Sydney/Taree Australia
Part 6

"You're a bad influence," Col laughed as we took our seats, together with Jeff, Phillip and the other two guys, who introduced themselves as John and Alan. "I can't believe we actually did that!"

"Happens all the time back home."

"Fair dinkum?"

"Sure."

"You serious? In pubs?"

"I'm under age," I said as I sipped my beer, "so I'm not sure about that. But there's a pedestrian crossing near my house, and we do rad stuff there."

"Yeah, right, Daniel," Jeff chuckled, "tell us another one, mate."

"It's true! My buds and I have done it there a whole bunch of times!"

"What?"

"Everything."

"Everything??? You mean... like fucking? Whoa! On a pedestrian crossing? You've gotta be kidding!"

"Not during the day," I explained before taking another sip of VB, then swallowing. "We do it late at night... but there's a big yellow light that overhangs the crossing. It's kinda scary, but it's totally fucking awesome. Woohoo! Nothing beats cumming when you're somewhere you're not supposed to be. Y'know, kinda like that forbidden fruit thingy."

"Far out! I don't know whether to believe you or not."

"I believe him," Phillip cooed. "He's the most amazing person I've ever met."

"That's 'cause you haven't met my buds back home. They're all totally rad guys. So are Kyle, Paul, and Steve... they're from South Africa. We met 'em during a school swim meet a couple of years ago. Had a fucking wicked time."

"So how come this kinda stuff happens to you all the time?" John asked. "Nothing like this ever happens here, 'cept for tonight."

"Maybe you're looking in the wrong places, dude. I met Col and Jeff at Bondi Beach, not in a gay pub."

"Yeah, but we met you guys here."

"It's like you said, man, nothing like this ever happens here, 'cept for tonight. Go figure."

As the convo continued, and Marilyn replenished our drinks, I discovered that Phillip, John, and Alan were pretty much your average guys. Phillip worked in a bank, John was a hairdresser, and Alan was a clerk in an office. As for Col, he was an apprentice mechanic, which explained why his old Holden ute was in such good condition, or 'nik' as he called it, and Jeff worked in a hardware store.

Meantime, Phillip was doing his best to chat me up. He wanted a lot more than I was prepared to give, as in being friends. "Hey, dude, I'm going back to the States in about a week, and before that I'm going to Taree, so... y'know..."

"It's not fair! Guys like you don't grow on trees, y'know. I've waited an entire lifetime to meet someone like you!"

"So eighteen years is an entire lifetime? Anyway, what about John and Alan here? You've got two friends you didn't have before. Right, guys?"

They all nodded, but they didn't seem overly impressed with each other. I guessed the reason for that was 'cause they were all kinda girly, and preferred macho guys like Col, Jeff and me. So why didn't I prefer guys who were girly? For me, a guy had to be a guy. Guys like Col and Jeff were my style of dude... surfers, fit, healthy, daring, confident. Those were the qualities I found sexy in a guy. If I wanted a girl, I'd get a real one.

I was also interested to know why Col and Jeff had never done anything before like they'd experienced that night. "Are you kidding, Daniel? It was fucking outrageous! I'm talking totally outasight! We just followed your lead."

"It was fun, though. Right?"

"Totally fucking rad," Col cracked. "You wanna know something? I'm gonna wake up tomorrow morning and I'm not gonna believe any of this. Not a damn thing!"

Jeff agreed. He shook his mop of shiny black hair, and added, "It'll be like some kinda freaky dream. Do you believe this? I mean, hey, here I am looking at that dance floor right now. Less than an hour ago I was standing there in my birthday suit and fucking Alan's face, with two or three hundred people watching us." Then he turned his attention to me with a goofy grin. "And it's all your fault, mate!"

"No wukkers, dude. It's all free of charge."

After a while, I figured Phillip finally got the message that I wasn't interested in being his bosom buddy, which pissed him off big time. But, hey, what was I supposed to do? Lie? John and Alan weren't exactly Col and Jeff's idea of bosom buddies either, so it was only a matter of time before our three guests decided to split and mingle with the crowd.

From time to time, some other guy would approach our table, and offer to buy us drinks. But it was becoming increasingly obvious to me that they wanted more than our thanks, so I would decline their offer.

"Hey, what's up?" Col asked. "They're free drinks, man."

"It's cool if all they wanna do is gawk at our pecs or whatever, but they want more than that. And I'm not just talking about butt. Y'know? They wanna get cosy. Don't get me wrong, guys. It's been wicked fun tonight, and a totally rad experience, but I don't think this kinda thing is my scene. No offence."

"It's not really our scene either, mate. We just do it for kicks. But you're right. Most of those guys figure buying us drinks is a sure-fire leg-opener, especially now that they've seen us fucking faces on the dance floor."

"Maybe that was a mistake."

"I wouldn't mind making the same mistake again," Jeff cracked, causing us all to dissolve into hysterical laughter.

At about midnight, we all agreed we needed a bit of fresh air, so we collected our shirts from Marilyn. "You're leaving already? The night is young!"

"The guys wanna show me around."

"I'll bet that's not all they wanna show you," she winked. "Now make sure you pay us another visit before you head back to the States. And thanks tons for the show tonight. You guys were absolutely sensational!"

Exiting the pub, and being back in Oxford Street was like entering another world. We were back to reality. Pedestrians, cars, buildings. "So what now?" I asked.

"Harry's."

"Jeez, not another gay bar. I don't think I could handle it."

"Nope," my tall, blonde bud smiled. "Just a bit of local Aussie culture. You haven't seen Oz 'til you've seen Harry's. Besides, I'm starving."

Starving? He must've been talking about a restaurant. Cool with me. I was starving, too! And I needed something to soak up the excess VB bloating my gut.

The taxi pulled up outside a trailer parked near... "Uh, how do you pronounce it again?"

"Woolloomooloo."

"What kinda name is that?"

"It's an ancient Aboriginal word."

"Meaning?"

"Meat pies."

Well, as it turned out, Woolloomooloo was a suburb of East Sydney, not far from Kings Cross, and was home to part of Australia's naval fleet. It was also home to Harry's Cafe de Wheels, hence the trailer. It had been an Aussie icon for several decades, and served hot dogs, meat pies, and other fast food to everybody from the rich and famous to the down and outs. Tables and chairs? Yeah, right. You had to stand on the street or sit in your car to eat your meal. But the place - if you could call it that - was packed with people.

"What's this green stuff?"

"You can't eat a Harry's meat pie without peas," Col explained.

"Peas? They don't look like peas."

"They're those hard ones that are soaked overnight, boiled, and mashed. And the red stuff is tomato sauce."

"Looks like ketchup."

"Same thing. Taste good?"

I had to admit that it tasted fucking wicked, and was a welcome addition to my stomach, which was awash with beer. "Yeah! Mmmmm! Awesome!" Trying to stop the meat and gravy from dribbling down my chin was a bit of a prob, though. But, hey, this was Oz, so no wukkers.

After Harry's, we wandered around the bright lights of Kings Cross, checking out the sights in Darlinghurst Road, and being accosted by spruikers every few yards, trying to get us to visit their strip joints. "Hey, guys. Lots of cool, sexy girls. Big tits. You wanna see of a bit of real fanny? Step inside."

And it wasn't just the spruikers who were harassing us. Every so often, we'd be approached by a prostitute. "Hey, gorgeous, you wanna girl?"

"Uh, no thanks."

"No problem. You wanna boy? I can fix it, no worries."

"I've got two already."

It was strange to see a McDonalds amongst all the razzmatazz. The whole street was a bunch of contradictions. Banks, supermarkets, restaurants, and gift shops side by side with strip clubs, pool halls, and cheap rooms for rent. But it was an amazing street, full of bustling life and energy. Not to mention tourists.

At the other end of Darlinghurst Road was a place known as "The Wall", where boy prostitutes plied their trade.

"Fuck off, man," one of them said. "This is my spot."

"Chill, dude. I'm just visiting."

It was amazing to see expensive cars like Jaguars, Mercs and Beemers pull over to the kerb. The passenger-side window would glide down silently, and some kid would poke his head in. A few seconds later, he'd open the door, and be whisked away to who-knew-where.

"What kinda customers you get?"

"You American?"

"Yeah... Florida. And don't say it."

"What?"

"Cool accent."

"I get all kinds. Mostly rich guys. Lawyers, doctors, bankers, married guys, tourists... Americans like you, only older. You name it."

"You a druggie?"

"You got any?"

"Sorry, dude. Don't use. Hey, you don't need this fucking shit, man. What the fuck are you doing here?"

"I don't need a fucking lecture, OK?" he replied in a voice that hadn't even broken yet. "I get enough of that crap from the cops and the welfare guys already."

"How old are you? 15? 16?"

"13."

"Fucking hell. You look older. You're gonna be 50 before you're 20."

Our convo was cut short as a big, black car pulled up beside us. The kid darted to the passenger-side door, spoke a few words, and was gone.

"Why doesn't somebody do something about this?" I asked my two Aussie buds as we wandered back toward the main strip, where we would catch a taxi home.

"Like what? Outlaw drugs? I think that's been done already, mate."

"Fucking pushers. I'd shoot the fucking lot if I had my way."

"It's supply and demand, mate. No demand, no supply. So the prob's not just about drugs, it's about human nature. Anyway, think yourself lucky you haven't been caught up in all this shit. Not all these kids are from broken homes or whatever. They're from all kinds of backgrounds, good and bad. You read about it all the time in the papers."

"I wanted to help that kid."

"He'd rip you off. Trust me. That's what they're like. Drugs rule. That's all they fucking know or wanna know, and the only people they bond with are guys like themselves. It takes professional people to get those sick kids back on the straight and narrow. So don't sweat it, Daniel. You're not responsible for the whole human race."

"It was great to meet you guys. Are most Aussies like you?"

"Most but not all... just like any other country."

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