Chapter 1 - The Journey Begins My name is Jono Banks this is my story of discovery on my journey home. First I should tell you a bit about myself. I try to live life by a short list of rules that yes, I frequently violate, often to my detriment: 1. There is a God. 2. I am not God. 3. Answer all questions in brevity. Don't babble, or offer extra informat...
Permit me to introduce myself. My name is Jake. Having just celebrated my 18th birthday, my family decided to throw a grandiose party. While I was not keen on the idea of a celebration, I was happy that I would be in the company of some good friends. My parents were well off and loved me very much. I was an only child and as such I needed to be loved by ever...
Chapter 9 - The Prince & The Stallion We were awakened Tuesday morning to the annoying electronic alarm coming from Tam's chronograph wristwatch. I never understood the allure of the digital watch. Give me an old Timex any day. I use the term 'we' very loosely, because it was actually I who was awakened by the alarm. I also knew Tam had a full day of evalu...
I was a tourist staying in New York for a week, I was having fun with friends and all, but it came down with me wanting more then friends. I took a taxi from Hamilton Heights down to Central Park, not knowing that I only had seven dollars in my pocket. I was in the taxi with a man born in Saudi Arabia, he was a nice man, maybe thirty years old by looking a...
Chapter 5 - An Introduction To My Father I awoke to Tamam lightly rubbing the skin between my eyes. I nuzzled deep into the fabric of his shirt deeply inhaling his scent. "Jono, you must wake now. We must dress you for dinner with the family." I grumbled and whined, "Food is overrated, but family time is not." I discovered my sweet Arabian ninja already ha...
It started innocently enough: We were sitting in his living room drinking wine and Danny was telling me about his high school wrestling team and how he won forty-eight straight matches. His eyes wore a glazed-over expression as he talked about his glory days. "...and out of those forty-eight matches, I pinned thirty-one of my opponents in under a minute in...
Chapter 6 - Jono & The Gilded Cage We finished our meal and walked out to the Range Rover. Reza climbed in the back with me. When Tam put the key in the ignition there was an odd sound a funny electronic warning tone. He swore colorfully as he picked up a handset. He called the mobile operator to retrieve his message then dialed the number. "Benjamin I have...
I tied the belt of the pink silk robe around my waist, took a deep breath, and knocked on Mister T's door. He'd told me to knock on his door at 10 o'clock, and I waited until the last possible second. "Come in!" I heard him yell. I wasn't surprised to see Billy there. It did surprise me to see what he was wearing: a shiny, black leather thong. When he turn...
This is loosely based on true happenings and therefore, personal names and details of characters have been changed. However, the location and the situation of the location are true, in my opinion that is. Also, note that while the situation is true, the storyline is not all true. I just wanted to touch the topic of LGBT situation in my country and I needed t...
I had two reasons to celebrate: it was my 21st birthday and I was finally leaving hell-on-earth—Saudi Arabia. I was in the customs line at the airport and couldn't wait to get on the airplane. The past year meant nothing to me except now I could go home and afford to put myself through college. One year of hard work and solitude; I drove a road-grader 10-12...