“DAVID, WAIT!” Kevin yelled, his tone of voice more pleading than commanding.
David halted, wishing he could erase the image of his boyfriend locking lips with their former attacker, John Lewis.
Before he could say anything else, David turned back toward the pair and watched as Kevin spun around shooting an angry glare at John. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing? Is this some kind of sick joke, or are you trying to set me up in front of my boyfriend to ruin another victory on the track that didn’t include your too-slow ass?” David’s eyes widened. He had never heard Kevin spew such a virulent rant, even when they had experienced their own brief breakup after David’s withdrawal.
Kevin continued, not allowing John to respond. “Do you have any idea how much I hate you right now? And you can ask anyone who’s known me for more than five minutes—I don’t do hate.” Kevin took a quick breath and pressed on. “You really think you’re the goddamned entitled exception to all rules. You participate in nearly beating the crap out of me and the guy I’m dating, and then you want to be my teammate when your own school won’t even give you a second chance. I respect Trumbull Academy more than ever on that account alone. Now, now, you dare to make a fucking pass at me! Is it because you were trapped in the closet around your bigoted gang of asshole friends or because you want to sabotage my relationship, to set David and me up for a fall during the 10,000 later today? It sure as hell can’t be anything else because I’ve never given you any reason to think I would be the least bit attracted to you. Although I’ve never said it, partly because I’m the team captain and it wouldn’t be appropriate, I’m completely and utterly repulsed by you. Every time we have to practice together, I want to rip your throat out for putting your hands on David and forcing him to watch your old pals beat the crap out of me. Earlier, when you asked if we could be buddies and get together outside of school, I had no idea you meant it as a fucking date!”
Hearing Kevin practically panting after allowing himself the privilege of saying all he honestly felt about John, David slowly walked closer to him. Placing an arm around Kevin’s waist, David guided him to sit on a nearby bench set in front of the long line of gym lockers. David then sat beside Kevin and looked up at John. David narrowed his eyes, and with all the venom he could inject into his tone of voice, he stated clearly, “If you ever put your hands, lips, or any other part of your body near, or on, my boyfriend again I will start at the top of your ugly face and rip you apart piece by piece until I reach your weak, overrated running feet.”
For the first time since David made his untimely discovery, John risked opening his mouth to speak. “You have no idea how hard it was at Trumbull. I would never have been accepted if they knew.”
Kevin lifted his head. His breathing was no longer labored, and the tension had left his shoulders as they relaxed under David’s touch. “You have no idea how they’d react because you never gave them the chance. A few choice jerks don’t make up an entire team, let alone an entire school. You’re just a big fat coward. You have no backbone and no confidence in yourself or your self-worth. How the hell can you be a competitor when you’re self-defeating in your own personal life?”
“What the hell do you know? You have it easy at West Hartford High.” The envy in John’s voice was evident, but David felt no sympathy. John had lost the chance to earn his support the moment he crossed the line with Kevin. “This is the first time I’ve allowed myself to express how I really feel.”
“Except you’re wrong all around.” Kevin stood up again; this time his shoulders were squared and his back straight and tall. His voice was even and firm, yet calm. David was glad to see Kevin back in control. “It wasn’t easy coming out. Hell, despite my family’s complete acceptance and support, illustrating their feelings by treating my announcement as barely a blip on their radar, my friends had some trouble with it. But I didn’t back down or crawl into a hole. I became a proud person who stood up for himself, and I still do. You might want to try it. You get a shitload more respect that way rather than acting like a stereotypical closet case aggressor.”
Kevin licked his lips. If the moment hadn’t been so intense, David would have found it sexy, but instead the eloquence Kevin demonstrated mesmerized David. “You knew David and I were, and are, going out together. What you did today was disrespectful to both of us—your teammates. So I’m going to make sure you either play by the rules or you’re off the team.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” The nervous timbre of John’s voice was evident. David, although not worried, was curious about where Kevin was going with his statement.
“Your time today was marginal at best. None of us broke any records despite David and my medal-winning showing. I have a deal for you.”
A few drops of sweat appeared on John’s forehead. “What kind of a deal?”
“Rather than dumping you from the team automatically, I’m going to give you one last chance. I know you don’t run the 10,000 so we can’t resolve this today, but going forward, you make sure to behave as if everyone on our team has earned your utmost respect, starting from Coach Garrett to the slowest replacement runner.”
“I can do that.” John jumped in and ventured a half smile until Kevin furthered the deal.
“We have another major meet next month. It’s the first of several where college scouts will be present. If you finish with either a medal, or at least a time that surpasses your current recorded personal best, you can stay on the team.” When Kevin finished his offer, he immediately took David’s hand and gave it a firm squeeze before letting go.
“And what if I can’t manage either of those?” John’s shoulders were slightly hunched, but he continued to look at Kevin.
“If you can’t meet those requirements, you don’t wait for anyone else to take action, you quit the team. You can tell the world you don’t have the time to practice as much as you need to maintain the high level of skill needed, or whatever the hell you decide to use as your excuse. This way, you bow out with a modicum of dignity, and I don’t have to jump through hoops to get your ass kicked off a team that worked great without you. In other words, either you become a team player in every sense of the term or you’re out.” Kevin paused and stared directly into John’s eyes. “Is that crystal clear? Do you agree, or do I announce to an entire stadium you made an unwelcome pass at your team captain?” David was shocked by Kevin’s threat but stood still and silent.
John glanced from Kevin to David and back again. He nodded.
“I want to hear it out loud.”
“Okay. You win. I agree.”
“I didn’t win shit!” Kevin shocked David when he continued. “If it was up to me, you’d be off now, but I have more respect for my team, for David, and for myself to do anything too rash. Hell, maybe you’ll actually try to win a race or two with enough motivation.” Kevin turned away from John and faced David. Even though he wasn’t looking at him, Kevin finished one last warning. “If I was you, I wouldn’t risk welching on the bet. Too many people would believe my version of the deal, and you’d have no life worth living left at West Hartford High.” He paused briefly. “And if you ever do or say anything to hurt David and me again, as a couple, I will beat the crap out of you, one on one. Trust me, you wouldn’t have a prayer. Now get the fuck out of here and support our team with everything you’ve got or you’re gone.”
The last two words John dared to say before he wisely hurried out of the locker room were, “I understand.”
Kevin continued to stare into David’s eyes, as the two faced each other. As soon as the locker room door shut with a loud bang, indicating they were alone, Kevin grabbed David, drawing him in and pressing their bodies close together. He then firmly planted his lips on David’s. Kevin immediately pushed his tongue inside David’s mouth. David moaned into the pleasure of the heated and passionate contact. He automatically returned the tight embrace. After the intensity and panic brought on by the alarming events from the moment he had
walked into the room, David and Kevin poured everything into their intense contact.
Although separating from Kevin wasn’t welcome, David and he parted. The two laughed as they looked into each other’s eyes.
Kevin spoke first. “I needed to feel you close. To know you believed every word I said despite how it must have looked when you walked in.”
David bit his lip for a moment. “I have to admit, after all your talk about trust, I was pretty shocked until I heard the tone of your voice when you called me back. I do trust you, Kevin, and I knew there had to be some explanation, although finding out John’s gay wasn’t what I expected at all.”
“I was as shocked as you, and nauseated.” Kevin and David chuckled again.
“I think we’d better get out of here before this goes too far, and we use up the energy we need for later. Besides, I think lunch break should be coming up pretty soon, and we also have to be on hand to cheer on our sprinters.”
“Good advice, David.” Kevin took his hand as they walked toward the exit. “Always know, I would never do anything like that behind your back. What I feel for you, well, it’s uhm….” Kevin’s voice trailed off.
“I know. I feel the same about you.” David ducked his head slightly when he felt his cheeks warming.
“Let’s go win this thing.” Kevin pushed open the locker room door, and the two jogged out to join their team and mentally leave the encounter with John behind to prepare for their final race scheduled later in the afternoon.
Chapter 25
DAVID CHECKED himself out in the full-length mirror attached to the back of his bedroom door. Although the 10,000 meter didn’t finish quite as he and Kevin had expected, with Kevin taking second and David taking third, David hoped their night out would make up for the disappointment. After confirming he had picked the right black jeans and navy long sleeved T-shirt, David thought back to his father’s words after the officials distributed the final medal at the end of the meet.
“This is not a loss, boys. Consider it an education. You now know there’s competition out there who want to take your rightful places on the podium. Don’t let it happen again.” David’s dad glanced toward Steve. “I’m sure your coach would disagree with me, but my advice is to try to put this behind you and make sure you strategize as to how to improve by the time the next meet comes along.”
Steve turned toward Rob, having just completed his congratulations to several sprinters who were taking home awards of their own. “What makes you think I’d disagree?”
Rob chuckled. “Don’t you coaching types watch and review past races over and over to learn from them, never letting them be forgotten?”
“We do review, but not ad nauseam as you seem to be implying.”
David quickly intervened. “Hey, you guys, don’t get into an argument about our training styles and approaches. We’ll get there.” He side-eyed Kevin. “Let’s just say we were a little distracted by the time the second race was called.”
“Do we need to keep you two apart at meets?” Steve stood between Kevin and David, patting them both on the back as they all walked slowly toward the parking lot surrounded by the rest of the team and their families and friends.
Jogging backward right in front of their little portion of the group, Jesse turned to face Steve. “Just try to keep them apart. I dare you. They are impossible when they’re together. It’s getting pretty sickening.”
Kevin’s eyes widened. “What the hell are you talking about? How have you had a chance to watch how we behave? You’re always glued to your football jock—at the lips. I’m surprised you’re even here today.”
Jesse giggled. “Okay, maybe I don’t pay that much attention to you and your Mr. Wonderful over there.” She pointed to David. “But ever since you got back together, you’re like conjoined twins whenever you’re not in class.”
“Yeah, right.” Kevin rolled his eyes.
David tried to keep a straight face but couldn’t contain his smile.
“I’m glad we get to see you from time to time, Jesse. Otherwise, I’d never get to hear all these important pieces of information about my son.”
“No problem, Mr. Martin.” Jesse turned to walk forward, finally facing the same direction as the rest of group. “And to answer your question, big brother, I wanted to watch you compete today and cheer you on. Craig has a football game tomorrow, so he’s following his coach’s instructions by keeping clear of the girlfriend for the day.”
“Good to know I wasn’t completely second choice.” Kevin smirked, and Jesse playfully elbowed him in the ribs.
Nodding his head as he glanced at his reflection once more, David hoped his night with Kevin would be everything he imagined it would and could be. The last time they had planned to go out after a meet was almost the end of their relationship, and David didn’t want a repeat of that. Since they had reunited, he and Kevin had grown closer and closer.
Although it was new territory for David, he totally trusted Kevin and willingly allowed him to take the lead as their relationship took a more intimate turn, gradually becoming more physical. They didn’t always have the privacy or time to enjoy each other as much as they would like, but what they had done made David feel more alive than he could ever remember. Whenever Kevin touched him, David felt electricity between them. Contact between the two easily escalated to levels of passion David had previously thought could only happen in the movies. Knowing how much he could be lit from within when kissing, holding, and exploring with the guy he cared about so much, made him even more excited about the night ahead.
Despite David’s inexperience, Kevin seemed to get lost in his touch and clearly returned the feelings. Watching Kevin’s back arch the last time they were alone in Kevin’s bedroom and hearing him moan out David’s name from just the ministrations of his hand had nearly made David want to go even further.
Fortunately, Kevin was wise enough to know neither of them was ready for more. They needed to grow closer and grow up in their relationship before taking it to a far more intimate level. David raised his hands to his cheeks, feeling them heating up at the thought of where the next physical connection with Kevin could lead. He had to calm down before Kevin came to the apartment to pick him up. David even detected himself responding to his own wishful thinking about how the evening would play out as his jeans tightened.
David started to think about his mothers and what they were doing in Europe and the deal Kevin had made with John. Those two things certainly diverted David’s focus from his physical yearnings. Before he had any more time to think, he heard the buzzer ring, alerting them someone was at the building’s front entrance. David heard his father press the associated button in their own apartment to let Kevin into the building.
Hearing the door to the apartment open, David walked out of his room to greet Kevin. The first words he heard come out of Kevin’s mouth surprised him.
“Sorry, Coach. We should have won the whole meet. If I’d come in first in the 10,000 we would have earned the points. Instead, Trumbull took home the biggest prize. They have some great sprinters, and their star distance man was primed for the final race today.”
“Kevin, take it down a notch. You guys had a great showing. We took home a lot of medals. Next time more of them will be gold and we’ll win.” Relieved to hear Steve’s response, David let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding, anticipating an evening of Kevin’s stress and regrets.
“The most important meet is next month.” Kevin’s voice was a bit shaky. “I don’t want the scouts to stop looking our way.”
“They won’t. Relax. You all did well. It’s good to have room for improvement. We’ll talk about it on Monday.” Steve squeezed Kevin’s shoulder. “Have a good time tonight, and don’t let the results of today’s meet get you down.”
Before David could say anything, his father spoke up. “Kevin, it looks like you have something more on your mind. Care to share why guilt is written all over your face? I’ve been wit
h Steve long enough to know this isn’t the first meet West Hartford didn’t come out on top. And I’ve been a reporter long enough to recognize a person who needs to come clean about something significant.”
David swallowed hard. Now he understood where all of Kevin’s inner turmoil was coming from. David didn’t know whether Kevin would be willing to confess to his bargain with John. He remained silent, watching and waiting.
Kevin looked down as if checking whether he had tied his sneaker laces. When he finally looked up, David noticed Kevin’s brow was furrowed. “I’m not sure what to say, but I did something today that probably falls under the category of ‘unethical’ in the sports world.”
Steve stood alongside Rob and nodded. “I see. I gather this isn’t something you’d be willing to share with your coach in case it means I may have to take action.”
“You could say that. It’s just—I’m not sure if you’d really need to do anything.” Kevin spoke softly, but his words were clear.
David quickly intervened, hoping his words would help ease Kevin’s mind. “Kevin, you don’t have to say anything. Just because my dads are nosy doesn’t mean you have to cave in to everything they want you to do or say.” The last thing David wanted was to have Kevin incriminate himself and hurt his chances to remain as captain of the track team, let alone remain on it at all.
“Relax, David, I know I’m free to say nothing, or everything, or whatever I want. I just don’t want to lie.”
“I know how you feel about trust, but my guess is this isn’t the time to take it to the extreme.”
Looking at David, Steve stepped closer to the boys. “Sounds like you know what Kevin is feeling guilty about.”
“I do, but it’s not my story to tell.”
“Steve.” David’s father gently tugged on Steve’s arm, drawing him back alongside him. “I know you’re the boys’ coach, but in this house—”
“In this house I’m a parent, and I relish keeping that role. I intend to be David’s parent far longer than his coach.” Steve looked from David to Kevin. “I won’t pry, but if there’s anything you want to tell me, in our home, there won’t be any consequences other than relieving your own conscience.”
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