The Saturday Boy - 8. Caught Out - Twice!

Shaun and I strolled onto the school football pitch, getting ready to watch Dean play a round of five aside with other guys from our year. Having got over my week-long throat infection, it was my first day back at school, and I was glad to be there for once.

The revelation Jack made as I laid listening to him on my bed was still at the back of my mind, slowly chewing away at me. In truth, I had been avoiding him ever since. Not because I was disgusted with what he had revealed but rather because I didn't know how to handle it.

As we sat down on the grass just outside the playing area, I could hear Shaun talking away in the background, his voice distant as my mind was wandering. I could see Dean near the goal line talking to his buddies on the team, each one of them unaware of the ordeal he had been through two years gone by.

Dean always seemed the most simple of the three of us. His life was straightforward; he was a free thinker and never let anything bother him. Laid back, confident and good looking, I always envied him for that. But now I knew he had a past that thankfully most of us would never have to endure, that being one of horrific sexual abuse. So I started to think that my life wasn't as bad as I made it out to be. After all, I had never been forced onto the back of a sofa and been screwed by my Uncle.

"And that's when he asked me where you had been. Joey?...Joey?" That was all I heard Shaun say as I drifted back to the clarity of his voice.

"What?"

"Have you even been listening to me?"

"No, Shaun, I'm sorry. What were you saying?"

"What's up with you today? You’ve been on another planet since you came in."

"It's nothing, Shaun, just got a lot on my mind. Tell me what you were saying again."

"I was talking about Jack; he’s been asking after you."

I just stared ahead. "Has he?"

"Yeah, have you and him fallen out? He even said you didn't come down and see him on Saturday. I thought you both worked on Saturdays together."

"I was ill, remember?"

"Yeah, I do remember Joey; I saw you on the Friday, and you looked fine. You wanna tell me what's going on?"

"Nothing's going on, Shaun, it's just…."

"Starting a sentence with 'it's just' normally means there is something up, so c'mon, tell your best buddy the problem."

I took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. "Remember I was telling you Jack stayed at mine the other day because of the thing with his Dad?"

"Yeah."

"Well, whatever I told you, I left a minor detail out regarding that night."

"Go on."

"Well, maybe I'm stupid, Shaun, and you'll probably think I am, but I never saw it coming."

"What? Will you get to the point?"

"Jack…he started telling me this story about a guy he fancied at school and…God, I'm so lame I didn't see it. Anyway, the story was about me, Shaun. Jack has a crush or whatever it is… on me."

"Oh wow, uh…so you're freaked out about that, now I see."

"No, no, I'm not freaked out about it."

"Then why are you avoiding him?"

"Oh well, Shaun, let me think!"

"So, uh…so how do you feel about it?"

"Pfft, mixed up."

"Do you like him?"

"Shaun!" I snapped.

"You can tell me, you know; it’s not like I'm gonna judge you."

"I don't know what I think about him, Shaun. If he was anyone else, I could confidently say no, I don't like him, but…."

"But?"

"I dunno Shaun, I look at him, his eyes…his fucking eyes just say so much and… I don't know how I'm supposed to feel."

"Sounds to me what you're saying is that you maybe pity him rather than anything more complicated."

"Yeah, I thought about that too. On the outside, he just gets on with it, but I've studied his face and stared into his eyes, and he looks…he looks lost, scared, and alone, it… it just draws me to him."

"You want my advice?"

I sniggered. "You have some?"

"I think the worst thing you can do is avoid him. Two things here…one, you work with him, or rather he works in your parent’s pub, and two, the longer you avoid him, the longer this will take to resolve itself."

"Resolve itself?"

"You wanna know what you feel for him, right?"

"No, I'm not sure I do."

"I think you do, and avoiding him, you'll never find out. You just have got to let this play out and see what happens. My view is, if something is supposed to happen, it will. So forget the past, Joey, forget who you think you're supposed to be and just go with it."

I puffed air through my lips and pulled my knees up to my chest. "Sometimes Shaun, I wish I had never met Jack Stanton."

"Yeah, sometimes I think that about Dean." We both burst into laughter at that.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Dean wandered over to us after his game finished, covered in sweat and grass stains. "Enjoy the match?" He called, getting closer, pleased with himself.

"Football's not my thing, Dean, but yeah, I'm glad you won."

"Thanks, Joey, so what have you two been talking about? Every time I looked over, you both looked deep in conversation." Shaun and I looked at each other, wondering what the other was going to say. Shaun spoke first.

"This weekend, actually?"

I raised a brow and smiled. "Yeah, this weekend."

"What about it," Dean asked, wiping the sweat from his forehead and flicking it into my face.

"Argh, Dean, that's gross."

"Yeah, lick it up." He said, dancing around laughing. "So this weekend, what's happening?"

"Uh…what about camping?" Shaun said.

"You made it sound like you had already decided when I first asked. So is it camping or what?" Dean asked, folding his arms.

"Yeah, camping, but I need to be back at nine on Sunday," I said.

"So what are we talking about here, Saturday afternoon until Sunday morning?" Dean asked.

"Well, I'll need to get up earlier Saturday and get the jobs done at the pub if you wanna go in the Afternoon."

"Can't you leave Jack on his own on Saturday; he's okay on his own now, right?"

"No, Shaun, it's too much for one person on a Saturday."

"Well, you used to do it."

I smirked. "As I said, it's too much for one person on a Saturday."

"Okay, so, three o'clock?" Dean asked, taking a seat on the grass in front of us.

"Make it three-thirty, and I'll try and do as much as I can on Friday night."

"Fuck Corky, your life is so complicated," Dean said, slapping my knee.

"You've had long enough to get used to it, Dean. So moving on…camping, we only have one tent if I remember, and that's yours, Shaun. If I also remember, it's a bit of a squeeze with the three of us."

Shaun giggled. "Yeah, I remember. Dean had to sleep with half his body outside."

"Yeah, and it was fucking freezing," Dean retorted.

"Meh, we'll cope. But, hey, maybe you can get some beer from the pub, Joey, you know, sneak some out."

"I'll do my best, but if I get found out, I'll be grounded for a year."

"Yeah, I wouldn't wanna piss your Mum off either, Joey. So just see what you can do, and I'll see if my Mum and help us out too," Dean added, putting his thinking pose on.

"So that's settled then, camping Saturday. Hey, why don't you ask if Jack wants to come?" Shaun asked. I watched Dean's face slowly contort.

"Stanton, are you serious?"

"Dean, it might be a good idea, actually. Maybe you and he can do some bonding down by the lake," I said, smirking at his reaction.

"Well, I wanna put it out there that I'm not too comfortable with that idea, and besides, there will be nowhere for him to sleep. So there we are, he can't come…there's nowhere to put him, sorted."

"What if he has a tent?" Shaun remarked.

"Why are you so eager for him to come anyway, Shaun?" Dean asked, perplexed.

"I just think the guy needs a friend right now. Jeez, he probably ain’t been out with anyone for ages. Well, apart from that Maddy he hangs around with, and she doesn't strike me as exactly riveting to be with. Anyway, I like him, I've been chatting to him here and there, and he's actually a cool dude."

"Whatever, look if he has a tent fine, bring him, but I ain’t sleeping with him."

"It’s fine, I will," I said.

"Well, I don't mind if you want me to sleep with him," Shaun added, earning a curious look from Dean and myself.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The last bell of the day rang out, and everyone started piling out of school. I stopped off at my locker, taking books out and putting others back in. The day had gone fast, and I was slightly relieved I had not bumped into Jack. But Shaun was right; I couldn't keep this up forever. I'd spent the last year or so avoiding him, it had become an art, but as his little story to me in my bedroom alluded, he had probably been watching me from a distance. Humph, or maybe I was flattering myself!

I slammed my locker door shut and found Jack had been standing behind it. "Shhhhit! You scared the crap out of me." I hissed.

"And you have been avoiding the crap out of me. Have I done something?"

"Have you done some…what do you mean? Of course, you've done something," I retorted.

"Is this about what I said to you in your bedroom?"

"I don't wanna talk about this in the middle of the school corridor. Walk with me, and we'll talk when we get out."

I started to walk off through the long corridors of the school until reaching the front entrance. Shaun and Dean were waiting in our usual meeting spot as I walked through the door, Jack close behind.

"Guys, why don't you go on ahead? I’ll see you tomorrow." I said. Dean shrugged and started walking, but Shaun stayed.

"Sure you don't want me to stay?"

"For what?" I asked.

"Uh, I dunno, I mean…okay never mind, I'll see you tomorrow," Shaun said before walking away.

"That was strange," I said, watching as Shaun kept looking back as he walked away. The funny thing was it was Jack he was glancing at more than me.

"Yeah, strange," Jack repeated.

We began strolling out of the school grounds. I wanted to let Shaun get a head start, just in case he decided to turn back and join us for some reason, his earlier behaviour making me wonder if he might.

"So, you were going to explain why you have been avoiding me," Jack asked as we walked.

"I wasn't avoiding…well, okay I was, but you haven't done anything wrong, I just needed time, you know."

"Look, I'm sorry for what I said; I didn't mean to freak you out or anything. I just didn't know how else to tell you how I felt. But, I admit it, it was a pretty cheap way of doing it."

"You didn't freak me out, Jack; to be honest, I don't know how I felt afterwards. I like you okay and…."

"You like me, as in?"

"I like you, Jack; just leave it at that. You have an effect on me that I can't explain."

He chuckled. "I don't know what to make of that."

"Nor do I, but it’s eating at me."

"Have you talked to Shaun about this?"

"Have you?" I asked, bouncing the question back, raising my brow at him.

"What do you mean?"

"You and him have been talking, right?"

"Yeah, but not about what I told you. That was between us."

"It's okay, I told him, but what else have you talked about?"

"Nothing really Joey, I sort of alluded to the fact I liked you."

"What did he say?"

"Well, he was quite negative about it, really; it was like he was almost trying to warn me off you. Not that he said that directly. It’s just a feeling I got from the words he was using."

"Oh really?" I wonder what he's up to!

"Yeah, anyway, can we just wipe the slate clean and just forget what I said in your bedroom. I get that you don't do guys, and it was wrong of me to even test the water with you."

"It’s fine, Jack, don't worry about it."

"No, it's not right. You already told me when we first met in your cellar that you weren't into guys in any way, and…and I still pushed it."

"Honestly, Jack, relax, it’s fine."

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The bus pulled up at my stop, and I got off, slinging my bag over my shoulder. As I walked up the road towards the pub, my cell started buzzing in my bag. Kneeling down, I unzipped it and pulled out my phone, seeing Shaun's name on the screen.

"Hey Shaun," I said, putting the device to my ear.

"Hi Joey, how are you?"

"I'm fine…Shaun, we just saw each other, and you're asking me how I am. What's up with you? You have been acting weird."

"Nothing, so is Jack okay? Did he say anything about… stuff?"

"Stuff…what kind of stuff?"

"I guess not, but you're okay then, yeah?"

"Yes, Shaun, I'm fine. Why shouldn't I be?"

"Dunno, thought maybe with the whole thing with you and Jack…So what did you talk about?"

"Well, we sorted out the whole thing about what he said in my room, oh and just before I got on the bus, I spoke to him about camping."

"Oh great, so is he coming?"

"Yeah, he was pleased I asked. Unfortunately, he doesn't have a tent, but he said he would see if he could borrow his uncles fishing one."

"Oh cool, at least there will be a bit more space."

"Yeah, that's what I said. He's still a bit worried about Dean, but I said maybe this would be a good opportunity for them to get to know each other."

"Yeah, I agree, so I'll speak to you later then?"

"Yeah, sure thing, oh and Shaun?"

"Yeah?"

"What did you actually phone for?"

"Uh, I can’t remember really,"

"Jeez, you need help, man," I said, laughing. "Well, I'll see you at school tomorrow then. I’ll meet you at my stop when I get off."

"Okay, Joey, see you soon."

"Yeah, bye Shaun, have a nice evening." I hung up and walked into the pub. My Dad was behind the bar, and he smiled at me as I walked through towards the restaurant. I checked the kitchen and found my Mum preparing some chicken pies for the menu.

"Hey honey, good day?"

"Yeah, fine, thanks…don't we order those in?"

"Yeah, normally, but the supplier has run out, so I thought, what the hell, it’s quiet today, I'll try making my own."

"Looks complicated, so any barrels gone today?"

"No, but we had an order of gas come in. I’ll need you to put them away, but watch out, I ordered the wrong ones and these babies are huge."

"The Z seven eight two's?" I asked, grimacing.

"Yeah, sorry."

"Argh, Mum, that's twice you've done that, they're a bitch to move and install."

"I know, but the web page froze and then by the time I noticed it, I had already put the order through."

"Great, well, Dad is gonna have to help me. I can't move those things on my own."

"No problem, but can you do it tonight, we have a food order coming in tomorrow morning, and I don't want those things in the way."

I sighed. "Yeah, just let me go and get changed, and I'll be back down."

I walked through the kitchen side door and up the stairs to my room, throwing my bag on my bed before adding myself to it. I laid there and closed my eyes, trying to settle my mind. Right now, my life seemed so complicated. Jack had confessed to fancying me, Dean was moaning about Jack, Shaun was just acting weird on me, and to top it all off, my fucking mother had ordered the goliath of gas bottles that I had to move. Will people just leave me in peace! My brain screamed.

I got back up from my bed, thinking if I lay here any longer, I would probably doze off. Pulling off my tie, I started to unbutton my shirt, watching as I did in my full-length mirror. I undid my belt and let my trousers drop to the floor, revealing my tight white Hugo boss trunks. I know it’s pretty vain, but as I stood there with my shirt unbuttoned and trousers round my ankles, there was something quite erotic about it. It was like I was about to be taken advantage of, and having not masturbated since before I was ill, the prospect made my dick surge with blood.

Raging hormones make people make irrational decisions. I had told my Mum I would be right down after getting changed, but I had the sudden urge to get off. Shuffling over to my door, careful not to trip in my trousers, I closed and locked my door before moving back to my mirror. Then, leaving my shirt on and trousers round my ankles for maximum eroticism, I pulled down on the waistband of my trunks to reveal my throbbing organ. Even in the short time it had taken to get to this stage, my cock head was starting to announce the first signs of pre-cum, making it glisten.

Holding the front on my trunks just below my hung nut sack with my left hand, I grabbed my dick in my right and went to work on it. This was going to have to be a no thrills and fast session. I pumped away, looking at my body in the mirror, watching as my arm muscle flexed with the grip on my cock and my stomach, which was heaving as my orgasm got closer.

I was getting close, and it was only going to be a matter of a few more pumps. I thought about where to cum, but it was too late to grab anything as glob after glob of hot semen came rushing out, and I exploded all over my mirror. Thick white juice began running down it in front of me as I stood watching, breathing heavily. It was an intense ending, but I expected it. I was pretty proud of the load I produced, suddenly thinking back to when I was thirteen and nothing used to come out. I felt like a stallion, but that passed as I settled back into knowing I was just a sixteen-year-old kid with a better than average cock size.

"Joey, I thought you were coming down." I heard my Mum call from beyond my closed door.

"Be…be out in a sec," I said, desperately trying to find something to clean up the mess I had made. I felt the door handle turn on my door but felt relaxed knowing it was locked. Well, that was before my mother brazenly came through it.

Not locked then, SHIT!

"I thought you said you were just getting…Oh my god…eh, sorry I didn't know…."

"Oh shit…uh, Mum, erm, can you get out."

Please, god, kill me now, or open a hole up for me!

It was probably only a few seconds, but my mother stood in there in my room for what seemed like an eternity, her eyes flicking from my face to my semi flaccid cock, and then the…oh fuck…yeah, the mirror.

"Mum, PLEASE!"

"Uh, yeah, shit, sorry, Joey. See you downstairs." With that, she casually left my room and went back down to the kitchen. I had never felt so utterly, completely, overwhelmingly, and gut-wrenchingly embarrassed.

I kicked off my trousers and paced my room, up and down, up and down. What was I supposed to say to her? Shit, how was I even gonna look at her…ever again. I used to think I was always more intelligent than my brother Roman, but at least he never got caught in the act, one of the most basic lessons to learn as a teenager.

I quickly got changed and ran downstairs, bypassing the kitchen, going straight into the bar. My Dad was still behind the bar, with Chrissie not due for another hour. I wondered if my mother had talked to him, but he didn't seem to give off any vibes and just smiled as I walked towards him.

"Dad, I need help with the gas bottles. Mum has gone and ordered the big ones again." My Dad just rolled his eyes and nodded.

"I'll go get your mother to cover for a moment. Keep an eye on the bar."

"Yeah no worries, Dad."

I watched worriedly as he left the bar and walked towards the kitchen. Was she about to tell him what she saw? Would he come out of the kitchen in hysterics? I wanted to melt away like a snowman in summer. Yet, part of me also wanted to march into that kitchen and explain myself, just to get it over with. How would she deal with it? What was she thinking?

Moments later, my Dad came back looking his usual happy self, no hint of satisfaction or a wry smile anywhere to be seen, but I knew she would tell him sooner or later; she told him everything. As he approached me, my mother came through from the kitchen and walked behind the bar. I saw her about to look at me and pretended I hadn't been looking at her. I headed for the door to the cellar, indicating that I was ready to go down, and sure enough, my Dad followed me.

"We'll try not to let any fall over this time Joey, yeah?"

"Yeah, we'll have a go. Just give me a sec while I pulled out the empties."

I stopped next to the cooling room, unfastened the chain that held all the Co2 bottles, and pulled out two empty gas bottles. A line connected to them, and usually, this was tied up to keep it tidy. However, with the new bottles being much bigger, I let out some slack to accommodate the extra height and refastened it back up.

"There, that should do it," I said, stepping back. "So, are you ready for this?"

"Ready when you are, son."

We moved ourselves towards the heavy new bottles located by the barrel-drop door and mentally prepared ourselves. They had been laid down for safety, and the first job was to get them upright. Being the stronger of us, my Dad got himself in a lifting stance, with the handle in his hands. I got further down to help with the leverage, and on three, we lifted the bottle upright.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

We both emerged from the cellar sweating, and I decided that I was in need of a shower, and not only because of the hard work in the cellar. I was pretty sure I still had dried spunk stuck to my pubic region.

I went through to the kitchen to wash my hands, finding the place empty, that was until my Mum walked back in to finish tidying up, I guessed.

"Did you get those bottles done, okay?" she asked me as I ran my hands under the hot water.

"Ssshit, that's hot…uh yeah, it's all done."

Turning the tap off, I grabbed some paper towels from the dispenser and began to head out, not feeling comfortable in her presence right now. I was just about to walk out the door when…

"Joey, wait a sec. Listen about earlier…what I saw…"

"Mum, I really don't want to talk about it with you."

"Look, I just wanted to say, I'm sorry I walked in and…well you know it’s fine you know, I mean its quite natural for boys your age to…."

"Mum, please spare me the biology lesson, I…."

She began to grin. "Do you know what your father said when you first came out of me and was laying naked on a hospital table being cleaned up by the nurses?"

"Do I want to know?" I replied nervously.

"Your father said, gee honey, he's gonna be a big boy when he's older, and boy, he weren't wrong."

"Mum!"

"Oh Joey, look, I was just trying to make light of it; I’m your mother, for god sake, wasn’t I used to wash that thing for you when you were little, so I've seen it all before." She said, bursting out laughing.

"This isn't helping, Mum."

"Okay, okay, I can see you're embarrassed. So let’s just pretend I never saw anything."

"You have scarred me for life mother, I can't just forget you saw…look never mind, I need a shower!"

I marched out of the kitchen and up the stairs straight into the bathroom, and shut the door. I needed my sanctuary now. I needed to escape beneath the falling water. I undressed and got in, not even letting the water warm up. I let out a shriek as the cold water assaulted the nerve endings of my neck and back. Leaning against the wall, I closed my eyes, letting my body adjust to the temperature.

I took the shower gel from the shelf and squeezed some out onto a sponge, and started scrubbing myself, trying to rid the horrifying thought from my mind. But, yeah, the thought of my mother, her eyes on my still semi-hard dick and semen, splashed up my mirror.

Grrrr, shut up, shut up, shut UP!

I got dressed and went downstairs. I was going out, and I wasn't taking no for an answer. I asked my Mum if I could…no actually I told her I was going out for the evening and walked out of the pub onto the street. The problem was, as I stood there like an idiot, I didn't even know where I was headed. All I knew was I had to get out of there for a while to try and shake the thoughts of…well, you know. I mean, c'mon, what can be worse than your mother catching you doing that?

I pulled out my cell and called Dean. "Please pick up, please pick up", I muttered, walking slowly down the street.

"Corky, I was just thinking about you." Came Dean's voice.

"Hey Dean, what are you up to?"

"Just watching a movie…hey, I can hear traffic. Are you out somewhere?"

"Yeah, something like that. Listen, what do you say to me coming over?"

"Yeah, sure, man, everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything's fine; if your mother catching you finishing a jerking session counts."

"Whoa, no way."

"Yes, way. I needed to get away from her for a bit."

"Yeah, I don't doubt, so how did she handle it?"

"Well, I think we were both embarrassed, but then she just thought it was funny."

"Hmm, well, I don't think I would feel any better no matter what way she took it. Although, to be honest, you must be mortified."

"Yes, Dean, thanks very much for reminding me. So give me a while, and I'll be round."

"Okay, dude, see you when you get here."

I trotted down to Beltways tube station and jumped on a train. It was rush hour, and I struggled to find a place to stand as the doors closed. Most of my journey was spent with some middle-aged man's armpit in my face, a full day at the office not making him smell very pleasant. I was relieved when people got off at the central station, him included, as I was starting to gag.

A few stops later, I arrived at Nelson's Canal station and jumped off. Tapping my travel card on the scanner, the flaps opened, and I walked through and ran up the stairs to the street above. It was only a short walk to Dean's from the station, and I felt more relaxed just by being away from my area.

Although Dean still lived in southeast London, his district was much quieter. Long rows of trees lined the roads, and people didn't seem in such a rush to get everywhere. He still had an independent butcher and baker down the street from his house, and there was also a small fruit and veg stall that set up each morning since as far as I can remember. There was a time when Dean, Shaun and I lived much closer together, and although we still went to the same secondary school, our parents had moved around, with me moving furthest away, due to my parents buying the pub.

I walked up the steps to Dean's door and knocked three times. Sarah opened their large oak door and greeted me with a smile.

"Joey honey, how nice to see you; here for Dean, I gather?"

"Yeah, how did you guess," I said, smirking.

"Well, you better come on in then." She moved to the side, and I stepped past. "Vince, Vince Joey is here." She called to her husband.

"Hey, Joey." I heard Vince's voice bellow from the lounge.

"Hi, Vince," I called back.

"Why don't you go up sweetheart, He's in his bedroom."

"Thanks, Sarah."

I plodded up the stairs to Dean's room and was just about to walk in but decided to knock.

"Come in, Cork."

I walked in, him looking at me strangely. "Hey, what's up?" I said, with an equally strange look on my face.

"Rather polite of you to knock, not like you."

"Yeah, well."

Dean laughed. "Oh, yeah, right. Don't worry, as I said on the phone; I’m just watching a movie, not choking the chicken."

"It's not funny, Dean. I think I'm going to have to move out." I remarked, totally serious.

"Oh, don't be a prick. Look, she would have forgotten all about it tomorrow."

"Pfft, we'll see. I'm so totally freaked out about this."

"Joey, forget it, anyway, what do you wanna do?"

"I dunno, what movie you watching?"

"Scream three, you seen it?"

"Only like four times."

"Okay, I'll turn it off, and we'll go out of you like?"

"Where to?"

Dean shrugged. "Feed the ducks?"

"Very funny, you wanna grab a bite to eat?"

"Nah, my Mum is cooking dinner for me; she'll go nuts if I don't eat it. You're welcome to stay and eat with us if you like. She always does too much."

"I think you better ask her first," I said, chuckling.

"I'll text her, gimmie, a sec."

"Dean, you lazy shit!"

"Yeah, whatever, so you heard from Shaun?"

"Not since school; why?"

"No reason, he's just been acting a bit weird today. Do you know anything about that?"

I brought my fingers to my chin. "Funny you mention it. I thought he was being weird as we were leaving school. I was standing with Jack, and he was asking stupid…well I don't what really, but yeah, he was a bit strange."

"Yeah, not like him. I might have to beat it out of the little fucker."

"Be nice, Dean. I’m sure there is a good reason. Anyway, are you looking forward to camping this weekend?"

"I guess it's gonna be a bit fucked up with Stanton being there though, I mean, we usually take the piss out of people like him, and now I gotta behave."

"Boo hoo, Dean, why don't you try being nice to him, like you was the other day."

"I was just being polite."

"No, you weren't Dean. You meant it. It was written all over your face."

"Alright, so he's not that bad. It just feels weird, that's all."

"Why?" I asked, not getting what he was on about.

"Joey, I spent so much of school hating the guy, and now suddenly I'm going camping with the guy. Don’t you think I deserve a little adjustment time?"

"Don't take this the wrong way, Dean, but you'll probably find you have more in common than you can see now."

"But what am I supposed to talk to him about? I just feel it's gonna be awkward."

"Talk to him like you talk to me. He’s not an alien, you know."

"You really like him, don't you."

I shifted on the spot, suddenly nervous. "W-why do you say that?"

"Because you defend him all the time."

"That's because he hasn't done anything wrong, Dean. I can't just hate someone for the sake of it. There has to be a reason."

"And I do?" Dean asked, looking offended.

"Well, kinda Dean. I mean, why do you actually hate Jack?"

"I already told you, I don't hate him."

"But you did."

"Yeah, because he was a…because he was gay, but I think I get that part now…I think."

I went and sat down on Dean's bed with him. Moments later, his phone went off. It was a text. "Shaun?" I asked.

He grinned. "Nah, but your welcome to stay for dinner."

"Oh, your Mum."

"Well, we better go down then, it's almost ready," Dean remarked, pulling himself off the bed. He picked up the TV remote, putting it on standby, and I followed him downstairs.

We went into the dining room, and Dean told me where to sit. Then, he left the room and returned a moment later with some extra cutlery for me.

"Want a drink, Joey?"

"Thanks, Dean. What you got?"

"Eh, coke, orange juice, milk or water."

"Orange juice is fine, thanks."

"Coming right up." He left the room again, and Sarah came in with a pot of stew.

"You like Stew and dumplings, Joey? I got mash potatoes as well."

"Oh yeah, Sarah, you know me, I'll eat anything; it smells good. Thanks for letting me stay."

"You're welcome honey, better that you stay anyway; I need to keep the weight off, Vince…Vince, I said to Joey, you need to keep the weight off, isn't that right, Honey?" He didn't respond and just pulled a sarcastic face as he came in to join us. Sarah left to get the plates and mash potatoes.

"How's it going, Joey, your Mum and Dad, okay?"

"Yeah, they're fine, thanks, Vince, still working me into the ground."

"They have a good business there, but yeah, I know you work hard for your age."

"I'm glad someone notices," I said appreciatively. "So, how is the cabbie business?"

"Meh, it's dropped off these last few days, but it's near the end of the month, so people will be getting paid soon and will be back out on the town."

"Yeah, I guess," I replied, not knowing if it made a difference. To me, the pub was nearly always busy whatever the time of the month, but then I did live in a really busy area.

"Dean says you three are going camping this Saturday…oh and with a new boy I hear, what's his name again?" Sarah remarked as she came back in with four plates and a pot of mash. Dean followed her in with my drink and one for himself.

"You mean Jack…Jack Stanton."

"That's right, the homosexual one. Sounds like a right darling Shaun was telling me."

"Oh really, did he?"

"Yeah, says his father is a right bastard as well, isn't that right, Vince."

"Yeah honey."

"He's going through some problems at home. I hope they work themselves out; he is a nice guy." I stated, spooning some stew out onto my plate.

"Yeah, apparently he's quite rough with Jack's mother as well," Dean added.

"I'm always hoping your father would be a bit like that in the bedroom," She said, giggling.

"Mum! Really, can you drop the innuendos?"

"Sorry, I guess that one wasn't that funny. No woman should take abuse from her husband." Sarah said, her face turning serious.

"None of them are funny; they just embarrass me," Dean retorted, giving his mother a dirty look.

"I hear Jack works at your parent's pub Joey?" remarked Vince.

"Yeah, he just started recently. He’s been a big help to me and has certainly taken some of the strain off'"

"Well, that's good; I know how hard your Mum and Dad work you," added Sarah. "So you get on well with him?"

"Oh yeah, I really like him, he's quite cute…uh I mean he's quite good…shit, uh, good… I mean, he's quite good."

Everyone at the table just stopped eating a looked up at me. Dean looked like he was about to have a seizure. Vince's eyes were wide, and Sarah's mouth had dropped open.

"Cute, Joey?" Sarah stuttered out, giving me a curious look. I coughed and cleared my throat.

"Erm, I don't know why I said that; uh…I mean, I must have had that word on my mind." My face was quickly filling with heat as I tried to brush the comment off, probably in vain.

"Something you wanna tell me, Joey?" Dean hissed, looking angry.