Date: Wed, 31 Mar 2010 14:49:30 +0000 From: David Lee <dlee169@hotmail.com> Subject: Second Chance, chapter 68 Second Chance, Chapter 68 Warning: This story is copyrighted by the author known as David Lee and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without explicit permission. This story contains descriptions of love and sexual fulfillment between people of the same gender. If possessing or reading this kind of material is illegal where you live, please leave this site at once. My previous stories may be quickly accessed by searching for my name under the "Stories by Prolific Net Authors" heading which is found under the "Information for Readers" spot to the "D's" since they've changed the way things are alphabetized. You may write to me at dlee169@hotmail.com. I'll do my best to answer promptly. Please put the title of this story in the "subject" line when you email. For the full disclaimer and additional info, please read the statement that precedes Chapter 1. As always, I thank my editors Tom and David for their proofing my work and giving me suggestions and lots of positive feedback. They're an integral part of this effort. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 68 Reese and Cameron grew closer than ever after going to visit Cam's family. Cam didn't seem to be hesitant at all when it came to discussing their future. Reese's smile rarely left his face when they were together. There were times when it wasn't all "life in paradise," but for the most part, these ended in "kiss and make up" sessions. However, Cam got really pissed when Reese left his dirty clothes on their bedroom floor again the day after he'd asked Reese to pick them up. Both showed their tempers, but stopped short of name-calling and allowing their differences to escalate to the physical level. Reese did, however, sleep in the other bedroom that night. At their counseling session with Ms. Harter the following afternoon, both seemed a bit grumpy and distracted. "Well, you'd better tell me what's going on. Did you two have a lover's quarrel?" Claire asked arching one eyebrow. "Yeah," Cam said as both nodded. "Who wants to go first?" "I will," Reese volunteered. "I've been kind of a slob lately leaving my stuff on the floor and it pissed Cam off. He yelled at me and I went with my first instinct, which was to yell back. From there, I got really mad. I slept in the guest room last night and told Cam I'm gonna sleep there until further notice." "Are you going to carry through with your threat?" she probed. "Probably not," Reese admitted sheepishly. "I guess I'm at fault too," Cam said. "I've been trying to keep the place neat even though I've been working lots of hours in addition to my class load and I felt like he wasn't doing his part. I treated him like an immature kid – like he wasn't being responsible..." "I wasn't, and I'm sorry. Now that I've had time to think about it, I don't blame you for being angry. I promise I'll do better." "I was afraid I'd messed things up between us by yelling – especially after you didn't sleep with me. I won't do that again either. I don't want fighting to drive us apart!" "There's no harm in having a disagreement once in a while as long as you talk out the issues in a rational manner." Claire interjected. "It can be a learning experience. I know it's not good practice to use personal examples, but I have to say that I can relate to Cam's feelings and my husband can relate to Reese's, I'm sure. I also feel like most of the housework falls on my shoulders and that Rich doesn't always hold up his end. We had a similar fight in the first few months of our marriage, but with positive results. He's begun to realize how much I do and I've come to understand that when I bitch at him it makes him feel like I'm playing the part of a mother with an unruly child. I was emasculating him without realizing it. Ironic isn't it? I'm trained to see these things in other people's relationships, but missed them in my own." "You mean like `physician heal thyself?'" Cam asked with a slight smile. "Precisely! Do you think we need to dwell on this issue longer, or should we get on with today's topic?" "What is it?" Cam asked. "It's supposed to be about sharing household responsibilities. I guess it's pretty topical, yes?" The guys laughed heartily. As they got ready to participate, Cam slid his chair closer to Reese's and subtly laid his left hand on Reese's upper leg. Reese turned toward him with the kind of grin that let Cam know he would not be sleeping alone. ---------- "Oh God, that was good!" Cam exclaimed. "You took me to places I didn't know existed. I mean, I didn't even touch myself!" "It was awesome for me too," Reese enthused. "Do you want to fight again tomorrow?" "Why would I want to do that?" Cam asked incredulously. "For the makeup sex!" Reese giggled. His flippant remark earned him a smack on the butt which led to a wrestling match which, in turn, led to coupling again. This time Cam took the dominant role. Despite having cum so recently, both were raring to go. It took a bit longer to reach nirvana, but that's not all bad. Sometimes the journey can be almost as fulfilling as the destination. ---------- The weekend following Josh's gallery opening, he and Eric had to be at the Barnes and Nobel Bookstore in the mall on Saturday afternoon for the autograph party Mr. Overman had arranged. They went unaccompanied by other family members, but were not alone for long. Rob, Blake, and Robbie showed up to help fan the flames of excitement. It wasn't absolutely necessary because their video on YouTube and the spot on the noon news before the art show had already done a lot in that regard. However, Robbie's presence didn't hurt the cause. "Oh look! There's the little boy I saw on YouTube," one expectant mother squealed. "He's so adorable. I hope my Tommy looks as cute. I just have to have an autographed copy to read to him!" The boys had pre-signed a number of copies, but wrote personalized inscriptions in all of the books they sold. Everyone wanted something special. They had been scheduled to be at the store from 1:00 to 3:00, but the manager prevailed upon them to stay another hour. By 4:00 there were only three people left who wanted autographed copies. However, the manager asked if they could come back for at least a couple of hours on Sunday afternoon because he was certain there would be a demand. ---------- Some kids were out partying on Saturday night, but Josh and Eric spent the time doing homework that they'd originally planned to put off until the following afternoon. When they finally finished about 8:00, they went downstairs to the kitchen to scavenge for a snack. "There's leftover pizza or you can make popcorn," Ben called from the living room. "If you pop corn, you'd better make a couple of batches because you know how the aroma carries." By the time the first kettle was done, they could hear Blake and Rob descending the stairs. "Is there enough for us?" Rob grinned. "Of course, we're going to make enough for the whole neighborhood," Eric joked. "We can make our own," Blake offered. "Nah, we've got more that'll be ready in a minute. Better call the old guys." "I heard that and I resemble that remark!" Scott snickered as he and Ben joined the rest in the kitchen. ---------- When Eric and Josh finally went up to their attic apartment, it was nearly time for bed. They were tired from going to swim practice in the morning, signing books in the afternoon, and doing homework much of the evening, but felt that a shower might revive them long enough to have a bit of quality time before going to sleep. Their bathroom was all finished; making it a pleasant place to be. Its beauty made the rest of their quarters look less than perfect, but things were progressing. During Thanksgiving break, they hoped to finish the painting. Of course, the décor wasn't the main thing on their minds as they lovingly removed each other's clothing. As soon as the water was running warm, they got into the shower and went about their usual routine of washing each other's hair and body. Every time they showered together, they rose to the occasion. After drying off, they slipped between the sheets and began to make out in earnest. Each was so attuned to the other's feeling and needs, that they knew the exact location of all the hot buttons. Making love was now more about holding on to the awesome sensation than having to arouse it. Not that they'd ever had to work at arousing each other. Josh lay on his back and pulled his knees toward his chest signaling that he wanted to be on the bottom. Eric was happy to accommodate since he knew how much Josh loved that position and he also loved having his cock encased in the warm, moist canal which was awaiting him. As usual, the one who took the role of "top" lovingly prepared his partner. By the time Eric was through, he had Josh begging to be taken. Eric began with long, gentle strokes, but sped up at Josh's urging. Before long, he was thrusting like an animal in rut while sucking his lover's tongue. Their chorus of sensuous moans grew louder just before Josh unloaded between their bodies. The clenching and unclenching of his rectal muscles rapidly pulled Eric over the edge with him. They rested for a few minutes and then pulled apart. In the afterglow, they licked the residue of Josh's rather copious offering off of each other. Then they kissed deeply until Eric went to the bathroom to get a warm, damp cloth to clean up Josh who was beginning to leak Eric's cum. Both went to sleep smiling. ---------- The trial for Jake Hall and Dalton Jones was to begin on Monday morning. Since they were accused of the same offenses and had court-appointed lawyers representing them, they were going to be tried together. The court case didn't affect many people in high school directly, but Casey, Aaron, and Sam were very conscious of it. Casey was to take the stand to testify against his older brother. Aaron wanted to support him and where Aaron was, Sam was sure to follow. (Sam had even joined the swim team mostly to protect Aaron if it became necessary.) Casey was automatically excused from school by the judge, but the other two had to get their parents to agree. Both got permission pretty easily because their folks were proud that they were thoughtful enough to stand by their friend. Surrounded by his friends and family, Casey felt as secure as he could in light of his role. He sat going over the victim impact statement he'd written. His feelings about his brother were mixed. On the one hand, he felt Jake deserved whatever he got. On the other, he worried a little about how his older sibling would survive hard-time. Just after prospective jurors had been interviewed, someone came in to excuse them. The two young men had agreed to a last minute plea bargain deal which would reduce the charges from kidnapping to aggravated assault. The charge of grand theft auto stood. The judge handed down their sentences after a short recess. Jake would receive one year for aggravated assault minus the time already served. He would receive three years for stealing his parents' car. The sentences would be served consecutively. Because of a prior assault charge, Dalton would receive three years on the first charge plus three for grand theft auto. The teenagers would be sent to a minimal security prison because they weren't considered to be dangerous, hardened criminals. Both would be eligible for early release if they kept their noses clean. Dalton's mother cried and carried on to the point of having to be escorted out of the courtroom. Jake's parents sat rather stoically, wondering where they'd gone wrong. Casey felt some sense of relief that Jake would be out of his life until he was out of the house and in college. Now he wouldn't even need to read the statement he'd worked so hard on. It all seemed rather anti-climactic to him. ---------- The remodeling of the former Morrison Hotel began in November with the hope of having the main floor done by Christmas and upper floors done throughout the winter. At the time when house construction would be greatly reduced because of cold weather, this project would create jobs for a number of craftsmen in the area. Staley Flooring won the bid for replacing carpet and tile. Peter wondered if his father's business had been chosen because of his connections with Rob, but wasn't going to ask. He was simply thankful that his family would not only ride out the worst of the recession in good financial shape, but stood to make serious money to boot. Several workmen who would have been laid off were now guaranteed jobs for several months – probably long enough to make it until spring construction began. In fact, the job was big enough that Mr. Staley was able to sub-contract some of the work a friend whose floor-covering business was in dire straits. Several businesses were heading toward Thanksgiving grateful for a certain young high school student who had helped to raise the money for the renovation. It would have a positive impact on the local economy. ---------- The school days leading up to Thanksgiving break were filled with tests and quizzes. Nearly every teacher was eager to catch the kids while recent learning was still fresh in their cluttered young minds. Students were bound to forget some of it over the vacation. Eric was pleased that his advanced creative writing class didn't have any major tests. Grades were based on each person's output and writing was relatively easy for him. Instead of creating another children's book for the first term, he had received permission to concentrate on a novelette in the "young adult" genre. His story was a fictionalized account of two young men falling in love and getting married. Mr. Shackford encouraged him to write it, saying that there was almost nothing available on the subject for gay teens to read. As long as there were no graphic accounts of a sexual nature, it would be fine to do as a school project. The story almost wrote itself because it was based on his diary. Mr. Shackford assumed that much of it was autobiographical and didn't mind. Many writers draw heavily on personal experience, especially in their early work. Josh was also relieved that at least his art classes were relatively "test-free." Mr. Gilbert was already pleased with the amount of paintings Josh had produced for his exhibition. The quality hadn't suffered due to the short time in which some of them were produced. In his entire teaching career thus far, Mr. Gilbert had never had a student with this much talent. What Josh had done in the first half of the fall semester was more than most students produced in a year. Studying for tests in math, science, and government along with swimming practice and daily chores made the boys glad when Friday came at last. They would have most of the next week off to work on their apartment! The only scheduled thing to interrupt their vacation would be a few hours in the pool. ---------- Author's notes: Thanks to those who emailed this week: Walt S, Rutabaga, Paul R, Rick S, Bill, Tom A, Vann, Bertrand, Carroll, Paul F, Chea, Tony W, Mark H, and John McD. I appreciate the encouragement. It looks like this story will go into the 80's at least as far as chapter totals are concerned. It's been a year since same-sex marriage has been legal in Iowa. Guess what, the sky hasn't fallen and we haven't had more catastrophes than usual! Our spring has come early, however. I think God might be pleased that people's rights aren't being denied...