Bloodlines - 8. Chapter 8

August 9, 1998

I went down to grab a late breakfast before we headed to the airport. I couldn't get the smile off my face. Cody should write his own Kama Sutra. The guy was an unbelievable lover. Alejandro was in the kitchen and just glared at me. For everything good in my life, like Cody, there had to be an asshole, like Alejandro.

“Morning,” I said as cheerfully as I could manage. He added a frown to his glare, which was a shame, because he really was a cute guy. “You look hot when you smile,” I said. It was fun to see his reaction to that. First he smiled, then he frowned again, and then he just looked at me. I got it now. He was an attention whore. He needed to be the focus. Once I figured him out, I reasoned, I'd be able to handle him.

“You must be Matt,” said a woman's voice. I stood up instinctively to find a very attractive woman in front of me.

“I am.”

“I'm Jeanine. I'm Darius, JJ, and Will's mother.” She had a different way about her than most of the women I'd been around. Still, she was pretty nice. I'd do her.

“It's nice to meet you,” I said as I extended my hand.

“I'm sorry I wasn't here when you arrived,” she said. She almost sounded like Mummy when she said that. “I was in New Jersey visiting my family.”

“That's quite alright,” I said, sounding like I was at the club. It was all very strange. “Your sons are great.”

“So you say. As for me, I'm looking forward to the start of school,” she said, then laughed. She had a really pretty laugh. “And how are you, Alejandro?”

“Shitty,” he said, and glared at me.

“Are you going to Palo Alto with us?” I asked, giving him my ‘I'll fuck you’ look. It didn't work.

“No!” Then he stormed out of the room.

“If I were to draw a brilliant deduction from that, I'd say you were sleeping with Cody,” she said, unfazed by Alejandro's weirdness.

“That's remarkably insightful of you,” I said back, unable to restrain myself from flirting.

“Yes, it would be, if Brad hadn't already told me.” That made us both laugh. “So you're going to Escorial? It's a big place.”

“I've seen big houses,” I said. I mean, these guys had nice stuff, and this place in Malibu was cool, but it's not like I'd grown up in a ghetto. Shaker Heights was full of big houses. I grew up in a big fucking house.

“Good. It will be nice to have someone go there and not be over-awed by it.” Stefan walked in, looking flustered. Then he saw Jeanine and smiled broadly.

“You are back!” he said, and gave her a kiss on each cheek in the French fashion. “You are going to Palo Alto with us?”

“No, I just got home. You can have all the fun,” she said. “It was nice to meet you Matt. I'll see you later tonight.”

“Nice to meet you too,” I said.

“We must get going,” Stefan said. “I called the plane and told them we'd be late. Where are Brad and Robbie?” He seemed stressed.

“Relax,” I said. “The plane will be there when we're ready.” He looked at me, irked at first, then smiled.

“I am sorry. I think I was channeling my former partner,” he said. “Still, we will need to get our group together.” JP came in then, and he was followed by Brad and Robbie. They both had overnight bags, as did I. Even though we weren't staying over, we were staying for dinner, and Brad had explained that dinners on Sunday at Escorial were a dressy affair. I went upstairs to check on Cody.

“We're just waiting for you,” I said.

“I thought I'd stay here and get some stuff done,” he said. I got the feeling that he didn't feel completely welcome on this trip.

“Well, if you're really busy, I don't want to fuck up your day.” He knew there was a ‘but’ coming. “I really have no right to ask you, because you've done so much already, but it would be great if you were there.”

“You don't need me there,” he said.

“I want you there,” I told him. I looked at him, hoping that he wouldn't make me whine and beg like a chick, that he'd understand that his being there would give me strength when I needed it most.

He nodded and got up. “Let's go.” Cody grabbed a suitcase he'd apparently packed, which told me that he'd labored with this decision. He put his arm around me affectionately, guiding me from the room and right into Alejandro. “You going?” Cody asked him.

“Fuck you,” Alejandro said and stormed off. I tried not to laugh.

“So I've never fucked on a plane before. Want my cherry?” I asked.

“Baby, I'll eat your cherries any time,” he said. “Alejandro is still pissed off at me. And he hates you too.”

“I'll fix that tomorrow when you're at work,” I said.

“Oh? And how exactly are you going to do that?”

“I'm gonna fuck him,” I said. It seemed pretty obvious to me.

“That may work,” he said, but seemed a little bothered by it.

“Is that OK?” I asked.

“You don't have to get my permission to fuck someone,” he said, the irritation palpable in his voice.

“I'm not asking for your permission, I'm asking for your advice,” I said, but it came out snippy. I grabbed his arm, stopping him to get his attention. “And I like you, so I don't want to hurt your feelings.”

He kissed me instead. “You're dangerous Matt Carrswold. You hot young guys are always trouble.” He was teasing me now.

“But not fun?” I teased back.

“Too much fun.” We were halfway down the stairs when a thought struck me like a thunderbolt. I was being incredibly selfish, not that I'm not a selfish person, but I actually gave a shit about Cody. And I was asking him to walk into a snake pit. I stopped and grabbed his arm again.

“Brian will be there. I'm sorry Cody. Look, I'll be fine. You don't have to go.” I'd forgotten all about Brian. This thing between them still bothered him, that much was obvious.

“I'm not some fucking pussy that can't handle being around a guy I used to be with,” he said. I couldn't tell if he was irritated with me, or just asserting his pride. Then he put his persona back up. “Besides, I'm with you, and you're way hotter than Brian.”

“That's cool,” I said. We started walking down the stairs again. “What's Justin like?”

“He's a really nice guy. I think he's a computer programmer or something like that. He's pretty geeky. You won't be measuring his biceps. He's got dark brown hair and these wicked brown eyes. But he's just a really nice guy, and a total doormat. He worships Brian.”

“Is that why Brian is with him? Is he one of those guys who need to be on a pedestal?” I asked. Please God, not a drama queen.

“No, that's not it. I think he appreciates it though. It would be fucked up if Brian didn't care about Justin as much as Justin cares about him.” I noticed that he didn't use the “L” word.

Thirty minutes later found us at the airport and climbing into Stefan's plane. “Nice plane,” I said. “My friend's father has a Gulfstream. I don't think it's as nice as this though.” I wanted them to know I'd been in private jets before. For some reason, it seemed important for them to know I wasn't overawed by all their cool stuff.

“Well, I looked at them, but I have so loved my Falcons, I could not see myself with anything else,” Stefan said.

“He likes French jets,” JP said, and got a fake dirty look from Stef. We took off and I dragged Cody back to the bathroom and made him fuck me. It was funny how when we came back, he looked embarrassed, while Robbie looked irked. That really pissed me off.

“I'm not a fucking kid,” I said to Robbie. “I like to fuck. Deal with it.”

Brad laughed. “Robbie is so old now; he forgot how horny he used to be when he was 18.” What a cool guy. What amazing social skills this guy had.

“Me? I was horny? Look who's talking.” Robbie joked. “I'm sorry, Matt. I'm still getting used to all this and I think I'm supposed to be upset when my son gets fucked on a plane with me.”

“No you're not. That's bullshit. Besides, you're not exactly a conventional guy. You're not supposed to get off by having a fist in your ass either,” I teased. He smiled at me, that impish grin that made me want to forget he was my father.

“I'll try to do better,” he said.

“God damn, you're cute,” I said. “Maybe you should add incest to your kink list.” I saw him freak out until he realized I was joking, then he laughed.

“No, that would put him on the same level as JP and Stefan,” Brad teased.

“How hard is it to open that door?” JP said, gesturing at the plane's door. We cracked up at his embarrassment and at Stefan's lack of any shame at all. These guys were a lot of fun. The plane landed and there was a limo waiting for us.

“Hey Rafael!” Brad said, and gave the limo driver a hug. Mummy would have shit a brick, hugging the help like that. “Matt, this is Rafael.”

“Nice to meet you,” I said, shaking his hand.

“Rafael took care of me all through high school when I was too wasted to drive home,” Brad said cheerfully.

“And a few times after high school as well,” Rafael said. He nodded to Stef and Stef smiled at him, with that look he had. Rafael may have been Brad's driver, but he had driven something else into Stefan, I thought with a smile. We drove by Stanford, and I stared at my future home, ignoring the others in the limo behind me.

“You've seen the campus?” JP asked.

“Yeah. We came out to visit last year. I got to see some of it,” I said. My parents had rushed me through, because they really didn't want me here.

“Would you like to stay over and browse around on Monday?” JP asked. “What's your schedule?”

“That would be awesome. I'm fine, but I don't know about these guys,” I said, looking at Cody, Brad, and Robbie. They pulled out their calendars almost in unison, which was hilarious. I thought about those lawn chair drill teams in parades.

“I'm clear,” Brad said.

“I can be too, but I have to be back tomorrow night. I've got a killer meeting on Tuesday morning,” Cody said.

Robbie was staring at his schedule. It looked like Evelyn may have been right, and that he was booked solid. He looked at his calendar, up at me, then down at his calendar. “I'm free.”

“You don't have to do this,” I said to him.

“Yeah, I do. Because I want to. And maybe we can get those tests done. It would probably be better to do this here, in Paly, than in Malibu.”

“Thanks,” I said, because I was tearing up again and that was all I could get out. I was such a pussy around this guy. I spent the rest of the drive checking out the scenery, and trying not to think about things. This part of the country was pretty in a dry, barren kind of way. The hills were a gold color, the grasses having apparently died in the arid summer heat.

“It gets much prettier in the spring, or actually by Christmas, after the rains come and turn the hills green again,” JP said, reading my mind.

“That must be really cool,” I said, thinking aloud. “You have seasons just like we do. We have hot and humid, and fucking cold. You have green or gold.”

“Yep, that's pretty much it,” Cody said. We drove up to some gates that opened automatically and then drove up a long drive to a massive Spanish house. It really was big, bigger than anything I'd seen in Shaker.

“Well, I see what you mean. This is a big house,” I said, trying to be gracious.

“I hope you like it,” Stef said.

“You'll have to live in the dorms for the first year, but we'll give you a room here in case you want to get away from dorm life, or you want a good meal,” JP said.

That was really nice. Incredibly generous. “Thanks,” I said. Isidore and Frank were evidently gone; they were spending the weekend in Santa Cruz and weren't back yet. Ace and his wife and kids were gone too. It was kind of funny, because this big house seemed completely empty, despite the housekeeper and all of us.

JP looked at me, inspired. “It's still early. Do you ride?”

“I thought we weren't allowed to have sex anymore?” I teased.

“Horses,” he growled.

“Yeah,” I said, but it came out like 'of course'. Mummy insisted that I take riding lessons. I went with my friends and we'd gotten really high before we went. It was a blast.

“We'll be back later,” he said, and dragged me off to the stables. “This will be a more fun way to see the campus.” He gave me a mild mannered horse, which was a good thing, because I was not even close to being as good a rider as he was. His stallion seemed like a lot to handle. We trotted along a busy road, using the bicycle lanes, until we got to Stanford. On horseback, we got to see a lot more than we would on foot, or in a car. It was awesome.

“My office is up there,” he said, pointing up to a rounded corner in one of the buildings. I loved the California Mission architecture. “You can come see me any time.”

“That's cool,” I said. It was awesome to have a guy like him here to help me out if I really fucked things up. We wandered around, although it took a long time since even though it was August, there were quite a few students on campus, and they all seemed to know JP. “Hello Professor Crampton,” I heard, over and over again. He introduced me to them, but I wouldn't remember them, and they didn't really give a shit about me.

“We better head back,” he said, looking at his watch nervously. He knew they were going to give him shit about fucking me.

“JP, don't let them bother you about having sex with me. Neither one of us knew.”

He didn't look at me, he just nodded. “You and I grew up in the same world. You know what that means, what it's like. That's why this hits me harder than Stefan, or any of the others.”

“Yeah, I get it,” I told him. “But you're a lot of fun, and I really enjoyed you guys. Quite frankly, I'd be willing to deal with the incest taboo to be with you two again.”

He looked at me and blushed slightly. “That's really flattering. You make me feel young and attractive. But that can't happen.”

“I'll wait until you're really drunk and try again,” I teased. We got back to Escorial and I went inside to get ready for dinner. I was horny again, of course, so I decided to stop in and see if I could get Cody to fuck me and maybe take a shower with me. I got to his room and just burst on in, not even thinking of knocking.

I should have. He was on his bed, driving his dick into some guy's ass. I looked at the guy, who was on all fours, taking it like a champ. His looks, his eyes were so much like JP's that this had to be Brian. I took the whole thing in, cataloging the scene in my mind, and then I turned to leave.

“Matt!” I heard Cody say.

“Hey, I'm really sorry man. My bad. I'll meet you at dinner,” I said. It really bothered me that he was with Brian, and it bothered me even more that I was bothered by it.

“No, wait!” Cody stopped me. I turned and noticed that he'd slowed his pace, just enough to keep Brian engaged. “Come here.” I looked at Brian, but his eyes were just glazed. I grinned. I knew that feeling. I walked over to them.

“Brian, this is Matt,” Cody said. Brian looked up at me and nodded. “Now suck his dick.” I took the hint and unzipped my pants and pulled them off. I was sweaty, really sweaty from riding all over Stanford. I pushed my dick into Brian's face, but before he could suck me I grabbed his head and pulled it down, burying his nose in my balls, making him smell me. He moaned and Cody took the hint, picking up his pace.

“Yeah Bri, you like that don't you. You like sweaty men,” Cody said.

“Um hm,” he intoned. He was really fired up.

I turned around. “Lick my ass,” I ordered. I felt him dive in, licking the sweat off of me, his tongue bathing me, first my cheeks, then my crack, and then my hole. I turned around then and jammed my dick in his mouth. He took it greedily, his mouth like a musical instrument playing my organ. My eyes met Cody's and he smiled, then pulled me to him and kissed me. That did it, that sent me over the edge, and I blasted my load in Brian's mouth.

Cody reached down and pulled Brian’s shoulders so he was up against his chest, Brian's cock throbbing and poking straight at me. I dropped to my knees and returned the favor, sucking him until I felt him tense and get bigger, and then I felt his cum spurting against the back of my throat and the salty taste of his essence as he filled my mouth.

Brian, now that he'd cum, seemed to realize what he'd done and kind of freaked out. Cody sensed that and pulled out of him. I noticed that Cody hadn't used a condom, and that bothered me. Why did this shit bother me? We were friends that fucked. Brian pulled on his shorts and shirt as quickly as he could. “Thanks guys. Nice to meet you Matt.” Then he was gone.

Cody looked at me, his eyes sad, and his dick hard. I moved up to him and kissed him. “You think I might fill in for him?” He turned me around and pushed me onto my stomach, grabbed the lube, and greased my ass. Then he pushed into me. It wasn't gentle, it wasn't loving, it was about working off frustration, and that was fine with me.

“Condom,” I said. He ignored me and pounded away at me. And even though I'd just cum, and even though I wasn't even hard, it felt great. It wasn't about the feeling of being fucked; it was about doing something for this guy that had done so much for me. I felt him tense up, and heard him roar as he came in me. Then he collapsed on top of me, lifeless and drained, except the drained part was more emotional than physical. I felt him slide out of me as he went limp and I pushed him off of me and onto his back.

“I'm sorry,” he said.

“Dude, there are all kinds of things you can be sorry for, but none of them involve me,” I said. He gave me a little grin.

“Yeah, I know we're friends and there's no, you know, commitment, but I came up here to be with you and I fucked him.”

“So,” I said. “I don't care.” It bothered me that I was lying and that I did care. “Fuck who you want. I can handle the competition.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, you can.”

“So what happened?” I asked.

“He came in to say 'hi' and we hugged, then we kissed, and the next thing I know my dick is in his ass,” he said.

“You didn't use a condom,” I said.

“He's clean. He's only fucked Justin,” Cody said.

“That's pretty trusting of a guy who's cheating on his boyfriend,” I said, and saw how that irritated him. “You didn't use one with me either.”

“Yeah, that was probably dumb, but you're worth taking a chance on,” he said.

“Well, I've got cum leaking out of my ass,” I joked. “I need a shower. Come on.” We took a shower together and just washed each other. It wasn't sexual, it was intimate. This whole thing with him was entirely new to me. It was exciting, and not a little scary.

“Stef told you they dress for Sunday night dinners?” Cody asked.

“Yeah. I've got it covered,” I said. Actually Brad had told me. I knew how to adhere to a dress code, but I took Cody's words as he meant them. He was just trying to make sure I fit in. I wrapped a towel around my waist and headed back to my room. I had an Armani suit Mummy bought me for graduation, a blue color that was the same hue as my eyes only darker. It looked great on me, and I knew it. I headed down to the dining room, feeling kind of cocky. I was moving at a slow stroll until I heard the big clock in the great hall start to gong. Stef told me JP was absolutely anal about everyone being on time. I broke into a mini-sprint, and managed to breeze into the dining room, only slightly flustered, as the clock finished striking seven.

A lady got up and came over to greet me. “You must be Matt. It is such a pleasure to meet you. I am Isidore. Welcome to our home.” She held her hand out to me and I kissed it in the continental fashion they'd taught us at University School, getting a smile from her. Isidore...this was JP's wife.

“The pleasure is all mine,” I said.

“Let me introduce you to everyone.” She went around the table, putting names and faces to these people I'd heard about. Ace, with his hot temper and French looks, with his wife Cass, who was pretty. Claire, a woman who could turn a gay man straight, and her hot husband Jack, who could turn him back again. And of course Frank, who looked at me a little curiously. So this was my paternal grandfather. He seemed so gruff, and didn't say much beyond muttering a few words. He looked to be in his mid-60s, but unlike JP, he actually looked close to that age. Not that he was a slouch. He was still fit, still handsome, but he had suffered from the years. And there was Brian, with his boyfriend Justin.

Brian looked at me and pretended like we had just met, begging me with his eyes to be discreet. His boyfriend was really cute. He had one of those faces that wasn't handsome in a rugged way, but cute in a model way. His body was tall and lanky. There wasn't a single muscle bulging from his body. But that just made him seem sexier. He saw me checking him out and blushed, and that made him cuter still.

“That is a nice suit,” Claire said. “I won't have to take you shopping.”

“Will you excuse me?” I asked, pretending to get up. “I need to go put on something crappy.” That got a laugh. Still, they were all wondering what exactly I was doing here. Was I here with Cody? Was I Stef and JP's boy toy? Was I just a student JP had decided to favor with special treatment? It was comical to see their attempts at guessing in their faces. Robbie was not so amused.

“We brought Matt up here to meet you all. He's my son,” Robbie announced.

“What?” Ace asked.

“Your son?” asked Frank, ignoring Ace. “He's your son?”

“Yeah, Dad, he's my son,” Robbie said.

“Well then, we must welcome you to our family as well as our home,” Isidore said graciously.

Frank ignored her. “How is that possible?”

“You need sex education lessons?” Stefan quipped, making everyone except Frank laugh. He just scowled at Stefan.

“His mother is Laura Mercer,” Robbie said.

“That girl you dated in Claremont?” Frank asked.

Isidore put down her napkin firmly and glared at Frank. He had been oblivious to everyone else's looks, but he drooped under hers. “My goodness Frank, if I were Matt, I would feel positively unwelcome. That's hardly a way to greet your grandson.” Everyone stared at him, and at her, which told me that this didn't happen very often. “And since Frank seems incapable of exhibiting any manners at all, I will apologize for him,” she said to me.

“No apology is necessary,” I said. “He's probably just trying to figure out how his gay son produced an 18-year-old kid.” My words seemed to impact him, along with hers, and Frank suddenly got with the program. He got up and walked over to me and held out his hand. I took it and he pulled me up, looking me in the eye, our lavender eyes taking each other in.

“I'm sorry Matt. I'm a little slow. These geniuses don't always give me time to catch up. Plus it's hard to believe that Robbie could create such a handsome young man.” Then he gave me a big hug, pulled away and looked at me, and hugged me again. Isidore smiled briefly at him and that made me smile. It was a nice smile, but he sure as hell wasn't getting any tonight.

They asked me about my life, and my family. It was vaguely irritating that they seemed surprised that I should have been raised so well, and in such an affluent environment, without any help from them at all. Then I told them about my kidneys, and the whole environment changed, but not at all how I thought I would.

“Come by the hospital tomorrow morning at 9am,” Jack said. “I'll set up tests for you two.” Jack was evidently a doctor and had a considerable amount of pull at the Medical Center.

“Thanks,” I said.

“I'm going too,” Frank said. “If Robbie's not a match, maybe I will be.”

“Does it have to be a blood relative? Is it possible that someone unrelated could be a match?” Brad asked.

“I don't know,” I said.

“It's possible,” Jack said.

“Then you can test me as well,” Brad said.

“Me too,” said JP.

“I will submit to these tests as well,” said Stef, as he winked at me.

“And so will I,” said Cody. I looked at Brian and saw the jealousy flash across his face before he could control it. I mean, Justin was cute, but what was he thinking, giving up Cody? But that thought passed and was replaced by one that just blew my mind. These people, whom I'd known for two days, were such giving people, such caring people, that they were willing to give me part of their body. Me, a virtual stranger.

I felt my eyes start to water and I tried to stop them, but I couldn't, and that pissed me off. Still, Isidore had showed me the way with her grace and dignity. “I'm sorry,” I said, wiping my tears with my napkin. “I'm just a little overwhelmed that you guys would do this for me. I mean I've only known you for a few days,” I said.

“You are family,” JP said. “We take care of our own.”

“Boy do you,” Brad said, and tried not to giggle. JP glared daggers at him, but Brad had taken us away from the maudlin scene and piqued everyone's curiosity.

“What do you mean?” Claire asked. Brad started to giggle again, then Cody, then me.

“I found Robbie by accident,” I said. “I actually came out here to stay with Stef and JP while I looked for my father, ‘Robert Hayes’. I met them at the festival in Claremont.”

“You met them?” Ace asked. Brad lost it then, despite the dirty look from Robbie.

“Like only Stefan can,” Brad said.

“Oh for Christ's sake,” JP said.

“You fucked my grandson?” Frank demanded. It was funny how he dropped an “f bomb” just like Robbie had, and it had the same effect. JP put his head in his hands again, while Claire and Jack started laughing as well.

“It is not fair to blame us. We did not know he was your grandson. We did not even know Robbie had a son,” Stefan said.

“Are you kidding me?” Ace demanded. He wasn't laughing.

I stood up for emphasis, a trick I'd learned a long time ago. It was the Shaker Heights equivalent of saying 'shut the fuck up'. “It's funny, in retrospect, but it's nothing vile, and nothing to get upset about.” I said this to Frank mostly. “These guys have been wonderful, and have treated me better than anyone I'd met until now, except my parents. The only downside of finding out I'm part of this family is knowing that I can't sleep with them anymore.”

“I should hope not,” Frank groused.

I glared at him. No one was going to come in and run my life. “And to tell you the honest truth, they were so much fun, and such great lovers, that even now, even after I know, I'd still risk the stigma of incest to do them again.”

“Well that is a given,” Stef said, re-injecting comedy into the situation. I sat back down then, having made my point, or so I thought.

“You had sex with guys three times your age?” Ace asked. “That's disgusting.”

“Hey Ace. Fuck you,” Robbie said. “You sound like my mother, all judgmental and high and mighty. How many men out there have young wives? Is that OK? You bigoted piece of shit.” Everyone just stared. Ace was irate. He had fire in his eyes, demonic fire, as he looked around the table.

“Robbie is right,” Claire said. “You owe them an apology.” I watched his eyes clear up, as the anger evaporated magically. Wow. She must have these guys trained really well. Ace sat there, looking around at the other people, and then he got a strange look on his face, a remorseful look.

“You're right Claire, and so are you Robbie. I'm sorry Matt. And I'm sorry Stef, Dad. You know me. It takes me a little bit to deal with shit like this. This family is sometimes challenging.” What an interesting guy. He'd gone from enraged and pissed to genuine remorse in almost no time at all.