Slipping silently into the dim light of the kitchen, Jonathan Campagnari’s attention was drawn to the silhouetted form of his son. Jerry stood silently at the windows of the wide French doors that faced their back yard, his favorite mug pressed to his lips as he sipped his coffee. A faint red glow of a false dawn streamed through the window panes, staining the normally white wood work with a deep pink contrast. Stopping just inside the entryway, Jonathan stood quietly watching him for long moments before moving into the room. It was a bit of a surprise to see Jerry up and about so early, since he hadn’t said anything about needing to be anywhere today. He had been taking advantage of really having nothing pressingly important to do over the last couple of weeks, sleeping in a little later than was normal for him, enjoying the rarity of free time that he‘d been missing over the last few years.

Jonathan had been raised an only child in a very strict home where physical contact was treated as improper, often seen as weakness especially by the men of his family. The memories he had of his parents were good ones, he knew they loved him but it was something that was to be understood not necessarily shown. It was for that reason he was firm in his belief that the simple affections of hugging and cuddling were not a privilege that was to be reserved for only girl children, he had showered his only son with as much of it as social masculinity permitted. Physical contact with his son had been a treasured experience that had dwindled to near nothing before their trip.

Over the last eighteen months Jonathan had contented himself with the fact that whatever the problem had been, at least Jerry seemed to have dealt with it to some degree on his own, or so he had thought. The solitary manner his son began to develop before their trip had now returned and with a vengeance it seemed. There was a strained sort of feeling between them at times that Jonathan could not breech. Only seventeen, Jerry’s emotional posture seemed to be carrying the weight of the world about his shoulders.

They had only been back stateside for just over two weeks and Jonathan was concerned about his sons withdraw back into his reserved mood. The unnatural moodiness of his son bothered him and confirmed some of his earlier concerns. These last three years had been a wonderful learning experience for both of them, he felt positive that they had grown to understand and he hoped to know each other a little better. It was the kind of quality time that was rarely shared between a father and son. He knew Jerry had had a far tougher time of it, with the requirement of school in addition to working with him when time and circumstance permitted.

There had been many changes in his son during the three years they spent traveling overseas. Some had fueled those concerns while others were simply amusing to him. Unlike a good many teenagers he knew, Jerry had never been one who simply got up and got dressed by throwing on whatever happened to be handy. Fastidious to a fault about his appearance, Jerry had no doubt already showered and completed his entire normal morning routine and ready to face the day before ever setting foot beyond his bedroom door. He had often found humor in the near pain staking effort Jerry put into not looking as if he had primped.

While he would not have traded one moment of the last three years, Jonathan had begun to feel the subtle pangs of something close to regret at perhaps not waiting until he was a little older before uprooting him from his friends and familiar places. Yet, there had been a distance growing between him and his son that he had not been ready for much less have any idea how to deal with it. The closeness that they had always shared had meant so much to him, to know that Jerry was comfortable enough with him to bring his troubles and problems to him. It was something that seemed to have become lost between them as Jerry entered puberty, a time when he believed his son would need him the most.

“Hi Bud, I figured you were up.” Jonathan said quietly, heading for the coffee pot. “I smelled the coffee all the way upstairs.”

“Morning.” Jerry smiled genuinely over his coffee cup and then returned his gaze to the tree line.

“What are you doing up so early?” Jonathan asked, pouring himself a cup before moving to join him at the doors.

“I figured I’ve been lazy long enough.” He chuckled, glancing at his father. “I talked Sam into meeting me at the mall this morning.”

“Somehow I don’t think it took much talking.” Jonathan commented, arching a knowing brow at his son.

He had watched his son dance around Samantha Drotleff for almost ten years. Theirs was a relationship that reminded him so much of the one he had shared with Jerry’s mother, Fallon. Although he seemed to have lost contact to some degree over the last couple of years with some of his other friends, Jonathan had found it comforting that at least she and Jerry had managed to remain close. Especially since Jerry had refused to discuss whatever had transpired between him and Scott.

“No.” Jerry laughed, glancing at his father briefly. “I even waited ‘till about eleven last night to call ‘er, so I wouldn’t get myself talked into anything.”

“Sam always could be pretty persuasive, a pretty common trait among redheads so I‘m told. You know, I‘m kind of surprised she hasn‘t already been over here to see you.” Jonathan said, studying him as he met his sons gaze for a moment.

“Down right determined when she has ’er mind set on something.” Jerry groaned, but there was humor in his tone. “As far as her not coming over, I made a heart felt plea to her to be left alone for a little while. I needed to get settled back in before I started checking in with everyone. We’ve talked on the phone almost every day though, but I suppose it’s time for me to get back to the world of the living.”

“What are your plans after the mall?“ Jonathan asked, reaching up with his free hand to grasp the back of his sons neck.

“I don’t know for sure, depends on Sam I guess. What are you gonna do today?” Jerry shrugged lightly. It was a subtle movement, not wanting to dislodge his fathers hand from his neck. He actually enjoyed the contact. Although he still had a great many unanswered questions and concerns about himself, the contact seemed to reassure him somehow that everything would be all right.

“I’m headed in town to inspect our new studio. Howard said they actually finished it over four months ago.” Jonathan told him, rubbing the back of Jerry’s neck almost absently with his thumb. “I also have a meeting with the Kodak representative about those old Gretag’s they have down there.”

“We’re still going with the digital right?” Jerry asked before swallowing the last of his coffee.

“That’s the plan.” Jonathan chuckled. “Jim said he could come by probably some time next week to give us both a quick class on the operation and general maintenance on the one’s that are still there. Just so we‘ll both be certified on them.”

“I thought we were gonna hire back the girls to run the front end?” Jerry asked, stepping away from his father to refill his cup.

“We are, but we still need to know how to operate those antiques until then.“ Jonathan laughed. “But you know, the front end is only going to be a small camera shop with a one hour photo service. We aren’t going to need all of them. There’s two possibles I have in mind right now.” Jonathan sighed, his tone turning a little more serious. “We’ve already decided on Angela as the store manager, based on the recommendation from the previous owner. She’s knows the ins and outs on the machines already as well as most of the photo customers. The rest of them...well.” He let his voice trail off as he thought about them.

“You know, I’m only going to be able to be there in the afternoons and on weekends...“

“Hold on a minute.“ Jonathan interrupted him in a quiet but concerned tone. “We aren’t going to be open on the weekends Jerry. I thought we talked about that.“ He kept his tone as quiet and unruffled as possible.

“I know.“ Jerry said, casting him an impish grin that was so close to his old self. “There’s a lot I can get done later on during the weekends once we get the computers set up in there.“

“Jerry.“ Jonathan’s tone was serious now, although his smile belied the intensity to some degree. “I don’t want you down there on the weekends. Really, I mean it. I know we’ve just got back and you‘re not quite into the swing of things, but you’re older now and you’re gonna want to have your weekends free to be with your friends. Who knows maybe you‘ll make some new one‘s or find someone special.“

“I could only hope.” Jerry sighed heavily to himself, but kept his eyes guarded as he looked up at his father.

“We’ve got most of the summer left.” Jonathan continued, slipping his arm around his son’s shoulders as Jerry walked back over to the doors. “There’s still a lot of stuff that needs to be done before we can open in any capacity. You may be pretty sick of the place by the time school starts.”

“Like what?” Jerry asked, his curiosity radiating from his face.

“We need to actually set this thing up from ground zero Bud.” Jonathan chuckled softly as he looked down at his son. “We still have all kinds of administrative things to figure out, mainly the store hours so we can figure out what kind of wages we’re gonna be paying the girls, what kind of shifts they’ll be working so we can figure out just how many we need, scheduling, vacations, benefits...”

“Dad.” Jerry stopped him with a firm but polite tone to his voice. “Isn’t that what we were going to hire Staff Right to do?”

“Well, yes basically.” Jonathan couldn’t help but laugh silently at the odd expression his son wore. “But it’s our business and we need to tell them what we want first, they’ll handle everything after that.”

“When did you say you wanted to open this place?” Jerry asked, giving him a crooked grin.

“Don’t worry.” Jonathan did laugh then. “It’s not as complicated as it sounds.”

“Whatever.” Jerry shook his head, still grinning at his father.

“Oh by the way, I picked up a little something for you while I was out yesterday.” Jonathan told him, patting Jerry’s shoulder as he turned away. “Call it a belated birthday present.” He called back over his shoulder.

“Dad!” Jerry growled, feigning anger as he watched his father disappear up the enclosed staircase that lead to the private part of the upstairs.

“You already bought the van for my birthday. Isn‘t that enough?” Jerry scolded lightly when Jonathan reappeared in the kitchen with a small package.

“No, that’s for graduation.” Jonathan laughed as he handed the box to him.

“Which hasn’t happened yet.” Jerry frowned at him, but he was unable to hide his grin for long.

“A mere formality.”

“A cell phone?” Jerry looked up at his father curiously, his grin disappearing somewhat as he lifted the cover on the box. “I already have a pager Dad, I don’t need this.”

“I want you to have it, it’ll make me feel better.” Jonathan smiled warmly at him. “I’ve been thinking about a few things.” He said, letting his gaze trail openly over his sons face searchingly. “This way you don’t have to keep reporting to me about where you’re going or what you‘re doing unless you want to. If I need you I can just call.”

Staring at his fathers soft gray eyes, Jerry was filled with a mixture of unfamiliar feelings and emotions. It hadn’t been said directly, yet he understood that this was a major step for them. Probably more so for his father than for him. He was learning to let go of him somewhat, to allow him a little more of his own personal space. Which meant that his father was trying to see him as an adult, treating him as equally as he could for now.

“It’s already been programmed with the house number, the studio and my own cell.” Jonathan said, pausing for a moment before continuing. “For emergencies, I put Warren’s number in there too.”

“I don’t know what happened between you and Scott.” Jonathan continued in the face of his sons silence. “Whatever it is, I hope you can work it out one way or another. Warren is your Godfather and he loves you very much Jerry.”

“Uncle Warren isn’t the problem.” He thought a little angrily.

“Yeah well,” Jerry shifted uncomfortably in the presence of his father for the first time in a long time. “Maybe things ’ll be different. We‘re both a little older.” He sighed, moving away from him to hide the feelings he knew were written all over his face. “It has been three years.”

“Well.” Jonathan nodded, frowning inwardly at the sudden wall that had shot up between them. “I’ll see you tonight then. I need to get going.”

Staring back out into the tree line of the back yard after his father had left, Jerry wondered sometimes just how much his father knew about things. The fact that Scott had been on his mind almost every minute since they had touched down at the airport had been the cause for many a quiet and awkward moment between them. Jerry hated it, they had grown so close over the last three years and it meant so much to him. He didn’t want anything to ruin the plans they had made together.

The last three years had been filled with the excitement and experiences of new places and people, giving him an escape from his broken heart in some ways. Finally getting to see and actually participate in the layman's side of his fathers work had been wonderful. He had at least been able to keep himself occupied enough during the day that he had little time to think about anything except what was going on at that moment. Jerry had thrown himself into everything with an energy that bordered on obsession. It was only on certain evenings during that first year when particular dreams haunted his nights to the point of torment. Those nights when he had not managed to exhaust himself to the point of almost passing out when he hit his bed, that his heart ached with the loneliness.

Warren Menning and his father had known each other long before Jerry and Scott were even born. Jerry had grown up calling him ‘Uncle’ and loved him as if he were his fathers brother and he didn‘t want that to change, regardless of Scott. They had been partners longer than Jerry could remember, struggling together as a team in the roughest element of the journalistic business, photojournalism. They seemed to have found their particular specialties about fifteen years ago when they started working together with a free lance reporter and writer named Darrin Wesson. Darrin had helped them out a lot because of his connections with both the Smithsonian Institute and National Geographic.

Jerry knew he was still stalling, hiding even from himself as he reluctantly let his thoughts wander to the past. He knew the decision to make this trip had been inspired at least in part by the death of Darrin in Afghanistan just over four years ago. Jerry remembered that both his father and Uncle Warren had been pretty broken up about it. There had been a lot of sequestered nights between them during the few months that proceeded their departure. He had heard them arguing over his fathers plans. Although he could hear the raised voices, Jerry never knew exactly what was being said between them. It was clear to him that Warren had been very much against his fathers decision to make this trip.

This would be the longest period of time that they would all be separated. Over the last ten years, both Warren and his father had come and gone for a month or six weeks at a time as they took on various assignments with Darrin. Sometimes they went together, most times not. It was kind of a weird sort of family but Jerry had been happy for the most part. The primary constant in his life had always been his father, yet there had also been Warren and his son Scott, including their house keeper Louise.

She had been the closest thing to a mother that both he and Scott had ever known. Louise had been Warren’s housekeeper before either of them were born. Constantly thrown together because of the nature of their professions and the lifelong friendship their fathers shared, Jerry and Scott had grown up more like brothers than friends in some ways. If it hadn’t been for his friendship with Samantha, Jerry had no idea how he would have made it through some of the tougher times of growing up in Scott’s shadow.

Thinking of Sam jarred him back into the present and he had to shake himself visibly as he shut himself down again. Drifting as he was, he had come so close to allowing himself the torture of pulling those other more painful memories forward in his waking thoughts. It had been nearly two years since he had felt that pain, being back home seemed to bring it all back so clearly.

“Phillip’s right, water under the bridge now.” He grumbled to himself mentally as he rinsed out his cup and headed out himself. Double checking the lock on the door as he pulled it closed, he quickly punched in his code to set the security system.

It had been Scott’s decision to end whatever had begun between them. It had been just over two years since he had even heard from him. There were other friends that he had continued to hear from sporadically while he was away, but at least they had taken the time to drop him a note once in awhile. Part of him felt bad that he still hadn’t contacted any of them personally to tell them he was actually home. He had taken a moment a couple of nights ago to send a rather bland email to all of them. It had been essentially generic, something he wrote to look like he was in a hurry but wanted to give them an approximate date he would be home.

Climbing up into the van, he once again he found himself more than appreciative of his fathers foresight in purchasing the van verses the more practical smaller car he had requested. It sat up higher than a car and gave him a lot more visibility. It was second hand which Jerry didn’t care about either. Having been custom designed to accommodate someone even smaller than Jerry’s five foot two stature, the altered driver’s section provided him with a certain kind of comfort that was not a normal driving experience for him.

Pulling out onto State Route 34, Jerry observed some of the changes Sam had told him about in several of her emails. Reluctant to face old friends just yet even Sam, he had been hibernating at home since their return. Harrison County was the largest county in the state, with its rolling farm lands, it spread nearly twice the size of most of the other counties that bordered it. It had been an economically depressed area for many years but slowly most of the local independent farmers had begun to sell out to real estate developers, those that hadn’t filed bankrupt. Although Sam had kept him up to date on most of the changes while he was gone, Jerry found it more than a little disturbing to actually see the landscape now crowded with newly built subdivisions.

Over the last couple of years some of the smaller towns had expanded into bigger cities. While other small towns within the northeastern part of the county had been annexed by the three major cities around them, existing now in name only. Some of those areas had now become something like gang territories, with old city limits forming their boundary lines. Jerry found this concept more than distressing, having always thought of gangs and gang related activities as something more relative to much larger cities.

Driving past the old Lakeland high school, Jerry thought about some of the more personal changes that Sam had told him about. Three of the counties smaller high schools had been closed down in favor of tax cuts and other issues she wasn‘t able to fully explain. His thoughts turned to some of his old friends, Danny Thompson, Eric Carlisle and Todd Sanders. They had been caught up in the first wave of transfers when Creston High in Sebring shut down the summer before their Freshman year. The new zoning laws however further complicated things, sending them to Edison High in Brackett which was almost twenty miles in the other direction. None of it made any sense to Jerry since they all still lived within a five mile range from him. Then last year Westgate High closed down sending Eddy Madison and Gary Duggan to Preston High in Weirton. This year would be the first time in fifty years that Lakeland wouldn’t open it’s doors.

Thinking of his former friends brought on the now familiar pangs of loneliness, those feelings that formed the wall around him. He had kept in contact with all of them pretty regularly for the first year or so, then things dwindled to just Sam as far as any regularity. He really didn’t blame them, they were going through changes here too, a new school, new friends. They had their own lives to lead, he was on the other side of the world and out of touch with home. Through all of it, like a lifeline to the real world, Sam had been there for him as always.

Jerry had been friends with Sam for longer than he even knew most of his other friends. They had gravitated to each other in the first grade and had stayed friends ever since. Even in junior high when the concept of changing classes had been introduced to them, they were together in the majority of their classes. Jerry cared a lot about Sam, he could almost say that he loved her, in a brother and sister way. It had been hardest leaving those three, especially Sam and Eddy, he missed Gary too. But Sam was like the other half of him in so many ways.

The worst part of being gone for Jerry was when her parents divorced, he wasn’t able to be there for her. Sam now lived in Salem with her mother and had transferred to Claremont High in the middle of her Sophomore year. Even though he had tried to get her to talk about things with him through emails, cards and letters, Sam would never talk about herself or her feelings. Except to tell him how much she missed him and to tell him that she was fine, everything was working out for her, giving him no personal details.

Complicated by his confusion over Scott, Jerry’s loneliness had brought forth other thoughts and feelings that he knew he wasn’t ready to deal with much less think about. Although he knew that the majority of his friends were either gay or bisexual, being away from home had done nothing to change his awareness of societies general view of homosexuality. Although it seemed more commonly referred to now as ’alternate life styles’ and was somewhat tolerated in varying levels within certain areas, it wasn’t really acceptable. Even if he did find someone to love and who would love him in return, it would never be something that could be shared as openly as those in heterosexual relationships.

Forcing his thoughts from the melancholy road they had taken, Jerry concentrated on the present. Traffic had suddenly become far more congested as he drew closer to the inner city. He felt stifled, everything seemed crowded and piled on top of each other. The mall was far more crowded than he remembered it being about this time of year. It usually didn’t have a lot going on until early August when all the ’Back to School’ sales kicked in. Then it would be pretty busy, slacking off a little after Halloween was over. Then it would be a mad house as retail Christmas moved into full swing and stay that way until after New Years or longer.

Parking at the far end of the parking lot directly across from Nordstrom’s, he steeled himself for his first in person encounter with Sam in three years. Hoping he wouldn’t run into anyone else for now, he wondered about her too. He was aware of some of the changes within himself, but they were for the most part on the inside where he hoped she wouldn‘t see. He was still basically the same size, maybe a couple of inches taller. Even though he had sprouted facial hair along his upper lip and jaw line, he didn’t care for it and kept it shaved.

Heading straight toward the center of the mall where the Food Court was located, he thought of all the times he and Sam had met there before. It always started out just the two of them, but their other friends would join up with them at some point during the night. The mall had been considered a neutral point by their parents and a cool place where they could just hang out at the arcade, get something to eat or catch a movie. He had told her that he would meet her at the fountain that took up the entire intersection of walkways just outside the main entrance to the Food Court .

Samantha Drotleff stood quietly inside one of her favorite little shops, pretending to admire some of the bobbles in the window. Not really sure of what to expect, she had dressed casually in jeans and a pale green pullover. The glass cubical shelves that covered the store front provided as much cover as it did a view of the fountain at Center Court. She had spent the better part of her early morning hours looking at all the photos Jerry had sent her of himself over the last three years and there were a lot. He had been her touch stone through all the craziness that had descended upon her once quiet and orderly world.

Glancing at her watch, it was well past the time when Jerry said he would meet her. Studying the milling crowd, Sam’s gaze fell on a somewhat familiar looking young man. He stood there with his hands jammed into the pockets of his jeans, looking almost nervously around him. Watching him pace, she thought he looked out of place. When he turned in her direction, Sam felt her breath catch in her throat for a moment.

“Oh my God...Jerry.”

It wasn’t the expected form of excitement she felt as recognition settled over her, where she pictured herself throwing herself into his arms in an ecstatic greeting of old friends. Instead of the overwhelming happiness she expected, Sam felt an odd sense of trepidation settle over her as she watched him.

Dressed casually in faded jeans and a light gray polo shirt, Jerry was drop dead gorgeous. The old story of the ugly duckling vaguely skirted the edges of her thoughts as she struggled to gain control over herself. All the photos he had sent her had not prepared her for what she saw.

His hair was still very dark, not quite a true black and it was longer. It was now parted in the middle and feathered back away from his face, laying at least an inch or two on his shoulders. It made his face seem thinner and his neck look longer. He still had that olive complexion that she had always been so jealous of, giving him the look of having a perpetual tan. Even from the distance where she stood, she could see that he might have grown some, he had definitely filled out more. Jerry would never be a very large person, she knew this, but he filled out the material of the polo perfectly.

“On my God!” She exclaimed silently as she forced her suddenly shaking legs to propel her forward.

“Jerry!”

“Sam!”

“Oh my God! In person you’re still the most gorgeous guy I know!” Samantha exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around him, planting a big kiss on his cheek. Trembling a little inside she quickly tried to pull away from him so he wouldn’t feel her nervousness. But his strong arms held her fast against him.

“Cut it out Sam!” He complained through the enormous grin on his face, even as his own arms clung to her tightly.

“Damn Jerry, look at you!” She exclaimed as he finally released her, allowing her to step back a little. “I almost didn’t recognize you!”

“What?!” He demanded, not caring at all for the way Samantha was looking at him. “What’s wrong with the way I look?”

“Nothing! Nothing at all!” She stated, grinning from ear to ear. Sam swallowed hard against the lump in her throat, the sight of him was painfully wonderful in ways she had never imagined in connection with Jerry.

Within seconds of embracing him she had noticed the freshly shaven face and the masculine scent of him mingled with Old Spice cologne. The golden herringbone chain hung just a few inches past a noticeable Adam’s Apple in his throat, drawing her attention to the fact that he hadn’t buttoned the top of the shirt. The soft tuft of dark curly hairs at the ’v’ of the polo revealed far more changes than she had been prepared for in Jerry.

“It’s just that with you and your Dad taking off for South Africa just before high school, I haven’t seen you for like ages! The internet just isn’t the same. I’m gonna be the envy of all the girls!” She prattled on as she forced her attention back to his face.

“Stop it Sam! Three years isn’t really that long!” Jerry blurted, grabbing her elbow and walking her toward one of the ever present benches in the center of the walkway. Even though it had felt like an eternity to him in a lot of ways.

Taking in everything about her as they shuffled through the crowd, Jerry made a lot of mental notes about his old friend. The one major thing he noticed was that Samantha Drotleff had grown up a lot more than he had expected. She had always been beautiful to him, but that was because of their friendship and he saw her from the inside. For the first time since he had known her, Jerry could feel something different coming from her and he wasn’t sure he liked it at all.

“Oh God don’t let me lose my cool!“ He pleaded silently as they reached the bench. “Not here, not now.“

“God it’s so good to see you! You look pretty damned good yourself.“ He grinned as they sat down.

Still as coppery red as it had always been, her hair was pulled back and up away from her face. It sat there on top of her head in a thick mass of curls and ribbons. Her eyes seemed to be a much deeper green than he remembered, sparkling with the same ever present mischief that he always loved about her. There was something else that lingered in the dark depths of her eyes, something that bordered on pain or maybe sadness. Samantha had also developed a woman’s body that he couldn’t help but notice. Her once boyish figure had given way to shapely curves and more than noticeable breasts. Yet it wasn’t in an over blown way like some of the girls he had met, but it was enough to grab his attention. He had noticed too that Sam was wearing makeup, something he had never seen her do before and God she smelled wonderful.

“You’re looking at me as if I’ve suddenly grown a second head or a third eye. What gives?” Sam asked, frowning a little as she forced herself to meet his gaze.

“Damn it Sam.” Jeremy half sighed and half groaned. “You’re a girl!”

“God that sounded so fucking stupid!” He scolded himself, feeling the dreaded blush stain his cheeks.

“Oh for Heaven’s sakes Jerry!” Samantha laughed, making her curls dance on top of her head. “You’ve just now noticed that!”

If Jerry had been honest with himself, he would have been able to admit that Samantha was no longer ‘his Sam’, she was Samantha Drotleff, a very beautiful girl. No, take that back, she was a young woman now. Part of him wanted to be angry at her for leaving him this way, but he couldn‘t. The bad part was, this wasn‘t the kind of leaving where somebody came back, ‘his Sam’ was gone and she wasn’t coming back. That thought hurt more than he wanted to admit even to himself.

“Yeah Right. Come on Sam, you know what I mean. I’ve always known you were a girl. It‘s just that to me you never really looked or felt like one until now.” He said quietly, studying his hands. “I guess we sort of freeze frame people as they were the last time we saw them. I just...”

“Jerry.” Samantha’s voice took on a slightly serious tone, touching his hands as she forced him to look at her. “You don’t look the same either.”

“I changed my hair style, it’s a little longer that‘s all. I think I‘m about two inches taller” He defended weakly.

“No way. It‘s more than that.” She grinned at him. “When you emailed me before you left Johannesburg to go to Australia, you told me you were getting your braces off. I knew you’d look better but I had no idea you’d look so damn good the next time I saw you. I mean it, don’t look at me like that.” She scolded lightly, still smiling at him.

“The pictures you sent obviously didn‘t do justice to you at all. There's something different about you, it’s coming from inside you.” She continued, taking his hand. “The girls are gonna fall all over you at school. I think I’m jealous already.” She added, hating the sting behind her eyes.

Unable to keep from staring at him, Sam struggled against the deep pain at his closeness. Jerry wasn’t Jerry at all. When he called her the day before he left with his father, he was still that little kid she had been so protective of for what had felt like forever. Small for his age, Jerry had often been picked on by some of the other kids, even his so called best friend Scott and she had felt sorry for him. Through the years however, she had discovered someone who was really cool, he was caring, sensitive and intelligent, not a common combination in most of the boys her age then. Jerry never seemed to care about the fact that she was a girl, they still did all kinds of things together. But Jerry was different, her ‘little Jeremy’ was gone.

The young man looking so intently at her right now stuck every nerve in her body. Somewhat lighter than she remembered, his clear blue eyes had taken on a strange slate color that made them unreadable to her for the first time since she had known him. The slight smile he wore revealed the now perfectly straight white teeth after years of wearing those awful braces. The little round face and boyish grin were gone, replaced by an captivating balance of delicate masculinity.

“Snap out of it Sam.” Jerry spoke a little more sharply than he had intended. “You of all people know the deal.” He added a little more quietly, instantly sorry for snapping at her.

“Yeah, I do.” She said softly, her grip tightening on his hand as she locked down hard on her personal feelings.

“Anyway.” He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. “Are you hungry? I‘m starved!”

“I’m always ready to eat.“ She informed him with a grin. “Are you buying?“

“Of course!“ He exclaimed, his eyes widening in mock shock. “If I’m going to have you spend your morning helping me update my wardrobe, I guess I better feed you.“ He added with a laugh.

“This is gonna be so much fun!” Sam giggled as they headed for the open entry way of the Food Court.

“I told you about Dad giving me my graduation present early didn’t I?” He asked, knowing that he called her the day it was delivered.

“Yeah, I think it’s so cool! So, how do you like it? Is it better than a car?” She asked excitedly.

“Slow down Sam.” He laughed as he held his arm loosely around her, guiding her almost protectively through the crowd.

Jerry rattled on about the van as they made their way into the open area of the Food Court. Glancing quickly over the enormous expanse of tables, chairs and booths, he was all too aware of her presence as she clung to his hand. Thankful for the neutral subject as they got in line, he continued watching her from an emotional distance. Everything from the past came flooding back to him, the way they were, the closeness they had shared. It was difficult to collect his composure around her. Seeing her like this made him uncomfortable in a way that he never connected with her and he didn’t like that about Sam.

Hitting the McDonalds concession, they ordered by the number to make it faster, something they had always done in the past. Most of the tables it seemed were pretty well taken by the time they got their orders and headed into the floor area. Glancing around the edges of the room, they spotted a couple of empty booths just past where they had entered.

“I love this place!” Sam exclaimed happily as they scooted into the booth. “It’s the only place you can have Burger King, McDonalds and Taco Bell and sit at the same table.”

“Not to mention watching all the people.” Jerry arched a brow at her as he unwrapped his burger, remembering that one her favorite pass times had always been people watching. “You just like keeping up with who’s with who and watching all the guys.” He teased, his eyes sparkling.

“So do you.” She quipped, sticking her tongue out at him. “What was it your dad used to call us all the time?” She asked with a grin.

“Mall rats.” Jerry laughed, shaking his head at her.

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“You found a steady boyfriend yet?” He asked tentatively, watching her face as he sipped his Sprite. “You’ve been really great about keeping me up to date on everything around here except you. You know, you always want to know everything about me and what I’m doing but you never talk about yourself.“

“No, I don‘t have an actual steady as in boyfriend.“ She replied in a flat tone. “I’ve got a friend that I go to the dances and stuff with at school but I wouldn’t call him a boyfriend. We don’t see each other beyond that. To tell you the truth Jerry I’m not really looking either.” She added quite pointedly, pinioning him with that famous matter of fact stare of hers that he could never forget. “There really isn’t much to talk about. I have no personal life and right now I like it that way.”

“Well, like I said before, I’m glad that you at least haven’t become a hermit or anything like that.” He arched a brow at her, realizing that she wasn’t going to willingly talk about herself as usual. He had asked her about different school events over the years, she had never really gone into any detail about them except to say that she went, had a good time and stuff like that. She had never put a name to the person she had gone there with for whatever reason and Jerry hadn’t pressed on it.

“You know he’s in here don’t you.” She stated quietly. Glancing over the crowd as they entered, she had caught sight of Brandon which was easy to do with his tall frame and long dark hair. She had also noticed that he was sitting with Scott Menning at the far end of the Food Court.

“Yeah, I saw ‘im when we came in, so what.” Jerry stated, his mouth set stubbornly as he stared at her. “I really don’t want to get into it right now. It really doesn’t matter any more.”

“I had hoped that you would have gotten over him by now.” Sam said quietly. The fact that he was more than a little defensive and didn’t want to talk about it told her that he hadn’t.

Samantha hated Scott with a passion that could not be explained in any words she knew. She had tried at first to honestly deal with what had begun between him and Jerry, but the pain he had inflicted on Jerry’s heart was beyond forgiveness in her book. Looking at Jerry now, that flash of pain in his eyes hurt her. For an instant Sam saw a piece of the ‘little boy’ still there and wanted to wrap him in her arms to protect him forever. Even as she thought about it, she knew deep down it was an impossibility.

Jerry opened his mouth to argue with her, but closed it almost as quickly. The soft concern in her eyes almost made him want to get up and walk away from her. He knew it wasn’t pity that he saw there, but it sure felt like it. If it had been anyone else besides Samantha, he probably would have left. Sam knew everything about him, everything. She was the keeper of his secrets as he had told her once.

“I’ve made a few decisions over the last year but no matter what happens, I’ll probably always have feelings of some sort for him. ” He stated, his tone slightly thickened as he struggled to maintain his composure.

“Jerry...” Sam started and then paused at the flash of pain in his eyes. “You really need to give yourself time. I know...” She quickly added, holding her hand up to silence the obvious comment he was ready to make. “I know you’ve already had three years to think about things, but it’s been three years away from him. It’s gonna be different seeing him everyday.”

“I’ve thought of that too.” He sighed heavily, sneaking a glance toward that end of the court. “Just getting used to going back to school itself is gonna be hard enough. I’ve gotten rather used to no classrooms with the internet since I left.”

“You know that’s where he started when they moved, he’s been there since his Freshman year. He‘s considered part of the ‘old crowd‘ there now, because of all the transfers. Nobody ’ll come right out and say it anymore, but there’s a lot of resentment between some of the kids at school.” Sam told him quietly, reaching over to him. Grasping his hands in hers, she wanted to comfort him.

“Great.” Jeremy groaned. “Dealing with him isn’t going to be easy especially going in as the new kid on the block, I’m walking into his turf. I‘m gonna be so out of place there, I know I‘m gonna look like a dork.” Looking down at their hands to avoid the eye contact at the moment. Her hands were soft as he toyed with her fingers.

“You could never look like a dork Jerry.“ She chuckled, giving his hands a squeeze. “You’re going in there with the final wave of about a hundred and fifty other students, so I wouldn‘t worry to much about being seen as the new kid. Besides, you’ve still got your own friends Jerry. Just because some of ‘em go to different schools shouldn’t mean anything. I still hang out with most of my old friends.” She said quietly, carefully choosing her words. “Maybe it won’t be so bad, I mean you haven‘t even talked to him since what, junior high?”

“None of that matters Sam.” Jeremy interrupted, hating the mixture of defensiveness and pain that had made his tone so sharp. “I’m gonna have to deal with him at some point, I just haven’t figured that part out yet. He’s gonna be in my face to some degree for the rest of my life. You know how it is between my Dad and Uncle Warren. Dad may have retired from traveling but he‘s gonna be doing all of Warren‘s developing now. Not to mention the fact that Dad’s started asking questions about what happened between us. I can‘t talk about it, I feel that wall come up that I can’t control and I can‘t even talk about it.”

“Oh God Jerry.” Samantha groaned softly. “You’re Dad still doesn’t know does he?” She added as she studied him.

“No.” Jerry sighed heavily, his shoulders sinking somewhat as he thought about the times he came so close to telling him. “I really want to tell him, to get it out in the open. You don’t know how close I came to telling him over the last two years. But I’m scared to death that it’ll destroy everything if I do.”

Sam continued to struggle with those old feelings of protectiveness washing over her, filling her with an almost overwhelming need to hold him. Pulling his hands to her face, she pressed his folded fingers to her cheek for a moment. The contact felt wonderful and would have felt better under different circumstances.

“Jerry.” She began quietly, looking hard at him as if she were willing him to understand and to believe. “You and your Dad have always had the coolest relationship of anybody I know. Maybe things would change a little bit, but I really don’t believe that and neither do you.”

“I just keep telling myself that if he knew...” Jerry paused, his gaze took on a strange inward look. “If I could just tell him, talk to him about it, I think it would help me to feel better about stuff.”

“You never did make friends very easily.” Sam said quietly, playing with his fingers as she searched herself for the right words. “I suppose the majority of that’s my fault.”

“Come again?” He blurted, a frown creasing his brow deeply as he studied her face.

“Face it Jerry.” Sam chuckled a little to cover her nervousness. “We’ve been joined at the hip since the first grade. You’re the only guy I know that thought it was cool to take a girl fishing with you...”

“A girl that never minded baiting her own hook I might add.” He interjected, his frown still firmly in place.

“We were always together and I’m not complaining, I’m really not. I adore you and I think you’re like the greatest friend I could ever have.” She stated, almost running her words together to get them out before he interrupted her again.

“Sam I’m not complaining either.” He stated. “So what’s the other reason?”

“You.” She told him pointedly, pausing to let it sink in a little. “I think you’re right about telling your Dad. You and your Dad have always been close, I think the worst part of all of this for you is feeling like you’re hiding something from him. Maybe once you get it out and you and him talk about it, you’ll feel more relaxed about everything. I think you’d even feel more secure about yourself. I figure it‘s another reason you don‘t have very many guy friends, you‘re unsure of yourself.”

“I have my friends and I’m working on it.” Jerry said quietly, but gave her a slight smile. “Now enough about this.” He stated, wanting to change the subject. “What about school?”

“What about it?” She arched a brow at him. It was something she really didn’t want to talk about, knowing his sexual preferences would give them both very different perspectives on it. Not to mention the fact that she knew the subject of school would invariably turn to Scott.

“Sam.” He almost growled, his grin belying any real anger.

“I don’t know Jerry, it’s hard to explain. It’s not fun like it used to be, everything‘s changed, people are different now than what they were, even the kids. There’s hardly any jobs up here, not decent one’s anyway. Just a bunch of part time or dead end stuff that caters to college students. But people keep moving up here anyway. There‘s so many people everywhere now, so much anger and attitude about it from the locals, you know the people who‘ve always lived up here. The way it used to be, it‘s all gone.” She sighed heavily, dropping their hands back to the table top.

“We’ve all been swallowed up by the bigger cities. Even school itself is different now without being at a different school. But these kids, they aren’t like the one’s we’re used to at Lakeland, Westgate and Creston. They’re....” She glanced up at the ceiling for a moment, searching for the right words.

“I suppose they aren’t really mean, not in a malicious way I don’t think, but they just seem harder Jerry. It’s just that there’s more of them than us and they don’t accept people very well in the inner city.” She stated, giving his hand a squeeze.

“What do you mean, us and them?” He asked, studying her.

“That’s just the way it is for some reason.” Sam told him. “I mean, I wasn’t part of all the closings, I started at Claremont ‘cause I moved over there with Mom. I kind of went in there as just a new kid in the middle of the year. They’re mixing up the old rivalries by throwing everyone together like this. It’s kind of like certain one’s feel threatened by the other kids coming in.”

“Threatened?” Jerry repeated, not understanding where she was coming from with any of it.

“You know.” Sam tried again to find the right words, perhaps some common ground that she could use to relate to him. “Mostly it’s the jocks and certain other cliques. You know that all schools have their ‘in’ crowds and what’s ‘in’ over here ain’t ‘in’ over there. Like who’s cool over there ain’t cool over here. You see what I’m saying?”

“I’m not sure. I’ve never been to high school, not like this. I’ve attended my first three years through Phoenix Academics online remember. And I never paid much attention to that sort of stuff before anyway.” He said slowly. It was odd, but in a way Jerry really did understand what she was saying even if he really didn’t grasp the full meaning of it. “What about Scott? How does he fit into all of that since he wasn‘t part of any of the closings?” He asked.

“You know Scott.” Sam grimaced a little, the mention of his name was like a weight on her heart. “The dumb ass super jock.” She added silently to herself.

“He’s the star quarterback for Claremont, oh I suppose with that comes other pressures that I wouldn‘t know anything about.” She quipped. “He parades around campus like he owns it. He still keeps himself surrounded by a bunch of dumb jocks like he needs some sort of protection or something. Most of them are total jerks, stuck on themselves. You know the type, ‘Hey baby, improve your image, be seen with me‘.” She added the last part with a huffy, deeper tone to her voice.

“Scott always did have a way about him.” Jerry commented, ignoring Sam’s typical reaction to that specific high school clique. It was never any secret between them that Sam was not impressed with the jocks, the muscle cars or anything else that went along with that particular image that Scott held. She had ranted enough about it in a great deal of her emails. Which had put Scott at the bottom of the list twice in her opinion, this much he knew about her.

“Only as far as you’re concerned, you never could see any of his faults. You always forgave him.“ She flashed him a teasing smile, trying to keep the mood light. “Claremont’s always been a bigger, rougher school, even without everything that‘s happened. I’m telling you Jerry, nothing‘s the same, not even Scott.” Sam continued, looking him in the eyes, this time more seriously. “He don’t hang with none of the old guys anymore, well Brent and Tommy Pezzano. Those two are like his damned shadows. He don’t have nothin’ to do with Dave, Brian or Shawn that I can see.”

“They still on the football team?”

“Dave and Brian are yeah. But it’s not the same cliques anymore Jerry.” Sam said sadly. “It’s like everything changed when they remodeled and expanded Claremont. All of them still live just as close to each other as they always have, yet people that have been friends for like years suddenly don’t talk any more. Most of them hang out with whole new circles, they don’t even hang out at the same places anymore.”

“Well maybe this could be like a new start for a lot of things.” He said, casting her what he hoped was a reassuring smile.

“Jerry, don’t let him hurt you again.” Her voice was filled with pain as she reached up to touch his cheek.

“Sam, I wasn‘t even thinking about him, honestly .” He smiled slightly, arching a brow as he spoke. “Don’t start assuming things. I’ve already told you, let me get past some hurtles here. I‘m gonna be okay, I promise.”

* * * *

“Yeah. Then I’m gonna take it and drive it over a cliff somewhere.” Scott stated, his eye’s narrowing angrily as he watched his friend for a minute.

“Whatever.” Brandon commented, sipping his coke as he pretended to scan the Food Court.

“I was thinking about old man Quay’s stripper cut.” Scott continued, some of his aggravation beginning to lace his tone thickly. “I hear the water’s deep enough in some places out there you could lose cement truck.”

“Sounds good to me.” Brandon shrugged, his gaze settling once again on the couple on the far side of the court.

Primarily the dark haired boy that was with Samantha Drotleff. He watched him with interest, curiosity and other feelings that seemed laced with something close to concern. Although there was a very slight hint of it, it wasn’t so much a feeling of jealousy that he felt, only because he knew Samantha.

“What the fuck are you looking at!” Scott demanded, smacking the table between them with a thud but not so loudly as to draw too much attention to them.

Unfortunately Scott didn’t need an answer, he already knew very well who he was looking at so intently. Scott’s anger had hit him from all directions, filling him with feelings he had never felt before. Jealousy being the primary hammer on his already strained and failing composure at the moment. He had seen both Samantha and Jerry the minute they had walked into the Food Court.

Samantha was hard to miss with all that gleaming red hair and an infectious personality. Scott had always thought that Sam ranked right up there in the top ten of the prettiest girls in school. She was very pretty, in that clean refreshing way, without all the war paint that most of the girls wore. Samantha was smart too, but most of all she wasn’t stuck on herself like the greater majority of them. However, it was the dark haired boy to which she clung that had drawn his attention like a moth to a flame. The only reason he had never made any moves on her was because of her friendship with Jerry and the fact that she had made clear all too often just how she felt about him.

“What?!” Brandon blurted, nearly jumping out of his chair as Scott’s hand slapped the table.

“You haven’t heard a word I’ve been saying asshole.” Scott stated, glaring at him. “What the hell are you lookin’ at anyway?” He asked again.

“Just doin’ a little Window Watching.” Brandon stated, shrugging with his usual indifferent manner that he knew irritated the hell out of Scott. “As if you ain’t”

“Bull shit.” Scott stated pointedly. “I’m sitting here talking about driving my car over the edge of old man Quay’s stripper cut and you’re like ‘Oh whatever man’, don’t tell me you’re just lookin’. Something‘s got your attention.”

“And I’ll say it again, whatever.” Brandon told him, turning to meet his gaze evenly. It was something that few people could do anymore, especially when Scott was mad about something. Brandon had not yet subscribed to the concept of worshiping Scott Menning.

“I help you with that damned car because I like doing it.” Brandon stated, refusing to back down as brown eyes locked with pale blue. “I like it and I like hangin’ out with you, when you’re not acting like an asshole. Now back off why don‘t ya.”

“Besides, we’re both lookin’ at the same thing asshole.” He added silently to himself as Scott simply glared at him.

Brandon had sensed the change in Scott when the two of them had walked in, although he didn’t know the exact cause of the shift in Scott’s mood at first. Following Scott’s seemingly random glances however had revealed the source of his obvious discomfort. Knowing full well that Scott’s interests were not in Samantha, the only logical conclusion was the boy with her. It had only served to make Brandon more than curious about him and he really wasn’t trying to hide the fact that he was looking, he just wasn’t broadcasting it to the entire Food Court.

“Damn it, I just don’t like being ignored and you know it.” Scott complained, feeling the heat creeping up the back of his neck at the same steady pace.

“Give it a rest, I wasn‘t ignoring you. I just don‘t pay much attention when somebody’s talkin’ stupid.” Brandon said, finally turning his attention away from Scott. “I could ‘ave been lookin’ at Sam. But I’ll bite, who is ‘e?“ Brandon asked, stretching his long legs out under the table.

“Who’s who?” Scott growled, shifting uncomfortably.

“The kid with Samantha.” Brandon said, narrowing his eyes as he shot him a ‘don’t be stupid’ look. “Judging by the way you’re not looking at him, I gather you know who ’e is.” He added, emphasizing the word ‘not’.

“I know who he is, but I don’t know very much about ’im.” Scott answered reluctantly. He had been friends with Brandon for too long to out right lie to him, stretching the truth all out of proportion was still pushing it. “His name’s Jeremy Campagnari. He’s a friend of hers from over at Lakeland.”

“Lakeland?” Brandon arched a brow, glancing back toward Scott. The discomfort was radiating from him like the beacon on a lighthouse. “What...” He grinned, his deep sable eyes glittering with mischief. “...Sam don’t let ’im out much.”

“What?!” Scott blurted, staring at Brandon in confusion.

“Come on Scott.” Brandon almost laughed, but held it back. Scott was already pissed enough about something. “Lakeland’s only fifteen miles from here. I think if he was a local boy, lookin’ the way he does, I’d ‘ave remembered seein’ ‘im around at least once or twice, don’t you?” Brandon knew too that Scott was fully aware of his limited relationship with Samantha and dumb act never did fit well with Scott.

“His Dad and mine do the same kind of work.” Scott stated, struggling to choose his words carefully. Revealing that they were actually partners of a sort wasn’t a good idea at the moment. The last thing he wanted was to let on about anything personal between himself and Jerry. In the past it had been instinct to protect Jerry, but he was mostly protecting himself at the moment. “Like I said I know who he is, but it’s not like we were friends or anything. It’s kinda like you can know someone ‘cause they’re so and so’s little brother or sister but not really know who they are.”

“Yeah right.” Brandon almost laughed at him then, but heard himself speaking calmly. “So where’s ’e been? I mean, they do look awfully familiar with each other. Sam’s never mentioned anybody special.”

“Chicks with brains don’t go out with one guy and talk about another one. Besides, he’s probably why you never got off home plate with her.“ Scott grinned at him, grabbing the first opportunity he saw to get the spotlight off himself. “Those two have known each other a lot longer than I’ve known either of them.” He continued, leaning back as comfortably as anyone could in the hard bench seats of the outer circle. “We all three went to Madison Elementary and then Lincoln Junior High, but I never got to know either of them that well. We never had that much in common. She’s a girl and he was always pretty sickly, even back in elementary. Some kind of breathing problems or something like that I think it was. Sam lived over there closer to ’im, they’ve been stuck on each other since like the first grade.”

“So what‘s the deal?” Brandon arched a brow. “He been sick all this time?”

“Who cares dude?!” Scott glared at him, not caring at all for what was beginning to feel like an interrogation.

“I’m just askin’ a simple question.” Brandon commented, letting a slight smile curl just the corners of his lips. Scott was getting more and more uncomfortable by the minute and Brandon knew it. “Whether I’ve gotten off home plate with Sam is not only beside the fact but none of your business, she seems pretty familiar with ‘im and I’m naturally curious.”

“He ain’t been around ’cause he’s been overseas with ’is Dad for the last three years.” Scott stated grudgingly. “They took off the summer before Freshman year, right around the time Dad and I moved up to Medina I guess. As you can see he’s obviously back and they’ve apparently hooked back up again. So you might as well start lookin‘ for a different dance date.”

“You’re sayin’ he’s why Samantha ain’t really interested in anybody?” Brandon asked. It really wasn’t any of Scott’s business, but Brandon hadn’t even tried anything with Samantha. It wasn’t because he wasn’t attracted to her, he most definitely was. There was a kind of sweetness about her, the girl next door sort of thing that Brandon liked about her. She radiated innocence and unfortunately virginity.

“Probably.” Scott shrugged, thanking whatever powers to be for turning the conversation back to his advantage again. “They’ve always had a thing for each other. I know she’s been talking to him online while he’s been gone ‘cause I’ve heard ‘er talkin’ to Kelly and Rachael about ‘im at different times at school.” Scott stated, hoping he sounded indifferent. He really wanted no connection made between him and Jerry right now, not until he had talked to him.

“I suppose that would explain the familiarity with each other.” Brandon said, almost as if he were speaking to himself. There wasn’t any need in pressing the issue. Scott was well aware of his preferences and the looking so far hadn’t really been out of character for him.

“So, when you drive over the cliff at Quay’s, you gonna be in the car?” Brandon asked, shifting position in the seat to turn completely away from the more than interesting situation at the other table.

“Fuck you Brandon.” Scott growled, but felt slightly relieved to see that Brandon had actually turned himself physically toward him.

“I think I’ll pass.” He grinned wickedly. “You’re not my type.”

“The way you bed hop I didn’t figure you were that picky.”

“When you got it, you got it.” Brandon grinned mischievously. “What can I say. It keeps ‘em all comin‘ back for more.”

“I wouldn’t know.” Scott smiled, arching one brow at him. “Seems to me I’m the only one you ever say no to dude.”

“You ain’t my style.” Brandon stated, pinioning him once more with a hard stare.

“I haven’t quite figured your style yet.” Scott said quietly. “But I’m workin’ on it.”

Shrugging off the comment, Brandon changed the subject to a further discussion about Scott’s Charger. It was at least a basically neutral subject and one he really didn’t have to think about in order to make intelligent comments. Nursing his coke, he pulled up the image of the dark haired boy with Sam. He was gorgeous to say the least, and definitely not her boyfriend like Scott would like for him to believe.

There was obviously a lot of things that Scott was either unaware of or blinded to because of his own attraction to this guy. He wasn’t exactly sure of what one might call ‘the finer points’ but there was much more to the situation than Scott was letting on. Even if he didn’t know Sam the way he did, there was a certain way girls acted around guys they were either getting it from or trying to anyway. Sam was showing none of those signs. It was more than apparent that they knew each other and probably quite well, but they were not together.

Brandon knew that Scott’s rumored power over everyone was mostly from his ability to control any given situation through information and the ability to substantiate that information. Scott was a natural at dominating the spotlight since he seemed to crave it, manipulating any given situation to achieve it. There was something else about Scott that Brandon had sensed a long time ago, shortly after they had met. He knew that Scott had come from a family with money, Brandon had never allowed that to influence his feelings one way or the other about people. Yet he could see that Scott was trapped by his own perceptions of what he felt society expected of him thus placating himself by dominating and controlling those around him. It was his methods that had been the primary reason Brandon had always struggled so hard to maintain a calculated emotional distance from Scott.

Discovering some deep dark secret about Scott could prove an advantage at guaranteeing that distance. The once subtle innuendos and slight overtures made by Scott were getting harder and harder to ignore. It was a situation that Brandon wasn’t sure how to deal with right now. He liked Scott, when they were away from his normal crowd of little groupies, he even liked a few of them. He knew that he had been accepted by the majority of Scott’s inner circle too, which worked for him. But even that came with a price, just like everything else when it came to Scott Menning.

To be continued...