Chapter 7
As was becoming routine, I arrived at Mike's apartment after school on Friday; the differences this time were that I was packed for two nights and I'd have a couple of extra boys to look after on Saturday night. Two of Mike's friends would be spending the night for his birthday; other than keeping them from getting too sugared up, I figured it would be an easy night since they'd keep each other busy. I had decided that it would be simpler if I just stayed the full day on Saturday rather than going back home and coming back. Plus, as Mike's mom had told me, he'd be excited to have me stay for the day and have birthday cake with them.
Since we'd be ordering pizza for dinner on Saturday night, Mike's mom had told me there were frozen meatballs that I could cook with spaghetti and sauce. With Mike on the couch watching TV, I put the water on to boil so that I could cook the noodles, put the meatballs in the oven, and poured the sauce into a pot to warm it up.
"Sooo? Are you excited about tomorrow?" I asked.
"Yeah", he said, "it's gonna be awesome and with you here it's even better."
"So what do you want to do tomorrow night for your birthday? Are we gonna play some games?"
"I don't know, I guess so. Jason said he's bringing something. He wouldn't say what, but he said we'd really, really like it."
"Okay, well I guess we'll be surprised then", I said, turning back to the kitchen to put the noodles in the boiling water.
We sat at the table when it was all done; Mike talked about the last couple of weeks at school. It reminded me that Randy had told me that I was supposed to tell Mike about him being sorry for what happened at the arcade. I had debated whether to tell him or not, but somehow it would've seemed unfair for me to hold that back.
"Hey, uhm, remember ... remember that day at the arcade? What happened?"
Mike nodded, "Yeah?"
"Well ... so this guy, uhm Randy, he uhm ...", I started.
"He didn't, y'know, punch you again, did he?" Mike asked with concern in his voice.
"What? No ... no, nothing like that ... he uhm, well actually he ... apologized", I said, "and he wanted me to tell you too, that he was sorry."
"He did?"
"Yeah, I mean, I ... I don't really know why, he's y'know, I mean he's never really been nice to me or anything."
"So", Mike thought for a moment, "are you guys friends now?"
"No ... I don't think so", I reflected, "I'm not really sure what it makes us."
"Well maybe ... maybe he really is sorry and you could be friends. Sometimes I have a fight with my friends and then we say we're sorry and then we're friends again."
"I don't know about that ... the thing is that you guys were already friends so when you were sorry, you could go back to being friends. Randy and I ... well, we were never really friends, y'know."
"But ... well, couldn't you be?" Mike asked innocently.
"I don't know Mike, I ... I guess anything's possible", I said, standing up to begin clearing the table.
I thought about what Mike had said as I brought the dishes into the kitchen. Would it really be possible to be friends with Randy after everything that had happened between us? And even if it were possible, would I want to be friends with him. The more I thought about it the more I realized that I really knew very little about him, but then again, why would I. The question that was really weighing on my mind now was why I had let someone whom I barely knew affect me so much. After I was done I joined Mike on the couch to watch some TV. I must've dozed off; when I awoke it was dark outside.
I looked at Mike, "What time is it?"
"It's almost 10pm sleepy head", Mike replied, "you've been asleep for hours."
"Oh, sorry", I said, "I didn't realize I was that tired. Not much of a babysit..., uhm sorry, anyway I guess I didn't earn my money tonight huh?"
"It's fine, I didn't burn the house down", Mike laughed.
"Hah, well that's good, I prefer waking up to not being on fire."
"Do I have to get ready for bed now?" Mike looked at me.
"Nah, it's your birthday tomorrow, so how about we stay up a little longer and watch a movie?"
"Really?" Mike said excitedly.
"You bet, buddy."
I went to the kitchen to grab a couple of drinks and some chips, and then settled back on the couch; Mike slid down to sit with me as we watched the movie. It was over at midnight and I suggested that it was time for us to go to bed.
While Mike went to the bathroom, I got changed into my pyjamas; Mike was finishing brushing his teeth when I went in to brush mine as well. He went to his bedroom while I peed, and I joined him there after flushing and washing my hands. As I walked in I saw Mike standing on the bunk bed ladder; I couldn't quite see what he was doing, but he appeared to have his hand under the pillow.
"What you doing Mike?" I said, startling him.
"I, uhm", he started as he hopped off the ladder, "nothing."
"Doesn't look like nothing to me", I said, walking over and reaching my hand under the pillow.
I knew immediately what Mike had pushed under my pillow; I had forgotten to take the briefs I had cum in the last time I'd slept here. I could feel myself starting to blush.
"You, uhm, well ... I guess you forgot them ... last time", Mike said.
"Oh, yeah, uhm, I must've, ah, thanks", I said, holding them in my hand and turning to face Mike.
"The ... they were sorta, uhm, wet", Mike said, causing me to blush harder, "but ... well, y'know, they uhm, didn't smell like pee or anything."
"Well I didn't ... wait, you ... you smelled them?"
It was Mike's turn to blush, "I ... well I ... y'know ... just wanted to know what it was. Was that uhm, cum?"
"Yeah", I admitted, "it was."
"Was it ... ah, y'know, did you have a wet dream?"
"Oh, uhm, no ... no, it wasn't a wet dream buddy."
"Sooo", Mike thought for a moment, "you mean ... you were uhm, beating off?"
Mike's question was very direct; I couldn't really see a way of talking my way around it, and besides, after all I'd told him about it being a normal thing for a boy to do, I shouldn't be embarrassed to admit that I had.
"Yeah Mike, I was beating off and uhm, well I used those briefs to ah, catch the cum so I wouldn't y'know, get it all over the sheets."
"Wow, you musta made a lot of it to get them that wet!"
"Hah, ah, yeah, I guess ha ha."
"I didn't make any yet", Mike said, looking slightly away from me.
"It'll happen, you'll see", I said, "so I guess uhm, that means you tried it. Beating off?"
Of course I already knew the answer, but I thought it'd be better if he admitted it rather than me telling him I'd see him do it that night.
"Yeah", Mike said quietly.
I tossed my briefs towards my bag and sat on the edge of his bed, "Hey buddy, come here a minute."
Mike came and sat next to me, "I just thought maybe, y'know, now that I'm turning 12."
"Hey listen, it's gonna happen, it just doesn't happen at exactly the same time for everyone, y'know? Like y'know, your friend Jason? You said he'd had a wet dream, right?"
"Yeah", Mike said, "and Kevin bragged that he'd made some too."
Kevin was one of Mike's other friends, it was he and Jason that were coming for Mike's birthday tomorrow and then staying over. Again I found it interesting that Mike and his friends seemed so open about sharing details of their puberty.
"Is that ... does it make you feel a little left behind maybe?"
"Yeah, kinda."
"Do they tease you about it?"
"No ... they just, y'know, they said how cool it was and all", he said, "and I just ... y'know, I wanna feel it too."
"I know buddy, you will, probably really soon, you'll see."
"You think so", Mike asked, looking right at me.
"Yeah, definitely."
Mike hugged me, "Thanks."
I hugged him back, "I love you buddy, you ready for bed now?"
"I love you too", Mike said, releasing me, "and yeah, I'm ready."
I stood up and walked over to the light switch, "Ready for lights out? When you wake up tomorrow, you'll be 12!"
Mike slid under his blanket, "Yup, ready."
I turned off the light, climbed into the upper bunk, and got comfortable. I liked that Mike was becoming so comfortable with me. I realized that I'd probably overthought the whole `how do I talk to him about puberty' thing. Now that the subject had been opened up, we could just let things come up naturally rather than me trying to turn it into a lecture of some sort.
"Martin?"
"Yeah?"
"Are ... are you gonna ... y'know", Mike paused and then added quietly, "beat off tonight?"
I guess I should've anticipated that question, but I hadn't so it caught me completely off-guard. Of course Mike already knew that I masturbated, he'd already asked me that when we had started talking about puberty. Strange that it was okay for me to acknowledge that I did, but a question of whether I was going to do it at a particular time seemed somehow more personal. Given that he knew I'd jacked off the last time I'd slept over, I figured it shouldn't be a big deal to answer his question.
"Well uhm, I ... I guess I might, yeah", I said, adding, "if I feel like it."
Mike was quiet for a minute, so I thought my answer had satisfied his curiosity.
"Martin?"
"Yes?"
"I, ah, ... well I was ... d'you think maybe ...", Mike trailed off.
"Maybe what", I asked, wondering why Mike seemed hesitant.
I heard Mike mumble something quietly, too quiet for me to hear properly, "What'd you say? I couldn't hear you."
Mike took a deep breath, "I ... could I maybe, uhm, y'know ... see you? Do it, I mean."
"Uhm, Mike ... are ... are you asking to ... to watch me beat off?"
"I'm sorry", Mike said quietly, "it's just ... well ... I thought maybe, well I could y'know, see if I'm ... doing it right? And ... well ... I, uh, wondered ... what it looked like, y'know, when the stuff comes out, your sperm stuff.",
"Oh wow, Mike", I said, "I don't know."
This was taking me into territory that I wasn't sure about. It's not like I hadn't masturbated with other guys before, but never with someone four years younger. And never with someone I was technically supposed to be babysitting. At the same time I couldn't help but feel my dick starting to get hard.
"Please? It's my birthday", Mike said with a pleading tone.
"Well technically it's not your birthday yet", I replied.
"C'mon, please?"
For some reason I had a hard time saying no to Mike; I knew this could be viewed as crossing a line. I also knew from things I'd read, that older brothers sometimes showed their younger brothers what to do. I thought about it for a moment longer, and without saying anything I let myself down from the top bunk and stood next to his. I could see Mike grinning by the dim light shining in from the street lamps outside.
"Move over", I said.
Mike moved towards the wall, "Could ... could you turn on the light? Just so I could, y'know ... see better?"
I walked over to the bedroom door and switched on the light; I turned to walk back towards the bunk. I was almost fully erect now and Mike didn't hide that he was openly staring at my stretched briefs. I pulled his sheets down and got into his bunk; I could see the front of his pyjamas were tented.
"Are ... are you sure you want to do this?" I asked, looking at him.
Mike was blushing, but I could also see the excitement in eyes, "Yeah."
"Are you going to do it too?"
I could see Mike's cheeks flushing even more, "Oh, uhm ..."
"It's fair if you're gonna see me do it, right? Plus you said you wanted to know if you're doing it right so ... that way I could tell you."
"Uhm, okay."
I hooked my thumbs into the waistband of my briefs and started pulling them down; Mike watched intently as first my bush of pubic hair came into view, then as the fabric of my underwear tugged my now fully hard cock down and finally as it came free and slapped back up to my belly.
"Woah", he said, "it's big! Way bigger than mine!"
"Well, I am a bit older than you and you're just starting to grow."
He watched as I wrapped my hand around the shaft and slowly pulled back the rest of my foreskin; the head was already glistening and there was some precum oozing from my piss slit.
"What's that?" He asked, sticking his hand out to point at the precum, nearly touching me.
"It's called precum ... it's uhm, this slippery stuff that comes out when you're excited."
"So ... it's not the sperm stuff?"
"No, that happens later", I said as I slowly gave myself a few strokes along my shaft and around the head, "... is this how you do it?"
"Kinda ... but, uhm, I don't move around the head like that."
"Well, why don't you try it now?"
"Oh, uhm, okay", he said, taking a deep breath before pushing down his pyjamas.
His comparatively small boner popped into view; it stuck straight up from his still hairless crotch and was capped by a perfectly pink mushroom head. He looked at me slightly bashfully, spit in his hand and began to stroke himself the way I was doing to myself.
"Like this?"
"Yeah, that's right", I said, "does it feel good?"
Mike giggled, "Yeah."
"Well ... as long as it feels good, then you're doing it right."
Mike continued to jack himself, occasionally pausing to spit into his hand; he was watching me closely as I slowly jacked myself. I'm not really sure why it mattered, but I wanted to go slow and take my time. Maybe I figured if I took my time it would make for a more dramatic ejaculation. For some reason I wanted to really impress Mike.
I asked, "Do you go until you get that really good feeling?"
"What d'you mean? It already feels good."
"Well, let's see ... it sort of like the feeling keeps building and building, sort of like this pressure starts building ... some guys when they start, they think that they're gonna pee or something, but you don't ... and then all of a sudden, it's like this best feeling ever."
"Wow, I uhm, I better keep going then."
"Yeah, me too", I said, and continued to slowly stroke myself.
We watched each other masturbate for the next few minutes. I couldn't help moaning a little as I felt myself building up to a big finish. Mike grunted next to me, "I ... oh, uhm, I ... I think it's ... I think it's happening nuhnn."
I watched as Mike's hand flew up and down his hard little prick and his body stiffened as he practically stopped breathing. He started breathing heavily as his body slowly released its tension. I looked, but it didn't appear that the tip of his dick was wet, although it was hard to tell with all the spit he'd used.
"That looked like it felt really good", I grinned over at him.
"Oh wow, I didn't know ... that was amazing."
I moaned as I felt myself getting close, "Ah fuck, get ready if you ... wanna ... see ..."
It was all I could get out before a small dribble of cum preceded a thick white rope of cum that gushed up and out onto my belly, and the next two volleyed up across my chest and almost to my shoulder. I kept groaning as I pumped and milked several smaller gushes out, and finally letting the last bit run down my shaft and into my pubes.
I let out a deep breath, "Oh fuck ... that was wild."
Mike's eyes were wide open, "Holy shit ... I ... oh man, I didn't think there'd be ... y'know, so much of it!"
I laughed a little, "Yeah, well ... that was a particularly good one. They're not all that big and well, just so you know, y'know, when it first happens to you, it'll probably just be a little bit. It uhm, well it takes a while before you start making more."
"Uhm, okay", Mike said with a bit of awe in his voice, "no wonder ... y'know, that your uhm, underwear was all wet."
"Yeah, ha ha, well ... speaking of which ... I uhm, damn, I should've kept them here to clean this up."
"I'll get'em for yah", Mike said, and scrambled over me, rubbing across my still hard dick in the process.
He just about fell as he got out of bed and made his way across the room, having forgotten that his pyjamas were still bunched up around his ankles. I couldn't help but look at his cute little ass as he bent over and pulled my old underwear out of my bag. He turned to come back, grinned and wiped his own dick with them before handing them to me.
"Thanks", I laughed, and started mopping up the streams of cum that had landed and puddled up and across my body.
Mike stood next to the bed and watched me as he pulled up his pyjamas. When I was done he held out his hand; I hadn't expected him to take them and put them back, but if he was offering I wasn't going to refuse. He took them and went over to my bag while I pulled up the briefs I had been wearing. I wasn't entirely sure, but it almost seemed as though Mike took a sniff of them, now that they were soaked with my fresh load; maybe he was comparing it to what they had smelled like the morning he found them forgotten under my pillow.
I got out of his bunk and stood up, "I gotta take a piss."
I went to the bathroom and stood at the toilet, letting a long stream splash into the water. I'd almost expected that I'd feel a bit weird about what I'd just done with Mike, but I actually felt good; I hoped that Mike felt the same and that we'd still feel good about it in the morning.
I returned to the room and saw that Mike had already climbed back into his bunk, "Ready for lights out now?"
"Yeah, but, uhm ...", he paused.
I was suddenly worried about what he'd say next.
"Could you uhm, well maybe could you y'know ... sleep down here with me?"
I smiled, "Sure buddy, I could do that."
I turned off the light and settled into the bunk next to Mike. He almost immediately snuggled himself back into me.
"Thanks Martin", he said, "that was ... y'know, cool and ... well, y'know, now I know about how it's supposed to feel."
"Yeah, good, it was cool", I said, laying my arm around him and holding him tight, "good night Mike, I love you."
"I love you too", Mike said sleepily.
It wasn't long before we were both asleep.
Mike was still asleep when I woke up the next morning; I got out of bed as quietly as I could so that I wouldn't wake him. I decided to shower before making breakfast, so I grabbed some clean underwear and a towel and headed to the bathroom. I get the hot water cascade over me; my thoughts drifted to last night, and I hoped Mike wouldn't feel awkward about what we'd done.
I rinsed, dried off and combed my hair, then headed back to the bedroom to finish getting dressed. I went to the kitchen to start making pancake batter for breakfast. I was nearly done when I heard the toilet flush.
"Hey", I heard a sleepy Mike say behind me.
I set down the bowl of batter, turned and lifted Mike into a bear hug and kissed him on the cheek, "Happy birthday Mike!"
Mike put his head on my shoulder and hugged me in return, "Thanks! I'm really glad you're here."
"Me too buddy, I wouldn't miss it", I said, "are you ready for some birthday pancakes?"
"I'm always ready for your pancakes", Mike said as I put him down.
"Great, why don't you go watch some TV and I'll get them ready. Sound okay?"
"Yup", Mike said as he walked to the living room.
I started cooking the pancakes and set the table; when everything was ready I called Mike to the table so that we could eat.
"So? Are you excited about your birthday party today?"
"Yeah, it's gonna be great", Mike said with a mouthful of pancake.
"So who's coming over? Jason, right?"
"Kevin and Jason", Mike said, "they're kinda my best friends."
"Cool. Jason is the one with the older brother, yeah? What was his name, Jake? I don't think you've mentioned Kevin before."
"Yeah, Jake is Jason's brother. Kevin's cool, he's a bit more quiet though, but you'll like him."
"I see, so Jason is the one I have to watch out for", I joked, "the troublemaker?"
Mike grinned, "Yeah, ha ha, but you'll like him too."
"I'm sure I will", I smiled.
When we were finished breakfast, I started clearing the table, "Hey, how about you go take a shower, okay?"
"Aww, do I have to? Now?"
"You don't wanna be all stinky for your birthday party, do you? Besides, now that you're 12 you're probably gonna find that you'll start smelling more, like in your pits and stuff so you should get used to having a shower everyday."
I laughed when I saw Mike lift his arm and sniff his own pit, "I don't think it smells bad."
I waved my hand in front of my nose, "Well, I didn't wanna say anything when I hugged you earlier, but ..."
Mike pretended to look hurt, "Hey ... it's my birthday, you have to be nice to me!"
"And you need to shower, it'll take you less time doing that than standing here and arguing with me", I said.
I realized with a start that I'd just sounded an awful lot like my mother telling me to shower; in fact, I'm sure she'd probably used to those very exact words with me at one point. Mike tried to give me a dirty look, but I could see him grin as he stomped off to the bathroom.
I was washing the dishes when I heard the door unlock and Mike's mom came in.
"Good morning Martin, I see you're already up."
"Good morning", I replied.
I noticed she was holding what looked a cake box in one hand so I went over to take it from her.
"Thanks Martin, if you wouldn't mind sticking that in the fridge for now. I picked it up on my way home."
"No problem", I said, doing as she'd asked.
She took off her shoes and coat, "I guess I'm too late for some of those great pancakes of yours?"
"Well, we've already eaten, but I saved you a few, they're keeping warm in the oven."
"Well aren't you just the sweetest", she said, then asked, "Where's Mike? Is that the shower I hear running?"
"Yup, told him he ought to be cleaned up for his guests this afternoon."
"Good lord, it's a miracle, you'll have to tell me what your secret is for getting him to listen to you. I swear that boy is deaf when I tell him to shower."
I laughed as I took the pancakes out of the oven and put them on plate for her, "Would you like syrup or maybe some strawberry jam?"
"Martin, you're spoiling me", she said, "maybe I should get you to teach Mike how to cook! And I'll take the jam please."
"I'll try to work on it", I said, putting the plate and jam on the table for her.
"So everything was good last night?" she asked.
"Great", I said, "as usual."
"Mike's been so excited all week about having his friends over today and of course you being here as well. It really means so much to him. I really appreciate it Martin, and not just today. Mike really looks forward to you coming over."
"Well", I said, feeling myself starting to blush at the praise, "I like coming over, Mike and I really get along."
"I'm so glad Martin", she said, finishing her pancakes, "and that was delicious! Thank you so much."
"You're welcome", I said, taking her plate to the kitchen and putting it in the sink.
"I can wash that later", I heard her say as she got up and followed me.
"It's alright, I still have water in the sink from the other dishes, it's no problem."
Just then Mike popped into the kitchen; apparently he hadn't heard his mother come in as he stood there stark naked. He froze and quickly covered himself with his hands when he saw her.
"For heavens sake Michael! You're like a wild beast sometimes I swear, I don't know how Martin puts up with you. Go put some clothes on!"
I could see Mike blush as he turned, his white little ass shaking as he ran to his room. Mike's mom and I both started to laugh. He returned a minute later wearing pants and a shirt.
"That's a little better", his mom said.
Mike squirmed a little as she hugged and kissed him to wish him a happy birthday; he looked at me, rolling his eyes and I mouthed `be nice' at him.
"You know", Mike's mom said while letting go of him, "pretty soon you're going to be starting to become a young man and you're not going to want me seeing you naked like that. But I just want you to know that you'll always be my little boy"
"Moooom", Mike said, turning ten shades of red, "oh my god, you better not say anything like that in front of my friends this afternoon."
By the smile on her face I was quite certain that she'd said that on purpose, "Sweetie, I'll say anything I want, just remember that! I'm going to lay down for a bit, but I'll be up a little later to setup the table and I've ordered the pizza to come for about 5:00. I'll be gone by then but of course I'll leave you the money for it."
Mike and I spent the next few hours watching TV and playing a few games. Mike's mom got up at 2:00 to set the table for birthday cake, and his friends showed up a short while later. I could hear the boys chattering noisily at the door as they came in and dumped their stuff in the hallway.
"This is Martin!" Mike grinned when he brought them into the living room to introduce me and then pointed at the boys in turn, "This is Jason and this is Kevin."
"Hi Jason, hi Kevin", I said.
"Hey", they said in unison.
They looked at me and then smiled at each other before turning to go to the dining room where Mike's mom had set out some drinks and chips. Jason was about the same height as Mike, but huskier, by at least 20 lbs I guessed; he had a blonde mop of hair, blue eyes and fair complexion. Kevin on the other hand was taller than either of the other two, but thin, almost as though he'd been stretched like taffy; his hair was brown and slightly curly, his eyes brown and his skin pale.
While the boys munched on the chips, Mike's mom called me to the kitchen, "Martin, could you come give me a hand please?"
She had set candles on the cake and was ready to light them.
"Would you mind taking a few pictures", she asked as she handed me a small camera.
"Yeah, no problem."
"Boys, could you sit down please, and I'll bring in the cake", she said as she lit the candles.
I positioned myself in the dining room so that I could capture as much of the scene that I could.
Mike's mom set the cake on the table, and had started singing happy birthday as she came in. The boys and I joined her, and even though Mike seemed slightly embarrassed by the attention, he was clearly enjoying the moment. He blew out the candles with one large breath and we all cheered.
After we ate our cake, the boys sat in the living room while I helped clear the table.
"Is it time for presents", we heard Mike ask from the living room.
His mom teased from the kitchen, "You mean you're getting something more than cake?"
"Yeah, it's my birthday!"
"Well I guess there might be some presents", she said as she disappeared to her bedroom.
I went to the bag I'd brought and took out the gift I'd gotten him; I followed Mike's mom to the living room where we put them on the coffee table.
"Happy birthday", she said and hugged him again.
I did the same, when the boys jumped up, "Oh yeah, we got you something too."
They returned with a couple of wrapped boxes and set them down next to the other ones. Mike was itching to open them, but waited until he got an unspoken signal from his mom.
He opened the ones from Jason and Kevin first; one was a new board game, and the other was a book. Mike thanked the boys and then opened his mother's gifts. The first couple were practical, a sweater and a new pair of pants.
Mike shouted excitedly as he opened the third larger, heavier box, "Oh my god, is that really a little TV? Look guys, it's my own TV! That's so cool!"
Mike gave his mom a big hug, "Thanks mom, that's sooo cool."
Mike's mom smiled, "Yeah, well, that way when I'm home we don't have to fight over what to watch anymore."
"Can we set it up?"
"Don't you want to open Martin's gift first?"
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot", he said as he started tearing the paper off.
"No fu... no way", Mike caught himself, "no way, you didn't!"
Jason asked, "What is it?"
"Oh man, look, it's an Atari!"
"Woah, you're so lucky", Jason said, and Kevin agreed.
Mike ran and practically knocked me over giving me a hug, "Wow Martin, thank you, I can't believe you got me a video game!"
"You're welcome buddy", I said, "we can hook it up to your TV so you can play in your room."
"Oh Martin, you shouldn't have spent so much money, that's too much really, you should just get something smaller", Mike's mom said.
Mike looked disappointedly at his mom, but I replied, "It's alright, I really want Mike to have it."
She asked, "Are you sure? That's really very, very generous of you. You shouldn't spend all your hard earned money like that."
"I don't mind, it's fine, really."
"Well, as long as you're sure, then I guess it's okay."
Mike whooped and gave his mom and I another hug, "This is the best birthday ever!"
"Alright Mike", his mom said, "I need to leave for work now. You remember to listen to what Martin says; that goes for all of you!"
"We will", the boys said.
"Can you hook up the TV and game?" Mike asked me.
"Sure thing", I said, and took the TV to his room.
We found a spot for it on the small dresser that was in his room; I connected the video console, turned everything on and put in the game that had come with console. I'd failed to notice that it only came with one controller, so the boys would have to take turns playing.
"I'll see about getting you another controller so you can play some head-to-head games too."
The game kept the boys busy and entertained for the remainder of the afternoon, taking a break only when the pizza I'd ordered had arrived.
"How about after we're done eating, we play the game that Jason got you; that way we can all play together", I said.
"Ok, that's cool", Mike replied.
After we finished the pizza, I cleared the table so that the boys could set up the game on the dining room table. I put the dishes in the sink; I figured I could just wash them later when the boys were getting ready for bed.
I was happy for Mike; he seemed to have a couple of good buddies in Jason and Kevin. I was also happy about how much Mike wanted to include me in his birthday and his life. I hadn't been especially popular when I was his age, so despite the obvious difference in our ages, it made me feel like one of the "guys".