Date: Fri, 11 May 2007 12:23:30 +0800
From: Seiji Kan <kanseiji@gmail.com>
Subject: In a Moment - Chapter Four (Gay/College)

This work contains elements of sexuality between teens over 18, adults
and includes homosexuality in prevalence. Please exercise proper
discretion. Do not read this if it is illegal for you to do so or if
the subject matter will potentially offend you. The author assumes no
responsibility for misuse or misconduct associated with the
dissemination or viewing of this work. Any characters, representations
or events should be assumed to be purely fictional with any possible
resemblance to the real world being entirely coincidental or otherwise
such that it may be treated as innocuous. This work is copyrighted by
the author, who retains all rights and priviledges. This work should
not be reproduced without the written consent of the author. Please
direct all feedback and comments to kanseiji@gmail.com. Thanks for
reading.

This story is based heavily on the events and characters of From Where
I Stand. Though the author endeavors to make this an independent,
standalone work, it may still be beneficial for readers to have read
FWIS or to refer to it at their own discretion.

IN RE: Harvard University
Any descriptions or depictions regarding Harvard University are meant
to be fictional and should not be taken as accurate representations.

Check out the latest updates and leave comments at
http://inamomentstory.blogspot.com

[ in a moment ] by kanseiji

Chapter Four - Passing in the Night

New England isn't exactly famous for clear skies...in fact, there are
plenty of natives who find it plain annoying when the sun shows its
face too often. Chris was one of those people. Unusual for the late
fall, the sun began to pour through the window in the opening hours of
the morning and starting drenching Chris's face with light. However,
sleep wasn't about to let up and let the day win. As soon as the light
got bright enough to be annoying, Chris unconsciously groaned and
turned over in bed. A few seconds later, he was still again, this time
with his head firmly tucked away from the insistent daylight. The
stillness was not to last though, as Chris registered movement around
him.

"Mmghhghh...Ace? You up?" a groggy voice asked. Chris wasn't conscious
enough to answer and so responded by nuzzling his face deeper into its
hiding place...which happened to be someone's shoulder.

Justin strained to open his eyes in the bright morning. He didn't
immediately recognize his surroundings, but after a few moments of
slowed perception, he remembered...he was in Chris's room...and bed.
As he looked around idly, Justin quickly closed his eyes and grabbed
his forehead as a ray of sunlight hit him square in the eye, shooting
like lightning into his hung-over brain.

"Ouch..." a second groggy voice uttered. Justin dared a glance over
next to him and saw that Chris was now face down on the bed after
losing his "pillow" when Justin moved his arm.

Justin chuckled a little. "Sorry, Ace...um, do you have any aspirin or
something?"

Chris merely grumbled and pointed toward his dresser...more or less
anyway. Justin clumsily reached over and grabbed a small white bottle.
After tossing back a couple pills, he offered it to Chris, but soon
realized that he was fast asleep again.

Justin smiled. "This guy could sleep through the apocalypse," he said
quietly. After glancing at the clock...which read a woeful eight in
the morning...Justin decided to get a few more hours of sleep as he
slipped back into bed. He paused for a few moments to observe the
other occupant of the bed. Since an early age, the two had been
accustomed to sharing a bed...being best friends and neighbors
resulted in them sleeping over constantly. As he looked on, Justin
couldn't help but notice that Chris looked very settled and tranquil.
Justin knew, however, that Chris's sleep wasn't always as peaceful as
it appeared. He signed knowingly as he gazed over his friend's
unconscious face. He knew that behind the shut eyes that there was a
storm brewing in Chris's mind. Sleep was an escape for him, but it
didn't always give him peace. As Justin settled back into bed, Chris
instinctively pressed back into Justin, who responded by putting an
arm around his sleeping friend, giving him a light hug. Warm and
comfortable, Justin faded back into sleep as the earlier hours of the
morning passed by outside.

****

There was always somewhat of a bustle around Harvard. Whether it was
groups of students heading to class or professionals commuting to
work, there was rarely any pristine quiet around the campus. Saturday
mornings were quieter than most though, with many students catching up
on sleep and the usual weekend lull in activity. The morning was a
stone's throw above freezing with the sun shining through clearly, but
the occasional gust of chilly wind reminded all that winter was nearly
upon them.

A small break in the quiet came as a dorm building door opened and
closed, the light shuffle of a lone figure making his way across the
yard fading into the background. Adam barely looked around him as he
made his way back to his dorm. He idly watched his feet as he walked
along, almost unconsciously guiding himself back. After a short stroll
in the brisk morning air, he stood before the doors of his own dorm,
digging into his pocket for his ID to get in. As he pulled out his
card, something else came out along with it...a small slip of paper.
Adam stood there, frozen in his own thoughts as he looked down on the
slip, the writing stirring up a torrent of feelings.

"Call me, 703-555-1876 ^ÖSean"

Adam stuffed the paper back into his pocket as he entered the
building. Just outside of his own door, he paused. He rested his head
on the door, shut his eyes and muttered, "Damn it..."

****

"Alright...it should be this next street," Adam spoke out to the
group. Brad, Erika and Sean followed as they turned down the bustling
street in Boston. As Adam glanced back to check if everyone was
accounted for, he smiled as he saw Brad and Erika being very friendly,
chatting and laughing as they strolled along. They would glance up
every few moments to make sure they didn't fall too far behind as Adam
guided the group toward the club. Adam took note of how well they were
getting along...he barely noticed as Sean walked up.

"They're cute together, huh?"

"Wha? Oh, yeah they are..." Adam responded as they walked slightly out
of earshot.

"So I'm guessing Brad asked you for backup to try and get with Erika, right?"

"Heh, more or less...I'm guessing that was why Tom decided to disappear huh?"

"Probably, haha...but that wasn't too surprising. Tom has a tendency
to just get random phone calls and then he just disappears."

"Ah ok. So, you and Erika...you two are friends right?"

"Fag and fag hag," Sean answered, chuckling to himself.

"Hehe, that's cool...I had one too, but she's slightly less available
these days."

"Why's that? Does she not go to school around here?"

"Nah, she goes to school in Boston, but it's a bit different from when
we were in high school...oh and she spends most of her free time with
her boyfriend."

"Heh, yeah...girls are like that. If they ever break up, you'll see
more of her than you probably want, haha."

"No question." Adam took a quick glance over at Sean and had to exert
a bit of self-control to not blatantly check him out. Sean looked over
and Adam scrambled for a bit of conversation to cover up.
"So...uh...you're not from around here then?"

"Nope, I'm from Virginia, near D.C."

"Oh cool, I've never really made it down there."

"It's nice, you should visit some time. I'll make sure you have a good
time," Sean said, innocently enough, but the possible innuendo was
soon apparent and he blushed. "Ok...that kinda came out wrong..."

"Hehe, no prob." Adam couldn't help but smile. He was usually very
nervous around other gay guys, especially ones he didn't know that
well, but for some reason, Sean was different. He exuded confidence,
but just seemed genuinely nice and laid back. "So what made you wanna
go to school here?"

"Legacy, haha. My dad went to Harvard and I think my great grandfather
did too. I swear I'm good student too, so it wasn't entirely my
family...at least, that's my story and I'm sticking to it."

"Sure...I believe you...your name isn't on some building is it?"

"Does it count if it's a portion of the campus?" Adam stared for a
moment thinking Sean may have been serious, but quickly realized when
Sean started laughing. "Got ya! Nah, we aren't THAT rich."

"Had me there for a second."

"Yeah I could tell. So how about you? Any influencing factors?"

"Um...yeah...some I guess." Adam thought silently to himself, "Yeah,
Chris wanted to go here." As the thought passed by, he answered, "I
went to the summer program here and really liked it. Also, I guess I
like Boston and I didn't want to leave just yet."

"That's cool. I miss home, but at least it's not too far away."

"You can just take the train or fly back for the weekend without trouble right?"

"Pretty much...it doesn't take that long. So where exactly is Quincy?"

"South of Boston proper...it takes like 30 minutes on the T from here."

"Nice place?"

"Yeah...well it's home, haha. It's a nice town, but kinda quaint I
guess. It's a lot mellower than Cambridge."

"Sounds kinda like my hometown, Alexandria. It's outside D.C. and
kinda quaint too in places."

Adam noticeably warmed up to Sean during the conversation. Sean was
definitely the more experienced of the two when it came to dating and
such, but there was some mutual nervousness. Sean could barely take
his eyes off Adam. The group finally arrived at their destination and
made their way inside. A flash of some well-made fake IDs later, all
of them were past the bouncer and making a B-line for the bar. As they
waited to get the attention of a bartender, Adam looked around. He
wasn't much of a clubbing person and he had never been inside the
particular club. It was a good size and filling up with what looked
like hundreds of people...and a lot of gay guys. Adam and Sean both
rolled their eyes as they saw some guys dancing on a large ledge,
shirtless and their jeans practically falling off their asses.

Sean turned to Adam and jokingly pleaded, "Please tell me you aren't
that kind of guy," as he gestured to the ledge.

"Haha, no way in hell...bit too modest for that."

"What'll it be guys?" a bartender asked as Sean and Adam turned away
from the dance floor.

Adam hesitated slightly and Sean picked up on it. "We'll have two rum
and cokes." Adam smiled at the gesture since he knew he looked a
little nervous.

"Comin' up guys...oh and you can put that away, you're in here already
so I don't give a shit," the bartender said as he pointed to Adam's
hand, which was clutching his fake ID. Sean took a closer look and
gestured to the ID as the bartender moved away.

"So where'd you get yours?"

"Huh? Oh, my roommate made it...photoshop whiz." Adam stared down at
the ID as Sean examined it. It was almost perfect...except it was a
Maine license instead of a Massachusetts one. He laughed a little to
himself as he remembered watching Chris make it. A friend of his from
Maine had given him a scan of an ID which Chris used to produce
several for Adam and Justin. Adam remembered marveling at Chris's
meticulous attention to detail as he assembled the fakes from bleached
copy cards, using clear packaging tape and a highly modified
mechanical vegetable slicer...that's right, a vegetable slicer...to
produce the glossy finish. They even still worked as copy cards.

Sean handed the ID back to Adam. "Dude, that thing is awesome...I'd
believe it, haha. Think he could make me a new one?"

"Heh, I'll ask." Their drinks came a moment later. Before he could
even reach back to his wallet, Sean had given money to the bartender
who smiled and moved on to the next customer. "How much was that?"
Adam asked.

"Don't worry about it...you can buy the next round," Sean said with a
warm smile, which Adam returned.

"Hey boys!" The call caused both of them to look over toward Brad and
Erika, who were working their way toward the dance floor. "Come on,
you guys are supposed to be strutting your stuff!" Erika called out as
he dragged Brad into the crowd.

Adam laughed and Sean just shook his head. "I swear, I don't know her
THAT well," Sean tried to claim.

"Hehe, it's ok...you should see my friend Rebecca."

"So...is dancing your thing or not so much?" Sean asked passively as
they sipped their drinks.

"Heh, I can fake it I guess...people tell me I'm better once I loosen
up." After saying that, Adam took a large swig of his drink in an
attempt to "loosen up."

"Yeah me too...I think everyone can dance a little better when
drunk...or at the very least they can blame their poor performance on
the alcohol afterward."

"Pretty much. So...dancing your thing or not so much?" Adam inquired,
feeling a little braver as the alcohol wore down his
inhibitions...Adam was a severe lightweight when it came to drinking.

Sean smirked and looked over at the dance floor. Seeing that they were
both done with their drinks, Sean took Adam's glass and set it down
before he pulled Adam into the crowd. "Let's find out," Sean beckoned.

****

"OH MY GOD THAT'S FUCKING SICK!" someone screamed as various other
people let out various "yucks" and "ewwwws". Chris was among the
disgusted as the balance of the group gathered around a computer
stared. Justin and Ryan had front row seats as they sat wide-eyed at
what they were watching.

"Can they really do that?" Ryan asked as he tilted his head to change
his perspective.

"Apparently," Justin deadpanned as he stared.

Naturally, if you get a bunch of drunken college kids in a room with a
computer, someone will eventually suggest watching porn. It doesn't
matter what the sexual orientations of the people are...it still just
sorta happens. Of course, sometimes the sexual orientation will
determine how long the porn can hold a person's interest. For Chris,
this wasn't very long as he had just witnessed more than he ever
wanted to in regards to female anatomy. He slipped away from the group
and made his way over to a table which was covered in half-empty
bottles of liquor and mixers. The party was a hit...again...but had
somewhat degenerated to straight porn watching, so Chris knew it was
winding down. Feeling his buzz disappearing, Chris looked over the
selection before him, but opted for something else. Looking around for
a moment, he kneeled down and reached under the table and came up with
a bottle of blue liquid that he and Ryan kept put aside and out of
view. He poured himself another drink, replaced the bottle and found a
comfortable spot on a couch as he watched the rest of the people. He
was amused at the fixation over the obviously surgically-modified girl
moaning and groaning on the screen, but was also doing his utmost to
push his other thoughts into the back of his mind.

After he had learned that Adam wasn't going to show up, Chris did his
best to just mingle and have some fun. It was somewhat labored at
first, but eventually he got a bit into the mood and loosened up. He
even danced with a drunken Steph for a while, much to the amusement of
his friends. Someone who didn't know Chris that well asked Ryan, "Hey,
he's gay right? I mean, he seems pretty into it."

Ryan laughed and just responded, "She's very special...she gives him
coffee." The response just further confused the guy, but he laughed
and moved on.

Justin was keeping an eye on Chris throughout most of the night. He
also made a point to count how many drinks Chris had, as he knew very
well his friend's limits. After Ryan had filled him in, Justin was
concerned, but was pleasantly surprised to see Chris letting loose and
having fun. He still kept a careful watch just in case. However,
toward the end, he had lost track and Chris had slipped out of his
attention due to a drink too many. Still, Chris slipping away from the
group hadn't gone completely unnoticed. As he sat on the couch, caught
up in his own thoughts, Chris was greeted by a movement on the couch
as Ian sat down.

"Hey Chris, you doing ok?" Ian asked nonchalantly.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine...just wasn't too interested in the...view
over there," Chris answered, pointing to the ongoing pornfest.

"Ha, yeah seriously, I don't think I've ever seen so many horny people."

It dawned on Chris that Ian was straight...his cognitive functions
were still obviously impaired. "Um...you are straight, right? Not to
say that all straight guys should like acting like idiots and watching
porn shamelessly, but...well...your species isn't being
well-represented a the moment."

"Heh...yeah...call me old-fashioned, but I prefer to be the only
person in the room with a hot naked woman...preferably one that is
actually IN the room and I'm not paying anything."

"HA! Yeah, you are old-fashioned."

"So what are you drinking?" Ian asked, pointing to Chris's glass of blue liquid.

"Oh, it's Hpnotiq...want some?" Chris held out his glass so Ian could
inspect it beforehand.

"Um, is it strong? I'm still a lightweight here."

"Haha, nah it's pretty tame...but the taste is a bit on the intense
side...in a good way."

Ian shrugged and took a sip...after which he cringed for a moment
before looking surprised. "Wow...that's good."

"Heh, yep...one sec." Chris pulled the bottle out again and poured Ian
a glass. "Ryan and I always keep a bottle of this for rough days and
special occasions."

"Ah...expensive?"

"Enough so to make us not want to give it out freely...we are poor
college students after all."

"Ha, well don't I feel special then...thanks man."

"No prob...so, didya have fun?"

"Man this was awesome. You guys do this every week?"

"So far...we're probably gonna tone it down a lot once school really
gets going hardcore, but for now it should be regular. You're
permanently invited by the way."

"Nice...thanks. So do you actually know everyone here?"

"Either I do or Ryan does...we're doing our best to limit the number
of people at these, lest we have to start charging admission."

"Actually that may not be a bad idea...I'll kick in some money."

"Ha, thanks...I'll have you speak with the finance department later,"
Chris joked, pointing to Ryan.

"Ok, not to sound like a total loser...which I may be, but anyway..."
Ian started, chuckling along the way, "what do you end up doing on the
weekends here besides, god forbid, studying?"

"Well, at least for now, I make a point to get as much of my work out
of the way before the weekend hits. So aside from a little bit here
and there, I try not to do any work on the weekends. Besides that, it
varies...just hanging out and chilling I guess. I go out biking a lot
and I go home and do some cooking too."

"Oh that's right, you live close by. So Boston's good for biking around?"

"Yeah I love it...it's gonna get a bit cold for it soon, but it
doesn't really stop me."

"Cool...I left my bike at home, but it's pretty old. I was gonna
spring for a new one if I can find a good shop."

"Well I can take you by my bike shop...I know half the people who work
there and they usually give me a bit of a discount on equipment."

"That'd be awesome. So are you busy at all tomorrow?"

Chris paused just as a sound squeaked out of his mouth. He and Adam
usually took their laundry to Quincy so they could do it at home. They
also brought their bikes so they could ride around the hometown. The
last weekend, they slipped and didn't go together...just as Adam began
feeling like Chris was avoiding him. Chris wanted to say that he
couldn't make it, but decided against it.

"Um, yeah...tomorrow's good...whenever I manage to get up, heh."

"Ok then, well, why don't you give me a call when you're up for it?
I'll either be asleep or trying in vane to catch up on work."

"Alright, sounds good."

****

The sound on the dance floor of the club was nearly deafening. Not
even a deaf person would have been completely spared. With the
blasting music, super low bass and the constant yelling and screaming
of the crowd...loud didn't quite cover it. Despite that...or perhaps
because of it...the club was lively and full of people having a good
time. The dancing covered the full spread from people casually swaying
to the beat to the ambitious ones who could make a passerby mistake
the sight for a music video.

Somewhere in the middle of the spectrum, Adam and Sean were getting
along nicely. Adam had definitely loosened up...in his mind, the
advantage of being a lightweight was that he got into his "happy
place" that much faster. After one drink, with only a one recharge in
the middle, he was nicely buzzed and enjoying himself. The feeling was
mutual with Sean...he was taking full advantage of the congested space
to get close to Adam, his arms wrapped around Adam's waste from behind
as they danced. The room was warm from all the movement and body heat,
but that didn't stop Adam from leaning back into Sean's embrace.
Adam's eyes were closed for much of the time as he used his other
senses to coordinate his movements. He was perfectly happy not seeing
anything else as he let himself get caught up in the warm feeling
around him.

"Having fun?" Sean whispered into Adam's ear...or rather his loud
voice was a whisper relative to the background.

Adam grinned widely as he turned his head to the side. "Yep...you?" He
opened his eyes to see Sean's face looking right back at him, staring
deeply into his eyes.

"Just got even better..." Sean said with a toothy smile.

The night was winding down as the clock approached the magical cutoff
time...two in the morning. Almost as if everyone was afraid of turning
back into pumpkins...or god forbid, sober people...the crowd began to
quickly thin out as closing time came closer. Brad and Erika tracked
down Sean and Adam before they all headed out. There was a line to get
cabs on the street and the T was already long closed. Adam looked at
his group and, satisfied that they were all adequately clothed for the
cool night, made a suggestion.

"Um guys, it takes a bit, but we could walk back to Harvard. I know the way..."

The idea seemed acceptable, but Erika held up a finger. "One second,"
she said. In a couple swift motions, she pulled off her high heels,
produced a pair of sneakers from her small purse, slipped them on and
made the other shoes disappear into her deceivingly small-looking bag.
"Ok, let's go."

Everyone just stared at her in awe. Brad uttered, "How'd she do
that...with that?!" as he pointed to the tiny purse.

Sean shook his head and chuckled. "Evil sorceress," he joked to the
amusement of all.

The group was relatively awake and alert as they set off toward the
river to cross back into Cambridge. Adam had made the trip numerous
times, but usually with his bike. Still, the night was pleasantly cool
at that moment and even sported a cloudless sky speckled with stars.
Brad and Erika had apparently gotten along well as they walked along
with his arm wrapped around her waist. Sean and Adam also made their
high spirits evident as they strolled along, hand in hand, with the
lights of the city at their backs.

****

"You sure you got him? He can just crash here," Ryan suggested as he
looked, admittedly amused, at Chris holding up Justin by the arm.

"Dudee...Ry...I'm cool...it's just across the yardd," Justin slurred
out. "Besidess...you just wanna get in my pantss..."

Ryan groaned as he laughed. "One drunken gay hook up and you're
branded for life."

Chris appeared in thought for a moment before he said, "yeah pretty
much. Nite Ry!"

"Oh ha ha...alright, just be careful."

Chris left Ryan's building with Justin in tow, guiding the off-balance
boy across the yard. He giggled at the sight of his friend completely
plastered as he stepped closer to his own building. A quick glance at
Justin's watch revealed that it was past three in the morning. "I
wonder if Adam's back yet," Chris thought to himself. He looked around
the yard and saw a few groups of people, but none were close enough to
recognize anyone. Just as he turned back toward the path, a small
chill ran up his spine. Chris looked around for a moment before
shrugging it off and continuing on.

****

"God that took forever..." Brad proclaimed as the he and Erika ran for
a few dozen feet onto the grounds of the yard.

"You guys need to work out more or something," Sean suggested. "We're
not even winded." He and Adam looked on, amused, as their friends were
sitting on a ledge rubbing their aching feet and legs.

"Yeah, yeah...leave the straight folk be...we're lazy and out of
shape," Erika admitted.

"Alright, let's get a move on," Sean said as he and Adam pulled up the
squatters. "So which dorm are you in Adam?"

"Um, Wiggs." Adam gazed over the yard toward his dorm. He spied a
couple of people walking up to the building, but they were a good ways
off. Something, however, made him not want to go back to his room. "I
think my roommate probably has a bunch of people there still." Adam
didn't like lying, but he didn't feel like revealing his true reasons
for not wanting to go to his room.

"Why don't you just come up to our dorm?" Brad asked. "It's still
early, we can just hang for a while." Sean's eyes noticeably lit up at
the suggestion.

Adam thought for a few seconds. He glanced quickly back toward his
dorm...the people had disappeared. Turning back, he looked at Sean for
a moment, slightly mesmerized by his eyes. "Sure...why not?"

****

"Dudee...Ace...I'm fine, really." Justin slurred out as he made a zig
zag dive for the bed.

Chris rolled his eyes. "I thought I was supposed to be the lightweight."

"Yo, I'm not a lightweight...I just can't count properly after I've
had a bit to drink," Justin claimed jokingly.

"I'm still not convinced you can count properly period."

"Oooo...ouch...I'll think of a snappy comeback tomorrow..." Justin
said as he lay down. Chris chuckled and walked back into the common
room. "Hey Ace? Aren't you coming to bed?"

"Um, I was gonna sleep out here..."

"Ace...seriously...I promise I won't puke on you."

"Haha...nah, that's not it..." Chris trailed off as he felt his mind
slip into a dark spot.

"Chris...come here...please?" That was enough...Chris made his way
back toward his bed as Justin reached out for him. A second later,
they were hugging tightly. "It's gonna be ok, Ace."

"I fucked up though..." Chris's voice was muffled as he dug his face
into Justin's neck.

"Ace, everyone makes mistakes ok...just live and learn. Now come on,
nothing's gonna be helped by you trying to pull away from everyone."
Chris gave in...a minute later he was nestled comfortably in Justin's
arms as they began to doze off.

"Thanks J," Chris whispered. "I love you."

Justin tightened his embrace for a moment. "I love you too. It'll be ok..."

Chris let himself drift away to those words.

****

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Adam asked nervously. After hanging out
for a little under an hour in Brad's room, the group disbanded and he
had walked with Sean down to his room. Sean had sensed Adam's
apprehension about going back to his own room, so he invited Adam to
stay the night...he didn't feel like his intentions had to be
completely innocent, but he first and foremost wanted to make Adam
feel better.

When he heard the slight tremble in Adam's voice as they entered the
room, Sean just smiled as he lightly pulled Adam toward him. "Adam,
I'm the one who invited you, remember? Besides, my roommate is gone
for the weekend and I'm taking full advantage of the absence of that
douche."

"Heh...ok...thanks Sean. I don't...I guess I'm just feeling a bit off."

Sean winced slightly. "I hope I didn't put you off at all."

Adam was quick to correct him. "Oh no, no...it's not you at all...I
really had a great time...I guess I just have a few issues, that's
all."

Relieved and wanting to be supportive, Sean tried to reassure Adam.
"We've all got issues...that's normal."

Adam grinned. "You don't seem like you have any..."

"Well I do have one at the moment..." Sean trailed off, smirking.

"Oh and what's that?"

"Well...there's this really great guy...and I can't seem to think of
the best way to let him know how much I like him..."

Adam felt a rush of tangled feelings wash over him. He was happy...and
excited...and nervous...and even felt a tinge guilty. He closed his
eyes and mentally shoved the negative feelings into a mental closet
and shut the door. When he opened his eyes, he saw Sean leaning in
toward him.

"Sean..."

"Yeah?" Sean answered, without stopping his approach.

Adam took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He barely whispered out
two words as Sean's breath breezed past his lips. "Kiss me."

Sean smiled as he closed his own eyes. He lightly brushed his lips
across Adam's before he knowingly pulled away ever so slightly...Adam
leaned in to follow. Sean immediately stopped pulling back and drew
himself closer. They both felt shivers as the kiss took hold. Even the
negative thoughts in Adam's mind stopped stirring a warm rush flowed
through his head. For a moment...but just a moment...he lost any sense
of sadness and felt totally at peace.

*****

This is a corrected chapter 4, thanks to GreenMartian for noticing the problem!