Date: Mon, 20 Jun 2016 18:52:24 -0400
From: Jim <zarek@roadrunner.com>
Subject: Another Chance: Chapter 77

Disclaimer: This story is fictional.  Some of the things that happened or
will happen with Jim are inspired by bits and pieces of my life.  Parts of
the character are fictional as well. All other characters were made up and
any similarities are just coincidental.  This is gay romance between
teenage boys, there may be sex, but for the most part, it's about their
true love of each other so if that offends you, please discontinue reading.
Also, if it is illegal for you to read such material, you have been warned.
Continual reading could cause a knock at your door.

I hope you're enjoying it so far and that the story draws you in wanting
more.  This story was "inspired" by another story, a great story, here on
Nifty, "Riding Lessons" by Andrew Todd.  Some people have compared my
writing style to that of Mr. Todd's and for that, I am flattered.  While
Another Chance does pay tribute to "Riding Lessons", it is a story of its
own and has its own plot and agenda.  If you have any suggestions or
concerns, don't hesitate to email me at zarek@roadrunner.com
<mailto:zarek@roadrunner.com> .  Thoughts and suggestion are always
welcomed and may or may not be implemented.  Concerns will be considered
and addressed as much as possible.

AND, if you enjoy the stories on Nifty.org, please give a donation to help
cover their expenses.  While the site is currently free, only donations
from loyal fans can help keep it that way.  Any amount will help.





Another Chance

Chapter 77

On the Friday before Labor Day, Jim, Joe, Dusty and Buster were sitting in
PE class.  This was their last class before going to their SWO, or Student
Work Opportunity, job.  Since Buster wants to be a teacher, for his SWO, he
went to the middle school to be a TA, or teacher's aide.  He doesn't get
paid like other students do, but he gets some practical experience.
Patrick was in a few of the classes that he sat in on already.

Coach Jenkins was standing in front of the class, just pacing.  Dylan asked
him, "Dad, is something on your mind?"

Coach Jenkins stopped pacing and looked at the class, "Well, with this
class being in the middle of the school day, there is no way we can go out
to the ranch as a class.  The School Board even approved me taking classes
out again so long as I promised no skinny-dipping."

"Sir," Jim said, raising his hand, "we can always go out on a Saturday.  I
work there Saturdays, and so does Joe and Buster, but we can always plan
for after four, when we get off."

"Thank you, Jim," Coach responded.  "After you and Dusty approached me and
told me about the changes at the lake, I called Jackson.  He said that
though he's normally closed to general public for riding after four, if we
wanted to go and make a night of it, we can any Saturday, even tomorrow
night.  Does anyone have a problem if we make it tomorrow night?"  No one
raised their hand.  "Then we will have our visit to the ranch tomorrow
night.  And with it being a Saturday night, why don't we make a party of
it.  You can bring a date.  And those of you who haven't seen it, wait
until you see the changes."

Jim asked, "My sons are usually with Zac and me at the ranch when we work
Saturdays, does anyone have a problem if they are there Saturday night?"

Dusty stood up, "I'd have a problem if they aren't.  They are two of the
greatest boys you will ever meet.  Though they aren't biologically Jim's,
they are so much like him, especially Patrick."  Everyone encouraged Jim to
bring them as they all would love to meet the boys.  The rest of the class
time, they discussed what refreshments they wanted and who was supplying
what.  Coach asked Jim to let Jackson know they were coming.

After class, Jim and Joe headed for the ranch, Buster headed to Cody Middle
School.  The class using him as a TA this day was the sixth grade geography
class.  This was Patrick's last class for the day.  He walked in and seeing
Buster, he gave him a hug.  Patrick had told his classmates that Buster is
an uncle, so none of them thought anything of it when they hugged.

The teacher called for everyone's attention, "Today, I will be grouping you
up and giving you a list of coordinates on the globe.  We have eighteen
students, two globes, three atlases and one world map, so I want six groups
of three.  Whichever group can find all ten cities belonging to the
coordinates the fastest gets a prize.  Once you think that you have them,
take your list to Buster or me and we will check them.  We will tell you
how many you have wrong and you can go look at those coordinates again.
First group to get all ten correct will win a free pizza coupon from
Millstones' for each member."

Patrick was happy when he and Toby were grouped together.  The third boy to
join the group introduced himself.  "My name is Scott Gavin, aren't you
Toby Maelstrom?  Your dad is an elder of our church."

Toby responded, "Yes, my dad is an elder of our church, but I don't recall
seeing you there."

"I'm not surprised," Scott stated. "My family sits in the last row."

Toby's face lit up, "OH, your family is the one that owns that small farm
on the corner of Rd 2Ab and Quarter Horse Lane."

"Cool," Patrick stated, "We go by there all the time.  You have some nice
looking horses.  I'm Patrick and my family lives on Mustang Lane."

"We've only had those horses for a short time," Scott explained, "Our
others were getting old so Dad sold them and bought fresh ones from a local
ranch called Another Chance."

Patrick got excited, "My two dads work there."

"Did you say two dads?  That's cool," Scott grinned.

Patrick looked into Scott's green eyes and felt a little strange.  He
suggested that they start looking up the cities using one of the globes.
Once they had all ten cities they thought were correct written down,
Patrick took their paper up to Buster.  Buster compared it to the answer
key and told Patrick that they had one wrong.

"We missed one," Patrick stated to Toby and Scott.

Toby suggested, "Maybe Cody isn't one of them."

Patrick shook his head, "No. I'm sure that forty-four point five two
degrees north latitude and a hundred nine point zero five degrees west
longitude would be Cody.  Maybe this one isn't Barsaloi, oh crap. We were
looking north of the equator.  This one is south, the only one south."

"So it looks like maybe Nairobi, Kenya?" Toby guessed.

Patrick wrote down Nairobi and Scott took the paper up to Buster.  The
teacher started saying she had a winner as Buster declared Scott's paper
was correct.  The teacher looked at both papers and since both were done
close enough, she declared it a tie.  "I only have three coupons, so we go
to a tie breaker.  Each team will be given five coordinates and ten minutes
to find them.  The team with the most correct after time is called, wins."

Both teams were handed a sheet of paper with the coordinates and once time
started they had to use a globe to find the different cities.  Patrick did
the searching, Toby read the coordinates and Scott wrote down the cities as
Patrick told him the name.  When time was up, they had a city for all five
coordinates.  The teacher checked the other team first.

"You only have four cities written down but I am happy to say they all are
correct," the teacher told them.  She walked over to Patrick's team.  "You
have five cities written down, but are they all correct?  For you to win,
they need to be. Miss one and we have another tie.  Miss two and the other
team wins."

She scanned the paper not once, but twice.  She looked at the boys and
spoke, "I'm sorry but you have all of your cities correct."

At first Patrick was downhearted, thinking she said they were wrong, but
then it sank in, "What? Wait, did you say they were all correct?"

The teacher chuckled, "Yes, and I'm sorry was for the other team.  You are
the winner and each of you boys will get a coupon."

Patrick, Toby and Scott were ecstatic when they received their coupon.
They felt sorry for the three girls, but that was short lived.  Toby walked
over to one of the girls and asked if she would like to join him for the
pizza.  It was a large three-topping pizza, big enough for him, his dad and
her to share.

Patrick thought about asking one of the girls to help eat his pizza, but
decided, if he shared with his family, it just wouldn't be big enough for a
fifth person.  Scott flashed Patrick a grin.  Again, Patrick felt something
strange happening.  Scott looked at Patrick and suggested, "We should get
our families together for this.  Too bad Toby wanted to share his with
Jeanie or I would have suggested all three families."

"We can still do all three families; we'd just have Jeanie as well.  Toby
is my best friend," Patrick stated.

"That's cool, can we be friends, too?  I really like you Patrick, you're
smart and caring and..." Scott didn't finish his thought, he was afraid it
might scare Patrick if he told him that he what he was thinking.

Patrick smiled, he didn't seem to catch the last "and", "I like you too,
Scott, I'd be happy to have you as a friend."

When class let out, Patrick went to find Jim and Zac waiting on him.  He
was a little surprised when he didn't see Mr. Maelstrom.  Toby was with
him, "Toby's dad isn't here? This is the first time that he hasn't picked
us up all week."

Jim spoke softly and quietly, "He called and asked if we could pick you
boys up.  He's in court finalizing the divorce and Mrs. Maelstrom is being
a bit demanding.  It seems that she thinks she should get the house and
cars but couldn't care less about anything else.  I'm sorry with how that
sounds, Toby.  I'm sure she wasn't referring to you."

Toby responded, with tears in his eyes, "No, I think she was.  I've known
my whole life that she didn't love me.  I hope that she doesn't get
anything, but I'd gladly give it all up to have her out of Dad's and my
life."

"OH DAD AND PAPA!!!" Patrick changed the subject as he and Toby got in the
truck.  "We had a contest in Geography class and we won.  It was Toby, my
new friend Scott and I on our team.  We each got coupons for a free pizza
at Millstones' Pizza.  Scott suggested that all three families go together
and celebrate."

"That's cool Patrick, way to go," Zac offered, "and you too, Toby."

Toby smiled, "I've never seen anyone look up coordinates on a map as fast
as this guy.  I read the coordinates, Patrick found them and Scott wrote
them down."

The boys went to the ranch and were getting out of the truck when
Mr. Maelstrom pulled up.  Toby looked at his dad and asked, "So do we have
to move?"

"Nope," Mr. Maelstrom stated, "I just told the judge that I filed for
divorce when she was happy you were in the hospital and she laughed at
that.  The judge declared that she could keep her car and her clothes.
Everything else was to go to me to help raise you.  I'm sorry that she
didn't even want visitation, but I'm glad that I don't have to share you
with her."

"I'm glad that she didn't want visitation," Toby declared, "I don't hate
her, but since she doesn't love me, I don't love her either." Toby hugged
his dad and started to cry.

Patrick prodded, "Tell him the good news, Toby."

"Oh, right," Toby said, "Patrick, a boy named Scott and I were a team in
geography class and we each won a coupon for a free pizza.  Scott suggested
that we all go together with our families, but I also invited a girl.  Her
team almost won so I felt sorry for her.  And she's cute."

Richard laughed, "You won a pizza?  I think we can figure something out
with Scott's family and set up a time.  You are too young to date, though,
but I suppose we can let this girl join us this one time."

Richard took Toby home, promising to see the boys at two the next day.  Jim
commented about having a busy day planned for Saturday and was ready to go
home.

Saturday morning, Jim and Zac found Patrick and Jake sitting in the dining
room.  "Let me guess, you want French toast for breakfast and have
everything ready," Zac teased.

"Nope, we do have everything ready, but not for French toast," Patrick
responded.

Jim walked in the kitchen and found two pounds of bacon, a dozen eggs, and
bread with butter beside the toaster.  "How do you want your eggs?" he
asked.

After breakfast, Jim and Patrick took care of the horses.  Patrick really
enjoyed taking care of the horses and being with Jim felt good.  When they
were alone, Jim looked at Patrick, "I, uh, I'm not sure how to ask you
something without embarrassing you."

"Umm, if it's what I think it is, I don't know what happened, honest, Dad,"
Patrick looked nervous.

Jim gave a weak smile before speaking, "I was doing laundry and I
recognized a stain in one of your briefs.  I'm guessing you had what is
called a `wet dream,' and if so, it's perfectly normal for a young man to
have them, especially when going through puberty."

Patrick looked down, "Is that what you call it?  I sorta freaked thinking
something was wrong with me.  Then I had another one this morning."

"Wow," Jim said, "Normally there's more time between them, but it's not
unheard of.  If you want to talk about it, I'm here, but I can understand
if you find it embarrassing.  Just know that it's normal, you have nothing
to worry about, and Papa and I are always willing to listen if you decide
you want to discuss anything."

"How do you know if you're gay?" Patrick asked.

Jim wasn't ready for that question and paused to think, "You may be too
young to decide that, but for the most part, you are attracted to guys more
than girls.  At your age, you may feel something for guys, but according to
Sigmund Freud, that's normal.  You may decide later that you're interested
in girls.  Are you attracted to Toby?"

Patrick shook his head, "Not Toby, but my new friend Scott has emerald
green eyes and I want to kiss him whenever I look into them.  And his smile
just causes my knees to get weak."

Jim warned, "Be careful, he may not feel the same as you, and it could just
be a phase."

Patrick acknowledged, "I know, but I think he does.  When he found out I
have two dads, he thought that was cool and he said that he really likes
me.  I think he almost called me cute but was afraid to."

Jim smiled at Patrick, "At this time, I don't think it means that you are
gay, but I wouldn't rule it out, either.  Just be careful and respect
Scott.  Don't push him into doing something he's not ready for and don't
let him talk you into it, either."

"I was dreaming of him when I had my wet dream this morning," Patrick
admitted.

Jim laughed, "That would explain why you had one so recently after your
first.  Just know that gay or straight, Papa and I will love you the same."

Patrick hugged Jim, "I could have never had this conversation with Daddy.
He might have disowned me for even thinking I might be gay."

Jim chuckled, "I guess that is one advantage about having gay dads."

Once the horses were taken care of, Jim and Patrick got the horses ready
for Matt and Gina to show up.  As Matt walked around to help Gina out of
his truck, Jim sent Patrick to get Jake.  Matt hugged Jim as he announced,
"Guess what, I received a full scholarship to attend the University of
Wyoming here in Cody.  They want me to play basketball, but they have a
great veterinarian program.  Classes start on Tuesday."

Jim happily told Matt, "I think Zac enrolled there as well.  They have a
great business section under their Animal Science department, including
raising and breeding livestock.  I was planning to go to Northwestern, but
when Zac was checking them out, I decided that's where I want to go."

Matt declared, "I have to take those courses as well so we'll probably be
in classes together.  But, Zac can get his Associate's Degree in two years
or Master's Degree in four.  I have to take six years of classes to get my
Doctorate to be a doctor."

Jim seemed a little sad, "Zac's going to take night courses so he can work
the ranch during the day, but I'm concerned with what that'll do with his
time with the boys.  He wants his Master's so that's four years."

"I hear you," Matt said, "If he goes all year round and doesn't take the
summer off, he won't have to have as stressful of a schedule.  He could
also take a little longer than the four years to get his Master's to ease
it up a bit, but he needs to do what's best for him, you and the boys.
Gina will be doing online courses so she can stay home with our baby when
he's born.  She's glad that you suggested it.  Maybe Zac can do some of his
online as well."

Jim looked at Gina, "I'm glad, I know that you weren't expecting a baby so
soon and wanted to do schooling first, but I'm glad you can still do your
schooling."

Gina smiled, "I'm glad that you suggested taking online courses.  And I can
do them while Matt's at home so he'll look after the baby while I'm having
a class session."

Patrick was returning from getting Jake when he heard Gina talking, "If Dad
and Papa let me, I'd be happy to babysit for you."

Jim responded, "I have no problem with it."

Matt looked at Patrick, "We have almost half a year before the baby is
born, and then a few weeks before Gina or the baby are up for trips.  If
you are still interested then, we can discuss it, but I promise, unless
there is some unforeseen reason to need a special babysitter, you will be
our first option."

Jim had just finished taking care of the horse after Matt and Gina's riding
when Richard and Toby showed up for their riding lessons.  Jim looked at
his watch and then Richard, "You are a few minutes early, but I like that.
With there being two of you, Patrick will be assisting me as it will help
him be a better rider."

Richard stated, "I don't have a problem with it, as long as Toby and I
learn what we need to know."

Jim acknowledge what Richard said, "Good to know, and I promise you, before
your hour is up, you will know the basics.  After that it will mainly be
practice and correcting your form.  Toby, you were with us the other day,
what is the first thing you think you should learn?"

Toby thought, "Well, ummm, the first thing you did was brush the horses to
make sure no burrs will get under the saddle.  That would hurt."

Jim gave Toby a quick nod and smile, "If you will be going to ranches who
saddle your horse for you, you won't need to know that as much, but if you
want to properly learn how to ride, that includes saddling your own horse,
so you are correct.  Since neither of you have actually ridden a horse, I
chose a couple of tamer animals for you to use.  Grooming the horse before
the ride is slightly different than grooming the horse after the ride, but
I will show you.  And expect to be a little sore tomorrow.  You will be
using muscles that you may not know that you have.  I will try to teach you
how to minimize the pain, but riding a horse is exercise, and we all know
that when we try a new exercise for the first time, it tends to hurt."

After they brushed the horse and inspected the saddle for burrs, Jim
demonstrated how to properly place the saddle on the horse.  Since Toby
would have had a difficult time doing it himself, Jim used the horse he
would be using.  He then showed how to secure the saddle using the cinch.
He watched as Richard saddled his horse.  As the hour progressed, Richard
was surprised with how much he was learning.  He actually felt confident he
could handle his horse before his lesson was over.

The Cody High School seniors started arriving a few minutes before four.
Coach, Dylan and Kevin were the last to arrive and they showed up right at
four.  Not knowing how many horses would be needed, Jim had all of the
horses ready to be groomed and saddled.  And every horse was used.  Jim
apologized to Patrick, "We don't have a spare horse, even Buster is riding
with Uncle Joe.  Either you can ride with Papa or me, or Jackson will be
taking some of the kids in the wagon."

Patrick just smiled and said, "At least you're letting us join you, you
could have taken Jake and me home to have Grandma watch us.  I'll ride with
you."

Jim turned to Jake, "Patrick's riding with Dad, do you want to ride with
Papa or do you want to ride Oro?"

Jake looked at Zac and without hesitation, he stated, "I want to ride with
Papa."  Everyone mounted their horse except Jim, Jake and Patrick.  The
teens that didn't have a horse climbed into the wagon.  Jim handed Jake up
to Zac and then mounted Gold.  He gave Patrick a hand getting up.

As the teens noticed the dock and the cabin, many made comments about it
and how much more fun they could have.  Some of the boys asked if they
could take the canoes out.  Jackson simply told them to enjoy themselves.
Coach Jenkins suggested that they have a race since there were two canoes
and several boys agreed.  Jackson started cooking burgers on the grill.

After Patrick dismounted from Gold, he asked Jim, "Can Jake and I go in the
cabin and change into our swimming trunks?"  Jim just nodded as he alit
from Gold.  The girls that came, which included Cheyenne, wore their
bikinis and swimsuits under their clothes as did a few of the boys.  The
boys who didn't, waited for Patrick and Jake to come out of the cabin and
then they went in to change.

Since girls were joining them, someone set up a volleyball net so the girls
could join them.  While some of the girls may have joined in football, not
all of them would and they thought Patrick might enjoy volleyball over
playing football with much older boys.  Jake was a bit young for either,
but they let him play just for fun.

After the first game of volleyball, Jackson announced that the burgers were
ready.  Coach Jenkins took down the volleyball net as they ate.  Dylan
spoke up, "Dad, what gives?  We were planning another game after we ate."

Coach Jenkins responded, "Knowing how you boys love football and girls
would be here as well as Jim's and Zac's boys, I brought the belts for flag
football.  Now, if you would rather play volleyball instead, I'll set it
back up."

Patrick was the first to answer, "I vote for football."  Once he said that,
everyone else agreed.

Coach looked at Patrick and smiled, "I can't wait until you are in high
school."  He turned to Joe, "You want to play or be a ref?"

"Buster and I can help ref," Joe answered.

After choosing sides, Jim had Patrick hike the ball to Jake and then Jim
picked the boy up.  "Hold the ball tight," he told his son and then he
carried him all the way down for a touchdown.  Jake laughed the whole time.

Coach Jenkins kidded, "You moved pretty fast there, Jake."

Jake giggled, "Because Daddy carried me.  This is fun."

"See that boy right there?  He's my son," Coach Jenkins stated, "Do you see
the straps hanging down his sides?  If you pull one, it'll pop off."

Jake grinned and walked over to Dylan.  Dylan was wondering what was up
because Jake had a devilish grin.  Jake reached over and grabbed one of
Dylan's "flags" and pulled it off.  Once that happened, instead of
football, everyone was trying to pull "flags" while keeping theirs from
being pulled.  That lasted the rest of the night until Patrick was the only
one still having a "flag" attached.

Jim walked over to Coach Jenkins, "You instigated that, didn't you?"

"I sure did, Coach admitted, "and it looked like y'all had fun doing it."

Jim confessed, "I admit, I did, but we didn't get much football played."

Coach looked at Jim, "Be honest, do you think your boys would have enjoyed
playing football more than this?"

"Patrick, maybe," Jim stated, "but Jake, no.  I think he had more fun just
pulling the flags."

Coach smiled, "So you can understand my thinking.  As for Patrick, he seems
to like playing sports and I can't wait until he's in ninth grade."

"I'm still learning things about him," Jim averred, "But yeah, I think he'd
be good at anything he decides to try.  Jake is still a bit young, but Zac
and I agree that we will encourage him to try anything he seems interested
in.  They both like martial arts."

Coach just started laughing, "I just envisioned Patrick running towards the
end zone with the ball and someone trying to tackle him, but he does a
martial art move on them.  Maybe I should invent martial art football."
Jim just laughed.

As they wrapped things up, all of Jim's classmates commented about how they
enjoyed getting to meet Patrick and Jake. Everyone seemed to have a good
time.  Patrick asked if they could spend the night at the lake.  Zac
apologized, "I'm sorry, Bud, but none of us brought a change of clothes, we
have no sleeping bags, or everything."

Jim thought for a minute and said, "We should leave our sleeping bags here.
We never use them anywhere else and if the need should arise, we can always
come get them.  That way, if we wanted to spend a night spontaneously, we
can."

Zac gave Jim a peck on the lips and whispered, "Are you suggesting that I
go get our sleeping bags and each of us a change of clothes?"

Jim looked at Patrick and then back to Zac, "Would you, please?  I think
the boys would be happy."

Zac gave Jim another peck on the lips and replied, "If it'll make the boys
happy, I'll do it."  Patrick hugged Zac around the waist.

As Zac got in the truck, Patrick looked at Jim, "Thank you for requesting
it, I know it made me happy, but I can't say for sure about Jake.  He's
asleep on the ground."

Jim picked Jake up and asked Patrick, "Are you in the mood for a walk or
would you rather wait for Papa to come back?"

"How long of a walk?" Patrick asked.

Jim replied, "As the crow flies, it's about a tenth of a mile, but that's
too risky and we might run into rattlesnakes.  If we stick to the trail, we
may still run into snakes, but the chance is less likely. The trail is
about a quarter of a mile.  I've not really measured either way, so those
are just guesstimates."

Patrick questioned, "Why can't we just ride the horses?"

Jim answered, "They've had a busy day and deserve a break."  Patrick
acknowledged that he understood and asked if they could just wait for Papa
to return.  Jim held his free arm out and Patrick moved in for a hug. "I
guess you've had a busy day yourself.  Did you have fun?"  Patrick didn't
answer so Jim looked down at him.  The boy fell asleep hugging him.  When
Zac returned, he had to take a picture.

Monday morning, Jim had hoped that Jake forgot about wanting to milk the
cows.  He didn't know if Jackson was able to arrange it and he didn't want
the boy disappointed.  Much to his chagrin, Jim woke up hearing a little
boy shouting about wanting to go milk a cow, today.  Groggily, Zac spoke,
"How does he know today is Labor Day and he might get to milk a cow?  And
it's five in the morning, why is he awake and so chipper?"

"I can guess the how he knows it's Labor Day," Jim responded, rubbing sleep
out of his eyes.  "He probably made mention about school and someone told
him we have no school, today.  As for the awake and chipper, he's a
five-year-old."

Jim and Zac headed downstairs, spotting a sleepy Patrick coming out of his
room.  "I love my brother, but I really hope he doesn't wake me up this
early too often," Patrick stated, letting out a yawn.

Jim chuckled, "I hear you Bud, but I think he's a bit excited about
hopefully being able to milk a cow."

"I just hope Jackson was able to arrange it," Zac commented.  "He called
them, but wouldn't let me know if he was able to convince them to come and
let kids try milking or not."

As Zac parked the truck, Jackson headed to meet them.  Zac told him, "I
hope you were able to set up for a cow to be here.  All this boy has talked
about in the three hours since he woke us up was getting to milk a cow."

Jackson explained, "Well, I told him that I would charge an extra dollar
for everyone getting tickets to go ride if he shows and he would get that
dollar whether they came over to his display or not.  Those that bought
tickets would turn one in to him and if they didn't have a ticket, he could
collect directly from them."

"I know; I was there when you spoke to him.  You just never let me know if
he was coming or not," Zac stated.

Before Jackson could answer, a truck was pulling up beside them.  Jim
smiled when he read "George's Dairy Farm" on the side of the truck.  A man
got out of the truck and walked up to Jackson.  "I brought three cows to
make it easier on them to be milked all day long.  Some kids may not get
milk, but I'm sure they will have fun trying.  Where would you like for me
to set up?"

Jake squealed, "Did you bring cows for me to milk?"

Jackson laughed, "This is the boy I was telling you that wanted to milk a
cow.  He won't have a ticket since his family works for me so let me give
you money for him now."

The man looked at Jake, "You seriously want to milk a cow?  As soon as I
have them ready, I will show you how to do it."  He turned to Jackson, "He
gets his free."

"And my brother?" Jake asked.

The man smiled as he replied, "Sure, maybe I'll let the two of you do it
first so people get an interest."

Patrick hadn't really showed an interest in milking a cow prior but when he
found out that he was going to get an opportunity he calmly said, "Sweet."

Jackson showed the man a temporary bull pen that he set up beside the pony
rides in the corral.  Patrick and Jake watched as the man unloaded his cows
from the truck. He placed a stool and a pail with each cow.  And he posted
a sign that said, "Come milk a cow for one ticket or $1.50."

Jackson commented, "They're only paying a buck for the ticket."

"That's right," the man said and then added, "Just like if you get tickets
to an event, you get them cheaper buying the tickets ahead of time rather
than buying them at the gate."

"You have a point," Jackson concurred, "If someone wanted to rent a horse,
it would cost them the same as buying tickets, but by buying the tickets,
they also get a drink, a choice of a burger or hotdog AND they get to milk
a cow."

The man looked at Jake, "If you want to come watch, I'll show you how to
milk a cow.  By the way, my name is George."

"I'm Jake and my brother is Patrick," Jake responded as he watched George
milk the first cow.

"I take it, you and Patrick are really close," George surmised.

Jake nodded his head, "Uh huh, he lost his parents and moved in with us.
He's been the best brother I could ask for and I'm trying to help him not
hurt anymore."

"And you have been a big help, Bro," Patrick said, a tear running down his
face, "but please, don't mention it anymore.  It brings back the pain when
you do."

"I'm sorry, Patrick," Jake offered.

"I know, and I understand that you didn't know it hurts talking about it,
so I forgive you, but please..." Patrick didn't finish his sentence, he
just hugged Jake.  Jim watched what had happened and wanted to give Patrick
a hug, but he let the two boys just hug each other.

Jake was ready to milk a cow when people started lining up.  He was milking
one cow as Patrick milked another.  One lady inquired, "I don't want to
milk a cow myself, can I use my ticket to watch the little boy milk it
again?  He's so cute, can I take his picture?"

"As for the picture, you'd have to ask his father," George stated, then he
looked at Jake and asked, "Do you want to milk the cow again?  This lady
would like to watch you."

Jake just grinned and sat back down on the stool.  Patrick was getting
ready to look for Jim when he saw a truck pull up with a horse trailer.
The truck had a sign that said "Gavin Farms."  "Dad," Patrick started,
"that's Scott's family."

Jim and Patrick walked towards the truck, leaving Zac to keep an eye on
Jake.  Jake was having fun milking a cow and several people used their
ticket to watch him.  A blonde-haired boy around Patrick's age was getting
out of the truck when Jim and Patrick got there.  He immediately ran to
Patrick and gave him a hug.  Jim thought, "I can see why Patrick thinks
Scott has feelings for him."

Scott introduced Patrick to his parents, "Mom and Dad, this is Patrick, he
was the one who really did the work that won us the pizzas."

Patrick was a little surprised when Scott hugged him and he almost kissed
the boy but settled with just returning the hug.  He turned to Scott's
parents and greeted them, "I'm pleased to meet you, this is my Dad."

Jim shook hands with Mr. and Mrs. Gavin.  "Patrick tells me that Scott
suggested for the boys and all of us to all go together for a pizza party."

"Yes, that's what Scott told us as well.  We were thinking around Friday
night the eighteenth, unless you will be busy." Mr. Gavin stated.

"Hmmm, I'm not sure what Zac's schedule is like for school, he'll be taking
night courses since he works on the ranch during the day.  What about
Saturday night?" Jim suggested.

Mr. Gavin agreed, "Saturday night or Sunday afternoon work for us.  The
twenty-second will be Scott's twelfth birthday and he'd like to invite
Patrick over for a small party right after school.  It'll just be us and
Patrick, but you'd be welcome to join us."

Jim looked at Patrick, "You have my permission to go, either you can ride
your bike, I can drop you off or I can take you and stay until you're ready
to go home."

"Or he can ride home from school with us and spend the night," Scott
suggested.

Patrick looked at Jim waiting to see what he said.  Jim gave Patrick a
one-armed hug and said, "It's your call, but if I were you, I'd jump at the
chance to spend the night."

"Thank you, Dad," Patrick said, giving Jim a hug.  He turned to Scott, "If
your parents don't mind, I'd love to spend the night."

"Scott already asked if you could," Mr. Gavin responded, "And we thought it
would be a splendid idea."

"I just hope I don't wake you the next morning, I get up at five so I can
take care of the horses," Scott warned.

Patrick laughed, "That's not that early.  Through the week, we get up at
six, but weekends, it's five since Dad and Papa come here to take care of
these horses.  I like helping Dad take care of them, maybe I can help you
so you get done quicker."  Jim smiled at Patrick.

Jim looked at Mr. Gavin, "So Mr. Gavin, what's in the trailer?"

"Please, call me Ed," Mr. Gavin started, "I hope Jackson doesn't mind.
Scott wanted to come here today, hoping to go riding and we brought our own
horses."

Jim confirmed, "Jackson won't mind, but don't buy any tickets.  They
include the cost of horse rental and you can buy the food and drink for
less than the tickets."

Patrick asked Scott, "You want to see my brother milking a cow?  He's so
cute and people are using their tickets just to watch him doing it."

Scott smiled at Patrick, "If he's your brother, he has to be cute."

Patrick just smiled and then asked Jim, "Can I take him to watch Jake for a
few minutes?"

"If it's alright with his parents," Jim replied.

"Can I, Dad?" Scott asked.

Ed agreed, "For a few minutes, then you need to help me unload the horses
since it was your idea to come here to go riding."

Patrick and Scott ran to watch Jake still milking the cows.  No one else
seemed interested in doing it, they keep using their tickets just to watch
him.  Jake didn't care, he was having fun, but he was obviously getting
tired.  George looked at the crowd, "After this cow, I think the boy needs
a break; I know the cows will."

Scott watched Jake and let it slip, "He's almost as cute as you."  Patrick
was surprised by Scott saying that but he didn't respond, acting like he
didn't hear it.  Scott glanced over and was glad Patrick "didn't" hear him.

Jim walked with Mr. and Mrs. Gavin and led them to Zac.  "Hon," Jim
announced, "This is Ed and Dena Gavin.  They are Scott's parents.  We
thought maybe Saturday the nineteenth would be a good day for the pizza
party for the boys and then Scott invited Patrick to his birthday party on
the twenty-second and Patrick will be spending the night."

Zac shook their hands and greeted them, "I'm pleased to meet both of you.
I take it, Scott really likes Patrick."

"He hasn't stopped talking about him since he got home Friday," Dena
averred.  "I've never seen him take a liking to anyone as fast as he has
Patrick."

Jim whispered in Zac's ear, "I think Scott has a crush on Patrick.  Patrick
has a crush on Scott and asked me about being gay."

Zac told Jim, "We'll talk later."

That night when they got home, Jim and Zac sat down with Patrick.  They
asked Jake to go play in his room.  Zac looked Patrick in the eye and
asked, "What's this I hear about you having a sleepover at Scott's?"

Patrick looked down, "Scott invited me to his birthday party and said I
could spend the night.  Dad said that it was alright, but now I'm nervous
about going."

"Oh?" Jim questioned, "did something happen today?"

Patrick nodded his head once, "When we went to watch Jake milking a cow,
Scott commented that Jake was almost as cute as me. I like Scott and I want
to kiss him, but I'm not sure if I'm gay and if I am, I don't think I'm
ready for a boyfriend."

Zac smiled, "You're not ready for a boyfriend.  If you were, you would know
it.  And remember what I said when you told me you had a crush on someone
else?"

"You mean when I told you I had a crush on Dad?" Patrick asked.  He looked
at Jim for some reaction.  Jim raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised, but
not totally.  He merely gave Patrick a smile.  Patrick continued, "You said
that it might be a phase.  Dad said the same thing, that Sigmund Fraud
claims that everyone goes through it."

"Sigmund Freud, and yes, you and Scott may both be going through a phase.
If you want, I can come pick you up after the party. You can say that I
said not on a school night," Zac offered.

Patrick's eyes went big, "No Papa, please?  I want to spend the night with
Scott.  I think it would be fun and I promise, if Scott tries anything,
I'll tell him that I'm not ready.  That is, anything but kiss."

Jim laughed, "You seriously want to kiss him.  I hope for both of your
sakes that either you both are going through a phase or neither of you are.
I would hate to see either of you get broken hearted."

"Yeah, I'm sure Dad told you, if you discover that you're gay, straight or
bi, we will love you and support you.  We can promise you that," Zac
assured Patrick.

"When does a straight boy get too old for his dads to kiss him?" Patrick
asked, "I enjoy you two kissing me, maybe not in public, but I hope I never
get too old for you to kiss me like you do."

Jim gave Patrick a hug, "There is no set age when it happens for anyone,
gay or straight.  Straight boys may start getting embarrassed sooner, but
there's no age on that.  As long as you feel comfortable with it, I don't
care if you're thirty, I will be happy to kiss your cheek and say I love
you."

Patrick smiled and Jim noticed a gleam in his eye, "You're my dad, I like
knowing that you love me, so I hope I never feel uncomfortable with it.
That goes for you too, Papa."

Zac said, "OK, you have school tomorrow, go get a shower and get to bed.
Let Jake know that we said the same for him."

"I love you, Papa," Patrick said, giving Zac a hug and kiss.  Then he
walked over to Jim, "I love you, Dad."  Jim picked him up with his hug and
held him.

Zac acted upset, "I thought I told you to get a shower and go to bed.  You
can't take a shower if you're up in the air like that."

Patrick stated, "Dad picked me up, it's not my fault."

Jim placed Patrick over his shoulder, "I think I should get a shower and go
to bed, myself.  I have school tomorrow as well."  Patrick laughed as Jim
went upstairs carrying him like that.  He was surprised when Jim didn't put
him down.  Instead, while still carrying him, he went in and turned on his
shower.

Concern in his voice, Patrick asked, "Dad, do you plan to put me down
before you get in?  We still have our clothes on."

Jim chuckled, "Oh, I was wondering what that weight on my shoulder was."
And he set Patrick on the floor.

"Somehow, I doubt you had to wonder too much," Patrick giggled, then he
gave Jim a hug before heading to tell Jake that Papa said for them to get a
shower and go to bed.

Jake looked at him and asked, "Did you get in trouble for something?"

"No," Patrick answered, "Dad and Papa just needed to talk to me about when
I go to Scott's birthday party in a couple of weeks."

Jake confessed, "OK, I was worried about you when they took you to the
table and asked me to come up here."

"I'm glad you cared, want to shower with me so I can wash your hair and
back?" Patrick offered.

"Uh huh," Jake said.  After their shower the boys went to bed.

Zac found out, he had a class on Tuesday nights, but a couple of his
classes could only be taken during the day on Wednesdays and Thursdays, or
he could do them online.  Since the day classes started at nine in the
morning and would be out by three in the afternoon, Zac chose those days as
his days off from the ranch.  Josh agreed to help those days if Jackson
needed anyone before Jim arrived.

Scott started eating lunch with Patrick and Toby every day.  The three
discussed what pizzas they wanted to get with their coupon and hoped that
their parents would let them.

Since Zac didn't have classes on Friday nights, they moved the pizza party
back to the original date.  At Millstones, Jim spoke to Patrick, "C'mon,
it's your coupon, so order what you want on it and I'll order a second
pizza and drinks to be sure we have enough."

"Papa said that you don't like olives, but I do.  I don't know about Jake
and Papa," Patrick commented.

Jim encouraged the boy to get what he wants, "If you want olives, get them,
or maybe get them on half.  I don't know if Jake does or not, but I know
Papa doesn't.  Papa and I can eat off the second pizza.  Just make sure
that whatever you put on it, you will eat."

Patrick grinned, "Scott, Toby and I were hoping that we could pick the
toppings since we won the coupons, but we didn't want to ask and seem
selfish."

Jim gave Patrick a slight hug, "Asking if you could wouldn't have been
selfish, but I'm glad it worked out like you wanted.  And you do know that
if you asked, we would have let you."

Patrick gave Jim a toothy grin and said, "I was fairly sure that you would,
but seeing how I never had to test it, I really didn't know."

Jim chuckled, "At least that's honest, but never be afraid to ask
anything."

"Can I take Gold to school on Monday?" Patrick teased.

That made Jim laugh, causing the entire restaurant to look at him.  "I
don't think the school would allow it."

"I know, but you said I could ask anything," Patrick replied.

When the pizza arrived, Jim asked Jake which side of the pizza he wanted to
eat from.  Jake pointed at the olives and asked, "What's them?"

Zac said, "Those are olives, do you like olives?"

Jake shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know."  Patrick picked an olive off
and handed it to Jake.  After eating it, Jake wrinkled his nose and made a
face.

Patrick declared, "I'm glad I didn't get olives on the whole thing."

After they ate, Patrick, Scott, Toby and Jeanie asked if they could go to
the arcade room.  Jake looked at Patrick and asked, "Can I come, too?"

Patrick replied, "You may be too little for most of the games, but we can
see if there's anything you can play." Jim and Zac mouthed a "thank you" to
Patrick.

As the night wore thin, Jake was sitting on Jim's lap asleep.  Patrick had
spent fifteen dollars playing arcades, but five of that was for Jake to
play skee-ball.  He came back to the table and laid his head against Zac.
Jim announced that he thought it was time to head home and Zac concurred.



Next Chapter, Patrick goes to the birthday party/sleep over.  What will
happen?  And, What's Jim and Zac doing in Priorities here on Nifty?



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