---------------------------------------------------------------------- The Old Valley Road Hotel.
By Wombat. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Any constructive comments are appreciated. I'm at 'bungala_wombat@yahoo.com.au'. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Dear Nifty Readers, If you enjoy this story or others on Nifty, please send a generous donation to Nifty.org at 'http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html' to help support and maintain this free service full of wonderful stories so it may continue to remain available to everyone.
Thank you all, Wombat ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 7 - 'A Rainy Day' Part 26.
------------------------------------ Part 86: A Christmas Pool Party ------------------------------------
That Christmas Ellis did not go to Mass. Instead he spent Christmas Eve and Christmas morning fucking Bryn enthusiastically. They were deep face-to-face fucks with Bryn's legs hooked over Ellis's shoulders. By the time they had finished, Bryn was a big, heavy, very happy, well-loved and well-fucked muscleman. Ellis felt gloriously well-used after he had emptied his balls many times deep into Bryn's guts. There was a delicious ache just behind his balls.
He lay on Bryn with his head resting on the thick bulges of pectoral muscles of Bryn's chest. He had his cock still up inside Bryn's arse while Bryn had his legs wrapped around Ellis's waist and his arms around Ellis's chest. Ellis ran his fingers through the hairs on Bryn's chest while Bryn massaged the back of Ellis's head and neck with his hand. Ellis was in a state of bliss. He did not want to move.
It felt like a reversal of the Christmases Ellis had spent in London with BJ. In London he was the one being fucked by BJ and it was a bitterly cold midwinter outside. Here in Sydney it was the opposite. It was hot outside the air-conditioned penthouse. Summer had arrived with a vengeance. And Ellis was fucking Bryn.
Ellis stayed blissed out on Bryn until Bryn asked if they should start getting ready for Roman's and Bill's Christmas pool party. They separated reluctantly.
After showering and getting dressed, they had breakfast downstairs at Cafe Juliana's with Geoffrey. The cafe was full because it was one of the few eating places open on Christmas Day. Bryn had the foresight to ask Ellis to book their table well in advance. Marica was not coming that day because she was going to church and then spending Christmas and Boxing Day with her family.
Alison and Clint appeared but there were no free tables available. Bryn saw them and waved them over. There was enough room at the table for Alison and Clint to join them.
Bryn dared Ellis to drive in his racer briefs swimsuit over the Sydney Harbour Bridge around to Roman and Bill's house in Mosman. Ellis accepted the dare on condition that Bryn did the same. Bryn accepted with a grin. Alison broke out into fits of giggles. Geoffrey rolled his eyes.
"Trust you two. Any excuse to show off your huge big muscles," remarked Clint with a smirk.
Afterwards, Ellis pulled on his bathing costume, a very brief pair of vertically striped yellow and green Speedos racers. Bryn did the same. His red, white and blue racing briefs were emblazoned with the Union Jack of the Australian flag in place over his prominent genital bulge.
Ellis drove them both in the Ferrari without the targa top through the streets of Sydney. It was hot outside the apartment building. A drying hot northwest wind was blowing. Ellis steered the Ferrari onto the motorway and over the Harbour Bridge. Both men were wearing aviator-style sunglasses. Bryn commented that people might think they are a right pair of wankers. Ellis laughed. He did not care. He was proud of his body and happy to show it off. Yes, people did stare at the two almost naked musclemen wearing cool aviator shades tooling along the Cahill Expressway over the Harbour Bridge in Ellis's open- topped bright red Ferrari.
They arrived at Roman and Bill's house. Ellis drove in and parked the car in a bay near the garage. Bertie arrived at the same time. With alacrity he swung his old Toyota Corona in next to the Ferrari. He got out grinning.
"Bloody hell, Bertie! If you'd clipped the Ferrari, it would've been more than your life's worth!" declared Bryn.
"Yes, Doctor Powys. Merry Christmas, Doctor Powys," returned Bertie.
Bryn laughed. Ellis grinned. Bertie greeted them both with a kiss and a hug.
They climbed the stairs to the expansive pavilion next to the swimming pool. When they reached the top, the people already there saw Bryn's Australian flag Speedos and started chanting "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!".
Both Bryn and Ellis made a bow and everyone clapped and cheered. Grinning from ear to ear, Roman came over and greeted them.
"Merry Christmas!" he cried and hugged them all. "I'm glad to see you're all dressed for the occasion. Great to see you two magnificently hunky musclemen. Lovely to see you too, Bertie."
Roman was wearing a loud Hawaiian-style shirt featuring Santa on a surfboard. He also had on white board shorts with yellow trimmings.
Bill ambled over from the barbecue earing a chef's apron over a pair of Speedos racing briefs and greeted them both with a hug, a kiss and a Christmas greeting. His superbly muscular torso and arms were bare.
Ellis presented him with a heavy packet wrapped in newspaper.
"Here're some prawns to chuck on the barbie," he said.
"Are you coming the raw prawn with me, Ellis?" asked Bill.
"I thought you'd prefer them raw rather than cooked," replied Ellis with a straight face and a trace of huffiness.
"Oh come off it, Ellis! I was only joking!" protested Bill.
Ellis laughed, "I know."
Bertie giggled.
Roman laughed too. "You'll get used to Ellis one of these days, Bill," he giggled. "He's a bit of a joker."
Bryn watched with a broad grin on his face.
"Good to see these two old mates get on so well together," he commented. "You and I, Bill, are relative newcomers."
"And our well-loved partners," declared Ellis.
"Yes!" agreed Roman.
Bryn presented the hosts with the parcel he was carrying. It was wrapped in Christmas paper and topped off with a big red bow.
Roman took it and staggered under the weight. He promptly handed it to Bill.
"Careful," warned Bryn. "They'll break."
Bill placed the parcel on a nearby table and opened it like a little boy at Christmas.
"My God! They're beautiful!" he exclaimed holding up a cut glass crystal champagne flute that sparkled in the sun. "They're Bohemian crystal. Thank you so much, Ellis and Bryn."
Roman thanked them both effusively and hugged them both again.
"Oh Roman! How sweet of you to bring along such splendid eye-candy for Christmas!" exclaimed a short slim soft-looking middle-aged man with greying brown hair as he approached. He too was wearing a loud Hawaiian-style casual shirt but with baggy green shorts.
Bryn looked the man with a raised eyebrow and a hard stare. It was a stare the nurses hated, so Ellis had been told by those who worked at RPA. It was intimidating.
Bertie giggled. He knew Bryn's look well.
Ellis folded his big arms across his chest and also fixed the man with a hard stare. The man was shorter than he was.
"And you are?" Ellis asked.
The man looked taken aback by Ellis's and Bryn's reaction.
Roman jumped in with "Ah, yes. Introductions. Bruce, this is Ellis de la Mare and his partner Doctor Bryn Powys. And, guys, this is Bruce Wyndham. Ellis, you've got some of his paintings hanging on the walls of your penthouse."
"Ah, yes. Pleased to meet you, Bruce," said Ellis cheerfully as he shook Bruce's hand. "I like your paintings."
"Thank you," replied Bruce.
Bryn shook the artist's hand in turn.
"Are you a real doctor, like Doctor Gould here?" Bruce asked him. "Or are you one with a courtesy title?"
"Doctor Gould?" cried both Ellis and Bryn in unison.
"Yes, Doctor Gould is a Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy," Bruce prattled on nervously.
Bryn towered over him. Both Bryn and Ellis looked at Bill. Roman laughed.
"You certainly kept that from us," accused Ellis.
"Well, I don't like to brag about it, especially among friends," replied Bill diffidently.
Bryn laughed and said, "I s'pose I should have remembered. Bill, you were a Ph.D. student when you were tutoring us when I was doing first year medicine. And yes, Bruce, I am a medical doctor. So you can put me in the proper pigeon hole."
"Look, sorry. I didn't mean it like that," said Bruce.
"It's all right. Don't worry about it. It's Christmas and it's party time. Right?" Bryn replied.
"Yes of course," said Bruce with an uncertain laugh.
Roman remembered to introduce Bertie to Bruce. Bertie said he had heard of Bruce, who did not look flattered.
"Come on, guys, come and join the fun," said Roman and led the way to the rest of the party.
There were several dozen people standing around the pool in the pavilion adjoining the half-Olympic-sized swimming pool. Many had drinks in their hands. Bill had a barbecue going and there was a trestle table laden with food. Another table was laden with various drinks. A bar fridge was nearby for the cold drinks.
A tall Christmas tree dominated one corner of the pavilion. It was decorated with baubles and tinsel streamers.
Ellis threw his towel over a vacant chair and leapt into the pool with a big splash. Bryn made for the diving board. He leapt high into the air and bomb-dived into the water causing a spout of water to rise up and waves to splash over the sides of the pool. A woman shrieked because her expensive Yves Saint Laurent sandals got wet.
When Ellis surfaced, he heard Claire say, "Well, look who's arrived with a splash, Doctor Powys and his boyfriend Ellis."
Laughter rippled around the pool.
A man with a high cultured voice asked, "Is Ellis the cute blond muscle boy with the shaggy-dog hairstyle?"
There was laughter and a chorus of yeses.
Ellis and Bryn cavorted around in the pool and splashed one another. Bryn yelled when Ellis got behind him and tickled hard him in his ribs.
A few other people were in the pool as well. They took care to keep well clear of the musclemen disporting in the water.
Bill announced that lunch was ready. Ellis and Bryn hauled themselves up over the side of the swimming pool. They did not feel the need to towel themselves dry because the hot dry breeze from the northwest dried their bodies quickly.
Claire, Leonie, Doris and her husband Neil came and greeted the two men. Alana and Christabelle joined them. With them were two women in their mid to late thirties. One was Doctor Julia Huckstepp, an immunologist who worked with Bryn. She was with her partner Doctor Rosemary Brocklehurst, a psychiatrist. Bryn introduced Ellis to the people he had not already met.
"The Wild Colonial Boy, unless I'm much mistaken! How super to see him in his natural habitat!" A very pale-skinned and slim young blond man with an affectedly effeminate manner and an upper crust English accent joined the group.
"The Wild Colonial Boy? Isn't that what they used to call you in London, Ellis?" asked Claire.
"Yeah," replied Ellis.
He addressed the newcomer. "Your face looks familiar but I'm afraid I can't recall your name."
"Hi, Ellis! I'm Terry. I used go to those wonderful soirees you people used to hold at Earls Court. Everything fell into a hole after you left. Poor Elizabeth, she fell into a real funk when you went to Scotland. The poor dear is so depressed these days. At least Juliana is holding herself together, thank goodness. And poor BJ, he's just so depressed too. He's fallen into a real hole and he's lost so much condition. It is so sad. He used to be such a magnificent specimen."
Terry looked Bryn up and down.
"I say, Ellis. Is that magnificent mountain of gorgeous hairy-chested muscle your boyfriend?" he asked.
Ellis laughed and said, "Yes, he is."
He introduced Terry to Bryn and the other members of the group.
Terry fanned himself with his hand as he gazed at Bryn overwhelmed with admiration.
"My goodness, Ellis. Bryn is glorious," he gushed. "His muscles are at least as big as BJ's used to be in his prime and he's better looking too. You lucky thing, Ellis. I'm so glad though you found him after that awful breakup with BJ. And you, Ellis. Your muscles are even bigger than before. You are perfectly gorgeous. You look like a god descended to Earth. You are beautiful!"
"Thanks," replied Ellis.
His face took on a slight flush.
"Why was Ellis known as the 'Wild Colonial Boy'?" asked Rosemary.
"Because he used to beat the living daylights out of the gay-bashers in London," replied Terry. "I tell you, bodies used to fly in all directions when Ellis the Wild Colonial Boy swung into action. It was just so absolutely fabulous to have him around looking after all us gay boys in the bars and clubs and things. Do you remember that time in 'Le Pissoir' in Soho, Ellis? It was just so wonderful seeing the way you beat up all those horrid brutes who invaded the place. You were so brave. It was wonderful the way you took them all on all on your own and you were so outnumbered. It was so absolutely wonderful to see all those ghastly thugs writhing around in pain on the floor, well, all those you hadn't knocked out."
"Claire, how's the baby coming along?" asked Neil.
"Now that's a clumsy segue into the next subject!" exclaimed Terry with a laugh. "Is all this queer talk too much for you?"
Neil glared at him but said nothing.
"Very well, thank you," replied Claire with a giggle. "It's a little girl and the father is standing right next to you."
Neil looked at Ellis and said, "Oh, right. I see. I reckon your little girl is going to be quite good-looking if she's anything like her father."
Terry giggled as he looked at Ellis too.
Ellis laughed.
"Well, he's certainly got a good bunch of genes," replied Claire. "That's why I chose him."
"Me too," put in Alana. "And he's one hot lover even though he's gay. He's a heaps better fucker than any straight guy I've had. I had a wonderful night in bed with him. Oh boy it was fun!"
Neil gave an embarrassed cough. Bryn laughed and clapped him on the shoulder.
"You're obviously not used to these women," he remarked with a grin.
"Yeah, Ellis is such a hot fucker that I ended up with twins, two little baby boys," Alana carried on imperturbably. "Talk about one continuous orgasm. It was wonderful that night."
"Well then, congratulations," said Leonie.
"No wonder you got such a big baby bump," commented Doris.
Neil was looking distinctly uncomfortable. Terry had a grin plastered all over his face.
"Have you and Doris any children?" Rosemary asked Neil.
"No, not yet," he replied.
"Doris, I can definitely recommend Ellis. He's one hell of a hot stud if Neil's not up to it," interjected Alana with a wicked grin.
"And Ellis has got such fantastic genes. Just look at him! One gorgeous hunk with big solid muscles. He's as fit as a wild scrub bull and also he's immune to every disease under the sun including AIDS too," said Claire joining in the fun.
Neil glowered at the two women.
"No thank you," declared Doris tartly. "I might just remind you that Neil and I are a married couple."
Bryn laughed, "And they are stirring you two like crazy."
Terry laughed. "You ladies are as bad as the two queens of Earls Court used to be when they got together. You're giving the poor man hell just like Elizabeth and Juliana would've done in the good old days. I love it!"
"You'd go down well at the RPA with your repartee, Terry," said Bryn with a smile. "People would love you."
"RPA? What's that?"
"The Royal Prince Alfred Hospital here in Sydney. I and many of the ladies here work there."
"Well, if I could see more of you, you gorgeous creature, I'd love to. Just looking at you and Ellis makes me feel faint."
Doris rolled her eyes. Neil did not look happy at all. He was a thin lightly built man shorter than Ellis and less than half Ellis's weight.
Rosemary came in with, "Ellis, I understand that you are the stud du jour. You've got quite a few ladies around RPA pregnant, I believe. Julia and I've been thinking about starting a family. I certainly get the impression that you're the man for the job because you've been blessed with a most impressive set of genes. I would love to have a baby by you. Would you mind? Please?"
"Um, yeah, OK," replied Ellis.
"I would much prefer to do it naturally if that's alright with you. Alana's been glowing ever since she spent that night with you and it's not just because she's pregnant. Apparently you really know how to pleasure a lady."
"Yeah, thanks," said Ellis.
"Well I never! Ellis, are you really into the baby-making business with real women?" asked Terry. "I thought you are most definitely gay, not into women at all. I'm staggered."
"He's had plenty of practice fucking Bryn and making Bryn a very happy well-fucked muscleman," put in Alana. "So he definitely knows what to do. He is most eminently satisfactory. I had a wonderful time with him and this is the result." She patted her obviously pregnant tummy.
Then she continued. "And I'm definitely not the only woman to get pregnant by Ellis in the natural manner. There are quite a few others."
"Oh my, oh my," gasped Terry. "This is all too much. So not only is Ellis in the baby-making game au naturel with real women but he's fucking that huge and gorgeously beautiful big hairy-chested studly muscle god as well. He's the top in their relationship! This is so incredible! Just wait until I tell everyone back home in London about it! I'm going to burst if I can't say something soon. I'm so far away here."
"I'd be careful if I were you, Terry," said Ellis. "You might make Elizabeth hit the bottle."
"She already has, my dear. She's turned into a miserable and drunken old man."
"Shit! That's tragic. What an awful waste!"
"It certainly is, my dear. But I'm so glad you've found happiness here. You left a big hole when you left London."
Rosemary turned to Bryn and asked with a wry smile, "Pardon my interruption but I have an important question. Is Ellis sane?"
Bryn laughed and said, "Yes, definitely. He's saner than I am."
"That's not saying much, Bryn," interjected Claire.
"As you should know, Claire, there's a fine line between genius and madness," replied Bryn with a grin. "You're lucky I fall on the genius side of it."
"That's true, darling," Julia said to her partner. "There are times when none of us can understand what Bryn's saying but I think that's because he sees things we can't see and he has trouble explaining them to us ordinary mortals. Whatever Bryn's mental state, he's certainly been one hell of a lot better since he started living with Ellis. He's such a lovely happy person these days and he's certainly a lot more patient with the rest of us. He's so much easier to get on with these days."
"Thank you, Julia," replied Bryn. "I've got to say, Ellis really does keep me sane. He's an absolutely rock solid bloke and he really is the most wonderful thing that's ever happened to me. In answer to your question, Rosemary, yes, he is most definitely sane. I can depend on him utterly to be my anchor-man."
"Thank you, Bryn," said Rosemary. "That's really good to know."
At Bill's repeated invitation, people queued to get the food cooked on the barbecue.
The table was piled high with food, salads, freshly cooked steak, sausages, chevapchichi, tropical fruit salads and ice-cream deserts like bombe coppelia and bombe Alaska.
Ellis heaped his plate high with food. When he turned around looking for Bryn, he saw that Bryn had joined a long table full of people. He was sitting with his back to Ellis and the pool. There was one seat vacant and it was opposite Bryn. Ellis went over and sat down. He found himself sitting next to Bertie who promptly put his arm around Ellis's shoulders and kissed him.
"Ellis, you gorgeous hunk, you're just my perfect Christmas present!" Bertie cooed.
"Ellis, you're the only man brave enough to sit next to Bertie," laughed Claire.
Ellis gave a twisted smile.
"Bryn, I thought you'd be giving Bertie the death-stare for trying to make off with your boyfriend," laughed one of the men.
Bryn was chewing his way through a thick juicy T-bone steak. He shrugged his massive shoulders.
Ellis looked around the table and saw sitting in the group Simon Morgenstern and his wife.
Simon commented, "You're looking well, Ellis. In fact you're positively bursting with health."
"Thank you," replied Ellis.
"Yes, Simon," interjected Claire, "you cannot see the scars on his chest. You've done a good job."
Claire introduced Ellis to all the other people at the table. It turned out that with the exception of Ellis, the partners and spouses, all the people were from RPA, nurses, physiotherapists, ward clerks, doctors, psychologists, social workers and others.
"Simon, is your food kosher?" asked Bertie looking at the plates in front of Simon and his wife.
"Bill assures me that it is," replied Simon unperturbed. "He's the one who'll rot in Hell if he misleads my wife and me and renders us unclean."
Laughter rippled around the table.
By the time most people had finished their meals, the talk around the table drifted into hospital politics. There was much comment about how much nicer Bryn had become since he and Ellis had become lovers. Bryn looked happily bashful. Ellis looked at him thinking how gorgeous Bryn was. When the group went on to discuss other people, Ellis lost interest. None of the people then being discussed meant anything to him. His thoughts roamed aimlessly.
He saw Bruce Wyndham talking with Tom Lundgren. Suddenly Tom waved his clenched fist in Bruce's face. It looked as if Tom was going to punch Bruce in the face. Tom was much bigger, stronger and younger than Bruce. He towered over Bruce and had a much more muscular build.
Ellis got up from his seat and quickly went over. It was obvious that Bruce was no match for Tom. As Ellis approached, he noticed that Tom was wearing just a bright red penis purse made of some shiny material and tied around Tom's cock and balls with a bright red, white and green bow. Apart from his cock and balls, his whole body was bare.
"Tom, surely you're not going to beat Bruce up, are you?" questioned Ellis. "You're so much bigger and stronger than he is!"
"Listen, Shorty, he grabbed my arse," growled Tom. "What are you going to do about it?"
Ellis turned to Bruce and said brightly, "I'll give you some advice, Bruce. It's always a good idea before you touch someone, you are sure that the object of your attentions will receive them favourably."
Tom snickered. Bruce looked at Ellis with an expression of surprise. His mouth was open.
"Yes, Bruce, I'm a fair bit younger than you but I learnt that piece of wisdom the hard way. Until I learnt that, I got into a few fights and believe me, Bruce, I'm a lot better able to look after myself in a fight that you'll ever be."
Tom laughed.
"Tom, you shave your pubic hair," declared Ellis.
"I have to. It's part of my job. I'm a well-known male model in case you didn't know," snapped Tom.
"So you shave your armpits too? You've left some stubble on your face though. I guess that's part of your tough guy image. You shave your chest as well? Or don't you have to?" laughed Ellis.
"None of your bloody business!"
A group of people from various tables approached.
Ellis heard Bertie saying, "Fight! Fight! Fight!"
Bryn put his arm around Bertie's shoulders and said, "Bertie, zip your lips now. And that's an order. It's for your own safety."
"Yes, Doctor," replied Bertie sweetly.
When the group came up to the three men, Bertie exclaimed, "Oh Tom, you look so gay!"
Tom snarled. His blue eyes blazed. Bryn rolled his eyes and laughed. So did Claire.
"Bertie, you're impossible!" she exclaimed.
Ellis folded his thick muscular arms and looked at Tom with a wry smile.
"Tom, you're a brave man wearing just that cock purse to a party here at Roman and Bill's place," he declared. "I'm finding it difficult to understand why you would buy such a thing in the first place. It certainly is getting a lot of attention."
"For your information, Shorty, Sue gave it to me for a Christmas present," growled Tom. "She wanted me to wear it today."
Bill ambled over to the group. He had shed his apron and was wearing just the blue pair of Speedos. His splendid muscular build was on show. His build was closer to Bryn's than Tom's and he was a bit shorter than the other two men. He raised an eyebrow and smiled wryly.
"Sue, what were you thinking?" he asked slowly.
"For your information, Doctor Gould, I wanted him to look sexy for this party," replied Sue sharply.
Bill laughed. "He certainly does that!"
Roman jumped in with, "Everybody, please understand that Tom is straight, very straight. He's Sue's boyfriend and is as straight as an arrow. And Ellis, please don't beat Tom to a pulp. I'd never hear the end of it from Sue and it's so difficult getting blood up off these tiles."
Ellis laughed and said, "Yeah, OK, my friend."
"Guys, it's Christmas!" declared Bryn. "Why don't we all just relax and enjoy ourselves? I'm going to."
"What a good idea, Doctor Powys!" laughed Claire.
The afternoon wore on. Lunch metamorphosed into dinner. The champagne was excellent. Much was drunk. Bryn became steadily drunker. He tackled Ellis on why Ellis was sticking to soda water, water and soft drink.
"Anyone who gets behind the wheel of a Ferrari after a few drinks is asking for trouble," declared Ellis. "Bryn, my love, it would break my heart if we had an accident on the way home and you got killed or injured. It would be horrible if I had to live with it."
"It would break my heart if you pranged the Ferrari," laughed Bryn with a drunken grin plastered ear to ear.
"What if he has a technicolour yodel in your car?" chuckled Bill. "He's a big fellow and he's had lots to eat and drink this arvo."
"Yeah, it would make a mess," replied Ellis. "It'd be a bugger of a job cleaning it up too. I guess I'd better wait until he sobers up a bit."
"You'll be a while. He's been drinking all afternoon. Look, Ellis, there's always a bed here for you and your best-beloved if you need it."
"Thanks, mate. We may just need it, especially if this big piss-pot keeps hitting the champers."
"What d'ya mean, I'm a pish-pot?" slurred Bryn. "I'm ash jober ash a shudge. Nah, not that. I mean I'm ash shober ash a sh... j... judge."
"And that would be true here in Sydney Town," laughed Bill.
"Oh boy, Bryn! You're gonna have one thermonuclear hangover tomorrow!" declared Ellis.
"Don't care!" With that Bryn wrapped his big arms around Ellis and planted a sloppy drunken kiss on Ellis's lips. Ellis reciprocated tolerantly.
After a few minutes Bryn unwrapped himself from Ellis and weaved his way back to his seat. Ellis dived into the swimming pool and swam a few laps.
People had eaten well. Doctor and Mrs Morgenstern thanked Roman and Bill for a most enjoyable day, said their farewells to everyone and departed. That started other people leaving. It was not long before the hard core was left. They had accepted Roman's and Bill's invitation to stay overnight. However, when it became dark, the mosquitoes attacked in hordes. The only way Ellis could escape them was by staying in the pool. Other people were spraying themselves with insect repellent but Ellis could not tolerate the chemical smell. He was quite happy to swim by himself in the pool.
Someone switched on the Christmas tree lights. The bright lights blinked in the semi-darkness.
Ellis noticed that Bertie and Terry were off by themselves deep in a quiet conversation. He could hear nothing. He smiled to himself as he speculated who would be the top and who would be the bottom if it came to sex or perhaps that was what they were discussing so quietly. At one stage they were looking in his direction and laughing. They looked away in a hurry when they saw that he was watching them. They were giggling uncontrollably. Ellis dived down under water and kept on swimming. It was good to be in the pool.
He was quietly swimming around when Bill came to the edge of the pool and announced that everyone else was going inside to escape the mosquitoes. Bill said that Bryn had passed out and offered to help Ellis get Bryn inside. Ellis accepted and heaved himself up over the side of the pool.
They walked to the pavilion and found Bryn asleep on a chair at one of the tables with his head resting on his arms on the table. His back and arms were covered with the small red welts of mosquito bites. Ellis tried to wake Bryn up. Bryn stirred but refused to move. The two men finally succeeded in waking him. They hoisted him up onto his feet by the armpits. Bryn was so unsteady that Ellis and Bill had to support him as they walked him to the house.
It was difficult getting the big drunk up the stairs he was swaying so badly. Ellis remarked that he was tempted to drag Bryn up the stairs but Bill advised him against it. As they were heading to the bedroom allotted to Bryn and Ellis, Bryn announced that he needed a chuck. Ellis and Bill manoeuvred him into a bathroom, got him down on his knees and positioned his head over the open toilet bowl. Bryn vomited into the toilet bowl. It took a while for him to empty his stomach.
When he had finished, he staggered up to his feet with difficulty. Ellis supported him.
"Shit, mate, you stink of chuck!" exclaimed Ellis. "And you've got it all over your face!"
"Well, there's the shower," laughed Bill.
"Yeah, into the shower you go, big fella!"
Bryn did not protest when Ellis removed both his and his own Speedos, put him under the shower and washed the vomit off him. However, Bryn did not want to get out of the shower. He wanted to finish washing himself so Ellis and Bill left him. Ellis went to the bedroom, hung his Speedos over a chair to dry and jumped into bed.
He was asleep when he was woken by knocking at the door. He got out of bed naked, switched on the bed light, opened the door and saw Sue staring at him wide-eyed. She looked embarrassed by his total nakedness and big semi-erect penis.
"Um, Ellis, sorry to wake you," she said, "but Bryn's lying unconscious in the shower with the hot water running. I can hear the water running and it's keeping me awake. I thought I better let you know otherwise Roman's going to blow his lid when he gets the next gas bill if Bryn stays in the shower all night. And I can't sleep with the noise of the running water. Sorry."
"Stone the bloody crows!" exclaimed Ellis. "I'd better get the big lump out. Sounds like he's gone and passed out in the shower. It's OK. I'll get him. Don't worry. I can manage him on my own."
"OK. Thanks."
Sue lit her way back to her bedroom with a small electric torch down the dark hallway. When she had gone, Ellis found himself in darkness. His eyes soon adjusted. He was able to see his way to the bathroom in the gloom.
He opened the door into the bathroom and was momentarily dazzled by the bathroom light. When his eyes had readjusted, he beheld Bryn's huge body lying unconscious in the bottom of the shower recess with the hot water running. Bryn's bulk blocked the drain hole in the shower recess. Water ran out of the shower across the floor to the drain hole in the centre of the bathroom. The floor was wet. The bathroom was fogging up.
Ellis turned off the water and lifted Bryn's dripping wet body out of the shower recess. With difficulty he propped up Bryn's limp body in a plastic chair and dried it off as best he could. At least Bryn was still breathing. Then he dried himself.
He had some trouble lifting Bryn's floppy unconscious body up in his arms without dropping him. He was glad of his tremendously strong back, arms, shoulders, torso and legs. He needed all his strength to hoist the considerable dead weight of Bryn's flaccid body without Bryn slipping out of his grasp.
He managed with difficulty to carry Bryn out of the bathroom and shut the door behind him. He was carrying Bryn down the darkened hallway towards their bedroom when a torch flashed in his face followed a few seconds later by a brilliant flash that blinded him.
"What the fuck!" snarled Ellis angrily. Bryn did not stir.
"Sorry, mate," came Bruce's voice. "It's such a tremendous picture I couldn't resist it, the god Apollo carrying the dead hero Hercules out of Hades up to Mount Olympus. I must paint the picture of you two. I hope you don't mind."
"We'll talk about it tomorrow," growled Ellis. "You fucking well blinded me! I can't see a fucking thing! Will you open our door?"
"Sorry. Of course. Allow me."
Bruce opened the door and followed Ellis into the bedroom. Ellis laid Bryn on the bed and turned to Bruce. He saw that the artist had a fairly new top-of-the-range Leica 35 mm. single lens reflex camera mounted with a serious-looking flashgun slung around his neck.
"Look, Ellis, you are an extraordinarily beautiful man," said Bruce. "You have the perfect body for a hero or a god and you are perfectly good-looking. In fact you have the looks and the body of a powerful Greek god, Apollo maybe or Zeus. I would love to paint you. That is if you don't mind."
"We'll talk about it tomorrow. Not now!" said Ellis irritably. "I've got to get this big drunk lunk settled into bed for the night, or what's bloody left of it. So, see you tomorrow, Bruce."
"Yes of course. Good night then."
Bruce left the bedroom and closed the door.
Ellis made sure that Bryn was positioned comfortably in the bed. He got into bed and switched off the bed light. He could not sleep straight away because of his irritation with Bruce's importunity and Bryn's drunkenness.
He was just drifting off to sleep when Bryn started snoring loudly. It sounded like a chainsaw cutting down trees next to him. Ellis managed to roll Bryn over onto his side. The snoring stopped.
He was almost asleep when Bryn started snoring again. Ellis found that Bryn had rolled over onto his back again. The snoring was deafening. Ellis rolled Bryn's bulky body back over onto his side and bent his legs forward so Bryn would be less likely to roll over. This time Ellis lay with his front up against Bryn's back and wrapped his arms around Bryn's body in an effort to stop Bryn rolling onto his back again and snoring.
This time Ellis did manage to get to sleep.
He awoke with his cock painfully erect and inserted halfway up Bryn's anus. His balls ached. His body was slick with sweat as was Bryn's body. He opened his eyes. Daylight was filtering past the closed curtains. He did not know how late or early it was. He did not care. The urge to thrust his cock fully up into Bryn's rectum was irresistible. He could not control himself. He had to push his cock all the way up into Bryn's massively muscled hot sweaty body. He was grateful to find that Bryn's arsehole was still lubricated with lube and semen from the energetic fucks he and Bryn had had on Christmas Eve and Christmas Morning. Bryn's anus was tight around Ellis's cock.
When Ellis had his cock fully embedded up to the hilt in Bryn's anus, Bryn moaned and stirred. Ellis sped up his thrusts up into Bryn. Bryn was moaning but still semi-conscious. He straightened himself up. His anus tightened even more on Ellis's penis ramming up inside him. Ellis made sure he was hitting Bryn's cum button, his prostate, with each thrust. He put his hand around Bryn's rock hard precum- slicked cock and massaged it with each of his thrusts.
Suddenly Bryn's whole body stiffened. He made a series of loud guttural noises midway between moans and groans. His arse tightened on Ellis's thrusting penis. Ellis felt Bryn's cock jerking in his hand and covering it with wet sticky slickness. He kept on fucking Bryn vigorously through Bryn's orgasm. Bryn yelled out loud, such was the intensity of his orgasm. His insides were writhing and pulsating around Ellis's cock ramming into his anus and rectum.
Ellis could hold back no more. He thrust his cock as far as it could go up inside Bryn's anal canal. He howled like a wolf as he emptied his balls deep inside Bryn's bowels. His arms tightened around Bryn's hard muscular torso. He forced the closest of connections with his lover. Bryn seemed to be enjoying the fuck. He was making a series of loud high-pitched cries like a howler monkey in heat. He was almost screaming.
When they came down off their highs, Bryn gave a deep heart-felt groan. He twisted around in Ellis's arms and started kissing Ellis's shoulder and biceps muscle. He ran his hands over both Ellis's arms delighting in the feel of the thick masses of muscle. He kept on moaning.
"You right, mate?" asked Ellis solicitously as he rested his chin on Bryn's neck. His stiff cock was still buried deep up inside Bryn's arse.
"Oh fuck yeah!" moaned Bryn.
"Good!"
Ellis covered the back of Bryn's neck with kisses. Bryn moaned deeply. He rolled his head back. Ellis ran his hand over Bryn's thick muscular bull neck. He could feel a broad grin spreading across Bryn's face.
Ellis buried his face in the back of Bryn's neck. He inhaled deeply the delicious aroma of Bryn's strong sweaty body. He was so much filled with love for his big lover that his eyes filled with tears. He snuffled into the back of Bryn's neck and then rubbed his face in the hair on the back of Bryn's neck.
Bryn moaned wordlessly. Ellis could feel he was a big happy chap. He kept his big erect penis fully embedded up inside Bryn's arsehole.
After a while when Ellis's emotional state had re-equilibrated, he remarked in a slightly wobbly voice, "I know we couldn't be connected physically any closer than we are now but I really wish we could connect our minds together like we can connect our bodies."
"Like some sort of telepathy?" asked Bryn.
"I guess so. Like we can know what each other's thinking. I could receive your thoughts and you could receive mine. I wish that was possible."
"I've got a fair idea what's going through your head, mate," laughed Bryn. "It's sex, sex and more sex, you big hot muscly bloody sex machine. Mind you, I'm definitely not complaining. I just love having your big fat cock up my arse and I'll take all you can give me until you monster my arsehole so much and make it so sore it screams for mercy."
"And Marica laughs her tits off because you 'walk funny'."
"Yeah, she does that. Hey! It's great we keep her amused."
"And then she tells me off for making you 'sore in the bottom'. Anyhow, how're you feeling?"
"Absolutely fucking fantastic, thanks mate," replied Bryn dreamily. "Fantastic waking up being fucked. Oh fuck it was good!"
"How's the hangover?"
"It's there. I wouldn't mind some breakfast in the not too distant future."
"Sure. You'll feel better with some food inside you."
"Thanks mate. But, that big fat cock of yours still up my arse is telling me I want another round of sex, you strong muscly sexy beast. OK with you?"
"Sure."
With that Ellis started once more thrusting his penis up Bryn's arse. Bryn groaned deeply as Ellis rammed his rock hard cock up deep into Bryn's bowels thrusting past his prostate. Ellis kept on plunging into him. Bryn gave a deep groan. His body shuddered and stiffened. His penis jerked in Ellis's hand and covered it with more wet stickiness.
With a few more lunges, Ellis howled as once more he squirted his load of spunk deep into Bryn's rectum. Bryn's orgasm continued.
Afterwards, they stayed connected as long as they could as they enjoyed the aromas and the absolute closeness of each other's bodies.
Big muscles were a tremendous turn-on for Ellis. The big muscles of his own powerful body were very arousing. But the huge muscles on Bryn's mighty body aroused a great desire within Ellis. He loved Bryn with all his being. He was filled with lust for Bryn and Bryn's magnificent muscular body that weighed 150 kilograms (330 pounds) of solid hard muscle. Bryn's heavy workouts in the Sparta Gym continued, gaining him a certain notoriety among the other users. His muscles were huge all over. Nearly every time Ellis got close to Bryn, he could feel his cock stiffening. Even every time he looked at Bryn. It seemed that his cock was permanently at least semi-stiff when Bryn was around. He was crazy about Bryn. He loved Bryn absolutely. He had to admit to himself that even though he and Bryn had been together for about half a year, Bryn was so much better a partner than BJ had been. Terry had brought that home to him at lunchtime.
When Ellis's cock had softened sufficiently after their energetic sex, they separated and showered together. They could not keep their hands off each other and Ellis fucked Bryn once more in the shower.
All the clothes they had to wear were the Speedos they had arrived in the previous day. No tops. Nothing else. That did not concern the two men. They were not shy about displaying their bodies.
They went downstairs to the morning room where breakfast was being served. Bryn put on his sunglasses to cut down the glare.
Terry came in with them. He too was wearing a pair of sunglasses. He was in a bad mood and did not greet them.
The table had been expanded to accommodate more people.
Roman greeted the three with, "how're the hangovers, gentlemen?"
"I'm fine," replied Ellis. "It's the other two you need to worry about."
"Hey! It's bearable. Apart from that I'm fine," replied Bryn with a big grin.
Terry ignored the question.
"Bryn, you seem remarkably cheerful for someone who must be hungover as hell," commented Roman.
"Yeah. I woke up having a thunderous great big orgasm and a big fat cock up my bum filling it with cum."
"You bloody perverts! That's disgusting!" expostulated Tom. "So incredibly disgusting!"
Terry looked sourly at Bryn and Ellis and sat down. He was quite uncommunicative.
"It sure was disgusting, Tom," replied Bryn grinning from ear to ear. "And a fuck load of fun! It was like waking up from a wet dream when you have an absolute humdinger of an orgasm and starch your sheets except this was real, fantastically fucking real. Ellis's cock really was up my bum monstering the cum out of me."
"You are so...," Tom started.
"Don't say any more," cautioned Sue putting her hand on his bare shoulder. "You know what this lot are like."
"You know, Tom," said Ellis. "You're a very good-looking man. Don't spoil the good impression by opening your mouth."
Tom glared at Ellis but said nothing.
"You're awful, Ellis!" declared Sue. "That remark is worthy of Roman."
"I wish I thought of that," laughed Roman.
Bryn and Ellis sat down with their backs to the windows. Bryn found the morning sunshine too bright for him so he kept his sunglasses on. However, he was happy to have the sun on his back.
Bill mixed up an old one pint beer glass full of water with liver salts and handed the fizzing glass to Bryn.
"Here. Drink this," he said. "It'll make you feel better."
"It'll replace all the electrolytes you lost last night getting smashed," put in Claire helpfully.
"Thanks," replied Bryn and swigged down the contents of the glass in one gulp.
Afterwards he let fly with a resounding belch much to the amusement of most of the others.
"Bryn, I hope you're not going to make a habit of drinking yourself stupid," admonished Claire. "You know how many brain cells die when you get drunk. Keep that up and you'll become normal like the rest of us."
"God forbid!" exclaimed Bryn with a laugh.
"Why did you do it?"
"Well, I reckon yesterday was the best Christmas I had ever had. It was so much fun. I had a strict Methodist upbringing as a child. Absolutely no alcoholic drinks and all that. Christmases with the family were very strait-laced affairs. Sit through church in the morning, bible readings during Christmas lunch, no alcohol of course, Christmas presents are opened quietly, soberly and giving thanks and all that. Yeah, it was all pretty dreary. Yesterday morning Ellis just about fucked me inside out. He monstered me pretty bloody thoroughly. That got things off to a flying start. I was buzzing for the rest of the day. Anyway yesterday was the first time I ever got really drunk. I guess the drinks just got away from me. The champagne was really beautiful, it was just so drinkable. Trouble is, I lost count of how many glasses I had but it was fun though until it all caught up with me."
Terry sat picking at his food. He glowered at Bryn and Ellis but said nothing.
"I'm glad you appreciated the champagne so much," said Roman with a smirk.
Ellis looked around the table and saw that most people were like him wearing only their shorts or swimming costumes. Only Bruce, Terry and Roman of the men were wearing shirts.
Bill served up breakfast. Bryn was hungrier than he expected and he fell on his as did Ellis with his.
After breakfast, Rosemary and Julia arranged with Ellis for him to spend the night with Rosemary in an effort to conceive a child. Rosemary looked forward to jumping into bed with the hot gay muscle stud. They would all spend the rest of the day and night with Roman and Bill.
Ellis and Bryn agreed to let Bruce use the photograph he had taken of them to paint the picture of the Greek god Apollo carrying the dead hero Hercules up out of Hades to Mount Olympus. Bruce was very keen to have both men as models for his paintings but Bryn refused saying that he was too busy working at the hospital and had little spare time. Ellis agreed but told Bruce that he had been accepted as a mature age student to study for an arts degree at Sydney University. If Bruce was willing to work around Ellis's study commitments and piano lessons, Ellis was willing to model for him.
The rest of Boxing Day was a hot slow day. Although the house was air-conditioned, Ellis spent most of the day in the swimming pool. Lunch was a languid affair held in the pavilion next to the swimming pool.
It turned out that Terry was staying with Roman and Bill to help Roman mount an art exhibition. He was a curator at one of the art galleries in Mayfair in London where the owner was a friend of Roman. The owner thought it would be a good idea for Terry to get some 'colonial' experience in Australia and asked Roman if Terry could get some experience with him. Roman readily agreed.
Terry was still feeling the effects of his hangover. At lunch he bemoaned the fact that he did not have a big muscular bed partner to fuck him through his hangover like Bryn did. He glared at Bryn jealously.
When Ellis asked him what happened to Bertie, Terry snapped, "None of your business!"
Terry was in a bad mood for the whole day. There was no sign of Bertie.
Dinner was held early around the pool. As arranged, Ellis and Rosemary went up to a bedroom and went to bed together. Rosemary confessed that she was thirty-nine years old. She was surprised when Ellis told her that he was a year older than she was. She thought he was much younger. Ellis told her that he had heard that older women were more fun. They both jumped into bed naked. After some foreplay that had Rosemary's nerves twanging like harp strings and her vagina wetting the bed, Ellis ploughed into her and gave her a titanic series of orgasms while he filled her vagina several times over with his spunk.
The next morning they were still connected so they had a few more fucks. Rosemary praised Ellis for being like a stallion. He was a much more satisfactory lover than the two straight men she had sex with but that was many years ago.
Bryn stayed up late with Roman and Bill listening to Bill give a recital on their grand piano. Julia, Bruce, Claire and Leonie were with them. Afterwards they sat around talking until late into the night.
Terry went to bed early.
In the week between Christmas and New Year Ellis and Bryn went to Mr Huynh and his brother to pick up their costumes for Roman's and Bill's New Year's Eve party. Mr Huynh insisted that they try on their costumes. He was clever the way he made the Captain Marvel costume for Ellis.
Ellis pulled the top on with the black face mask attached. The mask was part of the top. It had eyeholes but left the lower part of Ellis's face exposed. The mask left the hair free and Ellis's blond mop hung down over his eyes and ears. Ellis pulled on the bottom half of the costume, the shiny black leather gloves fitted with two brightly polished brass 'power bracelets' and finished off with shiny black leather knee-high boots. As Roman suggested, the sleeves were very short to show off the big powerful muscles of Ellis's lean upper arms with thick veins. The entire costume apart from the boots and gloves was made of shiny woven materials in black and red. However, in the centre of Ellis's chest was emblazoned a bright yellow eight- pointed star. The costume fitted Ellis's muscular body very closely and showed off every bulge. Ellis was not to wear underpants underneath the costume. The pants line would have shown.
When Ellis had put on his costume, Bryn and the Huynh brothers clapped enthusiastically. Ellis admired himself in the mirror and gave the Huynh brothers unstinting praise for such a magnificent creation. He was very happy with it.
"You're going to cause a sensation at the New Year's Eve party," commented Bryn.
Next it was Bryn's turn to try on his Conan costume. Like Ellis he had to strip naked to try it on. The eyes of the Huynh brothers widened with admiration as they beheld Bryn's magnificent body in all its naked glory. His costume consisted of a skimpy pair of briefs made of rabbit fur and knee-high boots also made of rabbit fur bound with leather thongs. As part of the costume were two highly polished brass bracelets like Ellis's 'power bracelets' and also a shiny thin gold circlet that fitted on Bryn's right arm above the biceps muscle. The finishing touch was a magnificent well-polished stainless steel sword with a highly polished beautifully ornamented brass handle. It was kept in a polished leather scabbard beautifully ornamented with brass fittings. It had come from a theatre shop. Then Mr Huynh presented Bryn with the crowning glory, a wig made of shiny long black hair that was real human hair imported from Vietnam. When Bryn looked at himself in the mirror, he was amazed.
"My God! You look bloody awesome!" exclaimed Ellis.
"Yeah! I look like the real thing," Bryn replied.
"That's for sure!"
When Mr Huynh presented Ellis and Bryn with the bill, Bryn's eyes widened. It was for a lot of money.
"I'm glad you're paying for it and not me," he commented.
"It's definitely worth it," replied Ellis. "We'll be a sensation at the party. These costumes are obviously a labour of love. They're beautifully well-made and worth the money. Thank you both, gentlemen."
On New Year's Eve, they both dressed in their respective costumes. Ellis chose to drive the Mercedes because it was least likely to attract the attention of the police and it had tinted windows so that the two men's costumes could not be seen outside the car.
As they had predicted, they both were a sensation at Roman's and Bill's New Year's Eve party. Some of the people present had been at Leon's birthday party and wasted no time in explaining the significance of Ellis's Captain Marvel costume. Both men had their bodies felt all over by other people, both men and women.
Many of the men wore spectacular costumes. Some were dazzling confections of feathers and frills. One brave man was completely naked. He had come as the biblical Adam. He had a lean muscular athletic build and was not displeasing to look at. Another brave man came as the Greek god Eros (the Roman god Cupid) dressed in golden angel's wings, winged helmet, bow and arrow and nothing else. He too had a pleasing body with a big penis.
Roman had dressed as a seventeenth-century Polish aristocrat wearing a magnificent colourful costume complete with an extravagant brown wig. His outfit looked like it had cost more than both Ellis's and Bryn's costumes put together.
Bill was far more soberly dressed. He had come dressed as the radical nineteenth-century Victorian Church of England cleric, theologian, philosopher and Oxford don, The Reverend Doctor John Barton complete with round spectacles and a wig of long grey hair.
Terry had come as a pageboy in a nice-looking sky blue costume with gold trimmings. Sue had come as Miss Moneypenny from the James Bond films while Tom had come as James Bond wearing a black short-sleeved polo shirt with white slacks. His hair and eyebrows were dyed dark brown. The polo shirt had '007' embroidered in white on the left breast. People commented that he was more muscular than Sean Connery and much more muscular than Roger Moore.
A number of men had come as dressed as Catholic nuns. There was a strong contingent from the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. A number of both men and women had come dressed as Catholic priests and bishops. These people lent a distinctly ecclesiastical air to the party. Other men including Bertie had come dressed as female nurses.
Yet other men came dressed as schoolgirls, particularly Catholic schoolgirls. Saint Perpetua's School uniforms were a favourite.
When Terry asked Ellis why the men wore the uniforms from Catholic girls schools, Ellis replied, "Because Catholic schoolgirls bang like shithouse doors in a gale and then they become lesbians."
Terry just about collapsed laughing.
Bill overheard him and said, "Ellis, you're a very naughty boy."
Terry laughed so hard at hearing that from the perfect image of a very old-fashioned, prim and proper Church of England clergyman that Ellis had to hold him up.
Ellis's Captain Marvel costume was difficult to get on and off. However, when Ellis was dancing energetically, he did not get any sweatier than when he danced topless. The material seemed to wick the sweat away from his skin. Ellis was impressed with Mr Huynh's handiwork and choice of materials.
Ellis spent about half the night dancing not just with Bryn but with many other people. Bryn was not at all jealous. In fact many people were keen to dance with Conan the Barbarian.
Bruce was dressed as a 1940s style newspaper reporter. He was running around most of the evening photographing people with his anachronistic Leica camera and flashgun.
The large ballroom was quite crowded. There seemed to be hundreds of people present. It reminded Ellis of the parties held at the house in Bramham Gardens in Earls Court.
Ellis had nominated himself as the driver so he stuck to the soft drink all night apart from drinking a toast in champagne at midnight. Bryn had a few drinks but nothing like enough to get as drunk as he did on Christmas Day.
Sometime after midnight, two ladies went to Ellis and asked him if he could father their child. They were Caitlin and Janine. Ellis went to bed with Caitlin and he gave her a thoroughly good time. When Caitlin discovered that Ellis could get his penis and balls out through a cunningly concealed slit in his costume, she insisted that he fuck her in his complete Captain Marvel costume, boots, gloves, power bracelets, mask and all. She really got off on being fucked by Captain Marvel the superhero, having one orgasm after another. Ellis spent a somewhat uncomfortable night dressed in his costume for the whole time he was having energetic sex with her.
Needless to say, they all stayed overnight with Roman and Bill. Ellis and Caitlin surfaced quite late in the morning of New Year's Day for breakfast. Ellis was still in his superhero costume and was rank with the odour of semen and vaginal juices. Their appearance occasioned much mirth from the others at the breakfast table. Ellis put up with the teasing good-naturedly. Caitlin was going to conceive by him the 'Superbub', Captain Marvel Junior. Bryn gave Ellis a congratulatory kiss and asked Ellis to fuck him in his costume. He said Ellis looked really hot. The costume was a real turn-on.
-------------------------------------- Continued in Part 87. --------------------------------------