Date: Tue, 30 Jul 2013 23:38:43 +1030
From: Robert A. Armstrong <rob.aa@hotmail.com>
Subject: Schoolie - Chapter 12

Thank you for your encouraging feedback. I am enjoying the ongoing
correspondence with some.

I remind everyone that this is a work of pure fiction - just an expression
of a fantasy. The resemblance of my characters by action, name, location or
description to any real person is purely coincidental - if it seems to be
you, or somebody you know, I apologise.

If relationships between boys and men is not your scene, or if you're under
age, or if it is not legal for you to be reading this, then please leave,
now, before somebody finds out!

Otherwise, enjoy!


From Chapter 11

Will relaxes his full body weight onto me and cradles my head in his soft
hands and practises his passionate kissing. My own hands slide down to each
firmly cup and fondle his pair of muscular downy-haired butt cheeks and I
experience another groundswell of pleasure as I feel them beginning slow,
tight, rhythmic contractions. OMG. Finally! Fully naked, together. Getting
lucky.


Chapter 12

It must be about 5:00am and I wake up to the realisation of the smell of
cum and recall my first and two subsequent orgasms with Will. These sheets
and the towel will definitely have to be washed before we leave to pick up
Marty. I am spooning Will who is still breathing heavily - sound asleep. I
slowly rub his stomach and gently fondle his exhausted frankfurt back to
life. Mine stiffens against his butt cheeks and nestles into his
crack. "Hmmm," Will moans. "Good morning, bro. Wow. Thank you. What a great
birthday present! I'll remember last night for the rest of my life." He
wiggles his bum as if trying to bury my Weiner deeper between his muscular
mounds.

I know that there is much more that I can teach him, and for us to
experience together. If he thought last night was good, wait until we get
to the serious stuff! And I'm quite sure that we will. I whisper in his
ear, "Hey buddy, we're both a mess. Want to shower together?"

"Hell, yeh!" he chirps back. He manoeuvres himself so that we are face to
face and presses his body against mine. He kisses me then rolls out of bed
and I watch his beautiful narrow hips and tight butt as he heads towards
the bathroom. I'm not far behind him. I glance down at my own chest and
abdomen, the dried cum just a reminder of the fun we had body sliding
against each other last night. The more we spurted and the slipperier we
became, the more heightened was our pleasure. He turns on the water,
adjusts the temperature and steps in. I pause at the door and take in the
vision of him, much as Marty did of me on that first morning. For all
intents and purposes, Will, having grown a little in the recent past, has
now become almost a clone of me. "Hey, we sure made a mess of each other,
didn't we?" he laughs.

I walk slowly across to the bath. Will is ogling me as much as I am
him. "Don't suppose you've got another load left in you?" I chuckle at him.

"I do, if you do." He joyfully throws straight back at me, pointing his
now-swollen cock at me and giving it a few inviting strokes. I step into
the bath and we share the soap to firstly clean away the evidence from last
night and then to soap each other up front and back. "You first?" he asks,
and I agree. He soaps my back and runs his left hand across my butt cheeks
and a single finger up my crack, then turns me around and nestles his
stiffness between my cheeks, while pulling me to him with his arm around my
waist. He reaches around with his right hand and begins to sensually rub my
balls and cock. Not roughly, but very gently, which is far more stimulating
than a quick jack off. At the same time I can feel him rubbing his
stiffness along my soapy crack. After a short while he steps back a little
and, releasing my stomach, uses his left hand again to rub up and down,
across and between my cheeks, deliberately pressing, every now and then, on
my hole. Each time he does, my muscles contract and I shudder with
pleasure. "Always wanted to try that on someone else," he growls. "Will you
do that to me too?" His right hand continues its mission on my cock.

Before long I say breathily, "Will, I'm getting close." He nestles in again
and continues a steady rhythm on my steely rod. I feel the eruption
building from deep down and, yet again, enjoy the pleasure of it surging
its way up. Will must be able to feel it coming. He holds his hand still
and I explode - straight up, and out, wherever he points me, swivelling me
around like he's watering the plants with a garden hose - mostly in the
bath, but some on the floor. My knees feel very weak and begin to tremble,
but I luxuriate in Will's firm grip of me. He hugs me and kisses my neck
while I regain my full balance.

Then he spins me around and turns his back to me. I understand what he
wants. I repeat everything that he has done to me, except that my cock is
not as stiff now as his was. Even so, I still position my chunky sausage
vertically between his cheeks and begin to soap up his front, sliding my
hand over and under his balls, and up and down his hardness. He leans right
back into me, purring like a big cat. After a few minutes I turn him again
so that our fronts are together, holding him against me firstly by the
small of his back, and then I grasp and begin to massage his butt cheeks
and play with his crack. I linger each time I pass his hole, rubbing gently
and teasing it. "OMG that feels good, Tom. Push your finger inside me."

I whisper lustily in his ear, "Will, I'll do this for you, but just so you
know, we are not going to end up fucking, OK? At least, not today." I
really want to reserve that experience for another time. I can feel his
cock press against me and he starts to gyrate his hips. He squats ever so
slightly, which parts his legs a little. I slowly and softly insert my
soapy finger into his hole up to my first, then second, knuckle, and gently
move it around. I'm nowhere near his prostate, but the sensation is enough
to set him off. He grabs my butt with both hands, while he unloads between
our bodies, groaning and thrusting with each spasm, his muscles squeezing
my inserted finger.

Recovering his composure and equilibrium he pants, "Holy shit, that felt
fantastic. I can't wait to do more, Tom."

"Patience, bro!" I encourage. "The anticipation will make it even better
when we finally get to do it." I emphasise the `when' rather than using
`if'.

I'm aware of the need to have him in the big town by eight o'clock to see
Chad at the police station, so breakfast is hastily prepared and eaten,
amid much fond remembrance and discussion of the events of the past nine
hours. Will does the dishes while I attend to the washing and remaking of
my bed, and Marty's, with fresh sheets. And I don't forget to clean the
bathroom floor!

The drive to the big town is accompanied by two different discussions - me
checking Will's knowledge of the road rules, and his insistence of how much
better our seemingly all-night fun was than jacking with Jake or his
grabbing games with Karl and Kurt.

I pull up outside the police station and Will turns to stare at me, with a
look of fear. I have not mentioned anything to him. Perhaps he thinks we
have come to `dob in' in mother and that he will have to recount what she
made him do with her. I ease his anxiety with, "Will, you are about to
receive another birthday present. Chad has offered to show you all around
the police station and then let you drive around town with him in the
police car. We thought you'd like that."

The tightness on his face relaxes instantly. "Wow. How cool!" he exhales
excitedly.

We go in and Chad is waiting behind the desk. "Hi William. Good to see
you. Happy Birthday for yesterday!" After shaking Will's hand he turns to
me, "Can you leave him with me for an hour, Tom? That should be time enough
for us to check everything out." He winks.

"Sure thing Chad. Oh, by the way, Many Happy Returns yourself for
Thursday." Will then obviously remembers the 10-year age gap, and echoes my
sentiment.

I tell Will that I will go and check out all of the shops in town, order
some groceries, including more instant pancake mix, at which he gives me
the `thumbs up', and that I'll be back for him about 9:00. If you've ever
seen a Disney version of `Alice in Wonderland' you'll appreciate my
description of Will's face as like the Cheshire Cat!

I drive off and park in the middle of the main street, outside the men's
emporium. I also note that there is a barber shop inside. The sign says
that they will open at 8:30. Perfect. I head down to the grocery store
which, to my delight, is already serving customers. I soak up some time,
exchanging pleasantries with our rotund friend and together we compile a
list of what I will come back later to pick up. He asks about Marty and
recounts what he's heard. News travels fast in a small town, and it seems
that everybody is aware of what happened. I explain that I'm in town today
to pick him up. I still have fifteen minutes before the emporium opens so I
head to the Acropolis for coffee and one of my favourite pastries. There
are more expressions of best wishes for Marty from everybody who met me
when I was in there last week.

Savouring every morsel of the fresh custard tart, I go over the scheme in
my head. I am going to get Will a whole new wardrobe of casual clothes and
some more stylish `going out' gear as well. But, I will also purchase
identical clothing for myself. I will have the tailor, or sales staff, take
my measurements and put aside for me one of everything that we get for
Will, without his knowledge. I have a great plan to torment Lilly, Will's
mother. And, when I take him on holidays with me, I can envisage some fun
with my friends and family. To top it off, so to speak, he and I are going
to get matching haircuts.

About 8:40 I head into the emporium and have a talk with Joe, the manager,
younger than I expected, who tells me that he has taken over from his
father, who inherited the business from his own father. I tell him what I
want him to do and he agrees to keep my clothes separate from Will's. I
suggest styles that I would like him to show Will in jeans, shirts, a good
pair of casual trousers, black boots and a new hat. He takes all my
measurements and assures me that I am standard sizes top and bottom, so
there will be no problem. Will is going to be very similar, if not the
same. However, I do try on a pair of black boots and a camel-coloured
Akubra hat, because there can be no guesswork with these. I give him my
credit card and tell him to charge everything in the one transaction at the
end, so that Will will be none the wiser. I also clue in the barber. I tell
him that whatever Will wants, my haircut is to be identical, and, in case
Will can't decide, I tell him what I think would look good on us both -
sides trimmed short but leave just enough on top so that the curls are
obvious. All set.

I get back to the police station and Chad is talking to Will who, when he
spots me, is bursting with excitement to say something. "Tom, you'll never
guess what! Chad let me drive the police car. We went all around town. He
even tried to catch me out with some tricky questions about the road rules,
but he couldn't. I knew them all. Pretty smart, eh?"

I wink at Chad. "You let him drive the police car? And it's still in one
piece?" That receives a pouty look from Will.

Chad replies, ruffling Will's hair, "actually, Tom, he did really well. And
I couldn't fault him on the questions either."

"Good on ya, buddy!" I say, giving him a light shoulder punch.

"Hey, Chad, isn't that assault?" Will pipes up, throwing a mischievous
smirk at me.

"I didn't see anything. What happened?" Chad replies. Will looks from Chad
to me and back again, then bursts into laughter. We both join him. "Tom,
can you come back before you pick Marty up? I've got a bit of work to do,
but there's something I'd like to give Will, to take home, but I don't have
it ready yet." He smiles. Will looks a little puzzled, but says nothing.

"Sure thing," I reply. I thank him for `looking after' Will and we head
out. I tell Will that I've got another surprise for him. We head to the
emporium and the barber's chair is vacant. "Hair cut," I say. "How do you
want it?"

"Like yours," Will shoots back, surprising me. I smile at the barber and he
gets to work as we had previously discussed.

The barber is just about finished and I ask, "Can you clean up that dark
fluff on his upper lip and chin too?" Will looks at me with some
curiosity. "Will, you've become quite a young man and I think it would be
good to have your first shave done by a professional. What do you think?"
Will's lips tighten, perhaps to help prevent the happy tears from falling
that I see forming in the corner of his eyes. He simply nods his agreement.

"Twins, or just brothers?" The barber asks as he finishes with Will and
looks at me.

"Brothers." Will and I say at almost the same time, then we smile at each
other, then do our `secret' handshake as we exchange places.

Will rubs his newly-shaven skin. "Wow, Smooth," is all he utters.

"Will, go and have a look at some clothes. I'd like to buy you a new pair
of jeans, a belt and some shirts. Maybe boots and a hat. Go and try on some
things. The manager will help you while I'm having the works here."

"Are you serious?" he asks, wide-eyed.

"Sure thing. Happy birthday, bro!" I reply. I can tell that he would like
to hug me, but he restrains himself.

The barber makes my hair identical to Will's and I afford myself the luxury
of a professional shave as well.

I pay the barber in cash and give him a good tip. I stroll over to where
Will is having difficulty choosing between some styles and colours, and
help out with suggestions that I know would look good on me as well. With
his boots and an Akubra selected, I ask the manager to put everything in my
car while Will and I visit the Acropolis. I hand him the keys.

When we return, I can tell that the manager is a smart cookie! He's put
Will's things on the back seat and mine in the boot. I still can't come at
calling it the `trunk' although I can understand why, given its
history. The car is locked. We go into the store and Joe runs through the
list of what Will has selected. I ask him to add a battery-operated razor,
which he does. I already have one. I say "Happy Birthday" again and present
the razor to Will then sign for everything.

Will cannot restrain himself any longer. He grabs me in a hug around the
neck and shoulders and manages to let out a "Thanks bro. This is
fantastic." The manager and barber would not have been aware of anything
except some good old-fashioned brotherly love.

I look at my watch. It's just after 10 o'clock. "OK. Let's see what Chad's
up to then we can pick up the groceries and collect Marty from the hospital
at 10:30," I say to Will. I know what's coming. I wonder how Will is going
to respond. I hope he doesn't embarrass us both by his reaction.

We walk into the police station. Chad gives us both a wolf whistle
indicating our haircuts and cleanly-shaven faces. He picks up a small
bundle of papers. Will blushes and I smile. "William, there is something I
would like you to sign, that's related to me letting you drive the police
car around this morning." Will looks at Chad and shrugs then steps up to
sign, taking a pen from him. When he reads the paper work, Will swings
around and blurts, "What the fuck is this?" then covers his mouth as if to
apologise for the obscenity.

"I'm sure that swearing at a police officer is illegal isn't it Chad?" I
try to be funny and repay Will for his assault assertion.

Will turns to me and, pushing his face close to mine, whispers a smiling,
"Fuck off!" Then he persists, aloud, "Chad, what is this?"

Chad simply says, "William O'Brien, this morning you passed a driving test,
both practical and knowledge. You now have a Provisional Driver's
Licence. Congratulations. Please sign the paper work and I'll give you your
licence." Will's mouth drops open and he just stares at Chad, then turns
his gaze to me.

"You knew! You planned this all along didn't you? You scheming bugger!" The
words might have been offensive if they hadn't been accompanied by such a
broad smile and misty eyes. "Thank you so much. Both of you. Is this for
real? Me - with a driver's licence! Wow!" He pauses momentarily then asks,
"Hey Mr G., can I borrow the car? I have a hot date tonight." We all burst
into laughter.

Will signs the paperwork which Chad takes away, feeding some into a
machine. A few minutes later he produces a plastic licence complete with
Will's photo and signature, and says to Will, "You remember earlier when I
showed you how the camera over there works? This is what we do with the
photo. It comes out on your licence with your signature. And here are your
`P' plates to display front and back whenever you are driving."

I stick out my hand to Will, "Congratulations buddy. Drive safely." He
pulls me into a hug, then turns on Chad and gives him the same treatment.

"Now, that's assault on a police officer," Chad laughs. I join him. Seeing
the humour, Will makes it a threesome.

"OK, let's pick up the groceries and then go and get Marty. You can drive,"
I say to Will and toss him my car keys.

While Chad and I watch Will attaching his new `P' plates to my car, Chad
says to me, "I've been visiting Marty every day. He's OK, but you'll find
that he's lost a bit of weight and may not be 100% steady on his feet
yet. Keep an eye on him, will you Tom? His body needs time to fully recover
as much from the medications as from the venom. I know he'll try to do too
much and we don't want him back in here because he has over-taxed his
immune system, or because he's tripped over and done himself a serious
injury."

"Sure thing, Chad. I'll tie him down, if necessary." I continue, "So, tell
me, how did William really do on the test?"

"Like I said, he was excellent. Apart from knowing all the rules, his
driving couldn't have been better - far superior to many that I see in
here. He'll be fine. He just needs some practice to develop his road sense
in traffic."

Chad gives me directions from the police station to the hospital and I bid
him farewell. It feels strange sliding into the passenger's seat instead of
behind the wheel. Will looks a little nervous, but I encourage him to just
take it easy, like he did with Chad. He checks for traffic, remembers to
use his indicator seeing that we're in town, and accelerates smoothly. He
eases off, turns the corner, drives to the grocery store and parks directly
outside it. I tell him to stay in the car to keep an eye on his new
clothes. I don't want him to see what's in the boot. I settle the bill with
the grocer and we stow everything out of sight.

"Now, down to the left and then first right," I tell him. While Will is
driving I ring Sean's number to let him know that we're heading for the
hospital. He says he will meet us there. As we pull into the parking lot
barely a minute later, I see Sean already standing at the main
entrance. Will and I head across the short distance together. "You didn't
waste any time getting here!" I say as we shake hands. Sean indicates that
we should look across the road from the hospital, and I see the ambulance
station. "That explains it," I smile.

Will hands me back the keys and we go inside. Sean greets the matron at the
main desk and she says melodiously, "You know where he is, Sean." `Matron'
is a great term for her. She is a very homely, grandmotherly woman, perhaps
in her early fifties - handsome like Di, hair colour similar to Acacia and
a disposition like my own mother. The best of all three rolled into
one. She does a double take when she looks at Will and me. I'm becoming
accustomed to it. It's has become a source of amusement for me, moreso
recently. Will has a smirk on his face as well. I hope he will also enjoy
the little scenario that I have planned for his mother, Lilly.

Sean leads us to Marty's room. He's sitting on the edge of the bed,
flicking through a magazine, dressed ready to go home, with a bag beside
him. Sean tells me that Chad had brought him in some extra clothes as the
two of them are about the same size. As the result of having seen Chad
naked the morning after he came to tell us the news about Marty waking up
from his coma, both Will and I smirk playfully at each other, taking a
double meaning from his words about being the same size, although nothing
would have been intended by Sean, or recognised by Marty.

Will goes up to him first and grabs him in a hug. "Hi Marty! Missed you
Cuz! Glad you're coming home. The schoolie, here has been trying to poison
me morning and night with the awful stuff that he cooks."

"Liar!" I smile at him, knowing that this was simply Will's way of
acknowledging to Marty that he was missed. Then addressing Marty, "The only
problem with the food is that the big smartarse here has put on weight. If
that's a problem, I could always cut out the pancakes," I look at Will,
"And we can take all of the pankcake mix that I've just bought back to the
grocer before we go home."

"Whoa!" Will exclaims. "No need to go to extremes. I'm happy to work off
the extra calories!" And he flashes me an O'Brien smirk.

A smile also crosses Marty's face at the light-hearted exchange between
Will and me. It's great to see. I take the few steps towards him, shake his
hand and hug him to me. "Marty, I never got the chance to say `thank you'
for saving me from the snake. It almost cost you your own life. I will be
forever grateful to you. I'll be your slave, if necessary."

"Haha, I have witnesses to that offer." he says, indicating Will and
Chad. "I might need a hand with a few things, though." It's now Marty and I
who see a double meaning that, I hope, the others don't. Will looks at me
to see if I react to Marty's words. Perhaps he did pick up on it, or maybe
his sexy adolescent mind is just hoping that he recognised an intent. He
had previously guessed that Marty and I did `something' together during the
weekend that he spent with Jake although I've never told him any
details. House Rule!

I grab Marty's bag and he slowly transfers his weight to his feet. He rests
his hand on my shoulder to steady himself. "I hope you don't mind me
holding on to you," he says. Another suspicious glance from Will. Is that a
slight hint of jealousy that I read on his face? And I think Marty is
deliberately choosing his words to convey double meanings. This is becoming
comical.

I unlock the car and put Marty's bag in the back, behind the passenger's
seat. I open the front door for Marty and he clambers in, with very little
assistance. Will and I shake hands with Sean and then both head around to
the driver's side. I slip Will the keys and smile. He slides in behind the
wheel and I take a back seat, moving Will's the pile of clothes across to
make room. Marty looks at both of us and says, "What the hell is going on,
Will? You know that you can't drive here in town!" Will simply takes out
his new driver's licence and, with the broadest of grins, flashes the piece
of plastic in Marty's face. Marty is totally confused and begins to ask
many questions that he never finishes... "When did you...?" "How the
fuck...?" "Who...?"

I answer them for him, all in one, "Remember all those reading lessons from
the Motor Traffic Handbook? They certainly paid off. Chad tested him this
morning. Perfect Score. And he passed the driving test with flying
colours." Then I add, just to stir him up, and to stroke Will's ego, "and
Chad reckons he's a better driver than you."

"Bullshit!" is all that Marty can muster. Will and I laugh, and Marty can
tell that we're just `pulling his leg'.

"Be kind to him." I say to Marty. And then to Will, "Home James, and be
gentle with the horses!" Will laughs at my parody of his words to me all
those weeks ago.

Will's provisional licence speed is limited and so the trip home takes us a
little longer than usual. Marty and I recount the incidents around the
snake and share snippets of what Sean told us, what the doctors did and
even what the food was like in the hospital. As we drive into the property,
Will avoids most of the bumps and hollows that Marty had deliberately found
on my first Sunday morning in his truck. I comment on it. Marty replies
with, "All I can say is, this car must have excellent suspension!" Then as
we pull up to a raucous welcome from the dogs, Marty leans across to Will,
lays his arm around his cousin's shoulders and says, "Great job,
Cuz. You've got yourself a job as my official chauffer." Will beams at him.

Marty goes over to the dogs and does a bit of playful rough-housing with
them. I pick up Marty's bag and Will gathers his clothes from the back
seat. "William, can you put those on your bed and then come and help me
with the stuff in the boot?" I ask.

Will takes his bundle of 'goodies' indoors. Marty comes over and offers to
help with whatever is in the boot. "Just some groceries and a bit of
shopping from the men's emporium," I tell him as he looks everything
over. He grabs most of the groceries which are packed into a single box,
and heads for the door, only to be met by Will on his way out. I call,
"William, could you please take those from Marty and put them away? You
know where they all go. Thank you."  I give Marty his bag and leave the
small sack of potatoes in the open boot. Walking straight past Will in the
kitchen, I quickly take all of my clothes to the bedroom, and lay them on
my bed then, pulling the door closed, I head back outside. As I pass by the
kitchen again I turn to the two guys and say, "I think we should drop over
to your Mum's place, Marty. I'm sure she and Anna are anxious to see you."

Will and Marty instantly stop what they are doing and both turn to give me
a searing look of disapproval - each for his own reason; however they know
that I'm right. Also, I can see an opportunity here to pour some oil on
troubled waters. There is definitely tension between Marty and his mum and
between Anna and Will. This will be a challenge, I think to myself, but
well worth it for everyone if it comes off.

"Guys, I can understand where you are both coming from," I begin. "But your
Mum, Marty, and your cousin Anna, William, are both special people." The
looks of disapproval turn to regards of pity for my apparent insanity. "I
tell you what I'm going to do. I'm going to try to get you both off the
hook with the women." Their faces say, `what the hell...?' I continue,
"Marty, despite what you may think and feel, your Mum really loves you. I
saw that very clearly while you were in hospital. But I see a power game
between the two of you. You want to break away from her domination and you
think you can do that by insulting her. Of course, that just riles her even
more. She pushes you to give in which, of course, you don't. If you'll
forgive the analogy in the light of recent events, it's like you playing
with a snake. You have the stick, but she has the venom." His blank stare
and open but silent mouth confirm that I've got it exactly right!

I feel like an amateur psychologist. I turn to Will. "And William, having
been on the receiving end of Anna's attentions myself, I can understand why
she does what she does, and why you do what you do." I don't go into
details knowing that it could possibly out my gay young hunk to Marty, or
reveal the illicit activities of his Aunt Lilly with his cousin, both of
which I want to avoid at all costs.

Then to both of them, "I just want you guys to trust me on this. You'll
thank me later, I'm sure." I had intended saying, `I'll bet my balls on
it', but then neither of them would have minded me losing, would they?
"Guys, I need your support in this. I think that Mum won't be hard, but
Anna may be. If she starts making a move on me, either with her fluttering
eyelids and flattering comments, or if she wants to get physically close to
me, I just want one of you to mention my girlfriend, Karen. Can you do
that?" Will catches on straight away but Marty looks at me in absolute
confusion, and I realise that he wasn't privy to my little ruse when Sean
was here. I decide that the truth of the matter should stay with Will and
me. I give him an `H' and he signs back. Marty either doesn't notice or
recognise it.

"Karen?" Marty asks cautiously. I nod. Now that's really confused him,
especially after how the two of us have played together. He comments, "You
sly dog!"

"So, this is what I'm aiming at." I watch their faces while I explain it
again. "Marty, do you want your Mum to quit her controlling behaviour? And
William, do you want Anna to leave you alone and stop chasing you and
trying to touch you?"

They look at each other, then at me. Will pulls an `I-guess-so' face,
shrugs and then nods his agreement. Marty, on the other hand, is more
vocal. "It'll never work, Tom. Whatever you have in mind, she'll never
change. Who do you think you are, Merlin the Magician?"

With both of them present, I resist the temptation to make reference to a
`magic wand', which I might have done if there was only one of them alone
with me. Each would have appreciated it in his own way. However, as I head
out to retrieve the potatoes, I just call, "We'll see. Just trust me, and
play along." When I return I ask, "So, are we all in? I don't see that
either of you has anything to lose and a lot to gain. I'm the one at risk
if Anna tries to hit on me. Can I count on you to back me up?"

Will says, "OK. This is gonna be good! If you can get Anna off my case,
I'll be your bosom buddy for life!" He suddenly blushes a little, realising
the familiarity in his choice of words, and hoping against hope that Marty
sees nothing in it but his use of a cliché.

Marty joins in, "If you can get Mum to change her attitude, I'll serve you
breakfast in bed for a week - whatever you want to swallow." I suspect that
Marty's clanger, on the other hand, was intentional. I look directly at
Marty and he smirks, which Will, standing alongside his cousin, cannot
see. However, Will's smirky expression tells me that he, too, is thinking
of more than pancakes and bacon - perhaps what he would like for breakfast,
a big sausage and two eggs.

I ask Will to remove his `P' plates from my car, telling him that he can
impress Mum and Anna later. I don't want to get side-tracked. However, I
still let Will drive. "Oh," I say to them both as we get into the car, "I
want to do the talking. Got it?" They agree, but I think that it will be
much harder for Marty to keep his mouth closed than for Will.

Their being alerted by the dogs, I can see Mum and Anna appear on the
verandah as we drive up the track. I jump out first, with the other two not
far behind. "Hello Mrs O'Brien. Anna. It looks like you were right. The
snake must have died." Mum smiles. Marty makes his way to the steps and his
mother gives him a hug. I'm sure it's the first time that this has happened
in a long while. Will hangs back. Anna joins the family hug and I'm sure
that all three of them have tears in their eyes.

I find that the scenario which I had scripted in my mind for Mum is not
necessary. She says more that I could ever have imagined.

"Marty, dear. I thought I was going to lose you," she begins while leading
him through the door, cuddling into him with one arm around his waist. "I
couldn't bear the thought of you not being around. Having to mourn your dad
was bad enough, but losing you would have broken my heart. I'm sure I would
have died as well. You mean the world to me." Then she turns and puts both
arms around his neck and kisses him, on both cheeks then his forehead and
finally on the lips.

Could Marty insult this loving woman now? I can see his face and all of the
pent up animosity seems to have melted away. Rather, it shows the
contentment of a little boy who has just been tucked into bed and kissed
goodnight by his loving mummy. I am proud of his response. "Mum, when I was
lapsing in and out of consciousness, I was thinking the same thing. I
couldn't stand to put you through any pain like you went through after
Dad's accident. You gave me a desire to live." Acacia pulls two
handkerchiefs from her ever-present apron. Apparently she had been
anticipating a few tears. She gives one to Marty, while she makes use of
the other herself. They both go over to the settee and appear to continue
some long-overdue conversation and reconciliation. I can tell from their
body language, including the hugging and kissing, that some old, deep
wounds have had a rapid-healing balm applied. Who would have thought it?

One down; one to go! Anna, Will and I are left alone. "Can the three of us
go outside and talk?" I ask. Anna looks puzzled. Will looks anxious.

I lead the way. Will is right behind me and Anna follows. The end-of-summer
sun has lost its sting although the temperature is still very warm,
probably hot by city standards. But, without the coastal humidity here, it
is bearable. We seat ourselves at the round table in a kind of open
triangular pattern but so that we are all still able to take in the view. I
can see that the chicken coop is still as solid as the day that Marty, Will
and I built it. In the distant background are the river gums and somewhere
over towards them, behind the scrub and brush, is Marty's place. I
contemplate that the summer drone of flies and beetles appears to have
abated but there are still bird noises from the trees. I'm sure they are
parrots of some description from their raucous calls. Discerning one bird
from the next is another lesson for me, the Schoolie, to learn while I'm
here.

There is momentary silence and after taking a deep breath, I begin. "Anna,
I think I owe you an apology." She looks at me strangely and so does
Will. Gaining confidence in my self-assigned task I continue, "In fact, so
does William." Anna looks from me to Will. Will stares at me and starts to
shift in his seat. I can tell, with no idea of where this is heading, that
he is feeling very uncomfortable.

I launch right in. "Anna, from the day that I met you, you have been
wonderful to me; the breakfast that you prepared after Marty and William
fixed your Mum's door, the morning tea and refreshments the day we built
the chicken coop, and you even saved my butt from the hard chair at
school. For all of that, I thank you most sincerely."

She smiles. Will doesn't.

"And you are very attractive," I add. Should I even be saying this in front
of Will, let alone Anna?

She smiles. Will grimaces.

"I really haven't expressed my appreciation, so I apologise for that. If
there was no `Karen' in my life, I think that I could easily settle down
here." I deliberately omit to say, `...with you...', and I think of the
other attractions.

Will smiles. She doesn't. I'm sure that Will knows by now that he
represents the true `Karen' in my life, not to mention Marty, Karl and
Kurt.

Hey. This conversation is not supposed to be about me - it's purpose is to
win Will his freedom from her!

I continue, "And I hope that William won't mind me telling you this,
because he won't say anything himself, but he thinks that you are pretty
hot, too. He told me so."

She smiles. Will doesn't. Instead, after he closes his gaping mouth, he
gives me the filthiest of side glances. "But...," here it comes - my best
pitch, "...he's afraid if he ever gave in to a moment of passion, that he
might ruin a girl's life, the way that his father ruined your Aunt Lilly's.
And he doesn't want to do that - especially to you. He avoids you, not
because he doesn't like you, but because you excite him too much,
especially when you touch him."

Will knows that me painting us both as hormone-susceptible straight guys
who would love to `get it on' with Anna is a lie, but that doesn't stop him
from turning red, like sunburn. At least I'm trying to deflect any
potential thoughts in Anna's mind that might arise about Will and me, the
two of us together.

Anna sees Will's embarrassment and appears to interpret it as a sign of the
truthfulness of my revelation about his feelings for her. I can read it on
her face.

"So, Anna, I apologise for how I might have appeared to be rude to you. It
certainly wasn't intentional." Then I dump Will right into it, and hope
that he can muster the right words to follow up. I look at him and simply
say, "William...?" The upward inflexion is his cue to say something. He
looks stunned. Embarrassed. Upset.

He manages to choke out, "Yeh, Anna. Me too."

Anna looks at me and then at Will with almost a repentant countenance.
Will, on the other hand, begins to return to an almost-normal colour and it
becomes more obvious that he is breathing again.

"William," Anna almost pleads, "I am so sorry. I always thought that you
were just locked away in a boyish shell and were just scared of girls,
which only made me more determined than ever to show you reasons why you
shouldn't be. That's why I kept coming on to you, to try to help you relax
and enjoy yourself. I never thought that you were thinking of me every time
you pulled away or hid from me." Her apparent lustful passion for Will
seems to have changed rapidly into an attitude of respect.

Anna continues, "Anyway, Mr Grant has just said that he finds me very
attractive, didn't he? It looks like he and I could have some fun." Then
she looks sideways at me and adds, "Couldn't we... Tom?" Then she giggles
at her use of my first name. Or is it at the thought of the type of fun
that she has in mind?

Hello! How stupid am I? My mouth has done it again, running away before
seeking consent from my brain! I ponder my conundrum and turn slowly to
look from Anna's excited eyes to Will. I try to make an `H' nonchalantly to
remind him of his pledge. I think that it's going to take more than a
shovel to dig me out of this one - perhaps a bulldozer might be required.
Will smiles an evil and disconcerting smile.

Whatever is he thinking about? If he doesn't say something soon, he's gonna
have sore nuts tonight!



To be continued...

-----

Please support the efforts at Nifty. Every little bit helps. Do it here:
http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html