Never Too Late To Change - 7. Making Plans

Andy stretched lazily, like a cat. Then he lay spreadeagled on the bed, the sheet covering only part of his torso.

Ahh.... Thank god, it was Saturday. No need to leap out of bed and get dressed in a hurry. He did sometimes have appointments at the weekend, but not today. A broad smile. Not that he could imagine himself leaping or any other violent activity right at that moment. He'd just about managed to take another quick shower, and then it was back to bed.

Andy sighed contentedly, then in his head, replayed some of the passionate scenes from the past hour or so. God, an early morning, loving fuck was the best way to start the day. Having Adam's cock inside him was bliss – something that was meant to be. And Adam knew how to use it as well, creating sensations in his body which were amazing for them both. He'd made so much noise as he came, he wouldn't be surprised if the neighbours had heard. Andy blushed slightly.They were so compatible in matters of the bedroom; Adam was often the dominant one, but they both enjoyed being versatile on occasion. Swapping roles was one of the ways they kept their sex life interesting, unpredictable.

Andy had long since come to the conclusion that he couldn't imagine his future life without Adam. He toyed with the plain, platinum ring which never left his finger. As it should be, he supposed, given they were planning to marry next year. He'd already given a lot of thought to their wedding day. They both wanted a small, fairly restrained civil ceremony somewhere out in the countryside, with a large, lavish reception afterwards. That way, they could entertain all their friends and colleagues without swamping the actual wedding.

Hmmm … it was about time he raised the subject again with Adam if they were aiming for the following summer. The best venues were booked out many months in advance. They'd already listed their favourites. If they waited too long, they'd be stuck with somewhere neither of them wanted.

“What are you looking so dreamy about?” Adam came out of the bathroom, still towelling his hair.

“What d'you think? You. Us.” Andy smiled at him, patting the empty sheet beside him. “Come back to bed, love.”

Adam laughed. He sat down on the edge of the bed, next to his fiancé, and kissed him. “Haven't we done enough to satisfy even you this morning, you insatiable monster?”

“ Hmm …?” Andy pretended to think. “Nope. I'm sure I can never have enough of you. And certainly not … this part of you …”

Adam lightly slapped the hand that was heading towards his groin. He was nearly laughing again. “Stop it! You're sex mad, you are.”

“Ever think you might be the reason? You, armed and dangerous, with that weapon of yours?” Another kiss, a grope. Laughter.

“You flatterer. Though I know who it is who gets me hard in an instant …” Adam paused, long enough for Andy to raise an eyebrow. “You, of course, you idiot.” Adam blew his fiancé a kiss. “OK. You know we've both got jobs to do this morning, and I'm off shopping this afternoon. Aren't you meant to be sorting some things out for Eric?”

Andy stretched himself again. “Yes – various errands at the library. Which, I think, is only open until one.” He sighed. “You are my conscience.”

Adam sniggered. They both swiftly got dressed – no fussing with work clothes, though they still wanted to look good.

Adam stood, combing his hair. “You seem quite taken by Eric …”

“I am. We got off to a bad start, as you know …”

Adam rolled his eyes.

“But now, I can see things happening for him. He deserves it – if only because of what we have and he doesn't … You know, that thought keeps on coming back to me.”

“Which thought, hun?” Adam was picking his stuff up from the bedside table, and was only half listening.

“That back when he was a young man, you and I would probably never have had the chance to meet? That we would've had to lead false lives, or risk imprisonment, or enforced quack treatments.”

Andy moved round to his partner's side of the bed and embraced him from behind. He nuzzled Adam's neck, then whispered in his ear.

“And that neither of us would have had the joy and pleasure of being lovers. Of making plans to marry.”

He reached round and lovingly cupped and fondled Adam's balls through their denim covering. Then he stroked the length of his man's cock, making it plump up a little. Adam gasped lightly, standing up straighter, pushing himself into his lover's hand. Then he turned round in the embrace, and gave Andy a passionate, toe curling kiss. They broke apart finally, still looking deep into each other's eyes.

Adam spoke first. “We are so lucky to follow in their footsteps. Those men's suffering, and the ongoing struggle, have made our lives together possible. We would do well not to forget that.” A short silence. Then Adam smiled, and tapped Andy's backside a couple of times. “Don't think I need to tell you which is my favourite part of you …”

Andy looked fake surprised, then grinned suggestively and wiggled his arse. Adam smiled back and shook his head in mock remonstration.

“Come on. Otherwise, we'll never get anything done today.” Gently, he pushed Andy away.

Andy adopted a hangdog, disappointed expression, and turned round. Adam grinned mischievously, took the opportunity offered, and gave Andy's arse another quick slap, making him yelp.

They both headed downstairs for a quick breakfast.

Andy stood on the pavement outside the town's public library, trying to remember the last time he'd been inside. When he was a student? Possibly. In which case, that made it seven years or so.

Now, hardly anything in his life even made him think about using a bricks-and-mortar library, never mind visit one. Most things that he needed in that way were available digitally – he had an e-reader app on his tablet, and if he needed a physical book, he bought it.

Andy went inside. The library was busy, but most people appeared to be interested in things other than books. He found the general area for novels easily enough without seeing anything marked specifically as LGBT. After wandering round for a short time and finding nothing, he asked a volunteer member of staff for help.

“Hi. I haven't been in for quite some time, but there used to be a small section of gay and lesbian writing?”

The assistant, an older woman, looked blank. “I'm sorry. I don't know that we still have any. If you'll excuse me for a moment, I'll ask one of my colleagues.”

While she went off in search of someone more knowledgeable, Andy's eyes lighted on the row of public computers nearby. They were already busy.

That was the other thing he'd thought of. What were his chances of persuading Eric to give computers a go? Possibly not that great, but he'd certainly push it. If Eric was serious about exploring what being gay meant, he wouldn't get far without going on-line. So much stuff was only available that way. It wasn't as if there was a thriving gay community in their town. Not even their local city had very much.

But … he wasn't going to have the time to teach Eric about computers. Or the patience, if he was honest. Eric would have to be taught the absolute basics. How to use a mouse, how a computer keyboard functioned. He himself had grown up using computers in one guise or another, and he still found it hard to believe that millions of people in his own country, had little or no experience of the digital world.

Apart from anything else, it was increasingly difficult to live life without an on-line presence. And he wasn't thinking about social media, apps, or networking – even many mundane, everyday things needed an email address at the least. Both local and central government were moving rapidly towards relying on e-contacts and operations.

Part of his task with Eric was to give him the tools he needed to lead an independent life. How to use a computer was definitely one of those. He only had so much time he could spend doing things like making the applications for Eric's additional benefit payments. Anything Eric was able to do for himself would be useful. And, anyway, he didn't think Eric would appreciate being sat next to him while the old man discovered gay websites.

The woman assistant hurried back. “Sorry to have kept you waiting. What we have is over here.”

She led him over to a far corner of the library and showed him an area which was obviously a sort of library graveyard. There was no-one else browsing, or indeed, anywhere nearby. A quick glance along showed Andy the shelves housed those areas of stock which policy dictated the library had to have, but which didn't get borrowed. Poetry, short stories, books by Asian or African heritage authors, and gay fiction were all lumped together. The bookshelves were untitled.

The woman was apologetic. “They don't really get borrowed, which is why they're back here. We don't have that much. You can request other books from the city library – they'd have more, I expect.”

Andy held back a reply about self-fulfilling prophecies in relation to how the stock was displayed, and thanked her.

“Oh, and while I'm here. How does it work with the computers? I've a friend who might want to use one.”

“You're allowed up to five hours a week, free of charge. You do need to be a library member.”

Hmm. Sounded promising. Andy had another question. “Is there any kind of tuition available? My friend would be starting right from scratch.”

The assistant thought for a moment. “There're computer buddies. People who volunteer to help those less used to computers. Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, I think, are their usual time.”

That was about what Eric needed. No money required, a computer, and people who'd be able to help him. Andy made a note on his phone. The assistant left him to browse. The selection was indeed nothing much, but it was at least still there. He chose a couple of likely looking titles and smiled at the cliched cover illustrations. OK, they might be banal to his eyes, but they wouldn't be to Eric. They would be special for the old man – the start of a new phase in his life.

Andy spent a moment trying to remember the first gay book he'd read. He'd forgotten both the title and the author. However the feelings it had evoked as he read, that he recalled clearly. He'd shut himself in his bedroom one evening and devoured it in one go. The tender, honest writing resulted in a burst of revelation and acceptance in his questioning teenage mind. Andy smiled at the memories, picked up the books, and headed off to get them issued.

Later in the afternoon, Andy was stretched out on the sofa, beer in hand, watching the football on the TV. His concentration was broken by the sound of the front door opening and closing – Adam had been out buying Christmas presents.

Putting his beer down, Andy roused himself. “Hi, love. There's a beer waiting in here, if you want it.”

Adam took off his coat and left his shopping bags in the hallway. He came in and collapsed into a chair.

“God, I hate Christmas shopping.”

After a moment or two spent slumped, Adam eased his shoes off with a sigh of relief.

Andy grinned as he reached out and handed the promised beer to his partner. He turned the sound down on the TV.

“From the noises off, it sounds as though you've been successful?”

Adam took a well-earned drink straight from the bottle. An expression of bliss appeared briefly.

“Yeah. Not bad. I managed to get most things. Still not sure what to get your parents, though. The glassware we thought of wasn't in stock. If you have any other ideas …” His lip curled. “It's not the shopping part that gets me. It's finding the parking space, fighting your way through the crowds, and the incessant bloody muzak. Twenty minutes in one shop, and I've now got that sodding Slade song going round my head.”

Andy chuckled. His partner's tastes in music were more jazz and funk. Why shops thought seasonal music was a good idea, was something he'd never understood. He avoided the shops at Christmas as much as he could.

“Why you don't buy your stuff on-line? So much easier.” It wasn't the first time he'd made that suggestion.

Adam frowned slightly. “And impersonal. It doesn't support local businesses or craftspeople. Keep shopping local? Our local shops can't survive in a vacuum. You'd be one of the first to complain if the town centre was nothing but betting shops, nail salons, and coffee places.”

Andy rolled his eyes. This was one of Adam's pet campaigns. One which their town had been promoting vigorously in the period leading up to Christmas.

“I like the idea of it, and I do support local food suppliers, but otherwise, it's so much easier and cheaper to just click.”

Adam grunted. “And if everyone did the same as you?”

Andy smiled to himself, not feeling it necessary to reply. This was a recycled conversation which got a regular outing. Adam did have a point, though. Maybe he'd have a wander later in the week – see if anything caught his eye for his mother. Or Adam, for that matter.

Andy looked over and saw that Adam had already nearly finished his beer. He sniggered quietly.

Adam heard him nevertheless. “I spent most of the afternoon looking forward to this. … How'd it go at the library?”

“Pretty well. I borrowed a couple of books for Eric, although the choice was limited, to say the least. I also got a good idea about how to introduce him to computers.”

Adam raised his eyebrows. “Good luck with that.”

“I dunno … I think he fears and distrusts anything he's not used to, like many older people. It'll be getting him past the initial hurdle that'll be the trouble. My guess is he'll try it, at least. He needs to – for all sorts of reasons.”

They were both distracted by sudden, muted cheering from the crowd - a goal was being scored in the match. Having missed most of the action the first time round, they watched the replays closely.

Andy took up the thread again. “I thought I'd go round and visit Eric tomorrow. Take him the books and talk to him about the computers?”

“As in, Sunday?” Adam looked over at his partner.

“Err... yeah?”

“Hun, we're visiting your parents for a late lunch tomorrow. You know it'll be early evening before we're back. We agreed to a bike ride in the morning? The weather sounds as though it's going to hold … ”

Andy grimaced. “Oh, for fuck's sake. I've got a memory like a sieve. Sorry, love. I'll give him a ring, and make it Monday or Tuesday. Probably Monday, I think.”

Adam got up. He leant over and kissed Andy, then ruffled his hair. “No worries. You ready for some food?”

“Yeah, ravenous.”

They both headed off to the kitchen for some refuelling.