Piano Forte

CHAPTER 4

READY OR NOT

 

 

 

 

Austin and Oliver were tangled together on Oliver’s bed. They were stripped to their underpants, white Fruit of the Loom briefs for both.

 

“Our moms must go underwear shopping together,” Oliver giggled after they finished taking off their jeans.

 

“Who knows? I like briefs,” Austin said.

 

“They’re okay, but the big kids at school all seem to wear boxers and boxer briefs.”

 

“Who cares what they wear? I know I like what I like.”

 

Oliver fondled Austin’s hard pecker through his briefs. “I like you in briefs because they show off your cock and I get to play with it. You still shooting stuff?”

 

Austin grabbed Oliver’s little cock and rubbed it through his briefs.

 

“Most of the time, but not a lot. Not like James does.”

 

“It’s still more than me.,” Oliver said. “I hope my first time shooting is with you.”

 

Austin lifted his ass off the bed and Oliver, knowing what Austin wanted to do, removed his hand from the little pole between his friends’ legs. Austin wiggled his briefs down his legs and then kicked them off. He was now naked. Oliver followed suit.

 

“I’m going to miss you, dude,” Oliver said.

 

“You’ll miss me or miss me jerking you off?”

 

“Both. And, don’t forget, you promised that after you get back you and me will work at being a music team.”

 

“How can I forget that?  But you’ve gotta take those lessons Josh is setting up and practice hard.”

 

“I promise.” Oliver put his thumb, index, and middle fingers around Austin’s cocklet and went to work masturbating his best friend.

 

Within fifteen minutes both boys had intense little orgasms. Austin squirted two drops of his seed on his belly and Oliver’s hand. Oliver was dry.

 

“You got cum first, and now you got little teeny hairs,” Oliver pointed out. “I should have one or the other.”

 

“You’re going to be twelve in a month. I bet things start happening real soon,” Austin assured his best friend. “Besides, my hairs are so tiny you need a microscope to see them. James says we are both imagining things.”

 

“Maybe when you get back from camp I’ll be a stud in puberty. But, damn, you won’t be able to make my birthday party.”

 

“Don’t forget one of your presents is pizza for you and me at Luigi’s after I get back.”

 

“I know, but my birthday still won’t seem right without you there.”

 

The boys went to the bathroom to take care of peeing, washing, and tooth care, then climbed back into Oliver’s bed. They quickly became tangled again, their faces inches away from each other.

 

That, of course, led to them kissing each other on the lips. Austin wondered what Oliver would say if he worked his tongue into his friend’s mouth. He decided not to push it. Instead he pushed his cock against Oliver’s and they humped each other to better climaxes than the first time.

 

“You got your gooey cum on me,” Oliver said.

 

“I didn’t hear you ask me not to do it.”

 

Austin gave Oliver one last kiss, picked his briefs off the floor, and put them on. For all of their jerking off, humping, and kissing together, they had some unspoken limits to what they would and wouldn’t do. Even though they jerked off and humped naked, sleeping naked was what boyfriends did together or what boyfriends did with their girlfriends. The same with French kissing. As for blow jobs, the topic had yet to come up.

 

 

 

 

William finished his keyboard final and walked out of the auditorium where each student took his or her test on the school’s concert grand. Every student in his class had to take the same final, except for one work. The pieces they played were a Bach Partita, a Schubert Impromptu, a Satie Gymnopedie, and a Beethoven Bagatelle. It was a rather conservative list of works that showed off various skills. The lone exception was their last work, a little trifle they had to sight read. Each work was different, but all by the same composer, James Pierce, a Seattle resident who was the Bainbridge School’s “composer in residence.” He wrote the trifles for the test, but they were all copyrighted for use in later publications.

 

William felt good about how he did on the test. He was certain it was better than anyone else’s test. After all he was a better pianist than anyone else, which was all anyone needed to know.

 

His test was the second to last on the schedule; he would have loved to stay for the last test. The pianist was a thirteen-year-old girl, who was a decent pianist but not much of a looker. She had bland brown hair that she wore in a pony tail and a flat chest. Michelle, at least back when he talked to the bitch, had told him she had the personality of a wet dishrag. But the auditorium was closed to all except the proctors and the student being tested.

 

“Hey, William, how’d you do?” came a raspy teen voice behind him. William turned and saw Wade Cole, a fourteen-year-old ninth grader and a student in William’s piano class.

 

“No doubt I aced it,” William told him. Like almost all the students at Bainbridge, Wade was a talented musician. However, he had little ambition to be a professional, which was the case with many pianists. Most of the orchestral students did hope to play in a professional orchestra in the future. Even though Bainbridge was a school for musicians, its big attraction for parents was that it was also a challenging academic venue. In other words, there was much more to the school than simply training musicians.

 

Two music professors at Western received their high school diplomas from Bainbridge. The Dean of the music department at Washington State University was a Bainbridge alumnus. Four faculty members at Bainbridge, including Max Shepherd, the Dean of the Lower School as well as the Summer Music Camp Director, were Bainbridge grads. The Commencement on Thursday would see the school’s 75^th graduating class receive their diplomas. The list of graduates was long and distinguished.

 

William’s father was a graduate, and while his grandfather never attended Bainbridge, he was on the school’s Board of Directors.

 

“When are you going to move to the high school dorms?” Wade asked William.

 

“After the summer camp is over,” William said, although he would love to make the move earlier. The first three weeks of camp were for students finishing grades eight or lower. Students entering grades ten through twelve would arrive at the start of the fourth week and stay for two weeks after the younger students left. “I asked and they said no moves until the middle of August.”

 

William hoped that after camp, his father would be at home for the duration of the summer. He often wondered if his father even remembered who he was.

 

 

 

 

Austin tip-toed into his brother’s bedroom wearing nothing but a pair of boxers. “Are you awake?” he whispered to the form under the covers.

 

“I was trying, but it looks like sleep is not going to happen real quick, since somebody’s little brother just snuck into my room,” James whispered back. Even though their mother’s bedroom was on the other side of the house, the boys worked hard not to make much noise. While the layout was suitable for adolescent boys sneaking around, the house was small and they didn’t want their mother to hear them and check up on what the noise was about.

 

“I can go back to my room if I’m bothering you.”

 

“Quit being a dork, bro.” James pulled his covers back and patted the sheets. “Come on in and tell me what’s on your mind.”

 

“What makes you think I got something on my mind?”

 

“Because if you had nothing on your mind, you’d be in your room having a wet dream or something.” Austin slipped into James’ bed. “Aren’t you a bit overdressed?” James asked.

 

“I don’t think so. All I got on is boxers.”

 

“WWU Viking boxers. You’ve got good taste, bro. But, as you’ve probably figured out by now you’re wearing infinitely more than me. I thought I taught you to sleep naked.”

 

“You did, but I put my boxers on so mom wouldn’t catch me naked.”

 

“Fuck dude, she’s in bed, and if she did see you then you say you’re going to the bathroom and that should take care of it. Anyway, you didn’t sneak into my bedroom to get a lecture on correct living from me. So, one more time, what’s on your mind?”

 

Austin wriggled out of his boxers and tossed them onto the floor. “You told me that I could come to your room if I wanted to learn about French kissing.”

 

 “That was almost a week ago.”

 

“So? You never said when. The serious part of school is over and we only have a half-day tomorrow, so why not teach me now? That way if I stay over with Ollie this weekend I can see if he wants to try it.”

 

James fondled his little brother’s almost 3.5 inches of rock-hard tween cock. “Damn, you are excited about this. Are you planning on making Ollie your boyfriend before you leave for camp?”

 

“No, I just want us to try it so we have something to, like, look forward to for when I get back.”

 

“Okay, you’re on. But if you think you gotta cum, don’t squirt on my sheets, cuz then I’d have to sleep in your cum.”

 

“Like you haven’t slept in your own.”

 

“Bro, that’s what socks are for. But, yeah, I have and so have you, so I guess turnabout is fair play, or something like that.”

 

Austin felt his big brother’s six-inch rod. “You’re horny, too.” He rubbed the glans and said, “Extra-horny, since you’re leaking lots of precum.”

 

“Well, here’s my qualifications. I French kissed Frank as late as Tuesday, Lena Jones in sixth and seventh grades, Trish Martin, who is officially going out with me now…,”

 

“Wow, awesome, bro. Have you fucked her?”

 

“Sheesh, you’re a dirty minded little fucker. No, third base in the nude is as far as we’ve gone. I’m still a clean-minded virgin boy (if you don’t count Frank) …and Michael Chu, in sixth, seventh, and eighth grade. Mikey was my first kiss and still ranks as the best even if he’s one-hundred percent into girls now.”

 

“Let’s quit talking and kiss,” Austin said impatiently. He was so horny he was quaking.

 

James stopped chatting, put his lips to his little brother’s, and worked up the intensity of his kissing until Austin felt James’ tongue snake into his mouth at which point he shot four small drops of clear cum onto his brother’s belly.

 

“Damn, little bro. Look at you! It wasn’t that long ago I couldn’t talk you into learning about jerking off, and now you’re squirting your jizz on me the second I put my tongue in your mouth” James rubbed his little brother’s warm, smooth torso. “Playing soccer’s given you a nice body, your red hair almost makes your head look on fire, and you get more boners than anybody I know, including me. You’re gonna blow somebody away at that hoity toity music school.”

 

“I just want to learn to play the piano better,” Austin said unconvincingly.

 

“Hell, you could almost play the piano with that cock of yours it was so hard. Wouldn’t that impress some girl violinist.”

 

“Whatever. Thanks for the lessons.”

 

“You shot so quickly it didn’t last long.”

 

“Yeah, well, I think I can figure out what to do if O wants to kiss.”

 

“What about learning about giving him a blow job?”

 

“Talk about horny, sheesh bro. But, like you said, blow jobs aren’t for brothers.”

 

Unless they are, bro, unless they are, James grinned to himself.

 

 

 

 

The last day of school for the middle school students was a busy one. Books were collected, the students received their grades for their final tests, and teachers who hadn’t already done so gave students their summer study programs. William’s piano teachers told him that the biggest part of his study program would be the work he did at the summer camp, which pleased William; it meant he wouldn’t be saddled with extra work on top of what he’d be getting in summer camp.

 

After his last class, William walked back to the dorm with Jonas Ferris. “What are you going to do next week?” Jonas asked.

 

“Take up space here I guess,” William said, “My old man and my older man are too busy with concerts for me to stay with them, and my mom is too busy going to cocktail parties. There are going to be a few kids hanging around like me, but nobody I know real well.”

 

“Wish I could hang around, but I’m not going to camp. I’d show you a few things.”

 

“About sex?”

 

“Why not? You need somebody to fuck your tight ass, and Kevin’s too big a pussy to be the first to do it. Why not me?”

 

“The answer to that is simple,” William grinned. “Nobody is ever going to stick his dick, his finger, his tongue, or anything up my ass.”

 

“Tongue? What do you know about tonguing an ass?”

 

“I might be straight, but I know what goes on in the world.”

 

“Hell, if we got high together I bet you’d do it.”

 

William nodded. “I gotta find some shit to buy. Nobody pays much attention to us getting high when there’s just a few of us hanging around.”

 

“Perry Hopper has shit to sell.”

 

“He’s gonna be a junior, right?” Jonas nodded. “How do you know he has any to sell?”

 

“Cuz I’ve got some in my backpack to take home,” Jonas grinned.

 

“And speaking of sex, there’s Kevin,” William said as he and Jonas entered the dormitory courtyard.

 

At the same time William saw Kevin, Michelle entered the courtyard. She grinned and gave him a little wave. William flipped her the bird in return. “She’s a bitch,” he told Jonas, not for the first time.

 

“Hey, roomie, what you gonna do until dinner?” Kevin asked. He’d seen the little byplay between William and his former girlfriend and thought it was funny.

 

“Depends on how horny you are,” William told him.

 

“Horny enough to handle you and Jonas both together.”

 

“That is so gay.”

 

Kevin and Jonas looked at each other and shrugged. “At least we treat you better than your girlfriend,” Kevin finally said.

 

“Hey dudes, I got stuff to get ready so I can move out tomorrow,” Jonas said. “You guys have fun.” He looked at Kevin. “You gotta take his ass before you leave for the summer.”

 

“The two of us together might have a chance,” Kevin grinned.

 

“You ain’t gonna get nothin’ unless you come up to the room with me,” William groused.

 

Kevin traded a fist bump with Jonas. “See ya in September.”

 

Jonas gave Kevin a kiss on the lips. “Not if I see you first.”

 

“He’s the only guy I know who’s gayer than I am,” Kevin said as he watched Jonas’s ass move away.

 

William led Kevin into the dorm and up to their room. “Why don’t you and Jonas become boyfriends?” William asked as he opened the door to their room.

 

“Because he’s going to high school and I’m going to eighth grade. If we’re going to be boyfriends then we should be able to room together.”

 

“Who says you can’t? Eighth and ninth graders can room together you know.”

 

“I know, but when you and me talked, we kind of agreed to room together next year. Besides, everybody says Jonas and Chad are sweethearts even if they aren’t. Not that they don’t have a lot of sex with each other.”

 

“Not to mention with you. Just think, if you and Jonas roomed together you could fuck somebody’s ass.”

 

Kevin grinned and said, “Who says I can’t, anyway.”

 

“It won’t be mine.”

 

“And not being roomies doesn’t mean me and Jonas can’t have sex together.”

 

Two hours later, William pulled the covers on Kevin’s bed back, exposing his smooth, well-built fourteen-year-old body as well as exposing Kevin’s slender thirteen-year-old torso. When William looked at Kevin he often wished he was gay. He knew he shouldn’t think of another boy as being beautiful, but Kevin was just that, beautiful.

 

William had fucked one girl, Michelle, and two boys, Kevin being one of those.  The other boy was a boy his age he met after one of his father’s concerts when he was twelve. His name was Noah. His father was the concertmaster of the St. Louis Symphony and they met at a post-concert gathering at Noah’s father’s house. Noah liked being a bottom and had no problem with William not returning the favor, especially since it was William’s first time doing anything beyond the blow jobs he shared with his neighbor in Seattle.

 

Of those three fucks, Kevin was, without a doubt, the best. William knew in his mind that Kevin was the best because they did it together so many times. It certainly wasn’t because he was gay, since he wasn’t. He just happened to like fucking Kevin’s ass. The fact that he wouldn’t reciprocate was proof to William that he wasn’t gay.

 

As soon as they’d closed the door to the room William and Kevin had undressed. They lay next to each other on Kevin’s bed and played with each other’s erections. After getting each other’s young teen hormones fully flowing, they took turns sucking and licking each other’s cocks, until they ended up in a sixty-nine. After William shot his load into Kevin’s eager mouth, he shifted position so their bodies were facing in the same direction and jerked Kevin off to a climax.

 

After they recovered, he let Kevin make out with him. While he didn’t like the idea of kissing a boy, Kevin was his friend so he was willing to exchange kisses as long as they didn’t French kiss. While William wouldn’t admit it, kissing before they fucked made the sex better. After William filled Kevin’s ass he remained in Kevin’s bed. The two naked teens snuggled and napped. William refused to sleep overnight with Kevin, but he thought snuggling and napping after sex was okay since it was a good way to come down from their highs.

 

“Hey, dude, wake up. It’s almost time for dinner.”

 

Kevin yawned and stretched. “I’m gonna miss this, well except for one thing.”

 

“What’s that?”

 

“Squeezing you and me into one bed. It works for sex but sucks for naps.”

 

“Yeah, but if we put the beds together like Jonas and Chad, then people will say we’re boyfriends.”

 

Kevin shook his head. “For somebody so smart, you sure can be dense. Jonas and Chad aren’t boyfriends, but they don’t care what people think. Plus, we can put them together and move them apart if we want.”

 

“I know, it just takes some muscle. You know what I won’t do, but maybe we can at least put them together when we mess around if we room together next year.”

 

“You won’t let me fuck you, you won’t let me French you, you won’t let me cum in your mouth, and you won’t sleep in bed overnight with me. Like I said, you’re dense, but I’ll be your roomie next year anyway.”

 

“Except for the big problem.” Kevin knew what the problem was, but let William say it anyway. “I don’t want to spend another year in the middle school dorm and…,

 

“…and I don’t want to be in the high school dorm with a bunch of big, hairy, horny dudes,” Kevin finished. “And don’t forget, the Tower might be middle school, but it has the best rooms and best views in the school until you’re a at least a junior. But, like you said, we’ll work it out before September.”

 

“Or not.”

 

“How come you’re so negative about shit?”

 

“I’m not. I just like things done my way.”

“Same difference.”

 

The boys changed and went to dinner. It would be their last dinner together for the school year. Also, it would mean William would probably be eating alone until his summer camp roommate arrived, providing he even wanted to eat with him. I probably won’t even want to talk with him, let alone eat with him, William thought with a feeling of disgust.

 

 

 

 

Austin was packed. In fact, he was packed twice over, since he didn’t like how he’d packed the first time. He packed everything he thought he needed into two suitcases, one his mother had purchased for him when he was accepted to the camp, and a suitcase Josh Fielding was loaning him. In addition he packed his backpack, and a briefcase for the sheet music and music books he wanted to take with him.

 

He felt he was ready. While he could arrive at Bainbridge as early as Thursday, he and his mother felt Saturday was early enough. Besides, it was the official reporting day. They considered Friday, but Austin didn’t want to arrive on Friday the thirteenth and Josh, who would be driving Austin and his family, wasn’t keen about driving in Seattle area traffic on a Friday afternoon.

 

He had an afternoon lesson scheduled with Josh. It would be his last one until after he returned from camp. He played the three pieces he had ready for his camp assignment, worked on a couple more, and then listened to Josh play a piece he wanted Austin to work on at camp, if he had the time to do so.

 

“That’s Beethoven, right?” Austin asked when Josh finished playing. He was embarrassed he couldn’t place it. Josh always told Austin what he was playing, but this time played without introduction.

 

“First movement, Piano Sonata One.”

 

“You want me to try Beethoven?” Austin asked in a surprised voice.

 

“It can’t hurt. I’m not surprised you didn’t recognize it. Most people aren’t familiar with his early sonatas.”

 

“Well, I should have recognized it, because it’s Beethoven. But, I’ll give it my best.”

 

“I think you can handle the fingering, but we’ll put work into the interpretation once you can play the notes.”

 

Austin packed up his stuff, including the score for the sonata. Josh didn’t have a lesson right after him, so they talked a little about Austin’s upcoming experience at music camp. When they saw Austin’s mother pull up in front of his house, Josh reminded Austin he would be picking them up at seven-thirty on Saturday morning and they would be eating breakfast out before leaving Bellingham.

 

One of the few negatives Austin saw in Josh was how he sometimes treated him like a little kid who forgot everything. But he loved Josh as a teacher so much he let it slide by as a minor irritant. He told Josh they would be ready on time and headed out the door to meet his mom.

 

 

William woke up to his alarm. A warm naked body was cuddled up next to him.

 

“What time is it?” came the sleepy voice of his bedmate.

 

He checked his phone. “Five.”

 

“Is early.”

 

“We agreed on it.”

 

I know. You need to be in your own bed real quick.”

 

William rolled on his side and faced Michelle Zimmer. He scooted up next to her, loving the feel of her little boobs against his chest. He couldn’t help but grin. For the first time in his life he’d slept overnight with a girl. He felt his cock harden as he tried to figure out how they could become roommates.

 

As much as Michelle could be a bitch at times, William thought she had to be better than a dorky twelve-year-old boy. He figured rooming with a girl would be more fun than rooming with a little brat that was probably a faggot anyway. The problem with his fantasy, of course, was that a boy and a girl would never be allowed to room together.

 

William felt himself drifting off and quickly got out of the bed. “Let’s move the bed back,” William told Michelle. They had moved the empty bed that would soon sleep Michelle’s roommate next to Michelle’s bed to make a bigger place for sex and for sleep.

 

As soon as he saw Michelle’s naked body he wanted to jump back into bed with her and fuck her for the third time since they’d shacked up just after ten.

 

“You have a boner again,” Michelle observed.

 

“Yeah, it likes you. Was I better than that high school kid last night?”

 

“I told you, he only did me once, and you did me twice plus you came when I sucked you after dinner and in the woods after that.” It was in Michelle’s room after dinner that they planned their night.

 

The two young teens had done a good job of following that plan. They went to the woods on the hill to smoke some of the joints he’d purchased on Wednesday and got high. They took their shirts off and pulled down their pants. Michelle removed her bra and they got high and made out. Michelle masturbated William to his second orgasm since dinner while William finger fucked Michelle to her first. They shared another joint and went to their own rooms. William snuck into Michelle’s room after ten and they fucked twice, although the plan had only called for once. But, horny was horny after all.

 

“Fuck me before you go,” Michelle begged after they had the bed in place.

 

“Damn you’re a horny broad,” William giggled. “But I better get to my room before we get caught.” He picked his clothes off the floor and headed for the door.

 

“Aren’t you getting dressed?”

 

“If I get caught out there by a proctor I’m in trouble anyway, so why bother? Besides the dorms are practically empty anyway.”

 

“So stay here and fuck me again. It could be our last chance for a while. And it will make your boner go away.”

 

“See ya at breakfast.” William dashed out of the room before he changed his mind. He made it to his floor of the dorm and to his room without being caught. He had no doubt that he had just enjoyed the best night of his life.

 

 

Austin was awake by five. He tried to go back to sleep but couldn’t. He was excited about going to camp, although he had his trepidations regarding his roommate. But his anxieties had been calmed down by James, who reminded him they were just sharing a room, not their lives, and “certainly not your beds.”

 

“Yuck,” Austin spat as he sat in his brother’s room a couple of days ago.

 

“Who knows, he might talk you into your first blow job.”

 

“Yuck.”

 

“Or maybe you’ll find a girl for your first fuck.”

 

“Yuck.”

 

“So, you see. All you gotta do his sleep there. A friendly, talented dude like you will find friends in an instant.”

 

“I hope so. I’m gonna miss you and O and all my other friends.”

 

“And remember—no matter what, you’re only gone for a month.”

 

Well, the start of that month is here today,” Austin thought as he headed to the bathroom to shower.

 

James did his best to calm his little brother down one more time after Austin’s early shower woke him up. He went to Austin’s room and watched him pull on a pair of boxers.

 

Austin flopped on his bed and patted the empty place next to him. James lay next to him, both boys wearing boxers and t-shirts. James put his arm around his little brother’s shoulders and squeezed him.

 

“I’m scared,” Austin whispered.

 

“Dude, you’ll sit at their fancy pianos and play circles around all those spoiled rich assholes.”

 

“I’m not scared of the music. I know I’m good at that.”  Austin had more than his share of young adolescent self-doubts, but was totally confident in his abilities when it came to his musical talent. “I’m scared that William dude will hate me and then his friends will hate me and I’ll be all lonely and hate the camp because everybody hates me.”

 

James kissed his brother on the forehead. “You’ll do great, bro. I wish I could give you your first BJ right now as a going to camp confidence builder.”

 

“You could jerk me off,” Austin grinned.

 

“I could, but it sounds like mom’s up.” James gave Austin’s cock a squeeze. “But, damn bro, you seem ready for action.”

 

“Boys, let’s get out of bed and get showered and dressed,” came the voice of their mother, Valerie Richards

 

“I am, but it sounds like I’d better get dressed. Looks like it’s just me and my own hands until I see you and Ollie again in four weeks.” Austin was an ambidextrous masturbator.

 

When Josh showed up at seven-thirty the Richards’ family was ready. James and Josh tossed Austin’s suitcases into the trunk and Austin followed with his backpack. He carried his briefcase with him. He thought a briefcase sounded dumb when Josh had first mentioned using one, but with Josh’s organizational help, Austin found that it was perfect for carrying his music.

 

After breakfast at IHOP, Josh drove the family to Seattle where they caught the Bainbridge Island Ferry to Winslow. After disembarking, Josh drove out of town to the Bainbridge School of Music where a security agent in a uniform directed him into the parking area. He was guided into a parking space by a student helper. Josh had visited the school before, but it was the first time anyone in the Richards family had seen it.

 

“Austin, this place is even more beautiful than the pictures. You’re going to have so much fun here,” his mother said.

 

Austin grunted something unintelligible.

 

Two student helpers helped them to the main office where Austin was checked in. While the paperwork was dealt with the helpers took the suitcases to The Tower, where Austin would be staying.

 

They were then introduced to Christian Morton, a freshman who would be attending the camp. “Welcome to the Bainbridge Summer Music Camp,” he told Austin as he shook his hand. Christian told Austin and his family that he would take them to Austin’s room, so they could see it and place his backpack into the room.

 

“I will be giving Austin a detailed tour,” he said as they used Austin’s keycard to access the dorm and the room. “His roommate is William Delacroix who is helping with the parking lot today.”

 

“Do you go to school here, too?” James asked as he gave the fourteen-year-old a long look. He thought Christian was unbelievably cute with his longish black hair, brown eyes, and slim, six-foot build.

 

“No, I went to Lakewald Middle School in Lake Oswego, Oregon and I’ll be going to Lake Oswego High next year. But, this is going to be my fourth year going to music camp here, which is one reason they made me a guide. I was eleven the first time I came here. I think that’s why they made me your guide, since I was pretty young my first time, too.”

 

“What instrument do you play?” Austin asked.

 

“I was waiting for you to ask,” Christian grinned. “I play the cello. My roommate, Benny  plays the violin. We want to form a piano trio and, well, we’re going to need a pianist for that. You’re welcome to give it a shot.”

 

Christian was inviting Austin as a matter of courtesy. The rumors he’d heard said Austin Richards was very young and would not be anywhere good enough. Christian and Benny had already eliminated William as a candidate. They felt he was talented enough but was too difficult to work with. In essence, he was a prick.

Austin and his family got a quick tour of the school. After seeing the practice rooms and the pianos, Austin couldn’t wait to get a detailed tour.

 

Josh had split from them at the office to meet with some of the teachers he knew. “I’ll give Austin a more detailed tour after lunch, along with another first-year camper.” He handed James and Valerie a voucher for lunch; Austin had been issued his lunch card when he checked in. “Your teacher got a lunch voucher, too,” Christian told them. He left them at the cafeteria entrance and told Austin he would meet him at his room and would text him the time.  

 

After going through the lunch line, James spotted Josh at a table sitting with another man. Josh waved them over and introduced them to John Boardman, one of the school’s piano teachers. “Looks like there’s room for three more if we squeeze together,” Boardman said.

 

Austin thought the lunch was good and was very pleased to learn that he could go back for seconds or even more if he wanted. After eating, Austin walked to the car with Josh, James, and his mom. He gave Josh a hug, fought back tears as he gave his mom a big hug, and finally lost it when he hugged his big brother who was more than a big brother; he was also the best friend a little brother could want.

 

Wiping away his tears, he watched the three get into Josh’s car and drive off. What he didn’t see was the tears being shed by his mother and his brother. It took a lot of self-control for them to hold back that long, but they’d agreed the day before that they didn’t want Austin’s last look before camp to be of them crying.

 

Austin took a deep breath and walked to his dorm room. He received a text from Christian along the way that said he would be at Austin’s room in ten minutes. Austin looked around the courtyard when he entered it but didn’t see his guide. He tapped his keycard to gain access to the dorm and then went up the stairs to his room. He tapped his card again and pulled down on the door handle like Christian had shown him.

 

 William had been at the front of the lunch line when the cafeteria opened. He ate quickly and headed to his room for a nap before having to return to parking lot duty. He was furious at being given parking lot duty. At the very least, he should have been an escort for the office. He felt that if a dweeb like Christian Morton could be a guide/sponsor, then he should have been a shoe-in for the job. When he complained to Mr. Shepherd, the camp director told him he needed William’s experience to help keep traffic under control. William wanted to call bullshit, since school security handled the parking.

 

 He wondered if he’d helped direct the car his roommate came in. He kept looking for a small boy but managed to only see one—a little redhead riding in the backseat with a boy about his own age. The redhead was every bit dumber looking than he imagined his roommate, but the older kid, who was probably the one coming to camp, looked okay. Whatever, he could see from the suitcases on the floor that his roomie had arrived sometime that morning.

 

After taking a quick snooze, William rolled out of bed, so he could get back to his fucking duty on the dusty parking lot. At least he could wear shorts there.

 

He heard a sound like the door being tapped, noticed the handle lower, and the door open.  What he saw was a scrawny little redhead whose hair poked out of the sides of a blue Mariners baseball cap.  His face was a mess of freckles and tear streaks. His little button nose made him look like a six-year-old in Williams estimate. The boy was wearing brown cargo shorts, a red t-shirt that had something written on the front, green trainers, along with the baseball cap.

 

One look at his new roommate confirmed his worst fears. He was a little faggot who probably had fat fingers and didn’t know Chopsticks from Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.

 

William stared at him not knowing what to say. All  his frustrations about what his roommate would be like for the next four weeks shot to the surface and he finally spit out a loud, “FUCK!”

 

Next: Roommates