I wrote this story as a tribute to Wazput's story about Matt, Kris, Corey, Colt and the Gang. The gang has been a part of my college life and all I could say is thank you for continuing it and making the story worthwhile.
This story is about an unseen character that maybe some of us can relate to. We all know someone has to play in the background. Someone has to be underneath everything and go unseen. Somehow, someone suffers from afar when we think everything is okay within eyes reach.
And we all know that there will always be a good story behind another good story.
Also thanks to Andy and Big D!!!
Watching from the Sidelines Summer Sidelines Chapter-5 "Autumn Meetup"
Change. A simple word with a hundred interpretations. I believe everything changes, from the small things to the vast spaces of the Universe. It is said that the Universe is continuously expanding. Growing even larger and larger to the point that the human brain can no longer comprehend. People change, and I like to think that it is for the best. The world is changing, slowly but surely. But sometimes I think it is too slow. A lot of people still hate, some would even go far as to hurt others. But then again... Change is coming. We just don't know when it's our time to change.
I turned to look at the stranger who called my name. He sounded familiar and when I turned I was shocked to see someone very familiar.
"Yes, I'm Cord. Can I help you?" I asked.
"Sorry if I startled you. Wow. Uhm.. My name is Scott. I'm a friend of Jess, the R.A. in one of the dormitories." He said as he reached his hand out. Scott's a really hot looking guy with a dark tan that suits him well. I could say that he is well built under his semi fit, white Tshirt.
"Oh! Jess, yeah, I know him. Nice to meet you Scott."I reached for his hand and gave him a firm handshake.
"Well he just told me about you and from the description I thought I spotted who he was talking about and I did."
I blushed a bit from the look he gave me.
"I was just about to prepare dinner. Why don't you come in?" I invited him in and he smiled and followed me.
"Wow! This is so sweet! Your apartment is so nice Cord." Scott said while I remembered Myles' reaction.
"Thanks, I had help. Hey, maybe Jess would want to come here too?" I asked since it's so awkward being alone with the guy I usually saw Matt with.
"That would be awesome. He's not doing anything at the moment. I'll call him." Scott said in an upbeat.
"Nice. Just make yourself at home." I smiled at him and handed him a bottle of beer. I went back to the kitchen to prepare our dinner. It's a good thing I've already shopped for more supplies. I prepared the marinated fish fillet and mixed some vegetables for the salad. I deep fried the fish and also made the thousand Island sauce to compliment the fish.
"Whoa, that smells great Cord." Scott said. I turned to see him leaning on the counter with his arms crossed.
"Thanks, I hope you like fish." I smiled.
"Oh, do I? I love them. Jess will be over in a minute. Hey, are you a musician or something? I noticed the organ." He said.
"No, no. I just play for the fun of it."
"Sweet. So where are your mates?"
"I've no roomies." I said while preparing the table.
"Seriously? No way!" He said in disbelief.
"Yes way." I laughed and blushed a bit.
"Wow dude! You must be rich!"
"I wouldn't put it that way. Im just an only child is all." I smiled. I didn't really wanted to be talked to when it comes to my family's standard of living.
"That's nice. So you also go to the University I presume? What course are you taking up?" He asked as he helped me arrange the table.
"I'm taking up Media Productions. I'm on my third year now." I said.
"Really? Me too dude." Scott said and we talked more about our courses. We finished preparing and went to sit back on the couch to wait for Jess. We watched a bit of Baseball on TV while we chatted with a bottle of beer in our hands.
"Hey. Jess told me you're gay. Is that true?" He asked out of the blue and I almost choked on my beer.
"Well, yeah. You?" I asked back.
"I'm actually bisexual but am leaning towards guys." He blinked at me. I have this clue that he was the guy Jess was talking about but I have also this strange feeling that he's hitting on me. I smiled back at him and broke eye contact.
"Oh. I see." I said lost of words. Thankfully Scott's phone rang and he answered it to learn that Jess is already outside the complex. He went out to get him.
In less than a minute he was back at the door with Jess trailing behind him. Jess was wearing a nice body fit light blue Tshirt that makes his eyes pop-out and dark chocolate shorts. He wore his smile that was so adorable and when he stood beside Scott, they were so lovely together. Scott had his arm around Jess's waist and looked at him like Jess was the prize he thought he would never have won. For a brief moment I felt the longingness in my heart but quickly shoved it away.
"This apartment is fucking fantastic Cord!" Jess said as he came near me and gave me a hug with his eyes still wandering around the room.
"I told you. And boy does he cook." Scott said.
"Speaking of which, I suggest we dig in before the food turns cold again." I said not wanting any more attention. "Do you want to eat here on the couch so we could watch TV?"
"Yeah, that would be cool." Jess said. We got our plates and I put a huge bowl of salad on the coffee table for us to dig into. I got more beer and just placed them on the table as well.
"This is actually good." Scott said.
"Yeah! Not bad Cord." Jess added.
"Thanks, I just follow the recipe." I laughed.
"So you play the organ? I used to play when I was a kid. My parents enrolled me in one music school during summer and I did enjoy it." Jess said.
"Nice! You could use it if you want to. I mean. You should play for us later." I said.
"Sure. I'll give it a try." He chuckled and looked at Scott warmly. "Hey, where's Jordy?"
"I don't know. He didn't text me today." Scott said.
"Oh. Maybe he's with the gang. Hey, Cord. You should totally meet our friends. They are the coolest people you'll ever meet." Jess said in an upbeat tone.
"No doubt about that. Absolutely the best." Scott added.
"So I've heard. I think I'll meet them soon. You both are great too! And you look great together. If I'm assuming correctly." I smiled.
"Damn, you think so?" Scott asked blushing a bit. He took Jess's hand and squeezed it.
"Well yeah. Scott and I are pushing our luck." Jess leaned in and kissed Scott on the cheek which made Scott blush even more. "Don't worry bout him. He's not used to expressing his feelings in front of others.
"Oh, I'll show you my feelings later, dummy!" Scott joked back.
"I do hope you will." Jess smiled and earned a kiss on the lips from Scott. Watching both of them was too sweet and it gave me hope that someday, I'll be like that with someone. I'm still hoping it will be the person I dreamed about... Matt...
"So, Cord. You told me before you never had a partner right?" Jess asked.
"Yep, never."
"Does that mean you're virgin?" Scott asked. I turned beet red again.
"Shut up! That is so unbelieveable." Jess said.
"Well. Believe it. It's true." I said.
"Why?" Scott asked.
"Let's just say I was good at distracting myself. I mean, I looked at it before as a phase. And... Uggghhh, I can't believe I'm telling you this." I said and smiled back at them.
"Have you ever been kissed before?" Jess asked.
"Yeah! Of course." I said and giggled like crazy.
"You mean, a real kiss?" Scott said and raised his eyebrow.
"Yeeaaahhh-No." I said. "Just a smack is all."
The couple then sat on either side of me. Jess on my left and Scott on my right. I tensed when Jess put his arm around my shoulder and then touched my chin with his other hand.
"Since you've been really nice to us, we're letting you in on a treat." Jess said. It's obvious that we're all a little drunk by now since we've consumed half the contents of the refrigerator full of beer.
Jess leaned in slowly and our lips touched lightly. I got goosebumps when his wet lips pressed with mine. His lips started to move with my lips. His tongue slowly invaded my mouth and I was on fire. Damn, Jess was a great kisser. We kissed passionately with a lot of tongue action. I pulled back when Scott started licking on my neck. I looked at him and he smiled. I smiled back at him and he leaned in for a kiss. Scott was as good as Jess and in no time, the three of us were in a kissing frenzy. I got a kinky and remembered a scene I saw online. I took a little amount of beer and kissed Jess, licking his tongue with my beer-wet tongue. I pulled back and he had nothing but lust in his eyes. We engaged in a threeway kiss. Before things got out of hand I pulled away with all the strength I had.
"Whoa!" I said catching my breath.
"Hot damn... You guys wanna take this to the bedroom?" Scott suggested which made me really nervous. It's very hot with the kissing and all but I'm not ready to go all the way just yet.
"What do you think?" Jess looked at me and smiled.
I smiled back at them and Scott saw something in my eyes.
"Hey, what's the problem Cord? Is there something wrong?" Scott said.
"Uhhmm, it's just that I... aaahh.."
"You aren't ready yet." Jess finished my sentence. I nodded and looked down at my lap.
"Damn he's so cute." Scott commented. "Cord look, we understand. We're sorry for jumping on you like that. I mean, personally, I was just carried away. I wanna be your friend and obviously I wasn't thinking clearly to go at you like that. I'm sorry."
"Me too Cord. Sorry dude." Jess said.
"No no! The kisses were to die for and thank you for giving me the pleasure. I'm just not sure about taking this in the 'bedroom' or going all the way."I said lowly. "I know maybe you'll think I'm some kind of dork, but I want my first to be special. Not that both of you aren't special, I just want my first to be with someone I have feelings for."
"Wow... That's not dorkish at all Cord. I've never seen someone who is willing to go celebate just to wait for someone special." Jess stated. "I admire you Cord."
"Me too. Damn, I'm guilty for thinking about sex and fucking all the time, but my hormones are just wild. But you my friend..." Scott patted me like I was a little kid. "The one who will be with you will be very lucky. I mean it..." Then he added with a laugh. "How the hell do you control your horniness?"
I shrugged.
"Damn superpowers if you ask me." Jess said.
The topic surprisingly moved from sex to family to hobbies. Scott and Jess asked me if I could play the organ. I told them that I would be joinging a talent contest in October and said that I would be singing My Chemical Romance's 'Sing'.
"Imagine we're the judges." Scott said with his arm around Jess.
"Okay... tell me what you think of it and be honest with your opinions okay?" I said and smiled. I sat straight, felt the keys on the tips of my fingers.
"Sing it out boy you've gotta see what tomorrow brings Sing it out girl you gotta be what tomorrow needs For every time that they want to count you out And use your voice every single time you open up your mouth Sing it for the boys Sing it for the girls Every time that you lose it sing it for the world Sing it from the heart Sing it till you're nuts Sing it out for the ones that will hate your guts Sing it for the deaf Sing it for the blind Sing about everyone that you left behind Sing it for the world Sing it for the world"
I closed the song after the first chorus with a fading melody. "Well?"
"You are full of surprises." Jess said with his head on Scott's shoulder.
"The song's beautiful. It's made for your voice." Scott smiled.
"Thanks..." I said and it was all I could say. I felt a lump in my throat as the three of us looked at each other.
"I wish the world was more accepting... You know?" Jess said with a sigh. "It would've been great."
"Yeah! But that's life... You can't force someone to look at something they refuse to look at." I said. "I mean, I look at some gay couple and I see beauty."
"So true bro... The group's made me feel accepted, but maybe what the group does to us is put a barrier around us. I sometimes forget how people can be so cruel." Scott said.
"And what I hate the most is people saying that we could be 'treated' like we have some sort of disease." I said. "Pisses me off."
We continued on for the rest of the night until it was quarter to one. Scott and Jess said goodbye and both gave me a kiss on the cheek. I've learned so much about how it feels like to be accepted, and to be within a place where none would judge you.
I laid on my bed and thought about how it'd be like when I met the whole crew. I wonder if Matt would even notice me. I wish he would.
The rest of the week came into a blur as I've prepared myself for the upcomming classes next week which will start next Thursday with Photography starting the day. Which reminded me that I needed to buy a new Digital SLR Camera. I went to the mall to buy the gadget I needed. I saw a promising shop that sells the SLR Camera I needed. I entered the shop and a cute salesman greeted me and asked if I needed assistance. I told him what I needed and he gave me a rundown of the lenses that were available.
"If you buy this telephoto lens you can have the fish-eye lens 5% less." The salesman smiled at me.
"Ok, but first I need to try a few shots. Would that be possible?" I looked at his name tag "G.I.?"
He smiled his cute smile that I could stare at for the whole day. "Yes of course. Here." He assembled the camera and put the telephoto lens on.
I had a few shots of the shop across the store. The results were great, as expected from a high-labeled DSLR. Then I tried the fish-eye and took a shot of the salesman, G.I.
"Whoa! Atleast take a shot of my good side." He joked.
"Well I think this is a good side." I said showing him the picture in the camera. "Don't you agree?"
He smiled a cute smile and I was hypnotized. I took the whole set. A DSLR, a regular lens and two special lenses. It was a bit pricey, but I managed, and it was worth it. Going out of the store G.I. stopped me.
"Hey! What's your name?" He said with his hypnotic smile.
"Cord." I said and smiled back.
"Cord... nice to meet you. Come back soon." He said in a formal way and I swear he winked at me before he turned to the store.
Tuesday the following week. There was nothing much to do so I did a little scanning of the photography lesson plan that was posted online for Junior Media Productions students. It was nice and I discovered that we have a new photography room that was just installed this summer. I got a little excited about photography so I fiddled with the camera to get used to it. I've always been a fan of photography but I didn't had the chance to be serious behind the lens.
In the afternoon I went out for a run. It became a daily habbit for me and I was glad I got myself do the routine daily. I walked to the campus as I've decided to run in the University track. I walked to the corner of one building when I spotted Toni. She saw me and turned and walked away.
'I'm not doing this anymore.' I thought to myself.
"Toni!" I ran after her and caught up. Toni stopped and looked at me for one second and looked to the ground.
"Hey! Cord, I was just about to leave." Toni said with her voice low.
"Toni, I can't do this anymore. I want you to be my friend and I'm sorry I let you leave that night..." I started.
"Cord stop. I don't wanna talk about it." Disappointment ringing in her voice.
"Toni I need to tell you this."
"Cord stop I don't..."
"I'm gay." I cut her off.
Toni's face was a mixture of shock, confusion and embarrassment. "What?"
"I'm gay!" I said a bit louder which I shouldn't have. Two guys walked past us and heard what I said. One of the guy turned towards me with an irritated look.
"Listen queer! If you're a faggot, keep that to yourself you disgusting son-of-a-bitch! Don't shout it out to the world cause it ain't funny!" He spat at me. I was furious on how he talked to me.
Toni had her back to the guy but I can see she too was pissed at what the guy said. She turned around slowly and faced the guy. "Okay here's what's gonna happen dumbass!!! You can stay here and I'm gonna crack your tiny balls right or left hand that's your choice, or you could turn around and live to me a douchebag another day!! Oh and yeah, I have snipers around the area... Yup, lots of them, just around the school."
I didn't get Toni's threat at all but it seemed to be effective as the guy just shook his head and left. Toni turned back to me with a smile.
"I could've handled that." I said with a small smile.
"It was fun doing it with a friend." She said and then giggled again. "I can't believe it! Are you really gay???"
"100 percent!"
Toni hugged me and kissed me on the cheek. "I missed you so much Cordy."
"I missed you too Toni." I hugged her back.
Toni accompanied me to the tracks and waited for me to finish some laps. I accompanied her to her dorm and said goodnight. It was really nice that Toni and I are okay now. I got out of the University past 6. I walked down the sidewalk and I heard something in the bushes. I stopped and searched for the sound. When I looked down beside a small bush I found a sack. It was moving so I looked inside. I was surprised to see a puppy in it. It was shivering and I presumed hungry so I took it into my apartment. Passing Matt's complex I could see a lot of guys hanging outside. 'Maybe they're having those parties Jess and Scott were talking about. I wonder if those two are in there.' I thought to myself.
In the apartment I prepared a bowl of milk and set the puppy down and gave the milk. It happily lapped down the milk which was gone in a minute. I filled it again and pittied the puppy. I held it up and learned that the puppy was a girl. "I think I'm gonna call you Drizzle."
Drizzle is a small puppy, maybe a month old. She is brown and arguably the cutest puppy ever. I believe she's a Pomeranian breed.
By 10PM Drizzle was unstoppable. She was running around the appartment and kept on following me wherever I went begging for my attention. I prepared a large box for her and put a small pillow in it. I took Drizzle outside first to teach her to potty on the soil as I don't want to be cleaning up behind her all the time. She did potty and was soon asleep in the box I had for her. I placed her box beside my bed and also put in a bowl of water beside her. Looking at her sleep was calming and relaxing.
After preparing for bed, I checked my phone and saw four messages on it. One was from Timmy checking things up. I sent him a reply and told him that everything is okay. I also told him about Drizzle. The other three text messages were from Scott. He was inviting me over at his friend's apartment and the other one was him asking why I didn't reply. After sending replies to both messages I read his last text.
'Last week was so much fun Cord. I really hope the gang was able to meet you in our freshmen year. Were have you been all those years?' Scott texted.
I smiled at his text and thought of Matt. Then I replied to his message. 'At the sidelines. =)'
-END of Chapter 5-
Whew! I made it to chapter 5! Thank you guys so much for sticking with me! And for those who wished me well... THANK YOU SO MUCH! I can see clearly now the rain is gone. LOL
As always thank you also to those who sent me emails and encouraging me to write more. I promise to make this add-on worth reading. And I do hope this special installment made someone smile. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Suggestions and Comments are most welcome! rizaldysbustamante@yahoo.com
P.S. I'm still single. LOL
And can you guess my favorite color? (First one to answer correctly gets a special appearance in the next episode!) LOL