The Metamorphosis of Jeremiah Long, Chapter 40
Warning:
This story contains scenes of love and sexual interaction between males of similar age. If the reading or possessing this material is illegal in your country, state, province, county, municipality, etc., please leave this site immediately and do not proceed further. If you are under the legal age to read this, please do not do so.
The author retains the copyright, and any other rights, to this original story. You may not publish it or any part of it without explicit authorization from me.
I have written several other stories. My longer ones on Nifty include: "Always and Forever" (March 25, 2004), "Jacob and Jacques" (May 30, 2004), "Zeke" (August 29, 2005), "Tales from Bentonville" (November 16, 2008), "Second Chance" (September 24, 2010), and "Tommy and Tanner (October 21, 2012)under "High School" and "Someone to Watch over Me" under "Beginnings" in the gay male section.
My short stories include: "Brad and Alan's Canoe Trip" (April 22, 2004 under "Camping", "Of Angels and Dragons" (November 8, 2008) under "Camping", "A Christmas Tale" (December 22, 2009), "Wyatt's Thanksgiving" (November 20, 2012)under "High School", "Brazil Affair" (October 1, 2010), "A Technological Christmas" (December 23, 2011), and "Patrick's Christmas (December 19, 2012) under "Beginnings," I have one story in the Sci Fi/Fantasy category called, "Seth's Gift" (October 10, 2010).
"Banana Splits" was added under "adult friendships" (September 17,1013).
You can easily access most of my tales by going to the "Author" button in Nifty's home page and scrolling down to David Lee. Some of these stories are also posted at: www.storylover.us and www.saberpeak.com.
My only reward for contributing to Nifty is your emails. Please write if you like the story. Please include the name of the story in the subject line of your email because my email service sometimes puts them in the "spam" file.
Thanks and hugs to Tom and David (boxerdude) who edit for me so that there are fewer mistakes! They not only proof-read, but make other valuable suggestions.
Your donations to Nifty are appreciated to keep this a free site for us and for you.
David (dlee169@hotmail.com)
The Metamorphosis of Jeremiah Long, Chapter 40
During the time that Tyler was adjusting to life in an American High school, his father was flying to Fort Worth, TX to negotiate the sale of the family company to Pier 1, as well as going to a variety of job interviews in various cities. The transaction with Pier 1 appeared to be on track, but none of the employment opportunities seemed to be a good fit thus far. Some were in places like San Francisco with a very high cost of living and others were in the deep south where Sean didn't feel he'd fit into the political and social milieu.
In addition to other considerations, Sean wanted to settle somewhere in the Midwest so that Tyler wouldn't be too far from his cousins or from the lake property in Wisconsin. With all that had transpired, Tyler would need family support. So would Sean for that matter.
The one bright note at present was that Pier 1 offered him a lucrative six-month contract to help make the merger go as smoothly as possible. He would get to keep his insurance coverage and other perks. That convinced him to accept it.
When he came back to Iowa for a short visit, he found that his son was adjusting well to his new situation.
"Dad, I'm so excited! They've been having tryouts for soccer already and I've been promised a spot on the varsity team! Can you imagine? Here I am a lowly freshman and I'm kicking ass on the field!"
"Be careful about the size of your ego or someone's going to be kicking YOUR ass on the field." Sean grinned.
"I know Dad. My homeys have been telling me that. Same goes for being in junior level math."
"Hmm, homeys' and math'is it? You've picked up the local slang quickly. Your accent is different too. You used to sound almost French Canadian, but that's all gone in a few weeks' time."
"I'm doing my best to fit in and it's paying off. I have a lot of new friends. There are even a couple of girls who like to hang around with me."
"Do we need to review the talk about the birds and bees?"
"Nah, Davy said he'd give me rubbers if I need them, but he advised me not to get into a situation where I would while I'm still this young."
"That is good advice and I hope you follow it. I know it's easy to think with your glands instead of your brains at your age. Remember, I was once young and horny too."
"God, Dad! It's really cool being able to talk to you like this. I was afraid I'd lose you with the divorce. I'm glad Mom didn't want me."
"Where did you get that idea?"
"Please don't underestimate what kids pick up on. I know you've never said anything against her in my presence, and I appreciate it that you're trying to shield me, but I know."
"Oh, Son," Sean sighed and he held Tyler to his chest.
"It's okay. Jack's mom, Paul's mom, and Eddy's mom all hug me and my own mom rarely did. I have a bunch of ladies who've adopted me, and my family members all show me love too. The world's a lot more understanding and compassionate than it was at boarding school."
"I'm so pleased you have love and support. I'm only sorry that you didn't get it earlier. I shouldn't have sent you away to school."
"It wasn't your fault. I remember overhearing you and Mom argue about it. You never were sold on the idea."
"I hope I haven't screwed you up forever by not fighting against it harder."
"Nah, I'm okay. It didn't kill me. Look what Davy went through with his strange mother and that terrible church he was forced to go to. He's made it and so have I."
"I really have to find a job where I can be close and won't have to rip you away from here. I think you've found the true meaning of home."
"I have!"
The weather in early March was rather iffy, but the soccer team was out on the field whenever possible. Coach Bernie Rapoport stood grinning like a kid in a candy store while watching his boys practicing. God had smiled on him in the form of a freshman boy who had become the spirit of the team.
Traditionally, soccer had never generated a lot of interest in this Midwestern high school, certainly nothing like football. Many of the players tried hard but just didn't have the experience needed to win. Suddenly they were coalescing because of a little spit-fire who wasn't afraid of mixing it up with guys who towered over him, and who had experience playing abroad where soccer ruled. He might have been a rather ordinary player in his old school, but here he was a standout.
For whatever reason, many of the older members on the team came to respect Tyler Hart. At first some of the seniors were resentful that he had been allowed on the varsity team, but soon most came to respect him and were eager to learn what he could teach them through example.
Of course, in almost any high school team situation there are kids who are resentful of someone who has better skills. Those kinds of people often put the blame for their own poor performance on someone else. It's never their fault!
Percy Harris was one of the spoiled brats who felt he should be the center of attention and the star of the team. He was not only spoiled, but rather strange. Regardless, his parents had doted on him since the day he was born because his mother had miscarried several times. Unfortunately, they expected the rest of the world to do the same. Some teachers and coaches caved in to their demands, while others felt the boy should earn what he received. Coach Rapoport was among the latter group.
Percy was particularly pissed because Coach Rapoport had assigned Tyler to be a forward and therefore more in a position to score goals for the team. Percy had been moved to mid-field, a place he considered beneath him.
The coach did his best to impress upon the boys that as a team, each of them was equally important to the whole. He told them it was like the human body, in that, the brain couldn't move the body if there weren't nerves to carry the messages to the arms and legs. The feet wouldn't know where to go without the eyes to have the vision.
"Even the lowly sphincter has a purpose!" he joked.
Percy suspected that the remark was aimed at him, since he'd complained loudly about the reassignment a few days earlier. He was certain of it when some kid made a joke just loudly enough for most of the guys to hear.
"Maybe Percy could be the team's asshole!"
Coach Rapoport hadn't heard the aside, but assumed the kids were still laughing over his earlier reference to butthole, and so he didn't respond.
Percy texted his parents as soon as he got to his gym locker, telling them that the coach had insulted him in front of the whole team and had called him an asshole. The parents contacted their lawyer who came to Dr. Pilchard's office the following afternoon.
The lawyer insisted that Percy was being insulted and bullied by the coach and that the man should be relieved of his duties pending an inquiry. Dr. Pilchard assured him that a complete investigation would be launched, but that Mr. Rapoport would retain both his classroom and extracurricular duties until, and unless, he was found in violation of the school's anti- bullying rules. The lawyer wasn't happy with the answer because he'd assumed he could frighten the administrators into doing what he asked. However, he couldn't threaten any further without being accused of bullying too.
The moment the lawyer left, Dr. Pilchard dropped the whole mess in Dr. Campbell's lap. He had dealt with the Harris family in the past, and didn't want to dirty his hands with this new grievance.
Frances Campbell had also had dealings with Percy's parents and therefore took the position that the coach was innocent and would surely be exonerated unless a preponderance of evidence proved otherwise. She was not one to fire from the hip regardless.
She began her investigation by calling in team members whom she could rely on to tell her the truth. The first was Chandler Baldus.
"Can you tell me what Mr. Rapoport said to Percy Harris before soccer practice yesterday?"
"Um, he didn't say anything to him in particular yesterday that I recall. He did tell him last week that the new assignments would remain in place for the present and that Percy should attempt to be the best middle-fielder he could be for the good of the team."
"What was Percy's complaint?"
"His nose has been out of joint because Tyler Hart has his old spot as a forward. Tyler is twice the player Percy is, but he can't get that through his head. It's like he's obsessed."
"But yesterday, you didn't hear an exchange between them?"
"None."
"So, Coach Rapoport didn't use the term `asshole' directed toward Percy?"
"I've never heard the coach say anything like that. His language is cleaner than mine, and that's saying a lot since my mother would probably wash out my mouth," Chandler grinned.
"Not literally, I assume."
"No, she wouldn't, but she'd lay a guilt trip that might be worse!"
"Okay, back to the subject. Did the coach say anything that might be construed in that manner?"
"He did give us a little pep talk about team unity. What he used as an illustration is like what I heard in a sermon at church one time. I think it's from Corinthian's somewhere. Like the people of Corinth were arguing about who was most vital to their church. It's the thing about all parts of the body being important to its function. You know, that whole `interconnected thing."
"I'm familiar with that, yes."
"Well to lighten up his sermonette, he joked that even the lowly sphincter muscle had an important purpose. Then some smart Alec toward the back of the gym said that maybe Percy was the team's asshole."
"Did the coach say anything?"
"Nope, I'm pretty sure he didn't hear it or he would have had a fit."
"Thank you, Chandler. Please refrain from mentioning what we've discussed until this inquiry is completed. I don't want to taint anyone's testimony."
"You can count on me," Chandler smiled.
"Thanks. Please send in Forrest."
The following day, after having interviewed a goodly number of the team, including a boy who admitted making the remark about Percy being right for the position of team asshole, she took her findings to Dr. Pilchard.
"I'm not surprised at the outcome, and I'm not surprised that you've left no stone unturned. You diligence will be noted at the next board meeting. Now, shall we interview Coach Rapoport so we can wrap this up?"
Tyler's cousins often watched part of soccer practices in order to support him and, if truth be told, to watch his back without being obvious about it. They knew of Percy's reputation. Word around school had it that he could go ballistic at the drop of a hat. Some of the kids referred to him as a schizoid. Most of them didn't pay too much attention to him, finding that ignoring him was the path of least resistance.
It was while the coach was in Dr. Prichard's office and his assistant was in charge that Percy started to heckle Tyler in an attempt to throw him off his game. To his credit, Tyler paid him no heed. He'd run into opponents in the past who had acted that way in attempt to win, so he could turn a deaf ear without much effort.
At the end of the scrimmage, and while still on the field, Percy tripped Tyler, sending him flying and skinning his knee. Then he kicked him while he was down.
Joe had had the presence of mind to pull out his cell phone and record the action the minute he saw Percy heading toward Tyler.
"Leave him alone, you damned bully!" Davy shouted as he went to intervene.
The team members who weren't inside the gym yet, turned around to see what was up.
"Stay out of this, faggot! It's none of your concern. I'm gonna teach this little shit to respect his betters."
"You won't lay a hand on my cousin while I'm here!" Davy said loudly.
"Then I'll take care of you first!" Percy yelled as he came at Davy with fists flying.
"Don't do this, Percy," Davy advised as he danced out of the way. "I don't want to hurt you. I have martial arts training you know."
"Yeah, I've seen you doing those fairy moves. Now stand still so we can fight like men."
Percy threw a hard punch toward Davy's chest which Davy felt only slightly because of having anticipated it and compensated by moving quickly at the last moment.
Davy then launched himself into a move which the kids watching didn't think was humanly possible. For a second or so, he was in a barrel roll horizontal to the ground, looking like a small plane doing tricks in an air show. When it was over, he had caught Percy's head with the side of his foot and sent him to the ground where he remained for a couple minutes, unable or unwilling to get up.
"Fucker!" Percy screamed. "I'll sue your ass!"
"Whatever," Davy responded. "Just don't harass my cousin!"
"I'll be a witness for the defense," Chandler offered.
"Me too," Forrest grinned. "You looked like a human tornado or maybe the Tasmanian Devil! How did you do that?"
"It's a move I saw on YouTube and I've been practicing it for awhile. That's the first time I've done it correctly, and it worked even in my shorts instead of my uniform."
"It's the first time you didn't hold back." Joe said. "You've always pulled your punches so as not to hurt Jon."
"Fer sure!" Davy grinned.
As soon as Davy came into the building, he went to Dr. Campbell's office. He wanted his side of the story on record before Percy gave a distorted version.
He was sitting patiently for Dr. Campbell to get there when Percy approached the receptionist demanding an appointment. When he saw Davy sitting there, his face turned bright red and he began screaming and cursing.
The secretary immediately pressed a button at her desk to summon Todd Watson. He was nearby in the foyer, so he appeared in a very short time.
In the presence of an officer of the law, Percy had the good sense to settle down and shut up. If he was going to play the victim, he'd better not appear to be the bully when the associate principal came in.
Todd remained in the outer office despite Percy's sudden change of attitude. He figured his presence might be welcomed by the receptionist, if not by Percy.
"I need to see you right now!" Percy demanded as Dr. Campbell entered the outer office.
"Jennie, which one of these young men was here first?"
"David Hart."
"Okay, I'll take them in the order of their arrival. David, please come with me."
"That's not fair! He'll tell lies about me." Percy insisted.
"Would it be fair not to see you in order? What would you do if you had been first and I had made you wait?"
"That's different."
"Why don't you sit here and write out your rationale for that while I visit with Master Hart?"
As soon as the inner office door closed, Percy stomped out of the office muttering under his breath. Todd followed at a distance.
"Thanks for taking responsibility for your actions, David," Dr. Campbell said after hearing Davy's story and watching the short video clip on Joe's phone. "The security camera will, no doubt, serve to back up what I've seen, not that we need it because there hasn't been any time to alter the images in Joe's video. Someday soon, I'd like you to demonstrate that move you made. I'm impressed! But, I suppose I need to let you go so I can deal with Percy; Lord have mercy!"
"I think there's a limerick in there somewhere," Davy grinned. "Let's see, there once was a boy named Percy..."
"Please don't do it! I've already dealt with something Percy jumped to conclusions about. You've probably heard about his parent's demanding that we fire Mr. Rapoport."
"No, I haven't."
"That's good! I'm impressed that the soccer guys haven't let it out. I'm not going to say more at present, but it will all be out soon."
"Okay, I won't beg for details," Davy grinned.
Dr. Campbell was surprised as well as relieved that Percy wasn't still waiting in the outer office. She'd spent more than enough time cleaning up the previous mess he'd made.
When Davy arrived at home for one of their communal meals with his extended family (including Todd and Jim), Jon was eager to get the details about how Davy had felled a punk who was older and a lot bigger than he was.
"Dad sent me a text about your heroism. Of all the days for me to be at the dentist, why did it have to be today and make me miss the action?" Jon complained.
"Never fear, Joe got a video of it all and so did a couple of other spectators. I'll bet it's on YouTube already." Davy grinned.
Davy's spectacular move was the dominate subject of conversation over the dinner hour. Tyler hailed his older cousin as a conquering hero.
"You've gotta see the video! He looked like the inside of our Ninja blender and he nearly ground up Percy to a pulp!"
"I didn't leave a lot of bruises on him, but I think he probably had to change his underwear," Davy joked. "By the way, what did the trainer say about your injuries?"
"He didn't like the looks of the bruise on my ribs, but he doesn't think they're even cracked. I rolled away from the force of his kick as much as I could while on my back on the ground. It all happened so fast!"
"I took him to the walk-in clinic at the trainer's suggestion," Brock said. "The x-rays looked okay. The doctor told him to take it easy for a couple of days, but you know how that's gonna work."
"The trainer can tape some padding over it to give me some protection in practice. I've seen that done at boarding school. It's not all that sore, but maybe I can get some sympathy from the girls, like ask Caitlin to kiss it for me."
"Be careful about what you let her kiss," Jon warned with a giggle.
"Hey, straight boys need love too, you know."
"But straight boys can end up being daddies if they're not careful." Davy advised. "You be careful and don't take any chances! See me if you need anything."
The adults at the table didn't say a word. There was, however, a slight, amused shake of the head. They appreciated how the guys seemed to be taking care of things without needing any intervention from them.
After being told by their lawyer that, in view of the testimonies of a large proportion of the soccer team, they had no case against the coach; Mr. and Mrs. Harris made one last scene, this time in the counselor's office, demanding that Percy's records be sent to a neighboring school district immediately.
"I will be pleased to take care of that right away," Ms. Proctor smiled.
"You seem eager to get rid of our son!" Mrs. Harris accused her.
"I'm trying to follow your orders, and I'm always happy to see a student in a placement that works best for EVERYONE." Ms. Proctor said.
Mrs. Harris frowned at the emphasis on her last word, but couldn't figure out a comeback that wouldn't sound idiotic.
News of Percy's departure was greeted with joy by everyone who had known him well. His presence would be missed, but only with a sense of relief – sort of like missing pneumonia when you recover.
Without Percy, the soccer team ran like a well-oiled machine. In their first game, against a strong opponent, they won two to zip. Tyler was responsible for one of those goals and Chandler set up Forrest to make the other. The whole team was on top of the world. The mid-field had done their part to set up the shots for the forwards and the defense had held their goal well.
In his locker room talk after the victory, Coach Rapoport praised the teamwork more than the two boys who had scored the goals, stressing again the analogy of the whole body being involved.
Sean managed to be back in town for Tyler's first game in his new school. It brought tears to his eyes to see his son and the other boy carried off the field by their teammates. He had missed too many events in Tyler's life up to now. He vowed that wouldn't happen again, even if he had to settle for a lesser job. No amount of money or position was more important than his boy, who was growing up way too quickly.
"Now I know how a mother bird must feel when her fledglings leave the nest," Davy said, with the back of his right hand against his forehead in an exaggerated gesture.
"Don't forget the father birds," Jon insisted.
"What's all this theatrical agony," Willa asked, as she set her tray down. "Is it okay if we sit here since I don't see Tyler and company?"
"Of course you may sit with us, you're always welcome," Davy replied. "It was Tyler, Eddy, Paul, and Jack that I was referring to. They were our little charges for a while so they'd feel secure in this big school, but now they've suddenly grown up and moved to another table, with girls."
"Girls do become a big attraction at their age," Jenna agreed. "Well, in the majority of cases."
"Yeah, I guess our agenda to turn them gay didn't work this time around," Jon joked.
"Jeez! How can you joke about that?" Willa asked. "There are a lot of crazies out there who actually believe it."
"It worked for us," Joe smiled. "Mark and I got a text from Toby saying that he and Jerry are dating. You remember, Jerry was the guy who made the big stink about not wanting to room with a "fag" at our peer counseling training."
"How did they get together?" Jenna wanted to know.
"After they reconnected at the anti-bullying conference, they discovered that their schools are only about 10 miles apart. It sounds like a new couple is being formed." Joe said.
"But you guys can't take credit for making them gay." Bradon weighed in. "By their own admission, they were already gay and Jerry was fighting it, rather like I did, until I found my soul-mate."
Their discussion was interrupted by laughter coming from several tables away. Tyler was standing with the side of his shirt pulled up and Caitlin was kissing his bruise.
Author's notes: I heard from the following since last posting: Archie D, Scott W, Mendy D, Bill T, Bill K, Ott H, Tony W, Walter Sz, Jim W, Luke C, Wayne, Walt S, Paul R, Trish R, and Dick W. Thanks for your words of encouragement.
This is a link to the kind of move Davy made:
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=karate+moves+2013&qs=n&form=QBVR&pq=karate+moves+2013&sc=1-17&sp=-1&sk=#view=detail&mid=6AB2D16136406AAA18FA6AB2D16136406AAA18FA