The Judge's Blessing (boyxboy)

On the Trail (Fall, 11th Grade)

The next Saturday was Danny's 16th birthday. He was to spend it with Asher, sleeping over Saturday night. In spite of the pain inflicted the previous weekend, Danny was excited to be sharing it with Asher. It was hard for Danny to be angry with someone for long. Asher also knew that if Danny wasn't upbeat quickly after being hurt, it would take something more than just time for the anger to pass.

Danny's father dropped him off in the middle of the afternoon, and the two boys decided to go on a hike. The back of the house entered onto a preserve, and the hiking trails were well maintained and went through some gorgeous scenery. On the trail, while they stopped to look at some lush hills in the distance, Asher took a quick look around and seeing no one, put his arm around Danny's waist while pulling him into Asher's side.

"Oh, Ash, this is perfect. You, the scenery. What's not to like?"

Asher put his head down on Danny's shoulder, and said to Danny, "Happy 16th birthday, Danny." Danny said nothing in response, just gently kissing Asher's head. After a few minutes at this idyllic place, Asher reached for Danny's hand, squeezed it and said, "We should get going back."

In the distance, Asher saw some people which he quickly recognized as being classmates from his English class. He panicked, grabbed Danny's hand and dragged him in tow as he practically ran on the trail. Asher heard the classmates calling to him. He rounded a turn and using his knowledge of the trails, took a route infrequently used. Within a minute, he knew that they couldn't see him.

"What's wrong, Ash," Danny said, now out of breath and increasingly concerned with Asher's running.

"I'm having an emergency. I need to get to a bathroom, now."

That was an explanation Danny could understand. Being out in the middle of nowhere with a "call of nature" wasn't much fun. Actually, it was downright distracting. He hoped they made it back to Asher's house in time.

With the house visible in the distance, Asher dropped Danny's hand and took off for the back door. Danny stopped to watch the run. 

Back at the house, Asher went into the Jack and Jill bathroom next to his bedroom. He closed the door, turned on the light, stood near the toilet and waited a minute and a half before flushing it.

"Danny," he called down the stairwell. "I need to take a quick shower." He closed his bedroom door and locked it. If that became an issue, he could say it was out of habit. He turned on the water in the shower while he shaved, and next, decided on what clothing he wanted to wear this evening. It was to be a special evening—Asher had a birthday gift he was sure Danny would like—a surprise gift.

After a few minutes, he turned off the shower, quickly ran a wet brush through his hair—his hair would now appear to be freshly washed, and changed his clothes.

"Want to play some Xbox while dinner is cooking?" Asher asked.

"Sure thing," Danny replied.

He went into the living room and sorted through the cartridges.

"What's for dinner?" Danny called to Asher.

"I don't know. Let's see what my father left us. It looks like a toss up between macaroni and cheese, or spaghetti. Which would you like, birthday boy?"

"Macaroni and cheese for me, please."

"OK, macaroni and cheese it is."

As Asher opened the refrigerator, he saw the cake there, all set for desert.

About 20 minutes later, dinner was ready, and the boys quickly finished it in under 10 minutes.

Asher's classmates who he had seen on the trail approached him on Monday in the cafeteria and commented that they had seen him on the trail on Saturday afternoon with someone they guessed was a friend.

"No, it wasn't me. It couldn't be me. I was at a concert Saturday afternoon, and I spent the evening in the city," he said. "You must be mistaken."

They looked at him confused and one said, "I could have sworn it was you." They left him sitting there. He was relieved that they believed him so easily.

It was an innocent lie, right?, and besides, it was to protect Danny. Wasn't that what was important here? Protecting Danny. Protecting him from something that might hurt him. Why else should I keep up the pretense if it wasn't to protect Danny? Danny, who could lift me up no matter how down I might be. Danny, who made life worthwhile even when it seemed like it would verge into hell. Gentle, sweet Danny, whom I needed to keep from my school friends; if they knew about Danny, they'd surely leave me. With hate. It would start to be like my previous school. Not again. No, never again. I so need Danny right now, to feel his embrace, to see his radiant face. Yes, it was to protect Danny, all of this charade. Right now, the only certainty, really, was that Danny wouldn't leave me. God, Danny, I love you so much.

The hypocrisy of the situation eluded Asher, even as his conscience told him that something was wrong, very wrong, with what had just taken place. The sickening, pitting feeling in his stomach merely confirmed that assessment. But he didn't have time to deal with it then. He needed to focus on his next class.