SATURDAY, JANUARY 27, 2018

"Michael? Are you ready?" called Zach.

"Yeah, I'll be down in a sec," yelled Michael before turning back to his computer screen. "Sorry, I got to to."

Christian had figured that out because he could hear an adult calling for his project partner. "Okay. I hope my parents find a place closer to school so we can work together in person instead virtually."

"Agreed," said Michael, putting up his research before heading off with Zach and the gang.

"So, what are you guys doing tonight?" Christian found Michael's life much more exciting than his own. Though most boys would think Christian had it great living with his best friend. Now that he'd been doing that for three weeks, it wasn't as exciting as it was at the beginning. It was still all the same old things he did at home with his parent, he just got to do them with Lewis around. Michael was doing things he never imagined.

"We're going up to some place in LA to shoot a video," explained Michael as he sat back down at his laptop.

"Cool!" The idea of going to LA to shoot a music video was beyond Christian's experiences but it set his imagination into overdrive.

"Well, maybe when your parents are in town, they'll let you come with us," offered Michael. The more he and Christian worked together on their project, the more he liked the boy. It was nice having a peer that seemed to get him intellectually and would work as hard as he did at school.

"You guys would let me come with?"

"Yeah, I don't see why not. I've got to get going, they're waiting on me." Michael and Christian waved to each other and said their "goodbyes" before ending their Facetime call. Michael closed his MacBook and raced to join his brothers.

Zach loaded the boys into the Yukon and let one of his schoolmates drive the Ford Transit loaded with all the band's equipment. They buckled in for a two-hour drive up to Los Angeles to shoot a video for the SDSU students' project. It had only been a week since everyone agreed to the project and Zach was having serious concerns. That wasn't the case the previous week.

When everyone reconvened in the family room, the initial excitement about the project had somewhat faded. If Lars' intention was to make sure the reality of the project set in, he succeeded.

"Keith, Asa," started Lars, "I need a better understanding of what you are going to be doing with this film."

"Well, um," offered Asa, "we'll submit it to the department for review as our senior project. If they like it and we pass, it will be shown at a student film festival on campus. It's sort of a competition with the winning movie being submitted for consideration to a film festival."

"How often is the winning student film accepted by the film festival?"

Asa looked to Kevin to see if he had an answer. "Not that often," answered Kevin. "In recent years, I think it is only happened a few times."

"Do you know which festivals?" asked Lars. He pressed the boys for answers to satisfy the concerns Brian planted in his head. From the perspective of law enforcement, Brian's concern wasn't the boys participating in the project. In fact, he was excited for them and wished he was still back in California to witness their success. Brian's concerns focused on the exposure the boys would receive. Yanni Oikonomou and some of his men were still on the loose. If the boys were put in the spotlight publicly, Yanni could take it as the boys thumbing their nose at him. Sort of like a baseball player hitting a home run and making show of flipping his bat and taking his time to round the bases. Doing so, the baseball player could start a bench clearing brawl. The boys flaunting their success in the wake of Yanni's failure could provoke the man to retaliate putting everyone in danger.

Keith and Asa satisfied Lars' concerns by assuring the exposure the movie would give the boys would be very limited. Lars and Carol gave their blessing. Now it was up to everyone else to give the project a green light. The SDSU students each gave the project a thumbs up. The decision now was up to the boys.

"I'm in," rejoiced Simon. He couldn't be more excited about this project.

Lukas followed with his commitment. "If Simon's in, then I'm in too."

"Me too!" added Michael as he bounced in place with his excitement.

All eyes turned to Matthew. The sixteen-year-old did not look comfortable. If he'd been asked first, he would have voiced his concerns about the project. He enjoyed his spare time and hoped to find a girlfriend. He was afraid that this project would make him busier than he cared to be. If that happened, he might resent the project and even being in the band. He didn't want that. Since up to this point he kept his concerns to himself, he had placed himself on the hot seat. If he said "no" it would sink the project and disappoint everyone. He sheepishly looked around the room and was met with questioning or hopeful eyes. None more so than Michael's. When Matthew's eyes met Michael's, the younger brother turned on the puppy-dog eyes knowing that Matthew could never resist.

"Ugh, seriously?" he asked Michael rhetorically. "Alright, I'm in too."

"YES!" Michael launched himself onto Matthew and gave his big brother a full-body hug.

Keith and Asa met with their advisors to discuss the project. They weren't concerned with the subject matter. In fact, they thought the idea was creative and suited the boy's personalities and interests. The discussion turned to the technical aspects of the project. Band's rarely are able to play the song exactly the same twice, especially when they are being recorded. Do pull off the videos that are not going to be live performances, they will need to have the boys record the songs in advance and then play along with, or lip sync the music. Since the recording studios being built in the rear of the theater were not ready, the production would have to focus on the live videos first. Up first, a video shoot up in LA.

Stone's father lived up in LA and managed to pull some strings to gain access to the Hollywood Recreation Center for the evening and procure the proper permits. The boys were going to record the first video just blocks from the Paramount Pictures Studios. It was supposed to be a combination of action shots that would be spliced into a live performance of the song "Hash Pipe" by Weezer.

For Zach, he learned the details of this shoot in bits and pieces. Since he wasn't playing an instrument on this song, he wasn't directly involved in this video's planning. But as each nugget of information was revealed to him, his doubt about the project grew. As he merged with traffic on I-5, he couldn't believe he was taking the boys to Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood. When he asked Kevin why they couldn't find some place closer, the only response he got was "authenticity". Zach didn't understand what Kevin meant by that, but he had a nagging feeling he wasn't going to like it. By the time they reached Los Angeles, Zach had himself tied in knots.

"I don't think we should do this," he announced to the boys with little conviction.

"What?!" cried Lukas. "We just drove two hours and now you are changing your mind?"

"Yeah," said Simon in support of Lukas. "You and dad went on and on about living up to our responsibilities and commitment to this project and now you are saying we should back out at the last minute?"

Matthew looked to Michael who seemed distracted. The younger boy was just sitting there staring out the passenger window. "Zach, it's okay," the oldest boy tried to interject some logic into the situation. "We're already here. It's no big deal. Let's just do this and get home. Alright?"

Zach nodded and pulled into the facility's small parking lot and parked beside the equipment trucks. The cramped lot provided them access to maintenance gates to haul their equipment through. It was getting dark, but Stone had a key to turn on the baseball field lights. Even so, they would need to work fast because their permit only allowed them to play until 10 pm, then the sound ordinance would be back in effect for the residence along Cole Avenue.

The performance part of the video would be the boys performing the song live. The stage lights were set up to be bright white to create an over exposed look in the foreground and intensify the dark backdrop when the field lights were turned off. Kevin positioned the band so they faced Santa Monica Boulevard with as much distance between them and the trees and basketball court as he could. This prevented the stage lights from lighting the background. The effect caused the night to act as a black curtain behind the band. Asa was particularly excited how the green of the grass and the bright colors of the boys' instruments contrasted with the backdrop of solid black.

The field lights were turned off for final adjustments to the set lighting. Jess asked the boys play a couple of songs to warm up. She and Zach used that as their opportunity to check sound, mix the instruments, and ensure the recording wasn't picking up anything they didn't want. Michael and Simon laid down the opening riff of "All My Life" by the Foo Fighters. When he was ready Michael stepped up to the mic. The stage lights made it difficult to see anything, but he caught glimpses of the crowd gathering along the fence. He smiled and nodded his head toward the spectators to make sure his brothers could all see. The riff continued as they waited for Michael to start singing.

"Hey everybody," greeted Michael, smiling to the crowd. "We're 'At the Majestic' from the San Diego area." He turned to let the other boys know he was starting then turned to the mic and sang.

Kevin looked to the sound board to where Jess and Zach were adjusting the volume and mix. Their smiles let him know the band sounded as good through the sound board as it did to the rest of the crowd. Jess noticed Kevin's watchful eye and gave her schoolmate a thumbs up. Zach followed suit.

At the end of the opening, the boys kicked their pedals and ripped into the guitars. Michael stepped back from the mic to strum his pearl white Gibson Les Paul Special with a black pick guard. Simon plucked away at his candy-apple red bass and Matthew had his metallic teal blue Fender Stratocaster with a white pick guard. Lukas' drums thundered as the boy meticulously drove the song forward with a style and precision his idol Dave Grohl would be proud to play.

The boys put all they had into the performance and the watching crowd grew. Neighbors along Cole Avenue crossed the street to take in the spectacle. Not that a film crew in Hollywood was out of the ordinary, far from it. What was out of the ordinary was the sound being produced by a bunch of kids. Yeah, there were plenty of School of Rock kids running around that could play their instruments and even more boys with "golden voices" looking to be the next pop sensation. But it isn't every day you see a group of boys that could put stellar rock vocals and tight harmonies to their professional instrumentation.

Cars began pulling off the boulevard to circle the block to see what was going on and filling up the on-street parking. As pedestrians lined the fence to watch, those in their cars were forced to get out of their cars to see the band.

When the song finished, the crowd clapped and cheered. From the performance he just saw, Kevin knew the boys were ready. "Asa, how did they look from your end?"

"Awesome!" replied Kevin's co-director.

"Stone, how's your camera?"

"I'm ready. They look great!" replied his friend who designed the lighting.

Kevin, carrying his camera mounted to a stabilizing chest system so he could get close ups and moving camera shots, approached the sound board.

Jess took her headphones off. "The sound is excellent, but we'll have to get the crowd to be quiet until we give the signal that that recording is over."

Kevin picked up his megaphone to give instructions to the crowd when the boys began another song. The director was so busy checking in with everyone else, he failed to notice the band deciding the next couple songs to play for their impromptu audience.

Simon and Lukas trudged through a syncopated bass and drum intro before the guitars jumped in at a racing pace. The guitars quieted down and Matthew stepped up to the mic.

I was just a kid,
I needed answers,
I found a screen,
Promised adventure,
Just as I thought,
I had it all,
I pulled the trigger,
And nothing happened.

It was "I Was Just a Kid" by Nothing But Thieves. Not even Zach had heard the boys play this song. Matthew got to show off his falsetto and grit as Simon and Michael each had opportunities in the song to showcase their musicianship. The crowd was dancing and those that knew the song were singing along. Kevin made a note that they'd have to find a way to work this song into the project.

When the song ended, Simon started the bass intro for "Body Talks" by The Struts. Michael and Matthew got the crowd to clap along with the song before they needed to join in on their guitars. This time, Simon had lead vocals.

When the song ended, the crowd's cheers were quieted by the "whoop whoop" of a police siren. The flashing lights of two squad cars reflected off the buildings along Cole Avenue as the vehicles approached the park's small lot. Stone and Kevin walked over to see what was going on.

"Hi, boys," warmly greeted Officer Whalen.

"Hi?" replied Kevin. The college boys were thrown off by the polite and friendly nature of the cop.

Stone didn't want to waste time and got down to business. He pulled the permit out of his pocket and returned the officer's greeting. "Hi," he said reaching to shake the officer's hand. "I'm Stone Mitchell. How can we help you this evening?"

"You're good," replied Whalen. "We're here to help you. Your dad asked us to keep an eye on your shoot this evening. When we hear how good the boys are, I knew you were going to have a large crowd. I called in for backups so we can do some crowd and traffic control while you make your video."

Stone and Kevin looked at each other in surprise. "Dude, what does your dad do?" Even in the dark, Kevin could tell Stone was embarrassed.

"Captain Mitchell is in charge of this precinct," added Whalen.

Now Stone was really embarrassed. He'd taken the nickname "Stone" and put on a bad-boy persona when he went to college, but he never truly lived up to his image. He thanked Whalen, but in his mind, he cursed the officer for ruining the image he'd spent so much time cultivating.

"We've only got a couple hours left. Let's get started so we can get this part of the shoot finished." Kevin understood his friend's situation and would keep it to himself though that wouldn't prevent him from teasing Stone every chance he got when they were alone. They returned to the shoot and the police went about managing the crowd outside the baseball field.

Itsuki was applying some makeup to the boys and fixing their costumes, if you could call them that. The makeup was to bring out their basic facial features in the glaring white lights. To get the band's personality and attitude on camera, you needed to see their lips and eyes. The boys arrived in the clothing he'd picked up from second hand stores. Old, faded skinny jeans and well-worn, skin-tight t-shirts. With the guitars, Itsuki felt it wasn't clear how old and worn the shirts were to appear, so he added a tear just under the collar along Michael's right collar-bone and along the seam of Lukas' shirt just under left arm.

Kevin approached the boys to remind them of his directions. He wanted them to look and act like slightly cocky, sexy hustlers performing for potential johns. What he told them to do is be a bit cocky and sassy, like they know just how good they are. The boys thought he meant as musicians and that was fine with Kevin.

An announcement was made to the crowd about noise and filming before Kevin gave the signal to start filming. Itsuki snapped the clapperboard for take one. In their ear pieces, the boys heard the pre-recorded count off (they didn't want it to be in the video) and began the song.

I can't help my feelings, I'll go out of my mind
These players come to get me 'cause they'd like my behind
I can't love my business if I can't get a trick
Down on Santa Monica where tricks are for kids

Michael felt his face turn red as the lyrics rolled off his tongue. The meaning of the song never occurred to him and frankly, he'd been too preoccupied to take notice. But being on Santa Monica Boulevard playing this song, and the directions from Kevin, the realization came flooding into his mind. Michael stopped and the band followed suit. They witnessed was the boy's internal conflict. Kevin and Asa held their breath.

Michael turned away from the mic. "Am I the only one that just figured out what this song is about?" The other boy's shrugged. "Kevin wants us to act like we're street hustlers trying to pick up our next trick."

Matthew walked over to his little brother. "Are you okay with that?"

"Well, we're just acting, right?" Michael bit his lower lip. "I guess I'm okay with it. Are you?"

Simon approached from the other side. "You okay?"

"Yeah," said Michael. "I never really thought about the lyrics before."

"Oh," said Simon. It hadn't occurred to any of them that Michael, of all people, hadn't analyzed every lyric and knew exactly what the song is about.

"Listen bro'," stated Matthew. "If you don't want to do this song, we won't. We all have to be 100% in or we don't do it." Simon and Lukas nodded in agreement. "But if anyone can look sexy as hell and give the attitude that they know how sexy they are, it's you." Matthew grinned and Michael felt the warm feeling that flooded his body every time his big brother smiled at him.

"You mean, US," laughed Michael. "Let's give them our best 'I'm Sexy and I Know It' attitude."

Itsuki overheard the conversation and gave Asa and Kevin a thumbs up. When the boys approached their microphones, Itsuki shouted "take two" and clapped the board.

The change in attitude of all the boys was apparent. Michael stared dead into the camera to deliver the opening verse as the boys oozed sexuality as only boys who know their bodies can.

As the SDSU professors pointed out, Kevin and Asa really weren't going to be able to mix multiple takes together. What they needed was one really good take as the foundation of the entire video. The boys were perfect, but Asa and Kevin weren't as confident in all their camera work so they did three more takes.

"That's a rap," Kevin announced. The crowd gave a final round of cheers and applause before breaking up and going their separate ways.

"Michael," called Kevin, "pack up your guitar and meet me by the trucks. I need you and Zach for the next part. Can you boys handle the rest of the equipment?"

Matthew, Simon, and Lukas nodded and began tearing down as Kevin and Asa's friends broke down and loaded the film, lighting, and sound equipment.

Michael lugged his guitar case back to the band's equipment truck.

"Can I help?" asked a hopeful voice.

Michael slid his instrument into the Transit and turned to the see who made the offer.

"Hi," said Michael to the taller, older boy. In the dark he couldn't make out too many of the boy's features, but he sounded nice enough. "I'm Michael."

"I'm Trey," said the boy, taking Michael's hand and giving it a firm shake. The boy's backpack slid from his shoulder and caught on his elbow. Trey broke the handshake and hefted the pack back onto his shoulder. Before the boys could get further acquainted, Kevin, Asa, Jess, and Zach arrived with their equipment.

"Well, who's your friend?" asked Kevin.

"This is Trey," said Michael, introducing the new boy.

Kevin gave the boy a once over. "You want to earn some money?" he asked.

"YES," came an all too eager reply. They heard the boy's stomach grumble.

"Well, if you're going to help, we can't have you hungry." Kevin pulled his backpack from the box truck they used to bring the school's equipment and pulled out a couple protein bars.

Trey eagerly took the bars then noticed everyone was looking at him. He tried to mask his true hunger as he devoured the peanut butter and chocolate bars.

Kevin gave directions while Trey and Michael listened. "I want to get some footage of you boys hustling."

"WHAT THE FUCK?" exclaimed Zach.

Kevin shot back. "Don't get your panties in a wad. They aren't really going to be hustling. You are going to be driving the vehicle that stops."

"What?" Zach felt himself getting into deeper shit with Lars.

Kevin rolled his eyes. In the dark no one noticed. "The video is going to open with the boy's standing around working the street. A car pulls up, we film them leaning in to talk to the driver. The song plays. At the end, Michael gets in the car and it drives away. We're going to get some b-roll of the street lights, store fronts and other hustlers along the street after we're finished."

Zach didn't like the idea, but it did sound harmless. Well, harmless until Lars saw the video and strung him up by his toes.

"Trey, can you show Michael the ropes? There's fifty bucks in it for you." asked Kevin. Embarrassed, Trey agreed. He knew they expected him to show Michael how to hustle which meant he was admitting to being a hustler. Technically, he reasoned, he really wasn't because he'd never actually turned a trick.

His eyes having adjusted to the dark better, Michael took a closer look at the boy. He couldn't be more than 13 or 14. His clothes looked to be in rather good condition, but dirty. The backpack was cram packed. Its seams ready to burst. His heart sank thinking this boy was living on the streets and selling his body.

The group walked to a spot where Trey spotted some of his acquaintances.

"Hey, hey little Trey," spoke one of the older boys. He appeared to be in his early 20s. "You ready to make the big bucks tonight?"

Trey was mortified by the older boy's comment. He wanted to impress his new friend and the boy's comments simply reminded everyone of what Trey was.

Kevin understood Trey's unease with the older boys. He got in close and spoke quietly. "Are there any boys in that group that we can trust?"

Trey looked to Kevin then back to the group. Turning back to Kevin he nodded his head. "Jimmy and Dante."

Kevin stood and called over. "Jimmy. Dante. Would you come here for a minute?" A shirtless, 15-year-old white boy with torn jeans and a tall, slim, Hispanic 17-year-old sauntered over to the group.

One of the other boys called out behind them. "Must be wanting to do some kiddie porn with all the young'uns." The older hustlers sang out in cat calls and laughter. Jimmy and Dante approached cautiously.

"Hi guys," greeted Kevin. The rest of his crew kept quiet and let him call the shots.

"Just to let you know," offered Dante unsolicited, "I don't top. If you want these little pieces of ass to take it, you'll need to find someone else."

"It's nothing like that. We're shooting a music video and want to portray Michael here as a hustler. We just wanted a few guys we could trust to be on the street with him to show him what to do."

"A hundred dollars for one hour," negotiated Dante. Jimmy thought it was a bit much for just standing around but nodded in agreement. He was all for an easy c-note.

Kevin agreed and handed each boy one hundred dollars. Typically, he wouldn't have paid them up front, but Trey said they were trustworthy, and it was going to be easy for them to earn it.

Trey realized that he'd failed to negotiate his own price. "I want a hundred, too," blurted Trey.

"You've been a big help already, Trey. Here you go." Kevin handed the young boy $160 bucks. It was all he had left, but his heart went out to the young boy. Trey realized Kevin had given him more and when he looked up, Kevin gave him a wink. Trey smiled and stuffed the bills in his pocket with great relief. If he was careful with the money, he could go quite a while longer without having to resort to hustling.

Kevin liked the location but knew the older guys were going to be a hassle. They reversed direction and he took the boys back towards the baseball field. He remembered that beside the automotive center on the corner was a building with a low brick wall and a tree. Instead of filming the hustlers where he found them, he'd simply take the hustlers to a better location to film.

The walk back and the time it took to set everything up gave Michael and Trey time to get to know each other.

"I've never done it before," informed Trey.

"Done what?"

"Hustled," clarified the older boy.

"Then what are you doing for money?" asked Michael.

"Well, I only ran out of money yesterday. I was so hungry tonight, I was gonna do it, but now I don't have to."

Michael thought he should feel good about saving the boy from having to turn tricks, but instead, he felt worse. It would have been easier to work with a boy that was an experienced hustler, not a boy trying to stay out of the business. "How long have you been on the streets?"

"A couple weeks, I think." Trey hadn't been keeping track of the days, just the money he had, or what he could find here or there.

"What happened?" asked Michael. He didn't want to open a can of worms, but he just needed to know.

Trey got quiet. He hadn't explained this to anyone. It wasn't good for the others to know too much about you. But Michael seemed like a cool kid and Trey longed for a friend he could really talk to. "My mom died of a drug over dose in December and they put me in foster care. When my foster dad caught me looking at gay porn, he tried to make me do things. I fought him off, but he wouldn't stop trying. So, I stole all the money I could find and ran away."

Michael giggled. "They deserved that." Trey liked Michael's smile and smiled back.

Trey and Michael continued to visit between filming. Michael shared his story about moving to East Harbor and the death of his own mother but didn't share what precipitated her murder. Their personal stories helped the boys become fast friends without a thought about what would happen after this evening.

Kevin got footage of Zach pulling up in front of the boys and Jimmy, Trey and Michael approaching as Zach put the window down. Jimmy "learns" the john is interested in the younger boys. The teen waves off the driver and returns to the wall to sit with Dante who's smoking a cigarette. After some back and forth, Trey steps back and Michael climbs into the front seat of the SUV and Zach pulls away while Trey watches intently.

"Perfect!" Kevin announced. He thanked the boys and Jimmy and Dante went on to see what else they could earn. Saturday nights were always the most reliable for at least a couple of tricks.

Zach sighed in relief. All of his fears on what might have gone wrong were exhaled away. Now they just needed to stop, get something to eat, and head back to East Harbor. It was going to be much easier to explain this to Lars since no harm came to anyone.

Trey, instead of joining the other boys on the street, decided to follow Michael and the gang back to the equipment trucks. It was one more lonely night on the streets, but at least it was a night that he didn't have to find a john to earn some money. As they hoisted the last of their gear, they heard shouting coming from the direction of the rec center. Then they saw the flashing lights of the approaching police cars. Their tires squealed as they turned onto Cole Avenue then screeched to a halt. Michael and Trey took off running ahead of the others to see what was going on.

----------------------     

Simon and Matthew were the first to finish packing their equipment and the band's mics and such. Simon helped Lukas finish with his drum kit while Matthew helped Stone and Itsuki tear down and load the rest of the production equipment. They were all finished before the rest were back from filming Michael's scene. Stone and Itsuki climbed into the box truck and waited. Matthew crawled into the back of the SUV and messed around on his phone. Simon and Lukas were a bit more restless. They did a lap around the rec center then perched themselves on the rear bumper of the box truck and talked.

They didn't notice the blue convertible BMW that passed them twice on their walk. The car had left but returned about 20 minutes later to find the boys chatting behind the box truck. Failing to get their attention, the driver found a parking spot just past the entrance to the parking lot and approached the boys on foot.

"Good evening, boys," said the man, interrupting Simon and Lukas' conversation.

"Hi," said Lukas in his friendly manner. The man was smartly dressed, had stylish glasses and a neatly trimmed haircut. He obviously had money and seemed harmless.

"Are you boys looking for a good time?" the man asked.

"Um, no," answered Lukas, a bit puzzled about the man's intentions.

"We're good," added Simon.

"Ah, come on boys," said the man. "I haven't seen you two out here before." The man stepped up to Lukas and brushed his hand across Lukas' cheek. "You're a beauty."

Lukas jerked away. "What the fuck?" The blonde's raised voice caused Itsuki and Stone to check the mirrors and windows to see what was going on, but they couldn't see anyone. Matthew, however, raised his eyes from his phone and saw a man standing too close to Lukas. He dropped the device and exited the SUV.

"If it makes you boys feel better, I'll take you both. Five hundred each to spend the night?" The man moved in closer and grabbed Lukas' crotch.

In a flash, Simon stood and smashed the man in the chest with the palm of his hand. "Back the fuck off!" he warned the man.

The warning came too late. Simon's shove caused the man to stagger back into a charging Matthew. The high school football player tackled the man. They landed on the parking lot pavement in view of Itsuki's mirror.

"Oh shit, call your dad!" squealed Itsuki as he lept from the truck. Stone followed suit pulling out his phone.

Matthew was in a blind rage. He only saw the men that harmed his little brother, including their father. Stone reached the boys to find Simon and Lukas trying to pull Matthew from the bloody man. The teen's fist having landed a few punches before Simon grabbed his arm. Stone told his dad they were in trouble then grabbed the back of Matthew's shirt to aid in pulling the muscular teen from the helpless man.

The man rolled onto his side and raised himself to an elbow. He spit out blood then turned to the boys. "I'm going to have your asses on a platter," threatened the man with a sinister grin.

"Fuck you!" screamed Matthew, burning with a fury he had buried for weeks.

"No, it's you who's ass is in trouble you asshole," shouted Simon, standing between Lukas and the man. "We should kill you right now you fucking perv!" He took a step at the man but backed off when Itsuki produced a can of mace from his purse and sprayed the man in the face.

"AHHHHH!! FUCK!!" The man screamed in agony. "SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!"

The police cars screeched to a halt.

The first officers exited their vehicles with guns drawn.

"Freeze! Hands in the air."

Everyone froze expect the man lying on the ground. He rolled around and moaned in agony. "I'm pressing charges. Arrest them all! I'm fucking suing all of'em!"

Seeing the blood on Matthew, an officer shouted at Matthew to drop to his knees and put his hands behind his head. The teen did as the officer said and when the officer grabbed his wrist, a shout came from behind.

"Connor! No hand cuffs. Put the boy in the back of the cruiser and take the others aside for questioning." Captain Mitchell's orders were instantly obeyed by the other officers. "Stone, what the hell's going on?"

In a full sprint, Michael and Trey approached. He saw Matthew being put in a squad car and started screaming. "No! No! Matthew!! No!!" Matthew looked up to see his little brother screaming his name when the officer pushed his head down and directed the teen into the back seat.

Michael reached the car and started yanking on the door handle. "Let him out! Let him out! Matthew!" When the door wouldn't open, he put his hands on the window and cried. Matthew knocked on the window to get his brother's attention.

Trey and Michael stood there as Matthew shouted and pointed to Lukas and Simon. Matthew shouted, "Go see if Lukas is okay!" The boys looked towards Captain Mitchell and another officer talking to Stone. Lukas was sitting on the curb with his hands on his head and Simon paced back and forth with clenched fists and looked more pissed than Michael had ever seen.

"I'm fine!" shouted Matthew. "Go check on Lukas!" Michael nodded to Matthew and he went to check on his other brothers. As he approached, he saw the other two officers tending to the bloody man.

Michael plopped down next to Lukas and threw his arm around the blonde's shoulders. "What's going on?"

Lukas didn't have time to answer before the Captain began asking questions. Michael listened to learn what had transpired.

"LUKAS!! SIMON!! MATTHEW!!" Zach's voice could be heard for blocks. When the shoot ended, Zach drove down to get gas then circled back to pull the SUV up to the rec center. That's when he saw the flashing lights and knew he was in deep shit.

Leaving the Yukon in the middle of the street behind the cop car, he ran to make sure his charges were all right. He arrived and listened to the Captain's questioning of Lukas and shook with rage at what he heard. One officer opened the squad car to tend Matthew. The teen was checked for injuries and his bloody hands were cleaned. The other officer walked the assailed man to where the Captain stood with the other boys.

"I want to press every possible charge against these boys. Especially that one. He punched me in the chest and the one in the car for assaulting me. And arrest this little punk for soliciting. I think they were setting me up to rob me."

The Captain laughed. "Sir, these boys are friends of my son. They were up here filming a music video. Here's their permit and their instruments and equipment are in these trucks. You, sir, propositioned two minors and sexually assaulted one of them."

The man looked nervous. "You'll be hearing from my lawyers. I'm going to sue you and your parents for everything they've got."

Captain Mitchell put on a little show for the man. "Dispatch?" He waited for acknowledgement. "We need all of the security camera footage from the cameras at the Hollywood Rec Center for the last two hours. There is also a traffic camera at the intersection Cahuenga and Santa Monica. Also put a request in for the security footage at the automotive center on the corner of Cole and Santa Monica. We're looking for footage of a blue BMW convertible cruising the Hollywood Rec Center and an incident in the Rec Center's parking lot."

The man looked up to see a camera pointing into the parking lot that caught everything that transpired. Following the fence, he saw a second camera that would have captured his transgressions from another angle. His bravado faltered.

Captain Mitchell addressed the man again. "You, sir, will not only be spending the night in jail, when all of this is over, you'll be a registered sex offender. If I were their parents, you'd have a huge civil suit hanging over your head. As for the assault charges, you were taken down in protection of this boy. His brother in the back of the squad car, as far as we are concerned, is a hero. I'm just sorry they stopped him from beating you worse. Cuff him."

----------------------     

The call back to Lars to explain that they'd be home a lot later than expected had gone better than he'd hoped, but he knew he still had a lot to answer for after the evening's events. Those were details better left to explain in person.

The police took everyone's statements on the scene since the boys were from out of town. It took a while, but they wanted to make sure they had an air-tight case against the man. The Captain hoped that if he did his job right tonight, the man would plea and the boys wouldn't have to come back to testify.

The police left with the gentleman and Keith and Asa's equipment used to film the scene around the corner was loaded into the box truck. Zach tried to load everyone up in the truck so they could get going. "Where's Michael?"

"He was looking for some kid named Trey," explained Matthew. His head was instantly on a swivel. "There he is." Matthew pointed to the corner. Michael was standing at the end of the block looking up and down Santa Monica Boulevard looking for his new friend.

"Michael!" called Zach. "We're heading out." The small boy's shoulders slumped. Michael turned and trudged slowly back to the truck where Matthew and Zach stood outside waiting for him.

"What's wrong little man? Zach was concerned about Michael's mood. A lot had happened this evening and he wondered how each of the boys was handling things.

"I wanted to say 'bye' to Trey," sighed Michael. "I hope he's alright."

"He'll be alright," assured Zach, even if he wasn't very confident. "Since he's a runaway, he probably wasn't too comfortable with all the cops around." Michael nodded in agreement and climbed in the back seat.

"Well," said Zach as everyone buckled in, "I was planning on taking us all to Hollywood Burgers, but I think we'll need to eat on the road. How does In-N-Out sound?" Everyone remembered how hungry they were and agreed with Zach's solution. He texted Kevin and Asa in the Transit to followed them to the drive thru of the In-N-Out on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Orange Drive. Getting the b-roll footage would have to wait for another trip to LA for the collegiate film makers.

They were back on I-5 heading south by the time the burgers and fries were gone. The boys were in better spirits with full stomachs. They nursed on the final remains of their shakes as they settled in for the rest of the drive home.

Matthew sat in the passenger seat with his ear buds in listening to his favorite playlist and checking out social media. It seemed the band was getting lots of likes and shares from people who saw them back at the rec center. Apparently some caught their act on video and posted it on their own social media pages.

Michael was sprawled out on the bench seat in the middle. He too had his ear buds in. He hoped music could distract him from his thoughts and worry about Trey. No one should ever have to do live on the street, and no one should ever have to survive by turning tricks. He'd asked Zach if they could get food for Trey and go back to look for him, but that idea got shot down. Michael couldn't get his brain to focus on schoolwork, so he resorted to playing games.

The back bench was occupied by Lukas and Simon. They slumped down and chatted quietly about the events of the evening.

Simon interlocked his fingers with Lukas's. "Are you sure you are alright?"

"Yeah," Lukas reassured Simon for the hundredth time. "He wasn't the first to grab my dick."

"Stop it. You know what I mean."

"I know," said Lukas, dropping his front. "It was a bit scary because I wasn't sure what he was going to do -- if he was going to stop. But the scariest part was when you and Matthew took him on."

"Why's that?"

"I didn't want you guys to get in trouble because I couldn't defend myself."

"That's not what that was about. Matthew and I would have done that for anyone. We didn't do that because you could or couldn't defend yourself. We did that because what that guy did was wrong."

"I know." Lukas squeezed Simon's hand and looked into his boyfriend's eyes. "That's one of the reasons why I love you so much." He leaned over and gave Simon a soft, loving kiss on the lips.

Before Lukas could pull away, Simon reached with his opposite hand and held Lukas in place while he raised the intensity of the kiss.

They broke to catch their breath. "You know," Lukas took a gulp of air, "you were really sexy singing 'Body Talks' today."

"You're really sexy right now." Simon leaned in and rolled Lukas onto his back and reengaged the tongue battle. Hands roamed as the boys passionately expressed their love, and attraction, for each other.

Lukas found the leg of the bench in front of them with his foot. He used it as leverage to slide his body across the bench to give him and his lover had more space. When Simon raised up reposition himself, Lukas slipped his hand onto his boyfriend's painfully erect cock. Simon flinched in surprise. The look on Lukas' face spoke volumes. Simon looked down and watched Lukas' hands unbuttoned his jeans and slid the zipper down.

Simon poked his head up to see what the others in the SUV were doing. Zach was watching the road and the other two were on their phone with ear buds. Since neither boy was old enough to drive, it never occurred to them that Zach would look in the rearview mirror. He ducked back down behind the seat and nodded to give Lukas the green light. Each boy kicked his shoes off and slid out of his tight-fitting jeans and underwear. Once their clothes hit the floor, the boys were back at each other like hungry wolves.

During their hot, half-naked make-out session, Simon managed to work Lukas' t-shirt up under his arm pits. When the moment was right, Simon attacked Lukas' left nipple with his mouth.

"Oh fuck!" hissed Lukas. He grabbed the back of Simon's head and threw his legs around the boy above him.

The truck behind the SUV had bright halogen lamps. The lights caused Zach to adjust the way he sat so he wasn't blinded. But a shadow flashing across the mirror caught his attention.

"What the hell?" He took a second look and realized it was Lukas' foot in the air rocking back and forth. "You've got to be fucking kidding me." He looked and saw Matthew and Michael engrossed with their phones and their music drowned out everything he'd just said. Both boys were blissfully unaware of what was happening in the back of the vehicle. "Good thing we have tinted windows."

Simon licked his fingers and reached below to wet Lukas' hole in preparation. When he penetrated his lover, it caused Lukas' toes to curl. Unaware of just what he was doing, Lukas placed his sock covered foot over the top of the middle bench so he could angle his hips for better entry.

The foot didn't go unnoticed. The foot wagged to and fro as the boys rutted in the back seat. It caught Michael's attention. The young boy sat up and peeked over the back of the seat to see what exactly was going on. If he didn't have his ear buds in, he would have heard plenty. However, the music blasting on his phone laid down a sound track for watching Simon ramming Lukas' love chute. Seeing the two boys have sex wasn't anything new for the 11-year-old. He simply watched for a bit then laid back down and turned his attention back to his phone.

Zach, on the other hand, was not wearing ear buds. He knew exactly what was going on in the rear of the vehicle. Lars had relayed numerous stories about the boy's sexual exploits and now he had one to share with Lars. He turned up the car stero so he didn't have to listen to Simon fucking Lukas' brains out.

Lost in their own little world, Simon and Lukas made love to each other with abandon. Lukas used the back of the benches to thrust upward to meet Simon's pistoning pelvis. The slapping of skin became louder and Zach turned the radio up again.

The smell of sex wafted through the enclosed space. It caught Matthew's attention. The teen peered back to see where the smell was coming from. The saw Michael lying on the seat messing around on his phone, t-shirt pulled up over his nose. Then he noticed Lukas' foot on the back of Michael's seat, toes curled. He turned to Zach. "Seriously?"

Zach laughed and used the controls on the driver's door to crack the windows to let in some fresh air. The lover's in the rear seat were still oblivious to how obvious their activities were to the others in the vehicle.

The boys climbed to their ultimate release as did the volume of their passion. Simon snorted with the physical exertion of drilling Lukas' ass. Lukas, lost in the pleasure of Simon's vigorous love making, got vocal. "Uuuuhhhhhh... Ohhhhhhh... Uh, uh, uh, uuuhhhhhhhhhh..."

Zach turned the radio up even louder.

With one final cry of pleasure, Lukas' toes flexed then curled one last time has his love button triggered an incredibly intense orgasm. Simon, with is feet firmly planted against the side of the Yukon, never lost a beat. He reached top speed when Lukas' rectum gripped him tightly. With a growl, he shoved himself forward one last time and emptied his entire supply of boy's cream, right where it belonged.

Despite the volume of the truck's sound system and the music blasting through their ear buds, Michael and Matthew heard Simon. The boys looked at each other and burst out laughing. Michael's giggles cracked Zach up and the three guys laughed even harder.

The laughing brought Simon and Lukas back to reality. The blond noticed his socked foot resting on top of the seat in front of them. He quickly pulled his leg down as if hiding it now would disguise what they'd been doing.

"Um..." said Simon, looking down between their muscular torsos to see three huge streaks of cum across Lukas' body, "good thing we pushed your shirt up. You made a mess."

Lukas looked down to admire his work. "Wow!" He smiled at the man-sized load he'd shot. "But your shirt wasn't so lucky."

"Shit," whispered Simon noticing Lukas' fourth streak shot right up the front of his shirt. It would definitely give them away. It was then that, like most early teens, the lovers realized their predicament from a lack of prior proper planning. "What are we gonna clean up with?"

"Your mom keeps cleaning supplies under the seat there. Can you reach the rags or box of tissues or something?" asked Lukas.

Careful not to pull out or smear the mess on Lukas, Simon stretched and felt around under the seat. Michael felt Simon fumbling around under his seat. The younger boy reached under and grabbed the box of tissues and shook them over the back of his seat. Speaking louder than necessary to compensate for the music blasting in his ears, Michael offered the tissues. "Looking for these?"

If that wasn't enough to let the boys know they'd been caught, Zach's comment sealed the deal. "Good thing we have leather seats. It would be a bitch trying to explain the stains to your mother." Zach and Matthew roared with laughter, but Michael missed the comment completely.

He pulled the buds from his ears. "What's so funny?"

----------------------     

Zach pulled into the driveway beside Lars and Stone backed the boys' equipment into the Novak driveway. Before the students could head back to campus, they needed to join Zach and face the music.

Michael and Matthew entered the house first.

"Hey boys," greeted Lars from his office. "Can you come here for a minute?" The boys stepped into the office and took a seat.

"How was the shoot?"

The boys weren't sure if Lars really wanted to know, or if he was just beating around the bush before he asked about what he really wanted to know about.

Michael ventured to answer, "It was fun. We had a big crowd show up to watch us play."

"Really?" That was news to Lars. "Bet you boys put on a great show for them, too."

"Yeah, we did!" grinned Michael.

"But I also heard about the altercation." Just as the boys expected, Lars wasn't really that interested in the video shoot at the moment.

"I'm sorry," apologized Matthew. He dreaded having to face Lars after causing all the trouble that evening. Matthew was still trying to fit into the family and worried that such a big fuck up wasn't going to win his way into Lars or Carol's heart.

"Matthew," stated Lars looking the boy directly in the eyes, "I don't condone violence. I am certain there was a way this could have been resolved without hitting the man, but..."

Matthew interrupted to defend himself. "He put his hands on Lukas!"

"But," Lars continued, "you protected Lukas the same way you would have protected Michael. Thank you. I see all you boys getting closer and closer every day and I'm so happy you are part of this family. Both of you." Lars came around the desk and gave each boy a hug. "I love you boys. Go get cleaned up and to bed. You can unload the truck in the morning."

Michael and Matthew said their good nights and headed to Matthew's room when Simon and Lukas and the college co-eds came in the front door.

"Where's your shirt?" asked Lars of the bare-chested Simon. Simon held up his carefully folded shirt so Lars wouldn't see the evidence of their ride home. He was relieved he and Lukas cleaned up the back of the car and threw the trash in the can out back instead of bringing it into the house.

Lars gave the boys a quizzical look and invited Simon and Lukas to join him in his office. "The rest of you, wait for me in the family room."

Simon walked into the office, but Lars took Lukas into his arms for a hug then held the boy at arms-length and bent over to be face-to-face.

"I'm fine, dad," sighed Lukas. "It's not like no one has ever touched my dick before."

Not exactly what you want to hear your 14-year-old son say, but it got the point across. Father and son walked into the office and took their seats.

"So, tell me what happened."

The boys related the story and answered Lars' questions about where each person was and what was said.

"And that's when Matthew tackled the man?"

"Yeah. He beat the shi... I mean..." Lukas didn't mean to sound that excited, but then, he wasn't sure how his father expected him to feel about Matthew's take down of the man that molested him.

"I'm fine, dad. I wasn't scared that the man touched me. I was scared that he wouldn't stop. But Simon and Matthew stopped him and I'm fine."

"Okay." Lars felt Lukas was doing fine, but he still needed to say his peace. "But the two of you shouldn't have wandered off and walked around the area without an adult. Some places aren't as safe as here. I know you didn't go far, and I know you felt you were being safe. But you have to be more observant and careful. The police said he drove by you guys a few times before he approached you. Being in that neighborhood, you should have been on the outlook. I love you boys and it crushed me to hear what happened tonight. It could have been worse. What if that man had a gun or a knife on him?"

The boys had never considered that. Both Simon and Lukas were looking at their hands in the laps. It could have been worse and they both new it. They weren't sure what would have happened if Matthew hadn't intervened. Simon probably would have been the one to scuffle with the man and he had never been in a fight in his life. And what if the man had a weapon? It could have turned out very different -- even deadly.

"Sorry, dad," apologized Simon.

"Yeah, sorry," added Lukas.

"It's late. You boys get to bed. We'll unload the truck in the morning."

The boys met Lars half way and gave him a hug and said their good nights. They headed off to their bedroom while Lars walked to the family room to meet up with Zach and his friends.

"I know it's late and I don't want to spend a lot of time hashing this out." The co-eds sat patiently, knowing that the project, and possibly Zach's relationship, were on the line.

"Zach, where were you when this happened?"

"I... I... I was watching Michael. They needed to film him playing a hustler and I was acting as the john and keeping an eye to make sure nothing bad happened to him."

"What do you mean 'a hustler'?" asked Lars in a very measured pace. The silence dropped like two-ton weight on each of the students' chests.

Kevin stepped up to the plate and explained his vision for the video. He told how he took Michael and Zach around the corner to film the scene with the help of Dante, Jimmy, and Trey and how he took precautions with Zach and the crew there to watch over Michael.

"Did Zach know about this in advance? That you guys were going to film my boys as street hustlers?" Lars was questioning his trust in Zach and Zach was visibly shaking.

"No," stated Kevin flatly. "I didn't tell Zach because I knew he'd say 'no'. I hoped that the boys would be excited to shoot the video and they would talk Zach into letting them do it."

Lars turned to Zach who was now crying. "Is that what happened?"

Zach nodded and wipe his eyes. "On the way to LA, I told the boys I didn't think tonight was a good idea. I didn't feel like I knew enough about what was going on and I didn't like the idea of taking the boys to Hollywood on a Saturday night. Lukas and Matthew argued that since we were on the way, we might as well do it. We had police, officers that know Stone's father, doing crowd control when we filmed the band. We were just around the corner and I felt like Michael was the one at-risk. Matthew, Simon, Lukas were with Stone and Itsuki at the vehicles. They should have been safe there. I'm sorry."

It was decided to NOT pull the plug on the project, but Lars scared the co-eds. "If I ever get a whiff of any impropriety where the boys were concerned, I will not only put an end to this project, but I'll have a discussion with the dean about your future at the school."

Zach's friends left and he was left to face Lars.

"I'm so sorry." Zach was truly scared he'd ruined his relationship with Lars.

"Come here," said Lars. Zach fell into a hug and cried. "I understand that you don't feel like you can tell the boys what they can and can't do. I think we need to have a talk with them to let them know you do have that authority. And when you have a gut feeling something is wrong, it probably..."

They were interrupted by raised voices from the other end of the house. Unable to make out what was being said, the men headed to the boys' bedrooms to see what was going on.

"But he touched Lukas!" yelled Matthew in defense of his actions that evening.

"Yeah, but you could have been arrested!" screamed Michael in rebuttal. It was clear he was upset and crying. "They could have taken you away from me!"

"Michael, come back..."

The bedroom door flew open and Michael, clad only in a pair of blue boxer briefs, ran from the room, right into Zach. Zach kneeled down to be closer to Michael's level and the boy threw his arms around the young adult and cried.

"Whoa," soothed Zach, rubbing Michael's back. "What's wrong buddy?" Lars looked on and watched his young partner practice his new parenting role.

"What... what if..." Michael was huffing to catch his breath and couldn't get his words to come out.

At this point, Matthew, Lukas, and Simon joined the others in the hallway each in their own favorite style of underwear.

"I think it's time we have a family meeting." Lars' tone let everyone know it wasn't a request or optional. Everyone headed to the kitchen table where Lars took his seat at the head of the table and Zach sat at the other end.

"First of all, as you know, I'm not happy about what went on tonight."

"But dad," whined Lukas, "I'm fine."

"Lukas," scolded Lars, "if things are fine, then why is Michael so upset." The blonde failed to have a rebuttal and slumped back in his seat.

"Look, I feel partly responsible for this," explained Lars. "I told you boys that if you commit to this project, then you must follow through. I didn't leave you the wiggle room to say 'no' if you were uncomfortable with what was going on. When did you boys figure out that you were supposed to be street hustlers during the video?"

Simon spoke up when none of the other boys would. "We figured it out during the first take."

"And how did you feel about that?"

"It was kinda weird at first," said Lukas. "But then we realized what Kevin was asking us to do and we were able to get into character."

"Yeah," added Michael. "I didn't like it at first, but then it helped me know how to act for the camera."

"Do you think it was appropriate for you boys to do that?"

"It was just acting," defended Matthew.

"Let me rephrase that question. Do you think it was appropriate for Kevin and his friends to ask you to pretend to be street hustlers?" Lars waited patiently for their response.

"No," said Simon, "but that's what the song called for so we did our job."

"Yes, but this isn't really a job. This isn't a movie script where we all read the script, signed contracts to do the roles, and then rehearsed and acted the scene. This is supposed to be a fun project, not a job. You aren't under contract and none of us were let in on Kevin's intentions until you were in the middle of it." The boys nodded in understanding.

Lars continued, "Remember when Zach said he didn't think he should take you to LA to film tonight?" The boys nodded again. "Well the next time, I don't want Zach to ask you. If he has a gut feeling about something, I'm asking him to act on it. Next time, I want him to turn the truck around and bring you home." The boys nodded again.

"One thing I came to understand tonight is that the four of you really, truly are brothers. Matthew was there to defend you two as he would have defended Michael. I love all four of you boys so much and I don't want anything to happen to you." Lars choked up a bit then turned his attention to Matthew. "Michael is right, though. Matthew, this could have ended very differently. The police could have felt they needed to arrest you and that man. You could have spent the rest of the weekend in juvie because you wouldn't have been able to see a judge until Monday at the earliest. And after everything that's happened, how do you think Michael felt seeing you in the back of a police car?" It was Matthew's turn to slump in his seat.

"Worse yet, what if he was carrying a gun? Any or all of you could have been shot," Lars' voice quivered and his body shook at the thought of any of the boys getting hurt.

"You know, if you'd simply stood up to the man and told him to stop, with you, Simon and Lukas standing there, three-on-one, I think the man would have back down and walked away. Instead, you started an altercation that could have gotten you in trouble or even killed. We might all be at the hospital now wondering if you're going to make it through the night."

Matthew saw Michael wipe tears from his face. "I'm sorry. You're right. I crossed a line tonight and I won't do it again. I was just so pissed."

"I know, Matthew," said Lars in a calm, soothing manner. "You probably have a lot of anger and we need to find a better way for you to deal with that."

After a moment to let everything settle in, Lars sent them off to bed -- each with a hug and a kiss.

"This would have been a different story if the FBI would have kept the boys under their watch," noted Zach. "Why have they left the boys' protection to the local authorities?"

"They don't think the boys are in as great a danger anymore," explained Lars. "But what they don't understand is the EHPD can't follow the boys out of their jurisdiction. When the boys are out of town, they really don't have any protection other than us. I'm going to call Brian tomorrow to see if he can do anything."

The men turned off the lights and headed to bed. "Zach," said Lars, pulling his younger lover into a hug. "I love you."

Zach smiled for the first time since they returned from LA. "I love you, too."

----------------------     

SUNDAY, JANUARY 28, 2018

The next morning things were back to normal at the Meijer residence. Zach woke up the troops. He needed to get the truck unloaded before he dug into his school work. Lars stayed back. Once the boys left for the theater, he had two loose ends to tie up from the night before. First, he needed to call Carol and fill her in on the events up in Hollywood. Then Lars intended to call Brian to see what he can do to extend the boys protection, at least through the end of the school year.

Due to the lack of seating in the Transit, the boys raced their bikes down Maple Street. Parking their bikes in the theater's lobby, they ran through the theater and exited the rear where Zach was backing the truck up to the door to unload.

Zach helped Simon and Lukas drag amplifiers and part of the drum kit out the back of the truck. Michael went to grab his guitar from behind the front seats. The boy slid the side door open only to come face-to-face with two, sleepy brown eyes and disheveled blond hair.

Michael smiled brightly. "Trey!"