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Chapter 7 -- The Wheels Fall Off
It was too good to be true, so in typical "that's life" form, the idyllic resolution to our "almost bust" was the precursor to a traumatic and destructive episode that almost ruined my Jamie's life, not to mention my own.
The day after our meeting with Stephan I floated around in a dream. After all, the Greek "tradition" that started out as an excuse to have sex with a hot Greek boy was legitimate and Jamie's dad not only understood but also approved heartily.
I couldn't wait to see Jamie again and fervently planned for us to get away on a "fishing weekend" of our own so that Jamie could stick his beautiful cock up my hungry daddy hole. I wasn't Greek but I had needs. Deep ones.
I was floating through my day, with occasional Whatsapps from Jo (my wife, remember I am married? Yeah, I'm struggling to hold on to that fact too...) and more frequent, breathless shots from my little Greek god.
Then reality shattered. There had been a long silence and I assumed that Jamie was held up in a class or something. Then about 11h00 my phone rang with Jamie's Whatsapp tone: "What Makes You Beautiful" by One Direction.
This message came through on Jamie's Whatsapp:
"So. He ws telling da truth, Unka D. My x is a faggot nd so r u. Lets c wht happens nw. Sweet kisses, Nadine."
Little purple devil face with a Satanic scowl.
That was it. I felt sick. I was driving and I had to stop the car to prevent an accident. I tried not to panic and a million disastrous scenarios scrolled through my mind like the scenes from a horror movie, but there was only one conclusion: Nadine was pissed that Jamie didn't fall right back into her lap and stole his phone to see what the real story was. Bingo. Pay dirt. And for me and Jamie, disaster.
I was parked under a bridge in the emergency lane (right?!) and I tried to calm my mind to plan some damage control. My heart was literally beating in my mouth. I was lucky I'd not had a chance to eat breakfast because if I had, it would be painted across the odometer about now.
Nobody plans for this. Nobody sits down one morning and says, "Although I'm straight, today seems like a good day to have gay sex with a cute boy that I've known and loved all of my life and in the process fuck up my marriage of 20 years--and probably lose our best friends in the bargain, just for good measure.
Maybe she was bluffing. It all depended on how vindictive she was feeling. But face the facts: she stole his phone to see who her competition was. She was feeling pretty vindictive. I decided to wait it out.
Or maybe I should tell Jo and at least prepare her. I tried to think what kind of things Jamie and I had been sharing on Whatsapp. I only had the texts from today because I emailed our conversations to a Gmail account that I'd created for just this purpose and then deleted them just in case Jo got hold of my phone for something else. I took my phone and scrolled.
Oh shit. There was a picture of Jamie's very hard dick in his Jocks when he'd slipped out to take a leak.
"He's waiting for you..." the caption read.
The next pic was of Jamie's broad pink tongue, with the caption, "Imagine this around little D." Above the tongue were Jamie's beautiful brown eyes, just in case you had any doubt as to who wanted to wrap his tongue around questionable parts of my anatomy.
I was so screwed. So, SO screwed.
Ok, right now there was little I could do. I couldn't even get hold of Jamie, because Nadine was obviously holding his phone hostage. I decided to call the one person that I could trust with this.
I dialed the number. After a moment Stephan's voice came on the line.
"Hey, Dee, you can't stay away from me, can you?"
The affection was palpable.
"Steph, we have a problem," I said.
"What is it? Are Jo and the kids ok?"
"No...yes... they're fine," (`for the moment' I thought) "but Nadine got hold of Jamie's phone and she knows."
"Oh, shit," was all he could say.
"How do you know? What happened? Did Jamie contact you?"
"I'm putting the phone on speaker, and I'll show you."
I did so and then went to Jamie's Whatsapp profile and forwarded her message to Stephan. It took a moment for his voice to come back on the line.
"This is bad," he said. No shit, Sherlock?
"Where are you now? Can you come to my house?"
"I'm parked under a bridge just before the Beyers Naude off-ramp. I'll be there in five minutes."
"Drive safe, Dee, I know you're upset, but don't kill yourself getting here."
"See you now," I said and hit the red button.
I tried to take my friend's warning about my driving seriously but it was hard not to speed to get there faster. The longer I thought about it the more obvious it became that some serious shit was about to go down. There were several scenarios and none of them could end up less than messy. One thing was obvious: I was going to have to tell my wife and trust that she would show more respect for our marriage than I had, and not send me packing. I was so grateful that Stephan knew about Jamie and me. At least I would have the benefit of his wisdom and support.
I tooted as I got to Stephan's gate and it opened. I drove into the driveway and when I looked up my friend was standing at the door. Stephan opened it and as I got out my friend immediately wrapped me in a tight brotherly hug--I knew that even if all else failed, he would be there for me... us.
"Come and have something to drink, Dee, so we can try and think this through."
When we were sitting I couldn't hold it in anymore. I felt tears rush to my eyes as my apology rushed to my lips.
"I'm so sorry, Steph! I'm so sorry that I got Jamie into this...!"
"Whoa, there! As far as I remember it was Jamie who started this whole thing, not you, so you are only partly responsible."
"Well, I should have put a stop to it for his sake. There was no way it wasn't going to end badly and now it's too late."
"No, it's not. Let's think this thing through. The first thing we have to do is to make sure that Nadine doesn't do anything foolish."
"You have her on Whatsapp, don't you?" I asked.
"Yes I do, but we have to know what we're dealing with. What have you and Jamie been saying to each other? Is it explicit?"
I hauled out my phone and handed it to him with Jamie's pics to me open.
"The stupid boy. I know kids do this but it's so dangerous and this is why."
"I'm not sure what else there is, but we've been pretty explicit in what we've said as well. I've been deleting our conversations. This is just today... There can be no doubt that we're lovers, that's for sure.
"I've got to tell Joanne about this. If this gets to her from another source I'm done for. At least, if I tell her, I will stand a chance of saving my marriage."
"No, wait. I'm going to send Nadine a Whatsapp, reminding her that Jamie's phone is private property and that exposing his private information is a crime. I'm not sure about now, considering she's a `woman scorned', but she used to have a lot of respect for me. Maybe we can catch her before she goes public."
Stephan took out his phone and started a Whatsapp to Nadine.
"Nadine, hope you're well..." Good start. Like:
`Lovely weather we're having please don't OUT my queer son,
love,
Me.'
"I hear you got hold of Jamie's phone. Please, before you do anything, come and chat to me, I'm sure you're angry right now, but don't do anything to hurt Jamie. You know how much damage it can do."
"There, let's see what happens."
It wasn't too long and there was a buzz.
"So did u knw dat he a faggot? nd ur best frnd 2?"
Stephan typed in his response and read it to me as he did. It was such a teenage thing to do, but here we were, two grown men reduced to begging a girl not to do anything stupid on Whatsapp.
"Nadine... you... don't.... know... the... full... story. Just... think.... before... you... tell... anybody... Jamie... is... going... through... a hard... time... right... now... and... I know... you... don't... really... want... to hurt... him."
There was a long pause.
"Yeah well he shoulda thot abt that b4 he shagged a married man, right? R u ok wit dat?"
"Nadine, as I said, you don't know the whole story. Come round this afternoon and let's talk. And you should give Jamie his phone back."
"O his got it bck. I copied all the msges. Lmao."
... And then, nothing. We waited ten minutes for her to say she was coming but nothing, zip, nada. Finally, we had to face the facts. It looked like she wasn't going to play ball.
"Ok," I said. "So it looks like I'm going to have to tell Jo about Jamie and me. Fuck!!! Sorry, but I feel like such a fool. How could I be so stupid? The first hunky teenage boy that propositions me and I become a willing cocksucker."
"Hey, hey, don't be so hard on yourself! Number one, you're not a cocksucker. You're a loving older man who is looking out for a younger guy who needs you."
"Yeah that's the theory but look what I did in the process: I was unfaithful to my wife and I may have ruined Jamie's life!!!"
"Nuuuumber two...!!" Steph carried on, raising his voice to top my own spiraling tone.
"It wasn't the first hunky teenage boy, it was Jamie. It wasn't just any boy. Have you ever considered doing this with anybody else?" He didn't wait for my answer. "No! So put the breaks on; self-pity isn't going to get you anywhere. You'll just do something stupid and then regret it later. NOW," he finished, "Let's think this through...!"
That's a real friend for you. Telling it like it is.
"...and by the way, number three, Jamie started the whole thing with you. It's not like you're some sexual predator who lurks in the bushes waiting for the first and best cute boy to wander by. This is a mutual thing and he's eighteen, which means technically he's an adult and can do what he wants. So...!"
He sat looking at me for a while. Then he got up and came to sit next to me. There was another long silence. Then he cleared his throat.
"Ahem... yesterday... well, I didn't exactly tell you the whole story.... I told it from Jamie's perspective if you know what I mean... that I was the Greek boy...but there's another episode, and it will show you that I'm also capable of making stupid decisions..."
"Go on," I said uncertainly, not sure I wanted to hear something that could tarnish my perfect opinion of my dear friend.
"This is not something that I can allow to get around. The story with Uncle Stavros is one thing. I am the young guy who was cared for by a willing and able older guy `cos I was in need of help and guidance. But the rest of the story is a little more, well, shall we say...well, you make up your own mind."
"Are you sure you want to tell me? You don't seem sure..."
"Dee, you're beating yourself up and you think it's ok because you think I'm perfect. Well, I'm not. This whole man-on-man sex thing is very complicated and I'm not sure there is an easy way to define it so it makes perfect sense. I need to tell you this also because it's on my conscience and we're in the same boat now so maybe we can absolve each other or something because I manage to keep it in the back of my mind most of the time but every now and then it comes up and then I'm miserable for a while. I've carried it alone for a long time and maybe you can help me bear the load."
"I'd love to help you with anything and you know it, my friend. But don't go and confess something just because you think it will make me feel better."
"No, man, maybe it will make me feel better...
"You know that I've been a Christian now for about fifteen years. I've been married, like you, for just over twenty years. As I mentioned to you and Jamie yesterday, I've not always been such a nice guy as I am now. I've always loved Desie, and I've always been good to her and I've never been unfaithful to her with another woman..."
`Oh fuck here it comes,' I thought.
"When Jamie was about one, so roughly seventeen years ago, one of my uncles, Uncle George (Geōrgios) who lived in Greece, came to South Africa to check things out here. My dad told him that there were lots of opportunities here. The uncle was about ten years younger than my dad and he had a boy and a girl of fifteen and thirteen. They were all here and came to live with my dad and mom until they could find somewhere to stay. You know what us Greeks are like: Family first.
"Desie and I were in our first house, quite near to my parents' house. My dad bought it for us. That's another thing about Greek fathers: they like to keep tabs on the family. Have you seen `My Big Fat Greek Wedding'?" I nodded. "Well, just like that.
"We still spent a lot of time with the family because Jamie is the first boy among the grandchildren so it means that he's IT as far as grandkids go. I saw a lot of uncle Geōrgios and of course, also of his kids and wife.
"The kids were struggling big time: strange country, new school, strange language. The boy, Dmitri, spent a lot of time with me because I was the only person even close to his age even though I was already twenty-four. I also speak Greek and he confided in me when he felt alone and cut off from everybody else.
"One day I took him to go see a soccer match at the local Corinthians Greek sporting club. For the first time in a while, he had connected with other Greek boys and he was very animated and excited. In the car on the way back home he looked so ... well, hot."
Stephan's voice got soft and he turned to look at me. There was real shame in his eyes as he admitted this to me.
"He had typical Greek, almost black eyes, and his mustache was a fuzzy strip above his lips. And his lips... when he smiled it made me... I dunno, man, gaga..."
"I didn't know what to do with what I was feeling. We stopped at a park because he said he wanted to talk to me about something. We went and sat on the swings and just talked about the match. He said he wanted to join the club if they stayed in Johannesburg. Then the conversation dried up. He looked very uncomfortable.
"After a while, he told me that he liked me. He said I had been kind to him when he was alone and then... and... and then he asked me if I wanted to fool around with him. I asked him what he meant by `fool around' and he put his hand on my leg and left it there. I could feel my dick start to get hard. He just smiled and said I knew what he means and did I want to. He slid his hand upwards until the side of his hand was rubbing against my hardon."
"Let me guess," I helped him out. "You said `yes', right?" Stephan smiled a guilty smile.
"Well, not immediately. I told him about uncle Stavros and me and I said that if there was something sexual it would only be a part of something that was more than sex. He said that was ok and, well..."
Stephan's Whatsapp went off and he looked at the screen.
"It's Nadine. She's coming."
"That's a relief!" I said. "I really hope we can sort this out without any mess or fuss. And if we can, I really must consider whether I want to carry on seeing Jamie... It's just too much of a risk!"
"Listen, Dee. I don't want to dictate to your conscience, but think what will happen to Jamie if you stop seeing him. He may not make it...!"
"Well, not stop seeing him, just stop having sex, maybe. It's possible to love and support somebody, but just maybe keep it to what Jo thinks we're doing anyway. You know, chat to him, be there for him?"
"If you think you can... Dmitri and I did `fool around' for a while, but then my conscience got the better of me too."
"What did you do? I mean, sexually...?" I asked, ashamed that I wanted the dirty details.
"What didn't we do? You would think that a fifteen-year-old would let me be the one fucking him all the time, but he had a huge dick--uncut--and I just had to let him fuck me." His voice went soft again.
"And boy, did he know how to use it.
"But as I said, I told him that we had to stop, but it never lasted. I couldn't stay away from him. Every time I tried he only had to smile at me and I was putty in his hands. Does that make me gay, Dee, or bi-sexual?"
"I don't know, Steph. Have you ever wanted to have sex with another man? I mean, you and I have quite the bromance going; Desie even jokes about it and I know Jo does too, but I've never wanted to have sex even with you."
"Me neither. I think to talk in terms of gay or straight or bisexual is too simplistic. Sexuality has as much to do with the situation and person, as with the gender, maybe more in some cases."
"I know what you mean. When I took Jamie to go paintballing the other day he wanted to know if I wanted to have sex with any of the other hot boys. I teased him and said `maybe'--and he got very upset about it--but I wasn't attracted to them. Just to him. Dunno what would happen if he wasn't around for that anymore."
"Well as you say, it might be irrelevant anyway, all depending on what Nadine wants to do. She may insist on spilling the beans, or she may even already have done it. Let's face one thing at a time. By the way, thanks, Dee, for being here for me to confess my secrets to. I feel like we're closer than ever. I've never shared this stuff with anybody, until now, especially the stuff about Dmitri."
"No worries, Bud..." and just then his Whatsapp went again.
"Ok, Show Time. She's here, and I just heard Jamie's scooter, so he's here too. Why don't you go and head him off so they don't see each other and I'll get her into my study? Meet us there. Let's hold thumbs this works out for the best, man."
We stood up and he grabbed me in a fierce hug.
"I love you, Bud," he said and I kissed him on the cheek.
"Thanks, me too."