Lost Boys Academy (Book One: Orientation)

by Aaron Ferrara

“Oh-okay, Jake.” He made his way to the whiteboard and turned back to address him. “Just make sure he’s back to his dorm room with enough time to finish his paperwork.”

  Jake flashed his pearly, white grin and squinted his eyes. He batted his long eyelashes in a way only he could pull off without looking like a total fool.

  “Don’t worry, Mr. Pierce. I’ll personally make sure he finishes.”

  Mr. Pierce jerkily nodded, averting his gaze from Jake once again. He gulped down the visibly large lump in his throat and apprehensively started to sketch what was supposed to be words on the board, but looked more like chicken scratch. He stopped to take a deep breath before continuing his orientation lecture for Mason.

  Jake glanced to his right and winked at Jimmy, giving him a thumbs-up. He bowed his head, and silently mouthed the words, “End of quarter.”

  Chapter Two

  -JIMMY-

  The center of the Academy was the main lobby back in the day, when it was a hotel. It was then later converted into a dining hall. It was by far the largest room on campus. The vaulted ceilings seemed to reach the sky, and its grand lighting fixtures hung from the walls like elegant torches. Though it was clear, from the lack of maintenance, that the hall needed work. Yet it remained to be the hub of the entire school. The room itself connected the few offices, classrooms, and three-story cylindrical dormitory—all add-ons during the renovation.

  Jimmy lead Mason into the dining hall, toting a tray of questionable-looking sustenance: a sandwich, an apple, and a carton of orange juice. They passed by a round table already occupied by Kyle and Alex. Mason waved meekly, but neither made eye contact.

  “Don’t bother. Kyle’s an ice queen, and Alex is whipped,” stated Jimmy as he took a seat at the only other available table.

  There was enough room for four or five at each table, but Kyle and Alex always seemed to be in their own, little world. It was never a necessity to have more than two tables due to the minuscule size of the student population. The vast dining room looked even more ridiculously huge due to the lack of bodies in its unoccupied space.

  “Have they always been like that?” Mason inquired.

  “Yeah, but it’s getting worse. We used to be able to talk to Alex, and now he’s like, ‘off limits.’” Jimmy picked the sandwich up off his plate and lifted it eye level, making a sour face as he plopped it back down. “Gross.”

  Mason gobbled up the rest of his sandwich and started in on the orange juice. “I think it’s kinda cool here. Feels like summer camp.”

  Jimmy chuckled, and then slowly trailed off until he stopped, noticing Mason’s smile. “You’re serious?”

  “So far, yeah. The food’s ok, and I’m sure we’ll all get along fine very soon.”

  Jimmy couldn’t help but grin. Between Kyle and Alex’s toxic relationship and Jake’s, well…enough said, he found Mason’s unabashed optimism to be refreshing.

  “So, I guess Mr. Pierce wanted me to catch you up on some of the rules,” Jimmy nodded towards Kyle, “Perfect example of following rule number one. It might just be me, but I think Kyle’s a little frustrated, if you know what I mean?”

  “What do you mean?” Mason raised his eyebrows from behind his thick glasses and took a sip of his juice.

  Jimmy fought back a sigh. Could he really be this naive? He tried to think of another way to put it delicately. “You know…he’s like a lion that’s been deprived of food for weeks on end…and a zebra is constantly being dangled in his face.”

  Mason continued to suck his straw as he gawked at Jimmy, cluelessly cocking his head to the side.

  “What I’m trying to say, is to keep the lion in its cage…”

  And again, there was no acknowledgment from Mason.

  “He means no fucking.” Jake’s voice spouted from behind Mason, who in turn choked on orange juice as he tried not to spit it out across the table.

  Mason turned around to face Jake’s crotch, at exact eye level. His mustard-yellow jeans seemed to be a size or two smaller than they should have been, judging from how tight they fit in certain places. Mason bumped his glasses up the bridge of his nose. His eyes slowly trailed up to Jake’s nearly-visible abs, up to his exposed collar bone, and finally to his artfully-sculpted face.

  “Hi, Jake,” he gulped.

  “Hey guys, can I sit?”

  Before either Jimmy or Mason could answer, he had already taken a seat. He leaned back, hands folded behind his head, fully aware of his own bulging biceps.

  “What Jake meant to say, is that messing around with other guys is off limits,” Jimmy stressed. “It’s like the first commandment in this place.”

  “Exactly what I meant,” Jake continued, “Thou shalt not do thy neighbor up the butt.” He stretched himself back further in his chair and smirked as he slurped his juice. “Trust me, I should know.”

  “Jake, c’mon,” Jimmy pleaded, looking away.

  “What?” Jake exclaimed. “I don’t think any of us are here because we’re virgins. Half the guys at the academy were shipped here because they were caught in the middle of doin’ another guy.”

  Mason looked down, trying to hide the fact that he had turned bright red.

  Despite his effort, Jake noticed his discomfort. This stopped him in his tracks, and the straw he was chewing fell from his mouth. “Wait…are you saying you’ve never—”

  “Umm…”

  Mason, who was still trying to find a response, was too obvious to ignore.

  “Tell me more.” Jake excitedly flung forward. He was like a kid on Christmas morning. He eagerly scooted his seat closer to the table, resting his chin on his knuckles as he stared intently at Mason.

  “Oooh-kay!" Jimmy proclaimed impatiently as he threw his barely-touched sandwich onto his tray on his way to toss it in the garbage. He wasn’t about to let Jake go any further if he could help it. “C'mon, Mason, I'll show you the dorms."

  Mason agreed as he stood up to follow, but was halted by Jake’s firm grip on his shoulder.

  "Feel free to stop by my dorm anytime, room 201.”

  Mason was too nervous to say anything other than "Umm, O.K."

  Jimmy rolled his eyes and lead Mason away. He couldn’t help but feel like he had just saved him from becoming Jake’s dessert. He let Mason walk ahead of him as he turned his head over his shoulder to Jake.

  Jake smirked back at Jimmy. He slid Mason’s tray across the table and took what was left of his lunch, a bright, red apple, into his hand. Jake bit hard into the apple, devouring the chunk of fruit like an animal, which required him to wipe the juice from his chin.

  James shook his head and turned to catch up to Mason.

  "This is the main hall,” Jimmy pointed out the nearly empty bulletin boards hung along the left side of the hallway. The right side held window after window, and it was actually quite beautiful the way the sunshine scattered through the stained glass, projecting into a rainbow of colors. "You're in room 102 on the first floor."

  "What about you?"

  "I'm on the second. Jake and I share room 201."

  "Oh..." Mason looked down and paused for a second before asking, "Are you guys—”

  "Uh, hell no! Just roommates,” Jimmy interjected before Mason could even finish.

  "Sorry," Mason quickly replied. "I didn't mean to ask that."

  "It's cool, don't worry about it."

  Before long, they entered a room across the hall that was an obvious renovation judging by the off-color paint. It contained a handful of doors and a spiral staircase leading up to three floors. It reminded Jimmy of a mini apartment building that might be found in the city.

  "Here it is—102,” announced Jimmy. "I'll let you get your stuff all sorted out. If you need anything, you know where to find me." He smiled pleasantly and headed back down the hall, leaving Mason to get settled into his new room.

  Later that night, Jimmy made his way down the hall toward his dorm after spending most of the day reading alone out in the gated co
urtyard in the middle of the school. He spent a great deal of his time out there, most of it alone. Most days he could handle Jake's stories and ridiculous behavior. He didn't have a problem telling him to tone it down once in awhile either even though he wasn't a fan of confrontation. If he had a bully, Jimmy would go away. If he had a problem, Jimmy would disappear. That's what was easiest and most familiar, and he was okay with that up to this point. It wasn't that Jake was a bully, but he was a lot to handle sometimes. Jake didn't realize that not everybody wanted to hear his list of ‘top five most beautiful dicks I've ever seen’ (which would change every time, and somehow would always include his own). This recurred about every other day.

  As Jimmy walked up the stairs, he stopped at the empty glass cabinet next to his dorm, catching a glimpse of his tousled, shaggy hair. He began fidgeting with it, brushing it to the side and watching it fall back into his face. I think Mason's gonna be alright here. Well, as alright as one can be when they're forced to forget everything they've known and pretend to be something they're not.

  Looking back, Jimmy had always known he was gay. When he was really young, he would only want to be around the other boys his age. When he got to middle school, he became comfortable with his own sexuality. It wasn't until the other kids in school—friends he'd grown up with, started treating ‘gay’ people negatively, when he realized he had to be ‘straight’ in order to survive. At that particular age, school was all anyone ever knew. He covered the ‘gay’, pushing it aside to avoid becoming anymore of an outcast.

  It wasn't until high school, when he made new friends, that he started to feel accepted as being gay, being himself again. This was his true, born self. By then, being ‘straight’ was second nature to him, so when he confessed to his friends, they were shocked, but they supported him.

  He smiled as he thought about being back home with them again. He then remembered why he was here in the first place—the real reason why he came to the Academy. He shook his head, messing his hair up again as he entered his dorm.

  It was now dark and the lights were off in the room. He could see the outline of Jake rustling around in the moonlight, so he flipped on the light. He then immediately turned around and closed the door as fast as he could, letting out an exaggerated sigh.

  "Again, Jake?”

  "You know me." Jake smirked, clearly unashamed of his bare naked body. "Hey, never seemed to bother you before..."

  Jimmy rattled his head back and forth, irritated. "I don't want people to get the wrong idea if they pass by and see your bare ass in front of my bed."

  "And what's the wrong idea? That we're fucking? Or that we've fucked before? Or what?”

  “Yes, yes and yes!” Jimmy yanked open a dresser drawer, slammed it, and then opened another, rifling through clothes, making as much noise as possible.

  "It's a nice one though, right?"

  Jimmy twisted around without thinking, but stopped himself in time. He saw Jake from the corner of his eye, angling his body so he could get a good view of his own backside.

  “Yes, Jake, it's beautiful." Jimmy stated in a highly sarcastic tone. “It's an ass to make every man, woman and in-between run and bow their heads in undying servitude to your perfectly, perky cheeks."

  “You know, you could set a glass of champagne on top of it, and not a drop would spill."

  "Are you decent yet?" Jimmy urged, going through his underwear drawer.

  "Yeah," he smirked, picking up a towel from off of his bed and wrapping it around his waist.

  "We've got a lot to cover, so I'm gonna go to bed a little early tonight."

  "What about Mason?"

  Jimmy froze in place with his boxer-briefs in his hands, back still facing Jake. "What about Mason?"

  "I mean, how's he doing?"

  Jimmy knew what he meant, but he just didn't want to hear it right now. He ignored the question and went to change in the corner behind the side of his dresser where he was just out of view. Only the top of his head down to his eyes was visible from over the top of the dresser.

  "He's fine, Jake."

  "Is he? I thought he might need someone else to show him around some more." He craned his arms up over his head and grabbed his elbow with one hand, flexing his biceps.

  Oh, God. Jimmy thought to himself.

  "Teach him a thing or two maybe," Jake continued, "ya know?"

  "Maybe you should let him settle in," Jimmy suggested as he threw his pants aside and pulled off his shirt.

  "What's the matter, Jimmy boy? Ya jealous?" Jake unraveled his towel so he could change, exposing himself freely without concerning himself with Jimmy.

  Jimmy looked up to the ceiling as he put his own boxers on, almost falling over in doing so, hopping in place. He made sure to keep his gaze upward as he put on a T-shirt for bed, avoiding Jake as he toweled off his wet body. He didn't want Jake to think he was staring, even though his heart was racing. He really didn't mind admiring Jake's beautifully-carved body. It was just the fact that Jake was so cocky about it. It always felt like a trap. It was like Jake was a cat, toying with a defenseless mouse. Jimmy decided to allow himself one peek before Jake covered himself up—as long as Jake didn’t catch him doing so. As usual, he was not disappointed.

  Jimmy finished changing and moved swiftly into bed, wrapping himself within his comforter and turning to face the wall.

  "Don't worry, Jimmy. You're still my fave,” Jake assured, “Night, roomie." He clicked off the light before climbing into bed.

  When he was sure Jake had dozed off, which only took about two seconds for him to do so, Jimmy propped himself up, watching the moonlight cast across the ceiling.

  He sighed, bringing a hand to his chest and whispered, “Goodnight, Jake.”

  Chapter Three

  -JAKE-

  Mr. Pierce wheeled around a rolling chair from behind his desk, joining it with the others which were occupied by his five students in the center of the classroom. All of the desks were pushed back to the walls, allowing for a more intimate setting. This was the type of environment Mr. Pierce created every time they were to partake in a group activity.

  Jake looked his teacher up and down with a cocky smile planted on his face. He always made sure to remind Mr. Pierce that he had his full, undivided attention. Regardless of the lesson, Jake would be at the edge of his seat, back arched, waiting for Mr. Pierce’s eyes to land on him. He then would take the opportunity to make it blatantly obvious that he was checking him out, whether it be a gentle bite of his lip, or a quick glance at his crotch. But the way he averted his gaze just as suddenly as he had locked eyes with his promising young student in the front row left Jake to wonder if there was anything else he could do to get Mr. Pierce’s attention.

  Mr. Pierce dressed a lot older than his age, but he somehow managed to pull off a sweater vest without looking like he was somebody's father. The stubble that grew on his face was never completely shaven. It seemed as though he was attempting to achieve a full beard, maybe in hopes of distinguishing him a bit. The problem was that it had settled in this stubble phase for three years. The one thing that revealed his real age was his shoes. Mr. Pierce always wore the same light, blue sneakers. No matter how dressed up he got on certain days, he always had a hint of youth and casualty about him.

  "Alright class, we're going to go over something today that will be a refresher to most, but to some," As Mr. Pierce continued to cycle through each student when he spoke, his eyes stopped on Mason, "an opportunity to introduce ourselves."

  Mason looked down, all too obvious that he was trying to avoid his instructor.

  Mr. Pierce leaned forward in his chair, resting one arm in his lap, the other offered to Mason. "Mason, we're going to get to know a little more about you today."

  Mason now had no choice but to look to Mr. Pierce with wide eyes.

  "Let me explain why," Mr. Pierce continued. "We all have a story. It's the story of how we came to be the way we are," he took a pause and raised an eyebro
w, "or the way we were. There are some things that you can't change in life. For instance, you can't change the past- nobody has superpowers; but you can build yourself a better future, and that can start today." He stood up and started pacing around his circle of students. "Mason, I want you to tell us the story of why you're here. That is, the first time you knew you were different. In doing so, we can pinpoint the root of the problem and figure out how to fix it."

  Mason stared blankly. Jake wondered if his classmate from Michigan ever even had the chance to meet another gay guy before, let alone had to explain himself in front of a group of them for that matter. He began to feel sorry for the guy, but his train of thought was de-railed as Mr. Pierce swept by in his nicely fitting slacks.

  "Why don't we have someone else go first, Mr. Pierce suggested. “Someone who has earned the badge of Acceptance.”

  “Badge?” Mason managed to repeat cluelessly out loud.

  “We're like the fucking boy scouts of America, only gayer.” Jake explained in a way he knew only he could get away with.

  From across the circle, Alex couldn't help but snicker at this, however he was quickly prompted to quit when he noticed an angry looking Kyle.

  “What?” Alex shrugged his shoulders. “Oh, I mean, I'm sorry,” he whispered to Kyle, but the damage was already done, and he was crossing his arms and looking away.

  Jake reached into his pocket and pulled out a small golden pin that fit daintily into the palm of his hand. It was an emblem of two hands grasping each other in a handshake. He held the pin out to show Mason. “We all got this one the first week we were here.”

  “You should be wearing it proudly, Jake. You all should be.” Mr. Pierce urged as he halted in front of Jake. “Acceptance is the first step to redemption.”

  Mr. Pierce seized the pin from Jake and began to push the needle through his shirt for him. As he clasped the pin onto his shirt, Jake leaned over slyly, raising an eyebrow at Jimmy, as his eyes darted back and forth between the two of them. Jake knew that he could get a rise out of him, but Jimmy turned away quickly, as if he didn’t notice.