Kevin called about 5:30 to tell us Kyle was cooking and we were expected. The four "Townhouse Boys," as they had started calling us, were in the living room having a beer to celebrate the end of the work week. That was our "family time," the equivalent of Sunday morning on North Lagoon Drive. "It's Kevin. They want us to come over to eat," I said to the group. "Yes," Tyler said, and Chuck and Tony said "yes," too. "Did you hear them? We all said 'yes,'" I said. "We're going to eat at seven or 7:30, but come a little earlier so we can have a drink. Sean's parents gave permission for him to live with us," Kevin said. "Great. I can't wait to get to know him," I said. "He's a cutie, Jeff, and he seems like he's a great kid, too. Thanks for making him want to come to us," Kevin said. "Sean's parents gave permission for him to stay here," I said to the others. "He's a nice boy, Jeff. We met him today," Chuck said. "Sort of shy. Sort of refined. Kind of like you, in fact." "Are you buttering me up? Because you're not getting into my pants, if you are," I said. They laughed. "I wonder what a stick of butter would feel like?" Tony asked. We laughed. "You all realize what's happening to us, don't you? We're turning into them," I said. "Is that so bad?" Chuck asked. "No. Of course not. I just wanted you to know it's happening, is all," I said. "Do you all think the four of us could ever be like Kevin and Rick? And take in kids, I mean?" Ty asked. Chuck and Tony looked at each other, and I could tell that they, too, had talked about it. "Guilty," Tony said. "We make enough money to do that, and, yeah, we'd like to, eventually. We've talked about getting married, too. Or having a commitment ceremony, at least." "Jeff and I have been talking about that, too," Tyler said. "Wouldn't it be cool if we had a double wedding?" "Shit, that would be awesome. Man, that would be more than awesome," Chuck said. "Are you guys close to that, yet?" "We're there," I said. "So are we," Tony said. "God, almighty! Would the guys have a fit, or what?" "I can just see Kyle," Tyler said. "He'll have multiple orgasms for days on end over this." We all laughed. Ty and I had decided weeks before that's what we wanted to do, but we hadn't said anything to anyone. I was glad our best friends were the first to know. We had both felt for a long time that we were committed to each other, but we were ready to make it public. We were both twenty-three, and we knew there would never be anybody else for either of us, as long as we were both alive. I had talked it over with Clay in my mind, and he had insisted that Tyler and I do it. I knew that was weird, but Clay was still with me, and I suspected he always would be, at some level, at least. The only person I would ever tell about Clay, if I ever told anyone, was Kyle. "Who wants another beer?" Chuck asked. We all said we did. He brought those out, and then he got a can of mixed nuts, a jar of pickled okra, a jar of olives, a hunk of cheese, a box of Ritz crackers, and a knife. He put them on the coffee table. "I love being formal like this," Tyler said. "Shut up and eat, asshole," Chuck said, and we laughed. We really were turning into Kyle, Justin, and Rick, and that made me feel very good. * * * We made a big to-do over Sean, and he was basking in it all. It was one thing to become part of that family because a social worker needed a foster placement for you, but it was truly another to find the family on the Internet and run away on a Greyhound bus to join it. Sean really wasn't like the other boys. "Did you write an entry today?" Sean asked me. "No. I didn't have time yet," I said. "Are you going to write about me coming here?" he asked. "No, I really don't think I am. Your coming here is like a miracle or something, but what if ten boys show up here next week? What are we going to do with them?" I asked. "True," he said. "I know Kevin and Rick have more beds, but there's a limit to how many they can handle, both physically and emotionally. If you haven't figured this out yet, Kevin and Rick love the boys they get," I said. "Yeah, I know that. I've already felt that love," he said. "So, I'm not going to write about you. At least not about the way you got here. You'll be part of the blog. I just won't say you showed up unannounced," I said. We had drinks before dinner, as we usually did at a party, and I noticed Sean had one, too. He smoked a couple of cigarettes, too, and that really didn't matter one bit. Clay smoked, and I used to when we were together. Kyle used to smoke, too, and so did Rick, I've been told. None of us in the townhouse smoked, though, and that was the way I liked it. We were all at the table after we had finished eating. I decided to take the lead and broach the subject of a commitment ceremony. "Guys, listen to me, please," I said. Kyle, Justin, and Brian were playing around, and I knew they hadn't heard me. "Kyle. Justin. Brian. Shut the fuck up. Jeff wants to say something," Rick said. "Sorry," they each said. "My brothers, Tyler and I, and Chuck and Tony, want to make permanent commitments to our partners. And we want it to be a double ceremony," I said. There was dead silence for a few moments while they were processing what I had said. Then all hell broke loose. Kevin, Rick, Kyle, and Justin got up and came over to us, as though on cue. They picked us up and put us on their shoulders. They marched us around the patio. The other guys joined in the march, and the dogs were barking their heads off. Somebody put on the theme from Rocky and turned it up loud on the outside speakers. We had a triumphal march around that yard. The neighbors to the east were the Spencers, and they came over to see what the hell was going on. The two boys spied the left-over food on the table--steaks, corn on the cob, pasta salad, green salad, twice-baked potatoes, rolls. It was pretty obvious they were hungry for that stuff. "Guys, get all you want. We're finished dinner," Kyle said. "Reid, get you some of that pasta salad. That's good stuff, man." "I will," Reid said. "David and Jimmy. Reid and Wade. These four boys are going to have a double commitment ceremony. They just told us tonight," Kevin said. Those four guys applauded, and our guys joined in. "Awesome," David said, and he looked at Wade and Reid. "I want to organize the whole thing," Kyle said. "Kyle, do you think for one minute I would ever settle for anybody else organizing it but you?" I asked. "We go back a ways, don't we, Bubba?" "Yes, we do, Kyle. A long way," I said. "I'm so happy for you, I'm about to cry," Kyle said. "I know. He's wonderful, isn't he?" I said. "Yes, and it puts Clay to rest forever," Kyle said. "Don't you think?" "I won't ever forget Clay, Kyle. He and I were just as committed as Tyler and I are. But death did us part. Tyler is wonderful about Clay, too. He's not the least bit jealous or resentful," I said. "I know he's not. I love Tyler, Jeff. Not like I love you because I don't love anybody like I love you. I love Tim with all my heart, but it's a different kind of love with you. I love you like you were Clay," he said. "Thank you, Kyle. Will you be my Best Man?" "Of course I will be. You try to stop me," he said. He was crying happy tears for me, and I was crying them, too, for our relationship. "What's going on here?" Tyler asked. "Very happy tears, Bubba," Kyle said. "Come here, guy," Tyler said, and he grabbed Kyle in a big hug. "Are you happy for us?" "I'm so fucking happy, I can't stand it," Kyle said. "You know Jeff is my brother, don't you?" "Yeah, I know it. I want you to be my brother, too," Ty said. "You are, man. You definitely are, that's for sure," Kyle said. Ty started crying those happy tears, too, and the three of us joined in a big hug. "When do y'all want to do this thing?" Kyle asked. "I don't know. Around Christmas, maybe? You tell us, Kyle. How long will it take to organize?" I asked. "We've got to find a good date. Kevin and Rick had theirs on Christmas Eve. That's not good, though. That's when we'll be in New Orleans. Christmas Day isn't good, either. How about the day after Christmas?" Kyle asked. "It would be easy to remember our anniversary if we did it then," Tyler said. "Yeah, it would be," Kyle said. "I wonder what day of the week that is. Let's check a calendar." Ty, Kyle, and I went inside and checked the calendar. Christmas that year was going to be on a Friday, which meant that the day after was a Saturday. "Damn. It's a miracle. You couldn't ask for better than that," Kyle said. "Let's have it at the Laguna, okay? One hundred percent catered. All the best. Open bar. Beef carving station. Pork carving station. Lamb chops out the wazzu. I see it now. This is going to be fabulous." "Whoa! Who's going to pay for all of this?" Tyler asked. "That don't even matter, Ty. It'll be taken care of, don't you worry. What's my daddy going to do? Sue you if it doesn't get paid for?" Kyle said. "Yeah, and fire us, too," Ty said. "You don't really get it, do you? Jeff is my brother. That means he's their son. Y'all are fixed for life, just like I am. Now, you're going to have to work, just like I am, but financially, you don't have a worry in the world," Kyle said. "And this is the next generation talking, too." "You're a blow-hard, Kyle," Tyler said. "I ain't touching that one. No way," Kyle said. "That is pretty loaded, isn't it?" Ty said. "Yeah, and fixing to shoot off at any second," Kyle said. All of us were laughing. "Listen, guys," Kyle said, when we had settled down, "it's going to be real nice, but I won't break the bank on this thing. I might act like a fool, but I'm really not one. This is going to be a celebration of love and commitment, and it's going to be something everybody remembers. Y'all are going to have to trust me, okay?" "Kyle is really revved up about this wedding, isn't he?" Tyler said later in the evening. "Yeah. I knew he would be, though. He loves all four of us, and he loves nothing more than giving a party," I said. "I know. I want you so bad right now, I can hardly stand it," he said. "Me, too. Let's go home," I said.
Jeff and I made love that night like we never had before. It was the most emotionally satisfying event of my life, and I felt as though we each surrendered the last vestige of our private selves to the other. Sex with Jeff was always wonderful, but that night it went beyond wonderful. It was sublime. "We've got some calling to do," I said the next morning. "I know," Jeff said. "Your parents. My brother. Your brother. Who else?" "Do you want to call the Goodsons?" I asked. "Yeah. For sure," he said. Everybody greeted our news with joy and happiness. My mother started crying when I told her. "Mom, are you okay with this?" I asked. "I can't remember when I've seen your mother this happy, son," my dad said. "We're so proud of you and Jeff we could burst. We want to help with the cost of everything, you hear? Let us know what's going on. It looks like it's going to be Christmas in Florida this year." "It'll be fun, Dad," I said. "Oh, it'll be wonderful," he said. My brother was happy for us, but he was somewhat less overwhelmed than my parents. Typical guy. His first question was where were we going on our honeymoon, and that was something we hadn't even thought about yet. Jeff called Gene and Rita Goodson and told them our news. "How did they react?" I asked, when he got off the phone with them. "They loved the idea. They want to pay for it," he said. "My parents want to help with the cost, too," I said. "That's amazing. They didn't say anything, but it wouldn't surprise me if Kevin and Rick want to help, too," he said. "We might end up making money on this deal." Nothing had really changed in our relationship, but it seemed that everything had changed. I used to wonder what I would do if Jeff and I broke up, but now I knew that would never happen. Jeff wasn't a perfect person, and I certainly wasn't. But, all of a sudden, nothing he did annoyed me anymore, and I had the sense that nothing I did annoyed him, either. I could tell the difference with Chuck and Tony, too. The four of us in that townhouse were as happy as any four people could be. Chuck and Tony really didn't have any family, other than us and the guys on North Lagoon Drive, but that was just the way things were. They got a huge amount of love and support from us, and that was really all they needed.
"What do you think about Jeff and Ty, and Chuck and Tony?" Brian asked me. We were in bed, and Brian had just fucked me. I could still almost feel him inside me, and the feeling was so good. From being a pure bottom at first, that boy was turning into quite a good top. He was bigger than me, and he filled me up good. "I think it's a great idea. What about you?" I asked. "I do, too," he said. "Would you like to do a double ceremony like they're doing?" "I don't see how it can happen any other way. We're not going to let them be first, and I know Kyle damn sure won't let us be first. Unless we do it together, somebody's going to be first," I said. "I think you're right, Buddy," he said. There was a tap at the door, and then somebody tried to turn the door knob. It was locked, though. "Open up," Kyle said in a loud whisper. "Go away. We're trying to make love in here," I said. "No, you're not. I smell cigarette smoke coming from this room," Kyle said. "Let him in, Buddy," Brian said. "Oh, I will. I just want to play with him a little bit," I said. "That ain't cigarette smoke. It's smoke caused by passionate fucking." "Yeah, right. Who you fucking? The Marlboro Man?" Brian and I both laughed at that line, and I heard Tim out there laughing, too. I got up and let them in. They were in their underwear, but Brian and I were both naked. "Yeah, y'all were making love. Your dicks ain't even hard," Kyle said. "What do you want?" I said. I was grumbling, and so was he. "We want to talk to you, that's what we want. Were y'all surprised tonight about Jeff and them?" Kyle asked. They each took a chair, and Brian and I sat up in bed. "I was a little surprised. I wasn't surprised they want to make a commitment. I knew both couples were committed. I just don't really think in terms of weddings and stuff like that," Brian said. "I was a little surprised, too, Bri, for the same reasons you were," Tim said. "Do you think y'all will ever do that?" Kyle asked. "Ain't no question, Kyle. I'm ready to do it right now," I said. "So am I. Let's go find a justice of the peace and elope," Kyle said. "We can tie some sheets together and climb out that window." He was on one tonight. "How much did you have to drink?" I asked. I knew he wasn't drunk. After the wedding news, he got too busy planning the party to even remember to have a drink. "None of your damn business," he said. "How much did you have?" "None of your damn business, either," I said. "Were you even able to make love to your boy? Could he get it up, Tim?" Brian and Tim were laughing. They liked it when Kyle and I teased each other like that, although sometimes we got on their nerves if it wasn't all that funny. "I got it up just fine, thank you," he said. "Did you?" I came all over my stomach and chest when Brian was fucking me, and I had used a wash cloth to clean up. It was right next to me on the night stand. I picked it up and threw it at him. It hit his bare chest. "Tell me that ain't what I think it is," Kyle said. "That's the proof," I said. "Jesus Christ, Justin. That's the nastiest thing anybody has ever done to me. You have well and truly grossed me out," he said. It was pretty nasty, but I knew he wasn't one bit grossed out. He was acting, and I could see it in his eyes. "You ain't grossed out," I said. "You don't think having somebody fling a wet cum rag at me would gross me out?" he asked. "No, I don't," I said. "Well, you're right," he said. We all laughed. "Buddy, that was pretty nasty," Brian said. "That kind of stuff don't bother me, Bri," Kyle said. "What's a little smeared cum among friends?" "See, I knew that," I said. "Is that your newest motto? What's a little smeared cum among friends?" "It is from now on," Kyle said. "But that's not your cum, is it?" "Yeah, it's mine," I said. "I thought you always wore a rubber," he said. "I do, but not when I'm the bottom," I said. He was dead still. I knew that was a surprise to him, and I couldn't wait to see how he reacted. "You were the bottom tonight?" "Yeah," I said. "When did this start?" he asked. "A few months ago. We're versatile now," I said. "Why didn't I know this? Did you know, Babe?" he asked Tim. "No," Tim said. "Kyle, you don't have a right to know everything we do," I said. "I know I don't, but this is a major break through. My best friend starts getting fucked by my other best friend, and neither one of 'em says a word to me about it?" he said. "Well now you know," I said. "Congratulations. I'm happy as I can be for both of you. It feels good, doesn't it? To get fucked, I mean." "Yeah, it feels good. It feels damn good," I said. "I know. Jus, you've come a long way, Bubba, and I'm so happy for you, I can't stand it," he said. He really did seem sincerely happy about me getting fucked. I hadn't really thought about it like that, but I guess it really was a pretty important development for me and Brian, considering my history, and all. "And it doesn't hurt you or anything?" he asked. "No, it doesn't hurt. He knows what he's doing," I said. "I'm sure he does, but I'm going to have to take your word for that," he said. "Changing the subject. Do y'all think you'd like to have a double ceremony like Jeff and them?" "We were just talking about that before you guys came in," Brian said. "And, yeah, we would." "We would, too," Tim said. "But not for a few years. It's tacky to get married when you're a junior in high school," Brian said. That made us all laugh. "Or a senior," Tim said. "Are you nervous about next week?" Brian asked. "Yeah, kind of, but not really," Tim said. "What are you nervous about, Babe?" Kyle asked. "This coming week the College Board announces the semi-finalists," Tim said. "Oh, yeah. You told me about that. But you're good, aren't you?" Kyle said. "Yeah, but I want the letter," Tim said. "You could have mine, if I knew where it was. If I even still have it," Kyle said. "You didn't save your letter?" Brian asked. He said it like, "You didn't save the crown jewels?" "He's got it. I know right where it is. His finalist letter, too," Tim said. "I got my Eagle medal. I know where that is. Sort of," Kyle said. "Stuff doesn't matter to you, does it?" Brian said. "Stuff like that doesn't. Do you know what matters to me?" he asked. "What?" "This boy right here." He put his hand on Tim's knee. "And the two boys in that bed right there. And those two men downstairs. And my parents. And Jeff. That's it. That's all that really matters to me." Everybody got real quiet after that. We knew he wasn't telling a lie. "Move over," Brian said to me. I scooted as far as I could without falling off. I knew what Brian was fixing to do. "Get in," Brian said, flipping the covers back. "Sleep with us tonight." The two of them dropped their underwear, and they got in bed. Nobody said anything after that. Tim was closest to the light, and he turned it off. I was spooned up to Brian and had my arms around him. He was spooned up to Kyle, and Kyle was spooned up to Tim. There wasn't any sex, and there wasn't ever meant to be any. I thought about what mattered to me, and it was the three people in that bed with me. I wished it was bigger because Kevin and Rick belonged there, too. I knew those two would never get naked in a bed with the rest of us, but, if they would, that would be my world. Right there. Brian would probably add Trixie and Krewe to the bed, but not me. It was just my boys. I heard somebody sniffle. It wasn't Brian because I would have felt that. Pretty soon, all four of us were softly crying happy tears. We didn't need to say anything. We all knew.
I woke up around nine on the Saturday morning after the engagement party, or whatever it was. I knew from Jeff's blog that they hung around in the den in just their underwear on weekend mornings, so I crept downstairs in just my boxers. I was dressed all wrong. They were all in briefs or bikini briefs. I turned around before anybody saw me and went back upstairs. I had one pair of briefs to my name, and I couldn't remember if I had packed them or not. My clothes were still in my suitcases, and I couldn't find them. I crept back downstairs to the second floor. I opened the door to what I thought was Kyle and Tim's room to borrow some underwear. They had made their bed, and I made a mental note to make sure I made mine later. I opened the second drawer in their chest of drawers, and I found gold. I picked up the top pair of briefs and held it up. It was a bikini, and it had a tag on it that let me know they had come from J. C. Penney. That wasn't a place I ordinarily shopped, but I'd have to get there somehow. The front of the bikini was shaped into a pouch. Seeing that made me start to get hard. I was confused. I didn't have an underwear fetish. Why was I boning up? Anyway, I pulled my boxers off and put the bikini on. It was very soft and very tight, and it felt very good. I went back up to the third floor and threw my boxers toward my suitcases. I'd take care of that later. I had to get downstairs. "Morning, Bubba," Kevin said when I entered the room. The rest said something like "good morning," too. "There's food and drink on the buffet in the dining room," Rick said. "Help yourself." There was quite a display of food in there. There was an almost-empty warmer of very light-colored scrambled eggs. Another warmer had link sausage and bacon, and a third warmer had grits. The grits were an orange color, so I figured they were cheese grits. There was a partial loaf of bread next to a toaster, so I put a couple of slices in it to make myself some toast. There was also a bowl of cut-up fruit, and I got some of that, too. There were four boxes of dry cereal, but I didn't want any of that. There was milk for the cereal, half-and-half for the coffee, and cartons of two different kinds of fruit juice. I drank down a small glass of juice while I waited for the toast to make, but I was going to have coffee with my breakfast. "Did you sleep good?" Rick asked when I went back into the den with my breakfast. "I slept great," I said. "That was a fun party last night." "That was a 'welcome to the family' party for you, but those guys upstaged you, didn't they?" Kyle said. "That was for me?" I asked. Nobody had ever given a party for me before. "Yeah, it was for you," Justin said. "We don't get a new brother every day, you know. Especially one from a foreign state." "He's from Virginia. That ain't a foreign state, asshole. That's one of the United States of America. You've been there, in fact. That's where ole George Washington's house is. Don't you remember that?" Kyle said. He sounded angry. "Kyle, the dogs need a walk. Take 'em," Justin said. They all laughed when he said that. "How can you think Virginia is a foreign state?" Kyle demanded. "I misspoke, okay? I know it's not a foreign county. I meant it wasn't Florida," Justin said. "Yeah, but you're so fucking dumb, we got to get to the bottom of how serious your misunderstanding really is," Kyle said. "I know this much, Goodson. I know I can kick your ass all the way to Virginia, and I'm right close to doing it, too," Justin said. Kyle laughed, and that's when I knew they weren't really fighting. "Do you know what the Virginia Dare is?" Kyle said. "Don't try to trip me up. That ain't a dare. She was the first white child born in the thirteen original colonies," Justin said. I was impressed. "Yeah, but who was the second?" Kyle asked. "Her brother. Dontcha," Justin said. Kyle got it before anybody else did, and he started laughing. Gradually, everybody in the room got the pun. "I think that's the best 'got you last' you ever did, Bubba. Put it there, man." They stood up, shook hands, and hugged. "Jus, that was pretty damn clever," Kevin said. "Thanks. I don't know where it came from, though," Justin said. "It came out of your brain," Brian said. "His dick, more like it," Kyle said. "Dick? Brain? What's the difference?" Justin asked. "I know. We think with both of them, right?" Kyle said. "I damn sure do. More dick than brain, too," Justin said. "You and me both, Bubba," Kyle said. Tim and Brian were sitting on one of the sofas, and Kyle and Justin were in front of their respective boyfriends on the floor. Tim and Brian both had their legs spread apart sort of capturing their boyfriends between their calves and thighs. Their bulges were bold and bright. What they were doing looked sexy as hell to me, and I wanted to be between some boy's legs like that in the worst way. The dogs came in just then, and they went right to the guys on the floor. "Damn! These dogs are all wet," Kyle said. The younger one, Krewe, was all over him, and Trixie was all over Justin. "Did you run 'em this morning?" Kyle asked. "Yeah, but I dried them off," Rick said. "They've been in the water, it looks like." Krewe chose that moment to shake off. Kyle jumped up. "God, I ain't believing this. They ain't never done this before," Kyle said. "Calm down. It's only water," Rick said. "I know it is, but I'm 99% sugar, and I'm going to melt," Kyle said. Everybody in the room laughed hard. Kyle scared the dog, and she went and hid behind Kevin's chair. "Come here, Krewe," Kyle said in a very sweet voice. It was almost like baby talk. "Come and get me as wet as you can. That's it, girl. Just get Kyle as wet and nasty as you can. That's right. 'Cause all of me but my dick is going to melt, and I want to see what they're going to do with it when that happens." None of us could control the laughter. It made Krewe bark. "We're going to bronze it and put it in the Believe-It-or-Not Museum as the world's smallest dick," Justin said. More laughter. "I guess you got me last just now," Kyle said. "Thank you. Finally something honest out of you," Justin said. "Last night was honest," Kyle said. "I know it was, Bubba," Justin said. They were both very serious. "What happened last night?" Denny asked. "That's between us," Justin said. I was dying to know what they were talking about, but I knew not to ask. "What are we going to do today?" Kyle asked. "Ski?" "We can, but have y'all ever played paintball?" Rick asked. "I came across an ad for a place near here, and I'd like to play. I've never done that." "I have," I said. "It's awesome." "What is that? Painting your balls? Or somebody else's balls?" Justin asked. Laughter. "No. It's like a war. Everybody has a gun that shoots out little balls of paint instead of bullets. You hunt guys down and shoot at 'em. If you get a hit, the paintball explodes and marks you as injured or dead," Rick said. "I'm all over that," Kyle said. "Let's get a crowd together and do it." "Have you done this before?" Justin asked Kyle. "Yeah, I've done it. I promise you, you will love it. I'm surprised we haven't done this before. This is big stuff, Jus. They have national, and maybe even international, tournaments. It's like fighting a fucking war, man. They have referees and everything. It's great. You're going to love it," Kyle said. "Does it hurt?" Justin asked. "It stings a little bit when you get hit, but it's supposed to be the safest extreme sport there is. You wear goggles and a face mask. It might hurt bad if you got hit in the face. Wear long jeans and a long-sleeve shirt. I know it's hot, but they'll keep you from hurting so much if you get hit," Kyle said. "It sounds like fun to me," Justin said. "I am telling you. You are going to love it," Kyle said emphatically. "And wear a cup in your jock." Damn. I didn't have a jockstrap with a cup. I knew he was right, though. They got on the phone to the Townhouse Boys, and they all wanted to play, too. Off we went. * * * "Why am I here, Kyle? Where are you taking me?" Murray asked. "We're going to play paintball, that's where we're going. Weren't you listening at the house?" Kyle asked. "Is this like an Israeli-Palestinian thing?" Murray asked. "Yeah, and you're the only Israeli," Kyle said. "Are you picking on me because I'm Jewish?" "Yeah, 'cause the rest of us are Arabs," Kyle said. Murray laughed. "Why are we Arabs?" Justin asked. "'Cause we were born that way, that's why," Kyle said. "Is that another word for 'gay'?" Justin asked. "No, it's not. Just shut up and look at the scenery. It's too hard to explain," Kyle said. "I'll explain it to you later, Buddy. But Kyle's right. It's pretty complicated. Just know that Palestine and Israel are at war. Kyle was just teasing Murray because he's Jewish," Brian said. "Why would he tease him because of that?" Justin asked. "Because Israel is the Jewish state. Country, I mean," Brian said. "I'm glad you said 'country' instead of 'state.' I've been trying to learn my states. I know the Mormon state is Utah. Right?" Justin said. I thought Justin was pretty smart because of his quick come-backs and all the word play. It takes intelligence to be able to do that. But, my God, he had such little information. I was appalled. * * * The paintball war was a lot of fun. The teams ended up being the Townhouse Boys, plus Kevin, Rick, and Ken against the North Lagoon Boys, meaning Kyle, Tim, Justin, Brian, Denny, Murray, and me. They obviously had the advantage over us. "Come here," Kyle said when we started. "Let's plan our strategy. The must-get target is Rick. Kill him if you can, but he'll also be a great POW. Get his ass, one way or another. Tyler is second priority, and then Tony. Let's get 'em." That field was unbelievably good. It was all woods and meadows. We played that game from eleven o'clock until five o'clock, and it ended in a stalemate. I, for one, had a hell of a good time playing it. "Mass is starting right now," Rick said. "So what? We can go tomorrow," Kyle said. I wasn't a Catholic or anything else, but I was willing to go to Mass with them because it was a family thing. Those guys were so cool. I wanted to be with them every minute of every day. I had truly found my home. |