off his face.”
“Daniel, not liking sports has nothing to do with it.”
“I bet it can have. The sound of power tools—sends a shiver up my spine like nails on a chalkboard. And you know, I was never curious about what boys had that girls didn’t in their pants. Never. By sixth grade all the other boys knew. I didn’t even care.
“So I guess I always knew something wasn’t right for me. But I didn’t know what it was until I met Roderick. He showed me what it was.”
“So, tell me about him, what’s he like? What does he do?”
Daniel sighed. “Twenty-five, long shiny brown hair, brown eyes. Playful. Sometimes moody.” He thought about how Roderick just up and left, how he’d kicked Daniel out of his head when he tried to find him, to talk to him. “Unpredictable. Lives on a trust fund, or something. I don’t know all the details.”
“You sound sad.”
“I’m not. Not really. Just that Roderick had to take care of some crap out of town and I’m bored.”
“Well, let’s get together. I’d like to get to know my little brother better. What’s your number?”
He laughed. “Hang on, I don’t have it memorized.” He hadn’t even thought about it. He’d seen it, somewhere... ah, there it was, taped to the wall above the phone. Smart. He read it off to her. “But Cyn—you have to call pretty late. We tend to stay up all night and sleep all day around here.”
How was that for understatement?
“So... Daniel... was Dad full of shit? You didn’t go to jail?”
“Oh I went, all right. But Roderick rescued me. He always rescues me.”
“The way you say that scares me, Daniel. There are a lot of predators out there.”
“I know, Cynthia, believe me, I know. But it’s not like that. We do stuff, hang out, go to concerts...”
“You just said he’s twenty-five, Daniel. What you’re telling me isn’t making me feel any better. Sounds like he acts more your age than his own. Does he have sex with you?”
Daniel blushed. He couldn’t talk about this with his sister . “That’s none of your business.”
“You’re right. It isn’t. And you just told me the answer. Please, please tell me you know how to be safe? Kids your age don’t think AIDS is real, but take it from me, it’s still out there and people are still dying. I’m serious, Daniel. I want you to convince yourself that if you have sex with a man without a condom, even once, even if you love him, you will die. That’s how important it is.”
Daniel so wanted out of this conversation. “We’re safe, all right? Hey, look, I gotta go,” he said, and hung up. Sighed. Lecture central.
He felt a lot better, though. Maybe he would venture out and look for Reed.
He let his mind go blank and reached out for the taste of Reed, the touch… letting his desire lead his senses until he could see Reed in his mind, sipping coffee and talking to a beautiful woman with long dark hair.
“Gotcha,” he said softly, and headed outside.
***
Roderick led the boy into the crowd waiting for the Treasure Island ship to sink. It was winter in Las Vegas but still warm, still a million visitors in town.
“Pick someone,” he said to Anthony.
The boy’s head swung from side to side. He pointed to two blonde girls sitting on a bench a hundred yards away. They looked about his age and just as street-wise. One had very short hair, the other very long in school-girl braids. “I’ve seen them around, they’re not tourists.” He stared at them.
Roderick was about to say something about feeding when Anthony crooked a finger in the air and said, very softly, “Come here, Sweetie. That’s it. Come here.”
The girl with the braids was staring back at him. She rose and approached, weaving in and out of bystanders. The other girl watched for a second then called out in a strident, unpleasant voice, “Hey Candy, where ya goin’?”
The girl with the braids didn’t even look back at her friend. She had eyes only for
“Daniel, not liking sports has nothing to do with it.”
“I bet it can have. The sound of power tools—sends a shiver up my spine like nails on a chalkboard. And you know, I was never curious about what boys had that girls didn’t in their pants. Never. By sixth grade all the other boys knew. I didn’t even care.
“So I guess I always knew something wasn’t right for me. But I didn’t know what it was until I met Roderick. He showed me what it was.”
“So, tell me about him, what’s he like? What does he do?”
Daniel sighed. “Twenty-five, long shiny brown hair, brown eyes. Playful. Sometimes moody.” He thought about how Roderick just up and left, how he’d kicked Daniel out of his head when he tried to find him, to talk to him. “Unpredictable. Lives on a trust fund, or something. I don’t know all the details.”
“You sound sad.”
“I’m not. Not really. Just that Roderick had to take care of some crap out of town and I’m bored.”
“Well, let’s get together. I’d like to get to know my little brother better. What’s your number?”
He laughed. “Hang on, I don’t have it memorized.” He hadn’t even thought about it. He’d seen it, somewhere... ah, there it was, taped to the wall above the phone. Smart. He read it off to her. “But Cyn—you have to call pretty late. We tend to stay up all night and sleep all day around here.”
How was that for understatement?
“So... Daniel... was Dad full of shit? You didn’t go to jail?”
“Oh I went, all right. But Roderick rescued me. He always rescues me.”
“The way you say that scares me, Daniel. There are a lot of predators out there.”
“I know, Cynthia, believe me, I know. But it’s not like that. We do stuff, hang out, go to concerts...”
“You just said he’s twenty-five, Daniel. What you’re telling me isn’t making me feel any better. Sounds like he acts more your age than his own. Does he have sex with you?”
Daniel blushed. He couldn’t talk about this with his sister . “That’s none of your business.”
“You’re right. It isn’t. And you just told me the answer. Please, please tell me you know how to be safe? Kids your age don’t think AIDS is real, but take it from me, it’s still out there and people are still dying. I’m serious, Daniel. I want you to convince yourself that if you have sex with a man without a condom, even once, even if you love him, you will die. That’s how important it is.”
Daniel so wanted out of this conversation. “We’re safe, all right? Hey, look, I gotta go,” he said, and hung up. Sighed. Lecture central.
He felt a lot better, though. Maybe he would venture out and look for Reed.
He let his mind go blank and reached out for the taste of Reed, the touch… letting his desire lead his senses until he could see Reed in his mind, sipping coffee and talking to a beautiful woman with long dark hair.
“Gotcha,” he said softly, and headed outside.
***
Roderick led the boy into the crowd waiting for the Treasure Island ship to sink. It was winter in Las Vegas but still warm, still a million visitors in town.
“Pick someone,” he said to Anthony.
The boy’s head swung from side to side. He pointed to two blonde girls sitting on a bench a hundred yards away. They looked about his age and just as street-wise. One had very short hair, the other very long in school-girl braids. “I’ve seen them around, they’re not tourists.” He stared at them.
Roderick was about to say something about feeding when Anthony crooked a finger in the air and said, very softly, “Come here, Sweetie. That’s it. Come here.”
The girl with the braids was staring back at him. She rose and approached, weaving in and out of bystanders. The other girl watched for a second then called out in a strident, unpleasant voice, “Hey Candy, where ya goin’?”
The girl with the braids didn’t even look back at her friend. She had eyes only for
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