Max and Josh - 25. Conquered and Marked

Disclaimer: This story includes sexual and romantic situations between consenting individuals. Any allusion to illicit or illegal activity, sexual or otherwise, is used only for enhancement of the story line and not promotion thereof. Remember AIDS, HIV and other STDs are a very real threat, please always practice safe sex.

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Max and Josh 25: Conquered and Marked

Mark breathed a sigh of relief as he rested his head against the cool metal of his locker. He knew he should probably feel bad about feeling relieved but he couldn’t muster the will to do so. He knew his cousin meant well but the way Max had been hovering over him the last week was starting to get on his nerves.

He loved that Max was including him in his social circle but he could hardly get a moment to himself. He didn’t want to use the word suffocating but it was pretty close.

Mark had spent the last week trying to find small ways to get a moment or two to himself. He knew that his cousin meant well and he didn’t want to hurt his feelings or upset him so he said nothing about how he was feeling.

Today’s reprieve had come in the form of Max being called away by Mr. Clark to discuss the up-coming weightlifting competition. He knew he shouldn’t be happy about his cousin being called away but he was in desperate need of some breathing room.

Mark smiled to himself as he turned away from his locker, and ran directly into someone.

“Sorry ‘bout that, I wasn’t paying attention.” Mark said apologetically as he looked up at the person he had knocked into…it was times like this he hated being as short as he was.

“You’d better start paying attention shrimp, unless you want me to teach you how.” The guy hissed threateningly.

Mark took a few steps back, not out of fear but out of necessity; he wanted to get a better look at the guy threatening him.

‘Robinson Bennett…’ Mark thought to himself as he took in the malice sparked brown eyes, and firmly set square jaw. His hair was shaved so close to his scalp that it was little more than slightly darker shade of skin.

“No I’m pretty sure that I already know how. You might want to find someone to teach you a lesson in manners though, or maybe how to brush your teeth. I’ve got some Tic Tacs if you want one.” Mark was well aware of Robinson’s reputation, courtesy not only of Max but from meeting Tucker and Curtis, but he had no intention of letting the overgrown meathead push him around; even if it meant getting his ass kicked.

Robinson seemed momentarily stunned by Mark’s statement but he rallied fast and leaned in close to Mark with an evil little smirk.

“Do you know who I am, you fucking midget?” The line was so clichéd that Mark actually had to keep from laughing.

“Robinson Bennett. The names jackass, bigot and idiot also apply from what I understand. Since you seem to think you’re someone important I’d also say you have a superiority complex.” Mark’s reply came out a lot more confident than he felt, he was very aware of how much damage Robinson could do to him.

“You little fucking shit.” Robinson growled at him and shoved him back against his locker.

“Unless you want an expulsion for assault, Mr. Bennett, I suggest that you let go of Mr. Blevins, or is it Calvin. Max didn’t mention which name you were going by.” The deep, slightly southern baritone shocked the both of them and caused Robinson to jump away from him.

Mark smiled in relief as he turned to see Mr. Clark standing a little ways up the hallway. Even though the tall, broad man was leaning heavily on a cane, it in no way diminished his imposing nature. Moreover, if the worried look on Robinson’s face was any indication he felt the same way.

“There’s nothing going on her Mr. Clark; nothing at all.” Robinson replied in a low tone.

“Yea, that’s the biggest load of crap that I’ve heard all day,” Mr. Clark replied as he limped over to the pair of them, “Now, unless Mr. Blevins wants to file a complaint against you, you’re going to turn around and go away. Or I’m going to personally kick you’re butt.” Mr. Clark replied with a smile.

Mark watched as Robinson’s eye’s zoned in on Mr. Clark’s cane and noted the way he was favoring his leg and the confident smirk that crossed his face before it vanished.

“Oh, don’t be getting any ideas, boy. Don’t let the cane and the bum leg fool you. I’m still more than capable of taking out a bully like you.” Mr. Clark replied; reading Robinson’s reaction the same way that Mark had.

“You’re a teacher, I’m a student.” Robinson said as he stepped back a few paces; not looking very confident in his statement.

“What’s your point?” Mr. Clark asked and Mark couldn’t suppress the smile as Robinson blanched.

Without another word, Robinson turned and walked down the hall. Before he had gotten out of earshot though Mr. Clark had the last word.

“Besides, I’m sure Max Calvin wouldn’t take kindly to his cousin getting pushed around.” Mark watched as Robinson froze for a moment before continuing down the hall.

“Thanks, Mr. Clark, I appreciate you stepping in.” Mark smiled as the two of them moved down the hall together, away from Robinson.

“No worries son. I couldn’t let the cousin of one of my best students get hurt. It would completely mess with Max’s head and I need him focused for the competition.” Mr. Clark replied and for a moment. Mark bought that the man was being serious, but the warm smile ruined his statement.

“I still appreciate it. I’d have probably been a puddle of mush on the floor if you hadn’t come along.” Mark smiled, and Mr. Clark nodded.

“Probably so, but that’s what you get for mouthing off to a guy that’s three times your size. I’m impressed with how you handled yourself back there; I was listening. You’ve got quite the attitude.” Mr. Clark’s tone was neutral so Mark wasn’t sure whether he was being complimented.

“It’s genetic. All the Calvin’s do.” Mark replied, neither agreeing or disagreeing.

“I get the feeling that the Calvin’s get themselves into a lot of trouble don’t they?” Mr. Clark asked as he stopped outside Mark’s biology class, Mark wondered momentarily how the man knew this was the room he was going to.

“More than our fair share.” Mark nodded happily, he was proud of his heritage.

Mr. Clark smiled and shook his head a bit.

“Well, I’ll have to make sure to keep an eye on you and your cousin. Try not to mouth off to people that could crush you with their thumb, at least when your cousin isn’t around.”

“Is that why you dropped Max’s name when Robinson was walking away, so he’d know who I was related to?” Mark asked shrewdly.

“Yep, you might not have noticed but your cousin has something of a reputation around here. Not for being a badass exactly but for looking out for his people; from what I understand he’s been known to get a little scary.” Mr. Clark said with a wink before leaving Mark alone to go into class.

* * *

Tom sat quietly as he waited for Mr. Clark to come into the office shared by him and Coach Mc’Cayhe. Mr. Clark called him the night before and asked to meet him that morning during his free period.

“Sorry to keep you waiting Mr. Moure, I ran into a situation that needed my attention.” Mr. Clark said as he limped into the room.

“Don’t worry about it.” Tom replied off hand, he wasn’t very interested in what the man wanted.

“I hadn’t planned on it as it was unavoidable, but I thank you for your permission.” Tom couldn’t help but return the good natured smiled that Mr. Clark leveled at him as he sat down.

“What did you need to see me about, Sir?” Tom asked, the spark of humor vanished as quickly as it came; now he just wanted to get whatever this was over with.

He watched as Mr. Clark leaned back in his chair and gave him the kind of look that Mr. Watcher so often gave him. The one that he always gave him when he was trying to understand him.

“You’re a troubled young man Mr. Moure, but that’s not why I called you here, but I figured that this would be a good opportunity to let you know that I knew. I don’t know what it is exactly and while I could hazard a few guess’s, I won’t. Your business is your business.
However I know what stress does to an already stressed and troubled person so I want you to understand that if I ever push too hard that you can come to me and we can talk it out.” Mr. Clark’s voice was steady and his eye’s never left Tom’s face.

Tom did his best to keep his expression neutral. He thought he’d been doing a good job at keeping everything buried while he was at school but if Mr. Clark had noticed he worried who else might have noticed something.

“Is that all you wanted, Sir?” Tom asked, keeping his voice as normal as possible.

“No, it isn’t. As you know, the state weightlifting competition is coming up soon and I need to know what your plans are.” Mr. Clark replied, leaving Tom puzzled.

“I don’t know what you mean, Mr. Clark; I’ve been to every practice and I’ve been training on my own when I have the time.”

“I mean that even though you show up, you’re not actually here. You’re not challenging yourself Tom; you’re just going through the motions. You can’t do that in competition; you’ve got to be willing and able to push harder, to go that extra mile and I honestly don’t know if you’re up to doing it or not.” Mr. Clark replied emphatically.

Tom sat quietly for a few moments mulling over everything that Mr. Clark was saying and as much as he hated to admit it, the older man was right. Even though he continued to show up his heart wasn’t in the sport.

He was trying his damnedest to get excited about something other than his sketching, anything that didn’t involve bullying or violence. Try as he might though he just couldn’t get involved in the team.

Even though he hated to admit it, part of his problem was feeling self-conscious. Every member of the weight lifting team was a stand up person that were well aware of his history. It didn’t matter that he hadn’t so much as thrown a homophobic insult in months; he couldn’t help but feel judged.

That’s probably why he was acting the way Mr. Clark said; he came in, did what he needed to do and was done. The rest of the team were constantly pushing themselves and each other, seeing how far they could go.

“So, do you want to cut me or do you want me to quit. It doesn’t matter to me. Which ever reflects least badly on you.” Tom didn’t intend for his statement to come off as insulting, it was what it was; he didn’t want Mr. Clark to look bad because he was screwed up in the head. When he met the man’s eyes though, he knew he had screwed up.

“I don’t give a rat ass about how it looks on me. If you want to quit then go ahead and quit. I’d rather have you stay on, though.” Mr. Clark’s tone went from angry to cajoling, catching Tom by surprise.

“You want me to stay on, after that little speech you just gave me?” Tom asked, confused.

“I gave you that little speech in hopes that it might jar you out of your funk, Mr. Moure. You’re one of the strongest members of this team and I don’t want to see you walk away from it. In fact I want you to lead in squat for your weight class.” Mr. Clark said and Tom felt a little thrill of excitement.

 

Given that competitors didn’t just lift in one area Mr. Clark’s declaration might not have made much sense but with the way he had organized the team it was something of a big deal.

 

“You want me to lead? What about Max?” Tom asked somewhat nervously.

 

Since they were such a small school and there were only eight of them on the team, there would be two people in four weight classes. Based on their strengths they would each ‘lead’ in at least one lift, usually making up for their partners lacking area. Given that Max was just as strong as him, he didn’t think that he’d have to worry about it.

 

“Mr. Calvin is a good all-around lifter but he is stronger in his upper body than his lower. The squat has been one of the lowest scored events in the team’s history.

Your upper body is just as strong as Max’s but I know you’ve got more power in your legs than he does; I’ve seen you when you do the squat. I want you to do your best in all the competitions but I want you to take up the slack for Mr. Calvin, I want you to focus on the squat.

I know that I shouldn’t have sprung this on you so close to competition time but this was the final piece of my plan. If you don’t want the responsibility, then I need to know by Wednesday so I can work with Mr. Calvin a bit more on his form.” Mr. Clark leaned back in his chair, obviously awaiting Tom’s reply.

 

“Does Max know?” Tom asked carefully after a short pause.

 

“Not completely. I have him working on his squat technique but he doesn’t know that I’m looking at you to lead. As it stands no one knows, they may know what their weaknesses are but not for sure what I’m gonna be having them do. I want every member of the team ready to step up and be ready. I don’t want anyone slacking off because they think they’re safe. It’s my goal though to have the teams worked out by Wednesday.” Mr. Clark replied officially.

 

“I’ll have an answer for you by then Sir, I promise.” Tom replied after a moment, he’d need to give it a lot of thought in the two days he had.

 

“Good, I’ll let you get going. You don’t have much time before your next class.” Mr. Clark replied with a gentle smile.

 

Tom returned the smile with a slight grin as he left the office and headed for his locker. As he walked, he kept running Mr. Clark’s offer over in his mind. He had only participated on the team once or twice, usually preferring football because of his dad.

 

He had never really shined there either, something which didn’t escape his dad’s notice. Tom didn’t really like the game to be honest; he only ever played to keep his old man happy. Not that he ever succeeded in doing so.

 

‘If I lead in the competition and kick ass it might make him happy, get him off my back for awhile.’ He thought to himself silently.

 

‘It’s not like it’s some sort of official lead. You’re just picking up the slack for your teammates.’ Whispered another part of his mind, the part where his pessimistic side usually resided.

 

‘Pessimism or realism, with dad it could easily be either one. I could always lie to him though. Make it sound like something a lot more important than it really is…’ Tom thought distractedly.

As engrossed in his inner monologue as he was, Tom wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings and walked right into Robinson as he rounded a corner.

“Watch where the hell you’re going Tom.” Robinson hissed angrily.

“Fuck off.” Tom said as he kept walking. He had never been friendly with Robinson; he didn’t even like the guy. The only reason he hung out with him was because he needed the back up against Max and his friends, back when he was making a prick out of himself.

“What crawled up your ass?” Robinson asked as he turned around to follow him. Tom really wished he wouldn’t.

Recently, Tom had done everything short of telling Robinson to take a fucking hike to get rid of him. Tom was no longer overtly bullying anyone. He still made a prick out himself every now and again to keep up appearance and he only really did that because he wasn’t sure how else to act.

Tom frequently stopped Robinson from going too far in his own bullying and even more frequently told him to fuck off or go away. Tom had given Robinson too much credit though; apparently, his skull was so thick he couldn’t take a hint.

“You did, and no matter how many times I tell you, you won’t leave.” Tom replied pointedly but Robinson just plowed on.

“Fuck you, Tom. I know that Mr. Clark called you down to his office this morning. He’s more than enough to piss me off, sticking his fucking nose in where it don’t belong.” Robinson grumbled and in spite of himself, Tom got curious.

“What the hell are you on about?” Tom asked as he paused outside an empty classroom. The halls were relatively empty as not many had this period free, and those that did were usually in the library or courtyard.

Robinson rolled his eyes but proceeded to tell him about the situation he had gotten into that morning with Mr. Clark, and Max’s cousin, Mark.

It hadn’t taken long before the entire school knew that Mark was Max’s cousin. Max and his friends may not have realized it, but they were pretty popular in the school’s social circles. Max and Josh were two of the few out gay students in the school and one of only two gay couples. Max was such a good boy that everyone knew who he was, even if they didn’t like him. Josh was a semi star from when he was on the swim and track teams. In Tom’s opinion Max was damn lucky to have snagged Josh. He was completely unaware of how hot and how skilled he was. Even Tom could admit that.

Kylie, though it wasn’t the best thing to be known for, was rich, which put her at the top of pretty much everyone’s gossip list. Tom had lost count of the number of psycho rumors that he had heard about her. Anyone who watched her or talked to her for more than a half a second could tell you that she rarely flaunted her cash around and was actually very humble.

Frank…Frank was only popular because of his friends. Tom knew one or two things about him but compared to his friends he wasn’t anything special. He never really stuck out in class and had never played a sport that Tom was aware of.

Everyone knew who the four of them were though, so when Mark came on the scene the school gossip wheel wasted no time in informing every member of the student body who Mark was.

Rumors flew about him too. Everything from him having survived a horrific car crash that killed his parents and left him a boatload of cash to him being adopted because of how dissimilar he and his cousin looked.

To Tom though, he looked perfect. Mark was everything that Tom liked in a guy, small, lean, almost delicate, and smooth. They shared a gym class, one of the few classes that Mark didn’t have his cousin or one of his cousin’s friends, and in the locker room and shower he had plenty of opportunity to glimpse how smooth and beautiful Mark was.

The biggest rumor was though that Mark was gay too; that was one rumor Tom secretly hoped was true.

“Maybe you should take Clark’s advice. You wouldn’t want Max to pretty up that ugly mug of yours.” Tom said snidely.

“You saying I can’t take out that fucking faggot?” Robinson hissed as he crowded into Tom’s space.

Tom suppressed a wince at the f-word and immediately pushed Robinson out of his space, hard.

“First off, you’d better remember who the fuck you’re talking to or Calvin isn’t going to get the chance to fuck you up,” Tom threatened in a low voice, just because he was trying to change didn’t make him a pushover. “And second I know for a fact that you can’t take him, you got beat up by the girl that hangs out with them. And third you’re going to back off of his cousin anyway.” Tom told him, thinking fast. Robinson wasn’t like him when it came to bullying. Robinson was much worse; where Tom had tried to never hurt anyone too badly physically; Robinson took a sick delight if he managed to injure someone.

“And why the fuck am I going to do that?” Robinson asked skeptically.

“Because you’re going to leave him to me. I’ve got a score to settle with Max Calvin and the best way to settle it is through his shrimp relative. I don’t like or tolerate asshole’s stepping onto my territory. So you’re going to back the fuck off, or else.” Tom injected more than enough malice and threat into his voice to ensure that Robinson followed his rules.

He couldn’t do what he wanted to do with Mark but he could at least keep him safe from Robinson’s sadistic ass.

“Whatever, you don’t have to be such a fucking prick though dude. I’m your friend remember.” Robinson said before turning around to stalk off.

‘You’re not my friend you fucking nut job…never have been and never will be.’ Tom thought violently.

                                                           *          *          *

Josh watched as Max carefully lowered the weight until it just barely brushed his chest before pumping it up again.

“Ten, five more and then you’re taking a break.” He managed to get out as he watched his partner’s chest stretch and contract through his gray gym shirt.

Max’s only response was a short nod as he went through another set. Mr. Clark had managed to convince Coach Mc’Cayhe to let the members of the weight lifting use the weight room on Monday and Wednesday to get in some last minute practice before the upcoming competition.

Josh had to force himself to focus on being Max’s spotter or else he would be in a very embarrassing situation. Only Max and two other members from the weight lifting team were in the room but there were several other students around whose rotation it was for the weight room.

“Fifteen,” Josh said but Max continued to work. Josh let him get to twenty before he grabbed the bar, “That’s three sets of twenty, that’s sixty; you’re taking a break.” Josh said sternly as he guided the bar back to the rack.

Max sat up and pinned him with an annoyed glare; one that Josh had been on the receiving end of a lot recently.

“Give me that look all you want but if you keep up at the pace you’re going you’ll end up hurting yourself and you’ll be out of the competition completely.” Josh replied evenly.

“Josh, the competition is less than a week away; I’ve got to be in top shape. The best high school teams in the state are going to be there. I don’t want to screw up like I did last year.” Max’s voice held a note of shame at the mention of last year’s competition.

Josh had to hold in a sigh. He knew that Max still blamed himself for their loss but they had been scored low in all three events, not just the bench press.

“You didn’t cause the team to loose last year; it was just a bad year. Besides, you’re already in top condition; you have the strongest chest of anyone else on the team. Mr. Clark told you that himself.” Josh said as he laid his hand on Max’s shoulder.

Max smiled a bit as he put his hand over Josh’s but it didn’t last long as he looked up at him with uncertainty in his eyes.

“What if I screw up, babe?” Max all but whispered.

“The only way you’re going to screw up is if you strain yourself over training. Stick to the regimen that Mr. Clark worked out for you and it’ll work out.” Josh smiled at him and Max smiled in return.

“You’re right, babe. Here, you take a turn.” Max said as he hoped up and motioned to the bench.

Josh shook his head but laid down and started his reps. Max moved to stand at his head and slipped his hands under the bar to help him guide it up and down.

Standing so close caused the fabric of Max’s shorts to brush the top of his head and as Josh looked up it was easy to make out the bulge behind the fabric.

“I really need you to back up a little bit.” Josh said quietly as he felt arousal flood his system.

Max gave him a confused look before taking in the blush across his cheeks and the tent beginning to form in his partner’s shorts before smiling.

“What’s wrong babe am I distracting you?” Max asked in a mock serious tone.

Josh gritted his teeth a little before shaking his head as he tried to focus on his workout.

“You’re making it hard to focus…I’m getting all kinds of ideas I shouldn’t be thinking about at school.” Josh replied honestly.

Max took a step back and after Josh’s set was done, he helped him guide the bar back to the rack. Max moved around to the side of the bench and brought one of his feet up to rest on it and under the pretense of tying his shoe and whispered to Josh, “You know I have a weight bench in my basement, we might be able to make some of those ideas a reality.”

Before Josh could reply a throat clearing from behind them got their attention. The two of them both turned to see Tucker standing behind them.

“You know I could create a distraction if you two wanted to slip into the bathroom for a few minutes, take care of a little business.” Tucker said quietly as he leaned on the barbell.

The two of them glanced around the room to see if any of the other students were listening. No one seemed to be paying attention, except for Alverez, who was on a treadmill nearby, and was focusing on the display of the machine a little too intently…and smiling slightly.

Max looked to Josh and gave him a questioning looked.

“No…hell NO.” Josh replied to the silent question.

“It was just a thought.” Max mumbled, causing Josh and Tucker to shake their heads.

Curtis and Tucker hadn’t been as lucky as the two of them to get exercise room sessions together so Max and Josh let Tucker join them for the rest of their workout.

“So how is Mark doing?” Tucker asked between his presses.

“He’s doing good. It worries me some that we’re in different gym classes though. Mark is small for his age…I don’t want people giving him shit.” Max replied worriedly.

Josh didn’t know whether to smile or sigh. He understood Max’s protective nature but ever since Mark had come to live with him, Max had been hovering over him like a helicopter. He never seemed to give Mark a moment on his own, which was something Josh was sure he was looking for but Max didn’t see the exasperation that Mark was giving out when Max insisted that he hang out with them.

“Dude you’re acting like he’s a little boy or something. He’s seventeen, not a kid. I’m sure that Mark will be able to take care of himself. You can’t be like a hawk, on him on all the time. He’ll get sick of it.” Tucker said after placing the bar back on the rack.

“That’s easy for you to say Tucker…he share’s that gym period with Tom.” Max said pointedly.

Max may have known that Tom was gay, and somewhat remorseful for what he had done, but he was still being a prick. True he hadn’t bullied anyone as badly as he once had but he was still hanging out with assholes like Robinson and as bad as he felt to admit it, he didn’t trust Tom not to go back to his old ways.

“Tom wouldn’t be stupid enough to screw with Mark. He knows that you and your entire crew would kick his ass if he did.” Tucker replied as Max lay back on the bench for his last set.

“His crew?” Josh asked curiously.

“That’s what a lot of students call you guys. You, Max, Frank, and Kylie, the four of you are like family.” Tucker replied with a smirk.

“They don’t include you and Curtis as part of it?” Max asked between presses.

“Nah, you and I both know that Curtis and I aren’t that close to you guys; which is cool with us. We’re happy just being friends of the ‘Crew’.” Tucker laughed.

Neither Max nor Josh had a response for Tucker’s explanation. They were both kind of stunned that the four of them had developed any kind of reputation with most of the student body.

True people took notice of Kylie, mostly because everyone knew she had money. Frank had a bit of a reputation as a scrapper and a hot head but neither Max nor Josh could think of any reason for the two of them to be taken note of.

The two of them must have looked confused because Tucker laughed at them.

“You two really aren’t as self aware as you think. You should really pay attention to your actions. Do that and you’ll recognize why people keep an eye on you.” Tucker smiled as he spoke and both felt even more confused.

Putting it out of their mind for the moment the three of them finished their workouts and after class headed their separate ways.

* * *

Mark adjusted the towel around his waist as he dug through his locker for his clothes. Despite being the smallest guy in his class, (stature wise at least), he enjoyed his gym class. He always liked to be active and even though he was a little on the short side he had enjoyed the game of basketball they had played.

Showering afterward wasn’t much of an issue for him either; the locker room was equipped with ten shower stalls so there was a small amount of privacy. The only thing he had issues with was with changing.

Maybe it was because he was smaller in size than the guys around him or maybe it was because he was gay and worried about sprouting a hard on around all the beefy, muscular guys but he dreaded the few moments between changing or getting dressed after a shower.

It didn’t take Mark too long to realize though that his clothes weren’t in his locker where he had put them. He felt his face heat up in embarrassment as he glanced around the locker room, unsure of what to do.

“You’re looking for these.” The quiet statement made him turn around, but the deep red blush along his cheeks kept him from looking up.

“Yea…where did you find them?” Mark asked as he took the small jumbled pile of clothes from a guy whose face he still couldn’t look at.

“Um…In you’re locker...I swiped them. It was just suppose to be a joke but I…I realized it wasn’t funny. So um…yea…sorry.” Mark chanced a glance up as he walked away. He didn’t know the guy who had swiped his clothes but as he walked away he stopped next to Tom Moure and Tom nodded at him before he walked away.

Mark let his eyes linger on Tom for a moment. He knew who the school bully was thanks to Max’s rundown of people to avoid. Tom was at the top of his cousin’s list, closely followed by the teacher Mr. Fleet and another student named James. Max didn’t give him any details on the guy, only that it was best to avoid him.

He knew from Max’s stories what Tom was capable of, of all the things that he had done but Mark hadn’t seen him do anything worse than being a prick. Mark still kept his distance from him though, if only to pacify his cousin’s protective instincts.

Mark wasn’t going to stand to be bullied by the guy though, so after they were both dressed Mark followed Tom out of the locker and once they were in a relatively empty hallway he walked up to him.

“Hey, I want to talk to you.” Mark said as he walked around Tom, stopping him in his tracks.

“What do you want small fry?’ Tom asked him with a smirk that Mark refused to admit to himself was kind of hot.

“I dunno what the hell was up with you and the guy that swiped my clothes but since he gave them back I’m pretty sure he chickened out on what ever prank you had planned.” Mark said confidently.

For a second the two of them just stood there before Tom spoke up.

“Look midget, if you’ve got a point, make it before I crack you in the head. I don’t give a shit who you’re related to.” Tom replied and Mark had to master the urge to knee him in the nuts…he hated being called a midget.

“My point is if you want to pick on me then do it yourself. Don’t be a chicken shit and hide behind your goons.” Mark replied vehemently.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Now get the fuck out of my way.” Tom said before pushing past him, making sure he knocked hard against Mark as he did.

                                                            *          *          *

Tom discreetly rubbed the back of his hand against his jeans as he walked away from Mark. Try as he might though, he couldn't rub away the tingling feeling that lingered on his skin from its brief contact it had made with Mark’s bare forearm.

His shove had been intended to intimidate the smaller boy but he hadn't anticipated the brief brush of skin to skin contact that he felt through his entire body.

As he took a seat in the back of his next class, he had to smile a little bit at the memory of Mark calling him out.

It seemed his personality was as fiery as his hair was...and Tom liked that. If Mark only knew the truth about the situation.

Tom wasn't working with the jackass that stole his clothes, he had caught him stealing them, and after he gave him the same speech he gave Robinson, he made him return them.

Tom was going to make sure that every jackass, moron, and wannabe bully in the school knew to stay clear of Mark and the best thing about it was that he would hardly have to do a thing to get the message out.

Robinson, he knew, wouldn’t say anything outright for fear of being branded a wuss for bowing down to him but he also knew that if Robinson saw or heard of anyone picking on Mark that he either respected, or feared him enough to warn the offender off.

The idiot in the locker wasn’t any kind of a threat, just a moron who liked to play practical jokes, but he was also a loud mouth.

Ton was confident he wouldn’t waste any time telling his buddies to watch out how they treated Mark.

As he thought it all over, Tom felt a small surge of guilt. If everything went how he hoped, then he was in effect putting a target on Mark’s back.

‘Target hell; it’ll be more like giving him an extra shield. With Max’s and his crews’ reputations and my threat of retribution no one will be stupid enough to touch him.’ Tom assuaged his conscience silently as the classroom around him started to fill up.

‘What will you do when Max finds out what you’re doing? He won’t see it as your attempt to protect Mark because you think he’s beautiful. He’ll see it as you going back to your old ways. You think he’ll keep your little secret once he finds out?’ A dark part of his mind whispered, Tom knew he wasn’t crazy but after all the negative shit he had repressed he often wondered if he hadn’t given them a mind of their own.

Ruthlessly though Tom shoved the words of the twisted little ‘conscience’ away and once again soothed his guilt and worry with platitudes.

‘I don’t give a shit what Max thinks….and I don’t have to worry about him spilling the beans on me either. He’s way too noble for that.’ Tom thought reassuringly.

What would Max and his friends really do when they heard that Tom had ‘marked’ Mark…what would Mark himself do if he found out what was going on? Would he confront Tom again or would he blow it off as being a bunch of schoolhouse drama.

Part of him really wanted it to be the first reaction. Even though it was only a few moments seeing Mark all fired up had lit a flame inside him. At first, Tom’s thoughts only centered on how appealing he found the smaller boy but after the dressing down Mark had given him in the hallway had shown him a bit of Mark’s personality.

It seemed that Mark had the same fiery, excited temperament as his cousin. Only on Max it wasn’t nearly as hot as it was on Mark.

For a moment, Tom allowed himself to think about what it would be like to have all of Mark’s intensity focused on him in a good way, in the pursuit of mutual pleasure. Sharing a gym class,(he had changed his schedule up in order to avoid seeing the judgmental look Max leveled at him every time he saw him), it was easy for his mind to supply him with images of Mark’s pale, lean body.

The way he would arch into his touch and the blush that would spread over his milky skin was entirely produced by his own mind.

“Mr. Moure, are you paying attention?” Mrs. Beckman called out, breaking him out of his lusty haze.

“No I’m not. Sorry.” Tom replied and his sincerity caused several people to give him strange looks, even Mrs. Beckman looked at him quizzically.

“Well…do try in the future. I hate to see one of my students fall behind.” She replied with a small smile.

Tom felt himself heat up a bit around his ears and smiled to himself. Mrs. Beckman was the first teacher beside Mr. Clark that had shown him any kind of positive response in a long time.

Tom did his best to pay attention for the rest of the class and was fairly successful. Tom had a good head for numbers, he always had and he hoped to put it to use when he got the trust from his grandparents.

Tom often wondered if they hadn’t seen something in his father; even with the sweet disposition that he showed when he was around them. He played the father and husband of the year perfectly.

Shortly before they died though they sold damn near everything they had, including their house, cars and stocks. They settled in a low rent retirement community and placed every cent they had made in their sale into a trust fund for him.

Even though they had named his mother the trustee, they made it perfectly clear that his money wasn’t to be touched for any reason before he turned eighteen unless he absolutely needed it.
She may have bowed to his father in every other aspect of their life but she never allowed him to touch his trust fund. Whenever the statement on his trust came in, she would always make sure that he got to see it before his dad.

Tom filed out of the room once class was through. Without even thinking about it, he held the door open for a few girls that were behind him, which earned him a small smile and a quiet thank you.

As he walked down the hall, with a small smile on his face, he had to admit that he was beginning to like the positive attention he got, even if it was sparse.

There were even moments when he allowed himself to think that maybe he could work on changing his image without admitting he was gay. It couldn’t really be too big of a stretch, he had made many mistakes and done many bad things but there had to be some way he could atone for the things he had done.

Distracted as he was Tom didn’t pay attention to where he was going and knocked into someone who was standing in the hall, causing them to drop the books that were in their arms.

The student must have been new because Tom didn’t recognize him, he was small and kind of geeky looking and given that Tom had a thing for smaller guys he knew he would have recognized him if he wasn’t new.

Tom had every intention of kneeling down to help him pick up his stuff and even offer to help him find his way since he seemed lost but before he could make a move Tucker stepped between them. Given his very public coming out everyone knew who Tucker was. The fact that Robinson had a vendetta against him and his boyfriend Curtis also helped Tom recognize him.

“Walk away, now.” Tucker said quietly.

Even as Tucker moved into a defensive stance, Tom planned to explain. No better time to start working on how people thought of him, but before he could do anything the two girls he had held the door open for just a few minutes ago, the ones who had smiled at him and thanked, came to help the knew kid pick up his books.

“Moure is a jerk but don’t let him get to you. Stick with us or Tucker and we’ll show you around.” One of them said quietly to the new guy as the other glared scornfully at him.

“I didn’t mean…” Tom started quietly but Tucker cut him off.

“Didn’t mean to what? Knock into him so his books scattered? You can’t even give the guy a day before you started fucking with him?” Tucker asked loudly, drawing the attention of several students that were around them.

Tom caught a lot of the looks that were being given to him, some were approving from the would-be bullies of the school but most of them were as scornful as the ones that the girl who had thanked him for holding a door open for them not even ten minutes ago gave him.

All that anger, dislike and resentment that was directed at him stung like hundreds of bee stings and he felt his resolve to explain, to do the right thing, get crushed under a wave of pain, hurt…and guilt.

Without so much as a word he stepped around Tucker, the girls and the short guy he had knocked into. As he passed, the guy caught his eye, he had a worried and somewhat scared expression on his face but in the brief moment when their eye’s met it shifted to a look of anger.

Just like that Tom knew that the seed had been planted…the same seed that Tucker, Curtis and so many other students nurtured and Tom knew…he knew that it didn’t matter what he did, how many people he helped pick up their books, how many doors he held open…it wouldn’t matter. All these people had already made up their minds about him.

And it was his own fault.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered quickly as he passed, breaking eye contact with the guy he inadvertently bumped into as the realization he had come to crashed down on him like a tidal wave.

Tom didn’t go to his next class; he kept walking till he found an exit. He didn’t care that the day was barely half over, didn’t care that his dad would be irate when he found out he had skipped school. He couldn’t be there right now…couldn’t be where it felt like everyone hated him…couldn’t be where he felt like he deserved to be hated.

Freedom was only six feet away but before he could reach it, a strong hand grabbed his shoulder and spun him around.

“What the fuck is wrong with you, I saw that shit. You could have kicked Tucker’s fucking ass.” Robinson all but roared.

Before Tom realized he was doing it, he had clocked Robinson across his jaw and before Robinson could recover, he had him up against the wall, his forearm pressing against his throat.

As the adrenaline shot through him, he felt the sweet sting of relief, a feeling he hadn’t felt in so long. It would be so easy, he knew, to take it all out on Robinson. To beat out all his anger and pain and guilt out on the sadistic son of a bitch he had pinned to the wall.

Without thinking about it, his free hand curled into a fist but as he raised his hand for another blow, his eyes caught Robinson’s and the fear there stopped him.

‘Do it and you turn back into the person that all those people back there despise and fear.’ Whispered the part of his mind that didn’t want him to go back to who he was.

He let his hands drop and Robinson hit the floor, gasping for breath and looking at him like he was crazy.

“I’ve told you before, and this is the last time I’m gonna do it. I don’t like you, you’re not my friend and I want you to go away and leave me the fuck alone.” Tom said quietly and he turned and left Robinson sitting on the floor.

                                                            *          *          *

Max took a deep breath, held it for a moment, before releasing it slowly. He was nervous as hell and no matter what he did, he couldn’t get over it. Max had done great in the squat and dead lift. He hadn’t broken any contest records but he had smashed his squat record by twenty pounds and his dead lift by forty.

The bench press was next though and after his failure to finish his third lift at the last competition Max was actually kind of scared to get up on the platform.

Max looked down the bench where he and the rest of his team waited to be called to see Tom staring up at the lifter on the platform.

He and Tom were lifting in the same weight class and they both had bench press next. Tom had done as well as him in the dead lift but had beat him out in the squat by forty pounds. He had always known that Tom had strong legs but Max had to admit that he was impressed.

As his turn at the press got closer and closer, Max got more and more nervous. He tried every calming and meditative trick he knew but nothing worked for more than a moment.

Just as his hands started shaking and panic began to overwhelm him he felt a gentle squeeze on his shoulder.

Max looked up to find Mr. Clark smiling at him. He gave him another gentle squeeze on the shoulder before fishing a folded up square of paper out of his pocket and handed to it to him.

“I was asked to give you this if you looked like you were close to passing out. I don’t think you’re the passing out type though, puking you’re guts out though, I believe is a distinct possibility.” He said with a smile before walking down the bench to talk to Tom.

He watched the pair for a moment, noting how Tom gave Mr. Clark a small smile as the older man clapped him on the shoulder.

Max added the interaction between the two to a list of things he had noticed about Tom’s behavior.

Turning back to the paper max unfolded it and read through it.

‘Hey Honey, I know you’re worried but you’ve just got to remember that you are your own worst enemy. Whether you think you can or can’t, you’re right. Just remember that you can.
-Love you, Mom’

‘Dear Max, SNAP THE HELL OUT OF IT!!!! I know you’re an egghead and like to over think things but you’re not just an egghead. You’re also a muscle head. Last year you weren’t in top form, you are now. You can kick this thing in the ass and come out on top.

-You’ve got this, Frank’

‘Hey Maxy, I didn’t know you at the time of the last tournament so my encouragement might not mean much but I’m going to have a go at it anyway. You are one of the strongest people I know, both physically and mentally. You’ve got the best of both and there is no way that you can loose here.
-BB Kylie’

‘Hey Cuz, If you’re really freaking out about this, then you need to get your head examined. Aunt D has told me everything about last year and you were in no shape to try for maximum weight. YOU CAN do it this year. And if you don’t, then I will personally kick your ass.
-Love you Cousin’

Max smiled as he read the little messages but as he finished Mark’s, he wondered where Josh’s message was. He turned the paper over in confusion and saw that a flap had been folded back on the paper. Opening the flap, he saw Josh’s message.

‘Hey Babe, I hope you’re reading this. I didn’t want to gross anyone out with my lovey dovey talk. I know you’re freaking out about your press and that you have been for a while.
You’ve got to let go of last year, Max, close you’re eyes, take a deep breath and let it go. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. It wasn’t your fault. You shouldn’t have tried maximum weight but you did and you didn’t make it.
You’re stronger now, more focused and you can do this, babe. We’re all right here with you, watching you and cheering you on.

I love you Max and I know that you can do it.
-Love you babe, Josh’

Max had to swallow hard past the lump in his throat as he folded the paper back up and tucked it into his shoe. It might not have been the most respectful place to put it but he didn’t have any pockets so it was the best he could do.

Knowing that his family and friends were out there waiting on him and cheering for him, knowing that they believed in him gave him a new burst of confidence.

Smiling slightly to himself, Max sat up straight, squared his shoulders and took another deep breath as he closed his eyes. This time he kept the words of his family and friends in mind.

Josh’s words stuck out mostly in his mind. His partner was right. It was time for him to let go of his upset at the last tournament. He had known better than to push himself as far as he had but he had wanted the win for his team.

This year though he knew that he could do it. Since their defeat, Max had been training with the specific purpose of winning this competition.

‘I can do this; I’ve been training for this for months. I can do it.’ Max repeated over and over to himself all the while running his loved one’s words through his head.

He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn’t notice as time passed and Tom took his turn at the press; at least until he felt a tap on his shoulder.

“You’re up Calvin.” Tom’s voice was labored and as Max looked up he looked away from him.

“How’d you do?” Max asked with an effort to be polite.

“Don’t matter; you’re up, unless you’re going to go vomit first.” Tom said as he moved his hand off Max’s shoulder and walked passed him.

Max shook his head at Tom’s reply but pushed it out of his mind as he stood up. It didn’t matter; right now he needed to focus. He could work out his issues with Tom later.

“Just remember Max, you just have to focus and be calm. Don’t go for broke if you’re hurting too much or think you might loose it. I don’t want to see any of my lifters hurt. But for what it’s worth, I believe you can do this.” Mr. Clark said quietly just before Max stepped up to the platform.

At the ref’s direction, Max moved over and took his place on the bench, making sure that he was positioned properly. He reached up and grasped bar just outside the marked places and waited.

His spotter checked the position of his hands and his overall posture before nodding at him. With the spotter’s assistance, which was little more than a bit of directional guidance, Max lifted the bar to arms length.

Once his arms were raised and steady, he lowered the bar down until it just barely touched his chest, held it steady and waited.

“Press!” The command was given low but plenty loud enough for him, and everyone else, to hear.

Max took a deep breath and pressed up on the exhale once he was back at arms length he held it steady and waited again.

“Rack!” The command was given just like the press had been and Max lowered the bar back in the rack as steadily as he could.

Once the weight was back in the rack Max sat up and after a few breaths nodded at the head ref.

At the refs signal the bar was loaded with a collective ten more pounds and the process repeated itself.

The weight increased with each lift and as the weight went up so did Max’s excitement; and his fatigue.

As he pushed closer to three hundred pounds he began to feel the strain. Three hundred was the maximum that high school competitors were allowed to lift. Max knew he didn’t need to lift maximum to win the competition for his team but getting to maximum wasn’t about the team.

Max wanted it, he needed it.

He didn’t want it for the glory of his team, or even for some award he might win. He needed it to prove that he could do it, to prove that he was strong enough.

Max hadn’t wanted to admit it but the last few months had left him shaken. His temporary split with Josh, his short stint in the hospital, reunion with his grandpa, the death of his aunt and uncle and the issues with his father that their death had brought back to the surface had all messed with Max’s equilibrium.

Succeeding here, at something he had never managed before would go a long way in bolstering his spirits and his confidence.

As he racked the bar and sat up though Max started to question his decision to go to maximum, he was starting to get sore and he was shaking slightly.

The Ref came up to him and asked if he was going to go on and just as Max was about to tell him no a loud, sharp whistle sounded.

His attention caught he looked at the crowd that was watching the competition and somehow and very distinct pair of green eyes met his.

Josh, and the rest of his family and friends, were all staring at him with different expressions. His mother wore a cross somewhere between panic and pride. Frank and Mark were both looking excited while Kylie looked worried as hell.

Josh though…the best way he could describe Josh’s expression was challenging. His arms were crossed over his chest and he wore the same cocky smirk that he always did when he was daring Max to do something. Usually that grin was associated with something sexual but Max knew it was different this time.

Max returned that smirk in kind and refocused on the ref.

“Yea, I want try for maximum.” Max replied and the head ref gave the signal for the weights to be changed.

* * *

Josh watched, his excitement and pride in his lover growing every second as he did, as Max pushed himself harder and harder. Max may not have said anything but Josh knew that this was more than just a competition to Max.

His partner needed this; he needed to succeed where he had failed once before. Instead of letting Max see more worry, his mother and Kylie were showing enough of that, he decided to show Max something far more useful.

He knew that Max was getting tired and on his last lift before the three hundred when he looked like he was going to give up Josh stood up and let out a sharp whistle.

As Max’s eyes met his he plastered on the smirk he knew did things to Max. For a moment he wondered if Max understood but then he smirked back at him and spoke to the ref.

Josh watched as the bar was loaded with three hundred pounds and Max lay back on the bench. He’d lie if he was ever asked, but Josh couldn’t deny that he was a little worried about Max. He took great pains to hide it but ever since he saw Max in the hospital, he was scared of what would happen if Max over exerted himself.

As he watched Max lift three hundred pounds off the rack in a single, effortless motion though he realized that his lover was a lot stronger than he had realized.

Max’s mom was next to him rocking back and forth and whispering ‘oh my god’ over and over again to herself while Kylie had her hands over her face, looking at Max from between her fingers. Frank and Mark were barely containing their excitement. Max was by far one of the best competitors in the competition and both of them were rocking back and forth in their seats eyes glued to Max as he pressed.

Josh though, just smiled as he watched Max lower the bar to his chest and at the command begin to press it up. His breath caught as the bar wavered slightly but not enough for the Ref to stop the lift.

He didn’t breathe again until Max had laid the bar back in the rack. As Max stood shakily, a loud roar of applause rippled through the crowd and Josh stood and clapped and shouted right along with them.

* * *

“Party, my place, tomorrow night. Everyone’s invited; and it is not optional.” Alverez practically shouted as they filed into the locker room to shower and change out of their lifting gear.

Max smiled at his excitement. They had won, by a pretty substantial amount as a matter of fact. Max couldn’t help but feel a little proud of himself, he hadn’t needed to lift to maximum to help his team win but his effort in the bench press, along with Tom’s in the squat, had gone a long way to help them win.

“You listening to me, Maximus,” Alverez said as he thumped Max on his back, “I have never seen your ass at a party before. You better show up tomorrow night.”

“I’m not a party person, I like a quiet life.” Max replied as he shrugged Alverez off him and pulled his lifting shirt off, grimacing a bit as his muscles stretched.

“You can embrace the wild side for one night Max. It’s not like anything crazy is gonna happen, just us and our girls.” Alverez replied and Max had to resist the urge to roll his eyes.

“Ever think that’s why he’s so standoffish, Al?” Their teammate Nick spoke up.

Alverez looked from Nick to Max in confusion for a minute before shaking his head.

“Is that the problem, the gay thing? Dude, lighten up. If that’s the issue then forget it. Bring your boy along. It’s not like we don’t already know you’re gay. Ain’t nobody gonna make any issues out of it. Right boys?” Max noticed that even though he directed his comments to the room his eyes were trained on Tom.

Tom however didn’t react; he had pulled off his lifting clothes while they talked around him and had a towel around his waist.

He watched as Tom walked past the rest of the guys and into the shower room. Just as he passed out of the locker room, he paused though.

“What time Alverez?” He asked without turning back around.

“Bout seven.” Tom nodded before heading back into the showers.

“Well, so long as no one cares about me walking in with Josh on my arm I guess I’ll be there.” Max replied with a smile.

Alverez whooped happily and thump Max on the back again before moving off to the locker he was using.

Max finished stripping out of his lifting gear and changed back into his street clothes.

“You ain’t showering Max?” Nick asked in confusion as Max packed his stuff back into his gym bag.

“Not here. My family and I are staying the night and heading home in the morning. I’ve got a comfortable, private shower waiting for me.” Max replied with a smile, making Nick leer.

“Yea, that probably ain’t the only thing you’ve got waiting on you.” Nick called after him as he left.

Max could only smile, denying it after all, would be a lie.

                                                           *          *          *

“You were amazing babe.” Josh said as he pulled Max’s shirt off over his head.

“I wouldn’t have gotten to maximum without you giving me that sexy little smirk of yours. You ready to make good on it?” Max asked as he smoothed his hands up Josh’s sides, taking his shirt with him.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. You must have been seeing things.” Josh replied innocently.

Once his shirt was off, Max drug his nails down Josh’s sides, not enough to leave marks, just enough to burn before smoothing them with his palms.

Josh hissed and dug his fingers into the hallows of Max’s hips.

“Alright, maybe I was trying to provide you with a little inspiration.” Josh replied huskily.

“Inspiration, huh…you know what that smirk does to me. The only reason my blood wasn’t flowing south was because it was helping me support three hundred pounds.” Max rasped as he nuzzled against Josh’s throat.

“Well…maybe I wanted you to achieve the goal you set for yourself so you’d be in a good mood for tonight.” Josh’s voice was uncertain as he pushed his hands under the waistband of Max’s shorts.

“So you weren’t encouraging me? You were baiting me?” Max whispered before licking a long swath from Josh’s Adam’s apple to his collarbone.

“It worked didn’t it?” Josh managed through a shudder.

“Mhm.” Max murmured before popping the button on Josh’s jeans and letting them hit the floor.

“Shouldn’t we be getting showered before getting you dirty again?” Josh said as he stepped out of his jeans, kicking them out of his way.

“I dunno, seems kinda pointless when I’ll just need another one when we’re done. Unless I stink too much for you.” Max said as he slid his hands under Josh’s boxers, kneading the mounds of firm flesh.

Josh smirked and pushed Max back against the bathroom door. He lifted Max’s arms and put his hands on the top of his head.

It was a secret that Josh kept close to the vest but he didn’t mind when Max was pumped and sweaty from a work out. He liked how Max’s scent was always stronger after a workout.

“Keep those there.” Josh said as he leaned down to lick and nuzzle into Max’s neck and chest.

Max’s skin was sharp with the taste of sweat and it was addicting to Josh. He moved lower until he could kiss and nip at his lovers’ nipple.

“MMm babe.” Max moaned as Josh gave his right nipple a hard nip, making him shudder.

Josh soothed the sensitive flesh with his tongue before finally moving to his main goal. He nuzzled into the smooth hallow of Max’s underarm, the earthy, masculine scent of his lover. He could feel Max’s body trembling slightly and smiled at the shudder that ran through him as he swiped his tongue across the smooth space, tasting the sting of sweat as he traveled up to his lovers’ tricep nipping at the hard, taught muscle.

“Babe….as hot as that feels I really need you to stop…I can’t keep my arms like this much longer.” Max’s voice was husky and labored.

Josh straightened up and stood, he unlaced Max’s fingers and gently lowered his lovers arms to his sides. Max hissed at the movements and Josh silently chided himself for not realizing how sore Max probably was.

“You know what would be good for those sore muscles babe?” Josh asked quietly as he gripped Max’s biceps with his hands, massaging gently.

“What…what would that be?” Max struggled out through an appreciative moan.

“A hot, soapy shower followed by a long, full body massage from me.” Josh whispered as he nuzzled against Max’s neck.

Max smiled and gripped Josh’s hips tight before pulling him against him, rubbing his partners cock against his stomach.

“Does that massage come with a happy ending?” Max asked as he ground himself up against his lover.

Josh threw his head back and groaned a little at the rough contact of Max’s jeans.

“I guess that depends on if you’re strong enough for it.” Josh smirked but immediately moaned and leaned forward onto Max’s shoulder as Max slipped his hands behind him to grasp his ass, the tip of his middle finger massaging against his entrance.

Max growled low in his throat before biting carefully onto his lover’s shoulder where it met his neck, applying just enough force to make him whimper.

“If memory serves, you like it when I show you just how strong I am…I think you’re trying to bait me again.” Max whispered against Josh’s heated skin.

“No…no idea what you’re talking about.” Josh stuttered.

Max just smiled and pushed Josh toward the shower.

“Get the water ready.” Max ordered quietly, making Josh shiver a bit.

Max watched as Josh pushed aside the sliding glass door of the shower and reached inside to start their shower. It might have just been leftover endorphins from the competition but as Max surveyed his naked lover, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of power and possession.

Josh wasn’t weak by any means. His partner was strong and Max loved his long, lean body but at that moment, he wanted to toss his lover onto the nearest flat surface and claim every inch on that long, smooth body.

As Josh turned back to him he smiled and popped the button on his jeans and let them pool around his feet. Before he could remove his boxer briefs Josh moved up to him, wrapped his arms around him, and buried his face against his neck.

Max had never thought of him and Josh in a dom and sub kind of way. He liked to feel his lovers cock inside of him as much as he liked to top Josh but as Josh stood there holding him, ghosting his hands over his body and placing little kisses and licks along his neck he couldn’t help but wonder if Josh hadn’t picked up on the way he was feeling.

“I want you tonight.” Max quietly in Josh’s ear.

Josh kissed his neck before nuzzling against his jaw then straightened up and pushed his boxer briefs off and pulled him into the shower. He indulged his new fantasy by letting Josh wash him. At some point his lover and gotten some new body wash, something that smelled heady and earthy and a little pheromone at the same time.

They had showered together and washed each other a dozen times but that didn’t stop him from enjoying the feel of Josh rubbing the soap into his skin and feeling those long fingers massage his scalp. As he washed and rinsed his hair, it was enough to make him go weak in the knees.

Neither of them had gone soft and as Max turned to pull Josh close to him, their hard cocks rubbed together, making Josh shiver.

“Now it’s your turn beautiful.” Max whispered before leaning forward to lick away a few of the drops of hot water that were pooled on his chest.

“You don’t have to. I took a shower this morning…I’m good.” Josh replied as he bucked carefully against him.

Max nipped at his shoulder again, making him jump before he replied.

“You took care of me, now it’s my turn to take care of you. You’re mine babe. I take care of what’s mine.” Max smiled as he reached for the bottle of gel.

Max used his considerable knowledge of Josh’s body to make his lover writhe in pleasure while at the same time getting every inch of his clean, inside as well as out.

Once they were both sufficiently clean they stayed in the shower a while longer, exchanging slow, deep kisses and enjoying the hotels abundant hot water.

When their slow grind against each other became too heated, Max called a stop; reminding Josh that he had promised him a massage.

Josh smiled at him and once they were out of the shower and dried off he led Max into the bedroom, had him lay face down on the bed after stripping the blanket from the bed and spreading a few towels over it.

Max made himself comfortable and had to suppress a groan as Josh straddled his legs, his long cock nestled comfortably between the cheeks of his ass.

Josh started by rubbing his bare hands over his back, sides and arms; warming his skin.

“Any place that’s particularly sore?” Josh asked him huskily and Max had to smile as he ground his cock against him as he spoke.

“My shoulders, upper arms, and chest. This includes a frontal massage right?” Max asked playfully.

“Of course.” Josh replied with a smirk Max couldn’t see.

“Good.” Max replied as he lifted his hips a bit, pressing against Josh’s cock.

Max settled in as Josh’s slick hands spread the warm massage oil over his skin. The initial warmth seemed to increase as Josh worked up to his shoulders from his tailbone. The heat combined with the feeling of Josh’s hands on him made Max moan and shudder.

“Fuck babe…don’t stop…so good.” Max moaned as Josh worked a particularly rough spot on his shoulder.

“I gotta stop babe if you want me to work on your chest.” Josh said quietly as he moved up on his knees.

Max rolled over onto his back and before Josh could finish his work he grabbed him by the hips and pulled him down so their cocks would rub together.

“My chest can wait, I need you.” Max replied as he reached up and pulled Josh down to meet his lips.

With one of the displays of strength that Max knew his lover was so fond of, he sat up and wrapped Josh’s legs around his waist. With an effort, he moved onto his knees and with Josh in tow, he crawled over to the headboard of the bed and pressed Josh up against it.

Josh tore his lips away from Max to moan loudly, partly at the feeling of his cock sliding against Max’s abdomen and partly at the strength and control Max exerted.

“What’s more of a turn on,” Max breathed against Josh’s neck, making goose flesh appear, “knowing how strong I am or knowing that every ounce of it belongs to you?”

“Me?” Josh whispered.

“You,” Max confirmed between kisses on Josh’s neck and shoulders, “Everything I am is yours babe, my body included.”

Josh forced his eyes open, not remembering closing them, to stare down at Max. Josh had known from their first “official” night together that Max loved him; even during their short separation he never really questioned that fact.
As Max stopped his loving assault on his neck and throat though, and looked up to meet his eyes, the level of devotion that Max held for him was so tangible that it actually made his breath catch in his chest.

Josh leaned in and caught Max in a kiss that left them both breathless when it broke.

“Knowing you’re mine, that you belong to me as much as I belong to you is the best.” Josh whispered as he nuzzled against Max’s jaw.

Max placed another kiss on the little patch of skin behind Josh’s ear that always made Josh shiver.

Without another word, Max crawled backward and lay Josh down on the thick pillows. He took Josh’s hands and put them on the pillow above his head, a little squeeze to his wrists told Josh to keep them there.

Moving back onto his knees Max smiled down at Josh stretched out before him. He’d wondered a dozen times how someone as beautiful as Josh could ever feel self-conscious. True, his lover was tall and gangly but he had a beautiful heart and body.

His arms were long and strong with perfectly defined muscles. His torso was a perfect V with chiseled muscle and the long legs that were currently wrapped around him were just as perfect as the rest of him.

Making sure that his stiff cock rubbed against Josh’s longer and thinner one, Max leaned down again, brushed his lips against Josh’s, more of a whisper than a kiss, before moving down to properly kiss his chin then his jaw and down his neck.

Max continued his journey down Josh’s body at a torturously slow pace, making sure that he exploited every erogenous and sensitive spot that his lover had. Josh whimpered and bit his lower lip in an attempt to hold back a moan when he flattened his tongue against one of his nipples, caressing the soft flesh until it was hard and sensitive.

“Don’t do that,” Max ordered quietly before biting down ever so gently on the stiff nipple, making Josh gasp in surprise, “I want to hear every whimper and moan.” Max finished before applying his tongue to the stinging flesh.

Josh nodded absently in consent as his hands gripped the pillow under his head tightly in attempt to gain some sort control.

Max smiled at his lovers reactions and decided to mimic some of Josh’s behavior from earlier. He let the tip of his nose and his lips skim across Josh’s skin until he reached the smooth plain of Josh’s underarm. The heady after scent of their soap from earlier mingled with Josh’s own spicy masculine scent made Max light headed, and he loved it.
He leaned on one arm while he nuzzled into the smooth flesh, kissing and tasting and ran the other over Josh’s body, tweaking his nipples and grazing over his hard cock with his finger tips.

Josh bucked into his touch with a needy groan.

“Please, Max…need you, want you so bad. Please, babe.” He whimpered and Max couldn’t deny the spike of power he felt at the slight begging tone.

With one last swipe of his tongue that went all the way up to his elbow, Max pulled away and reached over to pluck the lube out of the night table he had hidden there earlier.

Max straightened up again and moved back just far enough that he could reach his lover’s entrance without having to remove Josh’s legs from the snug fit around his waist. Max couldn’t help but want to tease Josh a little more so instead of going straight for his target he massaged Josh’s perineum.

Josh bucked again, trying to get Max’s fingers where he wanted them but Max put one of his own hands on his taut stomach to keep him still as he continued to massage. Josh groaned again, this time it was mingled with frustration and Max relented. Removing the hand from his stomach he slid it down to gently stroke Josh’s long, pale cock loosely as he slid his lube coated finger lower, delving into the warm crease of Josh’s ass till his finger tips were pressed against the tight pucker of skin.

Josh whimpered lightly as he pressed inside and Max felt a small surge of guilt for having made Josh wait so long for the pleasure he had obviously been craving. Silently Max vowed to rectify that. He added more lube as he slipped a third finger inside the tight heat of his lover. The addition caused Josh to thrust back onto his fingers and Max decided that he was ready.

Max eased his fingers out, slicked his cock liberally before setting himself at Josh’s entrance, and pushed carefully inside. Max bit his lip to keep from groaning out loud but quickly stopped when Josh reached up and pulled him down to kiss him.

“I want to hear you too.” Josh whispered as he pulled away, clenching himself around Max and making him groan again.

Max couldn’t form a reply; he rested his forehead against Josh’s as he continued to press slowly inside his lover. Josh, though, was impatient after Max’s teasing and thrust himself down, forcing the rest of Max’s cock inside him and making them both yelp.

“Im…Impatient?” Max stuttered as he eased out slowly before thrusting back in.

“You’re a tease.” Josh replied breathlessly.

Max chuckled but angled his hips just so, Josh caught what he was doing and shifted himself just right so that each time Max thrust back in he tagged Josh’s prostate.

“This what you wanted babe, me inside you?” Max asked quietly as he picked up the pace.

Josh didn’t answer, his hands, which were still gripping the pillow, moved to the back to Max’s head and pulled him down so their lips could meet. Josh refused to let him pull away but the way he was feeling, Max could die a happy man if he ended up suffocating.

It didn’t take much longer for them to push each other over the edge. Max’s thrusts became harder and faster and Josh was lifting his hips to meet Max’s motions. Max slid his hand between them and let the precum Josh was leaking pool in his hand as he yanked his lips away from Josh’s; he buried his face against his lover’s neck and gasped for air as he wrapped his slick hand around Josh’s scalding cock.

“This is what I wanted,” Josh whispered in his ear, “Feeling you inside me, claiming me; making me yours. Your scent around me, your lips and your hands on my skin; you’re so strong and powerful that it’s so fucking hot when you take control.” Josh’s words were too much, muffling the near scream in Josh’s shoulder, his hand moving like lightening around Josh’s cock to bring him with him; Max thrust deeply inside his lover and exploded.

Blinding white light exploded behind his eye lids and Max fought to stay coherent as he emptied himself inside Josh. The scalding heat and the shudders that wracked the lithe body below him told him that he had brought Josh off with him.

Not wanting to slip from the welcoming heat of his lover’s body just yet, Max carefully rolled them onto their sides and pulled Josh close to him. He licked the hand he jerked Josh off with clean before letting it wander over his body.

He nuzzled under Josh’s chin as his hands wandered on their own accord over Josh’s body.

“Who would think that the big bad Max Calvin, the guy who can bench three hundred pounds, would be such a cuddler.” Josh chided playfully as he held Max close.

Max gathered a little of the skin off Josh’s shoulder between his teeth and tugged at it in retaliation before soothing the sensitive flesh with his tongue before replying.

“Being close to you like this is one of the best things in my life. Let’em think whatever they want, I don’t care. I could stay just like this for the rest of my life and be happy.” Max murmured against Josh’s Adams apple.

Josh smiled and decided not to make any more jokes; he felt the same way after all.

“I’m sorry that I teased you so much,” Max said as he looked up at him, “I dunno why but I was feeling all hopped up on adrenaline and endorphins and got a little controlling.”

Josh saw the legitimate worry on Max’s face and leaned down and brought their lips together for a deep kiss before pulling away to smile at him.

“Between you and me, babe…I kinda like it when you get possessive and dominant like that. I may have complained a bit but it was mind blowing.” Josh replied in a whisper as his cheeks lit up.

Max smiled in return and nuzzled against Josh’s throat, letting the scent of sweat and smell of his lover wash over him.

“It’s a good thing your mom got us our own room. To be honest, I don’t think we could have avoided this…watching you strut around and pump your muscles kinda got me hot under the collar.” Josh mumbled against the top of his head.

Max kissed his throat and murmured in agreement.

They both knew that they should get up and clean up again but neither of them wanted too move, the intimacy and the connection they felt at the moment felt too good for either of them to want to give up.

                                                           *          *          *

Tom sat alone in the corner of the room by the fireplace as the party went on around him. It wasn’t much of a party, just him and six of the other teammates and their girlfriends. Max and Josh hadn’t arrived yet but Tom had no doubt that they would be there soon.

He wasn’t even sure why he was there in the first place. Alverez had invited the entire team, told them that it was mandatory, but Tom seriously doubted that anyone would have cared if he hadn’t shown up.

Despite how he felt though, Tom had done his best to get involved in the conversations that went on around him. He’d managed to get in a word every now and then but each situation seemed to end the same, the conversation going on around him while he stood to the wayside feeling awkward.

After a few too many of these freeze out moments, Tom isolated himself. It didn’t feel so bad at first but after a little while, he noticed that people seemed to be sending curious looks and rude glares in his direction. Just as he was about to say screw it and leave he saw Max and Josh walk in.

He had no delusions that the two of them being there would somehow elevate his standing with the rest of the team but he felt it might cause an issue if he left now.

So, with a frustrated sigh he sat back against the brick wall and tried to swallow past his angst and frustration.

                                                           *          *          *

Max covered his laugh with a cough as Josh blushed furiously. A few of the guy’s girlfriends, as well as one or two of the guys who looked like they were trying not to listen, were playfully beseeching Josh for details on his and Max’s love life.

They didn’t really want to know (at least the girls didn’t, the guys who were trying to look like they weren’t paying attention he wasn’t sure about) they just knew how shy Josh was and thought he was adorable when he blushed.

Max saw that he was stuttering and he figured he should probably intervene but he was having too much fun.

“Dude you are cruel.” Alverez said to him as he handed him a drink.

Max took the soda from him and quirked an eyebrow at him.

“I’m not cruel, it’s character building.” Max replied, doing his best to keep a straight face.

“You’ll think it’s character building when he denies you access to that tight ass of his.” Max almost choked on his diet coke at Alverez’s statement.

“Stare all you want bud, I’m secure. Beside I’ve seen him in the locker room; you’d have to be blind not to be able to appreciate that boys’ assets.” Alverez told him with a straight face.

“Do I need to be watching you Al?” Max asked carefully.

Alverez smiled and slapped Max on the back before answering.

“No bro, you don’t need to watch me. I’m straight but that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate a good-looking man. One person you need to be watching though is Tom.” Alverez replied quietly.

Max didn’t want to talk about Tom when he was supposed to be celebrating with his team mates but he had been hearing things himself lately that were worrying him.

“What have you been hearing?” Max asked as he cast a glance over at the corner where Tom was sitting before moving his eyes over to Josh, who was smiling and laughing with a few members of the team and several of their girlfriends.

Max listened closely to everything that Alverez told him. His confrontation with Tucker he had heard about from Tucker himself. Even though Tucker had seemed adamant that Tom was picking on the new guy, Max couldn’t help but feel that there was something off about his story; he couldn’t place it exactly but he knew that Tucker wasn’t telling him everything that had happened.

A lot of what Alverez said to him he shrugged off as the usual school rumor but when he got to Mark, Max felt a thrill of anger.

“Word is that he’s targeting your cousin man. Nothing detailed or anything but word’s gotten around that he’s warned off all the other pricks in the school; even Robinson.” Alverez said quietly.

Max couldn’t deny that he had heard the same thing himself; what’s more, he had seen proof of it. No one was safe from a little hazing, not even him or Frank, both of whom were well known as being able to take care of themselves in a fight.

Mark though…it was like there was a big protective bubble around him. Other than his first altercation with Robinson, which Josh had to hold Max back from going to kill the guy when he found out about it, no one had said or done a single mean thing to Mark.

“Yea I’ve heard something similar. Thing is though, it seems to be true.” Max replied worriedly.

“What seems to be true?” Josh asked, surprising Max as he slid an arm around him.

“The stuff we’ve been hearing about Mark and Tom.” Max replied before telling Josh what Alverez said and what he had witnessed himself.

“What are you going to do?” Josh asked as he pulled Max to sit down on the couch nearby.

“Nothing yet. I guess I just have to keep an eye on things.” Max replied uncertainly as he leaned back onto Josh’s shoulder.

Josh moved his arm, wrapped it around his chest, and pulled him tight to his side, making Alverez smile at them as he sat down across from them.

“Awww, don’t you two make a sweet couple. I might need to get a cavity filled after watching this little scene.” Alverez said with a smile, and then laughed when Josh flipped him the bird.

                                                           *          *          *

Seeing Max and Josh cuddled up together was the last straw for his tenuous control. Even though he knew it he refused to admit it he knew what he was feeling was jealousy. He didn’t just want a partner like the two of them had; he also wanted the acceptance the two seemed to automatically gain from everyone around them.

He knew he had to get out of the house before he accidentally caused a scene but he didn’t want to walk past the happy couple to get out the door so he decided to go out through the kitchen.

Tom hadn’t realized that so many people would have congregated in the kitchen, if he had he would have been more careful when he pushed open the door so he wouldn’t have knocked into the girl that was standing behind it.

“What’s the big idea, asshole?” She all but screeched, the step back that Tom took was more from the reek of vodka on her breath than because of anything else.

Before Tom could say or do anything three of the guys from the team and two of the other girls swarmed around him. Tom knew better to try an explain, it hadn’t worked any other time he had tried it so he muttered an apology and left, deciding it would just be easier to get past the happy couple getting fawned over in living room.

Tom hoped to get out of the house without any more issues but before he had even moved a half a dozen paces across the living room, Alverez called out to him.

“Where you going Tom, the night is young and the party just started.”

Tom bit his tongue to keep from smarting off; instead, he turned toward him and hinged on a small smile.

“Got places to go Alvy, things to do and people to see. You know how it is.” Tom replied and Alverez smiled and nodded to him and Tom thought he might actually get out unscathed.

“Off to pick on someone half his size again is more like it.” One of the guy’s muttered just loud enough for the whole room to hear.

Tom felt shame and anger bubble in his gut but he refused to acknowledge that he had heard the comment.

“You might check out your kitchen Alverez, someone snuck some booze into your party.” Tom replied instead, his face was starting to hurt from the strain of his smile.

Alverez’s face paled before he got up and hustled into the kitchen. Tom took advantage of the distraction caused by the sudden shouts to beat a hasty retreat. He managed to make it to his car before Max caught up to him.

“I got nothing to say to you Max.” Tom said as he pulled his keys out of his pocket and hit the unlock button.

“Too bad because I got stuff to say to you. You don’t have to talk, but you are going to listen to me.” Max replied and Tom rolled his eyes but stopped nonetheless to hear what he had to say.

“Make it fast.” He said as he leaned back against his car.

“All I know is what I’ve been hearing so I want to know what’s up with you and targeting my cousin. He hasn’t done anything to you.” Max said and Tom’s gut clenched. He knew this would happen sooner or later.

“Plug into the rumor mill Max. It’ll tell you everything you need to know. Seems that’s where everyone gets their info from. After all, a bunch of gossipy teenagers can’t be wrong.” Tom replied, neither confirming or denying what Max was wanting to know. He didn’t want to get into a fight with Max right now or ever again if he could help it.

“Look, I thought maybe you had changed, that maybe after everything stuff might be different; that you might be different. I guess I was wrong but whatever issue you have with me you can settle with me and leave my cousin out of it.” Max’s voice turned menacing as he spoke and Tom had to swallow hard.

“Yea Maxxie, you don’t know me, not now or ever. Do yourself a favor and don’t concern yourself with what I do anymore.” Tom said as he stood up straight and turned to get into his car.

Before Tom could even open his door though, he was spun around and pressed up against his car. Max’s hand was grasping his shirt collar and Max looked pissed.

“Look, you overgrown asshole. I really, really did hope that you were different, that all the shit I’d been hearing was crap. Personally, I don’t really give a damn if you want to be a closet case prick all your life but when it comes to you threatening me and my family I’ll concern myself with whatever in the fuck I feel like. You stay away from my cousin or you’ll deal with me. Is that clear?” Tom hadn’t seen Max this pissed off at him in a long time and he had to admit he was a little worried.

“Crystal, now get the fuck off me and go back to your party.” Tom growled to cover his nerves.

Max stepped away and started walking back to the house as Tom got into his car. Just before he shut his door though, Max turned back and spoke quietly to him.

“It could have been your party too Tom.”

Tom swallowed past the lump in his throat Max’s words had caused. Without a word he turned his car on spun out of the driveway and tore down the street.

*****************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

I want to thank Rush for her work in editing, without her I would be no where. As always, I love to get your thoughts and opinions so feel free to email me at allenarcane88@yahoo.com, drop me a PM, write me a review or visit the discussion forum.
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