Before He Was Famous

“You two should just have sex and get it over with,” Paul said watching Drue bear-hug Will as Will playfully fought to escape.

 

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” Drue taunted Paul. “You’d like to see me pound one off in Will’s hole. You lie in bed at night thinking about it, don’t you?”

 

With Will bent forward trying to free himself, Drue simulated fucking his best friend. “Ahh! Yeah! Will, you’re so tight. Will, I’m coming! Ah. Ahh. Ahh!”

 

“Gross!” Will chided.

 

“You’re sick,” Paul retorted turning back towards the campfire.

 

“Let me go,” Will demanded. “Let me go!”

 

Drue complied. Free, Will left Drue and sat next to R.J. in front of the fire. Drue laughed looking at his friends. They all had an uncomfortable look on their face. Drue was satisfied.

 

Drue joined Will next to the fire. He turned to his friends changing the topic. “If there was a girl from school who could be here right now, who would you want it to be?” 

 

Still looking into the fire, Paul smiled. “Tiffany, because you know she’d put out.”

 

“Nah, Tiffany wouldn’t put out. Now, Emily, she’d put out,” R.J. said.

 

“You’re crazy,” Paul countered. “Tiffany and Brett did it. You know she’ll do it again. Emily probably hasn’t even seen a dude naked.”

 

“You both have it wrong,” Drue interjected. “Tanya.”

 

“Tanya?” Paul protested turning to Drue. “Who would wanna fuck Tanya?”

 

“You serious?” Drue asked surprised. “Will, back me up on this. Tanya is the most fuckable girl in school.”

 

“She’s pretty fuckable,” Will conceded.

 

“Thank you.”

 

“You tow don’t know what you’re talking about,” R.J. objected.

 

“Those titties? That ass? Tell me that if she was standing naked in front of you right now, and she was asking you to fuck her, that you wouldn’t do it.”

 

“I mean, if she was standing here naked asking me to, of course I would,” Paul conceded. “But I’m not gonna work for it.”

 

“I’d work it. I’d work for it all day. I’d work overtime for it,” Drue joked. “Then when I had it, I would work it all night.”

 

Drue thrust his hips simulating sex. Moaning louder and louder he pretended to orgasm. Sitting back down, he tossed his imaginary cum towards his friends.

 

“Ewwww!” Paul protested. “You’re disgusting. I’m going to bed.”

 

“Me too,” R.J. said following his friend to their tent.

 

Paul turned back to Drue and Will. “Set your alarms for five. We need to get on the river early if we’re gonna make it to the second campsite by three.”

 

“Whatever,” Drue teased.

 

“I’m serious. We need to be on the river by 5:30.”

 

“Okay, dic,” Drue replied calling his friend a dictator.

 

“Whatever,” Paul spat before joining R.J. in their tent.

 

Will got up.

 

“Where you goin’?”

 

“To bed. You comin’?”

 

“I guess,” Drue replied reluctantly.

 

He didn’t feel like going to bed. He had been having fun grossing out his buddies. He could have kept doing it all night.

 

But sitting alone in the middle of the woods wouldn’t be any fun at all. He knew that if he went to bed, he might still have one other guy he could mess with. That guy was his favorite, Will.

 

Double checking the fire, Drue followed Will into the tent. The night was warm enough to sleep on top of the sleeping bag. That was what the boys did. Will lay facing away from Drue, and Drue, not liking being ignored, curled up behind Will like a spoon.

 

When he wrapped his arms around Will, Will didn’t give him his desired response. Upping the ante, he rubbed his nose and lips against Will’s neck. Will chuckled and pulled his neck away.

 

“Stop.”

 

Satisfied that he had gotten a reaction, he rested his head on Will’s pillow. Drue wasn’t sure why he didn’t also let Will go. Drue had begun cuddling with his best friend when they were both fourteen years old. He started doing it to torture him. Will was always the most embarrassed by Drue’s attempts to touch him, so he had been the subject of most of Drue’s torment.

 

But as the years went on, Will resisted less and less. Drue assumed that he had broken his spirit. Will now gave into Drue’s gestures with much less resistance. In fact, the only time Will ever fought anymore was when Paul or R.J. were watching.

 

R.J. had once defended Will by telling Drue that he should stop bullying Will. But Drue decided that R.J. didn’t understand their relationship. In spite of everything, Drue knew that Will took it in the spirit it was intended. After all, he would never pretend affection towards Will if Drue didn’t genuinely care for his friend.

 

Getting comfortable in the privacy of their tent, Drue clutched his friend. Pulling him tighter he felt something that he hadn’t felt before. Will’s hand suddenly held his. Drue initially thought that Will was trying to pull his away, but he wasn’t. Will’s hand lingered on his as if Will was holding Drue’s hand in place.

 

As the night progressed, Drue could feel something else unusual. He could feel Will’s heartbeat It was beginning to race. Drue considered asking his friend if everything was alright. He didn’t. Instead, he loosened his grip on Will seeing what would happen. Will’s hand tightened around Drue’s forcing him to stay.

 

“Drue, are you awake?” Will whispered.

 

Drue immediately knew something strange was about to happen. He hesitated but then replied. “Yeah.” Drue could feel Will’s heart pound.

 

“I have something I need to tell you,”

 

“What that?” Drue whispered feeling his own heart quicken.

 

“I…”

 

Will started unsure if he could finish.

 

“I’m in love with you.”

 

Drue froze. He wouldn’t have expected to hear those words in a million years. Will was his best friend and he definitely cared about him, but he didn’t have those types of feelings for Will. He didn’t have those types of feelings for any guy.

 

Drue tried to pull his arm from around his friend. Will clutched onto Drue not allowing him to move. Drue fought harder and was eventually free.

 

“I’m sorry,” Will whispered turning around to look at Drue. “I didn’t mean to say that.”

 

“Is that true?” Drue asked unsure of what to say.

 

“No. I’m…” Will stopped himself. He couldn’t deny it any longer. Will looked his friend in the eyes and told him the truth. “Yeah. It’s true.”

 

Drue couldn’t speak. He stared at Will’s face. It was illuminated by the soft campfire light and it looked like he was crying.

 

“Since when?”

 

“I don’t know. For maybe a year.”

 

“Are you… gay?”

 

“No. I mean, I don’t know.”

 

“But didn’t you say that you liked Sheryl?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Was that true?”

 

“I don’t know. I mean I like her.” Will paused. “Just not as much as I like you.”

 

The two boys stared at each other waiting for the other to speak. When Will gathered his courage and slowly moved his lips closer to Drue’s, Drue recoiled in alarm.

 

“I don’t like you like that.”

 

Will froze. “What do you mean?”

 

“It’s not you. I just don’t like any guys like that.”

 

“But I don’t understand. I thought this was what you wanted.”

 

“Why?”

 

“The way you act all the time.”

 

It was then that Drue realized that all of his overtures towards Will had gone too far. He would never have done any of it had he thought there was a chance that Will was gay. Will was the one who fought his gestures the most. Drue considered Will to be the least likely of his friends to be gay.

 

“Will, I was just playing around. I didn’t mean to lead you on or anything.”

 

Will slowly pulled away. His face contorted in pain. Drue’s heart ached watching him.

 

“I’m sorry, man. I didn’t know. I would never have done any of that if I had known.”

 

Drue’s words made Will feel worse. Will was humiliated and devastated all at once. Will’s heart thundered. His pulse exploded in his ears. A sharp pain developed in the back of Will’s head. And feeling like a nail being hammered into his skull, it was excruciating.

 

“Are you okay, man?” Drue asked watching his friend suffer.

 

“No,” Will squeaked.

 

“What’s going on?” Drue asked in a panic.

 

“I don’t know. My head hurts. It feels like a spike is being pushed into my brain. I…”

 

With a jerk and a gasp, Will suddenly went silent and collapsed.

 

“Will? Will! Wake up, Will. Paul, R.J., help! Will, get up!”

 

The two sleeping boys scrambled out of their tent towards Drue’s.

 

“What’s wrong,” Paul implored.

 

“It’s Will. He passed out or something. He was complaining about his head hurting and then he just passed out. What do we do?”

 

R.J. unzipped the boy’s tent and stuck his head in. “Try and wake him,” he insisted.

 

“I tried.”

 

“Well try again.”

 

“He’s not waking up. Seriously, guys, what do we do?”

 

The boys looked at each other. Paul replied, “We need to get him to a hospital.”

 

Pulling Will’s limp body out of the tent, the three boys carried him to Paul’s car. It took them a few minutes to get there, but laying Will on the back seat, they abandoned their camping equipment and raced towards the closest town.

 

Ten minutes into their twenty-minute journey, Will seemed to regain consciousness. Though his eyes were opening his speech was slurred and he couldn’t remember any of their names.

 

Wheeling him into the emergency room, the hospital attendances took Will from the boys. Watching him being carried away, Paul wrapped his arm around Drue. Drue was crying.

 

Watching Will be pushed through the swinging doors, Drue wondered if this was all his fault. He was sure that he had at least caused most of it. Why else would it have happened when it did? How could it not have something to do with what he had said to Will?

 

“What was going on right before he passed out?” the nurse asked the boys. Paul and R.J. looked at Drue.

 

“We were talking.”

 

“Was that it?”

 

“What do you mean?” Drue asked beginning to panic.

 

“Were you fighting or doing something that might have brought about the episode?”

 

“Fighting?” Drue thought about their conversation. Could what had happened be considered a fight?

 

“It’s important that you tell me the truth. Were you two fighting before he passed out?”

 

“No, we weren’t. We were just talking. That was all we were doing.”

 

Drue looked at Paul and R.J. They looked back at him like they didn’t believe him. Why wouldn’t they believe him? What else did they think that he and Will would be doing?

 

“I swear, we were just talking.”

 

“Okay,” the nurse conceded. “Doesn’t he have any allergies?”

 

“He’s lactose intolerant,” Drue volunteered. “And he says that peanuts make his stomach feel weird.”

 

“Is that it?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Has he ever had a seizure like this before?”

 

“Not that I know of.” Drue turned to his friends and they shook their head in agreement.

 

The nurse looked at Drue. “Do you have his parent’s phone number and address?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“We’ll need it.”

 

“Okay. Is Will gonna be alright?”

 

“We’ll do everything we can for him. You did a good thing bringing him here. You could have just saved his life.”

 

The reassurance didn’t make Drue feel any better. After all, he had been the cause of it. Whether his best friend lived or died would be his fault.

 

Watching the nurse walk away, Drue couldn’t hold back his tears. His two friends enveloped him in their arms. Drue knew he wouldn’t be able to go on without Will. Will meant everything to Drue. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he was the cause of his best friend’s death.

 

 

 

Scot made his finally cross to stage left making sure to stand in his light. He had the final line in the play and once he said it, his high school acting career would be over. Scot listened for the fog horn. It was the cue that his line was coming.

 

“He went and hanged himself,” Scot’s classmate began.

 

“And then there were none,” Scot finished.

 

With those words, the lights faded and the audience erupted into applause. Scot soaked up the adoration. He knew the audience’s appreciation was for the entire cast but his school paper had written that his performance was what made the show. He knew that much of the applause was for him.

 

Stepping forward for the final bow, he found Christine’s hand. She had been both his leading lady and his real life girlfriend since rehearsals had begun.

 

“You were really good,” she whispered in his ear moments before the lights came up.

 

With the bright lights again shining on him, Scot led the cast in a bow. When the audience didn’t stop applauding, Scot bowed again. Feeling the applause begin to die, Scot signaled for Christine to go. She let go of his hand and trotted to the front of his stage.

 

Waving her mother forward, Christine retrieved the dozen roses she carried and returned to the cast. As she did, one of the other cast members dragged a good-looking mid-twenties man on stage. Scot spoke over the remaining applause.

 

“As some of you know, five of us in the play are seniors and will be graduating in a month. I’ve been in all of the plays since freshman year. Christine has been in all but one. Bill has been in almost all of them and so have Lilly and Maria. We seniors would like to thank Mr. Reed for directing all of those plays, for shaping our lives…” Scot choked up and fought to retain his composure. “And for being our mentor and our friend. Thank you, Mr. Reed. We appreciate you and we will miss you.”

 

The audience broke into applause again. The good-looking man stepped forward with tears in his eyes, accepted the roses and waved at the audience. After, the cast and the director left the stage and the applause faded into a din.

 

Backstage Scot and the cast hugged each other in congratulations. It was bittersweet. This was the last time that they would all be together. After three shows a year for four years, this group had become a family. Among them, Scot was the big brother and Mr. Reed was their dad.

 

“Everyone can go out and talk to your parents but in five minutes I want you all back here to strike the set,” Mr. Reed proclaimed.

 

Scot emerged from the downstage door looking for his parents and sister. They greeted him enthusiastically. They had enjoyed his performance as much as everyone had and it meant everything to Scot to have them there for his last high school show.

 

With Scot’s promise that he wouldn’t stay out too late, his family left and he made his way backstage. Mr. Reed was the only one there. Scot considered approaching him now but thought better of it.

 

Mr. Reed looked up spotting Scot. “Grab a Mikita. Start off with the upstage backdrops and work your way forward. I don’t want to keep you guys here any longer than you have to be. You all should be out celebrating.”

 

Scot retrieved a battery pack and drill and went to work.

 

“Where do you want to go after this?” Christine asked Scot. “My mom gave me her card and a hundred dollar limit.”

 

“We could go to Leona’s. Pizza’s would be under a hundred.”

 

“Okay, I’ll tell everyone to meet us at Leona’s afterward.”

 

An hour later, the students finished breaking down the set. Starved and covered in dust they gathered in front of the stage.

 

“You wanna drive with me?” Christine asked Scot with a sparkle in her eyes.

 

 “I drove my mom’s car,” Drue explained

 

“I could bring you back for it later.”

 

“No. I should drive. But you go ahead. I need to talk to Mr. Reed about something. I’ll meet you there.”

 

“Oh, what’s going on?”

 

“No, it’s just some college stuff. Go ahead. I’ll meet you there.”

 

“Okay.”

 

Christine grabbed his hand and squeezed it. It was what they did when they were in public instead of kissing. Scot smiled and squeezed her hand back. Watching Christine and the others exit, Scot turned his attention towards the stage. When Mr. Reed exited, it was with his roses and a handful of audio equipment.

 

“Do you need some help with that?” Scot offered, rushing to him.

 

“That’s okay I have it. Go join your friends.”

 

“No, I can help you. Here.”

 

Scot took half the equipment from Mr. Reed and followed him out.

 

“I just need to lock this in my office and then everything’s done.”

 

The two walked across campus in silence. Scot’s mind whirled.

 

“Congratulations on getting into Beloit College, by the way. How did it go when you told your parents?”

 

“They don’t get it,” Scot explained.

 

“To be honest, Scot, I don’t get it either. Most people would kill to go to University of Chicago. It’s a very prestigious school.”

 

“I know. That was kind of why I wanted to talk to you tonight.”

 

“You wanted to chat?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Now? Don’t you wanna celebrate with your friends?”

 

“I told them I would meet them later.”

 

“Okay. Well, let’s put this away and chat.”

 

Scot and his teacher tucked the equipment into a closet in his office and took a seat. Scot was so nervous that he wondered if he was going to pass out.

 

“So, what’s up, Scot?”

 

Suddenly in the position he planned for so long, he realized that he didn’t know what he was actually going to say. Scot never knew what he should and shouldn’t say. That was one of the reasons he loved acting so much; the lines were always written for him.

 

“What’s the matter, Scot?”

 

Scot touched his face when he realized that he was crying. He was shaking. These were the stage jitters that he should have had before a performance but never did. For a moment he considered running out, but he knew that he wouldn’t get another chance.

 

“Mr. Reed, I think I have feelings for you.”

 

The room went silent. His teacher stared at him wide-eyed and agasp. Both were suddenly holding their breath. Scot was trying not to panic. Mr. Reed was doing the same.

 

“I’m not sure what to say,” his teacher admitted. “I guess it’s natural for someone to develop feelings for their teacher. It’s nothing unusual,” Mr. Reed said trying to convince himself.

 

“Mr. Reed, do you like guys?”

 

His teacher stared at him feeling the panic tighten its grip.

 

“I don’t know if that’s an appropriate question for you to be asking me.”

 

“Are you saying that you don’t like guys?” Scot asked feeling his heart begin to break.

 

“I’m not saying anything. I’m asking where all of this is coming from. Did I do something that would make you think that this type of conversation would be okay?”

 

Scot felt the prickly feeling crawl through his chest. The tears rolled down his cheeks uncontrollably. He was beginning to think that he had made a mistake.

 

“You just said that I could come and talk to you about anything, that’s all. But I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything. I’m sorry.”

 

Scot got up to go. Mr. Reed was on the verge of letting him when “Wait!”

 

Scot turned around and stared at his teacher.

 

“You’re right. I told you that you could come talk to me about anything. Sit. Let’s talk. You’re eighteen. You’re an adult. Let’s talk like adults.”

 

Scot sat and wiped his cheeks. He was embarrassed about becoming emotional but only slightly. His teacher was the only person he felt that he didn’t have to hide his feelings with. With Mr. Reed, Scot could be his true self.

 

Mr. Reed fidgeted in his seat before again looking Scot in the eyes. “You asked me a question. I’ll answer it. Do I like guys? It’s complicated. I like some guys and I like some girls. It’s called being bisexual.”

 

“I think that’s what I am too,” Scot interjected.

 

Mr. Reed nodded his head. “So you know that it can get confusing. Feelings can get difficult to navigate.”

 

“Mine aren’t. I know I have feelings for you and I have for a long time. I figured I was too young before, but I’m eighteen and it’s legal now.”

 

“Wait, when did your feelings start? You know what? Never mind. I don’t want to know that. This is awkward enough already.”

 

Scot tightened his lips saddened by his teacher’s assessment.

 

“So you have feelings for me. I hear what you’re saying and I acknowledge your feelings.” Mr. Reed paused. “Does that make you feel better?”

 

“I don’t know what you mean.”

 

“Neither do I. That’s just something teachers are taught to say. Let me cut the bullshit and talk to you like a human being. Scot, I hear what you’re saying. I thank you for saying that to me….”

 

“But you don’t feel the same way?”

 

“I didn’t say that.”

 

Scot perked up suddenly seeing a glimmer of hope.

 

“What I was gonna say was that you’re my student. I’m not even sure if I’m legally allowed to say any more than that.”

 

“But I’m eighteen.”

 

“But I’m still your teacher.”

 

“Yeah, but like, for a month more.”

 

“Yeah, for a month more.”

 

Scot stared at Mr. Reed with building excitement. “Are you saying that if we had this same conversation after I graduated, you’d say something different?”

 

The good looking man stared at his student searching for words. “Aren’t you seeing Christine?”

 

“Kind of. But it’s not serious.”

 

“Does she think it’s serious?”

 

“I don’t know,” Scot admitted.

 

“Well, that’s pretty important. You always have to take other people’s feelings into consideration.”

 

“Okay,” Scot said with a developing plan.

 

“Scot, did I do anything to encourage the way you feel about me? Did I say anything to encourage you to feel this way?”

 

“Yeah, you were an awesome guy and you were always there for me. That’s how you encouraged me to feel this way.”

 

The handsome man tightened his lips lost in thought. Scot stared at him second guessing himself.

 

“Mr. Reed, did I do something wrong by telling you how I felt.”

 

Mr. Reed caught himself. “No Scot, you did nothing wrong. Never be ashamed of your feelings.”

 

Scot smiled. “What about you? What are your feelings?”

 

His teacher looked at him thoughtfully. “I met you when you were fourteen years old.”

 

“But I’m eighteen now. I’m not a kid anymore.”

 

“I know. You’ve grown into a strikingly good looking man. That can’t be denied.”

 

Scot sat taller hearing his teacher’s words. “So, you have feelings for me too?”

 

“Scot, sometimes when you care about someone a great deal, those feelings can morph into something else. However, it is my job as a teacher to push those feelings down.”

 

“I wish you wouldn’t,” Scot said vulnerably.

 

Mr. Reed gripped the arm of his chair. “Maybe you should go.”

 

Scot saw an opening. Here was where he could make his move. But what? What could he do considering everything his teacher had said?

 

“After I graduate, do you think we could do something together… like a date, maybe?”

 

Mr. Reed looked away. His mind raced with conflict. Something came out of his mouth before he could stop it. “Yeah. I’d like that.”

 

“Okay. Cool,” Scot said with a smile.

 

Scot got up excited. He had never wanted the school year to end so badly in his life.

 

 

 

Drue’s friend Will stayed overnight in The Dell’s hospital. Drue, Paul, and R.J. stayed there with him. The next morning Will looked fully recovered. That was when he was flown by helicopter to a hospital in Chicago. After being examined by a brain specialist there, Will was diagnosed with a blood clot partially blocking an artery in his brain.

 

The doctor said that it was lucky that the clot moved when it did instead of while they were rafting. Not only could Will have fallen into the water making him harder to rescue, but Will could have sustained lung damage as he struggled to breathe. 

 

In spite of the doctor’s diagnosis, Drue couldn’t help but feel responsible for his friend’s condition. The first time the two were able to speak, Will dissuaded him of the idea. Will told Drue that he had saved his life. Neither boy brought up what their conversation that night had been about until after the medicine to dissolve the clot remaining in Will’s brain didn’t work.

 

“Surgery?” Drue asked unable to hide his concern.

 

Will stared at Drue as his friend paced around his bedroom.

 

“Yeah. The doctors said that they’re gonna give it another two days. But if it hasn’t shrunk by then, they’ll schedule me for surgery.”

 

“When would you have the surgery?”

 

“The same day.”

 

“The same day?”

 

“Yeah. They said that they don’t know why an eighteen-year-old would have a brain clot. They said it’s rare.”

 

“How rare?” Drue asked.

 

“They said that I’m only the third teenager that they have ever seen with it.”

 

It became harder for Drue to breathe. “Did they say anything about the surgery?”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“I mean like how risky it is.”

 

“They said that it’s usually not very risky at all. But they don’t know why I had the clot to begin with, so there could be complications.”

 

Both boys stared at each other knowing what that meant. Will was the only one to acknowledge it.

 

“Drue, in two days, I could die.”

 

“That’s not true.”

 

Drue sat next to Will on the edge of the bed and threw his arms around him.

 

“It’s true. That’s what they said. The other two teenagers they worked on died. They said that they were gonna use what they learned from their case to help me, but in two days I could be dead.”

 

Tears streamed down his cheeks as Drue gripped his friend tighter. “You’ll be fine. I know you will.”

 

Will didn’t reply.

 

“You gotta think positive. Nothing is gonna happen to you, okay. In a few weeks, we’re all gonna graduate and afterward we’re gonna goof off all summer and then go to college. But you gotta think positive. You can’t be thinking like that.”

 

The boys sat quietly lost in thought. It was Will who broke the silence.

 

“You know what I would regret most if I died?”

 

“What’s that?”

 

“Dying a virgin.”

 

Drue paused and looked up at his friend. Staring at him Drue burst out laughing. Will chuckled in response.

 

“I’m serious. I don’t want to die a virgin.”

 

“Nobody does.”

 

“So, will you help me?”

 

Drue stopped smiling realizing that his friend was serious.

 

“Help you what?”

 

“You know, stop being a virgin.”

 

“How?”

 

“You know.”

 

“What? You mean, like, have sex with you?”

 

“Shhh! Don’t say it so loud. But, I mean… yeah.”

 

“Will…”

 

“Would it be so terrible? You like me, right?”

 

“You’re my best friend.”

 

“Okay. Then think of me as one of those Make-A-Wish kids.”

 

“Will, getting me to think of you as a Make-A-Wish kid is not the way to get me to have sex with you.”

 

“Then what?”

 

Drue stared at Will at a loss for words.

 

“Please, Drue. I don’t want to die a virgin.”

 

“You’re not gonna die.”

 

“But I could and you know it.”

 

Drue lowered his head in admission. “Will, I don’t think I could have sex with you.”

 

“Why not?” he asked vulnerably. “I know you like me. I could tell you have a hard-on sometimes when you spoon me.”

 

“I never had a hard-on and don’t say that I spoon you.”

 

“Why not? That’s what you were doing. And I could tell you had a hard-on.” Will paused. “I get them too.”

 

Drue’s eyes darted around the floor. He knew that Will was right. He often got hard as he spooned his friend. Not giving much thought to why he, he would usually push it onto Will’s back with the hopes of making him uncomfortable. He had never considered that it was a sign of any sort of attraction.

 

“Will, I’m not sure I could do that for you, man. Anything else, though. I swear anything else you want, I’ll do it for you.”

 

Will turned to Drue pulling away. Staring at his friend, Will’s eyes melted vulnerably. Suddenly choked up, he forced himself to speak.

 

“There is one other thing that you could do.”

 

“Just name it, Will.”

 

Will swallowed. “Can I… get naked for you?”

 

Drue’s heart suddenly raced. Never had he heard something so intimate as Will’s request. Drue’s face flushed and he felt his cock harden.

 

Drue knew he had to reply quickly. He had said anything and he had meant it. He simply hadn’t considered that there could be something more personal than sex.

 

“Ye…” Drue cleared his throat and tried again. “Yeah.”

 

With both of their hearts’ booming like base drums, Will stood up. Without a word he moved to the door, locked it and then stood in front of Drue. Slowly slipping his hand under his t-shirt, he took a deep breath and pulled it up his body. When it covered his face Drue looked at Will’s chest. He had seen it before, but now, Will’s smooth, perfect skin made Drue’s cock flinch.

 

When Drue’s eyes met his friend’s again, Drue noticed that Will was shaking. His body twitched erratically and his stilted breaths lifted his naked chest in fits and starts.

 

Will took a deep inhale and then put his hands on the button on his jeans. Knowing what would happen next, Drue’s body warmed. Heat wafted off of him. Watching his friend’s hands unbutton his pants, Drue began to sweat.

 

Will, now shaking wildly, unzipped his pants and pushed them to his ankles. Leaning over Will realized that his cock was completely hard. This was the moment. He would stand up and Drue would see it pulling on his underwear. There would almost be nothing hiding it.

 

Will stood up and unable to stop himself, Drue stared at his buddy’s clothed cock. Restrained by his boxers, it jutted out past the profile of his hip. Will’s cock was much bigger than Drue could have imagined. His friend was huge. Drue’s own cock flinched again. He could feel the wetness against his skin.

 

With only one thing left to do, Will grabbed the waistline of his boxers and lowered them. His massive cock popped out. Standing up and stepping away from his clothes, he was now naked and erect. Staring at his friend, Drue had to admit that his best friend Will was a beautiful man.

 

Will stood shaking and staring at Drue. Drue’s gaze wash over him like a warm bath. Drue was examining all of him. Will looked down at Drue’s crotch and saw something fighting to get out. Will desperately wished that he could see all of the boy he loved, but he dared not ask. Instead, he requested something that his friend would never deny.

 

“Can I ask for one more thing?” the twitching boy said.

 

“What’s that?” Drue replied in a hoarse whisper.

 

“Can you hold me?”

 

Drue looked up into his friend’s eyes. “Yeah.”

 

Slowly Will climbed onto the bed. Turning away from Drue, he put his hands under his head and waited. He felt Drue’s arm touch the tender skin on his side. Will flinched.

 

“Is this okay?” Drue asked hoarsely.

 

“It’s great,” Will replied losing himself in his love’s touch.

 

Unexplainably aroused, Drue took hold of his best friend’s naked body. He had held him so many times before but never was it like this. It was no longer a joke. He wasn’t trying to get a rise out of Will. He was holding his naked friend because they loved each other. Drue wasn’t sure how to describe that love, but in that moment it felt more than platonic.

 

Drue’s palm lay on Will’s young chest. Drue swallowed. Wanting more and knowing that Will did too, he slowly rubbed Will’s naked body. It was unquestionably arousing. Thinking about Will’s cock and knowing it was just inches away, Drue changed the direction of his caress and traveled south.

 

Will’s flat stomach tensed when Drue touched it but Drue didn’t stop there. Pushing further his hand eventually touched what he was searching for. Drue’s inexperienced fingers pressed against his friend’s cock. It was brick hard and feeling the heat from another boy’s hand, it twitched begging for more.   

 

Drue didn’t know what was coming over him. Why was he doing this? Why was he cupping another boy’s tight balls? It went beyond his friend’s request. It was arousing him. He wanted more. He didn’t want this experience to stop.

 

Hearing his own breaths quicken, Drue slowly moved his hand to the stem of Will’s massive cock. Drue held it in his hands. It was so much bigger than his. Needing to feel even more of it, he followed it towards its tip. The journey never stopped. It kept going long past his virgin hands were used to. And when it found the mushroom shaped head and stopped, the head was covered in slippery fluid.

 

Rubbing his palm over the end of his friend’s gland, Will flinched. Throwing his hips back it met with Drue’s clothed cock. Will recognized the feeling. Will’s naked ass was touching his love’s hard cock and the sensation took his breath away. Fighting to breathe he held his ass against Drue. Drue pushed his hips forward and Will gasped.

 

At once, Drue slid his hand down Will’s cock and pushed his own clothed cock against his friend’s naked ass. It felt incredible. He was stroking another boy’s dick. He had another human being pressed against him. He was giving another boy pleasure.

 

Drue tightened his grip and stroked faster. Will groaned. Drue thrust his cock against the naked ass. It was like Will’s groans were his own. Drue felt like he was going to come. It couldn’t be. He hadn’t touched himself, yet as Will’s cock tense about to release, so did his.

 

“Ah! Ahhh!” Will moaned

 

“Yeah. Yeah!” Drue echoed no longer able to stop himself.

 

When the painful tingle shot up his inner thigh, his sack became a ball of electricity. Drue orgasmed with an explosion. He kept stroking his buddy’s huge cock until he too came. And feeling the handful pulse powerfully in his grasp, it extended his own orgasm.

 

Drue couldn’t stop orgasming. It was something he had never experienced in his life. When he thought his body would relax it would flinch again. With it came a reflexive tensing of his cock. Drue had never experienced as much pleasure as he did holding his best friend’s cock in his hand.

 

Drue realized that there was something in him that he couldn’t admit to before. He had a yearning that he hadn’t explored. Holding a boy’s naked body in his arms felt natural to him. Drue finally accepted that. Will had made him. But what did all of this even mean? What was Drue supposed to do now?

 

 

 

Scot stared at the undialed number displayed on his phone. It was Mr. Reed’s. He had called and left a message so many times since graduation but never had his teacher called him back. Scot wondered if he should give up. There wasn’t much time left before he left for college. Maybe instead of spending every night and day thinking about the man he loved he should be focused on preparing for that.

 

“Screw it.”

 

Scot pressed the dial button and moved the phone to his ear. It rang just like it always did. Once, twice, three times. After the forth, it would go to voicemail. Scot promised himself that this would be his final attempt.

 

Scot’s heart sank when he heard the fourth ring commence. It suddenly stopped. There was a pause.

 

“Hello?” said the voice on the other end of the phone.

 

“Hello, Mr. Reed?”

 

“Scot.”

 

“Hi, um, I graduated,” Scot said at a sudden loss for words.

 

“Yes. I remember. I was there.”

 

“Yeah. So, I was wondering if you might want to go out sometime?”

 

  There was a long pause.

 

“Mr. Re…”

 

“Sure,” his teacher said sending Scot’s heart racing.

 

“How about you come by my place?”

 

“Okay,” Scot replied feeling his cock thicken.

 

“Why don’t we say tomorrow at eight. Can you do then?”

 

“Yeah. I can do that.”

 

“Okay. Then I’ll see you then.”

 

The call ended and Scot stared at his phone disbelievingly. Something was bubbling through him and when the feeling hit his brain, Scot jumped out of bed and screamed in celebration.

 

“Wooooohoo!”

 

Scot couldn’t believe it. It was happening. The man he had fantasized about for so long had invited him by his place.

 

But what was it for? Was it for dinner? Was it for sex?

 

The thought of having sex with Mr. Reed immediately made his cock hard. He thought about what it would feel like to be held in his teacher’s strong arms. Imagining his teacher undressing him swallow. He had to jack off and he needed to do it now.

 

Ripping open his pants, he pulled out his long cock. Jerking it off, he came quickly. When that was done he lay in bed exhausted. But again imagining Mr. Reed removing his shirt and sliding his hand down his body, he was again brick hard. Clutching his cock, he jacked off a second time.

 

The next day Scot arrived at his teacher’s apartment. He was dressed in his most complimented outfit. It took him forever to choose it and in the middle of choosing, he had to stroke himself. He had imagined what the clothes he was wearing would look like strewn across his teacher’s floor. The thought had overwhelmed him.

 

“Come in,” Mr. Reed said pointing Scot towards the dining table. “I made dinner. I hope you like spaghetti.”

 

Scot could barely speak. “I do. It’s one of my favorites.”

 

“Good. Sit down. What would you like to drink?”

 

Scot didn’t know what he should say. He wanted his teacher to think of him as an adult. “Beer?”

 

Mr. Reed chuckled. “How about something without alcohol?”

 

“Okay. Whatever you have is fine.”

 

“Coke?”

 

“Sure.”

 

After escorting Scot to his chair, Mr. Reed brought the food and drink to the table. Dishing up and eating they engaged in small talk. Most of it was about Scot’s preparation for college. It took Scot half the night before he began to feel comfortable, but by desert, he found his courage and looked the man he loved in the eyes.

 

“You’re my favorite teacher of all time,” Scot declared.

 

“Thank you, Scot. And don’t tell anyone, but you are my favorite student. You know, you’re really talented. If you took acting seriously, you could be a great actor.”

 

“You really think so?”

 

“I do. Not many people will tell you this, but a lot of making it as an actor is the way you look. You have a great look. You’re classically handsome. The guys want to be you and the girls want to be with you?”

 

Scot swallowed knowing what he was about to say next. “What about the guys? Do they wanna be with me too?”

 

Scot’s teacher looked at him like he had never looked at him before. It made Scot’s knees shake.

 

“Yes Scot, the guys want to be with you too.”

 

“What about you, Mr. Reed? Do you want to be with me?”

 

Scot’s heart pounded as he watched the man he loved struggle for an answer. He looked tormented. Scot never wanted to make his teacher feel so torn, but he hoped beyond hope that his love’s answer was yes.

 

“Scot…” Mr. Reed opened his mouth and then changed his mind about what he was going to say. “Would you like to take our desert onto the couch?”

 

“Sure,” he said with erupting hope.

 

The two took their chocolate cake and sat on the sofa. Scot sat first and noticed how close his teacher sat next to him. He hadn’t been completely hard before, but smelling his teacher’s light cologne and manly scent, he became completely erect.

 

Scot froze holding his plate. He felt like a child wondering what to do. His teacher took the plate from him and set it aside. Taking Scot’s hand in his, Mr. Reed couldn’t miss how much his young pupil was shaking.

 

“Scot, yes. I do wanna be with you. I’ve watched you grow up maturing into an adult and so often I had to remind myself that you were a kid. Even when you would say something to me beyond your years and I would be blown away, I had to remind myself that you were a child. So now that you’re an adult, I’m torn.

 

“I care about you a great deal, but I didn’t know what the right thing to do was. You say that you have feelings for me. I also have feelings for you. I think I love you. And that is the reason that I can’t let anything ever happen between us.”

 

Scot’s heart stopped. He felt like he was falling helplessly into an abyss. He couldn’t catch his breath. Panic set in wrenching his gut and sending a bolt of pain through his body threatening to bring him to tears.

 

“But why, Mr. Reed? You said that you loved me and I love you too. I’m not your student anymore. We can be together.”

 

“Scot, I didn’t call you back because I didn’t know what I should do. But then I researched it. Studies say that when authority figures have sex with their pupils under a certain age, it has a lasting effect on their pupil’s ability to trust others.”

 

“But I’m eighteen, Mr. Reed. You don’t have to worry about that. I trust you.”

 

“And I’m repaying your trust by being the adult.”

 

“But Mr. Reed, I love you,” Scot pleaded on the verge of tears.

 

“And I love you too. And me telling you that nothing can ever happen between us, as much as I want it to, is how you can tell that I do love you. Scot, I love you so much.”

 

“Mr. Reed, I need you.”

 

Scot hadn’t planned to say that. He didn’t even know what he meant. He just knew it was true.

 

“No you don’t,” Mr. Reed replied sympathetically.

 

“I do. I need you. No one will ever understand me like you do. I’ll never be able to tell anyone the things I’ve told you. I can’t show anyone else who I am. I just can’t. Mr. Reed, I can’t live without you,” Scot said no longer able to hold back his tears.

 

“It’s okay that you think that, but you will. And some day you’re gonna find someone your own age and you are gonna love them and they are gonna love you. You’re gonna be happy. And you, Scot Townson, are gonna be a huge star.

 

“Then one day when fans are screaming for you and you have everything you ever wanted, you’re gonna look back on what I’m saying to you now and know that you had always been loved. Not in word, but in action. I love you, Scot. I love you a great deal. Don’t you ever forget it.”

 

Scot recognized the resolve in his teacher’s voice. His answer was firm. There was nothing Scot could say to change his mind. His heart was breaking.

 

Scot didn’t want his teacher to let go his hand. As much at it hurt, he didn’t want this moment to end. He wanted to hold onto his mentor forever. Scot was sure that he didn’t need any of the success that Mr. Reed described. The only thing he needed was the man he loved.

 

Brushing the tears from his cheeks, Scot, at last, found the strength to speak. “Mr. Reed?”

 

“Yes, Scot?”

 

“Do you think you can give me a hug? Would that be okay?”

 

“Yes, Scot. I’d like that a lot.”

 

Scot let go of his teacher’s hand and stood up. When his teacher was standing in front of him, Scot threw his arms around the man he loved. For a long time he squeezed their bodies together.

 

He wanted to remember every angle and every sensation. Scot moved his hand along Mr. Reed’s back memorizing the dips and peaks. He wanted to hold this moment in his mind for as long as he lived.

 

He knew he would never be the same once Mr. Reed was out of his life. But greater than that, Scot wondering if he would ever work up the courage to open himself up like this again. Scot’s heart sank as he considered what a lifetime of loneliness would feel like. Shaking that from his mind, he gripped tighter and lost himself in the good looking man’s intoxicating scent.

 

 

 

When Drue received the news that his best friend had died during surgery, he was inconsolable. As Drue cried his body wrenched violently. He was told by the school counselor after being pulled out of class. His counselor didn’t understand Drue flood of raw emotions until he realized the true nature of their relationship.

 

Drue hadn’t just lost a friend, he had lost a lover. Drue’s young mind was a chaotic mess of feelings. This was something that Drue had to work through. It was something that he would have to learn to deal with. Staring at the devastated boy sitting across from him, the counselor offered him his condolences.

 

The eternal empties Drue felt truly took hold as he lay in bed that night thinking about the last time he and Will were together. He thought about what the two of them had done. He wondered if it had been a mistake to allow his friend to die a virgin. He began to regret his decision so much.

 

The sexual feelings he had for Will were intense. He had always had them. Lying in the dark knowing that Will was gone he could now admit that to himself. It was their final night together that proved it to him.

 

It pained Drue to consider what they might have been to each other if Will had lived. On top of that, it destroyed Drue to think about what his feelings for Will meant. What did those feelings make him? Did the pleasure he felt with Will mean that he liked boys?

 

With Will’s death occurring right before examines, Drue was given a pass through graduation. Drue then spent the rest of the summer trying to come to grips with his loss. Drue’s best friend was gone. He couldn’t believe it. The boy, who had awakened something scary within him, had left him alone to deal with it.

 

Drue missed the feeling of Will in his arms. Drue longed for the feeling of holding his cock. Drue wondered what it would have felt like if he had said yes when his best friend had suggested sex. Drue imagined what it would have felt like as Will pushed his massive cock inside of him.

 

Every morning during the summer, Drue woke up with a whirlwind of divergent thoughts. His feelings for Will, his desire to only like girls, he couldn’t pull himself together. He considered taking a year off before he began college. His parents refused. Instead, Drue did his best to pull himself together. Packing his bags for school, he slowly began to turn his attention to the next stage of his life.

 

The day that Drue arrived onto Beloit College’s campus, things began to get better. There were a lot of friendly upperclassmen around and more than one offered to help him get situated in his room. Drue met his roommate, who turned out to be a nice guy, and during lunch, he was befriended by two girls.

 

Drue had to admit that in spite of how high school ended, college was beginning with promise. One thing Drue couldn’t shake, though, was the unexplainable yearning he felt in his heart. There was a gaping hole in him left by his friend and the agony of it left him feeling only half alive.

 

He needed something. He needed someone one. He was sure that if he didn’t fill the abysmal hole soon, like his best friend, he was going to die.

 

 

 

Scot arrived on campus feeling incomplete. He felt like a part of him had been ripped away. He wasn’t over the man he had loved for so long and his absence left a hole in his heart that he was sure could never be filled. Who could fill the gap in his life left by someone as magnificent as his mentor? How could he ever open himself up to anyone like he had with Mr. Reed?

 

With his family gone and his emptiness overwhelming him, Scot decided to get out of his room. There was a game room on campus and having nowhere else to go, he headed there.

 

Finding the room empty, he approached to the pool table. Racking the balls, he took a shot. It was a clean break. Admiring his work he heard the doorknob rattle.

 

Something in the sound of the door knob made his heart clench. There was no reason for it. But he felt something. Suddenly his body was reacting like everything in his life was about to change.

 

Hearing the door rattle, Scot didn’t know what to do. He was struck with a wave of panic. Staring at the door, Scot couldn’t breathe.

 

 

 

With nothing else to do at the end of their first day, Drue and the girls decided to check out the college’s game room. The entire way there Drue had an unusual feeling. It was like he was headed towards something overwhelming. He swallowed hard as he tried to figure out what was going on but he couldn’t.

 

By the time he was standing in front of the closed game room door, he was shaking. Reaching for the knob, he froze.

 

“What’s the matter?” one of the girls asked him.

 

“Nothing,” he said confused.

 

That wasn’t true. He felt his heartbeat increasing. It was like there was something behind the door that would forever reshape his life.

 

Drue pushed on the knob to enter. His breath hitched. His knees shook. His body felt like it was on fire. And from that moment, Drue’s life would never be the same again.

*****

Get the book ‘Before He Was Famous: MMF Bisexual Romance’ to find out what happens next. Warning: ‘Before He Was Famous’ contains many detailed descriptions of sizzling MMF sex and is not meant for younger readers.

Find the retailers that sell ‘Before He Was Famous’ from the author’s website at: www.AlexAndersBooks.com

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