Graduation Day
Tim and Travis pulled into the student parking lot. Tim said, “I can’t believe this is it. We’re receiving our diplomas.” Travis said, “Yeah, I’m not sure whether to be happy or sad that this phase in our lives is ending. I’ll miss the friends I’ve made here and some of the teachers, but I’m also happy that in the end, I landed my lifelong crush.” Tim smiled and replied, “Same. I really want to kiss you right now, but there’s too many others around”, then said, “I’m a bundle of nerves right now. I hope everything goes smoothly. Is your mom and dad coming to Jeremy and Carl’s afterwards?” Travis said, “I’m not sure. I guess it depends on what my grandparents want to do. Well, I guess we should grab our cap and gowns and head inside.” Tim turned to Travis and said, “Yeah, I guess”, then slowly leaned toward Travis. Travis leaned toward Tim and their lips met, then they wrapped their arms around each other. Eventually, they broke their kiss and straightened up with shit-eating grins. Travis said, “I don’t care who saw us. I love you and that’s all that matters.” Tim’s smile grew, “I love you too, Travis, and that is all that matters.” As they got out of Tim’s jeep, several other students were watching them with smiles on their faces. They blushed as they pulled their caps and gowns from the back seat.
As they walked toward the entrance to the school, someone yelled, “Tim! Travis! Wait up!” They turned to see Xander Thomas, the starting quarterback on their football team, and pitcher on the baseball team, heading toward them. He was in a few classes with each of them, but otherwise didn’t interact with them much, so they both wondered why he suddenly wanted them to wait for him. He caught up to them, stepped in between them, and put an arm around each of them, “Hey, can I have a word with you?” Tim looked over at Travis, who looked a little nervous, then said, “Sure. I guess.” They went inside and Xander led them up to the second floor, down the hall and into the Boy’s Bathroom. Once inside, Xander turned to face them, “I saw you two kissing in the jeep.” Tim said, “Yeah, so what? Travis is my boyfriend. I’m gay. Do you have a problem with that?” Tim wasn’t about to be bullied on his last day of school. Xander said, “Actually, I do have a problem, but it’s not with either of you being gay, and congratulations, guys.” Travis eyed Xander suspiciously, “Wait. If you don’t have a problem with us being gay, why bring up the fact that we kissed?” Xander asked, “What’s it like?” Tim asked, “What’s what like?” Xander said, “Kissing.” Travis rolled his eyes, “Like you don’t know. You’ve dated probably every cheerleader in school.” Xander said, “Yeah, but I mean kissing another boy.” Tim asked, “Are you being serious or are you punking us?” Xander said, “I’m serious. You know, being the starting quarterback on the football team isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, neither is being on the baseball team. There’s a lot of pressure on me. I mean, it comes with a lot of perks, but it doesn’t allow me to be who I am. Yeah, I dated most of the cheerleaders, but it was for show. I’m gay, but because of who I am, I’ve never been with another boy. I never kissed another boy. If anyone ever found out, I would have been shunned by the rest of the team and probably would have lost my starting position. I had to stay in the closet. When I saw you two kissing, I thought I might have the courage to ask.” Tim asked, “About what it’s like to kiss another boy?” Xander hesitated for a moment before saying, "Look, I know you two are boyfriends, and I’ll understand if you say no, but I always thought that both of you were cute, and if things were different, I probably would have asked both for a date.” Travis asked, “You wanted to date both of us?” Xander smiled, “I would have in a heartbeat if I could have.” Tim asked, “So, why bring us up here to ask us that? You could have pulled us off to the side somewhere and we could have answered your question.” Xander fidgeted nervously, “I was kind of hoping to, um, maybe, shit! I was hoping to experience it.” Tim looked at Travis who seemed to be looking at him for an answer. Tim asked, “You want to kiss one of us?” Xander nodded, “Both, if you’ll let me.” Tim asked Travis, “What do you think?” Travis shrugged, “If you don’t mind, I won’t mind it.” Tim looked at Xander, “Ready when you are.” Xander leaned in and kissed Tim. It was a tentative kiss and Tim could tell that Xander was nervous. Tim ran his tongue across Xanders teeth and when Xander opened his mouth, Tim slipped his tongue inside. Xander put his hands on the back of Tim’s head as he relaxed into the kiss. Eventually, Travis cleared his throat and said, “You do realize that Tim’s boyfriend is standing here watching.” Tim and Xander broke the kiss, chuckling at Travis’ comment. Travis asked Xander, “So, what did you think? He’s a great kisser isn’t he?” Xander smiled, “Wow! It’s a lot different than kissing a girl.” Travis said, “My turn.” This time, Xander didn’t hold back and kissed Travis properly from the start. After a bit, Tim said, “It’s hard to believe I’m watching my boyfriend get kissed by our star quarterback.” They broke their kiss and Xander was grinning, “Fucking fire, guys. Thanks. I guess it’s a good thing we’re wearing robes during the ceremony”, indicating the bulges in each of their pants. Travis glanced over at Tim and raised an eyebrow. Tim smiled and gave a slight nod. Travis asked Xander, “Ever have your cock sucked?” Xander said, “I did, but it wasn’t very good. I started losing my bone and she ended up finishing me off with her hand.” Tim said, “We have a little bit of time. Want to have another go at it?” Xander asked, “What do you mean? Here?” Travis said, “In here”, as he opened the door to the handicapped stall. They had Xander step out of his pants and underwear and then sit on the back of the toilet. Tim and Travis positioned themselves on either side of him and dropped their own pants around their ankles. Then they began licking Xander’s balls before they moved to his cock, placing their lips on either side of it and moving back and forth across its length in unison. Xander whispered, “Fuck, that’s hot!” They then began trading off between sucking his cock and licking and sucking on his balls. Tim was also playing with Xander’s butt and gradually entered him with a finger. Xander began breathing heavier, “Fuck, guys. I’m gonna cum soon.” Tim and Travis were also stroking their own cocks while working on Xander and momentarily paused that so they could use both hands on Xander. Xander warned Travis, “I’m about to cum. You may want to pull off me.” Travis remained on Xander’s cock and soon Xander was erupting in Travis’ mouth. Tim remained on Xander’s balls and continued fingering Xander until Travis pulled off Xander’s cock. Then Travis and Tim kissed, sharing Xander’s cum. Xander climbed down and sat on the toilet seat and Kissed Travis and Tim once again, tasting his own cum. Tim and Travis resumed pumping away on their cocks until Xander pushed Tim’s hand off his cock and Xander took it in his mouth. Tim warned Xander, “I’m about to cum.” Xander wanted his first taste of someone else’s cum, so he continued. He felt the first wad splash across his tongue and then each subsequent one as the cock pulsed in his mouth. Just as Tim was dribbling out the last of his seed, Travis said, “I’m about to cum!” Xander quickly swiveled around and took Travis into his mouth. Almost immediately, Travis began adding the flavor of his baby batter to that of Tim’s. Xander stood and the three of them shared a three-way cummy kiss. Once they broke their kiss, Xander said, “Thanks. This meant a lot to me. At least now I won’t be a total virgin when I start college in September.” Tim asked, “Will you be around this summer?” Xander shook his head, “We’re flying to Europe for the summer to visit relatives and do a little tourist stuff. I won’t be back until the third week in August. I’d like to keep in touch though. Let’s exchange numbers.” Tim said, “Let’s get out of this stall first, just in case.” They pulled their clothes back on then stepped from the stall. After exchanging numbers, they retrieved their caps and gowns from the shelf they had placed them on, inside the door. Xander said, “I’m going to go down the stairway at the other end of the hall. Nothing personal. I mean, it might have looked strange enough for me to coral you two when we arrived, since we never hung out previously. Suddenly looking like we’re the best of friends might raise some suspicions, you know?” Travis said, “It’s cool. I’m glad we could help, and when you get back from Europe, maybe we can hang out some before you start college. Are you going here?” Xander said, “I wish. No, I got a scholarship to Perdue.” Tim said, “We both were accepted here which helps, since we already have somewhere to stay and won’t have to worry about staying in a dorm.” Xander said, “Well, see you around. I’ll send you some pics from Europe.” Travis and Tim said, “Sure”, then Tim added, “Of course. Have a great trip.” They parted, heading in separate directions. Travis nudged Tim, “I can’t believe we just had sex with the star quarterback, and he swallowed our cum.” Tim said, “He seemed like a nice guy. I was a little worried at first when he steered us into the Boy’s Room. I half expected to find half the football team in there waiting to kick our asses.” Travis laughed, “I was thinking the same thing.”
As Jeremy, Chris, Carl and Chuck looked around for where their seats were, they noticed Chris’ parents and approached then, and realized their seats were next to them. Just in front of them, Henry and Martha Reynolds turned and smiled warmly. Next to them sat the Sterlings and two other elderly couples, most probably Travis’ grandparents. Between Tim and Travis, they were able to obtain enough extra tickets. As they were about to take their seats, Chris received a tap on his shoulder. He turned and quickly embraced the guy who had tapped his shoulder, “Uncle Jim! You came!” Jim Baker, Chris’ biological father’s brother said, “I knew it was an important day, not just for your friend, Tim, but for you and your friends as well. I wanted to witness it almost as much as witnessing your own graduation. I’m just happy Tim was able to get me a ticket. After they took their seats, Jeremy began looking around, searching for Tim’s mom. He didn’t see her, but there were two empty seats at the end of the row they were in.
There was commotion on the stage, and it seemed like the graduation ceremony was starting soon. Chris nudged Jeremy, and when he looked over at him, Chris indicated with a head movement to his right. Mrs. Houston was taking a seat, and sitting down next to her was a man Jeremy could only assume to be Tim’s father. Jeremy whispered to no one in particular, “Well, look who decided to show up.” Mrs. Sterling acknowledged Mrs. Sterling and then glanced back to Jeremy after hearing what he said. She gave him a look that said, “I wonder why he decided to show his face.” Just then, Jeremy and Chris’ phone just emitted a tone, indicating an incoming text. The looked at their phones and read the text, “Look behind you.” They both turned and saw Elijah standing in the back. He smiled and Jeremy and Chris both waved and smiled back. Jeremy said, “He came anyway. I hope he didn’t skip any classes.” Jeremy saw that Carl and Chuck both saw Elijah too.
The ceremony began, and the principal greeted everyone and thanked them for coming. Then she gave a speech. That was followed by speeches from the valedictorian, salutatorian, and some others. Then the principal announced an award for Most Outstanding Athlete, stating the award isn’t given every year because it requires the athlete to not only be the best in athletics but also excel in academics as well as leadership. She said, “This year, someone achieved that special award, Alexander (Xander) Thomas, please come up to accept your award.” The graduating students seated up front all stood and clapped as Xander walked on stage, seemingly surprised. The principal handed Xander his award and said, “Congratulations, Xander. It is well deserved.” Xander spoke into the Mic, “This was a surprise”, to laughter from most everyone, then he said, “I thank the school staff and the whole student body and feel this award belongs to everyone who worked hard to achieve their best.” He held the award up to the applause of everyone. When he was about to leave the stage, the principle held her hand up, indicating he should remain on stage. She the announced, “This year, the school has decided, for good reason, to hand out a new award, one for Most Outstanding Student Citizen. This student showed both heart and extreme bravery for putting himself in harms way to expose rampant pedophilia taking place in a local church, then testified to insure that the perpetrator received his due punishment. There’s more to this young man, however, I’m sure the student want to receive their diplomas before midnight”, to laughter from everyone, the she said, “Timothy Houston, please come up to accept your reward.” Everyone in the building rose to their feet in a standing ovation. As Jeremy clapped, and watched Tim approach the stage, he glanced over to see both Mrs. AND Mr. Houston wiping tears from their cheeks. As Tim stepped on stage, it was clear he had tears of his own running down his cheeks. After handing Tim his award, the principal gave him a hug. Tim stepped to the mic, gathered his composure, then said, “I really don’t know what to say. I mean, I think anyone else would have done the same in my shoes. No one else deserved to be a victim.” Thunderous applause once again erupted from the still-standing crowd. Then Tim said, “I want to thank Principal Jefferson and the school staff for this great honor, and I’m sure I need to thank whoever leaked this to the school. You know who you are.” Laughter from everyone, then Tim said simply, “Thank you.” The crowd gave him another standing ovation. Principal Jefferson then said, “You boys may take your seats. We’re proud of you both.” Another standing ovation, and Xander gave Tim a hug before they headed for their seats. The students were congratulating and patting both Tim and Xander on the back as they made their way back to their seats. Once they made their way to their seats and the applause died down, everyone slowly sat back down. Principal Jefferson then began calling each student, in alphabetical order, up to receive their diplomas. All of the graduating students and each student’s guests applauded as each student’s name was called to receive their diploma. When Tim’s name was called, the entire building rose and gave him another standing ovation. The same happened when Xander’s name was called.
Once the ceremony had concluded and the principal excused the students, of course they all tossed their caps in the air, the guests all gathered outside to wait for the graduates to emerge. Mrs. Houston came over and said hello to everyone, then had a private conversation off to the side with Mrs. Sterling. Mr. Houston stayed off to the side, staying by himself. As Tim and Travis made their way through the crowd, some of whom stopped Tim to congratulate him on his award, they finally made it to their family and friends. They received hugs and congratulations from each one. When Tim saw his mom, he raced to her and said, “Mom, you made it!”, as he gave her a tight hug. As she was telling him how proud she was of him, Tim looked over her shoulder, and his eyes fell on his father. His mom felt him tense up, and she knew Tim had seen him. Mrs. Houston said, “Tim, he’d like to have a word with you, if you’re willing. It’s up to you, but he’s not here to start an argument. Please, hear what he has to say.” Tim slowly broke from the hug, then nodded.
His friends all watched as Tim approached his father. Tim stopped in front of him, “You have something to say to me?” Tim was looking at his father directly, fearlessly. His father said, “Son, so much has happened since that day I angrily threw you out of our home. I was furious at seeing such an act being performed in my own house, and I felt betrayed by my own flesh and blood. I shrouded myself in that feeling of betrayal and felt vindicated in expelling you from our home.” Tim asked, “Is that what you wanted to say?” Mr. Houston said, “Yes, but that’s not all I have to say. Since finding out about what Reverend Smith had done to you, and others, I felt that feeling of betrayal was misdirected. I had trusted him, and he used that trust to assault my own son.” Tim said, “I thought you no longer had a son.” Mr. Houston cringed, “Please, this is hard enough. What you said during Smith’s sentencing hearing made me think. Before that, I began to think that Smith had corrupted you into doing things with other boys. Instead of being a man of God, he was a tool of Satan. Your words, not only to him, but to me, made me think. Now, I believe in the Bible’s teachings, but I decided to look elsewhere. I read articles written by doctors and psychologists, testimonials from others like you. All of them said the same thing, that they were born that way, that it wasn’t a choice they made. I still don’t understand it all, but I went back and read chapters of the Bible some more and think some verses may have been misinterpreted and if they were really born that way, they are still the children of God. Son, I’m proud of you and what you’ve accomplished thus far in your life. I can’t take back what I’ve done to you. I’m sure things must have been very difficult and I’m glad for the friends who took you in. Maybe someday you’ll forgive me, but just so you understand, you owe me no apologies. The money that was put away for your college tuition is still yours. I had planned on insisting that it be a religious college, but I understand you’ve been accepted here. It is a very highly respected university and it’s good that you’ll be close to your mother. She loves you with all her heart, Tim.” Tim looked at his father and said, “I have a question, father. Did you have an agreement with Reverend Smith to have me stay with him until you thought I had found the lord again?” Mr. Houston gave Tim an odd look, “No, why would I do that. His apartment has only one bedroom. Wait, did he tell you that?” Tim nodded, “Yes, he said if he thought I had learned my lesson and he told you so, that you had agreed to let me come home.” Mr. Houston looked angered, “That son of a! He manipulated you to get you in his bed!” Tim said, “Father, you’re attracting attention.” Mr. Houston lowered his voice, “Sorry, Tim. What you just told me is infuriating.” Tim said, “Well, it backfired. Thanks to my friends, it enabled him to be caught in the act.” Mr. Houston said, “Yes, but from what I hear, you were just a heartbeat away from it turning out badly for you. You took a huge risk, Tim. It could have gone completely wrong. You were very brave to risk it. As I said, I’m so proud of you.” Tim stepped forward and hugged his father, “I forgive you, father. Would you like to come over and meet my friends?” Mr. Houston said, “No, Tim. Maybe another time. You need to go back with them and celebrate your graduation which is what they probably planned for you and your….friend.” Tim said, “Travis is my boyfriend, father.” Mr. Houston almost smiled, “So I’ve heard. Have a good time, son. I hope to see you again soon.” Tim asked, “Does that mean…” Mr. Houston smiled, “Of course. You’re welcome to come home, whether you want to move back in or just to visit. It was a mistake for me to kick you out in the first place. In the meantime, I need to learn more about what it means to be a homosexual. Have a good night. I’ll just wait here for your mother. Go now, and rejoin your friends.” Tim gave his father another quick hug before turning to rejoin his friends, but first, his mom stopped him and looked into his eyes, “Are you ok, Tim?” Tim smiled, “Yes. I think we’re going to be ok. He asked me to, and I forgave him, mom.” She grabbed him in a tight hug, “Thank you so much, Tim. That means a lot to me. He’s been miserable ever since that hearing. I’m so glad you saw it in your heart to do that. Just another reason for me to be very proud of you. Well, I’ll let you to your friends. I’m sure you want to go celebrate.” Tim said, “Thanks mom”, before giving her a hug goodbye.
As Tim joined his friends, Elijah said, “You gave your father a hug? I’d have thought it would have been a bloody nose.” Jeremy cautioned Elijah, “Elijah, stop.” Elijah said, “I’m just saying. On the serious side though, what just happened, Tim?” Tim smiled, “We talked. He explained his thinking, apologized and asked for my forgiveness if I ever could come to that point. He told me he was proud of me.” Jeremy and Chris simultaneously said, “He did?” Travis asked, “Anyone have a thermometer available that can reach down to hell, because I think we’ll find it to be froze over.” That received a laugh except from Travis’s mom who rolled her eyes. It was then that Travis’ parents and grandparents said their goodbyes. Henry and Martha were just saying their goodbyes as well when they heard someone say, “There they are. Tim, Travis!” They turned to see Xander walking toward them with what looked like his parents in tow. As he approached, he said, “Mom, dad, I’d like you to meet Tim Houston and his friend, Travis Sterling.” Tim and Travis both said, “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas. I sure you’re pretty proud of Xander.” Mr. Thomas said, “Yes, we are, but we’re very pleased to meet you, young man as well as your friend, Travis. Xander’s mother and I followed the news of that church scandal. I saw your name and everything but hadn’t realized Xander knew you. You did a very brave thing in exposing that pedophile. You’ve probably saved countless other victims. I’m happy to now meet you in person.” Mrs. Thomas said, “As am I.” Travis and Tim’s other friends were beaming with pride. Tim said, “Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas. That means a lot to me and just so you know, we’re proud of Xander as well. Mr. Thomas said, “Well, me and your mom are going to head home to finish packing. We’ll see you when you get home.” Xander said, “Ok, I won’t stay out too late”, then turned to Tim and Travis, “Me and a few of my teammates are going to hang out for a bit, but I have to finish packing too, so I can’t stay out too late.” Xander then turned and saw his parents were out of sight, then turned back to Tim and Travis. He grabbed them in a hug and said, “Thanks you so much. I’ll call you. Have a great summer, guys.”
As Xander walked away, Chris asked, “What was all that about? Since when have you been close friends with the big jock on campus?” Tim and Travis grinned guiltily at each other and blushed. Travis then said, “Since this afternoon.” Elijah said, “I’m smelling a hot story. We’ll expect an explanation when we get back to the house.” Henry then interrupted, “I think now would be a good time for Martha and I to head on home.” They had forgotten they were still there. Both Tim and Travis turned an even brighter red. Martha Reynolds then said, “I wouldn’t mind hearing the story myself.” Tim and Travis both wished the earth would open up and swallow them at this very moment. Henry just chuckled and said, “Come on, Martha. Let’s go home. We’ll see you boys. Have a good time tonight. You deserve to celebrate your graduation, Tim and Travis.” As Henry was leading Martha away, she said, “That Xander boy was a very good looking fellow. I hope they bring him around sometime.” Carl grinned and said, “I’ll bet she does” The guys laughed. Jeremy said, “Fuck, I forgot they were still here.” Chris said, “Yeah, me too. Sorry, Tim and Travis.” Elijah said, “Yeah, sorry, guys.” Carl then said, “Well, Chuck and I are heading back to his apartment. We have to work tomorrow. I’d like to celebrate with you guys, but we can’t.” Tim said, “I understand. Thanks for coming though. I really appreciate it.” Travis said, “Me too. Thanks, Carl and Chuck.” As they headed off, Tim turned to Elijah and asked, “I thought you couldn’t make it? How did you get in? Sorry, thank you for coming”, then he gave him a hug. Travis did as well. Elijah grinned and said, “I told the guy collecting tickets that my little brother was graduating and that I was able to come at the last minute but didn’t have a ticket because everyone thought I couldn’t make it. He told me I would probably have to stand in the back, but let me in. I didn’t want to miss your graduation, so I talked to my professors and they agreed to leave me cut classes tomorrow, but gave me a ton of reading to do.” Jeremy then said, “Ready to head home and party?” Elijah said, “Fuck yes. Let’s go.”
End of Chapter 95
