Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 15:09:57 EDT
From: RitchChristopher@cs.com
Subject: briarwood:new-heaven-new-earth-101

All rights reserved. Copyright held by the author. If you are underage or
are offended by gay fiction, containing graphic sex and explicit language,
please exit now.

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                                    "BRIARWOOD"
                              Copyright Ritchris, 2006

                                  A dramatic saga

                                        by

			         Ritch Christopher


                                    <><><><><>


		   	             BOOK NINE


                          "A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH"


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

			      Chapter One-hundred-one

<><><><><><><><><><><>

***AUTHOR'S NOTE: Usually, I put a song or poem at the beginning of each
chapter. The one to accompany chapter 101 will appear later at Hunter's
audition. R.C.

<><><><><><><><><>


	On the way to Rob and Tim's apartment, Roger decided it was best if
Cliff talked with Billy about Chuck's suicide. Cliff would have better
answers for their son, especially after Rob had phoned them at the Waldorf,
saying that Billy couldn't understand why God would let Chuck take his own
life.

	"Roger, whatever you say, please don't blame Rob or Tim for letting
Billy find out about Chuck. It was purely accidental. Both of them thought
that Billy and Marc were either asleep or engaged in some adolescent
activities in Marc's room. Billy just happened to get up and opened the
door just as Rob and Tim were discussing Chuck," Cliff said.

	"Cliff, I won't blame anyone. If Billy is upset, I'm partially at
fault as I should have talked to Billy man-to-man and told him about Chuck
before we flew up here to New York."

	"Billy is fifteen. His parents' deaths were a great dynamic break
in his psyche. Most kids his age who had shot their parents would've been
traumatized for life. Billy is a mature fifteen, even though we don't give
him enough credit for being so. From what you and I suspected last night,
it's certain that Billy is having adult sex with Marc and perhaps it would
be better if we started visualizing Billy as a young adult rather than as a
maturing teenager," Cliff said, just as the limo arrived at Rob and Tim's.

	"Sweetheart, you're the young priest with the wisdom of a learned
sage. You always seem to know the correct thing to say in any given
situation. I promise I'll leave it all up to you."

	"Thanks...I think!" Cliff replied with a faux snarling look on his
face.

	Rob and Tim met Cliff and Roger at the door.

	"Where is Billy?" Cliff asked.

	"We tried to get him to go back into Marc's room and be with him,
but Billy wanted to be alone. He's in OUR bedroom, sitting in a chair
beside the window overlooking West 75th Street. He hasn't moved since he
went in there," Rob explained.

	"I'll go talk to him while you three sit and discuss the auditions
you heard today. Roger has a hundred questions. I, all but had to tie him
to the Statue of Liberty to keep him from going to watch the auditions,"
Cliff added.

	"That's not so, Cliff Cole! You didn't have to tie me to the Statue
of Liberty, but I DO think you slipped a ruffie of something in my coffee
this morning. I was sleepy all day while you and the boys were
sightseeing," Roger growled in a kidding manner. "I was just MORE than
curious if you guys found some young man to play Sammy."

	"You'd really like us to cast Hunter, wouldn't you, Roger?" Tim
asked.

	"Well, I..." Roger started to say, but Cliff stopped him by raising
his vocal volume to a level higher than Roger's.

	"ROGER! You promised that you wouldn't interfere with the casting!"
Cliff warned him.

	"I don't even get to vocalize my opinion?" Roger asked Cliff.

	"ABSOLUTELY, NOT! You promised!"

	"Rob? Tim? See how miserable Cliff makes life for me?"

	"Only when you...as you put it, VOCALIZE your opinions!" Cliff
retorted, as he left the living room to go into the bedroom to see Billy.

	Just as Rob and Tim described, Billy was sitting in the dark,
looking out the window at the street. He was no longer crying, but rather,
giving the appearance of being in a daze.

	"Hey, big guy!" Cliff said to Billy when he entered. Billy showed
no response to Cliff's entrance or greeting. His gaze remained the
same. "What do you see out the window?"

	Billy spoke, "I was looking at that tree..."

	"What tree?"

	"The only one I can see down the street. It's right outside the
entrance to Uncle Rob and Uncle Tim's place," Billy said, in a slight
expressionless monotone.

	Cliff squatted on his knees, beside Billy, and looked out the
window. "Oh, THAT tree."

	"It's not very big. It's about twelve feet tall and it's lost
nearly half its leaves in the fall chill."

	"It must be a brave little fellow, growing up on a big busy New
York street all by itself."

	"It looks lonely, Daddy Cliff. I hope it doesn't die when it loses
the rest of its leaves."

	"Oh, I don't think it will. It's probably been through three or
four New York winters and it came back when Spring rolled around with all
brand-new leaves."

	"You don't think it'll die when it snows?"

	"Do you remember one of Daddy Roger's favorite CD's with the song
"September in the Rain?"

	"Maybe."

	"You see, Billy, God has a plan for everything...even lonely little
trees. It usually rains a lot in New York in September. That's when the
little tree drinks lots and lots of water and makes sap and stores it in
his trunk and branches...you know, like our bodies need blood and other
organic liquids which keep us alive even when we get sick or have bad colds
or the flu. Then about the third week of March or the beginning of Spring,
the sap starts rising to the ends of the branches and produces spring
blossoms and brand new leaves which grow and makes the tree taller and more
beautiful until the next autumn. Our trees in Briarwood do the same
thing...EVERY ONE of them!"

	"Daddy Cliff?" Billy said, turning to look Cliff straight into his
eyes. "Why didn't you or Daddy Roger tell me about Chuck?"

	Cliff sighed and prayed a short prayer that he would find the
'right' words to say to his son.

	"You remember how we told you that we'd take you on a trip of your
choice?"

	"Yes."

	"Well, Chuck died the morning we left to come here. We knew how
excited you were and we both thought if we told you about Chuck, you
wouldn't enjoy ANY of your visit."

	"Why did Chuck do it? Why did God LET him do it?"

	"I think you were sitting in the church when I read about, 'We are
appointed to die once...'. That means all of us even though the Bible did
say that a man's life should last three score and ten or seventy years
old."

	"But Chuck was a teenager. He had many years to go before he
reached seventy!"

	"You've been to Daddy Cole's Institute. You know that sometimes
babies are born dead. Neither of your parents lived close to being
seventy."

	"But that was MY fault. I killed them!"

	"NO, Billy, that was when they were supposed to die. Lee's brother,
Jake, whom you saw pass away was your age."

	"So God punished Chuck for killing Jake? Why wasn't 'I' punished
when I killed my parents...or is that coming still? Is God gonna punish me
the same way?"

	"No, Billy, NO! What I'm saying is that some day, we ALL will die,
but no one can say HOW we will die. It could be from an illness, a plane
crash, a car wreck, a house fire, and we do everything in our power to
treat illnesses, check airplanes before they take off, drive carefully,
examine our houses for fires so that they won't happen. Only those who
decide to kill themselves take the power away from God and the way he
perhaps, planned for us to die."

	"Chuck cheated God's plan?"

	"If Chuck hadn't killed himself...who knows? He might have lived to
be seventy. The psychiatrists at the Institute would probably tell you that
ANYONE who takes his life is suffering from some kind of depression or
mental illness and someone who is mentally distraught, often has no idea of
what he's doing when he commits suicide. Chuck was sick and no one, not
even his father, who is a minister, could recognize it. It would take
someone mentally ill to throw acid at you and at Jake. Chuck wasn't
conscious of most of his actions. I don't think he meant to kill you OR
Jake. It was just a devilish prank for which Chuck couldn't see the final
consequence. If he had wanted to kill either you or Jake on purpose, he
could have run you over in his car or used a gun to shoot you."

	"But..."

	"I believe that when Chuck realized what he had done, he felt
remorse for his guilt and used his own death as an escape from
reality. When he saw you, he could see the love in your heart and it made
him see how wrong he was and didn't wish to see another day. You remember
when Judas got thirty pieces of silver for betraying Jesus? To let the
guards know who Jesus was, Judas kissed Jesus on the cheek. He HAD his
thirty silver pieces, but reality hit him when he saw what he had done and
that very night, Judas hanged himself from a tree."

	"But, Daddy Cliff! There's MUST have been SOMETHING I could've said
to Chuck to let him know that I didn't blame him for throwing the acid!"

	"You did, Billy! You even forgave him. It was at that moment that
Chuck knew what a wonderful little...or I should say, BIG guy that you
are. Your Daddy Roger and I fell in love with you at first sight. God
didn't want you to leave us and I can't explain why Jake had to die in your
place...except I DO know that when God lets you survive a tragedy, it's
because he has bigger plans for you and you WON'T die until you've finished
the tasks he expects you to accomplish for Him."

	"You think God wants me to be a priest?"

	"I don't know, Billy...a priest, a doctor, heck, even a fireman!
Maybe you're supposed to grow up, become a fireman, and save a huge
orphanage that's blazing and help hundreds of children escape. We'll just
have to wait and see what God has in store for your life. BUT, I DO know
that your life and everyone's lives serves a purpose and we won't die or
leave this world until we achieve it!"

	"What was Chuck's purpose for dying?"

	"Maybe God took him to shape YOUR life or his DAD's life. Perhaps
that was Chuck's purpose to change the lives around him and everyone who
knew him."

	"I...I think I can see what you're talking about, Daddy Cliff."

	"I don't have to remind you that you are the heir to Daddy Roger's
big fortune. When and if you inherit that, think of the thousands of ways
you can use the money to help other people, just as your Daddy Roger does
daily. Do you think THAT might be a plan?"

	"I'm gonna get millions of dollars?"

	"MUCH MORE, Billy! You could even start planning your life now with
the ways you could spend part of it...Hospitals! Shelters! Food banks!
Churches! Medical Research! All the things Daddy Roger is doing now!"

	Billy's eyes lit up as his mind started to imagine wondrous things.

	"BUT, if I'm bad! I might not live long enough to do those things!"

	"Billy, you won't EVER be bad!"

	"What if I told you that I've been bad already?"

	"Well, you could tell me about it now or wait until confession time
next Thursday."

	"Gosh darn it! Do I HAVE to tell you?"

	"As your father and as your priest, I'm afraid so. That way I can
tell you what to do to admonish whatever you've done."

	"Do I HAVE to look at you if I tell you?"

	"No. No one sees me in the confessional booth. You know that's why
we have the separations in the confessional. I'll turn my back if you want
to tell me now."

	"Please do!"

	"All right."

	Cliff got out of his squatting position and sat on the floor facing
in the opposite direction of his son.

	Nervously, but with slow deliberation, Billy began, "Bless me,
Daddy Cliff, for I've kinda sinned..."

	"And what sin do you accuse yourself of?"

	"You know, Marc...Marc Carlton?"

	"Yes?"

	"Well, Marc and I have been sucking each other's dicks for the past
two nights."

	Cliff had to compose himself to keep from laughing.

	"Oh? Is that all?"

	"No, we've been kissing each other and...and...he...Marc...and
I...put our dicks up each other's buttholes."

	"Did you feel guilty while you were doing it?"

	"HECK NO! It was fun!" Billy blurted out and then dropped his voice
and asked, "Was...am I...was I...supposed to feel guilty about doing it?"

	"Before I answer that, do you have any other sins you wish to
confess?"

	"I don't think so...aren't they enough?"

	"You didn't drink alcohol?"

	"Gosh, NO. It tastes terrible...except the wine that Uncle Jay
serves with dinner."

	"How about drugs? Did you do any illegal drugs?"

	"DADDY CLIFF! You know I'd never do drugs! Why are you even asking
me that?"

	"No stealing, no taking the Lord's name in vain, no wishing that
you had something that someone else owns?"

	"No, none of the ten commandments! But there's no commandment about
sucking dicks!"

	"No, Billy, there isn't!"

	"So, if I didn't break a commandment, what kind of sin did I
commit?"

	"You're the one who accused yourself! What kind of sin do YOU think
you committed."

	"I'm not sure. I've wondered what you and Daddy Roger did when the
two of you go to bed. I even listened with my ear to your bedroom door one
night."

	"You did?"

	"...yes."

	"...and what did you hear?"

	"I couldn't tell which one of you was saying it, but I kept
hearing, 'Baby, baby, baby, DON'T STOP!"

	"Look out! You might have just confessed to a sin without knowing
it!"

	"It's a sin to eavesdrop?"

	"If you're eavesdropping your father's bedroom...it MIGHT not be a
sin in the biblical sense, but it will surely get you into a whole lot of
trouble...ESPECIALLY if your Daddy Roger finds out!"

	"You won't tell him, will you?"

	"No, I'm sealed by the promise of the confession. I can't tell him
a word about it!"

	"Whew! That's a relief!"

	"That's not to say that 'I' won't punish you!"

	"Uh oh! This calls for a killer-diller penance, doesn't it?"

	"Not from your priest, but your killer-diller Daddy Cliff!"

	"What about the other things with Marc?"

	"Billy, as long as you both consented to safe sex, I don't consider
any of that as sins. You DID use condoms, didn't you?"

	"ALWAYS! I might be young and naive, but I'm NOT stupid. You taught
me to ALWAYS use a condom."

	"In that case, we'll overlook those so-called sins."

	"What about eavesdropping?"

	"I won't punish you now because I'd have to tell your
'overly-curious' Daddy Roger why I did it...BUT if you ever do it
again. I'll ground you from eating Uncle Jay's dinners and take away your
allowance for a month!"

	"That's all?"

	"That's all...except I WOULD like a hug from you!"

	"All you have to do is to turn around..."

	Cliff got to his feet and turned around. Billy grabbed Cliff,
hugged him, and kissed him on the lips.

	"Thanks, big guy! I love you!"

	"I love you too, Daddy Cliff. I REALLY DO!"

	"I know it! Now are you ready to go get into the bed with Marc and
'sin' some more?"

	"With your permission?"

	"Of course with MY permission! But stop and give your Daddy Roger,
Uncle Rob and Tim, a big hug and kiss before you go to be with Marc."

	"AW! You're the best, 'FATHER CLIFF'! I love telling you my
confession!"

	Billy ran into the living room, kissed Roger, Rob, and Tim, then
ran into Marc's bedroom and made a dive into Marc's bed.

	"OW!" Marc screamed. "Where have you been?"

	"Getting my dad's permission to do THIS!" Billy said as he swooped
beneath the covers to grab Marc's penis.

<><><><><><><><><><><>

	If it were possible to take a world-wide poll as to whom the
happiest person in the world might be, the following morning, Hunter would
have won hands down when he awoke. For the first and only time in his life,
he knew how it felt to be in love and even better, how if felt to BE
loved. Before he opened his eyes, he stretched his arm across the mattress
where Lee had lain all night long, but Lee wasn't there! This awakened
Hunter up quickly and he sat up in bed, looking around the room.

	"LEE?" Hunter cried out! "LEE!!" He screamed louder. An empty
feeling hit the pit of his stomach, his brow broke out with beads of
perspiration, even his hands were trembling. He reached from the bed to get
his robe which he had left lying on a chair, just as Lee entered the
bedroom door. Lee was wearing a matching robe as Hunter's.

	"Good morning, lover!" Lee announced, cheerfully.

	"Where the fuck have you been? You had me scared out of my wits."

	"I'll show you where I've been," Lee replied, setting a large
serving tray across Hunter's lap. The tray had a glass of water and a dish
covered with a silver top. Lee lifted it to reveal a plateful of various
pills of assorted sizes and colors. "Look at all of them and take a quick
inventory to make sure I didn't forget any."

	"God! I never saw all my medication heaped into one pile on a
plate. I usually take what I need from each medicine bottle...but DAMN!
Seeing them all spread out, I sure take a lot of 'em."

	"I think I took as many when I was sick. BUT, I told you I was
going to act as your nurse from now on. So swallow them quickly because I
have breakfast waiting for us in the kitchen!"

	"You cooked breakfast?"

	"Sure as shootin'!" Lee said with a heavy Texan drawl.

	"That's another first for me. I can't remember my mother ever
having breakfast ready when I woke up."

	"You better get used to it...if you're serious about loving me."

	"I have no doubt about loving you, Lee. I didn't know what love was
until last night and now I'm 'caught'...hook, line, and sinker!"

	"Come on, take your pills?"

	"Yes, dear," Hunter replied with a smirky grin.

	Lee stood closely by the bed as Hunter swallowed every pill on the
plate.

	"Good boy! That ought to get you through your audition with no
trouble at all or any worry about fainting."

	"Jesus! After what we did in bed last night, I'd forgotten all
about the audition!"

	"That's great. At least it didn't disturb your sleep."

	"Can I ask you a little secret?"

	"From now on, there are NO secrets between us! So what do you want
to know?"

	"I was wondering if you were naked under that robe?"

	"Hunter, sweetheart, you don't have to ask. If you want to see for
yourself, that's up to you.!"

	Hunter placed the tray on the other side of the bed, put his feet
on the ground and pulled at Lee's robe tie. He then parted the robe to see
Lee's body. Lee was stark naked under the robe with a semi-erection.

	"You didn't happen to cook bacon for breakfast, did you?"

	"Yes, as a matter of fact, I did."

	"Then cancel that order. I want sausage instead!"

	With that remark he quickly knelt on his knees and plunged Lee's
penis inside his mouth. Lee gasped and felt weak in the knees.

	"Hey, you'd better let ME sit on the side of the bed or you'll have
ME fainting," Lee said.

	"Wanna join me for a side order of sausage?"

	"Sure, I love homemade sausage with gravy."

	"Lie down, lover," Hunter ordered.

	Lee lay on the bed while Hunter countered him by assuming the
standard sixty-nine position and soon they were both gobbling sausage, to
be followed with a huge serving of homemade gravy.

	Later, they went to the kitchen to reheat the breakfast Lee had
cooked for them. Lee realized that he was just as much in love with Hunter
as Hunter was with him.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><>

	The open call for non-equity singers rivaled the line which
auditioned for Simon Cowell of the "American Idol". It stretched all the
way down West 44th Street, around the corner at Eighth Avenue. Tim, Rob,
and the director, Marvin, had heard over two hundred wannabe's before they
had the stage manager announce that the remaining contestants would only be
allowed to sing eight bars of their audition song.

	Hunter's number was 308 which meant it would be at least another
hour before he got on stage. Lee sat in Jim Downey's Restaurant across the
street to wait until Hunter had finished. Then the two of them would
high-tail it to the Waldorf to have Hunter's blood drawn by the lab
technician Roger had flown up from the Institute in Briarwood. Hunter was
still feeling strong since he had taken ALL his meds that Lee had prepared
for him to take. He showed no signs of being dizzy or feeling faint.

	Finally, Hunter made it inside the stage door of the theater and at
long last, he could hear the voices from the stage with which he would
compete for the role of Sammy. Three-hundred; three-0-one, 0-two,
0-three. Hunter's throat was feeling dry and he began to sweat from nerves
as the numbers counted down closer to his.

	"Three-0-eight!" The stage manager announced.

	Hunter walked across the stage. He couldn't see anyone or anything
past the orchestra pit as the entire theater was dark except for a table in
the middle of the orchestra section which was dimly lit by a desk
lamp. Hunter could only assume that Tim, Rob, the director, and whomever
was sitting there taking notes.

	"Excuse me!" Hunter cried out into the blackened theater.

	"Yes," answered a voice.

	"Could I please have a glass of water?"

	"Yes, there's a pitcher and some cups on top of the piano on stage
beside you!"

	Hunter hadn't even noticed the piano OR the audition pianist, but
he walked quickly toward the piano, poured himself a tall cup of water and
handed a piece of handwritten musical manuscript to the pianist.

	"What are you going to sing for us?" asked another voice.

	"It's a song that I thought Sammy might sing. It's an original that
was written especially for me by a friend who lives in Chattanooga,
Tennessee."

	"What's the name of the song?" the voice asked.

	"Uh...it really doesn't have a name. My friend never got around to
naming it."

	"Very well, then, you can sing the first eight bars or the last
eight bars, then out!"

	"I...I'll sing the first eight bars, if that's OK!"

	"Fine! We're waiting."

	Hunter cleared his throat and nodded to the pianist to play the
intro. Then, Hunter began to sing:

                          "The wind plays with the leaves in the storm.
                           The earth clings to the sun to keep it warm..."

	"That's it! That's the first eight bars!" Hunter said.

	"Wait just a minute, Hunter..."

	Hunter realized that it was Tim's voice talking to him.

	"Yes sir...?"

	"If you don't mind, I'd like to hear ALL of that song if you don't
mind singing it!" Tim said.

	"Oh, no sir! I'd be happy to sing ALL of it for you!"

	Hunter nodded to the pianist again to play the same intro and
Hunter began again.


                            "The wind plays with the leaves in the storm.
                             The earth clings to the sun to keep it warm.
                             And I stand on the crest of a mountain high.
                             My arms touching the sky.

                             For He created the sting of the wind
                             and the chill of a frosted morn
                             and the mountains high, and the yearning cry
                             of a child who's just been born.

                             Though the road of life
                             may be very dark
                             and your burdens hard to bear,
                             just look to the sky
                             through an open cloud
                             and you'll find Him waiting there.

                             When dreams are in vain
                             and the light that guides your way
                             seem to fade like the stars at dawn,
                             let your heart release;
                             let your soul find peace
                             for He will lead you on..."

	Hunter finished the song and there was complete silence in the
theater, in the audience seats where Tim and his cohorts sat, as well as
all the rest of the auditioners behind stage.

	Hunter broke the quiet by asking, "Is that it? Am I through?"

	"Yes, thank you, Hunter, you'll be hearing from us!" Tim replied,
from the dark.

	Hunter left the stage, went out the door and walked to Jim Downey's
to meet Lee. He didn't know how much he had impressed Tim, Rob, or the rest
of the people judging him, but Hunter felt he had done his best. Even if he
didn't get the part of Sammy, he now, had Lee and that was enough happiness
for a lifetime!

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

	Valerie Danforth knocked on Will's door, waking Will and Forrest,
giving them a scare, as they scrambled to reach for their clothes piled on
the floor. Both had the other's socks and their shirts and trousers were
turned inside out as that's the way they had left them before they got into
bed.

	"Shit!" Will said. "It's my mother!"

	"She won't come in, will she?" Forrest asked as he fought to pull
the sleeves of his shirt right-side out.

	"You never know. Remember, I'm her only son and we've never had a
boundary to separate us!"

	"Will?" Valerie called from the other side of his door.

	"Yes, mother?"

	"Can I come in?"

	"Not at the moment, Mother, I...I'm indecent!"

	"Son, I've seen you naked ever since I changed your diapers..."

	"Maybe so, Mother, but Forrest is indecent as well?"

	"OH? Did he arrive?"

	"Yes, Mother. I picked him up at the airport and he was suffering
from jet lag and wanted to go to bed as soon as he got here!"

	"My goodness! I thought it was less than an hour's flight from
Richmond to Briarwood. He got jet lag in that short of time."

	"Yes, uh, Forrest is not used to airplane rides."

	"Is he all right?"

	"Yes, Mother. Forrest and I were just getting dressed to come
downstairs and make some breakfast."

	"Well, you know where everything is in the kitchen. The reason I
knocked...I'm on my way downtown for my Women's Society meeting and won't
be home until after lunch."

	"Are you driving yourself?"

	"Of course, silly. At my age, I'm still a better driver than you,
Will."

	"I won't argue that point, Mother. Just be careful and have a nice
time."

	"Tell Forrest that I'm sorry I wasn't here to fix his breakfast but
I look forward to meeting him and having a nice long chat with him this
afternoon."

	"Mother, we might be gone when you get here. Forrest has to meet
Walter Clayton some time today."

	"Well, at least, we can plan a big dinner for all of us tonight."

	"Yes, Mother. We'll be looking forward to it."

	"Well, goodbye, son."

	"Goodbye, Mother!"

	Valerie went downstairs, got her purse and went to the garage to
get one of her automobiles.

	"WHEW! That was a close one!" Forrest exclaimed, after Valerie had
left.

	"At least we have the house to ourselves all morning!" Will said.

	"Will?"

	"Yes?"

	"...about last night...?"

	"What about it?"

	"We DID get sorta carried away..."

	"You mean with the sex or the lovemaking?"

	"How do you separate the two?"

	"Well, I'm still new at this gay thing, but, when I'm with a girl,
I either have sex with NO kissing or lovemaking with both."

	"So I guess we made love...?"

	"I guess we did, Forrest!"

	"How do you feel about it this morning? Any regrets?"

	"'I' don't have any...What about you?"

	"Actually, no. I'm just wondering what this means?"

	"Neither of us said anything about being in love with one another,
did we?"

	"You know, I'm not really sure. I mean we did get rather passionate
with each other. I can't recall if either of us said anything about
'love'."

	"I can say ONE thing, Forrest. You're terrific in bed!"

	"Ha! You were like the Master Teacher. Half of the things we did,
I've never even done with a woman, much less with Barry."

	"I suppose you've never been fucked in the ass by a woman..."

	"Not recently!"

	"Are you sore?"

	"You mean physically or 'sore' meaning I'm angry?"

	"BOTH!"

	"I'm not angry in the least, but the ring around my anal opening is
a bit tender."

	"Barry never fucked you?"

	"A few times, but compared to you, Barry felt more like an anal
thermometer. You, on the other hand are MUCH bigger cockwise. I felt as if
you were plowing my ass with a large steel crowbar!"

	"Frankly, I don't think I'm any larger than YOU, cockwise."

	"That's nice to hear, whether you mean it or not!"

	"I mean it!"

	"Can I ask a REALLY personal question?"

	"Try me!"

	"Uh, how do I compare, cockwise, to Rick or your priest?"

	"About the same size, I think. That's why you were able to enter me
so easily!"

	"That's ALSO good to hear."

	"SO!"

	"SO?"

	"SO!"

	"SO WHAT?"

	"So, where does that leave us, Forrest?"

	"US?"

	"Yeah, us!"

	"I'm not sure, Will."

	"Let me paint a dark scenario. What if Walter Clayton can't do
anything to help Barry and Barry has to go to jail for a long time?"

	"That's been in my thoughts ever since Barry was arrested."

	"Do you, uh, think there could be anything between us?"

	"Are you asking if I could love you?"

	"For starters..."

	"Probably! But what about your priest?"

	"Chris, that's his name, is a stalwart in the
community. St. Genesius, his church, has a very large denomination. Father
Cliff, the main priest, to use an idiom, is a pillar in Briarwood society,
in spite of being gay. His church and the entire city of Briarwood look up
to him and since he's out of town, Chris has assumed Father Cliff's duties
and is looked up to, almost as Father Cliff. Chris and I have only spent
one night together. Since then, I've wondered if I'm ready to be stared at
as a priest's wife or male companion. No one in Briarwood, except Chris and
my doctor at the Cole Institute knows that I'm gay now. I asked Chris if I
could move in with him until I got over this post-traumatic-stress. But
only after that one night, even my mother became suspicious of Chris and
me. If everyone finds out and starts looking down on me, then they might do
the same thing to Chris and I don't want to hurt his image in the
community. He did have a lover, the chief of staff at the Institute, and I
don't know whether anyone actually knew about them or not since both of
them worked together so closely at the Institute...PLUS the fact that Roger
Cole and Father Cliff are well-respected by everyone and their gay
relationship seems to be accepted by everyone...well, except for the few
evangelical right-wingers on the other side of town."

	"So, you're saying that you're not really in love with Chris?"

	"I thought I COULD be, but being Chris' steady lover adds an
albatross around my neck."

	"I realize that this is stupid and MUCH too soon to ask, but, since
you asked me...Do you think you could ever love me?"

	"If I thought every night from now on would be as satisfying as the
one we had last night, then the answer is 'yes'!"

	"Will, you realize that we have very little in common. I don't even
have a military pension to help me pay my bills."

	"You're worried about money?"

	"NO! I'm more worried about your having so much and I have nothing
much to offer you."

	"You sure had a lot to give me in bed last night!"

	"Let ME paint a dark scenario! Suppose you and I became
lovers. Where would we live? What would your mother say? Would she ever
accept me as your...whatever?"

	"Well, for one thing, she'd never drive me and you out of this
house. My dad left it to me. Mother would just have to accept us as we
are. I'd have to order some books or DVD's on the subject of cocksucking to
get her used to the idea!"

	"You'd do no such thing!"

	"If we were lovers, I would."

	"God! I'd love to see that!"

	"Do you know I...or YOU...didn't give either of us a good morning
kiss?"

	"Won't that just get us started again?"

	"I can hope so! We have all morning to fuck, suck, or do any
goddamned thing we choose to do. SO, come here!"

	Forrest walked slowly to Will and Will embraced him with both arms,
while planting a big kiss on his lips. Both of their lips parted and their
tongues became as epees, dueling like two of the Three Musketeers.

	When the kiss ended, Forrest gasped, "Boy, for two people who are
new at being gay, we're making up for lost time."

	"Come on! Let's go fix some breakfast and then we'll call Walter
Clayton!" Will said.

	The two walked down one side of the circular staircase with their
arms around each other's waists. About every third step, one would peck the
other on the lips for a quick kiss.  Once they got to the kitchen, they,
both, started cracking eggs, frying bacon and sausage, shoving bread down
the toaster, setting the table, making fresh coffee, as if they had been
cooking together for years. Occasionally, as they passed one another,
crossing from one side of the kitchen to the other, Will would smack
Forrest's butt with his open hand, playfully. To pay Will back, Forrest
kept grabbing Will's crotch to give it a slight squeeze.

	Forrest poured two glasses of orange juice and two cups of coffee
while Will piled scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, toast and jelly on two
plates and set them on the table. There wasn't much conversation between
them as they kept staring into the other's eyes across the table. From time
to time, when Will sipped juice, he would wink at Forrest, making Forrest
smile from ear-to-ear. They ate heartily and cleaned everything off the
once-filled plates.

	"GOD! That was the best breakfast I've ever eaten!" Forrest said,
wiping his mouth with a cloth napkin.

	"This could be the first of many..."

	"You know what I'd do if I lived here with you?" Forrest said.

	"WHAT?"

	"I'd dig a moat all around this place to keep the whole world out!"

	"We wouldn't need anyone else?"

	"I wouldn't, if I had you."

	"Do you want me?"

	"At this moment, there's NOTHING I'd rather have than you, Will."

	"Let me ask you something!"

	"What!"

	"Have you ever fucked on a kitchen table?"

	"Well, no..."

	"Wanna?"

	"Here and now?"

	"Let's clear the dishes!"

	They jumped up, picked up as much as they could of the dirty dishes
and set them in the sink. Will took Forrest by the hand and led him to the
table where he began removing Forrest's clothes. Forrest followed Will's
lead and undressed him at the same time. Soon they were both naked and
looking at one another.

	"What?" Forrest asked.

	"Who wants to go first? I gathered last night that neither of us is
a bottom OR a top, which is how I like it!"

	"You want to fuck me first or me fuck you?"

	"Since you're the one with the sore asshole, why don't you fuck me
first?"

	"Don't we need a lubricant?"

	"There's a stick of butter on the table behind you!"

	"Sounds good to me!" Forrest replied picking up the butter. He
teased Will by inserting the entire stick of butter up his rectum and then
rubbed butter on his penis as if he was buttering an ear of boiled
corn. "Lie down, lover!"

	Will lay back on the table and raised his legs for Forrest to enter
him. Forrest slid into Will's anal chute the first try. He went up as far
as he could go.

	"Jesus, that feels great!" Will said. "Take it slow and easy! I
want to enjoy every minute of this."

	"I'm not hurting you?"

	"Hell, no!"

	"All right, buddy! You asked for it and you're gonna get it hot and
heavy!"

	Forrest began to plunge himself into Will and both were enraptured
with physical pleasure. Forrest was on his third stroke when he heard a
slight noise in the foyer and then from the living room.

	"Will?..." It was Kathy's voice! "WILL!" She called louder, heading
toward the kitchen.

	Will heard her, cringed, and looked up at Forrest and said, "Just
keep fucking!"

	"Will, I hate popping in on you like this, but I..." That's as much
as Kathy could say when she saw Will on his back on the kitchen table with
Forrest hovering over him, pounding away at Will's buttocks. "MY GOD IN
HEAVEN! WHAT IS GOING ON?" she screeched.

	Will locked his anal opening to keep Forrest inside him. Forrest
turned beet red and then the color in his face faded, making him white as a
sheet.

	"KATHY!" Will said. "I want you to meet an old army buddy, Forrest!
Forrest, this is my fiancée, Kathy. I think you two should get to know one
another!"

	Kathy screamed and ran out the door. Forrest stood frozen and Will
started laughing.

	"Well, I guess the engagement's off!" Will said. "Now will you
continue what you were doing before we were so rudely interrupted?"


<><><><><><><><><><><><>

	Lee was waiting outside Jim Downey's Restaurant as he saw Hunter
running across Eighth Avenue. An available cab was coming by and Lee
flagged it down and waited for Hunter to hop in the back seat beside
him. The first thing they did was hug and kiss while the driver looked in
his rear-view mirror, rolling his eyes upward.

	"Where to, lovebirds? I can't wait all day. I have to make a
living, you know!" the cab driver snarled.

	"The Waldorf-Astoria, please," Lee replied.

	"Should've guessed!" the driver said, slapping down the metal flag
on the meter.

	"How'd it go?" Lee asked, eagerly.

	"Pretty good. All the other guys only got to sing the last eight
bars and out. I think it was Tim's voice in the dark theater who asked me
to sing my entire song!"

	"You sang the one that the guy in Chattanooga wrote for you?"

	"Yeah. I think it went over well. When I was finished, again, I
think it was Tim who said, he'd be calling me later."

	"That's encouraging."

	"I know. I practically floated all the way here to meet you."

	"You don't know when they might call you?"

	"Nope, 'later' means later. How much later, we'll just have to wait
and see."

	"I saw the line running all the way around the corner of Eighth and
Forty-fourth!"

	"Yeah, there must've been thousands! There usually are at cattle
calls."

	"Are you nervous about having your blood drawn?"

	"No. Why should I be? I've already been diagnosed. I don't think
the blood tests will show anything I didn't know before!"

	"Yes, well, let's see what the Cole Institute tells you. It never
occurred to me how seriously sick I was until I got to the Institute. My
remission and recovery went so smoothly, I still didn't know how bad my
situation was."

	"What'd you eat at Downey's?"

	"Ha! I had my first New York bagel with cream cheese."

	"Didja like it?"

	"The bagel was hard and dry."

	"ALL bagels are hard and dry, you Texas bumpkin!"

	Hunter and Lee chitchatted all the way to the Waldorf. They took
the ride up the elevator to Roger's suite where Roger greeted them at the
door with a big hug.

	Roger wanted to know All about Hunter's audition and Hunter
repeated everything he had said to Lee.

	"LATER?" Roger asked.

	"That's what they said..." Hunter replied.

	"I'll bet, by George, I can find out sooner than 'later', later,
sooner, if I call Tim or Rob!" Roger announced.

	"I realize you probably can, Uncle Roger," Lee offered, "but don't
you think it might hurt Hunter's chances by being too insistent about
finding out?"

	"Not when I'm investing millions just to back the show. I think I
have some right to know!"

	Cliff overheard Roger's comments and added his two cents opinion,
"Roger, you promised not to meddle and that's exactly what you're
doing. You DO remember that John is waiting in the other room to take vials
of Hunter's blood, don't you?"

	"Holy fuck! Where's my mind going? I'm not forty yet and I seem to
be getting 'pre'-PRE early senility. Come on in boys! Hunter, YOU roll up
your sleeve after you take off your jacket!"

	Hunter and Lee followed Roger in to meet John, a very nice-looking
young man, about twenty-five-years old.

	"Hunter, Lee, this is Dr. John Reynolds of my Institute. Please
call him John as I do.  John, these are mine and Cliff's newest Briarwood
Boys!"

	Once again, Hunter's chest filled up with pride with Roger's
introduction. Apparently, Hunter was now, officially, what he so longed to
be...a Briarwood Boy.

	"Please to meet you guys. Which one will I be drawing blood from?"
John asked.

	"Me, I'm afraid," Hunter replied.

	"I hear you've got a little problem with your immune system. Is
that right?" John said.

	"It's more than just a little problem, John. I've had it for a few
years," Hunter replied.

	"Pardon my asking, Hunter, but is Lee your other half?" John
inquired.

	"I don't know, John, why don't we ask him?" Hunter looked directly
at Lee and said, "Are you my other half?"

	"You'd better believe it! From now on and for always!"

	"I guess we both heard the answer, John."

	"How long have you two been together?"

	"Since Monday..."

	"Wow, love surely works fast in New York!" John joked.

	"When you have AIDS or are HIV positive in New York, love HAS to
work fast!"

	"Now this is just gonna prick your arm just a little. I want to
fill up about four of these containers," John said, putting the needle into
Hunter's arm.

	"How long are you staying in New York?" Hunter asked.

	"I'm leaving as soon as I finish drawing your blood."

	"You flew up here, all the way from Briarwood, to do this for me?"

	"When the boss calls and wants you to do something, at the
Institute, we do it immediately."

	Hunter looked at Roger. "You went to all of this trouble and
expense just to have my blood checked?"

	Before Roger could answer, Cliff spoke up, "Hunter, you'd better
get used to this kind of treatment. Once you're a Briarwood Boy, there is
no limit to what Roger will do for you. I don't know how religious you are
or if you go to church regularly, but I'm sure you've heard of your Father
in heaven?"

	"Sure, it's in the Lord's Prayer..."

	"Then, meet your father on earth," Cliff added.

	Roger looked at Cliff and replied, "You know how much I love you,
Cliff...and for how many YEARS, I've loved you, but sometimes you are so
full of bullshit, I think I could fall in love with you all over again."

	Everyone, including John, laughed heartily.

	John finished taking Hunter's blood and put it in a medical packing
case and stored away his implements.

	"Well, I guess I'll be on my way back to Briarwood," John said.

	"Thank you, John!" Hunter said.

	"You were very nice to leave your duties at the Institute to do me
this favor," Roger said.

	"It's just part of my job, sir!"

	"John, might I ask if you have a girlfriend?" Roger asked.

	"Uh, no sir?"

	"A boyfriend, then?"

	"Well, yes sir, I do."

	"That's fine. When you get back to the Institute and drop off
Hunter's blood, why don't you call your boyfriend and see if he can get
away for the weekend?"

	"Sir?"

	Roger handed a sealed envelope to John. "Here are a couple of
tickets for an all-expense-paid trip to the Caribbean. Have a good time on
me!"

	"But, Mr. COLE! I couldn't..."

	"I'm the boss and you'll do exactly as I say. Hell, stay a week or
two!"

	John looked at Cliff to ask, "Is he serious?"

	"As a coronary thrombosis!" Cliff said.

	"Well, thank you, sir!"

	"Thanks for helping one of my boys, John!"

	"Anytime, sir."

	"Oh, John, tell Dr. Andrews in the lab that I want every known
anti-viral HIV drug that we have to be tested on Hunter's blood. We have
conquered so many strains of that goddamned virus, I pray that we have ONE
that will knock the ever-living-holy-shit out of Hunter's!"

	"If we don't have one, Mr. Cole...bet your bottom dollar that we'll
find one."

	"Do you see why I like to hire people with positive attitudes at
the Institute?" Roger asked Cliff. "Because 'I'm' such a positive person,
myself!"

	"Heaven help ALL of us!" Cliff joked while hugging Roger.

	John shook everyone's hand, picked up his gear he had brought with
him from Cole and left.

	"That's a fine young man!" Roger said. "I'm glad he has a
boyfriend! He SHOULD have one!"

	"SO...Dolly, what do you have planned for all of us tonight?" Cliff
asked.

	"Well, we won't hear anything from the lab for a couple of
days...AND, we won't hear about Hunter's audition until 'later'! Why don't
we call up Billy and Marc and see where they would like for all of us to
have dinner...maybe even catch a show. What's playing that you'd like to
see, Hunter?"

	"There's a new dance show at the Barrymore Theatre...all guys! It's
called 'Heelz With Soulz', but I've heard it's sold out for months!"

	"I LOVE a good challenge! How many seats do we need?"

	"Six!" Cliff said.

	"Good!" Roger said as he went into the bedroom to pick up his cell
phone. He was gone about two minutes and came back. "How would six seats on
the sixth row, center, orchestra do?"

	"My GOD!" Hunter exclaimed, excitedly. "How did you get 'em?"

	"Don't even ask!" Cliff said to Hunter, quietly. "Next time, ask
him that you'd like to go to the moon on the Challenger and see what Roger
can do!"

	"I guess Lee and I had better get back to our place and change
clothes if we're going to dinner and a show!"

	"We might have time to shower...if we shower together!" Lee said,
smiling.

	"You two guys make a handsome couple," Cliff said. "I hope you live
together as long and as happy as Roger and I."

	"THEY WILL!" Roger replied with confidence.

	Hunter and Lee donned their jackets to leave for the townhouse when
the hotel phone rang.

	"Hello?" Roger said. "Oh, hi, Rob! How did the auditions go? Oh? I
guess both of you must be worn out to a frazzle. Tell me! Is Tim in ear's
range? Good! On the Q.T., what did he think of Hunter's audition?" Roger
listened to Rob's reply which took over a minute. "Oh, he did, huh?"


<><><><><><><><><><><><>

(To be continued in "Briarwood"...Book
Nine..."A-New-Heaven-And-A-New-Earth", chapter 102.)