David and Tristan

DAVID & TRISTAN-BOYS IN SCHOOL is a continuation of the story, Boys on the Farm, about David and Tristan. If sex between male teenagers is offensive to you or if you are underage then you should move on to something else. DAVID & TRISTAN- BOYS IN SCHOOL is a work of pure fiction -- the characters and the events do not represent any person or situation. Copyright (c)2000 by D.Z., all rights reserved. Please do not post in any other forum, newsgroup, or publication.

PREFACE:

In the preface of my last chapter I talked about the power of words and how Jonathan emailed me to say that I changed his world. Many of my readers made mention of last chapter's preface in their emails to me which made me feel really good because I almost didn't include that...I was afraid it would perceived as being too "preachy". I want to say "thank you" once more to all of you that wrote and told me thet prologue to chapter 7 was meaningful to you.

And then there are times when those emails will touch something in me like this next one. It's from a guy from down South named Ryan and he had this to say, "I am quite ashamed to say this is my first e-mail I have sent you but have been an avid fan of the story since it first hit Nifty in the early part of '99. I was hooked from the very beginning because I grew up and still live in a very small rural town and the Brandt farm almost seemed like home. I can only pray to have one day what David and Tristan have found in each other. Your story gives me hope and I draw great strength from that. I am still very much in the closet and can't imagine being out here. People still cling to traditional values and that being gay is something that bad and immoral people "choose" to be. Don't get me wrong, I love it here. The South holds a beauty to itself that has to be experienced to be understood but I can't see myself being who I truly am and being honest with everyone. I can definitely relate to how David is afraid his family will find out especially his father. No one knows about me, not even my closest friends. I would give anything if I could just tell them and know everything would be o.k."

Whew! Isn't that some email? I think Ryan speaks for many guys in what he said. No need to be ashamed of anything, Ryan. I understand exactly how you feel. And so do many others like us. My hope too is that some day you will find your heart's desire. But remember this, you have to empower yourself to do so. If you need to move away from that area in order to be yourself, then start making plans to do so. Be true to yourself...only then can you really begin to be happy deep down inside where it counts. Ryan, for what it's worth, I have a hug waiting just for you!

Something that never fails to amaze me time and time again is the fact that there is nothing new under the sun. Do you remember in the last chapter I wrote about Johnson, the kid who lost one of his nuts in an accident? Jack H, a very faithful email friend, wrote to tell me that he also knew of a guy who lost a testicle as a teenager.

In a moment I'll include his words...but before that I have to tell you something more about Jack. He is an extraordinary person. First, I want to tell you that he's a World War II veteran and he fought in the Pacific Theater. Each of us owes Jack and all veterans a tremendous debt of gratitude because they put their lives on the line to protect our country and its freedoms, which we enjoy today. Jack's generation is fading away, but I am so thankful to know him and to hear his stories. Yes, he has told me quite a number of stories, all of which are true and quite fascinating. The first one he told me was sparked by my writing Boys on the Farm, and it reminded him of his experiences on a cousin's farm during his teen years. By the way, Jack is married and has a family of his own. So here's my personal "thank you" to Jack for all the things he has done and shared with me. Thank you Jack, I am honored to be your friend.

Now here's what Jack had to say about Johnson in the last chapter-- "#7 was ok. Just like kids in high school. All f****d up. There was a kid in my class who only had one nut. He lost one at age 15 bronk riding. We called him Split Pee. He wasn't ashamed about it. Would show his nut to anyone who wanted to look. The one was much larger then the average. Didn't cause him any trouble. He fathered five kids. Three boys and two girls. He would say, 'If the old lady doesn't quit getting pregnant, I'm going to have the other one removed.' As I remember he had a better then average dick."

See what I mean? Each email is like getting a birthday present. You don't know what is inside until you open it and then the wonderful gift of shared experiences (which I tend to call 'stories') is found inside. I apologize for the long-winded prologue this time. Now, here's what you've been waiting for, Chapter 8!

CHAPTER 8. RELATIONSHIPS IN TRANSITION.

David and Tristan raced to the Oak Park swimming pool on their bikes, taking shortcuts wherever possible. They cut through the Midwest Trucking lot, hopped the railroad tracks and flagrantly disregarded all traffic rules such as stop signs and riding on the wrong side of the street in their haste to meet up with Jason and Chris. Their muscular young bodies were at their peak, displaying the prowess of their sculpted young male forms that were so beautiful and capable of seemingly effortless, sustained exertion. The wind they created speeding through the town helped cool them as David led them towards their destination.

Their squealing bicycle brakes heralding their arrival, they swung off their bikes while still in motion and hastily jammed them into the racks at the pool located within Oak Park. They had spotted Jason and Chris waiting for them from within the shade of a tree nearby and ran over to where Jason and Chris were waiting. Reclining on the grass, those two boys gave the restrained and "kewl" wave that guys give to each other in recognition.

"Been waiting long?" David asked as he and Tristan reached the other pair of boys.

"Nah, we've only been here a couple of minutes. The pool won't be open until 1:30 and that's..." Jason checked his watch and said, "another 5 minutes or so."

David and Tristan joined the other two boys by sitting down on the grass, Tristan sitting with his legs crossed in front of him, David sat with his legs bent up in front and spread apart. To the ordinary eye it looked like any gathering of boys waiting to get into the pool, but to someone who paid attention to body language, it was obvious from their proximity and actions that there were two distinct pairs of boys under that tree.

"Say David, what was the little problem you had to go take care of when I called you a bit ago?" Jason grinned as he teased David and then giggled in his usual unrestrained mirth.

"Yeah, you and Tristan too busy to talk with us, or what?" Chris chimed in.

"Nah, we weren't too busy to talk with ya. Jimmy was making a real pest of himself so I had to kick him out of my room," David downplayed the whole incident.

Tristan just sat there with a smile on his face. Inside his head was an entirely different emotion. He couldn't help but question whether David really wanted to make love with him that afternoon. All day long it seemed that everything else came first to David.... First it was football, then Jason called, and then Jimmy barged on in. Tristan was frustrated...physically and emotionally. Tristan was feeling the need to have David love him back the way he loved David.

"Oh yeah? So what was the big emergency then? You hung up on me right after I heard Jimmy say, 'Tristan, your dick is huuuuuuuuuge,'" and Jason and Chris began to laugh uproariously. "We want to know what really happened," they gasped out together.

David's face flushed with embarrassment. "I was hoping you hadn't heard that," David said ruefully. "OK, you guessed it. We were busy when you called but I knew Jimmy wouldn't shut up until I took the call. He slipped into my room and caught Tris as he was starting to get dressed."

Jason chortled in evident delight as he turned to Chris to say, "See what I told ya?" before turning back to Tristan and asking, "So what did you do then?"

"Ummmmmmm, not much. He got a good look at it and then David pushed him out. He's a nice kid but Jimmy is so snoopy. He wants to know everything David is doing."

"Ohhhhh, that's not so good, is it David?" Jason understood right away. He and David had talked about how David's dad hated gays and as a result Jason was very guarded and subdued whenever he was at David's house, contrary to his usual self.

"Nope, not good at all. I don't think he'll say anything to my dad, but if he does we've got it covered. Thank God he didn't catch us both naked or doing something else," David answered fervently.

"Yeah," Jason giggled. "It would be kinda hard to explain things if he were to catch you in the act, wouldn't it?"

"You got that right," David agreed while Tristan was shaking his head up and down in agreement.

"Hey guys, they're opening the door!" Chris announced. "Let's hustle over there so we don't have to stand in line so long!" as he jumped to his feet and snatched up his rolled up towel and swim gear. The other three boys were only one step behind him in their haste to hit the water.

After paying the admission, they turned left to go into the men's changing room. It was an open-air room, having four walls but no ceiling. Benches bisected the concrete floor and the four of them headed for an open corner. There were quite a few younger boys there, all chattering away like magpies as they hurriedly stripped off clothes and flung them into the baskets provided. The four boys turned their backs to that crowd so they faced the wall and began to change. Chris maneuvered himself so he was on one side of Tristan since he hoped to catch a view of Tristan's love muscle he had heard so much about. For that matter, he hadn't seen David naked yet either. He'd seen Jason up close and very personal quite a number of times and as recently as this morning to be precise.

Both David and Tristan obviously weren't body shy as they peeled off their shirts first and then dropped their shorts. Chris couldn't help but note with a sense of wonder that David wasn't wearing any underwear and that David's uncut cock and balls looked gorgeous on David's evenly tanned body. He took an appreciative look before turning his glances towards Tristan as he unbuttoned his own shirt. First, he noticed that Tristan was still wearing that identical medallion around his neck as David. He thought to himself, 'It was so kewl that they would show their love for each other like that.'

By now Tristan was sliding his packed briefs down to reveal a flaccid cock that nearly as large as his own was when he was totally hard! And how it swung as Tristan moved as he picked up his swimming suit was awesome. He knew from Jason that David had been on the receiving end of that whopper and he inwardly marveled about it as he slid his own shorts off. It was a good thing that he and Jason had made love that very morning because his cock had that prehardon buzz going as he hurried to get his own suit on since the others were now waiting for him and watching him get changed.

Chris wasn't the only one checking things out. You can be sure Tristan had one eye on Chris as he changed. Tristan was kinda disappointed since Chris had turned away from him once Chris had caught a view of Tristan's manhood, but he did see something very unique when Chris had his back turned towards Tristan as he pulled down his jockeys. Towards the top of his left butt check was a brown birthmark shaped like a crescent moon. It was almost like a tattoo, it was so perfectly shaped. The artist within Tristan began to consider what he would put there as a tattoo to compliment that unique birthmark. Maybe a palm tree with the outlines of a nude couple reclining under it would be the ideal thing?

Then Tristan was rewarded with a glimpse of Jason's equipment as Jason half turned while he was pulling up his bright red swim trunks. Tristan tried to take a mental snapshot as Jason hastily pulled his suit up and over his cut cock and light blonde pubes before tying the strings.

"Kay, I'm ready," Chris expressed the obvious. "Jason, where's that sun tan lotion we brought?"

"I've got it, so let's get a move on there, Stud Muffin."

Chris flashed back a quick grin at Jason's use of his pet name and answered, "That's right, you do have IT, Muffin Mix."

David and Tristan shared a startled glance before snickering at the pet names those two had for each other. It was evident to them at least that their pet names of babe and dude were much, much better! "Last one in the water is a wuss and is 'it' for water tag," David announced while leading the way out of the dressing room.

They scurried to the deeper part of the pool and jumped in with huge splashes only to come up gasping from the shock of the cool water. David took another faceful of water right after he opened his eyes from Jason's splash and it stung them enough so he stood there for a couple of seconds wiping them. It was his downfall since Tristan was the last one in the pool and he immediately tagged David with a backhanded swipe. "Now you're it," Tristan said playfully as he swam away like a fish. He put the experience of spending two years on the swim team to good use as he swiftly glided away from David's lunge.

The game of tag went on for some time, and each boy had a turn at being "it" before they tired of that game and decided to dive for a rock they found near the fence. They competed fiercely in retrieving the rock as they threw it out into the pool and then dove in and swam underwater until someone found it. There were more than a few underwater gropes attempted as the opportunities presented themselves, enough so that the boys were staying semi-aroused as they swam and fooled around.

Tristan was in his element and came up with the rock a majority of the time. Jason was getting a little tired and frustrated so as Tristan prepared to throw the rock for the hundredth time Jason stood back and mimed to David to pull down Tristan's swim trunks this time so they would have a chance. David gave a quick grin and a yes nod as Tristan throw the rock out. Both of them were hot on Tristan's trail and two hands quickly found purchase on Tristan's baggy trunks and began to yank. It some effort but to Tristan's surprise the waistband of his trunks soon had been pulled down to about midthigh, leaving him very exposed. That put Tristan out of the contest as he had a choice of either to stop and pull them up or shed them completely. Since they were in a public pool, Tristan chose the wiser course to stop and cover himself once more.

David snatched up the rock before he and Jason surfaced, the two of them laughing together about how they "fixed" Tristan. Tristan swam over to the pair. "You guys are real funny," he said. "Just remember, paybacks are a bitch," as he promised retribution. It was soooo tempting just to rap them both in the nuts, but Tristan wasn't that mad. He resolved to get back at Jason since he was pretty sure it was he that was the instigator. Jason usually was the instigator of many a prank throughout their years of growing up together.

"Awwww, Tristan, you don't have to take everything so serious," Jason chided and then enthusiastically changed the subject. "Let's have a horse fight! I'll take Chris on my shoulders and we'll take David and Tristan on."

There was some quick agreement to that suggestion and the two smaller guys were soon mounted on their "ponies". Then the real sparring started. Chris and David pulled and pushed at each other trying to topple the rider and his horse into the chest-deep pool. There weren't too many times that David and Tristan were upset since David and Tristan was the larger pair of boys. Tristan loved the close physical contact of having David riding his shoulders. But then, Tristan loved any situation where he could be touching the boy he loved and this was especially kewl to have David's crotch pressed up against the back of his neck. Of course, it would have been much better if David's crotch was pressed into other portions of his anatomy, but he was counting on that for later!

It wasn't too much longer before the four boys were feeling the effects of their strenuous play in the water and they decided it was time to take a rest and catch some rays. They climbed out of the pool and headed for a more secluded area of sunshine which was screened from the general area by the corner of the building. Chris used his hands to wipe the excess water from his suit prior to stretching out on the warm concrete. It wasn't meant to be erotic, but his actions emphasized the nice bulge in his crotch that was caused by the contact he'd had against Jason's neck as he wiped the excess water away from the front of his suit. His suit clung to his body revealing not only the shape of his maleness, but his beautifully rounded posterior.

"Whoa, look at Chrissy put on a show! Wooooooooooooo studly babyyyyy!!" Jason never hesitated to say what was on his mind. He started to mimic doing a strip tease as he hummed the appropriate tune while bumping his hips and wiping the excess water from his own suit. It was tremendously funny and quite sexy at the same time. The other three boys watched him with grins on their faces before shaking their heads at his craziness.

"Settle down, Jason," David admonished. "No need to put a strip tease on for the whole darn crowd out here. You wanna put a show on, you can do it for us later in private."

"Awww, Davie-boy, you never wanna have any fun," Jason mock pouted. "And who said you could see my privates in private? Chris-boy here probably wants to keep them all for himself." Jason turned to face Chris and said, "Right, babe?"

"That's right, Jase, you're all mine, every last inch." Chris said as he smiled back at Jason with that 'I'm so in love' look for Jason.

"Oh ho, listen to him talk! It sounds serious folks," Tristan chimed in.

"Yup, just like you two guys. You guys had a head start in the boyfriends department but we've caught up to you now," Chris responded as he was opening the bottle of sun tan lotion.

That remark caught Tristan's full attention. "Caught up to us now? And just what's that supposed to mean?" Tristan asked, his curiosity evident.

"Well, you should know," Chris replied with a lopsided grin. "I mean like being in love with each other and everything."

Tristan wasn't going to be satisfied with a vague reference, he wanted to know for sure that he wasn't the only one who felt the way he did. "Everything? What's everything?"

"How do you suppose people usually share their love, you moron?" Chris responded in a friendly put down and then continued, "We spend time together, touch each other, hold each other, have sex. We share our love together and you know how good it feels."

Tristan wanted to include David in their discussion of how they felt about each other and have David reaffirm the love the two of them shared. "Yeah, we sure do, don't we David?"

"That's a fact," David agreed. "How far have you guys gone?" he asked, remembering Jason's questions of him when Tristan was away in Lubbock.

Chris and Jason looked at each other. Jason gave a small shrug, leaving the decision up to Chris about what to say or not say. "Gentlemen never tell," was Chris' coy and disappointing reply. Then he changed the subject. "Here, Jase, would ya do my back for me?"

"Course. Anything else you need done while I'm at it?" Jason quipped with suggestive tone in his voice.

"Later stud, later." Chris flashed another smile at Jason as he spread his towel on the concrete and laid on it so Jason could lotion his back. "Ahhhhhh, that feels good. Rub the small of my back more, it's a little sore. Yeah, like that. Ooooh, that's nice. David and Tristan, you guys can help yourself to the lotion if you want some too."

Tristan looked at David. "You want some babe?" he asked.

"Nah, with the tan I have now I'm past the burning stage. How about you?"

"Nope. Remember when you got sun burned at the farm and I was only a little pink? I hardly ever get sun burn."

So the boys rested and warmed themselves in the sun, chatting about the things going on in their lives, which mostly revolved around getting ready for school and inevitably, football. David started the whole thing by wanting to tell about Tristan. "Hey guys, you shoulda seen Tristan today at football practice." Then he laughed. "That is, after I got him straightened out about how to wear the equipment! And you shoulda seen him trying to pack himself into that nut cup, right dude?" he teased as he grinned over at Tristan.

Tristan made a wry face as he grumbled a reply, "Yeah, they make those damn things too small for those of us who have a little extra."

"Oh sure, listen to you Tristan. Come on, brag some more!" Jason quipped.

"I'm not bragging, just stating the facts." Tristan defended himself as he stretched out on his towel. As if their words reminded him, he tugged at the crotch of his suit and then resettled his privates into a position of greater comfort. His timing only served to draw the eyes of the others to his crotch and outline of his package revealed by the wet fabric.

Jason shifted his gaze back to Tristan's and David's faces to remark, "Yeah, we had our first practice today too."

"We? You and Chris both went out for football?" David asked in surprise.

"Yeah, we BOTH went out for football. Our team is going to be awesome."

"What positions are you playing?" That was David, of course. Football was one of his main passions. It ranked up there with Tristan so you know it was serious!

"I'm playing strong safety and Chris is trying out for iron-man at free safety and tight-end." Tristan snorted with suppressed laughter. He had thought of a way to find out what kind of sex those two had engaged in. "Well, Jason, you should know. Is he good at being a tight end?"

Jason winked over at Chris before answering, "Of course he is, Tris. And he'll stay that way too cuz he isn't going to let you and your whopper near him!" And Jason roared with laughter as he scored on Tristan's word play. Chris and David couldn't help but laugh along with Jason. It was too funny!

However, just the thought of Tristan's man muscle and making love with him made David's bunghole clench and itch to be totally filled with it which also made David's cock spring to attention. He was glad he was lying on his stomach so everyone couldn't see the evidence of his thoughts. He reached over to brush his fingers quickly over Tristan's in a wordless signal of togetherness despite the teasing and the laughter.

Tristan wasn't about to let Jason get the last word in. "Too bad Chris here has to make do with what you've got to offer."

Now it was time for Chris to speak up in defense of his boyfriend. "Wait a minute there Tristan. I don't have to make do at all. I get all I want from my studman Jason."

"Oh ho! Listen to you!" David scoffed. "Heck, it's not just because a guy can stick it in somewhere that makes you man, you know."

"So, like, what does that mean?" Jason asked indignantly.

"It means that even femmy wimps will get their rocks off but that doesn't make them real men," David declared.

"You calling us femmy wimps?" Chris' ire was rising fast.

Jason put a hand on Chris' arm to hold him back. He could tell Chris was annoyed. "OK, Mr. Smart Ass, what makes a guy a real man?" Jason challenged.

"A man is tough, he can hand out some punishment and also take some like we do in football. You'll see when we play your wanna be team in two weeks. It'll be the Saints kicking the Lion's butts.

"More like licking the Lion's butts you mean," Jason growled.

"No way. Ain't gonna happen," David replied cockily.

"You sound pretty sure of yourself, David. Are you sure enough to make a bet out of it?" Chris was tired of David's cockiness and wanted to see if David had the guts to back up his words.

"Sure am. What are you betting?" David replied confidently.

Chris matter-of-factly stated, "I'm betting that our football team is going to win."

"So what are you putting up for a bet there, big talker?" David taunted.

"I dunno exactly," Chris looked down and then up into David's eyes for a moment before looking around. "Something big enough to make this bet a worthwhile one. Anyone got any ideas?"

Right away Jason popped out an idea, "Ummm, how about the losers have to do a strip tease to music for the winners?"

"Big bet there Jason, we already saw the opener for yours!" David joked.

Tristan said what was on his mind next, "Ummmmm, how about the losing couple hosts the other two on a romantic date?"

Chris nodded a little, "That sounds OK. What about you David, what do you think we should bet?"

"Ahhh, how about that the losing couple is responsible for organizing a weekend camping trip?" If they were going to do something together as couples, David wanted to do it privately and he loved the outdoors, especially in the fall.

Now both of these ideas sounded good to Chris, but it wasn't what he was looking for. He wanted something more humbling in the way of a bet. After thinking quickly he proposed, "How about this? The losing pair has to paint the balls of the horse statue yellow in the city park. Jase, what do you think? Got any other ideas?"

"Course I do," Jason grinned wickedly. "Let's make this a double or nothing bet. Since David is so sure he's gonna win and I'm sure we're gonna win I think its only right that there be two parts to this bet. First, we do the campout thing AND we bet our pubes. The losers have to have their pubes shaved off. And the winners do the shaving."

"Awesome!" Chris exclaimed. "What about it, David? Are you gonna bet your pubes on winning the game or are the stakes too high for ya?"

David's confidence was undiminished. "No problem there, Chrissy Wissy. I'm gonna enjoy shaving your pubes."

"Uh uh, Davie-girl, it's gonna be me shaving yours off." Chris looked over to Tristan. "What about you there, Tristan? You haven't said anything yet so are you in on this bet or not?"

'What the hell', Tristan thought to himself before answering, "I'm in. I guess while David is shaving you I'll be shaving Jason. No prob."

Jason jumped back into the conversation as he quipped, "Now, now Tristan, you'll have to be careful since you'll be handling a loaded weapon! And it might go off!" And then he laughed his usual bubbly laugh.

"Whoa, listen to that!" David teased. "Like Jason has something to be bragging about! Heck, he's lucky to get 4 inches out of that teeny thingie of his."

Not thinking about what he was saying Jason retorted with some heat in his voice. "Go to hell, David! You know exactly what I've got. And you know its way more than 4 inches. You were the one who had his hands on it more than once a couple of weeks ago as I recall."

Tristan's head snapped around to look at Jason. "A couple of weeks ago? You mean when I was gone?" Tristan asked incredulously.

"Yeah." Jason answered firmly.

"What's this about more than once?" Tristan continued to question, his eyes wide open with astonishment.

"Davie-boy got himself more than a good handful a couple of times. Once in his bed together and then again in the shower." Jason was quite insulted with David's put down of his masculinity and didn't mind a bit to do what he considered putting David in his place. Little did he know what he inadvertently setting off.

Tristan spun around to confront David. He knew immediately that it was the truth just by seeing David's return look of guilt. "Once in bed together and once in the shower? I leave town for 2 days and already you're cheating on me! And with Jason! How could you do this to me David? To us! I thought you were better than that!" Tristan's heart felt like it was breaking in half as he flung those stinging words of accusation at the one person he had ever trusted and loved whole-heartedly.

"Tris, let me explain..." David started to try and explain what really had gone on but emotions rapidly escalated out of control.

Jason was doubly insulted with the put down Tristan had implied with his words to David and was saying angrily at the same time, "What kind of bullshit is that Tristan? Did I hear you saying I'm not good enough to be with David? Or that I'm not good enough to be your friend? Is that it?"

Chris jumped into the fray as well. He took a stab at what he saw as the source of the problem. "Yeah, what is it with you David? Don't you trust Tristan? Jason told me right away what you guys had done. He trusted me to understand and I in turn trust him."

It was all too much for Tristan. Emotionally he was being pulled in all directions. Things went from being almost perfect to devastatingly bad in the space of 5 seconds. He found out that the guy he loved so deeply had cheated on him the first time they were apart with his other trusted friend, Jason. Now Jason was mad at him too and Chris only added confusion by calling another aspect of David's character into question. "Fuck it. I'm out of here."

David reached out to grab Tristan's arm and said, "Wait Tristan, you don't understand."

Tristan slapped David's hand away and spoke thickly past the lump blocking his throat, "Oh yeah. I understand all right. I understand now that you only say you love me and that you are a cheater who will get his thrills wherever and whenever. Well, screw you David." Tristan fled with long strides to the dressing room, the hot flames of his emotions roaring within him, consuming him with hurt and anger at David's betrayal of his wholehearted love.

Trembling from the powerful emotions held within, Tristan changed into his clothes in record time, making two swipes with his towel to partially dry his privates before putting on his street clothes. Tristan's mind was racing in all directions but one main thought persisted, 'Where was David? Didn't he care enough about their relationship to come after him?' Right as Tristan was tying his shoes David finally came in. Glancing up, Tristan noticed that David's face was white, except for the two spots of color on his cheeks, something he had never before seen on David.

David sat on the bench next to him, straddling it and leaned over to speak in low tones, "Tris, you've got it all wrong."

Tristan finished tying his shoes as he tried to find some words to respond to David. He turned his head and his angry stare pierced into David as he said, "I don't think so. Don't lie to me, David. I can tell what Jason said is true."

"Yeah, but," David started to say before Tristan cut him off.

"But nothing. I don't want to hear it. You're a cheater. Why should I listen to you? And here, take this back since it obviously doesn't mean much." Tristan whipped the medallion that had never been off since David put it on him before they left the farm over his head and dropped it on the bench. Then he grabbed his wet things and fled the changing room before David could see the tears pooling in his eyes.

Stunned by utter disbelief that such a thing could have happened, David just sat there looking down at the medallion he had given Tristan that Tristan flung there on the bench. David's emotions were running an intense gamut of heartbreak, guilt, and anger all rolled into one explosive mixture. The tension contained within him built and built as he quietly sat there staring.

It was then that Jason blithely came up to David and blurted, "Where's Tristan? Whassamatter, David, couldn't ya get him settled down?"

"Shut up you fucking moron!" David lashed out in all his pain and anger at Jason. "If you hadn't opened your fucking big mouth none of this would have had to happen."

Jason retorted indignantly, "If you hadn't made that smart ass remark about me and if you hadn't tried to keep secrets it wouldn't have been a problem, you retard!" Jason turned to Chris for support as he continued saying, "I told Chris right away and he was kewl about it. Right Chris?"

"Yup. Since he told me about it right away I knew it wasn't any big deal, but look what you did by not telling Tristan. I don't blame him for being pissed...I would be too if I had found out like he did," Chris affirmed.

"I knew Tristan would take it all wrong no matter when he found out...you know how he gets all worked up about shit like that." David nearly sobbed out as a crushing load of despair was settling its weight on his heart.

Jason stood there for a moment looking and David and considering what to say. "David, I'll talk to him and tell him it wasn't anything for him to upset about. I'll tell him the truth of the whole thing so he'll understand what really happened. Just wait, ol' Jase will get you guys fixed up!"

Still looking down at the medallion he now held in his hands, David said quietly but forcefully, "It's over, Jason, so you and Chris can just go fuck each other silly and leave me alone." Dragging in a shuddering sigh, David stood up and put the medallion over his neck where it matched the one he already wore, his hands shaking as he did so.

Chris was outraged that David would dare cheapen their love for each other and beyond that, to say such a thing in a public place. Pushing his way past Jason, Chris stuck his face into David's and threatened angrily, "Watch your damn mouth."

David glared back while the realization sunk in about what he said and where he said it.

Chris wasn't through yet either. His face only inches away from David, he hissed, "Don't go putting down the two people who want to help you the most here. Jason didn't mean to have this happen, did ya babe?" Chris turned to look over as Jason as he said that last part.

Jason was all sincerity as he stepped up and put his hand on David's shoulder and said, "No, I sure didn't. I'm sooooo sorry David. Some days I should have my mouth glued shut."

"Yeah, I sure wish it was today. Now things are such a mess," David said heartbrokenly. "Jase, you have to help me make Tris understand what really happened. He won't even listen to me."

"Don't worry Davie, I'll call him and explain it all to him. Heck, he probably didn't know how much of a basketcase you were when he was gone. You didn't tell him that, did ya?"

"No," David mumbled. "But he knew how glad I was to have him back."

"Just as soon as I've had a little talk with him you and he will be back together again, only even better. You wait and see! And if he won't talk to me, I'll have Chris talk some sense into him. Right Chris?"

There was no answer. Chris had went to get his clothes and stood there chatting with the attendant for a moment. Jason sat down behind David, straddling the bench as well. Jason sat there, just looking at David, waiting for David to say something. He could tell how badly David was hurting and he wanted to hug him so bad and make him feel at least a little better. But they were out in a public place so it would hardly be the thing to do. But he couldn't leave him there alone like that either. What should he do?

David knew he was there, just sitting and not saying anything. In the space of ten minutes he had gotten into the worst fights he'd ever had with his best friend and the boy he loved. David turned around to look at Jason. Their eyes met and then David dropped his gaze. "Chris is waiting for you. At least you still have someone who wants you. I'm getting dressed and heading for home," he said raggedly and got up to get his clothes from the attendant.

When David came back over to the bench, Jason asked quietly, "I'll call ya later after I've talked with Tris, kay?"

David looked up again and Jason could see the anguish in David's eyes. David nodded mutely once, then he slipped his shorts over his swim trunks and pulled his shirt on and was gone, just that quickly.

Jason and Chris dressed slowly, their high spirits gone in the aftermath of the raw emotions ripping apart the relationship of the only other gay friends they had. It was depressing. With few words being spoken, after they slowly dried off and dressed, they left to go to Jason's house.

Meanwhile Tristan was heading for home on his bike. He wasn't using the usual route because he didn't want David catching up to him, unlikely as it was since Tristan was hauling ass! He zipped up and over a small hill with a stop sign at the bottom, but Tristan didn't see it. He couldn't see too well since his eyes were tearing up again. At the last possible second he saw an older Ford pickup pulling into the intersection. Tristan slammed on his brakes, screeching the rear tire on the pavement and leaving a looong skid mark. It definitely wasn't Tristan's day because nothing was going to go right. He hit a patch of loose gravel and his bike whipped out from under him and now his left leg and butt cheek were sliding on the pavement!

The older man driving the pickup heard the noise of the squealing bike tire and abruptly stopped in the middle of the intersection. Tristan was still sliding inexorably towards the truck. Miraculously Tristan slid between the wheels of the pickup truck and finally stopped sliding, his bike and legs under the truck. He laid there, his chest heaving, looking at the man inside the truck. It was so unreal, to be lying halfway underneath the truck, looking into the scared face of a man in his mid-50s.

The man shut off his truck and found his voice, "Don't get up. Let me climb out and help you."

Numbly Tristan could only nod his head yes.

The man was tall! He stretched his long legs over Tristan as he clambered out of his truck, stepping over Tristan.

"Do you hurt anywhere?" the man asked, grave concern etched in every line of his face.

Tristan's head sagged backwards. The worst pain was in his chest, right where David had ripped his heart out. But he couldn't tell that to a stranger now, could he? As he extended his awareness to the rest of his body, a burning sting made itself known on his left leg and buttock. "My left leg stings like crazy," Tristan replied as he looked up at the man. He dimly noticed the man's short brown hair going gray and green eyes with sparkles in them peering back at him.

"Your leg doesn't feel like its broken, does it?" the man asked.

"No, I don't think so," Tristan shifted his weight and tried to crawl from under the truck.

"Hang on a second there, bud. Let's check you out before you move. Can you wiggle your fingers?"

Tristan wiggled the fingers of both hands and answered, "Yup."

"Now wiggle your toes," the man instructed. "Ooff, you're a ways under the truck. Do it again so I can feel your toes moving." He had crawled under the truck so he could feel whether or not Tristan's toes were moving in his sneakers.

"Are you a doctor or something?" Tristan asked. This was weird!

"No, I'm a certified EMT, you know what that is don't you?" The man replied.

"Yup, I know. Now can I get up?"

"Let's check one more thing first. I'm going to check your eyes here with my little light. Hold still and let me have a look now."

Tristan did as he was told and let the man shine his penlight into each eye.

"There, I'm done. Your eyes are reacting normally. I think we can get you out from under the truck now. Here, let me help you," the man said he put his hands under Tristan's arms and pulled Tristan out, helping him stand up in the process. "My goodness! Those holes in your pants are from sliding on the pavement, aren't they?"

Tristan twisted himself to the left and looked at his left leg. It was stinging something fierce on his butt and his calf, which took the majority of the punishing slide on the pavement. "Yeah, 'fraid so. I think I'm bleeding too. I think I can feel it running down my leg."

"OK. How else do you feel? Anything else hurt or do you feel dizzy or anything else?" The man was still holding on to Tristan with one hand while he gazed at him in obvious concern.

"No, nothing else seems to be wrong." Tristan was rather dazed and confused now that the immediate danger was passed. His brain wasn't coping with the additional shock and strain caused by his accident on top of the emotional trauma he had experienced with David, Jason, and Chris only scant minutes ago.

"Do you want me to take you to the emergency room?" the man asked. "What's your name?"

"Tristan Cochran. No, I don't think so. It isn't that bad, is it?" Tristan asked rather distantly as he twisted around to look at himself again. "I can't really tell how bad it is. Would you look for me?" Tristan asked worriedly.

The man grimaced slightly before answering, "Sure. Can you stand by yourself, Tristan? Maybe you better hang on to the side of my truck, OK?" And he watched Tristan steady himself with one hand before letting go.

"Yes, your butt is bleeding pretty good. You lost a fair sized amount of skin there and your calf has a pretty good scrape too. My house is only a block away, maybe you could go there with me and we could decide what to do. Maybe you would like to call one of your parents or something?"

"Ummmm, I guess so. What'll we do with my bike?"

"I'll throw it in the back of my truck." And he pulled it out from under the truck. Tristan's bike looked bad. The back wheel was really bent and the tire had a big hole in it from skidding. And it appeared that the handlebar was bent as well. "You were really moving on that bike, kid. You were going to run that stop sign, weren't you?"

Tristan looked at the man with surprise written all over his face. "There was a stop sign? I didn't see it." Then Tristan remembered why he wasn't seeing much of anything about then and suddenly everything was too much for him. The tears started running down his face. Tristan leaned down on the truck and hid his face in the crook of his elbow as he cried. He couldn't help it, he hurt so bad inside and just couldn't cope with it all.

"Hey bud, it's just a bike. It can be fixed. And you'll be fine too." The man stood there hesitantly for a moment, watching Tristan hide his face. "Come on kid, we have to move out of the intersection, we're blocking traffic."

Hearing those words, Tristan stood up, his face wet with tears and his eyes red as he faced the man again. "It's not the bike. I'm having a really bad day."

Fighting the urge to put his arm around Tristan, the man patted Tristan's shoulder. "Oh." The man said. "Well let's get you fixed up at my house and then you can tell me about it. I'm a good listener." He tossed the mangled bike into the back and then pulled a blanket from behind the seat, spreading it out quickly. "Here, you can sit on this. You might wanna lean to your right so you don't sit on your scraped-up rear." And then he smiled a little reassuring smile as Tristan gingerly sat down in the truck. "There you are. Now we can quit blocking traffic." And in seconds they were driving down the street.

Tristan couldn't help but like the man. He sure seemed to be a nice guy. "Uh, I don't know your name," Tristan blurted out once they were on their way.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Craig Thompson. How old are you, Tristan?"

"Almost 16."

"OK, so does that make you what, a freshman or a sophomore in school?"

"Sophomore."

"What school?"

"Saint Mary's."

"I hear it's a nice school. They seem to have real good sports teams and there's lots of school spirit. Do you play any sports?" Craig asked.

"Yeah, I've been on the swim team the last couple of years and today we started football practice."

"Really? This your first year in football?" Craig had no idea of the impact those innocent words would have for the two of them when he said that.

A fresh flood of tears started running down Tristan's face at the thought of football and David. "Yeah, but I don't know if I'm gonna stay on the team," Tristan said brokenly.

"Oh, something go wrong at practice today for you or what?" Craig asked with obvious compassion in his voice.

Tristan's nose was running badly by now and he sniffed to no avail before answering, "No, practice went OK. The coach said I would have a chance to prove myself." Scrubbing his face with his hands and trying to wipe away the tears and snot, Tristan said with shame, "Look at me, some tough football player I am, crying like a baby here."

"Hey, don't worry about it. Everyone has some bad times in their life that make us show the pain we are feeling inside. If you don't mind me asking, what made your day so bad?"

"I had a huge fight with someone. It was awful." Tristan said miserably.

"Ooops, here we are," Craig said as he turned into the driveway of a modest home with a detached double garage. The house and yard were immaculate, obviously tended with loving pride. A high privacy fence spanned the gap between the house and the garage. Craig parked his truck off to one side of driveway and they got out. Hanging over the arched gateway was a sign reading, "Meo Sanctum".

Tristan looked up as they walked underneath it and asked, "What's that mean? Something like Home Sweet Home?"

Craig smiled as he looked over to Tristan and answered, "Yeah, that's one way to interpret it. For myself, I interpret it to mean 'My Sanctuary'". This is where I relax...I can sit and listen to the birds and feel the breeze while I read, or I can relax in my hot tub over there," as he pointed around the private area between the buildings. It was so beautiful...filled with various flowers and shrubs, all blending together to create an extremely cozy and private area. What really stood out were the numerous rose bushes loaded with gorgeous flowers of pink, red, and white hues. Unlocking the door, Craig invited Tristan inside by saying, "Come on in and let's get you taken care of here."

For some unexplainable reason Tristan felt he could trust Craig. Here he was, about to go inside the house of a man whom he had never met before without a qualm. The inside of the house was as clean and tastefully decorated as the exterior. It was obvious that Mr. Thompson had a good job of some kind since the furnishings and wall decorations were not the kind purchased at a discount store. They passed a combination laundry room and half bath, a stairway leading down to a basement before stepping into a cheery kitchen, spotlessly clean. "You have a very nice home," Tristan remarked, spontaneously voicing his thoughts.

"Thank you," Craig replied. "I have a lot of spare time and it's easy to keep things up when you are the only one to clean up after."

"Oh, you aren't married?" Tristan asked.

"Not now. I was for several years until we divorced," Craig answered matter-of- factly.

"Oh, sorry. Did you have any kids?" Tristan asked as he stood there, still looking around.

"Yes, I have two daughters, Alyssa and Jennifer. They are grown up and live out of town so now I only myself to look after."

"That's too bad. I bet it gets kind of lonely." It was easy for Tristan to emphasize on that point. "I get lonely too sometimes since I'm an only child. My dad and mom got divorced when I was a baby so I don't have any brothers or sisters."

"Oh. Sorry to hear that. Do you live with your mom or your dad?" Craig asked.

"My dad. I hardly ever see my mom. She's an alcoholic and lives a couple of states away and the times I do see her aren't very much fun."

"Divorce is never easy on anyone, the adults or the children, but there are times that it is better for everyone concerned," Craig observed. "But don't you think we should do something about those scrapes of yours? I can see some blood around the hole in your pants so maybe we should get you patched up here first. I'll get my first aid kit - can you stay standing until we get you cleaned up a little?"

"Sure, that would be fine," Tristan agreed. Actually his ass still stung like crazy and his leg did too.

Craig disappeared into the back of the house and could be heard retrieving more than one item. It wasn't but half a minute and he reappeared, carrying a large first aid kit, a washcloth and a towel. "OK, here we are, ready to get you fixed up. Could you move over here by the sink?" Craig asked.

Tristan did as he was asked, still standing, not knowing what to do.

"Well, I think you are going to have to help me out here, Tristan, if we are to do this. Why don't you face the counter and drop your pants down so I can get your backside and leg washed up and a bandage put on. Would it bother you to do that?"

"I guess not," Tristan said as he dropped his hands to undo his pants. It wasn't as if the guy was trying to be a pervert that was obvious. He wasn't even looking at him yet since Craig was running water in the sink and wetting the washcloth.

"Why don't you step out of your pants here for a bit so I can get you cleaned up. You have blood all the way down your leg here but the good news is that you aren't bleeding much now. There you go," Craig said as Tristan lifted his feet out of his pants and they were put off to the side. "I'm going to wash your leg now so just stand there with your hands on the counter, OK?" Craig instructed, all businesslike.

"No problem," Tristan said and then he felt the warm touch of the washcloth move from his left butt cheek down his leg in gentle strokes. He told himself not to get aroused, but his dick had a mind of its own. He had been horny all day and his backside being touched was all the stimulus he needed to start the blood rushing to his cock. Looking down, Tristan could see his cock begin to push against the fabric of his underwear, clearly outlining the length and girth of his semi-hard member. There was sufficient blood in Tristan's system for his face to flush now too, as he was more than a little embarrassed by his dick's response to the gentle cleansing of his leg by Craig. Tristan stared across the room, trying to will his cock from creating a massive tent in his underwear.

As Craig changed from using the washcloth to toweling Tristan's leg dry with the towel, he caught a glimpse of Tristan's tumescent teen cock. "Holy shit!" Craig exclaimed to himself. "That boy sure has himself quite a dong! Wonder how big that thing of his gets when its fully up?" flashed through Craig's mind unbidden.

And then Craig's body surprised him by reacting sexually. His groin began to stir and fill in response to the tantalizing view. Instead of seeing Tristan there in front of him, Craig's mind transported him back many years before to a time when Craig was about the same age as Tristan. Craig's memory replayed an event in his youth where he saw his once best friend, Robert, standing there with his jutting maleness exposed, telling Craig to hurry and give him the blow job he needed. It was Robert with whom he learned the pleasures of gay sex and later the bitter devastation of betrayal and Robert's condemnation of male intimacy when Craig professed his feelings of enjoyment of those acts and love to Robert. The images from his past flashed through Craig's mind in a heartbeat, reviving his long denied craving for male love.

Putting the towel down, Craig mentally grabbed ahold of himself and forced his mind back to his mission of mercy. "Tristan, I need you to hold your boxers out of the way so I can get this bandage on. Can you do that for me?" Craig asked, looking up at Tristan's face, noting the dark flush on his face.

Tristan used both hands to pull his shredded boxers up so his entire left buttock was exposed. "Is this OK?" Tristan asked.

"Yes, that's fine. Now hold still, I'm going to use an antiseptic spray that might sting a little. It also has a pain-killer so it won't sting for long. Here goes..." and Craig sprayed a quick spray on the raw spot about 2 inches in diameter on Tristan's butt.

"Youch!" Tristan yelped involuntarily and rose on his toes as it STUNG LIKE CRAZY! And then, the sting quickly died away. The good thing about it was that it deflated Tristan's impending erection like air rushing out of a balloon. Tristan relaxed once more, in more ways than one!

"OK, we're ready for the bandage." Craig quickly taped a square of coated gauze on Tristans rear end, inwardly marveling and rejoicing at being able to see and touch the body of Tristan in the blossoming of its manhood. What a magnificent boy this was!

To Tristan, it felt really weird, having that tape plastered on his ass, but it was better than the way it was before!

"There, we got the worst one patched up. If you change the gauze everyday and use an antibiotic cream with it, the skin will grow back in a week or two and it will be less likely to scar." Craig advised. "Here, let's put a couple of large bandaides over the scrapes on your leg. Would you like me to trim the hair so when you take the bandaid off you won't be pulling hairs too?"

"Yeah, sounds like a good idea." Tristan's legs were kinda hairy, having long dark curly hair and he didn't need any pain from pulling off the bandaids later. Tristan definitely wasn't into pain!

Craig reached into his first aid kit and unwrapped a small disposable scalpel.

His eyes opened wide as Tristan squeaked out, "You aren't going to cut me with that knife now, are you?"

Smiling, Craig answered confidently, "No, not a chance. This disposable scalpel is as sharp as a razor blade and I'll use it to shave the hair on your leg around the scrape. As long as you hold still, we'll do just fine. Now watch, see how easy it is?" and Craig expertly shaved the hair from Tristan's leg in a minimum of steady strokes. "OK, are you ready for another shot of that spray?"

Tristan grimaced and braced himself for the biting sting that he knew would quickly leave. Nevertheless, he still sucked in a gasp of air when the antiseptic spray hit the scraped up calf of his leg.

"There, we're done. Do you want to sit down on the stool there and have a little something to drink? I have filtered water, orange juice, Coca-Cola"

In the process of sitting down, Tristan interrupted right then with "A Coke would be fine, thanks."

Craig pulled a pair of Cokes out of the refrigerator and handed one to Tristan, then opening his as he sat on another stool. They both sat there quietly, sipping their Cokes, both lost in their own thoughts and trying to make sense out of what had happened to them that day. Craig broke the silence first asking, "Did you want to use the phone and call your dad?"

"I guess there's really no point. He's at work and won't be done until 10 tonight. I'll tell him what happened when he gets home since you got me fixed up here."

"Oh. OK. Then there's no hurry for you, is there? Would you like to stay and have supper with me? I'd enjoy having you stay and we could talk if you didn't mind," Craig suggested, mindful of Tristan's earlier admission of having a bad day. Craig was captivated by this obviously wonderful boy which fate decreed that he met. Maybe he could help Tristan with whatever problems he was having. He hadn't really realized how much he missed having someone to spend time with since his daughters had moved away. All those unvocalized feelings made Craig very keen to have Tristan spend more time with him.

"Really? You want me to stay and eat?" Tristan's belly was already talking to him about how it wanted some food ASAP so this was an offer too good to refuse. "Yeah, I can stay for supper. I was going to have to feed myself tonight otherwise."

Craig's smile beamed back at Tristan as he said, "Great! I'll get the grill started and we can have steak and potatoes. Does that sound OK with you?"

"It sounds delicious!" Suddenly a disquieting thought flew through Tristan's mind and was out of his mouth accompanied by a puzzled frown on Tristan's face. "But why are you being so nice to me? I mean I about scared you into a heart attack when I didn't stop at the stop sign and then you bring me home and fix me up and now you are feeding me steak. I don't get it."

Craig thought silently for a moment before answering Tristan while looking seriously back at him. "That's a good question. Actually, it's very good that you ask that and question my motives. I guess I have a couple of reasons for doing it. The first one is that there are times in everyone's life when they are in a position to help someone with no expectation of being repaid in any monetary way. I surely wasn't expecting to bump into you today but when we did, it just seemed to be the thing to do since I lived only a block away to bring you here. Second, I'm enjoying your company and am selfishly wanting to enjoy it longer. And finally, I am a trained counselor and have always wanted to help people so when you said you were having a really bad day, it makes me want to help you if I can."

That last statement reminded Tristan about his fight and very possible permanent break-up with David. Once more the heartbreak of David's betrayal placed its invisible burden on Tristan's shoulders. Tristan shrugged his left shoulder in resignation. "There isn't much you can do to help, Mr. Thompson. It's been done and can't be undone." Tristan's chin began to quiver as his emotions threatened to get the best of him once more.

"Please call me Craig, would you Tristan?" Craig began. "It's been my experience that very few things short of death can't be undone or forgiven if the parties really want to. Would you like to tell me what happened today while I fix our meal? It will stay between just you and me, I promise." Craig waited for a bit to see what Tristan would say.

Tristan glanced up briefly, still struggling to keep from crying, his eyes moist and mouth trembling. Then his head ducked back down right away as he sat there without responding.

Standing up, Craig moved over by Tristan and put a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to be ashamed of your feelings, Tristan. Everyone has them and when you are ready, we can talk. I'll start fixing our meal and you call the shots here. We'll talk about it if and when you ready to." So Craig went out and lit the grill, then worked silently the kitchen on his meal preparations, fixing the potatoes and prepping the steaks by rubbing them with some spices.

"You seem to know alot about helping people. What do you do?" Tristan broke the silence. "Just who was this Craig guy?," he thought to himself.

Craig smiled back at Tristan. "You mean for a living? Like what's my job?"

A nod accompanied the 'yes' answer.

My job title is Dean of Men at the college here. I work everyday with the male half of the student body, and believe me, I've seen just about every problem under the sun. Most of the time I'm able to help young men like you work through a problem. The sad thing that is that the problems would have been much smaller if guys would think about what they are doing before they did it. By the time they get around to thinking about it, they have a big problem. You like onions?"

"Yeah, onions are fine. My dad uses them all the time. So the guys you work with in college are kinda like me, then?" Tristan questioned.

"Yes, you are pretty much the same as many of the college students I work with. They are young and full of potential like you. Sometimes we can fix their mistakes right away and sometimes the mistake can never be totally fixed. It helps when I tell them I have taken an oath of confidentiality so that unless it involves a felony crime, I don't have to reveal what I discuss with anyone."

"Is that right? So what kinds of problems have you been involved in helping college kids with?" Tristan asked with obvious interest.

"Lots of things. Why don't I tell you some of them outside while we grill, OK?" Craig suggested as he gathered the meal fixings. "Would you help me carry the potatoes?"

"Sure!" It was hard to tell what the ache in his gut was at that moment, hunger or emotion but it sure looked like Craig knew what he doing in the kitchen!

Craig threw their meal on the grill and adjusted the temperature before sitting across from Tristan in one of the outdoor chairs. "Like I said, I've seen all the various kinds of problems that guys can get themselves into. The usual problems are the ones where guys who drink too much and don't pay attention to their classes, or get hooked on drugs, or who work too many hours to pay for their education, or suddenly learn they are a father a couple of months after having casual sex with a girl at a party."

"Wow. Are there a lot of guys that have these problems then?"

"Enough. Maybe 10% of male student body will experience one or another of these," Craig said with a small shrug. "Some are able to work through the problem and others end up quitting school."

"You said those are the usual problems. Those sound like a lotta trouble to me. What kind of problems are worse that those?"

"Oh, the ones involving the very strong emotions where someone is physically harmed. Violence of any kind creates big problems for everyone involved. So, over the years I've been involved with college students, the worst ones I can think of would be a murder, and I remember a few rapes, and then there are the suicides. Those are the worst."

"Why is that?" Tristan asked, leaning forward.

"Because it leaves a tremendous burden of guilt on everyone who was close to that person. Usually there are so many unanswered questions about why they would do something like taking their own life. And the poor person who finds them is so unprepared to find a friend or relative they knew and talked to yesterday dead."

"Yeah, I'd sure hate to be the one to find someone like that." Tristan shuddered at the thought of it. "Did you ever figure out why those people suicided? How many have there been?" Tristan's curiosity was fully awake. It was morbid, but he wanted to know.

"There were three of them. God willing, I hope I don't have to be involved with any others."

"Boys or girls?"

"Two were boys, one girl."

"Did you ever find out why they did it?"

"Oh, most of the time you can pretty much figure out the basics. Two of them involved the end of relationships and they chose a permanent solution to a temporary problem."

"But that was only two of them. What about the third one?"

Craig sighed deeply. "The third one? That one is the saddest. And the most difficult to prevent."

"Why is that?"

"Because the boy was gay. He felt isolated from everyone and didn't have anyone who he felt he could confide in. In his note, he said his life was a mistake and that he couldn't bear to live without the love he needed and said he also couldn't bear the hatred some people have towards gays."

Tristan was silent before murmuring, "Oh Geez. That poor guy."

Craig checked the grill and flipped the steaks before answering, "Yes, you're so right. You would never know that he was having those feelings to look at him. On the outside he was an outstanding student with friends and was involved in campus activities. Then, something happened. In the space of a week he shut himself away from everyone and before anyone really realized was what going on, he pulled the trigger."

"He shot himself?" Tristan asked wide-eyed.

"No. I meant it as a figure of speech. He used pills and booze to do it. His roommate found him on a Sunday evening. If only he had talked to someone about his feelings then maybe it could have been prevented."

"That's so sad. What would you have told him if he had talked to you?"

"First, that suicide is never a good solution to life's problems. If only they could see the devastating consequences of their action, they would realize that the people who love them would be there to help them if they only gave them a chance to do so. Also I would have told him that being gay isn't the end of the world and that there are many gay people out there who live happy and fulfilled lives and that gays can make important contributions to society."

Tristan frowned. "How is that possible? All you ever hear about is how everyone hates gays and puts them down."

Craig grimaced and sighed before answering. "The truth of the matter is that it is never easy to be perceived as being different. And too many people lash out at those people who are different rather than try to understand and value those differences."

Tristan looked down at his hands. "Yeah, the guys in school are always putting gays down. They'll say, 'That's so gay', or else call someone a faggot that they don't like. It's tough to stand up to that kind of attitude and especially for the shy ones or the ones whose families are so anti-gay. So what would you have said to that kid about that?"

"First, I would have said that all worthwhile things are not always easy. But most importantly, a person has to believe in himself and pursue his own happiness. I believe that a person who lives a life true to their basic self is going to be a much happier person in the long run rather than a person who hides a vital part of himself away from everyone. That kind of self denial so often becomes expressed in low self esteem and over compensatory behaviors."

Tristan cocked his head to one side and raised his eyebrows as he asked, "Over what?"

Craig talked with his hands. Gestures punctuated his comments continuously. "Over compensatory behaviors. Those are the behaviors where someone is driven to exceed at a chosen endeavor to prove their self worth. That person might choose to be a star athlete, or sales person, or accountant, or actor, or whatever direction their interests and aptitude send them in. Their feelings of self worth are directly tied to their ability to perform in that chosen endeavor. In one way, it's good since they go out and do some extraordinary things. But if it becomes obsessive and shuts out all other facets of life, is it such a good thing?"

"Is it so bad to be really good at something?" Tristan asked, still puzzled by the wisdom Craig was attempting to share.

"Not always. But it can be when it is accompanied by a sense of loneliness and loss for those things that were sacrificed on the path to achievement. Relationships are what usually suffer in the instance of the over achiever. You see it time after time in all fields. Star athletes, actors, and the very wealthy business people who have what we all think we would like to have are often miserably unhappy. And do you know why?"

Tristan shook his head no. "Nuh uh. Why?"

"Because once reaching the pinnacle of success they either have no one to share it with or are lacking the feeling of being loved for who they are as a person, rather than for their accomplishment and riches. They may be rich in money, but quite often are impoverished in spirit and love."

Tristan rocked back in his chair and exclaimed, "Whoa, how do you know this stuff?"

Craig spread his hands and confessed, "Because it's been a special study of mine over the course of many years, trying to define what happiness is."

"Have you figured out the answer yet?" Tristan questioned.

"Yep. It's one of those answers that seems easy until you try to do it. First, you have to accept yourself for the way you are--the way you look, the way you feel and what talents God has given you. Second, the other half of the equation is to share love. It's quite the paradox. The more love you give away the more love you receive back. Fame, riches, and medals don't provide happiness when you don't have either of the other two."

Tristan could only shake his head in wonder. He was only beginning to comprehend the fact that Craig was feeding him things that would be much more beneficial to him than the food on the grill which was now ready to eat.

Craig was standing at the grill by this time, checking to see if it was done. "Still hungry, Tristan? These steaks have just a hint of rareness left to them and that's the way I like mine. How about for you? Is it done enough?"

"Yeah! Sounds great, cuz I sure am ready to eat!" Tristan's normal exuberance was showing with the happy grin he gave to Craig. Once more, his troubles with David were temporarily forgotten. They ate outside, enjoying the shade and slight breeze that made it into Craig's private garden. Neither spoke much while they ate as Tristan attacked his food and Craig watched him obviously enjoy the food. Craig marveled at the appetite of the growing young man.

It was later while they were cleaning up their dirty dishes in the kitchen that Tristan dropped his bombshell. "I'm gay, did you know that?" Tristan asked out of the blue as Craig was finishing the dishes.

"Not to look at you I didn't." Craig honestly replied as he glanced over to Tristan. "I started to wonder when we were talking earlier though just by the things you were keying in on."

"Does it bother you that I'm gay?" Tristan had to make sure that the comfort he felt with Craig was reciprocated.

"Not at all. You are still the very nice young man I'm enjoying spending some time with and getting to know," Craig said with a warm smile.

Tristan blushed a little. He wasn't used to getting compliments like that. Glancing up and meeting Craig's eyes only briefly Tristan gulped a little and ventured, "Ummm, I was wondering if I could talk with you about this problem I had today.... since you seem to have stuff all figured out."

"I don't mind at all. In fact I was hoping you would share with me what had you so upset a while ago. Let's go out in the front room amd we can talk in there." Craig led the way and sat down in an overstuffed chair. It was obviously his favorite chair and he settled into it very comfortably.

Tristan sat on the couch facing Craig. It didn't seem strange at all for him to be sitting in Craig's front room, only wearing his T-shirt and boxers. They had become that comfortable with each other in such a short time.

"OK, now we can relax and talk. Are you OK like this?" Craig asked.

"This is fine, thanks. Remember I told you that I had a big fight with someone?" Tristan asked hesitantly.

"Yes, I do. You were pretty upset about it." Craig responded sympathetically.

Tristan's eyes began to tear up as he thought again about what had happened and at the obvious compassion of Craig's. "You must think I'm a big wuss," Tristan sniffed, wiping the tears away. "It's just that everything was so perfect and I was so happy and then it all turned into a big lie."

"No, I don't think you are a wuss, Tristan. In fact, I much prefer that you can admit your feelings and be open with them. I admire that."

"You do? A lot of other guys wouldn't. When I was younger I was always called the "crybaby" because I could cry about anything." Tristan confided.

"Everyone is different Tristan. Don't worry about it," Craig reassured Tristan. "So tell me what this lie was."

"Kay," Tristan sniffed once more. "Anyway, I was swimming today with David - he's my boyfriend, or should I say my ex-boyfriend - and also Jason and his boyfriend Chris. We were having a great time and then Jason lets it slip out that he and David had sex while I was gone a couple of weeks ago."

"Oh. How did Jason let it slip out?" Craig asked carefully.

Tristan looked down at the floor and answered brokenly, "Well, David was teasing him about the size of his thingie and the next thing I know he says something like, 'David got more than a good handful a couple of times. Once in his bed together and then again in the shower.'" The tears ran down Tristan's face anew as he looked up again at Craig.

"I see that has hurt you quite a bit, Tristan. Can you tell me why you feel that way?"

That question came as a surprise to Tristan. He hadn't really stopped to think why he felt so hurt and betrayed. He stared at the opposite wall while finding words to express his feelings. While he looked across the room, he saw hanging there a framed wall hanging titled "ABC's of Friendship" but the words behind the ABC listings were too small to read. He shifted his mental focus back to answer Craig's question. "I totally loved David and I thought he loved me back. But today proved that wrong. He was all uptight at football practice today and then he didn't want to make love today and the last straw was when Jason told about the two of them fooling around behind my back when I was out of town." Tristan's voice got quieter as he listed all of the day's problems in their relationship.

"Hmmmm, I can see why you tell me you've been having a bad day. Has David ever said that he loved you?"

"Yeah, sometimes he did."

"As often as you did?"

"No."

"Why not, do you think?"

Trsitan cocked his head to one side as he answered. "It's harder for him. His dad is so anti-gay that he is scared to let his feelings out most of the time. Only when we're totally alone or in bed together with the lights off and the door locked does he really let his feelings out," Tristan admitted.

Craig sat back and thought for a moment. "You thought you guys had a commitment to each other. It may be that he's not on that same wavelength considering what he's up against at home. Had you ever talked about an exclusive commitment with each other? You know, like the idea of going steady?"

Tristan snorted. "Why? Going steady is a boy-girl kind of thing!"

Craig shook his head negatively. "Tristan, the fallacy many people have is that love between two guys is different from the love between a guy and a girl. That's not true. Exactly the same feelings and needs are in play in any serious relationship, no matter which sexes are involved. The other thing I want to tell you today, Tristan, is that we all make mistakes in everything we do, including our relationships. Maybe David made a mistake when he did something with Jason. From what I understand, it happened only when you were gone. Is that right?"

"Well, as far as I know," Tristan answered reluctantly.

"Did you talk to him about it?"

"No. It hurt too much." Tristan said almost inaudibly. Tears were dripping slowly down Tristan's cheeks.

"Did he want to talk about it?"

There was a long pause. Finally the answer came, "Yes."

Craig sighed before suggesting, "Well then, don't you think you should give him the chance?"

Tristan hung his head as he answered, "I guess so. But it won't be easy."

"That's right. Sometimes there are issues in relationships that aren't easy because we have to allow ourselves to become vulnerable emotionally in order to work through whatever the problem is. Talk to him Tristan. You said you loved him. Do you love him enough so that you are willing to work out your differences?"

Very quietly Tristan said, "Yeah, because when we're together my world is complete and when we are apart, there's a piece of me missing. I feel so empty right now..."

Tristan looked so pathetic sitting there forlornly. Craig's heart melted inside his chest and he got out of his chair and moved over to sit with Tristan on the couch, putting an arm around the heartsick teen. "It'll all work out, Tristan. Just give it chance by talking to David. Tell him how you feel and then let him tell you how he feels. Really listen to him when he talks and be respectful of his feelings. You'll see. And if that doesn't work, give me a call. You can call me anytime," and Craig gave Tristan a reassuring squeeze.

Tristan sagged into the man's supportive embrace. He needed comforting and Craig was there to give it to him. There was something about Craig that Tristan trusted implicitly. As the warmth of Craig's body and the clean scent of his aftershave insinuated itself into Tristan's senses an immense weariness washed over Tristan. The day's emotional toll and physical activity had exhausted him. His whole body jumped as he came back from the edge of sleep.

"You're pretty tired, aren't you?" Craig asked. "Are you feeling OK otherwise?"

"Yeah, but I'm sooo tired right now. All I can think of is sleeping."

Craig smiled warmly at Tristan as he observed, "Well go right ahead and take a nap. It isn't a good idea anyway for you to go home and be by yourself, justin case of the very slight chance this is a result of your little accident today. I'll wake you up in an hour or so and take you home then. How does that sound?"

"That sounds good...I'm sooo sleepy."

Craig offered, "OK, I'll get you a pillow and blanket."

"Do you have to? I mean, if you don't mind, I'd like to sleep just like this. I'm so used to having David with me as I sleep, it makes me feel waaay better."

And so it happened that Craig found himself cuddling a worn-out teen boy, watching him sleep. As Tristan slept Craig feasted his eyes on the details of Tristan's masculine features while he had the opportunity. He started with the texture and color of Tristan's dark curly hair and the curve of an eyebrow while the scent of healthy boy and chlorine wafted up to his nostrils. Craig's gaze wandered over the bare arms, covered with fine dark hair that was beginning to show. He studied the left hand and long fingers cupped loosely and resting on Tristan's inner thigh, immediately below the bottom hem of Tristan's boxers. It was there that Craig could see the short, dark curly hairs growing on the tanned skin of Tristan's thigh.

The fabric of Tristan's boxers draped loosely over his crotch softened but didn't obscure the outline of Tristan's generous endowment resting along Tristan's right thigh. The full roundness of Tristan's testicles rested at the junction of his thighs. It was an extremely alluring sight and Craig felt his libido emerge from the depths to which it had been banished long ago. Craig marveled at the situation that he found himself in. To be holding a warm, virile teen boy in his arms was an innermost dream come true.

It was all too easy to see the thick five inches of Tristan's manflesh and the ridged cockhead and Craig admired it, secretly wishing he could see it in all its glory. The arousal in his groin grew to an intensity Craig hadn't felt for years when he saw the outline of Tristan's meat enlarge and lengthen as its head began to peek out of the bunched up cloth. Craig stared at what he guessed to be nearly 8 inches of hard teencock. The painstakingly built walls confining Craig's latent homosexuality began to crumble. Craig's fingers began to move........

OK, that's it for chapter 8! This is the longest chapter yet. No wonder it took me so long to get it posted! You'll have to wait for chapter 9 to see what happens between David and Tristan as they attempt to iron out the wrinkle that developed in their relationship. And what about that bet they have going with Jason and Chris? Woo Hoo! Who is going to win? And what's up with this new character Craig? All the answers to those questions and more will be in chapter 9! lol

I apologize profusely for the length of time it took for me to crank this one out! Many readers wrote to ask me if I was ever going to post another chapter. I have to tell you that I was missing my writing partner, Eric Case, immensely as I worked on the first half of the chapter this summer. Chris and Jason are Eric's characters and to write about them while Eric was away on an extended vacation was difficult for me. And it didn't help that I was missing Eric's cheery "voice" in my emails and our regular chats where we would consult with each other about our respective stories. Now that Eric is back and has given me his seal of approval, I have been proceeding much faster.

Another thing I want to leave with you is the ABC's of Friendship that I mentioned within chapter 8. It was sent to me by Jonathan from Amarillo, Texas. It is a great piece of creative writing describing the elements of true friendship and I wanted to include it in my story. I hope you like it as much as I do and I applaud the original author whoever that may be!

THE ABC'S OF FRIENDSHIP

author unknown

A Friend....

(A)ccepts you as you are

(B)elieves in "you"

(C)alls you just to say "HI"

(D)oesn't give up on you

(E)nvisions the whole of you (even the unfinished parts)

(F)orgives your mistakes

(G)ives unconditionally

(H)elps you

(I)nvites you over

(J)ust likes to "be" with you

(K)eeps you close at heart

(L)oves you for who you are

(M)akes a difference in your life

(N)ever Judges

(O)ffers support

(P)icks you up

(Q)uiets your fears

(R)aises your spirits

(S)ays nice things about you

(T)ells you the truth when you need to hear it

(U)nderstands you

(V)alues you

(W)alks at your side

(X)-plains things you don't understand

(Y)ells when you won't listen and

(Z)aps you back to reality