Date: Wed, 5 Feb 2003 22:37:12 -0600
From: Rhaven <rhaven2002@hotmail.com>
Subject: Love of Grace Chapter One

This story contains strong language and sexual content between boy/boy and
man/boy.


http://www.rhavensreply.com/home/rhavensreply.com


Love of Grace

By RHAVEN2002


CHAPTER 1

It was a typical boy's room. Horror movie posters covered the walls; action
figures cluttered the bookcase, frozen in mid-attack, posing with
unflinching glory. Large lumps of clothes filled a corner of the room, which
also substituted for the cat's empire. In addition, comic books circled the
bed like a protective wall. The television flickered scenes of some old
black and white horror movie. The glow lit the room, casting dancing shadows
across the walls. The boy in the bed pulled his pillow closer to him,
hugging it as he had once hugged his stuffed toys. He stared daringly at the
TV as the swamp creature emerged from the water. He gasped as the thing
lumbered towards the unsuspecting teens. This was Kat. This was Kat's room
and his life. Kat was a boy with a sunshine disposition and a summer's
smile. He had a perfection that was stuff of dreams and the affection of
artists. Golden blonde hair caressed his face sweetly and curled softly at
the back of his neck. His bangs constantly were being brushed away from his
eyes and tucked neatly behind his ears, with a quick flick of his hand.



Kat was so involved with the movie that he jumped when his best friend
slipped into the room. The boy was dressed just as Kat was, in red silk
boxers; they usually dressed the same. Twins without being twins. Demi was
the same age as Kat, born only one month before him. Demi though was a foot
taller than Kat, which made him, look older. His chocolate brown skin and
broad shoulders making him appear even thinner than he really was.

"Did I miss anything?" Demi asked rushing to the bed. Kat looked at the cans
of coke in Demi's hands and frowned.

"I thought you were going to the bathroom." Kat took the coke Demi handed
him, but was still frowning.

"I did, but I thought we needed something to keep us awake." Demi scooted
close to Kat and popped his coke open. Demi and Kat had been close since
they first met in Kindergarten. They had the same disposition and the same
love for horror movies. They were best friends. Demi joined Kat in hugging
the pillow, as they watched the swamp creature rip into a soldier. They gave
each other a wide-eyed look and giggled.

"I told you this movie was scary." Demi said putting his now empty coke can
on the end table.

"I've seen scarier." Kat said trying to sound brave.

"Yeah, whatever." Demi said smirking. "I don't think so. 'The Creature That
Killed' rocks, total gore and great special effects. You're so full of it
Kat, you can't fool me I know you're scared."

"Oh really." Kat put down his coke and pouted out his lips.

"Yeah, really. I think you're scared shitless!" Demi mocked, puffing out his
bare chest. Kat tried not to smile, but he was unable to control the muscles
of his face.

"You want me to kick your ass?" Kat said in his best angry wrestler's voice,
still trying to look mad, but failed.

"You and what army?" Demi dared. Kat giggled and dived at Demi, trying to
pin his arms. However, Demi threw Kat off easily and pinned him. Demi sat on
Kat's legs. Holding his arms down, Demi leaned down, giving Kat a quick
wicked look, put his lips on Kat's stomach, and blew. Kat squirmed and
laughed at the tickling kiss.

"Stop! I surrender! I surrender!" Kat said through his uncontrollable
laughter. The door flew open and both boys screeched with shock.

"You're going to wake mom!" Calvin said in a loud whisper. "Why are you guys
still awake?"

Calvin was Kat's older brother, though since their father had left 3 years
ago, he had taken on the responsibility of playing 'dad'. Kat loved his
brother, but sometimes his 'dad' role got annoying.

"Sorry." The boys said in unison and separated to opposite sides of the bed.
Calvin looked cautiously down the hallway to his mother's room and quietly
shut the door. He glanced over to the TV and scowled. "I can't believe you
guys are watching this." Calvin flipped off the television. "Good God,
that's stuff is gross." Calvin shuttered as he said this. The boys gave each
of a wink. They knew that Calvin hated horror movies and got sick anytime he
saw one. Calvin walked over to the bed and sat on the edge grabbing Kat's
ankle.

"It's time for you guys to go to bed." He said pulling Kat towards him.

"Would you stay with us if we watched something else?" Demi asked lovingly.
Kat rolled his eyes and his big brother continued to pull him closer. He
knew that Demi had a crush on Calvin, which confused him. Sure Calvin was
all right for a brother, but he was old, 18 years old to be exact. Calvin
pulled Kat up and lifted him as if he was a little baby.

"Thanks Demi, but it's late and I have to get some sleep."

Kat liked it when Calvin mothered him. He looked deep into his brother's
eyes. They looked so much alike it was eerie. Kat could see his future in
Calvin's appearance and that made him happy. Calvin gently laid Kat back on
the bed and tucked the pillow under his head.

"Now I don't want to hear another sound from you guys, okay?" Calvin looked
at the two boys sternly and then smiled. "Sleep tight." He said kissing Kat.

"What about me!" Demi said abruptly, looking abandoned. Calvin snickered and
walked around the bed to the dark skinned boy.  He leaned down and gave Demi
a long kiss. Kat was shocked on exactly how long they kissed, but didn't say
anything.

"Sleep tight." Calvin finally said and running his hand nervously through
his long blonde hair.

"Good night." Both boys said as Calvin left the room, closing the door
quietly behind him.

"Man he kisses nice." Demi said more to himself than to Kat.

"Good night Demi." Kat said giving his friend a quick kiss and rolled over
to his side.

"Good night." Demi sighed, apparently still thinking about Calvin.

The boys would have eagerly said that they weren't sleepy. It was the
competitive side of them, who ever fell asleep first, was the loser.
However, this night there was no contest, the boys slipped into slumber,
dreaming the night away.



      Kat awoke as rays of light painted his room with the morning warmth.
He lifted his head lazily, it was the only part of his body he could move.
Demi was laying across him, his legs tightly wrapped around him.  Kat
giggled as he realized that Demi's hand was down his boxers and clinching
his buttock. This wasn't that odd, normally they awoke twisted together like
this. With great skill, Kat slid out of bed, and stretched out the sleep in
his body. He lumbered to the bathroom, it always took him a while to fully
wake up, which was one of the reasons he hated mornings. He could just lie
in bed all day long. That was his idea of fun, but Demi would awaken and be
in a rush to do something. Demi was always full of energy, from the second
his eyes popped open to that moment before sleep. Kat knew that if it wasn't
for Demi, he would have no life at all. Sometimes he wondered if that was a
good thing or not.

"Morning, Calvin." Kat yawned as he walked into the bathroom. Calvin pulled
back the shower curtain and smiled.

"Good morning to you too, where's Demi?"

"Still sleeping."

"Not anymore." Demi said as he stumbled into the bathroom. "What time is
 it?"

"Almost 9 am." Calvin said stepping out of the shower. "Demi could you hand
me a towel?"

"Sure!" Demi grinned and scooped up a towel for the other boy. "Here you
 go."

Kat watched as his brother took his time in drying himself off. It was all
too apparent that he was enjoying Demi's attention. Kat pushed passed his
brother and pulled off his boxers.

"My turn for the shower."  He stepped in as inhaled hard and the hot water
sprayed over his body. He half listened to his brother chatting with Demi.
Kat was feeling depressed, he wasn't sure if it was the attention Calvin was
giving to Demi or Demi's attraction to Calvin. He loved them both, but didn'
t want to share either. Kat felt like a third wheel, they didn't need him
around. They didn't even notice him taking a shower, not joining in on their
conversation.

"Move over." Demi said stepping into the shower.

"Where's Calvin?" Kat said hoarsely.

"He's gone to his room. Man, is he hot! Wow, I think I'm in love."

Demi grabbed the soap and lathered up his chest.

"I think. I think he likes me too. What do you think Kat?"

Demi looked over to the quiet boy and frowned.

"What's wrong?"

Kat shrugged his shoulders and stepped out of the shower.

"Nothing's wrong." Kat grabbed a towel and walked out of the bathroom. He
didn't listen as Demi called to him. If Calvin and Demi wanted to hang out
together, he wasn't going to stand in their way.

Demi entered Kat's room, he was dripping wet and naked.

"What's your deal? Why you acting so strange?"

Kat lay on his bed; he pulled off his towel and handed it to his friend.

"Come on Kat, talk to me." Demi took the towel and started drying himself
off. "What happened, man?"

"Nothing happened, Demi. I. I just don't feel well." Kat lied. "My stomach
hurts."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Demi sat at the edge of the bed and started to rub Kat's
stomach. "Can I get you something?"

"Geeze, aren't you guys ready yet?" Calvin walked into the room, hands on
his hips and shaking his head.

"Ready for what?" Kat asked sitting up.

"Calvin wants to take us with him to the mall." Demi said still rubbing Kat'
s stomach. "Kat's got a tummy ache."

Kat almost laughed, Demi made it sound like he was a baby. Maybe that was
how he saw him. It made him even angrier and in fact, his stomach was
starting to hurt. They really didn't want him to go along, they didn't want
the 'baby' messing up their good time together.

"You guys go ahead. I'll stay here." Kat said, he had hoped that they would
argue with him, but Demi only smiled.

"Mom's already gone to work Kat. You sure you'll be all right here by
yourself?" Calvin moved next to Demi, putting his hands on the boy's bare
shoulders.

"I'll be fine, damn it!" Kat screamed. "I don't want to go to the stupid
mall anyway!"

Demi jumped up, almost falling into Calvin's arms.

"Okay, we get the hint." Calvin said roughly. "Come on Demi; let's leave his
'Majesty' alone!"

"Damn Kat." Demi said scooping up his clothes from the floor.

Kat watched as his brother and best friend left the room. He stayed in bed
until he was certain, they had left. He heard the front door slam and soon
after Calvin's car zoomed away. Kat crawled out of bed, his stomach did
hurt, his lie had become truth.

"You are an idiot." He said to himself. Kat walked over this his window and
looked out at the beautiful morning outside. "Why can't it be raining?"

Nothing seemed right to him. He knew he had overreacted towards Calvin and
Demi. It wasn't that big of a deal. Demi had been in love with Calvin for
years. So why was it just now bugging him?



Kat found his favorite pair of shorts and shirt on top of the pile of
clothes and pulled them on. The shorts were Calvin's hand-me-downs, too
loose, too baggy, and too worn, but felt great against his bare skin. The
shirt was his 'bumming' shirt and his mother's worse nightmare. He would
wear this simple blue t-shirt everyday during the summer if it wasn't for
his mom's griping. He made his way into the kitchen, where he rummaged
through the refrigerator and then the cabinets. He had thought about finding
something to eat, but nothing looked good. The house was too quiet it made
him feel uneasy and restless. He roamed through the house, from room to
room. It all felt wrong, as if he was an intruder. He didn't belong here, he
didn't belong anywhere.

Kat headed outside, feeling suffocated by his depression. The sun felt nice
on his skin, its gentle warm kiss, eased his nerves slightly. He sat down on
his porch and watched as the 'normal' people carried on with their lives. He
hated feeling this way; normally Demi would be there to help him. Now Demi
was with Calvin and they didn't care if he was feeling bad. It had always
been hard for Kat to make friends, if it wasn't for Demi, no one at school
would even bother to talk to Kat. Demi was the 'outgoing' one, the popular
one. Kat was just there, feeding off Demi's glory. Kat sat on the porch for
a long time; he now knew that he was indeed hungry and getting thirsty.
Nevertheless, he didn't want to go back into the house alone. Kat knew that
once he entered, all the memories and feelings would return and he couldn't
stand to feel that way again.

"Damn it."

Kat looked up to see his neighbor, a Mr. Grace trying to carry several bags
of groceries. Mr. Grace had lived across the street for over a year now and
Kat had only spoken to him once. He was a nice looking man, but it was a
rarity to see him out of the house. Calvin had said that Mr. Grace was a
recluse, but Kat didn't know exactly what that meant. All he knew was Mr.
Grace had sad eyes.

"Damn it." The man said again as he dropped a paper bag to the ground.
Groceries exploded across the driveway and immediately began to roll into
the street. Kat jumped up and ran over to his neighbor.

"I got them!" Kat said as he grabbed up several cans of food.

"Oh.um thanks!" Mr. Grace grinned awkwardly. "Stupid paper bags."

Kat helped Mr. Grace collected the rest of the runaway produce, filling the
remaining bags until they were about to burst. Kat picked up three bags and
huffed heavily at their weight.

"You got those?" Mr. Grace asked as he lifted up four bags himself.

"I got them, no problem." Kat grinned, but he knew that he couldn't carry
the bags too far. He followed the man into the house; it was the first he
had been in Mr. Grace's house. Kat tried to act nonchalant as he gawked at
all the wonderful things inside the house.  There were beautiful landscape
paintings on every wall; each one seemed so real that Kat swore he could see
the trees sway from imaginary wind. It wasn't just the paintings that made
the house unique. In the living room, there was a huge flat screen TV,
probably the coolest television Kat had ever seen. Besides that, there was
the wall of movies. Kat was able to spy some of the titles and it seemed
that Mr. Grace had the same passion as Kat for horror flicks.

"You can put them down here." Mr. Grace said placing his bags down on the
kitchen table.

"You got a great house." Kat said after he had unloaded his hands of the
groceries. "You have some really cool stuff here."

"Um. thanks. I really appreciate your help with the groceries." Mr. Grace
seemed to force his smile. Kat could tell that the man was uncomfortable;
perhaps that's what recluse meant. Mr. Grace had been alone for so long, he
didn't know how to act in front of people. Kat pulled out a chair from the
table and sat down. It was felt nice to be with someone who felt like he
did.

"You sure bought a lot of groceries." Kat said looking at the seven stuffed
paper bags.

"I like to buy for a full month, it makes it easier." The man managed a real
smile. "Can I get you something to drink? I have Sprite, milk or I can make
tea if you want."

"A Sprite would be nice." Kat smiled back.

"I can't stand going to the grocery store, it's normally a madhouse." Mr.
Grace handed Kat a Sprite and sat down at the table with him. There was a
moment of awkward silence. Kat drank the rest of his Sprite and considered
leaving. However, he really didn't want to go home. Kat almost was afraid to
return to his house. What if Calvin and Demi were there, having a great
time, how could he survive that?

"Are you hungry? I was thinking of fixing lunch, once I put up all these
groceries."

"It's okay, Mr. Grace. I don't want to be a bother."

Mr. Grace stood up and cleared his throat; Kat thought that Mr. Grace was
almost blushing.

"It's no problem .eer Kat, right?"

Kat smiled and nodded. It was nice that the man had remembered his name it
made him feel special.

"Really I would like to have you for lunch. I don't get a lot of visitors
and . well, I do owe you for saving my canned peas."

Kat laughed, it felt good to laugh again. "All right, I'll stay."

Kat did his best in helping put up the groceries. Most of the time he stood
still, looking confused and eventually handed the food to Mr. Grace.

After all was packed away, Kat leaned against the corner as Mr. Grace
prepared lunch.

"I hope you like turkey sandwiches." Mr. Grace asked. "I should have asked
before I started making lunch." He laughed nervously, giving Kat an
apologetic smile.

"It's cool, Mr. Grace. I love turkey."

"You can call me. Andel. Only old women and lawyers call me Mr. Grace."

"Cool." Kat almost giggled, he could call this 'man' by his first name. It
made him feel so mature. They sat down at the table and ate, Andel wasn't
much of a talker, but neither was Kat. However, they found things to
discuss. Like their passion for horror movies or even older brothers. Andel
had experiences in dealing with an older brother. After they finished the
sandwiches, which Kat thought were fantastic, Andel invited Kat into the
living room.

"I've been collecting movies forever. I don't know why I love them so much."
Andel stood by the bookcase that was full of DVD's and videos, he looked
them over, smiling at titles that held some kind of magic to him.

"I think movies are special because we can live them, but not be us." Kat
thought about what he had just said and almost laughed. "I don't think that
made any sense, did it."



Andel finished slipping in a DVD and sat down next to Kat.

"It made perfect sense to me. It's nice to pretend to be someone else. Being
'me' all the time is very boring."

The large TV screen faded to black, eerie haunting music began, at first it
was barely above a whisper but gradually the music blasted from the four
speakers around the room. The movie title ghostly-appeared 'The Haunted
Coffin'. It was an old 1940's horror movie; Kat loved these kinds of movies.
Bad special effects, with bad make-up, and fake creatures but all pure fun.
Kat would have normally been glued to the TV, but he couldn't take his eyes
off the man sitting next to him. He had dark hair that was almost black and
seemed to capture light within its flowing strands. Andel had a gentle face,
young but with an aged sadness around his eyes. His eyes appeared brown, but
with another glance seemed green, like looking into a dark mysterious
forest. Kat liked how this man looked; he liked the small scar by Andel's
left eye, he liked the gold earring in the man's left ear. He liked the
heave of his chest as he breathed. It all made Kat feel comfortable being
here.

"I'm mad at my brother and friend." Kat said aloud, not sure what had made
him say that. Andel turned away from the television and crossed his arms,
preparing himself to listen.

"Did they do something to make you angry?"

Kat looked down at his hands and fumbled with a small hole in his shirt.

"Demi. Demi's my best friend. has been goo-goo for my brother for years."
Kat paused to see Andel's reaction. Even Kat knew that he didn't live a
'normal' life. His mother was a lesbian, his brother was bisexual, Demi was
gay and he was. he hadn't decided what he was, he hated labels. He was just
plain and simple. Kat.  Andel's reaction didn't alter, so Kat continued.

"Well. now my brother Calvin has been kind of hitting on Demi and they've
gone to the mall and left me here all alone. I mean he was my best friend,
not Calvin's; he didn't have the right to get in the way. And Demi was
acting like I was some kind of baby or something. I hate them both."

Kat inhaled deeply after finishing. His face was red and burning and he felt
dizzy. Andel placed a hand on Kat's knee.

"You feel abandoned. I can understand that, Kat. I don't think your brother
and friend did this intentionally."

Kat sniffed back a tear; it was nice to have someone to tell his problems
too. Demi was great as a friend, but sometimes it was difficult to talk to
him.

"Don't hate them Kat, I'm sure everything will work out."

Kat tried to smile, he put his hand on top of Andel's, he was surprised when
the man pulled his hand away.

Kat watched the rest of the movie without actually seeing it. He had to
remind himself that Andel was a recluse like Calvin had said. He wasn't use
to interacting with people. Kat couldn't imagine how lonely Andel must feel.
He was feeling guilty now for dumping all his problems on this man. It didn'
t seem right for Andel to be alone, he was too nice a man.

The movie ended and Andel got up to turn off the DVD player, Kat smiled deep
in his thoughts not even noticing.

"Didn't you like the movie?" Andel asked. "I guess you have too much on your
mind, huh?"

"Do what? Oh, no the movie was great." Kat said quickly once he realized
that Andel was talking.

"Sure it was." Laughed Andel. "It's no problem; I know you have a lot on
your mind."

"Yeah I guess I do." Kat stood and headed for the door. "Thanks for lunch
Andel. and the movie. I had fun."

"Anytime Kat, I enjoyed your company. Consider my door opened to you
anytime."

"Really?" Kat stopped at the door. "I can come over anytime?"

Andel thought about that and then smiled.

"Anytime."

Kat waved to Andel as he left. It had turned out to be a good day. Despite
his brother and Demi, Kat had made a new friend.

Kat was half way across the street when I stopped. Calvin's car was back in
the driveway. They were home. Although Kat had had a good day with Andel, he
wasn't sure he was ready to face them yet.