Works Of Art

Written By: LJ


“Whaat!” was Dusty’s preoccupied response to the musical tune playing on his cell phone. He was trying to study and resented the intrusion. “Skyy? Why are you phoning me? Where are you?” He sat up straighter, putting aside the Freightliner manual.

“I want you to come upstairs so I can show you something.”

“I thought you were supposed to be sleeping.” Dusty chided.

“I can’t!” A soft wail came through the line.

Picking up the distress in the younger man’s voice, Dusty relented. “Okay, Buddy. I’ll be right up.”

“This better be good!” Dusty muttered as he walked into the partially darkened room and flicked the switch. He immediately turned it off when he saw Skyy flinch at the unexpected glare from the overhead light. “What’s so important I have to see it now instead of in the morning?” Dusty asked, taking a seat on the side of the bed and turning on the lamp.

“This!” Skyy pushed down the blankets and pulled up his night-shirt. “It’s starting to hurt a lot, D!”

“When did you get your belly button pierced, Skyy?” Dusty inquired as he gazed in astonishment at the new addition on his fellow Brat’s stomach.

“Sunday evening. That’s why I got home so late.”

“Yeah, and earned yourself a few early bedtimes by missing your curfew yet again. Maybe you should have paid more attention to the warning given you the night before.” Dusty laughed at the man in the bed. He knew his reminder was completely unappreciated when Skyy responded to the teasing by sticking out his tongue. “Who pierced you anyway and where were you at the time?”

“Calvin did it! We were at Warren’s home. Just kinda hanging out, ya know? Warren and Marty had let Calvin pierce them the night before. They dared Aaron and me to get it done too. I wasn’t going to at first, but Aaron said it wasn’t very painful and it looked so cool. I thought it would heal faster than this, but it’s been almost two days now and it’s still really sore.”

“It’s festering, Skyy! No wonder it’s hurting you.” Dusty leaned in to get a close-up view of the pus-like discharge and screwed up his face at the sight. “Man, that doesn’t look good at all, little buddy.”

“Don’t touch it!” the younger man cried out when he saw his partner’s hand venturing nearer. He yanked the bed linen up to his chin.

“I better go get Den!” Dusty murmured, shaking his head. He didn’t want to assume any responsibility in deciding what needed to be done. “Because there is no way I’m going to mess with something that gross.”

“He’s gonna get mad if you disturb him while he’s working on his book.”

“He’ll be a lot more pissed off if we don’t tell him! Besides, I don’t think that infection is going to clear up without medical aid.”

“I bet I’m in trouble, right?”

“Nah! Den’s never told you not to get pierced,” Dusty assured the younger man. “Of course, he’d probably have preferred you getting it done professionally.”

“Any bets he brings up the subject of me taking dares,” Skyy grumbled.

“Deal with it when the time comes, kid!” Dusty strongly advised as he stood up.

************

Dennis was typing up the final few pages of his manuscript and completely oblivious to the conversation taking place in the master bedroom. His work was interrupted by a phone call. “Good evening. Taylor, Roberts, MacKay residence. Dennis Taylor speaking.”

“Hello, Dennis. Stephen here. I’ve a question for you. I was wondering if perchance you’d seen a recently acquired item adorning your youngest Brat’s body?”

“I have no idea what you are talking about, Stephen. Could you provide a bit of clarification, please?” The inquiry was definitely attracting Dennis’ attention.

“I just returned home from an unplanned two-hour visit to the walk-in clinic. Aaron’s navel was badly infected due to him having allowed one of those half-witted friends of his to perform an amateur piercing job on him. In somebody’s kitchen, of all places.” Stephen’s frustration came through loud and clear.

“And you have reason to believe Skyy may also have participated in this body decorating project?”

“I’m afraid so. According to Aaron, they both managed to convince themselves it was an appropriated thing to do.”

“I’ll check on Skyy immediately.”

“I didn’t want it getting worse than it already may be, Dennis.” Stephen said in a concerned voice. “And by the way, Dominic is on duty at the clinic and is expecting you.”

“Thank you for calling, Stephen. I appreciate it.”

Dennis walked into the bedroom in time to hear Dusty’s ‘deal with it when the time comes’ comment. He stood at the foot of the bed and firmly requested, “Let’s see it, Sport!” Sitting down in Dusty’s recently vacated spot; he gently uncovered his Brat’s stomach and peered at the little circle of gold winking up at him. He sighed in loving exasperation when he saw the redness surrounding it and the thick yellow liquid seeping from the entrance and exit points of the ring.

Glancing up and seeing the looks of confusion on his partners’ faces, Dennis explained, “I just got off the phone with Stephen. Guess who had matching artwork?”

“I tried to keep it clean, Den.”

“It was doomed from the start, Sport. The circumstances under which this was done certainly left a great deal to be desired, didn’t they”

“Yeah, I guess so. Am I in trouble?” Skyy murmured, trying to read his older partner’s expression.

“Not for getting pierced if that’s what you’re worried about. However, we will be discussing this propensity you have for accepting inappropriate challenges.”

“I figured as much!” Skyy griped and rolled his eyes. He glared up at Dusty to let him know his chuckle was unwelcome.

“You are probably not going to enjoy the next couple of hours, Skyy.” Seeing the wariness in the younger man’s eyes, Dennis added, “I’m taking you to the clinic to get this taken care of.”

“But I don’t want to see a doctor!” Skyy’s adamant rejection of the plan was ignored as Dennis pulled the blankets off him and hauled him out of bed. His struggles ended abruptly when a firm hand smacked against his backside.

************

“I think we should leave now, Den. We’ve waited long enough!” Skyy restlessly stated.

“We have only been here for twenty minutes, Skyy,” Den patiently informed his youngest partner. “Be thankful it’s a Tuesday evening and not Friday, when I imagine it would be a whole lot busier.”

“I don’t know why you made me get dressed, Den. I should have been allowed to wear my nightclothes. That old guy who just came in is wearing his housecoat and slippers,”Skyy grumbled a couple of minutes later. He wasn’t happy and had been getting the message across by criticizing one thing after another. “And how much longer is it going to be anyway?”

“Find something to read, Skyy, and stop complaining!” Dennis ordered.

“I’m allowed to complain, Den!” Skyy fractiously reminded the older man.

“I know you are, sweetheart. But there’s not much point, when it’s a lost cause.” Dennis smiled at the angry glare he got in response to his comment.

Dennis and Dusty worked at ignoring their partner’s protests, knowing the younger man was nervous. Although they sympathized with Skyy’s desire to be anywhere other than here at the clinic, they also acknowledged that Skyy had no one to blame but himself. They hoped the steadily decreasing number of patients waiting to be seen, was a sign they’d be seeing Dominic soon.

“Do you smell smoke, Den?”

“No, I don’t, Sport. I don’t think you do either!” Dennis sighed and hid behind the magazine he had been flipping through.

“I do so and there’s something familiar about it!” Skyy insisted. “Do you smell it, D? It really stinks!”

“Not me!” Hoping a diversion might work, Dusty leaned closer and whispered. “Ya know, Skyy, I remember a time when I got into some hot water over something like this. Wanna hear about it?”

“Did it involve piercing by any chance?” Sky asked; eyeing the gold earring in Dusty’s left lobe.

“Nah; I’ve had this since high school, Buddy,” Dusty answered when he saw what Skyy was looking at. “It was a different kind of body art and it happened near the end of my sophomore year at university. It comprised of tattooing!” He chuckled as Skyy eyes flew open.

“You mean the band you’ve got around your right bicep?”

“Nope,” Dusty answered before continuing his narration. “Den and I had been living together for less than a year when I first mentioned wanting to get a tattoo. He didn’t really care for the idea but said it was my choice if I wanted it badly enough to save my money to get it done properly. At the time, I was willing to wait for however long it took me to accumulate the hundred and fifty dollars.”

“Were you on an allowance or something?”

“Things were kinda tight back then. Den was the only one working while I attended school. Besides paying all our living expenses, he was trying to put some aside for a down payment on our own home, so both of us were sort of making do with as little pocket money as possible. I had already sold my truck to cover my tuition and books. Of course being that patience has seldom qualified as one of my stronger virtues, I found it really hard to wait until I had the money to pay a licensed professional. When a friend of mine told me about a guy who did tattoos for less than half the price, I went for it.”

“If you’re not talking about the one on your arm, then which one are you referring to?”

“Basically, the one I never got. And this is where Norman ‘Shithead’ Connelly comes into the picture!” Dusty shuddered at the memory of a past foe.

“Who’s that?”

“A fellow student; we were only taking one course together but it was hate at first sight. I thought he was an arrogant son-of-a-bitch and he considered himself God’s gift to mankind. Under any other circumstances, he wouldn’t have given me the time of day but I had something he wanted. Something I had no intentions of giving up.”

“What did ya have?”

“Dennis!”

“Are you serious? He tried to break you guys up?”

“Every chance he got! He’d go out of his way to embarrass me in front of Den and make me feel inferior. I was really uptight about going back to school to begin with and I definitely didn’t need anyone harassing me. Den and I had several arguments over that piss-ant and I forget the number of times I came home with obvious signs I’d been fighting. I never told you this, but I used to get in a lot of fights during my teens and still used it as a means of, hmmm……let’s just say, handling certain problem areas in my early twenties.”

“Man, I bet that wasn’t very high on Den’s list for acceptable activities,” Skyy said softly as he shook his head.

“Yeah, tell me about it!” Dusty grimaced. “Anyway, Norman overheard talk of my upcoming appointment with the tattoo artist and squealed on me. Den tracked me down just in time to prevent what could easily have turned into a serious health hazard. We later heard the place I’d gone to had close because of legal and financial woes. Apparently a few disgruntled customers had started a lawsuit.”

“Guess Den wasn’t too happy, was he?”

“I got a sound walloping for attempting to find the easy way out and avoid taking the time to save up the money like I had agreed to. I had a bad habit of not thinking things through before jumping in over my head and Den was at a loss as to how to impress upon me the need to consider my own well-being before doing something foolish. I told him I thought it might help if there was a clearer definition between the levels of seriousness in regards to what rules I was having trouble adhering to. That’s when we decided to get the paddle, even though I knew Den had one or two reservations about us getting one. It’s probably why he seldom uses it.”

“So when did you get the tattoo you have?”

“Several months later; Den gave me a gift certificate for one on my twenty-first birthday. He even accompanied me to the tattoo parlour of his choice.” Dusty smiled happily as thoughts of the special event came to mind.

“Did it hurt?” Skyy’s question regained Dusty’s attention.

“The outer part of the arm was tolerable, but the underside hurt like hell. I was actually crying by the time it was finished.” Dusty chuckled at the easily readable expressions spreading across Skyy’s face. He correctly assumed his fellow-Brat was making a mental note to forget about getting a similar permanent marking where multiple needles were involved.

Dennis had been listening in on the conversation and found the discussion an entertaining way to pass time. He looked up as the receptionist called out another patient’s name. A woman got up to accompany her young daughter into an examining room down the hall. Glancing at the large wall clock, he noticed it was after ten-thirty. Only one other couple remained and he knew there were two doctors working the shift. ‘We just might make it home before midnight,’ he thought wearily.

“Are you sure you don’t smell smoke, D?” Skyy breathed in and wrinkled up his nose. “I’ve smelled before tonight and it stank just as much then as it does now!”

“I do now, Buddy. Man, what a stench!” Dusty concurred. “You must smell it too, Den!”

Dennis was saved from having to respond when a heavy-set, gray-haired gentleman in a white smock came out of an office, strolled over to the nurse’s station and picked up a chart. “Skyylar MacKay!” the doctor announced just as the receptionist returned.

Skyy’s face turned chalk white when he saw who had called his name and he immediately made a dash for the main doors.

“Catch him, Dusty!” Dennis ordered as he walked over to the desk. Dusty jumped up and ran out to waylay his fellow-Brat.

“Dr. Peters! You are not to be smoking in the waiting room,” the nurse admonished and held out an ashtray. “Please allow me to dispose of it for you.”

“It may be best if Skyylar was seen by our family physician as he is not the most co-operative of patients,” Dennis politely suggested. He was relieved when the senior citizen, who had been hacking and coughing his lungs out for the past hour, took Skyy’s place. “I’ll be back as soon as possible,” Dennis informed the receptionist before leaving to find out what had become of his two partners.

Rounding the corner, Dennis spotted his Brats half way down the block. With the help of a street light, he was able to make out his lovers’ body language. Dusty was sitting on the edge of a planter box, facing Skyy with the younger man’s hands in his. He appeared to be in the midst of persuading Skyy to return to the clinic with him and the vehement shaking of Skyy’s head was a clear indication of Dusty’s lack of success.

Dennis’ arrival drew opposing reactions from the other men. Dusty breathed a sigh of relief because reinforcements had arrived, while Skyy let out a disheartened groan in acknowledgement of his being outnumbered.

“He doesn’t want to be seen by the older doctor, Den. He’s afraid of something,” Dusty quietly informed their Top.

“I-I don’t want him touching me,” Skyy whispered, turning pleading eyes up to Dennis.

“It’s all right, little one. Dom’s waiting for us.” Dennis placed his arm around Skyy’s shoulders and gently steered him back to the clinic. His first priority was to get his youngest Brat cared for. Learning the reason behind the fear would have to wait.

Their return coincided with Dominic giving instruction to his nurse-receptionist. “You can leave now, Nancy. Just lock the door on your way out and I’ll finish closing up when I’ve taken care of Skyy. He’s our last patient of the night.” He turned to Dennis and requested. “Follow me, please.”

Dusty helped Skyy undress and slip on a light blue gown. After doing up the ties on the back, he lifted the smaller man and plunked him down on the table. “Everything’s going to okay, little buddy.” He continued chatting in order to keep Skyy’s mind off the upcoming examination while Dennis conversed to Dominic.

“I’m sorry about the hold up, Dom. I know you’ve had a long evening and must be looking forward to getting home,” Dennis spoke quietly as he leaned against the chrome counter. He watched the doctor gather up the items needed to care for his patient. “I don’t know what frightened Skyy, but I am beginning to suspect it may have something to do with the cigar Dr. Peters was smoking.”

“We are repeatedly having to remind that man not to smoke in the clinic. He’s retired and is still an excellent physician. We are more than grateful to have his help when we are short-handed. Unfortunately, his smoking is not helpful in persuading patients to give up the habit.”

“In other words, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” Dennis chuckled softly at the expression of mock injury on his friend’s face.

Ignoring Dennis’ bantering, Dominic pushed a small, wheeled table across the room. “So! What have you been up to, kiddo?” Dominic asked as he examined his patient’s abdomen. In addition to the warmth, redness and swelling, he also detected a foul smelling drainage.

“I don’t see the need to go over the sordid details,” Skyy quibbled. “You already heard it all from Aaron.”

“True enough!” Dominic agreed. “I am going to remove the ring, Skyy. Then I’ll use a concentrated saline solution to flush out as much of the infection as possible. It will take approximately five minutes for this jet irrigation machine to clean the area. Ready?”

Responding to Skyy’s strained nod, Dominic began. He frowned slightly when both Skyy and Dusty flinched as the gold band was opened and drawn through the tender skin. He didn’t fail to notice the tight grip Skyy had on Dennis’ hand, nor did he miss the slight whimper followed by a sigh of relief.

“It’s out!” Dominic announced, moving on to the next part of the process. Wanting to redirect Skyy’s attention and hoping to have his suspicions confirmed, he conversationally inquired. “What unnerved you about Dr. Peters, Skyy?” Getting only a wide-eyed stare in response to his question, Dominic lightly interrogated. “Was it the cigar?” Again, no verbal reply was forthcoming as the young man attempted to turn away. The doctor lifted the sheet covering his patient’s hips and tenderly touched the puckered scar on the top of Skyy’s left thigh. “Was this the result of a cigar burn?” Dominic felt he was finally making some headway when he received an almost indiscernible nod. “How old were you, little one?”

“Almost eleven,” Skyy murmured. “I really don’t want to talk about it.”

“Who did it, sweetheart?” Dennis persisted, even as his throat tightened.

“He did. But it was my own fault, ‘cause I shouldn’t have said it was stinking up the placed. It was rude. He was so angry and he just held it…..” Skyy’s voice faded, leaving the rest of the sentence unspoken. He was uncomfortable with the direction this conversation was taking.

There was no doubt in Dennis’ mind as to who had committed this cruelty. His chest twisted painfully when he glanced up at a strangled sound from Dusty and saw tears forming in the young man’s eyes. He easily picked up on his oldest Brat’s rigid posture and fast, shallow breathing. However, Dennis was unable to determined whether it was overwhelming sadness, anger, or insatiable frustration behind the heightened emotional turmoil. He knew from past experience, Dusty’s first shoot-from-the-hip reaction would have been to go after the one responsible for the harm done to someone he loved with all his heart.

It was in similar moments when incidences from the past came to light, that Dennis considered it a blessing Skyy’s father, Harold, was no longer alive. Sending Dominic a silent message to keep Skyy focused on what the doctor was doing, Dennis placed an arm around Dusty’s shoulder and lovingly thumbed away the tear that managed to escape and roll down Dusty’s cheek. “It’s okay, baby,” he whispered, pulling his distraught Brat into a warm embrace.

“Skyy. Listen to me, son! You were not the one who did anything wrong. You were the victim, not the perpetrator. Do you understand what I am telling you?” Dominic turned off the flow of the warm, cleansing fluid and gently dried Skyy’s abdomen. “Now, even more importantly, do you believe me?” He was rewarded with a shy smile and a nodding motion that increased in ardour as Skyy’s acceptance strengthened.

“Uncle Earl said the same thing,” Skyy intoned as he inspected what he could see of the now less painful injury. “It’s feeling better already, Doc!” he exclaimed with the most enthusiasm he’d shown all evening, before glowering at the older man when Dominic chuckled and ruffled his hair.

“When was the last time you had a tetanus shot, Skyy?” Dominic asked. He had his back to Skyy and was taking a couple of small bottles out of the glass cabinet.

“I don’t know. Last time I had a needle stuck in me was you stitching up my cheek when it was cut by someone’s ring. Ah, not counting the piercing of course.” Skyy grimaced as both events came to mind. “I probably had the kid shots but I’m not sure,” he added distractedly while tentatively poking around his navel. A large hand stilled the motion.

“Don’t touch it, Sport!” Dennis softly admonished. Having succeeded in settling his older Brat, he was free to enfold Skyy’s smaller hand in one of his own larger ones while soothingly removing sweaty curls from the young man’s forehead with the other.

“Then I can’t imagine you being too pleased about me having to administer two injections now, kiddo,” Dominic stated. He deliberately neglected to mention the need for more blood tests. ‘One thing at a time,’ he thought, picking up on his patient’s growing agitation.

Skyy sat up and backed away while keeping his eyes on the items Dominic was carrying towards him. He was mesmerized by the hypodermics lying in the small tray and failed to grasp the significance of the brief discussion between the older men.

“Will this particular escapade result in a physical discipline situation, Dennis?” Dominic quietly inquired.

“No!” Dennis assured him. A signal from the doctor prodded Dennis into action. Flipping his youngest Brat, he lifted the blue gown to bare Skyy’s right hip. The area was quickly swabbed and an injection of antibiotic given as a wail of objection filled the room.

“One down and only one to go, little buddy,” Dusty encouraged while Dennis turned Skyy so the left hip could be bared to receive a booster shot for tetanus. Skyy barely felt the second injection but wailed anyway for form’s sake.

When released, Skyy bestowed a hurt pout on the three men he considered his attackers. He groaned and rolled his eyes when Dominic once again ruffled his hair before heading back to the medicine cabinet.

“I just need to draw a little blood, Skyy, to run titres in order to check immunization levels,” Dominic offered the information as he approached with yet another needle in his hand.

“No way, man!” Skyy jumped off the examining table and made a dash for the door. None other than his fellow-Brat unexpectedly impeded his escape. “You’re supposed to be on my side, D!”

“There are no sides here, Buddy. You just have to do what you have to do. We all want what’s best for you.” Dusty’s soft but sincerely spoken words calmed his young partner and enable Skyy to reluctantly submit to the final procedure.

************

A book bag landing on the table with a hard thud startled Skyy. “What’s your problem, Aaron?” he inquired with a frown of disapproval while shoving the bag to one side.

“I’m sore, I’m pissed-off, and I’m still grounded!” The other man listed his complaints as he placed his cafeteria tray down, pulled out a chair and gingerly perched on it. “How did things go for you last night, Skyy?”

“Could have been better, I guess.” Skyy shrugged his shoulders and went back to eating his lunch. “But I think the worst is over. At least I hope it is.”

“Are you in a lot of trouble?”

“Ya know, I’m really not sure,” Skyy responded after giving it some thought. “It was after midnight when we got home so Den said we’d be discussing it this evening.”

“Now that sounds ominous!” Aaron declared.

“How did you fare? Or would you rather not talk about it?” Skyy grinned at his friend’s obvious squirm of discomfort.

“Could have been worse,” Aaron chuckled good-naturedly. “Dominic removed the ring and shot a shit-load of antibiotic into my hip. Steve spanked my ass until it was sorer than the damn injection site and my belly put together. He didn’t paddle me though. Said that was because I owned up to what I had done before he heard it from someone else. Goddamn it, Skyy! Can you believe it? Steve actually got to tattle to Dennis for once instead of vice-versa.”

“Always a first time,” Skyy laughed; then turning serious, he demanded. “What? You only got one shot? Not one for tetanus; no blood test; just one measly little shot?”

“I had a tetanus shot less than two years ago, Skyy. So I only needed something to fight the infection,” Aaron explained. He failed miserably in his attempt to soothe his friend’s outraged indignation.

“Man, I’d like to tell Dennis and Dusty about this but I already know they’ll be right in saying it was my own fault. I shouldn’t have believed you when you said it didn’t hurt. How come you lied to me, Aaron?”

“I’m sorry, Skyy. I know it hurt and the ice was absolutely useless. I just didn’t want to look like a sissy. I didn’t mean to talk you into it,” Aaron answered softly and waited hopefully for the other man’s forgiveness.

“Yeah, I kinda understand. It’s not as if you forced me to do anything against my will. I wanted a ring after I saw how cool yours looked.”

“No grudges held, then?”

“Well, I’d be on the lookout for a little retaliation if I were you,” Skyy teased and laugh as Aaron’s eyes narrowed in feign irritation. The younger man gathered up his personal items in preparation for his next class. “See you around, my friend!” he called as he practically skipped out of the room.

Aaron groaned and put his head down on the table. “What the hell have I got myself into now?” he muttered to himself, wondering what his future had in store.

************

“I’m going upstairs to shower, Den,” Dusty informed his older partner as they passed one another in the hall. “Skyy’s having something to eat in the kitchen.”

Dennis waited for his youngest Brat to polish off the last of his snack. He smiled at Skyy’s loud yawn. “I think we’ve put off our discussion as long as possible, Sport.” He gazed lovingly at the sleepy violet-blue eyes turned up to him, gently pulled Skyy to his feet, sat down in the now empty chair and invited the smaller man to straddle his lap.

“I didn’t accept the dare, Den. Honest! I only decided to get pierced when I saw how neat it looked on Aaron. Had I not wanted it, I wouldn’t have let anyone talk me into getting it. You believe me, don’t you?”

“Of course, I believe you, sweetheart. But we still have to deal with the unsafe method used to acquire the décor you found so appealing. It was highly unsanitary, as you soon discovered. I want you to put together a report on how you could have kept yourself from bodily harm while still obtaining what you wanted and I expect it to be on my desk first thing Saturday morning. You need to learn to take better care of yourself.”

“But I’ve already learned, Den, and I am probably going to have a scar to remind me never to do it again. Plus getting jabbed in the butt twice and being made to let Dominic steal a pint of my blood.” Skyy was overtired enough to consider his arguments had some merit.

“Those injections were necessary and you hardly even felt the second one. And, young man, no one stole anything. Dominic only took the one small vial of blood needed to run tests. You’ve lost it, little boy, if you believe I would think for one minute you’d never contemplate pulling something like this again. You are going to do the essay and ponder over how fortunate you are not to have found yourself across my knee being soundly spanked,” Dennis scolded.

“But, Den….” Skyy left the words unspoken when he caught the expression on his Top’s handsome face. He dropped his head on Dennis’ shoulder and murmured his compliance. He sat up suddenly as an uneasy thought came to mind. “I got to bed late last night, Den. Is an extra ‘early’ night going to be added to make up for it?”

“No, Sport. Extenuating circumstances were involved, so it wasn’t as if you were staying up to enjoy yourself, was it?” Dennis pulled Skyy into a bone-crushing hug and hid a grin of amusement in the nest of curls beneath his chin. He felt more than heard the younger man’s relieved sigh followed by another huge yawn.

“It’s someone’s bedtime,” Dennis quietly hinted a couple of moments later as he gently attempted to pry the arms from around his neck. “Up you go, Skyy, and get ready for bed.”

“Aah, can you put me to bed, please?” Skyy softly pleaded, snuggling closer.

“Aren’t you getting too big for that?” Dennis chuckled.

“I’m no bigger than the last time you did it,” Skyy reminded him.

“Okay, hang on!” Dennis positioned his arms under his Brat’s bottom and stood up. “Wrap your legs around my hips, Sport.” the big man instructed as he walked out of the room and headed for the stairs.

Skyy bounced a couple of times when Dennis dropped him on the bed. He sighed contentedly, relaxed and waited for his partner to undress him. He lifted his hips at the insistent tugging on his jeans and shifted just enough to facilitate the removal of his sweatshirt.

A billow of steam followed Dusty into the master bedroom. He stopped at the foot of the bed and smiled at his lovers’ antics. Skyy was squealing and squirming in an effort to get away from their older partner who was employing every possible means to tickle the younger man into co-operating.

“Uncle! Uncle!” Skyy capitulated amid peals of laughter.

“Are you going to finish getting ready for bed?” Dennis asked, momentarily breaking off the attack.

“Yes! I’ll do it if you let me up,” Skyy promised. He bolted for the bathroom as soon as Dennis rolled to one side and set him free.

Dennis lay on his back and gazed appreciatively at Dusty’s naked form. Seeing the other man’s growing erection, Dennis got to his feet. He wrapped his arms around his oldest Brat, looked into the sultry gray eyes and enticingly offered. “If you get your robe on, Grease-monkey, and wait for me downstairs, I’ll be more than willing to take care of that for you.”

Dusty didn’t have to be asked a second time. “Kiss Skyy goodnight for me, Den,” he merrily requested as he left the room.

Skyy ran out of the en suite and jumped onto the bed. “Where’s D?” he inquired.

“He’s got other plans, Sport. Don’t look at me like that!” Dennis lightly admonished when the younger man rolled his eyes. He chuckled and tossed a large T-shirt into Skyy’s waiting hands.

“I’m not tired, you know,” Skyy muttered as he pulled the nightwear over his head.

An “Ah-huh.” made Dennis’ disbelief known. “In you go, babe.” Dennis held up the blanket and patiently waited for his Brat to crawl into bed before gently tucking him in. “That one’s from Dusty,” he said after planting a kiss on Skyy’s lips. “And this is from me.” He tenderly kissed him a second time. “Go to sleep, sweetheart!”

“I can’t! It’s too early!” Skyy whined.

“It is after nine o’clock. You wouldn’t be going to bed this early if you hadn’t stayed out so late on the weekend, Skyy.”

“Maybe you could join me,” Skyy seductively suggested.

“And just what would you learn by me doing that?”

“Why don’t we just try it and find out?” Skyy smirked mischievously. His invitation lost some of its’ sexual appeal when it was accompanied by a loud yawn that was lengthy enough to make his eyes water.

“Not tonight, Baby.” Dennis kissed him one last time. Then clicking on the nightlight, he walked over to the door. He smiled when he glanced over his shoulder and wasn’t at all surprised to notice his young lover had already fallen asleep.

************

Saturday afternoon found Dusty studying the final chapter in the Freightliner manual. He was patiently awaiting his partners’ return from a special errand Dennis has taken Skyy on. He heard the car in the driveway just as he read the last paragraph. ‘Perfect timing!’ he thought and listened expectantly for his fellow-Brat’s grand entrance. He smiled when Skyy ran into the living room and dropped to his knees in front of him.

“Got it, D! Whadaya think?” Skyy’s ear-to-ear grin and sparkling violet-blue eyes portrayed his excitement. His bubbling enthusiasm was contagious.

“It looks real punk, Buddy! Did it hurt?” Dusty asked, gently touching the ends of a golden semi-circle protruding from Skyy’s left eyebrow.

“Nowhere near as much as the navel ring!” An expression of disdain marred Skyy’s handsome features when the unpleasant memories of the week’s earlier events surfaced. “But I almost threw up at the crunching sound it made,” he added.

Dennis stood in the doorway and watched his partners’ animated conversation. He smiled happily at the two young men who provided all the beauty and colour needed to decorate his world.

The End