The Ides of March © 2021
By David Lee
Colin's room was chilly. His parents were trying to cut back a bit on their gas usage. Their bill had been exorbitant in February because of the storms in Texas which had shut down producers there. It wasn't that they couldn't afford the cost; it was more a case of feeling they should be environmentally responsible. In their view, no one would suffer from having to put on extra clothing or blankets. Spring would arrive soon. In fact, it was less than a week away.
Colin and his best bud, Ezra, had spent the earlier part of the evening on homework. A large part of their time had involved reading a play for their English class.
Unlike some of their peers, who had gone to school together since kindergarten, they had only met at the beginning of junior high. However, there had been an immediate connection between the two; a bond which seemed to grow by the year.
Currently, they rarely studied alone.
After finishing their lessons, they'd engaged in playing a few hands of "pseudo" strip poker, with real playing cards, to rest their eyes from the strain of being on electronic equipment for many hours earlier in the day.
Because of the pandemic, high school classes were following a hybrid model this year. At present, they were spending only two days per week doing in-person learning, with the rest of the instruction occurring in the form of online classes. Fortunately, being in a cohort group, they could accomplish that part together at one house or the other. Sometimes, the boys stayed at the same home for a few days instead of driving from one residence to the other each day. Neither family minded having an additional kid around because they kept each other from being lonely. Kids' mental health was deemed as important as whatever facts they might learn in school.
An outsider might be curious about the game they'd invented. Instead of playing poker betting their clothing, they used a pair of old Mr. Potato Head characters Colin had saved from when his brother, Connor, and he played with them. Each character started out with the same number of parts and accessories. The game ended when one player had nothing left but the basic "potato."
As tweens, they'd occasionally played the actual game, losing their clothing, during sleepovers at Bart's house. His parents had always left the kids to their own devices in the basement and the boys had sometimes engaged in other naughty pursuits as well.
Bart had access to his older brother's stash of videos containing "adult" material, and he was more than happy to share them. This sometimes led to activities of the type which they wouldn't dare mention at the breakfast table.
Bart had often used whatever excuse he could think of to be naked with his buds. Looking back, some of them wondered if he were gay. In any case, when he moved away, those events died out. No one in their little group was bold enough to initiate such behavior, partly in fear of being labeled as "queer."
"It's a good thing we're using our made-up game," Ezra grinned. "With the amount of clothing I would have lost, I'd be freezing my butt off!"
"You're about to lose your tush too because I have a full house!"
"Okay, I concede. I suppose we should go to bed soon anyway."
After brushing their teeth and taking quick showers, the two settled down to sleep in Colin's room. It was the one he'd shared with his older brother when they were little boys. Outfitted with a twin over full-sized bunk system, it had been their secure little nest. Sometimes during a bad storm, Colin would climb out of his top bunk and crawl in with Connor. The lower one was big enough to accommodate them easily when they were small.
With the onset of puberty, Connor had wanted more privacy and his parents had let him move into another bedroom with a queen-sized bed. Colin had enjoyed getting to sleep in the full-sized bed, but, at the same time, he had missed his brother's company.
Now, at 16, he still chose to keep the same sleeping arrangement though his parents had offered to buy him a larger bed, like they had his brother. Colin preferred having a place where he could invite a bud to stay over in the same room, and he always gave up the lower bunk for company.
Tonight, Colin wasn't able to settle down. If the chill in the air hadn't been enough to make him uncomfortable, a steady rain was beginning to pound on the roof. It reminded Colin of his childhood days and snuggling with Connor. He tossed and turned, making it difficult for Ezra to get to sleep as well.
"Grandpa always talks about sleeping like a top. I think that's what you're doing because you seem to be spinning like one," Ezra joked.
"Sorry, dude. I'm cold and the sandman hasn't knocked me out yet."
"I'm kinda chilly too."
"Maybe I should pull my comforter off and spread it over your bed and climb in with you," Colin suggested. "I'm too lazy to get up and go look for more covers."
"That's fine with me. It's not like we've never slept that close before."
Colin swung down to the floor without using the ladder, bringing the quilt with him. Moments later, he was snuggled up against Ezra's back. He reached around his buddy's side and placed a very cold hand on Ezra's left pectoral muscle.
"Yowie! Are you trying to freeze me?"
"Sorry about that; I'm just trying to let you know how cold I am. You feel nice and warm."
"That's okay. It was kind of a shock at first, but now it feels sort of nice."
"You like this?" Colin asked as he ran his fingertips tantalizingly across Ezra's erected nipple."
"Yeah, I actually do. I think my nips must be hardwired to my dick."
Colin slipped his other arm under Ezra's body so he could use his other hand on Ezra's right pec. He continued teasing until he had Ezra purring like a kitten.
Then Colin worked his left hand down to Ezra's navel tracing lazy circles around his bellybutton, spiraling closer to his pubes with each successive pass. Eventually, his hand brushed the head of Ezra's erection which was now projecting from his body at a 45-degree angle and pulsing.
"Would you like to turn over face to face and show me how it feels?" Colin asked, in a voice thick with desire.
"Okay," Ezra squeaked, unable to hide his excitement.
Ezra brushed his fingers over Colin's chest, trying to imitate the technique Colin was using on him. Pretty soon, Colin was feeling as good as his bud. Separated by two thin pieces of cloth, their erection rubbed against one another, creating what felt like a kind of electrical charge. Simultaneously, they moved their dominant hand down to caress those fleshy sabers. Soon, they were nibbling on one another's neck and earlobes, which led to rubbing their crotches together in lust.
Since this was far more intimate than anything they'd done as tweens, their orgasms weren't long in coming. The excitement also created bigger loads then either had experienced in the past.
They kissed tenderly in the afterglow. Kissing was a new plateau as well.
"Does this make us gay," Ezra asked, in a near whisper.
"I'm not sure. I hate labels, but I have strong feelings for you; not for every guy I see. I can think of a lot of worse things than being queer for you."
"That's cool! We probably shouldn't broadcast it, but I'm not ashamed to say that I really care about you."
Using the dry part of their boxers, they mopped up their abs as best they could and cuddled naked. The sandman arrived shortly.
In the morning, there seemed to be a chill of a different kind in the air. Colin seemed to be dejected and couldn't bring himself to look Ezra in the eye. Ezra wondered if he'd done something wrong to cause his buddy not to like him anymore.
They had slept a bit late, so they dressed hastily without showering and ate cereal for breakfast since no one was home to cook for them. Being doctors, Colin's parents were considered front-line workers. They'd been inoculated early in the pandemic and had gone to their jobs already as usual. Otherwise, the boys would have had a hot breakfast at least.
Both put on a cheerful face when interacting with their teachers and classmates via their laptops. When they broke for lunch, the old look of misery returned.
As they sat down to eat the sandwiches they'd made, Ezra couldn't hold back his questions.
"Hey, Bud, why are you mad at me?"
"I'm not."
"Then what is it? You won't even look at me! What did I do wrong?"
"Nothing. It's me. I feel so guilty. I tried to turn you gay last night when I was super-horny and I..." Colin's voice broke, ending in a sob.
Ezra got up from his chair and stood behind Colin, leaning down to embrace him from behind.
"You didn't turn me gay. If I'm gay it's because I was that way already."
"But I started it. I was more horny than cold last night. I used the temperature as an excuse to get in bed with you."
"That's cool with me. I've been wanting to snuggle with you for a long time."
"But I did more than just snuggle."
"Did I complain? I thought last night was awesome! I meant everything I said, didn't you? Don't you care about me?"
"I do care."
"Then what's the problem? We've been close buds since the day we met. I'd like to be even closer. I've heard stuff about guys who call themselves `soulmates.' I suppose that's kinda wussy, but it's what I feel about us."
"Oh, wow! Really?"
"Yup."
Colin stood up and took Ezra into his arms. They kissed with as much or more passion than they'd done the night before.
Having discovered that Ezra felt exactly like he did made Colin's mood soar to the sky! He was in love, and it wasn't one-sided. His guilt was replaced by euphoria. Life was sunny again.
In their afternoon sessions, the boys were back to their old, cheerful selves without having to force the emotion. The two of them were ready for the discussion about Shakespeare's play that they'd been reading. When Mr. Colbert, their instructor, ask about the significance of yesterday's date, both boys responded together.
"The Ides of March is the day Brutus turned on his friend and ended his life," Colin said.
"And the concept of the Roman Republic died along with him in 44 BCE," Ezra continued.
"That's what we've learned from Shakespeare's version of the events. You have answered well. However, the famous bard played a bit loose and free with history. Today, we're going to learn about Decimus, the major culprit in the assassination of Julius Caesar. Shakespeare barely mentions him and when he does, he misspells his name as `Decius.' He was closer to Caesar than Brutus and was the one who encouraged Caesar to attend the Senate meeting in which he was stabbed 23 times. There had been a warning by a soothsayer who advised Julius to beware of the period from the Ides of February to the Ides of March, not the latter date specifically as we read in the play. Having heard rumors about a plot to overthrow him, Caesar had planned to stay at home."
Mr. Colbert went on to explain how the major figures in the conspiracy against Caesar met their fateful ends as many other Romans turned against them. It opened the kids' eyes to a lot of history which has been overshadowed by William Shakespeare's version of the events.
After the class was over, Colin and Ezra decided to write their own story about the importance of that time of the month. It was their personal tale of finding love, and not one to be shared with anyone else.
Six years later, Colin Calahan and Ezra Akerman were united in marriage in a small chapel surrounded by friends and family. The date they chose was, you guessed it, March 15th -- an auspicious day in their history.
------------------------------END-----------------------------------
Author's notes: Thanks to David for editing.
Thanks to Nifty for providing this free venue. If you'd like to help maintain this service, please donate.
https://donate.nifty.org/