It was the first day of high school, and the Riverview High boys' locker room buzzed with the chatter of excited students. The locker room was newly remodeled with blue and silver lockers lining the walls and with shoulder high aisles in the middle. There was a large, white, tiled shower area with no doors off to the side and a door to the coaches office in the corner. Everything shined with newness and cleanliness. The school wasn't brand new, although from the state of the locker room, you might be mistaken. It had been renovated over the summer, and the old gym and locker rooms had been demolished and a new one built in its place. The boys were all talking amongst themselves and were picking out their lockers next to their friends and starting their new school year off by showing off for each other and seeing what the other had done during the summer. The talk was about girls, of course, and sports, but it was also about their families and all the drama they had experienced during the summer vacation.
Sam nervously walked in, clutching the strap to his gym bag tightly. His stomach twisted with anxiety as he glanced around at the groups of boys some still fully dressed others shirtless still others just in boxers or briefs and how they had already picked their spots and were all settled in. Sam's family had just moved into town, and this was his first day at his new school. He was hoping he could make a friend or two to help him get to know the layout of the large school and some people, but he was too nervous about his secret to think about that for the time being. He had always dreaded gym class. It wasn't the physical activity that bothered him—it was the changing in front of everyone in the locker room he disliked. He had always been able to sneak off to the bathroom and hide in a stall to change but the bathroom was located past the shower area and it would be too suspicious for him to walk over every day with his gym clothes. He was so self-conscious and scared of what might happen if his secret were to be discovered. What if one of the other guys saw it? That was his worst nightmare, and he did not want that to happen today or ever.
Sam was very shy, and it was hard enough just trying to make friends, so he didn't need to give the jocks in the locker room a reason to think he was some sort of freak too. Sam looked around for an empty spot and spotted one a little ways down from the other guys. It was a corner locker at the end of one of the wall aisles. There was a gap between the wall of lockers and the back white painted brick wall. It was just enough space for him to have a small amount of privacy as he changed. He placed his gym bag on the bench in front of him and unzipped it, pulling out his gym clothes, hoping no one would pay him any attention. Sam glanced around and saw that everyone else was in some sort of mid dress and were busy putting their stuff away. He felt his face go hot and red as he looked down, fumbling to take out his gym clothes, a pair of loose fitting gym shorts and a white t-shirt with "Riverview High Athletics" written in blue, and arrange them in front of him for maximum efficiency when changing. He slowly began to unbutton his shirt, his fingers shaking out of nerves and making it even harder to do. He had practiced getting changed into his gym clothes all summer and had gotten quite fast, but only if he had some amount of privacy, and he hoped that the nook in the corner would be enough. He had never had the guts to change in front of his previous friends at school in gym class afraid of what they might think, and he didn't have a friend here yet so he hoped that no one would notice him and he could quickly finish changing out. He took his favorite brown plaid button-down shirt off and hung it on a hook in the locker, revealing his white tank top undershirt and pale white skin.
Sam's medium brown hair was combed perfectly with a middle part. His wire framed glasses hid his green eyes, and his lips were pink and thin. He had a slightly rounded face and an average build. His stomach was flat and smooth. His pecs were well defined, but not big or bulky, and his biceps had some muscle, but not much. His arms were thin but not skinny, and his legs were toned with some muscle but not bulging. Sam had a nice body and was very cute. If he had been more confident and outgoing, he would have had many girls flocking around him, but unfortunately, his secret made him too nervous to try dating. He put on his brand new white Riverview High gym shirt, and the only thing left was to change out of his black jeans into blue gym shorts.
"Hey! You must be new here!" a friendly voice suddenly said behind him.
Sam jumped, startled, and spun around, coming face to face with the cutest guy he had ever seen. He was slightly taller than Sam with neatly styled short black hair. His brown eyes were sparkling with a warm, friendly gaze. His lips were pink and full, and he had the whitest teeth. Sam noticed how white his smile was next to his tanned olive skin and faint stubble. He was wearing a casual maroon hoodie over a tight black tank top that accentuated his well-defined chest muscles and showed off some faint chest hair and black cargo shorts. His arms and legs were more toned and muscular than his own, like he worked out regularly but not as large as some of the other guys around them.
"Do you mind if I take the locker next to yours? I prefer a bit of privacy when changing. My name's Alex, by the way.”
"Uhhh... sure, go ahead." Sam replied nervously, reluctant to give up any of the privacy the back corner nook provided.
"Thanks, man."
Alex opened his locker and started unpacking his gym clothes. While Alex was distracted, Sam knew it was now or never he quickly undid his belt and started to undo his pants while working his way over to the nook, his hands trembling.
"So, where'd you move from?" Alex asked in a genuinely friendly voice.
But still that made Sam jump, not prepared for the question as his pants slipped down a few inches. He tried to pull them back up enough to feel like he was the one in control.
"Um...uh, a few towns over." Sam stammered as he tried desperately to feel back in control.
When a large blonde muscled guy, who could give Gaston from Beauty and the Beast a run for his money, wearing a blue and white letterman jacket over his slightly too tight fitting gym uniform approached. He had a short, sporty hairstyle longer on top and buzzed on the sides with a neatly trimmed mustache above his upper lip.
"Alex, man, why are you talking to that loser?" The large guy glanced over to signal to Sam when the guy noticed Sam's secret.
"What the fuck?!" the guy yelled. "The new kid is wearing a fucking diaper!"
"No, I'm not!" Sam replied quickly as he pulled his pants up higher to hide his diaper but it was too little too late, the whole locker room was now staring at him. Everyone had gotten a glimpse of Sam's cartoon print diaper.
"Oh my God!" one of the guys laughed.
"He's wearing diapers!"
"What a loser!"
The jeers and laughter were getting louder and louder in Sam's ears. His face went bright red, as he had tried to cover his secret, but it was no use. He was caught. He looked down ashamed, and tears started to fill his eyes. He was so embarrassed he wanted to just disappear.
"Awwww, is someone gonna cry? Does someone want a warm bottle of milk?" The large guy mocked miming giving a bottle to a baby in his arms.
The guys surrounding the abnormally large guy all started laughing and pointing at Sam mocking and miming their own insults, but Alex stepped between them, and Sam who was now sitting on the bench in front of his locker fully crying, his eyes filled with anger.
"Shut the fuck up, Jake! Why do you and your cronies have to be such an ass to everyone? Just leave him alone. He's obviously already embarrassed enough as it is." Alex said, defending Sam.
Jake sneered. "What are you defending him for? He's a total freak. Just look at him. I bet his mommy still wipes his ass for him."
Sam looked up surprised through the tears in his eyes at Alex's kindness. Alex had his back to him and was standing up to Jake, and Sam thought of how cool and kind he was. He had stood up for a complete stranger, and he wasn't backing down to Jake's bullying.
"Fuck off, Jake, just because your dad is a big shot used car dealer and helped pay for the locker room and gym renovations doesn't mean you can treat the rest of us like shit. Now leave him alone." Alex snapped.
Jake took a step back, surprised by Alex's response, they had been friendly over the summer during football camp and he thought he could make Alex less of a sissy by having him join his friend group. But then he smiled a wicked smile. "Oh, yeah, maybe your dad could have a little talk with the principal about this kid. I mean, come on, no one wants to get stuck in the locker room with some cartoon diaper wearing pervert."
Jake and the rest of the guys all agreed. Alex turned and looked sympathetically at Sam. He had a nervous yet somehow fully confident look in his eyes as he looked over at Sam and said.
"Don't worry about them. They're just a bunch of morons. My dad doesn't care about a few wet diapers."
Sam's face was red as a beet, and warm tears started running down his cheeks, his glasses askew on his face. His heart warmed knowing there was at least one person at this school who didn't seem to care about his diapers.
"And you want to know why Jake?” Alex said with a confident smirk as he stepped up onto one of the benches as he unbuttoned and unzipped his cargo shorts in front of everyone in the locker room. He wasn’t sure he wanted to do this; he was quite confident about needing to wear what he was about to show everyone at home but he wasn’t sure how everyone at school would react if he would also be made fun of and bullied. No he didn’t think so he was quite popular and well liked by pretty much everyone except for Jake. If anyone would bully him he knew it would be Jake he cares so much about appearances and what everyone else thinks. There was no going back after his reveal but it would be worth it if Jake stopped bullying the new kid who reminded him of himself when he was younger. Then pulled down his shorts down to his ankles to reveal a white medical looking diaper, with a thin blue stripes design with two yellow stripes down the middle of the blue with M4 breaking up the stripes in regular intervals. "I also wear diapers and I'm on the Varsity football team same as you. So, fuck off."
Everyone was shocked. No one could believe their eyes. Alex stood there for a good while making sure every single person saw his diaper. Alex was freaking out internally nervous of what people might say or do but he made sure not to show it externally. From the outside Alex looked as confident as if he was showing off having a huge member. Jake stood there, his mouth hanging open, his eyes wide with surprise. Alex had just one upped him while showing off his diaper in front of everyone, no one had ever done anything like that and it made him absolutely furious. How could he show off such an embarrassing secret and yet be so confident that no one else would make fun of him. It had to be his dad's influence. Jake turned and walked away in a huff with his goons following close behind.
Sam wiped his tears and smiled at Alex as he pulled his shorts back up and stepped back down from the bench and sat next to him.
"Thanks. You didn't have to do that." Sam said his voice was small from all the embarrassment.
"Hey, don't sweat it. Those guys are total jerks, and you should just ignore them. That's the reason I wanted a locker in the back corner so Jake hopefully wouldn't have seen them. But it is what it is now." Alex said with a smile his heart racing from what he had just done.
Sam took off his glasses and wiped the tears from his eyes and nodded.
"What's your name anyway?" Alex asked.
"Sam. Sam Reed."
"Well, Sam, do you wanna meet after class and I can give you a tour of the campus?"
"Sure I would love that." Sam said smiling for the first time since arriving at Riverview High.
***
A few days later most of the guys from the locker room had stopped talking about the diaper incident and had gone back to focusing on their usual conversations except for Jake and his group of friends. Jake knew he couldn't bully Alex since they were both on the football team and the coach wouldn't allow it but Sam was still fair game. He was new, and he was shy and didn't have any friends other than maybe Alex and no one else would stick up for him. So Jake had taken it upon himself to make sure Sam was treated just like the loser he was. this is reading a lot smoother, and I think it's because we're already settled into the scene and the location of the school and whatnot. Nice!
Sam walked down the empty halls, his footsteps echoing off the linoleum floor and metal school lockers over to the school library to sign up for the school's chess club before school. He wasn't really the sporty type even if the diaper situation could be solved, so when Alex had been listing off after school programs during their private after school tour of the school he was pleasantly surprised to hear Riverview High had a chess club. Since it seemed the school only cared about their football team and other sports programs. With the full locker room and gym renovations. Sam was very excited about potentiality being one of the new members and was wondering if he would be able beat any of the other members since Sam was self taught though he thought he did pretty well when playing online.
Sam was just finishing up his first week at school and had only just begun to get his bearings, but he still made the occasional wrong turn from time to time. When Sam saw Jake at his school locker down the hall from him with some of his goons he knew he had made one wrong turn and tried to turn around to avoid them. Jake was the last person he wanted to run into especially since he was alone and not in the mood for confrontation.
Unfortunately Jake had closed his locker shut at just the right moment and spotted Sam.
"Hey, Pampers, where ya going? Are you too good to talk to us now? You think your buddy Alex is gonna come and save you?" Jake yelled loud enough for Sam to hear from the other side of the hall and his buddies laughed.
Sam's heart started racing, and he felt his hands start to tremble. He couldn't believe this was happening to him. He just wanted to melt into the floor and sink into the ground. He couldn't stand it. He grasped the strap to his messenger bag tightly hoping a teacher or anyone would show up to break up the situation he knew was going to come. He tried to turn around and run but his body was paralyzed. He tried as hard as he could to get his feet to move but they wouldn't. It was as if feet were glued to the floor.
"What's the matter, Pampers, is baby gonna cry? Did baby pee his diaper out of fear from seeing little ol' me." Jake said, his voice filled with mocking laughter. His goons egged him on with their own sly remarks.
"Leave me alone," Sam squeaked out in the bravest voice he could muster.
"Or what, are you gonna tattle on us to your daddy Alex?" Jake joked as we walked over closer to Sam who was paralyzed and couldn't find the strength to walk away from this. "Maybe he can change your little cartoon printed diaper and rub your tiny little dick in baby powder. I bet Pampers here can't even get fully hard yet little lone shoot thick ropes like me he's such a baby."
"I'll tell Coach Turner on you. I bet he'll have a thing or two to say about the way you have been treating me lately." Sam was able to spill out with only slightly more conviction than his previous reply.
Jake only laughed at Sam's statement. "Who is he going to believe me the Varsity Quarterback or a little diaper wearing loser like you?" Jake was having way too much fun tormenting Sam and had no intention of stopping anytime soon. He didn't even notice when another set of footsteps made their way over to them.
"Just leave him alone, you asshole," replied a familiar voice from down the hall. Sam was relieved. It was Alex, his new friend, coming to his rescue. Alex jogged over to Sam's side, his heavy footsteps the only sound that could be heard in the hall.
Jake rolled his eyes. "Here comes your knight in shining diaper to save you once again."
Alex jogged up and pushed Jake. "I said fuck off."
"Make me, diaper boy, at least you have the decency to wear plain medical diapers unlike Pampers over here. Couldn't he at least be normal about it and not wear toddler cartoon diapers like you." Jake sneered.
Sam felt his face turn red. "I'm sorry, Alex. I didn't want to cause any trouble."
Alex smiled. "Don't sweat it, Sam. Jake's just being an asshole."
"You better watch your mouth, Alex. I've got a lot more pull than you and your Pampers wearing friend. I can make things very hard on you." Jake spat his voice high and mighty, his goons chuckling at the sight of Alex acting tough for his little boy.
Sam's legs were shaking fearful of what might happen next he fell to the ground crying. He felt physically sick and tired of all of this. It had only been a week and he did know if couldn't take it anymore because of the bullying. This was the reason he didn't want to take a gym class but his high school guidance counselor said he needed one more gym credit to be able to graduate. Sam had asked if there was any way we could maybe take the gym credit online or take a different class that would count instead but there wasn't. Jake's friends laughed and made fun of Sam's crying as he sat huddled up in a ball in the middle of the hall. He hadn't cried this much since he had been diagnosed with a small weak bladder and was told he would have to wear diapers for the rest of his life since a surgical remedy would be to risky for him as he has hemophilia and surgery could cause serious complications and other non surgical treatments had little to no effect on him.
"See, I told you, you were a pussy. Now run home to your mommy and daddy before you make a mess in your diaper." Jake teased as he got ready to kick Sam's side.
Alex glared at Jake. He was mad now teasing and bullying was one thing but physical violence towards his new friend was quite another and at this point he didn't care who was watching or what consequences would follow. He balled his fist and swung, hitting Jake right in the ribs before Jake's foot could make contact. Jake stumbled backwards from the shock and loss of balance. The hit wasn't as hard as Alex could punch since he knew deep down he didn't want to get in a full on fight but it was just hard enough to show Alex he meant business and he was ready for more if that's what needed to happen.
"You're gonna regret that." Jake said as he regained his balance his eyes were full of hate toward Alex. His goons were nothing but show pieces to make Jake look tough since they had run off afraid of what else Alex might do. Jake and Alex locked eyes, each one trying to stare the other down and show no sign of weakness. After what seemed like an eternity to Alex Jake finally spoke up.
"We'll settle this later." he said before turning and walking away.
Alex reached out his hand and helped Sam up. Sam's eyes were red from crying, his face flush accentuating the sprinkling of freckles on his nose and cheeks. Sam took a hold of Alex's hand which was much softer then he was expecting a jock like him to have. It was this sort juxtaposition that intrigued Sam. Alex was quite popular and respected yet he wore diapers, something he was bullied over. He was a jock on the football team yet he was one of the kindest people he had met. He was strong and willing to get in a fight to protect him yet he was one of nicest guys he had ever met.
"Thanks, Alex." Sam said, rose to his feet blushing as he wiped the tears from his eyes.
"I hate those guys," Alex said. "They think they run the place because their parents are big donors to the football team, and the teachers let them get away with whatever they want. It's so not fair." Alex sighed as he let go of Sam's hand.
Sam knew his diapers might have been an issue with some of his classmates if they found out about them but he never thought he would be bullied this much over them. He had never been confident enough to show them to anyone even while at home with his parents. His parents said they were fine with him showing them off while at home so he could build some confidence but he was too ashamed having to wear the cartoon ones. He tried every plain medical adult diaper he could find in stores but they were all slightly too big for his frame and would leak or they were the type that were meant for occasional drips throughout the day and not his larger bladder releases. His parents had found an online brand that ran slightly smaller but they were made for the adult diaper lover community so they had popular children's cartoon characters on them. He was so embarrassed the first time he tried them on but they truly were the only ones that fit him properly.
"I know I'm sorry. I should have been more careful about the kind of diapers I wore but they are truly the only ones that fit. I tried all the medical ones from the store but they are all too big. My parents found this brand and I hesitated trying them for so long the bag of diapers and the characters on them stared at me mocking me for needing these ones. But I ultimately tried them on after I ran out of every other brand and they fit me perfectly." Sam admitted as he sniffled and wiped the tears from his eyes.
Alex patted him on the shoulder. "Hey, don't sweat it Sam there’s no need to feel ashamed about the diapers you wear, they are just a tool to help you get through the day no matter what they look like. Plus Jake and his friends they're all assholes, and jealous of us because we're cooler than them." Alex said playfully as Sam looked up unconvinced.
"We don't have to pause the movie we are watching or video games we are playing to go pee. We can just continue sitting there on the couch and let our streams out no problem."
Sam chuckled a little and smiled. "Thanks, Alex, for being there for me."
Alex smiled back. "No problem, bro."
Sam couldn't believe how lucky he was. Alex had stood up for him when no one else would and had even risked getting in trouble for him; he was in many ways the perfect friend.
"What were you doing here before school anyways I know you aren't on the football team like me and Jake who had a team meeting this morning and I'm pretty sure you don't have any tutoring?" Alex genuinely wanted to know the answer.
"I was just going to sign up for the Chess Club at the library but I must have made a wrong turn somewhere and ended up here."
Alex laughed. "I'll help you find your way. Just remember if you ever need me, I'll always be here for you."
Alex led Sam down the hallway with blue and white lockers. The halls were decorated in school posters advertising various clubs and after school activities. The other side of the hall had large windows looking outside to a large courtyard with several metal and plastic picnic style tables scattered around the perimeter for students to eat their lunch at or hang out at before classes in the center there was a grassy area with a few large old trees providing shade to a few students sitting and laying on the grass with cups of coffee from a local coffee shop happily chatting away and trying to finish any last minute homework before school not knowing what had just happened moments before inside. After some more walking and a few turns Alex pointed out funny landmarks such as a teacher’s bulletin board decorated with cartoon ducks in space showing off mathematical equations written on bread shaped like rocket ships they made it to the library.
The library was in the center of the main school building and had large windows looking in. The library was sunken in and had stairs and an accessibility ramp down it. Alex held the large glass door open for Sam. The library had a few rows of bookshelves all around its perimeter walls and had a study area with a few students on one side and a small collection of ancient looking computers on the other side of the center area in between the bookshelves. Sam spotted the large check out desk where a young black girl with her hair in two black poofs and a vintage style dress sat in front of the computer checking books back in.
"Um hi. I was told this is where I should come to sign in for the Chess Club." Sam said his voice was much more confident than Alex had ever heard.
"Oh hi yes you are just in time today is the last day to sign up." The girl said as she handed Sam a few papers to sign.
Alex was glad to see Sam and the girl chatting about something that made Sam genuinely happy. He had never seen him so happy and carefree since he walked up to him on the first day back. He could now notice how tall he actually was, not crouching in fear and how bright his green eyes could shine like newly polished emeralds. He could feel his face start to warm up and a smile from across his face watching Sam as he signed his papers as he leaned against a bookshelf.
Once Sam finished he walked over to Alex excited. "Tryouts are today after school. I hope I'm good enough to join." Sam said excited but with a touch of uncertainty.
"I'm sure you'll do great. I'll be here after practice to see you kick butt I promise." Alex said playfully pretending to repeatedly punch Sam in the stomach. Then they walked together over to the gym building to get to their shared first period class.
They walked into the locker room together talking to one another. Jake's eyes followed them; he was still pissed off that Alex had punched him. He knew if he was going to keep bullying Sam, he couldn't keep picking fights in the hallway, but he wasn't going to give up on tormenting him. He was having way too much fun and wasn't about to stop.
"Did you get a chance to watch some cartoons before gym class? Is Dora the Explorer your favorite or did you go with SpongeBob SquarePants? Maybe the cartoon characters on today's diaper will help us figure it out." Jake teased loud enough for Alex and Sam to hear from the other side of the locker room but not so loud Coach Turner would be able to hear from his office.
"Leave him alone, Jake. Your jokes are starting to get old. Plus you and everyone else here know I also wear diapers so why do you only pick on Sam" Alex snapped he felt like he needed to protect Sam but wasn't completely sure why. Sam had been standing at his locker. He had just removed his shirt and had dropped his head down at the comment trying to ignore Jake like Alex had told him but his face was turning bright red.
Jake laughed. "Yeah, yours are boring white, not all colorful and cartoonish like his. I mean come on, what is he, three?"
Sam's face turned a deeper shade of red, and he tried to walk away to get away from the situation. He grabbed his gym clothes as stated heading for the bathroom to change in peace but Jake was quick and put his arm around his neck in a headlock.
"Where do you think you're going? I was just about to offer you some help changing into your gym clothes." Jake said sarcastically.
Sam froze, terrified of what Jake would do next. His body was trembling, and he felt like he might throw up. Jake released his head lock and grabbed Sam's pants and pulled them down exposing his diaper with the popular cartoon character Bluey on the front posed in a carefree pose the exact opposite of how Sam felt. Sam stood IN the middle of the locker in basically nothing but his diaper. He was absolutely humiliated, his eyes started watering and his heart pounded in his chest. He wished he could just disappear and never reappear. It was one thing for Jake to notice his diaper and tell everyone but exposing him to everyone was quite another.
"What the fuck?" Jake said. "You have Bluey on your diaper? Do you seriously wear these things?"
"Stop it!" Alex shouted as he grabbed Jake and slammed him against a row of lockers.
"Oh, come on, Alex, don't tell me you're not curious what character was on his diaper." Jake said unfazed by Alex's action. He knew if push came to shove he was stronger and bigger then Alex and could easily beat him in a fight. No diaper wearing sissy could defeat him. "Since you wear plain white ones you probably didn't even know that they make adult sized diapers with characters on them." Jake teased.
Alex had had enough and he punched Jake in the side as hard as he could. As Sam pulled his pants back up to cover himself.
"Fuck, Alex, what was that for?" Jake said, surprised by the strength of the punch.
"For being a jerk. Why are you so fucking obsessed with his diapers?"
"Because they're fucking ridiculous. I mean, who wears cartoon diapers? If he's going to wear diapers he should wear white ones like you instead of the colorful ones."
"They were the only ones that fit me comfortably." Sam interjected with his voice slightly less scared than usual.
Jake shook his head. "You probably just couldn't resist showing off your cute cartoon butt to the rest of us like the perv you probably are.
Alex couldn't handle this situation anymore and was about to punch Jake in the face, but Sam grabbed his hand and stopped him.
"Like you said, it 's not worth it, Alex. He's just going to keep going." Sam said.
The other guys in the locker room looked stunned at each other not knowing what to say or do. Everyone was waiting to see what would happen next. No one had ever seen anyone stand up to Jake like this before, especially over something so mundane as underwear before. They all respected Alex and would have his back usually but this subject matter was completely different for them.
Unbeknownst to everyone Coach Turner had just walked into the locker with a mesh bag filled with Basketballs and was standing near the door watching what was going on trying to figure out if it was going to be needed to break up a fight.
"Come on, Alex, let's just go change into your gym clothes in the bathroom to get so much peace." Sam said softly trying to calm Alex down.
Alex nodded and started to follow Sam, but Jake grabbed Sam's shoulder holding him back
"Oh no, we're not done yet." Jake said with a mischievous grin.
"Get your hands off him!" Alex snapped, trying to pull Jake's arm away.
"What's going on here?" the Coach demanded as he sped over dropping the bag.
Jake quickly stepped back and put his hands up. "Nothing, coach. Just giving the new kid a hard time."
The coach eyed him suspiciously not trusting a single word from his mouth. "Well, stop it. We don't have time for your shenanigans, Jake. We have a football game next week and I need you to stay focused. Now get dressed, or you'll be running laps the entire class period." Couch barked
"Yes, Coach," Jake said and quickly tucked his tail between his legs as he ran off to his locker to finish getting dressed.
"You too, Alex," Coach said authoritatively but noticeably more kindly, "And keep an eye on Jake for me."
"Yes, dad." Alex said.
Sam's eyes went wide, and he blushed. Alex didn't tell him his dad was the coach, but he did mention his dad coached a football team.
"Dad?" Sam whispered.
Alex smiled. "Yep, that's my dad, but it's okay. I know he won't give you a hard time about your diapers. He knows I wear them too, and he doesn't care my family is real chill about them, actually."
Sam wasn't sure if Alex was being honest or not, but he was going to take him at his word for the moment. He didn't want to risk being embarrassed any further, especially in front of the coach, and especially since the coach was his father.
Sam followed Alex over to a bank of lockers in the corner. Alex opened his locker, which was next to Sam's, and started changing.
"So, your dad's the coach? I should have known. That's why everyone likes you."
Alex shook his head. "Not really. Most of the guys like me because they know I can kick ass on and off the field if I need to."
Across the locker room, Jake stood in front of his locker, seeing Sam and Alex laughing and messing around with each other as they changed into their gym clothes. The two of them were acting like the best of friends, and he was getting angry. Why would anyone stand up to a guy who wore blue diapers like some sort of pervert. His father had taught him that real men act tough and break any rule they need to get on top, and Jake felt like he was no longer the one on top everyone respected or feared. He needs to get them back for making him feel like shit in front of his dad.
"I fucking hate those two." Jake muttered to his friends. "They're sticking their noses where they don't belong and trying to act all high and mighty. It's pissing me off."
His friends nodded. "We can't let them get away with this, Jake. They're challenging your authority. You're the quarterback and should be treated like the king of the school."
"I think I have an idea that might get back to both of them. Everyone knows Coach Turner is quite conservative so why don't I start a little online rumor." Jake said smiling.
***
Later that afternoon at the chess club, Sam was in his first tournament against another boy named Rory who was in the top tier of the school's chess club. Rory was a short guy with bright red hair styled in a shaggy yet presentable style.
Freckles sprinkled lightly over his face and arms contrasting with his pale skin. He wore a brightly colored graphic t-shirt of the latest superhero tv show and loose-fitting blue jeans. He sat across from Sam on the table with a serious expression on his face, the exact opposite of this fun, colorful outfit, studying the chess board.
Sam studied the board intently, trying to figure out what Rory was going to do next. He didn't want to lose his try out game, but he was also not expecting Rory to be such a skilled player. Sam took his time, weighing his options carefully. Even though he didn't need to win the match and just needed to show off his abilities, he wanted to win this match. He moved his Knight into a strategic position confident in his move. Rory nodded and moved his pawn. Sam was surprised and made his next move, but Rory had anticipated his move and quickly countered, capturing his Rook.
"Damn." Sam said.
"Sorry," Rory replied, "But it was the only move I could make. Check!" He smiled. Although this was just tryouts, Rory was playing as if he was competing for the title of Grandmaster.
Alex quietly walked into the library and stood leaning against a nearby bookshelf as he watched Sam play. Although Alex didn't even know the names of the chess pieces, he could tell the game was intense.
There were several other tables of chess club members playing much more calm and casual games amongst themselves. It was nice for Sam to feel normal. For once, he wasn't the odd one out and was actually fitting in with the others, and no one at the chess club knew or needed to know about his secret. He was just Sam Reed, soon to be a new member of the chess club.
Sam and Rory continued their game, each moving and countering each other's moves until Sam moved his bishop and checkmated Rory's king.
"Good game, lad." Rory said, noticeably relaxing and grinning a big goofy smile.
"Thanks." Sam said, smiling, finally noticing Alex leaning against the shelf he looked freshly to shower, his black hair still slightly damp and wearing a new change of clothes.
"Hey, Alex." Sam said, excited.
Alex smiled. "Hey. Sorry, I didn't want to interrupt. It looked like you were in the middle of an intense match."
"It's alright, that was Rory. He's the captain of the chess club and wanted to test my skills before letting me join the team. I didn't know he was such a tough player."
"Looks like you gave him a run for his money." Alex said.
"I almost lost. I made a rookie mistake with my knight and thought I had him when I took his bishop, but he quickly countered and took my queen. Luckily, I was able to recover and win." Sam said in an excited nerdy way that Alex found adorable.
"Nice," Alex replied, "I wish I knew how to play chess. I only know how to play..." Alex was interrupted by his phone, and it started pinging like crazy. He took his phone out and saw a bunch of messages from his teammates and friends. He opened one of them from his brother and read it.
"Oh my God..." Alex gasped in a whisper, not believing what he was looking at.
"What's wrong?" Sam asked, worried.
Alex turned his phone and showed him the screen. There was a log of text messages, but the most recent one was the one that made Sam go as pale as Rory. "Hey, Alex. I heard a rumor from a few of my friends that you were caught kissing the new kid in the locker room. Is that true? I don't care if you're gay or bi or whatever bro I hope you know that."
"But that's not true." Sam protested, his voice shaking.
"I know," Alex said, "But you and I both know that doesn't matter. If my own brother seems to believe it, then anyone else will also."
Sam's eyes welled up with tears. He didn't know what to do or say, and he ran out of the library.
"Wait, Sam, don't go." Alex cried after him. Everyone looked up from their own chess matches, wanting to see what the all commotion was. Alex tried to run after him, but Sam was difficult to spot through the bookshelves, and the library's sunken floor plan made it nearly impossible to know which direction he had gone through the large windows. Alex felt his own tears starting to flow. He wasn't sure what he could do to make Sam feel better, but he knew he had to find him and do something.
Sam ran out of the library and down the hallways, not paying any attention to where he was going. All he knew was he couldn't be around Alex for this. He could not believe someone would do this, and he had no idea who had started the rumor and spread it like wildfire. Sam and Alex had become fast friends after Alex had stood up to Jake on the first day of school. Sam had known he was gay since as far back as he could remember and had developed a crush on Alex but would never have the courage to tell him, and now he felt like this would ruin their friendship. Alex was the only one who had defined him against Jake; he was the only one who was willing to risk being bullied by showing off his diaper to the rest of his class. He was the only one who knew what needing to wear diapers during your senior year in high school was like. Sam's heart ached; he knew he liked Alex from the moment he stood up to Jake for him, but Alex was straight so he would never feel the same way. He had seen the pictures Alex had pinned up in his locker and overheard him talking with others in the locker room about girls. He was stupid for having these feelings, and now everyone would know. After several minutes of aimlessly walking down the hall after storming out of the library, Sam wiped the tears from his face and slowly walked outside. He sat on a bench in the courtyard that earlier in the morning, he had seen others be so happy in and cried softly, wishing this day had never happened.
Alex searched the halls for Sam but couldn't find him. He wasn't sure where he could have gone, but he knew he had to find him and comfort him. This wasn't the first time he had been bullied, and he knew it wouldn't be last. He ran up and down the halls, trying to find him. He was about to give up and just go home and let Sam have the space he needed when he spotted Sam sitting on a bench in the courtyard through one of the large windows in the hall.
Sam wasn't sure how long he had been sitting there alone and crying when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He jumped and looked up.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I just wanted to check on you and make sure everything was okay." Alex said care, filling his voice.
Sam looked down, avoiding eye contact. "It's fine, Alex. I'm the one who should be apologizing for getting you in this situation to begin with." He said as he played mindlessly with one of the enamel pins on his messenger bag.
Alex sat down beside him. "You have nothing to be sorry about, Sam. Jake and his posse are most likely the ones to blame. I just don't know why they would do something like this."
"Because I'm different." Sam said, wiping the tears from his face. "They don't like me maybe because I'm a nerd or because I'm shy or even because I'm gay." Sam admitted barely above a whisper. His face felt hot, and he was blushing. He had never admitted he was gay to anyone except his parents and especially not to someone he had feelings for.
Alex wrapped his arm around Sam and pulled him into a hug. "You're not weird or different for being gay. And I'm not going to leave you to deal with Jake alone, no matter what happens."
Sam smiled weakly and leaned into the hug. He had never felt this warm and secure with anyone before, not even his friends from his former school. "Thank you, Alex. For everything. If I ever lost you, I don't know what I would do."
Alex squeezed him tighter. "Don't worry, Sam. We're going to get through this together. Whatever shit Jake throws our way, I promise to be there for you."
"Do you really think he could have started the rumor about us? Do you think he's desperate to get back at us for embarrassing him?" Sam asked, feeling a bit better.
Alex shrugged. "I don't know, but I wouldn't put it past him."
Alex loosened his hug just a bit, but still, he didn't want to let go. He was enjoying being this close to Sam being able to smell the subtle scent of his end of day cologne teakwood and lavender. He didn't fully understand why he had only ever really noticed him now, and not sooner, the faint freckles on his nose. The square shape of glasses the way his heart beat but still there was something deeper about him that made him feel whole, complete. Something he had never experienced before.
Sam was glad he was feeling a little bit better. Alex had done so much for him, and he felt bad for how things had played out. If only he had just decided to be the weirdo who changed in a bathroom stall, then Alex wouldn't have been dragged into this whole situation. He deeply cared for Alex and the thought that his reputation might be at stake because Jake felt emasculated over Alex, not caring about showing off his diaper, killed him.
Alex looked into Sam's eyes and saw there was still pain there and wanted to see his eyes no longer be the dull moss green they currently were. He was racking his brain for some sort of solution to the rumor.
"Maybe we should just pretend it's true." Alex blurted out, not realizing he had actually said his thoughts out loud.
Sam looked up, shocked. Wha, what? What do you mean?"
"Oh, um, well, why don't we just act like the rumors are true and show Jake how little it bothers us? You know, if everyone thinks we're dating anyway, then what would be the problem with it?" Sam stammered out, trying to come up with an explanation for what he had blurted.
Sam felt his face getting hot again. "Um, are you saying you want to pretend to date?"
"I guess, sorta? Like, I'm not gay or anything, and we're not actually dating. But if it gets Jake and his dumb ass posse to leave us alone, maybe it could be worth it?" Alex rambled out as fast as he could to make his previous statement make sense. He could feel his face getting hot and his heart racing. Why did he feel like this he couldn't answer. He wasn't gay, but there was just something about Sam that he just couldn't resist.
Sam was absolutely surprised by the offer. He looked at Alex's brown eyes, trying to find the real reason for his offer. He didn't want to get his heart broken by "dating" a straight guy, but he knew deep down that Alex would never purposely hurt him. So why was he offering? Sam took a few moments to reply his mind, going back and forth whether this was a good idea both for his own heart and Alex's reputation. Sam finally replied, "I guess if you're one hundred percent sure you're okay with that, then I guess it couldn't really hurt."
"Yeah," Alex said. "So, uh, what are we supposed to do now?"
Sam smiled he was still nervous about where this might lead and how he would cope with his feelings toward Alex. "Well, I think the most visually obvious thing to do that Jake and the others will pick up on is hold hands, right? Then, we can just act all couple-y like hold hands and flirt whenever we're together, and maybe eventually, people will just stop caring."
"Yeah, that sounds easy enough." Alex said, feeling relieved. He reached over and took Sam's hand in his gently not wanting to hurt him. He had held plenty of girls' hands before so why was he so nervous about holding Sam's. His hand was baby soft and warm; it was also quite a bit smaller and fragile feeling than his own. "Is this okay?"
"Yeah, this is fine." Sam said, smiling. His face was getting warm, and his heart was racing. He hoped Alex couldn't tell. His hand was as soft as he had remembered from earlier in the day when he helped him get back on his feet. Yet it also felt large and strong. He could feel Alex starting to clam up or was it him? Was his uneasiness manifesting itself he deeply cared for Alex and was so happy to be holding his hand but the fear of potential heartache once they to "break up" still loomed in head.
Alex and Sam continued sitting there on the bench, just holding hands and enjoying the afternoon sun watching the students heading home. Even though Sam knew this was just a ruse and a way to get Jake off their backs, he still couldn't help but enjoy this moment deep down. After a few moments of comfortable silence Alex turned to Sam and asked.
"So are you out to your family? I truly wasn't thinking when I blurted out the pretend dating idea and I want to make sure it doesn't get your family and make this an even bigger issue." Alex felt guilty for offering up the idea without knowing this simple fact first.
"Yeah, I am out to my family. My mom knows I'm gay, and my dad is cool with it. I'm not really out to anyone at school, but I have a feeling they'll figure it out. Especially now." Sam replied with a cheeky smirk.
Alex's phone began to ding again and Sam was suddenly scared to know what other horrible details the rumor mill had added. But instead of shock or fear in Alex's eyes there was a hint of sadness when Alex looked at his phone.
"It's just my alarm to let me know I should be heading home before my Mom gets upset for missing dinner." Alex said letting go of Sam's hand.
"Oh," Sam replied, feeling a bit sad for having lost the physical connection between them, "well, we should probably get going then.
"Yeah, we should. Let's walk out together."
"Okay, sounds good." Sam said and stood up, picking up his messenger bag and putting it back over his shoulder. Alex got up, and they walked side by side back inside and through the halls towards the front of the school. Once at the front gate, they split off, going in opposite directions.
