“Huck, are you still awake?”
“Barely, but yeah, Tom, I’m awake.”
“Thanks for, you know, letting me sleep with you.”
“Don’t worry about it half-pint, I know that couch isn’t too comfortable.”
“It isn’t that bad, it’s just, you know, I couldn’t sleep.”
“Is everything ok?”
“Yeah. I guess so.”
“You know that I’m always here, if you ever want to talk about anything. And I do mean anything, Tom, anything at all.”
“I know Huck, I know. Mmmmm, I like it when you squeeze me tight like that.”
“I like it too.”
“And I like feeling your breath on the back of my neck like that. It’s so warm, and it’s like the warmth is spreading all over me.”
“You smell good,” sniff, sniff, “right here,”
“I’m probably all sweaty, it was hot today.”
“You still smell good,” sniff, sniff, sniff, “for a half-pint.”
“Stop, that tickles!”
“Mmmmmm.”
“Hee, hee, hee. You’re tickling me.”
“I know,” sniff, sniff, “do you really want me to stop?”
“No, hee, hee, hee.”
“I didn’t think so.”

“Hey, Huck?”
“Yeah, Tommy?”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Of course, anything.”
“Well, uh, did you ever, you know, like, when you were my age, did you ever, um, you know, like, with yourself?”
Chuckle. “You’re asking if I ever jack-off?”
“Wellll, yeah.”
“Sure I have.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. All guys do it. And any who say they don’t are most certainly liars. They might not do it a lot, but they have done it.”
“Did you do it a lot?”
“What do you mean by ‘a lot’?”
“I don’t know, like, should you do it every day, or…”
Chuckle. “Don’t worry, Tom. Unless you’re rubbing it raw, or you’re doing it so much that you’re not getting on with the rest of your life, then there’s no problem.”
“I could probably do it at least a dozen times a day.”
“Yeah, I remember those days.”
“When did you stop doing it?”
Loud chuckle. “Well, let me think. The last time I did it, hummm, it was, uh, this morning, right after I woke-up.”
“Reeaalllyyy? I mean, you still do it?”
“Sure, of course. You might think I’m old, but I’m not. And I’ll bet that I’ll still do it when I am old.”
“Yeah, me too. You know, the first time I did it, I did rub it raw. I couldn’t touch it for two or three days.”
“I did the same thing my first time. But even though it hurt like hell, I did it again the next day, just a lot more carefully.”
“So, um, if you did it right after you woke-up this morning, then, well, you did it, um, right here. In your bed?”
“Yep. And I also did it right here, last night right before I went to sleep.”
“I did it last night too. Three times. And I would have done it this morning too, but I had to get up too early.”
“Three times, huh?”
“Yeah, most nights I only do it twice. But last night, well, I was so excited about coming here, I couldn’t get to sleep.”
“Why couldn’t you sleep tonight?”
“I dun’no. I was just thinking, and, well, you know, I couldn’t get my brain to shut-off.”
“What were you thinking about?”
“Nothing. I mean, I was, uh…”
“It’s ok, you don’t have to tell me. That’s the great thing about thoughts, they’re all yours. And you don’t ever have to let another person in on them unless you want to.”
“But I want to. I mean, well, I was thinking about, um… Well, I guess it all started the last time I was here.”
“Last year?”
“Yeah. Remember, you had to go to work that one day and I was here all by myself?”
“Yeah, I remember.”
“Well, I, uh, oh, I can’t believe I’m telling you this…”
“Tom, it’s ok, you don’t have to…”
“No, I want to. I was snooping and I found something.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, um, I’m sorry, I mean, I know I shouldn’t have been looking through your stuff, but…”
“It’s ok, half-pint. Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s rude to go through other people’s things. But I don’t have anything to hide from you. So, what did you find?”
“Well, I saw some magazines and stuff.”
Chuckle. “In the bottom drawer of my dresser?”
“Yeah.”
“Did you just see them there, or did you actually take a look at them?”
“I looked at them.”
“What did you think?”
“I thought they were cool. I mean, I never saw anything like ‘em before. Not with, you know, all guys.”
“Huum.”
“Is that, I mean, do you like? Well, are you???”
“Yeah, Tom, I am. Is that…”
“It’s cold, Huck. Don’t move away from me.”
“Sorry, I just… Is that better?”
“Yeah. I like that.”
“I do too Tommy, I do too.”

“Huck?”
“What now?”
“I’m sorry, you wanna sleep. I’ll shut-up.”
“No, I’m not sleeping half-pint. What do you want?”
“You sure?”
“Yeah, Tom, I’m sure.”
“Ok, sorry, but I just, well, I wanted to know, like, when did you know, uh, that you, you know…”
“When did I know I was gay?”
“Yeah?”
“I guess I always knew. It wasn’t like I was disgusted by girls, but I just always knew I liked boys better.”
“I think I do too.”
“Oh yeah? What makes you think that?”
“Well, like you said, I think I always knew. I mean, I’ve had girlfriends, and I’ve done stuff with them, but I’ve done stuff with other boys too. And, you know, I think I like boys better.”
“Huumm.”
“It’s getting warm in here.”
“Just a second ago, you said it was cold.”
“It was cold when you moved away from me.”
“So, now it’s getting too warm, and you want me to move back some?”
“No, no. I didn’t mean that. It’s not too warm, it feels good. I like how it feels with your chest-hair tickling my back.”
“You like that huh?”
“Yeah… Wait, stop, I’m ticklish. Stop!”
“You said you liked being tickled.”
“I said I liked your chest-hair tickling me, not your fingers.”
“Huh, sorry, I thought you meant…”
“Oh! That’s… It’s… Oh! Oh my Gosh!”
“I’m sorry Tom. I’m so sorry!”
“No Huck! Don’t move, cold, remember.”
“Tom, I can’t…”
“Yours is hard too. I can feel it.”
“Tom, we…”
“Huck?”
Sigh. “Yeah Tom?”
“I, uh, well, I like feeling it there.”
Huff. “Tom?”
“Yeah Huck?”
“Aw hell, half-pint, I like feeling it there too.”

“Uh, Tommy, um, do you know what you’re doing?”
“Uh, yeah Huck, hee, hee, hee, I’m rubbing my butt on your boner.” Hee, hee, hee. “I got a boner too.”
“You do, huh?”
“Mmhhmm.”
“Tom, I think we need to talk.”
“We are talking.”
“No, you know what I mean. We need to talk about, well, this.”
“Oohhh, it feels so big. And hot too.”
“Tommy, please. We should talk.”
“It would be easier to talk if you’d stop pushing it against me like that.”
“You’re pushing back against me, not me… Oh, sorry. It feels so good, I didn’t realize…”
“I like it when you do that, Huck.”
“Oh, Tommy. We can’t…”
“Huck, wait. Don’t let me go yet.”
“Tom, let go of my arms. We shouldn’t…”
“Wait, just let me explain.”
“Explain what?”
“Well, like I said, I saw those magazines last year and, well, it all made sense.”
“It did, huh?”
“Huck! Stop! I told you, that tickles.”
“Sorry, go on, ‘…it all made sense.’”
“Ok, hee, hee, hee. I never this to anyone before, but last year, well, I sort-of got caught.”
“Caught doing what?”
“Well, you know, me and this other kid, well, we were sort of messing around with each other, and, well, after a while he brought another kid in, so for like a week the three of us were messing around together, and then I came here. So when I was here, and I saw those magazines and stuff, I was getting really excited to tell my two friends all about it. Only, when I got home I found out that the new kid went and told his parents all about what we’d done.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. That must have been terrible.”
“It was. Everyone in the neighborhood knew about it. But I don’t think anyone said anything to my mom, or if they did, she never said anything to me about it. But I know most of the other parents, and all of the kids knew. Only, they didn’t know that me and the first boy had been doing things for almost a full year, before the other kid started messing-around with us. So, as far as anyone knows, it just happened a few times. I was a mess for, like a whole month, but then I started feeling like I was thinking about it more than everyone else was.”
“That’s probably true.”
“Yeah, I mean, no one stopped being my friend, or anything. And me and the boy who told on us, we just sort-of ignore each other.”
“What about the other one?”
“Oh, we’re still friends too. But we don’t fool-around anymore. He tries to, every once in a while, but I won’t.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t want to get caught again. One time, well, that could just be experimenting. Most all guys do that, then they find girls and…. But if I got caught twice, well, then everyone would know I was doing more than experimenting.”
“Seems you’ve put a lot of thought into it.”
“Yeah, I guess. But, well, it is me. I mean, I know what I am. I don’t have to like it, but there’s nothing I can do to change it.”
“What do you mean, ‘…I don’t have to like it…’ Don’t you like who you are?”
“No… I mean, yeah, I mean… It’s not like I hate myself, or anything. But, I just, well, I’m different. And I know that, and like I said, I know I can’t change that. But, well, sometimes I just wish I wasn’t different. I mean, I tried. I messed-around with girls too. And it’s not like it wasn’t good, but, well, with boys, it was just better.”
“I know what you mean.”
“Do you? Really?”
“Yeah, I think so. You see, I guess I was around your age, maybe a bit older, and there was this girl…”
“But I thought you said you like…”
“Just listen. See, the thing I liked most about this girl was her boyfriend. I mean, she was a pretty girl, just about the prettiest in my school. But her boyfriend, well, at least in my eyes he was the hottest guy I’d ever seen. So, when the two of them were together, and my buddies would catch me staring at them, I could always just say that I was ogling her.”
“What did he look like?”
“This is weird, but I thought about him for the first time in years, just earlier tonight. Remember that show we were watching, right after we ate? And that guy was on it, the one with dark-hair, who kept falling on his roller-skates.”
“Yeah, I like him. I think he’s cute.”
“Me too. Well, the guy I went to school with looked a lot like him. Except, he was a little bit bigger than the guy on TV. Now, I don’t remember exactly what all happened, but the guy heard that I liked his girl, and wasn’t too happy about it. And I guess that somehow, that caused a big fight between him and the girl, and they ended-up breaking-up. Then all of the sudden, the girl is all over me, telling me that I was her hero, for getting her away from her horrible ex-boyfriend. And all of the sudden, she was my girlfriend.”
“The other guy was pissed-off, wasn’t he?”
“He was. In fact, when he heard that me and the girl had, well, gone-all-the-way, he, ahhh…”
“What?”
Chuckle. “Tommy, look, maybe I shouldn’t…”
“No, please Huck, I wanna know what happened.”
“Well, see, here’s the thing. I wasn’t a big guy, not back then, and I’m still not.”
“You’re bigger than me.”
“Not for long.”
“Really, you think so?”
“If you’re not bigger than me next year, you’ll surely be the year after.”
“I hope so.”
“Yeah, well, for now, you’re still just a half-pint.”
“So what happened?”
“Oh, I was telling you a story, wasn’t I?”
“Don’t be stupid.”
“So now I’m stupid.”
“That’s not what I said.”
“Hey, careful! Not so rough.”
“Sorry, it just feels so good.”
“I know, but…”
“But, what happened? What did that guy do?”
“Well, like I said, he was mad when he heard I was going-out with her, but when he heard that we’d done it, well, that pushed him over the edge a bit. See, I guess she went and told her girl-friend everything we’d done. That girl told her boyfriend, who just happened to be best friend’s with the ex-boyfriend. So I guess the way he heard it, my girlfriend went on and on about how much better I was than he was.”
“Were you?”
Chuckle. “You know, the thing is, I probably was.”
“I’ll bet.”
“Hey, easy there, Tommy. So anyway, where was I?”
“The guy you liked just found-out that you were better at fucking the girl than he was.”
“Tommy, such language.”
“Yeah, whatever… But that’s what happened, right?”
“Yeah, I guess it was. So… Oh, I can’t believe I’m telling this to you.”
“Why?”
“Well,” Chuckle. “Now that I think about it, I’ve never told this to anyone before.”
“Why not?”
Extended chuckle. “Like I said, Tommy, I think I understand what you meant when you said that you knew you were different, but that didn’t mean you had to like it. Because that’s exactly how I felt back then. But when that girl came-on to me, it was like I wasn’t different any more. And then after the first time we, uh, did it, well… That was the first time I ever really wondered if I’d been wrong. I mean, it was incredible. I’d never felt anything like what I did with her. But then the second time we did it, well…”
“It wasn’t so good?”
“No, in fact it was great. But for some reason, well I know why, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. Her ex-boyfriend. Thinking that he’d been doing the same things I was doing with the same girl. He’d kissed the lips I was kissing. He’d fondled the breasts I was touching. Not so long before, it had been his naked body lying next to hers, him getting on top of her… And like I said, it was great, even better than the first time.”
“And she liked it too?”
“She said she did. And the way I heard it, she went on and on to her girl-friend about how much better I was than her ex. At least that’s what he told me.”
“You mean, he told you she said you were better than he was?”
“Yep.” Chuckle. “Oh shit.”
“Language.”
“Whatever. You want to hear the story or not?”
“Sorry, go on.”
“Ok, so, once the guy heard I was better than he was, well, being that he was so much bigger than me, and more popular and all into sports, when I was in the chess-club and had never even attended any sporting-event, it pissed him off. He was the big-man-on-campus, a shoe-in for prom-king, and I was a nothing. And to think that I could do something, anything, better than he could, especially something so manly, as doing it with a girl, well…. So one day after school he got me alone in the locker-room and…” Sigh.
“Huck, you don’t have to tell me about it, not if you don’t want to.”
“Thank you Tom, I know. But, it might be good for me to get it off my chest finally. And I hope it helps you see that I really do understand how you feel.”
“Now it’s your hairy legs tickling mine.”
“Do you want me to stop?”
“No. Just tell me the story.”
“Alright, already. So, ok yeah, I found a note shoved in my locker from him. It said to meet him in the locker-room right after school, and I honestly can’t remember what I was thinking, but I went. I never should have gone. What the fuck did I think he was going to do? Just talk to me….”
“Are you alright, Huck?”
Chuckle. “Yeah, I’m great…. Oohhh, there’s no possible way you can know what you’re doing to me, Tommy. Gentle. This is a long story, we’re going to be here a while. You’re not sleepy, are you?”
Grunt. “Does this feel like I’m sleepy?”
“Tommy! Ooohhh, ooohhh. OK, I get it. Now, take it easy, or I’m not going to be able to think.”
“Ok, but, could you squeeze me just a little tighter.”
“Sure. That too much?”
“That’s perfect. Ok, so you went to the locker-room, and…”
“…And he was there, all alone, but I noticed that he had a couple friends watching the doors, which should have sent-up red-flags, but… Sorry. I walked around the corner and the minute he saw me, he started laughing. Now, I wasn’t sure what the joke was, but it didn’t take long for him to tell me. He started calling me all sorts of names and asking me things like, ‘Do you think you’re more of a man than I am?’ and, “How the fuck can a squirrely little fuck like you, do a girl better than I can?” Well, I didn’t say anything. There wasn’t anything I could say.” Nervous chuckle, “Then he started asking me if I thought I was more of a man than him. Over and over, “Are you more of a man than me?” Or, “Do you think you’re manly than I am?” That’s when I started whimpering, ‘No.’, ‘No.’, ‘No.’, over and over, to whatever he was asking me. And that’s when he announced that the only way to prove who was more of a man, was for the two of us to arm-wrestle. I started saying, ‘No.’, ‘No.’, ‘No.’, even louder. I knew I couldn’t beat him and I told him so. ‘Please,’ I begged, ‘there’s no contest, you’re a hundred-percent more of a man than I am.’ But he just kept on saying, ‘The only way we’ll know for sure is if we arm-wrestle.’ Finally I gave in and we sat-down, straddling a bench, facing each other.” Deep breath.
“Were you more scared, or turned-on?”
“I don’t know. Probably more turned-on. At that point, anyway. But then two things happened and I got really scared. First, I saw the bulge in his jeans, and back then you have to remember, we wore our pants a lot tighter than today. I can still see it in my mind. Both his balls and his big dick, outlined perfectly in blue denim. So perfectly outlined, mind you, that I could even tell the guy was un-circumcised”
“I’m not circumcised.”
“I know.”
“How do you know?!”
“Duh, I used to give you baths, when you were little.”
“Oh, yeah, I forget that sometimes. OOOhhhhh, and you’re telling me to take it easy.”
“Sorry, can I continue now.”
“Please do.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“And you stink.”
“So why do you keep sniffing me?”
“You know, as much as I hate to admit it, I think you smell a lot like he did that day. I think he’d had gym-class last-period, and you’ve been riding on a hot bus all day.”
“If I stink that bad, I can go take a shower, if you want.”
Chuckle. Sniff, sniff. “No, Tommy, you’re perfect.”
“No, Huck, it will only be perfect when you squeeze me a little tighter. Now it’s perfect. Ok, so you said that two things happened and the first was seeing his big basket, so, what was the other thing?”
“When he wrapped his hand around mine to arm-wrestle. He was a couple years older than me, and he’d been working-out since jr. high. The closest thing I ever did to lifting-weights was when I was reading a really heavy hard-cover book.”
“I know what you mean, I read this one book that was so heavy, it was like a thousand and some pages, it was called, um…”
“So there I was, all alone in the locker-room with the guy who I was most attracted to in the whole school…”
“Sorry,”
“No prob. And his hand was so much bigger than mine, his arms, all of him, he was a big guy, and I was a runt. And once our hands were locked together, I knew that there wasn’t any way I’d ever get myself out of his grip, unless he decided to let go. And by the way he was looking at me, he knew it too. It only took him two seconds to force my arm down. But even though he’d won, he didn’t let go. Before I knew it, we were on our feet, my back to his front, and him forcing my hand between us, to right about here.”
“Hey, give me my arm back, I hate it when people do that. I mean, I’m pretty flexible, but there’s a limit.”
“Tell me about it. And he had me at my limit. I honestly thought he was going to rip my arm right off. But then, I could feel his breath right against my ear.”
“Your breath tickles.”
“So did his. And either he eased-up on my arm, or I just forgot about the pain, because all I could feel was his face, right next to mine. His other arm was around my chest, like this, holding me tight. I could feel his hip pressing against the side of my lower-back, right here. And I could also feel…”
“His big hard cock, just like this?!”
“You’re such a goof-ball. But, yeah. I could feel his dick, and I could tell it was hard. And then he started whispering into my ear. Things like, “You ain’t a man at all, are you?” Or, “How the fuck did you ever get her off better than I did?” And while he was whispering all this stuff, he was pressing his body against me.”
“Like you’re doing to me right now.”
“Yes, like I’m doing to you. Except he was going at me a little rougher. And at some point, his hand went between my legs and… I didn’t even realize it had gotten hard. That’s when he started calling me things like, ‘Faggot,’ and ‘Queer,’ and ‘Cocksucker.’ ‘You’ve got a fucking boner from losing at arm-wrestling from a real man. You’re nothing but a fucking girl.’ And that’s when he decided that he was going to treat me like a girl.”
“What did he do?”
“In a nut-shell, he raped me.”
“What!? Oh, Huck, I’m so sorry.”
Nervous Chuckle. “Don’t be sorry, Tommy, you didn’t do anything. And, well, it actually wasn’t that bad.”
“What!? How can being raped, not be so bad?”
“Well, it was weird.”
“I’ll say.”
“See, you have to remember that I’d had a crush on this guy for a long time. I’d spent many, many nights laying in bed, playing with myself and thinking about doing the exact things that he made me do that day. The only difference was, when I fantasized, I did everything because I wanted to. That afternoon in the locker-room, I did them because he made me.”
“What did he make you do?”
“Everything.”
“You mean…”
“He started by turning me around, so that we were face to face, and at first I thought he was going to kiss me. All of the sudden I was on my knees and he had his pants open. He told me what to do and I did it. But once I got started, well, he took over and… He would shove it so far down my throat that I started to choke.”
“I hate it when that happens.”
“Excuse me?!”
“Well, I know I haven’t sucked any that were really big enough to make me gag, but I have practiced with my fingers, and carrots, and pickles.”
“No shit?”
“No shit. So, did he pop-off in your mouth?”
Chuckle. “Sometimes you amaze me.”
“Some times I amaze myself. So come on, did you get a mouthful or not?”
“Goof-ball. Yeah, he did get-off in my mouth.”
“What was it like, how did it taste?”
“I don’t remember.”
“What? How can you not remember?”
“Well, like I said, he was really going at it, and when he started to shoot-off, I think he shoved it even deeper than he had yet. And once he shot the first few rounds right down my throat, well, there was so much of it, and it was like I was drowning in the stuff.”
“Ahh, but what a way to go. But, I suppose, I mean, can you imagine the newspaper headline…”
“Anyway…”
“Sorry.”
“Ah, you know I can never stay mad at you for very long.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Punk.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Well then, back to the story, so, even though he’d shot what seemed like a gallon down my throat, his dick never went down. I remember, ‘cause it took me a while to be able to get a good breath, and my eyes were all watery, and I was coughing-up his cum. So when I finally got myself under control and looked-up, he was standing right there. His pants were around his ankles and at some point he’d taken off his shirt. I remember how sweaty he was, and of course, how stiff his dick was, and how shiny it was. I could see my spit and his cum glistening all over it. I could even see some of the stuff dripping down his big, bloated balls.”
“You’re starting to sound like a poet again.”
“Do you want me to stop?”
“No, by all means, pray continue.”
“Ok, if you’re sure? Because this is where it really starts to get good.”
“I won’t say another word.”
“Yeah, right. But anyway, he was standing there, all-but naked and hard as a steel-pipe, and I just sat there, hunched-back on my knees, staring at him. I remember the strange smile he had, right before he started in, telling me about how he heard that I’d done something with his ex-girlfriend, that he’d never done. ‘The bitch kept begging me to eat her out, but I don’t do that. There ain’t no fucking way I’m ever going to put my mouth on some sloppy cunt! But you did it, didn’t you? From what I hear, you went to town on that slut’s pussy. Ate her out like a starving man. Is that true?’ I remembered her telling me, the first time I did that to her, that no other guy had done it before. But before I even had a chance to answer him, he said, ‘I’d rather lick another guy’s ass out, than eat pussy any day.’ He started to turn, and as his back-side came around to face me, he said, ‘I haven’t had my butt licked good in a long time. If you can eat pussy good, then I’ll bet you’re great at licking ass too. You ever eaten ass before?’ Now, there was just no way I could tell him the truth.”
“So, you had done it before? Had you ever sucked a dick before, also?”
“Yeah, I guess, when I was in grade-school, me and a little friend messed-around some. Probably the same stuff you did with your little friend. And also, I’d done it to my girlfriend, just a few days before this, while I was…”
“Eating her pussy.”
“Yeah, that, but while I was doing that, I sort-of slipped down a bit, and before I knew it, that’s what I was doing.”
“So, did he make you do it to him?”
“Yeah. He did. He bent over and told me what to do, and I did it.”
“I didn’t like licking the one guy’s butt, the one who told on us, he didn’t clean himself good. It was gross. But the other guy, the one I did it with more, I liked doing it to him.”
“I can’t believe it’s, umph, let me look, quarter after one in the morning, and I’m having this conversation with you.”
“I can believe it easy.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, this is exactly what I planned.”
“Tommy, what are you talking about?”
“You said I could tell you anything, right?”
“Yeah, of course. Anything, Tom.”
“Well, like I said, after I saw your magazines and that other stuff in the drawer, well, I started thinking a lot. I started thinking about you looking at those pictures, and doing stuff with those things, that’s when I started practicing with carrots and pickles. I tried some other stuff, but those worked the best.”
“Tom, you said something about a plan?”
“Oh, yeah. But, it’s not like that, I mean, like it wasn’t like an evil-plan, haa-haw-haw, you know. I just, um, well, I hoped, no. Wait.”
“Tom?”
Deep breath, in and out. “Ok, I need to tell you something.”
“Tom?”
“Huck, just listen to me. When I found those pictures last year, it was like the last day, and I was so shocked and, well, excited that I couldn’t think straight. But then when I got home and, well, I really started thinking about it, well, I realized what I wanted.”
“Are you just letting that hang there, hoping I’ll bite at it?”
“Something’s hung in this bed, and maybe so are my words.”
Chuckle.
“Fine, now you’re laughing at me.”
“Tommy?”
“No, I get it, you just want to hear me say it. So here it is. Like, I’ve played around with a bunch of little-boy-dicks, and that was great and all, but what I really want is, well, you know, a big, fat, hairy cock. A man’s cock. And, well, I was hoping…”
“Ok, Tom, I’m sorry. Please stop rubbing on me like that.”
“No, no. Don’t move away from me. Cold, cold, remember.
“Tom. I, well, we…”
“Now you’re talking to me like I’m a second-grader. You know Huck, that was the one thing I loved most about you. You always talked me like an equal, never like I was just a stupid-kid.”
“I’m sorry, you’re right. And you know that the only time I’ve ever said your name and the word stupid in the same breath was when you rode your bike off that bridge, that time.”
“Yeah, that was pretty stupid of me, wasn’t it?”
“I already said my piece on that stunt…”
“Which I remember well…”
“I know you do. And I also know you’re not stupid, either. But you’re asking me to do something that would be really stupid. You do understand that, don’t you Tommy?”
“You know Huck, you’re the only person who can call me Tommy, and not piss me off. Tighter, please. Tighter. You’re so warm.” Deep breath. “I get it, I mean, I know that I’m asking for a lot. But I don’t want to lose this.”
“But Tom…”
“No, just listen, please. I don’t want to go back to the couch. I don’t like it out there. There’s strange noises out on the street.”
“You aren’t used to the city, are you?”
“I guess not. But, I feel safe here, and I won’t do anything to mess that up. It wasn’t like I really expected us to do anything anyway. It was all just a fantasy. I mean, it’s like you said. Our thoughts are our own, and we only share them with people we love and trust. That feel’s good, Huck, nice and tight. Hey! You aren’t crying, are you?”
“I swear, Tom. You know exactly what you’re doing, don’t you, you little…”
“Is that a question, or a statement?”
“Does it matter?”
“No, I guess not. And by the way, as much as I want to think I always know exactly what I’m doing, most of the time, like right now, I have no fucking clue.”
“Once again, you never cease to amaze me.”
“I know.”
“You know something else, you’re the biggest goof-ball in the whole world.”
“Next to you, maybe. But I do know something about you that’s bigger than mine.”
“Tommy, careful. I just might leave you here and go sleep on the couch myself.”
“I’d follow you out there.”
“You would, wouldn’t you.”
“Uh huh.”
“Fine. Let’s get some sleep. Tomorrow’s going to be a long day.”
“And it’s going to be a long night, too.”
“Are you talking about tonight or tomorrow?”
“Does it matter?”
“No, Tommy, I guess it doesn’t.”
“I love you, Huck.”
“I know.”
“And I also know you love me too.”
“I know, Tommy.”
“Ok, the Tommy thing is starting to get to me.”
“Sorry, punk.”
“That’s better.”
“Good night.”
“Good night. Just a little tighter, please…”

“Huck?”
“Yeah, Tommy? Sorry, Tom?”
“Tomorrow night, will you finish telling me what happened in the locker-room?”
“If you still want to hear it, Tommy, I’ll tell you.”
“If I still want to hear it, are you kidding? I mean, seriously Huck.”
“I get it, Tom. Good night.”
“Good night, Huck.”

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