I Will Remember You

Chapter 4

~ The Cruise, Day Two ~

At Sea

Justin woke with a moan, wondering if maybe the ship was in the middle of a storm as his bed was rolling him from side to side. Cracking one eye open, he realized that the 'storm' was just Tris, bouncing across the bed on his way to the bathroom. Justin vaguely saw a pillow fly across the room to hit the wall near where Tris had just disappeared into the bathroom. Looking in the direction the pillow had originated, Justin saw Tee fall back into the bed with a groan. He had apparently been awakened a few moments earlier in much the same way.

It was a good thing that Tris didn't live at his grandparents as neither Justin nor Tee were morning people. They probably would have killed him after only a few days if he did. As it was, he was currently in danger of not making it off this cruise alive.

Worming his way into his blankets, Justin had just managed to drift off when Hurricane Tristin blew across his bed again. "Come on, sleepyheads. We only have six days left. You can't miss any of the fun and excitement by laying around in bed all day." The storm blew over the Tee's bed, attempting to wrestle the covers off his cousin who wasn't giving them up easily.

Tee quickly came to realize that wrestling with Tris may be allowing him to keep his blankets, but it was also forcing him awake. With a snort of disgust, Tee let go of the blankets, watching Tris catapult across the room to fall on his own bed. "All right, already. I'm awake." Tee headed for the bathroom, stumbling a little over the shoes and clothes strewn all about the floor.

Laughing, Tris began disentangling himself from the blankets that were now wrapped around his legs. "OK, Jus, that just leaves you. Up and at 'em."

Justin decided it was pointless to try and sleep with Hurricane Tristin in the room, so he slowly pushed his way up into sitting position. Seeing this as a positive sign, Tris bounced over holding a piece of paper in his hands and sat down next to Justin. After finally getting his eyes to focus, Justin recognized the paper as the cruise news, outlining all the potential day's activities while at sea. Tristin, their self-proclaimed event planner, was busily scanning the listing to see what might appeal to three teenage boys on the prowl.

"Hey, listen to this. They really do have massages at the spa, maybe we could do that one day."

Justin looked over his shoulder and gave a low whistle. "At those prices, I don't think I could even afford 15 minutes. Do people really pay that much?"

Tee walked out and looked over at the price listing too. "I'm sure I can find someone willing to run their hands all over my body for a lot less than that." He said with a grin.

Tris snorted, not amused. "That's not a massage. This would be incredible. To have some gorgeous hunk rubbing sweet smelling oil all over your body. To feel you muscles slowly loosen one by one until you're nothing but a relaxed mass of warm flesh. Mmmmm" Tris had a faraway smile on his face.

Justin looked at the prices again. "The only way we'd be able to do that is for all three of us to pay for an it and then split the time between us." He sighed. He'd never had a massage like what Tris describes. "It does sound nice though, doesn't it?"

Tee got a thoughtful look on his face, "You know, maybe we could go in together and pay for an hour. Then we could have a bet and the winner gets the massage."

Tris and Justin both looked up, intrigued. "You've got our attention. What do you have in mind for a bet?" Tris asked.

Tee hadn't really thought that far ahead. "Why don't we go grab some breakfast and see what we can come up with."

The boys quickly went through their morning routines and headed out the door, stomachs starting to rumble, each trying to come up with a bet that they felt they'd have a good chance of winning.

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The boys were sitting at their table, having just finished off their second round of breakfast, when the subject of the bet came up again.

"So, anyone come up with anything to bet on?" Tris asked. He was really wanting that massage.

"Well, it won't be an eating contest." Tee stated, as Justin got up to get his third round of breakfast. "We wouldn't stand a chance with the eating machine over there."

Justin just laughed. He was always getting teased about the amount he ate. Not that either of the other two were slouches when it came to putting away the groceries. Once he returned, he countered with, "We could have a contest to see how many different guys we can fuck while we're here."

The other two smirked at the suggestion. It definitely had possibilities. Then Tee had a thought, "The only problem is, Tris would insist that having two or three guys at once should count as two or three points. He'd leave us in the dust."

Tris raised an eyebrow at this, "And the problem is….?"

Justin laughed, "I'm not bottoming for anyone, especially to win a bet."

Tee agreed, not that he had a problem with being on the bottom. He just liked dealing with one guy at a time. "OK, so that idea is out. We need something that isn't going to give any one of us an unfair advantage."

They were still pondering later that morning while lying by the pool on the lower deck (in a shaded area in consideration of Justin's fair skin) when Uncle Rick joined them. "Mind if I enjoying the scenery with you?"

The boys called out their welcomes as Rick pulled up an empty lounge chair. "So what's going on with you guys, besides basking in the shade?"

Tris decided they had reached a stalemate on coming up with a bet, so he told Rick what they'd discussed earlier and asked if he had any suggestions.

Rick thought over the possibilities and an idea began to form in his head. "I tell you boys what. You go make that reservation, and I promise that by dinner tonight, I'll have a bet that is guaranteed to be fun and impartial."

The boys exchanged grins. They knew if Rick said he had something for them, he wouldn't let them down. They enjoyed the scenery a while longer, then decided to make that reservation on the way to lunch.

On the way back from lunch, they passed by a climbing wall which they lost Tee to. There was a show later that afternoon that Tris had talked them into, so Tee said he'd meet them there.

Tris and Justin found a Ping-Pong table located under a covered portion of the deck and decided to try their luck. Neither were very good and the ball tended to ricochet off in the oddest directions. They had soon drawn a small following of 'ball gophers' who would try to catch the ball when one of them missed or sent it off at an odd angle. The game became as much fun for the bystanders as for the two boys playing.

After a while, a couple of good looking men decided to 'teach' the boys how to play properly by standing behind them and holding the paddle with them as they played. The two boys quickly lost interest in where the Ping-Pong ball was going as they became more interested in some other balls that were making their presence known.

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Michael had been a nervous wreck all morning. Every time he saw a blond head, he'd feel a wash of panic run over him. So far though, he hadn't actually seen Justin again. He wasn't really too sure what he was going to do if he did. That was assuming, of course, that he saw him before Brian did.

Breakfast had gone without incident, although he'd barely been able to eat. He had told Brian that he was just feeling a little seasick still. They'd spent the morning lounging by the pool. Brian had disappeared a couple of times. Michael knew he was off with a trick somewhere.

After lunch, Brian had wanted to walk around the deck for awhile. They'd stopped for a bit at the climbing wall. Brian had made a comment about the way the harness emphasized the wearer's package, some not for the better. A dark haired teen with blue eyes had caught Brian's attention and he had wanted to wait around while the kid made an expert climb up the harder of the walls. Michael had to admit the kid looked good, both from the front and the back. And at least while Brian's attention was on that twink, he might not notice if a certain other twink walked by.

The dark haired boy had made his descent and was pulling his harness off, when Michael suddenly realized that this was one of the boys that had been with Justin the night before. He began to look around wildly, expecting the blond to suddenly appear out of nowhere. He had to get Brian away from here, now!

"Brian, I think I'm going to be sick." Well, it wasn't a total lie. He was feeling decidedly worse and worse as this day progressed.

Brian gave his friend a disgusted look, not appreciating Michael diverting his attention from a choice mark. Then he realized that Michael really did look ill. He was pale and sweating. Looking around, he saw a restroom not far away. Grabbing Michael's arm, he steered him toward it.

Once inside the restroom, Michael splashed some cold water on his face and sat down in one of the stalls. He hoped by the time they left, the kid would be gone. Moaning softly to himself, Michael wondered how he was ever going to make it through the next six days.

Maybe he just tell Brian the truth. Maybe it would be better if Brian was prepared, just in case they did run into each other. But Michael knew better. He remembered the blank look on the kid's face when they had all finally been allowed in his hospital room. He had obviously not known them or wanted them there and Michael had never had the courage to go back.

He'd seen the same blank look on Justin's face last night. The blond had looked right at him from only a few yards away and had shown absolutely no sign of recognition. It was an unsettling feeling for him, and they hadn't been all that close. How much worse would it be for Brian to see Justin look through him like that? And if Brian knew he was here, he'd have to find him. He wouldn't be able to resist.

No, he'd just have to keep doing what he was doing and hope that he could keep the two of them apart for the next six days. Michael wondered if one could develop an ulcer in only six days.

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The boys all met at the pizza place for dinner that night. Nothing like a high carb meal before a night of dancing and fucking, and they planned on doing both all night.

True to his word, Rick had a bet ready for them. Since they would be leaving early on the seventh day, the massage appointment was for day six. That meant that day five would be bet day and Rick would be the final judge. As he explained his idea to them, their grins got bigger and bigger. As promised, it would be a lot of fun, involve a lot of men (even if it was in a non-sexual way), and would be fair to all of them. They discussed details through the meal and Rick said he would have everything ready for them when the time came. All they would have to do is decide what to wear.

After dinner, they headed for the karaoke bar. Tris had promised to sing something for them. His voice wasn't half-bad, but his showmanship put everyone else to shame. After only one song, he had the whole place eating out of his hand (and other places).

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Brian and Michael were wondering the decks, checking out the different clubs and such. Michael was once again a nervous wreck. He wished Brian would just pick a place so they could sit in one spot. It would be much easier to watch one doorway than to have to constantly be on the alert like this. It didn't help that Brian was taller than he was and had a better chance of spotting someone before he did, either.

They'd stopped by the door of the karaoke club, looking in while some twink was belting out a show tone and prancing around the stage. Emmett would have been proud. It took a minute for Michael to realize that this was one of the boys that Justin had been with last night. There was no way he could let Brian go in this place.

"Come on, Brian. This is too lame. Let's move on."

Brian glanced down at his friend. Michael had been acting strangely all day. "You're not feeling sick again, are you?" Michael still looked a little pale.

"No, I'm fine. I just want to find someplace quiet to have a drink is all." Michael was getting more nervous the longer they stood here. He hadn't located Justin yet, but he knew that as soon as the boy on the stage went to sit down, Brian's eyes would automatically follow and that's where Justin would be.

Brian was puzzled by Michael attitude. He'd made this big push to get Brian to come on this cruise and now he didn't want to do anything. He was beginning to think that Mikey would be happy just staying in the cabin for the rest of the cruise. Sometimes, his friend was a royal pain in the ass.

They finally found a quiet club that seemed to be frequented mostly by the thirty-something set. Michael breathed a sigh of relief. Not much chance those twinks would show up here.

They bought a couple of drinks and leaned back against the bar, checking out the other patrons. Brian felt that the pickings for fairly slim, but there were one or two that were possibilities.

While Brian was off with his latest conquest, Michael debated having a few more drinks to help calm his nerves. He finally decided that he'd better stay sober. He knew he had a tendency to say things without thinking when he was drinking, and he really couldn't afford that while on this trip. Well, if nothing else, they'd almost made it through day two without incident.

Only five more days to go.

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