Struck 5
by Redkage and muscl4life
“Well, here it is.” Dan announced as he pulled up into the driveway. “My folk’s cabin, or what I like to call it, home away from home.”John looked out the window of the truck at the cabin. It was a grand sight indeed. It was made out of sturdy wood and soundly made. It was delicately placed amongst the trees so that it didn’t ruin the natural scenery, or appear to be boxed in by the mighty oaks. It was as if the cabin had become part of the wood itself, creating a picture perfect place in the middle of nowhere.
“It’s...amazing.” John said. He hopped out of the car and breathed in deeply. The mountain air was crisp and pure, quite different from the smog clogged city air. The scent of the woodlands filled his nostrils, coupled with the smell of summer. “I can clearly see why you speak so highly of this place. It’s so peaceful here, like a dream.”
“Yea.” Dan said. “Me and my Dad used to come here all the time.” His eyes grew distant, as if he was seeing a far off memory. Then he shook his head and broke out into a grin. “Alright, let’s get our things inside. I can’t wait ‘til I give ya the grand tour of the place and show you everything. We’re going to have a blast!”
It didn’t take long to unpack and get organized. Though Dan had mentioned foraging for their meals, he had brought quite a few food staples “Just in case.” He winked. “I’m not going to risk letting my little buddy starve himself to death.” To this John just blushed softly.
After Dan finished putting away the food packets, he went in search of John. He found him staring out the den window serenely at the view, with one hand pressed up against the glass. He looked so…so angelic in that state. Once again his glasses had slipped to the rim of his nose, but this made him look thoughtful instead of the geeky quality he had once labeled him. A few wisps of hair had fallen out of place and onto his forehead almost artfully, and Dan found his hand itching to push it back into place for him.
Snapping himself out of it, Dan walked up behind the little guy. “Enjoying the view?” He asked.
John jumped into the air, startled. “Oh, I, uh, yea. It’s a very nice view.” His words tumbled out.
The poor guy…even though Dan had completely changed his attitude to become more caring and friendly, there was still a part of John was still somewhat intimidated by him. Then again, it was naïve to think that it wouldn’t take more then just a few days to erase years of hurtful behavior.
This only meant that he’ll have to work even harder to fix this, Dan thought firmly in his mind. Gently he placed an arm around John’s shoulder and pointed outside. “Do you see that acorn tree right there? My great, great grandfather grew that tree from a sapling. When I was a little kid, I would make all sorts of necklaces and ornaments out of the acorns from that tree.”
John looked at the tree Dan pointed at and listened to John intently. Now that he knew about it, Thunderstrike could tell that the little guy was actually listening closely to what he said. Then John turned from the scenery and looked up at him. “Did you learn how to make those things from your father?” He asked.
“Yes, I did.” Dan said as he looked back out the window at the ancient acorn tree. “He would always show me how to do a certain piece of work for me to try to copy. I always mess up a lot the first few times, but he would just smile and shows me how to correct my mistakes.” Without even realizing it, his hand reached up and fingered the beads of the necklace he was wearing.
“He sounds like a great person.” John said.
“He was.” The corner of Dan’s eyes crinkled. Then he quickly shook his head and straightened up. “So anyways, let’s start our fun weekend together already! There’s this one spot that I absolutely have to show you!”
Dan took John by the hand and led him out of the cabin. John’s eyes went wide by this sudden action, but said nothing. It felt…nice, to hold hands like this. He followed Dan as they made their way through the brush, following some sort of old trail. Eventually Dan let go of John’s hand, but the feeling John felt still remained. At first they traveled along leveled ground, but then the path started to slant upwards, towards higher ground.
The slant started off gradually enough, so John was able to climb it fairly easily. But then, it became steeper and rougher. There were numerous boulders or rock faces that they had to climb up and over, making the journey harder. Soon John was huffing and puffing as he did his best to keep up.
Dan, on the other hand, moved through the terrain rather easily. It was as if the memory of every step or foothold was engrained in his brawny body. His muscles flowed as he climbed a small cliff as if it were just an anthill. And for John, it was a magnificent sight to behold to watch Dan move. From his position, John could see every curve and crevice perfectly. Dan’s back was wide and strong, rippling as he pulled himself up a ledge. His shoulders were so broad and wide that John felt he could lie down on its length comfortably. John felt that he could watch those wide lats unfurl and spread out like wings all day. The high points were when John had some difficulty climbing or getting over a certain point, Dan would take John’s hand into his and pull him up, the bicep bunching up into a beautiful ball that threatened to bust out of its sleeve.
So it was only natural that John developed a very uncomfortably erection. As disgusted with himself for thinking of his friend in such a manner, he couldn’t help it. Dan was just so attractive and handsome; who could resist that?
The erection and the steep climb took its toll on John, wearing him out. His little muscles were tired, and his little dick ached for release. He was sweating buckets as he tried to keep up with the energetic Thunderstrike and resist the urge to go off somewhere to take care of his little problem.
Dan, on the other hand, had never felt more alive in his life. Perhaps it was the fact that he was returning to the place of his most cherished childhood memories, but he was practically bursting with energy and high spirits. He hadn’t felt this good since his first trip to these mountains when he was just a little short five-year old. He could practically feel the energy feeding into his muscles, giving them the power to move through the familiar trail. What used to be a good hard hike was now nothing but a stroll through the park for him now. Even so, the hike must still be hard enough because he could feel his muscles pump up and swell, making his already tight clothes even tighter. Eventually they reached a small bubbling creek that stirred all sorts of old memories.
“We’re almost there now.” Dan said cheerfully. “How are you holding up? Are you tired yet?” He looked back and asked.
“No, I’m f…fine.” He huffed. His shirt was completely drenched in sweat, and his face had become a deep red.
Dan stopped. “No, you’re not fine. Why didn’t you say something?” Dan sat John down and made him drink from the bottle he had carried on him. As John drank, Dan silently swore at his own self-centeredness. He had been so excited to show off that he failed to notice that John was being worn out from the strenuous hike.
“You were so excited to show me your special place, of course I couldn’t complain about being a little tired.” John told him before taking another long drink of water.
Dan blinked several times. The way John had said that was almost like the guy had read his mind.
John had other things on his mind, however. His erection, which he carefully hid under the water bottle, was becoming too painful to ignore much longer. Any minute now he was going to cream in his pants, and Dan was so close, so sensually dangerously close that John felt like he could ruin the best thing that ever happened to him.
“Erm… Dan… I think I need…. Oh well…. I need to use the little boy’s room?” John felt really bad for lying to Dan like this, but he really felt his urges were winning his better judgment and if he didn’t take care of his manly needs, John would just cum right inside his pants and there was no way Thunderstrike would ever forgive him for doing such disgusting thing right in front of him.
Dan, too wrapped up in his self guilt, didn’t hear John’s question. “Oh dude… I am sorry, we should have prepared you before we started this trip, I keep trying to be a good host and all I’ve been doing is dragging you along with me…” The massive jock would keep going but John unexpectedly cut him short.
“Is there a place I can use for bathroom?” John asked again surprisingly curtly.
Thunderstrike was taken aback from this change of character, but then he had to control himself not to chuckle. “Well, if you need to take a piss, then you can just go off into the bushes and take care of it. If you need to take a dump though, I guess you can go around the hill over there. You’ll find perfect spot, near a string of running water from the creek to wash up after you’re done ‘going to the potty.’” Dan finally muttered with an insuppressible grin.
“That’ll have to do…” John said as he ran passed Dan towards the direction the enormous Native American jock pointed. The skinny nerd held his stomach and feigned a very funny urge to relieve himself just to mislead Dan into a complete different conclusion. He wasn’t even bothered that Dan was actually laughing harder as John disappeared behind the hill.
Once he made sure Dan could no longer see him, John quickly ran off a bit further into the vegetation then he had promised before he came across a nice, secluded spot against a rock face. Quickly he unzipped his pants, unleashing his caged 8 inches hard beast. Unlike the rest of his weak skinny body, John’s manhood was indeed remarkably big and pretty thick too, almost three full inches around. It would have made proud any man, but the geeky lad always considered his above average member a curse, especially because it was always hard because of Dan Thunderstrike, the same guy who was trying really hard to become friends with him. The same guy who was also an unreachable object for John’s desires, and no matter how hard his mind tried to rationalize, the eight inch long cock would always picture Thunderstrike as his favorite fantasy.
Oh Dan…you’re so huge… so fucking massive… John only mouthed the words as his hands savagely jerked his cock. Even though he was considerably far from his friend, the horny lad didn’t have the courage to even whisper the words in fear that Dan could actually hear them, but inside his very active hormone raged dirty mind, John already envisioned the same fantastic imagery Thunderstrike unleashed.
“Damn John… you got all the way up here just to take a dump? That’s a true call of nature!” Dan kept laughing as he cleaned the small tears in his eyes. That comical situation with John and his betraying bowls actually reminded him that he hadn’t laughed so hard in a long time, and it wasn’t just a mean laughter at the expense of humiliating the smaller guys. This was a cheerful happiness that erupted from a casual situation with his friend, something he hadn’t experienced in years. The tingling sensation actually spread all over Thunderstrike’s muscular figure, the aftermath of such delicious laughter was indeed very pleasing.
Suddenly, Dan noticed the refreshing breeze hitting him, and the moment only got even more pleasing; the beauty of the surrounding landscape, the memories of the ancient tales his father had told him right in that same place and the opportunity to share them with somebody else felt reinvigorating. However, what started as just heartwarming sensations suddenly became more intense and physically noticeable. Dan recalled that very feeling before, it was the same kind of rush that overcame his senses whenever he had another unexplainable growth spurt…
John’s silent yet vividly vigorous worship of Dan’s body continued lavishly as the geeky boy watched in his mind’s eye the muscles of Thunderstrike flexing and bulging just for him. He envisioned the teenager powerhouse showing off his ever growing muscles for his very pleasure. John wanted this to be true so much, he only wished Dan could understand that his lust over his muscles was just out of his control, but it wasn’t just some unexplainable fetish; John really understood that Dan worked on his muscles and he got off showing how much bigger he could make them, and whatever made Dan happy truly had an even stronger impact over John. He knew Dan was a great guy, perhaps the greatest guy in the world, and he only deserved what his heart truly wanted.
Dan panted as he noticed the growth spurt overtaking his body once again, the tightness of his new clothes only increased as the tingling sensation on his muscles augmented. It was like thousands of small needles pierced his hard physique, and at the same time it was incredibly arousing. It was a thrilling yet frightening sensation that became stronger each time it happened. Thunderstrike had never feel the spurt so intensely before, his skin actually looked like it was being pushed from underneath. The flimsy, almost fat free tissue of his epidermis bulged as the muscle fibers underneath unexplainable grew harder, thicker, wider and denser, Thunderstrike’s muscles were growing bigger and heavier without any possible explanation. Simply spellbound, Dan only could attest what was undeniable, his muscles were growing at such an incredible pace he was actually capable of witnessing the very surprising event of the growth of his powerful muscles.
John’s lust grew even more intense as the imagery of his adored Dan flooded his extremely horny mind; the uncanny imaginary flexing show became harder and more sensual. Although, later he would certainly felt disgusted and repulsed to his obsession about his friend’s massive muscles, right now John could do nothing but surrendering to his animalistic urges. The skinny lad jerked off so vigorously that he didn’t even notice that his feet slipped on the dusty soil, and he suddenly slipped his back hitting hardly against the rocky wall, knocking his glasses off in the process. But not even the pain could force John out of his trance; he just slid down to the ground, his legs opening wide as they slipped on the sandy rock. John continued his ravishing masturbation, with the glory of Dan’s muscles haunted his visions, his thoughts and his desires. It was so intense that John actually needed this feeling more than breathing.
Dan couldn’t help but grope his muscles with his big hands, feeling the masses of fibers growing under his touch. He just couldn’t help but become hard by his growth, but also he got scared at the unearthed event; why was this happening to him? How much heavier would he get with this spurt? Would it actually have an ending? All these thoughts inhabited Dan’s conscious mind, but at the same time he was feeling incredibly aroused by the simple fact that he was growing bigger and more muscular right before his very eyes! The lad flexed his pectoral muscles and watched as they got so much bigger that his tank top ripped down the center, exposing his magnificent torso in all its bare glory. His lats flared and widened out like he would suddenly grow wings of his own, his thighs pushed against each other, fighting for space. The tightness of his worn out jeans soon gave way and shredded up the sides, becoming another torn piece of clothing, but Dan couldn’t care about such minor details; He was having the best time of his life, having his muscles growing like that. Soon his boxers became tighter and tighter until finally his favorite muscle ripped free of its cotton prison. At 10 inches erect, it was truly a sight to behold. But, as Dan watched, the swollen cock head slowly began to rise higher and thicker as the energy that was flooding his muscles were also filling his cock and balls. Shit, even his dick wasn’t excluded from the growth! The only thing that could possibly make it perfect was if John was there with him, the two of them basking in his incredible growth.
Like magic, Dan’s mind suddenly abandoned all the lust and sensual bliss he was feeling. He was suddenly aware that his little friend was taking far too long for a simple call of nature. John was alone in a forest, and no matter how well Thunderstrike knew that area it was still a wild outdoors and many dangerous things could happen to someone unprepared like poor little John.
“Hey buddy, is everything alright over there?” Dan asked first in order to respect John’s privacy since the guy was already too uptight, but there was no answer at all.
Meanwhile, John slipped even further into his lust. It was like his very soul needed that orgasm at once, as the imaginary Dan Thunderstrike flexed and showed his enormous muscles for his worshipping gaze. The geeky lad felt his hard cock getting closer to the edge, his hands were getting tired of jerking such voluptuous manhood, his balls churned loudly, his throbbing cock synchronized with his heartbeat. No matter how horny John felt his lust for Dan only got stronger and more intense.
“John… are you okay?” Dan’s husky sexy tone asked, but at that point, poor Parsons could no longer tell reality from his very vivid imagination. He just accepted that his imaginary idol was actually talking back to him, and in his horny trance, the skinny lad just unleashed all restraints on his lust.
“Oh… Dan I need you so much!” John said, not even realizing this plead came out loud and not just in his firing lustful mind, the cry for Dan’s presence actually echoed in the silence of that beautiful area and filled the ears of the worried enormous jock, who suddenly heard a muffled cry for help coming from his weakling buddy.
“I'm coming John!” Dan said at once, using all his massive muscles to get there as soon as possible. He didn’t even remember he was currently going through another unexplainable muscle growth spurt, no matter how hot it felt. The very possibility of John going into something dangerous was stronger than any selfish vanity or erotic feeling. Thunderstrike covered the distance with an incredible speed; his augmented muscles seem to work better in their enlarged version, but Dan’s mind still needed some time to get used to his increased weight, mostly because no matter how worried that jock was, even though he wasn’t paying attention to the spurt any longer, it didn’t mean it was over. Quite the contrary, at each new step Dan Thunderstrike was bigger, thicker, heavier and denser, the glorious jock gained strength and power at each passing second, regardless the fact his mind was focused in aiding John.
Meanwhile, John’s mind had shut off again to the world outside his feverish mind; all he cared was reaching an orgasm and perhaps relieving his obsession for a few extra moments without embarrassing himself with inconvenient boners in front of his best friend. However, the more he lusted after his imaginary Dan Thunderstrike, the more vividly he envisioned his glorious muscular frame, the bigger, harder, wider, thicker, denser muscles he wanted it to be, because that’d what the real Dan deserved and that’s what John’s heart wanted to give him; everything he desired.
Dan’s heart paced as he ran towards the hill, he noticed how clumsy his steps were, like he wasn’t used to run in much harder conditions, Thunderstrike dropped out of the football team but it suddenly felt like back when he was dragging the defensive players onto the touchdown area, the weight was indeed considerable but it wouldn’t help him from scoring.
The impressive jock soon reached the creek and tried to turn to follow it to where John was suppose to be, but for some unknown reason, his body simply didn’t stop. Dan watched the creek getting closer and closer, his powerful legs stopped running, but the inertia accumulated on his increased weight worked against the enormous lad, who had clearly miscalculated the appropriate place to stop and make the jump. Summing up the increased weight, the augmented speed his body gained given the newly power acquired with his ongoing growth spurt, and the slimy slippery edge of the creek, Dan’s enormous body just continued moving until it simply splashed into the cold waters of the small creek thanks to Newton’s second law of Kinematics, though it didn’t hurt the impervious fortress of Dan’s body, his body ended up soaked in water, which actually felt very good, despite the surprise it caused on Thunderstrike, but he could not lose any second, so with a jump he just reached dry land again and ran down it’s length towards where he had heard John’s voice, getting each time closer to his friend in need.
John has never been so close to the edge before, it just felt like he would keep going forever without ever reaching an orgasm, but the more he ached for relief, the more intense his passion for that imaginary worship session grew. Parsons was torn apart between the need to cum and the pleasure to envision Dan like that, where all his fantasies, all his unexplainable admiration towards that massive lad could be fully unleashed, without regrets, second thoughts or any kind of repression at all.
When Dan finally got to the place from where he heard John’s cry for help his heart almost stopped. He found John’s body on the ground, the slim thin back turned to him, John’s pants were on his knees and he was visibly convulsing.
Thunderstrike yelled “DON’T WORRY JOHN I AM HERE!”
John was so lost in his fantasies he could swear the sounds of approaching footsteps or the manly scream of his adored teenager musclegod were actually real, so he decided to surrender into his disturbed mind.
“Oh John, please… help me… I need you so much!” John mumbled, and that was enough for Dan to bear. The huge lad kneeled and gently tried to lift John up, but he hesitated, feeling his growth spurt still lasted stronger than ever, the Indian teenager was afraid that he might hurt his friend if he moved too abruptly, so he decided to take a very delicate approach, but as he got just a little bit closer, Thunderstrike finally noticed that the reason for all that moaning and convulsing.
“John… what is going on here? What…” Dan suddenly could speak no more, overwhelmed by a sudden euphoria that overtook all his senses.
John’s body was caught inside turmoil of sensorial experiences, he lust had grown so strong that he could no longer tell reality from fantasy, in his mind’s eye he watched as Dan grew bigger and even more massive, but at the same time he was seeing that powerful lad’s worried face. While they identically equal, one was the image of power and confidence, the other had a very concerned look in his face, and this genuine expression actually alerted John that something was indeed wrong.
The wet locks of the dark brown hair, the soaking wet massiveness of the muscles he lusted after, the undefeatable power of his heroic proportions, the same scent of manly odor, the unmistakable reality that challenged any fantasy John could ever have about that uncanny muscle hunk. The skinny John Parson was actually facing the real deal, the biggest, hottest guy in the world.
“DAN?!!!” It was all John could mutter before it happened. Like an explosion of heat, passion and sensuality, Parsons blew his load like a volcano unleashing all the power of Nature into the world. The hot creamy man juice flew from his throbbing cock, splashing between their very close bodies.
Thunderstrike felt like an unheard power came over him, his growth stopped for one split second, only to regain a redoubled intensity. The moment John laid his eyes on him, the very moment as their hands touched and the skinny lad noticed he was actually there for him, the exact time where John came copiously, that was the time of Dan’s revelation.
While his own body continued growing so much faster than a few moments before, Dan could only see John’s face, that changed from pure shock and horror into a very soothing calm expression, the moment he came it seemed all his fears and regrets were lifted from his chest. The lad actually never looked so beautiful. In fact, Dan was sure that his face was the MOST beautiful view he had ever seen, a face of a new John, released from all fears, and who seemed confident about himself. A John Parsons that was laying underneath years of intolerance and lack of attention, a new man who for one single instant reached out for Dan, and the undeniable truth about this view was that Dan also wanted to be reached by that John. He wanted to help that charming one imprisoned inside layers of depression and solitude, Thunderstrike would do anything to set that angelical creature free from the pain. The cry of that dazzling beautiful essence was so strong that Dan Thunderstrike didn’t even notice he was getting close to release until the orgasmic eruption overtook his own body, and without any other explanation, the teenager muscle powerhouse unleashed his own powerful orgasm inside the remains of his even tighter pants.
The orgasmic explosion which assaulted John’s body transformed his mind for a very brief instant. Instead of his expectations, Dan didn’t seem outraged for noticing John’s dirty feelings for his muscles. Parsons only wanted that man to understand his need for him, and how much it transcended the carnal attraction, he could go an eternity without ever having sex with Dan, the mere possibility to watch his glory was enough for his existence, it was a respectful, indeed religious adulation that was stronger than anything in his life, stronger than his very will to live, from that moment on, John realized his life had no meaning until that very moment.
As epic orgasm subsided, both of the lads seemed to regain their senses. They were both panting, John looked at Dan so seriously, he wanted to apologize to Dan immediately, but something actually helped him doing that, and that something was the look on Thunderstrike’s face. He wasn’t mad, he wasn’t pissed, he was just grinning with a look of exhaustion, surprise and above everything; was the look of understanding.
Parsons already knew what Dan was about to say and he already wanted to deny it, he wanted to say he couldn’t possibly have anything to do with the growth spurts occurring on Dan’s body, but after such powerful episode, he could no longer know what was true and what belonged to the Realm of his Fantasies,
“It’s been you all along, John… you are the reason for THIS.” Dan said as he flexed his monstrous 28” biceps and it soared into the skies like the same mountain there were on at that very moment.
“N-no, it can’t be me…” John shook his head. “It’s just not possible. I mean, I know that your accelerated growth is unusual, but for me to be the cause? It…it just can’t be because of me!”
“But it IS because of you, John.” Dan said. “How could I have been so stupid? Every time you got hard, I grew. And just now, when you came, I grew even faster then before. It’s undeniable proof! There’s no mistake about it; you are the cause of my growth!”
“But…I can’t be it!” John denied it. His big eyes were fearful as he pulled back until he was pressed against the rock face, almost as if he feared the massive wrestler. “I’m nothing! A worthless person like me can’t do something that wonderful! I’m not worthy of such a miracle like that!”
So much pain…it tore at Dan’s heart to see John suffer like this. The little guy had endured so many years of neglect and abuse that the belief that he was really worthless was engrained into him. And Dan…he just inflicted more pain on the already scarred innocent. It was so deep and profound that John would be quick to deny any words that tried to tell him otherwise, even from Dan. The big jock had thought that John had been slowly improving, but now it seems John had reverted back to his old self once more. But, Thunderstrike cannot let this go on much longer.
Moving slowly to prevent John from becoming startled, Dan knelt down next to John and took his hand. John’s hand seemed so tiny within his palm, so fragile and delicate. Softly he looked into John’s beautiful eyes. “John…the one who is unworthy isn’t you. It’s me.”
Parson’s head snapped up in surprised. “Wha…what? No!”
“I am.” John told him. “You…you’re such a wonderful person. You’re so kind, gentle and forgiving. Even after everything I’ve done to you, all of the bad stuff I put you through, you still think of me as your friend.”
“That’s because you’re such a great person!” John tried to tell him, but Dan simply shook his head.
“No, I’m not. I’m…I’m a horrible person.” Dan told him. “Even though you said we were friends, I…I never really thought of you like that until only a week ago. I hurt you without a second thought, using you to do things for me, took your lunch money…any way you look at it, I’m the worthless one.”
“Dan…”
“But you! You…you still saw some good in me. You trusted me, stayed by my side, and helped me without question. And now…now I find out you were the one responsible for giving me this body. When I look back, I remember that we used to be the same size. I always thought I was going to become a small man like my father was, but then all of a sudden I began to grow very rapidly, building muscle with little effort. But now I know that you are the reason I have gotten so big and strong. Shit, you’ve had this power even way back then, when we first met. Even though I never treated you as an equal, you chose to grow me. You gave me such an incredible gift, and I’ve only repaid you with more pain and suffering. But you never complained even once. You were happy just to be with me. You…you’re truly the wonderful one here, John.”
“Oh no…” Dan said. “You…you are…”
“No, I’m not.” Dan said again. “I’m nowhere as great of a person you think I am. I…there’s something I have to tell you. And once you know about it, you’ll see how horrible I really am.” He had to tell him. He had to tell Dan his darkest secret. John had to discover that he was not the perfect being he thought he was. The big Thunderstrike took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he gathered his courage to say what he had to say. “I…I killed my Dad.”
The world around Thunderstrike seemed to have become deathly quiet all of a sudden. When John didn’t reply, Dan continued on with his confession.
“I…even now, I have always been a stupid, stubborn pig head. The two of us would get into arguments over the littlest things. My Dad wanted me to push myself academically, but all I wanted to do was play sports all the time. As I grew older and stronger, I began to feel more…more dominant and defiant. I…I used to call him names. My Dad wasn’t very large or muscular, and when I outgrew him, I began to act like I was the man of the house and push him around. My ego was swelled up so big that I didn’t care that I was hurting him. But even though I was such a rebellious kid, he still said he loved me.”
“Then, when I was thirteen, my grandparents from Dallas came to visit, and we all decided to come up here to our ancestral home for a trip. My Dad…he wanted me to go home early to go school and not miss class, but since I knew you would do my work and I liked this place so much that I refused. The two of us had a big argument. It was just so stupid and unimportant that I’m so ashamed about it. I think I knew all along that he was right, but because I was such an idiot that I couldn’t admit that I was wrong. Things got out of control and then I yelled that I hated him and that I wished he’d just die and go to hell. After that, I stormed out of the cabin, ran out into the woods and didn’t come back until one in the morning. When I came home, I found my Mom up, waiting for me, her eyes red. She told me that after I had run out of the house my Dad had taken the truck to run down into town to buy some supplies that we needed. He was driving down on the road when all of a sudden he had a heart attack and drove his truck off the road.”
Even with his eyes shut, Dan could feel his tears flow from his cheeks. “I killed him. I wished he would die, and it happened. My last words to him were that I hated him, and that I’d never wanted to see him again. Well, I got my wish, and now he’s gone forever. And the worst of it all is that he died thinking that I really hated him. After his death, I was such a coward to face the pain that I vented out on the nearest person I could find, and that was you.”
And even after all that, I ended up repeating the same mistake all over again. He spoke silently to himself. He had once more said hurtful things to the person closest to him, and almost ended up killing John, just like he killed his father. What if he said something wrong in the future and causes John to commit suicide? He could never be able to live with himself. Even though he had sworn to never let any more harm befall on John anymore, Dan still managed to hurt him in some way.
Before, John’s idolization of the big stud had flattered him, but now Dan could see that his friend’s worship of a seemingly infallible god was, in fact, impeding him. John was so blind by what he thought was perfection that all he could see were his own faults, and none of his self values. Because of this, Parsons has constantly put himself down, believing in the lies that he told himself. But now that he told John his secret, the little guy must be disgusted with Thunderstrike by now. The perfect man John had always worshiped proved to be a demon of the worst kind. Eventually, John will distance himself from Dan, and move on to a new friend who wouldn’t hurt him like he did. With someone more ordinary, like him, John will come to realize his own self worth, and break out of his inferiority complex. Even though it felt like he was being torn up inside, Dan had to do this. He couldn’t allow John to go through any more pain. Even if it meant…
Even if it meant they would never see each other again.
So now Dan waited for John’s response. He waited for words of disgust, asking him to take him home that instant. Waited for something, anything!
A gentle hand pressed against Dan’s cheek, wiping the tears that had been flowing down it. Startled, Dan’s eyes opened and saw John’s caring face looking at him.
“Dan…you’re not the monster you claim to be.” John told him. “I know what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to push me away, trying to protect me from yourself. But you’re wrong, Dan. You are a truly kind person, who is trying his hardest to make up for the past. Why else would you be trying to push me away when it hurts you to do so? And despite what you say, it was an accident, and it wasn’t your fault. I may not know your father, but I think that deep down he always loved you. Even when you said you hated him, I’ll bet he knew that you didn’t mean it. Because the two of us know that deep down, you really are kind and caring. You just didn’t know how to express it.”
Immediately Dan felt his heart melt. With only a few words John had removed his greatest burden, and healed old wounds that he thought would never close. John was so close to him that he could smell the scent of his hair, a sweet, flowery smell. The small hand on his cheek was soft, caressing, but at the same time it was warm and soothing. John was like a refreshing summer breeze that took away all worries and problems away.
Summer breeze…
Dan’s eyes widened. Could it be…? He looked up at John’s face in shocked surprise.
“Dan?” John asked, worried. “Are you okay? Did I say something wrong?”
There was no denying it. Everything clicked perfectly into place. “It’s you.” Dan breathed.
“Huh?”
“All this time, it was you.” Dan continued. “How could I not have seen it? All these years of being together, and I’ve never noticed. You were always right next to me, in front of my eyes.” Suddenly he began to laugh.
“Dan, are you okay?” John asked with his face full of genuine concern.
“Oh, I’m fine.” Dan chuckled uncontrollably. “I’m just laughing at how blind I’ve been for the past several years. I should have realized that it could have been no one other then you.”
John looked confused. “I don’t understand…”
“Oh you will soon.” Dan smiled broadly as he pushed himself back onto his feet. Then, he reached down behind John’s legs and back and lifted him off the ground.
“D-Dan?” John’s eyes widened. “What are you…?”
“I’m taking you up to my special spot.” Dan told him.
“B-but Dan, you don’t have to carry me. I’m perfectly fine. I can climb up there with you.”
“This is your first time hiking a rough trail, John.” Dan chided him. “Your feet are probably sore, and you could develop blisters. I’m not going to allow you to harm yourself anymore for my sake, so I’m simply going to carry you up the mountain. And besides, you’re as light as a feather to me.”
John had opened his mouth to protest, but then shut it when Dan had mentioned how easy it was from him to carry his weight. A bright pink color flushed his face as Dan held him like a baby while the powerful Thunderstrike began to move and hike further up the path. With his bigger muscles and new strength, Dan virtually flew up the mountainside all while carrying John with agility, grace and style. Within moments they reached their destination.
When Dan set John down, the little guy looked at his surroundings. They were now standing on a wide open space carved into the mountainside facing the beautiful setting sun. Closest to the mountain ledge was a large tree, still in bloom with fragile pink flowers, and in the shadow of the tree was a tall wooden totem pole with various animals depicted on it. Occasionally a warm wind would blow, scattering a few sweetly scented petals around them.
“Where are we?” John looked up at Dan.
“This is my favorite spot in the whole wide world.” Dan told him as he walked up to the tree and laid his hand against the totem pole. “This totem pole represents my family. See, this is me down here.” Dan pointed at the carved figure of the bird on the bottom. “Right above me is my Dad Swift Wolf, my Grandfather Soaring Eagle and so on. Every new generation, a new totem pole is made to include the newborn child’s animal, while the oldest one is removed and burned with the previous pole so that they can return to the spirits.”
“That sounds like a very sacrilegious tradition.” John said.
Dan moved his hand from the totem and laid it against the bark of the tree with affection and tenderness on his face. “I love coming up here to watch the sun as it sets, especially during the early summertime on a day like today. It’s because here, I could forget about all of my worries and be at peace.”
“Then, when I was fourteen, I had a dream. My family clan believes that when we become of age, the Great Spirits visit us and grants a dream of our soul mates. At first I thought it was pure superstitious crap, but when I had my dream…God, it was so real, I could feel the grass under my feet and smell the scent of summer in the air. I dreamed of a great blossoming tree, and of a wind that wrapped my in a gentle blanket of warmth and sweet smelling petals. For a little while it made me forget the pain of losing my Dad and I truly felt content. After that night I became completely obsessed with it. I even had that image tattooed onto my back. When I told my Grandfather about that dream, he said to me that I was blessed, because my soul mate was truly a magnificent person, capable of healing my scars and the wounds in my soul. That was when he told me the name of my soul mate.”
Dan turned around and looked straight into John’s eyes. “His name is Summer Breeze. And that person…is you John.”