Date: Thu, 28 Mar 2019 09:43:25 -0700
From: Backwoods Boy . <backwoodsnatureboy@gmail.com>
Subject: The Ranch Boy Next Door - Part 10

Friends

As I waited for a response to my text message, the sound of an ATV coming
along the dirt track in our woods attracted my attention.  The four-wheeler
stopped at the edge of the woods, and the rider dismounted and removed his
helmet.  The red hair left no doubt as to who it was.  I ran across the
lawn and gave Rusty a hug.

"I just texted you."

"I know.  I was waitin' in the woods."

"How did ya get there?"

"I came through our woods.  The tracks connect.  More important, are you
okay?"

I grinned.  "I am now."

"I knew ya went missin' yesterday 'cuz Logan's grandmother called lookin'
for ya.  I found out a lot more 'cuz my brother is a 911 operator for the
county, but pretend I didn't say that.  That's how I got your dad's phone
number too, but I didn't say that either.  I was very worried about ya."

"You hardly know me."

"Yer my friend."

Rusty was looking past me at the back porch so he didn't see me wiping the
tears from my eyes.

"That's probably your dad?"

It was.  "Come with me.  I want ya to meet him."

Dad was grinning as we approached.  "Let me guess.  This is the resourceful
Rusty."  They shook hands.

Rusty gave Dad a friendly smile.  "I'm happy to meet ya, Toby's dad."

Dad laughed.  "You can call me 'Don' if you like, or 'Toby's dad' will do
if you prefer it."

Rusty grinned happily.  "I think 'Toby's dad' has a good sound."

"So, I guess your ranch road connects to our woods."

"All ranch roads connect.  You'd be surprised how far you can get on a
four-wheeler and never be on a public road except to cross it."

Dad smiled.  "I'll remember to leave that entry point open when we put a
fence around our property."

"I would appreciate that, 'cuz I hope to come over here from time to time.
I'd like to take Toby for a ride on the ATV now, if that's okay."

"Is that ATV designed for two riders, and do you have two helmets?"

"Yes, to both."

"Then it's fine with me.  Toby, you know what your mother would say."

"Yes, 'be careful', and we will.  I still have my work clothes on, Rusty.
Should I change?"

"Nope.  Yer gonna get dirtier ridin' on the four-wheeler."

Dad had a practical idea.  "It's almost lunchtime.  Why don't you make some
sandwiches to take along.  And don't forget to take some water."

With a supply of sandwiches, chips, and water in my backpack, we were ready
to go.

************

I'd never ridden on a four-wheeler, and it was a blast.  Rusty drove safely
and with a skill learned from experience.  We rode for twenty minutes
through two or three ranches on dirt roads, along irrigation ditches, and
through gullys.  A few times I got off to open and close gates.  I had no
idea where we were until we came over a rise and the old quarry was dead
ahead.

Rusty pulled to a stop and shut off the engine.

"So this is how ya got here on Sunday."

"This is how I get everywhere.  Sometimes I cheat and drive short distances
on the public roads, but more often it's just like today.  I can even get
to the edge of town if I gotta pick somethin' up for my mom or dad."

We had the swimming hole to ourselves.  As opposed to the lively chaos of
Sunday, the crater-like shape of the pool enclosure produced an amazing
stillness.  The silence was broken only by the social conversation of cliff
swallows flying to and from their nests in the rocks.

Stripping off our dusty clothes, we dove naked into the still water,
creating ripples that continued to the far side of the pool.

I smiled at Rusty.  "Thanks for bringin' me here.  I needed this."

He grinned.  "I knew ya did."

We swam to the back of the pool and returned to the shoreline in front.

"Would ya show me how to do that dive ya did, Toby?  It was really cool."

"Sure!  Then we can try some others too if ya wanna."  One asset I'd
brought with me from the city was lots of swimming and diving experience
from training and practice at the public pools.

Rusty was fearless and a quick learner.  I taught him several forward and
back dives with twists and somersaults.  Without a board, there were some
dives that I didn't want to do or show him, but we had a lot of fun with
what we could do safely.

Two hours passed quickly.  It was mid-afternoon, and we'd been having so
much fun we'd forgotten about lunch.  Now, sitting on our sweatshirts, we
ate our sandwiches while the sun dried us.

I put my arm around Rusty's shoulder and pulled him close.  "This has been
one of the best afternoons I've ever had in my life.  Thanks for doin' this
for me."

Rusty smiled and brushed the hair out of my eyes.  "It's been one of my
best days too.  I'm glad we could share the experience."

That was exactly what he'd said on Sunday after we had sex together.
Sharing experiences was what it was all about.  But it was also about both
of us appreciating the sharing as well as the experience.  That was part of
what Logan didn't get.  I wondered if I could ever explain that to him.
Maybe it was outside of his ability to understand.

Which reminded me of something else I needed to bring up.  "Rusty, you
asked me about bein' Logan's boyfriend, well..."  Rusty put a finger on my
lips.

"Logan's grandmother said enough to Mom that I know the two of you are
havin' a rough time.  But when ya get it worked out, remember this:
everybody needs more than one friend, and I'll always be your friend no
matter what."

I let the tears run down my cheeks.  I'd never met anyone so selfless and
special.  Rusty wiped away the tears and kissed me on the cheek.  I had
once heard that to have a friend you have to be a friend.  Rusty was living
proof that was true.

I leaned over and kissed Rusty on the lips, and then pulled him over on top
of me.  As we continued to kiss, passionately but more gently than the
first time, I felt his boner growing between us, and the wetness that was
leaking from it.

He grinned, and quoted me.  "If ya wanna go all the way, we're gonna need
some lube."

I grinned back.  "I think yer leakin' enough to do what ya wanna do."
Supporting himself with one arm, he guided his pole to where it needed to
be and carefully slid it inside me.

Rusty leaned over and kissed me.  "I love bein' connected with ya like
this, Toby.  It makes our friendship so much more complete."

I ran my fingers through his hair.  "I like it too, and I like it best with
you on top."

Rusty began to slowly move inside me, his steady rhythm hypnotizing.
Excitement slowly spread through my body, a warm fire that grew and grew.
My hands roamed on their own over his back and through his hair, my only
release to the energy growing within me.

He grinned at me.  "Like it?"

I whispered back.  "Oh yeah, I love it."

I closed my eyes, lost in the pleasure Rusty was giving me.  Gently, little
by little, he guided me to the edge of the world.  For endless moments he
held me there, gasping for breath, wanting release and not wanting it.

"Oh fuck, Rusty, what are ya doin' to me?"

"Only what yer body is tellin' me to do."

Together we drifted over the edge into endless space, our spirits joined
together as tightly as our bodies.  Slowly, Rusty relaxed on top of me, his
fingers lovingly caressing my face and hair, as we shared the afterglow of
our experience.

Leaning up on his forearms, Rusty grinned broadly.  "Are we awesome, or
what?"

I grinned back.  "I doubt if it gets any better than that, but I'm sure
willin' to keep on tryin'."

Rusty pulled out and stood up, reaching a hand down to me.  "Come on.
Let's take a quick dip before we go.  We're both a mess."

Diving into the pool, we swam to the far side and back.  Leaning on the
rock edge, we kissed some more.

I could feel my boner coming to life again.  "We better stop this or we'll
need another dip before we go."

Rusty smiled.  "Yeah, we gotta get dressed and start back.  I wanna show ya
some more ranch roads on the way home.  I'd like to stay here longer, but
there are things I gotta do at home."

We got out of the pool, and I reached for my clothes.  "I bet there are
things ya oughta been doin' all day."

He grinned.  "Yeah, but sometimes there are more important things than what
ya oughta be doin'.  I told my dad what I needed to do, and he turned me
loose for the day."

The sound of an arriving pickup and two doors being shut greeted us as we
started toward the parking area.  Austin and Andy soon came into view.
They both bumped fists with Rusty and me.

Then, to my surprise, Austin gave me a hug.  "You okay, buddy?  Me and Andy
were both concerned, and hoped the poker game wasn't part of the problem."

Obviously, the word got around.  "Yeah, I'm okay, thanks.  And the poker
game itself was all good.  Don't worry about that."

"We're glad to hear that."  He glanced between Rusty and me, and grinned.
"I think you two been fuckin' again."

I grinned broadly.  "Yer damned right we've been fuckin'.  Ya gotta get
Rusty to top ya sometime.  It's an experience ya won't forget."

Rusty grinned happily and turned almost as red as his hair.

Andy had a suggestion.  "Maybe you could stick around and swim with us for
a while, and give us a chance to take that advice."

My voice had a sharp edge that surprised me.  "Well, first of all, I gotta
make it clear that it'd be up to Rusty, 'cuz I'm not his pimp."  Austin and
Andy glanced quickly at each other, looking a little uncomfortable.

I relaxed and smiled at them.  "Sorry, I'm a little sensitive about that
part, and it has nothin' to do with either of you.  In any event, it'll
have to wait for another day.  Rusty needs to go home, and I gotta spend
some time with my parents.  I haven't seen much of them lately."

Austin put a friendly hand on my shoulder.  "Okay, but I hope we'll be
seein' ya around.  Sunday is always a good time to run into all of us here.
What's your cell number?  If Rusty isn't comin', you can get a ride with
us."

I gave him the number, and he texted his to me.  "Thanks a lot.  I
appreciate the offer."

"No problem.  You guys have a good afternoon."

"Have a good swim."

************

Rusty took me home by a different and longer route to show me more of the
country.  We traveled over most of the dirt roads on his parents' ranch.
As with Logan's grandparents' ranch, there was a mixture of grazing and dry
land crops with a small amount of irrigated land.  We went past the central
ranch buildings and returned home the same way Rusty had come in the
morning.  This route dropped down into a draw and forded the creek I was
familiar with, a short distance below the highway.  I made a mental note to
explore downstream soon.

By the time we got to my house, it was nearly dinner time.  Rusty parked
the ATV at the edge of the lawn again, and we took off our helmets.

"Do ya wanna stay for dinner?  I know my parents would be happy if ya did."

"Not today.  I gotta get home, but I'd like to do that another time."

"Thanks for today."  I kissed him on the cheek, but that wasn't enough.  He
drew me into a hug and gave me a kiss on my lips.

I waved and watched Rusty disappear into the woods and listened to the
sound of the four-wheeler fading into the distance.  Then I found a log to
sit on.  I wanted to think for a few minutes, alone.  I had some decisions
to make, and some things to work out with Logan, but one thing was clear.
I was making friends here in the country - better friends than I'd ever
known - and whatever happened, it was going to be okay.

************

** Thanks to all who are reading this story, especially those who have
emailed their encouragement.  I have a few more chapters outlined, but I
need to take a break.  I'll be back with more in a few weeks. **

*** If you enjoy this kind of story, please donate to Nifty to ensure that
this free resource can continue. ***