This is the second part of the story of Dan Reed and Milo de Beer -- D'n'M. As before, it includes scenes of sex between teenage boys. However, sex is not the main driver of this story and often there is none at all.
All the characters and events in the story are fictitious. Any resemblance to real people, either living or dead, is entirely unintentional.
The story is copyrighted and may not be reproduced in any way without the express permission of the author who can be contacted at pjalexander1753@gmail.com
D'n'M Part 2
From Chapter 19:
"I can only imagine what you've been through, D, but I know it must have been the worst thing ever." Milo kept his voice calm and low. He didn't want what he had to say to cause any more upset. "And I know the thought of having to tell anyone else about what happened must be scaring the crap out of you right now. But you won't be alone. You'll have me and Tom, won't he Tom?"
"One hundred percent."
"And you'll have your mum and dad, and I for one wouldn't back anyone in a fight against your mum -- not Roberts, not school, not anyone."
Dan raised his head slightly and spoke haltingly through his sobs, "But it'd still just be his word against mine. Not even mum can do anything about that."
"No, but I can," said Milo. "The other guys I spoke to - who it had also happened to -- they didn't say they wouldn't speak out, just that I couldn't give their names without their permission."
"Do you honestly think they'd be prepared to back D up?" asked Tom. "If they did then it wouldn't be one against one. And who knows how many others might be prepared to come forward." He sounded as if he was trying to convince himself almost as much as he was his brother.
"Well, I can only try," said Milo as he took his phone from his pocket and began to tap in a number.
Chapter 20:
"Hi. It's Milo. Can you talk?" There was a pause as he listened. "Cool. Listen, I just need to explain to D what's going on. I'll be right back." Milo put his hand over the mouthpiece and turned to Dan. "This is one of the guys I spoke to before, about ..., well, you know."
Dan nodded weakly.
"I'm gonna speak to him outside in the hallway but I'll be back soon. Okay?"
Dan nodded again and Milo left the room, leaving the two brothers alone with their own thoughts, hopes and, in Dan's case, fears. He returned after a few minutes and handed the phone to Dan. "It's Warren. He wants to speak to you."
"Warren? You're kidding me. It happened to him too?"
Now it was Milo's turn to nod. "Talk to him. He'll tell you."
From then on events moved surprisingly quickly. Warren, hesitatingly but definitely, did confirm that he had also been a victim of Mr. Roberts' abuse for the past several months and had, in fact, been surprised when the teacher had put a stop to it just a few days before. It didn't take a genius to work out the lack of coincidence between Warren's last time and Dan's first. Mr. Roberts was obviously a `one-victim-at-a-time' abuser. By the end of the call both boys were in tears. For both of them the confirmation that they weren't the only ones and weren't, therefore, abnormal or perverted, was an indescribable relief.
Speaking to Warren was the first of many difficult conversations over the coming days and weeks. Perhaps the hardest was with Helen and Roger Reed, the hardest but also the most positive and restorative. Predictably they travelled a seismic range of emotions, from shock and disbelief to outrage and disgust. After that first, traumatic revelation the family (naturally including Milo) talked about what had happened numberless times over the following weeks, but every one of those conversations ended with Dan being reassured that he was loved and supported and totally blameless. He took a lot of convincing.
The Reeds met up with Warren's parents and all six of them made an appointment with the school principal for the Tuesday of the following week. Both boys were to be kept at home until then at least. At the parents' request the meeting was held at the district education department offices, "Well away from prying eyes and smart phone cameras," as Helen Reed put it. Not surprisingly Ms. Ohura was completely taken aback by the grave allegations being made against one of her longest-serving and most respected colleagues and was reluctant to take them seriously. In fact, she made it clear that it was only because there were two accusers and not just one that she was prepared to entertain the allegations at all. However, as soon as the boys' parents made it clear that they would not be letting the matter drop or be glossed over and that their next appointment, later that same day, was at the police station where both boys would be making formal statements outlining the abuse they had suffered on school premises by a member of her staff, she had no choice but to agree to the immediate suspension of Mr. Roberts (on full pay, as demanded by agreed protocols). Within hours of the meeting with the police inspector Mr. Roberts had not only been instructed to leave the school premises and not to return, pending a thorough investigation of the allegations by the school governors, but he had been arrested, charged and held in custody awaiting an appearance before the next day's magistrates' panel.
Events further escalated from there. The appearance in court of a long-standing and highly-regarded teacher at the most popular high school in the area would have been big news under any circumstances. The fact that he had been remanded on charges of the sexual abuse of young boys propelled the news into the stratosphere. Social media went ballistic and it wasn't long before more and more boys, both present and past members of the soccer squad, were coming forward to add their names to the list of the abused. The story was quickly picked up, first by national, and then by international, news organisations.
No-one ever discovered how the fact of Dan's involvement in the scandal came to be known about, but, just days after the teacher's first court appearance, the stream of congratulatory texts and emails soon became a flood. Dan was overwhelmed. He was still emotionally very fragile, subject to sudden bouts of tears and angry outbursts. He slept poorly. He continued to be kept away from school at the insistence of his parents but also on the advice of the family doctor who strongly recommended an urgent referral to a specialist child and adolescent mental health practitioner.
At the first session with Shania Margelles, one attended by both Dan and his parents, she suggested they should take on a restorative project' as she called it, something to keep the boy's mind off the up-coming court case but also to mark a turning point' in his life and a moment of moving on' (she was very big on life labels'). When Dan told him about this suggestion later, Milo immediately came up with the idea of his bedroom. Although the wreckage had been cleared away, there were still many reminders in the room of Dan's life before the abuse. What better way to show that he was moving on with his life than by refreshing his own personal space? Both the Reed parents and Shania Margelles gave the idea their enthusiastic support and a trip to a homewares store in a neighbouring town ("Less likelihood of being recognised there" was Roger Reed's assertion) was quickly organised.
It was decided a complete make-over was in order, including a fresh coat of paint for the walls, a new rug and more appropriate bed linen to replace the soccer motif which decorated the existing bed covers. Tom, home for the weekend, suggested Sponge Bob Square Pants which earned him a painful noogie from his father and, behind their parents' backs, the finger from Dan. Maybe the recovery was underway.
Every day of Dan's absence, and much to Mrs. de Beer's loudly-voiced objections, Milo left school as quickly as possible at the end of classes and made his way to the Reed house. More often than not he spent the evening helping with the on-going redecoration of the bedroom, shared in the family dinner and then slept over in order to provide reassurance through Dan's long and frequently disturbed nights.
After nearly two weeks of enforced home leave it was decided, with Milo's agreement as the family's in-school intelligence gatherer, that it was time for Dan to go back. Ms. Ohura raised objections, initially on the grounds of the likely disruption to the school's smooth operation as a result of the continued media interest in the case. When Helen and Roger Reed brushed this excuse aside, asserting Dan's statutory entitlement to continue his education, the principal expressed her `deep concern' for Dan's mental health and well-being should he return to the scene of the abuse. A timely phone call from the family's legal representative ended all attempts at bureaucratic prevarication and a date was agreed for Dan to re-join his classmates.
On the morning of Dan's return to school Milo was awake and out of the new and shared bed early. He was determined that the day would be a success, with D able to begin picking up as many of the threads of his old life as he wanted, even though they had both suffered a restless and serially-interrupted night. In the concealing darkness of the early hours Dan had admitted his fears about returning to school and facing the other students. What would they be thinking? How would they react? What would they do? And then there were the staff, some of them close friends and colleagues of the man that he, Dan, had accused of committing the most appalling acts. Exactly the same What? and How? questions applied to them. Milo had no answers, just a tighter hug and a reassuring back rub. Eventually they had both dozed off.
The pattern they had established over the previous couple of weeks was for Milo to get up, shower and dress before going down to collect the breakfast one or other of the Reed parents had prepared. The boys would eat the food together up in Dan's room before Milo left for school leaving D to get up, shower and dress in his own time. Some days he had never got beyond the getting up stage and on others, not even that.
In preparation for the big day they had jointly chosen D's clothing for his return and laid it out ready. Apart from a change of underwear selected from D's stock of boxer briefs, Milo would be wearing the same as the day before. On his way across the room to take a shower he heard D's voice behind him.
"I think I want to take a bath today. Is that okay?"
"Fine with me. I'll get it started for you once I've showered and then you can have some privacy."
"Actually," replied Dan, his voice hesitant and almost pleading, "I think I'd like you to stay with me."
Now this was a real surprise. Since the day of the abuse the only time Dan had been naked with another person was the day, weeks ago, when Tom had helped him shower. Apart from that, even though he hadn't explained it in so many words, he had been determined never to be undressed in front of anyone else. It was bound to provoke too many unfaceable memories. Milo had instinctively picked up on this and had been scrupulous in respecting D's wishes, so Dan's request took Milo completely unawares.
"Sure, D. Whatever you want. I'll go and get it started then run down to pick up breakfast. You get up when you're ready." With that Milo went into the adjoining bathroom to start the bath water running, then down to the kitchen before returning with scrambled eggs, toast, bacon, juice and a bowl of mixed fruit. D was no longer in bed so Milo put down the tray of food on the desk and went back into the bathroom. Dan was standing beside the bath, still dressed in his preferred sleep gear of boxers and outsize T-shirt, looking as if he'd no idea what to do next.
"You okay, D? Should I stay out in the bedroom after all?" This was clearly a situation that neither boy was confident in handling.
"I don't know. I mean, I don't know how to do this. At some time I've gotta get used to being undressed with other guys, how else how am I ever gonna be able to do any sports or go to the beach?" He sounded so lost and miserable.
"Perhaps it's just too soon and you need more time before you ..." Milo wasn't able to finish before Dan interrupted.
"No. I've gotta do this. Please help me, M. Please."
Suddenly inspiration struck. "I know, how about I turn round till you're in the water. If we put in some bubbles then I'll only be able to see your shoulders and your ugly face!"
"Who are you calling ugly? You looked in a mirror lately?" The banter was almost like old times and both boys couldn't help but grin as Milo turned to face away from his friend. As it happened he found himself looking directly into the full-length mirror that was fixed to the wall opposite the bath. As a result, Milo had an uninterrupted view of D removing his night clothes. Out of respect for D's privacy he quickly looked away but curiosity dragged his gaze back to the reflection. Crap! D had got so thin. All the muscle he had begun to build up over the weeks of working out had totally vanished. In its place was a skinny, pale-skinned version of a teenage boy, pasty and ill-looking. Milo couldn't help feeling guilty as he watched D lower himself into the foaming bath water, before turning back round.
"How does that feel?"
"Yeah. Good," replied Dan as he shuffled forward in the bath. "M, will you do something else for me?"
"What is my master's wish?" quipped Milo.
"Would you get in with me?"
"Er, yeah, of course. If that's what you want." Milo couldn't have been more surprised. He quickly slipped out of his clothes and eased himself into the bath, coming to rest in the space Dan had left for him. The temperature of the water was just right and the bubbles added an unexpected sense of specialness. Milo eased himself into position with his legs on either side of Dan who immediately leaned back against his chest. Milo's arms closed around him.
"Thanks, M."
"It was nothing. Even I can manage to run some water into a bath."
"I didn't mean that, or at least, not only that. Thanks for everything you've done for me these last few weeks. I couldn't have got through it without you, you know. My folks have been great, of course, but they've been so hurt and angry and stuff. And they've been so caught up with all the court case and arguing with Ms. Ohura, it's like they sort of forgot about me." This was the longest speech Dan had managed in days.
"They just want what's best for you," Milo assured him. "They love you."
"Yeah, I know. But sometimes it feels like they're watching and waiting for me to fall apart. It's like being under a spotlight all the time. I feel like I've got to pretend to be okay just to make them feel better. It's really hard work. But it's not like that with you. With you I can just be me, even if me isn't really much at all. Thanks. I owe you big time."
Milo was fighting not to cry.
Dan hadn't finished. "You know I'm really scared, right?"
"Don't be. I'll stick to you like a rash until things at school settle down."
"It's not just school, though just the thought of it is bad enough. It's the court case, having to see him and stand in front of all those people and tell them what happened. I don't know whether I can do it without you." His voice trailed away as projections of the likely scene in court flashed across his mind.
Milo lost the fight against the tears. The last few weeks had been agony for him, so many times thinking that the old D was lost and gone forever. But now it looked as if he might be on his way back, and if Milo had had any part in that return, well, it's what friends did, wasn't it? And he and D were more than friends, they were like two trees that had been planted close together and had grown up and twisted round each other so it was impossible to tell where one ended and the other began. Milo bent down and kissed Dan on the top of his head.
"I'll be there, D. You and me together,every step of the way."
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