The Gap Year

Al winced at the loud thumping music as he stepped into the school hall. Beside him, stuffed into tight purple taffeta was his prom date, Mary Sue.

"So, why are we here again?" Al shouted into Mary's ear, getting as close as he could so she would hear him over the pounding beat.

"You know why." She tugged him further into the hall, edging toward the buffet.

Al sighed at the knowing smirk on her face. "Tell me again."

"I blackmailed you into bringing me, so I would have a date."

"How did you do that again?" Al grinned as he watched Mary load up a plate with bite sized sandwiches.

She turned to him with an innocent look that slid into a saucy grin. "Um, that would be the day I caught you drooling over on the football champion."

Al nodded and said sagely. "Ah, yes. That would be it. But Greg's ass is totally worth it." He turned to the dance floor and watched the ass in question. "Don't you think?"

Mary Sue nodded with a stifled giggle, then her smile slipped. "I'm gonna miss you, Al. You'd better send me postcards from wherever you end up."

Al grinned and gave her a squeeze. "It's only till college starts. C'mon, let's dance."

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Al's self-revelation that he preferred guys to girls in his last year of high school had decided him on a travel adventure before he started college. Somewhere he could explore this new self-awareness,
without his parents watching. He explained it to them as revisiting his past before concentrating on his future.

"You sure you want to do this, son?" Al's mother looked at her boy with concern.

He gave her a bright sunny smile. "Yeah, ma. I'll travel a bit, check out the old hometown and be back before college."

Hugging him tight, she whispered, "Remember to write and phone every week, no matter where you are. Love you."

Al squeezed her back. "I'll be okay, ma." Letting her go, he grabbed his duffle bag and threw it into his old car. Giving his mother a wave, he was off on his adventure.

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Traveling to his hometown took a few weeks through various towns and states but Al found it all enlightening.

Whenever he arrived in the larger cities during the day, he became a tourist, exploring the well trodden sites. His letters home started to include postcards and pictures taken at famous landmarks.
When he spoke to his mother, he gave quick accounts of the people he had encountered.

What he didn't tell his parents about were his night excursions. He explored the garish and loud nightclubs, sneaking into gay clubs past benevolent bouncers who ignored his badly made ID, in favor of letting a cute young thing in to party. It opened his eyes to a whole new world that he cautiously observed but never had the courage to plunge into.

The pounding music and writhing bodies on the dance floor were fascinating and he was content to watch from the sidelines. He was asked to dance but he rarely accepted. From what he had seen,
most of the couples dancing disappeared into the back rooms, and while he was quite happy to embrace his nature, he was not going to lose his virginity in a hurried grope against a wall.

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Finally, he reached his destination. His hometown. He could recall it hazily, certain places and people ghosting through his memory. Armed with a worn map his mother had provided, he marked certain places to visit as he wandered around the streets of his childhood.

Entering the old ice cream shop, he smiled to see the worn seats had been updated but the same lady stood behind the counter. Walking out with a small vanilla ice cream, he paused to watch the beach activity.

People were out enjoying the late afternoon sun, walking their dogs and paddling in the rolling tide. A lithe figure windsurfing beyond the breakers caught his eye. He watched the daring maneuvers of the
tanned young man. Al gasped when a wave dumped the rider into the surf, but he soon grinned as the man surfaced with a whoop of excitement.

He continued watching, appreciating the view. It was only as the surfer was packing up his gear that Al moved away from his vantage spot to continue his neighbourhood tour. A low slung sports car
rolled to a stop near him.

"Hey, I saw you watching. Do you like surfing?" Al turned. The surfer he'd been watching a moment ago gave him a wide, welcoming smile and Al's mouth went dry. He couldn't help but return the smile.

"Yeah, great moves out there. I'm Al, Al Giordino." He leaned over and offered his hand to the Adonis, reminding himself not to drool.

"Hi, I'm Dirk Pitt. So, do you surf or do you just watch?" Al froze as Dirk cast an eye over his compact size and grinned. "You seem more of a boxer than a swimmer."

Al laughed at the mild flirtiness in the tone, replying, "Well, I do prefer diving." He saw Dirk's eyes light up.

"Me too, though all my diving buddies are scattered on vacation at the moment. Hey, there are some great diving spots around here. Are you planning to do some diving at all?"

Al tugged back his hand. "Do I look like that much of a tourist?" Dirk nodded. "Well, I'm actually checking out the old neighbourhood before I start college."

"You used to live around here?"

"Yeah. I've been checking out my old haunts, like the ice cream shop."

Dirk chuckled, quirking an eyebrow at him. "Ice cream shop? Aren't you a little old to be haunting places like that?"

Al laughed. "Now, maybe, but I was only a kid back when I lived around here."

Dirk smiled. "I've lived here all my life but college will take me away in a few months. Not that I think my parents will miss me." Al noticed the smile slip a bit and he thought of his own parents who waited impatiently every week for a call from him.

In an effort to distract Dirk's thoughts, Al asked, "Hey, can you show me how to get to Lancelot Crescent from here?" He looked down at his map and tried to trace the road from the beach to where
he stood.

Dirk's attention was brought sharply back to Al. "Why there?"

"That was the street I lived in before my dad got shipped out. Before me and mom followed him. I was gonna try to find a kid I knew back then, I knew him as Bull Pitt but I can't remember his real
name."

Al 's head shot up at the loud laughter from Dirk. "That was my nickname when I was a kid. How do you know that?"

Al looked at Dirk and slowly said, "We beat each other up in kindergarten. Until I left, he hung with me and mom."

Dirk nodded. "I remember that! You lived down the street. Welcome home, buddy."

Al grinned. "So, how about we go out for a beer? You can tell me about what's happened around the neighbourhood."

Dirk tapped the seat beside him. "Hop in."

As Al climbed into the sporty little car, he glanced at Dirk, catching the other man's intense gaze. Flushing slightly, Al dropped his eyes, taking in Dirk's golden tan and lean muscles. "Ready when you are."

"You bet."

Al felt himself pushed back into the seat as Dirk floored the accelerator and they were zooming past the beach and into the suburbs.

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It had been a few weeks of getting to know Dirk, and Al knew that his idea of travelling around had come to an abrupt halt.

He spent most of his time with Dirk. When he wasn't with Dirk, he dreamed about being with him. It had taken a while for Al to realise that the flirtatious behaviour that made him flushed and heated was
just the way Dirk behaved. It didn't help that due to the summer heat, Dirk spent most of his time in cut off shorts and little else.

Instead of planning his continuing travels, Al found himself scanning the paper for a part time job to stay near Dirk. The conversation with his mother had been interesting.

"Hey mom. How ya doing?"

"Good. How are you, son? Where are you now?"

"Still in ….. "

"Really, why, Al?"

"I found that guy I was telling you about, 'BullPitt'. We've been hanging out, getting to know each other again."

"That's wonderful, Al. But what about your trip? You only have six months before college."

"I was thinking of getting a part time job. That okay, ma?"

"Sure, baby. If that's what you want. Just be sure to allow enough time to get home to get ready for college."

Al laughed. "Yes, ma. I'll be home in five months. I'll spend time with you before I have to leave."

"You are a good boy."

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Al strolled down to the beach, his hair still wet from his shower. Spying Dirk near the lifesaver's hut, he made his way across the sand. He was bursting to tell Dirk his news. He slowed his walk when he realised Dirk was with a bevy of girls, lapping up the attention. He would have turned back but Dirk noticed him.

"Al! Come sit down with us. What's up?" Dirk waved Al to sit next to him.

"Hey, Dirk." He stood a few feet from where Dirk was lounging.

"Gotta mail a postcard to Mary Sue and my mom. I wanted to let you know I got that job, so I'll be around for a while. Gotta go, catch you later?"

Dirk frowned but made no effort to disengage the beauty on his arm. "Sure, you okay, Al?"

Al nodded, not quite looking at him. "Yeah, going out clubbing tonight so I'm gonna go get ready."

Dirk grinned. "Great, we'll meet up tonight then?"

Al hesitated, then nodded. "Sure, Dirk."

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Al stood morosely at the bar, watching Dirk out on the dance floor. He scowled to himself as he remembered behaving the same way at the prom. The only thing that made it worse was that Mary Sue wasn't there to tease him out of his funk. Taking a sip of his drink, he scanned the crowded club. He felt himself being watched and turned to see a man that he recognised as one of Dirk's occasional surfing friends. He grinned, knowing that his night was looking up.

"Hey, how ya doing?" Al grinned at the taller man.

"Al, right? I've seen you hanging with Dirk." The golden man smiled at him. Al's grin grew wider.

Al nodded to the dance floor. "Yeah, he's out there with one of his groupies."

The other guy winced at Al's tone. "Well, I can tell you aren't happy about that. Tell you what, how about you and me take to the floor?"

Al smirked. "I don't even know your name."

"It's Adam. C'mon, you need to let loose. Dirk's not the only guy around here, you know." Grabbing Al's hand, Adam pulled him to the fringes of the dance floor. Al dropped his glass on a nearby table
and wrapped an arm around his dance partner.

Al was moving to the beat, happy to have some admiring attention when he was suddenly pulled away from his dance partner. He yelped in surprise as he looked up to see Dirk's puzzled face.

"Dirk! What do you think you're doing?" He pulled his arm out of Dirk's grasp.

"I was about to ask you the same thing."

"Dancing, Dirk. I was dancing with Adam. Is that okay by you?"

"No. Yes, I mean. Aw, hell, Al. Why are you dancing with him? I mean he's a guy!"

"So? You were out on the floor. I was bored and Adam asked me to dance." Al stepped back and gave a small smile as Adam's arms came up to circle his waist. He was a bit worried though as Dirk's puzzled look turned into a dark frown.

Al sighed and he turned in Adam's loose grip, "Sorry, looks like our dance is over."

Adam just grinned as he dropped his hands from Al. "Maybe our dance is done, but Dirk could be starting something."

Al snorted. "Don't think he's that swift." At that, Adam laughed and bent to grab a quick kiss from Al before disappearing into the throng around them.

Sighing, Al turned to face his friend. Dirk still stood there with a frown on his face.

"He kissed you."

Al shrugged, glancing away from Dirk. "Yeah, sorta."

Dirk protested. "No sorta about it. He kissed you!"

"Dirk, does it bother you so much that I'm gay?"

Dirk pulled back in surprise. "No." He stopped, "You let him kiss you."

Al stomped away to the bar and tossed back over his shoulder, "It wasn't a real kiss." He waved to the barman and grabbed a drink, muttering to himself. "Damn you, Dirk Pitt, I would show you a real
kiss, if you'd let me."

"So, why don't you?"

Al spilled his drink in shock. Turning around, he realised Dirk had followed him off the dance floor. "Geeze, warn a guy next time you creep up on him!"

Dirk placed his hands on either side of Al, pinning him to the bar. "So, why don't you show me?"

Al snorted in disbelief, slipping under Dirk's arm. "I refuse to kiss you at the bar of a club, just 'cos you saw me get kissed by someone else. I've got nothing to prove to you." Al turned and made for the exit, leaving Dirk at the bar.

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Al stood outside the club waiting for a taxi. He groaned silently as he saw Dirk leave the club and make his way over to where he stood.

"We're not at the bar now, Al."

"Just tell me why, Dirk"

"Why?"

"Yeah. Why do you want me to kiss you all of a sudden? It's not like you have any interest in me at all."

"Al, I like you, okay? When I saw Adam dancing with you, it upset me. Then he kissed you."

Al wasn't feeling generous. "Yeah, well that's what gay guys do. They dance together and kiss each other."

Dirk gave a quick grin. "You said it wasn't a real kiss. You said you'd give me one."

Al's eyes narrowed and he lunged for Dirk. "Fuck it."

Al grasped the edges of Dirk's jacket and pulled his friend down to his level. He looked into Dirk's eyes and then dropped his gaze to his lips. Glancing back at Dirk's eyes, he saw the curiosity that
held him still in his grasp. Leaning forward, he tasted what he had hungered for all summer.

Soft lips met and tangled. Al nibbled at Dirk's bottom lip and moaned as he felt them open beneath his.

Shifting slightly, Al slipped one hand from Dirk's jacket to cup his head and hold him still as he delved into the kiss. He was startled to find Dirk's arms wrap around his waist and pull him close.

Gasping for breath, Al pulled his mouth from Dirk's and looked up at the man who held him. He almost laughed at the expression of wonder on the larger man's face. Wriggling, he pulled out of Dirk's embrace and without saying anything, hopped into the cab that was waiting.

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"Now, that was a real kiss."

Dirk turned to see Adam was standing next to him as they watched Al's taxi disappear.

Dirk scowled, feeling his mood plummet. "What do you want, Adam?"

"Nothing. Just want you to know that if you don't snap him up, someone else will. He'd make a good little wife, you know."

Dirk growled. "Leave him alone, Adam. He's leaving for college soon."

Adam turned to Dirk and raised an eyebrow at him. "So? What has that got to do with it? You're busy having your summer flings with a bevy of girls. I don't see why can't Al have some fun too."

Dirk was at a loss for words. Adam grinned at him. "That was some kiss, wasn't it?" When Dirk nodded, he continued, "So, think about it." Dirk gave him a puzzled look. "Geeze, Pitt. You and Al. I
told you, he'd make a great wife, but it's not me he's interested in."

With that, Adam hopped in a cab of his own, leaving Dirk to ponder his choices for the rest of the summer.