It's Monday, and we're back at school. Our mock exams are due to start in five weeks' time. I'm not unduly concerned. I've done the work. I just need to deliver on the day, the same as I usually do. After cross-country training, Dean comes to talk to me.

"I've been thinking," he says. "During the winter, we ought to get the guys working on their upper-body strength, their arms in particular. For anyone who wants to do well on the track, like Patrick and Niall, the arm-drive's crucial. I mean, everyone will benefit, but those guys especially."

"I was thinking Friday lunchtimes. I've checked with Mr Saunders. The gym's free and he's happy for us to use it. On the odd occasion when there's a race on the Saturday, we could miss it, but that only happens about twice."

November 2011

It's Friday lunchtime. We're holding our first gym training session. Most of the squad have turned up, which is pretty good, bearing in mind that the session isn't compulsory.

Dean takes us through a series of exercises designed to improve our upper-body strength. They're all exercises that he does, and he takes great care to make sure that we do them correctly. At the end of the session, he gathers us together.

"That was a good start," he says. "The results won't be immediate, but if you stick at it, you will improve. There's one other thing that I'd suggest. If you can, acquire a pair of light hand weights, about 1kg in each hand, so you can practise your arm-drive. Ideally, you should stand in front of a mirror so you can make sure you're bringing your elbows back nice and straight. Over time, it will make quite a difference."

Once again, I'm impressed. Dean clearly knows what he's talking about. It's good that he's taking the time to share it with us. I'll definitely get some hand-weights. My arms have never been very strong. I'm sure these exercises will help.

After school, I head to Scott's place. On Sunday, he has to join up with the England under-21 squad again. They're playing Iceland at home and Belgium away. It means that this weekend, we'll only have a few hours together. Then he'll disappear for nine days. I console myself with the thought that their next match isn't until the end of February.

Arriving at the flat, Scott welcomes me inside. We head to the lounge, flopping down on the sofa.

"Yeah! We've started to make it a regular thing. Until the end of last term, he had Jenkins, who was pretty useless."

"It seems that the new guy Newton is pretty good, but Jake had got behind. Having me working with him one-to-one is helping to build his confidence."

"I just thought that with me away, and him living right by the school, it might be easier for you to work at his place on Friday afternoon, before you go home."

"It probably would be, but there's a problem. When he comes to mine, Mum and Dad are there, and he's as good as gold. If I go to his place, it'll just be the two of us. Once we've done our maths, he'll want to get into my pants. After what happened with me and Franny, I can't imagine you being too happy about that."

"That was a completely different situation," he says gently, smiling at me. "On that occasion, you went behind my back and had sex with a boy I didn't even know existed. Then, when I asked you what was going on, you tried to pretend it hadn't happened. And finally, Franny was way under age. If anyone had found out, the shit would have hit the fan. It would have been horrible!

Jake, however, is of legal age, and he's a friend. Last week, he was right here, getting up to all sorts of sexy stuff. Now don't tell me that you don't get horny while I'm not around, because that's nonsense! So, while I'm away, if you have an opportunity to have some fun with a mutual friend, what's the problem? All I ask is that if it does happen, you tell me about it."

"Of course! Let me ask you something. Would having a bit of fun with Jake make you love me any less?"

"Good! Because I can tell you that it won't make me love you any less, and that's what counts, isn't it?"

"When we were in Spain, we said we'd only do that sort of thing when we were both there."

"And I'll probably have to stick to that. But given the way things have developed, I don't see any harm in cutting you some slack. I'm not saying that you have to have fun with Jake while I'm away; that's up to you. I'm just saying that I won't mind if you do. If it happens, just tell me about it!"

"If things go the way we want them to," he says quietly, stroking my hair, "a year from now, we'll be in a completely different situation. When you go to university, you'll meet other gay guys. But the ones who are 'interested' will see you as boyfriend material. That's a whole different ball-game. You're not going to get serious about Jake, now are you?"

He stands up. "Come on, babe!" he says, gently pulling me up. "Let me make you feel better. And stop worrying!"

In the bedroom, Scott is at his most attentive, his most affectionate, his most sensuous. Afterwards, when he drops me at home, I feel loved and valued. I can't imagine meeting anyone who can make me feel like he does.

Yet 'cutting me some slack' takes away some of the certainties that I've come to rely on. Having more freedom will give me more opportunities for screwing things up. It moves me out of my comfort zone, and that's not easy.

"After school, I went to Scott's place. He got onto me helping Jake with his maths. The thing is, next week he'll be away with the England under-21s. He suggested that rather than have Jake come here on Saturday morning, I could go to his place Friday afternoon, before I go home from school."

"Well, I explained to him what was likely to happen. He said he was okay with it. I just needed to tell him about it."

"Definitely! I don't want Jake to see me as his 'one and only'. I'm not ready for it, and I'm sure he isn't. It 's like I'm the big brother he never had, and that's great! I'm totally cool with that. I know Jake wants to play around, which is fine, but I do want to keep him away from guys who'll take the piss, yeah? Well, I know you won't, so that's more than okay with me."

"I'm just concerned it might affect my relationship with Scott. He says it won't, but I'm not so sure."

"I told you, you worry too much!" Anthony replies firmly. "Think about it. You've got the cute, boyish look that he obviously likes. On the other hand, you designed his flat, you work like a Trojan, you can plan, you can organise. That's rare for guys our age! And when he got injured, you were a total rock for him. Where else is he going to find all that wrapped up in one package?"

"You two were made for each other," he goes on. "He knows that, and he's cut you some slack. Fine! Now stop worrying and enjoy it!"

It's Wednesday, and we're on our way to Sutton Coldfield. We're going to be racing in Sutton Park, as we do once every year. Twelve months ago, we got thrashed by the local boys' grammar school. Apparently, it's a course on which we've never won. As we're unbeaten in the six races that we've run this season, this has to be the day we put that right.

"Because it's one lap, and a lot of it is through the woods, home advantage is massive," Patrick cautions. "They train there all the time, so they know where they are and how far they have to go. We don't. We only come here once a year. It makes it very difficult to judge how far you are from the finish." He turns towards Mr Bentley. "Sir, rather than racing, could Dean stand about a mile from the finish, so that he can call to us that there's around a mile to go?"

"Well Dean?" Mr Bentley asks, not taking his eyes off the road. "What d'you think?"

"You've better be there!" Patrick insists, glaring at Brian. "I want to see you, and I want to hear you loud and clear!"

"We'll sit on the leader's shoulder until we reach our 'mile-to-go' marker. Then we'll see how fast we can run the last mile. It'll be interesting to see if anyone comes with us."

I can't say I fancy the idea, but I don't have anything better to offer. After our usual warm-up, we line up for the start, and away we go. After around five minutes, six of us have broken clear: two boys from the host school, one from one of the other schools, Patrick, Nathan and me.

As the race continues, I'm feeling very comfortable. It's not a surprise. Nathan's still with us, and in all our five previous races, I've beaten him easily. Patrick was right though. After almost twenty minutes running, I've no idea where we are or how far we still have to go. Suddenly, Brian appears, waving his arms.

With a marked increase in pace, Patrick surges to the front. As arranged, I go with him. Now we're really running. Patrick's giving it everything! With half a mile left, I'm hanging on, but I'm still there, running on his shoulder.

Suddenly, I falter slightly. In the blink of an eye, Patrick's gone. It's what I'd been trying so desperately to avoid.

The run to the finish, no more than 600 yards, seems to take forever. I can't believe that anyone's running slower than I am. But somehow, I manage to keep it going, finishing clear in second place. Fuck! That was hard!

As I wander away from the finish, I see Nathan finishing in fourth place, splitting the two boys from the host school. With our sixth scorer, Simon, finishing eleventh, we've recorded another commanding victory. Well, I guess that makes up for last year!

It's Thursday afternoon. Cross-country training has just finished. It's been a typical November evening, with a blustery wind and flurries of rain, far from ideal for running. As well as that, the last mile that Patrick and I ran yesterday was brutal. I can still feel it in my legs.

Along with several of the other boys, I head into the showers. I mind my own business, the same as I always do. Being with Scott, I have absolutely no need to draw attention to myself. Strolling back into the changing room, I take my time, towelling off and getting dressed. At this precise moment, rushing around isn't on my agenda.

As I prepare to leave, I realise that something odd is going on. I'm the only one left in the changing room, but there are two sets of clothes still hanging up. The only explanation is that there are two guys still in the showers. If that's right, they've been there for a while.

I look again. I'm pretty sure that one set of clothes belongs to Jake, because they're where he always changes. Without checking them out, I've no idea who the other set belongs to. I know it's not my business, but I'm curious now.

I stroll across to where the changing room meets the drying area. To the right, a tiled breeze-block partition separates the drying area from the showers, with access at either end. I notice three things. First, there's nobody in the drying area. Second, from my position, I can't see anyone in the showers. And finally, the showers are still on. I conclude that there is someone in the showers, and whoever it is has to be near the far end.

Having got to this point, I have to see it through. Moving as quietly as I can, I pad through the drying area. Approaching the other end, I become aware of a rhythmic slap, slap, slap punctuating the sound of running water. I think I might be hearing some slight moaning sounds too, though I can't be sure.

This is it! I look around the end of the partition. What the fuck! Jake, facing away from me, is under one of the showerheads. He's bent at the waist, his feet apart, resting his hands on the far wall. Standing behind, Jon Franklyn is fucking his arse. With his attention focused on other matters, Jon seems not to notice me.

Completely shell-shocked, I step back. I'm not sure what I expected, but it certainly wasn't that! Jon and I have been team mates for more than a year. He's quiet, reliable and always gives of his best; a really nice guy. He's never given me the slightest hint that he's gay.

Holy shit! Now what am I going to do? The short answer is to get out of here as fast as possible, before they realise I've seen them. Retreating from the drying area, I pick up my bag and make my way out of school. I need time to think!

Fortunately, the solution's pretty obvious. After school tomorrow, I'm going to Jake's place to help him with his maths. I'll talk to him about it then.

Beat Iceland 5 – 0. I got 1 goal & 2 assists. Still missing you! Love you lots! S

It's Friday afternoon. At ten to four, the bell sounds for the end of classes. When we're dismissed, I take my time. By the time I reach the school gate, it's gone four o'clock, and almost everyone has disappeared.

After crossing Birmingham Road, I take the side street that leads to Alexandra Square. As far as I can tell, nobody's paying me the slightest attention. When I reach the square, I can't see anyone.

The building housing the two maisonettes is located in the far right-hand corner, directly in front of me. It's exactly as Anthony described. With its sash windows and cream render, it's totally in keeping with the other buildings in the square. But when you get closer, you can see that it's of much more recent construction.

The door for the upstairs maisonette is at the end of the building, on the right-hand side. I ring the bell. Seconds later, what sounds like a baby elephant bounds down the stairs and opens the door.

"Hi! " Jake greets, giving me a smile that would light up a whole town. " Come in! "

He's changed out of his school uniform and into a hooped rugby shirt and denim shorts. Dressed like that, he looks about thirteen and über-cute. I follow him upstairs and into the lounge.

His maths books are on the dining table. We sit down side-by-side, with me on Jake's left. I start by checking the work he's done over the past few days, since Mr Newton last marked his book. I spot a couple of minor mistakes. Other than that, it's all good.

We go on to solving triangles using the sine and cosine rules. Even with a calculator, it's one of the hardest topics in GCSE. After listing the four possibilities, we work through a few examples. As always, he's very attentive, doing exactly as I ask of him. Finally, I set him some questions to do over the weekend.

"Yes," I agree. "But before we do, there's something I need to ask you. Yesterday, after training, I was pretty tired. So once I'd had shower, I didn't rush. I just pottered about towelling off and getting dressed. By the time I was ready, everyone else had gone, but there were still two sets of clothes there. I was pretty sure one of them was yours. I didn't know who the others belonged to. Anyway, I had to have a look. You and Jon were in the showers. I saw what you were doing."

"Oh, yeah! He's like totally cool with it. Jon's really nice, and he's got a beautiful cock!"

"Anthony knows him pretty well," Jake continues. "He likes him too. Actually, it was Anthony who gave me the idea that Jon might be gay."

"Oh, right!" I respond, wondering what sort of curve-ball he's going to throw me next.

"Jon and I will be in the showers again on Monday if you'd like to join us," he says, lowering his voice.

I'd like to tell him to be careful, and not to go with guys he's not sure about, but how can I? By the time I was sixteen, I'd been fucked by seven different boys, including two complete strangers, and two lads that I only knew casually. I'm hardly the best person to be giving that sort of advice!

He leads the way to his bedroom. Once I've pulled off my shoes and socks, we start to undress each other. He's got a wonderful touch, his fingertips making me tingle. Within a couple of minutes, we're down to our underwear. The old-fashioned white briefs that Jake's wearing emphasise how young he is, or at least, how young he looks.

Sitting on the edge of his bed, I quickly pull them down, exposing his uncut penis, with his well-formed balls hanging a short distance below. Above his dick, some short, wispy hairs have begun to put in an appearance. I run my fingers over it, steel-hard and throbbing with his heartbeat.

Unable to resist, I take it into my mouth, sucking it right down to the root. It tastes and feels exquisite. In response, he gently strokes my hair, urging me to continue.

After a couple of minutes, we swap places. Jake eagerly skins my boxer-briefs down my legs before allowing me to kick them off. Opening his mouth, he devours my prick, sucking it hungrily. He's very good at this, but following the party at Scott's place, I already knew that. Once again, the sensations are quite extraordinary.

With the preliminaries completed, we snuggle up on the bed. Scott was right; he kisses beautifully, his tongue sensuously exploring my teeth. His aroma is quite different from Scott's, younger and fresher, but equally erotic.

That's totally fine with me. He's already been fucked by Anthony and Jon, both of whom are bigger than I am, well, longer anyway. If it's what he wants, I'm more than happy to give it to him.

With Jake in position, I kneel down behind, my tongue lapping at his rosebud. Oh, yes! I recall doing this with Diego, when Scott and I were in Spain, but his bum wasn't as smooth and soft as Jake' s is.

As my tongue begins to tire, I pull away. Squeezing some K-Y onto my fingers, I work it into Jake's bum-hole, first with one digit, then with two. Finally, I allow them to slide out.

As he rolls over, I pick up his legs, lifting them right up so that his knees are close to his shoulders.

Having slathered my dick with K-Y, I shuffle in close, guiding it onto his starfish. Taking a deep breath, I thrust it in.

Very gradually, I push further into him, delighting in the tight, velvety sheath that's encasing my cock. I thrust over his prostate.

Like me, Jake 's very loose-limbed. Bending at the waist, I push my torso down between his thighs. Getting the idea in a heartbeat, he wraps his legs around my back, drawing me to him, our lips meeting in a passionate kiss.

There's no holding back. Within seconds, we're fucking and kissing like nothing else even exists! For his part, Jake's trying to push his tongue down my throat, his hand behind my head seeking to pull me in even further.

Suddenly he shudders uncontrollably, his little starfish going into spasm around my dick. As my balls churn into action, his hot boy-juice splatters over my stomach. Oh, fuck! With the whole room shaking, my cock jerks violently, rope after rope of teen-cum spurting into Jake's arse. Holy shit!

I'm not sure how long it is before I'm able to move, but it's a while. Very slowly, I lift myself into an upright position, my cock still buried in Jake's bum. He's still lying right where he was, breathing heavily.

As I move out of the way, he gets off the bed and disappears out of the room. A few seconds later, he's back, carrying several sheets of loo-roll. Pulling on his briefs, he slips the toilet paper inside.

After dinner, I head up to my room to do my maths homework. I'm right in the middle of it when I get a call. It's Anthony.

"Good thanks!" he responds. "I understand that yesterday you caught our mutual friend 'messing around' in the showers with one of my classmates?"

"Yeah, I realise that. That was just a figure of speech. Jake said you seemed a bit concerned about it."

"I just wanted to make sure you knew. I'll admit, I was a bit shocked. I had no idea that Jon was gay. Jake said that it was you that gave him the idea."

"Well, we were talking about the cross-country team, and who we thought might be gay. Jake said he was pretty sure that none of the boys from his year was. Then he asked me about the lads from Year Twelve. Well, Nathan definitely isn't. Man, if he was a sailor, he'd have a girl in every port! Rhys isn't either. All the girls in our year think he's cute, but he's currently attached to a pretty little thing from Year Eleven. Martin Birch isn't anything to look at, so we didn't talk about him.

That left Jon. Now as you know, he's big mates with Nathan. From what I've been told, they've been friends since they were five. Now, I've run into them a few times when they've teamed up to take out a couple of girls. The thing was, Jon didn't look to be that into it. And it wasn't that he'd drawn the short straw and ended up with the fat, ugly one. A couple of the girls I've seen him with were quite pretty. But he was like a fish out of water. He just didn't seem that interested. I know that's not a clincher, but it does make you wonder!"

"I know Jon pretty well. He's one of the good guys. I want to keep Jake away from the arseholes, but I've no problem with him and Jon having some fun."

"The thing I'm struggling with is that everyone in the cross-country team knows I'm gay. But Jon's never given me the slightest indication that he was. Over the past year, he's been to my house loads of times when we've been going out running. I've never seen a hint of anything!"

"He was probably worried that somebody would notice. And I guess he could be concerned about how Nathan would react."

Duh! Of course he wouldn't! Once Anthony had planted the idea in his head, horny little Jake decided to test the water.

Early on Saturday afternoon, I'm in my room working when I get a call. To my surprise, it's Scott.

"Hi, babe! " he greets. " I've managed to grab some alone-time, so I thought I'd give you a call. Everything okay?"

"Yeah! Mind you, we didn't have much to beat. If we'd been a bit more ruthless, we could have scored a hatful. We're off to Belgium in a couple of hours. Meanwhile, my room-mate's down in the lounge, playing pool with some of the other guys, so I thought I'd call you while I had the chance.

"Cool! You can give me the details when I see you on Tuesday. What are you doing at the moment?"

As we end the call, I can't help wondering if the real reason he called was that he wanted to know if I'd got it on with Jake. I pull myself up short, remembering what Anthony said to me. I need to stop over-thinking things! It was great to hear Scott's voice. I should just enjoy it for that!

It's Monday afternoon; cross-country training has just finished. I still haven't decided what to do. I temporise by spending a few minutes chatting to Rhys and Gary, who aren't having a shower, telling them about the Hampton Cup race that we'll be running in next week.

So far this term, neither of them has made the scoring six in any of our races. But because the course for the Hampton Cup is so tough, and both Rhys and Gary are light and agile, they could have an important role to play.

As soon as they're ready to leave, I strip off and head into the showers. As I'd hoped, Jon and Jake are the only ones in there.

"There are still a few guys in the changing room," I advise. " Let 's wait for a few minutes, yeah?"

Predictably, Jake's already got a hard-on. Jon hasn't, but as Patrick has only just left the shower, it's what I might have expected. I'm guessing his dick will come to life pretty quickly once things get started. I'm a little concerned that Jake's risked drawing attention to himself by waiting around after everyone else in Dean's training group has gone home. Fortunately, nobody seems to have noticed.

After a few minutes, I return to the drying area, pick up my towel and walk into the changing room. Noting that everybody has now gone, I stroll back through the drying area, hang up my towel, and return to the showers. I give Jon and Jake a smile, raising my thumb. Jon sidles over to me.

"I didn't think we'd ever do this," he whispers, wrapping his fingers around my cock.

Within a couple of seconds, we're both fully aroused. When Jake said that Jon had a beautiful cock, he got it spot on. Uncut like the rest of us, when ready for action it's around the same length as Anthony's, but almost as thick as Scott's. Considering that Jon's only a couple of inches taller than I am, and quite slim, that' s impressive.

Our lips meet in a sensuous kiss, our tongues engaging in some exploratory wrestling. Eager to get in on the action, Jake slips his hand between us, fondling my balls before moving onto Jon's. Jon gently breaks our kiss.

"Cheeky! " Jon comments, grinning at me. "Come on then!" he challenges, turning to face our younger friend. "Show us what you can do!"

With Jon now standing to my right, Jake kneels on the floor and goes down on Jon's cock. He sucks it eagerly, reaching up to play with mine. Fuck! This is hot!

I look down, my eyes glued to what he's doing. Within a minute, he's taking the whole thing, burying his nose in Jon's curly dark pubes. Given how long it is, he has to be deep-throating it. That's a serious mind-fuck! As far as we know, he's only been doing this for a few weeks. So what's happened to his gag reflex?

I don't have to ask him twice. After releasing Jon's glistening dick, he shuffles across and goes down on mine, reaching up with his other hand to work on Jon's. Fuck! This just gets wilder! Having learned to deal with much bigger ones, he can pretty well play tunes on mine. In less than two months, he's become a master cock sucker. Wow!

Jake gets to his feet. With my back still to the wall, I move across a little, positioning myself directly under one of the shower-heads .

He doesn't hesitate for a moment. Standing in front of me, he bends at the waist. Having taken the whole of my cock into his mouth, he holds onto my thighs to keep himself stable.

"Move your feet a bit further apart," I continue. "Then keep nice and still. We've got this."

To be more accurate, I should have said ' Jon 's got this' . I'm guessing that I won't need to do anything. With his usual quiet efficiency, Jon works some K-Y into Jake's bum before smearing another dollop over his beautiful dick.

Having put the tube back into his shower kit, Jon moves in close, guiding his magnificent prong onto Jake's rosebud. I feel the jerk transmitted through the younger lad's body as he thrusts it in. After a brief pause, he holds the tops of Jake's thighs, advancing steadily until his whole length is buried in our smaller friend's bum.

Starting quite steadily, Jon gradually builds things up until he's giving Jake's arse a serious pounding. Just as I expected, this results in Jake's mouth going up and down on my cock without either of us needing to do anything.

After a couple of minutes, Jon reaches down with his right hand. With Jake's body in the way, I can't actually see, but I presume Jon's wanking the kid off. That suggests he's getting close, which is good, because I certainly am.

In a re-run of what happened at Scott's place, Jake suddenly begins to shudder, involuntarily tightening his grip on my thighs.

I don't need any more stimulation. Holding Jake's head, I shoot three big ropes of teen spunk into his mouth, followed by a couple of smaller spurts. Fuck! That was so hot!

After turning off the showers, we towel ourselves off and return to the changing room. I go across to Jon.

"Hi Jon! " I say brightly. "Thanks for calling. Look, I know it's not my business, but I understand you're quite new to this. Until last Thursday, I had no idea you were gay. I just wanted to say that if you want to talk about it, I'm here for you."

"After that dust-up with Zav, pretty well everyone at school knew I was gay. I came out to Mum and Dad the following Christmas. Basically, Claire told me I needed to do it before they heard about it from someone else. It was quite difficult at the time. Mum didn't take it very well at all. But I'm glad I did it. They're both fine with it now."

"If he's a real friend, which I think he is, he'll accept it. He's definitely the first person you'd need to tell. You guys go back such a long way, he'd be upset if you told someone else first. As for telling your mum and dad, we can talk about that later, if you want. You could come over here and we can discuss it. You can even speak to my mum and dad if you want."

"Cool! Just one other thing: I take it you won't be telling anyone about our little get-together this afternoon?"

"Good! I'll tell Mum and Dad that you confided in me because you knew I was gay. Everybody does, so they won't question it. "

Lost 2 – 1 to Belgium. Nothing for me! Disappointing! See you tomorrow! Love you! S

We head straight to the bedroom. After nine days abstinence, Scott's pretty well gagging for it, and I'm certainly not objecting. Within a couple of minutes, we're naked, and snuggled up on the bed.

"They're a decent team and we weren't quite at our best," he explains. "I didn't play badly. I made a couple of decent chances but we couldn't take them. It happens. It was disappointing to lose. A draw would have been fair. We've got them over here at the end of February. We're going to be totally up for that! Well, that's my news! Now tell me about you and Jake."

"Well before I get to that," I say, grinning. "I need to tell you what happened on Thursday afternoon."

Over the next couple of minutes, I tell him about seeing Jake and Jon in the showers.

"A little bit taller than me, slim, shortish dark hair. In the race you came to, he finished between Will's brother and Simon the cricketer."

"Yeah, I remember! Nice enough, but I wouldn't chase him down the street. Didn't you tell me he's got a big cock?"

"I got the hell out of there before they spotted me!" I say, grinning. "Then the next afternoon, I went to Jake's place. We did our maths, as usual. When we finished, he asked if we could have some fun. I said 'Yes, but,' and told him what I'd seen. He was as cool as a cucumber! He told me that Anthony knew and was perfectly okay with it."

"We went to his bedroom and had sex. Lots of kissing and sucking to start with. You've been with him; you know what he's into. Then he asked me to fuck him."

"Very nice, thank you! As you put it, he's got a very fuckable little arse! It definitely got the juices flowing!"

"Apparently not, but he absolutely loved it! He came on my tummy while I was doing him."

"As a parting gift, he told me that he and Jon would be in the showers again after training on Monday afternoon, if I'd care to join them," I add.

"I've no problem with the sex," Scott cautions, "I might have been a little concerned about you getting caught."

"Before we actually did anything, I took the precaution of making sure all the other lads had gone. The cleaners don't come to that area till six. The chances of anyone catching us were slim to none."

"After Jake had spent a few minutes sucking us both, we spit-roasted him, much like when he was here."

"Well, judging by the towel you've left out, I suspect you'd like to give me a damn good fucking. And as nobody gets to do that but you, it's what I want too!"

It's Saturday afternoon. I've primed Mum and Dad about Jon's visit. They're totally supportive, as I knew they would be. Dad did ask if I knew whether Jon had 'done anything yet'. I told him that I hadn't asked because it wasn't my business.

It's just before half past two when Jon arrives. As arranged, I take him into our club room, flopping down on one of the sofas.

"I told Nathan last night," he says quietly. "He was like, 'Oh, you've finally told me!' I felt such an idiot! It seems he's known for ages. Nate and I have double-teamed a few times, you know where we take out a couple of girls. Obviously, I tried my best, but he could tell I wasn't into it. "

"Then he called to his dad to come up to his room. I was a bit alarmed, but he was great! He said he was really pleased I'd come out and how important it was for me to be true to who I really am. Apparently, Nate had talked to him about it, and he'd told Nate not to ask me, just to leave me space to tell him when I was ready."

"He's very keen for me to tell my mum and dad. He said he'd be happy to support me when I do."

"That's great!" I pause for a moment, trying to get my thoughts in order. "Mum and Dad know why you're here, and will be happy to talk to you if you're okay with that. Dad did ask me if you'd 'done anything yet'. I told him I didn't know, so if you do talk to them, you'll need to stick to that."

"Now I'd like to tell you a few things about my situation," I say evenly. "But before I do, I need you to promise that you won't repeat anything I say."

"Scott and I have been together for more than eighteen months. Of course, being a professional footballer, he has to stay firmly in the closet. That's just the way it is. It does present its challenges, but our parents know about it, and that's all fine. A few times, I've even got to spend the night at Scott's flat.

What they don't know is that Scott and I have a somewhat strange arrangement. When he's away, as he was last week with the England under-21s, he's okay with me having a little entertainment on the side, provided that it's someone he knows, and I tell him about it. Our threesome on Monday would fall into that category. Scott got back on Tuesday, which is why I didn't join you on Thursday."

"He's not actually met you, but he knows who you are. During half-term, we had a dinner party at his flat. We invited Anthony and Jake. After dinner, you could say we all got to know each other a little better."

"Most of the time, we' re not. It 's just me and Scott, and that's how we like it. But occasionally, when the opportunity arises, we do like to spice things up a little. Obviously, we have to keep it all very quiet."

"Yeah, sort of! We were in the showers after training. He kept checking me out. Well, I waited and he waited. Finally, we were the only ones still in there. He started playing with his dick. I couldn't take my eyes off it! Then he came over to me and started playing with mine. It was amazing! I shot all over the place!"

"You'll need to be careful with him," I advise. "Although he's sexually very adventurous, at times he acts like a kid in a sweetshop. It's all a bit puzzling."

"Definitely! If you don't want to mention it in school, I can give you his number."

"Yes. We all know that Ian' s gay. It 's not a problem. He's one of the most respected guys in the school, so I thought I ought to talk to him."

"I started thinking I might be a couple of years ago. To start with, I tried to bat it off. I went out with a few girls, double-teaming with Nathan."

"Oh, I remember doing that!" Dad interrupts, grinning. "Sorry, please carry on!"

"Well, it wasn't too bad, but it just wasn't me. The first couple of times, I thought it was because I was nervous, and I'd get into it. I didn't, of course. During half-term, I decided I had to stop pretending. Last night, I told Nathan. He was fine with it. He reckoned he'd known for ages. He was just waiting for me to tell him. His dad was cool too, really supportive."

"That's a couple of years older than Ian was when he told us, and you have actually been out with some girls. Ian never got that far. If you tell your parents, and I hope you do, you're welcome to give your mum my number. If she wants, I'll be happy to talk to her. For the past couple of years, Ian and I have been going to a support group for parents with gay children. They meet during the school holidays. I found it very helpful, didn't I, Ian? "

"I could put your mum in touch with them," Mum continues. "Or, if you want to come to one of the meetings, we could probably all go together."

"Thanks, that'd be great!" Jon replies, sounding relieved. "Actually, I think I ought to be going. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me."

"You're very welcome," Dad says, smiling. "If there's anything we can do to help, please ask."

It's early on Wednesday afternoon. After leaving school at morning break, we've arrived at the course for the Hampton Cup race. Because around twenty schools take part, each one is limited to nine runners. Our other guys are here though. They'll be around the course, giving us support.

Before training on Monday, both Mr Bentley and I gave the lads a team talk, and I've spoken to them individually, to help them get mentally prepared. It's up to them now. From this point, all I can focus on is my own race.

Taking only our shoe bags, we walk around the course. The uphill sections through the woods are still very muddy, though not as bad as they were last year. However, the fast descents on the open grassland are firm and dry, like they were two years ago. And like I did two years ago, I'm planning to fly down them.

It's time to warm up. Although it's cool and cloudy, there's been no rain for a few days, and with only a light breeze, conditions are pretty good. After some jogging and stretching, we take off our training pants, and change from training shoes to spikes. We've all put in 15mm spikes, which are longer than we usually use, but the mud makes them just about essential.

Brian Armstrong collects shoe bags into one bin-bag, while Mr Bentley puts our training pants in another. They bustle away to deposit them in the minibus. After a few strides to get our legs moving, we jog across to the start where Brian collects our training tops, stashing them in another bin-bag.

A couple of minutes later, the gun goes and we're away. Because the course is so demanding, I don't need to be right at the front early on; I just need to be somewhere close.

After a lap of the playing field, we're into the woods and onto the first climb. I keep it steady, concentrating on conserving energy. I pick up a couple of places, but that's not really the point.

At the top of the climb, we emerge from the woods onto the first descent. Relaxing and allowing gravity do the work, I fly down the slope, picking up several places and narrowing the gap to the leaders.

A right turn onto a gentle climb leads us to the second descent. I promptly repeat the trick, picking up several more places. As we come back onto the playing field at the end of the first lap, I'm right where I want to be, closing in on the leading group.

We head onto our second lap. On the long, muddy climb through the woods, I pick up more places, as runners in front of me start to tire. On a course like this, being small and light is quite an advantage. As we approach the top, I pass Nathan, who's running just outside the top ten. I'm hoping that he'll be able to hang on somewhere close to that.

Emerging from the woods, I fasten onto the back of the leading group, with Patrick just in front of me. Hitting the first descent, I go scything through them, briefly hitting the front.

On the gentle climb that follows, they catch me again, but I don't care. I've made them work. Turning onto the lower descent, I do it again. This time I open up a ten-yard-gap. Running across the playing field to begin our final lap, the rest of the group have to work to catch me.

It takes its toll. Climbing up through the woods, a couple of guys drop off the pace, reducing the leading group to five, including Patrick and myself. Coming out onto the open grassland brings us onto the penultimate descent. I hurtle down, just as I did on the two previous laps, opening up another gap.

This time, however, when I turn onto the little climb, I really go for it. I've got away; with only around 600 yards to the finish, I want to hold onto my advantage. It almost works. As I turn onto the final descent, only one lad has caught me.

Plunging down the hill, I draw right away from him, emerging onto the playing field with a fifteen-yard advantage. I've got just two hundred yards to go, but I'm desperately tired. It's all I can do to keep my legs going. Gradually, he reels me in, passing me ten yards from the finish.

Having come so close, losing hurts. But to look at it another way, I gave it everything; it just wasn't quite enough. And I have to be realistic. If I'd been offered second place before the start, I'd have taken it, no question.

With Patrick running through to take fourth place, we've made a good start in our attempt to win the trophy. But how will our other lads perform? Behind the leading group of five, there's quite a gap. Finally, more runners start to come through. Suddenly I get a shock. Jon appears, and he's inside the top ten! Wow! That is a bonus!

As expected, our next scorer is Nathan. He's lost a few places since I passed him, but not too many. On a course that really doesn't suit him, he's done very well. But even better, Gary is only two places further back, with Rhys quite close behind. I'm ecstatic. I told Rhys and Gary, two more lightweights, that they could do well here, and they've delivered. How special is that!

It's time to add up the numbers. With Jon 9th, Nathan 14th, Gary 16th and Rhys 20th, we've scored 65 points. That's bound to get us into the medals, but will it be good enough to win? Predictably, Mr Bentley is very excited.

Simon (22nd) and Niall (25th) didn't make the count, but it wasn't really their sort of course either. Shaun finished 72nd, but I knew he was going to struggle. For him to finish in the top half of the field is actually a decent result.

"Hi! " he says, smiling at Patrick. "It's Patrick Keaveney, isn't it? Who's this guy?" he asks, jerking his head in my direction.

"Hi Ian! " the lad says warmly. "You ran a great race today! I don't know how you can run down those hills so fast! It was killing me! Sorry, I'm Gavin Shaughnessy. Patrick and I ran in the English Schools' 3000 metres when we were intermediates. I was second, Patrick was third."

"Hi Gavin, " I say. "Nice to meet you! I was so tired when I got onto the playing field, I just couldn't hold you off."

It's strange. Since being allowed to act as a course marker at the race two weeks ago, he's seemed far more engaged.

"Sir! " Nathan protests. "I think you need to send for the paramedics! Gary's gone funny in the head!"

Amid general laughter, we put on our tops, change back from spikes to trainers, and make our way to the minibus. Gary is a mess! We're all muddy, but he's absolutely plastered in it. He's even got some in his hair. I've no idea how that happened. It doesn't matter; he was fantastic today!

After collecting our bags, we head into the sports centre to shower and change. Although the showers are packed with fit guys, I'm too tired to pay them any attention. One thing I do notice is that Jake has a shower. There's no rule that says he can't, but as he wasn't racing, why does he need one? I think I can guess what that's about!

As soon as we're dressed, we head into the sports hall to await the presentations. I spend the time talking to the guys individually, encouraging the ones who did particularly well, and reassuring the three lads who didn't make our scoring six.

Suddenly, the results sheets appear. It's official; we've won it, beating Queen Mary's, the school in Lancashire that Gavin attends, by 19 points. Five minutes later, the presentations begin. I'm pleased to say that all nine of us receive winners' medals. In addition, as team captain, I'm presented with the trophy, and receive the silver medal for finishing second. Without question, it's the proudest day of my life.

The journey home through the early evening traffic is tedious. After such a tiring day, we're all knackered. With nothing better to do, I send Scott a text. In his reply, he tells me that when we get back, I should meet him in Milford Avenue, just around the corner from school, and he'll take me home. Well, I'm not going to turn down an offer like that!

When we finally get back to school, I walk the short distance to where Scott's Mini is waiting. Putting my bag on the back seat, I get in next to him.

"I am so proud of you!" he says, driving away. "Those are class runners you were up against, and you almost won it! That's an amazing performance! Winning the team race is just the icing on the cake." He pauses for a moment. "I guess that after a race like that, a good massage wouldn't go amiss."

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Juggling the Pieces

by Pink Panther

Chapter 28

October 2011

November 2011