Between Good And Evil - 1. Part I: The Blizzard: Chapter One

1

On the day Benjamin Bradley died, Hidden Silver was pounded by the biggest blizzard the small Michigan town had seen since 1954.

As the sun ascended from its bed, its light almost entirely muted by the white veil which signaled the beginning of the daylong storm, Benjamin lay in his, eyes shut with memories of the previous night’s sex slapping his thoughts and causing his penis to stand erect.

I hope I didn’t suck. Wait, no, wrong word. He chuckled to himself and hopped out of bed. He felt around his floor, found his clothes, and slipped them on. Dark, why is it so dark? The thought made him peer out the window above his bed, where his eyes were met with fat, fast falling flakes. There’s already five inches on the ground. No school for me.

Before getting in the shower and relieving his hardon, Benjamin checked the local 8 news to make sure Hidden Silver High was closed. Upon seeing confirmation, he hopped in the shower and continued the journey towards his death.

2

Jeremy Donovan didn’t awake on the morning of the blizzard; he simply set his half gallon of Five O’clock on the floor, capped it and went to brush his teeth.

When Jeremy had turned 16 the previous year, the realities of life had finally hit him in the form of a fist from Allen Jacobs, his mother’s boyfriend and Jeremy’s new Daddy Bitch, as in, “ I’m your daddy now, bitch,” which was Allen’s favorite phrase. For two months after the initial punch, the beatings increased in nature and severity.

And then Jeremy’s mind split in two.

3

The first crack appeared when Jeremy came home after football practice, tired and weak, sleep all that his mind could focus on. After Jeremy closed the front door behind him, Daddy Bitch’s voice rumbled -- sometimes Jeremy thought he could actually feel the bass from the 300-pound man’s voice hit him in waves, a precursor to the actual wave of hits that would pound him in different places -- and Jeremy knew that he was in for trouble. “Get in here boy. Fuck.”

“ Just a minute, let me change out of my practice clothes.” Jeremy had made it up four stairs before Daddy Bitch was on him. Jeremy knew the man was quick for his size, like a methed-out bear on attack, but he thought he’d be able to get to his room and out the window before Daddy Bitch could get to him.

A large paw grabbed Jeremy’s neck, picked him up and pinned him to the wall.

“You come when I call you, boy. You respect your daddy, bitch.” Hot spittle landed on Jeremy’s face, and his feet dangled an inch above the fourth step of the stairs, 3 steps and 20 feet away from escape. He began to choke as the large paw increased the pressure on his windpipe. Without thinking, Jeremy acted in self defense for the first time against Daddy Bitch and flung his knee into the man’s nut sack.

There was an exhale of hot air on Jeremy’s face, a guttural moan and then freedom as Daddy Bitch released his prey.

Jeremy pounced, adrenaline taking over.

The boy landed two hits on Daddy Bitch’s face before the man regrouped and threw himself forward. Daddy Bitch’s body hit squarely on Jeremy’s and pushed the boy down, hard, Jeremy's back cracking as the edge of a stair smacked his spine. Jeremy saw black for a moment, and then the pain struck. It started in the small of his back and quickly began radiating through his body.

Tears fell. Breathing became labored.

For a moment, Jeremy thought he was going to pass out, but the feeling subsided as Daddy Bitch pulled himself off of the boy, allowing air to fill his lungs. The thump of stomping feet filled his ears as he dared to shut his eyes for a moment, hoping to push the pain away.

He’s gone. God, he’s gone. Maybe, maybe that’s all I ever had to do was stand up to him. Maybe he’ll think twice-.

Stomp.

Stomp.

His brain stopped mid-thought, the approaching footsteps stomping all thoughts from his mind, leaving only instinct.

He snapped his eyes open and tried to pull himself up by the railing. The pain increased as he managed to pull himself into a sitting position with his back against the wooden spindles of the railing. Jeremy allowed himself two deep breaths before Daddy Bitch reached him. Through a blurry curtain of tears, he saw the large man had both hands behind his back. There was nothing but fear and confusion floating in Jeremy’s brain as Daddy Bitch brought both hands forward, revealing a large shotgun.

Fuck. What the fuck? Fuck...

Click.

Daddy Bitch’s shotgun was cocked and pressed against Jeremy’s head. “If you ever... ever.” There was no anger in Daddy Bitch’s voice. It was soft. It was monotone.

And it scared Jeremy more than anything had throughout the previous 16 years.

The boy closed his eyes and prayed. Prayed to a God he never thought existed. Prayed to anyone or anything.

And then his mind went blank.

There were no thoughts. There were no prayers. There was nothing.

Only a blackout.

He wasn’t sure how long this loss of all reality lasted; he was just aware that something brought him back. A voice. A voice not picked up by his ears, but by his mind. An inner voice, but not his own. It was foreign, and it scared the shit out of him, physically, as he soiled his Calvin Klein boxers.

You take gun now, yes? You rip it out of fat hands and shoot, yes? Blood is good, living is good, true, no?

A child. Or, at least, a childlike voice. A young boy, or maybe a girl, he couldn’t be quite sure. It’s, like, joyous. Why is it joyous? What in the Hell is joyous about this situation?

Do not ponder, no. Just act. Take gun, kill, yes.

And he did.

Jeremy’s mind registered the next few seconds as a series of slow steps. First, he opened his still tear stained eyes and saw the huge man with the gun. He let them linger for a moment, taking in the sights, a strange calmness completely overtaking him. It was strange, it was out of character, and it was like landing on the softest pillow in the world after a frightening ten thousand foot drop from the sky. After contemplating his demeanor for less than a second, he swiftly grabbed the shotgun, drove the butt into Daddy Bitch’s chest and turned it around.

It didn’t occur to the boy that the amount of strength used for this little turning of tables was more than any human is capable of.

Kill him, yes? Shoot. Pull trigger, blood gush, beautiful, no? We are free, yes?

No. That can’t happen.

“Do it. Pull the fucking trigger. You better not miss boy, because if you do, you’re dead.” Daddy Bitch spoke with no emotion, as though he was simply stating a fact. There was no fear in the older man’s eyes. No worry. No questioning. It’s like there’s no one home in there.

And like there’s two people occupying this house.

Jeremy held his composure, thought over his options, and simply dropped the gun. “If you ever hit me or Mom again, I will kill you in your sleep.” There was a brief flash of fear in Daddy Bitch’s eyes, so short that it would be unrecognizable to most people. But Jeremy saw it.

He will hurt you again, yes? Kill him now. Let him live? No.

“ No one dies. Yet.”

All three parted ways. Jeremy and the voice hobbled slowly up the stairs, Jeremy clinging to the railing in fear of tumbling backwards. Daddy Bitch backed slowly out of the foyer and disappeared in the living room, his shotgun still laying lifeless on the flight of stairs.

It would be three months before one of them killed the other.

4

This blizzard didn’t sneak up on Blake White, who had been sitting on his parents’ front porch since returning home from Benjamin’s house at 3 in the morning. There was a chill in the air, but his black hoody kept him relatively warm. When the snow started to fall after two hours of deep thought, Blake White had decided on a plan.

He could never talk to Benjamin again.

5

The sex didn’t happen right away. It came slowly. It was like an approaching hurricane, building to a crescendo and then overtaking the shore. When it hit, it was hard, relentless. There was no escaping it. Blake simply took cover and let it power over him.

Blake’s night started on the steps of the old house behind the church. He had been there a hundred times for church functions, and Pastor Bradley, while nice, had always spooked him. There was something about the man. Something that was hard to pick up on. Something dark. Something sinister. Something downright dangerous.

Still, it wasn’t Pastor Bradley that had Blake on edge. It was his son, Benjamin.

Blake’s mother, Evelyn, had insisted on the Bradley boy tutoring Blake. And, as usual, Blake was helpless when it came to his parents’ decisions about his life. Besides, he reassured himself, if Benjamin actually was able to help him pull his grades up, Blake would be able to stay on the football team. Still, there was something not quite right about Benjamin. Like his father, Benjamin had a hidden side that most people couldn’t pick up on.

While Benjamin wasn’t the athletic type like Blake, he was still popular. Benjamin was attractive, smart, and the sole son of Hidden Silver’s sole religious figure. The boys had been in the same classes since kindergarten, yet they never associated. While they were friendly enough to each other, they had never socialized outside of school. And Blake knew the reason.

Benjamin was gay and no one seemed to notice but Blake.

There was nothing obviously gay about Benjamin. In fact, he had been dating Alexa Edwards since the 7th grade and no one suspected a thing, except for Blake, who picked up on a mannerism here, a quick glance at some poor, unsuspecting boy’s package, there. Yep, a real faggot in disguise. Maybe if I just told my parents about him, they’d stop pressuring me to go there. But that wouldn’t be right, would it? I mean, would I want to be outed if I were gay?

Tucked between these thoughts like a bookmark between a book’s pages was another thought. One that barely revealed itself to Blake, except for its tip. And, he’s fucking sexy. His curly blond hair. His muscular frame. He barely allowed himself to acknowledge the thought before pushing it away. No, I’m not gay anymore. I prayed to God and he cured me. I’ve been forgiven for my sins.

All these thoughts replayed through Blake’s mind for the thousandth time as he waited on the doorstep of the Bradley house. Waited to be tutored. Waited for the dangerous faggot to open the door. Waited to see if God had really cured him of his ailment or simply left him to perish in sin.

When Benjamin opened the door, Blake’s mind suddenly cleared. “Hey, come on in. I’ve got everything set up in the dining room. “

“Alright, cool.” Blake returned the charming boy’s smile and followed him into the house.

“Do you want something to drink? Ummm, I’ve got water and Mt.Dew. That’s about it, though.”

“ Mt.Dew’s cool. So, where is Pastor Bradley? Is he here?”

“ Naw, he’s over at the church, counseling some couple.”

The thoughts that had been swept from his brain upon seeing Benjamin returned, loudly, like a clap of thunder warning of an approaching storm. Shit. We’re alone. God, please let me stay strong. Give me the power to overcome. And, God, please, please keep him from putting a move on me.

“So, let’s start with Spanish. I have a pretty good grip on the conjugation, which seems to be what you’re having a problem with. I can teach you a few helpful tricks. It should only take a minute or two.” Benjamin set a can of Mt.Dew in front of Blake and took a seat in the chair across from him. There were no sexual innuendos, there were no stolen looks. There were simply two teens discussing the stupidity that is the Spanish language.

The tutoring session began at 8 pm. By 8:30 pm, Blake had noticed just how hot Benjamin was. By 9 pm, Blake came to the horrific realization that God had forsaken him and left him to sin. When the clock in the foyer chimed 9:30, Blake decided that he was going to have sex with Benjamin. Hot, carnal, sinful sex.

I’m like a predator. This is discussing. And, yet, Blake pushed on with his plan. It started with the idea of proximity. As in, the closer I am to him, the easier it will be to touch him. And so Blake decided to move his chair next to Benjamin. “This way, you can show me the way to work out the formulas easier.”

“ Yea, that would be easier,” Benjamin replied as he ducked his head down, the curls on top of his head tickling some primal urge in Blake.

The lesson lasted five more minutes.

Benjamin had just finished showing Blake the proper way to find the area of a triangle when Blake softly grabbed Benjamin’s head, pulled it towards him, and planted a hard kiss on the boy’s lips. There was no romancing; there was no clever pick up lines. There was just Blake taking the usual road he was accustomed to -- straight and to the point.

Blake noticed surprise and apprehension in Benjamin, but eventually, the boy opened his mouth and gave Blake’s tongue entrance. The kiss was long, hot and passionate.

Finally, the boys broke their lip-lock. Benjamin’s bright blue eyes stared into Blake’s for a moment. “I- I’ve never done anything like that,” came Benjamin’s response. He moved in for another kiss, but Blake pushed him away.

“Yea, me either. Let’s save the kissing for later.” Blake moved swiftly, he unbuttoned his own blue button-up and proceeded to remove Benjamin’s white t-shirt.

“Wait. I mean. I mean, I’ve never done anything like this before. I- I don’t know what to do.” Benjamin’s innocence turned Blake on and made him move faster. He quickly got up and pulled the boy towards the stairs, signaling that they should take their escapades to Benjamin’s room.

“Look, I’ll show you, okay?”

“ Yeah, okay. I didn’t even know that you were, were, you know?”

“ Look, I’m not, okay? I’m just horny as shit.”

“ Alright.” There was uneasiness in Benjamin’s voice, but he led the way to his room anyway.

I just hope this idiot keeps his mouth shut about this. If it gets out, we’re both dead. Completely and utterly dead. The apprehension was quickly erased as Benjamin slipped out of his pants and boxers, revealing a fully erect six inch cock.

Yea, he’s into it. Let’s get this fuckin’ show over with.