Date: Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:58:44 +0100 From: Charles Wolfe Subject: The Ultimate Man Chapter 8 Opening my eyes, I don't see anyone. Or anything. It takes a few seconds for my eyes to adjust to the darkness but off in the distance I see Pike. Running up to him, I start shouting, "Pike! Pike, where are we?" He doesn't move until I get right up next to him. Barely moving, he just twists his head and snears at me. "What do you want Faggot? To think I would fall for you." Reeling from Pike's comments, I fall back stunned. Quickly turning around, I notice the soccer team approaching from my far left. I turn back to Pike but he has disappeared. I try to run away from the soccer group but they had already caught up to me and encircled me. "Hey cocksucker, look at you all alone." "What a pathetic piece of humanity." The slurs and taunts start to roll of their tongues as they move in. "I bet you would just LOVE to see us all gang-raping you." Horror starting to come over my face I push through the group and run off into the darkness. My dad is standing alone, head hanging low. He is wearing his military uniform, hands clamped in front of him. "Dad help me. Please!" I run up to him and grab him by the shoulders. The General breaks my hold and pushes me back. "You are a sad excuse for a son. Why did you have to be gay Chris? Why?!" The General raises his voice at me, then his hand to slap me across the face. Completely in shock at this moment, I fall to my feet and start weeping. Zach appears from my left, crouching "Chris, its ok. There is therapy for people like you. My cousin went through it and came out fine. I am sure that it will work on you." Tears start flowing down my face as I gaze over to Zach. "Who the fuck are you?" Moving on my back, I crab walk away from him, wanting to get as far away as possible. Where is Kyle? Rachel, Andrew, and the rest of the team stand off in the distance shouting at me. "We don't need your sissy queer ass helping us out. We are way better off without you." I stumble to my feet and run. Kyle appears in the distance. "Kyle! Kyle help me! Where am I?" I rush up to Kyle and look into his eyes. "Kyle say something!" Tears flow down my face as I grip his hands. He pulls them away from me, a disgust face appearing over what is normally a calm welcoming smile. "To think I loved you. You left me. How dare you ask me for help?" He pushes me to my feet again, my legs crumbling under their weight. Kyle turns away and starts walking away. Curling up into the fetal position, I start bawling out tears. Hearing sneers coming from the dark, I look up to see masks appear. Fear takes over my crying as I recognize the masks. Trying to get to my feet, my legs feel like stones. The bodies appear all around me, and then pain erupts through my arm, legs and ribs. My arm burns in front of my eyes, flames erupting from the middle of the skin. Pain shoots out of my chest, so hard that I fall back into the fetal position. "HELP ME! SOMEONE HELP ME!" I scream to the darkness. ***** A hand presses down on my right shoulder as I start to get out of the darkness. Color returning to my eyes, everything is a blur. The hand pressing me against a cushion disappears into a haze. "Chris. Chris, calm down. Everything is alright." I struggle against the hand as the haze lifts a little more, showing some features of where I am. My body is covered in a blanket, windows line both walls, one dark the other light. Looking into the light, I see people in white rushing into my room. The vapor reveals the arm connected to the General, speaking a little more softly, "Chris, I'm here for you." Ally and Pike are sitting together in some seats at the end of the room, their heads coming to. Pike removes his arm from around Ally as they straighten up. Pain erupts from my chest as I try to straighten up. I attempt to move my right arm to prop me up but nerves explode as I put pressure against the sling holding it. Freaking out a little more, I try to move but my chest erupts in more fire. "Chris, stop moving. You will only further the risk of breaking them." Ally and Pike come up beside me on the left. Pike rests his arm on my shoulder as Ally grabs my hand. "Wa.. Water." My lips are dry, my throat parched. The cobwebs have all burned off, the pain taking over my body. Wincing, I lie back down into a more relaxing pose. The fire dies down considerably. Pike moves to get me some water at the end of the bed then hands me a cup. Taking the cup, I start downing the water. Pike pulls the cup back, "Slow down there bro, there is enough water for you." He holds the cup to my lips and puts in the water. Emptying the entire thing, I look at the General. "Time for 20 questions." A faint grin comes on my face as I rest my head against the pillow. How comfortable the pillow feels. "Where am I? What time is it? Best of all, what happened?" The General moves in, a heartbreaking expression on his face. "Chris, you are in the hospital. Right now it is 2 in the morning on Sunday. You have been out for two days. Whoever attacked you did you in good, causing internal bleeding in your chest and your head. You had a slight concussion when you first came in but it has thankfully subsided." "What? When did this happen?" I have no recollection of any attack, any fight at all. My face contorts a questioned look, not wanting to believe I was attacked. I have never been attacked before, and those fights I have been in, I always won. "Bryan and Zach and a kid named Michael were the ones that saved you. They said there were six attackers. You managed to grab the hair of one of them." Pike's face tries to put on a smile but instead shows of worry. "What happened to my arm and chest?" I ask, raising my arm up as if to clarify the question. "You have two cracked ribs and a broken arm. You are lucky though that the damage was not worse." Ally looks down at me, her face clear of any makeup. "Have you guys been here the entire time?" I look around the room, spending a second on each of their faces. Stopping at the General, I look into those eyes, last time burning with fire, now overflowing with agony. Trying to fight back his tears, the General starts, "We have been watching you around the clock, someone every 8 hours that way if you woke you would have someone to talk with." He breaks down after that. "God Chris, I am so sorry for yelling at you. I should have never done that. If I had kept you there, none of this would have happened." While the tears are small, the few that do come out are enough to show how much he cares. Reaching for his hand with my left hand, I attempt to comfort him as much as one can in this situation. "It is not your fault. You had not idea this was going to happen to me." I crack a small grin as I continue. Trying to cheer up the atmosphere, "You all look like shit. Go home for the night. I doubt I will be going anywhere." I look directly at the General and drop the grin. "That is an order. Go home." The General smiles weakly at me then nods. Ally and Pike gather their things and make their way to the door. Ally, speaking for the group, informs me, "Hey, get some more sleep. We will be back later to say hi again. Maybe bring some food or something." Her feeble smile tries to be reassuring but given the situation there is not much anyone can do. They all head out the door and out of my sight. Sighing heavily, I turn my head to the window, looking outside at the stars. Knowing that it will be a challenge to fall asleep, I will myself to attempt to count all the stars I can see. Before long I am out. ***** I woke up the following morning to a nurse walking in with food. It was more the smell that brought me out of my slumber. Still a bit groggy from the drugs being administered to me, it took me a few seconds to regain my senses. "Sorry for waking you. How was your sleep?" He walks up to check on my monitors while I readjust my body. The pain in my chest has gone down a lot since last night, me being able to move up the back of the bed easier. Pressing the button to lift up the back, I am soon sitting up. "I am doing better than before. Been better though. When will I be able to leave the hospital?" I smile at the nurse, doing my best to flirt, hoping he is gay. The nurse, a blonde hair blue eyed god, smiles back at me. He is avoiding all contact with my body, not checking on the arm or the ribs, just checking the vitals. I briefly catch his nametag, a `Robert Chase'. "Well we want to keep you for one more night, just as an observation. So plan for tomorrow as long as everything goes alright." He moves the food over across me then heads out the door. Nope sadly not gay. Lifting up the lid on my food, it is eggs, bread, and a sausage link. The first food that I have had in over two days quickly disappears from the plate, no crumbs being left. Around when I finish is when my first guest arrive. It is about eight when Ally and the General walk in with some McDonalds. Looking at my empty plate before me, Ally comments humorously, "Well since you have finished your breakfast, I guess you don't need your egg muffin." She holds it in front of me, the smell of the precooked egg patty, combined with a hash brown triangle, makes my stomach growl for more. Taking notice not to use my right arm, I lash out with my left before she can pull it back. "I need all the food I can get, even if I don't like McDonalds." The contents of the bag are quickly devoured, slower though, taking pleasure on the hash brown triangle. "How was your sleep?" The question is directed at both of them. "A whole lot better than that chair. Pike was kind enough to donate his shoulder as a pillow but nothing beats the real thing." Ally rolls her head, releasing cracks that echo off the walls. The General is a little stiffer, moving to the seat next to my left. I notice that he is not using his cane and call him out on it, "I know that you are not healed enough to not be using the cane. Where is it?" Smiling mischievously he simply retorts, snorting as he does it, "The piece of metal holding me up? I chucked that thing when I heard you were injured. It was slowing me down. I saw the doctor yesterday and he gave me the green light to go without one anyways." He pats his leg, showing the freedom of not needing a cane. "So the doctor says I can come home tomorrow. I hope that my bags are all packed and ready. I want to leave this joint as soon as possible." I move further up the bed, readjusting my body. A slight ping of pain informs me that move was pushed too far as I relax back a little. "Yea we will be here to take you home. But only on the doctors ok. Not a moment earlier." Ally gives me a stern look, letting me know she isn't joking. ***** As the day dragged on, several teammates came by: Pike being the first, then Rachel and Andrew, and eventually the others. Bryan and Zach informed me that the fort was being held down without me and joked for a little bit. When Kyle came though, he had a very solemn look on his face. Coming into the room, it slowly formed into a smile as he saw that I was happy to see him. My energy restored life into his oceanic eyes. Even though the General was there, he boldly came forward and kissed me on my forehead. "Hey Dad this is Kyle." I said quickly, realizing that formalities had not been exchanged. The General, sporting a happy face, simply responded, "We have already met. Ally brought him in on Saturday. He stayed here the entire day watching over you." Kyle was not able to stay long, having a test on the following morning, but still stayed for an hour. We talked for a while, him having never gone through a gay bashing this bad. He had one back in high school but was able to defend himself. After Kyle left, the General and Ally went for dinner. They told me that they would bring me back something, so I was looking forward to the surprise dinner. It was bound to be better than anything the hospital had to offer. While I was waiting, another surprise came but this was in the form of a rugby player. Michael knocked on the door while I was reading a magazine then walked in. "Hey stranger, I heard you were doing a lot better. How are you feeling?" He is wearing a red Hollister long sleeve shirt with a North Face cut off Jacket. "Hey Michael. I am doing a whole lot better. Thanks for saving me too. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't shown up." I smile at him, making for a warm reception. Michael moves in to the chair where Ally sat and sits down. Resting his hand on mine, he looks into my eyes, concern showing all the way through. "I only wish I had been able to help you sooner. It should have not gotten as bad as it did. We didn't know the full extent of your injuries till you got to the hospital. You were touch and go for a while." Like Ally and the General, he too shows a deep care for me, one that I don't know if I am ready for. I pull my hand back and focus on him. "Michael, I need to tell you something. Regardless of how things turn out, I will always be here for you. Thing is, I am currently seeing someone. I don't want to lead you on only to break your heart." Michael's face turns from concern to hurt as I explain to him what all has been going on. Sitting there speechless, he starts to stare at the floor. "To be honest I kind of figured. Bryan and Zach had talked about Kyle, how he was going to react and all. I didn't think he was your boyfriend more of your brother." Realizing that Kyle and I still haven't moved to the boyfriend level, I wanted to say something but decided against it. "I will still be here for you. As it is, you are still unsure of if you are even attracted to men. I know you have a slight crush on me, but what about others? Don't let me be that guy who changed your mind. Stay open to all options Mike." I move to recover his hand but he pulls it away this time. Not going to proceed any further, I tried to change to subject onto sports and how rugby was doing. Michael didn't stay much longer after that, which was not too surprising. I felt kind of bad that I hurt him but I needed to lay things straight. Even still Kyle and I were in the middle of boyfriends and friends with benefits. We cared for each other but neither of us had made the move to the next level. Dinner was some food from Sizzles, a steak joint that you normally sit down at. Ally and the General got the food to go so that they could eat with me. They didn't stay long after that, Ally having to go back and study for a test and me kicking out the General to go back and rest. ***** Monday rolled around and I was already getting ready to go. The moment the nurse came in again I was already moving out of my bed. He tried to hold me back but it was a futile attempt. Moving one foot to the floor then the next, the cold embrace of granite tiles happily took hold of my toes. Standing up, it was hard to move at first, the wrapping of the rib cage still bound tight. Taking a few steps, while holding the bed, I start to get my balance back. Nurse Chase moves in to me, grabbing me by the left arm as I start to slip. "Told you, you need to take it slow." He lifts me back to the bed but I don't lie down. Instead I beeline it for the bathroom: relieving myself in the nice bathroom. Bedpans are disgusting for everyone to use. Coming out of the bathroom, Nurse Chase is still standing there, but the General is next to him filling out paperwork. Eyeing the clothes sitting on the bed, I move for them but am cut off by Nurse Chase. "You are going to need a little help with this. Also I want to change your bandaging. With luck you might be able to get it off, depending on how much the bruising has dissipated." I put on my pants myself, but Nurse Chase assists with the shirt. The General was wise to get a sleeveless t-shirt so the arm went through easily. He then moves to put on my jacket but I take care of that myself, working the right side to just rest over the shoulder. It takes about a half hour to get me cleared before we leave but at around 10 I escape from the hospital. ***** The rest of Monday was spent at my room back at Long Beach State. The General helped me back in but I got him to leave after some coaxing. He was just being fatherly and wanting to take care of me but after must insistence, he finally left. I worked on some small papers, things not due for a while and then read up on books that interested. That night I had my first nightmare. It was a reenactment of the night I got beaten, almost a slow motion scene, each blow to me causing me to twist and turn in my bed. I was only reminded that it was a nightmare when Zach woke me. My arm stung, having slept on it wrong. Tuesday was a little better of a day. Like the nurse had said, I was able to get the bandages removed, but when it was, I gasped at how blue and purple my chest was. My entire left side was colored, not a single patch of skin showing a tan hue. I took the day off from classes, knowing that I could use the day to rest more. I still read the assigned chapters that were required and got slides from the teachers but it still was not the same as being in class. The night though was a replay of the previous night's nightmare. I wanted to see who my attackers were but their masks kept concealing their identity. I kept yelling at myself, warning not to go over but it was futile. It was more painful this time, almost as if the scenes were skipping, moving back to the beginning each time. I woke up on my own this time and just sat there in the dark, sweat dripping down my body. ***** Wednesday I knew I had to go to class. I was getting cabin fever staying in the room all day, my only breaks being dinner and to shower. Statistics and History were both interesting, not so much of what was being taught but how people were reacting to my return. When I walked into both classes, a hush fell over the students, all of them looking over at me and then back at their groups. I never realized how far reaching my attack had been but apparently everyone had heard about it. With my right hand being broken, I was unable to write so I had to slowly start learning to use my left hand. English was a little better, Mrs. Steiner trying to take the focus off of my return and keep it on the class. She had called me aside after the class to make sure all was well and that if I needed to talk with someone, she was there. It felt good to have the backing from her as well. Thursday was more relaxed but still hushed. It was not so much of people looking at me as that guy who got beat but the guy who survived a hate crime. Seeing my broken arm only added to the image of it all. I didn't want their pity, more them to catch whoever was responsible for the attack. It was someone who knew who I was, what team I played for. My initial thought was the soccer team and they had been avoiding me the entire time I returned. Practice for Frisbee was me mostly sitting out a lot. I threw the disk a little, but like my writing, I needed to learn lefty. Throwing forehand was simple to learn but backhand proved a little challenging. I worked with the new players, Adam and Matthew. We practiced the marking drill though, when it came to throwing around my right side that was off limits. After practice, Pike called us all in. "Hey guys, we had originally chosen on superheroes for our theme but after much deliberation, the execs were wondering if you might be interested in going Doctors and Patients. This will allow for our returning gimp to play a round or two." The team unanimously agreed, making me wonder if this was pre-decided and only brought up because of my return. Thankfully I had snuck out one of the hospital gowns so I planned on using that as my uniform. Originally I was going to be Mr. Incredible from The Incredibles but this cast on my arm kind of ruined that. Thursday night, the nightmare returned. I was kind of expecting it and did everything in my power to stop it. I tried changing the dream to a different location but my mind kept bringing me back to Long Beach, dropping me right outside my hall. When I was awake I had already walked past the point multiple times. Somehow though my mind still could not get over the issue, and again I was beaten to an inch of my life only to wake up drenched in sweat. Getting out of my bed, I tried my best not to wake Zach or Bryan and stepped into the hallway. After strolling the empty corridors for a while, I finally managed to get the images out of my head. The rest of night was still stressful but I did manage to sleep. ***** Friday classes went by fast. I used my phone to record the lectures and wrote as much as I could as best as possible. Having to learn a new writing style is very hard, especially with a new hand. My writing has gotten slightly better, not as sloppy and scraggly as it once was. I kicked it in my room the rest of the day, reading and listening to the lectures while attempting to transcribe them. Around seven Bryan and Zach got back but they didn't stay long. While I was transcribing I noticed them packing some clothes together. "Where are you two going?" I put down my pen and turn the chair around. I really am getting annoyed at my brace, so to let it not touch my body, I unclip the sling and toss it to the floor. "Well you know how we agreed early on that we each get a night to ourselves every month, well tonight is yours." Bryan tells me as he zips up his bag. Looking at him confused, I turn to Zach and pose the question "What are you two talking about? That was only if we had someone coming over. I don't have anyone coming over." Zach looks at me, a grin forming between his lips. "Well we knew that you were having nightmares. Last night we both noticed you being restless, walking around the hall and all. With that we made some calls." Zach moves to the door and knocks. Bryan tosses his bag on his desk, Zach placing his next to Bryans. The door opens and in walks Kyle. Completely stunned to see Kyle, I looked back at Bryan and Zach then back at Kyle. Eagerly moving out of my seat, I run up to him and hug him. He starts to lift me off the floor but I cry out, my ribs being tender to the squeezing. Moving inside, Kyle places his bag on the floor near my desk. Bryan looks at both of us, half serious stern face on. "Alright, ground rules. No sex on any of our beds or desks. If such a pen is out of place, Kyle will not be allowed back. Keep your" Bryan waves his hand at us, motioning more towards our genitals, "Man stuff on your side of the room." Kyle and I giggle a little, moving our hands together. "We will keep our `man stuff' to our side of the room Bryan. Now go before we start man stuffing around." It didn't take much more coaxing for them to leave, giving Kyle and me the room to ourselves. The night started out fun, us ordering some pizza and watching Halloween with the lights off. The moonlight shinning in makes it for a more terrifying movie. While it was the original Halloween, watching Jamie Lee Curtis scream still brought shivers to skin. Passing up on the showers, we moved the laptop to my desk and the pizza box to the trash can. While I was powering down the laptop, Kyle moved in behind me and wrapped his hands around my waist. Nibbling my ear, he pulls me away from the desk and turns me around. "Can I close the curtains before we have voyeurs enjoying the free show? I would prefer to have you all to myself tonight." I break away from his hold and move over to Bryan's bed, reaching over it to shut the blinds. Right when the blinds touch the window seal, Kyle reaches around my pants and places his hands around my groin. With his index fingers rubbing each side of my penis, he pulls me back into him. He continues to nibble on my ear as he moves me over to my ladder. I start to go up but he turns me around before I get past the first step. He pulls me into him, his hands wrapping around the base of my chin. I kiss him passionately, my tongue running across his rear molars, down into his mouth and under his tongue. He lifts my shirt gently, taking the left side off first then working my cast through the sleeve. It is easier to have someone assist you when injured to take off clothes. Moving up a step on the ladder, I position my chest near his face, allowing him to gently kiss each ab. Taking special care around my bruising, he stops kissing and starts caressing it with his fingers. Slight shocks of electricity run to my brain, half of it being pleasure and the other half warnings of pain. Moving back to my main chest, he moves back up to my nipples, nibbling on each one. I reach to kiss him, wrapping my cast arm around his neck and pulling him forward. His tongue begins to play a tongue war with mine, seeing who could pin each others. All the while, his hands are working my pants, unbuttoning the top then unzipping it. Dropping my pants, he breaks off from the war and inspects my crotch. He pulls my boxers down and starts thrusting my cock with his hand. It is already pretty erect but while he continues with the hand job, he slides lower, taking my balls into his mouth. Sucking each one individually, he then takes the entire sack into his mouth, playing around with each testicle with his tongue. I am leaning against my ladder, completely in bliss. I feel him release the pressure on my testicles and then reapply it over the tip of my cock. Slightly jolting, I move my hips towards him, motioning more. He moves down my shaft slowly, moving one hand up to my breast in the same process. As he explores the vein layout with his tongue, his lips make a mental image for him as he moves down then back up. He repeats this process a few times, taking his time on every suck. While also sucking, he plays around with my balls, rolling them around his other hand. I pull him towards me, kissing him when he gets close. I move to pull off his shirt but am complicated by the cast. Taking over, he pulls the shirt off and presses his toned body against me, warmth transferring from nipples to nipples almost like conductors. He drops his pants and, like the first time we had sex, is free balling it. I whisper heavily into his ear, "You were expecting this tonight weren't you." Moving his erect body together with mine, he simple states "Bit late to prove otherwise don't you thing?" I move a few rings up the ladder, one step away from lying in bed. We continue to lock lips, pressure vacuums forming over our tongues. Kyle moves his body against mine, eliciting moans which vibrate down his mouth. Pushing me up to the bed, he lies on top of me, wrapping his arms round my chest and pressing in close. A slight ping of pain erupts from my ribs but I ignore it as the euphoria sets in. He moves up me, allowing for me to view his body. Resting his rear on my chest (while taking care not to pressure my left side), he looks down at me. I move in to his cock, mouthing his testicles while moving my hand around his body. My fingers outline his ribs and abs while my tongue rolls the balls around in my mouth. I move up to his cock, licking gently the tip, slithering my tongue around the crown. Enveloping his cock, I scoot up to be able to take more girth in. Kyle falls to his side and lies down beside me. Lying in a 6 9 position, he wraps his fingers delicately around the base of my penis while he licks the tip. Moving back in over my cock, he starts to suck as well. We move down each other at the same motion, both pumping the base to add to pleasure. With my cast hand, I move down his leg, trying to make as little contact with the cast as possible but as most contact with my fingers. I start to feel myself cum and stop sucking to warn him. "Kyle, unless you want to swallow, you will have to stop." He doesn't though, instead moving faster around my cock. Pulling a twist motion, he moves his mouth like a piston. I reciprocate, focusing more on the pressure than the motion. I pull up to the crown and wrap my lips around it while flicking my tongue at the hole. I feel him jerk a little, indicating that I pull him in more. We both shoot at the same time, filling each other's mouths like a jet from an open hose. He quickly moves up to me and kisses, unloading all my cum into my mouth and his to him. He presses his body to me as we both swallow at the same time. I lick his lips, where a little has escaped. Without saying any words, as we are both filled with ecstasy, he rolls off of me and to my right. Rolling me onto my side, he holds me in close and then whispers, "I have you. If you start to have a nightmare, just remember that you are safe." With that we both fell asleep, me not having a single thought of the men in masks. To everyone who reads my story, thank you for the comments and feedback. I have been enjoying everything that you have told me. I look forward to hearing more from you and if you have any ideas/suggestions, please feel free to let me know. Thanks :-D