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Friday, 30 November 2012
Wednesday, 28 November 2012
387
They settled into
bed in silence. By unspoken decision,
Cody went in the middle. Luigi put him
there because he didn’t trust him not to get up in the night and try to do
something rash. ‘Run away’ was what he
pretended to think, but darker alternatives were in his mind. Jason’s reasons
were more complicated. His reasoning was similar to Luigi’s, but he thought
that Cosy needed simple comforting and caressing, like a wounded animal. He ought to be held, to have hands on him,
and flesh against him. Years before,
Jason had read about how infants in Victorian orphanages had died simply
because no one had picked them up and held them. He’d stroked a run-over dog; calmed a
frightened horse. He firmly believed in
the healing power of petting. Cody’s happiness and security, and Cody and
Luigi’s relationship had become his cause.
And—just a little—he was also saying to Tyche, the Goddess of fortune,
“See. I’m trying. I’m trying to make amends for Brent.”
They were all
exhausted with the stress and tension of the day and the night before that, and
for the first time Cody was tranquil. He
handed himself over to Fate. He knew
now, as sure as he knew that the sun rose in the east and set in the west, he
knew that he was in God’s hands, and that he would come right. He needed only patience. And courage.
If you could have
seen those three young men—each one having been through their own personal
Golgotha, scarred, damaged, hurt—nevertheless peacefully and trustingly asleep
in each other arms … well, you know what you would have felt. I leave it to yourselves, gentle readers, to
imagine the simple humanity with which they held each other against the terrors
and agonies of life.
Terrors, which it
would turn out, were not that far away.
Monday, 26 November 2012
386
Cody’s look was so
humble and filled with gratitude that Jason was embarrassed. How
lucky I’ve been, he thought. How privileged my life has been! He wondered whether he could consider having his
mother ‘lucky’. He was—mostly—sure she
loved him. Well, she was quite fond of
him, he knew that. But she was so
obsessed with silly things. Once he
might too have been fussed about the things she thought important. But losing Brent—having Brent!—had taught him different. All the stuff which made her so happy or
unhappy, it didn’t matter. What mattered
was right here in this town, this house, these people. His grandam, Eleanor, Lou, and Keith, even
though Keith was with Esmé tonight. This
city which had accepted and embraced him from the first day he’d arrived in
her.
His heart too full
to speak, he stripped down to his trunks and slipped under the bedclothes.
“Aren’t you going
to brush your teeth?” asked Luigi, mocking.
“Not if you aren’t. But you’re welcome to use my toothbrush!”
“Ugh! You might have a deadly disease!”
“Prolly have, you
plonker. Something vile. Scrofulosity.
Your teeth will drop out. Or your
eyes will swell and pop. No, I
know! You’ll be touched by the ugly
stick! No longer the beautiful Luigi
DiPietro, just plain, fat, hideous LuLu.”
“What happened to
all that guff about the Shady Acres Retirement home?”
“Oh, the ugly
stick’ll only get you if you brush your teeth with my toothbrush.”
“Then I won’t!”
retorted Luigi, firmly.
“Wise man! Oh fount of wisdom and insight, joy of joys,
heart of my heart’s delight …”
“Shut up, you
idiot.”
Sunday, 25 November 2012
385
“C’mon. It’s time for bed.” Jason stood up and reached out his hand to
Cody, and pulled him to his feet. In
turn, Cody helped Luigi stand up.
For a moment,
Luigi had been afraid that they would all have to share a single bed. But
there was a queen-sized bed in the room.
“Nice big bed!” he
observed.
“Yes. And Eleanor has told me often that she
doesn’t mind me bringing friends home.”
“Maybe she didn’t
have us in mind,” replied Luigi.
“Nah. She likes you both.”
“Did she say so?”
“I could
tell. She’s a lovely person.”
“Yes, she is,” commented
Cody unexpectedly. Round a lump in his
throat, he said, “She’s so kind. She has
such kind, sad eyes.”
“Yeah.” Jason nodded.
“You know, I’ve been so lucky.
After Brent, I felt shredded. I
never thought I’d be happy again. And
yet—not that I’ll ever forget him, never—I am happier now than I ever thought
I’d be. And that’s because of
Eleanor. And you, Lou. And Key.
You’ve made me feel welcome.
Wanted. Loved.” He gave Luigi a
quiet smile, and again, his eyes locked with his friend’s. After a moment he turned to Cody. “You’ve been through some bad times, my dear,
and it’s not going to get better quickly.
But it will. You’ll learn to love
again, to be happy. I was so lucky with
coming to this house of all the houses in Melbourne. It seemed to be by chance. And meeting Lou. And I think it’s a lucky place, this house. Sounds silly, doesn’t it? But I mean it. It’s a good place. You’ll be safe here.”
Saturday, 24 November 2012
384
 |
| From Guys Cuddling |
“Hey!” said Jason.
“You OK?”
Cody couldn’t
speak. He could only nod.
“Don’t cry, dude,”
urged Luigi, cupping Cody’s head with his hands.
Cody shook his
head and sniffed.
Luigi kissed him
on his forehead and then on his lips.
“It’ll be OK, I know that.”
Cody nodded. He knew.
He smiled through his tears.
“That’s the
ticket!” said Jason. He hugged Cody and
pressed his forehead against the other man’s.
“You’ve got us, now. We’ll see you right.”
Cody nodded
again. He knew. Inside him burned a flame of joy, of
acceptance, of love. Still the tears
trickled down his cheeks. Luigi lifted
his own t-shirt and wiped Cody’s face.
Cody looked down at the firm line of Luigi’s stomach, at his Apollo’s
belt, and felt love swell inside his heart at the sheer beauty, inner and outer,
of this man who still loved him, despite all he had done.
“Thank you,” he
whispered, filled with gratitude. “Thank
you.”
Friday, 23 November 2012
383
Cody felt light
headed, transported. He had been given a
second chance. First, he’d been alert
and no longer drugged when the killer had released him, so he could fight back. Then he’d managed to escape through the
forest. Then, when he’d been sure that
he would be found, hiding in the phone box on Mt Macedon, Michael had helped
him. He’d been kind and unjudgemental. Then, later on, devastated and desperately
unhappy because Phillippa had dumped him—not that he blamed her—wandering
through the streets, he’d stopped right outside this house. And something
had made Jason turn back and find him. And talk to him. And take him in.
Each time, someone
or something had led him to safety. He’d
been wrong. God wasn’t punishing him for
his gayness. God wanted to see him safe,
wanted him to have a life with Luigi, wanted him to be gay. Wanted
him to be gay. Illumination flooded
his brain. He was loved, not just by
Cody, accepted not just by Jason and Cody and their friends, by the two old
ladies in this magical home, but by God Himself.
Filled with
intense joy and delight, he wept tears of happiness.
Thursday, 22 November 2012
382
Jason reached up
and tapped him on the nose. “Silly
gayboy!” he said softly. He turned his
look towards Cody. “You’re part of this
too, Co. Luigi loves you and we love
Luigi so you’re with us. I don’t know
what will happen with Phillippa or your marriage or that stuff, but as long as
you’re with Lou you’re our friend too.”
He turned his eyes away and looked at the ceiling, speaking quite
deliberately. “I screwed up with Brent,
and lost someone I loved … so much. I
can’t say how much. I can’t. I don’t have the words. And with you and Key I’ve been given a second
chance. And I am not going to fuck this
one up. When you get a second chance,
you must grab it. ‘Cos you won’t get a
third.”
 |
| From Pics That Work For me |
Wednesday, 21 November 2012
Episode 381
Luigi didn’t like
the turn the conversation was taking, and he said, a little sharply, “Why
didn’t he marry one of the men?”
“Gay marriage
wasn’t legal then.”
“Well, you know
what I mean. Be committed. Loyal.
As if they were married even if they weren’t.”
“Maybe in the old
days gays couldn’t have permanent relationships. I mean some did.”
“Society is
against us,” grumbled Luigi, irritably.
“Have some more
champers, Lou, and quieten down. One,
things are changing. Two, you idiot,
we’ll be around for you, for always. Me
and Keith and you too; Cody, right?” He
didn’t wait for an answer from either of them.
“Maybe,” he went on, “we’ll create a new model of relationships, like an
extended family, where we love each other but not exclusively. Shared.
Somehow. I don’t know.”
“Would it
work? Can it work?” Luigi’s voice showed
all his doubts, all his bitterness.
“Gayboy, I’ll be
here for you always.” Jason lifted his head and met Luigi’s gaze and their eyes
locked. “When we’re in the Shady Acres
Retirement Home, we’ll still be friends.
By that stage maybe not friends with benefits, you know, since we’ll be
ancient, but anyway something important and meaningful. Husbands.
Partners. Lovers.”
His eyes shiny
with unshed tears, touched beyond belief, Luigi was quite unable to speak.
Episodes 1 to 260 (without pictures, 10 episodes per chapter
Monday, 19 November 2012
Majorca Flats --380
“I s’pose. Not that I know that much. I mean I’ve had a couple of girlfriends, but
I dunno, I’ve always felt closer to men.
What do you think, Cody?”
Luigi realised
that Jason had deliberately and delicately directed this conversation to get to
this point. Clever, he thought. But … is it wise, right now? He was ready to intervene when Cody spoke.
“I don’t know any
more. I … love Phillippa. But … I need … I … God, this is so difficult
… I need men.”
“It’s a bugger’s
muddle. So to speak. You know what I mean!” Jason chuckled. He continued, more earnestly, “You know, if
loving men is half of you, it’s hard, very hard. I knew a man once, in England. Brent and I met him at a pub, and we
connected. He must’ve picked up the
vibes. He was in his—I dunno, late
fifties, early sixties—and he said he’d been gay all his life. Like 100% gay. He’d been in the Coldstream Guards …”
“ …mmm … uniforms
…” interrupted Luigi.
“ … and his whole
life had been spent with men. And then
one day he met a woman and he fell in love with her and they got married.”
Sunday, 18 November 2012
379
 |
| From Guys Cuddling blog |
“When must you go back to work, Lou?”
“Tomorrow, I
suppose. You?”
“Yeah. I can’t let Key do it all on his own. What about you, Cody?”
Relaxed by the
beat of Luigi’s heart, and by Jason’s easy acceptance of him, he replied, “I
don’t know if I still have a job. I have
to give them a medical certificate and if the whole story doesn’t make the news
then maybe it’ll be OK.”
“Well, if the
worst comes to the worst, you can come and work with us at The Lord Grey.”
Cody knew The Lord Grey well. He’d picked up several men there. Her realised He hadn’t been there in the
last few months.
“I might need
that,” he said.
“Mind you, Tom
might want to sleep with you.”
“Who’s Tom?”
“The owner.”
“Has he slept with
you yet?” asked Luigi, curious.
“No. He’s been entirely proper.”
“You sorry?”
“Yeah. A bit.
Key says he hits the spot. Every
time.”
“Is that why he
sleeps with him?”
“No. Tom and he … they have a … they love each
other. Hey, Lou, do you think het love
has so many forms as gay love?”
“What would I know
about that?”
Tuesday, 6 November 2012
Majorca Flats -- 378
After Eleanor and Lucasta had gone to bed, the three men stretched out on the sofas still nibbling cheese straws and chips and sipping champagne. Luigi pulled Cody closer to him and though Cody at first resisted, in the end he rested his head on Luigi’s shoulder. Jason put his head on Luigi’s stomach.
“The one advantage of being fat, Lou, is that stomachs are a bit softer. Yours is too flat. You’re useless as a pillow."
“Too bad so sad. Eat your heart out straightboy. At least I’m not a plump little schoolboy like you!"
“This is all muscle!" said Jason patting his own stomach. “Just solid, steely muscle. Gayboy." He turned his head to grin at Luigi and caught Cody’s eye and winked at him.
Cody had never had gay friends. His friendships with straight men had always been awkward. They were too remote for him and he was too intense for them. He was always half falling in love with his male friends. He didn’t know how to josh and tease like these two were. He was envious. And saddened. What had he been missing all these years? And what would happen later? They were being kind to him now, but what would happened after a few months. Would he be discarded?
Monday, 5 November 2012
The Music of Love: Chapter 4, part 1
The Music of Love: Chapter 4, part 1: Despite the fact that Lucy had often thought that her life had been a disappointment to her, she was normally a cheerful person. But ...
Read more here.
Read more here.
Majorca Flats -- 377
Luigi felt like kissing Jason in gratitude. Cody was on the mend.
“The cheese straws are delicious. I left you some. Amn’t I the tops?" He smiled at them both.
“Some more champagne, anyone?" Jason was being careful not to be too jolly but also not to be too serious.
Eleanor and Lucasta both nodded yes, but Luigi responded with “I can’t, I need to drive home."
“Stay the night." And Jason’s eyes were so warm and intense, their blue the happy azure of a summer sky, that Luigi’s cock in his thong instantly hardened. For shame! He thought to himself, all you can think of is sex!
Jason’s eyes sparkled as if he knew exactly what Luigi was thinking. He’d spoken softly enough that only Luigi had heard what he said. He winked at Luigi, unobserved by the others. Luigi coloured, and his hard on got even stiffer. He found the way Jason and Keith treated him as both a friend and a lover entirely pleasing. He hadn’t had it with Richard, while with Cody it had all been too intense for friendship. Maybe that would change now. Maybe they could resurrect something from the disaster.
“Another glass, then," he said, and this time it was Jason who got a chubby as he saw the look in Luigi’s eye.
Luigi turned back to Cody who was listening to something the two old ladies were saying. He thought, Cody’ll need a new family, new friends, people who don’t judge him. He’s judged himself cruelly enough. I’ll take him to visit nonna. But not yet. She hasn’t forgiven his betrayal, and he doesn’t need a skelling out right now. But these old ladies are kind and accepting. Maybe they weren’t when they were young but now they won’t judge Cody—or me, or Jace, or Key—for being what we are. And if Cody and I … But he stopped himself there. There was a long journey to make before he would believe that their relationship would work again.
Episodes 1 to 260 (without pictures, 10 episodes per chapter
Majorca Flats -- 376
Lucasta was thinking something similar. In her own inimitable way.
So old and silly but I must do what I can and certainly Jason isn’t going to get any help from his mother or his brother though he seems to have made friends here perhaps Australians really are friendlier than we are though maybe it’s because he’s making love to them how well I remember the first time with Harold and what an epiphany that was or is that only a religious experience? My brain looped and rented tatteredness is that the quote from King Lear how long ago school was to be sure well that’s my mind now full of holes all crinkly like my skin. But I must
be kind. Poor boy so worn-looking I wonder if Jason gave him a good talking to he’s so good with that I remember him comforting Parker when Ahasuerus died and saying sensible stuff and so kind to her and he made he laugh through her tears I think he’s the strongest of all my grandchildren especially now after Brent what’s that word annealed when they dip red hot swords into water like King Arthur what was that silly book which said he was bisexual they probably all were men are I think well some men I never asked Harold about Eton but those boys together without girls so unhealthy like us at St Anne’s all those pashes though really I was quite fond of Gladys or was it Rose I can’t remember.
be kind. Poor boy so worn-looking I wonder if Jason gave him a good talking to he’s so good with that I remember him comforting Parker when Ahasuerus died and saying sensible stuff and so kind to her and he made he laugh through her tears I think he’s the strongest of all my grandchildren especially now after Brent what’s that word annealed when they dip red hot swords into water like King Arthur what was that silly book which said he was bisexual they probably all were men are I think well some men I never asked Harold about Eton but those boys together without girls so unhealthy like us at St Anne’s all those pashes though really I was quite fond of Gladys or was it Rose I can’t remember.
Giving no sign of these thoughts she smiled benignly at Cody.
Sunday, 4 November 2012
Majorca Flats -- 375
When the two of them came back in to the sitting room, it was obvious to Luigi that Jason and Cody had formed a bond, and that Cody looked a bit more like he used to be.
Eleanor also sensed that Cody had lost some of his tension and sadness, and she was pleased. She had only just met Cody but she did know that he’d been through a very bad time. She accepted that she would never be able to exactly understand what Cody had endured or what he had felt while he was being raped, all the time aware that he would be eventually killed. Poor boy! Well, not a boy really, but all of them seemed so young, still with the innocence and hope of young people who have no appreciation of just how hard life could be. Except of course for Cody, now. He knew, and her heart went out to him at the hard road he would have to travel before he once again was content. Jason, too. He knew how hard life was. But he remained upbeat and happy. She knew he grieved, and that he regretted the selfish mistake which had led Brent to take his life. But he still had an optimistic outlook on life.
She herself had no one left now; Bart was dead, her husband too, and all her family members were gone. She had Bolt …. and Jason. She hoped with all her heart that Jason would stay. He felt like family now; and how nice he was! She knew that it was likely that he would go, that he would return to England one day. Probably there was stuff about his visa. But she tried not to think about that. He was here until he left.
The point was, as far as she was concerned, that Jason was like a son to her now, a new son, not taking the place of—how could he?—but in addition to the one she’d lost so long ago. And Cody was his friend, in a way. So she cared about him, too.
But these justifications were just that, not that she acknowledged or accepted this insight. The truth is that her own sorrow and mistakes had made her kind and filled her with compassion. And Cody needed to be loved. And if she could do something to help his grief and shock, she would.
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