Chapter 10

"See across the bay, over there," Aaron pointed with his finger, "that's Tancook Island. It has 784 inhabitants, its own elementary school and two pubs. Oh, and an old prison where they used to lock up privateers, whenever they managed to catch them."

Aaron was reading from a pamphlet Mr. Grant had left on the coffee table. There was plenty of information about things to do in the area.

"There's a ferry that goes there several times a day, there is one in about 15 minutes, but the next one is at 1:30. What do you say we grab something to eat before we go or we could eat over there, at one of the pubs."

Jackson thought for a bit, "Let's go now, see if we can catch an earlier ferry and eat there."

Off they went, and by the time they reached the wharf, there was a ferry just about to leave. It was a small, flat bottom craft able to transport about eight to ten vehicles. They were number seven, and got on just in time. Once onboard, the attendant directed them to a specific spot so they could park. The crossing would take about twenty minutes. Enough time to get out and stretch their legs.

As they left the shore, they could see some fishing boats tied to their moorings, lobster traps piled up on the wharf. It wasn't the season. The sea was calm, almost a mirror. The air was fairly warm and the mid-day sun beaming on them. It was an amazing sensation.

They went to one side and leaned on the railing. There was only one deck. Next to them was a couple of young lads, good looking as Aaron noticed. Maybe in their late teens, pretty straight-looking but Aaron and Jackson could feel there was more to them. They were gay, they could feel it. Then, Jackson noticed the tiny Pride pin on one of their rucksacks.

"Like your pin," Jackson said in a casual manner. He knew that would break the ice and allow for some conversation. He looked into the eyes of one of the young lads. "You've been to the island before?"

"Erm… yeah, me and my mate here," pointing to the lad with him, "we go every couple of weeks." He was trying to gauge this older guy, but if he knew about the pin, then he and his mate were likely gay. Besides, he looked alright, so it might be safe to talk to him. "So, you know about the pin, then?"

"Yeah, I do. It's okay, you don't have to worry." Jackson could see the relief wash over his face. "My name's Jackson and this is my boyfriend Aaron," he said, extending his hand.

"My name's Josh and this is Luke." They shook hands and started making small talk. Josh was less reserved than Luke, so he did most of the talking. They were both 18 years old, about to start college. Luckily, they were both accepted to the same college, so they would be able to share an apartment. Luke was going into translation, he had the gift of languages, and Josh wanted to be a graphic designer. They offered an excellent program where they were going, so choosing that college was easy.

"How long have you two been friends," Aaron asked. He was hoping they would open up a bit more, share their experience.

"We grew up together," Josh said. "We've known each other since we were about ten, but never really knew each other properly, if you know what I mean, until we were about fifteen," he said, looking to Luke to confirm that.

"Yeah, that's about right," Luke confirmed. "You kept checking me out in school, it was hard to ignore you!"

Jackson laughed. "So you're both out then?"

"Only to a few close friends. Our parents don't know, at least we don't think they do," Luke pointed out nervously. "But we're going to see my aunt, she lives on the island. She knows."

"Ah, so you were able to talk to someone, that's good," Aaron said. Remembering his own experience, he didn't talk to anyone until it had to be forced out of him!

"I didn't really need to talk, you know. One day, when I was visiting, Louise, that's her name, and me were sitting on the porch drinking her special lemonade, talking about school and stuff," Luke continued. "She looked at me and said something about my secret being safe with her. It's as if she had known all along. It was really weird."

"Luke, your aunt is weird," Josh said with a chuckle. Turning to Aaron and Jackson, he lowered his voice, as if in a conspiratorial tone, and said, "how many aunts do you have who smoke pot and drink moonshine?"

"Josh, shut up!" Luke punched him in the arm, a small smile tugging at his lips.

"That's alright, guys, don't worry, we have our fair share of weird relatives, too," Jackson exclaimed, glancing at Aaron.

"Would you, by any chance, be referring to my family?" Aaron asked with fake surprise in his voice?

"Absolutely!" Their exchange finished with a good laugh.

The crossing was almost over and they had to get back to their car. They offered the boys a ride to wherever they were going but Luke said there was no need to because the island was so small, they could walk to his aunt's place in no time. She lived up the road from one of the pubs.

"We wanted to grab a bite to eat at a pub, why don't you two come with us, our treat, you can tell us which one has the best food, and we can continue talking a bit, that is if you want to." Aaron was hoping they'd say yes, he liked them and the four of them seemed to be getting along nicely.

Luke and Josh looked at each other and decided it was okay. Luke got his cell phone out and called his aunt to say they were at the pub with friends and that they would be over in about an hour. They were all set.

They settled at the Split Crow, it had the best pub grub, in their opinion, and it had a patio on the side of the building, so they could sit outside and enjoy the view. They could also have their meal and talk freely with Jackson and Aaron, away from the prying eyes of the locals.

"So, how long have you guys been together?" Josh asked.

"About five years," Jackson said. "It was rough at the beginning, but we managed."

"You make it sound like it was quite an ordeal," Aaron piped in. He looked at the boys and added, "He was just difficult, he played hard to get." They all laughed at that.

"We've never thought of us as being together, you know, but I guess that's what we are," Josh said, "we don't live together, but we do a lot of things together, and we like hiking, so that's something we enjoy and have in common. There are great walking trails around LaHave."

Luke, the quieter of the two, was sipping his lager and listening. He was feeling comfortable now. "We go to clubs in Hotten and Pembroke every now and again, but it's just not what we like. You must think we're weird, right?"

Aaron smiled at them. "You're not weird at all, clubs are not for everyone. And everyone is different, the way you come out, how you feel about it, maybe you're still nervous about going out with your boyfriend. And that's fine. You don't have to go to bars. We use to go early on to meet friends and play pool, but we do it less often now, you know, with work and all."

"What do you do?" Josh asked, curious about what the two older men did for a living.

"I'm a builder and Aaron is a mechanic. Actually now owns half of the business where he works," Jackson added proudly. "And I have my own business."

"That's great," Luke replied. "You have… regular jobs, I mean, normal jobs, you know what I mean?" He didn't really know how to express his thought. He wanted to say they were not hairdressers or florists or some other stereotypical jobs people associate with gay people, but he actually felt bad even thinking like that.

Jackson remembered a conversation he had with Aaron early on about the same subject and added, "You mean manly jobs?" he said, emphasising the last two words. He looked at Aaron when he said that and smiled, sure his boyfriend would remember that night. And Aaron did, because he replied with a knowing smile.

"Yeah, I guess. There are still so many stereotypes, it's hard to get away from them. I suppose, as we meet more people, we'll get to know others like you, and like us, too."

Their lunch was finished, they'd had a good time and had enjoyed each other's company. Luke said they had to get going if they wanted to visit his aunt and have time to get the ferry back to town.

"Thanks for lunch," Luke said. "And thanks for talking to us, it was nice to have a chance to meet an older couple…"

Upon hearing the words older couple, Jackson just about spat the mouthful of lager he had in his mouth. Aaron burst out laughing, "You calling us old farts?"

The boys were mortified. "Oh God, no, not at all. I'm sorry, that's not what I meant," Luke stammered, so embarrassed.

"I'm only joking, mate, you're alright," Aaron said, still laughing. "We're only a few years older than you, but Jackson, here, he's the granddad of us all." That comment got him a serious jab in the ribs.

"Yeah, nice to meet you too, I guess," Jackson added jokingly, smiling at them, "and good luck with college."

They had enjoyed meeting these young men. Talking with them about coming out, about their insecurities and their fears, it brought back all kinds of memories, some good, some not so good. But in retrospect, they realised they had made a lot of progress and their lives had changed for the better. It was good to acknowledge that.

They visited the prison and learned some interesting facts about the privateers and their misdeeds. They walked through public gardens, admired an amazing collection of rhododendrons that were in bloom, then they sat down on a bench in the gardens to enjoy a soft-serve ice cream cone.

They were not alone. A man, maybe 30 or 35 years old, was sitting on a bench in front of them. He, too, was eating an ice cream cone. Jackson and Aaron were sitting behind him at an angle that afforded them a clear view of his face. Nice jaw line, 4 o'clock shadow, tanned skin and light brown hair. Probably straight but he was still a very attractive bloke. Aaron glanced at Jackson, their eyes met, but neither said anything. They understood each other and simply exchanged a knowing smile. They observed how his tongue would swirl around the ice cream and lap up a mouthful. It was one of those co-ordinated movements where the swirling of his tongue would coincide with his hand turning the cone, so that ice cream would be collected evenly, all around the ice cream serving. After a moment, his tongue would come out of his mouth again and lick up the sides of the ice cream until it reached the tip. His tongue would be perfectly curved outward, the tip almost touching his chin, then it would straighten before reentering his mouth. As it came out again, it then went around, repeating that slow, swirling motion. Finally, he took the cold, creamy, pointed mound and inserted it fully in his mouth in order to close his lips around it and then pull it out slowly, leaving another mouthful of ice cream in his mouth. His movements were slow, almost studied. He was definitely enjoying his snack.

The boys were simply mesmerised. They had never imagined how bloody erotic a tongue lapping at ice cream could be. The two of them finished their own ice cream in silence. The man left. Neither of them moved. Jackson turned to Aaron and said, in a sheepish, low voice, "I don't think I can get up just yet without embarrassing myself." Aaron burst out laughing, but he didn't move either! "Same here," he said, giving Jackson a big grin.

A few minutes passed before they decided it was time to go back to the mainland. The next ferry was leaving in about 25 minutes. Plenty of time to make it.

Shortly after getting off the ferry, they stopped at a store to buy some food and a few cans for the evening. They didn't intend to leave their nest after returning.

TBC