The Metamorphosis of Jeremiah Long, Chapter 29
Warning:
This story contains scenes of love and sexual interaction between males of similar age. If the reading or possessing this material is illegal in your country, state, province, county, municipality, etc., please leave this site immediately and do not proceed further. If you are under the legal age to read this, please do not do so.
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I have written several other stories. My longer ones on Nifty include: "Always and Forever" (March 25, 2004), "Jacob and Jacques" (May 30, 2004), "Zeke" (August 29, 2005), "Tales from Bentonville" (November 16, 2008), "Second Chance" (September 24, 2010), and "Tommy and Tanner (October 21, 2012)under "High School" and "Someone to Watch over Me" under "Beginnings" in the gay male section.
My short stories include: "Brad and Alan's Canoe Trip" (April 22, 2004 under "Camping", "Of Angels and Dragons" (November 8, 2008) under "Camping", "A Christmas Tale" (December 22, 2009), "Wyatt's Thanksgiving" (November 20, 2012)under "High School", "Brazil Affair" (October 1, 2010), "A Technological Christmas" (December 23, 2011), and "Patrick's Christmas (December 19, 2012) under "Beginnings," I have one story in the Sci Fi/Fantasy category called, "Seth's Gift" (October 10, 2010).
You can easily access most of my tales by going to the "Author" button in Nifty's home page and scrolling down to David Lee. Some of these stories are also posted at: www.storylover.us and www.saberpeak.com.
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David (dlee169@hotmail.com)
The Metamorphosis of Jeremiah Long, Chapter 29
For Saturday night, Brent and Brock had reserved a large table in one of the side rooms at Zephyrs to celebrate Joe's new position as a peer counselor. Brent had been so touched that his son had made a dessert to celebrate his accomplishment that he felt an official celebratory dinner was in order. Joe's self-reliant, humble manner never ceased to astonish his new family.
The restaurant held a number of memories for the boy, most of them good. The only tainted one was the incident with his grandfather, but thanks to Harrison's quick actions, that too had turned out okay. It had ridded him of the old man and had led to a new relationship with his grandmother. Still, the men had requested a different room so as not to awaken that memory.
Those in attendance for this dinner, besides the immediate Mason-Hart family, included Jon, Mark, Bradon, and Chandler. As Joe's boyfriend, Mark naturally was invited and Bradon was never left out unless he has other plans.
Joe had specifically wanted Chandler to be there too because the boy was Joe's best friend, after Mark. Chandler had made him feel at home in public school the minute they met, and Chandler's mother had done a lot for Joe. Since Chandler was thinking about following in his mother's footsteps, the two of them had dreamed about having a practice together someday.
"I wish I'd applied to the program too," Mark said. "Hearing you guys talk about the future makes me feel like I should get involved."
"You can still apply," Joe encouraged. "I'd love to have you go along when I take my training. We could room together and everything. I'll give you a hand with the forms when we get home."
The boys had turned to other subjects by the time their food arrived. Some of their conversation involved the delicious surf and turf special that they'd all ordered. It was a sumptuous feast, and one that Joe thought was too extravagant a fare to honor him.
The help-line organization wanted its entire group of peer counselors trained to know the correct kinds of things to say to kids in order to help them instead of possibly making the situation worse. Obviously, they didn't want anyone to be driven deeper into despair from hearing about other kids' experiences. Therefore, a course in how to be a good, sensitive listener would be held two weekends in a row at the university located in the center of the state. It was chosen so that travel wouldn't present a hardship for anyone.
The boys would stay in the university hotel facility which was rented out to alumni during major sports seasons, but was little used in the early spring after basketball was over.
Prior to attending class sessions, Joe was required to read several short books and watch some videos. Being his faithful boyfriend, Mark went through all of the preparatory phase with him despite not knowing if he'd be accepted into the program. Joe was certain that Mark would be added because he would be invaluable for helping other guys who had been sexually molested, having been in that situation himself.
They worked diligently together on the materials. It helped Joe stay focused when he had someone to bounce things off of. Occasionally, Chandler would sit in because he wanted to learn. He knew he didn't really qualify for this program because he'd grown up in a perfect world where he'd never experienced anything bad from family or outsiders. He added another dimension because he would talk to his mother about what they were learning. He even got her to come over to Joe's house to watch one of the videos with them.
About two days before the first training weekend, Mark got his letter of acceptance into the program. He was elated. Phil offered to stage a dinner in his honor, but Mark declined. He said he'd rather just include the other guys for brunch some Sunday after church.
On a warm day in the spring, Davy and Jon again stole away to the park where they'd first met. It was the continuance of the tradition they'd begun the year before to celebrate the first time they'd met.
Obviously, they had done a number of other things in several different situations and localities which were sexy and memorable, but the partially hidden clearing still had a special place in their hearts.
Because of track practice, they couldn't go on the exact date, but they celebrated on a convenient day pretty close to it. This time, Davy brought the blanket in his backpack and the two of them biked over right after school.
The day was warm and sunny just like their first time. Once they had their bikes chained up securely, they headed for the restroom to relieve themselves and to relive the moment they'd initially checked each other out.
"Nice!" Jon whispered.
"Thanks. I like yours too and we don't have to whisper because I'm not wearing a wire."
"I want to help you so you're not wearing anything at all!" Jon giggled.
After washing their hands, they made their way to their spot. Both had worn clothes similar to the ones they'd worn that day. Of course the originals had long since been outgrown.
Jon led the way through the underbrush and then helped Davy spread the blanket. He pulled off his shirt and helped Davy with his. Davy pretended to look apprehensive as he slipped into his role.
"Are you scared?" Jon asked.
"Um, a little; I'm kinda new at this."
"Relax and enjoy. I won't hurt you and I know you're gonna love it."
Jon traces his fingers over Davy's chest, teasing his nipples and sending tingling sensations to his perineum just like he'd done that first time.
"Let me help you with these," Jon offered placing his thumbs under the waistband of Davy's thin basketball shorts.
"Wait; you first!" Davy exclaimed.
Jon pulled down his own shorts and underwear in one smooth move allowing his hard cock to spring up when it became free of its confinement.
"It's really beautiful! It's so perfect and smooth."
"Hey, show me yours now," Jon insisted.
Davy stripped too and both boys admired each other's body.
"Let's lie down so we can have a better look." Jon grinned. "I still love your foreskin."
"You have enough now to cover the most sensitive spot under your head," Davy observed.
"It's never gonna be as long as yours," Jon complained.
"Maybe not, but you have a really beautiful cock, and I love it like it is.
Jon gently pushed Davy's skin back and forth, milking a large drop of precum which he caught on his finger and brought up to his mouth. Davy coaxed a drop from Jon's cock and licked it off his finger.
"Hey," Jon exclaimed. "You weren't bold like that two years ago. I fed you some of you own."
"That was Jeremiah you played with. You turned Jeremiah into a naughty kid named Davy, you heathen boy!"
"Okay naughty kid, let's suck each other off!"
"Yes, master." Davy giggled as they began to lick and suck.
Being out in a public place, knowing they could possibly be observed by someone, increased their libido seven-fold. Although they didn't ejaculate as swiftly as they had when less experienced, they still came more quickly than they wanted to. Regardless, it was exciting and satisfying.
They remained naked, cuddling and kissing for several minutes before they figured they'd better head home. When the stood again, after dressing, they embraced and shared one last kiss as their hearts beat in tandem.
Their reenactment of their first meeting may have gone a bit off script in places, but that was a good thing. Jeremiah had left feeling excited, but guilty. Jon had felt some remorse too. Now, both experienced nothing but love and joy as they rode home together.
Before Joe and Mark went to their first weekend of training, Todd used his connections to check the organization out thoroughly. Brent, Brock, and Phil had asked him to do so. Though it looked perfect on the surface, they wanted to make sure that it wasn't a front for some group who preyed upon vulnerable teenagers. It seemed to be legit, but they were taking no chances. They couldn't risk having their sons hurt again.
Todd came back to them with a glowing report. Not only was the program on the up and up, but it had a remarkable record of helping kids, including the ones who were counseling their peers. It had been vetted by a well-known child protection agency and found to be even better than anyone expected.
Brock and Brent drove the boys to the university on Friday night. The instructors/counselors, a man and wife team, wanted the kids there overnight so they could socialize and be ready to work together in the morning. It also headed off any problems with kids arriving late on Saturday and holding up the instruction.
Merle and Erica Dahl were easy to find because there was a sign in the lobby directing participants to a small side room with tables of refreshments and registration materials.
The couple rose immediately to greet the men and boys when they entered. Having arrived early, there would be more time for Joe and Mark to get acquainted with them before things got busy.
"Hi, I'm Erica and this is my husband Merle. Please feel free to address us by our first names. Though we'll be your leaders, we're all on the same team."
"It's good to meet you," Joe said. "My name is Joe Mason.
"I'm Mark Witte."
"It's a pleasure to meet both of you. This is Toby Tyler who arrived a few minutes ago."
"We're Brock and Brent Mason-Hart, Joe's parents." Brent said.
"It's good to meet you too," Merle enthused. "Please help yourself to refreshments. It's not just for the kids."
"Thanks, but we need to get back on the road," Brock smiled. "As long as the guys are settled, we'll be on our way. Our phones will be on if anything comes up."
"Have a safe trip back home," Erica said as the men made their departure.
Merle helped the boys sign in and showed them quickly to the room they'd be sharing. Joe had originally been assigned a roommate he didn't know, but was allowed to sleep with Mark once the "house parents" had discovered that the boys were friends.
The rooms were large, with two queen sized beds in each. These were attractively furnished to house visiting speakers and returning alumni, not college students. The head of the peer counseling program thought it was better to use these facilities than to put the participants into some low-budget motel nearby. The boys felt rather special in having such grand accommodations and not having to pay a cent for them.
On the way back to the reception room, the boys noticed that the lobby was very busy.
"Um, I thought this place was empty this time of year," Joe remarked to Merle.
"It usually is, and that's why we booked it, but there's a wedding between two alumni tomorrow and it's packed right now. However, we've been assured that it will be only for tonight. Tomorrow night should be quieter."
Soon the rest of the boys arrived and were shown to their rooms to get settled before going to dinner. Mark, Joe, and Toby had already done what they needed, so they stayed in the reception room and got acquainted with some of the others there.
Because there were only 12 participants, they would be seated in a small dining room of their own, away from the wedding party.
Tonight's meal was served family style, but they would be given a limited menu from which to choose their individual entrees for Saturday's dinner. Most of the boys were pleased with what they were offered on Friday, but one boy said that he needed vegetarian fare. The staff promptly saw to his needs.
After dinner there was a short meeting to go over the next day's schedule and then the boys were turned loose to use the facilities of the student union which was attached to the complex. There was a small pool, spa, and a game room. These were practically deserted because many of the students were off for their spring break which didn't coincide with most of the high schools other than local ones.
Joe and Mark put on their trunks and made use of the pool. It was rather small to do any actual swimming in, but they got involved in an amateurish game of water polo with some of the other guys in their group. It was a lot of fun and helped them all to get better acquainted.
On the way back to their room, the saw Toby sitting in the lobby outside of the reception room with his head in his hands. He looked so forlorn that they went in to see him despite their casual attire.
"Hey Toby, is something wrong?" Joe asked.
"It was stupid of me to come here. I thought everyone would be friendly and cool. I didn't know there'd be bullies."
"What happened?" Mark wanted to know.
"Jerry, the kid I'm supposed to room with is in there telling Erica that he doesn't want to be around me. He's calling me all kinds of names. All I did was try to be honest with him. I wasn't hitting on him!"
Just then the door opened and Jerry ran out, evidently going to his room. Erica followed.
"Toby, I'm working on finding another place for you to sleep. I don't want you to have to stay in the same room with him. It's too late for his parents to come to get him tonight, but he will be leaving the program. So we don't have a problem tomorrow night. I'll get this straightened out and I do apologize for all of this. I'm not sure what his motives were for getting into peer counseling in the first place, but it obviously isn't a good fit."
Meanwhile, Mark and Joe had had a quiet conversation nearby.
"I think we can help," Joe said. "There are two queen beds in our room and we need only one of them. Toby can have the other."
"Are you sure?" Erica asked. "I know some people your age don't like sharing a bed."
"We sleep together two nights a week during the school year and more in the summer. We don't mind." Mark assured her.
"That would definitely solve the problem. It's kind of you to offer.
Toby, I'll go with you to get your things."
They all went to the room together. Jerry was there sitting on his bed, but went into the bathroom and locked the door after letting them in. Toby hadn't really unpacked anything except for the clothes he planned to put on in the morning. He quickly put them back into his bag and they all left.
Joe and Mark led him to their accommodations while Erica continued on her way to the reception room, thanking the boys as she departed.
Once inside the room, Toby broke into tears.
"Thanks," he sobbed. "I didn't know what I was going to do. I hope you don't hate queers too!"
"My father did and that's why he beat me," Joe said quietly.
"For real?" Toby gasped.
"You can still see some faint scars," Joe continued, as he turned around and pulled up his shirt.
"Your back looks fine to me."
"Give me your hand," Mark requested.
Then he moved Toby's fingers over the spot on Joe's left shoulder which still bore witness to his father's cruelty.
"So, are you saying you're gay?"
"We both are," Mark told him. "We're boyfriends. My dad never laid a finger on me, but I was sexually molested by my swimming coach."
"It was a camp counselor in my case," Toby said in a whisper. "He raped me."
"That's terrible!" both boys said in chorus.
"I hope he's been punished," Mark added.
"He was sentenced to 25 years because of being an adult and all, but I'll bet he won't serve all of it. He tried to blame me for everything. He picked up that I was gay and I admit that I thought he was hot. I probably would have done stuff with him, but I didn't want to be forcibly fucked!"
"It would have happened to me if my brother and his friends hadn't intervened," Mark admitted. "My coach tried to make me feel responsible too. Damned perverts!"
They talked for a while as Toby began to relax. Then Joe and Mark got in the shower to wash off the chlorine. When they came out of the bathroom, Toby was half asleep. Although they were fairly quiet, their movements awakened Toby who appreciated the sight of his two naked roommates dropping their towels and putting on boxers.
"Sorry we woke you up," Joe said.
"That's okay, I'll be more comfortable in bed instead of on top of it. Um, is it okay if I sleep naked?"
"It's fine with us," Mark assured him. "We were gonna shed the boxers after we got under the covers."
"Cool! You don't have to be modest in front of me."
They crawled bare-ass into their respective beds and soon were asleep.
Saturday morning came early, but the three boys had awakened before the reminder call came from Erica. They had showered and dressed and were watching a bit of "Good Morning America" on TV to see the latest news and weather.
It looked to be a fine spring day, and they boys were almost sorry they had classes instead of being able to be outside to enjoy it. However, given the positive things they might do for others, this was a good place to be.
They were the first ones in the dining room for the breakfast buffet and were told to go ahead and go through the line. They had barely gotten to their table when several more guys came to join them. Jerry was not among them.
Toward the end of breakfast, Merle made a couple of announcements. He mentioned that there would be only 11 students because one boy had gone home. He said something about its not being a good fit for him. In the boy's absence, he would be grouping Toby with Joe and Mark for discussions in which students were usually paired up. Nothing more was mentioned.
The class sessions turned out to be enlightening, but not difficult to follow – at least for the trio. Evidently Toby had taken his preparation work as seriously as Mark and Joe had. The three of them aced all the quizzes and were able to participate more fully than some of the others.
Rather than having a bunch of lectures and note taking, the format included a lot of role playing in which one kid would act as the victim while another would counsel him. Some of this was done by using Skype with the images of the two projected split screen large enough so the "audience" could see the boys' faces as well as hear what they said.
The first to boys to volunteer for the exercise were Toby and Mark.
Toby chose to take the role of a boy who had been sexually abused by an older man. It made him cringe, knowing how close it was to his real life.
Mark wanted to be his counselor because the subject was also very close to him.
Toby had a script to follow loosely, but Mark was supposed to come up with what to say based on what he'd learned. He felt ready because of the therapy he'd had from Dr. Troxel and the peer counseling he'd had from Joe as well as what he'd learned that morning.
Toby began, sounding a little hesitant as he read from the paper. After a few minutes, he set the script down and spoke from his heart. A lot of things tumbled out that he'd never before had the courage to voice aloud.
Mark spoke words of comfort and encouragement.
As Toby got more into it, he had tears streaming down his face. His genuine show of emotion affected everyone in the room. Before long there wasn't a dry eye in the place, including those of the teachers.
When their time was up, Toby stood and said he was sorry for having messed up and gotten so far off script. Erica told him it was far more meaningful the way he did it. Mark got up and hugged him. That brought even more tears, but they were cleansing ones.
"Gentlemen, I think we should take a break at this point. There are plenty of refreshments available and you should take about 15 minutes to enjoy them before we regroup."
Interestingly, for a room full of teenagers, no one ran to the snack table immediately. They all crowded around Toby and Mark, giving them shoulder hugs and high-fives before giving in to their desire for refreshment. It was a good sign that they'd all be sensitive listeners. Erica and Merle were very pleased.
As the day progressed, others played similar roles. Some were supposedly physically abused by an adult or sibling. In all cases, the participants had suffered in a way that gave them empathy with the person they were playing and for the victim they were counseling.
Their lunch break had been short, so by 3:00 they were wrapping up the day with peer critiques. The instructions for those were that everyone should start by saying something positive, and then could point out something which might be improved.
The feedback was helpful and done in a compassionate manner so that no one's feelings were stomped on, but everyone learned from the experience.
Most of the boys went to the pool as soon as they could change clothes. Toby led the way. He was much livelier than he been the night before. Some of the guys hadn't even noticed him on Friday night, but now saw him as the life of the party.
"You're a miracle worker," Joe said quietly to Mark as they sat on lounge chairs taking a break. "If you never help another kid, it will have been worth the time spent."
"I don't think I did all of that."
"Yeah you did. You gently helped him purge his soul. You were awesome."
"You're responsible too because you laid the groundwork last night when you said we should let him sleep in our room. Then you let him feel your wounds. That was moving. It made me think of Jesus showing the nail prints to Thomas in the bible."
"Jeez, you're making me sound like a saint!" Joe laughed. "It's you who showed the compassion he needed."
"Well, let's not argue. We both `done good' as they say."
"Indeed you did," Erica complimented them.
Because of all the splashing in the pool, they hadn't heard her come up behind them. They blushed.
"I'm serious, guys. I'll admit I was a bit apprehensive to add Mark as a latecomer, but I was way off base. You're both naturals."
"We've both been on the other side." Joe remarked. "I think it's true that people who have been hurt probably feel the pain of others more easily."
"Some do, but not everyone. I'm not at liberty to discuss Jerry, but I'm sure you picked up on some things. In my opinion, he's in denial and he's not going to be free of his past until he faces it.
By the way, are you okay with having Toby stay in your room again? I'm sure he wants to, but I think he may be hesitant to ask."
"We'll invite him," Joe smiled.
On Sunday, there was an optional short time for meditation in the chapel. It was exactly that, a quiet time with no preaching or singing, simply a period of reflection. It surprised Erica that all the boys went. She assumed that they came for a variety of experiences and probably some weren't involved with organized religion, but all seemed happy to be there.
A combination of other activities filled the day and wound up at precisely 3:00 p.m. as they were supposed to. The boys were ready to go home when they were picked up by family members.
Toby grabbed his parents by the hands and led them over to meet Joe and Mark. He had texted them about his new friends and he was eager to have them meet in person.
Phil and Mickey, who had come to retrieve the boys, received Toby's glowing report about how kind Mark and Joe had been and how Mark had really helped him in the peer sessions. They were proud, of course.
After exchanging contact information, the boys said their goodbyes. Toby nearly hugged the breath out of both Joe and Mark. It was an emotional farewell.
Author's notes: I'll be out of town for over a week and will not have time to write most likely. So, please be patient of the next chapter isn't up as soon as you might like.
Thanks to all who emailed this past week - Jim W, Roger L, Bill T, Mendy D, Bill K, Tom A, Wayne, Paul F, Bill C, Mike Mc, JJ, Peter B, Roger P, RC, Paul R, Trish R, and Ott H.
Thanks also Paul F, Bobby M, Sammy H, Jim W, RC, Paul R, Oz, Trish R, Barry J, and Ott H for the comments on "Banana Splits."
Oops, I think Walt S commented on both, since we have corresponded several times this week. Sometimes my record keeping leaves a bit to be desired.
David