Rich Boy: Awakening - 9. Chapter 9

“You wouldn’t happen to have made friends already?” The middle-aged guidance counselor asked Michael with a wicked smile. She had brown hair that fell to the middle of her back, and glasses that actually complimented her oval face. Michael was sitting in her cramped office and trying to figure out how this public school operated. So far it had been nothing but confusing. Brandon was in another counselor’s office. For some reason they assigned counselors based on your last name here, not compatibility or any other system that would have made some sense.

“I have.” Michael said while wondering what had made her say that. He absentmindedly rubbed the back of his head again, feeling surprise at the short stubbly hair that now adorned his head.

“Some of them wouldn’t happen to be named Josh, Jeremy, Brian, Aaron, or Tom would they?” She asked with a grin.

“How did you know?” He asked her with a little surprise. No, she was a mundane, not a gifted so that wasn’t how she knew.

“I’ve been watching them come to school with fresh crewcuts every year.” She laughed. “I think some boys started the tradition about ten years ago. They’re always nice young men who ride motorcycles. Not Harley’s, but those little sports models.”

“I see.” Michael said with amusement. That had been a surprise when Brandon and he had been ‘inducted’ into the Red Bluff Riders. There was no gang tattoo, no jackets with their names on it, but that was what they called the group that Josh, Tom, and others rode with. Brandon was included simply because he’d gone that night with Michael, who was their real target. When they’d first grabbed him after he’d arrived at Josh’s house, he’d prepared to blast them with magic, but Tom was practically shouting in his mind that it was okay. At first the idea of having his hair cut with clippers, and cut into a crewcut made him scared, but he had to admit he liked the look after it was done. Being in a group of guys all with the same haircut was an even nicer feeling.

“Well, as gangs go, their more like what teacher could wish to have in her class.” Mrs. Warren, the counselor continued. “All the boys get 3.0 or higher GPA’s, I’ve never heard of any drugs associated with them, and while there’s a fight once in a while, they don’t go out of their way looking for trouble or bullying other students.”

“That is good.” Michael said, unsure what else to say.

“Well, enough of me stalling.” She said with a sigh and picked up a folder with his name on it and shook her head. “I really don’t know what to advise you here. I got your file last week and couldn’t believe you’d be attending here. I understand you’re living with two of our other students, but I thought a private school student like you would find somewhere to attend beside a public school.”

“This was the best option we had available at this time.” Michael said with a shrug.

“Well, Worthington…” She began but he interrupted her.

“Please, call me Michael, or Mike.” He said. “Worthington was my father.”

“Oh, yes, let me make a note of that.” She said, and she did, right there on a piece of paper at the top of his file. “Well, fortunately we have room in our Honors program for you. That will cover your English, Mathematics, History, and German courses without too much trouble. Your electives are another matter. We can cover two of them, but I’m afraid we don’t have any equivalent courses similar to what you were taking at your previous school. Why don’t I give you a list and you can pick something from that?”

“That will suffice.” Michael said, and he really didn’t care what he took beyond the core curriculum. The papers she shuffled over to him indicated they had Business courses for two of his electives. He wanted to tell her that he wanted something else, but remained silent. They did fit in with his courses from the boarding school, and he would need Business if he ever decided to take over the family businesses. Part of him didn’t want to do that, but there was still an obligation there, one that he could not fully reject. Those businesses employed too many people, people who depended on it for their income, for their comfortable lives. Just because his family’s history had been less than ideal didn’t mean he had a right to take away their jobs from these people. They were as innocent as anyone else, for the most part. The list she put in front of him caught his attention for the third elective, and he felt a wild urge to pick Home Economics. No, there was something else on the list that caught his attention. “What about this Physical Education class?”

“Oh, you don’t need that to meet your graduation requirement.” She said with a negligent wave of her hand. “That’s Sports P.E. anyway, for students who are on one of the teams. You don’t play any sports, do you?”

“I haven’t but I think it might be interesting.” He said, and it was.

“Well, as a junior you’ll have a difficult time getting on any of the teams.” She said. “Football has already started, you know, and we have a really competitive basketball team.”

“What about Track and Field?” He asked.

“Well, you wouldn’t need Sports P.E. until next semester for that.” She said with a frown. “Are you sure you wouldn’t like one of these other courses? Computer Science maybe?”

“Wrestling, that’s in the Fall, right?” He asked as he remembered something. Oh yes, he remembered that guy, and he let the guilt wash over him briefly. Victor had been a very good wrestler, and even after he’d taken some of the guy’s abilities, Victor had still been good enough to win his State Championship that year. Michael had clearly remembered reading that Victor had gotten a scholarship for wrestling, even after his encounter with Worthington Michael Sinclair. Even as he sat there in the guidance office, he could feel his limbs twitching with wanting to use some of the things he’d learned from that round of sex.

“You wrestle?” She asked, flipping through his transcripts.

“It was part of the physical education curriculum.” Michael said. “Naturally a school like that did not have a wrestling team, but it was taught. No one could beat me.”

“Oh, well of course you can always try out for the team.” She said. “If you really want this, I’ll pencil you in for the class. You can attend, but if you do not make the wrestling team you will have to go into a different course.”

“That is acceptable.” Michael said with a smile. “Thank you for your assistance with this.”

“Why, you are very welcome.” She said with a coquettish smile, and then she launched into an explanation of where his classes would be, how they did not have lockers at this school, so he would have a textbook in class, and another that he would take home and use for homework, and all the other little things about how the school worked. She even had a parking pass for his car, and his motorcycle, which he had to pay for, but that would not be a problem.

Brandon was still meeting with his counselor when he was done, so he headed to his first class. Of course he was fifteen minutes late, and interrupted the professor – no, teacher – who was in the middle of a lecture about all the wonderful history they would be learning under his tutelage. The older man looked quite aggrieved at the interruption, and smiled at Michael as he handed the man the slip of paper from the guidance counselor.

“Oh my, class, it appears we have a new student to this school.” The man said in a tone that let it be known he was not at all happy. It was almost scornful. The man’s name was James Bennett, Michael knew from his schedule that had been printed before leaving the guidance office, and apparently he hated Michael already. “Let’s see here, I need to write your name in my roll book since you are a late addition. Oh yes, Worthington Michael Sinclair, oh and I must not forget that you are the fifth to have that name. Quite distinguished, I am certain. Well, Worthington, since you are important enough to be able to interrupt my class, why don’t we take a moment and get to know you better? Please, introduce yourself to the class. Tell us where you are from, and please, tell us what has brought you to our little school.

“Thank you, Mr. Bennett, for taking the time out of your class to introduce me to all these wonderful people.” Michael said in a voice that bordered on sarcasm. Mr. Bennett’s antics had gotten quite a few giggles. As he turned to face the other students, he recognized two familiar faces, including one with a crew cut as fresh as his own. “Please, I know my first name is Worthington, but I’d like to ask everyone to call me Michael, or maybe even Mike.”

“Not Mikie?” James asked with a laugh in his voice. “You sure you don’t want us calling you Mikie?”

“That there’s my cousin Jamie.” Michael said with a grin as Tom laughed. “Or, as I like to call him, Jameson. He hates Jameson almost as much as I hate Worthington. As to where I am from, Mr. Bennett, my family is from Ohio. For the past four years I have attended Mt. Washington Prepatory Academy in Virginia. If you’re wondering, it was an all-boy’s school. I must say, public school definitely has a few advantages over that.”

The last part Michael said with a grin at two of the girls in the front row, both of whom giggled, along with several other girls, and one even blushed.

“I am attending this fine school, and in your wonderful class, Mr. Bennett, because this last summer, on the day of my birthday, almost my entire family was killed.” Michael added a little hard edge to his voice and looked back at the teacher with a very direct look. The man’s face changed from anger to confusion for a moment. “My parents decided to hold a birthday bash for my sixteenth birthday. They were all out back of our mansion when a thunderstorm hit. Of course they’d put up tents in case it rained, but lightning struck, killing my parents, all of my grandparents, most of my aunts, uncles, and many of my cousins all at the same time. It was quite awful, really. Luckily I was inside when the lightning hit and didn’t die. Now I live here with my sole surviving Aunt, who wasn’t there that day, and my cousin Jameson and his brother Richie.”

“If you think you can…” Mr. Bennett started to fume, but Jamie stood up.

“Uh, Mr. Bennett, he’s telling the truth.” Jamie said in a firm voice. Mr. Bennett looked at him for a moment, then looked back at Michael, and his mouth opened once, then twice.

“I, uh, of course, I hope you are recovering well from such a tragic event.” Mr. Bennett finally stammered, and Michael actually felt a little bit of liking for this man. He offered a platitude, but didn’t lie and say he felt sorry for Michael. A few of the girls in the class looked like they were going to more than take care of that, though. “Please, have a seat. I was just discussing our schedule for the semester.”

“Thank you, sir.” Michael said with a smile. Bennett may be a jerk, but at least he was an honest jerk. That was something he could respect. Plus, it was nice to show up a teacher. He’d have never gotten away with that at his old school. There was an open seat, luckily, just behind Jamie, and he sat down there. Tom was one row over, and smiled at him.

“I am so sorry to hear about your family.” This blond girl on the other side leaned over and whispered to him.

“Jessica, you can console him on his loss later.” Mr. Bennett said with a grim smile and Michael actually turned and smiled at the man.

You bastard. Jamie sent in a soft mental touch. Michael had never imagined this use for their abilities. Talking in class when the teacher had no chance of hearing.

What? He asked his half-brother and best friend.

You aren’t even straight and you’ve already broken the hearts of every girl in this damn school!

I don’t know about the whole school. Michael retorted. I’ll concede at least this class.

Are you kidding, the way gossip flies around here? Jamie laughed mentally. I guarantee you by the start of next period at least one girl will tell you she’s sorry for your loss.

What do you want to bet? Michael laughed.

Your television, the flat panel on your wall. Jamie said instantly.

What do I get if I win? Michael asked. Jamie was silent for a long moment.

My virginity? Jamie offered and Michael had to stifle a laugh. It had the feeling of a joke to it.

Sorry. Michael returned. Stacy will kill me if I took that.

Yes she would. Jamie shot back.

Why is that so important, anyway? Michael asked.

It has to do with being a Light Mage. Jamie said cautiously. I’m not supposed to really talk about it, but basically there’s certain spells only a virgin can perform.

So you have to be a virgin forever? Michael’s mental voice trembled at that concept.

No, just until my next birthday, really. Jamie replied with more mental laughter. Then I get to go hog wild all I want.

Fine, I win, I get to be your first, when you turn seventeen. Michael said with triumph. Jamie laughed again, mentally of course.

Okay, that’s a bet then. Your plasma television against my virginity, after I turn seventeen. Jamie laughed aloud this time, and got a glare from Mr. Bennett. I swear, Mom was right. You Dark Mages should not be trusted. You’ve been here a couple of months and I’m already betting my virginity for a plasma television.

You want a nice car? Michael offered as a joke.

How about a motorcycle like yours? Jamie countered.

That’s easy. Michael said.

What do you want in return? Jamie laughed mentally. It was clear that Michael was just joking around now.

Oh, let’s see, how about your firstborn son? Michael laughed.

Done! Jamie laughed. So, what’s your schedule?

Michael shared his schedule with Jamie, and was pleased when it turned out they had two classes together, including this one. Jamie was very surprised that Michael was going to go out for the wrestling team, but started making comments about him just wanting to get his hands on cute guys in front of everyone. Since that had a little bit of truth, Michael blushed as the bell rang.

“So, what classes you got?” Tom asked as soon as they were standing up, and between him and Jamie they managed to keep any of the girls from mobbing Michael. It turned out that Tom had four of the same classes as him, including the same English class that he was sharing with Jamie. Another was the Sports P.E., since Tom was usually on the basketball team. “Well, you’ve got the same Math class as me, so I’ll show you where it’s at.

Have fun! Jamie sent mentally as he went a different direction.

Damn! Michael thought to himself as he and Tom took seats next to each other in the Math class and the room began to fill up and a girl came up to him. She was not in their first-period class, but she had a sad look on her face.

“You’re the new guy, right?” She said softly. “Michael?”

“Yes.” Michael said, knowing he’d already lost the bet.

“I am so sorry to hear about your parents!” The girl practically gushed. “It must be so awful for you, losing all your family like that! How are you handling it?”

“Fairly well.” Michael said with a shrug and her eyes widened in shock. “They were all evil, evil people so the world is a much better place without them still alive.”

“Oh.” She said, backing up and nearly tripping over a desk behind her. Tom burst out laughing and she blushed, moving to the other side of the class.

“Mike, that was so fucking cruel.” Tom laughed. “She’s like a major cheerleader too! You know what’s really sick?”

“What?” Michael asked distractedly as he noticed Brandon coming into the class. Good, there would be someone else here he could ‘talk’ to without bugging the teacher.

“You probably told her the truth.” Tom said with a little bit of a frown.

“I was.” Michael shrugged and Tom shook his head. Now that was interesting. Because Michael was here, it was natural that he could remember things, and what he’d said hadn’t come close to revealing anything about magic. How the spell actually worked was interesting to observe.

“Wow.” Tom said softly as Brandon took the seat on Michael’s other side. Brandon actually looked very good with his crew cut. “Heya Brandon.”

“Hey Tom.” Brandon smiled at the guy, and Michael resisted a knowing smirk. Oh yes, Brandon would probably succeed in his efforts to seduce Tom if that smile was any indication.

The bell rang, cutting off any further chance of discussion. By lunch time Michael had decided that while the coursework would not be much of a challenge, negotiating the waters of high school social life was going to be rough going. Not to mention he had to help move his plasma television to Jamie’s room, and then convince Brandon to find the money to replace it. Sure, he didn’t watch a whole lot of television, but he liked having a big screen to watch whenever he did.

At lunch, he ran into a quandary. Tom and Josh wanted him to sit at their table, with the other members of their ‘gang’. Brandon wanted to sit there as well, but Michael wanted to sit with Jamie, who was surrounded by a mixed group of girls and guys. Jamie’s mental laughter reached him, and told him not to worry. That was why he ended up sitting at the table with Josh while watching Brandon continue to conquer Tom.

By the time the last class of the day rolled around, and he went into the P.E. locker room, he had been slipped sixteen phone numbers, all of them from girls. Josh, Jamie, Brandon, and Tom, who were all in the same class with him before this one were laughing at him as three girls in that class all gave him their phone numbers. Jamie offered to take them off his hands, but changed his mind when Michael offered the lot of them for his television back.

“That’s the wrestling coach, Mr. Vanderbilt.” Tom said as they sat on the benches waiting for the class to start. Apparently they were to wait there for the teachers to start issuing them locker combinations. The man Tom pointed out was short, barely five-five, and very lean of build. Like all the other coaches gathering near their offices, he was wearing tight shorts that showed off well-built legs, a polo shirt, and had a whistle around his neck. The man couldn’t have been more than thirty at the most.

“They hired him last year.” Josh added from Michael’s other side. He already had his locker in the football team’s special locker room that was in a room just off of the locker room they were sitting in right now. Like every locker room he’d ever been in, it smelled of teenage boys, sweat, and a whole assortment of other odors. “He was on the U.S. Wrestling team at the last Olympics. Didn’t place, but he was on the team.”

“That’s pretty good.” Michael said with a shrug. He wondered idly if Victor had ever managed to make that team like he’d wanted. Maybe he’d look it up sometime, although part of him worried about the guilt he’d feel if Victor hadn’t. No, there were some things he couldn’t fix. What he’d taken from Victor, he couldn’t put back.

That led him into a world of thought, though, that distracted him from the things going on around him. Tom and Josh noticed his distraction and kept talking to each other, giving him some room as the coaches began to call out names. He noticed that, and appreciated them all the more.

As much as he’d love to say it hadn’t been him, the fact was that he was Worthington Michael Sinclair. Right now, the evil part of him, or most of it, was bottled up in a crystal sphere inside of his head, but it couldn’t remain there forever. He would have to integrate it back into himself, become one with it, and he knew it would be painful.

One of the things that Stacy, and Barrett de Long had explained to him was that as part of the integration with that evil part, he would remember, and relive all the evil things that he had done while under the geas, or compulsion of others. He’d already integrated parts of that into himself, and knew some of the evil he’d performed as Worthington Michael Sinclair the Fifth. To deny that had ever been him raping Carl, or performing the soul-bonding spell on Brandon would be to deny a part of himself, and he could not do that if he ever hoped to be fully integrated. Not integrating meant that one day, the evil could break free, and consume him. Then it would be in control, and could do more evil. He didn’t want that.

Some of the things that had been done could never be undone. Any of those dozens of guys he’d had sex with, and in the process had drained them of some of their unique skills or abilities had suffered at his hands, even if they didn’t know what had happened to them. He could not put those skills or abilities back into them. They were gone forever. When he had done that, he didn’t take all of their ability, just that little extra spark, that extra little bit that made a person just a bit better at something than everyone else. Not all of his sexual partners had possessed that spark, and so had not lost anything, but enough had.

Those he could do nothing about, except maybe use what he’d taken from them to do something good. Would using what he’d taken from Victor to give this school a championship be good? Or would he be taking a victory from someone else who deserved it more? No, that was an argument he could have with himself later. Maybe he’d ask Jamie or Richie what they thought. Richie would be better. He wasn’t as close to Michael as Jamie was. Jamie might try to overlook something important just to make him feel better.

Were there things he had done as Worthington, though, that he could change or make better? Certainly until he’d completed the integration process he did not know everything he had done over the past several years. Still, he did know some things. Like Carl, the boy he had raped in front of every gifted student at the boarding school. The other thing he’d done that night, besides a violent and cruel rape, was to lock the boy’s memories in a spell. Carl would relive what happened to him every night, and never be able to tell anyone. When he was alone, he’d remember what happened, but his voice would never work, his mind would never work to tell another, and so he would suffer in silence.

Yes, Michael could do something about that.

“Sinclair!” Coach Vanderbilt shouted, and Michael roused out of his thoughts. Tom and Josh were gone, and he’d never noticed. Most of the guys in the class were gathering in groups around the coaches, and Michael got up to go join the group near Vanderbilt.

“Yes, coach.” Michael responded. The coach gave him an appraising glare and shook his head.

“You think you can wrestle?” Coach Vanderbilt’s voice was mocking.

“We’ll find out, won’t we?” Michael retorted and the coach nearly smiled. He got his face muscles under control quickly though, and scowled instead.

“Here’s your locker assignment and combination.” The coach said, handing him a piece of paper and then looking at his clipboard. “Tryouts for the team are in two weeks, but I want you dressed up and on the mats tomorrow. Sports P.E., the teams normally stick together as a group. Once a week we’ll have an inter-team skirmish in different sports so the Ed Board stays off our backs, but we spend most of the time practicing, even though practice doesn’t officially start for three weeks. Got a problem with that?”

“No, Coach.” Michael replied immediately.

“Good, for now let’s get you measured and weighed.” Vanderbilt said and this time he let a little smile appear on his face. “Just in case you know what a standing position is.”

“No problem, Coach.” Michael said and started to strip right there.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Coach asked him.

“If you’re going to weigh me, I’m not having all this shit on.” Michael said and realized his language was slipping slightly. Yes, that was Victor-ish if he remembered correctly. Vanderbilt shook his head, but since Michael was standing there in blue silk briefs and his white ankle socks, he motioned towards the scale. One of the other wrestling guys made a whispered comment to another guy and both of them started laughing. Michael was able to pick up what the comment was from the guy’s mind though, and smiled to himself as he shifted his hefty-sized dick inside his underwear. That got a few more comments and he smiled. Maybe he would go without a jock tomorrow, just to see the reaction.

That would be fun.

“Are you sure about this?” Elizabeth asked him later that night after he’d gotten home and given her the permission forms he needed her to sign to participate in team sports. He’d have to go to a doctor and get a physical too. She’d gotten home late after what sounded like an exciting day at court. Apparently she’d managed to break a witness down on the stand and get a startling confession that won her case.

“Yes, I’m sure.” Michael said and she shook her head.

“Your mother would have a fit.” She chuckled. “Wilma never liked the idea of organized sports.”

“She would not like it, no.” Michael said with a smile. “That’s why I’m glad I have to ask you, not her.”

“Okay, I’ll do it.” She agreed. “I’ll make the appointment with the school’s doctor too. Do you need to buy any gear?”

“I bought it on the way home.” He said, and it had been an interesting experience, buying a singlet, and a jock. He’d never bought one before, and had to ask a very amused store clerk questions about which size to buy.

“Well, here you go.” She said after signing the forms. “Stacy and I will have to go to your first match. You can wrestle, can’t you?”

“Yes.” He said.

“Well, have a good evening.” She said in clear dismissal and he left the upper level of the house, finding Brandon playing pool with Richie while Jamie was in his bedroom, enjoying his new television. He’d been in Michael’s room as soon as school was out, impatiently waiting for Michael to return so he could claim his prize. Brandon was still smirking at him, insisting it was impossible to afford such a large television right now, and wondering how bad it would look for the court if he was losing his possessions by gambling.

The next day went a little easier at school. It seemed he was already considered to be in the school’s upper social echelons for several reasons. Among those was the fact that he really did come from a disgustingly rich family. He certainly had more money than any other student there. It also seemed several students had found out about the legal fight between his uncle and his aunt, and that was even more fodder for the gossip mongers.

Then there was the fact that he was part of Josh’s group. Well, Aaron Beltran was the leader of that group, officially, but it was Josh that had introduced him to them. All of the guys, except for Brandon, were members of one of the school’s sports teams, and considered to be very popular. Then there was the fact that he couldn’t go three feet without some girl batting her eyelashes at him, or wiggling her butt, or doing any one of a hundred other things to attract his attention.

Just after third period something happened to further the mystery of his reputation. Rumors had it that his family was not the most legitimate of rich people, and had been under investigation for some shady dealings when they died. He’d probably started that with his comments to that silly girl on the first day, but there were now rumors going around that he knew all sorts of vicious people like mafia dons, hired killers, and the like. As he was coming out of third period, he saw a Senior, who was also a member of the football team picking on a freshman. Something snapped inside him, and he decided to stop it.

“Leave him alone.” Michael told the football player who was as tall as him, and nearly twice as wide.

“Get out of here.” The football player snarled at him, lifting a hand to push him away while staring down at the frightened freshman. The kid was a geek, complete with a bad case of acne, thick glasses, and a polo shirt buttoned all the way to the top. Michael grabbed the hand the football player was pushing at him, twisted it at the pressure point and used it to flip the football player over so that he landed on the floor, on his back.

“Scoot.” Michael said to the kid who looked shocked, and then smiled.

“Holy fuck.” Someone nearby said, and Michael dropped the football player’s arm before walking away. No one said anything to him, but the hall was filled with whispers, and half-whispers as those who saw what had happened spread the story.

“You’ve made some people really pissed.” Josh laughed as they walked into P.E. He was on the football team and had already heard about the incident.

“Are they going to try and get back at me?” Michael asked, beginning to think it had been a very bad idea. He might be able to handle two or three without magic, but he couldn’t fight the entire football team, and he didn’t dare use magic on that many people.

“Hell no.” Josh laughed while Tom chuckled. “They figure you’re some jujitsu master or something, and that if they really piss you off, you’ll just hire a bunch of mob goons to beat the shit out of them.”

“Oh.” Michael frowned. “Then why are they so pissed?”

“They’re pissed because now they don’t dare pick on anyone.” Josh laughed. “They’re worried they try to bully any of the freshies and they’ll end up dead, or worse, flat on their back in front of the whole school.”

“Oh.” Michael said with a shake of his head. Public school social rules were so different than those he was used to dealing with.

“Sinclair!” Vanderbilt’s voice rang out in the locker room as they entered and Michael went to his locker, which was near the others belonging to members of the wrestling team. “Get your gear on and let’s see if you can wrestle as well as all that kung-fu fighting crap!’

Michael smiled to himself as he got undressed. He’d put his new gear into the locker before school started, and put it on, leaving the jock in the locker and just putting on the maroon and silver singlet. Yes, the bulge in the front was perfectly obvious, and he enjoyed the looks from the other wrestlers. They all had decent builds, and a few of them were good looking enough to make his cock twitch.

The school had several gyms, actually, and one corner of one was already set up with wrestling mats. After taking attendance, and leading them through some stretching exercises, Vanderbilt paired Michael off with another guy in his weight class. The dark-haired guy was actually a junior, and had well-built arms. He also had that peculiar leanness of a wrestler trying to stay lean in order to keep in his weight class. Michael had no intention of taking things that far, but he started getting excited as he was told to get on all fours.

“Damn.” One of the wrestlers watching the match said fifteen minutes later. By no means was the match easy for Michael, and he ended up losing by points, but he was satisfied that he’d done well enough. His opponent even shook his hand, and smirked at the hard-on that was just beginning to subside. Michael wasn’t sure if the word spoken by one of the other wrestlers was for how he’d done, or the size of his cock. For that matter, he didn’t care.

“Not bad, Sinclair.” Vanderbilt said grudgingly as he walked off the mat. “You’re a bit sloppy and slow, but practice will take care of that. If you improve like I expect you will, you won’t have a problem making the team. Oh, and tomorrow, wear a jock.”

“Yes, coach.” Michael said, and couldn’t help but grinning because the coach had given him an extra long look, focused on his crotch before turning and calling out two more names.

“Jeremy Harforth.” His opponent said while they watched the next match, holding out his hand. Michael took it and shook.

“Michael Sinclair.” He replied.

“Yeah, I’ve heard your name.” Jeremy said with a smile. “Not bad, and that weapon you got down there is downright scary. Want some advice?”

“Sure.” Michael smiled.

“Wear your cup and jock at practice.” Jeremy offered. “You’re gonna get hit there a few times, and most of them won’t be on purpose. Go without one at a meet though.”

“Why?” Michael asked with real curiosity.

“I almost had you pinned, but then I felt that fucking monster against me and fucking freaked out.” Jeremy laughed. “How big is it?”

“Over eight last time I measured.” Michael said with a hint of pride.

“Damn that’s fucking big.” Jeremy laughed. “You get a girl who can go down on it yet?”

“You’d be surprised.” Michael chuckled. He found he was liking this guy already.

“I get up to seven on a good day, and I still have problems getting a girl to go all the way down on it.” Jeremy said sotto voice.

“Yeah, well girls can be touchy that way.” Michael laughed. “Maybe you should find a good guy.”

“Damn, you really don’t care what people think about you, do you?” Jeremy looked at him with a surprised expression.

“Nope.” Michael shrugged wondering why that would get that reaction. Talking about guys giving blowjobs at the boarding school had been commonplace.

“So you meet any guys that could go down on that thing?” Jeremy asked in a voice that sounded a little strained.

“I went to an all-boys school.” Michael said flatly. “What do you think?”

“Oh, yeah.” Jeremy looked a little pale, and didn’t say anything as they watched two more matches take place. When he did speak again, he was leaning over and whispering so faintly even Michael had a hard time hearing him. “Was it really good?”

“Yeah, it was.” Michael replied when he noticed that the cup Jeremy was wearing was pushing out further than it had been. “Hey, why don’t I give you my cell number after class? You can come over sometime and help me out.”

“Yeah.” Jeremy said in a husky voice. He really was good looking.

When he pulled his bike up to the house that afternoon, he was whistling, and Brandon was laughing at him as he got off the bike and took off his helmet. Richie and Jamie were still on their way home in Richie’s hybrid Prius. Michael was surprised to see both Stacy’s and Elizabeth’s car at the house already, and a strange rental car parked in front of the house. A quick thought checked the wards, and he relaxed a bit when everything seemed okay with them.

“Who’s that?” Brandon asked, jutting his chin at the strange car.

“Don’t know.” Michael replied as he put his gloves inside the helmet, got his backpack off of the special harness on the top of the bike’s gas tank, and headed towards the door with Brandon in tow. Stacy and Elizabeth were just coming out of the living room, escorting an overweight middle-aged man in a business suit.

“Oh, there he is now, home from school.” Elizabeth said with a smile for Michael.

“Hello.” Michael said cautiously.

“Worthington, this is Mr. Charles Brantree.” Elizabeth said with a mental warning as she introduced the man. “He is a court officer from Ohio. The judge in the case regarding your family’s estate has sent him here on a surprise visit to inspect the house and to meet with you.”

“Welcome Mr. Brantree.” Michael said with a sinking feeling in his stomach. The man gave him a hard stare for a long moment before nodding.

“I will need to see your bedroom, young man.” He said and gave the two women a look. “Without anyone else around, if you please.”

“It is this way, sir.” Michael said with cool equanimity. Yep, this was going to be just fun.