Date: Sat, 1 Sep 2012 14:48:04 -0700
From: B.E. Kelley <hailcaesar2011@hotmail.com>
Subject: A Light in Dark Places Chapter 7

This story is a work of FICTION. The events described are my own invention.
Any similarities to actual events or persons are strictly coincidental. The
author retains the copyright, and any other rights, to this original story.
You may not publish it or any part of it without my explicit authorization.

This story contains depictions of consensual sexual acts between teenage
males.  It is intended for mature audiences only.  If you find this type of
material offensive or if you are under the legal age to read said material;
please proceed no further.

Comments are always welcome at: hailcaesar2011@hotmail.com

A Light in Dark Places
Chapter 7

I woke up Sunday morning to the sound of knocking on my door.  I sat up and
put my glasses on, then saw Tyler waving at me through the glass.  It was
early, only 7am and I don't know any teenager who likes to get up that
early on a weekend.  I opened the door to find Tyler already dressed, a
little nicer then the casual dress code I'd seen him observing so far.

"What's up Tyler?" I yawned.

"Hi, uh, did I wake you up?" asked Tyler.

"Yeah," I yawned again.

"Sorry, I just wanted to ask if maybe you wanted to go to church with me,"
he blushed.

"Seriously?" I asked, curiously.

"Well, yeah, I mean if you don't want to that's ok, I just thought I'd
ask," said Tyler.

"Uh, what denomination?" I asked.

"Methodist, there's a church in town, I told Dr. Collins that I wanted to
go and she made arrangements for me.  There are a couple of girls going to
the Catholic church and Mrs. Potter is going to drop us all off," Tyler
explained.

Attendance at Sunday service was compulsory at Philips Academy but it
wasn't a real church service.  Our weekly gatherings were more like an all
school assembly, with a prayer and a hymn or two thrown in.  I attended
church regularly, with my parents, when I was home and I was a baptized
Methodist.  The fact that Tyler was the same religion as me, seemed like
more than a coincidence and I decided to go, if for nothing more than to
get away from the clinic for a couple of hours.  I also thought it might do
me some good to commune with God; maybe faith was the answer to the sense
of loss I felt over Connor.

"Yeah, ok, I'll go," I finally replied.

"Are you sure? You don't have to if you don't want to, it's just that I
know I sometimes feel better after church and maybe you will to," said
Tyler, "I don't know, it's probably silly."

"No, it's not silly," I reassured him, "thanks for inviting me Tyler."

"Great, well, you need to get dressed, we have to leave at 8:30," Tyler
smiled.

I agreed to meet Tyler in the dining room, then looked for something to
wear.  I didn't have anything really nice with me, but I had a decent pair
of khakis and a pair of penny loafers so I wouldn't stand out for having no
shoe laces.  I quickly found a clean white button-down and headed for the
shower.  I washed quickly and got dressed, my shirt looked a little funny,
tucked in with no belt, but I wasn't going to a fashion show, I was going
to church in rural Massachusetts, I didn't think anyone would care.  I
found Tyler in the dining hall, sitting with Wendy, she was still in her
pajamas.

"You're up early, going to church with us?" I asked.

"Hardly," Wendy scoffed, "I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd get something
to eat, speaking of which, eat your breakfast."

"Yes mom," I said, rolling my eyes.

I picked up my toast and ate the first piece in three bites.

"Good boy," said Wendy, patting my hand sarcastically.

She may have been teasing me but whether she noticed it or not, she seemed
to like mothering me.  I didn't understand why she had latched on to me,
she wasn't really forthcoming about herself.  The way she'd dodged my
question about why she was here, the day before, told me that she wasn't
ready to open up to me yet so I decided to take her mothering in stride.
I've been in boarding school for 2 years and I've become pretty
independent, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't nice to have someone
looking out for me.

"Hey did you guys here all that commotion last night?" asked Tyler.

"What commotion?" I asked.

"Sometime after midnight, I was sound asleep and I heard this loud banging
and then Mr. Perkins swearing," said Tyler.

"Yeah, I heard that too," said Wendy, as she laughed, "Jacob told me that
he heard that someone caught Perkins napping and tied his shoelaces
together."

"That's hilarious," Tyler laughed, "he was cussing up a storm."

I tried hard not to laugh, I was blushing profusely and a smirk started to
spread across my face.  Wendy and Tyler recovered from their laughter, but
my expression was a dead giveaway.

"Oh my God, Peter, you didn't?" asked Wendy.

"I uh, don't know what you're talking about," I smiled.

"Peter, I can't believe you!" Wendy exclaimed.

"Well, he's a jerk, right?" I asked, then started laughing.

"Wait, you tied his shoelaces together?" asked Tyler, being slow on the
uptake.

"Uh, duh!" Wendy roared with laughter.

Her laughter was infectious and I couldn't help but burst out into a belly
laugh of my own.

"Preppy, I keep telling you you're full of surprises, that was great," said
Wendy.

"Yeah Peter, how did you do that?" Tyler giggled.

"Well, I couldn't sleep last night and I found him there asleep and well, I
just couldn't help myself," I explained, earning another bout of laughter
from my friends.

"You should have come and got me, I would have loved to have gotten some
payback on that bastard," said Wendy.

"I didn't exactly plan it," I explained.

"Ok, good point," said Wendy, "but maybe we should plan something for
tonight."

"I don't know, it was just a spur of the moment thing, I don't want to
cause any trouble," I protested.

"Come on Peter, it'll be fun," said Tyler.

"Oh, you want in on this to?" I asked.

"Well, he shouldn't be sleeping on the job," Tyler giggled.

"Alright, let me think about it," I stated, ending the conversation for
now.

With breakfast over, Tyler and I met Mrs. Potter and the two Catholic
girls, Michelle and Renee, out in the van.  It was a short drive to the
church and we were met by an usher, when we were dropped off, who told
Mrs. Potter that the service would be over at 10am.

"I'm so glad you boys could join us today, let me show you to your seats,"
said the usher.

He led us to the front row and introduced us to the minister, Pastor Monica
Goodwin.  It became clear that the clinic had a relationship with this
church, and probably all the local churches where their patients might go
to worship.  We weren't exactly being watched, but I was also sure that
someone would notice if either of us tried to walk out alone.  I was
distracted by my thoughts and wasn't listing, while Pastor Goodwin spoke
with Tyler, until I heard something that caught my ear.

"Unfortunately our pianist isn't here today, but we have a very good
choir," said Pastor Goodwin.

"Peter plays, you could ask him to fill in," said Tyler, offering my
services.

"Really Peter, would you mind?" asked Pastor Goodwin.

"Uh, well, I don't know the music," I blushed.

"All of the sheet music is right there on the piano," said the Pastor.

"Well, uh, I guess that would be ok," I agreed.

"Wonderful then, Peter, you come with me and I'll take you to the piano,
before I start my sermon you can come back and sit with your friend," said
Pastor Goodwin.

"Good luck Peter," said Tyler, flashing me a radiant smile.  His smile was
so powerful that I forgot to be mad at him for volunteering me, there was
only one person whose smile had ever had that affect on me.

There were three hymns and the sheet music for each was laid out on the
piano.  The first song, or call to worship, would be Ode to Joy, after
which, the worship leader would ask the congregation to share any joys or
concerns to pray over, followed by the second hymn, Nearer My God to Thee,
and lastly On Eagles Wings.  I was a little nervous, I could play the music
but I didn't know any of these people and I didn't want to embarrass myself
in front of them.

Fortunately everything went fine, I blushed a little bit when Pastor
Goodwin introduced me to the congregation and announced that I would be
filling in for the pianist, but once I started playing, I felt comfortable.
When I was finished, when the last hymn had been sung, I hurriedly moved
down to the front pew and sat next to Tyler, who was beaming awfully
brightly.

"That was great, you were really good," Tyler smiled.

"Thanks but don't do that again," I scolded, gently.

"I'm sorry, I thought you liked playing," Tyler apologized.

"I do, I just get nervous in front of strangers," I explained.

"Oh, sorry, I just like hearing you play, I didn't mean to upset you or
anything," said Tyler, looking dejectedly at the ground.

I felt bad, I didn't mean to come down on him, I liked him, I liked that
he'd asked me to church and that he wanted to be my friend.

"Look, Tyler, I'm not mad, I was just a little caught off guard, ok?" I
asked.

"Ok," said Tyler, flashing me a weak smile.

I wanted to do more to assure him that I wasn't upset with him but the
pastor started speaking and I didn't want to be rude.  Pastor Goodwin's
sermon felt like it had been written for me, she talked about loss and pain
and God's plan for us all.  I took comfort in the words and I was glad
Tyler had brought me here.  I thought about Connor as the pastor spoke, I
thought about how I missed him and cleansing tears washed down my face.
Tyler took my hand and squeezed it tight, when the sermon was over, he
released me and flashed me a sheepish grin.  I took my glasses off and
dried my eyes, we both thanked the pastor for welcoming us into her church,
she then asked us to stay behind for a moment, while she said goodbye to
her parishioners.

When the last person had left, the pastor walked over to us and patted us
each on the shoulder.

"Thank you for playing for us today, you were quite wonderful, Peter," said
Pastor Goodwin.

"Thanks," I blushed.

"Listen boys, I spoke with your doctor, Dr. Collins, about you attending
our service today," said Pastor Goodwin.

I knew it, I knew that someone from the clinic had been in touch with the
church, someone had told them about us so that they could keep an eye on
us.  It wouldn't do for one of the clinic's patients to slit his wrists in
a church restroom.

"I just wanted to tell you that you're welcome to join us any time that you
would like and to ask if you might take a moment to pray with me," said the
pastor.

"Uh, yeah, sure," said Tyler.

I think he was a little embarrassed that Pastor Goodwin knew what we had
tried to do to ourselves, but thankful that she wanted to pray with us.  I
was a little shy about it myself but Pastor Goodwin had a warm and motherly
quality that made me feel at ease.  She put her hands on our shoulders and
the three of us bowed our heads to pray.

"Father God," began Pastor Goodwin, "I pray for Tyler and Peter, that they
might be brave in times of trial, when others lay crosses on their
shoulders, when mountains must be climbed and chasms must be crossed, when
hope can scarcely shine through.  I pray that every gift you have given
them might grow along with them and bring the gift of joy to all who care
for them. I pray for Tyler and Peter that they always have a friend worthy
of that name. One whom they can trust, and who helps them in times of
sadness, who will defy the storms of daily life to stand at their side.  I
prey that in every hour of joy and pain, they may feel closer to you. I ask
all these things in the name of your son, Jesus Christ.  Amen."

"Thank you for that," sniffled Tyler.

"God bless you boys," said Pastor Goodwin, and then she hugged each of us.

We said our goodbyes after that and found Mrs. Potter and the girls waiting
in the parking lot.  Tyler seemed a little emotional, after the pastors
prayer, so I took his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze, before we took
our seats in the van.  As we were driving back to the clinic, an
opportunity presented itself, one of the girls asked to stop at the
drugstore, with the excuse that she was out of deodorant.  Strictly
speaking, trips like this were against the rules, going to church was one
thing but side trips weren't allowed.  Mrs. Potter agreed, under the
proviso that we stayed together as a group, under her watchful eyes.

The girls bought all of the toiletries they needed and Tyler, who had a
wicked sweet tooth, raided the candy aisle.

"You're going to eat all of that?" I exclaimed.

"No, not all of it," said Tyler, who had more bags of candy then he could
carry "I thought that I'd grab a bunch of stuff and share it with everyone,
since they can't come down themselves."

Wow, he really is a sweet guy, I thought.  While the girls paid for their
things and Tyler paid for his candy, I decided to make an impulse purchase.
While I'd been waiting, I spotted a large stuffed Doberman, and while
reading the tag attached to its ear, I decided I had to have it.  The clerk
put it in a bag for me and we went back to the van.

"What did you get?" asked Tyler, he'd been distracted when I made my
purchase.

I pulled the stuffed dog out of the bag and showed it to him.

"Awww, that's so cute," Tyler gushed, like a little boy.

"Yeah and check this out," I stated, as I gave the dog a squeeze.

"It barks!" Tyler exclaimed, while the stuffed dog, growled, snarled and
yes, barked.

Tyler thought the stuffed toy was adorable, I'd bought it because when I'd
read on the tag that it could bark, an idea started to form about that
prank Tyler and Wendy were so eager to play on Mr. Perkins.  By the time we
got back to the clinic, I had a fully formed plan rattling around in my
head.

"Hey it's the God Squad," said Wendy, as we passed her in the foyer.

"Not now," I replied, "I've gotta take care of something."

I walked past her and then headed straight upstairs to my room.  Once I was
alone, I changed out of my church clothes and started to examine the
stuffed, barking dog.  As I'd expected, there was a concealed zipper and
when I opened it, I was able to pull out the small speaker and circuit that
caused it to bark.  I pocketed the circuit, zipped the dog back up and
plopped down on my bed to read for a few hours before dinner.  When it was
time to eat, I joined my friends at our table and forced down another meal.

"So, were you guys serious about pulling a prank on Perkins?" I whispered.

"Yeah, totally," said Wendy, her eyes agleam with mischief.

"Gee, I don't know, we're not supposed to be up after lights out," said
Tyler.

"Come on Tyler, don't be such a goodie two shoes," said Wendy.

"Hey, Tyler's a good boy," I defended, "if he's having second thoughts,
that's ok."

"No," said Tyler, "you're right, that guy is a jerk, he's sleeping on the
job when he's supposed to be watching all of us, what if someone hurt
themselves? I'm in."

"Right on," said Wendy, "what's the plan preppy?"

"I've got it all figured out, I don't want to go into detail here, but at
midnight, you two meet me in front of the girls bathroom, and keep quiet,"
I instructed.

After dinner, we went to arts and crafts like usual.  We went about our
regular activities and when it was time for bed, we each nodded at each
other, acknowledging our midnight rendezvous.  I lie in bed until the
appointed time, then I met Tyler in the hall and we walked to the girl's
bathroom, where we met Wendy.  We could hear Perkins snoring down the hall.

"Ok what's the plan?" asked Wendy.

"Right, Tyler, you're going to stand watch by the stairs in case
Dr. Collins or someone comes up, Wendy, you're going to set the alarm clock
on Perkins computer for 12:30 and I'm going to attach this to his chair," I
explained, pulling the barking dog circuit from the pocket of my pajamas.

"Uh, what's that?" asked Wendy.

"It's a speaker attached to a circuit, I got it out of the stuffed dog I
bought this afternoon, care to guess what it does?" I asked, rhetorically.

"Awww, you broke that cute little doggy?" asked Tyler.

"Relax Ty, I'm sure it didn't hurt," I said, rolling my eyes.

When we were ready, Tyler took his position at the stairs and Wendy and I
made our way to the attendant's station.  As I'd expected, Perkins was
leaning back in his chair, feet up on the desk.  I got on my back and taped
the circuit to the bottom of his chair, it had a pressure switch that would
make the dog bark when you squeezed it.  My plan was that when the alarm
clock on Perkins computer went off, he'd sit up and hit the pressure
switch, causing the "dog" to bark and scare the shit out of him.  While I
was working on the chair, Wendy made the adjustments to the computer.  When
I was finished, she helped me to my feet and we had to stifle our giggles
while we collected Tyler.

We dropped Wendy back in front of the girls bathroom, then Tyler and I
tiptoed silently back to our rooms.  Along the way, I came up with an idea
and told Tyler to wait in the hall for a moment.  I went into my room and
grabbed the stuffed dog, before returning.

"Here, why don't you take Rex?" I stated, handing Tyler the dog.

"But you just bought him," said Tyler.

"I know, but I only wanted the circuit, you take him," I stated.

Tyler looked at me for a moment, then he reached out and gave me a hug.

"Thanks Peter," he smiled.

"You're welcome buddy, see you in the morning," I smiled back.

Back in my room, I got under the covers and watched the clock countdown to
12:30.  The plan worked like a charm, at the duly appointed time, the alarm
clock went off, the noise was so loud I was afraid it might wake up some of
the sleeping patients.  As expected, Perkins snapped upright in his chair
and our whole floor could hear the loud barking of a large, angry Doberman.
Either the alarm woke some of the other students or they weren't sleeping
anyway, I heard laughter and it wasn't just coming from Tyler or Wendy's
rooms.

"God damn brats," Perkins bellowed, followed by the joyous laughter of a
bunch of depressed teenagers.

I slept soundly that night, at least my nightmare didn't come until the
late morning.  I woke up shivering and sweating, like the previous nights,
but at least the sun was up and I didn't have to lie awake all night.