A N.I.C.E. Boy, Part 10

NISH Agency Investigates Nazi Research to Find a New Treatment for Pedophiles

Washington Mail. April 25th, 2005

The three directors of the National Institute of Sexual health, Martin

Eckleston, Janet Frieland, and Dr. Jarvis Wright, released details of an

expanded range of treatment options for pedophilia. In keeping with the

Institute's focus, the four options are intended to give parents and young boys

carrying the da Vinci gene a greater range of choice in how to achieve permanent

emasculation. Prior to today's announcement, only two methods were approved and

recommended for use for pre-pubertal boys. These included the traditional

surgical removal of the testes, generally referred to as castration. The

operation can usually be performed using out-patient facilities and local

anesthetic. Until today's announcement, lactic acid injections have been the

most popular means to achieve sterility. With this method, lactic acid is

injected into both testis, causing the organs to slowly dissolve and be

reabsorbed in the body. Lactic acid occurs naturally in the body and for that

reason has no significant after effects. If the injections are properly

performed, the technique is 100 per cent effective. It is also painless,

accounting for its current high rate of use. Doctor Wright indicated that the

method is being used to treat about 90 per cent of boys who have tested positive

for the da Vinci gene. These boys are referred to as latent pedophiles, since

many of them are too young to be sexually active, but their pedophilia will be

discernible as they mature.

The Natural Intervention to Curb Evil Act requires a post-treatment condition

that is "permanent, complete and verifiable". Both surgical castration and

injections fulfil the requirements by completely removing the testicles,

although the latter method occurs over an extended period that can last as long

as one year. The two new options meet the NICE requirements while leaving the

testis in the scrotum, although substantially destroyed. Although reproduction

is no longer possible, and hormone levels will not increase to enable sexual

maturation to occur, all is not lost for the boy. According to Dr. Wright, these

new techniques have the added advantage of retaining partial sensitivity for the

sexual organs, thereby assisting the erectile function that is so important to a

male. "They are also non-invasive," he said. "This is an important consideration

for parents who realize the necessity of having their son treated for

pedophilia, but who are reluctant to take the steps required to do it."

The two options involve exposure to radiation and ultrasound. The radiation

method was discovered by Germany's Nazis in 1937. Dr. Heinz Boehmer, a doctor

working at the infamous Buchenwald Concentration Camp undertook sterilization

experiments on men and boys of Jewish and Gypsy ancestry. One of the more

promising methods of mass sterilization was discovered as a by product of early

efforts to use recently discovered radiation therapy to treat certain diseases,

although the purpose of the Nazi research was to find a way to eliminate

inferior races. All together some five hundred boys were sterilized using

radiation, but the technique was not brought into widespread use because of the

difficulty of implementation and the possibility of side effects that included

cancer. According to the few survivors the treatments were exceedingly painful,

involving a massive, often lethal dose of radiation.

Using Boehmer's research records, doctors at the National Institute of Sexual

Health (NISH) discovered that if the testicles are kept in constant close

contact with low-grade radioactive material for several days testicular function

is terminated. Radiation breaks down the DNA strands within the cells. This

prevents new cells from forming. Until recently, the problem had been to develop

an effective method of placing the testicles in close proximity to the radiation

source. "This is a painless, 100 percent effective way of achieving the NICE

goals," Dr. Wright said. "I expect it will become very popular as parents learn

more about it. Our CUP, which stands for Controlled Unmanning Procedure, will

snap right on. It installs very easily and it does not come off until the

treatment is complete. This is the method that I would choose if a son of mine

had the da Vinci gene." It is expected to rapidly become the treatment of choice

for over 50 per cent of boys with the pedophilia gene.

Another method has been under development and testing at NISH for nearly a year.

It involves exposing the testicles to ultrasound over a period of several weeks.

The high-frequency waves induce vibration of the cells, causing a permanent loss

of reproductive function. Hormone levels increase very slightly as a boy grows,

but not enough to cause problems. "It's like vibrating something until it turns

to jello," said Martin Eckleston. "I've seen some of the boys who were treated

with ultrasound. They really don't have testicles afterwards so there is nothing

left to be tested. We're talking mush. It might sound cruel, but you need to

keep in mind the depravity of pedophilia. These boys aren't going to be able to

sexually abuse other children after this has been done to them." It is likely

that ultrasound treatment will be preferred by those parents who wish their sons

to appear physically unchanged. However, the additional cost of the treatment

will not be provided for free. It is considered non-essential treatment under

the Healthy Nation Act because the radiation-based CUP and injection treatments

are cheaper.

Chapter 10. Lane's Bookstop, Liberty Street, Champain, May 2nd, 2005

It was a week later, eight days since Daniele's shameful confession. He had

visited the bookstore only twice during that time. His excuse was ostensibly the

increased time he spent at swim practice as the state championships approached,

but both of them knew the real reason was because of his embarrassment. Lane had

used the time to finish the avatar. It was a masterpiece. Cal Brewster said that

he was impressed even though he found sexual attraction to such a young boy

objectionable. Lane was uncertain of where he stood. It had been his decision to

modify the data so that Lachlan Troy appeared to be six years old instead of

eight. He had done it to make Daniele happy. And Daniele was definitely pleased,

even if he had become more reluctant to express his true feelings.

The avatar was far technically more sophisticated than Tybee, having the

advantages of better software and the benefit of Lane's experience with its

predecessor. Yet, its spectacular appearance was due to more than that for Lane

had also used superior textures to create the surfaces of the model. Unlike

Tybee, whose skin textures had been cropped from digital two-dimensional

photographs of boys, Lane had scanned Daniele's skin directly and used that as

the basis. Over a hundred different scans had been used, from the smooth skin of

his cheek, to the glabrous skin of his arms and legs. It even incorporated the

almost translucent skin of Daniele's scrotum where it was appropriate.

Lane heard the door close and sat back, admiring the finished image on the

screen. It was easy for him to be objective. Even a real naked six-year-old boy

held almost no interest for him. Still, he appreciated both the innocent beauty

and the diminutive maleness of a young boy, but only insofar as it heralded the

boy who would exist in a few more years. It was an entirely different matter for

Daniele. Whenever he visited, he stopped and stared at the avatar, constantly

excited by what he saw, always sexually aroused although he kept it well hidden.

It was almost amusing to watch, and it would have been funny had it not been for

the effect that the avatar had on Daniele. He saw no option but to accept

Daniele's growing infatuation with young boys as part of who he was, realizing

that in creating the young avatar, he was also `feeding the beast' within

Daniele.

"He's finished."

Unsure for the moment whether Daniele's intonation implied a question or

surprise, Lane nodded over his shoulder and waited until the boy had approached

close enough to see the image on the monitor.

"Ohhhh wowwww."

He smiled at the sound of unrehearsed awe. Daniele slowly came up beside him,

holding his breath, trembling with excitement.

"He's so beautiful."

"How was practice?"

"Okay," Daniele answered absently, his thoughts clearly elsewhere.

"Did the coach make you swim the 1,000 at the end again?"

Daniele nodded slightly, his eyes transfixed, trying to take in the image before

him. It was very different to looking at a two-dimensional photograph of a boy,

even a boy who had been photographed professionally. It was almost as if he

could move his head and see a different view.

"You're tired, aren't you champ?"

Again, the same vague nod. Lane watched Daniele with the admiration of a man who

loved boys. He loved everything about Daniele, but this lethargic, almost numbed

tiredness had a special effect on him. It was as if he had been drained of

everything except the essential qualities that defined him as a person. He was

exposed and fragile, and so easily hurt. There was no brash boyishness, no

seemingly limitless energy to protect him.

One thousand yards was forty laps of the indoor pool, and that was after the boy

had swum nonstop for an hour and a half. It was no surprise that he was

exhausted, but as the coach never tired of telling the team, fatigue made faster

swimmers. Daniele was slender but he had muscles to be proud of.

"He's all yours," Lane commented.

Daniele glanced back at him. He smiled sheepishly. "You think I'm weird, don't

you?"

Lane endeavored to shrug nonchalantly. "As far as boys are concerned?"

"Yeah."

"We both are."

Daniele smirked. "You know what I mean. About me liking little boys. Doesn't

that bother you?"

"Hm,... Well, for one thing, we both know this isn't real." He hoped that he had

avoided the issue.

"But?"

"You can't help who you are any more than I can, Dani. According to 99.99

percent of people I'm weird because I'm attracted to boys your age," he joked

feebly.

"He's six,... and he turns me on like you don't believe," Daniele muttered.

"Where did you hear that?" Lane laughed. "He turns you on indeed."

Daniele smiled shyly. "It's in a song I like by Kevin Kirkland, only he's

singing about a girl." His voice lowered. "I can't help it, you know."

"That's one of my favorite songs too. He has a superb voice."

"My brother says he sounds like a girl. He's probably gay too, but at least he

doesn't go after little boys like I do."

"Well, if he is gay, I'm glad for him," Lane said. "He's so good looking that

he'd be totally wasted on a woman. I know you can't help being the way you are,

Dani," he added consolingly. "Hey, I have an idea. What say we walk down to get

some ice-cream before you go home, Swim- boy?" he suggested.

"What about Arcadia?"

Lane nodded. "Well, I was thinking we should do that later tonight, like after

you've finished your homework. You already know how to log onto the server. I'll

download the files now into the account I had Cal Brewster set up for you. Then,

before you go to bed tonight, we can have Tybee meet Lachlan for the first

time."

"At the Virgin's Tears?" Daniele asked pointedly, knowing that boys went there

to have sex together.

"Of course." Lane grinned. "I'm not sure you want Lachlan to lose his virtual

virginity on his first date."

Daniele giggled playfully. "Does Tybee like little boys?"

"Hm, well, I'm not sure. Usually he prefers ten-year-olds, but when he sees

Lachlan he might change his mind," Lane joked.

He switched to the Internet download program, selected the address for the

university supercomputer and entered the account name, `Tikiboy', followed by

Daniele's middle name as the password. He initiated the file transfer and stood

up. Even with his 100 megabyte connection, it would take longer than he was

prepared to wait.

Together they walked downstairs, heading towards the university. The Dairy Farm

was an old-fashioned ice-cream store complete with wrought iron tables and

chairs, and battered pewter dishes with silver spoons. Servings of the handmade

high-butter-fat ice-cream were generous, but far too high in calories for more

than once per week visits for anyone over thirty years old. Lane's favorite was

mocha-chip, with pieces of fudge-like chocolate that were sometimes as large as

cookies.

Daniele's favorite, at least based on the few times that they had gone for

ice-cream, was raspberry chip. Lane liked how it gave him pink lips afterwards,

taking perverse satisfaction ion in seeing lips that belonged on a girl rather

than a boy. They ambled to a table close to one of the large windows that looked

out into the street.

There was nothing quite as enjoyable as watching a beautiful boy eat ice-cream,

Lane mused as he watched Daniele carefully spooning the crimson-colored hill

before him. Daniele's fingers were long and thin, reminding him of a pianist's

fingers. His fingernails were chewed to the cuticle. It was strange how Lane had

never noticed him doing that before. He wondered whether Daniele was nervous or

stressed, and then as the boy grinned and displayed his perfect teeth, he put

the thought aside. He observed the way that Daniele's little finger stuck out at

an angle as he held the long-stemmed spoon. He dug deeply into the ice-cream

excavating for the chocolate chips because as everyone knew, while the ice-cream

was superb, the chips were even better.

Lane fantasized as he often did when he was alone with Daniele. He enjoyed

creating a life together for them. Often, he pretended that Daniele was his son.

Sometimes, Daniele was his nephew. At other times, the son of a close friend who

had come to him for help with an insurmountable problem. The fantasy that day

featured Daniele as his young lover. He gazed at Daniele, imagining what it

would be like to sleep in the same bed at night. He smiled fondly, pretending

that Daniele was attracted to men instead of boys, that he responded to Lane's

loving embraces with hugs and kisses of his own.

Suddenly, he became aware that Daniele had stopped eating his ice-cream. His

mouth was wide open, revealing pure white teeth amid crimson cream. Not

thinking, Lane's head turned to see what demanded the boy's attention to the

point of being stunned.

There was a woman standing in front of the counter. She was carrying an

androgynous toddler on her hip, having left a brightly colored high-fashion

stroller adjacent to the door where it was out of the way. Beside her was a

flaxen-haired girl who was reaching up trying to get her mother's attention, and

next to her was a boy. A blond-headed boy. A boy with long silver straight hair,

hair that glistened in the late afternoon sun. The boy was smiling, his face

startlingly beautiful. He could not have been more than five or six, but he had

the presence of an older boy. He was dressed in a white tee-shirt and white

jeans that had been bleached to brilliant white. He was angelic, or rather he

had the appearance of an angel. Daniele was transfixed.

Lane inclined his head and lowered his voice to a whisper. "You're staring,

Tikiboy."

"So?"

Lane smiled. "So is he a ten?"

"Yeah, he's a ten." Daniele's voice was wistful. He paused. "Don't you think

he's beautiful?" he asked nervously.

"Hm,... Yes. He's definitely movie star material."

"He looks,..."

"Like an angel," Lane finished quietly.

"Yeah," Daniele smiled fondly.

The similarity to Grey was impossible to overlook, although the boy standing at

the counter was even better looking. He was even prettier than his sister.

Daniele realized his heart was beating faster. He found it impossible to believe

that anyone could be so beautiful. He felt tense, breathing quickly,

increasingly agitated as adrenaline surged into an exhausted body. He could not

help licking his lips even though he had just used his napkin to wipe away a

smear of ice-cream. Suddenly, he was nervous. Would they leave, taking their

ice-cream with them, or would they sit down and allow him to feast his eyes for

a few minutes longer? Would Mr. Lane want to leave before they sat down? The boy

was so beautiful, so very beautiful that he could think of nothing else. His

ice-cream was melting in front of him and he did not care.

"You're still staring," Lane teased.

"So! You stare at me all the time," Daniele rebuked. He glared angrily at Lane.

He lowered his voice so that he could not be overheard. "So? So I can't help

looking at him. He's so good looking, okay?"

"Neither can I," Lane tried to joke.

"Then stop telling me I'm staring," Daniele reproached. Suddenly, his eyes lit

up. "He's getting a raz-chip too."

"He has good taste," Lane teased. "And so do you."

Daniele lowered his eyes, smirking roguishly. "He's sexy, don't you think Mr.

Lane?"

Lane winked. Their heads were less than a foot apart. "He's not as sexy as

someone I know, but yes, he's hot."

He did not add `for a little boy', although he was increasingly apprehensive

about Daniele's attraction to boys who were a lot younger than he was. A boy who

was that young could never return the love that Daniele would give him.

"Dani,... he's very young,..." Lane counseled. It was far less than he wanted to

say.

"So? I'm just looking at him, okay? It's not like I'm going to do anything with

him," Daniele countered defensively. "They're coming this way, Mr. Lane."

It was true. The woman, struggling to carry a tray and the toddler and clearly

too young to be the children's mother, guided her two oldest charges across the

room towards where she had left the stroller. Their table, hurriedly selected

because a large group of people suddenly decided at that moment to come into the

store, was adjacent to the table where Lane and Daniele were sitting. Having

dragged a high-chair halfway across the room, the boy bounced into the seat in

front of the window and gleefully took his bowl of ice-cream from the tray. Like

Daniele, he immediately began the search for over-sized chocolate chips.

"Nicky, will you get some napkins please."

The boy's name reverberated in Daniele's ears. He watched surreptitiously as the

little cherub got up and went back to the counter. Nicky returned with a handful

of napkins, smiling warmly at Daniele as he slid into his seat.

"His name is Nicky," Daniele whispered to Lane. "Don't you love Nicky for a

boy's name?"

Lane smiled patiently. The sound of infatuation was impossible to miss, and even

if Daniele had not spoken a single word, the lovesick look in his eyes was

enough to convey his feelings. From where he sat, lane could observe both boys

at once. At ten years old, Daniele was twice Nicky's age, and a likely candidate

for worship. Nicky made eye-contact almost continuously. Again and again he

glanced at Daniele, making their spontaneous exchanges something of a game.

Lane knew that boys could be like that. They seemed to communicate on another

plane, forming friendships well before any words passed between them. The game

went on and on, both boys barely concentrating on their ice-cream, frequently

sharing faint almost-reluctant smiles that were more than enough to indicate

that there was something happening between them.

Lane had finished his ice-cream when the little boy leaned over and whispered in

the woman's ear. She nodded and quickly glanced around the ice-cream parlor.

Since she had entered, at least a dozen other people had come into the store,

most of them raucous college students. After a moment, she half-rose from her

seat. It was at that instant that the toddler decided that it wanted more

ice-cream, more than was already smeared across its face. Instead of getting up,

she turned to Lane and Daniele.

"Look, I'm really sorry, but would it be too much to ask if your son could take

Nicky to the bathroom. I sort of have my hands full here,... and well,...he's

too young to go in by himself. You hear so much about pedophiles being

everywhere. It just isn't safe for a boy to go in there alone."

Lane nodded understandingly, even though the inference dismayed him.

"He's probably safe enough. You can see the door from here."

"That's okay, I'm happy to do it," Daniele offered quickly as he began to stand.

He glowered at Lane, willing him to keep quiet.

"Thank you so much. Your son's such a nice boy," the woman gushed. "You must be

very proud of him."

Before Lane could respond, Daniele had pushed his seat away.

"Come on, Nicky right?" he said, gesturing towards the back of the store. "I

have to go anyway."

Lane watched as Daniele and Nicky made their way among the tables and chairs. He

felt a fleeting sense of trepidation, not to the point of being anxious that

something bad would happen because he did not think Daniele was old enough to be

capable of doing something he should not, but he was simply uneasy with the

situation for it had happened so quickly. He wondered whether he would have

tried to intervene if there had been a little longer time to consider what might

happen. What might happen? Casually, he glanced at his watch and tried to

estimate how long it would take for two boys to use the bathroom. He made the

logical assumption that there was a single urinal, that they would both want to

urinate, and that being boys it would take them a little longer than it would

take him. He decided on three minutes as the appropriate amount of time, perhaps

longer if they both washed their hands, which was decidedly unlikely.

And so Lane waited, his feeling of unease gradually becoming more foreboding as

the seconds ticked past and became minutes. Three minutes passed and then four.

He glanced somewhat too anxiously at the woman at the table next to his.

"I wonder what's keeping them?" he asked as calmly as he could.

For a few seconds she appeared to ignore him, the toddler apparently having

decided at that moment to regurgitate as much as possible of its vanilla

ice-cream.

"Their ice-cream is melting," Lane added as if to explain why he felt the need

to draw her attention to their absence.

"Oh, you know boys," she answered with sagely vagueness as she wiped away

another white drool. "It hasn't been that long."

However, it had been that `that long', nearly five minutes by Lane's watch. He

tried to tell himself that he was being ridiculous, that the boys were probably

engaged in some silly juvenile game. The logical and well-intentioned part of

his brain argued that there was no need for worry because there were times when

even Daniele with his Mensa-IQ sometimes reverted to being a normal ten-year-old

boy, at least in so far as normal was possible for him.

"I'd better go check on them," he muttered, getting up from his seat.

The woman obviously had her hands full with the toddler, who had by then decided

to cease drooling and demand a constant delivery speed of spoons of ice-cream.

She paid no attention at all to Lane as he walked to the rear of the parlor. He

endeavored to appear composed, and even considered knocking on the bathroom

door, yet by the time he paused in front of the door marked with a smiling bull

as opposed to the equally happy cow painted on the opposite door, he had become

irrational. He turned the door handle, fully expecting it to be locked, but it

wasn't.

Fortunately, the door was hinged so that it opened outward, thereby concealing

what was inside from the rest of the parlor. He gaped in mute disbelief. Daniele

was kneeling on the floor, both arms reaching up to steady the little boy who

was standing before him. His hands were on Nicky's bare hips, his fingers

extended and lifting the tee-shirt up. Lane almost gasped when he realized that

the little boy jeans and animal-patterned underpants were pulled down to the

youngster's knees. He was smiling angelically, just as he had been smiling out

in the parlor. Yet, in those first few moments that Lane's eyes took in the

scene before him, he realized that the little boy was no longer as angelic as he

had been before Daniele escorted him to the toilet. His finger-sized penis

complete with ruby-colored tip was undeniably hard. It was also wet. It

glistened from tip to base.

"Dani!" Lane almost shouted before he had to good sense to step through the

doorway and block the view.

Hurriedly, he closed the door behind him, taking the unprecedented step of

pushing the button in the handle to secure it from further intrusion.

Daniele, whose back had been towards the door, jerked away. Blood poured into

his face. He tried to say something about it being innocent, but his words were

garbled and afterwards either Lane or Daniele could remember what he said. It

was hardly a time for explanations for what had been happening was

all-too-painfully obvious. Even Daniele's lips wet with saliva.

"Dani!" Lane repeated. "Oh, Dani. How could you?"

Daniele Webster trembled uncontrollably, tears welling up in his eyes as the

full weight of what he had been doing finally same into him. He had been having

oral sex with a five-year-old boy. Noting more, nothing less. He could still

taste the other boy's penis. It reminded him of something very sweet, although

he could not identify what it was. He had not really sucked it because his lips

had barely touched it, but here was no point in saying that. He had licked it,

certainly, but it had been part of their game, pretending it was ice-cream.

Finally, as red-faced as a boy could ever be who had been caught in the act of

sucking another boy's penis, Daniele tried to deny what was painfully obvious

and needed no explanation.

"I wasn't,... Nothing happened,... I promise."

"Dani, please,... Don't make it worse. Don't lie about it."

"I-I-I didn't," Daniele stammered almost incoherently.

His body quivered. The little boy was wide-eyed. He was still smiling, no longer

innocent, pushing his pelvis out toward Daniele.

"Eat more i-keem," he lisped amid an infectious giggle that told Lane that

whatever Daniele had done to him was entirely enjoyable.

Daniele shook his head shamefully. "I was playing a game, okay? It was just a

game."

Lane sighed. `Just a game'. However, it was not a game and Daniele knew it as

well as he did. Despite that, he decided to act as if it was a game.

"It's fun to play ice-cream games but you guys have go out so you can eat real

ice-cream now," he said carefully.

Daniele nodded, sullenly, yet relieved. It had happened so quickly. When he had

closed the door behind them he had hoped for nothing more than a quick glimpse

of the other boy's private parts. However, instead of opening his zipper and

urinating through the gap, Nicky had done what a lot of little boys did. He had

opened the button of his jeans as well and pushed both his jeans and underpants

down. Daniele had been treated to a sight that he had not expected. He stared at

Nicky's tiny white bottom, marveling at the glorious globes and the darker line

of his crack. He could not remember ever seeing anything so beautiful.

Excitement came from deep inside him, bursting through him as if limitless

energy had been unleashed. His heart pounded. He had to see more. He had to

touch. There was nothing he could do to stop himself. Not even Grey's body had

affected him like that.

And so, trembling with the thrill of what he was doing, he invented the

ice-cream game, discovering in the process that the perfect little boy was not

perfect because he spoke with a lisp. For the rest of his life, Daniele would

always think of ice-cream as i-keem. For two precious minutes it was all he

could do to restrain himself from changing from ice-cream that had to be licked

to an all-day-sucker that had to be sucked. He licked Nicky's penis and the

little boy giggled and twitched and carried on in a way that confirmed he was

happy with attention that was being lavished on his penis.

Nicky's penis became erect almost instantly, matching the older boy for sheer

hardness if not in size. Daniele allowed his tongue to go where it wanted, so

instinctive did the intimate act seem to him. At first he cautiously explored

the perky shaft, savoring the taste before using his tongue to coat the boy's

penis with saliva. Like the vast majority of American males, Nicky had been

circumcised. His glans was flared and shaped like a fireman's helmet, or to

Daniele's lust- filled mind, like the top of an ice-cream cone. However, it was

so soft and smooth and deliciously hot that any similarity was entirely

make-believe. Within moments, it became wet and slippery, sliding from side to

side and back and forth under Daniele's tongue. His part of the game was not

made any easy by the fact that Nicky insisted on jerking his hips back and

forth. It was for that reason that Daniele had finally placed his hands on

Nicky's hips to restrain him. That was how Lane had found them, as if the next

stage was going to involve more than merely licking.

"Nicky, I think you should pull your pants up," Lane suggested.

Daniele finally managed to take a deep breath. He was still shaking when he

stood up. He glanced at Lane, then quickly looked away resentfully. Although he

had not intended to, his eyes stopped on Nicky. His penis, unlike Daniele's

which upon discovery had immediately shriveled to a lifeless morsel, remained

stiff even as he pulled up his underpants to cover it.

"That's better," Lane said nervously.

All it would have taken was for someone else to enter, for them to see what was

happening, and make a fuss. The police would be called, and at the very least

Daniele would taken to the police station. There was a very good chance that he

would be charged with one or more variants of sexual misconduct appropriate to

the act, although at that moment Lane could not remember the specific terms. Was

it `gross sexual imposition of a minor upon a minor of lesser years'? It was

likely that all-encompassing phrase would be one of the charges, but there would

probably be another charge that dealt directly with oral sex between minor boys.

Together, the charges would be sufficient for Daniele to spend the remainder of

his childhood in a home for sexual deviates. He shook his head sadly, not

realizing that he was doing so. He had even talked with Daniele about the recent

case in Mississippi that had gone all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. He had

forgotten the boy's name, but he had not forgotten the outcome. That boy had

been castrated within minutes of the Court's decision. Lane struggled within,

realizing that what Daniele had been doing would be portrayed as an appalling

deed even by many boy-lovers. There was, at least amongst his contacts, an

accepted age limit of ten years old for sexual contact, and even then it was

very limited in acceptability. Most of the men only acknowledged a sexual

interest in boys who had reached puberty. Younger boys were avoided at all

costs.

"You had better pull your jeans up too, okay Nicky?" he suggested evenly.

He managed to sound calm despite a growing feeling of horror that he was

becoming an accomplice. Given what had happened with Jeff, he would receive a

mandatory life sentence. Fortunately, Nicky obeyed. As he did so, he kept

looking from Lane to Daniele and back again as he tried to understand what was

happening. He had a feeling that something was wrong and he shifted from foot to

foot, anxiously. Daniele, even more nervously, stared silently at his feet as

Lane searched for the right words.

"Um,... Nicky,... He shouldn't have done that," he began awkwardly.

"Why noth? It wath justh a game."

Nicky's delicate lisping voice struck home, guileless and completely innocent of

Daniele's underlying motive. He smiled sweetly at Lane, vaguely aware that his

newly made friend was in trouble.

"Well,... You see, Nicky,... it, err,... um,..."

Lane was about to say that it was not a nice game, that letting another boy suck

his penis was not a game that he should be playing, and certainly not in an

unlocked bathroom in an ice- cream parlor. Then from the corner of his eye, he

noticed the tears streaming down Daniele's reddened face. There was no doubt

that the boy felt bad enough about what he had done without Lane making it

worse. For a moment he dared to analyze his reaction. He was angry, partly

because Daniele had been so reckless, but like himself, Lane also knew that

Daniele could be impulsive at times. His anger existed simply because Daniele

had been unable to control himself. He had long known that something might

happen. It was impossible to be a boy-lover and not be constantly subjected to

powerful urges. However, worse than his anger was fear. He was so frightened of

losing Daniele that he would do whatever it took to secure his safety.

"Nicky, what he did,... well it has to be a secret, okay?"

Nicky nodded slightly, then tilting his head, glanced at Daniele. "Whyth he

crying?"

"He's frightened you'll tell someone," Lane said slyly. "You don't want him to

get into trouble, do you?"

Nicky quickly shook his head from side to side. "We wath only playing a game."

"It's a very nice game too," Lane agreed. "But it's a secret game that boys play

together. Grown-ups can't know about it otherwise the boys will get into

trouble."

It registered in Lane's mind that Daniele was cowering as the realization of

what he had done finally sank in.

"It isn't a bad game," he added cautiously. "It's just that grown-ups think

you're too young to play it," he said guardedly.

"I'm noth," Nicky countered immediately. He stood up as tall as he could, still

more than a few inches shorter than Daniele who was twice his age. "I'm a big

boy."

"Yes, you are," Lane smiled. "And big boys are good at keeping big secrets."

Nicky nodded earnestly. "Now, remember,..."

"It'sth a secreth," Nicky confided with a hushed voice that served to emphasize

his childish lisp.

Lane nodded and reached behind him to release the door lock. He waited until

both boys had exited the small cubicle before he left. His heart was beating

quickly. Only one time could he remember being so distraught and that was when

he was forced to confront the consequences of being a boy-lover. Jeff was always

in the background, waiting and watching for him to make the same mistake again.

He followed Daniele across the parlor, keeping very close to him because he

appreciated the boy's pressing need for security, and that he, Dustin Lane, was

the only refuge.

"Sorry it took so long," he explained to the woman as he regained his seat.

Again she seemed to ignore him, having returned to wiping the last of the

ice-cream from the toddler's clothes and face.

"Nicky always takes forever in the bathroom. Thank you for getting him out," she

commented unenthusiastically.

"My pleasure," Lane said flippantly. "I guess boys will always be boys. It

doesn't matter how young they are they play the same games." He winked furtively

at Nicky, making sure that he acknowledged the secret exchange.

Still shame-faced, Daniele puddled his spoon in the bowl of slowly melting

ice-cream. His appetite was gone. He swallowed and awkwardly glanced at Lane. He

was met with a weak smile. It was not much, but it helped.

"Can we go?" he whispered.

"Of course," Lane answered, getting to his feet.

For the last time, just before leaving the parlor, he turned back and winked

meaningfully at Nicky, silently hoping that the boy had already forgotten

Daniele's name, that he would not tell his parents, that he would eventually

forget what had happened. It was all Lane could do not to grab Daniele's hand

and start running. Instead, he breathed a deep sigh of relief. It would have to

suffice until no one could here them. They were halfway down the street before

he dared to say anything.

"Jesus that was close! Dani, please,... Don't ever do anything like that again."

"I'm sorry, okay!"

"Dani, please don't be mad at me."

"I'm not!" Daniele retorted. He paused, guiltily aware that he was angry, angry

at Lane for interrupting him, angry at the world that rejected him. "I'm mad at

myself."

"That's okay then. Just so long as you aren't mad at me," Lane joked. "Do you

want to talk about it?"

"No!"

"Okay."

"I know I did a terrible thing."

"Sucking another boy's penis is not a terrible thing," Lane interjected before

he realized that he might be overheard. He glanced around quickly. Luckily,

there was no one within hearing distance. "It's a beautiful thing."

"Yeah, right. So if it's not terrible then why is it against the law?" Daniele

grumped.

Lane sighed again. "Why did you do it in that case?"

"Because,..." Daniele stopped walking. It was an awkward moment. "He,..." His

hands clenched into impotent fists. "I,... I couldn't fucking help it."

"That's okay."

"I wanted to so much,.... And,... and it was so easy,... I, I told him his

weenie looked like an ice-cream cone." Daniele shook his head. "Then I dared

him,... to let me lick it. I didn't expect him to say I could,.... But he

did,... and he kept giggling the whole time like he wanted me to,... and I

couldn't stop myself,.... I couldn't help it."

Lane nodded, reaching down to take Daniele's hand. He held him by the thumb,

pulling him forward. They had to keep walking. He wanted to put as much distance

as possible between them and the little boy in the ice-cream parlor.

"Dani, it's so dangerous for people like us. If someone had,..."

"Okay! I know I did a dumb thing. I wasn't thinking,... Why? Why, Mr. Lane?"

Daniele sniffed. With his other hand he wiped away tears, then rubbed at his

eyes.

Lane was glad that they had left the shopping area that had grown up around the

university co-operative store. There was still a distance of a couple of hundred

yards before they reached the sanctuary of the bookstore. Already, he could see

the sign hanging out over the footpath.

"Dani,..." There was a sound of squealing tires. He looked back over his

shoulder, half- expecting to see a police car.

"I couldn't stop myself," Daniele muttered. "All I could think of was how

beautiful he was,... When he was peeing I wanted to touch him so much that I

couldn't stand it. He stood right next to me and I looked down. I could see the

tip of his dick. It was so precious,... So small and pink. He doesn't have skin

like I do,.... I knew it was wrong. Please don't hate me, Mr. Lane."

"Dani, you have to be more careful. Especially,... well with young boys. With a

boy your own age, well, he knows it has to be a secret,..."

"I told him he couldn't tell anyone," Daniele mumbled. "I really fucked up big

time, didn't I Mr. Lane?"

Lane took a deep breath. He felt like he was being pulled along by forces beyond

his control. He was frustrated, discouraged by the realization that he was

powerless to intervene. He had known ever since Daniele had admitted to being

attracted to younger boys that it would come to this, and that having `fed the

beast' once, it would only be worse the next time. Much worse. The thought

sickened him.

"Yes, you did, Dani," he said sadly, shaking his head. "What you did with Nicky

wasn't a very nice thing. You took advantage of him."

"I know," Daniele grumbled. "I wanted him so much,... If you hadn't come in,...

Damn! Why am I like this? Why can't I be like other boys. I want to be normal."