Sea Change

Sea Change, Pt 42

I wish to retain all rights to this story. However, I am delighted to grant permission to any person to publish this story as long as there is no charge to the reader and as long as no changes are made to the story.

Copyright 2005. All Rights Reserved.

SEA CHANGE

CHAPTER 42 — Room Trade

“LeCoste is Trevor’s last name. He met me at the front door tonight,” I told Daniel. “They certainly aren’t rich. But, they have a nice little house; they keep it nice.”

“They probably worked hard to clean it up and roll out the red carpet for you,” Dan suggested.

“They did seem really happy to have me over,” I agreed. “His mom, Lisa, fixed hamburgers. They were pretty damn good hamburgers.”

“What else did you do?” he asked.

“We talked, mainly… Trevor and his brother have never been fishing, Dan. We’ve got to take them fishing. And they’ve never played much sport. So tonight I took them outside and we tossed a ball around. And after supper, I taught them the finer points of seven card stud. I think Trevor was hoping we’d play strip poker.”

Dan laughed. “Have we ever done that? We need to play sometime.”

“Fine,” I said. “We’ll start in our underwear so we have quick winners.”

“Quick wieners,” he said, chuckling. “So when do you go back?”

“They want me to come every Thursday. And that would probably be good. At least being over there would make it easier to hold off on sex before seeing you on the weekends.’

“Just be sure to get your studying done so we have time on the weekends.”

“Speaking of weekends, Lenny got the landscaping job he’s been wanting and he needs some help. He’s planning to work mainly on weekends and he’s offered to hire us. He needs muscle for moving stones as well as planting. I thought about Eric and Ferg, but until football season is over, they’re pretty busy on weekends. So I told him about Aaron and Jorge. Maybe they can come up to help.”

“But not this weekend, right? You’ve got the dive meet this weekend.”

“Yeah,” I said. “So what are you doing this weekend?”

“I don’t know,” Dan answered, casually. “Marco wants me to go with him to a party on Friday night. On Saturday, I was thinking of driving down to visit Linda. We’ve been talking about seeing a movie or two.”

“You and Linda?” I asked, surprised.

“Sure. We talked about taking in a matinee, then eating supper, and then taking in another movie.”

“So you’ve been talking to Linda?”

“We had a fun phone call last night,” he said. “Look, Sean. You started this. You got us all together. And you know that Linda and I hit it off. You remember how you told me that Linda was your first real girl friend? Well, she’s my first girl friend, too.”

I took a deep breath. “It’s just hard to believe that a couple of weeks ago you were worried about me and girls,” I said.

“What are you talking about?” We’re just going to check out a couple of movies.”

“So what are you going to do after the second movie?” I asked suspiciously.

“Don’t be an ass,” Dan said. “We may go for coffee, and then I’ll head back to Austin. I’m gay, Sean. You know that… right?

“Yeah, I know. But you’ve already had sex with Linda. And I know Linda. She’s going to want to have sex again, Dan.”

I heard him take a deep breath; he sounded exasperated. “I had sex with you and Linda. If you hadn’t been there, Sean, it wouldn’t have happened.”

“But it did,” I said.

“Look, I told you that I’m not going down there to have sex with her. We both like movies, and you made us friends.”

I was quiet and thinking over the situation when Dan grunted. “OK, OK. I won’t go see her,” he said.

“No,” I told him, and leaned back, examining my feelings. “Go see her, Dan. I’m sorry I was giving you a rough time. I guess it’s just that you surprised me is all. Plus, I’m sorta jealous I won’t be with you guys.”

“You’ll be busy. You’re going to share a room with Ken, aren’t you?”

“We’ll be sharing a room, Dan, but he’s already tried to get out of that. Nothing’s going to happen with Ken. And that’s fine with me. I’m beginning to get a little fed up with him.”

“Too bad you won’t get back in time on Sunday for us to be together.”

I twisted the phone cord, trying to decide whether we could work it out. But I had big assignments due in the next week and knew that I wouldn’t get much time to work on them at the meet. “Yeah,” I sighed. “It’s going to be a long week. Look, Dan. I didn’t mean to be an ass. Even if you and Linda decide to get it on, I’ll be cool with that.”

Dan groaned. “Sean, it’s not always about sex.”

“No,” I agreed. “Linda’s just cool.”

. . . . .

I had begun the week bummed and I was prepared to end the week bummed. Daniel was going to a party with Marco; I was going to ride a bus sitting next to Coach. Dan and Linda were going to movies and dinner; I was going to be handling paperwork for the team. Despite what Dan said, I half-expected Linda to seduce him. And I would be away from him, away from Lenny; spending the night with a homophobic homo.

I barely paid attention as I helped Coach pass out room keys. This time, there were enough double rooms to go around. I let Ken choose his bed, and as soon as he tossed his bag onto it, he was out the door.

He dodged me at supper and I ate with Caitlyn and the girls, listening to their chatter about guys and marveling at how girls’ tastes in guys could be so different from mine. Ken settled with his back to me at a table with Brent and other male divers. When Brent and the others glanced my way and poked Ken in the arm and laughed, I almost felt sorry for him. I certainly felt sorry for me.

Eventually the others left, leaving just Caitlyn, the girls, and me. I started to relax. And when they began telling each other about some of the pranks being played in the girls’ dorms, I decided that Ferg’s stunts were child’s play.

Caitlyn was an animated talker; perpetually smiling and happy. I did like her.

I went back to my room and stripped to my underwear to feel comfortable. Then I sat back on my bed with homework, and watched TV until it was almost time for bed check.

Ken came in silently and sat heavily on his bed. “Sean, I’m sorry about how everyone’s treating you.”

I frowned.

“OK,” he said. “I’m sorry about how I’ve been avoiding you. I know you don’t understand. You’re out and all. I’m not.”

“That’s no reason to be a bastard,” I said. “I’ve got straight friends that still are friends.”

There was a knock at the door and I pulled a blanket over my briefs. Ken got the door.

Coach leaned in. “Get to bed Kawamoto. You too Sullivan.”

“You got it, Coach,” I said, closing my books.

Ken nodded. “Sure, Coach.”

I hit the bathroom to piss and brush my teeth. When I came back to my bed, Ken hadn’t even begun to undress. “You can get ready for bed, Ken. I see you in speedos every day. I’m not going to attack you just because you strip for bed.”

“Sean,” he slowly said as I sat back onto my bed. “Look, I hope you don’t mind, but I worked out a trade.”

“A trade?” I asked, leaning back against the headboard.

“Yeah, a trade… of roommates,” he said, looking away.

I was completely surprised. “What guy was willing to trade?” I asked. Was there another closet gay on the team? Then it occurred to me that Ken might have set me up for something else, and I felt my blood begin to boil.

There was a second knock at the door, and Ken hurried to answer it.

Though it could be a hell of a lot easier to relax around a guy who was actually willing to room with me, I doubted that was the case. Instead, I half expected the entire male diving team to burst through the door and toss me out of the room; naked, of course.

Ken opened the door. Caitlyn quickly stepped inside and Ken stepped out. She set her bag down, and smiled. Now I was totally blown away. All I could think to do was pull the blanket over my briefs.

She smiled. “I’ve seen you in speedos,” she said.

“Yeah, but my speedos aren’t loose around the leg holes.”

Caitlyn laughed and kicked off her sandals.

“So is Ken sleeping with Diane?” I asked, trying to understand what had just happened.

She shook her head, and pulled off her shirt. “No. Ken is sleeping in the same room as Diane, but not with her.” She dropped her shorts and stood in pink panties and bra. Caitlyn had a gymnast’s body, with muscled legs, slender hips, a high little butt, and wide little shoulders. As she breathed, her abs made faint appearances.

“And you’re sleeping in here?” I asked.

“I’m sleeping with you,” Caitlyn said, unfastening her bra. “Same bed.” Her bra fell to the floor. Her breasts were firm, and perky, just like they always looked like they would be. She had small nipples. I liked small nipples.

If I hadn’t been bummed, and if Dan wasn’t at that very moment, probably making love to Linda, it might have been different. I was used to not looking at Caitlyn – day after day in her chlorine-thinned swimsuit — not looking at her the way it would be so easy to do. Tonight, I let myself look.

“You see, Longstory,” she said, pulling the blanket from over my briefs. “I know your secret.” Her gaze traveled up and down my body and settled on my briefs. Her eyes brightened.

“What secret?” I asked, clearing my throat.

“Only this,” she said, tracing the underside of my cock through the cotton of my underwear with her fingertip, “that you aren’t nearly as gay as you let people think you are.”

Keeping her eyes on mine, she pulled her panties off to reveal that she had shaved. “I heard that you like to shave down there,” she said, and smiled as my eyes fixed on her pubic area.

She slipped her fingers under the waistband of my briefs and I lifted my butt for her to pull them down. Then she climbed up on the bed and knelt astride my hips. We both watched as she lowered herself until the softness of her crevice settled on the underside of my cock. She rocked gently and closed her eyes. “Isn’t this where we left off once?” she asked.

The skin of her breasts looked soft, and as though they’d fit my hands. With both hands I reached up and cupped them.

She bent over me and smiled. “Long story,” she said softly. “I like your springboard.”

. . . . .

We were on our sides, facing each other, joined. She wasn’t long inside like Linda, but I had been careful. I pulled her leg higher over my hip and pressed deeper. She clasped my shoulders when I did. I had one arm under her side with my hand flat on her back. With my other hand, I held her butt. We moved our hips, and Caitlyn closed her eyes.

“Well Roomy?” I asked.

She buried her forehead in my neck. “Ummm,” she said, swiveling her hips. “I give it a nine point four.”

“Nine three for me,” I said, thickly. “What are we going to call this one?”

She considered. “Inward double with a half twist,” she said softly. Then lifting her leg higher up my side… “In the pike position.”

. . . . .

We were on our sides again, spooned; her back to my front. Her top leg was back over mine. I had one arm wrapped under her side and up over her breasts. I held my other hand flat on her belly, her clit between two fingertips. As she swiveled her hips, my fingertips massaged her.

“Oooh,” I said, gasping. “I give this one a ten.”

Caitlyn clasped her hands over the back of mine and pressed back against me.

“How’s it for you, Roomy?” I asked.

She didn’t answer.

“Cait?” I whispered behind her ear.

She still didn’t answer.

“Honey?”

She pressed my hands to her body and moved her hips faster.

“Oh, geez,” I gasped.

The bed rocked with our movement; faster and faster. Caitlyn cried out and pushed back onto me. Holding her tightly, I pumped fast and she cried out louder. I buried my nose behind her ear and caught my breath as I came.

Our movement slowed. I rested my forehead against the back of her head and let out my breath in a long, tense sigh.

“Ten,” she said quietly. “For sure. Reverse layout.”

I laughed.

Then I felt her fingertips probing around my shaft where it entered her. “Wow, Longstory! You make a lot of juice.”

Wrapping my arms around her chest, I squeezed. “It’s been a couple of days.” I said. “There’ll be less the second and third time.”

Caitlyn laughed and, twisting at the hips, turned her shoulders toward me to look into my eyes.

“I’m usually good for a couple of times,” I said with a grin. “But tonight, we need to get you to sleep. You’ve got to dive tomorrow.”

Caitlyn smiled and she twisted her hips my way, throwing both legs over my hip, while being careful to keep me inside. “I’m usually good for a couple of times myself,” she whispered. Then she swiveled her hips, testing. “What would you give this one?” she asked.

“A solid eight,” I said.

“Oh?” she asked with a smile, and then clamped down tightly around my shaft.

“Nine,” I gasped.

. . . . .

She was on her back, her legs crossed behind my butt. I had pushed up off her hands, which I’d pinned on either side of her head. And we were watching between our bodies as we circled hips together.

“Backward double, in the pike position,” I murmured. “Gotta be a ten.”

Caitlyn arched her back under me, her nipples drawn tight.

“Finish this way,” she whispered.

I carefully pressed deeper. My cock felt as though it got even harder. My jaw clenched, and I took a deep breath through my flaring nostrils… and I lowered my body onto hers.

. . . . .

“A couple of my gay friends would flip out if they knew I had been with a girl two weekends in a row,” I said, looking up at the ceiling as I lay on my back.

Caitlyn nuzzled into my neck. “They don’t know you like I do.”

“No, Roomy. You don’t know me as well as you think you do. I am gay.”

She chuckled. “I don’t believe you. You can’t be gay and do what we did.”

“Yeah, Cait,” I said. “I can. You don’t know what goes on inside me. You don’t know my heart.” I stroked her back. “Being gay is about who turns you on, and Cait, guys really turn me on. But being gay is also about who you love; who you want to be with. And for me, it’s a guy named Daniel.”

She didn’t say anything.

“I’m sorry, Cait,” I said. “It’s who I am.”

“Are you sure,” she asked softly, “that you really know who you are?”

“Maybe not,” I said to placate her. But I knew who I was. All I had to do was think about Daniel and I knew exactly who I was.

Caitlyn was happy in the morning. She hugged me when I stepped from the shower and held my hand as we went to breakfast. We had to be circumspect, or coach would have flipped out. But whispers passed among the divers and puzzled expressions became even more puzzled; though in the case of a couple of the female divers, there were smiles.

We left breakfast, hand-in-hand. Brent, who had slept with Cait before, followed closely behind us. “You can do better than a fairy, Cait,” he said, loud enough to be heard by other divers.

I could take him. One quick jab to that smirking mouth would do it. For a brief moment, I wondered how coach would react to my taking out one of his divers, at a meet.

Clasping my hand tightly, Caitlyn stopped and looked back between us. “Oh look, it’s one-pop Brent,” she said. “You ought to take up running, Brent. It does wonders for your stamina.” She looked up at me with a wide grin. “Absolute wonders.”

Brent turned scarlet. Close by, Ken looked at me sadly. I don’t think my evening had gone quite like he had expected it to.

Tad, the diver from Stephen F. Austin, was at the pool and came over when he saw me. “Sean,” he said, happily, offering his hand.

I took it and shook.

“You never called,” he said.

“It’s been sorta busy,” I told him.

“Good busy?” he asked.

I shrugged. “I got outed at school.”

My assumption that he was also gay didn’t faze him. In fact, he nodded. “I’ve been trying to decide whether to be out.” He smiled. “You guessed about me, huh?”

“Just like you did about me,” I said.

“And Ken?” he asked, nodding in Ken’s direction.

“He’s so far from out that he’s put a backroom in his closet,” I said.

Tad chuckled. “Shame. He’s cute. He probably just needs time.”

Caitlyn came running up. “First dive,” she said. “Give me a good luck kiss.” I kissed her and popped her butt as she turned to leave.

Tad looked totally confused. “What was that?” he asked.

I shrugged. “Since I’m so out, Ken didn’t want to room with me, and without telling me, he traded with Caitlyn. That was Caitlyn.”

“You do girls?” Tad asked, taking a step back. His face was a mixture of surprise and disdain.

“Not usually,” I said. “Well normally, never.” I watched Caitlyn’s little butt disappear behind the dive tower. “But when the occasion calls for it.”

I was afraid Caitlyn’s diving would be like shit after the night before, but she did well. Ken did well. The whole team did, and almost all of them made it to the finals for the next day.

Through the day, I saw Ken and Tad together from time to time. They seemed to be getting along.

I congratulated Tad on his dives whenever he passed close enough, and by the end of the day, he seemed to have gotten over my temporary bi-ness.

Caitlyn and I were sitting off by ourselves in the late afternoon when Ken nervously approached us. “Sorry about last night,” he said. “I should have never arranged changing rooms without talking to you, Sean. We don’t need to trade tonight, Caitlyn. I’ll stay with Sean.”

“Like hell you will,” Caitlyn said, wrapping an arm through mine. “The trade is still on. Sean and I have a few more dives to try.”

Ken’s brow furrowed. But I was in no mood to step in. All things being equal, I’d obviously rather spend the night with Ken than Caitlyn. But Ken had made his bed. I’d let him lie in it.

That night, he sat on his bed while he waited for Coach to do his bed check, and he watched me strip completely before I crawled into bed and pulled up the sheet.

“You going to see Tad?” I asked.

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “They’re staying in a dorm on campus.”

“Bummer,” I said. “You get it on with Diane?”

He shook his head. “Clearly, you did with Caitlyn. She made that pretty obvious. Look, Sean,” he said, turning toward me on his bed. “I went crazy last night, thinking about you and Caitlyn. I’ve been really, really stupid. I…”

There was a knock at the door.

Ken paused and went to the door. It was Coach who told us to go to bed.

As soon as he was gone, Ken returned to sit on the side of his bed. “Can we get together?” Ken asked.

“You mean for sex?”

He swallowed hard and nodded.

“I think you better find somebody else Ken.”

“Who?” he asked.

Before I could answer, Caitlyn knocked at the door. Ken let her in and then stood briefly in the doorway with a sad look on his face before turning to go.

She was in a white cotton nightshirt and smiled as she set down her bag.

I returned the smile and threw back the sheet. Caitlyn accepted my unspoken invitation and came to the side of the bed. “Let’s see,” she said while hitching up the bottom of her shirt before climbing onto the bed and straddling me. “Isn’t this is how we always warm up?”

. . . . .

Before we dressed in the morning, she came up behind me as I stood at the bathroom mirror and hugged me from behind. I was studying my reflection and pressed tenderly on my neck. “The hickey was on purpose, right?”

She laughed and kissed my back. “It looks good on you.”

“Yeah, I’m just a notch in your belt, right?”

Caitlyn laughed and squeezed my gut. “You made lot’s of notches in my belt.”

. . . . .

Caitlyn placed third and was overjoyed, hugging not only me, but everyone else as well.

Tad placed second. And when his teammates finished congratulating him, I patted his back. He turned, and seeing me, gave me a full-body hug, pressing his speedo clad loins awfully close considering we were in public.

“Better be careful,” I cautioned. “Or you won’t have to worry about whether to be out or not — you will be.”

He grinned. “See you next meet,” he said. “Give me a call sometime.”

“Or you call me,” I said.

. . . . .

I walked Caitlyn to her dorm room on Sunday night, hand-in-hand. “Do you think we saved your reputation?” she asked.

“No. We probably just really confused people,” I said. “And not just on campus. Word of this gets back to my gay brothers and I’m likely to get blackballed out of the whole gay fraternity.”

“That’s a weird thought,” she said. “A gay fraternity.”

“That could be cool,” I said, considering it. “I can promise that a gay fraternity would be different. Maybe Dan and I can start one at UT.”

Caitlyn was thoughtful for a moment. “Will your boyfriend be upset that we had sex?”

“No. I don’t think so.”

“But some of your friends might?”

“Oh, I don’t know. One or two might freak.”

“But you liked it, right? Even if you don’t ever want a girlfriend.”

“A solid ten,” I replied.

Caitlyn nodded, knowingly. “I want to do it again sometime,” she said softly.

“Remember? I am gay, Cait.”

“Call me Roomy, Longstory. I like when you do that.”

“OK, Roomy. Maybe we will do it again sometime. But don’t turn down any boyfriends waiting for me to go straight.”

“If I get a boyfriend,” she said, giving my hand a little swing, maybe I won’t tell him about you.” She smiled and squeezed my hand. “I could be your secret lover. I won’t tell my boyfriend – when I get one – and you don’t tell your boyfriend or your friends. We’ll sneak off from time to time and… go diving.”

“I won’t keep a secret like that from Daniel.”

She waved her free hand, dismissively. “OK, but from everyone else, we will keep it a secret,” she said, warming to the idea. “This could be even cooler than having you as a boyfriend. I always thought it’d be exciting to have a secret lover. I’ve read about things like that. Couples who were secret lovers, all their lives.”

“Caitlyn… Roomy,” I said. “Don’t get carried away, OK?”

She smiled. “I had a great time this weekend, Longstory. I always knew I would. Let me just dream, OK? And we’ll keep it secret.”

“Sorta late for that; the whole team knows.”

“Let them think it was a one time thing.”

I didn’t say anything. I thought it was a one time thing.

“Sean,” she said quietly. “There’ll be other meets. At least for a while, be my secret lover… please?”

I wasn’t sure how to answer. After the weekend we’d just had, it’d be callous as hell to figuratively shove her out the door. Besides, I liked Caitlyn; she was fun.

“Let’s just see what happens,” I said.

We had reached her room and she turned to hug me tightly. “I know about Daniel,” she said, leaning her head against my chest. “And I know about Linda, OK? But you get any other girlfriend at Trinity and I’ll cut her heart out.”

I laughed and kissed the top of her head. “Just find a good boyfriend,” I told her. “Some straight guy. Then maybe you won’t even care about me.”

She laughed, patted my cheek, and shook her head. “You really don’t understand girls, do you?” Then she rose on her toes and gave me a long kiss on the mouth. “See you tomorrow, Longstory.”

. . . . .

Eric stared at my neck. “I don’t believe it. Please don’t tell me a guy gave you that.”

“What?” I asked

“That hickey.”

“OK. I won’t tell you.”

“Oh, shit,” Ferg said from where he sat studying on my bed.

“Relax, guys,” I said with a chuckle. “Caitlyn did it.”

“Caitlyn?” Ferg asked. “Caitlyn the diver?”

“Yep.”

“Oh, shit! She’s hot!” Ferg said.

“You guys didn’t…” Eric started to ask.

“Didn’t what?” I asked, putting away my bag.

Ferg glanced at Eric. “I’m going to start telling girls that I’m gay.”

Planting my hands on my hips, I frowned at Ferg. “I’m going to start charging you rent for camping on my bed,” I said.

“Hey,” he said. “I’m doing you a favor. You’re supposed to be living on campus, but you’re gone more nights than you’re here. I’m just covering for you by making it look like someone actually sleeps in this bed.”

. . . . .

“I have something I need to tell you,” I said to Dan when I called him that evening.

“You did Ken.”

“Not hardly,” I said, lying back on the bed.

“You did the coach?”

I laughed. “No… look, Dan, don’t be pissed, but I did Caitlyn, or rather, she did me.”

Starting from the beginning, when Ken first tried to get out of sharing a room with me, I briefly told Dan about the roommate switch.

“So are you pissed?” I asked.

“No,” he said, with a sigh. “How could I be? I told you it’d be OK to do her. Just don’t make a habit out of it. And don’t get her pregnant.”

“You’re joking, but Caitlyn wants to be secret lovers. That’s the problem with girls. They always latch on.”

“Secret lovers?” he asked.

“Yeah, she knows there’s no way I’m going to be her boyfriend, but she thinks it’d be cool to just do each other sometimes, in secret. Somehow, she figures that I’d be more cool with doing a girl if no one knew about it.”

“That’s weird.”

“Well, she also wants to have her cake and eat it too. She figures she’ll get a boyfriend and not tell him about us and that we’ll do each other on the side. She even told me to not tell you, but I said, ‘no way.’”

“Horny chick, isn’t she?”

“She’s OK,” I said. “I think she just likes me a whole lot.”

“We sorta knew that.”

“We just need to find her a boyfriend. Maybe I’ll pitch Ferg at her. He thinks she’s hot.”

“Doesn’t sound like having a boyfriend would slow her down as far as you’re concerned… secret lover.”

“We’ll see. I couldn’t just tell her to fuck off after screwing each other silly this weekend.”

“Maybe you better tell me more about that,” Dan said, and I could imagine his eyebrow rising.

“Can’t. It’s secret.” I said.

“Screw that!” he said, “I want details.” Then he paused. “Sean,” he said, clearing his throat, “speaking of secrets… maybe I better get something off my chest.”

“You did Linda,” I said, knowingly.

“No, you shithead!”

“You didn’t?”

“No, I didn’t. I told you we wouldn’t be doing anything like that.” He paused. “I did sleep over, though. We talked late into the night and I didn’t feel like driving back.”

“Just slept?” I asked.

“Just slept.”

“What do you have to get off your chest then?” I wondered.

“Well, it’s just… you remember Reggie, from the costume ball; you know how hot he is.”

“Yeah,” I answered cautiously.

“Well, I still have Reggie’s phone number and I was going to look him up before leaving San Marcos. I mean… he really turned me on Sean. You know how it is when you get the hots for someone… and don’t tell me you don’t.”

“Reggie’s hot,” I acknowledged, “but I guess I thought that if we ever did him, it’d be together.”

“Just listen,” he continued. “I was going to look Reggie up, and see what happened. I figured I might just do him and tell you about it later.”

“I suppose I’m not surprised,” I said, feeling sadly disappointed. Dan doing Reggie without talking to me first might have been normal a year before, but not now. Of course, who was I to say anything? I’d done Caitlyn.

“Sean, just shut up and listen,” he said. “I carried his number with me, and when I left Linda’s I was going to call him. I even stopped at a phone. But then I saw your face in my mind, and all my feelings for you stirred up inside. And I didn’t want Reggie at all. I wanted you. And the last thing I wanted was to do anything to hurt you… or us.”

“I love you, Seany,” he said quietly. “And it’s changing me.”

I cradled the phone closer. Now I’m really, really sorry I did Caitlyn.”

“Why? We did talk about you doing Caitlyn before,” he said. “Look, Sean, I don’t mean for us to get uptight, OK? You’re still going to do Lenny and Michael. I’m still going to do Marco and Sammy; at least until you and I are living together. But that’s all sorta different than doing Reggie would have been.”

It would have been hard to explain exactly how, but I understood him. “Yeah, I said. Sorta keeping it in the family.”

“Weird way of putting it,” he said, “but yeah. Doing Reggie would be sneaking behind your back. I’m not going to do that. If we do anyone else… and I know it could happen; we’ll talk first. No sneaking for any reason.”

“No sneaking,” I agreed.

“Things will just be a little complicated for a while,” he said.

“Just wait till you and I start our gay fraternity,” I said with a chuckle.

“What?” Dan asked with a surprised laugh.

. . . . .

Things were going to stay a little complicated for a while yet.

“I’m at Lenny’s,” I told Dan when I called on Tuesday night. “He said I could call from here since it’s business.”

Dan laughed. “What business?”

“Can you make it down this weekend to help with the landscaping job? Lenny said he’d pay us.”

“Not Friday night,” he said. “And you can’t either. But Saturday and Sunday are OK for sure. Are Aaron and Jorge coming?”

“Not this weekend. Aaron says that they can make it next weekend, though.”

“If they’re coming, does that mean you aren’t going to need me there next weekend?”

“Of course we’ll need you, you nut.”

“I didn’t know,” he protested. “You know how you feel about Aaron.”

“I know how I feel about you,” I said. “You’re my life-mate. I want your butt down here both weekends. Why can’t you come Friday night?”

Dan took a deep breath. “You can’t either. Dr. Armstrong is having several of us over for supper and he made a point of telling me to invite you as my date. You’ve been wanting a date, so I already told him ‘yes.’”

“I don’t see how I can, Dan. I told Lenny I’d help him start work on Friday afternoon. He’s a little stressed; he’s got tons to do.”

There was a pause. “Maybe I’ll take Marco as my date,” Dan said.

“Oh, that’s a low blow, Dan.”

“Well then come, Sean. I’ll work hard for Lenny, too. I want you to meet Dr. Armstrong. And I want a date.”

“OK,” I said. “I’ll work things out with Lenny, and I’ll be there Friday night.”

. . . . .

Ken saw me walking between classes the next morning and caught up with me.

“You don’t mind being seen with me?” I asked.

“Come on, Sean,” he said. “Be fair.”

I gave him a disdainful frown and picked up my pace, but he kept following me.

“OK,” I asked with a sigh. “What’s up?”

“It’s just… can we get together?” he asked. “I’ve been going crazy… remembering the things we did... I’d give anything to do it again.”

“I’ve got all the lovers I need right now, Ken.”

He grabbed me by the elbow, trying to slow me down. “Sean, look, I’m sorry I pissed you off. But you and me, we hit it off from the start. Don’t act like we didn’t. We had a great time that first dive meet. You liked it. You like me.”

“So what? You’ve treated me like shit since then.”

“I wasn’t trying to treat you like shit. I just wasn’t ready to be out like you are.”

“Well come see me when you are,’ I said.

He still had me by the elbow and he stopped in his tracks, grabbing my arm tightly and turning me to face him.

“I’m ready now,” he said. “If that’s what it takes to get together with you again, I’m ready now.” His eyes held mine — those beautiful, oriental eyes — and he looked desperate.

“You’d out yourself to get together with me?”

“Yes,” he said.

“Or just to get together with any guy?” I asked, skeptically.

He bit his lip. “I’m gay,” Sean. “I’m ready to be gay, even if I have to be out about it.”

I acted on impulse. It was Wednesday, but Tom had given me the night off, and I figured Lenny wouldn’t mind if I showed up with Ken. I’d try to call Dan first, but I’d already done Ken once and Dan was cool with that.

“Meet me after supper tonight,” I said. “We’ll meet off campus so you don’t have to be seen leaving with me; we won’t ‘out’ you right away.” I flashed him an encouraging grin. “Meet me over on Broadway at the HEB parking lot. You know the store?”

“Yeah. What time?”

“Seven,” I said.

. . . . .

It bothered me that I couldn’t reach Dan, but if anyone ever needed a rescue, it was Ken. And Dan understood rescues.

I called Lenny ahead of time and explained the situation. “You up for a three way?” I asked.

“You said he’s cute, right? You know me, baby,” he said. “I’m always up for something like that. But wait… I forgot. Mikey’s off work and he’ll be home tonight, too. It wouldn’t be cool for us to get it on and leave him out. I’ll stick with Mikey and let you take care of Kenny Baby. I’ll even let you use my room.”

“You’re sweet, Lenny.”

“You better believe I am,” he said. “But not for loaning my room out. For loaning you out.”

. . . . .

“Three gay guys live here,” I told Ken as we approached the front door. “Only one’s never here. You’ll like the other two.”

Ken nodded uneasily.

“Relax,” I said. “Don’t be nervous.”

He gave a high, short laugh. “I’m more excited than nervous.” He glanced at me as I lifted my hand to knock. “I’m only used to wondering whether a guy is gay. It’s going to be different walking into a house and knowing the guys there are gay.”

Michael answered the door. He smiled at me, glanced at Ken, and then glanced again. Michael’s mouth dropped slightly and his eyes softened as he stared at Ken.

I put an arm behind Michael’s back and kissed his cheek. “Michael, meet Ken. Ken, meet Michael.”

They stared at each other for a moment, and then Ken slowly extended a hand. Michael took it and their eyes stayed locked on each other as they shook. And it dawned on me that Michael might not be left out that night at all.

It was fun in a way, watching Michael and Ken warm to each other. Lenny had hit Ken with one of his “Gawd, he’s gorgeous!” lines, and taken Ken aback a little. In fact, between that and a little eye makeup, Lenny had turned Ken off pretty effectively. Not that it would have made a difference. Ken’s focus was totally on Michael.

It’s hard to say what turns people on to each other. I would have never guessed there’d be any chemistry between Ken and Michael. I was wrong.

When Lenny and Michael vanished into the kitchen, Ken pulled me aside. “Does he have a boyfriend?” he asked.

“No,” I said. “Go for it!”

Michael and Lenny returned with sodas and by unspoken agreement, we worked the seating so that Michael and Ken shared a couch.

When conversation began a little awkwardly, I decided that I needed to fill Michael in. So I asked him if they had any chips in the kitchen. When he said sure, I asked him to show me, and gave him a meaningful look.

Once we were alone, I threw an arm over his shoulder and pulled him away from the kitchen door. “Did Lenny tell you about Ken at all?” I asked.

“No,” he said. “Why?”

“It’s just that he’s almost a virgin,” I said, leaning close to talk quietly. “He’s only had sex with one guy, one weekend — me. And that was weeks ago. He’s nervous as hell, but he’s gay. And he needs someone, Michael. I realize that you only like doing things with a guy after you’ve known him for a while and become friends. But you guys obviously like each other, and he’s almost desperate to be with a guy.”

Michael’s brow furrowed.

“Think about it, OK?” I suggested.

He nodded slightly.

I decided to give him a little motivation. So I pulled him into a deep kiss and a full-body hug. I held him until I felt him begin to relax… and begin to harden. “You’ll think about it?” I asked softly, keeping our packages pressed together.

Michael nodded, dazedly, and then gave me a sweet smile and returned the kiss. “Smartass!” he whispered.

We got them talking — Michael and Ken — and then I followed Lenny back to his room so we could leave them alone.

I closed the door behind me when we entered Lenny’s room, and I pulled him into my arms. “I’m horny as hell.” I told him.

He laughed, his grey eyes sparkling.

“I’m horny because they’re going to get it on,” I said. “But I’m horny for you!” I grabbed Lenny under his butt, lifting him like I used to do Ry.

With a delighted laugh, Lenny wrapped his legs around my waist, and I carried him, limping slightly, to the bed and dropped both of us on to it. I ground myself on him and kissed over his face, his eyes, his nose, his mouth, his ears, his chin…

Lenny giggled. “What’s gotten into you? Are you that horny because they’re getting it on?”

“No,” I said, running my hand up under his shirt, feeling his hard belly. “I’m not sure what it is. Maybe it’s because you have the sexiest, hardest body in San Antonio. Maybe it’s because I thought I’d be with Ken and I really wanted to be with you. Maybe it’s because now Michael might be getting a boyfriend and I don’t have to worry about balancing my time here; I can just relax with you.”

And then it hit me. “I’m happy, Lenny. I’m horny because I’m happy. Because you make me happy,” I told him. I lightly kissed his smiling lips.

“What do I call you?” I asked softly. “San Antonio boyfriend isn’t right. You’re my friend even more than you’re my lover. You’re… you’re Lenny… my… my most incredible friend, and I just realized how much I really, really love being with you.”

His smile softened, and his eyes glistened in the dim light. He pulled me tightly into his arms and we hugged, and I pressed my full package to his.

Lenny pulled my shirt up, and I let him lift it over my head. We rolled so that he was on top and I pulled off his shirt. We rolled apart and watched each other slowly strip off shoes, socks, pants, and underwear.

We scooted our sides together, hip to hip, sliding an arm behind each other’s back, and opening our legs to each other’s caressing hand. We kissed lightly while fondling each other’s balls. We opened our mouths to each other as our hands closed over the other’s shaft.

My tongue always tingled a little in Lenny’s mouth, almost like it tingled with soda. His mouth was always warm and moist. Limber isn’t a word I would normally apply to a mouth, but I would to Lenny’s. His mouth was always alive to mine, even when our kisses were gentle. But that particular kiss was far from gentle.

Keeping our lips locked, I rolled onto him, pushing my tongue deep into his mouth.

Lenny ran his fingers into the hair on both sides of my head and gripped me tightly, holding my mouth against his. I felt his legs draw up along my sides and then he pulled my ear close to his mouth. “Do me,” he whispered. “My most incredible friend.”

I backed my hips. In no mood to stop for lube or even spit, I tested his opening with only my precum. I had a bit, and slipped in with minimal effort. I pushed in slowly. And once in, Lenny and I wrapped ourselves into a tight ball.

I felt him, not just with my hands, and lips, and tongue, and cock. I felt him with my belly, with my chest, with my shoulders, with my thighs, my arms, my cheek… my scrotum… and all my body. Within our tight ball, small movements were full of pleasure.

“How long can you last?” I whispered.

“Hours,” he answered.

I pressed my loins harder against his bottom and plunged my tongue into his ear.

. . . . .

It was almost an hour later that we slipped on underwear and padded hand-in-hand to the kitchen.

“I have a surprise I was keeping for you,” Lenny said, opening the refrigerator.

A six-pack of red soda sat on the top shelf.

I cried out in delight, and hugged him. “Wanna split one?” I asked.

He winked and retrieved two glasses.

After the soda, we moved to a couch in the living room and lay on our sides, Lenny spooning me from behind. We pulled up a blanket and watched Johnny Carson on TV, keeping the volume down so as not to disturb Michael and Ken in the other room. Before long, we heard the sound of mattress springs bouncing.

“I guess they’ve hit it off,” I said. “I would have never dreamed that those two would go for each other.”

“Lenny smoothed my hair back from my ear. “You’d be surprised,” he said. “I’ve seen really cute guys get together with really ugly ones. Different guys like different guys.”

“What kind of guy do you like?” I asked, half expecting him to say, six-foot tall college students with reddish-brown hair. I was to be disappointed.

“Anything with a cock,” he said with a chuckle.

“Don’t give me that. What do you really go for?”

He nuzzled the back of my head, and when he finally answered, he sounded thoughtful. “I liked Jack,” he said. “He was sorta perfect. Well-built, handsome, older… early thirties. I like older guys. I also like strong ones. You know… hunks.”

“Damn, Lenny,” I said. “What are you doing wasting time with me then?”

“Oh, baby,” he said, hugging me from behind. “You’re just drop-dead gorgeous and you know it.”

“I don’t know it. But you can tell me.”

He laughed and snuggled closer. I could feel his stiffening cock against my butt. The mattress noises from the other room were affecting me, too.

“But you really like older, hunkier guys, huh?”

“Don’t get pissed,” he said, kissing the side of my neck. “You asked.”

The bedsprings were really going now in Michael’s room.

“Poor Mikey,” Lenny said. “He’s always looking for a boyfriend.”

“Don’t most guys?” I asked, wiggling my butt back against Lenny’s growing erection.

“Are you kidding?” Lenny asked. “Gay guys are still guys. And most guys get all the sex they can, as often as they can, with as many as they can.”

“You’ve been hanging around the wrong guys,” I said with a chuckle.

“You’ve had your head up your ass,” he said. “It’s not just gay guys. It’s guys, period. If girls were as easy to get sex from as guys are, hardly anyone would get married. In fact, that’s what’s happening these days. Girls are easier and guys don’t marry them. They don’t have to.”

I shrugged. “Sounds jaded to me.”

“But true,” he said.

“You aren’t like that,” I observed.

“You haven’t been around on weekends,” he said, kissing my ear again.

“All the sex you can, huh?” I asked, pulling down my underwear, beneath the blanket.

Lenny pulled his down. “All the sex I can… with you,” he said, and I felt the moist end of his cock as it poked my right butt cheek. “I really don’t like sleeping around any more,” he said. “You feel shitty about yourself after a while.”

Reaching back I clasped Lenny’s cock and guided it into my crack. I pressed the tip to my opening and wiggled against it, applying his precum, loosening myself, growing even harder at the pleasant feel of his glans, pressing lightly at my hole.

“But baby,” he said in a thick voice as he added spit. “I feel good about myself when I’m with you.” Then he positioned himself and pressed until his crown slipped inside me. He held me by the hip and sucked on my shoulder as he pushed slowly in.

. . . . .

A front had rolled through in the night. Rain pelted Lenny’s window and it was cool in the house. It was hard to get up from bed with Lenny’s warm body beside me, but I needed to get back to school.

We were sitting in the kitchen when we heard Michael’s bedsprings again.

I laughed.

Lenny smiled. “They’re regular little fuckbunnies, aren’t they?”

“What’s funny,” I said, “is that the first time I made love with either of them, they only came once and were ready to quit. I guess they really turn each other on.”

“That, or you trained them well,” Lenny said, blowing me a kiss.

. . . . .

I didn’t see Ken again until diving that afternoon, and he came late. But with a big smile on his face. He waved at me before joining the divers.

And he waited for me in the showers for the first time since I’d been outed. He was grinning from ear to ear.

Looking around to make sure we were alone, I leaned close. “I guess you and Michael hit it off,” I said.

He just smiled even wider.

“Did you miss your classes today,” I asked. “I didn’t see you anywhere.”

He shrugged. “Michael didn’t have to leave for work until a couple of hours ago.”

“Oh, shit,” I said with a chuckle. “Did you make love all day?”

“Not the whole time,” he said. “We ate lunch.”

I laughed. “Did you like the mirrors?” I asked.

His eyes went wide. “They are so cool. I’m going over again tomorrow night, after Mikey gets off work.

“Mikey?” I asked.

“He said to call him that,” Ken answered, defensively. Then he stepped closer. “He’s perfect, Sean. He’s cute as hell, and he loves being fucked.”

“What,” I asked, with a playful frown, “you didn’t give him a turn?”

Ken stepped close again with a conspiratorial smile. “I told him I wanted to try it too and that he had to take a turn every now and again.” His smile widened. “He’s good at that, too.”

. . . . .

“I see that you talked to Luke,” Caitlyn said as she joined me for lunch on Friday.

“That reporter for The Owl that you sicked on me? Yeah I did.”

“I didn’t sick him on you. Somebody else must have.”

“He sure knew a lot,” I observed.

“I guess so,” Caitlyn agreed and tossed a copy of the school paper onto the table by my food tray. She pointed to a third column story that was headed, “Trinity’s Most Interesting Student?”

I picked up the paper and began to read…

“We all call him Streak, and we’ll use only that name for this article because even though he’s been open about his lifestyle with everyone on campus, he has relatives and friends in town and for their sake has asked that we not use his real name.

“From the first day he showed up with the other freshman, Streak stood out. Girls worshipped his tall, lean, good looks. Guys liked his friendly, outgoing manner. Professors appreciated his quick mind. And everyone admired the pluckiness of an athlete who didn’t let injury get him down.

“When some jocks stripped him for a prank and made him walk across campus naked, his picture went up in almost every girl’s dorm room. And ‘Streak’ became a Trinity celebrity.

“But then word spread that Streak might be gay. Many people kept their distance from him. And yet interest in him has remained high on campus, especially as new rumors have made Streak more and more of a mystery.

“I decided to get a better handle on this human enigma and tracked him down outside the library earlier this week.

“Owl: Hey Streak, do you have a few minutes for an interview?

“Streak, eyeing my handheld tape recorder: You’ve got to be kidding. Interview for what?

“Owl: The school paper.

“Streak: About?

“Owl: We just want to get to know you better.

“Streak: Forget it. You want to talk to me about my being gay. I already have enough people avoiding me.

“Streak tried walking away, but I followed him.

“Owl: Wouldn’t you like people to know the truth?

“Streak: Not hardly.

“Owl: Wouldn’t you like to give your side of the story?

“Streak: My side? My side is to be left alone.

“Owl: If you don’t let me interview you, I’ll just have to write the article on my own and you might not like it.

“Streak: Go ahead. If I don’t like it, I’ll tell everyone I told you the story when we were in bed together.

“Owl, laughing: That’s cool. Some radical types think it’s chic to be bi. You’ll just enhance my reputation.

“Streak: You keep following me, and I’m going to give you a lip locking kiss and enhance your reputation real good, right here in the middle of the campus.

“I allowed a little more distance between Streak and myself.

“Owl: Is it true you’re trying to start up a Gay Rights Organization at Trinity?”

“Streak: Who the hell told you that?

“Owl: Is it true?

“Streak: No

“Owl: But you are really gay, right?

“Streak stopped and glared at me.

“Owl: In case you didn’t know it, whether you are gay or not is a subject of debate around campus. People are confused.

“Streak turned on his heel and headed away. I followed.

“Owl: Is it true that you brought back a bag of panties from a dance weekend before last?

“Streak ignored me.

“Owl: Is it true you danced naked and girls threw those panties at you?

“Streak: I never told anyone I danced naked.

“Owl: So you did dance? And girls did throw panties? You just weren’t naked?”

“Streak: I didn’t say I wasn’t naked.

“I had followed Streak into the Admin building and when he went into the bathroom, I followed.

“Streak, looking back over his shoulder: You really are bi, aren’t you?

“Owl: Some people say that you’re bi. Rumor is that you do girls, too.

“Streak: That’s nobody’s business but mine, and the few dozen guys and girls I lay every week.

“Owl: OK. We’ll change the subject. Is it true that you want to be a writer?

“Streak: A writer; definitely not a journalist.

“We left the bathroom.

“Owl: Novelist?

“Streak: Maybe.

“Owl: Would you consider writing a story for the Owl?

“Streak: I said, not a journalist.

“Owl: Write us a short story.

“Streak: About?

“Owl: About being gay here at Trinity.

“Streak stopped and considered my offer.

“Streak: Maybe. If you don’t mind that the villain in the story is an evil journalist.

“Watch for Streak’s story. He’s promised to have one to us soon.”

Emails are appreciated at btomandback@hotmail.com