Jamie Lawrence - Chapter Four
Warning
This story contains graphic description of sex acts betweens members of the same sex. If accessing material such as this is illegal in your country/province/state, please do not continue reading.
The characters contained within this story are entirely fictional and should be taken as such. Any resemblance to any person(s) living or dead is entirely coincidental.
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For the American readers amongst you; This story is set in England. The use of the word "Football" refers to what you would call soccer.
Jamie Lawrence - Chapter Four
Jamie was leaving his final exam twelve days later when he felt a hand on his elbow. He spun around, his shoes squaking on the cheap vinyl flooring. Completing his spin, he came face to face with Shane.
Jamie had been dodging his calls and avoiding him in school ever since he had left the coffee house. He had accidentally answered Shane's first call having previously deleted Shane's number and unfortunately he hadn't recognised it when it appeared on his phone's display.
"Why won't you answer my calls?" asked Shane, his eyes burning.
Jamie rolled his eyes. "Gee, I wonder!" His voice dripped sarcasm.
"Seriously, Jamie. What would you have had me do? Come out there and then? To Darren of all people?" Jamie was watching Shane's hand out of the corner of his eye. Every few seconds, it would move forward as if to touch Jamie's arm, face or maybe something more intimate. Then, sensing the presence of the students milling around them, it would return to his side.
"I want you to stop resisting the urge to touch me!" Jamie took a step toward Shane so that they were almost nose to nose. "You remember what it was like to touch me, don't you?" The people around them, excited by the end of term, paid them no heed and carried on ignorant. Jamie reached forward and gently carressed Shane's hand. "The touch of my skin? The heat of my breath on your lip?" he said, his tone seductive.
Shane shuddered with anticipation. Then he looked quickly around himself. "Jamie, please. Not here."
Jamie stepped away, a wry smile on his face. "And there's the reason I won't answer your calls. I want to come out of the closet. Not bury myself deeper in it." He turned on his heel and walked away.
Tears stung at Jamie's eyes. Not with the ferocity they had after the coffee bar, but enough the he quickened his pace to reach Matthew all the sooner.
Matthew was waiting at the school gates, standing by his mother's car. "Hurry up, Midget. My mum hasn't got all day." As Jamie approached, Matthew noticed his red eyes. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. I just ran into He Who Shall Not Be Named is all."
Matthew's mother drove them to a tailor's shop near the city centre so that they could rent tuxedos for the Prom. It was a small place, receiving next to no business, but both Jamie and Matthew's families had been patrons for years. Generally they had their clothes tailor mad here, but as Prom clothing would never be worn again, renting seemed more sensible. The store was owned by two fifty-something Italian men who had never indicated an interest in women.
Having grown up with Signor Silvestri dressing him for almost every significant occasion in his life, Jamie had forged a relationship with the black haired man. Signor Silvestri always had some sage advice to offer, whether warranted or not.
As he shifted about on his knees checking Jamie's legs, he piped up.
"Master James, I sense problem with you, si?"
Jamie smiled to himself. Signor Silvestri always knew. "Si, signor," he said in his best imitation of an Italian accent. "But I'd rather not talk about it just now."
"What is it you English say? A sharing problem is halfing problem?"
"A problem shared is a problem halved," Jamie corrected. "Perhaps another time Signor."
Signor Silvestri rose wielding his tape measure. "Master James, you grow an inch." He said it matter-of-factly, but it stalled Jamie for a moment.
"Holy shit. I grew an inch," he said, turning to face Matthew who was sitting by the window messing with his phone.
Matthew looked up for the first time since they entered the store, looked at Jamie's legs and said "Are you seriously wearing bright pink socks?"
"Yes, now would you please focus on the matter at hand?"
"Your chicken legs are stretching."
"What's with the mood?"
Right then, Signor Silvestri came bustling back over carrying a pair of trousers. "No problems! You grow an inch, I have trouser an inch longer!"
"Grazie." Jamie took the plain black trousers and pulled them on. "Matty, what's with the mood? Is it because Sam's on holiday?"
"Kind of. It's not important. My turn for clothes." He stood up, picked Jamie up beneath his arms and moved him away from the mirrors.
"Hey, now that I'm taller, you know what that means?" Matthew shrugged. "Shopping trip! I need a whole new wardrobe to go with my new height!"
"You're incorrigible."
"I know, but you wouldn't have me any other way, would you?" Jamie didn't see Matthew's wry smile.
Jamie was relieved when the last day before Prom rolled around. Since Matthew had mentioned that his roots were beginning to show, he had become increasinly paranoid about them, often donning a beanie to cover them up. He had considered giving up waiting for Sam, but had been waiting for the opportunity to hang around with Sam for three weeks.
Since the night at the cinema, he hadn't spoken to Sam. He had rung her phone three days later and heard her outgoing message. 'Hi, it's Sam. I'm on my hols at the moment. I'll be back in three weeks. And if this is Jamie, I haven't forgotten about our date.'
Jamie was now standing outside Julia's Salon watching a bronze goddess strut up to him. "You look amazing Sam!" As soon as she reached him she hugged him, once again placing his face firmly in her chest.
"You don't look to bad yourself! It's so good to see you Titch. How's everything?"
"Oh, you mean the whole Shane thing."
She looked momentarily confused, but recovered herself quickly and nodded.
"I'll tell you inside." They wandered into the salon and were greeted by the owner, Julia.
"Hello, sweeties. You're over here with me and Timmy." She led them over to the back of the store where they wouldn't be interrupted. Jamie didn't feel awkward talking about personal stuff around Julia and Timmy because he'd known the pair for years, so he immediately started recounting the last few weeks for Sam.
"...next thing I hear, he's got a girlfriend!"
"Really? Who?"
"Jenny Jones. That girl with the big teeth who you got in a fight with last year. She's not exactly the nicest person in the world, but she doesn't deserve to be used like this. He's clearly only using her as a cover for his parents' sake."
"Is he taking her to your Prom?" Sam asked, her head tipped back. Timmy was massaging her hair into a lather.
"I think so. It's not like I care."
"Oh contraire, Titch. I think you really do care. What do you think Jules?"
Julia had been listened intently to the whole story, humming softly when Jamie got to a sex part. Timmy had been tenting in his jeans for a while.
"Well, the way you talk about him, you are clearly invested. I think you may still have some feelings for the boy." Timmy nodded his agreement. "There again, I could be wrong. I used to think you were in love with your Matthew. You talked about him the same way, but I was wrong on that score, wasn't I?" Julia started rinsing Jamie's hair out.
"He's not MY Matty, though. He's Sam's." Sam just smiled.
It wasn't often that Timmy said anything, unlike all other hairdressers, but when he did, you could always tell that it was well thought out and probably right on the mark. He cleared his throat.
"Shane tried to apologise to you and you shot him down. He's probably started thinking that he's not worth your attention and figured that the best thing to do is try to make everyone else happy." He finished rinsing Sam's hair out and reached for the hairdryer. "I think you should have thrown him a bone. You remember how scary it is to come out, don't you?" With that, he switched on the hairdryer, making further comment impossible.
Jamie sat there, listening to the rushing air and the rushing thoughts Timmy had just planted in his mind. He didn't notice Sam furiously texting.
Jamie was in the bathroom of his home checking his hair in the mirror. He was just buttoning up his ruffled shirt when he heard the doorbell ring.
"Mum! Can you get that? It'll be Matty!" He rearranged his underwear before tucking his shirt in.
He could hear his mother greeting Matthew downstairs, telling him how handsome he looked. Jamie pulled on his tuxedo jacket and bolted down the stairs.
"Hey Midget," said Matthew, standing in the doorway with his hands behind his back.
"Wow, Mum was right. You do look handsome."
Jamie's mother excused herself to grab the camera leaving the two boys alone. Matthew brought his hands out in front of himself to reveal a blue corsage, the exact shade of Jamie's eyes. "You have no idea how long it took me to find a corsage. Must just be an American thing."
Jamie was looking at it with a mixture of mirth and giddiness. He had always loved this particular American custom and had mentioned it to Matthew once or twice. Matthew had clearly been paying attention.
"That's so sweet. And so incredibly gay of you." Jamie winked at the much larger boy.
"Don't make me give you another nuggie," Matthew admonished.
"I just did my hair. You wouldn't dare." Jamie's mother returned and told them to pose for a few photos. She had one of them side by side, one with Jamie in front of Matthew, and one as they were stepping out the door towards the small limo Matthew had rented.
"It's only taking us there. We can taxi it back."
The limo drove them into Manchester City Centre and dropped them of in front of the Britannia hotel where fifteen other limousines were milling around. The school had rented the spacious funtion room on the ground floor, but were forcing the students to queue just outside it.
As each person reached the front of the queue, the boys were asked to turn out their pockets and the girls had their bags searched, all in an effort to stop alcohol being smuggled in. Unfortunately for the school, they weren't allowed to actually touch the students.
Matthew and Jamie were admitted having turned out their pockets, and headed straight for the restroom just off the function room. They ducked into a stall together and both undid their trousers.
Matthew watched as Jamie dropped his trousers to the ground and said "Damn, I wish I'd have thought of that."
"What?" asked Jamie, reaching down.
"Shaving. Pulling the duct tape off my hairy leg is gonna be a bitch."
"You didn't shave before you taped the bottle on? Idiot." Jamie pulled the tape easily away from his fresh shaved leg and waved the half bottle of vodka before Matthew's eyes. He did up his trousers and watched Matthew slowly trying to unstick his own bottle as each hair tried to come away with the duct tape.
Finally free, they each stuffed their bottles in a pocket and headed for the bar to order cokes. Accepting his drink, Jamie turned and examined the room while Matthew dumped vodka in his coke.
The Britannia hotel was an old building, as displayed by the crumbling paint and dated wallpaper. The Prom organisers had done some good work however. The typical balloons were hung with photgraphs taken throughout the year. Many of them featured Matthew as he was on most of the sports teams. Everywhere Jamie looked, Matthew's goofy grin was flashing at him.
The only groups Jamie had ever been a member of were the orchestra and a folk music group several years before that. He didn't like to admit that he was a member of the orchestra, but being the first violin generally got him some press. Sure enough, there was one of him holding his violin to his chin at last year's Christmas Concert.
Along the farthest wall, a buffet had been set up with all the traditional buffet foods. Jamie knew Matthew would be back and forth all night as he loved cocktail sausages.
Jamie selected a seat close to the bar and chugged half of his drink, wincing at the amound of vodka he had added. He watched the rest of his year enter the hall and before he knew it, he was watching Shane strut across the room with Jenny on his arm.
She had a massive grin on her face, her massive teeth on full display, like she thought that Shane was some kind of prize. He however, looked slightly pained, which amused Jamie. Although he had taken on board what Timmy had told him, he still held some resentment for the boy.
The Headmistress stood up with a microphone in her hand and waited for silence. "Good Evening, class of 2012! Are we all well?" Everyone cheered. "Good. It's been a good five years, hasn't it?" Another cheer. "I remember seeing you lot turn up at my door that first day. That was back when you were all cute and nice." A little laughed followed that remark. "I know that all of you are desperate to get on with your lives and become adults, but remember the saying that your school days are the best of your life.
"You may never see some of the people in this room again. Take some time and say goodbye to them. Make amends if they're needed." Jamie shifted uncomfortably at that last remark. "And if there's someone you've been meaning to..." She mimed dancing; "Then tonight is your last chance!
"Now remember, no damage to the building. No drinking, and if you want to smoke, do it outside and out of sight of the teachers! Besides that, have some fun! This year's song is 'Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now, which we'll play at the end of the night, and I want to see you all dancing to that one!" She relinquished the mic to the DJ and shufffled over to the bar and Jamie.
"Ah, James and Matthew. Never just one of you, is it?" she asked.
"No, Miss Dervin."
"Oh please. Tonight, it's Theresa." She eyed Jamie's thigh, where the bottle of vodka was clearly outlined. She then turned back to the bar. "I'll take a white wine, and two more cokes for the lads here."
She handed them their new drinks and just said "Don't overdo it. You may be my favourite students, but that doesn't mean I'll ruin my school's reputation for you." She kissed each boy on the cheek and meandered over to where the other teachers were sitting.
"See, it pays to be teacher's pet." Matthew surreptitiously added a measure of vodka to his new drink.
The Prom proceeded as most Proms do. People talked and ate and danced. Friends cajoled and once a fight almost erupted until a teacher intervened. About an hour and a half in, Matthew returned from the bar to find Jamie staring and squinting at Shane who was dancing with Jenny.
"Why are you staring at him?" he slurred.
"Im trying to make his head explode," said Jamie, not breaking his stare. Matthew chuckled and took a long drink. Jamie had long since exhausted his vodka, but wasn't bothered by that. He had had his fill.
The song changed to the theme from Dirty Dancing. Matthew, clearly bored of sitting around, and probably feeling reckles due to the vodka, stood up. He put his hand out to Jamie and said "Nobody puts Jamie in the corner."
Jamie laughed hysterically at that before taking Matthew's hand and allowing him to lead him over to the dance floor. Matthew's family had had him take a few dancing lessons before his cousins wedding the year before, knowing how bad he was at it. He had only had four lessons before his natural proficiency at everything he tried took away the need for any more.
He spun Jamie and brought him into his arms before taking him around the floor a little. It didn't take long for a few of the people around them to notice, but by and large they were simply impressed at Matthew's skills. All Jamie had to do was follow his lead. Jamie realised that dancing together like this would likely out him to the school, but he didn't really mind.
Every now and again, Jamie would spot Shane watching, the look on his face changing every time. First it looked like jealousy, then hurt, then confusion. Jamie stopped trying to guess what he was feeling when Matthew whispered in his ear "Do you want to try the lift? The one from the film."
Jamie's heart did a leap. He had never been good at dancing, and now Matthew wanted him to try something very difficult that could involve injury. He must have noted the fear on Jamie's face.
"All you have to do is make the jump, and I'll compensate for your motion. I've done it with Sam before."
The song was building to the climax. Jamie was running out of time. He backed away from Matthew and readied himself. Matthew addressed the people watching them. "Brace yourselves, guys. We've never tried this before." A few people laughed nervously and the area immediately behind Matthew cleared.
Jamie ran, dipped his knees as Matthew grabbed his hips. He jumped. He felt Matthew's arms tense beneath him and he was in the air. For a moment he thought he'd over shot it, but Matthew cheered and turned on the spot, turning Jamie along with him. The people around them cheered and applauded, although a few people could be heard saying the word 'faggots'. A few of the teachers visibly relaxed. As Matthew brought Jamie down, Shane bolted to the toilets. Back on the ground, Jamie gave Matthew a hug and said "There's something I have to do."
Matthew followed Jamie's eyes to Shane entering the toilets and shrugged before offering his hand to a nearby girl named Claire. Jamie headed for the toilets.
As he entered, he saw Shane standing in front of the mirrors, simply staring at his own reflection, his fingers clutching the sides of a sink so tight they were white.
He saw Jamie and said "That was quite a performance. Was it for my benefit?"
Jamie sighed. "I'm sorry that I was so mean to you when you wanted to apologise. I was still hurt. Can you forgive me?"
"There's nothing to forgive. You were right, I was a coward. I did want you. I still do." He turned from the mirror and looked at Jamie. "I'm so sorry. I fucked everything up."
"You're forgiven." Jamie smiled and walked over to give Shane a hug. Shane made as if to kiss Jamie, but Jamie put a finger on his lips. "I've forgiven you, but nothing's changed. I think I just came out of the closet to the whole school with that little dance out there. Now that I'm out, I don't want to go back in. Not for anyone's sake."
"I can't come out; not yet," he said, a catch in his throat.
"Then all I can be is your friend." Jamie hugged him again. The door behind them opened and closed. Jamie looked around to see who had come in. Standing there, looking at them with hatred in his eyes was Darren the Dumpster.
"I fuckin' knew it! Fags! Your dad'll love this, Carter."
Jamie turned to deliver a scathing retort but stopped short when he heard Shane beat him to it.
"In case you've forgotten, Shit-for-brains, last month you asked- nay begged me to 'help you out' after Sarah dumped you."
"I dunno wha' you're talkin' 'bout!" he said, although his eyes showed some concern.
Shane started to speak in a rather accurate imitation of Dumspter's voice. "'I promise I won't tell anyone. It won't be gay 'cos there's no kissin'..."
Jamie was desperately trying not to laugh.
"Then there's the other thing. Is that a slight nosebleed on you?" Shane asked sarcastically. "I wonder how your father would react if he found out that his favourite son was a blowhead?"
Dumpster looked terrified. "You can't." His voice trailed away.
"I won't, unless my father somehow finds out that I am- what was it you called me? A faggot? He only finds out when I'm ready."
"Okay, okay. Your secret's safe." Jamie noticed that Dumspter had stopped using the exaggerated accent that annoyed him so much. It confirmed Jamie's suspicion that it was an affectation.
"Thank you. So is yours. Come on Jamie." Shane took Jamie's hand and dragged him back out to the Prom. Jamie did not miss the fact that as soon as they were back in view of the party, Shane released his hand.
As they entered, Jamie scanned around for Matthew and found him still dancing and laughing with some of his Football friends. Shane led him over to where the chocolate cake was, gave him a slice and took one for himself before heading for seats by the wall.
They sat for a while, chatting about nothing in particular in the way that friends do, and Jamie felt that it could work as just that; a friendship.
The DJ came over the mic. "And now, ladies and gentlemen, your Prom song of 2012."
He released the record and "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" started to play. The boys and girls started to pair off and slow dance together. Shane watched them for a few moments, his leg bouncing up and down until he jumped to his feet, frightening Jamie as he did.
"Fuck it!" was all he said before he took Jamie's hand and dragged him to the dance floor. He started to slow dance with Jamie, their bodies pressed tightly together. Jamie was uncertain about this. He felt like Shane was trying to cheat his way out of the newly imposed 'friends rule'. Regardless, he rested his head on Shane's collar bone and closed his eyes. The fact of the matter was that Jamie still liked Shane a lot, and it was hard for him to refuse this closeness.
The two ignored the stares. Jamie had already had similar attention tonight with Matthew and didn't care. As the song built to it's final crescendo and then started to trail off, Shane spoke up.
"Jamie?"
"Mmm?"
"Kiss me. Right here and now, in front of everyone."
Jamie's head snapped up, his eyebrows arched. "Are you sure?"
Shane nodded and bent down a little. As their lips touched, Jamie felt the world evaporate once again. For a full thrity seconds, all that there was in Jamie's universe were four lips, writhing against each other. Neither sought dominance over the other. Instead they found a balance in the kiss that promised Jamie that it could go on forever.
Shane was the one to break the kiss, somewhat reluctantly. He rested his forehead against Jamie's, his eyes still closed. "You've gotten taller."
Jamie giggled. "Yeah, I've grown an inch."
Shane pulled Jamie's body into his own so that Jamie could feel his erect penis. "I've grown a couple of inches too."
Jamie felt his breath catch and his own dick respond. "Taxi rank?" Jamie said, more than a little breathlessly.
Shane's eyes brightened as he nodded. Both boys darted for the exit, leaving behind them one hundred pairs of staring eyes and a very annoyed Jenny Jones.
I hope you enjoyed this. This chapter is my favourite so far.
Any comments, questions, or even suggestions are welcome. Please feel free to email me with your thoughts at thebobbyfish@gmail.com
Keep an eye out for Chapter Five!