SEA CHANGE

CHAPTER 33 — Caitlyn’s Party

When Eric’s alarm clock went off, I was spooned against Daniel’s back because that was how we finished making love in the night. I had one arm under his neck and one over his waist, and I had my nose close to the back of his head because I loved sleeping with the scent of his hair. I quickly untangled myself and rolled to my other side; my back to Daniel’s back, so Eric wouldn’t freak.

Enjoying the feel of Daniel’s butt against mine, I sleepily watched Eric wake up.

He frowned at me as he got out of bed. “Next time he comes when I’m here,” he said pointing past me to Daniel, “he brings a sleeping bag for the floor.”

“Yeah,” I said. “No problem.”

He pulled on his pants and then sat to put on his shoes.

“Look, man… I’m sorry,” I said, sitting up in bed. The bedcovers fell to my (and Daniel’s) waist and I pulled them up to cover our nakedness. “I didn’t know he was coming, Eric. Honest. And Daniel’s cool. We won’t embarrass you.”

He frowned again as he tied his shoe. “Just don’t gross me out.”

Daniel sat up beside me and yawned.

Eric eyed our naked torsos and shook his head. “Like you’re doin’ now,” he said, pulling on his other shoe.

Daniel started to say something, but I beat him to it. “Look, Eric, we’ll be cool around you, but if it bothers you that much, I can still try to find another roommate.”

He frowned and stood to grab his shirt.

“You might want to check your door,” Daniel said. “I had a hard time getting in last night because someone had stuffed a bunch of pennies into your door jamb.”

Eric’s head shot up and he strode to the door. It opened easily and he shut it again. He wore a satisfied grin as he went into the bathroom and quickly closed the door behind himself.

Daniel put his arm over my shoulder, leaned his forehead against my head, and rubbed my belly. “Hey, Seany,” he said.

I wrapped an arm behind his back. “Hey, Danny. We better wait on any cuddling till Eric’s gone. He’s probably just taking a whiz and brushing his teeth.” I patted his back. “But thanks for last night.”

He tongued my ear. I pushed him away. “Behave until Eric’s gone to breakfast.”

“OK,” Daniel said with a sigh and lay back down, crossing his arms over his chest.

When Eric came out of the bathroom, he quickly closed the door again. It was obvious that he didn’t want our suite mates seeing Dan and me in bed together. He gathered up his books, then handed Daniel his meal pass. “You can use this while I’m gone.”

“Thanks,” Daniel said, examining the card.

“But, Eric,” I pointed out, “everybody knows you; they won’t let Daniel use your meal pass.”

“Tell them I said to,” he said, heading for the door. “I paid for those meals.” He leaned back in before leaving. “And get a bedroll.”

As soon as he was out the door, Daniel pulled me back down and wrapped me up in his arms and legs. He nuzzled into my neck, relaxing, obviously intending to go back to sleep.

“I can’t,” I said. “I’ve got to shower up and get to breakfast before class.”

He sucked my neck under my ear. “Come on,” Seany. “Let’s sleep in.”

“You can, Dan,” I said, rubbing his back. “I can’t afford to miss any classes, especially since I may have to miss some when the trial comes up.”

“Come on,” he whispered, caressing my shoulder. “They don’t… like, take roll or anything, do they?”

“Yeah,” I told him. “Some professors do. It’s a small school, Dan. Everybody knows everybody. And the classes are small, too. Even in the ones where the prof doesn’t take roll, they’d know if I was missing.”

He moaned. “I’ve got one class so big, all of Trinity could be missing and they wouldn’t know it.”

I hugged him, kissing his cheek. “You rest. I’ll come back for lunch. At least I got some extra sleep earlier, while you were still on the road here.”

He tried to hold me, but I struggled free and patted his butt. And he was asleep by the time I left for class.

But he was waiting at my desk when I returned at lunchtime. “I’m going with you to your classes this afternoon,” he said.

I bent over and gave him a good kiss and shoulder hug. “Cool,” I told him. “Maybe I’ll even go to the one class I can skip. I’d like you to meet the professor. He’s the author who’s going to mentor me.”

“Mentor, huh?” Daniel said as I headed for the john. “How does that work?”

I left the door open while I took a piss and answered loud enough for him to hear. “He’s assigned me a few books that I’m supposed to read. And I’m supposed to do a lot of writing, as well as help him with his work.”

“Sounds like cheap labor to me,” he said, coming to the door of the bathroom.”

“No, it’s cool. I don’t have to attend class and I’m even going to get some kind of pay for doing it.”

“Well just don’t let him take advantage of you,” Dan said, and then patted my butt as I shook off. “Nice ass,” he whispered.

“Hey, be cool,” I told him as I zipped up. “Somebody could be in there.” I nodded toward the door to the other room of the suite.

“Yeah, yeah,” Daniel said with a frown, and then leaned against the wall while I washed my hands and face.

Bending over at the sink, I caught him in the mirror, watching my butt. I flexed my glutes for him and he chuckled.

“You have swimming this afternoon?” he asked.

“Ah-hah!” I exclaimed. “That’s why you want to go to classes with me.” I turned around to face him and lowered my voice to a whisper. “You want to ogle all the guys in their speedos.”

He grinned and wriggled his eyebrows as I grabbed up my brush.

“I’m actually anxious for you to meet those guys,” I said, touching up my hair. “The team’s adopted me as their mascot.”

“Or parts of you,” Daniel quipped.

“Fuck you… anyway, yesterday they all piled into the Bronco and we went to DQ. And I was thinking, the back of the Bronco is big enough, you and I could go camping in it sometime… cool?”

“Cool,” Daniel agreed, following me back into my room. “We could go camping in it right now, in an alley somewhere.”

“One track mind!” I said. “Classes first.”

“Yeah… speedo class.”

I poked his ribs. “Clean up your mind! I need you to watch Ken, one of the divers, for me,” I said. “Tell me if you think he might be gay.”

“What does he look like?”

“Well, he’s hot. At least I think so. He’s Japanese-American, tall for a diver; about my height. And he’s slender like Colin, but has wider shoulders. And he has thick, black hair. He’s really young looking, like he should still be in high school. Oh, and his face is sorta long, but cute.”

Daniel frowned at me as I switched out textbooks. “So just who needs to clean up his mind? Damn, Sean. Sounds like you have the hots for him. You thinking rescue?

“Nah,” I shook my head, then stopped. “Well maybe a little,” I admitted. “He’s nice to look at, and we’re sorta becoming friends. He always waits to finish his shower till I’m in there so we can talk.”

“So you can talk, huh?” Daniel said. “He’s gay. How does he react to those swim suits we bought you? Especially the hot one?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“You have worn both of the suits we bought, right?”

“To water therapy? Honest, Dan, the really tiny speedos aren’t right for that. I mean… that pair is even worse than the ‘magic suit’ I passed on to Colin.”

“You asshole,” he said, giving my shoulder a shove. “We bought it for your therapy.” He poked my shoulder hard with his finger. “Today. You’ll wear them today, and I’m going to make sure of it. Do you have them with you?”

“In my locker,” I said with a sigh.

“Today,” he said, poking my shoulder again.

. . . . .

“Is that the friend you said was coming?” Ken asked, nodding toward where Daniel sat in the bleachers as I warmed up with the team. Daniel smiled and gave me an OK sign. He evidently approved of Ken whether Ken was gay or not.

“Yeah, that’s Daniel,” I said to Ken. “I’ll introduce you after workout.”

“Is he a runner, too?” Ken asked. “He looks like one.”

“No,” I said, “but he bicycles. Or at least he used to.”

“Alright, Sullivan,” Coach said. “Into the pool. Warm up with four hundred freestyle.”

The moment of truth had come. I pulled off my top and took off my shoes. And then I intended to take off my warm up bottoms quickly so I could dash into the water before anyone noticed my tiny speedos. But because I hurried, I had trouble getting the pants off my ankles.

“Sullivan!” Coach called. “Come here!”

I felt naked and like my whole body was blushing as I walked over to the coach. I avoided eye contact with any of the divers.

Coach cocked a critical eyebrow. “Come by after workout,” he said. “I’ll give you a team swim suit.”

“Thanks, Coach,” I mumbled, and then over the coach’s shoulder I caught Daniel’s amused expression, up in the stands. I resisted the urge to shoot a finger at him.

. . . . .

That’s some suit, Ken said as I pulled my speedos off to rinse them under the showerhead.

“Yeah, well, I won’t be wearing it again,” I said. “Not to work out in.”

Ken smiled. “You can’t blame Coach. He’s just trying to keep the girls focused and you shot that all to hell.”

Daniel was waiting at my locker. I introduced him to Ken, and the way Daniel looked up and down Ken’s towel-draped body, I could have shot him.

Ken smiled nervously as he quickly shook Daniel’s hand.

“What are you doing tonight?” Daniel asked. “I’m taking Sean to eat at the Tower of the Americas. Want to join us?”

“No, thanks,” Ken said, shaking his head. “I’ve got a date tonight.”

“You’ve got a girlfriend?” I asked, surprised because he hadn’t mentioned one before.

He shrugged. “Sorta. We just started going out.”

. . . . .

“He’s gay,” Daniel said decisively as we walked out of the locker room.

“Yeah, right. One with a girlfriend.”

“You didn’t see the way he watched you,” Daniel said. “When you pulled off your warm-ups to swim, he did a double take and then couldn’t keep his eyes off you. I’m telling you, I smell a rescue.”

I stopped and Daniel pulled up short. “What?” he asked.

“Look, you talked me into embarrassing the fool outta myself in front of my friends by wearing that suit to practice in; you’re not going to con me into coming on to a straight guy.” I glanced around and stepped closer to Dan. “This isn’t UT,” I said. “It’s a small, conservative campus. I don’t know what it’ll be like when… make that if I come out. And even if it doesn’t turn out bad for me, think about Eric. The other guys on the football team will give him hell.”

Daniel sighed. “You can’t tell me you’re going to stay in the closet all year.”

“Maybe,” I said, and started toward the dorm. “At least for a while. So just be cool.”

Daniel caught up and walked silently beside me, frowning.

“You pissed at me?” I asked.

“At UT,” he said quietly, “I could stop you right now, and take you into my arms and we wouldn’t worry about what people thought.”

I shook my head. “Even if that were true – and I’m not convinced of that -- we can’t here. Not right now.”

We walked several yards farther in silence. “Did you want to?” I asked.

“Want to what?”

“Take me into your arms.”

He jostled shoulders with me. “I always want to take you into my arms.”

I glanced at him. He was smiling.

“I’m sorry,” I said with a sigh, reminding myself that Daniel was the important one here. “If you want me to, I’ll be out at Trinity.”

He put his arm over my shoulder. “If I say to, you’ll out yourself?”

“Yeah,” I told him. “That’s what the whole awl through the ear thing is about.” I leaned into his side. “I’m your servant for life, remember?”

He gave my shoulder a squeeze. “I haven’t pierced your ear yet. But even when I do,” he said, leaning close to my ear as we walked. “I won’t ever abuse it, Sean. What you’re giving me… is a trust. Just like I’m giving you my trust… I won’t ask you to out yourself.” He gave my shoulder another squeeze and left his arm over my shoulders as we walked.

. . . . .

“Hey Streak!” A girl’s voice called from above as we passed the dorm next to mine. Several students were leaning against the railing on the second floor ramp and it took me a moment to locate who had called. It was Caitlyn, one of the female divers; a sophomore.

Daniel and I walked over to the grass underneath her.

“Want popcorn?” Caitlyn asked, holding up a bowl.

“Nah,” I shook my head. “Goin’ out for supper soon.”

“Hold on,” she called down, moving toward the stairs.

“New girlfriend?” Daniel asked under his breath.

“It’s your fault,” I hissed. “Making me wear that swimsuit.”

“Damn, I love you in that swimsuit,” he said, as Caitlyn hit the bottom of the stairs.

Her shorts were so short it looked like she wore only a T-shirt. She had the kind of pert, small breasts I liked and wore her light brown hair short and perky. She was short and perky. “You guys want to come to a party tomorrow night?” she asked. “It’s off campus.”

Before I could answer, Daniel did. “Sure. Where is it?”

Caitlyn gave detailed directions, and the whole time, I wondered what had gotten into Daniel. When she went back upstairs and we turned for my dorm, I elbowed him. “Party animal! It’s a straight party, you know. You’re likely to get us attacked by… girls.”

“I did it for your reputation,” he said. “We don’t have to stay if it’s dull. Who knows, maybe you and I can find a backroom.”

“Yeah, right.” But then I thought about it. “It could be fun. And it won’t hurt the reputation I guess. I’ve been turning down other invitations.”

“Oh?” Daniel asked with a cocked eyebrow.

“Mainly girls in my honors classes,” I said. “I sure as hell don’t know why smart girls can’t be prettier.”

“That reminds me,” he said, as we entered the dorm. “I’m thinking you ought to put the picture of you and Linda up on the wall in your room; the one where you two look naked.”

“Why?” I asked.

He patted my back as I started up the stairs on my cane. “It’ll help your reputation,” he said. “And Eric will appreciate it.”

“Well thanks to you and your swimsuit,” I said, “I’m going to already have a reputation.”

. . . . .

He sensed me watching him and smiled at me, then turned back to the twenty-foot tall windows. Seven hundred feet below, the brightly-lit Riverwalk wound under the downtown streets. From there to the horizon, San Antonio was a sea of lights.

The restaurant atop the Tower of the Americas rotates fully once every hour. Our table was right beside the windows and Daniel had been glued to the view. My eyes were glued to Daniel.

He was becoming a man. I had known him when we were boys. We were youths when we fell in love at sixteen. Now he was assured, manly. His features, though finely chiseled, were undeniably male. His body, so angular and youthful at sixteen had grown taut and masculine.

And I found him more exciting than ever. As I studied the way his hair feathered down the muscles on the side of his neck, the handsomeness of his high cheekbones, the strength of his shoulders, my erection lengthened down my pants leg.

I was becoming a man, too. Sitting across from Daniel, I felt like a man, with a man’s passions. In my groin, my desire for him was hardening into something intense, visceral, and tight. I wanted him… now.

He smiled at something below and turned happily toward me. But he paused when he saw my face. I felt my nostrils flare. He swallowed hard and then leaned across the table toward me. “Damn Sean, talk about being out. You’re making me hard just the way you’re looking at me.”

I leaned toward him. “I’m hard as a damn granite rock,” I said. “I’m so ready for tonight.”

The food arrived and we leaned back to allow the server to set it before us, then we leaned together again. “Can you eat?” he asked.

It was a legitimate question. I was burning for him, and he recognized it. “Yeah,” I said. “I guess I can. I am hungry.”

“So am I.” He said. Just think about the food, OK. Keep your mind off sex till later.”

“How am I supposed to keep my mind off sex,” I whispered, challengingly, “with you around?”

He swallowed hard again. “Damn, Sean. I think I just dripped precum.”

“Fair is fair,” I said. “We’ll have matching wet spots.”

I poked at my food, and he poked at his. Daniel had said to splurge on supper because we were saving money by using the dorm instead of a hotel, and we would be for the next couple of weeks. But I couldn’t get my mind off him and rubbed his ankle under the table with my foot. Then I remembered a thought from earlier; something different we could talk about. “I may have a new nickname for you,” I said.

“Is it safe to ask in a public place?” Daniel queried with a smile.

“Sure. I was just thinking that sometimes I might call you… boss.”

“Ha!” he guffawed. “That’s not exactly romantic.”

“No,” I agreed. “I wasn’t thinking about it as a love-making nickname, but just for sometimes when we’re together… servant for life thing, you know?”

“Hmmm,” he said thoughtfully, “calling you slave in bed could be interesting.”

“Slave, huh? Maybe you better call me Spartacus, because I can guarantee you’ll have frequent slave ‘up-risings.’”

He grinned. “That’s poor.”

“What can I say? My cock’s still half-way down my leg and it’s hard enough to be witty on an empty stomach.”

“I don’t know,” Daniel said, laughing out loud. “You’ve been hard on my stomach when it’s been pretty empty.”

“Geez, Dan,” I said with a gasp and looked quickly around. Keep your voice down.

He leaned close again. “I like you hard on my stomach. In fact, I’d like you there right now.”

“Keep it up,” I warned, and you’ll get it now, right here under this table.

He kept the grin and looked under the table, then around, then wriggled his eyebrows at me.

“You would,” I said, with a groan.

“I could take care of you in the john,” he said, his smile fading. “We could take care of each other.”

“In the Tower of the Americas?” I hissed.

“In the bathroom. Come on. Let’s do it.”

“Yeah, like I’m going to follow your butt around looking for a john while I’ve got a blazing hard-on and a growing wet spot.”

He leaned closer. “It’s sorta dark in here, Sean. Who’s gonna see? And besides, we just rotated past the restrooms. All we have to do is sneak right up there.” He nodded back up the stairs to the next level.”

My cock twitched. I couldn’t help it.

“Don’t take too long deciding,” he said. “We keep getting farther away.”

I tried to decide if I could get my cock out of my pants leg and pointed up and out to the side so I could walk.

“Let’s do it,” Dan whispered. “You’ve got me horny as hell now!”

“Hold it,” I said, while as subtly as I could, I reached into my pants and rearranged. “OK.”

Daniel slid out of his seat and led the way. I followed closely, my hands crossed in front of me as casually as I could manage. Only one bus boy seemed to notice anything; a tall, chunky guy, our age, with black hair and a long nose. He had to be gay because of the way he looked us over before he spotted any bulges. And then his grin had me worried he might try to follow.

The lobby was brightly lit and we scooted rapidly across it and into the john. Daniel laughed out loud as the door to the john closed behind us. I poked his ribs and shushed him.

There were two stalls with very low walls that no one would be likely to look under, and two urinals, all along one wall. No one else was inside. We rushed to the back stall and closed it. Daniel began laughing again.

I frowned. “We’re going to be so busted if you don’t shut…”

He turned on me and covered my mouth with his, silencing me. His hardness pressed mine and he clutched my butt, pulling us tight.

I slid my hands into the back of his pants, found the waistband of his underwear, and slipped my fingers inside, running my hands down over his bare skin; pulling him to me. “Now!” I whispered, pressing my lips to the smooth warm skin on the side of his neck. “I need you now!”

Daniel reached between us and unfastened his belt and then his pants. I sucked on his neck and waited for the pants to loosen, then pushed them down in back. I turned him around, and he leaned forward over the john, planting his hands on the wall.

When he bent forward, the muscles in his butt worked and mounded. As desperately horny as I was, I had to pause to rub my hand over his smooth white skin. And then I wanted to kiss him, right on the hard triangle at the top of his crack. I loved the way he was built so compactly down there, compactly except for his balls and cock. I found myself reaching between his legs to rub up behind his balls, lifting him. His perineum felt thick and damp. I pulled my hand back and smelled my fingertips, and then moaned loudly at the richness of his scent. My cock felt like it grew even harder and longer; achingly hard.

I rubbed him again, harder, and buried my mouth in his crack, licking, getting him ready while I used my free hand to unfasten my pants and work down my zipper.

Daniel groaned softly and I slid my hand forward to cup his balls, and he lifted his butt higher. With a final plunge of my tongue, I decided he was ready. Standing, I pulled the front of my pants down under my balls and felt my cock spring up free and hard.

Quickly, I moved forward, placed my crown at the softness of his opening; savored the contact for only a moment, and then pushed in, steadily, all the way; his tightness sliding down my shaft. And I sighed, relieved… relieved and incredibly satisfied to be in him, all the way in him, joined to him, my groin pressed hard to his butt. Now when I came, it would be where it was supposed to be.

I grabbed his hips and arched back, stifling the urge to cry out; to cry in sexual triumph and consummation. I pulled my hips back and slammed in, lifting Daniel onto his toes. I held his hips and slammed in again, and then again. My orgasm gathered itself, growing, tightening, more than normal; almost painfully more. I pulled him back by his hips as hard as I could, pressing long into him, stretching the skin back on my cock. And then, for one exquisite, incredible moment, everything in me froze. My breath stopped, and the only sound I could hear was the throbbing of my pulse and the roar in my ears of blood coursing under pressure. I held his muscled butt snug in my lap, and felt… felt his warmth stretched tightly over my shaft, felt the grip of his opening at the base of my cock, felt the firmness of his hipbones in my hands, the softness of his flesh against my loins, and most of all, I felt the final, hard gathering of my semen deep under the root of my cock. It exploded. I sucked in my breath, and slammed into him.

Biting my lip, I stifled a cry into a loud, high hum. And I writhed on my toes, grinding in until I pulsed myself completely dry. My knees started to buckle. I realized I was still whimpering and quieted myself, listening to see if we were still alone. And I stayed in him while I listened. I didn’t want to separate from him yet.

Pulling Daniel more upright with the flat of my hand under his belly, I reached in front to stroke him and mouthed the side of his neck. “You ready for your turn?” I whispered.

“Don’t stop!” he whispered and clamped down on me hard with his butt. He leaned back against me and I stroked faster. His fingers dug into the side of my butt and into my forearm. And then he came, shooting over the back of the toilet.

I didn’t slow my stroking until I felt him relax, and then I wrapped my arms around his middle. “I could go again,” I whispered. “But I guess we better get back.”

Daniel nodded, and I started to pull out, but then pushed back in because he felt so good. “Tonight,” I whispered.

We quickly cleaned the stall and were washing our hands when we heard a voice outside the door. “Come back in a few minutes. A guy is puking in there.”

Daniel and I glanced at each other and like him, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cringe. When we stepped outside the john, we found the busboy who had smiled at us earlier, leaning against the wall by the door. And on the door was a sign that read, “One Moment for Cleanup.”

He winked. “Thought you might need a little privacy.”

We weren’t sure what to say until Daniel fumbled in his pocket and came up with a five-dollar bill. “Here,” he said. “Thank you.

The guy smiled and took the bill, staring at it until Daniel gave him a second five. Then he winked. “Anytime,” he said with a big grin.

Our food was gone from our table. But as we sat down, our server returned. You gentlemen feeling OK? One of the busboys said that one of you was sick in the restroom.”

“We’re OK now, Daniel said.”

“For a while,” I added, giving Dan a private smile.

“Well I hope you don’t mind,” our server said. “But I took your food back to reheat it. I’ll bring it right back.”

Dan started to chuckle and I kicked him under the table.

. . . . .

We weren’t the only ones on the dark observation deck, but at one point, we were the only ones on the northeast side. Daniel came up behind me as I leaned against the railing and he wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling my body back against his. He nuzzled behind my ear and purred, and I leaned back in his arms, laying my head back on his shoulder.

He slid his hands into the front of my pants and wrapped his fingers over the bulge in my underwear. I laid my arms on his and hoped no one interrupted us.

“You still going to be in the mood later?” he asked.

“You’ve gotta be kidding,” I said. “I was in the mood to go again before we left the bathroom stall.”

He chuckled and rocked me in his arms.

“When are we going to get our ear studs?” he asked. “When are we going to pierce our ears?”

“I told you,” I said, rubbing the front of my pants and his hand inside. “I need to save some money. It sorta depends on how much I get paid for helping Tom Edelstein.”

“Well tell him to hurry up and pay you. I’ve been thinking a lot about how you’ll look in an ear stud… just an ear stud.”

He pulled his hands from my pants and stepped up beside me. A couple walked behind us, staring.

“Did I tell you what Linda said?” I asked. “What she thought we should do?”

“No, I don’t think so. What’d she think we should do?” he asked, brushing his shoulder against mine.

I looked out over the low, sparsely lit hills of Alamo Heights and leaned against him. “She thinks we should invite friends when we do the ear piercing. Make it a celebration.”

He thought about that, chewing his lip. “Do you?” he asked. “Do you think we should?”

I shook my head. “I hadn’t thought about anything like that till she brought it up. I guess I just thought you and I would do it privately.”

A puff of breeze blew past us. And down below, a car honked several times on the freeway.

“You know who I might want to have there?” Daniel asked, thoughtfully.

“Who?”

He glanced at me. “My parents.”

I thought about that. Remembering the necklaces they had given us, and Roger’s speech to me in the bar, I figured Daniel might be right; Roger and Mary might want to be there. But would my parents?

“Forget my mom,” I said. “Dad might go for it. It isn’t like you and I would be promising anything sexual, though that’s understood.” And then it dawned on me. I knew who I would want. “I’d like Colin to be there,” I said. “If he’d go for it, I’d like him there.”

Daniel nodded slowly and looked around. We were alone again. He turned toward me and leaned against the railing. Smiling gently, he stroked my hair back off my neck and wrapped his hand behind it, pulling my face to his. He kissed me. I rested my forehead on his and we huddled together in the light breeze. “We can think about doing that,” he said.

. . . . .

We undressed slowly that night. The evening had mellowed, and it didn’t fit the mood to rip off our clothes and jump each other. But my desire had grown even more intense as the evening went on. I let it grow. I even fed it with gentle bumps and brushes against Daniel’s body, with strokes to his skin, with kisses.

And his desire had grown too. The ride back to the dorm, the walk from the parking lot, the climb up the stairs… I could feel his heat for me and it fed my own; almost like there was no oxygen, but only fire in the air between us.

I turned out the lights so there was only the glow of city lights through the windows above the curtains. Then I took the lube from my nightstand and left it on the side of the bed.

When the last of our clothes dropped to the floor, we stepped together, cocks brushing bellies first, then belly on belly, skin on skin. He rested his hands on my butt and I rested mine on his spine, high and low. His flesh was hot, his muscles hard.

His breath washed warmly over my chest. Our cheeks brushed. I kissed the side of his neck and he kissed mine, pulling my body to his. I shuddered and melted to him.

We opened our mouths and brushed them on each other, pressed them over each other, licked tongues. Our embrace tightened.

Daniel backed me to the bed and laid me down on my back, following me down, laying his long body onto mine. He took my face in both hands and kissed over it while grinding from his hips; grinding our hardnesses together.

His lips moved to my neck and then on to my chest, his torso sliding down between my legs. He held my ribs tightly and I clutched his hair as he sucked my nipples, hardening them, his chest resting between my legs.

He licked down the center of my belly, and sliding down, licked down the inside of my thighs, and then back up, licking up under my balls, holding my cock and licking up the underside of my shaft until my hips rocked with each swipe of his tongue.

He slid his body up mine, and when our cocks were together again, he pushed up on his hands, concentrating his weight onto where our bellies pressed our cocks, and he ground on me while his eyes bore down into mine.

I held his butt and ground with him. His nostrils flared and he ground harder, forcefully. He bent and gave me a brief, hard, rocking kiss. Then he knelt up, a knee on either side of my waist, and he lifted my right hand.

He held my hand in his left hand and stroked my palm with the fingertips of his right, drawing them from my wrist, over my palm, over my fingers.

He lifted my hand higher and kissed my palm. Then holding my hand palm-up, he reached for the lube and removed the cap, one-handed. He squeezed lube out onto my fingertips and then set the tube down. He rose on his knees, pulling my hand by the wrist, my hand with the lube, back down behind him.

I spread it into his crack and then over my cock, and then held his hip with one hand while I positioned my cock at his crack. He felt me there, at his hole, and backed onto me, backed all the way down onto me, and I held his hips and held my breath as I felt his warmth and tightness slide over me for the second time that night.

When he was seated all the way, he held me by the shoulders, spread his knees way out and swayed his back; rubbing his cock down onto my belly. His nostrils flared and his eyes rolled up.

He rotated his hips, rubbing his cock on my belly, and I held his waist tightly, pulling him down, firming up my belly for him.

He pleasured himself, rubbing his cock on me, and in the process drove his butt back onto my cock… and up… and back. I rocked my hips with him; only my hips, so that his cock stayed pressed to my belly, rubbing. And his butt made long slow collisions with my cock.

He laid his stomach down on mine, wrapping his arms over my head, pressing his cheekbone to the side of my head, his breath hot on my neck. I sucked on his collarbone and all the while, Daniel rubbed his cock on my belly and milked my cock with his insides.

I slid my hands up his back and clung to his shoulders, pulling him back onto me, lifting my knees to cup his butt and go deeper. But I didn’t need to be all the way in; not with what he was doing.

Daniel did the work, taking care of both of us; our moans and sighs, confirmations of every good move.

He chewed my ear and I sucked his neck. I stopped him when I started to get close, and he stopped me when he was. And we went on and on and on until I was sure he would be sore forever and wondered if my balls would ache when we were done.

And then I couldn’t wait any longer and I grabbed his hips, pushing him down on me, pushing him down hard against my risings. I couldn’t help crying out with each full, thick pulse of my sperm; it felt so good, so incredibly good, coming up thick and full, up my cock, and into Daniel.

He kept moving, moving on me, even after I finished coming. I arched my back, clutched the sheets, and gasped; my cock sensitive inside him. But he kept moving, rubbing on me, moving me inside him, even as I squirmed and whimpered under him, even as my legs thrashed and my head rolled, even as I arched and went rigid in a secondary orgasm. He ground on until I grabbed his hips and rolled us over and pounded into his ass until he cried out under me and I felt his insides spasm and clamp down on me.

And then I felt his cum between our bodies and he arched, pushing his butt back against me. I pressed in deep, wanting to stretch out his pleasure.

We were wet with sweat; our hair was damp. He cradled my head in his arms and pressed the side of his face to mine. Daniel breathed through his nose, then his mouth, then his nose; catching his breath, slowing down.

And he smelled so damned good. Taking a deep breath, I filled my nostrils with the smells of his sweat and sex. I burrowed my nose into his shoulder and took another deep breath, closer to his armpit.

He kissed me gently, brushing my temple with his lips. And my ache for him had hardly gone away at all. I realized; it wasn’t just sexual; not just sexual at all.

. . . . .

I dreamed that it was my alarm going off and fumbled for it before realizing it was the phone. Daniel was asleep on my back and I dragged him with me as I stretched past the alarm for the phone.

Without moving from my stomach, I held the phone to my ear. “Hello,” I mumbled. Daniel snuggled back on to me, rubbing his crotch comfortably on my butt.

“Sean?”

“Colin?”

“Hey, Sean, I threw two touchdown passes last night and ran an option for a touchdown.”

“Oh man, Colin, that’s incredible! Congratulations! But I’m not surprised; you’re damn good. I bet Dad’s bragging on you all over town.”

“Yeah,” he said quietly. “But I sure wish you were here, Sean. It’d be a hell of a lot better if you were here. Maybe you can come down some weekend and catch a game.”

“Maybe,” I said, thinking that my life was quickly running out of weekends. And then I wondered about Daniel and I both going down for a game.”

“Sean?” Colin asked.

“Yeah?”

“When you come, I want to talk to you about something.”

“You don’t wanna talk now?”

“In person,” he said. “I really want to talk to you in person. It’s about Heather… I really like her, Sean. I mean… maybe the same way you like Daniel. You know?”

The weight of Daniel’s warm body was as comfortable as a blanket on me; his flaccid cock and balls laying over my butt, familiar and intimate and exciting all at the same time. His skin, soft against my skin. His breath tickling the fine hairs at the back of my neck. And I couldn’t imagine Heather being anything like Daniel. But then, for Colin, maybe Heather was his perfect match.

“Yeah. Maybe we can talk about it. Sounds like things are really good for you.”

“They’d be perfect,” he said. “If you were here.”

Colin wanted to talk for a long time, telling me every detail of the game, and about how everything was going back home. And through it all, Daniel kept sleeping… right up until the time I hung up the phone.

I closed my eyes, intending to get more sleep, but Daniel snuggled on, rubbing himself on my butt and I felt him stiffen. He kissed the back of my neck and I groaned. “Man, didn’t I wear you out last night? I asked.

“That was last night,” he whispered.

“It still is as far as I’m concerned,” I said, and pulled the pillow more tightly over my head.

That’s when he dug his fingers into my ribs.

“Ahhhh!” I yelped, trying to roll away from him.

But Daniel held on, poking my ribs with his knuckles.

I fell from the bed and Daniel came down after me, rolling me to my back, straddling my middle, and tickling.

I squirmed under him and tried to buck him off, but tickling always made me weak and all I seemed able to do was gasp.

Finally, he stopped. “You awake yet?” He asked with a grin.

I looked down between us. His cock was still hard and pointing at me. “Not as awake as you,” I said. And then I thought back to the night before. “It really was good last night,” I said. “Thanks.”

“You liked it?” he asked with a grin, climbing off me to prop himself on his elbow alongside me.

“Oh, yeah. It was incredible. I think we just keep getting better.” I rolled my head to look at him and Daniel rubbed my tummy, putting a leg over mine. “You know what’s funny?” I asked.

“No, what?” he asked.

“Right in the middle, when we were really hot, and you were… well, doing what you were doing… well… I guess I’ve been hanging out with the dive team too long, cause right out of the blue, the way you were moving, I thought, degree of difficulty, three point oh.”

He laughed. “Is that good?”

“Depends on execution,” I said. “I gave you a ten point oh for that.”

He smiled, still rubbing my belly. “Shall I go for a new record?”

“As long as I can sleep through it,” I said.

His smile turned mischievous and he moved his head directly over mine so that our lips almost touched. “I know how to seduce you,” he whispered and moved the hand he’d been rubbing my belly with, down to my balls. He lifted them, fondled them, caressed them. And I moaned.

“Seany,” he said softly, “all I ever have to do is rub your balls.”

I arched my head back, stretching my body under him, opening my legs for his hand. “Oh, damn, you know me,” I gasped. “Rub my balls and I’ll follow you anywhere.”

He kissed my neck. “I know you even better than that,” he said quietly. “I know your favorite way to have your balls rubbed.”

“Mmm,” I said, my mind going numb. “What’s my favorite way to have my balls rubbed?”

He put his mouth to my ear and whispered. “With my balls.”

. . . . .

We ate lunch at the food court in the mall; Chinese food. Among other things, we bought a picture frame and back at the room, we hung the picture of Linda and me on the wall over my bed.

“It should be the picture of us,” I said. “It’s great of you to want to do this for Eric’s sake and all, but it’s really the wrong picture.”

“Nah,” Daniel said. “Leave it up for now. It’s good for the reputation.”

“I’m about ready to screw my reputation,” I said.

. . . . .

We studied most of the afternoon, spending some of it in the dorm lounge, and I introduced Daniel to people I knew. By evening, even I was ready for Caitlyn’s party.

The directions she had given us brought us to a large, old house close to San Antonio Community college. A wide porch ran across the front of the first floor and a balcony of the same size ran across the front of the second story. It was hard to tell in the dark, but it looked like the old wooden frame of the house leaned a little.

The music from inside was rocky, but mellow, and not very loud. I guessed they kept the volume down because of the closeness of the houses in that neighborhood. The living room was well lit and several pizzas were spread out on a large table. An ice chest held beer. Couples and groups sat or stood talking. It was so tame that I looked around for an adult sponsor.

Caitlyn found us there in the kitchen and offered us each a beer. Then she led us through the downstairs rooms, introducing Daniel and me around. She was animated, and I found that attractive. Of course it didn’t hurt that she wore short shorts and a T-shirt with no bra.

Other than Caitlyn, the girls all seemed attached. One was attached to a guy I recognized as a member of the Trinity track team. “Old boy friend,” Caitlyn said. “He rents here.”

An older guy with stringy black hair down to his shoulders tried to latch on to Caitlyn, but she shook him off. “He gives me the creeps,” she confided. “He rents here, too. In fact, he’s the one who invited me… us.”

We found the source of the music in a long side room that served as a den. There the lights were low and furniture was pushed back. Half a dozen couples danced in the dim light. Caitlyn led the way along a wall, and I followed; Daniel followed me.

We stopped, away from the others. Caitlyn turned toward me, pursed her lips, lifted her arms, and rocked her hips mildly in time to the music. “Do you like dancing?” she asked me. Even though she was short, she was an athlete and looked it as she moved her body.

I held up my cane. “I’m not doing that well these days,” I said.

She took my hand anyway and pulled me out onto the floor. I did the best I could to keep up with her. Daniel watched for a while, and then left the room right when I was thinking of having him take over dancing with Caitlyn. So I kept dancing.

“Have your workouts helped?” Caitlyn asked.

“Yeah, I think so.”

“I’ve been watching you swim,” she said. “And I’ve noticed… you’re loosening up.” She turned around and around as she danced, getting into the music.

When the song changed, she grabbed me by the hips and shook me. “You can loosen up some more… here,” she said. “You don’t have to move your knee very much.”

So I tried loosening my hips.

“That’s better,” she said, and then turned her back to me. “Grab my waist and just move with me.”

So I did, and though she was short, we moved together well. As we danced, the space between us vanished and before long, her back was pressed to my front and I was afraid she’d bring me up hard.

“You’re a good dancer,” I said.

She rubbed her butt against me, teasingly. “Divers know good moves.”

That’s when Daniel leaned in to the room, saw us, and frowned. I tried waving him over to take a turn with Caitlyn but he disappeared. I thought I better go after him as soon as the song ended. But when it did, and I said I was going to go get a beer, Caitlyn came along.

After getting beer, Caitlyn tagged along while I looked for Daniel. We finally saw him through a window; on the front porch, talking to the guy with stringy black hair.

Caitlyn pulled me back. “It’s that creep, Sean. He’s been hitting on me all night.” She wrapped her arms around one of mine, pulling my arm against her side, pulling us back. She smiled up at me. “I only like being with athletes.”

I wondered if “being with” had all the meanings I thought it might.

Caitlyn’s smile turned provocative. “Come on,” she said, nodding back toward the kitchen. “Let’s get a couple more beers and go back to dancing.”

I glanced back out the window at Daniel and he seemed fine for the time being. So I went with Caitlyn.

It was surprising how well my leg was holding up. We danced through two more beers and then, when my leg was finally getting tired, the music slowed. Caitlyn pressed in to me, laying her arms over my shoulders. I wrapped my arms behind her waist and moved with her. And when I came up hard, I had had enough beers that I let her feel my hardness against her belly and she had enough beers to rub against it.

By the time the song ended, we were pressed tightly together and her lips were at my ear. “Do you do grass?” she asked.

I nodded. “Sorta,” I said. “I don’t inhale because I’m a runner. But if someone shotguns me, that works. You ever shotgun?”

She ran her fingers into the back of my hair. “Sure.”

By now I figured that Caitlyn wanted to get it on; or would after any more beer, and almost certainly she’d be in the mood if we did grass. By then, I was in the mood myself, but not without Daniel; I wasn’t that wasted. It was time for me to find Daniel and see if he wanted to do a rescue or if he’d rather we leave, because I felt like I needed to do one or the other.

“You know,” I said. “I need to find my friend first.”

“He’s fine,” she said, taking my hand to lead me out of the room.

But I held back. “He’s my best friend, Caitlyn.” I said. “And he drove all the way down to see me. I don’t want him feeling left out. How about if he does a little grass with us?” I asked, thinking that if she baulked, I’d beg off and leave with Daniel.

Caitlyn looked disappointed for only the briefest moment, but recovered quickly. “Sure, if you want.”

She found her purse in the front room, and we found Daniel in the kitchen getting a beer. His look was hard to read. It was obvious that he’d had a few beers of his own. While Caitlyn grabbed a couple more for us, I pulled Daniel close by the arm and leaned to whisper. “She has some grass if you want to do it… or we can leave.”

“Grass, huh?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I knew he liked the stuff, but half expected him to want to leave; I didn’t think he was having much fun.

He nodded. “Cool.”

“And,” I whispered. “She might get in the mood for a rescue.”

I didn’t wait to hear what he’d say to that. Caitlyn, holding the two beers, waved us over, and as we got to her, she led us out of the kitchen and up a set of stairs at the rear of the house.

We followed her down a hallway to a room that opened onto the front balcony. The room was dark except for the light coming in the windows from the street, but I could make out a couch and a couple of chairs; and in a corner, a couple lying in each other’s arms. I squinted for a better look and decided that they were still clothed. The aroma of marijuana already filled the air.

Caitlyn picked the back corner to sit us down. She sat down cross-legged and pulled a baggie and some cigarette papers from her purse. Daniel and I sat side-by-side with our backs to the wall. He was quiet and I figured he was already half-blitzed. I started to think I should just get him back to the dorm, but then I wasn’t completely sober myself.

Neither was Caitlyn, who smiled, heavy lidded as she rolled two joints. “I liked you the first day I saw you,” she said. “When you walked out to the pool. And then…” She smiled unsteadily. “You look great in speedos.”

I replied before Daniel could elbow me or utter a wisecrack. “You’d like Daniel in speedos,” I said. “He’s hotter than I am.”

Caitlyn smiled, and quickly glanced up and down Daniel’s body. Yeah, I thought. Rescue.

She lit the first joint and after she inhaled deeply she handed it to Daniel. Then she knelt astride my legs and leaned over to shotgun into my mouth. I took a deep breath and felt a light buzz almost immediately.

She settled onto my lap and took the joint back from Daniel who held his hit. She took another deep drag, leaned over and shotgunned me and then sat back on my lap, holding the joint. “You go to UT?” she asked Daniel. “You like it?”

He nodded. “Yeah. I do. I just wish Sean was up there.” He elbowed me, roughly.

Caitlyn took another hit, rocking on my crotch. Then she handed the joint to Daniel before leaning forward to give me another hit.

“You guys been friends long?” Caitlyn asked Daniel.

“Yeah,” Daniel said. “A long time.” He handed the joint back to Caitlyn.

I thought things looked promising. Caitlyn seemed interested in Daniel too. But then, conversation quieted. With each drag, Caitlyn settled more firmly astride my lap, and I grew hard again. As I did, she moved on me, subtly, even between hits.

As we worked our way through the second joint, I rested my hands on her legs. They were good, strong legs; smooth legs. Each time she took a drag, she passed the joint to Daniel and leaned forward to shotgun me. And each time she leaned forward, she pressed more firmly over my erection and lingered longer at my lips until she ended the last couple of drags with a kiss. And on the last kiss, I reached up with both hands to caress her breasts.

I’m not sure what I was expecting. I guess I thought Daniel would make a move to join us. It was the perfect time to reach over and stroke her back, or lean in for a kiss of his own.

Instead, he took a final drag on the remains of the joint. Caitlyn sighed and moved on me, kissing me again. When I moaned. Daniel stirred.

“Geez,” I heard him say under his breath. He got up and walked away.

In my condition, it was the last thing I expected. Was he pissed for some reason? Was he jealous? I struggled to think, which was difficult, not only because of the grass and alcohol, but also because Caitlyn and I had already passed any reasonable point of no return.

Caitlyn melted into me, and I rolled us to our sides, then to her back; kissing, pressing crotches. She was ready. I was ready. It would be easy as hell just to pull down our shorts and go at it. Easy except for Daniel. I couldn’t do it. For whatever reason, he didn’t want us to do Caitlyn. I at least knew we’d take care of each other later. And that thought helped me to kneel up.

“I’ve gotta find the bathroom,” I said.

Caitlyn’s hands clung to my arms, but I freed myself. “Sorry, Caitlyn, but all that beer… when you gotta go, you gotta go.”

She groaned loudly and covered her eyes with her forearm.

I stood up to go looking for Daniel. But when I stood, all the grass and beer hit my brain at the same time and I rocked on my feet, then stumbled for the door.

It seemed to take forever, finding my way down the stairs and into the kitchen where I found Daniel, sitting at the kitchen table drinking a beer while the guy with long stringy black hair patted his back and drunkenly told him why the Pittsburg Steelers were way better than the Dallas Cowboys.

“Hey, Boss,” I said, coming up beside Daniel. “Come on back upstairs.”

He glared at me.

So I leaned over and whispered in his ear in what had to be a damned poor attempt to keep the other guy from hearing. “She’ll do both of us,” I said. “I know she will. It’ll be a rescue.”

He pushed up from the table and I saw he was more wobbly than I was. “Fuck you,” he said. “I’m walking back to the dorm.”

Well, no doubt about it; he was pissed. And there was only one thing to do. “We’ll both go,” I said. “Let me just tell Caitlyn we have to leave and I’ll meet you at the Bronco.”

“I’m not waiting,” he said.

“I’ll hurry,” I promised.

It was going to be damn hard to leave. Hell, it was going to be damned hard just getting back up the stairs. And I figured Caitlyn would be pissed. Though my arousal had definitely cooled, I wasn’t sure hers had.

As I walked down the upstairs hall, I heard someone behind me and turned to see the guy with stringy black hair at the top of the stairs.

I found Caitlyn on the couch in the room where I’d left her. She was asleep on her side. The other couple, who had been sleeping before, were now back in the corner, both naked from the waist down, going at it.

It would be easier to leave if I just left her sleeping there, but I couldn’t do that. Not with some guy screwing a girl in the same room and the black-haired guy lurking in the hallway. Caitlyn looked just too vulnerable.

Bending over her, I slid my arms under her back and knees and lifted her. And if her body had the least bit of rigidity, I could have managed. But she was completely limp and folded up in my arms, her butt sinking lower and lower.

“Caitlyn,” I said, gasping. “I need you to stand up.”

She made no response. So I set her butt on the couch and sat her up. “Caitlyn… honey… I need you to get up. I’m gonna take you back to the dorm. You’re not safe here.”

She stirred and nodded, and when I pulled her to her feet, she stood, leaning into my side. It took forever to get her to the top of the stairs, and though I was prepared to fight the black-haired guy off, he had disappeared. Caitlyn began to wake a little and we made it down the stairs, and then through the house and out the front door.

I stopped to look for Daniel and when I did, Caitlyn leaned into me. “We can’t go back to my dorm,” she mumbled. “My roommate will be there.”

“I’m taking you home, Caitlyn,” I said, moving her toward the Bronco. “It’s fine that your roommate is there. We can cuddle some other time.”

“Ohhh, nooo,” she said sadly. Then at the jeep she clung to me as I opened the door. “You can sneak into my dorm,” she said. “You can sleep with me.”

I shook my head. “I gotta find my friend. He’s falling down drunk and probably lost somewhere.” I hadn’t seen Daniel in the house, and I assumed he got fed up and started walking back to the dorm, but in his condition, that could be in any direction.

I loaded Caitlyn into the passenger seat and found my way, unsteadily, to the driver’s side. I looked up and down the street for Daniel but saw no sign of him. Once I started the car, I circled the block and then went out another block and circled again.

Caitlyn was nodding off and I was afraid I’d be unable to get her into her dorm, so I decided to take her back first and then look for Daniel, though by now, he could be anywhere.

And then a stirring behind me made me jump in my seat. I looked back over my shoulder to find Daniel sleeping in the back of the Bronco. I was relieved, but I also felt like kicking his butt.

Getting Caitlyn back inside her dorm proved easy when we arrived at the same time as a couple of her floormates. I handed her off and went back and opened the back end of the Bronco for Daniel.

At first, I thought about leaving him there. Then I thought about just climbing in with him. But in the end, I decided to get him back to the room. We couldn’t make love in the back of the Bronco; not in the parking lot. And though we might not make love until the morning, we certainly would then.

“Come on,” I said, slapping his butt. “Get up. We’re back at the dorm.”

He moaned.

“Come on,” I said, tugging his arm.

With a loud moan, Daniel sat up slowly.

Half dragging him, I got him onto the tailgate and onto his feet while I closed up the Bronco. Then I pulled his arm over my shoulder and grabbed up my cane. “You OK?” I asked.

Daniel turned toward me, knowing I asked a question, but not sure just what. Then he frowned. “You asshole.”

“What? What’d I do?”

He shook his head and it rolled. He jerked it back up. “You danced with her all night… Your knee’s too fucked up to dance with me, but you danced with her.” He tried pushing away from me. “Just don’t think for a… second,” he said. “That you’re going to fuck me after fucking her.”

“Damn it, Daniel. Keep your voice down.” It was my turn to frown. “I didn’t fuck her you prick. I wasn’t going to do her without you.”

“You were up there a long time,” he said with glassy eyes.

“I didn’t, Dan. But I wanted to, with you. And she would have done both of us.”

He shook his head emphatically. “No way. Uh-uh.”

“Why not? Caitlyn’s hot. You’ve never turned down a rescue before.”

“She’s a girl!” he answered, his voice shrill.

I’d always assumed that Daniel was at least a little bi because he’d done at least one girl before. But maybe I was wrong. Maybe he just plain didn’t like girls anymore.

“Sorry,” I said. “You’ve done girls before. You didn’t tell me you don’t like them.”

Helping him along was hell because of my knee. He kept leaning on me. But I let him lean. Halfway up the stairs, he leaned close to my ear. “I lied to you, Seany,” he said.

“You lied?” I asked, wondering what he was talking about.

“I meant to lie to Stefan,” he said. “I never wanted to lie to you.”

“When did you lie?” I asked.

“Stef started it when he asked me in front of you… he asked if I ever fucked a girl and I told him… I had.”

He nuzzled my neck and leaned heavily against me. “I lied to you, Seany. I’m really… really… really sorry. I never fucked a girl.”

That was a surprise. And yet it wasn’t. He certainly never wanted to talk about any girl he’d done. “Shit, that’s no big deal,” I said. “Like I’d even care about that.”

“You don’t?” he asked surprised, then leaned against me again as I got out my room key. “But you thought I was a stud like you, Seany. I’m not a stud.”

“You’re a stud,” I said, opening the door quickly to get him inside. I was afraid he’d be overheard.

“I’m not a stud,” he said again as I closed the door behind us. “I never fucked a girl… I lied to Stef, but I didn’t wanna lie to you. But I did… after I said it, I wanted you to believe me,” he said. “I wanted you to think I was a stud like you.”

“You need to piss before you hit the sack?” I asked.

He thought about it. “Yeah.”

“Me too,” I said, but be quiet, OK. “My suitemates might be in.”

He nodded and the two of us made it to the john where we took a whiz, leaning against each other. Daniel didn’t zip up and neither of us bothered washing up. I helped him back into the room and undressed him. I laid him down on the bed. Then I undressed and crawled in beside him and was instantly asleep.

. . . . .

When I awoke Sunday morning, Daniel was laying on his stomach, his breathing regular. I was draped over him and I woke up because my erection felt damned good, pressed against his butt.

I looked at the clock. We’d slept late; it was close to 11:00 AM. Eric would be back sometime soon and Daniel had to get back to UT. But we hadn’t made love since the morning before and it might be two weeks before we had another chance.

Snuggling up to him, I kissed over the smooth skin of his bare shoulder and up to the nape of his neck.

“Don’t,” he grumbled.

I kissed his shoulder. “It’s gonna be a couple of weeks before we get another chance.”

“Get Ken to take care of you,” he said, pulling the pillow over his head.

I moved up onto him, laying my cock into his crack, letting my legs drop to the outside of his, filling my lap with his lean-muscled bottom and pressing my stomach and chest to the flesh of his back. I wrapped my arms under his shoulders, kissing behind his neck and under his ear and slid my cock up and down his crack.

“I said, don’t,” Daniel growled, crawling out from under me. “I have to take a piss.”

“Sorry,” I said, as he went into the bathroom, naked; which he could do. He was completely flaccid.

When he returned, he lay down on Eric’s bed, crawling under the bedspread.

“I’m sorry,” I repeated. “Didn’t mean to piss you off.”

“Mumph,” he grumbled and rolled to face the other direction.

“What’d I do, Dan? Why are you acting like this?”

“Maybe because I feel like a piece of shit.”

“Hang over? I didn’t think you got hungover.”

“Yeah, well I did this time,” he said.

I put my hands behind my head and lay back on the pillow, feeling my erection vanishing. “Sorry the night was so shitty.”

“Shitty for who? You and Caitlyn had fun.”

“I told you last night. I didn’t fuck her.”

“You were up there with her a hell of a long time.”

“That’s fuckin’ crazy,” I said. “You wouldn’t even know, you were so drunk. Is that why you’re pissed? You think I fucked Caitlyn?”

He didn’t say anything.

“Well now I’m pissed,” I said. “I told you I didn’t do her and I’ve never lied to you.” I took a deep breath. “Unlike somebody I know who’s been lying all along.”

He got up from the bed and started getting dressed.

“Look, I’m sorry I said that,” I quickly told him, sitting up in bed.

He kept dressing.

“This is stupid,” I said. “I didn’t fuck her. I didn’t even fuck Linda last week when I could have.”

“Only because you were worn out,” he said, zipping his toiletry kit.

“You know better than that,” I said. “Look, it’s going to be at least two weeks before we’re together again. Even if we don’t make love before you go, this is not a good way to leave things.

“I told you,” he said, “get Ken to do you. You’ve got the hots for him.”

“He’s not even gay, you asshole. Girlfriend, remember?”

Dan sat to tie his shoes. “Maybe he’s like you; fucks anything that moves.”

“Oh yeah, right. Like I’m the one that samples guys like chocolate. You just want me to screw Ken so you can screw the shit out of Sam or Adrian or somebody else up there.”

Dan stood up and started gathering his things.

“OK, I’m sorry I said that,” I told him, climbing from the bed.

He zipped up his bag, and then stood there, looking at me as if trying to decide whether to even say goodbye. His eyes traveled up and down my body, and for a moment, I thought he might not go. But then he turned for the door. “I’ll call you later,” he said.

I sank back onto the bed, blown away. We had never argued like that. And it all happened so quickly. It had to be chewing on him since last night; thinking I’d done Caitlyn. But he had to believe I hadn’t done it.

I felt like shit; worse than shit. So I showered and slipped on clean shorts and then sat on my bed, trying to study. But I couldn’t concentrate. Eric might be back soon. I thought about leaving; I wanted to be alone.

I shouldn’t have let him go. I should have apologized. I should have apologized for last night. I should have stuck with Daniel, no matter what.

Close to an hour had passed before Eric showed up. He tossed a newspaper onto my bed. “I picked up a Sunday paper,” he said. “You’re welcome to read it.”

“Thanks,” I said, setting aside my books. I needed something to take my mind off things and studying sure hadn’t worked. Besides, I hadn’t read a Sunday paper in a long time. As I opened the first section, he set down his duffle and then stopped when he saw the picture of Linda and me on the wall. “Who’s this? Is this Linda?”

“Yep,” I said, scanning the front page of the paper.

“Damn, Sean. I knew she sounded like you guys had gotten it on.” He leaned closer to the picture. “You look like you enjoyed it.”

The last thing I needed was a reminder that I ever screwed a girl. I tried to concentrate on the paper. The heading of a short article toward the bottom of the second page caught my eye. “New Disease Affecting Gays,” it said.

There was a knock at the door, and I set the paper down. I had only scanned the first lines of the article, but it was enough to see that the story only concerned something out on the west coast.

Before Eric or I could get to the door, it opened and Daniel walked in. “Can we step outside?” he asked.

Eric busied himself with his bag while I followed Daniel outside. “I thought you’d be in Austin by now,” I said.

He shook his head. “I’ve been driving around… Look, Sean,” he said, stepping closer. “I’m sorry.”

“Me, too,” I said, wishing I could hold him without worrying about being seen.

“We need to talk,” he said.

“Yeah.”

“I was thinking,” Daniel said, and looking each way; then he stroked my arm. “Let’s go camp somewhere. We can sleep in the back of the Bronco.”

“I can’t miss classes, Dan.”

“We can come back early in the morning, OK? But we need to be together.”

I nodded. “Yeah. We need to.”