All That Drama - 6. Chapter 6

I woke up the next morning feeling happy and I wondered who was in my bed with me when it all came flooding back. I grinned to myself. I was dating Hector and I could not be happier. It was Saturday and the cafeteria would be closed and all I had for breakfast were pop-tarts. It was also after ten o'clock and unless I got up now I would not be up again before two; whenever I slept in I did it whole hog. We were supposed to meet Matt and Sarah at her house at noon so no sleeping in for me. I gently shook Hector who seemed to come awake fully in the blink of an eye. “Morning, beautiful.” I kissed his neck and he giggled.

“So I did not just dream last night.”

“Oh no, it was a dream. One come true.” He looked at me like I was the dorkiest, but sweetest guy alive. “Do you want leftover pizza for breakfast or go out?”

“What time is it?” I told him. He threw back the covers and was pulling on his clothes like he had been caught by my father.

“What?”

“I'm supposed to meet Sarah for brunch at 10:30.” I laughed how frenzied he looked. “What? It's a long ride on my bike from here to Cypress.”

“Like I'd let you do that. My car does have bike racks on top if you recall last Summer.” He halted in putting on his shoe. “Did you think I would just kick you out?”

“Well...it would be the normal for my life.” I snickered and got out of bed.

“Not anymore. May I join you, or is this a girls only brunch?” I ducked his halfhearted swing and laughed. “Seriously. Is it a private thing?”

“No. Of course you can come. Can we swing by my house so I can grab a change of clothes?” I nodded. “You can meet my mom. Again.” I had met her briefly during Steven's trial. She was nice enough but seemed to not trust me. But then I had been a dick to her son for a year.

“Already meeting the parental units.” He swatted my backside as I pulled on a pair of khaki cargo pants and the cream button up. I usually wore jeans and something that showed off my body, but the pants were loose and the shirt had almost billowy sleeves. He looked on with bewilderment. “Why dress like I'm looking for a good time when I have a boyfriend?” I wrapped my mind around that and found it was weird in a good way. I was dating a guy and it was fine with me.

“Will you turn back into a frog?” I snickered but shook my head.

“Only if you stop kissing me.” That got me a kiss.

We spent only a moment at his house while he changed. “Mom, you remember Justice.”

“Yes. How are you young man?” His mother had had him late in life. She was almost fifty in the face, eighty in the hair, and was actually sixty-two. She aged well. He had six older siblings, all sisters.

“I'm fine ma'am, how have you been?”

“Could be better. I'm getting too old to deal with a college son with odd hours.” I could tell she was not serious at all about being put out by his not coming home last night. “Hector tells me you're in a skit with him next week. You were very good last night.”

“Thanks. Hector's been a godsend. I would never have remembered all those lines if he had not helped out.”

“I'm surprised...what with your past.” There it was. The past I would have liked to forget.

“I'm just grateful he's got a good heart and forgave me.” She nodded. “But yeah. The skit is just the two of us. We were rehearsing until about two in the morning.”

“That's nice. I'm glad you two have patched things up.”

“Me too mom,” he said coming from the hall. He gave me a look that said he wanted to kiss me and he wanted to know how I would feel about it. The look I returned said I would be fine with it. I gave him a quick smooch. “Patched things is putting it lightly.” Her eyes nearly bugged out.

“You?” she asked me.

“That was what I said to myself months ago, but Hector's the best friend I've ever had and when we got to the kiss in the script we just...went for it.” I was beet red with embarrassment. This was his mother and I did not know how to tell her I had sex with her son last night. “I won't question my luck.”

She gave me a hug. “Welcome to the family, Justice. I never thought I would live to see him find someone he would kiss.”

“He feels the same way about kissing. Odd since he was such a slut in high school.” I laughed and nodded. I was. “Never kissed any of them. We have to go to brunch, Mom.”

“Have fun you two. It was nice to see you again, Justice.”

“You too, ma'am.”

The car ride was short from his house and we were only a few minutes late. “Hey guys. Looks like we have one more.” Sarah scooted over in the booth. Jerry and his girlfriend Gina were also there. She was a spunky little Vietnamese exchange student and a very pretty girl. Also a master of accents, few knew this was the first year she'd ever been stateside. The crowd varied weekend to weekend but every Saturday there was a group of friends meeting here at Denny's. Matt was smiling at us like he knew exactly what had happened last night. I think he did know.

“Sorry we're late, but I had to go home to change.”

Sarah looked from him to me and her mouth sagged open. “NO!” I nodded with the biggest grin. “Really? You? You finally told him?”

“His Mom said the same thing.” I gave Jerry a hand shake and Gina a hug.

“What does finally mean? You knew he wanted to get with me and you did not tell me?” Hector was feeling stupid he had not seen it. “Who else knew?”

“Meg, Chelsey, Jordan, Caleb, Greg, Kelly and Nigel. So pretty much everyone but you.” He glared at Sarah like she would be set afire right then and there.

“Guess it worked, huh Hector?” I looked at Jerry in confusion. “He asked me to write a part for the two of you and include a kiss scene.” Hector was suddenly very interested in the menu.

“Are you serious? You had your friend set me up just to kiss me?” I was red in the face and my brows were pulled down in anger.

“Oh god, don't be angry...”

“I so love you.” I dropped the act and he gave me a good solid punch to my shoulder. “Owww. Abuse, abuse!” I was laughing it out and trying not to be too loud.

“I thought you were seriously mad at me.” Sarah was giggling.

“I have been seduced, drugged, gotten drunk, and triple teamed into bed, taken advantage of in an emotionally low state, but no one has ever gone so far just for a kiss.” I put my lips to his and damn the discretion. It was one of the sneakiest and sweetest things to get my attention and it totally worked. “You are so in trouble.”

“Will you punish me like you did last night?” he whispered in my ear.

“Worse. I have one hole that has never been tampered with.” He pulled back with his eyes wide and filled with a mix of love and lust. It made me think about what we had done last night and I was glad I was sitting down.

“I have never seen Hector with that look,” said Gina sweetly. “He must have said something either really sweet or very, very naughty.”

“Naughty,” the rest of us chimed in.

“I knew it when they walked in,” said Matt. “They had a satisfied look in their eyes and the way their bodies moved, like they moved to the same music. Also last night they were making puppy eyes at each other in the green room and at the parlor.” He looked so smug and happy for us. Honestly happy.

“I'm so happy for you both. I...” Sarah said but she cut off and motioned to the door. Steven and his cronies were just coming in and looking around for me. I know they recognized my car. “Great. I can run interference. I do double as an entire defensive line according to him.” I looked away in shame. I had started that joke. It had been one of my “funniest” so they went with it.

We shared a look. “That'll be okay, Sarah. We're not going to run from them. The little old ladies will protect us.” She just shook her head and flicked her eyes above my head. They were coming this way.

“Well, if it isn't the drama queens. And I stress the word queen. Matilda, when did you blow back into town.”

“Drop dead,” said Gina with more acid in her tone than I thought possible. “Go mess up someone else's morning.”

“Aw, the little chink has a spine.” That was bad even for Steven. He usually tried to bed every Asian girl he saw. “Does she taste like sweet and sour sauce or sushi?” Wow, he was in rare form today. Jerry calmly placed his napkin on the table.

“Jerry, don't,” I said. “Unless you're a better fighter than you look, he'll mop the floor with you.” I stood up. I was taller than him by two inches and outweighed by at least thirty pounds. “I, on the other hand, can kick his ass. Just give me the word Gina and I'll send him home to Mommy...oh wait.” I paused and smiled sweetly. “That's right. Your mom left you and your dad when you were six. And it was for another woman too, wasn't it?” His face was a splotchy red and white. Everyone at the table was stunned to silence. I had once promised to never reveal that bit of info, but I had warned him last night I was done playing around with him. He was very close to doing what I had wanted him to do for a while. If he swung on me I could beat the tar out of him. One good thing about being the son of a senator was very good lawyers. “Get out of here, you fucking little shit, before I forget we used to be friends.” My tone was deadly even but my face said I was greeting an old friend. The smile was so false that I wondered if anyone would be fooled.

“I will kill you for this, Justice.” At least that is what I thought he said. It came out so garbled that I could not be sure. Kyle and the others had to restrain him.

“Yeah, whatever. Have a good day boys.” I turned my back on them for a moment but turned back and looked at one of the cronies. “Seth, you should really think about your friends. The clique went out with high school. That's my advice to you.” I gave him a smile, a real one that showed him I was genuinely worried about him. He knew it but I wanted him to see that I was willing to ask him in front of everyone. “You may find a better friend among those you used to torment. I did.” Then I sat down. I was ready for Steven to try anything. One good thing about JROTC was they had several options for self defense. I took them all, but my best was CQC, close quarter combat, with anything at hand and forks made for great weapons.

Steven turned and fumed away, his cronies in tow. Seth seemed torn as he made a decision. Stay or go? I could see his mind moving sluggishly, he was not the most brainy guy. I was disappointed when he went with them. I sighed and shook my head. “Sarah, I'm sorry for the lineman joke. I started it and it stuck.”

“Don't worry, handsome, I forgave you already. At least that one makes me a bit proud. I was always good at football.” I chuckled picturing her running at someone and them wetting themselves. “Mental funny?”

“Just picturing you sacking Steven and his eyes popping out even as he pissed himself.” She laughed at that thought.

“Justice, thanks for standing up for Gina, but I can take him. I'm black belt four ways and I know knife fighting.” I stared. No wonder he had been so calm. If he was as good as he says, he would have obliterated that asshole. I almost wish I had not spoke up. “And Gina whips my backside every time we spar.”

“Stereo typing much, Gina?” I asked, but she did not get it. “The little pretty Asian girl who can kick the stupid white boy's ass from here to next Tuesday without even breaking a sweat? How cliché.”

Hector only shook his head. Brunch went wonderfully after that and I will have to say this. I felt completely at peace within my own skin. Maybe I had been gay all along and only needed someone like Hector to bring it out. I could just be fooling myself into thinking I was gay, but if so I never wanted it to stop. And to top it all off a little old lady came by the table saying “You boys make such a cute couple,” and then hobbled off with her walker. I could only grin at my boyfriend and kiss him.

 

Monday came and I was very surprised to feel none of the nervousness I had expected. I mean, kissing Hector in front of the drama department was one thing, they're all a bunch of voyeuristic freaks anyway, but I was going to be really kissing him in front of I don't know how many fellow students...and I did not care. I finally found someone I could love who loved me back and I wanted to shout it from the roof tops. Of course then I would be hauled off to the loony bin for a suicide attempt and disturbing the peace. The skit order was done alphabetically by last name and I was first. I was almost glad to get it out of the way so I could prepare for Jerry Fredrickson's skit. I was also glad because Steven would not be at school until after I was done. I was sitting front row center and looking on at the minimal set that involved a couch off to one side with a free standing door and an American flag off to the other side. No one was on stage yet and I was gathering my courage to introduce my skit. I stood and hopped onto the stage. “Hey everyone. I'm Justice Anderson and this skit is about prejudice. What it can do to those who are the targets and how it can bite you in the ass when it backfires. I hope you enjoy it.” I got a smattering of applause from the close to one hundred student there. Matt was sitting beside me and had his laptop open so he could record it all with his camcorder.

When I took my seat Sarah took her spot on the couch. There was a momentary pause and then Hector came through the door and slammed it as hard as he could. “I hate him!” he yelled, and I knew there was no acting for that line. He did hate Steven. Not that character, either. He was dressed in my old ROTC uniform and I had to admit he filled out the pants very well, but then I was biased. From the word action to the time they took their bows I was very proud of my actors and actress. They delivered their lines perfectly even down to the scene where the Steven character slit his wrists and Francis ends with his short monologue about why blind hatred only leads to more. There was no applause and I thought I had written a truly bad piece until I looked back saw there was not a dry eye in the seats. When I stood the crowd was on their feet and clapping wildly. My cast gestured to me and I gave a small bow and went into the PA wing to change for my role. “That was great!” Hector said as he barreled into me. “I have never seen that in all my years. God they will remember this performance forever.”

“You guys did fantastically. You really caught what I wanted to say and threw it in their faces.” The cast joined in a group hug except for Sarah who had to change quickly for her next role. “All of you...thanks. I never realized it was such a powerful piece when I wrote it.” I took Hector's hand and led to the dressing room for our set. I closed the door and wrapped my arms around his waist. “And you. God I am so proud of you. I wrote it to send a message, but you really sold it.”

“I had all the motivation in the world. I was not acting so much as giving a speech.” I nodded and kissed him. “We should get ready for the next skit.” I helped him out of my uniform and hung it up even while he was fixing my tie. The rest of the day went as smoothly. Matt recorded the entire set of performances and said he would send us a copy when he was done editing it.

It was when we were on stage for a final bow of the entire class that I saw something that made my bowels turn to ice. Steven was standing at the top of the amphitheater seats and glaring daggers at me. I waved at him and turned my back as the Dean came over. “Wonderful, all of you, and such a diverse set of writing. I'm sure each of you worked hard, but all I hear about is the first skit.” I smiled as Hector nudged me forward.

“Justice wrote it,” said my boyfriend and I wanted to hug him and kick him all at the same time.

I stepped forward. “Young man that was an exceptional bit of writing.”

“I had an exceptional cast to play it. No writer is good without them.” I really did not want credit for this, I had only written what I wanted to tell everyone about how badly some people were still being treated.

“Well, unbeknownst to all of you a member of the Fine Arts department at Berkeley was here.” I know I was looking equal parts scared and thrilled. If some high mucky muck from a college like Berkeley saw it... goodbye jockstrap scholarship and hello drama major! “He wants to meet with you, Justice, to talk about not only turning your skit into a full stage production, but he wants to talk about enrolling you at Berkeley.” I remember the world spinning. I recall hitting something soft as I fainted.

I do not remember my eyes rolling dramatically back into my head or that I had turn so white I looked dead. To hear those drama queens tell it I did a nose dive off the stage. I remember coming to in Sarah's lap. “Am I dreaming?”

“No, I'm that soft.” I chuckled and looked up at everyone who was crowded around me. Matt the goofiest expression on his face. It meant simply “you can take four three hundred pound guys hitting you and walk away but this makes you fall out?”

“Did I faint?” They nodded. “God how embarrassing.” Hector pulled me to my feet and steadied me. “Nice save, Sarah.”

“Hey, it's about the only time I can say I had you in my lap.” I laughed and kissed her cheek. “Stop before I steal you from the one you love.”

I took a deep breath. “Berkley, huh? Is this scout still here?”

“He went back to Berkley right after the last performance, but gave me his card to pass on. Think it over, Justice. It's a great opportunity.” The dean left and I went and collapsed into the nearest seat.

Hector sat next to me with a big grin on his face. “Can you believe it? The first piece you do and someone wants to buy it.” I nodded, but my mind was elsewhere. I had never seen Steven look so angry, so filled with hate. It was scary to think I had been friends with him and had never seen how truly twisted he was. Someone must have seen the skit and told him. “Justice?”

“Huh, oh sorry, my head is spinning.”

“I'll bet. Will you sell the piece?”

“I honestly don't know. I wrote it for class not a large audience. And I could never want for a better cast and if they put someone in the roles that can't deliver it as well then the whole thing would be wasted on the public.” He nodded, knowing how hard a decision this would be. It was my work, my message, and I did not want it to fail. I wanted every performance of it to do exactly what it did that morning.

“Will you take the scholarship?” I looked at him. “Never mind, it's too soon to think about it. I'll walk you back to your room and then you can call and leave a message on the voice mail.” I nodded and he helped me home. I do not really remember what I did that night, only that I was sure Steven would be there Wednesday for the next performance. He would not be happy.

Tuesday morning I was woken by an insistent pounding on my door. I threw back the covers and stumbled over there planning on killing whoever was stupid enough to wake me up like this. When I opened the door I was rushed and my first reaction was to grab the person. Whoever it was landed flat on their back with the wind knocked out of them. “Justice, it's me!” I blinked to see Seth trying to get up.

“How many times do I tell you not to barge in like that?” I pulled him to his feet and shut the door. “One of these times I may do more than throw you.” It was the fifth time he had done it this year and each time I had either thrown him across the room or laid him out with one punch. I always felt like shit afterward too. Seth was not tall or brawny. A hard body, yes, from the years of helping his parents as a migratory worker.

“I know, I'm just so excited.” He shoved a newspaper at me and there on the front page was me and the cast. “They ran a story on your skit.” He was grinning from ear to ear and I snagged the paper to read it while he sat down.

I read it and had to laugh. “They loved it! Seth the only people who have said it was crap are the people I wanted to hear it. Wow...PFLAG has added me to their top author list for the year.” I wondered if I looked as stunned as I felt and sounded.

“Who're they?” he asked.

“It stands for Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. Like a support group for helping people to cope with being gay or having gay friends or family. This is exactly what I wanted. To shove the message up their prejudiced asses.” I grinned and pulled him into a rough hug. “This is great. Dude, you are so forgiven for waking me up.”

“I thought I would be.” The smile fell off his face. “Steven knows about the play.” I nodded, instantly sober. “He is pretty pissed. Kyle told him and we all caught the ...uh... kiss.” He was looking at me strangely.

“Good. Do you think less of me for it?” His was the only opinion in the Crowd that mattered to me and if he was disgusted I would be genuinely hurt.

“Naw, you're still a cool dude, Justice. It was an act, right?” Something told me he was hoping to be told no.

I knew whatever I said now would either get back to Hector or to Steven. Should I lie? It would be easy but I would lose the best part of my life. “No, it was not. I've been dating Hector for about a week now.”

His eyes got as big as saucers. The answering grin was not what I had expected. “Really? You mean I was right?” I looked at him in confusion. “Well, it has been obvious to me that you liked Hector, cause you're sticking up for him now. Then there was the way you got all giggly when someone mentioned him. No one else saw it but me. He must mean a lot to you.”

“Yeah, he does. You should try to get to know him.” My little bro was, I had to remember, a master when it came to variables and puzzles. He had taken every clue and fit it into a solution that seemed too ludicrous for anyone else to even consider it. That had been that show of mental working I had noticed, him putting all the facts together.

“I can't. Steven would kill me.” I nodded. As much as Seth was my friend he was totally dependent on Steven for social protection, dates, and anything approaching popularity. I understood and wished I could help Seth, but I was about to be kicked out of the popular Crowd.

“Yeah. Well, if you ever change you mind we have brunch at Denny's every Saturday. You're welcome to join us. I think I saw Sarah making eyes at you.”

“The pretty girl with the nice smile? The one that asked me where you were?” I knew he liked big girls so there would be no problem there. If he remembered that far back without any sort of prompt then he really did like her a lot. “She would not be interested in me. I'm no catch.”

“You would be surprised. I heard it from a very good source that Meg thought you had a great body. And Sarah said you were chulo, whatever that means.” His face brightened up. “She's really nice and forgiving of people who try to make amends.”

“So I should apologize to her for calling her a beached beluga?” I wanted to laugh because that was the only thing he had come up with on his own. Simply knowing what a beluga was is a feat for Seth.

“Yes. You may want to tell her that away from Steven.” He nodded and grinned. I knew I would have to call Sarah and tell her to expect it and keep an open mind. She may even play along with it to save the poor soul from the clutches of that twisted psycho.

“Yeah. I'll...I'll do that.” He grabbed his backpack and I could see, tucked into the ID pocket, was the card from the rose he had gotten. He left with a kind of half smile and I pulled out my cell and called her to tell her what I had done.

“Sarah's Squawk box.”

“Hey psycho girl, I have to warn you I did something and need your help.”

“You need my help for what? Killing Steven?” She sounded so hopeful.

“Not too far off. You know Seth, right? I kinda said you were making eyes at him. I'm trying to save him from Steven and the Crowd. You won't kill me right? He should be on his way to apologize for all the shit right now.”

“You mean the cute little Mexican boy with the puppy dog eyes?” So that was what chulo meant.

“That pretty much sums him up. So you won't tar and feather me?”

“No, silly. If I can get him away from Steven I'll do my best. It's not like he's repulsive and I do recall you singled him out at the restaurant.” Then I heard her gasp. “He's not my...is he my secret admirer?” Was there hope in her voice? Had I actually read a situation right?

“Bingo, sister.” He was going to at least get a hug out of this and if he used such sweet words during his apology he was going to get a kiss.

She giggled. Giggled! “He is cute. Always has been. You have nothing to worry about. If I can't get him away from Steven with my feminine wiles I will just drag him off.” I laughed picturing her with a club and them dressed as cave men.

“Thanks, Sarah.” I hung up to see Hector standing in my door looking happy and scared all in one. “Hey, you look...odd.”

“Did you tell Seth? Because he said, and I quote, 'I hope you guys last,' end quote.”

“Yeah. I mean I would not lie about it and he seemed to want to know.” I got attacked then and landed on the bed with him atop me and our lips pressed together. I took it as a good sign that he was not mad at me. When speaking was possible I smiled at him. “Good morning to you too.” It was almost seven in the morning after all and I had no classes. I had hoped to sleep in until noon, but alas...

“He brought you the paper, didn't he? The bum! I wanted to tell you.” I laughed and got up off the bed with him still in my arms. My neighbor peeked in and snickered.

“Quiet, Kai!” I said and slammed the door. Kai was my center on the team. How he would take to having a gay quarterback behind him would be interesting to see. “It's great though. I can't believe how many people hate it!” And I was happy about that. The people who hated it were the conservatives that hated anything that deviated from what they thought should be allowed.

“I know! Anyone with prejudice against gays are yelling themselves hoarse and just showing how ignorant they really are. Anyone with a modicum of sense likes it.” He kissed me again and this time I picked him up and laid him on the bed rather than fall onto it. “How will we celebrate? Dinner at Olive Garden with the cast?” My boyfriend was a pasta fanatic. If it involved noodles of any kind he'd eat it.

“Sure, tonight. I have a few other things in mind for now.” I whispered this last part in his ear as I slid my hand up his shirt and across his abs. Feeling him tremble beneath my finger tips was very nice. “I think I told you you were in trouble.”

He turned to look at me with a very seductive smile. “Then punish me.” I gave him an evil grin and got up to bar the door. I pulled him to his feet and pulled his shirt off. I ran my fingers across his stomach as I moved around behind him. When my arms encircled his waist he leaned back with a sigh. That sigh turned to a whimper as I trailed kisses from his earlobe to his shoulder and then back along his neck. My hands were unbuckling his belt and getting his shorts off. Like last time he wore no underwear and I was clad only in my sleeping shorts. Those fell when I loosened the draw string and my front was pressed to his back. “That is so unfair.” I was grinding my pelvis against his ample backside, kissing his neck, and stroking his hard on. He could not decide which part of what I was doing he liked best and he was almost in sensory overload.

“I know.” He quivered again and I spun him around and sat him on the bed again. I reached into my desk for something I bought for this occasion. I came back with two bottles of oil. “So, vanilla or strawberry?” I asked holding them up.

“Why?” he asked in a whisper.

“Because you are giving me a massage.” He looked confused until I squirted some of the vanilla on my hand and gave his dick a few strokes. “Inside and out.” He let out a sighing laugh and grabbed the vanilla while I put down a towel on the bed.

“Are you sure?” I looked at him with a smile and nodded. “Why the outside massage?”

“I know I need to relax or it will hurt.”

“Experience from the other end, huh?” I nodded and lay face down on the bed with my pillows under my chest so I could hang my head down. He paused for a moment and then I felt him straddle my hips, his long dick nestled in my crack. “You have no idea how sexy this is.” I flexed my cheeks and he gasped. He had never really felt on my ass thoroughly to know I really worked them out.

When his hands touched my shoulders and began to knead my flesh I groaned. “That...wow.”

“My cousin is an expert at this and she taught me a few tricks.” I sighed as he dug into my shoulders with enough pressure to get out the deep tension I always seemed to have. I could feel him softening as he concentrated on my upper body's relaxation. He was really trying to get me to relax and I could feel all the nervousness drain out.

“It shows.” He moved down to the upper back and found small knots I did not know were there. They were gone under his expert hands. One hand stayed to massage between my shoulder blades while the other slipped down. I know I went a bit wide eyed when his fingers dug into my glutes, but I did not tense up, which was a good sign. I was not paying too much attention to his lower hand. I was lost in the relaxation when I felt his finger slide across my hole. I could not believe how good it felt. I had never let anyone except a doctor anywhere near that area, and a doctor only for the physicals required for football. The thought before now was that it was an exit only, but boy was I wrong. I raised my hips to spread my cheeks apart and I could feel his dick getting hard again. He moved down so both hands could get at my glutes and while his fingers worked their magic on the muscles his thumbs cast their spell on my hole. It was like warm electricity that surged up my insides to the prostate, and I was so hard I could not remember it ever hurting with the need to orgasm. Then his finger entered. My breathing stopped as I was pushed over into an orgasm. He had barely touched my prostate and I was through.

“Are you...” I nodded, unable to speak. His finger massaged the gland and I started breathing again, only in shuddering gasps. My entire body was shaking still as he extracted that digit. Never in my life had I cum so quickly and for very little reason. “Do you still...”

“God yes.” I wanted it. If his dick was even half as pleasurable I would want it there all day long if we could. He spread my cheeks as wide as he could and I reached back to hold them open. I heard him squirt some more lotion on his hands and then I felt that round head pressed against my hole, the place I wanted him to claim. He pushed forward a little and eased off. I knew exactly what he was doing and knew he was far better than I was on patience. When I was relaxed enough he slid in. Only a few inches, but I felt filled. Letting me get used to his girth he massaged my lower back but I could tell his mind was no longer as focused on my muscles.

He rocked forward a bit and I rose to meet him. He moaned softly as he had more than half inside. Pulling out felt very strange, but when he pushed back in he aimed for that spot and when he touched it I bucked and he fell atop me, all eleven inches buried inside of me. I saw spots as the pleasure surged up and I gasped deeply, my hole clenching around his length. “Don't move, Justice.” I could tell by his breathing he was about to cum, so I just let him wait. I cannot begin to describe the feeling of having him inside of me, but I knew this was meant to be. He fit perfectly. There was no pain, no discomfort, only blissful pleasure. He pulled out a bit and slid gently back in, each time brushing my gland and getting my dick hard again.

I wanted to feel him cum in me. I pushed up into doggy style and looked back over my shoulder. His face was so full of need, but he was trying to be gentle. As he pushed in I slammed my ass back against him and his eyes rolled up. He looked at me as I met his every thrust with one of my own. “I want to feel it.” He nodded and picked up the speed. It was still not fast enough for what I knew he wanted and I let him know by bucking back harder and harder. “This is about you, babe.” He looked at me with such love in his eyes. I had what I wanted, what I needed, to feel. Now it was his turn.

I could never match the long strokes he could do. His hips moved better than any belly dancer and he was giving me what he wanted, what I knew to be his fantasy. He had wanted to be with me for a while, even when he could not stand me, and now he was living a fantasy. In and out, with those long strokes. He was lost in the sensation and I was getting just as much pleasure seeing his need being filled as I was with the pounding I was getting. Whether through training or conscious thought he was gliding across my spot with every thrust. Our breathing became ragged and I saw his face scrunch up as he came in me. I could feel every splash of his cum coat my walls and I had to bury my face in my pillow to stifle the moan that escaped my lips. It was a piece of heaven, a simultaneous orgasm that left us breathless. We collapsed onto the bed with him still inside of me. “Consider me punished.” I chuckled as he rolled off me, out of me, and onto his back. “That was...”

“I know. Whoever said exit only never had you in there.” He grinned and kissed me.

“Did you cum again?” I nodded. I was one of those rare guys who could go for hours even with multiple orgasms. “What a waste.” I laughed and rolled onto my side, my dick still hard. “Well, it looks ready for round three. Mine got knocked out in the first round.”

“I hope I can revive it.” He nodded. “That was amazing. I meant it when I said I love you. I've never uttered those words in my life.” He smiled with his eyes half lidded. He was drained and I was too, but I was not surprised when he held up the lotion bottles. “Strawberry.” He squirted a copious amount onto his hands and straddled me. I tossed the towel to the foot of the bed; I did not want my own cum on my back. One hand coated every inch of my shaft while the other lubed himself up. “Are you sure? I know it is thicker than most.”

“Do you want it?” I nodded. Oh yeah I wanted it. “Then I do too. Hell, since I saw you naked I wanted it. I wanted it before that.” He leaned over while he positioned it and whispered, “I like them thick.” Then he eased back and I slid in. I was no stranger to anal sex and I usually caused some pain to my partner, but he sat all the way back and took all of it without batting an eyelash. His mouth opened in an O as he sat there. There might not be pain, but I was nothing to simple go at. He looked down at me with such an intense look in his blue eyes that I knew I had better hold on. How he knew this was my favorite position for anal I don't know. He rocked back and forth and the moist heat of his depths made me shudder. I was so sensitive from the last two orgasms that every shift was like a blast of heat against cold skin, all tingly and prickly.

He was tight. How he could take me like that and still be as tight as any virgin I had been with was a mystery, but he showed me that he was just as good at riding as he was with his mouth. He found the perfect rhythm to build my orgasm without rushing it, but I still only lasted a few minutes. Watching his eyes as he looked at me was intoxicating but it was his abs flexing that pushed me into my third orgasm in less than an hour. As I was blasting off inside of him I felt something splash onto my chest.

He was cumming on my chest! God when it hit he got so tight it hurt, but I knew I would never do this with any other person. He sat there for a moment as I finally softened in him and looked down at me. “Never in my life have I cum when a guy fucked me.” I had no reason to doubt him considering his eyes said he was so satisfied he could die then and be happy for all eternity. He leaned forward to kiss me...

A knock came at my door. We both got that deer in a headlight look and he dove for his shorts while I pulled on my pants from last night. He tossed me the towel to wipe off the evidence even though the scent of vanilla, strawberry, and sex hung in the air. I unbarred the door and opened it to see Kai. “Done?” he asked and I nodded, my face so red I knew I doubled as a stop light. How much had he heard? How much did he suspect? “First off, holy shit balls! When did this happen? Hey Hector.” He waved from the bed. Kai's smile was huge but he did not seem to find this repulsive.

“Friday night.” I said somewhat hesitantly.

“Sweet, just no grabbing my ass when I hike you the ball.” I laughed and nodded. The dude was being very cool about it. “Secondly I have to remind everyone that they need to clear out their stuff by Saturday at noon.” He gave me an evil grin. “But since you've been packing shit all morning that should not be a problem.” He ran before I could retaliate.

I shut the door and laughed. “What an ass! Cool that he's not freaked out about it though.” Maybe I would not get my ass beat up by the entire football team.

“Shouldn't be.” I raised a brow in question and Hector gave me a flat look.

“No! Kai?!” Hector nodded. I could not see it. The man was taller than me and outweighed me by forty pounds of solid muscle. Hell he mad more chest hair than I had hair on my legs. He just seemed so...manly. “Spill it!”

“His girlfriend is my cousin, the massage guru, and she said he had always been curious about guys. She asked me to help, knowing that I would try my best to make it good for him.” So her thoughts about him cheating were with men! No wonder every time he was with us she thought he was cheating on her.

“Obviously you worked your magic on him and he liked it enough to not kill every gay guy in sight. He did mention some therapy session that proved he did not feel anything for anyone else, just her. Is there a doctor in the room?”

He raised his hand. “True. He said it was great but not for him and we just stayed friends. Not jealous?”

“No, that's just stupid. So you slept with Kai. Kinda hot, but so what? Hell, you've been kissing Patrick for the past month and a half and it has not bothered me. Except for me to wish I was him.” He smiled at me and gave me that look. “I'm not the jealous type. I've seen it tear apart people's lives and I don't want to lose you over something so stupid.”

He wrapped his arms around my neck and looked at me like I was the cat's meow. “How do you know what to say?”

“I just say what I feel, and right now I feel,” I kissed along his neck, “like we were interrupted. But I need to take a shower. Someone shot something all over my chest.” He giggled. “How about I meet you in the cafeteria and we'll decide what to do from there.”

“Or I could take a shower too since someone shot something all over my insides.” I groaned and shook my head.

“The nerve of some people...I swear.” We had our showers and on my way out to the quad I passed Kai in the hall and could not resist being evil. He never saw it coming until I had a handful of his ass cheek. Nice, but not as nice as Hector's. “Never said anything about when we're not playing ball.” He jumped about ten feet in the air and landed on his butt. He looked up at me like I was going to be dead, but he ended up laughing. “Golly, Kai, why are you sitting on the ground?” I asked with such false naive innocence, my eyes blinking vapidly. I did “blond” very well.

“It's safer.” I helped him up and he chuckled. “Dude, I'm glad you two hooked up. Hector's cool and I think you'll be good for each other.”

“Not to mention he gives the best blow jobs ever. What did you give him out of ten?”

“He told...I hate you all!” He spun and stalked away but not before I saw that laughter in his eyes. “Ten, by the way.” I could only laugh at his retreating back. “The things that tongue can do...” I laughed harder because it looked like he was having to adjust himself.

The cafeteria was packed with students all saying their goodbyes. It was the last week of school and those who did not live on campus were making plans to meet up with friends over the Summer vacation/term. The place was filled with conversation and I realized as I looked over at where the “in” Crowd sat that I would not miss them. I had a whole new crowd that I liked a lot more. I found my friends on the stage tables. Seth was just walking in and saw Sarah sitting off to one side. I nudged him when he got stuck on stupid looking at her. “Go talk to her, Seth.” He grinned and went to do just that.

I watched as he walked up to her with his eyes on his feet. “Can I talk to you Sarah?” He knew her name! She looked at him and I could tell she was acting to look so serious. He set his bag down and her eyes went to the lurid pink card with the green ink writing.

“Where did you get that?” she asked.

“I got on it Valentine's Day. You were in my class when I got it, you got one too.”

“Yeah, I wrote it.” He looked up with those puppy eyes shining. “I wrote it for Justice to make someone jealous.”

“You mean Hector?” Her serious look fell off her face. “He told me this morning. My big bro has a novio, big deal. I'm glad. You did not send it to me?” He looked almost crushed.

“Justice, did you have me write this so you could give it to Seth from me?” Her tone was curiously evil.

“Uh, duh. Like I couldn't just write it myself.” I looked at her like she was being a blond to even ask. She dug into her wallet and pulled out the card he had written.

“Hey, I wrote that! For Justice...who has been sneaky.” He looked at me with something akin to her tone, like he would get his revenge. “Big bro, did you tell her I think she's pretty?” Her eyes lit up.

“Nope, but you just did,” I said in a singsong voice. I laughed when his face turned beet red. It was just too cute. GAG! The evil laughter that came out of me made Jerry laugh.

“So you wrote this?” He nodded. “It's beautiful.” He beamed again and she leaned over to give him a kiss. He turned his head at the wrong time and she almost got his cheek, but she placed her hand on his cheek to turn him back to give him one on the lips. The entire stage fell silent. That was no stage kiss and by the wide eyes he was not expecting it...and not hating it either. “If you've come to apologize, don't. You were always nice to me when Steven was not looking.” I grinned. “Wipe that smirk off your face Justice. You could learn about being a sweetheart from Seth.” He hopped up next to her when she patted the stool.

“Who introduced those two?” asked Jerry.

“I did. He liked her, she thought he was cute, so I pulled a fast one on V day.” I told him about the roses and he grudgingly said it was romantic.

“It is,” said Gina. “I wish you looked at me like I hung the moon,” she shot at Jerry.

“He does, Gina, when you aren't looking.” I snitched. She smiled and kissed him. The things I do to keep my friends happy, I swear!

“So why hook them up?”

“I'm trying to get him away from Steven before Seth gets into a jam he can't get out of. Sarah agrees with me and is trying to give him a reason to break away.” Jerry nodded and finished his breakfast. I snagged two plates from the counter for me and Hector, but I could not make it back to the group because my former friends were blocking my way. “Guys,” I said in a sort if greeting that was part warning.

“Shut up you faggot loving bitch.” I nodded like he had gotten a good one on me. I was expecting it so I was not even remotely shocked. “Seth told us you were fucking the sissy boy. Maybe it's the other way around.”

“Actually, yeah. Best sex ever, by the way, way better than Torri, and I know why. It has to do with somethings you don't have. A heart and a soul. I'm man enough to say I love Hector, you're not even human enough to say you love yourself. So how about you get out of my way and I won't have to recall the fact that I can beat the tar out of each of you.” My voice was controlled and tight. If he wanted to go a round I would happily oblige him.

“Yeah, get out of his way.” Kai and two of the team were standing off to one side. Carl and Rafa were both on the offensive line and easily could take any two of the Crowd a piece. I gave them a grateful smile. Kai was cool, and I would expect it of him with what I knew, but the other two were just made cooler for backing me. They did not have to, but it looked like they were not the kind of people to hate just because the guy was gay.

“You standing up for this punk fucker?”

“Yeah. Justice may be gay, but that puts him way above you.” Kai shouldered through the crowd and stood next to me. He put his arm around my shoulder. “I have no problem seeing the fact that he's a cool dude, great quarterback, decent actor and the best damned writer I know. I'm not scared to have a gay quarterback behind me when we're on the line reaching his hands between my legs to grab the ball.” Rafa was laughing at the visual in his head and I was frankly kinda turned on by the image in mine. “You're afraid to even touch him. Afraid he'll pull you out of your homophobic closet with gay cooties?” Carl was chuckling. Rafa wiggled his fingers and made a ghost like ooh. Steven's face was getting redder by the minute.

“You fucking the sissy boy too, Kai?”

“Steven, I can say honestly I have never fucked Hector.” I grinned, knowing the truth. “The kid does give a dynamite blow job, though.” I almost dropped the tray as I laughed at the sheer disgust and bewilderment at how so masculine a guy could let another guy knock the dust off it that was painted all over Steven's face.

“You're a fucking faggot just like...” I saw it coming, Carl saw it coming, Rafa had been waiting for it, but Steven did not see it coming until he was laying on the ground. Kai had popped him one right in the snot box and dropped him with that one hit. Other than football Kai was a boxer. One swift punch was all it took, but that punch was deceptive. It looked light, but all of his weight and power was behind it. I would have been dropped too.

“That 'sissy boy' happens to be a really close friend, my girlfriend's cousin, and the boyfriend of my best friend Justice. If I ever hear you call him...no. If I ever hear you calling anyone who is gay a faggot or a punk I'll break you in two.” I was enjoying this. More so because there was a crowd forming and all of them seemed to be sneering at Steven like he was filth. I remembered some of their faces from the audience the day before and knew my message had been heard.

“Steven, old friend. Leave me and my boyfriend, and my other friends, alone. Everyone can see what a petty, pathetic creep you are. I doubt that any lovely lady here will ever give you the time of day now that your true colors are revealed.” Quite a few of the women nodded too. Hell, three of them he had slept with in the past year. “I doubt even desperate gay guys would sleep with you,” I grinned evilly, “even though you do have a fine ass.” I cocked my hip out and nibbled on my lower lip while I checked him out from toe to head and back down to his crotch. I would never do it, but it was well worth the revulsion in his eyes to make him think it. The look he gave me made me rethink saying that. There was such loathing that I knew he would not leave this alone. “So just get up and walk away.” He actually did too, shoving his way through the onlookers and holding his nose to stop the bleeding. The Crowd followed dutifully behind although I did see more than one re-evaluating his position. The onlookers applauded as I gave Kai a rough hug. “You are a brute, Kai. Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

“Don't mention it, bro. Kinda scary how you did that thing with the hip and lip.” I gave Carl and Rafa high fives. I got a decent shock when Rafa took Carl's hand.

“It must be catching. Are gay cooties real? If so then I just gave them to these two.” They pulled me into a three way hug and I got a noogie from Carl.

“These two actually told me they'd been dating since they were freshmen in HS. Introduced them to Hector who helped them tell their families.”

“God, have I been blind?”

“No, you just weren't looking. If the sleepless nights and that 'illness' last semester were anything to go by you've been pining over him for a while. You had your own problems to deal with to not see the love birds twittering at each other in the corner of the locker room.” I nodded. I had been occupied, but the thought of Rafa and Carl being together was great since they had been together for almost eight years. Not many same sex relationships lasted that long if rumors were true. And it was kinda hot! Two jocks going at it would turn Hector on so much that he may even surpass my libido. Maybe.

Hector came over with a smile and kissed me in front of the few remaining onlookers. They gave a few cat calls and some rather lewd comments, but it was not meant to hurt. They were letting us know that they were not like Steven, and I felt really lucky to have pulled my head out of my ass before it got stuck. “Want to join us for breakfast, boys?”

“Sure.” It must have looked very odd to those who still believed that cliques were supposed to be separate. The drama geeks were eating with some of the jocks, I was of both worlds so I did not count, two of which were dating and had been for eight years. There were also a few of the exchange students hanging out with Gina and Jerry. Sarah and Seth were still off in the corner chatting up a storm. Life was better for all of us.

 

By the end of the week every student had seen my skit and I gave an interview for the local newspaper on why I wrote it. “Call it karma. I was a real jerk in high school that I wanted to put the message out there that it's not cool to be that way. Call it my personal penance and community service. If one person sees it and changes their thinking then I did my job.” The guy from Berkley came back up and he brought the entire drama department just to see my skit. That way they can see what the author wanted it to be like. He offered me a nice sum of money to write a full length stage script. It would be my work, my name on it, but used solely by Berkeley...for now. He seemed to think that quite a few schools would want their own copies.

“Are you going to do it?” Hector asked me. We were in the dressing room for our last performance of our skit and of the year. One more time we had to say those campy, silly lines and kiss in front of everyone. One more time I had to worry Steve was going to go Columbine on me and Hector.

“I already did it. I sent them the script for a full production last night. If they want it they will pay me what I asked. I had a few lawyers at work help with the contract. Not for the money, but just to say 'I wrote that.' To be able to look back and say I did something right.” He shook his head fondly and gave me a kiss on my nose as the door burst inward.

“Guys, don't go out there.” Seth, the ubique barging expert at his finest.

“Why?”

“Steven's out for blood.” Our elation died with those four words.

“How do you know?”

“C'mon, Justice, I know what you guys say about me. That I'm slow, that if I was any dumber you'd have to water me twice a week.” I know I felt ashamed. I was guilty of thinking him slow, but the last line was just cruel. “I'm not bright, I know that, but I see things. I'm great at jigsaw puzzles. I get them. This entire semester had been one big puzzle that I finally knew more than the rest. So don't go out there.” His puppy eyes were glistening with tears. He was so adamant that both of us nodded. The sunshine came out as he smiled and gave us both quick hugs and dashed out again. “I'll tell Jerry.”

I looked at Hector and he nodded. We stripped out of our costumes and into regular clothes. All of my things had been shipped to the Senator's mansion, so I did not worry about leaving anything. The two of us slipped casually out the PA wing and into the music hall. God bless the thousand exits of any college. Even if Steven suspected we would leave he could not cover all the exits. Running for my car we were in and gone in under a minute. I thought we had made it, but no.

In my rear view mirror I saw Steven in his Tundra barreling towards us at top speed. “Hold on,” I said and took the turn onto the highway at close to eighty. My car was not the fastest, his Tundra would catch us in a straight run, but mine was suped up to corner like a dream. I did not have to worry about rolling her even at ninety.

“Where are we going?”

“The place where there will be the most witnesses.” This would be the final showdown and I could tell Hector knew it too. The car jerked as he hit the back of it. “Shit!” I changed lanes to avoid another collision and took the on ramp to I-5 south. He had to slow way down to make the turn so we gained some much needed distance.

That was when the CHP flashed their lights. “Not now!” Hector cried. I pulled over and sat there tapping my steering wheel while looking in my rear-view mirror for the missile that was a Toyota Tundra.

The officer got out of his car and sauntered up to the window. “License and registration please.” I handed them to him. “Mister Anderson, do you know how fast you were going?”

“Probably about eighty-five considering there is this psycho who is trying to run us off the road.” The officer took a breath to comment and it was his last.

Steven and his Tundra plowed into my car and the officer was caught in between them. He died instantly. My car was thrown over the guard rail and it tumbled down the embankment...I blacked out for a few moments and came to when someone pulled me out of the wreckage and smashed their fist into my face. “You fucking dick sucking bitch! I'm going to kill you for that little play!” I was so out of it that I could not even lift my arms to stop him.

But I could muster up one last retort. “I've won,” I choked out. It hurt to breathe, my leg was fast going numb from who knew what injury. “No matter what you do to me everyone will always know what you are.” I coughed up blood and spit it in his face. “You will be locked up for the rest of your life, and Hector will be safe.”

“He's dead, you punk fucker.” He spun me so I could see Hector laying motionless at the base of a tree. Beyond him the car was totaled. “I win.” I felt cold. My body was shutting down and my mind was getting sluggish, but I had one last act in me. One last parting shot. I took a shard of glass out of my leg, it no longer seemed to hurt really, and stabbed him in the gut. The wind whooshed from his lungs and he looked at me in shock. Blood welled out of his mouth and foamed a bit as he exhaled.

“But I'm not going down without taking you with me.” We both fell over.

* * *

Hector was in the ER for two days just to make sure he would live. He had a concussion, two broken ribs, a broken jaw and a new scar on the side of his head. Otherwise he was fine, physically. He had heard what Steven said but could not move to help Justice. He heard what his boyfriend had said. He had heard the finality in his tone and knew that he would never see him again.

Justice was dead.

Sarah had broken the news to him and only by sheer force of will did he not cry. It felt like someone had taken his heart and pulled out of his chest and suck a slab of ice in its place.“He...did he kill Steven?” he asked through a wired jaw.

“No. He's in ICU, but he'll live. He's been brought up on so many charges that it is actually funny. He won't see freedom again. Ever. He may get the death penalty.” The man nodded and shut his eyes. He could see Justice there. He saw the first time he walked into Homeroom their junior year in high school looking like a Mr. Hard Body calendar model. Hector had wanted to talk to him, to welcome him to the school, but the ramrod posture, brutal haircut and cold look in his eyes told Hector he would not like to talk to a queer.

He saw him pulling Steven off of him through the blood red haze of his beating and wondered why the guy did it. Why help someone you obviously hated? He remembered the look on his face when Hector had thanked him for saving his life. He had been so shocked but so relieved that Hector was going to live. Then Hector saw how much he had changed over that summer. He still ran with the Crowd, but he did not seem to be a part of it any more. Whenever Steven was not looking his face was troubled. It was obvious to Hector he did not like the politics any more. They had sat next to each other at graduation and Justice had offered his congratulations on being valedictorian. He seemed honest. Hector saw him schlep into drama feeling so out of place and how he struggled to better himself still, even after all the problems they had.

He saw that look in his eyes the first time they had kissed, that longing that Hector had been denying could ever be there...

Hector stopped trying to think about him at least for a moment and opened his eyes. “He's getting charged, right?”

Sarah nodded. She had just told him that, but he may have something wrong in his head the doctor's did not know about. “Murder, stalking, harassment, hate crimes...the works. He'll be someone's prison bitch for the rest of his life.” Hector nodded and turned away. Justice had prevailed then, but the cost was too high. “I know you miss him. It's okay to cry. I've been bawling like a baby.” Sarah was trying to be comforting. She wanted him to grieve, to get that part over with, and remember the good times.

“He would want me to move on and forget him. To smile...this is the best I can do right now.” She nodded. That was probably what he would want too, but it was not what Hector wanted or needed. Funerals and wakes are for the living, not the dead. The best gift Hector could give him was to tuck him away in his heart and move on to better things than this pain and misery.

 

Hector was at home dressing for court. He had offered his testimony and statements to the cops and the DA. There would be no trial, Steven was urged to take a deal by his father so Steven would go on living in prison instead of being put to death by lethal injection. The sentencing hearing would be short, there was no way he could even appeal it with his past. “Honey, you have a letter from Berkeley.”

Hector was fixing his tie as he walked to the living room. His Mom held out the letter. It was from the admissions office. He opened it and read, his jaw falling open. “I've been asked to attend on full scholarship.” His voice was a whisper. “Mom, Justice...he said that they needed to consider me for acceptance or they could not have his play.” He took a shuddering breath. Then he sobbed out all the pain he had kept bottled up for the past month and cried. Even in death Justice had done his best to make sure he was happy and secure. How, he was not sure, but Justice had done it. Hector cried out his hurt and wailed out his sorrow until he could not shed another tear and he was drying his face as they entered the court. All the drama department was there, Seth holding Sarah's hand. “You two get hooked up?” he asked, his voice so raw.

“Yeah.” Seth pulled him into a hug, which was kinda awkward since he was almost a foot shorter than Hector. “You got your letter?” Hector nodded. “Sarah got one too. Me too. I'm on a Criminal Justice scholarship. Forensics.” Hector could not even stop himself from gaping. Seth laughed. “Hey, it's all one big puzzle. I get it, you know?”

So Justice had made sure his friends were all given an opportunity to move on. “All rise.” As one the courtroom audience stood. “The honorable judge Clark Luther presiding.” The judge walked in and sat.

“You may be seated.” The scraping of chairs and the shuffling of feet was the only sound. Everyone was here to see Justice win postmortem. “Will the defendant please rise.” Steven stood somewhat. He could not stand up straight with a hundred stitches in his stomach. “In the case of The State of California versus Steven Anthony Jackson the sentencing is as follows. On the count of Murder in the Second degree you have plead guilty. You will receive no less than fifteen years in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. On the charges of stalking of more than four people you will receive no less than twelve years to run consecutive of charge A. For the charges of harassment of the same victims you will receive no less than eight years to run consecutive to Charges A and B. The minor traffic violations have been waived. And finally for the crimes of discrimination against a creed, gender, race and sexual orientation which led to the Death of one person you will be sentenced to no less than twenty-five years. The total is no less than sixty years with a life cap because your juvenile record dealt specifically with two of the victims. Do you have any final words?” Steven shook his head. The gavel thundered in the room. Justice had prevailed.

 

Hector and the rest of Berkeley’s drama department had been studying their lines for months. It was the opening night of Justice's full stage play and many people were there who had as much influence as the Governor. They had come to see what sparked such an upheaval in the north state. The piece was titled “Let Justice be Done,” and Hector had never been so nervous. He and Sarah were playing the parts they had in their community college to keep the style what the author wanted. That had not been part of Justice's contract, but since they knew the lines and knew Justice so intimately it was only natural they should play their original roles. The house lights went down and Sarah rushed onto the stage to take her place on the couch. When the curtain parted and the lights came on Hector gave one last inaudible sigh and stormed on stage. “I hate him!”

“Need I ask who him is, Franky, or is this the same him you have hated for a while now?” She did not look up from her book where she lounged in the couch.

“Is there ever any other 'him' I hate?” He took off his ROTC uniform shirt and hung it over the back of the chair. With a marching stalk he moved to the couch and plopped down onto it when she moved her legs for him to do so. She then put her legs in his lap.

“What did Steven do this time? Should I kick him where it hurts?”

“I think he should be kicked where it hurts just on general principle, but then you would not get laid. I still don't know what you see in that homophobic asshole other than the fact that he's hung like a horse. As to what he did...I have twenty hours of KP duty to work off because he was making some pretty rude gestures with his hands.” He mimed a few of the tamer ones which were pretty darned graphic. “I got mad when he pointed to Alex.”

“Ah. You never did like it when people used you against anyone else. I will never understand why you being gay and in ROTC is such a bad thing. Should I have a talk with Steven? Or is he going to be limping like the last time?”

“Limping and looking like a raccoon. I got him in the nose.” He held up his fist and gave it a few strong shakes. With his hat on no one could see his long hair so it was believable he was a young man in ROTC and not 19 years old.

“Good. Not only do you get your revenge...again...but I will probably have to play the concerned girlfriend and have sex with him to prove he's a man...DARN!” She gave and “awe shucks” snap across her body and a few people chuckled in the audience...

The play went perfectly and as the curtain fell and their mics were turned off Hector ran over to Sarah and fell into her arms. He was so emotionally drained, so wrung out like a wet dish towel, that he did not want to even take his bows. “He would be so proud of you right now.” He nodded but stayed there for a moment longer. All she could do was hug him and rub his back. Sarah knew he would be long in getting over him, if he ever did. Hector was a true lover and when he loved he loved deeply. Yet only Justice had ever made him fall in love. “C'mon, star, the curtain can't open until you're ready.” The applause was deafening even muted by the curtains. He did not have the energy anymore. He had done this play, this one play, all for Justice, but now...his heart was no longer willing to do it. Hector had given his all for this one performance, yet he had to finish it, he had to put on his best brave face for the audience, had to get that curtain open so his beloved could look at him from wherever he was and smile.

He nodded and they formed a line as the curtains parted for their bows. It was a standing ovation and there was no eye that did not look freshly wiped or that was still crying. Hector could see his family was there, all of them. All of his sisters and their children, husbands, and even their siblings and parents were all here for the debut of this piece. His old college pals were there for his community college and he grinned his best stage smile. Matt had come, Jason had come. Meg and Caleb had come here as the first stop on their honeymoon after being married that morning. Even a few of the Crowd were there looking on with new outlooks on life. Everyone was there...even Senator Anderson, Justice's Father, was front row. That smile faltered for the smallest of moments. Hector had never spoken to the man and did not really feel like having it out with him over the death of his son.

The head of the department came to the mic and waited for the applause to die down before he spoke. “Tonight is a very special night for this cast,” said the Dean of Arts. “Justice Anderson, the author of this piece, wanted to get out a message. You will see in your bills that two of our cast were in the original short skit and I think they kept us on track. I know that Mr. Anderson is proud of these fine people and how they performed so well this piece that was supposed to be just an assignment for school.” Hector was thinking that Justice would be proud, but this teacher did not know Justice, he did not know all the story behind the play, all the lessons it took for him to finally write such perfection.

There was thunderous applause again and Hector nodded...but they were not looking at them. They were looking stage right. “We have a surprise guest here tonight.” The teacher gestured and Hector looked and he could not believe his eyes. “May I present Justice Anderson.”

* * *

Damn my leg, I cursed while I waited for the Dean to hurry with his little speech. I leaned on my cane and waited behind the curtain and out of sight of the cast, yet I could see Hector. God he looked so beautiful, so much more than the memories that had paled compared to the real man, yet I could see such sadness in his eyes, such sorrow that told me he had not gotten over me in the months since the attack. “My poor baby,” I whispered and wanted to run to him, but hell, I could barely walk let alone run. When the Dean Finally gave me my cue I started forward and I watched Hector's eyes go from numb to disbelief and then to such joy that I hated not telling him I was going to live. I knew it would come long before he moved so I was able to get my good leg back to brace for impact. He launched himself at me and I caught him in a hug that had the audience cheering.

I was crying on his shoulder even as he was soaking mine. “I hate you. Why didn't you tell me?” he asked so quietly I almost did not hear him. He was pounding his fist against my chest but each one was less and less powerful until he rested his hand there. It felt so good to hold him again, so right to have him in my arms. I had waited for this moment all those months in recovery and rehabilitation.

“I'll explain later.” I pulled back and let him know that I was not going to leave him and held out my arms for Sarah and Seth. “All of you guys did great. I am so proud of you. I can't believe I wrote this.” The entire cast came over to shake my hand and pat me on the back even though I had only met them once. I was wiping away more than my tears as I took Hector's hand and hobbled to the podium. My leg hurt something fierce and I did not want to stand on it longer than I had to. When I got there I was beaming my best smile. Gradually the audience quieted. “Thank you all for being here for the opening night. As you can see the reports of my demise were a bunch of hype.” That got a bit of a chuckle. “I've been asked what inspired me to write this. The reason is not a what but a whom.” I smiled over at Hector who had not taken his eyes off of my face since he saw me. Those stunning blue eyes that were so filled with love and streaming tears. “Hector is that reason. I was as bad as the Steven character in high school and I made this man's life hell. It took him almost being killed by those I called friend to bring me to my senses. I was not a good person if I let them beat Hector for simply being gay. He thanked me for standing up to them when he could walk no better than I can right now.” He wiped away a tear and smiled. “His example of forgiveness even of his least favorite person changed me. Then by some twist of fate I simply had to have Fine Arts credits. Can't sing, hate the trumpet, sorry Dad,” that got another chuckle and a small smile from my Father, “so I chose the least of all evils. I took drama. I learned so much from Hector and Sarah and the rest of the class on being not only a better actor but a better person.” I gestured to Sarah and she blushed a bit, but when I gestured to my old classmates in the audience they stood up and waved as if they were the main stars. The applause was filled with laughter at the antics. “Drama queens, I swear! Seriously.

“I saw that prejudice was still so strong. It hurt me to see this man and our friends being ridiculed because they were gay, or voluptuous.”

“Say it right, Justice, I'm fat,” yelled Sarah and got a laugh. I grinned at her and blew her a kiss.

“Fine, fat. Or in need of watering twice a week.” Seth grinned. “These people are different, just like everybody else. No one was willing to say 'hey, that guy is a great actor' or 'she has a dynamite smile and should be on the football team.'” That got a balled up fist from Sarah and some nervous chuckles from the remainder of the Crowd. “All they saw was that he liked guys.” My face was serious and only made more so by the throbbing in my leg. “So I wrote this as a wake up call. I set the stage in a place where prejudice is drilled into the minds of young people. I know, I was in ROTC and I learned to hate gays there. But Hector helped me so much. Then, great holy God he kissed me! Cooties!” I smiled as they laughed. “I have never been the same since I went to drama, and I am glad to say in front of everyone here that my boyfriend Hector is one of the best people to ever know...the big sissy.

“There is also one unsung hero of this play, the one whose life this was loosely based off of. While I was ROTC one of the cadets killed himself because of the prejudice against gays. His home life was trash, his military life was days without end of slander and hatred directed at anything they deemed too liberal. He could find no peace in his life or even within himself. He hung himself because he was gay and would have been hated for that reason. So please take a moment of your time when you get home this evening to look up the real story of the cadet. You'll find his name in the dedications page. So, I want to thank you for coming. If you learned anything tonight my job is done. If you have any questions or concerns for yourself or family members when dealing with prejudice there are several phone numbers in the backs of your playbills. Help is only a hand away. Will you be the one to offer it?” I nodded and was escorted off the stage by the entire cast. The college class came storming on the stage to greet me, with Matt, Jason, Caleb and especially Meg beating them to the punch.

“I aught to wring your neck J,” Meg said as she hugged me tightly.

“No thanks, been there. So, Mrs. Martin, congrats.” I looked at Caleb as he came up with a smile. “I guess I don't have to kill you for doing things to my sister.” He shook his head and my hand. I got double teamed by Jas and Matt, a solid punch to each shoulder and a solid kiss to each cheek. “Yuck! Gay cooties! Help! Gay bashing!” They just rolled their eyes. They were used to my own form of drama.

Once in the wings I sat down on one of the couches and groaned. It felt too good to get the pressure off my leg. The hideous scar I thought I would have from the glass was actually quite small and not even I could see the scars where they had to reconstruct me left cheek bone. I would never play football again, but I was fine with that. I had something I like to do more. “Go ahead...lemme have it,” I said to Hector.

He let me have it alright. I could never forget how his lips felt on mine, but it had been months since and I had forgotten how much I missed him. The kiss was soft, his lips trembling with emotion, but in those few seconds I knew he had never once stopped loving me. I slid my arms around him and pulled him onto my good leg. It felt so good to be with him again that I never wanted it to end. Hard to believe it had been so few days in the months since I had seen him last, thinking he was dead until I had to beg my father to tell me if he was. When he did finally check it out three weeks later Hector had been out of the hospital for almost that whole time. “You are in trouble.”

I grinned. “I know.” I leaned in and whispered in his ear. “There are a few more positions I can think of to punish me with.” He shivered and laughed. “I hope you're not mad at me.” I was so happy to see him, to hold him, that I knew if he was furious I would break down and cry for him to take me back and not be mad. I would do anything to keep him.

“Why didn't you tell me? You could have written or called or e-mailed or sent a damned pigeon... something!”

“I went into hiding. Steven's father is a very rich man and I was sending his son away to prison for life. Who knows to what lengths he would have gone to shut me up. Father and the lawyers squirreled me away in Oregon in a small clinic there under a fake name. Like witness protection program only informally done. The son of a senator is, I guess, allotted some privileges. They,” I swallowed back the tears, “They told me I should remain dead until after the sentencing dates and he was officially in custody.” The tears fell anyway. I was very surprised I had any tears left I had cried so many of them recently. “I wanted so much to tell you I was going to be fine, relatively speaking, but they said you could not be trusted not to keep it a secret. They don't know how good of an actor you are.” I smiled but it fell away. “I think that has hurt the most. Not seeing you and not being able to tell you I would live.” He smiled a sick sort of grin. “Also I did not want you to see me like that. I know you had to go through therapy afterward, but I did not want sympathy. I wanted you to see me after the major suffering.” He looked confused. “I have a very low tolerance for pain and become a very crabby person. I did not want to take it out on you. I have very little image left and I wanted to hold on to that last shred of dignity.”

He seemed to understand that part at least. “When were you healed enough to leave the clinic?”

“About four days ago. I knew this was coming up and figured I could surprise you.”

He gave me a big grin. I did not think he was mad anymore, but I knew I would be in big trouble once I was healthy enough for him to really punish me...I looked forward to it. “You are still in trouble mister.” He kissed me again but broke off when we heard a very loud throat clearing, one I knew very well.

My Father had come up on stage and was shaking his head, which was just about the only part of him he could really move except for his hands and forearms. Hector went to get off my lap, looking scared and shy. “Stay where you are, young man, I need to get use to the fact that my son is gay. In for a dollar and all that.”

Father and I had a big talk when I was stable. I told him everything I had either been too scared to say or just did not feel like telling him. He listened for several hours a day for two weeks, his career on hold so he could do it. I found out that my first beating at the hands of Steven scared him. He realized we were not close, but he did not know how to bridge that gap. It took another near death mangling for him to drop by and have the talk we should have had years ago. He took me dating a guy in stride and we only shouted at each other for an hour, a record low for us. “Did you enjoy the show?” I asked. We had settled on a sort of political ceasefire.

“I did. All of you did quite admirably. It has been too long since my school days to recall if I saw such happenings, but I'm sure I did. It is a shame that it takes such tragedy to bring about change.” All of us nodded. “I must get back to the capital, Justice. I've been gone long enough. Hector, I do hope you can be a better friend to him than I was. He needs it and you.” He wheeled away in his power chair, leaving Hector with his mouth open.

“I was not expecting that.” I honestly could not guess what he had expected other than hatred or at least bare civility.

“I gave him no choice. Either he accepts this or he can stay the hell out of my life. Then the shouting happened, but it ended up with a truce.” I smiled at my boyfriend, content to just sit there with him on my lap, surrounded by friends. One last group of people made their way back stage. I had left a list of people I would see and I was ambivalent about these five. The Crowd had come to see us. Yippee skippy...not! “Guys,” I said neutrally. I was not going to make this easy on them. Petty, but I'm the one who had to spend the last six months learning how to walk. There was a huge elephant of a silence that descended and I was not going to fill it.

“We're just glad you ain't dead,” was all they said before they left.

Hector gave me a look that said I was being an ass. It was not their fault any of this happened...per se. They could have stopped Steven, but that would have required independent thought. I sighed. “Hey, guys, want to join us for the party later? Catch up on old times?” My boy gave me a big hug and kiss on the cheek. The things I did to make him happy...and I owed him one big. I watched them register the shock of the invite and then the kiss. I think the invite shocked them more, Lord knows they had seen me kiss him before.

“Yeah, Justice, if that's okay with everyone.” They specifically checked with Hector, Sarah, and Seth. When they all nodded we parted on neutral ground.

“You know they'll just latch on to us now, right?” I asked with fake exasperation. They were followers and unfortunately we were leaders.

“Good, that way they have good role models. Queers, fat chicks and retards.” I laughed and nudged him to get up. Seth pulled me to me feet and steadied me. “I'll be back after I change and get this make-up off.” I nodded.

Sarah came over to wrap her arm around my waist. I caught something glittering on her hand and looked. “No!” I smiled and looked at Seth who had the biggest grin. “God, I cannot believe this. When's the date?” I could not believe the people I had set up were getting married! Stupid cupid, that's me. All because of a silly V Day set up.

“Christmas,” said my chum, “and I would love it if you were my best man. You did introduce us.” I had never seen him so happy and I was glad for him, for her. Who knew they would hit it off? Not me! At most I had hoped for a few dates and Seth getting out from Steven's thumb.

“Hell yeah! Who's the maid of honor? I will have to walk her down the aisle and she should not clash with the wonder that I will be.”

“Hector,” said Sarah and I laughed so hard I had to sit back down. I had missed this. And I would have missed it if it were not for all the drama. “He even agreed to wear an off the shoulder dress...in red, white and green.” I could not catch my breath for more than a few minutes. Meg and Caleb left to go on the rest of their honeymoon but most of the college crew stayed. I almost died again when Hector came back, the others drifting away to change.

“What is so funny?” he asked as he resumed sitting on my lap.

“Just thinking about what to wear to compliment your bride's maid dress for the wedding.” His eyes narrowed dangerously.

“I only agreed to do it when I lost a stupid bet,” he growled out. I knew he was no woman, not with that thing between his legs.

“I think you're going to look sexy...especially after I take it off of you.” He raised a brow and then the other when he felt me getting hard. The grin on his face was elation mixed with pure evil. Those plump cheeks began to rhythmically squeeze and relax, in effect giving me a lap dance mixed with a hand job. “Careful, Hector, I may not be able to walk very well, but he's fine and has been waiting for you.” I pulled him close. “I have not even jacked off since the crash,” I whispered into his ear which made him shiver and groan.

“Then I think we can be late to the party. Should only take a minute.”

Actually we were an hour late...but no one said anything about the big grin on his face that stayed there all night...or about the fact that he seemed to be sitting a bit tenderly.

 

THE END