BUILD YOURSELF A BETTER BOYFRIEND

By

MICHAEL S. WITHERSPOON

Adam Simon was tired as hell what with his heavy workload at the office and so after a quick dinner he sat mindlessly watching television. But when one of those weekly hour-long news programs came on he sat straight up. The intro before the real program came on said, “Stay tuned for our special hour-long look about how to build a better boyfriend”, and then went to commercial. Well, needless to say he wanted to hear what they had to say on the subject. Since he came out of the closet he had not had one decent relationship. Maybe it was him or maybe it was them, who knew. His friends told him that he just kept getting involved with the wrong kind of guy. If ‘the wrong guys’ were airplanes, then certainly he must be the airport from hell. He was sure that this program was probably geared to the female audience but what the heck, maybe the good doctors on this show could throw a little help his way too. A quick trip to the kitchen for another soda and he made it back to the sofa just in time to see the program from start to finish. And he didn’t budge an inch till it was over.

“Welcome to our show tonight.” The commentator started. “Have you had a string of bad relationships (DUH) or perhaps just one that was so devastating that you are unwilling to go out and test the waters again? Well we just might have the ideal man for you, because you build him just the way you want him. Our guest tonight is Dr. Ivan Mandalay and he is here to talk to us about the new android technology that will soon be available. Get a pen and a piece of paper ready because at the end of our show we will tell you where to call to have a chance to participate in a research study program and receive one of these androids free for just being part of a test study.”, The anchor said.

The good doctor and his staff had created these little beauties that could easily be mistaken for human. One of them was sitting right there, listening and talking with the doctor and they didn’t tell you that he was one of them until the middle of the show. The inner workings (computer chips, data banks, voice recognition and audio-video feeds, etc, etc.) were already programmed for normal operations and only waited for its owner’s commands to complete them. His exterior, the hair, eyes; body type and skin tone were all waiting for the owners to describe in detail the complete the package. The android would then listen to your voice as it’s master/mistress and from that point on you would be in complete control. “For taking part in this controlled experiment there will be no monetary payments, other than any possible damages, however if things work out well and you wish to keep your android lover, it will be yours free of charge, except for normal maintenance.” Dr. Mandalay said. “They will sell for around half a million dollars each when they go on the market, so you can see we are not talking about toys here. The programming that you enter would be for personal commands such as personal security and for protection, or for having him enjoy the same things as you do, and display affection in the manner that you dictate. Those are the kinds of things that you will want to add.”

Adam was getting a raging hard on just looking at the already completed models, and at this point he still didn‘t know that the doctors assistant on this show was one of them. Those guys could have just walked off of a photo shoot they were so hot. And you get to choose just about everything about the looks of your new buddy. Oddly enough, they said that they were looking for gay men and straight women in order to get an all round view of how things would go for future models and how to gage sales. It was further stated that your ‘boyfriend’ could be set up as a top, bottom or versatile and you choose everything about him right down to the size, shape and cut or uncut of his lower equipment. Adams head was spinning and he was even dizzier than normal. Your new ‘boyfriend’s’ body would be covered in a new material that was extremely realistic both to the sight and to the touch, and they were still waiting for their patent of an even newer skin, that they promised was realer than real. No one other than a doctor or other health care professional would be able to tell the difference. They went on and on throughout the rest of the hour, but Adam was simply waiting for the phone number to come up. He had the phone in his hand and was ready to dial instantly.

He could not believe his luck because when the number did show up on the screen he dialed it immediately, and got thru right away. He spoke with the woman that answered the phone and she took some preliminary information from him. It was being done on a first come first serve basis and he was definitely up there as his was the third call received. It would take them about twelve hours to run a background and credit check on him and make sure that he didn’t want his android to go around robbing banks or anything like that. (You know, you don’t even think about those kinds of things until they plant those seeds in your head.) Although there was a lot of programming that would keep that from happening, they wanted to go to every extreme to try and insure the safety of him and themselves. He would also put himself in front of you to protect you from being shot or otherwise harmed. The screening woman told him that he would be called between eight and ten o’clock the morning after next to make sure that everything checked out and asked him if there would be a problem with that. Also, to make insure the safety of their ‘boyfriend’, he was told not to speak to anyone of this matter. Not your parents (like that was going to happen) close friends, co-workers, absolutely no one. Once you are cleared you will need to spend about two weeks here with us, at our expense of course, including roundtrip airfare. At that time your preferences would be loaded into his data bank and you will also be making choices about his physical appearance. It would be nice if you already have a name chosen when you arrive so that he can start talking to you and he will recognize your voice as the main one to answer to. He will have no free will, ever. Don’t panic though, you will be able to give him additional commands when the two of you leave here. She then asked if he had any further questions at this time?”

He told her, “I’m just trying to absorb all of the information you have just given me. I know that I will have more questions as soon as we hang up but right now I’m drawing a blank.”

She said, “She understood and that if he had any questions or concerns to just write them down and he could ask them when he got there.”

He did very quickly ask, “Do the units have regular biological functions and were they sexually functional?”

“Your unit will be able digest food but it will be burned up inside his system, anything he drinks will come out in the normal fashion when his gages hit a certain limit and he will ask you for directions to the bathroom about a half hour before that happens.” She told Adam. “In the event you are one the road or in an area where facilities are not available, he can wait up till one hour beyond that limit. Sexually he will be able to function with the grace and ease of a regular human male and a fluid imitating sperm will be released on your command that is harmless to humans, can be ingested and has a pleasant mint like flavor.” And on that note, they ended their conversation.

He barely slept for a day and a half, even calling in sick from his cell phone so as not to miss a possible early call. He knew his background check would go through, he had to have one for work because his company worked on government contracts and all employees had to be cleared. He kept the television and radios turned way down low so as not to miss the call. Reading was out of the question as his concentration was nil. He had tried to read and read the same paragraph of the newspaper three times and still could not tell you what he had read.

As a distraction Adam tried to make up a list of names for his ‘boy friend’ but nothing seemed right. He didn’t want anything too macho nor too feminine either. Definitely none of his old boyfriends, lovers or tricks names would do. Then he remembered that his sister Maryann had left a book of baby’s names when she was visiting. She had come to town to spend some time with her older brother and started having morning sickness. They had gone out to by a couple of those home pregnancy tests to check and make sure before calling her husband who had been unable to make the trip with her. She saw the book and picked it up just to browse threw, bought it and wound up leaving it there for him just in case he ever got pregnant. A joke between them. since she was the only one in the family that knew about his true sexual orientation. It turned out that she was pregnant and flew back home to tell him in person. Adam took a pencil and started at the back of the book moving forward, scratching out the names he knew he would definitely not use.

When he finally found the right name he could not believe he didn’t think of it on his own. Ethan. There was a film star a while back that was a very hot man and he teased with his friends after seeing one of his films that if he ever had a child he would name it Ethan whether it was a girl or a boy. Everyone got a laugh over that and called him a nellie old queen. Well wait till they see his baby Ethan now. He wondered if Ethan would be able to tolerate alcohol or not. If you are going to be able to hang with his friends you better be able to. While he was thinking about he wrote down that question.

Finally the phone call came in and he was told that he was approved for the experiment. The following Friday he would go to the airport, his ticket would be prepaid waiting for him and all he had to do is show them a picture ID at the ticket counter and they would hand him his roundtrip ticket to New York City. She had given him the time of the flight, the flight number and the name of airline, and then told him that someone would be there to meet him on there end and drive him the rest of the way. It would be a two-hour ride after the flight, so he should wear something comfortable. When he arrived he would first be taken to his room and someone would come and get him after he had a chance to freshen up and unwind. And after that they would take things one step at a time. It will probably be three or four days before you actually get to see him but don’t be worried or disappointed. We will be getting your specifications for him and doing some voice matching with you and teaching you some commands to use and teach you some minimal maintenance that you will have to be able to perform to keep him up and running so that nothing major goes wrong.

A friend drove him to the airport and promised to check his mail while he was gone. At the airport his friend asked again for an emergency phone number and he said that he had packed it but would call later in the day and leave it on his machine. He wasn’t sure if there would be a phone in his room or not that would allow for incoming calls, but the friend felt better knowing that he would call.

It was turning out to be a glorious day. Not a cloud in the sky as he waited for the skycap to finish tagging his luggage. Once inside, he marched his happy ass right over to the ticket counter and said that he had a prepaid ticket on the computer and handed the agent his driver’s license. She keyed in some information and she handed him his ticket, told him his gate number and pointed him in the general direction of the gates. He checked his watch and found he had enough time to get one more diet soda down before the flight. I will probably be pissing myself to death on the plane, he thought. With his newly acquired soda, briefcase and trench coat in hand he headed down to the gate. When he checked in at the gate they told him that he would be sitting in first class today and he said something about a first time for everything and she looked at him with a puzzled face. He figured that most passengers knew what part of the plane they would be sitting in even if he didn’t.

A light brunch was served and he had a Bloody Mary, since they were free. His flight was as smooth as ice until the got close to the New York area. The flight attendants were telling the passengers that there was a light snowstorm surrounding the airport and there was a lot of wind associated with it. The captain was making the adjustment now to correct things and assure a safe landing. Adam ordered another Bloody Mary and asked her to make it a double. Within a half-hour they had touched down to a very smooth landing. As he was deplaning he noticed that the snow was really coming down now. When he finally reached the terminal side of that tunnel he saw an older man in a driver’s uniform holding a place card with his name on it and he signaled the driver over to the side. The driver first took him to the limo with the heat already on, and then he took Adams tickets and collected his bags and put them in the trunk of the limo. The old fart knew how to drive on those icy roads and since Adam was nice enough to tell him to just call him Adam the driver softened up and started pointing out what he thought were sights of interest. The third shot of vodka was kicking his ass and he told the driver he might just nod off for a bit. When he awoke they were at the offices of the MANN Industrial Complex. Not knowing if this was the place or not, Adam waited for the driver to catch the door. He said that his bags would be sent directly to his room. Adam tried to tip him but he explained that they paid him quite handsomely and he was not permitted to take tips. He did, however, thank him for the offer.

Once inside the main building people were falling all over him. They only had one ‘host’ (what they called the recipients of the androids) arriving on any given day so they had more than adequate staff. Six of the staff members were gathered around a large conference table as the seventh led him in. At the time he had no idea why there were so many but he would be told later. Two of them were psychologist and a psychiatrist, one was a doctor, a nurse, one was a biological engineer, a linguistics coach and the seventh was a facilitator for the whole group. They put him through a battery of questions some right on top of the other. What they wanted to see partly was how he would be able to stand up under stress. If they had just asked him he would gladly have told them what his last five lovers had put him through and why this was going to be the best thing that ever happened to him. In fact, the psychiatrist and the psychologist would be questioning him on his former relationships to hopefully prevent the same thing from happening with their android. When they asked him if he had chosen a name yet, he told them right away. They asked why that name and he explained it to them. Would he like the android to look like the actor? He said, Hell no, everyone would be after him and trying to take him away from me if I did. Mind you I want him to be very good looking but there is already one Ethan, the actor and person. If anything ever happened to him, I would be saddened at the very sight of my android.”

The group at the table had been waiting for him to speak of the android in a possessive phrasing. He did not know how they were grading him but he passed this test at least. After about fifteen more minutes of questioning he was taken to his room. The room was really a suite of rooms and he almost wondered if they were going to put two or three other people in there with him. It was every bit as large as his apartment back home. His clothes were already unpacked and put on hangers or in drawers. Hell this place was so nice maybe they would just let him and Ethan stay here. There was a twenty-four hour cafeteria that served just about anything you could imagine, and you didn’t have to wash the dishes either. If you wanted to just stay in your room and eat, you could just call in an order and they would deliver it to your room. There was a television with all of the cable channels you could possibly ask for and a VCR but no tapes and no mention of a library either. There was a phone in the room for incoming and outgoing calls but there was no secretarial service. He called his friend back home and gave him the phone number and told him that his Aunt had no answering machine so he should just keep trying if there was an emergency. Adam also gave him his sisters phone number and quickly called her to tell her he was out of town for two weeks and had told the guys he was in New York with his Aunt. She laughed and said that they didn’t have an Aunt in New York and he said he knew. She tried pumping him for information as to where he really was and he told her she would have to wait for when his memoirs were published. They talked for a couple of minutes and then he hung up. He knew that all of this secrecy would drive her nuts because they have always told each other everything since they were kids.

About an hour after he got to his room there was a knock at his door. The medical doctor wanted to get a complete history and physical on him and thought he might be more comfortable doing it here rather than some cold, sterile office. Adam agreed that it would as he hated doctor’s offices all his life. He collected the history information in great detail and then told him to strip to his underwear. The problem was that he wasn’t wearing any and forgot that fact until his trousers were half way off and he was already exposed. The doctor quickly reassured him that this was okay, he was quite used to seeing the male human anatomy and found no shame in it. He poked and probed everywhere and then took some blood samples and told him he could dress now if he liked or just stay naked however he felt most comfortable. Adam retrieved his bathrobe and put that on. They talked for a few minutes longer and then the doctor asked him if he would like to join him for dinner. Adam told the doctor that he thought he would but he needed to dress again and would meet him there. The doctor said he had to get the blood to the lab and put his reports in the computer and could meet him there in about fifteen minutes.

They found each other with little trouble, as there was hardly a soul in the place. Adam went for a killer bacon burger and fries, diet soda and cheesecake for desert. The doctor just had a shrimp salad and a glass of iced tea. He said he was trying to maintain his weight. Adam could eat anything with his metabolism and not put on a pound. But he didn’t feel the need to make the doctor hate him by disclosing this information. Adam queried the doctor as to his report on him and he stated that Adam was as sound as a bell they would just have to wait on the lab results to be certain. They talked for about an hour past finishing their dinner and then the doctor excused himself and thanked Adam for his company and left.

Adam returned to his room and stripped down to his robe again and watched a little bit of television. Again there came a knock on the door and this time it was the company lawyer wanting to ask him a few questions if he wasn’t too tired. This guy was a knock out and he could ask him anything he wanted. After letting him in, Adam said he would go put some clothes on and would return to the room. The lawyer said that it was okay, he looked pretty good just like that. So he joined the lawyer in the living room just as he was dressed. There were questions about him having a will and told him that he would have to make arrangements to turn Ethan over to a friend or family member or he would have to revert back to the company. Adam had honestly not given that any thought. Especially since he had not seen or interacted with Ethan as yet. So far he was still a dream waiting to come true. Then the lawyer talked to him about his financial future, had he made plans for the future; a 401k or IRA account; stocks or bonds? You will almost be taking on the role of an adoptive parent here and we are prepared to offer you financial advice if you would like. While Adam’s head was spinning, the lawyer asked if he might get something cold to drink. Adam walked the steps over to the fridge and returned with a canned soda and gave it to him. He then admitted to the lawyer that he had not really thought that far ahead and the lawyer told him that he could get back to them later, he just wanted to plant a few seeds.

Then out of nowhere, the lawyer told him. “You are a very handsome man and I’m sure you will make some lucky android very happy.”

Adam blushed and returned the compliment and asked, “Do you have a lover?” And was very surprised when the lawyer said, “No, but that the very sight of you is making me extremely excited.”

Adam told him, “I’m feeling the same way and the room is paid for, so unless you have some place you have to be I strongly suggest that you get comfortable.” The lawyer removed his suit jacket and tie and walked over to where Adam was now standing, took him in his arms and gave him one of those kisses that make you weak in the knees. The lawyer then untied Adams robe and let it fall to the floor. Next he let his hands follow all of the curves of Adams body and brought his hands to rest on his cheeks and ears and gave him another of those kisses. Adam was opening the buttons of the lawyer’s shirt as fast as he could and was fondling his nipples and burying his head in the hairy manly chest. Next he stepped back and undid his belt and trouser snap then tugged the zipper down until the pants fell to the floor. The lawyer slipped off his loafers and then stepped out of the pants and kicked them across the room. Adam bent down to the floor and helped him out of his socks and then pulled down his paisley boxer shorts and admired the view while the lawyer stepped out of them. As he rose from the floor, the lawyer lifted him up and carried him over to the bed and then got in next to him. This time their game of touching and feeling was extended to every inch of each other’s body. Hands and tongues going everywhere that they could. And some of the very best kissing that either had ever had. They got into some very hot sex and in every position imaginable, and then doing it all again. Adam was exhausted and covered with sweat. He told the lawyer he had not had sex in almost a year and it had never been that great. The lawyer agreed but said he had to go now but he would see him again before he left with his android.

Left alone with his just his thoughts, his head was just spinning. What if there was something wrong with his blood, maybe he had not done enough to protect the interest of the android and they would not let him have one. And if not, could he take the lawyer with him or stay here with the lawyer. The next thing he knew it was morning. They had not given him an itinerary so he didn’t know what to expect. He got dressed and headed downstairs for breakfast. He saw the doctor sitting alone and asked if might join him. They sat and talked about the results of some of the blood test. So far everything looks good the doctor had said. Then Adam asked him some questions about the company and commented on how smoothly everything seemed to be running. He answered all of Adams questions and said that the company had a rough start but that everything was going just smashingly now. He did not know what they had planned next for Adam but he could ask the next person that visited him. They should be able to help him. When they finished their meal he went back to his room and took a catnap while he waited.

He didn’t have long to wait. About a half-hour into his catnap a knock rapt on the door. It was the lawyer and he let him in. He said he was going to have a full day but wanted to know if they could meet for dinner and maybe he could stay the night. Adam’s response was an emphatic yes, and YES.

Ten minutes after the lawyer left there was another nock on the door and it was a Voice Recognition Specialist. She took him to a pair of booths in the east wing of the complex. After leading him into his booth she explained that she would be in the booth facing him. He had a set of headphones and a microphone that was built into the counter, and the height could be adjusted. There was a pitcher of ice water and a glass to his left for him to take drinks of water when she told him to. They would both be wearing the headphones and her microphone would go directly into his headphones. She would say a word and he would repeat it twice into his microphone, with a breath in between times. This was being done so that Ethan would be able to understand him when he spoke.

They would take a break at the top of each hour and this whole process would take about four hours. There was a thick cushion on his chair, otherwise he would have hemorrhoids the size of grapefruit by the time he got done. He was not looking forward to this but a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do for his boyfriend. It just hit him that she had said, his android, Ethan.”

He asked her, “How did you know what his name was, since they had not discussed it.”.

She told him, “All of the information gathered thus far was on the chart and since only one of them would be working with him at a time, they had Ethan’s name already on his chart. Would you like to change that name?” But Adam said no.

The time was actually passing faster then he had expected. After a long list of words, they went on to phrases and then sentences. Then she told him, “We will run your voice patterns through the computer tonight and let him know if everything went well or not. Sometimes we may have to call you back for a couple of words or phrases just to make absolutely certain things will run smoothly when the two of you leave here.” She led him back to his room and talked much less technically than she had over the last four hours. Almost pleasant and with a lilt. “If something needed to be repeated we will call you by ten o’clock in the morning. Otherwise it was nice meeting you.” He said the same and then went into his room and took a quick shower before meeting the lawyer for dinner.

The lawyer was standing by the entrance of the dining hall waiting on him. Adam told him that he should have gone in rather than wait for him. But the lawyer told him, “Just watching you walk down the hallway made it all worth the wait.” Adam started blushing then the lawyer turned and led the way into the seating area where they sat and talked for a couple of minutes.

Adam said to him. “I feel so embarrassed, I never even asked your name last night. Come to think of it, no one has used their names around here.”

The lawyer told him. “They were simply not allowed to use names. We use our employee numbers even when talking to each other and that his was seven twenty-six. But you can just call me Seven.”

Adam cracked up and was saying, “My birthday is July twenty-sixth, 7/26. No way, “

“Really?” The lawyer said. “I must have skipped right over that and not noticed. Well then, I’m starved and you are going to need your strength later so lets eat up.”

They talked more over dinner. The lawyer was asking where exactly was Adam from, what was it like there, did he have many friends, what kind of work did he do? Adam said to him, “If I didn’t know any better I might feel like I’m being interrogated.”

“I’m Sorry, I guess it is just the lawyer in me.” The lawyer said. They looked across the table at each other and knew that it was time to leave.

The sex was just as wild and as much fun as it was before or maybe even better, then their first pairing. When they finally took a break, Seven asked him, “What do you think or at least hope sex will be like when you and Ethan got back home?”

Adam said, “I’m not quite sure what I should expect, hopefully it would be as good as what we have had. I was hoping that everything would go well and that we would have a long and enjoyable life together.” Now it was Adam’s turn to do a little questioning, “Will Ethan have any kind of feelings or emotions?”

Seven told him, “With the technology of today as good as it is, a well tuned Ethan will have a type of emotion but he would be dedicated only towards you and there would be no chance of him leaving you. He would be a fool to want to.”

Seven (Adam hated all of this secrecy with the names thing) told Adam, “In my best opinion, you are the type of loving and caring individual that anyone in their right mind would be looking for to make a lifelong commitment with. The hours we have spent together will stay with me forever.”

Adam was almost in tears and started kissing him and holding him. Then Adam started telling him about all of the bad relationships he had been through and the heartache they had caused him not only during but even after the relationship had ended. To run into his former partner in the bars or worse than that was to see them with someone else, was a killer. He wasn’t really sure how it was that he survived those times, except for the love of his friends. And when the television show about this place and the androids came on, well it seemed like the perfect solution to a great deal of my problems. When you are happy at home it reflects on the rest of your life. Truth of the matter is, I feel like I’m cheating on Ethan with you and I haven’t even met him yet. That must sound stupid to you but that is just exactly how I feel.”

Seven told him, “That it didn’t sound stupid at all, actually it was quite romantic and that he to hoped to find the ideal mate someday. Someone just like Adam.”

Room service brought the coffee, juice and toast at nine the next morning just as Adam had ordered it for him and Seven. They had already showered and dressed and were talking and watching the morning news. There was a knock at the door and he found another technician waiting on the other side waiting to take him down to the lab and go over the plans for Ethan’s completion. Seven looked at his watch and said, “I’ve got to get to the office right now but I would like to call you or just come by later if that was okay.”

Adam said, “Sure.“ And locked the door to his suite before headed down to the lab with the technician.

When he got to the lab he found that with all of the choices to be made he could be there all day. Eye color, hair color, skin tone, language and accent, height, weight, build etc. It was overwhelming to say the least. He thought he knew exactly what he wanted before he left home but now he wasn’t sure. The last couple of nights that he spent with Seven had his head spinning. He felt like he might be falling in love with Seven. Not just his looks or the great sex, but he seemed to be exactly what Adam had been looking for in a man all of his life. Then again, Ethan would never leave him. Adam and Seven both had good jobs and established lives that would mean one of them might have to be up rooted and he didn’t see that happening. To have Ethan built to look and act like Seven would be an insult to them both, and even if Ethan didn’t know, he would. He wasn’t sure what to do. The lab technician asked him if there was a problem and he said yes, and asked if it would be possible to see one of the psychiatrists. She called the doctor and he was able to see him right away.

The doctor had made arrangements to meet with Adam in his suite, thinking he might be more comfortable there and more likely to open up. To his credit, Adam didn’t go straight for the liquor cabinet but just headed for the fridge and got a diet soda while he waited for the doctor to arrive. When he got there they sat at the small table in the kitchen to talk. Adam had some of the best talks of his life over a kitchen table. He spilled his guts talking to the doctor, holding nothing back. The doctor asked him what he wanted to do to solve this situation and Adam but said, quite honestly, he wasn’t sure. He asked the doctor, “Is there was any kind of advice that you could offer and the doctor said he wasn’t sure, this situation had never occurred before?” Adam was holding up, but he wasn’t sure for how much longer. The doctor said he had to check on a couple of things and asked if he could get back to him in a couple of hours and Adam said sure, no problem, and the doctor took his leave.

About an hour later Seven showed up at his door and asked if he could come in. Adam let him in and told him, “A problem has arisen.”

When he was asked what was wrong. Adam told him the whole story and wasn’t even trying to hold back the tears as he did. Seven walked over to where Adam was standing and took him into his arms, just holding him tight and letting him get it all out of his system. When he finished, he backed away and grabbed a tissue. Adam felt like some nellie old queen again, but with red puffy eyes. Adam said, “I know it must seem silly or stupid and maybe both, but I have fallen in love with you. You are like no man I have ever known. By far you are the best lover I have ever had. You don’t hold back your feeling, unless I am reading you wrong, and with my track record I must admit that it is possibility. On the other hand, I know that Ethan will never leave me. Will never get sick or die on me and will take care of me always. You might say that you would do all of the same things, but all of my former lovers said the same thing and then they changed over the course of time. And you could as well, and I don’t want to go thru that again I want and need the security of a relationship to regain myself confidence, to throw myself head first into my work and build a career for myself and a fuller richer life for my partner and me.”

The doctor showed up at the door just as Adam finished talking. When he opened the door, both doctors and the nurse were standing there and asked if they could all come in and Adam opened the door wide to allow their entrance. They moved to the living area and seated themselves as he and Seven followed suit. They ran out of seating and Seven went to the kitchen and brought back a chair from there to sit on.

The psychiatrist Adam had spoken to said, “We were prepared for some of our guests to have innocent flirtations with some of the staff members but nothing on this scale.”

Doctor number two told him, “You are only the fourth person from the outside to be here and that the others seemed to only want a “robot” and nothing more than that. Along with your deep emotional caring you have also displayed strong logic, both rational and emotional.”

The first doctor said, “Those seemed to be a rare quality indeed to show these characteristics, as most humans don’t seem to be able to make the stretch beyond themselves. You are aware, I am sure, that you signed a privacy contract with us when you checked in, and Adam nodded, but didn’t know what this was leading up to. Then brace yourself. Everyone in this room is an android.” They gave him a minute to look at all of them trying to find something to prove what the doctor was saying was untrue. Everyone looked normal and human, and then he looked at Seven who reached out his hand to him. He took it but he felt a sense of betrayal, from all of them.

The second doctor explained, “It was the express desire of their benefactor that no one ever knows that the entire staff are androids. He too had felt the many stings of romance and was about to live his life alone when an inventor came to him with an idea. The first android ever built was for their benefactor and she was his loving companion until the day he died. The second went to the inventor with the same results. She was built with every likeness and feeling of his wife that had died in childbirth along with their only child. Their goal was to help others find the same happiness they had once known.”

Doctor number one said, “Every profile we ran on you showed that you would be an ideal candidate, and you have proven that every time we tested you, although I’m sure you were not always aware you were being tested. And Seven, as you so lovingly call him, was sent to test your sexual energy levels, compassion levels and your ability to give and receive love. He was only sent here once, the second and third times were completely on his own. We are not robots, we are far beyond the tales of old science fiction. What we are is science fact if you must put a label on us. There are some emotions built into us but the ability to expand those emotions exists and we are sure that is the reason Seven came back. He came back to us and told us an abbreviated version of the one you told me earlier. He had requested to have all of his memory chips be stored into the unit you want named Ethan so that he could stay with you.”

Adam turned to Seven and asked him, “Maybe it would just be easier to name you Ethan. Ethan Simon for that matter.” Ethan smiled at him and said he would like that very much.

It was the doctor’s turn to talk now he was very much in favor. He felt that Adam would be able to help Ethan grow emotionally faster than by staying here in his present position. But before they went any further, the doctors wanted to know how he would feel about staying on with them. There was much for them to learn and him to teach about human emotions. It would be a paid position of course, double what you are making back home, a fully furnished two-bedroom condo in the tower for the two of you and a limo at your disposal. In return they would ask that he sign a five-year contract to work with them, one that could be renewed or cancelled after the first five-years was up. Adam was caught up in all of the jubilation and then a sort of frown came across his face.

When asked what the matter was, “Adam told them about something that had been bothering him since Ethan’s first visit. He had said that Adam would have to make arrangements for Ethan’s care once he was gone and that brought his own mortality into view. He didn’t want to ever live without him, but now it would be Ethan that would have to go on without him.”

Doctor number one said, “Adam, first off you are still a young man and secondly we are one step ahead of you. We are going to make a mold of your body now so that a couple of years down the road, well you know.        

CURLY BLONDE HAIR

By

MICHAEL S. WITHERSPOON

They lay together on the hospital bed. One stroking the others hair and head. The families are all gone now. It’s just the two of them there. The walls were as stark white as the sheets. The lights are dimmed now. Framed artwork of unknown painters hanging on every wall. Pictures so bland that they seemed to seep into the white paint of the walls. Bland. Just like the food that was served here, it served a purpose, but it lacked depth, quality and most of all taste.

The hour is early. Somewhere between darkness and dawn, yet, undefined. There’s only the noise of air conditioner vents grinding on. It’s a private room. Very private. Thoughts and memories were bouncing off of walls and resounded to their owner. Memories of all the years that had brought them to this point. Memories of how they met, courted, loved, fought and loved again. And lived. Oh how they had lived. Not your normal everyday existence. They lived life to the fullest. Had met every challenge that faced them and never ran away. Sometimes, alone with thoughts, one might forget the depth and strength of the love they shared. But not for long enough. They depended on each other, fed off of each other and they complimented each other. Where one would fail, the other would be right behind to pick up the pieces and get them on the road to recovery. None who knew the two as individuals, would ever put this picture together. And yet, in a Salvador Dali sort of way, it worked for them. It would not work for everyone, hell sometimes it didn't work that well for them. But always in the end things worked out.

They had built a house and a business together, along the highway of their lives. Successful ones. Born of their differences and similarities and with plenty of mistakes along the way. Families who supported them, showed pride in them, their dreams and accomplishments, and were there for support also when the failures came and went. They were never allowed to actually marry, being gay men, but they did have a commitment ceremony, a holy union as it were, and invited the ones they loved. They called all their friends and families to join in their union and celebrate the love they shared and made a statement to the gay and straight communities that this was not something to be taken lightly, for they did not, and would not tolerate any to tried to drive a wedge between them.

The years passed and both had been favored with Godchildren. Children who would grow up and not question why they were together. To this generation, they would be as normal as a mated pair of socks. Never a question. And maybe then this would be the enlightened generation. Perhaps as they grew to adulthood, their generation would be the first to see the legalization of marriage between two people who love each other, with that alone being the only criteria.

But, one of them would not be here to ever see that day come. He had passed away several hours ago, just before visiting hours ended. The family had stayed until about 10 pm and then had left the two of them to be together for awhile. And the survivor laid there on the bed there with him, playing with the curly locks of blonde hair, as he had done on many a night so that his lover could drift off to sleep. He combed his hair with his fingers again and again while waited for them to come and get his partner in life and love.

My baby sister fell in love with this story and was pissed that it was shorter than she wanted it to be, LOL

A DIFFERENT KIND OF ATLANTIS STORY

By

MICHAEL S. WITHERSPOON

Ronald Joseph Williams III, Ron to this friends just graduated from high school at the age of nineteen, a year later than most of his friends because of a severe bout with pneumonia. His lungs kept filling up with water and he had a hard time breathing at first but even as the bouts continued, he was still able to breath easily. His family fought long and hard with the doctors over medications that they wanted to give him. In the end, his parents won the battle and he seemed to be over it.

Ron always had loved the water and by the age of three he was able to swim on his own. His parents had also taught him how to hold his breath for extended periods of time. And increasing those periods frequently. The three of them were always at the beach or in their back yard pool. During his years in high school he joined the swim team and was very successful, winning races almost every time. Few people noticed that he was able to keep his head underwater for the entire length of the pool and back. Most that did notice this happening thought their eyes were deceiving them. He played a big part in his high school winning the state championships for four years running and the student body was very proud of him. He was well liked by most of the other students and ignored the others. He had learned that no one is liked by everyone, and he adjusted to that fact. He stands six-foot-one, weighs about a hundred and sixty most of the year, a little less during his swimming seasons. He’s got has a full head of raven black hair and a moustache and hairy chest to go with it. And the most beautiful dark chocolate eyes that sometimes appear black. Fair skin that will not tan but burns and peels and also has no blemishes. What kills all of the girls at school is his extra long eyelashes and the fact that he is openly gay. A virgin, but openly gay. Some members of the swim team were afraid to dress, undress or shower in front of him the first two years and then most of them got over it. He told them not to worry, that he wasn’t ready for sex right now. It got to be a joke among them after awhile because that was just about the only thing the rest of them were thinking about. He always went to the dances and danced with any of the girls that wanted to dance. His buddies felt safe with their girls in his arms and besides, that way they didn’t have to do any dancing. He was quite good at it as well and could do things that wowed the others. His parents loved to dance and he loved to watch them and then they taught him. Actually, he was very good at almost anything he ever attempted.

A few years back, he began watching his mother sew for a while and started doing it himself with a little help from her. Next thing you knew, he was making most of his own clothes that people were always complimenting him on them and asking where he got them. No one wanted to believe him when he told them the truth. People are like that sometimes, they will believe a flimsy lie but have trouble with the truth. He put together the home computer his father bought him, put together before his father was halfway through reading the instructions. Art fascinated him but it seemed to be the only thing that he couldn’t develop a talent for. But he did have a good eye for textures and style and instinctively knew who would be famous if they continued to paint.

After his prom a bunch of his buddies and he and their dates, yes he took a girl, someone that he liked a lot but not in that way, went on a midnight cruise on the Gulf of Mexico. They lived in Clearwater, Florida and the boats went out nightly. There was only a quarter moon that night so you had to depend mainly on the lights of the boat to get around and they were dimmed. The water was calm and there was a nice warm breeze blowing. Everyone had changed from their formal attire into shorts, bathing suits or other casual attire to be more comfortable. As everybody knew, the punch was spiked and more than a few would wind up holding their heads over the side of the boat before the night was over. Ron didn’t care for the taste of beer or liquor except to have an occasional glass of wine with his parents at dinner, so he went for the cans of soda that were also available, and he knew that they were safe. His parents rarely drank and only went out if there was something at school that concerned him, like his swim meets, or with the few couples they associated with. They were very quiet and close to the vest type people. But he loved his parents and they adored him.

Everyone had been having a good time and they had reached the halfway point and were turning the boat around. Ron was standing at the front of the boat just looking up at the sky when all of a sudden the boat jerked and he hit his head falling headfirst into the water. Several of the others saw what happened and started yelling “man over board.” Ron was sober and an excellent swimmer, so most were not that concerned initially. But he lost consciousness for a short period of time and was stuck to the underside of the boat. The captain ordered all engines to be stopped in case Ron tried to surface there. He didn’t realize as he was coming around but he was actually breathing in water. Rather than being afraid, he was more than fascinated by the fact. The piece of his shirt that had been stuck to the boat ripped and he began floating downward. The schools of fish seemed unconcerned as he floated down through them. Their shapes and colors were beautiful and he reached out to grab some of the plant life to examine it, but it passed through his fingers.

He noticed something speeding towards him from below and hoped that it was not a shark, maybe it was a dolphin or a Manatee he thought. But as it got closer, he realized that it was a naked man with shoulder length blonde hair. Not the usual yellowish blonde color, but almost a white. “Don’t panic, I’m here to help you and my name is Azard,” the other man spoke into Ron’s mind. He grabbed Ron by the hand and towed him as he swam faster than any boat or underwater craft Ron had known about or seen in his whole life. Sea life of every kind was flashing before his eyes as their journey continued down. Soon there was a cave and Ron was pulled in there with Azard and then they switched directions and went up to a cave that had air and places to sit or lay down and oil torches everywhere and all were ablaze. Once they broke the surface, Azard let him go and swam over to the sitting area as Ron followed and then started coughing up seawater and choking.

Once he was okay again, he asked, “Azard who are you? Do you live here? Are you some kind of a merman and what the hell was going on?”

Azard very rarely spoke orally and mostly through telepathy but he answered Ron’s questions aloud to make him feel more comfortable. “You fell off of the boat and by now everyone except your parents and their network of friends and family, think that you have drowned,” Azard told him. “This is one of about a hundred meeting chambers for our people who like to use them rather than staying in the city all of the time. No I am not a merman, my family, like yours, are descendents from the original Atlantis, and I brought you here to explain to you what your parents were soon going to tell you.”

Ron’s head was spinning like a top trying to comprehend what exactly was being said. Before he could ask the question, Azard said, “Yes, there really was an Atlantis and to tell you the truth, nearly all of it is still in tact. Most of the inhabitants went into what you would call space ships back to our home world in a different galaxy when they saw the large meteor heading for earth. Fortunately, most of it broke up and burned up in space and the rest just fell into the sea and causing some havoc here and there. But they were already home by the time they realized it. Atlantis has always been underwater although most believe that it sank, if it existed at all. Our ancestors all had gills around their necks and shoulders because they lived totally beneath the surface. The ones that stayed behind mostly learned to walk the earth and just come back for visits. I have been down here for ten years and I just love it. I couldn’t ever imagine ever going back up topside to live permanently.”

“My parents must be going insane right now or at least will be very soon,” Ron said.

“No, they know right exactly where you are, I have already talked to them.” Azard said.

“Telepathically you mean?” Ron asked.

Azard said, “They are listening to us right now. If you want to, I can give you their messages. They have always been able to read your mind but they blocked out personal things, so not to worry there. Your mother is laughing now, a very hardy laugh. She had to block your thoughts through most of the eleventh grade because of some guy named Gary.”

Ron turned as red as possible and then asked Azard, “Am I going to stay here or are you going to take me back?”

“That is totally up to you,” Azard told him. “We believe in arranged marriages here and you were promised to be my life-mate when you were first born. Our families were very close and they all knew that you too would be what the walkers call gay. I have waited a very long time for you to get here, but you actually arrived a couple of months ahead of schedule. Your parents were going to bring you down from the East Coast of the Florida land to avoid all of the tunnels. But if you choose to go back to your old life, I will not hold you to the agreement that our parents made so many years ago.”

“But how would I possible ever be able to do that, everyone must believe that I have drowned by now?” Ron asked Azard, looking straight into his pale blue gray eyes and having a sense of falling, quite literally.

“It has been arranged so that you can be found washed up on shore a little further down the beach,” Azard told him. “As if you went the wrong direction when you reached the surface. Or a couple of fishermen are standing by that will say they found you floating face up. You could be back in your old bed by tonight. It is totally up to you.”

“Do I have to decide right away, I mean can I spend some more time with you down here?” Ron asked and Azard’s heart skipped a beat. “I would like to know what I am walking or swimming into or away from as the case may be, before I make any decisions. Can I learn telepathy and be able to keep in touch with my parents? Will I ever see them again? How far is Atlantis, can I go and see where I might live first?”

Azard was laughing and then told Ron, “Your mother says that you were always the inquisitive child, questioning every thing, but that was probably why you’re so smart today. Yes, you can stay longer if you wish. Your parents said that if necessary that they could move to a different city so that you could come home for visits at anytime. Actually you are already telepathic but have not known that you have been using it. That is why people usually do what you want them to do. The strongest link is between you and your parents. Then I follow right behind them. We have talked for hours at a time but you never realized it. My name is painted on the inside garage wall, just above your father’s tool table and several other places it is written for you to see and become familiar with. The one thing that you never questioned your mother is saying and laughing again. She’s not laughing at you but at the situation.”

Then Ron heard his mother’s voice saying, “Tell him for us please, that we always meant to tell him about everything but there never seemed to be a right time to tell him before this.”

“It is all right mother, I probably would never have believed you anyway.” Ron said telepathically to his parents and Azard heard and was pleased that it came so fast to Ron.

Azard told his pending in-laws, “You never told me that he was so handsome, I might have walked just to come and meet him.” His comment sent Ron on another blushing spree. “I would love to take him around and then take him to the Great City before he makes his mind up, if that is permissible with you?”

“Yes, that’s what I want to do mom, I have to at least see the city for myself,” Ron told her.

His mom and dad said, “And maybe get to know that blue-gray eyed young man there with you as well. We think that would be a wonderful idea or ideas as the case may be. We should be getting a call or visit from the police soon so we have to practice being hysterical in the mirror, and we will talk again soon.”

Ron laughed this time and told his mother, “You have always been hysterical, I don’t think you would know any other way to be.” And then the connection broke off.

Azard told Ron to take off his clothes and a look of panic froze on his face. “Clothing and shoes slow down the swimming,” Azard said, and then, reading Ron’s mind said, well if it happens you could just use it as a rudder. They both laughed and he stripped down and Azard told him that he may have a problem adjusting to the water in his lungs so they would just submerge and hold on to each other in case there was a problem. There was not a problem taking the water back into his lungs, but the closeness of the two men brought on almost instant reactions from both of them below the waist. Azard leaned forward and kissed Ron softly on the lips while Ron was reciprocating. This would be the first time he ever kissed a man, with the exception of his father. They embraced stronger and kissed harder while their hands roamed all over each other’s bodies finding every little crack and crevice and to the large handles to hold onto. Two virgins floating under the water, bodies entwined and there was to be no instruction manual to be found anywhere. They broke apart and then Azard grabbed Ron’s hand and they swam thru all of the tunnels and caves at up to five times the speed that they had traveled before and kept excelling.

“I’m really going to miss cheeseburgers and French fries though,” Ron said.

“We can still have those things, I do all the time, just be patient and wait and see everything I can show you,” Azard told him.

The water got colder and Ron asked Azard, “Why is it colder suddenly?”

“We are in the Atlantic Ocean now, and it is colder then the Gulf of Mexico,” Azard said.

Ron asked, “We are already on the East Coast, how did we get here so fast?”

“Short cuts and speeding, but don’t worry there are no speed limits down here except the ones you put on yourself,” Azard said. “The walkers are the ones with all of the limits. You body can swim as fast as you want to go, you just have to let your mind know that. Just like breathing underwater, if you tell yourself that you can’t do it you never will but if you try you can do almost anything you want. Azard let go of Ron’s hand and he fell behind for a few minutes and then caught up. See?”

Ron said, “Yes, but I think it is more fun to do it holding hands.”

Azard reached out and grabbed his hand again and they were traveling even faster now since Ron was pulling his own weight. Then they took a dive spiraling downwards and kept going until they arrived at the Great City. Azard stopped them both so that Ron could get a look at it from a distance.

It was the largest city on the entire continent of Atlantis. All of the governing bodies had residences here and in the providences where they represented. Like an underwater Washington, DC Ron figured. It was very bright here or it could have been the comparison to the darkness they had been swimming in. It was a twenty-four hour a day kind of place, with something always going on. They slowed their swimming to almost a dead stop and resumed sort of a walking pace, if you could equate the two. Ron’s head was filled with amazement. Everyone they passed greeted them and they in return. It is like daylight here in the city all of the time. “You come here to shop or play or do business but it is too bright to try and live here all of the time.” Azard told Ron.

“How does it stay so bright, the sun can’t possibly filter it’s way down this far?” Ron asked.

“There is a stone, smaller than your fist, that was brought here from the home planet thousands of years ago, and when it was placed in a special receptacle, it gave the old ones light, warmth and is a great energy source.” Azard told him. “We lost our sun that heated the waters and the scientist had been working on a way to invent a source of power that would be able to replace it once it was gone. This is just a chip of the original stone and I could not for the life of me tell you what it is. But it works.”

Ron’s eyes were going crazy trying to look at everything that there was to see. People swimming in and out of buildings, much like fish in an aquarium. He turned and looked at Azard and remembered the figurine in his aquarium at home. There was no way his mother could get him out of the store with out buying it for him and it looked exactly like Azard, with one very large exception of course. “I sent a message to you for you to see and remember that figurine so that I would be more familiar to you when we actually met, not for you to pitch a fit in the store,” Azard told Ron. “I caught hell from your mother for that one. The people here respect your privacy, unlike the Walker’s world, but you need to learn how to put your mind on hold to block yourself for times of intimacy or study. Also for sleep periods.”

Ron asked and was told how to do that. It was so very simple to do, like turning off the telephone when you want to be alone. Azard read his mind again once the channel was reopened and reminded him that he had to remember to take it off of hold when he was finished with the task or pleasure at hand.

As they swam away from the bright lights of the Great City, Ron saw tubes up ahead and Azard told him that they were going to surface up to Walkerville for a while, this is actually where I live. Azard explained that once they entered the tubes, they would be shot upward and would wind up in a pool. If you don’t go up right away it simply means that the last person up has not left the pool yet and it is unsafe. Once they leave, you will know what a torpedo must feel like but it slows you down before you reach one of the pools. He let Ron go first in case of any problems and once he was off, Azard entered another tube. To Ron, it felt like the greatest water park ride ever invented, but he did feel relieved when Azard appeared the next pool. They then swam to the top of the pools, climbed up the ladders and were on land again.

Some of the people were dressed in regular clothing while others remained nude. Reading Ron’s questioning mind again Azard said, “We have walkers that supply us with clothing, food and other necessities. Everything is loaded on boats that travel to a certain spot and the entire ship is brought down to the docks under a protective shield. There is so much to tell you and for you to see that it could take several life times for you to know. I must tell you now that if you do decide to stay, whether it is with me, alone or with another, your lifespan will be greatly increased. Some of the residents here are a thousand years old and more. I myself will be four hundred soon. I’m just kidding, I am twenty-seven.”

There were shops up and down the streets with apartment buildings sprinkled in here and there. An artificial sun and moon were provided to make it seem more like the surface world. Some come for a short stay and then return to the water to live again while others prefer to stay. I like both and switch back and fourth. Places not sexes. When they walked into the cafe it was like something out of the nineteen-fifties. The only thing missing was the guy with the greasy hair and a comb. They took a booth and Ron delighted in looking at everything on the menu, but still ordered a burger, fries and a shake. Azard had the same and when the waitress came over and took the order, Azard pressed his thumb to the check and she went and put their order in. “I just paid for the meal and the tip through my thumbprint. I believe that some of the banks above are using similar technology to some extent. My parents had great wealth and were killed in an accident above and their funds were transferred to me, plus I work in the library a couple of hours a week.” Azard told Ron.

“I’m sorry to hear about your parents.” Ron said.

“Not to worry, their souls went back to the home planet to be reborn. Or at least that is what we are taught to believe.” Azard said. “Some believe that and others think that it is a cop out to the grieving process. I believe it. With all of the power and technology we have here, it just has to be true. My mother was six hundred and ten when I was born and I was their first and only child. And talk about a spoiled childhood. It is said that the older ones can see into the future and that is why you were promised to me, because we are soul mates from another time and that we would be extremely compatible for life. I’m sorry if I am throwing too much at you too quickly, but I want you to see the whole picture.” The order came and Azard shut up for a couple of minutes and began eating.

“I have to tell you that this whole experience is completely overpowering my brain.” Ron said. “I think that you are quite possibly the most handsome man I have ever met and the thought of spending the rest of my life with you excites me to no end. More than likely I could spend the rest of my life learning about the technology here and just to find out how everything works. I miss my parents and that is a fact, but I was about to go to college and after college I might have found a job in a different city and would still be missing them. But with the telepathy, we can talk everyday if we want to. The thought also occurs to me that I might actually still be in the Walker’s world, but unconscious from a bump on my head and dreaming and I am going to wake up and you and all of this will be gone.”

“That will only happen if that is your choice,” Azard told him. “Some of the water babies that are raised on dry land decide that they would rather live there. That is perfectly fine, but most are shown at least a glimpse of this world and then it becomes just a dream to them that goes away in time. A few remember and take some of the technology back to the surface with them and use it for the good or fun of all mankind. Like what you were saying about the tubes.” They had finished their meal and left the restaurant and were now back out on the street. Azard pointed to a building across the street and said that he lived there. They crossed the street to get to the building and it dawned on Ron suddenly that there were no cars anywhere but he did see trolley tracks. It turns out that they were just for show though. Bicycles were the mode of transportation used by most that went further than they cared to walk or just wanted to exercise their legs. When Ron asked about those that might be handicapped and need wheel chairs, he was told that there were a few around but that most of them preferred the water for easier mobility and that it was said to really be better for them. However, the technology here extends to the medical field as well, though not as you know it. They came to the outside door of the apartment building and walked in and up to the third floor where there were four apartments and just walked in, no keys or anything. “There is no crime in Atlantis, and so there is no need for keys or locks,” Azard told him.

It looked as if Azard had painted the ceiling with the moon and stars but then Ron realized that there was no ceiling at all. Then he remembered that Walker City was completely inside of a dome and that there was no chance of rain, snow or other precipitation. But what about the birds, he had heard birds and knew that they could reek havoc. “Which is why we have switches like this,” Azard said and flipped one and they began to hear the chirping of the birds. He flipped another and a ceiling appeared from nowhere to keep out noises, sunlight and to give them more privacy. There was a refrigerator stocked with beverages and little else. The cabinets were filled with coded packages for the microwave that just needed a little tap water and cooked full course meals in under a minute. Some crackers and lots of candy were there also. It seemed that Azard had a sweet tooth. There was no television or VCR here but there was a radio in every room. Azard said, “I could get those machines if you want them, but I love to study and also to paint, the one thing you have no passion for as yet.”

“You know, this is so truly not fair,” Ron said. “It seems that you know my whole life story and I know so very little about you.”

“My mind and life story are open to you anytime you choose to read them,” Azard said to him. “I have been down here for ten years or so, knowing that you were to come to me at a certain time in your life, and I have been preparing for you all of that time. I wanted everything to be perfect, just the way you would like to have everything. I to am a virgin. No one would dare even approach me until you rejected me, that is our way here. I don’t mean to disturb you and if I do, I beg your forgiveness, but if it is of any consequence, that has been done out of love and respect. I swam with you in every meet that you ever competed in. Your mind was open to me and I knew then what I know now, that I want to spend the rest of my life with you whether it is down here or up there.”

Azard bridged the gap of space between them and took Ron’s face in his hands and pulled that handsome face close to his and kissed him. Ron’s arms went around Azard’s waist and then his hands slid down to that beautiful bubble butt he had been waiting to touch all of this time. Out of the water and dry, he could feel the field of soft baby like hairs all over it. He returned Azard’s kiss with deep ones of his own and it did not feel the least bit out of place when Azard’s tongue slipped into his mouth or when his crossed over. Both of them let their hands roam freely over each other’s body and getting to know every inch of flesh. “Does this place have a bed?” Ron asked.

Azard lifted him up and carried him back to the master bedroom and gingerly laid him down on the bed before settling down on it himself. They held and kissed each other lips until their lips were almost numb. They traveled all over the rest of each other, kissing lightly, sucking on toes and then on to the good stuff. Every move they made felt like it had been choreographed just for them. Momentary periods of pain were replaced by thrilling climaxes until they were both exhausted and needed to replenish the fluids they were losing. Then a sleep period and right back at it again. Over and over for days. Doctors would never know these two bodies like they knew each other’s. While they were laying there in bed, side by side and holding each other, Ron opened a channel to his parents and told them, “I hate to tell you both this, but I’m afraid that you have a funeral to plan.”

His mother said, “I always knew that you were popular in school, but our front lawn is covered with flowers and trinkets.” She went to the front door and opened it and he could see what she was talking about. “It would be so nice to be able to tell them the truth, that you are okay, but they would think that I had gone off of the deep end and wouldn’t believe me anyhow.”

“Just so you two will know, I am a lot better than okay and you couldn’t have found a better man to promise me to,” Ron told them. “But if you ever make me come home I promise I will turn you in for baby selling.” Ron’s parents started laughing.

Ron’s parents told him, “Whenever things settle down up here and we get a chance, we’ll come to visit with the two of them. We’ve not seen Azard since his sudden disappearance more than ten years ago.”

They laid in the bed talking after the conversation. Ron asked, “What kind of work is available so that I can make some money?”

“We are going to go down to my bank and put you on my account and then register you for school.” Azard said to him. “Actually, you are already pre-registered, your parents took care of that. Since you are my partner it is up to me to provide for us until such time as you are able and ready to work. You have such a wonderful mind and having lived above for almost twenty years, you can educate some of the others of the ways of the Walkers, what it is like up there both good and bad. There is much that you need to learn about the ways of your people and our laws. The things that you can do once you learn how, will amaze you. When I first got here I thought that I knew everything and it turns out that I knew nothing at all. Right now I am only at about a five percent level of knowledge so you can just imagine. Levitation; telekinesis; agriculture and talking to the other life forms that share this earth with us, some are also from other planets and that is just a sampling of what you can learn. It is not traditional school as you know it. No test or homework except for trying out what you have learned. Your professor’s can scan your mind and know what you understand and what you need to repeat. I go a couple of days a week and now that I have finally found true happiness I’m sure I will be going more often.”

“As long as we are doing what we do together I’m sure that I will be happy,” Ron told him and they started back at it again.

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