Date: Sat, 10 May 2003 09:37:22 +0000
From: Eric Shaw <volleyboy26@hotmail.com>
Subject: Beautiful Run: Chapter 8

I awoke, feeling Eric's hand run along my side. I stirred for a moment
before turning to face him, and after opening my eyes I realized the car was
parked along the street beside my house. I reached out and took a hold of
his hand, and tilted my head to the side, resting it on the cushion. "Oh,
I'm sorry babe. I thought I was just resting my eyes for a second. I guess
it may have been a bit longer than that." I said.
"No problem love, I thought the nap would do some good."
"I guess I needed it more than I thought."
"Well, I have to make sure my boy's well rested." Eric said with a smirk. I
could only do the same in return.
"So are you just going home now?" I asked.
"Yes.where else would I be going?" He replied, smiling curiously as the
question seemed to peek his interest. I licked my lips, sprouting a devilish
grin soon thereafter. Without uttering another word, Eric laughed and shook
his head, questioning what I had in mind as we left the car and walked
toward the house.  I opened the door, motioning for Eric to follow behind. I
could hear the sound of the television from the living room for a few
seconds before it was muted.
"Hey sport!" My father greeted me as he walked into the foyer. My mother was
close behind him. "And this must be Eric. It's finally nice to meet you,
son."
"Likewise" Eric replied, shaking my father's hand. I couldn't help but laugh
at the formality of the situation. "We really appreciate your driving Connor
home, Eric." My mother said, this time extending a hand of her own. With the
other she took my gym bag from him, as Eric was courteous enough to carry it
for me. "I better get his sweaty things into the wash. You know how
disgusting our son can be!" She said. Eric gave her a wink and nodded before
they all began laughing at my expense. I could only blurt out a defensive
"Hey!" before joining the round of laugher, which seemed to be more based on
the relief of the initial awkwardness than anything else. We all stood there
in the hall for a few moments as I relayed the happenings of the tournament,
deliberately leaving out the situation with Andrew, instead opting to share
the news of Eric's success.
"Congratulations Eric, that's wonderful. Well Con, it seems like a little
bit of Eric has been rubbing off on you." My father said with jovial intent
as he gave me a hug. I laughed, not at the joke, but at the thought of how
desperately I wanted to rub a little bit of Eric myself. "You don't know how
glad I am to hear you say that Dad. Does that mean I'm allowed to sleep over
at Eric's tonight? Considering we're both sort of tired, we may just stay in
tonight and relax." Taking cue, Eric understood and began to follow my lead
once my parents shifted their gaze to his direction seeking confirmation.
"Definitely Mr. and Mrs. Peck, we just wanted a quiet evening to rest.
Connor in fact is just being courteous, knowing that my parents are away for
the evening and opting to keep me company." My parents reacted warmly to
Eric, as they seemed to be quite taken by him. First looking to the other
for approval, they agreed. "I must admit that you boys do deserve a bit of a
break after today. Let this be our way of saying 'congratulations'." My
father pulled out some money from his pocket, insisting that we buy dinner
on our way. Surprised at the gesture, I took the money and pulled Eric in my
direction as I sped up the stairs disallowing any chance for them to change
their minds.

Once entering my room, I motioned to Eric to close the door behind him.
Filled with adrenaline, I pulled him forcefully by the shirt almost causing
him to fall forward, grinding his body into mine. I moved my hand behind
Eric's head and pulled him into a kiss. The taste of his lips on mine was
addictive, leaving me wanting more than ever before. Eric regained his
composure, though remaining surprised yet curious about my sudden audacity.
"Con, your parents are right downstairs!" He warned. His voice was filled
with reluctance, as though his rationale conflicted with what his heart was
telling him to pursue. I recognized the reason in his words. I took a few
moments to collect myself, breathing heavily as I rested my head on his
shoulder.
I asked Eric to wait a few moments as I packed a few things and took a
shower. When I returned to the room minutes later and began to change, I
noticed Eric stealing glances in an ill-fated attempt to read a magazine he
found on my nightstand. Unable to resist, I began to brush by him, teasing
him. Beginning a heated dance to tempt him as I posed, slowly getting
dressed. Feeling Eric's deep stare in my direction I licked my lips and
slowed moved toward him. Our eyes locked, I stood in front of him and
brought my face forward. I used my lips to brush his own for a mere moment,
as my hand worked its way up his thigh. I finally moved my hand to the front
of his pants and held it there. "So how does that feel?" I asked. Eric
smiled in anticipation and nodded in agreement. "Oh.but my parents are right
downstairs. Too bad!" I said with false disappointment. I quickly got
dressed and we left.

Once entering the car, Eric couldn't help but notice the smug look on my
face. He opened his mouth, to counter my newfound confidence no doubt, but
replaced it with a look of defeat. He slouched back into his chair and took
a deep breath. "Alright, you win. I admit it; I want you so bad. If you
don't mind, I had to borrow the magazine to walk to the car, for obvious
reasons." I looked down and laughed while Eric turned red. As he started the
car, I combed through the back of his hair with my fingers and kissed his
cheek.
After buying some Japanese food on the way, Eric sped through traffic and we
were at his house at what seemed to be the blink of an eye. Before I could
realize, Eric led me into the family room. He pulled me into him with the
same vigor I had show earlier, and held me in a kiss. Turning around, he
guided me onto the couch and straddled my legs. I pulled Eric's shirt over
his head and threw it on the floor below. He pulled up my shirt and worked
his lips over my stomach. Overwhelmed by the sensation of Eric's soft mouth
over my core, I arched my back to accommodate him. He soon lay on top of me,
tasting my lips and all the while grinding his hips into mine. I exhaled as
Eric pushed into me.
"So does this mean you're no longer hungry?" Came a voice from behind. Eric
and I lay there frozen. I did not have the nerve to look up and without
needing to, Eric whispered "Will!" Our heads lowered in embarrassment, Eric
grabbed his shirt from the floor while I straightened what I was wearing.
"Don't stop on our account!" We heard another voice. Eric and I
instinctively looked at one another once realizing our audience was not
comprised of just Will. Standing beside him was Robin and Marco, all dawning
rather monotonous expressions. Marco finally broke the silence. "Guys c'mon!
Can we eat this or not?"
* * *
We sat around the kitchen table eating the food that Eric and I had bought
earlier. Initially the awkwardness was based on our embarrassment alone, but
we were soon made at ease.
"Guys! No cause for concern." Robin said. "We're just disappointed it wasn't
us" she continued, squeezing Marco's hand. We laughed as the tension in the
room began to dissipate. From that point on, the conversation flowed freely
without restraint. After we took some time to explain how we met, I felt a
sense of ease brought on by the realization that there was no need to hide.
This topic led me to describe the situation with Andrew a few hours before,
replacing my feelings of contentment with discomfort. Eric was also affected
by the change in subject.
"If I had another minute with him." Eric began. "He would have regretted
being born." I squeezed his hand to calm him down. I had never seen such a
side to Eric, but to be honest I enjoyed it. Noticing my attempt to soften
him, he faced me. "Con, I'm just so sorry I wasn't there earlier."
"Don't be absurd, there's no way you could blame yourself for what
happened." I answered.
"But I do. The thought of that guy having his hands on you, just." It was
obvious that Eric couldn't think of how to finish, but no one needed another
word. It was selfish of me I admit, but I was comforted to see the fire in
Eric's eyes. Knowing how deeply rooted his love for me was, I was
overflowing with feelings of security. Eric was my protector, and I was
safe.
"Easy, little bro!" Will said. "It's over and done with. No use losing your
head over it." We agreed with his sound approach. Just as that was said,
Will leaned in toward me and squeezed my forearm. "If you came out with even
one hair out of place, I would have killed him myself".
From the corner of my eye I could see Eric stirring with anger. Before long
he excused himself from the table, apologizing on his way out. I chose to
follow him closely, hoping to help in any way I could. The chase led into
the back yard where I caught a glimpse of Eric sitting at the edge of a
large deck. I moved toward him, taking a seat on his lap and wrapping my
legs around him. He tried to look away, but my confronting gaze held his
eyes to mine. "Eric, am I missing something? I have never seen you like
this." He took a few moments to collect himself before speaking. "When I saw
Andrew kiss you. I was so scared. Scared that you wouldn't push away. Scared
that you liked it. Scared that I had lost you." Eric looked away, as though
continuing to speak was too daunting a task. He let out a sigh before going
on. "This may be hard to believe, but I've wanted to be with you from the
first time I saw you. Having to hold it all in for so long and not be able
to show it, was just too much. I could never go back to that. I don't know
what I would do if I lost you, Con." As the words came I could no longer dam
the emotion. I began to cry. Both feeling drained, we sunk into one another
before I whispered in his ear. "There could never be anyone else."
* * *
Eric and I sat on the deck for nearly hour without uttering so much as a
word. Once I felt goosebumps developing on his arm, I knew it was time to
rejoin the others. We noticed that the group had since moved into the family
room where our first meeting so smoothly took place. It was obvious there
was no need to bombard Eric with questions, as he was back to his normal
self. I noticed that a simple rub of the shoulder was enough for Will to
gesture Eric his support. With that, he flashed me a smile in appreciation
for my help.
The events of the day were chaotic to say the least, and took a heavy toll.
I closed my eyes for what seemed like a moment, when the sound of Will's
voice jolted me awake. "We better get our little 'Champion' to bed. The poor
thing's exhausted." With that I felt Eric's strong arms wrap around
me and guide me to my feet. Leading me up the stairs, I heard a 'knock' on
the door and Will walk to the front hall to open it. "There you are! We've
been waiting all night." I turned around to see who it was. He stood roughly
at Will's height, with brown hair and blue eyes. His toned face rather
striking, and physique nothing to scoff at. "Eric, you remember Grant." I
turned to see him smile and walk toward the door to greet him. "Hey, long
time no see!" Eric said. "Yeah, too long by the looks of things." Grant
said, pulling Eric into a hug and gave him a hidden kiss on the cheek. At
this point I was still rather sluggish, when suddenly I was pulled into
reality by the sight of Grant's hands cupping Eric's rear.