by Drew Hunt
“…and when the old Hamilton place was fixed up and ready to sell,” Brock concluded, “and Calvin was getting ready to go back to New York, I decided me and Junior should go with him…for a vacation. And, well, we kinda never left.”
“Perfect.” Milton clapped his hands together.
“Yeah,” Calvin sighed, looking sweetly at his partner.
JJ cleared his throat, sure the two older men were about to start sucking face again. “Is there any pie left?”
* * * *
“It started out okay, but pretty soon got embarrassing,” JJ told Maggie over the phone later that night.
“Oh?”
“My dads were all kissy-kissy. God, at their age, it’s gross.”
“You’re just jealous.”
Calvin had said the exact same thing. “And whose fault is that?”
“You know what they say, treat ’em mean and keep ’em keen.”
“That’s your wicked plan.” He groaned.
“Oh, poor baby,” she soothed. “So, what happened, besides your dads making out at the dinner table?”
JJ rolled his eyes. “Not just at the table, but in the hallway, in the middle of the kitchen, and—”
Maggie moaned. She’d told JJ a number of times how hot she thought two men making out were.
“Am I turning you on?” JJ asked. If so, he’d continue. He was becoming desperate, he’d try anything to convince Maggie to go to third base…and beyond. He loved her so much and wanted to give physical expression to those feelings.
“Back to Milton. How did he get on with your dads?”
JJ sighed, thwarted again. “Great. He told Calvin about why he wouldn’t use his locker.” JJ explained about the girl who’d poured crap through the vents. “But he didn’t say which girls had done it.”
“I bet I know.”
“Who?”
“I’m not saying. You just leave ’em to me.”
“Be careful, I don’t want to make things worse for Milton. We probably solved the problem anyway, by moving his locker closer to ours.”
“Okay,” Maggie conceded. “You’re probably right.”
In his darkened bedroom JJ snuggled under the covers. “I’m always right,” he said, trying for seductive.
“Don’t push it, buster,” she threatened. “You said Milton got on all right with Calvin. That was pretty much a given. But what about your dad?”
JJ sighed. “Oh, God, that’s the really embarrassing part.”
“Why, did Milton melt into a puddle of goo or something at his feet?”
JJ shook his head. “Pretty much, yeah.”
“Like I keep telling you, your dad’s, like, a total stud.”
“Gross!” JJ screwed up his face. Then he got an idea. “I’m supposed to look like a younger version of my dad, so that must make me a stud, too, huh?”
Maggie laughed. “Maybe, in a few years.”
“A few years? Oh, man!” JJ banged his head against the headboard a couple of times.
“Poor baby. But getting back to Milton’s visit, you think it helped him?”
“I guess. But he got upset when he left. We needed a few groceries from the bodega so I rode the elevator with him. Milton was quiet.”
“He usually is.”
“I know, but with my dads, especially Calvin, I couldn’t shut him up. So I asked him what was wrong. He said, ‘Would it ruin your straight jock rep to give me a hug?’”
“Oh?”
“I shrugged, you know I don’t care about that shit. Anyway, the dude was shaking. The elevator stopped on the ground floor, but Milton didn’t make a move to get out, so I didn’t either.
“Eventually Milton said, ‘It’s not fair.’ I asked him what he meant but he didn’t say anything.”
“I’d have thought it was obvious what he meant.”
“Yeah,” JJ conceded. “So we stepped off the elevator and went through the lobby. Milton’s shivering increased and he wasn’t wearing a jacket, so I took mine off and laid it over his shoulders.”
Maggie sighed.
“What?”
“Oh, JJ, you just don’t get it, do you?”
“What?” JJ repeated.
“That will have made Milton feel worse.”
“How did you know that’s what happened?”
Milton had reacted badly to the offer of the jacket. Milton told JJ he was being cruel, letting him see what it could be like having a boyfriend, but all the while knowing JJ couldn’t be that boyfriend. JJ had stood unmoving as Milton raced down the subway steps, confused as to what he’d done wrong.
“I know you were only trying to do the right thing, and I love you for it,” Maggie said, interrupting JJ’s thoughts. “But look at it from Milton’s point of view for a minute. This really hot jock comes along and is nice to him.”
“You think I’m hot?”
“I’m putting myself in Milton’s position. Don’t interrupt.”
JJ smiled, but was glad Maggie couldn’t see it.
“This hot stud takes Milton under his wing, protects him, walks him to his classes, carries his books for him.”
“I’ve never carried his books for him.”
Maggie let out a breath. “No, but you organized a new locker for him so he wouldn’t have to carry all his books. And then this guy takes him home to meet his parents, his gay parents. And if all that wasn’t enough, this guy, who Milton already thinks is a superhero, takes off his cape and lays it on the sidewalk so Milton doesn’t have to step into a puddle.
“I didn’t—”
“Shut up. You know what I meant. JJ, as far as Milton is concerned, you are the absolute most amazing man in his world. Of course he’s going to get upset because he knows you can’t be what he needs.”
“Shit, what should I have done different?”
“Nothing. You wouldn’t be you if you hadn’t done those things.”
“But what can I do to fix it? Milton is hurting.”
“Oh, JJ It isn’t your job to fix it.”
“I know, but I feel kinda responsible. If I hadn’t stepped in and—”
“Then Milton wouldn’t have had that comic, would have had had one fewer friend, and would still be getting picked on all the time at school. You’ve made a huge difference to that guy’s life.”
JJ let out a breath. He knew what Maggie was saying was true, but even so, he still felt responsible and wanted to do something to help Milton.
They talked for a few more minutes, Maggie trying to make JJ feel better. Her offer to have phone sex with him helped, but for once JJ wasn’t in the mood.
They made kissing noises over the phone at each other and promised to meet up the next morning before homeroom.
* * * *
After a more passionate than usual good morning kiss in the middle of the schoolyard that drew wolf-whistles and calls of “get a room” from fellow students, JJ took Maggie’s hand and they went in search of somewhere more private to talk. There weren’t many options. Eventually they found a sheltered spot between two buildings. The number of cigarette butts testified to the location’s popularity, but at that time in the morning it was unoccupied by students who needed one last fix of nicotine before classes started.
“You sleep okay?” Maggie asked, working an arm between JJ’s jacket and his uniform sweater.
JJ kissed her cheek. “Nope, I got this pain,” he pointed to between his legs, “and didn’t have anyone to relieve it for me.”
“Oh, poor baby.” She returned the kiss, with interest.
“And that isn’t helping.”
Maggie smirked. “Ever heard of cold showers?”
JJ shuddered. “I’d rather have a warm hand.”
“Well,” she squeezed his right hand, “you’ve got two of your own.”
JJ sighed. “I totally get that you want to wait, but, it’s hard…pretty much all of the time.”
Maggie giggled. “I know, and I’m sorry. Would it help if we change
d the subject?”
JJ knew what would help more, but Maggie wouldn’t go for it, especially in the schoolyard.
“What do you want to talk about? And please don’t say algebra. That shit we got yesterday afternoon just about killed me.”
“You should have asked Milton for help.”
JJ nodded, although Milton had been up and down emotionally so much that night, he doubted he could have gotten the guy focused enough to concentrate on differential equations.
“We need to find Milton a boyfriend,” JJ suddenly said.
“I know, but that’s easier said than done.”
“True.” JJ shuddered at the thought of asking around to try and find someone; that’d be all kinds of weird. But would Milton find anyone on his own? Would he have the courage? The guy hardly ever spoke to anyone. He sighed. “How long before homeroom?” JJ asked.
Maggie looked at her wristwatch. “Just over twenty minutes. Did you forget your watch?”
“Needs a new battery. Didn’t have time to buy one this morning ’cause I wanted to get to you.”
That earned him another kiss.
“So you think I did the right thing by taking Milton home with me?”
“Definitely, don’t you?”
JJ shrugged. “I guess.” Although the last image he had of Milton, upset and running away, was hard to get out of his mind. “I think Calvin talking about his own problems at school helped. God, some kids can be total assholes.”
Calvin wasn’t out in high school, but he was still perceived as gay and was picked on all the time. JJ marveled at how well the guy had coped.
“They say some of those who’re the most homophobic are closet cases.”
JJ pulled a face. “I don’t buy that. It’s like saying a racist is secretly black.”
“Why’re people homophobic or racist?” Maggie continued before JJ could form an answer. “Because they’re insecure. You, my sexy fag stag, on the other hand,” she ran a hand down JJ’s chest, “aren’t bothered what a person’s sexuality is because you’re secure in your own.”
Trying to get the conversation back on track, which wasn’t easy with Maggie’s wandering hands, JJ said, “I hope you don’t want to test your theory by having me go up to the most asshole of jocks and asking if they’re secretly queer.”
Maggie smacked his shoulder. “The word is gay, like you’ve told plenty of others.”
“Whatever word I chose, I’d get my face rearranged if I used it on most of the jocks.”
Maggie laughed.
“Would you still love me if my nose was on the side of my face?”
Maggie leaned up and kissed JJ’s nose. “I like it just where it is, thank you.”
“So do I.” JJ put his arms around Maggie and she snuggled up against him. JJ bent his head and buried his nose in her hair.
“Milton’s right, you are awesome. Who else would worry about trying to find him a boyfriend? But your mission, should you choose to accept, will require a lot of skill and cunning. Definitely a job for Super J.”
“Who?”
“That’s what I thought when I saw Milton’s cartoon strip. It has to be you he drew; the figure even has a big letter J on his chest.”
“Oh God,” JJ groaned. He was glad Maggie couldn’t see his face, because he knew he was blushing.
“Like I said, he’s got one hell of a crush on you.”
“All the more reason to find him a boyfriend so he can channel his, uh, urges somewhere more useful.”
Milton had so much to offer the right guy. Being with Maggie was wonderful, she was the best thing that’d ever happened to him, and he wanted Milton to be able to have the same level of comfort and security.
“We know Milton likes jocks. Which jocks do you know who’re into the stuff he’s into?” Maggie asked.
JJ grimaced, the mental image of going around the baseball and basketball teams in search of a boyfriend for Milton making an unwelcome reappearance.
“Come on, you know what Milton’s into, and you know most of the jocks and what they like.”
JJ wasn’t sure what all Milton was into, except for computers, old British horror movies, and comics. “Comics. No, Steve isn’t gay.”
“Maybe not, but as you know, my frustrated cowboy, it’s not just about having sex. Milton also needs friends.” She smirked.
“Comics. Hmm.”
* * * *
It was three days later and JJ still hadn’t approached the subject of Milton with Steve.
Tired of what she saw as procrastination, Maggie took matters into her own hands, almost literally.
Patting Steve’s stomach, she asked, “Have you put on a couple of pounds lately?
“No,” Steve replied, rubbing his perfectly flat stomach.
Maggie tilted her head to one side and pursed her lips. “You sure? Did you eat a lot of candy at Halloween?”
“What? No. Why this sudden interest in my body? JJ not enough anymore? You want a real man?” He grinned and puffed out his chest.
“Yeah, right,” she smirked. Walking over to JJ, she put an arm around his shoulders and pulled him into a long kiss. Breaking away, she smiled at Steve. “He’s all the man I need.”
JJ returned the kiss, his unease at the direction Maggie had taken the conversation reducing.
But Maggie hadn’t finished her little plan. She felt JJ’s right arm and said, “You need to work on your pitching arm for the upcoming season.”
“It’s November, baseball isn’t for months,” JJ protested.
But it hadn’t done any good, and off to the school gym he and Steve had gone.
* * * *
“You doing okay?” JJ looked over at Steve. They were doing bicep curls. “Looking pumped there, man.”
“You think?” Steve looked down at his arm. “Got a ways to go before I get as big as your dad.”
That was true, but JJ knew his daddy worked hard on his arms because Calvin really got off on his guns.
Maggie liked big arms, too. She said they made her feel safe. JJ grinned to himself; his girlfriend was perfectly capable of taking care of herself in any situation without any help from him.
As if Steve could read JJ’s thoughts, he said, “It was odd, Maggie telling us to come to the gym like this. Any idea why?”
JJ hoped his non-committal grunt would suffice as an answer.
“Really odd.”
“Yeah,” JJ relaxed his arm, maybe he should have used a lighter weight.
“Probably wants us to do some male bonding or some shit like that.”
“Wanna work on triceps?” JJ asked, changing the subject.
“Gotta get your pitching arm ready for the season, right?” Steve smirked.
JJ shook his head and bit his lip.
“Shoulder press next?” JJ suggested a while later, still feeling uncomfortable about getting his friend to the gym under false pretenses.
“Sure.”
JJ watched Steve take the dumbbells back to the rack and walk over to the next machine. JJ soon followed him, deep in thought.
Steve wasn’t gay. He wouldn’t be interested in dating Milton. Hell, the guy played baseball.
So did your daddy, an unhelpful mind voice announced.
No, Steve can’t be gay, if he was, he’d have said something to my dads by now. JJ thought to himself. But he’s totally cool being around my dads, he added.
That doesn’t make him gay, too, dumbass, another voice perked up.
“Earth to JJ, are you receiving me?” Steve clicked his fingers in JJ’s face. “You with us today?”
“Uh, sorry. Got a lot on my plate.”
They worked on their shoulders; their breathing plus the regular clicks from the machines the only noises in the room.
Steve can’t be gay, he’s had girlfriends, JJ told himself.
But he’s never stuck with one girl for long, another voice reminded him.
He was playing the field.
Yeah, righ
t,
“Lats next?” Steve asked, making JJ jump. “Jeez, man, something’s really eating at you. Want to tell Uncle Steve about it?”
JJ let out a breath and stood to go to the next station. “Uh, yeah, I suppose. It’s not easy though.”
“You can tell me anything, bud, you know that.” Steve came up behind JJ and put a hand on his friend’s shoulder.
“Thanks. I know I can.” But JJ continued to work out in silence, with Steve letting him think in peace.
It wasn’t until they were at the weight bench—Steve spotting JJ—that he decided he needed to bite the bullet. If he didn’t, he knew Maggie would do something painful to his balls.
“Hey, take it easy, bud. Don’t overdo it,” Steve’s concerned face looked down at him.
JJ had been so focused on the Milton situation that he’d lost count of reps. Along with Steve’s help, he set the bar back in its rest.
“Here, use this fresh towel.” Instead of just dropping the towel on him, Steve began to mop JJ’s chest.
“You really went at it today. Something’s definitely on your mind.”
“Yeah.” JJ let out a long breath.
“Water?”
“Thanks.” JJ sat up and accepted the bottle, taking several large gulps of the cold liquid. Capping the bottle, JJ turned to his best friend.
“You’re comfortable with gay people, right?
“Well, uh, sure.” Steve’s face was a mix of puzzlement and anxiety.
“Okay, that’s good.” He settled back on the bench. “Can you put on a couple extra pounds on each side?”
“Huh?” But after a moment, Steve shook his head and did as asked.
JJ lifted the bar, he could definitely feel the extra weight.
“You were saying?” Steve eventually asked.
“I know someone,” JJ began. “He’s uh…” he paused, his arms extended. “This guy, he’s—” he briefly met Steve’s eyes before looking away and doing another rep. “Shit, this is frickin’ awkward.” He panted and did another rep. “This friend, he’s kinda dealing with a lot of heavy shit at the minute.” Another rep. “And I was kinda hoping…thinking you might be able to, like, help him out.”
“Uh, okay,” Steve said quietly.
JJ’s arms started to wobble. Steve grabbed the bar and set it back in its rest.
“Thanks. You and this guy have things in common.” Shit!” This wasn’t coming out right.