Peaches found the rock and the tree easily. The tree wasn't alone in its poor posture; it highlighted a path of arched trees, sun trickling through the drooping leaves. This path was on the side of a hill, it seemed. Walking down this covered trail, Peaches stumbled against the changing altitude until he eventually reached a level flat of grass surrounded by vegetation. He had to pull back a few guarding branches before he actually saw the spring. A small cliff's overhang framed the water source against a rocky background. Cracks in the stone revealed a sizable collection of moss and vines with weak spouts of water coming from them as well. An offshoot of a strong Sycamore hovered over the surface, and a spear-head shaped boulder was planted nearby the cliff wall. Magnolia bushes decorated the area surrounding the water. Everything sparkled in the partially covered sunlight. It was a sight that was stolen straight from a fairy tale.
Peaches looked around both in awe and nervousness. Whatever beauty was here didn't shroud him from being naked in the open. Or, not open per se, but definitely vulnerable to being discovered. He twiddled his thumbs before approaching the spring's edge. He looked at the reflected image of himself. Worse for wear, he thought. He crouched down, pawed at the water, and determined it was probably fine. No one knew where he was, besides Jimmy, who didn't care enough to spy.
Before he started undressing fully, he took out a handkerchief from his breast pocket. It was frilly and embroidered, a gift that got him laughed at by his eighth grade homeroom. It would be a good enough wash cloth, considering the circumstances. He set the handkerchief aside and took off his belt, then his boots, and then his outerwear, folding them over the hanging Sycamore. It felt nice to be free from the restrictive costume. Every article of clothing peeled off him like vinyl.
He was just finished with taking off his socks, about to cross the threshold of taking his patterned boxers off, when he heard giggles coming from the spring. To his knowledge, water didn't speak. Greatly disturbed, his head whipped around frantically, eyes scanning the scenery to scout the source.
Two figures laid upon the spring's boulder, guys that looked around his age give-or-take. One black haired and the other brown haired. When did they show up? It seemed as if they materialized out of thin air. How long have they been watching? If his face was hot when it was getting blasted by the sun's rays, it was melting now.
"Sorry, I didn't know this spring was occupied," he managed to yell. He found it a win that his voice only cracked 5 times instead of 10.
"Oh, we don't mind," spoke the black-haired one. He was girly, that one. If Peaches didn't know any better, he might've mistaken him for a revived Helen Kane. "We were enjoying the show."
"Enjoyed it so much you started laughing at me…" Peaches said through a strained smile.
"Don't be so insecure, sailor," said the brunette. Despite being huskier in appearance, his voice was nasallier and higher than Mr. Kane's.
"It's rare we see anyone bathe here, y'know," Mr. Kane said in a tone that Peaches thought was supposed to be reassuring. "Especially young, handsome travelers like yourself."
"Handsome?" Peaches repeated under his breath. He's only ever heard his mom call him that.
"We can help you with cleaning up. We've got soap," said the brunette.
Soap would be nice, he thought. He shook his head and looked down at the water. Am I seriously going to take soap from two water weirdos? Ripples reached the edge of the spring Peaches was sitting at. Before long, the pretty face of Mr. Kane was at Peaches's feet, or near, at least, considering Mr. Kane never left the water, staying partially submerged. He had his head resting in his hand, long eyelashes shadowing his cheeks. His cupid lips were slightly parted and upturned. Under the sprinkled sunlight, his skin shimmered. Peaches was reminded of church when looking at Mr. Kane. He shyly turned his head away from the beauty in front of him. A confusing situation just became more perplexing to Peaches, especially considering he realized Mr. Kane was not sporting a swim suit. Butterfly gentle fingertips brush his calf.
"What's wrong?" spoke Mr. Kane. Peaches glanced back and saw him look deliciously heartbroken. Mr. Kane chuckled a bit. "We're all boys here, right?"
"Like being in the locker room." The brunette was now lying on his back on the boulder, facing away from the other two. He was naked too.
Peaches was looking deeply in those caramel rich eyes of Mr. Kane. Wet strands of velvety raven hair were framed by the edges of his eyelids. He wanted to pull the princely move of brushing said strands back in place. Mr. Kane's expression turned from sweet anticipation to a knowing, poised face. He seemed to know his effect on Peaches. "I'm just getting over the shock of this becoming a party, babe," Peaches said, face flushed to hell. "That's all."
He thumbed into his briefs. No point in wearing them if everybody else wasn't. Off they went, although with some fumbles due to the audience. His fingers jittered as he folded his underwear and placed it with the rest of his clothes. Looking over his shoulder, his eyes met with Mr. Kane's. He had an expectant smile. Peaches gave back a very toothy one in response.
"Well, come on, then," said Mr. Kane. He waded farther into the center of the spring, giving Peaches room to join him. He held out his hand for him. Peaches crouched down before taking Mr. Kane's hand in his own, scooting into the water. Mr. Kane's skin felt softer than it looked. Mr. Kane guided the two closer to the middle. It was deep enough, where they were, that the water came up to Peaches's chest. Mr. Kane took Peaches's other hand, starting to hold both of them under water. It felt great to be in the spring. "Not that bad, now, is it?"
"No," Peaches sheepishly said. Mr. Kane was rubbing his right thumb on Peaches's hand. He felt his heart skip a beat. "Uhm, the water's warm."
"It is, isn't it?"
Quiet filled the air between them. There was a nagging question that Peaches has been wanting to ask. "Why are you two here? Like at the spring?"
Mr. Kane let go of Peaches's hands. It was a decision that made Peaches want to scream. "We just like to swim, y'know, and the water's nice here. Close by to where we hang too." Mr. Kane smirked. "It's a great place for a rinse-off."
A twinge of uneasiness at the phrase 'rinse-off' turned in his stomach. He wished Mr. Kane was still holding his hand to comfort that feeling, but, at the same, he kind of didn't now. "I forgot my wash cloth back there," he blurted out.
"That's okay," said Mr. Kane, going back to holding Peaches's hands. The unease subsided a bit. "We got our own cloths, y'know. You could use one of ours."
"Okay." He was looking into Mr. Kane's eyes again. He noticed they twinkled under the golden hour sun. This was confusing. This entire situation was confusing but especially this. Looking at another man like he was a girl, wanting him to hold his hands. Jesus, what's wrong with him? Why was he going along with all this? He tore his eyes away from Mr. Kane. He was trying to look anywhere but at him. He looked at the surrounding greenery, the cliff's rocky belly, the boulder that had nobody on it now- hey, wait a minute. "Uh, where'd your friend go?"
"Behind you."
Peaches felt a mighty force slam down on his shoulders. His vision was shrouded by bubbles. His foot slipped on the spring's muddy ground, causing him to fall deeper in the water. He scratched and clawed at any surface, any body, to pull himself back up. Despite the strong hand on his head, he kicked himself upwards off of Mr. Kane's. He was able to breach the surface just enough to cough out the water he'd unknowingly gulped. He was forced back down into the depths. He swung his arms wildly. A painful strain was in his chest and neck now. Fingers gripped around face. He thrashed his legs against Mr. Kane. He then turned his head and bit down as hard as he could against those fingers. Something not quite like blood coated his tongue. Those fingers pulled away.
"Gah! Feisty little thing!" yelled the brunette, distorted and reverbed under the water.
Peaches climbed up the brunette's body, took a quick breath, and shouted as loud as he could, "Jim-"
Peaches was cut off by a grab of his hair and a backwards dunk into the water. He tried to twist out from under the grip but a kick in the ribs stopped that plan. More air escaped his lungs. His attackers were putting their full weight on him, pinning him as much as they could to the spring's floor. They were holding his head in a way that he couldn't turn to bite at. Any clawings he got in were met with only flinches. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck! An involuntary gasp made him gulp even more water. His chest had a deep insidious burning. Tears formed in his eyes. He was running out of energy fast. His kicking turned to peddling and his scratching turned to desperate grabbing. It was becoming harder and harder to keep his mouth closed. He was going to die. Pressure in his throat made his teeth pop open. He didn't want to die. Another flood entered into his gullet. He really didn't want to. His vision blurred at the edges.
At some point, a weightless sleepiness came over him. It was like he stayed in the sun for too long. Instead of blacking out, his vision turned white. Actually, he started to see an encroaching face. It was impressionist, not quite clear, as if he was looking at it through frosted glass. He couldn't tell much of that figure's features -- except a smile. Suddenly, a great calm washed over him. No more adrenaline, no more fight. The figure got closer. There was a radiance to it despite it being indecipherable. It was as if this figure was cradling him. The figure started saying something through those upturned lips. Peaches couldn't hear it, though. It all faded into ringing. He imagined it must be very sweet things. His eyelids were heavy. Sleep was what he wanted. He figured whoever this was wanted him to sleep too. It would be better if he was resting than whatever hell situation he was just in. His eyes fluttered shut. He could feel himself shrink, falling backwards into a depth he did not know. Despite that, he could feel the figure draw close to his nose, then his mouth, and then his ear.
Even through the ringing, he could hear it whisper gently, "Peaches."