Date: Mon, 18 Jul 2005 10:52:49 -0700
From: edwine81@gmail.com
Subject: My Theory of Justice 2

My Theory of Justice
By: Edwin E.

Disclaimer: This story deals with male/male relationships in high school;
don't read if you're not supposed to. This story is complete fiction: the
people, places, situations, email addresses, etc, mentioned below never
existed.

Quick note: Though this story is chronological, it's not entirely
linear. But I'm sure that won't be a problem for y'all, right? :-)

Part II: Verisimilitude

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To: "Philip Albright" <plitebright@xxxxxxx.org>
From: "Jude F. Kitsem" <jfkitsem@xxxxxxx.org>

Subject: On my way!

Philip,

Guess what?! My dad and I are finally moving! I don't know why his transfer
took so long, but it's finally done. I should get there in less than a
week! I know I've already missed a couple of weeks of school, but the
principal said I wouldn't be at any disadvantage, so I guess that's
good. This is the only time I've actually been excited since my dad told me
about the move. I guess I'm lucky to have found a friend online who's
already attending my future school. No more emails and IM as our only way
to talk to each other: we finally get to meet :-) I hope you're excited
too. Alright. I'm gonna go pack some more. See you soon!

-Jude

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"I'm not gay," Brad waveringly stated as he remained lying on the bed.

"Uh-huh okay," answered Adrian with obvious disinterest as he chose his
ensemble.

"Look, man, I was drunk last night, a-and I was just really horny," Brad
began before trailing off. Adrian's lack of concern over what happened the
night before was bothering him. "L-lots of guys experiment, right?"

"If you say so," Adrian replied casually while rummaging through his closet
for some shoes.

"Look, I'm not a faggot," Brad continued with boldness, possibly mistaking
Adrian's soft-spoken nature with weakness. "So unless you want me telling
people that you're a big queer, I think we should just forget about all
this." Adrian's head perked up - did Brad just threaten him? He turned and
stared at his guest.

"I hate to break it to you tiger, but you weren't nearly as drunk last
night as you wish you were," Adrian said coolly as he finished tying his
shoes. He looked in the closet mirror and fixed his hair while he
continued. "Judging from the noises you made last night... and this
morning... I'd have to say that you rather enjoyed yourself."

Brad could sense a bit of an edge creeping into Adrian's voice and he
became scared. That fear only heightened as Adrian's 6' frame walked over
to the bed and towered over him. In a flash, Brad was pinned down with a
forearm across his chest while a hand grasped this throat tightly.

"If you wanna keep quiet about all this, that's fine with me; I'm with you
100 percent on that one," Adrian said softly as he squeezed. "But leave the
bravado at the door and never threaten me again, or I'll kill you." Adrian
let go, smiled, and stood up as Brad began coughing. "Besides, who are you?
Some second string quarterback on a losing team? You're nothing. It doesn't
matter anyways: I've fucked more girls than you - who's gonna believe you
over me?"

Brad lay on the bed a few more seconds looking defeated. He knew that
despite his friendship with Philip, he could never stand a chance against
Adrian and his influence. So he quietly started getting dressed while the
other boy struggled with his tie. Adrian, knowing he had knocked Brad's
confidence down a few pegs, smiled as he watched the victim of his latest
social maneuver put on his shirt.

"Listen Brad," Adrian began as he walked toward him again. "You really
don't have to worry. I won't say anything if you won't."

"A-alright," Brad responded in a hoarse whisper while the two stood face to
face. Needing to reassert his dominance, Adrian grabbed the back of Brad's
head and drew him into a deep and rough kiss. When he could feel Brad's
excitement grow, Adrian drew back and smiled.

"Now get the fuck out of my house. I have to go to Church," said Adrian
nonchalantly. Brad, feeling more vulnerable than ever, confusedly made his
way to the front door with Adrian following suit. "Oh, Brad?" Adrian called
out just as the poor kid had stepped onto the stoop.

"Yeah?"

"For the record, you are a fag," Adrian smiled before gently closing the
door. "Fuckin' loser," he laughed to himself as he heard Brad start his car
and drive off.

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To: "Jude F. Kitsem" <jfkitsem@xxxxxxx.org>
From: "Philip Albright" <plitebright@xxxxxxx.org>

Subject: Re: On my way!

jude,

Finally, man! I am definitely excited that you're almost here. I already
told my friends about you that way you can feel more comfortable when you
get here. And don't worry, I didn't tell them ALL about you :-) It's
definitely selfish of me, but I'm glad that I'm finally gonna have a friend
at school who has similar... tastes as me, if you catch my drift :-) I
can't wait, man! I guess I'll see you in a week. Take care, bro.

philip.

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The next school day began as any other. Aside from a random fight between a
pair of sophomores, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Philip, however,
smiled the entire morning. His excitement after receiving Jude's email
hadn't diminished over the weekend. Though he loved his current inner
circle of friends deeply, he wasn't entirely open with all of them. He
never felt he could share his deepest secrets with any of them - except
Amanda, but she didn't count (she was more like a sister). Jude was going
to change that. Six months of corresponding online and Jude knew Philip's
most closely guarded secret; shit, it was the source of their instant
bond. Now Jude would be attending Cassidy Prep too. His smile would not
fade.

Lunchtime in the cafeteria found Philip and his friends at their usual
table. Per their custom, the quintet stayed seated after finishing their
meals so they could tell each other about their respective weekends: David
and Max had taken their girlfriends to the lake again, a story that
elicited playful yawns from the others - the two took their girlfriends to
the lake every weekend; Amanda had spent most of Saturday and Sunday
shopping with her parents for their newly remodeled home; Philip just
relaxed around the house and made it a Blockbuster weekend; and
Brad...didn't say much. Although he did his best to take part in the
conversation, he seemed mightily distracted. Philip wondered what could be
bothering his good friend - he tried to give Brad comforting glances from
across the table, but Brad paid little attention.

Meanwhile, Adrian got up from across the room, and with his friends
following him, threw away his lunch remnants and prepared to leave. After
glancing around the cafeteria, he headed toward the exit farthest from him
but right next to Philip's table. Under normal circumstances, the two
groups ignored each other during lunch seeing as how there were teachers
always around. But this time Adrian had a good reason to head toward his
former friend - he had spotted Brad.

Adrian despised everyone at that table: they had chosen Philip over him
after the Great Schism. So when he passed by, he acknowledged no one. Most
at the table were too engrossed in their conversations to notice him
approach. But Philip had noticed, and he did nothing but glare. Adrian,
with that consummate smile on his face, quietly lowered his head near
Brad's, who hadn't seen him due to his turned back. Whispering quietly
enough so no one could overhear, Adrian simply said: "Hey, queer," and
casually walked out the door.

Brad, originally startled by the whisper, grew sullen once the words
registered in his mind. He wrapped his arms around his backpack and glanced
at his friends who were now staring at him with looks of confusion. His
pulse quickening, Brad quietly excused himself and left.

"That was weird," said David. "Do you think Brad's okay?"

"I'm not sure," Philip responded. "But we should go. Amanda, go check on
Brad. I'll talk to Adrian."

"Um, you sure that's a good idea?" Max asked hesitantly. It had become rare
for Adrian and Philip to ever confront each other face to face.

"Not really," Philip said as he grabbed his backpack and quickly headed out
of the cafeteria. With that, the group disbanded - each not entirely sure
what they had witnessed.

It didn't take too long for Philip to catch up to Adrian and plant himself
directly in his path. "What the fuck did you say to Brad?" Philip demanded.

"That's none of your damn business," Adrian responded, his tenor voice
resonating a bit in the empty hallway.

"Don't mess with my friends Adrian," Philip said in a grave tone, once
again remaining in Adrian's way.

"Well, then I suggest you keep your friends away from my parties Philip,"
Adrian began gently, his gaze never losing its intensity. "Imagine my
surprise this weekend when I saw Brad at MY house, drinking MY beer,
dancing with MY guests. What should I have done, just let him go? Is that
what you would have done to my friends? The rules are clear: you five are
always unwelcome. He should not have been there."

"What did you do?" Philip asked tersely. Adrian simply smiled - a smile
that would otherwise be characterized as ravenously sexy if not for the
malice seeping behind it.

"Let's just say I got to know Brad better that night... over and over
again," Adrian stated, his words dripping with euphemism. He got the
reaction he was hoping for: Philip understood immediately what was meant
and stood dumbfounded. Adrian walked around him and headed down the
corridor - exaggerating his limp for effect - content at finally having
been able to strike down one of Philip's closest friends.

"You're such an unfeeling asshole!" Philip called out just as Adrian was
about to reach the exit. As was his nature, Adrian never let his true
feelings show, and calmly turned around to walk back.

"And whose fault is that, Philip? Hmm?" Adrian whispered once they stood
face to face again, his striking features radiating a hint of anger. Adrian
would never admit it, but every disparaging comment lobbed at him by Philip
really did hurt. What Adrian didn't know, however, was that the same was
true for Philip. "Keep your friends away from me and we won't have this
problem again. Oh, and, uh, tell Brad I said hi." With a patronizing wink,
Adrian left...

Philip remained preoccupied the rest of the school day. He had never
suspected Brad of being anything other than straight. Though to be honest,
Philip rarely looked at people and tried to classify them by their
sexuality: his mind normally didn't think in those terms. Looking back, he
might have recognized some signs: Brad always seemed uneasy in the locker
room after games; he always laughed when the guys all joked around about
sex but hardly ever joined in the conversations; and for a good looking
blond-haired, blue-eyed quarterback, Brad was perpetually single.

"Did you talk to Brad?" Philip asked Amanda when they met up after school
to walk home.

"Yeah. But he was pretty reserved," she replied as they headed off.

"He didn't tell you what happened?"

"He was vague. He rambled a bit about how he went to Adrian's party and
'fucked up majorly,' as he put it," she continued. "But he didn't give
details. Though it was pretty clear that whatever Adrian said in the
cafeteria got him rattled. Did Adrian tell you what happened?"

"Yeah," Philip answered. "He practically threw it in my face, that smug
bastard."

"Can you tell me about it?"

"It's not my place."

"I understand," Amanda said. The two had a deal: they're completely open
about most everything, but when it comes to truly personal problems
involving others or even themselves, privacy can become paramount. "I told
Brad to talk to you, but he thinks you'll be mad at him."

"What? Why would he think that?"

"Because," she continued, "he thinks you'll be mad that he went to that
party when he wasn't supposed to. 'Brought it upon himself' type of deal."

"That's silly," Philip said. "I can't tell him what he can or can't do. I
think he shouldn't have gone, but he's one of my closest friends: I'll
always stand by him." He sighed. "Brad's always had more 'neutral' friends
than any of us. I'm sure they had no problem getting into that party. He
probably got tired of never being able to hang out with them."

"Maybe," Amanda agreed. "I told him you could help him, no matter what the
problem is. So he might call you today, just so you know."

"Thanks for helping Amanda," Philip smiled, giving her a little nudge off
the sidewalk.

"Jerk!" She laughed as she got back on the sidewalk and pushed Philip
back. "So how are you going to handle things?"

"I'm not entirely sure. But I'll think of something... I always do," he
replied rather bleakly. After another 15 minutes talking about random shit,
the two said goodbye and veered toward their respective blocks. Philip
immediately went to his room, took out a pencil and paper and began jotting
down ideas for how to deal with Adrian this time around.

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'Litebright' Online Journal Entry #412

Mood: tired Music: Mariah Carey (before she turned into a ho)

I talked to 'B' tonight. I told him I knew something was wrong (of course I
didn't tell him I knew the details). He didn't open up too much though. He
mentioned the party and how he shouldn't have gone. But he said nothing of
what actually happened to get him so distressed today. I can definitely
understand him trying to keep all that a secret; Lord knows I wouldn't tell
if I was in his position. But still...

Anyways, I did let him know that no matter what happened, I was already
working on making sure 'A' doesn't do anything stupid. 'B' said he didn't
want me to get involved - that he could handle things himself. Yeah
right. He's one of my closest friends, but the boy must be crazy if he
thinks he can handle this. I'm going to help my friend through this, and
I'm not asking for his permission - I told him as much.

I don't consider myself too prone to melodrama, but 'A' can be very
efficient when it comes to destroying people. He's careful and calculating
and cruel. There's no doubt in my mind that fucker just wants to hurt me,
through 'B.' But I've been through this before. That's why I have to get
involved. All this is my fault. People don't seem to understand that. 'A'
keeps trying to punish me by attacking my friends. Three years and he's
never really relented. But I know him too well. I can handle this... I have
to handle this.

If my friends have to deal with all this shit because of me, then the least
I can do is help out and keep things as easy for them as possible...

God I'm tired. I think that's it for tonight everybody. Time for bed!


******
Comments: 1

JFKitsem - Damn. I swear this high school of yours is straight out of a
soap opera or something :-) Should be interesting! I hope your friend is
all right. And you're right about helping him: doesn't matter if he wants
it or not, it's the right thing to do, right? 'A' and 'B'? Are you going to
introduce me to these people once I get there? Do I get to be 'J'? Good
night 'P'. :-)

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TO BE CONTINUED...

***

Author's Notes: Hello! I know the style's a bit disjointed, but it's
supposed to be. Hope you're all still sticking around. Write me!

edwine81@gmail.com