Dear Readers, I am dedicating this story to a boy whose skill with a guitar inspired the main character. John was a warm wonderful soul and a great friend. While I will never understand his decision to take his own life I hope that he is at peace. I will miss him always.
"Hi Mr. Hanlan, how are you doing today?" Liam called as he and Danny passed the front gate, heading for Danny’s house.
Mike greeted the two like any other student and continued with his duties, keeping the mass of kids from getting damaged.
"Oh hey, Brian, how are ya? I don’t see Calvin with you today," Liam ventured.
"He had to do something with his mom today, he left at lunch. Are you guys going west?"
"Yeah, I’m staying with Danny and his mam while me da is out of town."
"Do you mind if I walk with you guys, I want to talk to you about something and I have to go to my aunt’s house and move some stuff for her."
"We’re expecting Todd and Darren to join us, is that okay with you?"
"Sure, they should know too. Do either of you have little brothers or sisters?"
"No we don’t, I don’t know about Todd and Darren," Danny said.
"I know Darren has a little brother, like eight or something, but I don’t know about Todd."
"What do you know about me you big fart?" Darren said grinning.
"Oh hey Darren, how’s it goin’? I was wondering if you or Todd had any younger kids in your house."
"Why, you lookin’ for a date?"
"No dickhead, this is serious, let’s get moving and I’ll tell you on the way."
"Okay man, just messin’ with ya."
"It’s cool, but what I need to tell you isn’t. Look Liam, I was in the bathroom when you were um, talking to Dave Parker. Sorry, I was sort of in the middle of having a dump. Believe me, if Dave had managed to get the best of you I would have stopped him, honest. Mostly I tried not to laugh and give myself away. But look, don’t ever let Dave near any little kid. He’s a fuckin’ perv and he’s already been in trouble. But he’s a minor so he’s not on the list you get for pervs in your neighborhood. I heard if he messes with one more kid, they’ll try him as an adult and he’ll be fucked for life."
"I heard that from somebody else today, he can’t be trusted around little ones, especially boys."
"Oh, Charlie must have told you huh? We all used to hang out together but Charlie got into music and I got into cars and engines and stuff and um… D&D."
"I always wanted to check that out, but it takes so much dedication to be any good that I just never actually did it. Music takes up so much of my time. And my old building didn’t have any likely prospects for role playing games," Danny pitched in.
"I was into it really heavy for a long time but then Dave and Charlie had a fight and it kind of lost something. I tried getting Calvin interested but it’s not his thing."
Liam noted how Brian’s eyes softened just for a moment when he said Calvin’s name. There was something there but it was fleeting. His initial assessment of Brian was spot on; a decent lad who had some stress in his life that he couldn’t cope with. He was glad he hadn’t made an example of him in the locker room and kept Danny from broadcasting it to the whole school.
"Well this is Belle Court; I have to turn here but just be careful. He even tried to get me to help him get even with you. He’s not very happy with me now either."
"Okay Brian, thanks, I really appreciate it. We’ll see you tomorrow."
The group walked on. "Man he sounds really different; he was so messed up for the first part of the year and I didn’t see him at all during the summer," Darren explained.
"He told me he had a problem at home and that’s why he was bein’ such a complete dick," Liam answered.
"I wonder if his dick kept growing since I last saw it," Todd pondered.
The other three looked at him demanding an explanation.
"Oh yeah, when we were younger I hung out with Brian and we messed around a little. His dick was really big when we were like ten and it was really thick and strong. That’s how I found out about dry orgasms. Then I read some stories online and it was on; me and my dick and Brian’s. I had almost made up my mind to suck him off when Darren and I got serious. I got him to squirt once just with my hand; it was awesome at the time."
"I didn’t know that," Darren said.
"It wasn’t something you broadcast and Brian probably wouldn’t have appreciated it. I can tell you he was a good cuddler a couple of years ago."
"Huh, I wonder if he’s gay too," Darren wondered aloud.
Liam didn’t comment, but he would talk to Brian later when it was just the two of them.
"I never asked but how old are you and Todd?"
"I’m twelve for another month and Todd was thirteen in September."
"How about you guys?" Darren asked.
We’re both about to turn twelve next week; we’re only a couple of days apart."
"I’d have never thought you were that young, you act so much older, both of you, it’s weird."
"We both got kicked up a grade and we’re in the advanced learning dynamic program. So I guess that makes us nerds," Danny explained.
"Not to us, it makes you cool being that smart," Todd replied.
"Plus you have big dicks for twelve year olds. It’s either that or Todd and I are really small and I don’t want to think about that."
"Right lads, knock off the dick talk here comes T.J."
T.J. flew into Liam’s arms and Liam hugged him tighter than he would ordinarily. He felt his eyes moisten at the thought of Dave or someone like him getting their hands on little T.J.
"Are you okay Liam?" asked T.J. in a sweetly concerned voice.
"I’m grand little man, just grand and how are you doin’ today?"
"My pre-K went to the petting zoo and we saw a baby zebra and petted a bunch of neat animals, and a lady had some monkeys and lemurs and she showed us what they like to do."
"That’s wonderful T.J., I’m glad you enjoyed it."
"I did enjoy it; lots and lots." T.J. hugged Liam’s neck, "Don’t be sad, Liam. I’ll draw you a picture of the lemurs after Greigh gets home, okay?"
Liam kissed T.J.’s cheek "Thanks T.J., that would be nice."
Bryce walked up as T.J. greeted Danny and the others. "You okay Liam, you look a little down?"
"I’m fine, but could I talk to you on the porch for a moment."
"What’s on your mind, son?"
"Do you know a kid named David Parker?"
"Yes, how do you know him Liam?"
"Same school, but I had a run in with him today. He was lookin’ to cause trouble and didn’t like what he got. I didn’t hurt him, just a pain hold and he ended up on the floor. One of our friends told me he wanted to get even and asked for help. I’m worried for Danny and anyone I know. And T.J., too. I’ve heard some things from people who know him and he can’t be allowed around little guys like T.J. or kids my age either.
"Did he do anything sexual to you Liam?" Bryce asked in a perturbed tone.
"He never got a chance, but obviously you know about him."
"Okay you got me, but he’s a juvenile and we’re not supposed to talk about those cases. Stay clear of him, he’s bad news. I can’t tell you much about him but he’s not allowed to be with children under ten."
"I understand Bryce, I know some boys who used to hang out with him and they told me he was looking at an adult trial next time, now he’s over fifteen."
"That’s a possibility. Take your friend’s advice and stay clear."
"I will, I just… when T.J. jumped in my arms I thought about Dave gettin’ at him and it kind of tore me up for a minute."
"I understand Liam, believe me, but that tells me your heart is in the right place kiddo."
"Thanks Bryce, I’ll be watchin’ for him. I’m pretty sure he’ll come at me again. I may have to cripple him if he does."
Greigh arrived and scooped up their little boy and Liam joined his friends and moved on to Danny’s place.
"You okay, Babe?" Danny asked.
"Yeah, T.J. just got to me a little."
"You were thinking about that Dave guy weren’t you?"
"Not just him, what if he goes after you to get even with me?"
"I know it upsets you Liam, but I’m not helpless, and Mom said I can go to your studio and learn some things to help protect myself."
Liam hugged Danny tightly and Darren and Todd got in on it as well.
"Hey, do you guys want anything to drink or a snack? We’ve got cheese and fruit and chips and stuff," Danny offered.
"I’ll take a soda," Darren said, adding, "I’m not picky about which kind."
"Me too, whatever you have handy and maybe some chips."
Danny and Liam served the drinks and opened a bag of spicy tortilla chips.
The boys settled into the big sofa in front of the TV but didn’t turn it on. They talked about school and the people in it and some of the better and worse teachers. But eventually they got around to the subject of the last get together they had.
"Are you guys still cool with what happened last time?" Darren asked.
"I am," answered Danny, "It was cool and we learned some neat stuff."
"Same here," Liam added.
"Um, do you think you might want to do some more stuff with us?" Todd asked.
"Yeah, I can see that happenin’ if we have some simple rules. Which is no dicks in our bums and no tying anybody up. I forget what they call it but none of that."
"How about sucking? Are you into that?" Darren queried.
"Well yeah, we do each other and I’d like to learn how to make Liam feel even better. You guys might know some stuff we don’t."
"Well we don’t do anal either, um that’s butt sex, but we found out some stuff that feels good back there."
Todd removed his tablet out of his bag and pulled up an image of the prostate and its location and how it was close to the rectum and perineum. "There’s a bunch of nerves all through here that make touching and poking feel really good, especially during a blow job."
"You can search anal sex for beginners on the web and see what’s involved and how to work up to it," Darren added.
"How did they figure this stuff out before Google, man?"
"I don’t know, my dad said if they had the web when he was a kid, he would never have left his room."
"I thought they had the web forty years ago!"
"Well yeah, but it was rubbish; fourteen-four modems, only a couple of browsers and the whole computer only had like forty meg hard drives." Danny explained.
"Yas wanna know somethin’ really nerdy about computers? They can trace computer-controlled machinery back to 1801 when some French guy named Jaquard developed a punch card system to run a powered loom. And then in World War II, this guy named Turing developed a computer to crack German military codes from a machine called Enigma. And just to make it super nerdy, he was gay as well."
"No shit, Liam?"
"Absolutely true, look it up."
"Cool, and it’s really cool he was gay. He must have had a rough time back then. It was like a felony wasn’t it?"
"Yeah, it was bad then. They could break into yer house and try to catch yas."
"Oscar Wilde got caught up in that; I read a book called Reading Gaol and it messed me up for weeks. I should have waited to read it; I wasn’t ready for that kind of cruelty," Todd said sadly.
"Poor bastard, I started it, but me da said I should leave it for later. From what I’ve heard he was right. He gets home tonight, I can’t wait to talk to him. I miss him a lot when he’s gone. Jeez, what the bleedin’ hell’s wrong with me. Why am I getting’ all weepy all of a sudden. It’s them feckin’ hormones I’ll bet. Da says they can really mess with yer emotions."
"Don’t take this wrong but I’m glad to hear you say that. I thought it was just me. We were eating dinner and I thought of something that my dad built for me when I was little and next thing, I’m bawling like a girl. I was so embarrassed. Dad was great though, he told me he had a terrible time during puberty and not to worry, it passes off fairly quickly. Then he said, eight, maybe nine years and you’ll be right as rain. It made me laugh and that helped."
"That’s cool Todd. I wish my dad had lived. I’d like to know what that’s like," Danny said. "Liam’s dad has been really nice to me right from the start."
"You can borrow him any time Danny, he loves you the same as me. He’s a big heart and you’re in it."
"I know Liam and I appreciate it, but it’s not the same as having my own. I know I can never have that and it bugs me sometimes."
Liam pulled Danny tighter and kissed him. There wasn’t anything he could say to that.
"Do you guys cuddle all the time when you’re home?" Todd asked.
"Yeah, I suppose. I like having Danny close to me and he seems to like being there. If we’re together we’re at least touching somewhere, even if it’s only our toes."
"Us too, at least at Todd’s. My sis is a real asshole and she never gives us any time to ourselves,” Darren added.
"This is all new to me; I’ve always put most of my energy into guitars and music until I met Danny. He’s so bloody cute and cool, now I can’t function without him."
Todd continued, "It was kind of gradual with me and Darren, I met him in fifth grade and it just kind of built up from there. We were both messin’ around with other guys, but nothing too serious. But after that we kind of focused on each other and well, now we’re us."
"Cool," said Danny.
"That’s nice. You guys look good together, and happy too," Liam added.
"What about you guys, how did you meet?"
"We met at McAuliffe on my first day. He was my second guide for the day since we were going to the same class. I was stunned because he was just so beautiful. And in Science we sat together; he smelled so good I couldn’t believe it. None of that stink sauce body wash crap, just a little soap and a hint of sweat. Cheri saw it right away and warned me off hurtin’ him. She’s a cool girl and a good friend. But I never would have thought of hurtin’ Danny, I think I was in love by the end of the day if not right after we played together."
"Oh man, that is so cool and sweet," Darren sniffed. "What about you Danny, what did you think of Liam when you first saw him?"
"When I saw him standing in the office, he was so cool looking and I got a boner right on the spot. I’m glad I wore a long tee-shirt that day. He was just so different from anyone I ever met and it wasn’t just the accent. He’s just so confident and really bright. But he’s also kind of shy and he doesn’t like being pointed out as someone special, even though he is."
"Shit Liam, you’re the closest thing to a celebrity I’ve ever met,” Darren proclaimed. “Everybody knows about your musical abilities and word got out about your thing with Brian. Of course it went nuts and everybody thought Brian would show up in a wheelchair."
"I thought it was a fairly quiet altercation, more of a discussion on manners and comportment really, Liam began. But there must have been more people watching than I thought; either way, Brian and I shook hands and I was thinkin’ that would be the end of it. I talked to him later about it or he talked to me actually. He told me about his troubles at home and why he was being such a dick and he went home and got things resolved. After that he was apologizing to people he had bothered, including Calvin. Now they seem to be mates, Brian is helping him with a quad runner that wasn’t running right."
"Yeah, he told us that himself, he said he didn’t want to be a bully and he never actually hurt anyone but he tormented Calvin and a few others," Darren said.
"Well I consider him a friend now and that was before he warned me about Dave," Liam clarified.
"Do you mind if I tell him that, we have first period together and we sit next to each other?" Darren requested.
"Feel free, I think he knows and I’ll tell him as well when I get a chance."
Danny’s phone chirped with a message that his mom was on her way and that he and Liam should be ready to go out for dinner in about fifteen minutes.
Danny told the others and Todd and Darren hugged each of them and headed off to their own homes.