Date: Sat, 7 Jun 2003 19:31:58 EDT
From: JuilianJ@aol.com
Subject: STORY OF US PART 26

THE STORY OF US
BY: Julien

This story is 100% fictional and is by no means depictive of the life of
any person, place or thing.  It contains sexual activities between males
and should only be read if it is legal to do so in your area.  Read at your
own risk.  Comments are welcomed and would be very much appreciated.
ENJOY!

I would like to thank my editor, Frank, for doing such a great job on
editing - thanks a lot, man.

BOBBY

Today was the day, and the time had now come for me to do or die.  After
last night, I just wanted to give up everything if it meant living like
this for the rest of my life.  And I know that this was sounding like a
decision made in the heat of the moment but it wasn't.  This was a long
time coming.  It wasn't a matter of if, anymore.  This was going to happen
and it was going to happen today.  Richie had wanted to come with me when I
went to speak with Laurence but I had refused.  This was something I had to
do on my own and I had let him know that.

"I know you want to help, Richie, but I need to do this on my own.  Having
you there is going to be more of a distraction than anything else."

He frowned.  "A distraction?  How am I going to be a distraction, Bobby?"

"You know how.  How is it going to look if I'm trying to have a serious
conversation with Laurence and I keep looking at you?"

He frowned, did a double take and started to laugh.  "Funny, funny.  You
need to learn a little thing called self-control.  But seriously though, I
know this is not gonna be an easy thing for you.  I want to be there just
in case..." his voice trailed off and his eyes left mine.

I knew what he was worried about and he had every right to be feeling like
that but my having to watch his back if things didn't pan out was an added
stress that I didn't need.  I could handle myself, and I had to let him
know that.

"Richie, I know what you're worried about, and I'm not gonna tell you not
to worry, but you can't stress yourself out over something that ain't even
happened yet.  How you think it's gonna make me feel if I have to worry
about you while I'm in there discussing my career."  I paused and gauged
his reaction.  He seemed to understand what I was saying, but he didn't
speak.  "Everything is gonna be okay, baby.  I'm just gonna go in there and
tell him what's up.  And as soon as I'm done, I'm gonna call you."

He smiled a bit, but I could see through it.  It wasn't how he was feeling.

"You promise to call me as soon as you're done?"  he asked, the anxiety
plastered all over his face.

"Yes, I promise."

"And if there's a problem, you promise to call me?"

"Yes, I promise."

"And no matter what happens in there, you promise you won't change your
mind about us?"

I was about to say yes, and stopped.  I hadn't been expecting that question
from him.

"Is that what this is all about?  You think I'm gonna back down?"  I asked.

"No... I just don't.... Okay, yes.  I'm sorry for feeling that way, Bobby,
but I can't help it, I just do."  He began shaking despite the temperature,
and I pulled him into my arms.

"You think I actually give a fuck what they have to say about us?  I don't,
Richie.  I'm just giving Laurence and the rest of them a heads up of what I
plan to do so they can either jump on the bandwagon or not.  Whatever they
have to say won't change the fact that I'm gonna come out, it won't.  And
as for us, we're solid.  You hear me, Richie? We're solid.  You think I was
actually gonna let them mess with what we got?"  The more I spoke, the more
convinced I was that I was making the right decision.

He grabbed unto my waist and held it tightly.

"No matter what, know that I'm here for you, no matter what.  You
understand, Bobby? No matter what," he whispered.

I pulled away from him and kissed the top of his forehead.

"I got to go, Richie, but don't worry.  I'm gonna be fine and so are you.
Why don't you take a drive out of the city for a while.  Get away, go have
coffee or something.  Just do something to get your mind off of this."

"You expect me to go and enjoy myself while you're trying to explain your
lifestyle to them?  You can't be serious.  I think I'll just stay right
here till you get back."

By the look on his face I knew there was no convincing him otherwise, so I
gave up.  Looking at my watch I saw that it was coming close to twelve
thirty, and if I had hopes to beat traffic, I would have to leave now.

"I should go.  You sure you don't want to go out and..."

"I'm sure.  I'll just stay here and try and clean up this pig sty you
have."  I looked up at him and saw the smirk on his face.

"You think my place is a pig sty?"  I challenged.

"Oh please, Bobby.  You live worse than a pig.  Your clothes are all over
the place, not to mention the fact that you haven't done laundry in God
knows how long."

"Ha, and whose fault is that?"  He knew what I was saying, and it made him
blush.  If we hadn't been trying to launder each other, things would have
been done, but it was worth every second, and I never regretted it.

"Okay, okay.  Don't start something you can't finish.  You'd better get
going."

"Yeah, I better.  You gonna be here all day?"

"Yeah, so call me as soon as you tell him."

"I will."  And with that, I leaned in and kissed him gently on the lips.
Anymore and I would have never gotten out of there.

A minute later he watched me get into my vehicle and back out of the
driveway, and then take off.




"So, what's the big announcement?" Laurance asked.

I opened my mouth to say something, but the words seemed stuck in the back
of my throat, along with this morning's breakfast.  I had it all planned
out.  How I was going to break the news to him, his predicted reaction,
right down to how I was gonna gracefully make my exit, but being here,
being in front of him, all of that planning suddenly evaded me.

"Bobby, you okay, man?  You look a little dehydrated.  You want a coke or
Heini'?"  he asked, getting up to head over to the bar.  I nodded, and
clasped my hands in my lap.

He came back over with a chilled beer and handed it to me.

"Now, again, what's the big announcement?"  he asked, seating himself
across from me with his beer in hand.

I found my voice and began talking, "You remember a while ago, after the
trip to Jamaica, you asked me if I had met somebody?"

A smile lit up his face, "Yeah I remembered!  You're shit was off the hook.
Still is."

"Well, at the time, I told you I hadn't met somebody... but, I lied."

"So you did, Bobby, so you did.  So now what?  You here to tell me y'all
getting married, or is your girl pregnant, or what?"

"Naw, man, it ain't nothing like that, but something did happen with me and
somebody.  I mean I'm with somebody right now, and I'm gonna continue being
with them no matter what, and I just felt that it's about time I told you
about it."  I was still beating around the bush but at least I had made the
first move.

"Well, good for you.  You seemed nervous coming into here today.  Thought
you was gonna tell me the worse, but this is good news.  So, who is this
woman that done swept you off your feet?"

"Well, you see... I um... it's um... I um... it's a... Fuck!"  I couldn't
do it!  I was just looking across at him looking across at me, and realized
I couldn't fucking do it!  I got up from my chair and walked towards the
door, ready to get the hell out of there, but Laurence stopped me with two
simple, yet complicated words.

"I know."

I didn't know what to think then.  I mean, how could he know?  What did he
know?

"You know what?"  I asked coyly, hoping that he wouldn't pick up on the
nervousness in my voice.

"Fuck, Bobby, stop beating around the bush with me, man.  I know you better
than you even know yourself.  I know about the shit you've been going
through with Ernie, I know about him blackmailing you."  And in a lower
tone he stated, "I know you and him... messed around, too.  I know all that
shit."

I froze in my tracks.  How could he know all a that, and I didn't say a
thing, and then I thought, 'that mutha fucker, Ernie, had gone behind my
back and told him'.  I was all ready and willing to take that son of a
bitch out when Laurence spoke again.

"I had a P.I. follow you."

"What?"

"I had a P.I. follow you," he stated again.

"Naw, naw, that shit ain't even true.  I woulda known if I was being
tailed."

"No, you wouldn't.  This guy is top notch.  Used to work secret service for
Clinton.  You wouldn't have spotted him among a row of trees.  He's that
good."

And it made me think back to every incident I recalled involving Ernie and
me.  I was careful, I was so fucking careful.

"I was hoping you woulda stepped up and clued me in on what was going on"
he stated, actually having the nerve to sound disappointed, and it made me
angry as a mutha.

"Well, I was hoping I could have some fucking trust in my management!
Where the fuck do you get off fucking following me around and shit!"  I
screamed, all of a sudden become irate.

"Well, if you was being upfront with me in the first place, I wouldn't had
to shell out almost ten grand for this little job.  I fucking thought you
were strung out on shit.  I expected him to come back and tell me you was a
crack head or something, but not this shit, not this.  I'm your manager and
you fucking keep this shit from me, Bobby!  You know what info like this
can do to your career?"

"Fuck you, man!  You think I ain't been thinking about this shit either!
This been like a fucking dark cloud hanging over my fucking head for months
now, months!  Every time I try to block it out, it keeps coming back to
haunt me, so don't fucking insinuate that I ain't been thinking about my
career!"

Things had gotten heated and I just wanted to get the hell out of there,
but something stopped me.  I realized that I had opened the Pandora's box,
and there was no sense in closing it now.  I might as well just let
everything out, and let the chips fall wherever the fuck they wanted to
fall.

"And you know what else, I'm seeing someone, a man, okay?  And guess what
else? It's Richie!  We've been boning since Jamaica and we ain't come up
for air yet.  And you want to know something else, too, I love that shit
and I love him, too, so you can fucking take that information and do
whatever the fuck you want with it.  I'm done with it, the writing, the
singing, the performing, I'm fucking DONE!  This damn career almost ruined
my fucking life and I want it back!"

After that declaration I had expected to be pounced on by security, but all
I was greeted with was silence.  Laurence had a stone cold expression on
his face and I imagined so did I, and not for the first time coming in
here, I wish Richie was here with me.

After what seemed like forever, he spoke.

"Answer me one thing, Bobby?  Is this just a passing thing, or is this
gonna be an ongoing lifestyle for you?"

I didn't even have to think about my answer, "It's the way it is, man.  I
can't change it, and I don't think I'd want to, anyway."

"One more thing.  What the fuck was the thing between you and Ernie?"

"It was a fucking mistake, that's what it was.  I wasn't in my right frame
of mind, and that mutha fucker took advantage of me and the situation."

Laurence looked at me once, excused himself, and went over to the bar.  He
fixed two glasses of rum and coke, walked over and handed me one.  He took
a seat opposite me and took a long swig of his drink.

"Okay, here's the deal.  I don't care who you want to fuck.  I might not
agree with it, but it's your business.  Secondly, assuming I'm still
management, I assume you told me cause you eventually want to take this
public.  All I got to say about that is that shit is going to fly - trust
me!  You got some die hard fans out there, Bobby, and not all of them are
gonna appreciate the fact that you'd rather fuck a man than a woman.
Thirdly, if we're gonna get through this, I need you to be honest about
EVERYTHING, even the smallest detail.  With that said and done, is there
anything you want to tell me?"

I was still in shock of his declaration to even think straight, much less
speak.  I had my expectations, but this sure as Hell wasn't one of them.  I
took a few seconds, and a few sips, to gather my thoughts.

"Ernie took some pictures of us fucking.  I don't know how, but he did, and
he's been blackmailing me for a few months now.  That's what's up with all
the discrepancies in the account.  He told me that if I didn't pay him, he
was gonna sell that shit to the tabloids, so I did."

"How much?"

"Too fucking much."

Laurence sighed, "I never trusted that S.O.B. any.  We're gonna have to fix
that, but first we got to deal with what we're gonna do about you and your
career.  If this is gonna come out, it should come from you, not from some
sleazy tabloid, and not after the fact."

"I agree."

"And you should be prepared to deal with some heavy shit, Bobby.  I'm not
talking light bantering, but some heavy duty shit.  People stalking you,
the hate mail, threatening phone calls, the media fucking with your life,
with Richie's life, all of that is gonna come into play.  It's up to you,
though, how you're gonna handle it.  You could handle it like an asshole,
or you could handle like a # 1 R&B singer.  You think you're ready for
this?"

"I know I ain't ready for this, but I'm gonna do it.  My life depends on
it."  And that was the truth.

"Well, if we're gonna do this right, we're gonna have to get a good press
guy up in here ,and I think I know the perfect guy."

I was curious as to who he was referring to, so I asked.

"Well, the good thing is that y'all have met, and he knows every nook and
cranny of your life and career."

"Uh, please don't tell me this is some obsessed Rookie," I begged.  I had
met enough of those over the span of my career.

"No, it's not a Rookie.  This kid knows the ropes like no other, and he'll
make this shit fly no matter what."

"Okay, okay, I'll take your word for it.  So, who is this mystery kid."

He smiled at me, too fucking brightly, and I knew the answer before he even
said it, "Richie, of course."

"Naw, man, naw.  I don't want him involved in this mess.  He's been through
too much already with the media.  He don't need this aggravation."

"He is the best candidate to handle this, Bobby, and you know it.  This
concerns him too, right?"  When I didn't answer, he continued, "With him
and you in direct synch with each other, you'll get to say what you want to
say, and there is absolutely no chance of the message not coming across as
it should.  If we're gonna do this, we should do it right.  You feel me?"

"Yeah, I feel you, but I can't promise you anything.  I got to check with
him first, and we got to discuss things, and see how we feel about it.  And
I don't want no pressure while we doing that.  You feel me?"

"Yeah I feel you."  He looked at his watch and stood up.  "I hate to jet,
Bobby, but I got another meeting at two.  We'll talk later, okay, and keep
in touch, alright?"

I stood up, too, walked over to the bar, and placed my glass on the
counter.

"Alright, I got to get going too.  I got someone waiting at home for me."

I looked at his face for a reaction, but it was neutral, a positive sign in
and of itself.

As I turned to walk out of his office, I stopped.  I needed to ask one more
thing.

"What do I do about Ernie?"

"Don't pay him another fucking penny unless I tell you to, and get a
recording device for your phones.  I want that son of a bitch on tape the
next time he threatens to extort money from you.  It could come in useful
in the very near future."  He smirked on that count, and I did too.  I was
feeling him.

As I began walking out, he grabbed my arm and spun me around, and when we
were face to face, he hugged me.

"Know this, Bobby, I done told you this before, you like a son to me, and I
mean it.  This don't change a thing, you got that?"

"Yeah, Laurence, I got that.  I'm glad you feel that way."

"Good.  Now get the hell out of my office, so I can get to my two o'clock."

He pretended to use his boot to kick me out, and I pretended to feel
insulted.  As I rode down the elevator, I let out a sigh of relief and
closed my eyes tight, sending up a silent prayer of thanks for the way
things turned out.




RICHIE

I checked my watch, for what seemed like the millionth time, and sighed.
It was already going on three o' clock, and Bobby still hadn't called yet.
I knew he said he would, and I trusted his word, but my gut was telling me
that something had happened.  It was like a sixth sense or something, and
it was almost always never wrong.  And just as I had begun to fear the
worst, the front door opened, and he walked in.  Looking at his sullen
expression, at first I thought that things had gone awry, but then he did a
180, and his frown turned into a smile.

"You can stop worrying, Richie, everything went fine."  And with that he
took me into his arms and planted a soft kiss on my forehead.  I let out a
sigh of relief and melted into his embrace.

"Thank God," I whispered, rubbing his back in a circular motion.  I could
feel his body tense up, and then he pulled away from me so that we were now
face to face.

"You've been sitting here stressing, haven't you?"  he asked sternly.

"How could I not, Bobby?  You did something today that could have messed up
everything you worked so hard for...."

"And I told you I didn't give a fuck!"  His voice softened, and he took my
hands in his. "Listen, Richie, you really have got to stop putting yourself
through this. Okay?  You're gonna give yourself a heart attack.  This is
exactly why I didn't call.  I know how wound up you can get."

He was right on all counts but how could he understand how I felt?  It was
impossible.  How could he possible imagine how hard it was for me to just
put my faith in his hands when he was so vulnerable?  A few months ago, he
wasn't even sure if this was the lifestyle he wanted to live.  How could he
blame me for worrying?  Simply, he couldn't.  But, I couldn't let him know
that, without starting another wave of argument and bantering between us.

"Fine, just tell me what happened with Laurence."  I stated.

"Things went well.  I told him straight up the situation and that it was
the way things were gonna be from now on."

"And?"

"And, he said, okay."

"He said okay?  Just like that?"

"More or less.  We need each other, Richie, that's how it is in the biz.
It was either he accepted the changes, or he dumps my ass and loses out.
He chose to stay in.  And you know what else he said?"

"What?"

"He wants you to come back as press guy."

I was surprised to hear this, and I told him so.

"Are you serious?  You told him about... you know... us, and he wants me to
come work for him?"

"Yes.  Who better to announce the nature of our relationship than you,
baby.  That way, there are no misunderstandings - we're in this together.
You want to do it?"

Of course I did, but I still had one concern.  "What about Ernie?  You know
what he said about us working together.  I don't want to risk having him
out you in the tabloids."

Bobby shook his head and stated, "Fuck him!  This ain't about him, Richie,
this is about us, you and me.  We're gonna do this, and we're gonna do this
right.  When I come out, he can't hurt me with those pictures.  That's why
we want you to come back.  We'll make a clean break with the media and let
them know what's up with everything.  He can't hurt us if we being honest,
baby, and with Laurence behind us 150%, it don't matter what anybody got to
say."

He was making it sound so easy and I knew it wasn't going to be.  Still,
the optimistic side was something that I enjoyed hearing about.

"I'm glad that you've planned this out, Bobby, but I'm still not sure about
everything.  You're making it out to be such an easy transition, when you
know it very well could not be," I stated.

"And I understand all of that, but we got to stay positive.  You think I
ain't been thinking about the worst-case scenario?  I have, and it scares
me shitless, but I can't dwell on it.  We have to deal with shit when shit
happens, and take things one step at a time.  Now I took the first step by
coming clean with management, now it's your turn.  I need to know for a
fact that you ain't gonna panic, and back out on me, I need to know that,
Richie."

He seemed to need me more now than ever before, and knowing that gave me a
warm feeling inside.

"I'm there for you, Bobby.  I'm not going to back out on you, or this
relationship, for nothing.  We're going to get through this.  And if you
need me to be Press, I'll be Press, but I need time.  I'm not talking about
a few days or a week, I need heavy-duty time, a month tops, just to put
everything into perspective and to get the facts straight.  Is that too
long?"

He once again leaned into me and held me there, "No, that ain't too long.
You take as much time as you need, baby.  No one's gonna rush you.  You do
whatever you need to do to make sure that we get a fair shot.  And I don't
want you to worry about Ernie, either.  Laurence and me got a plan to deal
with that S.O.B.  He is gonna get what's coming to him."

And just hearing him say it, sounding so sure of himself managed to calm me
down a bit.  I trusted my man and I trusted his word.  I had faith in him
and I knew that he would do everything in his power to see that I was
happy, to see that we were happy, and that we would stay that way.  But
knowing and accepting were two different things, and while I knew that he
would do it, I had a hard time accepting that he could do it.  And my
doubts were killing me inside.  I wanted so much to be able to just entrust
him with everything, but I couldn't.  This wasn't about Bobby alone, but
more so about us as a couple.  And as a couple, it was only fair that we
dealt with this together.  But I could see his competitive side begin to
come out.  He wanted to be the dominant, controlling force in this
situation.  He wanted to take care of all our problems while I sat home and
not worry.  It was an idealistic situation, but not the way it should play
out in a relationship between two equal partners.  It was not going to be
that way if I had anything to do with it.  But as before, I couldn't say
anything to him because I knew it would result in another petty argument,
and that I could do without.  So, instead of trying to argue with him about
it, I would have to sneak behind his back and do what I could.  It wasn't
the way things should have been, but it was my only option.  And as he held
me in his arms, I tried to convince myself that what I was prepared to do
was justified.