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Hey Guys! So yeah I know, I know. It's taken me what, a couple weeks to get this out? University mixed with family emergencies aren't a very good mix. Anyway I'd like to thank Clinton for helping me edit this chapter and a thanks to Steven for his help and input into the story. So here are the links to the music in this chapter- (Midnight Coward) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOCPN1aFlEk and (Take Me To The Riot) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxeIivNDtFU. Both songs are by one of my favourite Canadian bands. On with the chapter!
The weeks went by quickly and soon we were in the last week in November, awaiting our upcoming trip down to Minneapolis to spend thanksgiving with his parents. I wish I could say I was excited, but I was anything but. I mean come on. Who wouldn't be nervous to meet the parents for the first time. Okay, so maybe I shouldn't be nervous, I'm not his boyfriend or anything. I wish. I was scared that if they saw me looking at Colby, they'd see in my eyes what I felt for Colby.
I sort of pictured his parents to be these stone faced professionals who were incapable of showing love or emotion. Honestly, from what he told me about them, it seemed as though his parents put their careers before their family. I mean sure they provided for Colby and his brother, but they were never home.
On Tuesday after school was done, I went with Colby to his dorm to help him pack. He was going to stay over at my place before we left the next day for Minneapolis. This was the first time I'd been in Colby's dorm room. I actually expected it to be much more messy but was completely the opposite. It was almost worthy to be called 'pristine.' His room mate was there.
"Hey Dan, just here to pack a few things for my trip. I'll be staying at Oli's house tonight. Oh Dan this is Oliver, my best friend, Oliver this is Dan, my room mate." he said as I shook his hand. He was a nice looking boy, nothing compared to Colby but not bad looking at all. He wore black framed glasses and was about my height. He was just a regular guy like me, not a super jock like Colby. His clothes were cleanly pressed and his bed perfectly made with the corners sharply folded and tucked under. Now I knew why the room was so clean.
"Nice to meet you Oliver." he said as he let go of my hand. His hand was delicate like a woman's but when he shook my hand, his grip was surprisingly firm. He gave me a warm, suggestive smile that set off a response on my gaydar. Ok so I didn't really think gaydar existed but if it did, it would definitely be pinging like crazy. It's not that he acted gay or anything, I just don't know what it was. Maybe it was that suggestive smile? I would have been on that like a lion on a gazelle if I hadn't met Colby, but I had so Dan barely got a stir in me.
"Nice to meet you too. So what are you taking here?" I asked trying to make small talk as Colby packed.
"Well like you two, it's my first year, so I'm in the University 1 program. I want to get into the faculty of Kinesiology and Recreation Management so I'm taking prerequisites for that. What about you?"
"Well like Colby, I'm taking course to get into the faculty of Science and then try to get into the School of Medicine."
"That's cool! I'm in the midst of two possible doctors. Wow." he said, seeming genuinely in awe. Well, he was more looking at me that at Colby. He did have a constant smile on his face that told me he knew about me. The way his eyes traveled down my body towards my crotch definitely erased any doubts. I honestly tried hard to be attracted to Dan but it was no use. I guess when you have to try to be attracted to someone it's doomed from the start. I didn't realize Colby was done packing until he cleared his throat. I looked over at him to find an expression that I couldn't understand.
"I'm ready to go." he said kind of curtly. Okay, no need to be an asshole I thought to myself.
"Okay, well I guess I'll see you around Dan!"
"Yeah I'll see you around."
"I'll be back Sunday night." Colby said walking out the door. When he was out of sight I looked over at Dan and gave him a questioning look. He just shrugged signalling he had no clue.
"Are we going or what?" Colby said popping his head in the door.
"Yeah sorry." I said following him out the door. I don't understand why he was acting like such a dick. If this was how he as going to be, then I'd rather not go with him. As we walked outside I stopped which made him stop. "Why you stopping?" he said angrily. What the fuck? I was completely seething at this point.
"Maybe you should stay here tonight before YOU leave tomorrow. Because frankly, I did nothing wrong for you to be angry with me so if you're going to be a moody bitch to me, I don't want to go with you." He looked hurt but I didn't care. I was going to call him out every time from now on.
"I'm sorry. Please, I still want you to come home with me. It's just when I can tell that a guy likes you, I just...I don't know. I'm just so goddamn protective of you. Seeing Dan flirting with you just ticked me off. I mean he's a nice guy but...he's just not good enough for you."
"Look, you may be my best friend but I and I alone will decide who is good enough for me. Got that? Not you, not my parents and not my sister. If I fall for someone, then I fall for them. That means I have to deal with it. Okay?" I said tearing up. I put all my pent up emotions about Colby behind this. I pretended to be strong about this, but the truth was that I wouldn't date anyone that Colby didn't like.
"I'm sorry Oliver. I didn't mean to upset. If you get upset over something like this, then when a guy comes and breaks your heart...I just want to know that you are happy. When you are sad, then I am sad. Our emotions have somehow been merged together." he said looking down at his feet. If there was anything worse than having Colby mad at me it was him being sad.
"He's not my type anyways." I said trying to dispel the serious air. It worked because he laughed.
"So we good? I really am sorry. I stepped over a boundary and I shouldn't have. Let's get to our cars, it's getting cold."
"It's okay man. If you didn't step over some boundaries every so often, I wouldn't know how much you care."
"So," he said putting his arm around my shoulder "what is your type?"
"Well my type is a guy that is tall, brown hair, grey eyes and a tight muscular body. He has to be kind, caring and has to know how to comfort me. I have to feel like he and I are the only two that exist when he's holding me in his arms. I have to be able to grow old with him, I have to be able to devote my whole life to him without a second thought and have him do the same. He needs to know that it's the small things like a simple kiss, a hug, or even a note that says I love you on my pillow that makes me fall in love with him all over again." I couldn't help but let a tear escape. I wanted him to know that it was him that I was talking about.
"Wow, sounds like an amazing guy. He sounds perfect for you." he said almost sadly. And just like that, the serious air reappeared. We made it to our cars and drove off to my house. We were taking his car for the trip so he took his car too. On the way home, my cell started ringing. It was Colby.
"Hey you think we could stop at Sobey's? We should get some snacks and stuff for the ride."
"Yeah sure." I said before turning on a side street. I got out of my car and headed to the entrance where Colby waited. "We should get some chips and stuff. Maybe some fruits and water? I'd suggest we take some meat sandwiches but we can't take any meat products over the boarder."
"Sounds good. We should also get some of those chocolate covered espresso beans to keep us awake. Man that stuff is addicting." he said laughing.
"Oooh. That sounds interesting. Never had them before." I said. We both grabbed baskets. We perused down the first few isles picking up a few items here and there.
"Some dip for the chips?" he asked waving some in the air.
"Yes! Ha ha ha. Are you sure you want all this messy food in your car? You'll have a hard time eating while driving."
"Well lucky I thought of that. Why else do you think you're coming with me? You are my personal feeder while I drive!" he joked while giggling.
"You wish bud." We picked up a few more items like water, juice, apples and those chocolate covered espresso beans he talked about. We went to the checkout after arguing who was going to pay. He won saying he invited me so he should be the one paying. I never liked it when people paid for me, I liked my independence. Unfortunately I would let him do anything.I just wasn't about to let him know it. We headed out after paying and put all of the purchases in his trunk.
"Okay I'll meet you at your house."
"K"
We met at my house and went inside. No one was home yet so we just flopped on the loveseat in the theatre room. "You want to watch a movie? My parents won't be home till six and dinner won't be till seven."
"Yeah sure."
"Okay cool. Why don't you go pick a movie. I'll go see what's in the fridge and see what we can have for snacks."
"Okay. You want some help?"
"No, it's okay." I left him to pick a movie as I went on my quest for snacks. I came back, reubens with chips and pop in hand, just as the opening credits for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon came on. I loved these types of movies and it seems Colby did too.
"I hope you like this movie." he asked sitting back down.
"I love these kind of movies." I said taking my seat next to him. "Here, I made reubens." He took a bite, chewed, swallowed then looked at me.
"Is everything in your house gourmet?"
"What?! Ha ha ha, it's just a reuben. You know, corned beef, Swiss cheese, rye and sauerkraut. Nothing gourmet about that." I said taking a bite myself. "But it is delicious!" I said with a mouthful of sandwich.
"That's what I mean, everything that I eat in this house is so delicious. I bet I could bring in a bag of chips here and if you or your mom worked your magic, you could turn them into something gourmet."
"Yeah yeah." I said taking another bite. The conversation died down as we got into the movie. Michelle Yeoh was great and she is one of the reasons I love this movie so much.
The movie finished just as my parents got home. "Oliver!" my mom yelled. "We're home."
"Come on, let's go take the dishes to the kitchen. My mom and dad will want to say hi to you."
"Okay." he got up and followed me to the kitchen.
"Hey boys!" my mom said coming over to give me a hug and then she surprised me by giving Colby one. I could see the surprise on Colby's face too.
"Hey mom."
"Hey Sabelle"
"Hey! It's good to see you again Colby!" my dad said coming into the kitchen and shaking his hand.
"Hello Martijn. It's good to see you again too!"
"So what time are you two leaving tomorrow?" my mom asked as she got ingredients together for dinner.
"I was thinking we'd leave around eight so we can get there by late afternoon." Colby said taking a seat on a stool.
"What are we having for dinner?" I asked my mom.
"How do steaks and pasta sound?"
"Sounds good. Um, can you make it as 'gourmet' as you can? Because Colby here says that everything he eats in this house is so good." I looked over at Colby, who was giving me a 'I can't believe you said that!' look.
"Oh Colby, of course everything is gourmet. Especially if I'm cooking it!" my mom joked. "I promise to make dinner as gourmet as possible." she said to a blushing Colby. I couldn't help but laugh. "You two boys go watch some TV, dinner will be ready in about an hour."
"You don't need any help?" I asked.
"No, I'm gonna help your mom for once." my Dad said, wrapping his arms around my mom's hips and kissing her on the cheek.
"K." Colby and I made our way back to the theatre room. Once we were there he turned around. I almost bumped into him. "What are you trying to do? Embarrass me?"
"Oh come on Colby, I did that for me as much as I did it for you." I giggled.
"What do you mean?" he asked sceptically.
"Well she's gonna wanna make the best meal you've ever had now. You and I will get to eat heavenly food instead of really good food."
"Fine."
"Ha ha ha, now you know how I feel. Everyone is always teasing me." We watched a bit of TV before mom called us to dinner.
"Are you boys hungry?" my mom asked as she plated what looked like fettuccine carbonara. My favourite.
"I'm starved."
"Me too." I added.
"Good because we have steaks after this. This is just an appetizer. Grab a plate and follow me." My dad added We did as we were told and followed him into the dining room. My mom came in with cutlery and wine glasses. Dinner at the De Koning house was always a casual thing. The table was never set before hand because everything was brought in at the same time. I liked it better this way. I didn't like having to go to dinner at one of my parents friends house. It was always so stuffy and straight-laced. We still adhered to basic manners mind you, just not all of them. It definitely made for easier conversation.
We all sat beside each other around the table. The table itself was a testament to my parents rebellion against conformity. It was a large round table. They chose a round table because it facilitated easier conversation and let guests see everyone. My dad poured us some wine before we started eating.
"Mmmm. This is really good! What is it called?" Colby asked before downing another forkful of pasta.
"It's called fettuccine carbonara. It's just a simple pasta made with egg yolks, cream, garlic, fried pancetta and parmesan."
"It's my mom's specialty. I told you she'd go all out." I whispered in his ear. He just turned to me and smiled.
"So how is school boys?" my dad asked.
"School is great! I didn't think I'd enjoy it so much. I think that's partly to do with your son. He really has helped a lot."
"We help each other a lot." I corrected.
"Yes we do help each other. But regardless I think it's because of you that my first University experience is so great." okay so he really know how to make a guy blush and I'm sure my parents noticed too.
"How long are you guys staying in Minneapolis?" my mom asked.
"Well I think we'll probably be there till Sunday morning. We'll leave around eight again. My brother is going to be home too so I want to spend some time with him. He's a great guy and I want Oliver to meet him."
"Well that's good. As long as you boys are home before classes start." my mom said. The conversation was good throughout dinner. My mom brought out steaks for the main course and it was delicious. Perfectly cooked at the point where it was between rare and blue. After dinner Colby commended my mom on her culinary skills and told her it was the best dinner he's ever had.
Colby and I headed upstairs to get changed for bed. We had a early day tomorrow so we decided to have an early night. We took our showers, me first, then him. My onesie was freshly washed so I thought about wearing. I decided against it because I wanted to bring it on the trip. Colby on the other hand decided to wear the one I gave him after he got out of the shower.
"You really like that thing don't you?" I asked with a giggle.
"Uh yeah! This is like the best invention ever!" he said buttoning it up. I laughed it up even harder. He stuck his tongue out at me then turned around to give me full view of the easy access back that still hung open. His beautiful round butt stared back at me with all it's glory, and I must say, it truly was a glorious butt.
"Nice butt!" I said coming up to him grabbing a handful of the firm, velvety flesh. I guess he was expecting it, but he let my hand linger a while before slapping my hand away. He turned around and waved his finger at me.
"Ah ah ah, we'll have none of that until you marry me sir!" he said in a high pitched southern drawl. I laughed as he buttoned up his bottom.
"I don't know, we Canadians like to test things out before committing." I said in my best Newfie accent.
"Well I'm final sale. You have to take me as is!" he said laughing.
"Okay ya goober. Let's get to bed."
"Okay."
The next morning I woke up to Colby folding some of my clothes and putting them in the bag. He was already dressed, bright eyed and bushy tailed.
"Good morning!" he said handing me a cup of coffee. "Your mom brought up some coffee for us."
"Thanks. Why didn't you wake me? I could have helped you." I said before taking a contented sip of coffee. God coffee is so good first thing in the morning.
"Well, one look at you and I couldn't bring myself to wake you. You looked so content. Did you know you smile when you sleep? Or that you talk in your sleep too?" he said giving me a mischievous smile. I stared at him wide eyed as I tried to figure what I might have said.
"Uh, no I didn't know that." I said feigning nonchalance. "What did I say?"
"Nothing. You just kind of mumbled. What were you dreaming about anyways? Must've been something good because that smile said it all. It must've been me that you were dreaming of." he said jokingly. If he only knew.
"Oh yeah Colby. It was definitely you I was dreaming about." I said like I was joking, which of course I wasn't "Man, in my dreams, you are a fox in bed." I said trying to get a stir in him.
"You better believe it! And if you play your cards right, you might just get a taste of the real thing." he joked.
"God you straight boys will flirt with anyone."
"True. But you gay boys will let any hot straight boy flirt with you."
"Touche. You better watch out though, one day I might just take that flirting seriously." I warned. I guess he chose to ignore that because he just kept on packing.
"Well, you're all packed! Thanks to me of course. All that's left to do is for you to get dressed and head downstairs for breakfast. Your mom said it should be ready soon, so get dressed and let's get'r done." I got dressed in comfortable sweats, like Colby, a t-shirt and a light sweater then grabbed my jacket and we headed downstairs.
"Good morning boys! Come sit, breakfast should be ready soon." my dad ushered us looking up from his paper.
"Morning dad."
"Morning Martijn."
"Morning! I hope you guys are hungry. I made a big breakfast so you guys aren't hungry for the start of your trip."
"Morning mom."
"Morning Sabelle. After last night, I'm still a bit stuffed, but since you cooked, I'm definitely hungry!" Colby said rubbing his stomach. This brought a couple chuckles from my dad and I.
"Oh stop it you two! The boy likes my cooking, he can't help himself." she said taking a seat.
After breakfast, we got all our stuff into his car, said our goodbyes to my mom and dad as we got a couple 'be safes' and 'have funs.' We were on the road at five minutes to eight. I took the first driving shift so he was the DJ for the first two hours of the shift. We were going to switch at the boarder where he would drive for two hours, then switch again, then he would take the last one because he already knew the area. We both brought our Ipods so he fished them out of our bags.
"So what shall we listen to driver? You pick since you're the one driving."
"How about some classical?"
"Nah, it's too early for classical. We need something more lively."
"Okay. How about some Stars?"
"As in the Canadian band Stars?"
"Yeah, you know them?"
"Uhuh, I'm not a big fan of many American indie bands, but I seem to like every Canadian indie band."
"Cool. Well look in my Ipod under Stars. Play 'Midnight Coward.'" he searched for the song, then connected it to the auxiliary cord. Soon the soothing voice of the lead female filled the car. Long car rides can be relaxing if you have the right mix of music and company. Here I was, riding in a car with most amazing guy ever. I looked over at Colby wistfully. He had his eyes closed as he mouthed the words to the songs. He was so beautiful. I guess he noticed my stare so he turned to look at me. Our eyes met and he smiled. I can honestly say that at that point, he was the single most beautiful person I had ever seen. I smiled back.
"Come on Oliver! Sing!" he said as the chorus to 'Take Me to the Riot' came on. The strong drums and base overtook us as we sang.
"Take me, take me to the riot! Take me, take me to the riot! Take me, take me to the riot! Take me, take me to the riot!" we sang as I tapped my feet and he bobbed his head. The drive down to Minneapolis was some of the most fun I'd ever had. I guess that was due to Colby's presence but whatever. Time seemed to pass by so fast while we had fun. Before we knew it, I had taken both my shifts, he was on his last and we were driving down his street. I could tell just by the neighbourhood that only the top of top lived here. A lot of the houses were massive, but some were modest. Now when I say modest, I don't mean poor, what I mean is that the houses were modest for the area. Those modest homes were probably just as large as my parents house.
"See that?" he asked pointing to the lake beside the road.
"The lake?"
"Yeah, it's called Lake of the Isles. This street is called W Lake of the Isles Parkway. I've lived here most of my life. And this," he said stopping in front of an incredibly beautiful and large home "this is my home." The house was situated on raised ground, just like all the houses in the area. It wasn't so much as house as it was a mansion. Having it situated on elevated ground made it's size seem even larger. "Come on, let's get our stuff. My brother is probably home already! I'm really excited for you to meet him!" I was a little surprised he wasn't excited to see his parents.
We grabbed our bags and headed to the door. There was a set of stairs with several landings before we reached level ground. As we reached the door, it suddenly swung open as a guy about the same height as Colby took him into a bear hug and lifted him off the ground. Colby dropped his bags and wrapped his arms around the guy. I was pretty jealous until I noticed the guys eyes. They were just as intense as Colby, and at closer inspection, the two could pass off as twins. That was definitely his brother Eric. My jealousy quickly dissipated when I realized this.
"Colby! Man I've missed you!"
"I've missed you too Eric!" he said holding him tight. They finally let each other go as Colby turned to me. "Oliver, this is Eric, my brother, Eric, this is my best friend Oliver. I'm so excited that you guys finally get to meet."
"Hi." I said, shyly offering my hand.
"Hey Oliver! It's so great to finally meet you!" Eric said, bypassing my hand and pulling me into a hug. It wasn't a big bear hug, but a warm hug nonetheless. "Come in guys, it's cold out there! Here let me take your bags. Are you guys staying in Colby's room?"
"Yeah we'll be staying in my room."
"Okay, well I'll take your bags up. Oh yeah Brock and our friend Ozzie is here too. They're in the library I think." Wow, they even have a library.
"Who's Ozzie?"
"Oh! You don't know? You know how Brock came out to you, I and his parents last year right?" Hmmm, there's other gay people in his family. Hopefully Colby also got the gay gene!
"Yeah! Is Ozzie his boyfriend?" Brock asked excitedly.
"Mhmm. But shhh. Mom and dad don't know. Mom and dad are like second parents to Brock. He said he thought he'd die from nervousness when he told his parents about Ozzie. He didn't want to go through that again by telling mom and dad."
"Well he'll have to tell them sometime."
"True, but he'll do it when he's ready."
"Okay well we'll see you in the library then. Oh where are mom and dad by the way."
"They got stuck doing surgeries at Mayo so they won't be in till morning." Eric said as Colby rolled his eyes. I hadn't noticed how large the house actually was until we were heading for the library. The place was huge. It took us a good minute to get to the library.
The library was a massive two story affair completely panelled in chocolate colour stained oak. Shelves of books lined the walls on both levels with ladders. Two long tables sat in the middle of the room. I could almost imagine this being portrayed as a University library in a movie. At end of the long rectangular room was a sort of lounge area that seemed straight out of a French chalet. A large flat panel TV hung on wall in front of which two guys sat on a couch. They seemed about a year or two older than us and from process of elimination I guessed they were Brock and Ozzie. We walked across the room to meet the two.
"Brock! Get over here ya big lug!" Colby yelled out with his arms open. The two turned around in shock before realizing who it was. Well, Brock realized who it was since Ozzie had never met him before.
"Colby! God it's been a long time! How's school in Winnipeg been?" Brock said taking Colby into a tight embrace.
"Oh man, it has been everything I expected. Everyone that I've met in Winnipeg have been incredibly kind. I guess that's why they call it friendly Manitoba."
"Well I don't know about that. You kinda have to have lived there a long time before you can see the flaws."
"Oh hey," Colby said ushering me over "Brock this is my best friend Oliver. I think it's because of him that I've been having so much fun in Winnipeg." I reached out my hand to him.
"So this is the infamous Oliver. Wow Colby, he really is cute! I thought you were kidding me." he said shaking my hand. Hmmm, Colby called me cute? He was pretty cute himself. "It's really nice to meet you Oliver. This is my boyfriend Ozzie, Ozzie this is my cousin Colby and his friend Oliver." We all shook hands and caught up. I learned that Ozzie was half Filipino like me and his mom owned one of the top restaurants in Winnipeg. Both guys were incredibly good looking.
"So, it looks like we have to fend for ourselves for dinner. Mom and dad won't be back till morning. Did you guys want to go out or maybe we can go to the grocery and grab some stuff and cook. Oliver here is a great cook!" he said putting his arm around me and pulling me into him.
"I like the second idea best. Ozzie here can cook too so we can put the two chefs to the challenge if they're up for it." he said and Ozzie and I both looked at each, shrugged and nodded an agreement. "We can be their sous chefs."
"Sous chefs for what?" Eric asked walking into the lounge.
"Ozzie and I will be cooking dinner tonight with the help of these two."
"Well let's get going! I've already tried looking for something to snack on and all there is in the fridge is capers." Eric said rubbing his stomach. We all put our jackets on and headed out to Colby's car.
It took us a good twenty minutes to get to the grocery store. We loaded up on everything. According to Eric and Colby, his parents probably forgot to buy stuff to cook for thanksgiving so we got a turkey, ham, yams and other vegetables.
"Do you remember when we were younger Eric? Thanksgiving used to be such a big thing. Mom and Dad would actually take the whole week off to prepare for it. Now they can't even be home to meet there own kids. How sad is that?" Colby said flatly.
"Yeah I know." Eric said back.
That night we just lazed around after dinner. We talked and had a lot of fun. I love getting to know new people and Colby's family, well at least the family I've met so far, have been everything Colby said they would be.
At one point, Eric stood up to get us some drinks and asked me to come help him so I did. I knew he wanted to say something to me but I didn't have a clue as to what it would be. He waited until we were in the kitchen before spoke up.
"So, you like my brother huh?" he said in a way that my sister would if it were her talking to me. Holy crap.
"Uh, no?" it sounded more like a question than anything else. What was I supposed to say?
"Oh come on Oliver, notice the way Ozzie and Brock stare at each other." which I did "see how they have that sparkle in their eyes? Well your eyes glaze over in the same way theirs do. Look I don't mind, really."
"It doesn't matter anyways. Colby's straight. There is nothing else to it."
"If I tell you something, do you promise not to tell Colby?" hmm this piqued my interest.
"Okay."
"Well, it seems that I'm the only straight person in the this house at the moment."
"What do you mean? Colby's str..." I said before he cut me off.
"You know that glazed over look that I said you have when you look at Colby?"
"Yeah."
"Colby has the same look when he looks at you, except he looks like he's died and gone to heaven. And if I know my brother as well as I think I do, then I know that the boy has it bad for you."
To be continued...
Okay guys so I know this chapter took a while to get out. I'm trying to pop them out as quickly as a chicken lays eggs but I'm not as quick. Anyways I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. If you have any comments or critiques, send them over to my email at cndoliver@gmail.com. I really do enjoy reading what you guys think of the story so send them on down!
Much love, Oliver