Ch1: Stacy’s trips
Growing up gay in a conservative town was hard enough, but being the poor kid at school made everything even worse. James and his family had moved to the south because his dad got a job opportunity that they couldn’t pass up. His family was very christian and not the ‘love everyone’ kind, the ‘Gays will go to hell abd burn’ kind. This means that James didn't really have a good relationship with either of his parents, but his father was the worst. He never told them about his sexuality, which made him more reserved and closed towards his parents.
This town was what most people would call a ‘rich’ town. There were mansions everywhere, all the residents were like millionaires, and everything was so lavish. Unfortunately for James, this made him stand out as the poor kid who couldn't afford more than three pairs of shoes. The only reason James got into this school in the first place was because he got a full-ride scholarship for being “extraordinary”. James still hated it though.
The only thing good about this place was Stacy, his best friend. Stacy was what the kids there called a ‘regular kid’, but to James, she was anything but regular. Her parents were super rich and she lived in a three story mansion with a private pool. This was considered ‘normal’. Thankfully, James and Stacy became friends quickly and James got to experience a fraction of the lavish life with her. He even told her about his sexuality and she completely accepted him.
Keeping James’s sexuality a secret caused many people to think Stacy and Jmaes were dating, even Stacy’s parents thought so and made ridiculous rules like: No being alone with doors closed. It didn't help that James looked like all the other straight guys at school and was on the football team. ‘Because no gay guy can play sports and be jacked’. And Stacy was a typical girl’s girl, but the two got along great.
One downside about being friends with Stacy was that every summer, her and her family would go on lavish holidays, leaving James behind. Year after yeah, James had to listen to Stacy’s anecdotes of swimming in the beaches of bali, and eating pizza in Italy and all her rich people adventures. Sadly, all James could say was that he worked at the local McDonald's all summer and got some money. This year though was different.
As their senior year rolled around, James was dreading hearing about Stacy’s family’s next vacation destination. Would it be switzerland? Or France? Or Hawaii for the fifth time? James was happy that Stacy got to do all those fun things, but he was also sad that he was left alone. Plopping down across from James at the lunch table, Stacy’s excitement couldnt be contained. She was positively squealing. “I have news!” She said, jumping up and down.
“What? You going to Jamaica or something this time?” James tried to sound annoyed to hide his sadness, but it was overshadowed by Stacy’s bubblyness
“This year, were going on a cruise across europe! But there's more!” She said, her excitement almost looked like she was on crack “YOU'RE COMING WITH US!” She shouted.
“What?” Was all James could muster out of the shock he just experienced. “Are you messing with me?”
“No! I convinced my parents to let you come with us this time, all expenses paid of course.” She said, her face smiling ridiculously.
James could feel nothing but excitement for the next few weeks. He was finally going to be able to go on vacation with Stacy! About a week before leaving, James was invited to have a sit down talk with Stacy’s parents. During that meeting, they said that they had a few rules regarding the trip. 1) There will be no hanging out with Stacy anywhere private, only in public settings. That was easy enough. 2) Don't wander off without telling anyone and try to stay with the family. 3) Because they only had two two-bed rooms, James would be rooming with Henry, Stacy’s father.
From James’s experience, Henry was a nice man. He was always kind to James and was very welcoming, so James wasn't scared really. Unlike James, Henry was a more hairy man, having thick red chest hairs, matching his hair and mustache. He was quite tall and very muscular, a bit bigger than James, but not too big. In James’s eyes, he's hot.
This was going to be a great trip.
(Little did James know, the trip would be amazing for a different reason than he thought.)
