Taking Help From Mr. Jordan

 by: Hankster

© 2023 by the Author

 

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...
Email
hankster@tickiestories.us

 

Part 1
2, 3, 4, 5

 

Author’s Note:  Back in 1941, a wonderful movie called Here Comes Mr. Jordon was released.  It enjoyed tremendous success.  This is my modern, gay, take on that fantasy film.  HWB 

Prologue

Joe Lupino tooled down Santa Monica Blvd, in his brand-new sports car.  The car had cost him a pretty penny, but Joe didn’t care.  All his life, he had not had a pot to pee in.  Suddenly, he found himself with big bucks to spend.  At twenty-three, Joe was an up-and-coming, middleweight boxer.  Like most young athletes, he didn’t give a thought to his future, or to saving for a rainy day.  He didn’t think twice about buying the expensive BMW.

It's true that Joe was driving way above the speed limit, but still, the accident was not his fault.  A huge semi was driving right behind him.  The driver of the truck was impressed with the sleek sports car in front of him.  He speeded up to keep pace with the BMW.  Joe was going too fast, but the truck driver was going faster than the truck could handle.

Suddenly, Joe saw the next traffic light turn amber.  He could have gone through the intersection, but he did the right thing.  He reckoned that he had plenty of space, and it was safer to stop at the light.  He elected to slow down, and not attempt to beat the light.  He applied his breaks, and he wasn’t stopping fast enough, so he slammed his foot down as he approached the intersection.  There was no way the semi could slow down like Joe did, and the truck slammed into the rear of the BMW.

The truck jack-knifed, and Joe’s sports car burst into flames.    The driver of the semi somehow survived, but Joe was burned to a crisp.

*****

When Joe’s head cleared of its confusion, he tried to figure out what happened.  He felt like he was just coming out of a deep sleep.  He looked around.  A beautiful green meadow stretched out before him.  He had never seen grass so green.  It shone brighter than an emerald.  Joe would have run to the beautiful meadow, but it was barred by a gate which glittered in the sunshine.  People were waiting in line to be admitted through the sparkling gate.  Instinctively, Joe realized that he was supposed to join the queue.

There were two men standing at the gate entrance leading to the meadow.  One didn’t look a day older than eighteen.  The other was a middle-aged man, who looked like an ad for Gentlemen’s Quarterly.  Not only was he impeccably dressed, but he was a man of distinction.  He carried a tablet, which reminded Joe of the tablet Moses carried down from Mount Sinai.  The line moved quickly, and in a short while, it was Joe’s turn to be admitted through the gate.

“Name, please?” the distinguished gentleman asked.

“Joe Lupino, and you are?”

The man laughed.  “You’re the first one who’s asked me my name in a long time.  It’s Peter, of course.”

He said no more, and referred to his tablet. 

“That’s strange,” he said.

“What’s strange?” Joe asked.

“Your name isn’t on the list.  That’s never happened before.”

Peter handed his tablet to the young man.  “James,” he said.  “cover for me.  I have a little problem here.”

“Sure thing” James said.

Peter took Joe’s arm, and led him aside.  “Just stay put,” he said, “I need to check on your status.”

“My status?” Joe asked.  “What does that mean?”

Peter didn’t answer him.  Instead, he removed a cell phone from his breast pocket, pushed a button, and said, “Paul, I need to talk to the boss.  This is an emergency.”

There was a little pause, and Peter disconnected the call.

“The big boss is on another line,” Peter explained.  “He’ll call me right back.”

In a short time, Peter’s phone rang, and he asked, “Sir, is that you?”

“It’s not the boss, Pete.  It’s Paul.  The boss said that he’s going to be tied up for a long time.  He asked me to handle it.  What’s going on?”

Peter filled Paul in on the problem. 

“Okay, Paul said, give me his name, date of birth, and city of birth.  I’ll look him up on the main frame computer.  It’ll only take a few minutes so don’t hang up.”

Joe gave Peter the information, and he passed it on to Paul.

Paul was back in a very short time.  “This is terrible,” he moaned.  “He wasn’t supposed to come here for another sixty-five years.  We’ve got to return him to his body and revive him.  This is really bad.  I wonder how it happened.”

“I don’t know how it happened, and it doesn’t matter.  His body was burned to a crisp.  We can’t return him.”

“Then we have to find him another body, pronto,” Paul said.  “Hold on another minute, while I check to see what’s available.”

Paul was back on the line again in record speed. 

“There’s a young man, just Joe’s age, lying on the beach in Miami.  He’s a drowning victim, and the EMTs are trying to revive him as we speak.  He’s slated to die, but we can place Joe into the young man’s body and trade souls.  I can see to it that they revive the body before it dies.”

“It’ll have to do, if it’s the best we can do.  What’s the boy’s name?”

“James Lazarus,” Paul answered.

“How did he drown?” Peter asked.

“He was out in his speed boat in Biscayne Bay, and he was going too fast.  He hit a stray log floating in the water, and that caused his boat to capsize.  He’s pretty banged up.  He wasn’t wearing a life vest, and he was unconscious when he hit the water.”

“Okay,” Peter said, “let’s work fast.”

 

Chapter 1

This time when Joe woke up, he didn’t feel so good.  He was battered and bruised, and sore all over.  He was disoriented, and tried to figure out where he was.  He tried to get his bearings, and he concluded that he was in a hospital bed.  Half his body was bandaged, but he didn’t seem to have any broken bones.  His confusion was mind boggling.  All he could do was wonder how he got there.

Suddenly, he realized that he had to pee.  He had no constrictive devices on his body, so gingerly, he got out of bed.  He stood still for a minute, while his balance steadied out.  Then he went to the bathroom.  More confusion.  He was sure his cock had shrunk.

While he was peeing, a nurse came into the room and yelled, “What are you doing out of bed, Jimmy?”

“I had to pee.”

“Why didn’t you call me?  That’s what your dad is paying me for.”

“What do you mean my dad is paying you?  First of all, my dad hasn’t got a penny, and second of all, my name is Joe, not Jimmy, and third of all aren’t you a staff nurse at the hospital?”

The nurse didn’t answer him.  She ran out to the desk to get a neurologist ASAP.  “The patient has amnesia,” the private nurse, Miss Melrose, yelled.

In the meantime, Jimmy (we will start calling Joe Jimmy now) finished peeing.  After he was done, he went to the sink to wash up.  While doing so, he looked in the mirror over the sink, and he almost passed out.  A very handsome stranger was looking back at him.  Not only that, the stranger didn’t have a muscle on his body.  Jimmy reckoned that he was more damaged than he thought, so he ran back to bed.  He was very frightened.

A few minutes later, Miss Melrose returned with a handsome, but long in the tooth, gentleman.  He wasn’t wearing a lab coat, and did not have hospital ID displayed anywhere on his body.

“This is Dr. Jordan, Jimmy,” the nurse said.

Jimmy and Dr. Jordan shook hands, and the doctor asked Miss Melrose to leave the room while he examined the patient.

Jimmy looked scared to death, so Dr. Jordan took his hand, told him to take a deep breath, and relax. 

“I can’t tell you what’s happened to you, unless you’re completely relaxed, so calm down,” Dr. Jordan said.  “Don’t interrupt me with foolish questions.  You’re not going to believe a word of what I tell you, but it’s the gospel truth.  Do you understand, Jimmy?”

Jimmy was afraid to talk so he just nodded.  He wondered why everyone called him Jimmy.

Jordan began.  “You don’t remember anything right now, so I’m going to trigger your memory.  Try to remember the horrible car accident you were in.  If you remember, nod your head.”

Jimmy nodded.  “You died in that accident, you know.”  Jimmy believed him and said nothing.

“Do you remember trying to get into heaven through a shiny gate, but you were denied entrance? That’s where you met, Peter, and he had to ask Paul for help.”

Jimmy nodded again, but he was shivering as his blood ran cold.

“They couldn’t let you through the gate, because upon investigation, they discovered that you had sixty-five more years to live.  They wanted to return you to your body, and revive you.  Unfortunately, your body was burned to a crisp, so they put your soul into the body of a young man who just died of drowning.”

Jimmy wasn’t shivering anymore.  He was sniveling.

“I’m not finished.  Buck up,” Jordan said kindly.  “I’m not a neurologist.  I’m not even a doctor.  Peter, Paul and I work for the same boss.  It’s my job to mentor you, and help you adjust to your new life.  I’m sort of like your guardian angel.  When I feel that you can function on your own, I’ll leave you until we meet again far into the future.  It’s easier to reach me telepathically than by speech.  Just send me messages telepathically.  I assure you; I will hear you, and advise you.”

Jimmy understood, but he was incredulous.  Finally, he dared to speak.  “Go on, please,” he said.

“Lesson one, let’s begin with a few basics,” Jordan said, “My name is Luke Jordan and you are James Lazarus.  Everyone calls you Jimmy.  Got that?”

Just as Jimmy nodded, a young man, even better looking than Jimmy, ran into the room.  He wrapped his arms around Jimmy, and he was crying hard.

“Jimmy, Jimmy,” the man cried, “I thought I’d lost you.”

He bent over to kiss Jimmy, but Jimmy pushed the man away.  The guy looked shocked, so before Jimmy could say anything, Mr. Jordon reached him telepathically.

“His name is Parker Stillman, Jimmy.  He was your childhood friend, your roommate, and your lover all through your years at Princeton.  These days, he’s your fiancée.  He has a master’s degree in art history, and you have an MBA.  Not that it matters.  You’re both very wealthy, and don’t have to work a day in your lives, if you don’t want to.  The two of you live together.  You were born gay, Jimmy!”

Jimmy may be gay, but Joe had been all straight.  He gave out one long wail, “Noooooo….”

He scared Parker half to death.

No matter what had happened to him, the Joe who inhabited Jimmy’s body was straight, and he knew he would aggressively seek out women.  Parker would just have to deal with it.

Jordon took Parker’s arm and led him out of the room.

“I need to talk to you,” he said.  “Jimmy has amnesia, and doesn’t remember you.  I assure you, it’s only temporary.  I’m his neurologist, and I promise to bring him back, but until he’s ready, don’t try to force yourself on him.  He doesn’t know you, and if you get aggressive, he might hate you.  Please do as I ask, and go home now.”

Parker left the hospital sobbing bitter tears.

“Listen,” Jordan said to Jimmy when he returned to Jimmy’s room, the EMTs did a good job of clearing the water out of your lungs.  All that your body has suffered are more than a few bruises that don’t need treatment.  You’ll be given a supply of antibiotics, and you’ll be discharged tomorrow, but remember, I’ll always be with you, sight unseen, or not.  Your parents are in Paris for the summer, and they live in Palm Beach in the winter, so I can’t release you into their custody.  They’ll be arriving in Miami in a day or two to make sure you’re okay.  Then they’re returning to Paris.”

“Are they rich?” Jimmy asked.”

“Yes, they are, but you’re filthy rich also.”

“Wow,” was all Jimmy could manage to say.

“I have no choice,” Jordan said.  “You’ll have to go home with Parker.  It makes sense.  You two live together in Miami Beach, and you’re engaged to be married, but I’m warning you, be nice to him.  He’s hurting also, and if you’re belligerent, you’ll break his heart.  I know this is hard for you to fathom, but Parker loves you.  Don’t hurt him.  I want you to be kind to him, so you can get through the gate when the time comes.  Mean and nasty people don’t usually make it through.  Do you understand?” 

Jimmy nodded.

Mr. Jordan took his phone out of his pocket and called Parker.  “This is Dr. Jordan,” he said.  “I’m discharging Jimmy tomorrow morning.  Can you come and get him?”

“Yes, yes, of course.”

“Look Jimmy,” Jordan said, “I’m ordering you to remember your life with Parker.  You love him, and you will always want to make love with him.”

Immediately, Jimmy did remember his life with Parker, but when he pictured them making love, he wanted to vomit.  Mr. Jordan did not get through to the neophyte, who could not fathom participating in homosexual activity. 

“Never,” Jimmy thought.  His only concern was on his non-athletic body, and how he was going to build it up to resume his boxing career.  Despite his metamorphosis, his aspirations had not changed.

 

 

Part 2,
13 45

 

Parker picked up Jimmy in his two-seater Mercedes-Benz.  Jimmy was too frightened to do anything, but follow Parker blindly.  His greatest fear was that Parker would make a move on him.  How could he get rid of him, and remain “nice” as Mr. Jordan had instructed him to be?  The overjoyed Parker led Jimmy into their home.

If you can call it a home.  It was larger than most of the motels and hotels Joe had slept in while pursuing his career.  This mansion had seventeen bedrooms and eighteen bathrooms.  When Jimmy and Parker entered the house, a butler came running and helped Parker to take Jimmy to their bedroom.

There was only one enormous, custom made, larger than king-sized, bed in the room, and Parker had referred to it as “their” bedroom.  Jimmy was becoming more and more agitated.  He still could not relate to being wealthy, and certainly not to being gay.

Jimmy’s beat-up body suddenly became very fatigued.  “I need to lie down for a while,” he said.

“I’ll help you undress, and then lie down with you,” Parker said.  “I’ll relax you and make you feel good.”  He leaned in for a kiss, and Jimmy recoiled.

Parker was shocked, but Dr. Jordan had told him that Jimmy had amnesia, so he chalked up Jimmy’s strange behavior to his loss of memory.

“Please,” Jimmy said, trying to sound very nice and conciliatory, “I’d rather be alone right now.”

“Sure honey, anything you say.  Do you need any help?”

Jimmy shook his head, and Parker retreated.  When he was alone, Jimmy began to sob.  He felt like a fish out of water, a really lost soul.  I guess you might say that he was a lost soul.  Suddenly, he heard Mr. Jordan’s voice.  He looked up to see Luke Jordan standing at the foot of his bed.

“Stop sniveling and try to be grateful for the great gift Peter and Paul have given you,” Luke lectured him.  “Even you must admit that all this luxury beats being dead.  The least you can do is begin to adapt.”

“I can adapt to anything except to being gay.  I don’t know how to handle that,” Jimmy admitted.

“Go to sleep now.  It’ll come to you.”

Jimmy stripped naked, and fell sound asleep.  In his sleep, he dreamed that he was making love with his main squeeze, Stephanie.  He had often tried to get her to go down on him, but she wouldn’t do it.  Notwithstanding her reticence, she was giving him a delicious, and expert, blow job right now.  As he became more and more aware, he realized that it was really happening.  He had an awful suspicion that Parker was down on him.  If he wasn’t so close to climax, he might have discontinued play-acting, and being nice to Parker.  He would have socked him one.  He was too far gone to stop Parker from his endeavor.  Jimmy erupted in Parker’s throat, and he had to admit that his orgasm ranked all the way up there, with the best he ever had.

Parker scooted up and lay down facing his true love.  “I sure hope that jarred your memory,” he said.

Jimmy’s memory needed no sparking.  Mr. Jordon had taken care of that, but Jimmy still wanted to barf when he remembered every intimate thing that he and Parker had done together before the two accidents.

“How’d you like to do that to me?” Parker cooed.

Jimmy heard Luke say, “Repeat after me.  I’d love to, honey, but I’m so sore, I need a couple of days more to recover.”

Jimmy repeated all that, but he omitted the word, “honey.”

“Sure sweetie.  I understand,” Parker said.  “Do you feel up to going out for dinner tonight?  I didn’t expect you to come home so soon, so I gave the cook the day off.”

That sounded pretty good to Jimmy, and he said, “I’m up to it, and it sounds like a plan.  Where do you want to go?”

“Let’s go to the club.  We’ll meet people there you know, and maybe that will help in restoring your memory.”

Jimmy heard Mr. Jordan say something and he repeated it.  “Okay Parker, but you’ll have to help me with names.  I may not remember any of these people.”

“Don’t worry.  Just stay relaxed and I’ll do all the talking.”

Jimmy slept another four hours.  At last, Parker came into the bedroom to wake him.  “We have to get dressed for dinner,” Parker said.  “Let’s shower.  I’ll help you.  Also, your parents have arrived.  They’re really beat from all the travel, so they won’t be joining us for dinner.  They just want to make sure you’re really okay.  Then tomorrow morning, they’re off to their home in Palm Beach to check on things.  They leave for Paris tomorrow afternoon.”

Jimmy assumed that Parker intended showering with him.  He was about to tell Parker that he could shower alone, but he heard Luke say, “Shower with him.  He loves you more than anyone else on this planet. Besides, you’d better start adapting like I told you to do.  What are you afraid of?  Are you afraid, he’ll show you a little affection?  Joe had very little affection shown him in his short lifetime.  Try it, you might like it.”

Jimmy resigned himself, and said, “Yes, Parker, please help me shower.”  Then he added, “and to get dressed.”  The truth is he didn’t know what to wear to the club.

Parker took Jimmy’s hand to lead him to the bathroom, and a miracle occurred.  The two men, who were engaged to be married, smiled at each other.

Parker got the shower water heated to their mutual satisfaction.  Jimmy stood like a statue.  He didn’t know what to do.  Parker took the lead.  He grabbed a bar of soap, and sobbing, he wrapped Jimmy in his arms.  Jimmy tried hard to keep their cocks from smashing together, but it wasn’t easy.

With his arms entwining Jimmy, Parker started to soap Jimmy’s back.  He went all the way down to his buttocks, but never reached below the upper part of Jimmy’s crack.  That’s when Jimmy began to freak out.  He couldn’t believe how good he felt.  He wanted Parker to go lower, but he was afraid to say anything, and Parker feared angering Jimmy.  But when Parker turned Jimmy around, he started to soap Jimmy’s chest.  Without thinking, Parker’s muscle memory started him on a downward path to Jimmy’s pubic area, and he came nearer and nearer to Jimmy’s cock and balls.

Jimmy wasn’t stopping him, so Parker grew bolder.  He engulfed Jimmy’s cock, lubricated it well with soap, and began to stroke.  Jimmy couldn’t stop him if he wanted to, and he surely didn’t want this to stop.  He felt too good, but it was Parker who stopped stroking.

“Why did you stop?” Jimmy asked. “I was nearly there.”

“Because we are going out to dinner, and after that, we are going to make love all night in our dry, comfortable bed.”

Now Jimmy was aware of another phenomenon.  He didn’t get grossed out at all.  He wondered if he was becoming all Jimmy, and that included being gay.  Whatever was happening, Jimmy was not about to allow Parker to stop making him feel so good.

When Jimmy opened his closet, he was at a loss what to wear, so Parker laid out his clothes for him, and helped him dress.

They went downstairs where Jimmy’s parents were waiting for them.  They were strangers to him.  Mr. Jordan told Jimmy that they were James Lazarus, Sr., and Felicia Lazarus.

They engulfed Jimmy, and were slobbering him with kisses.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Sr. asked.

“I’m fine,” he answered.  “Look, I feel so well that Parker and I are going out to dinner.  Are you sure you won’t join us.”

“No darling,” Felicia said.  “We’re bushed and we have another grueling travel day tomorrow.  We’ll take a rain check until we come down for the winter.”

They had intended on sleeping over, but they left hastily in their rental car.  They preferred to sleep in their own bed.  As soon as they were gone, Parker led Jimmy to their driveway.

“You better drive,” Jimmy said.  “I don’t remember how to get there.”

“Sure thing,” Parker said.

The two men jumped into Parker’s sporty Mercedes.  It’s got more bells and whistles than my car,” Jimmy thought.  “I could get used to being wealthy, but I still want to box.”

They drove through a fancy gate, and Jimmy could see that the letters on the gate read “South Beach Golf and Country Club.”  He wondered if he and Parker were members of this club.  Parker sure talked like they were.  Immediately, a valet ran to the driver’s side and helped Parker out of the car.  Jimmy helped himself out.  The valet said, “Good evening Mr. Stillman, Mr. Lazarus,” and he drove off.  He didn’t give Parker a retrieval ticket.  Jimmy was surprised, but the young man knew them well.  He also didn’t need to be told which car was theirs.

Jimmy followed Parker to the dining room, where Parker addressed the maître d’.

“We’ve had a traumatic day,” Parker explained.  “I didn’t have a chance to make a reservation.  Do you have a table for us?”

“Certainly, Mr. Stillman,” the maître d’ said.  “Come this way, please.”

They were seated at a window table overlooking the golf course.  Unfortunately, it had gotten too dark to see much of anything.  All evening long friends came over to say hello to the two young men.  Jimmy didn’t have to do anything more than smile.  Parker did all the talking.  He greeted each visitor by saying their first names.  When the first couple came over, Parker greeted them.  “Harry, Anne, how nice to see you here.  How have you two been?”  Harry and Parker engaged in some small talk, and Harry asked after the welfare of Jimmy’s parents.  Jimmy assured him that they were fine, without going into detail.  Harry and Anne finally left.  Fortunately, as the evening wore on, less and less people came over to say hello.

As they were eating their desserts, Parker asked, “Do you want to go to Maury’s?  The night is still young.”

Mr. Jordan communicated telepathically to Jimmy.  “Maury’s is a gay bar.”

Jimmy’s stomach churned anew.  Even though he could recall many happy hours he and Parker had spent socializing there, he was not about to go to a gay bar.

He said to Parker, “I’m still sore all over, honey.  Let’s go home.”

Jimmy could not believe that he had called Parker, honey.  He feared he was turning gay.

“You are gay,” he distinctly heard Luke advise him.  “You’re not turning anything.  You are what you are.”

 

 

Part 3
12 45

 

Jimmy and Parker were quiet in the car driving home, so Mr. Jordan took the silence to allow him to communicate with Jimmy.

“Listen, ingrate,” he said.  “Parker wants to show you how much he loves you, and how grateful he is that you’re alive.  He’ll want to make love tonight.  You’re stuck in Jimmy’s body for another sixty-five years.  You’re not going to get another one, and if you try to have sex with a girl, you’ll find yourself impotent.  So, get over yourself, and make love to him.  Joe never made love to anybody, and nobody ever made love to him.  It was all lustful sex.  Try the love route.  I know you’re going to enjoy it.”

“Okay,” Jimmy answered telepathically.  He recalled how he and Parker made love in the past, and instead of wanting to barf, he thought he could go through with it.  Then, the strangest thing happened.  He realized that he had gotten an erection. 

“Do you know where there are training facilities for boxers nearby?” Jimmy asked Parker.

Parker was shocked at the question.  “Why do you want to know?” he asked.

“Because, I want to build up my body, get some muscle, and resume training.  I’ve got my eye set on middleweight champion of the world.”

Parker thought that Jimmy had lost his mind, but he decided not to say anything negative.  Dr. Jordan had warned him to be patient while Jimmy recovered.

“I don’t think there are any training facilities in South Beach,” Parker said.  He finally got over the shock.  “However, I’ll bet we could find more than one on the mainland.  Many great boxers have come out of the Latino community in Miami.  We can Google it tomorrow morning, and check out their websites to find the best.”

Jimmy had not recovered all his memory yet.  He had no idea how to get to the gym to restart taking boxing lessons, and to build up his body.  Yesterday, Parker gave him oral sex, while he was asleep, but it wasn’t just sex.  He knew that Parker had made love to him, and later they showered together.  Jimmy had no reticence in asking Parker to drive him to the gym. 

Jimmy was aware that Parker thought he was mad, but he didn’t care.  All he could think about, besides the shower and the blow job Parker had given him, was boxing again.

*****

After dinner, the night before, they had a nightcap at the country club bar, and then headed home.  Jimmy could see how hot to trot his fiancée was, and he decided to oblige him, and stop procrastinating.  He had a sample of man sex that afternoon in the shower, and when Parker went down on him.  He decided that a little more of the same wouldn’t hurt him.  He also concluded that Mr. Jordan was giving him sound advice.  He was stuck in a millionaire’s body.  The millionaire was gay, ergo, Jimmy would be gay the rest of his life.  He concluded that Mr. Jordan was right.  He should be grateful, not an ingrate.

On the way home, Jimmy had a thought.  He and Parker only had one car.  He would need a car to get him to and from the gym.  He could tell that Parker would be reluctant to go with him.

Jimmy took the bull by the horns. “How come we only have one car?” he asked.

Parker thought that was an odd question, but he was cutting Jimmy a lot of slack.  After all, he had nearly died.   “Because we do everything together as a team.  A second car would be a waste,” he answered.

“Well, I’m going to need a car of my own when I begin my retraining.  Will you take me to a BMW showroom as soon as possible?  I’d rather have a BMW than a Benz.”

“That’s odd,” Parker said.  “You always preferred a Benz to a BMW.  We bought this car because of you.  It’s way too showy.  I myself would have preferred a Chevy.”

“OK,” Jimmy laughed.  “Let’s buy you a Chevy, and I’ll drive this car.”

“A near death experience hasn’t changed you at all,” Parker said.  “You’re still a snob.  No matter, I love you and I always will.”

Jimmy was insulted.  “I’m not being a snob,” he said.  “I just have a thing for sport cars.”

“Whatever,” Parker said in resignation.  “Now, I have a question for you. How come you refer to boxing lessons as retraining?  You’ve never done any boxing before.”

“It’s a very long story,” Jimmy said, and he left it at that.  Parker had to be satisfied.  He was getting used to Jimmy’s odd behavior.  Dr. Jordan said that Jimmy would be his old self in no time, so he tried to stay optimistic.

When they got home at last, Parker rushed Jimmy into bed.  “We can shower later,” he said.  “For now, let’s make love.”

Jimmy decided to play act.  He was beginning to grow fond of Parker, and he didn’t want to upset him.  They both stripped rapidly and fell into their over-sized bed.  Immediately, they began to hug, fondle and kiss.  Jimmy was shocked at how much he was enjoying making love to Parker.  He wasn’t play-acting at all.  He had an erection that was so hard, it hurt, and he once believed that no man could ever arouse him.  He concluded, at last, that it must be because he was in a gay body.  That was the moment he accepted that he was gay, and he didn’t give a damn.  Besides, after the small sample of man sex that Parker had given him that afternoon, he was raring to go. It was not burdensome at all, considering the vast wealth he had obtained.

No matter how much he resolved to give into his desires, Jimmy shocked himself further, when he whispered in Parker’s ear, “Fuck me, Sweetie, I need it so badly.”

“My pleasure,” Parker whispered back. 

He reached into the end table on his side of the bed, and got out a tube of lube.  He used plenty of grease on Jimmy’s asshole, and even more on his own cock.  Jimmy could see why.  Parker was hung like a horse.  Seeing Parker during his passions, did something to Jimmy that he would have bet could never happen.  He wanted male sex, and he wanted it badly.  He admitted to himself that he had fallen in love with Parker, and he desperately wanted Parker inside of him.  In truth, he fell in love with Parker the first time they laid eyes on each other, when they were little boys taking tennis lessons together.

With that realization in Jimmy’s brain, they now made love like the two old warhorses they were.  Nothing was out of bounds.  Their love-making was rough and kinky, and they were both crying with happiness.  Joe was becoming Jimmy in mind, body and spirit.  Mr. Jordan sighed with relief.

*****

When Jimmy and Parker entered the gym, they were greeted by a Titan who was all muscle.  Parker was intimidated by his height and bulk, but Jimmy knew instinctively that this was the instructor he sought.

“Which one of you is Jim Lazarus?” The Titan asked.  He was not about to call his new student by a childish name like Jimmy.

“I am, and I’m bad with names.  What’s your name again?”

“Vinnie Valducci. What’s your friend’s name?”

“Parker Stillman.”

“Will he be training also?”

“No,” Parker screamed out.  “I just dropped Jimmy off.  I mean Jim, off.  He doesn’t have a car of his own.  I’ll be leaving now, and Jim will call when he wants to be picked up.”

When Vinnie heard that Jim had no car, he erroneously assumed that the boy was very poor.  He hoped he could pay his fee.

“Come with me,” Vinnie said.

Jim picked up his gym bag, and Vinnie led him to a locker room.  He assigned Jim a locker, and told him to put on boxing shorts, and appropriate sneakers.  He was shocked that Jim had these articles of clothing in his bag.  He had stopped at a sporting goods store on the way to the gym.  Vinnie became reassured that Jim was a serious trainee, and that he could pay his fees.  He left Jim alone to change.

When Jim returned to the gym, Vinnie said.  “I’m going to spar with you for a very short time.  I want to determine where you’re at.  Most of our session today will be working with the nautilus equipment.  You badly need some body-building.  Before you leave, I’ll give you a small manual.  It will tell you what you can eat, and what you can’t eat.  We need to put you on a high protein diet.”

“Does that mean, I can’t eat out?” Jim asked.

“Of course, you can.  Any good restaurant will have high protein foods for you to choose from.  I’ll give you the names of a few restaurants in Miami that I highly recommend.”

“That’s a relief,” Jim, said.  “Parker will be pleased.  Neither one of us can boil water.”  He was not about to tell Vinnie yet, that he would have his cook prepare most of his meals.

“Okay, young man,” Vinnie said, “Climb into the ring with me and show me what you’ve got.”

He handed Jim protective headgear, and they both climbed into the ring.  Vinnie thought he would surprise Jim with an unexpected jab.  He wanted to judge his reflexes.  It was pure instinct, of course, but using his peripheral vision, Jim saw it coming, and he blocked the jab.  Vinnie was very impressed.  They sparred for no longer than ten minutes, and Vinnie realized that Jim had previous training.  He was now looking forward to training the boy.  Jim had told him on the phone, when they set up the first session, that he wanted to be middle weight champion of the world someday.  Vinnie laughed, but he wasn’t laughing now.  Maybe he was indeed training a future champion.

After they left the ring, Vinnie led Jim to the exercise equipment.  Jim swore that he was never in a gym before, so Vinnie went easy on him.  He gave him fifteen minutes on four different pieces of equipment.  When the hour was up, Vinnie made Jim quit.  Jim was raring to go some more.

Come along with me,” Vinnie said.  “I’ll give you a massage.  I don’t want your muscles to cramp.  Then we’ll shower, and you can call your friend to take you home.”

When Vinnie told Jim that they would shower together, something happened to him that had never happened to Joe in his life.  He began to get an erection just anticipating what could happen.”

“I guess I’m getting more and more gay,” he thought, and laughed internally.  That’s when he heard Luke Jordan laughing also.

Jim enjoyed the massage immensely.  Vinnie brushed his cock a few times, but Jim ignored it.  He was sure it was an accident.  As wonderful as the massage was, he couldn’t wait to shower with his trainer.

They entered the showers.  There were five on each side of the room.  Vinnie completely ignored the every-other-stall rule, and started the shower next to Jim’s.  Jim was surprised, but he didn’t move away.  Vinnie saw the look on Jim’s face, so he offered an explanation.  “This way we can do each other’s backs.”

Jim blushed, but managed to say, “Good thinking.”

Of course, they checked each other out.  Neither was circumcised.  Jim was about four and a half inches flaccid.  Big Vinnie was at least five and a half inches.  Vinnie rivalled the late Joe Lupino in cock size.

While Vinnie was doing Jim’s back, he got a little too cozy with Jim’s bubbly butt and his crack.  Vinnie heard a purring sound coming out of his student’s throat, so he grew bold.

“Are you and Mr. Stillman a couple?” he asked.

Jim couldn’t lie.  “Yes, we are.  We’re getting married soon.”

“Are you monogamous?”

“We sure are.  Why are you asking?”

“Because I’m gay, and I have serious hots for both of you.” 

Jim’s body stiffened. 

“Relax, I won’t come onto you,” Vinnie promised.

“I’m not afraid of that.  I’m just shocked.”

“I guess you have no gaydar at all.”

“That would be correct.”

 

Part 4
12 35

 

As soon as Jim and Vinnie were dressed, Jim called Parker to pick him up.  Joe couldn’t wait to see Parker, and he reckoned that he was becoming more and more Jimmy.  It hadn’t taken long for the transition to occur, and for that, he was grateful.  In fact, when Parker showed up, they greeted each other with a hug and a kiss.  Parker felt much better.  In that moment, he realized that Jimmy was coming back to him.

Once they settled into their car seats, with seat belts securely fastened, Jimmy said, “Okay, sweetie, (he was not aware that he had called Parker sweetie) let’s go to a chevy dealer, and get you the car you want.  I’ll drive the Benz from now on.”

“Cool,” Parker said.  “I thought you were kidding me.”

Parker settled on a current year model of a Chevy Malibu.  Being new to the game, Jimmy had never thought to take a check book with him.  They registered the title in both their names, and Parker wrote a check for the full amount of the cost of the auto.  He was so blasé about it; you would think he was writing a five-dollar check for some charitable donation.  With business concluded, off they drove.  Jimmy followed Parker, just in case he forgot the way home.  He was not yet familiar with Miami.  Los Angeles was Joe’s hometown.

Despite his lapses, Jimmy’s memory of his life as James Lazarus was returning at an ever-increasing rate of speed.  He had no idea that Mr. Jordan was telepathically feeding him that knowledge, along with a slew of other needy things, like a knowledge of Miami’s geography.

Sitting alone in the Benz, Jimmy had a disturbing thought.  Joe’s sports agent lived in L.A.  He would have to do a search for a new one in the Miami area.  Neither Joe nor Jimmy had ever been very good with any electronic gadgets.  A computer was one of them.  Instinctively, Jimmy knew that Parker excelled in the use of electronic gadgetry.  He vowed to ask Parker to help him find an agent.  Parker thought he was crazy anyhow, so he didn’t mind adding fuel to the fire.

Jimmy and Parker had lunch at home.  Their cook was back on duty, so Jimmy gave her the list of dos and don’ts.  After lunch Parker did help Jimmy in his quest to engage an agent.  Parker thought that Jimmy was indulging in wishful thinking, but he allowed himself to believe that all this nonsense would go away when Jimmy totally regained his memory.

They zeroed in on three different agencies in Miami.  Their websites all listed the sports disciplines they represented.  It also assured that their clients were high profile athletes, but names could not be revealed.  They finally settled on an agency called Sports Angels.  They chose this agency because it had the most professional looking website.  They had no other yardstick.

Two other factors, influenced Jimmy.  Joe had been an Angeleno, and the word Angels in the name of the agency appealed to him.  The second factor was that the agent to contact was named Mark Jordan.  If that wasn’t an omen, what was?  Jim called and set up an appointment with Mr. Jordan for the next day, about an hour after his training period would be concluded.  He asked Parker to meet him at the agency, if he wanted to go there with him.  Parker politely declined.

A very important factor got Jimmy’s attention.  In his mind’s eye, he could picture the route to drive between the gym, and the agent’s office.  He wondered how he knew.  He wasn’t at all worried.  He may be electronically challenged, but he could use the navigation system on his phone.  In addition, the Benz had a GPS as part of all its bells and whistles.

Their cook prepared a healthy dinner, guided by the pamphlet Jimmy had given her.

“What if I don’t like this shit?” Parker whined.

“Then drive to the nearest Burger King and fill your veins with cholesterol.”

Parker gave Jimmy a dirty look, so Jimmy sought to assuage him. 

“I’m feeling great today,” Jimmy said.  “Let’s go to bed early.”

Parker’s sour look turned to a look of pure joy.  They made love half through the night.  Jimmy’s ass was sore, and somehow, he never felt so good.  In the middle of making love, he had a crazy thought.  With the pure joy, he and Parker were experiencing, why would any man want to be totally straight?

The answer came to him in a flash.  They were born that way.

*****

When Jimmy entered the agency office, he knew right away that he had made the right choice.  The office was very posh, and reeked of success.  The receptionist advised him to have a seat, and someone would be with him shortly.

Shortly indeed!  Mark Jordan came to greet him almost immediately.  Jimmy’s jaw dropped.  The man standing in front of him was Luke Jordan.  Jimmy was astonished, but wisely said nothing until he and Mr. Jordan were alone together in Mr. Jordan’s private office.

“What gives?” Jimmy asked.  “You’re not Mark, you’re Luke.”

“I like the name Mark better than Luke.  Neither name is my real name, so roll with the punches.  No pun intended.  I had to become your sport’s agent.  I told you.  I’ll be with you until you can function on your own.  I can’t promise you the championship, but if you work hard, and build up that scrawny body of Jim’s, I can help you move up the ranks.  I can give you the opportunity to realize Joe’s dream in your new body.   By the way, Vinnie prefers that everybody should call you Jim, not Jimmy.”

“I can inform everyone to call me Jim, but Parker never will.”

“That’s fine,” Mr. Jordan said.  “It’s okay.  Coming from him it’s a term of endearment.  Now, it’s obvious that I’m going to be your agent, but not for a few months down the road.”

“What do you mean?” Jim asked.  He was really peeved.  “Why do I have to wait so long?”

“Because you’re a skinny runt without any muscles.  If I took you on as a client, I’d be a laughing stock among my peers.  When I determine that your body has reached a point where you look somewhat like a real boxer, we’ll begin your journey to the top.”

“Fair enough,” Jim agreed.  “I’ve always intended to work my ass off anyway.  Jim Lazarus is going to change from a useless playboy into an aspiring boxer.  I just hope Parker won’t mind.”

“When you begin to muscle up, Parker will be your biggest fan, so stop worrying about him,” Mr. Jordan said.  “Lucky for you, he’s so blindly in love with you, he’ll sanction anything you decide to do.”

“Yes.  I’ve already discovered that.  I’m beginning to feel lucky and blessed on many levels.  If I lost my money, I could make more money, but if I lost Parker, I would truly be a lost soul.”

“Yes,” Mr. Jordan agreed, “you’re beginning to see the big picture.  Go home now, and when Vinnie is satisfied that you look like a bona fide boxer, come back to see me.  In the meantime, Luke will continue to help you out.  It seems to me that you need less and less “helping out” every day.  I’m really pleased with you.  It’s not easy to go through what you are experiencing.”

Jim wasn’t sure if Mr. Jordan’s last remark called for a thank you or not, so he said nothing.  He just nodded.  As he left the agency, he was overcome with a very strong yearning.  Parker was waiting at home to give him life’s greatest pleasure.  It’s a good thing traffic was so heavy.  He wanted to speed home, but he couldn’t.

*****

Within the next few weeks, Jim needed Mr. Jordan less and less.  He knew all about the old Jim by then, but he could not forget Joe.  He spoke to Mr. Jordan less and less.  He almost nearly asked him once or twice to let him forget Joe Lupino, but he feared losing his goal of being a champion boxer.  He was working too hard to build up his body to forfeit his dream.

Vinnie’s magic was working.  Jim’s body was getting buffer and buffer, and his body fat (which he had very little of from the get go) was practically down to zero.  Parker always ate what Jim ate, and he was getting harder without even exercising.

Jim couldn’t get enough of sparring with Vinnie, and of working out with the exercise equipment.  Often Vinnie made him stop so he wouldn’t damage or cramp any muscles.  Then he would give Jim a soothing massage before sending him home.

Jim had let Vinnie know that he was off limits, yet several times his massage was so arousing that Jim had an orgasm.  Neither man commented on it.  Jim just let it slide.  He cleaned himself in the shower, which he still shared too closely with Vinnie, and both men seemed to ignore what happened.  Knowing, without a doubt, that Parker would never go for it, Jim thought of asking his fiancé what he would think about doing a three way with Vinnie.  When Jim got home, Vinnie was out of sight and out of mind, so there was never any reason to broach the subject of a three-way sex session.

Six months to the day that Jim first visited Mark Jordan, Vinnie told him that he was ready to see Mr. Jordan about representing him.  Jim was elated.  Beyond being elated, when Jim entered the reception area at the agency, the young female receptionist literally drooled over him.  Then, when Mr. Jordon’s secretary came to get him, she drooled even harder.  The office was in danger of flooding.

Mr. Jordan knew full well what Jim had morphed into, but he put on an act for his secretary.  “Wow, and again wow,” he said. “Now it will be a pleasure to represent you.  “Let’s sign the standard representation contract, and I’ll get you booked in a preliminary bout.  That, my dear boy, will get your career started, but you better not lose.”

“Not a chance that I’ll lose,” Jim said smugly.

“I have no doubt,” Mr. Jordan answered.

Jim couldn’t wait to get home and give Parker the good news.  It wasn’t good news to Parker.  He just stared at Jim for so long, Jim had to ask, “What?”

“Don’t ever expect me at one of your matches,” Parker said.  “It would kill me to see someone trying to beat you to a pulp.”

Then he started to cry bitter tears, and Jim had to hold him in his arms.

Parker kept saying, “Please, don’t do this, Jimmy.  I’m so afraid for you.”

“Hush, sweetheart,” Jimmy tried to reassure Parker.  “Nothing bad is going to happen to me.  I’m going to live a long life.”

Parker thought, “From your mouth to God’s ear.”  Then Mr. Jordan burst out laughing, but Parker couldn’t hear the laughter.

 

 

Part 5 
1234

Jim’s first bout was in West Palm Beach.  It was scheduled while Jim’s parents occupied their home in Palm Beach.  Nevertheless, neither Jim nor Parker was of a mind to tell them.   Jim and Parker were invited to dinner at the Lazaruses that evening. They made up a story that Jim was busy with something or other, and Parker agreed to have dinner at James, Sr.’s country club, rather than his.  The older couple didn’t care to drive the approximate 70 miles between them, just for a dinner.  On the other hand, Parker didn’t mind at all.  He wanted to keep them busy and diverted.

Most preliminary bouts only last seven rounds, and this one was typical.  Jim so outranked his opponent, that he was having a romp, but he didn’t want to short change the paying crowd.  He waited until early in the seventh round, and with one quick jab, the other boxer was on the floor.  He didn’t pass out.  Jim knew just how to control the jab to stun his opponent, but not knock him out.  When he stood up, the poor guy couldn’t keep his balance, and his second threw in the towel.  The referee raised Jim’s arm, and declared him the victor. 

Mr. Jordan, who was seated in the arena, engaged two burly men to act as Jim’s seconds at ring side, and to look after him, in general.  Vinnie was there also.  He would always be at ringside when Jim boxed locally.  The seconds put a robe around Jim, and hustled him to the locker room.  When they were certain that he was fine, they sent him to the shower, and they went home.  Jim exited the shower, and entered the locker room.  Mr. Jordan was waiting for him.  Jim dressed quickly, and drove himself and Mr. Jordan back to Miami.  Jim got home about five minutes before Parker.

“How was dinner?” he asked as if nothing had happened to him that evening.

“It was fine,” Parker said, “and thank God.”

“What are you thanking Him for?” Jim asked.

“That you don’t have a mark on that beautiful face.  I was so worried.”

“That punk never got near me, but I want you very near me.  Let’s go to bed.  I’m all keyed-up, and I think you are going to love my keyed-up love making mode.”

*****

For two years, Jim participated in preliminary bouts, and during that time, he and Parker married.  Sometimes, he couldn’t remember if he was Joe or Jim.  Once again, he toyed with the idea of begging Mr. Jordan to erase Joe from his memory, but he kept procrastinating.  He feared that if he forgot Joe, he wouldn’t fight as well as he was doing.

With each preliminary, he moved up closer and closer to the main event.  One time he was scheduled for a prelim just before the main bout.  Mr. Jordan came into the locker room before being seated in the arena.  He was smiling, and he told Jim, that he had hired people to poll the audience, and most of them had come to see him, and not either of the two participants in the main bout.

“In fact,” he grinned, “I’ve booked your next bout in Madison Square Garden.  It’s the main event.”

His bout that evening was a ten-rounder, but Jim was too excited to fool around.  He wanted to get home to Parker with the good news.  Love making was always in the stratosphere when they celebrated something special in their lives.  Jim floored his opponent in the middle of the first round.  Instead of cheers, he was booed out of the ring.  He realized that he had really flubbed it, and swore it wouldn’t happen again.  He should have given his fans their money’s worth.  If he could have, he would have redone the evening, and prolonged the fight.

The bout was in Tampa.  Jim hadn’t worked up a sweat, so without showering, he jumped into his car, and drove Mr. Jordan and himself home.  He bounded into his house, grabbed Parker, and almost smothered him with kisses.

“What happened?” Parker asked.  He really didn’t care, because Jim showed no physical damage from the fight.  He asked, just to be polite, and show an interest in his husband’s obsession, even if he didn’t share that obsession.

Jim recited all about the up-coming main event in New York.  He purposely didn’t tell Parker about the first-round knockout.  He was too ashamed of himself.

“When’s the fight?” Parker asked.  “Let’s spend at least a week in New York.  I’ll get us a batch of theater tickets for nights when you aren’t boxing.”

“I was so excited, I forgot to ask Mark when the big night was.  I’ll call him tomorrow, but for now, shower with me.  I didn’t shower after the fight.  I was too excited.”

They never slept that night.  They made love instead, and employed every trick they knew; sucking, fucking, rimming, golden showers, between the thighs, between the armpits, and more.  Some of their activity that night, had never been done in any porn film.  They kidded each other about the possibility of making their own amateur male film, before their bodies got flabby.

Before he fell asleep that glorious night, Jim knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that if he was still Joe, his life would be meaningless without Parker in it.  He loved Parker as much as Parker loved him, and he was content.

*****

Jim won the next five of his main events.  In fact, he had an undefeated record.  The big day finally came when he was to fight for the middleweight championship.  It just happened to fall on his twenty-sixth birthday. 

He begged Parker to come to the arena in Chicago, but Parker refused, and refused adamantly.  Jim’s parents wanted to take their sons out on his birthday, but Jim made up some flimsy excuse, and they settled on the next day.  This time dinner was to be in Miami, and Jim’s parents would stay over.

The bout was a fifteen-round event, and lasted for the full time.  It was hard fought, and bloody, but in the end, Jim won in a split decision.  Parker refused to watch the fight on the sports channel, so he was spared seeing his husband all bloodied up.  Once Jim was cleaned up in the locker room, he didn’t look too bad.  He had a cut on his right cheek, and that was the worst of it.  He had looked much worse after the boating accident.

After he was made presentable looking, he was interviewed by the press. 

“Before you ask any questions, fellas,” he said, “I’ve prepared a short announcement.  Please permit me to read it.”

Jim took a piece of paper out of his pocket, unfolded it, and read:

For as long as I can remember, it was my dream to become middle weight champion of the world.  The only people who know this are my seconds, my trainer, and my manager.  My family members are not even aware of my dream, except for one person.

I’ve realized that dream, at last, but boxing is not what I want to do with my life.  Tonight, was my last fight.  I don’t need the purse, and I’m donating it all to charity.  My dad has been asking me to take over his business, which is now in the hands of a very capable manager.  I’m not going to shake up any of the staff, but I will be taking on the role of Chief Executive Officer.  I think that will make my father, and my husband, very, very happy.  Now, if you’ll excuse me, gentlemen, I have a flight to make back to Miami.

Very few people were aware that the middle weight champion of the world was gay.  There was an audible gasp from the press when he outed himself.  They wanted to ask him a million questions, but Mr. Jordan hustled him out of the arena.

This time, when Jim got home, and Parker saw the gash on his cheek, Parker started to cry, but more than that, he was angry.  Jim was a millionaire.  He could do anything he wanted to do, but he refused to give up boxing, no matter how much his husband begged him to do so.

Jim wrapped up his husband in his arms.  “I have something to show you,” Jim said.

He took his phone out of his pocket.  “Mr. Jordan recorded this for me.”  It was his farewell speech, which he was certain Parker had not seen.  He was correct.  Parker watched, and could not stop crying.

As the speech ended, the phone rang.  It was Jim’s father.

“I just watched the late-night news.  When were you going to tell me?”  Didn’t you think you could trust me?”

“Of course, I trust you.  I just didn’t want you and mom worrying about me.”

“We’re your parents.  We’ll always worry about you.  Didn’t we fly all the way from Paris when you had that boating accident?”

“I know, but I worry about you worrying.  Does that make any sense?  None of that’s important.  Are you okay with my going into the business.?”

James. Sr. started to laugh and couldn’t stop.  “I sure am,” he said.  “You’ve just made me the happiest man in the world.”

“Great, let’s discuss it at dinner tomorrow night.”

 

Epilogue

James, Sr.’s business was real estate development.  He inherited the business from his father, and his business had built half the high rises in The Magic City, Miami.  The business had been started by Jim’s grandfather.  All during his high school and college years, before he became a playboy, Jim worked at his dad’s office.  He was well suited to take over the business.  In fact, he was looking forward to it.  Joe Lupino used to have a work ethic that far exceeded Jim’s.  Jim wondered if that’s where he got his new determination.

Parker Stillman’s ancestors were among the earliest settlers of the city of Miami.  They came from England, and had plenty of money.  Over the years, they bought up thousands of acres of Miami real estate.  They sold a little at a time, but when the Cuban migration took off, they sold off large tracts of land, and they became multi-millionaires.  In fact, the Lazaruses bought a lot of that acreage for real estate development.  The related businesses made the two families, close friends.

At dinner that night, the first question James, Sr. asked was, “I know what Jim will be doing, Parker, but what will you do while your other half is working?”

“Funny, you should ask,” Parker said.  “During the fight last night, I got a call from The University of Miami.  You all know that I majored in art history, I applied for a teaching position, and I got good news yesterday.  I start teaching art history there, next semester.”

“That’s wonderful,” everyone yelled at once, and Jim jumped up, and kissed him.

“Wait,” Parker said, “there’s more.”

Everyone looked at him expectantly.  Parker was just grinning, so Jim yelled at him to start talking.

“Well,” Parker said, “I applied for two jobs.  I needed to get my mind off worrying about Jim getting mauled.  Armed with my master’s degree in art history, I applied for a job as assistant curator at The Perez Museum.”

“And?” Jim asked.  “Which one are you taking?”

“Both of them.  The teaching job is less than twenty hours a week, and the curator’s job can be handled in about thirty.  When the museum heard that I I was going to teach art history at the university, they wanted me more than ever, for the prestige factor.  I swore to them that I could handle both jobs.  So, you see, Dad, I’ll be plenty busy while Jim idles his time away in your office.”

“Trust me,” Jim’s father said.  “He’ll be working his ass off.”

Jim became very emotional, and started to cry.  He realized what a great life he had been gifted, and his emotions got the best of him.

“Will you guys excuse me,” he said.  “I need to be alone for a minute.”

Jim’s mother patted his arm, and Jim got up to go to the men’s room.  He went into a stall, and closed the door.

Please, Mr. Jordan, he thought.   Please erase all memory of Joe Lupino from my memory.  He’s dead, and I’d like to put him to rest.  He pops into my head at the oddest times, and it confuses me.  I’d like to be James Lazarus exclusively.”

In an instant, Jim looked around him.  he was totally befuddled.  What the hell was he doing in a rest room stall fully clothed.

I better get back to my family, he thought, before I get committed.

He never thought of Joe or Mr. Jordan again until 62 years later, when the three of them hugged each other in a warm reunion.

End


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Posted: 03/10/2023