This is the continuation of my story about Todd, 25, a physician assistant, and Luke, 20, who first meet in a medical appointment that doesn't quite go as either planned. This posting is an in-depth relationship story that will build slowly. I plan to post subsequent chapters often, so please check back. Or let me know if you'd like to get an e-mail from me whenever I post one.
No minors were harmed in the writing of this story, but if you are one please go find something else to do. Please do not reproduce this story in any form without the permission of the author. Your feedback is appreciated.
Damian nvtahoeus@yahoo.com
LUKE AND THE RED CANVAS SHOES
END OF PART 3
"Come here." I put my arm on the top of the couch cushions right around his shoulders as we met in the center of the couch, and he hesitantly laid one arm in the narrow space between our bare legs, touching mine ever so slightly. This was heaven, but I still felt the need to tread carefully. I had the sense that this was one very vulnerable young man -- which only made him more attractive to me.
"The `real world' is what I call the one I didn't grow up in."
Luke took a deep breath, working up the nerve to start his story.
PART 4
My young, normally taciturn friend started out slowly, but soon the words were flowing almost as fast as he could get them out.
I learned that Luke had grown up on an isolated farm near Fort Collins in an extremely fundamentalist family, uncompromisingly run by a father with an iron hand and a subservient but strict mother who never stood up to her husband's mental -- and sometimes physical -- abuse.
Luke had an older brother, David, and they were home schooled. Whatever social life they had was with other church members who believed and acted as they did. His brother ran away from home when David was 16 and Luke was 13, forcing Luke into the unwelcome position of being the sole focus of his controlling parents. Wanting to avoid a repeat of his brother's sudden exodus from the farm, they watched him like a hawk and never let him do anything but work on the farm and go to church twice a week.
Unable to support himself for long, David reluctantly returned to the farm several months later. His inadequate education and lack of social skills kept him from getting any meaningful employment, so he decided to throw himself on his family's mercy and work on the farm in exchange for food and shelter. They took him back but never missed an opportunity to let him know what a fool he'd been and how he'd never amount to anything if he didn't do "God's Word" and obey his father.
Luke and his brother had been close growing up, but their relationship had been strained by David's absence. It was like they had to get to know each other all over again, now that Luke had gone through puberty and his brother had gone through the school of hard knocks. Worse, Luke was having trouble dealing with a physical attraction to him. It wasn't surprising, given how isolated they were, that Luke had few outlets for his new-found sexual energies. He kept his feelings to himself for five long years while they worked side by side on the farm. But the longer that David stayed on the farm, the more like their father he became and Luke increasingly felt he had no ally in his big brother.
One fateful day, David -- mud-covered and thinking he was alone -- decided to take an impromptu shower under a hose and spray that he'd rigged up in the barn. Luke heard the water running and came to investigate. He stopped short when he realized that David was standing naked under it and hid where David couldn't know that he was being observed.
The unexpected scene made him fully hard in seconds. Lowering his pants, he began masturbating while David showered not 30 feet away. This was of course a major sin for someone of his family's religion, but Luke couldn't help it. He was mesmerized by the beautiful male body that he'd so often wanted so see but had not seen in several years. In fact, he had never seen an adult nude before.
Luke was just reaching orgasm when his father came along and caught him staring at David and relieving himself at the same time. This of course resulted in a major blow-up on his father's part, which attracted David's attention. The two of them lit into Luke, calling him every name in the book and telling him he was doomed to Hell for his sick perversions. His father told him to get packing immediately and never even let him say good-bye to his mother, who was doing volunteer church work off the farm at the time. His dad at least let him pack a few things first, although he didn't have many worldly possessions.
Having never been farther from home than Fort Collins, only a few miles away, Luke was terrified of what lay ahead of him -- but also warily optimistic that he could find a more satisfying life out from under his parents' and brother's constant control.
He knew he had a grandfather in Denver, but it took him a few days to track him down after he'd hitchhiked down to the city. When he finally did find him, Lloyd welcomed him with open arms, having some inkling of the kind of life he'd had to endure with his son and daughter-in-law. Lloyd had always blamed her for getting his son involved in "that church," and they hadn't communicated with him in several years.
"That was just two months ago," Luke said, "but it's turned my life around. I finally feel for the first time that someone is on my side and cares about me. I never had that before."
"You know, Luke, that's an amazing story -- and such a sad one," I said, squeezing his hand briefly. "I've never known anyone who's grown up in circumstances anything like that. I think you're an amazingly brave and resourceful guy to find your way out of it. And do you know what else I think?"
"No, what's that?"
"I think -- no, I know -- Lloyd isn't the only one in your corner. I am, too."
Luke looked up at me and then leaned against my shoulder, neither one of us saying anything for at least a minute. Suddenly -- as if spooked by his own candor -- he stood up.
"I'd better get going. Thanks a lot for listening. It meant a lot to me just to be heard."
"Any time, Luke. Can I ask you one question before you take off?"
"Sure."
"Does Lloyd know the details of why you had to leave home?"
"No, and please don't tell him, Todd. I just told him it was my idea to leave after Dad and I had a fight. I'd be embarrassed for him to know what we were fighting about."
"Everything you ever tell me is just between you and me. I promise you that. How about coming back over here on Friday after your procedure? I'll fix us something to eat. Is 6:30 okay?"
"Sure. Thanks -- I'd like that a lot."
We both stood up and walked to the door, with my arm around Luke's shoulder. I drew him to me and held him with both arms for a moment, and he awkwardly hugged me back -- I was thrilled that I was finally breaking through his self-imposed barrier with me. I'd be counting the hours till 6:30 on Friday.
Luke made his exit, and I closed the door behind him and slumped down to the floor. I leaned my back again the inside of the door and hugged my knees to my chest. I had been deeply moved by his unexpected visit. I had no idea what he'd been through before coming to Denver, but his story certainly helped me understand the way he had acted in Dr. Webberley's office at our first meeting.
I had thought it kind of strange that someone 20 years old would have been that uncomfortable being naked in front of another guy, but it was obvious to me now that I had probably been the first person outside of his immediate dysfunctional family who had ever seen him that way. He'd been home schooled and not allowed to live a normal life with friends. Maybe he'd never even been to a doctor before!
I thought about him a lot on Thursday and especially Friday, the day I knew he was going for his endoscopy. It was sweet that he'd wanted me there, but of course that was impossible. I hoped he had at least learned from me how to put a hospital gown on right. If not, the technician was going to get quite an eyeful of Luke's bare front.
I slogged through the day on Friday, weighing patients with too much weight and "blood-pressurizing" patients with too much hypertension. My own tension was plenty "hyper" as I thought about Luke's return visit that night to my apartment. I wanted him more with each passing day, but I knew I had to pace myself and bring him along at his own comfort level with me. In my mind I was his peer -- his equal -- but I knew that in his mind I was probably someone not only older but with much more life experience. In that regard, of course, he was right.
Dr. Webberley had a full patient load that day, and we were running behind schedule. The last patient didn't leave the office until almost six o'clock and Luke was coming at 6:30. I tidied up the examination room and rushed out the door. Traffic was a bitch, and I didn't get home until nearly 6:40. I was exhausted, sweaty, and harried.
Luke was in my lobby when I walked in and stopped to retrieve my mail. He looked relieved to see me.
"Hi, Luke. Sorry I'm late. Did I keep you waiting long?"
"Only a few minutes. I was getting a little worried that you'd forgotten I was coming over."
"Not a chance of that," I said, squeezing his shoulder with my one free hand. "I'm all yours for the whole evening." He grinned like a guy who couldn't believe this was actually happening to him. I asked him how things went today as we rode up in the elevator to my floor.
"It wasn't my idea of a good time -- that's for sure."
"But it's over now. Did you get any results yet?"
"No. They said I'd have to see Dr. Webberley again for those."
I fished my door key out of my pocket and let us in. I was still in the same scrubs I'd been in all day and couldn't wait to get out of them and into something else.
"Luke, why don't you help yourself to a beer while I get changed? I've gotta take a quick shower first, so just make yourself at home. I'm going to start the oven first and then we'll stick a frozen pizza in there when I get back."
"Okay. Mind if I look around?"
"Help yourself, but there's not much to see. I live a pretty simple life. You can turn the TV on if you want to."
I took the mail to the desk in my bedroom and then quickly doffed my scrubs and underwear and walked naked to the bathroom. Luke couldn't see me from the living room, but I felt a chill of excitement that maybe he'd wander back to where I was showering. So I left the bathroom door open.
I stood under the hot water and tried to shake off the stress of the day -- and the images of the patients I'd seen. There hadn't been one halfway attractive guy all day. I soaped myself all over and rinsed off. Stepping out of the shower, I grabbed a towel, wondering if Luke was anywhere nearby. Just as I was finished drying off, I heard a shrill sound over the hum of the bathroom exhaust fan. God, it was the smoke detector!
"Todd!!"
I quickly wrapped my towel around my waist and ran to the kitchen, where light smoke was wafting around the ceiling. Luke was standing there looking terrified, his hands covering his mouth and nose, his body rigid with fear. Had he never heard one of these alarms before?
I quickly turned the oven off and opened the oven door. I discovered a piece of Texas toast in there, left over from a meal a night or two ago. The smoke alarm was still shrieking loudly, so I grabbed a step stool from the utility closet and set it in place. Pushing the button didn't do anything, so I proceeded to try to remove the cover so I could get to the battery to disengage it.
As I reached up, my abs contracted and the only thing that was "disengaging" was my towel. I felt it loosening but decided to focus my attention instead on the smoke alarm. I knew it was inevitable that the towel would be on the floor in no more than three seconds.
Three...two...one...off -- I was right.
The damn alarm cover finally came loose, and I was able to get to the 9-volt battery. I looked down at Luke, who looked a little stunned. He picked up the towel from the floor but didn't hand it back to me right away because both of my hands were still busy above my head for a few seconds. With the battery finally free, I reached for Luke's hand for balance so I could step down from the ladder safely. His eyes were all over me. I just let him have a good long look -- it was only fair after the physical I'd done on him.
"Well, that was exciting. Sorry about that. I'd forgotten about that piece of toast."
"Would you like your towel back?" he finally said, with a little grin. It was nice to see him smiling for a change.
I took it from him but just hung it around my neck.
"I guess this sort of makes us equal now," I said, grinning back at him. "I've seen you, and you've see me."
"Well, not really equally. I was hard and shot off in front of you."
"If you keep staring at me like that, I'm going to get hard, too."
"I'm sorry, but there's a reason I'm staring, Todd."
"What's that?"
"I'm wondering why your...uh...thing looks so much different than mine."
Luke looked away momentarily out of apparent embarrassment, but soon his eyes were back on my tool again.
I looked down at myself.
"Oh, I see what you're getting at. But first let's call a spade a spade. There's nothing wrong with saying cock or penis or dick."
"There was in my family."
"Um...well...that's too bad...but back to your original question. I've been circumcised and you haven't. You've heard about circumcision, haven't you?"
"I guess so, but I haven't seen one before. What did they do to you and when?"
I was getting a little nervous now with all the prolonged attention to my bare manhood, which was starting to get a bit longer as a result.
"The tube of skin on me, like the one that covers the head of your penis, was surgically removed shortly after I was born. Most American boys are circumcised -- some for religious reasons and some just out of custom. They say it's easier keep your dick clean without a hood, but a lot of people believe it's unnecessary and unnatural to remove it. Except for your hood, our dicks are just the same, except that yours is probably more sensitive."
By now I'd been naked in front of Luke for well more than five minutes. I really needed to get dressed or risk getting a full hard-on, so I decided I'd said enough on the subject for now.
"Want a tour of the bedroom, Luke? You can help me decide what to put on." I started down the hall and felt his eyes riveted on my bare ass all the way. He followed me and I hung up my wet towel and started for my bureau, taking my time rummaging through it for just the right thing. He was wearing a t-shirt and shorts, as usual, so I put on something similar. I thought about forgoing underwear, but I needed something to keep my half-hard junk from flopping around too flagrantly the rest of the evening. It had already had far more attention than either of us ever expected.
Of course, I would rather have turned to him naked, strip off what little he was wearing, and make mad passionate love to him on my bed, but I knew it wasn't yet the right time. I wasn't even officially out to him yet -- although he had every reason to strongly suspect -- and I knew, despite being 20, that he was still an innocent man-child who had hardly an ounce of self-esteem or even self-awareness. It was hard (literally), but I would wait.
Since the smoke smell still permeated the apartment, I opened some windows and we went out for pizza. We talked a little more about his upcoming medical procedure and about how he was adjusting to life in Denver with his granddad. He said it had been eye-opening for him to experience what life was like with some real respect and affection -- essentials that most of us take for granted but that had been missing in his home of origin.
What he needed now was a job and an education, but with his anemia he didn't have what it took to pursue either for the time being. The best he could do was study for his GED, which he'd been spending several hours a day on, with Lloyd's encouragement.
He didn't even have a driver's license yet, since his parents forbade it. All he had ever driven was a tractor. So he now had to get around on foot and on the city buses.
I offered to drop him off at Lloyd's house, but he asked me if we could go back to my place and he'd walk home from there. I was wondering what more he wanted by doing that, and I found out.
When we entered my apartment, I was relieved to see that the smoke and odor had dissipated. I took my shoes off, as per my usual habit, and I noticed that Luke followed suit, so I knew he wasn't ready to leave just yet.
"Would you like a bowl of ice cream before you go home?" I asked.
"Sure -- that'd be nice."
I filled a couple of bowls, and we sat on the couch. He was starting to get more comfortable around me -- rather than sitting stiffly with his knees together, he put one knee up and tucked his foot under his other leg, like I was sitting. That meant that we were facing each other.
"This is really good. We almost never had ice cream at home. Dad considered it a luxury. I've probably gained five pounds at Granddad's house because he has it on hand all the time."
We talked a little more, but I was starting to fade after a long day at work. And I had to go in for half a day tomorrow to catch up on my paperwork and get the office ready for Monday morning. Luke noticed me yawning.
"I guess I'd better go now," he said, getting up and putting his shoes back on. I followed him to the door. Instead of reaching for the doorknob, however, he turned and faced me.
"Would you please hug me again?" he said, looking up at me with those soulful puppy-dog eyes of his. If I hadn't been hooked on this guy before, I sure was now.
"I wouldn't let you out of here without one," I replied.
Suddenly we were in each other's arms, embracing tightly for the first time. I held him around his shoulders, and he held me around my waist. With his shoes on and mine off, Luke was now only a couple of inches shorter than me, and we fit together nicely. The sight of him, the feel of him, even the smell of him intoxicated me. I never knew I could be this excited about anyone.
"You may not believe this, but you're the first person I've ever hugged like this. My parents and brother certainly never did any such thing. Granddad's a nice man, but we don't hug tight like this."
"Well, whenever you need one, you know where to find me."
"Yeah...I do...thank you. You really do care about me, don't you?"
"More than you know, my friend. More than you know."
After Luke left I was in such turmoil for the rest of the evening. What had started out as a little visit over frozen pizza had unexpectedly resulted in me being totally naked on a ladder in front of my new friend. While he seemed happy that it had happened -- and, to be honest, I was too -- it only caused me to have more questions about where our relationship was headed.
Because of the 5-year age difference and the stark differences in our backgrounds and education, I was feeling more like a big brother to Luke than a potential lover. I knew he looked up to me (and not just on that ladder) and wanted to be close. But how close? Did he have a sexual interest in me, like I had in him? If I tried to seduce him, would he get scared and run off? Or would he follow my lead with all the enthusiasm I felt for him? I wasn't sure yet.
I hadn't ever been in a situation like this. I was normally a very self-confident guy who knew exactly what he wanted and how to go after it -- and never had a doubt that the other guy felt the same way about me. I may not be the greatest "catch" on the street, but I do pride myself on having an above-average body (okay, it's smokin' hot, if the looks I get at the gym are any indication) and an agreeable personality -- despite the way I'd kicked Brian out of my bed unceremoniously not long ago.
All I knew was that I wanted Luke like nobody I'd ever wanted before. But I also wanted to give him time to get completely comfortable with me. We'd made a lot of progress in a short time, but I wanted see more joy in those eyes of his, rather than the fear and forlornness that had seemed to radiate from them up most of the time until this week.
As I slipped into dreamland I hugged my pillow tightly and pretended that it was Luke.
(To be continued in Part 5 soon)
Thanks for reading my story. If you have any comments, I'd be happy to hear them. Your feedback is the only "pay" we Nifty authors get for our efforts. Please put "Luke" in the subject line so I know your message is not spam. Sign your first name and location, if you don't mind, so I can respond appropriately. I answer every message.
Please don't reproduce any part of this story, or any of my stories, without permission. To see a clickable list of all my Nifty stories, please click on the "Authors" tab on the Nifty site. Then scroll down and click on "Damian" (but note that "Damian Chandler," just below my name, is a different author).
I encourage you to make a donation to Nifty to support the work they do to make these stories available.
Damian nvtahoeus@yahoo.com