The First Son - Arc Three. Part 2

by Zustara Orur

PART ONE: Introduction, A Secret, Moments Shared.
TWO: Hiding, Recuperating, Deep Talks.

I looked at Ozzie as my angel rested his head against my chest, not caring we missed the bus and not blaming him either of course. "Raphaél's sick", I told him, probably looking a bit upset. We were somewhere in rural America, I didn't even know which state and much less which town, my boyfriend had probably managed to get himself food poisoned, the Secret Service were out with every man they got looking for us and maybe the FBI and regular police too by now, and to top things off our bus stranded us and we had nowhere to go. Still, most of those things were all irrelevant to me by then, all that mattered was my angel and his well-being.

In the end we ended up at a motel not that far off. The place had seen better days. Some years back a new interstate highway had been completed which diverted most traffic away from town, and now the place only got occational visitors. Later I was told it was that which saved us. By the time the Secret Service had determined we'd probably fled Washington D.C. and identified all the transport options open to us, we'd already left the bus. I would have loved to see the look on all the passengers' faces as those black helicopters set down and blocked off the highway, with agents swarming out of them to storm the bus! Must have been really exciting...!

Again it was the game of probabilities that saved us. The agents didn't expect us to stay in that little town, they assumed we'd continued with another bus or maybe by hitching a ride with someone like we'd done the day before when we in actuality was no more than a few hundred feet away from the bus stop. We could have seen the agents as they walked back and forth in frustration swearing to themselves from our window if we hadn't pulled down the curtains to give my angel some peace and quiet.

Anyway, it was Ozzie who got us the room of course, I doubt either me or Raphaél could have managed it without the woman behind the counter becoming suspicious. Ozzie claimed we were his cousins, and she didn't bother to ask any further questions, her job a little more secure with our money in her hands - literally. Ozzie took no risks, he paid in cash.

He got a room with two beds, neither me nor my angel argued. Raphaél's not the one to stay silent if he feels something's not to his liking, but he didn't say anything. Not just because he was sick, but also because quite frankly neither of us had really much of an idea of what to do, and he was the adult and thus became sort of our parent, and that made us follow his lead until we were safely inside that room and got my angel in one of the beds. Then I did ask Ozzie why the heck he didn't go with the bus like he should have, and in response he just laughed and became a bit annoyed too.

"What, and just leave you guys here all by yourselves?"

"Yeah, we can take care of ourselves!"

He shook his head sternly. "No, you CAN'T! You're just two lost kids far away from home. You need someone to look after you to make sure-"

"We're not los-", I tried to interrupt him, and for the first time, Ozzie actually seemed angry!

"Don't you think I recognize a pair of runaways when I see them?", he said harshly. "Don't even try lying to me, Bastian! I don't think any parents with any kind of sense in them would let two kids your age go on a bus trip ALONE all across the country in the middle of the school term and with no luggage to speak of. For chrissakes, you did't even have any shoes on your feet when you boarded that bus! You still don't, that's my socks you're wearing!"

I looked down shamefacedly. "Ozzie, I'm sorry... It's just... We couldn't stay, okay? Raphaél's parents sent him away to a clinic just to keep us apart, so we wouldn't cause a scandal." I looked up into his eyes. "Don't you see? We HAD to run away!" Tears came in my eyes and he put his arms around me, sitting down on the bed my angel wasn't lying down in, with me at his side.

"You had to run away, and now Raphaél's sick..." He patted me on a shoulder. "Aren't you glad you got me keeping you company?" He smiled comfortingly and I tried to smile too. "I'm good company you know."

The next three days were a harrowing experience. A few hours after we first arrived to the hotel room, my angel's body had pretty much purged itself completely. Everything that didn't come out one way went out the other, though that did not stop his guts from still trying to wrench themselves inside out. I held him as he leaned over the toilet bowl, dry-retching again and again. The time we didn't spend in the bathroom together I spent at his sickbed. He burned with a high-temperature fever and refused to let me call for a doctor. He was so weak, I was really worried! He could barely keep even water down the first day, and he sweated so much the sheets soaked through, I thought he'd die of dehydration. The first, and most of the second day was the worst, then the fever started to let up. Ozzie had gone out and bought a small carton of a special kind of yoghurt that was meant to soothe upset stomachs, and we fed that to my angel one little spoonful at a time over several hours so his body couldn't reject it right away. Slowly it seemed to take effect, along with green tea with quite a lot of of really dark akacia honey in it, stuff Ozzie bought in a health-food shop in the center of town. He had an electric pot in his huge backpack with a cord attached that plugged into a wall socket so we could boil water. The stomach settled down, but he still had a really nasty infection, and like I said, it took the better part of three days for his immune system to fight it down. He had to eat more of the yoghurt, and he whined and complained about that because he said it tasted horrible, like yeast, but we didn't care! If it was good for him he simply had to eat it, I reminded him sternly several times.

Was almost funny the first night when I tried to sneak into his bed and he stopped me before I even got a foot in under the cover. "Don't come close to me, I'm like a petri dish here... Stay away!"

I patted his feverish forehead. "Cutest petri dish I ever saw...you dish there!"

He gave me a weak smile. "You'll catch it... Whatever it is I got. Don't come near..."

"Oh don't be silly. You can either sleep with me or with Ozzie because I'm sure as heck not sleeping in his bed, what shall it be?"

His smile got a bit stronger. "Oh, in that case I think I'll try some down-under action... Bring Ozzie over here please, will you?"

He was joking of course and I knew it, but I still nodded solemnly as if I thought he was dead serious. "Okay, one moment."

When I got up he made a wild grab for my wrist! "Uh, wait! Sebastian, I was only kidding you know!"

My huge grin immediately gave away the fact I'd known he was kidding the entire time and just played along in his joke! He whacked me on my shoulder when I sat down again - rather hard actually! "You seem to be getting stronger", I commented and giggled after 'oww!-ing' out loud. He smiled too and sat up slowly just so he could kiss me but caught himself and diverted his lips at the last moment and let them touch my cheek instead. I know he was only concerned about not infecting me, but seriously, he could have frenched me if he wanted to.

"I love you, please sleep with me, my sweet Sebastian..."

"How can I deny you anything?", I said and then snaked my way out of my tight clothes with Ozzie looking at us in a rather curious manner over from the sofa where he was longuing, watching TV at a low volume. First socks, and then the shirt (which meant my angel started caressing my sides and back), and finally my pants, by which time I was already sporting as big a hard-on as I could possibly sprout! Ozzie looked at that one too, and seemed rather bemused in a way that a guy would find another's stiff dick hot. I shot him a lewd look and he just laughed! I pretended to be annoyed and he shook his head at me in return as I slipped in under the covers and snuggled in to my angel. I was surprised I hadn't felt weird about showing myself like that to another person, a grown-up even. I suppose, it was because I knew Ozzie had no sexual attraction for either of us at all. He just wanted to look after us, be protective and probably practice being a daddy for a little while.

"Am I disturbing you guys?", he asked as he watched Andy Rooney with one eye. Andy was delivering yet another of his sharp-witted editorials about today's reality. I like him, he's a really old and dry guy in a way, but his MIND isn't old and dry; he KNOWS stuff and he isn't full of prejudice and pre-concieved notions based on how things were in his youth, and he doesn't go on and on about how much worse everything's gotten since then. He's like my dad I realized right then. I used to think Da's just a weird pothead, but I've become aware he really knows stuff too. Not like science or things like that, but he notices these little oddities that makes our society what it is, makes an observation and then tells about it at dinner at home or such and manages to both make a whole conversation piece about silly product names for example AND make it interesting to listen to as well. Just like Andy Rooney.

That evening, no TV channel seemed to be presenting any news whatsoever that we'd gone AWOL together. It was extremely rare he'd made headlines in the past, like with Chelsea Clinton, media respected his privacy, and only those few occations when he visited a children's hospice for cancer patients or such (mostly along with the First Lady) was he mentioned. Now however, everything was just like it had always been, and thus my angel tried to just not worry about anything and to sleep to get better.

First he wanted me to stay close and spoon him, but he became too hot and sweaty. When we broke apart he instead felt lonely and scared instead, so we ended up on our backs and held hands. It felt unusual, I usually fell asleep with him on top of me, or me on top of him. It was the furthest apart we'd ever been at night, and it was difficult for us to find rest. It wasn't the TVs fault, we didn't mind its low murmur and gentle bluish glow. In a way it was rather soothing in fact. Finally my angel nodded off, and then I followed. We slept maybe an hour or so at most and then we both woke up with a start. Raphaél had had a bad fever-dream, and needed to be calmed so I spent a few minutes doing that until he fell asleep again. Next time we woke up, the room was dark and quiet. Ozzie sat in a chair at the side of our bed, watching us. I saw his eyes glitter in the gloom of the night (not total blackness, because streetlamp light came in through the windows).

He wanted to make sure we were okay.

"Please... Turn on the TV again", Raphaél whispered. Ozzie reached out and patted us, then went back to the couch and turned the TV back on, setting the volume really low. He looked more at us than at the screen however, and then my angel finally sighed and rolled back up into a ball and went to sleep once more. I laid on my side with a hand on the side of his ribcage so he'd feel I was there. He was too hot for me to spoon him like we both wanted to, and we both understood that as well.

"Sebastian?", he asked me softly around midday. He'd been sleeping kinda on and off in a feverish kind of way, waking up to have some yoghurt or a little to drink, or to go to the bathroom on weak shaky legs. I followed him close behind at those times, holding him firmly as he aimed into the toilet bowl.

"Yes, what is it?", I replied quietly.

He hesitated for a few moments. "Uh, why... Why did you kiss those other guys...? I mean, when you brought guys back home with you?"

I shrugged, or tried to anyway as I laid down on the bed facing him. "I don't know, it seemed like a hot thing to do I suppose."

"You didn't want to... You know, touch their...?" He blushed and spoke even more softly. "Between their legs, I mean."

I was a little bit surprised he asked me this I have to say. "No, not really... I didn't think that far I guess. I just wanted to kiss them, it never occurred to me to get undressed."

"Oh."

My hand went to his chin, to turn his face back up at me. "Why are you asking me this, my angel?"

"Because... I... I never KISSED anyone before. Nobody, except my parents, and then only quickly. You know, like you're supposed to." No, I didn't. Not the way he meant. When I kissed my parents it was to tell them I love them, to him, well, I guess it was more like his duty I think, trying to be a good son. Or at least trying to be what they thought a good son would be like... But, I still understood what he meant when I thought about it for a few seconds... "I'd only kissed them before I met you. Like you said, it never occurred to me, I just wanted to put my hands on their dicks. Have sex, you know?"

I crawled over to him and took his fever-stricken body in my arms. "Oh my angel... It's okay." He shivered, and I didn't know if it was because he was feverish or scared or ashamed. Then I heard his sniffle, and I immediately started smiling! "Oh no, no nononoNO", I told him firmly, trying to stop the tears, and he looked up at me with a frightened expression, his lower lip trembling.

"But... I'm, I've... I've DONE stuff with other guys, okay?"

"Yeah, I know. With the twins, and that kid whatsisname when your dad walked in on you. You told me, no big deal."

He shook his head. "No. With OTHER guys too! I'm...n-not like you, Sebastian... Not pure li-like you. I'm... I'm nothing but a whore!" His face scrunched up and tears rolled down his cheeks. I smooched him on his mouth once. He scrunched up even harder, his face so sad it hurt me in my chest. I quickly smooched him more. Lots more, all over his face.

"No, Raphaél. You're my angel. You hear me. My ANGEL." The smooching intensified, long yet rather light smooches, my lips sealed to his soft skin, and a small lick every once in a while, tasting his tears as he cried.

"Don't say that, it's not true!"

I was all smooch-smooch-smooch on his skin. "My angel... My angel", I whispered over and over, then smooch-smooch-smooch and more whispers. I don't think there was a spot on his head I hadn't smooched when I was done. Yes, I was in his hair too, and eyebrows and ears and everything, and down his neck and throat too, all around the thick golden chain he still wore, even in bed he wouldn't take it off. I managed to kiss under his jaw and in under his white elastic armbands. I kissed the thin white scars on his wrists as I held him, showing I accepted him, ALL of him, and loved him unconditionally no matter what he'd done in the past! He was so pretty with his ruby-red hair in combination with his dark eyes and dark, long lashes, and just being with him made me feel beautiful too, how could I not love him to bits...?

"I was gonna do you, you know...", he whispered quietly. "In the shower, before I- Uh, I mean we, left for the clinic. That's what I meant. ...When we showered together last time, before we left." He paused. "Sorry, I'm rambling." I stroked his hair and down his cheeks to show it was OK. "Uh... I've, I've done it before you know. To other guys. I know how to do it so it feels really good."

I just held him close. "Those 'other' guys you talked about? You, uh, you sucked their...?"

He nodded. "Mm-hmm... They, umm... I was at an all-boys' school before dad became president, while he was still a senator, a place where rich, dry old republicans send their kids. Some of them wanted to do stuff."

I'd always felt he was more experienced than me, as if he'd 'learned the ropes' with someone else. Maybe it had been 'someones' instead, and now he wanted to tell me about it. It wasn't a big deal to me, it didn't matter because now he was MY angel, and besides it almost drove me nuts every time he made love to me, he was so good at it. He made my whole body jittery and tingly and weak and quivery as jelly and all super sensitive; in my opinion his greater experience was a GOOD thing! A laugh escaped me as a stray thought bubbled to the top of my mind. "I thought conservative kids all hated gays", I said with a giggle.

"They weren't very conservative, well, not all of them! Quite the opposite", my angel responded, and I could hear the edge of mirth in his voice. One of my hands were rubbing his back, and the other his hot bum, making him feel loved. "Some of them at least. Not when we were alone anyway, though some said nasty things about people like us when others were around. Gay kids, I mean... Even though they wanted to 'do stuff' in private. I guess most just wanted to get off, I think they'd rather done stuff with a girl instead if they could, but they were too young for girlfriends and it was an all-boys' school, so there weren't any girlies around anyway. Others were like, rebelling against their strict parents I guess, even though they didn't dare to show it to anyone but me and a few other boys. It was as if doing gay stuff was the worst thing they could possibly do, so they did it."

"Weren't you all a bit too young to be rebelling?", I said and smiled, then kissed the side of his neck slowly. "You can't have been more than eleven then, right?"

"Who said they were that young?", he replied somberly. "Most of them were at least as old as I am now."

I stroked his body more firmly. "It's OK", I whispered to him. "It's OK, I love you..."

"I let some of them buy me junk too", he blurted quietly before he managed to stop himself. Then he realized what he'd just revealed and nearly freaked out. "Oh god, I SAID I am a whore, it's true! Please don't be mad at me. Please! Please don't hate me!" He pleaded in a way that tore at my heart and cried, he thought I'd get angry with him... I showed him my love, and my acceptance. He's mine now, only mine, he doesn't need to give of himself to other people anymore.

"My angel. Poor baby. I love you, you know that, right?" He nodded and we smooched until he calmed down somewhat. "Did some of them want you to do stuff to them for the things they bought, or did they do stuff to you?", I asked softly.

He shivered. "It wasn't really like that. I mean, they didn't abuse me. I'm gay, I like being with another boy. But they were older than me and not really my type, so one said if I sucked his he'd buy me a videogame." He swallowed with a loud gulp. "Then some others bought me CDs too or manga comic books, stuff like that. Nothing really expensive or anything, just like, normal kid junk because my parents didn't give me a very big allowance... You're not very mad are you?"

I caressed his ruby-red hair slowly and calmly. "No, my angel, I'm not mad. I love you."

"I got paid for sex. That's what whores do!"

"Will you please stop saying that!", I said with a giggle. "I've never seen you dressed up in webbed stockings and high heels and a too-small leather miniskirt along with pink halter-top, wearing way too much make-up!"

Suddenly he laughed. "I only do that when you're not around", he said shyly, not wanting to laugh or even smile, yet he still did.

"Just relax, it's okay. I love you, and I always will."

He blushed rather demurely all of a sudden. "Oh, do you mean that? Do you really lo-" I silenced him with a deep kiss and a grab of his hot bum.

Soon there were only tears. No sobs, no sniffles, just tears literally pouring out of his eyes and I knew he was accepting what I'd been telling him all along, that it was okay. He was crying tears of relief, and of happiness. Well, a lot of the tears took the alternative route through his nose and emerged as snot, and I suppose that wasn't too hot as it ran down onto my shoulder right along with the tears as his head rested against it, but I love my angel, snot and all, and he needed to be accepted no matter what right then so the goo didn't matter. I held him so firmly he could not get away, and I had a big stiffie poking him as well just because I really do love to just hold him like that.

"How did you know?", I said, meaning regarding those other boys at his previous school. And, well, regarding me too I guess. I mean, he knew I'm gay before I did...

He giggled softly. "I just do, Sebastian... I look at someone, and I sort of know if they're gay or not. Or at least interested in doing stuff."

I smiled and kissed him despite the ooze on his face. "Sounds like a useful talent to me..."

"Are you guys alright?", came Ozzie's quiet voice. He sat down on the bed next to us and put a hand on each of our shoulders. He had stopped his aimless plunking on the guitar some time ago when he noticed we were having a serious discussion, and now he needed to know. It was mostly just a rethoric question I guess, or I hope so anyway because we didn't really acknowledge him at all at that moment. We were too absorbed with each other.

My arms cradled and rocked him a little. "Why this all of a sudden, hm?", I asked softly. "We've been together for ages now, why are you still worrying?" Oh listen to me. Not even four weeks is ages...

He shook his head. "I don't know... I, uh, you're just so kind to me and I guess... I thought, if you knew you wouldn't love me anymore and then you'd leave me."

"LEAVE YOU?! Not very darn likely!", I said with a big grin. "You can't get rid of me that easily you know, you're stuck with me now. Anyway, for me not to like you anymore you'd have to say... Uh, I don't know really..."

"Say I'm straight?", he asked with a remarkably...straight...face.

I giggled. "Oh no, not even that would be enough." Then I calmed down on purpose and looked at him in a serious manner. "You're not straight, are you?", I asked, pretending to be worried.

"Not very darn likely!", he returned in a quiet yet happy voice.

There was one final question I had to ask though. "Raphaél. If you thought I'd leave you if you told me those things, why DID you tell me? You don't want me to leave you, do you?"

"Oh no!", he hurried to respond. "Never! Oh GOD, nevernever leave me, my beautiful Sebastian!" He paused for a few seconds, watching me smile at what he'd said. "I don't really know why I told you", he mumbled. "It's difficult to say... It's something I've carried for a while now and kept hidden, but it was getting so heavy to keep on carrying so I just had to tell you. And, I thought if you wanted to leave me after I told you, all I had to do was pick up the phone and dial one special number and they'd come to get me so I wouldn't have to be here all sick and alone. I wouldn't even have to say anything, I could put the phone down or even hang it up again, they'd still be here in an hour at most. I thought maybe that way it wouldn't hurt so much... Maybe."

I cuddled and caressed his sick body. "I think I know why. You simply wanted to know if I'd really stay with you, right? Isn't that it? You just wanted to know for sure I belong to you? Well, I do. Through good times, and bad. Never doubt me on that. I BELONG to you!"

He nodded his head against my cheek and neck. "Mm-hmm... I think that's the reason. Guess I know for sure now, and I'm glad you're mine." He snuggled in so tight against me and smiled to himself, eyes closed. "Anyway, I have a question too. Why DO you kiss people so much, Sebastian?"

I felt my body shrug almost on its own. "Not sure either. I think I'm just a kissy kind of guy, I suppose."

"And a little girly too...!", he said in a mock-teasing way.

I sniffed and stuck my nose up prodly in the air. "So what if I am?", I said cooly and totally shamelessly.

"Nothing. I love it. It's hot, and it's sexy, because it makes you look pretty, especially when you bat your lashes and your earrings sparkle! Makes me wanna make out with you no matter where we are, and I love you..."

I twisted away from him a little and looked at him from over my shoulder in a way I knew he thought was really sexy. "Well if you do, go ahead and kiss me then!", I demanded.

"Don't mind if I do." And he did. And then he sucked on my flower-adorned earlobes too. Both of them!

Late the second night, just before dawn, his fever broke. He sweated rivers, so much we were both totally sticky, but neither of us cared. He was weak from lack of eating, the tea and yoghurt not able to sustain him fully, but at least he hadn't had to do anymore bathroom rushes since there was nothing left to puke up anymore. In the morning we fed him another carton of yoghurt over the course of several hours, and it went into him despite his complaints about the taste. Ozzie threatened to pinch his nose shut and force his mouth open if he didn't cooperate! The three of us took it easy the whole day, hiding in our room and playing the guitar, singing to my precious angel so he'd feel better.

We sang "Penny Lane" and "Strawberry Fields Forever" and lots of other Beatles stuff to him, he loved it, and we both sat naked in bed with our hard-ons jammed into one another, wrapped up in a sheet to keep us warm, because Raphaél got the shivers if too much of his skin was bared. Ozzie slouched in the armchair playing the guitar most of the time since he's more skilled than I am, and my angel wanted me in his lap so he could look into my eyes as I sang to him and kiss the tip of my nose or my forehead and fondle various convex parts of my body. Was pretty darned neat I have to say!

Late in the third day my angel felt well enough to get out of bed again. His stomach churned even at the thought of food however, and his face turned green just at someone MENTIONING egg-mayo-and-shrimp sandwiches, or basically anything with eggs, mayo or shrimps in it. Both me and Ozzie did it a couple times each just as a joke, but seeing how disgusted he felt made us stop teasing him immediately. It wasn't very fun after all, we didn't want to be mean to him. Both me and Ozzie wanted him to stay in bed a while longer, but we also sensed the restlessness building in him and we knew he'd start to make a nuisance of himself and grate on our nerves even though he didn't mean to if he had to stay much longer. We had to get going again soon, for our own sake.

Our bus tickets were all invalid now of course, and me and Raphaél considered buying new ones and paying in cash, but Ozzie thought that would be a waste of money. With him there to keep an eye open for kooks, loonies and weirdos, we'd chance it and hitch-hike the rest of the way, but first we needed to get clean again...

My angel hadn't showered for three days, and he wasn't smelling too good either. Tell you the truth, neither was I, I sure could use some freshening-up as well so Ozzie shooed us into the tiny bathroom while laughing merrily and closed the door and told us not to get out again until we were all teeth-brushed, washed, dressed and decent again. He'd taken all our clothes to a laundromat in the morning, and had even gone out to buy me a pair of sandals earlier to wear on my feet; something he revealed just before shoving us in there. He was so sweet and I gave him the biggest hug ever and a long smooch too. He tried to make me plant it on his cheek but I'd have none of it, so we kissed properly and he became so embarrassed. Raphaél thought that was really funny and afterwards said he had to do the same just to pay him back for the shrimp joke. Ozzie blushed again just quickly, then quipped my angel better wash his face first. We both giggled and then closed the bathroom door behind us.

In the shower, standing in the bathtub together we finally had the privacy we'd been deprived of for so long. We could touch without restraints; not so much without worry of anyone seeing us, because we were fairly un-inhibited, but because we didn't have to think about if someone else was bothered by what we were doing.

Raphaél was rather weakened by his ordeal so he pretty much just stood there and let me wash him. His body seemed a little gaunt to me, he'd been spending a lot of energy fighting off the disease, the fever and in all his sweating too, but if he just got some food in his belly I expected him to bounce right back. I used a small lathered-up hand towel as a washcloth, rubbing all over him to gently massage him while administring a deep-pore cleansing that removed sweat and dead skin cells all at once, to bring out a healthy pink glow to his pale complexion. Yes, his very light tan he'd started to develop was already fading, he was more or less back at what he'd looked like first time I ever saw him as he sat on that bench at the beginning of the semester. My angel wasn't stiff or anything when I started washing him, not even after I shampooed his long, ruby hair carefully with my hands while kissing him and rubbed the cloth almost all over him afterwards. First I washed his face and ears and neck, then in under and down his arms (making sure I lathered up his pits real good), down his chest and back (stopping to lick and kiss his nipples). Only when I lovingly probed his belly-button with my tongue, hands on his sweet teen buns did I feel his young boyhood rise up and stab gently at my throat.

"Aaaahhh... Sebastian...", he sighed. "Will you do it?"

I kissed his tummy with my eyes closed, making it quiver and him twitch and moan with pleasure, then I grasped his stiff penis in my hand. "I will do it... My angel, I love you. I will do it..."

Only minutes later, his loud, high-pitched cry of extacy made Ozzie fall backwards out of the chair he'd been leaning back in, we both heard him and the chair crash to the floor with a startled yell of his own!

Fortunately, my dad's Fender came through the ordeal without as much as a scratch we learned afterwards, when a big-eyed Ozzie stuck in his head into the bathroom to see what the hell was going on, if Charles Manson was busy murdering us or something! All he saw through the shower curtain was the vague shape of me holding a post-orgasmic teen-boy angel in my arms as we crouched down together, him weak and panting, weak not just from his recent illness...

"Omma god...", Raphaél mumbled several times over. "That was awesome..."

A happy-sounding snorting giggle came from me. "Yeah, that was GOOD!"

"You guys okay?", we heard Ozzie ask in his own special way of talking.

My angel sighed. "Yeah, we're FINE", he said with probably the biggest, prettiest grin of his life plastered to his usually quite serious face. We all bust out laughing, knowing what made him say that!

"I think you got some more hair since last I checked you out closely", I then quipped, looking at my boyfriend.

Ozzie's laugh ended with a snort. "Alright you guys, I don't want to hear any more of this!", he said with a chuckle and quickly withdrew himself.

Less than two days later, the battered side door of an old minibus slid open. Inside, four hippies in their mid- to upper fourties said their farewells to us. They were on their way to re-live a lost era none of them had ever really left actually. I think my father would have liked them very much, I saw so much of him in each and every one of them. Janet and Jenna, Eric and Garth. They had long hair, and the men big, weird sideburns, and they all wore weirdly colored clothes as well. I got one of Jenna's tie-dyed shirts - purple-pinkish and red in color - as a parting gift. She told me she had made it herself, and that made me feel honored. Her chest's pretty flat so her size wasn't much bigger than what I wear, and it smelled really nice too. It felt wonderful when my angel hugged me as I wore that shirt.

So there we were, finally. Standing on the south side of the Bay Bridge, all of San Fransisco stretching out around us!

My angel hugged me close as the vehicle carrying our friends rolled off, Ozzie keeping a protective hand on our shoulders. We made it... Oh jesus, we really made it!

We were there.

END OF PART TWO.