My New Apprentice

Preamble

Date: 08/21/2022

Author: Spike Meyers

E-Mail: SpikeMeyers@gmail.com

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Notice: This story is a work of fiction and may contain explicit sex between adult male(s), sex between adult male(s) and male minor(s), sex between minors, incest, and sexual fetish. If you are offended by such material, do not read this work of fiction. The character(s) in this work of fiction is/are not based on any known person(s).

My New Apprentice 01

I was on my way to Staples to buy a new cash register. I volunteer one day a week for an animal rescue. They have a small thrift store and our cash register is on its way out. I have learned over this past month that if I power it down and let it sit for five minutes or so it will start working again when I plug it back in. It may work for a day or a week before it stops working again. There seems to be no rhyme or reason for it to malfunction.

I was very close to the store and came to a red light. I looked over to see a guy standing on the corner waiting to cross the street. It was a hot day and he was wearing a putty-green t-shirt and cargo shorts. His shoes were those canvas-like crocks that are so popular. I initially noticed his legs; they were so shapely and proportioned so nicely. A fine smattering of silky, brown hair from just below his kneecaps to his ankles. He sported a backpack hanging from his shoulder and had a short, very neatly cropped beard. I'm not too fond of facial hair but on him, it looked really good. The walk sign illuminated and he stepped down off the curb and started crossing the street.

As he passed by the front of my car, I got a good look at him. He was extremely handsome. I couldn't take my eyes off him. He was about 5' 7" tall, slender, maybe 140 pounds if that, with a full head of light-brown hair. I continued to watch him as he stepped up onto the sidewalk. I don't know how long I sat there watching him amble down the sidewalk. Suddenly I heard the vehicle behind me beeping their horn. My light had turned green and I hadn't noticed. I made my right-hand turn and passed him slowly just to look at him again.

The Staples center was no more than a block down and I pulled into the shopping center. I could not get the image of this guy out of my head. I love, love, love little guys, and this guy was so handsome and sexy. I was very taken with him. My mind was so consumed with this guy I must have been on auto-pilot because I was suddenly aware of a Staples employee welcoming me into the store. I didn't remember walking across the parking lot nor did I remember entering the store.

The store clerk was extremely helpful and ten minutes later, I walked out with a brand-new cash register. I placed the register in the back of my car and found myself thinking about this guy again. As I was leaving the Staples parking lot, I looked for this mysterious, handsome man and of course, he was nowhere to be seen. I pulled back out onto the main road and realized I was a little hungry. I noticed a Natures Garden up ahead and decided to stop there for lunch. Natures Gardens is a vegetarian restaurant and I love their salad bar; they have everything imaginable for salad toppings in addition to the best home-made soups and breads to tantalize your taste buds.

I found a parking spot not too far from the restaurant entrance and parked the car. My back windows are tinted so the cash register sitting in the back of my car was not visible should a potential thief entertain the thought of helping himself. I locked the car and headed across the parking lot towards the restaurant.

As I approached the restaurant, an elderly couple stopped me in the parking lot and asked for directions. They were visiting from the Midwest and wanted to know how to get to Phoenix. I was rather surprised, I thought everyone now-a-days has a cell phone and GPS. I asked them to pull to the side and I would give them directions.

He pulled forward and parked in front of the restaurant. I started giving the husband verbal directions to Phoenix. The husband was driving and his wife was sitting on the passenger side. Apparently, she was hard-of-hearing and kept interrupting. "What did he say, Harold?" she was constantly asking. After the third interruption, the husband looked over at his wife and said, "For Christ sakes, Margaret, shut the hell up so I can hear the man!"

I started laughing out loud. He didn't say it in a mean way but was obviously frustrated with her frequent interruptions. I asked him for a piece of paper and pencil and I would write down the directions for him. I handed him the directions and reviewed them with him to make sure that he fully understood them. As they pulled away, I turned around and who did I see approaching, the handsome guy from the corner. I stood there motionless and watched as he sat down on a bench close to the restaurant entrance.

He sat his backpack down on the pavement between his feet and grabbed a water bottle. I watched as he took a long swig of water from the bottle. When he raised his arm and tilted his head back to drink, I saw his beautiful, exposed arm pit under his t-shirt sleeve. His light-brown pit hair looked silky and soft, a slight-curl from perspiration. I wanted so badly to lick his pit. His skin was so tan and smooth looking. He capped his water bottle and returned it to his backpack.

I was just standing there mesmerized watching his every move. He scooted back on the bench and turned his head towards me. "Fuck!" I cussed to myself, "he caught me watching him." I decided to just walk to the door of the restaurant and try to be as casual as I could. As I approached the door, he nodded his head at me in greeting. I smiled and nodded back, "Hi" I said, "how are you doing?" I asked him.

"I'm good, man, thanks for asking," he replied with a big smile flashing his beautiful, white teeth.

"Fuck! He has dimples too," I said to myself. I could see them even though he has a beard. I'm a sucker for dimples. "You're not working today?" I asked taking a step to the side of the door so I didn't get clobbered in case someone was to exit.

"No, not yet," he answered. "I just got here not too long ago and I have not decided if I want to stay yet." "Where are you from?" I asked.

"Santa Fe," he responded.

"What brings you over here?" I asked.

"I just needed a change. I have a friend here so I have been sleeping on his sofa for the last couple of days. I can tell his wife doesn't much care for me so I have to bug out soon. I don't want to cause him any trouble with his girl."

"You seem like a really nice guy, why do you think she doesn't like you?" I asked him.

"It's just a feeling, really, plus I overheard her asking him how long I was going to be staying. I could tell just by the way she said it that she doesn't want me there. She's always telling him what to do. I don't know how he puts up with it. I've only been there two days and I think I would have kicked her to the curb by now if she was my girl. Who needs to be picked at all the time. It's bullshit!" he said as he reached back down to his pack to retrieve his water bottle.

"So, what are you doing now?" I asked.

"I'm just hanging out. My buddy left for work this morning and she has the day off. I did not want to be there alone with her. So, here I am," he said flashing a beautiful smile.

"Got cha. I was just going to get a bite to eat, why don't you join me?" I said invitingly with a smile.

"Thanks man, I appreciate it, but I have to conserve what money I have until I decide what I'm going to do. I've been doing fast-food or sandwiches at the local market since I arrived.

"No worries, it's my treat," I told him. "Besides, I really hate eating alone. This place is not that expensive anyway. What do you say, handsome?" As soon as I heard myself say handsome, I panicked inside. It just came out; I did not want to offend him or piss him off.

"Thanks. I appreciate the offer and the compliment. My name is Joel," he said extending his hand to me in greeting. I was immediately relieved and gave him a firm handshake. "I'm Randy," I said in return.

"Is Randy, randy?" he asked with a sexy smile.

"If I am, it's all your fault, Joel," I said quipping back.

"My fault?" he questioned me with a big smile. "How is it my fault?"

"Because you are so damn cute, hot, and sexy. That's why. I'm just being honest." I said returning a big smile. My hands were literally shaking as I spoke the words.

"Holy shit! Are you fucking serious? You think I'm hot?" Joel said laughing.

"Why is that so funny?" I asked him.

"I don't know, man, it just is. I mean, no one has ever said that to me before; not even a chick." "Why is that so hard to believe, Joel. I think you are incredibly handsome. The second I saw you back there standing on the corner I thought that. I find it hard to believe that I am the first person to say that to you. At least you're not pissed because of what I said. That would totally suck, you should pardon the expression."

"No, Randy, I'm not pissed at all; I'm flattered. But what's this about me standing on the corner?" he questioned me.

"Well, I first saw you, no more than an hour ago, standing on the corner waiting to cross the street right down the road," I pointed. "I was in my car at the stop light when I noticed you. Now, here we are; go figure," I said with a shrug of my shoulders.

"May I ask a silly question?" Joel said.

"Ask away, handsome," I answered with a smile.

"What was I going that made you notice me standing on the corner?" Joel asked.

"To be honest, you weren't doing anything; it was your legs. Your legs caught my immediate attention. You have such nice legs," I answered him.

"My legs?" he questioned with a raise of an eyebrow.

"Yeah, you have great legs." I told him. "That's what I noticed first."

He raised up his right leg and pulled up the leg of his cargo shorts. "These legs?" he asked questionably.

"Yeah, look how perfectly proportioned they are. I think so anyway. They look like runner's legs to me." I told him.

"Interesting you should say that; I ran track when I was in school." Joel volunteered.

"See, there you go; like I said, nice legs. So, are you going to make me eat by myself, Joel?" I asked him.

Joel looked at me and gave me a big smile. "I guess it would be rather rude of me to decline your kind invitation now, wouldn't it?" he said.

"Extremely rude," I said with a smile. "It would crush me. Plus, you did show me your legs."

Joel started to laugh, he grabbed his backpack and stood up. "Do you need help getting up from the bench old man?" he joked.

"Old man!" I repeated and hoped up like a jack-in-the-box. "I'll show you what an old man can do." I laughed throwing my arm around his shoulder guiding him to the door. I realized what I did after it was already done. He did not pull back from me in the least. Suddenly, it seemed to me that the awkward barrier between us fell away.

I paid for our lunches and together we walked down the long salad bar line making our salads. We came to the end of the line and found a table towards the back of the dining area. We sat our salads on the table and I pointed him to the self-serve beverage counter. We each grabbed a glass and headed directly towards the iced tea dispenser. "Great minds think alike," I commented. He looked up at me and smiled.

We returned to our table and sat down. I handed him a small menu sitting on the table.

"What's this?" he asked.

"The menu," I responded. "They have other items than just salads and breads. On one side of the menu, you will see all of the soups they offer, all hand-made right here on the premises. They also have a variety of pasta, grilled vegetables and sauces, and on the back, you will see the dessert items. This is a vegetarian restaurant so you won't find any meat on the menu. This is one of my favorite restaurants. It's not fancy by any stretch of the imagination, but the food is awesome.

"Are you a vegetarian, Randy?" Joel asked.

"No, not really. I do eat meat from time-to-time, but not frequently: I eat fish mostly. My parents were real carnivores; meat for every meal. I grew up that way, but after I moved out on my own, I was not so inclined. As I aged, I kind of turned into a pseudo-vegetarian; that lasted about 12 years. Then, I started dating a guy who was studying to be a chef. He was a phenomenal cook and slowly, I started eating meat again; just not that much."

"So, I can order anything else on this menu at no extra charge? I don't want you to spend a lot of money on me, Randy."

"No worries, Joel. You can order anything that suits your fancy at no extra charge. The waiter or waitress will be by shortly. Take a gander at the menu and see if there is anything you want and let him or her know when the waiter comes over."

"Are you going to order anything?" Joel asked.

"I am, yes. I love their corn chowder so I am going to order some of that. All soups come in a cup not a bowl. Actually, whatever you order will be served in a cup, except the dessert depending on what you choose."

"Good afternoon, gentlemen," the waitress said. "May I get you anything from the menu?" she asked.

"Yes, thank you, Louise," Randy said reading her name tag. "I'd like a cup of your corn chowder, please."

"I think I'm going to try the pea soup," Joel said smiling at Randy.

"Coming right up, gentlemen," Louise said with a nod of her head and walked away.

"I'm really glad that you decided to join me, Joel. I am also glad that I didn't piss you off with the things that I said outside."

"I'm not a homophobe, Randy. I can't stand, bigotry, racism or self-righteous people. They can all go piss up a rope as far as I'm concerned. To be honest, it was nice to hear. It made me feel good and maybe a little embarrassed." Joel said softly.

"Why embarrassed?" I asked him.

"You caught me off-guard. I was certainly not expecting you to say those things. You have to admit, it is unusual to say something like that to a complete stranger. It's not something that happens every day; at least not to me anyway," Joel explained.

"Yeah, you do have a point. I did not do it consciously; at least initially. It just slipped out. However, now that the cat is out-of-the-bag, I have no qualms telling you that I think you're beautiful and so fucking sexy!"

"You're a hoot, Randy. How's the expression go? Oh yeah, I bet you say that to all the boys," he said giggling.

"You would lose that bet, handsome. In fact, I haven't said that to anyone in several years. I guess you have that affect on me for some reason. I don't want to make you uncomfortable, Joel, but I am very attracted to you. However, I will try to not slobber all over myself and the table for the remainder of our lunch. I promise."

Joel started laughing out loud. "Oh my God, the stuff you come out with; you crack me up, Randy."

"I was going for horny not humor but I'll take what I can get," I laughed with him.

For the next forty-five minutes we talked about all kinds of various things; music, sports, family, friends, current events, likes, dislikes. I found him to be quite knowledgeable about many things and thoroughly enjoyed my time with him; and I must say, I think he did too. I was sad to see it coming to an end.

"Well gorgeous," I said to him. "I had better get my ass back to work. Can I give you a lift anywhere? I offered."

He looked down at the table and checked his watch. "Four and a half hours," I heard him whisper to himself. "Thanks, but I have no place to be. My buddy, Roger, doesn't get home from work until five thirty. I'll find something to keep me occupied. Thank you so much for lunch Randy; it was a lot of fun. I had a really nice time." He picked up his backpack and slung it over his shoulder.

"Are you sure, Joel? It's not a problem."

"Yeah, I'm good. I'll be fine," he answered. "OK, I'm just going to say this. It's August and fucking hot as hell outside. It is easy to get sick and collapse in this kind of heat when you are not used to it. I don't think it's a good idea for you to be outside for hours until Roger gets home."

"I don't have much of a choice Randy. I know Roger's wife does not want me there so I can't go back until Roger gets home. It would be far too uncomfortable for both of us. He is the only person I know here."

"Not true," I said.

Joel looked at me quizzically for a second and then smiled knowing what I was thinking. "No Randy. I can't let you do that. Thank you, I appreciate it but no, that's way beyond the scope of reasonableness," he said waving his hands through the air.

They stepped outside and the heat smacked them dead in the face. Randy noticed Joel's reaction to the extreme difference in temperature stepping outside from the air-conditioned restaurant. "Like I said, handsome, it's fucking hot! Are you sure you won't reconsider my offer? I promise I will be on my best behavior so don't worry about that."

"It's not that, Randy; I'm not at all bothered about that. I have taken care of myself since I was seventeen years old; I just don't want to burden you. I do have some money; I can get a hotel tomorrow until I figure out what I'm going to do."

"Why don't we go sit in my car and get out of this heat. I'll turn the A/C on and we can discuss it then. Will you at least agree to that? I asked him. I did not wait for an answer, I placed my hand on his shoulder and guided him to my car. We jumped into the car and I started the engine immediately. Joel placed his backpack on the floor between his feet and I turned on the A/C to maximum.

"Fuck, it's hot! I have lived here for ten years now and I always ask myself every summer why I still live here. As usual, once the summer is over, it's gorgeous and it makes me forget about moving until summer arrives again." The A/C was finally starting to blow cold air and soon the overwhelming heat started to subside.

"Look, Joel, the truth is, eventually in life, everyone sooner or later needs a little help occasionally. It's nothing to be ashamed of. It seems to me that you, my handsome, new friend, have reached that crossroad; swallow your pride and let me help you. You are not a burden to me. I live alone so I would welcome your company. You can stay as long as you like. Take your time until you figure out your next step; no pressure.

"I don't know, Randy; I mean, we don't know each other. Besides, I could be an axe murderer; are you willing to take that chance and bring a stranger into your house?" Joel asked.

"Oh please, you are far to handsome to be an axe murderer," I joked back with him.

"You seem to have a one-track mind there, Randy," he laughed. "I need to pick up my things from Roger's place first if that's OK," he asked. "I don't have a lot; just one satchel. Are you absolutely sure about this?" he asked.

"I'm sure, Joel. I'm sure," I reassured him.

"Joel?" he questioned, "I thought my name was handsome?" he joked as he put his seatbelt on and buckled up. Joel navigated the way to his friend Roger's house. It was no more than ten minutes away. I pulled up to visitor parking and Joel said, "I won't be long, I'm just going to run in and grab my satchel. I'll be right back."

Joel unbuckled the seatbelt and hoped out of the car. I watched his little butt waver side-to-side as he navigated the sidewalk and disappeared. As I waited for Joel to return, I looked around the apartment complex. It was quite nice and very well maintained. I could just imagine what the rent was like here; expensive no doubt. I did not wait long before I noticed Joel coming back to the car. He had a medium sized satchel or duffle-bag in his hand. I jumped out of the car and opened the back hatch.

He gave me a big smile as he tossed his bag in the back of the car. "Is that it?" I asked him.

"That's it" he said, "I always travel light."

"Let's go home," I said to him with a smile.

As I pulled out of the apartment complex, I asked, "What did you say to Roger's wife?"

"I just told her that I found a more permanent but temporary place to stay. I asked her to let Rog know that I would call him tonight. I'm sure she is relieved I'm out of there. I really have no clue why she dislikes me so much. Until two days ago, I did not know her. We've never had an argument or anything. She and Rog met out here. To be honest, I'm relieved to be out of there. It's not a pleasant feeling to know that someone doesn't like you and you are in their home," Joel answered.

"She just wants to jump your bones, sexy. That's all. She wants you out because she doesn't trust herself around you," I joked to lighten his mood.

"Oh yeah, she wants me alright, I'm a pip-squeek compared to Roger; that guy is built like brick shit-house as the expression goes. I bet you'd want to do him too," Joel said laughing.

"Perhaps," I said laughing. "But I prefer smaller guys such as yourself. That's what floats my boat. I'm just being honest, handsome."

Joel simply smiled and looked out the windshield. "Um, I need to tell you something before we get home. I just thought about it this second."

"What's that?" Joel asked.

"My house is a shambles. I bought it about a year ago and I gutted the entire inside with the exception of the master suite and bath. The walls are just exposed studs in some rooms, other rooms are completely open space. There floor is just a concrete slab; I removed all of the carpeting and tile throughout the house. The kitchen stove still works, but the only habitable room is the master suite. I built a small platform with a double mattress sitting on it just so it's not on the concrete slab. I have been taking my time renovating the house."

"So, you're telling me that we have to bunk together on nothing more than a double mattress? Is that it?" Joel asked.

"Aah, yeah; that's about it." I answered sheepishly. "But I meant what I said; I will be on my best behavior; I promise. No funny stuff. I don't want you to be anxious about that. You are my guest for as long as you want."

"No worries, Randy. For some reason, I totally trust you. I don't know why, but I do." Joel answered. "Besides, you are really good for my ego," he giggled.

I pulled into the center of the garage and closed the garage door. "Here we are, my humble abode," I told Joel. "Don't let the interior shock you; one day, it will be stunning inside, just like you."

"You are too much, dude," Joel said with a smile shaking his head.

"Come on in, I'll show you around; such as it is."

The garage door led into the laundry room, although I gutted the room, the washer and dryer are still functional. I also tore out the wall between the laundry room and the kitchen, more specifically, the breakfast nook which was adjacent from the laundry room. I also gutted the kitchen. I left one cabinet hanging on the wall for storage and a small piece of counter space under the cabinet. Other than that, the kitchen is empty except for the cooker and the refrigerator.

"Oh my gosh, Randy, you weren't kidding when you said you gutted the place," Joel commented as he looked around the open space. "I take it this is, or was, the living room?" Joel asked pointing through the stud wall behind the stove and fridge.

"You are correct, handsome. This will be the living room. I am going to take out the slider here and replace it with French Doors. The back patio will be converted to what is referred to around these parts as an Arizona Room. Completely enclosed of course, but screened. I will also install remote-activated shades to keep the sun out in the summertime."

"Does that thing work?" Joel asked pointing to the hot tub on the back patio.

"It most certainly does for the most part. The heater is broken so there is no hot water, but everything else works. Come on, I'll show you the rest of the house. The house is only 1,700 square feet so it's not too big. This first room will be my office. It's the smallest bedroom in the house. Right here was the bathroom; obviously I gutted it too. I am going to reconfigure it and put in a large two-man shower. I need to move the toilet to do that of course.

Down the hall will be the guest room. I'm going to reconfigure that too so it has a small walk-in closet as opposed to the standard guest bedroom closet. The thing I like most about this house is that the master suite is all by itself. Soundproofing can be important sometimes so I like the separation of space. Come on, it's just down the hall. "Wow, it's really big," Joel commented.

That comment cracked me up. I couldn't resist saying, "How do you know? I haven't showed it to you yet."

"You are such a perv," Joel laughed. "I was referring to the size of the room, not your junk."

"Oh," I said defeatedly, "I was hoping you were talking about something else," I retorted with a laugh.

"Here, I'll show you the walk-in. There is plenty of space to put your things in here. I don't have too much with regard to clothing. I have never been a clothes hoarder." I slid the sliding mirrored door open and flicked on the light. "Take a look," I said to Joel.

"Just to be clear, I am referring to the closet when I say, it's so big," he giggled. "It's practically empty."

"You will also notice that I left the carpet in the closet for now. That will eventually be replaced too. It just takes time and money."

"Speaking of which," Joel commented. "May I ask what you do for a living?"

"Um, I have done a few things in my life. I am currently unemployed at the moment. I don't know yet what my next venture will be as of yet." I answered him.

Joel looked at me with a question all over his face. "I know what your thinking, handsome. If I'm unemployed, how am I able to do this? Correct?"

"Well, yeah; that's what I was thinking," Joel said softly. "I'm sorry, Randy. I don't mean to pry; that's your business."

"No, it's quite alright. I would be curious too. I had my own business for several years. In fact, I was about your age now when I started it. I used to make custom acrylic cabinets. My clients would tell me what their needs were and I would design them and build them to order. I made a very handsome living doing that for about ten years. I was very, very successful. Eventually I grew tired of it and sold the business. I have always been somewhat frugal. I've never been one to drive a fancy car or live in a big fancy house. Don't misunderstand, I like nice things, but I spent my money wisely.

I took a little time off and did some traveling for a while. When I got back, I got my contractor's license. I did that for about 5 years or so. I was super, super busy and I got tired of the incessant grind, so, I'm taking a break until I decide what my next venture will be. However, I keep my license current, just in case I decide to return to work as a contractor."

"Damn, dude. How old are you?" Joel asked.

"I'm old enough to know what I like, handsome; I'm 42," I answered him.

"Really? You could be my daddy; you sure don't look like your 42," Joel giggled. "Don't tease me, handsome; I'd love to be your daddy."