Make It Or Break It

by Jacktuck

To be honest, this story doesn't have much of anything to do with Rainbow Boys, I just figured I'd put the book here because it's about similar topics. I have read the series, however, and enjoyed it. I highly suggest it. However, I'm here to tell you about my story. It's original. It's based off of real people, but it's entirely fictional. Hope you enjoy it.

Make It Or Break It

Jack Tucker

It was the last day of school, also known as moving day. Alex and his family put their house on the market a month before then, in May, and only planned on living in it until school got out. His dad had just had his retirement ceremony a week before then. He had been in the military for thirty years and was becoming crippled.

They got to move for free, and better yet, they didn't have to lift a finger, however, they chose to help. This was great for his father, who still liked to walk and lift things and pretend his legs weren't giving out. His father's recruits did all the work. They showed up in a tractor trailer. Somehow, the giant monster managed to fit through the fairly diminutive street they live on. The truck was very noisy in contrast to the quiet neighborhood. They parked it on the side of the road and about eight men in yellow shirts that said '"Navy" on them exited the cab. Most of them looked like they were in their early twenties.

After his dad and them talked for a minute, they scattered about the house, picking up boxes and pieces of furniture and bringing them outside. A couple more guys were picking up the items and placing them in the trailer. They were blazing fast but extremely cautious at their jobs. An hour or so went by, and the majority of the things were packed, however some of the larger items, like the piano and an armoire, were still inside, waiting to be carried away.

Alex was a very good pianist. He wasn't able to read sheet music, though, only play by ear. He could play a multitude of different songs, but usually played one or two. He was exceptional when it came to ragtime. His favorite song to play was the Entertainer, but his friends and family were sick of hearing it since he played it every day.

He was a superb sax player as well, and he showed off his skills in band class often, but no one really seemed to take notice. Along with those instruments, he could play the guitar, bass, and drums, however he wasn't up to par when it came to the them, probably because he rarely touched them.

"Alex, come help them lift this." His dad called. He went into the other room to find his dad, and two other men struggling to lift a very tall armoire which was filled with clothes. "Why didn't you just take the clothes out?" Alex asked. "Too much work." His father responded. He shot his dad a glare when he turned around. Each of the guys were on each side of the dresser. They gradually lifted it up off the ground, and shuffled across the carpet, through the hallways, out the door, and down the stairs of the front porch until they got it to the truck. A hydraulic lift lowered from the back of the trailer. They moved the piece of furniture on to the platform and it rose to the level of the truck bed.

Eventually every last chair, box, instrument, television, and table was loaded into the truck or the car. The walls were bare, the floors uncovered, and everything was clean from head to toe. The back yard was neatly trimmed, and the above ground pool was crystal clear. There were no worn spots on the deck, if there used to be, they'd been painted over. The front yard was immaculate. No leaves or twigs, and like the back, the lawn was freshly cut.

Once they said their goodbyes, double checked the house, and did some other things, they got in their car and slowly pulled out of the driveway, following the truck. "Goodbye house. We'll miss you." Alex's sister, Sophia said once the house escaped their view. Everyone in the car said nothing afterwards. The atmosphere was somber, and so were the looks on all their faces. Even the dog and the cat looked sorrowful, but the cat's face was always like that. However, there was something about the tabby, you could tell it wasn't his usual frown.

Of course, anyone is going to feel sad in some way when they leave their house, their street, their city for good, but Alex was looking forward to his new life in Missouri. There were also things he was thankful he could just leave at the door.

For instance, He had a "friend" named Robert who Alex could't stand. Robert's mere presence around Alex made his nerves jump and twitch. He felt so uncomfortable around the kid, much more in his house, in which the walls lined with swords, but that wasn't the end of it. Robert was also big… Very big. Must've weighed three hundred pounds or so, and he was only fourteen. Not to mention his odor. It smelled like unwashed, sweaty clothes that had been worn for months, (which they probably were,) a toilet that had the misfortune of being used by someone who had a spicy burrito at lunch, gasoline, and the kind of body wash and deodorant that nobody likes the smell of accept the people who wear it (at least he showered.) He also lingered whenever he was around, like his smell. It would be two or three hours past dark, and they'd still be outside, wandering around doing absolutely nothing. He was miserably boring and made any social situation awkward. In addition, he played obnoxious music loudly as he strolled through the neighborhood. Finally, the very first time he visited Alex's house, he tried to walk through a narrow hallway, and because his body was so big, he barely made it through before he knocked down an exorbitant Italian plate that Alex's father had gotten on deployment, and it shattered into a million pieces. That gave him a very bad reputation along with all of the other things.

Another thing Alex was grateful he could leave was his old reputation as a Sonic the Hedgehog fanatic and a mentally unstable person.

A while back, when he was in third grade, he went through a very long and drawn out phase where he liked Sonic, and wished to be him. It started with the drawings. He got a video game for his birthday that had Sonic in it. He tried to draw the character, and thought it looked great, even though it wasn't. The drawings did get better however, and soon he had them all over his wall, some of which could be used professionally they looked so well. Then things took a turn for the worst. He got some stuffed animals of the character and its friends. Then he dressed up as Sonic, the hat, tail, shoes, makeup, all of it. A little while after, he obtained a five foot tall plush of the character. The nose alone on it was half a foot long. He'd go to school and ask trivia questions about the character, shattering his reputation, and probably the worst of all, he'd run everywhere he went with his arms behind his back and pretended to break the sound barrier like the cartoon character. At school, at home, in public places. It didn't matter where, if there was enough room to run, he'd do his little thing and make a complete fool of himself without even knowing it. People stared.

Eventually he grew out of it and realized just how demoralizing he was being to himself. Perhaps that's what triggered his insanity, or maybe it was because of a concussion he sustained early in life that permanently changed his brain. Either way, he started to become unhealthy, almost cannibalistic. It started as a game. He'd chase people around, pretending he was some sort of strange rabid animal, until he caught everyone. It was like a mad game of tag where he was it every time, only because he was the best at it. Better yet, it was a tradition to play it in the dark, or in an unlit movie theater with all the doors closed. The whole neighborhood knew about it. Eventually things started getting weird. He'd bite his victims once he found them, and not just a small nibble, he'd latch down on their flesh. It was like his way of tagging them. It progressed into a sort of addiction, a kind of need where he craved flesh. Eventually he got mental help from school counseling and the urges to bite almost went away. Now and then, he'd bite people who didn't mind it, but not often. The reputation stuck with him and he got insulted quite often because of it. The same goes for his Sonic phase. He'd run into people he hadn't seen in years and the first thing they asked was, "Hey, do you still like Sonic?" Or "Do you still bite people?" This happened with a girl he'd liked. It didn't end well for him.

After all of his phases and mental issues, seventh grade rolled along. It was about the middle of the year. Winter break. Alex's birthday was in December, and he was having a party on the Friday they got off. Now there was a kid who sat next to him in english, who he liked and talked to, but it seemed as though anything he told the kid left him unamused. He had an odd personality, and Alex couldn't pinpoint it. He also felt strange around him and he couldn't explain that either. However the kid seemed nice enough, so he invited him to the party. He didn't expect him to show up, but to his surprise, he did.

The kid had a blast, considering he never did anything. He had incredibly strict parents who quite literally never allowed their kid to do anything but sleep, study, and eat. Sleeping was amusing to him and homework was a joy, so all the colors, noises, tastes, smells and feelings of real life left him happy as could be. Strangely, the kid rarely talked to Alex afterwards. Then the teacher reassigned seats and left him all alone.

A month or so after that, he began to have weird dreams with the kid in them, dreams with romance in them. It tugged at his brain, until it finally clicked. He realized he was gay, or so he thought. A couple of weeks passed until he finally worked up the nerve to tell somebody about his secret, since he'd been aching to before. Months of self torture followed. He kept tossing the idea inside of his head and wouldn't accept that he was gay. After all, he liked girls, at least he thought he did, right? After about a year of thinking, he finally just accepted it. He didn't like girls like that. He was attracted to guys. That was it.

In February of the next year, he and his family went on a ski trip in West Virginia. Once there, he met a kid named Andrew. He quickly developed feelings for Andrew and struck up a conversation with him. It turned out that lived in the same city, only a couple miles from each other. Out of the entire country, all fifty states, his new found friend was from the same city as him, only miles apart. They exchanged phone numbers, and when they got back to their hometown, they texted each other. A lot. Alex had things planned out in his head about him and Andrew getting together, kissing and things like, until he found out Andrew had a girlfriend. That's how he learned not to make assumptions of people, and it hurt him for the days, weeks, even months following. Eventually, they rarely texted each other, a friendship down the drain. He was all alone. He longed for social interactions with someone besides his sister. No one really talked to him at school, accept for Haleigh.

Haleigh went to middle school with him and went through a lot at a young age. She suffered from depression, ADD, OCD, and other things, all of which she was medicated for. She also had a history with substance abuse. In addition, she applied for a bunch of different of high schools, all of which she got put on the waiting list for. On top of all that, she was transgender and planning to transition in high school, so there was an obvious connection between him and her. Not to mention she looked lovely with her dyed and all. They told each other all their secrets and knew everything to know about one another.

As all this was happening, Alex's grades began to slip. His B in math fell to a C, then a D. The same thing happened in civics. Of course it wasn't all his fault. He was already pretty bad at those topics. All the drama made it worse though, and his parents became angry with him. His father didn't know what was troubling. He hadn't yet come out to his dad yet. He did however, tell his mom. Eventually the truth slipped out, and his father became more understanding, but still upset.

Sometime around then, they started to plan their move. Alex was very happy, since there was no one gay he could at least talk to at his school, he'd to get to find some people like him. Perhaps he would be able to find a boyfriend, he thought. Nevertheless, there was still the chance of getting into the same kind of antisocial situation he was in now, where there was no one gay. Even worse, what if everyone was homophobic wherever he went? All he could do was hope and pray for the best.

They had picked a lovely white two story house with a pool and very large basement. Perfect for all Alex's instruments, however, he wanted to keep his music in his room. "Perhaps the piano could go down there." He thought. It also had a hot tub, a gazebo, a shed, and acres and acres of sprawling land to four-wheeler on. The house was also secluded, out in the woods. There were only a couple of neighbors around there. Alex hoped and prayed they had a teenager like him who just happened to be gay. And if that, that he was attractive as well, but he certainly expected nothing close to what he wanted.

The moving van pulled up in front of the house. Everyone looked like zombies as they exited their vehicles. They had driven roughly eighteen hours without stopping. It was a miracle they made it without a wreck. Everyone decided to stay in a hotel and rest up before they did any moving. The caravan of vehicles pulled into the nearest hotel and spent the night.

The next morning, everyone woke up, ate, cleaned up, and got out the door by eight so they could start early. Once they got to the house, they took their time unpacking things and moving them around since they were granted a long day thanks to their early morning start. Nevertheless, they kept a constant pace of unloading, moving items to their proper locations, and unpacking.

It was about mid day when they decided to take a break. All the small boxes and items were already inside the rooms to which everyone assigned themselves to.

There was a wraparound porch. The front door led directly to a flight of stairs, to the left of them was a kitchen with an island. To the right was the living room with a surround system. Up the stairs was a hallway. There were two regular bedrooms, which were quite wide and had windows in two spots. One of them had a nook. This applied to both rooms. Farther down that side of the hallway was a bathroom with two sinks. To the left of the stairs was the master bedroom. It had the same layout of each of the smaller bedrooms, accept it was larger. The room also had its own bathroom with two showers and a separate room for the toilet.

Everyone gathered in the kitchen for some ham sandwiches and lemonade. Since they hadn't eaten in a day, everyone was famished and every last bite of sandwich and sip of the lemonade tasted like heaven, almost like the flavors were emphasized. The acidity of the lemonade made Alex's throat burn, and the sandwiches had a spicy mustard which made his mouth feel like it was set ablaze. Despite these things, everyone still thoroughly enjoyed their meals.

After every last thing was emptied from the trailer, the truck pulled out of their long drive which they shared with three neighbors. Then it turned out onto the highway and headed south, back to where it came from. It was nearing sundown, so the family cooked a quick dinner with a box of rice, using the materials already taken out of the boxes. After dinner, everyone made up their beds, and fell asleep.

It was morning. Alex awoke with a feeling of freedom. He had twelve weeks of no school ahead of him. Despite having to finish unpacking his things and rearranging his furniture, which he didn't mind doing, he was home free to do whatever he wanted. He made quick work of this job, since he did it often at his old house when he got desperately bored. It helped set his mood. If the room wasn't arranged just right, it would irritate him and make him agitated until he moved his things again. If he got it right, it'd be hard to upset him.

He put his bed in the corner on the outer south wall facing west. He put his piano under the window facing south, next to the foot of his bed. The drums were placed to the right of it. His television sat on his small dresser facing north. The tall dresser sat next to his bed. His desk sat in the nook next to the window. He hung his guitars on the remaining wall and placed a small table under them. After hanging up a couple of posters and drawings of his, and adding some finishing touches, like a lamp, his stereo systems, and other things, he was done. "Finally, I'm finished, and it looks great." He told himself. As much as he would've liked to hung around, admire his new room, and listen to music, he wanted to go exploring. They had ten acres of land to explore. Half of it was wooded. They also had a metal shed that still contained things their previous home owner left, like a tractor and God knows what else. In addition, there was a chicken coop and a basement. The basement was particularly special since they didn't have one where they used to live. They used to live only a couple of miles from the sea. Now they were hundreds of miles from shore. The nearest body of water was their neighbor's lake. Although the basement was unfinished, it was still the coolest part of the house. And it was big too.

Alex had barely scoped out his new home when he had gotten there, but not very well. Now he had all the time in the world to do so. He went downstairs and found Sophia on the couch watching television. Their parents got a new couch so their kids could use the old one in the basement. There was a pool table left by the previous home owners. The hot tub was right outside the glass sliding doors under a balcony. "I'm gonna try out that hot tub tonight. What about you?" He said to Sophia. "Yeah, as soon as I find my bathing suit." "I take it you haven't unpacked yet?" He asked his sister. "I'll do it later." "Suit yourself. You wanna walk around, check out our property?" His sister, like usual, replied with the standard, "I'll come out later." Which meant she wasn't coming out. "Suit yourself."

He left the basement out the glass doors and headed around front, where his ATV sat, waiting to be ridden. He sat on it, started it up, and headed towards the woods. It overwhelmed him with joy and a sense of freedom to ride the vehicle, being able to go however fast he wanted, wherever he wanted. At least on their property, which was fine by him since they had lots of land. The previous owners had carved out paths in the woods specifically for what he was doing: four wheeling.

He revved the motor, sending him speeding into unmarked territory. For all he knew, there could've been a sharp turn at the other side of the hill, or a large hole or bump, lucky for him, it was a straight path. He cleared the ground when he made it over the top. He landed with a bump, and continued on, a bit slower to avoid crashing in the rough terrain. There were so many twists and turns, a bit like a maze. The confusion was part of the game for Alex. It made him feel in more control, in contrast to driving up a strip. He remembered his way around everything, so he didn't have to worry about getting lost.

A little while later, he found a special tree, an oak. It had, to his surprise a treehouse in it, and not your average treehouse, it was gigantic. It had two stories, a door, and walls covered with insulation and sheetrock. It also had glass windows. He parked his ATV and climbed up the ladder to a balcony. He opened the door and looked inside. Someone had obviously put a lot of time and money into the structure. One of the first things he noticed was a lightbulb handing from the ceiling and a cord. He pulled it and to his surprise, the light switched on. "My God, this place is incredible!" He said aloud. He then noticed a couple of outlets. Someone intended to live in the structure, or at least use it as some sort of pimped out club. He looked over to his right and noticed another ladder. He climbed it and in the second room. It was empty, not even a light. There was no need for one, since there were so many windows. Natural light filled the room.

The treehouse was the only thing on his mind as he sped back to the house. He stormed into the basement. "Sophia, I found the coolest thing! Come check it out." He screamed. She pushed off the couch as slow as a sloth as she turned off the television. "Fine, what is it?" She said as she slipped on her shoes. "It's a surprise." He sprinted outside, started the ATV, and pulled up next to his sister. She got on behind him and they sped off into the woods. Moments later they were there. "Oh my God! This is amazing! Sophia said enthusiastically. She dashed for the ladder and burst through the door. She screamed, "Oh my God it has power too?!" Then she found the other ladder and screamed a third time at the amazing view. "You can see for miles up here." The treehouse's second floor stuck up above the tree line. There were mountains off in the distance. "It's beautiful up here Alex! Get up here." She yelled. He was up there a moment later. After staring at the sky, watching the clouds, and making small talk for a bit, they headed back home.

They checked the shed out. There was the tractor, a couple of motors, lots of tools, and sheets of metal. Nothing much. "Hey, I could build some stuff with all this." Alex said. "I've been wanting to learn how to weld anyways."

Alex wasn't your stereotypical flamer kind of gay, he loved building things, dressed like a normal guy, didn't have any piercings, or anything of the sort, and he loved being outdoors. The only thing that separated him from normal guys is he was attracted to guys and not girls. He took pride in not being a cliché. "Perhaps I could make a jet engine with this stuff. I've seen guys on the internet do it." He said as he lifted up a sheet of aluminum. It was flexible and light, great for making aircraft, but maybe not so much for jet engines.

It started to get late and the two of them were getting hungry, so they went in for dinner. Their mom and dad had set up the furniture and put the silverware and china in the cabinets along with some food in the cupboard. "Were going to have a real meal tonight." Their mom said as she cooked a slice of salmon in a skillet. She was an exceptional cook. Their dad may have been just as good, but he was king when it came to certain things, like cooking meats. He'd fry fish with a special batter. It was better an any fish you'd ever tasted. The same could go for his fried deer stakes. He used the same batter. The taste was indescribably delicious. It melted on the tongue in a way.

At the dinner table, nobody really said much of anything, until their mother started talking. "So, what did you two kids do today?" Sophia and Alex looked at each other and smiled. "Not much, just drove around and stuff." She answered. "Nothing at all?" Their father asked. "Pretty much. What did you guys do all day?" Alex asked. "Oh you know, just moved some stuff around, unpacked some things. We also got the hot tub working if you two wanted to try that out later on. I know me and your mom will give it a shot." He said as he looked at Alex and Sophia's mom, as if he were hiding something. It was a devious, dirty smile. Their mom did the same thing. "Yeah, were definitely gonna be trying out the hot tub tonight." The two adults chucked, then kissed each other. "Thanks for sharing that valuable information with us." Sophia said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes. The two teens got up from the table, and left their half eaten food for their parents, who didn't really care, as they were pretty distant from their kids.

They went up the stairs. Neither one of them were used to them. Their old house had none. They climbed them slowly on their hands and feet, like animals. The stairs were more than just stairs, to them, it was pure joy. The two of them recalled the last time they had stairs. They were at their grandmother's house. They took blankets and wrapped them around their legs, as to keep them from getting scuffed. Then they proceeded to slide to the bottom at breakneck speeds. It was quite entertaining, but it hurt their rear ends.

They decided to save the stair sliding for another day as they went into Alex's room. In their old house, Sophia would spend half her time in her brother's room. Since they were so close in age, they got along quite well, and were able to tell each other nearly everything about them. Sophia was one of the first people he came out to, in fact. Usually they only had the most complex and deep conversations alone, at the park down the road from their old house. That night they decided to keep it simple, and make relatively small talk. Having said that, they also chatted about the treehouse, and their plans for it. "I think we should decorate it. Add some furniture, some lights, maybe even a television or a radio." Sophia said. "Definitely. Perhaps we should even add a bed and an air conditioner for when it's hot out." Alex added. "But nothing too girly." "You don't have to worry about me. I'm pretty sure I like the same colors as you." She said.

Sophia wasn't one of those girly girls who liked pink and bubble gum and things like that. Then again, she wasn't goth or anything, she was a bit in between. Scene, she called it. The look suited her well, with her hair dyed teal, part of her head shaved a bit so that the rest of her hair fell on the other side of her head, in front of her eye. It was also braided. She used to wear braces and glasses, but she had them removed, and afterwards, she became more self confident and embraced her new personality.

The sun hid behind the mountains in the distance, so that the sky faintly glowed a bit of orange and pink and the clouds reflected the light to create beautiful streaks of color. A perfect sunset. Alex didn't fall asleep immediately, rather he sat there and thought about boys, and fantasized situations he wished he were in, but he snapped back into reality, a bit saddened, but not depressed, although he ached for affection from a guy. Despite that, he had a feeling things would get better, and thinking that, he drifted into a deep sleep. Sophia on the other hand had a hard time falling asleep. She was depressed. Although she didn't show it and tried to be happy, she wasn't. The move hurt her. She had a boyfriend back at their old house. She loved him more than anything she ever loved yet. His name was Vincent. Vincent wasn't like most eighth grade boys, he was kind, light hearted, his brain not corrupted by the rest of the world. He wasn't inappropriate with Sophia in any way, and always brought her expensive gifts which made her want to cry. However, he did act a bit funny when it came to showing affection. He'd hug her for a short amount of time, and did other little things like that. Sophia herself was also the same way though, so they went together well. Finally they had just gotten used to each other. He took her out on a date to the movies playing across the street from them. That's where they had their first kiss, and their only kiss. It was only a quick peck on the cheek, but it was enough for her. She longed for him. She wanted to snuggle up with a blanket and watch television with him right next to her. Unfortunately, they got comfortable with each other a bit too late, and a month after they kissed, she was gone, torn from him like a child and their blanket. They were both alone. Of course they could video chat, call, or text each other, but it wasn't the same. Suddenly she let all of her emotions go and started to weep, softly, but for a long time. She missed Vincent so much.

It was the next morning, and Alex sprung out to bed early, unlike his normal self who enjoyed sleeping in. He was eager to discover more of the houses hidden secrets and other things of that nature, but before all that, he went downstairs to get some breakfast. He had just poured some raisin bran when he saw his sister come down the stairs and around the corner. She was wearing sweatpants and a hoodie. It appeared as if she had been crying. A lot. "You okay sis?" He asked. Suddenly, she started to wail. "I miss Vincent soon much!" She yelled, before collapsing into her brother's shoulder. Alex's face looked panicked, as he pet his sister's messy hair. "You wanna talk about it?" He asked her. "No, just let me cry." He continued to eat his cereal when she stopped crying a bit. She pulled some pizza out of the fridge, and ate it cold. "How can you eat pizza cold like that?" "Shut up it's my comfort food." She said, her mouth full.

After breakfast, Alex went up stairs, Sophia slowly behind him. She followed him into his room. He sat down at the piano and was about to play when he heard someone sit on his bed. "May I help you?" He asked. "I miss him so much, Alex! There was no one like him. He was so kind and respectful, and he always brought me gifts." "Don't worry Sophia, we haven't even met anyone yet. You're bound to find someone nice." "NO! I only want Vincent, no other guy I've ever met was like him. He's unique. I'd rather be alone." Then Alex chimed in, "Then I hate to break it to you, but I can't help you, I've got other things to worry about. Perhaps you could find someone better." He began to play a song.

The piano was his favorite. He loved the feeling of the keys when you pressed on them, the noises it made, how you could play so many notes at a time, and how it had such incredible range. So much possibility. In addition, it helped him vent stress. Not to mention he could show off to people he didn't like in band class and entertain the people he did.

Once he was done, he turned around to see if his sister was still there. She was, although she wasn't crying anymore, just staring at the wall. "Perhaps today would be a good day to meet our new neighbors." He said. She simply nodded her head. He gathered some clothes, jumped in the shower, brushed his teeth, and let his sister do the same. "We're going to go make some friends." Alex yelled as he and his sister left the house. They hopped on the ATV and pulled out of their drive and onto their little road that lead out to the highway, but Alex didn't go onto the highway, he turned left because a bit down the trail was one fairly secluded house. "Do you think we should've brought a gift?" He asked. Sophia just gave a nod, so before they made it to the house, they came back to their own and quickly made a card with a bit of money and a cupcake that they found in the fridge. Finally, they came up to the house and knocked on the door. It looked to be poorly maintained, the grass was overgrown, there was a rusty, decaying pickup truck in the driveway, and the wood the house was made from was splitting. An elderly man with a cigarette in his mouth answered the door. "Whadaya want?" He asked in a tetchy voice that was slightly raspy, most likely due to years of tar buildup in his lungs. In the back round, they could hear a woman's voice. "Who is it Harold?" She yelled sounding elderly herself. "Some little juvenile delinquents trying to poison me with a cupcake." He turned to face the twins. "Get off my property this instant, or I'll shoot the two of you. Incase you hadn't figured it out, we don't like people." The two of them briskly walked off the man's porch and back to their ATV. "Faster!" The grumpy old man barked, then he coughed and wheezed. They bolted for the vehicle and sped off, taking their present with them. "Onto house number two." Sophia said.

The next house looked much more well maintained. A younger family probably lived there. They rung the doorbell. A woman who appeared to be in her mid thirties showed up. "Why hello there, are you two part of the family who just moved in?" She asked, her voice sounding melodic, almost hypnotizing. She was also very attractive, and had a big set of breasts, which she showed off with a tiny shirt. She had a very fit and curvy looking body, and her face was very pretty as well, even though she wasn't wearing makeup. Her hair was blonde and curly, which hung past her shoulders. Any normal guy would have fallen head over heels for this girl, but Alex wasn't as interested, still, she was a very beautiful woman and was a bit captivating. He stuttered a bit before he talked. "Why yes we are, and we came to say hello and get to know one another. We even brought a cupcake." "Why thank you so very much you two, by the way, my name is Ashley." She said, taking the items. "Would you like to come in for a bit?" "Certainly!" The two exclaimed in unison.

They stepped inside the cozy, yet vast house. It looked fairly modern and renovated. Alex wondered how the two of them could afford such a large and lavish house. The two of them came and sat down in the living room on an expensive looking couch. There was a fireplace across the room. A man stepped into the room with Ashley. He appeared to be the her husband, perhaps in his mid thirties as well. Both Alex and Sophia were taken back by the man. He was extremely handsome. His face neatly groomed, with a small beard. His cheekbones were very sharp. His hair was spiky and brown. He wore a white undershirt that revealed his muscles and chest. Over that, he wore a long sleeve button up shirt. He also wore a pair of blue jeans.

"Hey, My name's James, nice to meet you." He said, extending his hand to Alex. He gave a firm handshake. "Hey, I'm Alex. Nice to meet you to." He said, blushing a bit. Then James moved over to Sophia. "I'm Sophia." She said, slightly flustered as he shook her hand, a bit easier than Alex.

"So tell us a bit about yourselves." James said as he sat down in his chair, Ashley in the other. Alex decided to do all the talking. "Well, we came from Virginia and we're in eighth grade. We're twins. I like to play the piano, design things, draw, and go for four-wheeler drives. Sophia can draw very well too, but she likes to spend the majority of her time on her phone or the television. We have a cat and a dog, my favorite color is green, hers is black. Anything else you'd like to know?" He asked. "Where are your parents?" James asked. "They're back at the house, we came here together. We can get them for you if you'd like." Sophia responded. "Why don't we just come over there?" The couple asked. "Sure thing, we only live a couple hundred meters away after all."

They got up and walked out the door. Ashley put on a jacket to cover up her chest a bit. Alex drove slowly, while Ashley and James ambled along behind them. The twins went inside first, calling, "Mom, dad, we have visitors we want you to meet." Their parents stepped out of the living room and greeted the couple. They told them a bit about themselves to Ashley and James, then the couple told them their story.

"So we were originally from Miami, and we moved up here a couple of years ago to get away from the city life a bit." James explained. "I work as a graphic designer and my wife is a nurse, so if you guys have any medical problems, you know where to go." "Thank you." Their parents said. Then they asked, "Do you have any kids?" Sophia and Alex suddenly tuned into the conversation. If they had kids their age, they could make an instant friendship. "Oh, no. We're planning on having a baby sometime soon though." Their hopes went down the drain. Oh well. Then Ashley said, "I hear your son can play the piano." "Why yes he can." Their father said as he turned to Alex. "Would you like to play us a song?" Alex reluctantly got up and said, "Sure." As he walked over to the piano. He sat down on the bench and started to play Bethena by Scot Jopplin, one of his favorite songs.

He played the song very accurately, but a bit different characteristically since listens to songs and plays them rather than read sheet music. However he emphasized all the right notes, slowing down and speeding up where it was needed and followed the dynamics correctly. It sounded euphonic and it put everyone a trance. Finally, the song was over. The couple gave a round of applause. "That was some of the best piano playing I've ever heard. Thank you for serenading us. We really enjoyed it!" They said.

After a bit more talking, he looked over at Sophia. She looked dejected, and he knew exactly why. She never got the spotlight. He interrupted the adults' conversation and said, "I think Sophia wants to show you some of her artwork." Normally, she was self-conscious over her work, but this time she willingly went up into her room and got some of her drawings. She brought them back down and showed them to their guests. They were magnificent, colorful drawings of people, places, and things. James and Ashley were bewildered by what they saw. They were much better than anything Alex could draw, this was especially so when it came to people. He couldn't draw a person to save his life. "Oh my God! Your drawings are so perfect and beautiful! You and your brother are really something!" Ashley exclaimed. Sophia managed to crack a faint smile. "Thanks." She said, blushing from all the attention she never received, but rightfully deserved, always overshadowed by her brother.

Their guests left a little while later. Alex and Sophia's parents resumed their normal activities. The twins went upstairs into Alex's bedroom, like usual. When they closed the door, they talked. "Thanks bro." Sophia said, hugging him at the same time, which was a rare occurrence, the hugging that is. "Don't mention it." He said. "I knew you felt left out, so I gave you a shot to knock 'em dead. You sure did. I should be the one thanking you for not freezing up and throwing a fit over not wanting to show your beautiful work that deserves to be seen." "Don't mention it." She retorted. The two of them chuckled, and fueled by each others' laughter, they started rolling on the floor, crying from all the laughing. Although Sophia was sad about Vincent, she felt a bit better, and she began to let go.

Once they were able to compose themselves, they started making small talk. Eventually, that got old, so they decided to watch some television. They spent the rest of their day doing that, thinking maybe they should wait until tomorrow or another day to meet people. After dinner, they headed up to bed, both of them fell asleep to happy thoughts this time and the low distant rumbling of jets high up in the air.

They got a late start to their day, taking advantage of their ability to sleep in. However, just because they slept late, didn't mean their day was wasted. Alex got out of bed at around eleven or so, got some breakfast took a shower, slipped on some clothes, and headed out the door, leaving Sophia, who was watching television.

There was a third house a bit down the road past Ashley and James's house. He drove down there with another cupcake in a basket on the back of the ATV. The house was in fair condition, same structure as the rest of the houses. It was made with brick, unlike the rest of them, which had siding or wood paneling. It looked younger than his house, yet older than the grumpy old people house. The yard was in need of a trimming, but not desperately. He proceeded up to the front door, and rang their doorbell. No one answered, so he knocked. A moment later, someone opened the door. A boy, roughly the same age as him stood at the door. Perhaps a bit older. He had some facial air and wore glasses. His brown hair combed over. "Hey… Can I help you with something?" He asked in an unsure tone. "Hi, my name's Alex, I just moved in down the road. Just came to say hello and give you guys this." Alex held out the cupcake. "Cool." The guy said. "I'm Josh. Nice to meet you Alex." His smile was somewhat strange, but right off the bat, you could tell it was a kind smile. He looked like a person with a mask, someone who looked like they would shatter your expectations. That was his impression on Alex. "You wanna come inside?" He asked. "Sure." He responded.

The house certainly wasn't flattering. It was fairly cramped and dark. Josh led him upstairs into his room, which was a bit dark as well. There was a desktop computer and a sound system set up on a desk. There were poster of half naked women on his wall, some riding motorcycles, some just making sexual poses, but one caught Alex's eye. The woman in that poster was underneath a beefcake of a man in his underwear. Suddenly, he felt a bulge in his pants. He covered his crotch with his hand. Josh's bed was unmade, dirty clothes and underwear littered the floor. He also had a television with a gaming system set up. Besides the dressers, that was about it. "Here, let me get some light in here." He said, pulling back his curtains. The mid day sun came bursting through the window. "Ahh, It burns!" He shrieked sarcastically, putting his hands over his eyes. Then he laughed. Alex forced a chuckle. "So, Alex, do you play any games?" He asked, referring to video games. "I'm gonna be honest with you, and people always think I'm crazy when I say this, but I don't game, unless you want to count playing games on my phone." Josh gave him a funny look, which turned into a grin. "So what is it that you do for fun?" He asked. "I ride on my four-wheeler a lot, I play the piano even more, I talk to people whenever I can. I build things. Sometimes I'll draw. I'll go on the internet fairly often. That's pretty much it." "Nice, I got an ATV too." He responded, sitting on his bed. "Here, why don't you stay for awhile?" He said, patting the bed next to him after a pause. "Sure." Alex answered as he sat down. "Tell me more about yourself." Josh asked. "Well, what do you want to know?" "I dunno, do you have any pets?" "Yeah, a cat and a dog. The cat's dumb as a box of rocks, but we still love him. Our dog's okay. She's old and crabby, but she looks like she's a puppy. It used to be you could sleep with her, but nowadays, you so much as even touch her, she snarls and growls like she doesn't know us. Not to mention the constant barking. She yaps at every tiny thing, people or not. We can't go a day without hearing her irritating noise. You don't have any pets, do you?" Josh responded, "I've got a dog named marshmallow, that's about it. He's a black lab. Sweetest thing, but you got to watch him. You leave him alone for five minutes, he'll either tear the house apart, or try to hump you. He's pretty nasty. Do you have any siblings?" "As a matter of fact, I do. A twin sister, my older sister, and my older brother. One of the reasons we moved here was because our older siblings live around here too. We came from Virginia." "Wait, I thought twins could only be identical?" Alex looked annoyed. He'd heard that so many times over his life. Some people even thought they were dating. "No, we're fraternal." "Oh, okay. I've got an older sister. My brother is in his room now, but my sister's off to college. She goes to UMR in Rolla." "Hey, my grandpa lives down there." "So you got lots of family here?" Josh asked. "Yeah, every last one of us lives here accept my grandma, but she'll be moving back soon." "Cool." They stared off into nothing for a moment, then Josh said, "You want some water?" "Okay." Alex said. They got off the bed and went downstairs.

To get to the kitchen, you had to walk through the den. In there, he saw two people, probably Josh's parents, sitting, watching television. They looked somewhat overweight, which was strange because Josh was lean and skinny, he had a fairly good body to be honest. They also didn't notice him.

He pulled a couple of glasses from the cabinet and filled them with water. "Here." Thanks." Alex said. "I don't like ice anyways. It gets in the way when you're drinking." "Same here!" Josh exclaimed. They did a little high-five thing without making any noise. They guzzled down their waters really fast and headed back up to his room. The two of them sat down on the bed. They made small talk for a bit, all the while, Alex stared at the particular poster on the wall with the man. Josh noticed this, and pointed it out. "You like that poster? It's my favorite. There's something about it. . ." His voice trailed off. Alex was embarrassed by the way he pointed it out, but he did find the picture arousing, at least half of it. "I suppose." That opened up a whole can of worms he hadn't intended to open for a while.

"So Alex, you have a girlfriend, or any crushes?" Alex responded, "I'd rather save that for another day, Josh. What about you?" "I'll say when you say." He retorted. Eventually there was an awkward silence. Then Josh said, "You want to try a game?" Alex, not trying to be rude, politely denied, but curiosity got the better of him. "I suppose I could give it a shot." "There you go." Josh said, giving him a small, and affectionate slap on the back. "I'll set it up for you." He took the controller, pressed some buttons, then asked what he wanted to play. Most of them were shooting games, which he wasn't really fond of, so he chose a racing game at the bottom of the screen. The controls were straight forward, but unrealistic. He felt uneasy at first, but he eased into it, eventually winning every race he competed in. Eventually Josh joined in, so that they raced each other. Alex managed to win every race.

Once they took a break, Alex looked at the time. 5:37. "Oh, I should probably be going." He told him, but before he left, he said, "Wait, give me your number so we can call and text each other." Josh whipped out his phone. Alex held out his. They exchanged numbers. "Alright, I had a lot of fun. Thanks for having me." "No problem. Next time, I should come to your house, hear you play the piano." Josh answered.

Alex could practically smell dinner from Josh's house as he got on the ATV. When he walked in the door, the smell hit him like a wall. Turkey and mashed potatoes. Their parents had decided to cook a real meal. Sophia greeted him at the door. "Alex guess what." "What?" "I decorated the treehouse and found some furniture to put in it." "Is that what you've been doing all day?" He asked. "Yeah, I'll show you after dinner." She answered.

They sat down at the dinner table with their parents. "So, what did you do all day Sophia?" Their mom asked. "Oh, you know, just some decorating." Their parents still didn't know about the treehouse. It was their own little secret. "Oh, okay, well what about you Alex?" "I made a new friend." Everybody's eyes fixed on him. "Nice, what's his name, what's he like?" Sophia asked. "He's really friendly." "I can't wait to meet him." She said. Sophia looked intrigued.

They were driving to the treehouse when Sophia asked, "Is he cute?" To which Alex responded, "Paws off, he's mine, if he's gay of course. However I doubt it. He's got pictures of women in bikinis and such all over his wall." "Too bad for you. I don't really intend on dating anyone else for awhile, so you have more of a chance anyways. I'm still trying to recover." "I'm sorry sis." Alex said sympathetically.

They arrived at the structure. It loomed tall over them, but not in a bad way. Almost like a giant. They claimed into it. It looked ten times better than before. There was furniture, a lamp, some blankets. The top room was even better. She had placed a couple of rocking chairs up there, to watch the sunsets and sunrises. "How did you get all this stuff up here?!" He exclaimed. "I used a pulley and things." He was shocked, because usually his sister was bad when it came to things like this, not necessarily decorating, but lifting things with pulleys and such. "Did you use the tractor or something? And if so, how did you manage to start the thing, much less drive it?" "I used dad's four-wheeler and a trailer. I'm not as dumb as you think I am." She said, sounding somewhat hurt. "Well, you did a magnificent job. Congratulations."

They made it back to the house, and after some television, they once again went off to bed. Alex couldn't sleep though. He was thinking about Haleigh, his best friend from back home. She went to middle school with him and his sister. She went through a lot at such a young age. She suffered from depression, ADD, OCD, and other things, all of which she was medicated for. She also had a history with substance abuse. In addition, she applied for a bunch of different of high schools, all of which she got put on the waiting list for. On top of all that, she was transgender and planning to transition in high school, so there was an obvious connection between him and her. Not to mention she looked lovely with her dyed and all. They told each other all their secrets and knew everything to know about one another. He decided to text her, or him. They didn't respond. Eventually he gave up and went to bed.

Over the course of the next few days, Alex lingered around the house, playing the piano, helping with chores, occasionally going to the tree house. Haleigh called. They talked for a short time, and he cherished it. He also talked to Vincent for a bit. They were fairly good friends and had known each other for awhile. They separated a bit, when he started dating Sophia, but he was still a good friend. He even got a call from his friend, Ethan. He had mixed feelings when it came to him. Sometimes he liked him, other times he wanted to kill him. He was slightly homophobic, which was a bit tricky, and ironic considering he was the first person he came out to. However, he got along with him more than he did Vincent. If there was a mix between Vincent and Ethan, he'd be perfect, that is if you took all the good parts of the two of them. You take the worst of each other and put them together, and you've got a very dislikable and ugly guy. Then mix Robert in, and the presence of that person becomes unbearable.

In addition to lounging around the house during that time, he also visited Josh. They didn't do much besides play games. That got dull very quick. He wondered how Josh could do that so constantly, however once they got around the fifteenth time they played the game, it seemed as though even he got bored, or wanted to do something different. Perhaps Alex was pulling him away from the games. Which was a good thing. Alex would much rather talk than play a silly game. He'd almost rather talk to his good friends than play the piano. Almost.

It had been about two weeks since they had moved. Sophia managed to make a good friend named Tori. Tori was almost a carbon copy of Sophia. They understood each other very well, and loved doing the same things. They talked about boys and such. She didn't have a boyfriend either. They even cried together about being so lonely. At least they had each other.

Alex woke late one morning to the sound of the doorbell downstairs. He quickly slipped on a pair of pajama pants and a t-shirt and headed downstairs to see who was there, since no one was getting the door and the dog wouldn't stop barking. He opened the door to a pleasant surprise. Josh. "Oh, hey Josh, didn't expect to see you." "Sorry, I didn't know if you were sleeping or not. I just got bored and was like, 'You know what, I'm gonna go see Alex.' Can you hang out?" He asked. "I don't see why not." Josh came inside and took his shoes off. The first thing he noticed was the piano. "Hey, didn't you say you played the piano?" "Yeah, you want to hear a song?" Alex asked. "Sure." Josh sat on the couch behind the piano. "You ever heard of the Steeplechase Rag?" He shook his head. "I think you'll like it." Alex told him. Just as Josh began to get comfy, he jumped off the couch from Alex's playing. He played fast. His fingers looked like a blur of rubber fingers bouncing off the keys. It sounded so incredible, his mouth sat wide open, catching flies.

Finally, the song concluded, and Alex got off the bench and turned around. Josh started hollering and clapping. "That's the damn finest piano playing I've ever heard in my life! You're incredible!" He said. Then he ran over to him and gave him a great big hug. In that moment, he felt something. He felt a warmth in Josh, or general happiness from his presence. He could also feel something in Josh too. They hugged for a fairly long time, monger than most friends would. He was okay with this. Then his sister came down stairs, and they separated.

"Hey, you must be Sophia. Alex told me all about you. I'm Josh." He held out his hand. The two shook. "Alex's a really cool guy. Did you hear him play the piano?" He asked. "Trust me, I hear him all the time. He plays all the same songs over and over. If you hear the same song two hundred times, it starts to get old." The three of them laughed, but Alex laughed the least, since they were laughing about him. "Well, I just came down here because I'm going to Tori's place. Alex, can I borrow your four-wheeler?" Sophia said as she put some shoes on. "Sure, just don't wreck it or loose it, where is Tori's house anyways?" "Right across the highway." She responded. "Just be sure you look both ways." She left the two boys behind. A moment later, there was the sound of a motor starting and fading into the distance.

"So, you want to go in my room?" "Yeah." Josh said, as he headed for the stairs. They opened the door, and he was surprised once again by a second piano, Alex's piano. A very nice thousand dollar digital piano. "Holy crap, you have two pianos?!" He said, practically yelling. "Yeah." Then he noticed the drum set and the three guitars hanging on the wall and a saxophone. Not to mention his cello he recently bought which was resting in a corner. "What the hell! Are you some kind of wizard?!" Alex just gave him a grin and a wink. "Oh my God, can I play any of them?" "Sure, just don't drop them or break them, and you'll be fine." He went for the guitars first. It was quite obvious he wasn't a musician. He fumbled with the instrument, holding it the wrong way, strumming random cords which sounded like sound rather than music, but Alex didn't care. Next he went for the piano. He wasn't much better, only being able to play Mary Had A Little Lamb. However, he even managed to mess that up, playing it in the wrong key, missing some accidentals, playing the wrong rhythm. It wasn't much fun to listen to. Finally he moved to the drums, saving the best for last. To Alex's surprise, he wasn't half bad. He got a beat going and it was perfect. Despite being a simple rhythm, he played it well. With some practice, he could actually play songs.

"I know, that sucked, didn't it?" He asked Alex, to which he responded, "I'm not going to sugar coat this; that was atrocious, accept for drum playing. You had something going on. With some practice, I can teach you to play the drums for real, and there's a big chance you can become better than me at that instrument, since I don't really play drums often." "Really?" "Yeah, you even seem like the percussionist type." "Thanks man. That means a lot." Josh said, giving him another, short hug. "In fact, I can start teaching you now. You can play the drums to steeplechase. How's that sound?" Immediately, he declined the offer, saying it was too difficult. "That's only the piano part that's hard. The drums are pretty easy and I think you'll pick up on it." Not to mention the song was old as dirt.

Alex got out a pair of brushes for the drums and put them in Josh's hands. He also held them, guiding his friend through the motion, standing behind him, a bit closer than most people would tolerate. "Right hand, left hand, right, left…" He alternated between the snare and the high hat three beats to one, all the while, kicking the bass drum to the beat. It sounded like a speedy jazz riff, just what he was looking for. Like he expected, Josh picked it up immediately, and within ten minutes, was playing it fast enough for Alex to join in on the piano. They rehearsed together until they were ready to play for real.

He sat down at the piano bench while his friend sat atop the throne. "Give me a beat." Josh counted in about two hundred fifty beats per minute. They were off, playing like a real band. It was so catchy, it swept you off your feet and made you want to dance, unfortunately there was no one around to do so to their private concert. The song ended with a crash. "Oh my God, that was the coolest thing I've ever done!" Exclaimed Josh. He was certainly coming out of his shell and out of that dark bed room of his.

After playing it a couple more times at varying tempos, they decided to take a break. They got some lunch, ham sandwiches and chocolate milk with bags of potato chips. "Thanks for the food buddy." He said to Alex. "You're welcome." They winked at each other.

They went back upstairs and made small talk about pointless things, which surprisingly enough, killed a couple of hours. It was finally getting late, and they heard Sophia on the four-wheeler. "You should probably get going." He told Josh. "I'll give you a ride over there if you want." He offered. "Thanks." They drove the short distance to his friend's house and when he left, they said their good byes. Alex went to bed feeling empty. He wanted to be with Josh, and he developed a crush.

He had the house to himself that morning. His parents left a note on the counter saying that they went to the store and took his sister with them while he was sleeping. He gave Josh a call to ask him if he wanted to visit, but he couldn't until later. He had the whole day with nothing to do. He thought about wandering down the highway a bit looking for any new friends and neighbors. However, he felt like hanging around the house instead, maybe try the hot tub, or perhaps go for a swim in the pool. The day was pretty monotonous, and dull. He played the piano over and over, and when that got boring, he cleaned his room, then surfed the web. Finally, his phone rang. It was Josh. "Hey Alex, how's it going?" "Good, what about you?" "I'm fine, say, you want to come over and spend the night?" He asked. "I'll have to ask my parents but I'd love to." They said their goodbyes and hug up. Later that day, when his parents and sister got back he asked them about Josh, and they gave him the O.K. After dinner, he packed a bag and headed over. He knocked on the door, and his friend was grinning from ear to ear. "Hey Alex, come on in!" He exclaimed. However, when they walked through the den where his parents were sitting, he tensed up a bit, almost as if he seemed nervous around them. His smile dropped a bit, and he took his hand off Alex's shoulder.

Finally, they got up to his room and shut the door. "You okay?" Alex asked, concerned. "Yeah, I'm fine." Josh answered, his happy face turning to one of exhaustion. "You sure, you don't look like it." "Yeah, it's nothing." "Well now I know something's wrong. Just tell me. It's fine, I won't judge you." "I appreciate it, but I really don't want to talk about it. Maybe later." Alex finally gave up. "Okay."

For the next hour, they talked about what they wanted to do when they grew up and other things like that, pretty much to pass the time. He could tell that Josh was itching to play video games. Alex would be like, "I can tell you're bored, you want to play some games?" To which Josh would painfully respond, "Nah, I'm good." He was impressed by his friend's self control. Josh was trying as hard as he possibly could to entertain his guest, who was a bit bored himself. Finally, Alex did the two of them a favor and asked to play the game. When he said that, Josh literally jumped for the controllers. The hours ensuing were full of bright lights and loud noises in a dark room. They played what Josh wanted to play that time, a shooting game. Alex grew bored quickly, but put on a smile and an enthusiastic voice until he said he was hungry. His friend, understandingly took him down into the kitchen to get some food. It still seemed like Josh was in a cold sweat, especially when he was around his parents.

They were getting some leftovers when he heard Josh's dad say, "Stop making all that racket!" When he did this, Josh spun around and flinched as if he was about to be hit. He responded with, "Yes sir." As if his father was a drill sergeant. He pulled Alex's sleeve and tugged him upstairs. He made sure to softly close the door behind him. The look on his face was like someone who was in shock. "Josh, I'm kind of worried, what's up with you?" Suddenly, Josh shouted, "There's nothing the hell wrong with me! Stop asking!" Alex fell back on his butt, startled by the sudden outburst, when he said, "Fine, I was only trying to help." A moment went by. Neither of them said a word or looked at each other in the dark room. Finally, Josh spoke. "Look, I'm really sorry I yelled at you. I'd like to tell you, but. . . It's just not that easy." "Believe me, I know what you mean. There's something I'd love to tell you, in fact." Alex responded, rolling his eyes, avoiding confrontation. He thought he heard footsteps coming up the stairs, but he dismissed the thought considering the television was still blaring downstairs. "I'll tell you what's bothering me if you tell me what's bothering you." Alex said with sympathy, noticing that his friend was beginning to shiver, not from cold, but from anxiety. There was something really bothering him. "Okay…" Josh said, working up the nerve to tell Alex what was troubling him, but Alex decided to make it easier for his friend. "How about I tell you what's bothering me first?" "Okay." Alex got equally nervous as his friend, he even began to sweat a bit. Finally, he blurted out, "Josh, I'm gay." He said it quickly, like ripping off a bandage. Josh's face almost lit up and smiled, like he was going to say the same thing, but not before they heard a voice from the hall. "Josh, come here, I need to talk to you." It was his dad. The voice sounded upset, almost muffled as if his teeth were closed when he spoke, like he were furious. The way parents talk to you when you did something horrible. Josh looked queasy, as he gave his friend a quick hug and left the room. He looked like a prisoner on death row being sent to the gallows. There was a bit of mumbling outside the door. Alex cracked it open a bit. Josh looked like a ghost. His dad noticed him. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Now." Josh's dad said to their guest, almost like a robot. Alex did as the man said, gathering his things, heading down the stairs, and leaving the building, all without a word. It was dark out, but he could see lights from all the houses. As he walked home, he heard shouts from Josh's house. Shouts from a man. Josh's dad. He was only able to make out a couple of words. "…WHY THE HELL DID YOU BRING A ***DAMN FAG INTO THE HOUSE?! You're not some kind of fag, are you?!" He went inside as soon as he couldn't hear any more.

The weeks following were dull and depressing. He felt so bad for getting Josh in trouble like that. He also felt terrible for being called a "damn fag." In addition, he couldn't talk to Josh. He went to his house a couple days after, and when he did, his mom answered and said, "Josh is in disgrace, don't come back here." Then she slammed the door in his face. He tried talking to his sister about it, and thankfully she understood and sympathized for her brother. Alex was also able to piece together why he was so nervous, especially around his parents. His parents were homophobic, which would mean that Josh was gay as well. That didn't make any sense though, he had posters of women all over his wall.

Half of his summer was gone. He was in a real slum. His music didn't seem to help lift his spirits. His sister tried comforting him, and his parents nagged on him, asking him, "What's the matter?" He didn't feel like sharing though. He even went for long ATV rides. Nothing seemed to help. Josh never answered his calls or texts.

He liked Josh very much, and not just as a friend. He had genuine feelings for him and hated being apart from him. It's strange though, Josh didn't really look handsome, and to most people, he had an unlikeable personality, but not to Alex. He was kind to him, and the more he realized it, the more he knew Josh liked him back. Unfortunately, it seemed as though they weren't going to see each other again.

It was living hell for Josh. He was literally a prisoner in his own home. His parents grounded him and wouldn't let him eat much. They locked him in his room, only letting him out to use the bathroom. His father had gotten so angry, he took a baseball bat to his television, computer, video games, etc. All he had were books on his bookshelves, which he read thoroughly. Sometimes when he was let out of his room to use the bathroom, his father would smack him. He had no idea how long all that would last.

He was also so grateful that Alex had come out to him. He wanted to ask so many questions like, "Do your parents know, or your sister? Why did you tell me sooner? How did you know you were gay? When did you find out? Who do you like?" More than anything though, he wanted to tell Alex he loved him, that he was gay, that all the posters on the wall were just for show, to fool his parents into thinking he was straight. All he wanted was to be with Alex.

Alex tried over and over to see his friend, to talk to him, but eventually it got so bad that Josh's parents threatened to shoot him if he showed up on their porch again. He also didn't know that his calls and texts were in vain, due to the fact all of Josh's ties to the outside world were broken. Finally, after about three weeks of being caged inside the house, Josh emerged, his parents taking him in their car. Alex happened to be outside when this happened, and sprinted to him. "Josh! I'll save ya!" He yelled. Unfortunately, his plan failed, as Josh's father pulled out a gun and fired a blank into the air. Everyone stopped. "Now you listen loud and clear, you faggot, don't come anywhere near my son for as long as I may live, or I'll shoot you dead, I guarantee it. I've already been to jail, I don't mind going back." Josh's father said. "Well can you at least tell me where you're taking him?" Alex pleaded. "That's none of your concern." They got into the car and sped off, leaving a cloud of red dust. He wish he knew where his friend was going.

As much as he hated to say it, he needed to find a new best friend.

His sister was watching television when he came into her room crying. "Josh is gone forever!" He wailed. Then he sat on the bed next to her. She hugged him, and eventually all the emotion got her crying about Vincent. They sobbed on each other, getting tears and snot on their clothes. Eventually they stopped crying.

It was the next day, but it didn't matter to Alex. They all felt the same anyways. Wake up, eat, do chores, eat, lay around, eat, go to sleep and the process repeats itself. Despite this, he was determined to make that day different. He was going to find a new friend, however, this was no easy task. He knew nobody off his street besides Tori. He was going to have to go down the highway, and do what? Knock on doors like a door-to-door salesman? Why didn't he just wait until school started back up? Unfortunately, school was a month and a half away. Alex didn't want to wait. It looks like he'd have to be a salesman. That was his only option. He got up, took a shower, dressed nicely, brushed his teeth well, and ate a healthy breakfast. He took these extra steps so he could make good first impressions. Afterwards, he hoped on the ATV, revved the motor, and sped off. He was a little uneasy about being out on the highway, so he drove slowly and kept a close eye out for cars. There was a house up on the right less than a hundred meters ahead of him. As he got closer, he started having troubling thoughts. "Why am I doing this? I can't just go door to door asking for friends, that's rude! Besides, what will I say? 'Hey, I just came to say I want to be your friend.' No that wasn't going to work. I could tell them I just moved in, although it's a little late for that, then again, they wouldn't know. In that case I should've brought a gift. Oh well."

He strolled up to the house and rang their doorbell. No one answered, so he waited to ring it a second time. Still no one answered, so he left. There was another house in the opposite direction. It had a wide open field and a gate. They were probably rich. He didn't suspect they would take to kindly to him visiting, so he skipped that house and crossed the highway. There were only two houses left to stop at. One of the was an old trailer home, the other a ranch style house. He stopped at the ranch house first. A man in his mid forties opened up. His hair was neatly combed and he had no facial hair. He wore glasses. It looked as if he was about to go to work, but not at the moment. "Well hello there, young man, can I help you?" He asked. "Hey, me and my family just moved in close to here and we thought we'd come and say hi, or at least me." "Well that's very nice and all, but I'm about to go. Hope to see you again." The man said walking past him, out to his car. "Wait, could you at least tell me one thing?" Alex persisted. "What's that?" "Do you have any kids?" "Only young kids. Sorry." With that he shut the car door and drove off. "I suppose that wasn't the right way to approach that." Alex thought as he drove towards his last house. This one was run down and overgrown with weeds. The paint was chipping and the tree in the front yard was dead. He knocked on the door. An ugly old hag of a person answered the door. "Go away." They said, slamming the door in his face before he could get a word in. Before he gave up all hope, he remembered that there was a house that nobody answered to. He looked at that house and noticed another car in the driveway. Once more, he rang the doorbell. Finally someone answered. A teenager opened the door. He looked to be maybe seventeen, probably old enough to drive. He had a bit of stubble all over his face as if he hadn't shaved in a day or two. His stubby legs were disproportionate to his long body He had a cup of coffee in his hands. "Who are you?" He asked with a stolid voice. "I'm Alex. My family and I moved into a house near here recently and I thought I'd come say hello to the neighbors." The guy didn't talk for a moment, but then invited him inside. "Go ahead and have a seat. I've got someone you can talk to." He said, going back into a hallway. "Steve, get in here. Somebody wants to meet you." He said.

A moment later, a tall kid, who appeared to be older than his brother, stepped into the den. His face was strange compared to his body. It looked too young, despite the fact he had a slight mustache, which it appeared that he shaved. His hair was a bit spiked in the front, but mostly just combed around. His legs were even more disproportionate because of of how long they were. Despite all this, Alex found him very attractive.

"Oh who are you?" He asked. "I'm Alex. I assume you're Steve?" "Yeah. So, what can I help you with?" He asked. "I moved in around here recently, and wanted to say hi to my neighbors." "Oh, you must be the people who moved into the house on Jefferson, right?" Steve asked. "Yeah." "Nice to meet you." He said holding out his hand. It was like his leg. They shook. Alex's heart swelled a bit.

"I must say, you did come around at such an odd time, and it was so unexpected." "Steve said. "I'm sorry, certainly didn't mean to cause any trouble, it's just that my friends are all gone now (Including Josh, which he failed to mention,) so I've just been hopping house to house searching for friends. Kinda pathetic isn't it?" "Well you found me now, so you're fine." Steve gave a reassuring chuckle. He was so handsome, and seemed very friendly. It'd be just his luck if he was gay and single. "So, do you want me to give you a tour of the place?" He asked Alex. "Why not."

"So this is my room." There was a television, a bed, a computer, just your average bedroom, not much of anything that stood out. Alex felt a bit out of place around Steve, but he didn't care. Steve patted the bed as Alex was about to walk out and said, "Where you going? Let's chat." Alex sat down.

"So… What do you want to talk about?" He asked anxiously. "Where did you come from?" "I came from Virginia." "Why'd you decide to move here? I've never seen the ocean. Why would you leave that?" "Are you kidding, we've lived next to water our whole lives." Alex retorted, feeling a bit more relaxed then. "What does the ocean and the sand feel like?" He asked. "Well the sand feels like walking on really fine, but hot gravel that has the texture a bit like cotton, and the ocean, well you're not missing much." They laughed a bit, more so Steve, but Alex gave a bit of a chuckle. "You play any sports?" Steve asked randomly once they had finished laughing. "To be honest, I'm a musician. I'm horrible when it comes to any kind of sport, now if you sat me in front of a piano, then that's a different story. If piano-ing was a sport, I'd be a state champ, not to toot my own horn or anything. Oh yes, and I can play the alto and tenor saxophone, bass guitar, regular guitar, drums and a bit on the cello." "You sound real cocky, I'd like to hear you play the piano, just to prove to me that you can actually play." Steve retorted. "I for one, like track, which is an actual sport, which I could smoke you in." The two of them both chuckled again, although to Alex, it felt forced.

An hour had gone by, and all they had done was make small talk. Eventually, Alex butted in, saying he heeded to get home. "Are you going to be home tomorrow?" Steve added. "Yeah." "Great, I want to hear you play."

Alex left feeling both happy and out of place, as if Steve was some sort of paradox. The awkwardness went away fairly quick once they start talking, and there was no doubt in his mind that he thought he wasn't a beefcake, but there were lingering feelings of distrust or discomfort in the kid, almost like a faintly detectable smell. However, he just pushed those bad feelings into the back of his head, telling himself that Steve was going to be a great friend, and even better potential mate. He just wished he could see him without a shirt.

Alex got an early start to his day so he could get some chores done. Just as he finished up his work, he heard a knock at the door. As usual, the dog barked her head off at the person on the other side of the glass. It was Steve. "Hey pal." He said, patting Alex on the back. "So, you want to show me those piano skills of yours?" "Sure." Alex said, sitting down at the piano. He decided he'd play something easy, like the Entertainer. Steve sat obediently through the whole thing, but when the song was finished, no applause. Alex turned around to see what was the matter. "I've heard that time a million times. can you play anything different?" He asked. Alex, slightly shocked, sat back down and played a slow song, Bethena. Only a slow clap. "C'mon, play me something fast!" Steve persisted. Steeplechase rag. "Still not fast enough." At that point, Alex was pissed off. So he threw Steve a real hard ball. S.P.F. Boggie, the fastest and hardest song he knew. That finally caught Steve's attention. "They're you go, that's how you get the title of state champion." Alex said nothing.

They did not much of anything for the remainder of their time, up in until the very end. It seemed as though Steve wanted to say something and had just then decided a conversation about it. "So, Alex, you like any girls?" Alex made an irritated face, as if he suspected this was coming. However, instead of telling the truth, he told him he did like some girls. The last thing he needed was another incident. Steven, instead of commenting, just looked at the ground, and stopped smiling like he normally did. "Oh, I see." He mumbled. "Is something wrong?" "Well first let me ask you a question; How do you feel about gay people?" Yup, this kid was gay too, just his good luck. "I'm fine with it." Alex said. Suddenly he felt sympathetic for his new friend, and at the same time surprised that he'd met this many homosexuals. There was a pause, then suddenly Steve blurted out, "I'm gay." Alex answered keenly, "I figured, don't worry I'm gay too. I was just pretending to like girls so you wouldn't think I was gay." That opened a can of worms. "That's great." Steve said, giving him a hug. Once they were done, He asked, "Do your parents know?" "Yeah, they're fine with it. What about your parents?" Alex asked, hoping they wouldn't be like Josh's parents. "They support me and help me out and that kind of stuff. My mom's part of PFLAG, so that's cool. She makes me go to these social group meetings. It's pretty boring, but you know…" "I've always wanted to go to one of those." Alex said. "I can bring you to one if you want, the next one is a week from now." "Cool."

They talked a bit more about being gay and stuff like that, and they bonded well. The stench of distrust and discomfort was well gone now. He'd found a new friend, and better yet, he was gay and his parents were okay with it. If only Josh's parents had been even remotely understanding, but all that was in the past, and Alex began to forget Josh. All attention was on Steve. They exchanged numbers and Steve left. Alex hoped he'd see his friend the next day.

He didn't. Or the next, however, they had been texting. He went to see Steve. They met up and hung out, doing pretty much nothing. They did that the next day, gradually visiting and getting to know each other better. Finally, he showed up at Alex house. He heard Steve at the door. "I'll get it, ma." Alex said, rushing down the stairs. He flung the door open, and his friend stood there with the biggest smile on his face. He wore a short sleeved shirt so his arms showed. They were very long, like his legs, but also muscular. He also wore shorts, which were above his knees because his legs were so long. This made Alex's heart flutter a bit, as silly as it seemed. "Hey, Alex, how's it going? Can you hang out?" He asked. "Sure, come on in." They both sat in the living room. Alex played the piano, a fast pace song, and to his surprise, Steve was dancing, instead of dancing. This was a totally different side of his friend that he hadn't seen before, and he liked it. Not to mention seeing him dance was kind of sexy. He really wanted to dance with him, but then there wouldn't be music, so he just let his friend go on ahead. "That sounded great." He said once the song was over. "I thought you didn't like my piano playing." "Water under the bridge." Was Steve's only reply. "I wish you could dance with me." "I wanted to too. Maybe I can get the old phonograph and slow dance to old people music on that." They laughed. "No but seriously, I have a phonograph and some old records up in my room if you want to." Alex said, his voice a bit deeper then. "Sounds like fun."

They went upstairs. He got the phonograph out and plugged it in. Then he got some old records out. The records were all songs he played on the piano. He put Bethena on and started the machine. Finally he placed the needle on the moving record and the song began.

Alex almost thought it was a novelty he was slow dancing with another guy, but he really did like him. He was very handsome, and so kind. All those bad feelings were a thing of the past. He felt like he understood him. It was even better that he was gay. He wondered if he had feelings for him. He'd bet he did."May I?" Steve asked, holding out his hand. Alex took it, and they began.

At first the two didn't take it seriously. They giggled a bit, trying not to step on each other's toes, figuring out how to position themselves. Neither of the had really slow danced before. Alex sort of danced with a girl he went out with for two weeks at a school dance. He didn't count that. Steve actually danced with another guy at a school dance as well, but he ended up vomiting on that kid. He didn't count that either. However, as they composed themselves, their foolish grins shrunk. Alex nuzzled into Steve's chest, since Steve was so tall and he couldn't put his chin over his shoulder. He was warm and smelled like cologne. Steve, on the other hand, didn't have a shoulder to rest on, so he rested his chin on Alex head. He also held his head and and ran his fingers through Alex's hair. It was soft, fluffy, not too oily, but not frizzy either. Their other hands were holding each other's backs. They stepped around each other's feet, not faulting once. It had become a serious matter, and the two realized they loved each other. They could feel it. Neither of them said a word as they danced.

It seemed as though Steve was going to make a move, when the song suddenly ended, ruining the moment. They gently pushed away from each other. Then their eyes met, and they beamed, and not in a goofy way, but with all seriousness. Finally, Alex spoke. "You're good at dancing." "I can the say the same about you." Both of them were blushing. They both felt awkward, and at the same time passionate. Despite their feelings, they didn't do anything rash. "Want me to put on another song?" Alex asked. "Go on ahead." Steve answered. Alex put on a fast pace stomp, something they could really dance and act goofy to. That is exactly what they did, act goofy. Their freestyle dancing was atrocious. They didn't dance like white boys, they were worse! Of course it was all in good fun. A part of both them wanted to slow dance again, but they decided to save that for later.

They spent the rest of their time watching television and making small talk. It eventually started to get late, so Steven went home, where he would do God knows what. He slept soundly with happy thoughts in his head. He couldn't wait to slow dance with Steve again. However, as he was just about to fall asleep, he remembered Josh, and be became distressed.

Alex didn't have a reason to be though. Josh had been taken in to child services, where his new legal guardian was his uncle, who thankfully, was fine with gay people. He told his uncle that he was indeed a homosexual to make things easier. It felt like a weight had been lifted his shoulders, and his uncle was perfectly fine with it. If only he could tell that to his best friend. In addition. His parents were charged with child abuse and neglect and were sentenced to twenty years each without a chance for parole. Also, his bruises from his beatings were healed up. Also, he got a new game system, new television, phone and computer. He was pretty much the happiest he could be, accept he missed Alex.

Summer was finally coming to a close. School was in a week, and everyone's morale was low. Despite, this, they squeezed the last bits of freedom out of that last week. They swam, ran, played, tinkered with things, and spent little time around the television.

It was Saturday, two days before school started. Alex spent the majority of his day prepping. So were his sister and his friends. They had all their materials, their food, supplies. Everything they needed. Alex finished before everyone else, so he went out to the treehouse. He was admiring the view from the top floor when he felt his phone buzz. It was Steve. "Hello there, Steven. What's up?" He said. "I was wondering if I could come and spend the night at your place? You know, last sleepover of the summer kind of thing." "I don't see why not." "Cool, I'll be over at six." Steven said. Then he hung up. Alex rushed home to tidy up his room. He made his bed, picked up his clothes, replaced his things, even dust. After diner, he heard a knock at the door, and the dog bark. He rushed to it. Steven greeted him with a smile. "Aloha!" He said, inviting his friend inside. They quickly went upstairs. He put his bag in the corner and the two talked for a while about school. "I hope we have all the same classes." "I do too, and I really hope I don't get Mr. Anderson. I heard he's like the devil. He apparently fails people on purpose." Steve replied. "What does he teach?" "He teaches math." "Ugh, I think I might have him." Alex sighed. "Just don't get on his bad side for the whole year."

Eventually that got boring, so they surfed the web (not looking at anything dirty,) and that got boring as well. However, they killed some time. It was nine thirty. "Let's take a break and get some coffee." Alex suggested. They went downstairs and got the coffee maker running. "How do you like your coffee?" He asked. "I 'like it black. Nothing added." Alex gave him an odd look, but followed through and poured him a steaming hot mug of joe. "I prefer mine with a lot of cream and sugar." Alex said. That time he was the one who received an odd look. They guzzled down their coffee and headed back upstairs. The caffeine gave them a quick jolt of energy, which they burnt on a "dance party." They danced to some more modern music, than what they did last time. Eventually they were the only ones up. Alex said, "Let's try and stay up all night." Steve agreed. The coffee began to wear off, but they were determined to have a great night.

While they were doing all those silly things, they were both horny, and eventually they realized it. They settled down and sat on the bed. "You want me to play another one of those old songs of mine?" Alex asked. "Only if we can dance to it." Steve replied. He pulled out a waltz and put it on the gramophone turntable. The song was perfect because it wasn't to slow, but it wasn't too fast either. They didn't want to dance too slow, or else they might fall asleep, but too fast and it wouldn't be romantic. They put one of their hands on each other's shoulders and their other hands held each other's hands themselves. The song began. Unlike last time, they started off collected instead of foolish. However, they still grinned, looking into each other's sparkly eyes, and then Steve stumbled a bit. "Just remember to count, '1-2-3-1-2-3.'"Alex mumbled, as if talking loudly would ruin the moment. Neither of them misstepped. Slowly their faces came closer to each other, until finally their noses touched, and so did their lips. At first they lightly pecked at each other, but they began to kiss for real. Soon enough, their tongues were tied up. Steven embraced him a bit tighter as did Alex. The music disappeared. The only thing they focused on was each other. Steve slowly slid his hand down Alex's back, until it met his thighs. Alex got goosebumps and suddenly became nervous and aware of his surroundings. He moved his lips away from Steve's and said, "Hey, let's take it slow, okay?" And he didn't say it in a rude tone, only loud enough to get the point through. Steve took his hand away and gave a reassuring nod. As exciting as sex seemed to Alex, he certainly was't ready. He got quite nervous at the thought of it. He always thought it would be interesting and pleasurable, but he also imagined it happening later in life. Not to mention his parents would kill him if they found out he'd done it.

The song was over, and he was still horny as he had ever been. Steve was too, but he also felt a bit dejected. Of course it was his fault, and he knew it. There was an awkward silence between the two as they sat on the bed and listened to more ragtime and waltzes. Eventually they simmered down and began to get tired. They did things to stay occupied, like reading and surfing the web again. The two of them got comfy on the bed and took their shirts off. They both stared at each other's bare chests. Steven had a six pack, his thighs formed a 'v' down by his groin, and he had no chest hair at all. Alex didn't have chest hair, but he also didn't have abs, or a 'v.' He was embarrassed by his appearance, but Steve certainly didn't mind. He still thought he was extremely sexy, especially with his muscular arms. There was no doubt that Alex found Steve attractive. After gawking each other for a moment, they drew close again. In no time at all, they were making out, Steve on top of Alex. They felt each other's chests. Steve respectfully kept his hand up above Alex's waist, even though he was certainly ready. However, to his surprise, Alex began pulling off Steve's pajama pants. Steve took this as an O.K. and did the same to Alex. The only thing either of them were wearing were their boxers. Eventually one thing led to another… I'm not going into too much detail, because I'm sure you can figure out what happened. Alex broke his own word.

Once they were finished, he went to bathroom to get some towels to clean up their messes. They slipped on their clothes quickly so no one were to find out what they did. Alex felt immense happiness and guilt all at the same time. That wasn't the way he planned for that to happen. "I can't believe we just did that." He said. "Pretty crazy, eh?" Steve said. You did well." They didn't speak for a moment, then He spoke again. "You're not mad at me, are you?" "Of course not. If anything happens, I'm the one who took off your pants in the first place." Alex retorted. "Albeit, I feel pretty bad for doing this so young. I feel guilty." "So do I." They said nothing more for the longest time. "I suppose this means we're dating, right?" Alex asked. "Sure thing." Steve responded.

They brushed their teeth, and crawled into bed. Steve cuddled next to Alex, putting his arm around him. "I love you." Alex whispered. "Love you too."

They fell asleep with a feeling of foreboding and discomfort rather than happiness. Their evening had not gone as planned.

Alex woke up before his friend, and got out of bed to go to the bathroom, when he realized that he had left his blinds open overnight! "Damn it!" He cursed under his breath. He then quickly drew them down, but not before he looked out the window and seeing a car in Josh's driveway. There hadn't been one there since he left. He felt even more guilty once he saw that, as if someone sucked the life right out of him.

Steve went home around noon. As soon as he was out of sight, Alex ran as quick as he could to Josh's house. No one answered. That didn't settle right. The rest of the day, he felt like something was looming over him.

Mundane Monday. The first day of school. His father bolted into his room like a tank, flickering the lights and yelling, "Wake up!" He did the same to Sophia. They took showers, got dressed, ate breakfast, packed up their things and walked to the bus stop, while their parents yelled goodbye. Josh stepped out about the same time. They gathered by the highway. Steve was there to, his house only a couple of meters away. Cars raced by, on their way to work, or wherever it is that they were going. Sophia talked to Alex and Alex to Sophia, but Josh and Steve said nothing, at least not to each other. Alex honestly didn't want to talk either, but he figured he'd break the awkward silence.

Finally, the bus arrived. Sophia sat in the very front of the bus on the right, her favorite spot. Josh sat adjacent to her. Steve and Alex sat towards the middle, next to the emergency exit windows on the right side. They grinned a tad bit thinking about Saturday night, even though it was nothing to grin about if they were serious. They also had their arms around each other's shoulders. Everyone was staring at them, wondering why they were grinning and had their arms around each other. The bus ride was long, and irritating. Some kid in the back called the two sissies. Steven flipped the birdie at the kid. It was also awkward, considering they just did it with each other, and they both knew it but didn't say it. Josh was no where near happy, even sad. He was full on disconsolate and dejected. He wanted to kill himself, but he held onto the hope that things would get better.

He had gotten back to his old house late last night. Him and his uncle moved into the house. However, as they were unloading their stuff, Josh just happened to look up nonchalantly at Alex's bedroom and see him and Steve making out without their shirts. That crushed him, considering he had feelings for Alex. Add on everything he'd been through over the past months, and he was having the worst day of his life. He kept his distance from the two lovers. He wanted nothing to do with them, especially that dirty double crosser Alex. He was so upset, he could kill the two of them. He felt as if something or someone had to pay.

Sophia was feeling fairly dull, but not depressed. She was hoping to find a new boyfriend. She had high hopes, and more of a chance.

They got to school. Alex saw Josh and said, "Hey, you don't seem to be very talkative today." In his most cheerful voice. The only response he got were two birdies. That normally didn't bother him, but that day it didn't settle right with him. He began to trace the source of foreboding. The majority of the day after that was uneventful, full of useless knowledge, vulgar language and nasty school food. Then it happened in gym class.

Alex and Steve were in the same gym class together, however in the locker room, they got dressed on opposite sides of the room. Towards the end of school, they headed back into the locker room after getting all sweaty in gym. They showered, got dressed, and left when the bell rang, accept for Steve. He was taking an unusually long time. Alex thought nothing of it though. However, as he left he remembered he left his book bag in there, so he ran back in to get it before the busses left. That's when it happened. He walked past the shower room when something caught his eye. He backed up and took a better look. There, he saw Steve and some other kid making out, both of them only wearing towels, holding each other.

"Steve?!" Alex exclaimed with rage. Steve, pushed the other guy off him, his face pale as a vampire's. "Oh my God, Alex, it's not what it looks like…" "How long?" Was the only thing Alex could stand to say. Steve put his head down and said, "Ever since I met you. I'm terribly sorry, to the both of you, I mean it. It wasn't supposed to happen like this! I-" Alex cut him off. "And who is this jackass anyways?" "This is Mark." Steve said, pointing to the guy he had just kissed. Mark was just as mad, if not more, confused. "I can't believe you cheated on me!" Was all he said. Then he ran out of the showers.

Alex made a mad dash for the exit, Steve yelling behind him. He chased Alex through the corridors, trying to talk to him. Alex's eyes were filling with water. He was just as upset as Josh.

He got on the bus and sat alone in his regular seat. He said nothing and cried softly to himself. Sophia tried to ask what was the matter, but he wasn't budging. He stormed up to his room and slammed the door as soon as he got home. He wailed for hours. Finally, once he got his stuff together, he called Josh. He needed a good friend he could count on. No one answered. He tried at least ten times, but no one picked up. His sanity was hanging by a thread. On the thirteenth call, he finally broke the barrier. "Josh are you there?! I need to talk to you. Please, help me. My boyfriend cheated on me! I feel like I'm gonna die!" He cried. The only thing Josh said was, "Karma's a bitch, ain't it Alex?" Then he hung up. It finally clicked in his head. Josh felt like he was being cheated on by Alex because he liked him. He also probably saw them kiss. He really felt like crap then.

He didn't come to school that day, or the next, or even the one after that. Josh followed suit. Josh still didn't answer any of his phone calls. Finally, on the fourth day, and fifty seven calls later, Josh picked up. "Hello?" He said, sounding a bit better. "Josh, it's Alex. It just clicked in my head why you haven't been talking to me. I'm terribly sorry, I didn't even think about your feelings when I dated Steve. Then again, I also didn't think you were home, and to be fair, we weren't dating. Anyways, I just hope you can forgive me. I already feel like crap, and you're right, karma's a bitch. I just want to be friends again, maybe even more than friends if you were willing, of course I'm sure you don't want anything to do with me." There was a long pause on the other end. Finally Josh sighed, and said, "I only want to be friends. I don't like you like that anymore, but I think we both need each other, so I accept your apology." "Thank you so much." They hung up, and Alex sprinted over to his friend's house. He knocked, and Josh opened up almost immediately. They hugged for quite awhile. It was quite a miracle that they made up so quickly. "I missed you so much." Josh told Alex. Alex said the same.

It was Friday. Josh showed up at Alex's door shortly after they got home from school. He was smiling like used to before everything was messed up. "Glad to have you back." Alex said, taking him in. "Glad to be back." Josh retorted. "You, want to go play a song?" He said. "Definitely." Alex said. They headed upstairs. Josh noticed the gramophone. "Is that new?" He asked. "Nah, I've had it. You want to hear a record?" "Maybe later. Right now I want to make music with you rather than listen to a machine make it."

They each sat down on their instruments and began to play, but this time they played a song neither of them really thought they knew, but were able to play just fine. It was even more perfect than the waltz. It was just the right tempo, and it was melodic. Euphonic, even. It was like a combination of all the songs they'd ever played, or at least Alex had played. Finally the song concluded, and they both got up and stared at each other, then smiled.

"Say, Josh, there's something I'd like to show you." Alex said randomly. Josh simply nodded and followed his friend. They stepped outside and walked towards the shed. They got the ATV out. Alex started it up, and got on. As did Josh. The sky began to get cloudy. They drove off into the woods, neither of them saying a single word, only smiling and smelling the air. Finally, they arrived at their destination. The secluded little treehouse. A secret jewel. "Oh my God! It's incredible!" Josh exclaimed, simply staring at the structure. "Well don't just stand there, go check it out." Alex said in a friendly way. He got even more surprised when he saw the inside. "Woah, it has a television, and a second floor?!" He climbed up the ladder and found the next level. There sat the two rocking chairs. "C'mon Alex, let's watch the sky!" He said. A moment later, he showed up. He sat down in the chair as well, and they watched the sky turn dark with storm clouds. It began to rain, not much, just a bit of a sprinkle. The sight from the second floor was breathtaking. "Do you want to go play in the rain with me?" He asked suddenly. Josh sat and thought for a moment, and said, "Wouldn't miss it for the world." They climbed out of their chairs and stepped out onto the balcony. The rain hit them like a wall. They dashed all around in it like little children. They laughed and splashed water all over each other. Then they came close to each other. Suddenly, Josh swooped Alex up in his arms and made out with him. That was the only thing they did, no sex or anything dirty that would ruin their moment, and they did it for what seemed like forever. They held each other tight, not letting to let each other go, afraid they'd loose each other again.