FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Cowboy

Writing out a reading assignment, Ben sat at his desk in study hall, writing a book review. Black retractable ballpoint in his grip, the tan and beige husky wrote out his opinion of the book "Angela's Ashes" on a piece of paper. Blue eyes glanced up at the clock, which struck 2:45PM, five minutes before final departure. It only made the husky more antsy. He returned to his paperwork and began writing his last paragraph, the conclusion. His cursive was a bit shaky; he was still learning how to write in cursive after being taught by his friends; he wanted to improve his penmanship.

Ben tapped the pen against the paper for the final period when the buzzer finally rang for the end of the day. He took it and placed it into his folder, which was tucked away into his backpack. The stocky husky got up and threw it over his shoulder, his brown cowboy boots clicking against the tile floor. He followed the other students out into the hallway. Ben felt that he stood out from his new classmates; he didn't look preppy, or urban. He wore a John Deere hoodie, snug Wrangler jeans, and his boots that scraped along the black and white tiled floor. He was a transplant to Westerville High School, the sixteen year old originally hailing from Hanover. He now lived in Westerville, with his friend's older brother, after being legally emancipated from his parents. He was now basically on his own.

The husky made a left and turned to push the bathroom door open. He stepped in and stopped to glance at himself in the mirror. His youthful face was aged by a dark, jagged scar that ran down the left side of his face. That side of his face was numb, the consequence of facial paralysis. The scar was the forever reminder of the gay bashing that almost claimed his life. His body bore the scars of being stabbed by three classmates back at Newark. Short cropped brown hair sat between his pointy ears- he grew a goatee, which jutted from his chin. He wanted to change things up.

Turning his head, he walked up to an empty urinal that was bolted along the wall. It was a wall of dividerless urinals. A couple obnoxious jocks boasted and joked about some girl as they stood at the far end. Ben found his spot and undid his silver buckle and fiddled around with his fly. Out plopped his thick, tan, uncut member. The blunt tip almost immediately sprung a thick piss stream, which splashed into the bowl below. The husky always stood at just the right distance, to show off to the meatheads who bragged about their own prowess. He quickly emptied his bladder and gave his cock a shake, which was tucked back away. He hit the plunger and turned to leave.

Going down the steps to the lobby, Ben saw his friends awaiting him as always. It brought a smile to his face, which was slightly twisted by his facial paralysis. Two beige and cream colored Ukrainian huskies and a slender red Doberman who was Brazilian. Vasily and Anatoly Savchenko, with Andy Rocha. Vasily and Andy were seniors, and Anatoly was a junior, like Ben. The tan husky lived with Vasily and Anatoly.

"Hey!" Ben greeted.

"How'd your day go?" Vasily asked.

"Oh, same crap, different day~" laughed Ben. "Got my writing assignment done."

"I had a little bit of a hard time following that book." Anatoly admitted.

"Yeah...reading ain't one of my strong suites." Laughed Ben with some self-depreciating humor.

"What book was that?" Andy asked.

"Angela's Ashes~"

"Oh I read that last year." The nerdy Doberman nodded. "I wrote a two page paper on my thoughts about it."

"Overachiever." Teased Ben. A grin curled up on part of his face.

"Pfft. All in a day's work." Andy smiled.

"Speaking of work...today's my first day with Lumberworx." Ben added.

"Oh? Well good luck!" Andy and the others chimed in.

"Thanks." Smiled the husky. "A lil' nervous~ My first real job."

"I'm surprised you didn't try and work for Rob~" Vasily added. He and the others all worked for Rob Barion, the man who saved Ben's life at Newark High School.

"Eh." Ben shrugged. "I want to do my own thing, ya' know? I want to do something- blaze my own path."

"Understandable." Andy nodded.

Ben checked the time on his phone. "Well, I gotta head off. I'll see you guys later!"

"See ya Ben!"

Walking with a happy stride, the husky returned to his truck, a brand new Chevy 3500 in the lot. A gift from Rob Barion, the cherry red, crew cab, dually sat next to Andy's black Suburban, and Vasily and Anatoly's silver Ford Fiesta. All their vehicles were covered in a coating of chalky looking brine, from the rough winter weather they were still enduring in the first week of March. Ben tossed his backpack into the passenger seat and climbed into his ebony crew cab. He buckled himself in and turned over his Duramax, which burbled under the hood.

Rolling the window down, Ben waved goodbye to his friends as he drove past. Following the congestion through the parking lot, he departed for work, the first day in training as a sales associate for a lumber mill in Westerville. He was disappointed to be told that because of his age, he would not be allowed to run any machinery, which basically eliminated him from directly working with lumber. He would have a plush office job within the company, taking orders and processing them for fulfillment. It paid eleven bucks an hour, twenty hours a week; four hours each evening after school. He would get a paycheck every Friday morning.

Ben yearned to do something with his life. He was frustrated that he couldn't immediately fulfill his dream of working in construction or fabrication. He was just sixteen, soon to be seventeen in a week. The constant coddling by labor laws and the state annoyed him. He was legally emancipated from his family, after they had disowned him for coming out as gay. It was a trauma of its own, on top of nearly being killed for being gay. But legal emancipation, while separating him from the clutches of the other Reynolds, did not give him instant adulthood, and that irritated him to no end. Ben just wanted to get on with his life and do his own thing, as a now openly gay, country boy.

Lumberworx was ten minutes away from his school. A lumber yard that had a manufacturing plant along with a small store for contractors, it was a sprawling complex just on the outskirts of town. Ben pulled his truck into the parking lot, which sat next to a couple other pickup trucks on the lot. The husky got out and battled snow flurries to get to the office, which he got quickly checked in. The front office receptionist quickly took Ben to meet his supervisor, a Dick Schlatter.

"Afternoon Ben! Welcome aboard to Lumberworx!" the forty year old brown Labrador greeted.

"Hey, thanks." Smiled the husky.

Dick showed Ben around the main office, and took him for a brief tour through the manufacturing plant. Wearing a red hardhat, Ben walked beside Dick as he pointed things out, at times shouting over the loud machinery. The air was filled with the smell of pine sap, as giant trucks were planed down, and moved along the assembly line for processing. The tour concluded at the end of the kilns, where the finished product was moved along for stacking and bounding for shipment. Ben was returned back to the office where he got his training packet, to begin computer training.

"By the way, Ben." Dick spoke up. "Are you related to a Bill and Valery Reynolds? From around the Hanover, Newark area?"

"Yes." Ben responded. His voice was blank sounding. "Those are my parents."

"Heard your father had a heart attack. Is he doing okay?"

"I have the slightest of clue, Dick. We don't speak anymore." Ben acknowledged.

"Oh? Something happen and-"

"I rather not talk about it." Ben curtly cut in.

"Oh, okay then."

Ben took his seat and opened his training packet up to scan through it. He loaded his program and began his first day on the job, the first day of a week's worth of training.

---

With barely any twilight left, Ben returned home, just a few minutes outside of Westerville. Rolling up a two lane country road, the husky turned the wheel and pulled up onto a long gravel driveway, lined with some trees. In the distance sat a stucco covered, single story home, with a two-story tall, three car garage. The loft above the garage was Ben's home; it had a bedroom, a small living room, kitchen, and bathroom. The house was where his best friends Vasily and Anatoly lived at, with their older brother Anton, and his boyfriend, Borr Eklund, a Swedish husky. Anton's parents, Ivan, and Yulia, resided in the home as well. Ben parked in front of the garage and hopped out with his backpack. He walked over to head inside the main house, for dinner.

At the dinner table, Anton and his boyfriend got the table ready. Vasily and Anatoly were not back home from work yet, due to their forty minute commute from Newark. Ben helped out, passing out plates and getting food ready in the kitchen, which was open with the dining room. Ivan and Yulia, helped in the cooking.

Ben took a step back and marveled at Anton and Borr. They were both ripped huskies; Anton was tan and beige like Ben, and Borr was white and gray, with blonde hair that was long and tied into a Viking inspired ponytail. A thick blonde goatee jutted from his chin. His right arm bore a full sleeve, an abstract collection of black and gray artwork with some Norse themes added to it. Anton had a stubby Mohawk of black hair that was dyed blue. His goatee was dyed the same color. Both his muscular arms were sleeved, right to the wrists of black and gray artwork. Ben wanted to one day have both his arms sleeved; but again, it reminded him of the fact that he was a minor.

The young husky looked up to Anton and Borr; they helped give Ben a huge morale booster. The two huskies were laid back and easy going, with a great, cheerful personality, in contrast to Ben's first caretaker, the mercurial Rob Barion. In contrast, Rob was a dour figure, with a penchant for always projecting ferocity. He was a gay bashing survivor like Ben, but it left him emotionally messed up, which was an understatement. He reminded Ben of a firm fatherly figure, compared to Anton and Borr being more like very close friends.

Bursting through the front door was Anatoly, followed by Vasily. The two young huskies lugged in their video fear from their car, as it all bounced around in their grips. Anton yelled for them in Ukrainian, his voice having a deep resonance to it. He was Vasily's older brother, and Anatoly's cousin, and had been raising both of them for a few years after they fled war-torn eastern Ukraine. Ben treated them more than just friends, but like family- they were the siblings he always wanted.

Around the table everyone sat, recalling stories from their day. Dinner was a roast, along with a tossed salad, and a few distinct Ukrainian dishes. Ben had a plate with roast beef slices on one side, a salad tucked beside it, and a handful of varenyky, and deruny. The varenyky were dumplings, stuffed with potatoes, sauerkraut, and minced meat. The deruny were crunchy potato pancakes, with a dollop of sour cream on top. Anton made both quite regularly- he quipped it was the only thing he "didn't suck at making". Both reminded Ben of what his mom used to make; part of his family was eastern European, while his father's side was distantly Swedish.

"These pancakes remind me literally of what Mom used to make." Ben recalled.

"Oh yeah?" Anton muttered, his muzzle half filled with food.

"Yeah, they literally are the same. She called it draniki? Something that sounded Russian."

"Well that's the Russian and Belarusian name for deruny." Anton pointed out. "Potatoes, eggs, flour, and water."

"Wait...maybe that's what Mom was telling me a while back. My family is half Swedish and Russian? Or something? It had a funny name like that- Bella...Russia."

"That's Belarus." Vasily added. "So you're half Belarusian!"

"I guess so!" laughed Ben. "Mom's family were all coal miners in West Virginia. So was Dad's family."

"And half Swedish! So you can be a drunk Swedish guy like me!" Borr laughed.

"Didn't Rob call you that?" Anton asked.

"Of course. Who else?" Borr chuckled.

"Oh boy." Smiled Ben.

"Somehow I pissed my boss off, and he's like 'Borr, you're a god damn drunk Swedish guy. And I'm like 'cool!'"

Ben and everyone around the table shared a chuckle.

"Well I do hold my liquor well~" Ben boasted.

"Underage drinking...impressive." Teased Borr with a grin.

"Well I'm now on my own...kinda...so screw it~" Ben shrugged. "Gonna do my own thing for now on."

"By the way...how was work?" Anatoly asked curiously.

"Oh, fine. Just a bit boring with all the computer training. I already know a thing or two about wood~"

"Oh tell me more~" Grinned Anton with a laugh.

"Shut up." Grinned Ben. "I know that kinda wood too!"

"Ha!" Borr laughed. Everyone chuckled about it.

"It's a nice place to work at. Hopefully I can get things to work out."

"You'll do great." Anton encouraged. "Pretty sure you'll be an expert in wood."

Ben closed his eyes and smiled, with a subtle chuckle at the innuendo. "Thanks, Anton~"

After dinner, Ben returned back to his "home", located in the loft above the garage. Going up the side steps, he opened the door to step into his small living room, which was open with the kitchen. The floors were a deep mahogany hardwood, the walls having wood paneling. Ben stepped into his bedroom to toss his backpack to the floor beside his bed. His bedroom was cozy feeling. Its beige walls were adorned with photos; on one wall a giant framed picture of his Silverado dominated it, while above his bed was a large framed poster of a local musician he liked, a leather clad red Doberman, Russ Drabek. He posed in just a leather codpiece and a harness, his sleeved, tattooed arms adorned with gauntlets and an armband on each bicep. Russ was the general manager who ran the Newark GM dealership- in Rob's own words, he was a "leather loving, automobile selling sociopath". At the bottom, it was autographed "Buy GM! Russ Drabek. 'Leather slave'". Ben always admired the portrait, he wanted to be just like that; tattooed and clad in leather.

Turning on the TV in the corner, Ben flipped to something interesting on to play in the background. He pulled his binder and a science book out from his backpack and sat down at his desk, pushed his new laptop aside and opened his book up to resume doing his homework, to settle down for the night.

---

Peering through goggles, Ben and Anatoly worked around their glowing Bunsen burner. The hiss of high pressure gas was followed by the rush of bright blue flame. It was part of a flame experiment, for science class. Across the laboratory desk stood Vasily and Andy, who stood around Andy's video camera, bolted down to a tripod. They had come down from their study hall with Andy's ITC-735A, to record a video for the school to post on their YouTube page. The old black, gray, and white sided analog camera was ready to record to its three-quarter inch tape deck.

"The burner's runnnin'!" laughed Ben as he got his element sample ready. They were silvery looking sticks that had various elements on them. Ben wore gloves to handle them as some of them were quite toxic.

"Okay! Okay! Let me roll camera here." Andy called as he toggled his VTR button. The tally lights on his viewfinder glowed red as the camera and VTR began to record. "Hey let's make this natural, whenever you're ready."

"Hi! I'm Anatoly Savchenko~"

"Ben Reynolds here!"

"Today in science class, we're learning how chemists use flame to detect elements by the color of flame they produce!" Anatoly explained. His English had extensively improved in the four years he had been living in the US. It had a noticeable Ukrainian "drawl" to it, as Ben teasingly referred to.

"Some of these are kinda toxic...so...I'd recommend wearing gloves." Ben chuckled as he picked up a sample of strontium. He held it to the flame and watched it glow a brilliant reddish-orange. Anatoly explained to the camera as Ben set a few other samples to the flame; copper, which glowed blue-green, Indium, which had a brilliant blue flame, and barium, which glowed a brilliant green color. It was a short video, which was quickly taped, followed by a few secondary shots Andy took of close ups of the elements being set in the flame, and other "B-roll" by his old Ikegami.

With the buzzer, class was dismissed. Ben left with his gaggle of friends, all of them heading for their lunch period. They talked glowingly about their video they created.

"Oh god, it's Talon..." Andy grumbled.

Ben looked ahead to see a gaggle of meatheads walking. They were members of the lacrosse team, lead by Talon Brock. He was a cocky looking, smug gray wolf. He sported a well combed goatee, and short cropped brown hair atop his head. Ben thought he was beautiful, but a homophobic, dickhead. His cohorts were just as obnoxious looking; in their athletic jackets that adorned the school's logo on the back.

"Jocks verses nerds...that's us." Vasily chuckled.

Ben shook his head as he saw Talon and his friends shove a rather feminine looking wolf into his locker, which was followed by obnoxious laughter. Ben felt his paws ball up into fists.

"Oh they're all just drunk on their egos." Andy explained. "Like Trey Hooverman- he was full of himself until he broke his back. Now he's stripped of his ego- and kinda a nice guy."

"Yeah." Vasily shrugged.

"Nothin' but a bunch of dumb, pretty boys..." Ben grunted.

"Brawn over brains~" Andy added.

Ben ate lunch with his friends at their own table, in the expansive cafeteria. Situated around a circular table made of white plastic, they all ate a school lunch; a slice of pizza, a salad, some fruit, and a bottle of apple juice.

"My pizza looks like someone puked on it..." Vasily said as he held his slice.

"Schools change, the lunches stay the same..." teased Andy with a laugh.

"So how are you liking your new job?" Vasily asked Ben.

"Oh it's great." The husky acknowledged. A smile curled up on his face. "I, uhh, really like it. I'm almost done with my computer training."

"So what's all the training?" Andy asked as he munched on his salad.

"Oh, a lot of stuff about the ordering processes, the computer systems used by Lumberworx, and a lot of the specifics about the kind of wood and lumber- building materials they sell. But I know a thing or two about wood."

"That can really go both ways, Ben~" Andy teased, to the grins and chuckles of Anatoly and Vasily.

"Funny~ Yeah, I went there." Ben snickered with a grin on part of his face. "I know wood."

"Yeah, so does every other fag~" came the masculine voice of Talon.

Ben turned to see the hulking gray wolf approach with his cohorts, their faces twisted with snickering grins.

"Funny." Was Ben's curt response.

"I like to think I am..." grinned Talon.

Ben hated Talon's guts; he was a homophobic piece of shit to Ben. While the husky never considered Talon a bully- the wolf knew his limits with Ben, after his reputation from Newark began to filter back to Westerville. Everyone knew Ben was gay, after he came out introducing himself and explaining his facial injuries to his classmates. Most left him be, especially when word came to other classmates that Ben almost beat a student to death in Newark after being stabbed a second time. But regardless if it was physical- Ben hated being called a fag. It was a word that shook him to his core. It made him think of his own estrange father, who called him that after he came out. But for all his antics, there was something about Talon that always made Ben suspect something- he just couldn't quite put words to it.

"Why don't you just fuck off, Talon. Don't you have more pussy to grab?" Ben grunted.

"I rather grab that than dicks like you, Ben!"

"Eat dirt, asshole." Ben hissed. He looked away and did not acknowledge Talon any further. The exchange ended at that, with a few insults hurled at Andy, and the other two huskies, who just brushed it off with disgruntled gazes as they ventured off.

"Bunch of fucking assholes if you ask me..." Ben grumbled under his breath.

"I can't help that I speak English with a accent..." Vasily frowned.

"It's okay~" Andy tried to calm everyone down. "They're idiots- all of them."

Ben drank the last of his juice and smacked the plastic bottle on the table. "I'm gonna go take a dump guys~"

"Okay."

---

The parking lot glowed amber from the sodium lights above. Snow flurries fluttered in the beams of light as Ben walked back to his truck, after another day working at Lumberworx. In his left paw was a freshly printed certification of completion of Lumberworx's training program. He completed his first week of computer programming and was now certified to take orders for the company. He climbed into his truck feeling a bit worn out, his eyes sore from all the computer work. Popping it into gear, he took off, feeling his tires spin a bit in the slush. He turned left, back onto the road to begin his ten minute commute home. The snow blew all around his grime covered truck.

Listening to some country music, Ben passed the time and thought about his day. The roads were slowly turning white from the more than expected snow that fell from blackened skies. Glowing streetlights came and went as Ben drove through Westerville, to head back to home, just outside of town.

Approaching a major intersection, the light turned green for him in the distance. Ben held his speed and approached the intersection, when out of nowhere, he saw headlights, and the rippling roar of a high-revving engine. A red Mitsubishi Eclipse power slid around a turn, a stupid stunt by its driver. They must have miscalculated, because the slide with further than intended, forcing Ben to abruptly swerve. The Silverado lost grip and slid, as Ben turned into his slide and put his foot on the brakes. He slid through the intersection and into the opposing lanes, where his left outer tire of the rear made contact with the roughed up curb. The jagged concrete with rusted rebar poking out hit the outer tire, which instantly exploded. Ben managed to come to a complete halt.

Slamming the shifter into park, Ben hopped out, his blood boiling at the other driver. Into the snow, the husky saw none other than Talon, his archrival. His Eclipse got stuck where the road dipped down for the storm drain. The sight of the cocky wolf only made the husky more mad.

"Watch where you're goin' shitdick~!" Yelled Ben as he gave him the finger. "Fuck you and your piece of shit rice burner!"

"Fuck off you god damn faggot!" Talon screamed back. He burned rubber in trying to get himself unstuck, his tires beginning to smoke.

"Eat my dick fucker." Ben glared. He turned around and knelt down to look at his shredded tire. The whole outer wall got ate up, the rebar puncturing it and tearing a large gash throughout. He still had the inner tire to drive on. "Fucking beautiful, Talon..."

Removing the destroyed tire with his tools, his truck drove on just five wheels, as the 3500HD was limped back home by a frustrated Ben. A constant, squinted glare graced his torn up face. He got back home, where he parked his truck in the garage and began the process of freeing the spare tire and bolting it onto the axle. He did the change out in less than half an hour, and tossed the rim aside; he needed to get a new tire tomorrow.

Vasily and Anatoly were not home, and were going to be late; they were working with Andy back at their jobs to edit their video shot in science class. So Ben passed the evening with Anton and Borr.

The floor lamp in the corner filled the room with a soft, warm glow. Anton and Borr's bedroom was cozy feeling, with a TV that played on the wall, and a large, plush bed that Ben sat on. Borr walked around the bedroom in just a snug pair of blue briefs that didn't hide much with the huge outline in front. Anton was still in the shower.

"Talon's a fucking idiot. If I could get that motherfucker to pay for a new tire...I would." Ben grumbled.

"Eh, we'll just buy another one tomorrow for you." Borr shrugged. "No need to go all Rob mode on it."

"Heh, I hear that a lot~" the husky chuckled. "Me and Rob share a lot in common..."

"That dude just sounds like some hotshot in a fancy car." Borr figured as he fiddled around with getting his phone plugged in for the night.

"More like the new car Daddy got for him. The Brocks are a kinda wealthy family- his old man runs a contracting firm in Worthington, so he's got cash to throw away on his son."

"I see~" Borr nodded.

"He's beautifully dumb." Chuckled Ben. "Like, that body is gorgeous- ripped lacrosse player. Six pack abs, man~"

"Like mine!" Borr pointed out with a grin.

"Heh!" laughed Ben. "Basically, yeah. But you're not a stuck up douchecanoe like him."

"Nah, I'm just a drunk Swedish guy!"

"Ha~"

"Do you ever see yourself dating someone?" Borr asked curiously.

Ben tilted his head with a look of thought. "Oh wow, I never put much thought into that."

"Really?"

"Yeah...everything so far has just been kinda survival mode for me...so I never really put much thought into dating another guy. The guys I know who are gay at school...well... I don't know. I don't share anything in common with them."

"Oh yeah?"

"I'm not that kind of gay..." Ben smiled. "Prancy, girly-actin', drama queens. I'm a chubby country boy, who's gay, and doesn't speak with a lisp. Not sure if there's someone out there like me!"

"Hold your horses there, cowboy~" chuckled Borr. "You got plenty of time- don't rush into things. Most importantly, don't stick your dick into crazy! Before I came out, I had two girlfriends who tried to kill me when we broke up. One set my new car on fire."

"Yeah..."

"So yeah, Ben, don't stick your dick into crazy."

"Will do!"

The bathroom door opened up to reveal an unapologetically nude Anton. Throwing a towel over his shoulder, he walked past Ben, who gave the hung husky a sly wolf whistle. Ben's eyes scanned that gorgeous body; starting with his tattooed chest, going down his washboard abs, and following his thick, tan member, which swayed with each step. He was like Ben, uncut and endowed.

"Lookin' good, Anton~"

"Thanks~" the Ukrainian responded with an arm flex for the young husky.

Ben chuckled at the sight of Anton's unique, colorful, tattoo that covered his right butt cheek and hip area; a Koi fish swimming amongst lily pads along his buttocks. "Heh, that's a unique place for a tattoo."

Anton turned around to smile at Ben, as he bent over teasingly to grab some briefs from his dresser. "You like that?" The burly husky gave it a playful smack with his right paw.

"So why on your ass?"

"Well...originally it was going to be my chest piece...but I decided to put the tryzub on my chest instead. But I really liked that drawing...so....I put it on my butt!" Anton grinned. "Every guy seems to like it."

"Heh, there's a lot to like."

"Oh I know~" Borr grinned.

"So your birthday is coming up soon..." Anton brought up.

"Oh I know right? Seventeen!" Ben laughed.

"You're a youngin'" teased Anton. "I'll be thirty-four this May."

"Thirty-two for me." Borr chimed in.

"What do you want for your birthday?" the Ukrainian husky asked curiously.

"Hmm..." Ben thought. He watched Anton shuffle around his closet for a tanktop to wear. He pushed by some leather gear he owned; a bomber jacket, harness, chaps, and a codpiece that were hung up. "Well that leather gear is pretty fuckin' hot if you ask me."

"Heh~" chuckled the husky as he examined a few pieces.

"You into leather too?"

"It's really hot. Like that Russ fella I have hung up on my wall? Oh my god, I want some of that Doberbutt~"

Borr and Anton both laughed hard. "Oh god, Russ."

Anton shook his head while he laughed. "That guy's got some Mommy and Daddy issues."

"How so?"

"His parents buy him fetish gear for Christmas..." Borr chimed in. "Who does that?"

"Russ's parents."

Borr let out a slow sigh and laughed at the fact.

"Tell you what...I'll surprise ya with somethin' for your birthday..." Anton smirked.

"Oooh~" grinned Ben.

"I think I can say with confidence that you're becoming a man, a little early, Ben." Anton added.

"Yeah, 'cause of all the shit my parents put me through..." Ben rolled his eyes. "I want to become a man, but I feel so held back. I have to go through school, I can only work so many hours at the lumber yard, I can't run any lift equipment or power tools. Heck, I'm not even allowed to throw something in the trash compactor there! I have a curfew, all this shit. It's like I'm being held down till I'm eighteen. It's frustrating."

"I understand that feeling, but I want you to finish school." Anton pointed out. "I moved to the United States when I was nineteen years old, basically fresh out of school, and I worked and struggled for a long time to get to where I am now. I had to fundamentally relearn English to survive here- and practically relearn customs and values in the States. I see so many people here who have such opportunity, such potential, get wasted because Americans seem to not value education or something. So please stay in school, please enjoy this blissful part of your life...you're gonna one day wake up and be thirty, in debt, burned out from your job, doing a nine to six. You have your whole life ahead of you, things will fall into place. Things will get better."

"Just hold your horses, cowboy, don't rush life." Borr smiled. "Just be like me!"

"A drunk Swedish guy?"

"Yeah!" Borr exclaimed as he clapped his paws together. "Want a whisky on the rocks?"

"Sure!" Ben agreed. "I love underage drinking."

"I know right? You should have seen me when I was sixteen~" laughed Borr as he fetched a bottle from their small personal fridge."

"By the way...what the heck does 'Borr' mean? You told me your real name is Walter."

"Well...Borr means 'drill' in Swedish! My Mom gave me the nickname when she caught me in bed with two lovelies from school. She said she was going to start calling me 'drill'- and its true!"

Anton and Ben shared a laugh as Borr poured them drinks. They sat on the bed, enjoying each other's company as they sipped some Jack Daniels together.

---

Tires crunched against the gravel of the old quarry's parking lot. Hopping out, Ben adjusted his knit cap and flannel jacket as he stood alone in the big gravel lot. What was once a bustling rock quarry, was now a flooded, abandoned facility where people went to swim and hang out at. His friends liked to swim here during the summer, escaping from the heat in the cool, spring fed waters. It was a fun hang out zone for more than just swimming; the gravel lot had litter. Beer cans and bottles lie scattered about, along with a nearby half drunk bottle of malt liquor. A used condom lay at Ben's feet.

His boots crunched against the gravel as Ben walked. He wanted to take a walk through the naked woods, the overcast Saturday being cold and lonely. His friends were all busy with work back in Newark, assigned to help cover a video shoot Rob was doing for one of his various projects. It left Ben alone; he didn't make any new friends, and felt uncomfortable and unsure of anyone else beside Andy, Vasily, and Anatoly.

The woods wrapped around the large quarry, which had towering cliffs of weathered limestone from all the years of mining. Ben walked along a beaten trail, carved into the earth. The trees were naked, a brisk breeze whistling through the empty branches that bristled with early buds. The forest floor was littered in faded leaf litter, which fluttered around by the occasional gust. Ben loved the scenery as he walked along the rim of the quarry; it brought such calmness to him. It was one thing he missed back home in Hanover, living in a hilly region of remote Licking County. His old home was a dilapidated shack, nestled in the woods. The only way in or out was by a narrow two lane road, cut through the woodland. He loved living that life. It was a shame his parents never truly accepted him coming out; now it was a home he could never go back to.

Ben stopped near the ledge and gazed down at the large pond. Vasily described it during summer as having a beautiful shade of blue. It was spring fed and the water was super clear, allowing one to see almost to the bottom of the deep pool. But its winter colors were drab; the water took on a grayish-blue tone. Everything looked drab in the first weeks of March.

Continuing on his way, he looped around the pond and descended down a small hill. Ben held onto some small saplings to give himself more balance as his boots scraped along the soft earth and stones. The trail leveled out for the final run back to the gravel lot.

As Ben emerged from the brush, he spotted a car drive into the lot, a red Eclipse. The husky immediately recognized it as Talon's car. It pulled into a spot some distance away from his truck, revealing the muscular wolf as he stepped out. A standoffish pose graced Ben as he slowly walked towards his truck. Talon made eye contact with him and slowly began to walk towards him. It seemed unusual to Ben that Talon would be alone; usually he was surrounded by his meathead friends, or with his bimbo girlfriend. But Ben really didn't want to find out.

"Didn't wreck your truck did I?" sneered Talon as he approached.

"You owe me a tire, motherfucker." Glared Ben. "You suck at drifting."

"Kinda like how you suck dick, faggot~" Talon growled.

"You like to keep bringin' that up, so maybe that's your problem..." Ben said. He turned to walk back towards his truck.

"Hey..."

Ben turned around to see Talon's face soften up a bit. "I'm sorry I caused you to blow a tire out."

"Can I really believe you're sorry? You've shown me you usually don't care about anyone but yourself." Ben curtly responded.

"At least I said it."

"Why don't you mean it, dicktree." Ben grunted. "I'm gonna go piss."

Talon chuckled. "I need to do that as well. Mind if I join ya?"

"Careful, you might get the gay..." Ben rolled his eyes.

"Heh, whatever..."

The husky marched towards his spot, and nonchalantly undid his belt buckle and unzipped his jeans. He pulled out his hulking member and tugged a bit on his foreskin, adjusting his pose as he farted. With a grunt, he relieved himself against some rocks, watching his piss steam against them from the cold. Talon approached to stand next to him, his paws already pulling his member out from his gray sweatpants. He stood with Ben and pissed against the rocks. Ben did not make eye contact or flinch as he emptied his bladder. The idea of pissing with another guy made his dick a bit more chubby, the sound of hot piss splashing against the rocks.

"Isn't it great you can piss wherever basically?"

"I guess."

"The best part of being a man~" Talon muttered with a chuckle. His tone sounded a bit awkward.

"Heh."

Ben squeezed out the last of his pee and gave his member a shake. He stroked his foreskin a few times, adjusting it over his broad cockhead.

"Boy...what a tool you got there."

The husky froze up hearing Talon's smutty words, which followed with a playful wolf whistle. He turned to see the big wolf standing there, a grin on his face. Ben looked down to see his huge cock standing fully erect, his right paw holding it at the base. He had a tan dick just like Ben's, only circumcised. The husky took a surprised step back, still holding onto his shaft.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Ben shouted.

"Heh, maybe I like I what I see?" chuckled Talon. "And I know you like what you see right here..."

"So you're a faggot like me then..." Ben muttered.

"Yep..." Talon grunted through his teeth. "Just nobody needs to know..."

"What a fucking hypocrite. You push around other gays to cover your own gay ass." Ben glared. "Fucking. Hypocrite."

"You're a different kind of faggot, Ben."

"Don't call me a faggot."

"You're all big and tough...not a queen."

"I am who I am. But I'm not a lying hypocrite like you."

"Sounds like you don't want some of this, huh?" teased Talon. He gave his cock a shake before slowly stroking it. "Eight inches of man right here..."

Ben breathed slowly to keep himself calm. His cock was growing hard itself at the sight of another man's dick. The husky wanted to turn and run, but his arousal kept him put. It suppressed the urge to flee from Talon. The wolf wasn't posing a threat like normal, and his cock was tantalizing. It had the most perfectly shaped head, and a thick tan shaft that ran to that beautiful, toned body. Talon was a douchebag- a smug narcissist, but his beauty was undeniable, even to Ben.

The wolf walked over and gripped Ben's cock. His paw was warm around his tan shaft as the jock slowly stroked his member with a tight grip. Ben grew much harder. "I like that hood yours got~"

"I wasn't snipped..."

"Never played with a dude who was uncut..."

"Well I guess there's a first for everyone, huh?"

Ben slipped a paw and gripped Talon's throbbing member. It felt thick in his grip as he fondled and caressed it with his fingers. He traced the shaft, and rubbed the thick head, which was already moistened by some pre. The husky longed for this day so badly, even if it was the maleness of a person he really did not like. He put the fact that Talon was his bully behind him; his horniness overruled any thought of ethics.

Talon moved in and kissed Ben's neck. The husky felt like he was going to melt as Talon caressed his stomach and chest. He slowly broke away and kneeled down, his warm breath on Ben's cockhead. The wolf took Ben's member into his muzzle, which clamped down around it and began to slowly bob up and down. Ben shuddered and groaned to being sucked off for the first time, his cock throbbing at its maximum hardness, all the way into Talon's muzzle. He placed a muzzle atop of the wolf's head, encouraging him to suck away as the wolf pleasured him. He jerked himself off furiously. Ben was practically panting as Talon focused on sucking on his cockhead, his tongue teasing his foreskin as well by gliding around it.

"Oh god...I'm so close..." Ben moaned.

Talon slid it all the way into his muzzle and slowly slid it across his tongue as he pulled himself off. He gave the tip and slit a final lick, which just about pushed Ben to the edge. A tight grip of his paw around his shaft pushed Ben to the limit. As Talon furiously jerked him off, Ben came. He shot his load all over Talon's paw, thick, hot ropes of cum coating his fingers. The wolf blew his load all over the browned grass. He was so aroused from everything.

"Oh my god..." Ben shuddered. "Holy fuck, man."

Talon was left panting as he looked down at his engorged cock, which dripped some cum from the tip. He looked at his paw, which was coated in Ben's still hot seed. There was such a look of satisfaction on his face. Talon calmed down from his sexual high, his face turning into a look of embarrassed shock. He immediately shoved Ben to the ground, who tripped over his own bunched up jeans and landed with a thud in the cold grass.

"Fucking faggot..." Talon scoffed. He quickly pulled up his sweatpants. "You tell anyone else about this...you're fucking dead!"

"Yeah, fuck you too." Ben grumbled as he got up. He pulled his jeans up and buttoned them back up.

Talon quickly retreated back to his car as Ben watched him leave. He backed out and spun the tires in the gravel and left in a hurry, his vehicle slipping from view in the woods. Ben took a slow, deep breath and looked down at his jacket; there was a hand print made from his cum on the flannel. He grumbled under his breath as he walked to his truck, but his mind thought about everything that just happened. His bully just sexually pleasured him, his bully just revealed he was gay, and deep in the closet about it. But most importantly, a new milestone was met in his life. Ben finally got to experience his first sexual escapade.

---

Setting his sandwich down, Ben did a final review of his order pick list on his monitor. It was a big commercial lumber package, for a house project done by McDowd Construction. He reviewed a list with enough lumber to fill two semi-trucks; bunks of OSB, pressure-treated ply, two by fours, two by sixes, two by twelve's. The order was a staggering ten thousand dollars. Ben confirmed that his numbers matched the written request and submitted it. The husky then rolled himself over in his chair to catch his hard copy from the big Xerox copier, which spat it out in the tray. He took it back to his desk, neatly organized it, and slapped a staple in the upper left corner. He took his blue pen and wrote the date and his signature at the bottom. "3/23/19- Ben R. Reynolds". He dropped it off in a wall mounted tray, which read "PENDING ORDERS".

Going back to his seat, Ben resumed munching on his bologna sandwich. He sat in an open office environment, at a large desk that overlooked the lumber yard. Outside, in the gray overcast evening, forklifts traversed the lot, hauling lumber to and from racking. He took a moment to relax his mind by watching the workers in the yard mingle about.

"Hey Ben!" came his boss, Dick Schlatter. He held a fax in his grip. "Could you do me a favor and process this order that came in for me?"

"Sure~" Ben nodded as he accepted the note. Dick walked away, leaving Ben holding a handwritten note that was faxed over to Lumberworx. He scanned it and immediately stopped when he recognized the name of his uncle. The grainy, poorly copied note was signed by his uncle, Vance Reynolds. It brought an unsettling feeling to the husky. Vance was his father's older brother, a homebuilder who lived in the Columbus suburb of Upper Arlington. He was far more successful than his own father, who could barely make ends meet running his own makeshift scrap yard and car shop. Very awkward and unpleasant memories came up, reminding Ben of the whole estrangement process after he came out. The Reynolds, wealth, or not, were basically a bunch of "slack jawed yokels". The thought of Ben being an openly gay teenager was just too much for their old world way of thinking. He had run into his Uncle Vance in January, after moving to Westerville, and the brief encounter was as awkward as awkward could get. So many inappropriate, personal questions about his sexually that made Ben so angry that he turned and left. The husky let out a soft sigh.

"Great..."

The husky sat the paper beside him and opened a new window up in his order program, to begin the process of placing an order for fourteen bunks of three-quarter OSB plywood. He did it rather begrudgingly.

At the exact stroke of eight o'clock, Ben clocked out for the night. He successfully processed five major orders for Lumberworx, and sent them on their way for fulfillment by the lumber yard people. Throwing his jacket on and his lunchbox bouncing along his side, he said goodbye to his older coworkers and wished them a good night. He was the only teenager who worked in the entire office. Leaving through the front entrance, Ben walked across the rain soaked parking lot and boarded his truck to head back home.

Making the drive across Westerville, Ben returned home to the outskirts of town, where he parked his truck in front of his garage loft to shower and change after a long day at school and work. A tired look graced his face. Getting into his evening clothes- a pair of gym shorts and a t-shirt, Ben ventured over to the main house, to mingle with Borr and Anton. Vasily and Anatoly were still at work.

Stirring a short glass of whisky with ice, Ben sat talking with Anton, as Borr took a shower.

"Today just kinda dragged. I got a C-minus on a damn fucking math test because the teacher did a friggin' bait and switch on us!" Ben griped, venting his day's frustration. "Then I go to work and things go okay until I had to process an order for my Uncle Vance."

"Oh yeah?" Anton spoke up as he took a slow sip of his whisky.

"Now he's gonna see the paperwork was processed by me, and it's gonna be fucking January all over again like what happened at Speedway..." Ben rolled his eyes. "Oh Ben, why are you gay? Why are you into men? You need more Christ in your life or something- fucking bullshit, Anton. My family can just fuck off...after everything that has happened."

The big husky shrugged. "Sometimes you just gotta cut toxic people out of your lives. Your day is over...time to relax."

"Yeah to some underage drinkin'!" Ben laughed as he finished his glass and smacked it down on the dresser close by. "You ever try Maker's Mark?"

"Heh~" chuckled Anton as he got up. "Well...your birthday is in a few days...so I thought I'd give you your present. The one I can't show to my parents."

"Oh yeah?" smirked Ben as Anton went to fetch a large box, which was wrapped up in wrapping paper.

"Borr's got something for ya...but this is from us." The husky announced as he sat the box before Ben. "I think you will be quite pleased."

Ben knelt down and tore open the package, revealing an inconspicuous brown cardboard box. He took his knife and cut the tape open, the flaps opening up to reveal leather, lots of black leather. His eyes went wide.

"You wanted leather gear...and I honored that." Chuckled Anton as Ben blushed holding up a brand new leather codpiece.

"Wow." Ben muttered. In the box, he got a set of leather chaps, a black bar vest, a X-shaped harness, wrist grommets, and black cowboy boots. His heart started pounding at those beautiful pointy-tipped boots, polished to a brilliant ebony shine. "This had to have cost a fortune."

"Worth every penny for you." Anton said, a smile forming. "You're becoming a man, fast, and I think it's time you started dressing like one."

Ben couldn't help but laugh. "Well that's taking masculinity to the next level!"

"...I want to try these on so badly..."

"What's stopping you?" Anton asked.

"So you don't care if I get naked?"

"Pfft." Laughed Anton. "Nudity don't bother me one bit."

The bathroom door swung open to reveal Borr naked, emerging through the steam. He struck a nude pose and then burped loudly. "Did anyone hear that?"

"What did I tell you~" Anton teased.

Ben pulled his t-shirt off and stripped himself out of his gym shorts and underwear. Borr gave a playful wolf whistle. "Boy, you got a hose that could make any man blush!"

"Told ya' I got a big dick." Chuckled Ben as he showed it off. "Nine inches."

"Nine inch club!" Borr wooed. "And you're uncut too!"

"Yeah, a bonus~" laughed Ben. "Now how do you put this thing on..."

Ben slid himself into his codpiece. It had leather straps that worked like a jockstrap. He fed his cock through a ring where the leather straps connected to. The leather pouch attached by grommets. It had steel studs on it, giving it an edgy look. Ben exhaled slowly to keep calm, the feeling of leather against his member made it quite chubby, the leather feeling soft and cool. The soft leather had a noticeable outline to it. He threw on the bar vest and was even surprised to find a garrison cap, made out of black leather, like Anton and Borr's.

"These boots are fucking beautiful." Ben admitted as he tried them on. They fit perfectly. "No wonder why you were pokin' about my clothes size!"

"Not so subtle am I~" teased Borr.

Ben looked at himself in the mirror, dressed in his new leathers. He looked so different, so edgier, so sexual. The jagged scar on his face only added to the tough image his leather gear gave him.

"You will have no issue wooing a hot guy into your bedroom." Chuckled Anton amusingly. "...Well...after you turn eighteen."

"Yeah, fucking thanks for reminding me." Ben grumbled sarcastically. "Eighteen this, eighteen that. It's frustrating. I feel held back."

"I know that feeling of seemingly being held back. That was how I felt back home in Donetsk. Seventeen, unemployed, in school, feeling like the only gay person in all of Ukraine...couldn't do anything. It was a frustrating feeling...but you can't rush life. It happens too fast to rush further."

"What'd I tell you?" Borr reminded Ben. "Everything will be okay. Just hold your horses, cowboy."

Borr's words brought a smile to his face. "Okay~"

The burly Nordic husky caressed his leather covered backside and wrapped his tattooed arm around Ben. He leaned over and gave the husky a kiss on the top of his head. "Everything's gonna be a-okay. Everyone has this feeling of frustration when you're your age. You're old enough to start wanting to branch off and do your own thing, but young enough to not really know how to do it~"

"Young, dumb, and full of cum." Chuckled Anton.

"Hey! That's me!" Borr exclaimed.

"Oh I know~"

"Happy birthday by the way, Ben." Smiled Anton. "Enjoy."

"I can bring all the boys to the yard." Ben laughed as he examined himself in the mirror again. "Nice."

---

The last rays of light slipped below the western horizon, filtering through the tree line far in the distance. Ben watched from his balcony as he relieved himself over the edge, the sound of his piss splashing against the gravel below. He gave his shaft a shake, stroked his foreskin and tucked it all way in his black gym shorts. Returning back into his living room, he slid the sliding glass door shut behind him. The clock was nearing eight o'clock on a Saturday evening. He had a great birthday; a barbeque, cake, and friends to celebrate with. Besides the leather gear from Anton and Borr, he got a thousand dollar check from Rob, a new stereo from Rob's husband Joey, and a couple gift cards from Andy, Vasily, and Anatoly.

Ben hopped into the shower to get all cleaned up. His mind raced. He was waiting for Talon to arrive for some "evening fun". Drying off, he threw on a plain white wifebeater that clung to his chubby body, and his gym shorts. The husky went commando.

He stepped out of the bathroom just as he heard a knock on the door. "Come in!" Ben called as he laid himself out on his bed, awaiting the jock wolf.

The door slowly opened to reveal Talon, who poked his head inside. "Well hey~"

"Hey~" smiled Ben. "Come on in."

Talon stepped in and closed the door behind him. He took his varsity jacket off and placed it on a chair. He crossed his arms and took his t-shirt off, revealing his chiseled chest and washboard abs. His upper right arm bore a tattoo of his family coat of arms. Off came his sweatpants next. He wore an expensive pair of snug blue briefs, which were slid off to reveal his big tan member that swayed between his legs.

"Make yourself cozy..." smirked the husky as Talon stepped into his bedroom. The wolf sat down on his bed, allowing Ben to caress his backside. He laid out beside Ben and smiled at him.

"So...you want some of this?"

"Well you certainly drove out here for it." Chuckled Ben as he gave Talon a kiss. The wolf accepted it and placed his muzzle against Ben's, as they began to make out with each other. Paws caressed each other as they kissed and kissed, locked together in their lust. Ben's clothes came off and they cuddled together, kissing and feeling each other's bodies. Their lust for men overcame their animosity. After ten minutes of kissing, they broke away, to catch their breath.

"Wow." Ben muttered.

"Yeah, I know right?" Talon responded.

"Damn good mouth you got there..."

"Oh yeah..." grinned the wolf. His paw slowly stroked Ben's rock hard boner, his fingers slowly pumping his foreskin up and down. "Maybe I should put it to work some more?"

"Maybe~"

The grinning wolf leaned over and took Ben's cock into his muzzle. The husky closed his eyes and let out a moaning exhale as he threw his head back into the pillow. Talon worked his cock with a teasing slowness, his muzzle bobbing up and down slowly as a paw caressed his slowly tightening balls. The wolf worked without pause, his shaft sliding in deeper and deeper. He changed things up; he pulled his muzzle off and licked the shaft and head, teased the foreskin and licked over Ben's sack. He ran a paw through his thick brown pubes.

"Fuckin' love your cock." Talon grunted. Ben reached over to stroke Talon's shaft; it was solid.

"You got a nice head on yours~" Ben chuckled. He turned his head and scooted closer, taking Talon into his muzzle, which made the wolf moan. Ben sucked on his cock, bobbing his muzzle up and down and allowing his tongue to glide over the head and shaft.

"Ohhhh yeah." Talon contently moaned. "Put that faggot mouth to good use."

Lying beside each other, they sucked each other off, the room filled with their grunts and groans and the sound of sucking muzzles.

At the last second, Talon pulled his cock out of Ben's muzzle. He began to stroke it furiously, panting heavily as Ben sat up with him, his own cock right at the edge. They kissed each other as they both came, their hot cum splashing against each other's stomachs.

"Oh fuck!" Ben shouted. His cock throbbed as it shot all over Talon.

"Fuck yeah, bro." Talon grunted. He breathed a huge sigh of relief. The wolf laid out on the bed and placed his paws behind his head. Ben laid out beside him.

"You should let me fuck you in the ass next time." Talon suggested. "Be much more fun than what I get with my girl..."

"I'm not really ready for that." Ben admitted.

"Why not? That's what faggots do~"

"I don't like that term." Ben glared.

"That's what you are."

"Yeah, and so are you. Fag." Ben grumbled.

"Don't remind me..." Talon glared back. The wolf stretched out an arm and caressed the side of Ben's face before going down to rub his chest and stomach. "I want it...but I don't want it..."

"But this is who you are."

"Yeah, but I can't be like this..." Talon admitted. "My family won't accept it..."

"Neither did mine..."

"That's you."

"You can't live this lie forever ya know..."

Talon got up and grabbed his clothes. "Yeah...tell me about it." He quickly threw them back on and slipped his shoes on. "Thanks for the fun, faggot." Ben glared in return as he watched Talon leave, with a curt smack of the door behind him. The husky shook his head and continued to lie in bed, looking up at the ceiling.

---

Exiting science class, Ben walked with his friends for lunch. His black cowboy boots clicked against the black and white tiles of the floor. They added an edgy flair to his faded Wrangler jeans and John Deere hoodie. The husky felt jubilant, he scored a B+ on his science test.

Going down the steps, Ben caught the commotion of student life, the constant flow of students traversing the halls to head to lunch, or to their next class period. The hallways were filled with noise; the squeaking and stomping of shoes, to the conversations all melting together. As Ben got to the base of the steps, he spotted Talon and his cohorts, messing around with one of the more feminine gay kids, a student named Colin. The meatheads were poking fun at him as usual, which made Ben squint his eyes. A paw bunched up into a fist. The wolf looked so smug and confident with himself as he shoved Colin against his locker. Ben shook his head as he told Anatoly he'd meet back up with at lunch.

Ben walked over to defuse the situation. He wanted to force Talon to back off. He was a blatant hypocrite and it constantly pissed off Ben; but he wanted Talon so badly. It was his first experience being sexual with another guy, and douchebag or not, he wanted to keep what he got. He didn't know anything else.

"Hey Talon, back off." Ben spoke up. He put himself between Colin and Talon and his friends.

"Oh look, another faggot appears from the wild!" grinned a square headed Rottweiler.

Ben watched Talon take a step back behind his friends. His smug smirk faded to a look of regret to Ben.

"Why don't you go fuck off." Ben muttered. Colin quickly escaped off to his next class.

"Why don't you mind your own fucking business."

"You don't want to fuck with me, guy." Ben pointed.

"I'm not a fudge packer, so no I wouldn't." laughed the Rottweiler.

"Okay, that's enough." Talon spoke up. "Don't waste your energy on this loser." The wolf looked at Ben with regret in his eyes. Ben shook his head at him. The husky turned and left for the bathroom. Talon slowly followed as he slipped away from his friends.

The wolf pushed the bathroom door open to find Ben at the urinal, relieving himself. "What the fuck was that about, Ben?"

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" the husky scoffed as he turned his head back. "Leave the fucking guy alone."

"It's just a joke."

"A joke?"

"Yeah."

"You're not very funny."

"Yeah, fuck you too, Ben." Talon shook his head.

"Heh, sounds like you want more of me, huh?" smirked the husky as he gave his member a shake, which he showed off to Talon.

"My girlfriend is being a fucking bitch...and I need to get laid...badly..."

"Heh, and you expect me to fix that?"

"You're willing."

"You're beautiful and dumb. You know that?"

"Heh." Chuckled Talon. "Guess we all can't be the same."

"I guess."

"How 'bout you wear those leather chaps you were tellin' me about last time...goes nice with those new boots of yours."

"Heh, I think I can make that happen..." Ben chuckled cynically. "I get off work at eight."

"Sounds like a plan."

The wolf quickly left as the husky shook his head. He let out an annoyed sigh before leaving himself. It was stunts like this that made him not like Talon. The lying, deceit, the glaring hypocrisy. But his beauty, his sexual lure, kept pulling Ben back in. He wanted a guy like Talon so bad. His lust overpowered his rational thought, it made him put up with his terrible faults, which Ben felt stemmed from his self-hatred of his gayness. The husky knew that feeling himself before coming out. It was a compressing, constricting feeling of pressure that always kept him on edge.

Ben made his way to the cafeteria, where he hopped in line and grabbed his food to eat with Andy, Vasily, and Anatoly. Talon remained on his mind.

---

"Yeah, my girlfriend's a fucking bitch. What more can I say?"

Cramped in Ben's walk-in shower, Talon bathed with Ben, enveloped in the steam.

"Gee, they didn't make this for two people..." chuckled the husky as he felt Talon's paws caress his belly, rubbing the soap into his fur.

"Pfft. No." the wolf chuckled. "But yeah, my girl is a bitch about everything. Me, me, me, always picky, always annoying as fuck."

"Well I guess it's also 'cause you're gay, and your true feelings aren't for women..." Ben said bluntly, pointing out the obvious.

"Yeah, no shit. Don't remind me there." Talon grunted. "God, how did I wrap myself up in this whole mess."

"Beats me." Ben sarcastically shrugged. He rubbed some soap into Talon's chest and ran his paws down his abs.

"You know, you're different, Ben." Talon pointed out.

"Yeah?"

"You see right through all my bullshit." Grinned the wolf.

"Pfft. Not hard to do!" laughed Ben. "You're easy to read, surprisingly."

"How so?"

"You're a pretty-boy, spoiled son of a well to do conservative ass family, who has to live up to society's expectations, so you portray this smug homophobic jock who secretly loves dick. Especially my dick~ Could spot it a mile away, Talon."

"Sucks don't it?"

"I know."

Talon put his arms around Ben and gave him a kiss. "Speaking of your dick..." He caressed his paws down Ben's backside, over his butt and around his hips to fondle his soft shaft. "I want to ride that thing tonight...been so long since I've been fucked. A big ass Sharpie won't do it anymore."

"That doesn't sound safe~"

"Yeah, and neither is telling my family I like dick, so there's that." Talon griped. "So how 'bout you fuck me in the ass."

"Sure."

"Okay then~"

Stepping out of the shower, Talon grabbed a towel and dried himself off. He did it rather teasingly for Ben as he watched, himself slowly drying his fur off. Talon walked naked to Ben's bedroom, which was nice and dim, with a single lamp in the corner giving off a rich amber glow.

"You don't realize how lucky you are to have all of this." Talon admitted as he laid out on Ben's bed. He turned around to smile at the husky as he watched him walk over to grab his bottle of lube and cockring.

"I guess. Gotta weather the bad to appreciate the good." Ben shrugged. He returned with a bottle of lube and a condom, wrapped in a gold wrapper.

"Condom, eh~ Heh, you know I can't get pregnant." Chuckled Talon as he lifted his tail up. Ben sat himself on the bed and fiddled around with his leather cockring.

"I play safe." Ben curtly responded.

"Don't know what you're missin'."

"Heh."

The cockring was a leather strap, with snap on grommets studding it. He wrapped it around the base of his shaft and his balls and secured it, enjoying the tension it gave. His cock slowly grew harder as he stroked it, his other paw slowly caressing Talon's rear end and tail. He playfully smacked his cock against Talon's rump, rubbing his cockhead up and down his asscrack, between those firm cheeks. His soft fur felt so good against his cock. "Ooooh yeah."

"Like my ass?"

"I do~"

"Why don't you try it on out?"

Ben chuckled as he tore his condom wrapper open and pulled the wrapped up condom out. Placing the tip on his rock hard cock, he slowly unrolled it down his vein bulged shaft, right to the base where the cockring was at. Opening his bottle of lube up, Ben put a line of the thick gel down Talon's crack. He rubbed his cock against it to smear it around. Talon let out a pleasured grunt.

"Yeah...stick it in stud."

Ben guided his cockhead right to his tight pink hole, the blunt tip pressing against it. With his left paw gripping the base of his penis, Ben began to push himself in slowly. He watched his cockhead slip in first, followed by the beginning of his shaft. Talon closed his eyes and let out a moan as he slowly accepted the hung husky into him.

"Fuck that's a huge dick."

"Think you're man enough for it?"

"Fuck you, Ben."

"Heh, a good observation..." the husky teased. "Careful Talon...it's huge."

"Fuck yeah it is, bro."

Slowly, Ben hilted himself in, his hips right against Talon's rear. The husky could breathe a sigh of relief. It was such a different feeling, a tightness all around his cock. The husky closed his eyes and exhaled slowly.

"You like my ass?"

"I do~ It's tight."

"Yeah...I fucking love your cock, bro. Fuckin' thick man~"

"Fuck yeah it is."

Ben slid his shaft back slowly, his condom clad dick glistening in the pale bedroom light. He pushed it, electing a moan from Talon as his hole was spread wide by the thick base of his cock. Ben set up a slow but steady motion, his mind racing with the realization that he was no longer a virgin. Talon's moans sounded so sexy; a rich deepness to them as his hole tightened and loosened, giving such a sensation to Ben. The husky was rock hard; he was so turned on that his cock throbbed, almost to the point of discomfort. His balls tightened up as he fucked Talon, his hips picking up some pace. The wet slapping of his cock into Talon was audible as they both huffed and moaned together. Ben tightened his grip on Talon's hips and worked with him as he picked up more speed in his thrusts. He was so excited that it didn't take much more to make the urge to cum taunt him. His cock throbbed, his balls tightened, his pace quickened. Ben bit his lower lip, trying to hold on for another second. He got one more thrust in, just as he came.

A moan of pleasure filled the room as his cock spewed his thick, hot cum. He kept himself hilted in, savoring each pulse of pleasure that surged through his cock. His heart pounded, his breathing was heavy as he squirted out his last bit of seed. The husky looked down and gripped the base of his cock with his left paw. Slowly, and teasingly, he slid his dick out, revealing the tip filled with cum as the condom clad head slipped out from his hole.

"Yeah~ Fuckin' hot." Ben muttered as Talon turned around to examine the cum filled condom.

"Nice man..." Talon grinned. "God that made me so horny..."

"Oh yeah?"chuckled Ben as he peeled his condom off and threw it in the trash.

"Why don't you put those sexy chaps on and let me fuck you in the ass?"

Ben had a look of thought come across his face. He was still aroused, he wanted to play, and it was something new. "Let's try it."

"Cool~"

Ben got up and grabbed his black leather chaps. He quickly threw them on and secured them, the leather having such an attractive creak to his steps. The black leather shotgunned down his legs. Talon let out a teasing wolf-whistle as he jerked his hard shaft. The wolf got up and undid the cockring from Ben.

"I'm gonna borrow that badboy."

"Okay." Chuckled Ben. He got on the bed, with Talon not far behind him. Looking back, he flipped his curly husky tail up teasingly with a grin. Ben licked his top lip teasingly for Talon, who got a condom rolled onto his cock.

"God that leather is so fucking sexy..." Talon murred. He climbed onto the bed and caressed his leather clad hips. The wolf licked his lips at Ben's rump, presented to him between his leathered legs. The virgin hole teased the wolf. Talon bent down and planted his muzzle against Ben's entry, rimming him by surprise. The husky immediately let out a moan as Talon tongue fucked him. The wolf ate him out for a minute, before pulling his muzzle away to get some air.

"Wow, I loved that..." Ben muttered.

"Fucking love eating out..." grinned Talon. "I'm a real freak with this tongue of mine."

"Oh baby~"

Smearing some lube on his cock and down Ben's ass, the wolf took aim with his blunt cockhead. He pressed it teasingly against Ben's hole, rubbing it up and down slowly to Ben's delight.

"Oooh..."

"Yeah? You like that?"

"I do~"

"Good..."

Ben felt the cockhead begin to slip into him. He closed his eyes, his breath being in short little bursts. The head felt good going in, but as the thick shaft began to get fed into him, he winced and tightened up. Talon muttered a "relax man" as he slowly fed his cock in an inch at a time. Ben grimaced and groaned. It wasn't was as pleasureful as he expected. His hole was spread open by Talon's cock- the husky his best to relax, but his hole was so tense. Talon was hard as a cock; he was clearly turned on.

"This is so much tighter than my girl... fuck yeah..." Talon muttered.

Ben breathed a sigh of relief as Talon finally hilted himself in. It felt like getting punched in the gut. Talon held himself all the way, to let Ben get used to the sensation. It only just dawned on him that his virginity was finally lost to Talon.

The shaft was slowly slid back, right to the head, then pushed back in. Ben gasped and let out a moan. Talon groaned in pleasure. He thrust at a good medium pace, working Ben's hole good with his thick pole. Ben breathed heavily, moaned, and snorted. He was awash in both pain and pleasure, such new sensations practically overwhelming him. Talon snorted himself, lost in his lust as he pounded Ben without end. He had much better stamina than the husky. He went for a good twenty minutes, his pace staying the same.

Picking up his speed, he laid against Ben and smacked his hips against Ben's rear as he moaned. He wanted to cum so bad. He nibbled on an ear and stroked Ben's still chubby cock, which made the husky moan. With a final thrust, Talon hilted his cock all the way in and came. He let out a deep, content filled moan as his cock throbbed.

"Fuck!" Talon muttered.

"God damn..." Ben huffed.

"Tight ass hole was perfect bro!"

"Thanks~"

Ben moaned as he felt Talon slide out of him. The condom was filled with Talon's hot seed. The wolf flicked it off and laid out on Ben's bed beside him, a content look on his face as he placed his muscular arms behind his head. "Fuck that was the best sex I had in months!"

"Heh~" Ben muttered as he laid out beside him.

"Someday...I can come out...someday."

"You only got one life to live man... You have to one day make yourself happy..."

"Spare me the platitudes, Ben~"

"Big words, Talon." Teased the husky.

"Shut the fuck up~"

---

The cold winds of March gave way to April, the first taste of spring. The weather was beginning to grow nice, with the cold appearing less and less around central Ohio. The wintering grass that turned brown was now lush green, growing with yellow dandelions erupting everywhere. The improving weather brought a sense of optimism for people who longed for summer. Everyone except Ben. The husky found himself beginning to sink once again into stress and grief. It crept up at school, and even at work. Old and new troubles haunted him. Rumors at school, and old family matters nagging him at work.

The sun shone brightly overhead as class was dismissed at Westerville High. Emerging through the doors with his classmates, Ben walked with Vasily, Anatoly, and Andy, the gaggle waving goodbye and splitting off to head to work. Ben walked with a smile that stuck on his face as his boots click-clacked against the sun bleached pavement. He returned to his truck, the Silverado sitting in the lot all polished up after a long overdue bath.

Just as he put a paw against the door handle, a shove threw Ben into the door. He spun around to see a furious looking Talon staring down at him. The wolf looked legitimately livid at him.

"What the fuck are you doing, asshole?" Ben shouted as he shoved Talon back.

Talon's voice was menacing and low. "What the fuck did you do..."

"What?"

"The rumor..." Talon growled under his breath. "Why is there a rumor going on that I'm a fucking faggot?!"

A week and a half ago, Talon broke up with his girlfriend. It was a nasty breakup after, ironically, she cheated on him with another lacrosse player. There had always been a very subtle rumor of Talon's preferences, but nothing had ever become of them until he was spotted with Ben at Tanger Outlets, the huge shopping center near Sunbury. Nothing had been noteworthy about it until a grainy photo surfaced showing Ben with his arm around Talon's side. Such a suspicion, coupled with the breakup, only put more fuel to the fire.

"It ain't much of a rumor..." Ben fired off sarcastically.

"I told you I'd fuck you up if you ever told anyone..."

"Which I didn't." Ben glared. "Don't you fucking get in my face over your shit."

"No one can find out..."

"I did not say anything." Ben muttered. He turned to open his truck door, only to be grabbed by Talon forcefully. The husky turned around and punched Talon square in the nose. It sent him back into the gray sedan parked next to him. Talon was momentarily stunned as he grabbed his nose, he turned to look at Ben in shock.

"Fuck off with your shit if you still want my D~" Ben hissed. He slammed the door shut and quickly departed, leaving Talon to angrily flip him off as he clutched a bloody nose.

The husky was growing tired of Talon's mercurial mood swings. He could be sweet and charming, seductive and sexy, but also a bonafide asshole. His ego, his desire to protect his reputation, his shaky façade, fueled the dark side, the abusive side that Ben hated. He drove to work with a scowl on his scarred face; a brief glimpse in the rear mirror brought a reminder that his face, his scowl reminded him exactly of Rob's menacing gaze. He felt his phone vibrate, a new text message arriving for him. Ben came up to a long red light and quickly grabbed his phone.

"Sorry." It read from Talon.

The husky tossed the phone into the backseat. He didn't want to deal with him.

Arriving at work, Ben tried his best to put on a happy face as he entered the Lumberworx office. He greeted coworkers and his boss and sat down at his desk. He saw a stack of "to-dos"- orders that needed to be input into the system. The husky logged in and began going through slowly. The mundane task helped bring some calm to him as he placed the orders in and typed out the quantities and other notes.

His desk phone rang. It had an annoying sounding ring that always got on his nerves. He picked it up and hit the line button. "Lumberworx, Ben speaking."

"Ben? This is Uncle Vance."

The husky nearly dropped the phone as he heard his uncle's voice for the first time in months. His heartbeat quickened, an icy feeling shooting down his spine. An uncomfortable gaze appeared on his face. He had spent a few weeks working on the orders his uncle had put in, and largely was able to avoid dealing with him directly, until now.

"Ben I haven't talk to you since that day in January at Speedway." His uncle began. "You just turn and ran off after I asked a few questions? You know things are going on with your family and you're just ignoring them!"

"I am not here to discuss personal matters on company time- is this a question concerning your processing order with Lumberworx..."

"Your father had another heart attack. It was pretty bad, and he needs a quadruple bypass. And you don't have contact with him? Is this what being gay means to you? Just do your own thing and-"

"You don't get it." Ben stated with some force to his voice.

"I don't think you get it."

"Oh I think I do, Uncle Vance..." Ben said with acidity to his tone. A few coworkers turned their heads to look at Ben.

"Why should I come around to a family who basically just left when I was sick? Why should I be forced to show love and compassion to people who decided to turn their backs on me when I was in the same boat? That's not now respect works- respect is a two way street. This phone is for company purposes and you're wasting my time with this by being an ass as usual. I'm sorry Dad's sick, but there's nothing more I can do about a bad heart. Who I am has no bearings on my moral fabric, and who I am and what I like is none of your damn business. So is this about your lumber order or what?"

Ben heard the line go dead. The husky slammed the phone back on the receiver. He mumbled something under his breath and shook his head as he resumed typing. He looked over to see coworkers staring at him.

"It's nothing. Go about your business." Ben motioned. The husky went back to typing, his keystrokes having an aggressive click to it.

---

The next day, Ben decided to "bite the bullet". He made the uncomfortable decision to visit his father in the hospital, all the way in Zanesville, at the Genesis hospital. Having talked to his boss, he got permission to skip work that day so he could visit him. It was a long time to Ben, who found himself zooming along on I-70 for Zanesville, over an hour and a half away from Westerville. He had to make a just as awkward second phone call to his uncle, to try and figure out where his Dad was.

His father was sick, to put it lightly. He was only forty-eight, but he didn't take very good care of himself. He was a heavy smoker, and drank too much. He worked long hours running his own makeshift scrap yard, and mechanic shop, which did lackluster work. He was a heart attack waiting to happen. The first heart attack was a sudden shock, but the second wasn't surprising. His heart was beat up.

The husky drove with a serious gaze as he followed a distance away from a couple semi-trucks rumbling on their way to Zanesville like him. He felt uncomfortable about the whole thing, but morally, he knew he had to visit. There was a desire to try and patch things up with his mom and dad, to bring closure. He wanted to make peace with them and move on.

Arriving to Zanesville in the early evening, he pulled into the large parking lot of the new Genesis hospital, which towered above him. His father resided on the fifth floor, in preparation for a bypass operation. Riding up the elevator, Ben stepped out and glanced around. The stench of iodine and disinfectants made the husky wrinkle his nose in disgust. It was a revolting smell to him, reminding him too much of his hospital stay after his gay bashing. Searching for room 506, he wandered down the corridor looking at each room number. He eventually found it, the door slightly ajar. It swung open to reveal a nurse departing. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath; this was for family.

Pushing the door open, Ben spotted his Mom and Dad, for the first time since December. His mother sat in a chair, looking half asleep, his father lied in bed, wearing a hospital gown and looking atrophied. He clearly looked sick. The sound of the door opening got their attention as they turned to spot Ben, who stared with a stoic gaze. The room was silent; one could hear a pin drop.

"Ben..." his father muttered. "You've...returned."

"Been a long time." The husky muttered in response.

His mom Valery got up. "Oh Ben... where have you been?"

"Living my life." The husky said in a blunt tone. "Putting things back together. But this is not about me. This is about Dad being sick."

His father coughed, a wheezing, weak cough that rattled his lungs. Ben walked over to see him. What was once a man towering over him, yelling at him, condemning him for being gay, Ben saw a very sick husky lying in bed. His face showed the strain of his ill heart.

"Karma is paying me back." His father muttered.

"No, it's not." Ben responded. His mind felt different, though. "This is not about me."

"You're fine one moment...and the next moment you're found lying on the ground."

"I'm so sorry to hear all of this, Dad."

"Where have you been, Ben~"

"I have been living with friends. I'm piecing things of my life back together. Building off that."

"I sobbed when I last saw you. You drove away and I thought I'd never see you again."

"I thought that would be the case, too." Ben admitted. His voice had little emotion to it.

"Ben...why did this all come about?" Valery asked. Ben knew right away what she was talking about. He closed his eyes and shuddered a bit about what was coming.

"This is not about me, Mom." Was the curt reply from Ben.

"We're a close knit family...then suddenly...we're told you're gay, and you're gone!"

"This is not about me..." Ben glared. His temper was rising.

"And your father has a heart attack and you just snub him at the gas station!"

Ben had enough. "What would you have done if you got thrown out by your parents, shunned, and then have to recover basically on your own with the care of a stranger that you rudely treated at the hospital!? Then try and come back into my life when it goes to your benefit. That's not shallow. I can see through that shit."

"My benefit? I had a fucking heart attack!"

"See!? This is exactly why I didn't want this to be about me!" Ben shouted. "I wanted this to be about seeing Dad, because he's sick, and instead you're turning this into an examination of my sexuality. Which is nobody's business but mine."

"But why are you gay son?" His father Bill finally asked. "I always thought you were going to find yourself a woman, get married and have kids to carry on the name!"

"Assumption is the mother of all fuck ups they say." Ben responded. "I don't know why I'm gay, but I just am. I've always felt this way for as long as I can recall... But it does not matter because it does not affect my morals."

"What did the church say?"

"Fuck the church."

"Hey!" His Mom and Dad shouted.

Ben took a step back, looking visibly irate. "I wanted this to be about Dad and you're turning it into just another fucking shouting match." The door swung open to reveal nurses responding to an increased heart rate from Bill.

"I returned because I hoped I could have my parents back into my life. But it seems that I can't even get over the first hurdle- the shock of having a gay son. So sorry I even tried."

Ordered to leave by the head nurse, Ben turned and left, looking rather defeated. Bill looked up at the ceiling with a sad gaze, his mom looking melancholy as well as nurses checked over Bill.

Returning home on I-70, Ben looked upset, yet slightly hurt on his commute home. He regretted every second of his attempt at patching up his relationship with his parents. "What a stupid fucking idea" he thought to himself as he drove home in the last light of the day.

---

The weekend had finally come, and Ben wanted to escape from his problems. He found his escape in Rob Barion's silver Supper Constellation, "Coneflower". Back from the repair shop after an engine fire, the curvaceous 1954 Lockheed cruised high over the great plains, enroute to southern Kansas. It was a long flight at three hundred miles per hour, alone in the cyan sky. Polished propellers tipped in red, white, and blue glistened in the bright spring sun, clawing the air and propelling them westbound over Missouri. Ben watched from his seat in the forward fuselage.

"Coneflower" was Rob's executive transport. The interior of the narrow fuselage was decked out with warm, earthy colors. Beige carpet, white ceilings, and faux wood paneling for the bulkheads. Ben sat in a plush seat at a card table made of walnut. He sat alone eating a sandwich and a bag of potato chips. Ben was the only passenger aboard the plane; the L-1049E was flown by Jordan Hoover and his boyfriend Ivo Horvat, their flight engineer being Ivo's father, Vlado. The Connie was dispatched by Rob to pick up Jordan's brother Kevin, who resided in Attica, Kansas. Ben traveled along to not only get away from his troubles back home, but to meet Kevin's "little brother", a German Shepherd named Brad Oakley. Brad was a sixteen year old Kevin took in back two years prior, after he had run away from home in Oklahoma for being gay. They were going to spend a few days in Ohio, to visit with Jordan and Ivo.

Turning his attention to the square window beside him, Ben got a fantastic view of the wing and big radial engines, which droned outside the cockpit. The massive R-3350's filled the cabin with a mesmerizing, monotonous drone, which was muffled somewhat by the sound deadening walls that lined the fuselage. Being in such an executive plane made Ben realize how much his life had changed since coming out; never did he envision flying anywhere, let alone in a big fancy plane by himself.

Four and a half hours later, "Coneflower" made it to Kansas. Touching down at the Anthony Municipal Airport, the Connie was the largest aircraft at the tiny facility, located in the middle-of-nowhere southern Kansas. Glistening in the sunshine, the L-1049E taxied on its inboard engines by Jordan, who turned and parked by the terminal building. The Connie sat almost as tall as the building as the inboard engines were shut down following a lean run.

Ben got up and walked to the forward hatch, as Jordan, Ivo, and Vlado emerged from the cockpit. The three of them were casually dressed. Jordan was a twenty-four year old German Shepherd. His boyfriend Ivo looked like a clone of his middle-aged father, Vlado. They were gray wolves, with white around their muzzles and ruddy colored hair with goatees. Both had their arms heavily inked with black and gray sleeves that ran to their wrists.

Jordan popped the forward, port hatch, which unlocked and slid open against the outer fuselage. The airport had no airstair for the plane- a simple telescoping aluminum ladder had to suffice. Ben was the second to climb down, having to traverse twelve feet between the aircraft and the ground. "Coneflower" was an exceptionally tall propliner on account of her massive three-blade propellers.

Ben took a glance around the airport tarmac as he zipped up his windbreaker. All around were miles and miles of empty farm fields. Kansas looked barren and empty. He slowly did a full three-sixty around, his eyes stopping at Ivo, Jordan, and Vlado standing around and observing the newly installed engine four to the Lockheed. The aircraft had an engine fire that was particularly damaging, requiring two months of repairs to return to airworthiness. A fuel truck came rumbling up, to top off the tanks with a fresh batch of avgas.

Emerging through a side door of the terminal was Kevin Hoover and Brad Oakley. Kevin was a tall, well built German Shepherd, who lugged a rolling suitcase behind him. Not far behind him was Brad, a slightly shorter German Shepherd, with a youthful face. He lugged not only a rolling suitcase with one arm, but carried a hefty looking cooler in the other arm.

"We're here!" Kevin shouted. "Sorry! My Uber guy was late."

Ben gazed at Brad. He wore a cowboy hat atop his head, with a red flannel shirt that was loosely buttoned at the top. A pair of nice Wrangler jeans, faded around the knees clung to his legs, which ran down to his brown cowboy boots. They were pointed at the tip and had a wonderful design on the sides. "Wow." Was all Ben could think. Brad looked eager, and confident, a happy smile on his face as he greeted Jordan and the others. Vlado took the cooler from him as they all started to make their way towards Ben.

"And this here is our deadheading friend, Ben~!" Jordan greeted as Brad walked up to the husky.

"Howdy-ho!" the young Shepherd greeted. He had a rich Oklahoma drawl to his cheerful sounding voice.

Ben smiled, trying not to blush. "Hey, how's it goin'?"

"Great! Ya'll ready to head back to Ohio?"

"Yeppers."

"I'm Brad!"

"Ben~"

Coneflower was refueled and everyone climbed back aboard the old Constellation. Engines were turned back over, one by one, hacking out oily smoke and flame as the propellers roared. Jordan and Ivo turned the plane around and taxied out for the runway, to begin its trek back to Ohio.

Ben sat back at his original spot, with Brad sitting opposite of them. They both had a window view of the port wing and engines. The cabin was soon filled with the roar of the four Cyclone-18's, which spewed bright red flames from their exhaust. The two teens watched as the plane galloped down the runway and gained speed, its wings gently flexing to the lift as it climbed away from the Kansas earth.

---

Settling down for cruise flight, Ben and Brad sat together, watching the scenery from their window. At twelve thousand feet, the vast emptiness of the plains passed below. The four radial engines purred in synchronization, the propellers flickering in the afternoon light. Ben stole little glimpses of Brad as he watched. He didn't know what to say; he felt so bashful. Brad was beautiful, with a face that just resonated with Ben. He had a tousled mop of black hair atop his head, a well trimmed black goatee jutting from his chin like Ben's. Bright, cheerful hazel eyes stared out the window. Ben wanted to know him more, but didn't know where to begin.

"You like deer steaks?" Brad asked randomly.

"Oh venison?"

"Yeah! I don't use those fancy words." He laughed at himself. "Deer steaks! Deer jerky! Ya' know?"

"Oh I love deer steaks. Me and Dad used to hunt." Ben smiled.

"You're in luck! Me and Kevin got ourselves a whole buck early this year! Got a whole chest freezer of frozen steaks and other goodies!" Brad laughed. "You hungry? I got some stuff to snack on in the cooler!"

"Sure!"

Brad's snack was a full course meal with "all the fixin's". It was all wrapped up in foil and packed in ice, which was warmed up in the plane's chrome-lined galley. They soon sat together eating a meal of venison with mashed potatoes and stuffing. Even homemade gravy was served by Brad.

"So...tell me about yourself?" Ben asked curiously. A smile curled up on his face.

"Well...I'm Brad Oakley! I'm an Okie! I'm from a lil' town called Dacoma before I found myself heading to Attica to live."

"Oh that's neat. I'm from Hanover originally...rural life." Ben responded.

"Rural life's the best isn't it?"

"It's real quiet, and you don't have nosey neighbors." Ben nodded as he scooped potatoes into his muzzle.

"Plus you can piss wherever you want! Front yard, back yard, side yard."

"Ha! Exactly." Ben snorted with a mouth full of food. "Nature's your urinal."

"Heck yeah~" the Shepherd laughed. "I wouldn't trade it for the world! Though...sometimes it can be bit lonely...especially when you're not like everyone else."

"Oh yeah~" Ben replied as he popped the tab to a can of Coke.

"Not sure if Jordan or anyone's told ya...but I'm gay, and there's not really any gay people out and about in Kansas!"

"Small world~" chuckled Ben. "That's how I feel somedays. I like country livin', but a lotta gay guys don't."

"So you're..."

"Yes, sir~" Ben admitted.

"Oh cool! So you understand." Brad smiled.

Brad opened up more about himself. He talked about Attica, how he was a junior in high school, and was longing to graduate so he could attend a trade program to be an electrical apprentice. He helped farm with Kevin, who he felt was "just like a brother from another mother". They owned a farm house and a big plot of land that made up their "Okie Dokie Farms". He talked about their big ambitious plans that went belly up due to politics; making the "dumb decision" to grow soybeans, they had a lucrative deal with a Chinese importer until the tariff war basically ruined their 2018 crop. "It literally rotted... It was that worthless." Brad cynically laughed. "But this year we're gonna grow wheat and corn!"

As Brad talked, Ben sat with just a smile on his face. He held up a fork that still had a piece of meat stabbed into it, dripping with gravy onto the table as he listened to Brad talk. The husky was almost in a trance. He liked Brad. A lot.

"Sorry if I'm boring you to death with my story~" laughed the Shepherd.

"No, no. Not bored at all." Smiled Ben.

"Boy, Ben, you that big ole' nasty scar on your face. You remind me of that, uhh, Rob fella back in Ohio."

"Yeah...seems like my trademark, huh?" Ben chuckled, which had a cynical, sardonic tone to it. "I got the shit beat out of me at school, 'cause I'm gay and people found out. I guess I almost died. Rob Barion shot and killed two of them. He saved my life."

"That gunslinger." Brad chuckled. "Sorry to hear about that bud~"

"Then my parents kicked me out. They rather have no son than a gay son..."

Brad slowly inhaled through his clenched teeth. "I know that feeling." The Shepherd took a slow breath and had a look of introspection on my face. "I was told I could be straight and live at home, or be a faggot and leave. I don't like lyin'...so I chose to walk. I was thirteen."

Ben shook his head at Brad's words.

"I had my fourteenth birthday on my long walk from Oklahoma. I thought I could make it to New York, the gay mecca or whatever... heh... but I happened to run into Jordan in Ohio. Literally. He smacked me with his truck on accident! Ha!"

"Well that's one way of meeting someone."

"I was hungry and I took some of these apples off a tree and this dude shot at me with his gun and chased me...and I ran out into the road and got hit by a truck. Sent me to the hospital...fucker hurt and bruised up some ribs!"

"Now you're in a lot better shape~" Ben pointed out.

"Mhmm! Never been better!" the Shepherd gleamed. "You appreciate the good after weathering the bad."

"Gee, I hope that comes true for me..." Ben admitted. He looked away hesitantly. "There's some issues going on, on my end."

"Oh yeah?" Brad asked as he sipped at his soda.

"Just a lot of drama and shit." Ben explained. "I want to try and mend relations between me and Mom and Dad because Dad's really sick... but it's so hard. It's so hard to let go of the fact that my family shunned me when I was in the hospital, but I feel it's morally the right thing to do...to at least try and patch things up. But they can't seem to get over the fact that they have a gay son...like it's contagious or something."

"I understand that feeling." Brad nodded. "I haven't spoken to my mom and dad in two years...I did get in touch recently with an aunt and uncle in Dacoma...they were very happy to hear from me. I plan on visiting them in the future."

"Well that's always good." Smiled Ben.

"Heh, he thought my Dad was an ass anyways." Grinned Brad. "Tis' true!"

"Ha!"

For the entire flight back to Ohio, Ben and Brad spent all their time together on the plane, seated by the window talking about their lives and sharing lots of laughs together. There was an instant chemistry between them as they talked about what they longed for, their feeling of isolation of being "gay in the middle of nowhere", and their career ambitions. They both understood each other's desire of "growing up to be a man", and to do something with their lives. It was as though they knew each other all along.

---

Sunday morning, and the sun was low on the horizon, but Ben started the day early. Standing beside his Silverado, Ben topped up his tank with fresh diesel, watching his breath be visible in the brisk morning air. He was preparing to drive to Newark, with big plans to spend the day with Brad. Just the thought sent butterflies through his stomach. He was smitten by the young Shepherd he met the day before on the flight back from Kansas. With a click, he got a full tank of diesel, the husky screwing the cap back on and accepting his receipt spat out from the printer. He climbed aboard his truck and turned it over to leave, to begin the forty minute commute to Newark.

Hopping on I-270, Ben began his trek, his dually truck merging in with the flow of traffic. It was a Sunday morning, and the outer-belt of Columbus was surprisingly quiet, devoid of the usual choking sea of glowing taillights. It took him to the Route 161 exit ramp, which looped him around towards New Albany, sending him eastbound to Licking County where the highway intercut the rural farmland between Columbus and Newark. All the while, Ben thought about that Brad fella.

The thought of Brad brought a warm, cozy feeling in Ben's otherwise shielded heart. It was the opposite feeling that he got with Talon. Brad made him feel happy, Talon on the other hand, only made him hard. It was just lust he felt, lust for his body, his cock, not his personality. Talon was arrogant, smug, insecure, and vapid. Brad was warm and friendly, cheerful, and optimistic. Most importantly, he didn't hide who he was; he was who he was, and he didn't seem to care what others thought about his gayness. He cheerfully described himself as "a happy gay cowboy!". Ben wanted someone like Brad to be his boyfriend; he never found anyone at school yet that fit that bill. He wanted Brad to be his boyfriend- but that was too quick, too rushed, he thought. He didn't want to rush things and scare him off. It was such a confusing feeling of uncertainty. It heightened his anxiety.

Arriving into Newark, Ben made his way to Broadwater Street, where Jordan and Ivo lived at. Kevin and Brad were staying with them for a few days, to catch up on things and get away from town to enjoy themselves before starting the planting season.

Pulling up to the curb, Ben left his truck to idle as he got out and walked across the street. Jordan and Ivo lived in a slate gray apartment, a cozy little place just for them. A knock at the door got Ivo to answer, who warmly let Ben inside. He found Brad sitting on the couch putting his boots on. He was dressed in a snug pair of Wranglers, and a dark blue sweatshirt that was a bit loose on him.

"Morning~" smiled Ben.

"Morning!" grinned Brad. He sounded eager. "So what's the plan?"

"Let's make it up as we go." The husky teased.

"Sure~"

Walking out together, Brad boarded Ben's Silverado, which Brad complimented. He mentioned about owning a pickup truck himself, a single cab, white one-ton that was almost twenty years old. Brad climbed into the passenger seat, followed by Ben as they took off to grab breakfast together. It was a quick trip to the Tee Jay's on 21st Street, as they battled the breakfast crowd to eat at a booth in the back. It was a time of more conversation between them as they seamlessly continued on with their conversations from their plane ride the day before. Brad was quite the talker, being eager to talk about the mundane to the interesting to Ben, who simply sat opposite with a smitten smile listening.

"Goodness, it's so great to have a fella who finally can relate to me!" Brad exclaimed. "There is only one other gay guy my age that I know at school...but whoo boy... talk about a queen~!"

"Pretty flamboyant, eh?" chuckled Ben.

"His name's Brice- he's in the school's drama program. Really nice guy, but I'm not really into fashion, Broadway, and big city life like he is. He wants to graduate and go to school in Chicago~ Heh, more power to him, but I'm a cowboy, I like my fields and dirt!"

Ben smiled. "Eh, ass is ass."

"Ugh~" laughed Brad. "He's okay at polishing my knob. There's a lot to polish! Heh!"

"Ha. My knob is pretty impressive, if you ask me."

A sly grin curled up on Brad's face as he nibbled on a piece of bacon. "That sounds pretty darn nice."

"You, uhh, done any more than that?"

"Yeah...but I'm not very proud of it." Brad pursed his lips. "When you're trying to walk across the country...you sometimes have to do things to survive, even if you're not proud of it..."

Ben frowned.

"There's a lot of cruel, self-serving people." Brad concluded, leaving it at that. He took a slow breath and exhaled through his teeth. "Makes me wonder what I really want for a relationship, ya' know?"

"Oh I know that feeling, Brad." Ben rolled his eyes. "I'm banging some dude from school on the lacrosse team...he's a fucking asshole."

"So you're fucking an asshole?" the Shepherd grinned.

"Basically." Laughed Ben. "I see what you did there."

"Zing!"

"He's a real hot mess...in the closet, homophobic parents, the works!"

"Hot mess...heh...sounds like what you do when you finish." Teased Brad.

"Well...I have to say...I'm homed in on my game." The husky boasted.

"Hehe, you're funny." Smiled Brad.

After finishing down some dessert and paying their bill, Ben took Brad along for a tour of Newark and the surrounding area. They drove around the downtown, observing Newark's landmarks and laughing at the usual insanity presented by some of its burned out citizens. They did a few laps through the labyrinth of streets that crisscrossed the downtown before heading east, leaving Newark behind for the countryside.

---

The rural road came to a fork, where a dirt road branched off to the right, through a heavy wooded, hilly area. Ben put his signal on and turned the wheel to make a right turn onto the unnamed road. Tires kicked up some dust as the Silverado rumbled onto the narrow dirt path.

"This is where I used to live at. Growin' up out here." Ben explained as he pointed out landmark features. The truck passed beneath a towering oak tree, which Ben once recalled climbing with his friends to sit and watch vehicles pass by below- concluding with a "fucking stupid thing we did as kids".

"It's got quite the drop off here..." Brad added, looking out his window at the steep hilly drop off to his right. The valley was lined with trees, with a creek flowing at the bottom.

"Oh yeah, I used to swim and fish in that creek. Fun stuff." Ben chuckled. "Well here it is..."

Slowing up, Ben pointed out his home that he once lived in. Coming to a momentary stop, Brad looked out to see a single house and garage, nestled on a small flat area near the bottom of the hill. A long, winding driveway connected it. The house looked old and dilapidated, the garage seemingly falling apart. The roof shingles were coming apart and covered in moss. A number of beat up cars sat to the side, including a couple that were scrapped out for their metal and other goods by his father. "This was my home."

"Brings back those memories, huh?"

"Yep."

"I'm sorry to hear your parents didn't take ya back."

"Eh. I'm growing numb to that. I'm gonna live my life as I see fit."

"All ya can do~" Brad concluded. "Even if my parents ever wanted me back...I don't think I'd go back? I like what I got in Attica, even if it's just a step up."

"It's your life. Live it." Ben nodded.

"Yeah, exactly."

"Hey you wanna go explore Flint Ridge?"

"Sure!"

Making the trek back towards Route 16, Ben and Brad made the twenty minute trek to Flint Ridge, located around south-east Licking County. It was a big nature park, famous for its ancient flint mines by indigenous peoples in the area. Taking a walk on the trail, Ben and Brad admired the slowly awakening woods, as spring flowers began to emerge through the sun bleached leaf litter. A few spots on the trail were perpetually soaked in a quagmire of mud- the product of springs that trickled in the woods. Wooden planks made of fallen tree trunks secured to the ground, helped traverse the muddy springs that pooled.

"We don't really have this around Attica." Brad explained. "It's just flat. Fields. Lots of farm fields."

"Hence why they call it the great plains." Chuckled Ben.

"Yeah! I wonder why?" grinned the Shepherd as he put his arm around Ben's side. "Shit, you're fun as hell, Ben."

"Well thank you~" the husky smiled. He tried so hard not to blush. "You got quite the humor as well."

"Well you gotta have the funnies, or else it's a dull world." Brad explained. "There's too much misery...a little laugh goes a long way."

"Yeah...too many fucked up people." Ben grumbled. "You know, the world can be a really miserable place."

"Yeah...I see it a lot." Brad shook his head. "I see it at school- heck, we had an overdose last week."

"It's a god damn shitshow with drugs in Columbus and Newark. You hear about overdoses left and right. I didn't even like taking my pain killers when I was recovering! They took me off my feet!"

"Numbs the pain called life." Brad quipped. "I tend to keep to myself. Just me and Kevin, a few friends here and there. No drama to get shoved into my lap!"

"Yeah same here. I got my buds Andy, Vasily, and Anatoly...good enough for me."

"And you got that Talon fella..." teased Brad.

"Pfft, no. We're not friends. He's a fuck buddy, an asshole fuck buddy."

"Fucking an asshole." Grinned Brad.

"Stop it, you." Smiled Ben.

"I got a way don't I?"

"You do~"

Their journey through Flint Ridge took them to the bottom of the hill, where a creek flowed at. Deciding to take a break, the two found a spot perched in a, thick, low, beech tree. Brad and Ben sat with their legs swinging from one of the low, thick branches of the knobby old tree. It provided a relaxing view of the creek, which flowed over rounded gray rocks. The trickling of water was further calming to them.

"Do you ever see yourself in a relationship, Brad?" Ben asked curiously.

"I do~ But so far that person doesn't live in Attica sadly..." Brad shook his head. "Like I said, the only other gay guy I know is that Brice fella...and we're not meant to be anything more than friends."

"Friends with benefits..."

"Kinda." Smiled the Shepherd. "Got needs ya' know?"

"Oh I know." Chuckled Ben.

"After everything that's happened...I don't really know what I want. There was a lot of things that happened on my journey to my new life I live."

"What went through your mind when you left?" Ben asked curiously. "If you want to talk to about it."

Brad puffed his cheeks out with a look of thought on his face. "Well I thought my parents would love me no matter what, and I came out to them when I was thirteen because I thought I better do it before someone at school did! So I came out, and they gave me an ultimatum...and I don't like to lie...and I was going to be myself no matter what...so I just packed my bags and left."

Brad talked about journey to New York. Ben listened as Brad talked about leaving Dacoma, walking with just a backpack full of clothes and a few possessions of his. He walked for two hundred miles until someone stole his backpack at knifepoint. He continued to walk until his boots were worn out, walking barefoot until a sympathetic person gave him a pair of old shoes in Missouri. He caught a ride by a truck driver in Saint Louis, who took him to Indiana, a decision he ultimately regretted.

"I was hungry, I was desperate...and like I was saying earlier...you do really desperate things when you're desperate..." Brad shook his head. "The driver told me the condition on getting a ride was that I had to suck his dick... I was fourteen years old and he was fifty-five... And what did I do? I put that teeny weenie in my fucking mouth and sucked his dick while he drove..."

Ben frowned at hearing that.

"At the end of my journey...he pulls over to his wooded area at dawn...we get out...go into the woods...and he fucks me...raw...in the ass. I lost my virginity to a god damn pervert. And it was not pleasant. Fucked me, came, and left me there. Drove off..."

"That's truly terrible."

"Some people are truly exploitive and evil. And that episode really makes me wonder what I want in someone? How could someone do that to another person?"

"How could parents throw their children out? I ask that question all the time." Ben quipped.

"I ask that too~" Brad nodded. "I don't give a fuck what my parents or a church has to say about my gayness...I have better morals because I don't hate people because they're different, nor do I sexually take advantage of people- minors..."

"The world may never know, Brad." Ben sighed slowly.

"I think the lowest feeling was when I turned fourteen. Having a birthday without family or a home kinda sucks." Brad laughed, sardonically. "My birthday was eating a thrown away cake in the dumpster behind a bakery in some small Missouri town. It was a sad day. But I look back on all of that and realized it helped harden me up and make me a better person. More understanding- better outlook!"

"Well that's good." Smiled Ben. "My whole fiasco made me realize that life does get better...and being honest with myself is such a relief. There was always this dread about my secret...always looking over my shoulder..."

"Yeah...I know that feeling." Brad murmured. "Being out is great. I mean yeah, people in Attica aren't always the friendliest about it...but fuck it. I'm gonna just be me."

"All ya can be~" smiled Ben.

"Yeah!" Brad grinned. "Only time I look over my shoulder anymore is to make sure Kevin don't walk in on Brice sucking my pole!"

"Heee~" chuckled Ben.

"He might be a girly boy, but man can he polish a knob! He could suck start a leaf blower!" laughed the Shepherd.

"Oh my~" Ben chuckled. "That Talon dude has a great mouth...beautiful body...personality? Not so much."

"Pick and choose." Brad grinned.

"Tradeoffs..." laughed Ben.

---

After a fun day of visiting places, and spending time together, Ben and Brad concluded the day with an outdoor dinner of venison and potatoes. The air was cool, but the mood warm at the picnic table, which gave a tremendous westward view of Anton and Borr's sprawling new property. The evening sun cast orange light against the two teens as they ate, which shone low, just above the naked tree line.

"This has been a great day~" Brad gleamed as he stuffed more potato and meat into his muzzle. "Just a real blast."

"You do anything like this back home?" Ben asked curiously.

"Eh, I don't really have that many friends...we're all kinda friends in school. That's it, really." Brad explained. "We eat lunch together and maybe hang out for a bit after class...but we don't really visit each other. We all just live different lives."

"I see~" Ben nodded.

"But I don't get lonely...me and Kevin always do something together. I guess it's just his way of coping, bein' almost twenty-eight and not having much of a successful relationship with any gal. Too much has happened to him, too much baggage, I guess."

"Happens."

"Yeah."Brad concluded. "But you're different, Ben. The first moment I met ya, you were different. It's like I've known you my whole life."

"Heh." The husky smiled. "We come from similar backgrounds."

"Hicks." Laughed the Shepherd.

"Hey! Hey! I like to say I'm a cut above the rest..." Ben grinned as Brad raised a brow. "Okay, I'm kinda a hick...but I'm a country boy!"

"There ya go!" Brad grinned in return. "A big, hearty, gay cowboy like me! Who knows how to treat a guy to a good time."

Ben couldn't help but blush with a smile. "Oh come on...it was nothing."

"It's kinda like...a date?" Brad smiled. It made Ben blush more.

"Well shit, never thought of it that way."

"You're a really sweet guy. Got a big ole heart in that chest of yours."

"What can I say?" smiled Ben. "You're a nice guy as well. You're not full of yourself or anything."

"Eh, I am who I am. Fuck it!" laughed Brad.

Finishing dinner, Ben and Brad enjoyed the last light of the day with a walk through some of the woods that was on the property. The naked limbs glowed orange from the setting sun, as they took a spot up to watch the sunset, near the gravel washout of a small creek, which flowed vigorously over some weathered gray and brown stones. The flowing of water sounded relaxing.

"This is a really nice place you lucked out at~" Brad smiled as he put his arm around Ben, holding him close.

"Yeah...I have to say..." Ben nodded contently. "It's a great upgrade...despite the hardship to get to this point."

"Eh, that's life." Brad shrugged. "But I don't know about you...but I gotta piss pretty bad..."

"Heh...I think I can agree with you there." Ben agreed. "Wanna share a tree or something?"

"Heh, sure~"

Finding a tall maple, they stood beside each other and fiddled around with their jeans. The pop of the button, the sound of flies unzipping, and the rustling of clothes as Ben and Brad whipped their members out. Brad was no holds barred with himself as his right paw held his thick tan member in his grip. Ben had a completely unobstructed view of it. He was amazed to see that the Shepherd was even uncut, his fingers fiddling with his blunt, tapered foreskin. Brad looked over at Ben and smiled at him, he then proceeded to splash his piss against the tree. Ben soon followed as he too relieved himself.

"Damn, Ben, whacha feed it?" Brad grinned.

"Big, I know~"

"I do like em big..."

Ben almost popped an instant boner as he felt Brad's fingers slip around his shaft. He held it for Ben as he continued to relieve himself, peeing in the same spot as Brad as their piss ran down the grayed bark. Ben slipped his right paw over to caress the smooth tan skin of Brad's member, just as the last drop of piss dribbled out.

"May I give it a shake?"

"Be my guest~"

Ben stroked the Shepherd's cock and gave it a few shakes. He stroked the foreskin, to the enjoyment of Brad who did the same for the husky.

"God damn...I can feel it getting thicker..."

"I know right?"

They turned to face each other, their cocks growing hard as Ben and Brad stroked each other, exploring each other's cocks with their paws.

"How big is yours?" Ben asked.

"Uhh, maybe eight and a half?"

"Nine for me." Grinned the husky.

"Nice dude~" chuckled Brad. "I like that you're uncut like me."

"Yeah...no snipping." Chuckled Ben.

"Heh~" Brad chuckled as well. "Think I could...sample it?"

"Sure~"

Brad caressed Ben's belly and knelt down to take his cock into his muzzle. The Shepherd worked his black muzzle slowly, up and down Ben's rock hard cock. Closing his eyes, Ben grunted and placed a paw on the top of Brad's head. He enjoyed that muzzle tremendously. His cock stayed firm as Brad worked it all over, stopping only momentarily to teasingly lick the shaft and caress the throbbing head with his velvet smooth tongue. It was placed back into his warm, wet mouth, which made Ben shudder and moan contently. Finally Brad pulled his muzzle off completely, a grin forming on his face.

"Not bad for a newbie?"

"You got a great mouth..."

"Heh, thanks~"

"Maybe we should take this back to my room?"

"I agree..." Brad grinned. He put his arms around the husky, stroking him tenderly, and caressing his thick brown pubes. "What would you like to do?"

"Maybe some more of this...maybe I'll let you fuck me in the ass?"

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, indeed..." Ben chuckled. "Show me how much of a man you are~"

"I can do that, for sure." Brad chuckled, with a smutty look on his face.

Pulling their pants back up, the two teens walked slowly back to the house, to give themselves time to calm down off their sexual adrenaline. They walked with their arms placed around each other's backside.

---

For an entire week, Ben couldn't get Brad off his mind. He was completely infatuated by the German Shepherd he had met the previous week. His beauty, his optimism, everything, everything infatuated him. He could still practically recall every touch, every kiss, every caress he gave him in those fleeting moments of intimacy he experienced with him. It pained him to watch him leave, his plane rising off the runway and climbing away in the western sky, to return back to Kansas. He longed to have Brad in his life again.

His thoughts were interrupted by a grunt and a "oh fuck!" from Talon. Ben looked up to watch Talon fuck him between his legs that were resting against the wolf's shoulders. A blank stare graced his face. Talon was a far cry from Brad. A smug asshole. His washboard abs, chiseled chest were gorgeous, but everything else was vapid and nonexistent. Even his dick seemed limp compared to Brad's throbbing boner that probed him.

"God, I'd fuck your asshole every night if I could, bro~" Talon grunted. "Fuck...fuck...yes..."

Ben only rolled his eyes in response. He laid his head back onto the pillow and waited for Talon to finish. He didn't even want to cum. His mind kept wandering back to Brad.

Talon came and finished. He looked smugly content as he flicked his condom into the trash and took a brief shower to clean himself up. He placed his clothes back on, made a usual asshole statement and left in a huff. Ben grumbled to himself as he picked up his clothes.

"You even suck at kissing...asshole." Ben thought to himself.

The next day, Ben walked the halls of his school, looking a bit glum as he traveled to his study hall. He walked down the stairs to spot Talon in the distance, in his usual spot by his locker, blabbering to a new girlfriend, another bimbo. Ben rolled his eyes; he wanted to tell her all the secrets about Talon, to spare her the inevitable. He continued on his way to study hall.

Taking his seat, he did his homework to pass the time, blazing through science, history, economics, and math, the latter he dreaded. He packed it all away into his binder and subtly checked his phone. A smile curled up on his face when he saw a new message from Brad, which asked how his day was going. A warm, fuzzy feeling crept up on him.

"Just boring. Lol." He wrote back, before stowing his phone away in his pocket. It brought such happiness to hear from the Shepherd.

At the final bell, Ben departed for work. He pushed the doors open and stepped out into the mild, spring air. The sun was bright in the sky, and the temperature had finally reached seventy degrees. Now he longed for summer.

As he pressed the unlock on his keychain, he felt a paw grab him. Ben spun around to see Talon staring at him.

"How's it going, buddy?" Talon asked. His words had a weird, ominous tone to it.

"You sound creepy as fuck when you call me buddy." Ben snorted.

"Whacha doing tonight?" Talon asked, a smutty look forming on his face. "I could use some more attention..."

"I'm going to be busy." Ben stated.

"Yeah?"

"So no, can't do anything tonight. Maybe you can go fuck your girl in the ass, it can be an analog."

Talon ground his teeth in frustration. "Fine then."

Ben watched him depart without even saying goodbye or anything. The husky shook his head and climbed aboard his truck, to depart for Lumberworx. Leaving school behind him, the husky took the time to drive to work to think about Brad and Talon.

Being intimate with Ben made him rethink his entire sexual fling with Talon. There was such an influx of feelings he never had with Talon; Brad seemed genuine, he seemed genuinely interested in pleasuring him, and not just using a hole to get off like Talon. The wolf was lived two-lives, and that made Ben feel uncomfortable- the idea of his fuck buddy sneaking around behind the scenes to get what he wanted, all the while hurting a girlfriend, even if she was oblivious to how painfully obvious it was. Ben no longer wanted to be part of that, but he wasn't sure what to do. He also felt uncertain about his feelings for Brad- was it true love? Or still just lust, an enhanced form of it. He wasn't sure if Brad felt the same way, or if he was just taking an opportunity to get some action. It all felt confusion to Ben as he drove off to work.

---

Watching from a window that overviewed the service bay, Ben watched his red truck get serviced by the mechanics of Drabek's Chevrolet dealership. The one-ton 3500 was jacked up on a stand, to have its oil tank drained out. It was time for an oil change and filter change out. The truck would have its filters changed out, oil replaced, and then a wash and detailing, courtesy of the GM himself, Russ Drabek.

Ben turned to walk through the waiting area and into the showroom, where a number of GM products sat on display. He fancied a cherry red Corvette, the newest model year, glimmering under the showroom lights. It's $129,000 price tag was a big proposition.

Rounding the corner was Russ himself, holding a stack of paperwork in one paw, and a mug of coffee in the other. Instead of leather fetish gear, the heavily tattooed red Dober was cleaned up in a dark blue suit and slacks. A gray necktie complimented his getup. He walked over to greet Ben.

"How's it going today?"

"Eh, not bad." Ben acknowledged. "This is a nice 'vette."

"Yeah, brand new model year! Super nice." Russ pointed out. "I named her Kayla."

"Why a girl's name?"

"Cause if I named it after a guy, it'd just drive away...you know! Like all the others...." Grumbled the Doberman. He grimaced a bit sarcastically, to the amusement of the husky.

"Uhh...Russ, do you, umm, have a moment I could talk to you?" Ben asked, feeling it was random and out of the blue.

"Sure~" the Doberman agreed. "Come to the office!"

Ben followed him back to his large office, which was adorned with all things automotive. It almost made Ben chuckle.

"So what's up?" Russ asked as he shed his suit and sat it on his swivel chair.

"I don't know if you can help me in this department...but it's been on my mind a lot lately..." Ben started. He looked a bit hesitant. "I umm...need some advice on what to do about this...you see...I'm kinda seeing a guy at school but it's not serious and-"

"Oh don't tell me...just a little fun fling kinda thing?" Russ chuckled.

"Yeah...you could put it that way..."

"Heh, it's okay if you're just hooking up with a dude. Just word it like that." Russ stated bluntly.

Ben exhaled. "Okay. I'm having a sexual fling with a lacrosse player..."

"Oh la, la."

"But I don't want to anymore..." Ben added.

"Then tell him no."

"That's it?"

"Well yeah. The power of no, Ben. It's really that simple. If you don't want to have sex with him anymore...tell him no. No is no. It's not yes, it's not maybe. It's a solid nope. And if he crosses that line...that's a serious problem then." The Doberman explained.

"I don't want to have sex with him anymore...because...it doesn't seem right. It doesn't feel right to me anymore. At the beginning it was great because I didn't know any better...but last weekend...I...fucked that Brad Oakley fella."

"Oh the friendly lil' German Shepherd who lives in Kansas?" Russ asked. "The kind of guy I envision for my boyfriend, but all I get stuck with are self-serving assholes who exploit me for automotive sales?" Russ's right eye twitched a bit.

"Yeah, let's go with that." Ben quipped.

"'Righty then."

"He made me realize that what I'm doing with the lacrosse player seems so empty? It seems dishonest? Because he's in the closet and has a girlfriend...and is fucking me on the side."

"Hmm." Russ thought.

"I don't even know how to gauge my feelings about Brad? He's a really nice fella...he's gorgeous...he's beautiful... he makes me feel so happy on the inside. It was such a wonderful experience to share that with him. It felt like more than a hookup, you know?"

"You must do what you feel is right." Russ pointed out. "It sounds like you have quite the fancy for Brad."

"I just don't know if he feels the same."

"Well ask him? Test the waters."

"Oh boy." Blushed the husky.

"Don't know if you don't try." Russ smiled. "In regards to that lacrosse player, if you no longer want to have sex with him, just don't. Say no. He's not entitled to it."

"He's kind of a dick, and he harasses and bullies other gays."

"Ahh, the classic homophobe." Chuckled Russ. "They got the tightest assholes, you know."

"You know it." Ben laughed cynically. "I'm just afraid someone's gonna get hurt."

"It's a dreadful thing- the closet. I'm glad I haven't been in it for twenty-one years." Russ recalled, just as the phone started to ring. "It makes people do irrational things- hold on a sec- hi, this is Drabek's Chevrolet, Rusty speaking! MOM! What are you doing calling me on my work- look I'm busy counseling a friend and I don't- Okay make the mac n' cheese tonight! But if you're gonna add the broccoli, please cook it first before adding it- look I gotta go! Mommy! I gotta go! Love you, bye!!!"

Russ slammed the phone back onto the receiver. "And that's the other side of being out of the closet..."

Ben pursed his lips. He didn't want to laugh.

"Basically the moral of the story is...sex involves consent. Yes or no. Nobody can force you to do something you don't want to do. That's sexual assault. Rape. No is no, Ben. Remember that."

"Sure." Ben nodded. "Hey thanks for the advice Russ!"

"No problem, buddy!" smiled the Doberman. "Hey, are you going to be helping Andy and his buds shoot my next music video project?"

"Sure." The husky smiled.

"I'm making something for my little nephew...he likes nature, so my next music video will be shot at that rock quarry thing near your place."

"Oh yeah. Sure~!" Ben smiled. "See ya around Russ."

"You too~"

Ben went back to the service bay windows to watch, feeling more sure of what needed to be done.

After paying the final bill, Ben was presented with a gleaming, polished Silverado, with a Duramax topped off by full synthetic. He thanked the detailing crew and climbed aboard the polished and cleaned interior, ready to head back to Westerville.

Hopping onto the highway, Ben placed his phone onto a suction cup mount and dialed the number for Brad. It rang three times before he answered. An enthusiastic "hey!" brought a smile to Ben's face.

"How's it goin' Ben?" Brad asked.

"What are you up to? Hope I'm not interrupting anything?"

"Nah. Just a boring day here in Attica." Brad responded. "What's up?"

"Not much...just drivin' home from getting an oil change in Newark."

"I see."

"Hey, uhh, Brad, can I ask you something?"

"Sure!"

"Our little...fling...last weekend."

"Oh yes..." chuckled Brad. "I think I got carried away there."

"Nah, you were great."

"Not every day you meet a guy like you!" laughed the Shepherd. "Been savin' all that~"

"I can tell." Ben chuckled. "I've been thinking...do you think that was lust? Or do you thing that was maybe something...more?"

"Well shit...never once crossed my mind."

"That weekend was special...but it's really made me think..." Ben admitted. "Do you think...there was something more to our fling?"

"Hmm..."

"It felt so much more different than a hookup. It felt so...desirable?"

"I'll say. It was great with you. And you didn't say my ass was like a ten year old boy's..." Brad cynically laughed.

"Oh boy." Laughed Ben in return.

"You think maybe there's something more between us?" Brad asked.

Ben had to practically force himself to say "yeah".

"Oh whew! I was worried maybe you didn't share the same feeling." Brad responded. Ben breathed a huge sigh of relief. "You're a great guy...and the first time I met you...I felt like I knew you for ages. Clicked instantly. Uhh...maybe...we could try something?"

"You mean..."

"Yeah."

"If you think we can overcome the distance...then I'm game for anything."

"Soooooo.... Then maybe we can be boyfriends?" Brad asked, sounding a bit hesitant. "Up to you."

"I like that~" Ben said with a smile to his face. "So you're my boyfriend then?"

"Sure." Brad agreed. "Sounds like a relationship beginnin' to bud, Ben!"

"Sounds like it!" Ben laughed with him. He drove the rest of the way home talking to Brad, feeling elated the whole time.

---

Emerging through the side entrance with the outflow of students, Ben left class to head off to work. He walked with an eager step and a content look on his face as he made his way across the parking lot to his truck. Unlocking the truck, he swung the driver door open, tossed his backpack in, and just got his right foot in when he was yanked back suddenly. Almost falling flat on his butt, he saw Talon staring over him, the husky shoving him back lightly.

"What the fuck do you want?" Ben snapped.

"Hey, hey! Snappy aren't we?" Talon grinned. "I'm hankering for you to fuck my ass tonight. How 'bout that?"

"No." Ben shook his head. "Talon, I'm sorry, but I have a boyfriend now."

"You have a boyfriend?" Talon muttered quietly, his eyes darting around to check for any onlookers. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"I have a life too." Ben glared. "And it's not just for your pleasure."

"How am I supposed to get laid?"

"Not really my problem. You got a girlfriend, ya' know."

Ben turned to try and climb into his truck, only to be pulled back by Talon a second time.

"You can't be fucking serious, Ben." Talon glared. "Who else can I-"

"Not my problem." Ben snapped. "Now get the fuck out of my face."

Ben jumped into his truck and slammed the door shut. Talon ran over and pounded on the window, his face scrunched in anger. Ben quickly backed up and peeled out to get away from him.

"Fuck you, asshole." Ben shouted from his window as he flipped off Talon. "Fucking faggot!"

The wolf ground his teeth watching Ben leave. His eyes were full of hate; at Ben, and at himself.

---

Tires crunched against the gravel of the old rock quarry. Ben parked his truck and hopped out, to take an afternoon stroll at the rock quarry. The air was warm and swollen with moisture, the sky milk gray, an overcast Saturday afternoon. Wearing a John Deere t-shirt, jeans, and boots, he took a casual stroll that wrapped around the rim of the old quarry lake. The lake still had its dull, lusterless steel blue color.

The woods were slowly coming alive, the trees were budding, and wild ramps and other flowers were growing in large patches. Ben admired the scenery, which brought calmness to him as he strolled alone, his mind thinking about his new boyfriend. The thought of him brought such happiness and contentment to the husky. He longed to see Brad again.

Walking most of the way around the pond, Ben stopped to relieve himself against a tree. He unzipped his jeans and let his member hang as he splashed hot piss against the aged bark of a towering beech tree. He momentarily let his guard down as he felt relief, the husky ripping a loud fart in the process which brought a smirk to him. Giving his member a shake, he was in the process of tucking it away when he heard a twig snap behind him. There was no time to react, when Ben suddenly had his head smashed forward into the tree.

Stunned, the husky went limp for a second as he was thrown back to the ground. His vision caught a blurred view of Talon, the wolf looking furious as he landed on the ground. Grabbing him, Talon hit Ben across the face, drawing more blood as he lifted him up and threw him against a large rock. Unable to react in time, Talon ripped his jeans down and yanked his tail up. He dropped his shorts, revealing a rock hard cock, primed for Ben's rump.

"Fucking faggot." Snarled Talon as he spat on his cock. "I'm gonna get what I fucking want..."

Ben let out a yell of pain as Talon forced himself inside. He thrust fast and hard, breathing through clenched teeth as he fucked Ben without mercy. The husky was pinned down by Talon as he pleasured himself. Ben struggled, but Talon overpowered him; he had the upper hand.

"You fucked me over you son of a bitch...now it's my turn..."

"Fuck you."

Grabbing a crumbled section of the rock, Ben threw it up and struck Talon across the face with it. The blow knocked the wolf back as Ben spun around, his right arm being thrown out as his punch landed square in Talon's face. The blow knocked Talon back, the wolf tripping on his bunched up pants. Ben quickly pulled up his jeans and reached for his hunting knife, which was strapped to his belt. He yanked it out, revealing a shiny, serrated blade. The husky swung it, the blade giving an ominous swoosh through the air.

Getting up, Talon, whose face was turning red with blood, looked in shock at the now armed husky. He desperately tried to pull his pants up as Ben swung his knife, which sliced open his t-shirt. The wolf bolted, the bleeding husky chasing after him.

"COME BACK HERE YOU SON OF A BITCH!" screamed Ben as he pursued, with one hand holding up his flopping around jeans. The pursuit weaved between the trees as Talon tried to flee, with the husky slowly losing ground. His chubby body just couldn't keep up. His hatred and rage overcoming him, Ben threw his knife, which flung through the air and struck Talon in the shoulder blade. The wolf let out an immense yell as it sliced him, the knife bouncing off him and landing on the ground upright. Talon stumbled against a tree, allowing Ben to close the gap.

Talon tried to lunge for his knife, but a swift kick to the crotch prevented that. Talon screamed in pain as Ben grabbed his knife and pointed it at Talon, who tried to run. Ben grabbed him with his left arm, destabilizing the wolf and making him strike a low tree limb. Stunned, the wolf stumbled, near the edge of the drop off to the pond below. Ben ran up and kicked the wolf, who flew over the cliff and fell, twenty feet, into the ice cold water below. A tremendous splash followed, the water rippling and kicking up gray silt that slowly spilled out in the pond. Ben stowed his knife and quickly took a photo with his phone. He then bolted for his truck.

Nearly tripping over his bunching up jeans, Ben snapped a photo of the red Mitsubishi, and quickly jumped into his truck. Nearly hyperventilating, Ben peeled out and spun the dual rear wheels to quickly make a hasty escape. At breakneck speed, he drove down the winding access road, which he bolted out onto the main road, nearly striking a Sheriff's vehicle. The Taurus interceptor immediately turned on its lights and spun around to pursue a panic stricken Ben. Realizing a cop was behind him, the husky hastily pulled over, nearly resulting in the Sheriff's deputy striking him. The German Shepherd deputy stepped out with his gun drawn as he saw a half naked Ben jump out and fall onto his face.

"HANDS UP! HANDS WHERE I CAN SEE EM!" screamed the deputy.

"I was raped! I WAS RAPED!" screamed Ben repeatedly. He held his hands out as the deputy approached with his gun tight in his grip, his other paw radioing for backup. He quickly threw on a set of handcuffs on Ben.

---

The emergency room doors slid open at Mount Carmel's St. Ann's hospital. Emerging through the vestibule was the serious looking Rob Barion, followed by Anton and Borr. Rob walked with a serious, back-erect pose, his scarred face glowering. Anton and Borr looked serious, but concerned at the same time.

"The boy- Ben Reynolds." Rob announced at the ER front station. Rob flashed his ID- he was Ben's emergency contact. Although he was legally emancipated, Rob still had some legal obligations in his care. He was pointed to where Ben was being treated at, ER room 10. Rob walked with a quick pace as he entered the ER corridor and ventured to find the room. The curtain was partially pulled, which was opened up by a nurse who carried with her a rape kit. Her pace was quick. Rob pushed the curtain open to find Ben sitting up, dressed in hospital scrubs, with an embarrassed look to his face.

"Ben." Rob greeted. His voice was serious sounding.

"Rob, I don't know how the fuck this all happened...it happened all so fast and-"

"It's okay." Rob motioned with a paw. "Breathe. It's going to be okay."

The sight of Anton and Borr brought some calm to the husky as he got up and ran over to get a warm hug from Anton and Borr.

"It's okay, buddy. We're here." Borr comforted.

"That motherfucker got me good." Ben pointed to the stitches to his forehead. "This face of mine is getting fucked up more and more."

Rob pursed his lips.

"Who did this?" Anton asked.

"Talon Brock, the lacrosse player I was hooking up with..." Ben admitted with an angry glare. "I knew this was going to end badly."

"Did you talk to police already?"

"They asked me questions while they searched my whole body for evidence. Nothin' quite like having your asshole scoped out huh?"

"Ben I'm so sorry to hear about all of this..." Borr frowned.

"I guess I just gotta deal with it- heh, as usual." Ben rolled his eyes. "I told police who did it. I was at the quarry, minding my business and Talon smashed my head into a tree that I was pissing on, threw me on the rock and fucked me in the ass... I know this is because I told him no, I wasn't going to have sex with him anymore because I have a boyfriend and-"

"Brad?"

"Yeah." Ben nodded. He then smacked his forehead. "Oh god...I need to tell him...oh Jesus Christ why the fuck does this have to keep on happening..."

"Breathe." Rob stated. "Just breathe. Everything is going to be okay."

"Okay." The husky responded. He took a slow, deep breath, and exhaled slowly.

After a final examination and questioning by police, Ben was released to go home. It was late in the night when he finally got back to his home above the garage.

Stepping into his darkened house, Ben flipped on the lights, revealing the husky standing with his knife drawn. He cautiously stepped into his abode and searched the entire place. He felt on edge, his anxiety on high alert. Only after searching every nook and cranny did he finally put his knife away.

The husky sat down on his bed, looking glum. He felt truly embarrassed. Embarrassed to the idea that he was sexually assaulted- no raped, by Talon. He wasn't going to just call it by some legal mumbo jumbo- he was going to call it like it was. Talon Brock raped him, and almost got away with it. The thought of it, the vision of his face, made his heart thump in his chest. Ben had to get up and shake his head, the act of doing that making a dull headache even worse.

Stepping into the bathroom, Ben went to fetch a bottle of Excedrin. He reached into the medicine cabinet and pulled out a bottle, his pace slowing to a stop as he saw his reflection come into view after closing the cabinet. Staring back was a exhausted, bruised up face. Bloodshot eyes had a thousand yard stare to them; his pupils were the size of saucer plates, surrounded by a sea of lapis lazuli. They were traumatized eyes, on a traumatized face. Ben knew something terrible had happened to him- by far even worse than his gay bashing.

Trembling paws grabbed two Excedrin, which Ben threw into his muzzle. A handful of water from the sink washed it down. Ben forced it down and nearly gagged. He walked out into his living room and proceeded to collapse to the floor. Anxiety finally dropped Ben to his knees as he laid on the floor, breathing heavily through clenched teeth. He was in a virtual panic, and didn't know what to do, or where to go. It paralyzed him on the floor. He laid there for two hours until he could finally calm himself down. The clock struck three o'clock in the morning.

Finally forcing himself up, Ben made a hasty escape from his own home and rushed to the main house, where he woke up Borr and Anton from their slumber. They found a horrified, shook up husky, soaked completely in sweat.

Taking him to the shower, Anton got Ben cleaned up, which helped comfort him as the big, tattooed husky scrubbed him down and listened to his emotional venting, which was a waterfall of pent up emotion coming out all at once. Finally, exhaustion overcame the husky.

"I should have never let it get this far-"

"It wasn't- no- it wasn't your fault." Anton comforted. He put his sleeved arms around Ben and held him against his frame. "What happened wasn't your fault at all. The blame rests solely on him. Not you. You said no more, and he failed to respect that."

Anton helped dry him off and took him back to their bed, where Borr lay, half asleep on his end of the bed. Still nude, Ben climbed into the middle, where he laid next to Borr. Anton slid into his spot and fixed the dark blue blankets for everyone.

"Well...this is a surprise." Ben stated, sounding more cheerful and calmer.

"Get to share a bed with two lovelies~" smiled Borr.

"Oh yes." Ben mustered a smile. He watched as Borr gently caressed his chest. Anton gently rubbed an arm as he turned off the lamp.

"Get some shut eye okay?" Anton said as he smiled at Ben. "No one's gonna harm you."

"I got a G3 that can blow holes in concrete walls." Borr chuckled.

"That's comforting. Gee...all this caressing...I like it."

"Yeah, I like it too~" teased Borr. The Nordic husky pulled Ben into his arms and nuzzled him. Anton laid up against Ben and gently kissed his forehead.

"Good night, stud~" Anton assured.

Ben felt warm and comfortable in the burly arms of the two huskies. It allowed him to relax and calm his ravaged nerves as he fell asleep with them, assured by their presence.

---

Three Days Later

Ben had laid low for a few days. He called off work, and called out of school, explaining that there was "an issue going on". It was a frustrating feeling of uncertainly in those three days. There were no further comments or issues going on from Westerville Police in regards to the sexual assault charges Ben had filed. There were no updates about the status of Talon; that alone made Ben feel super uncomfortable. The guy who attacked him was still lurking about, somewhere in Westerville. But after three days, Ben had no choice but to resume with life's commitments.

Missing out school, Ben drove to work, where he nonchalantly stepped into the office. Trying to maintain a calm demeanor, he clocked in and went to his seat, to begin the process of logging in.

"Uhh, Ben, we need to see you in the main office." Came his supervisor, Dick Schlatter. His tone and body language made Ben think something was not right. He got up and followed him into the main office, where other management members sat around the table. The door was closed behind Ben as he took a seat. The room was ice cold, and so were the people, staring at him with hostile eyes.

"Ben, I need to talk to you about your job performance." Dick started off.

"My job performance?"

"Well you were gone for three days." The wolf pointed out. His face glowered at Ben.

"I have had a personal emergency that is being worked on right now." Ben explained, trying to keep the details of it minimal.

"Not only that, you apparently did not process four major orders that came in last week. You know that cost Lumberworx half a million dollars in profit, correct?"

"What?" Ben muttered, his face scrunched in confusion. "I had them processed and put into the system!"

"Then why did the order not get pulled?" the assistant vice-president snapped. "There was no paper copy."

"I did exactly what was required and signed off and put it in the due file." Ben defended himself. "What is the meaning of this."

"This kind of performance issue is unacceptable...and is exactly explained in the Lumberworx policies laid out in the computer training you've done. So you know very well the consequences of poor job performance within this company..." Dick glared.

Ben leaned back in his seat, his mouth slightly agape. "Excuse me...but...am I being fired?"

Dick took a slow deep breath. He closed his eyes and slowly opened them back up. "Let me make this very clear. Your place within this company is not secure."

"And, I think there is a problem with your attitude...your demeanor." The vice-president stated. "After your angry phone call to your uncle that I heard about."

Ben couldn't even think of what to say. "Really..." was his meek response.

"...and I don't like that frankly. We hired you because we trusted you...and you have destroyed our trust, Ben."

"I did not destroy anything...I...I did the damn orders that you requested!" Ben shouted.

"And you don't think you have an attitude problem?"

"What is the meaning of this whole thing!?" Ben shouted. "I did those orders and I have the order hard copies in my own file to prove it! I signed the god damn things off!"

"I think it's best that you grab your belongings and go, Mister Reynolds." Dick announced. "Your tenure with Lumberworx is over."

Muzzle agape, Ben stuttered in disbelief as the management team got up. Dick grabbed him and escorted him to his desk, where he grabbed his lunch box and personal belongings. Ben reached in and grabbed the purple folder that held his order copies, only for it to be snatched by Schlatter and hauled away by another manager.

"Company materials are not yours to take." He scolded.

Ben was promptly escorted out the door, which banged shut. The husky looked shocked and in disbelief as he walked back towards his truck.

"I just got fucking walked out..."

Ben threw his lunch box into the cab and jumped in. He angrily slammed his foot on the gas and burned rubber as he departed. As he left, he threw a yogurt cup against Schlatter's black Tacoma, which exploded all over the windshield and hood. Ben retreated back home, almost in tears.

---

The next day, Ben returned to school. His anxiety way up, Ben felt he was right at the edge of losing it all day, his mind clouded in frustration. Only the occasional text messages from his new boyfriend Brad, helped keep his emotions right at the cusp. He felt agitated and irritated all day, his mind constantly fearing about Talon's return. He took the long way around the school, trying his best to avoid the known spots where the lacrosse team members lurked at. But even as he walked around, students looked at him strange. It was as though they all knew. Nobody dared say anything, but the stares gave it away. It made Ben feel even more uncomfortable.

Rounding the bend, he ran into Colin, a flamboyant, young beagle.

"Oh sorry, Ben." Colin said, his voice having a lisp to it.

"It's fine." Ben stated.

"You okay, Ben?" Colin asked. He could see the worry in Ben's blue eyes.

"No."

Colin pulled Ben into an empty classroom for some privacy.

"Do people know." Ben asked.

"Yes." Colin nodded. "Talon got kicked out of his house- everyone now knows he's gay. Father disowned him."

Ben closed his eyes and breathed slowly. "Great."

"Everyone knows he under investigation for rape- he raped you?"

"Yes." Ben admitted. "I didn't dare tell anyone..."

"Someone found out...but I warn you...Talon wants to get you..."

"I know." Ben acknowledged. He heard the bell ring for class. "I gotta go~"

"Hey Ben?" Colin called out, which made the husky turn around.

"Good luck. Be safe."

"Thanks~"

Ben rushed to his next class, where he laid low the entire period. He was dreading lunch. He was dreading everything. His heart pounded in his chest. He wanted to scream so badly. He wanted all of it to end. The forty minute class ended at the sound of the bell, which startled Ben. He was sweating nervously.

Rushing to lunch, Ben met up with Anatoly, Vasily, and Andy, who all noticed the panicked look in his eyes.

"Ben are you okay?" Andy asked.

"I'm, I'm gonna lose it, man." Ben said, almost trembling. "Everything that's going on."

"Breathe, Ben. Breathe!" Vasily tried to calm him.

Ben took slow deep breaths as he walked into the cafeteria to eat lunch with his friends. The tension ruined the camaraderie between the trio. Talk was minimal, and even the tension made Andy, Vasily, and Anatoly feel uncomfortable; they all knew something terrible had happened to Ben.

Following a tension filled lunch, Ben had Andy go with him to the restroom. Feeling vulnerable, he wanted someone to just watch the door while he relieved himself on the second floor bathroom. The slender Doberman stood by the door while Ben stood at the urinal.

"Everything's gonna be okay." Andy tried to reassure.

"I don't really know what to do." Ben admitted as he glanced over his shoulder. "The walls are closing in man."

"What Talon did to you is terrible- truly evil...but you can't let it consume you like that." Andy tried to comfort.

"I want to kill that son of a bitch- if I could get my hands on him, I'd hold em on his neck 'till he stopped breathing. This is exactly what Rob was talking about- people can lie, cheat, steal, murder, destroy people's lives and get away with it! You know I even lost my job last night- and I know it's a fucking set up."

"What? You lost your job at Lumberworx?"

"Yeah..." Ben snapped as he zipped his fly. "For poor job performance saying I didn't process half a million dollars worth of orders. That's a setup. I know for a fact I did it, and I know for a fact I gave a hard copy to McDowd himself, with my signature photocopied on it."

"Ben why didn't you tell me and the other two?" Andy asked.

"Because there's too much going-"

Ben stopped mid sentence to the bathroom door swinging open. It hit Andy and knocked him into the wall, then to the floor. Ben froze when he saw that it was Talon on the other end, a livid, death stare etched on his bruised face. In his paws he held his lacrosse stick, like a weapon ready for use. The husky felt his heart sink. He had no escape route; Talon blocked his path. The wolf suddenly charged for Ben, only for Andy to grab a foot and trip him. Talon fell forward as Ben charged at him. He was ready to fight to the death to protect himself.

Getting the opening blow in, Ben kicked Talon in the face. He tried to jump over him, only to be tripped by the wolf. Ben hit head first into the sink, stunning him as he fell to the floor. Talon jumped up and swung at him with his lacrosse stick, missing the first blow, but hitting Ben in the ribs on the second swing. Ben recoiled in pain, and managed to grab on at the third swing, which turned into a furious struggle for it. Talon overpowered the now bleeding husky and slammed him into a stall wall. He slammed the stick into his throat, choking him.

"You fudge packing piece of shit got me thrown out of my fucking house!" Talon snarled. "Now I got no place to fucking stay, but my aunt's house. Now I'm a fucking criminal because of you."

Ben couldn't respond- he couldn't even breathe. He strained against Talon's force as Andy rushed to strike him in the back of the head. Talon kicked Andy with a rear swing of his right leg, the Doberman being thrown back to the tile floor.

"I'm going to fucking kill you because of what your faggot ass did."

"Fuck. You."

Ben managed to throw his knee into Talon's crotch, giving him a split second opening as the wolf lost his momentum. Ben shoved the lacrosse stick aside and struck him in the face with a fast punch. He landed a second punch into his throat and threw him back against a urinal. Ben grabbed the lacrosse stick and began swinging, hitting Talon multiple times in his abdomen and ribcage, the two screaming and yelling at each other as Andy ran out to get help.

Ben broke the stick in half striking it across Talon's head. He turned and bolted through the door, with a heavily bleeding Talon not far in pursuit.

"HEY! STOP!" Ben screamed. "STOPPPPPPP!"

His screams got a few teachers attentions as they rushed out of their classrooms to see Talon tackle Ben, the inertia flinging both of them down the stairwell. They rolled, still practically latched onto each other as they fell down the steps onto the landing, only to be forced down the second set of stairs. The screams echoed through the stairwell, getting more people's attention towards the front office of the high school. Ben managed to eject Talon down the final five steps, the husky throwing himself for an elbow blow to the stomach. He put all his weight into it, finally stunning the wolf. Ben got up and took a step back. He was nearly hyperventilating, with blood dripping from new facial wounds. Talon's gray fur was soaked red in blood; Ben got him good.

Students poured out from the cafeteria to observe, along with the school's resource officer. Gun nearly drawn, the Westerville cop quickly stabilized the situation and radioed for backup.

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!" the black and rust Doberman commanded.

"Talon threw the first punch!" Andy yelled as he ran down the steps. He was going to defend his best friend no matter what.

"Talon. Talon! Is the one responsible for this." Screamed Ben. He pointed right at the wolf. "This guy raped me in the woods because he's a faggot like me!"

"Shut up...Ben!" Talon snarled.

"You're a faggot, Talon. Hey everyone! In case you didn't hear, Talon got arrested and made to provide evidence samples because he assaulted me at the rock quarry!"

There was an energetic, if not immature response from the student body, as Talon looked on with terrified eyes.

"You see Talon don't like faggots...or maybe he likes them more than he thinks- because me and him have been hooking up quite a bit lately!" Ben shouted. He wanted to really twist the knife into the wolf. "I fucked him in the ass...mister jock!"

The student body lit up as the officer grabbed Ben, who ordered him to immediately stop talking.

Talon finally collapsed from his injuries. He passed out, his head hitting the ground hard as he laid sprawled out onto the floor.

---

Apprehended by Officer Weiss, Ben found himself sitting in the head principal's office, awaiting his fate. He sat with a dazed look, a blackening left eye, and his fur caked with oxidizing brown blood. His clothes were torn, and he suffered from a terrible tension headache. But his problems were far less than Talon's, for the wolf was carried out on a stretcher to a waiting ambulance. He would be sent to the ER, then to jail, for Andy and other witnesses collaborated the confirmation that Talon was the one responsible for the fight.

"Benjamin Ryan Reynolds." Came the voice of Mr. Perry White, the head principal. Ironically sharing the name to the editor in Chief of Superman's Daily Planet, the middle-fifties aged gray wolf was the same firm, cigar chomping, tough-guy that the comic books portrayed. He always held a serious look on his face, and today was no different. In his grip was Ben's permanent school record, a carry-over from his time at Newark schools.

The principal took a seat. He stared at Ben, his bony face glowering at him, reminiscent to Nazi Goebbels. "Well...let's hear it."

"I was using the bathroom and I got attacked by Talon." Ben responded. His voice carried no emotion to it.

"You sent Mister Brock to the hospital." Mr. White explained. "He may have some serious internal injuries after you elbow dropped him. Saint Ann's is going to find out."

"Maybe he shouldn't have tried to attack me~" Ben shrugged sarcastically.

"Mister Reynolds, I don't like that answer."

"I don't really care if you did or not."

"This is a very serious offense you know? I don't like your cavalier attitude towards the seriousness of the situation Westerville High School is enduring. Two people have been injured- yourself, and Mister Brock. As your school agenda book lays out, fighting, in Westerville City Schools, is prohibited, regardless of circumstances. Fighting, and any kind of violence is not to be tolerated, regardless. And there is a serious chance that you will be expelled from Westerville, just as your record from Newark Schools shows you were expelled for fighting- for almost beating a student to death with a steel pipe."

Ben tried to defend himself, but was cut off by White who talked over him.

"I do not care the circumstances! You are in the wrong Ben, and no amount of defensive talking will change that fact! For it is on the record! You run the risk of losing your entire educational tenure- through your own undoing. And you will have nobody to blame but yourself."

Ben grew angered as he saw Mr. White jot a note down on his permanent record. "I do not like your aggressive manner, and it is something that needs to be seriously addressed. We, the district, took you in out of niceness, and this is how you thank us? The trust that we put in you, and you blew it with your actions today."

Ben stood up, his face scowling in rage. "Enough."

"You will not tell me-"

"ENOUGH!" screamed Ben. The husky ripped into Mr. White, a finger pointing right at him. In an eruption of emotions, Ben yelled and screamed about everything that happened to him. How he was sodomized against his will, how he was attacked, how he feared for his life, and the utter embarrassment of having to air his dirty laundry a second time to law enforcement and the hospital. The crippling fear and anxiety, the immense anger of trying so hard to put his life back on truck, and how exigencies keep threatening to derail his life and set him back. He ripped into Mr. White's condescending attitude, and automatic assumption that Ben was just a troublemaker. Tears welled up in his eyes because he was so furious. He slammed a foot on the floor hard, he threw his arms all over the place, he ripped the principal a new one.

"Do I have to call my legal guardian Rob Barion and his attorney Lisa Stoughton? Do we have to make this into something bigger because you refuse to understand my situation? Because clearly you don't. You just want to brush this all under the rug because this is a gay issue, and you don't want to deal with it. Would you react this way if I was a woman- I came in here telling you that Talon Brock raped me? Fucked me completely against my will because he's an entitled prick who wants sex!?"

Mr. White was silent.

"I'm heading back to class." Ben announced. "I have a math test I must complete."

"You're not going anywhere."

"Go fuck yourself." Snarled the husky as he stormed out of the office. Mr. White pursed his lips and looked down at Ben's permanent record.

Ben marched back to class, with a feeling of futility. He knew his education was over. Everything was over. But he didn't want to give up just yet. As he walked, he called Rob on his cell and explained everything that happened to him. Rob calmly told him to "carry on", and that he would "take care of matters". Ben put his phone away, feeling calmer. He returned to class, to horrified stares of his bloodied state. Ben nonchalantly began his math test as if nothing had happened.

Twenty minutes later, Ben turned it in, looking glum, just as the teacher's phone ran on the desk. She grabbed it and answered it, only to suddenly hand it to Ben.

"It's Mister White."

Ben closed his eyes and breathed slowly as he accepted it. "Yeah."

"Uhh Mister Reynolds...I...I...I think I owe you an apology." Came a hesitant sounding White. "I just got off the phone with Westerville PD...and your legal guardian Rob Barion with his attorney Lisa Stoughton...and I really think I owe you an apology... I failed to truly grasp the issues at hand."

"Thanks." Ben grunted. He reached over and hung the phone up. "I think I need to sit down."

The husky promptly collapsed back into his seat, which scraped on the floor. A thousand yard stare gazed into nothing.

---

Peering out the windows of "Coneflower", Ben watched the flat fields of the Midwest zip by. Flying at low altitude over Kansas, the old L-1049E carried Ben with Rob enroute to Anthony Municipal Airport. Outside his windows, the big propellers churned outside, filling the cabin with their monotonous, synchronized drone.

Sitting with Rob in the forward cabin, they enjoyed a cold meal of pasta salad and sandwiches together at the fancy walnut colored table. A bottle of Coke and Perrier sat by the window. Ben watched the propellers as he slowly shoved a spoonful of pasta salad into his muzzle. He slowly chewed. His face was still sore from his beating; his forehead and eye was black and blue still.

It had been a week since the final showdown at school, a week that was full of changes. Ben was spared expulsion, but had to accept being suspended from school for two weeks. It was a consolation he had to accept. For Talon, he pled guilty to sexual assault charges, in exchange for a reduced sentence. He would serve two months in prison after being tried as an adult, and forced to register as a sex offender. Two months in prison and a year of counseling, and four years of probation, given the circumstances presented to the judge. Ben knew the sex offender status was enough to write his life off- it was basically neutered just by that. But despite the progress, Ben didn't feel it was a victory. Now he was trying to escape from his problems again, by spending a few days in Kansas with his boyfriend. He was deadheading with Rob, who was flying out to Arizona for a few days. He would be dropped off at Anthony, Kansas, and picked up on Rob's return.

"Rob...do you think this was the outcome that should have happened?" Ben asked.

"Given all the circumstances? Yes." Rob concluded with a nod. "I hoped that son of a bitch would have gotten years in prison...but that's just revenge biasing me."

Ben licked his lips and gave them a smack. "I feel like he should have gotten a longer prison sentence."

"'Nother Brock Turner. Fucking judge is an idiot." Rob scoffed. "Another upper-middle class entitled kid getting away with shit."

"Do you think I did the right thing?"

"What do you mean~"

"I beat the shit out of him."

"You had every right to. Fuck your school. And fuck your dickless principal."

"What did you say to him?"

"I said if you were expelled, I was going to tie your school up in so much litigation, that his grandchildren would need lawyers." Rob shrugged. "You showed a lot more restraint than me."

"How so?"

"I would have murdered him. I would have snapped his neck and killed him with my own bare hands." Rob explained. His serious face was unflinching. "Ben you always amaze me with your resilience. You handle stressful situation better than me."

"Oh really."

"In six months you were gay bashed, disowned by your parents, stabbed a second time, expelled, legally emancipated from your family, moved to another town, started a new school, a job, get sexually assaulted, get unethically fired from your job, and almost expelled a second time...and you keep on going."

"I gotta keep on going." Ben explained. "It's all I got."

"You show an incredible ability to overcome."

"With help of my friends and you of course." Smiled the husky.

"Heh, it's not what you know, it's who you know my grandfather always told me." Rob chuckled.

Ben looked away for a moment and took a breath to motivate himself. "I hate Talon for what he did to me...I understand his circumstances."

The husky continued. "I cannot imagine the kind of pressure he faced. I had my own pressures of being in the closet. The constant secretiveness, the constant watching of what you say or do so no one catches on...the forced attempts at liking women. And his was not helped by the kind of family he had- the well to do, extra money, give him anything and everything he wanted."

"It made him entitled." Rob nodded. "People like his family pump it up in their minds that they're special, they're one of a kind...and that they're entitled to what they want because they seemingly have money and power. And in this country- money talks. I don't fucking care who says what."

"Seeing Talon in court- his ego stripped away. He looked like a broken person, almost in tears at the end...I wanted to savor it so badly...but I couldn't bring myself to. I felt so...dark...so ominous to savor that."

Rob pursed his lips slowly. "Ben I think now is the time to tell you something that I learned relatively recently in my life... It took me thirty-six years to figure it out and make sense to me."

Ben took a bite out of his sandwich and chewed slowly as he listened to Rob.

"Killing a man is easy." Rob stated. He pointed with his thumb and index finger to simulate a gun. "Pull the trigger and bam, they're dead. Barring legal consequences. The hardest thing a man can do is to forgive someone- especially when what they did was pure evil."

"I know." Ben nodded.

"To look at someone who did wrong to you, and basically say 'that's okay'. But sometimes we have to do that, for our own sanity. Revenge is unhealthy. Hate is unhealthy. Its corrosive- it eats your soul away, it makes you lust payback, and that only hurts you more, in a vicious cycle..."

"...As I've told you before, take my own life story... don't give into hate Ben. Don't give into that temptation. Hate ages you, I know firsthand."

"I don't know how to process it." Ben admitted. "I don't know how to process the feelings, the emotions I've been dealing with. I feel like I've won...but I didn't. I mean, Talon got the ultimate punishment of being a sex offender, that's worse than jail. Your chances of a job are slim, your chances of a home, dashed. Your face will plaster billboards and internet sites. He deserved it, but I feel like with just that, I won. But I don't want to feel like I won- because it's not a competition at payback."

"I understand fully." Rob nodded.

"I can sense understanding of what made Talon snap. It does not excuse the fact of rape, but I understand the pressure- he got the forbidden fruit he always wanted, sexual intercourse with another man...the genuine pleasure he wanted...and when he couldn't get it...it ended the way it did." Ben shrugged. "Russ told me the simple answer to sex is 'no'- no is no."

"And he's exactly right." Rob acknowledged. "No is no. Plain and simple. You said no, and he snapped and forcibly got it...and he got his just desserts in the end."

"Yeah." The husky agreed. "Now I just don't know where to go from here."

"Let it be, Ben. Everything is going to be okay. Another job will be found, and the mental wounds will heal, slowly. I want you to take this time in Attica, and decompress with Brad. He's a very nice fella. He will be there for you. For that's what relationships are about."

"It's shit like this that makes me want to become a man faster...so I can just go about my life." Ben chuckled cynically.

"One day at time, bud." Smiled Rob.

Landing at Anthony Municipal was uneventful, and Coneflower taxied and turned to park, its engines left running as Ben departed from the rear fuselage. He climbed down a telescoping ladder, an unglamorous way of disembarking. His suitcase was brought down, and the hatch sealed, with a final, friendly wave from Rob himself, before sealing the door up. Ben turned and watched the plane turn around and taxi back to the runway. It quickly lifted off into the blue Kansas sky, continuing on west to Davis-Monthan, in Arizona.

Ben grabbed his suitcase and walked with it, through a side gate and towards the parking lot, where he found Brad standing by his old white '99 Silverado. He was dressed in his cowboy attire, complete with a tan Stetson that bore a Sheriff's star on it. It instantly brought a smile to his face.

"Hey!" Ben called. It got Brad's attention, as he quickly ran over to give him a hug. Ben happily embraced him as they hugged each other tightly, which brought a lot of much needed comfort to the battered husky.

---

Attica, Kansas was an almost isolated community, surrounded by nowhere in the extreme southern part of the state. It reminded Ben of the tiny city of Hanover that he once called home, but there were no bigger cities around like Hanover had. Attica was its own little world for its six hundred and twenty-six residents.

He had spent the entire day with Brad; he drove Ben around Attica, and went up to Harper to buy some tools for him and Kevin. They ate dinner at the small diner that Brad worked for, the Pembroke's Attica Diner, near the center of the small community. It helped Ben decompress from all his stresses, allowing his mind to clear once again. It brought a smile back to his numbed face as he spent all his time with his boyfriend. He was so happy that he even held his paw, not even caring who saw in the conservative little community. It helped that he carried his hunting knife with him, strapped to his side.

The day ended back at Brad's home, an old, white, two-story farm house that was in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by endless farm fields on the two lane, dirt road. It was the home of Brad and Kevin's fledgling "Okie Dokie Farms".

Following a homemade dinner by Brad and Kevin, Ben found himself resting in their barn, on the second level that overlooked the farm. Lying on a bed of yellow straw, he laid with Brad, under the amber glow of a flickering hurricane lamp. The pale blue moon shone through the open upper door on them.

"Boy, Brad, this was so much fun. This is what I needed." Ben smiled as Brad laid beside him. The German Shepherd smiled and gently caressed Ben's chest.

"I haven't had this much fun in ages." Brad grinned as he nuzzled Ben. "It can sometimes get a lil' lonely when you're not working."

"I can imagine. There's a lot of nowhere, everywhere." Ben chuckled.

"Well shit, welcome to Kansas." Brad laughed. "There's more sunflowers than people here."

"Heh~" Ben smiled.

"Are you feeling better, Ben?" Brad asked curiously.

"I am~ But there's still some lingering thoughts."

The Shepherd nodded. "It's expected."

"When you were sexually assaulted...how did you react?" Ben asked. "If you want to talk about it."

"I'll talk about it for you." Brad smiled. "I'll be honest, I didn't really have time to really think about the gravity of it...I was thinking about surviving...and like I said...when you're out to survive...you have to do things that aren't right."

"Terrible isn't it?" the husky frowned.

"Yeah..." Brad nodded. "I was walking down the highway with my butt feeling all wet from his cum. But I kept on walking because I had to."

"Maybe I overreacted and-"

"No. You did not. You reacted like anyone else who's been assaulted like that." Brad interrupted. "This is not your fault. Never was. Never will be. The fault rests on that Talon fella...not you."

"You make me feel so much better when you say that." Ben smiled.

"I try." Chuckled the Shepherd.

"I feel like...I should forgive Talon. I feel like it's the only best option I have."

"Oh?"

"I talked to Rob on my ride here...and he brought up an interesting point. He said that forgiveness can be the toughest thing a person can do, much harder than pulling a trigger."

"Well there's less legal consequences." Smiled Brad.

"Pfft, yeah." Laughed Ben cynically. "But I feel like forgiveness is the only option...because if I hate Talon- I hate what he did to me, I hate the hypocrisy... but if I keep hating him...it's going to consume me. And Rob said I should never give in to hate."

"He does have a good point, bud~" Brad nodded. "I decided to not hate my parents for throwing me out for being gay- why? Because it makes no difference. I could spend the rest of my life dwelling on it...or I can pick up the pieces and start a new life, one that's a lot more honest..."

"True."

"But it's entirely up to you." Brad concluded. "Only you can do what's right for you."

Brad nodded at his boyfriend. "You're right."

"Well I try to be." Brad smiled. "I aim to be a step up from a yokel!"

"Ha!" grinned Ben as he nuzzled Brad in return. He ran a paw down Brad's side and caressed him teasingly. His fingers made their way down and slowly unzipped the fly to his jeans. "Now I want to enjoy you even more."

"Oh do ya~"

Brad felt Ben feel up his slowly stiffening member in his boxers. "Mhmm."

"I think we can arrange for that."

The two quickly stripped out of their clothes, which were tossed against a stack of straw not far away. Lying back on the straw naked, he enjoyed the sensual caressing Brad gave his chubby body, as Ben rubbed him playfully. Brad laid out beside him and took his hardening boner into his grip.

"You just lay back and relax..." Brad said, before taking Ben's member into his muzzle to suck on. Ben gasped a little and closed his eyes as his boyfriend sucked on him. The German Shepherd pleasured the husky as he slowly bobbed his muzzle up and down, his tongue teasing the tan shaft, foreskin, and bulbous head. His one paw held and fondled his big, loose sack. Brad concluded by licking the shaft all over, and giving the cockhead a teasing kiss.

"Man you're good at that."

"Thanks. Not much to it~" smiled Brad. "So...what do you want to do."

"I want you to make love to me, stud." Ben suggested.

"Well let me go grab my rubber and-"

"No. I want to experience you all natural..."

"Do you want me to cum?"

"Yeah. All the way."

"Okay~"

Grabbing his lube from his bag, the Shepherd slicked up his hardened dick, coating it with a thick coating of gel. Ben laid on his back and lifted his legs up, allowing Brad to slick up his hole with a finger full of gel. The Shepherd crawled towards him with a smile, his cockhead making contact with Ben's hole. The husky closed his eyes as he felt Brad feed his cock into him, which opened him up. For a split second, a shock of terror stabbed at him, the painful reminder of Talon's member thrust into him. But Brad's voice helped calm him down as he continued to open Ben up with his member.

"Relax...it's just me." Brad's soothing voice said. His legs were held up by Brad's shoulders as the Shepherd assumed the missionary position. "Feel good?"

"Yeah." Ben smiled. He loved the smile on Brad's face. "That smile makes all the difference."

"Thanks~" Brad cooed as he got a kiss from Ben. They melted into each other's kiss while they made love together, under the pale moonlight shining through the barn window.

---

The woodland scenery rushed past the open window of Andy's Suburban. The big black SUV rumbled along the country road, enroute to the rock quarry. In the backseat sat Ben with his friends Anatoly and Vasily. In the seat behind his, sat Russ alone, the red Doberman messing around with his all black bass guitar which was adorned with a rainbow flag and leather pride sticker. The rear of the Suburban carried the video gear Andy owned along with a couple battery powered floodlights from Rob's company, Barev.

Ben looked introspective as he felt the breeze rush through his window, rustling his fur. It was the first of May, the weather was getting much nicer. Spring trees were awash in colorful blooms, and the bigger trees were about ready to begin growing leaves, a few of which were already starting. But despite the improving weather, Ben himself felt a bit dreary, a big uncertain of returning to the rock quarry. After all, it was the site where Talon attacked him. But there was also a desire to go back, to reflect on it.

"You doing okay, Ben?" Russ asked from the row behind him. He poked his head close.

Ben perked his head up. "Yeah, I'm okay. Just reflecting."

"If you're uncomfortable, let us know." Vasily suggested.

"Sure."

Andy made the turn onto the gravel road that lead to the old quarry. The main road still bore the tire burn marks from Ben's truck from the previous month. Making his way to the parking lot, Andy found himself a parking spot and parked the SUV.

Ben hopped out and looked around at his surroundings. He spotted the drop off where Talon fell twenty feet into the water. That made Ben shiver a bit.

"Do you guys mind if we just walk it real quick before we shoot this?" Ben asked.

"Sure." Andy agreed. The group followed Ben on his path around the rim of the quarry pond. It was a slow trek that allowed Ben time to reflect on everything. They walked through the woods and came upon the rock that Ben was thrown against to be assaulted. He stood there and stared at it for a long time.

"I guess anyone can be caught off guard...heh...dare I say...caught with your pants down." Ben morbidly quipped. "Boy, I never thought in my life this would happen."

"Nobody does. Nor should they." Vasily comforted. He put an arm around Ben. "It's okay."

"It will be okay." Ben nodded. "I'll make it okay...but I got some unfinished business to resolve."

"Take it one day at a time." Andy added.

"I will~" Ben nodded. "At least I got him good."

"Hey, there ya go." Chuckled Russ.

"And I don't have to live as a sex offender." Ben concluded. "Let's go shoot this video."

Everyone murmured in agreement and followed Ben back to the SUV to grab their video gear. From there, they spent most of the day at the quarry, shooting Russ's music video for his cover of George Harrison's song "Blow Away". Trading his usual fetish gear for a pair of black gym shorts, and a blue sweatshirt, combat boots for sneakers, the Doberman played his shiny bass for the camera in various locations of scenery that looked really nice. He wanted the video to be shot with nature scenery, as a curious request by his little nephew that lived in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Ben sat back and watched Andy run his old gray sided Ikegami 79EA, while Russ sat on some rocks playing his bass, which he could faintly hear. He had a great singing ability, his voice carrying such a smoothness and confidence to it. The lyrics caught Ben's fancy.

"All I got to do is to love you

All I got to be is, be happy

All it's got to take is some warmth to make it

Blow Away, Blow Away, Blow Away."

He stood behind the camera, holding onto Andy's U-Matic deck by its leather strap while it recorded, processing the lyrics, and thinking of what he needed to do next.

---

After a week of back and forth thoughts on it, Ben decided to finally bite the bullet.

Tires droned against the pavement as Ben and Rob made their way to Lucasville, where one of the state jails resided at. It was the new "home" of Talon Brock, who was now almost halfway through his two month prison sentence for rape. Ben wanted to meet with him, to bury the hatchet once and for all. He wanted to communicate his frustration, and make peace for his own sake.

"You think people are gonna give me shit about this?" the tan husky asked Rob, who simply shrugged in response.

"Who the fuck cares what other people think? What matters the most is what you think. That's the most important thing." Rob acknowledged. "You must do what you think is right."

"I want this off my chest, and mind. I want to vent it out, and move on."

"If that's what you think is best...then do it." Rob reassured.

"Sure. Let's do it."

"We're about ten minutes out." Rob said as he checked the GPS.

Lucasville was a big complex of brick buildings, surrounded by an octagon of barbed wire fences, and watch towers with armed guards patrolling. It was an ominous facility that made Ben gulp as he was escorted in through the front entrance by guards. Rob seemed unconcerned by all of it as they drove to find a parking spot in the visitor's area. To Ben, Rob seemed unconcerned about everything; his face was unwavering, a serious scowl almost always present, with dead eyes, like empty pools of emerald.

Hopping out, they went into the lobby, where Ben was escorted to the visitor's area. Everything was sterile and white, with harsh white lighting. It was like something out of a horror film to Ben. He could sense the walls "closing around him". He felt some tension as he walked into the visitor's area, which was a row of booths that a large window made of lexan. There were telephones to communicate on the desk. Ben took a spot where the deputy pointed, as he waited, for Talon's arrival. It took only a few minutes for Ben to witness the wolf be escorted in, dressed in orange scrubs.

Blue eyes made contact as Talon stood, gazing at Ben, almost in surprise. His eyes looked weary; Ben realized this was a teenager who was stripped of his ego, exhausted and defeated in his legal confines. The smug look was gone, replaced by a look that could seen as defeat, fear, uncertainty. The wolf soon grabbed his seat and picked up the phone. Ben did the same.

"What are you doing here to see me?" Talon asked. His voice didn't sound tired, it sounded surprised, curious.

"I want some closure, so I came here." Ben responded into his handset.

"Heh, what a place to come?"

Ben simply shrugged. "You are the reason why I came here. Because I wanted to talk to you about everything."

"I'm not sure what all there is to talk about."

"What the hell went through your head thinking you could somehow get away with this?" Ben fired off. "Did you think somehow I wasn't going to say anything because I'm gay and in the closet? 'Cause buddy, I'm out and everyone knows, and I don't give a shit what they have to say. What you did was truly evil, a complete breach of anyone's trust, a blatant violation of my body for your own sick entitled satisfaction."

Talon didn't respond to Ben's rant. He simply nodded in approval.

"Now you threw your whole life away- a sex offender conviction. Your chances of careers, homes, everything! Ruined, because you thought you were entitled to sex. Terrible. Truly terrible."

"Well if it makes you feel any better...I got attacked in the shower. I got raped myself basically."

"That don't make me feel better. I wouldn't wish rape on anyone. I'm better than that. I ain't gonna stoop to that level." Ben glared. "I'm sorry that happened to you, Talon."

"Why are you sorry?"

"Because I'm here to fucking forgive you."

There was silence between the wolf and husky as they sat staring at each other. It was an uncomfortable silence that was only broken by Ben continuing where he left off.

"I was told that forgiveness can be the strongest thing any man could do- and I'm gonna do that. To bury the hatchet, for my sake, and maybe yours."

"I...I don't know what to say." Was Talon's response.

"You don't have to say anything." Ben quipped. "This is my moral decision, and I'm going to stick with it, because it feels like the right thing to do. I ain't gonna give into hate...'cause what does it solve?"

Talon nodded solemnly.

"I hope you can learn from this, man. Maybe turn your life around and start new."

"My Auntie in Hilliard is going to take me in once I get out. The only one left in my family who wants anything to do with me."

"Sucks doesn't it?"

"You would know firsthand~"

"Mhmm." Ben nodded bitterly. He checked the time, his visiting slot was almost over. "You have to weather the bad, to appreciate the good. I've weathered my storms. My gay bashing, moving to another town, all of this shit, losing my job..."

"I'm sorry you lost your job. That was my Dad's fault." Talon admitted. "Dad wanted to get back at you- 'cause he thought you turned me gay."

"I figured I was set up."

"Him and Dick are well..." Talon muttered as he crossed his middle and index finger. He proceeded to roll his eyes. "...I'm sorry Ben he did that to you."

"Doesn't matter. I just landed an even better gig, for Centoh Aircraft Company." Ben explained. "More money, and more of a chance at making something for myself."

"Hey, there ya go." Talon mustered a reserved smile.

"Well...visiting time is almost up." Ben said, with a hint of regret on his tone. "I wish you the best, Talon. You need it more than me~"

"Thanks, Ben. You're the better man~"

"Working on becoming one, Talon. Day at a time. Take care~"

"See ya."

Ben smiled a bit as he put the phone away. He got up and waved as he left for the exit. Talon was escorted back to his cell by a guard.

As Ben left the prison with Rob, he felt a huge amount of weight seemingly lift from his shoulders. Returning back to his truck, they began the hour trek back to Columbus, riding north on Route 23.

"Do you feel better?" Rob asked as Ben drove his truck home.

"I do, yeah." Ben nodded in agreement. "I think this was a good idea."

"There ya go~"

"It's like a lot of weight lifted from my shoulders." Ben revealed. "A lot of weight...but some still remains."

"Your parents?"

"Yeah." Ben said in an introspective way. "Dad had his heart surgery around the end of April...I wonder how he's doing? Nobody's said anything...and my attempts to reach out haven't gotten anywhere... pretty fucking typical..."

"Eh. Hope for the best, Ben. At least you tried- that's more than what they ever did for you."

"I know...but I still hold out this sliver of hope...that one day...my parents can meet Brad...and we can all laugh and be happy again, and this can all be put aside."

"It's not your fault if they don't accept you. You gave an honest attempt...and that's all that matters. That makes you the better person, and don't let anyone tell you different."

Ben smiled. "Okay Rob. Sounds really good."

An hour later, Ben returned back home in Westerville. He watched as Rob departed back for Newark in his white one-ton, which kicked up dust as he left for the main road. The husky felt content as he walked back to his home and up the steps the door. There he found a DVD packaged in a paper sleeve and taped to his door with his name on it. It had come from Vasily. It was the music video he helped shoot with his friends, and Ben was interested in seeing it.

Popping the disc into his blu-ray player, Ben sat on his bed and hit play to see the video. It was funny to watch a slightly muddy looking analog picture come up on a sharp 4K TV. The music video was made to look like an eighties project, shot on an old camera that Andy owned that used pickup tubes. They gave the picture a subtle softness to it, the colors warm, like pastels. The music was crisp and clear, a soft, upbeat tone that covered the famous Harrison song. Ben usually wasn't big into the Beatles, but he found that song in particular, soothing to him.

Russ had a nice, smooth voice. For such a quirky Doberman, he had a natural talent to sing, which made Ben ponder why he was such an "automobile selling sociopath". It was fun to see the shots of the quarry, as Russ played his bass, which flickered in the sunlight, casting little red and white colored blobs and comet tails that faded after a few seconds in the imaging tubes.

Day turned black, sky ripped apart

Rained for a year 'til it dampened my heart

Cracks and leaks

The floorboards caught rot

About to go down

I had almost forgot.

All I got to do is to love you

All I got to be is, be happy

All it's got to take is some warmth to make it

Blow Away, Blow Away, Blow Away.

Ben liked the lyrics quite a bit; it reminded him of his personal troubles. If he surrendered to his problems, he only made it worse. By forgiving Talon, by holding onto his personal strength, he felt he overcame the tribulations. He just had one more lingering concern, his parents. And Ben knew what he had to do.

---

Sunlight flickered through the germinating canopy of the woods. Dust kicked up behind the Silverado as Ben drove, far away from his home in Westerville. Deep into Licking County, he returned "home", to Hanover, on the rural country roads he once lived on. A moral obligation of one more try, compelled Ben to return back home.

Coming up to the fork in the road, Ben felt uncertain, but driven by the desire of seeing his parents, regardless of the outcome. He knew his father had heart surgery recently, but the details were very vague. Nobody was returning his phone calls, which upset him. His Uncle Vance, his own Mom. He tried calling the home phone, nothing. This was his last option, the most uncomfortable option. He still held out hope that maybe, just maybe, he could salvage something.

The dirt road went for quite a distance, seemingly weaving between trees that lined it as it straddled a valley to his right. The woods were coming alive, with green shrubbery, and green growth as new leaves were colored a cheerful green. Summer was fast approaching.

Coming around a bend, Ben slowed up, knowing the driveway was approaching. He could see one of the reflectors glisten in the sun. He put his brakes on and turn signal, his paws turning the wheel to slowly maneuver down the dirt driveway. As he turned, Ben saw the home come in view, which made him practically lock the tires up. The husky came to a jolting stop when he saw that the house was blackened and charred from a fire. He slammed the column shifter into park and jumped out.

Looking confused, Ben saw what remained of the house that he grew up in. The living room windows were gone, and the house was practically split in half, the middle of the roof caving into the living room. There were warning signs from the county, condemning the house with a big red sign that held a white "X" on it. The junked car fleet that his father once had was gone. It now sat as an empty lot, the ground stained black in spots by motor oil.

"What the fuck?!" Ben thought as he muttered those words quietly. It seemed surreal, unbelievable. "How could this have happened?"

Approaching the home, curiosity got the best of the husky, as he poked his head through the charred windows that were once the living room's. His nostrils picked up the charred scent of wood and upholstery. Stepping in, boards creaked and crackled under his boots as he stepped foot once again into what remained of his childhood home. There wasn't anything really left in the living room; a melted TV still hung, and a few pictures of his family remained, the glass darkened by soot. The kitchen wasn't in too bad of shape, with a refrigerator still in the corner, and a dining table still adorned with tableware.

Being mindful of the caved in roof, Ben went down the charred hallway and stepped into his bedroom, which was largely intact. It looked like nothing had changed. A John Deere tractor poster still hung, and an old CRT television sat on his dresser. His closet still held some clothes, and Ben quickly grabbed them, along with his cherished pair of brown cowboy boots that he missed so dearly. It was a sad, but curious dilemma. It was as though his parents were in a weird state of mourning, as though he had "died" when he came out. He carried his belongings back through the crumbling house and out the large window to place in his truck bed, under the camper shell. He went back to make one more look of the place. His only conclusion was that the house burned down from an electrical fire; his father had complained on more than one occasion about electrical problems, and morbidly joked that "one of these days this whole place is gonna burn down". A morbid joke that had come true.

Something white caught Ben's eye as he turned to see a piece of paper stuck in the blackened door. It was out of place, which made Ben walk over to grab it. He opened the door, which promptly fell off its hinges and smashed onto the ground, kicking up gray dust. Bending down, he picked up the piece of paper, which was folded three times. It revealed a letter, addressed to him with a "Dear Ben". It was his Mom's handwriting.

"Dear Ben.

I thought you might show up one of these days,

so I wanted to leave you this so you know.

Your father had open heart surgery on 4/31, but

died on 5/3. Complications following an unexpected

stroke. He was buried on 5/7. I am heartbroken. I

come home from the hospital after he died to find

the home on fire. Fire Department thinks it was an

electrical issue. I think it's God just punishing me.

So I made the decision to just return back home to

Tennessee, where family is at.

I'm sorry we could never overcome our differences.

Wish you the best, Ben.

Love, Mom."

Ben felt his heart sink as he slowly lowered the letter, which fluttered in a warm breeze. It hit him that his father had died, and no one in his family even bothered to tell him. He died and was buried, and Ben didn't even know. There was an upwelling of rage inside him at the snub the Reynolds gave him. But then suddenly, there was calm.

The husky closed his eyes, lowered his head, and chuckled. It was a cynical chuckle at the whole situation. But now it was over. The husky felt that the light bulb had finally gone off in his head; he no longer had to try and become a man. He was a man all along.

Seven months ago, it had never dawned on Ben, that fateful day that his life would change. But after his gay bashing, his abandonment, his expulsion, and uprooting of his life, he wanted to grow up fast to become a better person, "become a man" and do something bigger with his life. But it made sense now- he was a man all along because he was the better person, he had the moral fiber that his parents both lacked.

Looking down at the letter, Ben realized that his Mom's words were hollow to him. They were vapid words, empty and without sincerity. Her "Love Mom" felt as hollow as the burned out carcass of their former home.

"Can't say you didn't try." Ben could hear Rob say in his mind. "At least you tried."

"I did." Ben thought. He crumbled up his "Dear John" letter and threw it into the charred remains of the home. His quest was over, and Ben felt he finally could understand everything. There was a feeling of resolution to him as he turned around, to head back to his idling truck. He climbed back in and buckled himself in before backing out and onto the narrow road. He popped the shifter into drive and reached over to turn on his radio, which came on, playing Kenny Rogers. He cranked the volume up and tapped his fingers on the steering wheel as he left, a peaceful smile on his face as he began his hour drive back home to Westerville, listening to "Coward of the County".

"Promise me, son, not to do the things I've done

Walk away from trouble if you can

It won't mean you're weak if you turn the other cheek

I hope you're old enough to understand

Son, you don't have to fight to be a man".