Pierced

"Oh, right, sorry Henrietta," Kyle said, as she bussed him on both his cheeks.

Paul had never met a transvestite in person and felt a little overwhelmed. She was feminine down to her frilly blouse and her sweet perfume. She had shaved her face smooth and covered it with makeup, so that the only clues he had that she was not one-hundred percent female were her Adam's apple, the size of her hands and feet, and her deep voice.

"So what brings you in today?" she asked.

"I'd like to get my tongue and one of my nipples pierced, and he wants a Prince Albert."

At Kyle's statement, Paul felt a spike of dread. Am I really going to do this? Then he remembered his fantasy of Kyle's tongue flicking his piercing and that pushed his doubt away.

"Oh, honey, that is so sexy," Henrietta drawled, eyeing Paul up and down. He of course blushed.

Turning back to Kyle she said, "Neal is with someone right now, but he can do you boys in about twenty minutes. There's our price sheet." She pointed to a small stack of flyers sitting on the counter that listed basic information about the shop along with prices for piercings and tattoos. Next to it was a bowl filled with tubes of pineapple flavored lube.

Pineapple?

"Take your time, pick out your jewelry..." She waved toward a nearby case where a vast array of rings, plugs, and studs were on display. "Once you've picked out your jewelry, let me know. I'll have you fill out a release form and pay, and then you'll be set. Let me know if you have any questions."

"Thanks," Kyle and Paul said, almost in unison.

Paul already knew what he wanted—a ten-gauge, silver bar with a ball on either end. He and Kyle had looked at pictures of them on the Internet. He quickly located the jewelry of his choice. Kyle wanted a simple nipple ring and a ball stud for his tongue. Nothing fancy.

As Paul waited for Kyle to make his final decision on the size he wanted for his tongue stud, his eyes wandered to a display of sex toys along the far wall. He strode over for a closer look. It was a small selection, but they all looked high quality. There were dildos, vibrators, and butt plugs in various shapes, sizes, and colors. Paul felt his face growing pink.

Kyle came up behind him and nuzzled his neck. "See anything you like?"

"Er..."

Kyle laughed and picked up a bright red butt plug that looked impossibly large to Paul. "How about this one? It would stretch your virgin hole right out," he whispered into Paul's ear.

Now Paul was sure his face was as red as the plug. "Maybe not that one," he said.

"Chicken," Kyle teased. He put the butt plug back and moved over to look at the items in a display case close by. "Oh wow! They have sounds," he said.

Sounds? Paul didn't want to admit he didn't know what they were. He followed Kyle over to the display and stared at the small assortment of items. There was a variety of metal rods, one with a ring on one end and small bumps at the other, one had an electric cable and plug coming out of one end, there was one that was a whole set of rods in graduated sizes in a leather case, and one looked to be made of silicon.

At first Paul was confused, but when he caught sight of a label that read, "vibrating urethral sound," he sucked in a sharp breath. "Oh my God! People put those in their..." He couldn't finish the sentence.

Kyle laughed delightedly.

"Have you ... have you ever done that?" Paul asked in astonishment.

"No," Kyle's smile was huge. "It's supposed to be very pleasurable. I might be up for trying it some day."

"Pleasurable? Sounds like it would hurt to me."

"Sounds like it," Kyle agreed with a smirk.

Paul snorted. "That's not a very sound pun."

Both of them started to giggle and Paul couldn't help but draw Kyle to him. Kyle stood in the circle of his arms and Paul smiled down into his eyes.

"You're the best medicine ever," Kyle whispered to him. "I think I'm completely cured." Paul knew that Kyle was referring to his assault and was surprised to see there wasn't a hint of pain in his beautiful, variable eyes. Something warm and exciting grew in Paul's chest, filling him with joy.

"You make me happy," he said. And it was true. Since he'd met Kyle some part of him that had been dormant had woken up. It was as if he'd lived his entire life in perpetual winter, and Kyle had ushered in his first spring. And along with that, since he'd come out, the ever present fear and frustration that he had carried with him had melted away. He still had a few hurdles to cross—he needed to tell his family—but at school he was completely out and felt comfortable in his own skin for the first time since puberty.

Kyle's eyes darkened as his pupils expanded. He pulled Paul more tightly against his body, ran his hand up Paul's neck into his thick blond hair, and put his lips right next to his. "I think I love you," he whispered, and then he took Paul into a passionate kiss.

Paul's world spun out from underneath him and he found himself soaring. As emotions overpowered him, one thought became clear in his mind: he loved Kyle too.

And if he survived the flaming intensity of their kiss, which was threatening to burn him to cinders, he was going to tell him that.