Back at home it was dinner in the dining room, as was Brabazon's insistence whenever Mister Philip was in residence.

"A bit of fun this afternoon as we were practising for our dance routine at the end of term," said Adam.

"No, Dad. Just because you're gay that doesn't make you camp. Camp means gay and effeminate in a flamboyant way."

"Out of all our gay friends we only know two that are effeminate - Jonquil who's camp and Fran who likes to dress in girls' clothes. Otherwise they're like us - play sport, usually indistinguishable from the crowd."

"If you didn't already know, would you think that Tony was gay for instance?" said Simon.

"Ahem." It was Brabazon's 'discreet' cough. "May I serve the main course, Mr Philip?"

"I have some news for you. Because the solicitor has been on the case continually since you joined us, Adam, he says he can have the papers ready for signing on Friday afternoon. I've already rung the school and got permission for you to come home at one o'clock. You've also got an extension on your homework, but ask if you can work ahead and get some done on Thursday. Social services will be sending a representative who will also sign the forms, and one of the trustees from your trust fund. We will then go off and celebrate at a nice hotel and stay the night. Then what we do over the weekend is up to you. Suits by the way for the signing and dinner. And let Brabazon know what you want packed. So where are we going?"

"I'm not keen," replied Philip "because they're extortionate. You spend most of your time queuing and on top of that they charge you for parking. Bad business plan, well, good from their point of view. If you really want to go we'll go when the summer season's over and they reduce the prices and the queues."

"What about," said Adam "one day on the Severn Valley Railway and one day at the West Midlands Safari Park? They're close together and if we have time we can do something else as well."

"She could come with us. I'll check with the hotel before booking. Otherwise I'll ask Mrs Green to look after her. She'd better sleep in my room. It'll stop her from picking up bad habits. I take it you two will want to share."

"She'll want to sleep upstairs with you every night, and that will ruin your love life." Immediate blushes from two boys. "By the way I've been in touch with the police. They've traced those yobs through their school and given them a warning about using threatening behaviour. I don't think we can expect any more than that as they didn't actually lay a finger on you."

"Just as long as it rains overnight and has cleared before we have to go to school in the morning."

"Dance belts must be properly sized, fitted and worn-in to be comfortable. When properly positioned within the garment, your equipment is held closely and firmly to the abdomen pointed upward rather than in a hanging attitude as for a jock strap. It's to stop you getting crushed nuts with certain movements and horse riders have to do the same so as not to get hurt by the saddle."

"I always wondered why dancers' bulges looked different. When I was starting I simply put it down to the cup."

"And if you don't want to wear a cup you can get belts with thicker quilted material. It's all to do with freedom of movement on the one hand and not showing details of your dick on the other, like whether you're circumcised or not, through your tights. Showing off you're a roundhead is evidently a big no-no. Our Jonquil is a mine of information."

"I think we could do worse than cultivate him. Oh, don't forget we've got to order that subscription for GYwhen we get back. Come on, Lucy, we'll go and visit the ducks."

"During those dance exercises this afternoon, Si, I couldn't keep my eyes off your buns in those tights. It's made me feel really randy. Any chance of a quickie before we go to sleep?"

When they got home with Lucy they told Brabazon they wanted to go to bed early as they had a busy day the following day.

"Go and get ready for bed and I'll have cocoa ready in about a quarter of an hour." Before they got undressed Adam booted up his computer and ordered a subscription for GYmagazine. Meanwhile Simon got himself ready for a good seeing-to.

"Well, my sphincter control has got a lot better over the weeks and it's much easier for you to penetrate me than it is for you to penetrate me, but I'm finding your dick's getting tighter in my hole. Also, you're reaching my prostate easier. So I reckon your dick's still growing."

"Could be. After all I'm still only fourteen. I've never been into measuring it."

On Thursday evening the boys arrived home from school, a little damp, as it had come on to rain, and, unusually, burdened with homework. After putting their bikes away and hanging their waterproofs up to dry in the shed, they came in by the front door for Adam to find a large brown envelope addressed to 'Mr A S Neave van den Berg', a day premature admittedly. With Simon at his side he proudly read out

"Mr A S Neave vánden Berg." The van den Bergs always stressed the first syllable. Then he hesitated and read it out again. "Mr A S Neave van den Bérg." The penny dropped thanks to his German lessons. The name now made perfect sense, not only as two names put together, but as a single name in its own right, 'Neave of the Mount' as Jonquil preferred to translate it, rather than 'hill' or 'mountain'. He was pleased he had chosen not to have a hyphen placed on the official documents. "That's it, Simon. It works perfectly well as a name that way, instead of sounding stilted or simply stuck together. I might even use my full name more." At that point Philip came out of his study.

"Hi, boys. What's all the excitement?" Simon explained to him, partly because Adam was still excited and partly to prove that he had understood the subtlety himself. A look of 'ah ha' came over Philip's face. "Go up and get changed, you two. Brabazon's about to serve dinner." When he got up to his room, Adam carefully slit open the envelope and slid out the latest edition of GY.

"I don't think much homework is going to get done tonight," said Simon. The gong sounded for dinner. Adam replaced the magazine into its envelope and the boys scrambled to get out of their school uniforms and into shorts and tee shirts. Adam's tee bore the words 'I'm not gay, but my boyfriend is'. It was tolerated indoors, but there was a strict ban on its being worn off the premises.

Over dinner Philip asked them about what they had been up to at school and whether they had been given Friday's homework yet. There was no question of taking Lucy walkies in this weather. They contented themselves with a weather forecast that had predicted Saturday and Sunday to be fine. The hotel had been booked and they would be staying there Friday and Saturday night and it was canine tolerant. In fact it would even feed Lucy and provide a basket for her in Philip's room. When dinner was over Simon went upstairs and Adam brought his things down to the downstairs office and the first priority was to get the homework done and over with. They thought they might get brownie points if they could hand it in on Friday. The GYmag remained firmly in its envelope.

However, before bedtime the GYmag did reappear. Adam and Simon snuggled up together and turned str8 to the centrefold. The boy depicted was perfect and that was the trouble - he was too good with traces of make up to enhance his appearance, and his genitals had been oiled. They continued to leaf through the magazine.

"Some interesting articles here," said Adam. "Tom Daley after Beijing - why I had to change schools. We'll have to read that because he got bullied. We might pick up some ideas."

"You know, I prefer him to the centrefold. I wish he'd do naked with that package."

"You just keep to muff-diving and you'll be all right in my book." They continued to turn the pages. "My Boyfriend is Cut."

"And more. Dildos, handcuffs, crotchless knickers, and these that support you balls while letting your dick hang free."

"Mmm." Adam suddenly gave a yawn. "I'm bushed. Coming to bed?" The pair stripped off their clothes and went to clean their teeth. Within five minutes they were asleep in one another's arms. No nookie that night, but they had the weekend to look forward to for that.

Adam was quite excited about the next day and Simon shared his excitement. There was very little concentration during the morning's lessons and they rather rushed their food at lunchtime before making their way to the bicycle sheds and when they got there they saw Roly slip out from behind them with a boy from Year 8, a rather good looking boy which added to our lads' annoyance, but at least they had another name to add to their list. They didn't say anything apart from 'hi, Roly' since it might have sounded like professional jealousy. Both parties had to act within their respective spheres of influence even though they might not appear to be in direct competition. Our boys climbed onto their bikes and cycled home. The appointed hour was three o'clock and so they had plenty of time to change into their suits. They checked their weekend bags and added some personal items that Brabazon had overlooked. Brabazon put the family's bags into the boot of Philip's car, Philip wished him a pleasant weekend and emphasised that he was not to come in to do just the odd little job. The family climbed into the car, not forgetting Lucy, and arrived at the solicitor's office in good time. They had to await the arrival of the representative from social services and the trustee from Adam's trust. Philip had insisted on paying the trustee's expenses so that they would not be deducted from Adam's trust fund.

On the dot at three they were ushered into the solicitors' boardroom. It gave the boys the impression, the correct impression, that everything was terribly official. The solicitor himself was dressed in a black jacket, striped trousers and a black tie knotted round a wing collar. After greeting everyone he gave a preamble as to the seriousness of the occasion, asked Philip and Adam to read through the document he had before him on the table and asked whether they were satisfied with the conditions since it would be difficult to change them once the document was signed and became a legal deed. Philip said he was content, as was Adam, although surprised at the generosity of the agreement. The solicitor pressed a buzzer and two young employees of the practice appeared and after being introduce took their seats at the table.

"Adam, are you satisfied with the conditions of the agreement?" Adam said yes in a firm voice. "Would you be the first to sign the document, please?" He was not used to the 'scratch' pen he had to use along with indelible black ink, endorsing ink to give it its correct name. He signed his name for the last time on an official document as 'Adam Neave'. Philip was the next to sign as his guardian and as the 'receiving' party. The trustee was the next to sign on behalf of Adam as he was still a minor. The two young employees added their signatures as independent witnesses and finally the solicitor added his on behalf of the practice.

"Adam, this document will remain with us along with the van den Berg family papers until such time you reach your majority and require the original. In the meantime you will receive three certified copies which will serve for changes of name and address and Mr van den Berg will receive three also. If you require more we can arrange that. Adam Simon Neave van den Berg, may I the first to congratulate you on your new status?" Handshakes all round as Adam was congratulated and he received a kiss on the cheek from Simon.

The business concluded, the gathering broke up and the three van den Bergs with Lucy regained the car and happily drove off for their long weekend.

It was gone six when they reached the hotel. The one Philip had chosen was in the country and attached to a country club or leisure complex. The family would have complimentary use of the facilities, but with what they had planned it would be unlikely that they would have time to make much use of them. By the time they had registered and reached their rooms they had time for a short rest before getting ready for dinner. Simon and Adam were pleased to be able change out of their suits. Much as they liked dressing up for an occasion a suit was not the natural attire for full-blooded teenage boys, even gay full-blooded teenage boys. After unpacking they lay on the bed together just in their undies with the occasional kiss until Simon could resist it no longer. He rolled over on top of Adam, looked him str8 in the eye and said

"I want you tonight, just like this, me on top of you. I think it's time I re-established myself as a top and explored that rectum rectorumof yours with my penis penium." Although Adam had missed out on Latin at school he was sufficiently well read to appreciate Simon's meaning and they sealed the bargain with a long searching kiss.

"The mood you're in, Si, I seriously think we should shower separately this evening." Simon reluctantly got up off the bed, removed his slip and turned on the shower. After he had finished he looked at Adam lying on the bed. He had fallen asleep, but he did not wake him. He was transfixed admiring his body. It was obvious from his briefs that Adam was enjoying sweet dreams, but that was not the point of Simon's interest. He was staring at his lower abdomen, the beauty of his innie, the flatness leading down to his restrained package, but more importantly at the V-shape of his hips which led his eyes down to his groin and the two arteries which took a major blood flow to his legs. Simon was fascinated by the fitness of this body which was not only his boyfriend and beloved, but also now his brother by adoption. He kissed him gently on the lips and Adam opened his eyes, smiling. As if he had somehow been part of Simon's last thought he said

Two smart fourteen-year-old boys dressed in slacks and short-sleeved shirts entered the lounge where Philip was sitting over a drink and reading a newspaper, waiting for them to come down to dinner.

"I'll try one of those as well, please," said Adam. They went into the dining room and were shown to a table by the huge window that looked out into the countryside.

"If you take Lucy out, you'll have to keep her on the lead while you're in the grounds." They ordered their food and settled back to enjoy it while chatting about things in general. Only after the dessert plates had been removed did Philip alter the mood of the evening. "Adam, before I ask you how you felt about this afternoon and the little ceremony of signing the documents I want as head of the family to welcome you as a full member. I know I speak for Simon when I say that while we recognise the sad circumstances that brought you to us we hope that we can all put them behind us and concentrate on the happy circumstances and the future. I know Simon is truly in love with you as we believe you are with him. We want to honour that love and I say to both of you. Honour each other, care for each other, commit to each other and grow in your combined strength. If things change and you later decide to go your separate ways, you will always be a member of this family, Adam, and I don't want you to think that you will ever be alone while we are alive. To remember this day we have this little gift for you. It's from both of us." Philip reached under the table and produced a little dark blue box and handed it to Adam. He opened it and found a stainless steel watch and bracelet. He looked at the dial, analogue and simple, without any of the accoutrements of dates, calculator, kitchen sink. Adam knew little about watches, but he did know that Mickey Mouse watches were not produced by Omega. He watched the second hand tick round.

"I don't know what to say apart from thank you. Thank you for this beautiful watch and thank you for accepting me into the family." He got up and walked round the table to kiss first Philip and then Simon. What the three had not realised was that while Philip was giving his little speech the dining room had fallen silent and everybody could hear what was being said. Suddenly the silence was broken as applause broke out. The van den Bergs blushed and thanked everyone for their kind wishes and suddenly, as if from nowhere, the waiter appeared with a tray holding champagne and three glasses.

After the excitement had died down, Philip signed the bill, they went and fetched Lucy and all three took her for a walk. In June it did not get dark until ten o'clock and they had plenty of time to enjoy the summer weather. A warm breeze was blowing, the first time that summer.

"If you two want to hold hands," said Philip " don't worry about me. Just let go when we meet other people. PDAs and all that. I don't want a repeat of what happened at the wishing well. So what's it going to be tomorrow?"

"Good choice," said Philip. "I think there'll be more to do there on a Saturday than on a Sunday. Then Sunday we can please ourselves what time we get to the Safari Park and what time we leave for home."

"Good night, Dad," they replied, Simon saying it naturally and Adam extending the boundaries. Upstairs Adam pinned Simon against the wall and said

Next morning they awoke in time to have a little lie-in before getting down to breakfast at eight. Philip was already there with Lucy under the table. When the boys arrived she got up and greeted them excitedly, wagged her tail and licked their faces. By nine they were in the car and on their way into Kidderminster, the southern terminus of the Severn Valley Railway. They were in luck. Their train was going to be hauled by a steam engine. They had the chance for photo opportunities before their departure. Once they were on their way they could put their heads out of the window and get smuts in their eyes and soot on their faces, just as we did when we were boys and steam trains were for real. The train passed the Safari Park they would be visiting, but large screens had been erected so as not to spoil their fun for the following day. On arriving at Bridgnorth they visited the old town and took the funicular down to the riverside from High Town. When they returned they looked for somewhere to have lunch and Philip warned them to leave room as they would have their main meal that evening. They broke the return journey to view the Engine House, a new venture which explained how the SVR was revived after it had been closed down. The boys found they could book onto a course and learn how to drive either a steam or diesel locomotive and haul a train.

"We can't do that today," said Philip. "They need notice, but you might think of it for the summer holidays. You'll need to wear your anoraks." The boys looked at each other until the penny dropped and they remembered that trainspotters and railway enthusiasts were referred to as 'anoraks'. They re-embarked for the journey back to Kidderminster and were surprised at how easy it was to feel tired after a day of riding trains.

"We must find a park to give Lucy a run," said Philip. "She's been very good today." When they eventually arrived back at the hotel Philip said "So what do you want to do this evening? Eat in or eat out."

"Okay, I'll see if I can get any recommendations. Otherwise we'll just have to drive and take potluck. See you two later. Seven o'clock all right?" The boys agreed and disappeared up to their room. Philip went to his and found that some food had been set out for Lucy.

At first the boys just kicked off their trainers and lay on their bed, dozing in and out of sleep and having half conversations.

"Do you know what I'd like to try tonight?" said Simon. Adam rolled over and faced his lover.

"That doesn't leave me with very much choice then," said Adam. "Stop teasing me."

"Position number four, you know, where top becomes bottom. You lie on your back with a stiffie and I try to sit on it. It must be good 'cos we've seen all those pics of it on the net."

"We'll have to be gentle. It looks very easy to hurt yourself." Adam rolled on top of Simon and gave him a deep satisfying kiss. "What time is it?"

"We've still got plenty of time," said Simon. Adam fetched a paperback from his weekend bag and handed Simon his copy of GYmag and they settled down for a read. "Hey, Adam, have you read this?"

"No, listen. Have you tried our new tampon designed for men? Are you fed up with soiling the sheets after your boyfriend has withdrawn? Try our new Tampax for Men which comes with its own special colour coded 'his' and 'his' applicators and stop that leakage.' What do you think?"

"My tongue can deal with any excess you have," said Adam and rolled over to get on with his book. At half past six they showered and dressed smartly to go out and eat.

Philip drove Adam, Simon and Lucy to a riverside pub and they had an enjoyable dinner. When Philip was at the bar, Adam said in a hushed tone

"Si, you know what we were saying about trying position number four, do mind if we put it off till tomorrow night? It's just that I'd feel happier doing it at home. I don't know why."

"No, it's all right, but as I say I'd be happier doing it at home." Philip came back with a round of drinks.

"It's cosier," said Simon. It was odd the way that they were growing together in the way they were thinking and would answer questions like that with automatic unanimity.

The following day, Sunday, they visited the Safari Park and enjoyed themselves. Lucy had to stay in a kennel. It was too hot to leave her in the car. Philip insisted they went on the tour by bus as he wasn't going to have his windscreen wiper ripped off by an errant baboon. They arrived home at about six, and despite strict instructions Brabazon had left them out a cold collation for supper. As they were eating Philip explained to the boys that he would have to be in London from Tuesday onwards.

"Of course." said Philip. "Your friends are always welcome, but keep it to weekends and the holidays. You have a punishing enough régime during the week. I must admit I prefer it if your friends come here. We've got all the facilities and at least I get to see you. When we eventually get away on holiday, you might like to invite Tony to come with us. Think about it and tell him quietly he won't have to worry about the cost. He'll just need a bit of pocket money."

After supper Lucy had to make do with a short walkies, for although she had had a restful weekend the boys were feeling rather knackered, and they still had the great experiment of position number four ahead of them. On return they showered and put on dressing gowns and 'loin cloths', went to lie on the bed together and read. This time Adam had the GYmag.

"Hey, Si, this is interesting. Tom Daley is offering GYreaders a raffle for one of his Olympic speedos. Evidently they get issued with several pairs and so he can spare one. Half the money goes to a sports injury charity and half goes towards his training costs. I'm up for that. After all I won't get the speedos, but I don't mind helping him with his training. There's quite an interesting interview here and some pics. Unfortunately you can only buy one ticket per magazine."

"Let's have a look. Oh yeah. I'll ask Paul if he wants to use his entry form. Hey, Adam, listen to this:

TD: It's evident from my fan mail that a lot of gay people like me, particularly teenagers. Many of them ask for nude photos. No, I don't mind in the least. After all, it didn't do Daniel Radcliffe or David Beckham any harm to be gay icons and any publicity helps with my training.

TD: I spend a lot of time naked with other naked guys in the changing room, so it doesn't faze me, but naked modelling is out of the question until I'm at least 16 and maybe 18 for legal reasons. After that you never know. Competition divers have a short career.

"Anyway, I fantasise about us holding a dinner party for our gay friends and inviting famous people we'd all like to meet and all three of those would be on the list even if they are str8. Well, that is if I could stop Becks from saying 'you know' after every third word."

"Si, you know we were talking about that new position? I don't think I'm really ready for it yet. Do you mind if we do something else this evening?'

"Adam, I never want to hurt you or force you to do something you're not comfortable with. Of course we can do something else."

"I'll make it up to you, Simon, and you choose." Adam rolled over and took his boyfriend in a tender embrace. At that the moment the house phone buzzed. Philip had just made the cocoa.

Simon and Adam got to school on the Monday morning and met Tony by the lockers as they were getting their books ready.

"Oh," said Adam "we had my official adoption ceremony and then we went away for the weekend, travelled on the Severn Valley Railway and visited the Safari P... You what?" Adam interrupted himself.

"That's what I thought you said." Fortunately there was a lot of background noise going on during this conversation.

"And you said he's only got two peanuts and cigarette stub between his legs," added Simon.

"That's right, but I said I taught him to masturbate. I didn't say he masturbated. And you prolly remember when I was his age I only had two peanuts and a cigarette stub between my legs and look at what I've got now."

"So how did it happen then, that you taught Will to jerk off?" asked Adam. At that moment the bell went for assembly.

When lunchtime came, the three boys met in the dining hall and took their trays to the far end where they could have a little privacy.

"Okay, Tony, spill the beans." At that moment he tripped and his food threatened to end up all over the floor, but he recovered in time.

"Ho, ho, ho," replied Tony. "It started Saturday morning. I was in the shower enjoying myself when who should burst into the bathroom but my dear little brother. I was in full flow and had no chance to stop or anything, not to mention the spunk that was running down the tiles. 'Wotcha doing, bro?' Of course he wanted to know what I was up to and why and I told him that was what boys our age do because it feels nice. 'Can I do it?' asked Will. 'No,' I said. 'You're not old enough.' 'I'm eleven... and a half.' 'Yeah, but you haven't got the equipment yet. Go ahead and compare yours with mine.' 'All right, will you show me when I do?' 'If you want to, but you'll just have to be patient.' Patiencehas been removed from of Will's dictionary. Anyway he kept pestering me and I thought with his subtlety he'll open his big mouth in front of Mum and Dad and as the older one I'll get the blame. So I promised that when Mum and Dad were at church yesterday, I'd show him how it's done and let him do it to me. That way he wouldn't dare say a thing in front of them. Of course he keeps on saying he's not gay. He's very fond of you two, you know, and wants to come skinny dipping at your house - but he's not gay."

"By the way, that reminds me," said Simon. "We're home alone next weekend and Dad says you can sleep over."

"... as long as he doesn't want stop over and cramp our style," said Tony. Adam looked at his watch (not his new one in order to swank - he still wore his old one to school) and they realised it was nearly time for activities and they had hardly touched their food.

"Like him? I love him to bits. It's just that he's so impulsive and at times that can be soo embarrassing. At the weekend if I'm having a lie-in he'll come into my room and climb in bed with me. I love it when his little warm body snuggles up to me, but sometimes when he bursts in I might be going to have a wank. It doesn't faze him in the least, but it sure does faze me. I'll see what Mum and Dad say and if they agree I'll bring Will on the condition he goes home by five.

The week at school sped by quickly as it does when you're busy. Adam and Simon's new ballet kit arrived and they asked the maestro's permission whether they might wear it at the end of term concert, especially as its colours contrasted and they were the school colours. He would think about it, especially as the piece they were to dance had been adapted from Swan Lakeand you didn't see many scarlet and royal blue swans about. Finally Simon and Adam could relax on Friday evening and they could discuss what they wanted to do with Tony over the weekend.

"We can do that after Will's gone home. It's open during the evening." They jotted down a few ideas, then texted Tony so that he knew what to bring with him.

Round about ten the next morning Brabazon announced Master Anthony Legge and Master William Legge. His voice sounded more funereal than ever. They were shown into the kitchen where Adam and Simon were having their first brunch, rather early for them on a Saturday.

"Hi, guys," they said together. Will looked around wide-eyed as he took in the domestic arrangements in the van den Berg household. William had never been inside the house before. Simon's father said hallo and Will was introduced to Brabazon with the usual warning of what to call him.

"Dig in and help yourselves," said Adam "but remember we're going for a run with Lucy later, so don't stuff yourselves."

"Where shall I put Master Anthony's luggage?" interrupted Brabazon after one of his famous throat clearings.

"It's okay, Brabazon, we'll take it up with us when we've had breakfast," said Simon. "That's progress," he said after Brabazon had left. "He didn't insist on putting it in one of the guest rooms."

"It's all right," piped up Will. "I'll text Mum and she can bring it over," he said pulling out his mobile.

The boys went up to Adam's room and Will was amazed when he saw how big it was and even more amazed when he was taken though the connecting bathroom and saw Simon's.

"Why have you got big beds?" said Will. Adam and Simon gave Tony a look as if to say 'haven't you taught him anything?'. Tony replied

"It's in case anyone forgets to bring their sleeping bag," continued Simon rather provocatively.

"William, you are such an embarrassment. We were all born intelligent in our family... and then you came along." Will put his thumb into his mouth, bent his head forward and looked up at his big brother. He was so endearing and everyone burst out laughing. The irony was that Will was probably the most intelligent of the three Legge siblings.

The boys went down to the patio and sat around in the sun at first just chatting about school and things in general. Then they went into the games room and played darts and snooker until they felt they were ready to go for their run. There was a cool breeze which prevented them from becoming overheated. Simon went to fetch Lucy, and Adam explained that since the 'incident' they really hadn't felt safe going running in the evening. Simon and Adam were already in their running kit. The Legges just had to take off tracksuit bottoms and tee shirts. When they did, Will had on his school gym kit, brilliant white cotton shorts and comp top. Adam and Simon gave a quick intake of breath when they saw him standing there. He was gorgeous. He had all his brother's good looks and a bit more. Firstly he was in miniature and secondly those huge blue eyes of his were even more blue and larger than his brother's.

"Hold it, Will. We need a picture of you for our guest book," said Simon and dashed off to fetch his camera.

"Normally you have to stay the night to get into our guest book, but since you can't we're making an exception," said Adam. It didn't sound convincing to him either, but as Will had yet to become acquainted with the deadly sin of lust it was sufficient explanation for him. Since he loved being the centre of attention anyway, he willingly posed out on the patio in the required positions, with and without his brother and Lucy, and Simon and Adam knew they were going to have fun uploading them in the not too distant future, and of course Will would get prints and e-mail copies of the best.

Finally it was time to set out on the run. Naturally it was slower than when Adam and Simon were by themselves as they had to allow for Will, but the treat of running alongside someone so hot was ample compensation. Will got the full story of how our heroes had first met at the wishing well and his face saddened for he had never been told of Adam's family circumstances and just assumed he was a boy at school who happened to stay with the van den Bergs. It was also to Tony's credit that he had not abused his friendship and gossiped at home. On the other hand his parents knew the circumstances anyway.

Today it was the full run for Lucy and she was allowed to swim in the lake for as long as the boys liked. They threw a ball for her to catch and retrieve which helped to dry her off long before they headed for home.

When they got back it was the highlight of the day for William. Simon took Lucy upstairs from the pool to say they were home and going to have a swim, while Adam explained the house rules to Will. When Simon returned they stripped off in the changing room and Simon volunteered to take first watch on the side as the other three dived in. He was fascinated by Will's tight little buttocks and the lithesome way he held his own in the pool with the bigger boys. Finally they had had enough swimming. They showered, dried themselves off and put on bathrobes to go upstairs and dress properly in some clean clothes. On the way they told Brabazon they were finished in the pool and he told them that when they were ready he would serve some snacks and drinks on the patio and informed them that Mr Philip had ordered dinner for seven-thirty.

Once they were dressed Simon transferred the pictures of William onto his computer and let him choose the ones he like best. Those he printed in large format and all of them he sent to Will by e-mail. He was impressed at the way Adam mounted them into smart folders as Simon printed them off.

They went downstairs onto the patio and Brabazon served the promised snacks and drinks. Philip came and joined them and chatted for a while, but the combination of summer sun and exhaustion from the run made them doze off. With Simon the only one left awake his father said he would see them later and went off to do whatever he was doing. Simon then closed his eyes and nodded off in the bright warmth.

Eventually they were all four awake again. Lucy had found her way up onto the lounger and was asleep between Simon and Adam. She had given Simon a dead leg.

"Get off, Adam," he said as he came to and then to his embarrassment realised it was Lucy on top of him stopping the blood flow.

"Can't I be honorary gay just for tonight?" William hadn't realised what he had said. The other three boys' faces became serious. It was Adam that spoke.

"William, come here." Will recognised the seriousness of the moment because one of the boys had called him William. He walked across and Adam sat him on his knee and held him gently with his arm round his shoulder. "Will, being gay is not a game or something you can switch on or off. It's not something you can choose to be. You're born that way and believe me it's a burden you have to carry with you all your life. Tony, Simon and me, we're fortunate insofar that we are surrounded with people that understand and love us and so we're protected, but one day we are going to have to face the harsh real world where there will be people who hate us and want to hurt us. Just because we're happy now it doesn't guarantee us a happy life. So you must count yourself among the fortunate because you're not gay. Do you understand?" Will nodded wiping away a tear. "I'll tell you what we're going to do. In our GYmag there's an article about this. It's called Lifestyles: can I choose to be gay?. I'm going to ask Simon to photocopy it and will you promise the read it?" Will nodded again. Meanwhile Simon had gone upstairs to fetch the mag and photocopy it in the downstairs office. "And if there's anything there you don't understand, you can ask Tony or Simon or me to explain it. Understood?" Will nodded and gave Adam a great big hug. He then hugged Tony and Simon who had returned with the sheets in his hand. The boys went upstairs to get William's things together. Simon fetched his cycle from the shed. Will went to say goodbye to Philip and Brabazon and the boys waved him off.

"Tell Mum and Dad I love them," said Tony. As soon as he had disappeared Tony texted to say Will was on his way.

The next job was for the three to go into town to the video shop. They fetched their cycles and rode off. As they went into the shop the now not quite so spotty youth with 'Colin' on his name badge was standing behind the counter. He remembered them from their last visit.

"How about Tom Brown's Schooldays? It's not gay, but it's got Stephen Fry in who is and Alex Pettyfer who isn't, but who is absolutely gorgeous. It's a '12' and so no problem there." Simon handed over some cash and received some change and the DVD. They were soon home again and decided to chill out until dinner.

Brabazon loved it when the house had guests for he would make a special effort with the meals. There was no question that it would not be served other than in the dining room and the guest might be a fourteen year old boy in casual clothes, but he still received the royal treatment, and this time he was seated on Philip's right. Philip had the knack of getting the boys talking and this time he asked them about the GYmag which he had found left in the photocopier. Adam told him that GYstood for 'gay youth' and its editorial policy was to be both educational and entertaining for people, or rather boys and young men to be more precise, who were growing up with being gay.

"Can I come and watch it with you? It's years since I read the book." The boys were quite happy about that as Philip was such easy company. After dinner they adjourned to the media room and watched the film on the large screen. The boys appreciated what Colin had said about Alex Pettyfer who played Tom. It was quite late when it finished and so Brabazon served cocoa and biscuits in the media room and then it was time for bed. Simon yawned and said

"I am so tired. I don't think it will be long before I fall asleep tonight." The rest including Philip just burst out laughing. "What?" said Simon blinking.

The boys were determined to give Tony a good time that night (and the following morning) - a good night for him was, when all was said and done, a good night for them - and it was full sex shared equally between the three of them. I'll leave the rest to the readers' imagination. They didn't hurry down to brunch because the weather had taken a turn for the worse and it wasn't worth going out in the rain. They could easily amuse themselves in the games room and while they were there Adam and Simon showed Tony a little of their dance routine for the end of term. The preview was limited by not having the right music and the restrictions of their clothing. By the time they had had their second brunch the weather had brightened up a bit and they went outside to kick a ball around. Somewhere these hungry teenagers had missed the point of brunch, namely that it was one meal at flexible hours to replace two, but they felt that practice was more important than theory. In the afternoon they just sat around on the patio and chatted as adolescents do and finished off with a swim just before it was time for Tony to go home. From the van den Bergs' point of view he could have stopped on and had dinner, but as Mrs Legge said, she did like to see something of her elder son occasionally.

The boys had three weeks of grind in front of them: one week of revision, but fortunately with the relief of activities, followed by a week of end of year examinations all day followed by prep with the relief of a long weekend starting Friday lunchtime. Unfortunately Philip was away that weekend, but the boys made up by spending the Saturday at the Legges', but Mrs Legge felt she could not cope with a sleep over, and the third week was the return of the examination papers. Adam's results were mixed as he had expected, for when he changed schools he found he was following a different syllabus in some subjects. His maths, English and science were fine, but in history and geography he had to do the best he could and the school was understanding.

At the end of examination week Simon and Adam arrived home absolutely drained. They went str8 upstairs, peeled off their school uniforms and handed them to Mrs Green for maintenance and went and lay on their beds, one of the rare occasions when it was on their own beds. They just didn't feel like doing anything. It must have been five o'clock when they surfaced. Even having a shower didn't really revive them and although they showered together, they were not in the mood for any hanky-panky even. Lucy had minimal walkies down to the paddock and a bit of ball throwing. They thought they might try her out with a frisbee, but not this afternoon. When they got back, they had the appetite to tuck into one of Mrs Green's special dinners. Brabazon was a superb cook, but his food lacked the homeliness of Mrs Green's. His was rather restaurant cooking. They thought Mrs Green enjoyed Brabazon's days off for this reason, that being a widow and with her children grown up she had the opportunity to cook as she had done for her family, and besides the boys needed a bit of mothering. You couldn't imagine eating one of Mrs Green's meals in the dining room, and even when Philip was there her meals were served in the kitchen. They weren't sure that Brabazon would have approved, but then if it was his day off he wasn't there to disapprove.

Saturday was fun. The evening before Adam and Simon had gone to bed at nine and although they slept together, that's all they did do - sleep. At eight they were woken by the house phone with Brabazon reminding them that they had to leave for their day out by nine. They quickly showered. Adam looked at himself in the mirror. He would have to shave at some time over the weekend. Even Simon was starting to show the beginnings of a moustache. At least they didn't yet have to shave every day. That would come soon enough. They rushed their breakfast until Brabazon warned them to slow down or they would suffer from dyspepsia. They collected their things together and told Brabazon they would be home between eight and nine, before it got dark anyway, and would ring just as they were leaving. They set off on their cycles and soon arrived at the Legges' house. Tony opened the door and Will flung himself at Adam. They were just in time to see Angelica leaving for her riding session, dressed in jodhpurs and looking like a fugitive from a Thelwell cartoon. The boys just wanted to hang. Tony and Will were just as exhausted as Simon and Adam from the week's examinations. They decided they would spend the day boy watching, first at the local swimming baths, then they would stop in town and have lunch at Burger Star and then hang out in the main square and go from there. At the swimming pool, though, they found that because they were in the minority wearing speedos they were more boy-watched than boy-watching, but it was nice to be the centre of attention for a short while.

The lad serving them in Burger Star was particularly attentive. They were better trained than the ones in the international chains, [Not named for fear of legal action, but you know the one I mean.] and always appeared more intelligent. He wore a stud in his left ear, but these days that never could be relied on any more as a sign of being gay. However, they found he had slipped onto their trays a voucher for a free cone of chips, sorry, French fries, on a future visit. Also when things were quiet he popped across to their table to make sure they had enough relish or whatever. No great beauty, he had a nice really manner about him and if you watched his mannerisms and face, and listened to the way he spoke there could no longer be any doubt that he was gay. Of course, our boys with their matching plaited leather rainbow bracelets were a bit of a give away.

When they had finished their burgers, they moved out to the town square and found a vacant bench away from the mass of local youth sitting in the shade of William the Conqueror. Suddenly Adam said

"You won't know them, but it's those three thugs from my old school who tried to start something a few weeks back."

"Stay calm and ignore them," said Simon. "There are enough people around for us to be safe and I don't think they'll want to be involved with the police for a second time. Anyway, we can't go through life living in fear and running away. There are times we've got to face up to it." Adam wasn't happy, but he accepted what Simon said and they sat there trying to ignore them. In the end they passed at some distance and simply scowled at our boys. Just at that moment two Police Community Support Officers walked past. Our boys were immediately reassured.

"We should have had Will with us," said Adam "just to show him the unacceptable side of being gay."

The moment passed and Adam calmed down. Perhaps he had overreacted so because he knew the youths concerned and felt that he was the cause of the trouble. The boys carried on sitting there on the look out for the local talent and chatting.

"God, I'm feeling really horny," said Tony apropos of nothing. "I'd really like to give you a BJ." An old lady sitting on the next bench looked round and frowned.

"I find that rather hard to swallow," said Simon. Adam did his impression of the laughing policeman. Sitting between them Tony stroked the inside of their thighs. The old dear decided she had had enough and walked off in a marked manner.

"You know we can't do anything there. No privacy. How about... ?" Tony's eyes wandered across the square towards the public conveniences.

"No way," said Adam. "Cottaging is the pits and a great way to get into trouble. Don't you realise we're still under age? Even doing what we do at home, if we're frank about the matter, is illegal."

"Wouldn't be in most countries." said Simon. "On the continent the age limit is often fourteen, like in Germany.

"And anyway it's so humiliating. When I left the orphanage I made a vow to myself I would never have sex in a public bog again. Showers are different." They carried on talking. The scene today had rather let them down. Normally a warm sunny day like this would bring the boys out in shorts. For some reason there was a majority of girls today and the few boys who were around were not particularly interesting, even to a randy gay fourteen year old like Tony who was nursing a boner in his lust for Simon and Adam.

"If we do, Tony, the only reason is that we don't spend enough time doing it," said Simon. All three boys guffawed and made lewd noises and signs, usually reserved for their schoolmates' company.

"According to something I read in GYit's quite natural for boys our age because we have a lot of spare testosterone floating round our bodies. That's why it's good to play lots of competitive sports because it helps use it up."

"Or by sixteen we would have worn our dicks away just through wanking," added Tony.

"No, of course we don't," said Adam. "When you think of it logically, it's only because we're taking part in a story written for a gay website and most of the readers wouldn't be interested in the everyday things we do like lessons or reading books or cleaning and servicing our cycles or playing Trivial Pursuits."

"If you're that desperate," said Simon "come across and hang at our place tomorrow afternoon."

"We'll sort you out," said Adam with a grin "and if you want to use the pool afterwards, don't forget to leave your swimming kit at home."

As nothing was doing the boys decided to go back to Tony's. They played football in the garden until Mrs Legge called them in and said that tea was ready. It was high tea rather than tea for she had cooked eggs, bacon, beans, sausages and chips with cheesecake for dessert. Afterwards they went and watched TV until it was time to depart with William insisting on sitting next to Adam on the sofa. After Crocodile Dundeehad finished Adam and Simon made their excuses and went home. Adam rang Brabazon to say that they were on their way and after saying thank you to Mrs Legge for the tea they climbed onto their cycles and rode off down the road.

When they were getting ready for bed, Adam said "Si, you know when Tony comes tomorrow. I've thought of the most amazing wind up and make sure you've got the movie camera." Adam gave Simon a full rundown of what he proposed to do. "If he turns up before I'm ready, stall him and keep him downstairs."

Sunday afternoon on Tony's arrival Brabazon summoned Simon and Adam, both dressed in 501s and a loose plain white tee shirt, to greet him. After Tony had said hallo to Lucy, the three disappeared upstairs. When they'd closed the door behind them, Simon said "Okay, so you want to give us both head? Are you still up for it?"

"I'm first," said Adam. "I've been saving myself for this." Tony went up to Adam and put his hands between his legs. Unusually, he couldn't feel very much, but before he could go any further, Adam stopped him and protested. "Hey, Tony, you know better than that. I've said it before and I'll say it again. A gentleman always kisses before he makes love." Tony blushed and said

"Sorry, Adam, but it's just that I'm so desperate at the moment. I really must get a boyfriend." He hadn't noticed that Simon had started filming. Tony pushed Adam against the wall and started to kiss him. Every time he tried to hurry Adam slowed him down. If he tried to take Adam's tee off he removed Tony's hands and put them on his butt; the same if he tried to play with his flies. The thin cotton beach shorts Tony was wearing could not disguise his passion, but Adam could feel very little of it as Tony pushed against him. At last Tony got him to the stage where he was starting to break down his resistance as Adam's hormones took over and he allowed Tony to unbutton his flies and then came the first surprise. He put his hand in and Adam's lower body was smooth and flat. Tony stopped in surprise and Adam dropped his jeans to reveal he was wearing his cycling shorts.

"Sorry, Tony," he grinned. "It's just that I was getting changed when you arrived. Tony thought no more about as he pulled the loose tee shirt over Adam's head and instead of seeing two erect nipples it revealed another tighter tee underneath. He set about removing Adam's cycle shorts and to his amazement he found he was wearing a pair of boxers - back to front! - and under the tight tee shirt a vest, what the Americans call a wifebeater. The finally the penny dropped.

"Hey, Adam, you're taking the piss," and he burst out laughing as he saw the funny side of the jape. "How many more layers have you got on?"

"Yeah, a slip, a speedo, a jock and finally the greatest passion killer of them all, my new quilted dance belt. That really does compress, as they say in the trade. I'll be glad to get this lot off. It's really hot with it all on," and when Adam removed the last four garments in one move his imprisoned cock leapt to attention. He went and lay on the bed ready to receive his punishment. Meanwhile Simon had stopped filming.

"I don't know why we did it. We were thinking of the old pantomime dames in the scene where they strip. It seemed quite funny at the time," said Adam.

"We just wanted to see how long it would take you to twig." Tony had already taken off his sandals and was preparing to reap his rewards for being the victim of their prank.

"And Angelica told me the biggest passion killers were girls' tights," said Tony. "She knows nothing."

Tony enjoyed the rest of the afternoon with our boys and after he had gone, Simon and Adam went and sat on the sun lounger on the patio.

"I've been thinking," said Simon. "How would you describe our relationship with Tony?"

"Mmm, difficult one that 'cos he's more than a friend or a mate. We do stuff with him, but we can't call him a boyfriend because we're boyfriends, and yet... "

"That's all right except if you reverse it he can't call us best friends because logically you can only have one best friend."

"What if we forget about logic," said Simon "and still consider ourselves best friends?"

"We'll talk to him about, but I'm not sure he'll think of me as his best friend after this afternoon."

"Oh, he took it all right. All I'd say is watch your back over the next few days. Don't forget we must edit that video and mail it to him tonight."

Back at school it was post examination nerves as the boys waited for the results and then had to go through the papers, in all a bit of an anticlimax. The following ten days before school broke up for the summer holidays it was special events - educational trips, practices, sports day, the swimming gala. Anyway, back to the anticlimax. Our boys were having lunch, a big group of them in the middle of the dining hall when Will came looking for Tony. His face looked distraught, to say the least.

"He took me into the outside bogs and put his hand inside my trousers. He said I must like it because that gay brother of yours does it to you. It was horrible. I can still feel his hand there... " Tony didn't wait to hear any more. He was up out of his seat and after staring round the dining hall stormed out. Adam and Simon got up.

"Don't let anyone clear our grub away," said Adam and they both went out to follow Tony.

"Try the bicycle sheds," said Simon. "That's where Bedford usually conducts his business." Sure enough he was there talking to a Year 8 boy. They'd found him before Tony had.

"No way," said Simon. "He's too young and he's not gay. So we suggest you leave him alone in future. This is a friendly warning. The next time it won't be so friendly."

"Huh, what are you pansy boys going to do about it?" Adam started to move, but Simon silently held him back by the wrist. At that moment Tony turned up, face white and eyes blazing. He pushed through Simon and Adam and was about to grab hold of Roly when our two had the presence of mind to hold him back. It took all their strength to restrain him even though they were bigger and both strong and fit from all the physical activity they did.

"Don't, Tony," said Simon. "You'll just get yourself into trouble and that won't help Will at all." Meanwhile Roly used the confusion to escape. The Year 8 boy had long disappeared.

"Calm down, Tony," said Adam. "We're sorting it." Slowly the colour returned to Tony's cheeks and when they felt his muscles slackening they released him and his body flopped. "Come on. We'd better get you back to Will. He needs you. Then we'll decide what to do."

When they got back to the dining room the 'family' was looking after Will and they made sure he had some food. The youngster was talking which was a good sign. Adam and Simon explained what had happened while Tony concerned himself with his younger brother. This still left unanswered the question about what they were going to do, but serious, sensible Robin Banks came up with the answer. "Don't rush into anything. Tell your parents what happened and let them decide." This became the accepted plan of action. Tony, Simon and Adam still hadn't finished their food when the first bell went and they started to rush it.

"I think we'd better tell the maestro what happened and then take our time getting changed," suggested Adam. They told Tony they would be there to help him when he told his mother what had happened. Simon texted Brabazon to say they would be a few minutes late home. He didn't want to ring him and then have to explain the ins and outs of a nag's arse to him over the phone. That could wait until dinnertime.

The three regrouped for tea. The dance session had not gone well. Adam and Simon were not in the mood and the muscles wouldn't relax sufficiently. The maestro put it down to the week out because of school examinations. Tony was in a better frame of mind after spending the afternoon in the cricket nets either thrashing a ball as hard as he could with his bat or slinging fast ones down when he bowled. After school exams prep was rather notional with either exam corrections or reading. At six they collected Will and went to look for Mrs Legge in the car park. Tony explained to his mother what had happened to Will and Amanda immediately went into cub defensive mode and marched off towards the Headmaster's study with four boys in tow. Luckily the head was free. He felt that if the School had to work to six he ought to likewise and often parents did pop in when they came to collect their offspring. He was able to pacify Mrs Legge saying the School took such complaints very seriously. She insisted that he should hear from all four boys as they were to some extent involved and didn't want Tony accused of acting rashly, although it was thanks to Simon and Adam that he hadn't, or rather couldn't. Each boy had to write a statement and the Head said he would look into it in the morning and let her know what happened.

Outside again she said to Adam and Simon "I'm afraid I've made you rather late. Hop into the car and I'll take you home and collect you in the morning so that you don't have to worry about your cycles."

Once the Legges had got home and David had learned about what had happened, the family did everything they could to make William the centre of attention, although at that stage he didn't want to eat his supper or go to school the next day. Finally it was bedtime and the family settled down. As Tony lay in his bed subconsciously playing with his balls and his dick he was thinking through the events of the day and how thankful he was that Simon and Adam had held him back and prevented him from beating the living daylights out of Roland Bedford who would be in enough trouble when he got to school the next day, that's if he turned up. However, unless the Headmaster had rung his parents in the meanwhile, he wouldn't know he was in trouble. It would have been a very different story if Tony had reacted violently and however just the reaction might have been the School would have given him no support whatsoever. Now the Legges had the full force of the School's discipline on their side. Tony's fiddling had become more serious and he was now dealing with a very hard, throbbing boner when his bedroom door slowly opened. Luckily he was under the duvet rather than on top of it.

"Can I come in?" sounded a plaintive voice. How could Tony say no? William walked round to the other side of Tony's bed and climbed under the duvet beside him. Tony absolutely adored the smell of his younger brother when he was freshly bathed or showered and had newly laundered pyjamas on. He quickly turned over on his side so that when Will snuggled up to him he wouldn't feel his boner.

"Yes, please, bro." Tony turned over, put his arms round William and drew him into himself. "Why did he do it to me?"

"But you're gay and have never done anything like that, and Adam and Simon are gay and never done that to me."

"Some gay people are like that and it's often because nobody loves them. I'm lucky in that respect because Mum and Dad love me, and you do... "

"And Angelica, and in a different way Simon and Adam, and of course we all love you, and Adam and Simon are loved, even though Adam hasn't got a mum and a dad and Simon hasn't got a mum."

"And I'm going to love Adam twice as much now I know he hasn't got a mum and dad. So no one loves Roly Bedbug?"

"I wouldn't go that far, but it's quite possible his parents don't love him because he's gay and so he does these things to make up for it."

"I don't really know," said William. "I was going for a pee and suddenly the Bedbug was there. He put his hand on my shoulder as we went in and once inside he said 'I'll give you fifty p if I can feel your balls' and before I knew it he'd undone my zip and had his hand inside feeling me."

"Come on, Will, try and forget it. You're not hurt and you've been a brave boy. Give me a kiss and we'll get some sleep." They were still there cuddled up together when in the morning Mrs Legge came in to wake Tony up.

There was a buzz of excitement going round Year 9 when Roly hadn't turned up by registration and assembly. What the pupil body did not know was that the Bedfords had been rung up the previous evening and an appointment made for them to come in with Roland to see the Headmaster at ten o'clock. This had not gone down well in the Bedford household as Mr Bedford had had to cancel some business appointments at short notice and Mrs Bedford could not go into work either. Furthermore the Head would only say on the phone that a serious complaint had been made against Roland and in order not to prejudice the affair it would be better if he did not come into school until the appointed hour when an investigation could be held. Naturally the Bedfords demanded an explanation from Roland and because of the witnesses he could only say he had done 'something' to a younger boy and his parents inferred it was probably a case of physical bullying.

When the meeting began, with all three Bedfords present and the Head's secretary taking notes, the Head read out the statements made by William, Tony, Adam and Simon and asked for Roland's reaction. The parents were visibly shocked and asked if they could speak to Roland in private. They were ushered into the Head's secretary's office. Presented with such damning evidence Roland could do nothing other than come clean and at the same time come out to his parents who had had no inkling that their son was gay, let alone running a lucrative business based on his sexuality. It was a textbook example of parents so involved in their lifestyle and professional activities that they paid insufficient attention to their own children. In fact Roland genuinely believed that his father would have been proud of his entrepreneurial activities. They returned to the Head's study where Roland had little scope other than admit what he had been up to. He sent Roland out to wait in the corridor and asked Mr and Mrs Bedford whether they were satisfied with school's disciplinary process. Faced with what their son had said to them they were left with no grounds to protest or appeal.

"What I propose to do," said the Head "is to suspend Roland until the end of term and caution him that if on his return he is involved with any form of bullying, sexual, physical or mental, or becomes involved in any unauthorised 'business' transactions, he will be liable to instant dismissal. Is there anything you would like to say at this point?"

There was very little that they could say apart from apologise on behalf of their son and assure the Head that they would keep a closer eye on him.

"We have a number of gay pupils in the school," said the Head "and I am sure more than we actually know about. It is our policy to protect them, and to help them wherever possible. We have staff that are trained to deal with this and they are available to both pupils and their families. If you wish I can arrange for one of them to see Roland while he is suspended, and of course next term, though I am reluctant to commit them in the holidays as my staff work extremely hard during term time."

"Thank you," said Mr Bedford. "We'll let you know when we've spoken to Roland." The Head asked his secretary to fetch Roland, then explained to him what he had told his parents. The boy looked sheepish as he did not know what to expect when they got him home. When the Bedfords had gone he asked his asked his secretary to confirm what had happened in a letter to the Bedfords and to write to the Legges to inform them of the action he had taken. Later in the day a notice appeared on the main board in the corridor stating that Roland Bedford had been 'suspended until the end of term for gross misbehaviour. (signed) A M Kemp, Headmaster'.

That might have been the end of the affair apart from two incidental consequences. William had quoted in his statement that Bedford had said to him 'I must like it because that gay brother of yours does it to you.' The Headmaster had not missed the implication that this might true rather than simply an insult. Anthony Legge was on his list for counselling, and what about his friends? The other was that the names on Roly's 'client database' were disorientated, both suppliers and consumers alike. Some even approached Tony, Adam and Simon. Nothing doing. They were a happy little group of friends, especially as they now conferred 'best friend' status on each other and Tony was no longer actively seeking a boyfriend, except... Simon and Adam had had their wish granted. Slowly, but surely, they were discovering the names of other gayboys in the school. Because of the lateness in the term the project was put on hold. The boys had other things on their minds.

Tony and Simon had done well in their examinations. Adam had been given special consideration to take into account what he had missed through changing schools, subjects and syllabuses, and while he could not be compared with his peers, at his own level he had done extremely well, and possibly better than he might have done at his old school. In retrospect he found that while the demands made on him were more rigorous, they made him produce a higher personal standard. Now the event which mainly occupied their time and thoughts was Adam and Simon's dance routine at the end of term production.

Philip arrived home at the beginning of the post examination week, just as the 'Roly Bedbug' affair was unravelling, which was bit of a relief. Simon and Adam would have to explain their part in what had happened and they both preferred to describe the occurrences to Philip rather than Brabazon. As it was, Philip listened patiently and congratulated them on the way they had prevented Tony from getting into trouble, although he confessed a sneaking admiration for him for the way he was prepared to stand up for his brother and hoped that Adam and Simon would look after each other in a similar way. Philip said that he was now in the country for the rest of term and promised that he would arrange his diary around school events as he wanted to attend not only the end of term entertainment, but sports day and the swimming gala. Fortunately Simon and Adam were in the same house, as would have happened, had they been blood brothers, and so loyalties would not have been split by the boys competing against one another. It was up to the House captains to finalise the entries. Simon ended up in the 1500m, while Adam was in the 5000m since he was the only one to volunteer. It would be his first opportunity to make a name for himself in sport and he was still determined that he should represent the School at rugby the following term. With the long light evenings the training began in earnest and although Lucy would come for the run, that is what it was - no time to sniff, no time to swim in the lake and no time to flush out the ducks. Also Brabazon was under instruction to provide only light meals in the evening with the exception of Sunday which was a day of rest. This left little time for swimming training, but as the boys swam frequently all the year round, they were relying on natural ability.

Meanwhile there was another little development that hadn't gone unnoticed. In the way that Tony was a welcome and increasingly frequent visitor to the house, Philip was made welcome at the Legges' house, usually when they had other visitors. He and David even talked about playing golf together, something Philip hadn't done since his wife had taken ill. The Legges felt that he needed company and it was an appropriate way of repaying the open house hospitality enjoyed by their son or, as it had been more lately, sons.

Philip was as good as his word. Most days he worked from home and should he be required in London he caught the early train and returned as soon as his tasks had been completed. He felt that his company owed him some time; he knew he had been working long hours to compensate for the loss of his wife; he recognised that the sacrifice for working these longs hours were his sons and that he owed it to them to be there for them as they were both going through the same loss as he was, only children were perhaps more resilient owing to their being less set in their ways. He felt that perhaps he owed more to Adam. Simon was more secure in the family, to a certain extent it was 'business as usual' for him, but Adam had undergone a complete upheaval, losing both parents and his home, the orphanage and the change of schools. Had he suffered a reaction or a low period? Perhaps he had passed that stage in the orphanage. Perhaps he had escaped them because the emptiness had been filled by Simon, and heavens, did Philip know emptiness! Would he marry again? No, not the way he felt at the moment, not while the boys were growing up. He could never with good conscience rob them of affection when they were so vulnerable. On the other hand, never say never.

The first social event that Philip was looking forward to was Sports Day. The boys were too, but showing off their athletic prowess was not their only motivation. The School took early lunch for the event to start at one o'clock. Each pupil was permitted to enter just one field and one track event, plus a relay race. This policy was in order to open up the competition to more boys and make it more of a team event for the houses. Adam and Simon had come well prepared for their races. School athletics kit was compulsory and that's why they brought along their digital cameras to record the event, or nearer the truth to capture as many of their fellow pupils in their lycra one-pieces as struck their eye. Simon took a full range of photos of Adam at the start, during and after the finish of his race. The 5000m race was early on to allow the participants to recover sufficiently for their other events. Adam won his race with ease; he even set a new school record, not just for his age group, but also at open level. He had the build of a harrier, tall, slim, no excess body weight and comparatively large lungs. He would be doing cross-country during the 'hockey term'. The training had paid off, but the race was not popular and most of his fellow competitors had been dragooned into it. Afterwards he was congratulated, then joined Simon and Philip. He had an hour or so until he had to report for the triple jump. It came up to the time for Simon's 1500m race and Philip and Adam were there to cheer him on. He, however, had a more difficult and competitive race, but again the training paid off for he still had enough left to leave the pack for a sprint down the home str8 and clinched a victory by five yards. Then he had to report for the javelin. Perhaps throwing a ball for Lucy hadn't been in vain. Our boys acquitted themselves well, but didn't win their field events. However, they did gain some points for the ir house. After that they joined Tony and William with Mrand Mrs Legge. Will was waiting for the 100m in the youngest age group which would be towards the end of the afternoon.

It was a pity that Tony and Will were in a different house from Simon and Adam, but it didn't stop them from cheering on their friends in their various events, nor from taking both posed and action photos of them. The competition was nearing its end and climax. The points on the board showed that there was not a lot of difference in the position of the houses, but as everybody knew with double points it all depended on the relays, but at present it was the finals of the blue riband event, the 100m. As the youngest age group it was Will's race first. Although he was small he had an amazing burst of speed and at that age was in with a chance, but unless he grew inordinately, and looking at his brother and parents it was extremely unlikely, his career as a sprinter would be short lived. The Legges and the van den Bergs gathered round the finishing line. The starting pistol went off and eight twelve year olds hurtled down the track. From that angle it was impossible to tell the positions apart, but with the race over in less than twenty seconds the eight crossed the line together and the place judges had difficulty in sorting out the order. In fact they had to go into a huddle and as they came out the first place judge sought out William and to great cheers he was declared the winner. Our boys all hugged him. Then they had to go off and prepare for the relays. The harriers had to become sprinters. At least they were in the 4 x 400m which suited them better than the 4 x 100m.

In a few minutes Adam and Simon were on, Simon at three, Adam at four. The lane discipline is more difficult in this race as the lane markings are more spread out on the 800m tracks. Suddenly the race was off. It was close all the way. One, two, then it was Simon. With his edge he was able to put a little distance between himself and his nearest rival. It was still difficult to judge because the staggers hadn't yet fully unwound, but he did his 400m and ran up to Adam. It was a perfect hand over, almost ruined, however, because the boy in the next lane dropped the baton and it threatened to trip Adam. Adam opened up his legs - he'd had plenty of practice at that - and as he did he opened up the gap and steamed home in another convincing first place. The team came together in a group hug and despite the all out effort it still made him feel really horny and the lycra was being sorely tested. As they parted Adam whispered into Simon's ear

"You'll have to wait 'cos there's nowhere out here to do anything about it. See you in the showers after the presentations and tea," and his eyes popped out as he saw the lycra of Adam's one-piece under that test. That was the price to be paid for having a dick that just would not tuck down. Perhaps in future he would have to cultivate having everything tucked up as they were supposed to for dance, but that could be so uncomfortable, particularly if he got a pubic hair or hair from his treasure trail trapped under his foreskin.

The following day, Tuesday, the swimming gala took place in the morning. Since being at his new school Adam was taught how to do tumble turns which he could practise at home. Here again the training in their spare time put both of our boys at an advantage and with Adam swimming the longer distances and Simon the shorter ones they won their freestyle races for which they were applauded, but without any great fuss for this is what they were expected to do. Because of the wet they could not bring their cameras. Of course they were disappointed. What an opportunity that would have been. After the gala the afternoon was spent in a final rehearsal for their dance routine which they had put down in the programme as Pas du Tout. The maestro finally gave his consent to Simon and Adam to wear their new scarlet and royal blue tights. With its renaming he felt that the piece was sufficiently removed from the idea of Swan Lake.

The Wednesday evening concert was a mixture of acts. Besides Adam and Simon's there was modern dance, musical pieces both from the school orchestra and chamber groups, individual and choral singing and a Shakespearean scene from Hamlet, since being a play within a play it, it made sense as an excerpt. The boys' dance went well. Thoughts of the pas de deuxbetween Dawn French and Darcy Bussell did come to mind, but the boys had taken it seriously and they did their best. At the end they were loudly applauded and they had to endure some wolf whistles from some anonymous admirers, not of the dance, but of the boys in their costumes, and they certainly gained credit, street cred as well, for having had the guts to do it. Whether it was a good public relations activity for the School's gay community or a bad one would remain to be seen, but as all the boys had taken dance at some stage in their school career they appreciated that it was not an easy option.

The following day, Thursday, was the last day of term. The morning consisted of administration, practices and the Headmaster's final assembly. The afternoon was Speech Day followed by tea. Neither of our two boys had won prizes. Adam didn't expect to as a newcomer of one term's standing. They clapped particularly loudly when William received one for progress. For Adam it was a time of reflection as he sat in the hall. In four months his life had been turned upside down and he was grateful for the opportunities the van den Berg family had given him. He hated to admit it, but they were opportunities he would never have had if his parents had still been alive, though they were no compensation for their loss. He felt more fulfilled as a person, not only from his achievements, but from learning to love and being loved by Simon.

When Speech Day was over the boys met Philip and they joined up with the Legge family for tea in the dining hall. Mr Kemp, the Headmaster, made time to tear himself away from the honoured guests and circulate among the parents. He came across to the van den Bergs and the Legges. He apologised to the Legges for the earlier incident with Roland Bedford and said that on rereading the reports he realised that the boys might have an agenda which he might like to consider sympathetically next term. He congratulated Simon and Adam on their dance routine the previous evening and asked Adam how he had settled in with the van den Berg family.

That evening when the van den Bergs finally arrived home the boys collapsed on the settee in front of the television. They were mentally exhausted, too exhausted even to switch the set on. Philip said he would take Lucy for her walkies and organise Brabazon to produce a very light supper in the kitchen. The boys fell asleep in each other's arms until supper was ready. After supper they decided to say good night and retire to bed even though it was barely nine o'clock. There was certainly not going to be any fun that night. They stripped down to their undies and lay side by side on the bed and as the natural light faded they just talked. They talked about the eight weeks' holiday which lay ahead of them; a week to recover from the rigours of school, a family holiday with Tony joining them, odd trips out or weekends away, some with the Legge family. They did not know at that point that Tony would find a friend while they were away, but it would remain just one of those holiday romances. As feared the trip to South Africa was off. They spoke of the coming autumn term, the joys of rugby for Adam, before that their fifteenth birthdays, the new work at the start in Year 10 of the run up to GCSEs. They did not shirk the reality of having to face up to the first anniversary of Adam's parents' death and the death of Simon's mother. The hoped that they had understood the Headmaster correctly and that he was willing to do something for the gayboys at school. Gradually sleep overtook them and they dozed off looking forward to their eight weeks of freedom.

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After the Ghetto

Part 5

by N Fourbois