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Chapter 6 Glorious Mud Wrestle Becomes Worst Day Ever

(This story was inspired by Muddybootsnlevis' excellent "The Mud Business". My story and the characters in it are all 100% fiction with one exception - like my story's narrator Jason, I wished I could work at Muddybootsnlevis' fictional Drilling Mud Company)

It was my last day on the job. It was just as hard, dangerous, and muddy as the first two days, but I hated leaving it. Like the first two days, I was feeling hard much of the day, constantly hoping the guys wouldn't notice my bulge. I knew they wouldn't understand.

When we were wrapping up for the day, Jax came over to me. "You've done a great job, Jason."

"Thanks. I've really liked working with you guys."

"Our company needs someone like you on a different crew, but I know you plan to move on. Is there any chance I can talk you into staying here for six months?"

It was so tempting. I'd loved working here. But I had to be back at work in California in a little over two weeks.

"I've got to get back at my regular job. Would two weeks be OK?"

"Afraid not. They want someone who can commit for longer. If you change your mind after you leave, text me ASAP. If the job's still open, it's yours." I thanked him and we shook hands. I hated saying no to the job, but I had no choice. I had to return to my regular job.

Jax and me were just stepping away from each other when something unexpected happened. We were all pretty muddy, especially me, but not nearly as muddy as you see folks on UMD or like I was with Adam and the guys in the Sierra. We looked almost clean in comparison, just wet with a lot of mud splashed on our clothes. That's when it got wild. Rob's a big guy. Not fat, or super tall, but with bulging muscles. He could knock nearly anyone over. Rob tackled me, sending me flying chest first into a mud bog.

Then Chris jumped in and grabbed Rob. Chris was strong too, not as strong as Rob, but pretty damned strong, and then all three of us were wrestling in the mud, rolling around it, loving the mud and the wet. When one of us got some hands free, he'd smash mud over one of the other two. It was just a mud flying free for all, while Jax watched and smiled. I think he knew what was coming.

If I thought I was hard before, I was way harder now. Thankfully I was coated in so much mud that they couldn't see the bulge. It must have been huge. We were all wrestling, playing really, just three big kids having a blast in a great big mud bog.

I don't remember how long we wrestled in that bog. Not long enough. But finally we were laughing so much that we couldn't wrestle any more. We just lay in the mud, laughing like fools. Then Rob got up, grabbed the bucket, filled it to the top with very gloppy mud, and advanced in a mock threatening manner toward Jax. Jax pretended to be scared and cried out "You don't dare!" but I could see he wanted it. I wondered how often these guys did this. It was like it was a game they'd played before and loved playing.

Rob dumped the entire bucket over Jax's head, then Chris got up and together with Rob wrestled Jax into the mud. The three wrestled until Jax was almost completely covered in mud. I jumped up, filled the bucket with mud, and poured it over the one part of Jax that was still somewhat clean. The four of us were rolling in the mud, more playing than wrestling, and laughing until we were we were just four damned fools laughing in the mud. We couldn't stop laughing. Every time one of us said or did anything, we'd laugh uncontrollably all over again. We were the muddiest, happiest damned fools anyone ever saw.

I'd never been so happy as I was at that moment. I'd never worked with better coworkers. I could see they did this often. It wasn't a fetish with them, it was just good clean, muddy fun. They were just letting loose like kids. You almost wouldn't have to pay me to work a job with guys like this.

Finally, though, it was time to clean up. They were planning to take me out to the bar tonight to give me a going away party, though really, this muddy play was way better than any party anyone could give me. I'd never forget this.

We took turns hosing off each other's clothes, then stripped and hosed off each other's bodies. At first, I was scared. When I pulled down my shorts, my cock was erect and stiff like a baseball bat, so stiff you could almost bat a home run with it. There was no way they wouldn't see. But no one said anything. They all ignored it, even when Rob blasted it with water from the hose aimed directly at it. I jumped and yelped loudly. The guys broke out laughing, but it was friendly laughter, just guys who worked hard together and respected each other. I'd never experienced anything like this comradeship.

We got clean clothes from our trucks, dressed, and Jax treated us all to dinner at a pizza place. Pizza never tasted so good. I never felt so good. The last couple of hours had been the best of my life. These were the best friends of my life.

But it was all about to come crashing down.

After cleaning up and getting some dinner, we went to the bar for my farewell party. They wanted to send me off right. And as we entered the bar, Jax said, "If you change your mind about that job, Jason, text me immediately. You're a solid worker." After briefly pausing, he added laughing "and next time I promise you, you're going to get even muddier." That sounded like a great promise to me. We both laughed. If only I could stay.

It all felt so great. I'd never felt so at home with guys like this. I was one of them. I belonged. Totally unlike that bar in Humboldt. This was fun. Couldn't have been better. They were buying me drinks. They wouldn't let me pay. We were drinking and I played a mean game of pool with Rob and Chris. The music was loud and fellowship fantastic. I had a lot to drink and finally needed to pee, so I went to the men's room.

That's when everything went south.

From inside the men's room, I heard fighting in the bar. Just a little at first. Then more. Then furniture being thrown. Shouting. Cursing. It was getting big. Not just a fight. A brawl. I haven't been in a fight since I was thirteen and wasn't going to start now. I waited in the men's room, wondering when it was safe to go out. A few other guys came in and joined me. They didn't want to get caught in a bar brawl either. After a while, we heard sirens. The sirens got closer, then stopped outside, and then the sounds of fighting stopped.

When we left the men's room, police were in the bar. Rob and the guys were nowhere to be seen. After checking my id and asking some questions, the police let me go and I returned to Rob's.

He was waiting for me. He had a black eye and a bloodied lip. And he looked pissed. "Where'd you go, asshole?" I didn't know what to say. "We needed you. We trusted you."

"I was in the men's room"

"Yeah, we know." He punched me hard in the shoulder. It almost knocked me down. He was strong. Massive muscles. "Hiding in the men's room. Pussy." He punched my shoulder again. He wanted me to fight. He punched my other shoulder. I fell to the ground. I was pissed. Every cell in my body was calling for me get up and fight back, but I wasn't going to play that game.

"Get up"

I didn't move. I just lay there.

"Be a man. Get up and fight. Fight goddamn it." When I didn't get up, he gave me a look of utter disgust, spit on the ground, and walked back to his house, never looking back.

Maybe I didn't belong here after all.

Thinking back on it today, I feel horribly conflicted. I'll always defend my friends. Always. I should have been paying more attention that night. If I saw someone attack Rob or any of the guys, I'd be there for them. No matter what. But I was in the men's room. I didn't go there to hide. I just went there to pee. Probably I should have come out to see how my friends were. I would have done anything to defend those guys if I saw them being attacked. But what if they started the fight? I'll never know how it started. It's haunted me ever since.

Maybe I should have stood up when Rob told me to. Maybe he wouldn't have beat the crap out of me. Maybe he was just testing me. I'll never know. I'll fight to defend myself and my friends, I just will not fight for no reason, especially my friend, and definitely not a guy as massively strong as Rob. But it's haunted me ever since, wondering whether I should have stood up and confronted him.

I left the next morning, feeling too down to check email. I did leave a note on Rob's windshield, apologizing and thanking him, but I knew he would just tear it up.

As I drove, I started thinking that maybe I should just give up on this quest. Forget mud. Just find a beautiful park somewhere, set up my tent, and go hiking all day like I used to with Melinda. I was on my three week accumulated vacation for god's sake. I was nuts to be spending it doing hard, dangerous work. I spent the rest of the morning driving, thinking, wondering if this whole journey was nuts. I was feeling more down than I'd ever felt in my life.
I entered a small town, where I filled the tank, got some lunch, and went to a laundromat to wash my muddy clothes. While I was there, I checked my email. There was email from both Axel and Melinda.

Jason-
Love the pix. Your body's even better than I remembered. Maybe we can work out in the gym together sometime. I could use some tips. BTW you look even better in grease than in mud. I don't know anyone in the city who does stuff like what you do. A real man.
Axel

Then I got a second email from him, sent only a few minutes later.

Jason-
I know you probably feel a little strange about us being in bed. I remember how it was for me my first time. I felt really weird. It's natural. I think about you all the time. I've never met a man like you. I've been waiting until I was sure to tell you this. I'm sure now. I love you.
Axel

Axel's second email stunned me. I'm straight. I think. But I had sex with him. And I think about him all the time. I like him. A lot. So what am I? There was also an email from Melinda:

Jason-
You've changed. You seem freer now. Love the pix. You're not the same Jason as five years ago. I love the change. Keep sending me pix. Tell me more about yourself these days.
Melinda

We had something special going five years ago. But we had an argument. I don't remember about what. Something stupid. I don't even remember why we split up. I couldn't stop thinking about either email. I hit the road again, not sure where I was going, sometimes thinking about finding a nice campground where I could hide for the next two weeks, but also thinking about Axel was I really gay? and Melinda and the great times we used to have.

I was driving a two lane road, out in the middle of nowhere, when I saw an SUV broken down on the side of the road. It was towing a really bizarre looking ATV on a trailer. I'd never seen an ATV like it. A guy was looking under the SUV's hood. A family was inside the SUV. They were far from the nearest town. There probably wasn't any cell signal here.

I wasn't going to just leave them stranded here, so I pulled over to help. It would be the start of a whole new adventure in the mud. I'll write about it in the next chapter, Mud Park.