Date: Tue, 19 Aug 2003 22:54:00 EDT
From: Draginacht@aol.com
Subject: David's Initiation: The Recovery 21

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fiction and any resemblance to real
people or events is purely coincidental.  The story contains graphic
descriptions of sex between men. Anyone who is forbidden by law to read
such material must stop now.  This story is being posted to the Nifty
Archive solely for the enjoyment of its readers.

*******

David's Initiation: The Recovery 21

*******

The `morning after' should be expected to have some awkward moments. Dave
lay snuggled close to Tony, feeling his upper abdomen rise and fall, listening
to his heart, and hearing his soft, masculine snore. The sun was up but Dave
didn't know what time it was; he refused to lift his head to look at the clock
because it might awaken Tony.

`What's going to happen today? Will he wake up and want to leave? Will he
want to stay? If he stays, what do we do all day? Will he still be here
tomorrow? How do we pass the time? I really should run this morning. Should I go
running and leave him here? Maybe he'll run with me. I'll need to go to the store
to get something for lunch and dinner. If I leave, will he stay? We could swim
for a while... I guess he knows how to swim. How stupid, of course Marines have
to know how to swim. What do we talk about? I'm sure there's more he could
tell me and I haven't told him one thing about me, I really should do that if
there's going to be any kind of relationship between us. Listen to me! How did
I get to talking about a relationship? You're getting ahead of yourself,
David, take it easy. Right now I need to pee, can't wait any longer. Maybe I can
get to the bathroom and back before he wakes up.'

Dave slowly moved away from his sleeping giant and carefully crawled off of
the end of the bed. He was standing at the urinal, just about finished with his
eyes closed when he felt a presence on his left side and a hand touched his
right shoulder. Opening his eyes, Dave saw Tony standing right next to him.
Tony's left hand was against the wall supporting his weight and his right hand
was aiming his penis toward the urinal waiting for the flow to begin.

"Thought you'd get started without me, did you?" Tony sounded like he was in
a good mood.

"You were sleeping like such a baby I just couldn't wake you," Dave said
playfully. And then a devilish grin crept across his face as he remembered
something that happened in Texas five years earlier. He stepped back from the urinal,
slid behind Tony, wrapped the fingers of his right hand around Tony's pecker,
slid his left hand under Tony's armpit and pinched Tony's left nipple, then
stood on his tiptoes and stuck his tongue into Tony's right ear. Tony was
caught completely off guard but his body responded and he was instantly hard; his
stream, which had just started, stopped. Then Dave turned and ran out of the
bathroom giggling like a kid.

"You little bastard, you'll pay for that," Tony shouted; he was also
chuckling.

Dave ran to the chest, pulled out a pair of black compression pants and
slipped them on. Then he found a pair of socks and sat down on the end of the bed
to put them on. Just as he slipped the second sock on, a naked Tony stepped
directly in front of him. Dave looked up to see Tony trying to appear very
sinister. His eyebrows were doing their part but the corners of his mouth were not
cooperating and curved upward.

"Going somewhere? " Tony asked in his most quietly demanding tone of voice.
He was now bent over, his nose was pressed against Dave's and they were eye to
eye. Tony began to press forward, forcing Dave to lay back onto the bed.

"Well... I..." Dave was barely controlling his giggles as Tony slid between his
spreading legs. He felt Tony's weight press down on him; Tony's crotch was
grinding into his. "Running?" Dave more or less asked and stated at the same
time. Dave was so turned on he was beginning to not care if he ran. Tony's
arousal was obvious also.

"Would you like some company?" Tony asked quite slowly, making it sound like
a challenge. He wasn't opposed to continue doing what he was doing but really
thought it might be better if he lightened up on the sex.

"Think you can keep up?" Dave threw the challenge right back at Tony.

"Runner-up in the Marine Marathon the last two years," Tony proudly countered
Dave's challenge.

"Ooooo, I'm impressed," Dave sarcastically replied. "You gonna run in your com
bat boots, Jarhead?"

"I got stuff in the truck, my little friend," Tony was losing his battle
against smiling, even his eyebrows were giving up their scowl. There was something
about the way Tony said, "my little friend," that made Dave giggle.

"Well, if you don't stop what you're doin' we'll never get out of the
house."

Tony pushed back and stood up, his cock standing straight out but the hood
still covered the crown. He glanced at Dave's cock, shook his head then extended
his hand to help Dave up from the bed.

"Is it okay if I dress in the garage?" Tony asked.

"Oh please do, that'll be most entertaining," Dave was really enjoying this
little mental ballet they were engaged in. "Why don't you go ahead while I put
my shoes on? I'll start the coffee so it'll be ready when we get back."

"Okay, see ya in the garage," Tony agreed and began walking out of the
bedroom.

"Nice ass, Tony," Dave said playfully, trying to get something started.

Tony blushed. "Nice of you to think so," he replied as he wiggled his butt
and disappeared through the bedroom door.

Dave slid his feet into his runners and tied them. Then he slipped on a
T-shirt that Lt. Col. Lewis had sent him. On the front was printed "GO ARMY" and on
the back was printed "BE ALL YOU CAN BE." `Perfect!' Dave thought. At that
moment the security alarm sounded and Dave realized he'd forgotten to disarm
the system before Tony opened the back door to the garage. He lunged at the
control panel and quickly silenced the alarm then disarmed the system. Dave went
to the kitchen where he plopped a packet of coffee into the holder, filled the
reservoir with water and pressed the `START' button. The clock on the coffee
maker read 06:35. By the time he walked into the garage Tony was ready to run
dressed in running shoes, athletic shorts with very likely a jock strap
underneath and a T-shirt. Dave noticed that Tony's T-shirt had "USMC" on the front
and when Tony turned around, the back had "Semper Fi." `How appropriate!' Dave
thought.

Dave led the way out the side door to the garage and made sure it was locked.
One feature Dave had incorporated in his house was mechanical five-button
cipher locks. That eliminated the need for keys and he could change the code any
time he felt it was needed.

The two men went through their rather complex stretching routines, a good
indication that they took running seriously. Dave finished first and watched as
Tony finished his routine. Tony was the first to speak as they started to climb
the driveway from the garage level.

"How far?"

"Five miles?"

"Perfect," Tony agreed and stayed along side Dave as they began to jog down
the driveway to the street and turned right.

They'd jogged in silence side-by-side for about five minutes when Tony began
to pick up the pace. Dave stayed right with him. Since Tony didn't know the
neighborhood, Dave told him where to turn, down one street and then another.
Soon both men had broken a sweat and then their endorphins began to kick in. Tony
picked up the pace again and Dave stuck with him. Dave knew what he was
doing; he was letting Tony be the rabbit. And Tony thought he was winning just
because he was in the lead.

Dave felt like he was in Heaven. It had been quite a while since he'd had
someone to run with and this felt great. Tony really was a good runner and
presented him with a challenge, but not too much of one. Tony was just running to
beat Dave. He was used to running with some of his Marine buds but that was now
in the past. Eventually they turned down the street toward Dave's house and
Tony recognized where he was. That route would take them past Sean and Sophia's
house.

As they approached the McGregor house Tony shouted, "Race ya to the house!"
and he took off. Dave noticed Sean removing a travel bag from the trunk of his
`airport car' and guessed he'd just returned from another read-eye flight. He
wanted to shout a hello but had to kick into high gear to catch Tony. They
both ran as hard as they could and Dave managed to turn into the driveway just
ahead of Tony. Not knowing exactly where the finish line was supposed to be,
Dave continued up the driveway then down to the garage area and tagged the side
of the garage next to the door.

"Damn!" Tony exclaimed as he bent over, placed his hands on his knees and
gasped and gulped for air. "Why didn't you... tell me you... knew how to... run?"

"City-Post... marathon champ... two years... in a row," Dave announced proudly, a
big smile on his face and his hands on his hips as a signal that he was in
better shape than Tony.

"You sand-bagged me," Tony said as he straightened up.

"You didn't ask," Dave grinned.

Tony felt a little confused. Dave was destroying all of his preconceived
ideas about gays. Dave was very masculine. When pushed, he pushed back. He was a
real stud. Dave was well educated and obviously intelligent but was careful not
to patronize someone who wasn't. He was also quite wealthy but seemed
unaffected by it -- he was `normal.' Tony walked over and stopped directly in front
of Dave and looked down into his eyes. Dave was also the sexiest man Tony had
ever met, he was sure of it. He wanted to take Dave into his arms and cover him
with kisses. He'd never felt this way about anyone before, man or woman.

Dave looked up into Tony's eyes and wanted to throw his arms around the
hunk's neck and shove his tongue down Tony's throat. The sexual tension was so
electric you could almost measure it with an ohmmeter.

"Want some juice?" Dave asked in an effort to diffuse the moment. He could
feel himself losing control and grasped at any diversion.

"Juice would be nice," Tony accepted, glad that Dave had deflected the
tension. `I'd like some of your love juice if you don't mind,' Tony thought as he
watched Dave open the door and walk into the garage.

Upon entering the short hallway leading to the kitchen, Dave stripped his
sweaty T-shirt up and over his head and draped it over a drying rack then turned
to Tony, "T-shirt please." Tony pulled his soaked shirt over his head and
handed it to Dave. Tony's body heat still permeated the dripping-wet fabric and
Dave enjoyed the feel. Dave draped Tony's T-shirt on the rack next to his then
turned around and continued on into the kitchen. He got two large glasses from
the cabinet, retrieved the orange juice from the refrigerator, filled the
glasses and handed one to Tony. They stood facing one another as they brought the
glasses to their lips and began drinking. The sexual tension was beginning to
rise again and both men were sporting softons.

They drained their glasses at about the same time and Dave stuck his hand out
to take the glass from Tony's hand. Their fingers touched and each man was
sure he felt a spark. Dave carried the glasses to the sink and rinsed them out.
Tony watched the muscles on Dave's back move under the skin and couldn't take
it any longer.

As soon as Dave set the glasses down Tony moved in behind him, slid his hands
under Dave's armpits and wrapped his arms around Dave's chest. Although Dave
was a little surprised he didn't flinch he seemed to welcome the attention
and melt back into Tony's grasp. Dave could feel Tony's erection pressing into
his crack and his body and mind wanted more of it.

Dave brought his hands up and held onto Tony's arms in such a way that said,
`don't let go.' And when he felt Tony's hot, wet tongue began to lick the
back of his right ear, Dave swooned, "Oooooh." Tony's left hand found Dave's
right nipple and stroked his rough thumb across it at the same moment that his
tongue started at the bottom back of Dave's left ear and slid toward the top.

Lust was flowing from the tips of their engorged penises causing large wet
spots to form on their shorts. Dave turned his head to the left where his lips
came into contact with Tony's and as they kissed, Dave managed to twist around
until they were facing each other and grinding their crotches hard together.

The more than 24-hour growth of stubble on Tony's face was giving Dave a good
case of whisker burn but he didn't care. When their lips finally parted to
allow them to breathe Dave suggested, "We need to shower."

"Right," was Tony's response as he looked deep into Dave's eyes. He started
another kiss while he released Dave from his arms. Then he took Dave's left
hand and began leading him toward the bedroom. But he didn't stop there, he led
them straight into the bathroom and into the shower then took Dave into his
arms and kissed him again.

Dave felt like he was being swept off of his feet. He loved the way Tony was
taking command of the situation. They stood kissing for a few moments than
Dave reached out and started the water. It was almost immediately the correct
temperature and Dave maneuvered them into the spray created by three showerheads
-- they maintained their kiss through all of this.

Tony's hands had not been still; they roamed all over Dave's body. Now they
went to the top of Dave's now waterlogged shorts and began rolling them down
his hips until they slid down Dave's legs to the floor. It released Dave's
aching, throbbing member to sway in the spray.

Dave could feel Tony's rod through his shorts and knew it yearned to be free
just like his so he slipped his thumbs under the waistband of Tony's shorts
and then under the waistband of his jock strap and slid them all over Tony's
hips. However, due to being wet, they hung up and didn't slide to the floor like
Dave's shorts had so Dave crouched on his haunches and forced the articles to
Tony's ankles and help Tony step out of them.

When Dave raised his head he was staring straight at Tony's leaking cock.
Without giving it a second thought, Dave opened his mouth and took Tony all the
way to his pubic hair. It was the first time in five years that he'd done that
and although it was a little tight it excited Dave.

"Oh Dave," Tony gasped. It was so unexpected and no one had ever taken him
completely like Dave had just done. It was great but Tony had other plans and
when Dave backed off, Tony reached down, placed his hands under Dave's armpits,
lifted him to a standing position, backed him against the shower wall and
kissed Dave while pressing his body firmly against the smaller man. Dave offered
no resistance. He felt rather turned on by Tony's strength and decisiveness.
The contrast of the cold shower wall against Dave's back and Tony's hot body
against his front was another shocker.

Tony began gyrating his hips while pressing their erections between them like
he was trying to cause them to merge into one. Dave's hands found a bar of
soap and rubbed it between them until they were slick with suds and it
intensified the sensations exponentially. Tony continued gyrating and pressing and
kissing Dave while his hands were exploring every inch of Dave's body that they
could reach. When Tony's hands cupped Dave's glutes Dave lifted his legs and
wrapped them around Tony's hips. The next thing Dave felt was one of Tony's
fingers sliding into his rectum. Dave became very tense at first but then relaxed
and moaned as the penetration began to feel so good.

"Oh god..." Tony gasped softly and then thrust very hard against Dave. Tony was
cumming. The aroma of fresh cum permeated the humid shower air as Tony
continued to thrust against his new friend. It seemed like his orgasm lasted several
minutes but in reality it only took a few seconds. Tony reached between them,
wrapped his left hand around Dave's cock and began to stroke. "Cum for me
Dave," he pleaded in a deep and soft voice that was just above a whisper. The
emotion of Tony's plea reached somewhere deep inside Dave and, like a key
unlocking the gate on a dam Dave's fluid of life gushed forth and coated their
abdominal flesh.

Both men stood locked in an embrace, using the shower wall for support.
Dave's legs slid slowly over Tony's hips until his feet reached the floor and he
could support his own weight. It seemed to Dave that Tony's climax couldn't be
complete until Dave achieved one too because the minute Dave shot, he felt
Tony relax. The embrace that Tony held him in was just as strong but felt more
sensual, softer, more caring.

Dave wanted to stay like that forever. But Nature has a way of changing
things. Their erections waned, their senses returned, and they could look into each
other's eyes again in wonderment.

"I feel like I ought to say something profound but for the life of me I can't
think of any words," Dave said softly into Tony's right ear.

"Yeah... me too," Tony agreed. Then he pulled his head back, looked into
Dave's eyes again and they kissed. "I always dreamed of doing that someday... and I
can't think of a better man to share it with," Tony added after they stopped
the kiss.

"Well, I'm really glad I could be of assistance," Dave finally found some
words. Then he reached for the bar of soap again and began rubbing it around on
Tony's hairy chest. That was the signal that the lovemaking was over and they
were both somewhat relieved to be moving on.

Dave washed Tony thoroughly, including an interesting exploration of Tony's
foreskin. After rinsing, Tony washed Dave and seemed to devote extra attention
to Dave's ass. They also continued to plant kisses on various parts of each
other's bodies and by the time Dave turned off the water they were beginning to
show a little firmness. They finished by drying each other and it gave Tony
his first opportunity to really examine another male body up close and personal.

They went into the bedroom where Dave dressed and Tony stepped into his
briefs. "I need to go to the garage to get the rest of my stuff, is the alarm
turned off?" At that point Dave was struck by the realization that Tony had arrived
prepared to stay if things worked out that way. He smiled.

"Yeah, the alarm is off. Say, I need to run to the store to get something for
lunch. You won't run away while I'm gone, will you?"

"No sir, I shall await your return, sire." Tony grinned at his own playful
expression of respect for his elder host.

"You're incorrigible," Dave groaned with a smile and a chuckle as he turned
and walked out of the bedroom. Then he turned around and came back into the
bedroom. "Turkey sandwiches for lunch and steaks on the grill for dinner sound
okay to you?"

Tony hadn't planned on staying for dinner but Dave was presenting him with an
opportunity to stay. It was definitely an invitation. "Steaks are great. Can
I do anything?"

"You know how to make a salad?"

"Sure do, my sister calls me the Salad Man. If you get some feta cheese I can
make a Greek salad."

"Good, I'll expect great things from you... at least in the salad department,
that is." Dave grinned and left again.


Upon returning from the grocery store, Dave parked the 540i in bay number 2,
gathered the sacks and walked up the steps leading into the house. When he
opened the door he heard piano music. He listened for a moment and identified the
song as one of Beethoven's sonatas, "Fur Elise." `Tony must have found the
CDs. Good, I could stand some good music. But I don't remember having that
one," Dave seemed puzzled. He quickly placed the frozen stuff in the freezer and
the cold stuff in the refrigerator and then he heard a mistake on the keyboard
and the music stopped for a second then continued.

Leaving the rest of the groceries on the counter, Dave quietly walked toward
the great room. Tony was seated at the studio grand piano wearing tan Bermuda
shorts and a dark green polo shirt and his fingers were dancing on the piano
keys making the instrument come to life. The house was filled with the most
lovely sounds it had ever heard. Dave quietly found a seat on one of the sofas
and listened. The way the piano was oriented, Tony's back was turned toward the
kitchen door and he didn't see Dave enter the room. Tony continued the sonata
to the end, often playing with his eyes closed. When he finished he folded his
arms on top of the piano and rested his head for a moment. This was the first
time in years he'd played and he realized just how much he missed his music.

Tony lifted his head and spun around on the bench to find Dave staring at him
with tears in his eyes. "How long have you been here?" he asked.

"Long enough," Dave replied. "That was beautiful, Tony, absolutely beautiful!
"Fur Elise" wasn't it?"

"Ye... yes it was!" Tony seemed surprised that Dave had correctly identified
the piece so quickly. "You like classical music?"

"It's one of my favorites. I love Beethoven and you play so beautifully."

"Thanks, but I haven't played in years and it sure shows. You probably like
symphony orchestras too," Tony questioned.

"I go as often as I can," Dave stopped short of asking Tony to join him for
the Fall Season. That might have been just a little too far ahead of what was
happening.

"What'd ya get for lunch?" Tony wanted to get off the subject of his piano
playing. "As my stomach recalls, didn't we skip breakfast?"

"No wonder I'm hungry!" Dave exclaimed. "I guess there were more pressing
issues to take care of," and he grinned at Tony. "How about some boiled ham or
some turkey with lettuce, tomato, Swiss cheese and mustard?" Dave suggested,
glad to be off on another topic.

"How about all the above," Tony jumped at Dave's suggestion. They moved to
the kitchen, constructed some sandwiches and sat around the table eating.

Dave brought up the next subject, or more correctly, brought up an old
subject.

"Last night..." Dave cleared his throat. "You asked what it's like to be gay."
Tony looked straight into Dave's eyes with anticipation, like at last all of
his questions were about to be answered. "I've been thinking about how to
answer that. There must be as many answers as there are gay men who ever lived. So
I think I'll just tell you about my experience and share some of my decisions
and how they turned out, then let you decide for yourself. How's that?"

"That'll be great! As I told you last night, I've never known anyone who I
knew was gay."

"And I have some friends who will be willing to share some of their
experiences. But for now here's I handled it," Dave looked up at Tony and saw that he
was about to laugh at Dave's last statement. "Okay, so I could have said that a
little better. Deal with it." And they both chuckled.

"I'm a rather private person. By the time I was thirteen years old I'd
figured out I was different, then I figured out what `gay' meant. But I wasn't
active. When I was fourteen, my sister figured it out but she kept my secret. She
was really my rock, someone I could depend on for clear thinking. The summer
before my junior year a friend and I managed to satisfy out curiosity about
most things gay. We were both very careful and did a good job of hiding it. We
saw what happened to guys who were labeled as `queers' and we didn't want any
of that. When my friend graduated he joined the Navy just to get away from the
entrenched bigotry of a small town. By the time I graduated I could see the
wisdom of his decision and I enlisted in the Army."

Having finished their lunch, Dave and Tony, placed their plates in the
dishwasher, refilled their iced tea glasses and relocated to the same comfortable
sofa they had occupied the previous evening. Dave continued.

"I got a nice deal with the Army, only two years and out. I figured I could
survive that and then I'd be able to go to college to become an architect. Oh,
I forgot to mention that there was an architect who worked at the construction
company where I did and he kind of took me under his wing and introduced me
to that business. That's what got me hooked. Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah.

"After the Army I moved here to go to school. I had a lot of credits to
transfer from courses I took at a local community college while I was in the Army
so I had a nice head start." Dave looked down into his glass and decided to use
it as an excuse for a break.

"I need some more tea, want some?"

"Yeah, thanks," Tony responded almost surprised. He'd been so engrossed in
Dave's story that he wasn't aware that his glass was empty. Together they went
to the kitchen, refilled their glasses and returned to the sofa.

"College was a great awakening for me. It gave me the opportunity to find out
who I was. The one important decision I reached early on in college about
being gay was that I was through denying what I was. Yeah, I was gay but that
wasn't `who' I was; I was a lot more. At the same time I wasn't going to walk
around with a bullhorn announcing my sexual orientation. My close friends, most
of whom were straight, already knew I was gay and they accepted it. But if
the question ever arose I decided not to deny it unless there was some question
of safety involved. And even then I might even admit I was gay. I found a
student organization for gays on campus and got involved. The organization was
more of a behind the scenes type, they didn't do parades and neither did I. I met
some really great guys who helped me `get a handle'," Dave look at Tony and
smiled, Tony smiled back, "on being who I was. I think it's really liberating
that first time when you meet a group of men who know how you feel. You don't
have to be on guard all the time; you don't always have to watch what you say.
You don't have to explain yourself. Man, that was a real rush!"

"So, all in all, I have to say my life had been pretty dull... and secure... and
successful. I have a close circle of great friends, some gay, some straight,
and we get together often to socialize."

Tony kind of stared at Dave for a few moments trying to think of how to ask
his next question. "I always imagined gays having endless orgies. Is that true,
does that happen?"

"Ha-ha-ha!" Dave laughed out loud uncontrollably. "I'm sorry, Tony, I wasn't
laughing at you, it's just the thought of my gang having an orgy struck me as
being enormously funny. No, not the people I associate with. We're all very
boring but we love each other very much. My Army roommate is in a committed
relationship with a great guy and I would find it hard to imagine them getting
involved outside their relationship."

"I know it's none of my business but... if you don't mind my asking..." Tony
wanted desperately to know if Dave had a `best' friend and Dave seemed to sense
that was where his question was headed.

"I'm not seeing anyone right now... except you of course. I'm seeing you at
this moment." Dave was smiling from ear to ear.

Tony blushed. He wanted to say something but his voice was quiet. The phone
rang and Dave excused himself, got up and walked into the library to answer it.
He motioned for Tony to follow him, thinking they could continue their
conversation in that room. Dave considered it a more intimate setting anyway.

"Hi Sis, `sup?"

"David, you and that infernal Caller ID," and she laughed. "The boys want to
go swimming and I wondered if it would be okay with you."

"Sure, bring `em over, I'll be ready. I went to the store this morning so I
have lots of bad stuff for them to suck up."

"You'd better not be feeding them junk food, dear Brother! I'll collect them
and shoo them into the van and be there in about fifteen minutes. Is that
enough warning?"

"I'll be on the front steps waiting!" Dave chuckled then hung up the phone.
He stood staring at the phone for a few seconds wondering how to manage the
scene with Tony around.

"How are you with kids?" he asked to Tony who had seated himself in one of
the exceptionally comfortable leather chairs.

"Love `em. My sister has three kids, a boy and two girls and I just love
being their uncle."

"Well, my twin six-year-old and four-year-old nephews are on the way over to
go swimming. You wouldn't by chance have a bathing suit in that bag of yours
would you?"

Tony chuckled, "No, I never considered that."

"C'mon, I have extras for occasions such as this. Normally swimming around
here is done in the raw but I have a rule that when the boys are here the adults
have to wear swim suits." Dave took hold of Tony's hand and pulled him out of
the chair he'd sunk down into. They went out to the small shower room off the
pool and Dave showed Tony a drawer with several suits in it and told him to
pick one, they were all clean. Tony selected a pair of boxer style trunks,
maroon, and then followed Dave to the bedroom to change.

Dave put on some dark blue Speedo's and Tony had to concede that they did
about as good as humanly possible of concealing Dave's abnormally ample package.
Dave said he would wait for the boys on the front steps and suggested Tony go
ahead to the pool and get wet.

Kate drove up the driveway, around the circle and stopped at the front steps.
The side door of the van slid open and three excited young men jumped out and
hugged their uncle.

"Boys... BOYS!" Kate shouted to get their attention. They stopped chattering
and turned to face their mother. "No skinny dipping, understood?"

"Yes Ma'am," three little boy voices replied meekly.

"David?" Kate looked at her brother with raised eyebrows as if to ask, `Did
you get that?'

"Yes Ma'am," Dave replied with a smile.

Dave and Kate waved at each other then Dave closed the van door and Kate
aimed the van down the driveway and disappeared.

The boys had begun walking in single file, like they were marching or
something like that. This was something new and Dave didn't know how that got started
but it was fun to watch. Mark led the way through the front door followed by
Matt with JD bringing up the rear. Dave closed the front door behind him and
tagged along behind the boys as they marched through the great room, opened the
door and proceeded out into the pool area.

Tony had been waiting off to the side and when Mark saw him he stopped. Just
like a scene out of a "Three Stooges" movie, Matt collided into Mark and JD
smacked into Matt. Dave and Tony both wanted to laugh but were able to suppress
it.

"Who are you?" Mark demanded.

"Men, I'd like to introduce Mister Mancuso, he's a friend of mine. Tony this
is Mark, Matt, and JD," Dave completed the introductions.

"JD stands for John David; that's my real name," JD added just as seriously
as he could.

"Is he like Uncle Mike?" Matt asked.

"Well..." Dave thought for a second. Tony hadn't met Mike yet but what
difference did it make. "Yes, he's kind of like Uncle Mike.

"Then can we call him Uncle Tony? Mister Manco, whatever, sounds funny," Mark
requested. Dave and Tony were about to burst out laughing but managed to
control the urge.

"I would be honored if you would call me Uncle Tony," Tony jumped into the
mix. "And I'm happy to meet you Mark (shook his hand), Matt (shook his hand),
and JD (shook his hand). And I think John David is a neat name, JD."

"Thank you sir, my middle name is for my Uncle David," JD said quite proudly.

"Is it okay now?" Mark turned to Dave and asked.

"Yes, it's okay now," David replied with a big grin.

"Yeaaaa!" three little boy voices yelled in unison as they slipped out of
their trunks and jumped into the pool.

Dave and Tony stood at the edge of the pool watching the boys swim and chase
each other around in the water. After about fifteen minutes the boys were
calling for the men to join them in the water. They began playing tag and in
ceremonial fashion, Tony was the first to be `it'. He chased the boys making them
laugh when he `almost' caught them but didn't. Then Dave was `it' and played
the same game. Just to make the game seem fair, Dave tagged Matt and then
Tony immediately let Matt tag him. Each of the boys got tagged at least once but
either Dave of Tony was always readily available to be tagged.

Finally, as Dave began to feel exhausted, he asked if anyone was hungry and
three high-pitched voices yelled `Yes'. He left Tony in the pool while he went
to the kitchen. He fixed some orange slices, poured five glasses of lemonade,
stacked some oatmeal-raisin cookies on a plate (Dave had made them Thursday
evening) then loaded it all on a platter and carried it back to the pool.
Arriving at the pool Dave found that the boys had managed to talk Tony into being a
`boy launching platform'. That meant Tony would pick one boy up and launch
him into the air as high as possible so that when he came back down he caused a
large splash. They boys were laughing and yelling, "Me next, me next."

"Food's here!" Dave announced loudly as he set the platter down on a table.
That immediately stopped the `launch' business as the boys swam as fast as
they cold across the pool, climbed out and rushed to the food. "Okay, get your
stuff and sit down to eat." Dave wanted them to calm down a little.

"Damn," Tony said softly when he reached Dave's side, "I hope you brought
enough for me."

"I see they tricked you into the game they like most," Dave quietly replied.
"Better you then me, Senior." Dave chuckled and handed Tony a glass of
Lemonade and a cookie.

"I can't remember when I've had this much fun," Tony replied. "It kind of
reminds me of growing up with my brothers. We did things like this, but at a
public pool. But I sure was glad to see you come back with food for the masses, I
was about to go under," Tony laughed.

Dave and Tony stretched out in lounge chairs to rest and when the boys were
fed and calmed down, after a short waiting period Dave gave in to their pleas
to swim some more. Mark went into the shower room and found a tennis ball and
they began to play a different version of tag while their `Uncles' watched.

"This is really amazing, Dave, it's like you're living a normal life."

"Yeah, isn't it great!" Dave replied. "I love to have the boys over, partly
because I love them so much and partly to give my sister some time alone with
her newborn, Susan. I think it's good for the two of them to have some quiet
time together. My brother-in-law, John is gone today. He recently accepted a
position as the football and track coach at our old high school and he's down
there getting ready for the beginning of school. He'll be back this evening in
time for dinner and the boys will be tuckered out and ready for bed, which means
he and Kate will have some quiet time of their own."

"You said `our old high school'," Tony picked up on what Dave had said. "Did
you all go to school together?"

"Yeah, Kate and John were classmates two years ahead of me. They went to
college together and then got married. John's a really great guy, kind of like a
brother I never had."

"What's his last name?"

"Close, John Close," Dave offered. The name sounded familiar to Tony but he
couldn't place it anywhere in his past. "Anyway, they're building a house down
there that I designed for them. I'll be going down on Tuesday to check on how
it's coming. The significance of that is that soon they will be moving away
and I won't be seeing them as often. Plus, their new home will have a pool and
the boys won't have to come here to swim. So you can see why I'm always
available when they want to come over."

Tony could hardly believe what he was hearing. Here was a man, Dave, who was
going out of his way to care for his family. Tony didn't know exactly what to
make of it.

By five o'clock, the boys had been there a little over three hours and it was
no surprise to Dave when the phone rang. He answered the poolside phone, had
a very brief conversation then hung up. He walked over to where the boys had
dropped their trunks, picked them up and carried them to the deep end of the
pool. The boys hadn't noticed what he was doing.

"Okay, men, time to get ready to go home," Dave shouted. "Time to get
dressed," and he tossed their bathing suits into the middle of the pool.

"Awe, we don't wanna go," three boy voices complained in unison. Then they
hurriedly swam to the middle of the deep end of the pool and caught their trunks
before they reached the bottom. With bathing suits in hand, Mark, Matt, and
JD swam to the shallow end of the pool, put their suits back on and climbed out
of the water.

"Can we have more cookies?" JD whined.

"No, it'll spoil your dinner," Dave explained as he tossed each of them a
towel. Once dried, Dave led them back through the great room and out the front
door where they sat down to wait for Kate to arrive. They waited less than two
minutes before the van drove up the driveway, round the circle and stopped in
front of the steps. The side door of the van slid open automatically.

"Hi guys, did you have fun?" Kate queried.

"Yes," came three replies as the boys walked slowly toward the waiting
vehicle. They didn't seem too happy about it.

"Did you thank your Uncle David?"

"Thank you Uncle David," came three seemingly unhappy replies. This was the
usual scene. The boys really did have fun, they were just unhappy that they had
to stop. Dave understood perfectly and smiled.

"You're welcome men, come back again some time."

"We will," JD shouted as the van door closed. Kate waited until the boys were
buckled in before moving the vehicle. On the short trips between her house
and Dave's, she often didn't bother with safety seats.

Dave waved as Kate began driving away and she waved back. Dave could see that
the boys were in the back seat talking about something. Dave wondered if they
would say anything about having met `Uncle Tony', oh well...

"How come you threw their suits in the water?" Tony asked.

"Dave smiled and chuckled. "Their mom doesn't want them skinny-dipping so we
make sure their trunks are wet when they leave here. It's our secret." Both
men laughed. "Hey, you ready to think about dinner?"

"Yeah, that cookie just didn't do much for me, chocolate-chip would have been
better."

"Yeah, but I try to give the boys something like oatmeal that won't do so
much harm. I'll make you some chocolate-chip cookies if that's what you want,"
Dave offered with a grin.

"Gee, mommy, can you, please?" Tony was putting on his best little-boy
impersonation.

"Sure, little boy, but you have to be real nice to mommy," Dave replied
suggestively.

Tony stepped up to Dave and said, "Oh, I'll be verrry nice to mommy." The
more Tony saw of Dave, the greater his admiration of his new friend became. He
felt really good about himself and about Dave.

"I'm looking forward to that Greek salad you said you were gonna make," Dave
said as he looked up into Tony's smiling eyes. The sexual tension between the
two was growing again.

"Well, let's get to work!" Tony said as he followed Dave into the house.

They both took quick but separate showers to wash off the chlorine, each
wishing the other were in the shower with him. In the kitchen they set about
making dinner. Tony assembled all of the ingredients for his salad while Dave
unwrapped the steaks and placed them on a plate so he could carry them to the gas
grill. As they moved about the kitchen, each man was keenly aware of where the
other was, almost like they had proximity radar operating. They kept sneaking
glances at each other, one occasionally catching the other and they'd smile.
The sexual tension in the air seemed electric.

"How do you like your meat?" Dave asked innocently.

"The same way I like my men, hot and raw," Tony shot back with a devious grin
and doing a Groucho Marx move with his bushy eyebrows. "I'm sorry, I
couldn't resist, I've always wanted to say that," and he chuckled.

"Okay, aren't you going to thank me for feeding you that straight line?"

"Yeah, that was great," Tony replied as he stepped in front of Dave who had
the plate with the steaks in it ready to go outside. They stood still for
several seconds just looking into each other's eyes. "I owe you a straight line
someday," Tony finally said, it broke the tension for a few minutes.

"Okay, you're forgiven, now how DO you like your steaks?" Dave chuckled.

"Medium, please."

"That makes it easy because that's the way I like mine. Go ahead and make
that salad and I'll be back in a few minutes." Dave carried the steaks out to the
gas grill, which was at the east end of the pool area. After placing the
steaks on the grill, Dave returned to the kitchen and placed the potatoes in the
microwave oven, set the time and pressed the start button.

Tony continued creating his salad and by the time Dave went outside to turn
the steaks, the salad was ready to serve. Remembering where the plates, knives
and forks were located, Tony was just about to set the kitchen table when Dave
changed plans.

"Let's eat in the dining room tonight," Dave suggested. So Tony carried the
things into the dining room. He'd not really been in that room before and was
quite taken with the impressionist motif. Dave turned the potatoes, restarted
the microwave and went back outside to get the steaks. When he came back
inside, Tony had pulled a couple of beers from the refrigerator and they were ready
to eat. Neither man gave much thought to the idea but they seemed to work
naturally as a team with little planning or discussion.

Dave sat at the end of the table closest to the kitchen door and Tony sat
around the corner to his right. Once they were seated, Dave reached his right
hand out, palm up as an invitation for Tony to place his left hand in it. Dave
bowed his head and silently asked Jesus to bless the meal and the new friendship
he had formed. He and Tony raised their heads and opened their eyes at the
same time. `I wonder if he's Catholic?' Dave thought.

"Tony, this salad is terrific!" Dave exclaimed after his first bite. "Where
did you learn how to make it?"

"My grandma taught me."

"An Italian who makes a great Greek salad? Sounds a little strange," Dave
questioned.

"Well, she's Greek." Tony smiled and shoved a slice of steak into his mouth.
"And your meat... er steak is perfect." Both men chuckled at the little joke.

"Your grandmother was Greek?"

"Yeah, ya see..." Tony paused to think about the best way to explain his
grandparents. "Three of my grandparents are Italian and my mother's mother is Greek.
Both of my father's patents are Italian. Grandpa Mancuso came to the U.S.
after WWII when he was about twenty years old. After six years he'd saved enough
money to go back to his village and marry Grandma. They were kind of promised
to each other, something like an arranged marriage."

"So your father is like first generation Italian-American?"

"Yeah. My grandpa Como's family was originally from Italy but they've been
here for a long time. When Grandpa was in the Air Force, he got stationed in
Greece and that's where he met my grandma and they got married."

"Let's see, that makes you what, one quarter Greek?"

"Yeah, I guess it does," Tony admitted like the idea had never really
occurred to him. "But we, the whole family always felt like it was half and half.
When I was... I think six or seven, our grand parents took the whole family to
Italy and on to Greece. We visited the villages where they came from and I thought
it was really exciting."

"Wow, that's really amazing. Was that the only time you got to go to Europe?"
Dave found Tony's family experiences intensely interesting.

"We went several times. Each time we got to see more. As they got older, my
sister and then my brothers dropped out; they had more interesting things to do
during the summer. But I always liked going. I remember one year we came home
through Paris and visited a lot of museums. Another time, we spent a week
touring Rome, the Vatican and the ancient ruins. Athens was always interesting
with the Acropolis and the place where some dude drank something called hemlock.
The museums were the greatest, especially in Paris. There's one place, I
can't remember the name, but it has lots of impressionist paintings. And I like
those the best. By the way, didn't I notice a picture of Van Gogh's `Yellow
House' in you library earlier?"

"Yes, you did, that's pretty observant considering that we were only in there
for a few minutes," Dave was impressed.

"And that big picture in your bedroom, isn't that the `Bathers'?" Tony asked
further.

"You sure seem to know a lot about art, Tony, and you play the piano like a
pro. That seems so out of character for a Marine!"

Tony laughed. "Yeah, maybe I wasn't really cut out to be a Marine but I did
love it, still do." Tony tipped his can of beer and emptied it as he thought.
"You built this house, right?"

"Yes," Dave said proudly. "It's kind of like my dream house."

"I've seen a lot of this style in France, nothing this big of course, but
it's so warm and friendly and inviting. You have good taste. And it seems to me
that you've managed to introduce a lot of impressionism to the interior."

"I had a lot of help. The wife of a friend in Dallas did it for me. I gave
her a checkbook, told her what I wanted and turned her loose."

"Well, you can be proud. This place is beautiful." `And so are you,' Tony
thought. He was also thinking about how he was going to politely excuse himself
to go back to his motel room after Dave had been so gracious. It wouldn't be
easy; he had really enjoyed being with Dave, not to mention the sex.

"Let's take this stuff to the kitchen and place it in the dishwasher," Dave
suggested. "Then I've got a couple of video tapes for us to watch. When I went
to the store I rented `A Few Good Men' and `Gossford Park'."

"Oh man!" Tony exclaimed. "I love `A Few Good Men', I've only seen it once
but it's great. What's the other one about?"

"I'm not sure, I think it's a period piece set in England around 1900 to
1910, I'm not real sure. One of my clients suggested I watch it because she says
there's a guy in the movie who looks like me."

That presented Tony with a dilemma. Should he leave now or later after he
watched `A Few Good Men'? He decided to stay. They placed the dishes in the
dishwasher and generally cleaned up the kitchen.

The tension between them had morphed into one of attraction and comfort. They
adjourned to the great room where Dave opened the entertainment center,
turned on the large TV, inserted the cassette in the VCR, then joined Tony on the
sofa facing the TV. He pressed the start button and they settled in to watch
the movie.

They made running comments about the characters, the actors, and the plot.
They were having a lot of fun. When the movie ended each man needed a bathroom
brake, Tony went to the master bathroom while Dave switched the tapes, then he
went. Tony was somewhat relieved to go alone because he was beginning to feel
a growing desire to be with Dave again... sexually. If he didn't leave soon he
wasn't sure what would happen between them but his imagination was very
active.

Dave returned from the bathroom and sat at the left end of the sofa turned
sideways with his left foot on the floor. His right foot was up on the cushion
with his right leg resting against the back of the sofa (he and Tony had not
worn shoes all day). Tony sat looking forward, waiting for Dave to start the
tape. At first the movie didn't seem to have much promise. But then the guests
began to arrive and when the character played by Ryan Phillippi appeared Tony
set upright and leaned forward.

"Dave, look at that!" he exclaimed. "That guy looks exactly like you!"

"You think so? I'm not so sure," Dave said skeptically. "Well... maybe a
little," Dave finally agreed after he had a better look. "I'd have to see him naked
to make a real judgement," he said with a chuckle.

"Yeah, I doubt if he could `measure up', Tony added with a grin.

"Com'ere and let's watch some more," Dave invited. He held out his hand,
beckoning Tony to slide across the sofa. Tony couldn't resist. He moved toward
Dave and turned so that he was positioned between Dave's legs leaning his back
against Dave's chest. Dave felt the weight of Tony's body settle against his
chest and thought how wonderful that weight felt. Tony didn't seem heavy, just
comfortable. Dave draped his right arm over Tony's shoulder so that his hand
rested on Tony's chest. Tony stretched his legs out on the sofa and placed his
right hand on Dave's right knee. Both men thought they could feel their bodies
vibrating. A feeling of comfort swept over them and they settled in to watch
the movie.

The movie was good but it couldn't seem to hold their attention. It wasn't
long before eyelids began to droop and finally close. After all, they had
started the day with a five-mile run, had sex in the shower, and played almost to
exhaustion with the boys. They had a reason to be tired.

The click of the VCR stopping and the whirr of rewinding woke Dave. He picked
up the remote and stopped the rewind, he'd do that tomorrow with his rewinder
before returning both movies to the store. Then he leaned over and kissed
Tony on his temple. Tony began to stir.

"Time to go to bed, Prince Charming," Dave spoke softly into Tony's left ear.
Tony's eyes fluttered open and he turned his head and looked up at Dave.

"What time is it?" Tony looked like he was still asleep.

"Time to go to bed," Dave answered. Tony didn't argue. He sat up, rubbed his
eyes then stood somewhat unsteadily. "Why don't you go ahead and I'll lock
up?" Dave suggested. Tony didn't answer he just turned and started walking
toward the bedroom. He was more tired than he thought.

By the time Dave locked the doors, turned out the lights and walked into the
bedroom, Tony was already asleep on his right side and in a fetal position.
Dave turned out the lights, undressed, and went into the bathroom to brush his
teeth. When he walked back into the moonlit bedroom Tony was already on his
back near the center of the bed and was snoring softly. Dave walked around to
what was now his side of the bed and got in. He scooted toward the center and
when he got close enough, Tony reached out and pulled Dave into a spoon position.
Dave felt so comfortable, so relaxed that he fell asleep immediately.

*******

(To be continued.)