Erastes

Throw Away Kid

Chapter 1
A chance meeting

I couldn't argue with his reasoning and the things he had told me about the building were definitely a plus, so I went to inspect it. I took the highway to get there, just to see how convenient it would be for the various suppliers, as well as our trucks, to get in and out of the area. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was. There were just two turns to be made, and they both looked as if they would be fairly easy to navigate, when I pulled up in front of the structure.

I was only planning to view the building from the outside, to make sure it was fundamentally sound and worth the investment of time and money, but when I saw the broken door, which was opened wide enough for a person to slide past, it just beckoned to me to go inside. I squeezed through the opening, stepped into the shadowy interior and paused momentarily so my eyes could adjust to the lower amount of light inside. Although the windows on the lower level had been boarded up sometime in the past, there were still a sufficient number of gaps in the coverage and enough holes in the boards, from kids throwing rocks at them, that there was a limited amount of daylight filtering inside.

When my eyes became accustomed to these darker surroundings, I decided to take a stroll. Basically this was just a large brick and cinderblock structure, with cement floors and ceilings. It had a nearly totally open floor plan and all four walls were covered with large groupings of windows, which once allowed the daylight in so employees could perform their jobs. By the looks of the place, this had probably been in use during the 40's and 50's, when the US was flexing its muscle as a manufacturing powerhouse. Unfortunately, the economy had changed over the years, as the nation switched from a manufacturing to a service-based sector, and this building was probably shut down in the late 70's or sometime during the 80's, and has remained abandoned ever since. I could see definite potential here, but I still wanted to check out the upper two floors as well, to make sure they were in as good a condition as the lower one. After I looked around, I finally spotted the stairway.

When I walked up the steps to the second floor, I could immediately see that this area was better illuminated than the first floor, since the boards only covered the lower two-thirds of each window on this level. As I looked around and attempted to find out if there were any signs of significant decay on this level, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it looked to be in decent shape. I continued to check out this area, to make certain I didn't miss anything, and spotted something over in the far corner. Unsure of what it was, I went over to investigate.

When I got closer, I still didn't know if it was a pile of rubbish that had been left there or a collection of debris that had fallen from the walls and ceiling. As I attempted to learn if this was anything to be concerned about, I was able to tell that it was a pile of blankets, with a young boy buried beneath them. Concerned, I bent down to see if he was still breathing, since I conjectured that something dreadful might have happened to him. As I poked at the pile, I was quickly relieved when he moved slightly, which let me know he was alive. He appeared to be about twelve or thirteen years old and sleeping peacefully, so now I began to wonder what a young boy like that would be doing here.

I wasn't sure what to do next, so I just stood beside him and studied his features, while I considered if I should wake him. His face was smudged with dirt, but that was to be expected, seeing where he was, but I could still tell that he was quite cute, even under the grunge. Yes, I did notice things like that. You see, I'm a closeted boy-lover and I always notice good-looking boys. I've never acted on my feelings, since I was always too scared of losing everything I'd worked so hard to gain, but I still liked to look at the boys and dream.

As I stood there admiring him, I noted his oblong face, thin lips, light brown hair and delicate features. This had the effect of making my blood begin to boil and my heart beat a little faster. Without much warning, a sudden urge to sneeze came over me and escaped my lips before I had time to stifle it. It was not a dainty sneeze or the sort let loose with a soft achoo. Instead, it was the type of sneeze that rattled the glass in the windows when let loose. This sudden noise startled the boy awake and he sat bolt upright, his eyes showing signs of fear.

"Who are you and what do you want?" he asked, with as much bravado as he could muster.

"Calm down, kid. I don't want anything," I tried to assure him. "I'm here because I'm thinking about buying this building and just came to check it out. I didn't know you were crashing at this location."

"It's just temporary, until I find someplace better," he said defensively.

I don't believe he realized that he had given me more information than he probably should have. If I had meant him harm, I would have known that he was on his own and no one knew where he was, so I could have done whatever I wanted to him. Fortunately for him, I wasn't like that and only tried to get additional information without alarming him.

"Ok, that's cool, but why is a kid your age out here on his own anyway?" I followed, without displaying much emotion.

"That's none of your business," he spat back. "I don't have to explain myself to you."

"No, you don't, but if you did, I might be able to help you," I offered.

At this point, he decided to stand up, to put us more on an equal footing. I suspect he might have also done this in case he decided he should run away. As he had pushed aside the blankets, I noticed that he was also quite slender, which made me wonder if this was his normal build or merely the result of a recent lack of food. Either way, the kid looked as though he could use a good meal.

"Why would you do that?" he challenged, once he was on his feet.

I could tell he was still kind of scared, but he was putting up a good front not to show it.

"Well, it's because there was a time in my life when someone reached out and helped me," I explained, "and I'd like to return that favor by helping someone else."

"Believe me, you wouldn't want to help me," he countered, while avoiding making eye contact.

"Why do you say that?" I asked. "I think you look like the perfect candidate for a helping hand."

"Well, maybe I could use some help," he conceded, "but you probably wouldn't think I was worth it, if you knew more about me."

At this point, he lowered his eyes from looking in my direction and seemed to be staring at the floor. I wasn't sure why he thought he was so worthless, but obviously someone had berated him so harshly and often that he now didn't feel he was worth even the slightest kindness. I'm also smart enough to realize that you can't easily reprogram someone who has been treated this way and convince them they aren't as bad as they've been led to believe, so I thought maybe I should try to get him to see this for himself.

"Why? Have you killed someone?" I challenged.

Hearing this, he looked up at me again, but this time he had a very serious expression on his face.

"No, I've never done anything like that," he admitted. "I wouldn't hurt anyone, unless they were trying to hurt me."

By telling me this, he seemed determined to convince me that he wasn't really a bad person.

"Do you deal drugs to other kids?" I pressed.

Again, he looked shocked that I even thought this about him.

"No, I wouldn't do that either," he confirmed. "Do you think I'm evil?"

"No, but you're the one who told me I wouldn't want to help you, so I decided to see how bad you really were," I confessed.

He was eyeing me now, trying to figure out what I was up to. I gave him a minute to think this over, and then I continued.

"Well, if you don't do those things, I can't think of anything else that would make you unworthy of my help. Can you?" I followed.

"Yes, I can," he replied, to my surprise. "You wouldn't want me if you knew how I made money to eat and stuff."

"Are you a thief?" I challenged, without hesitation.

This time, he looked a bit embarrassed.

"Well, I have stolen some food and other little things to get by, but nothing big," he admitted.

Although he seemed sincere, I felt I needed to pursue this a little further.

"Would you steal from me?" I pressed.

"No, sir. I'd never do that, especially if you're trying to help me," he confirmed.

I believed him, because he was coming across as an honest and likable young man, so I couldn't understand why he had insisted that I wouldn't want to help him. Confused, I decided that I needed to see if I could get this information out of him.

"Then why wouldn't I want to help you?" I asked, directly.

There was a slight pause before he responded, and once again he looked down at the floor and not at me.

"You just wouldn't. Trust me about that," he offered.

The poor kid seemed really sad as he said this and I got the feeling he wanted my help, but didn't feel he deserved it. He also remained hesitant to let me know what was so awful about his background, so I thought it was time to try to take him off the hook.

"No, I think it would be better if you trusted me, instead," I countered. "You still haven't told me anything that would convince me that you're as terrible as you claim, and I can't think of anything you could have done that would keep me from helping you out. I asked you about the things that might make me reconsider my offer, and since you haven't done any of those things, I still want to do what I can. When was the last time you showered or had a decent meal?"

"I clean up every day or so and eat when I need to," he stated, defiantly,

After hearing his response, I studied this kid and tried to get a feel for why he was reacting the way he did. I also wanted to know why he was so defensive about every question I asked him. It was obvious he'd been hurt before, emotionally and maybe even physically, and it probably wasn't just a one-time occurrence either. This was most likely the way he'd protected himself since the abuse first began, by not letting anyone else get close to him again. However, I wasn't about to take 'no' for an answer.

"Look, kid. You still didn't answer my question," I reiterated. "Let's try this one more time. When was the last time you showered and washed your clothes?"

"I wash up every few days or so, but I haven't taken a shower in a while," he finally admitted. "I wash my clothes whenever I need to, but I haven't gone to the Laundromat lately."

"I can see that," I commented, with a slight chuckle. "Ok, I guess your answer will do for now. So when was the last time you had a real meal?"

"I ate at McDonald's last night," he replied.

"I'm sorry, but I don't consider that a real meal," I countered. "When was the last time you sat down at a table and ate a meal off a plate, using silverware?"

He merely looked at me and didn't respond. I could see from his expression that he either didn't want to tell me this information or he couldn't actually remember, so I decided to let him off the hook again.

"Ok, we'll skip that question for now," I relented. "What would you think about going back to my place, where you can take a shower and I can throw your clothes in the washing machine, while I fix us a nice dinner?"

"You aren't planning to hurt me or anything, are you?" he followed.

Even though he sounded concerned, I could tell that he didn't really believe I would, or he wouldn't have even consider my offer.

"Well, I probably wouldn't tell you if I were planning to, but NO," I replied, as convincingly as I could. "I don't want to hurt you in any way. Maybe after you've cleaned up and had something to eat, you'll trust me enough to tell me a little more about yourself. Deal?"

He looked at me apprehensively, while trying to gauge whether or not he could actually trust me. After thinking about my proposal for a while and weighing all of the possibilities, I think he concluded that if I were going to harm him, I would have done so by now. I think he realized that I could have easily done as I wished with him where we were and not waited until I got him back to my place, so I believe this was enough to convince him to give it a try.

"Ok, deal," he finally agreed.

"Great, my name is Kyle 3; Kyle Loomis and I'm glad to meet you," I announced, as I held out my hand to him.

Surprisingly, he didn't take it right away. First, he tried to wipe both sides of his hand on his pants, to make sure it wasn't covered with anything first, and then he tentatively reached out to shake.

"Hi, I'm Bryce," he told me, in a very meek voice. He was looking at my hand and not at my face when he said this.

"Well, hello, Bryce, I'm glad to meet you," I responded. "Do you happen to have a last name?"

He immediately looked up this time and gave me a weak grin, before he nodded his head.

"Yeah, it's Hobbs," he announced.

"Ok, Bryce Hobbs. Why don't we gather up your belongings and take them down to my car," I suggested. "Then, we can get you cleaned up and fed."

Bryce nodded his head and I helped him collect his belongings, which were stored in two well-worn items – a small duffel bag and a backpack. We each grabbed one of those items and carried them down to put in the trunk of my car. We did have some trouble getting them through the narrow opening, because the two satchels kept snagging on the doorway as we tried to squeeze through, but we managed. Once we were outside, I threw his belongings into the trunk of my car, but then I noticed he was hesitating before getting into my passenger side door. That's when I realized he didn't want to sit on the seat of my fairly new Lexus in his dirty clothes.

After considering the situation, I eased his fears by grabbing a small throw blanket that I kept folded on the back seat and used it to cover where he was going to sit. I keep the blanket there for when I hauled items from work or when loading groceries in the car, but it would serve this purpose as well. Once I had him buckled in, he made several comments about the car, telling me how nice it was and wanting to know if I were rich or something That's when I decided to tell him a little about my background and about the business I had built from scratch.

Bryce seemed fairly impressed by this information and seemed interested in the fact that I dealt in electronic devices and computers. I owned several good-sized stores within a 300-mile [500 km] radius, and the building I was checking out was to house my second warehouse. You see, we were projecting to open several more stores over the next couple of years and our current warehouse was not adequate to handle that type of volume and growth. Therefore, if I added this second warehouse to handle one side of the business, so we could grow without harming our current locations. He was very interested in what I told him and we talked about this during the entire trip to my house.

I happened to live in a nice suburb, a dozen or more miles [20 km] from the city limits, where it was still wooded and fairly private. It wasn't a mansion by any means, but it wasn't your average home in your typical neighborhood either. It was a four bedroom English Tudor home, with almost 2,200 square feet [200 m²] of living space. I don't know why I bought such a large home in the first place, other than it was a good place to entertain my business associates, but it was much larger than I actually needed. I know it had something to do with the fact that I loved this type of architecture, but it also had something to do with the very private wooded lot and the large in-ground pool that was there. As I pulled into the driveway and parked in front of the attached garage, Bryce's eyes became as large as saucers and his mouth hung open.

"You live here?" he asked, while showing his excitement and tacit approval.

"Yes, sir. This is the place I call home," I confirmed.

I glanced over at him again and noticed his mouth was still hanging slightly open, as he scanned the area before him.

"It's huge," he observed. "It's almost as big as those apartment buildings down the street from where I was staying, and four families live in them." He looked at me, with his big brown eyes shining with excitement, and I was intrigued by the child-like wonder they belied. No matter how tough and mature he tried to act, there was still the wonder and excitement of a little boy inside.

"It is a little on the large side, but it's not so bad," I agreed.

"Not so bad, I think it's awesome," he announced. "Man, you must be a millionaire or something."

He was so excited now that he was bouncing up and down on the seat, so I felt that I needed to get him out of there and turn his caged-up energy loose.

"Well, maybe something like that, but I do own it with the bank," I confirmed. "Why don't I take you inside and show you around?"

Bryce nodded eagerly at my suggestion and sprang from the car. He ran across the yard to look along the far side of the house next and then came back to do the same thing to the other side. While he was checking out the outside, I got his things out of the trunk and set them beside the car. When he ran back to where I was waiting for him, he was still excited and slightly breathless.

"Man, this place is so cool," he gushed. "I can't believe you live here."

"Well, I do, and now you'll be living here too, at least for a while," I told him.

Hearing what I'd said, he looked up at me and grinned. I guessed he was probably feeling about as important as he ever had, as I placed my arm across his shoulder. Instinctively he pulled away at first, but then he relaxed, looked at me and smiled. Finally, we picked up his bags and I led him to the door, before guiding him inside.

I gave Bryce the cheap tour of the house first, since I figured that he wouldn't remember much being so excited, and he was quite overwhelmed by the size of the place. I did show him which bedroom he would be using, which was at the top of the stairs and across the hall from mine, and he quickly announced that it was bigger than any bedroom he had ever seen before.

I also took him back into the hallway and pointed out the bathroom that he would be using as well and explained that it would be his own private bathroom for now. He asked me why I didn't use it, so I told him that I used the bathroom off the master bedroom. He seemed shocked that we had more than one bathroom to use, so I told him that I'd show him all of that later. In the meantime, we went back downstairs to take care of business.

First, we took his things to the laundry room, which was just off the entrance between the garage and the house, and I started running the water to put in the first load. I quickly decided that we should probably wash everything in very hot water first, just in case there were any vermin in with them, and then I would rewash them, separating the whites, so I could also add bleach. I was mildly surprised to discover that he didn't have many articles of clothing with him, at least many that weren't threadbare and tattered, so I put the halfway decent ones in the washer and left the others in the bag. The larger bag was filled with the bedding he had been using, so I decided to toss them in the trash as well. I'd discard those things later, so I didn't embarrass Bryce in the process.

When I told him that he might as well throw all of his clothes in the washer, including the ones he was wearing, I was somewhat shocked that he didn't hesitate and took everything off right there. After throwing those items into the washer, he stood unashamedly in front of me, totally naked. I had expected that he might keep his underwear on and leave those to be washed later, thus not exposing his goodies to me, but he never balked. Obviously, this wasn't a concern for him and he stood beside me now, in full view.

Giving him a visual inspection, I noted that he was even more slender than I'd first thought and I could actually count his ribs through his skin. However, I was more interested in what I saw below his waist. I must have appeared to be staring at that area now, but he didn't mention anything about it or act any differently toward me. I couldn't help myself though and was mesmerized by what I saw. My eyes were instinctively drawn to his three-inch [7½ cm], limp, circumcised cock, which had a small band of dark hairs running above it. Eventually, I regained my composure and was able to continue doing his laundry. As I dropped the lid on the washer and started to walk away, Bryce asked me a question.

"Mr. Loomis, is there a towel for me to use in the bathroom?" he wanted to know.

I stopped and turned to answer him.

"First of all, you can call me Kyle and not Mr. Loomis," I advised him. "Second, there is a linen closet to the right of the bathroom door and you can grab a towel from there, before you go in. There should be a new bar of soap in the soap dish and a bottle of shampoo in the shower. I've got a large hot-water tank, so use all the hot water you want."

"Thanks, Kyle, and I'll be back down in a little while," he announced.

"Take your time," I advised him. "You may want to stay in there and soak for a while, to make sure you get totally clean. While you're doing that, I'll fix dinner for us. I put some chicken breasts in the frig this morning, if that's ok with you?"

"Yeah, that sounds fine," he agreed.

Having said that, he disappeared up the stairs. Fortunately, I had three chicken breasts marinating during the day, since I like leftover chicken for some reason. I think it makes great sandwiches and it always seems to taste better after it's been sitting in the refrigerator for a while. Anyway, I put the chicken in the oven, along with four baking potatoes, and then I fixed some sliced carrots and made a tossed salad for each of us. When Bryce came back down stairs, the table was set, and the food was nearly done. I had also taken his clothes out of the washer after the first cycle had ended and separated them. Then, I put the whites through again, while the others sat in the laundry basket, ready to become the next load. It was during this time, before they'd even gone into the dryer, that Bryce came back downstairs. He didn't even bother to wrap a towel around his waist for modesty.

"Hmmm, smells good. Are my clothes ready yet?" he asked.

"No, it will take a while yet, because I wanted to run them through twice," I explained, "but I'll run up to my room and get a robe for you."

"Nah, you don't have to, unless my being naked bothers you," he replied.

"No, that doesn't bother me, but I think you should wear something at the table," I reasoned.

He seemed to accept my logic, so I went up to my room and brought back the robe I had purchased as a backup. I handed it to him and told him he could keep it, so he just smiled at me, as he tied the belt around his waist. Before I began to serve the meal, I went back to the laundry room and moved Bryce's whites to the dryer and then placed his colored clothes in the washer. I figured that I should be able to take the whites out of the dryer and put the coloreds in by the time we had finished eating, so he would have something to choose from later.

After I finished doing that, I went back to the kitchen and started carrying the food into the dining room. When Bryce saw me doing this, he rushed out to assist me. I quickly thanked him for helping and we carried the rest of the items into the dining room and set them on the table. Then I told Bryce about his choice of salad dressings and allowed him select the one he wanted, and then I went out to get that particular variety out of the refrigerator. When I returned, I told him to help himself to whatever he wanted, but he was a little reticent, so I ended up dishing everything out for him. He thanked me and then began to wolf the food down very quickly.

"Hey, slow down there, champ. I'm not going to take it away," I teased.

This caused him to stop and look at me, before he gave me a sheepish grin.

"Sorry, it's just a bad habit I've gotten into," he confessed.

After that, he began a more leisurely approach to dining and took time to actually taste the food before swallowing it. He did stop a little while later, in order to tell me that it was all very good, and this helped to start a conversation between us.

"Do you live here all alone?" he wanted to know.

"Yes, I do," I confirmed. "Unfortunately, I've been too busy trying to establish my business to think about a relationship. Does that bother you?"

"No way," he announced. "I was just wondering why you had such a big place, if you were the only one that lived here."

"I've often wondered that myself," I agreed. "It all began the first time I saw this place, because I just fell in love with everything about it, so I signed a purchase agreement a short time later. It certainly wasn't because I needed this much room, but I have held some parties here for my managers and their families, as well as for others involved with my business. It has worked out well and it's nice to have a home large enough to do things like that when I want. At other times I just kind of bang around in this big old place."

Bryce hesitated a second before asking his next question, because it appeared as if he was trying to decide if he should be so bold. Finally, he must have decided I wouldn't mind, so he let fire.

"Do you mind if I ask how old you are?" he wondered.

I saw an opportunity here, so I took it.

"Not if you're willing tell me some more things about yourself," I offered.

He hesitated momentarily, while looking me squarely in the eyes, but eventually gave me an answer.

"I will, but I can't tell you all of it yet," he explained. "Maybe when I get to know you a little better then I'll tell you more."

"That sounds fair," I agreed. "Well, I'm 31. How old are you?"

"I'm twelve, but I'll turn thirteen in a couple of months."

"Twelve years old and you ran away from home," I observed. "Man, it must have been really bad for you."

I wondered if I should have said that. as soon as he broke eye contact with me and looked down at the table. After a slight delay, he finally gave me an answer.

"It was, but I don't want to talk about that now," he stated.

"That's fine, but we'll need to come up with something so people won't start wondering about you," I acknowledged. "It's summer and you'd be out of school anyway, so why don't we just tell people that you're my nephew, just in case they ask. You'd be my sister's son, to explain the difference in our last names, and she sent you here to stay with me, because she and your dad are going through a very difficult divorce. Can you remember all of that?"

"Sure. No problem," he confirmed.

"Good! That way you won't have to get into any of the real reasons you're here and it will keep everyone else from getting curious," I explained. "Your parents' names will be Sherry and Bob. Ok?"

"Yeah, and thanks," he agreed. "I appreciate that you're not making me tell you everything now."

"Hey, I can understand why you wouldn't want to divulge those things, until you know me better," I confessed. "Actually, that's a pretty smart precaution. We'll just leave it that way for now and you can fill me in about the rest of it when you're ready."

"Thanks. I already think I can trust you, but I just want to wait a little while longer," he replied.

"That's fine and I'll try not to rush you," I agreed.

After our conversation, I told him to help himself to seconds, if he wanted more. Again he was reluctant to do so, since it appeared that he didn't want to take advantage of my hospitality, so I split the final chicken breast with him, gave him another baked potato, and then divided the remaining carrots between our plates.

Once we had both finished our meal, he announced that he would do the dishes. I understood that this was his attempt to pay me back for everything, but I advised him it wouldn't be necessary. I explained that we just had to carry the dishes out to the kitchen, rinse them off in the sink and then put them in the dishwasher. As soon as he understood, Bryce said he'd do it all, and seeing how important it was for him, I agreed. I just went out to the kitchen with him to make sure he did it correctly.

When that task was completed, I went out to the dryer, pulled out his whites and told him that he had underwear there that he could put on. To my surprise, he seemed to be in no hurry and said he would do it in a while. Rather than trying to pressure him, I threw the other load into the dryer and started it, before going into the family room to join him.

"Would you like some ice cream for desert?" I asked, before taking a seat.

"Thank you, but not right now. Maybe later," he answered.

After sitting down with him, we decided to watch television for a while. When the program ended, I made an announcement.

"Look, your other clothes should be dry by now, so I want you to get dressed," I told him. "Then, I'm going to take you to the mall and buy you some new clothes. I'm not trying to make any judgments here, but your old things have seen better days and you'll need something nicer to wear, if you're going to go places with me."

At first he appeared shocked by my announcement and then he began to look as if he was a bit embarrassed. Hoping it might put him at ease, I was going to tell him the rest of my plans, but he spoke first.

"I know my clothes aren't in very good shape, but you don't have to buy me new ones and pay for them," he announced, looking guilty. "I can get a job and buy some new clothes later."

"No, you'll need them sooner than that and I don't mind spending a little money on you," I confirmed, hoping to ease his discomfort.

"Then I'll work for you, so I can pay you back," he offered, "or I can go look for another job and then give you some money every time I get paid."

"Look, you don't have to worry about paying me back," I insisted, "and besides, there is very little that you'll need to do around here. I have a lady who comes in twice a week to clean the house and I've hired a company to come over once a week to take care of the yard. The pool guy comes by regularly as well, although the number of times he shows up depends upon the time of the year. Besides, what are you going to do to make money?"

After I made my comment, I got a sudden feeling that I shouldn't have gone as far as I did, because Bryce turned red and looked away from me. I wasn't sure why he did this, but I knew that I had accidentally blundered upon a sensitive issue. Fortunately, the buzzer went off on the dryer about that same time, so I took him out, let him select something to wear and then told him to get dressed. He took his robe off, tossed it on the dryer and began to dress right there. While he did that, I checked some of the sizes in his other garments, so I would have an idea about what sizes we'd need to get him. When he finished getting dressed, we went outside, got in the car and set out for the mall.

Chapter 2
Growing bonds

When we got to the mall, Bryce immediately started to head toward the discount store, but I called him back and took him to one of the places I liked to shop. He began to argue with me almost immediately and told me that he didn't mind wearing the no-name brands, but I explained to him that he was living with me now and we had to maintain the image that he was my nephew and I was taking good care of him. After listening to my reasons, he relented and gave me a little smile in the process, as we headed directly to the boys' department. As soon as we arrived there, a clerk came over, offered to help and asked what we were looking for. In response, I merely told her that I was going to buy my nephew a few things and we'd call her if we needed help. Somewhat disappointed, she stated that she'd be at her counter if we needed assistance, but before she left she looked at Bryce and made a comment.

"You sure have a nice uncle," she told him, with a wink.

Bryce smiled, looked at me and then turned back to the clerk.

"Yep, Uncle Kyle is a really great guy," he agreed, with a huge grin.

The clerk left us alone after that and Bryce followed me around the department, as we looked at various items. We picked out a couple pairs of dress slacks for him, some jeans and some shorts. After that, I sent him to the changing room to try them on.

"Aren't you coming in to let me know what you think, Uncle Kyle?" he asked, when he noticed I wasn't following him.

"Well, I can, or you can just come out here and show them to me once you've changed," I offered.

"Nah, that will take too long," he reasoned. "Why don't you just come in with me and then I can just keep trying things on without having to keep stopping."

That did sound like a reasonable suggestion, so that's what we did. After he selected which pants and shorts I was going to buy for him, we placed the items on the sales counter and told the clerk we'd be taking those, but we had other items to purchase as well. Then we went into the next area and started to look at the shirts. The clerk seemed delighted at how much we'd already chosen, which lead me to believe that she received some sort of commission on the sales, and then she began to fold the various items we'd already chosen.

Over the next few minutes, Bryce and I picked out an assortment of dress, polo and tee shirts, which I had him try on as well. When we had selected what we wanted from that assortment, I took him over to the underwear section next. I asked him which type he preferred, boxers, briefs, boxer-briefs or bikinis, and then added that he could buy whatever he wanted. I knew he was currently wearing briefs, but that might not have been by choice. He might just have had to wear whatever was purchased for him.

"What do you think I should get, Uncle Kyle?" he asked, seeking my input.

"Well, that depends on what you're most comfortable in," I replied.

"But what would you rather see me in?" he followed.

I thought this was kind of an odd question, but I figured he probably just wanted to please me, because I was doing all of this for him.

"Well, I think the bikini briefs are the sexiest, but the regular briefs will do just fine," I suggested.

He gave me an evil grin and went over to the section where the bikini briefs were located and started to rummage through the selection.

"Is there any particular color that you'd prefer?" he wanted to know.

"No, just surprise me," I answered. "Get a dozen pairs for now."

"Are you sure? That seems like a lot."

"Yes, I'm sure," I confirmed. "It's better to have extra than not enough."

He hurriedly picked out the pairs he wanted and then we grabbed some A-line undershirts for him, before selecting a variety of socks, both colored and white. We then took everything up to the clerk, who gave us a strange look, and then asked us a question.

"I thought you said you were going to get a few things?" she teased.

"Well, we got carried away," I told her, "but he can always use them. Besides, how often do I get a chance to spoil my nephew?"

She giggled and Bryce smiled, while I felt like a million bucks. When Bryce started to move toward the exit, I called him back.

"Hey, hold on there, champ. We still need to go back to the shoe department next and get something for your feet," I informed him. "You can pick out a pair of dress shoes and a pair of athletic shoes, before we head home."

"Are you really sure you want to spend this much on me?" he asked, amazed. "You've already bought more for me than I usually get in a year."

"I'm sure it's all right or I wouldn't have told you we were going to do it," I confirmed. "Stop questioning everything and let's just go back and pick those things out for you."

"Ok. Whatever you say, Uncle Kyle," he relented, while flashing me a very devilish grin.

After we made our way back to where the shoes were located, Bryce picked out a pair of loafers and a mid-range pair of athletic shoes, but I made him buy an extra pair of laces for the athletic shoes at the same time. On the way up to pay for them, I saw a display of those rubber beach sandals, so I made him select a pair of those too. I wasn't planning to go to the beach anytime soon, but they'd be good for around the house and when he went out to use the pool. That reminded me, Bryce would probably also need a bathing suit.

After telling him what we were about to do, I took him back to the boys' department and he began to look at what they had. Before long, he was holding up a pair of black Speedos, with red trim, and asked what I thought of them. I told him they looked great, if that's what he wanted, and he said he thought they would do just fine. I also had him pick out a Boardshort style pair as well, in case we went swimming somewhere that he might not feel comfortable in a Speedo. After we paid for the rest of our selections, we made our way back to the exit, loaded everything into the Lexus and then I drove us home.

Throughout the return trip from our little shopping excursion, Bryce kept thanking me for buying him so much and raving about everything we had purchased, but he also exclaimed that he couldn't believe I was doing so much for him. After we pulled into the driveway and parked the car, I told him to take everything up to his room and put it away, and then he could come back down and we'd have some ice cream. I told him after that we could spend the rest of the evening watching television or do whatever he wanted. He was only gone for about five minutes before he came bounding back down the stairs, to ask me if I had any extra hangers. I told him that I did and apologized for not thinking about giving him some, before I took him up to my room to retrieve the extra hangers. This was also the first time he had been in my bedroom, so he made sure he checked everything out.

"Man, this is really neat," he beamed. "You've got a huge bed, a big TV, a great stereo, an enormous closet and your own bathroom."

I was amazed at his enthusiasm about everything, because I didn't think it was all that special, but I would find out later that it certainly was for him. He had lived in a small two-bedroom apartment, with just one bathroom, and the whole apartment would have fit nicely into a small corner of my home. I guess I sometimes take too much for granted and forget how truly fortunate I am. Suddenly this young man was giving me a whole new appreciation for my life and reminding me how great it was. I was appreciative for this new insight he was giving me and I knew that I had to help him through his situation, as best I could. I had no idea of how I was going to do that yet, because I was certain I'd get into trouble just for just having him here, but with my money and what it could buy, I was sure I could figure something out, sooner or later.

After I gave him the hangers and saw how carefully he put everything away, we went back downstairs. I went to the kitchen and scooped out two bowls of ice cream, after telling him to go into the family room and pick out whatever he wanted to see or do until bedtime. He soon discovered a movie on one of the pay stations and told me he wanted to watch that, as I handed him his dish. I sat in my chair, a very comfortable recliner that I love, and he sat on the sofa. We ate our ice cream and then set our bowls on the coffee table when we were done. Bryce then sprawled out on the sofa and laid his head on one of the throw pillows.

We watched the movie, but I could see Bryce was getting pretty sleepy and having trouble staying awake toward the very end. When the movie finished, I told him it was time to go to bed and then I walked behind him as we made our way up to our rooms. I did this to make sure he didn't fall backward and tumble down the stairs, since he was traveling on a pair of shaky legs and it was obvious that he wasn't totally with it. That's why I thought it best to take this small precaution.

When he reached the landing at the top, I guided him toward his bathroom, while I went and got him a toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste to use. I always keep extras on-hand in my room, so I dug into my stash and took the items to him. After he brushed his teeth and used the toilet, he finally staggered into his room, stripped down to his underwear and slid into bed. When I went to close his door, as I was leaving the room, I heard him speak in a weak and sleepy voice,

"Good night, Uncle Kyle," I heard him mumble. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Sure thing, little buddy," I replied, as I shut the door behind me.

The next morning, I awoke with a strange feeling. I didn't know what it was, but it just felt as if something wasn't normal. As I opened my eyes and began to focus, I saw Bryce standing at the foot of my bed, smiling at me. When I looked at the clock it read 5:15, so I'd be getting up in fifteen minutes anyway and didn't say anything. After I finished stretching, I reached over and turned off the alarm, so it wouldn't go off later, and then I looked at Bryce again. He just smiled and spoke to me.

"I was just excited and couldn't sleep any longer," he explained. "That was the first time I've slept in a bed in ages and it felt great. I just came over to see if you were awake or if you were getting ready for work."

"Well, I'm glad you had a good night's sleep, but I'm just going to lie here for a few more minutes, before I get moving," I confessed.

"Hey, that's ok and I'll join you," he agreed.

With that, he raced forward, leaped into the air and landed beside me on the bed, causing me to bounce up and down on the mattress. He looked at me and began giggling, like that was the funniest thing he had ever done.

"Sorry about that, but I just couldn't resist," he choked out, amid his laughter.

"So I noticed, but I understand," I stated, soothingly. "I liked doing that when I was a kid too. It used to drive my parents, as well as my brothers and sisters, crazy."

Suddenly a sad expression came over Bryce's face and I couldn't understand why, until he informed me what he was thinking about.

"I could never do anything like that when I was home, because my mom never allowed me to go into her bedroom and I didn't have any brothers or sisters."

I guess I had unintentionally trod upon some sensitive issues, so I had to think of a way to make him forget about this quickly. I decided to go with the first idea that came into my mind and slowly tried to turn this into a joke.

"Well you're going to have to pay for that," I teased, "and I think you deserve a tickle torture."

I immediately grabbed his sides and began to tickle him. I wiggled my fingers along his ribcage and under his armpits, and rapidly discovered that Bryce was extremely ticklish. He began to thrash about beneath me, as he tried to break free, so I threw my leg up and over his body, thus pinning him down with my weight upon his waist. Once he was securely held in place, I continued the assault.

"Ok, ok, I give," he squealed, through his laughter. "You'd better stop or I'm going to pee all over your bed."

"You do and I'll have to start putting diapers on you." I responded jokingly.

I did let up momentarily, in order to give him a chance to gain control of his bladder, but he also took this opportunity to give me his point of view on the matter.

"But I wouldn't have to worry about that, if you weren't tickling me like this," he said panting, while trying to catch his breath.

"Ok, I'll stop, but next time I won't give in to you so easily," I warned.

"Aw, come on, I've got to have some fun," he pleaded.

"And I do too," I countered. "If you can have your fun jumping on my bed, then I'll have my fun by tickling you. Sounds fair to me."

"It would be, if you could catch me," he hissed, as he started laughing again.

"Well, I caught you today, didn't I?" I challenged.

"Yes, but next time I'll be ready for you," he replied.

"And I'll be ready for you too," I retorted.

To emphasize my statement, I began tickling him again. When I stopped, he had another comeback.

"Yeah, we'll see about that," he challenged.

Glancing over at the clock, I let him up and then got out of bed, so I could head for the bathroom. I knew I had to get moving and perform my morning ritual at breakneck speed, or else I wouldn't be ready in time for work. As I disappeared through the doorway of my bathroom, I decided I'd better let him know what was going on.

"I need to take a shower and then I'll come down and fix breakfast for us," I stated, when I stopped at my bathroom door, "unless you want to get your own."

"Nah, I'll wait and eat with you," he replied. "Besides, I don't really know where things are yet."

"Good point and I won't be long," I added.

I jumped in the shower and began to lather up, while thinking about my new houseguest. The more I thought about him, the more I realized that I needed to do some things in order for this arrangement to work. First, I had to get him familiar with where I kept things and, second, I wanted to get to know him better and see what I could learn about his past. He seemed like a good kid and I enjoyed his high spirits and good nature, so maybe we could still remain friends, even if I was able to reunite him with his family or found another solution for him.

The more I thought about this, the more I realized that I needed to do something out of the ordinary, something that I wouldn't normally do. When I got out of the shower, I went over to the phone beside my bed and called into work, so I could ask my secretary to clear my calendar for the day. I told her that an emergency had come up and that I needed to stay home to take care of some things. When she inquired as to the nature of the problem, which she normally did since we were quite close, I told her that my nephew was here and he needed my help.

She knew I had two brothers, three sisters, and several nieces and nephews, so she didn't question this information. In addition to my other reasons for doing this, I wasn't sure I was ready to leave Bryce in my house unsupervised. Sure, he seemed like a nice kid and had told me that he wouldn't steal from me, and although I basically believed him, experience had taught me to be more cynical. Using that perspective, I wanted to get to know him a little better first, before I left him with most of my possessions within his grasp. I hated to think this way, but I did have to be pragmatic.

Another reason I wanted to stay home was due to the fact that I felt Bryce might require some help from me, in order to work through his problems, especially if his family had mistreated or abandoned him. Many things could be running through his mind right now and he might not know how to deal with them. For example, he might be wondering why some guy he had never met was willing to take him in and do things for him, when those who were supposed to love him had either abused or turned their back on him.

I didn't know anything about his situation, but I thought spending the day alone would give him too much time to reflect on what he'd been through. It might even cause him to question not only his family's motives, but mine as well. I thought it would be best if I were here to help him find answers to those questions, rather than have him speculate about why things have happened as they did. I was afraid that he might run off or possibly report my actions to some agency as being suspicious in nature. I couldn't afford to take those kinds of chances and certainly didn't need a bunch of do-gooders sticking their noses into my personal business. As far as I was concerned, it didn't matter how well intentioned they were or whom they thought they were helping. It was a situation I definitely wished to avoid, at any cost.

My next reason was that I understood we needed to bond in order for him to open up and let me know about the types of situations he had experienced in his young life. Seeing that I tended to spend much of time at work, since I had nothing else in my life at this point, I knew I would have little opportunity to do this without taking some time off. If I continued my normal routine then I wouldn't be with him very often, except for a very brief time late at night or on the weekends. If I were going to try to forge any kind of a relationship with this kid and get him to confide in me, then I'd have to do better than that. By taking the day off, maybe I could speed up the process a bit. I'd spend today with him and then go into work tomorrow. Since the day after was Saturday, we'd have the entire weekend to be together, so I was hoping that by spending three days out of four with him I just might be able to make his transition easier. It might just provide us the opportunity we needed to get to know each other better.

When I finally went downstairs, I began to make breakfast, but I also informed Bryce that I had taken the day off from work. Of course he wanted to know why, so I told him I did it for a couple of different reasons. For one thing, I explained that it would be extremely rude for me to invite him into my home only to run off and leave him behind before he was familiar with anything. Next, I decided to give my reason a more personal touch, so I let him know that even though I hadn't known him for very long, I already liked him. For that reason, I thought I should take the day off so we could get to know each other even better. He seemed to think the second reason was pretty special and it caused him to keep asking questions such as, 'you did this just for me?' or 'you really like me?'

After he asked one of these questions, he'd then flash me that special grin of his, which gave me a warm feeling inside. By the time we had finished eating, he was dancing around the table and asking what we were going to do. I told him that it would be his choice, since he was my guest, and he gave me an evil little grin this time. Slowly, he motioned toward the French doors, located at the back of the family room.

"Can we go swimming?" he asked, coyly.

"Sure, if that's what you want to do," I agreed. "It's plenty warm enough for that and the pool's been set up for about a month now, so I see nothing that would stop us. If that's what you want to do, then we'll do it."

"Yeah, I've never been in a private pool before," he confessed. "I've only gone swimming at the community center and the YMCA, and they were usually crowded."

"Well, you won't have to worry about any crowds here," I teased. "We'll wait a little longer, to give our food time to settle first, before we go upstairs and put our trunks on, and then we'll swim for as long as you want. How's that sound to you?"

"It sounds great, as long as you're going to be out there too," he agreed. "It's not as much fun swimming alone."

"I guess not, but I do it all the time," I admitted. "I go out and swim laps by myself nearly every night, just to keep in shape. It also helps to relax me before I go to bed."

"You mean you swim at night?" he asked, amazed.

"Yes. There are lights in the pool, just below the waterline," I confirmed, "and then there are spotlights on each corner of the house, which are angled to shine on the pool. We can either turn both sets on or opt to use just one of them, but then again we don't have to turn any lights on at all. I often do that when there's a full moon. I like swimming after dark, when it's cooler, but it's also one of the few times I have to swim. Working as much as I do, I seldom get to go in the pool when there's any daylight."

"Can we go swimming tonight too?" he asked, hopefully. "I've never gone for a swim outside after dark before."

"Sure, we can do that," I agreed. "I think it sounds like a splendid idea."

"Super. It's sure is going to be fun living here," he gushed.

Hearing this, I realized we had a dilemma. I didn't want to crush his hopes, but I didn't want to mislead him either. I decided that it would be best to be honest and let him know, upfront, what the options were. If he thought I was being straight with him, then maybe he'd be honest with me.

"Look, Bryce, I can't promise you how long you'll be able to stay here, because I don't know anything about your situation. I've also got to check on the legalities of all this, because I don't know if I'm currently breaking any laws as it is. I certainly don't want to end up in prison for a number of years because someone thinks I tried to kidnap you or if they suspect I aided your delinquent behavior. Don't get me wrong, because I do want to help and I like you staying here, but we might have to pursue other options, especially if it looks as if one of us is about to lose his freedom because of what we're doing. I'll get my lawyer involved and I'll have him refer me to a top family court lawyer. I'll also make sure he understands that we'd both prefer to have you remain here, but I won't know if it's possible until we've spoken. I'll call my normal lawyer later, to get the referral, but I'm not sure how long it will be before I'll get in to see him."

"But why do you need another lawyer? Why don't you just use the one you have?" he wondered, innocently.

"Let me see if I can explain this," I began. "The lawyer I'm going to call handles all of my personal matters, but I have another lawyer who takes care of my business affairs, so it's only logical that we'll need a specialist for this matter too. We need to do that in order to make sure we have a chance to get what we want, so we'll need someone who is familiar with what would be considered family law. As soon as I get the recommendation for someone in that field, I'll call him and set up an appointment. I'll try to get in as soon as I can, but I'm not sure how quickly that will be. Once I see him though, then we'll have a better idea about what options we have. I hope this works out the way we want, but I just don't know yet."

At first, Bryce looked thoughtful, but then he began to look sad and acted as if I'd just told him the worst news possible. I knew he had been impressed by the material aspects of my life, since it seemed he grown up with only the bare basics, and I also realized we were kind of hitting it off, but I wondered if that would last. Would things change if, and when, I had to clamp down on what he was doing or discipline him for misbehaving? Those were questions I still needed to find an answer for.

As I was considering all of the reasons that would explain why he might have become sad, I also thought about what other problems might arise if we didn't cover all the bases. While I was doing this, I noticed his attitude and body language had suddenly begun to change. It wasn't sure if my comments had altered our relationship or if he was having second thoughts about staying with me. Then again, he might believe he had come up with his own idea that would help to improve the situation or change my mind. Even though he wasn't saying anything, I was certain I'd find out what was bothering him before too long. I soon discovered I was right about that, because he suddenly looked up at me and began to speak.

"Please, you gotta let me stay," he pleaded. "I'll do anything if I can live here with you, and I mean anything you want. I've never lived in a nice place like this before or had anyone who wanted to do the things for me, like you have. You seem to like me and I've never had anyone who really cared about me before. Everyone else just kinda put up with me or wanted something from me, but you're not like that."

"Ah, come on. You must have had some friends," I countered.

"Not really. Nobody's ever wanted me, even before I was born," he replied.

"Oh, your parents must have wanted you," I suggested.

"Nope, they didn't," he countered. "They didn't want me then, they didn't want me later and they don't want me now."

Bryce was sobbing by the time he finished speaking and his chest was heaving, as the tears flowed freely down his cheeks. I was sorry that I had broached this topic and said those things, but there was no way to take back my words now. Instead, I thought I'd have to find another way to make him feel better or distract him from dwelling on his problems. As tenderly as I could, I took him by the hand and led him over to my chair. Once there, I sat down and then I pulled him onto my lap. Once he was situated like that, I cuddled him against my chest, stroked his hair and whispered in his ear.

"Hey, I'm your friend and I want you around, so I'll try to do everything I can to keep you here. If that isn't possible, then I'll try to find you an even better place to live."

"I don't want a better place. I like it here," he sobbed. "If you're going to make me a promise, then promise me I can stay here with you."

Oh, God. Did I paint myself into a corner or what? Sure, I wanted the kid to like and trust me, but I didn't expect this to happen, at least not so soon. I didn't foresee that he'd react this strongly or imprint on me so quickly. Now, what was I going to do? How do you explain the realities and intricacies of the justice system, or the bureaucratic red tape of the Social Services Department, to a twelve-year old kid? I feverishly wracked my brain to come up with a feasible solution.

"I wish I could make that promise to you, Bryce, but there are just too many other factors involved here and variables over which I have no control. I will get my lawyers working on this, as soon as I have enough information to go on, but there is only so much we can do until then."

"What kinds of information do you need?" he asked, looking slightly more hopeful.

"Well, for one thing, I don't know enough about you and wouldn't be able to answer any questions the lawyer asked along that line," I answered. "We'll have to investigate your situation pretty thoroughly, such as what it was like for you before you left home, why you ran away and things like that, before he'll be able to advise me on what types of things we might be able to do."

"Then I'll tell you whatever you want to know," Bryce offered. "I'll tell you everything, if it means I can stay here."

He looked at me hopefully and I stared at his face streaked with the tracks his tears had made, as his eyes pleaded with me. It was as if I was looking at the face of some adorable little puppy and having a strong desire to take him home, only to realize that I might not be able to. He was breaking my heart and making me feel as if I was failing him already, but all I could do was to continue to be honest with him.

"Bryce, I'll try to explain this the best way I know how," I confessed. "Even if you do tell me everything about your past, there is still no guarantee that I'll be able to keep you here with me, but I know that won't even be a possibility without having that information."

"Then I'll tell you everything and I'll do it now," he agreed.

"Look, why don't you think this over for a while first," I suggested. "I don't want you rushing into this and I don't want you doing it because you feel I've pressured you into it. Let's go for a swim, and when we finish doing that you can let me know what you've decided. If you still want to fill me in about your past then, we'll do it at that time. Is that ok with you?"

"Yeah, I guess so, but I know I won't change my mind about wanting to stay here," he confirmed. "I trust you and know you care about me. You do all kinds of things just for me and talk to me like I'm a real person. Besides, I can see almost everything you're doing is for me and not just for yourself."

"You are very perceptive," I replied, while giving him a hug. "I do care for you, but how else would I treat you, if not like a real person?"

"Maybe I didn't say it right, but my mother, her friends, and the foster families, well they always talked about me like I wasn't even there, even when I was in the same room with them," he explained. "They never talked TO me, they just talked AT me or ABOUT me. They spent most of their time giving me orders, setting a bunch of dumb rules or telling others what a bad person I was. Everybody always told me how rotten I was or that I was worthless, but you haven't done that.

"You ask me questions and then you actually listen to what I have to say," he continued. "You ask me what I think and I can tell that you really care about what I tell you. You even consider my feelings and think about what I want before you do anything. Nobody's ever done that for me before, not even my teachers. There were only a few of them that ever seemed to give a damn about me, but they only cared when I was at school. They never asked about anything else, just how I was doing in school, but at least they cared that I did well. I wish some of them had asked me what it was like living with my mother or at the foster homes, then maybe I could have gone someplace else, someplace like this."

He was tugging at my heartstrings again, so I hugged him tightly to my chest and kissed him lightly on the forehead. I wasn't sure if I should really be doing this, but it just seemed as if it were the right thing at the time. In return he wrapped his two arms around my arm, the one that was holding him against my chest, and squeezed it as hard as he could, to show me that he cared for me too.

When I finally felt him relax his grip on that arm, I told him that we all have our dreams and our regrets, but even if one of his teachers had asked him about his situation at home and discovered how bad it was for him, it wouldn't have necessarily meant that he would have been moved to a better place. It might have merely resulted in him being placed in foster care sooner, or if he already was in foster care, being moved to a different foster home, and he knew what that was like. I told him that rather than worrying about his past, he should start looking toward his future and doing whatever he could to make it better. I think he got the point of my message, because he hugged my arm and thanked me again. I held him for a while longer, but then I decided it was time to get his mind off his troubles.

"Ok, young man, now let's go upstairs and put on our swimsuits, so we can go out and swim for a while. When we finish doing that, then you can let me know what you want to do next."

After listening to what I said, he looked up at me and smiled weakly, before he got up and wiped the tears from his eyes and face. He then took my hand and pulled me out of my chair, before dragging me all the way to my room. It was as if he thought I'd disappear if he lost contact with me, so he didn't even seem to let go of my hand long enough for us to go into our rooms to change. After I convinced him that he would have to do this, or else we couldn't get changed and go for a swim, he reluctantly released my hand and raced to his own room.

Before I'd even had a chance to get my trunks out of the dresser, he had already returned to my room, carrying his swimsuit. He was obviously planning on changing in my room, along with me. I didn't know if this was a good idea or not, but it seemed important to him, so I grabbed my suit and took everything else off, so I could put it on. He had already let me see him naked, when he threw his clothes in the washing machine and when he took off his robe to get dressed, so now he stood staring at me and grinning from ear to ear when he finally saw me naked. I guess that meant he liked what he saw. Once we were both ready, he took my hand and dragged me downstairs, through the house and out to the pool. When we got there, I surprised him doing something he wasn't ready for.

It was an experience I'll also remember for quite some time. It all began when I grasped his hand tightly and then rotated my body quickly, so I could use the momentum to help propel him into the air. As he started to move forward and pick up speed, he looked at me with a startled expression on his face, but it turned into one of shock when I released my grip and he went flying into the pool. That alone told me that he wasn't expecting me to do this, but he was still wearing that same startled expression when he hit the water. A few seconds later, he came up sputtering and laughing, but he also warned me that he was going to get me back for doing that to him.

I didn't pay any heed to his threats and jumped into the pool with him, only to have him leap upon my shoulders, in an attempt to dunk me below the surface. I didn't fight his attempt, since I knew it was important for him to feel that he had gotten even with me, so I went under without a struggle. When I broke the surface of the water again, I began spluttering and causing a fuss, like I hadn't expected him to do that so quickly. He was laughing hysterically and pointed in my direction. The look of satisfaction that was etched upon his face now was worth more than any amount of money anyone could have given me. At that moment, he was just a little boy having fun.

"See, I told you I'd get you back," he jeered, with as much enthusiasm as he could muster.

He continued to laugh and splash me now, so I dove underwater and swam below his body, so I could grab his legs and pull him down with me. I watched his face, to make sure he wasn't in any trouble, but his eyes were sparkling and he still sported a huge grin, as he completely enjoyed our carefree play and good-natured antics. We stayed in the pool for nearly an hour, sometimes swimming and sometimes horsing around, but we both had a great deal of fun, plus it was a pretty good workout as well. Finally, I climbed out of the water and went over to lie on one of the lounge chairs. That's when Bryce yelled at me from the pool.

"Is the old man tired out?" he teased, and then he giggled in delight at the sound of his derogatory comment.

"I'll give you old man, you little bugger," I shot back, but it only caused Bryce to laugh even louder. "I just came out to work on my tan. It's not often that I get to come out here in the daylight."

"So you're not that white just because you're a ghost?" he teased, before he giggled again.

"No, wise guy, I'm that white because I don't get to be in the sun enough," I replied.

"Sure, like I believe that," he stated, mockingly.

This only caused him to giggled once more and then he hopped up on the edge of the pool.

"Do you want me to get out and get some sun with you, or do you want me to stay in the pool?" he asked next.

I wasn't sure if he asked this question because he wanted me to tell him to join me, or if he was just used to having adults tell him what to do and when.

"That's up to you, sport. You can do whatever you like," I offered. "If you want to get some sun, then you can grab the other lounge chair and join me, but if you want to keep swimming, then go ahead and enjoy yourself. If you stay in the pool, just be careful. I wouldn't want anything to happen to you."

At hearing my response, Bryce got completely out of the water, walked over and sat on the lounge next to mine. Then, he just sat there and stared at me for a few seconds. Finally, he decided to respond.

"I think I'll stay here with you, so I won't be too tired when you get back in the pool again," he announced. "I want to have enough energy left, just in case you try to do other things to me in the pool."

"Me? Do things to you?" I asked, incredulously. "Would I do something like that?"

"Of course you would. You already have," he responded, before giggling some more.

"Moi? You think moi is as heartless as that?" I panned, which only caused Bryce to giggle even more.

"Yep, I do," he confirmed.

I feigned a look of shock and anger over his answer, which made him laugh even more, so I began to pout. He saw this and thought it was hysterical, which he promptly pointed out.

"Oh, look at the way the baby sticks his bottom lip out," he jeered. "Did I hurt your widdle feelings?"

He began laughing really hard after saying this, but I didn't respond.

"Aw, do I have to try to make the baby feel better now?" he continued.

"No, just leave me alone," I told him, in mock anger. "And you'd better decide what you think I am."

Bryce looked puzzled by my last comment. He wasn't quite getting my meaning, so I decided that I'd better bail him out.

"Well first you call me an old man, and then you tell me I'm a baby. Which is it? I need you to explain, so I'll know how to act around you. Do I shuffle around and forget things, or am I supposed to cry and throw temper tantrums?"

He started laughing again.

"Awwww, poor baby," he said, as he got up and walked toward me.

I thought he was possibly going to do something nice, to make me feel better, but I was wrong.

"Let's see, is he is an old man or a widdle baby? Hmmm 3; I guess he's an itty, bitty baby. Maybe my widdle baby would feel better if I tickled him."

With that, he dug his fingers into my side and sent me into a fit of laughter, as I tried desperately to break away from his grasp. I try to keep this one bit of information hidden from everyone I knew, because I didn't want anyone else to learn that I am incredibly ticklish. Unfortunately, this little devil had already found my Achilles heel and was taking full advantage of it.

About this time, I finally managed to swing my legs over the side of the lounge, grasp both of his arms and stand up. Then I slung his body over my shoulder, raced forward and jumped into the pool, still holding on to him. We both went under the surface for a second or two, before we came up for air. When we did, he threw his arms around my neck and gave me a big hug, before he kissed me on the cheek. Then he pushed his upper torso back, away from me a bit, and just looked into my eyes.

"You are so much fun and I love being with you," he told me. "I hope you can make it so I'll never have to leave here."

"I'll do what I can, kiddo, but that's all I can promise," I agreed.

"As long as you try, but I know you will," he stated, while giving me a look that said he trusted me.

He continued to stare at me, much longer than I expected, and it seemed as if he were trying to memorize every feature of my face. After several seconds of this behavior, he finally made a suggestion.

"Why don't we get out of the pool again and I'll tell you everything you want to know about me," he suggested. "That way you'll be ready when you have your appointment with the lawyer."

I thought this was a good idea, so we climbed out of the pool and walked toward the lounge chairs. I sat on one, and then Bryce scooted between my legs and leaned back against my chest. My heart began to ache for him immediately, as he began to tell me his life's story.

Chapter 3
Revealing secrets

Bryce started out by filling me in about the circumstances surrounding his conception. It was a story he'd heard many times when he was younger, whenever his mother or grandparents would use it to try to hurt the other during one of their arguments. They obviously were very eager to blame each other for what had happened and neither party seemed to care if Bryce heard what was said, since their main intent was to hurt each other.

It seems that Bryce was conceived as the result of a date rape, when a former acquaintance of his mother's took advantage of her. It seemed that he wasn't too pleased when she didn't want to put out after he had spent a bunch of money on their date, so he took matters into his own hands. Not taking 'no' for an answer, he forced her to the floor, placed his hand over her mouth and then lifted her skirt and ripped off her panties. He used his free hand to undo his own trousers and release his straining dick. Then he forced her legs apart, so he could do the no-step boogey, since he only cared that he got off. After he dumped his load inside her, he left her lying on the floor, sobbing her eyes out and feeling shamed by what had just happened. He never said a single word to her, as he got up and disappeared into the night.

When she got home, she told her mother what had happened and then she told her father. Her parents tried to report the incident to the police, but didn't have much success. The fact that his mother had been out on a date with this man and many people had seen them having a good time together, it would be very difficult to prove the sex wasn't consensual. The case would essentially boil down to 'he said, she said', and there wasn't much else she or her parents could do to prove it wasn't what they had both wanted, unless they got him to admit it, but that wasn't very likely. After she found out she was pregnant, Bryce's mother wanted to have an abortion, but her parents wouldn't allow it, since it was strictly against their religion. To spite her parents and get back at them for not allowing her to have an abortion, his mother opted not to put the baby up for adoption. This meant Bryce was going to be stuck in a home where he was neither loved nor wanted.

As an infant, Bryce was basically left in his crib or playpen for most of the day, although he was fed, changed and bathed fairly regularly. As he grew older, he was expected to play by himself and keep out of the way, a variation of the old theme 'children should be seen and not heard,' but they actually wanted this kid to be neither seen nor heard. He also learned quickly what punishment he'd face if he didn't do what they wanted, when one day his mother became unhappy that he had accidentally gotten in her way. Furious, she grabbed a wooden spoon from the kitchen and beat his back, butt and legs with it, which left numerous bruises and welts covering those areas. After that happened, Bryce made certain that he never got in her way again.

There was, however, one other time he had managed to do something wrong. One night he'd had a bad dream and awoke crying hysterically. The terrible visions he had just witnessed had scared him badly, but unfortunately the noise woke his mother and she came storming into his room. She was determined to not only put an end to thus ruckus, but she planned to teach him that she didn't enjoy being awakened in this manner. As she left her room, she managed to grab her hairbrush and brought it along with her. After voicing her displeasure at being awakened, she told him she'd give him something real to cry about. She then proceeded to spank him with the hairbrush and then forced him into the closet, where he spent the rest of the night. He was still crying, but this time he tried to do it as quietly as he could. He couldn't understand why he'd been punished for having a bad dream, but then he realized that she hadn't even bothered to ask him why he was crying in the first place.

Scared, in pain and totally alone, Bryce huddled in that small dark hole until morning, when he eventually dared to let himself out of the closet. He only did this after he finally noticed the sunlight filtering through the gap under the door and felt it was safe to open the closet door and get back in his bed. He stayed in his room for the rest of the day, because his mother never left the apartment. He didn't even venture out to get something to eat and his mother never offered him any food or called him for a meal either. Instead, he chose to remain out of sight and remain in hiding. He even peed in an old bottle that he found in his room, so he didn't take the chance of running into his mother, which might have upset her again.

When he heard her go to bed later that evening, he snuck out of his room and went to the kitchen, where he found a box of crackers and a jar of peanut butter/ He also grabbed a butter knife, so he could spread a little peanut butter on each of the crackers before he ate them, and a glass of water. After taking everything back to his room, he used that measly excuse for a meal to ease the rumblings in his belly, before he got back into bed.

Bryce stayed awake all night, because he was afraid to fall asleep. He feared that he might have another bad dream and he certainly didn't want to wake up crying again, so he took every precaution to remain awake and prevent a repeat of the previous evening. What a hell of a way for a child to have to live.

Things eventually calmed down for him again and he was able to stay out of the line of fire after that. A few weeks later, however, someone new showed up at the apartment and this man was supposedly a new friend of his mother's. This guy was skinny and kind of ugly, but for some reason his mother seemed attracted to him. The guy started to spend most of his time at the apartment with them, and stuck around even when his mother wasn't there.

After continuing this arrangement for about a month, the guy just moved in completely. His name was Maury and he seemed to have taken special interest in Bryce, especially when his mother wasn't around. Bryce thought that Maury was only paying attention to him when they were alone so his mother wouldn't get upset that he was being nice to her bastard son. Unfortunately, Bryce discovered later that this wasn't the reason at all, but regardless of the man's intent, Bryce kind of liked it that an adult was spending time with him. Sometimes they would talk or Maury would sit with him when he watched TV. At first, this seemed really strange to Bryce, because he was so used to being alone, but then getting this attention started to fascinate him and became something he looked forward to. It eventually developed into an important part of Bryce's daily routine.

One night, Maury told Bryce's mother that he wasn't feeling well and wanted to stay home, but she didn't want to do that. Instead, she decided to go out without Maury this time, since she didn't like the idea of spending the evening cooped up in the apartment again. Since Maury didn't seem to object to her plan, she took off and left Maury and her son alone in the apartment.

At first, Bryce and Maury only sat on the couch and watched television together, but then Maury pulled Bryce onto his lap and began cuddling with him. Although he hadn't expected this and Maury had never done it before, Bryce was enjoying the closeness. Maury even began to rub Bryce's legs in the process and Bryce thought this was really great. He couldn't believe that someone actually liked him enough to want to hold him, so he melted into the guy's chest.

It wasn't very long after he did that when Bryce felt a hand slide under the waistband of his underpants and he felt Maury's fingers playing with his little wiener. He had no idea if this was right or wrong, but he enjoyed the attention and the feeling he was getting from it wasn't half bad either, especially when his little thingy got hard. For those reasons, he let Maury continue doing these things to him. He was just grateful someone had noticed he was alive and wanted to pay attention to him, for reasons other than to just beat the crap out of him.

This same thing seemed to happen every time the two of them were alone, even though Bryce knew that Maury was having sex with his mother nearly every night. He knew this because he could hear the bed squeaking and the headboard banging against the wall, but sometimes he could even hear the two of them moaning in the throes of passion. He knew about those kinds of things from the other kids at school, even though he didn't have any friends of his own. For some reason, the other kids thought he was weird and not very friendly, so they didn't have much to do with him.

Sometimes Bryce could hear the other children talking about things like this, especially about what boys and girls did together. He had also heard some of the older boys talking about doing things with each other, so he thought what Maury was doing with him was the same kind of thing those boys were talking about. It was because of this, and the fact that he knew Maury was also having sex with his mother, that he never tried to stop Maury from doing those things to him. His silence, however, complicated the issue and inadvertently encouraged Maury in the process, which made him grow bolder in his actions.

Things went on like that for quite some time, and then one day Maury started to do something different, something new. This time he put his hands down the back of Bryce's pants instead and started rubbing a finger up and down his crack, but he also tried to stick the finger in Bryce's butthole. When Maury did that, Bryce tightened his anal muscles, so Maury couldn't do it, but this only caused Maury to become more insistent.

Somewhat annoyed, Maury told Bryce to just relax and he'd enjoy it, but Bryce was scared and didn't want to continue this new game. Although he hadn't objected to what they had done before, Bryce didn't think this was right. Eventually, and over Bryce's objections, Maury managed to force one of his fingers into Bryce's hole and it hurt him a little. Bryce told Maury this, but Maury didn't seem to care about that and just kept doing what he wanted. After a while, Bryce's rectum began to adjust to the intruder and it didn't seem to hurt as much any longer, but that didn't make Bryce like it any more. From his previous experiences though, Bryce knew it wasn't wise to go against an adult, at least not if he didn't want to face the consequences, so he just tried to relax and think about other things while Maury did as he pleased. That helped a little, but not much.

After that, Bryce tried to stay away from Maury as much as he could, but the older man sought him out just the same. The apartment was small, so no matter where Bryce tried to hide, Maury always seemed to be able to find him. Whenever he did, Maury would do those same things to him, but it was happening more frequently and the sessions seemed to last longer. This kept up until Maury suddenly decided to change what they were doing.

One night, Maury unexpectedly pulled Bryce's pants all the way off before he began, and not just down. Then he started using two fingers at a time, not just one, and Maury was getting more aggressive toward the little boy. The added finger hurt Bryce again and stretched his little hole even further, while possibly even tearing him a bit, but Bryce didn't dare say a word to Maury about it. He was too afraid of the reaction it might draw, if he objected to what was being done to him. No one ever listened to what he had to say anyway, so why should he even bother to complain? He knew it wouldn't do any good, so he just resigned himself to let this happen.

Maury would finger-fuck him like this for many, many minutes, and continue to slide those digits in and out of the boy's opening, but Bryce never understood what pleasure Maury got from doing it. After Maury finished doing this to him, Bryce would pick up his clothes and go to his room. Then, he would try to stay away from Maury for as long as he could manage, while enjoying the solitude of his bedroom. This, however, didn't protect him completely or keep him from being the object of Maury's desires. Whenever Bryce's mother went somewhere alone, Maury would drag Bryce out of his room to join him, so he could do those things to him again. Finally, the inevitable happened, when one evening Maury took their activities to the next level.

After Maury had dragged Bryce into the living room with him, as he normally did, he removed Bryce's clothing and began working two, and then three, of his fingers up the boy's behind as they watched TV. After they had done this for a while, Maury made Bryce lean forward, which at the same time moved Bryce slightly off of Maury's lap, when Bryce heard Maury unsnap his own pants and unzip them. When Maury told him to sit back again, Bryce could feel something new touching his opening.

Startled and scared, Bryce turned around and gave Maury a horrified look, but Maury told him to just relax and it would be no different than when he used his fingers, but Bryce wasn't convinced. He tried to jump off of Maury's lap and bolt from the room, but Maury was prepared for something like that to happen. When Maury felt Bryce attempt to get away, he grabbed the boy by his shoulders and held him in place, while all the while telling him that he'd beat the crap out of him if he tried that stunt again.

Bryce considered this warning for a moment and decided that he might as well give in. He figured this wouldn't hurt as much as a beating, so he calmed down and Maury positioned the tip of his penis so it touched Bryce's puckered hole. Bryce was wondering when Maury was going to make his move, when Maury suddenly tightened his grip on Bryce's shoulders and forced the boy's body downward, at the same time thrusting upward with his hips. Bryce felt a jolt of pain as that man-sized tool was thrust all the way inside him in one fell swoop, and he cried out in agony. Maury immediately clamped a hand over Bryce's mouth and told the 'little brat to shut the fuck up,' but Bryce's continued to whimper, as the tears streamed down his cheeks.

Maury was considerate enough to wait at that point and gave Bryce's anus time to adjust to the intrusion, but then he moved his hands down to Bryce's waist. After grasping Bryce's firmly about the hips, he began lifting the boy up and down, as he pulled him off and then impaled him again on his erection. Maury told Bryce to help out and do some of the work himself, while encouraging Bryce to lift his body up and down on his penis. Bryce did as he was told, figuring it would be better that way, and he felt Maury's penis sliding in and out of him, while rubbing uncomfortably against the lining of his intestinal tract. Bryce was numb now, at least from the neck up, and he tried to think about other things, so he wouldn't have to concentrate on what was happening to him.

As he kept lifting up and down, so Maury would finish and leave him alone, Bryce kept telling himself it would be over soon. While he was enduring this activity, Maury would say things to him like, 'you're tight, boy' or 'you're even better than your momma,' but Bryce tried not to hear a word he said. After a few minutes of this action, he heard Maury begin to moan, like he would hear him do in the bedroom when he was having sex with his mother, and then Maury jammed his cock all the way into Bryce's ass. This hurt Bryce even more, because Maury's dick was further inside him now than it had ever been before, and then he felt something warm filling his insides. Bryce's naïve mind told him that Maury had just peed in his ass, and that made him feel sick to his stomach.

After Maury stopped his movements, they stayed motionless for a minute or two longer, while Maury enjoyed the lasting effect of his orgasm. After coming down from his sexual high, he reluctantly helped Bryce get off his cock. Eagerly, Bryce jumped up, happy that it was over, but then Maury told him to lay face down on the couch. Bryce wasn't sure why Maury wanted him to do this, but he knew he'd better comply. As Bryce got into that position, Maury reached over to the coffee table and grabbed a box of tissues, so he could clean both of them up.

Maury wiped the white goop off of himself first, and then he wiped Bryce's rear-end. Bryce looked at the tissues as they were thrown onto the floor and noticed that some of them had some red on them too. Even though Bryce didn't know what it meant, it was obvious that he had bled a little when he'd been fucked, but hopefully the damage wasn't too severe. After Maury finished cleaning the boy up and Bryce had put his pants back on, Bryce ran back to his bedroom and stayed there for the rest of the night. He knew in his heart that he didn't ever want to see Maury again.

Ironically, it was just a couple of weeks later that Bryce's class was given the 'Danger Stranger' and sexual abuse presentation. His teacher told them they should tell an adult, like a parent, teacher or policeman, whenever someone did something to them that they didn't like or if someone touched them in an area that would normally be covered by their bathing suits. Bryce considered this information for the rest of the day and all through that night. He wondered if he should actually tell someone what had happened to him and risk a beating, or remain quiet and let it happen over and over again.

The next day he made up his mind and let his teacher know what had been going on at his house, and not just about Maury either. He also told his teacher about his relationship with mother and how she had been treating him. The teacher had a tough time believing what he had to say, but she took him to the principal's office and had him repeat his story. After hearing what Bryce told him, the principal called the Department of Social Services and the police. Later that same day, Maury was arrested and Bryce was taken out of his home. Maury was later convicted of child molestation and sent to prison, but not until after Bryce had to tell a judge and a bunch of other people, whom I assumed were the lawyers and a jury, about what had happened to him. He was kind of embarrassed about having to do this in front of a bunch of strangers, but he was very brave and did what he needed to do. From there he went into the foster care system and a whole new phase of his life began.

The foster home that Bryce was taken to was really quite nice. The couple was probably in their early 30's and had decided to take in a foster child because they, for some reason, weren't able to have children of their own. They had tried for several years to conceive, but were either unsuccessful or the pregnancy had ended badly, so they put their name on a waiting list to adopt. Unfortunately, they learned it would take a minimum of four years to get a child that way, so they signed up as foster parents in the interim.

The couple thought if they got into the program first, they might be assigned a child they liked and who was available then maybe they would be allowed to adopt that way, thus speeding up the process. They were hoping for a baby or toddler to begin with, but that was not to be, and it was Bryce who was delivered to their doorstep and introduced as their first foster child. Although Bryce was only a first grader at this point, it was still a disappointment for them not to get an infant. They did accept him, fearing they might not be assigned any more foster children if they refused the first child brought to them, so they welcomed him into their home, while hoping for a newborn on their next placement.

After their initial disappointment wore off, they did warm up to Bryce and made him feel welcomed and treated him fairly well. It was evident, however, that Bryce had sensed their initial lack of enthusiasm and partial rejection of him when he arrived, so even though his foster parents became more loving and affectionate after that, Bryce wasn't ready to forgive them for that slight. Over the next few months, things improved and they seemed to warm up to each other. The foster parents did their best to make Bryce feel comfortable, and he was beginning to put the past behind him. They were also starting to take Bryce to local parks and on occasional other outings, like to the zoo, and they even took him to visit some of their relatives, which began to make him feel like part of the family. He was really starting to feel accepted now, but then something unexpected happened, something that no one could have predicted. His foster mother suddenly became pregnant.

At first it wasn't a big deal, since his foster parents were afraid to celebrate too soon or announce this fact to others. She had already lost babies during the first and second trimester, so when she reached her seventh month they began to tell everyone they knew about their good fortune. The biggest surprise was not that she was pregnant, but that the ultra-sound had revealed that she was carrying twins. Suddenly Bryce lost his importance to the family and all the talk was about the babies. He was moved out of his bedroom and placed in a smaller room, because he'd been told that the larger room would be needed for the two cribs. Slowly, Bryce began to slip back into some of his old habits, such as keeping to himself and staying in his room, because he was convinced that he wasn't loved or wanted any more. As the days passed and the due-date grew nearer, Bryce received even less attention, but it was only going to get worse. After the babies were born, identical twin boys that were three weeks premature, he felt totally abandoned.

Suddenly, Bryce was in the way again, no matter what he did. He only wanted to help and he wanted to hold the babies, but he was told not to go in their room, not to get near them and he was only allowed to see the babies at arm's length. The twins were also very demanding and not even on the same schedule, so one or the other was up almost continually throughout the night. This meant their parents weren't getting much sleep, as they tended to the twin's needs. The wife took most of this nightly abuse, since she realized that her husband had to be fresh and alert for his job, so she got up three out of every four times that the babies cried. By morning, the last thing she wanted to do was get up and feed another child and then get him dressed and ready for school, especially if the twins happened to be sleeping at that time. It wasn't very much longer before Bryce's world came crashing down again, when a social worker showed up at the home to take him someplace else.

Bryce's caseworker tried to explain to him that it wasn't his fault and that he had done nothing wrong, but her words seemed to fall on deaf ears. She tried to convince him that this move wasn't because they didn't want him, but instead that it was due to the fact that taking care of the babies tired the parents out and they didn't have the energy or the time to look after another child. This didn't mean very much to Bryce, and he just accepted it as another example that he wasn't wanted or loved.

Bryce did, however, refuse to let anyone see any emotion coming from him. In fact, he hid his feelings so well that it led everyone to misjudge and wrongly evaluate his level of acceptance and ability to cope with change. They continued to define his adjustment using adult standards and attempted to explain his apparent resignation by using logic and other psychological jargon, rather than understanding the emotional response of a young boy. This caused them to misdiagnose his level of self-worth and his emotional stability before sending him to live with his next foster family. Unfortunately, this was done without any counseling to help him cope with the trauma of being ripped from another home and he was merely dropped in a new environment.

Since he'd learned to internalize his feelings and fears, Bryce went to his next family in stoic compliance, neither shedding a tear nor offering a smile. This was just something he did, like going to school when it was in session, so everyone either misread or overlooked the pain and feelings of rejection that were welled up inside of him.

His next home was not as nice as the first, even though there were several other children there as possible playmates and confidants. This was a long established foster family and Bryce was their fourth foster child, at least currently. Over the years this couple had taken care of more children than they could count and, in fact, they couldn't even remember the names of all the children who had lived there. Even worse, they wouldn't have recognized those children even if they ran into them on the street. This was merely a warehouse type of foster home, one where they took in any and everybody offered to them, be it for a day, a week or however long the child was scheduled to stay.

These parents fixed meals for the children, often using the cheapest items they could buy, and they made the children help with all the other chores. All of the furniture in the house was very old, although semi-clean, and the mattresses on the children's beds had seen more use than a cheap hooker. There was also a discernable pecking order among the foster children, with the oldest or most aggressive being at the top and the youngest or weakest on the lowest rung of this social ladder. Bryce soon learned that he filled the bottom-most rung, so now he had even more bosses than before.

Once again, he retreated to the solitude and protection of his room, although he had to share it with one of the other children, but he found it easier to entertain himself than to fight for love or attention. Oh, he did try to make friends with the other children and attempted to see if his new foster parents might take an interest in him, but he was quick to sense their rejection. He also discovered he wasn't big enough or strong enough to stand up against the older or larger children, but he also had limited social skills, due to the fact that he'd hardly ever had anyone to interact with. This drastically limited his ability to attract friends and the other children often considered him as being dumb, boring or immature.

He was stuck in an unending cycle of failure. He couldn't get friends because he didn't have any social skills and he couldn't build his social skills without any friends to interact with. It wasn't completely bad though, because Bryce learned how to wash the dishes, do the laundry and how to sweep and mop the floors, as well as how to make his bed. It's not that he had to do all of the chores, and he didn't become Cinderella, but the kids had to share the responsibilities. He did do more than his share, however, because of his size and demeanor. The others found it easy to take advantage of him and they often forced him into doing some of their chores as well. It may sound as if I'm saying that tongue-in-cheek, by saying that having to do all of this wasn't all bad, but those were skills that would help him in later placements or if he were lucky enough to get a chance to be on his own.

Bryce was at this particular foster home for more than a year, before the husband was diagnosed with cancer. The doctor explained that he would have to operate and remove as much of the cancerous growths as he could, before sending him for radiation treatments, which would eliminate the problem areas that couldn't be taken care of surgically. After discussing what this would entail with his wife, they decided that they wouldn't be able to handle having the kids around during his surgery and follow-up treatments.

They understood that there would be times when both of them would be required to be at the hospital for extended periods of time and this would take a lot out of them. They also realized that neither of them would be in the mood or have the strength to deal with a bunch of rambunctious children during this time, so the wife called the Department of Social Services. She informed them about her husband's medical condition, and that they could no longer care for the children. She told them that they had a little over a week to find new homes for everyone and the caseworker told her she would do what she could.

When the foster parents broke the news to the children later, the other three were very upset, but the news didn't have much of an effect on Bryce. He didn't feel any particular attachment to any of these people anyway and he hadn't made any friends here. He also wasn't very fond of the rundown state of the house, but he did wonder what his new home and foster family would be like.

While he waited to be removed from there, Bryce also came up with a new way of distracting himself from this situation, by imagining that his father was going to come back for him and whisk him away to a better life. Even though he had never met his father and didn't even know the man's name, he began to build this image of him in his mind. He began to think of his father as some kind of savior who was going to love him, take care of him and rescue him from his cold and lonely existence. He became Bryce's fantasy knight in shining armor and Bryce was convinced he would show up one day and suddenly make his life better.

At first this was just a harmless distraction, which took him away from his everyday woes, but over time it became an obsession and Bryce began to forget that this person was just someone he had created in his mind. When the day came for the children to be moved to their new foster homes, Bryce told the other kids that he wouldn't be there for very long, because his father was going to come get him and take him away from all this. Of course, the others didn't believe a word he said and began to give him grief about it. They teased him that he didn't even have a father, but Bryce stood his ground, even though there was not a shred of truth in his boast. Instead, he told them that his father loved him and he was going to come back and take him away from all of this, so he could care for him, as a father should. The other kids just laughed and continued to tease him about it. The also began to call him names, but it didn't faze Bryce in the slightest. In his mind, this was the truth and he had convinced himself of that, so now he just had to wait for it to happen.

His next foster family lived in a trailer park and they had a biological daughter, but no other foster children. She was about two years younger than Bryce, but at least she was friendly. However, Bryce was told that this was only a temporary placement, since this couple was only certified as emergency home, which could be used until another qualified family became available. This fact didn't seem to bother him, because he was convinced that his knight in shining armor was coming to take him away from all of this.

Not only had he been forced to change homes, but he also had to change schools when he moved here, but this was actually a lucky break for him. It wasn't that the kids here treated him differently or any better than at the other school, but there was another 'geek' like him who was willing to be his friend. At least now he had someone he could hang around with. The other boy was just as excited about having a friend as Bryce and they soon became inseparable. In addition to playing with his new friend and sitting next to him in class, the two of them would watch the other children and slowly learned how they interacted with each other. The pair would also watch the types of things the others did together, so gradually their social skills began to improve. When that happened, they made a new friend, who was another 'outcast' at the fringe of the school social hierarchy.

Bryce began to like his new home for several reasons. First, he had made friends at school and the couple's daughter was being really nice to him too. Second, when he came home from school he didn't have to start doing chores and was actually allowed to go outside and play with his foster-sister or one of his two friends, if they could get permission to come to his place. This was actually Bryce's first taste of behaving like a kid and he was beginning to enjoy this new experience. There was only one problem, and that was the fact that he had forgotten this was only a temporary placement – an inevitability that would hit him squarely between the eyes sooner than he wanted.

The cold reality of this situation came crashing down on him one afternoon after the phone rang. His foster-mother took the call, which it turned out was from his caseworker, and after she hung up, she broke the news to Bryce. She did it gently, by walking over to him and wrapping her arms around his chest first. Then, she told him that he was going to be leaving there in a little while. He wanted to know why, and she tried to explain it to him, but then she took him to his room and helped pack up his belongings, because his caseworker would be coming by to pick him up in about an hour.

Bryce was crushed and quickly asked if he could call his two friends, so he could tell them what was happening. He didn't know if he'd still be going to the same school after this move, so he thought he should let them know, just in case he had to go to school somewhere else. It was one of the most difficult things he had ever had to do. All of them tried to remain hopeful, seeing none of them knew for certain what was going to happen, but secretly they all had their doubts and suspicions.

After he got off the phone, Bryce also went through a tearful farewell with his foster sister, because she also couldn't understand why he had to go and wasn't taking it very well. Finally, he said good-bye to his foster mother and told her that he appreciated the fact that she had been so kind to him, even though they never had a chance to get to know each other very well. One thing he did know, however, and it was that he would miss her gentle ways and caring touch. He also told her to thank her husband for him too, since he figured he'd be gone before her husband arrived home from work.

When the caseworker arrived, she loaded his things into her car and then drove him across town to his new home. This place was pretty much like his first foster home. It was another older couple that lived in an older home, which was randomly cluttered with older furnishings and an assortment of other items. Bryce soon discovered that he was their third foster child, all of whom were boys, so he hoped he would be happy here.

To his delight and amazement, Bryce hit it off with the younger boy, but he also got the impression that the older one was going to be a problem. In fact, it didn't take very long for him to discover that his hunch was correct. Almost immediately, this kid started bossing him around and acting more like he was the foster father, rather than just one of the kids. He did this to the other boy too, but it didn't seem to bug that boy as much as it did Bryce, maybe because he had already become accustomed to it. The older boy automatically made decisions about what they were going to do or what they were going to watch on television, whenever the foster parents weren't around. Bryce soon discovered that he didn't mind this kid's choices, but it was just that he didn't like being told what to do by someone only a couple of years older than himself.

Bryce was also in a new school district again and had to attend another elementary school in a different part of town. To his dismay, he had trouble there right from the start, but it wasn't with the other kids, but with his schoolwork. Having jumped around between so many different schools, he hadn't had any continuity in his instruction, so now he was struggling to keep up. At his last school, he had been taught reading by a whole-word method, but now he was required to learn phonics, which was completely foreign to him. That wasn't his only problem, though, because this school used a hands-on, concept oriented approach to teaching, as opposed to the look, listen, and learn approach of his previous schools. He did have one advantage however, and that was a teacher that had taken an interest in him.

This teacher offered to work with him before school, during his lunch hour, and also for a brief time after class ended, if he was willing to put forth the effort to catch up. Of course, Bryce jumped at that idea, seeing he never spent much time with his classmates anyway. Bryce loved getting all of this personal attention from an adult, so he showed up whenever he could and for as long as possible. He was actually spending time with an adult who seemed to care about him and was trying to help him. No one was screaming or telling him what an awful person he was. This was great!

This extra attention eventually helped him to catch up to the others, by filling in all of the academic gaps that had occurred, due to his constant moving around. Before long, he had not only caught up, but he was doing above average work. Since she had been so helpful and nice to him, Bryce wanted to get to know his teacher better, so he could thank her for all of her help. The problem was, she no longer wanted to spend as much time with him now, since he had caught up and his grades had improved. This confused Bryce. He thought that if she liked him when he was doing poorly that she'd like him even more if he did well. He just couldn't understand why her attitude had changed toward him, but he continued to keep his grades up, in hope of winning back her admiration.

Bryce also managed to make a couple of new friends in his class too, and the one boy wasn't even a 'geek' or a 'loser.' Bryce didn't know why this kid seemed to like him and was so friendly, but the boy always seemed to pick Bryce to be on his team during P.E. or when they went outside for recess. Bryce was smart enough to know that he wasn't a very good athlete, so that couldn't be the reason the boy kept choosing him, and the kid was always friendly and talked to him at other times too. Soon, Bryce quit his trying to figure out the 'why' and just started to enjoy the friendship that this boy offered.

This boy's name was Greg and they began to talk a little, as they got to know each other better, but Bryce was almost afraid, or maybe just ashamed, to tell the boy that he was a foster child. What he didn't realize was that it didn't matter to his new friend. For some reason, Greg already knew this, probably because Bryce had told where he lived and then realized that those people always took in foster kids. Bryce was kind of relieved when he found out that Greg knew, so he didn't have to try to keep it a secret any longer, and he was thrilled that it didn't seem to matter to his new friend either.

After they had discussed this information, Greg had a surprise of his own and told Bryce that he had been adopted. At first Bryce didn't want to believe him, thinking that he was making this up to make him feel better about being a foster child, but Greg insisted that this was true. He even told Bryce that he could even come over and ask his parents, if he wanted proof. Bryce figured that if he was willing to let him do that then he must be telling him the truth, so he never questioned this fact again.

Over time, the two boys continued to grow closer and they even included the third boy in many of their activities, but the two of them bonded together more with each other than they did with the other boy. They did, however, vow that they would never leave the other boy out of their escapades completely, since Bryce remembered what it had been like for him, but they would also make sure they had time for just the two of them to do things alone, in addition to the times when they were all together.

When Greg asked Bryce if he wanted to come over to his house the next afternoon to play. Bryce told him he'd have to ask his foster parents first, but he assumed they would let him. He knew they allowed him to do other things that his other foster parents hadn't, so when he got home he asked his foster mother if he would be permitted to take advantage of this opportunity. Before she gave him permission, she wanted to know where this kid lived. When he explained that he just lived a couple of blocks away, she told him it would be fine, but he'd have to be home in time for dinner. Bryce agreed and was all excited about this prospect. He was so excited that he could barely eat that evening and it took him forever to fall asleep later that night, something he hardly ever had a problem doing any more. All he could think about was how Greg would react when he found out Bryce could come over and what they'd do when they got there. It was like a dream come true for him.

Chapter 4
The eye of the storm

The next day at school, Bryce found Greg as quickly as he could and told him the good news. Greg was very happy about it, but he had also suspected that he would be able to come. The two were very antsy all day, which meant they were hardly able to keep their minds on their work, and they spent their whole lunch period talking excitedly about what they might do. They made many plans, but this only added to their distraction during the afternoon, and then the boys flew out of the school when they were finally dismissed.

The two of them joked around and had all kinds of fun with each other the entire way to Greg's house. They playfully punched, tripped and stole each other's hats, as they enjoyed some harmless childish fun. They had almost reached their destination before Bryce began to look at the different places they passed, but he wasn't exactly prepared for what he saw. He and his friend may have only lived a few blocks apart, but it was obvious that they lived in two different worlds. The houses here were much nicer and better kept than the area where Bryce lived, and the lawns were all freshly mowed and the shrubs neatly trimmed. These people weren't rich, but they were obviously better off than the people around where he lived, and they took more pride in their neighborhood as well.

Greg's mother greeted them almost as soon as they walked through the door and led them to the kitchen for a snack. She worked part-time, but only when Greg was in school, so she was home when he arrived in the afternoon. She was a good-looking woman, with a warm friendly smile, and she apparently doted on her adopted son. Bryce was quick to notice how she treated Greg and how good she was to him, so he started to become jealous.

Why couldn't his mother have loved him like this? Why did she bother to keep him if she didn't love him? Why hadn't she let him be put up for adoption, so he could have been taken in by someone as loving as this? Why had Greg ended up in such a good home, while he had been forced to endure years of neglect and abuse? Why did God hate him so much that he made his life as miserable as it was?

As Bryce continued to ask himself these questions, Greg was trying to get his attention, because he wondered why Bryce was so distracted. Finally Greg shook Bryce's shoulder and brought him back to the present, and then he took him upstairs to show him his room.

Grey had a nice bedroom, which had a lot of boy type toys and other things in it. He had a couple of trophies and some sports gear on display, both on the wall shelves and top of his dresser. There was also a Dallas Cowboys pennant above his bed, a Notre Dame pennant on the opposite wall and a Motocross poster hanging above his dresser. On his closet door was a Taylor Lautner poster and there was a Chord Overstreet poster on the inside of the door to his room. Bryce was busy checking out the two posters, because he had never seen pictures of either boy as large as these and he thought both guys were extremely good-looking and really hot. He didn't know why he thought this way, but he just did, and Greg caught him staring at the posters.

"Do you like my posters of those two?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

"I do too. I think they're both hot, but those pictures make them look even hotter. I wish I were as good-looking as them."

"You are," Bryce blurted out, but he began to wonder if he'd made a mistake saying this, almost as soon as the words escaped his lips.

"No way. Those two guys are gorgeous. I'm just average," Greg replied.

This comment seemed to encourage Bryce, since Greg hadn't reacted negatively to his comment, so he decided to keep going.

"No, you're not average," Bryce insisted. "You're as handsome as either one of them."

"You really think so?" Greg followed, as if he didn't believe what he'd heard.

"Yeah. I wouldn't have said so if I didn't mean it," Bryce confirmed.

"Well, you're not bad yourself," Greg stated, while eying Bryce more closely.

"Thanks, but you're just being nice," was Bryce's retort.

"No, I'm not 3; well I am, but that's not why I said it," Greg insisted. "It's true. I've thought that since the first day you showed up in our class."

"Is that why you've been so nice to me?" Bryce wanted to know.

"That's one of the reasons," Greg admitted, "but I also know it's hard being the new kid in class. I had overheard the secretary giving your address to our teacher, so I knew you lived close by and that you were probably a foster kid. That didn't matter to me though, especially after I saw you. That's when I knew that I wanted to be your friend."

"I'm glad," Bryce confessed. "I've never had many friends before."

"Well, you do now," Greg confirmed. "Hey, maybe you could spend the weekend here. Do you think your foster parents would allow that?"

"Maybe, but I'll have to ask," Bryce answered. "They let me come over today, so maybe they will. I'll ask when I get home and then I'll tell you tomorrow. Ok?"

"Sure, that will be fine," Greg replied. "Come on, let's go outside and play."

The boys then went racing out of the house and out into the yard. Greg found a rubber ball lying in the grass, which he picked up and threw to Bryce. The boys then proceeded to throw it back and forth, while they talked about all kinds of different things. Once they finished playing catch, they continued to do a variety of other stuff, until it was time for Bryce to go home. As Bryce got ready to leave, Greg ran inside and told his mother that he was going to walk Bryce home, which she agreed to, but Bryce didn't understand why. Greg, however, made the reason perfectly clear to him as they made their way there.

Excitedly, Greg explained to Bryce that he didn't want to wait until tomorrow to learn if he could spend the weekend. He wanted to know now, so when they got to the foster home Bryce introduced Greg to his foster mother and then asked her if he could spend the weekend with him. She thought about it for less than a minute and then told him he could, which sent both boys into a jumping frenzy, with Bryce's foster mother trying to calm them both down. When they did, they went back outside, so they could savor their success. A short time later, Greg said good-bye and then walked the short distance back to his own home.

The time between that moment and Friday night was almost too much for Bryce to endure. It seemed as if it was taking forever for the time to pass, especially after he got to school and Greg told him that he had special plans for when he was there. He wouldn't tell Bryce what these plans were, but he did tell him that he'd love it. So when Friday finally arrived, the boys walked to Bryce's house after school first, so he could pick up his things, and then they walked the rest of the way to Greg's house.

Once again, Greg's mother met them as they came through the door and told them to take Bryce's things up to Greg's room. She also told the boys that they were to immediately come down for a snack, because she had freshly baked cookies and milk waiting for them. She also announced that she had made a chocolate cake for desert, after dinner, and the boys thought it was fantastic news. They both loved chocolate cake, not to mention the cookies, so they were looking forward to having these treats.

After they finished their snack, the boys went out to walk around the neighborhood for a while, to see if anything exciting was going on. They didn't find much, but they did horse around with a couple of boys from down the block for a brief time, and then they walked back to Greg's house. Almost as soon as they arrived, Greg's mother had them wash up for dinner and then they sat down to eat. That's when Bryce got to meet Greg's dad for the first time.

Greg's dad had just arrived home from work and seemed really nice. Bryce thought that Greg's mother was nicer, but he really hadn't had a chance to get to know Greg's father very well. It did seem as if he loved Greg and was interested in what was going on in his life, as well as wanting to do things with him. Bryce knew this because Greg's father had asked Greg about his day, but he also asked if Greg had told Bryce about their plans.

Greg quickly admitted that he hadn't told Bryce the details, because he was saving that as a surprise. Bryce was fascinated as he watched the two of them interact with each other, but it also made Bryce envious again, and reminded him of the imaginary father he created to do the same things. Greg's father had noticed this change in their visitor and thought he should include Bryce in their discussion, so he started to ask him questions about himself. This seemed to perk Bryce back up and soon his regrets were forgotten. He had been totally distracted by this man's sudden interest in him.

After they had finished their scrumptious dinner and enjoyed the delicious dessert, the boys went into the other room to decide what they would do next. After discussing their options, they ended up playing the 'Guitar Hero' on Greg's X-box, which would be another new experience for Bryce. Greg was very patient with Bryce and showed him how to do everything, and then they competed against Greg's parents. Everyone seemed to have a great deal of fun, and even though it was the first time that Bryce had ever done this, he performed rather well. It was also more fun than he'd had in ages and he really liked his new friend and his family.

After the last round of challenges ended, the boys went up to Greg's room and played some other video games for the rest of the night. When Greg's mother came up to check on them, she told them it was time for bed and that they should get ready to go to sleep. After brushing their teeth and going to the toilet, they came back to Greg's room, stripped down to their underwear and got into Greg's double bed. Bryce was planning to just go to sleep on the floor, but Greg wouldn't allow it. Instead, he told him there was more than enough room in the bed for both of them and insisted that Bryce joined him. Bryce certainly didn't mind, especially if Greg didn't, so they both got into his bed, but they ended up talking for quite a while before they fell asleep.

The next morning they awoke before Greg's parents, so they just stayed in his room and entertained themselves. They started playing video games again, but soon they began to complain that the other one was cheating, which they actually were and they both knew it. Jokingly, they started wrestling and trying to pin each other to the floor, so the loser would have to admit that he was the one who was cheating. They were having a good time doing this, but they must have made a little too much noise, because Greg's mother showed up at the door to see what they were up to. When she saw that they were wrestling and it was all in fun, she made some comment about them being typical boys. Then she told them to get cleaned up and dressed, before they came down for breakfast.

The boys did as they were told and hurriedly washed their faces and hands with a washcloth, after taking a leak. Then, they headed downstairs to meet Greg's mother in their kitchen, where she greeted them with a smile as they walked in. She then asked them what they wanted for breakfast and Greg told her that he would like scrambled eggs and toast. Bryce, however, said he'd just have peanut butter and jelly toast, like he normally had at his foster home. Greg's mother made it for him, but she prepared enough scrambled eggs so he could have some too. Bryce began eating everything as if it were a race, so Greg's mother told him he should slow down and enjoy it. She also told him that she'd fix him more, if that was what he wanted, but he told her that he'd had enough and it was all very good. Of course, praising the cook and eating like that only helped to endear him to her, so Bryce didn't have to worry about being invited back again.

After breakfast, they all went outside and loaded into their car, but Bryce still had no idea where they were going. On the way, Greg finally told him that they were going to visit his grandparents. He explained that they lived out in the country, but not on a farm or anything like that, it was just a small housing development in the middle of nowhere, which was populated by a bunch of old people. Even though it didn't sound as if it would be very exciting, Greg informed Bryce that there were some great places to explore around there, and he'd show him as much as he could.

After hearing this exchange, Greg's parents told them that they had to spend some time with his grandparents first, but if they promised to be careful, they could go exploring if they wished. Greg was used to doing that nearly every time he went there anyway, so this time he'd just have someone to drag along with him. The boys were both very excited now and could barely wait to arrive. As soon as the car stopped in the driveway, they bolted out of it even before the engine had been turned off. Bryce followed Greg, as he raced into the house to say hello to his grandparents. When they asked who Bryce was, Greg eagerly began to tell them all about his new friend. After the boys talked to Greg's grandparents for a while, his parents gave them permission to go out and do some exploring for a while. The boys then told Greg's grandparents they'd be back soon, as they sped out the door and raced behind the house.

When they finally came to a stop, Bryce decided to take a moment to check out the area. The place seemed pretty interesting. There was a small cluster of homes, but behind them were open fields and a scattering of trees, which spread before them on all sides. It was then that Greg informed Bryce that he had something to show him, and then he led him through one of the fields, toward a line of trees and whatever lay beyond.

As they made their way through the small cluster of trees, they suddenly came upon a small creek, but it turned out to be more than just that. At some point, someone had built a dam across the creek, which had caused a small pond to form behind it. It was probably no more the four feet [1.20 m] at its deepest point, but it looked so inviting and beckoned to them. It was secluded here, but open enough to give access to the creek and small pond, which was lined by trees on both sides. The water appeared to be fairly still and quite clear, which almost made it seem as if this area had remained untouched for centuries. This, in turn, elicited the inevitable reaction.

"Hey, Bryce, do you want to go swimming?" Greg asked.

Bryce looked at the water and then at his friend.

"Yeah, that sounds nice, but we don't have our swimsuits or towels with us," he answered.

"No big deal. We can just go swimming without anything on," Greg suggested. "You've seen other guys naked before, haven't you?"

"Well, yeah. Sometimes I've seen one of the other guys at my foster home without anything on. You know, when they were changing or getting ready to shower."

"You aren't bashful about me seeing you, are you?" Greg followed.

Bryce wasn't sure if he was or not, but he wasn't about to let Greg know that.

"No, of course not," he told him. "We all got the same things, right?"

"Yeah, we do," Greg agreed. "They may be a little different, but basically they're all the same."

"Do you think it's safe here?" Bryce wanted to know, because he wasn't sure if he was comfortable with the idea. "I mean, aren't you worried that someone else might come here and see us swimming without anything on?"

"Nah, everyone around here is old and they never come out here," Greg assured him. "I always come to his place whenever we visit and I've never seen anyone else around. I don't think my parents would ever come out here either, because I don't think they even know this is here."

For some reason, Bryce now wanted to see Greg naked and that thought excited him. He was mentally picturing what Greg would look like without his clothes on and hoped that he'd be able to get a good look at what he had between his legs.

"Well, ok. I'll do it, if you will," Bryce agreed.

"Let's do it then," Greg urged.

The boys immediately began to strip out of their clothes and threw them on the ground beside where they were standing. When they got down to just their underpants, they looked at each other and grinned.

"We'll do it together," Greg announced, without giving Bryce a chance to back out.

Bryce nodded and both boys pulled down their briefs. They spent the next few seconds checking each other one out and making sure they saw what the other looked like down there. They were both pleased to learn that they were pretty much identical, because they were both a couple of inches limp and circumcised, which made them relax even more about doing this. At this point, they decided to get closer to each other, so they could have a better look and be able to compare their packages. Without saying a word, they kept inching closer to each other, until their penises were almost touching, and then they just stood there.

"See, I told you we would be the same," Greg announced.

They both remained staring at each other's goodies and didn't appear as if they wanted to take their eyes off of the other's penis.

"Have you ever touched anyone else's wiener before?" Greg wanted to know.

"No, have you?" Bryce countered.

"Just one other boy's wiener," Greg admitted. "We were friends last year, but he moved away. We touched each other's wieners a couple of times and thought it was fun. Would you like to touch mine now?"

Bryce felt his heart leap to his throat and it began to beat faster after Greg asked this question, and Bryce knew what his answer was going to be. He had always wondered what it would be like to touch someone else there, but he just didn't have the courage to ask anyone else if he could do it, so he could find out what it would be like. Even though Maury had touched him before, he had never touched Maury, and he wouldn't have wanted to anyway. This was different, though. Greg was his own age and he was cute, really cute. Even before he had a chance to answer or reach out, his own body gave him away. Suddenly his little dick began to stiffen and rise, indicating his interest in his friend. Greg noticed this immediately and let him know about it.

"Wow, you're getting a boner," he blurted out. "Go ahead, touch mine and then I'll touch yours. Wow, yours is getting even bigger."

Greg was right, it had gotten bigger and thicker too. Bryce's skin was all hot and his body was trembling with excitement. Slowly, he reached out his hand and touched Greg's penis, gently fingering the tip and then touching it all over. Reacting to the contact, Greg's penis began to grow too, because the stimulation of Bryce's touch was arousing him as well. The two boys laughed about this, as they were now both very erect, and then Greg reached over and began playing with Bryce's stiffy too. The boys were not only touching each other, but they began to stroke the penis they had in their hand, using one or two fingers and their thumb to do so. This also caused the boys to giggle even more, because they thought these new activities tickled, but neither one wanted to stop. It just felt too good and neither of them wanted it to end. Eventually, they did stop, but they were both breathless and still very excited.

"That was really neat," Bryce confessed.

"Yeah, it was great!" Greg added. "We'd better go swimming though, if you still want to do that. It won't be too much longer before we'll have to head back to the house, or else my parents will begin to worry about us."

Bryce agreed that he wanted to go swimming, so they ran to the edge of the pond and jumped in. The water was cool, but refreshing, and their little dicks quickly wilted under the sudden change in temperature. It didn't seem to bother them though, and they probably didn't even notice that fact, because they were now too busy just being boys. First, they splashed each other and then they chased each other around, while playing their own version of tag in the water. They did this for about thirty or forty minutes, before they began to tire, and then they got out of the water and lay on the bank. As they rested on their backs and allowed their bodies to dry, they kept glancing over and checking out each other's body. They were still intrigued, even though they had seen it 'all' before, and continued to stare at the other's boyhood. Once their bodies had dried, they decided they had better get dressed and head back to Greg's grandparents' house. They continued to goof around all the way back, and they were still laughing and joking around as they walked in the door.

"I'm glad to see you boys are getting along so well," Greg's grandmother told them, as they walked into her living room. "It's good that you are such good friends. Good friends can be hard to find, but they can last a lifetime. I hope that's how it will work out for the two of you."

The boys sort of understood what she was saying, so they said they hoped so too, but how can anyone know what his future holds.

Now that they were in the house, Greg's grandparents had some really neat old things for them to check out. They had this thing they called a stereoscope, which was kind of like looking through a viewfinder or a pair of binoculars. A pair of pictures was placed in a holder at the far end of the apparatus, but when you looked through it there was just one image. The pictures were of the same scene, but had been taken at slightly different angles, so when you looked through the lenses at them, it combined the two images into one and gave it added depth. This made viewing the scene to seem closer to looking at the real thing, rather than just looking at a picture. Greg's grandfather said he had received this as a gift from his grandfather, so it must have been really, really old, well at least that's how the boys perceived it.

In addition to this device, Greg's grandparents also had a piano that played by itself. Well not completely by itself, because somebody had to pump the pedals, but no one had to touch the keys. They called it a player piano and it played music by following a series of holes that had been punched into a roll of heavy paper that had been placed on rollers inside of it. The holes told the piano what keys were to be played and the piano followed the script precisely and played whatever song was on that scroll. Greg's grandfather played the first song, so he could show the boys how it worked, and then he put in a new scroll in and let Greg do it. After that song ended, he changed the roll again, so Bryce would get a chance to 'play' the piano. Both boys thought this was really neat and had fun doing it.

They all had dinner there too and enjoyed a big pot roast that Greg's grandmother had prepared with onions and carrots. They also had some mashed potatoes with gravy, along with butternut squash. Greg's grandmother was a really good cook and the food was delicious. Bryce didn't think he was going to like the squash, but she had put brown-sugar or something like that on it, so it was really sweet After they'd finished eating their meal, she brought out a home-made blueberry pie and put a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top of each slice, for anyone who wanted it.

After they finished their dessert, they sat around and talked for a while, and then they listened to Greg's grandparents tell them about what it was like when they were younger. They had some great stories to tell, about things like Woodstock, Vietnam, and Watergate. Some of the stories they told were interesting, while others weren't, but the boys sat quietly and listened to them anyway. When they finished telling their stories, it was time to leave, and the visitors got into the car and drove back to Greg's house.

Greg's mother called Bryce's foster home to make sure that he had permission to spend the night again, and once that was settled the boys were told it was time to get ready for bed. The boys weren't all that tired yet and were still pretty wound up from their earlier sexual exploration and the fun they'd had at Greg's grandparents' house. It was obvious that it was going to take a while for them to calm down enough to sleep, but they did as they were told and went to Greg's room. After brushing and flushing, they stripped down to their underwear and got into Greg's bed. That's when Bryce felt he should thank Greg for everything he had done and the great time they'd had together.

"Greg, I had a really good time today," Brice began. "Thank you for inviting me to stay over this weekend."

"You're welcome, but I had fun too," Greg replied. "I like you a lot and I'm glad you're my friend."

"I really like you too," Bryce agreed. "I've never had a friend like you before, so this is very important to me. I'm so glad you wanted to be my friend."

The boys talked for a while longer, until they had talked themselves out, and then they went to sleep. Bryce felt as happy and content this evening as he had ever felt before, and he managed to scoot over against Greg and stayed close to him throughout the entire night. He wasn't exactly cuddling with him, but he was close enough to make it special, and he enjoyed a greater sense of peace and happiness than he had ever known.

The next morning, Greg noticed Bryce was snuggled tightly against him when he awoke and was kind of excited by it. He liked Bryce more than he could ever let him know, maybe in a way that wasn't quite 'normal.' Although neither of them had reached puberty yet or knew much about gay love, it was clear that they shared an attraction that neither of them dared to mention. They thought if they spoke those words aloud they would scare the other away, since they weren't certain that the depth of their affection was mutual.

They spent most of that day together playing games, taking a trip to the local park and just hanging around with Greg's family. The closer it came to the time for Bryce to go back home, the more he wished that he didn't have to leave. Not only was he attracted to Greg, but he liked Greg's parents as well. They were nice and included him in everything they did. They even did some other things just because they thought Bryce might enjoy it. Even though this was his first weekend with them, he was beginning to feel that he was part of their family and he looked forward to being able to come back again. When it was time for Bryce to leave, Greg's father drove him home and then Greg walked him to the front door to say good-bye. It was very emotional parting and they even hugged before Greg left. Bryce also waved as they drove away and kept it up until their car drove out of sight. Bryce then went inside to face the reality of life as a foster child.

The boys got together nearly every chance they got and Bryce was invited to stay over nearly every weekend. About the only weekends that he didn't go over were the weekends Greg's parents had other things planned, like a wedding, another family gathering or something with Greg's parents' friends. On about his third weekend visit, Bryce and Greg even took a shower together. It happened because his parents decided to take them someplace on short notice, so to save time the boys decided to shower together. This didn't really end up saving any time, because they became totally interested in each other's bodies again. Both boys sprouted erections and then played with their own penis, before switching over to grasp the other's boyhood. They were beginning to not only learn that this little activity gave them very pleasurable sensations, but they were also beginning to like doing it with each other. They continued this for as long as they dared and then they got out of the shower, dried off and got dressed, before hurrying downstairs in time to leave.

There were other weekends together and a great deal more fun. The boys were beginning to learn not only about each other, but also about themselves, especially about their bodies. Bryce was even beginning to think that life had finally dealt him a decent hand, because things weren't all that bad at his current foster home. His foster parents pretty much let him do want he wanted, so he spent as much time with Greg as he could, and things were better for him than they had ever been. Just when he was ready to put his past behind him and move on toward the future, life dealt him another cruel blow.

It seemed that just as things were becoming bearable for Bryce and he was beginning to think he had at last found happiness, something unexpected happened, something that would turn his world upside down. His problems all began when a simple audit was conducted at the Department of Social Services. The problem didn't really concern him directly, but it did affect him when numerous charges were lodged against multiple individuals connected with the department.

As it turned out, one of the examiners had uncovered the names of a dozen or more children on the department's lists of placed foster children, but these children didn't actually exist. When he checked the names against a list of those currently in the system, he discovered these children were now either too old to be in foster care or they had been taken out of the system prior to even the previous audit. During the course of this investigation, the auditors discovered that these supposed foster children all appeared under the supervision of the same two caseworkers, out of a much larger staff. These children were allegedly placed in several different foster homes, all under the supervision of these two individuals, and each of these homes also had other children assigned to them.

After starting a legal investigation into the matter and interrogating the various foster parents and caseworkers, one of the foster parents broke down and admitted to the scheme. What had been happening was this. The two caseworkers were creating new files and records for children who had become too old or left the system. They would change specific information from the original records, in order to make it appear as if the children appeared eligible, and then they entered this information into the system. The caseworker would then supposedly place these children with the foster families they were working with and send them checks for the child's care. The foster parents would then cash the checks and kickback half of the amount to the caseworker that had made the assignment, so both parties prospered. The foster parents and caseworkers were both raking in the cash, without experiencing any additional expense or work, so it was all pure profit for them.

It was ingenious in some regards, but the attempt to pull it off was really dumb. Things like this seem to get discovered sooner or later, especially when the participants get greedy and try to amass even greater sums of money. In this case, adding more and more imaginary children into the system was what tripped them up. The investigator may have overlooked a few children, but after coming up with a dozen or more names he couldn't find an immediate match for, he decided he had to check the matter out in depth. That was the crooks' undoing.

Once the fraud was discovered, the caseworkers were arrested, along with the foster parents who were involved, which meant all of the foster homes were immediately closed. Because there were so many children involved in this mess, the local system wasn't able to handle the large number of children that were now without a place to stay. Many of these children were shipped off to adjoining jurisdictions, under an emergency mutual cooperation agreement. Unfortunately for Bryce, his foster family was one of those involved in this fraudulent scheme, so he was one of the children that got moved to a new location.

This meant he would not only be moving to a new home and attending another new school, but he'd be moving away from the only true friend he had ever had. In fact, he didn't even get a chance to tell Greg about what had happened, because the authorities met the children when they came home from school and were ready to whisk them away. They helped the children pack up their belongings and loaded them into their cars, before driving them away.

Bryce had asked for permission to call Greg, but was told he wouldn't be allowed to do that, so he didn't know how Greg would find out that he was gone. Of course, when Bryce didn't return to school Greg would probably investigate and discover his old foster home was empty, but he thought Greg deserved better than that. The problem was that he had no control over the situation, so Greg would have no way to learn where he went or how to contact him. Maybe Bryce could find a way to get in touch with Greg when he got to his new home, but he would have to wait and see where they sent him first, and then he'd have to try to find a way to get in touch with his friend.

Needless to say, Bryce was upset and very distraught because of this. For the first time he could remember, he had been happy and had someone he felt close to, but he was suddenly ripped away from all of that and was now on his way to who knew where. He did his best to keep from crying, especially after they were given a brief explanation of why they were being moved and where they might be going. He wanted so badly to just break down and get it out of his system by having a good cry. That would release his pent up frustration, but there was no way he was going to do it in front of a bunch of other kids, especially if there was any chance that they'd end up in the same home or going to the same school.

Instead, Bryce sucked it up, as he always did, and retreated into his fantasy world, where he thought about his fantasy father who was supposedly coming to rescue him. For as much progress he had made since coming into the foster care system, he now regressed to a state similar to the one he was in after the final incident with Maury. He was emotionally broken, mentally withdrawn and now he was being physically removed from the only source of security and hope he'd had – Greg and his parents.

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