New Horizons

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This story contains descriptions of consensual sexual contact between males, adult and minor. As such it is homoerotic, designed for the entertainment of mature adults. If you are not of legal age to read such material, or if the subject matter would create irresolvable personal moral dilemmas, please exit now

Chapter Seventeen: New Horizons

Daniel was sitting in his office enjoying a rare moment of solitude when Michael and Barry walked in. Barry brought a cup of coffee for himself and one for Daniel. The three men are shooting the breeze when Roger and two other members of the review board knock on the door.

"Mr. Dan'l, can we speak with you for a minute?"

"Sure, fellas, come on in." Why should Daniel expect to get more than a moment of solitude?

"Sir, it's about Evan. Last week when we did his review we gave him a choice of giving him his proper name back or removing the collar. As a reward for how well he did in Tallahassee, he got a pass on his regular swats for last week and this week. Well, after last week's review we had asked about how he was doin' with the psychologist. We thought if he was doin' good we could stop the swats and close his file. We think the question we have now may also have to do with his talkin' to the psychologist."

"What's the question?" Daniel is trying to find out exactly what it is the boys are after.

"Sir, we talked about it and wondered if by leavin' the collar on Evan, he might be using that as a crutch. You know ^Å maybe he's doin' what he supposed to 'cause the board said he had to and the collar is a reminder ^Å I'm not sure how to say it ^Å like, a reminder that someone else has control over him and he must do what they say. That's the way it was with him. We're tryin' to help him take control of himself and don't want him usin' us as a crutch. If we wanted to punish him, we know a lot better way than the swats and collar."

"Oh, and what kind of punishment would that be?" The boys have Daniel curious.

"Tell him he can't go near TJ."

Daniel and Michael almost choked on their coffee. All three men were laughing so hard they couldn't talk. Barry didn't choke on his coffee, but he spilled some down the front of his clothes.

"Mr Barry, dress like us and you don't have to worry about messin' up clothes. Just make sure you don't burn anything."

Roger's comment to Barry did nothing to calm things down. Michael motioned for the boys to stop, he wanted to ask them something as soon as he got a breath.

"Boys, we heard the rumors about Evan and TJ. We have a question: who's doin' who?"

The boys look at one another and grin before answering. "Well, sir, both are doin' both from what we hear. You'd think it was TJ toppin' Evan, but we hear it's about equal. Funny thing, Evan was always there for somebody else's pleasure and TJ never volunteered to bottom, except of course for the television thing yesterday. TJ's been fucked plenty of times, but that was 'cause he had to for food. We hear he'll just roll right on over for Evan though. That's why we think takin' TJ away is good punishment for Evan."

Daniel laughed so hard he had tears flowing, but seeing the boys enlarge couldn't help but pick on them. "Boys, don't look now but all this talk must be getting' to you too. All three of you seem to have grown some in the past couple minutes."

Finally, Michael recovered enough to show some sympathy to the boys.

"Guys, Evan is with the psychologist now. When they finish I'll pass on your concerns and let you know what he says."

"Thank you, Dr. Mike."

The boys left Daniel's office. As soon as they were out the door the men, watching through a window, saw them break out into laughter themselves and start a little grab assing. Each pointing to the enlarging dick of the other.

Daniel sat back in his chair feeling more relaxed than he had in two or three days. They all had a good laugh. What TJ and Evan were doing was not the concern. The big concern was realizing how close Kyle is to TJ, Daniel wants to be sure the young boy doesn't get hurt.

"Michael, I'll have to talk to TJ to be sure Kyle doesn't get hurt through all this, but there is another concern. Have you been able to determine what will happen with TJ's injured kidney?"

"Daniel, there's little we can do about the kidney. Nature will allow it to heal either in part or fully, or it won't. He can still have a normal life with one kidney. I do still run a urinalysis on him periodically to be sure the kidneys are filtering the way they should. Right now, I think he has some function with the damaged kidney, time will tell us the rest."

"Are you checking Evan's leg after his talk session today?"

"Sure am, probably just before supper. Hopefully, we can remove the hard cast and give him a removable support unit. After a couple of weeks with that he should be fine."

"Good, how about sending TJ in to see me while you have Evan."

"Barry, I'm assuming someone is taking food to Greg. I'm pissed off with him. But I don't want him feeling unwanted by not feeding him."

"He's covered; at lunch I sent food over before the boys on kp ate. We'll pick up the plate when supper goes over."

"Mr. Dan'l? ^Å Dr. Mike said you wanted to see me?"

"TJ ^Å come on in and sit down. Don't look so worried, you haven't done anything wrong, at least that I know of. There's just a couple of matters I want to discuss with you to get a comfort level."

TJ looked at Daniel with a 'what are you talking about' expression.

"TJ, there's a couple of things happening and I need to know that the boys involved are alright. I'm talking to you because you are involved in both things. I'm talking about Evan and Kyle."

"Oh, okay. But, Mr. Dan'l, what's going on? I don't understand."

"Rumor has it that you and Evan are getting kind of close, some even say the two of you are becoming 'an item'. Now, when you boys came to New Horizon I said I wasn't going to be naive and tell all of you not to have sex. Most of you had already tasted the fruit, and usually after the first taste it's hard to tell somebody that can't have another taste. The problem I'm having here is that Evan isn't like you."

"Evan grew up in a world where everything was done both for him and to him. Whatever someone told him to do he did with a blind faith. He pretty much looked at having sex as an expression of love. Are you with me so far?"

"Yes, sir."

" Well, if you and Evan want to be close friends and sex is part of that, we regard that as your business. That's something between you and him. However, the key is that you are good friends. There is concern that Evan may regard the two of you as lovers and if the day comes that you want to be good friends with someone else, Evan could be hurt and a lot of problems develop around here. Your friends would defend you, and his friends would defend him. Understand?"

"Yes, sir. Mr. Dan'l, I won't deny that Evan and me have been foolin' around, we have. We're two teenagers with two sets of ragin' hormones; he likes it and I do, too. This is the first time he's been able to decide when he wanted to have sex. He told me it's a lot better when he makes the choice and nobody tells him he has to do it."

"Bein' on the streets, of course, I was no virgin when you found us. But now, I'm doin' it 'cause I like it, not 'cause I have to so I could buy food. Fuckin' for fun is a lot better than fuckin' for money. ^Å.. I'm sorry, Mr. Dan'l, I shouldn't a said that; but it's true. I'll talk to Evan and make sure he knows I just want to be good friends; I'm not interested in havin' a lover."

"TJ, you guys never cease to amaze me by the maturity you can show sometimes. Of course, usually right after you do that, one of you turns around and pulls some dumb kid' stunt."

"That's cause we are just kids, Mr. Dan'l. Just because we had to be on the streets, that doesn't mean we forgot how to have fun."

"Okay, let's talk about Kyle. You know that little boy worships the ground you walk on. You should have seen how lost he was when you were in the infirmary. If you remember, he got in the bed with you and you just tolerated any discomfort he caused. What you couldn't know is that when you fell asleep you moaned from the discomfort caused by him moving. He knew it, and got out of bed rather than hurt you. Too bad we couldn't have gotten that episode with the urinal cup taped; that was his job and he wasn't about to let any one else help."

"Kyle's quite a little kid, Mr. Dan'l; he's also number one with me. Evan and me don't fool around when Kyle is around, he shouldn't be watchin' or involved. When Evan and me sleep together I don't go over or he doesn't come over until we know that Kyle is asleep. Sometimes, when Evan wants to ^Å uhhhh ^Å. play around(?) I may have Kyle spooned up to me and I let him stay; Evan has to wait 'til the next day."

"Okay,TJ, I feel better now knowing you have your priorities set and in a good order. Right now, you probably need to go find the other set of ragin' hormones and Kyle, it's about time for supper^Å^Å. And, TJ ^Å thanks."

Daniel woke up feeling more refreshed than normal. A quick look said it was almost day break which meant Barry would soon be brewing a fresh pot of coffee. Daniel couldn't say why, but he had this deep down feeling this would be a good day to fool around with the kids and relax; except for Greg, of course. He walked over to the dining hall and noticed four or five boys walking through the yard with what looked like garden tools, it was almost too dark to tell.

"Hey, boys, what's up?" The boys stopped for a moment and looked in Daniel's direction.

"Startin' the new garden this morning, Mr. Dan'l. Better to do it before the sun gets too hot." Then the boys continued on.

"Garden?" Daniel thought to himself. "Surely Rick would have said something about this starting. There was talk about expanding the garden during a staff meeting, but now?"

Daniel was right, the smell of fresh brewed coffee greeted him as he walked into the dining hall. Five boys on kp duty were scooting about helping prepare breakfast. One of the boys saw Daniel and brought him a cup of coffee. Daniel sat and relaxed while watching the boys help get the meal ready. He's satisfied the boys had fallen into a schedule so that they knew what to do and when; this made it easier on everyone.

Michael walked in a few minutes later and joined Daniel. Before he could sit one of the boys was headed his way with a cup of coffee.

"Daniel, you're up early. Couldn't sleep?"

"Michael, it's more like didn't need to sleep. Woke up early feeling good and decided not to waste a nice morning. It's been a long time since I sat around and watched the sun come up" . "I had planned on spending time interacting with the boys, you know, maybe a soccer game or something. On the way over here I spotted a group headed out to the garden. They told me they were starting the new section this morning; wanted to get going before the sun got too hot. Thing that bothers me is I don't remember us saying we were doing that now."

"Well, if it will help I recall we discussed it and decided to do it whenever Rick had the equipment and materials available. Evidently, he's there and arranged it with the boys."

"I've been working too hard or getting a case of premature senility. Michael, if anyone is looking for me I'm going to head over to the garden area and see if I can help. A little physical work would feel good right now."

Daniel walked over to the garden area with coffee cup in hand. He looked more like a supervisor than a worker, unless carrying a coffee cup can be considered exercise. He stood watching the boys work. They hadn't been out here more than thirty minutes and all were glistening with sweat. One of the older boys was operating the tiller, two others were double checking measurements. Daniel stripped out of his shirt and joined the work crew.

"Hey, Mr. Dan'l, it's more comfortable if you just shuck 'em all. Don't worry, we won't attack ya." The boys began to laugh.

"All right, why is it we always get a wise ass in every group? It's not that I don't trust you, I figure I can whip anyone one of ya here; so I'll give it a try."

"Hey, somebody give us some music. Mr. Dan'l's gonna do a strip tease for us."

Daniel just looked at the boys and went along with the joke. Rather than just stripping down he did a little dance. The pants were unfastened slowly, one button at a time and began an ever so slow descent. When the pants cleared his butt, the cat calls began again.

"Hey, Mr. Dan'l, nice pair of tighty whities. Where'd ya find those, antique shop?"

Rick joined the boys, moving to the front to join the fun when he's spotted by Daniel.

"Rick, how come you're the only one dressed out here. If me and the boys can work like this, why can't you; think you're too good for us?"

Of course, Rick knew that was a challenge and a suggestion. If working naked was good enough for the boys, he'd have to do the same as Daniel or possibly risk alienating some of them. Rick didn't wait for the music, but did a straight strip on the spot.

"Rick, what do you do about feeding the boys when they start this early?"

"No sweat, Daniel, Barry makes up a bunch of egg and bacon sandwiches and sends them out with water and juice. They'll be here in a few minutes. Uhhh, Daniel, don't look now but rather than blending in we stick out like sore thumbs, here. No one else has any tan lines."

The two men laugh and then join the labor gang. Within a few minutes both men are glistening with sweat, just like their charges. Sure enough, in a few minutes two of the kp boys come out with a large platter of sandwiches, juice and water. They stand watching Rick and Daniel, and joking with a couple of the work crew, then head back.

It doesn't take long for five hungry teenage boys to consume the sandwiches; Rick and Daniel consumed their share, also. Then, it's back to work. Shortly, they heard wolf whistles and cat calls; and they weren't directed at the boys. Most of the rest of the boys have come out to join in on the fun of taunting Rick and Daniel. Danny walked up to Daniel, looked the man up and down and broke out into hilarious laughter, pointing to his white stripe. There was no doubt who was the center of entertainment.

Daniel dropped his work tools and grabbed the boy, turning him upside down. Danny screamed and giggled as only a five-year^Öold could. After swinging him around and bouncing him up and down a few times, Danny was covered in Daniel's sweat, at least most of him was. Daniel put the boy on the ground head first and let him plop on his back. Danny was now one very dirty five-year-old. Danny grabbed two fist fulls of dirt, ran over to Daniel, and smeared the dirt over any portion of his body the boy could reach. This started the melee.

It was a wrestling free-for-all. Someone was reminding Daniel he claimed he could whip any of them, but he didn't consider all at once. When Daniel was taken down he always took one or two boys with him. Somewhere during all this Michael, Mark, Paul and Jeff got into the mix. Whether they stripped voluntarily or the boys gave them assistance wasn't known; everybody was wrestling and playing au natural. After a while everyone was either sitting or lying on the ground in a happy state of exhaustion. Daniel looked around him.

"Boys, I think we made a royal mess out of the new garden."

"Yes, sir, we made a mess of us too."

Daniel looked around at the boys. Everyone looked like they had been rolling in a mud bath. There was no way to hit the showers or pool without risking clogging something up. Daniel just began to laugh; joined by the rest of the guys.

"Okay, guys, think we better find some water hoses and get cleaned off. Good thing we don't have company coming this morning, I'd have a helluva time explaining this one."

"No you wouldn't Mr. Dan'l, just tell 'em we're boys being boys."

Daniel's upbeat demeanor was broken when he was told it was almost ten; the time for the review board to meet for Greg. As he thought about this he remembered the boys had asked Michael to talk to Evan's psychologist.

"Michael, did you have the chance to speak with Evan's psychologist?"

"Yeah, Daniel. He said he was inclined to agree with the boys, although he's not one hundred percent sure Evan is ready. He suggested the boys might try taking the collar away with the understanding that if Evan back-slides, the collar returns. The boys have already been told. What do you think they should do?"

"I don't know. Me, I think I would try to push the issue and make Evan assume responsibility for himself. If there's a problem, like the doctor said, we can bring the collar back."

"Roger, Frank, do you know where the rest of the board is?"

"Yes, sir, we're all out here. Here comes Kevin now."

Kevin appeared with the other two boys. Daniel signaled for them to join him. After a quick discussion about the doctor's advice the boys tell him what they would like to do; Daniel concurs. Paul was asked to retrieve a paddle and collar keys from Daniel's office. Mark went for Greg.

"Fellas, given our state of uncleanliness at the moment, we're going to conduct the review board session out here. Now. So, if you will step back a little and let the board line up, we'll get under way as soon as Greg gets here."

When Greg arrived, Kevin looked around to be sure Evan was also there. The session began.

"Greg, can you tell the board and the rest of the boys gathered here why you are in trouble right now?"

''Cause, I hurt Jamie. But, I didn't mean to, honest, I swear."

"Is there any other reason that you can think of."

"No sir, not really."

Members of the board, Daniel and several other boys look exasperated.

"Yesterday we told you we hoped you would trust us to do what we believed to be in your bests interests. Today, we repeat that wish; we hope you trust us enough to do what is in your best interest. The answer you have given is not satisfactory. The punishment read out yesterday is that you would appear before the board every day where we hoped you would give us the correct answer to our question, and you would receive three swats with the medium paddle. The board would like to point out the punishment said answer and swats, not answer or swats. Greg, bend over and grasp your legs behind the knees."

Greg, looked to Daniel hoping for intervention. Daniel nodded for the boy to do as he's told. As Greg grasped his legs, Jamie ran up to Daniel. The boy had tears flowing, he put his hands on Daniels stomach, and looked up to him with pleading eyes.

"Please, Mr. Dan'l. Don't let 'em hurt Greg. Pleeeaase?"

"Jamie, you don't need to be here, son. I can't interfere with this. The review board set the punishment, and we have to go along with it."

Daniel picked the boy up and looked back to the board. Kevin saw Daniel look to them and responded.

"Normally, we draw a name out of the bowl to pick who will administer the swats. Given the unusual circumstances of this meeting we can't do that; Roger has volunteered to administer the three swats today."

Roger walked up behind Greg to administer to the swats. Daniel tried talking to Jamie to distract him. Daniel told Jamie Greg would not get as many swats as yesterday, but as the swats landed, Jamie cringed and grasped Daniel's neck.

WHACK!! "oooohhhh!"

WHACK!! "ummmmppph"

"Noooooo, Mr. Dan'l, ^Å.. pleeeeease?"

WHACK!! "oooww!!"

Jamie's pleading and tears only made Daniel more upset with Greg. Daniel approached Greg, who had tears flowing down his cheeks.

"Greg, look at Jamie. I trust you understand how bad this makes all of us feel?"

Daniel had given the boy another hint where the answer lies; Greg didn't listen.

"Boys, don't leave here yet. We have one more item on the agenda. Evan, front and center, you have business with the board."

Evan stepped forward, not understanding why he was called before the board. While Evan stepped up, Daniel asked Rick how much damage they did to the new garden. Rick advised the job could be completed in about two hours with maybe ten boys. The board was ready to address Evan.

"Evan, the board recently met with Mr. Daniel and other staff members. On our request, they spoke with your doctor who has agreed with our suggestion. We believe it would not serve any further purpose to administer additional swats nor for you to continue wearing the collar. Therefore, this board directs that the collar be removed, the punishment of swats related to the event are cancelled and your case review is closed. You are an equal member of the New Horizon project and will be expected to assume responsibilities for yourself and the success of New Horizon like the rest of us."

"But ^Å but ^Å I'm not sure that ^Å I mean ^Å maybe we should ^Å."

"Evan, we took these steps because we were concerned you may use that collar as a crutch or excuse. You have friends here to help and support you when needed. There is staff here to help and support you when needed. How can that slave collar, the symbol of someone who is not responsible for himself, be better?"

Evan stood there looking at the board, then to the other boys. His gaze stoped on TJ who answered with a smile, and finally to Daniel, who nodded with a smile.

"Thank you, sir, I'll do my best to do what I'm supposed to."

After removing the collar from Evan, Daniel announces that Rick says the garden can be repaired and completed after the mornings round of fun in about two hours with ten workers. He asked for volunteers and most all the boys head back to the garden. He also proposed that after the garden was finished and everyone had lunch, they organize some sports activities like soccer and volleyball.

Daniel looked around, feeling very proud of the group, and spotted TJ giving Evan a hug. They are holding one another very close and very tight. Daniel can't help but notice that with the affection they share, each has something else growing between them. Daniel turned to join the boys at the garden.

So many boys volunteered to help with the garden that not only was the expansion completed quickly, the size was doubled. When finished the boys were both sweaty and dirty, including little Danny and Ian. Daniel stood looking over the work and felt proud at how the boys jumped in to help without anyone coercing them. Again, it was time for the water hoses to rinse off the sweat and dirt. As the boys cleaned up Danny walked up to Daniel and looked up to him with that smile and head cocked over; Daniel reached down and picked the boy up, cradling him on his hip. Daniel cleaned himself and Danny.

Everyone worked hard that morning and as they waited outside the dining hall, letting themselves drip dry, everyone began to feel the fatigue of the morning work. Danny wrapped his arms around Daniel's neck, lay his head on his shoulder and was almost asleep when Barry sent out the call for lunch. The group of teenagers found instant energy when told food was waiting.

Danny stayed with Daniel during lunch. He sat in the man's lap with one arm around Daniel and leaning against him. Daniel thought it wouldn't take much to put the boy down for a nap. As he sat sharing a plate with the boy, Daniel began to smile and chuckle to himself. Michael looked over to him.

"What's so funny, Daniel"

"Us ^Å.. I never thought about putting my clothes back on. Maybe the boys have something here. Running free feels pretty good right now."

All the men were laughing when they realized no one had bothered to get dressed. Maybe the boys were right. The phone rang. Paul answered and then handed the phone to Daniel, telling him it was Jon Caruthers.

"Jon, how are you?"

"Just fine, Daniel, and we think you will be too when you our news. Wait a moment, I have Betty with me and I'd like to put you on the speaker."

"Sure"

"Daniel, can you here us?"

"I can hear you just fine. How are you Betty?'

"Great, Daniel, and we have news for you. Jon will explain."

"Daniel, after you were here we received a huge number of calls about New Horizon and also about Sean. Management has told us to give top priority to assisting you in locating Sean's brother. Betty and I would like to come out to see you tomorrow if that's convenient to discuss the details."

"That'd be great. Why don't you come out a little before noon and you can join us for lunch? You'll also have a chance to see what the boys do here. OH! Uhhh, Jon, there is one thing I think we should let you know up front; the boys run free here."

"Daniel, this is Betty. I have nine year old twin boys. They love to run free, in fact they prefer it, and I usually let them do it around home and the neighborhood. Would you mind if I brought them with me, I think they'd love it and fit right in?"

"Daniel, Jon, I have a ten year old son that likes running free. If you don't mind I'll bring him, too."

"No problem, the boys would enjoy a little extra company. Usually after lunch they are spread between the game fields and the pool. Bring the kids with you, we look forward to the visit."

"Great, Daniel, we'll see you then tomorrow morning between say 11:00 and 11:30."

Daniel ends the call and tells the staff the news. They suggest Daniel let the boys know a lady is coming here tomorrow so they aren't surprised or embarrassed. Hopefully, they have been living this way long enough to be comfortable with themselves. Daniel decides he should let the boys know.

"Boys, let me have your attention, please." Daniel waits a moment or two for it to quiet down. "We just spoke with Jon Caruthers from the television station. The station is giving top priority to setting up special segments to help us and they want to meet to discuss details. We invited Jon and Betty Risler to join us for lunch here tomorrow. They will be bringing with them their sons. Jon's son is ten and Betty has nine year old twins."

"Uhhhh ^Å Mr Dan'l? Do they know how we dress or, I guess, don't dress?"

"Yes, they know. We made sure to tell them and they told us their kids prefer to run free and would love the chance of spending the afternoon with you boys. Fellas, I think you'll find Betty won't even pay attention, particularly when you consider she lets her boys run free a good bit. We didn't think it was fair for you to be surprised tomorrow, so we wanted to let you know now. We hoped you boys have been with us long enough that you are secure enough with yourselves not to worry about whether you're dressed or not."

"No sweat, Mr. Dan'l. Some of us didn't get to go to the station. Is this Ms Risler good lookin'?"

"Gentlemen, and I stress the term, you will learn that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. You tell me if she's good lookin' after they leave tomorrow, okay?"

After supper, Daniel sat on the steps of the dorm with Danny in his lap. All the efforts to put the boy down for a nap were futile. There was no way he was going down when all the other boys were laughing and having a good time. Daniel watched him during supper and expected to see his head fall face first onto his plate. As the boys ate it was apparent most of them were worn out, but it was a good worn out. They had formed teams and played games or swam after lunch and exhausted themselves with play.

Mark and Michael sat beside Daniel. No one was saying anything, the men were relaxing while enjoying the quiet of the moment. They had all exchanged jokes and conjectures about how the boys would react when Betty showed up in the morning. Her boys may be with her, and they be running free, but there would still be a woman in their presence. Tomorrow should be interesting.

TJ and Evan walked towards the men. Mark thought he saw the two boys holding hands, or maybe they weren't. It was almost dark and getting hard to see. The men could see both boys appeared a little flushed. It was that special kind o flush that comes when you have recently experienced a personal euphoria; and, their personal gear didn't seem to be in the most flacid state possible. TJ reached out for Danny, but Daniel stopped him.

"That's okay TJ, I'll keep him for now. He wouldn't take a nap this afternoon and he's exhausted. When I set him in my lap he didn't fall asleep, he passed out. Where's Sean and Kyle?"

"They're over by the pool, Mr. Dan'l. Kyle wasn't quite ready to get out and since Sean was in the pool too, he said he'd watch him for me for a few minutes. We offered to get Danny. He is kinda dirty, Mr. Dan'l. We need to bathe him."

'That's all right, I'll take care of Danny tonight. You know if you'd like a little private time, now might be about right while Sean has Kyle and I have Danny. I'll see that he gets to bed tonight."

"Thanks, Mr. Dan'l. We'll let Sean know."

The two boys turned and walked off. There was a lot more bounce in their step as they left, the boys forced themselves to walk instead of running. Watching the boys leave the three men look at one another and smile, forcing themselves to suppress their laugher. All three men knew that no one has been near that pool in over a half hour. TJ and Evan need to learn to keep better track of their fun time or develop better cover stories.

When they head to bed all three feel they will be out before their heads hit the pillow. Daniel takes Danny with him and gently lays him on the bed. Daniel laughs when he again realizes they had not bothered to dress after lunch; they spent the entire day au natural in the sun. There should be some interesting sun burn pains in the morning. Daniel slipped into bed, spooning the boy against him.

Daniel was in a deep sleep when he felt someone shaking him.

"Daniel, wake up ^Å. Shhh ^Å don't wake Danny. There's something you've got to see."

"Mark, what are you doing in here. Do you know its after midnight?"

"I know, but there's something you've got to see^Å. Shhhh."

Daniel slipped out of the bed, making sure Danny wasn't disturbed. The two men then walked over to the meeting hall. On the way over Mark explains he normally gets up during the night to check on the boys and the area. Tonight he found something different.

They walked into the meeting hall and then towards the latrine. As they entered Daniel saw on the tile floor Greg, with Jamie spooned against him. Both boys looked sound asleep and content. Daniel left motioning for Mark to follow.

"How long has he been there?"

"I don't know but I didn't remember seeing him out playing with the other boys this afternoon. Wouldn't surprise me if he's been there since lunch, except for supper."

Daniel and Mark walked back to the dorm and retrieved two blankets and a sheet. Daniel thanked Mark for letting him know and headed back to the meeting hall. When he entered the latrine he gently shook Greg awake. The boy awoke with a start.

"Mr. Dan'l, sir ^Å please, don't be mad with Jamie. He didn't mean no harm, he was sad and just wanted to be held. That's what I usually do when he feels sad."

Daniel puts a finger to his lips for Greg to be quiet. He then signaled Greg to lift the boy so he could slip a blanket under him. When Jamie was again laying down and sound asleep, Daniel slipped a blanket under Greg, and then covered both boys with the sheet. Greg lay there looking up at Daniel with that pleading look in his eyes. Daniel motioned for Greg to slide over away from Jamie so Daniel could talk with the boy.

"Greg, I'm not mad with Jamie or with you for him being here. You are doing exactly what I hoped the boy's mentor would do for him. Do you think you can tell me now why I was so upset with you?"

"Mr. Dan'l, all I can think of is because I hurt Jamie. The other boys say that was what happened because I did something wrong, but I can't figure it out."

"Greg, you are not stupid, and I know it. If you were wrong in hurting Jamie, and you broke a rule before that, think of the rule you had to break; there's really only one."

The boy is really thinking and Daniel can see him shake his head. Eventually, tears begin to form in the boy's eyes. Daniel knows the boy is trying too hard and missing what he thinks should be the obvious.

"Greg, think back to when all of you were at the detention center. When we started the Little Brother/Big Brother program I told all of you that if a little one chose you, it meant something special. Tell me what that special thing is and you can get the answer from there. If you need a little back up for your conclusion think in terms of what it meant when we didn't say no to the little guy's request. Do you understand now?"

Greg lay there thinking. He'd think a little and then look at Daniel, then at Jamie. After a few minutes he looked at Daniel with a gleam in his eye and Daniel thought the boy may have worked it out.

"Mr. Dan'l, I think I have it. I need to think on it a little more, but I think I have the big part. I'll give a different answer tomorrow, promise."

Daniel just looked at the boy and gave one of those approving smiles that can say more than any words.

"When you wake in the morning be sure he gets cleaned up. He'll see the blanket and want to know where it came from. Don't lie to him, Greg; also, tell him I'm not upset with him. Right now, I think he's where he belongs ^Å.. with you. Good night"

The next morning Daniel was awakened by the feel of small fingers running over the side of his face and ears. When he opened his eyes he saw a wide eyed and smiling Danny looking at him. Danny turned his head and pressed it against Daniel's chest while wrapping his arms around Daniel as best he could, squeezing hard.

"Hi, Danny. Boy, that's a big hug, can I hug you back?"

Danny relished the attention from Daniel.

"Little man, you are one dirty kid. If that dirt is a measure how much fun you had yesterday, then you had quite a day. Come on, I'm hauling you into the shower right now."

Danny wrapped his arms around Daniel's neck and was one happy little boy.

End Chapter Seventeen

To Be Continued: comments welcome; contact Dwight Wilson at adm2780@yahoo.com