Date: Thu, 08 Nov 2001 09:53:14 -0700
From: Daniel Lund <rimshotsplanet@hotmail.com>
Subject: What's a Pogo? Part 1

	This story is based on the somewhat embellished life of a guy nick named
Pog because of his inability to hold still.  He is sitting right in front of
me as I'm righting this, and has contributed a lot to the flavor of the
story.  There's one or two more adventures to add, and if you like it, let
us know, won't you?

	P.S. If you have the time, a guy that I've been coaching has
written a story called "You get what you need" in the Beginnings directory.
Have a look if you can.


Thanks,

Daniel
rimshot@hotmail.com



What's a Pogo?, Part one


	From time to time, life can be one cruel irony after another.  Shelby
Martin sat behind the wheel of his truck and looked out the window at the
headstone marking his wife's grave.  At the ripe old age of twenty-three,
he'd lost his best friend and mate in a once in a life time freak accident,
which filled him with relief, guilt, and sorrow all at the same time.

	He opened the door and unfolded his tall lean swimmer's physique out of the
truck, his longish light brown hair waving in the slight breeze.  He reached
into the passenger seat and picked up the flowers, pink carnations today,
and turned to put them on the grave.  Kayla, his wife, had never known his
inner torment and shame, and had been his light and his secret burden since
they'd met six years before.

	There had been a party, and all of their friends had been there.  It was a
kegger in the canyon, and Shelby had been goaded into something that until
that time had been unthinkable.  He strongly suspected that he was gay, but
in a desperate attempt to prove otherwise, he'd had sex with Kayla
Davenport.  She had been so beautiful, tall like he was, and so generous
about his total lack of experience.  They'd become instant best friends.
And parents.

	Koby Brandt Martin was born nine months later, six months after his parents
had been married at the tender age of seventeen.  Both had finished school,
although it had been a battle of wills and mockery, and Shelby had gone to
work for a lumber company in town, using his strong back to produce enough
money to live on while Kayla went to school.

	Surprisingly, both sets of their parents after one brief clash settled down
and helped them out, both grudgingly admiring "the kids" for doing the right
thing and making a home for the baby.  Shelby absolutely buried his feelings
towards other males, keeping his wandering eyes silent for Kayla, who was so
good to him.

	Then, last year at the local annual carnival, Kayla had been with her
sister and her friends from school, taking a night out and leaving the baby,
now almost five, at home with Shelby.  He had urged her to go and take a
break from her books, just about tossing her out the door.  The carnival
only came once a year after all.  She deserved some time off.

	From what he was told after the fact, Kayla had bent to tie her shoe when
the metal framework next to her collapsed.  Twelve people were hurt, three
seriously, as the ride she was waiting in line for pulled itself apart.
Kayla was crushed instantly, the only death.

	Shelby sighed through his nose and stood up straight in the autumn air,
looking down at the headstone.  After several moments, he turned to the
truck and climbed in, his inner mind still warring over which emotion to
feel.  Eight months ago, and still he couldn't get it out of his head that
it should've been him.

	He drove to the school and picked up Koby from Kindergarten.  The five year
old was nearly an identical copy of his dad with the same feline features
and graceful build already showing through.  "Hey, Brat!"  Shelby smiled and
knelt down as the boy pelted out the door towards him.  Koby launched
himself into the air and Shelby wrapped his arms around him.  "Did you have
a good day?"

	"We saw a real snake!"  Koby's intense green eyes, a gift from his mother,
met his dad's ice blue ones.  "A man brought it, and we got to touch it.  It
was gross!"

	"Fantastic."  Shelby smiled and threw Koby up onto his shoulders for the
trip to the truck.  "What did it look like?"

	"Long and brown."  Koby answered as though it was the stupidest question on
earth.  He continued to describe it for the rest of the drive home.




	Kenny Stanten stood in the shade of a large willow tree panting but not
very winded, and smiled as his friends Flynn and Nolan ran after the Frisbee
he'd just thrown.  He watched Flynn dive, roll, and come up with the disk,
and then tore off to the right as it was flicked back at him.

	Kenny, known by just about everyone he'd ever met as 'Pogo', or 'Pogo
Stick', because of his almost boundless energy and tendency to bounce on the
balls of his feet when he was excited, dived flat out and caught the
Frisbee, tucked his knees, and rolled into a perfect somersault.  One of his
mother's many gifts had been gymnastic lessons, and he had absorbed them
like a sponge.

	At 5'8" tall, he was built like a miniature powerhouse, so cut and defined
that there was debate among some of his girlfriends that he had no body fat
at all.  At school, when not competing, he served as the school mascot, a
purple badger in leotards that did the most incredible gravity defying
stunts.  People came to the games just to see the mascot.  He was adored by
the teams and the faculty.

	Pogo was also a very happy go lucky person who was never known to have been
angry in his life.  In fact, he'd never been in a fight or serious argument
that anyone knew of.  Several of his classmates called him friend, and
would've been shocked to find out that he didn't think of anyone as a close
friend, not realizing how important he was to them.  It just never occurred
to him.

	Actually, Pogo had shut every one of them out on his fourteenth birthday
when he had figured out that he was different.  His mother, the center of
the universe, had given him a party at the city swimming pool, a large
covered pool with three slides and a video arcade.  While they were
swimming, wrestling for a plastic ball, Pogo had wrapped his arms around
Flynn to get the ball and Flynn backed up, pushing him into the wall.

	It was a moment frozen in time for Pogo.  For less than one second, he had
been totally aware of his own cock pressed between his best friend's ass
cheeks while he had his arms around him, and a paradigm shift had occurred.
While his friends took off across the pool, Pogo stood there with his jaw
hanging open, terrified.

	Now, a few days before his seventeenth birthday, Pogo was totally free, the
envy of most of the kids he knew.  He was the consummate actor, leading on
the ladies and even occasionally flirting with the guys.  Both sexes laughed
and attributed it to his fantastic personality, and he would've been shocked
at the number of both sexes that would've had sex with him at the drop of a
hat.

	None of that mattered anymore.  He came out of the somersault and sprang
six feet into the air, whipping the Frisbee off in a new direction and
landing on his feet with absolute confidence.  He always did, even when two
of the male cheerleaders tossed him fifteen feet in the air during their
halftime show at ball games.  He was totally unafraid of heights and motion
thanks to the gymnastics.

	He bounced on his feet and waited for the Frisbee to be thrown again.  A
child in the near by sand pile shrieked and laughed, and Kenny glanced that
way, smiling.  For a split second, he met a pair of ice blue eyes, and then
the guy looked away.  They were so intense that Pogo was distracted for a
second, and the Frisbee nailed him in the forehead, knocking him off his
feet.

	"Aw, shit, Pogo!  Are you okay?"  Flynn pelted across the grass towards his
friend and skidded to a stop on his knees.  "I'm sorry, man!  God, I didn't
mean too!"  He helped Pogo sit up.

	"Jesus, that was ugly." Nolan dropped down beside them.  "Did it bust your
nose?"

	"I'm fine."  Pogo laughed and held his head in his hands.  "I feel like a
fucking dope, but I'm fine."  He was suddenly nervous only he had no idea
why.  He blinked several times and looked back over towards the playground
and sand, but the person the eyes belonged to was gone.

	"You're not a dope.  I am for nailing you."  Flynn put his hand on Pogo's
shoulder.  "I'm sorry, man."

	"It's cool."  Pogo smiled and stood up  "C'mon, let's do it."  He said
cheerfully, wiping his arm across his eyes.

	"You sure, dude?  You look like it hurt."  Nolan followed him out onto the
grass.

	"I said I'm fine.  I thought I left my mother at home."  Pogo joked.  As
they others ran back out into the park, he glanced around over his shoulder,
but whoever it was had gone.




	Shelby met the boy's eyes for the briefest of seconds and couldn't help but
smile, then looked away as Koby headed for the slide again.  He had been
trying to watch the amazing tricks the boy was doing with the Frisbee and
Koby at the same time, and it had not been working.  He sighed and followed
his son to the slide.  "One more time, monster, and then we gotta go.  We
need to fix dinner."  He said, hoisting Koby onto the platform attached to
the slide.

	"Can we watch a movie?"  Koby looked over his shoulder at his dad.

	"Maybe at Grandpa's.  You get to spend the weekend with Grandpa Pat and
Grandma Karen."  Shelby explained.  He tried to give Kayla's parents as much
time as he could with Koby.  They had been real good to him since she died,
and Shelby wanted his son to know all of his family.  It was important.

	"Okay."  Koby turned back and patiently waited until Shelby got to the foot
of the slide and then shoved off, shrieking as he slid down.  Shelby caught
him and spun around, swinging Koby into the air.  They talked about the
snake on the way back to the truck and during the drive to the Davenport's.

	It was almost seven and getting dark as he pulled into the parking place
assigned to him by the apartment complex.  Shelby got out and locked the
door and headed up the stairs.  The building was three stories, and his
apartment was on the third floor at the far west corner.  The view of the
woods behind the apartments was great.

	Shelby dropped his keys and bent to retrieve them.  As he stood up, someone
crashed into him knocking both of them flat onto the landing below his
floor.  He groaned and looked up to see two white tennis shoes swish by his
face as the other person tried to sit up.  Suddenly, he was face to face
with the Frisbee kid from the park.

	"Oh, man.  I didn't see you bent over."  Pogo said and looked up, meeting
those same intense blues eyes again.  "Oh wow."

	"Are you okay?"  Shelby asked, pushing himself up.  The kid's face had gone
blank, and he was worried that he might've hit his head or something.
"Hello?"  He waved his hand in front of the kid's eyes.

	Pogo blinked and realized what he was doing.  "God, I'm so stupid."  He
jumped up and brushed himself off.  "I'm really sorry, man.  I'm a clutz."

	"From what I saw at the park, I'd say that's bogus."  Shelby chuckled and
tugged his shirt straight.  "It was like watching a pro."

	"Thanks."  Pogo blushed.

	"I'm Shelby Martin."  Shelby put out his hand.  "Do you live here?"

	"Yeah."  Pogo shook his hand.  "Kenny Stanten, but everybody calls me
Pogo."  For the first time in forever, Kenney was intensely aware of someone
being attractive, and for the first time in a long time, he was totally
unable to shut it out.  He could feel himself beginning to sweat.

	"Cool, Pogo.  Good to meet you."  Shelby flashed an award winning traffic
stopper of a smile, totally unaware of what it was doing to the other, and
started back up the stairs.  "Got get going.  See ya 'round, kid."

	"Yeah."  Pogo waved halfheartedly and offered a pathetic smile as he
watched Shelby climb the stairs.  He turned hurriedly and went the rest of
the way down.  "I am such a fucking idiot."  He murmured as he headed for
the bike rack and the store for his mother.  He stopped at their apartment
on the ground floor and grabbed his jacket.




	Shelby stacked two laundry baskets on top of each other, put the soap in
one and his keys in the other, and headed down to the laundry room.  He had
changed into what he thought of as his work sweats, a battered pair of
cotton sweat pants that had started out dark blue and were now grayish blue,
and a yellow t-shirt.  He pulled the door closed and checked it before
heading down the stairs.

	The laundry room was deserted although he could hear other machines
running.  How people could leave things down here unattended was beyond him.
  He hated the idea of someone stealing his or Koby's shit, and he never
left the laundry unguarded.

	After sorting the colors and whites from the towels, he started the
machines and climbed onto one of them, curling his legs under himself after
kicking off his shoes.  He'd brought a book down, fantasy this time, and was
lost in it quickly.  He never heard anyone come in.

	The heat and humidity were almost relaxing, and the steady sound of the
machines could be hypnotic at times.  He breezed through a couple of
chapters before changing the loads and putting two of them in the dryer.
The door opened behind him, letting a cool breeze loose on his bear feet.
He turned around to see who it was and shook his head with a smile.

	"Oh.  Hey, Shelby."  Pogo said nervously as he pulled the door closed
behind him.  "I didn't know you were down here."

	"Wassup, young man?"  Shelby smiled and climbed back up on his washing
machine.  "Out doing some laundry?"

	"Yeah.  I have a competition this weekend."  Pogo blushed, embarrassed and
not wanting to pull his gym leotard out of his basket or any of his other
clothes for that matter.  For some reason he didn't want Shelby to see them.

	"What kind of competition?"  Shelby picked up him book but really wasn't
interested in it any more.

	"Uh, I do Gymnastics."  Pogo said, avoiding those incredible eyes.

	"That explains your performance at the park."  Shelby look over at him.
"Bet you're pretty good, right?"

	"Kinda."  Pogo smiled and set his basket on the table at the end of the
machines.  There were a total of five machines, and Shelby sat on the second
from the end and had two machines going.  The one on the end nearest him was
out of order, which meant that unless he left, Shelby would see everything
he'd brought down.  Why that bothered him, he didn't know, but it did.

	"Win any awards?"  Shelby asked, tossing his book over onto the other table
and leaning back on his hands.  He watched as Pogo started putting clothes
in the washer and inadvertently ran his eyes over the kid's body.  Guilt
washed over him and he looked away.

	"A couple last year.  This year I've concentrated on the mascot."  He
smiled slightly, proud of his fame and embarrassed by it at the same time.

	"The mascot?"  Shelby asked, unable to make the connection.

	"Uh, I'm the Beaumont Badger, you know, the purple guy at the football
games?"  Pogo blushed and laughed.  "I get thrown in the air a lot by the
other guys."

	"Oh yeah!"  Shelby chuckled.  "I went to homecoming with my dad a few weeks
ago.  You were awesome."  He sat up and held his hands out like Superman.
"Dude, when they tossed you over the crowd, I couldn't believe it.  You
never missed a landing."

	"Thanks."  Pogo put his gym suit in and his collection of jockstraps and
started the machine.  "I really like it.  It stretches my abilities, and we
always try to think up something new."  He hesitated for a second, then
pulled off his t-shirt and tossed it in the wash too.

	"You must have to work out all the time to handle those vaults and shit."
Shelby tried to not be to obvious as he noticed Pogo's unbelievably ripped
chest and abs.  "You're built like a little tank."

	"Over an hour a day."  Pogo sighed and climbed up onto his own machine.
"It's the only way I can keep my routine down."

	"Man, you're more dedicated than I've ever been."  Shelby shook his head.
"With all that work, what do you do to relax?"

	"Go to the park and play Frisbee."  Pogo chuckled.  "Did you see my face
basher?"

	"No."  Shelby grinned.  "What happened?"

	"Um, well, I looked over at this guy and this little kid, and well, I kinda
wasn't paying attention.  I caught the Frisbee with my left eyebrow."  Pogo
lifted his bangs with his hand and showed the small bruise off.

	"You mean me and Koby?"  Shelby laughed out loud.  "He kept screaming on
the slide.  I'm sorry, man."

	"Koby, is that the boy's name?"  Pogo asked.

	"Yeah, he's my son.  He's almost six."  Shelby said with quiet pride.

	"Are you married?"

	"No.  I was."  Shelby looked at his hands, not wanting to get into it.
"She died."

	"Oh.  Sorry."   Pogo watched as Shelby got up to change batches again.
Damn, he thought, he's straight, was married, and has a kid.  For some
reason that was hugely disappointing.  Shelby was very attractive, and it
would've been cool to at least fantasize about him, but that was hard when
you knew too much.

	"Don't get married, kid.  Mess around a lot and stay young."  Shelby said
somewhat bitterly, realizing that if he'd been true to himself, he would've
tried to meet someone like Pogo a long time ago instead of being guilty all
the time.  That thought made him angry, and he stuffed it aside.

	"I doubt I'll ever get married."  Pogo muttered, then realized what he
said.  He jerked his head up and met those ice blue maximum intensity eyes
and went furiously red.  "I mean, I have plans and stuff."

	"So did I."  Shelby pulled clothes out of the dryer and started folding
them, still feeling anger and regret in the pit of his stomach.  "You know
what I regret?"  He asked, not looking up.  "I regret not being myself
instead of creating a fake front.  Know what I mean, Pogo?"  He didn't wait
for an answer before continuing.  "I think you should be yourself no matter
what."

	"Yeah, that'd be cool."  Pogo turned around and noticed that Shelby's face
wasn't as good humored as his voice sounded.  "Save a lot of pain, wouldn't
it?"

	Shelby looked at Pogo and smiled.  "You know, you're wise beyond your
years, kid."  He shook his head and started loading the folded clothes into
the baskets.  "So tell me about this competition."  He said, changing the
subject.  "Are you any good?"

	"Good enough."  Pogo sat up straighter and smirked, his comfortable persona
slipping into place.  "Wanna come and see?  It's tomorrow at ten in the high
school gym."

	"I'd like too," Shelby met his eyes and grinned, "But I have to work at
six.  If you have another one give me a heads up and I'll see if I can be
there."

	"Deal."  Pogo grinned.  Later that night after he got into bed, he couldn't
get Shelby out of his mind.  He let his inner sight and memory wander, going
over every detail again from Shelby's eyes to the way his muscles defined
the fabric of his clothes.  Without realizing it, he began to masturbate,
letting the image in his mind travel into erotic waters, something he hadn't
had happen in a long time.  He moaned quietly as the dream Shelby caressed
his chest and face, his perfect body revealed by imagination.  They came
together, loudly groaning and urging each other on.  With a jerk, Pogo was
suddenly aware of his impending orgasm and he tightened up almost into a
ball, shooting into the sheets.

	Shelby put away the clothes that he had washed and got in the shower.
After he finished, he straightened the small two-bedroom apartment and put
away Koby's toys.  In the back of his mind, he watched an imagined gymnastic
routine with Pogo as its star.

	It had been so long since he'd even thought about being attracted to
someone that it surprised him when he figured it out.  He replayed their
conversation in his head as he stripped and got into bed, wondering if he
was leading too much into what Pogo had said verses what he actually meant.
As he drifted off, he watched Pogo take his shirt off in the laundry room
and kept his eyes on that beautiful chest and abs as Pogo moved around the
room.  It led to an intensely erotic dream.

	When Shelby woke up at 4:30 am to the sound of the alarm, he found himself
in a still damp set of sheets that were soaked with his own semen.  The
pungent aroma wafted out of the covers as he got up, and he felt ashamed as
he irritably snatched a pair of his bikini briefs from the drawer and went
in to shower again.  The kid was a KID for Christ's sake, not even
seventeen.  His mood was foul for the next several hours.

	The weather was unseasonably hot for October, nearly 70, and the crew at
the lumberyard moved several stacks of various building materials and
straightened them.  The yard was swept and organized, and everyone was
pleased with the days work.

	Shelby stopped at the grocery store and got the fixings for tacos, homemade
pizza, hamburgers, and the like.  Koby was not a finicky eater, but demanded
variety, and Shelby liked to cook.  When Kayla was alive, he always cooked
the evening meal, happy to do something for her.

	The store had a video section, and he stopped and rented Shrek for the
Brat, and Detroit Rock City for himself, quietly wondering in the back of
his mind if maybe Pogo might like to come up and see it.  Wishful thinking,
he decided, and headed to the check out.

	He opened the third door to his truck, a 99' Ford F-150 that he and Kayla
had picked out together, and loaded the three bags into the back seat.  It
was a short drive home, during which he called the Davenports and talked to
Koby, and called his own parents just to check in and see if things were
cool.

	At the apartment complex, he grabbed the bags with one hand and reached for
the videos with the other.  He wasn't paying attention to what was going on
around him and was startled when someone called his name.  He looked up to
see Pogo sitting in a lawn chair outside a ground floor apartment in a pair
of spandex workout shorts and a worn nylon tank top.  His foot was propped
up on the railing and looked like it was wrapped in an ace wrap.

	Shelby walked towards him and tilted his head, looking at the ankle and up
at Pogo.  "Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you tumbler types supposed to
be graceful?"  He laughed as he approached.

	Pogo chuckled and shook his head.  "The dumb fucker that put the mats out
didn't check 'em."  He raised his foot and pointed at it.  "When I landed I
hit the wood floor.  It's only a sprain."

	"Sounds like you need to adjust someone's attitude.  Did they call your mom
to take you to the doctor?"  Shelby asked.

	"No, she's at work.  The school nurse wrapped it."  Pogo readjusted it on
the railing.  "Mom couldn't be there.  She's working the fuel desk at the
truck stop. She'll be late tonight."

	Shelby sighed and smiled, coming up with an idea.  "In that case, why don't
you come and keep me company.  I rented videos."  He was careful not to let
his eyes wander.

	"That'd be great!"  Pogo's face lit up.  He stood up and grabbed the
crutches leaned in the corner by the door.  "It'll take me a minute,
though."

	"Bullshit.  Hold these."  Shelby held out the bags and the kid took them.

	"What're you gonna do?"  Pogo asked and then grinned.  "Oh no you don't.  I
don't want to be...Ooof!"  The air whooshed out of him as Shelby swept in
and threw him over his shoulder in a fireman's carry.  "Carried.  Oh, God."

	"Just don't drop the bags or the crutches."  Shelby said and headed up the
three flights of stairs.

	Pogo closed his eyes and desperately wished he'd worn a jock. He had
nothing on under the stretch shorts and the motion of his crotch against
Shelby's shoulder was almost unbearable, and striving so hard to avoid a
physical reaction, he started giggling.

	"What's funny?"  Shelby breathed hard under the weight, stopping at the
door to his apartment.

	"I never had a guy sweep me off my feet before."  Pogo dissolved into fits
of laughter.  "And I only knew you two days.  Jesus!"

	Shelby chuckled and set the videos on Pogo's back.  "Don't move for a
second."  He fished in his pocket for the keys and opened the door, catching
the videos as they slipped off the kid's back.  "Almost there."

	Pogo looked down at the ground and saw his neighbor's three year old
pointing up at him, and he waved, laughing harder.  "This is so fucking
cool."

	Shelby set him on his good foot and took the bags, shaking his head as Pogo
held his sides.  "I'm glad I cheered you up."

	"Dude, you have no idea."  He followed Shelby to the couch and sat down.
"I love odd ball shit like this.  My friends think I'm demented."

	Shelby carried the bags into the kitchen and set them on the counter,
looking out at his guest.  "Maybe that's why we met.  Maybe God thinks I'm
to serious."

	"You just packed my ass up three flights of stairs with three grocery bags
and two videos, my crutches, and we didn't drop anything.  Shelby, that's
fucking hysterical."  Pogo cracked up again.

	"I'm trying to loosen up, that's all."  Shelby grinned and tossed a Twinkie
at Pogo.  "Put that in your mouth, dumb ass, so it can have something to
do."

	"God, man, you are the shit."  Pogo said, reaching for the Twinkie.
"You're too cool, Shel."

	Shelby's head jerked up and he stared at Pogo, almost lost.  "What did you
say?"  He muttered.

	Pogo looked up from the pastry.  "I said you're too cool."  He said,
concerned that he'd done something to kill the mood.

	"No, I mean what did you call me?"  Shelby leaned against the counter
feeling almost dizzy.

	"Shel."  Pogo said quietly, his face going beet red.  "Is that okay?"

	Shelby smiled wistfully and his eyes sort of unfocused.  "I haven't heard
that for a long time."

	"Shelby," Pogo said after a moment, "Are you okay?"  He was really getting
wierded out.

	Shelby literally shook his head and blinked.  "Oh, shit, Pogo.  I'm sorry."
  He smiled and ran his hand through his hair.  "I haven't been called that
forever.  It's cool, it just shocked me.  I didn't mean to phase on you like
that."

	Pogo sat for a minute and let his mind race.  Something had just happened,
like a door opening or something, and he didn't want to miss it.  He fought
his way up off the couch and hobbled over to one of the stools on the
opposite side of the counter.  "Can I ask you a personal question?"

	"I guess, but I don't promise to answer."  Shelby looked over his shoulder
for a second, then went back to putting boxes up in the cupboard.

	"Why do you think you and I met?"  Pogo asked directly, looking to meet
Shelby's eyes.

	"Because I was at the park and you were playing Frisbee."  Shelby looked at
him quizzically.  "Did I miss something?"

	"Dude, I've been at that park a thousand times, and I'll bet you and your
son go there a lot, right?  So what changed?  Why did we meet?  Pogo leaned
forward intensely, almost looking like a wide-eyed kid.  "This bugged the
shit out of me all night last night."

	Shelby thought about his stained sheets and looked away, remembering his
own thoughts.  "I guess I'm lost, Kenny.  What are you getting at?"

	Pogo laced his fingers and squeezed hard, trying to bring his thoughts into
line.  "We met only like eighteen hours ago, man, and I feel like I've known
you my whole life.  You laugh at the right times, you fit, you know what I
mean?"

	"Pogo, you are way intense, do you know that?"  Shelby leaned down on his
elbows and looked into Pogo's large hazel eyes.  "Do you want me to tell you
that a psychic set it up, or that Elvis did it?  What do you mean?"

	"Augh!"  Pogo lifted his hands with his fingers splayed in frustration and
grunted.  "Don't you feel it, man?  It's like karma or kismet or something.
We're supposed to be here, you and me."

	"I hope so, or the guy that rents here will be pissed."  Shelby said dryly.
  Pogo looked at him and blinked, pursing his lips.  Shelby chuckled.
"Okay, I'm sorry.  Yeah, I guess I do feel something like that, okay?  Is
that what you wanted to hear?"  He turned back to the shopping bags.

	"Dude that is so bad.  I thought you were gonna blow a fuse."  Pogo
chuckled and leaned back.  Inwardly he sighed in relief.  If Shelby had
gotten upset, he'd of been out on his ass.  They made tacos together, with
Pogo watching the meat brown, and Shelby dicing up the veggies.

	"C'mon, Hop-along.  We can watch one of the movies while we eat."  Shelby
picked up their plates after preparing them and headed into the living room.
  He set them on the coffee table and helped Pogo get situated, then put
Detroit Rock City in the VCR.

	"I never saw this one."  Pogo said around a mouthful of taco.  It moved
quickly and was funny as hell.

	"It's one of my all time favorites.  I guess I ought to by it."  Shelby
answered.  He got up and went into the kitchen for drinks.  "Kind of ties in
with your psychic experience, doesn't it?"  He chuckled and dodged a corn
chip as it arced through the air at him.

	When it was over, Shelby turned off the TV and turned on the CD player with
the same remote.  An 80's station played quietly on the radio.  "I would've
loved to go on a road tri like that."  He said, leaning back into the couch.
  "Just pick up and go somewhere because it was the thing to do, you know?"

	"You're asking the wrong guy."  Pogo scratched his chest absentmindedly.
"I've never left this town except for competitions, and then we never saw
anything."  He looked over and scrunched up his eyebrows.  "Didn't your
family ever go on vacations and stuff?"

	Shelby nodded and smiled.  "I got to see Yellowstone and Mt. Rushmore.
When Kayla got pregnant we didn't get to go much anymore."

	"Have you dated anybody since she died?"  Pogo asked.

	Shelby's first reaction was irritation but it faded fast.  He really felt
comfortable with Pogo, and inwardly he sort of loosened up a little.  "No.
I really never wanted to."  He took a sip of the soda and set it down.
"What about you stud?  Surely a purty little guy like you's got lots of
phillies."

	Pogo cracked up.  "That's so cool!  You sounded like John Wayne.  Your
voice is perfect."  He chuckled and put his hand over his face.

	"Come on, pilgrim, spill yer guts."  Shelby said, effecting the
impersonation that he'd been famous for in school.  "Tell us about the
phillies."

	Pogo smiled uncomfortably and looked away.  "There isn't any phillies."  He
said behind a false smile.  He made a decision and looked up at his new
friend.  "I don't think there ever will be."

	Shelby caught the long fly ball into left field easily.  "You're gay?"  He
asked, making sure there was no malice behind it.  Pogo's face went red, but
he didn't look away.  He nodded at Shelby slowly.  Shelby thought long and
hard before looking down at his lap.  "Then you're in good company."

	"Does anybody know?"  Pogo asked, feeling like he needed to cry suddenly.
His throat constricted.

	"No."  Shelby looked up, wondering why the hell he'd just said what he had.
  He was angry, and he felt like an idiot.  "Listen, Kenny, this is probably
a bad road for us to go down, you know?  Maybe we should watch TV or
something."

	"It was supposed to happen."  Pogo said quietly.  "You can joke about it or
whatever, but I've waited for a long time to find somebody I could tell."
He started to get up from the couch.  "I couldn't carry it myself anymore."

	"Don't go."  Shelby stood up quickly put his hands on Pogo's shoulders.  "I
didn't mean to upset you."  He swallowed hard and nodded his head.  "Yeah,
it is cool to have someone else know, but it could really fuck us over,
too."

	Pogo shook as he reached up and touched Shelby's face.  He could barely
control his hand as he gently stroked Shelby's cheek.  "I never told anybody
what I told you.  Please tell me I didn't fuck up."

	Shelby's eyes closed and he leaned his head against Pogo's hand, feeling an
electric charge run down his spine.  "You didn't.  I did."  He reached up
and took Pogo's hand.  "I never should've led you on."

	Pogo's eyes teared up.  "Anybody ever tell you you talk to much?"  He
whispered.  The corner of his mouth curled up, and he reached up and pulled
Shelby down into a kiss.  Time slowed for them and stopped as their lips
met.  Pogo's tongue gently caressed Shelby's lips, and after a slight
hesitation, he opened them to feel Pogo's tongue on his, weaving and dancing
in and out.

	After several minutes, Shelby leaned back and panted, stroking Pogo's bangs
out of his eyes.  "Uh, not that this is a bad thing, but parts of you are
way past excited."  He grinned and ran the back of his hand up the front of
Pogo's spandex shorts, feeling the bulging hardness there.

	Pogo felt much bolder and reached out the grasp Shelby through his jeans,
excited by the size and length he found.  "Then I'm in good company."  He
said, smiling and gently mocking Shelby.

	"There's still time to stop and part friends."  Shelby half teased, turning
his hand around to grasp Pogo in the same manner.

	Pogo chuckled.  "I begged God for this the second I saw your eyes at the
park, Shel."

	Shelby looked deeply into Pogo's hazel eyes, then reached down to scoop him
up in his arms.  "Can't have you hurting your ankle, can we?"  He bent in
and kissed the kid again, slower this time, and less forcefully.

	They made it into the bedroom, and Shelby set Pogo on his feet.  "I am so
out of practice, man, you have no idea."  He said nervously.

	Pogo chuckled and whipped his shirt off, revealing his absolutely perfect
body, every inch carved as though by a sculptor.  "I have no practice, but I
wanna learn real bad."  He threw his arms around Shelby's neck and kissed
him.

	While they kissed, Shelby's hands slid down across Pogo's back and gently
under the waistband of his shorts, feeling the smoothness of his ass.  Pogo
moaned and intensified his tongue frenzy in Shelby's mouth.  Finally Shelby
pulled away and took a deep breath.  "Holy shit."  He gasped.

	Pogo tugged at Shelby's t-shirt and lifted it off, running his eyes over
Shelby's tight six-pack and hairless chest.  His pecs were square, just like
he'd envisioned, and small dark nipples stared back at him.  He couldn't
help it.  He leaned in and licked one several times, thrilling when Shelby
moaned.

	"Okay you little shit, no more playing around."  Shelby smiled a wolf's
smile and unbuckled his jeans and stepped out of them.  He stood into front
of Pogo in a pair of emerald green bikinis, a raging hard on clearly visible
and barely restrained.

	Pogo got a huge shit-eating grin on his face and turned to climb on the
bed.  He rolled onto his back and raised his legs up, pushing the spandex
down and off.  Shelby climbed onto the bed on his knees and helped get the
short off, careful of the ace wrapped ankle.  Pogo pushed himself up to the
pillows and grinned, and Shelby had to stop and gaze in wonder.  "You are
the most gorgeous thing I have ever seen in my life."  He said quietly,
awed.

	Pogo blushed and sat up, placing the palm of his hand flat against Shelby's
cock.  "Take them off."  He whispered.  "I need to see you, Shel."

	Shelby nodded and rolled onto his back, flicking the briefs down and off
with a long unused skill, and tossing them of the bed.  He slid up to where
Pogo was and propped himself on one elbow, raising his leg for a pose.  "Is
it what you were expecting?"  He asked in a whisper.

	Pogo leaned into Shelby's embrace, totally losing himself in the moment.
He felt Shelby's strong hand on his cock, and he grunted as he began to
slide it up and down.  Pogo closed his eyes and let Shelby push him over
onto his back, already feeling the current build inside his body.

	Then Shelby's mouth closed over him and he squealed.  "Oh fuck!"  Hurriedly
he slipped around so that he could get to Shelby.  They began to work
together, trying to stay in rhythm with each other.  Pogo knew that he was
going to hit much sooner than Shelby, and he was having a hard time
concentrating.  "Uughngh."  He tried to articulate, but his nerves were over
heating fast.  A bright light flashed, and he arched up off the bed and
gritted his teeth, losing control.  "Augh!  Unghn! Oh!"  He grunted as each
successive pulse of his body shot his cum deep into Shelby's throat.

	Shelby swallowed fast, amazing himself with his ability to do a decent
blowjob.  He'd never done one, and it wasn't that hard.  Pogo shakily moved
around so that their faces were back together and pushed Shelby on to his
back, climbing onto his chest and collapsing.  "Dude, you are my God.  I
worship you."

	"You're pretty hot yourself."  Shelby chuckled and kissed him, sharing the
interesting flavor.  Their cocks touched as Pogo settled, and he looked into
Shelby's eyes.  "I'm sorry I couldn't finish you right away.  I didn't last
very long."

	"This isn't a contest, and I kinda really like the feel I'm getting right
now."  Shelby said.  Pogo smiled and began to gently move back and forth.
Shelby felt the vibrations begin again in his groin, and he closed his eyes.
  Their fluids were acting as a lube.  "That's nice."

	Pogo lifted his up and grinned impishly at Shelby's closed eyes.  He
concentrated, timing it just right, and lifted up, carefully sliding just a
few inches farther up.  Shelby's eyes opened as his cock popped up over
Pogo's balls and came to rest between his ass cheeks.  "What are you doing?"
  He asked with a smirk.

	Pogo feigned innocence.  "Nothing dude, just falling in love, that's all."
He reached back and guided Shelby forward, hesitating for only a fraction of
a second, then pushing back suddenly, feeling Shelby's slippery head pop
into his ass.  He winced.

	"Kenny, you don't need to do that."  Shelby tried to change positions and
back out, but Pogo's steel cable muscles clamped down tight.

	"Only for the man I love."  Pogo whispered and pushed again, forcing Shelby
the rest of the way in.  As soon as it was done, the pain subsided, and he
put his head on Shelby's chest.  "Made it."

	"Are you okay?"  Shelby asked.  It had been painful for him, too, but it
was incredible now.  Pogo lifted his head up and smiled, licking his lips.
He slowly slid forward, and Shelby shivered as he slid lowly out, almost to
the tip, then back in as Pogo slid back.  It took several minutes for them
to build up any speed, and at some point, Shelby realized that Pogo was
raging hard again.

	He reached up and wrapped his arms around Pogo, stopping his motions, then
flipped over suddenly so that Pogo was on the bottom.  He immediately began
pumping his hips, picking up where they'd stopped.  From this position, he
could get a grip on Pogo's cock, and soon they were in rhythm again.

	This time, it was like a runaway train hitting them.  Shelby felt his
stomach cramp almost painfully, and he knew that he was seconds away.  There
was so much pre-cum on Pogo that it was dripping off his hand, and Pogo
thrashed from side to side.  "Augh!"  He shouted and rabbit fucked load
after load into Pogo's ass.  Pogo blew, sending strings six feet into the
air to crash back down all over both of them.  Shelby could barely hold
himself up as he slid out, his arms shaking.  He fell on his side and held
out his arms for Pogo to fall into.  It was too much of a hassle to get
under the covers.  Shelby pulled the comforter over them before passing out
cold.  Pogo was already long gone.

	Shelby woke up because his ass was cold and gently slid out from under Pogo
just enough to adjust the covers.  He glanced at the alarm clock and
groaned.  It was almost midnight.  "Pogo, wake up."  He shook the kid
gently.  "Hey, it's almost midnight, man.  Wake up."

	Pogo jerked his head up and blinked at Shelby.  After a few seconds he
smiled and dropped his head on Shelby's chest.  "It was real."  He mumbled
thickly.  "I thought I was dreamin' or something."

	Shelby chuckled and put his head back onto the pillows.  He stroked Pogo's
head and neck softly and closed his eyes.  It had been like a dream, and he
could remember every exquisite detail.  "Pogo, what time does your mom get
home?  She might be pissed off if you're gone."

	Pogo inhaled deeply and stretched his legs out, then looked up at Shelby
again.  "Dude, she'll get home about two.  I stay at a friend's place a lot
so I don't wake her up."  He twisted towards the nightstand and grabbed the
phone, dialing almost without looking.  He rested his head on Shelby's chest
as it rang.  "Mom, this is Kenny.  I'm at a friend's so you can sleep.  Love
ya."  He hung up the phone.  "Ta da."

	"Are you hungry?"  Shelby asked with a yawn.

	"Maybe."  Pogo blinked at him a couple of times.  "If you wake me all the
way up, though, you're asking for a rematch."

	Shelby laughed and kissed his forehead.  "I can live with that threat."  He
slid out from under the covers and looked for his underwear, thought about
it, and left them, walking into the living room naked.  Pogo bounded off the
bed and hopped out behind him, grabbing one of his crutches on the way to
the kitchen.

	They dispatched two large bowls of Cheerios and drank some juice at the
table.  Pogo crunched away and swallowed, resting his head on the palm of
his hand.  "If I tell you something, will you promise not to laugh?"  Shelby
nodded, and he went on.  "I dreamed about tonight a long time ago, like
deja' vu, you know?"

	Shelby nodded.  "I wish you'd been around six years ago.  Things would've
been a lot different."

	Pogo laughed.  "I was, Shel, but I was eleven."

	"That's not what I meant."  He smirked at Pogo.  "Can I ask you something?"
  His face went red, but he was intensely curious.  "What did it feel like
when I was inside you?"

	Pogo set his spoon in the bowl and grinned.  "I wish I could feel like that
all the time.  It hurt real bad at first, like I was ripping, but them it
went away."  He looked down at the table and chuckled.  "Every time you
moved, it was like a zap or a throb or something.  I want to do it again,
you know, like everyday for the rest of my life."

	Shelby laughed out loud and leaned back.  "You are the greatest person I've
ever met, you know that?"

	Pogo breathed out through his nose and locked onto Shelby's unbelievable
eyes.  "So how do you feel about me?"  He asked quietly.

	Shelby returned the gaze and felt his heart miss a beat.  "Like I could
spend everyday with you for the rest of my life."  He smiled slightly and
touched Pogo's hand.  "I fee like I'm out of a prison or something."

	Pogo slid his chair back and stood up, carefully limping around the table
to sit in Shelby's lap.  "I never felt like I was important to anybody."  He
wrapped his arms around Shelby's chest and rested his head on his shoulder.
"You make me feel like I'm important."

	"Yeah."  Shelby slid his arms under Pogo and picked him up easily.  "I'm
not hungry anymore, are you?"  He headed down the hall.

	"Not for food."  Pogo leaned in and kissed him, nearly causing them to
crash into the bedroom doorframe.

	It was a long night.