The Golden Boys Chapter Seven Colin
Colin's plane was due to arrive at 5 PM on a Saturday evening. Usually when Harris picked a friend up at the airport, he would ask the friend to call him when the plane landed. By the time that someone retrieved his luggage and went out to the curb, Harris would just be entering the airport. He would pick up his friend at curbside without having to pay parking fees.
Not this time. He was too excited to wait at home for a phone call. He got to the airport about 3:30 PM, parked the car and began his vigil. He rushed into the terminal, and checked the `arrivals' board. The plane was due ten minutes past the scheduled arrival time. He went to a kiosk, bought a cup of coffee and a muffin, and sat down at the arrival gate.
Every five minutes he checked the board. Nothing changed.
Suddenly his phone rang and he was startled. He was sitting quietly, and he jumped a country mile when he heard the shrill ring. The call was from Darryl.
"When are you leaving for the airport?" Darryl asked.
"I'm here already. Why are you asking?"
"I was going to volunteer to drive with you and keep you company, but I see that I'm too late."
"It's the thought that counts, sweetie. Thanks anyway."
"OK, but call me when Colin gets in so I'll know that he arrived safely." They both hung up.
Colin was one of the last persons to deplane. He had been seated in the rear of the cabin, where he had ample opportunity to flirt with the handsome, even younger than he, male flight attendant. In fact, the two of them walked together toward the security gate. Harris spotted them and grew insanely jealous.
When Colin saw Harris, he ran as fast as he could and never said goodbye to the flight attendant. He hugged Harris and kissed him lightly on the cheek.
"What's up with the pretty boy?" Harris asked. He had sworn that he wouldn't ask, but in the end he did.
"Nothing, sweetheart. Just relax. He's way too young for my tastes."
"Do we have to go to baggage claim?" Harris asked.
"No Babe. I had way too much stuff to pack, what with costumes and make-up and regular clothes so I shipped everything. We should be getting four cartons delivered Monday morning.
"Good. Let's get moving. I can't wait to get you home and into bed."
"Aren't you even going to feed me?" Colin asked with mock humor.
"Does that mean that my cock isn't enough food for you?"
"Let me think about that."
Walking to the car Harris remembered Darryl. He called to tell him that Colin had arrived safely.
"You guys wanna join us for some skinny dipping tonight?" Darryl asked.
"Not tonight sweetie, not tonight."
Colin's act was appearing at Sandy's Hideaway, a popular dinner theater, which featured high caliber drag entertainment. Two or three of the "ladies" were regulars, but there were always at least one to three guest artists.
Colin was opening on the following Friday evening. He began rehearsals on Tuesday. By opening night, the club manager offered him a permanent position.
"You're the best act I've had in years," he said. "Please consider my offer. I know it's tough to move to Florida from New York, but you'll love it here," he urged the young performer.
Colin accepted the offer, but decided not to tell Harris immediately. He wanted to make sure that living together was going to remain the paradise they both dreamed of.
On opening night, The Golden Boys (as they had dubbed themselves) and Harris were on hand to cheer Colin on. He was a huge success. Instead of the usual imitations and lip syncing of Streisand, Midler, Rivers, etc., he created his own character, Fifi, of course. He wrote his own lyrics to popular tunes and he sang them live. They were bawdy, but never offensive. The audience roared with laughter.
By the end of the second week, Colin and Harris felt like they had lived together forever. The problem was that Harris worked nine to five and Fifi worked from seven to midnight. They made love whenever they could, generally between midnight and 2 AM.
During the third week of their union, Colin revealed to Harris that he was moving to Ft Lauderdale, and working full time at the dinner theater. Harris was ecstatic. His euphoria was short lived by some obstacles. The least of their troubles was that Colin would have to go back to New York for a week or so to close out his apartment, and ship his remaining stuff.
Much more formidable a problem, was the size of Harris's apartment. Colin's costumes and theatrical gear required more room than an apartment twice the size. The first evening that Harris was alone after Colin went back to New York, he was skinny dipping with his friends at their home.
"Colin and I need to look for a bigger place with at least two bedrooms," Harris confided to his friends. "We need one bedroom just for his costumes. Right now we have no living room. There are two racks of dresses taking up all the space."
"I have an idea," Bob said, "but we all have to agree. Darryl, if you would finally move into my room, and John, if you would finally move into Rosie's room, we'll have two free bedrooms. Colin and Harris could have one of the bedrooms, and the fourth would be Colin's closet. I'll figure out what's a fair rent and readjust your current rates. Not only will you each pay less, but I'll bet Harris and Colin will come out ahead also. It's not my intention to make money on my family, and best friends. You guys would have to share a bathroom, but Colin has different hours, and it won't be too much of a problem. It's not too different from what's going on now."
"That's a great offer," Harris said, but wouldn't the house be too crowded?"
"The kitchen, living room and dining room are huge," Bob pointed out. We wouldn't get in each other's way. We all hang out together now, and it hasn't been a problem."
"I think it's a great idea," Rosie said. "That way I can keep an eye on John. If we have a fight, he'll be unable to run away from me." Rosie smiled at John and they kissed.
"I'm for it too," Darryl said. "The whole family would be together then. Come on guys; group hug." He stood up and extended his arms. Seconds later, five naked bodies were embracing each other."
"Tell you what," Harris said. "I don't want to discuss this with Colin on the phone. As soon as he gets back, I'll bounce it off him."
"Fair enough, but we all hope you guys will say yes," Bob said. It was Bob's house after all, so that sort of made it an official proposition.
Colin drove his car down to Ft. Lauderdale. It was so loaded with his stuff, that he didn't have to ship anything. When he arrived home, Harris was at work. He wasn't in the apartment for five minutes when the phone rang. He picked it up and said, "Hello."
There was a slight hesitation, and then a voice said, "Hey Harris, this is Ken. I didn't expect to find you home, and I was going to leave a message. I got arrested for possession last night, and I was wondering if you could bail me out."
Colin didn't know what to say. After a long pause, he said, "Ken, this isn't Harris. It's Colin. Whoever you are I'll give a message to Harris. Give me a number where he can reach you."
"What do you mean you don't know who I am? I'm his boyfriend. Who the fuck are you?"
Colin's world collapsed around him. "Call around six tonight," he said between gritted teeth, and he slammed down the phone. All he could think about was that he had only been gone a little over a week, and Harris had started playing with another guy. He was devastated.
He had intended to unload his car, but instead he ran out to the car and started it up. He considered going to a motel, but he had second thoughts. He preferred to confront Harris face to face, and tell him what he thought of him. His heart was breaking. He went back into the apartment, and lay down in bed, sobbing until he fell asleep.
He wasn't certain how long he slept, but he was awakened when he felt someone kissing his mouth and trying to enter it. He woke slowly and realized that it was Harris. He tried to remain calm, but he pushed Harris aside and got out of bed.
Without giving Harris a hug or a kiss, he said, "You got a call from somebody named Ken. I told him that he should call you this evening."
"I wouldn't speak to that bastard for all the tea in China."
"He said he was your boyfriend."
Harris started to laugh hysterically. "And you believed him? That son-of-a-bitch couldn't tell a lie from the truth if it hit him in his cock. My darling boy, my love, my everything, Ken and I lived together for a short while. We hardly ever made love. He was out every night on the prowl. One day he just up and left to be with someone else." Harris didn't think it wise to mention that Ken left him for a twinkie. Colin was just out of the twinkie stage himself. "Then even before I met you, he called and wanted to come home. I told him, when hell freezes over, and don't bother me again. Then the night before your last visit, he showed up, let himself in and started unpacking. I kicked him out and threatened to have him arrested for trespassing. Please believe me. The guy is an enigma. I can't stand to look at him. What did he want this time?"
"He's in jail for possession and needs bail money to get out."
"Revenge, sweet revenge," Harris yelled out. "He can rot there. He'll get plenty of action in jail. Now listen to me, Numbnuts, I'm in love with you. I want to spend my life with you. My prayer is that you feel the same way."
"I do, I do," Colin answered and smiled for the first time since arriving home.
Harris started to undress. "Don't undress yet, Honey. We have to unload my car."
"Not now and not here," Harris said. "Bob has two free bedrooms in his house. We are moving into the one that faces the back yard, and the one in the front is going to be your theatrical closet. You'll have a whole room for your stuff."
"Did all the guys agree to this?"
"They not only agreed, they said that if you balked at the idea, they would send out a posse to lasso you and drag you back. Please say yes, sweetie. I love you so much. This place isn't big enough. We have to move regardless."
"Don't you think I'm a little young to join The Golden Boys?' As Colin's words sank into Harris's brain and disturbed the hell out of him, Colin laughed so loud, he started to cough. When his laughter subsided, he pulled Harris down on the bed, and demanded, "Make love to me."
To be continued ...