A STORY BY THE BRAT
     
The Boys of East Harbor: Michael
Chapter 7: Lacrosse and Music
     
   

(b/b, oral)

DISCLAIMER: This work of fiction contains explicit material intended for adults over 18. If you are under 18 or are offended by non-traditional sex, or sex between minors, do not continue. If reading this type of material is illegal in your location, proceed at your own risk. This work is the sole property of the author and may not be reposted or reproduce without the author's written permission. This is a work of fiction. If any characters resemble the living or dead, or events are similar to actual events, it is purely coincidental.

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

Michael woke warm and snuggly. He smiled as he became of aware of the world around him. Lukas' house. Family room. GAVIN! Michael blushed as he realized he was in the arms of his crush. Then he blushed two shades darker when he realized Gavin's boner was wedged in his crack. As much as he wanted to stay right where he was and luxuriate in the warmth and comfort of Gavin's arms, he had to pee – too much soda with the pizza and popcorn the night before. There was no way is was going to hold it – he had to get up.

'DAMN!' thought Michael.

He ever so slowly disentangled himself from Gavin and the blankets. Finding his footing on the cool tile floor, he made his way across the house to the hall bathroom outside Lukas' room. Assuming he was the only one awake, he hadn't considered it necessary to hide the boner tenting his thin shorts.

"EEEK!" peeped Michael when he noticed Lars sitting at the dining table drinking his morning coffee. He almost peed himself.

"Good morning, Michael," said Lars.

Michael pinched himself and made a run for the toilet. "Morning…" came Michael response as he disappeared around the corner, making it just in time.

Lars chuckled, "Oh, what am I going to do when these boys grow up?"

It was the smell of coffee that woke Gavin. Disappointed to find himself alone, he didn't dwell on that fact - nature was calling, loudly. Thankful he had on a long t-shirt, Gavin stood and adjusted himself so it was pointing upward (and hopefully less obvious). Before heading to the bathroom, he folded up the bedding and made the family room more presentable.

"Good morning, Lars," greeted Gavin with smile.

"Good morning, Gavin. Did you and Michael sleep well?" asked Lars, stifling a smirk. The blush he provoked spoke volumes.

"Uh… yeah. Like logs." He hoped Lars didn't notice his blush or his condition and continued to the bathroom. Lars wondered if Gavin meant the use of "logs" as a double entendre.

Passing Lukas' bedroom, he noticed the door was open and peered in, stopping dead in his tracks. It wasn't the way Simon and Lukas were embracing in their sleep, it was Michael's naked ass pointed towards the door as he changed to get ready for lacrosse. Bending slightly at the knees as he ruffled through the gym bag that was on the floor, Simon got a beautiful view of Michael wrinkly rosebud and dangly pink sac holding his almond sized testicles. Gavin felt his whole body flush with heat and what he thought was impossible happened - he got even harder.

He watched as Michael stepped into a black jock strap. Reaching back, he straightened and smoothed out the bands that framed his gorgeous, tight ass before he bent again, shuffling through is clothes to select the perfect outfit for the day. Again, he cheeks parted giving Gavin another view, making the teens mouth water. The thoughts going through Gavin's head were new to him. The things he desired, the things he wanted to do to Michael right at that moment, had never entered his head before. Sure, he'd read about those things in the gay erotica he'd read online, but had never thought about doing them to someone in real life. It was disturbing, but so damn erotic. Gavin started to take a step into the bedroom. As his target disappeared into a pair of black soccer shorts, Gavin realized what he was doing and returned to the mission to relieve himself.

'Shit. I'm never going to be able to go like this.' It was impossible to angle his boner towards the bowl. Without even hesitating, Gavin went to plan B. He turned and started a cold shower.

"Morning…" came a grumble from the bed.

Once his head popped through the neck of his black and yellow Columbus Crew jersey, Michael looked over to see who uttered the almost unintelligible greeting.

"You look like shit," Michael replied with concern.

"Thanks," quipped Lukas before dropped back onto his pillow.

"Com'on!" Michael bent to grab his shoes, he'd carry his cleats and change at the field. "We need to get to the field and set up the goals before everyone gets there."

With surprising accuracy, Lukas nailed Michael with a pillow without even looking.

"Oh, so that's how you want to be," Michael responded. Dropping the shoes on the floor, with two steps he launched himself into the air landing on the bed right beside Lukas who still had his eye closed. Before the sleepy boy could react, Michael wedged one hand into Lukas' armpit and the other his ribs and attacked with tickling fingers. Lukas' scream woke Simon, and the neighbors three houses down.

Gavin hurriedly finished his shower and dried to see what the ruckus was all about. Still wet and drying his hair, he appeared at the bedroom door to see the other three engaged in a rather aggressive tickle fight. Being outside the covers, Michael appeared to have a distinct advantage, even when the two older boys managed to grab him and pull him into the fray. However, when Michael noticed a naked Gavin standing in the doorway drying his hair, Michael completely forgot about the tickle fight, leaving an opening for Lukas and Simon to pounce. Michael's laughter filled the air as both Lukas and Simon attacked from every angle making it impossible for Michael to protect himself.

Gavin proceeded to get dressed, laughing as Michael begged for his help or for mercy from his attackers. Ready for lacrosse, Gavin finally interceded. "Hey guys, get ready. We need to get to the field and set up before everyone gets there."

Lukas stopped and gave Gavin, then Michael, a look of disbelief, its meaning lost on the other three. But for Lukas, it was another observation he filed away. The seriousness Michael and Gavin attack their passions was something the two had in common and possibly something that would make their relationship solid. That is, if he and Simon can get them together. Last night seemed like a good start.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah... I hear ya," grumbled Simon, crawling over a thoughtful Lukas and Michael, who was still recovering from the tickle fight.

"Boys! Breakfast is ready."

That was all it took to get all four moving in the right direct. When they entered the kitchen, they found a mountain of French toast on the table with butter and syrup and Lars at the stove making more.

"Yes!" cheered Michael.

"Perfect! This will get us ready for playing this morning." Gavin took the seat next to Michael and both boys dug in.

A dressed Lukas and Simon entered not long after with eyes as big as saucers when they spied the pile of food. Lukas spied the breakfast fare and Michael's vicious attack of the food on his plate. "What's with you and French toast?" he asked.

"French toast is my faaaavorrite! This tastes just like my mom's!" Michael rattled off with just enough time to take a breath before he shoveled another mouthful into his face.

"That's because your mom told me it was your favorite," Lars said.

Michael smiled realizing that Lars had made it especially for him. After swallowing his bite and chasing it with some ice cold milk, Michael asked with curiosity, "But how does your French toast taste just like my mom's?" Then it occurred to him. "Did she tell you her secret ingredient?" The smile on Lars' face told all.

"She won't even tell ME her secret ingredient! How did you get her to tell you!"

That cracked up the others around the table, but not enough to stop them from devouring the delicious food. Lars brought some more French toast to the table and sat down to join the boys in eating breakfast.

As each of the boys finished, he thanked Lars and rinsed his plate in the sink and headed to brush his teeth and gather his gear for lacrosse. When Simon rinsed his plate, Lukas asked him to grab his stuff too. Simon nodded, knowing what was going to happen. Simon headed to the bedroom and kept the other two busy getting cleats, sticks, and other necessities ready to carry to the high school to give Lukas the time he needed.

Lukas got up and cleaned his plate then approached his father. Lars had pushed back from the table, regretting eating that last piece of French toast. Lukas slipped into his father's lap, put his arms around Lars' neck, and buried his face into the crook of his dad's neck.

Lars wrapped his arms around his son, knowing that these moments had become rare - each possibly being the last as his son grew older.

"What's wrong Jitterbug?" He could feel Lukas give a slight chuckle from hearing the nickname his dad used for him when he was a little tike that never sat still.

"We need to talk later," said Lukas.

"Oh?"

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have looked. But I had to know what had you so upset yesterday. I was scared."

"I'm sorry I didn't communicate with you better yesterday and set your mind at ease. But that doesn't excuse you looking at someone else's private business. I could get in a lot of trouble from you getting into that file." He let that set in before he gave Lukas a squeeze. "I love you, Jitterbug."

"I love you too, daddy." Lukas kissed his dad on the cheek and father and son looked into each other's teary eyes to make certain the other was really okay. Lars saw the pain and fear in Lukas' eyes from what he read in Michael's file. Lukas saw love and sadness in his father's eyes. After another embrace, Lukas hopped up and joined the others.

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The boys were excited by the turn out. Between the middle school, JV and varsity teams, they had nearly 30 players. Michael knew some of the eighth-grade players through Lukas' introductions, and he recognized Luke from Geometry class. Even though Michael only knew a few of the boys there, most everyone knew Michael, at least by name. The middle schoolers knew Michael from his exploits on the soccer pitch in East Harbor's win over Madison. The high schoolers knew him as the little kid attending classes in their building. Not that there was any animosity, but Michael felt the need to prove himself, especially since he'd only started to learn lacrosse just days earlier.

Once everyone had warmed up, Gavin called them all together. "Most of you know me and have even played on the same team with me at one time or another. You know how much I love this sport, and your being here tells me you enjoy it too. I was able to get permission from Coach Lange to use the field for practices and scrimmages any time we want. My hope is, you will join me Saturday mornings and once during the week after school so we can have fun and improve our lacrosse skills. I believe if we make this commitment, there won't be a team in this area that can beat us – including any team from Vista."

All of the boys cheered, but no one louder than Michael. He'd had some good coaches, but none had inspired him the way Gavin did. It was really something different to have a peer put his love and passion for the sport on his sleeve for his teammates to see. Also, it didn't hurt that Michael had a huge crush on Gavin. Michael didn't realize that this is exactly how he inspired his soccer teammates.

The boys started by running basic drills before Gavin organized the boys into teams to scrimmage. He made sure to surround Michael with his friends. He wanted them to be close enough to keep an eye on him and to communicate when he needed direction or to teach him plays or strategies.

After a few times up and down the field, Michael began to understand how the offenses and defenses were setting up and being played. Though he'd watched plenty of lacrosse on TV, being on the field was a lot different. He found the on the field basics of positioning and attacking to be similar strategically to soccer, however the body movement and skills were completely different. Once he was confident he knew where he was supposed to be and what he was supposed to be doing, he was able to focus on his stick and ball handling.

On the way home, the boys recounted great plays and funny gaffs. Michael joined in but was more subdued than the other three. He was analyzing his performance and trying to catalog the different moves, passes and shots he'd seen that he wanted to practice and add to his skill set.

"Earth to Michael. Earth to Michael. Come in Michael." Gavin made his best attempt at mimicking an intercom system.

Finally, Michael's concentration broke and the boy looked up at Gavin and smiled – something he'd been doing much more of lately.

"What's on your mind?"

"I was just going back through practice today, thinking about things I've learned and want to learn so I can get better."

"You're thinking too much," said Gavin, putting his arm around his new little friend. "Just enjoy the game. Everything else will come with time. Besides, you even scored a goal today."

It was true. By the end of practice Michael was able to pass and shoot with power and more accuracy, allowing him to bounce one at the feet of the goalie for a score. Remembering that accomplishment, Michael looked up at Gavin and smile in understanding and agreement. He admired everything about Gavin and craved the older boy's attention. The pair lazily walked down Maple street without a care in the world. Michael did make a mental note that his mother wasn't home, but he would check in with Lars later to see if he'd heard word. At one point, Michael became aware that he was resting his head on Gavin's side and pulled away quickly so no one would notice.

"Awww... don't they look sweet together?" teased Lukas.

"Yeah, they do," agreed Simon. "They're in their own little world right now. Don't even notice that we're standing here waiting on them." Lukas giggled before Simon continued, "I think it's time to move to phase two of my plan."

"Oh really?" inquired Lukas, intrigued that there was more.

"Hurry up slow pokes! We're starving!!" shouted Simon. Both Gavin and Michael looked up and noticed they had fallen way behind their friends.

"Com'on," said Gavin and he broke into a trot. Michael caught up and stayed by his side.

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"Hey boys! How was practice?" greeted Lars from his office.

"Great!" they replied almost in unison followed by laughter since they all said the same thing as they wandered to the kitchen. Lukas took drink orders and passed out the bottles Gatorade and water as requested.

Lukas finished his bottle of water and stared into the open refrigerator when his father entered the kitchen.

"What's for lunch, dad?"

Lars laughed, "You guys are hungry already?"

"I am. Are you guys hungry?" asked Lukas. With headshakes and assenting grunts, they all agreed that food would be good.

"I've got an idea," offered Simon. "Why don't we place an order down at the diner and Gavin and I will walk down to pick it up."

Lukas gave Simon an inquisitive look and the crooked smile on Simon's face told him everything. Step two of his plan, whatever it is, was being put into motion. Not knowing where this was going, Lukas played along. "Yeah dad, that sounds like a good idea. I could really go for a good burger and fries. This way we won't have to mess up the kitchen."

"I'm okay with that," said Lars. The mention of the Maple Street Café triggered his craving for their spicy grilled chicken sandwich and sweet potato fries. Reaching into the kitchen's junk drawer, Lars continued, "Here's a notepad and a menu. Pick out what you want and write it down and I'll call in the order."

After much debate and indecision, the orders were handed to Lars. As Lars related the order to a waitress at the Café, the boys determined what they would do while waiting for the food.

"My dad wants to have a private talk with me today. I think while we wait I'll get that out of the way," said Lukas.

"Well, Gavin and I will walk down to the Café and wait for the food so we can get it will still be hot when we get back," suggested Simon, looking to Gavin to agree with his plan. Gavin gave a nod, even though he was disappointed that he wouldn't be spending that time with Michael.

Michael, for that matter, was feeling a bit left out. He could go check on his mother, but she wasn't home when they walked by. He could go out back and practice his shooting but playing lacrosse by himself just didn't seem that much fun after being with the boys all morning.

"Michael, you can just hang out here – make yourself at home. If you want, I'll show you how to work the entertainment center, or you can hang out in my bedroom, or," as Lukas pulled out his keys, "you can hang out at Simon's. You can use the studio all you want. We'll come get you when the foods here."

Michael hadn't thought of that. He bubbled with excitement has Lukas handed him the keys. "Thanks! Don't forget to get me when the food's here!"

"We won't," smiled Gavin. Michael flashed a smile back and headed out the backdoor and over to the Simon's house.

"We're on our way to the Café, have a good talk with your dad Lukas," said Simon, making direct eye contact with Lukas to have one of their unspoken conversations.

"I will," Lukas assured him.

"Com'on Gavin!" With that the high schoolers walked out the front door.

"Dude, I can't believe how many guys showed up this morning for lacrosse," said Simon. He made small talk while he searched for a way to start the conversation he really wanted to have with Gavin.

"I know, it was awesome. If we continue to work hard like we did today, we're going to be really good this season, from varsity all the way down to the eighth graders," said Gavin, hardly containing his excitement. Lacrosse was important to Gavin for many reasons, not just because he loved the game and playing sports. Gavin planned on going to college and wanted to earn an athletic or academic scholarship. Not that his parents wouldn't help him pay for his schooling, but he didn't want them to have to. His father, Brian, a detective for the East Harbor police force and his mother, a special education teacher, had been frugal with their money and would do anything to support their sons. But when Garrett earned a full music scholarship to USC, Gavin saw how proud they were he got into his school of choice. Now a senior, Garrett had confided in Gavin that he had worked extra hard to earn the scholarship because he didn't want their parents to have to postpone their retirement to pay for his schooling.

Gavin resolved to do the same. Though he couldn't be certain that his interest in going to some sort of biomedical research was because it was his main interest or because it was taught at Johns Hopkins, his favorite collegiate lacrosse program, but that's what he'd set his sights on. He knew that it was going to be difficult to get an academic scholarship to Johns Hopkins, so getting a lacrosse scholarship was his backup plan. In the back of his mind, he knew he'd follow the scholarship, not the academic program he wanted, because he wasn't going to put an economic burden on his parents, but he wanted to make them proud by getting to go to his first choice like Garrett.

Gavin's plan was going better than he realized. There were college recruiters at the lacrosse camp he went to in July. After the camp he learned he was on the list of top prospects in the class of 2020 for many of the top programs nationally, including for Johns Hopkins. All of the programs were waiting to see his progress and maturation before making an offer. The high expectations lit a fire within him to exceed those expectations.

When they arrived at the Café it was busy. With 20 minutes to kill before their order would be ready, the boys took a seat and the far end of the patio area to wait.

"Gavin, I think it is awesome you like Michael and he adores you. But Lukas and I sense something we can't figure out. You do like him, don't you?" began Simon after he decided to just jump into the subject.

Gavin looked at the Splenda packet as he fiddled with it and smiled to himself. "Yeah, I do like Michael. More than I want to," he admitted out loud. It felt good too. "He's incredible. I've never met anyone whose made me feel this way and it's scary. But..." Gavin looked off into the distance and didn't finish his thoughts.

"But what? You two are perfect for each other!" stated Simon. As soon as he said it he could hear Lukas' voice in his head, 'Subtle, aren't we?' Simon reminded himself to work on that.

"He's so young. I feel like a pervert being interested in someone four years younger than me. I mean, he's 11. I would be corrupting him or something. Everybody will think I'm weird." Gavin was surprised he'd confessed so much to Simon, but he found that once he'd finished, he really wanted Simon's feedback.

"Dude don't worry about it. First, you two both want this, so fuck everyone else. Second, if anyone was going to put the kibosh on it, it would be Lars. He's worried that Michael's not ready for it because of everything that happened before he moved here. But all he said was that if you do start something, he'd talk to you both and we should keep tabs on both of you. He's not against it. As a matter of fact, I think he was happy about the way you two got along last night during the movie."

"Really?" Gavin felt that if Lars wasn't freaked out about the idea of he and Michael being a couple, then maybe it really was okay. "What happened before Michael moved here?"

"That's not for me to tell. You have to ask Michael or Lars." Simon paused for a moment to watch Gavin's reaction.

"So, do you want Michael to be your boyfriend?" asked Simon.

Gavin opened his mouth to answer, but the word stuck in his throat. He swallowed and tried again, "Yes."

"Good, I've got a plan. Take it slow with Michael. He and dad are going to start working through some things to continue to help him adjust to the move and stuff," explained Simon with Gavin's full attention. "This will give you time to talk to Lars – he will want to talk to you – before you ask Michael." Gavin nodded in agreement.

"In the meantime, you are going to help me with my plan, and it starts with homecoming this year. The four of us are going to go together – you, me, Lukas and Michael. Cool?"

"As couples?" asked Gavin.

"Well, yes... and no. That's part of my plan. We're going to tell them we're just going as a group of four friends, but then..."

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"Lukas, go ahead and shut the door." Lukas turned and shut the door to his father's office so they would be afforded some privacy particularly in case Michael came back early. Lars did not want the boy to overhear their conversation. When Lukas took a seat across from his father, Lars began.

"First, I can't believe you took the file off my desk without my permission. You've never done anything like this before. I left the files on my desk because I had complete faith and trust in you boys that you would never come into my office and do anything like that. Now I can't leave my office without having a thought cross my mind about having to lock it so you don't do that again. I'm really hurt and disappointed by you and Simon."

Lukas was crying before his dad finished. This made him feel far worse than he'd expected. "I'm sorry dad. Don't blame Simon, he told me not to but I wouldn't listen to him." Wiping his face, he continued. "If I wasn't so scared about what was in the file, I would never have looked. But you were so out of sorts yesterday I got scared. I just had to know. I'm sorry."

"You do realize that if that was a patient file, I would have to report the privacy breach and could possibly be sued by the patient AND lose my license. If that happened, we'd lose everything, including my way of earning our livelihood."

Lukas cried a bit harder. He hadn't considered just how serious those consequences would be. "I'll never do it again. I'm sorry."

"Okay, just know that I love you. I'm disappointed in your behavior, but not you. You got that Jitterbug?"

Lukas managed a half smile, "Yeah, dad."

"Now, about what is in these folders," Lars shifted gears to the real issue they were here to discuss.

"Dad, how could anyone do that to another person? I didn't even recognize Michael in the photos."

"I don't know Lukas. My job, my training, is more focused on how to help boys like Michael who have been victimized, not the perpetrators. The reason the file upset me so much is because of how close we are to Michael – how he's become part of our family. It occurred to me that it could have been you," Lars blotted tears from his eyes.

"You can't say anything to Michael, though. Not yet. I need him to be able to tell me what happened, and then I think it will be a good thing for him to tell you his story in his own words. Knowing what you know, keep an eye on him. He's dealing with a lot right now. But you boys have been wonderful to him – don't change that."

"Can I ask you one question?"

"Sure."

"How did all of this cause his family to fall apart?"

"I'm not sure Lukas. I haven't been through all of the transcripts from the trial and a lot of the documents are redacted."

"What does that mean?"

"That's where they blackout parts of a document to keep it private. This is part of a larger federal investigation so they are keeping certain facts about the case a secret, so they don't expose or tip off people who are suspects in the larger investigation. Does that make sense?"

"I guess."

"Well, when Michael is ready and able, he'll fill us in on some of those gaps. But from what I've been told, Michael was not in the courtroom for much of the trial so there are facts in those folders that he doesn't know. Facts that he may not be ready to learn yet."

Lukas could only nod his head.

"Come here, Lukas."

Lukas walked around the desk and into his father's arms. Pulling his son into his lap, Lars held Lukas and they both enjoyed the closeness while they finished their emotional release.

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Michael entered the backdoor of the Novak residence and quietly made his way to the studio. For Michael, it was kind of spooky. He'd only been in the house a few times and never alone. He'd never even met Simon's mother. 'What if she comes home and finds me here by myself?' However, once Michael was surrounded by instruments, his joy of music pushed the other thoughts out of his mind.

First, he sat on Lukas' stool so he could look at the CDs the boys have been learning. With boxes of CDs littering the space around the stereo, there were two stacks of CDs that appeared to be their favorites. Michael went through the stacks and took notes on his phone. Assuming that the other two already knew all this music, Michael organized the lists accordingly: CDs that he already knew and they could play together now, CDs that he liked and wanted to learn so they could play, and music that he wasn't familiar with and needed to hear. Being the newcomer, Michael took it upon himself to learn their music to fit in, but he also started a list of his favorite songs that he hoped Simon and Lukas would be interested in learning. All in all, he was happy with how much overlap there was in their musical knowledge and tastes.

Sorting through his list of favorite songs, he came across one that made him think of Gavin. He smiled to himself and headed to the piano to play. He put his ear buds in and played the song on his iPhone and looped it. Then played and sang along with the artist. Each time through, Michael remember more of the song, and how to play it. Finally, able to play it straight through without messing up the music or the lyrics, Michael smiled and hit pause on his phone, only to hear the applause of one.

Turning, he took his ear buds out and found Simon standing there listening to him.

"That was really beautiful, Michael. It sounded like you were singing it to someone," Simon observed. Michael gave a little nod and got up off the piano bench. If Simon was there, so was the food.

"Were you singing that for Gavin?" said Gavin, again hearing Lukas' voice telling him to learn to be more subtle.

"Yeah," said Michael. Both boys were surprised that Michael admitted that so easily.

"Michael, can you help me with something?"

"Yeah, sure."

"I've been trying to figure out how to surprise someone and that song would be perfect. Do you think you could help me with the surprise?"

"YES! I love surprising people. Who are we going to surprise?" Michael really wanted to know.

"Foods getting cold, so let's eat now, and then I'll fill you in when we have more time to work out the detail of our plan."

"Alright!! This is going to be so much fun!" Michael was practically bouncing off the walls as they headed to the backdoor.

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"Don't worry about me, I'll play on my phone and listen," said Gavin as crashed on the black leather sofa left over from when the studio was once a family room.

"What do you guys want to play first?" asked Lukas.

"I don't know," stated Simon, uncertain as to how to get the ball rolling. Each boy was worried that if he picked a song someone didn't know or didn't like, the others would think he was being pushy.

"I looked through your CDs earlier and I think I can play a lot of the stuff you guys play. What songs are your latest favorites to play?" asked Michael.

"Well, we've been playing 'Dookie' a lot," said Lukas, referring to the Green Day album.

"I know that," said Michael. That was one of Matthew's favorite albums, so he knew it by heart, though he hadn't played it in months. "What's your favorite song to play?"

"I really like 'Long View,'" offered Simon. "What about you Lukas?"

"Yeah, let's play 'Long View,'" Lukas agreed. The drum and bass lines were a lot of fun to play.

"I haven't played it in a long time, so I need to practice it a bit before we play together, is that okay?" asked Michael a bit unsure of himself.

"We should all practice a bit before we play it together," agreed Simon, trying to get his fingers warmed up to play.

"Simon, do you have a notebook I could borrow? I want to write out the lyrics in case I don't remember them."

"Sure, let me go grab one from my bedroom." Simon ran up the stairs and returned with a new notebook and a couple pens.

Michael picked up one of the guitars, made sure it was unplugged from the amp, popped his ear buds in and sat down and wrote out the lyrics and refreshed his memory of how to play the song. Simon turned off his amp and worked through some warm-up exercises and started practicing the bass line for 'Long View' and Lukas joined in. Gavin, with his legs thrown over the back of the couch, caught up with friends on social media. But as the trio worked out their parts, Gavin started becoming more and more interested in listening to his friends.

Lukas set up a seldom used mic over his drum kit. Though they had plenty of microphones and stands. Lukas and Simon were not in the habit of singing along while they played, but Lukas decided that if Michael was going to sing lead, they should pitch in and sing the backing vocals, even if this song didn't have much for them to sing.

By the time Michael was ready to try out the song, the room was arranged so the three boys would be in a triangle. Lukas would have Michael facing him from over his snare on the left, while Simon would be to the right. This arrangement allows the boys to see each other while they played.

Noticing the boys were getting ready to start, Gavin picked up his phone and turned it to video. In a whisper he hoped only his phone could hear, Gavin began to document the moment. "Okay everyone, this should be interesting. It's time for history to be made. If these guys become famous, you'll be hearing the first song they every played together as a band. Here's Simon Novak, Lukas Meijer, and Michael Grant playing 'Long View' by Green Day." No one noticed that Gavin was recording.

The song happened to be a great choice. Lukas started with the drums to get the song going and Simon joined in a few bars later with the bass line. It was a bit strange for them to not be playing along to the CD, but they'd done it so many times the song came naturally.

When Michael joined in with vocals, it all fit together like they'd been practicing the song together for a while. Gavin enjoyed the song and was blown away when Michael reached the lyrics "and I'm fucking lazy" and tore into the guitar. Simon and Lukas lifted their energy level to match Michael's, elevating the performance. The more they played and Michael became more comfortable, his personality and showmanship started coming through and made the other three laugh.

From Gavin's vantage point, he could see Michael's change from playing to performing. He took that as his queue to get closer with his camera. As the song played on, Gavin worked his way behind Lukas so the camera could see his work on the drum kit, and Michael's and Simon's faces while they performed the song.

When the song ended, Gavin ended the recording screamed, "HOLY SHIT THAT WAS GOOD!"

"That was fun," added Lukas. "I can't believe how much more fun it is to play together without the music than when we play with the CDs."

Simon just grinned and nodded. He was so excited he didn't know what to say.

"You know what," Gavin started to say, then interrupted himself by tapping on his phone. "I think you guys.. (more tapping) should (tap tap tap) be in the talent show. It's next Thursday night."

Simon was the first to react, "Are you CRAZY? That's less than a week away!"

"And I have a soccer game on Thursday," added Michael. Lukas just nodded, agreeing with the other two. The closest he's come to ever performing in front of a crowd was playing lacrosse – and those crowds were just parents. He wasn't sure he wanted to play the drums in front of people.

Gavin did some more work on his phone. "According to the online schedule, your game Thursday is at home. You'll be finished by dinner and will have plenty of time to get to the talent show. It doesn't start until 7:30."

"But isn't the talent show for high schoolers?" asked Lukas in an attempt to thwart this idea.

Gavin tapped his phone a few more times. "The rules on the signup sheet state that the majority of performers in group acts must be East Harbor High School students, the remaining members can be as young as seventh graders and can even be from other school districts."

Lukas made one more attempt. "If that's the case, our band is three people, and Michael and I are eighth graders so most of our band is not East Harbor High students so we don't qualify to perform." Lukas gave an emphatic nod to punctuate his point, pleased he had made the case for not performing.

"True, but technically, I think you do qualify. Michael, don't you have a student ID for the high school?"

"Yeah," answered Michael just as he was getting where Gavin was going with this.

"So technically, Simon and Michael are both students at the high school and they make up two-thirds of the band. You guys can participate in the talent show!"

"Isn't it too late to sign up," asked Lukas. He could tell that Michael and Simon were starting to warm up to the idea. Being past the registration date was his last hope of getting out of this situation.

"Don't worry about that, the school always makes exceptions for new students so they can be included and participate," added Gavin, oblivious to Lukas' apprehension and anxiety.

"Then its settled. Simon, let's go print out a registration form. And we need to come up with a name for your band."

Simon and Gavin headed to the home's office to print off a signup sheet leaving Lukas and Michael in the studio.

"You don't want to do this, do you?" asked Michael.

"I don't know," said Lukas. "I've never played in front of an audience before. What if I screw up and embarrass everyone?"

"You didn't just now. You're a really good drummer and I'd be proud to be on the stage with you," said Michael with complete sincerity. "I'm nervous too, but it seems to mean a lot to Simon and Gavin. And if Simon wants to do it, I'm gonna do it for him."

He knew Michael didn't mean to give him a guilt trip, but that's how it felt. After all, Simon has been his best friend for as long as he could remember. If Michael was going to step out of his comfort zone to support Simon, he surly had to do the same. With a sigh, Lukas gave in. "Alright, I'll do it. But we get to pick out the band name and the song we'll play."

"That sounds fair. Let's see if we can figure that out before they come back," said Michael. They began brain storming ideas and songs.

Gavin and Simon returned to find Michael and Lukas sitting on the floor behind the drum kit in a serious discussion over songs.

"We filled out the registration form, we just need the name of the band and what song we'll perform."

"We came up with a band name," said Lukas.

"No, you came up with the name and it is brilliant," corrected Michael. "Tell them."

"Courage Game," stated Lukas.

"Isn't that cool? And it also has lots of meanings that fit us," added Michael.

"I kinda like it, but what does it mean," asked Simon.

"Wait, I saw something about that." Gavin tried to recall where he'd heard that name before.

"Remember the story about the 12-year-old lacrosse player that outed himself when he tried to get his teammates to stop gay bashing?" Lukas gave them a moment to recall the ESPN SportsCenter feature.

"Oh yeah," said Gavin, "Isn't The Courage Game a lacrosse fundraiser for LGBT youth?"

"Exactly," said Lukas, "and it is exactly what this all is for us, a game for us to get up the courage to perform at the talent show. Besides, I think our name should be Courage Game, not THE Courage Game."

"Courage Game it is," stated Gavin just before he put it on the registration form. "I wrote it in ink so it's official." The boys laughed.

"Now what song are we going to play?" asked Simon.

"Well, Michael and I figured we should stick with something off Dookie since we already know the songs," offered Lukas. "Michael said he just needs to knock off the rust. We came up with these four as possibilities. We wanted to pick something that shows off our abilities, but at the same time are high-energy so we can really rock it out."

"Let's practice them and see which one works best," decided Simon.

The boys practiced up until it was time to eat and Gavin managed to record each of the four songs. After dinner, they convened in Lukas' bedroom. After watching all four videos, they agreed to let Gavin post three of the videos on social media, but they didn't want their talent show song to be revealed until the contest.

"I'm on it," stated Gavin, the band's self-appointed marketing and social media manager. He posted the first video he recorded, 'Long View,' then posted a video of the boys playing 'Basket Case' and 'When I Come Around.'

Everyone in the Meijer household gathered in the family room for another movie night. Gavin took his laptop to work on promoting the band. He sat on the floor with the computer on the coffee table so he could work and watch TV. Michael sat behind him, watching as Gavin created a YouTube channel and Facebook page for the band. Using photos he took with is camera that afternoon, he set about branding the band's social media pages. Then he posted the videos on YouTube and shared them on the band's Facebook page. Next, he switched over to his own social media accounts to share the band's pages across his own Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat accounts, tagging everyone he was connected to so they would see. By the time the movie ended the videos began getting views, likes and shares. But Gavin had closed the laptop before the buzz really started.

The movie ended and it was still relatively early for teen boys on a Saturday night, but with lacrosse in the morning and hours of practice in the afternoon, they were tired – especially Simon and Lukas. A late night of reading Michael's case file and the restless sleep had both boys wanting to go to bed.

"We're hitting the sack," Simon announced. With a yawn and stretch, he got up and helped Lukas up off the sectional. "Good night guys," was all he said before they headed to bed. Lukas gave a wave and followed.

Lars decided to head to bed so he could get some reading in before going to sleep. He was enjoying Robert McCammon's third book in the Matthew Corbet series, 'Mister Slaughter.' It was a nice break from reading professional research and case files, especially after spending time reading the trial transcripts he was sent regarding Michael.

"I'm going to bed too, boys," said Lars. "You guys can sleep here on the couch again, or use the spare bedroom by Lukas' room. You know where that is, right Gavin?"

Gavin nodded, "Yes, I've stayed in there before." Some of Lukas and Simon's sleep overs spilled out of Lukas' room and into the guest bedroom, living room, family room and anywhere else boys end up falling asleep.

"Here are the remotes. You guys have a good night." With that Lars headed off to bed.

"Want to watch another movie?" asked Gavin.

"Sure, pick whatever you want," said Michael, happy that Gavin wanted to send more time with him.

"Ok." Gavin started flipping through movies and started 'Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.' "Get comfy," he suggested to Michael.

Michael piled up some pillows to prop him up so he could watch the movie. Gavin, turned onto his side and pulled the pillows, and then Michael, closer. Once Michael was nestled into the pillows, Gavin slid his right arm under the boy and placed his left hand on Michael's chest. He looked at the boy's profile and couldn't stop himself. Before he decided against it, Gavin quickly placed a quick peck on Michael's left cheek. Uncertain how Michael would react, he held his breath. Michael, first surprised by the gesture, turned to look at Gavin who was staring into his eyes. Without a word, Michael leaned in and placed a kiss on Gavin's lips and then he pulled back waiting to see what Gavin's reaction would be. It was Gavin's turn to be surprised, that wasn't the reaction he expected from Michael. After the shock wore off, he gave Michael a huge grin that was returned by the smaller boy who, for a moment, thought he'd made a big mistake. Michael situated himself again to watch the movie, but this time he was snuggled up against Gavin's chest, wrapped in the older boy's arms. That's just how they fell asleep before the end of the movie.

Lukas' bedroom was another story. As they undressed for bed, Simon asked Lukas about the talk with his father. Lukas sat down on his bed and relayed as much as he could to Simon, who had seated himself at Lukas' desk. Simon felt horrible letting Lars down and the two boys vowed they'd never do that again – ever. The other parts Lukas remembered did help put some of the information they gathered into perspective and explained away the parts they didn't know or understand. But the most important thing Simon took away from the discussion was that Michael's troubles are deeper and more horrible than they thought, and he needed them more than Simon thought. They agreed to continue to look after Michael and this possible relationship with Gavin.

Simon brushed his teeth first and when Lukas returned from his nightly maintenance, he found a naked Simon laying on top of the covers waiting for me. The blond paused to soak in the beauty of his long-time bedmate. Lukas removed the tenting towel from his waist and tossed it in the hamper. He turned out the lights and found his way to the bed and in between Simon's legs. Kneeling, Lukas pushed Simon's knees out and up a bit to expose his target. Then adjusted his position, Lukas planted his face between Simon's ball sac and thigh. Simon groaned with pleasure.

Lukas licked around to the side of the sac then took one testicle, then the other, into his mouth, giving each a loving tongue bath. Lukas' toe-curling ministrations quickly raised Simon's temperature and drew hisses and moans from the older teen. Moving his left hand into a better position to balance his weight, Lukas licked up the underside of Simon rock hard cock and began lapping up the delicious, dripping precum. With his right hand, Lukas grabbed his own erection to pull back his foreskin and rub precum around his head.

Satisfied that he was getting Simon close, Lukas opened wide and took Simon's entire length into his mouth. Then he slowly masturbated himself in time with his mouth on Simon. Each boy's excited grew as Lukas worked them both to orgasm. Simon didn't say anything, his breathing just sped up before he grunted and unloaded into Lukas' mouth. The first splash of cum in his mouth triggered Lukas' orgasm. He snorted and tried to breathe as his body shuddered through a much-needed release. All the while he swallowed in an attempt to not waste a single drop of Simon's essence.

The boys didn't move as they came down from their orgasms. Lukas finally let Simon drop from his mouth so he could breathe easier, resting his head on Simon's pelvis as he gasped for air. When Lukas felt his strength return, he gave Simon one final tongue bath then licked his way up the teen's body. Lukas slid his left arm around Simon's neck and supported himself by placing his right hand on Simon's opposite shoulder. Throwing his right leg over Simon's leg, Lukas gave Simon a passion filled kiss that took both boy's breath away. Simon grabbed Lukas and held him tight. Breaking the kiss to get some air, Lukas relaxed his body into Simon's and both boys fell into a peaceful sleep.

   
         
   

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