Field of Blooms: The Beginning

"I told you superman, I know what your weakness is. Now come back to the party."

Austin, still recovering from his orgasm replied, "Give me a few minutes."

"Okay but I better see you back at the party soon." Eric grinned as he turned and walked away.

Just as he was tying the string on his bathing suit Becka walked back up.

"So, what did I miss?" she asked as she saw the look on Austin's face.

"Nothing." Austin grinned. "Do you want to go back?"

"If you want too."

They rejoined the party but Austin didn't go back in the pool. For the rest of the night he and Becka sat and talked. As the night went on the party showed no signs of slowing down and by eleven Austin was ready to go as he still had that long bike ride home. He told Becka that he was heading out and gave her his phone number. They both agreed to hang out again soon. As he was making his way over to Eric someone tripped him causing him to fall into the pool hitting his head on the edge. Eric jumped in after him and helped him out of the pool. Blood was coming out of a cut above his right eye. He grabbed the nearest towel and pressed it onto the cut to try and stop the bleeding causing Austin to hiss at the pressure on his wound. Eric walked Austin into the house and sat him down at the kitchen counter. He told Austin to not move until he got back with the first aid kit. While Austin was sitting at the counter Mrs. Mason walked in.

"What the hell are you doing in my house?" She yelled. "Oh my god you are dripping blood all over my white marble counter!"

"I'm sorry ma'am. I fell into the pool and hit my head."

"You got blood in the pool?! Just great now I'm going to have to get it completely drained and cleaned! Where is Eric?!"

Austin pointed towards the hallway and she went to find her son.

"What is that boy doing in my house, Eric?" she asked as she tapped him on the shoulder.

"I'm trying to find the first aid kit so I can cover up the cut above his eye."

"You are not going to waste that on him. He is trash just like his family. He can go home and use his own first aid kit!"

"So you just want me to send him on his way bleeding? That is fucked up."

"Do not take that tone with me young man. Get that white trash out of my house right now!"

Eric ignored his mother's words and took the kit back to the kitchen but he found it empty. The only thing left was the bloody towel and a few drops of blood on the floor. He ran outside to see if he could find Austin but when he looked out front he saw that Austin's bike was gone. Quickly he ran back into the house, grabbed his keys and took off down the road to catch up to Austin. He knew that he wouldn't have been able to get too far. Given that Austin could take a few ways home he hoped that he had picked the right one. As he drove down the winding country road his headlights illuminated a silhouette off in the distance. His heart slowed down when he saw it was Austin and relief washed over him.

"Austin, get in the car." Eric demanded as he pulled up next to him.

Austin ignored the command and kept on riding.

"Austin, please at least let me look at the cut."

Austin just kept riding. Finally Eric pulled the car in front of him forcing Austin to come to a sudden stop. Eric jumped out and grabbed the handle bars before Austin could try and turn away.

"Why did you leave?"

"I heard what your mother said about me." Austin said as tears fell from his eyes. "I never should have come to the party. I was so stupid to think that it was going to work out."

"What do you mean work out? It was a party."

"I mean us Eric. Your people don't mix with my class of people and I was stupid to think that we could."

"Are you trying to break up with me?"

"Yes. This just isn't going to work. You need to find a guy who is in your class. At least then your mom and friends might approve."

"You are not breaking up with me. I'm not going to let that happen. I love you Austin."

"Let me go. I just want to go home."

"At least let me drive and then, after you get some sleep tonight, we'll talk more about this tomorrow."

"There's nothing to talk about, it's over!" Austin said as he tried to move.

As Eric tried to hold on, a struggle ensued. During the struggle Eric lost his balance and they both fell to the ground. The bike peddle cut Eric's stomach as he landed on it, which immediately caused him to snap. He picked up the bike and, in a blind fury, tossed it to the side of the road.

"Fuck you Austin! Just fuck everything! You want to end this then fine! Have it your way you selfish son of a bitch! I took a big risk inviting you to the party but I guess that doesn't mean anything to you."

"I'm selfish? Have you looked in the fucking mirror lately?! Sometimes I think I'm not your boyfriend but just some guy you can have your way with then go back to your normal life like nothing happened."

"Oh really? Then I guess me inviting you tonight meant nothing?!" Eric raged.

His body now shaking, Austin spat back, "I was there as the poor queer from school that you feel sorry for, not as a friend and sure as fuck not as a boyfriend."

"You told me that you were fine with me staying in the closet and now it sure sounds like you've changed your mind."

"Well maybe I have."

"Then fuck you Austin Montgomery. I don't care if I never see your face ever again!" Eric said as he pushed Austin out of the way and got in his car.

Austin stood in the silence of the hot summer night as he watched the tail lights from Eric's car speed off into the distance. That night he cried himself to sleep. Eric was the first guy that he had true feelings for and he felt like he had just made the biggest mistake of his life.

The next morning Austin tried to call Eric to talk but Mrs. Mason said he wasn't home and didn't know when he would return. Austin had a feeling that she was lying but there was nothing else he could do but hope Eric would call him. He made sure that when he was doing his chores he stayed within earshot of the phone. He waited all day and into a good part of the evening hoping the phone would ring. At dinner time his mom noticed that something was wrong with Austin but when she asked him he only told her he wasn't feeling too well. Once dinner was over and he had washed the dishes he went up to his room and laid on the bed. His heart was breaking. He had fucked up big time and was afraid it was too late to fix things with Eric. There came a knock at his door and when he answered his mother was standing there holding two bowls of Mint Chocolate chip ice cream, his absolute favorite.

"I figured you'd like some ice cream." She said as she handed him the bowl.

"I really don't have the appetite for it."

"Okay, now I know there is something seriously wrong. You never turn down mint chocolate chip. Did you and Eric have a fight?" She asked as she sat on the bed and scooted the bowl closer to him.

Austin sat in silence wondering if he should tell his mother the truth about Eric. Austin had told his parents awhile ago that he was gay but he never told them he was in a secret relationship with Eric. As far as he knew they just thought he and Eric were just good friends. He decided to tell her the truth. She listened intently as he told her how Eric had approached him one day after school and asked if he wanted to hang out, and over time that led to them becoming more than friends. He did omit that they had fooled around, which was just something that he wasn't ready to share. He told her about almost everything that had happened at the party and how hurt he was when Eric didn't defend him and that it was his idea to break off the relationship.

"Austin, your father and I had a feeling that things between you and Eric where more than just friends but we didn't want to say anything to you."

"You knew, mom?!" Austin exclaimed and then asked sullenly, "Do you think I made a mistake?"

"I think that the two of you should have sat down and really talked about what was going to come of this relationship. Was he ever going to come out or would you forever be the other person? I don't see a problem if someone wants to stay in the closet, that is completely their business and I don't think they should have to come out. But I will say this; I do not like the idea of my son being someone's play thing, to put it nicely. I want you to be able to find a guy who is going to make you completely it happy and love you one-hundred percent. Be honest with yourself, if he is still dating Jennifer then how can he love you one-hundred percent?"

"I was just hoping that he would dump her and not have a girlfriend."

"Did you ever ask him to do that?"

"No, I wouldn't want him to do something that he doesn't want to do."

"Then why should you do something that you don't want to do. Think about that for a little."

His mom was right. It wasn't fair for him to change things and make sacrifices if Eric wasn't willing to do the same. He thought about it long and hard that night before he fell asleep.

The next morning was sickeningly hot. It was the type of heat that just sucks the breath out of your lungs. By six a.m. it was already seventy-eight degrees and the temperature was going to rocket past ninety-eight. Austin was completely soaked with sweat by the time he had finished cleaning out the pool filter and it was only eight-thirty in the morning. The heat was beginning to get unbearable by lunch time and he retreated to the only cooler room in the house, the basement. This was not your typical basement. This was a basement of a 250 year old farm house. The ceiling was just less than six foot so Austin had to bend over when he walked down there. The relief of the cool concrete floor was a much needed reprieve. He had brought down his copy of The Never Ending Story and opened it to where he had left off. He was so caught up in the story that he almost didn't hear the phone ringing upstairs. Just as the machine was about to pick up he grabbed the receiver.

"Hello?" He said, clearly out of breath.

"It's your mother. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I was down in the basement and ran up when I heard he phone ringing."

"Oh okay. I was just calling to let you know your father and I are going to be working some overtime tonight and we won't be home until after midnight."

"Oh okay, not a problem." Austin's tone of voice was clearly disappointed.

Tonight was supposed to be family night where they would play games, eat pizza and watch a movie. It was the one night of the week Austin looked forward to the most. His mother could hear the disappointment in his voice and it broke her heart.

"I'm sorry Austin. I promise we can have family night tomorrow. Okay?"

"Okay mom. Tell dad I said hi and that I love him."

"I will and be careful tonight. There are supposed to be some pretty severe thunderstorms rolling through."

"I will mom. I love you."

"I love you too."

Austin sat looking at the phone wondering why his parents were working all this extra overtime. He thought that maybe it was time for him to find a job and help out more around the house. Doing chores only went so far and didn't help pay the bills. So he decided that the next day he would go out and look for a job. Granted living in the county and only having a bike as a means of transportation severely limited how far he could go to find a job, but never the less he was determined to find something.

As the day dragged on it just kept getting hotter and hotter, even the old musty basement started to get too warm. Austin knew his one sure reprieve from the heat would be to go in the pool during the hottest part of the day. It was just too hot to sit in the house. He slipped on his red bathing suit and jumped in the pool. After spending a few minutes floating in the cool water he made his way over to the steps and his book.

Austin loved to read. He wasn't like your typical eighteen year old guy who was into going to parties, hanging at the mall or even watching TV. His passion was reading books and he always had a book on hand, but his favorite was The Never Ending Story. When Austin was younger his dad always used to read it to him. The copy he had was well worn and loved. Every so often while reading he would splash some water on himself to help keep cool. It was still blazing hot in the sun but the pool water seemed to help keep him cooler. The way he was sitting, his back was to the west, and he didn't see the dark, angry storm clouds moving in. It wasn't until the sun disappeared that Austin realized a massive thunderstorm was heading right for him. Just as he got out of the pool he felt the temperature bottom out which was a sure sign that this storm could be the mother of them all. The dark storm front looked like something out of a fantasy movie. A wall of black and dark grey clouds swirled around each other. He couldn't tell which way the storm was really coming from or which way it was going. All he knew was that it was going to be bad and that there were only a few minutes to secure the outside furniture before the storm hit.

Deep thunder rolled in the distance as he carried the pool chairs into the shed. He was trying to move as fast as he could but the storm was bearing down towards him. The wind started kicking up dirt and debris making it hard for him to carry the last of the chairs in. Just as he shut the door to the shed and turned towards the house he saw a red Camaro race up the driveway and then Eric jump out.

"Austin what the hell are you doing outside?!" Eric yelled over the roar of the wind.

"I was putting away the pool chairs before the storm hit."

"Get the fuck inside now," Eric demanded as he grabbed Austin's arm and pulled him to the house.

"Jesus Eric what is your problem it's just a summer thunderstorm." Austin said as he pulled his arm from Eric's grasp.

"This is not just some run of the mill summer storm; this thing is called a derecho." Eric said as he started to close the windows in the house.

"A what?"

"Yeah, I had to look it up. It's called a derecho. Basically it is the mother of all thunderstorms. It can produce hurricane force winds, flash flooding and tornados. This damned thing has marched its ass all the way from Ohio and is coming straight for us."

"Holy shit. I have to call my parents and warn them. They are still at work!" Austin said as he picked up the phone.

"The phone lines are already down. I've been trying to call you for the past twenty minutes to warn you but your phone just rang when the lines went dead. I was worried that you might be out in the field and get caught in the worst of it."

"You were worried about me?"

"Of course I was! You think I'd risk driving over here in this for just anyone?"

Austin wrapped his arms around Eric and gave him a big hug. "Thank you."

"Come on let's get some flash lights in case the power goes out."

Austin walked over to the cabinet below the kitchen sink and grabbed the two flashlights. Just as he handed Eric one he watched as the wind picked up the canvas gazebo and rip it out of the ground. The old farm house started to creak and moan in the intense wind. They watched as the trees swayed back and forth and their leaves being torn away. Then, the sky grew even darker causing the street lights to come on. Austin could hear what sounded like little rocks hitting the windows and when he looked out he saw it was hail. Just then he heard waling from the local fire department's whistle and moments later an even more severe wind showed up.

"The basement, now!" Eric yelled as he grabbed Austin by the arm and ran down the basement stairs.

They could hear the limbs of trees snapping and crashing to the ground. Glass shattered and things started to fall and collide in the house. The lights flickered then everything went dark. Sitting in the darkness they could hear the storm raging outside. The roar of the wind was almost deafening, it drowned out everything else around them and suddenly he would have sworn he heard a train bearing down on them. The sound the wind was making was nothing Austin had ever heard before. It sounded so angry and fierce that it was starting to scare him. Eric moved closer to Austin and could feel him shaking. He wrapped both of his arms around him and pulled him closer.

"It's okay. I'm right here with you." Eric said as he kissed the top of Austin's head.

Just then the small basement window shattered, spraying them with water and broken glass. Eric pulled Austin under an old desk that was in the corner and held onto him tightly. Austin was now shaking uncontrollably as he gripped Eric's arm. They sat in the basement for over an hour listening to the storm terrorize the outside world. Looking out of the shattered window Austin could see leaves and other debris flying around. When the winds calmed down enough that Eric felt sufficiently comfortable to venture back upstairs, they flicked on their flashlights and made their way up the stairs. When they opened the basement door, the house was completely dark and only the sound of light rain falling was heard. As they walked out of the doorway the sound of crunching came from under their feet. When they shown their lights down, they saw broken glass all over the place.

"Be careful where you step and put your hands. There could be shards of glass sticking up." Eric said as he led the way.

They slowly made their way through the dining room and kitchen until they got to the back porch. The sight that awaited them was something out of a war movie. Leaves and tree branches littered the ground in every direction. The pool was filled with all kinds of debris and hail stones.

"Do you think that roaring sound we heard was a tornado?" Austin asked as he looked around the yard.

"Honestly, it could have been. I'm just glad I was here with you and knew you were safe. I would be going out of my mind if I was home right now." Eric said as he pulled Austin into a close, tender hug.

"Me too." Austin smiled until he saw Eric's car or what was left of it. "Oh no, Eric look."

When Eric turned around he saw the remains of his car. It had countless dents from the hail stones and a tree branch was smashed through the windshield. Austin knew how much Eric loved that car and he felt horrible that it had been destroyed. He was waiting for Eric to snap and start cussing but was surprised when Eric turned around and kissed him.

"It's just a car. You are safe and that's all that matters to me." He smiled.

"So what do we do now? I mean look at the road it is completely blocked and we have no power." Austin asked as he looked up and down the road.

"Well, we will have to make due for now. I'm sure your parents will be on their way home soon if not already trying. I know they will find a way to make sure you are okay." Eric reassured him.

"What about you? Your car is ruined how are you going to get home?"

"Are you kicking me out?" Eric laughed.

"No, but I thought you might want to make sure your house is okay."

Eric held up his finger and pulled out his cell phone. "Mom is everything okay at the house?" Eric asked. "Okay good, I'll be home in a few days."

Austin gave him a puzzled look.

"All taken care of. Now I can stay here with you until your parents come home."

"What about Jennifer shouldn't you call her and see if she is okay?"

"I broke up with her yesterday."

"You what?!" Austin exclaimed as he spun around and looked at Eric, unable to withhold a huge smile.

"Yeah. I told her that we didn't have anything in common and that I didn't have any feelings for her."

"I'm sure that went over real well." Austin rolled his eyes.

"Yeah like a fart in church. Look Austin, I saw how hurt you were when I didn't step in and defend you when she was being a total bitch. Honestly, it broke my heart and I know I have a horrible way of showing emotion, but I never want to see that look on your face ever again. That moment made me realize how much I really do care about and love you. I just hope that you will forgive me and give me a second chance." Eric said as he pulled Austin close to him.