Open Hearts

Open Hearts Part 12:

There was a few more stops on the route before the bus would reach the school. I wasn't surprised by this, considering that there was only maybe a dozen kids on the bus so far. Once we hit a few more stops, the quiet whispers of the bus became a full on roar.

Soon the bus was filled with kids hooping and hollering over the seats and across the aisles. I prefered a more quiet atmosphere, but I was no stranger to bus rides with loud and obnoxious kids.

'Huh... I guess I really am an old man at heart.' I thought to myself.

I can't help it, I liked things to be quiet and peaceful. I also drink my coffee black but that's because it's the way it's supposed to be drank and I don't care what anyone else says.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Bjorn said coyly while running his finger over my arm.

"Huh? Oh nothing. Just daydreaming I guess." I responded meekly.

"Ah okay. Hey Keaton, I want a puppy." Bjorn said suddenly.

"Wait what? What made you bring that up?"

"I dunno. You're cute... puppies are cute... it just came to me." Bjorn responded with a chuckle.

"You're a dork... but yeah I want one too."

I always wanted a puppy. My parents had an older dog that passed when I was about 3 years old so I don't remember him much.

"I was thinking about asking my parents for one when my birthday comes up." I stated matter-of-factly

"When's your birthday?" Bjorn asked.

"About a week from now. Eight days to be exact." I said proudly

Bjorn's eyes grew wider and his jaw started to drop as a result of shock.

"What!? Why didn't you say anything before!?" Bjorn exclaimed.

"You didn't ask babe."

"Ugh, Keaty! I need to get you something." He said in a frustrated tone.

I found myself blushing and sinking down into the seat after he said my nickname so loudly. I hope no one else on the bus heard it.

"Keep your voice down dork." I whispered in a harsh tone.

Bjorn completely ignored my request and started naming off possible gifts for my birthday.

"What about a new surf board? Or maybe a game? Oooh how about we go to Disneyland!" Bjorn exclaimed with obvious excitement.

I wasn't excited about the Disneyland idea. Don't get me wrong, I love Disney. The problem with it is, I'm from Florida, AKA the home of Disneyworld.

Anyone who says Disneyland and Disneyworld is the same thing is just plain wrong.

Walt Disneyworld is massive compared to Disneyland. There's two entire waterparks and three times the shows at Disneyworld too.

I won't say any of this to Bjorn though; I'll sound like a dick if I do. But it's true, Disneyland would just feel like a downgrade to me.

"You don't have to get me anything babe. Well... maybe a few kisses." I chuckled softly to avoid having any eavesdroppers hear me.

Bjorn chuckled too and shot me a provocative look.

"Oh you'll get some of those, and some other things too." He said with a slight wink.

I blushed again and looked away out of embarrassment. I knew what he was implying but was too embarrassed to offer any witty response.

When my gaze trailed off to the scenery out the window, I noticed a large building that we were soon approaching. It was a two story, red brick schoolhouse that would probably fall under the "medium" sized range. The sign out front read "Redondo Middle School" on an electronic panel.

A tall fence of metal rods surrounded the property as far as I could see. The front of the school had a large walkway with palm trees on each side leading up to the main entrance. Our bus pulled around the block and headed for a bus loop on the side of the building.

This school looks very similar to my last one. Instead of one singular building like most schools, Florida and California commonly have more spread out designs. Each major addition, such as a gym or auditorium, is in a separate building. The corridors to get from each building are completely outside as well. I guess this is because of all the sunshine and warm weather. I could see at least three major buildings from the angle I was at.

'At least this school isn't so cramped like the schools in the movies.' I thought to myself.

"This is it babe, our school." Bjorn called out from behind.

The noise level on the bus was rising quickly as we approached the school. Everyone was talking about new teachers, old friends, what classes they may get and so on. I was internally praying that I had classes with Bjorn. If we had showed up to orientation a week ago then we would have known already, but we both skipped it for our own reasons.

When the bus finally came to a halt, the bus driver stood up and laid out a few rules. She had to shout over the kids until they finally got quiet and listened to her speech.

"Now... my name is Ms. Terry, I will be your bus driver this year. There will be no food or garbage on my bus. If you make a mess, then you will clean it up. If I tell you you're too loud, then you will get quiet, IMMEDIATELY. No horseplay, no fighting, no talking at the railroad tracks, and no listening to music unless you have headphones; No one wants to listen to your songs." She commanded in a loud authoritative voice.

It seemed like she was respected, or at least feared by the students who already had her, because everyone was dead silent during her speech.

"I am not overly strict, I am not a mean person either; but if you don't listen to instructions then you WILL be written up and I WILL have you removed from my bus. Riding the bus is a privilege, not a right. There will be no pushing or shoving when we get off either; don't think I won't write you up on the first day, because I will. Do y'all understand me."

"Yes Ma'am" most of the students chimed in unison.

"Good. Now y'all have a lovely first day, I'll see you after school."

And with that, Ms. Terry took her seat and opened up the bus door. All of us started to stand and slowly pile out of the bus. It was a very slow process since we were in the back. Standing in the aisle, I was practically clinging to Bjorn's back because of how closely we were crammed together; he definitely didn't mind though.

Once we finally made it off the bus, Bjorn, Michael, and I started heading towards the main school building. There was a wall outside with all of our schedules posted on it, so we were going there first.

"I hope Ms. Terry didn't scare you Keaton. She's just trying to scare the 6th graders so they don't act so obnoxious. She's actually really cool, not mean at all." Michael said.

"Yeah she's pretty cool, just gotta stay on her good side." Bjorn chimed in.

I took that as some useful advice to remember. "Don't cross Ms. Terry" I coached myself internally.

When we made it to the signs with homeroom postings on it, we had to try and push through the crowd to get close enough to read. I was able to find my name first.

"Mr. Cristophson" I said out loud as I read the homeroom teacher's name that was posted next to mine.

Bjorn chimed in from behind me. "He's pretty chill, it's a history class so nothing too hard."

I followed Bjorn as he weaved his way through the crowd to another sign with more papers posted on them. Soon he found his name and was beaming with excitement.

"Fuck yeah! I've got Cristophson too!" He exclaimed loudly in a excited tone.

His accent made his swearing feel so out of place but I couldn't help but find it cute.

Soon we were both smiling widely out of excitement. I'm not sure who was happier but I know for a fact that my heart almost skipped a beat when he said that. It felt like a weight off my shoulders knowing that we'll have at least one class together.

Michael checked for his name but didn't have the same luck as us.

"Damn it, I got Miss Peters. She's such a bitch." Michael stated before stomping away.

Soon after, another familiar face came along and greeted us. I recognized him as Chris; the slightly chubbier boy that was about my height. He was outside my house the first time I met Bjorn. He was also the person who hit me in the eye with a football but at least that was an accident.

For all I know, him hitting me in the eye that day could be the reason me and Bjorn are dating.

Sure, I might have met Bjorn again later on; but who knows if the results would have been the same. And even if me and Bjorn were destined to be together, we still only met as soon as we did because of that stray pass. I couldn't be more grateful to have met him as early as I did. He's given me so much to be happy about in such a short amount of time. I wish I could thank Chris right now; but maybe that conversation can wait.

Scanning the boards, Chris soon found his name too.

"I got Cristophson, how about you two?" Chris asked.

"Same!" Me and Bjorn replied in unison.

Seems like Michael struck out on this one. The three of us had homeroom together but there's one more piece to this puzzle; it's a piece that I hope stays missing too. I'm talking about David of course.

Now that we know our homerooms, it's time to officially start our first day at school.

I stuck to my pattern of following Bjorn around like I was attached to his hip. Besides the four boys that I met at the beach that day, Bjorn being one of them, I knew no one else at the school. Until I've learned the area and at least made a few friends, I doubt I'll be leaving his side anytime soon.

We snaked our way through the crowds of kids populating the courtyard. There were sixth graders wandering around who looked completely helpless; there was also people in our grade dragging their tired bodies around like zombies. There was a noticeable difference in the energy levels of the different grades. The sixth graders looked lost but at least they looked alive the. The semi-older group of seventh graders looked somewhat proud and stuck up; as if they were annoyed by the sixth graders. It's kind of ironic since they were sixth graders just a few months ago. I guess I had similar feelings of seventh grade pride myself, so I understand it. Then there's us, the zombies. The barely alive eighth graders just yearning for another hour of sleep. I felt like I was stacking up pretty well compared to some of them though. Maybe it's my nerves keeping me awake.

This middle school had the same system of "grade labelling" that my old school had. You could tell what grade someone was in by the color of their binder. Sixth had white, seventh had blue, and lastly there was eighth grade, we had black.

I'm not exactly sure the purpose of this system, but it doesn't really bother me. I kept my binder in my bookbag anyways. Some schools have been discouraging bookbags lately; mostly to prevent kids from bringing guns to school and stuff like that. Luckily they're still allowed because some classes require textbooks to be carried to and from class. It wouldn't be fair to have to carry a textbook around under your arm all the time.

Our trio of Bjorn, Chris and I, entered the main school building with a large crowd of students who were also making their way to class. Up the stairs and two doors down on the right was our first class of the day.

There was nothing particularly special about the classroom. Well except for the few tech upgrades it had that my old school didn't. There was a line of three desktop computers against one wall. This wasn't completely unheard of in classrooms, but what surprised me was the fact that they were expensive Mac computers instead of Dell computers. Even the teacher had a fairly new computer to work with. The smartboard, the projector, even the TV looked fairly new.

"This school must be rich." I whispered out loud.

Overhearing my comment, Bjorn replied. "Yeah, I don't know who funds it, but they always have new stuff here."

The desks weren't actually desks; instead, we had sturdy wood tables that sat two people each.

This must have been a sign from the gods, because now me and Bjorn can actually sit together. The only table available with both chairs not already taken was in the back, closest to the door.

Without even saying a word, me and Bjorn took the two seats while Chris took the seat closest to Bjorn in the next row over. A minute or two later the late bell rang.

'Still no sign of David, that's a relief.' I thought to myself.

"When I call out your name, please raise your hand and say "here". Keep them raised because I'll be passing out your class schedules to you too." Called the teacher from the front of the room.

He was a shorter, 30-something man, with a receding hairline and glasses that he wore as he read the attendance list. He was pretty buff for his stature. You could see his biceps flexing underneath his tight fitting dress shirt.

I was up first on the list of names to be called.

"Keaton Anderson." The teacher said in a monotone voice.

"Here" I called out with my hand raised.

Everyone in the class turned back to look at me. I was the new kid in school and everyone stared at me like I was an exotic animal on display at a zoo. It was a bit nerve-racking with all the attention on me but soon people lost interest and went on with their lives. The teacher handed me my schedule and then started to call out more names.

A few names later and Bjorn was up next.

"Bjorn Eriksen" The teacher said in the same monotone voice before handing him his sheet.

This was the first time I've ever heard his last name. It was cute, I liked it a lot. I started to daydream about his name in the middle of class.

'Mr. Eriksen huh... Maybe even Mr. and Mr. Eriksen one day. Or maybe Mr. and Mr. Anderson-Eriksen... Too soon Keaton, get that out of your head it's too soon to think like that. Although... I do like the sound of it.'

"Show me your schedule Keaton." Bjorn asked suddenly.

It caught me off guard because I was still lost in my mind thinking about him in a tuxedo. I slid the paper over to him and watched him compare the sheets.

"Looks like we only have this class and 3rd period together. I wish it was more but at least we have homeroom and lunch together." Bjorn said semi-enthusiastically

It would have been great to have more classes with him. But 2 out of 6 isn't that bad I guess. Since I'll be without him for four classes, I'll be forced to make friends whether I like it or not.

Once all the names were called, the teacher started with introductions and handed out some important papers. It was all the usual 'first day of school' type of stuff so far. Occasionally, Bjorn would brush his leg against mine under the table. exchanged a few looks and sly grins but did our best to not catch the attention of the teacher in the process.

Looking down at my schedule, I took a moment to check out my classes for the day.

Homeroom was history, then English, Math, PE, Info Tech, and then finally Science.

'Simple enough.' I thought to myself.

The teacher started going over the first module that we would start learning about next class. I was doing my best to pay attention but Bjorn was fidgeting in the seat beside me. I tried to ignore him but then I felt his hand grab my wrist suddenly. I shot him a look of curiosity but he wasn't paying attention to my glare in the slightest. His attention was on the sharpie marker in his hand. The same sharpie that he was using to write something in my palm.

I was a bit annoyed and I wanted to pull away at first; but then I had second thoughts.

'He is my boyfriend after all. No one in this class is allowed to touch me, except him.'

It's an unexplainable feeling having a connection with someone like this. It's something so simple as writing in my hand; and it still feels like this special bond that only me and him share.

So instead of pulling away or scolding him, I just let him do what he wanted.

A few moments later I felt the cool felt tip of the marker leave my hand. I looked down to admire his handiwork, I was definitely not disappointed.

My heart fluttered a bit when I saw the shape of a heart across my palm. The best part however, was the lettering inside the heart. "B + K"

It was simple and extremely corny; but still the cutest thing I'd ever seen. It took all my willpower to not pull him into a kiss right there in the middle of class.

We exchanged looks once again. We were both smiling wildly and almost on the verge of giggling. If someone had turned around and observed us for even just a moment, they probably would have thought we were crazy.

Before we knew it, the bell rang and it was time for second period. This unfortunately means I'll have to leave Bjorn's side. Lucky for me though, his next class was next to mine so he could walk me there at least.

When we arrived outside our second period classes he leaned over and whispered into my ear. "Now you can look at your hand if you miss me. See you soon babe."

A part of me wanted him to kiss me right then while he was so close to my face. But another part of me knew that it would have to wait till later.

I walked into my English class smiling like a madman. It was going to be hard to have a bad first day now. Every time I looked at my right hand I could see Bjorn's message to me and it made me smile again.

Michael had the same class as me so I wouldn't be totally alone. We had normal desks this time; The kind where a bar connects the table and chair together. After me and Michael took our seats, I drifted off a bit into another daydream. I was normally really good at paying attention in class but this English teacher was just too boring.

First days in general can be pretty boring. You normally just spend your time doing introductions and reading the syllabus. My mind would rather be doing something more interesting; like picturing Bjorn lying in bed with no clothes on.

Okay, maybe it's not such a good idea to picture that right now and risk the accidental hard-on. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop picturing him wrapped in my blankets; whispering my name seductively.

Needless to say I had to re-adjust myself to avoid any suspicious gazes. I don't want to be labeled as "the boner kid" on the first day of school.

Much to my own embarrassment, Michael put his phone down and tried to have a conversation with me while the teacher was preoccupied with taking attendance. I did my best to cover myself and point my crotch away from him so he couldn't see the bulge in my pants. On top of that, I was expected to uphold a normal conversation with him; this was torture.

"So what have you and Bjorn been up to since... you know... the whole David thing." Michael asked casually.

I was a bit taken back by the question; Mostly because I had no idea how to answer it.

"Uhh... you know... just hanging out. Nothing special I guess." I said nervously.

Michael gave me a curious look and a slight smirk before turning his attention back to his phone.

'What was that about!? Does he know about me and Bjorn? Did Bjørn tell him something or could he just tell?' I ranted to myself.

I'll have to ask Bjorn what he thinks next period because maybe we aren't doing a good enough job at hiding our relationship.

But then again, maybe we aren't supposed to be hiding it. I'm not sure yet, I have to talk with him and figure this all out.

Aside from the awkward boner and Michael's suspicious looks, English was pretty boring.

When the bell rang, I wasted no time getting out the door so I could meet Bjorn outside his class. Despite my quickness though, I didn't see him leaving the classroom. However I did see a blond haired boy with similar clothes, walking down the hall and around the corner.

'It must be him, but why didn't he wait for me? And who is that boy walking beside him?'

I waited a few more moments for people to pile out of his class just to make sure he wasn't still in there. When no cute Norwegian boy appeared from the class, I knew it must have been him who walked around the corner.

With that knowledge though, I started to feel extremely uneasy at the thought of him leaving me behind so quickly. And I couldn't get one question out of my mind; 'Who was that other boy?'

I couldn't let jealousy take over so quickly; I had to investigate. I made my way down the hall and around the same corner that they did. There was two classrooms and an exit here; I chose to use the exit.

When I opened the door leading outside, I found myself looking at another large brick building. From the looks of it, this must be the gym.

I followed the path until there was a split in the walkway; one way going left, another going right.

I looked down both ways and surveyed the paths to figure out where to go next. I looked left and saw the courtyard plus the cafeteria. When I looked right, I could see the same two boys from earlier; one of them was definitely Bjorn.

There was a few dozen kids heading up and down the path so my vision was a bit obscured. But I could still Bjorn pretty clearly; he was talking to the other boy about something. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to approach or not. Since he went out of his way to talk to this boy here, he must have his reasons for wanting privacy.

I was struck with a pang of jealousy. I know it's not healthy to be so desperate for his attention; but it's the secrecy that hurts so badly. Why wasn't I, his boyfriend, included in this little meet up of his.

I looked a bit closer now; leaning against the corner of a brick pillar. I was in plain sight; if he chose to, he could look over and see me. So it wasn't like I was snooping or anything. I was simply waiting for him to be done with his conversation.

I kept trying to see past the crowd so I could try and identify who the mystery boy was. It's probably just another friend of his; Bjorn seemed pretty popular. In between the crowd there was finally an opening to where I could catch a glimpse of the boy's face. I felt my blood run cold when I recognized his him. Without a doubt, it was David that he was talking to.

It was more of an argument actually. I was out of earshot so I had no idea what was being said between them; but by the expressions on their faces, it didn't look friendly.

Bjorn seemed to be doing most of the talking between them. From what I could tell, David was just standing there and listening with an unimpressed look on his face. Occasionally, David would utter a few words in response but ultimately, he was staying very silent.

'Why is he talking to David?' Just then it hit me. Bjorn told me he would talk to David and try to defuse the situation; this must be what he's talking to him about.'

If that's what this is about then I should stay away. Bjorn doesn't need my help and I'll probably just end up making it worse if I tried to intervene. I turned away and headed back inside the school house and towards my third period class. I hope they're able to work it out; the last thing I want is an angry Bjorn on my hands.

I made it to math class and purposely took the seat in the back because there was a second one available right next to it. As soon as the bell rang Bjorn walked into class. The teacher gave him a disapproving look but chose not to say anything; probably because it's the first day.

He saw me in the back and took the seat right next to me as I planned. He looked a bit worked up to say the least. I wanted to try and make conversation but ultimately decided against it. Bjorn taught me that his name meant bear in most Nordic languages. In this case, I wanted to avoid poking the angry bear, literally.

After a half hour of listening to the math teacher tell us how hard we will have to work this year, I felt my phone buzz in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw a text from Bjorn.

Received: "This is boring. Plz shoot me."

Sent: "Can't kill you, love you too much."

Received: "If you love me then you'll go to the bathroom and send me some pics."

I glanced over at him and saw him grinning widely in my direction before gesturing back to the phones.

Sent: "Fat chance."

Received "Aww Pwease ;)"

I slid my phone back into my pocket and shot him another disapproving look. He did his best to plead with me using his eyes. I'm not going to lie I was on the verge of giving in but I held strong. I mouthed the word "No" to him quietly. Even though we were being quiet, the teacher noticed us looking at each other and not paying attention.

"Do you two young men intend to learn anything this year?" The teacher asked in a sarcastic tone.

We both nodded our heads in silence while the rest of the class turned to look at us.

"Well then the first thing you should learn is that you need to pay attention in my class; to me and not each other."

I heard a few giggles in the class after the teacher's comment. I was flushed with embarrassment. Even though we weren't in trouble, I still hated being put on the spot like that.

I avoided eye contact with Bjorn until the class was over. When the bell finally rang I headed for the door without looking back at him. I wasn't really angry with him or anything, I just didn't want the teacher to see us talking and think we're going to be a problem. I'd hate it if he separated us next class.

He caught up with me in the hall and apologized for earlier.

"Sorry about getting you in trouble babe." He said sincerely.

"It's fine. Let's just try to stay on his good side from now on. And I'm not sending you nudes from the bathroom you dork." I said jokingly.

We both laughed as we headed out the doors and towards the cafeteria. Well at least I thought it was a cafeteria. The lines for food were actually outside. You ordered your food over this counter like one big concession stand at a football game. Once you had your food you ate your lunch outside on the tables in the courtyard. I've never seen this before; my old school had an indoor cafeteria.

I followed Bjorn through the line and grabbed a tray. Not too much to choose from as far as good food goes; so I just chose an apple, milk, and a sandwich that I didn't plan on eating.

We took our seats at one of the tables that had a tree over it for shade. This school really was beautiful. A few large trees were dotted around the courtyard in plots that didn't have cement in them. I guess the school figured they shouldn't tear down all the trees in the area; it's best to leave some behind for shade and also they look really nice.

"So... did you have something in mind for this afternoon?" I asked curiously. I really wanted to know what he wanted in return from our deal this morning.

"Oh wouldn't you like to know?" He said with a smirk.

"Aw come on, tell me." I pleaded.

"You'll have to wait and see mister."

"Ugh! Fine!" I exclaimed in a frustrated voice.

There's no telling what he'll ask of me after school. My fate is in his hands I guess.

"Are you not gonna eat your sandwich?"

"No. Do you want it?" I responded offering him my bland chicken sandwich.

"Nah I'll pass. If you're still hungry after school we can go get something though." Bjorn offered.

"I want a milkshake." I stated in the most serious tone I could.

"I'll get you a shake."

"You're the best."

"I know." He stated proudly.

We both giggled and finished our lunch relatively quickly. After we threw our trays away, we talked a little a bit about our classes and teachers until the bell rang for fourth period. Bjorn took a quick double take to make sure no one was looking and snuck a kiss on my cheek; before saying his goodbyes and heading to class.

I was walking on sunshine after lunch with him. I debated asking him about David throughout lunch but ultimately decided against it.

I made it to 4th period with no problem. It was PE, also known as H.O.P.E. Health optimizing physical education or something like that. It's one part health class, one part gym. I had Michael in the class too, but unfortunately we didn't get to play yet. I guess we have to do health stuff first and then gym class after a month. It kind of sucks but at least health class is pretty easy.

When that class was over it was time for Introduction to Information Technology. Better known as computer class. The school maintained its reputation of having the best equipment once again. All of the computers looked new and expensive; this will probably be a fun class.

Introductions took up most of the class just like the others. By the end of it all, it was time for sixth period. I hadn't made a friend yet, but so far all my classes seem pretty cool; so I guess today is going pretty good.

When I arrived in sixth period science class I was one of the first ones there. They had tables like my history class from earlier. I took a seat in the back and checked my phone for any new messages. Nothing new, so I scrolled through my usual list of apps to check like Twitter and Facebook before giving up and sliding the phone back in my pocket.

The class was almost full now and the bell was about to ring. As soon as it did though one final person appeared in the doorway. I guess it was inevitable, I had David in my class.

I was somewhat emotionally prepared for this, but the part that makes it so worse, is the fact that there's only one seat available. And of course it had to be the seat next to mine.

As he approached my table I could see the very defined scowl on his face. I could also the yellowish tint from his healing bruises too; so that made him a little less intimidating.

He made eye contact with me briefly but made no gesture or attempt to speak to me. He just simply took the open seat next to mine and looked forward at the teacher. Fine with me, it's best we don't speak anyways; we have nothing to say to each other unless he's apologizing to me.

"Okay ladies and gentlemen, seems we're all here now. My name is Mrs. Holton. I will be your science teacher this year." A short and plump red haired woman announced to the class.

Looks like the class is completely full. That's great though because that means we'll have a nice even number of students. Take a look at person sitting next to you and introduce yourselves, because you two will be lab partners this year!" She announced with a large amount of enthusiasm.

'You've got to be fucking joking.' I practically screamed in my head.

'I didn't bother looking over at him and I doubt he did either. This couldn't possibly be worse. I mean come on, David, as my lab partner! This fucking sucks oh my god!'

The class introductions went on as usual. Except now, there was this uncomfortable feeling in the room; like a cloud of uneasiness was hanging over the both of us.

We kept to ourselves all class. No insults, no foul expressions, not even a glance in the same direction as each other. Finally the bell rang and I practically bolted out of there without even looking back.

I found my bus just fine and I was relieved to see Bjorn there already.

"Hey babe. You alright?" He asked in a concerned tone.

"Yep. Just fine." I replied sharply.

"You sure?"

"Yes. I'm fine Bjorn." I said in a cold manner.

Gosh I shouldn't be such a dick to him. I'm just upset at the possibility of spending all year next to David; and being forced into being his lab partner as well. Still, I can't take it out on Bjorn.

Eventually we were on our way home as the bus rumbled along.

"Babe. Sorry about sounding mean. I'm okay, just tired I guess." I lied.

"I just assumed you were irritated because you didn't get your milkshake yet. I had plans for us this afternoon but if you're tired then you can go home and take a nap."

"If you buy me a milkshake I will literally do whatever you want babe." I really wanted a milkshake.

"Aren't you already supposed to do whatever I want." He stated matter-of-factly.

"Well I'll do whatever you want twice, and maybe more if I like it." I said with a wink and slight smirk.

His eyes lit up and he looked around to make sure no one heard me say that. He leaned in real close and whispered.

"If you don't stop being so cute then I'm gonna whip it out on this bus."

"I'd say you don't have the balls to do it, but I've seen your balls and they're pretty big so I believe you; but please god don't do it."

We both started laughing like a bunch of dorks and caught the attention of a few people on the bus; but we didn't care, it was too funny.

When we made it to our stop we got off and headed for the diner we went too on our first date. I slung my bookbag off my shoulder because Bjorn asked to see my schedule again. But before I could unzip it, he snatched the bag once again from grip.

"What're you doing?" I asked angrily.

"Carrying your bag. I knew you'd say no, and I wasn't going to waste one of my requests on this." He said proudly.

"You're a dork... I love you though." I took a look back and made sure we were alone before kissing his cheek

"I love you too babe."

We made it to the diner and sat down in the same booth as last time. I ordered a banana shake this time; it sounded refreshing on this hot day. Bjorn went with plain old chocolate.

"So, school is out now, what did you want me to do." I asked while slurping down my shake.

"What do you mean?" Bjorn asked.

"Our deal, I'm supposed to do whatever you ask; so what is it?"

"Oh yeah that. I was just going to ask you to spend the day with me... and maybe one other thing too." He asked nervously

"You don't have to ask me that dork, I already wanted to spend the day with you. But what's this other thing?"

"Well... I didn't want to ask so soon but... do you... maybe... want to go surfing again?" He stammered.

I was surprised by the question. I was sure he was going to ask for something more... I dunno... dirty, I guess. But no, he wasn't asking for a blowjob or even sex; instead, he's asking for me to surf with him. Honestly I would have said yes if he had just asked, I wasn't sure why he was so nervous about it.

"Of course babe. Why would you not want to ask that so soon?"

"Because of what happened last time. I wasn't sure you were ready to go back yet." He said sincerely.

He's so sweet sometimes I can't even handle it. You could see the sincerity in his eyes as he spoke. He was afraid to ask me to go surfing because I might be uncomfortable at the beach. It was true that my last beach experience was kind of bad. But there's no way I'd let that one experience ruin the beach for me. Besides, that day turned out pretty good in the end.

"Thanks. You know, for worrying about me and all that. But I'm fine with it babe, let's go surf." I said reassuringly.

His eyes lit up again at my approval. He's definitely excited to get back on the water.

After we finished our shakes and paid the bill, we made our way back to his house for the boards. On the way there I had to call my mom for permission. At first she said no because of my punishment and the rules we had laid out beforehand; but eventually, I was able to work my magic and get her to agree just this once.

We made it to his house and while he grabbed the boards and got changed, I headed across the street and grabbed my own bathing suit. There was no need for wetsuits today. It was a sweltering afternoon and the cool Pacific Ocean would be the perfect relief.

Once I was changed, I grabbed a towel and headed out the door to meet Bjorn back at his house. I was excited to be practicing my surfing again. My lessons were cut short last time around.

I took the board he was lending me from underneath his arm and carried it down the sidewalk as we made our way to the coast.

"So what did you think of your first day at school?" Bjorn asked.

"It was alright. Kinda boring but alright. How about yours?"

"It was good." He took a long pause before continuing.

"If you don't want to talk about it just tell me and we don't have to. But uhh... I just wanted to let you know that I talked to David today."

Of course I already knew this information but I decided to withhold that from him for now.

"Oh yeah? How'd it go?" I asked

"Uhh... alright I guess." He said, sounding unsure of himself.

"What's that mean?"

"Well, I'm not sure if I got through to him or not. But I doubt he'll mess with you."

Bjorn sounded more optimistic than confident.

"Well I guess I should tell you the real reason I was kinda upset on the bus. David is my lab partner in science."

Bjorn stopped walking and looked right over at me with a pained expression on his face.

"Did he say anything to you?" He asked in angered tone.

"No we didn't talk. Why?"

"Keaton, if he says anything at all besides "I'm sorry" then you better tell me. I won't let him do anything to you I promise. Now you better promise to let me know if he does or says anything to you." He ranted angrily.

"Babe chill out, I will-"

"Promise me!" Bjorn shouted over me.

I looked back at him with my own angry expression now. I didn't want to tell him about David because I knew he'd get all worked up like this. I can handle David and his words; I'm not scared anymore. The last thing I need is my boyfriend trying to fight every problem I have, literally.

Without answering him, I resumed walking down the sidewalk and towards the beach.

"Why are you ignoring me?" He called out to me.

"Because I'm not going to talk to you if you're gonna yell at me."

"I'm not yelling at you. I'm just yelling."

I turned around and shot him an annoyed look.

"That's a weak excuse and you know it. If you want to talk to me then use your inside voice."

"But we're outside!"

"You know what I mean dork. Don't yell at me when you talk to me."

"I'm sorry. Won't do it again." He said in a unenthusiastic tone.

He sounded like a child being lectured by his parent. I could tell he didn't mean it when he said it; but I'd rather drop it and not argue anymore.

Finally, we made it to the beach. The sun was shining, the water was glistening, the birds... well they were making their normal bird noises I don't know what to call it. But the point is, it's a beautiful day to enjoy at the beach.

We found our spot in the sand to set up and Bjorn pulled his shirt off his body. I might be a little annoyed with him right now, but it's hard to think about anything else besides his body.

"Are you gonna stare all day or take yours off too?" Bjorn asked jokingly.

"I think I'll keep mine on actually. And I could stare all day if you let me."

"What? Why won't you take yours off?" He asked sounding a bit shocked.

"Oh, uhh you know... my back and all that." I responded meekly.

I was kind of nervous still about being shirtless in public. The wetsuit covered my scars before, but I didn't have it this time. I don't care of Bjorn sees it, I just don't want everyone staring at me.

"You mean the scars?"

He was about to say something else but instead he just walked over to me, grabbed the base of my shirt, and lifted it over my head.

"You're beautiful Keaton, don't be afraid to show it off." Bjorn said with a smirk before leaning in and kissing me.

He just kissed me right on the beach in front of everyone! I'm sure some people took notice of it, even if it was just a quick peck.

"Babe everyone saw that!" I said in a loud whisper.

"I know. The whole secret thing is too hard to keep up with. Let's just do it babe." He said, sounding so casual about it.

"Are you sure? I don't know about that Bjorn."

"We'll be fine. No one here is going to say anything. If they do, then they're just jealous of me because I snagged a cutie like you."

I blushed at his comment and how cheesy it was. But just like all his other cheesy comments, it was still incredibly cute.

"Let's just get in the water dork, I'm hot." I said.

"Yes you are." Responded Bjorn with a cheesy grin.

"Ugh, shut up and take me surfing!"

We both laughed it off as we bounded our way down the beach and into the cool ocean water. Bjorn continued to give me tips as we went along. I wiped out a lot; but that only made every successful wave ride feel even better.

Watching Bjorn pull himself out of the sea with sweat and water dripping from his hair and down his muscular body, well... it caused a "rise" out of me.

There was a few people somewhat close to us in the water. I even saw the two girls from this morning entering the water and heading our way. I couldn't afford to have a visible boner around all these people. I needed to adjust myself but my board shorts were too tight; so I slid my body off the board and into the water. Once my lower half was covered, I loosened the string to my shorts so I could have easier access to my package. Just as I was adjusting myself, a wave came through and took me by surprise.

The wave had enough force to knock me over, and take my board away from me. I didn't feel the need to have it strapped to my ankle this time, I regret that decision now.

When I came up out of the water I could see Bjorn heading towards me on his board. My board was being carried to shore at this point, but it wasn't the only thing that was missing.

The water around my lower half felt unusually colder. In fact, my crotch area felt very "free" for some odd reason. When I reached down to check myself, I realized that my board shorts were gone.

The wave caught me just as I was loosening them, causing them to fly off of me when I tumbled underwater. Now I'm standing in the Pacific Ocean, completely naked, and the girls from school are only 20 feet away.

Internally, I was panicking and freaking out. Externally, I was trying to keep my cool so I didn't attract anyone's attention.

When Bjorn finally reached me I felt like I was going to die from embarrassment.

"Man that wave got you go-"

"Bjorn. I need your help." I interrupted him.

"What's up cut-"

"Bjorn. My shorts are gone."

He slid off his board and gave me a curious look as he approached me. When he got close enough, he looked down at my crotch and his eyes grew wide.

"Hey look, a penis!" He exclaimed with a chuckle.

"Bjorn!" I shouted in frustration.

"Sorry babe I'm just messing with ya. Wait right here I'll go get a towel."

Bjorn started to make his way back to the beach. I was forced to stand here, butt naked, and try not to get rolled over by the waves again. A minute later he was back with the towel, but now we had a new dilemma.

"Stand up Keaty." Bjorn ordered.

"What!? No I can't stand up, they'll see me!"

"You have to stand up or I'll just be dunking the towel in the ocean babe. Come on, just stand up."

I looked around a bit, the two girls from earlier were having a conversation and didn't seem to be paying attention to us.

"Okay, I'll stand up but please cover me up quickly babe." I pleaded with him.

"I will, now come on dork." He teased.

I sprang upwards out of the water and practically into Bjorn's arms as he wrapped the towel around me. I took hold of the towel and turned it around so the ends of it were now in front of me. Mission accomplished, or at least I thought so.

Turns out, we weren't as stealthy as I hoped to be. A quick glance to the right revealed two giggling girls who obviously saw more than I had hoped.

"Babe they saw my butt."

"Well aren't they lucky-"

"Bjorn!" I yelled.

"Chill out babe. I got an idea." He said matter-of-factly.

Bjorn walked around until he was behind me and started leading me back to shore. Just as we were almost out of the water, I felt his hand reach out and squeeze my right cheek.
Stunned by his actions, I took my hand and gently pushed on his shoulder to get his attention.

"Why the hell did you do that!"

"They saw your butt, I had to make sure they saw that too."

"What!? Why?"

"Because tomorrow they would have approached you and told you how cute it is and maybe even ask you out. But now, they know that it's mine and they can't have it." He said with a proud grin.

"You're such a dork. I doubt they care about it anyways."

"It doesn't matter, at least they know it's mine."

I was kind of angry at him for being so bold in public. But listening to him say those kind of things, it really got me going.

"If it's yours... then take me home and prove it." I said in a seductive whisper.

Even I was surprised I said it, but I couldn't think of a better way to spend my afternoon than with him.

Bjorn's face lit up with excitement as he grabbed our boards. He didn't say anything in return; he just looked back and shot the girls in the water a big cheesy grin before following me up the path.

"You know the first time I came to this beach, I got hit in the face with a football. The second time I came, David happened. And now, on the third trip, I lost my shorts." I started to explain to Bjorn.

"What's your point?" He responded nervously.

"My point is, the trips to the beach usually don't go as planned; but afterwards they always turn out pretty good. I'm counting on you to make it worth it when we get back to our houses."

I gave Bjorn a suggestive smile and wink to seal my request. In truth, I was just horny and I needed some "relief" after today. I hate to feel like I'm using Bjorn, but judging by the boner he's sporting right now, he's alright with it.

"Don't worry about it cutie. I'm going to make it all worth it." He said with confidence as we made it to his house.

"You better.”