The Color of Spring Lightning

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

VERHEAD

, thin, cottony clouds blew across the bright blue

sky in frilly wisps, but Kody couldn’t appreciate such beauty
at the moment. Where had the storm gone? Each nerve in his

body screamed with agony. He squinted his eyes closed
again. It hurt even to breathe. He gasped from the effort.

The crackling noise and flash of light drew Jarvis’s

attention from farther up the sunny hill. He saw the figure
crumpling to the ground and ran toward it.

“Gads! Are you alive, sir?” a light baritone voice yelled

from somewhere to Kody’s right. He opened his eyes and
tried to roll over to find the source of the voice but then
closed his eyes. The sun just seemed too painfully bright.

“Hold still, sir,” the man’s voice said, very close now.

Kody felt some sort of cloth draping over him and tried to sit
up, but he slumped back into the grass. His muscles
resisted moving and thrummed with throbbing pain from the
effort.

“No, just lie back. Clear your head,” the man’s voice

advised.

Jarvis gazed down at the disheveled man twitching with

obvious pain. He glanced up at the sky, looking for any signs
of that peculiar lightning striking again.

Kody finally managed to open his eyes and keep them

open. He stared up into the face of, he would guess, a thirty-
year-old man with huge, bushy yellow sideburns. The silly
facial hair and rounded hat the man wore almost made Kody
laugh. But the intensely worried look in the man’s honey-

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

colored eyes and the growing throb of Kody’s pounding head
stole any humor from the moment.

“Can you speak? Are you injured?” Jarvis asked as he

glanced  into  the  victim’s  eyes  and  checked  for  abnormal
pupil  dilations.  He  had  read  somewhere  that  was  what
physicians  checked  for  in  cases  of  drug  overdose,  but  he
wasn’t sure how applicable it might be. The man’s blue eyes
looked to be in order, in any case.

Kody tried to answer, but his voice fell out in a strangled

sort of wheeze. He shook his head.

“Lie still and collect yourself, then. I am Banks, Jarvis

Banks, good sir,” he said, looking Kody over for any signs of
injury.

Kody cleared his throat. “Kody… I’m Kody,” he managed

to whisper.

“Kody?” Jarvis asked with a hint of doubt in his voice.

“That’s quite an unusual name, Mr. Kody.”

“No, first name. Kody Higgins.” As the throbbing in his

head eased, Kody tried to sit up again.

“I daresay, what cruel parents to burden one with such

a name. Just move slowly, Mr. Higgins. Perhaps we should
summon a physician?”

“Physician?” Kody asked, puzzled at the man’s strange

choice of words. His head still felt all mushy, leaving
everything off balance. He realized he was draped in some
sort of trench coat, presumably Jarvis’s.

“Yes, just to verify you bear no serious injuries from the

ordeal.”

Kody glanced around the city park. In a way he couldn’t

quite put his finger on, things just seemed to be… not quite
right. The dark storm seemed to have suddenly vanished and
left behind a nice, sunny day. “What ordeal?”

“Goodness, Mr. Higgins, do you not recall? Why, the

lightning, of course. I saw the flash and turned to see you

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

slump to the ground when the thunderous noise struck. It
was such a frightful sight, I feared I would find you dead.”

Kody probed his memory for some reason why he would

be in the park in the middle of the day. He did recall going to
work  earlier  that  morning,  but  after  that  he…  he  what?  He
couldn’t  seem  to  collect  his  memories  of  the  events  after
getting  to  his  office.  “I…  I  don’t  remember  what  happened,”
he finally admitted.

“Don’t strain yourself, then, let’s rest a bit. Are you in

any pain?” Jarvis asked while glancing at Kody’s arm.

Kody followed Jarvis’s eyes to his wrist and saw the

large, reddened patch of skin starting to blister, like a bad
sunburn. “Not really, at least not yet.”

“We should be thankful for that much, at least. It does

appear most of your clothing was destroyed.”

Kody looked under the trench coat. His T-shirt and

cargo  shorts  did  look  a  bit  singed,  but  they  appeared  to  be
mostly intact, so Jarvis’s comment just left him confused. He
looked over Jarvis again. His forest-green costume of a three-
piece suit fashioned from some sort of wool looked too formal
for  such  a  warm  spring  day.  He  must  be  on  his  way  to  a
wedding or something.

“You may wear my coat until you can return home and

dress yourself again. The coat won’t cause as much of a
scandal, I venture.”

With growing awareness, Kody consciously noticed how

quiet  the  world  seemed.  Faint  clickety-clacks  and  an
indistinct young shouting voice were the only sounds around
him. A sudden strange chill slithered through Kody. He took
a  deep  breath  and  looked  around  again.  The  park  didn’t
appear any different, but he realized the city around it was…
gone.  Well,  not  gone,  exactly.  The  brownstones  along
Penbroke  Avenue  were  still  there,  looking  somehow  shiny
and new. But the Conner Tower, the Lentura Building, hell,
all  of  the  skyscrapers  were  missing.  Taking  a  closer  look  at

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

the avenue, Kody couldn’t find any cars or trucks at all.
Instead, horses and carriages flowed and hurried along the
road. “What the fuck?”

“Sir,” Jarvis said sharply. “I can make some allowance

for your recent trauma, but please refrain from such course
language  in  the  future.”  Jarvis  looked  over  Mr.  Higgins
again,  noticing  the  shorter  cut  of  his  hair.  Maybe  he  was
recently  released  from  military  service?  That  could  account
for his gruff language and sense of confusion.

“Oh, sorry,” Kody muttered as he shook his head. He

looked  over  at  Jarvis  again.  With  that  hat  and  those  bushy
sideburns  that  stretched  all  the  way  down  to  his  jaw  and
pointed  forward  at  the  bottom….  The  icy  chill  coursed
through  him  again.  Kody  noticed  the  slightest  wear  around
the cuffs of Jarvis’s suit coat. He didn’t fit into those strange
clothes  like  someone  wearing  a  costume.  Jarvis  seemed  too
comfortable in the green garb.

Light laughter drew Kody’s attention down to the street.

Three  young  women  in  long  dresses  were  looking  toward
him.  The  trio  stood  at  least  seventy-five  yards  away;  their
laughs  and  voices  would  only  be  able  to  carry  that  far  in  a
strangely  quiet  world.  One  of  the  women  pointed  her  frilly
umbrella at them before the gaggle burst into more giggles.

“We should get you home, before drawing too much

attention. Can you stand?”

“I think,” Kody said as he leaned forward. Jarvis offered

his hand and helped him to his feet. He quickly helped Kody
get his arms in the trench coat.

“Where do you reside?” Jarvis asked while buttoning the

coat around Kody.

“Just off MLK,” Kody replied, gaping at the horses in the

bricked street.

Jarvis puzzled over the strange sounding abbreviation.

“Where again?” he asked politely.

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“Martin Luther King Boulevard, a few blocks over there.”

Realizing he was barefoot, Kody looked down and saw two
melted plastic blobs, presumably the remains of his beige
flip-flops.

Jarvis frowned. “I fear you may be more addled than we

thought. There is no such street here in Waldenburg.” He
glanced over Kody with concern. “Perhaps you are traveling?”

Kody felt that spooky chill again. “Uh, yeah, I’m

traveling, I guess,” he said, trying to recover.

“Then where are you boarding?”
Kody squinted, not knowing how to answer. This was

such an impossible situation, but the nagging cold of reality
couldn’t be ignored. This wasn’t his Waldenburg. At least it

wasn’t the city Kody had grown up in; not yet, anyway.

Watching Kody’s confusion, Jarvis motioned toward the

street.  “I  dwell  just down  there,”  he  said,  pointing  to  one  of
the  brownstones  on  Penbroke.  “Let’s  get  you  indoors  while
we  sort  out  this  situation.”  Suddenly  feeling  strangely
protective,  Jarvis  wanted  to  take  the  man’s  arm  and  lead
him,  but  he  quickly  abandoned  the  idea,  knowing  public
decorum must be maintained.

“Okay.” Kody followed closely behind Jarvis down to the

street. He kept his eyes focused on Jarvis’s back, trying to
ignore the unfamiliar era around him. He had to keep raising
his gaze up, because his eyes kept wandering down to
Jarvis’s nicely toned butt.

As they neared the street, Kody flinched when the

stench  of  manure  and  waste  clawed  its  way  up  his  nose.
How  did  Jarvis  not  notice  this  horrible  stink?  Kody  looked
down  to  where  he  expected  the  curb  to  be,  but  only  saw  a
narrow  ditch  oozing  with  dirty-looking  water  running  along
the  bricked  road.  He  was  obviously  in  a  time  before  the
glories of concrete covered the city.

They navigated across the road, carefully placing each

step to avoid the horse dung and other unpleasantness

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

scattered around on the bricks. Kody was ever conscious of
being bare-footed.

On the corner, a young boy barked, “Blockade

continues! Cuba surrounded!” as he offered newspapers to
the pedestrians around him. The boy’s barks seemed loud in
this place, with only the clickety-clack of the horses’ hooves
on bricks and the swoosh-swoosh of carriage wheels to
compete with. Without the hums of engines, air conditioners,
snatches of music from radios, and various other electronic
beeps and honks, the soundscape seemed vacant.

Kody glanced up from the bricked road when they

crossed another ditch and was briefly surprised to see street
lamps stationed at each walkway. But he soon noticed the
globes had no light bulbs inside. The lights must be gas-
powered.

Jarvis led them up the steps of his building and ushered

Kody inside. They stepped into an entry hallway, with some
sort of living room on the left and a dining room on the right.
Instead  of  that  stale-attic  odor  Kody  expected  from  such
buildings,  it  smelled  of  plaster  and  wood  varnish.  As  Jarvis
removed  his  hat  and  placed  it  on  an  empty  hook  among  a
row  of  various  other  hats,  Kody  breathed  in  the  fresh  “new
house” aroma.

This smelled much better than the street. Kody smiled

as he looked Jarvis over. Under that hat, Jarvis had hidden
a full head of flaxen-colored hair, trimmed in a crew-cut
style. Kody had always had a soft spot for blonds.

“This seems like a nice home. How long have you lived

here?” Kody asked as Jarvis led him past the dining room
and into a small kitchen area. Jarvis motioned for him to sit
on one of the stools of a small prep table, which looked to
function like a kitchen island.

Jarvis went to the sink, trying to keep his mind on the

task at hand. He retrieved a basin from the cabinet and

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

started pumping the spigot handle to fill it. He could not
afford to entertain such carnal thoughts about this man.

“You must be feeling better,” Jarvis said as he pumped

more water into the basin with the old-fashioned sink spigot.
“I  do  believe  that  was  the  first  complete  sentence  you  have
spoken  since  we  met.”  He  brought  the  basin  to  the  table
before retrieving some cotton towels from one of the drawers.
“To  answer  your  question,  I’ve  been  here  since  the  building
was completed; just less than a year ago.”

Jarvis moistened one of the cotton towels in the basin of

water  before  leaning  forward  for  a  closer  look.  He  pushed
back  the  man’s  dark-brown  wavy  locks,  using  the  towel  to
wipe away the dirt and grass along Kody’s forehead and left
temple while trying not to gaze too much into his baby-blue
eyes.  Jarvis  suddenly  stopped  and  studied  Kody’s  face
intently, trying not to notice how cherubic he looked.

Kody felt like some sort of lab animal under scrutiny

before he saw a brief hint of something pass in Jarvis’s gaze.
Was it admiration, maybe?

“Mr. Higgins, may I inquire of your age?”
“I’m twenty-nine,” Kody lied. He was actually thirty-two,

but looked good enough he felt he could still get away with
shaving off a few years.

“I see. And what’s your great secret for having that

remarkably unblemished skin at such a mature age?”

“No secret,” Kody said, taking a closer look at Jarvis.

“Just clean living, I guess.” He noticed Jarvis’s skin looked a
bit roughened from what appeared to be bad acne scars and
some other kind of lightened pockmarks scattered about his
visible cheeks.

Jarvis tightened his gaze like he didn’t quite believe

Kody. “Take off the coat. We should check your arm.”

Kody stood and started unbuttoning the coat. “And how

old are you?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“I am only twenty-six, so you are my senior, Mr.

Higgins.” Jarvis kept his eyes down as Kody stood. He would
not be enthralled by this man, he promised himself.

“Just call me Kody, or even ‘hey you’. That mister stuff

is getting irritating,” he told him as he slipped off the coat.

Jarvis blanched momentarily from the casual attitude.

“Fine, then. Kody. Put your hand on the table.”

Kody complied. As Jarvis carefully examined the

blistering  burn  above  his  wrist,  Kody  glanced  around  the
kitchen for some sort of hint of what the date might be. He
was  surrounded  by  the  garish  colors  and  patterns  of  the
Victorian  period,  but  Kody  did  notice  a  few  more  modern
touches, like the simple pulls on the cabinets and the plain
arts-and-crafts  style  of  the  table  and  stools  where  they  sat.
His  rough  guess  of  a  year  would  be  1900.  It  would  be
difficult  to  confirm  without  asking  Jarvis  directly,  but  he
didn’t want the man thinking he was addled again.

“This doesn’t appear too extensive, not much worse than

a kitchen burn. We can salve and bandage it.” Jarvis looked
up at Kody’s T-shirt. “That undershirt is of such delicate
weave; is it some sort of silk?”

“No, just—cotton.” Kody caught himself before saying

polyester. He didn’t think synthetic fabrics had even been
invented yet. Except maybe nylon, he couldn’t recall exactly
when that had become available.

Jarvis glanced up at Kody, a question etched heavily

onto his face. “Oh? Just cotton? And hand-painted by Trader
Joe?”

Shit. Kody had forgotten his T-shirt had the logo on it.

“Yes, he’s a friend of mine,” he lied again with a smirk.

Jarvis stared at him incredulously. “It seems… peculiar

one would go to such lavish lengths to decorate a mere
undershirt. Are you a wealthy man, Mr.—I mean Kody?”

“No.” Kody shook his head fiercely. “And actually quite

poor, now that I remember why I was in the park. I wandered

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

there after getting—released from my employer this
morning.”

“I am sorry to hear of such difficulties,” Jarvis said with

sincerity, still closely studying Kody.

Kody tried to think of some way to steer Jarvis’s

attention in another direction. “Do you live alone here?”

“Yes, I’m a bachelor,” he replied while looking at Kody’s

chest. “A confirmed bachelor, some might say.” Jarvis
glanced up into his face while holding his breath.

Kody smiled slightly. “Is that your way of coming on to

me?”

Jarvis quickly pulled on a stoic expression. “I must

confess, I’m not familiar with that expression. What do you
mean by ‘coming on to’?”

Taking a deep breath, Kody paused to think about this

situation. It was finally sinking in that, Lord knows how, he
had traveled back in time over a hundred years. Despite
however handsome and available Jarvis might be, he
shouldn’t just blunder ahead. This would need some careful
consideration. And he needed some time to think on it. “You
said something about salves and bandages a minute ago?”

“Oh yes.” Jarvis jumped to his feet. “Quite right. Excuse

me while I fetch them from the powder room.” Jarvis hurried
away into the house.

Resigning himself to the fact that some sort of time

travel had occurred, Kody was still left with the big question
of what to do about it. Since such a random event brought
him here in the first place, it left the likely possibility that he
was permanently stuck here. How much right did he have to
“muck around”?

But maybe the bigger question should be, what should

he tell Jarvis? The man already showed growing suspicion; it
seemed unavoidable that Kody would have to tell him at
least some of it. But how much detail to divulge? Should he
mention the upcoming European war, or the World War that

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

followed soon after Roosevelt’s assassination? Kody would
just have to play it by ear.

Jarvis returned with a short glass jar of goop and a

rolled-up  strip  of  cotton  bandage.  He  lingered  in  the
doorway,  looking  at  Kody’s  legs  and  the  cargo  shorts,
studying them briefly before his gaze traveled to Kody’s bare
feet.  Jarvis  walked  around  the  table  and  opened  the  jar.
“This  will  soothe  the  burn,  if  nothing  else,”  he  told  Kody  as
he gingerly smeared a thin layer of the yellowish goo onto the
blisters.

“Thank you for this. I doubt many would have bothered

to rescue me.”

Jarvis just glanced up at him briefly and curtly nodded

in reply. After unrolling a bit of the bandage, Jarvis carefully
wrapped  the  cotton  strip  around  the  burn  and  retrieved  a
pair of scissors from his pocket to cut the strip before tying
the  bandage  end  in  a  simple  looped  knot  to  secure  it.  “I’m
not  a  nurse,  and  that  is  probably  not  the  best  work,  but  it
should hold it in place for a few hours.”

Kody watched as Jarvis sat down again on the other

stool. He seemed to squirm uncomfortably and wouldn’t
meet Kody’s glance.

“About that bachelor stuff, it’s… fine. I’m actually that

way myself.”

Jarvis did smile slightly, but his overall concern still

remained.

“And for what it’s worth, I kinda find you attractive too.”
“That’s all well and good, but I have the distinct

impression you are merely using that as a ploy to distract
me.” Jarvis looked sternly into his eyes, daring Kody to
contradict him.

“Well, maybe so. What do you think I’m trying to

distract you from?”

“These queer notions percolating in my head, most

likely.”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Kody gazed directly at Jarvis. “What notions?”
“You, Kody Higgins… seem to have just dropped from

the sky, arriving from an altogether different place, as if
summoned by a lightning bolt during clear skies. I had
glanced up at the rise not a moment before, and you hadn’t
been standing there.”

“Okay, then. Let’s say I did just ‘drop from the sky’.

From where?”

Jarvis chuckled as he made a hand flourish at Kody

without meeting his eyes. “Your clothing and speech
definitely suggest someplace… not local.”

“Where?” Kody asked more pointedly.
“Where? Mr. Higgins, I’m wondering if it isn’t more a

question of when. I’m not aware of any culture on the earth,
either now or in the past, that would explain the way you
dress and speak.”

Kody grinned. “You seem very open-minded.”
“I have read Wells’s recent story, the one about time

travel. Although I never considered it more than interesting
fiction.” Jarvis seemed to trail off into his thoughts while
staring at the tabletop.

“What’s today’s date?”
“April 24, 1898.” Jarvis finally met his gaze. “And what

was the date you departed from?”

“I should be careful about too many details, but more

than a hundred years.”

“A century? And this strong musculature and minimal

clothing style will be common in the future?”

“Musculature? I’m not even really built.”
“Oh, but by today’s standards, you are quite ‘built’, as

you put it. Far beyond what standard calisthenics can
achieve. How is that done?”

“With workout machines that have weights to increase

the muscle resistances.”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Jarvis looked over his smooth skin. “And from your lack

of pox scars, I can assume a cure is found?”

“Even better, good vaccines end up preventing most

diseases.”

“I see, so Pasteur’s work does revolutionize medicine, as

many are predicting.”

“I should be careful about saying too much.”
The glint in Jarvis’s eye dimmed slightly, but he nodded

in  agreement.  After  a  moment,  though,  he  broke  out  into  a
wide  grin.  “This  is  all  assuming,  of  course,  that  you  have
some  kind  of  proof  to  substantiate  this  wild  yarn,”  Jarvis
said with a simple smile as he carefully laid out his trap.

“Proof? I don’t know….”
Jarvis feigned disappointment. “I did notice the bulge of

items in your pants. Surely there would be no harm in
displaying the contents of your pockets.”

After standing up, Kody removed his keys and wallet

from  his  pockets,  then  hesitated  when  his  hand  clasped
around  his  cell  phone.  Even  if  the  electrical  surge  of  the
lightning  hadn’t  destroyed  it,  Kody  knew  it  would  still  be
useless,  since  the  phone  would  not  have  any  cell  towers  to
connect  with.  He  withdrew  the  slim  black  phone  from  his
pocket and set it on the table.

He regretted the move when Jarvis’s eyes immediately

zeroed in on the rectangular plastic. “And what is that?”

Jarvis nearly salivated with excitement.

Kody put his hand on top of the phone as Jarvis

reached for it. “You never told me what kind of work you
do….”

“What difference should that make?”
“A lot of difference.” Kody slid the phone close to him. “I

probably shouldn’t let you see this at all, depending.”

“And if I told you I was an accountant, would you let me

see it more closely?” Jarvis said, trying to look demure.

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“But you would be lying if you said that, wouldn’t you?”

Kody smiled tightly as he studied Jarvis. “An accountant
wouldn’t pop a boner over something like this.”

“And what exactly does ‘pop a boner’ mean?”
“It’s an expression for getting an erection.”
“Ah, an interesting euphemism. Yet I think that, once

again, you are trying to distract me.”

Giving up on the device for the moment, Jarvis turned

his attention to the other items on the table. He ignored the
wallet and picked up the key ring. The metal keys seemed to
be  of  no  interest,  probably  being  similar  in  nearly  any  time
period.  Instead,  Jarvis  examined  the  flat  plastic  charm
advertising the restaurant Kody had worked at years ago. He
read the caption briefly, then bent the material  between his
fingers and watched it flex back into a flat shape. Jarvis then
bit  on  it.  “What  remarkable  material  is  this?  Some  sort  of
compressed and waterproofed paper?”

“You still haven’t answered me about what you do.”
“I do work as a small business accountant in my sister’s

shop, for three days of the week.”

“And what about the other days?”
Jarvis sighed and put down the key ring. “I have been

known to tinker a bit.” He picked up the wallet and opened
it. “Which is what you fear, I imagine. That I would use this
knowledge to my own ends.” He read the driver’s license
displayed in the clear celluloid window.

“Define ‘tinker’.”
“I dabble with mechanics. Steam contraptions, mostly. I

am fascinated by the notion of horseless carriages and other
vehicles.” Jarvis gazed up from the wallet. “Speaking of
which, where is your vehicle? I’m assuming this document,
this license, refers to your time vehicle.”

Kody laughed. “No, that is just for my car… automobile.

I don’t have a time machine.”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Jarvis scowled slightly.
“Seriously. I don’t have a time machine. I’m stuck here.”

Kody sighed. “I arrived here just as you saw. I was walking
across the park in a bad thunderstorm and was struck by
lightning.”

Jarvis peered at him. “You say it was the lightning?”
“Believe me, I wish I did have a machine. Short of

hanging around the park hoping to get struck again, I don’t
have any way back to my own place. And what are the odds
of that?”

Softening his gaze, Jarvis frowned. “Then you are ‘stuck’

here? Left in this barbaric past?”

“I never said that. It doesn’t seem that bad at all.”
Jarvis quietly studied him.
“Since I’m left to rely upon the kindness of strangers, I

couldn’t have gotten much luckier, I don’t think. You haven’t
even seemed to blink at such an outrageous idea.”

“There’s no point in arguing against the obvious

conclusion.” Jarvis smiled. “And you think I’m kind?”

“Yes, I do.” Kody looked down at the table, then picked

up the key ring by the restaurant charm. “And to answer
your question, this is called ‘plastic’. It’s a synthetic created
through some chemical process that solidifies oils.”

“Solidified oil? How remarkable! That process sounds

similar to creating celluloid, but this material is much
stronger and more colorful. How is it done?”

Kody laughed. “I’m not a chemist, so I couldn’t tell you,

but even if I did know, that’s probably the sort of detail I

shouldn’t share.”

“Oh, right, then.” Jarvis paused. “Let me ask, if you’re

not a tinker and not a chemist, then what work do you do?”

“Artist.”
“Really now? As in painter?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Kody struggled with how to describe a computer

graphics artist. “No, not much experience with paint. More
sketching, doing bold images for things like advertisements.”

“Pictures in advertisements? How queer.”
Kody frowned. “Your newspapers don’t have ad

pictures?”

Jarvis stood and disappeared a moment, returning with

that day’s newspaper. He handed it to Kody.

Kody looked over the page of nothing but columns of

solid text. The masthead at the top didn’t even have a logo.
How  people  could  read  this  without  eyestrain,  he  couldn’t
imagine.  Kody  certainly  didn’t  want  to  try.  He  did  notice  a
few  ads,  though,  their  plain  text  only  separated  from  the
stories  by  thin  boxy  outlines.  “I  guess  newspapers  haven’t
advanced yet. There must be some improvement in printing
technology  that  allows  for  pictures.  Believe  me,  newspapers
will be much prettier and easier to read in the future.”

“So there will be a few advances in the future?”
Almost laughing, Kody patted Jarvis’s hand. “You have

no idea….”

“Like what?”
Kody thought a moment about how best to answer.

“Right now, this is, like, a huge fulcrum point. Electricity is
just getting started and will create a whole new foundation
for everything. Disciplines and sciences that have always

been distinct will begin merging and collaborating in ways
you can’t even imagine.”

Jarvis looked skeptical. “I have a very good imagination.”
“Oh really?” Kody tapped his fingers on top of the phone

as he flashed a grin. Since Jarvis was into steam mechanics,
it probably wouldn’t hurt to let him have a look. He slid the
phone across the table. “Here, then. If you’ve got such a
great imagination, examine it and tell me what it is.”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“A challenge.” Jarvis grinned as he gingerly picked up

the  device.  “How  delicious.”  He  ran  his  fingers  along  the
smooth  gray  face,  pausing  briefly  at  the  smiley-face-looking
LG  logo  before  turning  his  attention  to  the  sides.  “This  is
more of that plastic?”

“Yes.”
Jarvis studied the sides, fingering the small power cord

hole and the elongated USB connection port. When his
attention wandered to the top edge, he found the power
button and pushed it. The gray screen blinked briefly with a
flash of random colors as the phone tried to boot up, but the
screen went blank again.

Kody shrugged. “I was afraid the electrical surge of the

lightning damaged it.”

“I must confess, you have bested me, Kody. What is the

purpose of this?”

“It’s a phone.”
“Phone? As in telephone? I see holes where the cord

might attach, but it has no rotor. How do you dial such a
thing?” He suddenly placed it back on the table.

“When it works right, buttons that can be pushed

appear on that gray screen.”

Jarvis frowned. “Then my imagination has indeed failed

me.”

“No, it hasn’t failed; at least you found the power

button. But you’re looking at over a hundred years of tech
advances that led to that device. The floods of new
technology can be very difficult to predict.”

“Floods,” Jarvis repeated, pondering the word. “And

what other floods await? Does the United States still exist?”

“Yes, even bigger than it is now. And many social

changes have already started.”

“Such as?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“The WEVA, for one.” Kody saw the confusion on

Jarvis’s face. “Equal voting rights for women.”

“And how do you see that?”
“Most historians seem to think it started with women

allowed on the battlefield in the Civil War, as nurses and
cooks and such. It allowed women the taste of something
more like true equality and started an attitude shift.”

Jarvis still seemed to be having trouble following.
Kody took a deep breath. “Unlike technology changes,

which seem to happen like a flood from a burst dam, social
changes are more like a rainstorm flood. It starts with just
one or two drips of water that might go unnoticed. Then
another drip, and a drip-drip-drip until more water falls and
starts the flood.”

“Ah.” Jarvis looked thoughtful. “Like the few bold

women now wearing slacks. That’s another drip.”

“Exactly. And it will lead up to women pushing for the

right to vote and other equal legal standings. They eventually
get to vote in 1968 when the WEVA passes.”

“My sister will be relieved when that finally happens.

She often complains of feeling her hands are tied when it
comes to business dealings and hates the need to bring her
husband into situations.” Jarvis’s gaze turned more serious.
“And what of….” Jarvis squirmed a bit on the stool. “What of
bachelors?”

Kody smiled. “Oh, it’s much better than I suspect it is

now. Most of us are out openly, and we recently got the right
to marry, although the religious nuts still have their butts on
fire about it. But most people are pretty much live and let
live.”

Jarvis chuckled. “They have ‘butts on fire’? Your

expressions are quite humorous at times.”

“And I’m not even trying to be funny.” Kody leaned

forward a bit. “How exactly are things right now? Is it just
like an unspoken secret?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“Society tries to be ‘quietly polite’ about it. After a man

reaches a certain age without marrying and he isn’t a
philanderer, people will suspect, but it’s not something that
should ever be mentioned.”

“Oh, kind of a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy.”
“Yes, that sounds like a way to describe it.”
“The military went through a phase of that in the 1940s,

before they finally just gave up and let us serve openly.”

“You keep using the word ‘openly.’ What exactly does

that mean?”

“That means we date other men without hiding it, we

touch and hold hands on the street, introduce a guy as our
boyfriend or husband, if that’s what he is. You know, just
out in the open with no secrets.”

“Then I’m afraid you will miss that greatly.” Jarvis

smirked.

Kody smiled warmly. “I won’t have to miss everything,

though; you guys still have sex, right?”

“I’m not sure if our definition of ‘sex’ and yours would be

the same.”

“Sex, as in, mutual penile stimulation of one form or

another that results in orgasmic ejaculation for both
parties,” Kody said with a grin.

“That certainly sounds like

my definition. I can’t speak

for all bachelors, though.”

Kody gazed into Jarvis’s eyes. “And who said I cared

about the other bachelors?”

After clearing his throat, Jarvis dropped his gaze.

“Right, then.” He looked at the phone. “I imagine you will
need to make arrangements now, considering your
situation.” Jarvis found the thought of sheltering Kody both
terrifying and exciting. He tried to ignore the increase of his
heart rate.

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Kody tried to hide his disappointment. “The little cash in

my wallet will probably be useless. But why the sudden
brush-off? Do you already have a boyfriend?”

“No. I suppose I didn’t explain that clearly enough. Men

of our predilection can’t hope for such things. We simply find
the occasional relief when we can.”

Kody bristled. “Oh, hell no. Anonymous sex in dark bars

and dingy alleys? I’m not settling for that. And you do?”

“There is no choice.”
“Oh, fuck that, there’s always a choice, dude. You make

a choice by just lying down and accepting it.”

Jarvis blanched. “That’s quite enough language, Mr.

Higgins.”

“Bullshit. It’s not enough language. You need to just

fuck that shit, piss all over it, and tell the nosy cocks and
cunts to mind their own fucking business.” Kody watched
Jarvis grow red in the face and clench his jaw as he spat out
the curse words. “And quit calling me mister.”

Jarvis stopped grinding his teeth and relaxed his jaw.

“You confound me.” He finally looked directly at Kody. “I am
torn between the notion of punching you or kissing you.”

“I’d prefer the kiss.”
“As you made quite apparent earlier.” Jarvis turned his

eyes away to the cabinet and took a calming breath. He
would not let himself be captivated by this man.

Kody smiled. “So you did notice I was flirting with you.

Maybe you aren’t hopeless.”

Jarvis let out a big sigh. “But I fear you may be, Kody. I

can’t in all good conscience let you out on the street. I doubt
you could reach the corner without creating some scandal or
another and getting arrested.” Jarvis leaned forward and
pointed his finger as he spoke. “Those attitudes and your
temper are bound to stir controversy, to your detriment.”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“Don’t worry, I’m not that stupid. I can behave myself in

public.”

“Let’s hope so.”
“But you need to loosen up, at least a little. You’re

wound up tighter than a Swiss watch. You can say the word
homosexual without the sky falling down.”

Jarvis frowned. “We don’t need to discuss me. My future

is not the one at stake here.”

“Alright, then.” Kody threw up his hands in surrender. “I

guess I should put together a plan. Where should I start?”

“The most pressing matter, I would think, is your

clothing. You will also need to consider employment. Have
you any skills besides the art?”

“And what’s wrong with art?”
“You should avoid the stigma of a bohemian. You’ll have

enough to concern yourself over without adding that smear
to the list.”

“I have some music talent, but that’s probably just as

‘bohemian’, as you put it. I do have other skills. I’m just not
familiar enough with how things work now to know what’s
marketable. Or useful.”

“Then let us tend to the first matter.” Jarvis stood and

walked to the doorway. “Follow me.”

Kody got up and trailed behind Jarvis through the

house, back to the central hallway and up a flight of
gleaming wooden stairs. He followed Jarvis into his bedroom.

Jarvis opened a wardrobe and sorted through some

jackets. “This one is loose on me; it may fit your ample
chest,” he said, handing a dusty purple suit coat to Kody.

Kody shook his head as he tried to slip on the coat. It

was too snug to fit his arms into. “Did you pick these colors
out yourself?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“Yes, I did,” Jarvis answered as he helped Kody remove

the strangling coat. “My brother-in-law is larger; maybe we
can temporarily borrow a suit from him.”

Kody scanned through the wardrobe as Jarvis put the

suit coat back. “These colors are all wrong for you. You could
use a good makeover.”

“Wrong? How so?”
“That forest green and black bow tie you’re wearing is

too winter of a color and washes out your beautiful eyes and
leaves  you  looking  pale.  This  autumn-y  purple  will  make
your lighter skin tone look jaundiced.”  Kody sorted through
the other jackets in the wardrobe. “Another winter, and this
summer  one,”  he  said  while  holding  out  a  bold  yellow  suit
coat,  “will  make  your  skin  look  unnaturally  pink.  You  need
spring colors, more genuine pastel tones.”

Jarvis laughed. “And I was so concerned about you

sounding bohemian,” he teased.

Kody stuck his tongue out at him. “Just calling it as I

see it.”

“I should dispatch a post to my sister and have a suit

brought over, to avoid having you wander the street in such
dress.” Jarvis hesitated, then reached out his hand and
rubbed his fingers along Kody’s bare upper arm, feeling the
bulging firm muscles. “That outfit would barely be
acceptable for the beach. T’won’t do at all in town.”

Reaching out to Jarvis’s left mutton chop sideburn,

Kody teased his finger along the thick, coarse-looking, flaxen
hairs and was surprised at how soft they felt. “These will
take some getting used to.”

“Men of the future don’t have facial hair?” he asked,

raising his hand and trailing his finger along Kody’s smooth
jawbone.

“Most stay clean-shaven, like me. Otherwise it’s a full,

smartly trimmed beard, or goatees are still a bit popular, but
waning.”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“Yes, well, I see,” Jarvis said, flustering and stepping

back. “I should send that post.” He turned and left Kody
behind in the bedroom.

Kody slowly made his way back down the hall and the

stairs,  marveling  at  how  modern  the  house  felt.  Only  the
absence of tiny details marked it as pre-modern, like the lack
of  electrical  outlets  along  the  walls.  He  found  Jarvis  in  the
living room area, scribbling away at a studio-type desk.

Kody looked around the room as Jarvis sealed up the

envelope  and  went  to  the  front  door.  Jarvis  poked  his  head
out  and  glanced  around  a  moment  before  yelling  out,  “Boy!
You,  boy!”  He  held  up  the  envelope  and  a  silver  coin  for
someone on the street to see.

A plainly dressed youngster of maybe eight or nine ran

up the stoop. “Deliver this, just around the corner,” Jarvis
said as he handed the envelope and silver coin to the boy.
Jarvis opened his other palm to reveal a smaller gold coin. “If
you wait and return right away with the other package, this
will be your tip.”

“Yes, sir, right away!” The boy gleamed as he ran off

down the street with the letter.

Jarvis closed the door. “It shouldn’t take long. We can

wait here in the parlor.”

Kody couldn’t help but notice how nothing in this nicely

decorated room seemed at all personal. He didn’t find any
portraits or mementos that spoke of Jarvis himself.

Jarvis sat on the settee and Kody drifted over to sit on

the other side. Kody glanced over and said, “I really do
appreciate all this effort. Thank you.”

“What else is one to do with someone who falls from the

sky?” he joked. Jarvis’s gaze nonchalantly admired the build
of Kody’s bare legs and scanned down to his dirty bare feet.
“Gads! I forgot your filthy feet,” he exclaimed as he jumped
up, returning from the kitchen a moment later with the
basin of water and cotton towels. Kneeling down, he wet one

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

of the towels and wrung it out. He hesitantly placed one
hand around Kody’s left calf before lightly cleaning his toes
and insoles with the other hand.

Kody shivered slightly from the touch of the wet cloth.

“That water’s cold,” he said as he lay back and enjoyed the
gentle massaging.

“Too much so?” Jarvis asked, admiring the cleaned foot.

“I can warm some water on the stove,” he offered while
moving his attention to the other foot.

“Nah, not worth the trouble, since you’re almost done.”

Kody looked down and watched as Jarvis obviously enjoyed
himself. “I could have done that myself, you know.”

“I know.” Jarvis picked up the other towel and slowly

patted each foot dry “Your feet are so soft and callous-free.
Do you walk on clouds in the future?”

Kody chuckled. “I’m not an angel. More like a devil,

maybe.”

“That, I can believe,” Jarvis admitted in nearly a whisper

while looking at the muscular calf he still held in his hand.
“And that may be what I fear most.”

Kody leaned forward, getting closer to Jarvis. “You’re

afraid of me? Why?”

Jarvis suddenly released the calf as though it had

turned into a live snake in his hand. “Because….” He
grabbed the bowl and towels and hurried through the house
without saying more.

Kody followed him into the kitchen and watched as

Jarvis dumped the basin into the sink, then wrung out the
towels and hung them on the small towel rod mounted by
the window. “Why are you afraid of me?”

Jarvis turned, but busied himself preening his clothes

and wouldn’t meet Kody’s gaze. “Because, as I have
explained, you offer what cannot be had.”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Kody shook his head. “Because I’m not some nameless

dude you grabbed off the street?”

“I would never,” Jarvis said, bristling. “Never bring… one

of those into my home.”

“One of those what? One of those fags? Those pansies?

Whatever the hell name you guys use right now?”

Jarvis glared at Kody stiffly.
Kody crossed his arms over his chest. “You do know

how hypocritical—”

Quiet knocks on the front door interrupted his next

verbal jab.

Jarvis carefully stepped around Kody and answered the

door. A moment later he returned to the kitchen and thrust
a dark-brown suit, still on hangers at Kody. “You may
change in the powder room.”

Kody took the suit. As Jarvis left the kitchen, Kody

glanced  over  and  saw  his  stuff  still  lying  on  the  table.  He
snatched  up  the  items  and  hid  them  in  the  pockets  of  his
cargo  shorts  before  following  Jarvis  into  the  parlor.  Jarvis
stood  at  the  little  desk,  seemingly  in  a  quandary  over
something. He kept his back turned to Kody.

“And where’s the powder room?”
“Down the hall past the stairs,” Jarvis advised briskly

without turning around.

Kody found the powder room and closed the door. As he

looked around the small space, illuminated only by the small
slit of a window near the ceiling, Kody was surprised not to
find  a  sink  or  a  toilet.  The  only  furniture  he  saw  was  a
vanity-style  table  and  its  two  stools.  The  counter  and  one
wall shelf held hair products and other makeup items.

After Kody put on the three-piece suit, he checked

himself in the small mirror mounted on the wall. The dark-
brown coat was nearly the same color as his wavy hair, so
that worked. Kody wasn’t sure about the frilly cream-colored

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

ascot, but he put it on anyway. The coat fit okay in the
shoulders and chest, but ballooned out around the stomach
area a bit. Jarvis’s brother-in-law must have an ample gut.
He had to cinch the belt up tightly to fit the baggy pants to
his waist.

Kody smiled at the mirror and gave himself a thumbs-

up for the cool retro look. Now all he needed was some shoes
and a hat. He walked back out into the main hall.

From the parlor doorway, Jarvis glanced over Kody and

frowned. “Shoes,” he scolded himself. “How thoughtless of
me. Come back upstairs.”

FTER

donning spider-web-thin dress socks and squeezing

his feet into a pair of Jarvis’s shoes, Jarvis placed one of the
round bowler hats onto Kody’s head and took him back out
to  the  street.  They  turned  left  toward  the  main  road  that
Kody  knew  as  Kennedy  Avenue,  which  undoubtedly  hadn’t
earned  that  name  yet.  Secretary  of  State  Joe  Patrick
Kennedy wouldn’t be killed for decades. He noticed the sign
said “Olympia Street” as they headed to the shopping zone.

Not wanting to give up on their previous conversation,

Kody decided to try another angle as they walked around the
corner. “You know, down in the South, slavery is over, at
least on paper. But most of that society still view Blacks as
second-class citizens. Few Blacks will vote, or own property,
or have any kind of education. Yet the Blacks that don’t

listen to that society, and know in their hearts that they
aren’t second-class, that they are worthy, will pass on that

pride to their children, who will be the ones with education.
Then they pass that pride along and their children will be the

ones voting and owning property.” Kody felt hopeful when he
glanced up and saw the bemused expression on Jarvis’s
face.

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Jarvis nodded. “I see, Mr. Higgins. I give you marks for

that veiled method of continuing the conversation.” He
motioned, indicating they should cross the street at the
corner.

“And I thought we agreed on the mister stuff.”
Jarvis threw him a glare as they crossed the road. “We

must maintain public decorum. I won’t argue on that point.”

“Fine. Then I hope you understand what I’m saying, Mr.

Banks. A society cannot create second-class citizens unless
those citizens give them that power and believe their
propaganda.”

Jarvis stopped in front of a clothing shop and opened

the door. “Maybe you have a point, but let’s tend to your
needs first,” he said while holding the door open for Kody.

Glancing around, Kody shouldn’t have been surprised to

notice  that  just  like  a  modern  clothing  store,  at  least  80
percent  of  the  floor  space  seemed  dedicated  to  women’s
fashion,  and  only  a  smaller  portion  in  the  back  corner
catered to men’s needs.

A perky, skinny lad appeared out of nowhere. “Good

afternoon, Mr. Banks!” he gleefully exclaimed. “A pleasure to
see you today.”

“Thank you, Martin,” Jarvis said as they walked toward

the back. “This is Mr. Higgins, my friend. Due to an
unfortunate incident, he is in need of a new suit.”

Martin tsked as he gazed up and down at Kody in the

ill-fitting  suit.  “Yes,  that  just  won’t  do  at  all  now.  Such  a
terrible  fit.”  He  pointed  Kody  toward  a  counter  and  a  coat
rack.  “Remove  the  jacket,  please.  Let’s  get  some
measurements  and  find  something  more…  appropriate.”
Martin’s eyes seemed to land on Kody’s butt toward the end
of his sentence.

Jarvis cleared his throat. “Is Mrs. Reynolds here?”
Martin shook his head. “You know that sister of yours.

She’s off at some tea committee with one of her causes.

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Horse turds on the sidewalk, I think, is the latest calamity,”
Martin explained as he used the measuring tape to examine
every available inch of Kody’s body.

Jarvis chuckled.
Kody’s chest must have been stubborn, for Martin had

to measure it twice, running his finger along the edge of the
tape the second time. “Such a… manly chest, this will have
to be smartly tailored to get any kind of decent fit.”

Jarvis nodded. “I trust you can work your usual magic.”
“Will try my best.” Martin grabbed Kody by the shirt

sleeve and led him to one of the racks. After sifting through
the coats, he yanked out one. “Try this one, it should fit at
the top.”

Kody winced at the dark-olive color. “No, this color is too

autumn for me. Maybe the charcoal?”

Martin scowled. “Just try it on for the fit.”
Kody complied, and the coat did fit nicely along the

shoulders and chest.

“What do you mean by ‘too autumn’?” Martin asked as

he fastened the buttons and made a gathering with his hand
in the fabric at Kody’s lower back while looking at the fit in
front.

“The four-season palette? I do best with the summer

colors.”

Martin released the fabric and his hand dropped down,

brushing briefly along Kody’s butt. “Explain this to me,
please?”

Kody realized he must have made a huge error. If this

clothier had never heard of the four-season palette, the idea
must  be  much  more  modern  than  he  had  thought.  Should
he  try  to  backpedal  out  of  this?  He  looked  over  at  Martin’s
expectant  face  and  decided  it  was  probably  a  trivial  point.
“It’s the idea that people fall into four basic tone values, and

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

once you know a person’s tone, you just pick colors from the
particular tone palette that corresponds.”

Martin’s eyes sparkled. “I see. And you say you’re a

summer?” He motioned to the rack. “Pick out the colors from
this summer palette.”

“Okay,” Kody answered, pulling out the charcoal, a

navy, a burgundy, and a mint-green color.

Martin glanced back and forth between the coats and

Kody, as though mentally comparing them. He then looked
over at Jarvis. “And Jarvis is not a summer?”

Kody smiled. Martin seemed to have a sharp eye and

was picking this up quickly. “No, he’s not. He is a spring.”

“I see.” Martin pointed to the rack again. “Show me the

spring.”

Kody pulled out the honey, lilac, camel, and turquoise-

colored coats. “Springs are the true pastels.”

Martin grabbed the turquoise coat and held it in from of

Jarvis. “I do see. What a remarkable difference, how it brings

him to life and makes his eyes glow.” He turned back to Kody
and flourished over himself and his Italian-looking black hair
and dark brown eyes. “And I am another season?”

“Winter,” Kody advised. “You would look best in the

more icy colors.” Kody looked back over at Jarvis. “While
we’re here, do you think we could get Jarvis—Mr. Banks out
of that horrid forest green?”

Martin’s eyes glanced up at Kody’s casual use of Jarvis’s

name. “I see.” Martin scanned over the rack. “Maybe….” And
he pulled out a salmon-colored coat from another rack.
“Pastel, correct? This should be his fit.”

Kody nodded at the good choice, and Martin handed the

coat to Jarvis.

Jarvis stepped back from it. “We are not here for me.

Please attend to Mr. Higgins.”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“Dear Mr. Banks, you are always so stubborn,” Martin

accused, handing the coat to Jarvis anyway.

Martin turned back to Kody and glanced down at his

butt again. “Now, then, let’s get you out of those pants… and
into a better fit.”

ISPLAYING

a great talent for speed sewing, by hand, no

less, Martin had both men dressed in new suits of perfect fit
in less than an hour.

Kody grinned as he admired himself wearing the tailored

cocoa jacket with charcoal slacks in the full-length mirror.
The burgundy bow tie really made it all “pop.” “This is
fantastic work, Martin, thank you.”

Martin smiled slightly, but seemed to be holding

something back. He kept glancing at Jarvis, like he feared
breaking some decorum.

Before Kody could press him into spilling, the jangle of

the bell over the door grabbed his attention. He looked over
to see a thin woman in a floor-length, vibrant yellow spring
dress sashay into the shop. She smiled when she saw Jarvis.
“My dear, I thought you were attending to other business
today.”

Martin darted behind the counter and busied himself

with putting away the sewing notions and threads.

“I am.” He pointed over toward Kody. “This is my

traveling friend, Mr. Kody Higgins.” He turned to Kody. “And
this is my sister, Mrs. Susan Reynolds.”

Susan crinkled her nose. “Kody? And what might that

be a nickname for?” she asked as she appraised him
thoroughly.

“Um, Koderick?” he said, trying to make up something

on the spot.

“My,” she said. “It sounds rather… Welsh?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“Yes,” Jarvis jumped in, nodding his head strongly.

“Welsh it is.”

“I see. And this is the man that had need of my

husband’s suit this morning?”

“The very one. His clothes were in rather a state when

he arrived. We were just seeing to getting him tailored.”

Susan looked rather doubtful of the explanation but

seemed to decide against arguing, for now. “Well, then, I
should attend to some details in the office. Martin seems to
have things in hand,” she said dismissively as she stepped
behind a curtained doorway and disappeared.

Kody looked back over at Martin, curious about what he

might have to say, but saw the man was fussing over
something and trying to look invisible.

Jarvis stepped up to the counter. “Many thanks for your

work, impeccable as always.”

Martin just nodded. “I’ll total the work on a tab and

leave it on your desk, Mr. Banks.”

Jarvis turned to Kody. “Perhaps we should dine before

heading back to the house.”

“I could go for some food,” Kody agreed.
Jarvis chuckled. “Fine, we shall ‘go for some food’,

then,” he said while picking up their bags and walking to the
door.

HEY

ate in what looked to Kody like a very elegant

restaurant, complete with real tablecloths and many
flickering candles, but Jarvis assured him it was just barely
a middle-class establishment.

Kody allowed Jarvis to order for them the stuffed-pie

something-or-other plates, not sure what to expect. He was
quite pleased when the server brought out a pair of meatball

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

hot pockets and a side of steamed carrots and roasted
potatoes.

After the great meal, they stopped at a cobbler shop and

Kody got a pair of glossy black shoes that fit much better.

Following the short walk back to the brownstone, Kody

felt an ominous dread to be once again alone with Jarvis in
his parlor. He feared their heated argument from earlier in
the afternoon would resume.

Jarvis hung up their hats then hesitated in the

entryway. “I have to admit, I have deeply pondered your
observations of our discussion of the South.” He motioned
Kody toward the settee. “I’ve come to think those points may
hold some merit.” Jarvis walked across the room and sat on
the other side, maintaining a safe distance.

“But you know it’s true. You can’t be held down unless

you let yourself.”

Jarvis sighed. “Please, Kody, don’t get angry with me. I

don’t want to argue. But I do need to try and… explain some
things. Can we do so in a calm and civilized manner?”

“Alright.” Kody nodded. “Before we get into that, though,

I was wondering why it seemed so important that I be
Welsh?”

“It’s a very safe and neutral kind of nationality. It

wouldn’t be good right now to be, say, Irish.”

Kody just shook his head. “I guess things are different.

We just think of ourselves as American, with different
heritages.”

Jarvis turned his gaze away. “That sounds like such a

rosy place, where you come from.”

“It’s not perfect.” Kody tried to deflect, hoping to

brighten Jarvis’s mood. “But socially, it is better.”

Jarvis examined his fingernails. “I am trying to…

understand.”

“Do you still think I’m a devil?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“No.”
Kody watched him examining his hands. “Do you still

want to kiss me?”

“Yes, even more so now, I do think. And that only makes

it worse.”

“Worse how?” Kody breathed slowly, trying to show

Jarvis he was staying calm. “Because I can’t be just a one-
time-only guy?”

“No, you can’t.”
Kody forced himself to breath evenly. “I don’t see why

that is so terrible.”

Jarvis just fidgeted with his hands. “Because if I kiss

you once, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to stop kissing you.”

“And I still don’t see why that is so terrible.” Kody

paused. “Unless….”

Jarvis waited for Kody to finish his sentence, but looked

up at him after a moment of silence. “Unless what?”

Kody locked eyes with Jarvis. “Unless what you fear has

nothing to do with sex at all.”

Jarvis clenched his hands together until his knuckles

turned white.

“That’s it, isn’t it? You’re afraid of falling in love with

me.”

Jarvis sat silently.
“Aren’t you?”
“You… everything has already been turned upside

down. And you continue to bewitch me.”

One word jumped out at Kody. “Already? You’ve already

fallen in love with me?”

Jarvis scowled. “I’m supposed to be such an

enlightened, rational man. Such events shouldn’t happen.”

Kody sighed. “Trust me, they happen. Even where I’m

from, no matter how knowledgeable or rational mankind

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

tries to be, the very bottom line of it all is that we are
emotional mammals. To deny that only leads to problems.”

“I see,” Jarvis said, still wringing his hands together.

“Not much consolation, if even the future fails to be
rational.” He looked expectantly over at Kody, the question
etched pleadingly into his face.

“I wish—” Kody started, suddenly feeling like a total

shithead. He had pushed Jarvis to consider thinking about
relationships without considering the possible consequences.
“I mean… right now I’m feeling completely overwhelmed with
trying to adjust to absolutely everything being so foreign.”

Jarvis’s face collapsed. “You don’t reciprocate.”
“I didn’t say that. I do feel something, something that

feels like more than just grateful for your rescue and all. But
I can’t say, right now, quite what it is. It’s so churned up
with everything else I’m dealing with.”

“I see.” Jarvis stood and began pacing the floor with a

stoic expression. “But you’re not discounting it?”

“At this point, I honestly feel too much and don’t know

anything.”

Jarvis paced over to the desk, paused briefly, then

paced back to Kody. “Then perhaps you should retire for the
evening,” he suggested, a smolder of desire showing briefly
through his stoic mask. “In the guest room, of course,” he
added quickly.

“Isn’t it a little early?” Kody asked, but then he realized

there would be no television, no movie theater, nor even a
radio to occupy the evening. It didn’t seem there would be
much to do once the sunset led to darkness.

“A bit, yes, but considering your ordeal of the day, you

should take the extra rest.”

“Probably right,” he agreed as he stood.
Jarvis led him up the stairs and to another bedroom, on

the opposite side of the hall from Jarvis’s. “You should be

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

able to find all you need, but I’m just across the hall if any…
questions arise.”

Kody nodded, not at all sure if Jarvis was trying to flirt

with him. “Good night, then.”

“Good night.” Jarvis walked across the hall and back

down the stairs.

EALIZING

his clothes were still hanging on the hooks in the

powder  room,  Kody  went  back  downstairs  and  grabbed
them.  He  had  planned  to  sleep  in  his  T-shirt,  but  a  sample
whiff  of  the  shirt  proved  that  it  still  had  that  charcoal-y
ozone tang to it. Kody should have thought to wash it earlier
so  it  would  be  dry  by  now.  He  would  have  to  save  the
washing for a morning project.

Even without plans to wear them, Kody brought the

clothes  back  upstairs  with  him.  It  would  be  best  to  keep
them  close  until  he  decided  what  to  do  with  his  “future”
items.  He  stripped  off  the  suit  and  poked  around  in  the
wardrobe until he found a pair of linen pajama bottoms. The
pants looked cut in a style to probably be a bit baggy, but he
filled  the  pants  out  like  a  pair  of  snug  jeans.  They  would
have  to  do  for  tonight.  Another  thing  to  add  to  his  growing
shopping list.

Wearing just the pajama bottoms, since he figured the

pajama top would just be a lost cause, Kody crawled under
the layers of covers on the bed and stretched out. He felt
weary. But his mind, finally free to roam, churned worriedly
from one thought to another in a seemingly random fashion
without the least regard for sleep.

Kody kept thinking about things he had left behind. He

could easily survive not ever seeing any  of his family again.
His  father,  after  the  divorce  so  many  years  ago,  had  drifted
far  from  his  life,  and  they  had  barely  spoken  in  the  past
decade.  Kody’s  mother  wasn’t  much  closer.  She  never  did

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

deal with the whole coming-out thing, so in later years they
pretended to be close while stepping around the lump in the
rug formed by all the unpleasantness previously swept
underneath. He didn’t have any brothers or sisters to miss.

So what would he miss? Not TV, really—he had never

gotten into that distraction or been “hooked” on any
particular shows. But music, though—radios and iPods—
that he would miss in this deathly quiet world.

As to the rest of his lost modern world, like hot showers

and working out… those he could probably find a way to
recreate somehow.

Yes, his mind agreed as he thought about those

possibilities. Kody wouldn’t have to just survive here;
carefully using his foreknowledge, he could easily thrive

here.  That  idea  left  him  feeling  a  bit  excited.  His  attitude
took  a  huge  shift,  and  he  stopped  thinking  of  the  situation
as  some  strange  punishment  and  more  like  a  challenging
opportunity.

Jarvis retired to his own room soon after seeing Kody to

bed. He removed his suit jacket and draped it over the back
of his chair before digging around the storage cubicles near
his drafting desk. He soon found the house blueprints. Even
if Kody changed his mind about staying, the home
improvements needed to be completed anyway, or so he kept
telling himself as he lit the gas sconces over the drafting
desk and set to work.

Kody rolled over again, no closer to turning off his

whirring mind and finding sleep. He was facing the bedroom
door now. A flickering glow was still visible under the door’s
lower gap. Kody wondered what the time was. Come to think
of it, he had only seen one clock in the entire house, the
large grandfather-style clock in the parlor.

Watching the flickering door gap, Kody wondered how

long it had been since he’d gone to bed. Had Jarvis been
awake doing whatever this whole time, or had he just

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

recently gotten back up? Only one way to find out. Kody
slipped out of the covers and quietly walked out into the hall.

He saw that Jarvis’s door gaped slightly ajar, that warm,

flickery  glow  of  light  spilling  into  the  hallway  and  enticing
him  forward.  Kody  walked  across  and  lightly  rapped  on  the
door.  At  least,  he  intended  a  light  rapping.  His  knuckles
seemed to bang and echo loudly in the ethereal quiet of the
late hour.

“Yes?” Jarvis’s voice called him forward.
Kody slowly pushed the door open and stepped in. He

saw that Jarvis was sitting in the corner at a large drafting
table Kody hadn’t noticed in the room that afternoon. Jarvis
had removed his suit coat, but still wore the vest and slacks,
so he must not have gone to bed yet.

Four strategically placed wall sconces fully illuminated

the work corner, flickering with their gas flames. Seeing the
desk and shelves beside the drafting table all a jumbled
mess of papers and drawing supplies made Kody smile. This

was where Jarvis lived.

“I apologize if I awakened you,” Jarvis said, trying not to

drool at the nearly naked buff god walking into his room.

Kody approached the drafting table. “No apology needed.

I haven’t slept, just been thinking a lot.” He peered over
Jarvis’s shoulder and saw some sort of building blueprints.
“What are you working on?”

Jarvis turned back to the page, trying to keep his eyes

off  the  nicely  tanned,  naked  flesh  so  near.  “Pulled  out  the
house  plans  and  started  working  on  getting  the  plumbing
modernized. It was always on my duty list, but it seems now
it  should  have  a  higher  priority,  since  having  an  extended
houseguest and all.”

“I was meaning to ask. I haven’t seen a bath or anything

in the house….”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“There isn’t,” Jarvis explained. “Since I eat my meals out

and bathe at the gentleman’s club most nights, it wasn’t
really necessary.”

“Oh,” Kody said, smiling, “so this is just a crash pad.

That explains a lot.”

“A ‘crash pad’? What a strange term.”
“A place to just sleep and change clothes, because you

are out elsewhere nearly all the time.”

“Yes, that is, or was, the situation. I have to wonder

from some of your expressions, though. The future seems to
be maybe a bit violent.”

Kody tried not to frown. “I did say it’s not perfect. But I

guess sex and violence go hand in hand. As one gets more
casual, so does the other.”

Jarvis nearly gasped. “Casual violence? I don’t even

want to contemplate such a notion.”

“It’s better not to.”
“Then I shan’t,” Jarvis said, turning his gaze to Kody. He

then grinned slightly.

“What’s that look for?”
“Oh?” Jarvis chuckled. “Looking at you, barely dressed

like that, I still can’t determine if you’re a devil or an angel.”

Kody almost blushed from the sincerity of Jarvis’s

compliment. “Which do you want me to be?”

Jarvis turned back to his drafting table. “I merely want

you to be who you are, Kody. I don’t want to interject any of
my own notions upon you.”

Kody looked over the blueprint. “You’re planning to add

the bathroom here?” he asked while pointing at the vacant
area next to the downstairs powder room.

“Yes, do you think that works?”
“Had you planned on adding a shower?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“Just a tub.” He looked over at Kody and saw his

disappointment. “Unless you think that might be
important….”

“Well, when I was lying awake in bed, just thinking

about all the things I might miss, the memory of a nice, hot
shower kept haunting me.” Kody shook off his wistfulness.
“Of course, I don’t know if that would even be doable yet, or
how that might fit into your budget.”

Jarvis laughed. “Budget?” Then he studied Kody. “You

really don’t know. I’m not sure if I should find that insulting
or not, to be neglected by history.”

“Don’t know what?” Kody asked.
“Banks. Susan and I are the heirs of the Banks and

Trust Financial fortune. How else do you think a part-time
accountant and tinker could afford such an extravagant
house?”

Kody just shook his head. “I hadn’t thought about it. I’m

not familiar enough with how things are now to realize this is

an extravagance.”

“Well.” Jarvis widened his smile. “It is. And that puts

away one of my other fears.”

“Oh?” Kody asked, realizing this put a whole new

perspective on Jarvis’s sexual reluctance. If the guy was so
upper crust, he would have a reputation to protect and be in
constant fear of blackmail. Jarvis would have to keep a
tightly closed closet for a reason.

Jarvis sighed. “I did have this fleeting paranoid notion

that you knew who I was and had somehow targeted me for
my money.”

Kody laughed. “I’ve never been called a gold digger

before.”

“A ‘gold digger’?” Jarvis laughed. “You and your peculiar

phrases.”

“I’m glad I can keep you entertained.”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Jarvis got a brief glint in his eyes. “I’m sure you could

find many ways to entertain….”

Kody smiled. “I do think, Mr. Banks, you are flirting

with me again.”

“Maybe,” Jarvis admitted before going stoic and

scribbling something on the blueprint.

Kody watched as he erased and shuffled around the

bathroom items.

Jarvis looked up at him again. “Besides the hot shower,

what else do you miss?”

“Music,” he replied without thinking. “Radio and movies.

But those are just around the corner, so I only have to wait a
couple of years.”

“And what of the calisthenics machine you mentioned

earlier today? Will you miss that as well?”

“Yes,” Kody agreed wistfully.
“Then you must sketch the machine for me.” Jarvis

glanced over at Kody’s delicious body again. “And if I used

the machine, could I also develop to be as blessed as you?”

Kody chuckled. “Blessed? Believe me, if you saw the

other bodybuilders in the future, you’d realize how puny I
am.”

Jarvis scoffed. “Puny? You are like the alluring spawn of

Aphrodite herself and a chestnut ox.”

When Kody saw Jarvis’s grin and heard his warm

laughter, he felt a stirring in his chest. He knew then those
feelings he had been trying to ignore were more than simple
gratitude. Much more. Jarvis, this smart and funny man
from the past, was stealing his heart. Kody wondered if he
might need to apply some brakes. “Jarvis….”

The warm tone of his name sent a shiver through Jarvis,

but he puzzled at the tinge of regret he also heard. “Yes,
Kody?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“I, um, I need to know, right now, if you think this is a

bad thing. It may be better if I move out in the morning.”

Jarvis tried to hide his disappointment. “How could this

be a ‘bad thing’? Isn’t this what you were trying to convince
me of earlier today?”

Kody hesitated. “I don’t want to complicate things. I

think if I stay any longer—”

“I honestly confessed my feelings for you earlier this

evening. If you’re trying to say what I think you are, it would
only simplify matters, as far as I’m concerned.”

Kody smiled. “I just wanted to make sure we’re on the

same page.”

Jarvis chuckled. “I believe we are, Kody. Now quit

gushing and sketch out that calisthenics device so I can
build it for you.” He offered his charcoal pencil to Kody as he
brought out some blank pages of paper.

Kody took the pencil and sat on the bench next to

Jarvis.

Jarvis scooted a bit, trying to keep his leg from resting

against Kody’s.

With a grin, Kody scooted closer and pressed his leg up

against Jarvis’s.

Suppressing a smirk, Jarvis pointed at the paper.

“Draw.”

Grabbing a short ruler, Kody began sketching out the

fitness machine with its stack of weights in the central back
area and upper T-bar to support the pulleys. He worked
quickly, squeezing in as many details of the device as he
could recall.

Jarvis watched in fascination. He admired that look of

blissed  focus  that  came  over  Kody’s  face  as  he  scratched
away the details of the drawing. The machine didn’t look as
complicated as he had feared.  As the lines appeared on the
paper,  his  engineering  mind  calculated  lengths  and  weight

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

loads and possible construction materials, planning out how
to make Kody’s machine a reality.

Kody set down the ruler and pencil. “There, that’s about

everything I can recall.”

Jarvis nodded. “This should not be at all difficult to

construct. Maybe three or four days if I ignore my sister.”

“Don’t do that.” Kody frowned. “It’s not that big a

priority. Go to work and do whatever you’re supposed to. I
don’t want to come between you and your life.”

Jarvis dropped his hand down to his thigh. “Then it may

be one or two weeks,” he said while sliding his hand over
toward Kody’s linen-clad thigh. He got his hand just close
enough for his fingers to lightly brush the material.

“That’ll be fine.” Kody replied, gazing over at Jarvis. The

hand barely touching his thigh seemed so tentative, Kody
wasn’t sure if he should respond with something bolder.
“Your hand seems to have found my leg,” he finally said.

Jarvis gazed back. “Indeed it has. Is that not how a man

of the future would act?”

“Truthfully? If you’re a teenager going for your first kiss,

maybe. Grown-ups aren’t usually so subtle,” Kody said as he
leaned  in  and  kissed  Jarvis  softly  on  the  lips.  Kody’s  heart
raced,  and  he  felt  a  sense  of  relief  at  the  moment  finally
arriving.  He  hadn’t  realized  how  much  he  had  wanted  this
kiss  from  Jarvis.  Kody  put  his  hand  behind  Jarvis’s  back
and  pulled  him  closer  as  he  tasted  the  foreign  flavor  of
Jarvis.

Jarvis seemed to melt in his hands as he opened his

mouth and kissed back with a guttural moan. He slumped
into Kody as though all his bones were dissolving. Kody put
his other hand behind Jarvis’s head, just in case he needed
to hold him upright.

Kody pulled back when Jarvis was panting through his

nose to catch his breath. “Was that your first kiss?”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“From a man, yes.” Jarvis replied, still looking glassy-

eyed.

“I hope it wasn’t disappointing,” Kody teased.
“I daresay decidedly not.” Jarvis straightened himself

and grinned slightly. “I’m afraid your analogy of a pubescent
boy isn’t far off, though.”

“You don’t have any experience with a man?”
“Just a few quick masturbations, and I did receive oral

once that was interrupted before finishing. But I had never
kissed.”

Kody shooed away the sudden mental image of bodies

fumbling in a dark, dingy alley. “How depressing.” Kody
frowned. “I guess we’ll have to fix that,” he said as he
reached out and undid the bow-tie around Jarvis’s neck and
removed it from his collar.

“I was… I was hoping you would share my bed?”
Kody reached out and stroked his mutton-chop. “You

don’t sound very sure of that.”

“I’m certain that I want you.” Jarvis reached out and ran

his hand across Kody’s bare chest. “Just maybe….” He
looked up into Kody’s eyes. “I’ve never done anything like
this here, in my home.”

“No need to be paranoid.” Kody dropped his hand down

and began unbuttoning Jarvis’s vest. “I won’t take advantage
of you.”

“But I want you to take me. In a way I’ve never wanted

before.”

Kody slid the vest over Jarvis’s shoulders and off his

arms. “Tell me exactly what you want.” He leaned forward
and blew at Jarvis’s ear.

“I, Gads—”
Kody gently licked his tongue around Jarvis’s ear and

followed down to his neck. “Tell me, I’m listening,” Kody
whispered as he gently nibbled below Jarvis’s ear.

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

“Ah… inside me… I want you to take me, be inside me,”

Jarvis moaned quietly in Kody’s ear.

“What if I’m not a top?” Kody teased, before he realized

Jarvis might not know that term.

“I’d prefer you weren’t. I’d rather you not spin about.”
Suppressing a chuckle, Kody moved around and kissed

Jarvis again. “Then we should move to the bed, I guess.”

Jarvis jumped up and ran to the bed so fast he made

himself light-headed from the sudden movement. He tried to
sit steadily on the edge of the bed as he unbuttoned his
shirt.

“Whoa there, cowboy, is there a time limit?”
Jarvis smirked. “You’re just obsessed with time, aren’t

you.”

“Well, being a time traveler and all, I guess it comes with

the territory.” Kody sat next to him on the bed and gazed
over at Jarvis. “If that’s what you want, then, do you have
any lubricant?”

Jarvis’s brow crinkled quizzically. “In the basement

workshop, but what do you need that for?”

Kody paused before it dawned on him what Jarvis was

thinking. “Oh, Lord, no, not engine lube. I mean something
organic, for internal use.”

Jarvis’s eyes ticked back and forth as he pondered. “Oh!

How about goose grease?”

Kody wrinkled his nose. “That sounds smelly.”
Jarvis raised Kody’s bandaged wrist up to his nose. “It’s

what I put on your burn. Does that smell?”

“No. That should do.” Kody watched as Jarvis nearly ran

from the room and returned soon after with the familiar
glass jar and some cotton towels. He set the jar and towels
on the nightstand.

Kody reached over and pulled Jarvis to sit on the bed.

He slipped the shirt off Jarvis’s shoulders, revealing nearly

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

alabaster  skin  over  a  thin  body.  Jarvis’s  chest  had  a  slight
concave  indent  over  his  sternum  and  only  a  thin  veil  of
muscles stretched over his ribs. No wonder Jarvis seemed so
enamored  by  Kody’s  chest.  Kody  lightly  kissed  along  his
sternum.

“Don’t be disgusted,” Jarvis almost pleaded.
“Not at all. It wouldn’t be your body if you looked just

like me. But if you want, I think the fitness machine could
help.” Kody moved his mouth over to Jarvis’s nipple and
rubbed against it with puckered lips.

“Oh, yes, please,” Jarvis moaned.
Kody wasn’t sure if he was answering his question or

responding to the pleasure, or maybe both. He put his hands
under Jarvis’s armpits and lifted. “Stand and take off your
pants.”

As Jarvis undressed, Kody noticed the hip bones

protruding from under his skin before his eyes turned to
Jarvis’s ample swollen cock.

“Don’t you ever eat?”
“Yes, at least once a day.” Jarvis looked down at Kody.

“What about your pants?”

Kody stood far enough to slip the pajamas off and free

his own swelling cock. He started to say something about
dietary habits, but Jarvis rushed forward and knelt in front
of him, taking Kody’s cock into his hands.

“It’s beautiful,” Jarvis said admiringly. “Just a perfect

size, I think.”

“Well, I’m glad you like—”
After only the slightest hesitation, Jarvis inhaled his

cock nearly to the hilt, only backing off when his gag reflex
hit. Jarvis swallowed, then plunged down again.

“Holy fuck….”

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Jarvis looked up at Kody, but glared only briefly at the

language as he began nursing and suckling on the head of
his cock.

“I thought you’d never done that before,” Kody teased as

he opened his thighs wider and Jarvis engulfed him again.

Jarvis rose up. “I haven’t, but I have fantasized about it

quite often.” He leaned forward and warmly kissed Kody.

“You didn’t have to stop.”
“From the swelling and twitching I elicited, it seemed

like I should. I have another activity in mind, if you recall,”
Jarvis said as he crawled onto the bed and lay down on his
stomach. He reached his hands back to grasp his butt
cheeks and spread them apart. “Just don’t go too fast.”

Kody stretched out beside him and pulled on his far hip

to  roll  him  on  his  side.  “Let’s  warm  you  up  first.”  Kody
reached  for  the  jar  and  lightly  dabbed  his  finger  in  the
grease.  “Lift  your  top  leg  up.  And  just  relax.  Give  in  to  the
pleasure.”

Jarvis closed his eyes when Kody’s finger lightly

massaged at his opening.

“Relax.”
Taking a deep breath, Jarvis tried to relax as the finger

circled and toyed with his opening. He resisted briefly when
Kody tried to insert the finger, but forced himself to relax
and felt the finger slide slowly in.

“Is that uncomfortable?”
“No, just… peculiar.”
“Just relax and enjoy it,” Kody said as he slowly slid the

finger in and out.

Jarvis relaxed more and moved his hips slightly to

match  the  rhythm  of  Kody’s  finger.  He  could  feel  the
pleasure of the slight little bump of Kody’s knuckles as they
moved  in  and  out. Then  he  suddenly  felt  more  and  realized
Kody  had  two  fingers  inserted  now,  working  at  his  anus.

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Then a third. The addition of more fingers only seemed to
heighten the sensations of pleasure. He started rolling his
hips more, wanting to feel it all.

“You’re awfully quiet up there, is this okay?”
“Oh, enjoying it immensely.”
“Then are you ready for more?” Kody asked as he

removed his fingers.

“Yes, please, fill me up with your beautiful penis.”
Kody had to stifle a chuckle. He’d have to give Jarvis a

few pointers on “dirty talk” later. He applied some of the
grease to his cock and positioned himself over Jarvis. “Do
you want me to drive, or do you want to?”

“Uh, pardon?” Jarvis asked, confused by the reference.
“Never mind, I’ll just let you drive.” He placed his left

hand under Jarvis’s thigh and pushed his leg up a bit higher
as he put his other hand on the mattress. He lined himself
up with Jarvis’s entrance. “Okay, ease back and take me in.”

Jarvis raised up onto his elbows and slid down the bed

just a bit. The sudden sensation of being stretched and filled
made  him  pause,  but  there  was  none  of  the  expected  pain.
He  relaxed  and  slid  further  and  further,  taking  in  Kody’s
cock  and  filling  himself  up  with  warm  and  pleasant
sensations. He pushed further, but couldn’t move anymore.

“You have all of me now,” Kody said as he lowered

himself down to lay on top of Jarvis. He leaned forward and
whispered in his ear, “You’re so quiet. Is this okay?”

Jarvis kept his eyes closed. “This… I’ve never felt so

close  to  anybody  before.”  He  sighed  warmly.  “I  swear  I  can
feel  your  heartbeat  inside  me.”  Jarvis  shifted  slightly,
managing  to  pull  Kody  the  tiniest  bit  further  in.  “I’d  never
really considered this, I always thought it would be painful.”

“Are you ready for more?”
“More?” Jarvis wondered aloud as Kody slowly slid

himself out to just his head, then pushed back in. “Ha…

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

ah… ho… holy fu—” Jarvis exclaimed with surprised
pleasure as Kody’s cock slid in and out of his ass.

Kody moved a little faster. “Talk to me, Jarvis, tell me

what you like.”

“I like this, oh yes,” Jarvis panted. “I like you moving in

me.”

“What are we doing, Jarvis?” Kody leaned in and

breathed on his ear, then whispered, “Tell me, what are we
doing?”

“You’re screwing me,” Jarvis uttered.
“Another word,” Kody whispered as he teased at his ear

with his tongue.

Jarvis inhaled then quietly whispered, “You’re fucking

me.”

Kody pushed himself all the way in and stopped moving.

“Do you like it?”

“Yes, Kody, quit teasing me, I like it very much.”
Kody grinned. “Do you want more?”
“More?” Jarvis asked. “There couldn’t possibly be more.”
“There is, or we could just keep with this position, if you

like.”

Jarvis playfully slapped at his arm. “You oaf, how can I

pass that up now?”

“We’ll have to change positions,” Kody said as he

removed himself. “Hand me that pillow and roll on your
back.”

“I didn’t think we could face each other.” Jarvis

marveled as Kody lifted his legs and positioned the pillow at
the small of his back.

Kody applied a little more grease. “Just close your eyes

and relax,” he said as he lined up and eased into Jarvis
again.

“Oh yes, fill me up again,” Jarvis moaned aloud.

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Kody slid in and out twice before changing the angle

and brushing Jarvis’s prostate.

“Gads, what was that?”
Kody leaned forward and rolled his hips to slide against

the prostate again. “You mean that?”

“Oh fu—is that the more you mentioned?”
“What do you want?” Kody asked as he rolled his hips

again.

“Oh, keep doing that, Kody.”
“What do you want?”
Jarvis moaned as he slid in and out again without

touching the prostate.

“What do you want, Jarvis?”
“Please, Kody….”
Kody moved and avoided the prostate again. “Tell me

what you want.”

“Fuck me,” Jarvis barely whispered.
Kody pulled back and rolled his hips as he plunged

back in, banging against the gland. “I couldn’t hear you….”

Jarvis reached up and grabbed Kody’s hips. “Like that,

fuck me like that,” he said a little louder.

Kody plunged in again for the gland. “What do you

want?” he asked as he plunged again.

“Oh gads, yes, fuck me like that, Kody,” Jarvis nearly

squealed.

Kody leaned down and kissed Jarvis as he went to work

with his hips, pleasuring Jarvis from the inside with each
stroke. He pulled back when he felt Jarvis’s breath catching.
“You okay?” he asked between panted breaths.

Jarvis nodded and squeezed his eyes shut. “I think I’m—

oh fuck,” he squeaked as his body stiffened and his anus
squeezed a vise grip around Kody’s cock.

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

Kody stopped moving and kissed Jarvis’s forehead

before glancing down to watch him ejaculate. “Yes, Jarvis, let
it out, make a mess,” he urged.

Barely slitting open his eyes, Jarvis reached his hands

behind Kody’s neck and pulled him down for a quick kiss.
“Why did you stop? You haven’t finished yet, have you?”

“No,” Kody told him as he slid out. He lay on top of

Jarvis and frottaged against his semen-covered stomach.
When he came, he raised up so Jarvis could see him squirt.

Jarvis pulled him back down and hugged him close.

“I’ve decided. You are definitely an angel.”

“Oh?” Kody said while still catching his breath.
“Yes, that lightning must merely be a cover story for

when you fell out of heaven.”

Kody chuckled. “It seems like an awfully elaborate story

just for a mere cover,” he said before kissing Jarvis.

“Oh, naturally,” Jarvis mused. “An angel wouldn’t have

something mundane. It would have to be an extravagant

story.”

“Well, then, as long as you promise to love me back, I

can  be  your  angel.”  Kody  sealed  his  mouth  over  Jarvis  and
kissed  him  so  deeply  it  seemed  they  nearly  stopped
breathing.

Jarvis suddenly pushed him up. “Wait. Did you just say

you love me?”

“Darn, I thought I could slip it by you,” Kody teased.
Jarvis grinned. “I think the world better start nailing

down.” He gave Kody a quick peck on the cheek. “My money,
combined with your knowledge… I wager we could really
shake the fuck out of shit.”

Kody groaned. “I can’t believe you just said the F word

again.”

“It’s fine, I made a new rule. Decorum of language does

not exist in this bed. We can fuck, or say ‘fuck’, anywhere

The Color of Spring Lightning * Jackson Cordd

within the confines of this bedroom.” Jarvis kissed Kody’s
forehead, grinning at the man who fell from the sky.

Kody grinned back and settled closer to Jarvis. For the

first time in his life, he felt like things were flowing his way.
Kody had a feeling this was going to be an interesting
partnership and an interesting future.

About the Author

ACKSON

ORDD

first attempted writing in junior high,

when he put together an eight-page comic book. His lack of
drawing  skills  doomed  the  work  to  failure,  though.  In  high
school,  he  learned  to  rely  on  the  words  alone  and  placed
third  in  a  regional  short  story  contest  his  senior  year.  (He
still  feels  he  didn’t  get  first  place  only  because  of  the
homoerotic elements.)
To get a steady paycheck, he works in the software industry
writing  and  proofreading  programs  and  manuals,  but  he
returns  to  weaving  the  tales  of  his  hunky  fantasy  men  at
night.
Visit Jackson on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1000036168779
72

Published by
Dreamspinner Press
4760 Preston Road
Suite 244-149
Frisco, TX 75034

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the
authors’ imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead,
business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Cover Art by Catt Ford

This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is
illegal and a violation of International Copyright Law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon
conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. This eBook cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No
part of this eBook can be shared or reproduced without the express permission of the Publisher. To
request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press at: 4760 Preston Road, Suite
244-149, Frisco, TX 75034

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/

Released in the United States of America
June 2012

eBook Edition
eBook ISBN: 978-1-61372-626-6

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