Copyright © 2020-2024 Douglas DD. All Rights Reserved.
CHAPTER 14
AIDEN AND SAMMY
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 28
<Aiden and Marty>
Marty’s phone call woke Aiden up Sunday morning, but he didn’t care. It was Marty calling and that was all Aiden needed to know.
“Did I wake you up?” Marty asked after hearing Aiden’s sleepy greeting.
“Yes.”
“Good. You need to be awake and accomplishing great things.”
“It’s easier to do great things when people let you sleep in. But this is different,” he hastily added.
“Oh?”
“Yeah, it’s you calling to tell me the Mariners will win today and play in the Wild Card game.”
“Well, if we win, we’re off to Boston to play the Red Sox in the Wild Card game on Wednesday.”
“Piece of cake.”
“I wish. I can’t chat for long, since I slept in as late as I could. Gotta get to the ballpark early for a 12:10 game.”
“Why is it starting an hour earlier than usual?”
“Come on, sport, I thought you knew this stuff.”
“I just wanted to make sure you knew it.”
Marty chuckled and said, “Ask your pop, then he can also give you shit for not knowing. Thanks for the text last night.”
“You’re welcome. Get another big hit today,” Aiden implored his idol. “No, get lots of big hits today. I’ll be watching the game at Nolan’s house.”
“I’m sure I’ll feel the love and energy. Later, dude.”
“See ya, Marty.”
<Aiden and Nolan>
Aiden and his dads arrived at Nolan’s house at quarter after eleven. Nolan dashed out of the front door as soon as he saw the car and Aiden was out of the right back door of the car as soon as Phil turned off the engine. The boys exchanged hugs and headed into the house. Aiden exchanged hellos with Nolan’s father and was surprised to receive a hug from Nolan’s mother, Vivian.
Well, Nolan said she was loosening up, Aiden thought, so maybe that means she might even like me a little bit. The widescreen television was playing in the home theater. One of the Mariner announcers was on the screen talking about the previous day’s game, but the regularly scheduled pregame show wouldn’t start until eleven thirty. Nolan grabbed the remote and turned on the sound.
Nolan and Aiden were both dressed in Mariner garb. Instead of sitting in the loveseat, they grabbed a pair of seats on the sectional and kicked out their footrests. The comfort of the footrests and reclining backs won them over. Paul Moyer sat in the sectional at a right angle to the boys. Larry and Phil ended up on the love seat.
Vivian brought out a cart with snacks and drinks. She was used to entertaining and was well-prepared. After parking the cart, she took a seat in an overstuffed chair next to her husband. She looked over at Nolan and Aiden and noted how closely they were seated, their hands surreptitiously touching. She totally disapproved of even that much touching by the boys in public. Since she knew she was totally outvoted, she elected to keep her objections to herself for the time being and focused her attention on the game.
One of the topics of conversation during the pregame show when the endless commercials came on was the fact that all 15 Major League games were starting at the same time. That meant the starting time on the west coast was 12:10 while the starting time on the east coast was 3:10, with the games in the middle time zones starting in between. The simultaneous starts had been instituted a few years before to keep the suspense generated by close races on the last day. It used to be a team playing a later game would know the outcome of an earlier game, which would remove the suspense from the later game. Other than the Mariners and Twins, the postseason berths had been decided in the American League before that final Sunday, and those two teams were playing each other. But, in the National League, the Cubs had a one game lead over the Pirates in the Central Division, but they weren’t playing each other. The fact that their games started at the same time, meant there would be a lot of scoreboard watching by the fans.
By the time the game started, Nolan had wrapped his fingers around Aiden’s hand. He and Aiden had agreed beforehand they would slowly increase their handholding until Nolan’s mother objected. Vivian knew exactly what the boys were doing. She realized she was outvoted, plus she didn’t want to ruin a family gathering by objecting. She would wait until they crossed Paul’s line, whatever that was, and he told them to ease off.
The game got off to a good start for the Mariners when rookie Gerald Beck struck out the side in the top of the first. Gerald started the season as one of the top Mariner prospects and was called up in early August after posting an 8-4 record for the Tacoma Rainiers, the Mariners AAA farm club. He had posted a 5-1 record since his callup and, along with Marty, was instrumental in the Mariners making up ground in the September pennant race.
The Mariners went down in order in the bottom of the first. Gerald gave up a two-out single in the top of the second but threw another scoreless inning. Left-fielder Wade Whalen opened the bottom of the second with a single after which first baseman Thomas Adams walked. That brought Marty, who was hitting sixth, to the plate. He took the first pitch for a strike and then sent the next pitch sailing over left field and into the Mariner bullpen.
Aiden and Nolan, battling their footrests, were on their feet screaming, whistling, yelling, and hugging each other. As much as they wanted to share a kiss, they maintained enough cool to avoid doing something they knew would likely set Nolan’s mother into a frenzy. For her part, Vivian had no problem with the yelling and hugging—it was an exciting moment after all—and was glad they didn’t carry things farther, as in sharing a kiss.
The second inning ended with the Mariners ahead 3-0. Gerald Beck remained dominant. After six innings he was throwing a two-hit shutout and had struck out 11 batters while walking none. The Mariners had scored two runs in the fifth on Wade’s two-run double and led 5-0. With two out in the seventh, Beck gave up a walk, followed by a two-run homer to make the score 5-2. Beck pitched to one more batter, giving up a one-out home run. Manager Scott Pierce walked out to the mound and signaled for a left-hander to come in from the bullpen. Gerald Beck left to a standing ovation from the sellout crowd.
The excitement over the last two innings didn’t die down at T-Mobile Park and it certainly didn’t die down in the Moyer residence. Closer Mario Diaz entered the game in the top of the ninth to protect a 6-3 lead. Aiden, Nolan, and their parents cheered every strike and out as Diaz threw a 1-2-3 inning for his 42nd save of the season. The Mariners would be playing the Boston Red Sox at Boston in the American League Wild Card game. The winner would move on to the best-of-five American League Division Series, playing the Toronto Blue Jays. The season would be over for the loser.
“How long until we eat?” Nolan asked as soon as the game and the ensuing celebrating ended.
“It’s cooking up, as you can no doubt smell,” Vivian replied. “Figure an hour for the roast to be done.”
“What do you want to do for the hour?” Nolan asked Aiden.
Before Aiden could say, “Let’s go to your bedroom,” Paul interrupted. “We’re going to the basement to run the trains if you boys would like to join us.”
Nolan had been thinking in the same terms as Aiden, but he and Aiden both enjoyed time with their dads as well. They weren’t together with all their dads very often. This day had been set up as a family day and the boys understood they would have to save their own pleasures for later. Nolan wanted to talk to Aiden for a couple of minutes before going into model train mode, however.
“We’ll be down in a couple of minutes,” Nolan responded. “I need to ask Aiden something.”
“Good enough,” Nolan’s dad replied. “We’ll see you in a few.”
Nolan and Aiden quickly retired to Nolan’s bedroom and shared a long kiss before getting down to business. Nolan flipped on his iPod and began playing some current popular music.
“I love this song,” Aiden remarked. “My dads play classical music. I really like it and play it most of the time, but I like hearing new shit now and then, too.”
“Me too,” Nolan said as he groped his boyfriend. “This is a great song.”
“I could kiss you all the way to dinner,” Aiden panted.
“No you couldn’t, because we’d kiss and kiss and kiss and then we’d be naked having sex.”
“Well, there is that. Anyway, what did you want to talk about?”
“About what you did with Gordy on Friday.”
“I told you all about it on the phone.”
“I know, but I wanted to hear it from you face-to-face, lying on my bed with no clothes on and kissing and kissing. And then, when we got totally turned on, you would get on your stomach and let me do to you what Gordy did to you.”
“But we can’t do it, now.”
Nolan placed his hands on Aiden’s shoulders and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. “I know that because we love our dads…”
“…and the model trains…”
“Right, and the model trains. Anyway, I wanted you to know what it was I wanted to do with you.”
“And you’d be doing hard and fast and way better than Gordy, who did okay for a rookie. But he wasn’t you, the pro in bed.”
“I dunno, I think you have to be a teenager to be a pro,” Nolan giggled.
“Oh cool, that means you’re going to be a pro in a month.”
“And I plan on proving it to you more than once.”
“We better go down to our dads before I get too horny and cum in my pants,” Aiden giggled.
“Oh, I’d like that.”
Aiden gave Nolan a friendly punch on his right shoulder. “Sex fiend.”
“Always when I’m around you.”
The two boyfriends adjusted their raging erections, hoping they wouldn’t be too noticeable, and headed for the basement and fun with their dads.
<Marty>
Marty met his husband, Rich, and his father, Lewis, in the family waiting area after the game. Father and husband jostled to get in the first hug, with Rich stepping aside for his father-in-law. He had almost daily access to Marty for hugs (and more) while Marty’s father didn’t.
“Great game, son. You guys looked out of the race a week ago, and now you’re off to Boston. I am so proud of you and your team.”
“Thanks, dad. It’s great to see you.”
Lewis Carlson made as many games as he could. His youngest son, Drew, had just turned six and was starting to get into sports, which kept Lewis busy as an assistant coach. He wanted to give Drew the kind of attention he had failed to give his two older sons. This weekend was too big to miss, however, and Drew would have to play soccer with just his mom watching. Drew had wanted to go to watch his big brother play, but his mom and dad let him know he was still too young to sit through a long baseball game. They didn’t even go into sitting through the long drive to Seattle.
“We’re still doing dinner, right?” Lewis asked.
“That was the plan, and I haven’t heard anything about it being changed.”
Lewis enjoyed a great dinner with his son and son-in-law. It was an event that none of them would have thought possible just a few years ago when old resentments built up during their drinking years kept father and son apart.
“I’d give my right nut to go to Boston,” Lewis said.
“Interesting,” Rich grinned. “I managed to be able to go for the cost of a plane ticket.” As Marty’s husband, Rich had complementary admission to the game.
“I guess that’s your reward for clean living.”
“Dad can afford to give up that nut,” Marty said. “He proved his virility as an old man by fathering another son.”
“Who are you calling old?” Lewis snorted.
“Hey, you’ve been my old man since I was a wild and crazy teen.”
“Speaking of old men fathering sons, are two ever going to get into the grandkid supplying business?”
“You mean Drew hasn’t been at work on the project?” Marty chuckled.
“He still hasn’t figured out that his pecker is for more than pissing.”
“I’ve seen his hand wander south at times.”
“And his mom sends it moving north again…nicely of course.”
“Of course. She’s a mom being a mom. Which brings us to John, whose congratulatory text just arrived.” John was Marty’s older brother by just over a year. He worked for Oracle and lived in the San Francisco Bay area. “He looks like a good grandson provider. He and Jenna appear to be in a pretty serious relationship.”
“Well, I was asking about you. I know a lot of gay couples adopt and was wondering if the two of you have talked about it.”
“We’ve talked about adopting or going through a surrogate mother,” Rich replied. “There are plusses and minuses to both, and we haven’t decided on anything except we want to wait for Marty’s career to stabilize.”
“The way he’s been playing since his callup, things are looking pretty good on that account.”
“It does, but the adage among us rookies is that getting to the Majors is fairly easy. It’s STAYING there that’s tough,” Marty said. “If we’re going to have a kid, Rich is going to be the stay at home dad and I’m going to need a big-league salary for him to do that. With me in the minors we needed both of us working to keep our heads above water.”
Lewis nodded in understanding. “From my point of view, if you two had a kid, I don’t care whose blood was in it, I’d love it like I would my own flesh-and-blood grandkid. The key thing for me is that you two have a happy life together. I know that being out in public like you two are has to put increased tension into your lives.”
“Not as much as you’d think. Yes, there are assholes, especially on the road, but the league and ballclub have been great in policing things. They treat gay harassment just like racial and sexual harassment. They’re right on top of things.”
“Once upon a time, I would have been one of those giving you shit,” Lewis said with a shake of his head.
“But you’re not one of those today. I love you, dad,” Marty said sincerely, looking directly into the eyes of his father.
“And I love you son.” Lewis shifted his gaze to Rich. “And I love you son-in-law.”
“Thanks, dad-in-law. I love you, too. You and my parents have become friends, so you know their dilemma.”
“Yep. Two sons, both of them gay. Your parents are very patient people, and quite lovely.”
Rich shifted topics. “We’re lucky, today. In a couple of years my hubby is going to have problems going out in public without being recognized.”
“I’ll be sure to carry a NO AUTOGRAPHS sign,” Marty chuckled.
“You know you love signing them.”
“I never could pull anything over on you,” Marty agreed with a smile. “And you’re right - I do love signing them, especially for the kids.”
The waitress arrived with their orders and the men quickly dug into their seafood entrees. “One of the great things about living in this part of the world is eating fresh caught salmon,” Lewis commented.
“You’ve caught more than your share of salmon over the years,” Marty said.
“You and I fishing together was great times. Sadly, we didn’t have enough of those times. I think the first time you got drunk was fishing with me when you were like ten or eleven.”
“Remember, dad, we don’t regret the past.”
“In that case, how about living in the present with me and joining me for some fishing after you guys win the World Series.”
“You’re on, dad. Be prepared to be out-fished.” Father and son traded fist bumps and, with Rich, enjoyed the best meal the three of them had eaten together.
<Aiden and Nolan>
Aiden and Nolan enjoyed a few minutes of private time in Nolan’s bedroom after enjoying father/son time with their fathers, followed by Vivian’s delicious roast beef dinner. They were disappointed they couldn’t show their love for each other physically, but they were also happy to have spent bonding time with their dads.
“I just wish we didn’t live so far apart,” Nolan lamented.
“But we do have a pretty cool change coming,” Aiden reminded his lover. “Dad says that the hiking/bicycle trail from Highway 12 to Meadow Park is coming along on schedule and should be finished by May. I don’t know about you, but my dads told me as soon as it’s finished, they’ll let me do daylight rides from my house to yours.”
“My dad thinks it’s a great idea, but mom isn’t so sure. I think that’s another argument dad is going to win. The Judge is tough to beat in an argument.”
“Which you know from experience,” Aiden giggled.
“For sure. And I also know from experience that the best way for us to say goodbye to each other is a big, wet kiss.”
“Then what are we waiting for? My dads are going yell for me any second.”
The big, wet kiss happened on Nolan’s bed with the two twelve-year-old boys on their sides facing each other. They traded as much tongue, saliva, and love as they could while their hands snaked inside each other’s shorts in the hope of creating a climax to their afternoon together. As horny as they were, they needed more than the three minutes they ended up having.
“Fuck,” Aiden grumped as he heard Larry call for him. “My dads have the worst timing on Earth.”
He and Nolan got off the bed, straightened their clothes, traded a final kiss, and made their way to the living room. As much as they would have liked to complain about not having any sex together, they were good enough kids to know they had enjoyed a fabulous day together. They promised to make up for lost orgasms next time.
“You could have given us more time together,” Aiden complained as he and his dads pulled away from the Moyer house.
“Time for what?” Larry asked slyly.
“Just time.”
“Maybe it’s about time for the boyfriends to have an overnight.”
“Tell me about it.”
“I take it that outside of the game you didn’t have a good time today,” Phil said.
“I had a great time with you guys and the trains. I just wish I had a few more minutes alone with Nolan.”
“Well, you know what they say about time,” Larry said.
“No, I don’t know, but I know you’ll tell me.”
“Time flies like an arrow and fruit flies like bananas.”
Aiden folded his arms and glared at the front seat. “And some TIMES I hate you guys,” which started his dads roaring with laughter with Aiden quickly joining in.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30
<Fourth Dimension Meeting>
“Hi, Aiden,” Grant smiled as he saw his friend come into the church meeting room. Grant was busily setting up the meeting room. “I haven’t seen you here in a while.”
“I’ve been busy,” Aiden said, not bothering to elaborate. The boys made a point of not discussing the Fourth Dimension at school.
Before Grant could respond, Sammy and Peter Astor entered the room. “Hi, guys,” Sammy said cheerily. Grant and Aiden greeted the two teens in return.
“It looks like you have no soccer, no piles of homework, and no endless chores assigned by your dads,” Sammy told Aiden as the four boys worked together to complete the setup.
“I just wanted to be here,” Aiden said.
“That’s good enough for me.”
When the start time for the meeting arrived, nine members had arrived. Aiden didn’t see any new faces. He was happy to see Rusty there and pleased that he seemed to be settling in since the school year had started. He knew that Rusty and Collin had become close.
Peter Astor, who was the meeting chair, opened the meeting on time. Aiden had volunteered to be one of the opening readers and read the Twelve Traditions. The meeting topic was honesty.
When Aiden elected to share, he opened by saying, “My name is Aiden, and I’m an alcoholic,” as he had before his reading, even if he didn’t feel like one. He had come to the meeting because it made his dads happy more than because he wanted to be there. After he finished his share on honesty, he felt like he had sounded totally lame. He was sorry he had come since he really had nothing to say and wasn’t particularly interested in hearing what everyone else had to say.
After the meeting ended, Aiden told Sammy he wanted to talk to him. Sammy herded Aiden into a far corner of the room. “Whazzup dude?” Sammy asked his sponsee.
“I want to meet with you.”
“It’s been way too long since you’ve wanted that. What provokes this desire?”
“I just want to talk and not on the phone.”
“You’re wish is my command. Is tomorrow okay?”
“I have soccer practice tomorrow after school and then the Mariners play in the Wild Card game. How about Thursday after dinner?”
“How are you going to get my house?” Sammy knew what the answer was going to be, but he wanted to be sure. “Or do you want to meet at your house?”
“Yours is cool. I’ll ask one of my dads to take me.”
“Good enough. See you Thursday.”
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1
Since the end of soccer practice overlapped the start of the Mariner game, Aiden couldn’t help but be impatient. He wished Coach Bill would end practice early, forgetting he should be grateful that Coach Bill’s schedule allowed him to hold an early practice.
Larry had the game on the car radio when he picked up Aiden. The game was scoreless in the bottom of the second, which relieved Aiden since he hadn’t missed much. The only important thing he’d missed was Marty’s at bat. He had hit a hard ground ball to shortstop with a runner on first and one out. The Sox infield turned a routine 6-4-3 (shortstop-to second-to first) double play to end the inning.
While Jerry Andrews didn’t pitch badly, he wasn’t at his sharpest either. He gave up three runs over the first four innings including two home runs. Red Sox starter Glenn Curry was sharp, however, keeping Mariner batters off balance through four scoreless innings, allowing only two baserunners, both of whom were erased by double plays.
The Mariners ended up losing 6-0. Curry gave up only two hits over eight innings while striking out 12 and walking one. The Red Sox would be moving on to one of the two American League Division Series matches, facing the Toronto Blue Jays. For the Mariners, it would be “wait ‘till next year.” Next year looked promising. The M’s had a young ballclub with a good mix of veterans. They were disappointed to have been eliminated from the postseason so quickly, but they were also pleased to have made the postseason since nobody had given them a chance when the season started.
Aiden texted Marty his condolences and could hardly wait for the next season to start.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2
<Aiden and Sammy>
Phil drove Aiden to Sammy’s house. He and Larry had discussed how they were pleased to see Aiden getting active in recovery again. They both had done a little prodding on the subject, while trying not to leave their son with the impression that they were nagging him. They were only partially successful with that endeavor as Aiden wished they would get off his case.
Aiden said hi to Sammy’s parents; Jeffrey had left for college. They talked some about the Mariner game the day before and then Sammy guided Aiden to the sunroom, which had no sun right then since it was dark outside. “Do you want anything to drink?” Sammy asked.
“A Coke, I guess.” Aiden didn’t get to drink carbonated drinks often since his dads rarely kept any in the house. You’d think the pop cans are filled with beer or something, Aiden would grouse to himself when he felt the urge for a fizzy drink.
Sammy came back from the kitchen with two Cokes and some Doritos to snack on. “So, what are you so eager to talk about?” Sammy asked Aiden.
Aiden got right to the point. “I know I’ve been saying I’m an alcoholic in the Fourth Dimension meetings and I meant it when I first said it.”
“So, you didn’t mean it when you said it Tuesday?”
“I don’t know. I guess not. I mean, I’m twelve, how can I know it?”
“Funny how you can’t know some things because you’re twelve and then you do know things because you’re twelve.”
“What do I know?”
“You know you’re grown up enough have a boyfriend. You know how to be an athlete. You know how to be a leader. You know…”
“Okay, okay, I get it. But how can I know if I’m an alcoholic if I don’t try it?”
“You mean you want to try being an alcoholic?”
“No, I want to try drinking alcohol.”
“I seem to remember you and me having this conversation before and you admitted you probably shouldn’t drink.”
Aiden gave his sponsor an annoyed look. “So, that means I can’t change my mind?”
“You can do what you want, as far as I’m concerned. Just remember that there will be consequences.”
“I want to drink, that’s what I want.”
“Then I can’t help you.”
Aiden grabbed a Dorito, popped it into his mouth, chewed and swallowed. He then took a swallow of Coke. Sammy found himself amused by Aiden’s stalling tactics.
“You’re my sponsor. You’re supposed to help me.”
“If you come and tell me you don’t want to drink, I can help you. You can drink booze without any help, so don’t bother asking for me for help.” Sammy remembered Peter Astor telling him how he had gone through that same conversation with his sponsor.
“That is totally lame.”
“Not if you think about it.”
Aiden pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’m calling my pop to come pick me up. If you’re not going to help me, I don’t want to see you anymore.”
“Suit yourself.” Sammy wondered where this version of Aiden had come from. Maybe it’s because he’s just a middle school kid, Sammy thought. But damn, he’s always seemed to have his act together for a kid who’s not even a teenager yet. But he sure has had a hair up his ass the last few days.
Aiden called Larry to come pick him up and then walked to the front door of the house. Sammy accompanied him to the door. Aiden left the house without saying goodbye to Sammy or his parents.
“Try calling your father,” Sammy called out before closing the door. Aiden ignored him and walked to the curb and waited for his pop. No way I’m calling daddy Keegan, he thought. He’s the one who started this mess. His thoughts were interrupted by Larry driving up.
“How did it go?” Larry asked.
“Sammy said he wasn’t going to help me, so I don’t want to see him anymore.”
“Do you care to talk about it?”
“No,” Aiden answered sullenly.
Larry let out a deep sigh. Working with pubescent boys as a teacher had been one thing but working with one as a father was something else altogether.
“Talking things out helps to solve problems,” he finally said.
“Tell Sammy that.”
Larry decided he had pushed the subject far enough. Aiden would tell him what was bugging him when he was ready to do so.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4
After telling his dads goodnight, Aiden went into his routine for getting into a zone. It was a different routine than he used for baseball, but then soccer required a different kind of thinking. As he tried to center his thoughts, he noticed that as he moved his focus from his anger and resentment to where it needed to be for his game, the black cloud that had been hovering over him seemed to dissipate. It didn’t occur to him that the routines he used for getting prepared to be in the proper zone to play a game could also be used to help put him into the proper zone to help make his life more positive.
He finished with a gratitude prayer before climbing into bed. He went down onto his knees and then surprised himself when he said, “I am grateful because I don’t drink booze.” After he finished the prayer, he wondered for a moment where that came from and then let the idea drop.
When he woke up the next morning, he knew he was ready to play. He felt more focused then he had in a long time; he was in a zone. Because of the game, he would not be able to attend the morning Fourth Dimension meeting, which he didn’t think was a bad thing.
Aiden was in the center of things the moment he arrived at the field. He cheered on his teammates through warmups, played hard and heads up from the opening kick, and was a force on the field. The Cobras knocked off Winston 4-1. Aiden scored a goal and assisted Lenny’s goal and did a superb job of setting up plays and leading his team. When he went to Bob’s Burger Barn with the team, he felt good about his game and about himself. His dark cloud had been left behind somewhere.
“Do you find our son to be an enigma?” Larry asked Phil after they returned home with Aiden, Mason, Miles, and Gordy in tow. “He has more ups and downs than a roller coaster ride.”
“I think the phrase I’d heard once is an enigma wrapped inside an enigma,” Larry said. He quickly Googled the phrase. “Hmm, back in the 30’s, Winston Churchill called the Soviet Union, ‘a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.’ I think Mr. Churchill managed to eruditely describe the young adolescent boy right along with the Russians.”
Aiden and his friends spent the afternoon downstairs in the basement, wearing just their underwear or less, enjoying the activities available in the game room. Phil provided snacks and lemonade for the perpetually hungry pubescent boys. When he came downstairs with a tray of goodies, the four boys were working up a sweat playing a rousing game of naked ping pong. None of them, including Gordy, seemed upset about Phil’s appearance. He set down the tray, making sure not to linger.
Still, he had time for a quick look. He couldn’t help but note how the boys were growing; even Mason was putting a little bit of meat on his scrawny body. Of the four, Gordy was the most mature sexually. His balls were hanging, and he had a little patch of pubic hair above his cock. Miles’s cock hung lowest and he was displaying wisps of dark hair on the sides of his pubic area. Mason had the most immature sexual organs—totally hairless with tight balls and a nub of a soft penis. Knowing that Mason was quite active sexually, he assumed the boy was a grower rather than a shower.
He asked if someone could help bring down the lemonade—Mason volunteered the fastest and loudest. The game was then suspended for blueberry muffins and lemonade.
Gordy’s father picked up Gordy and Mason and took them home. Miles was staying for dinner and spending the night. The other two boys wanted to stay, but family obligations stood in their way.
<Aiden and Miles>
Even though the four boys had gone from playing games in their underwear to playing in the nude, nothing overtly sexual had happened between them. It was understood that would change between Aiden and Miles during the evening.
Both boys wore t-shirts and briefs while watching the postseason baseball game between the Red Sox and the Blue Jays. Larry, Phil, Miles, and Aiden all expressed their wishes that the Mariners were the ones playing the Blue Jays, all of them sure that their favorites would have played a better game than the Sox in losing 7-2 to the Jays at Toronto.
When Aiden and Miles finally made it to bed, they were a couple of horny boys. They were naked and unable to keep their hands off each other, which the two old friends knew was going to happen.
Aiden ran his fingers lightly along Miles’s pubic area, enjoying the feel of his friend’s wispy pubes. “How did you get so many pubes so fast?” Aiden asked.
“I dunno. One day I had none, then had I teeny ones, and then the next thing I know I got so many I can’t count them anymore. But they’re more to the sides of my dick—I got hardly any on top.”
“You’re going to have more hair than Gordy pretty soon.”
“His is all on top of his dick and way thicker, so it’s hard to tell who has more.”
“I think Nolan’s got more than you do. I know he has way more than me.”
“Everybody has more than you except maybe Mason.” Miles checked out Aiden’s almost bare pubis. “But you got teeny tiny ones coming in, which gives you more than Mason.”
“Everybody has way more than Mason, including little babies,” Aiden laughed.
“Are you and me ever going to do butt sex?”
“Do you want to?”
“In the worst way. You’re one of my best friends, and well, the way our group is going, best friends are starting to do best friends.”
Aiden rolled on his side and draped his left arm over Miles’ torso. “Well, you know that Nolan is my boyfriend, right?” Miles nodded. “We’re okay with messing around with other guys. I mean, we’re almost thirteen and always horny, plus we live in different towns, so getting off with our best friends is cool.”
Miles knew what was coming next. “But, not butt sex, right?”
“Right, unless we talk it over ahead of time and agree that we can do it with somebody. Our rule is no matter how we mess around with somebody we have tell each other about it and tell everything we did.” Aiden grinned and said, “Telling each other all that over the phone is a great way to get each other off.”
“I’ve never gotten off talking on the phone.”
“Then you gotta try it.”
“Yep. How many guys have you done butt sex with? You don’t have to give me no names.”
“Four guys,” Aiden admitted. “And you?”
“Four, but one of those was just rimming.”
Aiden’s experiences had been with Gordy, Nolan, Chase, and Logan. Miles had done it with his brother John, Mason, and Trent. The rimming session was with Lenny.
“Do you think you and me will be able to, you know, go all the way together some time?” Miles asked insistently.
“We’ll see. I can’t say yes or no, but I promise I’ll bring it up with Nolan.” While Aiden meant what he said, he made sure to not promise to do it soon.
The time for chat was at an end and horniness finally took over. Mutual masturbation in various positions followed by a sixty-nine session gave each boy a pair of orgasms before they each fell into an untroubled sleep.
Next:
Fathers and Mentors
CHAPTER 14
AIDEN AND SAMMY
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 28
<Aiden and Marty>
Marty’s phone call woke Aiden up Sunday morning, but he didn’t care. It was Marty calling and that was all Aiden needed to know.
“Did I wake you up?” Marty asked after hearing Aiden’s sleepy greeting.
“Yes.”
“Good. You need to be awake and accomplishing great things.”
“It’s easier to do great things when people let you sleep in. But this is different,” he hastily added.
“Oh?”
“Yeah, it’s you calling to tell me the Mariners will win today and play in the Wild Card game.”
“Well, if we win, we’re off to Boston to play the Red Sox in the Wild Card game on Wednesday.”
“Piece of cake.”
“I wish. I can’t chat for long, since I slept in as late as I could. Gotta get to the ballpark early for a 12:10 game.”
“Why is it starting an hour earlier than usual?”
“Come on, sport, I thought you knew this stuff.”
“I just wanted to make sure you knew it.”
Marty chuckled and said, “Ask your pop, then he can also give you shit for not knowing. Thanks for the text last night.”
“You’re welcome. Get another big hit today,” Aiden implored his idol. “No, get lots of big hits today. I’ll be watching the game at Nolan’s house.”
“I’m sure I’ll feel the love and energy. Later, dude.”
“See ya, Marty.”
<Aiden and Nolan>
Aiden and his dads arrived at Nolan’s house at quarter after eleven. Nolan dashed out of the front door as soon as he saw the car and Aiden was out of the right back door of the car as soon as Phil turned off the engine. The boys exchanged hugs and headed into the house. Aiden exchanged hellos with Nolan’s father and was surprised to receive a hug from Nolan’s mother, Vivian.
Well, Nolan said she was loosening up, Aiden thought, so maybe that means she might even like me a little bit. The widescreen television was playing in the home theater. One of the Mariner announcers was on the screen talking about the previous day’s game, but the regularly scheduled pregame show wouldn’t start until eleven thirty. Nolan grabbed the remote and turned on the sound.
Nolan and Aiden were both dressed in Mariner garb. Instead of sitting in the loveseat, they grabbed a pair of seats on the sectional and kicked out their footrests. The comfort of the footrests and reclining backs won them over. Paul Moyer sat in the sectional at a right angle to the boys. Larry and Phil ended up on the love seat.
Vivian brought out a cart with snacks and drinks. She was used to entertaining and was well-prepared. After parking the cart, she took a seat in an overstuffed chair next to her husband. She looked over at Nolan and Aiden and noted how closely they were seated, their hands surreptitiously touching. She totally disapproved of even that much touching by the boys in public. Since she knew she was totally outvoted, she elected to keep her objections to herself for the time being and focused her attention on the game.
One of the topics of conversation during the pregame show when the endless commercials came on was the fact that all 15 Major League games were starting at the same time. That meant the starting time on the west coast was 12:10 while the starting time on the east coast was 3:10, with the games in the middle time zones starting in between. The simultaneous starts had been instituted a few years before to keep the suspense generated by close races on the last day. It used to be a team playing a later game would know the outcome of an earlier game, which would remove the suspense from the later game. Other than the Mariners and Twins, the postseason berths had been decided in the American League before that final Sunday, and those two teams were playing each other. But, in the National League, the Cubs had a one game lead over the Pirates in the Central Division, but they weren’t playing each other. The fact that their games started at the same time, meant there would be a lot of scoreboard watching by the fans.
By the time the game started, Nolan had wrapped his fingers around Aiden’s hand. He and Aiden had agreed beforehand they would slowly increase their handholding until Nolan’s mother objected. Vivian knew exactly what the boys were doing. She realized she was outvoted, plus she didn’t want to ruin a family gathering by objecting. She would wait until they crossed Paul’s line, whatever that was, and he told them to ease off.
The game got off to a good start for the Mariners when rookie Gerald Beck struck out the side in the top of the first. Gerald started the season as one of the top Mariner prospects and was called up in early August after posting an 8-4 record for the Tacoma Rainiers, the Mariners AAA farm club. He had posted a 5-1 record since his callup and, along with Marty, was instrumental in the Mariners making up ground in the September pennant race.
The Mariners went down in order in the bottom of the first. Gerald gave up a two-out single in the top of the second but threw another scoreless inning. Left-fielder Wade Whalen opened the bottom of the second with a single after which first baseman Thomas Adams walked. That brought Marty, who was hitting sixth, to the plate. He took the first pitch for a strike and then sent the next pitch sailing over left field and into the Mariner bullpen.
Aiden and Nolan, battling their footrests, were on their feet screaming, whistling, yelling, and hugging each other. As much as they wanted to share a kiss, they maintained enough cool to avoid doing something they knew would likely set Nolan’s mother into a frenzy. For her part, Vivian had no problem with the yelling and hugging—it was an exciting moment after all—and was glad they didn’t carry things farther, as in sharing a kiss.
The second inning ended with the Mariners ahead 3-0. Gerald Beck remained dominant. After six innings he was throwing a two-hit shutout and had struck out 11 batters while walking none. The Mariners had scored two runs in the fifth on Wade’s two-run double and led 5-0. With two out in the seventh, Beck gave up a walk, followed by a two-run homer to make the score 5-2. Beck pitched to one more batter, giving up a one-out home run. Manager Scott Pierce walked out to the mound and signaled for a left-hander to come in from the bullpen. Gerald Beck left to a standing ovation from the sellout crowd.
The excitement over the last two innings didn’t die down at T-Mobile Park and it certainly didn’t die down in the Moyer residence. Closer Mario Diaz entered the game in the top of the ninth to protect a 6-3 lead. Aiden, Nolan, and their parents cheered every strike and out as Diaz threw a 1-2-3 inning for his 42nd save of the season. The Mariners would be playing the Boston Red Sox at Boston in the American League Wild Card game. The winner would move on to the best-of-five American League Division Series, playing the Toronto Blue Jays. The season would be over for the loser.
“How long until we eat?” Nolan asked as soon as the game and the ensuing celebrating ended.
“It’s cooking up, as you can no doubt smell,” Vivian replied. “Figure an hour for the roast to be done.”
“What do you want to do for the hour?” Nolan asked Aiden.
Before Aiden could say, “Let’s go to your bedroom,” Paul interrupted. “We’re going to the basement to run the trains if you boys would like to join us.”
Nolan had been thinking in the same terms as Aiden, but he and Aiden both enjoyed time with their dads as well. They weren’t together with all their dads very often. This day had been set up as a family day and the boys understood they would have to save their own pleasures for later. Nolan wanted to talk to Aiden for a couple of minutes before going into model train mode, however.
“We’ll be down in a couple of minutes,” Nolan responded. “I need to ask Aiden something.”
“Good enough,” Nolan’s dad replied. “We’ll see you in a few.”
Nolan and Aiden quickly retired to Nolan’s bedroom and shared a long kiss before getting down to business. Nolan flipped on his iPod and began playing some current popular music.
“I love this song,” Aiden remarked. “My dads play classical music. I really like it and play it most of the time, but I like hearing new shit now and then, too.”
“Me too,” Nolan said as he groped his boyfriend. “This is a great song.”
“I could kiss you all the way to dinner,” Aiden panted.
“No you couldn’t, because we’d kiss and kiss and kiss and then we’d be naked having sex.”
“Well, there is that. Anyway, what did you want to talk about?”
“About what you did with Gordy on Friday.”
“I told you all about it on the phone.”
“I know, but I wanted to hear it from you face-to-face, lying on my bed with no clothes on and kissing and kissing. And then, when we got totally turned on, you would get on your stomach and let me do to you what Gordy did to you.”
“But we can’t do it, now.”
Nolan placed his hands on Aiden’s shoulders and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. “I know that because we love our dads…”
“…and the model trains…”
“Right, and the model trains. Anyway, I wanted you to know what it was I wanted to do with you.”
“And you’d be doing hard and fast and way better than Gordy, who did okay for a rookie. But he wasn’t you, the pro in bed.”
“I dunno, I think you have to be a teenager to be a pro,” Nolan giggled.
“Oh cool, that means you’re going to be a pro in a month.”
“And I plan on proving it to you more than once.”
“We better go down to our dads before I get too horny and cum in my pants,” Aiden giggled.
“Oh, I’d like that.”
Aiden gave Nolan a friendly punch on his right shoulder. “Sex fiend.”
“Always when I’m around you.”
The two boyfriends adjusted their raging erections, hoping they wouldn’t be too noticeable, and headed for the basement and fun with their dads.
<Marty>
Marty met his husband, Rich, and his father, Lewis, in the family waiting area after the game. Father and husband jostled to get in the first hug, with Rich stepping aside for his father-in-law. He had almost daily access to Marty for hugs (and more) while Marty’s father didn’t.
“Great game, son. You guys looked out of the race a week ago, and now you’re off to Boston. I am so proud of you and your team.”
“Thanks, dad. It’s great to see you.”
Lewis Carlson made as many games as he could. His youngest son, Drew, had just turned six and was starting to get into sports, which kept Lewis busy as an assistant coach. He wanted to give Drew the kind of attention he had failed to give his two older sons. This weekend was too big to miss, however, and Drew would have to play soccer with just his mom watching. Drew had wanted to go to watch his big brother play, but his mom and dad let him know he was still too young to sit through a long baseball game. They didn’t even go into sitting through the long drive to Seattle.
“We’re still doing dinner, right?” Lewis asked.
“That was the plan, and I haven’t heard anything about it being changed.”
Lewis enjoyed a great dinner with his son and son-in-law. It was an event that none of them would have thought possible just a few years ago when old resentments built up during their drinking years kept father and son apart.
“I’d give my right nut to go to Boston,” Lewis said.
“Interesting,” Rich grinned. “I managed to be able to go for the cost of a plane ticket.” As Marty’s husband, Rich had complementary admission to the game.
“I guess that’s your reward for clean living.”
“Dad can afford to give up that nut,” Marty said. “He proved his virility as an old man by fathering another son.”
“Who are you calling old?” Lewis snorted.
“Hey, you’ve been my old man since I was a wild and crazy teen.”
“Speaking of old men fathering sons, are two ever going to get into the grandkid supplying business?”
“You mean Drew hasn’t been at work on the project?” Marty chuckled.
“He still hasn’t figured out that his pecker is for more than pissing.”
“I’ve seen his hand wander south at times.”
“And his mom sends it moving north again…nicely of course.”
“Of course. She’s a mom being a mom. Which brings us to John, whose congratulatory text just arrived.” John was Marty’s older brother by just over a year. He worked for Oracle and lived in the San Francisco Bay area. “He looks like a good grandson provider. He and Jenna appear to be in a pretty serious relationship.”
“Well, I was asking about you. I know a lot of gay couples adopt and was wondering if the two of you have talked about it.”
“We’ve talked about adopting or going through a surrogate mother,” Rich replied. “There are plusses and minuses to both, and we haven’t decided on anything except we want to wait for Marty’s career to stabilize.”
“The way he’s been playing since his callup, things are looking pretty good on that account.”
“It does, but the adage among us rookies is that getting to the Majors is fairly easy. It’s STAYING there that’s tough,” Marty said. “If we’re going to have a kid, Rich is going to be the stay at home dad and I’m going to need a big-league salary for him to do that. With me in the minors we needed both of us working to keep our heads above water.”
Lewis nodded in understanding. “From my point of view, if you two had a kid, I don’t care whose blood was in it, I’d love it like I would my own flesh-and-blood grandkid. The key thing for me is that you two have a happy life together. I know that being out in public like you two are has to put increased tension into your lives.”
“Not as much as you’d think. Yes, there are assholes, especially on the road, but the league and ballclub have been great in policing things. They treat gay harassment just like racial and sexual harassment. They’re right on top of things.”
“Once upon a time, I would have been one of those giving you shit,” Lewis said with a shake of his head.
“But you’re not one of those today. I love you, dad,” Marty said sincerely, looking directly into the eyes of his father.
“And I love you son.” Lewis shifted his gaze to Rich. “And I love you son-in-law.”
“Thanks, dad-in-law. I love you, too. You and my parents have become friends, so you know their dilemma.”
“Yep. Two sons, both of them gay. Your parents are very patient people, and quite lovely.”
Rich shifted topics. “We’re lucky, today. In a couple of years my hubby is going to have problems going out in public without being recognized.”
“I’ll be sure to carry a NO AUTOGRAPHS sign,” Marty chuckled.
“You know you love signing them.”
“I never could pull anything over on you,” Marty agreed with a smile. “And you’re right - I do love signing them, especially for the kids.”
The waitress arrived with their orders and the men quickly dug into their seafood entrees. “One of the great things about living in this part of the world is eating fresh caught salmon,” Lewis commented.
“You’ve caught more than your share of salmon over the years,” Marty said.
“You and I fishing together was great times. Sadly, we didn’t have enough of those times. I think the first time you got drunk was fishing with me when you were like ten or eleven.”
“Remember, dad, we don’t regret the past.”
“In that case, how about living in the present with me and joining me for some fishing after you guys win the World Series.”
“You’re on, dad. Be prepared to be out-fished.” Father and son traded fist bumps and, with Rich, enjoyed the best meal the three of them had eaten together.
<Aiden and Nolan>
Aiden and Nolan enjoyed a few minutes of private time in Nolan’s bedroom after enjoying father/son time with their fathers, followed by Vivian’s delicious roast beef dinner. They were disappointed they couldn’t show their love for each other physically, but they were also happy to have spent bonding time with their dads.
“I just wish we didn’t live so far apart,” Nolan lamented.
“But we do have a pretty cool change coming,” Aiden reminded his lover. “Dad says that the hiking/bicycle trail from Highway 12 to Meadow Park is coming along on schedule and should be finished by May. I don’t know about you, but my dads told me as soon as it’s finished, they’ll let me do daylight rides from my house to yours.”
“My dad thinks it’s a great idea, but mom isn’t so sure. I think that’s another argument dad is going to win. The Judge is tough to beat in an argument.”
“Which you know from experience,” Aiden giggled.
“For sure. And I also know from experience that the best way for us to say goodbye to each other is a big, wet kiss.”
“Then what are we waiting for? My dads are going yell for me any second.”
The big, wet kiss happened on Nolan’s bed with the two twelve-year-old boys on their sides facing each other. They traded as much tongue, saliva, and love as they could while their hands snaked inside each other’s shorts in the hope of creating a climax to their afternoon together. As horny as they were, they needed more than the three minutes they ended up having.
“Fuck,” Aiden grumped as he heard Larry call for him. “My dads have the worst timing on Earth.”
He and Nolan got off the bed, straightened their clothes, traded a final kiss, and made their way to the living room. As much as they would have liked to complain about not having any sex together, they were good enough kids to know they had enjoyed a fabulous day together. They promised to make up for lost orgasms next time.
“You could have given us more time together,” Aiden complained as he and his dads pulled away from the Moyer house.
“Time for what?” Larry asked slyly.
“Just time.”
“Maybe it’s about time for the boyfriends to have an overnight.”
“Tell me about it.”
“I take it that outside of the game you didn’t have a good time today,” Phil said.
“I had a great time with you guys and the trains. I just wish I had a few more minutes alone with Nolan.”
“Well, you know what they say about time,” Larry said.
“No, I don’t know, but I know you’ll tell me.”
“Time flies like an arrow and fruit flies like bananas.”
Aiden folded his arms and glared at the front seat. “And some TIMES I hate you guys,” which started his dads roaring with laughter with Aiden quickly joining in.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30
<Fourth Dimension Meeting>
“Hi, Aiden,” Grant smiled as he saw his friend come into the church meeting room. Grant was busily setting up the meeting room. “I haven’t seen you here in a while.”
“I’ve been busy,” Aiden said, not bothering to elaborate. The boys made a point of not discussing the Fourth Dimension at school.
Before Grant could respond, Sammy and Peter Astor entered the room. “Hi, guys,” Sammy said cheerily. Grant and Aiden greeted the two teens in return.
“It looks like you have no soccer, no piles of homework, and no endless chores assigned by your dads,” Sammy told Aiden as the four boys worked together to complete the setup.
“I just wanted to be here,” Aiden said.
“That’s good enough for me.”
When the start time for the meeting arrived, nine members had arrived. Aiden didn’t see any new faces. He was happy to see Rusty there and pleased that he seemed to be settling in since the school year had started. He knew that Rusty and Collin had become close.
Peter Astor, who was the meeting chair, opened the meeting on time. Aiden had volunteered to be one of the opening readers and read the Twelve Traditions. The meeting topic was honesty.
When Aiden elected to share, he opened by saying, “My name is Aiden, and I’m an alcoholic,” as he had before his reading, even if he didn’t feel like one. He had come to the meeting because it made his dads happy more than because he wanted to be there. After he finished his share on honesty, he felt like he had sounded totally lame. He was sorry he had come since he really had nothing to say and wasn’t particularly interested in hearing what everyone else had to say.
After the meeting ended, Aiden told Sammy he wanted to talk to him. Sammy herded Aiden into a far corner of the room. “Whazzup dude?” Sammy asked his sponsee.
“I want to meet with you.”
“It’s been way too long since you’ve wanted that. What provokes this desire?”
“I just want to talk and not on the phone.”
“You’re wish is my command. Is tomorrow okay?”
“I have soccer practice tomorrow after school and then the Mariners play in the Wild Card game. How about Thursday after dinner?”
“How are you going to get my house?” Sammy knew what the answer was going to be, but he wanted to be sure. “Or do you want to meet at your house?”
“Yours is cool. I’ll ask one of my dads to take me.”
“Good enough. See you Thursday.”
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1
Since the end of soccer practice overlapped the start of the Mariner game, Aiden couldn’t help but be impatient. He wished Coach Bill would end practice early, forgetting he should be grateful that Coach Bill’s schedule allowed him to hold an early practice.
Larry had the game on the car radio when he picked up Aiden. The game was scoreless in the bottom of the second, which relieved Aiden since he hadn’t missed much. The only important thing he’d missed was Marty’s at bat. He had hit a hard ground ball to shortstop with a runner on first and one out. The Sox infield turned a routine 6-4-3 (shortstop-to second-to first) double play to end the inning.
While Jerry Andrews didn’t pitch badly, he wasn’t at his sharpest either. He gave up three runs over the first four innings including two home runs. Red Sox starter Glenn Curry was sharp, however, keeping Mariner batters off balance through four scoreless innings, allowing only two baserunners, both of whom were erased by double plays.
The Mariners ended up losing 6-0. Curry gave up only two hits over eight innings while striking out 12 and walking one. The Red Sox would be moving on to one of the two American League Division Series matches, facing the Toronto Blue Jays. For the Mariners, it would be “wait ‘till next year.” Next year looked promising. The M’s had a young ballclub with a good mix of veterans. They were disappointed to have been eliminated from the postseason so quickly, but they were also pleased to have made the postseason since nobody had given them a chance when the season started.
Aiden texted Marty his condolences and could hardly wait for the next season to start.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2
<Aiden and Sammy>
Phil drove Aiden to Sammy’s house. He and Larry had discussed how they were pleased to see Aiden getting active in recovery again. They both had done a little prodding on the subject, while trying not to leave their son with the impression that they were nagging him. They were only partially successful with that endeavor as Aiden wished they would get off his case.
Aiden said hi to Sammy’s parents; Jeffrey had left for college. They talked some about the Mariner game the day before and then Sammy guided Aiden to the sunroom, which had no sun right then since it was dark outside. “Do you want anything to drink?” Sammy asked.
“A Coke, I guess.” Aiden didn’t get to drink carbonated drinks often since his dads rarely kept any in the house. You’d think the pop cans are filled with beer or something, Aiden would grouse to himself when he felt the urge for a fizzy drink.
Sammy came back from the kitchen with two Cokes and some Doritos to snack on. “So, what are you so eager to talk about?” Sammy asked Aiden.
Aiden got right to the point. “I know I’ve been saying I’m an alcoholic in the Fourth Dimension meetings and I meant it when I first said it.”
“So, you didn’t mean it when you said it Tuesday?”
“I don’t know. I guess not. I mean, I’m twelve, how can I know it?”
“Funny how you can’t know some things because you’re twelve and then you do know things because you’re twelve.”
“What do I know?”
“You know you’re grown up enough have a boyfriend. You know how to be an athlete. You know how to be a leader. You know…”
“Okay, okay, I get it. But how can I know if I’m an alcoholic if I don’t try it?”
“You mean you want to try being an alcoholic?”
“No, I want to try drinking alcohol.”
“I seem to remember you and me having this conversation before and you admitted you probably shouldn’t drink.”
Aiden gave his sponsor an annoyed look. “So, that means I can’t change my mind?”
“You can do what you want, as far as I’m concerned. Just remember that there will be consequences.”
“I want to drink, that’s what I want.”
“Then I can’t help you.”
Aiden grabbed a Dorito, popped it into his mouth, chewed and swallowed. He then took a swallow of Coke. Sammy found himself amused by Aiden’s stalling tactics.
“You’re my sponsor. You’re supposed to help me.”
“If you come and tell me you don’t want to drink, I can help you. You can drink booze without any help, so don’t bother asking for me for help.” Sammy remembered Peter Astor telling him how he had gone through that same conversation with his sponsor.
“That is totally lame.”
“Not if you think about it.”
Aiden pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’m calling my pop to come pick me up. If you’re not going to help me, I don’t want to see you anymore.”
“Suit yourself.” Sammy wondered where this version of Aiden had come from. Maybe it’s because he’s just a middle school kid, Sammy thought. But damn, he’s always seemed to have his act together for a kid who’s not even a teenager yet. But he sure has had a hair up his ass the last few days.
Aiden called Larry to come pick him up and then walked to the front door of the house. Sammy accompanied him to the door. Aiden left the house without saying goodbye to Sammy or his parents.
“Try calling your father,” Sammy called out before closing the door. Aiden ignored him and walked to the curb and waited for his pop. No way I’m calling daddy Keegan, he thought. He’s the one who started this mess. His thoughts were interrupted by Larry driving up.
“How did it go?” Larry asked.
“Sammy said he wasn’t going to help me, so I don’t want to see him anymore.”
“Do you care to talk about it?”
“No,” Aiden answered sullenly.
Larry let out a deep sigh. Working with pubescent boys as a teacher had been one thing but working with one as a father was something else altogether.
“Talking things out helps to solve problems,” he finally said.
“Tell Sammy that.”
Larry decided he had pushed the subject far enough. Aiden would tell him what was bugging him when he was ready to do so.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4
After telling his dads goodnight, Aiden went into his routine for getting into a zone. It was a different routine than he used for baseball, but then soccer required a different kind of thinking. As he tried to center his thoughts, he noticed that as he moved his focus from his anger and resentment to where it needed to be for his game, the black cloud that had been hovering over him seemed to dissipate. It didn’t occur to him that the routines he used for getting prepared to be in the proper zone to play a game could also be used to help put him into the proper zone to help make his life more positive.
He finished with a gratitude prayer before climbing into bed. He went down onto his knees and then surprised himself when he said, “I am grateful because I don’t drink booze.” After he finished the prayer, he wondered for a moment where that came from and then let the idea drop.
When he woke up the next morning, he knew he was ready to play. He felt more focused then he had in a long time; he was in a zone. Because of the game, he would not be able to attend the morning Fourth Dimension meeting, which he didn’t think was a bad thing.
Aiden was in the center of things the moment he arrived at the field. He cheered on his teammates through warmups, played hard and heads up from the opening kick, and was a force on the field. The Cobras knocked off Winston 4-1. Aiden scored a goal and assisted Lenny’s goal and did a superb job of setting up plays and leading his team. When he went to Bob’s Burger Barn with the team, he felt good about his game and about himself. His dark cloud had been left behind somewhere.
“Do you find our son to be an enigma?” Larry asked Phil after they returned home with Aiden, Mason, Miles, and Gordy in tow. “He has more ups and downs than a roller coaster ride.”
“I think the phrase I’d heard once is an enigma wrapped inside an enigma,” Larry said. He quickly Googled the phrase. “Hmm, back in the 30’s, Winston Churchill called the Soviet Union, ‘a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.’ I think Mr. Churchill managed to eruditely describe the young adolescent boy right along with the Russians.”
Aiden and his friends spent the afternoon downstairs in the basement, wearing just their underwear or less, enjoying the activities available in the game room. Phil provided snacks and lemonade for the perpetually hungry pubescent boys. When he came downstairs with a tray of goodies, the four boys were working up a sweat playing a rousing game of naked ping pong. None of them, including Gordy, seemed upset about Phil’s appearance. He set down the tray, making sure not to linger.
Still, he had time for a quick look. He couldn’t help but note how the boys were growing; even Mason was putting a little bit of meat on his scrawny body. Of the four, Gordy was the most mature sexually. His balls were hanging, and he had a little patch of pubic hair above his cock. Miles’s cock hung lowest and he was displaying wisps of dark hair on the sides of his pubic area. Mason had the most immature sexual organs—totally hairless with tight balls and a nub of a soft penis. Knowing that Mason was quite active sexually, he assumed the boy was a grower rather than a shower.
He asked if someone could help bring down the lemonade—Mason volunteered the fastest and loudest. The game was then suspended for blueberry muffins and lemonade.
Gordy’s father picked up Gordy and Mason and took them home. Miles was staying for dinner and spending the night. The other two boys wanted to stay, but family obligations stood in their way.
<Aiden and Miles>
Even though the four boys had gone from playing games in their underwear to playing in the nude, nothing overtly sexual had happened between them. It was understood that would change between Aiden and Miles during the evening.
Both boys wore t-shirts and briefs while watching the postseason baseball game between the Red Sox and the Blue Jays. Larry, Phil, Miles, and Aiden all expressed their wishes that the Mariners were the ones playing the Blue Jays, all of them sure that their favorites would have played a better game than the Sox in losing 7-2 to the Jays at Toronto.
When Aiden and Miles finally made it to bed, they were a couple of horny boys. They were naked and unable to keep their hands off each other, which the two old friends knew was going to happen.
Aiden ran his fingers lightly along Miles’s pubic area, enjoying the feel of his friend’s wispy pubes. “How did you get so many pubes so fast?” Aiden asked.
“I dunno. One day I had none, then had I teeny ones, and then the next thing I know I got so many I can’t count them anymore. But they’re more to the sides of my dick—I got hardly any on top.”
“You’re going to have more hair than Gordy pretty soon.”
“His is all on top of his dick and way thicker, so it’s hard to tell who has more.”
“I think Nolan’s got more than you do. I know he has way more than me.”
“Everybody has more than you except maybe Mason.” Miles checked out Aiden’s almost bare pubis. “But you got teeny tiny ones coming in, which gives you more than Mason.”
“Everybody has way more than Mason, including little babies,” Aiden laughed.
“Are you and me ever going to do butt sex?”
“Do you want to?”
“In the worst way. You’re one of my best friends, and well, the way our group is going, best friends are starting to do best friends.”
Aiden rolled on his side and draped his left arm over Miles’ torso. “Well, you know that Nolan is my boyfriend, right?” Miles nodded. “We’re okay with messing around with other guys. I mean, we’re almost thirteen and always horny, plus we live in different towns, so getting off with our best friends is cool.”
Miles knew what was coming next. “But, not butt sex, right?”
“Right, unless we talk it over ahead of time and agree that we can do it with somebody. Our rule is no matter how we mess around with somebody we have tell each other about it and tell everything we did.” Aiden grinned and said, “Telling each other all that over the phone is a great way to get each other off.”
“I’ve never gotten off talking on the phone.”
“Then you gotta try it.”
“Yep. How many guys have you done butt sex with? You don’t have to give me no names.”
“Four guys,” Aiden admitted. “And you?”
“Four, but one of those was just rimming.”
Aiden’s experiences had been with Gordy, Nolan, Chase, and Logan. Miles had done it with his brother John, Mason, and Trent. The rimming session was with Lenny.
“Do you think you and me will be able to, you know, go all the way together some time?” Miles asked insistently.
“We’ll see. I can’t say yes or no, but I promise I’ll bring it up with Nolan.” While Aiden meant what he said, he made sure to not promise to do it soon.
The time for chat was at an end and horniness finally took over. Mutual masturbation in various positions followed by a sixty-nine session gave each boy a pair of orgasms before they each fell into an untroubled sleep.
Next:
Fathers and Mentors
CHAPTER 14
AIDEN AND SAMMY
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 28
<Aiden and Marty>
Marty’s phone call woke Aiden up Sunday morning, but he didn’t care. It was Marty calling and that was all Aiden needed to know.
“Did I wake you up?” Marty asked after hearing Aiden’s sleepy greeting.
“Yes.”
“Good. You need to be awake and accomplishing great things.”
“It’s easier to do great things when people let you sleep in. But this is different,” he hastily added.
“Oh?”
“Yeah, it’s you calling to tell me the Mariners will win today and play in the Wild Card game.”
“Well, if we win, we’re off to Boston to play the Red Sox in the Wild Card game on Wednesday.”
“Piece of cake.”
“I wish. I can’t chat for long, since I slept in as late as I could. Gotta get to the ballpark early for a 12:10 game.”
“Why is it starting an hour earlier than usual?”
“Come on, sport, I thought you knew this stuff.”
“I just wanted to make sure you knew it.”
Marty chuckled and said, “Ask your pop, then he can also give you shit for not knowing. Thanks for the text last night.”
“You’re welcome. Get another big hit today,” Aiden implored his idol. “No, get lots of big hits today. I’ll be watching the game at Nolan’s house.”
“I’m sure I’ll feel the love and energy. Later, dude.”
“See ya, Marty.”
<Aiden and Nolan>
Aiden and his dads arrived at Nolan’s house at quarter after eleven. Nolan dashed out of the front door as soon as he saw the car and Aiden was out of the right back door of the car as soon as Phil turned off the engine. The boys exchanged hugs and headed into the house. Aiden exchanged hellos with Nolan’s father and was surprised to receive a hug from Nolan’s mother, Vivian.
Well, Nolan said she was loosening up, Aiden thought, so maybe that means she might even like me a little bit. The widescreen television was playing in the home theater. One of the Mariner announcers was on the screen talking about the previous day’s game, but the regularly scheduled pregame show wouldn’t start until eleven thirty. Nolan grabbed the remote and turned on the sound.
Nolan and Aiden were both dressed in Mariner garb. Instead of sitting in the loveseat, they grabbed a pair of seats on the sectional and kicked out their footrests. The comfort of the footrests and reclining backs won them over. Paul Moyer sat in the sectional at a right angle to the boys. Larry and Phil ended up on the love seat.
Vivian brought out a cart with snacks and drinks. She was used to entertaining and was well-prepared. After parking the cart, she took a seat in an overstuffed chair next to her husband. She looked over at Nolan and Aiden and noted how closely they were seated, their hands surreptitiously touching. She totally disapproved of even that much touching by the boys in public. Since she knew she was totally outvoted, she elected to keep her objections to herself for the time being and focused her attention on the game.
One of the topics of conversation during the pregame show when the endless commercials came on was the fact that all 15 Major League games were starting at the same time. That meant the starting time on the west coast was 12:10 while the starting time on the east coast was 3:10, with the games in the middle time zones starting in between. The simultaneous starts had been instituted a few years before to keep the suspense generated by close races on the last day. It used to be a team playing a later game would know the outcome of an earlier game, which would remove the suspense from the later game. Other than the Mariners and Twins, the postseason berths had been decided in the American League before that final Sunday, and those two teams were playing each other. But, in the National League, the Cubs had a one game lead over the Pirates in the Central Division, but they weren’t playing each other. The fact that their games started at the same time, meant there would be a lot of scoreboard watching by the fans.
By the time the game started, Nolan had wrapped his fingers around Aiden’s hand. He and Aiden had agreed beforehand they would slowly increase their handholding until Nolan’s mother objected. Vivian knew exactly what the boys were doing. She realized she was outvoted, plus she didn’t want to ruin a family gathering by objecting. She would wait until they crossed Paul’s line, whatever that was, and he told them to ease off.
The game got off to a good start for the Mariners when rookie Gerald Beck struck out the side in the top of the first. Gerald started the season as one of the top Mariner prospects and was called up in early August after posting an 8-4 record for the Tacoma Rainiers, the Mariners AAA farm club. He had posted a 5-1 record since his callup and, along with Marty, was instrumental in the Mariners making up ground in the September pennant race.
The Mariners went down in order in the bottom of the first. Gerald gave up a two-out single in the top of the second but threw another scoreless inning. Left-fielder Wade Whalen opened the bottom of the second with a single after which first baseman Thomas Adams walked. That brought Marty, who was hitting sixth, to the plate. He took the first pitch for a strike and then sent the next pitch sailing over left field and into the Mariner bullpen.
Aiden and Nolan, battling their footrests, were on their feet screaming, whistling, yelling, and hugging each other. As much as they wanted to share a kiss, they maintained enough cool to avoid doing something they knew would likely set Nolan’s mother into a frenzy. For her part, Vivian had no problem with the yelling and hugging—it was an exciting moment after all—and was glad they didn’t carry things farther, as in sharing a kiss.
The second inning ended with the Mariners ahead 3-0. Gerald Beck remained dominant. After six innings he was throwing a two-hit shutout and had struck out 11 batters while walking none. The Mariners had scored two runs in the fifth on Wade’s two-run double and led 5-0. With two out in the seventh, Beck gave up a walk, followed by a two-run homer to make the score 5-2. Beck pitched to one more batter, giving up a one-out home run. Manager Scott Pierce walked out to the mound and signaled for a left-hander to come in from the bullpen. Gerald Beck left to a standing ovation from the sellout crowd.
The excitement over the last two innings didn’t die down at T-Mobile Park and it certainly didn’t die down in the Moyer residence. Closer Mario Diaz entered the game in the top of the ninth to protect a 6-3 lead. Aiden, Nolan, and their parents cheered every strike and out as Diaz threw a 1-2-3 inning for his 42nd save of the season. The Mariners would be playing the Boston Red Sox at Boston in the American League Wild Card game. The winner would move on to the best-of-five American League Division Series, playing the Toronto Blue Jays. The season would be over for the loser.
“How long until we eat?” Nolan asked as soon as the game and the ensuing celebrating ended.
“It’s cooking up, as you can no doubt smell,” Vivian replied. “Figure an hour for the roast to be done.”
“What do you want to do for the hour?” Nolan asked Aiden.
Before Aiden could say, “Let’s go to your bedroom,” Paul interrupted. “We’re going to the basement to run the trains if you boys would like to join us.”
Nolan had been thinking in the same terms as Aiden, but he and Aiden both enjoyed time with their dads as well. They weren’t together with all their dads very often. This day had been set up as a family day and the boys understood they would have to save their own pleasures for later. Nolan wanted to talk to Aiden for a couple of minutes before going into model train mode, however.
“We’ll be down in a couple of minutes,” Nolan responded. “I need to ask Aiden something.”
“Good enough,” Nolan’s dad replied. “We’ll see you in a few.”
Nolan and Aiden quickly retired to Nolan’s bedroom and shared a long kiss before getting down to business. Nolan flipped on his iPod and began playing some current popular music.
“I love this song,” Aiden remarked. “My dads play classical music. I really like it and play it most of the time, but I like hearing new shit now and then, too.”
“Me too,” Nolan said as he groped his boyfriend. “This is a great song.”
“I could kiss you all the way to dinner,” Aiden panted.
“No you couldn’t, because we’d kiss and kiss and kiss and then we’d be naked having sex.”
“Well, there is that. Anyway, what did you want to talk about?”
“About what you did with Gordy on Friday.”
“I told you all about it on the phone.”
“I know, but I wanted to hear it from you face-to-face, lying on my bed with no clothes on and kissing and kissing. And then, when we got totally turned on, you would get on your stomach and let me do to you what Gordy did to you.”
“But we can’t do it, now.”
Nolan placed his hands on Aiden’s shoulders and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. “I know that because we love our dads…”
“…and the model trains…”
“Right, and the model trains. Anyway, I wanted you to know what it was I wanted to do with you.”
“And you’d be doing hard and fast and way better than Gordy, who did okay for a rookie. But he wasn’t you, the pro in bed.”
“I dunno, I think you have to be a teenager to be a pro,” Nolan giggled.
“Oh cool, that means you’re going to be a pro in a month.”
“And I plan on proving it to you more than once.”
“We better go down to our dads before I get too horny and cum in my pants,” Aiden giggled.
“Oh, I’d like that.”
Aiden gave Nolan a friendly punch on his right shoulder. “Sex fiend.”
“Always when I’m around you.”
The two boyfriends adjusted their raging erections, hoping they wouldn’t be too noticeable, and headed for the basement and fun with their dads.
<Marty>
Marty met his husband, Rich, and his father, Lewis, in the family waiting area after the game. Father and husband jostled to get in the first hug, with Rich stepping aside for his father-in-law. He had almost daily access to Marty for hugs (and more) while Marty’s father didn’t.
“Great game, son. You guys looked out of the race a week ago, and now you’re off to Boston. I am so proud of you and your team.”
“Thanks, dad. It’s great to see you.”
Lewis Carlson made as many games as he could. His youngest son, Drew, had just turned six and was starting to get into sports, which kept Lewis busy as an assistant coach. He wanted to give Drew the kind of attention he had failed to give his two older sons. This weekend was too big to miss, however, and Drew would have to play soccer with just his mom watching. Drew had wanted to go to watch his big brother play, but his mom and dad let him know he was still too young to sit through a long baseball game. They didn’t even go into sitting through the long drive to Seattle.
“We’re still doing dinner, right?” Lewis asked.
“That was the plan, and I haven’t heard anything about it being changed.”
Lewis enjoyed a great dinner with his son and son-in-law. It was an event that none of them would have thought possible just a few years ago when old resentments built up during their drinking years kept father and son apart.
“I’d give my right nut to go to Boston,” Lewis said.
“Interesting,” Rich grinned. “I managed to be able to go for the cost of a plane ticket.” As Marty’s husband, Rich had complementary admission to the game.
“I guess that’s your reward for clean living.”
“Dad can afford to give up that nut,” Marty said. “He proved his virility as an old man by fathering another son.”
“Who are you calling old?” Lewis snorted.
“Hey, you’ve been my old man since I was a wild and crazy teen.”
“Speaking of old men fathering sons, are two ever going to get into the grandkid supplying business?”
“You mean Drew hasn’t been at work on the project?” Marty chuckled.
“He still hasn’t figured out that his pecker is for more than pissing.”
“I’ve seen his hand wander south at times.”
“And his mom sends it moving north again…nicely of course.”
“Of course. She’s a mom being a mom. Which brings us to John, whose congratulatory text just arrived.” John was Marty’s older brother by just over a year. He worked for Oracle and lived in the San Francisco Bay area. “He looks like a good grandson provider. He and Jenna appear to be in a pretty serious relationship.”
“Well, I was asking about you. I know a lot of gay couples adopt and was wondering if the two of you have talked about it.”
“We’ve talked about adopting or going through a surrogate mother,” Rich replied. “There are plusses and minuses to both, and we haven’t decided on anything except we want to wait for Marty’s career to stabilize.”
“The way he’s been playing since his callup, things are looking pretty good on that account.”
“It does, but the adage among us rookies is that getting to the Majors is fairly easy. It’s STAYING there that’s tough,” Marty said. “If we’re going to have a kid, Rich is going to be the stay at home dad and I’m going to need a big-league salary for him to do that. With me in the minors we needed both of us working to keep our heads above water.”
Lewis nodded in understanding. “From my point of view, if you two had a kid, I don’t care whose blood was in it, I’d love it like I would my own flesh-and-blood grandkid. The key thing for me is that you two have a happy life together. I know that being out in public like you two are has to put increased tension into your lives.”
“Not as much as you’d think. Yes, there are assholes, especially on the road, but the league and ballclub have been great in policing things. They treat gay harassment just like racial and sexual harassment. They’re right on top of things.”
“Once upon a time, I would have been one of those giving you shit,” Lewis said with a shake of his head.
“But you’re not one of those today. I love you, dad,” Marty said sincerely, looking directly into the eyes of his father.
“And I love you son.” Lewis shifted his gaze to Rich. “And I love you son-in-law.”
“Thanks, dad-in-law. I love you, too. You and my parents have become friends, so you know their dilemma.”
“Yep. Two sons, both of them gay. Your parents are very patient people, and quite lovely.”
Rich shifted topics. “We’re lucky, today. In a couple of years my hubby is going to have problems going out in public without being recognized.”
“I’ll be sure to carry a NO AUTOGRAPHS sign,” Marty chuckled.
“You know you love signing them.”
“I never could pull anything over on you,” Marty agreed with a smile. “And you’re right - I do love signing them, especially for the kids.”
The waitress arrived with their orders and the men quickly dug into their seafood entrees. “One of the great things about living in this part of the world is eating fresh caught salmon,” Lewis commented.
“You’ve caught more than your share of salmon over the years,” Marty said.
“You and I fishing together was great times. Sadly, we didn’t have enough of those times. I think the first time you got drunk was fishing with me when you were like ten or eleven.”
“Remember, dad, we don’t regret the past.”
“In that case, how about living in the present with me and joining me for some fishing after you guys win the World Series.”
“You’re on, dad. Be prepared to be out-fished.” Father and son traded fist bumps and, with Rich, enjoyed the best meal the three of them had eaten together.
<Aiden and Nolan>
Aiden and Nolan enjoyed a few minutes of private time in Nolan’s bedroom after enjoying father/son time with their fathers, followed by Vivian’s delicious roast beef dinner. They were disappointed they couldn’t show their love for each other physically, but they were also happy to have spent bonding time with their dads.
“I just wish we didn’t live so far apart,” Nolan lamented.
“But we do have a pretty cool change coming,” Aiden reminded his lover. “Dad says that the hiking/bicycle trail from Highway 12 to Meadow Park is coming along on schedule and should be finished by May. I don’t know about you, but my dads told me as soon as it’s finished, they’ll let me do daylight rides from my house to yours.”
“My dad thinks it’s a great idea, but mom isn’t so sure. I think that’s another argument dad is going to win. The Judge is tough to beat in an argument.”
“Which you know from experience,” Aiden giggled.
“For sure. And I also know from experience that the best way for us to say goodbye to each other is a big, wet kiss.”
“Then what are we waiting for? My dads are going yell for me any second.”
The big, wet kiss happened on Nolan’s bed with the two twelve-year-old boys on their sides facing each other. They traded as much tongue, saliva, and love as they could while their hands snaked inside each other’s shorts in the hope of creating a climax to their afternoon together. As horny as they were, they needed more than the three minutes they ended up having.
“Fuck,” Aiden grumped as he heard Larry call for him. “My dads have the worst timing on Earth.”
He and Nolan got off the bed, straightened their clothes, traded a final kiss, and made their way to the living room. As much as they would have liked to complain about not having any sex together, they were good enough kids to know they had enjoyed a fabulous day together. They promised to make up for lost orgasms next time.
“You could have given us more time together,” Aiden complained as he and his dads pulled away from the Moyer house.
“Time for what?” Larry asked slyly.
“Just time.”
“Maybe it’s about time for the boyfriends to have an overnight.”
“Tell me about it.”
“I take it that outside of the game you didn’t have a good time today,” Phil said.
“I had a great time with you guys and the trains. I just wish I had a few more minutes alone with Nolan.”
“Well, you know what they say about time,” Larry said.
“No, I don’t know, but I know you’ll tell me.”
“Time flies like an arrow and fruit flies like bananas.”
Aiden folded his arms and glared at the front seat. “And some TIMES I hate you guys,” which started his dads roaring with laughter with Aiden quickly joining in.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30
<Fourth Dimension Meeting>
“Hi, Aiden,” Grant smiled as he saw his friend come into the church meeting room. Grant was busily setting up the meeting room. “I haven’t seen you here in a while.”
“I’ve been busy,” Aiden said, not bothering to elaborate. The boys made a point of not discussing the Fourth Dimension at school.
Before Grant could respond, Sammy and Peter Astor entered the room. “Hi, guys,” Sammy said cheerily. Grant and Aiden greeted the two teens in return.
“It looks like you have no soccer, no piles of homework, and no endless chores assigned by your dads,” Sammy told Aiden as the four boys worked together to complete the setup.
“I just wanted to be here,” Aiden said.
“That’s good enough for me.”
When the start time for the meeting arrived, nine members had arrived. Aiden didn’t see any new faces. He was happy to see Rusty there and pleased that he seemed to be settling in since the school year had started. He knew that Rusty and Collin had become close.
Peter Astor, who was the meeting chair, opened the meeting on time. Aiden had volunteered to be one of the opening readers and read the Twelve Traditions. The meeting topic was honesty.
When Aiden elected to share, he opened by saying, “My name is Aiden, and I’m an alcoholic,” as he had before his reading, even if he didn’t feel like one. He had come to the meeting because it made his dads happy more than because he wanted to be there. After he finished his share on honesty, he felt like he had sounded totally lame. He was sorry he had come since he really had nothing to say and wasn’t particularly interested in hearing what everyone else had to say.
After the meeting ended, Aiden told Sammy he wanted to talk to him. Sammy herded Aiden into a far corner of the room. “Whazzup dude?” Sammy asked his sponsee.
“I want to meet with you.”
“It’s been way too long since you’ve wanted that. What provokes this desire?”
“I just want to talk and not on the phone.”
“You’re wish is my command. Is tomorrow okay?”
“I have soccer practice tomorrow after school and then the Mariners play in the Wild Card game. How about Thursday after dinner?”
“How are you going to get my house?” Sammy knew what the answer was going to be, but he wanted to be sure. “Or do you want to meet at your house?”
“Yours is cool. I’ll ask one of my dads to take me.”
“Good enough. See you Thursday.”
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1
Since the end of soccer practice overlapped the start of the Mariner game, Aiden couldn’t help but be impatient. He wished Coach Bill would end practice early, forgetting he should be grateful that Coach Bill’s schedule allowed him to hold an early practice.
Larry had the game on the car radio when he picked up Aiden. The game was scoreless in the bottom of the second, which relieved Aiden since he hadn’t missed much. The only important thing he’d missed was Marty’s at bat. He had hit a hard ground ball to shortstop with a runner on first and one out. The Sox infield turned a routine 6-4-3 (shortstop-to second-to first) double play to end the inning.
While Jerry Andrews didn’t pitch badly, he wasn’t at his sharpest either. He gave up three runs over the first four innings including two home runs. Red Sox starter Glenn Curry was sharp, however, keeping Mariner batters off balance through four scoreless innings, allowing only two baserunners, both of whom were erased by double plays.
The Mariners ended up losing 6-0. Curry gave up only two hits over eight innings while striking out 12 and walking one. The Red Sox would be moving on to one of the two American League Division Series matches, facing the Toronto Blue Jays. For the Mariners, it would be “wait ‘till next year.” Next year looked promising. The M’s had a young ballclub with a good mix of veterans. They were disappointed to have been eliminated from the postseason so quickly, but they were also pleased to have made the postseason since nobody had given them a chance when the season started.
Aiden texted Marty his condolences and could hardly wait for the next season to start.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2
<Aiden and Sammy>
Phil drove Aiden to Sammy’s house. He and Larry had discussed how they were pleased to see Aiden getting active in recovery again. They both had done a little prodding on the subject, while trying not to leave their son with the impression that they were nagging him. They were only partially successful with that endeavor as Aiden wished they would get off his case.
Aiden said hi to Sammy’s parents; Jeffrey had left for college. They talked some about the Mariner game the day before and then Sammy guided Aiden to the sunroom, which had no sun right then since it was dark outside. “Do you want anything to drink?” Sammy asked.
“A Coke, I guess.” Aiden didn’t get to drink carbonated drinks often since his dads rarely kept any in the house. You’d think the pop cans are filled with beer or something, Aiden would grouse to himself when he felt the urge for a fizzy drink.
Sammy came back from the kitchen with two Cokes and some Doritos to snack on. “So, what are you so eager to talk about?” Sammy asked Aiden.
Aiden got right to the point. “I know I’ve been saying I’m an alcoholic in the Fourth Dimension meetings and I meant it when I first said it.”
“So, you didn’t mean it when you said it Tuesday?”
“I don’t know. I guess not. I mean, I’m twelve, how can I know it?”
“Funny how you can’t know some things because you’re twelve and then you do know things because you’re twelve.”
“What do I know?”
“You know you’re grown up enough have a boyfriend. You know how to be an athlete. You know how to be a leader. You know…”
“Okay, okay, I get it. But how can I know if I’m an alcoholic if I don’t try it?”
“You mean you want to try being an alcoholic?”
“No, I want to try drinking alcohol.”
“I seem to remember you and me having this conversation before and you admitted you probably shouldn’t drink.”
Aiden gave his sponsor an annoyed look. “So, that means I can’t change my mind?”
“You can do what you want, as far as I’m concerned. Just remember that there will be consequences.”
“I want to drink, that’s what I want.”
“Then I can’t help you.”
Aiden grabbed a Dorito, popped it into his mouth, chewed and swallowed. He then took a swallow of Coke. Sammy found himself amused by Aiden’s stalling tactics.
“You’re my sponsor. You’re supposed to help me.”
“If you come and tell me you don’t want to drink, I can help you. You can drink booze without any help, so don’t bother asking for me for help.” Sammy remembered Peter Astor telling him how he had gone through that same conversation with his sponsor.
“That is totally lame.”
“Not if you think about it.”
Aiden pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’m calling my pop to come pick me up. If you’re not going to help me, I don’t want to see you anymore.”
“Suit yourself.” Sammy wondered where this version of Aiden had come from. Maybe it’s because he’s just a middle school kid, Sammy thought. But damn, he’s always seemed to have his act together for a kid who’s not even a teenager yet. But he sure has had a hair up his ass the last few days.
Aiden called Larry to come pick him up and then walked to the front door of the house. Sammy accompanied him to the door. Aiden left the house without saying goodbye to Sammy or his parents.
“Try calling your father,” Sammy called out before closing the door. Aiden ignored him and walked to the curb and waited for his pop. No way I’m calling daddy Keegan, he thought. He’s the one who started this mess. His thoughts were interrupted by Larry driving up.
“How did it go?” Larry asked.
“Sammy said he wasn’t going to help me, so I don’t want to see him anymore.”
“Do you care to talk about it?”
“No,” Aiden answered sullenly.
Larry let out a deep sigh. Working with pubescent boys as a teacher had been one thing but working with one as a father was something else altogether.
“Talking things out helps to solve problems,” he finally said.
“Tell Sammy that.”
Larry decided he had pushed the subject far enough. Aiden would tell him what was bugging him when he was ready to do so.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4
After telling his dads goodnight, Aiden went into his routine for getting into a zone. It was a different routine than he used for baseball, but then soccer required a different kind of thinking. As he tried to center his thoughts, he noticed that as he moved his focus from his anger and resentment to where it needed to be for his game, the black cloud that had been hovering over him seemed to dissipate. It didn’t occur to him that the routines he used for getting prepared to be in the proper zone to play a game could also be used to help put him into the proper zone to help make his life more positive.
He finished with a gratitude prayer before climbing into bed. He went down onto his knees and then surprised himself when he said, “I am grateful because I don’t drink booze.” After he finished the prayer, he wondered for a moment where that came from and then let the idea drop.
When he woke up the next morning, he knew he was ready to play. He felt more focused then he had in a long time; he was in a zone. Because of the game, he would not be able to attend the morning Fourth Dimension meeting, which he didn’t think was a bad thing.
Aiden was in the center of things the moment he arrived at the field. He cheered on his teammates through warmups, played hard and heads up from the opening kick, and was a force on the field. The Cobras knocked off Winston 4-1. Aiden scored a goal and assisted Lenny’s goal and did a superb job of setting up plays and leading his team. When he went to Bob’s Burger Barn with the team, he felt good about his game and about himself. His dark cloud had been left behind somewhere.
“Do you find our son to be an enigma?” Larry asked Phil after they returned home with Aiden, Mason, Miles, and Gordy in tow. “He has more ups and downs than a roller coaster ride.”
“I think the phrase I’d heard once is an enigma wrapped inside an enigma,” Larry said. He quickly Googled the phrase. “Hmm, back in the 30’s, Winston Churchill called the Soviet Union, ‘a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.’ I think Mr. Churchill managed to eruditely describe the young adolescent boy right along with the Russians.”
Aiden and his friends spent the afternoon downstairs in the basement, wearing just their underwear or less, enjoying the activities available in the game room. Phil provided snacks and lemonade for the perpetually hungry pubescent boys. When he came downstairs with a tray of goodies, the four boys were working up a sweat playing a rousing game of naked ping pong. None of them, including Gordy, seemed upset about Phil’s appearance. He set down the tray, making sure not to linger.
Still, he had time for a quick look. He couldn’t help but note how the boys were growing; even Mason was putting a little bit of meat on his scrawny body. Of the four, Gordy was the most mature sexually. His balls were hanging, and he had a little patch of pubic hair above his cock. Miles’s cock hung lowest and he was displaying wisps of dark hair on the sides of his pubic area. Mason had the most immature sexual organs—totally hairless with tight balls and a nub of a soft penis. Knowing that Mason was quite active sexually, he assumed the boy was a grower rather than a shower.
He asked if someone could help bring down the lemonade—Mason volunteered the fastest and loudest. The game was then suspended for blueberry muffins and lemonade.
Gordy’s father picked up Gordy and Mason and took them home. Miles was staying for dinner and spending the night. The other two boys wanted to stay, but family obligations stood in their way.
<Aiden and Miles>
Even though the four boys had gone from playing games in their underwear to playing in the nude, nothing overtly sexual had happened between them. It was understood that would change between Aiden and Miles during the evening.
Both boys wore t-shirts and briefs while watching the postseason baseball game between the Red Sox and the Blue Jays. Larry, Phil, Miles, and Aiden all expressed their wishes that the Mariners were the ones playing the Blue Jays, all of them sure that their favorites would have played a better game than the Sox in losing 7-2 to the Jays at Toronto.
When Aiden and Miles finally made it to bed, they were a couple of horny boys. They were naked and unable to keep their hands off each other, which the two old friends knew was going to happen.
Aiden ran his fingers lightly along Miles’s pubic area, enjoying the feel of his friend’s wispy pubes. “How did you get so many pubes so fast?” Aiden asked.
“I dunno. One day I had none, then had I teeny ones, and then the next thing I know I got so many I can’t count them anymore. But they’re more to the sides of my dick—I got hardly any on top.”
“You’re going to have more hair than Gordy pretty soon.”
“His is all on top of his dick and way thicker, so it’s hard to tell who has more.”
“I think Nolan’s got more than you do. I know he has way more than me.”
“Everybody has more than you except maybe Mason.” Miles checked out Aiden’s almost bare pubis. “But you got teeny tiny ones coming in, which gives you more than Mason.”
“Everybody has way more than Mason, including little babies,” Aiden laughed.
“Are you and me ever going to do butt sex?”
“Do you want to?”
“In the worst way. You’re one of my best friends, and well, the way our group is going, best friends are starting to do best friends.”
Aiden rolled on his side and draped his left arm over Miles’ torso. “Well, you know that Nolan is my boyfriend, right?” Miles nodded. “We’re okay with messing around with other guys. I mean, we’re almost thirteen and always horny, plus we live in different towns, so getting off with our best friends is cool.”
Miles knew what was coming next. “But, not butt sex, right?”
“Right, unless we talk it over ahead of time and agree that we can do it with somebody. Our rule is no matter how we mess around with somebody we have tell each other about it and tell everything we did.” Aiden grinned and said, “Telling each other all that over the phone is a great way to get each other off.”
“I’ve never gotten off talking on the phone.”
“Then you gotta try it.”
“Yep. How many guys have you done butt sex with? You don’t have to give me no names.”
“Four guys,” Aiden admitted. “And you?”
“Four, but one of those was just rimming.”
Aiden’s experiences had been with Gordy, Nolan, Chase, and Logan. Miles had done it with his brother John, Mason, and Trent. The rimming session was with Lenny.
“Do you think you and me will be able to, you know, go all the way together some time?” Miles asked insistently.
“We’ll see. I can’t say yes or no, but I promise I’ll bring it up with Nolan.” While Aiden meant what he said, he made sure to not promise to do it soon.
The time for chat was at an end and horniness finally took over. Mutual masturbation in various positions followed by a sixty-nine session gave each boy a pair of orgasms before they each fell into an untroubled sleep.
Next:
Fathers and Mentors