Hey everyone. I'm back with another story - except this time it's fictional. Or is it? Hehehe... Anyways, I really appreciated all of the emails from my last story. They were all great and there were alot of you asking for a repeat performance -- so here it is! As before, I would love to get emails from you, so you can email me at libra_@hotmail.com. Flames and all that will be ignored. --------------------------------------------------
================= The Regatta - Part One =================
I was just asked to join the Crew Team. Varsity. What did these people see in me?! I was never really athletic, and even though I had an average build, I wasn't exactly in shape. Up until now in my High School career, my involvement in sports was one failure after another. Let's see, there was Track my Freshman year. I gave that up when psycho-coach wanted me to run until I vomited. Yeah, right. Then in my Sophomore year, I had thought I would be a decent swimmer on the Swim Team, so I joined. Well that was a bad idea. Not only could I not swim as well as the others, I found myself fighting those damn erotic thoughts in the locker room. That was pure torture. Especially in Speedos.
Those two failures had been at two separate schools, and here I found myself at yet another school. You see, my family had split up when I was 15, and since then I had gone to live with my father. Lately he was traveling everywhere for work, so the powers-that-be in my family thought I should go live with my relatives in Connecticut. Big change from the South, I must say. Hell, when I was first told about me moving, I had to go find on a map where exactly Connecticut was.
So here I found myself in Connecticut, standing here in the locker room after school talking to a coach about joining the Crew Team. I had to even ask him what Crew was, cause this stupid kid from the South had never heard of that before. He just laughed and explained to me that it was the Rowing team, the group of guys that squeeze themselves into amazingly small boats called Sculls and then row in races called Regattas. I mentioned that I remembered seeing that in the last Olympics - to which he told me he had been a member of the U.S. Olympic Crew Team two Olympics earlier. Whoopie doo, I thought. Another psycho-coach...
"But, Coach, why me?"
"Well, to be honest Trey, you are tall. And that is a quality that is sorely needed for this sport. Besides, you look like you could use a little activity." He said smiling and giving me a playful jibe in the arm. Ouch, that sorta hurt...
Great Here we go again. I avoided Basketball like the plague for this very reason. In Bball, if you are tall and play, you are expected to be good. Of which I was not... at all. Airball was my middle name. And here I was facing the same situation, except with Crew. Just wonderful...
"Umm, lemme think about it. How long do I have Coach?" I asked in hopes of coming up with a good excuse to not join. I couldn't just say no, I had to make a reason up.
"Well, we are starting today, nothing big - just breaking out the gear and starting the warmups... but if you decide to join, make it soon. We'd love to have ya!" He replied. Then he saw another student behind me and waved him over. "Hey Chris! Come here a sec. I was just talking to Trey here about joining the team. What do you think?"
I groaned to myself about meeting yet another person today and slowly turned around. When I saw him, I had to consciously keep my knees from buckling out from underneath me. Whoa and whoa. This dude was the definition of cuteness. Then I remembered where I was and caught myself before anyone noticed the drool. I saw him looking at me, up and down, and smiling. Oh shit, he figured me out.
"Coach, I think he'd be a great addition. And if his form is good, a potential first seat!" Chris answered to my astonishment.
"Ha! Now let's not go losing our heads, Chris. Let's see what he can do first!" Coach said heading out the door to practice.
This being all Greek to me, I asked what they were talking about.
"Tell you what, come to practice with me and I'll explain. Ok?" Chris asked.
"But no offense dude, you are like... crippled." I said looking at the crutches.
Laughter. "Yeah, right now I am, but I should be better in a week. Anyways, Coach wants me there for strategy."
"Well, in that case, let's go." I said.
Great, here I go again. I'm joining a friggin sport again, and for all the wrong reasons. Oh well, let's see where this ride ends. I helped Chris out to his car, a badass BMW. I noticed a lot of kids owning some nice wheels up here. I guess I was in a well-off part of the country. Struggling with Chris and two bookbags, we finally made it. I asked him what happened to his ankle, and after a bit of hesitation, he finally said he just took a wrong turn down the stairs. I left it at that.
"Thanks for helping me out here. Walking around on crutches with a bookbag isn't exactly easy."
"Oh don't mention it. It was no problem." I said. Certainly not a problem to put my arm around your waist and feel that six-pack. Dang, I was starting to sport a woody. This is not good.
I looked up and he was smiling. Geez, what a smile. I smiled back.
"So, you just move up here? Trey, right? I heard about you. Formally, my name is Chris... Good to meet ya!" He said, moving to shake my hand.
I took it and said, "Yeah, I just moved up here from Mississippi. Big change!"
"I bet. So you never heard of Crew, huh? Let me go over the basics on the way to the boathouse. Want a ride?"
"Sure! If it's no problem." I answered.
"None at all, let's go!"
With that we set out to the boathouse, for my initiation into the Preppy-Ivy-League sport of Crew. Wow, my life takes the weirdest paths.
On the way to the boathouse we got to know each other a bit. Chris was the Captain of the team, which explains why he had to attend practice even though he was hurt and had to sit out. He had lived in Connecticut all his life, had three other brothers, two old and one younger. Of course my thought was there were actually others out there with looks like this. Heh. I know - I'm sick. He started filling me in about Crew and what they were going to do to get me up to speed with everyone else.
"If you really want to do Crew, we're going to have to do some extra work to get you going. I can be your teacher, if you don't mind," he said.
"Oh sure, fine by me. I don't mind at all." I replied, hoping I didn't sound so eager.
"Cool, well then, do you wanna start today? I can ask coach about heading over to the trainers now..." he asked.
"Sure! I have a change of clothes if there's a place..."
"Well, not really, but you can change in my car," he said.
As I mentioned to him how he could change in my car, I almost started drooling. I might be able to catch a glimpse of his chest or stomach. Boy, did I have a thing for stomachs. He didn't seem too worried about changing in my car. Now if I could just figure the rest of him out... I was positive he wasn't gay, though.
We pulled up to the indoor Crew training center, housing the stationary boats and the pool of water that flowed in a large oval. This center was shared by several schools in the area, including some colleges. But today there weren't any scheduled sessions, so we had the place to ourselves. Perfect, we could take our sweet time. Hey - what are YOU thinking?!
I started to tell him I would go unlock the place and he could change, but I noticed he had already started. His shirt was around his head, in the process of taking it off. I looked down to see his stomach, and noticed no signs of a six pack at all. I decided to have some fun.
"Ooooh, still got a baby-belly I see!" I teased while poking him in his stomach.
He tensed up and protested. "Hey! Stop that! I told you I needed to get back in shape!" He laughed. Whew, glad he took it the right way...
"Yeah, you sure do need to get in shape!" Hehehe, I can be mean.
He feigned being hurt. "Well what about you, mister?!" He lunged at me, tugging at my shirt. Whoa! This is going further then I thought. I let him pull my shirt up and gauged his reaction at my abs. I was certainly proud of them.
Just as I thought, he tried to hide the ogling at my stomach, but couldn't. I had him. Well, enough for now. I needed to work a plan. I said let's get going and ushered him inside.
"Well cool, let's get you in strapped in and start some rowing!"
I ran through the basics of rowing, starting him out with the easy in, pull, and out sweep. Then I threw in feathering the oar, and pace. He caught on quick, surprisingly quick, I thought.
"Hey, you are doing pretty good. Are you sure you haven't done this before?" I asked.
"No, never. It just seems to feel right, though. So I'm doing good, eh?"
"Yeah, you are looking real good..." I hollared over the water noise.
With that comment, he looked up and smiled. Oh man, there went my heart. Melted for sure, now. I decided to make my move.
I stood up from the seat I was on, and started walking towards Trey. A step later I collapsed and fell onto the tile floor of the workout deck, grabbing my ankle and crying out in pain. I had forgotten all about my ankle brace and crutches.
I sat there rowing on the trainer, thinking about what Chris had just said to me. So I was looking good, eh? I wonder what he meant by that. Probably that my form was looking good for rowing, and nothing else at all. Did he know the torture he was already putting on me? And we just met. Damn. That's when I heard him scream. I looked up and saw him on the floor curled into the fetal position holding his ankle. His face had the look of pain on it.
I jumped up out of the trainer and ran the five steps over to where he was. I kneeled down to him, telling him to elevate his ankle up.
"Dude! Look, I'm pretty sure you need to elevate your leg. That will ease the pain." I grabbed his leg and shoulder and rolled him over laying flat on his back. I jumped up and ran over and grabbed the chair for him to rest his leg on it.
I lifted his leg up and put his foot on a towel on the chair. I turned around and knelt next to him to talk.
"How's it feeling? Better?" I asked.
"Umm, grimace, Yeah, a bit," he replied, still in obvious pain.
"Well, hang on for a sec and I will run to call an ambulence." He said.
"No, I'll be OK in a sec. I just need to rest for a sec."
I looked up at him hovering over me. His cute face was there, framed by his mussed hair and sweat. He had this worried look all over his face and his hands were holding both my upper arms. This wasn't exactly what I had planned, but it still turned out better, even though it hurt like hell.
I reached up and grabbed Trey on the back of the neck and gently pulled him down to me, kissing him softly on those perfect, angelic lips. I had closed my eyes, but when I noticed him not jerking away, but rather pulling away slowly, I opened one eye to see his face. He had a look of semi-shockness on his face. I decided that I should say something.
"Trey, my ankle is feeling LOTS better now, thanks!" I said smiling.
"Uhh, uhh, uhh, you just, uhh, k-k-k-k--" he was stammering...
"Kissed you. Yeah. And? I hope you won't beat a cripple, and your ride home I might add."
"But I didn't t-t-t-think you were l-l-l-like that..."
"Trey, I am, and I was hoping to God that you were too. Umm, are you? Was that OK?" I asked.
"Man, I dunno. Let's see again. I'll tell you after this..." He replied, slowly coming back for another kiss. This time it was longer and more electrical. I felt his tongue searching for mine. Boy, this kid recovers quick!
Well, this is the end of Part One. I know, there's nothing for anyone to actually "sink their teeth into". Well get over it. I've decided to do some character development, and that takes time. I would appreciate any comments and suggestions on where to go with this. I have most of the story in my head, but I could always change it.