking to each
other in chat sessions?"
"Because a young man I know and
love was hurting. I don't know what was causing him so much pain; he wouldn't
tell me. But I could tell he was in such anguish that he desperately needed me.
I had to come help him."
Jack sobbed and the tears began flowing down his cheeks. Micah
pulled tissues from the center console and handed them to Jack, who dabbed his
eyes until the fears finally stopped. He
held the tissues to his face and blew his runny nose. Jack looked around for a
place to throw the used tissues. Seeing nowhere to put them, he shrugged and
stuffed them into a pocket on his hoodie.
"Don't forget to take those out when you get home," Micah
said, grinning.
Jack chuckled. "I won't." He took a few more tissues and
rubbed his eyes.
Micah touched Jack's cheek with one finger. "I had no
choice, Jack. Our friendship has reached a point where I couldn't say I was
your friend, hear how much pain you were experiencing, and not come running to
be by your side. I had to be there for you, helping you with whatever it was
you were going through."
Jack turned to look out the car window. He couldn't face
Micah. He couldn't even think of words to say, to explain how dejected he was
and how it was all his own fault.
Micah continued speaking. "It's been a rough
few weeks for you, Jack. You've experienced ups and downs like never before, so you shouldn't beat yourself up over how
you've handled it. We all would have had a hard time dealing with all you've
faced lately."
"I suppose," Jack replied. "It just seems like every
decision I made was wrong."
"Why do you say that?"
"I tried to talk to Ian and ended up in trouble with the
school and my parents. The first guy I picked for a date was dishonest. He was a
middle-aged creep just trying to get me in bed. The next guy I dated was a
party animal who only wanted me as part of his late-night orgy. And then when I
decided to stop dating altogether, I —" Jack paused, realizing how close he'd
come to revealing the secret he didn't want to utter.
Micah waited patiently. When it was apparent Jack wasn't
going to finish, Micah said, "I don't see those as bad decisions on your part. If
anything, they were bad situations that gave you a chance to show
you can make good decisions, like recognizing it wasn't something you wanted to
be a part of and walking away."
"I know. You told me all that. But if I'm making good
decisions, how do you explain—?" Jack paused again, miserable now. How could he
explain his frustration with himself if he couldn't tell Micah the rest? If
Micah knew the truth, he'd see that Jack didn't always make good decisions, and
deep down inside, there was something wrong with Jack's brain, something that
made him think it was okay to fantasize about getting his dick sucked by his
best friend, who also just happened to be old enough to be his dad.
Jack opened the car door and jumped out. He walked to the
edge of the lookout spot and stared out over the city.
͠ ͠ ͠
When Jack felt the warm hands sliding onto his shoulders and
neck, he knew Micah had joined him. Micah didn't say a word but slowly kneaded
Jack's muscles, pressing in with his thumbs moving in small circles.
Jack felt his eyes misting over and filling up with tears. He
didn't want to be a baby, but he couldn't help himself. Micah was always so
kind to him, but this was one time Jack didn't deserve
that consideration. Micah would undoubtedly stop being so nice if he ever
learned the truth. Jack's shoulders began shaking slightly as he sucked in
shuddering breaths and allowed the tears to fall again.
"Whatever it is ..." Micah said, his voice trailing off at the
end.
Jack sniffed. "You really want to know?"
Micah squeezed Jack's shoulders. "I do."
Jack turned around. His face was downcast as he stared at
Micah's shoes. He reached out and took Micah's hands in his own. The skin was
soft, the flesh warm. He saw a blue vein running along the back of Micah's hand
and traced it with his own finger.
Then he took a deep breath and began explaining, holding nothing
back. "You remember when I decided to stop dating? Because it wasn't working?"
"Yes."
"I guess it helped, because I didn't have crazy guys bugging
me anymore. But it did cause another problem ..."
Micah softly asked, "A bit of extra semen pressure?"
Jack nodded. "I'm horny every day, but it was worse this
time. I tried reading a story and jerking off, but something happened ..."
Micah waited.
Jack realized the time had come to open up
and lay it on the line. "I was fantasizing about getting a blowjob, and I ... uhhh ..." Jack blew out his breath and gulped. "I ... I
fantasized about you doing it."
Jack waited for Micah to explode, but Micah said nothing.
Jack slowly lifted his eyes to meet Micah's. "I felt horrible
afterward. Guilty. Stupid. Picturing you between my legs really messed with my
head, and I couldn't talk about it to anyone, especially you."
Jack expected anger, but there was none. Micah's eyes were
kind and understanding.
There was no lecture. No conversation about how Jack was
being immature, allowing his hormones to take over. No dismissing it as a silly
crush of some kind.
They continued to stare at each other.
Jack wondered if maybe Micah was secretly pleased. Some
older guys would probably be flattered to know that a sexy teen like Jack was
jerking his dick at the thought of getting a blowjob from his older lover. But
Micah didn't show any signs of pleasure either.
What was going through his head?
Micah held Jack in front of him, stared into Jack's eyes,
and used his fingers to wipe away Jack's tears. Then Micah leaned in and kissed
Jack gently on the lips. A soft and chaste kiss that lasted only a few seconds.
Micah pulled back and waited, watching to see how Jack would respond.
Jack felt his heart flutter.
The end of THE BARRIER,
Chapter Eleven