Disclaimer: The following is a work of fiction and any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental. The story contains graphic descriptions of sex between men. Anyone who is forbidden by law to read such material must stop now. This story is being posted to the Nifty Archive solely for the enjoyment of its readers.
David's Initiation: The Recovery 09
Through his still closed eyelids Dave could tell that the room was no longer dark. Slowly he allowed his lids to creep open and was greeted by a very lovely sight. The soft light of the morning sun filtering through the closed Venetian blinds gave emphasis to Beth's decorating skills. The large floral print wallpaper she had chosen masterfully combined the soft, muted greens and deep oranges and blues of an artist's pallet against a cream-colored background, that in the soft light gave the room the appearance of a Monet or Manet painting. The atmosphere was so peaceful and serene that Dave lay on his back and savored the relaxation. At first his mind was devoid of any thought.
What...' his mind began to wander, ...am I doing? One year ago I was a plain, simple Army grunt from a small town in the Southeast hoping to finish out my hitch with a Good Conduct Discharge and go my merry way. Then a hot looking guy sits down on an adjacent weight bench, almost strangled himself, and my life hasn't been the same since. Now I feel like two different people leading two different lives. One life is back home as a student, a gay man with gay friends, and life is good and happy there. Being gay is not the problem I thought it would be... except for my dad. And then there is this other life filled with travel and excitement. Yesterday I hop on a plane and fly First Class half way across the country, drive my BMW 540i to a friend's house, attend a party filled with wealthy, influential people and almost get raped by some wealthy matron. Today I'll play golf with my new friends and spend the rest of the weekend with my lover's family. Monday I'll learn what it's like to be a Director on the Board of the AANCF and then fly off to Kate's house. The crazy thing is that the people of my other life know almost nothing of this life and those of this life know just about as much about the other life.' Dave pondered those thought some more.
`No, there's only one ME! And right now there's a good reason for the two lives to be separated. But I thing eventually they'll have to merge, but at the moment I can't see how or when. Back home life is comfortable; most of the guys I associate with are gay and those who don't know don't matter, I'm with gays all the time. Here only a few people know and the others don't know enough to ask or care. Here it's better for all concerned to keep it that way. Now if anyone were to ask, I wouldn't deny it, but who is going to ask? Certainly not Maggie!' Dave chuckled at the thought. That was an extraordinarily funny situation he found himself in last night.
`Well I don't expect I'll have to resolve this situation right now so I'd better get moving. What time is it?' He looked at the clock and saw 08:53 AM. He expected to see a much later time but then he realized his body was almost at 10:00 AM, a practically unheard of time for his to wake up at.
Dave got out of bed, showered and dressed for the scheduled golf outing with Art and Steve. Art was sitting at the table sucking on a very black cup of coffee and still wearing his pajamas when Dave walked into the kitchen. Apparently Dave wasn't the only one who had slept late. But there was one big difference - Art was hung over. He must not have learned what Paul had taught Dave; when you're at a party, nurse a gin-and-tonic until the ice is gone and when it gets half full, fill it up with ice. Then keep doing that until the party is over. That way you look like you are keeping up with the drunks without having to suffer the consequences the next day.
Dave saw an extra cup next to the coffeepot and assumed it was for him so he filled it and sat down across the table from Art.
"Where is everybody?" he whispered, Beth and the girls were nowhere in sight.
"You don't have to shout!" Art said and at the same time managed a pained smile. "Oh, they're long gone shopping," he finally added. "Hey, there's cer eal in the cabinet, over there," he nodded his head, "and milk in the fridge. Help yourself." Art took another sip of coffee.
Dave fixed his own breakfast and, in deference to Art's condition, tried not to let the dishes clank against each other. Art seemed to improve after another cup of coffee and soon he and Dave were on their way to the country club. Art was wearing very dark sunglasses with a large brimmed hat pulled low over his eyes. After they had been on the road for a few minutes, Art seemed to perk up a little more.
"Oh, I just remembered, Dave," Art finally spoke, "when you get home, send me any W2s you have from last year. Your accountant will need those to do your taxes. You'll probably have one from the Army and didn't you work last summer?"
"Yeah, I worked for a construction company. I think I got one from them at the end of January." Dave paused for a moment. "I have an accountant?"
"Yeah. He works for the investment firm that manages your estate. So gather them all up and send them to me. When he's finished, he'll FedEx the tax forms to you so you can sign them. Then FedEx them back and he will file everything."
"Okay," Dave replied. His responsibilities continued to surprise him.
They arrived at the club early enough that Dave was able to hit some balls with some of Art's clubs just to see how bad he was going to be -- not as bad as he might have thought. Art was not yet in any shape to do anything in the sun so it was no problem for Dave to use his clubs. The plan was for Dave to use Paul's old clubs, which Steve was bringing. After about thirty minutes on the practice tee Dave noticed Art, Steve and another man walking toward him from the clubhouse.
"Hi, Dave," Steve said, he was genuinely glad to see Dave again and they confined their greeting to a hardy handshake.
"Steve, it's great to see you. I've been looking forward to this," and with his left hand Dave gripped the back of Steve's right hand, adding emphasis to his greeting. Dave then glanced at the good looking young man standing to Steve's left.
"There's someone I'd like you to meet," Steve said and turned toward the stranger. "Dave, this is Adam King. He and Connie announced their engagement last week and I made a father's decision and asked him to join us today. I hope you don't mind."
"Mind! I'm really glad you did. This is a big surprise! I had no idea! She never mentioned she was after anyone; nice to meet you Adam, congratulations." Dave extended his hand. Adam stood about 6' 3" tall, dark brown hair, brown eyes, and an average complexion. He looked to be about Paul's age, 25 or 26, and appeared to be in good physical condition.
`Hi, Dave," and their hands clasped, "Connie's mentions you often, tells me how much she thinks of you. I'm happy we can finally meet."
"I hope it's all been good!" Dave responded.
"Oh, yes, it is," and Adam chuckled.
With the formalities over the foursome got organized and prepared to head for the first tee. Steve tossed a tee in the air three times to establish the order of play off of the first tee. Adam hit first, followed by Art, Dave and Steve. Dave was just glad he didn't have to lead off.
Art seemed to improve as play progressed. From the beginning, Steve and Art seemed to want to share the same cart; from the way they were talking, Dave concluded they were conducting business. That left Dave and Adam sharing the other cart. Off the fifth tee, Art and Dave hit their balls in the same direction and so Dave drove the cart while Art became a passenger. Dave took the opportunity to ask Art what he thought about buying a car.
"Why don't you just take the Beemer home?" Art asked.
"Nah, it's too conspicuous. I want something like a used Honda Civic. That way nobody will notice me." Dave replied.
"Okay, if that's what you want I'll e-mail you a contact who can fix you up with a top quality car at a good price."
"Thanks, knowing who to talk to will save me some time."
Dave was obviously the weakest of the four golfers but he did have some success on a few holes. After teeing off on the par 5 13th, Dave and Adam rode together again. The conversation was casual when Adam made an abrupt change in the subject.
"Dave, I don't mean to pry but after all the things Connie has told me I have to ask, are you gay?" Adam slowed the cart and looked at Dave.
Without hesitation and looking squarely into Adam's eyes, Dave responded with a straight face and in a matter-of-fact tone of voice, "Yes I am."
"Well, I knew Paul at college and knew he was, so when Connie told me about you I automatically jumped to some conclusions; I just wanted to confirm them. I must say you don't fit the stereotype and please don't get me wrong; I don't have a problem with it, I want you to know that."
"Thanks, Adam, I'm glad to hear that." That's all Dave had time to say because at that moment they arrived at his ball and he had to get out of the cart. The subject never came up again.
The four men stopped in the clubhouse after their round and enjoyed swapping lies over a beer. When it came time to leave, Steve rode with Dave because he had ridden to the country club with Adam. That allowed Dave and Steve to have a nice visit on the drive to the ranch.
Alex was excited at Dave's arrival and gave him a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. Later that evening Connie and Adam joined them for dinner and conversation. Dave learned quite a bit more about his adoptive' family. For instance, Steve and Alex were staunch conservatives but they were also very active in charities. And their attitudes toward alternative lifestyles' were notably tolerant. Adam and Connie were unabashed liberals. Dave couldn't quite square Adam's political leanings with his profession; he was an investment banker. Connie and Adam wound up spending the night and Dave noticed that Alex put Adam in the guestroom but he also knew that Connie's room shared the bathroom with the guestroom. How convenient! Dave suspected that Alex was making an attempt at the charade of propriety, all the while knowing the two lovebirds would spend the night in the same bed. Sunday morning they all attended church as a family then returned to the ranch for lunch. That afternoon the entire group saddled up and went for a ride and later, around sunset, they enjoyed a casual bar-b-que with all the trimmings. Connie and Adam left just after dark because they both had to be at work early and wanted to avoid the heavy Monday morning traffic.
Monday morning, Dave took Steve to the airport, he was on his way to Austin for some political activities, and then proceeded on to his first meeting with the AANCF Board of Directors.
His meeting was a wonderful experience. When he arrived, the staff gave him a guided tour of the facility and introduced him to so many people he knew he would never remember all their names. Ever since the middle of January, the AANCF had been sending Dave a large quantity of information about the Foundation and details about its operation, things he'd need to know as a board member. He knew, for example that the Foundation accepted children of all ages. Their first objective was to provide shelter, physical and psychological care for abused, abandoned and neglected children. That included evaluating each situation and determining if the children could be safely returned to their natural homes. It also included family counseling, legal assistance and medical attention if necessary. If they decided a child would still be in danger other alternatives were available, including housing on the property, relatives, foster parents or adoption. The focus was entirely on what was best for the safety of the child. The majority of the children, including some family members, if appropriate, were referrals from area ministers and church organizations.
When the actual Board of Directors' meeting was called to order, the Chairman introduced Dave to warm and friendly applause. After all, he was now a major benefactor but that had nothing to do with the greeting. The meeting lasted for about four hours and included a catered lunch of sandwiches, soft drinks, tea and coffee and an assortment of cookies for desert. The real business consisted of the major department heads reporting on their activities. The finance manager explained some of the variances to the budget and what she expected the final outcome would be. In all, Dave was impressed with how professionally the Foundation seemed to be run and how similar the board meeting was to his last meeting of the Phylos Foundation.
The meeting adjourned just after 3:00 PM, almost on schedule, and that gave Dave adequate time to get to DFW and catch his flight to Kate's.
David was the second person off the plane. Kate had said she would pick him up by herself and he was looking forward to seeing her alone. As he walked up the jetway he realized he'd screwed up; he just hoped Kate wouldn't notice. Fat chance!
Waiting patiently at the gate, Kate almost didn't notice David as he approached through the jetway. She wasn't looking for an adult wearing an expensive suite and carrying a laptop computer and a carry-on bag with a trench coat slung over his shoulder. She was quite surprised when she realized it was her brother walking toward her.
Their greeting was one of joy as David picked his sister off the floor and swirled her around then they quickly headed for the parking lot. Kate told him the boys were angry they didn't get to come and would be waiting to jump on him when she got him home. That only made David happier. After a joyous reunion with the boys, David was able to get to his room and change onto something more comfortable. Then he was down on the floor helping the boys construct a tall tower out of Lego's and the boys took advantage of his position to crawl all over him and make him give them rides like a pony. John came home and greeted David with an affectionate hug then Kate ordered everyone to get ready for dinner. David had a lot of fun helping Mark and Matt wash their hands. While they sat in booster seats, JD looked quite at home in the highchair. After dinner Mark and Matt had to show David how well they could color in their coloring books. Then it was David's pleasure to give them a bath; John had the duty of bathing JD. About thirty minutes before bedtime David got the boys to settle down as he read them a story from one of their books, a story they had heard over a hundred times. After the boys went to bed, Kate and John visited for a while before David begged their forgiveness and turned in for the night. The day had been action packed and very stressful.
Tuesday morning David got a rude awakening when two exuberant young boys began jumping up and down on his bed demanding he get up. Kate came in and saved him, telling him to get dressed and down stairs for breakfast. David hardly had a minute to himself until the boys took their afternoon nap.
"Whew!" David exclaimed as he sank into the kitchen chair. "How do you manage?" he exclaimed to Kate. "I've been here less than twenty-four hours and I'm pooped."
Kate laughed. "I guess I'm used to it and Gloria and I divide up the duties. The boys have been all over you since you got here. That usually doesn't happen to us, they often play by themselves." Kate had fixed hot cups of tea for them and carried them to the table then joined David. When the moment of silence lasted a little too long David knew Kate was building up a head of steam and would soon have a probing question.
"David?" She looked into her tea at first then looked up at David. "Honey, you sure were dressed well yesterday. When did that start wearing suits... and expensive ones at that?" And before David could answer she continued. "You must have been sitting pretty far forward in the plane to be the second one off."
"I knew you'd see that," David said with a tone of acquiescence. "I might as well tell you everything." And he did. He talked about his involvement with the AANCF and his relationship with the Roehls and Art.
"But how can you afford all that, who pays for it?" Kate truly didn't understand.
"Before Paul died he made me the first trustee of his estate. Basically, it's all mine." David paused. "But I spend almost none of it; I still consider it his. The money I've spent has been for things Art told me I needed."
"How much is it?"
David was silent for a moment then looked at Kate, "Take a wild guess."
"Oh, five hundred thousand?" David didn't say anything, he just continued looking at his sister. "More?" Kate asked. David nodded his head. "Seven fifty?" Still David didn't answer. "More than a million?!" Kate was now in astonished disbelief.
"It's much more, but let's leave it at that, okay?"
Kate leaned back in her chair, her mouth partially open; she was in shock. "I'm speechless."
"Quick!" David exclaimed laughingly. "Where's the video camera? I want to capture this!"
Kate made a fist and punched the side of David's upper arm. "TWERP! That's not fair." She exclaimed. Silence filled the room as David waited for Kate to collect her thoughts. "So... how is that going to change your life? Will you stay in school?"
"Yeah, I'm still a poor college kid. As far as I'm concerned that's still Paul's money. But I have to admit that when I travel it sure is nice to go First Class. That's Art's doing; his secretary makes most of the reservations and that's all she seems to know."
"I'll bet! Just how big of a secret is this? Is John not supposed to know? Do Mother and Dad know?"
"It's fine if John knows; now that you know we ought to tell him tonight. Mother and Dad don't and I want to keep it like that, at least for a while. Dad doesn't understand me now and knowing this wouldn't help."
Kate held David's hand. "I understand, John and I've tried to talk to him but I can't say we're making much progress. I agree; I'd feel a lot more comfortable if we told John as soon as possible. Can we do that after the boys go to bed tonight, provided you don't fink out on us like last night?" Kate chuckled; she never wanted to pass up an opportunity to poke her brother in the ribs.
At that moment they heard JD crying. He probably awoke from his nap and need to be changed, David's job, so off he went to JD's room. No sooner did he have JD in clean Pampers than Mark and Matt were up and about, arguing over something they both wanted to play with. `My quiet home is looking better all the time.' David thought, then smiled because he really was enjoying himself.
During dinner John invited David to join him and two other guys for tennis Wednesday, provided David still remembered how to play. David accepted but pointed out that he didn't have any clothes or equipment. John suggested he could get a loaner racquet at the pro-shop and John would also buy David shoes, shorts, and a shirt there. David quickly corrected him by saying he could pay for it himself. To David's question about who the other two guys were, John replied that they would be playing with Tomas Douczek and a wide receiver named Shawn whom David had met.
Later, after the boys were in bed, David, Kate and John sat in the family room talking when John insisted that he pay for David's tennis clothes. David and Kate looked at each other and smiled.
"Okay, you two, I know something's up, what is it?" John never ceased to be amazed at the way Kate and David seemed to communicate without speaking a word.
"John, I can afford to by my own clothes. In fact, I can afford to buy this house, all your cars and all your Subways and not make a dent in my finances."
"David Baker, what the hell are you talking about?"
"Uh, Sis?" Dave sought help from his sister.
"Honey," Kate squeezed John's arm affectionately, "Paul left his entire estate to David. He won't tell me how much it is but I gather it is quite substantial."
"What!" John exclaimed then sat speechless with his mouth partially open. Kate and David began to laugh.
"That was my reaction too." Kate explained. "So let him buy his own tennis togs tomorrow."
As soon as the information sank in, John seemed to have hundreds of questions, which David answered truthfully. David also made sure John understood that his parents were not to know just yet.
Wednesday morning John and David arrived at the tennis club, a large facility with fourteen indoor courts and twenty-four outdoor courts. David found a racquet with a grip size and weight that felt comfortable to him and then he purchased shoes, shorts and a shirt. John led the way to the locker room where they changed and met up with Tomas and Shawn. On the indoor court, John proposed they play three round-robin sets, changing partners after each set. All agreed so they spun their racquets and John and David wound up paired against Tomas and Shawn.
After the first set, which Tomas and Shawn won, they spun their racquets again on the stipulation that a David-John paring was unacceptable and David and Tomas wound up as partners. All during the set Tomas seemed to find reasons to touch David. With both of them at the net after a point, Tomas would move close to David, place his hand on David's shoulder, lean his head close and make a suggestion on how to play the next point. When Tomas was serving he would call David to the baseline, rest his hand on David's shoulder and tell him where he was going to place the serve and what David should expect on the return. If Tomas served as he planned, David would know whether or not to poach. That's the way it went for the entire set. David wasn't used to being touched and after a while it began to bother him. The actual touching wasn't so much a problem as what it meant and what to do about it.
David's radar hadn't picked up any signals from Tomas before now and this confused him. Was Tomas coming on to him? Why here? How should he handle it? David decided the best thing to do was to ignore it for the time being. David and Tomas lost that set, primarily due to David's lack of concentration.
The third set had John and Tomas against David and Shawn. Without the distraction of being constantly touched David was able to concentrate better and he and Shawn won. However, David noticed that Tomas wasn't touching John like he had touched him. Shawn won three sets, John and Tomas two, and David one. Regardless of who won, they all had fun and David actually played quite well, considering he hadn't played for months. They all adjourned to the locker room. John and David stripped and went into the sauna. David watched John move to the top level where he folded his towel, placed to on the tile and sat on it. David followed suite and after he was seated Tomas came into the sauna and sat down next to him. Shawn was next to enter the sauna and sat on the other side of John. The conversation began to pick up and soon they were in a lively, laughing discussion about the upcoming NBA playoffs. David thought he felt something touching his left knee but he pretended to ignore it. Within a few moments he was sure he felt Tomas' leg touching his. During the conversation, Tomas had moved closed to David and turned so that his leg was making definite, intentional contact.
David was puzzled. Why was Tomas doing that? Tomas wasn't married and he had lots of women begging for his attention. David couldn't believe a gay player could survive in the NFL. David wasn't exactly insensitive to Tomas' advances either. He was under a lot of pressure to control his impending erection. After all, Tomas was an attractive guy, even sexy.
Thankfully John called time, meaning they had been in the sauna the maximum recommended time. They showered and gathered around a table in the bar for a beer and this time the conversation switched to their tennis games.
"Hey, how about we get together for lunch tomorrow?" Tomas suggested at one point.
"Not me, I have baby sitting duty," Shawn said.
"Got a business meeting, Tommie, sorry." That was John's answer.
"How about you, David?"
"Uhh..." David felt trapped. He didn't have anything to do and wasn't quick enough to come up with even a weak excuse. "I guess so, where you wanna go?"
"I pick you up at John's house and then we decide."
"Okay." David agreed.
David sat in the passenger seat of John's SUV as they drove back to the house. David was deep in thought when he turned to John.
"John, how well do you know Tomas?"
They had just stopped at a stoplight so John turned and looked at David. "You noticed it too." They looked at each other, neither speaking, until the light changed. "I've never seen that before, David. What do you think?"
"I'm not sure." David thought a moment longer. "Part of me wants to say he's gay... but it just doesn't make sense. Like, I mean, he's a football player in the NFL, for god's sake. But I will say this, I've never been cruised like that before. Whatta you think?"
"I'm with you, not sure. But it sure looked like he was coming on to you. You going to lunch with him tomorrow?"
"Yeah."
"Well David, I can't tell you what to do but I'd advise you to watch yourself. If Tommie IS gay... and you two get it on... and word gets out... it could cause a lot of problems not only for Tomas but for me and Kate and the boys." John stopped talking and the only sound was that of the powerful engine pushing them down the street.
For the first time, David could see how his actions might adversely affect those he loved. It was kind of a revelation. He could see the newspaper headlines: "KICKER GETS BOOTED, Affair With Tight End's Brother-in-law!" He vowed to himself right then, nothing would happen... tomorrow. "Nothing will happen, John, you have my word on it." That's where the conversation ended because about two minutes later they were pulling into the driveway.
Lunch with Tomas on Thursday was actually uneventful. Tomas took David to one of the popular lunch places down town and a couple of women tried to pick them up. After lunch, Tomas said he needed to stop by his condo to pick up something and invited David up. David was on guard; he watched Tomas' every move. At one point he was sure Tomas was about to make a move but suddenly he became nervous and said they should leave. David figured Tomas probably had a plan but lost his nerve. That evening David made a complete report to John, who thanked him sincerely and gave him a hug to reinforce his appreciation.
Friday morning Dave caught a 10:10 flight home. Before leaving he promised Kate he'd try to come back after school was out. He walked into his house just after 1:30 PM and immediately felt like he was home. He felt safe, secure, and at ease. Dave unpacked his bags and threw the dirty clothes into the washer then made a quick trip to the grocery story; he and Mike had pretty well emptied the place before Spring Break. When he got back home the washing was done so he put the clothes in the dryer and settled down to do some serious studying. One lazy professor had postponed the mid-term exam until the Monday after the break. By coming back early, Dave was giving himself the time he needed to make sure he was ready for the test.
Mike and Todd didn't give any indication when they planned to return home so Dave couldn't plan dinner for anyone but himself. Around 5:30, Dave began to brown the ground chuck he bought at the store and placed a pot of water on the stove to begin heating for the spaghetti. This time he was going to try a new brand of sauce called `Five Brothers, Tomato & Basil'. He threw in a small can of chopped mushrooms for flavor.
If Mike and Todd wind up coming home tonight they'll have something to eat, if not, then I'll have leftovers for two or three more meals,' Dave thought. Then he chuckled to himself. No, If those two ran out of food they'd probably eat each other.'
Just as Dave drained the cooked spaghetti in the sink he heard the front door open and Mike call out, "We're home!" Dave got a warm feeling at hearing Mike refer to their place as `home'.
"In the kitchen!" Dave called back and waited for them to walk in. "You're just in time for dinner," he added.
"Oh good, spaghetti." Todd said as he entered the room. Mike was right behind him. Once inside the room they stopped and stood side by side, Todd's arm over Mike's shoulder and Mike's arm around Todd's waist, and grinned at Dave.
"What?" Dave asked. Neither Mike nor Todd replied except to increase the width of their grins. Dave quickly caught on that he was supposed to see something so he began walking toward them, examining them as he got closer.
"OH SHIT!" Dave exclaimed. "They look great!" By now Dave was standing directly in front of them. "When did you do it? Does this mean what I think it means?"
"You like?" Mike asked proudly as he and Todd turned their heads slightly to the right to better present the rings in their left ears.
"Yeah, man, hot! C'mon, spill!" Dave wanted to hear all about it.
"Go ahead, Mike," Todd encouraged Mike to tell the story.
"Yeah." Mike replied and kissed Todd on the lips briefly. "Well... we've decided to be together. How's that?"
"C'mon, tell me more than that, Dude!" Dave insisted.
"Okay, we're now a couple. After the first three days I knew I wanted to be with Todd forever and told him so. So then, like he couldn't be out done, told me he felt the same way." Mike was grinning real big with pride by now. "So we found this shop that pierced anything you could ever dream of piercing and we got matching rings. You really like them?"
"They are really cool, Dudes, and I'm so happy I could..." Dave stopped talking, placed his hands on each side of Mike's head and held him still while he kissed him full on the lips, no tongue thought. Then, with Mike in shock, Dave did the same thing to Todd. To his recollection, they were the only two men he had ever kissed except Paul. "C'mon, dinner's gettin' cold." And Dave grabbed their hands and pulled them toward the table.
Todd and Mike's shock wore off in a matter of seconds and they began to laugh. Dave joined the laughter as he finished placing the spaghetti on a platter and pouring the sauce into a bowl. The green beans were done so he placed them into a bowl and sat everything on the table. While Dave took care of the food, Mike added two more plates, knives and forks to the table. Before Dave sat down he reached up into the cabinet and pulled out a bottle of Merlot, opened it, filled three glasses and set them on the table.
Standing at one end of the table, Dave raised his glass to signify a toast. Mike and Todd caught on quickly, rose from their chairs, picked up their wineglasses and raised them together.
"To Mike and Todd, the two guys I love most in the world, congratulations. I hope you live happily forever more, and if you don't, I'll kick your asses."
"Here, here." Mike and Todd said in unison. They each took a sip of wine and sat down.
Dave looked at Mike, "Would you say a blessing, please?"
Mike was a little surprised because that was something Dave had stopped doing several months ago, after Paul died.
"Let us pray," Mike said and they joined hands and bowed their heads. "Lord, we ask you to bless this food, bless this friendship..." Mike hesitated for a moment, "and bless our union." He looked at Todd. "Amen."
Dave's felt like his heart would burst with joy for his two friends. He had a big smile on his face and tears in his eyes. "Let's eat," he instructed and they began. "Oh shit," Dave exclaimed after his first bite, "this means I have to get you a wedding present doesn't it."
"No, no. You don't need to give us anything," Todd insisted. "I propose a toast." Todd continued as he rose from his chair and picked up his wineglass. Mike joined him and Dave sat still like he wasn't sure what to do. "To Dave, the guy who made all this possible."
"To Dave!" Mike added and he and Todd took another drink of wine.
"I don't deserve it but I'll not pass up a chance to drink a toast," Dave said as he stood and drank more wine. All three men sat back down and began eating in earnest.
After dinner Dave and Mike were doing the dishes as Todd sat at the table and watched. Dave turned to Mike and, in a humorously indignant voice said, "I suppose this means you'll want to go live with him (nodding his head toward Todd) now."
"Well, duh!" Mike responded and began to laugh. "But I'll come back to visit once in a while, just let me know when you're fixin' spaghetti."
"That's just like you, Wetback." And he leaned over and gave Mike a peck on his lips. He was fighting back tears.
"Get used to it, Gringo." Mike returned Dave's brief kiss and he too fought back tears. They were both happy and sad, happy that Mike had finally found someone to love and sad that their relationship had come to a parting, not an end, just a parting.
After the dishes were washed and put away and the kitchen was cleaned up the three men took the rest of the wine and retired to the living room. Dave shared some of his experiences on his vacation, especially the one with Maggie. That drew loud howls from Mike and Todd. The two lovers were not so forthcoming as Dave was no matter how hard he pressed them. Finally Dave realized something.
"Wait just a minute!" He reached over and turned the light on bright. "Todd, you spent a week at the beach in Ft. Lauderdale. Where's your tan?" He could see that Todd was beginning to blush.
"Well... ya see..." Todd looked at Mike.
"We were busy." Mike jumped into the conversation. Dave started to laugh then Mike and Todd joined in. They laughed until tears flowed from their eyes.
"Okay, okay, no more questions." Dave gave up; he didn't want to know any more than he had already learned. "Except maybe one. When you gonna move in with Todd?"
"Well, if it's okay with you we'd like to stay here tonight and move my stuff tomorrow." Mike offered.
"Of course it's okay with me," Dave said, "what difference is one more night of noise from your room gonna make?" That was a slip of the tongue that was loosened by the wine.
"You were awake all the time?!" Mike almost shouted. But then he didn't have anything to say after that so he remained silent.
"Don't worry, I didn't record any of it." Dave chuckled.
"You are something else, Dave, I've never known anyone quite like you before." Todd finally jumped into the conversation. "Maybe we should just move in here so you can cook for us."
"I don't think so," Dave responded with more laughter. "I'd never get any sleep." Now they all laughed. It took them a few minutes to settle back down then Mike asked a question.
"Will it be okay if we borrow your truck to help me move tomorrow?"
A light went on in Dave's head. "I can do better than that, I'll give you that truck as your wedding gift."
"Dave!" Mike exclaimed almost breathlessly. "You can't do that!"
"And why not?"
"What'll you drive?"
"I've decided to get a new car. That truck is so old and has so many miles on it that it has absolutely no trade-in value. It still runs well and I'd rather you have it than someone I don't know. How about it?"
"Gosh, I... I don't know what to say!"
"Say yes." Todd interjected.
"Okay, yes." Mike got up off of the sofa, pulled Dave out of his chair and hugged him. "The luckiest day of my life was the day I got you for a roommate. I just didn't know it at the time."
"Hey, Miguel, it's been all my pleasure. You're an easy guy to like."
"Okay, okay, no more kissy-face with my partner, Baker." Todd laughingly demanded.
"Yeah, we gotta stop that." Dave acknowledged. "Listen, I gotta hit the sack. You guys can do what you please. I'll see you in the morning. Will you need any help moving stuff?"
"No thanks, I think we can handle it." Mike replied.
"Well, see you in the morning. And congratulations again." Dave was tired from traveling, studying, and the excitement of Mike and Todd's announcement. Mike and Todd each gave Dave a hug and, because they were just as tired from traveling as Dave was, they followed him toward the bedrooms.
There was no entertainment from the other side of Dave's bedroom wall that night. Mike and Todd must have achieved some level of satisfaction, at least for the moment.
Saturday morning, Mike and Todd loaded all of Mike belongings into the back of the truck and drove away. Dave called the phone number Art had e-mailed him and talked to the salesman who answered the phone. After listening to the type of car Dave was interested the salesman told him the supply of Civics was virtually nonexistent but he could put Dave in a very nice, late model Accord for about the same price. Dave asked when he could see it and the salesman said he could drive it over right then. Within thirty minutes Dave was examining and then test driving a clean white Honda Accord that was very quiet and had only 22,145 miles on it. It seemed like too good of a deal to pass up so Dave told the salesman he'd take the car. The salesman pulled some papers out of breast pocket of his coat, asked Dave to sign them, and handed Dave the keys. Dave couldn't understand how the sale could be completed so fast until the salesman told him that Art had set everything up so that no matter what car Dave chose, the sale could be completed with as little hassle as possible and the estate would pay the bill. By 11:45, Dave was driving down town to complete his volunteer work.
Monday morning, Dave was up on schedule, ran, ate breakfast, and went to class. He was feeling a little irritated but couldn't figure out why. His irritation seemed to increase each day until Friday morning he was in a really fowl mood. Walking into the house after his last class, Dave heard the phone ringing but his answering machine picked it up before he could reach it so he just listened.
"Hey, Dave, it's Mike. Todd and I want to know..." Suddenly Dave was excited. He lunged for the phone and snatched the handset from its cradle.
"Mike! Mike! I'm here!" The excitement in Dave's voice was clearly audible. "Glad you called. What's up?"
"Hi, Gringo, Todd and I want to know if you'll come over for dinner tomorrow night."
"You cookin'?"
"Nah, Todd's got some recipe for baked salmon he wants to fix. How you doin'?"
"Great!" That wasn't the truth but Dave thought it was the proper answer to give so he did. They talked for about ten minutes then hung up. Dave sat down on the end of the bed then lay back on it. Suddenly he felt good. Why would the sound of Mike's voice make him feel good? Very simple, he missed his good friend. Every day he had missed hearing Mike's voice, the voice he had become used to hearing for the past five or six months. Dave realized that each evening he'd sat in his room studying, waiting for Mike to come in the front door and announce he was home'. Isn't it strange how disrupting a routine can make you upset,' Dave thought. He even missed having Mike to run with in the mornings. Tomorrow night he was going to Todd and Mike's apartment for dinner and he felt good again.
Mike has moved on but I haven't,' Dave thought. I should follow his lead and start looking to the future. Paul is gone. He's not coming back and there isn't anything I can do about it. I need to change my routine. Instead of running before class on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I have a break between 11:00 and 1:00 on Tuesday and Thursday. I can go to the gym, run either on the indoor or outdoor track and lift a few weights when I'm done. Then I can run either Saturday or Sunday, depending on what my plans are for the weekend.' Dave contemplated that plan for a few moments. `Yeah, that'll work. It'll change things and get me away from thinking so much about being alone.' Dave sat up, looked around the room, and went to the kitchen to find something to fix for dinner. He felt better already.
Saturday afternoon, around 5:35, Dave, carrying a sack with two chilled six-packs of beer, knocked on the door to Todd and Mike's apartment. Mike answered the door wearing one of his patented grins.
"Hey, Gringo, welcome to our casa."
Dave was so glad to see Mike he wrapped his arms around him and gave him a hug. "Hi ya, Wetback," he responded.
"He won't let me call him that." Dave heard Todd call out as he approach from the kitchen. Todd embraced Dave too. "C'mon into the kitchen and I'll show you how to make the best tasting salmon you ever ate."
"Here, put this in the fridge," Dave said as he handed the beer to Todd. "He won't let you call him `Wetback'?" Dave asked then turned to Mike, "How come?"
"Hey, he has his own name for me. How many more does he need to have?" Mike answered as the three men moved to the kitchen.
"What is it?"
"I'll never tell," Mike emphasized `I'll' as he looked at Todd and wiggled his eyebrows up and down. "It's too sexy." That brought laughter from all three men and they began a lively conversation like they hadn't seen each other for weeks.
"Mike's gonna make the rice pilaf while we do the salmon. We're having asparagus too, which we'll nuke in the microwave." Todd announced as he removed the salmon from the fridge. Mike was already working on the rice because it took longer.
"Okay," Todd began, "I plan on one half pound of salmon per person but I couldn't find exactly what I wanted so here we have one and three-quarter pounds." He sprayed a glass-roasting pan with Pam and placed the bright pink, almost red salmon in it. "First we salt and pepper to taste. It's always a guess as far as I'm concerned," and Todd sprinkled a reasonable amount of salt over the fish then picked up a pepper-mill and ground some pepper over the fish. "Next I pour about a quarter-cup of olive oil in a small bowl and add about two tablespoons of brown sugar and mix them. But since we have more salmon than planned, I'll fudge a little extra oil and a little extra brown sugar."
"Where'd you get this recipe?" Dave asked.
"The chef at the hotel gave it to me. It's his personal favorite but you won't find it on the menu. Okay, where was I? Oh yeah, he recommends adding a dash of lemon juice to the oil and sugar but I'm going to leave that out this time.
"How much is a `dash'?" Dave asked.
"Hell, I don't know, my mama was always adding a dash of this and a dash of that but she never told me how much it was. Now we spread the oil-sugar mixture over the salmon," and he did. "I'll slice some slivers of onion and place them around the top of the fish. Oooo, it's lookin' good already." Todd was having fun hamming it up. "Hand me that container of parsley flakes, will you Dave?" Dave picked up the bottle and handed it to Todd. "Sprinkle, sprinkle, sprinkle. There we are! See how simple that is? How's it goin' Mike?"
"The rice should be right on time."
"Okay, in the oven it goes, 400 degrees for 20 minutes. The chef told me I could bake it at 450 degrees for 10 or 11 minutes; either way works. I like the slower bake. The olive oil helps keep the meat moist and gives it a great flavor. Okay, now let's get ready to nuke the asparagus." Todd found an oblong serving plate, dumped the asparagus into it and placed it in the microwave oven.
"Can we have some of that wine now?" Todd asked.
"Sure. Where are the glasses?" Dave asked as he opened the refrigerator and found the wine. Todd was already on top of it and set three ordinary water glasses on the counter. Dave poured until each glass was about one third full. "Let's save the rest for the meal," he suggested as each man picked up a glass. "Cheers!" Dave exclaimed as he raised his glass. "Cheers!" Mike and Todd responded, then they each took a sip.
Before long the oven timer sounded, indicating the salmon was done, and the microwave buzzed signaling the asparagus was ready. "How's the rice, Mike?"
"It's ready."
Within minutes they were sitting at the table. "Mike?" Todd asked. They held hands and Mike said the blessing.
"Okay everybody, let's eat!" Todd picked up his fork, broke off a small chunk of meat and placed it in his mouth. He looked around to see that Mike and Dave were watching him. "You guys waitin' to see if I die before you eat?" They all laughed then Dave and Mike each took a bite of the salmon.
"Ohhh, Todd, this is great! I gotta get this recipe." Dave exclaimed. "It looks so simple to make too."
"Yeah, Hon, this is super!" Mike added.
The dinner conversation was fairly subdued, as the men seemed more interested in devouring the food. The wine and food disappeared about the same time and each man leaned back in his chair, his appetite sated. They cleared the plates, knives and forks from the table and Todd began washing while Mike dried. Dave excused himself to go to the bathroom.
"You notice anything different about Dave?" Todd asked.
"You noticed too!" Mike replied. "I don't know. He's almost like his old self. Ya know, when I called him last night to invite him over, he sounded... I don't know, kinda like... you know, excited. Maybe he's trying to hide something."
"That' it," Todd said. "He's trying to hide something. You wanna ask him?"
"Ya think I should?"
"You know him better than anyone," Todd replied. "Quiet, here he comes."
Dave entered the kitchen and sat back down at the table. "Hey guys, isn't there something I can do to help?" he asked.
"You're a guest. Guests don't do anything, they just sit still and keep their mouth's shut," Mike lectured.
"Oh," was Dave's short reply. He sat still and watched the other two men finish washing and drying the dishes. He was amazed at how fast they seemed to have bonded.
Mike put away the last dish, hung the towel to dry, walked over to the table and sat down next to Dave. Todd walked to the table and stood, looking down at his guest. Dave began to feel surrounded.
"What?" He asked, looking from Mike to Todd than back to Mike.
"How do you feel? Are you okay?" Mike asked.
"Yeah. Why shouldn't I be?"
"Todd and I agree that you seem different tonight and we wondered if anything was wrong."
"Noo." Dave answered, stringing out the `o' for emphasis. "Whatta you mean, different?"
"Well...?" Mike began.
"More calm, at ease," Todd added.
"Gosh, guys, I guess I am, I just didn't think it would be that obvious. Ya see, when Mike called last night I realized I'd missed him all week. When I realized he wasn't coming back I decided I needed to make some changes and get on with my life. So, yes, I do feel more calm."
"That's great!" Mike exclaimed. "Listen, I may be living here with Todd..." he glanced at Todd and smiled, "and I plan to stay here." Todd smiled back. "But that doesn't mean I don't want to see you any more."
"I agree," Todd interjected, "we want you in our lives, Dave and we hope you want us in yours."
Dave stood up from his chair and hugged Mike them Todd. "Thanks guys, nothing could make me happier. I really need you both; I love you both." Then they fell into a three-way hug.
The rest of the evening was a lot of fun as they caught up on things that had happened since last Saturday. By the time Dave left for home, they were all in good spirits.
(To be continued.)