Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 23:45:39 -0700 (PDT) From: John Josept Subject: Man in the Mirror/Chapter Seven The following is a story that deals with explicit gay sex between men. If this type of material offends you, or you are under the age allowed by the state or region you reside in or you reside in an area where this type of material is not legal, you must please leave and not go any further. This is a work of fiction meant for private enjoyment and in a fictitious world as this is, HIV, AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases do not exist, and so safer sex is not needed. Unfortunately, in the real world these diseases do exist, so please do yourself a favor and everyone you come in contact with, practice safer sex, use a condom. This is a continuing story and if you like it well enough to reproduce it on your site, I have no objection, but Please Ask First. ************************************** I dedicate this and everything I do to my partner, who goes through hell just to be with me. ************************************** I want to thank those who sent me emails of encouragement on the story. This is my first attempt at writing and your kind words help tremendously. I hope you all continue to enjoy it. Email me and let me know what you think. Your comments are always welcome - wildgate1@yahoo.com ************************************** Man in the Mirror Chapter 7 As light from the large bedroom window warmed our naked bodies, Royce and I stood holding each other after our little pre-marriage ceremony. With my arms still around him, I put my hand up so I could admire the beautiful ring that he chose. It looked good on my hand. "This is the best birthday ever, I will always remember my 40th because of you", I said gently kissing him on the lips, "Thank you babe". I lead him to the bed and I laid down on the edge. He went around the other side and laid down on his back resting his head on my chest, his body was at a 90-degree angle to mine. I put my hand on his chest and ran my fingers around the hairs, while I admired his body. His dick was soft and it lay in its sheaf on his ballsack. Royce closed his eyes and said, "I could lay like this forever". "I wish we could too dear, but we have company coming tonight, remember", I said, lazily. "Yes, but that's several hours away, we could just lay here until they come to the door", he said with a smile. "Or we could go up to the gym and workout for an hour or so, then shower and get ready for Chandler and Tony's arrival", I came back. Royce halfheartedly agreed. So, reluctantly, we got up from our daydream, and went up stairs to the gym. "I need gym shorts and a jock", Royce said. I reached into the drawer of one of the cabinets in the gym and handed Royce a clean jockstrap. "Here take this, you won't need anything else it's just you and me," I said to him with a wink. Royce laughed saying, "Well we may not get much of a workout tonight if we just wear these". He slipped the jockstrap over each leg and pulled it up, hiding his dick in the cloth cover. The straps of the jock accentuated his exposed hard round butt. He looked so damn hot that way. I went up to him and kissed him on the lips "You are a sexy devil", I said while grabbing his package thru the pouch of his jockstrap. We kissed again. "We better get to our workout before we start something we can't stop". "You are right love". We kissed this time very lightly. Royce went toward the stationary bike to warm up and I took the treadmill. After a few minutes on those machines, our bodies were glistening with sweat. We turned our attention to the Universal weight machine and worked out for a few hours or so. My concentration on my workout was constantly broken by the site of Royce in that jockstrap. I think my dick was hard the whole time. We finished our workout and sat on the weight bench to cool down. Both our bodies were drenched in sweat. Royce's muscles were pumped up from the workout and the sweat only accented them more. I wanted to make love to him right there on the bench. My dick was straining at the jockstrap. Royce lay his sweaty body down on the bench with his eyes closed, oblivious to my lust. I went to him, kissed him hard on the lips, and whispered, "I want you now Royce, no shower, just as you are sweat and all". Royce opened his eyes, looked at me and smiled. His dick was starting to grow inside his jock. He sat up and we kissed again, this time probing our tongues in and out of each other's mouths. The odor from his sweaty body was overpowering, but that only made my hunger for him stronger. We groped each other's slick wet bodies. I pulled Royce's jockstrap down with my teeth and devoured his rigid pole in one gulp. The musk from his balls and crotch made me dizzy. Letting go of his cock, I licked the sweat from his scrotum. I took each ball, one at a time into my mouth and rolled it around my tongue. I let go of his balls and went back to sucking his enormous manmeat. I wanted his cum down my throat. I pumped faster and harder. "Love, I will cum soon if you keep that pace up", he said in a panic, but I didn't care I wanted to taste my lovers juices. "Oh fuck love, I'm going to cum", Royce said as I felt his cockhead pulsate in my mouth. "Ahhhhhhhhhhh", Royce yelled as the first gush of cum entered my mouth. This is what I wanted, the sweet taste of my lovers sperm. I swallowed as fast as I could, trying desperately to keep up with the jizz that was spraying from his dick. When he finally stopped, I got up and kissed his lips, letting him taste his own cum that was still in my mouth. Royce collapsed on one side of the bench and I lay my head on his chest. We both felt so relaxed, maybe a bit too relaxed because we both dozed off. A few minutes later, I opened our eyes, my mind in a fog. "Hmmm" I thought to myself as I realized I was still lying on Royce's chest. My dick started to get hard again. I looked up at Royce who was still asleep. The urge to kiss him got stronger as my dick got harder. I maneuvered my way up to his lips and woke my sleeping beauty with a passionate kiss. I felt Royce stir. I could feel his dick getting hard underneath me. We embraced and kissed again. Royce's eyes opened and he happened to glance at the clock on the wall of the gym. "Bloody Christ", he yelled out, "It's nearly 7PM, we have only an hour before Chandler and Tony arrive!" What I thought was just a few minutes of sleep must have been a few hours. "Damn", I said breaking our embrace. "I grabbed his crouch, his dick still hard, "I am going to want more later, so keep that thought". We ran down the stairs to the bathroom and took a quick shower, dried ourselves off and started to dress. Since the evening was going to be warm and casual, I decided to wear a pair of khaki cargo shorts (commando style, of course) and a colorful Hawaiian Shirt. I slipped on my brown boat shoes with no socks and was ready for our guests. Royce on the other hand was still naked trying to choose what to wear. He seemed to be getting flustered. "I will let you alone to decide what to wear dear". "Oh Ok, love", he said not really paying attention to what I was saying. I patted him on his bare behind, kissed him, and went down to the kitchen to begin the last minute preparation for dinner. It was nearly 8 PM. I went to the freezer, took out some ice, went to the bar in the Den, and filled the ice bucket with the cubes. "Royce", I yelled up the stairs, "what do Chandler and Tony drink?" Royce yelled back down the stairs, "Martini's I think". Ah, this is going to be my kind of group. I was hoping this would be a Martini couple; I made sure we had enough gin, vodka, and dry vermouth. I took out 4 Martini Glasses and set them on the bar. I turned my attention to the dining room and put my good dishes and flatware on the table around Royce's stunning flower arrangement. I took out napkins and folded them on the dishes. I then set the wine glasses in place and opened two bottle of the Merlot, to set them to breathe. "The table looks great, good enough to be on HGTV", I said to myself. I love doing stuff like this. All that is left is to put the lamb and the asparagus, on the grill and toss the salad and dinner will be ready. "Hmm", I said to myself, "where is that man of mine". "Royce", I yelled out, "What are you doing?" Just as I said that Royce appeared at the top of the stairs. He had on a pair of teal blue shorts; he had no shoes but wore sandals. The pale yellow short sleeve sport shirt he wore seemed to drape his body and accent his pumped up chest muscles. His blue eyes had that sparkle in them again. Not even a hair was out of place, he knew he was perfect, yet I don't think he knew just how perfect he really is. He never puts on airs; Royce is who he is and nothing more. I smiled as he walked down the stairs with his hands in his pockets. He got to the bottom step, "Anything I can do love?" he asked. I was speechless for a second, getting lost in those memorizing Blue Eyes of his. I came out of my haze and said, "No babe, everything is just about ready for our guests. Damn you look fantastic", I added. He grabbed me around the waist, said thanks, and kissed me on the lips. I was about to kiss him back when the doorbell rang. Our guests had arrived. It was the start of what was going to prove to be quite an interesting evening. I kept a few feet back in the living room as Royce anxiously opened the door. Chandler and Tony greeted Royce with the usual hugs and kisses friend give when they come for a visit. Chandler handed Royce a beautifully wrapped box, which I had assumed, would be his birthday gift. Tony had something in his hand but he held on to it as I approached the threesome. "Chandler, Tony, I want you to meet my partner, Eric", Royce said being very British and very formal. I starred a bit at the two men that walked into our house. Chandler was tall, but not as tall as Royce was, with fair skin and reddish blonde hair. I could see, even with the shirt he had on, he was nicely built. He wore shorts and his well-defined legs had a light coating of fine reddish blond hair. He was very striking and handsome; no he was more beautiful than handsome. It must be those steely gray eyes. His features were delicate, but not feminine. The big surprise was Tony. Royce had not mentioned there was such a big age gap between him and Chandler. I would say Tony was in his mid-fifties. He was shorter than the rest of us, had gray hair that he wore very short, probably to hide the fact that he was going bald. He had a moustache and goatee that was nearly all grey. His face, arms, and legs were very tan, which most likely was due in part to his Italian ancestry. The fact that they lived just steps from the beach, was also a factor. He was very well built for a man his age. His deep brown eye seemed to look right through you. His handsome face showed just a hint of his age. He had taken good care of himself over his 50-something years. "Nice to finally meet you", I said as I extended my hand to greet Tony first. Tony opened up his arms, gave me a big hug, and kissed me square on the mouth. "I am Italian, we don't shake hands we kiss", he said with a big smile. "And besides you are part of our family now". I was taken aback by his forwardness at first, but for some reason I liked it. Not to be out done, I said to Tony, "Well great, I love hugs and kisses too", and I grabbed him and kissed him on the lips as he had done to me. "Oh I can see you two are going to get along famously", Chandler said with his charming British accent. He put out his hand to greet me. I pulled him close to me, gave him a big hug, and kissed him on the lips too. That seemed to break the tension of meeting new people. We all laughed and went into the den to relax. "This is quite a place you have Eric", Tony said. "Thanks, a little later, I will give you both the grand tour, if you like", I said. I got behind the bar and beckoned everyone to come closer. "Royce tells me you are a Martini group, is that true?" I asked, knowing what the answer would be. Chandler and Tony both laughed, "Yes as a matter of fact we are", Chandler said. "Ok good, four Timpson Martini's coming up". I mixed the martinis and poured them into the glasses I had prepared earlier. I plopped an olive in each drink and I passed them each to the handsome men in front of me. We raised our glasses and toasted to new friends and old friendships. Then we went and sat down on the two love seats that were facing each other; a glass coffee table separated them. Chandler and Tony sat on one and Royce and I sat facing them on the other. I put my drink down on the table, leaned into Royce, and rested my hand on his leg. "Chandler, Royce tells me you two have known each other since you were kids", I said. "Yes, I was about eighteen at the time and Royce, you were how old again?" he questioned. "Just thirteen years old, and so very innocent", Royce said trying to act like an angel. "Oh yes, so bloody innocent, that you seduced me the first day we met", he came back. "Oh really", I said with a smile, "now you will have to tell me all about this one". "Well there's really not much to tell", Royce said. "Oh you have to hear this story Eric," Tony said, "It's really terrific". I looked over at Royce to see if he was uncomfortable with this. He winked at me and I knew it was ok. Chandler proceeded to tell how he and my lover had first met so many years ago. ************************* Chandler Saunders stood in the locker-room of the school gymnasium facing his own locker. He had just scored the winning goal in the biggest soccer game of the year, between St. Regis Boy's School and their archrivals Chumley Academy. Chandler was 18 years old and in his final year at St. Regis. He felt proud of himself for his accomplishment today, yet he felt empty. The rest of his teammates came into the locker room from the showers. Some had towels wrapped around them, most others were naked and held their towels in their hands. Their dicks, some soft and some half hard, swung back and forth, as they passed by. Chandler barely noticed them today. He usually would get quiet excited watching his hard body soccer friends cavort around the locker room, snapping towels at each other and just generally getting rowdy. Chandler knew he was gay from a very early age. He had many encounters with boys from St. Regis as well as several men, including a few teachers. Chandler considered himself pretty experienced for his eighteen years. Nevertheless, today he felt like something was missing. He was the hero of the game yet he felt nothing. All his mates had now dressed and were heading out the locker room to the dorms to celebrate the win. Chandler, still in his uniform, just sat there staring off into nothing as they bid him goodbye. "You ok", said Donny, Chandler's, teammate, best friend, and roommate at the dorm. "Yes I'm fine, Donny, just a little tired. I will meet you in our room, I just need to rest a bit", he said not knowing why he wanted to be alone. He knew Donny had a big crush on him and they did play around all the time, but today he just didn't feel like it. Donny looked around the room and saw they were alone. He leaned in, then kissed Chandler on the lips and whispered that he will wait for him in their dorm room. Chandler sat there nearly motionless. He tried to smile but couldn't. Donny left the locker room wondering what was wrong. Chandler thought it was time for him to take his shower. He figured after his shower he would go back to the dorm and most likely he would fuck Donny, something he usually enjoyed but for some reason was not looking forward to today. He slowly started to get out of his uniform. First, he took off his boots and socks and threw them into the bottom of his locker. Then he stripped out of shorts and jersey. Chandler is usually very meticulous about his uniform but today he just threw that onto the bottom of the looker too. He removed his jockstrap, balled it up on his hand, put it to his nose as he usually does, then threw it on top of his uniform, and shut the locker door. He stood there naked, his dick became half-hard, but he didn't care. He figured he was alone and just threw his towel over his shoulders and headed for the shower. His uncut cock grew to its full eight inches now and it swung back and forth, as he walked. When he turned around the corner into the shower room, there by the benches was a very handsome young boy collecting towels. The boy turned around just as Chandler came into view. Chandler took his towel and tried to hide his erection. "You the new towel boy?" he asked to the cute young preppy. "Yes, sir", the boy said, "I am just collecting my towels and I will be out of your way. I will leave you one to clean up after you take care of that hard on of yours". Chandler blushed and angrily said, "Rather cheeky, you little bastard. What's your name preppy?" "Royce, Royce Stewart, sir", he said, "I didn't mean anything by that sir, I just know that sometimes the guys here masturbate, I see their spunk in these towels all the time." "Well you won't be seeing any of my spunk in the towel, now get the hell out of here, you little twit", Chandler said rather impatiently. "Yes, sir", Royce said as he grabbed his towels and left the shower room. He went to the caged area where the dirty towels are kept; he put some in the large commercial type washing machine, put soap flakes in, and then started it up. Royce sat down in the cage thinking about how big Chandler's dick was and hoped that someday his would be that big. Royce had just recently reached puberty. He knew right off he was gay and took advantage of every opportunity to beat his young dick. He was producing sperm now and he enjoyed watching it squirt from his shaft, he even tasted it now and then. Being towel boy offered him the chance of seeing all the hot school athletes run around naked. Sometime, when they didn't know he was around he would watch them masturbate. He had even seen a couple of the guys suck each other's dicks. He knew that Chandler Saunders was still in the shower. He wanted to see him naked again and see that big dick of his. Royce left the machines running and quietly walked over to the showers and peeked in. There standing under the water stood Chandler, his eight-inch cock still fully erect. Royce gasped at the site. Chandler was beating his manmeat while standing under the shower. He had his eyes closed and the water made it impossible for him to hear anything around him. Royce looked around to see if anyone else was there and took a chance by pulling down his shorts, then began to beat his own cock. Royce was only thirteen years old but his dick was already 6 inches long. Chandler was deep in his thoughts. He was not fantasizing about anything or anyone. He was just enjoying the feeling of his hard dick in his hand and the water pouring over his body. He was lost in the sensation and did not care if someone came in the room or not. He beat his rod faster and faster as the water drenched his hard body. Suddenly, he felt something clamp down around his cock, something warm. He opened his eyes and there was Royce sucking on his dick. Chandler's first instinct was to pound the hell out of the little bugger, but for some reason he was enjoying the feeling of this young punk sucking on his hard dick. "Damn, for a kid so young you suck a good dick", he said. Chandler reached over and turned the water off so Royce wouldn't drown while sucking his dick. Once the water was off, Royce found it much easier to pump Chandler's hard manhood. Royce had a difficult time getting all of Chandler's big meat in his mouth, but he was giving it a good try. Chandler could feel his balls tighten and his breathing was becoming more rapid. He knew it wouldn't be long before his jizz would be squirting in Royce's mouth. "God preppy, suck on that thing", Chandler said. Royce really was not sure if he was doing this right, but he knew that the feeling of having a big dick in his mouth was fantastic. Chandler was close to cumming and decided to warn Royce. "Kid, I am going to cum soon", with that he let out a yell. "AHHHHHHHHh", and his white spunk shot from his dick into Royce's mouth. Royce could not swallow all that cum. He gagged with the amount of sperm that Chandler was giving him and most of it shot from his mouth and down his chin, but he kept Chandler's rod in his mouth and swallowed as much as he could. Wave after wave of cum was blasted into his young mouth; Royce's face was completely covered in Chandler sperm. Chandler started to laugh at the site. He then picked up Royce from his kneeling position, brought him up to his lips, kissed him deep and hard, and licked his sperm from Royce's face. He set Royce down and said, "Damn, kid you need a shower", they both laughed as Chandler turned on the water and then proceeded to clean Royce from top to bottom. When the shower was over, Chandler told Royce thanks for being such a good sport about this and told him to go back to his dorm. "Will I get to do this again with you?" Royce asked. "I don't know, if I get caught screwing around with a kid your age I will be kicked out of school for sure, maybe even arrested", he said, "it is illegal you know". "I don't give a fuck if it's illegal", Royce said, brazenly. "Well, listen to you, you cheeky bastard, I will be the one to go to jail not you", Chandler laughed. "I won't tell anyone, Chandler, honest", Royce said sincerely. "I know you won't Royce, we will see." Well they did meet a lot over the last semester and for years afterwards. Chandler taught Royce how to suck a cock and not let loose of the sperm. He also was the first one to fuck Royce. Over the years, their love turned to a beautiful and wonderful friendship. Even today, though they have their own lovers, they still see each regularly or at least talk with each other on the phone, as best friends usually do. ******************************** "Damn that's quite a story, I can see why you two have a special bond", I said while pouring us all a second martini. "All I can say Chandler, is that you taught him very well, thank you so much, and he still does that shower trick quite well too." I said smiling at Royce. Everyone laughed at that. "Well it was a special time in our lives"' Royce said, "and I for one will always cherish the memory". "Me too", Chandler said, looking down into his glass trying not to stare at Royce. I felt he feared he would embarrass himself by crying. I looked at the time and it was approaching 9PM. "Well I better start dinner", I said. I looked at Royce and I felt he needed time alone with Chandler. "Tony", I said, "would you like to give me a hand in the kitchen?" Tony looked up at me and said, "Yeah sure Eric". He got up, kissed Chandler on the top of his head, and followed me into the kitchen. I turned on the indoor grill next to the range to warm it up. Then went to the refrigerator and got out the marinating lamb and the asparagus. "Hmm that lamb looks great", Tony said. "Well I will put it on the grill in a bit." "Eric, did that story that Chandler told, upset you at all?" He inquired, "You seemed rather surprised that Chandler and Royce were intimate at one time". "Well, to be honest, it did take me by surprise. You see Royce and I haven't known each other very long, there is still so much we have to learn. I feel very secure in our relationship, though. I know I love him more than I have ever loved anyone in my life and I feel he loves me in the same way". "I have met Royce a few times when I flew to London to be with Chandler. Royce seemed so lost and distant. Now he seems to be more animated and alive. I am sure we have you to thank for that", Tony concluded. "Thanks Tony", I said. "How about I show you how I would like the asparagus skewered so I can grill them along with the lamb", I said to Tony changing the subject "Sure", Tony said, "cooking is in my blood". I showed him how I wanted it done and put the lamb on the grill. The smell of the lamb started permeating through the house. I looked over at Royce in the Den. He and Chandler were sitting closely facing each other. Royce was holding Chandler's hand. It looked like Chandler was crying. Tony saw what was going on too and he noticed my puzzlement. "Is Chandler all right?" I asked. "Not really, he's leaving to go back to the UK next week. Our separation is very hard on him". "Damn, sorry to hear that Tony. It's got to be difficult on you too". "Yeah, more than anyone knows, not even Chandler knows what I go through." I heard the meat sizzle on the grill and turned my attention to my cooking. I took the asparagus that Tony skewered and set them on the grill too. They would only need to cook a short time. I looked again into the den, Chandler was not there, and Royce was sitting alone with his eyes wet from his tears. "Is everything ok hon?" I asked. Royce gaining control of himself, got up wiping the tears from his face, "Yeah love, everything is ok," He came up to me and put his arms around me. "Where's Chandler?" "He went to the bathroom; he should be out in a second". "I will check on him", Tony said and left the room looking for his lover. "What's going on Royce", I said as I put the lamb and asparagus on a platter. I went to the refrigerator, took out the salad, and tossed it in the balsamic vinegar dressing I made earlier. Diner was ready but our guests were no were to be seen. "Chandler has to leave the US in about a week". "Yes I know, Tony told me. He said it's very difficult on them both". "Yeah, Chandler is a wreck. Every time he leaves, he and Tony have a major fight and nearly break up. Their relationship is very strong though and I doubt that will ever happen. It just takes a toll on Chandler's nerves and he gets so depressed". "I don't understand why Chandler doesn't just move here". "It has to do with immigration laws. What made me upset was what Chandler said to me". "What did he say?" "That I was going to have to go through the same crap as he is going through. I have an American lover now and if I want to be with you I will have to travel back and forth like he does". "Oh that's stupid; I don't think we will have to do that". I took the platters of food into the dining room and lit the candles on the table just as Tony and Chandler entered the room holding hands. "Ah there you are", I said, "Dinner is ready, I hope you will enjoy it". We all sat down at the table. "I want to apologize for the way I was acting", Chandler said. "No need to apologize, Chandler, its very understandable", I said. "What this group needs is some wine", I said as I started to fill everyone's glasses. "Yeah", Tony said eagerly. I was serving dinner family style so everyone helped himself. As we ate, they all said how delicious and tender the lamb was and that I was a great cook. I kept thanking everyone. I couldn't get out of my mind what Chandler told Royce, that he and I would have to be separated just as Chandler and Tony are doing. "Chandler, if I am speaking out of turn please tell me, but Royce told me that he and I will be going through the same type of separation as you and Tony, why is that? Why can't you and Royce just move here?" I asked. "Because the US Immigration laws are fucked up when it comes to gay relationships", he said and I could tell this was a very touchy subject with him, so I had to proceed cautiously, choosing my words carefully. "What do you mean", I said being very ignorant of this whole situation. "If I was a woman and wanted to marry Tony, he could sponsor me as his fiancée. But I am gay; the damn immigration department doesn't recognize us as a couple, even though we have been together more than some straight people's marriages". "Well surely there are other ways you could move here, especially with what is going on in Massachusetts and San Francisco and other places," I said. "Gay Marriage is just around the corner". "Don't hold your breath on that one, Eric that could still take years", Tony said. I grabbed onto Royce's hand as Chandler and Tony explained things to us. Things like there are several ways to get a green card like going to school, which costs a lot, and since Chandler already has several degrees it would be difficult for him to do this. Another way is to start a business but you will need in excess of a million dollars to do that and there are a lot of restrictions to overcome. Still, another way was to have a unique job that no one here in the US could fill. "Damn, that sucks", I said. "I heard of a Green Card Lottery, what about that?" Tony laughed at that one. "Brits are not allowed to enter the Green Card Lottery because there are too many of them here in the US." Tony said angrily. "Hell the Brits are fighting alongside the American in the Middle East and yet they're not allowed to enter into the lottery that could keep families together." I was stunned by what I was hearing. Royce was just staring off into the distance. "Well maybe you could get a woman to marry you Chandler", I said almost joking, but he didn't take it as a joke. "Do you realize that if we got caught doing something like that. I will get deported from the US and never be allowed to come back and the woman could get up to 10 years in prison", Chandler said angrily. "I didn't know that", I said feeling like a child that just got reprimanded. "Easy babe, these are our friends and besides most people aren't aware of this issue." Tony said, calming Chandler down. "God, I am so sorry I lost my temper, Eric", said Chandler "its just such a touchy subject, please forgive me. Wait, though, you two will be going thru this soon". Royce and I looked at each other not knowing what to say. "You know what pisses me off the most", Tony said, "There has been a bill in the House of Representatives for the past 3 years that is stuck in a committee, that could end all this crap. And a companion bill was recently introduced in the Senate". "I hadn't heard of that, what kind of Bill", I said. "Not many people have, Eric. It's called the Permanent Partners Immigration Act; it would give committed bi-national gay and lesbian couples the right to sponsor their foreign partners. What gets me is that there are 15 other countries in the world that already have laws like that in place, including Canada, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany and many more. Including South Africa, who just a short time ago had Apartide, for Christ sake. The US is the only English speaking country to not have such a law. The US is so influenced by the religious right, I doubt if it will ever pass", Tony stopped talking, "it just gets so discouraging sometimes, I love this man so much and all I want to do is spend the rest of my life with him and this damn country with their stupid ass religious right laws are preventing it. And you know, there are literally thousands of gay and lesbian bi-national couples just like us all struggling to be with the ones they are committed to. Now our only chance seems to be if Gay Marriage goes through. Even if the states say it's ok, immigration is a federal matter. With that guy in the White House endorsing a Constitutional Amendment to "save Marriage", it almost seems hopeless. Ban fucking divorce, if he wants to save marriage, damn it. Can you imagine this country ever passing a Constitutional Amendment that would take away a specific group of people's rights? They would take the United States most sacred document and use it for their ends," Tony's voice was getting higher and near tears. I knew I had to do something to change the mood. "Antiquated laws made by antiquated people," Tony said. We all outstretched our hand and held on to each other. "Look", Royce said, "if there is anything we can do to help just let us know. We are involved in this now. What we need to do", Royce said turning to me, "is educate ourselves on this issue". "I know I may be sounding discouraged, but as long as this present administration is run by the religious right, there is no chance in hell of these bills being passed in the present congress or gay marriage being recognized. The only hope for gay marriage will be in the courts", Tony said. "Yeah, I will get my lawyers on this as soon as possible", I said, not knowing what else to say, "we will see if there is anything that can be done". The mood in the room was going from bad to worse. Then as if on cue, the phone rang. I got up and answered it, almost relieved to be interrupted. "Hello", I said into the phone. "Hi Eric, its me Flip". "Oh hi Flip, did you change your mind and decide to come on over?" "I wish I could", Flip said on the other end, "I think I have reached the state where I could not retain any more information no matter how much more I studied. I am so exhausted I think I will just go to bed now". I overheard Chandler in the background ask Royce "Who is Flip?" "He's our Knight in Black, he saved our lives yesterday". Chandler and Tony looked shocked at what Royce told them. "Is it ok if I come on by tomorrow morning?" Flip continued on the phone, "I want to wish Royce a Happy Birthday". "Oh sure, that would be great." "Ok Thanks", he said, "see you then, love you". "We love you too," then I hung up the phone. I relayed to Royce what Flip had said. "So tell us about this Flip guy and were you serious about him saving your life?" "Yeah dead serious", Royce said, "Eric and I were attacked last night by a bunch of thugs". "What?" Chandler and Tony shouted at the same time. As I poured us more wine, Royce recounted the happenings of last evening. How Flip came charging up in his black motorcycle and saved our asses. I got the other bottle of wine that I opened earlier and put it in front of us ready to fill any empty glasses. "My Lord, Royce, you are so lucky that this Flip person came by when he did", Chandler said. It seemed the story of our close encounter with death, changed the mood of the room again. They seem, at least for the time being, to forget their own troubles. "Well, he really is quite a young man", Royce said. "Yes, He's a cute Latin", I added with a smile. "And he's gay", Royce included. That got a cheer from Chandler and Tony. "And how do you know this?" Tony asked, winking at Chandler. "Ummm, He told us", I said. I didn't want to explain what went on to confirm that he was gay. "I hope we get to meet him", Tony said. "I am sure you will", said Royce, "I think we are sort of adopting him". "My Lord, Royce, how old is this guy?" Chandler asked. "Early twenties, I would say, wouldn't you Eric?" Royce replied. "Yeah around that I would guess". At that, I got up and poured another round of merlot from the fresh bottle that was on the table. I think we were getting a bit tipsy. "I tell you what", I said trying not to slur my words "lets all go up to the gym, get naked and jump into the Jacuzzi". "I like that idea," Tony said. Royce and Chandler heartily agreed. I grabbed the bottle of wine, we grabbed our glasses, and the four of us proceeded up the stairs to the Jacuzzi room, were there would be lots of fun surprises yet to come this evening. On the way I past the hall mirror, I glanced into it. The Man in the Mirror stood there said, "You can't shut me out forever you know". "I can try", I replied silently and continued up the stairs. To Be Continued *********************************** If you are interested in learning more about the Permanent Partners Immigration Act in the House of Representatives and The Senate, go too www.hrc.com (The Human Rights Campaign), then look for Immigration and that will fill you in on the problem we bi-national couples face. This is a real problem and you can see what your senator or Representative are doing to help sponsor this bill. If you have any questions please email me and I will try and find an answer for you. Thank you, John