This story is completely fictional. This is a love story between two high-school aged boys and their relationship, any relation to person's living or dead is coincidental. If the nature of the story offends you, or if you are under the legal age to view this content, I ask you not to read this. If you have any questions, comments or criticism, email me at loverboystory28@gmail.com.
The thing about Bobbie and I was that, unlike any of our friends, we were natural born troublemakers. We were `absent' more than we were in class, half the time because I hated French and Chemistry, the other times Bobbie just wanted to get out of PE and Math, sometimes we stayed up too late the night before and just slept through the first 3 periods. If the school ranked delinquents, we were the elite.
I wish I could say that Bobbie was rubbing off on me again, but that would be lying. I hated classes just as much as he did, and when it came to a Monday or an especially depressing Thursday, I chose comfort over an education. Bobbie was actually the one following my example, sometimes he would run to my house just after I woke up and we would waste the day away together. Those were some of my favorite times, making breakfast and watching Bobbie play videogames when he should have been learning.
Truth was I had just as much of a wild side as he did; he was just more careless about his actions. Like always, we had each other, and for all the sneaking out and rampant detentions, I think we bonded even more over our mutual independence from the law.
Today was definitely one of those days, I woke up rather groggily around 9:30, I would probably be in English right about now. Bobbie told me he was coming over as soon as he got dressed, but I figured there was not a rush, we would probably get to school around eleven as we always did anyways. I was feeling a silent tension in the air, and I wanted Bobbie at my side as we made another drastic step in our relationship.
Our friends had been supportive of us since the day we met, especially the time I came out to them, as far as friends went, I knew we picked some keepers. The problem was not the people; it was the environment we lived in that left me worried. Our high school, located at the very center of ultra-liberal Southern California, was one of the few catholic private schools in the region. It had hardly changed since the 50's, uniforms and prayer were the only thing most of the kids had in common, all of us were from different places, backgrounds and personalities, the Catholic Church just brought them together. Naturally, gay kids were allowed to attend school, but the homophobia was much more clandestine. Too oppressed by the religious stigma and too unpopular among the students, many gay kids and their loving families preferred not to poke the proverbial beehive.
"I'm not too proud or stubborn am I Jay?"
Bobbie showed up at my house a few minutes later, his uniform tossed carelessly in the back of his car as he stayed in what he slept in last night. We still had a few hours before we would leave for school, so we paused our schedule to lie on my bed, just talking.
"Well, when you're hung up on something, you tend to get a little..."
"...heated? My parents said the exact same thing"
Tilting over from our spooning position on the bed, I looked him in those teal eyes and tried to focus on the topic at hand.
"I wouldn't say that. Why were you talking about it?
"They said that us being together wouldn't go over so well with the school"
"Uhhh yah. Remember morality class?"
Our sophomore year we were forced to take a semester of a class called Religious Morality. We covered all the basic topics the Catholic Church wanted you to feel bad about; Bobbie joked that it was why your body was evil' class after our rather lengthy sermon on masturbation. Mr. Edwards, also the vice Principal and Dean of Discipline had made it perfectly clear that we were expecting a cold welcome when he described those homosexuals' as the embodiment of evil itself.
I almost left the class right there, cringing at every mention of the sex, drugs and debauchery that the collective gay community participated in every single day of their life outside of the eyes of God's good children; to say that it was hyperbole would be lying. We would have to bear our own crosses if our relationship ever reached the attention of the school at large.
"All I remember about sophomore year was how sexy your hair was short. You really need to cut it like that again"
Bobbie being Bobbie, grabbed my hand as I tried to pull it away and held it tighter, I was beginning to enjoy the feeling his body made whenever it was near mine.
"I agree with your parents. I know you, one unfunny joke and you would fight the entire football team for me"
"I'm not that heroic Jay; I would fight for us"
Bobbie looked over my shoulder at the clock that lay next to the bed, telling me to hurry up and get dressed or we would be late to school, or later than we already were.
"As lovely as it would be, I think we should take it easy today"
Being able to love openly would be a wondrous thing, but we were better off playing it safe. Remembering the impetus of the conversation as I slid my khaki shorts on, I told him through the door of my bathroom as he took a shower.
"Besides, I think you're adorable when you're angry"
Getting into Bobbie's car while he got dressed in my bedroom, I made sure to check him out as he walked out of my house; his khaki shorts a size too small from the initial sale freshman year. His shirt left hanging dangerously at his sides un-tucked and without a belt was the true sign of a rebel in a Catholic private school. We normally dressed the same whenever we went to school, him standing a few inches taller, ready to fight the man.
"I wonder how Kaitlyn's going to take it"
Kaitlyn was Bobbie's cousin and best friend since they were eight; she had been in love with the idea of both of us getting together before I even had the balls to tell her I was gay. If she had known about our little sabbatical over the weekend, I was positive she would die of excitement.
We pulled up to the school, Bobbie parking on one of the side streets instead of his designated spot in the student parking lot because we had, once again, ended up coming to school 3 hours late.
"I'll see you in Anatomy Class Monkey"
On our day together Sunday, we came up with little nicknames for each other, so we would always have a more personal way of speaking than just James and Bobbie, everyone called us that, what we needed was like a code that only we understood. My little name for him was Monkey, because on those weekends when he did not clean his room or shave, he was like a wild animal. He was mad at first, but he laughed it off as he became more used to it.
His was a little more sentimental, when everyone would call me Jamie or James; it was an odd occurrence for someone to call me Jay. Even my close friends called me Jamie, but Bobbie wanted to set himself apart, so he began calling me Jay freshman year. It was something only Bobbie would say; it was only something Bobbie could say, because no one could have the amount of love and longing that he inflected when he said it. "Love you Jay"
I walked into my 4th period math class several minutes after the bell, and though I was fairly smart, I drew the line at trigonometry. Thankfully, all I got was an off-hand comment about being late from my math teacher as I strolled in. I assumed he was not aware I spent half the school day at my house, fighting with my boyfriend over the last remnants of our breakfast. I slept through the lesson and woke up at the sound of the bell telling me it was 5th Period.
5th Period was Anatomy and Physiology, taught by the greatest teacher in the world. Mrs. Reyes was an older woman, around forty at least who always loved to talk about her kids. With the weather cooling down and cold season rearing up, she was stuck managing appointments and trips to the pharmacy for her sick kids. She left the room to make a call to her daughter about picking up the medication for her sons, leaving us in the room while she took the call just outside the door.
Mrs. Reyes, the most laidback of all the teachers at the school, let us pick our seats at the beginning of the year so we could get better acquainted with each other, naturally, I chose the seat next to Bobbie. Despite his grades and his attitude, he was a whiz at Biology, and we always got A's because he knew, with that darling smile and those devilish eyes, I would hang on his every word. I watched him doodle on his paper, which he slid under his arm towards me so I could read it.
Hey Jay ;)' was written on the top of the paper, drawn large and wide across the length of the sheet, next to it was a large heart that was filled in with red pen. At the bottom of the page, he put a simple box that had a yes and no on it, next to that it read Do you think that Bobbie is cute?"
Laughing quietly enough for only us to hear, I checked a big mark next to the yes and handed it back to him.
He smiled and took the paper, folded it and placed it in his backpack. Grabbing another sheet, he drew another doddle on the paper, one of them was a rather nice looking boy, the other drawn much taller, and much more of his face and hair were defined, the doodle's hair styled the same way that Bobbie did his every day.
Taking the note from him, I drew a big heart around the two of us and wrote `James Alan Forrester loves Robert Thomas McAdams' and put on the front of my binder. Mrs. Reyes returned to the classroom not long after, telling us about how both her sons got sick before quickly jumping into the circulatory system.
By the end of 5th period, it was lunchtime, and while Bobbie went to go deposit his books in the locker, I waited for him at our usual table just outside of the quad. Soon enough my boyfriend arrived with his cousin in tow; in one hand he held a turkey sandwich, and in the other a chip bag up to his wrist. He sat down next to me, flashing a contented smile as he kissed me on the cheek; the boy had guts.
"Sorry Jay, she forced it out of me"
"I was wondering when the two of you would get together, Bobbie wouldn't have said anything until you guys were fifty Jamie"
Kaitlyn was far from the catholic schoolgirl that people expected her to be. A senior, cheerleader and a member of the dance team, she was still one of the nicest people I knew. She had frankness to her that other girls could not stand; she refused to allow any of the girls on the cheer team to bully and antagonize her. For all her strength, she was belied by her appearance, she was a tiny girl with a skinny frame; she had a much worse bark than her bite. Bobbie and Kaitlyn were as close to brother and sister anyone could get, I had learned to fear her before I learned to love her.
"Hey, why the hell does everyone think I'm some mute? Some of us don't talk as much as you do."
"Laugh it up Bobbie, it wont be funny when I knock you on your ass"
Bobbie had an innate fear of his older cousin since he was little, ever since she `accidently' knocked him off his bike while they were playing. He still had the scar on his arm where he hit the ground. When it came to his cousin, Bobbie would always fold. Without him saying another word, she continued.
"You guys weren't at school in the morning, stay at home again?"
"Yup, Bobbie couldn't keep his hands off me, huh Monkey?"
I was shocked at the ease I let our personal life slip out of my mouth, perhaps it because I was surrounded by my two closest friends. Considering how tense the two of us were after our little moment in the back seat of Bobbie's car, maybe it was not the smartest idea to tease my boyfriend. He took it better than expected, producing a slight shade of pink across the bridge from his nose to his cheeks at the thought of something, of what I could not be sure. I smiled at him, hoping to fix the situation, and he replied by beaming with the same caring smile.
Kaitlyn noticed our silence, piecing parts of it together, she giggled to herself, bringing her face into a more calm, loving expression. She knew when to tease and when to be nice to her cousin. "I'm really happy for you guys, I know you'll make Bobbie really happy; how did Mom and Dad take it?"
"They love Jay more than me, so it's all good right now"
Kaitlyn turned to me next, asking if my parents were okay with our relationship. Before I even had the time to say anything, Bobbie answered for me, thank the world for his quick wit.
"Jay said he would tell them soon, but whenever he's ready"
Kaitlyn took a second to process it, and then continued.
"I'm glad you guys have so much support, it's not like you'll get any around here..."
A large portion of the staff at the school, many of them older men and women, who previously worked for the clergy, were at the center of the conservative teaching at the school. Some of the kids, mostly from highly religious and bigoted families were exactly the same way. The school provided a healthy breeding ground for homophobia, but so long as it did not show, they were golden.
"Don't worry Kait. So long as we don't piss off the wrong people, there isn't shit they can do about it."
Noticing the obvious lack of people at our table, I asked Kaitlyn what was up.
"Well, Amy and Marcy are eating with their other friends today, and Cook, Raymond and Todd are sick, so it's just us."
Taking the last few minutes of our lunch to talk about all sorts of things, we wound down the end of the thirty-minute lunch break discussing something or rather before going to class. Bobbie and I went our separate ways, him at one side of the school and I on the other. I found my English class a little earlier than usual, waiting for the bell to ring before I went inside. I could barely keep myself awake in English class most of the time, and today was no exception. I frequently drifted in and out of a dreamy daze until the bell rang, meeting Bobbie at the center of the quad, we walked together to my religion class.
Extending a helpful hand to him, I took some of his books off the load of three or so heavy texts he had yet to leave in his locker. I never brought my books to class, usually borrowing Bobbie's when I needed them, so it was the least I could do for my boyfriend.
"Hey Jay, listen to this sick new song..."
Bobbie pulled his earphones out of his pocket, as we entered the building my class was in, he started the song. It was not that new, but I had to admit that Bobbie always knew what I liked, a song called `Everybody Talks' by Neon Trees. I had listened to it before, but never knew the name of it, noting the sound and the lyrics of the song, we could definitely relate to the song.
We stopped in front of the classroom door, my religion teacher watching us clearly from the window on the door. Quickly pulling off the earphones, I shut Bobbie's iPod off with as much haste as I could find, hoping not to get it taken away. Handing the books and iPod to Bobbie, I turned to face him was only met by his chest; Bobbie had pulled me into a hug, wrapping his arms around me, I nearly melted at the sudden intimacy between us. He moved his lips closer to my ear, talking only loud enough for the two of us to hear.
"You know how I said we should play it safe and keep it a secret?"
Completely enamored with the warmth of his breath in my ear, I could feel the world change around me. I knew what Bobbie was going to do, but I felt like I was a million miles away from reality to stop him.
"Fuck that"
Moving his face against mine, he pulled me into the deepest, longest kiss yet, holding my face as he passionately lost himself in the moment. We kissed for what seemed like hours, oblivious to the sounds and feelings of the dozens of students walking into class around us. We were rebels before, but with the ultimate offense to the school still held on our lips, we were revolutionaries and our love was on the line.
Notes: Thanks again for the people that wrote in to me, I appreciate it. I really wanted people to have a more dramatic angle beside all the romantic moments; based on personal experience, a kiss between two boys does not go over well at a catholic school. The results of their decisions are very important to the story because an event like this is going to have legitimate consequences. I also want to give a shout-out to my buddy Mark and the ending to one of my favorite stories in the high school section `Backdoor Slider'.