can touch me, Andrei,” he repeated.
I stayed silent and attempted to decipher the purpose and meaning of the words. After the day, I began to touch him. A pat on or a quick rub of his back. I grabbed his upper arms from behind and squeezed them as I gave a goodnight spiel.
I noticed another song played when we were both present and not any other time. It’s “Do You Think I’m Sexy?” by Rod Stewart.
Chapter Four
In September, I met Victor.
A job vacancy opened at work. The position involved working with me from 7:00 am until 3:00 pm Monday through Friday. I supervised two other employees in this post and neither worked out.
It's difficult to fill any position, not just this one. I met Victor when I interviewed him for the job.
Although I interviewed people for this and other jobs, the oddity of this one didn't occur until the conclusion. It lasted two hours. None of the past ones came anywhere close. And, the time flew.
I had no qualms or hesitation. Victor became my recommendation to the account manager for the job. He learned quick and became proficient. Comfortable with him and confident in his ability, we gelled. We became like brothers.
Until now, Angel remained the one person I expressed my full feelings to for Sammy. Oblivious to any potential fall-out, I confided in Victor. We began to get together after work to socialize. Here was a person I supervised, and I poured out an intense, personal, and private matter. I felt comfortable and trusting.
He accepted what I told him and listened with intent. He became my primary emotional support.
Over time, he mentioned he had a gay male friend, but it never evolved beyond friendship, and neither of them fancied it. He remarked previous bartending employment exposed him to a number of LGBT people.
As time passed, I learned of his previous and current circumstances. He’s thirty-four. He confided a mugger stabbed him and he almost died. Because of this, he experiences horrifying nightmares of the event, reliving it again and again.
He lives with his grandmother and told me his mother steals identities. His brother gets in trouble on a regular basis. His relationship with his mother and brother is poor, bordering on an intense and deep-rooted hatred.
He disclosed he developed a brain tumor at one time. The more I get close to him, the more I realize this young man has his share of pitfalls.
He claimed he's had sex with many women but isn't in a current relationship. He mentioned he finds it difficult to form friendships.
His most recent romance involved a lab assistant named Alysha. He hangs out from time to time with an acquaintance named Liberty Willis. He's into Renaissance Fairs, Witchcraft, card reading, and so forth.
A proud moment of his was playing the part of ‘Rocky’ in his troupe’s rendition of ‘The Rocky Horror Picture Show’.
He strikes me as a caring, intelligent, and unpretentious person. He comes across as advanced beyond his years, and I consider him a free-spirit.
I enjoy the time we share. He causes me to laugh — almost always at Sammy’s expense. He’ll refer to an unrelated or innocent narrative, and my mind concocts a dirty notion.
“We need to find something to get your heart pumping,” he said.
“Oh, I know what would get my heart pumping,” I replied, bursting out laughing.
“Oops, I see where this is going,” he chuckled.
He once said: “That’s fucked up.”
Without skipping a beat, I responded, “Oh, hell, up, down, sideways, upside down, round and round. I’d fuck him every way imaginable.”
Many times, I communicated an X-rated thought to him. On one occasion, I shared I envisioned Sammy walking into a packed Rusty’s.
“I killed Andrei,” he said.
Everyone in the place turned and looked.
“Did you shoot him?” one said.
“No! He shot me full and then died of a heart attack.”
His short stint working with me came to an abrupt halt. He took a hankering for a female employee of the client company. One day, he told this lady, “I’d like to get to know you better outside work.”
Taboo by company policy, the lady reported it to her supervisor and the corporation’s human resources department. Regardless of other employees and me deducing it harsh punishment, the client company determined they no longer wanted him at their site.
They requested his removal from the account and the company we worked for terminated him. I’m not condoning what he did because it violated a policy but got blown way out of proportion.
The complainant considered it sexual harassment. I deemed it a far stretch and believed a written warning and suspension without pay sufficient recourse. The company never solicited my opinion.
Victor expressed he likes to fight. He’s told me years have passed since his involvement. Although I’ve never seen him in action, I surmise he’s a pretty good scrapper. It’s the little guys' people have to watch.
He stands five feet, three inches, and weighs one-hundred and thirty-two pounds. His hair is jet-black and wavy. We’ve joked of late we’d tear Rusty’s apart one night. Not the place, select people.
When it comes to fighting, it doesn’t accomplish a thing. It amounts to alpha monkeys' grandstanding. Although exceptions, they inflict no serious injuries. People may get hurt, but no debilitating injury occurs.
Many fights amount to a game and dance. They are mere competitions. Times have changed, and these days, what starts as such ends far worse than a mere fight.
I’ve never engaged in a fight. Although I received extensive training in defensive tactics, martial arts, and self-protection, I never had to use it. In years of work in the prison system, I never became involved in a use of force incident. Logic, fairness, understanding, and quick wit prevailed.
Chapter Five
On October 11th, Sandra and I got together for dinner after leaving Rusty’s. It was the first we accompanied each other outside.
We made plans several weeks before for a home-cooked meal and to watch a musical DVD at my apartment. I invited her to join me and others in December to see the group live in Bluewater Springs.
I pulled out the stops. With Stouffer's brand Manicotti as the main entrée, I splurged on shrimp cocktail, salad, and Hors D’oeuvre. I purchased essential items for the presentation. I shelled out close to one-hundred dollars for this at-home-dinner for two.
The following night, Allison served my first beer.
“How was the dinner date?” she asked.
“It was nice,” I replied. “We had a good time.”
Sammy
