I'm Josh and this is the story of my first summer home after going to college. I was 19 at the time, and this summer, in August, I celebrated my 20th birthday. I am from Shepard's Mill, a small, rural town, and my college roommate Adam was from a nearby small town. I got Adam a job here with me clearing out a farmhouse and some old out buildings for Joe Bramlett, whose parents had passed and he needed to sell the land. He agreed Adam could stay, while working, in the farm hand's rooms in the hayloft. I lived at home, but would go over to the farm to work clearing it with Adam.
We discovered a lot about ourselves that summer.
It was last Friday when the levee broke. Figuratively that is.
After getting dusty in the loft, Adam took his shirt off and one thing led to another and we were naked in the shower. Which led to our discovery that as roommates at school we secretly had a crush on each other.
Which led to what could be called the "cum-ulation" of part 2.
And now it is Monday, and Adam has been home for the weekend as he usually was.
Me, at home, all weekend, and I was going over in my head the feelings, both physical and mental, we experienced. Would Adam want to forget what we did? I felt guilty as well as unbelievably happy. On what side of the range would Adam be on?
Did we need to pretend it never happened?
When I got to the hayloft that Monday morning, his old car was parked in the usual spot. I went in.
Adam was making a cup of coffee in the makeshift kitchen with his back to me.
I couldn't bear it if he wanted to forget the whole thing. I couldn't work with him and want him and not be able to share that special pleasure we found in each other.
He turned around. "Josh!!!" He ran to me and hugged me.
I felt as if I could melt in his arms.
"I missed you"
"Me too, but we will have lots of time to explore. Here, I made a cup of coffee for you too."
He handed me one of the cracked antique cups we had found.
"I think this morning we should start on the old kitchen garden."
Old Mrs. Bramlett had let the large kitchen garden go in the last few years. There were saplings growing and knotted masses of weeds carpeting the whole thing. There was a high wall running around it to keep the critters from munching the vegetables and fruits. An old wooden door was the sole entrance.
It took a bit of work with the oil can to get the lock turning and the hinges free, but we did it.
We surveyed the mess. "This is gonna take A LOT of work," I said grimly. "A lot"
Adam looked at the matted strawberry bushes gone wild along one side. "Some is salvageable, we can cut them back and tie them up. But first we need to get the saplings dug up. We can't just pull them up and leave the roots."
There was a small garden shed in the corner and we found shovels, picks and a wheel barrow.
We worked for 4 hours getting the saplings out. Tough, dirty work in the sun.
A few wheelbarrows full wheeled out and loaded in the truck for the dump.
"Let's break for a cold drink and a bit of lunch," Adam said as he headed back to the loft.
He headed upstairs, "I think we need to clean up first."
I followed him up. This was how our last encounter started. I had butterflies in my stomach. I wasn't sure if Adam just wanted to clean up or was it something else? I was scared if I tried to do something he might freak out.
He was taking his shirt off. "Come on, get your dirty shirt off. We can toss them in the washer. "
