Date: Sat, 30 Jul 2005 01:25:26 -0700 (PDT)
From: rimpigfl <rimpigfl@yahoo.com>
Subject: RECRUITED FOR THE CORPS 05

TO MY READERS: As I write this, the fighting continues in Iraq and
Afghanistan where our gallant forces, especially members of the United
States Marine Corps, are still being killed and wounded on a daily
basis. This story is dedicated to all members of the United State Military
who are living in harms way.

Copyright (c) 2005 by RimPig. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to
Nifty Archives, to archive and display this work. All other uses are
expressly forbidden unless explicit arrangement has been made with the
author. This copyright applies to all chapters and pages of this work. It
may not be reproduced, posted, stored electronically, or archived, except
for personal, non-public use, without the express written permission of the
author.

RECRUITED FOR THE CORPS
Part 5
by RimPig   2005

For a long moment, I just lay there looking up at him. My mind was whirling
with what had just happened! I'd told Erik that I loved him - finally! But,
more than that, Erik had just told me, in no uncertain terms, that he loved
me! The reality of that was overwhelming. I didn't know whether to laugh,
cry, scream, shout or what! Without even thinking, I did the one thing that
I think was best, under the circumstances. I pulled his face back down to
mine and kissed him deeply.

His kiss was tender and passionate. Now, understanding what was happening
between us, I could feel all the love that was pouring from him in that
kiss. The same thing I had been feeling from him since the first time he'd
made love to me. I had been right to surmise that was what was going on at
the time. I just couldn't believe it then! Now, I did.

"Happy Birthday." he murmured when the kiss ended.

"This is the best birthday present I've ever had." I murmured.

"What? Me making love to you?" he smiled.

"No. That was wonderful but you telling me you love me - that's way
better!" I enthused.

He grinned.

"That's why I wanted to be here when I told you. I thought about putting it
in one of my letters but that just didn't seem right. I wanted to be here
with you. I wanted to see your face. I didn't expect you to 'beat me to the
punch'!" he said.

"Sorry, I just couldn't wait!" I grinned.

"Don't be sorry. You can't even begin to understand what hearing that from
you means to me.  You know, this is my first time, too." he said.

"Really?!" I exclaimed.

"Really. I've never fallen in love before. For a while there, I didn't
think it was ever gonna happen. That first time with you, I didn't know
what the fuck happened at first. I found myself wanting you in a way I'd
never wanted anybody in my life!" Erik said.

"It was the second time." I murmured.

"Yeah. It was the second time. You knew, didn't you?" he asked.

"Kinda. I knew it was different. I could feel all kinds of things from you
but I pushed it out of my mind. I just didn't think it was
possible. Growing up without a lot of love, you kinda get accustomed to not
expecting it." I said.

"I don't want you to ever feel that way again! From now on, I want you to
know that, no matter what, I love you and I always will." he said, his face
very serious.

"Just the way I'll always love you." I said.

He leaned down and kissed me gently this time.

"I'm fucking starved. Let's go take a shower. I'm taking you out to eat."
he grinned down at me.

"Okay!" I said, excitement rising inside me.

Eating out in a restaurant is not something I do a lot of. In fact, hardly
ever. Oh, sometimes I eat with Wally at the little restaurant in the
Greyhound station but that almost doesn't count. I spend so much time
there, it's almost like a second home for me. A lot of time, Wally asks me
to stay and eat because he hates to eat alone. I guess I do, too because,
when I do eat at home, it's always while either reading a book or watching
TV.

Erik and I went into the bathroom and got into the tub. Erik was behind me
and when I bent over to turn on the taps, I suddenly felt this jet of hot
wetness hit my ass crack! I turned and Erik was laughing and pissing on me!
Oh, well! Two could play that game! I grabbed my cock and let go all over
him! In moments we were both standing there, pissing on each other,
drenched in each other's hot piss and laughing our heads off! Since the
first time that Erik showed this to me, it had become one of our favorite
games. Well...except for the one time that we drank each other's piss, but
that was something special. It was like a bonding ritual for us. Each of us
taking that part of the other within us. It wasn't like now. Now was just
for fun!

When we'd run out of 'ammunition', I finally turned on the taps and we
showered together, each of us washing the other. It was so wonderful to run
my soapy hands over Erik's strong, muscular body. Thrills went through me
at the feel of his smooth, soft skin and the almost steel-like muscles
beneath it. Erik seemed to take equal delight in running his hands all over
me. I know we both managed to arouse each other so that our hard, soapy
cocks were rubbing up against each other's slick, wet bodies.

Erik also slowly and gently washed my hair again. Three times, just like
the last time. I moaned at the feelings as his hand and fingers massaged my
head and neck. I was lost in the feeling and almost completely lost touch
with anything but the sensuous pleasure that he was giving me.

"You really get off on this, don't you?!" Erik exclaimed through my groans
as he lathered my head for the second time.

"Oh, fuck, yeah! The only thing better than this is when you make love to
me!" I assured him.

"I am making love to you. I'm just not using my cock." he murmured in my
ear.

"Oh, fuck!" I groaned.

And because I loved him, I returned the favor. Of course it was different,
Erik having almost no hair, but I loved the feeling of his short, stubbly
hair beneath my hands and he groaned at the feeling of my fingers massaging
his scalp. I also gave him a massage across his shoulders and neck and his
groans were louder!

"Ahh, fuck! That feels so fuckin' good! Where'd the fuck you learn to do
that?!" he asked as I worked on his muscles.

"No where. Just love touching you and making you feel good!" I smiled,
knowing that I was.

"You make me feel any better and I'm either gonna shoot another load or
fall asleep right here in the shower!" he laughed.

I looked down, and sure enough, his cock was not only hard, but dripping. I
hadn't gotten around to washing that yet, so I decided that now was the
time. I got down on my knees and took his wet cock in my mouth. Gently
sliding back the foreskin with my tongue, I found exactly what I expected
to find - some of his cock-cheese trapped under the hood and somewhat still
flavored with my butt.

I quickly began licking it all up, it's pungent taste and smell rising in
my mouth and nose and making my own cock bone hard and start dripping! He
groaned as I went on to swallow him into my mouth. I didn't know if I could
do it, but I wanted to do what he had done to me. I wanted to take all of
him - deep throat him.

I started out slowly, taking more and more of him into my mouth. His hands
were caressing my head and shoulders as I did. He was moaning softly as I
slowly and gently sucked on his cock.  Slowly I began to press forward,
taking more and more of him into my mouth. His cock was leaking cock-honey
continuously which made things easier. His cock and my mouth were slick
with the pre-cum and the taste was driving me on.

His cock reached the back of my throat. He must have felt it as well
because he stopped all movement at that point. I fought my gag reflex and
pushed forward, allowing the head of his cock to inch a bit further into my
throat. Without thinking about it, I felt the need to swallow and did.  At
the same time, I pushed forward again and I felt his cock slide completely
into my throat and my nose was now pressed into his pubic hair. I heard
Erik groan above me and I held still for a moment, not knowing what to do
at that point.

"Just breathe through your nose." Erik's voice came to me, a bit gravely
with desire.

I immediately did as he said and felt myself, especially my throat,
relax. I found I could breath quite well, even with his cockhead lodged in
my throat. I pulled back, taking it once again into my mouth and then
pressed forward again, repeating what I had done before, swallowing and
allowing Erik's cock to slide deep into my throat.

"Ahh! Fuck! Holy shit! You're doin' it, Tim! You're takin' all of me!" Erik
groaned.

I felt such pride well up inside of me at this accomplishment! I had done
something I didn't even know I was capable of doing but wanted to do for
him so badly! I continued to move my head up and down on his cock, fucking
my throat with it. I began to love the feeling of fullness as his cock
spread my throat - very much like the feelings that I had when he fucked my
ass! I grabbed my own cock which was as hard as steel and began jacking-off
in rhythm to my sucking motion on his cock. It took only a few more
circuits of his meat and I was ready to shoot my load!

"AHH!!! FUCK!!! TAKE IT!!! TAKE IT, TIM!!!" Erik screamed out as his cock
began to pulse in my mouth, shooting his cum straight down my sucking
throat.

I pulled back some so I could have his cum in my mouth where I could taste
it and felt the next blast his the back of my throat. That's all it took
and I began practically screaming around his cock as I shot my load, hard
against his legs!

He seemed to cum forever! It felt like ten or twelve strong blasts of his
sweet, thick juice. I was right behind him, covering is legs and feet with
my own spunk. By the time he finished cumming, his hands were resting on my
shoulders and holding himself up by them - so intense was his orgasm. I
leaned forward and rested my forehead against his abs, allowing his cock to
fall from my mouth. I was panting for breath by that point, so intense was
my cumming followed by the inevitable weakness that the French call 'Petite
Morte' or 'Small Death'.

We stayed that way a long time. Erik's softened cock resting against my
cheek, his hands on my shoulders and my hand now running up and down his
strong thighs. Finally he straightened up and, reaching down, hooked his
hands under my arms and pulled me up to my feet, holding me against him. He
stroked my wet hair and nuzzled my neck.

"Oh, fuck! Tim! That was incredible! That's never happened to me before!
Nobody's ever been able to deep throat me! I don't know how you did it!
Fuck! You are incredible!" Erik moaned into my ear.

My chest swelled with pride! I'd done something for him that nobody had
ever done! Just as he'd done so much for me that no one had ever done! I
truly felt like I had just won a Gold Medal in the Olympics or something!
In fact, I was sure that winning the Olympics would be a pale second best
to what I was feeling having given such pleasure to this young warrior that
I loved so very, very much!

"I wanted to so bad! You'd done it to me and it felt so good, I wanted to
be able to do it to you!  I'm glad you didn't tell me that nobody had ever
been able to before, though! I probably would have been too scared to try!"
I admitted.

"Fuck! Now you've given me a real problem!" he said.

"What?!" I pulled back and looked up at him.

His face was beaming down at me!

"I loved that so much, now I don't know which I'd rather fuck - your face
or your butt!" he laughed.

"That's not a problem!" I said.

"No?" he asked.

"No! Just fuck both!" I grinned.

"Oh, fuck! You can bet on that!" he laughed.

He then kissed me deeply, tasting his cum in my mouth. When we finally
pulled out mouths from each other, we quickly finished showering and got
out of the tub. Erik got out first and when I did, he was standing there,
waiting with a towel to dry me off. I grinned and let him, moaning again at
the feeling of him doing so.

"You love this, don't you!" he said, a statement rather than a question.

"I sure as fuck do! I love when you touch me!" I groaned.

"You have no idea how much I love to touch you!" he murmured in my ear.

"Yes, I do. It's the same way I love to touch you!" I murmured back.

Which led to me grabbing a towel and very sensuously drying him off. Once
we were dry, Erik and I went back to the bedroom to get dressed. I thought
he would put on his uniform but, instead, he dug in his duffle bag for
civilian clothes.

"Aren't you going to wear your uniform?" I asked.

"Can't. Not where I'm taking you." he smiled.

"Why?" I asked, confused.

"Just take my word for it. You'll see when we get there." he said.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"It's a surprise. Now get dressed. Wear something nice." he instructed me.

"I don't have much that's nice." I said, looking at the dismal array of
clothing in my closet.

My wardrobe, almost exclusively, was from second-hand stores where they
sold used clothing really cheaply. I don't think I'd ever paid more than $2
for a shirt or $5 for a pair of jeans in my life!

"That's okay. Try these on." Erik grinned at me.

He had gone down in his duffle and had pulled out a beautiful 'Polo' shirt
in a soft blue and a pair of khaki slacks - both of them obviously brand
new with the tags still on them.

"What are these?" I asked, as he handed them to me.

"I bought them for you to take you out! I think I got the size right." he
grinned.

I put on the new clothes, even putting on a pair of underwear - something I
almost never wore. I did have one pair of nice loafers and I put on white
socks with them. I was about to grab my old, worn leather belt from my
jeans when Erik held out a new khaki colored web belt with a brass buckle
to me.

"This is actually regulation, but it will go just fine with those slacks."
he grinned.

I smiled back and put the belt on. I looked at myself in the mirror and it
was like looking at a different person! These were literally the first
'new' clothes that I had ever had.

"Oh, God! These feel so wonderful!" I said, running my hands over the
softness of the knit shirt and the khaki slacks.

"And you look wonderful in them!" Erik said, coming up behind me, slipping
his arms around my waist and resting his chin on my shoulder so that I
could see his face over my shoulder in the mirror.

"Erik...I don't know how to thank you for these..." I started.

"No need to! This is just the beginning. Come on. Let's get our
jackets. There's a ways to go!" he grinned as he leaned down and kissed the
side of my neck.

When we got down to the street, Erik started looking around for
something. I couldn't imagine what and I started to ask him when he
suddenly stepped out into the street, raised his arm in the air and I
suddenly heard a very loud whistle come from him! I looked down the street
where he was looking and there was a cab coming which stopped in front of
Erik. He opened the door and looked back at me.

"Your chariot awaits!" he said, and made a sweeping bow like a footman or
something.

He obviously wanted me to get into the cab so I did. I had never ridden in
a cab before so I really didn't know what to expect. Actually, I'd never
been in a car before. A bus, yes. But a car, no.  Nobody I knew had a
car. And there was certainly never money enough for me to be riding around
in taxi's! But here I was!

Erik gave and address to the driver and then settled back in the seat. I
sat somewhat apart from him. He noticed this and patted the seat right next
to him, indicating that I should move closer. I slid across the seat and
Erik put his arm around my shoulders. I didn't know what to do, so I just
rested my hands on my thighs. Erik reached over and took my hand nearest
him and put it on his thigh. I looked up at him in shock but he just winked
at me. Well...if he didn't have any trouble with it - I sure didn't!

The cab ride took about twenty minutes. We were in a part of town that I
didn't know when we pulled up in front of this place with a neon sign above
it - "Mr. Toad's Hall". I recognized the reference from the book "Wind In
The Willows" but couldn't understand why someone would name a restaurant by
that name, but I supposed that the owner must have loved the book as a
child.

Erik paid the cabdriver and we got out. We walked into the restaurant and
there was a guy in a white shirt and black pants who greeted us.

"I'm Erik Meiers. I have a reservation for two." Erik said.

"Yes! Mr. Meiers." he said, checking a book that he had on a tall stand.

He led us to a booth the likes of which I'd never seen. It wrapped half way
around the table. Erik slid into one side and I slid into the other. But
Erik kept sliding until he was almost in the middle and motioned to me to
move closer. I looked at him funny, wondering what was up? After all, I
didn't think it was a good idea for us to sit like that. People would
notice and think we were gay or something! Well...we were, but I didn't
think Erik wanted to advertise that fact!

"Come closer, Tim. It's okay. Trust me." he said, smiling.

What the fuck! If that's what he wanted....I moved closer and he reached
over and put his hand on my thigh under the table. I stiffened in fear. I
mean - that's all it took for me to start getting hard! And we were in
public!

"Relax, Tim. Look around you." he said.

There were about 15 or 20 other booths that I could see, with people in
about half of them and there was a bar with soft lighting with a lot of
people standing or sitting around it. It was a really nice place with
pictures on the walls and white linen table clothes on all the table. There
was also a small vase with a single rose and a candle with a glass cover at
each table.

"It's a nice place." I said.

"Is that all. Look closer. What do you see?" he smiled.

I looked again. There wasn't anything I saw about the restaurant that
seemed out of place. There were only the people. I suddenly started to
notice something strange. I looked at all the tables and at the bar and
then it hit me! It was all guys! Only guys! And the guys at the tables were
all in couples, just like Erik and me. I looked back at him, my face full
of questions.

"You got it. Go ahead. Spit it out!" he grinned.

"They're all...uhh..." I faltered.

"Gay, Tim. They're all gay. This is a gay bar. Actually, a gay restaurant
and bar. We don't have to hide anything here. Well...except I can't wear my
uniform here. I think you understand that." he smiled.

I grinned back.

"Yeah. I get it! I knew there were places like this but...well...I didn't
expect it to be like this." I said.

"You thought it was some kind of dark, hidden, run-down place where guys
kinda slunk in hiding their faces, right?" he smiled.

I looked down, blushing.

"Yeah. I guess I did." I admitted sheepishly.

He laughed and threw his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close to him
and gently kissed my cheek. That was something he'd never done before and
it kind of surprised me. But I loved it!

"Well...I guess there are places like that. But I wouldn't take you to one
of them. Especially not for your birthday. By the way, we can thank Wally
for this." he said.

"Wally?" I asked.

"Yeah. He found this place for me. I wanted to take you someplace gay that
was nice. And somewhere you could get in." he said.

"What do you mean? That I could get in?" I asked.

"Well...you're 18 but you can't drink so there's a lot of gay places that
won't let you in. You have to be 21. But here, because it's a restaurant,
anyone can get in. Besides, I wanted to take you somewhere for dinner,
someplace special. Someplace you'd remember."

I wanted to answer that I'd remember this forever but, at that moment a
waiter appeared. He looked to be about Erik's age and very good
looking. Tall, slender and blond. I noticed that he was definitely eyeing
Erik! I wasn't exactly sure how I felt about that. Well...actually, I
didn't feel very good about it. I guess I was feeling jealous. It wasn't a
very comfortable feeling. The waiter asked Erik for his drink order and he
ordered a beer but I ordered sparkling water with lemon.

"Well...he certainly was looking at you!" I said to Erik after the waiter
left.

He looked startled at me, and then started laughing.

"If he was, I didn't notice. Don't tell me you're jealous?" he asked.

I blushed a deep red and looked down, avoiding his eyes because I was.

"Tim! You have nothing to be jealous of! I'm not interested in anybody but
you! I get those kinds of looks all the time. I just ignore them. Just like
you're ignoring the guy over at the bar who hasn't been able to take his
eyes off you since we came in!" he said.

I looked up startled.

"What guy?!" I asked, shock in my voice.

"The blond guy in the blue blazer standing at the corner of the bar." he
said, grinning.

I looked over and saw the guy eyeing me. He was looking right at me and
when I looked at him he smiled and raised his glass in a toast. I know that
I blushed because I could feel my face heat up and I looked away
quickly. Erik was watching all this and started laughing!

"What are you laughing at?!" I hissed.

"You! Tim, you're gonna need to get used to the fact that you really are a
hunk. I know you don't think of yourself that way, but you really are. I
keep telling you you're beautiful. A lot of guys are gonna be after you."
he smiled.

"But I don't want them to be! I don't want any of them! I just want you." I
insisted.

"I understand you feel like that right now, but you may eventually change
your mind about that."  Erik said gently, his face very serious.

"How can you say that?" I asked.

"Tim, you've just turned 18. How many guys have you had sex with?" he
asked.

"You know that! I've only had sex with you!" I said.

"And you'll probably live into your 70's or 80's - that's 60 or 70
years. Really think you're going to only want me in all those years?" he
asked, smiling.

That stopped me. That was a hell of a long time. I was smart enough to know
that.

"Well..." I tried to say something but I didn't know what to say.

"Tim, I love you. I really do. But that doesn't mean that I own you. You
say you love me and I trust that but I also know that sex and love don't
have anything to do with each other. I've had a lot of sex with a lot of
guys and I didn't love any of them. Oh, I liked most of them all right. But
I didn't fall in love with any of them. Now...look at that guy again. Can
you really tell me that you wouldn't have sex with him? I don't mean
tonight. But are you sure that he isn't attractive to you?" he asked.

I slowly looked around at the guy again. He was probably a couple years
older than Erik with blond hair and what looked like a really nice body. He
looked to be about six foot tall with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. I
could see his arms bulging in his jacket and figured he must work out and
kept his body in good shape. I had to admit, he was a very good looking guy
and, I supposed that if I didn't know Erik or he wasn't around, I might
consider having sex with him.

While I was looking at him again, he turned back and his eyes caught
mine. I smiled sheepishly at him and he grinned. I looked back at Erik and
he was sitting there grinning at me.

"You don't have to answer. I can see that he's not unattractive to you." he
smiled.

I blushed in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry." I said.

"Why? What are you being sorry for? Hey! I find him attractive as well! It
just doesn't seem like he's at all interested in me - only you!" he
grinned.

"I really don't know what to think, Erik. I know I love you and I feel like
I'm being unfaithful by being attracted to someone else." I said.

"I was afraid of that. Tim, it doesn't work like that. We're guys - you
aren't a woman and neither am I. We aren't straight. We don't get married
and swear fidelity to each other the way they do!  After all, what does it
mean? Are you going to go out and have sex with another guy and get
pregnant so that I have to raise some other guy's kid?" he grinned.

"No! Of course not. But what about diseases? I could get something from
another guy." I insisted.

"Yes, that's true. But you have to take personal responsibility for your
behavior, Tim. Looking at your life, how you've taken care of yourself, I
think you have enough personal responsibility to handle that. Besides, I
have a funny feeling that your sexual interest in other guys is going to be
more active once you're in the Corps. Since all of us are constantly
tested, the chance of any kind of infection is greatly reduced there." he
said.

"Well...I don't know about that but, I can tell you this. The guy at the
bar is completely out of luck!" I grinned.

"I'm glad. I don't want to share you right now - especially not tonight."
he said and leaned over and kissed me gently.

I blushed again and shyly looked around to see if anybody had noticed. No
one seemed to except when I looked at the guy at the bar, he seemed to
shrug as if he understood there was no hope for him.

It was at that moment that the waiter came back with our drinks and asked
if we were ready to order. We hadn't even looked at the menu but Erik said
that we were anyway.

"Bring us two of your biggest steaks, medium rare, salads with bleu cheese
dressing and baked potatoes with everything on them." he said.

"Would you like appetizers?" he asked.

"You got shrimp cocktail?" Erik asked.

"Yes, we do." the waiter answered.

"Good. We'll have two of those." Erik said.

"Anything else?" the waiter asked.

"No. That should do it for now." Erik said and the waiter went away.

"Can you afford all that?!" I asked, awed.

I'd never had food like that in my life! Never had steak and certainly had
never had shrimp.

"Don't worry about it. I'm loaded!" Erik laughed. "Besides, it's your
birthday! You should have steak on your birthday!"

"I've never had steak before." I said quietly.

"Never?!" he asked, surprise on his face.

"Never. Nor shrimp either." I said.

"Then you are in for a treat!" he grinned. "And I'm so glad that I could
introduce you to them!"

The waiter brought the shrimp cocktails. I thought it was going to be a
drink! It turned out to be like champagne glasses with shrimp hanging from
them. There was this red sauce that was like catsup but it tasted like it
had something tangy in it. Erik said it was horseradish. I'd heard of that
but had never had it. It was spicy, but with the cold shrimp, it tasted
really good! Erik told me you don't eat the tail parts. I'm glad he told me
because I honestly wouldn't have known.

When we were done, the waiter brought a cutting board with a small loaf of
hot bread. Now, I'd had plenty of bread in my life but I'd never seen a
loaf this small or had bread that was hot. Erik said it was just baked. He
cut off a thick slice for me and put butter on it. Then, rather than hand
it to me, he held it up to my mouth and fed me! I opened my mouth and bit
into the crusty bread.  It tasted delicious! The crust was chewy but the
white bread part was soft! It tasted delicious!  Erik than took the piece
of bread and bit into it where I had eaten. We shared the piece of bread,
staring deep into each other's eyes. It was the most erotic and romantic
thing I think we had ever done! At least in public!

We ate two more pieces of bread, with Erik feeding both of us and then the
rest of the meal came.  The steak was the best thing I'd ever eaten! I
couldn't believe how good it tasted. Erik and I sat there, eating and
grinning at each other, just enjoying the food and being together. It was
like there was no one else in the place. Like we were totally alone. Before
I knew it, the steak and baked potato just disappeared!

"Are you ready for dessert?" Erik grinned.

"Are you kidding?" I asked. "I'm pretty full!"

"Well, it's your birthday. We gotta have dessert!" he said, kissing me
gently on the cheek.

"Okay. Whatever you say." I answered quietly.

The waiter came and took away the dishes and asked about dessert.

"I believe if you check, there's a dessert already ordered." Erik said.

"Yes, I know, sir. I just wondered if you wanted it served now." the waiter
said.

"Yes. You can bring it now." Erik said.

The waiter went away and I looked at Erik funny. He was up to something,
but I didn't know what. And it didn't seem like he wanted me to be asking
any questions about it. I didn't care.  Everything had been so wonderful,
no matter what it was, I was sure that, whatever it was, it would be
wonderful, too. I didn't have to wait long. There was a piano playing in
the bar area and suddenly, the piano player spoke into his microphone and
made an announcement.

"Gentlemen, we have a very special person dining with us tonight who is
celebrating a very special birthday! Number 18! I'm sure some of you
remember turning 18. Of course, some of you can't remember last week! Tim
is here with his lover Erik who you might like to know, is serving this
country in the United States Marine Corps! Just a word to the wise if any
of you are thinking about hitting on young Tim! I'd think twice if I were
you! But let's all sing 'Happy Birthday' to Tim!" the piano player
announced.

I looked over at Erik in shock! He was grinning back at me and I wanted to
say something but suddenly the entire bar and restaurant erupted into song!

"...Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Tim! Happy birthday to you!"
they sang and then broke into tremendous applause.

While the singing was going on, the waiter had come out, pushing a cart
covered with a white table cloth on which sat a huge cake with white and
blue icing and the words 'Happy Birthday Tim!' on it. There were eighteen
candles (I counted them).

"Make a wish and then blow them out!" Erik said in my ear.

I was dumbfounded! I didn't know what to wish for! In my mind, I had
everything I could ever wish for having Erik love me. So I wished that we
would always love each other and blew out the candles. There was another
huge round of applause and Erik told me I should get up and wave to
everyone to thank them. Blushing furiously red - not being used to this
much attention - I did as he suggested.

In the mean time, the waiter had begun bringing up plates from under the
cart and began to cut up the cake and put it on plates. He gave the first
two slices to me and Erik and then several other waiters began taking the
plates with cake on them and delivering them to everyone in the
restaurant. I looked at Erik and I started to cry. Huge tears streaming
down my face.

"Tim, what's the matter?" Erik said, scooting over and putting his arms
around me.

"I've...I've never had a birthday cake before." I said, trying to keep my
voice under control. "I remember one time a kid in school...his mother
brought one for him to share with everybody in class. Nobody ever noticed
when I had a birthday." I said.

"Oh, Tim! God, man! I'm gonna make fuckin' sure that you birthday is NEVER
ignored again!"  Erik swore to me.

"Thank you, Erik, this has been the best night of my life!" I said, meaning
every word of it.

"Hey! The night is young! It ain't anywhere near over yet! Why, you haven't
even opened your present yet!" he said.

"Yes, I did! I did that with Wally." I said.

"Oh, those weren't all your presents! There's still one more!" Erik said,
reaching in his pants pocket and bringing out what looked to be a very
small box wrapped in white paper with a small blue bow on top.

He handed it to me and I pulled off the paper and ribbon. It was a box, all
right. A black velvet one. I'd never seen the likes of it before. I opened
the top and inside was a ring! A ring with the symbol of the Marine Corps -
the Anchor and Globe - in gold resting in a sea of black which Erik later
told me was Onyx. He took the ring out of the box and slipped it on my
finger. But not just any finger. The ring finger on my left hand!

"It's not the ring I want to put there, but for now, it will do." Erik
smiled at me.

I knew what a ring on that finger meant! I threw my arms around his neck
and we kissed deeply! I don't know how long that kiss would have lasted, or
how deep it would have gone but suddenly, we were hearing another
announcement from the piano player.

"And this dance is dedicated to Tim on his birthday from his lover, Erik!"
the piano player said.

I pulled back from Erik's mouth, looking at him in shock. He grinned at me.

"Come on. Let's dance!" Erik said.

"I don't know how!" I exclaimed.

"You don't need to! Just put your arms around me!" Erik said, grabbing my
hand and sliding out of the booth - dragging me with him.

The dance floor was behind the bar where the piano player was. When we got
there, all the couples on the floor parted out of the way and left the
dance floor completely open for us. There were colored lights everywhere
and this mirrored-ball in the ceiling which threw out spots of light
everywhere! Erik took me in his arms and I wrapped mine around his
neck. The song was a slow one, which I didn't know but it was obvious Erik
did. While he slowly moved me around the floor, he sang softly in my ear.

"Some say love, it is a river, That drowns the tender reed.  Some say love,
it is a razor, That leaves your soul to bleed.  I say love, it is a hunger,
An endless, aching need.  I say love, it is a flower, And you it's only
seed.

"It's the heart afraid of breaking That never learns to dance.  It's the
dream, afraid of waking That never takes the chance It's the one, who won't
be taken Who can not seem to give.  And the soul afraid of dying That never
learns to live.

"When the night has been too lonely And the road has been too long And you
think that love is only For the lucky and the strong Just remember, in the
winter Far beneath the bitter snow Lies the seed, that with the sun's love
In the spring, becomes the rose."

Then he kissed me deeply and, as we continued to move slowly around the
dance floor, I rested my head on his shoulder and tears were falling again
from my eyes. I was so in love with Erik and this night proved, beyond any
doubt, how much he loved me!

I had never danced in my life, much less in the arms of another guy. And to
do it in the arms of this beautiful young Marine who loved me was just
overwhelming to me. When the song ended, Erik took my hand and led me from
the dance floor. A bunch of guys, including the one who had been staring at
me, stopped us to wish me a happy birthday.

"Happy birthday, Tim. I have to admit that I'm sorry you're already taken,
but I can see that you and this young Marine are very much in love. I wish
you both all the happiness in the world." he said.

"Thank you." I said shyly.

"Thanks, guy! I was really lucky to find him." Erik said.

"Don't lose him. I can tell by the way he looks at you that he adores you."
the guy said.

"Yeah, but only half as much as I adore him!" Erik laughed and we went back
to the table.

"What do you say we go home? I really want to be alone with you." Erik said
quietly.

"Yes! Please! That's what I want more than anything!" I exclaimed.

Erik paid the bill and we caught a cab back to my apartment, holding hands
the whole way there.

The End of Part 5 of RECRUITED FOR THE CORPS

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