This story is the property and work of the author. A great deal of effort has gone into its conception. Should you feel
compelled to copy or post this to a website or print
literature other than Nifty or it's mirror affiliates,
please consult the author for permission at the email
address detailed at the story's conclusion. Thank you for
your co-operation.
R. - August 2002.
Daring To Dream
Chapter Two: Moonlight Grove
Looking back on that first night, my first encounter with Tyler; I can describe it as nothing less than heavenly. The moment, lying with him under the skylight was forever etched into my mind, heart and soul.
He drove me home, and I was so tired with the lulling of the car moving along the road, and the easy listening music on the radio that I soon fell asleep. His house was on the outskirts of Vancouver; I had taken a fairly long bus ride to get there that evening. The car ride home should have been twenty minutes, but the car must have stopped after only ten. I awoke with the engine turning off and looked over to Tyler for an explanation. Perhaps, had I not just been with Tyler and experienced how loving and caring he was, I would have been nervous or even scared. But I knew, there wasn't a drop of blood, a patch of skin, a thread of hair that would even consider harming me. Still, I was curious why we had stopped, so I glanced over at Tyler.
"Ryan, I brought you up here to show you something." Tyler looked slightly embarrassed, and I wondered what he would want to show me at such a late hour of the night. When he received no response from me except my quizzical look, he continued saying "I come up here a lot to think."
I looked outside and realized upon seeing the city lights of Vancouver below us, and an encompassment of trees surrounding the parking lot, that we were in a small park near Tyler's house. "It's nice." I said, not entirely sure how to respond and struggling for clarity through the slowly abating guise of sleep.
"Let's get out, I want you to see this."
He got out of the car; myself having just dozed off was still undoing my seat belt as he opened the door for me. "A perfect gentleman," I said with a teasing smile as he helped me out of the car.
The night's air was warm and humid, despite it being late October. The park was fairly large with paths extending through the semi-rainforest surrounding us. Situated on the top of a very small mountain we were looking over the City of Vancouver below us. Generally I like to think of more natural settings as beautiful, but the glimmer of the various streetlights and buildings twinkling so far below us was nothing short of awing.
"Hey come over here!"
I glanced over realizing Tyler was a bit further along the path then me. The moon was quite full and although there were no lights in the park, I still had no trouble seeing Tyler ahead. "I'm coming, this place is really beautiful!"
"You haven't seen anything yet!"
I caught up to him and he took my hand in his and we started walking along the wood chip path away from the parking lot. We must have walked along the path for about fifteen minutes. The path had entered the trees around the park and we had been immersed amongst ferns and underbrush below huge towering trees. We reached a clearing with the city lights far behind us. I gasped realizing why Tyler had brought me up here. Far below the hill was the ocean harbour and with the trees sheltering the city lights the stars were radiant above us.
We sat down on a bench and he opened up the backpack he had brought along to take out a pillow and blanket. We sat against the bench sharing the pillow and wrapped in the heavy blanket.
"So what do you think?"
"This is amazing Tyler, thanks so much for bringing me up here!"
"I thought you might think it's stupid, but I always dreamed about sitting up here under the stars and moon with someone else. I mean, this view is beautiful and everything, but it seems even better with someone else to share it with."'
He reached his arm around my shoulders and I leaned against him, my head next to his. He was so warm and soft, I just lay their saying nothing for a few minutes. Just feeling indescribably lucky and thankful. Tyler broke the silence looking down into my eyes, even more beautiful with the moon glowing off his face and body.
"A penny for your thoughts."
"I'm just sitting here still wondering whether I'm dreaming. I can't believe how lucky I am."
"You think its luck? I'd like to think of it as fate. I've suspected I was gay for sometime now, but I was looking for someone special to really decide. I'm not interested in these guys that just want a quick fuck or a few nights of fun. I have to tell you something and I know it's our first night together, but I think I'm in love with you." He looked into my eyes, searching for my reaction before I spoke.
I felt my eyes moisten, but I ignored this. "Tyler, you have no idea how much that means to me. I'm so thankful we've come together like this. I'm in love with you too. I never really knew what love was until tonight. But being here, with you, this is love. I feel so safe with you. It's like we're in a movie, everything seems so surreal yet perfect.
He lowered his head and gave me a long kiss. I felt his lips brush against mine - they were soft and moist. We just sat there for a moment; our lips pressed together, the moonlight illuminating us
Tyler began humming a song as we sat locked together. How exactly he managed to do this with our lips pressed together I'm not sure, but I heard it fine nonetheless. Tears came to my eyes, as I realized the song he was singing. It was very familiar to me, from countless nights spent on different patios watching sunsets and sometimes even sunrises, I had dreamed of finding that person fate would match me with. Filling in the words I broke the kiss and we both sang the words.
"Somewhere out there, beneath the pale moonlight.
Someone's thinking of me, and loving me tonight.
Somewhere out there, someone's saying a prayer,
That we'll find one another, in that big somewhere out
there."1
Tyler stood up and motioned me to do the same. Leaving the blanket and pillow on the bench, we both grasped arms and began swaying to the music barely audible but resonating within us. They speak of a moment that tugs at the heartstrings, a moment that crystallizes your life and your being. This was the moment I believe they speak of, where time no longer seems to apply to you. Tyler and I were dancing on a mountaintop under a brilliant starry sky. I felt like I was on the set of some movie, and that someone would yell `Cut' and the beautiful scene I was engaged in would come crashing down. But this did not happen. Tyler and I were alone, lost in our own microcosm where love was all that mattered.
Tyler looked deep into my eyes and his warm smile was all I wanted to know of. We must have looked like fools prancing around up there in the early morning. Of course to us, that didn't matter.
Eventually, we realized dawn was approaching and with school that day we were both due back home. Tyler packed the blanket and pillow back into his bag and we hiked back to the car. It was 4:30 by the time I got home. As I crawled into bed I drifted off to sleep feeling more comfortable and alive than I had ever felt before.
I awoke to my mom standing over me with a phone.
"Ryan, get up it's 8:30! You have to be at school in a half hour! Oh and someone from your class is picking you up. He said his name was Tiger?"
I groaned as it had just seemed like I went to sleep. My Mother had turned on my lights and my eyes hurt. As I sat up, the last part of what she had said finally processed in my mind. "Tiger? What are you talking about Mom?"
"He said he was one of your friends. Come on get up! He'll be here in twenty minutes!"
I laughed realizing my Mother had confused Tyler with Tiger. "His name is Tyler Mom, not Tiger!"
"I don't care if his name is Jennifer, get into that shower!"
And with that I ran down the hallway into the bathroom, wanting to be half presentable when Tyler got to the door. I took extra care checking myself over in the mirror. Having had such a wonderful night before, I felt a new surge of confidence within me. Normally, I am rather self- conscious about my looks and spend as little time as possible staring at myself in the mirror. But today, I wanted to make sure that my hair and teeth were perfect and my face looked clean. I put on my jeans and my favourite Nike t-shirt and ran downstairs. Tyler was sitting in the kitchen talking with my Mom. He glanced at me and smiled.
"Hey Ry!"
"Hey Tiger." I giggled as I said this, and much as I had anticipated he looked genuinely baffled. "I'll tell you in the car."
"Alright then. Bye Mrs. Norricks. It was nice meeting you."
My Mom was already quite taken by Tyler, although she always was one to insist on proper manners and decorum. We ran out to the car and I explained to Tyler as we drove to school that my Mother had thought his name was Tiger. We both had a good laugh and yet I could tell something was troubling him.
"Tyler you look upset. What's wrong?"
"I'm worried about how the rest of the football team will think of me if they know that I'm gay. I don't want to pretend I'm straight or hide that I love you."
"We can just be friends at school Tyler. No one needs to know that we are in love with each other. I mean it's no one's business except ours."
"I guess your right, I just know that they talk about gay bashing a lot and that worries me know that I think I'm gay."
"It's up to you, I mean I'll follow your lead here. But if you don't want the team or the rest of the class to know your gay, that's okay with me. I'm not sure if I'm ready to tell people I'm gay either."
We walked into class together and I took a seat in the back of the room with him and his other teammates. Tyler was quick to explain that I had really helped him with the Math and I seemed cool so he thought I could hang out with them. They all seemed okay with it, much to my relief.
Later that day we had Math class, and I couldn't help but feel some pride when Tyler got eight out of ten questions right on the pop quiz. Tyler had a football practice to go to after school so I decided to head home. He promised to call me that night, before I rushed off to catch the bus. As I ran to catch the bus I looked back and saw him smiling at me - a warm, inviting and caring smile I had just recently come to know and love.
The bus ride home was uneventful; I sat looking out the window thinking about all that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. I realized that some of my bitterness towards the world and everyone around me had disappeared. I know longer felt so alienated and lonely. Things were looking up, and where they were going, I knew not, only that I was going somewhere in my life.
"Somewhere out there if love can see us through,
Then we'll be together somewhere out there,
Out where dreams come true."2
THE END
For now. Chapter three is now in the process of being
written.
My apologies to everyone who has been waiting so patiently for the latest instalment of this story. The truth is that I questioned whether I even wanted to continue this story. My decision was that I did, however I wanted to focus on the relationship, the romance and the love rather than the sex. Sorry if some of you are disappointed, I felt that the sexual depictions cheapened my story though - and I actually regretted their inclusion in the first chapter.
My email address remains as before, nicodemus000@hotmail.com I would appreciate feedback on this latest chapter and my recent decision to change the story's focus. Hope it was still enjoyable.
Also in case you are curious, my profile is a 19-year-old, gay white male. I live in Vancouver Canada and am studying at a University there. This story sadly isn't true, however it does make for a good fantasy. I can only hope that my dream can one day be a reality. I think I long for love even more with writing these stories. I find writing clarifies what I hope to have in a relationship one day, as well as entertaining my romantic notions that have no outlet currently. Until I can find that one right guy, yes I do believe in soul mates, this make-believe world that seems so enticing will have to suffice.
On a final note, I'm looking for someone to develop an editorial relationship with - someone who I can get feedback and suggestions on my work from. If your interested drop me an email, I would appreciate anyone who is willing to give some of their time (even just a little).
Thanks for reading my story.. Take care and don't forget to dare to dream! R. - August 2002
_______________________________ 1 Words and music for "Somewhere Out There" written by Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, and James Horner and sung by Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram.
2 See above information.