Devyn’s Struggle II
Published: 15 Dec 2025
Devyn wanted to reach over and grab Charlie’s hand as they were walking from school towards Charlie’s house. It would have been nice if they could have expressed their feelings for each other instead of having to hide them from everyone. “Is your brother going to be home?”
“He should be at the store,” Charlie answered. “He’s still in deep shit with Mom and dad. That whole thing with Joe’s taillights pissed them off. He’s been on his best behavior.”
Devyn wondered how long that would last. He was hoping that Howard would stay at the store and not be at Charlie’s at all tonight. If Devyn had his choice, he would have declined the invitation to come over after school. He did not want to deal with Charlie’s brother and the disdain that the older boy held for Devyn. He knew it was Howard’s attitude that kept Charlie from coming out, or it was at least part of the reason. Charlie, not knowing how his parents would accept him being gay, was the other part of the equation.
“Mom wants to hear your side of the story about what happened in the storeroom. Howard said he was not involved in that at all.”
“He’s lying,” Devyn said.
“Yeah, I know. I believe you when you say he was there,” Charlie said. “Sheriff Thomson, though, said both Ted and Dale stated it was just them and you in the storeroom. Tanner backed them up.”
“Of course he did,” Devyn said. There was no way Tanner was going to turn on the two jocks. After what Terry had told Devyn, he believed that it was Tanner pushing Ted, Dale, and the others to assault Devyn.
The silence between the two stretched out for a little. “Are you nervous about Saturday?” Charlie asked to break the silence.
“Yeah,” Devyn admitted. “I wish I had told Stacy no.”
“I know I wouldn’t like being up there on stage,” Charlie said. “Stacy told me you are great. She said you’re a natural. Did you…um…do this stuff at your other school?”
“No,” Devyn said. “I wasn’t into any of this stuff. I had friends, but they were just school friends. I didn’t do much with anyone after school. It wasn’t until Brent moved in that I started hanging out with him and then dating Sue. He and I were doing that more to hide our feelings for each other.”
Charlie knew he was doing the same thing Devyn had done. Charlie was going out with Heather to cover up being gay. Now that it appeared that Charlie had a girlfriend, it had made his brother back off him a little. The difference between Devyn and Charlie was that Heather had figured out that Charlie was gay and that he and Devyn were boyfriends.
“It is probably better that I’m taking more of an interest in school activities,” Devyn said. “It is nice having more friends and doing stuff with them outside of classes. Everyone in the drama club is cool, and most of the guys in FFA are friendly enough.” Devyn knew a few of the FFA guys were uncomfortable with him being gay but they had not been harassing him like the jocks had. Some of them had started to get a little more relaxed as they had gotten to know him. Mr. Hanks had told Devyn early on that if anyone gave him any crap about being gay to let him know. He was not going to stand for that.
“You should run for an FFA officer,” Charlie said. “You already do so much stuff in the group that you should get more recognition. It would look good on your college applications.”
“Mr. Hanks suggested that too.” Devyn had considered it, but right now, he was so busy with everything else that he just felt like he did not have the time. He might feel different once the play was over.
“Think about it.” Charlie paused before he asked about something that had been on his mind. “Have you given much thought about college? I mean like what you might want to major in or where you might want to go?”
“I’ve been thinking about it a little more but haven’t decided anything.” Originally, Devyn had not been considering going to college. He thought it would be too expensive, and he knew Frank and Judy were not going to help him. He had not wanted to put that burden on Joe. Joe encouraged him to go. “I’ve thought about a degree in agriculture.”
“That would fit you,” Charlie said. They had turned onto his street now and were only a couple of houses away from his.
“It does seem to make the most sense for me,” Devyn said.
They had reached Charlie’s house, and Charlie led them inside. They stepped into the kitchen, where Charlie’s mom seemed to be waiting on them. “I just took this batch of cookies out of the oven,” she said. “Could I get you two boys to taste and evaluate them? It’s a new recipe.”
“Um… a new recipe?” Charlie asked, looking at the cookies. He was always a little hesitant when his mom was assessing a new recipe.
“They smell great,” Devyn said.
“What…um…flavor are they?” Charlie asked as he picked up a cookie.
“You tell me.” She pushed the plate of cookies towards Devyn.
Devyn took one and bit into the still warm cookie. He thought he tasted something like pumpkin pie but not quite. “They’re good,” he said.
Charlie had taken a small bite and agreed with Devyn. They did taste good. “Is there pumpkin in them?” He asked.
“Yes,” she said. “You know how much your father likes pumpkin pie, so I thought he’d like these.”
“He should,” Charlie said, taking a second cookie.
Barb turned her attention to Devyn. “I understand there was an altercation at school last Friday,” she said.
Devyn nervously licked his lips. “There was,” he confirmed.
Sheriff Thompson said that Howard was involved,” she said. “I find that hard to believe.”
Devyn looked down at the countertop and then back at Charlie’s mom. He knew the only thing he could do was tell the truth. “He was there.”
“Please tell me what happened,” she said.
Devyn glanced at Charlie. He seemed to get a reassuring nod from his friend. He then proceeded to tell her exactly what had happened in the storeroom between himself, Ted, Dale, and Howard. “I am sure that Dale and Ted will say Howard was not there,” Devyn finished.
“It seems Ed Tanner is also stating Howard was not involved,” she said.
“You can’t believe Tanner,” Charlie put in. “he’s… um… not fair to Devyn.”
Barb turned her gaze on Charlie. “Not fair, in what way?”
“He just isn’t,” Charlie said. “He’s done nothing when Devyn was being picked on by all those football jocks. He did nothing when Devyn was being beat up. He gives him detention unfairly.” Charlie continued to list Tanner’s faults and how unfair the man was to Devyn and other students. “He’s a bully.”
“Well, it seems that Charlie believes your version of events,” Barb said.
“I do,” Charlie declared. “Ted and Dale have always been jerks.
“I just find this so hard to believe about Howard,” she said. “If I had not seen the video of him breaking Joe’s taillights… well…”
“So, you believe Devyn then?” Charlie asked.
“I’m not sure why you would need to lie about Howard being there if he wasn’t,” Barb said. “I’m just not sure why Howard would have such a grudge against you.”
“It’s just because Devyn’s gay,” Charlie blurted. “He hates him for that. It’s the same reason he’s been an a-hole to Joe whenever Joe’s been in the store.”
“Watch your language,” Barb scolded.
Charlie thought he had been watching his language. If he hadn’t been he’d have said ass hole instead of a-hole. He actually had considered worse terms for his brother, but he would keep those to himself.
“I thought we had raised both of you boys to be accepting of folks’ differences,” she said. “I guess we missed the mark with Howard.” She turned and looked at Charlie. “I guess we got it right with you. I’m just not sure what we did different.”
“It could be other things,” Devyn began, hesitantly.
“What do you mean?” she asked, looking into Devyn’s brown eyes.
“Tanner only became principal last spring,” Devyn said. “Before that, he was the coach.” Devyn had learned some of this from Charlie and Sam. He did not know about some of these changes. “He would have been Howard’s coach during his whole time in football. That might have influenced Howard. Joe told me a little about his and Tanner’s history. It seems that could be a part of the problem.”
“Yes, Joe and Ed never got along. Ed liked tormenting other kids.”
“Um…I think it was more than tormenting,” Devyn said. “Just going from what Joe told me, Tanner beat him up a number of times. He likes harassing guys that are smaller than him.”
“Joe was small back then,” she agreed. “I never fully understood their issues. I know they got worse as they got older. I would have thought they would grow out of those issues, but they got worse when Joe moved back.
“So why does Tanner hate Joe?” Charlie asked. “I mean other than just Joe being gay.”
“I think that is something only Ed and Joe know,” she said. “Why don’t you two get started on homework. I’ll let you know when dinner is ready.”
Devyn had only been over to Charlie’s a handful of times. With Howard’s attitude, it had been easier to avoid going to his friend’s house. He followed Charlie to his room. Devyn closed the door behind them. He glanced around the room. It was larger than his room at home. Charlie had a desk and a dresser, there was a door to a closet opposite the door they had just come through. There was a laptop on the desk. Everything in the room was in relaxing shades of blue and green.
“Do you have a lot of homework?” Charlie asked.
“No,” Devyn said. “You?”
“No, but I do need to take care of something,” Charlie said.
“What’s that?” Devyn asked.
Charlie moved to the desk and dropped his books. He then went to Devyn and pulled his friend close. “Just this.” Charlie kissed Devyn’s lips. He could feel the heat of the other boy and the surge of sexual excitement when Devyn returned the kiss. Devyn dropped his backpack to the floor and enfolded Charlie in a tight hug.
“I miss doing that,” Charlie said.
“Yeah, I miss that too,” Devyn said. They quickly kissed again. Devyn slid his tongue into Charlie’s mouth. He battled with Charlie’s tongue. His hand slid under Charlie’s shirt to feel his friend’s smooth skin. Devyn wanted to rip the clothes from Charlie’s body. He wanted to kiss the blonde boy from head to toe. He wanted to enjoy the pleasure they gave to each other but knew they could only go so far here.
Charlie could feel his heart rate speeding up. He could feel blood surging into his teenage equipment. He ran his hands up and down Devyn’s back and then down to his friend’s hot ass. He squeezed the jean-clad cheeks. He wanted to touch the bare skin of that firm butt. He wanted to pull Devyn’s pants down and pleasure his friend with his hands and his mouth.
Devyn slid his hand to Charlie’s basket and could feel the other boy’s erection pushing out the front of the teenagers’ jeans. Devyn squeezed the bulge and felt Charlie moan into their kiss.
The kiss broke and Devyn was looking into Charlie’s eyes. “If we keep going, I’m not going to be able to stop.”
“Me either.” Charlie did not want to stop, but he knew they should. He knew if they kept going, clothes would start to come off, and they’d be naked and doing more than they should.
Devyn forced himself away from Charlie. He tried to push down his surging teenage hormones. He wanted to do so much with Charlie. He wanted to continue kissing him. He wanted to taste Charlie on his tongue. He wanted to cause his friend to explode with pleasure.
Charlie tried not to think about all of the things he wanted to do with Devyn. He tried not to think about undressing the sexy boy. He tried not to think about licking Devyn’s chest. Charlie tried not to think about dropping to his knees and sucking Devyn’s erect cock like he had in the carriage shed.
“We should… um… work on that English assignment,” Charlie said. “Have you started it?”
“Right, the English assignment.” Devyn wanted to do anything but work on homework, but he guessed it would help keep his mind off the things he could do to Charlie’s naked body.
They moved to Charlie’s desk and took a seat. “I started typing up the paper,” he said. “See what you think.”
Devyn read what Charlie had written. “You’re a good writer,” he said. “It sounds so much better than mine.”
“Thanks,” Charlie said.
They worked in silence for a few moments. “I’m looking forward to the play on Saturday,” Charlie said.
“Oh, um… you’re coming?”
“Of course,” Charlie said. “I wouldn’t miss it.”
Devyn looked from the computer monitor to Charlie. He wanted to lean over and kiss those lips again. “Um… I should tell you… um… Brent is going to come.”
Charlie felt his heart stop. “What?” He knew his voice was a little sharp.
“He wanted to, and he… um… needs the distraction.”
“So… um… is he coming by himself?”
Devyn proceeded to fill Charlie in on the plans he and Brent had discussed. He could see it was causing some tension in his friend. “You aren’t worried, are you?”
Charlie was worried. How could he compete with Devyn’s first love? He could not compete with Brent. Especially when Devyn said that Brent would be spending the night at his house. “Um… It’s just a little odd… you know.”
“I know, but Brent needs this. He’s got shit going on and needs the distraction.” Devyn did not want to hurt Charlie, but he also wanted to help Brent. He felt a little torn between the two boys.
“I know he’s been through a lot,” Charlie said.
“He has,” Devyn confirmed. “We both have. We’ve both changed.”
“You don’t talk much about what all you did after… um… you know, and then moving here.” Charlie had been wanting to ask Devyn for a while about the time between being kicked out by his folks and then coming to live with Joe.
Devyn was hesitant to talk about his time working for Tom. He was not sure what Charlie would think of him if he knew what Devyn had done. Devyn also knew he needed to tell Charlie about that time. If they were going to have a strong relationship, then Devyn had to tell Charlie the truth.
“I know it was hard on you,” Charlie said. His voice was filled with his compassion for his friend. “I can’t really imagine how hard it had to be.”
“It was hard,” Devyn said. “I did things… I did stuff that…”
Charlie could feel Devyn’s hesitation. He could hear what he thought was shame in Devyn’s voice. “You don’t have to tell me until you are ready.”
Devyn could not meet Charlie’s eyes. He wanted to tell Charlie, but he was afraid of the look of disgust that might fill Charlie’s expressive blue eyes. “I did stuff I shouldn’t have done. I made bad decisions.”
“I think we all do that sometimes,” Charlie said. He placed a comforting hand on Devyn’s knee. “Tell me when you are ready. I don’t want to pressure you.”
“Thanks,” Devyn said. He placed his hand on Charlie’s. “I want to tell you, but I’m worried about what you will think of me.”
Charlie wondered how bad it was. Had Devyn been a thief? Charlie could see how being out on the street could push someone to steal to survive. “Devyn, it isn’t going to change anything between us.”
“You say that now, but you don’t know. You don’t understand what all I did.” Devyn knew that he had to tell Charlie for them to have a trusting relationship.
Charlie looked into Devyn’s eyes. He took Devyn’s hand in his own. “I know that time was rough for you,” he said. “I know you might have been pushed to do things that you regret doing now. Whatever you did, it won’t change how I feel about you.” Charlie knew in his heart that it truly did not matter. He believed he was in love with Devyn. He wanted to tell Devyn that, but the fear of Devyn not feeling the same way held Charlie back.
“Charlie, it was rough. I was confused and stupid, I guess. I did things that were wrong. I got mixed up with the wrong person. Charlie, I was…” Devyn was interrupted when Barb’s voice called them for dinner.
“She’s got perfect timing,” Charlie said.
Devyn was half glad for the distraction. He wanted to tell Charlie about his past, but he also did not want to tell Charlie. What would the guy think if he knew Devyn had once been a high-priced call boy? Would Charlie think Devyn was just a slut. Would he dump him? Would he tell everyone? Devyn knew on one level that Charlie would not tell anyone what Devyn told him. What about the rest? Would Charlie knowing change their relationship? Devyn did not want to find that out. At least, he did not want to find it out now. “I… um… guess we’d better go eat. I can tell you… um… some other time.”
“Whenever you are ready,” Charlie said. “No pressure. Whatever you did, it won’t change anything.”
Devyn doubted that was true. He figured once Charlie knew the full story, that it would change their relationship. It might even end their friendship.
Dinner turned out to be pleasant enough. Devyn had been concerned about having to face Howard over the dinner table, but Charlie’s brother was not there. That allowed Devyn to relax a bit and enjoy spending time with Charlie, his mom, and his dad. Devyn had not been around Charlie’s dad much but found him to be welcoming and a bit funny. He reminded Devyn a lot of Charlie.
“I hope you are hungry,” Howard said when Devyn and Charlie had entered the dining room. “Barb always fixes more than we can eat.”
“It smells great,” Devyn said. He took a seat next to Charlie. Both boys had the urge to touch each other but resisted those impulses.
“Mom’s pork chops are awesome,” Charlie said.
“They look great,” Devyn said. He took in the mashed potatoes, the bowl of vegetables, the dinner rolls and what looked like pie for dessert.
The conversation followed easily as they ate. Barb and Howard asked about the school day and about the homecoming dance.
“Jim was in the store today showing off those pictures of you and Julie,” Howard said. “You two made a striking couple.” He turned to Barb, “They looked like movie stars.”
“Julie has always been a pretty girl,” Barb commented. “I bet they did look nice together. Charlie and Heather made an adorable couple.”
“Geez, Mom.” Charlie could feel his ears starting to burn.
“Well, you did,” she said.
“I agree with that,” Devyn said. “They were quite the… um… attractive couple.”
Charlie knew Devyn was teasing him a bit and bumped his knee against Devyn’s. “Knock it off.”
The talk then turned to the next big event, which was Devyn’s play. “We are looking forward to that production,” Howard said.
“We’re all going to be there,” Barb said. “Charlie’s invited Heather.” She smiled at her son.
Charlie could feel his ears heating up. “Um… well not all of us,” he said. “Howard won’t be there.”
“That’s right,” Barb said.
Devyn thought he detected a note of annoyance in Barb’s tone. He also thought he noticed a gleam of anger in Barb’s eyes when Howard’s name was mentioned.
“He feels he’s too old now for a high school production,” Howard said.
Devyn preferred that Charlie’s brother not be at the play. He was stressed enough about being on stage with what sounded like the whole town watching. “I’m not sure he’ll be missing anything.”
“Oh, that is not what I hear,” Barb said. “Deloris said you were great at rehearsals. She thinks it is going to be one of the best productions in a few years.”
Devyn could feel his own neck starting to heat up. “I’m alright, I guess.”
“Well, we will find out on Saturday,” Howard said. He then turned to Charlie. “Maybe Stacy will talk you into being in the spring production.”
“Um… I don’t think so,” Charlie said. He could not see himself up there on stage with everyone watching him.
“You need to get more involved in school activities,” Howard said. “You need that to add to your college applications. Howard had sports, student council, and yearbook club.”
“I think you would be great in the drama club,” Devyn said. He thought if he and Charlie were in some of the same school activities that they might be able to spend more time together. “You should also join the school paper. You’re a good writer.”
Charlie punched Devyn in the side to get him to stop. He did not want to be in the school production, and he did not want to be compared to his brother if he joined one of the organizations that Howard had belonged to too.
“Listen to him,” Barb said. “It would be good to get you more involved in school activities.
“You could join the baseball team this spring,” Howard said. “You haven’t played since that little league team.”
“I didn’t know you used to play,” Devyn said.
Charlie shrugged his shoulders. “I… um… decided it wasn’t that much fun.”
“I thought you were enjoying it,” Barb said. “You were so excited when you made the cut.”
“Well, they let everyone on the little league team,” Charlie said. He had been excited. He enjoyed the game and being with his teammates. It wasn’t until he had started to be compared to Howard that it had stopped being fun. That and how Howard and his friends had made fun of Charlie.
“Well, it doesn’t have to be fun,” Howard said. “Life is not going to be fun all the time. It is preparing you for your future. You need extracurricular activities on those college applications.”
Devyn could see that this conversation was making Charlie uncomfortable. Howard was putting pressure on Charlie and now he was comparing him to Charlie’s brother. Devyn thought Charlie was worth a whole lot more than his brother Howard. Charlie was so sweet, kind, gentle and caring. He was not a homophobic dick like Howard Junior. Devyn was trying to think of something to change the topic, but he was coming up empty.
“We should talk about this later,” Barb cut in. It seemed she had seen how uncomfortable the conversation was making her son.
The mood at the table had changed and was no longer enjoyable. Devyn was glad when the meal was over, and they could get up from the table. He followed Charlie back to his bedroom. Devyn closed the door behind them as Charlie flopped down on the bed. Devyn knew Charlie was still stressed from the dinner conversation. He wanted to think of something to get his friend to relax. “You… um… alright?”
Charlie was silent for a long moment. “I guess. It was just… embarrassing.”
“It wasn’t that bad,” Devyn said. He moved to the bed and sat down next to Charlie. Charlie was lying on the bed with his legs hanging off the edge.
“It was,” Charlie sighed. “I’m sorry you had to sit through that. I… um… don’t know what brought all that up.”
Devyn thought Charlie’s dad was a little over the top. He also did not like how he compared Charlie to Charlie’s brother. “He… um… just wants you to get into a good college.”
“I don’t even know what I want to do. I mean it isn’t like I’ll be taking over the store. That will be Howard.”
Devyn could hear the anger in Charlie’s voice. “Won’t you two be partners?” Devyn would assume that they would be equal partners in the store when Charlie’s parents decided to retire from the family business.
“It will end up with me working for Howard. I’m not working for the prick. I don’t want anything to do with him now or in the future!” Charlie’s voice was growing louder with each word and firmer.
Devyn looked down at Charlie. He wanted to lean in and kiss the frown off of Charlie’s face. He wanted to see the blonde boy smile that warm smile. “It sounds like going into business with him is out. You can do something else.”
“Like what?” Charlie sighed. He should not have let his dad get to him. He just did not like that pressure being put on him in front of Devyn.
“Open your own business,” Devyn suggested. “Or be a journalist. You could be one of those sexy news anchors.”
“Sexy huh?” Charlie’s lips twitched.
“Very sexy,” Devyn said. “I bet those big blue eyes would look damn good on the screen. Not to mention this cute nose.” Devyn put his finger on the tip of Charlie’s nose. “You also have this cute little mouth.” Devyn’s finger lightly traced Charlie’s lips.
Charlie puckered up and kissed Devyn’s finger. “Thanks.”
“There is also the rest of this sexy body,” Devyn said. “You would look so good.”
Charlie laughed. “You might but not me. I don’t…”
“Stop that,” Devyn said, cutting off Charlie’s words. “Don’t put yourself down. You are sexy. You are smart and you’re a damn good friend. Just don’t become a sports anchor. I don’t want my sexy boyfriend around all those horny jocks.”
“It wouldn’t matter,” Charlie said. “I’ve got a boyfriend that is sexier than any jock.”
Devyn’s lips curved up into a smile. “So do I.” He then leaned down and kissed Charlie’s lips.
Charlie was finishing his English paper when he heard his brother’s voice coming from the living room.
“He’s a damn liar!” Howard almost shouted.
“Do not take that tone with me!” Barb told her son.
Charlie was not sure what the two were talking about, so he moved to the door and opened it so he could hear better.
“It isn’t true,” Howard said. His voice was calmer now.
“Why would he lie about you being there?” Barb asked. “It makes no sense to drag you into it.”
“He doesn’t like me,” Howard stated. “I see through this whole act that has so many people believing he’s this awesome person. You have no idea what all he’s done.”
“I know there have been some fights,” Barb said. “He told me that.”
“Yeah, and I bet it was always someone else’s fault, or someone was picking on him.”
“I don’t see him starting fights with…” Barb’s words were cut off by Howard.
“Oh, come on Mom, don’t fall for his line of BS.” Howard’s voice was filled with his exasperation. “He’s got all those teachers believing what a good guy he is. It is far from the truth. At least Coach Tanner sees through that. He knows what kind of deviant he is. That’s why I’ve been warning Charlie to keep his distance. I don’t want my little brother getting sucked into that sort of stuff.”
“His story sounded very believable,” Barb said.
“Sure, it did. He’s a practiced liar,” Howard could tell he was starting to sway his mother’s opinion of Devyn. “Coach has looked into his past. He knows just how messed up the guy is. There were all kinds of drugs.”
“He did have a drug problem,” Barb agreed. “I knew about that.”
“He still does,” Howard said. “He was always trying to get beer and drugs from other kids at school.”
“By other kids, you mean your friend Dewayne?” Barb knew Dewayne had been arrested recently for a drug offence.
“Yes. Dewayne got mixed up in the drugs because of Devyn. It is that guy’s fault that Dewayne was arrested. He set Dewayne up and made sure that Lee was there to bust him.”
“That seems very devious on Devyn’s part. Why would he do that?”
Howard shook his head. “Who knows how he thinks. He’s twisted up inside. I mean his own parents tossed him out. From what I’ve heard it was sick and twisted what he had been up to. It is no wonder they tossed his ass out.”
“I’m usually a good judge of character,” Barb said. “I just did not see any of that in Devyn.”
“He’s good at manipulation and hiding his true colors. I can bring Ted and Dale over so you can hear exactly what was going on. You should also talk to Coach Tanner. He can fill you in on just how many times he’s had to put Devyn in detention.”
Charlie could not listen any longer. He could not believe his mom was falling for the line of crap that Howard was giving her. Charlie considered running out there and telling her just how much of a line of bull shit that was, but he knew that would only start an argument between him and Howard. Charlie thought it would be better to wait until Howard was gone so he could tell his mom the truth. Devyn was a great guy. He was tender and caring. He was honest and smart. Maybe he had made some mistakes, but who hasn’t.
Charlie moved back to his bed and flopped down. How was he ever going to be able to come out with Howard around? How could he and Devyn have a relationship? If he could not convince his mom that Howard was lying about Devyn, would he ever be able to spend more time with Devyn alone? He wanted to be alone with Devyn. Charlie wanted to explore their sexual relationship. He wanted to explore making love with Devyn.
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