Date: Tue, 29 Apr 2008 15:28:04 -0500
From: BRENT ARCHER <jakeschance@gmail.com>
Subject: JAKES CHANCE CHAPTER 13 GAY/CELEBRITY

"I'm not sure that I will ever get over it Jake, I'm still very hurt and
pissed that you would just throw me away the way that you did." I poured
some peanut oil in the wok and threw all the veggies In to start cooking.

I opened a can of refried beans and put aside. I made homemade fried rice a
few days ago so I grabbed that out of the fridge and set it on the counter.

I was having a hard time concentrating..  I was truly shaken to my core
that Jake was even here. I figured that I wouldn't see him again especially
after a few months had passed with no communication.

I turned and faced Jake asking "Why don't you set the table. The plates are
in the cupboard next to the sink and the silverware is right below. There
are cloth napkins in one of the drawers in the hutch."

I grabbed the sour cream and avocado's from the fridge. I was at the stove
again tending to the wok. The veggies were almost done so I put them on a
platter. I threw more oil in and added the chicken in. Once the chicken
started browning I added the veggies back to the wok. I let them cook for
about five minutes and dumped the whole thing onto a platter. I poured all
of the rice into the wok to warm as well as the refried beans. Once it was
warmed I dumped them in separate bowls and asked Jake to take everything to
the table. I quickly made some Guacamole and sat that on the table.

Looking at Jake I asked "What would you like to drink?"

"A beer would be great."

"I will be right back.. could you pour me a glass of milk please."

I started for the stairs as Jake asked "Where are you going?"

"The beers downstairs behind the bar in the beer cooler. I will be back in
a few seconds." I grabbed a few bottles just in case Jake decided that he
wanted more than one. I walked back up the stairs as Jake came out of the
kitchen with my milk.

"Where do you normally sit Chance."

"I usually don't, I usually eat at the breakfast nook. It doesn't really
matter where I sit Jake. Go ahead and have a seat, I need to heat up some
tortillas anyway." I gave Jake his beer and put the others in the fridge. I
grabbed the extra large flour tortillas out of the fridge and placed a damp
paper towel in between each tortilla and nuked them for 20 seconds. I
grabbed the salsa out of the fridge and put everything on the table and sat
down.

"Ok, I think we have everything."

"It smells and looks great Chance."

"Thanks..  did you want to drink your beer out of the bottle or did you
want it in mug?"

"This is great. Thanks for asking though."

"Help yourself Jake, Dig in.. before it gets cold."

We sat and ate dinner not saying much at all. I had never felt this tense
or uptight. I finally gave up and asked "How long are you going to be in
town?"

"I don't know. . I will be here as long as it takes." He said.

"As long as what takes?" I asked.

"For you to fall in love with me again..Hell for you to look at me like you
don't want to rip my head off."

"Do I really look like I want to rip your head off?"

Smiling he said "Yeah..  I thought you were going hit me earlier."

"I would never hit anyone Jake, unless I was defending myself or someone
else."

"I know.. it was just the look on your face."

I picked up my fork and started loading a tortilla. I took a bite as Jake
asked "Wheres the nearest Hotel?"

"Well lets see.  You will have to go about 40 miles to the northwest or 30
miles to the east. You can stay here Jake.. I have three other
bedrooms. You can take your pick and stay as long as you like."

"Are you sure your fine with me staying here?"

"No..  but I know if showed up at your place you would do the same thing
for me. So yes its ok."

"Thank you Chance...  I appreciate that."

While Jake was on his third helping he asked "Who taught you how to
cook. This is so awesome."

"I guess we never talked about our childhoods.  Mom worked nights..  I
really never saw her until the weekend unless I was home sick. I had to
learn to take care of myself. I learned to clean, cook, wash clothes and
anything else that sustained my life. Mom taught me a lot about
cooking. The rest I have picked up. I try anything that sounds good to me."
Laughing I added "I have ruined plenty of dishes also."

"Well this is awesome..  thank you so much."

"I'm glad that you like it, did you need another beer?"

"Yeah, that would be great."

I picked up my plate and put it in the sink and grabbed Jake another
beer. I sat it down in front of his plate and started to walk away. Jake
grabbed my hand and stopped me. I turned so that I was looking at him.  "I
really am sorry Chance. I have missed you so much these last few months. I
want you to know how truly sorry I am and that something like that will
never happen again. I promise you."

I pulled my hand away and walked back into the kitchen, grabbed myself a
beer and went and sat back down at the table. I put both of my elbows on
the table and leaned forward so that I would have Jakes full attention and
said "Look Jake, I'm not going to sit here and say that I don't have
feelings for you, because I do." The look on his face was priceless, You
could see the angst leave his face the moment I said that. So I continued
"I really need to talk to you about a few past relationships so that you
understand where I am at in all of this." He started to speak but I held up
my hand saying "No, let me finish." I paused and then continued on. "The
first one was great up front.. very loving and everything that I could have
hoped for.. that is until he started drinking. Then it became angry and
violent.  The second time he hit me was the last time he would ever hit
me. He came home drunk again and I had had enough. We started fighting and
he hit me." I chuckled and said "I went off.... I ended up breaking his
nose and giving him a black eye. He moved out that night and I haven't seen
him since." I paused, took a breathe and took a swig of my beer.

"The last person I was with was Steve, I thought he really was the guy for
me. I was madly in love with him. We went out for almost three years. It
started great also. We spent a lot of time together, I met his friends and
he met mine we went out and hung with everyone at least twice a month. Some
of his friends are still great friends of mine.

 I noticed that he was spending a little more time away from home after
about a year and a half but figured it was due to the company he worked
for. Then a little over two years into the relationship a friend of Steve's
came to me and sat me down and told me that He considered me a good friend
and didn't want to see me hurt and proceeded to tell me that Steve had been
having an affair with a coworker for about the last six months. I
confronted Steve when he got home and he said yes that he was and that he
didn't have any intention of ending the relationship. I packed his bags for
him and he moved out that night."

I wiped away the tear that was running down my check with the back of my
hand and added "I'm telling you all of this Jake so that you understand
where I am at. After the last relationship I started seeing a counselor
because I couldn't figure out why I was attracting all of these guys that
really were bad for me. Well, within a few months of therapy I discovered
that I cant change how anyone feels about me or who wants to date me, but I
have total control over who I date. I was spending so much time trying to
keep them happy that they looked at me like a care taker. I took care of
them, so that meant that they I guess in turn thought they could treat me
the way they wanted and I wouldn't do anything about it since I always
tried to fix everything."

Jake sat and watched me the whole time that I was talking.  He leaned
forward and asked "What does that mean for us?"

"I'm not going to take care of you Jake. Just like I don't expect you to
take care of me. I'm not going to try and fix everything that could
possibly happen between us. Any relationships that I have from now on will
be a two way street and will never turn one way for me to ever travel alone
again unless I decide to travel it alone. If thats not something that you
can handle then I guess you better head back to Beverly Hills."

I got up and cleared the table and started loading the dishwasher. I heard
Jake get up and come into the kitchen He walked up to me and leaned over
and threw his beer bottle away in the garbage which was under the sink. He
brought everything over that needed to be washed by hand. I filled the sink
with hot soapy water and washed the remaining pans and sat them on the
counter and then proceeded to scrub down the kitchen. Jake stood watching
me the whole time not saying a word.  Everything was done except drying the
few pans. I grabbed a kitchen towel and dried and put the pans away. I shut
the kitchen lights off and asked Jake "Are you staying?"

"I would love to."

"Well then lets go get your bags." We walked out the side door to a brand
new beautiful Jeep SUV Jake was driving. "Nice ride Jake. Must have cost
you a fortune to rent this?"

"Its not rented." he answered.

"What, is it one of those promotional things the stars get for going to
premieres and stuff."

"No... I bought it, but its not mine."

"Ok....whatever " I said tired of talking in circles. "Open it up and lets
get your bags and head in side."  I heard the latch click as Jake pushed
the button on the remote. I grabbed two bags leaving the last for Jake and
headed towards the house. I put his bags down in the kitchen waiting for
Jake. Once Jake made it inside I asked "What room did you want to stay in?"

"Yours?"  he asked timidly.

"Thats fine.  I will take the spare room up here then."

"Nooo..  I want to be.... in your room.... with you." He said.

"I'm not sure thats such a good idea Jake."

"Why??  I love you and I know you still love me.. as far as I am concerned
we had a spat and took a little break."

"A break from what Jake..  what were we?" I asked getting pissed.

"We were boyfriends. I want that again.  I want to be your boyfriend, lover
and life partner."

"God Jake it sounds like a really bad gay romance novel."

Laughing he said "I know it sounds corny, but thats how I feel. Cant we try
again.. cant you forgive me.. I would never hit you or cheat on you Chance,
I love you too much for that. And I will not let you walk away from me
again." I watched his facial expressions change from laughing to totally
serious with his last word.


At that point my mom decided that it would be a good time to show up. She
got out of her car looking at the new SUV sitting in my driveway. She
walked into the back door yelling for me. I walked into the kitchen saying
"I'm right here.. No need to yell."

"Nice Jeep.. Is it yours?"

"No.. its Jakes."

"Who's Jake?"

"I am." Jake said as he walked into the kitchen from the living room..

She looked shocked. You could tell that she recognized him by the look on
her face.

"Mom.. this is Jake.  Jake this is my mom Mary."

Jake walked up to her and extended his hand saying "Its nice to meet you,
I've heard a lot about you from Chance."

She shook his hand and said "Thats funny I haven't heard anything about you
except what I've read in the tabloids.".

"Well this is a little awkward isn't It." I said. They both looked at me
and I started laughing.  "Mom i will explain it all to you one of these
days. Jakes here on vacation."

She shrugged her shoulders and finally said "Ok..  sorry.  You just caught
me off guard.  Hell who would be expecting Jake Gyllenhaal to be standing
in your sons house."

"Sorry mom I should have warned you, but I wasn't sure I was going to ever
see Jake again.

"Ohhh.. I guess you will have to tell me whats going on later then. Well I
better run I know its getting close to the time you go to bed. I just
wanted to come out and see if you were ok. "

"I'm fine mom..  thanks for coming by." I went up and hugged her and told
her that I would call her tomorrow.

"It was nice to meet you Mary,.. sorry about the surprise." Jake said.

"No problem.. nice to meet you too Jake." She walked out the back down and
started her car and backed out of the driveway..  I burst into laughter. I
turned to Jake and started laughing harder. He stood looking at me like I
had jumped off of the deep end.

"You cannot imagine how fast this is going to get around the family, We
will start having visitors in the morning."

"Really?"  He asked.

"Oh yeah.  They will all want to come out and meet you. I will put a stop
to it in the morning.  They can wait until Sunday to meet you when we have
the family get together.

Jake looked at me and said "I'm kinda tired from the drive.. can we go to
bed?"

"Lets put your suitcases in my bedroom and I will make room for your stuff
tomorrow morning. I grabbed the two suitcases I had carried in and threw
them on the bed. I said unpack what you need now and we can store the
suitcases in the walk in closet."

"Okay. Sounds like a plan."

"I feel kinda dirty from working outside on the garden today .. so I'm
going to jump in the shower and get cleaned up. If you need anything just
let me know. " I walked over to the dresser and pulled out a t-shirt and
boxer briefs and walked into the bathroom and shut the door. I went to the
sink and brushed my teeth wondering the whole time should I let him sleep
with me tonight.. no sex... but sleep together. I truly still did love him
and wanted nothing more than to sleep right next to him.

Conflicted would be a word for what I am a this moment.

I was in the shower when I heard a light knocking on the door.

"Jake you can come in, after all we've seen each other naked before."

"I know but I wasn't sure if you wanted me in here because of whats
happened."

I stuck my head out the door and said "Make yourself at home Jake. When you
cross a line that I feel uncomfortable with I will let you know."

"That sounds reasonable to me." He walked further into the bathroom and put
his toothbrush, toothpaste and shaving kit on the counter as he watched me
the whole time I showered. He turned and plopped his butt down on the
counter and said "God your beautiful."

"Get out!!!!!" I said laughing.

"Fine..  but its the truth.. you are so beautiful."

"OUT!!!!"  I could hear him laughing as he shut the bathroom door. I
finished my shower, dried off and redressed, as I reopened the bathroom
door I could see him laying down on the bed. It looked like he was
sleeping. I walked up to him and took off his shoes and socks and shook him
awake. I told him to get ready for bed. He stood up and pulled off his
shirt and pants and dropped his boxers, and got into bed. I grabbed one of
my pillows and started walking out of the room when he asked "Where are you
going?

"I'm going to bed. I will see you in the morning."

"Chance please.. Please.. just sleep next to me. I promise I wont do
anything or try anything. I just want to feel you next to me." He leaned up
on his elbow saying "I promise."

"Ok.. Ok..  dang.  But you try anything.. your ass is downstairs,"

He smiled at me saying "Deal."

I went over and pulled the covers back and got in, I settled onto my back
with my arms crossed behind my head. I felt Jake move a little closer to
the middle of the bed and within minutes heard his light snoring that I had
become so accustomed to. I moved a little closer to the middle of the bed
and turned on my side so that I was facing away from Jake. I fell asleep
within minutes. I woke in the middle of the night having to pee. Jake was
spooned up against me with his arm draped over my side and his hand on my
stomach. I removed his hand and arm and slowly tried to get out of bed
trying not to wake him.

"You ok?" Jake asked.

"Just have to pee.. I will be back in a few."

"Ok.  Love you." he said as if it was the most natural thing for him to
say.

I went into the bathroom and did my business and went out to the kitchen to
grab a drink of water. I stood at the doorway just watching Jake sleep for
a few minutes. I walked back over to the bed and got in. I again laid on my
back with my arms above my head. Jake snuggled right up to me with his head
on my shoulder and the rest of his body against mine. I figured what the
hell and wrapped my arm around him and snuggled as close as I could get. I
heard him sigh and start his light snoring.  I tucked myself in a little
closer and fell back to sleep.  I woke up about a half hour before my alarm
went off. I crawled out of Jakes grasp and threw some sweat pants and socks
on. I went into my home office and started my computer. I signed on and
said good morning to Reva and Deby at the office. It was a typical day at
the office with lots of computer issues and problems. I finished my work by
ten and was on the phone with Sherri going over a few glitches that need to
be worked out on the system. I hung up with Sherri and swung around to
start some breakfast when I came face to face with Jake. I screamed like a
little girl and fell off of the chair. I started laughing immediately.

"You could have warned me." I said not irritated at all.

Smiling at me he said "Sorry I didn't mean to scare you. You were so
involved with the phone call that I didn't want to interrupt.

"Thats ok.  I was just going to make some breakfast." He followed me out to
the kitchen when I opened up the fridge and pulled out the eggs, bacon and
toast. I went to the pantry and pulled out some potato's and started
peeling them to fry. Jake came and stood next to me talking about how nice
and quite it is here.

"How Did you sleep last night?"? I asked

"Better than I have in about two months."

"Thats good. I did too.. except I kept being someones drool rag."

"I don't drool!!"

I looked at him and said "oh really??  then what do you think these puddle
marks are from?"

"Those are from you jerking off and using the shirt to soak up the cum."

Laughing loudly I responded with "The only thing leaking on this shirt was
from you last night."  I put the griddle on the stove for the potatoes and
added some oil and waited for it to get hot enough.

"Jake?'

"Yeah?"  he said walking in from my office.

 "How do you want your eggs? And how many?"

"Scrambled would be cool and I would say two or three."

 "Ok...  you gonna help or just walk around naked all morning? I cannot
believe your not cold."

"I am a little cold." he said as he had good bumps running up his arms.

"Well then go put some clothes on and get back out here and help me make
breakfast."  I finished washing and cutting up the potatoes as Jake came
back out wearing some shorts and a t shirt. I threw the spuds onto the
griddle pan to let them start browning. I started the bacon on the other
side of the griddle. I went over and started a pot of coffee. Jake came up
beside me and partially hugged me and kissed me on the cheek. I turned and
looked at him asking "'What was that for?"

"Not kicking my ass yesterday and letting me stay."

I smiled at him. "Well you do realize I do have work to do around here. So
after I get breakfast done I am going to head into town and pick up some
supplies that I need to finish a rock wall that I'm working on out
front. You can come if you want. Or you can sit around here sipping
martinis and eating Bon Bons like the rest of the folk do in Beverly
hills."

"Did you ever see me eat a Bon Bon or drink a martini the whole time you
were in Beverly Hills." He asked smiling at me.

"No..  anyway I will be working outside again today..  I just wanted to let
you know."

"I would love to help you do whatever your doing."

"I would love the help." I looked over at him smiling. I am falling.. yep
falling hard again.

I went over flipped the spuds and then turned the bacon it was coming along
nicely. I looked over at Jake as he stood against the counter watching
me. "What?" I asked.

"Nothing.. I just.."  He didn't say anything else. And looked down at the
ground.

"Spit it out Jake."

"I just don't want you to get mad at me."

"Well I don't know what to tell you. I guess you will just have to trust
that I may get mad but get over it.. or wont get mad at all. I cannot
imagine what you have to say could be that bad"

I turned and messed the spuds around so that they would cook evenly. And
flipped the bacon again. I went over and cracked the eggs into a bowl and
whisked them together. I grabbed two plates and silverware and set the
breakfast nook table. I pulled out milk, orange juice and jams. I walked up
to Jake saying "Did you want to talk about it? Or are you just going to
stand here and keep it all inside?. I think this is how our first problem
started wasn't it Jake. Don't shut me out. Tell me how you feel and whats
going on in the little tiny head of yours."

He looked up and into my eyes, I could see he was on the verge of tears. I
reached out and hugged him saying "Talk to me Jake, If you want this to
work between us you cant hold this stuff in... Just talk to me... ok."

He hugged me so hard I thought he was going to break my ribs. "I messed
up. Big time."

"How? And why?" I asked becoming scared of all the possibilities.

"I sold my house in LA. I put everything in storage, I told mom and dad
that I'm gay and had met the man of my dreams and then screwed it all
up. Mom and dad are so mad at me, we haven't spoken for about a week." H
was crying heavily at this point so I just continued to hold him in my
arms.

 I kissed him on the cheek and asked "Why did you sale the house?" I pulled
back from his embrace and went over and tended to the spuds and bacon
again. They were doing fine so I leaned on the counter and waited for his
answer.

He walked over and stood next me saying "I didn't like the feel of the
house once you left. It just didn't feel like home anymore. So I had
everything packed and put into storage and sold it."

"Wow." was the only thing that came to mind "Ok.  But what about your mom
and dad. Were they that upset because you told them you were gay? They just
seem like the kind of people that would care less if they had a gay child."

"No not that I was gay..  but because of the way I acted and treated
you. They told me that they kinda figured that I was gay anyway.. and when
you and I met they saw how happy we were together. They went off on me when
they heard what happened that final night."

I turned so that I was facing him and said "God Jake I am so sorry." I gave
him a long affectionate hug and said "I guess we both could have handled
things a lot better than we did. Huh."

He started crying harder, so I just held him until he started to calm down.

"See what did I tell ya.?"

"Huh?" he looked at me with a confused expression on his face so I said "
last night this was a drool rag and now its a snot rag. The things I do for
the people I love."

"You love me???" he asked excitedly.

"I always have Jake. I really didn't like you for a while. But I never
stopped loving you."

He leaned in and kissed me and it truly felt like I was at the exact place
I should be in my life.

I released him and continued making breakfast. The spuds were almost done
as well as the bacon. So I threw the eggs in the frying pan to
scramble. Jake grabbed the toaster and started toasting the bread. We just
sat down to start eating when someone knocked on the door.

"Here we go with all the visitors." I went and opened the door to see my
second cousin Chase standing there looking tired. "Whats up Chase? What are
you doing up so early?"

"I came over to see if I could use Your jeep.  I have to go to Columbia for
some intro test with college and they are saying that were suppose to get
bad weather this afternoon."

"When did you need it?"

"I have to leave in an hour."

"Have you eaten?"

"No I was going to pick something up on the way."

"Come on in and sit down and eat something I made plenty." We walked in and
I introduced Chase to Jake. It was like it didn't even phase Chase. I sat
down and started eating again.. I looked up at Chase to see him starting at
Jake. So I spoke up saying "You know where everything is Chase. Get a plate
and fork and whatever you want to drink before you have to go."

"So.. is it ok if I use the Jeep then?" he asked.

"I was going to pick some stuff up to finish that rock wall but it can
wait. I would rather see you safe on the road then the rock wall done. I
can get the stuff tomorrow or later this week.  So yes you can use it."

"Cool thanks Chance I appreciate it."

"Yeah yeah.. whatever."

Chase came over and sat down at the table and looked at Jake point blank
and asked. "So what brings you to Missouri?.  Long way from Hollywood or
New York isn't it."

Jake looked at me and then Chase and then smiled saying. "I came to visit a
really good friend and spend some time where nobody will find me."

Chase looked at me and narrowed his eyes asking "How long have you known
him?"

"About two months." I replied.

"Are you the reason he came back so sad." Chase asked.

"That was probably my fault, yes." Jake responded honestly.

Chase turned and looked at me asking "And every things ok now?"

"Fine Chase..  don't you worry about it."

"Don't tell me not to worry about it.  I love you.. your my best bud. I
don't want to see you get hurt or be sad like you were."

"I love you too buddy.. now shut up and eat."I smiled at Jake who had a
very happy look on his face.

"We can take the other Jeep and get the supplies Chance." Jake said.

"I'm not taking or having you take it to get supplies . The things
beautiful. It was be trashed with mud in the back."

"So" he answered.

"What do you mean so. You have to take it back to who ever you got it
from. I'm sure they wouldn't appreciate it being trashed."

"Well I will leave that up to you. Since its yours."

"What?" I asked. I could hear Chase choking on his food.. I slapped him on
the back and continued to look at Jake.

"Its yours.  I got it for you. You can do whatever you want with it. The
only thing we have to do is go to the local jeep dealership and finish
filling out all the papers."

"No. I am not going to take a gift like that Jake. Its to much. Plus...
well....  Just.... NO."

Chase started laughing as he said "I have never seen or heard you be at a
loss for words."

"Shut up Chase!"

 I looked back at Jake who shook his head and again said "its from me to
you. Its a gift. Its yours to do with what you want."

"I don't like it one bit Jake..  But you can keep it here and when you come
into town you can drive it.." Jake smiled at me.

Of course at this point Chase said "Can I take the new jeep to school?"

I looked over at Jake and said "Your on your own on this one. Its still
your jeep as far as I'm concerned." I got up and started cleaning the
kitchen up. They were still discussing the use of the jeep while I finished
washing the pans. I went over and picked up Jakes and Chases plates and
loaded the dishwasher and started it.

"Chase you have about ten minutes before you need to go. You know where my
keys are in case you take my jeep. Be careful.. if the weather gets bad you
call me and I will put you up in a hotel."  He didn't respond. "Chase did
you hear me?"

"Yeah.. sorry..... Thanks Chance."

"Well boys I'm going to go put on some old ratty clothes and go work
outside." I walked into my bedroom and grabbed some old jeans and and old
T-shirt with an old hoodie to go over it. I pulled on some long socks and
my work boots and headed back out to the kitchen. Jake was still sitting at
the table but Chase was gone. I sat down and had another cup of coffee. I
looked over at Jake and asked "Does anyone know where you are?"

"No.. I didn't tell anyone that I was leaving."

"Jake .. call Maggie and let her know your ok and that your here with me."

"I'm not sure I want anyone to know where I am..  I just want it to be you
and me for awhile. I want to work on us without distractions."

"We will have distractions here also Jake. As you can see by last night and
this morning. Life goes on. Call your sister and let her know your ok. Shes
probably worried sick."

 He flipped open his phone and started dialing. I heard him say sis its me
and then a lot of yelling on the other end of the phone. I decided that now
would be a good time for me to go outside.


JAKESCHANCE@GMAIL.COM