Tucker Williams almost missed his flight. His mind was a thousand miles away as they called for the last passengers to board the flight for San Diego. If it hadn't been for the attentive gate agent, he might have been staring into the distance while his flight rolled down the runway without him. Shocked back into the moment by a gentle tap on his shoulder, he quickly grabbed his backpack and boarded the flight just as they were closing the doors.
He was going home to stay with his friend Jon Weller for the week and they always had a lot of fun whenever they were together. Normally staying with his best friend over spring break would be an occasion of great joy and anticipation. But something had happened a couple of weeks ago which had turned Tuck's world upside down.
Tucker was on the varsity diving team as a sophomore at a big university in Arizona. Physically, Tuck was perfect for diving. He had always been small for his age, and even at twenty, he was still smaller than many of those on his team or his competitors. He stood just over 5 feet, 5 inches, and his small frame was strong and lean, just like most men in the swimming and diving world. Being so small meant he could turn tighter, faster and with more precision than his larger opponents, and he could enter the water with a smaller splash. All this combined to make him a formidable competitor on the university circuit.
Tucker had been swimming and diving since elementary school. As he got older, he became aware that a number of those competing in his sport did so because they enjoyed being around well-toned young men in skimpy swimwear. Tuck stayed in the sport because he truly enjoyed the activity. He was better at it than most and he enjoyed being in and around the water. As for the intimate extra-curricular activities, he had always been somewhat ambivalent. He knew he was good looking with his white-blonde hair and his smooth, strong body, but he kept his focus on the competition and practices and not on the physical advances which were sometimes not very subtle.
He had met Jon in the second grade. They had hit it off immediately and had been inseparable ever since. Some people, their parents included, considered them brothers. Jon was always the bigger of the two, growing taller and more powerful than his best friend.
Through high school, they had double-dated many times, played in the band together, played on the school's soccer and baseball teams together, did science and math fair's together, and had even worked at the same after-school jobs together. Most summer days would find them at each other's houses, spending the whole day, sometimes several days together. Neither of them had had any serious girlfriends in high school, but they had both dated regularly, had made out with girls in the backseat or on the sofa, and both had even gotten to "third base" a few times. But both boys were serious about their studies, their activities and their futures and didn't really invest a lot of time or energy on girls (much to the dismay of many young ladies in Southern California).
When they graduated, their friendship faced its greatest challenge. Tucker was accepted to a top public university in Arizona on full-ride diving scholarship and a place on one of the top five teams in the country. Jon was accepted to a Midwestern school on a baseball scholarship.
They struggled long and hard with whether or not to accept their scholarships and the thousand miles which would separate them, but in the end, economic realities took over for both families.
They packed up their cars and drove off together, Jon going with Tucker to Arizona to help him move in, then another two days of driving to his school.
At first, everyone thought the friendship might devolve without the regular daily contact, but Jon and Tuck both somehow found a way to make it work. Their friendship was as strong as ever.
All this had been rolling through Tuck's mind for the previous two weeks and continued to plague him at the airport, on the flight, and on the ride in the cab to Jon's house.
Two weeks ago, at the regional diving championships, Tucker's life had changed.
The school had put the team up in a large apartment-like suite for the four-day tournament. The suite had four bedrooms, a couple of bathrooms and a large common area with huge sofas and a big-screen TV.
The team had come home late from the second day of competition tired but exhilarated. Scores for the day were exceptional and they were well-positioned to make a run for the regional title.
As they walked into the suite, all the guys were wearing team t-shirts and warm up pants. Some still had their swimsuits on underneath while others were going commando. It was easier for them to shower back at the room than to fight for limited shower space at the pool when the competition ended and it was a matter pride with them to always wear team gear when in public at a competition.
A couple of the guys headed off to shower or change while the rest got pizzas and began camping out in the common area. As a group, they were very casual and open with each other. They had traveled to dozens of swim meets together and had seen the best and worst of each other both physically and emotionally. They accepted each other and all got along pretty well. They were a team in every sense of the word.
As the evening wore on, they joked and rough-housed a little, but quickly the combination of exhaustion and a little something to eat caught up with them. The lights got turned way down and they ordered a pay-per-view movie.
Tuck was on one of the big couches with three or four other guys. They all nodded off within a few minutes of the movie starting.
Later, perhaps half-way through the movie, Tucker woke up gently. He was lying on his side facing the TV. His head rested on someone's thigh, but it wasn't that which had caused him to stir awake. It was the comfortable warmth of a body pressed up against his back, an arm under his shoulder and wrapped around his chest. The other hand was on his hip. He wasn't sure who it was, but surprisingly, Tucker felt particularly peaceful at that moment. He felt emotionally secure in the strong arms of his teammate. He stirred ever so slightly, letting whoever it was behind him know he was awake and aware and ok with the physical contact.
The person behind him pulled him in a bit tighter and rested his head on Tuck's cheek. Tuck could feel the very slightest hint of stubble and the warm breath on his neck. His emotional calm began to give way to a sense of desire, a yearning for the moment not to end. He felt stirred in a way he hadn't ever felt before. Deep down, he recognized this was how he felt when he was with Jon, particularly at night, when they would be sleeping at each other's house. Tuck would be on the couch or the floor and could hear his friend breathing. At those times, a deep sense of calm and love would wash over him, but here on this sofa with the unknown teammate pressing into his back, he felt something deeper and more primal.
