By Terosk
Copyright 2024 by Terosk, all rights reserved
[3,065 words]´
* * * * *ARS PUNIENDI
PART IV
Chapter 40 – By Tyler’s Rules
[Theo]
I took his ‘I’m not ticklish’ claim to be an invitation for me to put
that to the test, which inevitably would allow me to examine and even
touch him in ways that at least a part of me was eager for. Another
part of me was instantly horrified at the thought and couldn’t believe
that I’d invited such a wager. Here I was with my arms locked tight
around his naked mid section, not at all far from his family jewels,
and his adorably naked brothers were assisting me in keeping him
trapped on the couch; Leo was sitting with his full weight on his legs
and trying to tickle his feet while Luke sat squarely on his shoulders
while seeking access to his left armpit. It was perhaps the first time
I’d ever seen Tyler not in control of a situation; I have to confess
that I found this strangely exciting even while I was simultaneously
shocked that I was willing to take advantage of it. I had loosened my
hold only marginally - just with my left arm enough so I could attempt
a tickle along his exposed left flank. I began above his hips and
worked my way down the outside of his butt and down the outside of his
left leg. My efforts didn’t solicit the slightest squirm or sign that
he was affected by the touch. “I told you that I wasn’t ticklish - I
mean it. So yes, I’ll take the bet, but only if you’ll agree to join in
naked soccer tomorrow morning if I win.”
I wasn’t about to
agree to that, so I remained silent as I continued to dig into is left
side with greater force which seemed to solicited a reaction as he
squirmed away from it as he exclaimed immediately. “That doesn’t count,
Theo, it just hurts. Not fair.” I had been about to declare victory but
he’d called me out for the unfair tactic and I couldn’t really argue.
So I decided to take a different tact.
“Okay, how about this.”
I said as I sat up a bit and loosened my grip with my right arm. At the
same time, I slid my hand down his belly to his balls and gave it a
real quick squeeze.” It was an utterly impulsive move and I really
don’t know what had gotten in to me to do that, but it did achieve the
reaction that I’d expected. There was a huge jolt as he jerked his legs
from under Leo and managed to extract his trapped right arm from my
loosened grip and twist away from Luke’s armpit attack.
“What the hell?” he cried. “That’s out of line - totally not in the rules of tickling. That doesn’t count.”
“And why not - I didn’t hurt you, did I? And you dared me to find a way to get a reaction out of you.?
“By tickling - yes, not that! And yes it did hurt.”
The twins, not surprisingly, had ceased their own tickling attacks and
had removed themselves from their aggressive positions. Tyler then left
the couch and returned to his desk chair.
He continued, “Since
you’ve violated the rules, I declare myself the winner., and you know
what that means.” He didn’t phrase it as a question and I was about to
object when to our surprise Mrs. Formale’s voice was heard calling up
from the bottom of the stairwell.
“Excuse me boys - sorry to
interrupt your fun, but it’s now time, Luke and Leo, for you to come
downstairs. I’d like you both ready for bed in 15 minutes. Since it is
a weekend, I’ll let you read in bed for another half hour before lights
out, but only if you’re in bed on time. So please get a move on.” The
twins seemed about to object, but Tyler interjected,
“Okay
Mother, I’ll send my most wonderful brothers down in just a minute.”
and then, with a finger to his lips, he motioned for Luke and Leo to
come close as he then whispered, “She’s right - it is getting late and
Theo and I have something else we have to do before we go to sleep, so
you two should obey mother …for now at least, and do put your PJ’s back
on while you get your teeth brushed and ready for bed. I do mean it
about the ‘au naturel’ soccer. Let’s plan on an early morning, pre
breakfast game; Theo and I will knock on your door when it’s time to
get up. It won’t take you long to get ready since you won’t need to get
dressed. In fact, why don’t you try sleeping ‘au naturel’ - that way
you’ll be truly ready for the game. It’s going to be fun. Now get a
move on so mother lets you read for the next half hour. We’ll see you
bright and early tomorrow morning.”
The twins looked at Tyler
with a conspiratorial smile and giggling excitedly as they put on their
pajamas and headed back downstairs. Tyler simply smiled and encouraged
them to keep quiet about the morning’s plans.
When the sound
of their footsteps faded, Tyler looked at me with a grin and said, “The
twins - they’re tons of fun and awfully cute, aren’t they?” I nodded in
agreement as I thought of their adorably bare back ends, and almost
said so out loud before catching myself. He continued, “Just for the
record, I want to thank you for being a good sport when they attacked
you. You were really good with them. I get the sense that you may have
enjoyed it as much as they clearly did - hope so. You can tell they are
eager for our early morning game of soccer. It’ll be fun.”
“Hold on a second, Ty, I haven’t agreed to this plan, and I really have
no interest of running around naked outside, especially in front of
your mother. …and remember that your father made it clear you weren’t
to put any pressure on me to do so.
“But you lost the bet that you yourself initiated.”
“No - I never agreed to your conditions.”
“Yes, you did.”
“No, you never heard me say ‘yes’, did you?”
“Not with words perhaps, but most loudly and clearly with your actions.
There is more than one way to show your acceptance. After I accepted
your bet on the condition of you joining the ‘au naturel’ soccer game,
you didn’t back off, did you? which would have signaled your rejection
of the deal. No, instead you renewed your efforts by digging into my
ribs so much that you hurt me, …and when that didn’t work …well, I
certainly shouldn’t need to mention your wildly out of bounds attack on
my privates, do I? …something for which, by the way, you’ve yet to
apologize.” There was a lengthy pause as I tried to find a way around
his reasoning. I thought back on the convincing way he had out
maneuvered his parents at dinner and recognized that, like his parents,
I was being out maneuvered. Even so, I was keen on coming up with some
excuse that might save me from the horror of his morning’s plan, but he
didn’t give me a chance, “So there will be no more arguments, Theo.
You’ll just have to get over your unhealthy and prudish aversion to
being in your birthday suit by agreeing to join fully in tomorrow
morning’s soccer game.”
I think he could tell that I wasn’t
ready to give in, so he took a deep breath and took a different tact.
“Listen Theo, you know that you’re among my best friends, don’t you;
and I’m hoping that I’m one of yours. One of the things best friends do
for one another is share advise about how we are to navigate this
world. Today was rough, I can’t deny it, but I really do think I’ve
learned a remarkably important lesson today that has changed the lens
through which I see myself and the culture we’re a part of. The
punishment I endured, spending the whole day naked, has compelled me to
revisit all the assumptions I had about the rules and cultural customs
we’re subject to, and have come to recognize the subjective nature of
it all. Had we been living in ancient Greece, we wouldn’t have given a
second thought about being naked, would we? So, after today’s
experience, and especially the lesson in History class with Mr. Justi,
I feel like a great weight has been lifted. I feel liberated from
following blindly the arbitrary rules and customs that has defined my
world up to now. It is a great feeling and because you are my best
friend and I care about you, I want to share that revelation with you
so you too can enjoy that liberation. Isn’t that what good friends do
for one another?”
I wasn’t sure how to respond to this line
of reasoning; on the one hand I was excited to be numbered among his
best friends and couldn’t deny that I was a bit jealous of the fearless
way he had navigated his day and envied his hutzpah. On the other hand,
I was totally terrified of embracing his rebellion - running around
naked in a world of clothed people - I didn’t think I could possibly
get comfortable with it. My brief taste of it yesterday only reaffirmed
my horror at the idea. I was about to put voice to my thoughts when he
continued.
“Remember Theo when you yourself admitted earlier
this evening that the worst part of your experience yesterday was when
you were in Mr. Innovata’s office and learned that the punishment
involved applying the golden rule literally and that you’d have to
remove your clothes and endure the same “acute embarrassment” that we
had inflicted on poor Arthur?” I nodded as he continued, “and yet once
you had been naked for a while and the kids around you had grown
accustomed to it, then it became slightly less horrible, didn’t it? …at
least until you popped the boner which probably doubled the horror
momentarily, but even then, after those around you had all noticed and
made whatever snide comments they were going to make, the horror even
then subsided a bit. The “horror” of this particular punishment, you
see, is as much in the anticipation of what you are about to endure, as
it is the actual fulfillment. I’m sure that’s why you said the worst
part was when Mr. Innovata unveiled the details of the punishment.
It was the same for me, only instead of one single period after lunch,
mine was an all-day affair without the slightest hope for an end to my
‘horrifying’ humiliation. And yet, one can’t be in a sustained state of
horror forever; once the adrenalin rush runs its course, we have to
come to grips with what’s in front of us. So, after a period or two,
once my punishment had been on display for all my classmates to comment
on, I had no choice but step back and reflect upon my circumstances in
a more reasoned, detached manner. Your punishment was so short in
duration that you didn’t get to that stage, but believe me, by
mid-morning - it was in History class - I began to see this whole
experience through a different, more enlightened lens. And it is my
goal tonight to help you see through that more enlightened lens as
well. Trust me, Theo, it’s quite liberating.
I continued to
remain silent as he looked at me intently awaiting my reaction. My mind
was reeling - I was beginning to accept, at least intellectually, that
he had won his case; I couldn’t argue really with his argument about
the bet. I had indeed initiated it; he had accepted it making clear the
consequences if he won, and by my actions, I had accepted his terms.
What was I to say other than acknowledge defeat? But to do so meant I
was agreeing to go naked tomorrow morning and the thought terrified me.
His claim that I’d feel liberated seemed far-fetched to me despite the
fact that I could see quite literally by the evening’s events that he
seemed totally at ease now in his naked state. His eyes were locked on
mine as the seconds ticked by; I felt trapped; my mouth was suddenly
dry. Eventually I broke eye contact turning my head away and curling up
at the far side of the couch; it was in its own way an admission of
defeat.
“Theo, tell me this: when you look at an animal, do
you think to yourself, ‘oh- that dog, that cat is naked?’ No, you
don’t. The whole concept of clothing for animals is silly. The human
animal shouldn’t really be any different. My father’s experience in Cap
d’Agde reinforces that notion. If we were all to go without clothes for
a bit, at least when the weather allows, we’d begin to accept it as
normal. We wouldn’t be at all self-conscious about it for ourselves,
nor would we be unnerved by nudity in those around us. So here’s the
plan in my effort to help you prepare for tomorrow morning’s ‘au
naturel’ game. The first step is to get you more comfortable with
others being nude.”
I had listened to this last bit while
looking past him towards the door where his brothers had recently
departed. I wasn’t exactly sure what he meant, so I turned my head back
to face him raising my eyebrows questioningly. He stood up and placed
himself directly in front of me, his privates only a foot or so from my
eyes. “Here, take a good long look at me - all of me.” Instinctively I
shifted my gaze upward away from his privates and looked at him
incredulously. “No - I mean it, Theo. If I’m to help you get over your
awkwardness about your own body, then I have to demonstrate for you
that it’s no big deal for someone to see the parts of us that we’ve all
been conditioned to cover up - it’s a silly hang up really. So please
go ahead and examine this thing that hangs between my legs …and your
legs for that matter, and the legs of all males of the human species.
It would be hard to express exactly what I felt at that moment. Tyler
was inviting me to do the very thing that I’d been trying to convince
myself that I didn’t really want, yet now that his impressive boyhood
was just inches in front of me, and he was instructing me to examine it
directly, I couldn’t really resist. I therefore let my eyes travel down
his smooth torso towards the center of my interest. I couldn’t help
noticing along the way the sinewy strength in his shoulders and upper
torso, his well-defined pecks with dark nipples far larger than my own,
and a set of rippling six pack abs in the middle of which was his
navel. A faint line of dark fuzz lead from his navel down past his tan
line and disappeared into a thick patch of pubic hair atop his
privates.
When my eyes had descended to that part of him
where the sun doesn’t shine, I again panicked and looked up to meet his
eyes. He simply met my gaze and gave a nod of encouragement to continue
my visual tour of his body. I couldn’t deny that I felt a pang of guilt
as I allowed my eyes again to descend. His boyhood hung down gracefully
framed on either side by two low hanging balls. Given that I’d never
really studied any other boy’s genitals, I could only compare it to my
own which were much smaller in every regard. While I did have a healthy
patch of pubic hair that had developed over the past year and a half,
my private package was likely half the size of Tyler’s. He was clearly
a man down below the belt line, while I was still mostly a boy. In
addition, I was able to study what an uncircumcised penis looked like
and couldn’t stop myself from wondering if the extra skin would still
cover the head if it were erect. I was immediately horrified that that
thought had risen to the forefront of my inquisitive mind. and I was
even more mortified by an all too familiar sensation that I could now
feel rising up between my own legs. It had never really entered my mind
that I was gay, but the sudden realization that I was becoming aroused
by the sight of my best friend’s privates was unnerving to say the
least. It was a good thing, I realized, that I was still curled up in
the corner of the couch which prevented him from seeing any unwanted
bulge. I forced myself to look away and pretend that there was nothing
of interest in what I was seeing.
.
Tyler however repositioned
himself in front of my eyes as he reached down between his legs, took
hold of his testicles, and cradled his two balls in front of me, “Just
two balls and a hose to piss with - nothing special really. You have
yours; Thane has his, and all the boys in school and across this globe
have pretty much the same thing. After seeing a few of these, you’ll no
doubt come to the conclusion that they’re all pretty much the same and
they will lose their fascination.” He said this with a confidence that
I couldn’t share. Indeed, I was quickly concluding, much against my
will, that I was perhaps different; that the more of this I saw, the
more I’d want to see. But thankfully my thoughts didn’t show on my
expression. He continued, “It is silly that we make such a big deal of
this natural part of our physiology. I was forced today to get past
this silly obsession with my body, and it has turned out to be super
liberating. Tonight, I aim to set you free as well. So listen carefully
now to the evening’s plan.
****