Last of the Summer Tomatoes (12 page)

“You were flirting with that receptionist, um, Joanie.”

Sam lifted his eyebrows. “Being gay doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the female form. That I don’t appreciate beauty in all people. Plus, she slips me extra lollipops.”

Kyle gave him a small smile. “I… I’m glad you aren’t mad. You won’t tell your parents, will you?”

“Why wouldn’t you want me to?”

“I figured they don’t want a gay guy in their house.”

“They already have one.”

“One what?”

“A gay guy in their house.”

“They
know
?”

Sam sat back a little from Kyle’s outburst. “Yeah, they know. They’ve known for quite some time.”

“And they’re okay with
it
?”

“At first they had questions, but yeah, they are quite all right with it.”

“You weren’t asked to leave or punished or anything?”

“Kyle, you’ve met my parents. Do you really think they’d do any of those things?”

Kyle took in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “Of course not. I… I have just never heard of someone who had a family accept them for, um, for not being normal.”

“You think being gay’s not normal?”

Kyle shook his head. “I… I’ve never told anyone about me before. Well, except Billy, and he’s got an older brother who’s… gay.”

Sam reached over to touch Kyle’s face. “We are normal. We were born this way, and there’s nothing wrong with us. Do you… do you think I could kiss you again?”

Kyle felt his face grow hot. “I… yeah, but….”

“But what?”

“You… this is….”

Sam smiled knowingly. “That was your first kiss, huh?”

Kyle nodded.

“If you didn’t like it, I’ll keep my hands to myself….”

“No! No, that’s not it. It’s just… I… I don’t know what to do.”

“Do what you feel like doing. If you don’t like what I’m doing, tell me. You aren’t going to offend me.” Sam leaned in close, giving him a light kiss, then pulling them together, keeping his lips closed.

Kyle leaned in as well, his arm going around Sam. He loved the feel of Sam’s lips, and he wanted more. He parted his lips a little, his tongue lightly running over Sam’s mouth. He felt Sam respond to him and both mouths parted, two tongues touching, feeling. And it was over too soon. Sam pulled back a little.

“That okay?”

Kyle swallowed and tried to get his breath. Their foreheads touched, and he smiled. “Yeah, that was nice.”

“So, we okay now?”

“I… yeah. I… do we have to tell your parents right away? I… I need some time.”

“I totally get that. Sure, we can go slow, take our time. But… I won’t lie to them. If they ask, I’ll tell. You okay with that?”

Kyle thought about it for a few seconds. He really couldn’t see Glenda or Walt asking about them kissing, but yeah, even if they asked him straight out, he wouldn’t be able to lie to them. Not after all they’ve done. “I’m okay with that. I won’t lie to them either.”

“Highly unlikely they’ll ask anything, though. But I don’t want to keep it a secret very long.”

“They really don’t care you’re gay?”

“Not in the least. They’ve met my boyfriends before.”

“Boyfriends?”

“I’ve dated a little. Brought two of them home. One in high school, one back in the fall semester.”

“Were you serious?”

“Well, about as serious as a gay teenager can be, I guess.”

“What…. What does that mean?”

Sam looked a little sheepish. “No sex, if that’s what you’re getting at. Making out, sure, but yeah, no sex. Sex is for a committed relationship, and I haven’t had that with anyone.”

Kyle tentatively reached his hand out to Sam’s. Sam met him and intertwined their fingers.

“Is this going to affect how we act around each other?” Kyle looked at their hands, feeling a little disconnected with his. No one had held his hand, at least since he’d been a kid.

“I don’t see why it should. There’s work to be done, we do it. When we have free time, we can spend it together, or not. I know you like to hide away and draw.”

“Is that okay?”

“Of course! I’d love to see some of your work sometime. I’ve seen a glimpse or two when you’ve been sketching. You’re good.”

Kyle looked down. “I guess.”

Sam put his finger under Kyle’s chin and gently pushed his face up. “You’re gonna have to learn to take a compliment.”

Kyle looked up through his wet hair. “I’ll try.”

“It’s about time to head back. Shrug your t-shirt off and wring it out, will make it dry faster.” Sam pulled his off, and Kyle took in a sharp breath. Sam’s body, what glimpses he’d had of it, always turned him on.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, you… you look beautiful.” Kyle looked away, knowing the moment the word left his mouth he shouldn’t have said it.

“Beautiful?”

“I… I don’t know what I’m saying… sorry.”

“What have I said about the sorries?”

“I’m… s—I….”

“Thank you.”

“Huh?”

“Thank you for the compliment. I’ve never been called beautiful before.”

“It’s a girlie word.”

“Not coming from you. Not coming from an artist. Now come on, let’s get as dry as possible before we head back.”

Kyle shrugged off his shirt and wrung the water out. He became aware of Sam staring at him. “I know I’m skinny. I don’t think I’ll ever have the muscles you do.”

“It’s not that… it’s….” Sam pointed to Kyle’s chest. “I… what happened?”

Kyle looked down, and it dawned on him what Sam was referring to. “I pierced my nipple; Hank saw it and didn’t like it.”

“What, did it get infected?”

“No, he yanked it out. Said no nipple-piercing pansy would be parading around his house. It… yeah, it didn’t heal right.”

Sam fell back on his ass. “He…
he what?
”

“I forgot about it and came out of the shower without putting a shirt on. He met me in the hallway and yanked it out.”

“You say that so… matter-of-factly.”

Kyle shrugged. “It’s his house.”

Sam swiveled around so he was next to Kyle. “Can I… can I hold you for a moment?”

“Why?”

“Because I need to.”

“Yeah, okay.”

Sam put his arms around Kyle. Kyle leaned into the muscled chest, admitting to himself he really liked this feeling. He felt Sam’s lips on the top of his head.

“I really care about you, Kyle. I want to show you that I care. I want you to feel you’re special, particularly to me. Will you let me do that, eventually?”

“I… I think I can. Can… yeah… just take it slow?”

“I can do that.”

The sun started to set, the air started to cool. They picked up their towels and headed back to the house.

Nine

“D
ID
you boys have fun?” Glenda called out from the kitchen.

“Yeah, Mom, creek’s still kinda cool, but okay.”

“Go up, get cleaned up, we’ll be eating in about twenty minutes.”

“Will do.” Sam motioned with his head toward the stairs. “You go take a shower first.”

Kyle stepped in closer to Sam, whispering. “You aren’t going to tell….”

Sam grasped Kyle’s hand lightly. “I said I wouldn’t. I’m going to go check in with Pops, make sure we don’t have any storm brewing. It got cold, real fast. And with one cow ready to drop, need to stay on top of things.”

“I… I’m sorry, I know you said… I’m just….”

“I would never betray your trust.”

“I… I know.”

“Now, go get warmed up. Your lips are a little blue.”

Kyle put his fingers to his lips. He had felt nothing but warm since they left the bank of the creek. He gave Sam a smile and headed up the stairs for a shower.

Dinner was the most savory chicken Kyle had ever eaten, with tender young vegetables and homemade bread with that wonderful butter. As he ate, he reflected on this afternoon, how Sam felt next to him, how he enjoyed the kisses. He could feel his cheeks warming with the memories.

“Kyle, everything okay?” Glenda put her fork down, giving Kyle a concerned look.

Kyle looked around to see all eyes on him. “Um, what?”

“I asked if you were okay. Maybe you shouldn’t have gone swimming today.”

“No, I’m okay. Sorry, lost in my thoughts I guess.”

“As long as you’re feeling okay. Want anything else?”

“No, thank you. Can… I’d like to go to my room now, check my e-mail, if that’s okay.” He could see the concern in Sam’s eyes, but he didn’t have any way of telling him he was really okay.

“Sure, hun. We’re going to turn in early, so if we don’t see you again later, have a good night.”

Kyle stood up, picking up his plate to set in the sink. “Yeah, you too.”

He quietly shut the door behind him, finally alone with his thoughts. He felt conflicted, and his mind wandered back to a year ago, and Hank.

I
T
WAS
a Saturday night. Hank was usually at the local bar with his fellow dock workers. Kyle flipped through the channels on TV, finally stopping on the movie
Brokeback Mountain
. It wasn’t that he was looking for a gay movie. It just happened to be on. He was half paying attention to it, half dozing when a booming voice echoed across the room.

“What the hell are you watching!” It wasn’t really a question. It was quite obvious as Hank had walked in during a scene where the two main characters were kissing each other.

“I… I just had it on, wasn’t paying much attention.” Kyle scrambled to sit up, trying to get the remote to change the channel to anything else.

“I won’t have that kind of filth in my home!” Hank stalked over to Kyle and yanked him up by his t-shirt. “Fucking pansies! What, you like taking it up the ass?” Kyle could almost taste the alcohol coming off his breath.

“I… no, I don’t….” Hank didn’t give Kyle a chance to say much of anything as one beefy hand made contact with his jaw. Kyle had nowhere to go as Hank held on tight to his shirt. “I wasn’t watching it, just had the noise….”

“Daydreaming about your boyfriend, you pervert? Getting pointers on getting fucked? Fucking faggot. Should just round all of you up and have some target practice.”

“Hank, honest, I wasn’t….” Another blow across the face, this time the force ripping his shirt so he fell back on the couch.

“Figured that AIDS shit would take all of you out, but no, the government had to allow a treatment to be created. You all should just get some gay cancer and die.” Hank leaned in close to Kyle. “You daydream about cocks? You a cocksucker? You want to suck my cock?”

Kyle curled into a ball. “No, I swear….” The rib shot knocked the breath out of him.

“Cocks go into pussies. Period. Anything else isn’t normal. You hear me, boy?”

“Yes, yes sir.”

“Repeat it. Cocks go in cunts. Repeat it!”

“Cocks go in cunts.” Kyle hated using that language, but if he wanted to leave the living room somewhat intact, he’d tell Hank exactly what he wanted to hear.

“Good. Don’t you forget that. Think I’ll go practice what I preach now.” Hank stood up and grabbed his own crotch. “Man up, faggot. If you know what’s good for you.” Hank backhanded him once more before heading upstairs.

K
YLE
came back to the present, allowing his butt to ass-plant on the floor. The pain of that lesson came back to him. He knew he really liked Sam. Sam seemed to like him. What they did that afternoon didn’t feel dirty or abnormal, it felt good. He felt… cared for. He shook his head.
It can’t be like Hank said, it just can’t.
His life, the way he felt, it was normal. If good people like Glenda and Walt can accept their own son being gay, it had to be okay. It had to be okay to feel like this.

He pulled himself up to crawl into bed. He didn’t feel like getting on his computer, didn’t feel like even drawing. He wanted the blissful peace of sleep. He wanted to feel Sam’s lips on his.

What seemed like minutes but was obviously hours later, Kyle heard the kitchen door slam, followed by a knock at his door. He fumbled for the lamp.

“Yeah?”

Sam’s voice came through the door. “Cow’s about ready to birth, you wanna come see?”

Kyle tossed the covers aside. “Yeah, sure. Give me a minute.”

“We’re out in the barn.”

Kyle heard Sam almost run down the stairs. He grabbed his jeans and hoodie, stuffing his feet into his sneakers. He ran out to the older barn, lights blazing inside. Walt was kneeling next to a cow that was lying on her side, a trail of clear fluid coming from her hindquarters. She kicked a little and two little hooved feet appeared from her. Sam was standing off to the side.

“What….” Kyle swallowed, the scene in front of him was a bit much. “What needs to be done?”

Sam came over to stand next to him. “Nothing right now. Everything is progressing as normal.”

“I see… feet.”

“Yeah, the front feet usually come out first, then the head and shoulders, followed by the torso and back legs.”

Kyle made a face as more fluid came out. “Uh… it looks slimy.”

Sam patted Kyle’s shoulder. “All part of being born. You were slimy when you came out.”

The cow kicked a little; the rest of the front legs and head emerged. A few more minutes and the rest of the calf came into the world, along with more fluid and blood. Kyle’s face went pale. He raced out of the barn to throw up.