Disclaimers: Please see installment 1 for disclaimers. If you don't belong here, you know who you are.
A Warning to the readers: Events will take place in this chapter that I do not personally approve of. If this ever happens to you, especially those of you who shouldn't be here, please have the courage to let someone know so that you can get help dealing with it. If you don't know anyone, write to me and I will try to direct you to someone who can help.
Announcement to the readers: Stephen and Joey are going away from everything for a while. They are going to be gone for a couple of weeks and aren't telling me where they will be. They won't have access to a computer, so if you want to e-mail them, they will answer but not until after March 13. Thank you for your understanding.
And so the three of them headed off to the clubs. Stephen offered to drive.
When they got to the car, Joey offered to sit in the back and climbed in first. Somehow, Katie just followed Joey right into the back seat. She continued her aggressive attack on poor Joey by sliding over towards the middle of the seat, practically pinning Joey in the corner. Stephen stood outside the car on the driver's side watching every move that Katie was putting on Joey. He wanted to laugh so hard that his sides were hurting. He wouldn't let Katie do anything that would hurt Joey, but he thought that this might be a fun lesson for Joey. He'd have to deal with women at some point in his life, and he could think of a lot worse situations than Katie. He wasn't going to let her go too far. And he knew what all of her work was going to get her. No matter how hard she tried, Katie was not going to get Joey.
Chapter 25
The drive to Club Row took about 20 minutes. It was a section of town that was about 12 city blocks. It had been part of a development program to revive the slum section of the city. They had filled the area with a large shopping center and surrounded it with restaurants, bars, and clubs. Stephen hadn't been down here, the renovations had been started after he had married and he and Susan just didn't go out clubbing. Katie was going to be the tour guide for the evening. She selected a club that had a pretty large dance floor and a DJ. It had a restaurant off to one side of the building and there was a mixed crowd of people in there. Katie started to the bar side of the floor but noticed that Joey seemed a little hesitant to follow. She switched directions and they settled between the dance floor and the restaurant. The three of them chose the seats that faced the dance floor with Katie sitting between the two men.
As she approached the table, Joey pulled her chair out for her, ever the gentleman. When she sat, she slid her chair slightly toward the side that Joey was sitting on. Joey sat in his chair facing the dance floor and rested his right arm on the table. Katie's arm immediately began sliding up Joey's arm from his elbow to his wrist, pulling his hand back so that she could interlock her fingers in his. Joey looked down to watch the arm creep along his, as if watching a poisonous spider slowly attack his hand. He froze, unsure what his next move could be, trying to figure out how to deal with Katie. His eyes searched in panic for help until they settled across the table on Stephen who was quietly watching the entertainment, thinking that things were still under control. Stephen turned to look at Joey and smiled, their eyes met, and Joey tried to express the fear he was feeling, hoping that Stephen would be his knight in shining armor. Stephen didn't see anything wrong, maybe ignoring it on purpose, tapping his fingers on the table to the beat of the music.
The next move, of course, came from Katie. She took her left arm and beginning at Joey's lower back, ran it up diagonally to his far shoulder. Her hand ran in swirls over the muscles in his back, then to his shoulder blade, up to the side of his neck, where she began massaging his neck, playing with his ear, and running her fingers through his hair. Joey was beginning to turn pale. She was just a few inches short of a full head lock when the song ended and the DJ announced that he was taking a ten minute break. Joey excused himself and stood up to go the bathroom. He glared at Stephen one of his nastiest looks and Stephen knew that he was expected to go. He looked to Katie and said, "I think I'll go to the little boy's room too. Be right back."
Katie smiled. "Do you always go in pairs?"
Joey forced a smile and nearly shoved Stephen across the dance floor toward the bathroom. When they got into the brighter light of the bathroom, Stephen could see that Joey looked ill, as if he was going to throw up. Stephen could see that the game had gone too far.
"I didn't realize that you were so upset. Katie really is a sweet girl, but she can be a little forward sometimes. "
"FORWARD???" Joey nearly screamed at Stephen. "You call that forward? Two more songs and she would have had me on the table with my pants around my ankles?"
Stephen grabbed Joey by both shoulders. "Calm down, son. I know her, and it wouldn't have gone any further than her hands roaming your body and some close dancing. I wouldn't let her hurt you. She just likes to party and have a good time. I know from the looks she gave you in the store today that she thought that you might be an interesting person to know. I didn't realize that it was making you so uncomfortable you were getting sick. I promise you that it will not go any further." He looked around the bathroom to make sure they were alone. "Besides, you belong to me, and if she wants to get you, she'll have to go through me. You are safe. I promise. I love you." Stephen wanted to include everything that he thought Joey needed to hear to feel protected.
He hugged him until he heard the door open and another guy walked into a stall. The man did his business and quickly left. Stephen and Joey killed time in front of the mirror, waiting for the man to leave by washing their hands and checking their hair. The boys stepped up to two urinals as the man left and Stephen glanced over at Joey. Joey's hands were shaking so hard that he could hardly unzip his pants. They finished and returned to their table.
When they got there, they were surprised to find Katie was not sitting alone.
"Hey guys, this is Tim, a friend of mine from school. He works here. Tim, this is Steve, my uncle, and his roommate, Joey. Joey just moved here and he'll start at City next month." The men all shook hands.
"Roommates?", ask Tim.
"Yeah," Stephen said. "Joey is a friend that is moving from up the coast and needed a place to stay. Money is tight for him and renting an apartment would have been a strain. I'm just helping him get on his feet."
Tim knowingly smiled. "I wish I had a sugar daddy like that. Man, school and working is a killer."
Stephen did not want this conversation to go any further. Joey was rattled enough and the way Tim was wording things was not lost on Stephen. "Katie, I'm sorry, love, but Joey just tossed his cookies in the bathroom. I want to get him back home. This has been a stressful week for him and I'd like to take a rain check on partying. Maybe next weekend, call me. I really have missed you and want to see you again."
He leaned over and kissed Katie on the cheek. Katie got up and hugged Joey, "I hope you feel better, I'd like to go out some other time."
Joey whispered, "Maybe." It was all he could get out.
Everyone nodded their goodbyes as the two boys left. When Stephen and Joey were near the door and out of hearing range, Tim said to Katie, "Don't make plans on him. I think he is already taken."
"I don't think so. Uncle Steve said that he just moved here. Who could have moved in on him that fast?"
"How about your uncle?"
Katie was shocked. Her mouth hung open. For a second she was angry at Tim for making such a suggestion, but then thought about her encounters with Joey. "You know, I can believe that Joey might be gay. I've met him a couple of times and I've thought him to be cute but shy or nerdish. He doesn't seem to be interested in me, and I watched and know he didn't check out any of the waitresses either. But not my Uncle Steve. He was married and had a son."
"Had? What do you mean by that?"
"They were killed in a car wreck about two years ago."
"Has he gone out since?"
"You know, I haven't been that close to him. His wife was my aunt."
Tim replied, "You might not believe this, but I was just in the bathroom. When I walked in, I could have sworn that they were breaking from a hug."
"Oh, my God. I don't know what to say. Uncle Steve?"
"Katie, be cool about it. Working around this place, I think I can tell the difference between love, infatuation, and friendship, but I just caught a glimpse. Don't run off to conclusions based on what I saw. I just have a feeling."
"Thanks. I can't believe that Uncle Steve could be gay." She stopped in her thoughts for a minute, doubtless to follow up on what Tim had said when she next saw Stephen. She filed it away, cleared her mind and asked Tim, "Say, when do you get off work?"
"I've got an hour left."
"Do you think you could give me a ride home? I came with Steve and Joey."
"Sure. Do you want to go straight home, or hang out at the Row for a while."
"I'm game if you are."
Chapter 26
Stephen and Joey practically flew home. Stephen was upset with himself for letting things get out of hand. Joey just sat in silence, staring out the passenger side window. His mind replayed this night, comparing it to the hundred times that he had approached girls at school, only to be refused each and every time. He just couldn't get over the extreme difference in tonight. Katie wasn't just interested, she was ready.
"Son, are you alright?" Stephen was almost scared at how Joey had reacted to Katie's advances.
"No." Joey's voice again was barely above a whisper and only capable of one word answers.
Stephen reached across the car and took Joey's hand. He stole Joey's move, pulling Joey's hand to his heart this time. "I will never let anyone upset you like that again. I know she didn't mean any harm, she thought you were cute and available."
Joey, the boy of few words, made it clear. "I'm not available. I'm yours. No one else's."
Stephen kissed the hand he held. "I may never forgive myself for tonight. But I certainly will never let it happen again. I'll talk to Katie soon. I guess that I will have to come out to Susan's family, but if it means saving you from something like this, I will be glad to do it. I'm sorry I made a bad decision."
For the first time since they got in the car, Joey turned to look at Stephen. He heard the sincerity, saw the sadness for the hurt that he had caused, and knew that Stephen was telling the truth. He composed himself before he spoke. "I'm sorry. I never thought that this would ever happen to me. I've never had a woman that interested in me. I didn't handle it well. I think I understand what you were trying to do. I'm not mad. Just scared that I couldn't deal with it."
Nothing more was said on the drive home. They parked the car and walked into the apartment. Joey headed directly to the bedroom. His mind was on overload, still unable to deal with what had happened. He stripped to his boxers. He just wanted to crawl under the covers and fall asleep. He wanted to forget this night. It was going to take hours for him to fall asleep. The more he thought about it, the more he was embarrassed by it.
Stephen followed into the bedroom a few minutes later. He had locked up and turned off the lights. Checking the answering machine, there was one message, from Jeff's secretary. She asked him to come to the office Thursday morning at 10 for a meeting with Jeff. He slid into his side of the bed. They were quiet. Joey was turned away from Stephen, the blanket pulled up under his chin.
"Joey?"
"Yeah."
"I love you."
"You too," Joey grunted. The pain in Stephen's heart was immeasurable. This was the first time Joey wasn't able to say the words "I love you" to Stephen. He hated himself for hurting Joey this bad. Even though he had told Joey how much he regretted his decision, Joey had to be shown how much Stephen loved him and how far Stephen would go to make it up to him.
"Is it alright if I give you a hug?"
Joey slid toward Stephen, scooting back on his left hip, not turning or rolling as he got closer to Stephen. He still couldn't face him. Tonight, he definitely needed Stephen's arms, he needed to feel Stephen's protection, he needed to be in his favorite position. But when Stephen wrapped his arms around Joey, it didn't feel the way it had every time before. The bond between them had been frayed a little, Joey felt it in his heart and Stephen could see it in Joey's body language.
Joey had heard Stephen's apology, but the pain wasn't going to go away simply by chanting a few words of some magic spell. They nestled into position uneasily, Stephen protecting his young boy, wrapping him up, but this time making sure that his dick did not come near Joey's crack. Joey needed to feel love and safety, and Stephen knew anything suggesting sex without Joey's okay would hurt things. He should have been this concerned earlier tonight.
"Joey?"
"Yeah."
"I'm sorry. I want to make it up to you. Can I make you feel better?"
"This feels okay."
"Joey?"
"Yeah?"
"Last night, you said that it hurt you to see me so sad. Now it hurts me to see you so scared. You need to know that someone loves you. I didn't do my job tonight. I let you down. You said that when you are down is the time you thought I needed to feel love the most. Do you need that now?"
Joey sighed and shivered. He needed Stephen to want him. He needed to hear that he would survive. Stephen held him tighter as he said, "No, this is fine."
"I can feel how much you are hurting. I hate myself right now for it because I am the cause of it. I just want the best for you. I can't think of anything to say or give you to make things right. I wanted to give you everything. Please take me. Make love to me. I may be selfish, but I need you, I need to know you can forgive me."
Joey loved Stephen. He rolled to his back, quiet for a minute. He remembered all the wonderful things Stephen had done for him in the past week. He knew that Stephen loved him, even if he didn't feel it right this minute. He didn't think that he had the energy for Stephen to take him, but he was going to honor Stephen's request out of respect for him. "Yeah, I do want you in me."
Stephen kissed him on the back of the neck. "I would rather that you be in me. I know that all your life you never felt wanted. I want you now and forever. But I want to belong to you too. I want a part of you in me forever. Can you do this for me, please?"
Joey hadn't thought about this. He hadn't really thought about fucking Stephen. He was happy that someone loved him, and he was willing to be receiving his lover. It never occurred to him that receiving love meant giving love too.
So tonight, Joey would call all the shots. Joey could see Stephen's concern for him, and this recharged him, and helped him forget the evening and focus on what was going on in their bed now. Stephen saw the pleasure that he had felt last night in Joey's face as he entered him. He got to feel the fullness of the man he loved inside of him. He felt the emptiness and ecstacy as Joey pulled slowly out of him. They exchanged places this evening, and what one had felt the night before, the other enjoyed this evening. It happened much quicker, maybe too quickly, once Stephen got comfortable beneath Joey. It didn't take Joey long to give Stephen what he wanted, a permanent piece of his body and his soul inside of him. When they were done, they kissed and hugged, then cleaned themselves up. They found a new position for sleeping tonight. The one Stephen had discovered this morning, with Joey rolled toward him, tucked in under his side with Joey's head resting on Stephen's shoulder. Stephen kissed Joey on the forehead and soon they were both asleep.
Chapter 27
Thursday morning. Stephen opened his eyes, trying to focus on a new day. He didn't feel a body laying on or beside him. This sounded an alarm in his head and his heart. The first thing his groggy mind searched for was Joey.
He wanted Joey to be the first thing he saw every morning. Especially, this morning. Stephen was still worried about what had happened last night.
He rolled his head to the left to see if Joey was still there. He was. He was still on his side of the bed, sitting cross legged, just watching Stephen.
"Good morning." Stephen smiled. He tested the waters to see how Joey felt.
"Hey, dad." Joey was studying Stephen's face.
"How long have you been awake? Are you okay?"
Joey paused, thinking how to best answer those questions. "I love you."
"Come here."
Joey stretched out and took his place inside of Stephen's warm hug. Stephen ran his hand up and down Joey's spine, petting his boy gently. No words would be needed. Everything was good.
After a few minutes, Stephen looked to the clock radio on his nightstand. It said 9 am. He thought of the answering machine message from last night, pulling Joey up to his lips and giving him an affectionate embrace.
"I doubt if you heard last night, but there was a message from the office. Jeff wanted to see me at 10. I've got to get a move on."
Joey kissed Stephen back. "Please don't let him hurt you. I will be worried what might happen."
"I'm a big boy. He can't do anything to me there. There are too many people in the office and his words cannot hurt me."
Stephen went through his routine quickly, but didn't get into a coat and tie. Instead, he chose to wear a dress shirt and Dockers slacks that he wore frequently on "dress down Fridays." He didn't work there anymore and didn't feel the need to comply with the dress code. He figured this was a clean out your office and leave meeting. By the time he was ready to leave, Joey had made his way to the living room. Stephen kissed Joey again, and just like the other time, it was almost impossible to leave him. "I should be back pretty quickly. Let's go catch another movie this afternoon, okay."
Joey watched his best friend leave for work. He decided to go for a swim. He hadn't exercised since he had moved in with Stephen, and his body was craving some exertion. He went through his constitutional, which strangely was beginning to look more and more like Stephen's morning routine, and then put on his suit to head to the pool.
As he entered the pool area, a familiar face passed him. "Hey, Kevin. S'up man."
"Nothing, dude. Just hanging out. Going for a swim?" He nodded down to Joey's suit, but was trying to grab a quick peek at the goods. Kevin had decided after their first meeting that Joey was going to be the next notch on his gun. And he was determined.
"Yeah, I haven't worked out all week and I left my bicycle at my old house. I need to burn some energy."
"Cool. Give me a yell. When you're done, let's hang. I'd like some company."
"Sure, 20-25 minutes and I'll be done. Do you want to come down here and meet me?"
"Yeah, I'm meet you at the gate."
After Joey's swim, Kevin was waiting at the appointed place. He had watched Joey the whole time from his front room window, hoping to catch a glimpse of him.
"Good swim?"
"Yeah, the body's sore. Got to remember to do this as much as possible."
"Do you run?"
"I don't care for it. I hate the pounding on my feet."
"I have that problem, too. I work out at a gym nearby. Maybe you could come with me. They have good equipment and nice sets of weights."
"Thanks, but I wouldn't be interested. Dad and I are on a tight budget and I don't think club memberships would fit into that."
"Too bad."
About this time, they had reached the front door of Joey's apartment. Joey unlocked the door and led the way in. He pointed to the sofa, "Have a seat, let me change. If you want, the remote's on the coffee table."
Kevin watched Joey go down the hall to the bedroom. He didn't want to watch TV. He wanted to watch his dick sink into Joey's tight hole. He didn't take any time. He was looking for a way into the bedroom, maybe to sneak a peek at Joey. "How's that sunburn from Tuesday?"
"Dad had some stuff. My burns not too bad. But I'm not sunning for a few days."
Kevin had moved down the hall, standing just outside the bedroom door now. "What did he use?"
"Some aloe. I'd never tried it. It's great. Really took the sting out."
"Oh yeah, that's good stuff. Do you know what brand?"
"No, it's on the counter in the bathroom."
Kevin grabbed the bottle from the bathroom and nudged the bedroom door open a little. Joey was wrapped in his towel, picking out his clothes from his duffle bag. They still hadn't gotten any furniture to put his clothes in. Joey was startled by the intrusion.
"This the stuff?" Kevin was disappointed that he didn't get to see the prize, but his poker face kept hidden from Joey his real intentions.
"Yep."
Kevin's mind kept working, looking for an opening like a boxer. He noticed that there was only one bed in the apartment, a nice wide bed with room for two. This would be a nice place to lay down, with Joey.
"Hey, there's only one bed in here. Where are you sleeping?"
Joey blushed. "Until we can get some furniture, Dad and I are having to share a bed."
"Man, I didn't even do that when I was a baby. Aren't you a little uncomfortable?"
Joey let his imagination run wild. What if Stephen really had been his dad?
He could have crawled in bed with him when he was a kid. They could have had tickle fights. Stephen could have read to him. They could have father-son talks that Joey never got. All the things they were doing now. Well, almost.
"Hey, he's my dad. It's not a big deal."
Kevin sensed an opening. He was closing in on his real intentions, something that Joey would never expect. "Do you mind my asking, how do you take care of, you know, your urges?"
"What urges?"
"You know, late at night or early in the morning? I can't imagine you doing it in front of your dad."
"Uh, that's kind of private, man."
"Sorry. I was just curious. I am taking a psych course now on sexual dysfunction. I might become a psychologist. We talk about everything. I guess I'm used to talking about sex."
"I'm not. Let's change the subject."
The opening closed. This wasn't going to be an easy score for Kevin. He was hoping that he could just come out and ask Joey if he was interested in fooling around, but Joey's answer confirmed that he was to uptight to be that kind of guy. But Kevin knew all the tricks. Plan B, look for another chance, something to get their bodies close to each other. Kevin searched the room. Hanging out of his bag was a brightly colored Hawaiian print shirt.
"Hey, where did you find that shirt? I've been looking for that style. I like these prints, but I want them in bright colors. Those are hard to find." Kevin walked over next to Joey, standing between him and where he had laid his clothes on the bed, pulling the shirt out of the bag.
"Oh, dad and I bought that earlier this week. He took me to get some new clothes. He likes this style and I wanted to get one to make him happy."
"What store?" Kevin continued with the interrogation.
"You know, I don't remember. Somewhere in the mall. It's not one of the big department stores. We found it in a small shop in the middle of the mall."
Joey tried to reach over to grab his boxers. Because Kevin had stepped between Joey and his clothes, it was difficult to reach. Joey had to stretch and lift one foot off the floor, reaching across Kevin who was acting distracted by looking at the shirt. Kevin had succeeded. He had Joey off balance both physically and mentally.
As Joey reached, Kevin threw the shirt aside and tackled Joey onto the bed. Kevin was a regular at the gym, and he was considerably stronger that the slightly built Joey. It was no contest.
"Hey, what the hell are you doing?"
Kevin didn't say anything. He grabbed a belt that Joey had laid out to wear and bound Joey's hands behind his back.
"Let go of me you bastard."
Kevin yanked the towel off of Joey, leaving him naked and laying on his stomach on the bed. He ran his hand over Joey's butt, giving each cheek a squeeze. He kept one knee in the middle of Joey's back to control him and began to pull his own shirt off.
Joey began to yell, "Help me...."
Kevin slapped him in the back of his head, quieting him and making Joey a little dizzy. He covered his mouth with his hand. "Shut up." He grabbed Joey's t-shirt, stuffing some of it in his mouth to gag Joey.
Kevin searched the room and spotted two bathrobes hanging on the back of the door. He jumped off of Joey and quickly ripped the robes down and was back to the bed before Joey could crawl away. He put his knee in the middle of Joey's back again. He pulled the belts from the robes and tightly tied one to each of Joey's arms. He dragged Joey's body towards the head of the bed.
He took the other ends of the robe belts and after taking the belt off of Joey's wrist, tied each arm to the ends of the headboard. He adjusted his knots tighter, straining Joey's arms. Joey was now tied down to the bed, gagged, with his arms immobile. Kevin stepped off the bed to admire his work for a second. He walked around where Joey could see him. "Just relax and enjoy this buddy. We'll have a good time."
Joey began to panic. He and Stephen had been fairly gentle with each other.
He was not into rough play. And then he watched as Kevin pulled his shorts down. He was just starting to rise, but Joey could tell that Kevin was considerably thicker that Stephen, and the idea of that pole ripping through him terrified him.
Kevin smirked. "I want to thank you for telling me where the aloe was. I hate to think of dry fucking you with this dick. I want you to enjoy this as much as I will." Kevin grabbed the aloe bottle and squirted some on Joey's ass. The sensation of something, anything touching Joey led him to think that he was being entered. He struggled to free himself, but the knots were too tight. Kevin rubbed the aloe on Joey's ass, running fingers into his hole, stretching him, but certainly not enough for Joey to accept the thick cock that Kevin had waiting for him.
Kevin slapped Joey's butt, making him flinch, and causing him to pull up his knees.. "Okay, time for some fun." Kevin crawled around behind Joey, putting his knees between Joey's legs, forcing him to spread his legs wider and wider. Just as he was starting to grab his dick to guide it into Joey's slippery hole, the bedroom door burst open. Kevin was so focused on ramming his dick into Joey's ass that he blocked out the commotion.
Stephen screamed, "You son of a bitch!" He grabbed Kevin's right shoulder with his left hand, pulling him away from Joey. It now became apparent to Kevin that someone else was in the room. Less than a second later, he discovered that the someone else was very unhappy with him. Even though Kevin was probably much stronger than Stephen, adrenalin made up for it. Stephen's right fist smashed into Kevin's face, and the sound of crunching bones and cartilage probably could be heard out in the living room.
"Get out of here, you piece of shit! Don't ever come near Joey again! If you do, I swear to God, I'll rip your balls off with my bare hands." Stephen threw Kevin's shirt as him as he flew out of the room, pulling his pants up as he fled in shock. Stephen chased him until he was out of the house. The screen slammed as Kevin left, and Stephen watched him run away from their apartment. When he was out of sight, Stephen closed and locked the front door. He hurried back to the bedroom, stopping at the door.
Joey lay on the bed, still immobilized, his face pointed toward the back wall of the room. He could not tell what was going on behind him. His body shook, shivering from fear. Stephen could hear the sobbing from the frightened boy. As much as he wanted to race to his lover, he knew he had to be calm. He walked slowly into the room, waiting to make sure that Joey could hear that it was Stephen in there with him now and not his rapist. He wanted Joey free now, but didn't want Joey to strike out at him in defense, possibly hurting one of them.
"Joey, Joey, can you hear me?" Stephen called as loudly as a comforting voice can. Stephen walked up to Joey, still unsure if Joey could hear him. He put his hand on Joey's back and Joey struggled to protect himself from the contact. Stephen knew that Joey still had no idea where he was or who was with him. He bent down next to Joey, whispering in his ear. "Listen to me. It's over. He's gone. You are safe. I'm here."
Joey stopped struggling against the binding that held him. He tried to focus his cloudy gaze to see the tear-filled eyes of his lover looking at him. Now that Joey knew who it was and was calmer, Stephen began by taking the gag out of Joey's mouth and untying the ropes from his wrists. As soon as he was free, Joey lunged into Stephen's arms, driving him into the headboard of the bed. Joey buried his head into Stephen's shoulder. The sobbing was now uncontrollable for both of them. They sat there for quite a while. When he stopped crying, Stephen held his boy, gently rocking him in his arms, softly humming in his ear. Stephen was there when Joey needed him the most.