If you are offended by male/male relationships and sexual relationships, or homoerotic situations and scenarios, then please leave, for your own benefit. If this conduct is illegal in your area, or if you are underage, you must leave. Otherwise, enjoy. This is copyrighted by me, so please don't copy or steal, ask and you'll be rewarded (maybe).
Chapter 3
School
-----Darren-----
I looked nervously at him as he stared at me with a calculating gaze. I wasn't quite sure what he was up to, but it unnerved me, to say the least. It was almost as if he was trying to disprove something that was true, and accepted as true. Uneasily, I fidgeted in my seat, awaiting my chance to leave, or preparing to bolt if the need arose. All of a sudden, as if waking from a daze, Brendan smiled back at me, hesitant to meet my eyes.
"Sorry about that, I got lost in my own thoughts for a second. It's just that I know Emma. We're very good friends and we talk about a lot of things. You happened to be one of the things we used to talk about and meeting you here is just so unexpected. Sorry, I guess I overreacted, huh?" He smiled back at me, holding my gaze for a few seconds before unlocking the car. "Do you mind if I tag along? I haven't seen Emma since I've been out and I really would appreciate it if I could just say hi."
The question was weird, but it was absurd for him to ask me. It was polite, yes, but highly unnecessary. Unless of course, which was probably the case, he felt I wanted some time alone with her. I wanted to tell him I did want to talk to her, to find out why he knew about me, and what it all meant. But what kind of a person would I have been if I had denied the man who had given me a ride in a storm the right of entrance into a house that wasn't even mine. I nodded before getting out and rushing out of the car, attempting to remain as dry as possible. I rang the doorbell hoping Emma would quickly open up, I don't think I could have stood another few minutes with Brendan alone.
There was something about him that made me feel ambivalent. On one side, he was extremely appealing to the eyes. No doubt about that, I'm sure he had a string of worshippers lined up for him at school. If I had met him back at my old school, even my old life, I would have undoubtedly tried to at least get to know him as a friend and even better, if he was gay. Now, of course, I just wanted to be let alone until I could once again reestablish a part of myself in this world. Now, on the flip side of the coin, his eyes were dark. Not the kind of dark that's reminiscent of mystery or mischief, but an eviler blackness. It chilled me to the bones every time I met his eyes. Deadly beauty would be the perfect way to describe them.
Emma opened up looking ghastly white. At the sight of me she flung her hands over me and started sobbing into my shoulder.
"Oh my god Darren, I was so scared. I had no idea that a storm was approaching or I would never have let you gone out. Thank god you're ok. Your parents must have been watching over their son. Whatever divinity of heaven granted this miracle, I thank you." She pressed me tight as she sought to control her emotions. I couldn't raise my eyes to meet Brendan's gaze but I knew he was intently gazing at the interaction between Emma and me.
I patted her gently on the back before stepping back from her. "It's okay Emma, I'm fine. Really, nothing happened. Don't worry about it." She slowly nodded her head but her face was still contorted with worry and concern. I was touched by her empathy, but I was not surprised. Emma was the kind of person that would go to any depths of worry to make sure someone was ok and until she had concrete proof, she'd be the classical mother hen. Turning around, she gasped a little as she noticed Brendan for the first time.
"Brendan! What are you doing here?" He smiled gleefully at her; I think he was slightly thankful that he could finally enter the conversation.
"Well, I was on my way over to Kyle's house for the party when I spotted Darren walking. When the storm started to worsen, I remembered him walking and dashed back to see if he was ok. Luckily, I was able to catch him before it got truly ugly out there." Emma seemed to accept that answer for now but deep down, I knew she was nowhere through with him. It looked like it was going to be a long night, something I did not need right now. All the human interaction after a long time of no contact had me exhausted, wishing for my pillow and comforter.
"Darren, dear, why don't you go up and change out of those wet clothes. You want a pair B?"
"Nah, I'm cool. Mind if I crash on the couch?" Entering, he took off his wet shoes before shaking his hair to get out all the moisture that had accumulated on the porch. Emma snorted a little to show her contempt at his antics. I made my way up to the room as I shed my shirt and picked up a towel to dry off. I rummaged through my drawer when I felt a slight chill take over the room. I felt eyes on my back which made the hairs on my neck stand on end. Slowly, I turned around to find Brendan there, his eyes transfixed on my mid section.
I was horrified, positive he was staring at the long scars that were running down my abdomen. The wounds had healed, but the scars had remained. The doctors said they would fade in about a month. Apparently the incisions had not been deep enough to permanently scar anything. I was very lucky for that.
In vain I tried to cover myself with the comforter of the bed. My actions seemed to have disturbed Brendan from his reverie because he looked down, blushing a crimson red. I stared at him, hoping he'd either leave or tell me what he wanted. I didn't like his eyes on me, the way he seemed to be piecing me apart or something. Not only that, I didn't want him to ask any questions. True, my scars were faint, but they were still there. I just hoped he was not inquisitive.
"Umm^ÅEmma told me to ask you for a towel." He stood there looking at me guiltily. I wish he'd just walk out of the room so I could finish changing but he seemed rooted to the spot. I could always ask him to leave, but I opted for a different approach.
"The towels are in the second cabinet, from the top, in the bathroom. It's the second door on your left, can't miss it." With that, I turned my back to him. It was only after I felt clam again did I resume changing my clothes. I changed quickly, hoping that he would not reenter the room and disturb my peace. Luckily, he didn't. I quickly made my way downstairs to find him and Emma talking about his apparent vacation. He was describing it with great vividness. Taking a seat on the same couch as Emma had branded her own, I listened in for a few words.
"Yeah, the roller coaster just stopped for about ten seconds, and those were the longest ten seconds of my life. I thought it'd never end, but when it did, I felt like they were too short." He laughed at his own anecdote which I quickly grew bored with. My wind was wandering which it was doing a lot lately. I wanted to get up and get some sleep, but it was not to be.
"Ah Darren, there you are. I almost thought you were going to go take a shower. Brendan here has kindly offered to give you rides to school and back." She smiled at me, putting her hand protectively around me whilst I seethed in rage. She knew I hated being babysat, this was no different. I turned to see Brendan but his face was unreadable. His eyes shone with the same glint they had during the small altercation a few moments ago.
"Thank you Brendan but there's hardly any need. I love to walk and the school's not that far. If anything does come up though, I will definitely ask you." Definitely my ass I thought to myself. Until I figured out who he was and what his intentions were, I needed to place as much distance as possible between him and me. Of course, the sparse four feet between him and me was not helping, but it would soon change. Very soon, I hoped.
Luckily, his cell started to ring and he politely excused himself. He went outside to talk and I wasn't able to catch his words. At the same time, he could not hear what I wanted to say to Emma, so it worked out in the end.
"Emma, what are you doing? You know I don't want any ride to school, you know I want to stay low key. From what I can tell, sticking around Brendan won't help me at all to stay low." Her eyes were still moist with the roller coaster of emotions she had gone through but they had softened a little more when I asked her this.
"I know Angel, but I really think it'll be impossible for you to stay low key. At least with Brendan, I know him and he'll be able to keep an eye out for you." I snorted and she looked at me quizzically, eyebrows raised.
"Yeah, he'll keep an eye on me all right." She seemed surprised to hear this and tilted her head as a signal for me to continue. "He came upstairs and was staring at me for god knows how long while I had my shirt off. His eyes were transfixed. He saw everything Emma, the scars are still dark enough to see. You don't think he'd make anything of it, do you?" She sighed a little and stared out at the window.
"I don't know Angel. I doubt he'd say anything. But be careful. I'm sure it'll amount to nothing. After all, he's a good kid, deep down. He may not seem it but he's not bad. Perhaps a little vain, shallow, and even a party animal, but deep down, where it really matters, he's not bad." I couldn't believe the words that were flowing out of her mouth. Every pore in my body was giving me the contradicting answer, but somehow, I knew Emma would never lie to me. Maybe I was being too judgmental. After all, it had only been but an hour since I had met him. First expressions aren't always true. Oh how much I had learned that lesson.
"Maybe Emma. Maybe I'm being stupid or prejudiced, but he seems unbelievably superficial. It's bugging me. I'm not usually like this. I don't know what's happening. Maybe it's all the nerves. Damn it, I wish I could figure this out." I pulled my knees to my chest as I fought my inner demons as they fought to be released.
Brendan reentered the room looking a little unnerved. It must have been an interesting call. I know it was bitchy of me, but I couldn't resist.
"Do you need to leave Brendan?" He seemed a little taken back, but fortunately, I had kept my voice from sounding hopeful.
"No, it's ok. It was just Kyle calling to see if I was going to make it." He left it at that, not finishing. I was fuming inside. Why couldn't this Kyle have forced him to leave? I'm sure there was something that could have made Brendan leave, but I just had to find it.
Emma punched me in the rib slightly eliciting a small hiss from me. I turned to her to see she had her hand covering her mouth, horrified at what she had done. Her eyes were wide but I shot her a glare that told her to shut up. I didn't need to give Brendan any more suspicions of what was going on. Unfortunately, I cursed the bad luck of mine; I found him staring intently at us.
"Umm^Åare you ok Darren?" it almost sounded like genuine concern but I checked myself before gingerly shifting onto the spot where Emma had accidentally hit me.
"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just a sore spot." I knew at that instant he knew what those scars might have meant. I knew, from looking at his dark green eyes, that he was slowly but surely calculating my story. Why I was here with Emma, why I was to attend school here. If he only knew how wrong he was.
"Well B, it's getting late. You have school tomorrow. You better head home." I was thankful to Emma for asking him to leave but I was uneasy that she lamely put together such a reason. It was apparent that he wanted to stay, and even more so that he had expected a long night. After all, he did have a party planned. Nonetheless, I was grateful for her attempt.
"Yeah, you're right Emma." I was shocked to say the least. Inside, I was doing jumping-jacks and tumbles of ecstasy. "Well it was wonderful seeing you again. I hope we can talk again real soon. And Darren," he turned to me, his hand outstretched, "it was a pleasure meeting you. If you need anything or a ride to school, call me. Emma has my number, so no worries there." He smiled and I smiled back, much to my resistance. My emotions were getting the better of me. I gave him my hand to shake but he grasped it and pulled me up. "Walk with me?"
I looked out side and to my great chagrin, the rain had stopped. I groaned internally before quickly glancing at Emma. She nodded her head and gave me a small smile. I cursed my luck thinking how unfair this was. I just wanted to go to sleep. Sleep, damn it. Turning to him, I nodded, my chin remaining rigid. He led the way outside and to his car.
The lawn was still moist with the new batch of rain it had received. The moonlight caught in the dewdrops and reflected the darkness around us. I looked up to notice he was staring at me again. I was seriously getting tired of it and I was getting angrier every time he did it. I just wanted to be left alone, at least till college. But apparently, he didn't want me to.
"Listen Darren, if you need anything at school, don't hesitate to ask. Just find me and we'll work it out. You sure you don't want a ride? I mean it's really no problem for me." Forcefully, I found my voice in response to his.
"Really Brendan, don't sweat it. I can walk, it's no problem. It's good exercise too." He laughed a little and I raised my eyebrows to him
"You, my friend, don't need any exercise. I doubt there's any fat on you." I narrowed my eyes. What did that mean, no fat on me? One thing I knew though, he had been watching me intently. The thoughts perturbed me to say the least but I shook it off. "Sorry, I guess that was a little unnecessary huh? But really, don't hesitate to ask. For anything." He smiled coyly before hopping into his car.
I didn't like the way he had said anything. It implied so many things, none of which I wanted to try with him. I waved my hand slightly before quickly running back inside. I snuggled into my spot in the living room before speaking up.
"Alright Emma, spill. Why does he know me?" She shook her head before standing up.
"Well Angel, Brendan and I are really good friends. I had met him at a restaurant, but that's a story for another day. Anyway, he used to come over and tell me his problems and I'd listen to him. We got real close and slowly, I too opened up to him. After all, it was only fair since he had put so much faith in me. The things he told me, you'd be surprised of." She smiled fondly, remembering the memory. I cleared my throat to get her attention back on me. "Sorry, where was I?" She smiled as I shook my head.
"You were about to tell me why he knows about me." She nodded and continued pacing in the room.
"Well, one day, we were going through some pictures when he saw you. I don't think I had ever seen him so excited. He was practically jumping up and down. He pointed to you and said, `who is he?' You should have seen him, he was so cute. And when I took a closer look and noticed it was you, I couldn't resist, it poured out of me." I contemplated what she had just said. Why had he been so excited when he had seen me?
"Emma, why was he excited when he saw me?" She looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Smiling sheepishly, she turned her head to face more directly as she sat directly in front of me.
"It's not my place to say Angel. But knowing you, you've already put together two and two." She had inadvertently confirmed my suspicions, he was gay and he was after me. I groaned as I fell back against the wall.
"Please tell me he has some kind of boyfriend or something. I don't want to deal with him right now, I have plenty enough on my plate." She chuckled but continued.
"Honey, he's not a dater. Not a long-term dater or anything. So don't worry." I smiled to myself before closing my eyes.
"I thought you said you couldn't tell me if he was gay or not?" She punched me, this time, in my arm before responding.
"I didn't say he was gay now did I? You really oughtn't jump to conclusions, you know." Oh I knew alright, knew real well.
"Well, thanks for the heads up Emma. I'll watch myself. I'm going to go to bed. Tomorrow's a big day for me." I stood up before giving her my hand to get up. We walked up the stairs together before we stopped at the top. She gave me a slight kiss on the cheek and I hugged her tight.
"Sweet dreams, Angel. I will always love you."
"You too Emma. Take care girl." I hugged her tight again before we split and headed in opposite directions. Entering my room, I looked and found my school stuff. Everything was in order, all I needed to do was get my schedule the next morning. Another semester and I'd be out to college, and hopefully, a better life.
Chunking my shirt, I opened the door to my bathroom before quickly washing my face and brushing. Returning, I dropped my pants and changed into PJs. PJs are the best, soft and comfortable. Very warm. I decided to leave the top off for now and instead used the comforter for warmth. I prayed for my parents before closing my eyes.
My eyes flew open about two minutes later realizing I had not set the alarm. Some stroke of luck had somehow reminded me about it. Leaning over, I set the alarm for 6:00 A.M. Nice and early, the best time for a run. I wanted to go out for a jog before going to school. Jogs had always refreshed me and prepared me for the long day ahead. Although the air here would be more crisp, it'd actually probably be better since it would awaken me faster.
Returning to the warmth of my bed, I closed my eyes. Sleep slowly came to me and I dreamed of pretty, fluffy, pink things floating in the air. Actually, I didn't have any dreams, but I've always wondered what it'd be like to dream of such innocent things. Who knows?
TBC: Chapter 4: Run-Ins
Author's Note:
Hey guys, thanks for all your help in respect to the questions in my last chapter. I've decided to continue with dual-set up since I received pretty mixed feelings on this, slightly leaning toward the dual-set up. However, from now on, I will begin the next chapter where I had left off the old one. I realize you will not be able to get what the other boy feels for the previous chapter, but that's what your imagination is for (amuse me here). Actually, I'm pretty sure you'll be able to figure it out yourself. Secondly, for the sex scenes, most likely, I will limit them to the very beginnings of sex, maybe continue them if they're very important to the story. Otherwise, most will be left for you to gesticulate. Sorry about this, and if you're truly bothered, email me. Thirdly, I realize my posting is slow. I'm sorry for this but I have only time on the weekends to write and respond to your emails. I'm truly sorry for this, but this is as fast as I can do them. I'm dying to know what you guys this about the two boys, so please send me some feedback.
If you have any comments or suggestions, please email me at: dreemarz@yahoo.com