Bill W

Castaway Hotel II

Summer 1999 – May 2000

Chapter 1
A new beginning

From the time my grown children left at Easter and up until the week I adopted all of the boys, I spent much of my spare time trying to decide what we were going to do on our vacation together. Even though my priority was for everyone to have a good time, I also wanted it to be relaxing and free of stress, especially for the working members of the family. This would be their opportunity to unwind from the rigors of their jobs, as well as spend some quality time with the rest of us. After many weeks of thought on the matter, I finally came up with an idea. With this in mind, I contacted a friend, to see if he would be able to help me work out the details. Luckily, he had what I needed and wouldn't be requiring it during that particular time frame, so we made a deal and I called my children and set everything up for the final week of July and the first week of August.

I planned this to run for two consecutive weeks for a couple of reasons. First of all, the boys and I would be able to spend both weeks there, but this would also give the others some wiggle room, if they found they couldn't get off one week or the other. As it turned out, three of the four decided the last week of July would be best for them, while Robert became the holdout non-conformist, as usual. He decided to come in on Thursday of the first week, so he could spend some time with his older siblings, and then he'd stay the second week, so he could have his younger brothers to himself. I thought that was pretty good planning on his part and suited his purposes quite well, even if it was a bit devious.

Now that nearly everything had been agreed upon, there was something else I needed to address. It was a persistent problem, one that had begun to manifest itself even before the boys had come to live with me, and had to do with learning potential. As the school year came to a close and everyone's academic achievements were posted, as I expected, most of the boys had done very well. However, there were a couple of notable exceptions to this rule, but it was also clear their lack of success wasn't due to a lack of effort. During the school year, it had been discovered that both Cole and Graham suffered from learning disabilities.

When the early signs of their difficulties became obvious, both boys were tested and evaluated by the school psychologist. She was the first to inform me about their problems. Once school was out, I had them reevaluated by another professional, in private practice, but his results were nearly identical to the first. He suggested the boys also be taken to a medical doctor, for complete physicals, to see if we might be able to pin down the source of these difficulties. After running an extensive series of tests on the two boys, it was determined that most of their problems stemmed from their mother's indifference and lack of concern. Let me explain what I mean by that.

First of all, both boys suffered from 'fetal alcohol syndrome,' which was caused by their mother's excessive drinking problem while she was pregnant with each of them. This had deprived their rapidly growing bodies from getting the nutrition they needed to develop properly and also robbed them of an appropriate oxygen supply. This had its greatest impact during the time their brains were still developing and some irreversible brain damage had occurred. Both professionals agreed the boys could be taught to compensate for some of this, but it would require an extreme effort on their part and they would be required to work twice as hard as anyone else.

As if that weren't bad enough, this problem had been compounded by the poor diet and lack of nutrition they endured while growing up. Their physicals had shown they had also suffered from a mild form of malnutrition for most of their formative years. This not only meant their bodies had been deprived of the vitamins and minerals they needed to grow strong and healthy, but it was also severe enough to cause additional complications. Cole's situation was the most severe, because not only had he suffered from these things over the longest time span, it was also discovered that when there was food, Cole would unselfishly give a larger portion to Graham than he would take for himself. He later explained to me, in private, that this was because he couldn't stand seeing his brother cry from being so hungry.

Although there was nothing that could be done to reverse the situation at this point, we could make sure they ate well and received vitamins from now on. Not only that, but we would also be responsible for making certain they were provided with the educational materials and additional assistance they would need, in order for them to succeed. More importantly, we would also form a support system and provide the encouragement beneficial to motivating them sufficiently to overcome this handicap.

Once the problem was diagnosed, Ricky took it upon himself to make sure both boys were able to function and progress with his assistance. "Dad, I have to do this for them," he told me one evening, when we were alone. "If it wasn't for some of my neighbors who gave me things to eat from time to time or the food I got at school, I might have had those same problems too. I know my mom drank and did drugs, both during and after she had me, and now I'm beginning to think that's what caused a lot of the problems I had in school too."

I was momentarily speechless and just stood there looking at him. I was thinking about what a profound insight he had just made about his own situation, but Ricky interpreted my non-responsiveness as a sign I didn't understand what he meant by his statements. Therefore, he decided to explain it in more detail for me.

"That's part of the reason I'm so small, kind of like Graham, and why I could never settle down or control myself in class," he admitted, referring to his hyperactivity. "I think that's why I also had trouble learning how to read to and why I don't like to read so much now. I'm sure I know better than any of the rest of you what it's like for them, so I want to do whatever I can to help them get through this." I can't tell you how impressed I was, after he'd finished his explanation.

From that moment forward, Ricky was like a little father to the pair and that only caused Cole and Graham to adore their older brother even more than before. As a result, many nights the boys would talk him into sleeping in their room, snuggled adoringly between them, since they had pushed their two beds close together, so it was almost like having just one big bed. I think Ricky enjoyed their attention as much as they benefited from his guidance and support.

I can't explain the depth of my pride in Ricky for what he was doing and for shouldering a great deal of this burden for me. Whenever we were alone, I would go out of my way to make a point about it and let him know how much I appreciated all of his hard work. I also told Cole and Graham how fortunate they were that Ricky was willing to assist them, and whenever I did that, they would just smile and say something like, "We know, Dad, and we love him as much as we love you." I thought that was a truly remarkable answer.

One thing that particularly amazed me though, was how patient Ricky was with them, especially whenever they faltered. For a hyperactive young man who had trouble waiting two seconds for an answer and couldn't sit still for longer than a heartbeat without bouncing around in his seat, he would sit with them for an hour or more, patiently teaching whatever they were currently working on. He seemed content spending his time trying to think of different ways to explain the same thing, in order to make it easier for them to understand. He was like the hyperactive version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. However, he wasn't always the kindly Dr. Jekyll.

Mr. Hyde generally came out on the weekend, especially during the early morning hours, when Ricky would conspire with his two little charges and come up with a new way to wake me up. One day the three of them came running into my room naked, leaped high into the air and land on me, startling me awake, from out of a deep slumber.

Another time they slipped into my room at the break of dawn and tucked all my bedding under the mattress as tightly as they could, but they weren't done yet. In order to make certain I was completely restrained, they took a length of rope, which they had previously discovered in the storage shed and hid it in their room for such an opportunity. Now that they had it, they proceeded to wrap the rope under my bed frame and over my bedding, thus effectively tying me to my bed. However, the coup-de-grace was when they began running around my room yelling 'fire.'

I nearly had a heart attack when I couldn't get out of the bed to save my boys, but eventually I began to realize it was just another of their pranks. After letting my heart rate and respiration settle back down from the sprinter's pace they had risen to, I noticed all three boys laughing hysterically. Although I had to promise I wouldn't do anything to them for this little prank, or they wouldn't untie me, they weren't off the hook yet. I was a very patient person.

I waited for the right moment to get revenge and luckily the opportunity presented itself later that afternoon. The trio was sitting out on the lawn, discussing something, although I wasn't sure what they were so interested in. Seeing my opportunity, I sneaked out the back door, grabbed the garden hose, turned on the water and then slipped up behind them, unobserved. Once I was within range, I squeezed the handle on the nozzle and proceeded to douse all of them. When they wanted to know what I was doing, I told them I was only putting out the fire they had started earlier. After thinking about this a moment, they began to catch my drift and understood I had just taken advantage of a play on words and used the ploy they had dreamed up, to also pay them back.

One other morning, they raced into my room and threw damp towels on me. As if that weren't bad enough, the boys had placed them in the freezer first, not long enough for them to get stiff, but just long enough for them to be ice cold. Needless to say, this caused me to launch out of my bed, screaming mild obscenities at them, before I grabbed one of the towels and began snapping it at their cute little butts as they fled down the hallway, squealing in delight.

On another occasion, my trio of devils had also filled my bed with an assortment from their collection of little rubber and plastic creatures as I slept, so these toys would work there way under me as I tossed and turned. They hoped this would lead me to believe that vermin were invading my bed, but I felt more like Gulliver being prodded by the Lilliputians, as he lay on the beach.

One other time, the three of them got on one side of my mattress and managed to lift it up, thus rolling me onto the floor. I would never have guessed they would have been strong enough to do that, but I was rudely proven wrong.

Another memorable event happened when they took their boom boxes and set them in a triangular arrangement around my bed. Each was set to maximum volume, but tuned to different radio stations, before they plugged them in. When the speakers began to blast this cacophony simultaneously, I shot upright in my bed, startled out of my slumber. After the other boys came in and scraped me off of the ceiling, I chased my three little monsters all around the house, smacking their bare bottoms playfully each time I caught up to one of them. Ricky still retained his unique ability to cause mischief and was taking great pleasure in teaching those skills to his little brothers, as well. This was definitely causing them to bond even closer.

In between Easter and our summer vacation, we also celebrated a couple of birthdays. Jay turned fourteen on June 10th and Ricky turned fourteen on July 7th. We had parties for each of them, and included our entire extended families and a few of the boys' friends. Ricky got teased a bit that Jay was nearly a month older than he was, but he took it in good humor and played along with what was being said. I think this was due in part because he found some comfort in the fact that he was no longer the baby of the family, since Graham had now assumed that honor.

No matter how much everyone teased him, Ricky still commanded respect from his brothers and was greatly adored by Cole and Graham. Ricky, however, was not the only one who was the focal point of hero worship. Cole and Graham also had two little admirers of their own: my grandsons. Jordan and Nicky thought the sun rose and set because of their uncles and that Cole and Graham were real life superheroes, of sorts. When we'd met for our joint summer vacation with my oldest children, the two little ones wouldn't allow themselves to be separated from their youngest uncles, even to spend time with their parents. The four of them played together, ate together and even shared one bed, nearly every evening they were with us. However, I guess I'm getting ahead of myself here, so I'll tell you more about that in more detail, in due time.

After all that time trying to come up with an idea for our vacation, I had finally decided to take everyone to my friend's cottage, which was located on a fairly large lake. I had talked him into renting me the place for two weeks, as I felt this would be just what the doctor ordered for all of us. After picking up Brandon and Jay, so they could join us, the boys and I still got there well ahead of the others. We then took time to air out the place, put clean linens on all of the beds and stocked the fridge to the brim. By the time my older children began to arrive, the boys were already diving off of the dock and swimming in the lake.

Nicky got there first, with his parents, and immediately sought out Graham. Graham could barely wait to give him the water wings I had purchased for Nicky to use while he was there, as he was still too young to be much of a swimmer. That's why I didn't want him out swimming with the boys, without utilizing these safety devices. By the time Jordan got there with his family, the others were already out splashing around and he was kind of disappointed he had missed out on some of the fun. After I assessed the situation, I suggested I could call Cole and have him come back to the cottage to pick him up, which seemed to make Jordan forget about his disappointment at arriving later than the others. Cole and Jordan both lit up like Times Square on New Year's Eve, the moment they saw each other again. I was glad they felt so strongly about each other and had become soul mates, the same way Graham and Nicky had done.

After a few minutes of getting reacquainted, Cole presented Jordan with his water wings too. Knowing Jordan might think he was too old for such things, as he was a year older than Nicky, Cole quickly explained to him that it would help Nicky feel better if he also wore them. Since it was Cole who had asked him to do this, and thinking it would also make things easier for his cousin, he did as requested, but it also gave the rest of us a little more peace of mind knowing he was using them.

During the rest of that day, we all found time to swim, as well as lounge about and get some sun, while also making time to catch up on what the others had been up to, since we'd last been together. The boys gladly told their older siblings about their exploits, but also listened amazingly well when the older gang did the same. Not only that, but they were also exceptionally patient when listening to Nicky and Jordan tell them about all the things they'd been up to. My grandson's mouths were both like the energizer rabbit – they just kept going and going and … well, you get the idea.

At dinner, Michael and Adrian (my son-in-law) offered to get up early the next morning and take out anyone who wanted to go fishing with them. I immediately began to wonder if any of the boys would take them up on their invitation, until Dustin and Danny said they'd like to go. The other boys just weren't as keen on the idea of getting up early, sitting quietly in a boat and then, worst of all, having to clean the fish they caught, since the fisherman had already promised to supply the meat for dinner. And then there were the little ones, who just thought catching fish was 'yucky.'

The boys were going to use one of my friend's boats, since he had previously told me we were welcome to use any of them. He had a larger boat I think all of us would fit on, a smaller, faster motorboat and a rowboat. In anticipation of using the motorized versions, I'd filled up a couple of gas cans along the way, just before we reached the cabin. I'd figured the gasoline would come in handy, since I suspected the boats would probably be kept quite busy.

The fishermen were all up before sunrise, so they could be out on the lake when the fish were biting the best. I heard them get up, so I went to the kitchen and fixed them some breakfast, while they were getting their things together. I didn't want their grumbling tummies to scare away what was out there, since I was looking forward to a nice fish dinner later. By the time the rest of the boys were getting up, somewhere around 10:00, the fishermen were already heading back to the cabin holding up a small collection of rainbow trout and small-mouth bass. Danny and Dustin looked as proud as could be, as they displayed their catch to me.

"Looks like tonight's dinner has been provided by our newest anglers," I announced, eliciting smiles in response.

"These two were naturals," Michael quickly added. "I've never seen anyone take to fishing so quickly in my life."

"Let's see how they do when it comes to cleaning them," Adrian teased, drawing disgusted looks from the pair he was commenting about.

"You don't think we can do it?" Danny asked, more of a challenge than a question.

"I've had friends who got that far and then lost their enthusiasm for the sport," Adrian announced, in reply.

"Well, I won't have a problem with it," Danny shot back. "I want to be a doctor, so I'll be cutting into things that will affect me more than just a bunch of fish." I found it astounding that this was the first time I'd heard Danny mention his career goal, but I was also quite impressed by it.

"And it won't bother me neither," Dustin added. "I went hunting a few times with one of my foster parents and he made me skin and clean what we killed. I was able to handle that, so I'll be able to do this too."

Both Michael and Adrian were taken slightly aback by the boys' stubborn determination, so they took them into the kitchen area, to teach them how it was done. To their surprise, the boys did a very good job and had no problems doing whatever they were taught, which gained them a great deal of admiration from their mentors.

"I'm impressed," Michael told them. "You guys have more spunk than I gave you credit for. Anytime either of you want to go fishing or even hunting, I'd be happy to take you with me." I think that was the highest compliment either boy could have received and their chests swelled, as they thanked Michael for his kind offer.

After putting the fish in the fridge, Danny and Dustin changed into their swimwear, so they could go out and join the others, who were already frolicking in the lake. As soon as they were out of earshot, Michael filled me in about some of the details of their fishing excursion.

"I mean it, Pop," Michael began. "Those two really impressed me. I've never been out with first timers who caught on as quickly or were willing to do as much as they were. Most of the guys I've taken out were usually a little squeamish at first, and if not then, they would get that way when it came to cleaning the fish, but not these two."

"I'm glad you took them out," I told both of them, in all sincerity. "You know hunting and fishing have never been my thing, even though I took you out when you were younger. It's really nice to see you all growing so close, by doing things like this together."

"Pop, I love having all these little brothers," he blurted in response. "They're all so different, yet I feel close to each of them, but in different ways. You aren't the only one who's benefiting from having them around." I knew he truly meant this.

"Same goes for me, Pop," Adrian added. "You know I was the only boy in my family and had to live with two sisters, so I think that's why Michael and I have always gotten along so well. But now, I really love having all these younger brothers, so I can teach them all the things I wished an older brother would have taught me." Marie had previously told me, in the strictest confidence, about how Adrian had always regretted being the only son. However, I'd never heard him express it to any of the rest of us before, at least not until now.

"Well, go join them out in the lake then, but don't forget your sons," I warned them. "Even though they love their uncles' attention, they don't want their fathers to forget about them completely."

"Oh, we won't," Michael assured me, "and thanks for doing this. It's working out great."

"Yes," Adrian chimed in, "this is turning out to be a great vacation."

My daughters and daughter-in-law had also been enjoying their time here and had been out sunning themselves most of the morning, when they weren't taking a breather in the lake. However, I think the best part of their vacation, at least so far, was the fact that the other boys were looking after their sons, so they didn't have to worry about them. Not only that, but I was doing most of the cooking, along with Michael's help, so they didn't have kitchen duties either. Since Michael had always enjoyed being the main man at our cookouts, he was the logical choice to give me a hand, but he pitched in and did more than I expected. Not wanting to look lazy or be left out, Adrian was helping out too and the other boys were splitting the clean-up duties, so the ladies were completely free of these responsibilities.

After lunch, Michael and Adrian decided to take the boys out and teach them how to water-ski. They were planning to use the smaller, faster boat for this purpose, since they would need something with a little muscle, to generate enough speed to get the boys up and gliding on top of the water. With the exception of Cole, Graham and my two grandsons, everyone gave it a try, with varying degrees of success. The older boys took to this activity immediately, and even Jay managed to get up on the skis and did remarkably well. What caused his undoing was when he tried to cross over the wake from the boat. Hitting that small ripple of water sent him sprawling, like a wounded duck, into the water. Even with that miscue, though, I think he was extremely pleased by how well he had done – even better than some of the others.

However, there was a subtler competition going on here too. The girls weren't about to be outdone by the boys' quick adaptation to this sport, so they immediately set out to prove that being a member of the feminine gender didn't mean they were weaker or not as athletic. I think the boys were both shocked and impressed by what they saw and managed to learn a valuable lesson in the process. Never underestimate someone because of the way they looked or how they were built. Both of my daughters had always participated in various sports while they were in school, so I wasn't surprised to see them going out of their way to prove this point. Even my daughter-in-law gave it her best effort, which was nearly as good as her counterparts.

Once everyone began to grow tired and hungry, I went inside to cook the fish the boys had caught for dinner. I also made a few side dishes to go along with it, along with macaroni and cheese for the littlest ones. I think everyone was pleased with what they got, not only because it tasted great and was filling, but also because of the fact that the main course had been provided by others we love.

After dinner, some of the boys decided to go out and try to catch some frogs as it started to get dark, while most of the rest of us just sat outside on the porch and chatted. I couldn't think of a lovelier way to end to this wonderful day.

Chapter 2
Family Ties

Over the next few days, we did many things together, including taking a nice long hike on state land, which was situated just a short distance from the cottage. Even though Michael had to carry Nicky most of the way on his shoulders and Adrian ended up giving Jordan a piggy ride back, because both boys tired out quickly on the rugged terrain, we all still had a nice time.

I think the only thing my older children weren't crazy about during that entire week was the fact that Ricky, Cole and Graham taught Jordan and Nicky how to terrorize their parents in the morning, as a way of waking them up. They showed their nephews some of the things they had done to me, but only the milder forms of harassment, and they also somehow managed to keep their clothes on while the others were here. I knew some of them would probably have loved to shed their garments at various times, but the thought of having the women see them naked prevented most of them from doing that.

"Dad, how do you put up with them doing things like that to you all of the time," Elizabeth asked me, after the boys had startled her awake one morning."

"Honey, compared to my dreary existence before they arrived, I'll take that jump-start any day of the week. At least I know it will get my heart beating, even if the old ticker doesn't want to start on its own," I added, trying to lighten the moment. My daughter looked at me oddly, before she grinned and responded.

"I guess that's one way to look at it," she chuckled, "as long as they don't give you a heart attack and cause it to stop in the process."

"Dad," Marie told me later, "were we ever that mischievous? Those guys are something else."

"The four of you had your moments too, but maybe not quite in the same manner," I told her. "Don't you remember, that's when my hair started turning gray and falling out." She grinned.

"Well, we may have been partially responsible for that," she admitted, "but I believe age had something to do with it as well. By the way, I think Adrian was ready to castrate them this morning, when they come pouncing on him and covering him with wet washcloths, but I know he really loves them down deep."

"Thanks for the warning," I responded. "I'll be sure to keep the sharp objects out of Adrian's reach while he's here, so I don't go home with a group of sopranos," I teased.

"Yes, you do that," she agreed.

Things were going great and everyone was growing closer, when Robert finally arrived on Thursday. Not only did Robert arrive, but the precipitation did too.

"So nice of you to show up and bring the rain with you," Michael commented, pulling his brother's leg a bit. "You always did have a dark cloud over your head, didn't you?"

"I thought that dark cloud was you," Robert shot back. "I never have these types of problems, unless you're around at the same time."

I appreciated their playful banter, but noticed it momentarily shocked the rest of the boys, before they realized Michael and Robert were only joking. I don't think they ever suspected their older brothers teased each other like that and were more like them than they had ever imagined. I suspect that incident shed a whole new light on their possible future relationship with their older siblings.

"Well, seeing that's more than a gentle summer rain," Marie began, "did anyone think to bring anything to do in case of bad weather?" We all had to admit we hadn't.

"Let me look around a bit," I suggested. I'm sure my friend must have something around here he uses for days like this." I soon discovered I was correct, when I located several decks of playing cards in one of his cupboards.

In an effort to pass the time, we keep switching cards games to keep it interesting and over the course of the day, we played hearts, spades, pitch, rummy, poker, blackjack and double solitaire. We taught the various games to those who didn't already know them, but we also played Old Maid, War and Go Fish with my grandsons, so they didn't feel left out. There were always two or three different card games going on at the same time, so no one ever lacked for something to do.

That evening, my older children suggested I tell one of my ghost stories. They said it had been a long time since they'd last heard one and thought this might be a good time to revisit those nostalgic events from their past, but only after my grandsons went to bed. They didn't want me scaring the little ones and prevent them from sleeping throughout the night. The boys thought it was amazing their older siblings had made this request, so they proceeded to tell them about the stories I'd already told them and how they suffered through more than one restless evening after listening to one of my renditions. My older children just chuckled and said they understood perfectly.

Once Nicky and Jordan were safely tucked in and fast asleep, I told them all the tale of the Lady of the Lake. "Eleanor was a very lovely girl and full of life, She had many friends and was very popular, until she fell deeply in love with a man who was ten years her senior. They seemed truly in love with each other, and that's why she gave herself to him completely, cutting herself off from nearly everyone else in her life.

"One evening, her lover brought her out to this very lake for a romantic, moonlight boat ride. Eleanor assumed he was doing it to set the mood and this would be the night he would propose to her. She had told him a few days previously that she was carrying his child, so she surmised he was going to do the right thing and ask her to be his wife."

I now changed my tone from the light, wispy tenor I had been using, to a dark and foreboding baritone to make this next point. "You have to remember that this was in the early 1900's and having sex before marriage was taboo. Much of society shunned unwed mothers and unmercifully gossip about them, but Eleanor knew this would not be her fate. Her boyfriend would never allow this to happen to her."

At this point I switch back to my first voice again. "That evening, she got in his rowboat, eagerly anticipating his surprise. She enjoyed watching her lover handle the oars so deftly, as he rowed them out to the middle of the lake." I pantomimed rowing a boat as I said that. "Seeing there was no motor, and therefore no noise to alert others nearby that anyone was out on the water in the middle of the night, they went completely undetected. Once her lover stopped rowing, he let the boat begin to drift and gently rock in the small swells on the lake, as he moved toward her. Eagerly, she awaited his touch, as she suspected he was about to wrap his arms around her, before smothering her passionately with kisses, under the modest glow from the crescent moon.

"When he reached her, she was greatly surprised that he grabbed her and shoved her out of the boat, instead." As I said that, I stood up abruptly and made like I were pushing someone out of the boat, which startled a few of my listeners. "Seeing she wasn't prepared for this to happen, she sank under the water almost immediately. As she struggled to resurface and inhale a fresh lungful of air, her many garments became completely waterlogged and the weight of them began to pull her into the depths.

"As quickly as she could, she began to frantically pull at her dress and the many petticoats beneath it, literally ripping the buttons off of the garments, in an effort to break free." Now I was mimicking her struggle with her garments, making like I was trying to tear off my own. "With her last ounce of strength and her lungs burning from a lack of oxygen, she broke free of her clothing and shot upward, now bobbing like a buoy and gasping loudly.

"Once she regained her bearings, she frantically tried to climb back into the boat, but as she did so, her lover slammed one of the oars into her skull." Now I swing an imaginary oar through the air and gave a loud 'whack' when it would have struck something. "A sickening 'crack' was heard, as the two made contact, and she fell backward, either dead or unconscious." I heard some of the boys gasp, as I went through this last part of the story, although I assumed they were all anticipating something foul to happen.

"Her body quickly sank to the bottom of the lake, and because the water is so very cold there, it never rose to the surface again and was, therefore, never discovered. No one else knew for certain what had happened to her. Some of her closest friends, whom she had told about her situation, suspected she had run off, in order to avoid the disgrace and ridicule that would follow her throughout the years to come. Others, who merely knew about her tryst with the older man, conjectured she ran away because she'd been jilted or that possibly even some sort of misdeed had befallen her.

"It wasn't until many years later, when her lover lay on his deathbed, that he finally confessed to what he had done. He felt, at that point, he needed to clear his conscience, before going to meet his maker. Although several searches were conducted after he made this fact know, nothing was ever found which might confirm his story. To this very day, her body still lies at the bottom of this lake – probably still appearing much as it did in life, because the frigid temperature of the water would preserve it perfectly.

"Every so often there are reports of a woman wandering around this area, walking along the shore and appearing to be searching for something. Nearly everyone who has seen or heard about this believes it is Eleanor, who has returned from the depths. Some claim she is seeking her lover, in order to pay him back for what he did to her, while others believe she is merely lonely and seeking the company of young people like herself, so she won't have to spend the rest of eternity in those cold depths alone. Every so often, someone will come up missing while visiting the lake, and most of the locals feel she has just taken another poor soul to keep her company." I looked about the room now, gauging my audience, and found them all transfixed and staring at me intently, so I added my final words of caution.

"While we are here, I must warn you to be careful if you wander near the lake at night and see a young woman approaching. It just might be the Lady of the Lake, roaming the water's edge and seeking out her next companion."

"Okay, I'm not going swimming in the lake any more!" Cole screamed, as he moved farther away from the water.

"Oh, you're okay during the day," I attempted to assure him. "It's only after dark that she's been seen and when others come up missing."

"Well, I'm not taking any chances," he countered, "so no more swimming for me."

"Daddy, why did you let Danny and Dustin go out fishing with Michael and Adrian then?" Graham asked, extremely concerned. "It was still dark when they left and they were out in a boat on the lake."

"Yes, I understand that, but in their case, there were too many of them for her to do anything," I advised him, before seeing a look of relief spread across his face.

"Maybe she doesn't take them so she won't be lonely," Elizabeth added. "I think she probably wraps her cold, slimy hands around the neck of any guy she believes might do such a despicable thing." I do believe this comment shocked most of the boys and caused them to wonder about their sister, but she wasn't finished. "Any guy who would do something like that to an innocent young girl deserves no better."

My younger daughter had always been sort of a strong feminist, but I truly believe her comments were intentionally made to add another element of dread to my story. However, her words did make the boys wonder if she might do such a thing, and then try to make it look as if the Lady of the Lake had been responsible. Silently, I thanked Elizabeth for adding this additional touch of horror to my tale.

Later, after we returned to the cottage, Cole and Graham announced they wanted to sleep with me tonight. I wasn't convinced this was only because their little buddies were already sound asleep, even though that is what they insisted was the reason. I still think their decision had been inspired by a lingering touch of uncertainty after listening to my story, even though their older brothers kept assuring them I had made the whole thing up. Whatever the reason, I did not sleep alone that evening.

Friday turned out to be another lovely day, so everyone spent it out on the lake. Cole and Graham were still a little hesitant at first, but once they saw everyone else swimming, water-skiing and soaking up some rays, they finally became convinced it was safe and joined the others.

Sometime between breakfast and lunch, the boys talked Robert into taking them for a hike around the lake, which wasn't going to be an easy feat. The lake was quite large, so I figured it would take them several hours, at a minimum, to accomplish this task and warned them so. However the older group was determined to do it, and Robert was eager to take them, so I let them go. I would stay back and not venture very far away from the van, just in case I had to drive out to pick them up, if things didn't work out as planned.

In the meantime, the couples set out to enjoy some quiet time with each other, while I kept Cole, Graham, Jordan and Nicky entertained. Well, that isn't exactly true. Cole and Graham actually kept Jordan and Nicky entertained, while I merely sat around and kept an eye on them all.

The group hiking around the lake didn't show up until after dinnertime, in fact it was quite a while after the normal time to eat. They were exhausted, yet excited.

"Dad you wouldn't believe what we saw out there," Kevin told me. "It was amazing."

"Yeah, we saw some deer drinking from the lake not far from here, but that wasn't the scary part," Ricky announced, which immediately sent a chill up my spine. Wasn't the scary part?

"Pop, it really wasn't all that scary," Robert informed me, although I think it was just to get my heart rate back to normal.

"Danny, tell me what Ricky is talking about," I pressed, knowing Danny was the most likely to tell me the whole truth.

"Dad, it was just that we saw this black bear off in the distance, but it wasn't really anything to worry about," he assured me.

"Then why did Robert tell us to run into the lake and swim out as far if we could, if the bear started toward us?" Ricky countered, and quickly drew glares from the others as he did so. I raised my eyebrows, hoping this would get me a plausible response.

"Pop, I was just being cautious," Robert responded, "in case the bear did come at us. I knew there was nowhere else to go and we couldn't do much else. I just figured it would be less likely to follow us out into the water.

"I'll give you credit for quick thinking, Robert, as that was a pretty good plan, under the circumstances," I admitted. "But don't treat me like some doddering old idiot who can't tell what went on out there." All the boys cringed as I said this, realizing they had greatly misjudged the situation and my reaction to not being told about it sooner.

"I knew there was a chance something out the ordinary might happen out there," I continued, "especially where nature is concerned, but please don't try to soft sell me, so I won't prevent you from doing things like that in the future. I think you should all know me better than that, especially you, Robert."

Robert's reaction to my pronouncement was similar to a man on trial hearing the jury foreman read the guilty verdict. He hung his head, went weak in the knees and looked as if his world had just come to an end. After a few seconds, he managed to look up at me again.

"Pop, don't blame the others," he began. "It was my idea to encourage them to keep this information from you. I didn't want to give you any reason not to trust me out alone with them in the future. I should have known you'd find out, one way of the other, just like when we were kids. Whenever we thought we'd kept you from learning about something we didn't want you to know, you'd ask us about it and we knew we'd been had."

"You never learned then either," I told him, which caused us both to chuckle nervously. "I'm not upset, but I'm glad this came out now, rather than later. I'd have been more upset if I'd found out some other way, like overhearing a conversation about it, days down the road."

"See, I told you," Ricky chided them. "I knew Dad wouldn't get mad about what happened, but he would get upset if we didn't tell him."

"You were right, Ricky," Robert agreed, although I think he might have batted Ricky upside the head for ratting them out in the first place, if I weren't still there.

"Okay, let's put this behind us now, but no more secrets where the boys' safety is concerned," I offered, with all of the boys going along with my statement, sooner or later.

Over the next hour or so, each of them came up to me and apologized for their part in the duplicity in what happened earlier and I told them all was forgiven, as long as they didn't repeat their mistake. They assured me they wouldn't, and I pretty much believed all of them… except for Robert. If he didn't learn that lesson when he was growing up, I think it was too late for him to learn it now.

That evening we all went to bed early, as nearly everyone was drained. Tomorrow, my older children and their families would be leaving us, with the exception of Robert. Therefore, there was also a touch of sadness in the air as we spent our final evening together.

The next morning, I awoke early, while the others got up in their own due time. As my older children came into the dining area to join me, I would pour them a cup of coffee and fix them some breakfast, in order to ensure they had a good start to their day. They would all be leaving before lunchtime, and I didn't want any of them to leave hungry.

By nine, both sets of parents went to awaken their sons, who hadn't joined us yet. When they went to the area where they were sleeping, they discovered their sons already awake, but clinging to Cole and Graham. The foursome were all hugging each other fiercely, knowing they soon would be separated again. They had enjoyed an invisible bond during their whole time with us and we all understood it would be very difficult for them to be parted now. There were plenty of teary eyes to prove the point and that malady soon became contagious and began to spread to the rest of us.

"Mommy, when can I see Unka Gwam again," little Nicky asked, looking more sorrowful that I could ever remember seeing him.

"We'll go to see Papa and your Uncle Graham at both Thanksgiving and New Year's, honey," she assured him, hoping that would be enough to alleviate his concerns. However, Nicky wasn't satisfied yet.

"How many days is that?" he asked.

"It will go by fast, sweetie, and you and your Uncle Graham will be able to spend more time together then." Although he kept pressing for an exact number of days, he never got one, but Graham helped put an end of Nicky's interrogation of his mother by telling him he'd see him soon.

I think many of us had tears streaming down our cheeks, as both families drove away in their rental cars and headed back to their own homes.

Chapter 3
Time With Robert

During our second week, it was just Robert who was still with us. I think he was also walking on eggs around me and wondering how much I'd let him do with the boys now, since that little fiasco surrounding their hike. I wasn't about to end his suffering easily either, hoping it would make him think carefully before he tried keeping anything from me again. However, I ended up giving in, so the other boys wouldn't suffer too, since they all seemed to adore him.

During the remainder of the day, the boys remained pretty subdued, which surprised me. I did notice a lot of whispering between them all and wondered what they were up to, but felt they were conspiring to come up with something to make me feel better about them all spending time with each other. Boy, was I wrong.

Later that evening, after it started to get dark, Cole and Graham asked me to play cards with them. I felt this was because they were missing my grandsons so much, so I humored them and we played rummy. After a while, I realized I hadn't seen the others for quite some time and figured I might have been had.

"Okay, where are your brothers and what are they up to?" I asked my youngest. Immediately, a look of surprise and fear came over their faces. "Come on, spill it," I urged them.

"They just went swimming," Graham admitted, "but we didn't want to, because of the Lady in the Lake." At least that part of the puzzle was clear.

Without saying a word, I got up, walked out of the cottage and headed for the lake. I could now hear the boys laughing and splashing about. As I got nearer, I could see they were diving off the end of the dock, but there was something I wasn't ready for. They were all stark naked – even Robert. I think that was my biggest shock of all, since Robert had always been my most modest child. The thought of him getting naked in front of others really threw me.

I crept up behind them, moving as noiselessly as I could. When I was as close as I thought I could get without being noticed, I spoke to them. "Well, isn't this a fine sight."

Robert immediately tried to cover himself, as the other boys began laughing. "Dad, you must have known we couldn't wear clothes for the WHOLE vacation," Ricky announced.

"That I realized, but this…" I said, while pointing at Robert, "I never expected. I know you boys love to be naked, but your older brother has always been a bit more shy about such things." Although I couldn't tell in the dark, I think Robert was blushing.

"Well, they've been trying to convince me all day," he told me, "so I finally went along with them. I must admit, it is more fun than I would ever have guessed," he added, while dropping his hands from in front of him and to his side.

"I have no problems with this, as long as everyone is doing it willingly," I informed him, to which each of them eagerly agreed.

"We know the rules, Pop," Jay chirped up, "and no one did anything he didn't want to." I looked at Robert and he shook his head.

"Yeah, I actually agreed to join them," he admitted, shyly. "It's just that we had to wait until it got dark, so no one else would see us.

Having received my explanation, I went back to the cabin, as the boys continued to enjoying their skinny dip. I must admit I was tempted to join them, but felt it might be too much for Robert to handle, so I passed up the opportunity.

Sunday, I made a run into town, to pick up more supplies, but only Cole and Graham indicated they wanted to join me. After getting Robert alone and making him promise to keep an eye on the boys and not do anything foolish, I pulled the other boys aside and made them promise to help keep Robert in line. Trusting that one or the other would do as I asked, I took the two younger ones and went shopping.

We picked up enough food for another week, including plenty of munchies for the boys to snack on between meals, and I filled both gas cans again, since they'd used up the gasoline I'd purchased previously. On the way back, just before we reached the state land, I noticed something I'd missed before. I quickly hit the brakes and pulled off the road.

"Why are we stopping here, Daddy?" Graham asked. "What's this place?"

"I think it may turn out to be just what the doctor ordered," I told him, as I parked the car.

"What doctor, Daddy." Graham asked, confused.

"That was just a way of saying I think I found something that will come in handy later in the week," I told him. "You boys stay in the car and I'll be right back." They did as I told them and waited while I checked out this discovery. Before long, I was back in the car and we were driving toward the cottage again.

The two who were with me pestered me all the way back about what I'd done there, but I only told them enough to keep them from pushing it further. I also made them promise not to tell any of the others about this, as I wanted to keep this as my ace in the hole.

When we got back, I asked the others to help unload the groceries and the gas cans, and once that was done, I offered to drive the faster boat for them, so they could do some more water-skiing. They immediately liked that idea, so we spent the next few hours with most of the boys enjoying the opportunity to get more proficient at this activity. I was immensely surprised to see Jay doing as well, if not better than the others. Cole tried it too, but soon gave up on it, saying it just wasn't his thing. Graham, on the other hand, spent all of his time with me in the boat, so I let him steer it from time to time, to make him feel important and help keep him from growing bored.

Robert had spent much of his time giving the boys pointers about what to do, both before they went out and after they got back from their run, so they would continue to improve. I was very pleased to see the boys listening to his every word and working with him on this, knowing this was only strengthening the bonds that had been building between them.

We did this until dinnertime, but after dinner the boys played cards until it got dark. As time passed, I also began to notice that some of the boys were slipping off to shower together, so I figured this was to allow them a little sexual release. I noticed they would watch Robert, to make sure he didn't observe what they were up to, but I picked up on it, mostly because of our vacation the previous year. The first pair I saw sneak off together were Danny and Brandon, and I later discovered they had used their time for a little oral relief. I could tell it must have done the trick, because they both wore huge smiles when they rejoined us.

A little while later, Ricky and Jay disappeared, and I was told that they used the little trick they had discovered the previous summer. After soaping up generously, they would place their dick between the other one's inner thighs and then hump him like a horny dog, until they creamed the shower wall. Both boys found this very satisfying, but I think some of that was psychological, as it made them feel as if they were actually having intercourse.

By staying indoors and playing cards after dinner, I immediately began to suspect the boys were planning another late night skinny dip. When they later began to leave the cottage and head for the lake, I slipped down behind them and took off my shorts, since I wasn't going to be left out this time. I think Robert was the only one surprised to see me do this, since I had never done anything of this nature when he was younger. However, that was probably due mostly to the fact his mother and two sisters were around most of the time too, and that would have made it a bit awkward. Not only that, but my wife was not very open-minded where public nudity was concerned.

After we tired ourselves out swimming, we went back to the cabin, dried off and went to bed. I was surprised when Graham asked if he could sleep with me again, since I'd figured he'd want to spend time with his brothers. However, he was insistent, so I gave in. Later, I realized it was probably due to the fact that he was sorely missing having little Nicky around, so I became his human pacifier.

For the next two days, our routine stayed basically the same. Although Robert and I took turns in the boat, we didn't limit ourselves to doing just that one thing, but in reality we didn't have a lot of options to contend with. By the time Wednesday night rolled around, the boys were all becoming a little bored with our limited agenda and let me know so.

"Dad, we've got to find some other things to do too," they complained. "What we've been doing is all right, but it's isn't as much fun now. Isn't there something else we can do too?"

"Maybe," I said, "just let me think about it for a bit. If you're lucky, I might be able to come up with something by tomorrow." I think Cole and Graham were suspicious that I already had something in mind, involving our extra stop on the way back from shopping, but they were very good about it and didn't spill the beans.

Later that evening I slipped away for a bit, to set things up, but no one knew what I was up to. It was working out perfectly.

The next morning, after the boys got up, I fixed them all a big breakfast, before they began to pester me again. "Well, did you think of something new to do?" Kevin asked me.

"We know you've got a lot of ideas, Pop," Brandon added, trying to butter me up with a little flattery.

"I might have," I told them. "All of you get dressed and hop into the van, and we'll go out to see what else we can find."

After their enthusiastic cheers of approval, the boys did as I asked, but we didn't have all that far to go. When I pulled into the same place I'd stopped at with Cole and Graham, the other boys all looked at me funny, since they couldn't figure out what I was up to.

"You boys wait here and I'll be right back," I told them, without giving anything away. All I was actually doing was checking to see if things were ready for us.

"Okay, follow me," I informed them, after coming back to the van, and they trailed behind me to the back of this old, beat up looking garage building. As they rounded the corner, they all began to cheer. "Way to go, Pop," Jay shouted, as he saw the line of four-wheelers, gassed up and ready to go.

"This place rents these to people to use on the trails in the state land," I explained, "so I rented them for us to use for the day. Cole, you'll ride with Robert and Graham will ride with me, until we're sure you're ready to solo." I doubted Graham would be, but felt Cole might eventually be ready, although I wanted to make sure before we did that.

Over the next twenty minutes or so, the owner gave the boys instructions on how to operate the vehicles, including warnings about what they should and should not do on them. Once everything had been sufficiently explained, each of them picked out a safety helmet to use and we were ready to go. With Cole seated in front of Robert, Graham seated in front of me and the rest of the boys on their own four-wheelers, we were ready to set off.

The owner had also provided Robert and I maps of the trails and warnings about specific dangers out there. After talking it over, I put Robert in the lead and I agreed to bring up the rear, to make sure there weren't any problems. Robert and I had also been given 2-way radios to use, so we could communicate with each other without having to stop to do so. Cautiously, we started out, taking it easy and giving the boys a chance to get used to their vehicles. I could see Robert was letting Cole operate their bike, with his assistance, and I was doing the same with Graham. They both seemed satisfied with that and we proceeded down the edge of the roadway, until reaching the state land, and then we took the trail into that area.

This was definitely a fun and exhilarating activity. In some spots the trail was wide enough for two boys to ride side-by-side, but most of the time it was narrower than that and we had to stay in single file. Regardless of which way we traveled, everyone seemed to be having a great time. It looked as if Robert had pretty much left Cole in control of their bike, and he rode with his arm's wrapped around Cole's chest, but I kept control of our vehicle, even though I did let Graham do most of the steering and controlling the gas. I did have to rein him in a couple of times, so he didn't ram into the back of the bike ahead of us, but for the most part, he did those things fairly well.

We rode until after lunchtime, when I radioed Robert to head back to the place we started from. He did as I requested and I suspected the boys were a little disappointed, thinking this activity had come to an end. However, after we arrived back at the garage, I informed them it was only so the owner could have a chance gas them all up again and give us a chance to run out and grab a bite to eat in between. Suddenly, they all began to perk up.

Seeing the boys didn't want to waste much time eating (will wonders never cease?), we stopped at a fast food place and chowed down quickly. When we got back, everything was ready for us again, so we took off once more, but this time Cole was also operating his own four-wheeler. After Robert had assured me he was ready and capable of being left alone, I asked the owner to provide us with one more four-wheeler for the afternoon. I think this did affect Graham's ego slightly, but after I told him it was just that I needed him to drive me around, he seemed to be more willing to accept this arrangement.

We took different trails this time and rode until it began to get dark. As soon as I could tell the light was beginning to dim, I signaled Robert that it was time to call it a day and we headed back in. No one complained this time… in fact, everyone was quite pleased by the entire day out. Somehow I managed to get lucky and find this bit of salvation on a trip to the grocery store. How fortunate.

Before we left, I asked the boys what they wanted to do the next day, Friday, since it would be our last full day here. We would be heading back home Saturday, after saying good-bye to Robert, so I left the choice of activities entirely up to them. They all said they'd like to spend the day at the lake and today had been enough to tide them over and break the monotony. Even though they'd had a great time, they just couldn't see riding the four-wheelers two days in a row. I appreciated their candor, so I'd try to think of another variation to amuse them tomorrow.

That night Graham and the boys decided to sleep together on the floor of the living area, along with Robert. It was his last night with us and everyone wanted to be as close to him as they could that evening. That was fine with me, as I got a good night's sleep alone, in a big bed.

The next morning, I suggested we could take the big boat out and enjoy a nice cruise of the lake, during which time I'd let each of them have a turn at piloting the craft. I hadn't let anyone but Robert, Michael, Adrian or me drive the smaller boat, mainly because of its power and very sensitive steering. It could turn on a dime, so to speak, and I didn't want the boys to have an accident because of that combination of factors. However, the larger boat's steering was a lot more forgiving, plus the pick-up was not as explosive, so I figured they'd have less chance to foul up seriously. They all thought they'd like to take a turn at steering the big boat, so like Gilligan, we set off on a three-hour tour.

I felt the fairest way to take turns at the helm was to go by age, starting with the oldest, so Dustin went first. We ended up traveling around the lake several times, so each boy got a decent chance at steering the boat for more than just a few minutes. One of the best times came when it was Graham's turn and all of the other boys egged him on.

"Come on, Graham, give us a special ride," Danny suggested. "Make it different from the others."

"Yeah, give it full throttle," Ricky urged him, which didn't surprise me in the least.

"See if you can scare up a sea monster or something," Jay teased him, followed by his hearty laugh.

"I'm not sure Champ or Nessie live in this lake, but maybe something else does," Kevin added, playing along with the gag.

Graham enjoyed this attention, as well as his turn at the wheel, so we ended up giving him even more time than the others had piloting the vessel, to make up for some of the other activities he'd been curtailed on. I think he felt pretty special by the time we came back in.

After lunch, the boys wanted to go swimming, and I was more than a little surprised when I looked out the door, after I finished cleaning up from our meal. They were skinny dipping again and it was still light out. Sure, there weren't any cottages real close to the one we were using and we hadn't seen many people out when we were cruising around the lake, but this might stir up a hornet's nest, if anyone with other children were around. However, against my better judgment I let them continue, but I stayed in the cottage and wasn't about to join them this time around.

Our last evening with Robert was actually kind of sad. The boys had a great time with him and appreciated how he liked being with them too, so they tried to get him to promise to come home for Thanksgiving and New Year's, but Robert offered them a compromise.

"I'll come home at Thanksgiving, with everyone else, but it's really very difficult for me to come home for the winter holidays. I'll save my second visit until your spring break from school. I'll take some time off from work then, so we can spend the whole week together. I'll also see if I can take more time off next summer, so we can enjoy another vacation together."

The boys all seemed to like that idea, so it was agreed. Once again, I think it was mostly so Robert could spend much of his time alone with the boys and not have to share their attention, even though he used his work schedule as an excuse to do so. I know the holidays are a very busy time for people working in retail, but I also knew New Year's wasn't as big a deal as Christmas. However, I kept my mouth shut and left it as they had planned.

Saturday was a bittersweet parting. The boys had enjoyed themselves and had a great time with Robert, but now he was leaving and we were heading home. That also meant school was just around the corner. If it weren't for the fact they were looking forward to playing soccer again, I think they might have become even more morose. Thankfully, however, I think they were also eager to see what the future might hold for them.

Chapter 4
Much Ado About Us

When we got back from our vacation, we immediately had a great many other things that needed our attention. The very next day, Sunday, was Kevin's birthday and I'd almost forgotten we were having everyone over for his party. We'd invited them before we left and I think Kevin was suddenly excited about it, now that he remembered what the date was. Robert had wanted to stay long enough to attend, but had to be to work on Monday, so he didn't dare. However, the extended family and a few of Kevin's friends would be there, so Kevin got over his disappointment about Robert not being able to make it.

Kevin's party went well and everyone enjoyed himself. Not only that, but we also got to share our vacation stories with those nearest and dearest to us. Kevin also received some very nice gifts in the process, but I still felt badly that his party seemed a bit unorganized and a little rushed, because we didn't have much time to get our act together before everyone started arriving. If I'd been smart, I'd have planned his party for the following weekend, regardless of the date.

Kevin had no problems with it though, and I think the little surprise we learned about when we got back more than made up for out lack of organization. Sally was the first to let on something had happened during the past week, but she wasn't aware we knew nothing about it. "Josh, that's right, I forgot. You've been away," she announced, after seeing the confused looks on our faces.

"Last Sunday the newspaper ran a big article about how you adopted all of the boys, and they even included Judge Shay's comments from the adoption proceeding. It was absolutely marvelous. I think they tried to get a hold of you before it went to press, so they could take pictures to go along with the article, but because you were away, they had to improvise. They cropped in a photo they had taken of you at one of your school functions and then used some pictures of the boys, which they had in their sports archives. I bought a couple of extra copies and have them in my car, if you'd like them."

"I'd love one, Sally. I'll scan the articles in my computer and then send a copy of the clippings to my older children." Suddenly, everyone began talking about that article and all of the attention it had garnered in the community.

When the party ended, we said good-bye to all our guests and then went into the house to collapse. That was very hectic, especially after being away for two weeks. While relaxing, I took the opportunity to read the very nice article about us. Now, all we had to do was get ready for school to start a week from Monday.

Before that day arrived, though, I had to get all of the boys to their soccer physicals and practices, since most of them had decided to go out for the schools teams again. I was mildly surprised to learn that Cole and Graham were going to sit the season out and just watch their brothers play, as neither felt that sports were their thing. There was an exception to that decision, however, when Cole explained he still wanted to try his hand at wrestling again this fall.

I did have one concern about the start of the fall sports season, though, and it was the fact that Ricky and Jay were freshmen and would be competing against their sophomore brothers (Danny, Brandon and Kevin) for positions this year. Dustin would most likely not be included in that experience, since he was a junior and would most likely be playing on the varsity team. My main worry was that by having to compete with the others for playing time, and since the older boys had done so well on the JV team the year before, it might deflate some of the confidence the younger pair had developed while playing on the modified team. No matter how much this troubled me, I would just have to sit back and see how it played out.

The tryouts lasted several days, before the teams were selected. When this happened, the boys came home all excited. "Dad, Dustin, Danny, Brandon and me all got picked to play on the varsity team this fall," Kevin gushed, breathlessly.

"And me and Jay are going to play on the JV team," Ricky added, equally as proud.

"Wow, that's really awesome," I admitted, still reeling from the shock, yet somewhat relieved by this revelation. "All of you were taken up to the varsity team, even though you're only sophomores?" I asked, to clarify my understanding of the situation.

"Yeah, the coach said we all played really well together and he didn't want to break that up," Danny informed me, while beaming.

"I'm really impressed," I replied. "That's quite an accomplishment, at least for our school district. The coaches don't usually call up many sophomores to the varsity level. And Jay and you are going to be playing on the JV team," I followed, after turning toward Ricky and Jay, as I wanted to acknowledge their accomplishments too. "That is really wonderful news."

"I didn't think I'd be good enough to play this year," Jay confessed, "but the coach says I've got potential and put me on the team."

"I've always known you've had potential Jay, and told you so many times," I assured him, "but I'm glad to see others are taking note of it too." He smiled, as a blush tinged his face from my comment.

When the academic year started, all of the boys quickly fell into their various routines. This year is going to be quite different for me, in that everyone except Cole and Graham would be attending the high school. It is also going to be very strange for me not to see Ricky around all day long; especially after all of the hours we've been together, including the time he'd spent in my office before he came to live with me. I knew I was going to miss having that little imp around, more than anyone could ever imagine.

It was during the first week of school that something else happened. I received a call at work. "Mr. Currie, I'm Max Snelzig," the voice told me, "and I work for USA Today. My paper happened to pick up on an article that was run about you and your boys a few weeks ago, and we'd like to run our own feature article about your unique family. Do you think it would be possible for us to meet and discuss this within the next couple of days?"

"Mr. Snelzig, I'm flattered, but there must be more important stories than ours for you to write about," I responded.

"You are the perfect human interest story, positive and uplifting," he replied. "I think it's important for others to see there are more than just fetuses that need our attention and concern. There are plenty of children out there who could use loving and caring homes, and we want to write about what you've done, to give others the idea about what they could also do."

"I think I should talk this over with the boys first, and call my older children, before I can commit myself to something of this nature. Would you allow me until tomorrow, before I give you an answer?"

"Certainly, I'll call you back tomorrow afternoon," he assured me, "and if you agree, I'll be out there on Wednesday, so we can run this in the weekend edition."

I was stunned, to say the least. Another article about us? I still didn't see how we were really newsworthy. However, I'd talk to the boys and see what they thought of this idea.

That evening, after dinner, I had everyone remain at the table, so I could explain what I had been told earlier. After I gave them the basics, I also provided them an opportunity to speak out. "I won't do this without your approval," I told them, "seeing it's your lives that will be exposed for everyone to see. So who wants to tell me what they think first?" All the boys looked at me and then at each other. It was my impetuous blond imp who spoke first.

"Dad, if this can help find homes for other kids, then I say we've got to do it," he announced, quite confidently. "I don't mind people knowing what happened to me, if some other kids can end up with a decent place to live, like we did."

"Wait a minute," Dustin announced. "Does this mean they'd tell about why Kev's dad kicked me out? I mean… I don't want the girls thinking I'm gay and ruining my chances with them."

"Would they find out about why I got kicked out too?" Danny wondered. He looked nearly as concerned as Dustin. "Man, that might not go over so well at school. I mean, everyone's okay thinking I MIGHT be gay, but that would pretty much convince them I was and I don't know how they'd react then."

"Those things could happen," I warned, as I didn't want to mislead them and then have it all come out later. "If he's a good reporter, he might even look up your dad and Kevin's, so he can interview them about what you were like before you came to live here." Both Dustin and Danny looked very concerned now.

"I'd be happy to let the asshole who beat on me get interviewed and see this story in a national paper, where the whole world could see it too," Kevin added, with a touch of sarcasm. "If he thinks he was embarrassed because one of his friends might find out about me, then what's he gonna do when it's in the paper for everyone to read over and over again?"

I don't think Kevin was going along with this idea only to get some payback on his father, but he sure wasn't going to ignore that possibility either. I even thought he might bring it up himself, before the reporter had a chance to ask.

After we discussed this for many more minutes, I think Graham said it best. "Daddy, if other kids are going hungry or don't have a good home and this might help them find someone to love and take care of them like you did for us, then maybe we should let them put it in ALL of the papers."

The boys looked at each other, sizing up the various reactions to Graham's statement. They were all going over this in their minds, when Danny broke the silence.

"You know, he's right, Dad," Danny began. "Even if we might be a little uncomfortable about the paper telling what happened to us, we should be doing it for the other kids who don't have it so good. If doing this might get more people like you to take in more kids like us, then I say we should do it too."

There was a lot of murmuring between the boys, as they discussed this further, because Dustin still wasn't sure about it. "I can understand what everyone's saying and why," Dustin began, "but I have to think about how this is going to affect me. I'd like to help those other kids too, but not if it means I'm going to be labeled gay and not have any chance with the girls at our school."

"Can't you just give them the hint you're bi?" Ricky asked him. "You can say you've experimented a bit, but that you really prefer girls. That should do it for you."

"Yeah, and the girls might also think that would make you more sensitive," Danny added, "and from what I've seen, girls like sensitive guys."

I guess that was enough to sway his vote, because in the end, the boys were unanimously behind the idea. Although they still weren't totally fond about drawing attention to themselves or having how they came to live with me be exposed, they hoped this would serve a higher purpose. By allowing this article to be published, it might be a way to help others, who were currently in situations similar to what they had experienced, to get their own fresh start. I thought it was quite generous of them to be willing to share the dark secrets of their pasts in order to help other young people they'd never met.

This caused me to think about the old saying that good deeds are rewarded tenfold. If what I had done was a good deed, then the boys were the ones who were going to magnify it tenfold, or possibly even more. Of course, then there was the other saying – no good deed goes unpunished, which made me wonder in which direction this would actually go.

When Max Snelzig called me back, I confirmed the boys were willing to go along with his request, but I did ask him one favor. "The boys are willing to do this to help others who might benefit if other adults are willing to share their homes and love with them, but I ask you to please respect as much of their privacy as possible. Although each of them understands this could get out of hand and become fodder for those who might wish to bash us on various levels, I hope you will only expose as much of their past as is absolutely necessary to accomplish your goal of writing a human interest story. I am only doing this because you don't represent one of those tawdry tabloids and trust you can maintain an interest level without digging for the dirt under any of our rugs."

After assuring me that would be the case, we set up a time for him to come out and meet the entire group. He arrived at the house early one evening and began to interview us each separately, although I sat with each of the boys as he was speaking with them, just to protect them as much as I could. He also brought along a photographer, who snapped numerous pictures of us, mostly candid shots, when we least expected them. I do believe he took a picture of each of the boys while they were interacting with me, as well as taking several other shots showing the boys with each other.

Before he left, he asked my permission to contact my older children, so he could get their reactions as to what they thought of this arrangement. I agreed and gave him each of their phone numbers, before adding that I expected him to treat them with the same civility as he had with each of us.

Needless to say, when the article was published, we bought multiple copies of that edition, so everyone would have their own copy to preserve for the future. We were a little apprehensive when we first sat down to read it, so I read it aloud, and we were all pleased with Max's tasteful presentation of our situation. I think we all breathed a deep sigh, once we realized he had kept his word.

Now that the genie had been let out of the bottle, there was no easy way to cork him back in. We immediately began receiving numerous letters, cables and emails, which were forwarded to us via USA Today, and I took the time to read each of them to the boys as we sat around the dining room table. After each item was read, we would decide, as a group, as to how we wished to respond to it. In general, the boys suggested that we should be polite and appreciative to each sender, but also agreed we should make it a point not to encourage them to think of us unique or special.

After discussing this on several different occasions, the boys agreed that, more than likely, there were other mixed families in other communities who had accomplished as much as we had. Even though we had no way of knowing for certain, we suspected there were unsung heroes out there doing just as much for the children who lived with them, so we didn't want anyone to think any less about what they were doing. We certainly didn't want to portray ourselves as the 'only example' or the 'model eclectic family' and would be more than happy to be acknowledged as just one small raft in a sea of thriving non-traditional families. However, it appeared that choice was not to be ours. For some unknown reason, we soon became this season's media darlings and Time and Newsweek also picked up our story and ran articles about our family. That brought us a new round of even more correspondence, but this time it came from all around the world. No matter how much the media tried to single us out, we continued to insist there were other families and persons who were doing just as much and equally as deserving of such attention and praise.

While all of this hubbub had been going on, the boys had also started their fall sports season. Although Cole and Graham didn't participate, they did go and support the others, and their brothers made sure to take time to come over to greet them at least once during the competition. That small gesture made Cole and Graham feel special and they enjoyed the fact that their brothers would always go out of their way to speak to them or encourage their closest teammates to go over and say 'hello' to the pair as well. That's how Cole and Graham became the unofficial mascots for these teams and were often the focal point of some impromptu cheerleading.

Both teams were doing fairly well and all of the boys were becoming invaluable assets to their respective squads. I was pleased with how everyone was doing, but there was one whom I was most proud of. He had definitely made the greatest improvement and I was thrilled to have been there to witness him scoring his first goal. He even came over to me to talk about it afterward.

"Pop, did you see that?" an excited Jay asked me. "I actually scored."

"I did and it was quite impressive," I assured him. "It was a tough angle and I loved the way you drilled it into the upper corner of the net. Any lower and the keeper might have had a chance to make a save." Jay was simply beaming.

"You were right," he told me, looking me squarely in the eye.

"About what?" I asked, perplexed. I wasn't sure what he was referring to.

"When you told me I'd grow into my body and not be so awkward," he explained. "Everyone's been telling me how much better I'm getting at nearly everything, and I hardly ever have those embarrassing accidents any more."

"I'm glad to hear that," I told him, while placing my arm about his shoulders. "I had faith that your coordination would eventually catch up and you certainly did look impressive out there. Not only did you score, but that was also a pretty nifty assist you had before that, on your crossing pass to your midfielder." This time Jay actually did blush.

"It was actually meant for the wing, but I kind of pulled the kick," he admitted.

"Well, no one would know that, if you don't tell them," I hinted. "Even the great players are hesitant to admit when luck is involved in one of their fantastic plays." He looked up at me and grinned.

"Thanks, Pop. You always know how to make me feel better."

He walked with me the rest of the way to his parent's car and gave me a special hug before he got in with them. Once they pulled out, I hurriedly gathered up my own brood, so I could take them home and feed them – before they got ugly.

Chapter 5
Patrick

We were several weeks into the school year, when my secretary announced I had an important call. I took it in my office, wondering if its nature was personal or professional.

"Hello, this is Josh Currie."

"Hello, Mr. Currie. This is Judge Steven Shay. I don't know if you remember me, but I'm the person who presided over family court when you adopted your sons."

"Of course I remember you, Your Honor. It's nice to hear from you again, but I suspect this is not a social call."

"Quite right," he admitted. "I have a favor to ask of you and your family. Earlier today, a young man appeared before me on a minor offense and I'm not convinced that his misdeed deserves confinement. I suspect this young man is primarily a product of his environment and would benefit greatly if he were simply removed from the temptations he is currently surrounded by. I suspect he would prosper under the right tutelage, but my only options are to place him in juvenile hall or foster care. I've talked to Ms. Swathhout from D.S.S. and she's explained the spots she has available would not be particularly suitable for this young man." Listening to his explanation, I felt like I was being set up for a sting and that Sally might also be involved in it.

"You have the best foster home I've ever had the pleasure of knowing," Judge Shay continued, "and if a boy can't flourish with your guidance and the help of your new sons, then that would tell me this young man belongs in a more regimented and confined environment. I wish to give him this chance to prove himself, but I need your help to do it. If you would agree, I would like to place him in your custody, so I can see how he adjusts to the change. If that isn't possible, then I will most likely be forced to have him locked up."

I hesitated for a few seconds, as I thought it over. I just couldn't condemn this boy to being locked up without at least considering taking him in. After thinking about the boy's options, I was pretty sure I'd probably give in to the Judge's suggestion, but I wanted to be certain first. "Before I give you my answer, is there more you could share with me about his situation?"

"Yes there is," Judge Shay began, sounding please that I at least considering his request. "His name is Patrick Murray, he's fourteen years old and in the ninth grade. Perhaps I should say that he has been placed in the ninth grade because of his age, but he is taking many remedial courses, even after he was forced to attend summer school. I must admit, most of his academic problems are probably due to the fact that he's had a very chaotic and unstable childhood. Patrick's parents divorced when he was three, so his maternal grandparents took him in and raised him. He lived with them until he was approximately ten, when they became too old and feeble to be able to cope with his needs.

"When that happened, he returned to live with his mother, but that was not a very stable household. His mother got kicked out of several places, mainly because she didn't pay the rent or failed to take care of the place well, so they were constantly packing up and moving. Since his mother didn't like to be without a man, multiple lovers wandered in and out of their lives. Most of these men even moved in with Pat and his mother, until she took up a new residence and moved on to another guy. At some point, Pat ended up going to live with his father, but his dad had too many of his own problems to deal with to be able to raise a young boy properly. Therefore, Patrick only ended up staying with him for a couple of months.

"After things didn't work out there, an aunt and uncle took Patrick in. This was his father's sister and her husband, but they moved around quite frequently, supposedly to follow various seasonal jobs. I suspect there was more to their nomadic wanderings than just employment opportunities and this may have compounded Patrick's problems. Since leaving his grandparents home, he has never been in the same school for longer than three months and, therefore, his education has been a collage of unconnected pieces. His teachers find him to be a bright child and I believe he would blossom in a stable home.

"His family only moved into our county at the very end of the last school year, which was too late for Patrick to be enrolled in regular classes. That's why he was forced to sign up for summer school, because he had missed so much of the previous academic year. While taking his summer courses, he also met and fell in with some of the less desirable members of our local society. What brought him to my attention was an incident that happened while in the company of these individuals. I believe he was most likely pressured into doing what he has been accused of and I'd like to give him a break. I believe that if he were removed from the care of his aunt and uncle, separated from the influence of his new friends and placed in a loving and caring home, we might discover a much different young man. That is where you and your boys come into the picture. Do you think you might be interested in taking him in?"

I had been anticipating this request, so I was prepared to answer him. "The boys and I have talked about the possibility of being asked to take in others who needed help, and with that in mind, they made me make them a promise. Before they let me adopt them, I had to swear that I would never refuse to help any other boy who needed our assistance. They have each expressed to me, in their own way, that we have to help as many of these young men as we can. They have more or less told me they feel that coming to live with me has been the best thing that has ever happened to them, so they want me to give every boy who needs our help the same chance I gave them."

"Well, I see that they not only adopted your name," Judge Shay commented, "but also your kind, loving and compassionate spirit as well. I knew when I first met your family in my courtroom that you were all very special individuals. I want you to express my gratitude and admiration to each of them, on my behalf. You are all very fortunate to have each other."

"Thank you, Your Honor. That was very kind of you to say. I look forward to meeting this young man. When should we expect him?"

"Would today be too soon?" he asked, apprehensively.

"Not if 5:30 will meet with your approval. Some of the boys have sports practices and other activities and it will take me that long to round them all up, brief them about this new arrival and get them home so we can welcome him."

"Good thinking. I suppose that's why you're such a successful parent. You look at all aspects of the situation before you make your decision. I will bring Patrick around myself, because I'd like to see the boys again too. I would like to congratulate them for turning their lives around and for making the most of their present situation. I would also like to express my gratitude for their most mature attitude about helping others in similar situations."

"I'm sure they will all appreciate seeing you at that time. I look forward to your visit around 5:30 then, judge. Good-bye."

Once school let out, I went around and collected all of the boys. During the ride, I informed them about Patrick and explained he would be joining us shortly after we got to the house. Suddenly there was a steady hum behind me, as the boys started to discuss various things amongst themselves. However, there were so many overlapping conversations going on, and most of them were being conducted in whispers, that I couldn't make out what anyone in particular was saying. I wasn't sure if this was a good sign or not.

When we arrived at the house and I pulled into the driveway, all the various conversations came to an abrupt halt. As soon as the van stopped, every door flew open and the boys raced toward the house, so they could clean up and change before Patrick got here. I wasn't in quite as big of a hurry and merely strolled up the sidewalk behind them. I was only about halfway to the front door, when Ricky came bolting back out of the house and approached me. He quickly asked if he could speak with me privately, so we moved onto the front porch. It was then that Ricky made a suggestion.

"Dad, since there is only one open bedroom left, Patrick won't have a choice of where he wants to be, like the rest of us had. I want you to show him the open bedroom and my room, so he can choose the one he wants. I can move in with Cole and Graham if I need to, since I'm there most of the time anyway, and they've already agreed to it as well." No matter how many times they do things like this, these boys never cease to amaze me.

"I'm sure they did, but I'm not sure if it would be wise of me to allow such a move," I began, and my words elicited an immediate confused and worried look from Ricky. "I believe it might be to my detriment if I allowed my 'three stooges of pranks' to share a bedroom, thus giving them even more opportunity to make plans on how to best torture the rest of us."

After hearing the rest of my comment, Ricky grinned and then flashed me his fake injured expression. "Ohhhh. That hurts, Dad. Do you really think we'd do something like that?"

I didn't answer with words. Instead, I looked him in the eyes and raised my eyebrows as high as they would go. "Okay, so don't answer that," Ricky shot back. "Maybe we have done some things that were a little wild, but I'm still your favorite son, aren't I?"

"A little wild?" I mocked. "Let's put it this way, Ricky. Would I be your favorite anything, if I did those same things to you?"

Ricky flashed me another pained look. "That's low, Dad. That hitting below the belt and it really hurts. I'm beginning to think you don't love me any more." He flashed a half-grin as he said this.

"Of course I love you, Ricky. Not because of your little pranks and instigative abilities, but because of your thoughtfulness, like offering Patrick a chance to select your room. I also love you because of the compassionate and patient help you bestow on Cole and Graham, but most of all because you were my first new son. That alone will always make you special to me, but it's all those special, wonderful qualities you seem to exhibit at times like this that make me love you the most."

Ricky wrapped his arms around me in a powerful bear hug and I quickly did the same to him. When we broke our embrace, I scooped him up, threw him over my shoulder like a large sack of potatoes and carried him into the foyer. The other boys wanted to know what that was all about, and Ricky and I just smiled at each other and giggled.

"It was caused by a thoughtful little suggestion your brother made to help the new boy," was all I told them, trying to be honest, without divulging all of the nuances of our discussion. After I set Ricky down again, the boys quickly went about their business. Those who had homework went off to do it, which meant there was a boy on each of the computers. Seeing they were occupied, Kevin offered to help me with dinner. He went to set the table, while I set about fixing the food, and I reminded him to include two extra settings for our guests. I wasn't sure Judge Shay would join us, but I wanted it to appear as if he were truly invited to stay, if he wished.

When he was finished with that task, Kevin came out to see if he could assist me with anything else. I was just finishing preparing the chicken and was about ready to put it into the oven, so I informed him he could either help me fix a salad or make some stuffing to go along with the chicken. He opted to do the salad and was getting everything out, when the doorbell rang.

The sound of the door chime served the same purpose as the starter's pistol at a track meet. It caused the boys to come racing in from all directions, so they could check out the new kid. Graham was at the door first, since he was walking through the foyer at the time the chime sounded, so he opened it and welcomed our visitors inside. I hastily wiped my hands and came out of the kitchen, so I could also greet both of our guests. I offered to shake each of their hands and then led them into the living room to chat. All of the boys crowded in behind us, and once our guests were seated, they flopped down in various places, so they could be privy as to what was being said. Graham squeezed onto my lap and Ricky took a seat on the arm of my chair, which brought a gleam into Judge Shay's eyes.

Once we were comfortable, I proceeded to introduce all of the boys to Patrick and then each boy took a few seconds to give him the short version about how they came to live with me. After they had finished, some of the boys also began to tell him what it was like to live in our household and about some of the things we had done together.

Patrick seemed to listen intently to everything they said, but he never uttered a word in response. Instead, he sat stone-faced and rigid, occasionally looking toward Judge Shay or me, to see what we were up to. After the last of the boys had finished speaking, Judge Shay congratulated all of them on their successes, both academically and athletically, before complimenting them on their concern for the welfare of others. He briefly mentioned our conversation earlier and teased them about requiring me to make an oath, before agreeing to the adoption.

"I want to tell each of you that the day I participated in making this a true family will always stand out as one of my most cherished highlights in my career as a jurist. I was impressed with you then, but I'm even more impressed with you now. This family will always hold a very special place in my heart."

After the judge finished speaking, I sent the boys off to show Patrick around the house. However, before he left, he informed all of us that he preferred to be called 'Pat'. We quickly assured him we would honor his wishes, and the boys went off as a pack, while I invited the judge into the dining room for coffee. We had just finished our second cup when the boys came back in.

"Well, Pat," I began, "I take it that the boys have shown you around the house by now"

"Yes, sir. They've shown me the house and we walked around outside for a while too. This is a pretty big place."

"Yes, it is," I agreed. "So, you've seen your choices of bedrooms?"

"Yes, sir. I have," he answered, briskly.

"Well, I just want to let you know, before you make up your mind, that if you choose the spare bedroom, I will have it remodeled to suit your needs. That is the only bedroom that hasn't been redone since our new family started forming. Some of the other boys have had the opportunity to select their own wallpaper and other items before they moved into their rooms, and you would be given the same opportunity."

"I was going to choose that bedroom anyway, sir," Pat told me quickly. "I wouldn't feel right chasing Ricky out of his room."

"Oh, don't worry about that. He doesn't spend much time in there at all," I teased. "You will soon discover that Ricky, Cole and Graham are attached at the hip and spend most of their time dreaming up diabolical pranks to pull on the rest of us. You may not understand this now, but I'm sure you'll come to fear this as much as the rest of us, once you've lived here for a week or two. I'm certain they will show you little mercy, just because you're new to our home."

"Oh, Dad," Ricky complained, "you're going to have him thinking we're rotten and he won't trust us at all."

"Exactly," Danny shot back. "If he learns that early, he might even survive the exploits of Dr. Jekyll, Dr. Frankenstein and Igor."

"Yeah, and he'll learn to sleep with his door locked," Dustin added, "if he doesn't want any unwelcome surprises during the night or in the early morning hours. We're not all like them, Pat, but you've really got to watch out for those three. They have a knack for waking people up by scaring the crap out of them."

Pat was laughing, as Ricky looked pained. Cole had his hands on his hips, feigning disgust, and little Graham began pouting. The judge was doing all he could to contain his laughter.

"Dad, they're going to have Pat think we're evil or something," Cole complained.

"Well, would they be wrong?" I asked in return.

"Dad!" the three of them yelled in unison.

"Well, you boys have pulled various pranks on each of us, multiple times. I think your reputation is well deserved and we should give Pat the benefit of our knowledge."

"Some family this is," Ricky huffed.

"We still love you," Kevin added. "It's just that none of us trust you any more."

That did it. Judge Shay and Pat couldn't contain their mirth any longer and both burst out laughing, loudly.

"I'm sorry," Judge Shay apologized, "but you boys really act like brothers who have spent their entire lives together. Don't worry, we can see that all of these little pranks were done with the utmost love and weren't malicious in any way. It's just comical to see how you all feed off of one another and how you each have your own endearing qualities. Patrick, excuse me… Pat, I hope you will learn to appreciate their good natured ribbing and let yourself become part of the fun."

"Yes, sir. I'll try," Pat responded, trying to look as serious as possible.

"Then you think you'll be all right here?" Judge Shay pressed.

"Yes, sir. I think this might even be fun," Pat assured him.

Hearing that, Judge Shay excused himself, explaining that he had to get home, as his wife would be holding dinner for him. We let him know that he was welcome to stay and eat with us, if he wished, but he politely declined, saying his wife would kill him if he ate somewhere else, without warning her in advance. He thanked us for our hospitality and for the evening's entertainment, before advising Pat to make the best of this opportunity. Everyone said good-bye to the judge, individually, and he was soon backing his car out into the street.

"Pat, let's move your things upstairs," I suggested. "For the time being, you can sleep in Ricky's room and he can temporarily bunk in with his partners in crime. You can go with me to the home improvement store tomorrow, after school, and help me pick out supplies for the renovation. I'll call my contractor in the morning to set up a date for the work to be done. In the meantime, you'll stay in Ricky's room, while Curly, Larry and Moe share the jungle room. I strongly advise the rest of you to be on guard against attack."

That comment brought another round of chuckles from most of the boys and another round of protestations from my trio of pranksters. I ignored the boys and went into the kitchen to check on dinner and then advised them we would be eating in approximately fifteen more minutes. I suggested they all go wash up and then meet me in the dining room, if they planned to eat. Kevin was kind enough to take Pat with him, to show him where he could clean up.

As we ate, Pat began to open up a bit about himself. He told the boys about growing up with his grandparents, his time with each of his divorced parents and then a little about his stay with his Aunt and Uncle. He didn't give us any real details about any of these situations, but merely gave us an impression of what he liked and disliked about each of the places he lived.

"My grandma and grandpa were old, but they were nice," he admitted. "It's just that they woke up early and went to bed early and I hated that, because they made me go to bed early too. Luckily, I was still pretty little then, so it wasn't as bad as it would be if I lived with them now. The problem was, I was just more than they could handle any more, so they sent me back to live with my mother." All of us were listening intently, as he told us this, but no one interrupted his story.

"My mom was okay too, but I know she really didn't like having me around," he continued. "She was barely making enough to keep herself going and generally had a guy living with us to help out. The other problem was, having me there with her meant she couldn't do much else, except come home to be with me. I stayed with her until my father said I could come live with him, but I later found out he just wanted me with him because he thought it would hurt my mom." I think each of the boys understood that remark quite well.

"I agreed to go live with him before I knew that, but I decided to go with my dad mostly because I thought it would make it easier for my mother. When I realized he didn't really want me there either, I didn't know what to do. I was hurt to think he didn't want me around. I guess I thought he offered because he really loved me and then I found out it was mostly just to get back at my mom.

"My dad would leave me by myself most of the time, and that's what got him into trouble. When the welfare people told him he had to have someone with me at all times, he called his sister and asked her to take me. She agreed, but I think she did it mostly so I wouldn't end up in a foster home. I don't think she really wanted me either.

"I like my aunt and uncle, but they didn't have any children and I really don't think they ever wanted any. I think this caused some fights between them and I didn't want them to get divorced too, just because of me.

"I moved around a lot when I lived with them. They said it was because my uncle did seasonal work, but I think there might have been another reason for it. I wasn't sure what, but things just didn't add up. We never stayed in one place more than a few weeks and sometimes they didn't even bother to put me in school, because we weren't going to be there for very long. Actually, after I left my father's house, I hardly ever went to school any longer." We all listened intently and looked at each other as he revealed more and more details about his life. I now understood why he needed remedial help. Not only was his schooling inconsistent and sporadic, but there were also periods when he didn't attend at all.

Once Pat finished his story and dinner had been completed, Dustin and Danny volunteered to help me clean up the dining room and kitchen. Pat stayed in the dining room and watched what everyone did, but he did not offer to lend a hand, which was all right. I didn't need to put him to work his first night with us.

When we were finished, we moved into the living room, where I continued to observe Pat and started to make mental notes of his appearance. He stood about 5' 3" tall and had a solid, but not overly muscular build. He had a handsome, but not pretty face, dirty blond hair, blue eyes and a distinct cleft in his chin. He carried his body as if he was always prepared to ward off an attack and never seemed to let himself fully relax. This may just be the result of being the new kid on the block and not feeling comfortable with his situation, but I suspected there might be additional reasons for his posturing stance.

After all of the boys had made sure that their homework was completed and their chores were done, they joined Pat and me, to watch some television before going to bed. Some of them decided to also shower and prepare for bed before joining us, and before long there was a parade of naked bodies roaming into the living room. Pat saw the boys entering and a look of horror came over his face.

"Are you guys a bunch of homos?" Pat screamed out, surprised by the seemingly nonchalant attitude the boys had about being nude. "I'm not living with a bunch of fucking queers!" he shouted, which caused the rest of the boys to react to his outburst.

Too late, I remembered I had forgotten to forewarn the boys not to do this until Pat had a chance to get comfortable with us. Not only that, but I also failed to prepare Pat about this nightly ritual, after having forgotten to tell the boys to hold back on this activity. Now, I wasn't sure how I was going to correct the problem, which resulted from those oversights.

Chapter 6
A Bump in the Road

I felt terrible and didn't know what to do. He had only been with us a short time and already I began to question if this arrangement was going to work.

"Just because we aren't ashamed of our bodies doesn't make us gay," Dustin informed him, while positioning himself, in case Pat decided to attack him.

"Yeah," Kevin added, "it's just more comfortable and cooler this way. We see each other and other boys naked in the showers all of the time and none of us feel we have anything to hide."

"You don't have to do it if you don't want to," Danny added. "It's just that we don't stop anyone else who does want to do it."

"Well, it's not right and it ain't natural," Pat shot back as he stormed out of the room and raced up the stairs.

"I think I better go talk to him," I told the others, before I left the room too. I walked up the stairs and knocked on Pat's closed bedroom door.

"Go away," he shouted.

"Pat, it's me and I think we need to talk," I told him. There was no response for several seconds and then the door slowly opened. "What do you want?" he asked me.

"May I come in and discuss what just happened?"

"There's nothing to talk about," he answered defiantly.

"I believe there is and I think there is more to this than just your objecting to the other boys being naked. I think we need to talk about what triggered that outburst."

"It's nothing. I'll just stay in my room when they start running around without their clothes on," he informed me, hoping that would make me go away.

"That would probably prevent future flair-ups," I agreed, "but I don't think it would solve the real problem behind what just happened. I believe it would be best if we took some time to discuss this."

"But there's nothing to discuss," Pat protested.

"Pat, people don't react in that fashion or to that degree without some underlying reason," I explained. "I think that's what we need to talk about."

"I guess you're not going to go away until we do," he responded, apparently still annoyed, "so you might as well come on in."

I walked in, sat on his bed and made a hand-signal to indicate I wanted him to sit next to me. Hesitantly, and very reluctantly, he joined me on the bed, but he wouldn't look me in the eye. He only stared at the carpet, so I began the conversation. "Pat, I can understand if you are uncomfortable about the boys running around without their clothes on, but I think your reaction was a bit severe."

"But why would they want to do something gay like that?" he pressed, still unable to comprehend the reasoning behind their actions.

"Pat, there are many nudists, or naturists as they prefer to be called, who are not gay. They just don't believe it's necessary to hide their bodies. Even if the boys were gay, they wouldn't try to force you to doing anything you didn't want to do. We are very open and accepting here. We try to respect each other for who and what they are and we don't try to force our views on each other. We're not trying to tell you that you have to do the same thing, but in the same token, we don't want you telling them they can't do it either. You don't have to look at them if it bothers you, but you also don't have to hide alone in your room. The human body has always been viewed as a work of art and there are many fine paintings and sculptures to verify this fact. People spend a great deal of money to purchase these masterpieces, and here we have equally attractive works of art parading around in front of us for free. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. Do you?"

"I don't know," he answered, half-heartedly, "but it just doesn't seem right."

"Okay, I can accept the fact that you view things differently, but I don't think you need to call the boys names or raise such a fuss about it. We are still in the dying throes of summer and it is quite warm at times. The boys feel cooler and more comfortable without their clothes on and I've never seen anything wrong with letting them express themselves in this manner. The house is very isolated and they have time to go and put something on, should we get company. We keep the blinds and shades drawn on the windows that might expose them to view from the outside world and they don't parade outdoors that way unless it is in secluded areas, such as the swimming pool. That area is fenced in and the boys wear towels to and from the pool."

"You mean we can go skinny-dipping here?" Pat interrupted me.

"Yes. Here that is the norm, rather than the exception," I admitted.

"I used to do that with some of my friends when I was little and it was a lot of fun," he explained, with a dazed look of happiness appearing on his face, as he recollected those fond memories. However, his sudden change of gears momentarily confused me. I looked at Pat and tried to unravel this apparent contradiction in attitude.

"I'm sorry, Pat," I informed him, "but I don't understand. One minute you're complaining about the boys running around the house naked and now you're excited about possibly going skinny-dipping with them. I'm not sure I see any difference between the two."

Pat suddenly became morose again and dropped his head toward the carpet. "I don't really mind the boys being naked, I was just worried that it might mean other things would happen."

"Like what?" I pressed.

Patrick turned his head away from me and I began to hear him sniffle. I put my arm on his shoulder to comfort him, but he quickly jerked away from me. "What's the matter, Pat? I just want to help."

"I'm sorry. It's not you. It's just…" His words died off and he looked toward the window, as his body shuddered from the sobs that were now coming from him.

"Whatever it is, you don't have to worry about it here," I tried to reassure him. "I'm willing to listen, if you need to get whatever it is off of your chest. Sometimes it helps to just tell someone else what's wrong."

He turned and looked at me, trying to size me up and determine if he felt he could share this secret with me. After several minutes of internal debate, he gave in and told me the basis for his problem.

"It happened when I was living with my mom. She had this boyfriend who lived with us and he would make me run around naked whenever she was gone or if she was passed out from drinking. Then he would do things to me and would make me do some of those same things to him too. The worse part about it was that I enjoyed some of the things we did, but I couldn't stand the others. Some of the things he tried hurt me a lot, but he wouldn't stop doing them. I was afraid that was going to happen here too, just like then."

"That certainly won't happen here," I countered, in as soothing a tone as I could manage after hearing his story. "How old were you when this happened?"

"I think I was twelve," he replied.

"Did you ever tell anyone else?" I asked, wondering if he wasn't believed or if no one cared.

"No," he responded, looking guilty that he never spoke up about this until now. "I was afraid if I did, my mom wouldn't want me to live with her any more and I didn't want to leave."

"So this guy was never arrested for what he did to you?" I continued.

"No. Nobody else knew what was happening," he informed me.

"I'm sorry that you had to go through something like that," I told him with all of the heartfelt emotion I could manage, "but nothing of that nature will ever happen to you here. We may touch each other to show affection or to let each other know how much we care about them, but we would never make you participate in any unwanted sexual activities." He looked up at me and studied my face.

"Do you really mean that," he countered, "or do you do things like that with the boys too?"

"No, Pat. I've never had sexual relations with any of the boys," I admitted honestly, "and if I touch them in an area such as that, it's only for legitimate reasons."

"Like what?" he pressed, thinking I might be hiding something with my response.

"Like when Kevin told me he thought he had a lump on one of his testicles," I explained. "I checked it out to see if that was indeed the case, and then took him to the doctor, to have it tested."

"Oh," he nearly whispered, apparently relieved. "I'm glad to hear that. You know, the one thing I've never been able to figure out is why I enjoyed some of the things he did to me?"

"It was because he was sexually stimulating your body, at a time when you were physically maturing and just becoming aware that such feelings could be pleasurable. Under those circumstances, your body would enjoy some of what he did to you, whether you agreed to do them or not. I must tell you that some of the boys do experiment and try things like that with each other, but only with those who want to do them. It is a hard, strict rule here that nothing of that nature happens, unless everyone agrees to it and wants it to happen."

"Oh, okay," he replied, while considering the implications of my statement.

"If there were things that you enjoyed and wanted to do again," I continued, "it's possible you might be able to find a partner here, who would be willing to help you. The difference is, you will never HAVE to do anything you do not wish to do, at least not of a sexual nature. You may be asked to do chores or help out when you don't wish to, but nothing sexual will ever happen without your consent. If it does, you just have to tell me and it will end immediately." At this point, I wasn't sure which Pat felt the most, relief that he wouldn't be forced into anything or guilt over his earlier outburst.

"I'm glad you made me talk about this," he began, after a brief lull in our conversation, "and I'm sorry that I was such a jerk earlier. It's just…"

"There's no need to explain further, Pat, and I'm sure the others won't hold your little tirade against you," I informed him. "Would you mind if I gave you a hug, to make you feel better?"

He looked at me and a slow grin began to spread across his face. "No. I think that would be all right. In fact, I think I might even like it. I haven't had anybody hug me just because they liked me or wanted to make me feel better for a really long time. After that guy did those things to me, I guess I tried to make sure no one else would touch me again, for any reason. I think it might be nice to get a hug without having to worry you want me to do something in return."

I immediately reached out and pulled him toward me, slowly squeezing his body against my chest. I felt him stiffen at first, as his reflexes kicked it. It was obvious his instincts hadn't caught up to his brain's reasoning, but eventually he began to relax. At that point, I felt his arms slide up my side, until he wrapped them about my waist, and then he hugged me back. After that, I left it up to him to decide when he wanted to break this embrace. Eventually, he let his arms fall back to his side and began to pull away from me.

"You know, I kind of enjoyed that," he admitted a little sheepishly, "but now I have another problem."

"What kind of problem?" I asked, worried that another monster was about to rear its ugly head.

"Well, it looks like I'm going to end up living here now," he began, "but I don't know what I should call you. I know that the other boys call you 'Dad,' but I guess that's probably because you adopted them. What do you want ME to call you?"

"That's up to you, Pat," I added quickly, yet not overly forcefully. "There are several possibilities, which I've gone over with all of the boys, at one time or another. My name is Josh and you can call me that if you wish, but many of the boys called me 'Dad' long before I adopted them. You could also do that, if you wish, or you can use another option I offered the others. I told them they could also call me 'Uncle Josh' or you could do like some of their friends and call me 'Pop'. It all depends on what you're comfortable with. I'll let you decide about this by yourself, because it's an extremely personal decision."

"Do you mind if I think about it for a while first?" he asked, while waiting to see how I was going to respond.

"No, take your time," I assured him. "I'm going to go back downstairs with the other boys and you can either come with me now or join us when you're ready."

"I'll be down in a minute," he announced. "There's something I kinda need to do first."

"Okay, take your time," I agreed. "You can join us whenever you're ready.

I walked back to the family room and joined the other boys. They immediately began to fire questions at me, as soon as I entered the room, but I only told them that Pat seemed sorry about his outburst and had some personal issues to work out. I then explained that I thought there wouldn't be any further problems concerning their continuing with the nudie hour, and no sooner had those words spilled from between my lips, a bare-assed Patrick entered the room, paraded over to the sofa and sat down next to me.

"I'm sorry about earlier, guys," he began, "and I thought you might accept my apology easier, if I joined in the fun. I'm sorry if I insulted anyone or hurt your feelings."

After getting over their initial shock at his sudden change in direction, the boys all assured him that everything was fine. Almost immediately, the room filled with the sounds of boys being boys, as they began to frolic and enjoy each other's company. Patrick was soon accepted as part of the group and his 5" circumcised pole became a welcome addition to the parade of dicks that waved back in forth as they moved about the house, like the trunks of elephants, swaying lazily in front of each member of the herd as they meandered across the African plains.

When the TV shows were over and the boys headed to bed, I pulled Pat aside and told him how pleased I was that he was able to work out his feelings so quickly. Not only that, but I expressed how proud I was of his ability to let down his guard and join in with the others, after having utilized that particular survival skill for so long, to prevent future abuse. He apologized, again, for his earlier outburst, but I told him not to worry about it. I did tell him that I was available if there was anything more he wished to discuss, either about that topic or whatever else he might wish to get off his chest. After thinking this over for a few seconds, he hinted he might just do that, but he wasn't ready quite yet to divulge more. I accepted his hesitance and informed him that I'd be there, whenever he decided he was ready.

Everyone slept well that evening and the house was very quiet. I had just opened my eyes and noticed that the lighted display on my clock read twenty minutes before six, when I heard a scream from the next room. I jumped out of bed and raced to the room where Pat was bunked, figuring he might have had a nightmare or had awakened and not realized where he was. I had just passed through his doorway, when I observed the actual cause for this disturbance. My three little monsters were on the bed with Pat, tickling him and smacking him with pillows. By the time the rest of the boys came along to investigate the disturbance, the first four were all laughing and having a good time frolicking upon the bed.

"I can't say you guys didn't try to warn me," Pat admitted, grinning. "They nearly scared the shit out of me when they all pounced on my body at the same time. The worst part was, they also interrupted a really great dream I was having. You're right, they are evil," he added, with a smirk.

Cole responded to his accusations first, by slamming him in the head with a pillow. Seeing this, the other two immediately joined in this new assault. Before I knew what was happening, the other boys ran into my room and grabbed pillows off of my bed, so they could help Pat battle my three little devils."

"Hey, that's no fair," Graham chirped up, after discovering they were now outnumbered. "There's four of you and only three of us, and you're bigger."

"But you guys started it," Dustin added, just before he got belted from behind and knocked on top of the others. While they were bickering, I had slipped into the jungle room and grabbed a pillow for my own use and then came back to even out the teams, not that I was trying to encourage the incorrigible.

"All right, Dad's on our side," Ricky shouted, with an ear-to-ear grin.

"Only to even out the numbers," I shot back, with just a bit of sarcasm dripping from my voice. "I don't want you to assume this to mean that I don't think that you three deserve exactly what you're getting. You antagonists deserve every bit of grief they can give you, just to make up for SOME of the wicked things you've done to us."

"Aw, Dad," Ricky countered. "We only do it to show you that we love you."

"Then we'd rather you didn't love us at all," Danny shot back, with an evil smirk on his face – an expression that was soon replaced by a pillow, which Graham had swung.

"You little devil," Danny scolded, as he attacked and tickled Graham's lithe frame. "Now we'll see how you like the way I show my love for you."

"No, no," Graham screamed, as he wiggled beneath Danny's dexterous fingers. "No, stop or I'm going to pee on Pat's bed."

"Make him," Pat shouted. "It's really Ricky's bed, not mine, and I'd like to see you make his little thing squirt all over."

Everyone was laughing hysterically, as I heard the alarm go off in my room. I went over to shut it off and then I came back to halt the activity.

"Okay, it's time to stop and start getting ready for school. Pat, you can use the bathroom in the master bedroom with Danny. Kevin and Dustin use the one down the hall and the three brats here can use the one downstairs."

"We're not brats," Cole pouted.

"Maybe not, but you're not angels either," I countered, which elicited similar reactions from the other two.

As the boys set about getting ready for school, I went down to the kitchen and started whipping up a huge pan of oatmeal and a large quantity of toast. The ones who wanted dry cereal could get it out of the cupboard for themselves, but the hot food would be there and ready for whoever wanted it, by the time they reached the kitchen. I helped myself to a small bowl of oatmeal, a couple of slices of toast and two cups of coffee, and had nearly finished all of it, before the last of the pack began to chow down.

While they were eating, I went up to my room to take my shower and dress for work. Once everyone was ready, we all loaded into the van and I dropped them off at their various schools. I let the high school crowd off first.

"Pat, you'll need to inform the guidance office about your change of residence and you can tell them that they may phone me at my school, if they need any additional information."

"Thanks, I will. Bye, guys," he told the ones who were continuing on with me. "I still owe you for this morning, so don't think we're even yet," he warned them. I think he just threw that comment in to keep at least two of the terrible trio on edge and make them wonder what he was going to do to get back at them. It worked because they spent the rest of the trip discussing what they thought he might try to do to repay them for this morning's wake up call.

The school day went smoothly and I went around to collect the rest of my boys after the day's class schedule had been completed. When I arrived at the high school, Pat was sitting on the ground, watching the three older boys going through their soccer drills.

"Do you play any sports?" I asked Patrick.

"No, I've never been in one place long enough to play on any teams and I think I'm too old to start now."

"Maybe and maybe not," I told him. "What sports do you like or might you want to play?"

"Actually, I like to watch almost all of them and I don't know which ones I'd like to play, because I've never actually had a chance to try."

"Well, why don't you explain your situation to the three who are out on the practice field after we get home," I suggested. "They might be able to start working with you in the evening and on weekends, and then you could see if you might be interested in trying out for one of the teams next season. Those guys aren't bad athletes themselves and they're very patient teachers. I've seen them work with the younger ones. Actually, Danny helped Ricky become quite good at soccer, but I think Ricky is going to give it up after soccer season, because he wants the extra time to help Cole and Graham with their studies. They are having a little trouble with their school work."

"They really do a lot for each other, don't they?" Pat commented. "I don't think I've ever seen a group of guys who were willing to help each other out like they do. They really do seem to love each other."

"Yes, you're right. They do love each other," I agreed, "and they are very supportive of one another. They might also be willing to help you, if you let them know what you need."

"Yeah, that might be a good idea," he admitted. "I think I might try it. Thanks." He started to turn back to watch the practice, when he changed his mind and turned back toward me. "You know, I think I'm going to like it here with you guys, if you don't mind me staying."

"Mind? Heck, we're counting on it," I confirmed with a wink, which garnered a huge grin from Pat, in response. I think we've made significant progress here.

Chapter 7
Let the Good Times Roll

After I drove to the house, I told all the boys to go inside and get busy, except for Pat. I was going to take him down to the home improvement store, so we could pick out the items for his room.

"I talked to my contractor earlier," I told him, "and he said he could start on your room by the middle of next week. That means you'll probably be spending a week or more in Ricky's room before it's done. Do you have any problems with that?"

"I don't, if Ricky doesn't," Pat confirmed.

"Don't worry, he won't," I replied. "He spends most of his time in with the other two anyway."

Once we arrived at the store, Pat and I went in and Pat quickly picked a paper pattern that depicted sailboats gliding across a crystal clear lake. It was really attractive and very peaceful looking and I suggested we do the upper half of the room in that and the bottom in a wood paneling, similar to what the other boys had done. He agreed and selected a medium oak paneling for the bottom half, which was considerably lighter than what the other pair had used. I left the two sample names for my contractor with the salesperson at the business counter. We had done this before, so I knew it wouldn't be a problem. Now that we were finished, Pat and I went home.

"Thanks," Pat said as soon as the van's doors had closed. "I can't believe you're doing all of this just for me."

"Why not?" I asked. "Why should you have any less than anyone else?"

"I'm just not used to people wanting to do things just for me," he admitted. "Most of the time people just wanted something FROM me or they wanted me to stay out of their way. Thank you for being so nice."

"The reason I agreed to take in boys in the first place was so I could help them. That's all I'm doing for you. It's not that big a deal," I explained.

"Maybe not to you, but it sure is for me," Pat countered. "So, thank you."

This discussion could have lasted forever, so I just decided to leave it at that. I reached over and squeezed his shoulder, which caused him to turn in his seat and smile at me in return. "Next, you will have to decide if you want a single or double bed in the room," I informed him. "We need to get you a bed anyway, because there is none in there, so you decide which would be best for you."

I pulled in the driveway and Pat didn't get out right away. Instead, he looked over at me and spoke. "I've made a decision," he announced.

"About the bed?"

"No. It's about something much more important," he stated, which caught me slightly off guard. "I'd like to try calling you 'Dad,' like the other boys do, if that's all right with you."

"I would love that," I admitted, feeling overjoyed that he had made his decision so quickly. "Thank you. I feel very honored you are going to try that, but you still have the option to change your mind later, if you want," I added, sensing from his words that he might not be completely committed to the idea."

"No, I don't think I will," he countered. "I think I'm lucky Judge Shay brought me here, rather than taking me somewhere else. You already treat me better than either of my mother or father did, when I lived with them, and I really feel you deserve to be called Dad more than my father ever did. At least I can tell you care about me. You proved that when we talked about why I got so angry when the boys were naked that first night. It made me realize you cared about what was bothering me and wanted me to be happy. I even get the feeling you want me to be here, more than either of my parents ever did when I was with them, especially since you've let me fix up my room the way I want it. I don't think I'll ever forget how good you've made me feel."

I was too choked up to respond. Pat jumped out and ran around to my side, so he could give me a hug before we entered the house. I was moved by his gesture and hugged him back.

Kevin came to greet me, as soon as I got to the foyer. "Dad, some lawyer from Miami called for you a little while ago and said he'd call back later to speak with you."

"A lawyer? From Miami?" I asked, bewildered. "I have no idea what that would be about. Did he say when he'd call?"

"No, he just said he'd call later," Kevin informed me, so I continued to wonder what this lawyer might want.

While contemplating the situation, I set about fixing dinner, which took about thirty minutes, followed by another forty minutes for it to cook. When it was ready, I called the boys and we sat down to eat. During dinner, Pat excitedly told the boys about the things he had picked out for his room and I informed Ricky he would most likely have to stay with Cole and Graham for up to two weeks, which drew high-fives from the trio. The boys were just starting to clean up the mess, when the phone rang. I quickly announced that I'd get it.

"Hello."

"Hello. May I speak to Mr. Joshua Currie?" the voice on the other end asked.

"This is he," I informed him.

"Mr. Currie, my name is Louis Kaufman," the man explained. "I'm an attorney and the executor of the will for one Jacob Goldman."

"I'm afraid I don't know anyone by that name," I informed him, almost apologetically.

"I realize that, sir, and I'm willing to explain to you what I know about him," the attorney countered. "Mr. Goldman was a Holocaust survivor as a child and moved to the states after the war, still a young boy. When he grew older, he married, started a business and became very wealthy. He and his wife never had any children, because his experience in the death camps had left him unable to produce sperm. His wife passed away several years ago and Mr. Goldman had no other living relatives, since most of them had perished during the war.

"About a week after he read about you and your family in some publication, he asked me to change his will and name you as the principal beneficiary of his fortune. He told me he admired what you were doing, and after seeing so much evil and hatred in the world, he wanted to help make it possible for you to do more for your boys and give you the option of taking in even more young men, over the coming years. After reading about what you'd already accomplished and seeing the pictures of how happy the boys were with you, he knew you were providing them with a loving and caring environment in which to grow. When Mr. Goldman passed away, I calculated the value of his estate and your share of it will come to just over five million dollars, after taxes."

I nearly fell over and dropped the phone. Dustin saw me and came running over to grab me and yelled to Danny to get a chair from the dining room. I managed to sit down and could hear Mr. Kaufman speaking loudly into the phone. "Mr. Currie… Mr. Currie… Hello… Are you still there?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Kaufman, but I was just a little overwhelmed by your news," I admitted. "Did I hear you correctly? Did you just tell me I would be getting a little over five million dollars… after taxes?"

The boys' eyes lit up and their mouths dropped toward the floor. "Yes, you heard me correctly. If you wouldn't mind, I'll be sending an associate with a bank check made payable to you, along with some other paperwork I need for you to sign. Just tell me when and where you'd be willing to meet this individual, to complete the transaction."

Once the shock wore off, we went over the remainder of the details and everything was set. I hung up the phone and was immediately barraged by questions from the boys.

"What was that about five million dollars?" Danny asked.

"Where are you getting that kind of money from?" Dustin followed.

"Are we going to have to move to Miami to get it?" Ricky wondered.

"What's that going to mean for us?" Pat asked, worried. "You're still going to let us live here with you, aren't you?"

Many other questions followed those and I answered them all, honestly and the best I could. I told them about the money, where it came from and why it had been given to us. I assured them we weren't going to move or do anything differently, but added the money would ensure we'd be able to afford to take in as many other boys who also needed our help. I also informed them that a portion of this money would added to their mutual fund account, to pay their college expenses or give them a decent start, once they were on their own.

The boys were quite excited about our windfall, yet also relieved that our lives would not change drastically because of it. I think they were comforted by my commitment to try to maintain the same degree of togetherness and happiness we had enjoyed up until now.

Over the remainder of the evening, I was barely able to keep a lid on everyone's enthusiasm and their speculation about how we might spend some of this newfound wealth. It took me hours, before I finally was able to get them to settle down. When I sent them off to bed, I closed up the house and went up behind them. This news had also exhausted me and I was looking to rest up from the excitement.

As I was going to my room, I noticed that the door to the jungle room was closed, something that rarely ever happened. I immediately realized they were either cooking up some plan for the morning or they were doing a little experimenting. I put my ear to the door and quickly determined it was the latter, so I went on down the hall, performed my nightly ritual and jumped into bed.

* * * *

Ricky, Cole, and Graham had gone up to their room and hopped into bed. Before long, Graham spoke up. "How come you guys never want to do anything with me?"

"We do everything with you," Cole answered.

"I mean in bed at night, you know… the sex things," Graham announced. "Is it because I'm not cut?"

Cole and Ricky looked at each other. "No, that wouldn't make a difference," Ricky told him. "I've done stuff with Jay and he isn't cut either. It's just that we weren't sure you wanted to do anything like that. You never seemed like you were interested whenever we talked about doing things and Cole and I don't do it very often. Sometimes we sneak into one of the bathrooms to fool around for a while or we do it in here, after you've fallen asleep. Not up the butt, though."

"I wasn't always asleep," Graham informed them, letting the other pair know they weren't as clever as they'd thought. "Can we do something tonight?" he followed.

"Sure," Ricky told him. "What do you want to do?"

"I don't know," Graham admitted. "I've never done more than touch Cole's dicky." Ricky snorted, after hearing Graham refer to Cole's penis as a 'dicky.'

"Well, do you ever beat your meat?" Ricky asked him, trying to get an idea of how much he did on his own. When he saw the confused look on Graham's face, he knew it probably wasn't much. "You know, play with yourself… jerk off?"

"You mean rub my dicky?" Graham asked, for clarification.

"Yeah, that's what I mean. Do you do that?" Ricky continued.

"Sometimes," Graham admitted.

"Can you shoot?" Ricky pressed.

"Shoot what?" Graham countered, befuddled.

"Shoot white stuff out of your wiener," Ricky clarified. "If you've been awake at night and must have seen what we were doing, so you should have seen some of that."

"It was too dark and I didn't want you to know I was really awake," Graham replied, "but I don't think I can do that," he added, while looking more than a little confused.

"Okay, then we'll find that out first," Ricky informed him. "Lie back and we'll see what you can do. Cole, you can suck on his tits while I jerk him off. We'll see how he likes that before we do anything else."

Graham reclined against the pillows on his bed, with Cole on his left and Ricky on his right. Cole bent over his brother and started to work on his left nipple while Ricky began to lick around his navel. Graham was very ticklish and began to giggle, but his little soldier popped right to attention. Ricky reached down with his right hand and began to fondle his nut sac and stiff penis, gently stroking the area to give him maximum enjoyment.

At this point, Graham's movements stopped being a reaction to the tickling sensations and, instead, became an instinctive response to what the others were doing. Graham was now thrusting his groin up to meet Ricky's downward strokes, in an effort to encourage his friend to continue what he was doing. After a few minutes of using his tongue and fondling Graham's testicles, Ricky wrapped his thumb and first two fingers around Graham's little boner and began to pump it up and down. The foreskin on Graham's little rod slid back and forth, allowing his dark pink head to pop in and out, as the stimulation continued. Little squeaking sounds also began to emanate from Graham's throat and his body began to undulate beneath the attention of his two bedmates.

Cole had moved his head over, so he could work on Graham's right nipple, eagerly licking and sucking the little nub, before gently nibbling that erect little piece of flesh. Graham squealed from delight as his brother worked on his chest, but the best was yet to come. Ricky was now pumping faster on Graham's erection and his boy hips were bouncing up and down off the bed in pure joy. After a couple more minutes of this intense stimulation, Graham's body stiffened, he arched his back toward the ceiling and the first spurts of a watery liquid shot from the head of his cock.

Ricky didn't let up, though, and kept pumping away at Graham's dribbling hose. Three more droplets of his immature seed burst from the tiny slit at the end of his penis and soon there were small puddles of this liquid forming on his stomach and covering the few scattered hairs surrounding the base of his shaft. Graham was still breathing heavily, in rapid, shallow breaths, when his back started to relax and his butt fell back against the bed. Ricky and Cole smiled at their young partner, as they watched him enjoy the afterglow from his recent ejaculation.

When Graham regained his senses, he merely reached his arms out to his side, grabbed his two brothers by the waist and he pulled them toward himself. "Thanks, that was awesome."

"We would have done that for you before, if we'd known you wanted it," Cole told him.

"Yeah, we didn't think you were ready yet," Ricky added. "You never let on at all that you might want to do this and we didn't want to push you into anything, if you weren't interested."

"Well, I am now and I want to do it more with you guys," Graham announced, quite boldly.

"No problem," Ricky told him. "What would you like to do next?"

"Can I do that to you?" Graham asked, his eyes wide with hope.

"Sure!" Cole chirped. "Who do you want to do it with?"

"Both of you," Graham answered, eagerly. "First I'll do it with you and then Ricky. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, that will be fine," Ricky answered, with Cole shaking his head energetically up and down.

The boys quickly switched positions on the bed, so Cole was lying down, with Graham on his right and Ricky on his left. This time Ricky got to work on Cole's breast, so Graham could play with his dick. Graham didn't waste any time reaching out, rubbing and stroking Cole's groin. He let his small hands run all around the scrotum, squeezing the entire thing in his palm before he began to finger and explore the testicles separately. When he was satisfied with his manipulation of that area, he ran his fingers up and around the shaft, through the small bush of pubic hairs and all over his abdomen. Finally, Graham's small hand wrapped around the fleshy tube and began to stroke it up and down.

"Your wiener feels different than mine, without the extra skin," he explained.

"I know what you mean," Ricky responded. "I thought the same thing, the first time I did this with Jay. It was different, but still nice."

"Yes. I'm not saying it's bad, it's just not the same," Graham affirmed.

Graham went back to stroking his brother's stiffy and Cole was enjoying the feeling of his brother's small, warm hand as it squeezed his penis lightly, while gliding up and down his shaft. It didn't take very long before Cole's body stiffened, his penis swelled in Graham's palm and strings of his white, creamy cum bolted from his pulsing member. Graham started stroking even faster as he watched the sticky liquid shoot from his brother's mast, until Cole had to reach down and grab Graham's arm, to prevent him from continuing, since his penis was becoming a little sore from Graham's frantic pumping.

"That was fun," Graham chirped, excitedly. "Come on, Ricky. I want to do that to you now."

"Hold on there sport," Ricky answered him. "We need to give Cole a chance to recover first."

"Okay," Graham said, while looking a little disappointed about the delay. It was obvious he had enjoyed what he had just done and wanted to continue without wasting any more time. He understood what Ricky was telling him, though, and thought back to how he had also taken a few minutes to rest after he shot his load. Patiently, he stretched out next to Cole and waited.

Cole was slowly coming out of his blissful afterglow when he reached out, grabbed Graham and gave him a big kiss on the lips.

"Thanks, little bro. That was great and I'll do it with you again, anytime you want." Graham blushed from the suddenness of Cole's affection and then smiled at his older brother, appreciatively. They were now a little closer to each other than they had been before.

Within a minute or two the boys had switched positions once more, with Ricky lying on the bed, Cole on his left and Graham on his right. Graham was making sure he was going to get to do the same thing to Ricky that he had just done to Cole, especially since Ricky's pecker was a little bigger than his brother's. Ricky's body had barely hit the mattress when Graham's hand shot out and began rubbing and grabbing at Ricky's rigid mast. Graham's exploration was more hurried than it was with Cole and there seemed to be a greater urgency to his movements.

"Slow down, Graham," Ricky chided him. "I'm not going anywhere and you can take all the time you need. Just take it easy, so I can enjoy this too."

"Sorry," Graham replied meekly. "It's just so much fun that I wanted to get going. But you're right and I'll go slower now."

Having said that, Graham took his trembling, hot, little hand and began to massage Ricky's ball bag and manipulate the watery orbs within. Ricky sighed loudly and tried to encourage his younger partner. "That's it. That feels great. Oooooooh yeah, keep that up. That's fantastic."

Graham smiled because of Ricky's comments and it encouraged him to play with Ricky's gonads longer than he had originally planned. Eventually he brought his hand up and wrapped it around Ricky's granite pole and began to stroke it up and down. Ricky was enjoying the touch of the satiny soft skin of Graham's palm and the tender, yet firm, hold he had on his pole. Ricky sprawled back and enjoyed the dual manipulations from his young partners and reveled in the warm waves of feelings that were bathing his body from their attention. He silently hoped this experience would last for a very long time, but it was only a few minutes later when he started to recognize that all-familiar tingle building in his loins, which would soon consume every fiber of his being. When the sensations became too strong to hold back any longer, his love muscle exploded, sending streams of spunk spewing from the gasping lips of the tiny slit that opened from his crown. Graham was more aware not to overdo it this time, but he still milked Ricky's cock until every drop of his cream had been drained from his boyhood.

The three boys kissed, hugged and thanked each other for the wonderful feelings they had just given to one another. After cleaning up a bit, they slipped under the sheet and cuddled like a pack of newborn puppies. Cole and Ricky made sure that Graham was in between them and wrapped their arms and legs over and around his body, making him realize he was the focal point of this group embrace. The boys slept well that night, with hardly any movement between the three of them, and their dreams were filled with pleasant thoughts about future encounters with each other.

Even though this had been Graham's initial experience of being touched and touching someone else during a sexual act, he was already dreaming of many more sessions. He was looking forward doing the same things, and even different stuff, with these two and maybe even with some things with his older brothers. The bug had bitten and it would be hard to satisfy the curiosity he now felt about the male body.

Chapter 8
Another Visit From a Very Weary Stork

The contractor had finished the work on Pat's bedroom, so all it needed was some furniture to make it habitable. Pat had decided he'd prefer a double bed, so I went out and purchased one, along with the appropriate matching pieces. Like before, I found a decent bedroom set at a garage sale and then bought a new mattress and box spring to use with it. Pat was ecstatic about his new room and Ricky had his own room back, although he still didn't use it often.

Even though it might be hard to believe, the three mischievous imps were now even more inseparable than before. They were almost constantly in each other's company and the other boys spent their time trying to figure out what they were up to. They had always been close, but not quite as close as they appeared now, so the rest of the family feared they were planning new horrors for us. Due to my small amount of eavesdropping at their bedroom door that one evening, I was the only one, beside those involved, who knew about or suspected the new connection between them, and I wasn't about to share that secret with anyone else.

During that week, I also met with the representative from Mr. Kaufman's law offices, signed the required paperwork and accepted the check. It came to $5,347,550. I put some into an account for easy access and then invested the rest. I calculated that even if it only earned 5% interest on the principal, we would have a quarter of a million dollars a year to spend without ever having to touch the base amount. There would be no way this family would lack for anything in the future and I could ensure the boys would be able to pursue many of their dreams. I would add to the account I had set up for each one of them to be used for college, starting their own business or buying a home and beginning life when they were ready leave. I could now provide them with everything I had ever dreamed of.

It was about two or three weeks after Pat moved into his own bedroom when he did something none of the rest of us ever expected. He even planned it alone and worked out every last detail, to make it go flawlessly. He did give me a hint about what he was planning, so I would be prepared for it and not panic when it happened.

We were all sleeping in one Saturday morning, after a fairly hectic week, when all hell seemed to break loose. At first most of us were oblivious to what was going on in one of the other rooms, but suddenly we began to hear very loud animal noises. At first, I thought I heard a growl of some sort, followed by the roars of several lions, but I knew that couldn't be. Groggily, I figured some of the boys must be watching television and had set the volume way too high, so I got out of bed, to tell them to turn it down. However, that's when I began to hear screams coming from the jungle room.

Frantically, I raced there and opened the door, only to see three young boys screaming and darting hysterically about the room. Then it all began to sink in. Pat had exacted his revenge on our little monsters, so now the rest of us gathered around to watch and enjoy the lesson he was teaching our three terrors.

I think it best if I back up a bit and explain how Pat had set this all up. While the rest of us were sleeping, he carried Kevin's boom box, which he had borrowed previously, into the jungle room, attached it to an extension cord and set the volume full blast. That way, nothing would happen until he plugged it in. He also turned on a black-light lamp, which he had placed on the desk in the jungle room, to add a surreal glow. He then lay down on the floor at the foot of their bed, completely out of sight. The room was now nearly completely dark, lit only by the black-light lamp, when Pat reached out and pushed the plug end of the extension cord into one of the nearby sockets.

The tape immediately began to play the animal noises we soon heard, which Pat had previously recorded off of the animal network. That's why I thought I heard the growls and roars of lions. It had been taken from a program showing individual lions establishing dominance within the pride, which was also vaguely what was happening here. Slowly, these sounds began to register in the psyches of the sleeping trio, when all of the sudden there was another mighty roar, much louder than any of the rest, as one lion announced his superiority and control to the others.

Three bodies suddenly jerked upright on the bed, only to be confronted by the wallpaper, which was lit up eerily by the black light and filled with the faces of jungle creatures. Just as the boys began to look around, a large stuffed lion (one that had been purchased for Graham at Christmas by my older son's family) leapt onto the bed (it was actually tossed there by Pat), just as another mighty roar sounded from the speakers.

The trio began to scream hysterically and fought to get off the bed and away from their attacker. These shouts brought the other boys running down the hall toward the jungle room, to see what the commotion was all about. Just as they arrived, another roar sounded from the speakers and the older boys spotted the stuffed lion, which had been unceremoniously knocked onto the floor, just before Pat sprang up from the foot of the mattress to pounce on our little monsters himself. The three young boys started screaming again and frantically tried to break free of their attacker, which caused the older boys to roar themselves, only their roars were of laughter.

"All right," Danny chuckled. "Somebody's finally given those three a good dose of their own medicine."

"Great job, Pat," Kevin added, when he saw Pat heading out of the jungle room. "You're going to fit in just fine here."

"Yeah," Dustin agreed. "I wish I'd thought that one up myself. That was awesome and it might make them think twice before they try their tricks on any of us again."

"Hey, that's not fair," Graham argued. "When we do something like this, you all gang up on us. Why aren't you ganging up on Pat, instead of telling him how great it was?"

"Because you three do it to innocent people," Kevin answered, "but each of you are far from innocent."

"Yes, you guys have deserved that for ages," Danny continued, "so don't come running to us for sympathy, because you aren't going to find any."

"You sure are lousy brothers," Ricky spat out. "You won't even protect the three youngest, most innocent and most defenseless members of this family."

"Youngest, maybe," Dustin countered, "but you three are far from being innocent or defenseless. We kept telling you the day would come when someone would get you back, but we had to wait for Pat to do it."

"So we're even now," Pat concluded, "so no more pranks. Right?" But he didn't wait for them to answer, before he continued. "If you do anything of this nature to any of us again, I'll get the others to help me get you back even worse next time."

"Dad," Cole pleaded, "won't YOU help us?"

"Hey, you brought this upon yourselves," I said with a chuckle, "but I fear this probably isn't going to be the last of it. I suspect that from now on, however, it won't be quite as one-sided."

"But Daddy," Graham said in his best, innocent, little boy voice, "aren't you going to protect your babies?"

"I don't see any diapers on you and there's the matter of those horns sticking out of your heads," I teased. "Admit it, you three little devils just can't take what you so happily dish out, so if you don't want something like this to happen to you again, then I'd suggest you start mending your ways."

"Oh, we can take it all right," Ricky spat back, defiantly. "I just hope the rest of you can, because this means war!" The three little ones were all laughing now and glaring at their brothers, as they started to chant "War, war, war…"

I decided to put an end to this little sideshow, but quickly realized my best effort probably wouldn't be enough to stop the escalation of pranks. We all hoped the three villains would learn from what had just happened to them, but I think, down deep, they enjoyed the sudden attention this brought them. Not only that, but I think they were also impressed by Pat's creativity in planning his revenge, at least once their little hearts stopped racing. However, I now believed this was only going to unleash a new round of attacks in the near future.

To my surprise, things did actually die down for a while and we made it to the middle of October until the next surprise. I was nearly finished with another long day at school, when I heard an unexpected visitor at my office door.

"Josh, do you have a few minutes?" I thought I recognized the voice, but it didn't quite register in the school environment. I didn't realize who it was, until I turned around and actually spied my visitor.

"Well, Sally, hello. For you, I have all the time in the world. Come in and sit down." It was Sally Swarthout, my friend from D.S.S., who had brought me all my sons, except for Pat. "What brings you here?"

"I wish I could tell you this was a social call, but I desperately need your help again," she admitted. "Before I begin, though, how are you and the boys?"

"We're all fine, Sally, and you should drop around more often to see them," I suggested. "I know they would all like that. By the way, I have a new boy whom you haven't met yet. If you want to come over, I'll introduce you."

"Oh, dear. You have a new boy?" she repeated, as a surprised expression flashed over her face. "Where did he come from?"

"Yes, I have a new boy," I repeated. "His name is Patrick Murray, but he prefers to be called Pat. Judge Shay called me a few weeks back and asked me to take him in. After a slightly rough start, he now seems to have become a fine addition to my clan."

"Now that you mention it, I do remember Judge Shay asking me about a placement for a young man," she responded, "but I didn't know he talked you into taking the boy."

"He did, but that's not the only surprise I've had, either," I continued. "I recently received a great deal of money from a gentleman who read about our blended family in one of the magazine articles. He included me in his will and we are now financially set."

"Oh Josh, that's wonderful," Sally gush, while eyeing me suspiciously. "Maybe I can still impose upon you then," she blurted out, without meaning to sound so insensitive. "I have another young man who could also use your help. He is an orphan and we have found no relatives who are willing or able to take him in. He has been temporarily living in another foster home, in a different part of the county, and his case was just brought to my attention by a fellow colleague from that area. If you wouldn't mind, I'd love to bring him around to meet you and the boys, and that way I could visit with them as well."

"That would be fine, Sally, but what about the other foster home?"

"They only took him in on an emergency basis. They already have two permanent foster children, in addition to their own children, so they didn't feel they'd be able to take on the additional responsibility. Maybe I should have told them about your place and the number of boys you have, but I must admit I've heard they also have very limited space, compared to your massive home."

"I must admit what I've done, by taking in so many, is not for everyone," I conceded. "I've been fortunate, thus far, and can only pray my luck holds out in the future. You can bring this boy to our place around 5:30 and that way you can also plan to stay and have dinner with us. I'll pick up some steaks, throw them on the grill and maybe even add some baked potatoes and a salad. I think the boys will like that. What do you say?"

"I say it sounds lovely," Sally replied, "and we'll be there. I know you're going to like him. He's a sweet boy, but very shy."

"If you like him, then I'm sure we will too," I told her. "I guess it's settled then and we'll see you later at the house."

I spent the rest of the day thinking about this new boy and prayed I wasn't taking on too much. Sure, there were no money worries any longer, but I did just take in another boy, and there were Cole and Graham's learning problems we still had to deal with (and we've only just began there, with Ricky's help, of course), and it's nearly time for Kevin's next check-up (to make sure no growths have reappeared since he found the cyst on his testicle). I know the rest of the boys would most likely encourage me to take this new boy in and I do want to give the kid a chance; it's just that I don't want to end up ignoring or neglecting the others, merely because I tried to do too much for too many. I hope the answer to this dilemma becomes evident, when I finally get to meet him.

Although it seemed to take forever, my school day finally ended, so I rounded up the troops, made a quick stop at the grocery store and hurried home. Dustin fired up the grill for me, while Kevin washed and wrapped potatoes in aluminum foil for baking and then made a tossed salad to go along with everything else. Then Danny and Pat volunteered to take the baked potatoes out to the grill to get them started for me, while Ricky, Cole and Graham offered to set the table. I had just come in the back door from checking on how my chefs were doing, after explaining when and how to start the steaks, when the doorbell rang. I went to open it, and as I anticipated, there was Sally and the new boy. I greeted them and invited them inside, as the other boys began to filter in. I think they were eager to say hello to their 'Aunt Sally' again. I gave them plenty of time to all exchange hugs and kisses with her, while I looked the new boy over.

He was definitely in his early teens, fairly tall (about 5' 8"), yet slender for his age. He didn't look thin, but he also wasn't what I'd call muscular. I couldn't see his face, because he spent most of his time looking down at the floor, while shuffling his feet. Sally was right. This kid was shy.

Once Sally and my boys finished their greetings, they introduced her to Pat. Once she said hello to him, she was ready to introduce the new boy to us.

"Josh, boys," Sally began, "this is Alexander Michael Daniels III." The boy finally looked up and I must admit I thought he was gorgeous. He had brown hair and brown eyes, but his face was absolutely angelic. That's why it was so odd to see the sad, frightened expression that radiated from it.

"What would you like us to call you?" I asked. "Alexander or Alex?"

"My friends call me Trey," he responded dryly, after which he tried to look away from us.

"Trey? Where did that come from?" I pressed, confused by this association. I hoped it wasn't some kind of a gang tag.

"You know, as in three," he stated with quite a bit of force, almost as if he were exasperated that we weren't able to figure it out for ourselves. "I'm Alexander Michael Daniels… THE THIRD."

"Oh, I get it now. Sorry I'm so thick," I apologized, while trying to lighten the moment. "Well it's nice to meet you, Trey, and welcome to our home."

I then proceeded to introduce all of the boys to him, before letting him go off with them, so they could show him the house. Ricky had already moved all of his things out of his old room (with the help of his two shadows) and they put them into his new abode, the jungle room. While the boys were out and about, Sally and I went out to the grill to watch over dinner and talked about life in general, while we did so. During our conversation, I explained a little bit more about my recent inheritance and she was totally shocked when I advised her of the actual amount of the check I had received. After she got over her surprise and regained her composure, she told me, "It couldn't have happened to a better family."

After checking to see how well each of them wanted their steaks cooked, I started taking them off the grill, with the medium rare coming off first and working our way up to the well done. After placing the steaks on the platters according to how they were cooked, Sally helped me carry them inside. The boys had already begun to clean up to eat, so they were filtering into the dinning room as we entered. Trey was bringing up the rear, but he did have sort of a smile on his face now.

I quickly threw some oil and vinegar on to the salad Kevin had prepared and took it in and placed it on the table, along with the rest of the food. As I passed out the steaks, the rest of the dishes were passed around the table, for everyone to take a share. As we ate, we chatted about a variety of topics, mostly throwing ideas out to see which ones seemed to also interest Trey. I thought that might be one way I could learn more about him, without having to interrogate him.

During our meal, Sally also got an earful about what the boys had been up to, and Pat was briefed as to how Sally had become such a valued member of our extended family. I think Trey eagerly gobbled up all of this information and evaluated his prospects here, by listening to all of these various tales. Near the end of dinner, he also began to interject a comment or two every so often, and I was glad to see he was loosening up and trying to fit in.

Once the main course was completed, I knew the boys would be looking for some dessert to top it off with. We had some ice cream in the freezer, and Dustin, Kevin and Danny were kind enough to offer to dish it out and serve it to us. It wasn't anything fancy, but I think everyone enjoyed what he got.

Now that we were finished with our meal, the entire family moved to the living room. After talking it over with Trey, he agreed he'd like to stay with us and see what it would be like living there. That made Sally happy and removed another problem for her. It also made my worries moot, since Trey had decided for himself that he'd like to stay.

We talked for a while longer, but after another half hour or so, Sally announced she had to leave. We all bid her farewell, with the boys each giving her a hug and a kiss before she left. We all followed her out to her car to see her off, but also so we could help Trey get his things and carry everything up to his room. As Sally drove away, the rest of us went back inside.

When the boys came back, after lugging Trey's things upstairs, they went into the family room to watch television. However, Trey stayed up in his room to unpack and get settled. I decided this might be a good time to go up and have a private talk with him, so I made my way to his room and knocked on his open bedroom door.

Chapter 9
Successes, Large and Small

"Do you mind if I come in?" I asked Trey, after knocking on his door. He looked confused as to why I'd do that, but finally spoke.

"No, it's your house," he responded, nonchalantly.

"Yes, it is MY house, but this is YOUR room," I advised him. "Around here, we respect each other's privacy and don't invade anyone's space unless we're invited. Now, let's try this again. Trey, may I come in and speak with you?"

"Yes, please do," he answered, this time with a slight smile on his lips. I suspect he got a kick out of our little give and take; especially since he now realized his privacy would be honored.

"Mrs. Swarthout told me you were an orphan, but she didn't give me any of the details," I began. "Would you mind filling me in? I like to know a little about every boy and what it was like for him before he came to live with me. You don't have to, if you don't wish, but I would really appreciate it." Trey studied me for a moment after I finished speaking, before he responded.

"Yeah, I guess so," he stated, before pausing, to collect his thoughts. I think he might have also used some of this time to control his emotions before he began, as this appeared to still be quite a painful topic for him.

"It happened one night when I was away on a school trip," he began. "I was told there was an huge explosion, which set fire to our house. Everyone who was there was killed."

"Did they ever figure out what caused it?" I asked.

"Yeah, the fire department said it was a ruptured gas line and figured the explosion probably killed everyone in the house instantly. The family room was directly above the furnace room and the investigators said they believed my mother and sister had been in there at the time. They also said they thought my father must have smelled gas or something and then went down to investigate. They think it was something he might have done while he was down there that triggered the explosion. It killed all of them, my mom, dad and older sister." His voice was beginning to crack as he told me this, and he shed a few tears thinking back upon that night, before fighting to regain his composure.

"When we got back home, the principal and one of the counselors met the bus as it pulled in and then took me with them, away from everyone else. Once we were alone, they told me what happened to my family. I couldn't believe it. They were all dead. How could that be? Then I thought, if I hadn't been on that trip, I would be dead too. There was no one left but me. My entire family was gone. My mom and dad had both been only children and their parents had already passed away, so now I had no one else. I didn't know what I was going to do." He began sobbing even harder, knowing his circumstances hadn't really changed from that night. He still had no one – at least not yet.

"You have us and we would be glad to have you become a part of our family, if you want," I offered. "You don't have to decide about this immediately, but just give us a chance and see how you feel about it. Okay?" He began to look up at me, as the tears continued to roll down his cheeks.

"Yeah, okay," he informed me, between his sobs. "I think it's nice what you're doing here," he continued, once he got his emotions back under control. "Some of the other guys told me earlier about how they came here and what you've done to help them, so I guess this won't be as bad as I first thought."

"I'm glad you feel that way," I told him, which caused him to force out a weak smile, "but I also want to give you a little warning before we go back downstairs," I added, which caused a look of panic to replace his smile.

"It's something I forgot to tell our last addition and it almost caused a major problem for us," I admitted. After hearing that final sentence, which let him know I was about to say something general and nothing specifically about him, he began to relax again.

"The other boys like to run around the house nude after they take their showers, while they're getting ready for bed. Many of them even like to sleep that way too. You don't have to do it yourself, unless it's something you'd like to do, but I thought you should be advised about this, before they startled you with their exhibitionism."

"Really? They go around without anything on? That's great!" he responded with a great deal of enthusiasm, before realizing what he had said and how he had said it. He immediately stopped short and regained his control before he continued, this time trying to sound less enthusiastic about my announcement. "You don't have to worry. I won't mind. I've seen naked boys in the school showers. It's no big deal."

"I'm glad you feel that way," I countered, while trying to read between the lines, "because you'll probably get quite an eyeful of naked boy flesh before long." Once again, I thought I saw a glimmer in his eyes as I mentioned this, so I thought he might be happier here than he first thought.

As Trey and I walked to the family room, I continued to think about his initial joyous response to my telling him the boys liked to go nude and now suspected Trey might be gay. I wouldn't ask or say anything to embarrass him at this point, but I would definitely stay alert for signs as to how he swung.

During one of the commercials, Trey began to open up about himself. He told us he was thirteen, in the eighth grade and would turn fourteen in February. Good Lord. This meant I would now have my fourth fourteen-year old, as Ricky and Pat were 14 already, Cole would turn 14 next week, and then Trey in February. I sincerely hoped God wasn't punishing me for something.

The boys all seemed to get along well during our initial time together, but soon some started disappearing, as they got ready for bed. Most of the time, one or two would wander off when a program came on that they didn't especially care for. That way, they wouldn't miss anything important.

I did notice that Kevin asked Trey to join Dustin and him, after explaining they all took showers together, as it saved time (although in reality I don't think it really did accomplish that goal). Watching them talk with each other, I began to feel Kevin had an immediate attraction to Trey, but that's when I saw the green-eyed monster flare up in Dustin again. That's one thing that always confused me. Dustin claims to be straight and insists he doesn't have a romantic interest in Kevin, yet he always seems to get jealous if Kevin is attracted to anyone else or if someone else seems interested in Kevin. Go figure.

Before long, a swarm of naked boys began to filter back into the room with me, but Trey had on a pair of shorts when he entered. No problem. Now I know he is shy about things of this nature, but I think some of the other boys were more than a little disappointed about this turn of events. At that point, I decided to go up to my room and slip into a pair of shorts myself, as it was quite a warm night, and that was when I got my next surprise. When I entered my room, I could hear Danny and Pat in my bathroom. From the sounds of it, I surmised Pat was doing a little experimentation of his own. Since I didn't want him to know I had overheard what was going on, I sneaked back out of my room and proceeded downstairs. I needn't have hurried, because it was about twenty minutes later before Pat and Danny strolled back in to join us, with both of them looking quite relaxed.

We watched television for about another hour before I sent the younger ones up to their rooms. An hour later I sent the older ones up too. As the last of the boys said good night to me, Danny held back. I had a feeling it had something to do with what happened upstairs and concluded he wanted to talk about it. Once we were alone, he began.

"I just thought you might want to know that Pat started asking me a bunch of questions when we went upstairs. They were about the kinds of things we did with each other. I told him what I could without going into specifics and then I told him he could use the shower first, since I thought he was still a bit shy about such things. That's why I was kind of surprised when he suggested we could take our shower together. When I didn't answer, he asked me if I wanted to, so I told him that would be fine with me. While we were in the shower, Pat asked me if I'd do certain things with him. To try to convince me, he also told me he'd done a few things before, so that did kind of make it easier for me to say yes. I thought you might like to know what we did tonight."

"I would and I appreciate this," I told him. "Pat's outburst and then turn around have confused me some, so anything you tell me will help to shed a little more light on figuring him out."

Danny went on to explain what happened, knowing this type of information helped me understand the boys better and allowed me to help them in the future, whenever problems arose. He knew it was especially critical with the new boys, whom I knew very little about, so he was very open and willing to share his entire experience with me. Here is what I learned.

Once they were in the shower, Pat asked Danny if he would be willing to jack off with him. Danny agreed and soon discovered that Pat meant to do it TO each other. Of course, that didn't bother Danny at all, but he let Pat decide who was going to go first. Pat said he was so nervous that Danny should do him first, so Danny agreed and reached out for his circumcised pole, which was already beginning to rise to the occasion. Danny stroked it a few times to get him fully erect, played with his nut sac for a short time and then he moved to Pat's right side and began to jack him off. He wrapped his fingers and palm around that throbbing bad boy and slowly started his stroking rhythm.

After just a minute or so of this action, Pat was already getting weak kneed from the contact, so Danny wrapped his arm around Pat's waist to support him. Danny said he was almost afraid that Pat was going to hyperventilate from the excitement, but it didn't happen. Instead, Danny quicken his pace, not knowing how long Pat would be able to take this amount of stimulation, and slid his left hand between Pat's legs so he could pull, tug and massage his scrotum too. It wasn't long after that before Pat was panting and his dick spewed several streams of thick creamy spunk against the shower wall. Danny continued to hold him and milk the final drops from his dick, until Pat recovered from his ejaculation and then Pat thanked Danny for his effort.

Danny decided to wash Pat off while he recovered, before quickly showering his own muscular frame. By the time he'd finished, Pat finally stepped forward, ready to return the favor. Eagerly, Pat squeezed Danny's large rod and explored it with his fingers, like a small child studying a new toy. He did this for several minutes, before he took it securely in hand and began to pump it back and forth. Pat's grip was tight, but his hand was still trembling, as he continued his up and down manipulation of Danny's hard-on. Danny made Pat work hard to get him off and it took many minutes before his body stiffened and ropes of boiling spunk shot from his piss-slit and were washed down the drain. Pat totally emptied Danny's wand before letting go, but now that they'd shared this intimate act, he also told Danny some of his secrets.

"I told you that I had done this before," Pat began, "but it wasn't with another boy. It was with my mom's boyfriend and I didn't have any choice in the matter. He did it to me and then made me do it to him. I guess that's why I got so upset that first night, when I saw all of you naked, because I thought those things were going to start happening all over again." Pat stopped to gauge Danny's reaction to what he'd said, and seeing Danny wasn't making a face or running away, Pat continued.

"Even though I enjoyed what he did to me, I hated having to do it to him, but this was different and so much better," Pat admitted. "I even liked doing it to you too. It was never this good when he made me do it to him, so I guess it makes it better when you can choose what you want to do. Thank you, Danny. I'm not sure you'll ever know how much you've done to help me get over what happened then, by doing this with me tonight."

"I've got an idea," Danny agreed, "and you'll never have to worry about anyone forcing you to do things you don't want to do while you're here. I think many of the others would be willing to help you, if you asked them, so don't ever be scared to approach them either. If they don't want to do something, they'll say no, but they'll never make fun of you or tell anyone else. We're all brothers here and we take care of each other. We may tease back and forth and pull some good-natured pranks, but we'd fight to protect each other, if it came to that."

"I know. Dad told me some of that and I've seen even more of it for myself," Pat admitted. "I'm so glad you guys were here and willing to let me join your family."

"No, it's OUR family," Danny corrected him. "The minute a guy comes through the front door, he is part of OUR family, unless he chooses not to be. I think I can speak for everyone when I say that we want you here, if that's what you want."

Pat started to shed a few tears at that point, but he didn't even try to hide the fact. When the flow of water from his eyes stopped, he looked up at Danny and spoke. "Nobody's ever really WANTED me before, they just wanted something FROM me. I can't believe you guys are all so great like this. I never knew there were really people out there like you. I thought people like this only appeared in stories."

"I think we all thought that too," Danny concurred. "We all had bad home lives, some worse than others, but none of them were what you could call good. In case you don't know about them, I'll give you a quick run down about the others. I know none of them will mind and would even be eager to tell you themselves, but I'll fill you in for them. Ricky's mother was a drug addict and died from an overdose. Since he never knew his dad, he ended up here. He was the first one Dad took in and then I came next. My parents threw me out of the house and disowned me after they found out I was gay." Realizing what he had just said, Danny thought maybe he needed to say something more. "I hope that doesn't bother you, after what we just did together."

"No way!" Pat assured him, emphatically. "How could I think less of you after all you've done for me? Who knows, I might even be gay too," he added, to Danny's great surprise. "I'm just not sure yet. I didn't think so before, but I really enjoyed what we just did, so who knows?"

"And you probably won't be sure for a while, so just keep an open mind and have some fun. Now, where was I? Oh yes, I was telling you about us." The boys were grinning at each other, knowing they were enjoying being with one another, as Danny continued to enlighten Pat about his brothers.

"Dustin was bounced around between a bunch of different foster homes and ended up living with Kevin's family. After he got caught fooling around with Kevin, by Kevin's father, Dustin got bounced from there and ended up here with Dad. After Dustin was gone, Kevin was beaten quite badly by his dad, because of what he'd done, so that caused Kevin to run away. The cops picked him and he ended up here too, thanks to Aunt Sally. She kind of helped us all end up here with Dad." I think that information began to help Pat understand why the boys were all so affectionate to her, as well.

"Cole and Graham really are brothers and they've had it the worst," Danny continued. "Their parents ran off and left them alone and they almost starved to death. You should have seen them when they came here. They looked awful, like pictures you see in magazines of kids in Africa or Asia who've had nothing to eat for a really long time. They've got a bunch of problems because of all that and have a lot of trouble with school. Heck, they're lucky just to be alive.

"So, you see," Danny concluded, "we've all had our share of problems and each of us thought the same way you did, until we met Dad. He made the difference for all of us and there's nothing we wouldn't do to repay him. We all try hard not to let him down, and so far we haven't. He sometimes says he only did this because he was lonely, but we know that's not the whole truth. He's just a great guy, with a big heart, and he really does love us. He adopted the rest of us last June and I'm sure he's gonna do the same thing for you some time in the future, if you want him to."

"I do. I really do," Pat agreed, nearly dancing with excitement. "Since I've been here, I've seen how happy everyone is and I want to be part of this, not just an outsider living here. I would do anything to make him my real dad, and not just my foster dad. I've never wanted anything more in my whole life."

"Well, just do what's right and follow his rules, and I'm sure it will happen sooner or later. Trey will have the same opportunity too, along with any other boy who comes here after you guys. Dad can afford it now, so the sky's the limit. I even think he'd have taken you and Trey in, even before he got the extra money, but having it takes a lot of the worry out of it for him. As far as we're concerned, you're already our brother and he's your dad. It just may take a while before it becomes official, but it's gonna happen. I just know it."

Danny finished his story and I thanked him for all the information he'd shared with me. I told him he was wise beyond his years and thanked him deeply for all the kind things he'd told Pat about me. I also advised him I would be investigating the possibility of adoption for each boy who wanted it, as a part of their Christmas present, like I had done for the rest of them last year. He just smiled at my news and told me that's what he figured. Now that we had finished, he gave me a kiss and a hug and then went off to bed.

After Danny left, I sat alone in the dark and thought about everything I'd heard for a short time, before I went to turn in myself. Let's just hope this means we've had another success at the Castaway Hotel.

Chapter 10
The Trials and Joys of Youth

The next morning the triumvirate went in to wake up Trey, but they gave him a break his first morning with us. All they did was pull off his covers and jump on the bed around him, but they didn't let up until he was fully awake. Pat heard the commotion and walked down the hall to peak into the room. Graham saw him out of the corner of his eye and turned toward him immediately.

"We didn't do anything bad, really," he announced, with a scared expression on his face. "We just wanted to welcome Trey to the family."

"You're safe this time," Pat told him, as he stifled his laughter. "They must like you, Trey, because you got off easy. We'll tell you at breakfast about the things these three have done to us."

"I guess there's no need for alarm clocks with these guys around," Trey added, as he poked playfully at the three boys on his bed.

"Only dad has an alarm clock," Pat told him, "but these three usually have us up before the dang thing goes off. Right, Dad?" he asked me, as I walked out of my room to go down to the kitchen.

"Is what right?" I responded, puzzled, as I was still trying to shake the cobwebs from my brain.

"That our little monsters get us up before your alarm clock goes off," Pat clarified.

"Did they get Trey already?" I blurted out, shocked. "I must have been really tired, because I didn't even hear a thing."

"We did it nicely," Cole called out, from inside Trey's room. "We didn't do it loud or scare him?"

"Is that true, Trey?" I pressed, not totally convinced.

"Yeah, they weren't too bad," he admitted. "They just pulled the sheet off of me and danced on my bed until I got up."

"Well, I don't know if that means they like you or they're playing it safe after what Pat did to them," I replied.

"What did you do to them, Pat?" Trey inquired, curious about my comment.

"I'll tell you at breakfast, along with everything else," Pat assured him.

Before long the house was buzzing with the sounds of boys getting ready for school. I went down to start breakfast and the boys collectively filled Trey in about how lucky he was this morning. When the others had finished telling their tales of horror and concluded describing how Pat had paid them back, Trey winked at the trio and said simply, "Thank you for going easy on me," before they moved on to the next topic.

About an hour later, I was striding into my office at school, so I could get things ready to register Trey, when a sudden concerned look came over his face. It suddenly dawned on me that all of us had forgotten to mention to Trey that I would also be his principal. After seeing my nameplate on the door to my office, Trey froze, with his mouth hanging open. It was then that I concluded he'd thought I was merely accompanying him in, so I could sign some papers to get him enrolled. It must have come as quite a surprise to discover I was also in charge of the place, but he kept it to himself and didn't say a word. Besides Trey, only Cole and Graham still attended my school, as the others were now at the high school.

On the way home that night I heard Trey confide his shock to the others. "Why didn't one of you tell me he was going to be my principal too? I almost died when I saw his name on the door."

"I guess we never thought about it," Ricky told him. "He's just always been there, but it didn't really make a difference for you, did it?"

"No, but I was just shocked when I found out. I thought it meant he'd be really hard on us, but now I think it's kind of neat. Most of the kids at school seem to really like him, except for the troublemakers. I heard one of them say he think he's a bastard, because he's so hard on them, but they deserve it. Some of the kids I met today also told me I was lucky I get to live here. The things they said made me feel really good and I kind of felt important after that."

"Well, don't let it go to your head and don't try to take advantage of the fact that he's your dad or you'll see the side of him that the troublemakers see," Danny informed him. "He always told us we'd get no special privileges because of our relationship and that, in fact, he would expect more from us than the other kids, because we should know better. It is neat, but it's also harder. Don't forget that."

"Thanks, I won't," Trey agreed.

"And don't forget to call him Mr. Currie at school," Graham added. "He makes us all do that, to show the other kids that he treats us all the same."

"Oh, okay. I didn't know that," Trey admitted, "but that's what I did anyway. I guess I probably did it because I'm not really sure what to call him yet, but I'll remember to keep doing that whenever we're in school."

That evening went pretty much as usual, except that Trey went to his room to read after dinner, instead of coming into the family room with the rest of us. Later, when the boys began to prepare for bed, Kevin went to Trey's room and asked him if he wanted to share the bathroom with him again. Trey readily agreed and they were in the upstairs bathroom together, when Dustin went up to take his shower. A few moments later, I heard some screaming and pretty soon Kevin came down in tears.

"What's up, bud?" I asked him.

"Dustin got mad because Trey and me were in the bathroom together," he sobbed out, with the tears streaming down his face. "I don't know why, because we didn't do anything. We didn't even shower together. We just shared the bathroom at the same time. I just didn't want Trey to feel left out."

"Although I'm not sure I understand why Dustin reacts like he does," I explained, "it seems to me he still has feelings for you."

"But he keeps talking about girls all the time," Kevin shot back, "but then he tells me he can see I want Trey and don't care for him any more, but that's not true. He's the one who makes me feel like he doesn't care about me any more."

"Have you told him this?" I asked, hoping maybe he had discussed this with Dustin.

"Yes and that's when he got mad at me," Kevin responded. "I told him I thought Trey was nice and I wanted to be friends, but that I wanted to be with him more. When I called him Dusty, he screamed that he didn't want me to call him that any longer. He said he only let me call him Dusty because I loved him, but now he can see that's not true any more, he doesn't want me to call him that from now on." Kevin was having a tough time holding it together, as his chest heaved while he told me this.

"When I reminded him about how he was always talking about girls now," Kevin continued, "and that he was the one who stopped loving me, he got even madder. That's when Dusty told me that one of us would have to move out of the room, because we just couldn't be together any longer. What am I going to do, Dad?"

"The first thing you need to do is give Dustin some time and space to calm down and think this through. You can sleep with me tonight or ask Danny if you can sleep with him, whichever you want."

"I'll sleep with you," Kevin answered quickly. "That way Dusty won't get any madder. If I sleep with Danny, he might think I'm after him too."

"Good thinking," I agreed. "Just give it time and things will work out. Where's Trey and how is he taking this?"

"I guess he must be in his room," Kevin answered. "Once Dusty and I started arguing, I think he took off and I guess I kind of forgot about him after that." As Kevin told me this, I began to wonder how Trey was responding to what had happened.

"I'm sorry, Dad," Kevin apologized. "I guess I was too upset and to think about Trey. I hope Dusty didn't scream at him too."

"Well, I'll just go upstairs and find out for myself," I assured him. "While I'm seeing how he's doing, I want you to stay down here with the others." Kevin nodded his agreement, so I headed for Trey's room.

When I arrived there, I knocked on Trey's partially closed door. "May I come in?" I asked.

"Sure," he answered, although he looked surprised that I was the one who was there.

"How are you doing? Do you want to talk about what just happened?" I inquired, but he didn't answer right away, so I pressed on. "Sometimes you have to trust people and talk about things or the problems get bigger. Why don't you just tell me about what happened a few minutes ago?"

There was another slight hesitation on his part, but he finally opened up to me. "I'm not sure what happened, except I guess I kinda messed things up for Kevin. Dustin got mad at us, because we shared the bathroom together, but I don't understand why."

"It's because Dustin and Kevin have feelings for each other and have had them for a long time, although Dustin tries to deny it most of the time," I told him. "I believe Dustin is jealous that Kevin is being so nice to you, but you had no way of knowing this. You see, Dustin lived with Kevin's family for a while and they were pretty close. In fact, Kevin's father threw him out after he discovered the boys had feelings for each other. He also battered Kevin pretty badly, because of it. That's how they both came to live here."

"But we weren't doing anything," Trey blurted out, as if he were also trying to convince me.

"I know and I suspect Dustin does too," I told him. "However, I think he's just scared about losing Kevin and isn't thinking straight. Give him time and things will return to normal."

"I didn't mean to cause any problems," Trey added, trying to ease his conscience.

"I know you didn't, and you haven't," I assured him. "Dustin just happened to use you as his excuse, but it could have happened at any time and with anyone else to whom Kevin was being nice. Don't blame yourself and don't worry about it. I certainly don't want you to stop being friendly with the other boys because of this. Like I said, give it time and it will all blow over."

"Thanks, I do feel a little better now," Trey admitted. "I thought it was just me."

"And Kevin thought it was him," I explained. "You both need to just shrug it off and let Dustin calm down. He'll come around. I'd bet on it."

I left Trey and thought about going to speak to Dustin, but decided I needed to heed my own advice and let him cool down first. If I approached him now, I might just end up fanning the flames of this brushfire and turn it into a full-scale blaze. Instead, I'd wait and speak with Dustin either later tonight or tomorrow – playing it by ear.

I joined the others in the family room, until we decided to call it a night. Kevin was already in my bed when I got there, so I merely slid under the sheet beside him. Almost immediately, I sensed Kevin moving toward me, so I stretched out my left hand, slid it under his head and wrapped it around his shoulders. His head dove straight for my shoulder and I could hear the muffled sounds of his sobbing. I didn't comment about this, since I felt he was trying to hide his tears from me, but I did pull him into me to let him know he was loved. I thought he had fallen asleep, when he lurched into a sitting position.

"Oh, shit," he blurted out.

"What's the matter, Kev?" I asked, concerned.

"I left something in my room and I can't sleep without it," he informed me.

"Well, why don't you just go and get it," I suggested.

"No, I can't do that," he responded. "If I see Dusty, we'll just start fighting again and I don't want to argue with him any more."

"Do you want me to go get it for you?" I asked, already fairly certain about how he was going to reply.

"Would you?" he asked, while seeming almost afraid I might say 'no.'

"I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't willing to go," I assured him. "Tell me what it is and I'll go fetch it for you."

"Okay but don't let Dusty know what it is," he confirmed, nervously.

"I promise," I countered, in an attempt to assuage his concerns.

"It a little velvet, drawstring bag in my nightstand," he told me. "I sleep with it under my pillow every night."

"Okay. I'll be right back." I strode down to Kevin and Dustin's room and quietly opened the door. I was moving noiselessly in the dark, thinking Dustin was asleep, when he spoke."

"Who is it?" he challenged.

"It's only me," I offered, feeling a little guilty I hadn't knocked first. "Kevin wanted me to get something for him."

"What?" Dustin wanted to know.

"That's not important," I told him, "but how are you doing?"

"Fine," he answered, yet I felt his response lacked a sense of sincerity.

"You don't sound fine," I challenged, hoping this might lead to a discussion.

He didn't reply, so I continued over to the nightstand and groped around until I found what I was after. As I turned around and prepared to slip out of the room, Dustin spoke again."

"I just feel betrayed," he told me, on the verge of losing it.

"I'm sorry to hear that," I assured him, as I walked over and sat beside him on the bed. When he didn't object to my being there, I reached out my arm and placed it on his shoulders. "I've talked to the other two and think you may have overreacted a little."

"I don't agree," he stated, defiantly. "That's two nights in a row that Kevin asked Trey to join him. I think he's falling in love with him, Dad, and I just can't handle that."

"Are you sure he isn't just trying to be nice to your new brother?" I pressed.

"No. I've seen the look on his face, whenever he's watching him," he admitted. "You can see it in his eyes. It's the way he used to look at me. I can tell."

"Well, he might be attracted to Trey good looks," I conceded, "but I've spoken with both boys and they have each told me there is nothing going on…"

"Not yet, but it will," Dustin interrupted. "You just watch."

"I'd be willing to give you the same advice. You watch too and see if you're not mistaken," I challenged. "I can tell just by what he's told me that Kevin has very deep feelings for you. He's crushed and hurting in my room. He wouldn't even bunk in with Danny tonight, because he was afraid you might misread that as well. Besides, I think you're giving him confusing signals."

"Why? What do you mean?" Dustin shot back, unable to grasp my implication.

"Well, you now act as if you want to be close to him, maybe even like a boyfriend," I began, "yet you constantly keep telling us you're straight and hope to get close to the girls at school. I think Kevin is confused about what to make of all this."

"Well, I do want to have a girlfriend," he told me, half-heartedly, "but I still have feelings for Kevin too. I don't know. Maybe I'm bi. I'm just not sure. I don't want to be gay, because I know what other people think of them and I hear what the guys at school say about Brandon, and sometimes even Danny. I don't want them talking about me like that, but then again, I do really love Kevin and I guess that's why I acted as I did."

"Maybe you should let him know that then," I suggested.

"I'm not sure I can," he admitted, "at least not now."

"And why not?" I pressed.

"Because I think he's falling for Trey," he confessed, while seeming to be hurting nearly as much as Kevin was over this.

"I'm not sure that's happening," he told him, "but keep your eyes open and you might be surprised by what you see. You might discover Kevin wants you more than anything else."

"I will," he agreed, "but I still think you're wrong."

"Well, at least give it a fair shot," I encouraged him. "Good night, Dustin."

"Night, Dad."

Now that our conversation had ended, I left his room and walked back down the hall. Kevin was staring at the door as I entered, nervously waiting for my return. "What took you so long?" he pressed, as soon as I walked through the door.

"Dustin was awake, so I talked to him for a few minutes," I admitted.

"What did he have to say?" Kevin countered, hoping I would tell him that Dustin still had feelings for him.

"He just let me know he was hurting too, much like you are, and he's confused," I explained. "Give him time, Kevin, and I think this will all blow over." After saying that, I handed Kevin his little pouch. He took it from me and clutched it to his chest. "What's in there, if you don't mind me asking?"

"They're things that I've kept, since Dusty and I first got together," he replied. "It's really nothing special, but each thing means a lot to me. There's a poem Dusty wrote for me once, a lock of his hair that I clipped from his head one night while he was sleeping and a cheap kids ring. He gave it to me when we were younger and joked that it made us a couple. I don't even think he knows that I kept it. I just can't sleep unless I hold everything in my hand or put it under my pillow."

"You know, it might help if you told Dustin what you just told me," I encouraged him. "I think he might stop questioning your feelings for him, if he knew how much those things meant to you."

"I can't tell Dusty about this," Kevin shot back, while looking apprehensive. "He'd think it was childish and that I was just being stupid about it. He'd say I was acting like a baby by clinging to such things, like a child to his blanky or pacifier, and then he'd want somebody else, someone who was more grown up and mature."

"I don't agree with you, so I hope you will reconsider about telling him," I replied. "I think Dustin would feel honored and special because you thought those reminders of him were worth keeping, but it's your call. Let's get to sleep and you guys might look at things differently in the morning."

Agreeing with at least that portion of my advice, Kevin cuddled up against me, with his little treasure bag clutched in his hand. It wasn't very long before I heard his low, gentle snoring, which let me know he had fallen to sleep. I lifted my head slightly, so I could kiss his forehead, before joining him in the land of Nod.

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