New to This State

OKAY YOU WIN! =============

I've had a ton of emails about the last chapter and have been persuaded to write another one to bring things to a better conclusion than Part 14 did. I wasn't wildly happy with 14 anyway (as I said in the previous intro), so I will now continue the story as far as the Thursday of Curtis's move. After that, I'm definitely getting on with something else! I hope this next chapter satisfies everyone who's been following the story. It took me a while to get back into Curtis and Drew mode, kept writing lines that would have sounded better coming out of Ryan or Alex's mouth! You might need to reread Chapter 14 (which is riddled with typos!) to get the hang of this one. I know I had to. Remember to check out the website as well at http://www.ardveche.com where a download of the entire story is now available. Wow! I just checked, the last chapter was posted January 13th, I sure have kept you guys waiting! Sorry!!

DISCLAIMER ==========

This is a work of fiction; any resemblance to persons living or dead is entirely coincidental. The author asserts all legal and moral rights (copyright (c) 2001 - ardveche@ardveche.com) to this work and you may not copy it or transmit it in any way except in its entirety and with this disclaimer. This story features descriptions of sex between consenting (all over the legal age, at least in my jurisdiction they are) males:

• if such material is prohibited in your jurisdiction, please DO NOT READ ON, - if you're under the legal age to read such material, please DO NOT READ ON, - if you don't like, or are offended by such material, please DO NOT READ ON.

Now, if everyone who is still here is meant to be here, or at least knows they shouldn't be, let's get on with it. All comments are welcome and gratefully received (email them to ardveche@ardveche.com).

NEW TO THIS STATE =================

Epilogue

"Very romantic, Curtis." My mother put as much sarcasm into her voice as she could manage, but there was the trace of a smile on her lips. "But seriously, if there's anything we can do to make the move easier for you, you just have to ask." This was a very generous offer from my mother, given our own precarious financial state, and I was touched that she was making it. But this was a guy who wouldn't even accept the price of a pack of cigarettes!

"Thanks, Mrs. Quinn. But I'll be fine, really." He smiled broadly at her. "I really do appreciate everything you've done for me. You and Lois."

"It's been a pleasure." Lois chimed in. "And as far as help moving is concerned, you'll do as you're told, young man. Remember, I've seen your apartment." Curtis looked as though he might be about to protest, but something stopped him. And I don't think it was fear of what Lois might say, but more that his acquiescence was his way of showing his gratitude. He smiled at her and nodded, not meeting her gaze. But from where I was sitting, I could see the moistness of his eyes and felt a renewed sense of my love for this young man.

"And I think we can probably stop the Mrs. Quinn and switch to Margaret now, Curtis." My mother added with what might easily have become a fond smile.

"Okay." He pursed his lips and nodded, not trusting his own voice to continue as the tears welled up. "Next time." I certainly smiled fondly at my boyfriend, as he was welcomed into our strange little dysfunctional family.

"Oh, for God's sake Andrew, hug the boy!" Lois finally snapped at me, and I was only too happy to oblige, throwing my arms around him and holding him tight as he battled not to sob.

We left the kitchen, ostensibly so Curtis could smoke a cigarette on the back porch, but I think it was more to get out of everyone's sight as I saw him swabbing at his eyes with his shirt sleeve as soon as he stepped out into the darkness. He took up his customary position, leaning on the railing and staring out into the darkness, his breathing slow and regular. I had only been in this house for a week, and had come to associate it as much with Curtis as with my grandmother. Everything about it contained a memory of the most blissful week of my entire life, the week in which I discovered love. He seemed not to want to talk, and I was perfectly content to stand leaning on the wall of the house and simply watch him in silence. Actually, a lot more than content!

"What're you looking at?" He finally asked with a sigh as he fumbled for his lighter.

"The most beautiful, most perfect man in the world." I answered. Corny, perhaps, but it fit my mood perfectly.

"You're funny." He snorted a laugh, but didn't look round.

"And you're all mine." I murmured taking a step closer and draping an arm around his broad shoulders. He gave a little sigh and palpably relaxed his muscles, which were still a little sore from his father's beating. "At least until Thursday."

"And after that."

"Yeah, then too."

"And for the rest of your god damn life." He laughed aloud, turning to take me in his arms again, stubbing out the cigarette as he did.

"Is that a threat?"

"No. A promise." Curtis kissed my neck lightly and nuzzled against me and I melted into his embrace. Maybe things were going to be okay after all.

"I'm going to hold you to that."

"I'll give you it in writing if you like."

I couldn't help but laugh, he sounded so serious, albeit a little muffled. I took his hand in mind and towed him off the porch and into the garden. We threaded our way in silence to what I thought of as our tree where Curtis lifted me slightly to help me take a seat on one of its sturdy limbs. He moved a little closer, pushing my knees apart and stepping into the V formed by them he hugged me again and his lips met mine. We were far enough from the house to be out of my mother's sight and could comfortably make out in the shadows of the trees. And that's what we did, simply stood there in the dark, kissing and cuddling and enjoying the warmth and closeness of one another's bodies and the simple fact of being together. Not for the first time, the universe seemed to consist only of my boyfriend and myself. I haven't a clue how long we stayed like that, and I don't much care, but eventually the cold began to seep through our little utopian bubble and to make its presence felt.

"You're shivering." Curtis murmured in my ear.

"Trembling." I replied with a little chuckle. "With lust."

"You heard your mother." He chided, clapping his hand against my back. "None of that until after Thursday."

"Actually, she said until I was eighteen." I corrected him.

"Funny, that's not what I recall." He gave me a sly grin and a wink.

"You know, now you mention it, I think maybe you're right." My tone was deliberately chosen to be one of dawning realization. "Now that I think about it, she did say Thursday."

"Coming back in?" He smiled broadly at me, pleased that my memory was going to prove as faulty as his, and I felt much better about things than I had when my mother issued her edict.

"Yeah, watch some TV or something." I smiled back and winked at him.

"Yeah, or something."

We headed back across the garden hand in hand, forgetting for now that my mother had said we didn't need to cling to one another all the time, and were soon back in the blissful warmth of the kitchen. My mother's voice could be heard faintly, so I guess she was on the phone in the parlor. Lois was sipping coffee and reading a book at the kitchen table but she looked up at us as we returned.

"Ah, the love birds return." She murmured with heavy sarcasm.

"Lois." I mumbled in greeting, dropping my boyfriend's hand, but Curtis made no response.

"I hope my flowers survived this little outing."

"They did."

"Good. Have some coffee, there's more in the pot." Lois turned back to her book and a grateful Curtis poured us both some coffee. It was welcome warmth; I hadn't realized how cold it was outside. Of course, the fact that we were both wearing only shirts without jackets might have had something to do with it. We took our mugs of coffee and returned to my room to watch TV, and strangely enough that's pretty much all we did. We sat at the foot of the bed, close enough that our arms were resting against one another and we talked quietly and sporadically. Occasionally one of us would lean a little closer and kiss the other, but it wasn't a night of passion, just quiet intimacy.

"Well, I should turn in." He finally murmured into my hair and I nodded as he pushed himself to his feet. "Walk me to the door?" I looked up at Curtis's dazzling smile and had to smile back at him as he offered me his hand.

"Okay." I took his hand and we walked to my bedroom door together, where we stopped and turned to face one another, Curtis taking my other hand in his.

"Thank you for a lovely evening, Mr. Quinn." He said looking deep into my eyes, despite the absurdity of the situation my knees felt weak.

"My pleasure, Mr. Reid."

"Perhaps we might do this again?"

"I think I should like that."

"Well, good night then." He leaned forward and kissed me chastely on the cheek.

"Good night." I managed to murmur. Although this was probably the least physical evening we had spent together so far there was something intensely exciting about it all.

"Sleep well, beautiful." Curtis returned more to his normal self long enough to tousle my hair and grin, I scowled at him as he did, how I hate people messing up my hair.

"You too." I swatted his hand away and we kissed again, less like characters from a black and white movie and more like teenage boys in love. We lingered like that for a while before finally separating, each wearing a goofy grin. And with that he left me alone. I drew in a great sigh, and rested my forehead against the doorframe until my stomach stopped lurching. When it finally did I changed slowly, almost in a daze, into shorts and T-shirt, went to the bathroom and slid gratefully into my suddenly enormously big, perishingly cold, heart- wrenchingly empty bed. Despite the feelings of gnawing loneliness, I was asleep mere minutes later.

"Hey." A rough hand shook my shoulder accompanied by a soft voice. "Wake up."

"Mmmph?" I rolled away from the intrusion to my sleep and pulled a pillow with me. But the hand stayed on my shoulder and pulled me back onto my back, I didn't want to wake up and go to school I'd been having a wonderful dream about Curtis. Curtis? Wait a minute, that was his voice and his hand. My eyes flew open, it was still dark and I could barely make out his form seated on the bed beside me.

"I tried to be good." He whispered.

"Huh?" I enquired in my usual intelligent way.

"But I couldn't help thinking about you up here on your own. All lonely."

"Who says I was lonely?" I teased, snapping into wakefulness.

"Okay, I couldn't help thinking about you naked." He grinned broadly and I could see white teeth in the gloom. "Better?"

"Slightly." I tried not to laugh and to keep my voice as a whisper. "But I'm not naked."

"Naked." He continued, ignoring me, pressing a finger to my lips. "I was thinking about you naked all sexy and beautiful, um, did I say sexy?"

"Yes."

"Alright, I admit it, I was lonely down there. I couldn't stop thinking about you. And the pillows just aren't the same as your body. Softer, I grant you but they don't hug back. Good enough?" He bit his lower lip nervously. "Can I get in?"

"Do you have to ask?"

"Well your mom did say..."

"Curtis?" I interrupted.

"Yeah?"

"Can you name one teenager in the whole history of the universe who actually stayed off sex because their mother said to?"

"Oh." He looked thoughtful.

"Oh." I agreed with him. "So should I be the first?"

"Um, no?" He hazarded, appearing genuinely unsure what the right answer should be.

"No." I echoed.

"So I should get in?"

"Before I lose interest in you." I smiled fondly at him and lifted the edge of the covers so he could slip underneath and snuggle up behind me as I rolled onto my side. The first thing to touch me was his cold foot on my leg and I stifled a yelp at the shock. He whispered an apology and slid the rest of his body alongside me and wrapped his arms around me. He craned his neck to lean over me and our lips met and parted and we kissed a long, slow, minty-fresh kiss. It was glorious. What is it about a clandestine meeting that gives it that extra little frisson of excitement? After a while I broke the kiss and slithered onto my back again to touch his lips for silence. "Wait." I rolled over to set my alarm clock, so I could be sure that my mother wouldn't catch us. It was two in the morning already, so I set if for six, knowing she wouldn't be up until after that.

"Good thinking, sparky." Curtis murmured to my shoulder, having rolled with me and pressed himself against my back again. It was wonderful to be held in his arms like that, and Curtis's preferred cuddling position while his back was still sore. And, to be fair, I quite liked it too; it allowed his strong hands free access to the front of my body and gave me the delicious sensation of being kinda covered by him. That said, of course, my cuddling experience was strictly limited to Curtis anyway, so I had no comparison. Still, if his touch making my stomach flip-flop is a good thing (and it is) then I guess the boy knew how to cuddle.

"Mmm." I said as his hand moved lazily on my chest.

"Mmm?"

"Yeah, 'mmm'. That feels so good, Curtis."

"It does?" He asked quietly, nibbling my ear, his hand slid down to my belly and into my shorts circling my now hard shaft. "How does this feel?"

"It's okay." I managed in a strangled gasp, it felt fantastic, but I was never one to pass up an opportunity to tease.

"Just okay? Maybe I should stop?" He released his grip.

"Don't you dare!" I squeaked.

"I just did, asshole." He rolled away from me onto his back, but I heard the tiniest chuckle and knew that this was a revenge tease. Quick as a flash I rolled after him and swung a leg over him, dislodging most of the covers and ending up kneeling either side of him, sitting on his belly. I had moved fast enough to catch him unawares and pin his arms above his head. But Curtis was used to hard work and his arms were much stronger than mine, hell his entire body was much stronger than mine, so there was little chance of keeping him there for long.

"Say sorry." I demanded.

"Oh? You wanna play rough, huh?" He grinned up at me, making no move to get free. "Well, try not to leave any more marks." His grin broadened, but I winced at the thought of his damaged body, the horrible red welts his father had inflicted on his back.

"Curtis..." I couldn't keep the memory of a t-shirt stuck to his body with blood, images of him unconscious on the kitchen floor his face blackened with bruises. I loosened my grip unconsciously. Curtis's hand was on my cheek suddenly, the other on the back of my neck, drawing me down towards him. He kissed the tip of my nose.

"Drew, I'm happy that you worry about me. I'm glad that you care so much. But that's all over; he'll never get to do that to me again. Never. I have you; you have me, that's all that matters. It's over, in the past. Forget it. Okay?" He kissed me again, on the lips. "Laugh at it, it takes the sting out."

"Curtis..." I started again, unconvinced. And again I was cut off by a kiss.

"Am I going to have to keep kissing you to shut you up?" He asked lifting my head gently away from his with a handful of my hair and shaking it gently from side to side like I was a disobedient puppy.

"Maybe." I answered with a grin.

"Works for me." He pulled me back down and we resumed our quiet, gentle kissing, rolling me over so he was almost on top of me again, to relieve the pressure on his ribs. One hand moved casually back and forth on the fabric of my T-shirt sending wonderful sensations through my body, reminding me just how much I loved the feeling of his hands on my body. How much I would miss, how utterly dreadfully I would miss being like this with him every night. I know it sounds foolish, I had only known him for a short time, but I was addicted to him in every way, I needed Curtis around me, to make me feel complete. I had begun to doze off when Curtis broke the silence of the moment, murmuring quietly to me as he slid his hand back down my shorts and startling me. "Now if I remember correctly, my hand was about here."

"Eek." I think is the closest verbal approximation of the noise I made as he curled his fingers around me again and brought be sharply back to being both awake and aroused!

"That was high-pitched." He whispered.

"You took me by surprise."

"I took you by the balls." He sniggered.

"Comedy is not your calling, Reid."

"Sure it is." He snuggled closer still and began to tease me gently and slowly with his fingers. "I'm a funny guy. And it really isn't too smart to antagonize a guy who has you in this kind of grip."

"Good point." I grunted as he continued his deft strokes, not wanting to disagree with him and make him change his mind about his chosen course of action, nor wanting to enter into a debate with him. He squeezed a little more firmly, and I couldn't stifle a groan. "Oh, man!"

"That feel good, Pennsylvania?"

"You haven't called me that in a while." I groaned, failing to answer his question.

"I know." He replied, his breath tickling my ear. "Since that first day."

"Can you believe it's only been a week?" I tried to see his face over my shoulder and he obligingly slid away a little so I could turn to face him. "So much has happened."

"I know, I have the marks to prove it." He grinned at me in the darkness, but even so I could see that his eyes were not joining in with his mouth.

"Oh, Curtis." I reached out for him and ran my fingers lightly through his hair. "I love you so much, you've changed my life completely. We've known each other for such a short time, but I can't imagine being without you. It's too horrible."

"Horrible?" He raised an amused eyebrow at me.

"What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing." He leaned in and kissed me lightly. "Drew, you're the only thing in my life that matters to me. You're my lover, my friend and my family all in one adorable package. I'll do anything to keep you, anything."

"You know, I didn't really want to move here?"

"Well, I for one am glad you did." He paused and lowered his gaze from mine for a moment. When he continued speaking his voice was low and hesitant. "Wanna hear something dumb?"

"Okay." I agreed and he raised his head a little again, with that same sad little smile I had seen him wear so often when he was thinking about something painful.

"This is really, really dumb."

"Try me." I answered, placing my hand on his arm and giving what I hoped to be a reassuring little squeeze.

"You won't laugh?"

"Of course not!"

"Okay, well, you know how I was kinda quiet in chemistry class?"

"'Sullen' is the word you're looking for." I supplied.

"Okay, thanks Josiah."

"Huh?"

"Josiah Webster? Jeez, and you're supposed to be the smart one?"

"Okay, you got me." I was embarrassed at having missed that, and annoyed that Curtis was putting himself down again. "So get on with the story already."

"Okay, um, where was I?"

"Being sullen in chemistry." I supplied.

"Oh, yeah." He hesitated for a moment as though trying to work out what to say next. "Well, I was surprised to see you there, that's why I left in such a hurry, I needed to think."

"Surprised? But..." What on Earth was he talking about?

"But I'd never seen you before?" He cocked his head a little on one side at me and waited for me to respond.

"Exactly."

"Well that's the dumb part. I sort of had."

"How?"

"About a month ago, after my dad had..." He trailed off. "Well, anyway, I had this dream and you were sort of in it. Or someone who looked like you was."

"A dream." I said slowly and carefully, not a question so much as an attempt to comprehend what he was saying.

"Told you it was dumb." He offered me a little shrug and an embarrassed smile. "I didn't remember much about the dream, but it made me fell kinda tingly every time I thought about the guy from it, and I had the same dream again a few times after that."

"Always the same?"

"Yeah, the guy, you, had come to take me away from everything that was shitty about my life." His voice was so quiet now I was having trouble hearing him and I knew that he was acutely uncomfortable.

"I see."

"So when you walked into chemistry class that day, well, it was like the dream was actually happening, it was unbelievable." He looked up at me. "I followed you home, you know. That's why I was able to stop and give you a ride."

"You followed me?"

"Yeah, I had to know where you were going." I had a feeling that if I could have seen him better, I would have seen that his cheeks were burning.

"Well, man am I ever glad you did." I pulled myself closer to him as I spoke and gave him the tightest hug I could risk.

"Me too." He replied hugging me back. "It's so dumb, but it seemed so real at the time." He murmured to my neck.

"No it's not." I murmured back to him.

"Sure it is. And the weird thing is I don't even know if you did look that much like him or if I just wanted you to, you know? Now I can't remember what he really looked like, when I close my eyes, I just see you." He kissed me gently and tenderly on the lips and continued in a more wistful voice. "That's the thing with dreams, you never get to keep the whole thing."

"Oh, I don't know." I kissed him back, with a mischievous grin on my face.

"Pretty high opinion you got of yourself, Pennsylvania."

"Yup. But I know someone not a million miles from here who shares it."

"What am I going to do with you?" He asked shaking his head sadly.

"Make love to me?" I volunteered.

"Well, it's an option." He kissed me again. "Basically, it's that or slap you."

"Ooh!" I grinned broadly at him.

"Sicko."

"I don't think it's dumb, Curtis." I was suddenly serious, holding his face in both my hands so he had to look at me. "I think it's wonderful, and if that's what made you stop and give me that ride then it's about the best thing that could possibly have happened to us both. Even if it wasn't me in that dream, it certainly is me in this one." I kissed him again and this time we stayed together for a long time, just holding one another and kissing.

"Thanks, Drew." He said when we finally came up for air. "You're the greatest."

I could only smile as we kissed again and his hands slid back down my body, pushing at the waistband of my shorts. I decided to help out and as I lifted up to let him slip my shorts down I began to struggle out of my T-shirt too, to let him have ease of access to any part of me he wanted. He lay still, looking at me for a while, before he shucked his own T-shirt and swung himself back over me, so I was lying on my back and he was straddling me. My erection pressed against the seat of his shorts and he grinned wickedly down at me, I lay back and relaxed surrendering to whatever he had planned for me.

"I like it when you go all limp and passive." He murmured pressing his palms down on my shoulders and almost massaging them.

"Not ALL limp, surely?" I joked and he laughed at me as his wonderful hands began to trace delicate patterns back and forth across my chest. I reached up and placed my hands on the warm, firm surface of his biceps, enjoying the soft downy feeling of the hairs as I stroked back and forth. My eyes were fixed on his broad, powerful chest and on the beautifully smooth curves of his muscles.

"That feels nice." Curtis mumbled, halting his own motion to let me enjoy the feeling of the sure, adamant strength of his arms.

"I'm glad, I want to make you feel good."

"Me too, Drew." He leant forward to kiss me again, sliding one hand under my head and burying his fingers in my hair, drawing me closer to him. It was wonderful.

"You too, what? Want to make me feel good? Or want me to make you feel good?" I grinned at him and he looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Both."

"Okay, works for me." I nodded and wrapped my arms around him, pulling him down into a warm hug. "So, about that hand of yours..." I didn't need to ask twice as he slid further back down to rest on my thighs and resumed the gentle stroking of earlier. I was already in a heightened state of arousal and his touch was like electricity, so I arched my back and groaned happily as he did. After that conversation dried up completely as Curtis slid further down by body, never interrupting his movement for a second, until his head was level with my groin. Then he stopped and looked up into my face, a glint in his eye as he bowed his head again and took me gently into his mouth; how I loved, and how much I had missed, that sensation. "Wait!" I was able to gasp.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." I squirmed around on the bed and into a better position for access to him, I wanted to do for Curtis what he was doing for me and I wanted for us to be able to enjoy, and to give pleasure to, one another at the same time. I reached for the waistband of his shorts and tugged, he wriggled a little to let me remove them from his body, negotiating the obstacle of his own erection as I did. Once we were both naked and comfortable again we leant towards one another simultaneously, warm breath on thighs, gentle hands, questing tongues and attentive lips. We concentrated intently on one another, working in silence, giving all our attention to the task in had. So to speak. We took our time, savoring the sensations, making each other wait, pushing ourselves to the edge and then drawing back. After a while, my breathing was harsh and labored and my actions more spasmodic, and so were Curtis's, as we drew closer to our mutual climax.

Afterwards, Curtis crawled back up the bed, kissing his way up my body as he did and pulling the blankets along with him. He nuzzled for a while against my collarbone, as I lay spent and sated, one arm draped loosely around his back. Finally, though he pulled himself the rest of the way and we kissed a long, slow, loving kiss as I drew my other arm up to stroke his hair. I lay still and quiet and enjoyed his warmth, knowing that I wouldn't get to experience it too much over the next few months and wanting to soak up the feeling while I could. My thoughts were about how much I loved him, about how good he was for me and how wonderful he was in every way. I can't think of any other or any better way to say it, I just loved him utterly.

"That was nice." He murmured into my ear as he arranged to his satisfaction, draping himself over and around me with small grunts and shufflings.

"Yup." I allowed, wrapping my arms around him once he was settled. "Comfy?"

"Perfectly." He kissed my bare chest lightly and mumbled against me, his breath tickling me. "You've gotten better."

"I had a good teacher." I answered with a chuckle, determined not to give him the satisfaction of annoying me, but I did give his bare shoulder a playful slap to show that I was not amused.

"Ow." He whined raising his head and blinking woozily at me. "Wounded guy here."

"Oh stop milking it, you baby."

"Tyrant." He grumbled lowering his head back onto my chest. We lay like that for some time, talking quietly and sporadically about what had happened to us both in the last few days. When we had exhausted that topic we talked about our childhoods, about growing up gay and how we had each handled it, about our parents, about everything and anything that it occurred to us to discuss. The last time I glanced at the time it was almost five o'clock and I know we talked some more after that, but when I actually fell asleep, I don't know. It was in my mind to stay awake and watch him sleep for a while before I sent him back to his own room, but it didn't work out that way in the end.

"Up, up, up!" Lois voice startled me into wakefulness, I started upright, dislodging Curtis's arm as I did and eliciting a sleepy grunt from him as I did. It was almost seven o'clock and my alarm had failed to sound, Lois was standing in the doorway in a bathrobe, I blinked and tried to get my bearings.

"I had a feeling you two wouldn't listen to Margaret, so I thought I'd better check on you. She's in the shower; so, Curtis, get moving!"

"What?" He asked, blinking as stupidly as I had been.

"Now!" Lois stepped towards the bed and Curtis clutched convulsively at the covers, pulling them up over his bare chest. "Oh for goodness sake, Curtis, you have nothing there I haven't seen before. Come on, now, move!" Curtis glanced at me then back at Lois and back at me and I had to laugh at him, then he began to rummage in the bed under the covers.

"Drew, where are my shorts?" He finally asked plaintively, throwing the covers back and hopping from the bed, trying to cover himself, with limited success, as he did. Once he was out, I was quickly able to find his shorts and throw them to him, watching as he struggled into them in front of my grandmother. The whole scene was both laughable and pathetic, but at the same time it was scary, knowing that my mother might catch us at any moment.

"Right, go, back to your room." Lois ushered him out, glancing over her shoulder at me with a shake of her head as she did. "I'll talk to you later." I could only grin and nod, the way I figured it, the previous night had been well worth any number of sharp looks from Lois. By the time I had showered, dressed with elaborate care and made my way downstairs, a slightly shamefaced looking Curtis was already perched on a stool in the kitchen having coffee with Lois and my mother. He looked like he hadn't had a lot of sleep, which he hadn't, but he looked good sitting there in jeans and T-shirt, his feet bare. Very good. He glanced up, his hair hanging over his eyes, and smiled at me as I entered the room.

"Morning, dear, sleep well?" Lois chirped and I answered her with a scowl and an incoherent little grunt as I took a seat.

"Hey." Curtis muttered to me.

"Hey." I muttered back.

"Well you two are real bundles of joy this morning!" My mother laughed at us, utterly oblivious to what was going on and to how little actual sleep we had had the night before. I glanced sidelong at Curtis and we both smiled shyly, he blushed, if my mother noticed she decided not to comment.

"So what's planned for today?" I asked knowing that I had to go to school, and despite the help from David, Tyler and Dan I wasn't really looking forward to seeing Mike and his cronies again. I had a feeling that things wouldn't just improve overnight, that he wouldn't just go away and leave me alone.

"Well I have to go to work." My mother supplied.

"And I have my sewing circle this morning." Lois added. "But Curtis and I are going shopping after that."

"We are?" Curtis's head jerked up at this, clearly he had been told as much about this as I had.

"Yes. We are." Lois informed him emphatically.

"I guess I'm going shopping." Curtis turned and told me.

"I guess so." I answered, clapping him sympathetically on the shoulder.

"With some old chick." He jerked a thumb at Lois with a grin, she laughed uproariously at this and then proceeded to trump him.

"And then this 'old chick' is taking him to see Dr. Ellis." She smiled a saccharine smile at him, knowing that she'd scored a point. I still thought it was hilarious that Curtis had come out with the 'old chick' line, he was really starting to open up with my family, and I guess he was being accepted by them as part of it himself. But then, he and Lois had spent a lot of time together in the last week and seemed to get on really well. It was cool.

"I don't have to, I'm fine..." He started to protest.

"I'd give up now if I were you, buddy." I informed him, patting him on the shoulder again. "Her mind's made up. You know how stubborn the elderly can be."

"I guess." Curtis sighed, resignation to his fate in his tone and written all over his face.

"Good boy." Lois beamed at him. "Seriously, though, we need to get those ribs of yours looked at and Dr. Ellis said he'd be happy to see you. And as for you, young man." She turned her attention to me. "You will live to regret that remark."

"Hey! He gets to insult you but I don't?" I nodded in Curtis's direction as I whined my protest. "No fair!"

"Curtis gets latitude because he's hurt." Lois answered and gave me a little wink. "And he's a lot cuter than you." Curtis turned beet red and concentrated fiercely on his food.

"Mother!" My own mother joined the conversation again, putting down the paper. "Leave the boy alone. Andrew, are you about ready? I'll drive you to school."

"You don't have to."

"I know. I'm going to though."

"Whatever." I finished the rest of my breakfast rapidly and in silence then jumped to my feet and kissed an astonished Curtis on the cheek. With new-found determination I turned to face my mother, I was ready to go to school. "Okay, let's go."

We said our good-byes to Lois and Curtis (who had his hand on his cheek still) and my mother dropped me off at school to face the masses. I entered the building and made my way to Tyler's locker, the usual meeting place for the guy's before classes. I think word of my brush with Mike had spread, I seemed to be getting some odd looks as I walked, maybe it was just my imagination though. As I turned the corner and approached the guys I wasn't surprised to see David standing with Tyler already, I rarely saw one without the other, but I was surprised to see Brian with them and more surprised when it was he who spoke first.

"Hey, killer."

"Hey, Brian." I answered cautiously.

"Yo, Drew." David said with a grin and a slight wince. "Nice bruises, man."

"Yeah, thanks." I smiled back at him. "I walked into a door, kids." This got a laugh from the other guys.

"Hey, what's funny?" Dan's voice asked as he approached the little group, slapping me on the back as he did. "Hey, champ. Ouch! I'd hate to see the other guy."

"Dan." I acknowledged him with a broad grin, but we didn't have long to talk as the bell rang signaling the start of yet another deep draught from the wellspring of education. I grabbed my pack from the floor and turned to David with a sad expression, he smiled at me and raised both eyebrows to show that he understood my lack of enthusiasm.

"Let's go, amigo."

"Oh, hey, Drew?" Brian called, as I followed David towards my first class. I stopped and turned to see what he wanted, a quizzical look on my face. "You're free after lunch right?"

"Um, yes?"

"Cool. We'll head down to the pool, yeah?" I just stared at him. "Work on your times?"

"Yeah." I finally managed, why was Brian being so nice to me suddenly? I realized I wasn't sounding suitably grateful. "Yeah, that's really good of you, man."

"No problem." He shrugged and turned to go for his own class. Tyler watched him walk away with a big grin on his face, then turned to me and winked before heading off himself without making any kind of explanation. I turned to David who simply shrugged at me and the two of us headed to class together in resigned silence. The morning passed quickly, and relatively painlessly. I still had the odd feeling that people were talking about me and looking at me strangely, but I didn't encounter Mike and one of the guys was always with me; so I made it to lunch intact both physically and socially. I spent most of the next two hours in the pool with Brian shouting at me, helpful hints and instructions interspersed with yells of encouragement. By the end of the time, I was feeling a lot better about my swimming, which had once been pretty good.

"Few more weeks of practice buddy, you could be okay." Brian called from the side where he had pulled himself out and was now sitting watching me having swum a few lengths with me.

"Yeah, thanks." I gasped pulling myself up and resting my forearms beside him. I looked at him for a moment or two and finally asked the question that was on my mind. "Why are you doing this, Brian? It's too late for me to be on the team."

"Sure, but it can't hurt to get into decent shape." He shrugged at me. "And it's not really, you could be on next term."

"But why?" I asked again, aware that the question had been dodged. "Why are YOU helping me?"

"Tyler said I had been a bit rough on you." Tyler, abusing his authority again!

"Yeah?"

"Plus, I guess I was a bit of a jerk yesterday." This last was mumbled more to his chest than to me, but it seemed sincerely meant.

"Forget it." I attempted a shrug as well as I could in that position. "New guy, can't expect everyone to love me right from the beginning."

"You had a pretty quick start!" He burst out laughing and splashed some water at me with his foot. So I did the only thing I could do in the circumstances, I grabbed his ankle and pushed away from the side of the pool, yanking him with a startled yelp into the water with me and then swimming as fast as I could to get away; there was a yell from behind me and Brian was pursuing me across the pool. Inevitably he caught up with me and grabbing me round the waist pulled me under, when I bobbed to the surface spluttering he was still laughing and we splashed around for a bit, wrestling and trying to dunk one another. When we separated laughing and gasping for air Brian was the first out of the pool and he offered me his hand helping me out and throwing an arm around my shoulders.

"You're alright, Drew."

"Thanks, Brian." I guess some sort of test had been passed there in the pool, and I was glad to have, apparently, made another friend here. We headed for the changing rooms and parted company to get to our next class of the afternoon. Late! The rest of the day went just as smoothly, and it was not until I was heading towards Tyler's car after the final bell that I saw Mike for the first time. Astonishingly, as soon as he saw me, he changed his course and skirted the parking lot instead! Tyler, true to his word at lunch, was waiting to give me a ride home.

"So, you talked to Brian?" I asked as we drove.

"He wasn't supposed to tell you that." He sighed.

"Thanks, Tyler." I said, looking at him as he blushed a little. "But no more, okay?"

"No more what?"

"No more telling people to be nice to me."

"Hey!" He protested, glancing away from the road to scowl at me. "I never told him to be nice to you, I never TOLD anyone to be nice to you. I just asked them to give you a chance, to cut you some slack and to try to get to know you."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"And you didn't ask David and Brian not to let me out of their sight?" I asked acerbically. "And I suppose you're not driving me home to make sure Mike doesn't get me?"

"Actually." He admitted with a guilty look flitting briefly across his handsome face. "I kinda had an ulterior motive for driving you home."

"Oh?"

"I wanted to know what my Dad said to dumbass." He seemed to have forgotten already that I had told him not to call Curtis that. "And I know he won't tell me, god damn Hippocratic oath..."

"And I thought you only cared about me!" I laughed.

"Nah, Curtis all the way."

"Thanks, asshole." I muttered, but instead of answering he simply winked at me again as he pulled the BMW into Lois's drive and up to the house.

"Out." He barked as he pulled the key from the ignition.

"Charmer."

"You know it." He slid from the driver's seat. "C'mon, c'mon, move it." We walked to the house together, me shaking my head sadly. My mother was still at work, but Curtis's car was there so I guessed he and Lois were back from their excursion, and I was keen to know myself what Tyler's dad had to say. We found them in the kitchen, chatting amiably, there were a half dozen bags by the kitchen table, so I guess they'd done some serious shopping. Curtis looked up as we entered and favored us with a tired little smile.

"Hey, Drew." His smile broadened as he saw Tyler behind me. "Tyler."

"Hello, boys." Lois smiled at us both also. "Some iced tea?"

"Sounds great, Lois." Tyler, as always utterly at his ease swung his leg over the stool next to Curtis, mussing his hair as he did so and earning himself a scowl for it. "So? What'd my dad say, dumbass?" Okay, so now he was just doing it to annoy me, I shook my head sadly and joined them, accepting a drink from Lois.

"Said I was in fine physical condition." Curtis supplied.

"Huh! I could have told you that." I said under my breath, but obviously not so under my breath that they didn't all gape at me. Tyler laughed aloud, Lois shook her head and frowned, fighting a grin, and Curtis turned the brightest shade of red yet. I blushed too.

"And Lois and me did some shopping." Curtis tried to steer the conversation away from this awkward topic as swiftly as he could.

"Yeah, whatcha buy?" Tyler came to his aid.

"Stuff for the apartment." Curtis informed us unhelpfully.

"Cushion covers and throws!" Lois supplied triumphantly, and poor Curtis flushed anew, his macho credentials completely and utterly shot.

"S'not all we bought." He mumbled, hanging his head in shame.

"No, we got some things for the kitchen and bathroom as well." Lois added, utterly unaware of what her words were doing, busying herself tidying up the kitchen as she prattled on. "And some clothes, and new shoes, well, I suppose they're more boots really." Tyler, Curtis and I exchanged variously amused and pained glances with one another behind her back. We chatted for a while longer about nothing in particular until Tyler pushed himself to his feet.

"Well, kids, I gotta go. See you at school tomorrow, Drew." He squeezed both our shoulders. "And, you, you need help Thursday call me, okay, dumbass?"

"For that, Ellis, you're carrying all the boxes!" Curtis shot back. "Me and Drew are injured." Tyler glanced up from writing his cell number on a slip of paper for us.

"Yeah, figured you'd need a real man to help out." Tyler flexed his arm and grinned, neatly dodging the tangerine I pitched at him for that comment and waved us a goodbye as he left. We spent the rest of the afternoon just hanging out in my room, Curtis strumming his new guitar sporadically, me reading some stuff for school, albeit halfheartedly as I struggled to keep my eyes open. After dinner we returned to more of the same, interrupted by occasional talk about the impending move, just relaxing in one another's company. All good things must come to an end, though, and eventually Lois came up to take Curtis away.

"And this time, young man, you stay downstairs, I'm not getting up that early again to save you two from Margaret. Understood?" She made a stern face at us and stood by the door, tapping her foot until Curtis pushed himself to his feet and shuffled despondently towards the door. "Oh for God's sake! Kiss the boy goodnight at least."

"Huh?" Curtis jerked his head up and grinned at Lois.

"Good night, man." I said as I rose and walked towards him to kiss him on the lips.

"Night, beautiful." He murmured slipping one arm around me, as Lois discreetly turned away, and slipping his tongue between my lips. It was an amazingly thrilling kiss, perhaps because my grandmother was in the room! Once he left and I slid into bed I was asleep in seconds, I guess the lack of sleep the night before had taken it's toll on me, that and all the swimming with Brian that afternoon. All in all, it had been a pretty good day.

Wednesday at school couldn't go fast enough for me as Curtis and I were planning on spending the evening together, our last night under the same roof. I knew I ought to be miserable about it, about his moving out the following day, so soon after I had met him and he had changed my life. But I wasn't miserable, I was walking on air the whole day, I was unable to concentrate on anything because all I could think about was Curtis. Kate called me on it in the library, and Tyler and Dan made enough jokes over lunch to make me want to scream, but I made it through the day despite all that and when the final bell rang I practically ran from the school to where Curtis was waiting by his car. We carefully made no display there but got in the car and drove off together, up to the lake for a little privacy. Hey! It wasn't the weekend, Mike wasn't gonna be around, so we spent the rest of the afternoon walking around holding hands, talking and stopping from time to time to kiss.

We had told Lois and my mom that we wouldn't be back to eat, so we drove over to McDonald's and bought our 'dinner' at the drive-through and sat in the car to eat it. It was pretty romantic, all things considered, just the two of us, and after dinner we made out in the car for a good long time before driving home. Well, my home, but after that night, no longer his. That night I helped Curtis to pack his belongings and the new stuff they had bought. There was still pathetically little, far too little to be starting a new life with, and in truth I mostly sat on his bed and watched as he packed and criticized him for doing it wrong. Some of us are born to labor, others are born to supervise - my fervent prayer was that I was one of the latter because I am seriously lazy. To his eternal credit, Curtis took it all in good part and with a fond smile, only occasionally reaching behind himself to hit my legs as they dangled over the edge of the bed.

"That's a nice shirt." I remarked as he was folding his clothes and packing those too. The room looked hopelessly bare and the few boxes of his possessions seemed pathetic and refugee- like sitting on the floor of the big, empty bedroom.

"Lois bought it today." He said, looking slightly annoyed. "I told her I didn't need it, but you know how she can be." He shrugged.

"That was nice of her."

"I know. But I'm supposed to be making a start on my own, and you guys have done so much already. I wouldn't even have agreed to go shopping with her if I'd known she was going to do that."

"She can be pretty forceful." I grinned, thinking about my own experience with Lois.

"Well, She spent around three hundred dollars today." He told me as he turned back to get another shirt, having added the first, inexpertly folded, to a pile.

"That much?"

"Yeah." He nodded and from the set of his shoulders I could tell there was more to come. "So I figure with everything this week I owe around five hundred to you guys."

"Curtis..." I sighed, were we really going to have this conversation again? Okay, maybe Lois shouldn't have spent that much, but she wasn't senile, she wanted to help him and it was her money.

"Drew, stop." He cut me off, refusing to let me speak in defense of Lois. "I need you to do me a favor as well."

"What?" I was instantly on my guard as he started to fold another shirt, having returned the hanger to the wardrobe - after all, that was Lois's, not his.

"I need you to find out what Tyler's dad charges for consultations."

"Huh?"

"I don't like owing people, Drew. I want to know how much I owe Dr. Ellis, and I need you to find out from Tyler so I don't have to make a big deal of paying him."

"He said he was happy to do it, Curtis." I sighed again.

"I don't care."

"But..."

"Conversation closed, Drew."

"Jeez, Curtis. Are you going to do this every time?" I stood up and faced him. "Are you? I mean, am I allowed to help you? Or does this stupid policy apply event to me?"

"Drew..." He began, but this time it was me who cut him off.

"No, listen to me, you can't live like this. You can't be like this martyr guy who can't even accept a little help from his friends, you just can't. I mean, that's what friends and family are for, man, to help one another when out when we need it. So, for God's sake stop being so dumb and let us help you, okay?"

"Drew, I'm not used to this, okay? I'm out on my own here, I need to stand on my own two feet."

"But that's it, you're not on your own any more. You have me now, and you have plenty of other friends who are willing to help you out, who want to help you out. Why can't you just let us?" I reached out for him, put my hand on his arm. "Forget the past, if a new start is to mean anything, you have to make a clean break."

"I'm trying, Drew." He pulled me to him and hugged me tightly, kissing my hair. "Guess I just need you around to point me in the right direction."

"I can do that."

"Good." He kissed me again, gently, softly.

"And there's no way you're getting rid of me." I hugged him as tightly as I possibly could. "You remember that first day when you hugged me?" I felt him nod 'yes'. "And I said to let me go, and you said 'not a chance'?" He nodded again. "Well, right back at you, asshole."

"Thanks, Drew." He buried his face against my neck and I just stood still and held his wonderfully strong, male, body as he spoke softly to me. "You're just about perfect, you know that? And me? Well I'm just about the luckiest, happiest guy in the world."

"Yeah, I'm pretty special." I agreed and we simply stood like that, swaying a little and holding each other. There was so much we had to talk about, we were both afraid, but neither one of us said a word, we just stood in silence and drew strength from each other instead. Whatever happened, we would always have this, this silent communing, this closeness that I had never in my whole life experienced with another human being. It was simply, indescribably wonderful, Curtis was so strong and steady and sure and being around him made me feel so very, very safe. Wanted. Needed. Vital. At that moment, I could not begin to imagine a life in which I couldn't just throw my arms around someone, around my lover, around my best friend, and take solace in his warm embrace, in his holding me right back.

"Yup." I think he whispered to my neck as we parted, then he looked up into my eyes with his beautiful green ones and there could be no mistake about what he said next. "I think you are. Nah. I know you are."

"You're not getting all mooshy on me, are you, Reid?" I said with a laugh.

"Hey!" He tried to look hurt, but failed as I threw his own nonsense word back at him.

"Get some sleep, handsome." I smiled. "You'll need your strength tomorrow."

"Oh will I?" He raised an eyebrow at me and grinned.

"Sure." I winked suggestively at him and then laughed aloud. "Can't ask poor Tyler to do everything!"

"You are such a tease, get outta my room!" He gave me a gentle shove.

"You don't mean that do you?" I pushed out my lower lip and tried to look hurt. Instead of drowning me with sympathy, he reached out and tried to grab my lip, causing me to skip away from him with a yelp.

"Hey, that's the last time I can say that to you." He looked speculative. "Weird."

"Yup, from tomorrow you'll have to throw me out of your apartment instead of your room!" I grinned moronically. "How cool will that be?"

"Very."

"And on that charming note, Mr. Reid, I am going to bed." We kissed once more and I headed off to my lonely room and my empty bed, him holding my hand, waiting until our arms were both stretched out straight before he let go.

The next day dawned, and Curtis was still in bed when I was ready to leave for school, so I slipped into his room briefly to kiss him on the forehead and remind him that he was meant to come pick me up after school so I could help. We both knew there wasn't much that we could really do, but I wanted to try to help him and he wanted to try to include me, knowing that I was feeling pretty left out of things those last few days. I went through my morning classes in the same sort of trance as the previous day, and was beginning to wonder what I was doing at school as I was clearly wasting everyone's time at the moment, my own included. It was during my last class before lunch that a terrible thought occurred to me and as soon as the bell rang I bolted to the cafeteria to find Tyler.

"Tyler!" I called as soon as I saw him sitting at his usual table.

"Drew? What's up, buddy?"

"I need a ride down to the mall." I explained as he walked towards me.

"What for?"

"Curtis moves in to his new place today."

"I know, I'm coming over to help, remember?" He put a hand on my shoulder to make me stop hopping from foot to foot like I needed the bathroom. "So what's your point?"

"I need to get a housewarming gift!"

"Oh." He grinned broadly at me and mock punched my jaw. "What a sweetie!"

"Yeah, funny, so can you give me a ride?"

"Sure." He said with a rueful shake of his head. "Okay, come on." Like an obedient puppy I followed Tyler out of the building and down to his car and we drove into town. Not for the first time I found myself thinking what a great guy Tyler was, not everyone would go to the trouble he had gone to for me in the short time we'd known one another. I know that I had never behaved as openly and generously towards anyone at my old school, people I had known for years, and he was doing this for me. It was knowing guys like David and Tyler that made me acutely aware of my own frequent selfishness, which Lois had called me on, and of all my little shortcomings. They made me want to be a better person, for them, for me, but most of all for Curtis.

"So what should I get him?" I asked Tyler once he had parked and entered the temple of consumerism. There were too many stores, and I was a lousy shopper.

"I'd say an alarm clock." Tyler grinned at me, making a joke about Curtis's tendency to sleep through stuff that didn't interest him. That made me laugh, as he had inadvertently made another joke, this one about the other day when we had been caught in bed together when the alarm failed to go off. "But me and David already covered that one."

"You did?" I looked round at him and he grinned sheepishly. I had no choice but to mock him. "What a sweetie!"

"Yeah, okay. So what are you gonna get him?"

"I have no idea. Is it okay if I browse for a bit?"

"Sure. I'm in no hurry." He walked round the various stores with me as I poked around disconsolately at electrical equipment and even, briefly, at more soft furnishings. I was put off that by Tyler's low chuckle from behind me. "Drew? Buddy? I think you're on the wrong track altogether, man."

"Yeah?" I was getting exasperated. "And what, pray, is the right track?"

"You're thinking stuff for the apartment. And that's cool, I'm sure he really needs a toaster or a cappuccino machine or whatever. And that's okay for David and me, but you should be getting him something for him, something he can look at and think of you."

"Why Tyler Ellis, under that rugged exterior there beats a warm and gooey heart!" I laughed, slapping him on the shoulder.

"Oh God, Drew, don't fag out on me here!" He grabbed my wrist with a grin and gave me a little shake. "Straighten yourself out!"

"Not gonna happen." I grinned back, amazed by just how open I was being with him, and here of all places! "So what do you think? Like a stuffed toy or something?"

"Not really very Curtis." He flopped down onto an armchair that was part of the display I had been looking at and looked up at me. "Hey, this is pretty comfortable."

"No. Not a stuffed toy." I said, ignoring him and thought hard for a few moments, running options through my head and discarding them. "Jewelry of some kind? A necklace or something?" I shrugged.

"Sure, why not?" He didn't sound convinced. I looked at him with a frown for a moment and then allowed my gaze to sweep dejectedly round the store. And then I saw the perfect thing, and my face split in a broad grin. Tyler looked up at me. "What? What's that evil grin about?"

"Come with me." I said walking away from him, he bounded to his feet and followed me, keen to see what I had in my mind. I led him out of the soft furnishings and over to the gift I had in mind, which I indicated with a flourish. Tyler burst out laughing and slapped me on the back as I laughed along with him; I guess I had found something we could agree on! That chore accomplished and the gift deftly wrapped by the assistant, I persuaded Tyler to come with me to the jeweler. I was still wearing the cross that Curtis had given me, and I thought it would be good to get him a replacement, and it was a better, more acceptable, gift to give him when other people were around. Once a suitable one had been chosen and paid for we drove back to school in high spirits.

"Thanks a million, Tyler." I said as we parked the car.

"Any time, buddy." He grinned at me before continuing. "Within reason."

"Yeah, okay." I smiled back.

"Don't worry about it, Drew. I'm glad to help, even if I didn't like you, and I do, it's the least I can do for Curtis."

"You guys used to be really good friends, didn't you."

"And we will be again, bud." He patted my knee, an odd but comforting gesture. "And I have you to thank for that. Now let's stop the lovefest and get back to class, huh?"

"Yeah." I agreed and we headed back into the school, parting at the doors. Tyler went off to lift more of those 'weights that won't lift themselves' and I headed to the library to track down Kate. She was at what I was starting to think of as our table in a quiet corner of the room and I threw myself into a chair opposite with a heavy sigh. To her eternal and lasting credit, she stayed silent as I collapsed face first onto the table with a groan, resting my head on my arms. Did I mention that I'm a lousy shopper? Kate patted the back of my hand reassuringly and let me hyperventilate for a while. When I was feeling more human I showed her the cross I had bought for Curtis and she cooed in a suitably appreciative fashion. Maybe I should have taken her with me instead of Tyler? Hmm. We soon got chatting, me bringing her up to speed on the whole 'coming out' to my mother, and the preparations for Curtis's move and once more Kate proved herself an attentive listener and an amusing companion. She promised faithfully that once he'd had a few days to settle in she would pop round to see Curtis and take him some plants, I explained that Lois probably had the plants covered. Instead she volunteered to cook a romantic dinner for the two of us and over my blushes and token protests (hey, who am I to object?) the deal was done.

"Well, we're freed from all this in a few minutes." She finally announced waving an arm expansively around the room having glanced at her watch. "You'd better dash, beat the rush and meet lover boy!"

"Ha ha." I said without a trace of humor.

"Shall we?" She asked rising to her feet and sliding her belongings into a pack. "I'll walk you down to the parking, lot."

"Why, thank you!" I replied as courteously as I could, taking her arm. And that was how we wandered along the empty halls (blue lines!) and out into the sunshine. It felt good to be outdoors again and to feel the breeze. Despite having been out of the school for part of the day I had begun to fell slightly claustrophobic. In the distance, I could see a brownish figure leaning on the hood of an old red ford and my heart leaped at the sight. He was dressed in jeans and an old blue shirt, open to revel a T-shirt and with the sleeves rolled up and he had sunglasses on and a cigarette in his mouth.

"Hey!" I called as we drew near.

"Hey, buddy." He answered dropping the cigarette and crushing it out with the toe of his boot. "Kate, hi, how are you?"

"Better for seeing you, cara mia!" She joked as she kissed him on the cheek, causing him to blush once again. "Well, I shall leave you boys to it, I'm sure you have a lot to be getting on with."

"Okay, see ya." I said as Kate bade us farewell and headed off on her own errands.

"Bye, Kate."

"Good luck, guys! Hope everything goes well." She called waving to us. "And, Curtis? I can't wait to come over and see the place!"

"So..." Curtis rested his forearms on my shoulders and clasped his hands behind my head. "How was your day, beautiful."

"Me?" I feigned looking over my shoulder to see who he was talking to then, placing my hands on his waist, leant closer and kissed him. "Fine, yeah, fine." I nodded sagely. "Yours? How does the place look? Has Lois driven you mad yet?"

"Um, fine, great and almost." He answered after he'd considered, then his face spread into an idiotic grin. "She's gone back home now." He winked at me suggestively. "Anyway, come on, come see the place! You're going to hate it!" His enthusiasm was infectious and I had to grin back at him as we piled into the car and headed for his new home. We drove in silence and it was clear that he was keyed up with excitement about it all. I, on the other hand, was still fighting a mounting sense of dread for the future, sadness at the thought of being without him, and jealousy at his newfound independence. But over it all a vague feeling of contentment, of pride in him and a real desire to see him happy.

"Well, here we are!" He said indicating an okay looking apartment building, obviously not terribly affluent, but well maintained for that.

"Looks great." I said.

"Shut up." He punched my arm and laughed. "Come on!" And then I was following him up the stairs to his apartment; number 4B. He stopped outside the door and fished in the pocket of his jeans for the key. "Ready?"

"Beside myself." I answered. "Are you going to carry me over the threshold?"

"Are you nuts?" He looked round as he turned the key in the lock. "You weigh like three hundred pounds."

"You utter bastard!" I laughed as the door swung open and I saw his apartment for the first time. The main room was perhaps a little smaller than my bedroom and comprised a small kitchen area, separated from the rest by a counter, and a living/dining room. There were two doors off it which presumably led to the bathroom and, be still my heart, bedroom! There were boxes on every surface of the sparely furnished room, a couple of armchairs, battered couch and a dining table with four chairs. It wasn't as bad as I had feared it might be, there was no sign of the roaches he had joked would help with the rent and I could see how, with a little work and some imagination it could be made into a really comfortable place.

"So?" He demanded practically hopping from foot to foot. "What do you think?"

"I think it's marvelous, Curtis. Absolutely wonderful." I grinned and hugged him tightly. "It's great, needs some work, but it's just great."

"Thanks, Drew." He answered hugging me back and kissing me repeatedly. "So...you wanna see the bedroom?" He winked at me.

"Uh..." I feigned indifference. "Yes! Show me!" My wish, in this instance, was his command and he was across the room in a single bound, like Superman! He paused dramatically, long enough to wink at me again, and threw the door open with a flourish.

"Come into my boudoir." He laughed, ushering me through the door. It wasn't a huge room, but it had good light and a double bed. What more do you need? There was a largish walk in closet, made to look larger by the sparse collection of clothing hanging in it. There was a box on the bed though, which still had some shirts in it, and drapes waiting to be put up thrown carelessly across the back of a chair.

"Did you guys actually DO anything?" I asked looking around.

"We spent most of the morning cleaning, Lois insisted." He looked crestfallen. "I haven't really got round to doing much."

"It's wonderful, Curtis." I smiled at him and squeezed his hand tightly. "I was kidding. I'm glad you haven't done too much, I really wanted to help you and I was afraid I'd get here and find it was all done."

"You want to play house, huh?"

"You're not funny!" I laughed, slapping him on the arm. "Oh! I almost forgot!" I yanked my backpack off and rummaged through it pulling out a large, though thin, rectangular package wrapped expertly by the woman in the store and handed it to him.

"What's this?"

"Housewarming present." I grinned and raised one eyebrow at him.

"Wow. You didn't have to, Drew." He protested as he tore the bow from the package.

"It's not just for you."

"Huh?" He looked up at me, puzzled and then returned to the task of tearing open the parcel. "Oh my god! Drew!"

"You like?"

"You pervert." He grinned moronically, he looked so happy at that moment as he held up the scarlet satin sheets I had picked up for the new place. "I love you, you goof!" He threw the package onto the bed and picked me up with a grunt, spinning me round once before dropping me also into a sitting position on the bed. With a swipe of his arm the box on the bed crashed to the floor and then he was atop me and we were kissing, passionately, and rolling around in one another's arms. I was panting and aroused and burning with desire for him; I wanted him so desperately, I wanted him forever.

"I love you too, Curtis." I sort of mumbled, sort of growled at his neck as I kissed him furiously. His hands worked rapidly pushing my shirt back off my shoulders and rolling me onto my back, yanking up my T-shirt as he did. My arms trapped, I could do little but lie there and let him have his way, not that I was complaining. He sat up enough to give himself access to my waistband and began to tug at my belt, I got my arms under sufficient control to help release it, and my pants were quickly round my knees as we returned to kissing, his deft, strong fingers explored my body and I groaned aloud.

"Anybody home?" Came a shout from the front door. Tyler! I had told him where the apartment was while we were shopping that afternoon, I should have realized he'd want to come over with his housewarming gift. I pushed Curtis roughly away, wholly unnecessarily as he was already struggling to his feet, my shove only served to send him crashing into the wall behind him with an 'oof'. We must have left the door open. I tried to straighten my clothes up while Curtis sat on the floor, his back against the wall hugging himself and giggling.

"What's so funny?" I demanded, pulling up my pants and yanking my T-shirt back into place. I was rebuckling my belt when Tyler appeared at the door, I could see David behind him, bobbing around trying to see past his bulk and into the room. I was the color of the sheets I'd just given Curtis, as I straightened my shirt up under Tyler's amused stare.

"Not interrupting anything are we?" He asked archly, once I was more composed, my cheeks still burning but my clothes still on. I hung me head as he entered the room, trying to hide my embarrassment, Curtis was still laughing, but silently now, and holding himself as though he was in great pain, his body rocked as he struggled for air. Tyler stepped past me with the broadest, most perfectly even, pearliest white grin, great amusement in his eyes. He held out his hand to Curtis and helped him to his feet. "Okay?"

"Yeah." Curtis was able to gasp as he swabbed at his face with his forearm to wipe away the tears of laughter.

"What'd I miss?" A perplexed looking David demanded. He was carrying a small box that presumably contained the clock they had bought for Curtis.

"Nothing fit to print." Tyler supplied and I felt the blood rushing into my face again.

"Oh god!" David cried, taking a step back and laughing. "You mean...?"

"I mean that if we'd arrived five minutes later..." Tyler trailed off too and smiled at Curtis and me, the embarrassment was acute, but I seemed to be the only one suffering from it, Curtis couldn't stop laughing. "Learn to lock the door, kids!"

"Thanks, uncle Tyler." I finally managed to say. "Why didn't say you were coming over?"

"I thought you'd wait for me after school." He shrugged.

"This is for you, man." David said, killing the potential argument by stepping forward and handing Curtis the package. "It's from Tyler and me."

"Um, thanks." Curtis said accepting the package from him, eyes cast floor-ward. He glanced at me briefly, looked like he was going to protest but I shot him a look and he thought better of it.

"Can we get out of the bedroom, please?" I asked Tyler making shooing motions at him.

"Sure, you two should spend SOME time in the other room." He winked at me and ushered David out ahead of him. Curtis straggled along behind, tearing inexpertly at the package as he did, still chuckling a little.

"Oh, hey, thanks, guys. This is great."

"No problem, amigo." Tyler reached out and messed up Curtis's already messy mop of dirty- blond hair. He stepped away sharply with a frown on his face, still deeply uncomfortable with all the recent camaraderie.

"Yeah, least we could do." David volunteered. "So you guys want some help with this stuff?"

"Um, yeah, if you don't mind?" Curtis said, I could have gone for some privacy and some time together with my boyfriend, but there was still a lot that needed to be done, and I guess I could restrain myself for a while. So we accepted their assistance and set about rearranging furniture and unpacking the stuff Lois had foisted on him. As I had suspected she had decided to 'brighten the place up a bit' by giving him plants, which would be sure to die pretty quickly if I knew Curtis. The throws and cushions she had bought really cheered the place up and actually, once we'd argued about how to make best use of them (I won!), made the ratty suite look pleasant and comfortable. After maybe two hours of work, Curtis called a halt, the place was looking good and would only take a little tweaking to make it feel really like a home. We all flopped down into the seats and David got cold drinks from the fridge, food and drink supplied courtesy of Lois who had gone shopping on Curtis's behalf.

"This place isn't half bad." Tyler said after a long, long drink.

"Yeah, for a rabbit hutch." Curtis replied with a laugh.

"Oh stop it." Tyler threw a cushion at him. "I'd kill for my own place."

"Are you nuts?" David was the one to respond. "You've got it made at your place."

"Yeah, but I'd like the freedom of my own place."

"I guess." David backed down immediately. "Yeah, that'd be pretty cool."

We sat around and talked about nothing much for some time after that, just relaxing and chilling out after all the hard work. In truth, all the furniture rearranging and unpacking and general tidying we had done my mother could probably have done in half the time, but we were all still tired out. Hard day at school! Eventually, I made coffee for us all, christening Curtis's kitchen and found a bag of cookies that Lois had bought and on which we all munched contentedly for a while as we continued our conversation. Eventually, though, I think Tyler caught the looks I was throwing in his direction and understood that I wanted him and David to make their exit. Curtis, never entirely at ease in groups, had been holding up well, but I figured he was just being polite. With a sigh, he pushed himself to his feet.

"Well, we should get going."

"Huh?" David asked.

"Oh? You can stay for dinner if you like." Curtis said, looking perplexed. What was going on here? They could stay for dinner? Was this the Curtis I knew and loved, the anti-social (bordering on sociopathic) Curtis that I had been spending my days with? It looked like him, it sounded like him, but the words coming out were not his. "I mean, I wasn't planning to cook or anything, just take-out."

"Huh?" I thought the time had come for me to add something intelligent to the conversation, it seemed the two people in this conversation were Tyler and Curtis and David and I were simply spectators. We looked blankly at one another and then, simultaneously, shrugged.

"That's if you're not in a hurry?" Curtis went on to add.

"We should really go. Leave you guys to it." Tyler informed in. "But thanks, dude." He reached out and shook Curtis's hand vigorously. "Invite us back when you're settled in, okay?"

"Sure." Curtis smiled up at his old friend, and my heart swelled at the sight of them getting on so well, sliding back into the easy, untroubled relationship they had had before Curtis's mother died. He squeezed back, and entered the record books for being the first person I had seen shake Tyler's hand and not get his fingers crushed for his efforts!

"Well, I guess we're going." David said to me as Curtis got to his feet to see them out, we shook hands briefly and with the two of them calling good wishes to us as they went down the stairs, we were alone.

"Do you want to stay for dinner?" I asked Curtis with a frown, hands on hips.

"Just trying to be sociable." He shrugged at me and grinned at the look I gave him.

"Sociable?" I scowled some more. "And you picked today? When we have a bed to christen?"

"So you wanna go play now? Or should we eat first?" He asked cocking his head on one side, grinning moronically at me.

"Hmm. Maybe eat. You're not so irresistible, you know." And then continued in my best Jerry Springer guest voice, grinning at him. "You ain't all that."

"Sure I am." He grinned again and waved his hand in front of my face. "You will come to bed with me now."

"Your Jedi mind tricks will not work on me, boy." I replied. "So what are we eating?"

"Pizza?" He offered with a shrug. "There's a place round the corner."

"Handy."

"Very." He agreed with a rueful smile. I had a feeling he'd be spending a lot of his wages there, Curtis didn't strike me as being too domesticated. "So you wanna go for them? Let me finish up here?"

"Sure." I agreed, least I could do really. So off I went, leaving him alone up there to finish straightening out his little kitchen. I had to wait for a while as there were a few people in the pizza place ahead of me, but I didn't mind. I was really pleased with myself that I was paying for the pizza, a small victory, but an important one! When I got back up, nothing much had changed, the glasses we had been drinking from were washed and waiting to dry, but other than that he appeared to have made little progress.

"Hey." I called, assuming he must be in the bedroom. Which he was, but when I went in, having dumped the pizza on the kitchen counter, I was greeted by an explosion of red satin. He'd made up the bed already and was sitting, bouncing gently on the edge, a broad, stupid- looking smile on his face.

"Hey." He replied. "Food?"

"In the kitchen."

"Cool, how much do I owe you?"

"Don't make me hit you."

"Whatever." He replied following me to the kitchen. "I'll just get the next one."

"See, that works. That's like sharing. Can you understand that idea, Curtis?" I asked in the closest approximation of my mother I could manage.

"Do you ever get tired of being right?" He asked, taking me by surprise, it took a few moments for me to come up with an answer.

"Not yet, but I'll be sure to let you know."

Over our impromptu dinner we discussed the apartment, considered moving the furniture around some more and talked about what would look good on what wall, where the TV should go (if and when he got one), whether the phone was better where it was or nearer the kitchen part. That sort of stuff, light, inconsequential, easy. It was weird, like an old married couple talking about how they kept house. Weird, but at the same time also really cool. After dinner we washed and dried what few utensils we had used together.

"Here, this is for you." Curtis passed me one of those little gift bag things. Inside was a set of keys. "Your own key."

"Curtis...I...wow, thanks." I hugged him tightly, accepting his gift happily.

"This way you can come and go whenever you like."

"You're not frightened I'll catch with another man?" I joked.

"There won't be another man. There'll never be another man, not for me. You're the only one I need." He answered with total sincerity.

"Does that line ever work?" I asked.

"I don't know, but I'm about to find out." He held out his hand and I took it in mine without hesitation and allowed myself to be led to the bedroom. Certain this time that the front door was locked. "I guess it does." He murmured as I clicked off the light in the main room and pushed the door closed behind me. Not for the first time the universe shrank dramatically, to be the size of that little bedroom, and with a population of two. Just me and Curtis, nothing else existed, nothing else mattered, and nothing could ever come between us. He pulled me to him and the two of us stood beside his satin swathed bed and kissed, over and over again, nuzzling against one another, our hands roaming each other's bodies, utterly, blissfully happy. Eventually, he gave me a little shove and I toppled onto the bed, the fabric feeling wonderful to my touch, but for all it's erotic silkiness it didn't feel half as good as the rough cotton of his shirt and the solidity of his body beneath.

"Drew, I love you, man." He whispered as he looked down at me.

"I love you too." I replied looking up at him standing there, his expression soft and warm. "Now shuck them duds, and get your ass over here."

"You want my ass?" He asked, tilting his head and looking at me quizzically.

"Maybe later. For now I just want you naked."

"Can do." He quickly kicked off his boots and threw shirt and T-shirt aside with a flourish. The jeans were next and my beautiful boyfriend was standing in front of me in just shorts and socks. "Now you have to take something off."

"Do it yourself, tiger." I replied casually.

"Can do." He said again, nodding amiably. He bent over me and we kissed lingeringly as his fingers rapidly worked my shirt buttons loose, never taking his lips from mine. Soon I was bare from the waist, and I decided to help him out by kicking my sneakers off as he removed my belt, for the second time! Moments later I was naked and completely exposed to him as he pulled my socks off and sitting down to join me on the bed slipped his off too. Off came the shorts and then we were as one again, our arms wrapped around each other, erections pressing urgently against one another's thighs and bellies as we rolled around on the spacious, silky bed. Absolute heaven! At least, that's my definition of the word.

We stayed like that for some time, twining around one another, our hands and lips making slow explorations of each other's body, getting to know one another better than ever before. No need to be quiet for fear of waking my mother, no need to be careful in case anyone walked in. This place was ours, this time was ours, we were together, we were safe and we were staying that way. I knew it as absolutely as I knew the sun would rise the next morning. He slid away from me, kissing his way down my chest and then skirting my crotch, despite the fist I had clenched in his hair. I gave him a little tug and he looked up at me, amusement in his beautiful green eyes, then with a gentle shake of his head, he directed his attentions exactly where I wanted them!

"Oh, God!" I was able to moan, sinking back into the pillows contentedly and arching my back slightly as he took more and more of me into his mouth. Man, but he was good. We quickly squirmed around on the bed so I was able to return the favor, taking him as he had me and applying all he had taught me in our short acquaintance. It was a feeling I had come to love, the feeling of my boyfriend's soft smooth skin, of his firm muscles and of him inside me, silkier than any other part of his body and harder too, a beautiful combination! I made as tight a seal as possible of my lips and began to work my head gently, teasingly back and forth, swabbing his shaft with my tongue as I did. I was rewarded with a low groan which I more felt than head, as I reached behind him and placed my hands on his butt, drawing him in as deeply as I could take him.

Although I was conscious of the time constraints, knowing my mom and Lois were expecting me home, we made it last as long as possible. Changing positions from time to time, using tongues and lips and fingers to stimulate every part of one another, we kissed and hugged and generally had the most wonderful time of my young life. Every time one of us was close, the other would stop sucking and stroking and pull back long enough to let him calm down, to build the tension and increase the anticipation, to make the whole experience as intense as we possibly could. And it worked, I was aching, but in a good way, after more than an hour of this sensual teasing and I was desperate to get off.

"Curtis..." I groaned to him. "Curtis, please."

Apparently he understood this inarticulate pleading and swiftly redoubled his efforts, taking me all the way into his throat with ease, a trick I had yet to master. I had to content myself with using my hand to supplement my lips in my efforts to get him off at the same time as me. Again, his soft moans, and the tightening of his grip on my thighs told me I was doing something right! He began to buck slightly in my grip, I could feel the tension building in the firm, smooth lines of his body and I could tell from the increasingly erratic movements he was making that I was pushing the right buttons. My own balls were fast tightening as he applied all his skill to getting me off, it felt fantastic, I was moaning and groaning loudly now and nearing a state of total ecstasy.

"Oh, Curtis!" I finally called out, unable to stifle my moaning any more, my lip was sore from biting it and my back arched as he pushed me to the edge and then, with a deep animal groan, he pushed me over. I spasmed, my entire body went rigid, and I'm sure I must have left marks where I was clutching at him as my orgasm wracked my body. It was the best it had ever been though not, I had a feeling, the best it would get as we became more used to one another's bodies and had more opportunities to practice! That was not the thought in my mind at the time, though, as far as I had any thoughts they centered on how amazing it felt, and how much I wanted to taste him too.

"Wow." He gasped coming up for air, letting me slide back out, he flopped onto his side and then I rolled him on his back. In that position I had unrestricted access to him and I took immediate advantage of it, kneeling between his legs and pushing his thighs apart. I bowed my head to the task, wrapping one hand around him and stroking his chest and belly with the other. I worked steadily and hungrily at him as he knotted his fingers in my hair. He squirmed and groaned and murmured my name, turning me on almost as much as his earlier soft caresses and questing tongue had. I ignored his pleadings for me to finish him, but I kept my pace regular, teasing him further and making him feel as good as I possibly could.

"Oh, Drew, man, Drew." He moaned and I smiled round the mouthful I had. Moments later, I knew the line had been crossed, his grip tightened and his back arched as mine had done shortly before, he pushed himself further into me and I astonished myself by being able to take him into my throat without any trouble. As soon as I realized what was happening though I began to fear I would choke, and placing my hands on his hips I pushed him back down so his back was flat on the bed, pulling off him as I did. He was in the throes of his orgasm, he eyes screwed shut, his head rolling from side to side and a noise that sounded a lot like 'nnnnnggg' escaped his tightly clenched teeth. The last few splashes landed on my face and chest, but who cared? What was important was how much pleasure my efforts had given him, this is how it was meant to be.

"That. Was. Fan. Tastic." He finally managed to gasp out, going utterly limp on the bed.

"Good." I whispered laying down half atop and half alongside him, kissing his chest, his neck, his collarbone, his earlobe, his cheek and finally his lips. He opened his mouth and our tongues dueled lazily as he brought one hand round to my shoulders. Eventually though we had to part, nature was calling, so I took him by the hand and led him naked through to his bathroom. He got into the shower and I joined him shortly after that, once more wrapping myself around him and glorying in how good he felt and how lucky it was that we had met each other, and how perfect my life was shaping up to be.

"You got time?" He asked as we staggered back out onto the tiled floor some time later.

"For you?" I whispered hugging him tightly and tracing patterns on his back with the tips of my fingers. "For you, I have all the time in the world." It felt wonderful just to be able to hold him like that, almost as good as the sex, my stomach rolled over again and again as he hugged me back and whispered in my ear how much he loved me.

"You are wonderful, Drew." He murmured as we slowly dried simply in the warmth of the room. "Never leave me, buddy."

"I never will." I replied. "Well, except that I have to soon."

"I know." He kissed the top of my head a few times, down my forehead and nose to my lips. "But that's a cool kind of leaving, I'll miss you, but I know you'll be coming back tomorrow and it'll be like meeting all over again."

"You sap." I whispered, tears forming in my eyes.

We returned to the bedroom and curled up naked together between the new satin sheets, our hands resting gently on one another's bodies, the soft thud of his heartbeat in my ear as I snuggled against his chest. I gave a small contented whimper as I pressed myself as close to him as I could, curling my toes happily and letting my eyes slide closed. He kept one strong arm wrapped around my shoulders and gently played with my hair with the other.

"I want us to be like this forever." He murmured as I drifted off to sleep. It was the last thing I heard. "You make me feel so special, Drew."

It was the sound of his telephone ringing that brought me back to wakefulness, startling me as he gently disentangled himself and went to answer it. Who on earth could be calling I thought woozily as I blinked slowly and tried to focus on my watch. I could dimly hear his voice from the other room as he conducted a brief conversation with the mystery caller. Then he laughed and I could hear him saying goodbye, I waited quietly for him to pad back through to the bedroom. He sat on the edge of the bed and drew me towards him, kissing me softly and gently as he did so.

"That was Lois." He muttered to my neck as my hands roamed his body.

"Yeah." I replied, thinking that it probably would have been. I wasn't late yet, but she was just being cautious, keeping us out of trouble and keeping my mother of our backs. I was grateful in a way, but I also resented the assumption that I couldn't make it home on time under my own steam. But then again, I had been asleep when she called. "Were you asleep?" I asked Curtis, looking up into his eyes.

"No. I was just watching you." He replied, smiling shyly at me.

"Yeah?" I asked, with a broad smile, feeling so happy to be with a man who would want to stay awake and simply watch me. But the real world was still there, and it would have to be dealt with. "What did she say?"

"She said I should put my pants on and drive you home."

"She was probably right." I allowed, though with limited enthusiasm as I had now returned to my favorite pastime, kissing Curtis.

"She was." He pressed his lips to mine and his tongue gently sought entry.

"I know." I finally sighed, breaking off the long, lingering kiss. It was wonderful, but it had to come to end. For now.

"Well, get dressed." He said, slapping my thigh and standing up to pull on his jeans, not bothering to look for his underwear which he had thrown across the room as he undressed earlier. I watched him for a moment and then, with a resigned sigh began to dress also. When we were both dressed, I took his hands in mine and looked deeply into his eyes, he looked back at me, his expression fond.

"Curtis, I'm sorry I was such an asshole about you getting your own place."

"It's okay, Drew, I completely understand." He squeezed my hands. "I don't want to be away from you either, you're all I think about. I had to keep getting Lois to repeat herself today, I was miles away." He grinned.

"Thanks." I whispered as we embraced again, enjoying the feeling of him clothed as much as I had naked.

"Come on, I'll drive you back." I dutifully followed him out of the apartment and down to where his car was parked in the street. It was fully dark out now as we both slid into the car and made the journey to my house in silence.

"You coming in?" I asked as we pulled to a stop in the drive.

"I don't think so, I could use some sleep." He answered with an apologetic smile. "I'll come by tomorrow and say 'hi' to everyone though, and then you can come back to the apartment with me for a while, okay?"

"Okay." I smiled, depression beginning to creep back in at the prospect of another night alone in bed. But at least we now had more freedom. That was worth something.

"I meant it, Drew, that key? Use it whenever you like, you need to get away from Lois and your mom, you need someone to talk to , you just want sex." He smiled at me. "You know where I am."

"Okay." I whispered again, feeling the tears starting to form.

"I'm not far away, and I'm not leaving you. I'll always be there for you, just like you were for me." He kissed me once more. "You're my savior, buddy." We kissed again, a gentle, loving kiss. I knew that everything was going to be fine. I knew that I loved him, and I knew that he loved me.

"Good night, Curtis."

"Good night, Drew." We kissed once more. "I love you."

"I love you too."

I got out the car and stood in the drive until his lights faded into the distance. Then I just stood there and let my mind wander over all that had happened. I needed those few minutes of silence and solitude before I returned to the warmth and the welcome of my home and my family. He'd said once he wanted to be my friends and family, and he'd said that I was his. He'd been right, this sweet, caring young man meant everything to me. And though I would be the only one in that bed tonight, I would be anything but alone. I was new to the state, but somehow I knew that it was where I was meant to be.

THE END