Tim

Tim Chapter 4

Disclaimer: This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to real people or events is coincidental. It contains descriptions of sex between teenage boys and between adult men. If you are offended by this type of material, or if you are forbidden by law to read it, please exit the story now. E-mail comments are gratefully accepted at brew_drinker23@yahoo.com.

Tim

Chapter 4

Mont and Terry were the first to arrive, along with Fred. We shook hands all around and then introduced them to Tim. By the time everyone had something to drink and had taken their places to watch the game, Mike showed up. I introduced him to everyone, and he took a place next to Fred. I watched as the two of them checked one another out. It wasn't overt or inappropriate by a long shot, but it fueled my curiosity about the two of them.

Kyle was the last to arrive, and Tim introduced Rick and me to him as his foster big brothers. I definitely liked the sound of that, and I know Rick positively loved it. Kyle was a hottie, by anybody's definition. He was my height, five feet, ten inches, and he weighed about as much as Rick, 175 pounds. Like Rick, he had a powerful upper body, and I wondered if he also had Rick's rock-hard leg muscles. Tim had said he was a runner, so my guess was that he did. He had dark hair and brown eyes, and I noticed the tell-tale shadow of a full beard on his face. I suddenly wondered if Tim had to shave, and when I looked closely at his face, I could traces of the beginnings of a beard that probably required no more than weekly attention, if that. Kyle had a deep, manly voice, and I was sure it projected well on stage. He wore his hair in the same random, uncombed gelled style that Tim wore, and it actually made him look rather rugged. His handshake was that of a confident man, not a boy, and he could easily have passed for twenty-one or twenty-two in the right light.

Mont and Ter, as we had observed the weekend before, were right at home in new company. They immediately engaged the boys in conversation, and it wasn't long before Rick had all of us in stitches with his wisecracks. Everybody seemed at ease with everyone else, and it didn't take me long to know that that was going to be a good party. Ter had made a delicious cheese ball, and Rick had put out some mixed nuts and a bowl of olives for us to munch on before dinner. Tim took Kyle back to see his new room, but they were back in the den in less than five minutes.

Rick excused himself to take care of chores in the kitchen. After fifteen minutes he started putting dishes of food on the counter that separated the kitchen from the part of the den we referred to as the breakfast room. I got up to help him, but he shooed me out of the way.

"See if anybody needs a beer or something," he said.

I did as told. In five minutes Rick made the announcement:

"Come and get it, guys."

There was the usual reticence of nobody wanting to be first in line. Kyle stepped up, saying, "Hell, I ain't shy," and started the line moving. Tim was right behind him. Rick and I brought up the rear.

The game started, and everyone ate. There wasn't a whole lot of conversation at first, but, once everyone had finished eating, conversation started up. One of the great things about watching a game with friends is that you can watch it and still talk. We all quieted down for the legendary commercials, of course, and some of them were pretty good. As usual, the beer commercials were some of the best. I saw Kyle and Tim slip out the kitchen door into the garage, and Rick saw it, too. He mouthed "the smoker" to me, and I grinned. They came back inside in about ten minutes.

I had often found Super Bowl games less than exciting. When the two best teams in the NFL go at it, the offense has trouble against the defense of both teams. There is the occasional spectacular play, as there was that night, but the Patriots made everyone gasp with their forty-eight-yard field goal in the last seconds of the game.

At one point Mont went into the kitchen for a beer, and I followed him.

"Having fun," I asked.

"The best, man. I wish Terry could cook like Rick. That meal was fantastic," he said.

"Yeah, I thought it was good, too, but that cheese ball was damn fine, too," I said.

"It looks like my brother may have made a new friend. That Mike guy seems really nice."

"He is, Mont. I've known him for three years, and he's a great guy." Pause. "Is Fred gay?"

"Isn't it obvious, Kevin?"

"No. That's why I asked you," I said.

"Yes, he is. He was in a relationship since he was as old as those two boys in there, and his partner was killed in a diving accident last April. He was pretty well devastated, and he hasn't dated anyone since then. I sure hope he and Mike can get together."

"I probably need to turn in my rainbow flag. I've had lunch every day for three years with Mike, and I was never sure about him. So much for gaydar, I guess."

Mont laughed. "Some have it, and some don't. You * do * know that Tim and Kyle are gay, don't you?"

"Yeah. But I had to be told," I said.

"Well, at least you know. That Kyle is a hottie, for sure, and Tim is as cute as he can be."

Just then there was a cheer from the crowd in the next room.

"Shit, we probably missed the best play of the night," Mont said. He put his hand on my shoulder, and the two of us went back to the game.

When the game was over, everybody hung around for a while. It wasn't long, though, before the reality of the work week and school week intruded itself into our gathering, and everyone was gone by 9:30. Everyone, that is, but Kyle. He and Tim helped Rick and me get the kitchen cleaned up. When we were finished cleaning, I took Rick by the waist and kissed him on the lips. It was a chaste kiss, and it was something I had done a million times. The difference that night was that Tim and Kyle froze and watched as I did it. The potential for embarrassment was enormous, I then realized, until Rick destroyed the awkwardness.

"Okay, who's next," he said.

Kyle looked at Tim, and Tim just shrugged. Then Kyle grabbed Tim as I had grabbed Rick, and he planted a healthy kiss on his lips. It was no more passionate than our kiss had been, but it lasted several seconds longer. Tim broke it by pulling back.

"What are you doing, Kyle," Tim demanded.

"I've wanted to do that ever since the camping trip, Tim, and I know you've wanted it, too." Then, turning to us, Kyle said, "Mr. Rick and Mr. Kevin, can we talk to you guys?"

"Only if you lose the `mister,' Kyle," Rick said. "I'm Rick, and he's Kevin."

"Okay, Rick. It's a deal. I felt pretty dumb saying `mister,' but I wasn't sure, you know what I mean?"

"Yeah, we do, Kyle," I said, "and that's a credit to you and your parents. How old are you, anyway? You look like a man, man."

Rick laughed at my "man, man" sentence structure, but the boys didn't react.

"I'm sixteen. My birthday was in November."

Kyle smiled a perfect smile. God, he's gorgeous, I thought.

Back in the den, we all took seats. I lit up a smoke, my second of the day, and Kyle got the most needy look on his face.

"Do your parents know you smoke, Kyle," I asked.

"Oh, yeah. They're cool with it. They both smoke."

"Well, light up, buddy, if you want to," I said.

It took him about five seconds to retrieve his crumpled box of smokes from the pocket of his jeans and to fire one up. I halfway expected Tim to light up as well, but he didn't.

"I want to thank y'all for inviting me tonight," Kyle said. "I'm probably going to remember this night the rest of my life."

"Yeah, that mac and cheese was awesome, wasn't it," Rick said.

I knew he said that to make us laugh, and, ordinarily, I would have, but I sensed Kyle was talking about something much more important than macaroni and cheese, so I kept quiet.

"Yeah, it was, Rick, but that's not why this night was so special to me," Kyle said.

I marveled at that kid's poise.

"Tonight was special to me because it was the first time I've ever been with a group of gay men." He turned to Tim. "I know I told you I wasn't sure I was gay, but that was a lie. I've been sure I'm gay since I was twelve years old. But I didn't want to be gay, Tim, and I've spent a lot of time worrying about it since then. A lot changed for me on the camping trip last week, but tonight made me realize I don't have anything to be ashamed of because I like guys."

"Why did tonight make you realize that, Kyle," Rick asked.

"'Cause everybody was just so normal, Rick. And so friendly, and so at ease. Everybody here tonight was gay, right?"

"Yeah, as it turned out, but we didn't know it when we invited them," I said.

"You didn't? I thought gay guys could spot other gay guys," Tim said.

"Apparently, some can, Tim, but Rick and I couldn't. We've known you for a year, and we didn't know you were gay until yesterday, when your dad told us," I said.

"Your own dad outed you, Tim?" Kyle was obviously horrified at the idea.

"I asked him to. I wanted to stay with Rick and Kevin while he's gone, and I wanted them to know," he said. "I would have been too embarrassed to tell them."

When Tim said that, Rick jumped to his feet.

"Whoa!!!!"

The boys looked like they were afraid of him, all of a sudden.

"Both of you have said tonight that you were ashamed or embarrassed about being gay. You can't ever be ashamed of being who you are. Are you ashamed of being white? Are you ashamed of having a dick? Are you ashamed of being an American? Sure, I've been ashamed of some things that white people have done to people of other colors, and I've been ashamed of what some guys have done with their dicks, and I've been ashamed of what Americans have done to other people. But I've never been ashamed of being white, of being male, or of being an American."

"Have you not ever been ashamed of being gay, Rick," Kyle asked.

Rick sat down and calmed down. "No, I haven't, Kyle, but I might be a special case. My father is gay. In college, my mother got pregnant with me, and my father married her. That was what was expected in the 1970's, and I'm sure he was ashamed of being gay, too, and so he was glad to have a kid on the way. But they divorced right after I was born, and he was never a part of my life. My mom raised me by herself, with the help of my dad's parents, and all my life she let me know, somehow, that it was okay to be gay, if that's how it turned out for me. Well, that's exactly how it turned out for me, and I never was ashamed of it."

"When did you first realize you were gay," Tim asked.

"I was probably twelve. Maybe eleven. Maybe thirteen. I don't really remember a specific instant when I had a revelation or anything, Tim. I probably always knew at some level that I was different from most," Rick said.

"What about you, Kevin? How old were you," Kyle asked.

"I was a good bit older," I said. "Probably twenty. No, not probably. I was twenty. But I want to get back to something Kyle said earlier. Kyle, why did tonight make you realize you didn't have to be ashamed of being gay?"

"Because everybody was so normal, Kevin. Everybody was, like, `I'm a guy watching the game.' That doesn't make much sense, I know, but it was just so ordinary, so normal. Hell, y'all were no different than my dad and his friends. See, that's what bothered me about being gay. I just want to be normal, ordinary, just a guy."

"That's what we are, Kyle. Just guys," Rick said. "And I'm just a guy who is dragging ass right now. This has been a whole lot of fun, but I've got to get my tired ass in bed, guys."

"Yeah, and I need to go home. Damn, I only have fifteen minutes to get home," Kyle said. "Thanks, again, for everything, Rick and Kevin. Tonight has been one of those milestones you hear about. Good night."

Kyle shook hands with Rick and me. When Tim offered his hand, he took hold of it, but he didn't shake it.

"Walk out with me," he said to Tim.

Tim looked at us for permission, or something, and Rick said, "Go."

We left a lamp on for Tim to find his way to his room, and Rick and I went to our room silently. It was almost eleven o'clock, and I was sure Rick was exhausted. We brushed out teeth, took off our clothes, and got into bed.

"This was quite a day, wasn't it, Babe. Quite a weekend, really," Rick said.

"Don't run tomorrow morning, okay? Sleep till seven. Will you do that for me," I asked.

"I'm ahead of you there, Babe. I already reset my clock. It was a good party tonight, don't you think?"

"Yeah. The food was wonderful. I think everybody had a good time," I said.

"I think they did, too. There's a lot I want to talk about, but not right now, okay?"

"Okay, Baby. I love you," I said.

"I love you, too." He kissed me goodnight and was asleep thirty seconds later.

I woke up to go to the bathroom around two o'clock, and I discovered the house was cold. I had opened a couple of windows during the party to let some fresh air in, and I forgot to close them before we went to bed. The temperature had evidently taken the plunge the weatherman had predicted, as a cold front made its way through.

When I finished in the bathroom, I slipped on my briefs and went into the den to close the windows. Then I went down the hall to the thermostat to turn some heat on. I noticed light coming from under Tim's door. He must have fallen asleep reading, I thought. I used to do that routinely when I was a kid, and I still did it occasionally. As I adjusted the thermostat, I heard noise coming from Tim's room. I listened intently to it, and I thought I heard someone crying.

I tapped on Tim's door, and I heard a startled grunt.

"It's me. Kevin. Can I come in."

"Yes."

He was lying face down on the spread. He was wearing only briefs, and I was sure he must be cold. He had obviously been under the covers at one point, though. He didn't look at me, but he was sniffling in the final stage of what must have been an intense cry.

"What's the matter, buddy," I asked. "Why aren't you under the covers? It turned cold, but I just put the heater on."

I moved toward the bed and sat down on the corner near his head. He looked at me, and his face was wet with tears.

"Are you okay," I asked.

He didn't reply.

"Are you missing your dad," I asked. Tim was a pretty macho kid, but he seemed very fragile and vulnerable right at that moment. I tried to be gentle.

He nodded.

"Come on. Get under the covers and get warm," I said. I felt his hand, and it was icy.

"I wet the bed," he said. He blushed and looked away from me. I didn't know if he was a chronic bed wetter, but I had heard or read about kids sometimes reverting to more infantile behaviors when they suffer a significant emotional jolt. It certainly isn't beyond a kid Tim's age to have that kind of reaction to having his dad jerked away from him suddenly, I thought.

"It's okay, Tim. It's no big deal. Accidents happen all the time, man. Here, let's see what the damage is."

He turned over to get out of bed, and I could see that the front of his briefs was wet. It wasn't very much, though. I pulled back the spread and top sheet, and there was a small wet spot about eight inches in diameter. It didn't look like urine, though, and, when I touch it, I realized what it was.

"You didn't wet the bed, Tim. You had a wet dream, man. It happens all the time. No biggie, for sure."

"I know," he said.

"Let me get something," I said. I went into the bathroom next to his room and got a towel to cover the wet spot and a wet washcloth for him to use to clean himself up. Back in the room, I spread the towel on the sheet and handed him the washcloth. "Here. Clean yourself up and put on some fresh underwear."

He got some briefs from the dresser and pulled the soiled ones down. He was facing the bed, apparently unconcerned that he was in my line of vision. I averted my eyes, but not until I noticed he still had a partial erection. No shame between his legs, I thought, and then I immediately felt guilty for thinking that.

"Were you crying because you had a wet dream, buddy," I asked. If he had any conflicts about that, I wanted to clear them up on the spot, but I certainly didn't want to embarrass him any further.

"No. It woke me up, though, and I started thinking about my dad. That's why I was crying."

"Come on and get back in bed."

I checked the vent in his room, and the damn thing was closed. I stood on a chair and opened it, and the warm air from the heater started flowing in.

"Kevin, I'm sorry to cause you so much trouble," he said.

"I don't even want to hear that, Tim. I got up to pee and noticed it was cold. I closed the windows we left open last night, and then I walked down the hall to turn on the heater. When I heard you crying, I thought you might need me, is all."

"I do need you, Kevin. Can you stay for a minute, please?"

God, how could I possibly say no to that request?

"Sure, but lie down so you'll go back to sleep," I said.

He lay down. I was chilly, so I got under the covers with him.

"I was crying because I was thinking about my dad getting killed in the war. If he does get killed, what would happen to me? I'd have to go to a homeless shelter or an orphanage," he said.

His concerns certainly weren't amusing, but his choice of words was. I stifled a chuckle, though.

"No, you wouldn't. You'd stay right here. You'd be our son."

"What?"

"Your dad didn't tell you what we did?"

"No. What did you do?"

"First of all, Tim, he's not going to die. He's a couple of thousands of miles away from combat, and he's in no more danger there than he would be driving down the highway or skiing behind a boat. Probably less."

He was listening intently, but he didn't say anything.

"But before he left, he changed his will. He named Rick and me your guardians, just in case something bad does happen. He didn't think it was going to happen, but it's Navy regulations. He had to do it."

"So I'll be taken care of by you guys, if something happens?"

"Absolutely, dude. We'll be here for you. Don't worry about that."

That seemed to satisfy him, and he was quiet. I hoped he'd fall asleep soon so I could get back to sleep. A few minutes later, he started again.

"Kevin?"

"Hmmm?" Jesus, I thought, this isn't a sleepover, Tim. We both have full days tomorrow.

"Did you like Kyle? He really, really liked you and Rick."

"Yeah. I liked him a lot. And I know Rick did, too."

"When we went outside as he was leaving, we kissed for a long time. With tongue. He showed me how. I had never done that before."

I knew he had been through a lot in the last two days, and I wanted more than anything to help him work through his sexuality, too. But I wanted to do it at two o'clock in the afternoon, not two o'clock in the morning.

"Did you like it," I asked.

"I liked it a lot. A whole lot, in fact. We both got hard."

"Umm hmmm," I said.

"Do you and Rick get hard when you kiss?"

"Yes, we do, Tim. That's a perfectly natural reaction."

"You sound like you're real sleepy," he said.

"I am. Let's be quite now, okay. We'll talk tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay. I love having you and Rick as my big brothers. Thank you for taking care of me."

"We love having you as our little brother, too, Tim. Good night."

"Good night, Kevin."

I went to sleep in his bed. He had his alarm set for 6:30, and he bounded out of bed when it went off. While he was in the bathroom, I went back to our bed. Rick was just waking up, but I knew we had another thirty minutes before our clocks went off.

"Where have you been," he asked me.

"Tim needed me last night, and I fell asleep in his bed. I'll tell you about it later."

"Okay, babe," he said.

As badly as I wanted to go back to sleep for a few minutes, I knew I was awake for the day. Rick was propped up on his elbow, looking at me. When I opened my eyes, I got one of those "you're my whole world" smiles. I smiled in return.

"Was Tim scared last night," he asked.

"Yeah, but scared over losing George. He had a wet dream and it woke him up. He started thinking about what would happen to him if George died, and it made him cry. I thought he would never stop talking, but I had to reassure him that we'd take care of him. Apparently George didn't say anything to him about his will. I guess he didn't want to worry him or make him think he might not come back."

"Was he okay with us being his permanent guardians if something happens," he asked.

"He was thrilled. Right before I went to sleep he said he loves having us as his big brothers."

"What did you say?"

"I said we love having him as our little brother. Oh, and apparently Kyle is a smoker in more ways than one," I said.

"Oh, yeah? What happened?"

"Nothing, really. They kissed outside when Tim walked him out, and they both got hard."

Rick giggled.

"He asked me if we both get hard when we kiss."

"What did you tell him," Rick asked.

"I said that I get hard but that you don't because you're impotent."

In an instant, a pillow crashed into my face. I started laughing, and he did, too.

"Do you want me to prove to you right now just how wrong that statement is," he asked.

"Of course I do, but we don't have time," I said.

"I know. Let's get up."

"Okay." We got up, made the bed, and started our day.

Rick could shower, shave, and dress faster than any man I'd ever even heard of. He wore a uniform that consisted of a casual shirt and Dockers slacks, and he could get into (and out of) it in an instant. He was already dressed and in the kitchen making breakfast by the time the alarm clocks went off at seven. Tim was sitting at the breakfast table with a glass of juice when I came out.

"Wow, Kevin, man, you look gooooooood," Tim said.

"Thanks, Tim. You look good, too," I replied. I wondered if he had ever seen me before in a business suit and tie.

"What about me? Do I look good," Rick asked as he put a huge platter of scrambled egg whites on the table.

Tim looked at Rick appraisingly and said, "Doesn't Kevin look good, Rick?"

I laughed.

"You little ape," Rick said, good naturedly.

"What is this stuff, Rick," Tim asked, referring to the eggs.

"It's scrambled eggs. What does it look like?"

"Why is it so pale?"

"It's a special product that's made only from egg whites, no yellows. The pale yellow must be food coloring or something. It's good. Try it."

Tim put a serving on his plate. Next, I helped myself, and Rick took most of what was left. I saw Tim eye his portion, and I smiled.

"He eats a lot, Tim," I said in a stage whisper. Then, "Are you all set for school?"

"Pretty much. I didn't get all of my English read this weekend, but I'll be able to finish the chapters during first period."

"What time does school start," Rick asked. I knew because Tim had told me the afternoon before, but I hadn't mentioned it to Rick.

"It starts at 7:30, and it's over at 2:30," he said.

"What time do you catch the bus," I asked.

"I'm going to start riding in with Kyle, if that's okay," he said.

"Sure. I don't have a problem with it," I replied.

"Neither do I," Rick said. "I'll show you how to get your own breakfast, in case we're running late some mornings. We're off to an earlier start than usual today because I didn't run. I don't cook every day, either. A lot of days we just have cereal. Or I do. Kevin eats at work, most days."

"What time do you run," Tim asked.

"I'm usually out of the house around five minutes after five," Rick replied.

"When do you get back from your run?"

"Usually, right at six," he said.

"So what do you guys do until you leave for work?" Then his eyes got big, and he blushed. He smiled a knowing smile, and Rick winked at him. He looked at me for confirmation, and I smiled and nodded slowly. All three of us burst out laughing.

"Every day," he asked eagerly.

Rick and I looked at one another. At that moment I was really glad he and I had talked about Tim and sex.

"No, not every day," I said. But almost every day, I thought.

"Do you guys take showers together," he asked.

"Umm hmm," Rick said around the eggs in his mouth.

"Cool. That sounds like fun," he said.

"It is," I said.

"Kevin, you saw my penis last night, right?" Then, when I didn't respond, "Right?"

"Yes, I saw it, Tim. I wasn't trying to, though."

"Oh, I know. So, what did you think?"

Rick started laughing at my obvious discomfort at that moment. "Yeah, Kevin, what did you think? Is it as big as mine? Is it as big as yours?" Rick moved his hands apart to suggest something well beyond human proportions. He winked at Tim, and the little rascal winked back at him. I suddenly realized Rick now had an ally in teasing me, and I knew the fun had only begun.

"What I thought was...[long pause to build suspense] you said school starts at 7:30, Tim."

Just then a horn sounded, and Tim jumped up and grabbed his backpack.

"We'll get you next time, Kevin. Bye. I love you guys," Tim said as he was leaving the house.

"Bye. We love you, too," we said in one voice. By then he was probably already in Kyle's car.

"So what does his dick look like," Rick asked.

"It's big. I'd say he's got a good seven or seven-and-a-half inches. Maybe more. It's also not cut."

"Was it hard," he asked.

"Half hard," I said. "Why are you so interested in what his dick looks like? Hmmm, pervert?"

"You know better. It's just that I'm curious, like every other guy on earth. Besides, I like dicks."

"I've noticed."

We both laughed, and then we started picking up the breakfast table.

"I think we've got a major cutie on our hands here, Babe," Rick said, as he was loading the dishwasher.

"I know we do, Babe. He was really cute last night when he was telling me about kissing Kyle. He blushed when he told me they both got hard."

"I can't believe how open he is," he said.

"I know, but I think we should encourage that, don't you? It might get a little uncomfortable for us sometimes, but I thought we handled it well this morning, don't you?"

"Yeah, I agree we handled it well, and I agree we should encourage his openness. And, Babe, I won't let the teasing get out of hand."

"I know that, and I suspect you'll be in for your share, too. Oh, by the way, do you think we should go to the school and show them our guardianship papers?"

"That might be a good idea. I can't do it today, though. Probably not this week, either. What about you?"

"I could go over there this morning. Let me call and see if that's something they even want us to do."

I looked up the number for the school and placed the call. They would, indeed, like to have photocopies of the guardianship papers for Tim's permanent record. I told the lady on the phone that I could be there at nine, and she patched me through to the principal's secretary. It turned out the principal was free at nine, too, so I had an appointment. I hadn't been in a principal's office since the seventh grade, but that time I was actually looking forward to it. I would be committing my first act as a parent, and it was a little exciting.