Slingshots

This was it. Casey was ready… almost ready, if his mother would stop fussing over the beach blanket.

“Mom, it’s fine,” he said with impatience.

“I just want to be sure that it doesn’t blow around,” Mrs. Connor replied, throwing her bag on one corner. “All right, that should be it. Do you want to eat first or swim?”

Casey held his eyes still, not wanting to roll them at a parent. “Swim, of course. It’s hot as… heck out here.”

Mr. Connor arrived then, carrying beach chairs, a cooler and two bags. “A lot of stuff for just one day,” he grumbled. After practically throwing the things down into the sand, he looked around and sighed. “Now, did I forget anything, or did we need to take the kitchen sink with us?”

“Oh, stop,” Mrs. Connor replied. She turned her attention to the cooler, bringing various food items out. “You didn’t have much of a breakfast, honey; you’re sure you’re not hungry?”

“Yeees…” Casey replied in a drawl. While she rambled on about how much he liked plums and that she’d packed three extra if he wanted them, Casey scanned the beach and lake area. He’d already spotted a few of his classmates, which made him swallow nervously. Still, he knew that a certain someone was supposed to be here; he looked down at his cutoffs and bit his lip. “I’m gonna swim, okay?”

“Do you need to change in the little boy’s room first, or do you have your swimming clothes on under your jeans?”

‘I’m seventeen, for fuck’s sake!’ Casey felt like yelling. “I’ve got ‘em on,” he said. No more fucking around; he threw off his shirt and undid his jeans in a flash. He took a quick glance to his parents before he kicked them off into the sand; his mother was still preoccupied with the cooler, but she sighed and looked up just as he turned to run for the water.

“Did you put sunscreen--CASEY!”

Stopping dead, Casey clenched his jaw. “Yea?” he said, forcing himself to look casual as he turned back around.

“What… what are you wearing?”

“Um… a bathing suit.”

“That’s not the one I told you to wear!” she cried. “I can… Casey!”

“What??”

“Oh, brother…” Mr. Connor breathed out. “Casey, you know how your mom wants you to dress.”

“I can see--Casey, get something else on!” Mrs. Connor spluttered.

It’d been a risk, and Casey knew it. His mother liked things ‘proper’, where a young man wore casual but un-alluring clothing. She hadn’t known about how much money he’d saved over the year, all to buy something other than plain white briefs--she didn’t know about his secret ‘underwear collection’, but she now knew that Casey wanted to wear a bathing suit that was a bit more risqué. ‘At least I didn’t go for the leopard print,’ he thought as he looked down on his comfortably snug, black swim shorts. “Mom, it’s just a bathing suit. It even covers the tops of my thighs--”

“It’s practically your underwear!” the woman all but shrieked.

“MOM!”

“Did you bring your other shorts, Casey?” his father interjected. Even if his dad went to protest, he did it more to look better in front of his wife, rather than caring about what Casey wore. Casey knew THAT much.

“No. I didn’t need to, we’re just at a lake. I don’t pack a suitcase for a forty-minute car ride. Geez.”

“Frank, bring Casey back home and get him changed,” Mrs. Connor said.

“What? Wait, no way…” Mr. Connor said. He looked between the two of them and groaned. “Meredith, they’re not that bad. Just let Casey wear what he wants to.”

Yes--finally. As much as Casey loved his mother, she kept her husband’s balls in a vice at times--this not being one of them. “Mom, c’mon. It’s not a big deal. I like these,” Casey said in the sweetest voice he could muster.

With a great sigh, Mrs. Connor shook her head. “Fine. Just know that I do NOT approve.”

Casey smiled in triumph and turned back to the water. He did feel a bit self-conscious, but in a good way. It wasn’t as if he’d put on a true Speedo, or some other ‘banana-warmer’. He looked down and felt a blush, however; they WERE pretty tight.


~*~


This wasn’t working out at all.

“Yea, um… I’m gonna go… get something to eat,” Casey haltingly said to the man who’d stuck by his side for the last ten minutes, trying to start up random conversation. He had to be somewhere in his fifties, but it was obvious as to what age group he preferred--along with what sexual orientation he ‘practiced’.

“Ah, okay,” the pervert replied, giving Casey one last look-over before swimming off.

Casey shivered in turning his back to head to shore. This hadn’t been the only snag, as at least two other older men had given him appraising stares today. It was strange how things worked out, really. Casey had run into two girls from his class, and they’d done the opposite of the men in turning away with giggles and hushed conversation… not that he cared what they thought. Still, he was tempted to cover his behind with his hands as he ventured out of the water and weaved through the people camping out in the sand. Perhaps going back home and grabbing some baggy, boring trunks wasn’t the worst idea, but like hell if he was going to ask.

“How’s the water?” his mother asked once he reached their spot. Casey shrugged and took up his towel to dry off.

“Nice. Why haven’t you gone in yet?” he asked.

“I’m finishing this chapter… it’s getting good,” she replied. Leave it to his mother to arrange a ‘family fun day’ at the beach, only to sit in a chair and read one of her mystery novels. “Your father’s in the bathroom again. I told him that egg salad gives him gas, but…”

“Mom. Seriously,” Casey interrupted; he chose a ham sandwich and chips.

“So, you’re okay, right?”

“Hmm?” Casey hummed past his first bite.

“Meaning that--you’re comfortable in that--thing?” she asked.

“Oh… yea,” Casey lied. “Don’t worry about it.”

“All right. Just making sure,” she said, her voice absent as she turned a page.

Casey chewed slowly and looked around. In seeing a man wearing the skimpiest Speedo he’d ever seen--along with a beer gut that hung over so far that it made him look near-naked--Casey chuckled and turned back to his mother. “At least I’m not wearing that,” he hissed, nodding towards him. Mrs. Connor raised her eyes, winced and frowned.

“Oh, that’s just plain ridiculous,” she said, scoffing. “Don’t you EVER, Casey Daniel.”

“No way,” Casey replied.

It was then that Mr. Connor returned, looking grumpy. “The line at the men’s room is terrible. Is the whole of Ohio hanging around here?” he muttered.

“The woman’s side is no better,” Mrs. Connor said.

Casey ignored this bantering to look back at the beach. Disappointment had started creeping into his bones; where was he? He felt a bit stupid; even if Zeke Tyler had talked about renting one of the lake cabins here, sans parents, to have endless parties the entire summer, it didn’t mean that he’d actually venture to the public beach. Casey wanted to hold onto the hope that Zeke would bother with him at all in the first place; they HAD chatted for a few minutes in their shared study hall, on the last day of school. Zeke never really talked to anyone, but it was him that had turned and asked Casey what he was doing that summer… perhaps it was to brag about HIS summer, and how cool guys like him got to do a whole lot more than someone like Casey. He’d certainly talked about it enough, making Casey jealous as hell until the bell rang.

Feeling down, Casey took the last bite of his sandwich; before he could reach for some chips, he felt pressure grow in his bladder. Crap… he’d have to brave the line his father spoke of. “Be back,” he said. He stood with a groan and ventured off to the bathroom cabins. Sure enough, a line wrapped around the doorway leading in, all the way to the corner of the furthest wall. Giving polite ‘excuse me’s to people he bumped into along the way, Casey finally reached the end and stood in wait. He dug his toes in the sand, letting the grains fill the gaps…

“Hey, David.”

Casey blinked wildly and turned to look behind him. His heart skipped a few beats as he set eyes on Zeke, who stood just behind him. He wore jean cut-offs and a black woolen cap… strange for a sunny, summer day, but so Zeke, and so hot. “Uh… hey, Zeke.”

“What’s up?” the older boy asked in monotone, lighting a cigarette. Smoke wafted between them, making Casey feel high.

“Not much. Why are you calling me ‘David’?”

“Cos’ you brought your slingshot with you,” Zeke replied.

Casey crinkled his brow in confusion, but it faded when he looked down on himself. “Oh… right. Shut up.”

“Since when do you give old pervs something to look at?” Zeke asked. At the glare Casey shot him, Zeke corner-smiled. “Pure boy-meat.”

“What, are you looking?” Casey retorted.

“Kinda hard not to.”

Casey rolled his eyes and turned back around, though he felt more excited than annoyed. ‘He looked at me,’ he thought…

“Are you here with the ‘rents?” Zeke asked.

“Yea,” Casey replied.

“Mmm.” Zeke hummed in a non-committal way. “Got my cabin.”

More bragging. “Yea? Cool.”

“Damned right. I’ve only been here three days, but the parties… fuck,” Zeke went on. “I don’t even know what the hell I’m doing here. I have my own private strip of beach and shit.”

Casey hissed a deep breath, in and out of his nose. This wasn’t fair. “I’ll bet you have your own private bathroom as well. So yea, what ARE you doing here?” he asked.

“Dunno.”

It was just like Zeke to toss things off and act in these strange ways. Still, his skin was going tan and his nipples looked like smooth circles of milk chocolate. Casey cleared his throat and turned away. “Damned line,” he muttered.

“Yea… this is a ‘fuck this’ kind of situation. Fuck this,” Zeke said. He slipped his sunglasses on and stepped from the line. Casey watched him in the corner of his eye; this was going to be all he got, he supposed. The older boy stopped and looked back at him, however. “Wanna ditch this hellhole with me?”

“Um… huh?”

“My place is pretty cool, and the bathroom’s nice. It doesn’t stink of piss, anyway,” Zeke told him. “Go tell your parents that you’re taking off for a bit.”

The invitation now sounded more like a demand. Casey’s knees turned in a little and he bit his lip. “Um… I guess…” he started, then shook his head. “But I’m not exactly ‘party-boy’ material.”

“Ain’t no party tonight. Everyone’s busy.”

“Oh.” Casey sighed, feeling like he was a last resort of companionship. But the line wasn’t moving, and the fluttering of Casey’s heart couldn’t be denied. “My parents might give me trouble, but I can try.”

A look of mischief rose on Zeke’s face. “You can always take off.”

“Oh, right… I’d really get away with that…” Casey chuckled. He moved out of line and rubbed his chin. “You might have to come with me so they get to meet you and… shit.”

“They don’t gotta worry. My intentions with you are entirely honorable.”

Intentions. If Casey grew any more excited, he was going to throw up. He flicked a look to Zeke as they walked, then hissed, “Put out the cig. They’ll say yes easier if you look respectable.”

Zeke scoffed lightly but leaned down to snuff the cigarette out on a stone. “All this to hang out with ‘99’s biggest geek.”

“You asked me, remember?” Casey pointed out.

“Didn’t know this was gonna be treated like a marriage proposal, but… yea, whatever.”

They continued their trek across the sand to Casey’s blanket; once there, Mrs. Connor raised her eyes and smiled. “Welcome back.”

“Um, yea… can I…” Casey cleared his throat. “I ran into someone from school, and he asked me to come hang out with him at his cabin on the beach, and I’d really like that,” he blathered.

“Oh… but this is kind of a family trip, Casey,” Mrs. Connor replied. She then looked behind Casey to Zeke and nodded slowly. “Hello… you’re…?”

“Zeke. Hi,” Zeke said.

“Hi. It’s nice to meet you, and it’s nice of you to invite Casey out, but…”

“Mom,” Casey interrupted and leaned down. He tried putting on a firm expression without looking ‘uppity’. “When do I get invited out by a friend?”

This made her pause and look to the shore. “Well… I don’t know what your father would say.”

“Please, Mom?” he pleaded in his best good-boy voice, seasoning it with slow blinks and pouty lips. Mrs. Connor looked between the boys, put her head back on her chair and sighed.

“All right. But be back by dinnertime.”

“Cool, thanks, Mom!” Casey replied with obvious excitement, then grabbed his bag and towel. She smiled and raised her book from her lap, but kept her eyes on the boys as they walked off. Zeke glanced over his shoulder and made a sly grin.

“You know how to turn on the boyish charm,” he said. “You practically seduced the poor woman.”

“Shut up, that’s my mom.”

“It’s what you did, though.”

Casey rolled his eyes but corner-smiled. “Why’d you ask me to come along with you, anyway?”

“Cos’ you were there and easy to cull from the herd,” Zeke answered.

“Thanks for making me sound like a wounded antelope.”

“’Welcome.”

Their conversation died down as they walked, heading past the main beach and into a wooded area. A small pathway led them along; Zeke walked ahead and relit his cigarette, making Casey walk into small smoky clouds. He waved his hand in front of his face and looked around. Being away from the ‘herd’, he could hear the soft winds blowing through the trees, along with the whine of faraway cicadas. “It’s quiet out here.”

“I like it. Especially if I got blasted the night before and need the peace. Some fuckers came out at six a.m. yesterday to go water skiing using the loudest boat on the planet. I was ready to get out a shotgun to lay ‘em out.”

“Hah… you would, too.”

“Damned right,” Zeke said, almost sounding coy.

After a quiet ten minute walk, Casey looked through the trees at a small cabin. “Is that it?”

“Yup.”

“Cool,” Casey said. “Point me to the bathroom.”

They were soon on the porch; Zeke reached into his pocket, drew out a set of keys and opened the creaky screen door. Casey looked out towards the side of the cabin and saw a circle of stones; blackened, burnt wood sat in the middle. The smell of wood smoke in the air made him smile.

“Go straight, down the hall--last door on your left,” Zeke said once inside.

Casey nodded and brushed past him to follow his directions. The air felt cold; Casey shivered his way to the hall and bathroom, where he closed himself inside. After pulling the small chain to turn on the overhead light, he looked around. His curious nature made him go over to the sink and inspect Zeke’s bath items… a plain black washcloth, bar of Ivory soap, an electric shaver, Herbal Essences shampoo and conditioner… Casey had to snort. For someone who put on a tough-boy act, Zeke liked his girly hair care items.

He finally shuffled over to the toilet; his feet froze once he stepped away from the large bathmat and walked on cold tiles. Deciding to make it quick, Casey tugged the waist of his suit down to let him relieve himself. The chill of the room made him wince even more in being almost fully exposed. He was done in a flash and he flushed, washed his hands and left the room.

“It’s cold in here,” he said while walking back to the main sitting room. The sight before him made him stop dead. “Oh my g--Zeke!”

“What?” Zeke said, turning to face Casey. He slung his towel over his bare shoulder, which hung down his bare chest and grazed along his bare hip. He was bare everything at the moment. Casey lifted his eyes to Zeke’s face, his expression incredulous. Zeke cocked an eyebrow. “Do I have something in my teeth?”

“Are you--gonna skinny-dip?” Casey asked.

“Why not? There’s no one around. The nearest cabin is about a half a mile that way.” Zeke pointed out the door. “The public beach is long gone--and the less laundry the better.”

Casey had dreamed of the day he’d share gym with the tall, handsome young man. It never came, and Casey was doomed to think that he’d never see Zeke as he was right now. He wasn’t disappointed, but he wasn’t expecting this, either. He turned his head and bit his lip, hard. “Okay…”

“C’mon, let’s go swim,” Zeke said. He turned to the door; Casey almost whimpered and moaned in want at the sight of Zeke’s perfect ass, but he forced himself to stay calm and follow.

‘It’s not a big deal. He’s just naked, and I wanna suck his cock,’ Casey erratically thought. He felt waterlogged and drowsy, especially when they got outside in the sunlight. Zeke gleamed, and Casey was suddenly regretting his choice of snug, tight swimwear. The warmth of the sun returned, though Casey’s groin was especially heated.

“Ah,” Zeke sighed as he walked out into the cool water. “This is nice.”

“Yea,” Casey replied. He slapped his towel into the sand and ventured over to the water, forcing his eyes to look ahead at a distant sailboat. Walking a few paces past Zeke helped; the water crept up to his navel and the small of his back, tickling his skin with the gentle, lapping waves. “So how is it that you can get a cabin all by yourself, without Mom or Dad hanging--” Casey went to ask, but everything stopped when he felt a hand pull at the back of his swimsuit. “Hey--HEY, what the--”

“You tag was hanging out,” Zeke said, then moved away to look out over the water again.

“Your… thing’s hanging out, but you don’t see me grabbing at it!” Casey snapped.

“‘Thing’?” Zeke echoed with an air of amusement. He smiled wide and folded his hands behind his neck. “C’mon, Casey. You can say ‘cock’. I won’t stick a bar of soap in your mouth.”

Casey almost growled; he moved further out and put his feet up, letting himself float to the surface. “So, you have enough cash to rent a lakeside property--or at least there’s money in the family, but you can’t buy some trunks?”

“If I could walk around naked all day, I would. Clothes are annoying.”

‘Oh, don’t say that… don’t SAY that,’ Casey thought with desperation. “’K, then.”

“And you may as well be naked too, y’know. I can tell that your left ball is a little bigger than the other, and that you tuck to the right,” Zeke said. “And I saw those guys hangin’ on ya at the beach.”

A lump formed in Casey’s throat when Zeke dipped down and swam closer. “So there are pervs in Ohio. Big deal,” Casey replied.

“Betcha liked it.”

“Um… no.”

“For real, Casey… you can tell me,” Zeke said.

“Tell you what? Jesus, Tyler…” Casey said with exasperation. “If I wanted to get nagged at, I would’ve stuck around with my mom and her constant attempts to cram sandwiches down my throat.”

Zeke smiled with a strange, soft warmth. He looked back out along the water and sighed. “Do you deep throat, Casey?”

“Okay, what?”

“Simple question.”

“Why the hell are you ASKING?”

“Simple question.”

“You said that--”

“I can.”

Casey stilled and darted his eyes to the older boy. “Um… what?”

With a nod, Zeke put his face to the surface of the water, drew some into his mouth and swished. He then spit to the side and smacked his lips. He didn’t look like he was going to answer. Casey narrowed his eyes and scrutinized him for a moment before shaking his head and chuckling derisively. “You’re so full of shit.”

“Am not. My gag reflex is so relaxed, I can swallow a cantaloupe,” Zeke replied.

“Uh huh.”

There was no warning to Zeke’s next action; he simply took Casey’s hand, gripped his pointer, middle and ring finger together and brought it to his mouth. Casey froze and stared as Zeke sucked them back, swearing that he felt the back of his throat with his fingertips. “Zeke… you’re sucking my fingers,” he said.

“Mmhmm,” Zeke hummed deep in his chest. His nostrils flared before making one long, solid suck then released Casey’s hand. Casey set his eyes on the moistened digits and shook out a sigh.

“Don’t tell me that you’ve sucked dick, cos’ I won’t believe it,” he told him.

“Nope. But I know I can.”

“Well, that’s awesome--glad to know that you have dreams.”

Zeke chuckled hard, moved to the shallow end and sank down to a sit. “Casey?”

“Yea?”

“You’ve been looking at me.”

With a nervous scoff, Casey faced him. “Well, I don’t see too many guys strip down in the open--”

“All year. More than that, really. You’ve been watching me,” Zeke interrupted. “’Just thought I’d point that out.”

“I…” Casey attempted speech, but the words got caught in his throat.

“Christ,” Zeke mumbled. He then began chuckling heartily. “I am so fucked up.”

“Huh?”

“Ecstasy. I dropped a hit last night, and it’s still fuckin’ with me.”

Casey frowned, then felt a little bit sad. It was probably a drug that had Zeke bring him out here--something he wouldn’t have done without being intoxicated. Casey tried fighting the idea of it. ‘He wouldn’t have done what he’s done so far, drugged up or not,’ he thought. “You seem pretty straight though.”

“Hah… yea, everyone thinks that, don’t they?” Zeke said. The cryptic comment stilled Casey. He needed to switch the subject, now.

“I’ve never done anything harder than codeine, and that was just because of my molars getting taken out,” he finally replied.

Zeke smirked. “Yea, no shit. You’re too goody-goody. Wanna go back inside and have an experience?”

All of Casey’s life, he’d carried pride at his straightedge status. Someone like him didn’t do drugs or be pressured into drinking at a party--his being a geek helped him stay clear-headed. Yet right now, if he didn’t have parents to go back to, he’d be getting as high as a kite. He’d sit in Zeke’s living room and use the drugs in his system as an excuse to get naked, beg to be fucked and GET fucked. Zeke would do it; he was positive he would. Before he could say anything, Zeke moved closer and went on.

“You could always go back to Mommy, have some dins and beg them to let you stay overnight. Say that we’re going to read the bible and have tea and cakes. I bet they’ll cave,” he said. His voice was liquid sunshine.

“I could maybe try. You’d… give me a ride home in the morning?” Casey asked.

“In the afternoon. Maybe even evening. We’d need time to sober up.”

Casey was going to get high. Get fucked. Have Zeke Tyler where he wanted him.


~*~


He couldn’t believe it; once again, Frank Connor had worked on his wife to allow Casey to go out and enjoy himself for the entire night, with his good friend Zeke who had a curfew because, “Yea, his parents are there. They might go on a date later on, but if we’re not in bed by midnight, they’ll ground BOTH of us.” Perhaps it wasn’t nice to take pride in being able to lie so easily, but Casey was desperate. He was overjoyed when they packed up and left; he was more of a grown-up nowadays, wasn’t he? It felt good to see that his parents had accepted that, for just one night, anyway.

Even with his bag full of CDs, his CD player, extra clothes, his heavy-with-wet bathing suit, Gameboy and deck of cards, he wasn’t slowed down. He rushed down the trail at the speed of sound until he reached the cabin, where he screeched to a halt at the sight of three cars that sat in the dirt driveway.

No. No, this ruined everything. It couldn’t have been his parents, unless they were able to drive three vehicles at once. And Casey was certain that they weren’t into the loud metal music that was pounding through the walls of the cabin. Swallowing hard, Casey dared to climb the front steps and knock on the screen door. No answer--he tried again, louder this time. Zeke finally opened the door and looked out. The expression on his face said it all.

“Hey,” Zeke said. He coughed into his hand, shot a look behind him and turned back. “Y’know… I wasn’t actually expecting your parents to say ‘yes’.”

Casey was ready to cry. “So you invited your real friends to come by, huh?”

“No, no, they just showed up,” Zeke replied.

“Okay. So. Gonna let me in?” Casey asked, though he already knew the answer.

“I, uh…”

“Yea, thought not. Who wants to be seen hanging out with Casey ‘Geekburger’ Connor, eh?”

“It ain’t like that--”

“So let me in.”

“Look…” Zeke leaned in. “They won’t be staying that long; the beach doesn’t close at night, so you could hang there and wait…?”

“What if they stick around? Should I come back when everyone’s too fucking high to notice I’m there?” Casey practically spat the words. A scowl formed on his face and he felt a fire in his gut. “If that’s what you think, then you can fuck off.”

Zeke sniffed in hard and rubbed his mouth. “If they stay--did your parents leave already?”

Casey’s breaths came quicker. He needed to get this over with before he started bawling like a toddler. “Yea. And the nearest fucking bus line is about six miles away in the next town over.”

“There’s a motel only about a half-mile away, though. I can, uh, give you the cash--”

“Are you fucking serious? You want me to hide out in a goddamned motel room? I don’t even have a license to GET one, you asshole.”

“Okay, you can stop insulting me, y’know,” Zeke said.

“That’s what you ARE, though. A big, fat asshole,” Casey shakily replied. He suddenly didn’t care if he did cry, so he did. Let Mr. Cool see it--who cared? As two tiny tears dripped from his eyes, he sniffled and backed away to the stairs. “See ya in school, you fuckin’ shithead.”

“Zeke, who the hell’s at the door, man?” someone called from inside.

Zeke turned his head quick and without pause yelled, “Casey!”

“Huh? Casey who?”

“Connor. From school.”

This made Casey stop and blink furiously. Had Zeke just…?


~*~


“Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug!”

Okay, so beer was a hell of a lot tamer than ecstasy, but Casey had chickened out. No one here seemed to mind, especially when the beer-funnel emerged and Casey volunteered to take the first ten gulps. When he’d taken in the entire forty-ouncer in record time, everyone whooped and cheered with great force. His stomach gurgled in protest, but Casey fought down the urge to heave, stilled and wiped the back of his hand against his mouth. Everything settled in and he chuckled.

“Shiiiit…” he drawled.

“You’re SURE this is the first time you’ve had a brew, man?” Brett Mason asked.

“Yea, I’m pretty fuckin’ sure. Hot damn, that feels good,” Casey said.

Harry Carter grabbed Casey’s neck and jostled him a little; it didn’t help Casey’s now-swooning head, but the sudden camaraderie he felt with Zeke’s buddies overrode that. “You’re the coolest dork, Connor. Really,” Harry said. His arm then slung over Casey’s shoulders. “’Bout time you loosened up!”

The impromptu party continued on for the next few hours, with Casey taking one more smaller hit from the funnel. After that, he chilled out with a bottle of Bud, choosing to take tiny sips to prevent himself from becoming too intoxicated. He was already buzzing like a hive of yellow-jackets as it stood. When midnight rolled around, Harry stood up and stretched.

“Shit, wish we could stay--but we’re crashing Proffit’s party. She’s got half the chicks at school there,” he said. He smirked at Zeke. “You’re sure you don’t wanna come with?”

“N’aw, man. Anyway, Casey’s staying over,” Zeke answered.

“Dude, he can come with us!” Miguel Suarez said.

“HAH!” Casey whooped. “Like she’d have me hangin’ out with all her bitches!”

Everyone snorted and guffawed. “If she knew how fuckin’ cool you were, she would!” Brett proclaimed.

“Aw… you’re sweet,” Casey said, slapping a hand against the young man’s knee.

“You guys get goin’. Who’s straightest to drives?” Zeke asked. It was obvious that he, too, was getting drunk.

“I only had one Bud. I’m saving the X for Del’s. That’ll totally piss her off,” Harry said.

With that, the three boys took their leave, but not before jostling Casey all over again with hearty grabs to the shoulders and neck. It felt like Casey was in a frat house, and where he’d hated the idea of boozing it up and getting stupid with the delinquents of Herrington High, he was loving it now. They didn’t seem to want to see the class dork get stupid WITH them, but actually liked his company. Casey felt light and happy as everything quieted down; Zeke lowered the stereo’s volume and sighed.

“That was pretty cool,” he said.

“Yea. I think they liked me,” Casey replied.

“Yea.” Zeke walked over to the kitchen, snatched another beer from the fridge and returned to the living room where Casey was, sitting on the couch. Zeke joined him, then cracked open the bottle to sip from. He, too, was taking it slow. “Sorry for trying to shove you in a motel. Before.”

Casey shrugged and smiled. “No big.”

“Yea, it is. I remember… this time, back in grade school. This kid on my block had a huge birthday party, invited everyone but me. I fuckin’ threw up, I was so messed up over it,” Zeke said.

“You? They didn’t invite you?” Casey asked. At Zeke’s nod, Casey snorted. “You haven’t ALWAYS been the coolest kid around?”

“Oh, I was cool. He wasn’t. Sam Parks--know ‘im?”

“Oh my god, yea. He always butt-kisses the popular kids. So don’t feel bad.”

“Yea. So… sorry.”

“N’aw, it’s okay, man,” Casey said, giggling while leaning up to slap Zeke’s forearm. He flopped back and sighed. “I’ve been having LOTS of fun.”

“Good. You need it,” Zeke said. He made a pensive expression and scratched the top of his head. “Still don’t wanna do some X, huh?”

“Nah. I ain’t that mental.”

“You sounded like you were gonna do it up before.”

“Hey Zeke?”

“Hmm?”

“You’re not a bad guy.”

Zeke rolled his tongue around in his mouth and shrugged. “Maybe I ain’t. Haven’t quite figured it all out yet.”

“Yea, me neither,” Casey softly replied. He found himself grunting to a sit, then he took a deep breath. The half-empty beer bottle was placed on the coffee table, and he nudged Zeke’s thigh with his foot. “Hey.”

“What?”

“You’ve seen me lookin’ at you, you said.”

A pause followed, until Zeke nodded and muttered, “Yea.”

“Yea,” Casey said in a sigh. “Have you?”

“Have I what?” Zeke asked.

“Looked… at me?”


~*~


Maybe when September arrived, Zeke would barely look at him. Maybe he’d pretend Casey wasn’t even there. Things would go back to normal, and Casey would be the studious, dorky, well-behaved non-drinker he’d always been. There’d be no parties on the beach. Winter would arrive and Mrs. Connor would wrap Casey up in three pairs of pants, four shirts, a thick coat, long scarf and bobble-headed hat to keep her baby warm. It would make everyone at school laugh and throw snowballs at his head. Zeke had never been one of the bullies, but he’d never stepped in to protect him--and he probably wouldn’t start now.

But all Casey cared about, at this very moment, was how good Zeke felt inside of him… how good it was to hear Zeke say, I’ve always wanted to fuck you. He’d meant it, even if he’d never speak of it ever again. The mattress was soft, letting Casey sink into it over and over again with every thrust Zeke made. Their foreheads were pressed together, each other’s sweat mingling. Casey felt gorgeous.

You didn’t come, Zeke had said after HE had. Before Casey could say that it didn’t matter--that Zeke had been so wonderful it hurt--the young man slid down and took his cock in his mouth. His hands braced against Casey’s thighs to keep them open, all to bring Casey to the brink and let him fall over the edge just minutes into the act. When the aftershocks died down, Zeke pulled a sheet over them, warding off the cooled air of the room. Casey had figured that they’d sleep as far apart as they could, so he was surprised when Zeke pulled him in to lie on his chest. Pillow-talk resumed; it was like little candy-drops that Casey could taste in the air.

He said, I’ll never forget this, and Zeke replied, I won’t either. And Casey knew he meant it.