Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 17:59:49 -0700 (PDT)
From: T. Chase McPhee <survivalgame@yahoo.com>
Subject: ROAD TRIP   losers and winners

The story below is a work of fiction, set in the
format of reality. Any resemblances to real people,
alive or in the hereafter, is entirely coincidental in
nature. It is not meant to accurately reflect upon
persons, in towns, cities, nor governmental areas,
which the story is stages. If a sexual scene involving
male-to-male relationships offences you, then you
should not read this story. Additionally, if you are
under 18 years of age, in most state and countries,
you are not allowed to read this story, by law. Check
with your local laws regarding such. Sexual safety
matters. This is fiction. Use protection, in real
life.

ROAD TRIP   losers and winners
wriTten by T. Chase McPhee

%

Second day in a row, one of Robbie's linguistic
classes had a sign hanging up on the door,
`cancelled'.

"Like we're paying big bucks for nothing?"

"Topher! How's it going man?" Robbie turned, standing
face to face with his fellow classmate.

"It's going," Topher replied, not too enthused.

Nodding towards the door, the sign, Robbie inquires,
"I was heading over to the hospital after class. Want
to take a ride?"

"Sure," the eighteen year old agrees.

Keying the ignition, they head out of the university
parking lot, Robbie getting a hand wave from Adam,
manning the security booth. For a few moments the cab
of Robbie's Uplander is silent except for the hum of
the engine and two guys breathing.

"So what's on your mind?" Robbie asks, turning off
College Drive, onto the Cedar Ridge Road, the main
drag.

"I don't want to burden you with my problems, Robbie."

"Maybe I want to be burdened." He hints Topher,
stepping on the gas after the only light on Cedar
Ridge, the crossroad leading to the interstate. "That
is if I'm not prying."

"You're not prying." Still with an edge to his
attitude, Topher says, "Other than you there's nobody
I know who I feel comfortable talking with."

"Is that so?" Robbie replies, paying attention to the
traffic ahead, brakes lights coming on in succession
til they reach him. Given the time, he looks over to
Topher, seeing him in a different light, the dark mood
showing on his face, totally unlike the mood when he
gave him a lift. "The longer you hold your worries
inside, the more it's going to eat at you, Toph."

"Hey, I'm the psych major here," he say more
uplifting, then sinking back down, "not that I chose
to be."

"Oh, so somebody else... your parents maybe, are
pressing you into a career you don't want to pursue?"

"You better go," Topher alerts Robbie to the car
spacings in front of him, traffic moving along.

After letting up on the brake, Robbie replies,
"Thanks."

Without pressure, Topher gripes, "My life is such a
screwed up, complicated mess." Then as Robbie turns
into Eskridge General, "Yeah, this is what I need
alright. Do they have a mental ward?"

Sensing something deeper than he can handle, Robbie
replies, "I'm sure they have qualified professionals
if it has come to that."

"I don't know," Topher sighs, exhaling with the cut
off engine, as they pull into a parking lot space.

Lifting the lid of Topher's baseball cap, Robbie
strongly suggests, "C'mon. Let's see what we can find
out."

Still bonded to his seat by the belt, Robbie takes his
leave, walking around to the passenger side, opening
the door. He holds it open for a moment, then says,
"Y'know there are better ways with handling problems.
The easiest way out is not always the best choice."

A hand to Topher's face, running down from forehead to
chin, suddenly reveals tear stains down his cheeks.

Rapidly, Robbie's heart starts beating, thinking his
inner thoughts and presumptions could have been
correct, Topher being so deeply rooted in his own
problems, the only out being terminating himself.
Reaching over him, Robbie unclicks the seatbelt. It
zips across Topher's lap and rescinds to its hiding
place. "C'mon, bud," he slowly helps his classmate out
of the SUV. When his feet hit ground, a natural
occurance, they embrace, Topher now weeping.

Between the tears, Topher confesses, "I... I never
knew anybody... never had somebody I could talk to
like you, Robbie."

Kicking the door shut, Robbie slung Topher's arm over
the back of his shoulders, the other around his waist,
as if his bud was drunk. "We're gonna get you some
help, so don't you worry." Robbie's empathetic
feelings were showing through, a natural instinct to
help out a guy in trouble.

When they entered through the emergency doors, on his
way out, Anthony asks, "What happened to your friend?"
His attention swerved back and forth from Robbie to
Topher.

"I got him," Robbie said, Anthony turning and walking
with them to the interior.

"What do you need?" Anthony asked.

"A behavior health professional, if they have one
handy," Robbie spoke for Topher.

Not too often has Anthony pawned his father's
kindness, regarding donating a wing to the hospital,
but lots of times it's worked the other way around,
him having a sort of `prestige' when sighted at
Eskridge General.

"Can I help you Mr. Torricelli?" the attendant
inquires, folding his `Instinct' magazine in half,
looking alert to his duties.

As if a doctor, Anthony orders up, "We need a
psychiatrist, stat!"

"One sec," he said, glancing to Topher as he picks up
the phone.

While cluing Topher in his swimming coach, Robbie
doesn't totally ignore the cover of the `Instinct'
magazine, plus the guy who was reading it, the same
nurse whom he met attending to Barry, Rashid Yacouba.

Reading from the computer, Rashid switches from phone
to screen, then back to the phone, punching a button
then paging, "Dr. Kiiski to the emergency desk." Then
he repeated himself before telling them, "Dr. Kiiski
is a practicing physician on staff here. If it wasn't
his first day, you would probably have to wait til Dr.
Monroe gets here."

"Someone needing my help?"

Silence prevailed as heads turned to the far side of
the desk. Most likely only Topher and himself heard
it, as Robbie mouthed, "Wow."

Putting business before pleasure, Anthony says, "This
man," though he wasn't sure the teen measured up to a
man at this point, but let the title hang, "needs
medical attention."

"And you are?" Dr. Kiinski sideswipes Anthony, taking
Robbie's hand.

"It's not me. Him," Robbie passes the honor of
touching the blond, Danish bombshell's hand, though at
this moment he wishes he were the patient.

Right away, Kiinski detects something terribly wrong
with Topher upon greeting him with a handshake. Not
letting go, he looks over his shoulder, telling
Rashid, "Admit Mr...."

Robbie offers, informing not only Rashid, but also Dr.
Kiinski and Anthony, "Cristan. Topher Cristan."

Even though the picture of a serious, caring attitude
portrayed Dr. Kiinski at this moment, he did manage to
crack a little smile, staring at Topher, but adding
direction, "Rashid, admit Mr. Cristan, please."

"The psychiatric wing?"

"Not at this time, but make sure there is an empty bed
just in case, will you?"

"Yes, sir," Rashid replied, setting up a file on his
computer.

Robbie and Anthony glanced at one another, both aware
of the fact Dr. Kiinski and Topher still grasped each
other's hand.

"We're going to take good care of you here, Mr.
Cristan," Dr. Kiinski offered, moving to Topher's
right side, relieving Robbie of his task, ushering his
friend into the hospital. Placing his left arm behind
Topher, a hand to the back of his left shoulder, he
leads him away from the desk, moving between it and
Anthony. "Excuse me...."

"Anthony Torricelli," he says.

"And I'm Robbie Sinclair," Robbie gets his dibs in.

"Mr. Torricelli, sir. Yes, it is indeed a pleasure to
meet you," Dr. Kiinski replied, though not breaking
his hold on Topher to add the formal greeting. Robbie
got a nice little smile from the doctor.

Over his computer, Rashid bellows, "Room 24."

"That's Barry's room!" Robbie exclaims.

Kiinski turns back to Rashid and asks, "Don't we have
an empty?"

"Sorry sir, but with the bus accident day before
yesterday, we're up to our necks in little kids."

"Bus accident?" Anthony questioned Rashid.

While the swim coach chatted with the desk nurse,
Robbie excused himself with, "I'm going to check up on
Barry."

"I better too," Anthony abruptly ended his
conversation with a short version of the elementary
bus school accident.

"But I thought you were on your way out, Mr.
Torricelli?"

"I was!" Anthony replies, heading around the desk,
disappearing into the hallway.

Rashid just smiled, knowing why Anthony decided to
remain. After all, Rashid couldn't put down another
gay man for `noticing' the new eyecandy around the
hospital. He grinned thinking of when Dr. Kiinski
entered the hospital this morning. With introductions,
he was glad he stood behind the counter, his boner
poking at the underside of the wooden fortress
surrounding him. He reminisced of the latter half of
the `Instinct' magazine, an article depicting some men
dressed up in leather, some masters, others slaves. He
fantasized of Dr. Kiinski decked out in chaps, boots
and harness, tearing his codpiece open and him on his
knees taking care of his hefty tool.

"Rats!" Robbie said, entering the door to room 24
after Dr. Kiinski drew the curtain, dividing the room
in half, hiding himself and Topher behind it.

"Robbie! Did you see?"

"I saw... I saw," he said, walking over to the side of
Barry's bed. With a look of wanting to know, Robbie
says, "That's my friend Topher. Remember I told you I
gave him a lift?"

"Cute, but who's the doctor? I haven't seen him around
here before."

As Robbie is filling Barry in, Anthony invites himself
in. Being a smart aleck, he says, "Won't it be nice
being with Dr. Kiinski behind the curtain?"

Quite seriously, at least it seemed so, Barry tells
him, "And what would Roberto say to that?"

Robbie giggled, Anthony seriously trying to lie his
way out of that one!

After Robbie explained about Topher, Robbie says to
Barry, "Nice of you coach to stop by and see you."

Not meaning to make a federal case out of it, Barry
renders, "Oh well, if he didn't bring Edwin in to the
emergency room, he probably would have never stopped
in!"

Anthony pleaded on the mercies of the court, stating
he would have make a trip at the end of his work day.

In the mean time, Robbie asks, "What happened to
Edwin?"

"I don't believe they have to keep him overnight
because he got his hand caught in a hurdle," Anthony
fills them in.

"Wow! That could've been me!" Barry replies.

They both laugh out loud when Anthony states, "It
could've been his dick!"

Of course they wanted to know all the details of how
Edwin, preparing the cart in the shed, had a guy bent
over an open hurdle and how it gave way, the guy up
front getting one helluva fuck when the two fell
forward, Edwin's hand getting sandwiched in between
the folding hurdle.

"Not funny," Anthony curbed their laughter. "The boy
could've lost his fingers. Yep, he's a very lucky
young man."

"I guess," Robbie covered for the two of them as they
regained their sanity.

Breaking from the threeway conversation, Robbie skirts
around the edge of the bed, confronting Dr. Kiinski as
he opens the curtain. "How's Topher doing?" he asks,
seeing his friend laying calmly on the bed. "Hmm...
what did you do to him?"

"Just talked a bit. Uh, would you keep an eye on him
for a minute," Dr. Kiinski said, adding, "Seems like
the only person in the world he can trust is you."

"Me?" Robbie replied, his thumb pointing to his chest.


In response, the doctor replied, "Good thing you
brought him in. I hate to think what the recourse
might have been." Looking over to Topher, his buttoned
down shirt rising and falling to the air rapidly
inhaling and exhaling, Kiinski says, "You're a real
hero. Be back in a jiffy."

As Dr. Kiinski leaves, Barry yells out, "Hear that
coach? Robbie's a hero!"

"I hear," Anthony says, adding, "but he won't be such
a hero if we don't get moving back to Applegate. Swim
practice," he reminds Robbie, looking at him.

Silence comes over the room, until Barry dictates, "A
hero deserves a break once awhile, doesn't he coach?"

"I've been to every practice," Robbie responds,
defending himself, "I've never missed a competition."

Cracking a smile, Anthony says, "I suppose one absence
would not matter to a champion of your status."

Both thanked Anthony as he took leave. Later on he
`forgot' to fill in Robbie's absence in his planbook.

"Hey Robbie, you better go see what happened to Doc
Kiinski."

His gaze took him away from Topher, to look upon his
lover. "Okay, but you better come over here and sit by
him."

With some moans and groans Barry manages to sit up on
the edge of the bed. "I think I'm getting better."

"I think not," Robbie took the upper hand. "Back to
bed."

"I know," Barry came up with the perfect solution.
"See that red thingy?"

Robbie walked over to the wall, to where Barry
pointed. "This?"

"Give it a push. Somebody'll come running."

Sure enough, after Robbie's thumb deployed the red
button, a muscled guy comes rushing in.

"What's the emergency?" he barks out, two hefty pieces
of hospital machinery dangling from each hand.

For the second time this afternoon, Robbie is mouthing
the astounding word, "Wow!"

Right away he singles out Robbie, singling out Robbie,
setting the equipment down and walking towards him.

"I told him to do it, Travis," Barry informs him.

"You know him?" Robbie asks Barry, looking to the
side.

Not even sensing the approach of the fat-bicepped
nurse, Robbie gasps when Travis takes hold of his
scalp, snaps Robbie's head back, face-to-face says,
"What's the meaning of this boy?"

Of course Robbie, caught by total surprise, yet
intrigued by being talked down do, especially by a
muscle stud, fell right into the cross from reality to
fantasy, replying, "Um... for no reason sir?"

However, Barry wasn't too keen on it, whether fantasy
or not. With his blood boiling, he slings the sheet
aside, hops out of bed gives Travis good warning, but
without waiting, tosses his foot up into Travis'
pubes.

"Ooooooh fuckin' sheet!" Releasing Robbie's head, he
turns, bows to the door holding his big balls in both
hands. "Fuckin' damn it Barry!"

All Robbie could do is stand there, trying to figure
out who hurt the most, as Barry slowly hobbles back to
his bed. "Oh shit!" he responds to seeing the trail of
blood, a line painting the floor. "Now look what you
went and did!"

As Robbie helped Barry back to the bed, helping him
sit on the side, he yells to Travis, "It couldn't have
hurt that bad. He didn't even have shoes on!"

"Move aside..." Travis delayed, but for effect, said
to Robbie, "boy."

Standing there, helpless, he watched as Travis put
pressure on Barry's foot.

"Um, think instead of being useless you can go get
some help?" he addressed Barry.

Barry tore into Travis with, "He was being helpful in
the first place, you big baby, so go find your own
help!"

"Here," Travis instructed Robbie, "put some pressure
on this."

Then giving Robbie the once over, said as he left,
"I'll be right back."

As Robbie leaned on Barry's foot, blocking the flow of
blood outward pretty well, he inquired, "So you know
this Travis guy?"

"Yup. We got to talking this morning. He's a cool guy.
Y'know he's into bdsm?"

"No. Really? I wonder where he got the idea I was?"

Looking up into Barry's face, he could see the angelic
look.

"Um, I didn't mean to say anything. I know how you
said to keep it a secret."

He couldn't be angry at Barry even if he was acting.
Instead, he posed the question to his lover, "Kind of
nervy of you to kick Travis in the balls? Were you
acting or was it the real thing?"

"I was really mad at Travis. Especially after this
morning."

"Why? What happened this morning?"

"Nothing much," Barry replied, "except after I told
him..."

Seeing Barry reluctant to tell about breaking his oath
of secrecy, Robbie says, "It's obvious he knows about
me now, so?"

"I told him about you going to the party, but I didn't
mention names. Except you and Tino."

"Oh, so you dragged Tino into this too?"

"It wasn't any secret to Travis. He said he knew Tino
from med school."

"They both attended the same college?" Robbie
questioned, dividing his attention between Barry's
foot and conversation.

"Right. He said he knew all about Tino and playing
that bdsm fantasy game stuff."

"And?"

"Nothing. He asked me if you liked doing it. I told
him yes. After I told him what you told me about what
Tino did to you at the bdsm party, he asked me if he
could meet you."

Robbie, more excited over the prospects of Travis'
muscled grip on his scalp, asks, "So what else did he
say?"

"He asked me for permission to play with you."

"Way he talks, sounds like you're the master and I'm
the slave!"

"Yeah, but I told him I don't make a good master. I'm
not the image. He said I didn't look like it. See? I'm
not the only one who thinks so."

"Oh really? A few minutes ago one would never be able
to tell the difference." Then Robbie chuckled, saying,
"Imagine you, taking on that big muscled brute,
kicking him where the sun don't shine, almost driving
him to his knees!"

It did make Barry smile.

"So, is that it?"

Even though the bleeding had stopped, their
conversation did not. "Almost. In a roundabout way
Travis was getting at the possibilites of playing with
you."

"Really?" Robbie's eyes lit up.

"I told him okay, but he has to ask me first."

"Of course, sweetheart. After all, you're my master!"

The two exclaimed glances, each rolling a kiss off
their lips, to be met in thin air.

Then Barry confesses, "That's what got me ticked off.
He knew he did wrong, grabbing your hair."

Right after saying it, the two turned to the door as
brutish Travis says in a mellow tone, "Barry, I got a
big apology due you. I hope you'll forgive my
tresspassing with your..."

"Slaveboy?" Robbie filled in the blank, exchanging
smiles with Travis.

Furthering his apology, Travis offers Barry, "When you
get back on your feet you and I will get together and
settle the score, okay?"

"It doesn't matter," Barry responds.

Robbie asks, "Am I missing something here?"

First looking at Travis, then at Robbie, still bent on
one knee, Barry states, "It's not cool for a master to
do wrong to another master. What Travis is saying is I
get to punish him."

"That would prove interesting," Robbie said, looking
up at Travis, a vision of the perfect master.

"But instead, it might be cool if Travis shows you
some weightlifting stuff at the gym!"

Standing, Robbie now on Travis' level, he responds,
"Might be cool."

"Could prove to be very cool," Travis agrees, arms
folded across his big pecs, the short sleeves of his
hospital scrubs almost ready to burst from pressure
put on them by his biceps.

"But no fooling around unless you ask," Barry said,
sensing more could happen then a few pushups and
crunches.

"Sweat to God," Travis promised.

Barry kidded, threatening, "Or I'll get Tino after
you!"

"Oh no, no, no... as you can already tell, I'm not
into pain from the catcher's standpoint!"

It gave food for laughter, Robbie saying he would
still like to get in some swim practice. He was very
surprised when Travis, in the middle of caring for
Barry's foot, stopped, reached up, offered a
handshake, along with, "I'll be looking forward to
getting together and having some fun with you,
Robbie!"

"Yes, sir," Robbie replied, a squeeze to his
handshake, secretly acknowledging his offer.

%

2B continued...

Copyright 2008 T. Chase McPhee
This story may not be sold, nor made part of any
collection without prior written permission, by the
author.