Dylan & Wes

Me: You still up?

Wes: No.

I laugh.

Me: Idiot.

Wes: Rude.

I laugh again.

Wes: Dude. It's only eight o'clock. What do you think? I changed into jammies and I'm lying in bed staring at my ceiling?

That's what I did. Can he see me? What the hell? Is it really only eight o'clock? Why am I home already? Why am I so tired? My brain is FUBAR right now. I'm a moron.

Me: How was the Secret Sauce?

Wes: Umm... I'm not sure what you're asking me.

I'm not sure what I'm asking him either. I guess I want my best friend to know that he can talk to me. He can tell me anything. I sigh to myself.

Me: Never mind. Now I'm the idiot.

Wes: You're not an idiot. You're still rude, but then I remind myself that you're just an awkward teenage boy like the rest of us. I just mask it better.

Me: You really don't.

Wes: I am the model of grace and maturity.

Me: Not even in a room full of kindergarteners.

Wes: Always the comedian. Did you text to insult me? Or do you actually want to know how my burger was? What do you really want to ask me?

Insulting Wes is never my goal, beyond just kidding around. He's Wes. He knows I love him.

Me: We didn't get to talk alone at all tonight. I'm sorry about Tessa. Are you okay?

Wes: Water off a duck's back.

Me: Good.

Wes: Did I ever thank you for bringing that ray of sunshine into our lives?

I assume that's rhetorical. I type nothing.

Wes: Now I'm being rude. Sorry. She wasn't horrible at the beginning, but you were the last to see it when she began her slow transformation into the Villainess of Doom. You apparently have no idea how long those six months were for the rest of us.

He's right. I hadn't considered her effect on them when suddenly our quartet became a quintet. Not that they would have minded if Tessa had actually been a kind person.

Me: You called it. I'm rude and I suck.

Wes: D... No! Naïve? Absolutely. Blind, clueless, dumb, ignorant...uh huh."

I snort.

Me: You're a funny guy too, Wesley.

Wes: Watch it!

He hates being called Wesley.

Me: Is there anything you want or need to tell me?

Now it's his turn for a long pause.

Me: I mean, you know I love Mateo. He's fire. He's dope.

Wes: LOL. You're a dope. And I officially ban you from all future use of "fire" or any teenage slang for that matter. You can't pull it off.

Me: I being serious though.

Wes: I know. And thanks. So... Umm... I really don't know. It's earlier than early, D. Like, he and I haven't even talked about it. Yeah, when he told us about his dad, I unconsciously reached for his hand. He unconsciously didn't pull away. I haven't told you anything because there's really nothing to tell yet. And if there ever is anything to tell... You know this D... You'll be my first call, text, Zoom, Facetime, in person, whatever. I'll just leave him standing there with his eyes closed and lips puckered while I rush off to find you.

I laugh out loud and send him an emoji of a round yellow guy shedding tears of joy.

Me: I might not need every detail though.

Wes: Gotcha.

Me: In the meantime, I'm rooting for you guys. Mateo is no Villain of Doom.

Wes: What about you? Is anyone standing around waiting for you to kiss them back?

Me: Not that I know of.

Wes: Really?

He must have noticed Destiny cozying up to me earlier. I don't want him worried that I'd risk our friendship dynamic. Wes and Mateo are factors too and if I ever screwed this up... I need my friends more than anything else. Yes, I'm encouraging Wes to investigate the Mateo situation, but that's different. I've already screwed up once. I've already put them all through so much with Tessa. I close my eyes and I smell Destiny's shampoo again. I exhale. Dammit. She has been my friend for almost half of my life. How could I... I can't. I won't. I really need to start sitting on the opposite side of the booth.

Me: You're surprised?

Wes: I'll just say that maybe your next kiss is coming sooner than you think.

Me: Let's stop saying that. It's freaking weird.

Wes: Did something happen between you and Destiny after Mateo and I left?

Me: I don't think so. Why do you ask?

Wes: She sent me a cryptic text twenty minutes ago.

Oh no. Why am I such a dork? I probably don't want to know, but I have to ask.

Me: What did she say?

Wes: It was three words. Boys are weird. I didn't know if she was referring to all three of us or just one in particular.

Me: It was about me. We had an awkward moment and I literally turned and ran away. Like the idiot that I am. She probably thinks I had the trots or something.

Wes: LOL! And you ate so much fried cheese at dinner. I'd think if anything you'd be bound up.

Me: Funny. Did you reply?

Wes: I said, But we're cute too!

I laugh.

Me: Did she say anything back?

Wes: She said, LOL. Unfortunately, I agree.

I smile.

Me: Good night.

Wes: Umm... Don't think I didn't notice that you ignored my comment. About your next whatever...

Me: I ignore your comments every day of my life.

Wes: Again. Rude.

Wes-

I've had my way with his tummy for several more hours. The best hours of my life. They must have been the best hours of nameless, faceless boy's life too because he never stopped laughing the whole time. But now the exposed strip of underwear four delicious inches south of his oval navel is beckoning for my attention. Who am I to ignore a request?

I begin to work the button and zipper of his jeans. His hips oscillate, but he does not attempt to twist away. I pull those jeans down to his knees and his underwear is tented by a massive erection. So massive that there is now a gap between the waistband and his body. My own erection is trapped and straining. I think my penis wants to be introduced to his.

The elastic barely stretches enough to clear the top of his steel rod. Finally free, I take a minute and just stare at it. It seems to be its own living entity. It proudly twitches and bobs and pulsates. Unlike his feet, I see veins and bumps and ridges and I want to touch it more than I've ever wanted anything else in my life. He laughs and tells me that I'm doing it again. I'm tickling him with my eyes. I'm not sure I believe him, but his twitching increases in intensity and so does his laughter. He yells at me that if I don't cut it out, he'll cum any second now.

I grab him in my hands and oddly, that seems to bring him relief. I begin to stroke him and he's not laughing anymore. He's moaning in ecstasy. My nameless, faceless friend is impressive in both length and girth. I keep up the stroking and he begins to leak precum. I am mesmerized by the monster in my hand. I rake my fingertips along the underside of his length and his toes curl.

My own erection is so raging hard that it hurts in my jeans. I let go of him long enough to shed my own clothes. I am as big as him. I can't discern his eyes, but he sees me. He tells me he really wishes his arms worked. He says he's dying to stroke me too. I point my member towards his and bump our tips together. He laughs again. I lie on top of him and we grind our steel rods together. It feels so right. So good. So good that I think I'm close to cumming. I sit up and my friend protests. I grab hold of him again and he falls silent.

I want to watch him orgasm and I know just how to do it. I let go of him again and stare at his throbbing cock. He asks me what I'm doing. I don't answer, I just stare. He starts to laugh again. He begs me to stop. I say nothing. I keep staring. He throbs and bobs more and more. His laughter turns to screams. His back arches, his gasps for air and suddenly--

I am woken by a new text from Dylan. It is five words: Pool party at my house.

~~

None of us are in the pool because the heater is broken. The water is cold and big strong football players are apparently wimps. Well, Dylan and I anyway. Mateo isn't here yet. He's hoping to join us. He has a job interview to go to first. All four of us have decisions to make about college and jobs. We're grown-ups now. But Mateo's living situation has changed a little sooner than it will for the rest of us.

I find myself in conversation with Dylan's cousin Hayden. He says, "Hey, Wes. You're the OG now!"

I smile, "Destiny says only OGs say OG these days. Since you were so cool with me the other night when I...umm...you know, made my bad decision, I won't rat you out with Dylan for using slang."

"Don't tell Destiny either. I'm more afraid of her."

"Oh, totally," I agree.

He asks me, "How's it going with your family?"

I shake my head.

He says, "Wes, to the people who truly love you, it's like ice cream."

That confuses me, "Huh?"

"Or a movie, a song or a color. Is your favorite ice cream flavor the same one it was when you were ten? Has a new song or movie ever replaced an old favorite? What I mean is that it just doesn't matter. The Wes who used to love vanilla but now prefers cookies 'n cream is still the same Wes. Nothing really changes. Maybe vanilla never was your flavor but people just assumed it was. It's all perspective. No matter what your favorite ice cream is, you're Wes. And I don't think I've met anyone who doesn't love Wes."

I scoff, "Well, you don't get out that much. But I know what you're saying, and thank you for saying it." I put a hand on his shoulder, "For the record, mint chocolate chip rules. Always has and always will."

He laughs.

"My parents are awesome though."

"That's what Dylan told me. They certainly raised a fine young man."

I run a hand through my wild brown hair, "If anything, they try too hard. It's like, not everything is about that, you know? Football is still football and pizza is still pizza and Wes is still Wes. It doesn't have to always be a thing."

"You mean they're cheugys?"

I laugh, "You're lucky Dylan can't hear us. And you're using it wrong. It's an adjective, not a noun."

"That's a hard one."

"For someone studying a list of teenage slang off a Google search it is."

He grins at that, "Busted."

"You're still totally fire."

"Wait. That's good, right?"

I like Hayden. I laugh, "Anyway, my cousins are still choosing sides. It's like I've instigated a real-life family feud, only Steve Harvey is not about to round the corner in a bright purple suit."

"Maybe that's for the best."

"No. Steve Harvey's dope. I wouldn't hate meeting him."

"You're funny," he says elbowing me. "I mean it sucks, but at least you'll know who to not waste your time with. Anyone who doesn't realize that your sexuality does not define you or what an amazing human you are, those people just don't matter anyway."

That's what Destiny said to me the other night. I say, "It's kind of not really real for this town. Gay, queer, LGBTQIA+, pick a label. In this town that's something that only exists on TV and in the movies. People here don't actually know any questioning people in their daily lives. And then I come along..." I look down at my own muscled arms, big hands and bigger feet. "I don't exactly fit the onscreen stereotype. I couldn't be dropped into the cast of Glee."

"You've never seen a single episode of Glee, have you?"

"No. Did I screw up the reference?"

"I never saw the show either, but I think you're good." He looks me up and down, "Wes, someday, you are going to make the right other boy very happy."

"Ew."

"No! As a person. In a relationship. Wes!"

I grin, "Gotcha!"

He snaps me with a beach towel. "Are you planning to go away for college?"

"Duh. As far away as possible. Is the University of Alaska any good?"

"Are you majoring in comedy?"

"I already have my masters in that."

He smiles, "College will be your time. You'll see. Life will be so different. And in the meantime Mateo's already come out... I bet more will soon follow. And what did Dylan say? 10 to 20%? I bet some of them are the 'hot guys' Dylan picked out for you."

My cheeks heat up, "I never should have told you about that."

"Hey, I love that you trusted me. I'd never bring it up front of anyone else."

As we make our way back over to the others I tell Hayden, "I know I can be a lot to take sometimes."

Destiny overhears this, "Just sometimes?"

I laugh.

"Seriously," she says. "There's no such thing as too much Wes. We wouldn't have you any other way."

I know they love me.

Hayden looks at the three of us not swimming and says, "I'll bet anything you're all in that pool within the next fifteen minutes."

Dylan eyes his cousin suspiciously, "No way."

My phone chimes. It's Mateo. I look up and realize that I don't need to tell them that because the big dopey grin on my face does the talking for me. Hayden sees it too. I abruptly change the subject, "So what's your plan to get us in the pool, Hayden?"

As if on cue the gate swings open and Hayden's friend Ren steps into the yard with his two kids. Isaac is 10 and Judi is 8. They are already in swimsuits. They kick off their flipflops and run over to us. We've all babysat them over the years and they know us well. Isaac starts pulling on my arms, dragging me out of my chair. He's surprisingly strong for a little guy and my butt thuds on the concrete.

Dylan-

The kids are too young and excited to even realize that the water is freezing. Wes stands and says to Hayden, "Nicely played, bruh." He has accepted the inevitable. There is no way we're disappointing these kids.

I sigh in helpless resignation and say to everyone, "Who wants to play Marco Polo?"

Isaac and Judi jump and squeal in delight.

Destiny says, "Five's a crowd. I'll watch the fun."

I sidle up next to her lounge chair and kneel down beside her. I take her hand in mine and say, "Pleeeeaaase..."

She shakes her head.

I wait for her to look at me before pouting out my lower lip.

She can't help it. She smiles. Then she lets out a theatrical sigh, like she's exasperated by a three-year-old's antics. She plants her left foot in middle of my chest pushes me back. Still holding her hand, my momentum pulls her to her feet. She punches me in the arm, "You and your cousin are exactly alike. He knew we couldn't say no to these cute kids and you knew--"

She stops herself. How was she was going to finish that sentence? Was she about to say that I knew she couldn't say no to cute me? But now there's an awkward silence.

Fortunately, Wes breaks it by grabbing Isaac by the armpits, lifting him off the ground, spinning him around three times and launching him skyward. Isaac laughs and screams while he's airborne before his NASA-like splashdown in the deep end. When his head breaches the surface on the far end he grins and waves Wes and me in. Wes complies first and I take a step to follow but quickly realize I'm still holding Destiny's hand. I let it go.

Destiny stretches and I can't help staring. She's in a two-piece today and I've never seen so much of her skin before. I shiver. She has scattered freckles in all the right places, not that she has any wrong places. I force myself to look away. Destiny is my friend and my tingling shivers are inappropriate. Judi tugs on Destiny's arm and pulls her down to her level. She cups her hand between her mouth and Destiny's ear and tells her a secret. The secret makes Destiny blush redder than I've ever seen her.

I laugh and ask Judi, "What did you tell her?"

Destiny cuts in and answers for her, "She said she wants you to throw her in the water like Wes did with Isaac."

Judi looks at Destiny like she's concerned that her ears might be broken. "That's not what I said. I mean, I do want Dylan to throw me in the pool, but I said that I hope when I'm older, my boyfriend is as cute as yours is."

Now I'm blushing hard. It is so time for a cooldown. Without the spinning or the high arcing launch, I do throw Judi in the pool and jump in after. Destiny joins in and we forget all about the frigid cold. Mostly.

The five of us are playing games and splashing around when the gate slowly opens again, this time producing Mateo. He immediately slips off his shirt, jumps out of his high tops and strips off his socks. He cannonballs into the pool causing a not-so-mini tidal wave and making the kids laugh hysterically. When Mateo surfaces, his eyes bug out. He hadn't heard about the broken heater and didn't expect the jolt of cold he'd leapt into.

Eventually the six of us all pair off. Shockingly, Wes and Mateo end up next to each other like a natural magnetic pull. Lots of smiling. Lots of whispering. Everybody can feel the buzz between them. If this is still "nothing" it's surely soon to be something. Destiny is coaching Judi through her backstroke technique and Isaac has challenged me to some one-on-one basketball on the shallow end where the nerf ball and hoop are set up. Isaac edges me out by one basket.

Isaac swims off and I realize I'm staring at Destiny again. "May I help you?" she smiles back at me.

Despite the fact that Isaac swims like a fish, he's letting Judi teach him what she just learned from Destiny. He's a good big brother. Water beads all over Destiny's glistening skin and I'm almost in a trance. I point with my chin in the direction Wes and Mateo. "What do you think is going on there?"

"I don't think even they can answer that question yet, but clearly there's a spark."

"Clearly. They should get out of the water before someone gets electrocuted."

She laughs, "What about you?"

My heart misses a beat, "What about me?"

"Do you miss Tessa?" she asks.

I wonder if Wes told Destiny about our text conversation from the other night. I shake my head, "She wasn't the right one for me."

Destiny scoffs, "I could have told you that six months ago."

Now I scoff, "Could you have?"

Alone now, she moves in closer to me. "Uh huh."

I move closer too, "So, who is the right one for me?"

She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. "They say that opposites attract. Tessa was your opposite in a bad way."

"Oh?"

"Dylan, you're sweet, kind and generous. You do need someone who can be tough for you, but tough for the right reasons. Not just tough for the sake of being..." She trails off.

"A bitch?" I ask.

She snorts. "Right."

Tough for the right reasons. Is she aware that she's describing herself? She holds my eye for a moment before swimming off to join the kids. I survey the scene around me again. I have some pretty amazing people in my life.

~~

I need a break from the water. I'm toweling off when Hayden appears beside me, "You okay, kid?"

I smile and nod.

He eyes me suspiciously.

We both look out over the pool. We can't hear what, but Mateo says something that makes Wes splash him. Mateo laughs and lunges, dunking Wes. When he pops up, all five of them crack up.

I tell Hayden, "It looks like Wes won't need me to pick out hot guys for him anymore. I think he just might already have one."