Sirs - This story is true, however the names of individuals and the names of some places have been changed for reasons of privacy. If you think you recognize someone in this story, you don't! The characters have been obscured beyond any similarity to the actual individuals.
The author is Terrence Julian with additional input from Andrew van Ryan. Let us know what you think!
Thank You - Andrew van Ryan and Terrence Julian
Anything To Turn You On.......
By Terrence Alessandro Julian
I was born the only child to an extremely wealthy Swiss Italian Father who died when I was just four and a half years old. My Mother is a Diplomat with the Italian Embassy. Father made his fortune in oil shipping, international banking and finance, amongst other business ventures. When he died he left the bulk of his wealth to me. Mother didn't mind, as she was from a wealthy family herself. When it came time for me to enter school, I was shipped off to a very exclusive private boarding school outside Montreux, Switzerland where I stayed until Mother took a post with the US Embassy in New York. I entered seventh grade in the United States at another private school where the other students soon started calling me by 'TJ'. At the end of eighth grade, Mother was reassigned to a post in Los Angeles, California.
She decided it would be good for me to experience leading a more 'normal' life, so she purchased a home (still huge by any ones standards!) in a small city (commuting distance to her work in LA) and enrolled me for the fall semester in the local public High School. That's how I came to be living in Fullerton, California.
Terrence Alessandro Julian is my name, hence the nickname 'TJ'. I am Swiss- Italian with brown eyes and practically white blond hair. I was shorter when I started high school however I stand 5' 8" tall now. I look tanned even when not, due to my skin tone. I also speak five languages fluently.
My second day at high school is when I first saw 'The Prince of Main Street', Andrew Simon van Ryan. When I saw Andy that first time I was instantly in awe. He was a year ahead of me and evidently had earned the nickname 'The Prince of Main Street' at a very young age. He lived one town over from Fullerton and attended classes here due to the fact his town was so small at the time (this was in 1968) there weren't enough students to warrant building a school just for them. So by contract the students from his town were bused to my high school.
I was in the Orchestra room tuning my violin as the others in my class were tuning or talking as well. I vaguely recall hearing the door to the classroom open and suddenly all talking stopped, as did most of the tuning. I looked up expecting to see the conductor, but to my surprise everyone was staring at this tall thin boy with long blond hair. As he walked towards the percussion section he carried himself with what can only be described as a 'presence'. I whispered to the girl seated next to me 'Who's that?' and she replied "Andy van Ryan, the Prince". "He's a Prince?" I asked watching as he walked with his head up and shoulders back. "Well, they call him 'the Prince of Main Street' in the town where he lives. I think it has to do with his supernatural powers, somehow. That and the way his voice changed overnight" she whispered back. I watched him and once he had taken his seat he surveyed the room with one eyebrow arched up and a slightly disapproving look. I noticed all the other students were staring at him as if waiting for something to happen. Then the conductor entered and said 'Good morning, class!" and all eyes turned to face forward. During the rest of rehearsal I glanced back at him from time to time, yet he didn't appear to notice. The conductor stopped at one point and asked us to start over at measure 64. That's when I heard him speak.
"Pardon me, Mr. Manolino? I didn't quite hear which measure you said to begin at" the Voice from the back of the Orchestra called out. If I didn't know better, I would have sworn Peter O'Toole, the actor who played 'Lawrence of Arabia' had spoken. "Measure 64, Mr. van Ryan" the conductor replied as I swiveled my head to look. The conductor had called a student by 'Mister'?
"Thank you, sir" Andy calmly remarked. I almost missed the count in because I was still staring. The thought came to mind 'Where did he get that accent?'. After class I noticed him talking with a group of other students outside the band hall and I stood nearby to listen. "We didn't see you much over the summer, Andy" one boy said to him. "I take it you haven't heard then" Andy replied sounding very much a well mannered blue blood "I was attacked and beaten on the Fourth of July, ending up in the hospital. You have noticed the scar on my cheek, haven't you?"
That was all it took. I was head over heels for this boy they called 'the Prince'. I would find places on campus where I could watch him during breaks or at lunch. To my disappointment I discovered he was dating Linda Hamilton, the daughter of a wealthy man who lived in my neighborhood.
I asked around about him and heard all sorts of strange rumors. I heard tell he could seemingly appear out of nowhere, that he once blew out all the lights in an entire city block because someone made him mad and he had caused several businesses to go under after he 'jinxed' them when the owners made him angry. No wonder everyone got silent when he walked into a room!
The only story I heard from everyone I asked concerned how his voice and personality had changed overnight the previous school year. Everyone agreed that one day he was a shy boy with a high pitched lisping voice. The next day he was an intense extrovert who spoke in an accented voice which was at least five whole notes lower in pitch. Some said it was Voo Doo and some just shook their heads. All agreed they had heard it happen themselves and swore it was not simply a made up story.
I also learned that he lived with one of his friends, a boy named Jesse whose Mother had taken him in after he had some kind of falling out with his own family. It had something to do with his being attacked over the summer and his brother, I heard.
I would watch him from afar and wish he was mine. I had known I was gay for some time and had told my mother when we had moved here from New York. Her reaction was to have me live in the smaller 'maids' house behind the large house she lived in. That way I was out of sight to any of her friends or associates. Therefore, I was very lonely and cut off from her world.
I made practically no friends and only by chance had met another gay boy named Daniel. He had seen me sitting across the street from school eating my lunch one day in late September and struck up a conversation.
Two weekends before Christmas vacation was to begin I was talking with Daniel on the phone when he asked me if I had any 'crushes' on anyone. I told him all about my mad crush and the boy I dreamt about. "So what's his name?" Daniel had asked and I answered "Andrew Simon van Ryan" with a sigh.
There was a pause then Daniel laughed. "You're kidding me!" he said "Andy's the drummer in my band!" Then Daniel added the most astonishing thing I could ever have expected to hear. "He's as gay as you are TJ! So is Jesse, the boy he lives with". "I thought he was dating Linda!" I replied. Daniel informed me that he did so only to keep suspicion away.
I couldn't believe what he had just told me! The boy of my dreams was gay! I decided that the following Monday I would try to introduce myself to him, even if he did have a boyfriend.
After Orchestra on Monday I waited. Andy was talking with another percussionist when I got the nerve up to speak. At first I tried clearing my throat, but he didn't hear me. So I tugged on his shirt tail. He turned around and said "May I help you?". I asked to speak with him privately in the band hall and he followed me out. Only the hall was too crowded. I spotted an empty rehearsal room and stepped in. He followed and I closed and locked the door. After I told him my name I asked if he knew Daniel. He looked at me suspiciously then cautiously replied that he did. To make things easy I told him Daniel was my boyfriend and he glared at me.
I thought I'd just made the biggest mistake of my life! Until he spoke, that is. He asked if Daniel had told me it wasn't a good idea to admit 'that sort of thing to strangers' and I answered yes. Then he smiled and asked why Daniel had told me about him. I blurted out how I was telling Daniel about having this 'crush on Andy' when I realized what I was saying!
Andrew grinned and said to me "I guess you let that cat out of the bag!" He said he was flattered then explained he and Jesse were boyfriends. I asked if maybe we could be friends. He answered 'perhaps' then excused himself. I figured that was that until two days later when Jesse caught me walking across campus.
"You're TJ, right?" he asked. I was sure I was going to get an ear full but he surprised me saying "Andy's sick at home with the flu. Would you like to come over and visit him tomorrow?" I was thrilled!
Jesse and I talked for a while out on the football field at lunch time. He was actually a really cool guy! The next day I went home with him after school and surprised Andy with my visit. Soon Jesse, Andy and myself were the best of friends and we remained so though out high school.
My Mother accepted a post back in New York just before Andy turned eighteen in April of 1971. I sadly had to leave my friends in California. Then in May, Jesse's mother died. Jesse and Andy were emotionally devastated. Andy was eighteen, but Jesse was still seventeen for another five months. He was sent to live with his Father in Connecticut. Tragically, Andy soon discovered Jesse had disappeared along with his Father never to be seen or heard from again.
Andy was thrown into a deep depression that threatened to destroy his entire existence perhaps even end his life! I called him every day trying to keep his spirits up.
I turned eighteen that November, receiving the fortune my Father had left me. I immediately flew to California to be with my dearest Andrew. He was living between his parents house (they had taken him back now that his brother had moved away) and with Linda, his so-called 'girlfriend'. He was sadly holding out hope Jesse would be found.
Still empty and on the market, I purchased the two houses in Fullerton from my Mother. Occupying the small 'maids' house again, I moved Andy in with me. Here is where our story begins.......
.......to be continued