Charlie - 3. Ch 03: Trouble in Paradise

CHAPTER 3: Trouble in Paradise

I still haven’t told you about Charlie’s wet dream, have I? Well, he didn’t exactly tell me that he was dreaming about me. But, I thought that it was a perfectly logical and acceptable assumption to arrive at. It was kinda funny, really, how it happened. It was during one of the nights Charlie slept over at my house. You know that awkward stage that everyone else goes through as they get older? You know that point where the body suddenly gets a growth spurt almost growing out of proportion? Yeah, I mean puberty. It’s that time when other guys’ voices start to crack and get awkward as they get deeper. It’s also when pimples start showing up and when hormones suddenly start giving you urges in bed.

Well, I’m proud to say, I pretty much skipped all the awkward phases. I went from cute and adorable to damn sexy and adorable. It was the result of pure thought. One day I just decided that it was time to cross over then BAM – hot stuff!

Needless to say, Charlie had an awkward time as he entered puberty. He was definitely confused about something because he always seemed to be in such deep thought. As I said before, he was usually talkative around me but there were times when he seemed to be just staring into nothing. Sometimes, it felt like he was staring at me. I asked him often about it whenever he entered one of his moods but he just kept saying that he couldn’t tell me. He said I wouldn’t understand which was weird because Charlie always shared everything with me. I suppose it made sense thinking about it in retrospect because I went from perfect boy to perfect teenage hottie without any of that awkward transitioning crap. I didn’t undergo the same gauche phase he did so I wouldn’t share in his experiences.

One thing he couldn’t control or at least hide from me though was his urges. At least at the start before he discovered the joys of self-gratification, he was always hard. We slept over a lot at each other’s house so I knew he was usually hard as we got into his bed and probably harder as he got out of it. Before you get any ideas, we didn’t share the same bed. That would just be gross. He simply slept in pajamas which didn’t hide much when he was upright. I slept in boxers only though so maybe, just maybe, seeing my sexy bod was a huge turn on. I know I get hard when I see myself in the mirror.

Anyway, there was this one time when Charlie slept over at my place. My room had two beds (much like Charlie’s room). Our moms realized that we were virtually inseparable and consequently gave in to our constant requests to have two beds in each of our rooms. At first, we’d sleep on the same bed in protest (completely ignoring the sleeping bags they would put out). When they realized that sleeping on the same bed would be awkward at a certain age, they bought matching beds and placed one in each of our houses.

I was having this wonderful dream involving Rebecca Hastings and a can of 98% fat free cream cheese when I heard a moan come not from me or Rebecca. I ignored it at first as I let the dream continue but then I heard it again. The disturbing part about it was it was Charlie’s voice I could hear. When it repeated a third time, I’ve had enough and almost as if on cue, I woke up in my bed with an unsatisfied hard on. I would have taken care of it if I didn’t hear Charlie’s moan again this time in my room.

I looked over to Charlie’s bed and he was sporting a huge hard on in his tented pajamas. He was squirming in bed and had somehow managed to wiggle out of his blanket which was now lying on the floor. His bare chest was dotted with sweat and you could see his eyes moving in the moonlight underneath their lids. He kept jerking his leg as though trying to kick something away and his hard on seemed to grow even bigger within its thin prison. Considering his lanky frame, he was quite impressive down there.

Of course, I assumed he was having a bad dream. His face seemed worried as beaded sweat fell across his forehead. I was about to wake him up when I heard him speak.

It was barely above a whisper but I undoubtedly heard it. “Ee mee,” he said.

My eyes opened widened as I realized what his jerking and moaning meant. I chuckled to myself as I watched firsthand what a person having a wet dream looked like. “What?” I asked with a smile.

Slowly, Charlie opened his eyes and he stiffened as he looked up at me (and I don’t mean down there, he was stiff for quite awhile there as you can imagine). “Hero,” he whispered.

I couldn’t resist it. I jumped on his bed and sat on his stomach. He released a strangled oomph as I sat down. “Dude, were you having a wet dream?”

Charlie seemed to shake underneath me. I don’t know why but I didn’t find the situation odd at the time. I mean I was only in my boxers and sitting on Charlie’s bare stomach who still had a hard on, by the way. I suppose things were different back then. Maybe I was different. Anyway, I was still somewhat hard from my own dream with Rebecca but that didn’t matter to me. I wanted to get the juicy details of Charlie’s dream.

“No,” he replied in a shaky voice as he seemed to glance down to my package.

“There’s no hiding from me, boy,” I said in a faux Texan accent as I bounced on his stomach further constricting his breathing. “Tell, whossit yo dreamin’ about?”

Charlie squirmed nervously underneath me. “I… it’s no one.” I bounced a few more times and he squirmed and seemed to whimper beneath me. “I can’t tell you, Hero,” he was almost pleading with me now.

I kept bouncing on him. His hard on seemed to grow bigger again and was poking me a bit on my butt. I could feel it slightly through the thin material. “Hey, you’re thinking about her again, aren’t you? That must have been one hot dream. I had one too. I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.”

“Hero… I can’t,” he whimpered beneath me as I bounced.

“Sure you can. It was Rebecca wasn’t it? I knew you had the hots for her.” I bounced more on his stomach.

“Hero,” he whispered almost out of breath.

“It’s definitely someone from the art table. They’re the only ones I’ve ever seen you look at,” I said contemplatively bouncing more.

“Hero,” Charlie pleaded. “Stop. Please.”

“If it’s not Rebecca, then it must be Andrea. No way is it Jenna. God, even you can do better than that.”

Charlie looked momentarily hurt but in a whimpering voice continued. “Hero, you really do have to stop bouncing.”

“It’s Andrea isn’t it? I knew you were into the freckly kind,” I said raising my eyebrows at him. This time, instead of bouncing, I moved forward and backward on his stomach.

Charlie’s eyes widened as his breath seemed to catch in his throat and he looked almost in pain. He whimpered and released the cutest “nnnnnnggg” before I felt his legs jerking beneath me. He had a dazed look on his face as I felt the oddest sensation on the back side of my boxers.

“Big C?” I asked Charlie.

“Yeah?” he whispered.

“Did you just do what I think you just did?”

“I’m sorry, you kept bouncing and I couldn’t stop.”

“Oh… my… god…” I said as I bounced off the bed. Charlie’s tented pajamas now had a huge wet spot on it. I reached behind me and touched my boxers. It was also wet. “Oh my god! You came on me!”

Charlie fell on the floor in a fit of laughter.

“That’s not funny,” I said as I desperately tried to remove the stain with a tissue. The boxers were sticking to my butt. Whatever was left of my erection quickly deflated. “Oh god, I have Little Cs all over me.” I finally decided to just change boxers.

Charlie just laughed harder as he collapsed again on the floor. “Hero, I did tell you to stop,” he managed to say in between laughs. “But you wouldn’t listen.”

“Uhh, next time tell me when you’re going to do something like that.” I shivered even my new boxers. I could still feel the wet spot there. “I’m going to make you pay for that. One day you’re going to wake up with my cock in your face.”

Charlie seemed thoughtful for a moment as he sat on the floor in front of his bed. But when he noticed the glare I was giving him, his eyes widened and he looked down. “I’m sorry,” he said barely audible.

“Hey,” I said as I sat down next to him in my new Little C-free boxers. I thought Charlie took my threat a little too seriously. “I was just kidding, you know. I’d never do anything like that to you. I love you, man.”

Charlie looked nervously at me. “You… you love me?” he asked. I could almost sense some longing in his voice. I knew he had low self-esteem but I didn’t think it would go so low that he would doubt that he was my best bud.

“Yeah, Big C. You and I, we’re like brothers. Through thick and thin, no matter what happens, we’re in it together, eh? Brothers to the end.” I then punched him playfully on his arm.

“Brothers,” he repeated. He almost sounded sad when he said it, which kinda offended me then.

“Is something bothering you Big C?” I asked.

Charlie looked at me, as in looked intently at me. He was giving me one of those sand falling into the sandbox looks of full concentration. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that there was something he wanted to say, almost desperately. Besides, even if it did take a genius, it wouldn’t have been a problem for me.

He didn’t get his chance to explain though because there was a knock on our door followed by my mom’s voice, “are you boys up yet?”

I couldn’t resist. “Well, Charlie’s up,” I said as I looked at his hard on which was surprisingly still standing. He shoved me away with a laugh.

“What was that?” I heard my mom ask before she opened the door and peeked in. Somehow, her eyes immediately landed on the very visible wet spot in front of Charlie’s pajamas. “Oh,” she said as she started blushing. “Would you like to borrow one of Derek’s boxers, Charlie?”

Charlie who must have finally realized what she was seeing scampered for the blanket that fell on the floor. His entire body seemed to blush as he covered himself up. I was laughing the whole time. “That’s okay, Mrs. H. I have an extra pair with me.”

I liked how Charlie called my parents Mr. and Mrs. H. It’s supposedly because our last name was Hampton but Charlie told me when we were small that he called them that short for Mr. and Mrs. Hero. It’s kinda funny naming my parents after me. In truth though, I think my mom knew that that was the real reason Charlie called her Mrs. H and she didn’t mind at all.

“Okay then dear, breakfast will be ready in five minutes and since you’re both up… I mean awake. I expect you there, alright?”

“Yes, mom,” I said with a laugh. Charlie could only nod and blush even more although I was quite certain he would be pushing me around once the door closed. Not that he’d have any luck with that given my perfectly toned and muscular body. The only way Charlie ever got one up on me was by saying something and running away before I could get my hands on him – a nasty habit he was slowly developing.

“Alright then,” she said with a nod as she closed the door.

“Geez, Big C, hide that thing away,” I said as I stood up to wear something. I took out a wife-beater and some jersey shorts to wear. Surprisingly, Charlie chuckled with me as I changed. After Charlie had changed into his clean boxers and put on a shirt and shorts, I remembered what we were discussing. “Hey Big C, was there something you wanted to tell me?”

Charlie looked away for a moment and I could tell he didn’t want to meet my eyes. He made his way to the door before he spoke up. “Oh, I was just wondering what your mom would say when she found some of my stuff on the back of your boxers.” With a quick and practiced tug at the doorknob, he was out the door and running down the hall.

Argh! I swore that cheeky brat would be dead when I caught him!

I took my time getting ready and by the time I got to the kitchen, Charlie was seated on his usual spot on the table. Yes, he had a usual spot in our house in the same way that I had a usual spot in his house. He always sat next to me in this square dining table for four. If my parents sat at the table, he would be across my dad while I was across my mom. He had a knowing smile on his face that said he knew what I wanted to do but I wouldn’t do anything while my mom was cooking in the background. Judging from the smell, my mom was cooking pancakes.

“Mom, do you know where my training shorts are? I’m going to need it later. We have practice today.”

“On a Saturday?” my mom asked. “I didn’t realize you guys needed the extra training.”

“I don’t,” I said with much emphasis on the I. “But coach thinks I need to help the others train more. We have a game against Westfield in two weeks.”

“Ahh, old school rivalry. You know I think Coach Henry is living his old days vicariously through your team.” I loved that, your team. “He’s always had a thing against that school. I still don’t understand why.”

“Well they are our only serious competition for the Middle School IBC. That’s the Interschool Basketball Cup by the way in case you didn’t know.”

My mom gave me a humoring look. “I know what the IBC is. I do work at that school after all even if half the time I’m out of the office.”

She finished making the pancakes and laid them on two separate plates. She served Charlie first as she always did when he was over at our house. Now, Charlie and I had varying tastes in our pancakes. He liked peanut butter and bananas on his, sprinkled with nuts, some whipped cream, and syrup. I, on the other hand, preferred the healthier option of fresh blueberries, vanilla powder and just a tiny bit of syrup. I really couldn’t understand how Charlie was so thin given what he ate and his lack of physical activity. As far as I knew, wet dreams didn’t count as physical activities.

After she placed my pancakes in front of me, she continued speaking. “Anyway, I think it’s the laundry room. I’ll go get it now while you two eat up.”

“That won’t be necessary, Mrs. H,” Charlie said quickly. “I’m sure you can take care of it later.”

I knew what he was trying to do. “Nah, I think you should get it now, mom, so you won’t have to be interrupted later.”

“No, I think you should eat first,” Charlie suggested. “Your food will get cold.” By now my mom’s eyes were darting between us.

“What food?” I asked. “Her morning tea? That’s all she ever has for breakfast anyway.”

“Tea does get cold you know, Hero,” Charlie said with a corrective tone and a wave his fork which had some pancakes staked on them. “It will be bitter by the time she gets back. And I heard tea can cause ulcer and all other kinds of digestive problems if you drink them when they become lukewarm. You should sit and eat, err drink, with us.” By now, my mom was smiling and probably catching on to what Charlie was trying to do.

“And where did you hear that?” I asked. “Discovery Channel?”

“Oprah,” he said.

“I did not just hear that,” I said as I covered my ears. “Uhh… don’t turn gay on me, Big C.”

Surprisingly, Charlie didn’t have a comeback. He just seemed to stare at me for a moment as though waiting for me to say something else.

“Okaaaay,” my mom said. She was still standing in the same spot. “It’s okay Charlie. I’m sure Derek will behave while I go get his things. He is a good boy after all, right Derek?” She waited for me to nod. With her own satisfied nod, she turned towards the hall that led to the laundry room. Before leaving the kitchen though, she turned towards us again and with a slightly different voice said, “Charlie, I will leave you here for a few minutes… alone.” Her eyes seemed to bulge out at the last word.

Charlie chuckled and smiled as he watched her walk away. As she finally disappeared, he turned his nervous eyes towards me.

I was cutting my pancakes acting indifferent to the situation. Charlie was looking at me intently probably because he knew what was coming next.

“You didn’t think you’d get away with that boxers comment, did you?” I asked in a low voice without taking my eyes off the pancakes I was cutting.

“Actually…” he said but didn’t get to say anything else as he suddenly half-screamed, half-giggled. I lunged from my chair and in one swift motion had him in a headlock. He was laughing and screaming as I gave him a noogie.

“Stop, stop!” he begged as I fully disheveled his hair. He attempted to break free but he always lost. In a surprise move though, he placed his full weight forward causing me to lose balance. We collapsed on the floor in a tangle of arms and legs. We tussled on the ground until I finally had him pinned under me. After making him squirm under some nipple twists, he called for a timeout and I collapsed on the floor next to him.

“Hey,” he said with short breathes and chuckles, “I got you to fall down this time. Maybe I have what it takes to take up wrestling… or maybe even martial arts.”

“Yeah,” I said seriously but also short of breath. “I hear they’re in need of new punching bags. The old ones are all bruised and broken.”

“Shut up,” he said with a punch so weak it was almost a pat. We stayed there on the floor awhile longer catching our breaths before Charlie spoke up again. “Did you really mean what you said?”

“What I said about what?”

“You know,” he said almost uncertainly. “No matter what happens, we’re in it together? Brothers to the end?”

This time, I looked over at him. He was staring straight up at the ceiling almost as if he didn’t want to meet my eyes. “Of course, Big C. Why? Is someone bothering you at school? Cause if so I’ll kick their ass.” I slapped a closed fist to my open palm for effect.

“It’s nothing like that,” he said with a chuckle but he quickly grew serious. “It’s just that… it’s… it’s just that…”

I chuckled and said playfully, “just spit it out, Big C. You’re not reciting in front of a whole classroom of people. It’s just me.”

He chuckled also and finally looked at me. He had such a nervous look on his face that I was starting to hate whatever was bothering him. I didn’t like it when something bothered Charlie especially if it was some jerk off pushing him around. I swore to myself that if anyone was giving Charlie any trouble I’d kick their ass to the next county.

“It’s just that I’m… I’m…”

“Do I not feed you enough that you have to eat scraps off my floor?” My mom said loudly as she re-entered the kitchen. She was carrying my training shorts, an athletic shirt, and a pair of socks. Charlie jumped at the sudden interruption and quickly stood up. My mom chuckled at his response. “Hey, where’s the fire? If you like it down there, I’m sure the dust mites won’t mind. Saves me the trouble of having to sweep there later.”

“I have to go home,” Charlie said quickly, “thanks for breakfast Mrs. H.” Without another word, he turned and fled from the house.

“Big C!” I called after him as I got up. I ran to our front door calling to him. “Hey, Big C!” He didn’t respond or even look back. He just ran and ran until he disappeared into his house.

“What was that about?” my mom asked in a concerned tone.

“I dunno,” I replied equally baffled by Charlie’s behavior.

“You weren’t too rough on him, were you?” my mom asked. “You know Charlie’s a sensitive boy. He’s not used to getting physical. Did you hurt him?”

I turned to my mom with a scowl. “I’d never hurt Charlie. How could you even say that? How can you even think that?” I turned my back to her and started walking to my room. Although I hardly touched my pancakes, I lost all desire to take another bite. Charlie’s weird behavior, coupled with my mom’s accusatory questions, was making my temper flare.

“Honey, that’s not what I meant,” I heard my mom say. She always called me honey when I was upset and she wanted to calm me down. Well, it wasn’t going to work this time. “Derek!” she called out finally.

I didn’t hear anything after that cause I slammed my door shut. I paced around in my room trying to let some of the steam off. For some reason, I was really mad. I was rarely ever that mad. I’m not the type of guy that frequently threw temper tantrums. It’s bad for my image, you see. But whenever I was in that state, I always had to do something to take that anger away. Usually, it involved getting rid of whatever was causing me to get angry. Whether it was a bully that thinks he’s all that or something as simple as the grotesque clothes an aunt gave me that she insists I wear to her party, I needed to get rid of it.

Something was definitely bothering Charlie. Whatever it was, I was going to fix it.