| DAY 1 |
Jeff just turned 23 and to celebrate his dad, Harry, decided to pay for a flight for the both of them out to Los Angeles, California. Jeff had never been to the United States before and Harry thought it would be an experience he�d really enjoy. Jeff meant the world to Harry; he was his only son, and since his wife passed away, Jeff was all he had left. So he always wanted to make every moment with his son count. He loved him more than anything. ~~~~~ They stepped out of the airplane terminal and into the humongous lobby of the L.A. airport. They looked around for baggage claim and when they found it, they walked over to the conveyor belt. As they were waiting for the rotation of luggage, Jeff noticed a commotion across the hall at one of the metal detector doorways. There were a couple older officers in uniform standing to the side of another couple men who were struggling. One was a tough looking gentleman with typical good American looks. He had a butch hair cut and was wearing dark slacks with a tucked in white button-up dress shirt and a brown tie with tie clip. The button-up shirt was short-sleeved and the end cuffs of the sleeves wrapped around his biceps, making him look even tougher. And the man he was struggling with was much shorter and skinnier, and he wore ripped blue jeans, a white t-shirt, and a black leather jacket. The tough guy was overpowering the other man by far. And it appeared as if he was on the same side as the officers, for they were not trying to stop him from holding the smaller guy. It was hard not to notice the commotion going on. Most anyone would look, and half the airport was. But instead of shifting cautious eyes from person to person involved in the scene, Jeff found himself obsessing over the good looking guy with short-sleeved dress shirt. The fabric of the button-up shirt was thin and Jeff could see a tank top beneath it, which turned him on greatly. He thought to himself, �What a hunk.� One of the other officers helped cuff the smaller guy. And the two officers took off towards an exit of the airport, and right behind them the tough guy pushed the other man, signaling him to start walking. As they were walking by, the cuffed man strayed a bit from his straight path to the exit and leered very close to Jeff and Harry. The tough guy picked up his pace and caught up with the man. At this point, they were directly in front of Jeff�s face, and when the man grabbed the cuffed man by his shoulder, his arm was practically in Jeff�s face. His huge biceps flexed as he grasped the man�s shoulder and Jeff found himself getting aroused. He was extremely attracted to this stranger. One of the officers up ahead shouted back at the other man, �Hey, Bud, is everything okay?� The tough guy shouted back, �Nothing I can�t handle!� and he pushed on the cuffed guy and muttered, �Keep moving.� As the men walked out of the airport, Jeff focused his eyes on the backside of his dreamy crime fighter. �....Bud...� He whispered under his breath. �What�s that, Jeff?� his father asked. �Oh, nothing...just admiring the scenery,� Jeff replied. Harry looked in the direction of his son�s fixated eyes and noticed what he was drooling over. �We�re in the U.S. for not even 30 bloody minutes and you�re already perving over some sexy stud.� Jeff looked at his dad, �What!? Can I help it if I see someone really good looking, even if it�s only after just stepping off the plane?� �I was just kiddin� ya, mate. Geez! Well, anyway, let�s get our bags and go find ourselves a taxi cab.� They waited for the conveyor belt to circle through the luggage again and then spotted theirs. They picked up their bags. Jeff slung one bag over his shoulder and carried the other. The two of them began making their way out the same exit the other men took. �I think I�m gonna like it here, dad,� said Jeff. �Just keep your bloody projection in your pants til we get rested in okay?� Harry objected laughingly. Jeff stuck his tongue out playfully at his father, and then they continued out the door. ~~~~~ The cab was lurching down the road just next to the airport. Traffic was like mud, cars just barely oozing their way out towards their destinations. Harry had planned all the resting accommodations including which hotel they�d be staying at during their stay in L.A. So he told the cab driver to take them there so they could get settled in, before heading out on the town to see all the sights. �So what you want to do first, Jeff, after we get settled in to our room?� �Oh, I don�t know, dad. Maybe grab a bite to eat. Seems like I haven�t had food for yonks.� �What do you mean you haven�t had food for yonks!? On the plane you couldn�t stop eating.� Harry said with an agitated laughter in his voice. �Plane travel does that to me, mate. I don�t know.... I�m just hungry. And then perhaps we could go club hopping and...� responded Jeff. �Club hopping? Don�t you ever have anything else on your mind, son?� Harry intervened. �Oh, Christ, you should know me by now, Dad..� Jeff replied back, with a smirk on his face. ~~~~~~ The cab pulled up to the sidewalk in front of the hotel. Harry paid the man and the cab went on it�s way. They went inside the fancy glass doors of the hotel and approached the lobby desk. A young lady with blond hair was the person at the desk. Harry gave them his name and showed his ID. The lady rummaged through paperwork and matched up his ID to their reservations. She reached behind the counter and found the key to their room and handed it to Harry. She gave them directions where to find their room number and as they walked away she looked innocently at Jeff. He smiled back at her, recognizing that she was checking him out. Even though he only liked men, he still found himself blushing at the thought; it�s still flattering. Harry and Jeff got on the elevator. Their room was on the eigth level of the hotel building. Jeff pushed the �8' and the elevator jolted to a start and began moving upwards. �She was checkin� you out, Jeff.� Harry said with a glint in his eye, �Maybe you should ask her out.� Jeff gave his father an awkward glance, wondering if he was joking or actually being serious. He knew his father loved him. But of course he would be disappointed in Jeff�s choice of lifestyle; disappointed that he would never have a grandchild of his own to look after; disappointed because he felt Jeff was missing out on something truly wonderful - making a baby. But he respected Jeff�s choice and supported him fully. Yet every now and then he�d make a comment like that one, almost as if expecting Jeff to suddenly change lifestyle and get interested in females. �Dad....� Jeff remarked back at his father in a serious tone. �....I�m sorry, Jeff. I know sometimes I seem to rant on and on about you asking girls out. I�ll try from now on not to ruin your vacation.� Harry said apologetically. �No worries, Dad. Geesh, don�t fall to tears now. Lighten up, old man.� Jeff said smiling back at his father. He knew he didn�t mean anything bad by his comment. At that moment the elevator came to a stop. The ding sounded and the doors slid open. Jeff and Harry picked up their begs and headed down the 8th floor hallway. They looked for their room, #804. It was the second door on their left. Harry sat his bags down as he fumbled with the key in the doorknob. He flung it open and they entered. It was a nice and clean, modern looking apartment; nothing fancy, but plenty good enough for a week�s visit. Jeff immediately let his bag fall from his shoulder and he set his bags near the counter top right next to the door. He walked around the spacious room, glancing around at the kitchen, bathroom, living room and bedroom. And then he walked over to the window. It overlooked the busy city street. Many other buildings towered up into the sky nearby, but beyond the stretch of skyscrapers was a beautiful sunset and hills way off in the distance. ~~~~~ Jeff remained gazing out the window while Harry settled himself in, unpacking his bags and getting familiar with the surroundings in their hotel room. Jeff�s eyes widened as he scanned across the busy city. While taking out the last bit of supplies from his luggage case, Harry looked up at his son, �You gonna unpack, Jeff, before we go out?� Jeff held his stare out the window for a couple seconds then turned to greet his father�s eyes. �Nah, I can do that tonight after we get back. I don�t have that much to unpack.� Harry slid his suitcase under the bed, �All right. You ready?� �Sure, mate.� ~~~~~ Stepping out of the hotel doors; standing on the sidewalk, masses of people rushing around, and the road backed up with traffic. It seemed taxi cabs outnumbered the rest of the vehicles in this pool of machinery. �We shoulda picked a hotel in a less busy part of town,� Jeff commented. �Ah! Where�s your sense of adventure, son?� Harry replied enthusiastically. �I think I left it at the Sydney Airport.� �Don�t be ridiculous, Jeff! Come on, let�s go!� And Harry pulled on his arm and started walking down the boulevard. �Aren�t we gonna get a taxi?� Jeff asked. �Nah. We�ll pass by all the fun that way. Why don�t we start by visiting all the shops and places nearby. And later we�ll take a taxi to other parts of the city.� ~~~~~ They visited many shops, picked up a few souvenirs for their trip, and continued down the line. Harry was amazed by the variety of items in the different shops. He was particularly interested in the book store a couple blocks from the hotel. The store had a myriad of intriguing novels that he purchased. Harry�s quite the reader and he was having a splendid time. Jeff on the other hand didn�t seem to be getting into the full spirit of the vacation. He moped alongside his anxious father, feeling grey and down about his life. Jeff felt extremely lonely. He just turned 25 and had no one special in his life. And he knew it was all because of his lifestyle. Any boyfriend he ever had either only wanted sex or were scared away by his overly-supportive father. Of course Jeff loved his dad so much for being so understanding, but those few boyfriends he had didn�t feel the same; felt it too domestic - they themselves having to sneak in at night with the guys they liked, and hoped not to be caught. One could say Jeff was experiencing his mid-life crisis a bit early. He yearned for love so badly, and every day that passed, he grew more bleak. ~~~~~ The two spent every last bit of sunlight and even part of the evening just bouncing around between shops and attractions, sitting down for dinner at a fancy restaurant, and even roaming through a beautiful park. Harry was simply thrilled to be out and seeing new things, and Jeff, he just pretended he was having a good time, flashing smiles now and then, so as not to hurt his father�s feelings. He did pay for this trip after all. Once night fall came, Jeff and Harry returned to the hotel and rested a bit. Jeff collapsed in the recliner chair and used the remote to turn on the tele. Harry packed away all his souvenirs and left one of his books out to read for the night. �So, Jeff, did you have a first good night here?� �Oh yeah, Dad. It was fun,� Jeff tried to sound enthused. �You want to go club hopping then?� Harry asked with a whimsical tone. �Not tonight. I�m rooted.� ~~~~~ It was a 2 bed bedroom. Harry took the bed near the window. A counter with a lamp separated the two beds. Harry rested under the covers, turned to the side facing the lamp, book in hand, reading away. Jeff was aloof on the sofa, barely watching TV. He was wallowing in his self-pity. And then he picked up the phone and dialed room service and ordered some Brandy. A couple minutes later room service knocked on the door and Jeff answered and took the Brandy and left the good sir a tip. He plumped back down on the sofa, placing the bottle of Brandy on the table in front of the couch. He poured himself a drink. Harry stepped out of the room, �It�s getting rather late, Jeff. I thought perhaps we�d get up early tomorrow morn� and visit the animal park.� �Oh, it�s never too late for a drink, Dad,� and he poured a drink for Harry and extended his arm out. Harry took the glass. �Well, don�t stay up too late, son.� �I won�t, mate,� Jeff replied. �All right, g�night then. I�m turning in.� �Okay, g�night, Dad.� Harry returned to the room and Jeff took a few more drinks for himself. And then Jeff turned off the tele and slumbered into the bedroom and into the soft confines of his bed. He pulled the covers over himself and turned on his side and buried his face into the pillow. He crept off into sleep almost immediately and rested his weary head. |