Date: Wed, 3 May 2017 17:46:20 -0400
From: Hunter Ozzy <openhearts1999@gmail.com>
Subject: Open Hearts Part 7

Welcome guys to part 7 of Open Hearts. As you may have noticed, there was a
slight glitch with last part's spelling and the use of diacritics. Now I'm
not sure if that same problem is going to happen again or not so here is my
solution. I'm going to type the name out once to test if it works "Bjørn"

For the rest of this part I will be spelling it as "Bjorn" just in case the
same glitch happens again. If the same glitch does not appear in the next
chapter after its submitted then I will return to spelling it as "Bjørn" in
chapter 8.

Okay with that out of the way let me just take a second to thank you all
for continuing to read this story of mine. I still enjoy seeing all the
feedback and it still makes me smile when I get to read some of your own
experiences.

******Important Notice********
As you all know you can email me at any time at openhearts1999@gmail.com

If you would like to be put on the notice list for my chapters then just
send me an email stating "I would like to be on the list" or "Can you
notify me when a new chapter comes out?" Or however you feel like wording
it.

For everyone who asks to be put on the list, I will send you an email as
soon as a new chapter drops so that you don't have to check everyday for
it.

************************************

Once again I'd like to thank my friend Danny who is also a writer on here.
He's written stories such as "Even If We Tried" and "Spring Tide" and I
encourage you to check them out.
************************************

Now for the usual disclaimer and recap.

This story is fictional, any similarities to the characters written and
persons in real life is purely coincidental. This story contains sexual
content and is suited for adults so if you're not at least 18 years old
please leave now.

Please remember to donate to nifty.org because without your donations none
of this would be possible
***********************************

RECAP:

Previously on Open Hearts.
Keaton awoke from another strange dream but paid it no mind because he was
too excited about seeing Bjorn. Before he could see him however he had an
unexpected conversation with his mother. Keaton's mom revealed that she
knew about the boy's sexuality for a while now. Keaton in return, confessed
his feelings for Bjorn and their new found relationship. His coming out was
surprisingly well received and his confidence levels soared as he went to
see Bjorn. Upon meeting him Keaton realized that something was troubling
Bjorn but couldn't figure it out. Both boys spent some time "bonding" in
Bjorn's room before falling asleep in each other's arms. This peaceful
slumber was disturbed however, by the sudden appearance of Bjorn's father.
************************************

Open Hearts Part 7:

"What was he going to do to me?" Was the last thing I could think before I
saw Bjorn's father raise his hand at me. As I saw the hand coming down at
me I instinctively closed my eyes and flinched. I expected the hand to come
across my face any second now, slapping the life out of me.

But instead I felt the hand land squarely on my back. A powerful hand that
then took ahold of my shoulder, clenched firmly and shook me not-so-gently.
The force of his grip was obviously self-restrained, he could have snapped
me in half if he wanted to.

Bjorn's father was hard to make out in the dark room but from what I could
tell he was at least 6 foot 3 inches tall and over 230 lbs with a large
frame. A very intimidating figure in the darkness and in the light as well,
I would soon come to find out.

His hand almost knocked the wind out of my lungs when it struck me. I was
afraid that he was just controlling himself for now and that the situation
might get worse.

Finally I heard the giant speak in his deep ragged voice again.

"So you're the boy my son has been shacking up with huh?" He let out a loud
hearty laugh and shook my shoulder once again. I swear I could feel my
bones clashing into each other as he shook me.

It took me a second to realize that he had asked me a question. Once I
processed what he was asking I found myself with questions of my own like
"How did he know me and Bjorn were dating?" Of course I was too afraid to
ask him these questions, in fact I think I was too afraid to even answer
him.

Luckily Bjorn spoke up for me. He was speaking to his father, but it was in
Norwegian so I couldn't understand it. Bjorn's tone however made it seem
like he was annoyed with his dad about something.

Bjorns dad just looked down at his son without a word in response and then
back over at me. He didn't reply to Bjorn he just stuck his hand out at me
and said "I'm Sigve, Bjorn is my son. Nice to meet you."

His tone was different now. Before, he was loud and commanding but this new
tone was softer, well as soft as his voice could be at least and more
serious than before.

'I wonder what Bjorn said to him? Did it have something to do with how he's
talking now?' I thought to myself.

I stuck my hand out and replied.

"I'm Keaton."

I tried to grasp the baseball mitt of a hand that Sigve possessed. When he
closed his hand around mine I heard an audible pop from my knuckles
cracking under the pressure of his handshake. I released my grip quickly in
hopes that he would do the same. It seems all of us heard the pop because
Bjorn and his father both chuckled in unison.

Sigve finally released my hand and gave my arm another "pat" of
encouragement. This time I didn't feel like I was being hit by a truck but
it still did push me a few inches from my original position.

'What god-forsaken planet spawned this mountain of a man?' I thought to
myself.

I knew he was Norwegian but I didn't expect a real life viking to be
Bjorn's dad.

Sigve turned around and started for the doorway. He flipped on the light
switch next to the door and looked back at us. Now I had a clearer picture
of the brute. His dimensions were similar to what I had previously
estimated but now I could see the details. He had blue eyes just like Bjorn
but didn't share his blonde hair. Instead he wore no hair on his shiny bald
head. The only hair he had was present in his long and full beard. A proper
Viking beard that fit the profile of any Nordic giant from ancient times.
He looked like he came straight out of a movie. Aside from his large frame
and beard I noticed that he wasn't an ugly man. His size in no way made him
seem fat or out of shape. His biceps looked capable of grinding rocks into
dust and his facial features showed a handsome man with the manliest
features you could imagine.

"Will Bjorn look like this when he gets older? I like Bjorn the way he is
now but I certainly won't complain if he turns out with same manly genetic
features of his father." I pondered but quickly shook this thought off.
It's best not to get lost in thought right now.

Sigve spoke up again and addressed Bjorn in Norwegian. He muttered a few
words before leaving the room. Bjorn didn't respond to him, he just took a
big sigh of relief when his dad left and looked over at me.

"Well that turned out better than expected." Bjorn sounded a little bit
optimistic and relieved about how that situation just went down.

I was still confused and a little bit afraid so I wasn't sure what I should
ask him first. Maybe I should keep it simple.

"What the hell just happened?" I whispered to Bjorn, obviously confused.

"You met my dad and that's pretty much it." Bjorn stated plainly with a
straight face.

"Well yeah but... why did he come in here yelling but then started
laughing? And why wasn't he mad at us? Did he already know about me and
you? What did you say to him."

I was firing off my questions one by one without giving Bjorn ample time to
respond. Finally Bjorn interrupted my rambling to try his best at
satisfying my questions.

"He was just trying to scare you. And yeah I might have told him I liked
you. And I told him to go easy on you, he has a tendency to be... erm...
rough, I guess you could say."
Bjorn looked confident that his responses would suffice, but he was unaware
how many questions I still had.

It would probably be best to not bombard him all at once. My other
questions can wait. Except for one.

"So he's cool with us dating?" I asked nervously.

"Well, he doesn't have much of a choice if he's not cool with it." Bjorn
leaned in and kissed me on the lips again.

"Besides, he didn't throw you out did he?" Bjorn acted like this was a
proper response to calm my fears but in reality, it just made me more
nervous.

"Would he?" I responded sharply.

"Nah, and if he did then he'd have to kick me out too. Then I would just go
live with you." Bjorn responded smoothly and kissed my lips again.

I giggled at the thought of Bjorn living with me. It was an amazing idea
really, I could sleep with him every night, cook my grilled cheese
sandwiches for him and maybe even share the shower with him from time to
time.

My perfect living situation just so happens to include sleeping, eating,
and a wet naked Bjorn. That says a lot about me when you think about it.

Bjorn snapped me out of my trance with another kiss. This time I
instinctively kissed back.

"Alright fine, I kinda hope that happens now." I chuckled. "But I have one
more question."

"What is it now?" Bjorn jokingly teased before kissing me again.

Our entire conversation was taking place in between short, wet kisses. I
think the sensation of this new feeling was something we both wanted to
keep exploring. I don't know if Bjorn had ever kissed anyone before but I
know that this has been a first for me and has quickly become my new
favorite thing in life.

"What about your mother?" I asked in between kisses.

As soon as the words left my lips I could feel that I made a mistake. Bjorn
broke the rhythm of kisses and stopped dead in his tracks. His eyes were no
longer looking at me, instead, his gaze just fell in between us. The
playful and seductive tension was replaced with a different feeling in the
air. Something colder and awkward.

"What about her." Bjorn's words were a quiet mumble, his tone was soft and
frail.

I wasn't sure how to follow up my question now. I had ripped off a bandaid
that I didn't know existed. The source of Bjorn's pain was obviously
related to his mother. He has that same look on his face that he had
earlier when he was upset. I instantly regretted asking the question. Bjorn
had never mentioned her yet and I've met his father so I was curious about
his mom. I wasn't aware that I would be accidentally breaking my promise
from earlier about not prying in his business.

I just sat there, looking down at the same spot between us that Bjorn was
staring at. I didn't dare mutter another word about her, not yet, not until
he was ready.

We both sat in silence, Bjorn didn't bother asking his question again and
neither did I. There was a quiet understanding between us that we shouldn't
continue with that conversation. But at the same time we were both too
afraid to speak up and change the subject. Even saying sorry would seem
like an attempt to bring the subject back up so I decided against it. I had
an idea though, what couldn't be said with words, can be expressed with
actions.

I took Bjorn hands in mine. I gently rubbed my thumbs over the top of his
hands and leaned my head forward so that my forehead rested on his
shoulder. We sat there for a few moments, still in complete silence.

Much to my surprise Bjorn jerked his hands away from mine. At first i
thought he did it out of anger but then I felt his arms wrap around me, he
pulled himself forward and buried his head into my shoulder as he hugged
me. It was clear that he was thanking me for not asking questions any more.
Although it felt like something more as well. Almost like he was seeking
comfort from me. He clutched me tightly, so tightly in fact that it almost
hurt, it felt like Bjorn was stabling himself against me.

I hugged him back. My touch was gentle and slow, I was unsure of how to
comfort him properly. But Bjorn needed to know that I was here for him.
Suddenly my mother's words rang through my head. "If you're happy around
someone then you should hold onto them." Her words may not have been
intentionally so literal but hey I guess she's a mind reader and a fortune
teller. This was the perfect moment to take her advice. I clutched Bjorn
back, tightening my hug to almost the same force that he held me with. This
was not the time for a gentle pat on the back, he needed to be held tightly
and securely. This was my first opportunity to show him that he can always
be safe around me and I wasn't about to screw it up.

We sat there for at least a minute, maybe more. Just two dorks trying to
hug each other to death because words couldn't always express the way you
feel well enough.

Bjorn started to loosen his grip of me. This was my cue to let go as well.
But instead I just kept hugging him. Even as his arms dropped to his side,
I still didn't let go. I don't know why I couldn't, I just couldn't do it,
I can't let go of him, not yet.

Finally Bjorn broke the silence in the room.

"You don't have to let go, just give me some space so I can kiss you
again." I could barely understand him because his face was still buried
into my shirt  and it muffled his voice.

However I did hear "kiss you again" and this was all the information I
needed to release my grip and let Bjorn breathe. His eyes were a little
red, I don't believe he was crying but it was obvious he was close to it. I
kept my arms rested on his shoulders, almost like the way a girl would hold
her prom date in a slow dance. I envisioned myself with Bjorn at a prom,
both of us dressed in tuxedos, slow dancing in the center of a large room,
completely oblivious to any wandering eyes in the room.

My mind shifted back to the boy in my arms, he leaned forward and kissed me
again. This time it wasn't just a peck, it was long and passionate, it even
included a little tongue which made me giggle as it was an unexpected but
welcome surprise. When Bjorn pulled himself off of me we took a moment to
look into each other's eyes. I normally thought prolonged eye contact was
uncomfortable and awkward but it was different with Bjorn. I just ended up
losing myself in his eyes and forgetting about everything else around me.

"Aw fuck!" Bjorn exclaimed loudly.

I was taken back by his sudden outburst and word choice.

"What?! What's wrong?!" Just a moment ago we were lost in each other's
eyes, what made Bjorn yell like that so suddenly.

"Look at the time." Bjorn pointed at an alarm clock on his night stand. The
clock read 6:07 pm.

"I didn't realize we slept that long. Is that bad?" I was still a bit
confused as to why he was upset about it.

"I guess it's not the end of the world. I wanted to go somewhere with you
today but it's too late now." Bjorn said with the sound of regret in his
voice.

"Where'd you want to go?" I was curious about his plans. It seems like he
had plans to take me somewhere but he didn't mention this beforehand.

"I don't know, just lunch or something. Anywhere really." Bjorn was still
pouting over missing our possible lunch date.

I saw an opportunity to possibly salvage our day.

"Is there a movie theater around here?" I asked.

"Yeah. Why?" Bjorn didn't catch on immediately.

"Well I'm starving, and I wouldn't mind watching a movie." I gave Bjorn a
wink and a nudge on the arm but he still looked confused.

"Ugh! You're so bad at this!" I chuckled because I had the opportunity to
repeat his words back at him.

"Take me out to dinner and a movie you dork!" I was grinning from ear to
ear, I enjoyed teasing Bjorn and he didn't seem to mind either. He returned
my smile before responding.

"Oh. Yeah... I knew that. Good idea!" Bjorn jumped up and darted out of the
room without saying another word. I was a bit dumbfounded as to why he just
left and where he went but he came back about 15 seconds later with a big
smile on his face.

"Dad said yes." Bjorn stated proudly with a huge smile.

This is great. Me and Bjorn are going to go on a real date, my first date
ever. Well as long as my parents approve first, but I'm sure they will.

"So I guess you gotta leave now." Bjorn said as he turned to his dresser
and started tossing clothes about.

"What? Why?" I questioned almost a little too loudly. I was caught off
guard by his sudden statement asking me to leave.

"So I can get dressed for our date you dork. Bjorn turned slightly towards
me and shot a provocative glance my way. "Unless of course you want to stay
and watch me undress." Bjorn pulled a pair of underwear out of the drawer
and held them out in front of him. He stretched the waistband of the orange
and black boxer briefs and waved them around as if he was trying to entice
me into a lust-filled trance.

His invitation was playful but still seemed all too serious to me. I found
myself questioning whether I was ready for this.

Friends always made comments like this growing up. Boys would always try to
gay-bait each other for fun. Whether it would be stripping in front of the
group and waving around the crown jewels begging for some poor child to
look just a second too long, and thus tease him endlessly for it. Or even
just angst filled comments about sex between hormonal tweens trying to
break the awkwardness in the air that surrounds their changing bodies. But
this was a different situation, this wasn't just 'locker room talk,' this
was Bjorn.

My heart skipped a little at the thought of him shedding his pants and
underwear to give me a look at his 'natural' form. At the same time
however, it felt different now than it did before. The last time I imagined
Bjorn naked my mind was focused only on the areas that his boxer briefs
covered. While that curiosity still remains, a different feeling seems to
be attached to him now.

'Before, there was this hunger, an almost primal instinct to pounce on
Bjorn's naked body and.... well... I'm not sure what I would do next, my
mind never went farther than that.' But now this emotion I was feeling was
less comparable to hunger and more like.... like..... passion. Yeah that's
it, passion.'

I wanted him, I wanted to feel him and hold him and bask in his naked
glory, but I couldn't imagine the next step. It was as if my mind was
incapable of even imagining what I would do to Bjorn afterwords. I felt my
sex drive plummet, it's as if my own heart craved Bjorn more than my
teenage crotch did. 'Was this love that I was feeling?'

I've been attracted to someone before, I've even ventured into the gay
section of certain adult websites before. Those feelings of attraction,
that sexual desire, they felt completely different than whatever this was.

I was still standing there, frozen in time, struggling with my own internal
conflicts like some greek philosopher comtemplating the purpose of human
existence. Sure, you could argue that my issue wasn't comparable to that of
the meaning of life, but I would have to disagree. "This new feeling, this
passion for this playful and silly blonde boy waving his underwear in my
face, what if.... what if this is the meaning of life?"

"Earth to Keaton... hey... you there?" Bjorn was calling my name amidst a
flurry of finger snapping and whistles.

I snapped back to reality, unaware that I had been completely zoned out in
front of Bjorn was beyond embarrassing. I found myself blushing and
diverting my eyes to the floor in between us to avoid eye contact.

"Uh yeah, sorry, zoned out." I said, still blushing and flushed with
embarrassment.

"You were thinking about me naked weren't you." Bjorn stated while
chuckling.

I looked up at him, my expression filled with anger and embarrassment.

"No of course not!" Well I kind of was for a moment but I couldn't let him
know that.

Bjorn smirked and raised his eyebrow at me. "Oh really. So you think I'm
ugly." Bjorn upheld his devilish grin as he knowingly backed me into a
corner mentally.

"Don't say that." I stated sharply.

Bjorn paused for a moment debating whether or not to let me off the hook or
continue teasing me and risk making me upset. He decided on a compromise.

"Okay. I won't say it again... if.... if you prove it to me right here
right now that you don't think I'm ugly." His grin returned.

This was torturous, Bjorn knew as well as I did that he wasn't ugly. He
must be trying to provoke me into making the first move. He had the
confidence and smooth demeanour to do it him self and he knew I wouldn't
object but instead he was trying to test me to see what I was willing to do
without having to ask.

In a way this was somewhat considerate. He was trying to not always make
the first move so he wouldn't pressure me into doing something I wasn't
ready for. At the same time this was equally frustrating because I had no
idea what to do. I want to do something but I don't know what I am and am
not ready for.

'Okay Keaton, it's time to go for it, don't think, just do whatever feels
right. This is a golden opportunity to prove to Bjorn I'm not a baby, I'm a
man too.' Under normal circumstances I would have laughed at the thought of
myself as a man but right now I was too headstrong to feel discouraged.

I walked forward, almost in a march, determination burned in my eyes and I
was ready to answer Bjorn's request and much more. I grabbed ahold of his
waist and pressed my body into his until he was pushed up against the
dresser. Pinned between my body and the wardrobe he had no where to run,
although his actions showed no sign of resistance anyways. Bjorn was
taller, I had no issue kissing him before because we sat on the bed, but
now that we were standing up, we weren't exactly level to each other. This
wouldn't stop me though, I needed to prove something to him and to myself.
I stood up on my tip toes and inched myself up to his lips.

This probably wasn't the most manly of sights but hey, what can I do, I'm
short.

Our lips pressed against each other. Another kiss of inexperienced passion
was shared between us. But this time it won't be just that, he wanted proof
and I wanted answers to my own question 'what was I ready for?'

I opened my eyes ever so slightly so I could see his face, I wanted to
gauge his reaction. My hands shifted from his hips now, my left hand
slipped to his rear. I shoved my hand into his back pocket and lightly
grasped his backside. I've wanted to grab his beautiful butt ever since I
saw it at the beach the day after we met. Bjorn paused and giggled but for
the most part his face showed no reaction. We kept kissing, even using our
tongues, but I was still determined to do better. My right hand which was
situated on his hip moved to the small gap between us. I shifted my body to
allow for more space, my hand hovered over the zipper to his shorts. I
grabbed ahold of his crotch with one swift movement, even underneath the
fabric I could still feel him, all of him.

Bjorn gasped, he inhaled a large breath of air as his tongue retreated from
my mouth. His eyes opened slightly to gaze into mine for only a brief
moment. Then his head dropped to my shoulder, he rested his head there and
let out a small almost silent whimper.

I was terrified, my heart was pounding out of my chest. I don't know what
was scarier, the fear of possibly having messed up and hurt him, or the
fear of holding a penis that wasn't mine for the first time. It was still
behind two layers of fabric, but there was no mistaking what it was and my
mind was having a harder time wrapping around it than my hand was.

Bjorn didn't say a word, he just continued to rest his head on my shoulder
and breathed deeply. 'Maybe I grabbed too low? Maybe he was in pain?' I
slowly let go of Bjorn, I was scared to death that I had accidently hurt
him.

His hands, which were positioned on the dresser behind him, moved to my
sides and gripped my hips.

"Are you okay? I'm so sorry Bjo-"

"I'm fine." Bjorn didn't sound hurt or angry, he just lifted his head and
gave a sly grin.

"I was just surprised. No one's grabbed me there before. That felt good."
Bjorn said.

I was blushing now. Bjorn's slight moans had been of pleasure not pain, and
I was the cause of it. I didn't have any previous intention of grabbing him
like that, I just did it. I was excited now more than anything, but still
nervous. If my heart were to beat any faster than I swear I would kill over
any moment. There was a moment of silence between us, neither of us were
confident enough to speak up at first. Finally Bjorn spoke up.

"Do you want me to-" He was cut off by a loud voice penetrating the air.

"Bjorn!" Sigve yelled from the living room.

Both of us jumped back from one another, scared that we had been caught in
the act. We both looked at the open doorway to make sure he couldn't see us
then looked back at each other. Bjorn made a face at me, like he was unsure
what to do but also relieved that he didn't get caught. He shrugged his
shoulders and went to go see what his dad wanted.

I sat back down on Bjorn's bed and waited patiently. Truthfully I needed a
moment to collect my thoughts anyways. 'That was my first time ever going
that far with anyone. It was just some light groping but it was still
contact that I have never experienced before.'

'He felt... hot, and... well... big. It was hard to gauge through his
clothing but he felt larger than me. I'm almost embarrassed just thinking
about it, he'll probably think mine is tiny compared to him.'

I started to get nervous thinking about that possible interaction between
me and Bjorn. I didn't like to think of myself as overly self conscious but
I've never had to expose myself in that way before to someone. 'I can only
imagine how Bjorn would react so maybe I should just forget about it. That
reminds me though, what was Bjorn going to ask me before his dad called
him?'

Bjorn entered the room, he didn't show any signs of being upset or sad so I
assumed we didn't get in trouble.

"He just wanted to know when and where we are going." Bjorn said without me
having to ask.

"Oh okay, cool." I was about to ask him to finish his question from earlier
but he started talking again before I could.

"Do you want me to walk you out?" Bjorn asked.

I almost forgot that I needed to go home and ask permission to go out,  it
also wouldn't hurt to change into something more appealing for my date. It
was best that I ask him later and go home to get ready.

"Sure, I'm ready."

Me and Bjorn left the room and headed towards the garage door. Sigve looked
up from the television screen for a brief moment to glance at us as we
walked out. I made eye contact with him but he quickly looked away without
a smile or wave. I thought it was kind of odd but didn't read much into it.

Me and Bjorn made our way to the door and he followed me outside into the
garage.

"I'll be over in 30 minutes. Is that okay?" Bjorn asked.

"Sure that'll be great. I'll see you then." I hesitated for a moment but
leaned in and kissed Bjorn on the cheek. I don't know why I kissed him
there instead of the lips, but he had soft, milky cheeks, why not kiss him
there too. He didn't seem to mind at all, he just smiled and replied.

"See you then" before returning back inside his house.

I practically skipped back to my house. This was turning out to be a great
day but it was about to get even better. Tonight was my first date with
Bjorn and my first date ever!

I darted inside my house so quickly I almost forgot to shut the door behind
me. My father was no where to be seen so I assumed he was in his room. My
mom was standing in the kitchen cooking dinner.

'Uh oh. She's not going to be happy that I'm asking to go out after she
already started cooking.'

I made my way towards her, thinking of the best way to ask and get her to
say yes. I put my hands on the counter and stood next to her, leaning
forward just a bit so she would notice me.

"Hey mom?" I did my best attempt at my innocent voice again. If I played
the part of her sweet little boy then there's no way she could say no...
right?

"Yes Keaty." My mother didn't seem to be fazed by my voice nor did she even
look over in my direction. That thwarts my plan to use puppy dog eyes on
her.

"Well I was gonna ask if I could go out with Bjorn tonight. He wants to go
to a movie and dinner." I decided that the straight forward approach was
best, I had no time to waste anyways.

"And you thought it was a good idea to ask after I started cooking dinner."

"Well I forgo-"

"Oh did you."

"I'll eat the leftovers for lunch tomorrow but can I please go out?
Pllleeeeeeeasssee!!!"

My mother stopped stirring the vegetables in the pan and glared at me out
of the corner of her eye. Here's my chance, puppy dog eyes activate!

They probably didn't work nearly as well as I thought they did, but I was
determined to get a yes out of her. I threw in the exaggerated pouty lips
just for good measure.

She turned her attention back to the pan and sighed deeply.

"Fine. Go. Whatever you go and eat won't be as good as what I cook though."
My mother finally gave in and gave me her blessing.

"I know I know. Thanks mom." She was right, her cooking was amazing. I
rushed up the stairs and entered my room, it's time to make myself
presentable.

I stripped to my underwear and started rummaging through my closet and
drawers looking for something to wear. I decided on a black hoodie with a
white splatter print on it, white skinny jeans and a pair of gray Vans. I
chose the hoody because it was a little chilly outside, also it didn't make
me look so scrawny. I guess in the mirror I looked like a skater boy, even
though I've never skated before. I spent a few minutes combing my hair back
and to the side so it would look well kept and cute-ish.

When I was finished I heard the door bell ring and knew it was for me. I
bounded down the stairs and was met by my mother who made it  to the door
first. She opened the door and greeted Bjorn at the doorstep. I didn't want
to waste any more time and have her invite him in, so I shimmied my way
past her so I could get outside.

"You two look adorable!" My mother screeched. I was lucky my father wasn't
in the room to hear her because I wasn't quite ready to tell him about
this. But to be honest the whole block probably heard her, she wasn't great
at being discreet.

She was right though, at least about Bjorn. He was wearing a very loose
fitting white graphic tee, the kind that was long enough to hang below your
butt, but still slim enough that that shirt doesn't seem oversized. He was
also wearing black skinny jeans and a pair of white and gray sneakers. He
looked like a pop star, I'm just glad he didn't act like one too.

"We're gonna go now mom." I said quickly. I really wanted to avoid any
additional embarrassment by letting her get more comments out.

"Oh okay honey go ahead. You really shouldn't rush your date, it's not an
attractive trait to always be in a hurry." My mother teased.

"Mooom! Stop it." I grabbed Bjorn by the wrist and lead him away from our
porch. As I dragged him along I could my mother shout out to us.

"Have fun sweety! No drinking! No drugs either! Oh and use protection!" She
shouted.

"MOM!" I quickly stormed off now, I couldn't let her get another word in.
That last one was just pure evil, but the situation was made worse by Bjorn
joining in on my demise.

He turned and shouted back at her "Don't worry we will!" as he smiled and
waved goodbye.

I was literally dying at this point as I drowned in a pool of my own
embarrassment. It was already bad but now Bjorn was encouraging her.

We started our walk down the cool dark street, only illuminated by the moon
and a few dim street lights. The positive side to living where we did was
we could walk to almost anything. It would probably only take 15 maybe 20
minutes to reach the theater.

"Did you eat today?" Bjorn asked.

"No, did you?" It was true I hadn't ate anything all day and I was
starving. We were supposed to get lunch at Bjorn's but we took a nap
instead.

"Nope not a bite. Want to go eat first?"

"Yeah that sounds good. Where do you want to go." Bjorn has lived here
longer than I have so maybe he has a good idea of where to eat.

"Well there's a great place that serves stuff like burgers and fries and
shakes. Does that sound good?" Bjorn asked.

It seemed rather simple and straightforward but honestly it sounded great.
Nothing beats a good burger and I could go for a chocolate shake too.

"Yeah sounds good, I really want a chocolate shake anyways" I could hear my
stomach growling already.

This part of our night was a bit awkward. A lot had happened in just a few
short days and today especially. We were boyfriends now but I don't think
either one of us has any idea what that entails. 'What exactly do
boyfriends do? Should we be holding hands or kissing all the time? Is it
okay to just talk about normal stuff or is there stuff that only boyfriends
talk about?' This was all new to me.

I decided the best course of action was to strike up a conversation and
avoid any further awkward silence.

"So. Umm am I your first boyfriend?" I was genuinely curious, Bjorn was my
first and it would be nice if I was his too.

"Yep. First and only." He chuckled a bit. "I'm guessing I'm your first too."

"How'd you know?"

"You seem just as lost as I am." Bjorn smiled and looked over at me.
We both laughed in unison. I was relieved to hear that it wasn't just me.

"So Keaton, can I hold your hand?"
Bjorn seemed nervous. His voice was firm and serious, almost like he had
practiced saying it in his head for awhile now. It was cute to hear him ask
so seriously, I chose not to even answer, I just stuck out my hand in front
of us as an invitation. He accepted it of course and interlocked his
fingers with mine, now we were walking down the sidewalk on a cool
California night, holding hands under the stars.

It was a surreal moment. Before I came here I was hopeless in the love
department. I spent my nights jacking off in the shower and envisioning a
day when I would have someone to hold. But now I was here, holding his
hand, the vision I once had didn't seem like a distant future anymore. To
be honest I didn't think it was going to be a boy. My mind was too afraid
of the idea of being gay at the time. This feeling I've got now however,
has completely changed my perspective.

Bjorn was the next to speak.

"You know, I wasn't really sure what America would be like. I didn't know
if people would accept me. I didn't think I would find someone like you
especially so quickly. But I'm glad I came here. I'm glad you came here
too. The odds of the Norwegian boy moving across the world to fall in love
with a boy who moved to the same place from across the country, it's almost
good enough to write a story about us. Too bad it took you a few years to
get here haha."

Bjorn's words surprised me. They were sweet and endearing. You could hear
the lovestruck tone in his voice. But one thing he said stood out more than
the rest.

"You said... you fell in love with me?" I stammered. My heart was beating
fast again and I think my palms were starting to sweat.

Bjorn didn't respond immediately. All you could hear was the occasional car
horn in the distance and the sound of our shoes shuffling against the
concrete. Finally he replied after what seemed like ages.

"Yeah I did. And yeah I am. At least I think I am. I know it's really fast
for me to say that so early but I just have a good feeling about you. Sorry
if that's too much for you." Bjorn sounded defeated again, worried that I
would be uncomfortable with how he felt.

"You're right. It is fast. I didn't think you were supposed to feel that
way so soon. Especially with how little we know each other. That's why I
was so scared to tell you I feel the same way." It took a lot to get that
off my chest. But with Bjorn saying it first, I had more confidence in my
own feelings.

"Wait. So you feel the same way as me?" Bjorn asked sounding surprised.

"Well yeah duh. I mean you are perfect after all." I was giggling now. But
I did mean what I said.

"I'm not perfect." Bjorn stated bluntly.

"Of course you are. You're hot, you're tall and strong, you speak two
languages and have a cute accent. And you're sweet, and funny, and gay. All
those things seem pretty perfect to me." Bjorn laughed at my barrage of
compliments but suddenly got serious again.

"Well you're right about us not knowing each other very well at least. I'm
not perfect, you'll find that out eventually." Bjorn stated firmly.

His words made him sound very mysterious, like a secret government agent or
something. Or maybe he had a dark secret he was keeping from me. Whatever
it was it seems like I'll just have to wait and see to find out.

We finally made it to the restaurant by now. We instinctively let go of
each other's hands once we were visible to the public eye. Both of us
weren't quite ready to take that step yet. The place Bjorn chose just
screamed old fashioned American diner. It had a 1950's feel to it like a
Johnny Rockets or a Steak n' Shake. This of course came with chrome metal
trim to every table top and bright two toned booths that adorned vertical
red and white stripes.

Me and Bjorn chose a booth in the corner of the restaurant, even though
there was maybe only 3 other people here excluding the waitress and kitchen
staff, we still wanted maximum privacy.

Our waitress, a teenage girl about 16 or 17 years old greeted us shortly
after we sat down.

"Hi my name is Rachel I'll be serving you two tonight. What can I get you
two cuties to drink?"

"Well I'll take a vanilla shake." Bjorn said. And then he pointed his
finger at me and said "And this cutie will have a chocolate one."

At this point I didn't even feel embarrassed anymore. It was obvious Bjorn
enjoyed doing things like this in front of people and there was nothing I
could do to stop him. I still haven't forgiven him for agreeing with my
mom's joke to use protection earlier.

I just closed my eyes and sighed deeply. "Yes. Yes I would, please." I
muttered.

Bjorn and the waitress were both smiling now. He knew he had got me and she
must of thought it was a pretty cute comment.

"Okay one chocolate shake and one vanilla. I'll be back in just a second to
take your orders." The girl walked back to the kitchen to make our shakes.

"You're a dork you know that." I said teasingly.

"Sure but I'm not just a dork, I'm your dork now." Bjorn grinned and then
stuck his tongue out at me.

He had a good point I couldn't argue with that. This was my first true
experience with an unfamiliar feeling. That feeling of being annoyed or
frustrated by something your partner does, but you love them so much that
you start to love those things that annoy you too. Bjorn liked to embarrass
me and tease me slightly, but for some strange reason I loved it. I loved
hearing him call me dork, and that comment about "protection" from before
did more to excite me rather than annoy me. But of course I couldn't let
him know this, what would be the fun in that.

The waitress returned with our shakes. Me and Bjorn bad taken a moment to
look at our menus. I decided on the western burger with fried onions and
barbeque sauce. While Bjorn went with an extra cheesy burger that had
cheese inside the patty. I got the feeling that Bjorn really likes cheese.

While we waited on our food we took this time to get to know each other a
bit more. Bjorn asked about Florida and my old life. It felt weird to
describe it like some ancient history when in reality it was a short time
ago. I talked about the differences in our beaches, what central Florida
was like and the difference in weather. He was listening to every word I
said, nodding along and asking questions to each of my comments, it was the
first time anyone has ever showed me this kind of attention. I felt
invested like he was invested in the conversation, I only wish I had more
to tell.

"So what about Norway, how's that compared to California?" I asked. I was
trying to make it so every conversation wasn't about me, but I was also
very curious about his past too.


"Well it was definitely colder. The beaches here are definitely nicer than
the ones there. It's nice, different but nice." Bjorn seemed to talk very
quickly about Norway and wasn't very descriptive.

"Do you miss it?" Might as well try to get him talking a bit more.

"Sometimes, but I'm happy here, especially now." Bjorn smiled at me again.

Damn he was smooth, just like that he flipped it back to me and even snuck
in a subtle compliment.

Maybe I shouldn't ask about Norway anymore, he didn't seem interested in
talking about it.

"What school will you be going to." I asked. I silently prayed he would be
going to the same school as me.

"Redondo High. What about you?" Bjorn answered.

"Thankfully the same as you." I was smiling on the outside but my true
inner emotions was more along the lines of a high school pep rally. Thank
god Bjorn would be going to the same school, now let's hope that we get the
same classes too. Finally our food came and it was time to chow down.

We were both so unbelievably hungry that we didn't waste any time with
normal table manners. Instead we just devoured the food with huge bites and
giant slurps of shake. Once our initial hunger levels went down we started
to take it slow and finally get back to conversating while eating.

"Okay so you take the fry and dip it in the shake like this. And boom
you've got the best tasting thing on planet earth." I did my best to
explain to Bjorn the delicacy that is a french fry dipped in a shake.

"Eww no way." Bjorn obviously wasn't having any of it but I knew I could
sway him.

"What if I feed it to you. Will you try it then?"

Bjorn paused and pondered the idea. He even stroked his chin for comical
emphasis.

"All right, deal." Bjorn leaned forward and opened his mouth wide.

I dipped one of my fries into my chocolate shake and proceeded to feed it
to Bjorn just as we agreed upon. At first his face turned up in a look of
disgust but as he chewed and swallowed his expression softened.

"Can I try another?"

'I've got him now.' I thought triumphantly.

I dipped my fry again and fed him once more. I'm pretty sure our waitress
was watching from across the room and laughing at us but I didn't care.

This time Bjorn chewed and swallowed but paused afterwards to think of a
proper response. He hummed and stroked his chin once again to exaggerate
his thinking process. Finally he spoke up and gave his review.

"I like it. Salty and sweet at the same time. Kinda soggy though."

I was satisfied with Bjorn's response, this was definitely a win for me and
all french fry shake dippers across the planet. Also I got to feed Bjorn,
which was definitely a cute memory I would hold onto and document in my
fictional scrapbook of 'first times' with him.

We finished our dinner pretty quickly and just sat there talking. I started
to doubt we would ever see a movie but it didn't bother me, I was enjoying
just talking to him too much to care.

We talked about school and our favorite subjects, sports and our favorite
teams, and eventually we talked about each other again.

"So I told you a few reasons why you were perfect earlier. Can you tell me
a few reasons why you decided to pick me?" I asked curiously.

"Well you're cute for one. But uhh... Well you just seemed different."
Bjorn stammered.

"Different how?"

"Like when we first met you didn't just nod and wave like a normal kid. You
introduced yourself and told us your name, I thought your name was cute
too. And then the next day when you got hit in the face you didn't get
angry or yell at us, you just accepted our apology. And when I held your
hand for a second to check out your eye, I didn't even really look at the
area you got hit in at first, I just stared into your eyes. You didn't pull
away or get creeped out, you just looked back into my eyes and I felt
something different about you in that moment."

I could feel my heart melting at this point. Bjorn kept note of a lot of
little details, things that I didn't even notice. I looked around to make
sure there was no one eyeing us. With the coast clear I leaned across the
table and grabbed Bjorn by the shirt, pulled him towards me and planted a
kiss on his lips.

It felt like the right thing to do. I couldn't exactly put into words how
he made me feel so I decided that a kiss would have to do instead.

He seemed a little surprised at my sudden boldness, he almost looked
flustered even. I might have been the one getting embarrassed before but it
seems Bjorn isn't all that comfortable with the boyfriend stuff in public
either. It was worth it though, just a brief moment of lip contact to thank
him for his sweet words and gestures.

"So when did you feel that moment with me?" Bjorn asked.

"I guess in that same moment. I was interested in you the first time I
heard you speak, but I remember getting completely lost in your eyes that
day on the beach. I didn't think it was normal for a boy to hold my hand
like that and look at me the way you did, but it didn't feel creepy, it
felt special." I said matter-of-factly. It was the honest truth, I knew
that's when my crush on Bjorn started.

He smiled and lightly pushed his silverware around, fidgeting in any way he
could to try and mask his emotions. Bjorn didn't like to seem flustered or
overwhelmed by the looks of it. Honestly it was just cute watching him try
to hide it while still  unable to remove his big grin.

At this point we were both eager to stretch our legs and get out of the
cramped booth. We decided it was time to go. The check had already been
left here but neither one of us had paid it any attention until now. It was
about 18 dollars total. I reached into my wallet and pulled out some money
when I felt Bjorn's foot slightly kick me.

"What are you doing?" Bjorn exclaimed

"Paying the bill dork."

"Nuh uh. I am" Bjorn said proudly.

"Just let me pay for it this time." I pleaded.

Bjorn reached across the table and snatched the receipt from hand.

"Nope" he stuck his tongue out at me in defiance and pulled his own wallet
out.

I rolled my eyes until I almost felt them pop out of my head. 'Looks like
I'm not winning this one.' I thought to myself. I can already see the he
was a stubborn one and this was going to make things... interesting.

I decided on a compromise. Bjorn would pay for the meal and I would pay the
tip, it was the least I could do and the only thing he was willing to let
me do as well.

Once the meal was paid for we headed back out onto the city street.

"So umm... do you wanna maybe skip the movie and do something else?" Bjorn
asked gingerly.

"Like what?" I really didn't want to see the movie anymore but I wasn't
sure what else to do.

"Well it's too late to see the sunset but we could go to that spot and
hangout. Look at some stars, maybe listen to music."

I felt my stomach flutter a little at the thought of this. It sounded like
a lovely and romantic scene, I wonder if Bjorn intended for it to be this
way.

"Yeah that's sounds great. Lead the way." I smiled at Bjorn and stuck my
hand out so he could take ahold of it.

We joined hands once again and made our way to Bjorn's secret spot. We
followed the boardwalk until we came to a path that led up a small cliff.
Venturing off the path and through some vegetation we found a small grassy
spot hidden away from the rest of the world. There was a decent view of the
ocean, and since this was a sea turtle hatching ground there wasn't any
lights around us. You see when baby turtles are hatched they instinctively
head towards light, usually the sun or moon, because this leads them to the
ocean. It's illegal for people and businesses to have lights in areas like
this because it draws the turtles inland.

The low levels of light made the stars shine brighter than I've ever seen
before. We also had complete privacy here, something we were both excited
about.

I took a seat on the grass and Bjorn did the same. At first we were both
sitting and star gazing but then Bjorn laid down in the grass and invited
me to do the same. I was never good at star names or constellations. I had
no idea where they were or the stories behind them. Bjorn was the opposite,
he knew all the constellations and waisted no time pointing them out and
explaining them to me. As he started to tell their stories I scooted in
closer and let him rest his arm behind my head.

He told stories of ancient philosophies and gave me a brief history on the
zodiac signs as well. I did my best to keep up but honestly I was more
interested in just hearing his voice. Whenever he spoke passionately you
could hear this child like excitement in his voice. It was lively but still
soothing and calm.

After some time had passed we were now just telling jokes and stories about
our lives. I talked about the one time I got a bead stuck in my ear for a
few hours when I was four and he told me about the time he ran naked around
his neighborhood as a dare when he was ten. The idea of a ten year old
Bjorn running around naked in the snow was too much to bear and I found
myself giggling uncontrollably.

We both had fun laughing at each other's stories and telling jokes. With
the beautiful and peaceful atmosphere, the mood was just perfect. It wasn't
long before we shared a kiss under the stars.

Eventually Bjorn grew quiet. I was curious so I was about to ask him if he
was okay, but he spoke up before I got the chance.

"Your mom seems really nice." Bjorn whispered.

"Yeah she's cool." I was about to ask Bjorn about his mom but I remembered
to stay away from that subject for now.

"Don't forget to tell her that. Sometimes we forget to say it even when we
feel it." Bjorn spoke very softly. You could hear a sense of reminiscence
in his voice.

I thought it was a strange thing to bring up. But maybe this is Bjorn's way
of bringing up his own mother indirectly.

"Yeah I know. I will. Did you tell your mother that?" I knew it didn't come
out the way I wanted it to. I just wanted to find a way to make him
comfortable talking about it.

There was silence between us now. The crickets still chirped in the
background and the waves still crashed against the shore, but besides that
it was completely quiet for a few moments.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that." I was going to try my best at
damage control to avoid upsetting Bjorn again. I didn't want him to think I
intentionally broke my promise not to ask him about it.

"It's okay. Can I tell you a story? Something that stays just between us."
Bjorn spoke weakly now as if he was afraid to continue talking.

"Of course you can. Just between us." I grabbed Bjorn's hand and waited
patiently while he found the strength to speak. After a minute or so I
could hear Bjorn finally start his story.

"I guess this is the story of my childhood, and Norway."
************************************

End of part 7:

Another cliffhanger I know I know I'm an evil bastard. I promise this won't
be a regular thing but I just needed to break this up here.

What did you guys think of this part? Is the story heading in the direction
you expected or wanted?

Remember to email me your comments, questions and concerns at
openhearts1999@gmail.com

******IMPORTANT NEWS******

I just launched a Tumblr for Open Hearts!

For anyone who doesn't know, Tumblr is a media sharing website that allows
people to share links, videos, photos, and really any kind of media you can
think of.

This allows me to share my stories, artwork and ideas on a whole new
platform that supports more than just stories.

On this Tumblr you can follow my page and see everything I post, such as
links to my stories and updates on each part. You can even submit photos or
stories to me and I can post them as well. This gives us the opportunity to
communicate in a way other than email and even share things as a group.

If you would like to follow my page then just search the username
"openheartsworld" on Tumblr.
************************************

Thank you guys so much for the feedback and support. I hope this wasn't too
long of a wait for chapter 7. I'll see you all next time for Part 8 of Open
Hearts.