Sex in the Sky

“This is a work of fiction, and as such the characters are not bound by the usual dictates of modern society. Unsafe sexual practices can be undertaken with impunity only in the world of fantasy. In reality, it is your obligation and your right to play safely, sanely and healthily.

I hope you enjoy my work, and if you have any comments, or ideas that may inspire new work, please feel free to contact me at Joystick56@Hotmail.Com - all E-mails will be answered to the best of my ability.

I would like to thank all of you for the many letters you wrote (so far over 250) and for telling me how much you liked or hated the story so far. Keep the letters coming and send in a donation to the site you are reading this on.

*End of Chapter 26*

“It’s on the news, Aljazeera, as well as the American news. He was captured in Iraq. Ibrahim Smith an American soldier, it is him they showed a photograph. People in the congregation remembered that he brought you to the Mosque. He is still alive but unless all Iraqi prisoners are released in 48 hours, they are going to cut off his head!!!”"

*Chapter 27*

It was one of the few times that Joseph was too stunned to talk or move. He leaned back against the wall and just let the world close in on him. His arms and legs seamed to become disconnected from his body as he felt himself sliding down the wall. Fazzi reached out quickly and grabbed him to prevent him from landing on the hard stone floor of the alcove.

“Yussef, Yussef are you all right?” Fazzi kept repeating as he shook him and patted his cheek trying to bring him back from out of the deep dark cold sea that was fast enveloping him. “Someone, please, come and help me.”

From everywhere men came running to assist. They helped carry Joseph into the Imam’s private study where he was placed on a sofa and made as comfortable as possible. Someone brought him a glass of water and as he sipped from the glass, the color began to come back into his face and slowly he started to come out of his stupor. Seeing that he was returning to the world of the living, Fazzi gently moved the onlookers out after thanking them for their help. However, a distinguish member of the congregation carrying a black bag, pushed himself forward. Fazzi recognize the man as his own doctor and asked if he could please be of assistance. The doctor said “For sure. As soon as I saw what was happening I ran for my bag. What happened?”

“Thank you, doctor. My friend has had some bad news and I think he passed out. We would be most thankful if you could look at him. Any assistance you render would be appreciated.”

“I know I heard the news myself. It shocked me also. The black soldier, a really nice boy, I remember his visits here.” He said as he opened his case and removed his stethoscope and placed it to Joseph’s chest.

“I’m fine now, just a bit of a shock.” Joseph mumbled. “No need for all this fussing.”

“Now look here young man, you are the patient and I’m the doctor here. You just keep quiet while I finish up. Then I’ll tell you if you are fine.” He said as he took his pulse and them made him follow his finger with his eyes. “No concussion. You were right sir; it looks like just a bit of shock. Let him rest here for a few minutes. Then perhaps a few hours rest at home might be better for him. He is young and strong as a bull. He should be fine. Everyone else clear out of here and give him some air. Just you and I will stay Mr. Muhammad. Please raise his feet and someone bring him a warm blanket.” About a half hour later Joseph was beginning to feel more like his old self, his color had even returned.”

Joseph told the doctor that he was feeling better and that he thought he would like to go home. “We are keeping the Imam out of his study. Please apologize to him for me. It was just the shock. I’ll be OK. I just need time to adjust to it. I did not even know he was serving in Iraq.”

“Yes, I do think he would be better resting at home Mr. Muhammad. He still appears to be a bit disoriented, but that should clear up with rest. I have a sedative he can take, but only when you get him into bed. It is quite strong and should help with the shock. I’ll give you four tablets; have him take one when you get him home and put him to bed, then one every four hours, but only if he needs it. He is not to drive or operate machinery. I think he will be fine by morning. I can stop by tomorrow, if you like, but in any event give me a call in the morning and let me know how he is doing.” The doctor instructed and gave Fazzi the pills and his card.

“Thank you doctor. Please send me the bill. It was most kind of you and we will be in touch.” Fazzi helped Joseph to his feet and he and the doctor put him into the car. Again Fazzi thanked every one and after making sure that Joseph was covered up he got behind the wheel and drove home.

“I’m going to have to call his mother—what can I say to her. That poor woman, she must be out of her mind. Maybe I should check to find out if they have notified her yet.” Joseph rambled on and on with his eyes closed to prevent the sunlight from aggravating his throbbing head.

“They would not have released his name and photo to the American press if the Pentagon had not done that first. Do you know her number? When we get you home and in bed I will get her for you. However let’s wait until I first check and see if I can get any information from Allie at the embassy. He has all kinds of connections and informants. I’m sure he will help.”

Arriving home and helping Joseph up to his room and making him sit on the bed, he said, “Let me help you undress and get comfortable. You heard what the doctor said. You have to lie down and rest. I’ll have cook make you something warm to drink and you will take the pill the doctor prescribed. You relax and I will call the embassy and get Allie to work on this right away. I also have some other people that I know who may be helpful. I promise you, habibi, everything is going to be OK. I have a lot of friends who owe me favors and I intend to call every one of them in. If your friend is still alive I will do everything I can to have him back home soon. Now I’m going to the kitchen and have Summaya make you a cup of broth.”

A few minutes later he came back with some toast and a cup of broth, with which he insisted Joseph take with the pill. Joseph had a problem. If he took the pill, as Fazzi wanted him to, he could not be sure that he would be able to keep his mind alert and when dealing with Fazzi he wanted to be one hundred percent sure that he was. Taking the pill in his fingers he said, “I can’t take this with hot soup, I need a glass of cold water. Could you please get me one from the bathroom?” While Fazzi went to get him the water, Joseph did a quick palming of the pill. On the way back with the water all Fazzi saw was Joseph reaching for the water as if he had just swallowed the pill. He then finished the hot broth and lay back with his head on the pillows.

“I hate taking medicine, but I do need the sleep. I am bushed and …” he said as he relaxed his body and then pretended to doze off.

Fazzi kissed him and said, “There you rest now, and I’m going to let you alone. I’ll get right to work on freeing your friend. I’m going to call Allie right now and see if the embassy has any news and if it can help.”

“Good, thank you for everything, but promise me that you will wake me if there is any news at all.” After he left Joseph got out of bed and went into the bathroom, took a leak, then wrapped the pill in toilet paper and flushed it down. He returned to bed got under the covers and this time he really did start to drift off.

About 20 minutes later Fazzi carefully opened the door and peeked into the room. Seeing that Joseph was sleeping, he tiptoed over to the chair by the bed and sat down. He sat there watching the sleeping man’s chest rise and fall. Joseph, feeling a presents in the room, opened his sleepy eyes and seeing the Arab’s smiling face asked, “Habibi, you are smiling, any news?”

“I really did not want to wake you, but you did say to wake you if I had any news. I just got off the phone with the embassy. Allie said that he is going to call-in every favor he has out there. He was very upset that this happened. One way or the other, he is going to get your friend released. I told him to act like, God forbid, it was you that they had captured and to make sure Ibrahim was treated well. He said he would call back as soon as he had some news and that you were not to worry, too much.”

“Not worry! How can I not worry?” Joseph said as he drifted off again.

Two hours later Fazzi again tiptoed into Joseph’s room and woke him up. “I’m sorry to wake you again, but I thought you would want to hear this. I have some good news for you.” He said handing the soldier a phone. “Here talk to Allie.”

“Hello Allie, what have you found out?” Joseph asked in Arabic.

“First of all he is well, considering that he put up one hell of a fight when he was taken. They must have really wanted him alive as a hostage. He is receiving excellent medical attention now. Through some very powerful friends we have been assured that he will be well cared for, that no further harm will come to him and best of all they will cooperate by releasing him to a Syrian agent.”

“How were you able to get them to do that?” Joseph asked.

“Well we told them that they had captured an undercover agent of the Syrian Government and that until this was taken care of they had better treat him well or there would be hell to pay.” Allie laughed. “And they brought it. So they will hold him until one of our agents can take him off their hands.”

“Thank you Allie, but can we be sure that they will keep their word. I have to call his mother and I want to tell her the truth and not some lies that will cause her more pain and anguish later.”

“Well, in these cases, no one can guarantee anything one hundred percent but I am sending a man there who is going to stay with Ibrahim until he is brought safely to Syria. He is one of our best operatives. However, it might be difficult for our man to gain your friend’s confidence unless he has some way to assure him that we are there to help him and not hurt him. If we could convince him that you were the one behind his rescue it might help.”

“What do you mean? What can I do from here? What do you want?”

“Just some personal message. Something that only you and Ibrahim are familiar with that will convince him that the man was sent not only by Syria, but that you are in back of it. Do you have one?” Allie asked. “Without something like that he might fight us and we would have to use drugs to knock him out. And one can never be sure how he might react to being drugged. I think you will agree that it would be better to not have to use them.”

“I agree, wait while I think.” Joseph thought for a few seconds and then said with a big smile on his face, “Yes! I have one. Tell him he better take care of himself because Kassie and I will need him as our best man and if something were to happen to him, I would miss not getting his morning bacon.”

“Someday you must tell me what that bacon thing is, but for now I think that will do it. It will be made to look like he escaped on his own. It will take a day to arrange all this and I’m flying out tonight to monitor the situation myself and make sure it goes well. I’ll be there myself when he is free. I will meet him and fill him in. I’ll be in contact with either you or Fazzi whenever I have anything to tell you. Fazzi has my cell number, get it from him and call me anytime you feel the need.”

“I don’t know how to thank you, but I’m sure I will find a way.”

“No need, just remember that it pays to have a friend like Fazzi. Somehow it opens the doors fast.” He said out loud, while thinking to himself; now I’ve got myself in good with the real boss. “You just rest now and leave the problem in my hands. I will get back to you.”

“What about his mother? What can I tell her?”

“Fazzi said you were worried about that… well you can call her and tell her that while she is not to say anything yet to the press, you think that by Monday Ibrahim will be back home or on his way. Our ambassador has already informed the White House that Syria is going to get Ibrahim back safely and in such a way that it will reflect well on the young man. He has assured them that we are ‘pulling out all the stops’ and will move ASAP as long as Washington does not interfere. Now rest easy.”

“Again my thanks to you and to the ambassador and I do owe you.” Joseph said and put down the phone. He dialed Ibrahim’s mother and after making sure she knew who he was, he told her that he was sure everything would work out.

“Everyone is saying that, but I’m not so sure. Until I hear his voice on free soil I’ll worry. I’m a mother. What else can I do? I thank you for your call but I should leave the line free to let calls come in. I just hope one of them is from Ibrahim and it comes soon.”

“I’ll get off the line now, but I wanted you to know that we are doing everything we can to bring him home.” He hung up the phone said to Fazzi, “that poor woman. I wanted so much to tell her everything but I did not want to raise her hopes now to have them fall later. I hope she can hold on.”

“Look, you too have got to relax or I’ll have you on more of those pills. Now no more phone calls just lay back and get some rest. Do you think you need another pill?” Fazzi said with concern in his eyes as he smoothed the bed linen. “No! It is too soon. Lay back and let the pill work. I’ll take the phone out of here so you won’t be disturbed. Would you like me to come back and stay with you while you sleep?”

“That would be nice, however there is something else I want you to do for me first. I want you to go back to the Mosque and get that Imam to issue a statement or edict or whatever, in “the name of Allah the Compassionate, and the entire Muslim community of Paterson”, calling for the immediate release of their fellow congregation member and brother, Ibrahim Smith.”

“Yussef, my darling, I don’t have to power to do that! What do you think I am?”

“BULLSHIT, habibi, that is a load of bullshit, let’s cut the crap. Do you think I’m blind or just an idiot? You are the most powerful man in this community. If you want something you just have to shake your finger and these people run to do your bidding. They respect and love you and will do anything you ask.”

“Why is it so important that I get them to do this?” Fazzi asked. “Ibrahim is going to be set free with or without this.”

“That, my lover, is just the point! The idea just came to me, in a bright crystal clear flash. As long as they are going to release him we have nothing to loose and a whole lot to gain.”

“Gain? What are you talking about? You know as well as I do that when he is free, these men will only take revenge in another way. What can we gain?”

“I’m not talking about the kidnapers. They are viscous and stupid. Without even planning it they have afforded us a golden opportunity. I’m thinking of the Arab/American community here. I’m thinking of our ‘Fund’. We can and should play this for all it is worth!” Joseph reasoned. “Lots of good will and publicity! That’s what we will gain. Look you are throwing this Bazaar soon — why? For publicity and to publicize that the ‘Fund’ is a humanitarian charity, isn’t that right? To most Americans ‘Humanitarian’ and ‘Arab’ are oxymorons. The two just do not coexist in the same universe. If you do what I say, we may be able to change this misconception. Not only will this bring us good public relations, but also this could become national news. The best kind of P.R. possible, worth millions of dollars and best of all it does not cost us a single cent. When Ibrahim is freed the Arab/American community will look like the real heroes. I can’t think of anything else you could do that would prove to your fellow Americans that that they have been wrong about Muslims. That Arabs do care and can be humanistic and compassionate. One other thing — just think of what the Black Community will think of your going to bat for one of their people.”

“Yussef, my dear, dear habibi, what a scheming, devious, calculating and wonderfully evil mind you have. Are you positive that you are not Levantine? You must have lots of Arab blood in you.” Fazzi started to laugh, “Why didn’t I think of that? It’s a great idea. But, I will go you one better. I’m going to call not only the Imam but also all the leaders from the Mosque and tell them to get their backsides here, now. We will get that petition and get it within a few hours and release it to the press and make the evening news. You leave all this to me, lov, I will take care of everything. Ish Allah, it was His will that I met you. I thank Him every day for sending you to me. I will get right on this and then I’ll be back.” Fazzi left after kissing Joseph.

“Great” Joseph said as he drifted off to sleep.

It was late in the evening by the time he returned to Joseph’s room. He was ready for bed himself. It had been a rough day, but things had gone well. After a bit of pressure applied in the right places, he had done everything that Joseph had asked. He had called the Imam and all the movers of the community to a meeting in his house and ordered them to sign the proclamation he had written. He then called in the press and together with his “committee”; he released the petition and the press gobbled up the story. The whole thing appeared on all the networks and received top spot national news coverage. Even the European and worldwide press were printing the story. “Arab Americans Demand Release of American G.I.” ran the headlines. It had been a very satisfying and a very good day’s work.

He looked down at the still sleeping soldier and Fazzi seeing him there stretched out decided to join him in bed. Even though he had sent the servants home earlier, he locked the bedroom door and went into their connecting bathroom. He was exhausted yet he just had the need to feel Joseph’s body next to him in bed. In his room he stripped off his clothes except for his boxers then he went back into Joseph’s room dropped the boxers and lay down beside the nude body of his lover. He wanted– he needed Joseph to make love to him. Joseph needed it also. But right now Joseph was not in any condition to do it to Fazzi. He was out. The doctor was right; those pills could keep him in a state of happy bliss for hours yet. This was his chance, perhaps the only one he would ever have. He was going to rape the sleeping soldier. He would never know it and if he objected he would blame it somehow on the pills. He was not thinking straight. It was as if the old lusts had returned. He was back in the Lebanon again. The “old Fazzi” was back, with a vengeance. All he wanted was to fuck his lover into submission. To have his cock nail him to the bed. He ran his fingers over the sleeping nude body. Feeling no response he kissed the back of his neck. Only the sound of his deep breathing greeted him. His fingers gripped the soft dick and still no reaction. Fazzi slid down under the covers his lips kissing as he moved his mouth down the sleeping body until they reached it’s crotch. He started to nibble on the foreskin using his teeth, his lips and his tongue he moved the skin back and forth lapping his hot tongue tip over and into the space between his cock head and the skin. Finally a reaction, but not the one he had expected. Joseph rolled over on his belly, still asleep. The Arab was frustrated at this point, his face now looking at Joseph’s ass. His fingers reached out and caressed the muscled flesh. He placed his thumbs so that he could spread apart the two hard globes exposing the hidden valley of delight to and for his explorations. Next the Arab’s tongue tip reached out to touch the pink rosebud. He pressed his face deep within the walls of the hot, humid love valley. Burring his face in the hairy forest, He licked, sucked, and nibbled on Joseph’s ass hole. Then and only then did Joseph react by moaning and giving a deep sigh.

“So, he got you back inside?”

“After he cornered me and made me tell him what was wrong with me. I told him, Jose. I told him I’m gay and that I like him. I told him because he wouldn’t let me come in otherwise.” I sniffed again, willing myself not to cry again.

“That bastard!”

I shook my head. “When we did get be back inside, he just left. Didn’t say a thing, he just left.” I turned watery eyes to Jose. “Let me stay here for awhile, please. I can’t face him, not right now.”

“Of course, Baby! Don’t you give it another thought. It will be like a slumber party, okay?”

“Okay,” I gave a weak laugh.

That night I did nothing more than curl up on the empty top bunk and stare at nothing. Jose talked none stop about nothing important, occasionally sending me sympathetic looks. Near three in the morning, I was looking out the window at the courtyard bellow, wrapped in my blanket at the desk and listening to Jose snort in his sleep when someone began pounding on the door. Jose gave one great snort and sat up in bed to look over at me. I shrugged my shoulders and looked back at the door. Jose jumped up and ran over to the door, pulling his night shirt farther down his thighs. “Who es it?”

“Open the door, Jose,” Derek’s commanding voice shot through the wood barrier.

I jumped up from my chair, dislodging a sleeping Boots who complained an hid under the bed. I was half tempted to follow him but was afraid I wouldn’t fit.

“Don’t you know what time it es?”

“I said open the door, Jose.”

“I em trying to sleep in here. Now shush or you will wake up Tim.”

“I just saw Tim getting cozy with Peter Shanks out in the entertainment room, so your story is blown there.”

Now, me? I would have known this was a ploy to open the door, but my poor misguided Jose suddenly forgot about protecting me and thought about how his boy toy was playing with someone else. Throwing open the door, a very displeased Jose poked his head out into the hall. “What? Where es he? I will scratch his eyes out.”

“Thank you,” Derek said as he stepped into the room and closed Jose out into the hall. With a resounding click, he locked the door.

My heart dropped to my feet.

Jose started pounding on the door, demanding to be let in saying what a dirty trick that was. Derek ignored him. The dim light from the window reflected off of his eyes, giving them an unholy light.

This was it, I was sure. He was going to kill me or yell at me or hit me or something equally displeasure able. Leaning against the desk, I tried to look casual all wrapped up in my blanket, my bare feet kicking at the carpet. Not an easy task, but I like to think that I pulled it off. “What do you want?”

“I want to talk to you. I waited for you back at the room, but it didn’t take me long to figure out you had turned tail and left.”

The accusation stung, but it was true. I fled like a scared little kid. “I don’t want to talk.”

“Well,” Derek said as he sat down on Jose’s bed. “Good thing I didn’t ask, huh?”

I scooted over to the far wall which was only about five paces away, but I figured if I could manage it, I could break for the door eventually.

“First of all, screw you for thinking I wouldn’t be your friend if I knew you were gay.”

The venom in his voice made me flinch. I glared at him. “It’s a rather new thing for me and I didn’t feel like advertising it.”

“And after we were friends? What, you didn’t trust me enough to tell me?”

“The last time I told someone I got my ass kicked, so sue me for being a little more cautious! Wouldn’t that have just made the perfect dinner conversation?” I threw my blanket onto the chair, my hands waving around wildly. “Hey, Derek, I’m gay. Oh, and by the way, I’ve had the hots for you since I met you at the water park. Yeah, I could barely wait to tell you that!”

“It would have been nice if you had told me something rather than springing it on me like that!”

“Springing? It wasn’t like I wanted to! You were holding me hostage up in that tree! You wouldn’t let me come inside! You made me tell you,” I ranted. How dare he put all the blame on me. I never would have told him if I hadn’t gone out on that tree limb. This was Boots fault.

Derek rose from the bed, a soft laugh on his lips. “Yeah, maybe I did.”

I scooted closer to the door, not watching him. “What was the second thing?”

“Second, that was a pretty nasty thing you did out there on the field, but,” he raised his hands to hold me off as I opened my mouth to retort, slowly advancing on me. “I understand why you did it and that’s okay, I guess. I don’t like it much, though. You put me in a pretty tight situation back there.”

“You know what, I don’t care what kind of situation I put you in. I’m sure your smooth tongue got you out of it just fine.” I turned and headed for the door. I was tired of this, I just wanted to go to bed. I’d definitely had enough stress for one day. “Why don’t you just go back to your girlfriend and let yourself be roped into a loveless marriage that you’ll regret within a month. I’m done.”

I didn’t get very far. Before I knew it I was back against the wall with Derek leaning his elbows on either side of my head so I had no where to go. Even as angry and hurt and tired as I would, I couldn’t help but notice how close he was standing to me. We weren’t quite touching, but we were oh-so-close.

His eyes bore into mine. “Maybe I don’t want to go back to April. Maybe I’m not into a fake relationship with her anymore. Maybe I broke up with her down on the field, told her what you said was true. Maybe, just maybe I want something different.”

I think the guys down the hall heard me gulp; the rapid bounding of my heart that was trying to jump right out of my chest. “What . . .err . . . what do you want?”

“Maybe I’m finding myself a little more into you than is right. When you were down there on the field picking a fight with April, I was strangely fascinated by you. And back there on the tree, I didn’t know whether to hit you or . . .”

“Or?”

“Or kiss you,” he said so softly, I almost missed it. Part of me wanted to believe it was my imagination playing tricks on me. This was Derek my roommate, the guy I’d had a crush on since he came to my rescue at the beginning of summer, the guy who’s girlfriend was a complete limelight seeker, the STRAIGHT GUY!!!!! Surely, he could not have said what I think he had just said.

“I’m sorry, what?” Probably not the best thing I could have said at that moment, but I was really at a loss.

Derek just laughed softly, shaking his head. “Only you could have utter disbelief in your voice at a time like this.”

“But your straight! You had a girl friend just a few hours ago that doesn’t even resemble a guy in the slightest! You’ve never given Jose a twice over when he really dresses up, you’ve never tried to check a guy out as he’s walking away, you don’t even like fashion! I mean I don’t either, but still! You are one of the straightest guys I know!”

He leaned in close and whispered in my ear, his breath just brushing my lobe making goose bumps breakout over my arms. “Even straight guys wonder if they really are straight.”

Wasn’t that the very thing that had set me on the path to discovering who I really was? The gay guy who had not yet actually gone out on a date with a guy because he was too nervous to let anyone know he was really gay? Even if he wasn’t honest with anyone else, he was honest with himself to say he really liked to watch reruns of Baywatch and it wasn’t because of Pamela Anderson. It had all started with a question, ‘What if I’m not as straight as I think I am?’

When Derek pulled back to look at me, I know my mouth was hanging open. Not in invitation, mind you, but in shock! He apparently thought it was the first option. He leaned in and kissed me! I thought my knees where going to give away, but I had them locked just as tightly as every other part on my body. Oh, the conflicting emotions I was feeling right then. Shock, first and foremost, terror wondering if this was really real or was he just using me as some kind of self discovery experiment, and burning desire I couldn’t deny even if I had to.

Derek leaned back and gave me what I could only describe as a shy smile, which looked so damned cute! “I wouldn’t do this with anyone else. You have to know that Ethan. You’re my friend and mean so much to me. I don’t know when I’ll have the courage for this again.”

I knew then it was now or never. Even if I was an experiment on his part, I would regret it forever if I didn’t have this moment with him. I couldn’t speak, my voice having decided to desert me at this crucial moment, so I did the only thing I could to let him know how I felt. I leaned in and kissed him. It was a soft kiss barely containing the burning hunger I felt within me. He moaned low in his throat with desire and nearly undid me right there.

Even knowing I was gay and liked guys, I still had never actually kissed a guy yet. It was nice, so different from kissing a girl. Derek’s lips were strong and demanding and I felt myself yielding to him.

One of his hands moved to cup my cheek, my own hands creeping up to grip the back of his neck holding him close to me. With a pull of his other hand, he began to lead me back to the bed. I didn’t resist. It was like a fantasy come to life. It was everything I had wanted since I had realized I was gay just before summer. And now I was with the one guy besides Colin Farrell that I really wanted.

It wasn’t long before he had me on my back on Jose’s bed, moving restlessly under him, practically begging for him to take me. Wordlessly, we stripped each other, our eyes locked. No words were needed, not between us. I may have only known him for the last four months, but I felt as though I’d known him my entire life and everything about this moment was right. I didn’t need to tell him to go slow, I didn’t need to tell him I’d yet to be with a guy, I didn’t need to tell him how badly I wanted him. He knew it all, I could see it in his eyes. In their murky depths, I could see he was even more nervous than me and that made me feel so good.

When at last we lay together with nothing between us, Jose’s K-Y in my hand that I’d found in his desk moments before, he looked at me, his bottom lip between his teeth. “You, uh, you’re sure about this?”

I grabbed his throbbing member in my hand and grinned at him. “Don’t tell me you want to back out of this now?”

He groaned with pleasure. “No. I just, I wanted to give you a chance to, you know, if you weren’t sure about it.”

I leaned up and kissed him deeply. It was so sweet that he was thinking about me, not wanting me to regret what we were about to do. I wanted to jump him right then. “You’re sweet, but no, I definitely don’t want to back out.”

“Okay.” He watched me with fascinated eyes as I pored the lubricant out onto my hand and warmed it up. Gently, I rubbed it onto him, delighting when he moaned out my name.

Leaning up, I whispered into his ear, “Take me, Derek.”

Not waiting further, he pushed into me, just his head. The pain was abrupt and fierce, making me gasp. He didn’t move, waiting for my body to adjust to him. It hurt, but I could tell that the pain was fading fast, only to be replaced with one of the most curious sensations I’ve ever felt. When I nodded I was okay, he began to push into me farther. I felt so full and so beautiful wrapped in his arms. Then came the pleasure.

I began to buck back against him as he began to move, He kissed my collar bone, nipped at my neck, making me cry out in delirious delight. Sweat beaded out on our bodies, but still we held tight to one and other. In the throes of passion, we came together, falling from the heavens back down on to Jose’s bed.

He fell asleep in my arms. I simply laid there, holding him to me as I watched the sun rise out the window. Even if he wanted nothing more to do with me for the rest of my life, I would always have this moment to cherish close to my heart.

Somewhere around noon, we both awoke to furious pounding on the door. Derek jumped up and threw his pants on, while I wrapped Jose’s blanket around my middle. For some strange reason, I could not find my pants. Strange.

Derek opened the door to an indignant Jose. “Well. Es about time you let me back into my own room, you brute. Look what I had to go around campus in! Just look at me! I had to sleep in your room, and borrow your clothing. I look like a disgrace!”

I began to laugh as I really looked at Jose. He was dressed in one of Derek’s extra football jerseys, which was belted around the waist, and a pair of my skinny jeans. I couldn’t remember the last time he had looked so much like a guy. “You look good, Jose.”

“Don’t you get started on me, girl. I will scratch your eyes out, you-” Jose looked at the blanket around my waist and the blushing Derek who was leaning casually against the wall next to the still open door. “Oh, girl, you have to tell me everything! You look like you were ridden all night long and enjoyed every minute of it. Mmm!”

“Jose!” I’m fairly certain my face had turned a red somewhat similar to that of a ripe tomato, my eyes doubling in size. Did Jose have no shame? No, not really.

Derek laughed and moved over to me, encircling me in his arms. He wasn’t making this situation any better, let me tell you. “Would you stop badgering my boyfriend, please?”

“Oh, honey, really?” Jose asked with excitement, clapping his hands in front of him.

I looked up at Derek in shock, still trying to keep the blanket around my waist. “Really?”

Derek leaned down and kissed my nose. “Yeah, really. If your game for it, that is.”

“Of course, he’s game, honey! What do you think he’s been waiting for all this time? A beer buddy?” Jose asked, hands on hips, eyebrow expertly raised.

Seeing the look in Derek’s eyes, I couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah, I’m game.”

And that was how I found the love of my life. College goes pretty smoothly when you are in love and dating the Captain of the football team, let me tell you. Maybe the Fates weren’t laughing at me. Maybe they were telling me to stop being so afraid of what others thought and to just take a chance? Who knows?