Whereas Boston Street often seemed like part of a ghost town, Butcher's Hill was a thriving little neighborhood. Robby's house was down the block from the Pick-Wick grocery store, and only two blocks from Orleans Street which was the major east-west road through this part of town.

Robby lived on South Collington, a street where kids played ball, dodging cars and laughing at the honks of irate drivers. Women washed the front steps of their row houses here on the weekends when the sounds of stereos blasting rock music filled the street.

Joey stood on the street in front of Robby's house and looked up at the third floor windows of Robby's room. He put his fingers in his mouth and issued the call.

Threep-too-weep...his signature whistle echoed off the walls and up the alley beside the house. Joey waited a second or two, wondering if he should call again. But then the bedroom window was pushed open and Robby stuck his arm out. He held out one hand, palm out, fingers spread...he would be down in five minutes.

Joey went around into the alley and leaned against the wall. Robby's parents had never approved of their son's relationship with him. Not that they knew anything specifically bad about Joey, they just didn't know him. It was a pain in the ass that often kept him and Robby apart. But the boy was a teenager now; they needed to cut him some slack.

Joey waited patiently until Robby came banging out the back door.

"So where you been, Joey?" were his first words, "I've been worried about you."

"It's a long story....you got time?"

"Ya, I don't have to be home until dinner," Robby grinned. "Let's go over to Lou's house and talk."

They headed down past the Pick-Wick to South Ann, and made a left into the alley. Lou had a tiny row house that faced the alley. He was a retired old man who had an affinity for the local boys. He gave them a place to hang out, party a little and if they needed it, a quick blow job in the back room.

Lots of boys dropped in on Lou, but most of them didn't take advantage of the back room. Lou liked Robby, even though the boy only came over with Joey or with friends to party. The man was a pushover, he was never rude or mean, so most of the boys came back.

When he knocked, Lou was sitting in the living room talking to some kid Robby didn't know.

"Hello, boys," Lou said. "Have you met Alan?"

The boys nodded at one another by way of greeting, now they had been introduced. "He just moved here from Dundalk," Lou said.

Robby and Joey smiled at the kid. He was probably fourteen, Joey's age and just about what Lou loved best.

"Joey and I got some talking to do," Robby said.

"Nobody upstairs if you want some privacy," Lou said. Robby smiled and said "Thanks." That would leave the back room open for Alan, if Lou got lucky.

Taking the stairs two at a time, the boys ended up in Lou's spare bedroom which was the party room. There was a small printed sign on the wall above the couch that said: 'Two rules only: Please use the ashtrays and don't piss out the window.'

Lou had allowed Joey to shower here when he was homeless, but he never allowed boys to spend the night. Not that his neighbors would have noticed, but Lou had to be careful. All it would take was one visit from an irate parent or the cops and he would spend the rest of his retirement behind bars. So far the cops had only bothered the ladies who worked out of their home further down the alley.

Joey sat down on the couch and Robby sat beside him. The boy looked worried; he kept playing with his watch band. At least he still had it. "I saw...I saw your mom over in Dundalk," Robby said.

Joey gasped. "Shit...where was it?"

"She and Mike were with some biker guy at Eastpoint Mall...I'm sorry."

"Did you know the guy?" Joey asked.

"No, a stranger. I was with my dad so I couldn't follow them, but he was wearing colors, some biker club...DDMC something, I couldn't read the small letters, I'm sorry."

"Stop bein sorry, you didn't do anything wrong. OK, it's a shock, but I don't know if I want to see her again," Joey said.

"You got Benny now and a place to live," Robby said.

"Yeah, sorta maybe. I've been there two years and it's getting old already, I need to get away from there," Joey said.

"Where would you go?"

"I met this guy Paul last year, he's cool. I've dated him but he doesn't want to do anything with me, that's the weird part. I could probably live with him but he wants to make up all these rules and change my life, I kinda like the way it is...except for Benny."

"Is he rich?" Robby asked.

"Yeah, I think so...he's got a sweet car and a nice house. But he wants me to go to school or something, I'm not gonna go back to that shit."

"School ain't so bad, the niggers leave me alone," Robby said.

"Yeah, and Paul says no callin the Negro folks anything but black, he's got all these changes he wants, like I said."

They settled down on the couch for a while and talked. Paul was planning to take him to the beach and Joey shared that. Robby was starting to hang out in the park on weekends and Joey knew the boy would start dating pretty soon. He also knew that Robby was gay, and that meant the dating game would be different for him.

But now that Paul was taking him out, Joey thought that he might introduce Robby to Jack. At least the man wouldn't hurt the boy, and now Joey understood why. It had been last month; right after the trees in the park had begun to fill out.

Like most of the guys, Joey had one or two guys that he considered regular dates besides Paul. That meant the guy would buy him something to eat, take him to a movie or just drive on out into the county and find a nice quiet place to have sex. None of Joey's guys wanted his ass, but they were welcome to do anything else.

Jack had come by just as darkness began to fill the spaces beneath the trees of the park. It was still a little cool out, and when the temperature was low Jack always took Joey to a motel out off Eastern Avenue past the county/city line. The place was cheap and so a night's rate didn't seem like a big deal, especially since Jack was usually done inside of two hours.

Jack admired the boy's body and that usually led to bathing, touching and then the foot fetish activity as Joey masturbated. But this particular evening they reached the motel and saw a group of police cars in the parking lot, Jack drove on past and then turned back towards town.

"Maybe they had a robbery," Joey said. He was afraid Jack was going to return him to the park and the date would be off. He usually got fifty bucks from Jack, good money for what they did, but then they had been dating for almost two years.

"Yeah, I'll have to find us a new place to go, that motel is getting pretty run down," Jack said. "Would you feel comfortable coming home with me?"

"You live by yourself?" Joey asked.

"I have my own apartment, but we'll have to sneak in the house."

"That's OK, I sneak in my place sometimes," Joey laughed.

"You're such a good boy, I love you very much, Joey. We'll have fun; I have a nice big bath tub and a huge television."

"Cool," Joey said.

They drove back on Eastern and cut north. They passed the Johns Hopkins Hospital and Joey stared out the windows. This was deep in the heart of the black neighborhood, a place Joey never went, at least not on foot. Jack kept heading north and the neighborhoods changed, this looked better. They passed a large church and turned at the corner where Jack pulled over.

"That's my house there, the one behind the church," He said.

"Wow, nice place. But don't all the bells from the church drive you crazy on Sunday morning?" Joey asked.

Jack laughed. "Yeah, they do get a bit annoying if I'm trying to sleep in."

They walked around to the back of the house and Jack let them in at the kitchen door with his key. He put a finger to his lips and Joey could hear music coming from somewhere else. Jack led him up a back staircase into a quiet hallway. The house seemed clean and neat as Joey followed the man down the hall to a doorway.

The apartment was small but well furnished. There was a kitchenette off the living room and Jack went to the fridge and brought out two sodas before they went into his bedroom. A nice big bed and a private bathroom with a tub made Joey wonder why Jack had never brought him home before.

As they undressed Joey looked at several paintings on the walls, scenes by a river and people standing in the water. There was also a wooden cross on the wall so Joey figured Jack must be a religious person as well.

"Are those people taking a bath or swimming?" Joey asked.

"Both probably, that's a painting I got in the Holy Land, do you know where that is?" Jack asked.

"Nope, what's holy about it?"

"The birthplace of Jesus, that's the river Jordan. Come on, let's go take our own bath," Jack said.

The water was always just warm, but Joey really enjoyed it when Jack ran the soapy wash cloth across his body and told him how beautiful he was. All that talk of love was just a small part of the weirdness, but Jack seemed to enjoy talking about it.

Joey would never take this long in the bath tub, but this was Jacks' game and he was paying for it. The man washed between his toes and kissed each of them gently, it tickled but Joey tried not to laugh. But when Joey lay back and spread his legs Jack washed between them and the moment always gave him an erection.

The towels Jack had were fluffier than the ones at the motel, and when he was done drying Joey laid spread eagle on the bed. This was Jack's moment to stand and admire Joey's body as he talked to himself. Several times Joey had fallen asleep, but Jack didn't mind, he enjoyed the view of innocence as he called it.

But the hands would eventually seek out flesh and Jack would begin the rubbing. The caressing fingers moved from feet to thighs and up across Joey's body, the touch so sensual that Joey couldn't help but become severely erect. But for some unknown reason Jack wasn't like the other men, he ignored Joey's penis, he'd never touched it when it was hard.

So when the pleasure of those touches overwhelmed him Joey would grasp his cock and begin to manipulate it. Jack would watch and then begin the kissing and licking. Feet, toes and anywhere else his fancy dictated. Joey could see the man was aroused, he had a big old fat cock, but Joey was never asked to touch it.

But something was different tonight. Instead of just standing around the bed to do his kissing and licking routine, Jack moved up on the wide bed to get closer. His face came ever closer to Joey's crotch and the boy slowly stroked himself. Jack liked things slow, there was never any hurry. But Joey closed his eyes as he felt Jack's breath on his thigh and it made him shudder.

If Jack wanted to lick and kiss his cock that would be just fine, another moment in all the weirdness these dates engendered. But Joey almost groaned with pleasure as he felt Jack's tongue lick across the head of his cock. The kisses that followed felt simply wonderful and Joey wondered if he should stop rubbing himself. He had his answer when Jack slid his lips around Joey's cock.

Joey removed his hand and allowed Jack to do what he wanted. Maybe the man felt more comfortable here in his own bed, whatever it was he was succeeding in turning Joey on to the max. And then Joey came. What had been a deep tickle at the base of his cock suddenly overwhelmed him and he busted his nut in Jack's mouth.

Joey's eyes flew open as Jack choked, gagged and choked again. He was off the bed in a flash and into the bathroom where Joey could hear him throwing up. Shit, he couldn't stop himself, but he should have. Now he was afraid the man was going to be pissed. But Jack hadn't taken it all and the rest had spurted out on Joey's stomach. Now he felt it begin to slide and he didn't want to make a mess on Jack's bedcovers.

The towel was out of reach on the floor but there was a box of tissues on the bedside table and Joey grabbed it. He was wiping up the mess and still listening to Jack barf when he looked down at the table. There under the tissue box had been a small picture frame that had been hidden and Joey leaned down to look at the photo.

It was Jack; there was no doubt about that. Jack surrounded by several young boys, Jack wearing the collar and robe of a priest. Jack was a priest, one that had just sucked his cock and had been kissing his toes for years. Joey hurriedly put the tissue box back in place. Oh shit...Oh shit.

Joey wadded up the tissue in his hand and just laid there thinking. No wonder this had always seemed so weird. But it was all about the money, and Jack paid well. A priest...OK, what the fuck, it didn't matter. It made him understand that the man would never hurt him, now all that talk of love made sense...maybe.

"Robby, when are you going to start dating?"

"Me? I don't know, maybe I won't. My dad gives me money, that's enough," Robby said.

"You're gay, man...we both know it," Joey said.

"So? That doesn't mean I want to go out and suck some strange cock. Some of those guys sound pretty creepy. Why, you want to pimp my ass?" Robby laughed.

"No, I don't want you to get hurt; we love each other, right?"

Robby smiled and nodded. "You're my best bud, now and always."

"I know a guy you might like to meet, he's cool. I know he would never hurt you," Joey said. "We'll talk."

Lou and the new boy were not in the living room when they came down the stairs, but the door to the back room was closed.

"You suppose?" Robby asked as they got to the front door.

"Hope so, everyone needs something, " Joey said.

Joey got back to the house in what he hoped was enough time to catch the dinner hour. Benny wasn't home anyway, but Jerry was, and so it was declared a pizza night. A phone call later they had four large with everything on the way, no anchovies.

Red was in their room with Bugs, but the door was open.

"Hey, there he is...how was your day?" Bugs asked.

"About normal, all fucked up. Jerry just ordered pizza for everyone."

"Yaaay," Bugs yelped and pulled out his little tin box.

Joey shut the door and Bugs lit a joint.

"I saw Robby today," Joey said. "He saw my mother out at Eastpoint Mall...the bitch."

Red and Bugs knew the story; at least Joey knew his mother was still around. They smoked in silence until Bugs couldn't hold it in anymore.

"You gonna go back with your mom?" He asked.

Joey shook his head. "Oh hell no..."

"Don't blame you," Red said. "So who's this guy in the black car you been seein?"

"Black car...that's Jack," Joey said. "Weird man, but he pays."

"What's he like to do?" Bugs asked.

"None of your business, baby boy," Red laughed and Bugs pounced.

Joey liked these two boys; they made life in the house bearable. But since their little team had pulled off three forays into Fells Point in the past six months they decided to cool it. Red was out several nights a week on dates, Bugs was kept in check for the time being.

The boy was twelve and still hadn't reached puberty. But he was hanging out with a kid named Norman who lived up off Patterson Park Avenue. Joey vaguely remembered the kid, his momma was a hooker. But they were visiting Richard who was probably playing games with both of them.

After the pizza Joey decided he needed some thinking time and he walked up to the Park. It was a Thursday night; Paul was due to pick him up tomorrow at three. The whole ongoing argument with Benny had soured the relationship, Joey felt like it was time to move on. He just wasn't sure Paul was the answer.

With his mother back in the picture things were growing a lot more complicated. He missed his little brother, but he didn't know what was up with this new boyfriend of hers. His brother Mike had always been a quiet kid and that made Joey feel protective.

His mom's taste in men had been shit since his father left, they were all drunks and druggies ... he didn't expect this one to be any different. Joey knew that going back to her would change things with Paul, he didn't want that. He didn't know what he wanted.

There was no one sitting up in the trees, the bench was empty. Joey sat himself down in the dark. He was fifteen and yet he didn't feel one bit different than he had two years ago. The dates still liked his looks, he was careful about that. But although he might kiss a guy and suck his cock, Joey still didn't feel gay.

He'd seen that young girl again just this afternoon after Robby left. She looked fine even if she was only twelve. Her little tits were starting to grow and pretty soon her momma wouldn't let her wear those T-shirts anymore. The girl had been sitting on the steps of her row house and she'd responded to his smile.

Girls that age were such teases, but this one knew he was interested. Joey wanted to get her alone somewhere and see what she was made of. He'd never kissed a girl before, but she was too young ... wasn't she? Fuck, he didn't even know her name.

Joey left the bench and wandered up Eastern towards Broadway. Maybe if he just walked past her house she might see him. He turned up Wolfe Street; her house was halfway up the block. He walked on the far side of the street hoping to look up at the windows and see her. But the house was dark and so he crossed over to walk past her steps.

"Hi," A voice said, and Joey looked down to see her sitting on the steps to the passageway between houses.

"Hey," Joey replied. "What you doin outside?"

"My mom locked me out; I wasn't home when she left. You're Joey ... right?"

"Yeah ... that's me. How do you know my name? I don't even know yours."

"I'm Crystal ... and I asked a friend who you were. Wanna sit here with me until my mom gets home?"

"Um ... won't she be mad? She might think something is goin on," Joey said.

"No one can see us here, you could always leave the back way," Crystal said pointing down the corridor to the alley. "It's cool out here."

Joey took off his jacket and slid it over her shoulders as he sat down in the narrow opening. She was right up against him and he could smell her hair and ... the joint she'd been smoking.

"You get high?" Joey asked.

"Yeah, want some?" Crystal produced a joint, half smoked but fat as his little finger. "I roll 'em out of my mom's stash," She explained.

Joey smiled. "Yeah, I used to cop a buzz off my mom's weed too."

Crystal pulled out a book of matches, and expertly cupped the match as she struck it. She put the joint between Joey's lips and lit it. He took a toke and then held it to her lips so she could smoke. It took all of three minutes for the buzz to wash over him, and Joey gave her a grin as she put out the roach.

"Thanks ... that was sweet ... you're sweet," He said.

Crystal leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "I wish we could go inside," She said.

"When is your momma due back?"

"In about three hours or so ... you wanna go somewhere?"

"Uh ... maybe we could go up Ann ... do you know Lou?" Joey asked.

"No ... who's that?"

"He's a guy who lets us use his house to party, he's cool."

Crystal nodded. "If you know him ... that's OK."

They walked down the alley and crossed over to Ann Street, staying in the shadows the whole time. Joey didn't want to be seen with Crystal, what if someone told her momma? But the girl was following him and the alley was always dark. The door to Lou's was unlocked, but the front room was empty with only a small lamp to light the space.

Joey was aroused; he'd been that way since finishing the joint. There was no way to know what Chrystal knew about sex, but he was about to find out. The door to the back room was shut; Lou might be in there so Joey led her upstairs. The spare room had chairs and the one couch, but the door had a lock and he turned it now.

Chrystal seemed a little shy now, alone with a strange boy. But Joey sat on the couch and smiled up at her as she sat down in his lap. The kiss wasn't innocent this time and her hands slid around his neck to pull them together.

She had to know he was aroused; her butt was right on top of it. Joey leaned over and they both lay down on the couch.

"I ... I've never done anything like this before," Chrystal said.

Joey smiled. "But you want to ... don't worry."

His hand went up under her shirt, fingers caressing her tiny mounds, and Chrystal moaned with delight. Joey unsnapped the waist of her shorts and his hand slid down between her legs, she was wet and warm down there. But a probe with his finger told him she was tight ... too tight to fuck even if she did have pubes.

But Chrystal had her own ideas about pleasing a boy and they were soon naked and turned around head to crotch. Joey had sucked cock; this was just a different piece of anatomy. But when she went down on his hardness Joey forgot all about his inexperience, this girl knew what to do.

He could feel her body tremble as he used his tongue to thrill her. Chrystal might be too small to penetrate, but that would change. She had her orgasm before he did, groaning around the cock stuffed down her throat. That did it, and Joey cut loose, amazed that she didn't miss a drop.

After they got dressed she kissed him again and then sat back. "My momma has a vibrator, I'm gonna start using it."

Joey laughed. "No hurry is there?"

Chrystal groped his crotch. "Yeah, I wanna get fucked by you."

They slid back thru the alley to the steps and finished smoking the joint. They were still kissing when Chrystal saw her mother's car drive up the street. Joey walked down the corridor and turned the corner, vanishing like a ninja.

He was still thinking about her smell as he lay face down on a towel in the warm sand. Paul spread suntan lotion on his hands and began to rub it on Joey's back and shoulders. They had been here two days and to Paul the boy seemed like a different person, peaceful and content.

The kid had been in awe of Atlantic City and its boardwalk; he'd never been to a beach before. Paul and Bob spent the first day watching Brian and Joey wear themselves out in the surf, like two seals the boys threw themselves into the waves time and again.

They had chosen the Jersey shore instead of the Delaware or Maryland coast for one simple reason, the boys. Their circle of gay friends in the city always crossed the Bay and went to the gay beaches in Delaware. Paul couldn't imagine himself enthroned on a gay beach with a young boy and Bob...well, he was afraid Brian might actually enjoy a taste of gay lifestyle and their relationship wasn't secure enough yet.

The first night they had arrived at the hotel late and the boys had practically been asleep on their feet, so they got tucked in with a kiss good night. The second night the kiddies were so exhausted from playing in the surf all day they were conked out by ten o'clock. None of them had even mentioned the word sex the whole time, it felt wonderful.

"All done, kiddo," Paul said. "Why don't you and Brian go in for one last dip before we head back to the hotel, it's almost dinner time."

"Great, thanks," Joey replied, "Sure you don't want to join us?"

"No way, I've been out in the sun too much already," Paul said.

"Ok, I'm getting hungry again," the boy replied as he took off towards the water.

Joey and Brian had amazing appetites. They had eaten pizza by the yard, hot dogs by the handful and consumed enough lemonade to float a battleship, just your typical family outing.

"So what do we do to top this?" Bob chuckled.

"Good question," Paul said, "When does the house land in Oz, Dorothy? I'll have to take the boy in town when we get back, do dinner and then spend the next twenty-four hours catching up on the work that's piling up on my desk."

"Maybe you need a babysitter to watch over him while you work? You could hire Brian to take him mall hopping occasionally. Isn't that what kids like to do?"

"They go mall hopping to look at girls, my friend ... is that what you want Brian doing?" Paul asked.

"Hmm, wondered why he spent so much time over there, scratch that." Bob said.

"What I really need is to start tutoring Joey; he can't read worth a damn. We got a man to the moon and half the city is illiterate, it's pathetic. Remember the mayor's slogan? 'Baltimore, the city that reads,' what a joke. It's more like the city that breeds ... ignorance and contempt for education. Sorry Bob, I'll climb down off my soap box now, it just makes me so angry."

"Maybe you should run for office, a lot of gay men are working city hall and even the statehouse," Bob said.

"Oh yeah, just what I need, a high profile. I can see it now, introducing Commissioner Saunders and his boyfriend Joey. Slap the cuffs on me now will ya? "

"So, you think of him as your boyfriend now? Are you sure?" Bob asked.

"I'm not sure of anything. Hell, I still haven't had sex with him and it's been two years. He's too damn young between the ears. But I care about him even though I know he thinks I'm weird. Every other guy went straight for his pants, what else can he think?"

"That you're a smart man who's willing to wait until he grows up."

"They don't think like that at fifteen, I sure didn't," Paul laughed. "On a serious note, Joey said his mother was spotted out at Eastpoint Mall."

"Is he going back to her or is he staying on at that man's house?" Bob asked.

Joey had finally revealed his living situation. All the time he had spent with Paul, nights away from home, and now this trip, the boy had to explain everything. Paul wasn't surprised; he'd met a few other boys off the street. It was sad that Joey's mother had abandoned him at such a young age, he couldn't think of a good reason for a parent to do something like that.

But this boy was a survivor, and so far he was succeeding. The house on Boston Street was a big bad secret; Joey had made Paul swear not to reveal anything about Benny. So of course he told Bob, they shared everything. But Paul also knew that Benny was the source of tension in the boy's life. The man was a petty crook, a pimp and a pervert. If the need arose Paul could have him removed from the scene.

The boys ran back up to the umbrella where Paul and Bob sat. They stood in the bright sun and toweled off the salty water, shaking their long hair like a couple of dogs and spraying droplets on everything in sight. It was a sight worth remembering.

Brian was as skinny as his younger companion which wasn't good; he was malnourished like most of the street boys. At eighteen he should have better muscle development, even a little body fat would show proper growth, but there wasn't an ounce. Joey on the other hand was developing long striated muscles in his arms and legs, an athletic body type.

Paul was proud of his own body. He had a hard, gym developed torso, a body built to take a punch and keep on going. And then there was Bob. Well, he was Bob, a latter day hippie with a totally nondescript body, you're average low fat, non-caloric, eat anytime kind of guy.

"Bet you're starved," Paul said, "Let's go find some dinner, both of you need to get out of the sun for a while anyway. Hate to see you get too burned while we still have a few days remaining."

They slogged through the sand back to the street and down the block to their hotel. Paul thought a shower would be best before food. Joey's skin showed quite a tan line when he removed his suit and he thrilled at the color of his naked body.

"Awesome, I look toasted," Joey said.

"Don't laugh now, wait until you hit the shower, that's when you'll feel the burn," Paul replied.

Paul was on the balcony knocking the sand from his shoes when he heard Joey let out a yelp from the bathroom. The kid loved hot water and his sunburn must have hurt. Paul went over and opened the door.

"You better use colder water kiddo, or you'll be disturbing the entire hotel."

"Hey, want to shower with me?" Joey said suggestively.

"If I shower with you all we'll do is get clean," Paul replied.

"I was just kidding."

Paul enjoyed the way Joey had come to some small understandings about their relationship together. The time would soon come when he would have to face up to the responsibility. Having Joey live with him was something Paul was seriously considering. The beach was a reward, a carrot dangling in front of his nose, an incentive to come closer and be loved.

Since they had been together, Joey had developed certain feelings about Paul and they confused him terribly. The man had gone further then any other guy to be nice to him. What was he feeling right now, this very moment? Paul was standing there washing the burns on his back so very gently, his touch so kind and tender. Afraid to hurt me, Joey thought.

It had seemed strange at first, the lack of sex just didn't seem right. But Paul could be affectionate, and that meant sex would happen one day. Maybe he was too young for the man in a grown up sense, but Joey was beginning to understand that Paul was worth waiting for. Strange thoughts for a straight boy.

"What are you thinking, little man?" Paul asked. "You're standing there in a complete daze; did the sun get to you?"

"I just don't know myself any more," Joey mumbled, "I'm confused."

Paul turned off the water, grabbed a towel and proceeded to dry the boy's hair. "Confused about what Joey? Is it anything I can help you with?"

"I don't understand how I feel about things any more; it's all become so confusing."

"There's nothing to be afraid of, I'm here for you. We can slow down if you want. Maybe you're discovering how I feel about you and finally trust me enough to know it's real. I hope that somehow there's a bit of love inside of you for me too."

Oh God, he'd said the word, did the boy understand?

"Do you really love me; do you feel like I'm your boyfriend?"

"That's up to you. All you've been doing is playing games with guys, one after another so you've never made a commitment to one person before. It doesn't give you much to work with does it?" Paul said.

"But I want to have sex with a girl, won't that change the way I feel about you?"

"Sure, I hope so," Paul said. "Sex with women is great; sex with guys is great too. But a straight man chooses women because that's what he wants. You haven't found out what you want yet, but when you do I'll have my answer."

"So then I need to have sex with a woman to find out if I'm gay? Wow, what a reason to get laid. Shit, talk about pressure, if that's in my head I probably won't be able to get it up." Joey groaned.

"I suppose you'll be asking me to find you a hooker next, is that it?" Paul asked.

"Yeah right, now there's a good idea. No, I know a girl but she's not ready yet," Joey replied.

"At least you're smart enough to know that, good for you."

They met Bob and Brian out on the terrace behind the hotel. Neither boy knew much about seafood so they skipped that idea and went to the Italian place on the corner. The restaurant was dark but both boys were burned enough that they seemed to glow. Paul was afraid it would be an uncomfortable night for sleep.

The sun was just about gone when they took a final stroll on the boardwalk. The boys ran into an arcade while the adults took a seat on the bench outside.

"Mine's cooked about medium rare, and yours?" Bob asked.

"Burned, he'll be in pain tonight. Hmm, will you look at that. I love the sights on the boardwalk.

The boy in question was a handsome blonde youth of maybe fifteen or sixteen. He was deeply tanned, had on expensive clothes and wore a heavy gold chain around his neck. The kid was standing against the wall of the arcade and seemed very much attached to some Mafia looking type who was talking insistently into a pay phone.

"Someone's got a sugar daddy," Bob said.

"You think?" Paul replied. "He sure looks the type."

The kid looked bored out of his skull and seemed to be focusing on removing some non-existent specks of lint from his shirt when the boys walked out of the arcade. Joey plopped down on the bench beside Paul and looked around.

"Hey, that's Terry," Joey said, "I know him. He's one of Hal's boys, what's he doing here?"

"Maybe you should go ask him," Brian suggested, "I'd love to know."

"Who is Hal?" Paul asked.

"Um, he drives by the park sometimes, haven't seen him lately," Joey said.

"And ... ?" Paul said.

"Oh, he's into flashy boys and makes movies. Let me go talk to Terry."

As they all watched, Joey slipped up to the boy and said something. Terry looked startled but then realized it was his old buddy and shook Joey's hand. The guy on the phone was oblivious to everything and so Joey managed to get the kid to come over and meet his friends.

"Terry, this is Bob and Paul, you know Brian," Joey said.

"Hey Terry, long time man, what's up?" Brian asked. Looking at Paul and Bob he added,

"They're cool."

"I got me a job man, with that dude over there. I'm his house boy, know what I mean?"

"I don't suppose you actually clean his house?" Bob asked.

"Naw, I just have to serve drinks at his parties and go round with him places. He buys me stuff like these cool clothes. Last week I had to pose like a statue at a party, no clothes, just a tiny little strap to cover my dick. I made good bucks for that gig."

Paul could just imagine what else Terry had to do for the money, but he seemed happy to be doing it. On close examination the boy looked like he'd been through a makeover. His skin was flawless and the haircut was easily a hundred dollar razor job. Somebody was shelling out the dollars for this kid to look so hot and they had succeeded. But why a Baltimore kid, he wondered?

Terry and the boys had moved into their own little private conversation, a lot of gestures and information was being passed along. Paul hoped Joey would share some of it later. The guy hung up the phone and in a flash Terry left them and was quickly striding beside the man, acting like a trained dog as they sped up the boardwalk. That was it, Paul thought, the boy had become this guy's slave. He knew there were some real control freaks out there and boys willing to play the role for lots of cash. He would bet the kid was into S & M too.

"He's in way over his head, Joey, don't you think?" Brian said.

"He's always been a tough little guy though, I haven't seen him in a while, and he sure has built up his body. Looks pretty good, don't you think Paul?"

"Physically he looks great, wonder what his head's like though. Some of those guys play pretty rough I hear. OK, forget him; it's time to shoot the ducks. Joey beat me last night and I want revenge."

"No way," Joey laughed, "I'm gonna do it to you again."

And so he did. Maybe Paul missed a lot on purpose, the damn little ducks just wouldn't fall over for him. But if that was bad, Joey and Brian both excelled at video games. Bob refused to enter the fray but Paul was skunked time and again to the accompaniment of loud, raucous laughter from the boys.

The vacation days would be over too soon Paul felt. Having this time with the boy and watching him have fun hardly made up for the fact that he would soon have to put Joey back on the sidewalk. It was time to make a decision about the boy's future, and where this relationship was going.

Paul could understand why Joey had chosen what he saw as security with someone like Benny, but that had been two years ago. Now his mother was back, or at least back in the city from God knows where. She may have abandoned him, but she was still his mother. Taking custody of the boy would be a whole lot easier through her; he had to work on it.

Joey was still excited on the three hour drive back; the week away had raised his spirits tremendously. Paul didn't know what the boy faced when he returned, but Joey didn't seem to have a care in the world. They dropped him off on the sidewalk by the park with promises of getting together the following night. Paul watched Joey run across the street in his rearview mirror as he drove away.

He felt the loss immediately once they turned the corner. What was it? The feelings had grown stronger every time he thought about Joey. Strangely enough the sexual desires hadn't developed as he thought they might. He was afraid that he would start making excuses that would overcome his need to see the boy as a child, but it hadn't happened yet.

Joey felt the loss as he got out of the car, but he had already spotted Robby running around up by the Pagoda. He ran up the slope until Robby saw him and broke away from the other boys.

"Joey ... wow, you're burned," Robby said. "She's back, has a house right over on Collington."

"Who ... what are you talkin about?"

"Your mother, she's livin in this corner house off the alley with that motorcycle guy, his bike is in the garage and...what?" Robby asked.

"Why should I care?" Joey snorted. "She don't want me back."

"I think she does, at least that's what Mike said...go ask him."

"I'm not going over there," Joey replied.

"You won't have to, he's sittin right over there," Robby said.

Joey looked up at the line of benches by the Pagoda and saw his little brother staring. Twelve years old and still shy as a girl, Joey thought. But Mike was a smart kid, he was still in school. Joey walked over and Robby followed along.

"Hey, Mike...where you been?" Joey asked.

"I ... I missed you," Mike said, and then he started crying.

Joey smiled, same old Mike, always too sensitive and emotional. He sat down beside his brother and slid an arm across the boy's shoulders. "I missed you too, Mike."

It took a while for the boy to settle down, but Joey sat with him until he dried his eyes, then the questions began.

"Who's this guy mom's with?" Joey asked.

Mike frowned. "His name is Bill Barnett...he's an asshole," Mike said.

Joey smiled. "We've never liked any of the men she's gone out with, so he's a biker, huh?"

"Yeah," Mike said.

There was more Mike wanted to say, Joey could feel it. But his brother was never direct, and pressing him for information was not the way to get answers.

"So where have you guys been for the past two years?"

"Mom said you ran off and she couldn't find you. She couldn't pay the rent so we had to get out of that house. I was mad at her for leaving you. Then we went out Dundalk way and she met up with this guy Bill, he doesn't like me much." Those were a lot of words from Mike; the boy rarely had that much to say about anything.

"If he doesn't like you then I know there's no room for me," Joey said.

"But I want you back, I need you to ... " And then Mike stopped talking.

"What?" Joey asked. "Is he mean to you?"

"I ... I can't say, he'll be mad at me," Mike said.

"What the hell, you go on and tell me what's wrong ... I'll kick his fucking ass if he bothers you."

Mike shook his head and seemed about to cry again. "I can't, just come home with me, will you?"

It wasn't what he wanted but Joey knew he had to find out what Mike was worried about. His mother was pretty much an ass when it came to picking men. All that thumping and groaning in her bedroom at night had kept him up so many nights, he was sure that was Mike's big concern.

Robby had hung back as Joey talked with Mike, but now he saw them get up and he rushed over. "You going to see your mom?" Robby asked.

"I guess, Benny is gonna have a fit if I go back to her," Joey said.

"He's not good for you, Joey ... we both know that, you guys fight too much."

"Let me go see what Mom has to say, I'll catch you later," Joey said.

Sharon Dabrowski didn't seem at all surprised to see her son walk in the door, but she sat and waited to see what he had to say first.

"What the fuck, Mom ... I ended up on the street," Joey said.

"Don't talk shit to me, you ran off and I couldn't find you. What brings you back?" Sharon asked.

"Mike did, he needs me for some damn reason," Joey said.

"You can stay then, but I'll have to talk to Bill about it."

"Shit, Mom ... you ain't married to that asshole, what does he have to say about it?"

She reached out to slap him but Joey caught her hand and pushed it away. "There won't be none of that anymore," Joey said. "If I come back it's for Mike, not you or him. This guy Bill better not mess with me either or he'll be sorry."

"Oh, Mr. Dangerous now is you?" Sharon said.

Joey gave her a cold hard stare. "Something like that. You don't want to meet some of the people I know now."

Joey turned away and Mike followed him back to the front stoop. Joey had seen the moment of fear flash through his Mom's eyes, good...let her worry. It wasn't long before they could hear sounds in the kitchen coming through the screen door. If nothing else Sharon was a good cook, most of her part time jobs had been in someone's kitchen, at least when she wasn't tending bar.

Joey and Mike sat and watched the cars moving up and down the street. Some kids were up at the church on the corner playing with a pile of old mattresses in the side yard. Mike had never been social with other kids in the neighborhood, he preferred family.

Sharon finally came to the door. "You boys come inside and eat something," She said.

Joey followed Mike through the door. "Where's this guy Bill?"

"He'll be back later, you boys eat now," Sharon said.

"You want me gone when he gets back? When do I get to meet him?" Joey asked.

"I need to talk to him first, this is his house. Mike has room for you upstairs, Bill just hates a surprise, that's all. He knows about you, I told him that much."

"OK." Joey sat down to eat and that seemed to make Mike happy. Chicken fried steak with gravy and potatoes sat on the plate, Sharon knew what her boys liked to eat. She sat with a beer in hand and watched them eat.

Joey had grown up considerably, he looked lean and tough. Someone has been taking care of him, she thought, but he probably wouldn't tell her. He looked tanned and there was one of those shell necklaces around his neck. Had he been to the beach? Maybe he would tell her if she asked.

But she wasn't stupid, everyone knew what the boys in the park did, talking about it wasn't necessary. If Joey had been out with some guy then he had done it to survive. Working at the bars had allowed her to hear a lot of talk. Some men said things when they were drunk, things no mother ever wanted to hear.

If Joey had been out dating men for money then she was in no position to stop him. The game had been played for generations, just like the women who prostituted themselves; the boys had played around for decades. She just hoped Joey wouldn't get caught; the cops weren't ignorant, just inattentive.

"You got yourself a nice tan," Sharon said.

Joey smiled. "I just got back from Atlantic City. Brian and I went up there ... great beach."

"Brian Bookbinder, is he still around?"

"Yeah, he's eighteen now," Joey said.

"When can we go to the beach?" Mike asked.

"Bill and I both work, sweetie ... maybe we can get some time off next month," Sharon said.

Mike had heard that line all his life; there was never a next month. "Can I go with Joey if he goes back?"

"No...not with Brian, you know what I think of him."

"He's moving to Towson, he's back in school," Joey said.

"He's still a ... druggie," Sharon said. "You smokin pot now?"

Joey glared at her and bit his tongue. His momma did more drugs than most of his friends. He would bet that Bill had something to do with it too. But he would say nothing because he knew she couldn't change his friendships, those days were over.

Joey left after dinner still not knowing what Mike was upset about. But the boys hugged before he walked out the door. He would see Mike tomorrow; there would be time to talk. Joey ran up the street and ducked into the corridor between two houses and waited. He had a clear view of the alley, and it wasn't long before he heard the motorcycle.

Bill was just another biker, the type his mother favored, beefy and ugly. Joey peeked around the corner watching as Bill rolled the bike into the back yard and locked the gate. Maybe the guy was cool; it was too soon to tell. Joey turned around and made his way back to Benny's.


On to Chapter Five

Back to Chapter Three

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"Whistler's Club" Copyright © 2010 by Chris James. All rights reserved.
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