The Saturday Boy - 1. Slave Labour

There comes a time in a guy's life when he finds out his parents have been using him for slave labour for as long as….well as long as he can remember. Today, that guy….is me. You see, I'm currently on vacation with two of my friends from school in Gran Canaria, accompanied by one pal's parents, of course; I wouldn't want you to call the police or anything.

We had been here about three hours, and my Mum had already called twice for various reasons, but nearly always to do with business.

Never fear; I will explain. So, I'm just about to sit back with a cool glass of orange juice in a giant inflatable chair in the pool, and my cell phone goes AGAIN. I nearly fall in, as my brain can't make up its mind to either get on to the floating chair or stay out and answer my cell. Well, the annoying ringtone wins over, and I shimmy around and pick up the device from my sunbed, carefully placing down my rapidly warming juice.

"Hey Mum, third time today, yeah, I'm still alive." I roll my eyes.

"Oh Joey, sorry to bother you again, but your dad just wanted me to remind you about Saturday?"

"Saturday, what about it?"

"Well, as you know, we are having this big function for those office workers, and I need to know I can count on you to make sure we have enough stock for the following week, oh and clean out the cellar of empty barrels?"

I sighed. "Mum, I get home late Friday night; I really would like some sleep."

"Oh sweetheart, pretty please, look, we'll give you some extra money, okay?"

"It's not about the money, Mum; it's about physically being awake when you need me to be. Look, I'll see how I feel."

"Thanks, Joey, Mumma loves you, kiss kiss,"

"Bye Mum." I hang up the call and chuck the cell back onto the sunbed, causing it to bounce back off and land in the prickly bush behind. Great!

That was my mother, always expecting me to drop everything and be at her beck and call, but she's slick in how she does it. Firstly, it's always my dad's idea, that's how she takes the heat off herself, and second, she always offers extra cash as a bribe but always conveniently forgets about it after the deed has been done. That's how it has been since I was fourteen when they purchased a rundown Tavern in the centre of town. You see, then, I was too young and naive to understand what parental bribery and slave labour were, but now at sixteen, I have them all worked out.

I can't say it's all on me though, I mean, they both work really hard, seven days a week even, and I do feel sorry for them. They brought the place when it was a rundown drinking joint two years ago. My dad used to work for Ford Motors but was made redundant; he did okay out of it, and rather than putting the funds into a savings account, they decided to buy the pub. Back then, it was called the Horse and Groom, a dirty working man's joint, ceilings still stained yellow from before the smoking ban, and carpet that your feet stuck too. But they got it cheap and spent around twenty thousand pounds on refurbishing it, and in the process, renamed it The Hungry Hog.

They fitted a state of the art industrial kitchen and started serving food, and it's doing really well now, taking ten times what it was. But, the busier it gets, the more my parents rely on me… the workhorse, the slave, or whatever you wanna call me, to chip in. When I first started being asked to help out, it was literally to being up twenty or thirty bottles from the cellar before school, to stock the fridges from the night before, but now? Jesus, now…well, never mind.

What frustrates me more than anything is my brother Roman, who’s seventeen. Just because he has a two day a week job, he doesn't have to lift a finger at the pub, and what's worse, he rubs my face in it at every opportunity, gloating how he earns more for his two days than I do for all the hours I put in.

The hardest thing to take sometimes is the truth!

Well, enough was going to be enough; I had to convince my parents to hire someone to help. Not bar staff, kitchen hands or waitresses. No, they already had those. I mean someone to help with my job, which was the most labour-intensive in the whole business because my role was that of the….Cellar Boy.

It was a hard job, dirty, sweaty, and you were always guaranteed to smell stale beer on your skin for at least twelve hours after finishing. The pay?

Ha, well, I just got paid in dribs and drabs, ten here, twenty there, there was never any structure, and my Mum had a secret weapon to keep the pay down with me. So it was that I lived with them rent-free, baa!

So, now that I've explained that, you can probably see why I was a little annoyed to be called on my holiday about….work related matters.

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

I manoeuvred my hand carefully through the bush, trying to rescue my phone from its sharp stalks, only managing to draw blood once when Shaun, my best buddy from school, comes out of the villa and creeps up behind me.

"Whatcha doin' Joey" he shouts, making me jump, a long scratch travelling up my arm.

"You bastard, look what you did," I wined at him. "My cell got caught in the bush, and now I'm probably going to die of blood poisoning because of you," I said, acting seriously.

"Meh, just get in the pool; the chlorine will kill anything bad in that insy winsy cut, ya baby."

"What do you want anyway?"

"Dean is on about going down to the beach to play some volleyball. Are you up for it?"

"Sounds cool; hey, before we go, could you put some sun cream on my back? I’m starting to crisp up here."

"Sure, I'll get mine. It’s just inside."

"Thanks, Shaun," I said, watching as he went in to get the cream. I loved Shaun; he was a real joker and my best friend. He had a fantastic personality - a sensitive rebel is the best way to describe him, and yeah, I know that sounds contradictory. He was also an excellent Tennis player, six foot one of pure muscle, not an ounce of fat on him. The girls loved him, guys wanted to be him, and he always had the pick of the hottest girls at school. They loved his classic blond hair and blue eye look. He always had the latest hairstyle, and whatever clothes he wore, they always fitted like they were tailor-made. Yeah, I was fucking jealous of him.

Don't get me wrong, I don't fare badly in the body department myself, just a little shorter than Shaun, but I was dark haired, and always wanted to be blond, probably because he was, and I saw the success he had with the ladies. I wore mine short and spikey, earning me the nickname, the hedge from the hog… in reference to my parent's pub. But I didn't mind my five foot ten slim built frame. I blended in enough not to turn me into a bully magnet.

I was pretty well toned for my age, mostly due to the manual work at the pub over the last two years. The only thing I didn't have, which I really wanted, probably because Shaun had one, was a six-pack. No matter how hard I worked, no matter how toned everything else got, my stomach, although flat and tight, never had that washboard effect. Then there is Dean, lovable Dean, and well, he was just average, not thin, not fat, not bony, not muscled, just average Dean And the best thing about Dean was, he never cared about it. He was happy in his skin and wouldn't think of working out if his life depended on it. Even though we were the same age, he had the most boyish looks of the three of us, a redhead through and through. And with a fiery temper to match his hair, he was the lovable rogue in our trio, always looking out for Shaun and me, even if we could handle ourselves.

Well, most of the time.

 

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Shaun came out of the patio door and tripped, falling over, the bottle of sun cream skidding over to me, stopping short of my feet. I burst into laughter, and he got up, laughing too.

"I bet you couldn't do that twice," I remarked, astounded where the bottle had landed.

"Just sit down bitch, and we'll never speak of what happened again," I smirked and sat on one of the sunbeds as Shaun tried to compose himself.

"Where is Dean, by the way?" I asked, having not seen him for the last hour or so.

"Chatting to Melissa, probably jerking off."

"Seriously? Cant he go a few days without talking to her? This is supposed to be a boys only holiday."

"Yeah, I told him, but you know how loved up he's been. It has been a whole two months, you know" Shaun grinned, popping open the sun cream and drizzling some down my back.

"Shit, that's cold," I hissed, making him smile with satisfaction.

"Teach you to laugh at me, almost breaking my neck."

"Just rub it in and be gentle; I’m starting to burn on my shoulders."

"Yeah, yeah." He replied, gently making circular motions with his hand until the lotion began to absorb into my red skin.

"Careful, Joey, you're starting to cook like a lobster."

"I know, I should have put this on earlier, but what with my Mum calling three times, and blowing up that stupid pool chair, time ran away."

"Uh-huh, well, there you are, punk, all done."

"Thanks, Shaun. You want me to do you?"

"Yeah, please, and be liberal with that stuff. The sun by the beach will be worse than here, with that breeze."

"No worries, leave it to me," and I squirted a huge dollop on his back, making him arch forward, trying to escape the chill from it.

"You fucker, touché."

"Touché indeed, my friend," I said, giggling.

I rubbed in about half the bottle before rinsing my hands in the pool. Then, pulling on my basketball vest, I left the heat of the poolside and went inside to get a fresh glass of juice, my previous one now warm and attracting wasps.

Walking over to our room door, I banged on it, trying to get Dean's attention. "Hey, has she made you shoot your load yet?" I heard the door click and a pissed off dean appeared in front of me. "What's up?"

"What's up? That stupid bitch, that's what's up."

"What happened?"

"She broke up with me; the fucking tart broke up with me."

"Hey, what the fuck, man, why?"

"She thinks I'm out here banging everything that walks. She even tried to say that you and Shaun weren't really here and that I had come away with two other girls. She’s fucking lost it she has."

"Fuck mate, I'm sorry. Surely she knows me and Shaun are here. I mean, all she has to do is go to the Hog and ask my Mum."

"You know what, Joey, fuck her, at least if I'm going to be accused of fucking around with other girls, I might as well make her right if I can help it."

"That's the spirit. But, hey, when are your folks back? They’ve been gone all morning?"

Dean shrugged, "Said they were going to the mall to buy some cheap rip-off Jeans."

"You better leave a note while we're down the beach."

"Yeah, I will; I can't believe that fucking…."

"Dean, forget her, just enjoy your holiday, don't make her be the cause of you having a shit time. There's plenty of time to do angry when you get home, but right now, you're with us, your pals, so, do happy, okay?"

"Yeah, sorry, Joe, it’s just….fucking girls, that's all."

"Yeah, that's why you have friends Dean, to be there when you get…fucking girls!" He laughed, and when Dean laughed, the world was safe again. "C'mon, big man, let's get going; Shaun’s probably dying of boredom."

Me and Dean went back outside and saw Shaun had climbed into the pool. He was laying on his back in a star shape, his eyes closed."

"You do know you have now washed away all of my good work, getting in there, you doofus."

"Yeah, sorry, I was just getting too hot waiting for you, and it looked too inviting."

"Well, we're heading out now, so you better dry off," I said, picking up a nearby beach towel.

"Okay, wait, let me just grab a shirt," Shaun said, hauling himself out of the pool.

Shaun patted himself dry and pulled on his T-shirt. The three of us headed through a side gate to the villa and out onto a grass verge that sloped down onto a pathway. The beach was about five hundred feet away. We had to walk down a narrow ally way surrounded by trees, through a gate, but then, there it was, the beach. The area we were heading down to wasn’t entirely private as other villas shared it. But depending on whether they were all rented out at the time would decide how busy it was.

 

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As we stepped onto the sand, I could see some boys standing by the net that was gently flapping in the breeze accompanied by the noise of the crashing waves nearby.

"Hey, aren't those the ones who rent or live in the villa next to us?" Dean asked, recognising one of the boys sitting in the sand.

"Yeah, I've seen them before, just as we were arriving. They seem friendly enough. Wanna ask to join them or wait until they finish?" I said, slowing up my walk.

"Better ask to play with them, ass, since we can't play volleyball with three of us," Dean said, slapping the back of my head.

"Yeah, okay know it all. I was just putting the question out there."

"What? Are you scared to ask them to play or something? Hey listen, any grief from them, and I'll ruffle their feathers, right Shaun?"

"Hey, don't drag me into this; anyway, I'm sure they are nice lads. Now take your brain out of your balls Dean and play nice." Dean shrugged, and the two of them went and asked if we could join them. I stayed back, not through fear, but because I didn't want to be there when Dean made a fool of himself.

I watched as they conversed with the strangers until finally, they both turned around and gestured with their hands for me to join them. I walked over and said hello, raising my hand.

"Don't bother; they are all Spanish Joey, but it looks like they wanna play," Dean remarked.

There were five of them altogether, big lads with well-developed tans. I wondered again if they were locals and lived here, or like us, just here for a week's break.

"Okay, we need two of your guys on our team, any volunteers?" Shaun said, picking up the ball. The five boys just looked at him and said nothing. "Do any of you speak any English?"

"I do, but not very well," one of them said, stepping forward.

"Cool, so which two of your guys wanna join my two friends and me here?"

"You want play, with us, we play you, here you take Jacob and Fernando, they good players."

"Okay, now we're getting somewhere," Shaun said, looking back at Dean and me.

We got prepared, and the game began, starting nice and friendly, but as we played on, the moves were getting more aggressive, not in a bad way, but we were getting into it. Their team was ahead by four points when Dean called for a break. We were all dripping with sweat even in the cooler ocean breeze.

"These guys are good, "Shaun remarked, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"Just lucky," Dean added, getting back up getting ready to play again. "Ready, guys?" he called over to the five lads sitting on the other side of the net. Our two borrowed players came back over to us, and we began again.

I didn't notice at first, but as the second half of our game continued, one of them always seemed to play very close to me, our skin rubbing on more than one occasion. Don't get me wrong, I know volleyball can be a free for all sort of game, but even by the game's standard, this guy was pretty much always on top of me.

Soon enough, pretty much all of us had, had enough, all apart from Dean, who was livid we lost and wanted to keep going, but we were ten points down, and I, for one, didn't see us pulling that back. So I was happy to stop anyway, exhausted.

We watched as one of the boys went over to a patch of sand and started digging. "What the hell is he doing?" Shaun remarked, pointing.

"Beats me," I replied as we all watched in fascination.

A few moments later, the boy stopped digging, pulled out a two-gallon bottle of water from under the sand, and brushed off the loose particles with his T-shirt.

"Well, I'll be damned. I would never have thought of doing that," I said, amazed.

"You only learned to tie your shoelaces last year, Joey, but I admit, I'm impressed," Shaun remarked.

"Sorry guys, but why was the bottle in the sand? Have I missed something?" Me and Shaun looked at each other and laughed, typical Dean, to ask such a question.

"Don't worry, Dean, anyway look, they are offering us some, I think."

We walked over to them, and sure enough, one of the boys handed the large bottle to me, and I took a few gulps before giving it to my friends. As we shared the bottle, I could see one of the guys whispering something to the lad who spoke to us in broken English. Tilting my head, I could hear some sounds, but it was all in Spanish, I suspected.

"Hey, you, the one with spikey hair,"

"Me?" I said, suddenly nervous. Dean had already started to move closer to me. Yeah, again, typical Dean.

"My friend, uh, he say, um, sorry my English, um, he say to tell you, he think you very good looking, maybe have phone number, yes?"

Dean and Shaun looked at me before Shaun spoke.

"Oh my god….Little Joey Cork has got himself his first date, and it's a guy," He cried, bursting into hysterics, clapping his hands to Dean, who, I will add, looked less impressed.

I was speechless and just stood there with a stupid look on my face, no doubt. "Uh, jeez, um, well, you see, your friend is probably very nice, but that's not really the way I roll," I answered politely, not wanting to offend.

"Well, very nice meeting you guys; we’ll be off now, C'mon guys let’s go, stuff to do places to see," Dean said quickly, as he grabbed hold of our arms, starting to walk away.

We got to the edge of the beach and arrived at the gate before any of us spoke.

"Well, that was strange," I said calmly.

"Strange, fuck man, the guy just asked you out, or something along those lines, and wanted your number, Jesus."

"Calm down, Dean. It’s not like he threatened to kill me," I retorted.

"Joey, a guy just asked you out. That’s a little on the fucking weird side." Dean hissed, almost jumping around now. We turned and looked at Shaun, both noticing his silence in all of this, only to find he was wetting himself laughing beside us.

"Ooooh, god, I think I'm gonna piss myself. But, oh, that's funny. That is the best thing to happen since….ever."

"Shut up, Shaun," I barked, but feeling the need to giggle too, which I did.

"That guy was gay, a homo, a queer, and you two think it's funny?" Dean remarked, agitated we weren't taking it seriously.

"Dean, so fucking what, man, leave the guy alone, each to their own right?" Shaun said, annoyed with Dean's choice of words.

"He's right, Dean; The guy didn't do anything wrong. He just got the wrong idea, that's all, what's the issue? Argh, don't tell me you have a problem with gay people?"

"Yeah, I mean, no, I don't. I just never had one ask one of my best friends out before."

"Dean, it’s cool; forget it. Man, you're gonna have a heart attack before your twenty, you know that. Stressing out those blood vessels, one day they're gonna go pop."

We walked back to the villa and were greeted by Dean's parents as we came through the side gate. His dad, Vince, was in the pool resting his arms and head on the side. Sarah, his mother, was reading Fifty Shades of Grey on a sun lounger, sipping on some blue looking drink.

"Aww, my boys, you're back; good time down by the waves, play netball, did you?"

"It's volleyball, Mum, and yeah, we played."

"Vince, did you hear that? The boys played volleyball. You should join them, you know, work off some of that excess." She called over to him; he just raised a hand and went back to lazing.

"Yeah, some Spanish dudes joined us, Mrs Grissom. They were good." Shaun piped in.

"Yeah, and then Joey here got asked out by one of the Spanish fairies, hey Joey."

"Yeah, Dean, thanks," I replied, slightly embarrassed.

"Oh how sweet, So Joey, did you accept?" Sarah asked, every bit sincere.

"Eh, not quite Mrs Grissom, that ain’t my thing," I replied, chuckling and shaking my head.

"Hmm, well, not to worry, I'm you're the right one will come along soon. Vince, did you hear, Jake got asked…."

"Mum, he ain’t gay", Dean snapped at his mother. "Jeez, why do you think all my friends are gay, Mum?"

"Well, Dean, it's all the rage these days; I just assumed you might have one of your own by now." Shaun burst out laughing again.

"This is so unreal…ah, your so cool, Mrs Grissom. I love you." He said before walking back towards the villa.

"So, what have you got planned for tonight?"

"Not much might just chill out here, it's too warm to do anything else, and there's no point going out when we can't drink," Dean answered. I just shrugged, agreeing.

"Well, boys, if you go to our room, there might just be something of interest in there for you all."

"Probably a porn DVD," Dean muttered. "C'mon Jake, let’s go see what the surprise is," He said sarcastically. I followed as he led on back inside the villa and walked into his parent's room.

"Whoa, beer!" I declared excitedly.

"Fuck, yeah, and lots of it," Dean added.

We stared, as right before our eyes were eight crates of Coors light just waiting to be consumed.

"Shit, let's get as much as we can in the fridge," Dean stated, grabbing a box. Sarah came up behind us and leant against the door frame.

"Your Mum's not such an old party pooper, now is she?"

"No, Mum, you are not, my god, you are so not, this is so cool, and you…you don't mind, I mean if we drink?"

"As long as you don't get stupid and stay in the villa, no, I don't mind. Just don't get too loud when you have all had a few. I don't want the neighbours calling me an irresponsible mother."

"Thanks, Mrs Grissom, you're the best," I declared, hugging her.

"C'mon Joey, help me get this lot in the fridge. We got a while before it cools."

"Stick some in the freezer for a blast; just don't forget they're in there," Sarah suggested, walking away and back outside.

"Shaun?" I called through our closed bedroom door, "We got beer."

Shaun opened the door and ran out, darting into the small open plan kitchen as Dean loaded bottle after bottle into the waiting fridge. He counted Dean putting sixteen bottles carefully on the shelf.

"Hey, go in Dean's parent's room, if you think that's a lot," I offered, seeing him counting. He did precisely that, screaming an obscenity, presumably for the reason we did. "You found it then?" I called through to him.

"Fucking hell guys, are we gonna get drunk, or are we gonna get drunk?" Shaun asked excitedly, rubbing his hands together.

 

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We all sat around a large white plastic table, an umbrella gently flapping in the warm evening breeze. Vince was puffing on a cigarette talking to Sarah about what was going on in her steamy novel, trying to convince her that despite what she thought was a normal relationship in her book, a real marriage was far from it. At the same time, Us boys were quietly chatting about school, oh, and girls.

"Who has sex that often anyway?" Vince said, referring to the book she was reading.

"Certainly not us," Sarah replied, cackling. "You're always asleep by nine. What hope do I have?"

"Honey, I work in construction. It’s very intensive," "Maybe on the arms, darling, but not on your penis," She giggled again.

"Mum, we are still here. Do you really have to have this conversation with us around? Dean barked, no doubt turning a shade of red.

"There nothing for you to worry about, Dean honey, a big strapping lad like you, in the prime of your life. I bet your pinky winky is always ready."

"Oh my god, you did not just say those words Mum, I think…I'm..gonna…die."

"Oh relax, Dean, it's just a penis. It’s just your father's needs to be jump-started now and again."

"Sarah, honey, that beer is making your tongue a little loose. Ease up a bit, will you," Vince said, pulling the bottle away from her. "And anyway, Dean, your mother doesn't know what she is talking about. It must be another man." Vince grinned.

"I don't want to know."

"Anyway, Mrs, let’s go to bed, leave these boys to it."

"Yeah, your probably right; I’m beat," Sarah said, getting up, a bit wobbly.

"Night Mum, night dad,"

"Good night, son, night boys, remember, keep the noise down."

"Yeah, night, Mr Grissom, Mrs Grissom," I said as they both wandered off, back into the villa, Sarah pinching Vince's bum and giggling as they went."

"Woman, you are something else,"

We laughed hearing Vince berate Sarah as they disappeared out of sight.

With just us lads left, we sat there sinking bottle after bottle, the conversation soon turning to what young lads talk about the, most….sex, and who with. Dean started talking about a girl he had an episode around the back of the bike sheds with, as me and Shaun listened intently, our brains slowly being numbed by the alcohol.

"Jessie, her name was, so she's got my dick in her hand, on her knees, and I'm trying to push it in her mouth, but she's got these braces on, and I'm like, watch the metal babe. So she’s chewing away on my cock and I'm getting close, yeah, and then her cell goes off, and I'm like, who's that, your boyfriend, and she's like, no, it's my Mum, asking me what I want for supper. I mean, talk about killing the mood, and then, she's like, I gotta go now. I'm just about to do my load, and she fucks off, leaving me with my pants around my ankles."

Shaun was laughing as he always does at most things; I'm just sitting there grinning, half drunk.

"And then what happened?" Shaun asked, feeling the story needed an ending.

"Well, I had to do it myself, of course, I mean, I was almost there anyway, and I wasn't about to go back into school with pre-cum leaking down my leg all day, so I just got rid of it up against the wooden shed."

I listened to Dean as he told us more of his stories, most of them similar, a girl blowing him somewhere obscure. The strange thing is, as I listened, I felt a strange feeling in my groin. I wasn't getting hard or anything, but as he explained in graphic detail, I felt myself getting….excited. I didn't know whether it was the thought of the hot girl going down on one of my best friends, or my friend himself, maybe it was the drink, but I felt funny down below, like that feeling you get when you first sit down to watch porn.

"Hey Joey, when did you last jerk off?"

"What?" I said flinching, I thought we were talking about who blew you, and now we're…."

"Man, we done that Joey, keep up man, where were you?"

"Daydreaming, I guess." I smiled a goofy drunk smile.

"What was her name?" Shaun asked.

"Who?" I asked back

"The girl you were daydreaming about."

"Oh…no one special."

"So, Joey, when was it, man?

"I dunno, three days ago, I think."

"Three days, jeez, we're all sixteen; who at our age can wait three days to jerk off?" Dean demanded, smirking.

"Well, it's quite hard with you two in the room,"

"No, it’s not," Shaun piped in, "I did it last night when you were both asleep." He admitted, grinning from ear to ear.

"See, Joey, even Shaun has found a way to beat the meat. You got to get rid of it, Joey. You don't want the cleaner coming in and finding little Joey's swimming in your bed sheets where it's made its own way out." Dean said, wagging his fingers.

"I'm sure I'll manage," I said, ripping another lid of a bottle of Coors. "So what about you, Dean, seeing as you brought it up."

"Yesterday afternoon, have a look inside the old Pizza box in our room. You’ll find the evidence." Dean replied. I cracked up laughing but feeling that feeling again as an image came into my mind of Dean jerking off into a pizza box. Sick! “Well, guys, you obviously have more stamina than me, so I’m gonna hit the sack. See you both in the morning." I gulped down the rest of my beer and stood up, the quickness sending me staggering to my left, being caught by Shaun right at the point of no return.

"Thanks, pal, I guess I drank over my limit tonight," I exclaimed, standing upright, Shaun letting go of me.

"Good night Joey, and no dreaming about your Spanish fairy," Said Dean, teasingly.

"Fuck you, Dean, and I expect by the morning for you to drop that!"

"Yeah, yeah, see ya," Dean said smiling. Shaun put his hand up, gesturing goodbye.

I heard Shaun and Dean immediately return to conversation as I got back into the villa. The room was spinning, but thankfully I did not feel sick, although there was still time, I thought. I made my way to the bathroom, pulling off my vest and turning on the basin tap.

Scrubbing the taste of beer out of my mouth, I brushed my teeth, exposing my pearly whites in the mirror to check the job I'd done. Finally, satisfied, I turned the light out and staggered into our room and found my bed. Making hard work trying to get my sneakers off, I fell onto my mattress, not really remembering too much after that.

 

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My eyes flickered open, suddenly aware of the blazing sunshine that was turning the back of my eyelids bright red. It was morning. My two friends that had probably stayed by the pool until that same sun had started to come up, were snoring soundly.

I turned on to my left side, away from the sun, and faced a peaceful-looking Shaun. Shaun was a mover in the night. What I mean is, he never stayed still for long. I can remember the sleepovers at his house, and his sheets would always end up contorted and twisted around his body or on the floor if it got that bad. This morning was no different, as a single sheet was barely managing to cover his modesty.

I was lost in my thoughts, trying to escape a now probing headache. Shaun was on his back, gently snoring when he stretched out a leg, catching the end of the sheet on his toes. I tried not to laugh aloud as the sheet was pulled right off his mid-section, revealing my friend's, uh….bits.

It didn't faze me; I'd seen it all before, Dean's as well. I think out of the three of us through, Shaun was the most hung, but then, he did shave his balls and the rest of his groin, so that probably made it look bigger. But alas, it was another reason for me to be jealous of my perfect best friend. Sigh!

Thinking it might be better to warn him of his vulnerabilities, I gently leant over and nudged him, and he stirred. "Eh, uh…what?"

"Shaun, you're tackle is hanging out mate, you wouldn't want Mrs Grissom coming over all unnecessary, would you." I quietly giggled.

Shaun opened his eyes and looked down; his semi-hard morning wood drooped over his abdomen. "Hmm, shit, sorry if I gave to a scare Joey," He remarked, covering himself up. "Man, I need a piss."

I watched as he jumped out of bed, holding the sheet around his toned torso and left for the bathroom.

"What time is it?" I heard a voice, the other side of me say.

"Morning Dean, uh, it's just gone nine. How are you feeling?"

"Joey, that is not a good question to ask, my friend," Dean replied, running a hand down his face.

"Would you like some painkillers for the head, or do you just want to vomit instead?"

"Naa, I think I can stomach some pills. But, hey, where's Shaun? Did he actually get to bed last night?"

"Yeah, he's in the bathroom. Why did you leave him as well?"

"Yeah, I think, uh….yeah, I did because I remember telling him to lock the door."

Shaun came back into our room and sat on the edge of the bed, letting the sheet drop exposing his ass crack. "God, I feel rough."

"Yeah, I'll bet. So what time did you get to bed last night? I left you to it, right?" Dean remarked.

"Uh, yeah, I don't remember. I went into the pool after everyone went and just floated there. It was a hot night."

"Jeez, Shaun, you really shouldn't have gone in without someone with you. In that state, you could have drowned or something."

"Haha, yeah, what a sight that would have been, my naked body being fished out, with you two looking on thinking how big my dick was."

"So that's why you're starker's. I thought maybe Dean's Mum had come in a molested you in the night." I said, smirking.

"Hey, shut up, Joey," Dean barked.

"Anyway, what are we doing today, after we get rid of these hangovers," Shaun asked, getting up from the bed, minus the sheet.

"Oh, can you put that away? I feel ill as it is." Dean squealed, covering his face with his hands. I, on the other hand, couldn't help looking.

"Hey, shall I do my helicopter trick?" Shaun asked, a smile beaming.

"NO!" Dean and I both shouted in tandem.

"Just put some clothes on, Shaun. The show's over," I said, throwing him a beach towel.

We all got into some shorts and T shirt's and wandered into the bright morning sun. Vince and Sarah had already taken their usual places in the sun and were quietly reading as we arrived.

"Well, hey boys, good night last night?"

"Yeah, was great, Mrs Grissom. Thanks for the beers."

"You're all welcome Joey, how much is left?"

"Oh, about five boxes, we didn't go that crazy," I replied, taking a seat on a sun lounger.

"I'm gonna go get an Orange juice and some Cereal. Does anyone want anything?" Shaun asked, turning on his heels.

"Food, feeling like this, you must be kidding, right?" Dean replied, pretending to gag.

"Just a drink for me, Shaun, thanks," I added.

"Okay, be right back." Shaun headed back inside, and me and Dean pulled two sun loungers round to face the hot morning sun. I took my top off, placed my sunglasses on, and laid back, putting my hands behind my head, letting out a sigh. I felt a few droplets of wet hit me, realising that Dean had stripped off and bombed into the pool, much to the disgust of Vince, whose magazine was now dripping wet.

"Watch it, boy, look what you did."

"Sorry old man, my bad."

"Hey, less of the old," he retorted. Sarah glanced up, smiling. "You'll never make an Olympic diver Dean, far too clumsy," she said, letting out one of her cackles.

I sat, soaking up the rays, and watched as Dean fooled around into the pool, noticing Shaun appearing in front of me moments later.

"Your cell was ringing; I brought it out to you, oh and here's your juice." Shaun handed me my cell and juice and went off to pull over another sun lounger. I placed the liquid on the floor next to me, freeing my hands to look at the missed call. Then, swiping the screen, the cell told me my mother had called.

"Oh, hell, not again."

"What's up, Joey?" Vince asked, peering over his damp magazine.

"My mother!" Vince chuckled and shook his head.

"She got more jobs for you?"

"Yeah, you know, don't you? I better call her back, get it over with."

I pressed the redial button and waited for the call to connect. After four rings, my mother answered.

"The Hungry Hog, can I help?"

"Mum, it's me, you called….again."

"Joey, sweetheart, good, you came back to me, Listen your father…."

"Here we go," I muttered under my breath.

"Your father says to let you know we have hired a Saturday boy to help out around the pub."

"Really…wow, that's great, so does that mean I get Saturday off?"

"Well, not exactly. You see, he has no experience doing anything like this, so I was rather hoping you might be able to work with him in the evening, you know, show him the ropes as it were?"

"Thought it was too good to be true, Mum."

"Honey, we have hired him to take some of the load from you, as you wanted. So the faster you get him trained up, the less work you will have to do around the place, right?" She said, reasoning.

"I guess."

"Yeah, well, I was speaking to your father last night after I got off the phone to you, and we agreed. We do ask you to do a lot, so I decided it would be good to get some help in."

"Oh, you decided? Usually, you say it was dad."

"Oh, no, Joey, this was my idea. I knew you would like it. Anyway, listen, he's sixteen and looks pretty strong, so he should have no problems doing what you do, and being the same age, you'll probably make a new friend."

"Hang on; does he go to my school?"

"I don't know. You’ll just have to find that out when you see him."

"Yeah, okay, so is there anything else?"

"Yes, I hope you and the boys are having a lovely time away and not giving Mr and Mrs Grissom a hard time? I know what you three are like when you get together.

"No, Mum, it's been pretty quiet, and we have been well behaved."

"Hmm, well, pass me over to Sarah. I want to get her opinion on that." I rolled my eyes and got up, putting the phone in front of Sarah.

"My mother wants to know I'm not raising hell here," I said. Sarah looked at the phone in my hand. She took it and smirked. I got back on my sun lounger and listened as Mrs Grissom convincingly reassured her.

Friday, rolled around faster than I wanted it to, and me and the boys were in our room packing up our stuff, preparing to go home, With Dean's parents doing the same. I was pleased with my tan, though, which had evenly coated my body, giving me a golden complexion, and the sun had even cleared up the couple of spots I'd had on my face before I came. Shaun looked excellent, too, his model body taking full advantage of a week in the sun. But it was poor old Dean I felt sorry for. Being a redhead, his skin was not so compliant, leaving him red and blotchy, signs of burning in the extreme areas such as his shoulders and nose. But, as I mentioned with Dean, he just didn't care, and I liked that.

"So, you gotta work this Saturday, Mr Cork?" Shaun asked as he finished rather unceremoniously throwing all his clothes into his case, not folded, of course.

"Yeah, that new boy we got at the pub, the one I told you about….well, I gotta train him up. Plus, the pub will be busy Saturday night; we have a load of office workers having a retirement party there.

"That sucks. Seven Ways to Die is on in the pictures. I said to Dean about going."

"Ahh fuck man, I wanted to see that. There is a scene where this dude gets eaten by a snake alive.

"You probably just told him the best bit of the movie, Joey," Dean called from the bathroom.

"Well, either way, I want to see it, but hey, if you really want to go with us, Joey, me and Dean can always hold off, you know, and do something else?"

"It's up to you guys. I don't want to change your plans just for me, but sweet, if you do wait, I'll gladly come with you when I can get away from the prison."

I finished packing my case and hauled it from the bed. Wheeling it into the sitting area, I dumped it by the door before heading into the bathroom to take a pee. Shaun followed me and washed his hands in the sink, commenting on my tan as he met my eyes in the mirror.

"You look good, Joey; the chicks are gonna be all over you."

"You think?"

"Sure, and they will be all the ones that were over Dean until he turned into a lobster."

We both cracked up laughing, with me managing to piss all over the toilet seat as my body jolted. Shaun rolled his eyes as I took some toilet paper and cleaned up the area before I too had to wash my hands.

"I feel for him; he never tans very well."

"Don't feel sorry for him; he doesn't," Shaun giggled. Come on, let's see when we're leaving.

We joined Dean, and his parents by the pool for one last sun soak, as we counted down the clock to when we would have to leave. The plane would be heading back to London in about five hours, so we just lounged around chatting about the week we had just had.

I went over to the side gate and pulled it open, wanting to get one last look at the crashing waves in the distance. I stepped out and wandered a few steps onto the grass verge in front of me, listening to the dull hum of the ocean beating down on the sandy beach.

I just stood there and stared at the open expanse, becoming lost in my thoughts as I wondered how cool it would be to live in a place like this, the beach only seconds away, warm, bright sunshine greeting you every morning. Not to mention good looking chicks passing you frequently, wearing next to nothing.

Felling that I had better get in and lock the gate, ready to leave, I turned around. As I took steps back towards the sanctuary of the villa, a small envelope caught my eye. It was pinned to the wooden fence next to the gate, gently flapping about in the warm breeze.

I got closer and could see there were words on it, handwritten. Looking through the gate to see if anyone was watching me, I pulled the envelope from the fence and looked to see what was written.

The boy with spikey brown hair, it said in very untidy handwriting. I stood there, no doubt a very confused look etched on my face as I tried to think of whom it was from and who it would be to. It didn't take long, however, when I suddenly remembered the Spanish boys from the game of volleyball we joined. Suddenly overcome with a feeling of embarrassment, I shoved the envelope in my shorts and headed back into the villa grounds. I dared not tell my pals what I had found through fear of ridicule and endless banter. But, out of curiosity more than anything, I decided to keep the letter and read it in more….private surroundings.

The sound of a Taxi horn stopped everyone from chatting, and Vince told everyone to collect their belongings. We got outside and clambered into the taxi, and I thought about the following night, having to work, feeling reality would soon be firmly back in place.