The Apprentice
by and © N Fourbois
Chapter 50
Eric picked Kieran and William up a little earlier than usual as they would have to register and pay for William's membership. Once they were changed they said hallo to Olaf who looked after William while the other two got on with their gym routine. The session ended at eight and Olaf brought William back, sweaty, perhaps a little bushed, but otherwise unscathed. He had a grin on his face.
"Can we go swimming?"
"We haven't got time on a Monday, but now you're a member you can come any time you want to except Tuesday evenings."
"Why's that?"
"Because it's ladies' evening," answered Eric.
"Oh." They went through to the locker room to get showered and changed.
"Wash your bottom properly," Kieran whispered in William's ear.
"Why?"
"Because I'm going to give it a pounding later on."
"Who says?" said William cheekily.
"Oh, so you do want to sleep on the floor after all?"
"No! Anything but that."
"Clean your butt then." Both boys giggled away as they continued showering. Eric wondered what it was all about. William took it as an opportunity to tart as he continued his ablutions. Finally Eric dropped them at Kieran's place at half past eight and they said good night to him.
Once indoors Kieran sorted out his dirty kit and said
"Will, are you hungry?"
"No one's ever called me Will before."
"Do you like it?"
"Mmm, yes, but only from you. I want everybody else to go on calling me William. It's different when you say it."
"Okay then, I'll only call you Will when no one else is about. Agreed?" William nodded and Kieran sealed it with a kiss on the lips.
Kieran notice the little green light flashing on the telephone. The ID screen showed 'international'. He lifted the receiver. There was a message. He dialled 1571.
"Will, my Mum and Dad are arriving home about midday tomorrow. I must leave a note for Mrs Crater. To get back to my original question - do you feel hungry?"
"A bit. Quite a bit in fact. A lot."
"Do you eat omelettes?"
"Sure."
"I'll make a couple then. It'll use up the eggs. I'll put various bits in it - ham, mushroom, tomato, cheese. You okay with that?"
"Yeah, there's not much I don't eat."
"So I've noticed." William giggled. "Right, you can get on with chopping up the bits and grating the cheese while I beat the eggs and get the frying pan heated up."
While Kieran and William were tucking in, they were chatting about their evening.
"So how did you get on, Will?"
"Great. Olaf said that now I was attending regularly I could have a personal plan to strengthen muscles, increase stamina and improve recovery times. He said I'd have to wait at least a couple of years or so before using the weight machines, but they might not be the right thing for me anyway. He'd been talking to Mr Bridgeman about me. They reckon that because of my build I'd be okay to play junior rugby, but I would be struggling in the seniors because of my size and weight. I realise I'm not good enough for the U14's A team and I'm lucky to be playing in the B team. He also said that if I get serious about gymnastics I won't be able to play rugby anyway because the injury risk is too great."
"Do you think you will get into serious gymnastics?"
"In my heart of hearts, no. I started too late in life. I could be all right at school level, but not at club level. I can't even do the splits yet. But I'm working on it."
"That will improve your love life," laughed Kieran.
"It could damage it more like it. That's why you have to wear a comp top so that you can tuck your nuts upwards so as not crush them on the mat. Hey, I'll tell you what, Kieran. A lot of the other members took quite an interest in what I was doing and welcomed me to the gym." Kieran spluttered on a mouthful of omelette as he burst out laughing. "What's so funny?"
"Remember it's gentlemen's evening."
"Yees, what's that got to do with the price of fish?"
"You amaze me for an intelligent boy how thick you can be at times. The gay members like it better when there are no women there and so they're more likely to be there on a Monday. And when they see a cute young thing like you, they take an interest in what you're doing."
"And is that why there were so many checking me out in the showers and the locker room?"
"That's right. I thought we'd discussed all this."
"Maybe, but last week there was so much to learn. I wish I'd popped a boner now."
"That might have been going too far."
"Since me and Toby did that in front of old Bridgers I don't care any more. I like people looking at my equipment. It's not bad for a boy my age."
"You seem to know a lot about it."
"C'mon, Kieran, who's being the thicket now?" They carried on with their omelettes.
"Kieran, were you serious when you said you wanted to have Toby?"
"Yes, I think so. I don't know. I'm so confused at the moment."
"Why so?"
"Look at it from my point of view, Will. I get kicked out of my last school for attempted sex with a boy. Then I meet a boy I have a good sexual relationship with. That ends because we have to go our separate ways. Okay, that's quite clear. That's life. At my new school I then meet three boys in particular. The one I have a full sexual relationship with, but we decide not to become boyfriends, but we still go on having sex."
"That's us two?" said William. Kieran nodded.
"Then with the second one we have a one night stand and then I hear he's got the hots for me, and because I'm promiscuous by nature I'd like to give him what he wants."
"That's Jack presumably?"
"Yes, then there's a third one in the frame who just exudes sex. I know he's gay. I know the shape of his trousers back and front. I know I want to get my hand inside them, but I don't know whether he wants it or not."
"If that's Toby, he wants it all right... from anybody. It's just a question of when and where."
"There's all that without a single mention of the words love or loyalty. Is it any wonder that I'm confused?" Both boys were silent for a moment.
Kieran got up and made a pot of tea. William looked thoughtful, more than that, he was deep in thought; he was away with the fairies. Kieran let him be. He just put a cup of tea in front of him. Eventually he returned to consciousness.
"Do you know what I think?" he said as if there had been no time gap. Kieran gave him an encouraging look. "For the time being us two are together. We are bound... bonded by the fag / fagmaster relationship. But they're mere words. It goes deeper than that. That's an excuse, that's acceptable to other people. The bond is there. In two years' time it may well break. However, knowing we're bonded doesn't stop us looking in other directions. We will look at other boys, we will have sex with them, that will never break our bond. It will only strengthen it for we'll share our experiences. And when we look at other boys we are not being unfaithful to each other, we are being true to ourselves. We've both said we can't commit, yet we have... we've committed against our wills, but because it is against our will, we shall fight it and lose the battle every time. Do you understand what I am saying, Kieran?"
Kieran was exhausted just from listening to him. He exhaled a long, slow breath, but was still not ready to reply. Finally he said
"So what you are saying is whatever we do we can't split until we're actually physically parted. We are going to have sexual relationships with others that won't even affect ours. We're open about this and we're even giving each other permission to carry on in that way. Is that it?"
"I think it is," said William almost immediately.
"C'mon, Will, let's sleep on this and see what the morning brings. We'd better get cleared up here so that everything is spick and span. There won't be too much time in the morning and Mrs Crater will be in a tizz when she sees that note and finds out Mum and Dad'll be home about midday."
It was a good job Kieran set the alarm for both boys were fast asleep, entwined with each other, when it went off. They showered in separate bathrooms to speed things up, had the normal breakfast of muesli and toast and made ready to go. Just as they were off they heard the front door bell ring, the turn of a key in the latch and the 'Cooee, good morning' of Mrs Crater. The boys exchanged greetings with her in the hall and went off towards the bus stop. The bus arrived. Both boys climbed aboard and sat together on the top deck. Jack got on at his stop and with a twinkle in his eye asked if they had had a good night and was assured that they had. When the three turned up at the sixth form centre, Toby was already waiting for his fagmaster to arrive. Both sixth formers sent their fags off to registration without giving them any tasks in order to make sure that they arrived in good time today.
The two younger boys left the sixth form centre, William's arm round Toby's shoulder as they chatted.
"Hey, Toby, have you lost your cherry yet?"
"What? Lost my cherry as in... you know... um..."
"Being fucked," added William to help his friend out.
"I wouldn't have put it quite as crudely as that myself," answered Toby in a mock self-righteous tone, "but the answer is not yet. Why?"
"Nothing. It's just that I want to steal your cherry before Kieran gets it."
"What? You mean he fancies me? I thought with you around he never looked at another boy."
"It's not for me to comment," replied William.
"And that means you must as well."
"I cannot tell a lie, but if you were that way inclined... I wouldn't say no."
"What do you mean - that way inclined? All four of us are that way inclined, aren't we?" They'd reached their tutor room. "I'm up for it, but definitely not at College. I like the place too much to risk doing anything as serious as that here. What are you doing at the weekend... besides rugby?" asked Toby.
"Have to ask my mother first. Speak to you later."
Kieran didn't rush home after school that night. He had to keep up appearances, but naturally he was keen to see his parents after their time away. He opened the door and shouted out
"Hi, Mum, hi, Dad!"
"I'm in the front room," came his mother's reply. He went in and they hugged and he gave her a kiss.
"Where's Dad?"
"He's gone into the office. Can't you guess? He won't be long, or at least that's what he said." Mother and son chatted for half an hour or so.
"I'll go up and get changed and start my prep," said Kieran.
He was just settling down to an essay when there was a knock on the door and his mother came in.
"Kieran, can you tell me what these are?" He took a bundle of white cotton from her hand.
"A pair of underpants?" He thought of the note from Mrs Crater he was going to read later. He wanted to die, but he immediately thought back to the way William had faced down his mother.
"But they're too small for yours."
"Where did you get them from?"
"Mrs Crater found them under your pillow when she was tidying up."
"Oh, that's where they got to." Kieran felt in control. "They belong to William. We were looking for them everywhere." He even defiantly sniffed them.
"Yes, Mrs Crater has laundered them." 'Unfortunately,' thought Kieran, but kept it to himself.
"We wondered where they'd got to. He'd lost them, but it didn't matter he had a clean pair in his overnight bag. I'll give them back to him tomorrow at College."
"Kieran, you're not taking this seriously. You know what a fuss Mrs Crater makes and what if she starts gossiping?"
"Sorry, Mum. I'll make sure he's more careful in future..." 'OMG, what have I just said?' thought Kieran.
Colleen went back downstairs, not best pleased. Kieran heard his father come in. 'Uh uh, I really am in trouble now,' he thought. Ten minutes later he was called down to tea.
Sitting at table he politely asked his father about the business trip, but otherwise acted sheepishly. His mother started up.
"Mrs Crater found a pair of William McLarney's underpants under Kieran's pillow this morning."
"Bad move, son," said his father. "That can lead to a whole lot of trouble."
"Yes, Dad."
"I still remember the time my mother found a pair of your mother's knickers under my pillow and times were far less tolerant then. I got into one helluva row," and he burst out laughing.
"Dean!" shouted Colleen, now red with embarrassment rather than anger. "You've completely undermined me!"
"Sorry, love. You ought to have warned me this was supposed to be a reprimand."
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