Kaimoana Tales, Riley 11

Doctor Stevens was standing by the reception desk, talking to Alice Kersten and Julia, who were changing over shifts. They all looked around when Riley came running out.

“What is it, Riley? Something wrong?” The doctor stepped towards him, the others both looked at the monitor alarms.

“Oh, Fuck! Doctor, you’ve gotta come quick. There’s another one! He spoke to me; he’s called Colin and he’s got a brother. There’s another one out there and he’s sicker than Colin was. We’ve got to do something. We have to find him!”

“Of course we do. Alice, tell Brian to get the ambulance out. Julia, get Constable Lawry, tell him that we need him – now! He’d better alert the Search and Rescue as well. Riley, come with me.”

Riley was not about to argue with him, but the doctor gave him no choice anyway. He grabbed him by the arm and dragged him back into the ward where Colin was. Tammy was not kidding when she said Doctor would move heaven and earth to help a kid.

The boy lay there, looking as terrified as usual. He fixed those eyes on them and he started panting, like he was hyper-ventilating. He was crying and the sight of him started Riley crying as well. He had to force himself to calm down. Panicking was not going to help anyone. He picked-up Colin’s hand and held it in both of his.

“Sorry, Colin. I’m sorry. It’s all right, everything’s going to be fine, you’re with friends. This is Doctor Stevens, he wants to help. Where is your brother? You have to tell us where to find him so we can help him.”

“Jacob, my Jacob,” Colin whispered.

“Yes, Jacob! Colin, where is he?”

The boy, Colin, shook his head on the pillows. He took a deep breath and held it, and then another. He exhaled, quietly.

“Jacob is there, where I was. There’s a cave, it’s by the creek. You go up the creek, about 50 meters up the hill, it’s on the right. The front is covered in scrub, but it’s there, by the creek. There’s a fire-place just inside it. He’s in there, in the back. He’s just lying there and he hasn’t moved for days.

Please find my brother. Help him!”

Doctor Stevens headed for the door. “I’m on my way.”

He stopped in the doorway and looked back. “Well done, Lad. Thank you. Don’t worry, we’ll find your brother, if I have to get the whole town out there, I will!” He smiled and he was gone.

Riley was ‘at 6’s and 7’s’. He didn’t know what to do. He looked, longingly, at the door. He wanted to be there. He wanted to help find the other boy, but he wanted to be here, with this one.

But, there was nothing that he could do out there and Colin was clinging to him, gripping his hand tightly. He’d stay where he was. He couldn’t leave Colin to wait on his own. He sat down by the bed and forced a smile.

“They’ll find him. Don’t worry, Colin, they’ll find your brother. We just have to wait. I’m staying here and I’ll wait with you.”

Colin nodded. “Thank you, Riley. We’ll wait together.”

“Sweet. Oh, damm! Hold on a minute. I’d better ring my mum and tell her that I’m staying here. She won’t be happy, but – whatever. Someone else can mop the floors for once.”

He got out his cell and called the café. When he told his mother what was happening, she was fine with it.

“Of course you have to stay with him, Riley. You can’t leave him alone. We’ll look after things here. Let me know if there’s anything I can do.”

“Thanks, Mum. I love you, Mum.”

“You’re a good kid, Riley. Come home when you can.”

He closed his cell and slipped it back into his pocket. “Great invention, cell-phones. I don’t know how people live without them. Do you know about cells?”

Colin nodded and smiled. “I know about cells, I used to have one. I wasn’t born in a cave you know.”

“Of course you weren’t! Where did you come from, Colin?”

“I can’t tell you that. Sorry, I can’t.”

“Okay, if you can’t, you can’t. Did you run away?”

“We did what we had to do. I can’t tell you.”

“Yeah, well, I think I understand that. You just say what you want to. How long have you been living out there?”

Colin shook his head.

“No? Well, how old are you? Can you tell me that?”

“Fifteen, I think. Yes, I am fifteen.”

“15? So am I! 15 and you’re living alone? Except for your brother, I mean.”

“Yes, just us.”

“You’re not going to spring another one on us tomorrow?”

“No,” he smiled. “Just Jacob and me.”

“How old is Jacob?”

“He’s 15. We’re twins.”

“Twin cave-boys! Very cool. Look, can you hang on a minute? I’m not going anywhere; I’ll just go out and see the ladies and make sure that they tell us when there’s any news. Is there anything that you want?”

“No, I just want my brother.”

“They’re getting him. Doctor Stevens will get the army out if he has to. He’ll be here.

You wait, I’ll be back in a minute.”

He went out to the desk. Mrs. Kersten was there, on her own. She looked up.

“Still here? I thought that I was the only one left.”

“I’m waiting with the boy – with Colin. Is there any news yet?”

“Not yet. Give them a chance; I doubt if anyone’s there yet. I’ve called the night-staff on early, they’ll be here soon. Go back and sit with the boy, Riley. I’ll tell you as soon as I hear anything.”

“Please do. Thanks, Mrs. Kersten.”

“Not a problem. Go away.”

Some minutes are longer than hours. Riley and the quiet boy sat and watched the clock on the wall, for what seemed like ages, but wasn’t really. They didn’t have a lot to say; Colin was not talking again and Riley felt like he was talked out. He did have a hundred questions that he’d like to ask, but knew he’d get nowhere with them.

In a way, it was a welcome distraction when a busy young woman came into the ward. She had an open notebook and a large, expensive-looking camera slung around her neck.

However, in another way, it was not good. As soon as Colin saw her he got very agitated. He moaned, “Oh noo!” and he pulled the sheet up over his head, and lay there shaking like a leaf.

“Colin, what’s wrong?” Riley patted his shoulder through the sheet.

“That’s his name is it? Colin.” She smiled and wrote it in her book. “And you must be Riley. What’s your other name?”

“I, umm, who are you?”

“I’m Terri Rangi, I’m a reporter with the Kaimoana Chronicle, and, boy! Have we got a story here!” She smiled widely.

Riley looked fro her to his new friend, and knew exactly why he was upset. He turned back to the reporter.

“Oh no you haven’t. There’s no story here and we’ve got nothing to say. No comment, thank you.”

“Don’t be silly, Boy. There’s a great story here. This could be my biggest story of the year. Now, are you the one who found the cave-boy here?”

Riley sat and glared daggers at this pushy woman. She was upsetting Colin, they didn’t need this. He thought of asking Mrs. Kersten to kick her out, but, what could she do? She wasn’t a bouncer. Speaking of bouncers – he took out his cell and speed-dialled his mum.

“Hello. Is that you, Riley?”

“It’s me, Mum. Can you come to the hospital? There’s a reporter here, she wants to talk to Colin and he doesn’t want to. She’s upsetting him and she won’t take no for an answer.”

“Oh, won’t she just? We’ll see about that! I’ll be right there, Riley. Sit tight and don’t open your mouth.”

“Thanks, Mum. Hurry, won’t you?”

He closed the phone and patted Colin again. “My mum’s coming. She’ll sort this out.”

“I can’t believe that you rang your mummy. Does she wipe your nose for you?” the reporter sneered.

“No, she doesn’t, but she’ll wipe the floor with you, wait and see.”

“We’ll see. Now, you were the one who found him, what was he doing?”

Riley turned his back on her and joined Colin in clamming up and not saying a word. He waited.

In a very short time, the door opened again and Riley’s mother, Mrs. Kersten and Tammy, the nurse, came in.

“Oh, good.” Riley stood up. “My mum’s here, Colin. This is my mother, Dianne Sullivan. Mum, this is Colin.”

“Hello, Colin. You were our cave-boy? Good Lord! You scrubbed-up nicely.”

Colin smiled.

Tammy said, “There are too many people here. Only two visitors per patient are permitted. Someone is going to have to leave. Colin, it’s up to you. Do you want Riley to stay?”

Colin smiled and nodded.

“Do you want Ms. Rangi here to stay?”

He shook his head, vigorously.

“How about Mrs. Sullivan, should she stay?”

He nodded and Mrs. Kersten said, “I’m sorry, Terri, we’ll have to ask you to leave now.”

“I certainly will not. I was here first.”

“First or last makes no difference,” Riley’s mum said. “The hospital rules are quite clear – 2 visitors only. The boy has indicated who he wants to stay. You can leave now please.”

“I don’t see why I should. I have questions that I want to ask. It seems to me that this is a question of the Freedom of the Press.”

“The Freedom of the Press is a legal fiction and has no standing in the law of this country. Trust me, I do know the law.” Mrs. S. smiled and handed her one of her old business cards which gave her name and credentials as a registered Solicitor.

“I will be representing this boy’s interests. Pro bono, of course. This situation is clearly covered by Health and Safety regulations. Furthermore, you have been asked to leave by Mrs. Kersten, as a representative of the area Health Board, whose property this is. Therefore, you are now trespassing. Unless you want to spend the night in the Police cells, I suggest you leave immediately.”

The reporter looked around the blank faces, and huffed. “This is preposterous! You will be hearing more of this.”

“My address is on the card,” Mrs. S. smiled sweetly. “I suggest that you bring legal representation with you.”

“I’ve never heard of anything like this!” she stormed out and left.

“Awesome, Mum. Thanks,” Riley beamed. “I told you that Mum would sort it out, Colin.”

Colin smiled and said, “Thank you.”

“My pleasure, Son. Do you want me to represent you?”

“I do, but I have no money to pay you.”

“You don’t need any. Pro Bono means for free. First thing in the morning, I’ll pull in some favours and I’ll have Privacy Orders issued so you’ll be left in peace. No-one will be allowed to set foot in here without your express permission.”

“Will Riley be allowed to come in?”

“Yes, of course, if you say so.”

“I do say so. Thank you, Mrs. Sullivan.”

“Well done, Riley’s mum,” Tammy smiled. “It’s about time that little tart was taken down a peg or two.”

“And I’m just the one to do it. It’ll do me good to keep in practice. Is there any news on the other boy yet?”

“There is, actually,” Mrs. Kersten said. “They’ve found the cave. The doctor and Brian have gone in there. I’d better get back to the desk. I’ll let you know what develops.”

“Brian?”

“Yes, Brian Kersten. He’s my husband and he’s the ambulance driver.”

“Oh, I see. The hospital is a family affair then?”

“We like to think so. Take it easy, Boys. It won’t be long now.”

Kaimoana Tales, Gary 5

“I don’t think that Virgil likes me.”

“Of course he’ll like you. Why wouldn’t he? Virgil’s a good guy; he’s a nice kid. Why would you think that he doesn’t like you – have you met him again?”

“No, I’ve only ever met him once, at that carnival thing in Timaru. I was with you and if looks could kill, he’d be doing time by now.”

“No way,” Joel laughed.

“Way,” Gary insisted.

“I didn’t see that. He was with someone else then, now he’s with me and he’s got no reason not to like you. We’d better go around and see him and tell him what’s what before some big-mouth tells him that I picked-up a good-looking boy in the street and took him out to the beach.”

“Why would anyone do that?”

“It’s a small town and people love to gossip. Everyone knows what everyone’s doing, but sometimes they get the wrong idea.”

Joel drove back into town, along the Esplanade, up the main street and up the hill to Virgil’s house. He pulled-up in the driveway outside, the front door burst opened and Virgil came running out.

He stopped, looked at the pair getting out of the Chevy, and the welcoming smile fell off his face.

“Again?” he said. “You bastard, Stafford. You absolute bloody bastard! I’m not going through this again. Fuck off and take your boyfriend with you.”

He turned, went back inside and the door slammed. It was a wonder that the glass didn’t shatter at the impact.

“Damm!” said Joel. “Trust Virgil to get the wrong idea. He’s right about one thing, we’re not going through that again. Stay here, wait by the car and I’ll go and sort this out.”

“Maybe it’s best if I just leave.”

“No, it’s not! Don’t you run out on me too. You just wait here, I’ll be back. I love the Little Shit. I always will – but, sometimes!”

He went to the door. It was locked. He knocked, and then he hammered on it.

“Virgil! Virgil Cain, you open this door!” There was no reply.

He looked at Gary and shrugged, “I’ll go around the back then. Stay there.”

Joel went around the side of the house, heading for the back door. Gary stood, waiting, leaning on the Chevy and feeling really bad. This was all his fault. He should’ve stayed away from Joel. They didn’t need him messing up their lives.

A kid, in a school uniform, came in from the street and stood next to him. He dropped his bag on the ground and leaned against the car. “Trouble in paradise, is it?” He nodded towards the house.

“Looks like it,” Gary replied, miserably.

He looked at the boy. He was over-weight, had sticking-out ears and blond stubble for hair, but he seemed nice enough.

“Hey, don’t blame yourself,” the boy grinned. “Those two are always fighting about something, but they’ll sort it out. They love each other and they both know it.”

“I hope you’re right. It’s me that they’re fighting about.”

“I’m always right. I’m Lachlan. I’m Virgil’s welfare case. Who would you be?”

“I’m Gary – Gary Stafford. I’m Joel’s cousin and, yeah, I guess that I’m his welfare case too.”

“So we’re two of a kind then. Nice to meet you, Gary. Where are you from?”

“I’m from up North, but I’m going to be living here now, I think.”

“You think? Well, in case you do, welcome to Kaimoana. It’s a pretty cool town – best place I’ve ever lived.”

“It is? Where else have you lived?”

“I was hoping you’d ask that,” Lachlan grinned. “I’ve never lived anywhere else, I was born here.”

“So it’s definitely the best place you’ve lived then.”

“It is. The best and the worst.”

They exchanged smiles. Gary liked this kid, he was all right.

Lachlan asked, “Where exactly, up North did you live?”

“It’s a little town, you’ve probably never heard of it. It’s called Auckland.”

“I’ve heard of Auckland. It’s north of Wellington, isn’t it?”

“Everything’s north of Wellington, you Dork!” Gary laughed.

“Dork? That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“Give me time, I’ll think of better.”

“Have they been at it long?” Lachlan nodded towards the house.

“No, just a couple of minutes. We arrived here, Virgil came out and exploded at him and ran back inside. Joel’s gone around to the back to see if he can get in there.”

“He’s a good guy, Joel.”

“He is. He’s the best.”

“Why’s Virgil upset with him?”

“Because I’m here. I was with Joel before he was with Virgil. I think he thinks he’s lost him again.”

“Oh, yeah, rite! Like that’s going to happen? Joel loves Virgil, end of story. Are you gay then?”

“A little bit, yeah.”

“Cool. Me too!”

There were smiles all around.

Joel tried the back door. It was locked, as usual, but that didn’t stop him, he knew where the spare key was hidden. He walked into the kitchen and Virgil’s gran was in there, sitting at the table, with her head in her hands and staring at the coffee before her. She looked up.

“Hello, Handsome. Tell the boy to keep the noise down. I’ve got a splitting headache!”

“Hey, Gran. Brewer’s asthma, is it? I don’t know why you do that to yourself.”

“I’m sure I don’t either. There should be a warning label on the bottle.”

“Would you take any notice if there was?”

“Probably not. Don’t slam the door on your way through.”

There was no lock on Virgil’s bedroom door, but he had trouble opening it. Something, several somethings, had been thrown against the inside and were blocking the way. He put his shoulder into it and pushed until it was open enough for him to slip through.

Virgil sat up on the bed and yelled at him. “Aargh! I told you to fuck off! Get out of my house and don’t ever come back.”

“Shut up, Virgil. We have to talk.”

“We do not. I’m not talking to you ever again. Never, ever, ever! Fuck off!”

He grabbed a pillow and wrapped it around his head, holding it with his clenched fists over his ears. He lay, face-down, kicking his feet and yelling.

“Aah! Aah, Aargh!!”

Joel sighed and sat patiently, on the end of the bed, and waited for the tantrum to finish. Virgil finally shut up, lay quietly for a minute, and then peeked around at him.

“Oh. You’re still here.”

“I’m still here”, Joel replied. “Have you finished?”

“Well, maybe.” Virgil sat up and glared at him.

“So help me,” Joel sighed. “Why did I have to fall in love with a bitch?”

“I’m not a bitch!”

“Stop acting like one then.”

“Well, what do you expect? What do you fucking expect when you come around here with your boyfriend?”

“You are my boyfriend, no-one else.”

“What is that little faggot out there then? Just your bit on the side, is he?”

“You’re better than this, Virgil. Did I throw a fit when you turned-up with Lachlan in tow?”

“Well, no. But that’s different.”

“Why is it different?”

“I was never in love with Lachlan, was I? I never loved him and I never fucked him.”

“No. Yes, it’s true that I had sex with Gary, a long time ago, but I never loved him. Not like I loved you. He’s my cousin, for fuck’s sake. He’s my cousin, he’s all alone and he needs me.”

“I hope you’ll be very happy together!”

“I very much doubt it. Goodbye, Virgil. I do love you and I always will. Have a good life.”

Joel got up and moved towards the door. Before he got there, Virgil flew across the room and slammed it shut. He stood leaning against it.

“What do you mean, goodbye? Don’t you walk out on me, Joel Stafford. Don’t you dare!”

“Why the hell shouldn’t I? You don’t love me; you never did.”

“I don’t love you?” Virgil grabbed his head and kissed him, savagely. “Don’t you tell me that I don’t love you. I fucking love you more than you’ll ever know!”

“Yeah, you do. I love you, Virgil. I love you, heaps, but you’ve got to learn to trust me. I’d never betray you, never again. Okay?”

“Yeah. I will, I do. I do know really, that you’re mine and I’m yours. It’s just that – well, you’re too bloody good to be true, you know!”

“I’m not, but you can keep on thinking that if you want to.”

“Shut it, Dork!”

They kissed again, and it was Joel who broke away first. “”Okay, we’re cool. Come outside now and meet Gary – properly this time.”

“Do I have to?” Virgil pouted.

“Yes, you have to. He’s going to be living around here now and he’s going to be my brother.”

“He’s not your brother, he’s your cousin.”

“Not any more, he’s not. We’re brothers now. He’s got no-one else.”

“No-one?”

“No-one at all. His family, my family, kicked him out because he’s gay.’

“They did? Bastards! I don’t understand how anyone can do that to their kids.”

“Neither do I, but some do. Not everyone’s as lucky as you are, Virgil.”

“No-one’s as lucky as I am – nobody! Let’s go out and meet your brother then.”

“Yeah. Come on. The kid’s probably feeling rotten out there.”

“Yeah. Got caught in the cross-fire, didn’t he? I owe him an apology.”

“Only if you want to, but it would be nice if you did.”

“I’m always nice, Joel.”

“Yeah, right! I’ve always said that you can be an awesome kid, as well as being a bitch sometimes. It’s time to be awesome again.”

“All right, all right. Don’t rub it in.”

They went back outside to make peace with Joel’s upset cousin, but he didn’t look like he was upset at all. Gary and Lachlan were in the drive, with their backs to them, laughing and joking together. They looked like they were having a great time.

“Looks like Lachlan’s found a friend,” Virgil smiled.

Joel replied, “It does. I think Gary’s found one too.”

Kaimoana Tales, Gary 4

Bright lights came on and there was another one there! Buck Thomas was leering at him and stripping his clothes off as well.

The three of them used him and abused him for hours. They all fucked him, separately and together, over and over again. At one point he had a dick in his mouth, he didn’t know whose, while 2 dicks tried, but failed, to get up his arse at the same time. It wasn’t rape, not quite, he wanted sex but not like this. There was no loving or affection involved, they just fucked him.

Finally, they’d all had enough. They all piled into Wayne’s car and he drove them back into town. He dropped Gary off at the corner where he’d picked him up and drove away without a word – not even a fucking thank-you.

Gary walked home, sore, stretched, used and tired. He was exhausted, but he still had to have a long shower before he crawled into bed. He felt dirty all over.

“The Bastards!” Joel couldn’t contain himself any longer. “The dirty bastards! I’ll kill them.”

“Shut up, Joel. You will not. That wouldn’t fix anything, it’d just get you in trouble too. Anyway, be quiet. I told you not to talk and I haven’t finished yet. It gets worse.”

“Worse? How could it? Did they give you the clap or something?”

“No, nothing like that. I’ve been tested and I’m clean, in that way anyway.”

“What happened then?”

That was Friday night. He went nowhere in the weekend, just stayed at his dad’s place as usual and didn’t put his nose out of the door. On Monday, he went back to school and was largely ignored, as usual. As the day went on, something was going on. Everyone was staying away from him and the only attention he got was sneers and abuse thrown from a distance. Apparently, he was a faggot and a cock-sucker and all the rest of it.

Apart from that, no-one wanted to talk to him, not even his so-called friends. They all stayed well away. By the end of the day, without being told, he figured that, somehow, they all knew what had happened to him on Friday night. He had confirmation of that on the way home.

(He lived with his mother on weekdays and his father on the weekends). His phone rang in his pocket and it was a message from Kathy Gilbertson, a ‘friend’ – one of the ones who wouldn’t talk to him. The message read, “Don’t reply 2 this. U shld no – Theres more.”

There were 3 video clips attached. He looked at them and stood stunned! They were all of him, stark naked, getting fucked and sucking dick. There were no other faces shown, just his, and there was plenty of that. One clip finished with a link to an internet site.

The bastards had taped him and clips were all over the school. Who could understand that? They’d all gotten into it and it was all their idea and now – this. Bastards!

It wasn’t just the school where they were doing the rounds, they were all over the town. He got to his mother’s house and she wouldn’t let him in the door. She didn’t want to know him anymore. She met him with a mouthful of abuse, worse than any he’d heard all day, and finally told hi to fuck off and don’t ever come back. She slammed the door in his face.

“Oh, well,” he shrugged. There was never much love lost there anyway; she only wanted him for the maintenance money from his dad. He picked up his bags and walked across town to his father’s house.

There was no-one there when he arrived, they were still at work. He let himself in and went on the net to check-out the link. It was more of the same stuff, still with only his face showing. He still didn’t know how they’d done it. He hadn’t seen the cameras, but he was kind of busy at the time.

His father and his new partner came home from work and screamed at him. It was worse than he’d got from his mother, and it was in stereo. He took their suggestion and fucked off out of their house, never to return there. They were just bastards too.

“They are,” Joel agreed. “They all are. You should’ve come to me right then.”

“I couldn’t. I did think about it, but you couldn’t have helped me. You were still living with Uncle Dick and your father is as big a prick as my one is.”

“Maybe not quite as much. What did you do then?”

“If you’d be quiet, I’d tell you. I went to our Granny Stafford. I didn’t know what else to do and she’d always told me that she loved me. So I cleaned-out my bank account and spent my last dollar on a bus ticket to Granny’s. The bus didn’t leave until the following morning so I had to spend the night in a park, sleeping under a tree. It was friggin’ cold too!”

“How did you get on at Granny’s?”

“Well, I’m not living there am I? Turns out, she likes gayboys even less than her sons do.”

“So what happened?”

“Joel! I’m trying to tell you. I figured that honesty is the best policy, so we sat in her kitchen, with a drink, and I told her the whole story – everything that happened. She went ballistic and she hit the roof! I didn’t know that Granny even knew language like that.

She had visitors, in the other room. They couldn’t hear me but they certainly heard her – every screaming word of it. She said that I was going to burn in hell and I deserved everything I got. She told me to get the fuck out of her house and her family and don’t ever come back. Witch!”

“Bitch!”

“Yeah, that too. I had no money left and nowhere else to go, so I was going to top myself. I headed across town to find a rope and a tree. I was going to hang myself and show them all what I thought of them.”

“Idiot!”

“Yeah. Anyway, it was raining too, just to make it more fun. It was persisting down and cold with it. That was the lowest point of my life. Then it got better. Ron saved me.”

“Ron?”

“Ron Clarke. Didn’t you know him? He was an old family friend, went to school with Granddad, or something. He was one of the visitors in the other room. He heard everything and came out looking for me.

He pulled-up in the street beside me, opened the door and called out. I got in – best thing I ever did – and he took me home. Well, back to his motel actually.

He told me to shower and get some dry clothes on while he got us some food. I did that and then I told him my story. We stayed the night there, in separate rooms, and next day and next day he took me back home to live with him.

I think he might have been gay, but he never actually said that. He lived alone, in a big old house on a huge, over-grown section, on the outskirts of Auckland. It was in a country area when he bought it but the city had grown around it.

Ron’s place was a real eye-sore, sitting there by the nice new suburbs. It wasn’t worth much, but the site was. He’d been offered big money for it, but wouldn’t sell. He liked sitting there pissing everyone off.

So, I lived there with Ron for almost a year. I went back to school up there, because he said I had to, but never made any friends. I did offer to sleep in his bed, I had no other way to repay him. He just laughed at me and told me to stay in my own bed where I belonged. He was too old and I didn’t have to repay him anything. He liked having me there and I was the son he never had.

I tried to help him around the house and made a start on clearing the section. Damm, it was a jungle out there! It’s probably all been bulldozed by now. Some good stuff happened. I liked living there.

Ron had a win in the lottery. He bought a ticket every week, but this was the first win he’d ever had. It was a big one too, but he never got to spend it, he died.”

“He died? Shit, Gary, that’s awful!”

“It was. But he did the best way he could and he’s still looking after me. Ron was always an old man, old beyond his years. He was always short of breath and lacking energy. He knew that something was wrong, but wouldn’t go to a doctor. When he finally did, it was too late, he was riddled with cancer and he only had months to live.

He tidied everything up, with a lawyer. He sold his house and everything he owned and put all the money, and the lottery money, into bank accounts in my name. He sorted everything and, when I was at school one day, left me a long letter, and then he hung himself.

He told me that he loved me and that he was sorry but he couldn’t face the months of pain ahead of him when he was going to die anyway. There was a long list of instructions and details of arrangements he’d made. He’d even arranged for me to go and board at his cousin’s, because the house had been sold.

They all came to the funeral – the loving mother, father, step-mother, step-father and Granny. I don’t know how, but they all knew that I had money now and they all wanted me to come home with them.

I stuck close to the lawyer and, as soon as I could, I was out of there. I’m 16 now and they can’t make me go with them, but they all tried. Fuck ‘em.

I’ve been bouncing around the country, just moving on when I felt like it. I was on the train, heading south. It stopped here and something about the place appealed to me, so I got off and stayed here. I’m staying in the Blue Pacific Hotel, and now I know what it was about Kaimoana that appealed to me – it was you. So, I found you and here we are.”

“Here we are. It’s great to see you too,” Joel smiled. “You won’t have money for long if you keep staying hotels. You could come and live with me if you like. I’ve just got a caravan, but there’d be room enough for two.”

“Thanks. But what about Virgil?”

“What about him? He doesn’t live there, he lives with his mum.”

“But you’re with him?”

“Of course I’m with him, I’ll be with him forever, but, so far, we don’t live together.”

“We could do better than a caravan. I could rent us a house, or buy one.”

“You could buy a house? Gary, how much money have you got anyway?”

“About 6 million.”

“Six million dollars! Fucking hell, that’s a lot of money! No wonder that your family want you back.”

“Yeah, but I’m not going. I’d rather be with you.”

“That’s cool. But never forget, I’m with Virgil. I don’t do sex with anyone else, not even you.”

“But, you love me anyway?”

“I do. Just not like that, it’s different. We can be brothers.”

“Sounds good to me, Brother.”

“Oh yes. Give me a hug.”

They hugged, chastely, and then broke apart and looked at each other.

“What are you going to do now?”

Gary grinned, “I guess I could kiss you.”

“Oh no, you could not! I love you, Gary, and I’m glad you’re here, but I love you like a brother and that’s all. Virgil is my boy. I love him very much. I fooled around once and I’m not ever going to do that again – no way!”

“Fair enough, I guess. You really do love him, don’t you?”

“Totally!”

“You’re lucky; I wish that I had someone like that, seems like I never will, but I’m happy to be your brother. I’ve got no-one else.”

“You will. I’m sure that you will. A great kid like you is not going to be alone for long; you’ll find someone to love.”

“I hope you’re right, Joel, I really do. Ron was old and he was just my friend, but since he’s been gone, I’ve got nobody – no-one at all.”

“Damm! That’s not right, it’s just not right. What about your family? Can’t you patch things up there?”

“No, I can’t. Oh, they’d take me back, but it’s Ron’s money that they want, not me. When I had no money they didn’t want to know me, none of them.”

“Bastards!”

“They are. They’re no great loss anyway. You’ll be my family, won’t you?”

“Course I will. We’ll make a family together.”

“Together. Yeah, thanks. What about you? How did Uncle Dick take the news that you’re gay? I don’t imagine that he’d be happy about that.”

“No, he didn’t really. He didn’t go all anti or anything; he just doesn’t want to talk about it. I think he thinks that if he ignores it, it’ll go away.”

“That’s not going to happen though, is it?”

“Not in my lifetime. So, again, what are your plans now?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t got any plans. I’ve just been drifting around and taking each day as it comes, but I’m sick of that. I’m lonely.”

“Oh, Gary! Give me a hug!”

Gary slid across the seat and they hugged, long and hard. Neither of them said a word, but their bodies said a lot. They broke apart and grinned. Gary kissed him on the cheek.

“Thanks, Joel. You’re the greatest!”

“That’s what Virgil tells me. From now on, you’re my brother. I need a brother too. Are you going to stay in Kaimoana?”

“I think I will. Yeah, I’d like that. I’m staying if I can be with you.”

“Of course you can, that’ll be great. You need to stay put somewhere so you can meet people. You’re never going to do that while you’re drifting around. You can stay with me, the caravan is not huge, but we’ll manage.”

“That’d be good, but not in a poky little caravan. There’s no need for that; I’ll buy us a house and we can live there.”

“Damm. You could, couldn’t you? I was forgetting. But, no. Don’t do that. You shouldn’t rush into a commitment like that. You need to look after your money.”

“Joel, I’m rich. I’ve got pots of money; I could buy a whole street of houses if I wanted to.”

“Well, don’t. You won’t be rich for long if you throw your money around.”

“I’m not throwing it around. Buying a house wouldn’t be wasting money, it’d be an investment. A better investment than living in hotels. That’s an idea, why don’t I buy the hotel and you could come and live there?”

“Gary, I can’t afford to live in a hotel.”

“It wouldn’t cost you anything. You could live there for free if I owned the place.”

“I could not. You’re not spending your money on me; I pay my own way.”

“That’s just pride, Joel.”

“Maybe it is. I’m proud to be me and I’m not a bludger.”

“Is that why you live in a caravan and not with Virgil?”

“Part of it, yeah. Virgil! He’ll be wondering where I am.”

He patted his pockets and grimaced. “Damm. I’ve left my phone at work. We’d better go around and see him. He needs to know about you.”

Kaimoana Tales, Gary 3

“You can’t? Why can’t you? Don’t you love me anymore?”

“Gary, I do love you. I love you a lot, but not like that. I’m in a relationship. I’m with my life-partner, and there is no way I’m ever going to screw around and stuff that up. Not with you, not with anyone. Sorry.”

“Sorry? Yeah, I’m sorry too, but good for you if you’ve got someone who loves you.”

“Oh, I have!”

“Good. Who is it, Joel? Is it that girl you met?”

“Cyn? No, not her. I was with Cyn for a while and that was the worst mistake of my life. I’m not ever going there again.”

“Is it that Virgil with the long hair?”

“Yes, it’s Virgil, but he hasn’t got the long hair, he cut that off ages ago.”

“Ages ago. We are out of touch, aren’t we?”

“We are, and that’s not good. What’s been going on in your life?”

“What hasn’t?” Gary sighed. “How much time have we got?”

“We’ve got all the time you need. Start at the beginning and tell me how we came to be sitting here now.”

“Okay then. Don’t talk until I’ve finished, some of this is not pretty.”

“I’m all ears.”

They sat in the car and Joel listened quietly while Gary poured out his story. Joel was not the first boy he’d had sex with, but he was the best by far, and he was the first one he’d gone all the way with. They’d done everything there was to do and he’d loved it.

After their holiday was over and they’d gone home to their separate lives many kilometers apart, he was keen to continue with what they’d been doing, and he went to the two boys that he’d done stuff with. Neither of them wanted to know and they both told him to fuck off and leave them alone.

So, he lost 2 friends and, when word got around, he lost all the rest. No-one wanted to be seen with the gayboy, they weren’t faggots. He was alone. Friendless and lonely for the first time in his life. He still wanted to do stuff, but had nobody to do it with. No-one wanted to know him.

By now he was an outcast and a reject in his school and in the town. Even the girls shunned him. He still didn’t understand that; it was not like he was serious competition for them. Now he knew what a loser felt like. It got worse.

After a couple of weeks of rejection and abuse he was still hungering for some loving; even more now. He couldn’t stop looking at, and dreaming about, the choice-looking boys around the town.

One day, he thought his dreams had come true. Walking home, alone of course, after school, a car pulled up next to him. The driver stood up and smiled across the roof at him. It was Wayne Bell!

Wayne was just about his no.1 fantasy figure. Gary had often admired him from a distance. One day Wayne caught him at it and their eyes met. He smiled.

He was in year 13, 17 years old, tall, blond and built like a brick-house. He had short blond hair and blue eyes. He reminded Gary of Joel, he had that same air of muscular sexuality about him. He was one of the sports-heroes, of course. He was good at everything he did and he did them all.

“Hey Gary. Everyone’s saying that you’re gay.”

“I know.”

“Well, are you?”

“I dunno. Maybe – with the right person.”

“Could I be the right person?”

“You? I dunno. Could you?”

“Possibly. Want to go out with me tonight and find out?”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. You want to or not?”

“Well, yeah! I’d love to.”

“Cool. Be right here at 9 o’clock tonight and I’ll pick you up. Okay?”

“Yes, very okay. I’ll be here. Where are we going?”

“You’ll see. Just be here and waiting and I’ll worry about the rest. See ya, bye.”

He slid back into the car and left.

Gary went home, ate, showered, dressed in his best, and he was back there well before 9 o’clock. Wayne was a few minutes late. It was only a few minutes, but it was enough that Gary was starting to worry and think he wasn’t coming. So he was very relieved to see him when he showed up.

Wayne drove up the street and stopped and waited for him to get into the car. Warning bells started ringing in his head right then, but he didn’t listen. He wished that he did.

They drove for miles, away out of town and up a back-country road. They stopped outside a dark, old, and slightly derelict house in the middle of nowhere.

“What is this place, Wayne?”

“It’s just an empty house. It belongs to some old friend of my dad’s. I use it to camp-out sometimes. Good place to party, there’s no neighbours. C’mon in.”

Wayne led the way, around to the back and in through the unlocked kitchen door. The house smelled old, musty and empty. There were no lights working and there was no moon that night, it was very dark. However, he knew where he was going and he showed the way with flashes on his cigarette lighter.

“Watch your step. There’s a hole in the floor there.”

They went in to a back room and he lit a couple of candles.

“Here we go. This is better, eh?” He lit some more candles.

Gary stood looking around the room, it was a bit odd. It was big, but there was only the one door, the one they’d come in through, and there were no windows. Or, maybe there was, but they weren’t visible. The walls were all covered with white bed-sheets.

There was loose carpet on the floor and there were stacks of junk at one end. The other half of the room was empty, apart from a bed made-up on an old opened-out couch, and the boxes that the candles were on. It looked like a porn movie set. He was not comfortable.

“Home away from home,” Wayne announced. “Sit down, kick your shoes off and let’s get comfortable.”

“Wayne, I don’t know about this. Maybe some other time?”

“What’re you talking about? This is a great place, warm and dry and all the privacy we’ll ever need. C’mon, Kid, relax. I’ll get us a drink.”

He pushed him down to the bed and started pouring drinks from a spirits bottle. Gary sat and watched.

“Oh, well,” he shrugged. He was there, alone with Wayne Bell! That was what he wanted. How bad could it be?

“There you go, Good-Looking.” Wayne handed him a full glass and sat down next to him with another. “Get that down you. That’s a man’s drink. It’ll put some fire in your belly.”

He took a sip. He didn’t know what it is. It tasted like liquid fire.

“Good stuff, eh?” Wayne grinned. “Drink up, Kid. Take it like a man, it’ll make you feel better. Lots more where that came from. We’ll have a joint, and then you’ll really feel good.”

He produced a ready-made joint from somewhere and lit up. It was huge, Gary had never seen a bigger one. Not that he’d seen a lot, but he’d seen a few and tried it a few times. Wayne took a drag, filled his lungs and held it while he passed the joint to Gary. He inhaled and held and passed the joint back.

“Oh, yeah!” Wayne grinned. “Good shit. First of this year’s crop. It’s going to be a good year.”

“Every year is a good year,” Gary grinned back.

The joint passed backwards and forwards until they’d finished it. He didn’t bother with a roach-clip, just pinched the butt and dropped it on the candles’ box. They had another drink.

Gary was starting to feel good, relaxed and mellow. It felt good too when he pushed him back across the bed and they kissed – wetly, tongues and everything.

All too soon, the kissing stopped and Wayne’s hands were opening his clothes and exploring his flesh. He flinched and tried to slow him down.

“C’mon Gary. Play the game. This is what we came here for, isn’t it? Relax and you’re going to have the best sex of your life. Let’s get naked and then we can get down to it.”

Wayne got up off the bed and stripped his clothes off. He stood displaying his naked body and his stiff dick in the candlelight. He looked good, and he knew it. He looked as good as Joel did.

Gary shed his own clothes and they stroked each other and kissed again. That was good, but then Wayne pushed back to the bed.

“Enough of that. Suck my dick”, he growled.

He did. He was on his hands and knees on the low bed while Wayne stood beside it, his knees leaning against the edge and both hands holding Gary’s head while he fucked his face.

The hands let go and he felt something cold and wet. He stopped what he was doing and looked around. Wayne was leaning right over him and greasing up his arse with some goop from a jar.

One finger, then two, opened him up and greased his hole.

“C’mon, Hot Lips! Don’t stop now, we’re just getting started.”

He pressed his dick back at Gary’s mouth. He opened and took him back in, sucking him and being finger-fucked at the same time.

Wayne pulled out and crawled around behind him. Big hands held his hips and the dick lined-up with his hole. “Tell me that you want it,” he teased him.

“Yes! I want it. I. . ah!”

He got it. Wayne shoved forward and totally impaled him in one thrust. Wow. It felt good. Big, hot and good. His arms folded and he dropped his head to the bed, groaning in pleasure while the big dick fucked him from behind.

Hands enfolded his head and lifted it up. A stiff dick pressed against his lips. Another dick! He looked up at Bruce Abelson, one of Wayne’s jock friends.

“Come on, Bitch. I want some of that too!”

Whatever. There was nothing he could do. He opened up and took him in. Now he was being spitted – forcibly fucked at both ends at the same time.

Kaimoana Tales, Gary 2

Mrs. Tanner left, closing the door after her. Gary decided against having another shower. He didn’t need one and he wasn’t cold anymore. He took the towel off and dried himself with it.

He didn’t really need to do that either. He was, mostly, dry now. The weather outside was still foul, so he closed the drapes and crawled into bed to watch cartoons for a while.

However, he didn’t turn the TV on, he relaxed in the bed, closed his eyes for a minute and went straight to sleep. He woke with a start, hours later, when a door slammed somewhere.

The weather cleared later in the day; the clouds drifted away and the sun shone in a clear blue sky. Gary lay on his bed, watching TV as he’d done for most of the day. The blue sky outside was beckoning to him. Should he risk it? He’d gone out once today and got soaked when the rain caught him.

“Ah, whatever. Doesn’t look like it’s going to rain again and I’ve been cooped-up here all day. I’ll be going stir-crazy and talking to myself soon. Oh, right! I already am. Time I got outta here and went for a walk.”

He put his sneaker, a hoodie and a wind-cheater jacket on. He didn’t know how long he was gong to be and didn’t want to get cold and wet again. He headed down to the beach at the end of the street.

‘Not much of a beach – all stones and not much sand.’

He wandered along the Esplanade, going around the bay in the direction of the seal colony, but he wasn’t going there. He didn’t know what the tides were and, apparently, the best time to see the seals was at low-tide. It’d be just his luck to get all the way out there and find that it was high-tide.

A short way along the road, there was a finger-post promising a look-out up on the hills behind the town, so he went that way to check that out. The sheer, rock-faced cliffs weren’t really high, they just seemed like it.

He found the track which zig-zagged up the hill to join the road at the top. Another sign showed the way, so he went up the road until he found the look-out. There was a wooden viewing platform up on top of a huge, round, concrete water tank.

A couple of cars were in the small parking area, but the people in them weren’t interested in him; they were busy necking. This must be the local ‘lovers lane’, every town seems to have one. He wished that he had someone to neck with, or even just to talk to. He felt very alone.

He needed to stop this aimless drifting around the country and settle down somewhere – somewhere where he could meet some people and maybe build some relationships. This town, Kaimoana, seemed to be a nice-enough town. It was in a spectacular setting, hemmed between the sea and the snow-clad mountains to the west.

There seemed to be quite a lot of teenagers around, but nobody was very interested in him. They just looked and looked away as he walked past. How did he go about meeting someone? He didn’t have a clue. He had pots of money and no friends. He’d rather have friends.

He climbed the steps to the lookout and stood there admiring the view – spectacular! The mountains, the sea, the little town nestled between them, and the coastal strip of lush green farmland. Nice.

He didn’t know why, but there was something about this town that called to him. What? It was just a little town, miles away from anywhere else. So? Looking around at the pleasant scene, he racked his brains, and then it struck him. Of course!

Last summer, a year ago, back in the old days when he had a family, they’d gone on a holiday trip, touring and camping around the South Island, and his gorgeous cousin had gone with them. His cousin was a couple of years older than him, but way less experienced.

The two of them shared a small tent, every night for 3 weeks, and they had a short-lived, but very intense, all-on affair. It was awesome! Best sex he’d ever had.

This was the place, the town, where his cousin, Joel, was planning on living as soon as he could leave home. He was going to work for his uncle here.

That was a year ago. He wondered if Joel’s plans had worked out? If they had, he’d be living and working somewhere around here by now. He hadn’t heard from Joel in ages, they’d lost touch during all the upheavals and troubles in his life. How could he find him?

That’d be so cool if he did and he was living around here. There might be no sex involved, unfortunately. The last time he’d heard from Joel he was very keen on this other kid in Tiroroa.

What was his name? Yeah – Virgil, or something like that. He met him once, when they were on holiday, at the carnival in Timaru. He was a rather cute boy with a spectacular mane of long, long hair.

Even then, Gary had sensed some spark between the two of them. He didn’t like him much because Joel obviously did and he was supposed to be with him. He wondered how that had turned out? If it had, were they together now?

But they wouldn’t be together if Joel was living here, Virgil belonged in Tiroroa. That’d be so cool if Joel was here and alone again. He had to find him to find out.

How to find him? Well, there was his g-mail account. He hadn’t checked that in ages, it was about time he did. Also, he could just ring old Uncle Dick and ask him. He didn’t have to know where he was ringing from.

Uncle Dick was his father’s brother, and he didn’t want his family to find him. They didn’t want him but they’d like to get their hands on his money. That was not going to happen.

Anyway, even if Joel was in a relationship with someone else, they could still be friends. They were cousins, and always would be. They had a history and some great memories. Oh yes!

The first step was to get on the ‘net. The hotel might have the internet, of course they would. If he couldn’t use theirs, they’d know where he could go to connect. He forgot all about the great views and the town and everything and hurried back to start the search for his cousin.

His email account was no help at all. There was nothing from Joel there, just a whole lot of junk that the spam filters had missed and a couple from people that he didn’t want to hear from. He deleted the lot of them and sent a message to Joel’s address. He wasn’t sure it that would still work, his cell didn’t, but it sent anyway, so that was hopeful.

Next, he tried to ring Joel’s father, but had no joy there. The number he had didn’t work anymore. That was Uncle Dick’s land-line, he didn’t know his cell. Dammit.

He found the number for Tiroroa Area School, but didn’t waste his time emailing them, he’d ring them in the morning and see if they’d tell him how to contact his uncle.

None of the hotel staff knew of a boy named Joel Stafford, but the boss’ wife had a ray of hope for him. He should ask Patsy, the cleaner. Patsy was a great gossip and she knew everybody and all about them. Even if she didn’t know, she could probably find out, she had teenage kids and it was a small town.

There was no reply from Patsy’s number so, dammit, he’d wait to see her in the morning. Back up in his room, he turned the TV on. It was boring, but it was something to do. When he’d had enough of that, he shut down and went to bed for the night.

Next morning he was waiting for Mrs. Tanner and he waylaid her as soon as she arrived at work.

“Yes, sure I know Joel Stafford. I know who he is anyway. He’s a cousin of my son’s friends, Stephen and Dougie Griffin. Do you know those two?”

“No, I’ve never heard of them.”

“Good, because you wouldn’t want to anyway. They’re a couple of horrible little shits. I don’t know why my Dennis bothers with them, but he does. How do you know Joel?”

“He’s my cousin and my friend. I haven’t seen him in, like, forever and I really want to. How can I find him, Patsy?”

“I’m sure I don’t know. I’ll ask my Dennis, he’ll probably know, but it won’t be until tonight. His class is going on a field trip, up Mount Fife, today. What’s your number? I’ll ring you when I find out.”

They exchanged numbers, then, as he was about to go back to his room, she stopped him.

“Actually, Gary, there’s another one. The Griffins have got a sister, Sally, and she’s a good kid. She’s got an after-school job in the Foodmarket. You could ask her.”

“Sally Griffin in the Supermarket? Choice. I’ll ask her. I’ll go and see her this afternoon.”

“Yea, you do that. Good luck, Boy. Have a good day now.”

“You too. Thanks again.”

Things were looking up. Joel was around here somewhere and he should find him by tonight. He couldn’t wait. Joel wouldn’t reject him for being gay – not likely! So he should have one family member who still wanted to know him.

He knew Joel well, very well, intimately! He hoped that he didn’t have a boyfriend now.

The sun was still shining. It was too nice a day to be stuck inside all day, so he went out for a walk, to scope-out the town. There weren’t many kids around; hardly any in fact. They’d all be in school. He should be there himself, but wasn’t – he was finished with school.

He didn’t need the money, but maybe he should get a job of some sort? It would help to fill-up his empty days and be a way of meeting people. Maybe. First he’d have to decide if he was staying in this town. He didn’t know.

The I-Site, information centre, had some excellent large-scale maps of the town and surroundings. It was only a small town, but there was more to it than appeared at first glance. There were several areas, sub-divisions, tucked away in amongst, and on top of, the hills.

There was quite a large suburb over at the south side of the hill; there was even a race-course out there. There were two separate business districts in the town, one here, where the I-Site was, and one strung-out along the highway at the north end.

What was the main industry around here? Tourism, he supposed. There were a lot of accommodation and eating places. Plus, there was the fish-processing factory and it’d be a service town, there were no other towns for miles around.

He tried to remember what work Joel had said he’d be doing, but couldn’t. He hadn’t been paying much attention at the time, he had other things on his mind, like sex!

Sex was great and sex with Joel was the greatest – he’d never had better, probably never would. Maybe if Joel’s job wasn’t working out, he could hire him to be his full-time rent boy. He could afford it and that’d be ace! That would fill up his days, and nights, quite nicely.

He kept walking and found the Highschool up a side street, at the back of the hill. It was quite a large school. It all seemed quite newish and there were a lot of buildings. This must be a growing, and breeding, town. There was a primary school up there too, across the road. There were two primary schools, this one, which was the Catholic one, and another, bigger, one behind the Esplanade.

He walked and walked for hours, he must’ve seen the whole town. He bought a coffee and sat on the balcony outside the Craypot Café in the main street, and watched the world go by. His feet were sore, he’d done so much walking! But, the day was passing, slowly.

He was on his second coffee when school uniforms started to appear in the street. At last. He sat watching them pass in the street below. Little kids, from the primary school, were passing in one direction, and Highschool kids in the other. The lucky ones got to ride in cars.

When the parade thinned-out, he got up and went across to the small supermarket at the other side of the street. He walked around in there until he saw a girl, down on her knees, replenishing the stock in the shelves. He walked up to her, she looked up and smiled at him.

“Hi. Can I help you?”

“Hey. I’m not shopping, I’m looking for someone – Sally Griffin, do you know her?”

“Yes, I know Sally Griffin, what do you want her for?”

“I have to ask her something. Is she here?”

“Oh, she’s here,” she smiled. “I’m Sally. What do you want to ask me?”

“You are Sally? Sorry, I didn’t know. I’m looking for Joel Stafford. They tell me that you’d know where to find him. Where is he?”

“You’re looking for my cousin? What do you want him for?”

“He’s my cousin as well. I’m Gary Stafford and I just want to find him. I haven’t seen him in ages.”

“No, you haven’t, and I’d know – he lived with us. You’re not going to give him grief are you?”

“Of course I’m not. Joel’s not just my cousin, he’s my friend too.”

“Okay’, she nodded. “Sorry if I’m being a bit sensitive. Joel’s been getting grief from my idiot brothers lately and he doesn’t need any more. Wait a minute.”

She took out her cell and pressed a number on the speed-dial.

“Hey, Joel. Sally. Are you still at work? There’s a kid here at the Foodmarket. He says that he’s your friend and he’s looking for you. Who? Gary Stafford, he says. Okay? Cool. I’ll tell him. See you, Cus, ‘bye.”

She closed the phone and slipped it back into her pocket.

“Right, Gary Stafford. Sounds like you’re good news. Go and stand outside the front door there, he’s on his way, it’ll take him a few minutes.”

“He is? Oh, that’s great – really great. Thanks, Sally.” He was halfway to the door before he finished speaking.

“Hey,” Sally smiled. “Any friend of Joel’s - ” She was speaking to herself, he had gone.

Gary stood on the sidewalk outside the Foodmarket door, jigging up and down in his excitement. He was excited, anxious and impatient. A few minutes, she said – bloody long minutes! It had been so long since he’d seen a friendly face, way too long. He should’ve done this months ago.

He studied every approaching face, but none of them was Joel. A few cars, and a couple of trucks, went past. He spared them a glance, but he didn’t expect that Joel would be driving.

But he was! When he finally arrived, Joel was driving a big old Chevy. He pulled in, parked, got out and came around in front of the car.

“Joel!!” Gary flew at him and wrapped around him. “Joel,” he sobbed. “Oh, Joel! It’s so good to see you.”

“Hey, hey, Little Cousin!” Joel pushed him back and looked, smiling, into his teary eyes. “It’s good to see you too, really good. It’s been far too long. Where’ve you been?”

“Been? I’ve been everywhere. So much has happened; I’ve got so much to tell you – so very much!”

“Yeah? I’ve got stuff to tell you too, but not here. Jump in the car and we’ll go for a drive.”

“Oh, yes! Thanks, Joel.”

They got into the Chevy and buckled-up. Joel drove up the street, along the Esplanade and around the bay, out of town, towards the seal colony on the Peninsular. He didn’t go all the way out there, he stopped and parked, facing a sandy beach, next to a concrete-block changing shed.

“Public toilets and changing-shed, away out here?” Gary broke the silence.

“That’s the one,” Joel replied. “This is Taylor’s Beach. It’s not huge, but it’s the best swimming beach for miles around. No good for surfing though, it’s too sheltered for that. The surf beaches are all to the north of the town.

This is a popular place for the kids to hang-out. There’s parties out here most weekends.”

“Parties? The best parties I’ve ever been to were just two people – you and me.”

“Parties in your tent? They were good times, Gary, very good times, but they’re over now. I can’t do that anymore.”

A Wee Distraction

(Just wondering - has anybody recognised Gary (in the story) yet? I'm sure that Lloyd will, but anyone else?

Anyway :-

The Scottish Field Hospital

A new commander in Iraq hears that a Scottish regiment has a specialized field hospital that's doing fantastic things with the troops. He wants to know what is so special about the place, so he arranges a tour.

When he gets to the ward, it's full of patients with no obvious sign of injury or illness. He's perplexed, so goes up to the first bed and greets the soldier there.

The patient replies:

"Fair fa your honest sonsie face,
Great chieftain o the puddin race,
Aboon them a ye take yer place,
Painch, tripe or thairm,
As langs my airm."

The general is confused, so he just grins and moves on to the next patient.

That soldier responds:

"Some hae meat an canna eat,
And some wad eat that want it,
But we hae meat an we can eat,
So let the Lord be thankit."

Even more confused, and his grin now rictus-like, the commander moves on to the next patient, who immediately begins to chant:

"Wee sleekit, cowerin, timorous beasty,
O the panic in thy breasty,
Thou needna start awa sae hastie,
Wi bickering brattle."

Now seriously troubled, the general turns to the accompanying doctor and asks, "Is this a psychiatric ward?"

"No, not at all," replies the doctor. "This is the Serious Burns unit."

Kaimoana Tales, Gary

(I know! Be patient).

Mid-afternoon, the Tranz Coastal passenger train arrived and stopped at the sea-side station in Kaimoana. That was nothing unusual, it happened every day. Some people got on and some got off. That happened every day too.

What was unusual was that one of the alighting passengers was a teenage boy, a stranger in the town, and he had no luggage, nothing at all, not even anything in his hands. He got off the train on impulse, he hadn’t intended to – just looked up, saw the sign and decided to get off.

He walked off the station platform and slowly strolled away, into the town. He walked up Station road, at the back of the beach, under the railway viaduct and around, back down and under it again and into the main street of the town.

He strolled along the short length of the business area, partway along the esplanade, and then turned and went back to a café in the main street.

In there, he selected a sausage roll and a couple of sandwiches, then took them to the counter and asked for an expresso coffee, no milk, no sugar. The lady raised her eyebrows and pursed her lips, but she said nothing, just served his coffee and rang up the sale. He paid with plastic.

The tables outside were full, so he sat at a booth inside and quietly ate the food and drank the drink. There were advertising brochures on the wall-rack by the table. He took a couple out and inspected them, and then returned them to the rack.

School had finished for the day, obviously. Small groups of uniformed teenagers were walking past outside. Two boys came into the café and went through to the back. He glanced at them as they passed. One of them smiled at him. He nodded and looked away. They were just kids, about his age – 16 years.

Finished eating, he downed the coffee and took the tray back to the counter.

“Thanks, Love.” The lady was preparing more drinks. “Just drop it there and I’ll get it.”

“Thank you,” he said. “Where do I find the Blue Pacific Hotel?”

“Turn right, outside, go up the street and a couple of blocks along the Esplanade. It’s back up the side street, third block down, I think. You can’t miss it, it’s painted blue.”

“’Kay, thanks.”

He went outside, followed directions and easily found the hotel. It was a long, sprawling building. Only the older, central part of it was two-storied. It was painted in several shades of blue and was set back, at the foot of the hill, one block back from the Esplanade. The front windows looked down the street to the blue Pacific Ocean, behind him.

He went in to check into a single room. The guy in there looked at him suspiciously, probably because he was a kid, on his own and with no luggage. But they did have a room.

He checked-in, for a week, with a fully-serviced single room with breakfast and dinner provided. The guy asked for payment in advance. He didn’t turn a hair at the asking price, just paid with plastic.

He signed the register, using his real name. all the other details he gave were made-up. Who was going to check? He did give his real age though, who was going to believe he was 18, he barely looked 16.

He took the key and went up to have a look at his room. He hadn’t asked for a room with a view, but he got one anyway – upstairs, at the front of the building and looking down the street to the sea. He’d asked, and paid for, a single room, but apparently he’d been upgraded because this was a queen-sized bed. That was okay. He wasn’t planning on sleeping with anyone, but the extra room meant that he could stretch-out. Choice.

The TV had multiple channels – the 4 free-to-air plus Maori TV and a selection of Sky channels. He was getting a bit old for the Cartoon Network, but there were still some shows he enjoyed. There’d be no need to buy a book then.

There was still some shopping to be done, so he locked-up the room and went back to the main street to find a clothes store. He needed new clothes for the week and a decent padded jacket would be good. The nights were getting a bit chilly.

This time, he was not going to be fobbed-off with kid’s clothes. He might be small, but he was not a kid and he knew what he wanted. He wanted plain, ordinary clothes that would not stand-out in a crowd.

Back in the street, there were still a few kids around, but none in school clothes now. The unwritten law must apply here as well – uniforms were to be discarded as soon as possible after school was over for the day.

He was pleased that those days were behind him now. One day, he might go back and finish school, or he might go to university. Maybe. He didn’t have to work if he didn’t want to. Money was never going to be a problem, thanks to Ron, he had more than he knew what to do with.

Poor old Ron. He won the lottery and lost the lottery of life. He died of cancer before he got to enjoy it. Actually, he didn’t really die from cancer, he never waited around for that to happen. When he found out that he had it and that it was too late to do anything about it, he tidied-up his affairs, sold his house, paid for his funeral, transferred everything to Gary, and then he hung himself.

The note that he left said that he knew that it was the coward’s way out, but he couldn’t face the long months of pain and suffering ahead of him when he was going to die anyway.

He was lucky that he was dead. Gary would bloody kill him if he wasn’t! He missed Ron. It was, kind of, nice to be wealthy, but he’d rather have his old mate.

There were only a couple of clothes shops to choose from, so that wasn’t hard. He went into the first one he came to. He wasn’t fussy, clothes were just clothes, but it still took a while. It was almost 5 o’clock by the time he’d finished.

He went back to the hotel and watched TV while he was waiting for dinner.

After eating, alone in the dining room, he went for a walk down to the beach. From the look of all the seaweed, shells and bits and pieces washed-up on the high-water line, it was true what the books said, sea-life was prolific around here.

He thought he saw a seal out in the bay, but wasn’t sure. Tomorrow he’d go and check-out the seal colony around on the headland. Seals were cool.

He watched TV until far too late. The porn channel was conspicuous by its absence. He stripped naked, showered and got into bed, naked as usual, alone as was usual now. He was never going to get used to that.

When he opened the drapes in the morning, it was wet and windy and probably cold out there. The seals would have to wait a day. He put some fresh new clothes on and went down for breakfast in the dining-room.

The cooked breakfast was great, but it was far more than he was used to eating in the mornings. He doubted if he’d want any lunch.

Afterwards, he went back to his room to watch TV. There was nothing else to do on a wet day. If it got too boring, he’d brave the rain and go out and buy a lap-top and some games. Maybe.

There was a break in the weather. The sky hadn’t cleared, but at least it’d stopped raining, so he decided to go and have a look around the town while he could. He didn’t get far though, he’d just reached the beach when it started raining again, heavily.

He ran back to the hotel. At least the wind was behind him, but he was cold and wet to the skin by the time he got there. That was not his brightest idea.

He went back up to his room and the door was wide-open. What was that about? He was sure that he’d locked it when he left a few minutes ago. He closed the door, quietly, peeled off his wet clothes and went into the bath-room for a nice hot shower – his second one for the day, but it’d help to warm him up.

He didn’t see the little round lady in there until it was too late. Well, she was down on her hands and knees and backing out the door. He tripped over her and fell face-forward along her back. She collapsed with the sudden impact, and lay spread-eagled on the tiled floor of the bathroom with a naked teenager on her back.

“Ohmigod, ohmigod, ohmigod!” he scrambled frantically back off her and sat trying to cover himself with his wet t-shirt, which seemed inadequate for the job.

“Sorry! Are you all right? I didn’t see you there.” He was so embarrassed!

She sat up, pulled her ear-phones out and looked at hm. “My fault, Lovey. I didn’t see you coming. I’m all right, are you all right?”

“I’m fine. It was a soft landing. Oh, damm! I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Why not? It’s true. I’m just pleased that you’re okay, it was my fault as much as yours. I haven’t got eyes in my backside.”

They sat on the floor, looking at each other. His face was burning hot, deepest red and getting redder. A big smile spread across her round face.

“I must say, it’s been a long time since I’ve had naked boys throwing themselves at me! You’re a very good-looking one too.”

“I, umm, I didn’t mean to. It was an accident.”

“Of course it was. A bit of a thrill for an old lady though.”

“You, ah, you’re not that old.”

“Oh, aren’t you lovely! Still too old for you, Lovey. Worse luck!”

“What?”

She sat grinning at him. Her bosom started heaving and she burst out laughing. He was mortified, but it was, kind of, funny now. He had to laugh back. They fed off each other and both laughed until they cried.

“Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.” She got up on her knees, pulled a towel down from the rack and wiped her eyes with it. She handed it to him.

“Here, Lovey, this will cover you better than that wet rag will.”

“Thanks.” He took the towel and spread it over his nether regions. “But it’s not a rag. This is my brand-new shirt, I’ve only worn it for an hour.”

“It must’ve shrunk in the rain then.”

“Would it really? Damm.”

“No, not really. Rain doesn’t shrink anything. If it did, I’d be standing out there now.”

She stood up and offered him a hand. He got to his feet without taking it. The t-shirt dropped on to the floor. Both of his hands were busy, wrapping the towel around his waist and tucking it in to secure it.

“Glad we didn’t knock that bucket over or we would’ve been swimming. So, Handsome Naked Boy, you must be the guest, Stafford, G. I’m your friendly cleaner, Patsy Tanner.”

“I see. You’re the cleaner. That’s why you’re in here.”

“Course it is. I’m being paid to clean and you’re the one who’s paying. It’s a fully-serviced room.”

“So that’s what fully-serviced means. You don’t have to clean up after me, Ms. Tanner. I’m here for a week, I can take care of it myself.”

“Don’t be silly, it’s my job and you’ve already paid for it. And, it’s Mrs.”

“Pardon?”

“It’s Mrs. Tanner, Not Ms. I’m a Mrs., and I’m proud of it. On second thoughts, I think you’d better call me Patsy. It’s a bit late to be formal when we’ve been rolling around on the floor together.”

“I guess. Hey, Patsy. Nice to meet you. I’m Gary – Gary Stafford.”

“Nice to see you, Gary,” she smiled. “Very nice. Where are you from?”

“Oh, up North,” he replied.

“A man of mystery, eh? Don’t worry about me, I’m far too nosy. My kids tell me that all the time.”

Gary stood smiling easily. He liked this lady. She was comfortable and easy to be around.

“Now you’d better get into the shower, alone this time. Throw whatever clothes you want washed into the basket there and I’ll take care of them.”

“You’d do that?”

“Of course. All part of the service, M’Lord.”

“Thanks.”

“No problems, Lovey. Are you getting in the shower now?”

“No, ah, I’ll just wait until you’ve done.”

“Okay. I’ll be out here in a minute. Sit yourself down over there and try to look decent. You don’t make much mess, do you?”

“I haven’t been here for a whole day yet, give me time,” Gary grinned.

“You wouldn’t believe how much mess some people can make in a day. Proper pigs some of them are. You’re not like that. I should take you home and you could show my boys how it’s done. They’re shockers.”

“Really?”

“No, not really. They’re not that bad, I just like complaining. Where’s your mum?”

“I haven’t got one.”

“You haven’t? That’s sad, every boy needs a mum.”

“I get by.”

“You shouldn’t have to. Where’s your dad then?”

“I haven’t got one of those either.”

“No parents at all? Who looks after you?”

“Nobody. I look after myself.”

“Oh, Sweetheart. That’s just not right. A young boy like you should be with his family, you only get to be a kid once.”

“I hope you’re right. The sooner I’m finished being a kid, the better.”

“What happened with your parents, Lovey?”

“Nothing happened. They just decided that they don’t want to be my parents any more and they threw me out.”

“They what? That’s awful. How could any parents do that?”

“Mine could. They didn’t like me.”

That’s not natural. Parents should love their kids no matter what.”

“Maybe they should, but they don’t always, especially when the kids are gay.”

“Oh, you’re gay? That’s not something I’ve ever had to face with my kids. They’ve got their problems, but that’s not one of them. Your parents are bastards, Gary Stafford. If a boy’s gay then he needs support not rejection. It’s not like anyone would chose to be gay.”

“Thanks, Patsy. You’re all right. Pity my parents weren’t more like you.”

“Oh yes! Those brats of mine don’t know how lucky they are. But, how do you get on for money? You’re not on the game, are you? Not that it’s any of my business, but that’s a dangerous world.”

“No, I’ve never had to sell my body. I wouldn’t do that. I had an old friend, Ron. He took me in and looked after me.”

“Good for him. Where is he now?”

“He died. He had cancer.”

“Shit! Sorry, but that’s awful. So now you’re on your own again?”

“Yes, I am, but I’m okay. Ron’s still looking after me. He left me all the money he had, and he had a lot.”

“A lot of money?”

“Yes. More than enough for me.”

“It must be a lot if you’re staying hotels and buying new clothes. Tell me to mind my own business now.”

“No, I wouldn’t do that. You’re not just being nosy and it’s good to talk to someone.”

“Sure it is. It’s not right for a young boy to be all alone, no matter how much money he’s got. Your family were a dead loss. You’ll just have to get yourself another one. I’d better move on, Lovey. I’m not getting paid to talk to you. Maybe I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, that’d be good. Thanks, Patsy.”

“Bye, Gary. Stay out of trouble.”

“I will. ‘Bye.”

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.”

Kaimoana Tales, Lachlan 2

Lachlan had his breakfast – 2 slices of dry toast with nothing but marmite on them, and a glass of orange juice. He started walking in to school. His gran was right, it was a long way, they lived in South Bay and the school was away over at the other side of the hill. It was a big hill and a bloody long way when you’re walking.

It was hard work. By the time he was half-way up the hill he was about ready to give up. His gran would come and get him if he called her on his cell. His mother wouldn’t; she’d just laugh at him, but Gran would come. But, no. He was going to do this today and everyday from now on, even when it was raining! Once he got to the top of the hill it would be easier going down the other side. (‘Be hard work going home though.’)

Still, what doesn’t kill you has got to be good for you. One day he would run up this hill – but, not today.

He arrived at school, at last. It was easier going down the hill, but it was still a very long way! He was knackered and the day hadn’t even started yet. However, he was quite pleased with himself, he’d done it and he felt like he’d achieved something.

No-one took any notice of him, they never did. He wasn’t one of the cool kids, he was just the fat-boy. Some fatties are jolly with it. Lachlan wasn’t, he couldn’t be bothered. Stuff ‘em anyway. There was more to a person than what he looked like.

While he was sitting, catching his breath and watching the people walking past, Mark Wilson came along. Wow. He had a full-blown moustache going there. Where did that come from?

He looked like he was pretty proud of it too; stroking it with a forefinger and calling attention to it. Skiting Prick. Well, he wouldn’t be for long. Facial hair was not allowed on the boys. It was in the Uniform Code and someone would make him shave it off. Teachers hated facial hair, but the kids were proud of it, those that could grow it.

That was another problem of Lachlan’s; not a big one, but a problem just the same. He wasn’t growing hair on his face, none at all. He had no body-hair either, the only hair he had was on his head and there wasn’t much of that.

It was about time that he was sprouting hair, here and there. He was 15 already and he was still as bald as a baby. Dammit. He was glad that NZ schools didn’t have shared showers like the ones you read about in the states and the UK.

Funny that. The gayboy didn’t want to get naked with a bunch of teens. He wouldn’t mind checking out what the others had, but he didn’t want them looking at his fat gut and bald dick.

There was nothing wrong with his dick and stuff, Big Jim and the Twins he called them, as far as he could tell from the net, they were pretty normal for his age. They worked fine too, they got a lot of practice. His dick was the favourite part of his body, it was choice – just bald.

And, he’d better start thinking about something else before he embarrassed himself. Kids do sometimes and everybody notices. Not a good way to get noticed.

He got up and went inside to work his way through the locker-room chaos. The one good thing about that was his locker-neighbour; he was Matt Thompson. Matt was in there, doing his thing, and he looked up and smiled as Lachlan approached.

“Hey, Lachlan. How’re you on this bright, sunny morning?”

“Hey, Matt. I’m okay, thanks. You’re looking happy today.”

“Well, yeah, I am! I had a great weekend. How was yours?”

Lachlan shrugged and sighed, “It was okay, I guess. Same old, same old.”

“We went to the beach-party, at Taylor’s Beach, on Friday night. It was grouse! I had a great time. You should come sometime.”

Lachlan’s heart did a flip. Was the boy of his dreams asking him out? Surely not. That only happened in his dreams. Matt was just being nice; he was nice to everyone. Anyway, who was this ‘we’ that he went to the party with?

“Yeah, well. Maybe I will sometime. I might surprise you.”

“That would be a surprise. Don’t think about it, just do it. Get out and live a bit, you’re only young once. Well,” he slapped his locker door shut, “Gotta go. Things to see, people to do. Catch you later, Lachlan.”

“Bye, Matt,” Lachlan sighed and opened his locker. That was the best part of his day, over already. He liked that boy so much. He was so going to bugger him!

It was funny, as the day went on, he wasn’t even feeling hungry and he felt good, kind of.

He had a good score during English in the second period. They had to go to the school library for some books and the book he’d been waiting for had arrived! Choice. It was nothing to do with school-work, it was just a sci-fi novel, the 5th part of a ‘trilogy’ that he’d been reading.

That made his day. It was nearly as good as getting a smile from Matt Thompson. Somehow, he controlled himself and he didn’t start reading until lunchtime, except for studying the covers of course.

As soon as they broke for lunch, he took his apple, his water and his book and found a quiet corner where he could start reading. He’d only just begun when a group of maori girls stopped near him, jabbering away in their language which he didn’t know a word of. He looked up and frowned at them, wishing they’d go away.

The leader of the group, Missy Waipori saw him looking. She tossed her mane of long, unruly, black hair and scowled her usual greeting. “What are you looking at? Fool!”

“Nothing, Missy. I was just reading here.”

“Do it then and stop looking at me. Egg!”

She moved away, her entourage following.

Lachlan sighed. She was fierce, that one. Nobody messed with Missy. An egg, was he? Yeah, he did look a bit like Humpty Dumpty. He’d better not sit on any walls. He had a mouthful of water and returned to his book.

He walked home after school, with his nose in the book again. It was great stuff. He loved science fiction and he adored Isaac Asimov. His books might be ancient, but they were the greatest. They stretched the mind and Asimov was the greatest writer ever.

It was a long, long climb up the hill, but it was even and gradual and he didn’t even notice it much. He was over the crest and going down to South Bay before he even knew it.

His gran was true to her word and she dished-up grilled fish and boiled rice for dinner, but she gave him too much of it. He shoveled half back into the pots. No! He didn’t want butter on his fish. Butter was 99% fat, didn’t she know?

Days crawled past, one after the other, as they do. Lachlan stubbornly stuck to his new regime. He exercised, drank heaps of water and ate ‘hardly enough to keep a bird alive’, according to his gran.

He even started running, out of town and after dark. He didn’t want anyone seeing and laughing at him. It was slow and painful, but he was making progress and he forced himself to go a bit further every night.

His father came home from work one day and threw an expensive pair of running-shoes at him. All he said was, “Wear them.”

“These are for me? Choice! Thanks, Dad.”

“Of course they’re for you. They wouldn’t fit the dog. If you’re going running on the highway, you need proper shoes. I’m not paying to fix your feet after you’ve wrecked them.”

“I will. Thanks, Dad. They’re really Ace.”

He tried them on, and then went out running. It wasn’t quite dark yet, but – whatever. It was great how his family were being so supportive of him.

Friday morning, it rained. Lachlan got out of bed and looked out at a miserable wet day. He thought seriously about asking for a ride to school, but, no, he didn’t. He walked and got wet. It didn’t kill him.

He thought of asking Matt if he was going to the party at Taylor’s Beach, but, no – bugger that in the rain. It’d be different if either of them had a car, but they didn’t, so he didn’t.

By the second week, he was making progress and he was starting to lose weight. No-one else noticed, but he did. He measured his gut and weighed himself at least twice a day. It was never going to happen overnight, but, like the ads said, it was happening.

He was pretty sure that his hair was growing too. He could definitely see a dark-blond fuzz on his head, in the mirror, and he could feel it. He’d have to get himself a comb or something soon. That’d be a first.

His gran took him to the optometrists’ clinic at the hospital, to get his eyes tested and ordered the contact lenses. They weren’t cheap, but she didn’t care. She wanted to do this for him.

It would be a couple of weeks before they arrived. That was one of the draw-backs of living in a small town. Whatever.

The next day was Friday again, already. He walked to school in the sunshine, and he was feeling good. He thought that he might go to the party that night. He’d have to ask Matt and make sure that he was going first. Matt was the only reason that he’d want to be there.

The last few blocks along the way, he was walking behind a small group of school-bound teens. The new kid, Virgil Cain, was one of them. Matt Thompson was his dream-boy, but he was not the only kid around who Lachlan secretly admired, from a distance.

Virgil Cain was one of them. He was a very cool kid, nice to look at and kind-of stylish, sort-of. He came across as very self-confident and capable and he always looked happy. His mum was a teacher in the school; she was a cool lady.

Virgil always had kids around him but he didn’t seem to have any ‘special’ friends. Rumours, (which, of course, are always totally reliable), said that Virgil was gay and that he had a boyfriend – that hunky blond who worked in the marine engineering place in South Bay. He was a lucky kid if that was true. They both were.

Lost in salacious thoughts, and with his eyes firmly fixed on Virgil Cain, he walked into the school-grounds and almost bumped into Missy Waihopi! Whoa. He backed off in a hurry. That would not be an intelligent thing to do.

“Sorry, Missy. Sorry, I didn’t see you,” he stammered.

She greeted him in the usual way, but she didn’t snap it out like she normally did. She said it quietly and thoughtfully.

“What are you looking at? Fool.”

She walked away, as always.

Whoah! Lachlan felt like he was almost busted. Of all the people there, he didn’t want Missy figuring out what he was thinking. He didn’t want anyone knowing, but especially not Missy. She was scary.

He indulged in one last, longing, look at Virgil, and then hurried inside to find Matt. He knew when someone was totally out of his class. Matt was too really, but he was a friend, kind of.

Matt was in there with his head inside his locker. He really needed to clean it out, it was a bigger mess than Lachlan’s one was.

“Hey, Matt. Lost something, have you?”

“Something? Try everything. This shove it in and slam the door system is not working very well. He, Lachlan. How’re you? Still walking to school are you?”

(He didn’t know that he’d noticed!)

“Yeah, I am. It’s not that far and its gotta be good for you.”

“Yeah, probably.”

“Matt, are you, umm, are you going to the party tonight?”

Matt pulled his head out and looked at him. “Yeah, I’m going. Don’t tell me you’re coming too?”

“I thought I might.”

“That’s good – really good.” Matt beamed a smile. “About time you did. We’ll see you there then.”

“Yeah, you will. Thanks, Matt.”

“Thanks?”

“Yes, thanks. I wouldn’t go if you hadn’t said to.”

“Of course you should go, it’s fun! See you there tonight. And, there’s the elusive maths-book. Okay, I’m gone. Laters.”

Lachlan was walking on air for the rest of the morning. He had a date, and it was with Matt Thompson! It was a date, wasn’t it? Yeah, sure it was. He felt good.

The further up you go, the further you fall. His world came crashing down at lunchtime. He was sitting in the quadrangle, reading his novel one last time before he had to return it and a grinning Matt Thompson walked past.

He had his arm around a girl and was whispering in her ear. She was giggling and had an arm around him. It was a walking cuddle and it was disgusting!

Lachlan McLaughlin

“He was such a happy boy, always laughing and joking, never with any malice. He was so full of life and energy and always, always, had a smile on his face. The whole world was his friend and every day was a new adventure to be enjoyed to the full.

Now he’s gone. The boy we knew is not there anymore and we’ve got this sad, listless, tired and moody teenager – long legs, long arms and a long face. He never smiles, I can’t remember the last time I heard him laugh, and he’s cut himself off from all of his friends.

Isn’t there anything we can do, Doctor? I want our laughing boy back.”

“How old did you say your grandson is, Mrs. McLaughlin?”

“He’s 14, nearly 15. You should know that, you delivered him.”

“Him and about a thousand others. I probably delivered most of the kids in this town, I can’t remember them all. They all look much the same when they’re new-borns.”

“Not to their families, they don’t.”

“No, I guess not. What you’re describing is fairly normal you know. Maybe Lachlan is an extreme case, but they’re funny creatures, these teenagers. They’re in transition, halfway between children and adults and it’s not easy on them sometimes.”

“It’s not easy on his family either!”

“I’m sure it’s not, but you’ve raised a family, you must have seen it all before.”

“I haven’t. We only had the one son and 5 daughters. None of them were ever like this.”

“You were lucky then. I doubt whether there’s anything I can do, but bring him in and I’ll check him over to make sure that there’s nothing physically wrong with him.

The best thing you can do is to love him, and the harder that is to do, the more he needs it. Keep on loving him, be patient and don’t despair. He will come through it, most of them do.”

“Most of them? That’s not good enough.”

“Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that to a concerned grandmother, but it is true. Most of them do, a few – a very few, don’t make it.”

“A few? One is too many.”

“One is too many to those who care for them. Is he doing drugs?”

“Drugs? I very much doubt it, except for far too much chocolate. Maybe he needs some, of the right sort.”

“I’m not sure that there is a right sort. The mid-teenage years are the worst possible time for kids to be putting any sort of drugs into their systems. They’re already awash with hormones and their brains are undergoing huge development. Drugs, any drugs, can do permanent damage at that stage.”

“But they all do it, don’t they? Drunk and stoned teenagers are so common it’s a cliché.”

“It is, but that doesn’t make it right. They don’t all do it, but far too many of them do. Asserting their independence, rebellion and peer-pressure are all factors. Plus, at that stage, they are risk-takers; their brains haven’t developed caution and awareness of consequences. They all think that they are bomb-proof. I did and you probably did too.”

“So, there’s nothing you can do, Doctor?”

“Oh, I didn’t say that. Bring him in and I’ll check him over to make sure that everything’s developing normally, but I suspect it is.

Keep on loving him, that’s the best prescription I can give you. Love him but don’t stifle him, he needs room to grow.

He’ll be okay, Mrs. McLaughlin. Your grandson will be okay.”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

He looked in the mirror and a handsome young teen-god looked back at him.

Phaw! Not likely. Only in his dreams. What he saw was what he had, what he was.

Round. Fat. A face that only a mother could love, if she could. His grandmother did, so that had to be something. It was not ugly, that was the best you could say for it; not ugly, just a plain, ordinary and boring face. And fat.

There was a strong jaw-line in there somewhere and the nose and the blue eyes wouldn’t look so small if the face wasn’t so fat. The eyes were magnified anyway, the big round and thick glasses took care of that.

The teeth were pretty good, no problems there. You just didn’t see them unless he smiled and he didn’t smile a lot – why would he? The ears were far too big and they stuck out like jug-handles. Maybe they wouldn’t if he had hair. He did have hair, of course, he was far too young to be bald yet, but it was always buzz-cut, almost shaved. It was easier to look after that way.

One day, he probably will be bald. Blonds tend to do that. His dad was going bald and his granddad had done it years ago – he had a head like a bowling ball with ears. And, fat.

He had spots too; not a lot, but any is too many. That’s what you get when you’re a teenager and you eat too much chocolate and other crap. Eating junk-food was probably his greatest pleasure, (well, maybe the 2nd greatest), but you pay for it – you get spots. And fat.

He sighed. What a face. What a life. Did it get any worse? Well, yeah, probably, but it could get better too – much better. He hated mirrors, hated what they showed him. When he got his own house, there’d be no mirrors anywhere. Then he wouldn’t have to look at his fat face.

Maybe that wasn’t right, about his grandmother loving his face? She wanted him to improve it, didn’t she? His birthday was coming up soon, 15 already! Instead of asking him what he wanted, (which was chocolate), like she usually did, Grandma had ideas of her own. She wanted to buy him contact lenses.

Apparently, he would look ever so much better without the thick glasses. He was not so sure. As far as he could see – which was not a lot! – his eyes would just look smaller, wouldn’t they? Small and lost in his fat face. Bugger it!

That was another thing too – buggering. He wanted to do that. Oh boy! Did he want to do that! He never had, he was starting to worry that he never would. Who with? Anybody really, but especially Matt Thompson. It was never going to happen, but if it did, he’d want to be with Matt.

Funny. Matt Thompson wasn’t the best-looking kid in the town, far from it, but he’d choose him before anyone else. There was something about him. Lachlan really, really liked him. He was a cool kid and sexy – very sexy.

Phaw! He should be so lucky! Who’d want to have sex with a fatty? Lachlan wouldn’t and he was the fatty. He was the fattest kid in their class. He was gross.

Okay, that was enough sitting here thinking, he was getting depressed. He could do with some chocolate; was there any left? Chocolate made you feel better, it had endorphins and shit in it that could lift your spirits.

Chocolate also made you fat. That’d be intelligent wouldn’t it? Eat chocolate to make you feel better because you’re fat, and then get even fatter. What’s wrong with that picture?

Someone should make diet-chocolate. Aha! He could make a fortune there. What a great money-making idea – Diet-Chocolate to make you feel good and not get fat. No, wait, someone already had. He’d tried it and it was gross. Maybe it just needed more sugar in it. Yeah, rite! Like that would work?

One day he was going to invent something that would make him rich. Not today, obviously.

It was like one of those epiphany things, a life-changing experience. He didn’t want to get fatter, he wanted to get rid of the fat he already had. How could he do that? Diet and exercise, obviously.

Phaw! That sounded like a lot of hard work. Would it be worth it? Yes, dammit, it would! Then maybe, just maybe, he might get to bugger Matt Thompson. Or, anyone really but preferably with Matt.

He liked him. He liked him a lot, he always had. He wouldn’t care, really, if they didn’t get to the buggering, he’d just like to be with him, to be his friend. To be his best friend. If only. He didn’t think that Matt had ever noticed him really, even though they’d been in the same school, in the same classes for, like, forever. He was just the fat boy in the background – filling the background!

Okay, that was it. He was going to do it. No matter how much it took, however much starving and working, he was going to change things. He was going to change his life and be the fat-boy no more. This ugly duckling was going to be a swan.

So, now he had a plan. No, he didn’t, he had a goal; he needed a plan to get there. A pen and paper and he’d start right now. What was this plan going to be called? BMT – yeah. Be Me Thin? Big Makeover Time? No – Bugger Matt Thompson actually.

He could call it what he liked, no-one would ever know, and that was his goal – Bugger Matt Thompson. No. Stop messing around. Time to get serious here.

There were some other things he could do too, like get a whole new wardrobe – some trendy clothes like the cool kids wore. He’d need new clothes anyway, once he was thin.

Also, yeah, he’d better tell Grandma that the contact lenses were go. It’d be good to rid of the dorky glasses. Also, the hair – if he grew it long enough, it would cover-up his jug-ears. It was blond hair, it might look good if it was longer, and styled properly of course. But first he had to grow it.

What else? Studs? Piercings? No. They were ugly, that wasn’t what he wanted. A suntan would be good; there was not much work involved in that. None at all actually – all he had to do was lie around in the sunshine.

If only losing weight was that easy. How was he going to go about it? Eat less for a start. That wouldn’t be easy, but, apparently, if you drank lots of water before every meal, it filled you up so you didn’t eat as much.

The other obvious thing was to cut out the sugar. No chocolate, no biscuits, cakes, sweets or soft-drinks. That meant no coke! Damm. Oh well, he could drink orange juice, that had to be better for him. No sugar in his coffee either – nasty.

Water, fruit, vegetables, chicken or fish, and not much else. This had better be worth it! Oh, and dairy products were out too, weren’t they? Milk, butter, cheese and even eggs; they were all laden with calories. He wouldn’t miss them much, not as much as the chocolate.

Was there any chocolate left? He should finish it off now so that he wouldn’t be tempted tomorrow. No, better not. Start as you mean to go on. No more chocolate. BMT.

The lounge fire was still going, so before he could have second thoughts he jumped off the couch and threw the chocolate – all of the chocolate – into the fire. Wow! Chocolate burned good. Who knew? All the calories? Nah, more likely all the fat and sugar.

Imagine a fire in a chocolate factory. One next-door to a fireworks factory – choice!

He went to bed, feeling good. He was on a mission. Maybe he’d get lucky and dream about Matt Thompson again?

He didn’t dream about anyone or anything, or maybe he did but he didn’t remember it, which is the same thing really. He woke up in the morning feeling fine, there was something special on his mind – BMT.

It could happen! Well, maybe. It never would if he just sat and waited; no, he was going to have to work at it. And he would. He felt good.

It was Monday morning, at last, so he’d be going to school. That was cool, he liked going to school. He liked being there, where the kids were. He was never actually a part of things going on, but he liked watching.

He’d see Matt today. He was going to talk to him too; or try to.

He bounced out of bed and hurried through the shower. One day he’d do that even quicker because there’d be less of him to wash.

His mother and grandmother were already in the kitchen when he went in there. “Morning,” he grunted and headed straight for the refrigerator.

“Good morning, Sweetie,” his grandmother smiled. “You’re early today. Bacon and eggs this morning; do you want 2 eggs or 3?”

“No thanks,” he frowned.

“No? What then? Do you want 4 eggs?”

“No. No eggs and no bacon either. I don’t want any.”

“Oh yes? Very funny. Seriously, how many eggs?”

“Gran, I seriously don’t want any bacon and eggs.”

“But it’s your favourite! Are you not well? Let me check your temperature.”

She reached for his forehead, but he shied away. “Leave me alone! I’m not sick, I just don’t want a cooked breakfast. I’ll have a piece of toast and marmite and, umm,” he surveyed the refrigerator, “and some orange juice.”

“Are you sure you’re not sick? That’s no breakfast for a growing boy. It’s a long time until lunchtime.”

“I’m not sick, I’m feeling okay. I just don’t want much, I’m on a diet.”

“A diet?” His mother looked up. “Since when have you been on a diet?”

“Since now. I’m gonna do this. I don’t want a ride to school either, I’m walking.”

“Well, it won’t do you any harm,” his mother shrugged. “Good luck to you.”

His grandmother did not agree. “You can’t walk all the way to school on an empty stomach. It’s miles away!”

“I know that, Gran. I go there every day. I’m dead serious about this. My life is a mess, I’m a mess, and it’s time that I made some changes.”

“That’s good, I suppose. But, tiny steps for tiny feet. You don’t want to overdo it. Just have some breakfast, you can walk to school and, later, we’ll go and see the doctor about a proper diet for you.”

“There’s no need for the doctor, I’m not sick, I’m just fat and flabby. I know what I need, less food and more exercise.”

“Okay, but you need some food. You’re not fat, you are just well-built.”

“Look at me, Gran! I’m fat and it’s going to change.”

“Okay then, have it your way. Take some chocolate with you when you go, in case you need the energy.”

“No chocolate! There’s none left anyway. I threw it in the fire last night.”

“Really? Well that’s a waste.”

“No it wasn’t. Better there than in my guts, piling on more fat. I’m cutting out sugar altogether. Well, except for fruit. I’ll take an apple and another one for lunch.”

“We’d better get some more apples in then. That’s all you’re having for lunch, an apple?”

“Yes, an apple and water.”

“Water is good. Drink lots of water, it will fill you up. I’ll do fish for dinner; grilled fish and boiled potatoes. Can’t get much healthier than that.”

“That’d be good, thanks Gran. Rice would be better though.”

“This is a good thing you’re doing. We’ll support you every way we can, won’t we, Darlene?”

“It is good,” Lachlan’s mother agreed. “Very good. I hope that you can keep it up.”

“Oh, I will. You can rely on that.”

“Yeah? Well it will be good to see that stubborn streak put to good use for once.”

Kaimoana Tales, Joel 2

(I think Joel's story should've been posted as one chap.)

“You’re very welcome, my Lovely boy. Having you sleep out here would suit me too. There’s been a few burglaries, and some vandalism, out this way lately. Having a big strapping lad like you on the premises should scare the little shits off.”

“That sounds great, Uncle. I could live out here easy!”

“That’s settled then. You’ll live here, for free, and keep the place secure. You feed yourself, of course. You’re welcome to have Virgil here, after hours, but no parties, okay?”

“No, of course not. I wouldn’t do that.”

“Didn’t think you would. Bloody Stephen and Dougie would though. We might put in a camera or two as well; can’t be too careful.

You never know, when we’re busy, I might stay out here with you, sometimes. You might have a boarder. Now, let’s get this place opened-up. We’ve got work to do.”

Joel said nothing, but he sincerely hoped that the caravan had more than one bed. He was grateful to his uncle, but gratitude only went so far – he was not sleeping with him.

Uncle went home for lunch, Joel didn’t go with him. He wasn’t welcome there and didn’t live there anymore. Instead, he went into town to buy a pie and some groceries. He guessed that he was going to have to go back to get his gear, but wasn’t looking forward to it.

As it turned out, that wasn’t a problem either. When Uncle came back to work, there were boxes full of all Joel’s stuff, in the back of the van.

“She-who-must-be-obeyed has been moving things around. Dougie’s moving into your room, apparently. All of your things that were there are in the back of the van. Let me know if anything’s missing.”

After work, Uncle went home and left Joel to it. He sorted his clothes and gear into the wardrobe and drawers in the caravan, and then he went uptown to see his boy.

As soon as he stopped in the street outside, Virgil came running out and jumped into the car. “Joel! Where’ve you been? Why isn’t your phone turned on?”

“Isn’t it? Whoops, sorry. There, it’s on now.”

“It’s a bit late now. I’ve been looking for you. Sally said that they kicked you out. Where have you been?”

“They didn’t kick me out, I left. I slept in the car last night and now I’ve got a caravan to live in.”

“A caravan? Where did you get a caravan? You should’ve come here, Joel. Why didn’t you come to me?”

“Virgil, it’s okay – really it is. Uncle arrived at work this morning with the caravan for me. I’m going to live out there and use the shower and stuff in the workshop. I didn’t want to disturb you. I’m not bludging off you and your mum, I need to stand on my own feet.”

“I’ll stand on your bloody feet! You wouldn’t be bludging. I love you and Mum would make you welcome here.”

“I know that, My Love. I love you too, but it’s not up to your mum to support me. I’ll make my own way.”

“You’re way too proud, Joel Stafford. Kiss me.”

“Kiss you? Here, in the street?”

“Yes, here. No-one can see us, and if they did, I don’t care. I love you.”

“Oh, Virgil. I love you very much. You’re the best thing in my life – ever!”

He kissed him.

“Okay, thank you.” Virgil pushed him off. “Now you can come inside and explain to Mum why you won’t live here, and good luck to you!”

They went into the house and were met by a wall of words. Natasha was not happy.

“Where the hell have you been, Joel Stafford? I am not impressed! Where did you sleep last night?”

“I, umm . . .yeah. Hello Mrs. Cain. I’m good, how’re you?”

“Don’t you try soft-soaping me, Young Man. We’ve been worried about you. Where have you been?”

“I haven’t been anywhere; just working. I slept in my car, last night, down by Geese Bay.”

“In your car? Of course you did. Well you’re not doing that tonight – you’ll stay here with us. This is where you should have come in the first place. You know that you’re always welcome here.”

“I do know that, and thanks, but I can’t stay here with you guys. I’ve still got a job and I need to make my own way. I’m not a little kid who needs looking after.”

“You’re not little, but sometimes we all need looking after. Where are you planning on sleeping tonight? And don’t say the car.”

“No, it’s okay. I’m all set-up now. Uncle got me a caravan; it’s parked-up at the yard and I’ll be sleeping there. I can use the showers, toilets and kitchen in back of the workshop, so I’ve got everything I need.”

“At the work-shop? You are not! Why can’t you live here with us?”

“Because I can’t. What if I want to bring a girl home for the night?” Joel grinned cheekily.

Virgil shoved him. “Don’t think about it. Don’t you even joke about it. You are mine, and don’t you forget it. We’re going to be living together, sooner or later, why not now?”

“Because we’re not ready. I’m 18 and I’m not. You’re just 15 and you certainly are not. You’re still a school-kid, Virgil, and you need space to grow. I’m not taking that away from you.

I seriously intend that we’re going to spend our lives together, so we have to do it right. I don’t want to stuff it up by starting on the wrong foot.”

“There is no wrong foot, you Dork! I’m as ready now as I’ll ever be. But . . . okay, if that’s the way you have to do it, then we will. But, you just remember – I’m ready whenever you are.”

“When the time is right, we both be ready and we’ll know; not before.”

Natasha said, “Virgil, if you ever let this boy go, I’ll . . . well, I don’t know what I’ll do but I won’t be happy.”

“I’m not letting him go,” Virgil replied. “Not now, not ever.”

“See that you don’t!” Virgil’s gran spoke up. “You’re never going to find better than Joel. Anytime you don’t want him, I’ll have him.”

“Shut up, Gran. Eww! No-one’s having my Boy, not you, not Mum, and no-one else either. Joel is mine!”

“All yours, My Virgil.”

“Don’t ever forget it,” Natasha said. “Now go away while I get us something to eat. You’re eating with us, Joel. Don’t say no.”

“I won’t, not this time,” Joel grinned. “Thanks everyone, you really are great! Virgil, come with me. I’ve got something for you.

They went into Virgil’s room. Joel closed the door, carefully, and turned to face him.

“Well?” Virgil was not known for his patience. “What’ve you got for me?”

“This is for you, and only for you, always.” Joel kissed him.

“Oh, yes!” Virgil beamed. “I love you, Joel. So much!” He kissed him back.

“Do you think we’ve got time for a quickie before dinner?”

“No, we have not, Horndog!” Joel laughed. “I’ll love you later. We’re not risking coitus interuptus. I do love you, Virgil.”

“I know! After dinner, we’ll go and have a look at this caravan, there’ll be no interuptus there.”

“Good idea. We’ll christen it and maybe break the bed in.”

“Maybe we’ll break the bed.”

“Well, we can try.”

“Oh, I intend to!”

Kaimoana Tales, Joel

“Stephen Griffin, you’re nothing but a bloody idiot!”

“Lay off him, Sally. Mind your own bloody business.”

“My own business? You’re a great one to talk, Dougie. Why don’t you mind your business? Why don’t both of you? I’ve got the biggest pair of idiots in town for brothers. Leave the kid alone!”

“The kid? The kid’s a bloody little pansy.”

“And he’s fucking our cousin!”

“So bloody what? I don’t see Joel complaining, do you? They’re a couple, they’re together and what they do is nothing to do with either of you.”

“Of course it’s got to do with us! Joel’s our bloody cousin, worse luck. He’s living here in our house and he’s fucking that pansy. What if people think that we are too?”

“Oh yeah, right! Like that’s going to happen. Virgil can’t stand either of you, and why should he? Joel has got no time for you, and neither have I at the moment. Why do you have to be such a pair of bone-heads?”

“Bone-heads, is it? You turning into a fag-hag or something? We’re not queer.”

“We’re not and we can’t stand queers. Bad enough having them in the town without having them in our house as well!”

“Virgil is Joel’s mate and, as long as Joel’s living here, he’ll come around to see him. You needn’t think that your ranting at him is going to scare him off. He’s not frightened of you, I don’t think he’s scared of anyone.”

“Maybe he should be.”

“Yeah. Maybe it’s time we taught him to be scared of us.”

“Yeah, we’d be doing Joel a favour if we scared the little pansy off. Joel’s not queer,” Dougie said.

Stephen agreed. “He wasn’t until bloody Virgil came around flashing his fanny at him. Joel used to have a girlfriend. Maybe he will again if the Virgin’s out of the picture.”

“You really are a pair of thundering idiots aren’t you? Joel’s totally rapt in the boy. He’s his best friend, he loves him and what’s wrong with that?”

“It’s wrong, that’s what.”

“It’s sick and it’s disgusting. He’d be way better off without him.”

“You’re so bloody thick! They are in love and that’s what matters. What you think is not worth a dog-turd. You lay one hand on Virgil and Joel will knock your bloody heads off!”

“He’ll try.”

“Oh, I’ll do more than try.” Joel walked into the room and into the argument. “I’ll do it! If you two even think about giving my mate a hard time, you’re dead. Or, if you aren’t, you’ll wish that you were.”

The Griffin brothers looked at each other, like they were making sure that they had support.

“Fuck off, Stafford!” Stephen flared. “We’re not scared of you.”

“Yeah,” Dougie agreed. “Why don’t you fuck off and go live with your bum-boy? You spend more time there than you do here anyway.”

“Yeah, do that,” Stephen said. “We don’t like having queers in our house.”

“Don’t think I haven’t thought about it. And, who said it’s your house?”

“Well, it’s certainly not yours. It’s more our house than it is yours, Fag!”

“It’s not yours. It’s your father’s house and he said that I could live here.”

“Actually,” Mrs. Griffin waded in. “It’s my house and I’m not sure that I like having queers here either. You’ve done nothing but upset this family ever since you’ve been here.”

“Mum! That’s not true,” Sally protested. “Joel’s done nothing and neither has Virgil. The only problem here is this pair of bone-headed idiots.”

“That’s enough, Sally! This is your brother’s home and I don’t see why they have to put up with this. I don’t see why any of us do. Joel, I think it’s time that you found somewhere else to live.”

She turned and sailed out of the room, like a galleon lumbering up the Channel. Stephen and Dougie stood with identical smirks on their faces, which enraged Sally even more.

“You pair of fucking idiots! Now look what you’ve done. I hate you. I fucking hate the both of you! I hate this whole bloody family!”

Sally was so wild, she started crying and she fled to her room, slamming the door behind her. She wasn’t standing there with them grinning at her.

“That’s one down,” Stephen smirked. “Are you going to cry too, Stafford?”

“Shove it, Griffin.”

Joel left the room, left the house, got in his car and drove. He didn’t have a clue where he was going and didn’t care. He just had to get out of there before he did something really stupid.

From habit? The car went up and over the hill to South Bay. He didn’t turn in there though, he just kept going down the highway, south, and away from the town.

A few kilometers along, he pulled off the highway and stopped in a quiet place between the road and the rocky beach. He turned everything off and sat looking out at the quiet sea.

Damm! What a mess. It was going to happen, he knew that it was only a matter of time, and now it had. What was he going to do now?

One thing he knew, he wasn’t going back there. He had the worst family in the world. They didn’t like him and he didn’t like them either. Well, except for Sally. He did like Sally. She was worth more than all the rest of them put together.

What about Uncle? That was a whole different problem Uncle did like Joel, but not in a good way – he’d like to get into his pants, and that was not going to happen. Apart from that, Uncle wasn’t a bad guy really. He was good to work with and Joel liked his job. It was a great job and he was learning lots.

Oh, damm! That was another thing. He had no home now, did he have a job? He’d need it more than ever now.

Well, he supposed, he’d wait until the morning and then go and find out if Uncle still wanted him. He’d like to keep his job, but not at any cost. The only person who was getting into his pants was Virgil; no-one else, not now, not ever. His relationship with Virgil was the best thing in his life, the best thing he’d ever had, and he was not going to stuff it up. He’d made mistakes before, it was not going to happen again.

He guessed that he could probably go to Virgil’s place, couldn’t he? Yes, of course he could. They’d give him a bed. Virgil’s mum and gran were great, they liked him and he liked them too, but, no, he’d better not. He didn’t want to sponge off them.

As long as he had his job, he’d be all right, he’d find somewhere to live. If he didn’t, he didn’t know what he was going to do. He was not going back to his father’s place. His father was back in Tiroroa, Virgil was here, so he was not going to leave Kaimoana no matter what. Not until Virgil did anyway. He could always live in his car if he had to.

And – that was enough for today. Tomorrow he’d see what happened, for now he was going to sleep. At least he had a roof, of sorts, over his head. There were a couple of blankets in the boot of the car, they were good for cuddling under on chilly nights. He got them out, got into the back, took his sneakers off and curled up on the seat under the blankets. He slept.

Chevys don’t have drapes to block-out the early morning light. Maybe they should. This one definitely should, but it didn’t. Joel was awake at first light in the morning, the sun wasn’t even up yet.

It wouldn’t be long though, the sky was turning pink over the eastern horizon. It would soon be rising up out of the sea and a new day would begin. What was the time?

“Oh, Lordie,” he groaned. It wasn’t even 6am yet.

Chevys also don’t have bathrooms. He crawled out of the car to pee on the rocks. It was cold out there! There was a definite chill in the air, summer was on its last legs. He did his business, closed his fly and stood stretching and looking around.

There was a small creek, in a mini-culvert under the road. The water looked clean enough, so he lay down beside it and had a drink. It was okay. Maybe a bit brackish, but better than nothing.

He did think of having a bit of a wash in the creek, but no. It was too cold and he had no towel, or soap, or a toothbrush. “Damm! You need a lot of stuff to live. What’s for breakfast? Not a lot.”

He got back into the car and under the blankets to wait for things to warm-up. It’d be nice to go back to sleep, but there wasn’t much hope of that. He was awake now.

He waited until 6.30, and then drove into town to get something to eat.

Some people lived in cars all the time, didn’t they? They’d need to be well-organised.

There weren’t many businesses open yet, but there were some. Some people’s day started early. The service station was open, so he stopped and went in there.

“Good morning, Lad,” the lady smiled. “You’re up early, or haven’t you gone to bed yet?”

“No, I’ve slept. I just woke-up too early. Way too early!” Joel grinned. “I need something to eat, what’ve you got?”

“To eat? That depends on what you want. There’s groceries down the back there, canned-goods and suchlike. Frozen food in the freezers. There’s cookies and stuff, or, if you want something hot, there’s pies, hot-dogs and maybe a couple of burgers left.”

“You’ve got a lot of stuff here. Here I was thinking that service stations sold petrol, oil and car accessories.”

“Well, we do, of course, but that’s not all. Service stations are becoming one-stop shops these days. We’ve got magazines and papers, music, toys, clothes, food and drinks. We even sell bloody cut-flowers, though I don’t know why. What would you like?”

“Have you got cereal?”

“Yes, of course we have. Milk too, if you want it.”

“That’d be good. But, no – I haven’t got a bowl to put it in.”

“Oh, we’ve got those too,” she smiled.

“Of course you have,” Joel smiled back.

“Tell you what, we’ve got those plastic, disposable picnic sets.” She indicated some boxes on the racks behind him. “They’re pretty good value and they’ve got everything you need – two of everything, including bowls.

“That sounds great. I’ll have one of those, some cereal, canned-peaches and some milk.”

“Self-service, Lad. That means you find them yourself. Milk’s in the coolers there.”

He made his purchases, and then drove back to South Bay to park by the workshop, eat, and wait to see what the day would bring. Uncle was late getting to work. That couldn’t be good, could it? He would’ve opened up the business himself, but he didn’t have a key. He bloody should’ve!

When his uncle finally arrived, he was towing a small caravan behind the van.

“Good morning, Joel. I’m glad to see you here.”

“Morning, Uncle. I’m glad that you’re glad.”

“Yes, well. I hear that you had a bit of trouble at home last night.”

“You could say that, yeah.”

“Yes. I heard all about it when I got home. Sally told me her side of the story too. Oh Boy! Did she tell me!”

“I imagine that she did. Uncle, have I still got a job?”

“I don’t see why not. I’ve got no complaints about you.”

“Oh, good! Thanks.”

“No worries, Joel. I know that my sons are jerks and your aunt’s not much better sometimes. However, what goes on at home has got nothing to do with work. I need you here, and you need somewhere to live. So, we could try this.”

“Try the caravan?”

“Yes, the caravan. It’s nothing flash, just a little old thing, but it’s better than nothing. It’s got a good-sized bed. We could park it in the yard here. You can sleep in it and use the facilities in the ‘shop. There’s a shower, washing-machine, toilets and a kitchen. What more do you need?”

“I don’t need anything else at all. Thanks, Uncle.”

Kaimoana Tales, Virgil again 2

Virgil was walking down the hill with Mac and Joyce. Mac wanted to know all about the great classic car he’d seen outside Virgil’s house.

“That’s the Chevy. It’s my friend Joel’s car. And, yes, it’s a great old car.”

“It is! It’s a classic. It’d make a great pashin’ wagon!”

“It does that,” Virgil grinned widely.

“Yeah, it’d have so much room to move inside and it’d be a chick-magnet. Tell us more!” Mac demanded, and then he gasped when Joyce poked him in the ribs. “Ow! Damm, Joyce. Keep your hands to yourself.”

“You’d better keep your hands to yourself too! You go picking up any girls and you’ll be no use to them, I’ll cut your dick off!”

“See? I knew she loved me. Hey! What the fuck? Watch it, Griffin!” Mac fell to the side as Joel’s cousin, Stephen Griffin, plowed through them on his bike. He stopped and looked back with a sneer.

“You’re the one who needs to watch it, MacSweeney. Hang around with queers and people’ll start thinking that you’re one too.”

“What’re you talking about? I’m no queer.”

“Not yet. Give it time. The sweet little Virgin Pansy there’ll be working on converting you.”

Virgil sighed as he looked at the big lug standing there astride his bicycle. He so did not need this. Who was it said that the best defence was to attack?

“What would you know, Griffin? No-one around here’s into sex with apes – though it looks like your mother was. Poor ape.”

“Fuck you, Faggot!”

“Not in this lifetime, Monkey-Boy.”

“You’re dead, Faggot. You are so dead!”

The goon dropped his book-bag and, completely forgetting that he astride his bike, lunged at Virgil. Virgil stepped back, and then cracked-up laughing as Griffin fell over in a tangle of arms, legs, and bicycle.

They were all laughing at him, even his own friends were. Virgil did think of rubbing it in, but that’d be like kicking someone when he was down, so he just walked away. He was very pleased when Mac and Joyce hurried to catch up to him.

“Wait up, Virgil!” Joyce was still laughing. “What a total idiot!”

“Yeah,” Virgil grinned. “Looks like the gene pool is pretty shallow in places.”

“It is!” Mac said. “That couldn’t have gone better if you’d planned it.”

“I did, kind of, plan it. No-one thinks straight when they totally lose their rag. Never dreamed it would go that well though,” he grinned.

“No? Classic! You’d better watch yourself though. He’ll out for revenge.”

“Probably. But, I’m not scared of idiots.”

“He’s a total idiot,” Joyce agreed. “But he’s a big one. Just be careful, and if he makes trouble, we’ve got your back. Right, Mac?”

“Of course! Never did like the wanker anyway. You’re okay, Virgil.”

“Thanks, Guys. You’re okay too – more than okay.”

“No probs, Friend. But it’s going to cost you.”

“Cost? What’s it going to cost me?”

“It’ll cost you a ride in the Chevy.”

“That can probably be arranged. Joel might drive us to the hospital after the fighting.”

“Hospital? I was thinking more like a romantic drive down the coast on a moon-lit night.”

“Romantic?” Joyce smacked him one. “You’d better be thinking about with me, Boy!”

“Of course, Joycey, of course! I wish you’d stop hitting me. I’m going to be black and blue on our honeymoon.”

“If you live that long.”

“Oh, I plan on it, if only to get my own back – as the old man said when he peed into the wind.”

“You’re bloody disgusting, Mac. You know that, don’t you?”

“Yeah. But you love me anyway.”

Joyce just grinned and rolled her eyes. They went to school.

They went through the locker-room routine and met again outside room 9, where they had to wait for the teacher’s arrival – he was late again.

“Hello Joycey. Did you miss me?”

“Yeah, like a hole in the head. Shut your cake-hole, Mac. Virgil, you watch your step with Griffin. You’ve made an enemy there and he can be nasty.”

“So can I, Joyce. So can I. what’s with that Douche-bag anyway? I don’t even know him. Sally is his sister, isn’t she? Sally’s not like that, she’s a great person.”

“Yes she is, Sally’s okay, but her brothers are jerks. There’s only one more obnoxious person around here and that’s the other one; his brother, Dougie.”

“Obnoxious is it? Oh well.”

Missy walked past, still wearing the same attitude. She glared at them and Virgil smiled.

“Good morning, Missy. Great day, innit?”

“Shut up, Fool!” She growled and kept walking.

“Ah, she’s so nice,” Virgil sighed as they watched her go.

“She is!” Mac agreed. “All sweetness and light. You should try putting a bit of bread on a stick and poking it at her – she’d toast it for you.”

“Yeah right, probably,” Virgil laughed. “I wouldn’t want to mess with that one, but I’m sure that her mother loves her.”

“Well, maybe,” Joyce said.

There was one difference with Missy today. Virgil was pleased to see that she was no longer alone; she now had a small group trailing along behind her, 3 girls and 1 boy, all maori. That had to be good. It looked like Missy was a leader, despite the attitude.

Sally caught-up with him, later in the morning. “Hey Virgil. How’s it going?”

“Going good, thanks Sally. You?”

“I’m doing okay. Well, mostly. I’ve got all the teachers where I want them, all except one. Damm, your mum can be staunch!”

“Yeah, that’s my mum. Don’t fight her, you can’t win.”

“I think you’re right. Speaking of families, I hear that you had a run-in with my idiot brother. Both of my brothers are bone-heads and they’re bullies. Don’t let them push you around.”

“I won’t, thanks, Sally. You sure that they are your brothers?”

“Unfortunately, yes. Anyway, let me know if they gang-up on you, I’ll deal with them and, if I don’t, I’m sure that Joel will.”

“He would, but I’d rather deal with it on my own. I’m not a wimp.”

“Good for you. You’re okay, Virgil.”

Later, Virgil was in the Manual Training Block, doing metalwork which was not his favourite subject. The work itself was okay, he could handle that, but the teacher could be difficult, she was his mother. He finished the piece he was working on and stood back looking at it.

“Think you’re pretty hot shit, don’t you, Virgin?”

He looked around, Stephen Griffin stood leering at him. The other goon with him had to be his brother, they looked alike and they both had the same attitude.

“Exactly what is your problem, Griffin?”

“The only problem around here is you.”

“Yeah”, the other one agreed. “We don’t like pansies – can’t bloody stand them.”

“Maybe they can’t stand you two either. Fuck off, Griffin. Fuck off and take your boyfriend with you.”

“I haven’t got no boyfriend. It’s not us who are the pansies.” Griffin looked around and frowned at Virgil’s mother who was across the room talking to someone else.

“One of these days, you’ll find yourself somewhere where mummy’s not around and looking out for you. Then you’ll see what we think of creeps like you.”

“Oh, Gee! I’m so scared. Fuck off, Idiots.”

“Just wait, Virgin. Your time will come.”

“And stay the hell away from our cousin.”

“From Joel? Like that’s going to happen! Again, Fuck off!”

Dougie looked around and saw that Natasha had left the room. He swung a fist, which Virgil easily dodged.

“Oi! Maggot!” All 3 of them froze and looked at Missy striding towards them.

“Try that again and I’ll rip your fucking head off!”

“You and whose army?” Stephen replied, a bit nervously.

Missy grinned and waved around the room. About 6 people waved back. “Me and my army. Now fuck off and leave my friend alone. Hassle him again and you’ll see what happens.”

“Hard up for friends, aren’t you? C’mon, Dougie, we don’t need this.”

The Griffin brothers backed off and walked away, muttering. “Black bitch!”

“Bloody pansies and their hags!”

“Fools!” she snorted. “I’m hard up? They must be desperate.”

Virgil grinned, “Wow, Missy. I’m not scared of those jerks, but thanks!”

“Anytime,” she smiled, but then the grin turned into a frown. “Stop grinning at me, Fool!”

She went back to her work-station.

School finished for the day. Virgil, with Mac, Joyce, Fern and Dylan, walked out of the main gates. Joel was there, in the Chevy, parked across the road.

“Cool. I think I’ve got a ride home, Guys. See you later.” Virgil ran across the road and slid into the front passenger’s seat.

“Hey, Handsome. Waiting for me? Or are you just looking to pick-up a schoolboy in your very cool car?”

“Yea, I was hoping to pick-up a schoolboy,” Joel replied. “I could do with some loving. But I think you’ll do, there’s none better.”

“Shut up, Fool.”

“Fool?”

“Long story. C’mon, Joel, let’s get out of here. Everyone’s looking at us.”

“Your wish is my command.” Joel started the car. “Buckle-up, Kid. We’ll go for a drive up the coast.”

“Sounds good, but shouldn’t you be at work?”

“Not today. Uncle shut down early because he’s gone out for drinks with some people. So I’m free, my time is yours.”

“Cool. Let’s find a private place somewhere out of town.”

They drove away, north. More than a few envious looks, and a couple of baleful stares from the Griffin brothers, followed them.

Kaimoana Tales, Virgil again, 1

Virgil went to school. A new beginning in a new school. He was a bit nervous, but not a lot. He was bright enough to cope with the academics, that wouldn’t be a problem. He was fit enough for the sports and games, they wouldn’t be a problem either.

What he didn’t know was how was he going to get on with the people there? He hoped that he would. He’d been the outsider in a small school before and it was not nice.

If he didn’t? Well, it wouldn’t be the end of the world. He was 2 years older now and a lot more confident than last time he’d made a new beginning. If they didn’t like him, well – tough! He’d like to make some new friends, but wouldn’t care that much if he didn’t.

He had a brilliant life at home anyway. His mum loved him, his gran loved him, and then there was Joel. Joel was the cutest, handsomest, sexiest, lovingest boy ever and he loved him totally. (Lovingest?) As long as he had Joel he’d be happy and never need anyone else – ever!

Joel was the best and he was his mate. How cool was that? Very, very, very cool.

So, he was feeling pretty good and hardly nervous at all when he walked into the school grounds. His mum left him to go to a staff meeting and meet her new colleagues. It was still early. He wouldn’t be making a habit of coming in with her. It was not that far to walk anyway, and it was all downhill, sort of. Maybe he’d just hitch a ride on wet days.

Someone opened the doors so he went inside, found his locker and sorted his books for the day. There was still hardly anyone around, so he went back outside to wander around, get his bearings and check this place out. It looked okay.

People started arriving in groups and pairs. Everyone was looking, but no-one spoke to him. They just looked, checking him out. He sat down on one of the low bench seats by the netball court, looked back at the growing crowd and checked them out too.

“Hello, Virgil Cain, what d’you think of it so far?”

He looked up at a teenage girl and boy and stood up. “Looks okay, I guess. How do you know my name?”

“Oh, I know everything,” the boy grinned. “I can read your mind you know.”

“Shut it, Dork! You can not!” She hit him, lightly, on his shoulder.

Well, it looked like a light smack, but he fell about, clutching his arm and moaning.

“Ow. Ow, Ow! Boyfriend abuse! Boyfriend abuse!”

“Shut up, Mac. You’ll live.”

“You’re a brutal, brutal woman, Jocelyn Archer.”

“You ain’t seen nothing yet.”

They grinned at each other.

“Now shut your trap. I’m trying to talk to the new boy. Hello. It is Virgil, isn’t it? Cool. Welcome to Kaimoana High. I’m Jocelyn and this idiot is Bryan MacSweeney, we call him Mac, among other things.”

“Idiot? You’re a hard woman. First you beat me up and now you’re abusing me. Dunno why I let you love me.”

“Because you adore me, and you know you do. Now pipe down before he decides that we’re all idiots here. What d’you think, Virgil?”

“Looks all right. But how did you know my name?”

“Told you – I read your mind”

“Mac! You did not. He saw it written on your locker. Mac’s got the one next to yours, he’s your neighbour.”

“Yeah, a new name on the locker, a new kid in school, not hard to put two and two together.”

Oh, I see. You’re not a total idiot then.”

“Not at all. I’m a genius really. Just don’t tell Joyce that, don’t want her getting an inferiority complex.”

“Inferior? I would have a complex if I was!”

“She loves me really. So where are you from, Virgil, and why didn’t you stay there?”

“We’re from Tiroroa, kind of, and I came here to steal your girl away.” Virgil grinned in case they thought he was serious.

“Steal her? You can have her if you think you can handle her!”

“Handle me? I’ll handle you!”

“Promises, promises.”

Virgil laughed. He liked these two. They looked at him, looked at each other and they laughed too. Life was looking good. The three of them sat chatting in the sunshine and waiting for school to begin.

“Hello,” Joss said. “You’re not the only new kid here today.’

“Who’re you talking about?” Mac looked around. “Whoah. Talk about your interesting people!”

A Maori girl walked past them. She was very dark-skinned, very ‘maori’ in her features and she had a spectacular mane of black, unruly hair that spilled halfway down her back. Everyone there was giving her a wide berth as she stalked through the school.

She was a striking-looking girl, but the most arresting thing about her was not the looks but the attitude. She was scowling and glaring at everyone, they could almost see the waves of anger coming off her.

She spotted the three white kids sitting there looking at her and she stopped, tossed her hair and demanded, “What are you Niggas looking at?”

Virgil stood up. “I don’t know about these guys, but I know what I’m looking at.”

“What then?”

“I’m looking at a rather spectacular, very beautiful, Maori girl.”

“No you’re not. You’re looking at me.”

“Yeah, that’s what I said. You look stunning. I’m Virgil. I’m new here too. It’s a bit scary being all alone in a new school, isn’t it? These are Joss and Mac, do you want to sit here with us?”

“I don’t care who the fuck they are. I don’t sit with no honkies. And I ain’t scared of nothing. I don’t need no pretty white boys telling me that I’m scared. You can shut the fuck up and stop looking at me.”

“Oh – kay.” Virgil held up his open hands and sat down again. “But you do look good. What’s your name?”

“None of your bloody business!” She tossed her head and walked away.

However, she only went a few steps and she stopped and looked back. “Missy,” she said. “You can call me Missy.”

“Okay. Missy it is then. Nice to meet you, Missy.”

“Nice? I don’t do nice. Shut up Nigga.” She walked away, continuing her progress through the school and scaring everybody.

“Whoah! Awesome,” Mac grinned.

“Yeah, scary stuff,” Joss agreed.

“No she’s not,” Virgil said. “She’s just a kid all alone in a new school and that’s not nice, I know. Thanks Guys, for coming and talking to me. You make it easier.”

“You’re welcome. You’re a nice guy. We might as well be friends seeing as we’re all neighbours,” Jocelyn replied.

“All neighbours?”

“Yeah. Mac has got the locker next to yours and I live across the street from you, in Fife Avenue.”

“You do? Hello Neighbour. We’ve been here for a couple of weeks. I haven’t seen you around.”

“I’ve been away, on holiday. I just got back yesterday. I’ve seen you. Who’s the hunky boy hanging around with you, is he your brother?”

“That’s Joel. We’re not brothers, we’re mates. I haven’t got any brothers.”

“No brothers? You can have some of mine if you like. I’ve got 4 brothers and that’s far too many.”

“And that’s why she’s a tomboy,” Mac grinned.

“A tomboy? Shut it, Mac. You’ve got all sisters, what does that make you?”

“Oh you’re mean! I’m the man of the house, you know that.”

“Dream on, Sister!”

The teachers arrived and the school year began. Virgil spent most classes sitting with Mac. At lunchtime they introduced him to more of their friends and he found that he was easily accepted into their crowd. He was going to like it there. It was a friendly place.

The only sour note in his day was the maori girl, Missy. She was alone all day and he didn’t like that. He knew what it was like to be all alone in a new school – not nice. He made a point of smiling and speaking to her whenever he could. She didn’t answer, except once when her response was, “Shut up Fool.”

Missy seemed to be intent on keeping everyone at a distance. If looks could kill, there would’ve been a massacre there that day.

After school, he walked home with Mac and Joyce, Kelly Smith and Megan Solomon. The others dropped off, one by one, until there was just him and Joyce left. They stood talking in the street outside their houses.

“Man, I so need a drink! Coke’s great for waking you up at the end of a hard day. You want to come over to our place? Meet the family and have a coke, if there’s any left?”

“No. thanks but no thanks. I’ve met enough new people for one day. It’s going to take me weeks to get all their names right. Why don’t you come and have a coke with me? We’ve got plenty.”

“Yeah, let’s do that,” Joyce grinned.

Virgil led the way inside. Gran wasn’t there, who knew where she’d be? He got out glasses and a bottle and they sat at the table.

“You sure a girl’s safe all alone with you?”

“Yes, of course you are. Perfectly safe. Am I safe alone with you?”

“Well, today you are.”

They grinned at each other.

“Mac’s your boyfriend, right?”

“He is. I quite like him really. Don’t tell him I said that.”

“Probably wouldn’t believe me anyway. Mac’s a good guy.”

“He’s the best. Have you got a girlfriend?”

“No way. Joss, umm. I’d rather that everyone didn’t know, but if we’re going to be friends, I think you should. I’m gay. I’m gay and I’ve got a boyfriend, so you’re totally safe with me.”

“I see. Thanks for telling me. I won’t tell anyone. I’ll just put a note in the Chronicle, that’s the community newspaper you know.”

“You wouldn’t!”

“No, not really. You’re cool, Virgil. We’ll be friends.”

They sat sipping their drinks and thinking. Joyce broke the silence.

“It’s Joel, isn’t it? He’s your boyfriend.”

“Well, yeah! Joel’s my boy.”

“Oh you lucky Beggar! He’s gorgeous.”

“He is and he’s even more beautiful on the inside. I love him to bits and he loves me too and I know that I’m lucky.”

“Very cool. Romeo and Romeo.”

“Oh yeah!”

The drinks were finished, she didn’t want another.

“No, ta. Time that I was getting home. I’ll see you tomorrow. Are you walking to school?”

“I am. Mum goes in too early, so I’m walking.”

“Cool. I’ll walk with you. I’ll come and pick you up about quarter past eight, okay?”

“Very okay. Thanks, Joss and thanks for talking to me today. I think I’m gonna like it here.”

“Yeah, it’s a pretty cool town. You’ll fit in well. See you in the morning.”

When she arrived home, Virgil’s mum was well pleased to hear how his first day had gone.

“You won’t be burning this school down then?”

“No. I don’t think I’ll need to.”

“Glad to hear it. Will Joel be here for dinner?”

“Twenty-seven, Mum.”

“Twenty-seven? What does that mean?”

“It means that if you ask a stupid question, you’ll get a stupid answer. Of course Joel will be here for dinner. He’ll be wanting to know how my first day went.”

When Joel arrived, in the Chevy, he was delighted to hear about Virgil’s day.

“That’s good, my Boy. Really good. If you have any trouble, call me and I’ll come running.”

“I know you will, and thanks, but I’d rather handle it myself, if I can. It doesn’t look like there’ll be any trouble anyway. This is a cool school.”

“Well, good! But just remember the rule – anyone hassles Virgil, I kill them.”

“If I don’t get to them first,” Natasha said. “Virgil Cain, if you break up with this boy again, I’ll bloody murder you.”

“Not going to happen, Mum. Not ever.”

“Never,” Joel agreed.

“See that it doesn’t.” Natasha liked to have the last word.

However, this time, Virgil did. “My Mum’s a bit in love with you, Joel,” he grinned.

“Shut up!”

“Shut up, Virgil.”

The trouble started before he even got to school the following morning.

Kaimoana Tales, Riley 10

(Here we go. This is going to be the last of Riley, for a while - it's getting longer & longer and i've got other stuff i want to get posted - a bit out of order, but - whatever.)

Some days are longer than others. The hours pass, but slowly. Riley tried, but he just couldn’t get into school that day; not even the socializing, which is the important part. He so did not want to be there.

He thought seriously about ditching, at lunchtime, but didn’t – he’d suffer the day out. Tammy had said to come back after school; the cave-boy would be busy until then.

He must’ve been asked a hundred times about the cave-boy he’d found. News travels fast in a small town. Even Ashton, and his fans, came over to ask him about it. He was as mystified as anyone about where the boy had came from.

Riley looked hard at Ashton, but he couldn’t see the hurt in him that Peter saw. He looked happy enough to him Who wouldn’t want to be Ashton Woods? Peter was either very perceptive, or he was dreaming. Riley thought that he was probably dreaming.

Finally! The school-day was over and he was outta there! He didn’t go home and didn’t go near the café, in case his mum slowed him down. He went straight up the hill to the hospital.

He walked in and there was a different lady at the desk. He didn’t know her, but she knew who he was.

“Hello, Riley. You’re a welcome sight. We’ve been waiting for you.”

“You have? Good, I guess.”

“Yes. Doctor Stevens wants to talk to you. He’s in his office there; I’ll tell him that you’re here.”

She called him on the intercom. A door opened and Doctor Stevens looked out. “Ah, Riley. There you are. I want a word with you. Come in here for a minute.”

Riley went into the small office, the doctor sat back at his desk and waved him to the visitor’s chair. “Sit down there, make yourself comfortable and don’t look so worried.”

(‘Worried? I’m not worried, am I? I’ve done nothing.’)

“Now, it’s about our patient, of course – the cave-boy.”

“The cave-boy, yes. How is he, Doctor?”

“He’ll be fine. Well, physically he will be. I’m a bit concerned about his mental state.”

“Why? What’s he done?”

“Oh, he hasn’t done anything, he just lies there. The boy is terrified, he’s nearly catatonic. He eats, if someone spoon-feeds him, but he won’t do anything for himself. And, oh, those eyes! Do you have any idea who he is?”

“No, I don’t. I’ve never seen him before yesterday.”

“It seems like no-one’s ever seen him, including the police and the welfare people. They know nothing of him. We haven’t been able to get a word out of him all day. Did he speak to you at all, when you found him?”

“No, he didn’t. He didn’t say anything, just whimpered and ran away.”

“Oh, I see.”

“No, wait, he did! He said one word, he said my name. I said, Hi, I’m Riley, and stuff, he looked at me, he said, “Riley’, and then he ran away – up on to the road and in front of a car. I thought I’d killed him.”

“You didn’t kill anyone. You didn’t chase him, he ran.”

“I did chase him, in a way. I ran after him.”

“Of course you did. But, he did say your name?”

“Yes, he definitely did. Is that good?”

“I think so. It’s more than he’s said to anyone else. So at least we know that he can talk, he just won’t. Maybe he’ll talk to you”

“I’ll try. I’ll do whatever I can.”

“Of course you will, and that’s good. Be gentle with him, the boy’s terrified. I really hope that you can get through to him. He’s in Ellis Ward, Julia, on the desk, will show you where. Thank you, Riley.”

“Thank you, Doctor. Thanks for looking after him.”

“We’ll do whatever we can too.”

Julia took him in to the ward. It was a nice room, for a hospital. It was warm, bright and open. The big windows looked out from the front, over the roof-tops of the town and out to sea. There were 4 beds in there, but only one was occupied.

Dressed in green-striped hospital pajamas, a very handsome youth, with short, dark-red hair, lay there looking out the windows. It took Riley a few seconds to realise that this was the same boy he’d seen yesterday. The youth turned his head to look at him and, yes, it was definitely him – he’d know those eyes anywhere. He didn’t look at all like a cave-boy now, he looked good.

“Hey,” he smiled widely. “Remember me? I’m Riley.”

The boy didn’t say anything, but he still had that frightened look in his big eyes. That said a lot. He turned back to the windows again.

He reminded Riley of a small, wild animal, trapped and yearning to be free. Damm! This was a beautiful boy. He was different, but he was just as cute as Peter or Ashton, or any boy that Riley had ever seen. But he was not happy. The poor kid!

His skin was amazingly clear, considering the state that they’d found him in. His hands and feet had cuts and scratches, angry and infected looking, but there wasn’t a blemish on his face. No zits at all.

His face was pale, white and almost translucent looking, and he had red hair! Gingas were not always good-looking, but when they were, they were gorgeous – like this one. He was stunning. Riley would never have recognized him if it wasn’t for those eyes.

The more he looked, the more he liked what he was looking at. Someone said that you don’t love someone because they’re beautiful, they’re beautiful because you love them. If that was true, Riley thought he must be in love already! Gorgeous boy.

But, much as he’d like to, he couldn’t sit there staring all day.

“So, my name is Riley. No, we’ve already done that. You know my name but I don’t know yours. What can I call you?”

He waited, but there was no answer.

“No? I’ve got to call you something. I think I’ll call you ‘Ron’, like Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter movies, you know? No? Well he’s got red hair too, and he’s good-looking. Not as good looking as you though.”

The boy’s eyes fixed on him again and Riley smiled. He still said nothing, but it felt like they were getting somewhere.

“Welcome to Kaimoana, Ron. It’s a cool town. I’ve only been here for a few days and I thought that I was going to hate it here, but I don’t, I like it. Really like it. Everyone’s friendly. We came from Auckland, where did you come from?

No? Okay then. What else? I’m sorry if I scared you yesterday; I didn’t mean to. I’m not scary at all really. More like a wimp.

It was a bugger that you got hit by that car, and the bastards didn’t even stop to see what they’d done to you. But, the nurses all say that it was, kind-of, a good thing that it happened. Because of that, you’re in here now and you’ve been really sick.

But, I s’pose that you know that. You probably don’t want to be in here; I know that I wouldn’t, but this is the best place for you to be right now. Everyone just wants to look after you and help you to get well. You’ll get good food too.

Damm! You’re thin. They’ll fatten you up a bit. Hospital food is not as bad as people say it is – it couldn’t be!

I live in a café, the Craypot Café, down on the main street. There’s just my mum and me there, and the staff, but they don’t live there, they just work there. So do we really, we live in a house up at the back. Anyway, if there’s any food, or anything that you want, let me know and I’ll get it for you. Okay?

Damm, Ron. I’m starting to burble here. This is hard work, talking when you don’t answer me. I wish that you would.

I’ve got your skin cloak thing, they cut it off you, so I took it home and I’ll look after it for you. I wish that you’d talk to me. Tell me to shut up, why don’t you?”

A fleeting smile flicked over the boy’s face and Riley’s heart sang.

“Cool! You are listening, aren’t you? I can talk enough for both of us, but I wish that I didn’t have to.

I just want to be your friend, Ron. All day today, I’ve been wishing that I could be here, but I had to go to school. I’m here now, at last, but I can’t stay too long. I’ve gotta get back and help Mum in the café.

She works me like a dog, but I get paid for it, so that’s all good. I’m saving every cent I make, I want to buy a car. Haven’t got my licence yet, but I’m working on it.

Ashton Woods – he’s a rich kid and he’s like the coolest kid in town – he’s got a bloody Beamer! Imagine that. He got it for his birthday. I wish that I would, but don’t like my chances. Still, any car would be better than none, eh?

Oh, damm! This is hard work. I could tell you my whole life story – I was born at a very young age. But, I’d rather hear something about you. You must’ve had an interesting life.”

Riley was there for an hour, jabbering away, almost non-stop. The only quiet times were when he paused and thought of something else to say. The hospital staff kept looking in and smiling encouragement, but it seemed that he was getting nowhere.

Finally, he had to go, he had work to go to. On impulse, he took the boy’s hand and squeezed it. The boy squeezed back, turned those frightened eyes on him, and he smiled!

“Wow! Thanks. Listen, Kid, you don’t say much, but I still like you. I’ve been talking your ear off here; you’ll be getting sick of me. I’ll give you a rest now, I’ve gotta go.

The café has to be cleaned-up and got ready for another day tomorrow. So, thanks for listening to me. I’ll come back and talk at you again tomorrow. Okay? No? Well, ‘bye Ron, I hope you have a good night.”

He squeezed the hand again and put it back on the bed. He got up and walked away. When he got to the door, the boy coughed. Riley looked back and smiled.

“You know, that’s the most noise you’ve made all day.”

The boy said, “Riley.”

Riley beamed and went back to the bed. “Yes! Great! You know my name, I wish that I knew yours.”

“Jacob,” he replied.

“Jacob? Ohmigosh! Jacob is your name?”

A tear ran down the quiet boy’s cheek and he shook his head vigorously. “No,” he said. “My name is Colin. Where is Jacob?”

“You’re Colin? But who is Jacob?”

“He’s not here?”

“No, there’s no Jacob here.”

“My brother. Jacob is my brother. He was out there and he’s much sicker than I was. He might die; I can not look after him and he might die.”

The boy, Colin, was crying and Riley stood staring.

“Ohmigod. You’ve got a brother? There’s another one??”

Colin nodded and said, “Yes.”

Riley stood, stunned. He backed away slowly, and then he turned and ran out of the door, screaming, “Doctor! Doctor Stevens!!!”

Kaimoana Tales, Riley 9

(That line in the distance is the Peninsular. South Bay is on this side, the town on the other.)

At first he thought that there was no-one at home again, but there was. The de Groots’ small house was all in darkness, but there were some chinks of light showing and the chimney was smoking, so they had the fire going.

There was no door at the front of the house, so he had to go around to the back. It was really dark back there with the lush gardens all around and the dark, steep hill rearing up behind.

He stopped by the door and wondered whether this was a good idea, maybe he should come back tomorrow? But the outside light came on, the door opened and Mrs. de Groot looked out.

“Oh,” she smiled. “It’s you, Riley. Have you come to see Peter? Come on in.”

She was obviously getting ready to go to bed. Her hair was tied-up and she had a dressing-gown on.

“Hello Mrs. de Groot. I’m sorry, I didn’t realise that it was getting so late. I don’t want to disturb you; I’ll come back tomorrow.”

“Don’t be silly, Riley It is not that late and you’re not disturbing us. It’s lovely to see you. Come in.”

“Well, okay, thanks. I’ll just stay a few minutes.”

“You stay as long as you like. Peter is in bed, but he is not sleeping, just reading his book.”

She stepped out of the way and Riley could see Peter grinning at him from his cot-bed at the far side of the room.

“Riley! Hey,” he beamed a welcoming smile.

“Hey, Peter.” Riley stepped into the warm, cosy and cluttered room. “How’s it going?”

“I’m good. Really good. Come and sit here with me.”

As he walked in, from the side of his eye, he noticed Mrs. de Groot putting a small baseball bat into its keeping place by the door. He thought, ‘Whoah! I wouldn’t want to mess with this old lady!’

“That was very good timing, the kettle is just boiling.” She went to get the kettle from its rack above the open-fire. “I will make us a drink. Would you like a hot chocolate, Riley?”

“Yes, thanks. That’d be great.”

He stepped over and sat on the end of Peter’s bed. He took a minute to look around the room. It was a big room for a little old house. It ran all the way from the back-wall to the front one and was probably half the floor area of the entire house. It was warm. A big driftwood fire blazed in the open fireplace and the floor was covered in rugs and scraps of carpet.

Heavy green velvet curtains covered the windows and there was hardly a bare space anywhere in the room. There were hundreds of books and old magazines everywhere, hundreds of ornaments, miniature paintings and scenic posters on the walls.

The kitchen area, a wooden sink-bench, cupboards, shelves, racks, a wood-burning stove as well as an incongruously new electric range, stood by the back-wall. There were only 2 chairs at the wooden kitchen table.

Peter’s bed, surrounded by book shelves and a writing desk, was against the front-wall.

It was all very old looking, cluttered but clean, warm, cosy and inviting. It was a nice room.

“So, Peter, do you, umm, always sleep in the living-room?”

“I do. I always have, ever since I graduated from the cradle. There is only one bedroom, so Mother and Father have that and I sleep here.”

“And you don’t mind that?”

“I don’t mind, I like it. We could put a curtain up, but it’s better like this. It’s nice to lie in bed and watch the fire when I’m going to sleep.”

This boy fascinated Riley. He had nothing and he was perfectly happy with that. One thing he did have though, his mother obviously loved him very much. That had to be worth a lot.

“You’re not still doing schoolwork at this hour of the day, are you?”

“No, Riley. This is not schoolwork, it’s just a novel. Mrs. Braidwood lets me have as many books as I want, from the town library. It’s funny, she says that I’m her best customer, but she never charges me for anything, which is good.”

“Yeah, that’s good,” Riley nodded.

Mrs. de Groot said, “Mrs. Braidwood is a good lady and she knows a good boy when she sees one. Librarians like to see people reading.”

“I guess they do. It keeps them in a job.”

Peter said, “Oh, she doesn’t get paid at the library, it’s just voluntary. She does it for love.”

“Yeah?” Riley mused. “There are some good people around. It seems to me that you’re surrounded by love, Peter.”

“As he should be. As he should be.” Mrs. de Groot came over and handed them mugs of steaming hot-chocolate drinks. “Peter is a very good boy and everybody who knows him, loves him.”

“Mother, don’t!” Peter blushed as only a fair-skinned blond can.

“Don’t yourself, Peter. That is true.” She went back for a plate of baking for them.

“So,” Riley took a piece of cake. He was famished, he just remembered that he’d had no dinner. “I came around to see you, but you weren’t home. Where did you get to?”

“We took a picnic-tea and ate on the beach, by the highway near South Bay. Father was passing through, driving a truck for his work, he didn’t have much time so we met him and shared a meal out there. It was nice to see him even if it was just for a few minutes.”

“Yeah, that’d be good. But how did he let you know that he was coming? You don’t have a phone.”

“He emails me at the library. I’ve got a free account on the computer there.”

“You have? Cool. What’s your addy”

“My addy?”

“Yeah, your email address. I could send you messages too.”

“That’d be good. I’m at peterdeg@gmail.com. What is your address?”

“I’ll send you a note, and then you’ll know. But it must’ve been cold, picnicking on the beach in the evening? It’s not quite Summer yet.”

“It’s almost Summer. We had warm clothes and we lit a fire on the beach. It was great! We took the hand-cart out there too, so we brought a load of driftwood home for the fire.”

“You bring your firewood home from the beach?”

“Yeah! It’s free and it’s good exercise too.”

“I suppose that it is. I wouldn’t want to do it though. Pushing a cart of beachwood through the streets would be embarrassing.”

“We do what we have to, Riley. You get used to it.”

“I don’t think I ever would.”

“A dollar saved is a dollar earned, Riley,” Mrs. de Groot interrupted. “Have you seen the price of firewood? I will leave you in peace, Boys. I’m taking my supper to bed. Don’t talk all night and, Peter, lock the door when Riley leaves.”

“I will. Goodnight, Mother.”

“Goodnight, Mrs. de Groot. Thanks for the supper.”

“You’re very welcome. It is always nice to see you. Goodnight, Boys.” She went into her room and closed the door.

Riley grinned at Peter. “Want to fool around?”

“You know that I don’t, Riley.”

“I do. Dammit. I do like your mother. She’s different but she’s nice.”

“She is. I love my parents, they are very good people. What have you been up to? Haven’t you made any friends yet?”

“Yes, I’ve made some friends, I think, but the best one is you. I really want to be your friend, Peter.”

“Thanks. I want to be yours too.’

“Then you will be!”

“Good. Have you met Ashton yet?”

“Yes, I’ve met Ashton Woods. He’s a really cool kid. He surprised me actually. He’s got everything, including good looks, but he’s a nice guy. He should be up himself, but he’s not.”

“Ashton is nice. There’s more to him than people think. He’s not very happy on the inside.”

“He’s not? How do you know that?”

“I just know. I look and I see. Ashton has a hurt, deep inside him.”

“You think? I don’t see that. Hell, if I was Ashton Woods, I’d be very happy. He’s even got a bloody Beamer!”

“Yes. His parents bought the BMW for his birthday. They like to show how rich they are.”

“They must do. But, how do you know about it? You don’t go anywhere or talk to anyone.”

“I watch, from the outside. People have been talking about it on Facebook.”

“You read kids’ Facebook pages?”

“I do. Facebook and Bebo. It’s the only sort of social life that I get. I don’t talk though, I just read.”

“Ah, Peter! We’ve really got to do something about your life.”

“My life is okay. It is what it is, and it’s better than it was – at least I’ve got one friend now.”

“You have. You’ve got a friend who likes you very, very, much.”

“So have you, Riley. Very much. What else have you been doing?”

“Not a lot. Oh, I met a caveman today.”

“You did not!”

“Oh, but I did! I met a real live caveman, or a caveboy, I think.”

“But how could you? There are no cavemen, are there?”

“There’s at least one. I put him in the hospital.”

“You what? Riley, tell me what happened!”

Peter sat wide-eyed, and listened while Riley told him about his encounter with the strange boy. He had no more idea about who he’d be than Riley did.

“You’ll have to come and meet him. He’s got incredible eyes, I’ve never seen anything like them.”

“It sounds like he made quite an impression on you.”

“He did, and he scared the life out of me. I’ve gotta find out more about him, and I will.”

“I’m sure that you will. It’s not everyday that you meet a wild-boy.”

“It’s not! Everyone’s interesting, but some are even more so.”

“Like Ashton.”

“Well, yeah, like Ashton. You really like him, don’t you?”

“I love him.”

(‘Damm! You poor kid.’)

Riley didn’t stay much longer. They cleaned-up the plate of supper, Riley ate most of it – he was hungry, Peter wasn’t, and then he said that he’d better be getting home.

“It is a schoolnight, and if I don’t show up soon, Mum’ll be sending out search parties.”

Peter got out of bed, looking oh-so-gorgeous in his skimpy shortie-pyjamas, and stepped across to see him out of the door. He didn’t have a boner – Riley checked.

“Goodnight, Riley. Thank you for coming to see me.”

“It’s always a pleasure to see you. Can I have a hug?”

“A hug? Sure, why not?”

They stood in the open doorway and hugged comfortably. Riley whispered into his ear. “I love you, Peter.”

“Thanks. I love you too, as a friend.”

(‘Dammit!’)

They said goodnight and Riley went home to eat and go to bed. He did like this town – so many interesting and gorgeous boys! Was he ever going to get one of his own?

Kaimoana tales, Riley 8

(lol. Hey Tracy & Kathy)

They arrived and parked outside Kaimoana’s small hospital. The trip in took forever in Riley’s view, but it wasn’t that long really. The hospital was conveniently sited on the side of the highway on the hill down into the town.

They hurried inside, Riley led the way, and stopped short when they saw the lady at the reception desk smile at them. Mrs. S. soon recovered and walked over.

“My Lord! For a minute there, I thought that you were Betty. Betty Stone works with us in the café. You surely do look like her.”

“I’ve been told that before,” the lady smiled. “Maybe it’s because we’re sisters. I’m Alice Kersten, you must be Dianne and Riley Sullivan.”

“Yes, that’s us. The resemblance is quite amazing. Are you twins?”

“No, just sisters. I’m the oldest. I suppose you’ve come in about the boy you found on the road?”

“Yes, of course.”

“How is he?” Riley burst out. “Is he going to be okay?”

“We don’t know yet; they’re still working on him in there. But I can tell you this, things don’t look too bad. The most serious cases are flown straight to Christchurch and no-one’s talking about that. Not yet anyway.”

“I hope it stays that way,” his mum said. “I understand that you have some forms to complete. I don’t know how much help we’re going to be; we don’t even know the boy’s name. He’s a complete stranger to us.”

“He’s a stranger to everyone. He’s definitely not from around here or someone would’ve recognized him. Maybe he fell out of a car?”

“No, it wasn’t like that,” Riley said. “He was in Geese Bay, down by the shore. I found him there and he ran away from me, up on to the highway. He ran out in front of a car, it hit him and he flew through the air and – damm! I thought I’d killed him.”

“No, you haven’t killed him. He’s going to be fine. Actually, Doctor says that the injuries from the accident are the least of his problems. He got some bumps and he’s going to have some spectacular bruises, but it doesn’t look like there are any broken bones or anything. He was very lucky.”

“So it would seem,” Mrs. S. agreed. “You don’t know what else is wrong with him?”

“Not really, no. My guess would be that he’s severely malnourished – suffering from lack of nutrition. He’s been living rough, obviously, and every little wound has become infected.”

“The state of him wouldn’t be helping that.”

“It wouldn’t. Basically, the boy’s a mess. Whoever’s been looking after him hasn’t been doing a very good job.”

“He might’ve run away from a circus or something,” Riley said.

“I doubt that. Any circus that treated its livestock like that wouldn’t be in business for long. Besides, he’s not an animal, he’s a boy, a boy in a mess. The poor kid!”

“He might have been a wild-man in a sideshow or something. He couldn’t really be a caveman, could he?”

“No, of course he couldn’t. There’s caves out there but there are no cavemen. Let’s get these forms filled in as well as we can, shall we?”

They completed what they could of the paperwork, and then Mrs. S. said that she had to be getting back to the café.

“Life goes on, Riley. We can’t just sit here all night.”

“Maybe you can’t, but I can. I’m not leaving, Mum. I have to know what happens to him.”

“Okay then, suit yourself. But at least come home and eat. You can come back later.”

“I’m not going home, I’m not hungry.”

“Not hungry? Really? I think that the doctor should have a look at you too.”

“Mum! I’m just not hungry. I’ll eat when I get home.”

“I’m sure you will. Don’t be all night then.”

He wasn’t waiting for too long. The doctor and 2 nurses came out and went through to the back somewhere. The doctor just grunted at him and kept walking, but one of the nurses stopped.

“Hello there. Are you the one who found our Jungle-boy?”

“That’s me. I’m Riley. Is he going to be all right?”

“He’s going to be fine, no worries. The biggest job was cleaning him up and that’s not finished yet. We haven’t even started on that hair yet. He’s a lucky kid.”

“Everyone keeps saying that he’s lucky, but he’s not. He isn’t! He got hit by a bloody car and it was my fault that he did. That’s not lucky.”

“Oh, but it was. Okay, it was not much fun getting run-over, but it could’ve been a lot worse. There’s no broken bones and hardly any injuries at all. However, the accident caused him to be brought in here and he’s got a lot of other problems that need seeing to. If he hadn’t been hit and went on the way he’s been going, he wouldn’t have lasted much longer.”

“Wouldn’t have lasted? Do you mean that he’s dying?”

“He might have. He’s a sick boy. But now he’s in the right place where we can look after him.”

“You will, won’t you? Look after him, I mean.”

“Of course we will, Riley. That’s what we do here. He’ll get the best of care. Doctor Stevens has got a soft-spot for boys around that age.”

“He has? Why? He’s not gay, is he?”

“No,” she laughed. “He’s not gay. He had son who died of leukemia at 14, so he hates seeing any kids get ill and he’ll move heaven and earth to help them.”

“Well, that’s – yeah – I guess that’s good, in a way.”

“In a way, yes. So, you see your friend there couldn’t have come to a better place. We’ll clean him up, clean him out and fill him up with antibiotics and drugs to fight the infections. What he needs most of all is a proper diet and he’ll get that too.”

“There was an awful lot of blood on him.”

“There was, but most of it is not his. He must’ve been butchering some animal. It’ll wash off.”

“Oh, that’s good. He’s not my friend, you know. I don’t even know him.”

“I don’t imagine that that will last for very long. You’re obviously very upset by all of this. He’s sleeping now and will be for quite a while. Go home, Riley. Go home and get some rest. You can come back and see him tomorrow, we’ll have him looking a bit more presentable by then.”

“I, umm, yeah. I will then. I’ll come back in the morning.”

“No, not in the morning. If he’s awake, which I doubt, we’ll be busy working on him. You can come back after school, he’s not going anywhere.”

“After school? Okay, I will. Can I have a look at him before I go?”

“Well, we shouldn’t, but okay. What harm can it do? Just for a minute; come through here.”

“Thank you, Nurse. Thanks for everything.”

“You’re welcome, Riley. Call me Tammy, that’s my name, not Nurse.”

“Thanks, Tammy. My name is Riley.”

“I know that,” she smiled.

He was a pathetic sight, lying on the bed in the recovery room. Riley gulped and tears welled-up as he stood looking down at him. Which was stupid, but he couldn’t help it – the boy looked so small and vulnerable. It was not fair! Kids should not get into a state like that. It was not right. Where was his family?

“Are you all right, Riley?” Tammy broke the silence.

“Yeah, I’m fine thanks. I’m good, but he’s not.”

“It’s not as bad as it looks. The monitors are just to keep an eye on him. The drip in his arm is a saline solution to get some nutrients and antibiotics into him, plus a little something to relax him and keep him sleeping.”

“What have you done to his hair?”

“Nothing yet. It’s just tied back to keep it out of the way. It’s a mess and it’s going to have to come off. We’ll get a hairdresser in to do that and make a decent job of it.”

“That’s good. But, what are all the purple patches, bruises?”

“No, they’re not. Not much anyway. It’s mostly just stains from the disinfectant swabs. It’ll wash off. Don’t worry, he’ll be fine and he’s in good hands. If I was ill, this is where I’d want to be. You go home and get some food in you and try to get a good night’s sleep.”

“I will. I’ll try to anyway. Thanks, Tammy. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“We’ll be here, so we’ll see you then – after school.”

“Yeah, bye.”

Riley left the hospital, but he didn’t go home. He went the other way to go and see the other boy he’d been worrying about – Peter.

Kaimoana Tales, Riley 7

The caveman was not huge, it was no bigger than Riley was. It was standing, bent forward, with the huge mop of tangled and dirty-looking dark hair hanging over its face. The arms and legs were bare, dirty, muddy and bloody, and it was clothed in something, a blanket? Made of skins and tied in place. Probably possum skins.

Whatever it was, it was filthy. It stunk and it was standing funny, like a monkey would stand, almost upright. Something was not right; it was breathing heavily and making small whimpering noises. This creature, whatever it was, was hurt and it was frightened.

Riley relaxed a bit. He didn’t know how he knew, but somehow he knew that it was even more scared than he was. He didn’t relax too much though. Even the most timid animals will attack if they’re cornered.

But, it wasn’t an animal, was it? It was human; it must be. The skin, where he could see it, was totally hairless and it was pale. It was even whiter than he was. Not a maori then. But what the hell was it?

It couldn’t be a caveman, could it? No, of course it wasn’t. There were no such creatures and hadn’t been for a long, long time. Was someone making a movie?

There didn’t seem to be anyone else around. If this was an actor, it was a damm job make-up job, and a smelly one. But it had to be a person.

“Umm. Ah. . yeah. Hey, I’m Riley. Don’t be scared, I’m quite harmless really. I’m not going to hurt you. What’s wrong? You’re hurt, aren’t you? You’ve got a lot of blood on you.”

The figure’s head came up, a hand pushed the hair away from its face and Riley got an even bigger shock. The face was totally beardless. This was just a kid, a boy somewhere around Riley’s age and he had the most stunning eyes that he’d ever seen. They were big, round and frightened and they were an amazing, icy-blue, almost grey colour. Whoah!

Wow!

The figure, the boy, stood there, whimpering as he breathed. “Riley,” he said.

He looked to Riley’s right, and suddenly dashed past him to his left. He ran, with a weird crab-like motion, dragging one foot behind him, back up the beach and scrambled up the bank to the highway.

Riley shook his head, recovered from the shock and ran after him.

“Hey! Wait! It’s okay. It’s all right!”

He followed him up the bank of loose stones and reached the top just in time to see the panicked boy run out in front of a speeding car. The car braked and swerved, but it clipped him.

The boy’s limp body flew through the air and landed on the far side of the road. He lay there unmoving. The car didn’t even stop; it accelerated and disappeared down the road and through the tunnel.

“Bastards! Ohmigod! Ohmigod, OHMIGOD!!”

Riley ran across the highway and dropped to his knees next to him. Lord, he stunk! Had he killed him? Was he dead? No, not yet – he was still breathing and those amazing eyes were open and looking at him.

The eyes closed and he sighed and slumped. Damm! No – still breathing. What to do? What the hell was he going to do?

He felt like panicking himself. He got to his feet, lurched to the sea-side of the road and stood there crying and screaming. “Mum! Mum, come here!”

His mother looked back and smiled and waved at him.

“No! No, you stupid bitch! Mum, come here. Come here, MUM!”

She dropped the rod, came up the bank and hurried up the road towards him.

“What is it, Riley? This had better be important! What’s wrong?”

“Of course it’s fucking important! That boy over there – I think I’ve killed him!”

“Boy? What boy?”

He couldn’t speak, he was crying. He sobbed and waved his shaking hand at the other side of the road. She looked across.

“Oh, that boy. That’s a boy?”

Riley followed her back over to the limp figure on the side of the highway. She knelt down and looked closely at him.

“Yes, that’s a boy. Lord! What a stink. What happened, Riley?”

“A car! A car hit him and it didn’t even stop. I surprised him down by the water, He panicked and ran away, on the road and a car hit him. Oh God! Have I killed him, Mum?”

“No. No you haven’t killed him, he’s not dead.”

“Not yet! What are we going to do?”

“Settle down, Riley. There’s no point in you panicking as well.” She slapped her pockets, and then looked up. “Have you got your cell?”

“Yes! Yes, I’ve got my cell.” He slapped his own pockets. “Where is it? Here! Here’s my cell.” He fished his phone out of his pocket.

“That’s good. Now ring 111 – get an ambulance.”

“Yes, of course. 111. We need an ambulance. We need one now! I’ll get an ambulance.”

He was still crying, sobbing and shaking as he tried to use the phone.

“Oh, Riley! You’re useless. Give it here, I’ll do it.”

She took the cell from him and dialed.

“Come on, People! Where are you? Oh, hello, ambulance please. Thank you.”

A short wait seemed like hours, and then, “Hello? Hello, yes. We need an ambulance please. It’s very urgent. A boy has been hit by a car and he’s lying on the side of the road, unconscious but he’s still breathing.

What? Oh, yes, I’m in Geese Bay, just south of Kaimoana, near the road tunnels on State Highway 1.

This is Dianne Sullivan. Address? Craypot Café, Main Street, Kaimoana. No, I haven’t got a clue what the post-code is. Who cares? I’m calling from a cellphone. 021-371476. No, it’s not my own phone, it’s my son’s. That’s 371476. What does it matter whose fucking phone it is?

Look, Mister! I’m sitting here with an injured boy on the side of the road and he needs an ambulance, now! If this kid dies while you’re mucking around with your bloody paperwork, you are in more trouble than you can imagine. Get an ambulance out here!

No, we have not applied first-aid. There’s only my son and I here and we wouldn’t know where to start. Yes, of course we’ll wait here. Where’s that ambulance?

All right then. Thank you.”

Riley sat and looked at his mother with awe and admiration. She was generally a fairly quiet and unprepossessing sort of person, but when she was on her high-horse, look out! She was a lawyer too, before she decided that she’d had enough of that life and she’d bought the café. But she still knew which strings to pull. He grinned through his tears.

“What? What are you grinning at?”

“Nothing. Thanks, Mum. I’m glad that you’re my mother.”

“Yeah? So am I, sometimes. No, forget that – I’m always glad that I’m your mother and I always will be, no matter what. Don’t ever forget that.”

“Thanks, Mum. I love you too. Where’s this ambulance?

“They’re on their way. They’d bloody better be! We just have to wait. Who is this boy and why is he got-up like that?”

“I haven’t the faintest idea; I’ve never seen him before. Mum, he’s got the most amazing eyes! Incredible. It’s like an angel looking out from his grubby face.”

“An angel, is it?” She looked doubtfully at the injured boy on the ground. “I don’t think an angel ever looked, or smelled, like that one. And, here comes the ambulance. That was good timing.”

They could hear the wail of the approaching siren.

“I hope it was good enough.”

An ambulance came around the corner and Mrs. S. stood up to wave them down. Riley stayed sitting where he was. They pulled over, off the road, stopped and the driver and a medic jumped out.

“Is this the patient?” The driver asked, looking at Riley.

“No, not me,” he replied. “It’s this kid here. He’s hurt, a car hit him and I think he was injured before that. He was standing, and running, funny and he’s got blood all over him.”

“Oh, dear! What a mess. What’s he wearing? Possum skins? Is there a fancy-dress or something?”

“We don’t know,” Mrs. S. answered. “He was like that when Riley found him.”

“We’d better see what we can do then. Oh, Man! He stinks!”

“I think it’s coming from the skins.” Riley felt like he had to defend the Kid.

“Whatever’s causing it, he stinks.” The driver shook his head. “My poor ambulance is going to pong!”

“I’m sure it’s seen worse. Stop fanny-arsing about and see to the boy,” Mrs. Sullivan replied.

Riley and his mum stood well back and watched as the professionals did their work. They stripped the reeking cloak of skins off him. It was tied with strings of flax in several places. They had to cut it to get the skins off. They left the skins on the ground and flip-flopped the naked boy, to and fro, as they rolled him on to a stretcher.

They lifted it up and slid it on to the racks in the ambulance. The medic got in with him.

The driver said, “Mrs, ah, Sullivan, isn’t it? Can you and the lad come in to the hospital, please? I’m sorry, but the paperwork has to be done.”

“Of course it does. I’m quite aware of that. I’ll just collect-up my gear here, and we’ll follow you in to town.”

The ambulance turned around and sped back into town with the siren wailing again. Mrs. S. started back for her fishing gear.

“Mum, can’t we just leave that and go?”

“Don’t be silly, Riley. It makes no difference to him whether we’re there or not and I’m not just leaving my gear here. This stuff was expensive.”

“Okay then, but hurry!”

“I will, but not too much or you’ll have to get them back for me.” She went back to the rocks.

Riley stood waiting impatiently. He folded and rolled the skins up, for something to do. He took them to the car.

“What are you doing with that thing?” His mum came back and looked at the bundle he was holding.

“It’s his – the caveboy’s. We can’t leave it here. I’ll take it home with us.”

“Great! Now the car’s going to smell lovely. All right then, if you have to. Put it in the boot and don’t you leave it anywhere near my café.”

“I won’t. Can we go?”

“In just a minute. Patience, Riley.”

“Patience, what’s that?”

“Shut up, Riley.”

The skins went into the boot, on their own. She dismantled the fishing-rod and put all of her gear on the floor in the back. They got in, turned around and went back to town, to the hospital.

They didn’t have a siren. Riley wished that they did. He wanted to be there, now! It was odd, those eyes were haunting him.

“Damm, Mum. I so hope I haven’t killed him.”

“You haven’t killed anybody. It was an accident.”

“But it was my fault.”

“No. It was not.”

Kaimoana Tales. Riley 6

He was awake far too early in the morning. Bloody sunshine! Something was going to have to be done about the drapes in his room. They were big enough, they covered the windows and they were floor-length, but as far as blocking the light out went, they were useless!

Whoever chose the light colour of them was just dumb. Or, sadistic. Or a masochist.

(‘”Hurt me, hurt me!” said the masochist. “No”, said the sadist. Hah!’)

He was so not into any of that stuff and couldn’t understand people who were. All he wanted was some loving. He was just an ordinary boy – an ordinary, gay, boy.

Peter was a gay boy too! Not an ordinary one though; he was freakin’ gorgeous! Riley would so like a piece of Peter, but that wasn’t going to happen, was it? The dork was in love with Mr. Cool.

Riley could, kind of, understand that. Ashton Woods was a very cool kid, but, damm! He was totally out of Peter’s reach. He was at the top of the heap and Peter, apparently, was at the bottom. Somehow, he was going to have to make Peter see that his dream was impossible and he’d be better off with what he could have – which was Riley.

He’d be happy to be his friend, but he’d like more than that. The Kid was gorgeous.

And, what about this plan of the de Groots’? They’d been rich and now they lived like paupers and saved every cent so that they could be rich again. Oh yes? Wishing makes nothing happen. Sounded like Peter came from a family of dreamers.

He buried his head under the pillows and lay with his eyes shut tight, trying to go back to sleep. But it wasn’t happening, he was wide-awake now. He sighed, crawled out of bed and went for a shower. He’d have to do something about those blasted drapes.

His mother was already in the café kitchen when he went down there for a coffee. She looked around and smiled as she greeted him.

“Good morning, Riley. Lovely day, isn’t it?”

“No it’s not,” he grumbled and reached for the coffee. “Its way too early and the bloody sun is streaming through my windows.”

“Ah, you poor wee thing. Do you want some breakfast?”

“Yeah, I’ll have my usual – two strong coffees.”

“That’s not good enough. You need more than that.”

“No, I don’t. I can’t stand greasy food first thing in the mornings. You know that.”

“Greasy? You insulting my cooking, Boy? Have some cereal then, fruit and cereal, it’s better than nothing.”

“Coffee is not nothing and that’s all I’m having.”

“Please yourself then, you usually do. Listen, I’m going fishing this afternoon. Do you want to come with me?”

“Fishing? You? Since when do you go fishing?”

“I haven’t for years, but I used to do a lot when I was younger. Now we’re living here in the Seafood Capital of New Zealand, I thought that I’d take it up again. It’s good to have a hobby and it’ll be nice to get out in the fresh air for an hour or two. Are you going to come and keep me company?”

(Riley thought, ‘I know what hobby I want – Peter de Groot!’ But he couldn’t say that out loud.)

“Yeah, okay, I’ll come. It’ll be something to do. Where are we going?”

“Well, don’t be too enthusiastic! We’ll go down the coast a few K’s. I want to try fishing on the rocks, down by Geese Bay. Betty says that it’s a good spot, her husband goes there all the time.”

“Geese Bay? Okay, we’ll have a look. I’m not fishing though, just looking.”

“Suit yourself. But you should try it, it’s fun. Come straight home after school and we’ll get away for a couple of hours.”

“Beats working, I guess but I can think of much more fun things to do.”

(‘I’m not telling you what they are though!’)

He hung around for a while, hoping to see the girls on their way to school. But there was no sign of them and it was getting late, so he started walking on his own. It wasn’t far to go and he was almost there when a car came along behind him and tooted.

He looked around and grinned and waved. It was Ashton Woods, in his BMW, smiling and waving to him. The car didn’t stop, just cruised past and turned the corner in to the school. There was no room for him in there anyway, as well as the driver, it was full of girls.

One of them he recognized, it was Fern. ‘Wow, Fern, maybe your dreams will come true. Good luck to you, he’s a nice kid, and rich.

‘Fancy having a Beamer to go to school in. Lucky Sod! That boy could have any girl he wanted, or any boy either if he was into that. Poor Peter, he’s wasting his dreams.’

He thought about asking Peter if he wanted to come fishing. He could keep him company while his mother fished and he kept her company. But, no, better not. He wanted to have a serious talk to the Kid and nothing was going to happen while his mother was around.

Nothing was going to happen anyway, but it wouldn’t stop him trying. He’d go and see him later, after they got back.

He had an okay sort of day at school. Nothing much happened, but it was okay. The best part of it was at lunch-time. He was walking around, looking for somewhere to sit and someone to sit with, when Ashton called him over to join his circle. He was delighted to do that, there was no cooler place to be. He was only one of a group, but at least he was in with the in-crowd.

They sat in the sunshine and talked. Riley answered a hundred questions and gave them a, highly censored, story of his life so far and how he came to be here, in Kaimoana. He thought that he was going to like it here.

Actually, as time went on, he was thinking that some of these kids were wannabes. They were the beautiful people, or trying to be, and they were a bit up themselves and trying hard to impress. Not everyone though, Ashton wasn’t. He was top of the heap but he was a thoroughly nice kid and not at all up himself.

Riley really liked him and he could see why Peter did too. Maybe he could do something there? If he got to be part of this group and Ashton’s friend, he might be able to get them together.

He didn’t believe that anything could happen there, but, at least if Peter got closer to him he might see for himself how hopeless it was and he might look around for someone else – like Riley.

After school, much to his regret, he had to decline an invitation to go with Ashton and his friends. They were going to someone’s place for a drink and a snack.

“Sorry, no, I can’t. I’d love to come, but I can’t. I’ve gotta get home because I’ve got a date.”

Well, he did. It was a date with his mother, but he wasn’t telling them that!

“Okay, some other time then,” Ashton smiled.

“Yeah, thanks. Sometime would be great, just not today. Once I make a promise I like to keep my word.”

“Good for you! That’s a very good way to be, Riley. See you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, tomorrow. Laters, Ashton.”

He did feel like kicking himself as he walked away, but Ashton approved of him, so that was good.

He walked home and his mum was there and ready and waiting to go. She left the café to Betty and Sue and told them that she’d be back in a couple of hours. They went up to the house, Riley changed out of his school clothes and they got into the car to go to Geese Bay. His mum drove, he’d been having lessons but he needed more and she was in a hurry.

“I’ve put in some extra gear so you can throw a line out if you change your mind.”

“I won’t. I don’t like killing things.”

“You’re a strange boy, Riley Sullivan. Man is a natural hunter, it’s part of his nature.”

“It’s not part of mine. Maybe I’m not natural.”

“No-one ever said you were, but I still love you.”

“Thanks, Mum. I love you too.”

“You’d bloody better! But, I still think you should try fishing, you might like it. Who knows? It might change your life.”

“I doubt it. Let’s go, Mum.”

She started the car and headed, south, out of town to go to Geese Bay. Riley didn’t know it, but his life was about to change in a major way.

They arrived and she stopped and parked, just north of the twin road-tunnels, between the highway and the rocky shore. Riley got out and stood looking around. The railway line was over at the far side of the road and the steep bush-clad hills reared up behind them.

“Is this it? It’s hardly downtown Auckland, is it?”

“Of course it’s not. This is nature and it’s beautiful. We don’t live in the city anymore, get used to it.”

“You’re telling me nothing! But I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to it. Those road-tunnels are pretty cool.”

“They are. There’s talk of removing them because the trucks are getting bigger all the time. It’d be a shame if they did.”

“Yeah, it would. There’s a third tunnel, down there by the beach.”

“Where? Oh, there. I don’t think it’s a tunnel, it’s probably just a cave. They say that these hills are riddled with caves.”

“Are they? Do you think that there’s cavemen up there?”

“In this day and age? Not likely! Don’t be silly, Son.”

“Shame. It’d be cool, in a way, to be a caveman. Courting was so much easier then, they just bopped them on the head and dragged them off to the nearest cave.”

“In the cartoons, they did. I don’t know about real life. I don’t think that girls would have stood for that, modern girls certainly wouldn’t – or modern boys for that matter.”

“S’pose not,” Riley mumbled and turned his back so she wouldn’t see him blushing. What did she mean by that remark? Did she suspect something? He didn’t know.

“I’m going to check-out that cave and see where it goes.”

“Okay. Don’t get bopped on the head. I’ll get started here.”

“Not funny, Mum.” He stumbled off down the beach.

That was really not funny. His mother didn’t know that he was gay, did she? He was embarrassed, but it would be good, kind of, if she worked it out for herself. It’d save him from having to tell her. He was not looking forward to that.

There wasn’t much to the cave. It was just a low, dead-end tunnel with sand, pebbles and sticks of driftwood on the floor. It was big enough to walk into, but soon got too low to stand upright and it was getting lower, and darker. It was too dark to see in the end and he had no flashlight or anything, not even a lighter.

“Oh, oh!” It suddenly occurred to him that this cave was probably crawling with creepy things – cave-wetas and suchlike. He got out of there in a hurry.

He’d never seen a live weta, but he’d seen pics. They were creepy, mini-monsters. If one of them landed on him, he’d freak.

He went back to where his mother was. She was fishing already.

There were lots of empty shells and bits and pieces of sea-weed and stuff along the shoreline. Some of the shells were really pretty – pink and pearly-looking. He didn’t know what they were, but they’d make great Jewellery, if you were into Jewellery. Shame that most of them were broken. They were thin and fragile-looking.

He arrived just in time to see his mother pull a flapping fish out of the water. She inspected it, unhooked it and whacked it on the rocks to kill it. Damm, he didn’t know that she could be so efficiently brutal. Killing things didn’t worry her then.

“All right!” she beamed. “Got one already. This is a good spot!”

“Yeah, good for you, Mum. What is it?”

“It’s a fish, Silly. What did you think it was?”

“I know that, but what sort of fish is it?”

“Don’t they teach you anything in those schools? It’s a perch, of course. They’re not the best of eating, but they’re not bad in a pie.”

“I’m sure that his mother would be pleased to hear that.”

“Shut up, Riley.”

They sat and chatted for a while. It was nice there in the sunshine and it was a good place. There was hardly a trace of men’s works anywhere, apart from the road and railway line up behind them.

The Tranz-Coastal passenger train rattled past. It was late today – again. Riley stood and waved to the people out on the observation deck. They smiled and waved back. Hah! They probably thought that he was a local yokel. But, he wasn’t, was he?

A truck hooted at him. What for? He wasn’t doing anything.

It was funny how just about every car tooted when going through the road tunnels, like it was compulsory or something. Just one of those things that people do. Kids thought it was funny and no-one ever really grows up.

It was nice there, but he got bored with just sitting still. Communing with nature was really not his thing, he was a city boy. Well, used to be a city boy.

“I’m going for a walk, Mum. Going exploring.”

“Okay. Don’t get lost and don’t be too long. We’ll have to be getting back soon.”

“Won’t be long. I’ll just go along the bay.”

He made his way along the stony shore, it was mostly loose pebbles, which made for hard walking. There were a lot of big rocks sticking up out of the water. Some of them, down near the end, were almost big enough to be called islands. They even had bushes and stuff growing on top of them, like they were crowned with messy hair styles. Green hair, that’d be a sight!

The debris along the tide-line was more and more of the same. Somebody had lost a jandal. There were even some MacDonalds’ wrappings. Where did they come from? There was no Maccas for miles around here. Bloody messy tourists!

He was almost at the end of the small bay and focused on the rocks at the end. Was that an albatross sitting on that one?

A movement at the side of a column of rock, caught his eye. What was that? Some animal or something?

There were no wild animals around here, no land-based ones anyway, apart from rats and possums and it was too big to be either of those. So, of course, he had to investigate.

He cautiously made his way around the rock. There was something there, in the back of a shadowy cleft. Something quite big, it was as tall as he was. He picked-up a handy club-sized chunk of driftwood and edged forward.

“I know you’re there. Come out, whatever you are!”

It did! A human-sized figure emerged from the shadows. Whoah! Riley’s eyes nearly fell out. His mouth hung open and he stood, shocked, brandishing his make-shift weapon.

It was a caveman! An actual, living, breathing, caveman. It couldn’t be, but it was!

Whoah!

(What a good place to stop – if you’re a swine.)

Kaimoana Tales, Riley 5

(just because)

When he went to school, Riley walked around there with the girls he’d met on the Esplanade when Peter was asleep on the beach. They were just passing the café when he walked out of the front and he fell into step beside them. He’d seen them around town a few times. They were always friendly, but he had trouble remembering their names. He was terrible with names.

“Hello again, Riley. Where are you off to on this lovely day?”

“Dressed like this? Where d’you think I’m off to?” he grinned.

“Prison, perhaps?” one of them smiled back.

“Yeah. Pretty close, I guess. You’re Sally and you’re Fern, right?”

“Other was around actually, but it was a good try. What year are you in?”

“Year 11. How about you?”

“We’re year 11 too. That’s cool. If they give you a ‘buddy’ to show you around for the day, ask for us. We’ll look after you.”

“Yeah, we’ll look after you. Got a girlfriend?”

“No I haven’t.”

“Oh?” Sally said. “Got a boyfriend?”

“No I have not!”

“Oh, so no Jafas are crying because they’ve lost you?”

“Probably all of them are, but I’m here now.”

“Yeah. Their loss and our gain. Want a girlfriend?”

“Why, are you offering?”

“Not really. Just curious.”

“Just nosy! Take no notice of her, Riley. Fern’s always gotta know everything.”

“No worse than you Sally – Pallie,” Fern laughed.

Riley grinned. He liked these two. They went to school together.

School was okay. It was much smaller than what he was used to, of course, but everyone seemed friendly enough, even the teachers. He wasn’t used to that either.

He ate lunch in the quad outside. Sally and Fern joined him and he met some of their friends.

After school, he walked home with a small crowd, had a drink and a snack, changed his clothes and worked in the café until closing time. The deal he’d struck with his mother involved working for 20 hours a week, mostly cleaning but also serving customers when it was busy.

It was going to be a bit of a tie, but, hey, he was getting paid, so that was all good. Also, he enjoyed meeting the people. They were mostly just passing through and he’d never see them again, but everyone’s interesting. Some of them were pretty cute too.

They ate, in the café, after closing at 7pm, cleaned up and went up to the house. He did think of going around to see what Peter was doing, but decided not to. It was a school-night and, strangely enough, he was tired already. H had a long, hot, shower to get rid of the stink of the fish, and checked his emails. There weren’t any. His friends were forgetting him already.

After that, he lay, boxer-clad, on his bed and read some Harry Potter. 10 o’clock was late enough, so he turned off the light and climbed into bed. He needed a social 1ife!

If there were no suitable boys around, maybe he should get a girlfriend? No. He’d rather have a boy. There must be someone. Peter would’ve been great. Who was this Ashton kid that he was so infatuated with anyway?

He found out when they arrived at school next day. There was a growing crowd in the street outside where a kid was proudly showing-off his new wheels. Everyone was admiring them enviously.

“What’s going on here?” Riley asked.

“That’s Ashton Woods,” Sally replied. “He’s got his new car. I heard he was getting one as soon as he got his licence.”

“Come on,” Fern said. “Let’s see what he’s got.”

They pushed through to the front and Fern exclaimed, “Ohmigosh! Ashton’s got himself a bloody Beamer! Classic.”

“Yeah, classic car,” Sally agreed. “He couldn’t have a common old Mitsubishi, or whatever. Oh no, only the best for our Ashton. The coolest kid in town has to have the coolest car. Damm. Is there another BMW in Kaimoana?”

“Well, yeah,” Fern said. “You see tourists with them sometimes, but there is one other person – Kevin Woods, Ashton’s old man, has got one, of course. So, it’s like father, like son. I wish my last name was Woods. Maybe it will be, one day. Mrs. Woods sounds good to me.”

“Fern Woods?” Riley grinned. “Sounds a bit much like a jungle story to me.”

“Oh yeah. Him Tarzan, me Jane!”

“In your dreams, Fern. Yours and everyone else’s.”

“Well, someone’s got to get him. It might as well be me. Smile, he’s looking at us. Ohmigosh, here he comes!”

Riley stood quietly studying the tall, smiling boy approaching them. So, this was the local ‘Ritchie Rich’, the coolest, richest kid in town who everybody was in love with – including Peter? Damm his eyes!

He was prepared to hate him, he should have hated him, but he found that he couldn’t. This was one fine-looking boy; he was gorgeous! Life was so not fair. Not only did this kid have everything, he looked like every gayboy’s fantasy ideal. Tall and smooth with broad, strong, shoulders tapering down to oh-so-slender hips. He had long arms with big hands and long, long, slender and shapely legs.

His hair was just brown, but it looked good. It was a bit long(ish), full and bouncy and neatly styled. His eyes were a stunning blue and his face looked – well – nice. Warm, friendly and nice.

“Hey Sally, hey Fern,” he beamed a smile. “Like my wheels?”

“Oh yes!” Fern gushed. “Great car. How did you score a bloody Beamer?”

“From my dad, of course. He is a dealer and he got a good deal on it. Not a biggie really.”

“Oh, but it is!” Sally said. “This is Riley; have you guys met?”

“No. Hello Riley,” he offered a hand. “I’m Ashton. I’ve heard about you, you’re the new kid in town, at the Craypot Café, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.” Riley took the hand and shook. He had a firm grip. “I’m from Auckland. Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too. We won’t hold Auckland against you. Welcome to the best town in the country.”

“Doesn’t everyone think that about their own town?”

“Probably. But we don’t just think it; we know it’s the best. I’ve gotta move, busy impressing the locals here. See you later, Guys.” He went back to his car.

“Isn’t he dreamy?” Fern sighed. “He’s like the perfect kid!”

“Put your tongue away,” Sally shoved her, playfully. “Ashton’s way out of your class. So Riley, what did you think?”

“I dunno. I think I see what everyone’s raving about, but I never expected that. He’s actually a nice guy.”

“Of course he is! Ashton’s the best,” Fern enthused.

“Takes more than just being rich and good-looking to get where he is,” Sally said. “Ashton’s got, what do you call it, charisma. Mind you, people said that about Hitler and he turned out to be not so nice really.”

“You think?” Riley grinned.

“Shut up, Griffin,” Fern shoved her back. “Ashton is no Hitler. That’s ridiculous! He’s perfect. Ohmigosh, bloody Belinda’s talking to him. I’ll shove her out of the way. I want that boy!”

Fern rushed away and Riley looked at Sally. “You’re not in love with Ashton Woods then?”

“No way. We’ve got more in common than you think, Riley.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that I’m gay, aren’t I? Just like you.”

“Like me? You think I’m gay?”

“I know you are. I know when I’m with a gayboy. My cousin’s gay and I love him, so does his boyfriend.”

“You’ve got a gay cousin? What’s his name? Is he here? And, you are too?”

“I am. Joel’s not here, he works for my dad. Don’t get your hopes up, he’s very taken and totally in love with his boy.”

“Lucky sod. I wish that I had a boy.”

“Yeah, I knew it. Don’t worry, you will. A boy like you, young and beautiful and very available, you won’t be single for long.”

“Do you think?”

“Do I know!”

“What about you then? Got a girlfriend?”

“That’s for me to know. Come on, time for school.”

Riley saw Ashton a few times during the day, of course, it was a small school, but he didn’t get to speak to him again. He was constantly surrounded by his admirers. There were way more girls than boys too.

Peter was right, Ashton was Mr. Cool, but he was not gay.

‘Oh Peter. You’re wasting your heart, giving it to that one.’

Riley needed to have a long and serious talk with Peter.

The girls had netball practice after school, so Riley walked home alone. He could’ve found someone to walk with, there were a few groups that he could’ve insinuated himself into, but he couldn’t be bothered. It wasn’t far to walk anyway.

It was quite nice to be alone, in a way. All day long he’d felt like he was on display. He was constantly catching glimpses of people looking at him, checking him out. He’d be glad when they found some other new novelty. He was sick of being the new kid in school already.

Anyway, while he was on his own, he had a lot of checking-out to do himself. It was easier without someone chattering away to him.

Small-town kids; there were a lot of them. This must be a good area for breeding. Something in the water around here, maybe? Some of them were fine-looking kids too.

Another boring evening, he worked in the café until it closed at 7pm, and then went around to see Peter, but there was no-one there. The house was all shut-up and there was no-one at home. Where would he be? Peter said that he never went anywhere.

He wandered around for a while and then went home and spent the evening alone. Even his mother was out somewhere. He didn’t know where she’d gone either. None of his old friends were on line and he had no new addys yet. So, there was only one thing for it – he played computer games until far too late. What an exciting life!

Kaimoana Tales, Riley 4

“Sorry, Riley, but we’re not going there.”

Peter moved away from him and sat on the couch.

“But. But why? Am I reading the signals wrong? You are gay, aren’t you?”

“Yes, of course I’m gay. You got that part right; but I’m not interested in sex with you, not with anyone actually.”

“I don’t get this. I’m gay, you’re gay, let’s do it. Sex is not a bad thing, it’s great. Why don’t you want to do it with me? You do like me don’t you?”

“Yes, I like you very much, but only as a friend. I’d like a friend, I need one – I don’t have any.”

“You don’t? Maybe that’s because you don’t give yourself. Have you thought of that?”

“I don’t have friends because I’m not a slut? No, that’s not why at all. Even if it was, I still wouldn’t be interested. Look, I think that I’d better be going now. Thank you for today, it was fun. I hope I’ll see you again sometime.”

He stood up, but Riley beat him to the door and blocked it with his body.

“Don’t, Peter. Please don’t go. Stay here and talk to me, that’s what friends do. Why don’t you want me and why don’t you have any friends? You’re a nice kid, you’re good-looking, very good-looking, and you’re a nice guy. Why no friends?”

“It’s a long story. A very long story.”

“Fine. I’m not going anywhere and I love long stories. Tell me, please, I really want to know.”

Peter sat down again and he sighed. “You just want to know because you’re bored. You’re new here and you’ve got no friends yet. You’ll have lots of them when you start school and you won’t want to know me either. They’ll soon tell you not to bother with me.”

“Not bother with you? Why would they do that and why wouldn’t I? I want to bother with you, I like you.”

“You won’t for long.”

“Why not?”

“It’s no great mystery, I’m a loser, that’s all.”

“No you’re not. I don’t see a loser.”

“But you do. You just don’t know what you’re looking at – yet. Your new friends will tell you.”

“I’d rather you told me. What makes you different to the others?”

Peter sighed again. “I am different. For a start, I’m gay, but I don’t think that they know that. I’m certainly not telling them. Plus, I don’t go to school, I never have.”

“Never? But you have to go to school, it’s the law, you can’t just ignore it. How old are you anyway?”

“I’m 15.”

“Fifteen? Then you have to be in school until you’re 17, unless you get a job at 16, I think.”

“I don’t go to school. I am home-schooled, always have been.”

“So your mother teaches you?”

“Sort of, yes. She did more when I was younger, but mostly I teach myself now.”

“And that’s all legal and everything?” Riley was fascinated, home-schooling was something he knew nothing about.

“Yes, of course it is. Inspectors come around a couple of times a year to check on my progress. Hundreds of people are choosing not to send their kids to school. Mostly fundamentalist christians though.”

“Hundreds? So that’s where you socialize then, with them?”

“No. I don’t socialize with anyone. They don’t want to know me either. We did for a while, but mother withdrew us because I wasn’t welcome.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m gay. Christians don’t like gays.”

“You’ve always known that you’re gay then?”

“Kind of. I worked it out a long time ago. Mother knew before I did. She just knew.”

“And she still loves you?”

“Of course. She’s my mother and I’m her only child.”

“What about your father, does he feel the same?”

“He does. His work takes him away from home a lot, but he’s still my father and he loves me.”

“You don’t know how lucky you are!”

“Oh but I do. I’m very lucky. I love my parents and they love me.”

“I wish that I could say the same. But what about the other Home-School people? You were just a little kid. If they’re Christians, shouldn’t they love you no matter what?”

“Maybe they should, but they don’t. Christians are very good at hating. “I love you, My Lord, and I will follow you and believe in the precepts you taught. But deliver me, Lord, from the judgment of the saints who’ve never been caught.””

“Who said that?”

“I don’t know – some wise man. Probably a real Christian.”

“Probably. But, I’m gay. Admittedly I go to school, but I’m not isolated like you are. I get on pretty good with people really.”

“Yes, but you’re not me. There’s more to it than just not going to school. I don’t go anywhere. I’m not interested in sports, I don’t have friends and I don’t have any money either - never.”

“Never? Why not? Your father works, you said that he’s got a job. If they love you, why don’t they give you any pocket-money? Every kid needs some money of his own.”

“Not every kid. I don’t. Father would probably give me an allowance if I really wanted it, but I don’t. I wouldn’t take it. My parents don’t spend any more than they have to. They live a very frugal life. It wouldn’t be right to take their money and waste it.”

“Living a life is not wasting it. They don’t drink, much, they don’t smoke. You don’t have a big flash house or anything. What do they do with their money?”

“They save it.”

“Save it for what? A rainy day?”

“No, for our future. Mother says that it’s a dream, but Father says it’s not, it’s a plan. Every possible dollar is saved for the Plan.”

“And what is the Plan?”

“To be rich again. They’ve been wealthy and they’ve been poor. They had a very comfortable life once, but through politics, they lost the lot. They arrived in New Zealand with nothing – penniless refugees who didn’t even speak English. This country has been good to us and one day they’re going to be rich again.”

“Were you a refugee too?”

“Oh no. I was born here – I’m a kiwi.”

“You weren’t part of the Plan then?”

“Definitely not, but I am now. I was a complete surprise, their ‘miracle baby’. They had no children and they thought that they never would. They’d decided that they couldn’t have kids, and it was getting too late anyway. Then I happened.

I was a major set-back to the Plan, but I was welcomed with love. I love my parents and I’ll do anything to help them with their plan.”

“Of course you will. It’s not just you who’s lucky, you know – they are lucky to have you too. You’re a great person.”

“I’m not. I wish that I was, for them.”

“Oh, you’re special, don’t ever doubt that. If I ever had kids, I’d be delighted to have one like you.”

Peter grinned, blushed and hung his head. “Thank you, Riley.” He raised his head and looked him in the eye. “ I think that you’re special too. I so wish that we could be friends.”

“Oh, we will be, if you want me. I’ll be proud to have you.”

“So will I,” Peter whispered.

“So – do you want to fool around now?”

“Sex? No, I can’t do that.”

“I don’t get it. We’re young and beautiful, we’re both gay. Why can’t we?”

“Because I’m in love.”

“In love? Have you got a boyfriend?”

“No, of course not,” Peter laughed. He wouldn’t want to know me, but I love him. I always have.”

“Always?”

“Always.”

“Just the coolest, richest kid in town. Don’t tell me, I know that I’m stupid, but I can’t help it. I love him.”

“What are you going to do about it?”

“Do? Nothing. He’s not gay. He doesn’t even know that I exist, and even if he did, I’m not good enough.”

“Well!” Riley grinned. “Cinderfella and Prince Charming, eh? All the best fairy stories have happy endings you know.”

“Not in my world,” Peter shrugged. “It’s okay, Riley, I’m used to it.”

“No, dammit. It’s not okay. You’ve got as much right to be happy as anyone has. Who are we talking about?”

“It doesn’t matter. Just forget it. I shouldn’t have told you.”

“Sure you should’ve. That’s what friends do. Who is this perfect boy who has stolen your heart without even knowing about it?”

“It doesn’t matter, Riley.”

“It does. Who?”

“Well, okay, I’ll tell you. It’s Ashton Woods. You’ll see. You’ll see him around. You just might have a chance of getting into his circle, but I never will. He’s not gay anyway, so don’t go getting your hopes up.”

“Like you did.”

“Told you that I was dumb. I know it’s hopeless. I can’t help it; I just love him. I’ve got to go, Riley. Mother will be getting worried.”

“I wish you’d stay. Can’t you ring her and tell her that you’re okay?”

“I can’t. We don’t have a telephone.”

“Really? Wow. We’ve got 4 phones – 2 cells, the business and the land-line. How can you live with no phone?”

“We’ve never had one. You get used to it.”

“Not likely! I couldn’t live without my cell. How am I going to get in touch with you?”

Peter grinned. “You could always throw an umbrella at me.”

“It was an accident!” Riley protested.

“I know. It was a lucky accident. It hurt, but it was well worth it.”

“Glad you think so. Can I come and see you?”

“Of course – anytime. It’s better after lunch, I do my schooling in the mornings. I’m usually at home; I don’t go anywhere much.”

“Except the beach?”

“Well, yes. I go there sometimes. ‘Bye Riley. Enjoy your new town.”

“I wasn’t going to, but I’m starting to think that I might. ‘Bye Peter.”

Peter left and Riley lay on his bed to have a think about all of that. It seemed that he hadn’t met a sex partner – yet. If this, very cute, blond boy’s love really was as hopeless as he said it was, there might still be a chance for him. He’d be second-best, but he could handle that, couldn’t he?

Yes, he could. A boy in the hand is worth two in the bush, or something like that. He really wanted a boy in the hand. He’d had that, back in Auckland, with Gareth and he was missing it already.

Still, it was not so bad. At the very least, he’d made a friend of a good-looking boy. One who wasn’t interested in sex with him. That was worth something, wasn’t it? Sure it was. A friend was worth a lot.

Peter went home to face the questions from his mother. As he expected, she wasn’t disapproving, she was delighted that he’d made a friend. And wanted to know if there was anything she could do to help the relationship. She worried about him, didn’t he know?

“I know, Mother. Thanks, but you shouldn’t. Worrying never changed anything and I’m doing all right. Before you ask, no, I do not want to go to school. It’s too late now. They’re all settled in their relationships and there’s no room for me.”

That was his mother’s usual response to any problems lately. Peter had gone beyond any help she could give him with his schooling and she thought he’d be better off in the high-school.

Peter was equally sure that he would not. The kids in town had no time for him, he was a freak in their eyes. Besides, his mother had taught him how to learn and now he was doing it.

They had no computer at home, but Mrs. Braidwood, at the town library, gave him as much time as he wanted on the one there. He was doing all right. The school inspectors agreed too.

“But you must spend time with your new friend. When can he come around for a meal? I could cook a traditional dish from the old country. You love my goulash, perhaps Riley will too?”

“I don’t know, Mother. He said that he’ll come around. We’ll see if he does. He’s new in town and doesn’t know anyone here yet. He soon will and then he’ll forget all about me.”

“He is a silly boy if he does. I know what we can do. I made a nice chocolate cake today. I’ll put cream and icing on it and, after dinner, you can take it around to welcome Riley and his mother to their new home.”

“Mother! I’m not taking cake to them. They live in a café, for goodness sake.”

“So? They will love my cake. Everybody does. It will be a nice thing to do and then Riley will not forget about you.”

Peter rolled his eyes and lost himself in his book. He would’ve gone to his room, but he didn’t have one. All he could do was to make like an ostrich with his head in the sand.

A few hours later, after dinner, Peter found himself walking back to the Craypot Café. Going along the sea-front, he was tempted to throw the cake, box and all, over the wall and let the seagulls have it. They’d soon clean it up, they were always hungry.

This was just dumb, taking a cake to a Café. They’d probably have more cakes than they knew what to do with. Besides, what a waste! Nobody made better cakes than his mother did. Everything she produced in her kitchen was all-but perfect.

His father was a master-baker, but he didn’t even try at home. He couldn’t compete with his wife, he was totally outclassed. Ah well. He hoped they appreciated it.

He never rebelled against his parents. He might not agree with everything they said and did, and often didn’t, they were both so old-fashioned in their ways. But he’d never do anything that would hurt them. Peter loved his parents and he knew that they loved him too.

He walked into the café and Riley’s mother came out in response to the bell. She greeted him with a smile.

“Hello again, Peter. What can we do for you?”

“Hello, Mrs. Sullivan. Is Riley here please?”

“No, he’s not. He went out walking with a couple of girls he met. They’re showing him around the town. I don’t know when they’ll be back, but it shouldn’t be long. Do you want to wait for him?”

“No, thanks, but I should be getting back home. My mother made this for you.”

He put the cake-box on the counter and pushed it across. Mrs. Sullivan opened it and looked inside.

“A cake?”

“A double-chocolate cake with cream. It’s one of her specialties.”

“I don’t understand. Does your mother want us to sell her cakes for her?”

“Oh, no. It’s a gift. A cake to welcome you and Riley to your new home.’

“A cake as a welcoming gift?”

Peter blushed. He wished that the floor would open up and swallow him. He was SO embarrassed. But, she smiled as she continued.

“That’s lovely, Peter. What a nice thing to do. Tell your mother I said thank you. I appreciate this.’

“Thank you, Mrs. Sullivan. I hope you like it. I’ll see Riley another time maybe.”

He got out of there fast and headed for home. He’d never understand adults! That went better than he thought it would, but he was disappointed that Riley wasn’t there. He shouldn’t be; of course Riley was going to make new friends.

A boy like him would never be without friends for long. Didn’t take him long though! Peter wished that he could be like that. Riley was only here for one day and he was meeting people. He’d lived here for years and he never had, no-one wanted to know him.

He tried not to feel bad, he should be used to it by now. A couple more years and he’d be out of here and going to ‘varsity. He’d probably have no friends there either, he didn’t know how to make them.

He went home to his book and bed.