Sam and Chris Chapter 42
This story may occasionally include explicit depictions of sexual acts between consenting adult males. If you are underage or it is illegal to view this for any reason, consider yourself warned. If you find this material offensive, please leave.
This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to people, living or dead, is entire a coincidence. As the author, I retain all rights to this story, and it cannot be reproduced or published without explicit consent from me. This work is copyright © 2014 by Steven Wells.
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Sam and Chris
Previously
Once we had the leashes on our pets, we headed out for our walk around the block. As we were about half way around the block we heard our names being called, "Sam, Chris!"
It was Ron from the gym. He was with a cute blond guy, "Sam, Chris, this is my boyfriend Ted. Ted, these two are Sam and Chris. You remember I met them on Tuesday at the gym!"
"Of course, Ron told me about meeting you," Ted explained. "He was excited to bump into you."
We exchanged handshakes.
"And, who are these three?" Ted asked.
Ted and Ron both offered the guys their hands for a sniff. Once they were assured they were not going to be attacked, they leaned down to pet Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Simon. Ron and Ted received some serious licks.
"They are certainly friendly," Ted assured us once they were standing again. "They are Border Collies, right?"
"Yes," I explained. "We adopted Lincoln and Roosevelt in December. They were both eight weeks old. Simon just arrived today. He's two years old. They are all brothers."
"Why did Simon just arrive today," Ron asked.
"He belonged to an elderly couple," Chris started to explain. "They needed to go into assisted living and could not take him with them. So, here he is!"
"By the way," I began. I decided if Chris could make a decision about another dog, I could certainly decide to ask Ron and Ted to our gathering on Sunday. "If you aren't doing anything on Sunday afternoon, we are having a group of friends over for brunch. We would be delighted if you could join us! The gathering is sort of a welcome to the family for Simon."
Ron and Ted looked at one another before Ron responded, "We'd love to join you! When? Where? What can we bring?"
"Just yourselves," Chris answered. "We will have plenty of food and drink!"
"Awesome!" Ron enthused as we went our separate ways.
Chapter 42: Another Brother
Saturday morning we awoke to three dogs sitting at the foot of the bed waiting for Chris and me to move. Once we started to move around, the three of them scampered to the head of the bed to wake us up with tongues all over our faces.
"Boys!" I said in my loud you-are-in-big-trouble voice. "Stop the licking! We get the picture! You want attention!"
The three of them again moved to the foot of the bed and sat while intently watched us wake up. Three tails wagged furiously.
"Am I wrong in thinking that they would let us sleep beyond 8 am today?" Chris asked.
"They have their agenda. We have our agenda. I think their agenda will probably win every time!" I answered. Then, I turned my attention to Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Simon, "Boys! Please let us get cleaned up and then we will take you for a walk."
The three of them jumped off the bed and scampered out of the bedroom while Chris and I relieved ourselves and brushed our teeth. We didn't say much because we were still waking up. Once we found our way into the kitchen, the three animals were in place beside the door.
"Some things never change," Chris said as we grabbed the three leashes and our coats.
"They are excited about something," I said to Chris. All three dogs were straining at their leashes. When we turned the corner onto the next street, all three dogs pulled us to a clump of bushes. They were excitedly sniffing at the bushes. Lincoln and Roosevelt began to bark. Simon was on his way into the clump of bushes.
"They never bark," Chris said as we peered through the bushes. "Holy shit! There is a kid in there!"
A very young boy, wrapped in a blanket, lay on the cold ground.
"He's breathing," Chris whispered to me.
I dug my phone out of my jeans and dialed 911.
"What's the nature of your emergency?" the 911 operator asked.
"We found a boy lying in a clump of bushes. He's wrapped in a blanket. We were walking our dogs, and they pulled us to the bush where we saw the boy. He appears to be breathing," I explained to the operator. I also gave her our approximate location.
"Can you stay with the boy until an emergency team arrives?" the operator asked.
"Of course," I answered her.
I moved to where Chris was standing. Simon was sniffing the kid and nudging him with his nose.
The kid woke up and smiled, "Doggie! Doggie!"
Simon licked the kid's face and the kid giggled. Then, the kid noticed Chris holding Simon's leash and me holding Lincoln and Roosevelt's leash. Chris kneeled beside the kid and introduced ourselves in a quiet voice, "Hi! I'm Chris. The other guys is Sam. The big dog is Simon. The other two are Lincoln and Roosevelt. What's your name?"
"Donny," the boy said.
"What are you doing here, Donny?" Chris asked.
"I'm waiting on mommy to come back and get me," Donny answered.
"Where did your mommy go?" Chris asked.
"To find us some food," Donny explained.
"How long have you been here?" Chris again asked.
"I don't know," Donny admitted. "It was light outside when she left. Then, it turned dark. I fell asleep until you and your dogs found me."
We heard the sirens in the distance coming toward us. A police car arrived first followed by an EMT crew. The officer walked over to where Chris and I were, "I'm Officer Michaels. What's happening here? Hey! Wait, aren't you two friends of the guy who was attacked on campus this fall?"
I decided to explain, "Yes, we are Branden's friend. Chris and I—I'm Sam, by the way—were walking our dogs. They seemed to smell something and began rummaging around in the bushes. That's when we noticed Donny. He was wrapped in a blanket."
"Do you know why he was here?" Officer Michael asked.
Chris answered the officer's question, "He said he is waiting on his mommy to come and get him. Apparently, she went in search of food yesterday afternoon. That's all we know at this point."
Officer Michaels turned to the EMT crew, "Why don't you check out Donny to make sure he is okay? I'll contact the station and let them know what we have found. I think we will need to get the DCFS involved."
"Donny, I'm Wauneta," one of the EMT crew members started to talk to Donny. "We're going to take you over to that big truck and look you over. We want to make certain you are okay. Is that alright with you?"
"Yes, Wantena," Donny said to the EMT worker. Wauneta was apparently not in his vocabulary yet. He looked at Chris and me and the dogs, "Will you guys still be here when the people in the big truck are finished?"
"We will definitely be here," Chris answered.
"Good! I want to say good bye to doggies," Donny answered as Wauneta escorted Donny to the `big truck.'
We waited while Wauneta and the other EMT examined Donny. In the meantime, Officer Michaels was on the phone with his station. "I suspect the EMT's will want to take the kid to the hospital for a more thorough examination. Maybe you could have a DCFS caseworker meet us there."
Once he was finished with his conversation with the person at his station, Office Michaels turned to us to offer and explanation of the coming events. "We need to speak with Donny about his mother. Hopefully, he can provide a description and names. Maybe he knows of a relative in the area. A caseworker will meet us at the hospital."
Wauneta joined us after she had examined Donny, "We are taking him to the hospital for a more complete examination. The boy is cold, hungry, tired, and misses his mommy. He seems not to be afraid of hospitals. I think he may have had considerable experience with them... And, he also wants to say good bye to the nice men and the doggies before we take him to the hospital. So, if the two of you will join me in the ambulance, you can say good bye to him. He also asked if the doggies can visit him in the hospital. I told him I would ask."
"We'd be delighted to have the dogs visit Donny," Chris answered. "Is that allowed?"
"Probably if he is placed in the pediatrics unit," Wauneta assured us as we followed her to the ambulance.
Wauneta opened the door of the ambulance. Chris, Lincoln, Roosevelt, Simon, and I climbed the stairs and stood beside Donny in the gurney. Simon decided to give Donny a lick in the face.
"We will bring the dogs by to see you once you get settled in the hospital," I said to Donny as he patted Simon on the head. "I think they like you!"
"I like them, too," Donny said. "I have always wanted a doggie, but my mommy said we couldn't afford one."
"Just so you know, Donny," Chris began. "This doggie is Lincoln. That one is Roosevelt. And, the one you are petting is Simon. Wauneta has our phone number, so when you are settled someone can call us and we will bring the dogs to see you."
"See you soon, Donny," I said as Chris, the dogs, and I exited the ambulance.
Wauneta followed us out of the ambulance, "I will give the pediatrics nurse your contact information. Someone will be in touch as soon as he is able to have visitors with four legs and a lot of hair!"
We said good bye to the crew and Officer Michaels and headed back to the condo. Once we were inside and the dogs were wiped down, Chris and I settled at the kitchen island to discuss our morning activity.
"I hope they find Donny's mother," Chris finally said as he poured us each a cup of coffee. "I have this feeling something isn't quite right about this. I hope I am wrong!"
"It is strange that his mother just left him in the bushes," I said to Chris. "Why would she do that?"
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Chris and I busied ourselves with preparations for today's brunch. About 20 people were expected to join us, so we decided to keep things simple—at least simple for Chris.
As we were getting things ready, my phone began to ring. It was Sawyer, "Hello, Sawyer. What's up?"
"Well, I have a few questions for you and Chris," Sawyer announced.
"Okay," I responded. "Let me turn this on speaker phone. What are you questions?"
"Good morning, Chris!" Sawyer interjected. "Tom, Harrison, Glen, and I were actually reading the Sunday paper this morning. Now, is this a coincidence or what? One of the stories involved two men, students at the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana, who were walking their three Border Collies yesterday morning in our neighborhood. It seems the dogs sniffed out a boy sleeping in the bushes. The boy was taken by ambulance to the hospital for further examination. Isn't it interesting that there are two other college students living in our neighborhood who have three Border Collies!"
"It is interesting that two other men in Champaign have Border Collies," Chris announced. "We should try to make friends with them!"
"Cut the crap, Chris," Sawyer announced. "Spill!"
I told Sawyer and the group—who were listening on speaker phone—the summarized version of our Saturday morning encounter. "We are waiting to hear from the authorities as to when we can visit the kid. He wants us to bring Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Simon."
"It can only happen to you two dudes," Harrison interjected. "Do you have a press agent?"
"Nope," Chris announce. "We just have three very socially aware dogs!"
"I'll let you guys get back to preparing for Brunch," Sawyer announced. "I know of four guys who will come with extra-large appetites."
"See you soon, guys!" I announce to the group as I shut off my phone.
"New travels fast," Chris said in response to Sawyer's call. "If our involvement with finding Donny is newsworthy, then, I think it must be a slow news cycle!"
I agreed as we continued our preparations for Brunch. The buzzer rang at precisely 12:30. It was Chris's singing group. They each greeted Chris and me as they entered the condo. David and his boyfriend Andy; Leo and his girlfriend Patti; Terry and a girl we didn't know; Anna with her boyfriend Jay; and Michelle with a strikingly handsome brunette stud we hadn't met before. So, ten of the twenty people arrive at one time.
Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Simon were ecstatic to have new potential playmates in the condo. Everyone received a lick except Patti who announce, "You have three dogs? Why do you need three dogs? I would think one would be sufficient!"
"We couldn't make up our minds when we adopted Lincoln and Roosevelt," I announced. "Simon just arrived last week. He's Lincoln and Roosevelt's older brother. His former owners couldn't take him to the assisted living facility. So, here he is!"
"That's so cool," Andy added in his British accent. "You should sing some Three Dog Night songs!"
Terry was next up, "Avery, these two are our hosts, Chris and Sam. Chris sings with our little band of merry makers. Chris, Sam, this is my girlfriend, Avery. Her brother lives down the hall from me. He introduced us a month ago."
"Welcome to the group," Chris said as he offered Avery his hand, "You are the lucky one. Terry is probably the sanest of all of us."
It was then Michelle's turn to introduce her guy, "Sam, Chris, this is my boyfriend, Will Cunningham. Will, this is Christopher Johnson and Sam Williamson."
"It's so nice to finally meet you two, Michelle has been talking about the two of you ever since we met," Will greeted us.
"Do you know Sawyer Cunningham?" I asked.
"Yea, he's my cousin. He's a freshman at UIUC this year," Will explained. "Do you know him?"
"He was my roommate before I move in with Chris. He and the gang will be here shortly," I announced.
We pointed them to the bar area in the kitchen as we answered the door. Sawyer and Glen; Tom and Harrison; and Luke and Sean compiled the next wave. Sawyer was the first to speak, "So, Sam, Chris, we want to meet Simon! He is the guest of honor after all!"
"Simon is over there with David and Andy. Roosevelt has latched onto Michelle and Anna and their dates. Lincoln has selected Terry and Avery to harass." I explained to the group. About the time I had given our new arrivals the location of the dogs, all three dogs were rushing to greet our newly arrived guests.
We let everyone deal with the dogs while Chris and I started to set out some appetizers to munch on before the main brunch.
I heard Sawyer exclaim when he joined Michelle and her new boyfriend, "Will Cunningham! What the f... sorry... are you doing here?"
As Sawyer was introducing his cousin to our gym group, to buzzer sounded again. This time the final guests arrived. Ben and Marcus as well as Brandon and Harvey and our new friends, Ron and Ted. Chris and I pointed everyone to the bar to get refreshments.
Ben and Marcus settled in on the sofa. Lincoln was on Ben's left side. Roosevelt was on Marcus's right side. Simon was in the middle. I wasn't certain who was enjoying the attention more the dogs or Ben and Marcus. I move to the side of the sofa, "So, I see you have gotten to know each other. These three thrive on attention as if you haven't noticed!"
"They are cute dogs," Marcus announced. "If you ever need a dog sitter, we will be happy to volunteer."
"We will keep that in mind," I said to Marcus. "You might have second thoughts after they have decimated a pillow or two."
Sawyer joined our conversation, "So, Sammie, you never told us. Which one is the hero?"
"All three were pulling at their leashes and headed toward the bushes," I explain. "Simon actually more or less found the kid, though."
"Hero?" Ben asked. "We must have missed something."
Sawyer explained the situation to Ben and Marcus, "So, I think they should get a medal from the city!"
"What happened to the kid?" Marcus asked.
"He's in the hospital being treated for hyperthermia," Chris explained. "We are waiting to hear from the case worker about visiting him. He wants to see the dogs again! Not us, but the dogs!"
"That is highly reasonable," Sawyer began. "The dogs are cute!"
"Are you saying we aren't cute, Sawyer?" Chris said. He was looking at Sawyer with squinty eyes.
"I guess I had best shut my mouth," Sawyer responded. "I like coming here for brunch!"
Just then the buzzer in the kitchen sounded announcing that the brunch food was done. As Chris went to set out the food, he turned to Sawyer and said, "Saved by the bell, Sawyer!" Chris was smiling at least.
After the last guest left, Chris and I cleaned up the kitchen and the living room. We were settled at the kitchen island with our laptops when Chris phone rang. He put it on speaker phone, "Christopher Johnson."
"Mr. Johnson! I am Beth Graves from DCFS," the voice said. "I understand you and your dogs found Donny in the bushes."
"The dogs found Donny. We just followed them and made the phone call to 911," Chris explained.
"Donny has been talking about them nonstop," Beth said. "He really would like to visit with you and your three dogs. He will be in the hospital until at least tomorrow morning."
Chris whispered to me, "An hour?"
I nodded yes, "What if we bring them to visit Donny in about an hour?"
"That would be perfect," Beth said. "We will bring Donny down to the visitor's lounge off the lobby. There is some rule about not allowing more than one animal on the floor at one time. Apparently, the visitor's lounge is a safe haven. I will make certain Donny is there one hour from now!"
"Terrific!" Chris said as he ended the call.
"So," I said to Chris. "It looks like we have a kid to visit!"
Once we changed clothes and rounded up Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Simon, we were off to the hospital.
"You know, Sam," Chris began. "When I first got this car, I thought it was extremely roomy. But, when you add three dogs, it looks a bit cramped in the back seat!"
"Just think what would happen if we had to put them in my car," I said to Chris. "The back seat is almost nonexistent as it is. Do we need a bigger car?"
"Not this instant," Chris explained his position. "Maybe if we decide to take a long trip somewhere, but not now."
When we arrived at the hospital, Chris parked away from the `masses' as he called it. We gathered the dogs and headed to the hospital lobby. We found some resistance from the hospital security people, "We can't let you take those three dogs to visit patients!"
"We are meeting a young patient in the visitor's lounge off the lobby," Chris announce.
"Oh! You're the two who found the boy!" the security guy said in a much happier tone.
"Actually, the dogs found him," I said to the security person. "The boy asked to see the dogs. So, here we are!"
"The visitor's lounge is just down the hall on the right," the security guard said.
When we were close to the visitor's lounge entrance, Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Simon were again pulling at their leashes. We walked in to see a delighted Donny, waiting for our furry charges. "Doggies! Doggies!" He screamed as the excited dogs pulled us toward Donny.
The licking began. Donny was squealing with delight with every swipe of dog tongue.
"Do you remember their names?" Chris ask.
"Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Simon," Donny exuberantly named each dog. "Which one is which?"
I pointed to each dog with the explanation, "This one is Lincoln. That one is Roosevelt. The bigger one is Simon."
"Hello, I'm Beth," the neatly dressed young woman announced. "He has certainly been looking forward to your visit. Now, I think I see why!"
"I'm Chris," Chris introduced himself. "This is my boyfriend, Sam."
"How's the search for his mother?" I asked.
"Nothing yet," Beth answered. "The hospital wants to release him on Monday. But, his health issues have scared away a most of the available foster families."
"Health issues?" Chris asked.
"I can't elaborate any further," Beth said.
"He looks healthy," I said to Beth.
"Right now, he looks happy," Beth suggested. "He hasn't smiled this much in all of the time I have been with him. Animals are good therapy for kids like Donny."
"What happens if you can't find a foster family?" Chris asked.
"He would be placed in a state facility," Beth said quietly.
"A state facility? What kind of state facility?" Chris asked two questions at a time.
"A group home, probably," Beth told us. "It won't be a good situation for a kid like Donny!"
"Does the foster family need to be in this area?" I asked Beth.
"In the state," Beth suggested. "We could transfer custody to almost any area in the state if we could find a foster family."
"Chris, stay here with the dogs and keep Donny happy," I tell my boyfriend. "I'm going to make a couple of phone calls!"
The first call was to Randy Allan, our executive director of Home Front. "Randy! This is Sam. I'm sorry to bother you at home, but we have a situation here. I hope you can help find a solution."
I explained the situation about Donny and how we found him.
"Can I call you in about 15 minutes," I need to speak to someone. "I take it you do not know what health issues are involved?"
"No," I told Randy. "They can't tell us."
"Okay, I will call you shortly. Thanks, Sam!" Randy said as he ended the phone call.
I walked back to the visitor's lounge, and I pulled Chris aside. "Chris, I just talked to Randy Allan. He is going to call me back in a few minutes. Hopefully, he will have some plan."
We continued to watch Donny interact with the dogs until my phone rang!
"It's Randy!" I said to Chris as I answered the phone. "Randy, tell me you have a plan!"
"I just spoke with my wife. We were recently approved to be a foster family in case the need arose at Home Font. Vanesa is a former nurse. She assured me that, unless it is Ebola or something like that, we can handle his health issues. Can you have the DCFS caseworker call me?" Randy said. He blurted out his whole plan without pause.
"I can put her on the phone if you'd like," I said to Randy.
"I will wait," Randy said.
I walked over to Beth and briefly explained the situation. "Mr. Allan would like to talk with you, if you don't mind." I handed the phone to Beth. She walked to the opposite side of the room and began to quietly talk to Randy.
I explained the situation to Chris.
"For a farm boy, you do good work!" Chris said with a smile.
After several minutes, Beth handed me my phone, "Mr. Allan wants to speak with you again, Sam." She was at least smiling.
"Sam! Vanesa and I will be at the hospital tomorrow morning before 11 am," Randy said. "We will bring our certification papers. We will probably be able to have him release from the hospital into our custody. We will need to stay overnight tomorrow night to have all of the paperwork finished. I will make hotel reservations."
"You will not make hotel reservations, we have a guest room and a sofa bed in the office," I tell Randy. "You will stay with us tomorrow night. No questions. No objections. Got it?"
"Thanks, Sam," Randy said. "I guess we will see you tomorrow afternoon!"
I ended the call and went to find Chris so I could tell him we would have house guests tomorrow night.
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After classes on Monday, I went to the condo to get ready for our house guests. Chris went to find food for dinner.
Chris had just arrived from the grocery store when the landline rang, "This is Sam!"
"Hello, Sam," Randy Allan announced. "The gang is downstairs."
"Terrific! I'll buzz you in," I said into the phone. I opened the door to await our house guests.
When Randy, Vanesa, and Donny exited the elevator, Donny saw me and immediately began running down the hallway to our condo. "Sam! Sam! Sam! Where are the doggies?" He almost jumped into my arms. I'm glad I caught him. I carried him inside. Randy and his wife followed.
"Our guests are here, Chris!" I shouted to Chris because I had no idea where he was. Donny wiggled his way to the floor so he could greet Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Simon. The four of them played on the floor for a few moments.
When Chris sauntered out of the kitchen, he looked at the four playful creatures and smiled. "I guess they seem to be getting along. Meanwhile, can I get you something to drink?"
"It may be a little too early, but, if you have scotch, I could use a scotch on the rocks!" Randy Allan decided.
"Same," Vanesa Allan added.
"It's been a long day!" Randy said.
Chris and I fixed drinks for the Vanesa and Randy Allan and grabbed beers for the two of us.
"How did things go?" I asked when we were finally settled on the sofas in the living room.
"It was like a roller coaster," Vanesa explained. "But, looking at this adorable child playing with three dogs makes everything worthwhile."
"They found Donny's mother," Randy began in a hushed voice. "She was found in an alley in back of a restaurant. Dead of an overdose. It seems she was not only trying to find food, but also a fix of heroin."
"Oh shit! Does he know?" I said pointing to Donny.
"No," Randy added. "We just found out a few hours ago. We haven't decided when to tell him."
"What happens next?" Chris asked.
"That will be decided by the court tomorrow," Randy explained. "There is another issue. Officially, we haven't told you this. Donny is HIV positive. Probably born that way. We won't know for certain until the authorities perform an autopsy."
Chris and I both looked at the happy kid playing with our dogs on the floor of our living room. "What an awful situation to be in," Chris quietly said. "His mother isn't around. He will be living with her mistakes for the rest of his life."
My phone began to ring. "Hello, Glen!"
"Did my parents make it to your place yet?" Glen asked
"Yes, why don't you come over?" I suggested to Glen.
"We're on our way!" Glen said as he ended the phone call.
"Guess who's coming to dinner?" I said to Chris.
"Glen and Sawyer, I would imagine!" Chris said with a smile. "I'm glad I bought reinforcements for tonight's meal!"
Sawyer and Glen didn't bother knocking. They stopped momentarily when they saw Donny and the dogs playing on the floor. "Looks like they are having a good time!" Glen announced before he hugged his mother and father.
Chris automatically retrieved beers for Glen and Sawyer as they sat talking with Glen's parents. Randy explained Donny's situation to the guys.
"At first, I was thinking why would a mother leave her kid in the bushes," Glen spoke up. "I guess, considering the situation, that was actually a good thing in a way!"
"Donny," Vanesa said to the boy. "Could you come here? I'd like to introduce you to these young men. Donny, this is our son Glen and his friend Sawyer. Guys, this is Donny."
Donny instinctively moved beside Glen and Sawyer and wiggled his way between them. He looked at Glen and ask, "Are you my brother then?"
Glen ruffled Donny's hair, "Yes! I guess you could say that. You have two other brothers who are in Chicago waiting for you."
"Wow!" Donny responded. "Three brothers! I always wanted a brother."
Then, Donny looked at Sawyer, "Are you my brother's boyfriend?"
To be continued...
I hope you liked the direction that `Sam and Chris' is taking. I've heard from many people and would like to hear from even more.
I would enjoy hearing your comments about this story. You can write to me at MaWriterBoy@yahoo.com.
This is my 42nd posting of my first story on Nifty.org.
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John's Journey Forward in the `Beginnings' section
Jeffery Comes Home in the `Beginnings' section
Life With Tim in the authoritarian section (Please note, this story is not for everyone because there are several scenes depicting Master/slave and BDSM relationships. So, if you are not interested in this activity, please, please do not read this story.)
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