07-11-2025, 02:04 PM
The Prodigal Son
"Luca, are you finally done with your hair? The meeting is about to start, and the parents want to leave."
"Man, Daniel, I'll be right there. I just can't get my hair right today."
There I was, at 15 years old, standing in the bathroom in front of the mirror, trying to get a grip on my unruly black hair. I actually liked my hair, but today it was driving me to despair again.
"Alright, I'll help you, otherwise the old man will kill you if he has to wait any longer," said my annoying brother Daniel with a grin. Well, he wasn't really that annoying. We were only a year apart, I was 15 and he was 16, and we usually got along great, except for the usual sibling squabbles.
"Oh man Luca, that's way too much gel you've slapped into your hair again," he said and rubbed the gel out of my hair with a towel.
He took the gel tube and put a small dab on his hand.
"Look, that's enough, you don't need more," and in no time, he had styled my hair into a presentable shape.
"Now hurry up, you know how important it is to our old man to be punctual for the meeting."
For explanation, our family belonged to the Jehovah's Witnesses, and our father was an elder, a sort of local leader of the group. There were always several elders per meeting, but their number had to be odd so that a clear result could be achieved in votes, and Dad was basically the chief elder; his voice carried the most weight. Our group had meetings three times a week: on Tuesdays at our house with a smaller group, called the book study, where a current Jehovah's Witness book is studied, and on Fridays and Sundays with the whole group, the meeting where topics from the Bible are presented. And today was another Friday evening, time to go to the Kingdom Hall in town, a kind of church that looks like a regular building.
"We always have to wait for you, Luca. You know I hate being late, so make sure you're ready earlier next time."
"Yes, Dad, I know, but I just couldn't get my hair right today."
"It's always the same with you and your hair. We should just cut it off; you're just too vain. Be a bit more humble, or do you think Jesus stood in front of the mirror for hours before he preached the good news to the people?"
"No, Father, of course not. I'm sorry, I'll be ready earlier next time, I promise."
My stupid brother sat next to me in the car, grinning. I gave him an elbow in the side, which led to a tickling attack from him on me, to which I retaliated, until our mother called us to order.
"Quiet back there, or you'll be assigned to cleaning duty at the Kingdom Hall tomorrow morning."
This mere threat was enough to silence us.
The 2 hours at the meeting dragged on like chewing gum. I could hardly wait for the end to finally chat with my almost same-age friends. We had all practically grown up together, and since our parents forbade us from associating with youths outside the meeting, they were our only friends. There was Finn, my best friend, Max, my brother's best friend, Lea and Rahel, who were best friends with each other, but really we were all one big clique.
"Hey, do you all want to meet at the quarry pond tomorrow afternoon? It's supposed to be really hot."
"Yeah, Lea, that's a great idea. I'll take care of the grill."
"Great, Finn, then Daniel and I will get the meat."
"And we girls will make the salads. After all, we don't want to interfere with the gentlemen's hunt," Rahel said, laughing.
"Exactly, meat and fire making is men's business, Rahel."
"Really, Finn, how silly that instead of men we only have you guys with us."
Rahel's last statement sparked discussions and general laughter until my mother once again called us to order.
"Behave yourselves, we are in the house of the Lord."
Yes, my mother is a real killjoy, but she always has been.
"Alright, then it's settled. We'll meet at 3 PM at the quarry pond tomorrow. Are you all coming to the preaching service meeting point at 9 AM tomorrow?"
"Don't remind me, Lea, you nerd. You know Daniel and I have no choice but to go since Dad is leading the meeting point."
"Oh Luca, don't always make such a fuss, preaching service can be fun too."
"Yeah, only when it's over, Lea."
For explanation, the preaching service was a must for every Jehovah's Witness, as the Bible says that the so-called good news must be preached to people, which means going door to door, ringing bells, and trying to bring the Bible closer to people and convert them.
The next morning, I dragged myself out of bed at 7:30 AM on a Saturday because, like every Saturday, the meeting point for the preaching service was at 9 AM. I dragged myself into the shower and quickly completed my morning routine, knowing that, as always, I was expected at breakfast at exactly 8 AM. Fortunately, my brother was an early riser and was already ready, so I had the bathroom we shared to myself. Thank God I managed to do my hair relatively quickly today, so I appeared somewhat punctually at the breakfast table.
“Wow, on time today. Who are you and what have you done with my brother?”
“Shut up, Daniel, not everyone can be a nerd like you.”
“That's enough now, it's time for the daily text. Daniel, would you please read it?”
The daily text is a kind of calendar where a Bible text is provided for each day and subsequently explained. In our family, it was a fixed ritual to start each day with a Bible text.
At exactly 8:45 AM, we were at the Kingdom Hall, and my parents greeted the participants of the meeting point. Here too, the daily text was first discussed together at exactly 9 AM, and then my father gave the participants useful tips for the preaching service. I hated having to go to the preaching service and always felt like I was bothering or annoying people when I rang their doorbell to talk to them about the Bible. Additionally, I was always afraid of encountering schoolmates at the doors. I was already the outsider in my class because I wasn't allowed to socialize with my schoolmates privately since, according to my father, they were a bad influence on me, and the same applied to Daniel, of course. What I hated most was having to go to the preaching service with my father, as he always had something to criticize about me and my conversation skills. My father, of course, once again made the pairings for the preaching service, and in the end, what a big surprise, only he and I were left, so I once again had the pleasure of going with my old man. Every preacher, as they are called, had a fixed area with streets to work on, including me. And since my father wanted to improve my preaching technique again, we went to my area. As always, when I was with my father in the preaching service, I hoped at every door that no one would answer, but unfortunately, many were home that day. I recited my well-rehearsed conversation introductions at each door and luckily always quickly heard "Not interested" from the people. My father was, of course, eager to improve me and give me good advice. So, the 2 hours of the preaching service dragged on endlessly once again. As time was already far advanced, we decided to tackle just one last door. I rang the bell, as always hoping no one would answer, but it turned out differently. A blond boy my age opened the door, and I sighed inwardly; I hated having to witness to teenagers my age, especially if they were from my school, but fortunately, I didn't know this boy. I recited my usual text:
“Good day, my name is Hellmann, this is my father, and we are at your door today to talk to you about whether the Bible is still relevant in our time and can help us with our daily problems.” I firmly expected a "Not interested," but the boy grinned at me and said:
“No idea, to be honest, I have no clue what's in the Bible. My parents are atheists and aren't interested, but I would be interested in what's in the Bible.”
I was totally baffled by his reaction and was momentarily frozen, but my father helped me out of the predicament once again.
“We also offer free home Bible studies. If you're interested in the Bible, I would be very happy to teach you the Bible, young man.”
“Please don't be offended, but I would prefer to do it with someone my age because I'm a bit shy.”
“Okay, no problem, then my son will teach you the Bible.”
“Okay, if you're really interested, then we can set up an appointment, and I'll come to your house. By the way, I'm Luca.”
I shook his hand.
“Jonas, nice to meet you.”
I liked him from the first moment, and so we exchanged phone numbers to arrange an appointment in the coming days. My father was, of course, very proud of me; his shy son finally had his first home Bible study. I was confused; I had never gotten this far at the door before, and then with someone my age. I was nervous thinking about our first appointment.
In the afternoon, Daniel and I hurried to pack the grill meat and sausages into our backpacks and hop on our bikes heading toward the quarry pond. It was a hot summer day, and the lake was less than 5 kilometers from our house, so we managed to arrive somewhat punctually at the agreed meeting point.
“Luca, Daniel, there you are finally, the grill is already set up, only the coal isn't ready yet,” Finn came to meet us.
“No stress, we'll do it together then, are the others already there?”
"Yes, you are the last ones, now we are complete."
The others were already sitting at our usual spot by the lake, the girls were chatting while the boys tried to get the grill going.
"Guess who managed to set up his first home Bible study today," Daniel blurted out.
"Wow, I'm impressed, Luca, I wouldn't have thought that a preaching service grump like you would get a home Bible study," teased Rahel.
"See, even a blind hen finds a grain sometimes," Finn said laughing.
"Oh, shut up, you're just jealous because I'm such a preaching ace."
This statement caused general laughter, and then I had to tell my friends in detail how exactly I had managed it. After we finally got the grill going, we placed our collected barbecue food on it, spread out the picnic blankets, made ourselves comfortable, and enjoyed the beautiful summer day by the lake. When we were done eating, we all lay in the sun, chatted, or dozed a little. After a short time, my brother got bored and decided, since he was a good swimmer, to swim over to the small island in the middle of the lake.
"I'm swimming over to the island, need to burn off some energy."
"I'm coming with you, wait for me," Max said.
The rest of us didn't feel like joining and decided to chill a bit more, so Max and Daniel set off alone. As the four of us lay in the sun, I suddenly noticed how my annoying classmate Leon with his dumb friends Sven and Tim approached us.
"Oh no, Finn, Rahel, Lea, look, there comes Leon with his dumb friends, now there's probably going to be trouble again."
"What do I see there, the Jehovahs in swimwear by the lake, are you even allowed to do that, are you done with your missionary work for today," Leon taunted.
"Oh Leon, you blockhead, shut your mouth and leave us in peace," I replied.
"For a prayer sister, you sure have a big mouth."
"Guys, we don't want any trouble, can't you just leave us alone," Finn said.
"Shut up, you little Jehovah fag, I decide who gets to lie here and who doesn't, this is our territory."
"Ah, that's why it smells like piss here, you must have already marked your territory," Rahel laughed.
"You have quite a big mouth, little one, but I won't be so harsh, after all, you look really hot without your nun's outfit, I didn't know you had such big tits."
Leon was already approaching Rahel while his friends held us in check and tried to grope her chest.
"Don't you dare, you stupid ape, or you'll regret it."
"Oh yeah, what are you going to do about it, little one," Leon said with a diabolical grin. And then he got a hearty kick in the groin.
"You bitch, that was a big mistake, I was actually trying to be nice to you, but now you're going to get it the hard way."
Leon held Rahel tight, and just as he was about to grope her chest, Lea suddenly pulled a small can out of her bag and sprayed its contents directly into his eyes.
"Ah, you dirty little bitch, it burns like hell," Leon screamed. That was our cue, Finn and I began to awaken from our paralysis. I punched Sven right in the nose, while Finn landed a blow directly in Tim's stomach, our guards yelped and let us go.
"Come on, let's get out of here, guys, the Jehovahs are really crazy," Leon said, and he and his friends quickly made their escape. From a distance, he called out to me:
"Don't feel too safe, Hellmann, school starts again soon, and there won't be any friends to hide behind."
"What an asshole, I'm already sick thinking about seeing him and his friends again at school."
"Wow, Lea, that was so cool, what did you spray in his eyes?"
"Pepper spray, I always have a can for emergencies in my bag."
"Wow, our little Lea is a real Amazon," Finn said laughing.
"Thank you, Lea, I don't know how it would have turned out without you," Rahel sobbed and hugged her friend. Finn and I also hugged Rahel and tried to comfort her. This incident had, of course, spoiled our mood considerably, so Rahel and Lea decided to leave. Finn and I would have preferred to go too, but since Daniel and Max hadn't returned yet and their things were with us, we had no choice but to wait for them. To kill time, we decided to play a little table tennis on the tables set up by the lake. We were both good players since we also played tennis, and so we had another one of our famous epic matches, which I won a bit luckily with a net roller at the end.
"Oh man, Luca, you farmer, without the net roller, I would have had you."
"Keep dreaming, I'm just the better player, admit it," I said laughing, and Finn immediately pounced on me and tried to silence me with a tickle attack.
"Stop it, okay, I take it back, you're obviously the better player, and I just got lucky," I said, gasping for air.
"Are we interrupting, or should we come back later?"
Suddenly, Daniel and Max were standing in front of us, grinning.
"Ah, just shut up already, and where have you been for so long anyway? You have no idea what went down here while you were gone."
"Why, did we miss something? And by the way, where did the girls go?"
Then we had to tell them in detail what had happened. When I finished my explanations, I looked at two angry faces.
"What are those jerks thinking, anyway? I'd love to really smash their faces in."
"Max, don't worry, Finn and I already took care of it. We really messed up Sven and Tim, and Leon got a good dose of pepper spray in his stupid face from Lea."
"Lea, are we talking about our Lea? That little one is really something, I can't believe it. Where did she even get that stuff?"
"Daniel, no idea. She said she always has a can in her bag for emergencies. Isn't it crazy? I would never have expected that from the little one," I said, laughing. After celebrating Lea and her super cool action for a while, we decided to pack up and bike home. Once we got home, we said goodbye to Finn, as he was expected by his parents. Daniel went to his room with Max, and I went to mine and decided to listen to some music. At exactly 7 PM, it was time for dinner with the family.
"Was it nice at the lake today?" my mother asked at the dinner table.
"Yeah, it was really funny, the weather was great too," I lied, as I didn't feel like telling them about the day's events. After the obligatory table prayer, dinner dragged on in silence, except for my mother, who was ecstatic that I had landed my first home Bible study. After dinner, I decided to go to our home gym in the basement, yes, you heard right, physical exercise, as my father called it, was very important to him, so he equipped the basement with fitness equipment a few years ago, and I wanted to blow off some steam there. Our gym was also very popular with our friends, Max and Finn often came to train there. I put on my headphones, turned up the music, and started my workout. After a good hour of hard training, I decided to call it a day and go shower. Arriving in the bathroom, I undressed and looked at my body in the mirror, I was satisfied with what I saw: six-pack, well-defined chest, only in terms of mass I could still gain, I thought, but there was still time for that at almost 16 years old. Unlike Finn, I didn't have my own PC in my room; the only PC in the house was in my father's study, and I was only allowed to use it for important schoolwork or for Jehovah's Witness meetings. I often met with Finn at his house to secretly watch porn on his PC in his room. Initially, we just watched together and then each jerked off at home, but lately, we had started jerking off together in front of the PC, each with his dick in hand until we came. I found our joint jerk-off sessions really exciting, just the thrill of the forbidden, and Finn felt the same way. It's worth mentioning that sex before marriage and even masturbation are forbidden for us. There's even a book titled "Questions Young People Ask" that deals with these topics in detail. The Bible mentions a guy named Onan who was supposed to marry his deceased brother's wife and have children with her, but he wasn't into it and would pull out and spill his seed on the ground, which was condemned by God. From this story, the Witnesses deduced that masturbation is not okay with God, hence a general ban on it. It was acknowledged that it might happen since we are imperfect and all, but then one should sincerely repent and ask God for forgiveness in prayer. So much for that, but as you can imagine, it's absolutely impossible for a teenager to get by without masturbating, otherwise, you'd feel like your balls would explode. So Finn and I decided to do it secretly, like most other Witness kids probably do as well. Anyway, I stood in front of the mirror, looking at my dick. I was actually quite satisfied with it; it was uncircumcised, slightly curved at the top, and already a decent size, but I hoped it would still grow since I was still growing and all. Once in the shower, I recalled one of the films I had watched with Finn, and soon my dick was rock hard. I spread some shower gel on my painfully hard dick and began to jerk off, faster and faster until I finally came and shot my load in several spurts against the shower glass. Afterward, as often, I felt guilty because it was forbidden and all, but I just couldn't do without it. Back in my room, I listened to some music and tried to chill a bit when my phone suddenly notified me of an incoming text message. It was from Rahel, and I opened it excitedly because I was worried about her after the events at the lake:
"Hey Luca, can you sneak out for a bit? I'm waiting for you at our spot."
I immediately replied:
"Okay, I'm coming, just hope my parents don't catch me."
My parents certainly wouldn't be thrilled if I left the house at this hour, but I had already devised a plan in case my disappearance didn't go unnoticed; I would pretend I was taking out the trash, so I grabbed the wastebasket from my room, stuffed it full, and sneaked down the stairs with the trash bag. Luckily, there was no sign of my parents, so I managed to leave the house unnoticed. Rahel and I always met at a playground near our house to chat, and over time it had become our secret meeting place. As I approached the playground, I saw Rahel already sitting on the swing. I sat on the swing next to her.
"Hey, how are you?"
"Oh well, I've been better, you know, I just hate guys like that Leon. As if it wasn't hard enough for us as Jehovah's Witnesses to cope at school and all, those jerks make life even harder."
"Yeah, I know, the guy is just a jerk, but what can I say, I have to be in the same class with him and his stupid friends."
"Yeah, I really don't envy you for that, at least I have Lea who is in the same class with me, but you're really on your own in your class, especially since Finn goes to another school, I'm really worried about you."
"Hey, you're the one who was almost groped by that creep today and you're worried about me? Don't worry, I'm tough, I'll handle those guys."
"Yeah, I know you're strong, but you really mean a lot to me and I don't want those guys to make your life hell at school because of me."
"Oh, they didn't like me before either, so nothing has changed in the situation."
I laughed and hugged her.
"So don't worry so much about me, I'll be fine."
"Luca, I can't help it, I'll always worry about you, whether you're okay. Luca, listen, I've actually wanted to tell you something for a long time, but I didn't dare, I was afraid it would ruin our friendship. But I can't keep it to myself any longer. Okay, I'll just say it now before I lose my courage: Luca, I love you more than anything. I love you more than just a good friend and when I really think about it, I think I've always loved you, from the first moment I moved here with my family and met you as a child, and you ran up to me beaming and welcomed me and asked if we could be friends, from that moment I loved you. I know this is probably a big shock for you because we've practically known each other our whole lives, but I can't change my feelings for you. I want you to know that I don't expect anything from you and I definitely don't want our friendship to be ruined because of this."
I looked at her totally confused and at that moment I had no idea what to say.
"Hey, don't look at me like that, just don't say anything, I'm not expecting an answer from you. I just wanted you to finally know. Wow, it feels good to finally get that off my chest," she said, gave me a kiss on the cheek, and left me in my emotional chaos. I sat on that swing for what felt like hours, unable to think clearly, when I suddenly realized how late it was and that if I didn't want to get caught, I should head home quickly. When I got home, I opened the front door as quietly as possible and sneaked upstairs. Luckily, my disappearance seemed to have gone unnoticed. Once in my room, my thoughts kept circling around Rahel and her unexpected confession of love. I was totally confused, I desperately needed to talk to someone. My first thought was Finn, but it was too late to go to him and I didn't want to talk about it on the phone. Then my brother came to mind, Daniel just had to help me. A bit hesitant, I stood in front of his door but finally gathered my courage and knocked.
"Yes, come in."
When I entered Daniel's room, I saw that Max was also there.
"Oh sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt, I didn't know you had company," I said and was about to leave when I heard my brother laughing:
"Nonsense, you're not interrupting and since when are you so formal and call Max company, besides he was just about to leave anyway."
"Uh yeah, I should get home before my parents get mad. Bye Luca," and he was gone.
"Okay little brother, what's up, what's bothering you," Daniel said grinning.
"Oh man Daniel, can't you be serious for once, I really have a problem and need someone to talk to."
"Sorry Luca, what's going on, does it have something to do with Leon and his friends, are they threatening you, I'll take care of them."
"No, it has nothing to do with them, I don't care about them. It's about Rahel, I just met her outside at the playground, she wanted to talk to me."
"So, did someone sneak out of the house secretly?"
"Man Daniel, cut it out."
"Okay sorry, I'm sorry, how is she doing? Did she handle Leon's attack okay?"
"Yeah, I think so, we didn't really talk about that."
"And what did you talk about then? Oh man Luca, don't make me drag it out of you."
"Okay, she confessed to me that she's in love with me, she said she always has been."
"Wow, and what did you say to that?"
"Nothing."
"What do you mean nothing, you didn't just leave her sitting there and run away, did you?"
"No, of course not, she basically left me sitting there and said she didn't expect an answer from me and definitely didn't want our friendship to be ruined because of this."
"Okay and what about you, do you love her too?"
"Yeah, of course, I love her, she's my best friend, but I don't know if I love her the way she loves me."
"Yeah, that's a dilemma little brother, you should figure that out as soon as possible. So, the consultation is now over, I'll put my fee on your bill."
"Oh man, you're so silly," I said, but I couldn't help but grin.
"That's more like it little brother, and now get to bed and don't overthink it."
Great, my big brother wasn't much help either, so I lay in my bed, mulling things over, unable to sleep. Tomorrow morning at the Kingdom Hall, I would see Rahel again, and I had no idea how to behave around her. I had never seen her as more than my best friend; I was just totally confused. Suddenly, my phone rang, notifying me of a new text message. The message was from Jonas, my new home Bible study, whom I had completely forgotten about in all the commotion. I quickly opened his message and read the following text:
"Hi, Jonas here, you came to my door today and wanted to teach me about the Bible. I have time tomorrow afternoon, let's say around 3 PM, does that work for you?"
Tomorrow afternoon, yes, I should be able to make that, so I wrote back:
"Yes, that's fine, I'll come to your house tomorrow."
Not a minute later, his reply followed:
"Cool, see you tomorrow, do I need to get a Bible or something?"
I chuckled at this message and promptly replied:
"No, it's fine, I'll bring everything."
Once again, my SMS inbox lit up:
"Okay, looking forward to it, see you tomorrow."
"Yes, see you tomorrow."
Somehow, I was looking forward to going to him tomorrow, although I was also a bit nervous since it was my first home Bible study, but the distraction would surely do me good.
I must have fallen asleep at some point because the next morning, I was rudely awakened by my alarm clock. I hated that damn thing; no one should have to get up at 7:30 on a Sunday morning, but I was used to it because every Sunday at exactly 9:30, the meeting at the Kingdom Hall began. As always, I dragged myself into the shower and tried to get ready as quickly as possible, with the full program, of course: suit, tie, patent leather shoes, everything had to be perfect when we went to the meeting. At exactly 8 o'clock, my parents were strict about this, breakfast was served, which I, of course, reached again with some delay.
"Man, Luca, can't you be on time for once, can't you follow the simplest rules?"
"I'm sorry, Dad, I didn't sleep well."
"Alright, now that you're here, let's start discussing today's text. Luca, would you please read?"
And we were back in the usual daily routine.
Arriving at the meeting, I greeted my friends first, as always, including Rahel. She appeared outwardly the same as always and didn't show any signs. Well, we didn't have much time for long conversations anyway, as the meeting was about to start. After 2 hours of sitting still and listening intently, taking notes, yes, you heard right, because my father regularly quizzed me and my brother about the content of the talks, and woe to anyone who hadn't paid attention, they would be given some stupid punishment, the meeting was finally over. We gathered again and discussed what we could do today. Finn suggested:
"How about it, do we want to go to the lake again today?"
Lea responded:
"Oh, I don't know, I think Rahel isn't too keen on going there again after yesterday's events."
"No, Lea, it's fine, the weather is great again, and besides, I'm not going to let those idiots drive me away."
"Cool," said Finn, "are the rest of you coming too?"
After Daniel and Max agreed, all eyes were on me.
"I can't, I have an appointment for my first home Bible study at 3 PM, but maybe I can join later."
"Should I come with you, and then we can go together afterward?" suggested Finn.
"No, it's fine, you guys go ahead, I'll come later."
After lunch at home, Daniel headed to the lake, and I went to Jonas.
"See you later, little brother, good luck," said Daniel before he got on his bike and headed towards the lake.
Arriving at Jonas's door, I was a bit nervous and had sweaty hands, but then I gave myself a push and rang the doorbell. Inside, I heard voices:
"It's alright, Mom, it's for me, I'll get it."
When he opened the door, he grinned at me.
"There you are, right on time, very commendable. Now come on, don't just stand there like you're rooted to the spot, let's go up to my room."
Jonas lived in a nice single-family house in the new development; they must have just moved in recently because not everything was 100% finished yet, and there were still some moving boxes in the house.
"Sorry for the mess here, we just moved in this week and haven't gotten around to unpacking all the moving boxes yet," Jonas said when he noticed my gaze.
"Hey, it's no problem, moving is a lot of work."
"Come on, let's quickly go to my room before we run into my parents, they're always so terribly curious and will bombard you with questions as soon as they get their hands on you. So here we are, my room is already completely furnished," he said, opening the door. His room was really nice. It was very large, bright, and modernly furnished. To the side of the window stood a large box spring bed, opposite a TV on a white high-gloss sideboard, and there was also a cozy sitting area with a small table and a large desk with a computer.
"He cool room, I really like it."
"Thanks, I also think it turned out quite well, but my parents really gave me free rein with the setup. Tell me, what do you actually look like, do you always walk around in a suit and tie, even when it's as hot as today?"
"No, in my free time I dress normally," I said grinning. Jonas insisted I take off my suit and tie and make myself comfortable on the sofa. After we made ourselves comfortable on the sofa, Jonas suddenly said:
"Oh man, I'm such a bad host, I haven't even offered you anything to drink yet. What do you want to drink?"
"Uh yeah, a Coke would be cool if you have it, otherwise water will do."
"No, no, Coke is fine, we have it," he said and shortly after disappeared from the room, only to return a short time later with a large bottle of Coke and 2 glasses.
"So now we should have everything, shall we start?"
"Sure, let's get started," I said.
Then we began to study the Knowledge Book, a Bible-explaining publication of the Witnesses. After a good 2 hours, we decided to call it a day. I was very satisfied with how my first home Bible study had gone and was about to say goodbye to Jonas when he suddenly asked:
"Hey, do you have to go already, or do you feel like playing a round on the PlayStation with me?"
I had always wanted a PlayStation, I always played promo games with Finn at the MediaMarkt because, of course, I wasn't allowed to have one since my parents didn't approve at all. This offer was just too tempting to turn down, well the others were already waiting for me at the lake, but I definitely had half an hour to spare.
"Yeah cool, why not, but I don't have much time, I wanted to meet my friends at the lake, what games do you have?"
Jonas had a lot of cool games, and after a long deliberation, we chose FIFA, one of my absolute favorite games. I picked Juventus Turin, my absolute favorite club as a half-Italian, Jonas played with Bayern Munich. In the first games, my lack of practice was quickly noticeable because I didn't stand a chance against Jonas, but my ambition was awakened. We didn't even notice how time flew by, I got better with each game and could keep up more and more, I even ignored the constant beeping of my phone. It was just so much fun playing with Jonas and chatting. He was 16 years old, had moved here with his parents from the big city because he had some problems there, but he didn't want to go into detail. He also played tennis and was looking for a local club, and as we found out, he would be going to the same school as me after the summer holidays. After my phone had beeped dozens of times, we decided to take a break, which gave me the opportunity to check my phone. There were numerous messages and missed calls. Message 1 was from Finn:
"Luca, where are you? We're all here waiting for you."
Message 2 from Daniel:
"Bro, please get in touch, we're starting to worry."
Message 3 from Rahel:
"Hey Luca, if you don't want to come because of yesterday's thing, because you don't know how to deal with me, I told you that I don't expect anything from you, you can treat me normally and don't have to avoid me."
Message 4 again from Finn, was the latest:
"Hey Luca, you don't need to come anymore, it just started pouring rain, we're packing up and going home. Get in touch, is everything okay with you?"
Only now did I realize how late it was, already after 7 PM. I really had to go now, otherwise, there would be trouble at home.
"Hey Jonas, I have to get going."
He looked at me grinning:
"Have you looked out the window, it's pouring rain and a big storm is brewing outside. You can't possibly ride your bike home now. Is there anyone who can pick you up, what about your parents?"
No, my parents were not an option, how could I explain to them what I was doing at my home Bible study at this time.
"No, my parents are not a good idea, I guess I'll have to wait here until the storm is over."
"Hey, I just checked the weather report and they said the storm is supposed to last all night."
"Shit, what do I do now?"
"Hey, it's not a problem, you can stay here overnight, I have a freshly packed toothbrush for guests, towels, underwear, and a T-shirt you can also have from me if you want.
"Hey, don't get me wrong, I would really like to stay over, but my parents would never allow it.
"Really, why not?"
"I'll explain another time."
"Should I ask my parents if they can drive you home?"
"Hey, I'm really uncomfortable with that, but it would be really cool if they could."
"No, it's no problem, they would be happy to," he said and disappeared from the room. Through the door, I heard voices and discussions but couldn't really understand what was being said. Then Jonas came back.
"I'm sorry, but they've already had something to drink, they opened a bottle of wine, but they asked if you want to sleep over at our place, and tomorrow morning they would drive you home if you want. They even offered to call your parents and ask for permission if you like."
"No, definitely not, okay I'll try to work something out so I can stay over here."
First, I called Finn:
"Finally you're calling, I was about to file a missing person report."
"Finn, listen, I have a problem and need your help. I'm still at Jonas', my home Bible study, and after the study, he convinced me to play on the PlayStation and we totally lost track of time. Because of the storm, I can't leave now and will have to stay here overnight, you know what a fuss my parents would make about that, so I want to tell them I'm staying over at your place, just so you know in case they ask you."
"Yeah, okay, I'll keep quiet. But tell me something else, what's going on with you and Rahel, she was acting so weird today when you didn't show up?"
"I'll explain that to you another time, okay, I have to call my parents now. Thanks again, see you tomorrow."
"Okay, all right, no problem, see you tomorrow then, bye."
So, next I dialed our number and listened with a pounding heart to the ringtone.
"Hellmann, hello."
"Ah Daniel, it's you, Luca here."
"Luca, finally, what happened, where are you?"
So I told my brother what had happened, but asked for silence, but I knew I could rely on him, we had covered for each other in front of our parents many times before. Daniel had fortunately managed that my parents hadn't even noticed my absence until now. When I finished my explanation, I asked Daniel to get my father on the phone.
"Dad, can you come, Luca is on the phone."
"Luca, what's going on, where are you, I thought you were in your room."
"No, Dad, I went to Finn's after the lake when the storm suddenly caught us. Is it okay if I sleep over at Finn's tonight?"
Oh God, my heart was pounding in my throat, I sincerely hoped that my father wouldn't get the idea to pick me up there or want to speak to Finn's parents. I was really treading on thin ice with my lie, I knew that, but I couldn't think of anything better on the spur of the moment.
"Did you ask his parents for permission?"
"Yes, Dad, I’m not staying at Finn’s for the first time."
"Alright, but see to it that you're home early tomorrow. By the way, how did your home Bible study go today?"
"Very well, Dad, Jonas is really interested and had a lot of good questions. I think it could work out with him."
"Very good, Luca, I'm proud of you, you've finally overcome your fear of people and are on your way to becoming a good preacher."
"Thanks, Dad, yeah, a home Bible study is really fulfilling. See you tomorrow then, say hi to Mom for me."
Wow, I was really infinitely relieved that my father believed my lie.
"Hey, I didn't know you could lie so well."
Jonas was suddenly standing next to me, grinning.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but you weren't exactly quiet. Why all the fuss, why don't you just tell your parents you're staying here?"
I turned red, feeling caught.
"Well, that's not so easy to explain, my parents would never allow me to sleep at your place because you're not a Witness."
"Really, because I'm not a Witness, you can't stay over at my place?"
"Yeah, we're not supposed to have private dealings with non-Witnesses because they could be a bad influence on us."
"Okay, so I'm a bad influence on you?"
Jonas looked visibly hurt.
"Um, well, no. Oh, I don't know, I'm not saying it's my opinion too. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I like you and enjoy being with you."
Suddenly Jonas was smiling again.
"Yeah, I feel the same way. Thanks for being so honest. There was a knock on the door.
"Yes, come in."
Jonas' mother peeked into the room.
"Hey boys, dinner is ready, are you coming?"
We didn't need to be asked twice, and soon we were sitting at the dining table with four of us.
"Luca, I hope you like lasagna?"
"Yes, I love lasagna. Thank you again for letting me stay over, Mrs. Stahl."
"Hey, call me Elke, please, Mrs. Stahl makes me feel so old," Jonas' mother said, laughing.
"And I'm Peter, by the way, the father of this rascal here. Nice to meet you. Sorry again that we couldn't drive you home. I hope you didn't get into trouble with your parents because of it."
"No, don't worry, I sorted everything out with them, they don't mind me staying here," I lied.
The food was really excellent, and Jonas' parents were very friendly to me.
"How did you two actually meet?" Jonas' mother suddenly wanted to know.
"Oh, Mom, don't always be so curious, but if you really want to know, we met yesterday at the bakery when I was getting rolls. So, we're going to my room, good night my dear annoying parents."
"Good night, my darling, do you need anything else?"
"No, thanks, Mum, we have everything."
"Good night, Luca."
"Good night Mr. and Mrs. Stahl, uh I mean Elke and Peter."
And we disappeared into Jonas's room.
"Sorry that my parents are so curious, they always have to question every friend I bring home."
"Hey, it's okay, I think your parents are really nice."
"Yeah, they're actually quite okay," Jonas said, grinning.
"So, I'm going to jump in the shower quickly, I put a fresh pair of boxers and a towel on the bed for you. I won't be long, then you can take a shower."
"Okay, thanks for everything."
"Don't mention it, I'm glad you're here," he said, and shortly after, I heard the shower running. As I sat there waiting for Jonas to finish showering, my bladder suddenly made itself known with full force. Since I really couldn't hold it any longer, I decided to knock on the bathroom door. Hmm, no reaction, but he probably didn't hear me because the water was still running. So I pressed the door handle and went in; luckily, he hadn't locked it. I hurried to the toilet, stood there, of course lifting the toilet lid first, took out my penis, and began to relieve myself. When I was done, I flushed, and at that moment, as I turned around, Jonas came out of the shower. He was visibly startled and blushed when he saw me. The reason was hard to miss; he had a semi-erection, and it looked like he had just been pleasuring himself. He really looked good naked, well, for a boy. He was slim, had a nicely defined body, a six-pack, and his penis was also of considerable size. I turned beet red and stammered:
"Sorry, I didn't mean to barge in, but you didn't respond to my knocking, and I really had to go."
"Hey, relax, it's no big deal. You can go shower now; I'll bring you the boxers and towel."
I quickly undressed, and just as I was about to step into the shower, Jonas came in with my things.
He stared at me and said, grinning:
"Now we're even, I guess," and handed me my towel.
"Thanks," I said uncertainly and disappeared into the shower.
I wasn't quite sure what to make of his last remark, and it was a bit embarrassing that he had seen me naked, but after all, I had seen him in his birthday suit too. I quickly got ready for bed and went back to the room.
"Hey, I hope you're not mad about earlier."
"No, it's fine, after all, I saw you naked too, so we're kind of even," I said, laughing.
Both of us stood there in boxers and T-shirts, grinning at each other.
"Do you want to play another round on the PlayStation? I'll give you a rematch," Jonas said, grinning.
"Don't brag, I'm going to beat you this time," I replied.
Of course, I lost all the games again, but I was getting better. After two more hours of gaming, we decided to call it a night and go to bed.
"Hey, I'll get you soon, next time it's your turn."
"Yeah, yeah, keep dreaming, maybe you should just pick a decent team like Bayern Munich instead of always choosing Juventus Urin," Jonas said, laughing.
"Hey, take that back," I said and threw a pillow at Jonas's face.
"Just wait, now you're in for it," Jonas said, and what started as harmless ended in a full-blown pillow fight. We really had a lot of fun. In the end, he threw me onto the bed and started tickling me until I couldn't take it anymore.
"Mercy, please, I give up, I can't take it anymore."
Jonas pinned me to the bed, held my hands down, and said:
"Say that I'm the best PlayStation player in the world and Bayern Munich is the coolest team in the world."
"Okay, you're the best PlayStation player in the world, and Bayern Munich is the coolest team, satisfied?"
He still held me down and stared at me. His gaze made me feel both hot and cold at the same time, and I shuddered. His face suddenly came very close to mine, and my heart pounded in my chest. Then he suddenly grinned and said:
"Alright, I'll let it go," and released me.
"Hey, I hope you don't mind sharing a bed with me, because I only have the one."
"No, it's no problem at all. Thanks for letting me sleep here."
"Hey, you don't have to keep thanking me, I'm glad you're here."
Then we went to sleep. Jonas had a large double bed, so there was plenty of room for both of us. We chatted in the dark for quite a while about everything and anything until he suddenly asked me:
"What's it like being a Jehovah's Witness? I mean, do people at school accept it and stuff?"
"Well, what's it like? I don't know, I don't know anything else. At school, I'm an outsider and sometimes get bullied by some. I'm not a wimp or anything, and I don't start crying because of it, but sometimes I wish I could just be like everyone else and not always the odd one out. But luckily, I have my friends; they're also Witnesses, go through some of the same things, and understand me. But without them, I would be really lonely."
"Yes, I know what you mean, not this witness thing, but how it feels to be an outsider. I was also an outsider at my old school and was really badly bullied."
"Really, you and an outsider, I can't imagine that."
"Well, it wasn't always like that, I used to be popular, had a big clique, and then suddenly everything changed, so much so that I was even bullied by my former friends. I couldn't take it there anymore, that's why we moved."
"I'm really sorry for you, but I don't quite understand, why did everything suddenly change? What happened?"
"Don't be mad at me, I'm getting tired, I'll tell you the story another time, okay."
"Hey, no problem, sorry, I didn't mean to be nosy."
"No worries, all good. Sleep well, Luca."
"Yeah, you too."
Shortly after, I heard him breathing regularly, he must have already fallen asleep. I found it hard to fall asleep today, too much was going through my mind
"Luca, are you finally done with your hair? The meeting is about to start, and the parents want to leave."
"Man, Daniel, I'll be right there. I just can't get my hair right today."
There I was, at 15 years old, standing in the bathroom in front of the mirror, trying to get a grip on my unruly black hair. I actually liked my hair, but today it was driving me to despair again.
"Alright, I'll help you, otherwise the old man will kill you if he has to wait any longer," said my annoying brother Daniel with a grin. Well, he wasn't really that annoying. We were only a year apart, I was 15 and he was 16, and we usually got along great, except for the usual sibling squabbles.
"Oh man Luca, that's way too much gel you've slapped into your hair again," he said and rubbed the gel out of my hair with a towel.
He took the gel tube and put a small dab on his hand.
"Look, that's enough, you don't need more," and in no time, he had styled my hair into a presentable shape.
"Now hurry up, you know how important it is to our old man to be punctual for the meeting."
For explanation, our family belonged to the Jehovah's Witnesses, and our father was an elder, a sort of local leader of the group. There were always several elders per meeting, but their number had to be odd so that a clear result could be achieved in votes, and Dad was basically the chief elder; his voice carried the most weight. Our group had meetings three times a week: on Tuesdays at our house with a smaller group, called the book study, where a current Jehovah's Witness book is studied, and on Fridays and Sundays with the whole group, the meeting where topics from the Bible are presented. And today was another Friday evening, time to go to the Kingdom Hall in town, a kind of church that looks like a regular building.
"We always have to wait for you, Luca. You know I hate being late, so make sure you're ready earlier next time."
"Yes, Dad, I know, but I just couldn't get my hair right today."
"It's always the same with you and your hair. We should just cut it off; you're just too vain. Be a bit more humble, or do you think Jesus stood in front of the mirror for hours before he preached the good news to the people?"
"No, Father, of course not. I'm sorry, I'll be ready earlier next time, I promise."
My stupid brother sat next to me in the car, grinning. I gave him an elbow in the side, which led to a tickling attack from him on me, to which I retaliated, until our mother called us to order.
"Quiet back there, or you'll be assigned to cleaning duty at the Kingdom Hall tomorrow morning."
This mere threat was enough to silence us.
The 2 hours at the meeting dragged on like chewing gum. I could hardly wait for the end to finally chat with my almost same-age friends. We had all practically grown up together, and since our parents forbade us from associating with youths outside the meeting, they were our only friends. There was Finn, my best friend, Max, my brother's best friend, Lea and Rahel, who were best friends with each other, but really we were all one big clique.
"Hey, do you all want to meet at the quarry pond tomorrow afternoon? It's supposed to be really hot."
"Yeah, Lea, that's a great idea. I'll take care of the grill."
"Great, Finn, then Daniel and I will get the meat."
"And we girls will make the salads. After all, we don't want to interfere with the gentlemen's hunt," Rahel said, laughing.
"Exactly, meat and fire making is men's business, Rahel."
"Really, Finn, how silly that instead of men we only have you guys with us."
Rahel's last statement sparked discussions and general laughter until my mother once again called us to order.
"Behave yourselves, we are in the house of the Lord."
Yes, my mother is a real killjoy, but she always has been.
"Alright, then it's settled. We'll meet at 3 PM at the quarry pond tomorrow. Are you all coming to the preaching service meeting point at 9 AM tomorrow?"
"Don't remind me, Lea, you nerd. You know Daniel and I have no choice but to go since Dad is leading the meeting point."
"Oh Luca, don't always make such a fuss, preaching service can be fun too."
"Yeah, only when it's over, Lea."
For explanation, the preaching service was a must for every Jehovah's Witness, as the Bible says that the so-called good news must be preached to people, which means going door to door, ringing bells, and trying to bring the Bible closer to people and convert them.
The next morning, I dragged myself out of bed at 7:30 AM on a Saturday because, like every Saturday, the meeting point for the preaching service was at 9 AM. I dragged myself into the shower and quickly completed my morning routine, knowing that, as always, I was expected at breakfast at exactly 8 AM. Fortunately, my brother was an early riser and was already ready, so I had the bathroom we shared to myself. Thank God I managed to do my hair relatively quickly today, so I appeared somewhat punctually at the breakfast table.
“Wow, on time today. Who are you and what have you done with my brother?”
“Shut up, Daniel, not everyone can be a nerd like you.”
“That's enough now, it's time for the daily text. Daniel, would you please read it?”
The daily text is a kind of calendar where a Bible text is provided for each day and subsequently explained. In our family, it was a fixed ritual to start each day with a Bible text.
At exactly 8:45 AM, we were at the Kingdom Hall, and my parents greeted the participants of the meeting point. Here too, the daily text was first discussed together at exactly 9 AM, and then my father gave the participants useful tips for the preaching service. I hated having to go to the preaching service and always felt like I was bothering or annoying people when I rang their doorbell to talk to them about the Bible. Additionally, I was always afraid of encountering schoolmates at the doors. I was already the outsider in my class because I wasn't allowed to socialize with my schoolmates privately since, according to my father, they were a bad influence on me, and the same applied to Daniel, of course. What I hated most was having to go to the preaching service with my father, as he always had something to criticize about me and my conversation skills. My father, of course, once again made the pairings for the preaching service, and in the end, what a big surprise, only he and I were left, so I once again had the pleasure of going with my old man. Every preacher, as they are called, had a fixed area with streets to work on, including me. And since my father wanted to improve my preaching technique again, we went to my area. As always, when I was with my father in the preaching service, I hoped at every door that no one would answer, but unfortunately, many were home that day. I recited my well-rehearsed conversation introductions at each door and luckily always quickly heard "Not interested" from the people. My father was, of course, eager to improve me and give me good advice. So, the 2 hours of the preaching service dragged on endlessly once again. As time was already far advanced, we decided to tackle just one last door. I rang the bell, as always hoping no one would answer, but it turned out differently. A blond boy my age opened the door, and I sighed inwardly; I hated having to witness to teenagers my age, especially if they were from my school, but fortunately, I didn't know this boy. I recited my usual text:
“Good day, my name is Hellmann, this is my father, and we are at your door today to talk to you about whether the Bible is still relevant in our time and can help us with our daily problems.” I firmly expected a "Not interested," but the boy grinned at me and said:
“No idea, to be honest, I have no clue what's in the Bible. My parents are atheists and aren't interested, but I would be interested in what's in the Bible.”
I was totally baffled by his reaction and was momentarily frozen, but my father helped me out of the predicament once again.
“We also offer free home Bible studies. If you're interested in the Bible, I would be very happy to teach you the Bible, young man.”
“Please don't be offended, but I would prefer to do it with someone my age because I'm a bit shy.”
“Okay, no problem, then my son will teach you the Bible.”
“Okay, if you're really interested, then we can set up an appointment, and I'll come to your house. By the way, I'm Luca.”
I shook his hand.
“Jonas, nice to meet you.”
I liked him from the first moment, and so we exchanged phone numbers to arrange an appointment in the coming days. My father was, of course, very proud of me; his shy son finally had his first home Bible study. I was confused; I had never gotten this far at the door before, and then with someone my age. I was nervous thinking about our first appointment.
In the afternoon, Daniel and I hurried to pack the grill meat and sausages into our backpacks and hop on our bikes heading toward the quarry pond. It was a hot summer day, and the lake was less than 5 kilometers from our house, so we managed to arrive somewhat punctually at the agreed meeting point.
“Luca, Daniel, there you are finally, the grill is already set up, only the coal isn't ready yet,” Finn came to meet us.
“No stress, we'll do it together then, are the others already there?”
"Yes, you are the last ones, now we are complete."
The others were already sitting at our usual spot by the lake, the girls were chatting while the boys tried to get the grill going.
"Guess who managed to set up his first home Bible study today," Daniel blurted out.
"Wow, I'm impressed, Luca, I wouldn't have thought that a preaching service grump like you would get a home Bible study," teased Rahel.
"See, even a blind hen finds a grain sometimes," Finn said laughing.
"Oh, shut up, you're just jealous because I'm such a preaching ace."
This statement caused general laughter, and then I had to tell my friends in detail how exactly I had managed it. After we finally got the grill going, we placed our collected barbecue food on it, spread out the picnic blankets, made ourselves comfortable, and enjoyed the beautiful summer day by the lake. When we were done eating, we all lay in the sun, chatted, or dozed a little. After a short time, my brother got bored and decided, since he was a good swimmer, to swim over to the small island in the middle of the lake.
"I'm swimming over to the island, need to burn off some energy."
"I'm coming with you, wait for me," Max said.
The rest of us didn't feel like joining and decided to chill a bit more, so Max and Daniel set off alone. As the four of us lay in the sun, I suddenly noticed how my annoying classmate Leon with his dumb friends Sven and Tim approached us.
"Oh no, Finn, Rahel, Lea, look, there comes Leon with his dumb friends, now there's probably going to be trouble again."
"What do I see there, the Jehovahs in swimwear by the lake, are you even allowed to do that, are you done with your missionary work for today," Leon taunted.
"Oh Leon, you blockhead, shut your mouth and leave us in peace," I replied.
"For a prayer sister, you sure have a big mouth."
"Guys, we don't want any trouble, can't you just leave us alone," Finn said.
"Shut up, you little Jehovah fag, I decide who gets to lie here and who doesn't, this is our territory."
"Ah, that's why it smells like piss here, you must have already marked your territory," Rahel laughed.
"You have quite a big mouth, little one, but I won't be so harsh, after all, you look really hot without your nun's outfit, I didn't know you had such big tits."
Leon was already approaching Rahel while his friends held us in check and tried to grope her chest.
"Don't you dare, you stupid ape, or you'll regret it."
"Oh yeah, what are you going to do about it, little one," Leon said with a diabolical grin. And then he got a hearty kick in the groin.
"You bitch, that was a big mistake, I was actually trying to be nice to you, but now you're going to get it the hard way."
Leon held Rahel tight, and just as he was about to grope her chest, Lea suddenly pulled a small can out of her bag and sprayed its contents directly into his eyes.
"Ah, you dirty little bitch, it burns like hell," Leon screamed. That was our cue, Finn and I began to awaken from our paralysis. I punched Sven right in the nose, while Finn landed a blow directly in Tim's stomach, our guards yelped and let us go.
"Come on, let's get out of here, guys, the Jehovahs are really crazy," Leon said, and he and his friends quickly made their escape. From a distance, he called out to me:
"Don't feel too safe, Hellmann, school starts again soon, and there won't be any friends to hide behind."
"What an asshole, I'm already sick thinking about seeing him and his friends again at school."
"Wow, Lea, that was so cool, what did you spray in his eyes?"
"Pepper spray, I always have a can for emergencies in my bag."
"Wow, our little Lea is a real Amazon," Finn said laughing.
"Thank you, Lea, I don't know how it would have turned out without you," Rahel sobbed and hugged her friend. Finn and I also hugged Rahel and tried to comfort her. This incident had, of course, spoiled our mood considerably, so Rahel and Lea decided to leave. Finn and I would have preferred to go too, but since Daniel and Max hadn't returned yet and their things were with us, we had no choice but to wait for them. To kill time, we decided to play a little table tennis on the tables set up by the lake. We were both good players since we also played tennis, and so we had another one of our famous epic matches, which I won a bit luckily with a net roller at the end.
"Oh man, Luca, you farmer, without the net roller, I would have had you."
"Keep dreaming, I'm just the better player, admit it," I said laughing, and Finn immediately pounced on me and tried to silence me with a tickle attack.
"Stop it, okay, I take it back, you're obviously the better player, and I just got lucky," I said, gasping for air.
"Are we interrupting, or should we come back later?"
Suddenly, Daniel and Max were standing in front of us, grinning.
"Ah, just shut up already, and where have you been for so long anyway? You have no idea what went down here while you were gone."
"Why, did we miss something? And by the way, where did the girls go?"
Then we had to tell them in detail what had happened. When I finished my explanations, I looked at two angry faces.
"What are those jerks thinking, anyway? I'd love to really smash their faces in."
"Max, don't worry, Finn and I already took care of it. We really messed up Sven and Tim, and Leon got a good dose of pepper spray in his stupid face from Lea."
"Lea, are we talking about our Lea? That little one is really something, I can't believe it. Where did she even get that stuff?"
"Daniel, no idea. She said she always has a can in her bag for emergencies. Isn't it crazy? I would never have expected that from the little one," I said, laughing. After celebrating Lea and her super cool action for a while, we decided to pack up and bike home. Once we got home, we said goodbye to Finn, as he was expected by his parents. Daniel went to his room with Max, and I went to mine and decided to listen to some music. At exactly 7 PM, it was time for dinner with the family.
"Was it nice at the lake today?" my mother asked at the dinner table.
"Yeah, it was really funny, the weather was great too," I lied, as I didn't feel like telling them about the day's events. After the obligatory table prayer, dinner dragged on in silence, except for my mother, who was ecstatic that I had landed my first home Bible study. After dinner, I decided to go to our home gym in the basement, yes, you heard right, physical exercise, as my father called it, was very important to him, so he equipped the basement with fitness equipment a few years ago, and I wanted to blow off some steam there. Our gym was also very popular with our friends, Max and Finn often came to train there. I put on my headphones, turned up the music, and started my workout. After a good hour of hard training, I decided to call it a day and go shower. Arriving in the bathroom, I undressed and looked at my body in the mirror, I was satisfied with what I saw: six-pack, well-defined chest, only in terms of mass I could still gain, I thought, but there was still time for that at almost 16 years old. Unlike Finn, I didn't have my own PC in my room; the only PC in the house was in my father's study, and I was only allowed to use it for important schoolwork or for Jehovah's Witness meetings. I often met with Finn at his house to secretly watch porn on his PC in his room. Initially, we just watched together and then each jerked off at home, but lately, we had started jerking off together in front of the PC, each with his dick in hand until we came. I found our joint jerk-off sessions really exciting, just the thrill of the forbidden, and Finn felt the same way. It's worth mentioning that sex before marriage and even masturbation are forbidden for us. There's even a book titled "Questions Young People Ask" that deals with these topics in detail. The Bible mentions a guy named Onan who was supposed to marry his deceased brother's wife and have children with her, but he wasn't into it and would pull out and spill his seed on the ground, which was condemned by God. From this story, the Witnesses deduced that masturbation is not okay with God, hence a general ban on it. It was acknowledged that it might happen since we are imperfect and all, but then one should sincerely repent and ask God for forgiveness in prayer. So much for that, but as you can imagine, it's absolutely impossible for a teenager to get by without masturbating, otherwise, you'd feel like your balls would explode. So Finn and I decided to do it secretly, like most other Witness kids probably do as well. Anyway, I stood in front of the mirror, looking at my dick. I was actually quite satisfied with it; it was uncircumcised, slightly curved at the top, and already a decent size, but I hoped it would still grow since I was still growing and all. Once in the shower, I recalled one of the films I had watched with Finn, and soon my dick was rock hard. I spread some shower gel on my painfully hard dick and began to jerk off, faster and faster until I finally came and shot my load in several spurts against the shower glass. Afterward, as often, I felt guilty because it was forbidden and all, but I just couldn't do without it. Back in my room, I listened to some music and tried to chill a bit when my phone suddenly notified me of an incoming text message. It was from Rahel, and I opened it excitedly because I was worried about her after the events at the lake:
"Hey Luca, can you sneak out for a bit? I'm waiting for you at our spot."
I immediately replied:
"Okay, I'm coming, just hope my parents don't catch me."
My parents certainly wouldn't be thrilled if I left the house at this hour, but I had already devised a plan in case my disappearance didn't go unnoticed; I would pretend I was taking out the trash, so I grabbed the wastebasket from my room, stuffed it full, and sneaked down the stairs with the trash bag. Luckily, there was no sign of my parents, so I managed to leave the house unnoticed. Rahel and I always met at a playground near our house to chat, and over time it had become our secret meeting place. As I approached the playground, I saw Rahel already sitting on the swing. I sat on the swing next to her.
"Hey, how are you?"
"Oh well, I've been better, you know, I just hate guys like that Leon. As if it wasn't hard enough for us as Jehovah's Witnesses to cope at school and all, those jerks make life even harder."
"Yeah, I know, the guy is just a jerk, but what can I say, I have to be in the same class with him and his stupid friends."
"Yeah, I really don't envy you for that, at least I have Lea who is in the same class with me, but you're really on your own in your class, especially since Finn goes to another school, I'm really worried about you."
"Hey, you're the one who was almost groped by that creep today and you're worried about me? Don't worry, I'm tough, I'll handle those guys."
"Yeah, I know you're strong, but you really mean a lot to me and I don't want those guys to make your life hell at school because of me."
"Oh, they didn't like me before either, so nothing has changed in the situation."
I laughed and hugged her.
"So don't worry so much about me, I'll be fine."
"Luca, I can't help it, I'll always worry about you, whether you're okay. Luca, listen, I've actually wanted to tell you something for a long time, but I didn't dare, I was afraid it would ruin our friendship. But I can't keep it to myself any longer. Okay, I'll just say it now before I lose my courage: Luca, I love you more than anything. I love you more than just a good friend and when I really think about it, I think I've always loved you, from the first moment I moved here with my family and met you as a child, and you ran up to me beaming and welcomed me and asked if we could be friends, from that moment I loved you. I know this is probably a big shock for you because we've practically known each other our whole lives, but I can't change my feelings for you. I want you to know that I don't expect anything from you and I definitely don't want our friendship to be ruined because of this."
I looked at her totally confused and at that moment I had no idea what to say.
"Hey, don't look at me like that, just don't say anything, I'm not expecting an answer from you. I just wanted you to finally know. Wow, it feels good to finally get that off my chest," she said, gave me a kiss on the cheek, and left me in my emotional chaos. I sat on that swing for what felt like hours, unable to think clearly, when I suddenly realized how late it was and that if I didn't want to get caught, I should head home quickly. When I got home, I opened the front door as quietly as possible and sneaked upstairs. Luckily, my disappearance seemed to have gone unnoticed. Once in my room, my thoughts kept circling around Rahel and her unexpected confession of love. I was totally confused, I desperately needed to talk to someone. My first thought was Finn, but it was too late to go to him and I didn't want to talk about it on the phone. Then my brother came to mind, Daniel just had to help me. A bit hesitant, I stood in front of his door but finally gathered my courage and knocked.
"Yes, come in."
When I entered Daniel's room, I saw that Max was also there.
"Oh sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt, I didn't know you had company," I said and was about to leave when I heard my brother laughing:
"Nonsense, you're not interrupting and since when are you so formal and call Max company, besides he was just about to leave anyway."
"Uh yeah, I should get home before my parents get mad. Bye Luca," and he was gone.
"Okay little brother, what's up, what's bothering you," Daniel said grinning.
"Oh man Daniel, can't you be serious for once, I really have a problem and need someone to talk to."
"Sorry Luca, what's going on, does it have something to do with Leon and his friends, are they threatening you, I'll take care of them."
"No, it has nothing to do with them, I don't care about them. It's about Rahel, I just met her outside at the playground, she wanted to talk to me."
"So, did someone sneak out of the house secretly?"
"Man Daniel, cut it out."
"Okay sorry, I'm sorry, how is she doing? Did she handle Leon's attack okay?"
"Yeah, I think so, we didn't really talk about that."
"And what did you talk about then? Oh man Luca, don't make me drag it out of you."
"Okay, she confessed to me that she's in love with me, she said she always has been."
"Wow, and what did you say to that?"
"Nothing."
"What do you mean nothing, you didn't just leave her sitting there and run away, did you?"
"No, of course not, she basically left me sitting there and said she didn't expect an answer from me and definitely didn't want our friendship to be ruined because of this."
"Okay and what about you, do you love her too?"
"Yeah, of course, I love her, she's my best friend, but I don't know if I love her the way she loves me."
"Yeah, that's a dilemma little brother, you should figure that out as soon as possible. So, the consultation is now over, I'll put my fee on your bill."
"Oh man, you're so silly," I said, but I couldn't help but grin.
"That's more like it little brother, and now get to bed and don't overthink it."
Great, my big brother wasn't much help either, so I lay in my bed, mulling things over, unable to sleep. Tomorrow morning at the Kingdom Hall, I would see Rahel again, and I had no idea how to behave around her. I had never seen her as more than my best friend; I was just totally confused. Suddenly, my phone rang, notifying me of a new text message. The message was from Jonas, my new home Bible study, whom I had completely forgotten about in all the commotion. I quickly opened his message and read the following text:
"Hi, Jonas here, you came to my door today and wanted to teach me about the Bible. I have time tomorrow afternoon, let's say around 3 PM, does that work for you?"
Tomorrow afternoon, yes, I should be able to make that, so I wrote back:
"Yes, that's fine, I'll come to your house tomorrow."
Not a minute later, his reply followed:
"Cool, see you tomorrow, do I need to get a Bible or something?"
I chuckled at this message and promptly replied:
"No, it's fine, I'll bring everything."
Once again, my SMS inbox lit up:
"Okay, looking forward to it, see you tomorrow."
"Yes, see you tomorrow."
Somehow, I was looking forward to going to him tomorrow, although I was also a bit nervous since it was my first home Bible study, but the distraction would surely do me good.
I must have fallen asleep at some point because the next morning, I was rudely awakened by my alarm clock. I hated that damn thing; no one should have to get up at 7:30 on a Sunday morning, but I was used to it because every Sunday at exactly 9:30, the meeting at the Kingdom Hall began. As always, I dragged myself into the shower and tried to get ready as quickly as possible, with the full program, of course: suit, tie, patent leather shoes, everything had to be perfect when we went to the meeting. At exactly 8 o'clock, my parents were strict about this, breakfast was served, which I, of course, reached again with some delay.
"Man, Luca, can't you be on time for once, can't you follow the simplest rules?"
"I'm sorry, Dad, I didn't sleep well."
"Alright, now that you're here, let's start discussing today's text. Luca, would you please read?"
And we were back in the usual daily routine.
Arriving at the meeting, I greeted my friends first, as always, including Rahel. She appeared outwardly the same as always and didn't show any signs. Well, we didn't have much time for long conversations anyway, as the meeting was about to start. After 2 hours of sitting still and listening intently, taking notes, yes, you heard right, because my father regularly quizzed me and my brother about the content of the talks, and woe to anyone who hadn't paid attention, they would be given some stupid punishment, the meeting was finally over. We gathered again and discussed what we could do today. Finn suggested:
"How about it, do we want to go to the lake again today?"
Lea responded:
"Oh, I don't know, I think Rahel isn't too keen on going there again after yesterday's events."
"No, Lea, it's fine, the weather is great again, and besides, I'm not going to let those idiots drive me away."
"Cool," said Finn, "are the rest of you coming too?"
After Daniel and Max agreed, all eyes were on me.
"I can't, I have an appointment for my first home Bible study at 3 PM, but maybe I can join later."
"Should I come with you, and then we can go together afterward?" suggested Finn.
"No, it's fine, you guys go ahead, I'll come later."
After lunch at home, Daniel headed to the lake, and I went to Jonas.
"See you later, little brother, good luck," said Daniel before he got on his bike and headed towards the lake.
Arriving at Jonas's door, I was a bit nervous and had sweaty hands, but then I gave myself a push and rang the doorbell. Inside, I heard voices:
"It's alright, Mom, it's for me, I'll get it."
When he opened the door, he grinned at me.
"There you are, right on time, very commendable. Now come on, don't just stand there like you're rooted to the spot, let's go up to my room."
Jonas lived in a nice single-family house in the new development; they must have just moved in recently because not everything was 100% finished yet, and there were still some moving boxes in the house.
"Sorry for the mess here, we just moved in this week and haven't gotten around to unpacking all the moving boxes yet," Jonas said when he noticed my gaze.
"Hey, it's no problem, moving is a lot of work."
"Come on, let's quickly go to my room before we run into my parents, they're always so terribly curious and will bombard you with questions as soon as they get their hands on you. So here we are, my room is already completely furnished," he said, opening the door. His room was really nice. It was very large, bright, and modernly furnished. To the side of the window stood a large box spring bed, opposite a TV on a white high-gloss sideboard, and there was also a cozy sitting area with a small table and a large desk with a computer.
"He cool room, I really like it."
"Thanks, I also think it turned out quite well, but my parents really gave me free rein with the setup. Tell me, what do you actually look like, do you always walk around in a suit and tie, even when it's as hot as today?"
"No, in my free time I dress normally," I said grinning. Jonas insisted I take off my suit and tie and make myself comfortable on the sofa. After we made ourselves comfortable on the sofa, Jonas suddenly said:
"Oh man, I'm such a bad host, I haven't even offered you anything to drink yet. What do you want to drink?"
"Uh yeah, a Coke would be cool if you have it, otherwise water will do."
"No, no, Coke is fine, we have it," he said and shortly after disappeared from the room, only to return a short time later with a large bottle of Coke and 2 glasses.
"So now we should have everything, shall we start?"
"Sure, let's get started," I said.
Then we began to study the Knowledge Book, a Bible-explaining publication of the Witnesses. After a good 2 hours, we decided to call it a day. I was very satisfied with how my first home Bible study had gone and was about to say goodbye to Jonas when he suddenly asked:
"Hey, do you have to go already, or do you feel like playing a round on the PlayStation with me?"
I had always wanted a PlayStation, I always played promo games with Finn at the MediaMarkt because, of course, I wasn't allowed to have one since my parents didn't approve at all. This offer was just too tempting to turn down, well the others were already waiting for me at the lake, but I definitely had half an hour to spare.
"Yeah cool, why not, but I don't have much time, I wanted to meet my friends at the lake, what games do you have?"
Jonas had a lot of cool games, and after a long deliberation, we chose FIFA, one of my absolute favorite games. I picked Juventus Turin, my absolute favorite club as a half-Italian, Jonas played with Bayern Munich. In the first games, my lack of practice was quickly noticeable because I didn't stand a chance against Jonas, but my ambition was awakened. We didn't even notice how time flew by, I got better with each game and could keep up more and more, I even ignored the constant beeping of my phone. It was just so much fun playing with Jonas and chatting. He was 16 years old, had moved here with his parents from the big city because he had some problems there, but he didn't want to go into detail. He also played tennis and was looking for a local club, and as we found out, he would be going to the same school as me after the summer holidays. After my phone had beeped dozens of times, we decided to take a break, which gave me the opportunity to check my phone. There were numerous messages and missed calls. Message 1 was from Finn:
"Luca, where are you? We're all here waiting for you."
Message 2 from Daniel:
"Bro, please get in touch, we're starting to worry."
Message 3 from Rahel:
"Hey Luca, if you don't want to come because of yesterday's thing, because you don't know how to deal with me, I told you that I don't expect anything from you, you can treat me normally and don't have to avoid me."
Message 4 again from Finn, was the latest:
"Hey Luca, you don't need to come anymore, it just started pouring rain, we're packing up and going home. Get in touch, is everything okay with you?"
Only now did I realize how late it was, already after 7 PM. I really had to go now, otherwise, there would be trouble at home.
"Hey Jonas, I have to get going."
He looked at me grinning:
"Have you looked out the window, it's pouring rain and a big storm is brewing outside. You can't possibly ride your bike home now. Is there anyone who can pick you up, what about your parents?"
No, my parents were not an option, how could I explain to them what I was doing at my home Bible study at this time.
"No, my parents are not a good idea, I guess I'll have to wait here until the storm is over."
"Hey, I just checked the weather report and they said the storm is supposed to last all night."
"Shit, what do I do now?"
"Hey, it's not a problem, you can stay here overnight, I have a freshly packed toothbrush for guests, towels, underwear, and a T-shirt you can also have from me if you want.
"Hey, don't get me wrong, I would really like to stay over, but my parents would never allow it.
"Really, why not?"
"I'll explain another time."
"Should I ask my parents if they can drive you home?"
"Hey, I'm really uncomfortable with that, but it would be really cool if they could."
"No, it's no problem, they would be happy to," he said and disappeared from the room. Through the door, I heard voices and discussions but couldn't really understand what was being said. Then Jonas came back.
"I'm sorry, but they've already had something to drink, they opened a bottle of wine, but they asked if you want to sleep over at our place, and tomorrow morning they would drive you home if you want. They even offered to call your parents and ask for permission if you like."
"No, definitely not, okay I'll try to work something out so I can stay over here."
First, I called Finn:
"Finally you're calling, I was about to file a missing person report."
"Finn, listen, I have a problem and need your help. I'm still at Jonas', my home Bible study, and after the study, he convinced me to play on the PlayStation and we totally lost track of time. Because of the storm, I can't leave now and will have to stay here overnight, you know what a fuss my parents would make about that, so I want to tell them I'm staying over at your place, just so you know in case they ask you."
"Yeah, okay, I'll keep quiet. But tell me something else, what's going on with you and Rahel, she was acting so weird today when you didn't show up?"
"I'll explain that to you another time, okay, I have to call my parents now. Thanks again, see you tomorrow."
"Okay, all right, no problem, see you tomorrow then, bye."
So, next I dialed our number and listened with a pounding heart to the ringtone.
"Hellmann, hello."
"Ah Daniel, it's you, Luca here."
"Luca, finally, what happened, where are you?"
So I told my brother what had happened, but asked for silence, but I knew I could rely on him, we had covered for each other in front of our parents many times before. Daniel had fortunately managed that my parents hadn't even noticed my absence until now. When I finished my explanation, I asked Daniel to get my father on the phone.
"Dad, can you come, Luca is on the phone."
"Luca, what's going on, where are you, I thought you were in your room."
"No, Dad, I went to Finn's after the lake when the storm suddenly caught us. Is it okay if I sleep over at Finn's tonight?"
Oh God, my heart was pounding in my throat, I sincerely hoped that my father wouldn't get the idea to pick me up there or want to speak to Finn's parents. I was really treading on thin ice with my lie, I knew that, but I couldn't think of anything better on the spur of the moment.
"Did you ask his parents for permission?"
"Yes, Dad, I’m not staying at Finn’s for the first time."
"Alright, but see to it that you're home early tomorrow. By the way, how did your home Bible study go today?"
"Very well, Dad, Jonas is really interested and had a lot of good questions. I think it could work out with him."
"Very good, Luca, I'm proud of you, you've finally overcome your fear of people and are on your way to becoming a good preacher."
"Thanks, Dad, yeah, a home Bible study is really fulfilling. See you tomorrow then, say hi to Mom for me."
Wow, I was really infinitely relieved that my father believed my lie.
"Hey, I didn't know you could lie so well."
Jonas was suddenly standing next to me, grinning.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but you weren't exactly quiet. Why all the fuss, why don't you just tell your parents you're staying here?"
I turned red, feeling caught.
"Well, that's not so easy to explain, my parents would never allow me to sleep at your place because you're not a Witness."
"Really, because I'm not a Witness, you can't stay over at my place?"
"Yeah, we're not supposed to have private dealings with non-Witnesses because they could be a bad influence on us."
"Okay, so I'm a bad influence on you?"
Jonas looked visibly hurt.
"Um, well, no. Oh, I don't know, I'm not saying it's my opinion too. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I like you and enjoy being with you."
Suddenly Jonas was smiling again.
"Yeah, I feel the same way. Thanks for being so honest. There was a knock on the door.
"Yes, come in."
Jonas' mother peeked into the room.
"Hey boys, dinner is ready, are you coming?"
We didn't need to be asked twice, and soon we were sitting at the dining table with four of us.
"Luca, I hope you like lasagna?"
"Yes, I love lasagna. Thank you again for letting me stay over, Mrs. Stahl."
"Hey, call me Elke, please, Mrs. Stahl makes me feel so old," Jonas' mother said, laughing.
"And I'm Peter, by the way, the father of this rascal here. Nice to meet you. Sorry again that we couldn't drive you home. I hope you didn't get into trouble with your parents because of it."
"No, don't worry, I sorted everything out with them, they don't mind me staying here," I lied.
The food was really excellent, and Jonas' parents were very friendly to me.
"How did you two actually meet?" Jonas' mother suddenly wanted to know.
"Oh, Mom, don't always be so curious, but if you really want to know, we met yesterday at the bakery when I was getting rolls. So, we're going to my room, good night my dear annoying parents."
"Good night, my darling, do you need anything else?"
"No, thanks, Mum, we have everything."
"Good night, Luca."
"Good night Mr. and Mrs. Stahl, uh I mean Elke and Peter."
And we disappeared into Jonas's room.
"Sorry that my parents are so curious, they always have to question every friend I bring home."
"Hey, it's okay, I think your parents are really nice."
"Yeah, they're actually quite okay," Jonas said, grinning.
"So, I'm going to jump in the shower quickly, I put a fresh pair of boxers and a towel on the bed for you. I won't be long, then you can take a shower."
"Okay, thanks for everything."
"Don't mention it, I'm glad you're here," he said, and shortly after, I heard the shower running. As I sat there waiting for Jonas to finish showering, my bladder suddenly made itself known with full force. Since I really couldn't hold it any longer, I decided to knock on the bathroom door. Hmm, no reaction, but he probably didn't hear me because the water was still running. So I pressed the door handle and went in; luckily, he hadn't locked it. I hurried to the toilet, stood there, of course lifting the toilet lid first, took out my penis, and began to relieve myself. When I was done, I flushed, and at that moment, as I turned around, Jonas came out of the shower. He was visibly startled and blushed when he saw me. The reason was hard to miss; he had a semi-erection, and it looked like he had just been pleasuring himself. He really looked good naked, well, for a boy. He was slim, had a nicely defined body, a six-pack, and his penis was also of considerable size. I turned beet red and stammered:
"Sorry, I didn't mean to barge in, but you didn't respond to my knocking, and I really had to go."
"Hey, relax, it's no big deal. You can go shower now; I'll bring you the boxers and towel."
I quickly undressed, and just as I was about to step into the shower, Jonas came in with my things.
He stared at me and said, grinning:
"Now we're even, I guess," and handed me my towel.
"Thanks," I said uncertainly and disappeared into the shower.
I wasn't quite sure what to make of his last remark, and it was a bit embarrassing that he had seen me naked, but after all, I had seen him in his birthday suit too. I quickly got ready for bed and went back to the room.
"Hey, I hope you're not mad about earlier."
"No, it's fine, after all, I saw you naked too, so we're kind of even," I said, laughing.
Both of us stood there in boxers and T-shirts, grinning at each other.
"Do you want to play another round on the PlayStation? I'll give you a rematch," Jonas said, grinning.
"Don't brag, I'm going to beat you this time," I replied.
Of course, I lost all the games again, but I was getting better. After two more hours of gaming, we decided to call it a night and go to bed.
"Hey, I'll get you soon, next time it's your turn."
"Yeah, yeah, keep dreaming, maybe you should just pick a decent team like Bayern Munich instead of always choosing Juventus Urin," Jonas said, laughing.
"Hey, take that back," I said and threw a pillow at Jonas's face.
"Just wait, now you're in for it," Jonas said, and what started as harmless ended in a full-blown pillow fight. We really had a lot of fun. In the end, he threw me onto the bed and started tickling me until I couldn't take it anymore.
"Mercy, please, I give up, I can't take it anymore."
Jonas pinned me to the bed, held my hands down, and said:
"Say that I'm the best PlayStation player in the world and Bayern Munich is the coolest team in the world."
"Okay, you're the best PlayStation player in the world, and Bayern Munich is the coolest team, satisfied?"
He still held me down and stared at me. His gaze made me feel both hot and cold at the same time, and I shuddered. His face suddenly came very close to mine, and my heart pounded in my chest. Then he suddenly grinned and said:
"Alright, I'll let it go," and released me.
"Hey, I hope you don't mind sharing a bed with me, because I only have the one."
"No, it's no problem at all. Thanks for letting me sleep here."
"Hey, you don't have to keep thanking me, I'm glad you're here."
Then we went to sleep. Jonas had a large double bed, so there was plenty of room for both of us. We chatted in the dark for quite a while about everything and anything until he suddenly asked me:
"What's it like being a Jehovah's Witness? I mean, do people at school accept it and stuff?"
"Well, what's it like? I don't know, I don't know anything else. At school, I'm an outsider and sometimes get bullied by some. I'm not a wimp or anything, and I don't start crying because of it, but sometimes I wish I could just be like everyone else and not always the odd one out. But luckily, I have my friends; they're also Witnesses, go through some of the same things, and understand me. But without them, I would be really lonely."
"Yes, I know what you mean, not this witness thing, but how it feels to be an outsider. I was also an outsider at my old school and was really badly bullied."
"Really, you and an outsider, I can't imagine that."
"Well, it wasn't always like that, I used to be popular, had a big clique, and then suddenly everything changed, so much so that I was even bullied by my former friends. I couldn't take it there anymore, that's why we moved."
"I'm really sorry for you, but I don't quite understand, why did everything suddenly change? What happened?"
"Don't be mad at me, I'm getting tired, I'll tell you the story another time, okay."
"Hey, no problem, sorry, I didn't mean to be nosy."
"No worries, all good. Sleep well, Luca."
"Yeah, you too."
Shortly after, I heard him breathing regularly, he must have already fallen asleep. I found it hard to fall asleep today, too much was going through my mind