Oliver and I

Hi everyone, Al here. Thanks again goes out to all of you that took the time to write me. I really appreciate it. Well, on to part seven!

Oliver and I Installment #7:

My eyes shot open in a flash and my arm flew reflexively sideways as the loud, beeping alarm went off. My hand hit its mark, successfully switching off the annoying sound being projected from the small digital clock on the dresser. I brought my hand back up and rubbed my eyes as I let them adjust to the darkness of early morning. It was 6:00 AM I knew without looking, as I had it set for that time every morning of the school week. Oliver stirred and yawned as he rolled over to see what was going on.

"Wha...What's g..." Oliver yawned again, unable to finish his question.

"It's time to get up and get ready for school," I said as I stood up and began going through my daily routine. I searched through my dresser drawers for my regulation polo shirt and khakis pants. (I went to a catholic high school, so uniform was required.)

"What time is it?" Oliver asked.

"Six," I replied.

"Six?! You're crazy," he said in a groggy voice. I turned just in time to see him turn back over and bury his head into the pillow. The corner of my mouth pulled into a grin as I observed the exhausted form on the bed before me.

"Come on sleepy head. Rise and shiny!" I said that with all drama I could put into my voice as I reached down and pulled the covers off of him in one quick movement. He moaned, almost whined, and curled up into a fetal position on the bed as he began to shiver slightly. I sat back down on the bed and helped him to sit up. A smile spread across my face as the morning hardon he was sporting shot out of the front of his boxers. I pulled him into a hug and kissed his warm cheek.

"Good morning sunshine," I whispered.

"Good morning," he groaned back. Then he finally returned the kiss and smiled. "How long do I have?"

"We've got about forty minutes to get ready and out of the house. You'd better shower so you can wake up a little bit." I smiled.

"Yeah, I guess I'm not a morning person."

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it. "And you might want to take care of that too," I said, touching his erect member. Come on," I said as we stood up together.

"Sure you can't join me?" he asked, giving me that puppy face that made me just melt.

"Sorry babe. We've got company."

"Alright. But you owe me," he said, giving me one last hug before opening up his dresser. After Oliver got his things he walked into the bathroom. A short time later I heard the water go on so I grabbed my clothes and headed to the small shower that was downstairs. My own morning hardon was throbbing as the warm water of the shower poured over my body. As I washed myself with one hand, I took the other and gently handled my dick. Close to fifteen minutes later I stepped out of the shower and got dressed. As I ran my fingers through my damp, short hair (I rarely ever comb it.) I could still hear water running upstairs. I smiled to myself. Oliver was going to take a while to wake up. After I had brushed my teeth and shaved I headed back upstairs to the kitchen. My dad was already there, coffee in hand, packing up the last of his school papers. My brother walked past me without a word and went downstairs to take a shower. That was typical. His violent mood swings kept the two of us from ever becoming very close. It was a rare occasion that the two of us ever found something in common to talk about. My brother is very spoiled, and was always used to getting his way. It seems that he can't be happy unless everyone else is miserable. Oh well, what can I do?

"Good morning," I said to my dad.

"Morning Albert," he replied without looking up from the huge pile of un-graded papers before him.

"Aren't grades due this week?" I asked, pointing to the stack of papers.

"Don't remind me," he said rolling his eyes. "I'll have them in late like every other faculty member." Then he smiled and shook his head.

"Got any more coffee?"

"Sure, over there on the counter."

"Thanks," I said. I walked over and poured myself a cup."

"Are you going to bring Oliver to see Bob today?"

"Yeah. I thought I would take the van today. I need to stay after school for a while."

"What for?"

"I've got some art projects to finish up so that I can start a new one this week."

"Okay. Did Oliver have any trouble sleeping?"

"Not that I know of," I said. "He had kind of a hard time getting up though."

"That's to be expected. I didn't feel like getting up this morning either," my dad sighed. "He'll soon get used to it."

"Yeah, he will."

"Do you guys want any breakfast?"

"Nah, by the time we're ready to go we'll have to leave. We might just swing by the McDonald's on our way."

"Okay then. You'd better leave soon though. Bob starts early and you don't want to interrupt his schedule too much."

"Don't worry, we'll get there in plenty of time."

A short time later Oliver came out of the bathroom dressed and ready to go. He was wearing a pair of khakis and a T-shirt, and as always, his hair was perfectly combed and styled. He was a knockout, and I smiled as he came into the kitchen.

"Good morning guys," he said, still a little groggy.

"Good morning Oliver. Sleep well?" my dad inquired.

"Till the alarm went off," he responded. My dad let out a light chuckle.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," my dad said as he came over and gave Oliver a quick pat on the shoulder before going into the closet for his coat.

"Here," I said, handing him a mug of coffee.

"Thanks." He took a sip and his face instantly lit up in surprise. His eyes went wide as he tried to swallow the contents of the mug, and I couldn't help but laughing at him.

"I was about to tell you to be careful. It's a little strong," I said.

"A little?! What a buzz!"

"Now you know how I make it through the mornings," I chuckled as I threw an arm around him.

"I guess."

"Grab a jacket and we can get going. It's about 6:30."

"Okay. Be right back." While he did that I put on my coat and got the keys for the van. A moment later Oliver returned with his coat and we were ready to go.

"See you there dad," I called out as we were walking out the front door.

"See you there," he said. After that the two of us drove off to school. The ride was uneventful, and about twenty minutes later we arrived at the parking lot and stepped out. The morning air was beginning to cool down some, and a slight breeze blew into our faces as we took the back entrance to the high school where Bob's office (indoor tool shed actually) was located. Just as I thought, bob was sitting right by the back door with a cigarette and a cup of coffee in his hand.

"Good morning Bob," I said with a smile.

"Good morning Al, how's things?"

"Not bad, and you?"

"I've seen better days. This place is falling apart and I can't seem to keep up with everything. This new principal doesn't help much either. She expects miracles."

"Well actually I wanted to talk to you about that."

"Oh?"

"Bob, I would like you to meet my best friend Oliver. He's visiting from Germany and is going to be here for a while."

"Really? Well nice to meet you Oliver."

"Nice to meet you too sir," Oliver replied, shaking Bob's hand.

"Oliver has already graduated from high school and he's looking for a job. I thought that since you are so tied down with all of this work that maybe you'd be looking to hire someone."

"Hmmm." Bob looked over at Oliver and began speaking again. "Can you mop floors?"

"Yes."

"Sweep, change lights, fix plumbing?"

"Yes. I can do quite a bit, though I don't have much experience in plumbing and electrical work. But I'm a fast learner, and I..."

"You're hired," Bob cut him off. "Have any problem starting today?"

"Uh, no I guess not."

"Good. Today I'll give you a crash course, and tomorrow we'll discuss getting you on the payroll. It's only minimum wage, but it's better than nothing."

"That's great, thank you very much." Oliver looked really happy.

"Thanks Bob," I said.

"Not at all. Thank you," he replied.

"I'll see you two later, okay?"

"Alright, see you later Al."

"See you later," Oliver said.

"Okay." I turned around and headed down the hall. I took the first set of stairs up to the second floor where my dad's classroom was and opened the door. I turned on the lights and stepped into the storage room situated in the back of the class. Besides microscopes and various chemicals, my dad had put a coffee maker, a desk, chair, and mini-fridge all inside. It was like a tiny office, and I usually spent a lot of time doing my homework at the desk that was there. After I hung up my coat I set my backpack on the desk and took out all of my books. It was about 7:00 AM. School didn't start till 8:00, but we were always an hour early. Grabbing a pencil from the desk drawer, I stuck it behind my ear and walked down to the art room on the first floor. I had taken every art class that the school offered, and had ascended through every level of difficulty, so this year I was taking the most advanced art class they offered over again more credit. The art teacher (Mrs. B.) and I had become very good friends, and she pretty much let me work at my own pace on whatever I wanted. Art class was the best time of the day for me, and this year (for the first semester anyway) I had art for the first two periods of the day. (Like I said earlier on, our school had started a block schedule, in which there are four, ninety-minute classes a day.) After lunch I was in my dad's Anatomy and Physiology class, and for the last period of the day I was in Trig/PreCalc. This was only for the first half of the year though, mind you. Everyone's classes changed at the end of the semester. The art room, which was really two rooms, was my sanctuary I guess you could say. It was here that I spent the majority of my free time. Anyone in the school that wanted to see me knew where I could be found. Right here. I took on the role of school artist and mister fix-it as I was sometimes called. This was because I spent a lot of time giving Bob a hand with fixing things and setting up for events like mass or assemblies. I was also VP for student council for 3 years, and since it was our job to decorate for and plan homecoming and prom, I did much of the technical stuff like electrical work and design. Though there were a lot of other things that I could have done with my time, I always took time out of my schedule to help out in any way I could. If anyone needed something they came to me because they knew that I rarely turned anyone away. It was just the way that I was raised. I always worked hard (still do), and it gained me some respect of several of my peers. I really only had a few good friends that I would talk to, but other than that, I spent most of my time alone in the art room. I always had something to do, so I was rarely bored.

Once I was inside the art room I turned on the coffee machine by the sink and began brewing a fresh pot. When Mrs. B. came in she was going to want some. It was like a ritual really. The two of us were the only ones that drank coffee, and we had a pot every morning in class. It was the only way we were able to stay awake through the four long periods of the day without falling asleep. After the coffee was ready I poured myself a cup and sat down at my drafting table in the corner of the classroom. I hadn't bothered to switch on the lights overhead so I turned on the desk lamp that sat on the drafting table. I removed the pencil from behind my ear and proceeded to work on the sketch I had started the week before. It was a portrait of one of my classmates, and it was nearly finished. All that was left to be done was some detail work, and I no longer needed them to model for me.

A short time later there was a knock at the door. I turned my head only slightly to see whom it was. I smiled when the familiar figure slid through the half-opened doorway.

"Mornin' Al!" the deep voice echoed.

"Hey, good morning Adam!" I replied, nodding my head in greeting. "How was your weekend?"

"Not bad. My dad and I finally got the field cut."

"That's good. One less thing to worry about, huh?"

"Yup. So how's the portrait coming along? You're not making me look ugly, are you?"

"No, not to my knowledge anyway." Adam looked down at the sketch in front of me.

"Man, I look like a dork," he whined.

"Hey, I only draw what I see," I said.

"Gee, thanks a lot!"

"It's not my fault you had a permanent scowl on your face when you posed for this last Friday." I was actually surprised that I had been able to get him to sit down for the picture.

"Sorry about that, that's my fault I guess. I was kind of in a bad mood Friday. I think the stress is gettin' to me."

"I know what you mean."

"You think you could do another portrait? Maybe one of me smiling?"

"Sure, why not. Pull up a chair, cause there's still a lot of time before the first bell rings."

"Okay, cool." Adam grabbed the nearest chair and sat down next to me, facing in my direction. I pulled out a clean sheet of paper and started on the new sketch. Now I bet you're all wondering who this Adam kid is, right? Adam stood about 6'2", only a few inches shorter than myself, but he was much more muscular. I swear the kid was born with a barbell in his hand. He had a great, even tan, short brown hair, and brown eyes. He was almost your typical jock, and was actually the captain of the football team. Though the two of us had met freshman year, we really hadn't become good friends till our junior year. To outsiders we seemed like total opposite ends of the spectrum-and in some respects that's true-but we actually had a lot in common with each other, despite the social bracket that we were put in. We had both taken the same art classes, and after we got to know each other better, we became great friends. Despite his being captain of the football team and probably the most popular guy in school, Adam was actually very quiet and hardly ever socialized with anyone. Weird, huh? He was also very smart in math, so while he tutored me in that subject, I would tutor him in science. Overall he was a really nice guy and never lived up to people's first impressions of him.

"So how was your weekend Al?" he asked after a short period of utter silence.

"Great actually. You remember when I went I went down to Atlanta for that Sci-Fi convention?"

"Yeah."

"Well I became really good friends with this guy from Germany that I met down there, and I just picked him up on Saturday from the Cleveland bus station. He's in the U.S. till next fall, so I invited him to stay at my place."

"That's cool. How old is he?"

"Eighteen, and his name is Oliver. He's really cool."

"So when do I get to meet this guy? Maybe we can all hook up and do something together."

"Well I brought him with me today. Bob just hired him for extra help."

"No way!" Adam put is arms up in the air to strike a victory pose. Remember when I said that I was always helping Bob out with various jobs? Well Adam was the guy right there with me, every step of the way. We were like the school's junior handymen. "That mean's we can retire!" he said jokingly.

"For now anyway," I chuckled.

"But I really mean it, if you want we can all get together and do something. It'd be good for him to make a few friends while he was here."

"Sure, he'd probably like that. My uncle is getting tickets for a hockey game soon. Would you be interested in coming?"

"That sounds great. How much are the tickets?"

"Nothing. He won free season passes for the next 3 years."

"Cool. Let me know when it takes place and I'll be there."

"Sure thing. So, any thoughts on where you want to go to college yet?"

"Not really," Adam said, seeming a little annoyed. "I've looked into a few places, but I'm not sure. I want to try and get a football scholarship or something, but I'm not sure about what I would major in."

"I think you should go into architecture," I said.

"Really?" he asked, cocking his head a little.

"Sure. I mean, you can draw well and lets face it-you kick ass in math and physics."

"I'm not sure if I kick ass, but I am pretty good at it."

"Are you kidding? You could probably teach that class." Adam blushed at the comment. He always got real embarrassed when given a compliment-especially if it came from a girl. I always found it pretty cute. He was always so modest. "Look, I just think it's something you should consider. You'd definitely be good at it."

"Thanks Al. I'll look into it."

Moments later the door swung the rest of the way open and the lights went on. Adam and I both turned our heads in that direction.

"Good morning guys!"

"Hey, good morning Mrs. B.!" Adam said.

"Morning!" I said, still working on Adam's portrait.

"So how was the weekend?" she asked.

"Great," we said together.

"That's good. Still working on that portrait Al?"

"I've started a second one. This time Adam's smiling somewhat," I chuckled. Adam blushed again.

"Oooh let me see!" she said as she walked over to wear we were sitting. "Awww, isn't that cuuute!" she said in a high girly voice, letting the word cute drag out. Adam blushed even more and I gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

"You know, I think Adam should draw you now," Mrs. B. suggested.

"Cool," Adam said. The words 'It's payback time' were written all over his face.

"But I'm not done yet," I protested.

"You can finish later. Besides, Adam needs more practice."

"That's what I'm afraid of." As soon as I said that I felt a punch connect with my arm. "Ouch," I said, rubbing my shoulder in mock pain as I looked back at Adam. Mrs. B. always liked to tease and play games with her students like that. She always kept things even.

"Alright Al, sit still," Adam said with a grin.

"Okay, you've got twenty minutes," I said, setting my drawing board on the tabletop. As the two of us sat there in the corner of the room, Mrs. B. was busy putting everything in order for class. She was a really great person. Only about 5'6" high, she had black, wavy hair and brown eyes. Her hair was stylized so that it was real short on bottom and then teased on top so that it almost covered the tops of her ears. For being 50 years old, she was still in great shape and could have passed for being 10 years younger. She had a great sense of humor, and had a way of getting people to open up. When I think about it, she was really more of a friend to us than a teacher.

Before long the first bell rang and the footsteps of students heading for their lockers could be heard. Mrs. B. moved over and closed the door to keep out the early morning noise.

"Thanks for the coffee Al," she said, holding up her mug.

"You're welcome. Are you finished yet?" I asked, turning my attention now to Adam.

"Yup," he said. Then he turned it around so that I could see it. My eyes grew wide and my mouth dropped when I saw what he had done.

"You made me cross-eyed you bastard!" I said, playfully smacking him in the back of the head. Adam began to laugh uncontrollably.

"I draw what I see asshole," he mocked, getting another slap in the head.

"Hey, watch the language you two," Mrs. B. scolded.

"Sorry," we said together.

"Fix that you dumb ass," I giggled, Adams laughter becoming contagious.

"I don't know, it's some of my best work," he continued, still laughing.

"I mean it."

"Alright, alright, I'll fix it," he said, erasing the eyes off the portrait. "But you have to admit, it was pretty good." He grinned again.

"Yeah, great," I said sarcastically. "You're such an ass. I'm getting more coffee."

"Awe come on Al, you know you love me."

"That's what bothers me," I said, smiling back at him. Once I got my coffee I walked back over to my desk and scruffed up Adam's short, almost butch hair.

"Ah man, not the hair! I got a date after school."

"Wow, she must not take long to blow up then."

"Very funny asshole."

"So what's her name?"

"Cara," he said, blushing again.

"From here?"

"Yeah."

"Cool. Where you guys going?"

"Not sure yet. We're gonna decide that later."

"Well good luck to ya then," I said, patting him on the pack.

"Thanks."

Just then the door swung open and the rest of the class walked in. I looked up at the clock. It was already 8:00. Where did the time go?

Art class went on as usual. I spent most of my time helping my classmates with their projects instead of working on mine. So what else was new? In between all of that I was able to work on my picture a little bit. I sighed as the bell rang for the end of class. I knew it would be at least another day before I finished.

"Later man," Adam said, patting me on the shoulder.

"Later," I replied. Then I turned my attention back to the unfinished project before me. I would be here for my second period class as well-Graphic Art-but Mrs. B. allowed me to work on whatever project I wanted, instead of following along with the rest of the class-especially now that I had a portfolio to put together for college applications. Mrs. B. came over and peered over my shoulder.

"That's coming along good babe," she said. She called everybody that once in a while. She was sort of like a mother figure to us all in some ways-but cooler.

"Thanks. It's slow work when you have to help out everyone else."

"I know. Welcome to my world," she smiled. "Don't worry, you'll catch up."

"I hope," I said. Then she ruffled my hair and returned to her desk. My hair was too short to get messed up too much, so I ran a hand over once and went back to work.

Second period went quickly, and when the bell rang I locked all of my supplies up and bolted out the door, saying goodbye to Mrs. B. as I stepped out into the crowded hallway. This was the start of the first of two lunch periods for the day-my lunch period. I rushed down the hallway to Bob's office by the back door of the building, where I found Oliver and Bob talking.

"Hey, there you are!" Oliver said as he turned around.

"Hey, how's everything going?" I asked.

"Great so far," he said.

"Yeah, he's doing a good job. Thanks for shoving him in my direction, the help is much needed around here," Bob said.

"Hey, just helping out a friend-two I guess."

"Yeah, thanks for hiring me Bob."

"No problem. I'm sure Al and Adam are overjoyed that I've gotten someone else to do my dirty work." Bob winked over at me and smiled. I just grinned back. "Well you guys had better get to lunch. If you blink you might miss it," Bob said sarcastically.

"I know. Come on Oliver, let's get something to eat."

"I didn't bring any money though."

"I've got food upstairs. I wouldn't trust that cafeteria food."

"Why not?" he asked suspiciously.

"Trust me, it can't be good for you," I said. The halls were now empty, the momentary rush over, the two of us were alone.

"I had no idea the girls here could be so vicious. I've gotten numbers from 8 different girls today."

"That doesn't surprise me," I laughed. "I mean look at you, you're so cute," I said, pinching his cheek. "And that accent of yours can drive a person crazy."

"Really?" he asked, blushing slightly.

"Sure. I know it makes me wild," I said, putting an arm around him. After making sure no one was around I gave him a quick peck on the cheek."

"Cool."

"On top of all that, most girls around here are quite snobbish. A good eighty-percent of the students come from money and are spoiled rotten."

"I guessed that much."

"I've learned to ignore them. I only have a few good friends in this school that I can trust, but other than that I keep to myself."

"Reminds me of me in high school."

When we reached the second floor I unlocked the door to my dad's classroom and we walked in. When I worked for the cleaning staff my freshman year I made copies of my work keys so that I would be able to get around without seeking the aid of Bob or some one from the office. My dad had gone down to the teacher's lounge to eat so the classroom was empty. I shut the door behind me and we walked into the back room. There was a note on the desk.

'There are sandwiches and fruit in the fridge, and micro. popcorn on the shelf. See ya later.

-Dad'

"Cool," I said, throwing the note away. I walked over to the mini fridge and pulled out the sandwiches. "Here," I said, pulling up a chair next to mine, "have a seat."

"Thanks," Oliver said. I put the popcorn in the small microwave and sat down.

"It's not much, but at least I know it hasn't been scraped up the side of the road."

"That must be some cafeteria food," he chuckled.

"It's something, that's for sure."

"Ah, peanut butter and jelly, my favorite," Oliver said as he took a bite of his sandwich.

"I'm glad 'cause that's all we got." I picked up mine and began eating as well. All of lunch there was total silence. And though that might seem irritating to some, I kind of liked it. We were together, and nothing had to be said. When the bell rang I let out a long sigh.

"Well you had better get back to Bob. He'll be looking for you," I said.

"Okay. Thanks for lunch," he said. Then he stood up, bent down, and gave me a soft kiss on the lips. "I'll see you later."

"Okay. Meet me down in the art room after school. I've got some work to do before we go."

"Alright, see you then." With that he left the classroom. Once he was gone I got my books for the next class and sat down at the lab table in the front of the room. Did I mention that I had my dad for Anatomy and Physiology? A few minutes later Julie, my lab partner walked in. She was also one of my best friends at school.

"Hi Al!" she said. She had a very vibrant and animated voice. Julie was only a meager 5'1", with big brown eyes, chestnut colored hair, and a light complexion. We had become really good friends ever since we met sophomore year, and we talked about nearly everything.

"Hi Julie! So how was the weekend?"

"Good actually. Very interesting family moment, but I won't bore you with that. So how was your weekend?" she asked, taking her seat next to me at the table.

"Great," I said, smiling.

"Oh I know that smile, what happened?"

"Remember when I attended that Convention in Atlanta over the summer?"

"Yeah."

"Well I became really good friends with a guy from Germany I met up there. Anyway, he's staying in the country till next fall so I invited him to stay at my place." Julie sucked in a deep breath of excitement.

"You mean you're friends with that cute guy with the accent downstairs? Oh he's such a god, I love that accent."

"Yup, so keep your claws off him."

"Hey, that's not fair. He's so cute." I admit I was a bit jealous of all the attention Oliver was getting, but that feeling passed as quickly as it came.

"If you want an introduction you can come on down to the art room after school. We'll be there for a couple hours tonight."

"Cool, I can't wait. So how'd you meet him?"

"Well I needed a place to store my costume for the Con and I ended up sharing a room with the guy. We found out that we had a lot in common and before we knew it we were inseparable. We have lots of fun together."

"That is so cool. We'll have to talk more later," she said when she noticed my dad walking into the room.

"Lookin' forward to it."

After third period was over I grabbed my fourth period books and headed to homeroom, which lasted for about half an hour before the start of fourth period.

"Hey Al, wait up," a familiar voice called from behind me. I recognized it right away as Chris's voice.

"Hey Chris, how's things?"

"Busy."

"I know what you mean." Chris was about 5'11", and a little overweight. His hair was jet black and wavy, and his eyes were a deep brown. Chris was probably my best friend at school besides Julie, and the two of us had run for student council together. He became president, and I became vice president, and it's been that way for the last 3 years. We both belonged to numerous organizations, holding various positions, and we worked well together. While I was more straightforward and aggressive about things, Chris was more subtle and optimistic. Together we made one heck of a team, and we got a lot of things accomplished. We were too smart to be cool, too unathletic to be jocks, and too poor to be part of the snobbish upper-class group, so I guess you could say we were drifters. We were neutral to all the categories students put each other into, which didn't bother me a bit. We had friends from every side, and could call in favors to get things done for the school.

"Hey, I heard the new janitor's a friend of yours."

"Yeah, and Julie's got a big mouth," I stated, shaking my head with a smile.

"Don't worry she only said something to me, and that was just a few minutes ago. Will he be here long?"

"Till next fall."

"That's nice. We'll all have to get together sometime and do something."

"That'd be great. He's just settling in and I'm sure he'd like to have a few friends around here."

"Great. I'll have to see when I'm off work. Maybe this weekend."

"Cool."

"Do you think we should schedule a student council meeting for this Wednesday?"

"Yeah. We still have to work on organizing a senior class trip. The school hasn't had one in years and our class seems bent on going somewhere."

"Okay, I'll tell Mr. Hoover that we'll have a meeting during homeroom on Wednesday then. Anything else?"

"We should probably talk about getting a fundraiser together."

"Alright. Oh, by the way, Mrs. D. (the principal) wants to have a meeting with student council officers on Friday. Something about school dress code."

"Great. Let me guess, she can't get the kids to follow the rules so she wants us to get some kind of magic point across to them for her."

"Well, sort of, I guess."

"Forget her, that's what bitch gets paid for. I'm not about to help her after what she did to me last year."

"Why do you have to be so damn negative? You haven't even heard what she has to say."

"And I don't need to. If she would enforce the regulations and hold people responsible for their actions she wouldn't have such problems. She dug the hole, and now she can fall in it."

"Well you had better be somewhat civil at that meeting. The last thing we need is a brawl with the principal."

"Hey, I'll bet people would pay money to see that. There's our fundraiser!"

"You can be such a pain sometimes. Let's get to class."

After the homeroom period ended, Chris and I headed to our trig/precalc class-the last period of the day. It was also the most boring, so I'll spare you the details on that one. As soon as the bell rang I said my good byes to Chris and bolted out the door to beat the rush of students in he hall. With the new schedule school let out at 3:00 PM, and by that time everyone-even the teachers-was restless. I stopped off at my dad's room, packed my book bag, grabbed my coat, and headed downstairs after saying goodbye to my dad.

When I made it to the art room Mrs. B. was still cleaning up and Julie was waiting by my desk with books in her hand.

"Hey Mrs. B." I said.

"Hi Al. Staying late tonight?" she asked as she put on her jacket.

"Yup."

"Okay, well you know to lock up before you leave."

"Sure do. Have a nice night."

"You too. Bye Julie."

"Bye Mrs. B."

"So Al, where's your friend?" Julie asked excitedly.

"Claws off," I warned.

"Why?"

"Because he's already taken."

"What do you mean? Who?"

"None of your business," I said, trying to suppress a grin. I loved to agitate her like that.

"That's cruel Al, really cruel."

"I know." This time I had a grin spread wide across my face. I was enjoying this. Julie always had to know everything about everything, and it absolutely killed her when she was left out of the loop.

"Fine, be that way. So where is he?"

"He'll be here. Don't get your pants in a wad." I reflexively ducked but I was unable to elude the slap to the back of my head.

"Jack ass," she stammered.

"That hurt," I said, rubbing my head.

"Serves you right." Then all of a sudden everything went dark. Someone's hands were covering my eyes.

"Guess who," a strong, unmistakable German voice sounded. I couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Gee, this is going to be a tough one. I mean, who do I know that speaks broken English with a German accent?" Oliver removed his hands from my eyes.

"Okay, so I'm no good at that game. You don't have to rub it in," he said with a fit of laughter that matched my own at the moment. When I was able to catch my breath again I looked up to Julie.

"Oliver, I'd like you to meet my friend Julie. Julie, this is my best friend Oliver."

"Hi, nice to meet you!" Julie said, taking Oliver's hand in a handshake.

"Nice to meet you too."

"So how do you like your stay so far?

"I'm having a great time. I've gotten to see quite a bit over the last month, and I must say that I like America a lot."

"So you're staying with Al, huh?"

"Yeah, and I'm glad for it. He's made me feel at home." Oliver's hand rested on my shoulder and began to blush a little."

"Aww, look, you made Al blush," Julie said with an overdramatic voice. "I don't think I've ever seen that."

"Don't get used to it," I muttered.

"So, Oliver, I was wondering if you and Al would like to hang out with us this weekend."

"I guess we could. Albert?"

"Sure. Who all's going to be there?"

"Well the usual: Chris, Leo, Jessica, Lois, and me."

"Cool. What are we doin'?"

"Don't know yet, but I'll let you know when we figure that out."

"Good people Oliver, you'll like 'em."

"Sounds like fun," he said smiling.

For the next couple of hours the three of us talked about things. Julie took a real interest in what Oliver had seen during his visit so far, and the two of us listened to Julie give the latest gossip. It was a lot of fun. Finally Julie had to leave, and I was starting to put things away before locking up.

"Julie's a nice person," Oliver said.

"Yeah, she is. She's helped me get through some tough times-that's for sure. She's a good friend."

"She seems like it. Speaking of good friend, how was your day?"

"Nice. How was your 'janitorial crash course' with Bob?"

"Great. The guy should lay off the cigarettes though. He smokes like a chimney." I laughed.

"Don't tell him that. He probably lives on that stuff rather than oxygen." Soon I had everything put away. Oliver came up behind me and put his arms around my waist.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Yup." I turned my head around and we kissed. His warm tongue brushed up against my chapped lips and I put my arms around him to embrace him in a hug.

"Okay, lets go."

"After you," I said. I picked up my stuff and we left. We got home around 6:30, just in time for dinner. All of us talked about our day as we ate. My brother seemed to be in one of his better moods, and actually joined in the conversation. After dinner Oliver and I went outside for a walk while there was still another hour or two of daylight. We walked out away from the house and into the field behind it. When we were finally out of sight we reached over and held hands as we continued to walk closer to the woods.

"It's been one hell of a day," I sighed.

"It certainly has." Oliver gave my hand a gentle squeeze. "This is really I nice place."

"Yes it is."

"Where are we headed?"

"You'll see. It's not much further."

"I love surprises," he said with a wicked grin.

"Take your mind out of the gutter," I laughed.

"Okay, but I can't guarantee anything." I rolled my eyes and smiled.

Soon we reached our destination in the woods and I came to a halt at the top of a tree-covered hill. A large oak tree was there with extra low branches that extended over the other side of the hill to loom above the gully below. Then I leapt up onto the first branch and turned around to face Oliver.

"Come on," I said, taking him by the hand and helping him up into the tree. We crawled around to the next branch and sat down.

"It's beautiful," Oliver gasped as we gazed out into the western sky. The sun was beginning to set, and an array of purples and pinks pierced the once white clouds above. Rays of yellow light shot endlessly east over our heads, and the slight vapor trails of jets were reflected in odd, crosshatched patterns of orange. Oliver leaned against me and rested his head on my shoulder. I put an arm around him and kissed his forehead lovingly.

"I come up here to think sometimes. The view helps me to relax. I know it's probably not quite as spectacular as the sunsets out west, but it's nice."

"It's one of the best sunsets I've ever seen."

"Cool. Your being here means a lot to me."

"I can't imagine being anywhere else. I love you."

"Thanks." I hugged Oliver even tighter letting my head tilt so that it rested on his. "I love you too." We sat there for a long time, watching as the bright sun as it sank into the darkening distance. Finally, when all that could be seen in the western sky was a sliver of light on the horizon, we stood up and walked back to the house. It was after 9:00 PM, and my brother had already gone to sleep. The two of us walked into the house and found my dad watching TV on the couch.

"Hey guys," he said.

"Hey dad," I said. Oliver nodded.

"Well now that you guys are back I can turn in early. Goodnight."

"Good night," we responded together.

"Don't stay up too late."

"We won't," I assured him. Oliver and I plopped down on the sofa and watched TV for a little while. Then, sometime around midnight, we turned it off and went to our room. After locking the door I stripped down to my boxers and got into bed. Oliver was a little cold so he put on a clean T-shirt and a pair of pajama bottoms.

"Can I sleep with you tonight?" he asked, rubbing his shivering arms.

"Do you have to ask?" I said, pulling back the covers and gesturing for him to come over. He crawled in and cuddled close to keep warm. I pulled the covers over us and put my arms around him.

"Goodnight," he muttered.

"Sweet dreams, my angel." I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer, and in no time at all I was asleep.