Kaimoana Tales, Lachlan 3

Matt Thompson was the boy of his dreams, the ‘object of his affections’. He was the one, the only one that Lachlan wanted to be with – to touch him, to hold him and to have sex with. Bugger it! He was the reason he got up in the morning and he was why he was putting himself through all of this torture and trying to re-make his body so that it would please him.

It was never going to happen. Matt Thompson was straight, he was never going to want him and he was never going to bugger him. Never! Lachlan had no reason to live.

He dropped his head, curled forward and cried. He sat in the middle of the busy school-yard and he cried his eyes out. If they looked at him, who cared? He didn’t. He didn’t care about anything; all he knew was this pain that was tearing him in two. What was he going to do?

“What are you going to do about it?”

What?? Shocked back to reality, he lifted his head and looked into dark brown eyes. His teary eyes focused – brown eyes, a brown face, black hair – long, black and unruly. It was Missy!

Oh wow. Missy was kneeling in front of him and looking into his eyes. There was a real look of concern on her face, but it was her – Missy!

This was not like her. Normally Missy was feisty, fiery and scary, but it was still her and she terrified him. She was the scariest girl that he’d ever seen. He drew back and hugged himself.

“Well?” she said quietly. “What are you going to do?”

“I, umm, what do you mean, what am I going to do?”

“Oh, come on. You’ve got a crush on the kid and he’s with a girl. You and him are not going to happen. What now?”

“I don’t know!” he wailed. “I don’t know and I don’t care. Nothing matters. My life is over. I’m going to eat until I swell up like a balloon and burst. Ah, Fuck it anyway!”

He got up and walked away. He left the school-grounds and kept on going, heading towards home. Missy sat back and watched him go. “Hmm,” she said. She went into the school.

After lunch, Virgil was with Mac, waiting to go in to their first class of the afternoon. Missy came up and stood in front of them. She looked at Mac and flicked her head. “Go away.”

“What do you mean, go away?” Mac protested.

“You heard me, Fool! Go away. I want to talk to this one.” Missy flared and Mac backed off.

“Okay, okay, I’m going. Laters, Virgil.” He walked away.

“Right then,” she turned to Virgil. “Lachlan McLaughlin. You know him?”

“Kind of, yeah. Chunky kid with glasses and a bald head. I know who he is, but I wouldn’t say that I know him.”

“Time you did. The boy needs a friend. He hasn’t got one. Go and talk to him.”

“Talk to him? Why me?”

“Why not? I can’t. He’s not one of mine, he’s one of yours and he needs help. Go and do it.”

“I still don’t see why I should get involved. He’s no friend of mine, why would he listen to me? I’ve got nothing to give him anyway.”

“Of course you have. Look, Virgil Cain, I don’t know much but I do know people. I watch and I see – a lot. You’ve got it all together. You’ve got a great boyfriend and you’re one of the happiest people around.”

“I think you’re right, but it’s nothing I did. I just got lucky, that’s all.”

“Well go and make someone else lucky. The kid will listen to you. He looks up to you. Go and see him before he does something stupid.”

“Something stupid? O, shit! You don’t think he’s going to hurt himself, do you?”

“He might if someone doesn’t stop him.”

“And that someone would be me?”

“Yes.”

“All right, I will then. I don’t know what I can do, but I’ll try. Where is he now?”

“He’s gone home. 75 Marine Parade, South Bay.”

“South Bay? Damm, that’s a long way.”

“So? You walk out there all the time.”

“Yeah, I do. Don’t miss much, do you? You know, you’re okay, Missy.”

“Shut up, Fool!” she snapped, but she grinned as she walked away.

Okay, so he’d opened his big mouth and got himself involved in something. (‘Thanks, Missy’) What now. “Go and talk to him,” she’d said. But about what? Well, Denise had helped him when he’d needed it, he’d have to try.

He’d think of something when he got there. Cut school for the afternoon? He guessed that he’d have to. It might be too late if he waited until after school. His mother was standing, talking to Mr. Arram, outside the Manual Training block, so he went over to talk to her first.

“Hey, Mum.”

“Hey, Son. Something wrong?”

“I’m not sure, but there might be. I’m taking the afternoon off, okay?”

“You what? This had better be important!”

“It is, I think. There’s a kid in trouble and I’ve gotta go and see him.”

“Trouble? What kid and why you?”

“It’s Lachlan McLaughlin and Missy said that I have to talk to him.”

“Missy said? You’d better go and do it then.”

“Yeah, I will. Thanks, Mum. I’ll see you tonight.”

“Well,” she smiled coyly at her companion. “You might. Later, Virgil.”

“Laters, Mum.” He walked away shaking his head. His mother could be such a flirt! What about Barry anyway? She needed to find one guy to settle down with, like he did.

There was one bonus anyway. While he was out at South Bay, he could go and see Joel. He quite liked Joel.

He left the school and started up the hill, made a quick detour home to change his clothes, and then carried on, to South Bay. What was he going to say to this kid? He didn’t have a clue.

Marine Parade was the main road into South Bay, so he had no trouble finding Lachlan’s house. It was just an ordinary house; not new but not old either. He went around to the back and knocked on the door. An older lady answered.

“Yes?”

“Hi. Is Lachlan here please?”

“Lachlan? No, he’s not. He’s across the road there, sitting on the beach. I don’t know what’s wrong with him. Do you?”

“No, I don’t, but I want to find out. That’s why I’m here.”

“It is? Good. Be nice to him, he needs a friend.’

“I will. I think he’s got more friends than he knows.”

“I hope you’re right. Straight across the road there.’

“Okay, thanks.”

“Thank you!”

He went across the road and saw the hunched-down boy sitting by the water. Damm, this was a hard beach to walk on. In town, the beaches were all stones and a bit of sand, here it was all pebbles – small, round pebbles which made it hard to walk on.

He crunched his way across and sat down beside the boy there. Chunky? This kid was fat. But, there was something different about him.

“Hey, Lachlan.”

Teary eyes looked up at him. “Virgil?”

“That’s me. What are you doing here?”

“I live here. What are you doing here?”

“I came to talk to you.”

“To me?”

“Yes, you. Missy said that I should.”

“And you do what Missy tells you too?”

“Wouldn’t you?”

“Well, yeah!”

“Wise move. She’s a scary girl.”

“She is.”

“She’s worried about you. What’s wrong, Lachlan?”

“Wrong? What would you care?”

“I care. Missy said that you’re one of my people. I’m gay, are you?”

“You’re gay? Of course you are. It’s all right for you, you’ve got everything.”

“I have. I’m very lucky and I know it. So, how can we make it better for you?”

“You can’t. I wish you could.”

“So do I. what’s the problem? You, ah, you’ve lost weight, haven’t you?”

“I’m trying to, starting to. You’re the first one who’s noticed. That’s part of my problem.”

“Which is?”

“I was trying to clean my act up, lose weight and get fit. I’ve even ordered contacts.”

“For your eyes?”

“I’m not going to sit on them. I’ve been killing myself for nothing. I’m not going to bother anymore.”

“Because?”

“Because there’s no point. There’s a boy I was keen on. I really, really wanted him and it’s not going to happen because he’s straight. He’s got a girlfriend.”

“Oh, I see. It’s not the end of the world you know.”

“It is for me.”

“No, it’s not. He might be still finding out who he is. My mate had a couple of girls before he knew that he belongs with me. I’ve always known that I’m gay, but I was with a couple of other boys before I finished up back with my first one ever. He’ll be the last one too. Maybe your boy will come back to you.”

“He never was my boy. It was just a dream in my stupid head.”

“It’s good to have a dream. You’re not stupid.”

“I bloody am!”

“You bloody are not! People who are stupid don’t think that they are. They usually think that they’re very clever.”

“I must be clever then, in a stupid sort of way.”

“Shut up!” Virgil grinned. He was starting to like this kid.

“Lachlan, it’s not the end of the world. Nobody is 100% straight or gay, except me. Your boy might have another look at you, or you might find someone else. There’s someone for everyone, I believe that. The lucky ones find them.”

“That counts me out then, with my luck.”

“It doesn’t at all. I’ll tell you something about luck too – the harder you work, the better your luck is.”

“You think so?”

“I know so. It’s a good thing you’re doing, with the diet and stuff, and it’s starting to work. Don’t give up now, it’ll get easier and you’ll be glad that you did.”

“You think? But it’s such hard work and I’ve got no reason to do it now.”

“Sure you have. Do it for yourself, that’s the best reason of all.”

“But. . Well, yeah, I suppose. I’ll give it a go.”

“Good for you. Great! You’re not ugly you know. Clean-up what’s wrong and you’ll be a good-looking kid.”

“I’m fat.”

“You can fix that, you’ve already started.”

“My ears are too big and they stick out!”

“Grow some bloody hair then!”

“Yeah.” Lachlan grinned and ran a hand over the blond stubble on his head. “I’ve been working on that too. It takes time.”

“Good things take time. You need to clean up your skin too. There’s lots of stuff you can get to treat it. The chemists are full of it.”

“I’d be embarrassed to buy something like that.”

“Embarrassed, why? Fuck ‘em. I’ll come with you, if you like.”

“Would you really do that? Thanks, Virgil. That’d be great. Your being there would make it a lot easier.”

“Let’s do it then. We’ll do it now.”

“Now?”

“Yeah. Why not? We’ve got all day. Come on, we can talk while we walk.”

“But, well, okay, why not? Thanks. You’re a good guy.”

“No I’m not. I’m a little shit – ask my mum.”

“She doesn’t know you then.”

“Oh, she knows me, all too well, but she loves me anyway. She has to, that’s her job.”

“Yeah? I thought her job was being a teacher.”

“That’s just a part-time job. Loving me takes much more than that.”

“You’re wrong. Loving you wouldn’t take much work at all.”

“Whoah! Hold it right there. I’ll be your friend, I’ll be happy to be your friend, but that’s as far as it goes. I’ve got a boyfriend, I love him very much and he loves me too. I’m not ever going to stuff that up. I’ll be with you, I’ll support you every way I can, but friends is all we’ll ever be.”

“Thanks, Virgil. I need a friend.”

“You’ve got one. Come on, let’s walk back to town. We’ll go to the chemists and then we’ll walk back here and I’ll go and see Joel.”

“Joel?”

“Yeah, best boy in the world, don’t you know?”

“He’s a lucky kid.”

“Sure he is, but not as lucky as me. Come on then – walking.”