Swimming with Parker
by (and ©) Matthew Oswald
Chapter 2
As I held the phone while it rang, it was a fight to keep myself from hanging up. It helped a little that the call would already be logged on his phone, so if I hung up, he'd see I called and it would be weirder.
Parker picked up on the fourth ring.
"Hello?"
"Hey Parker," I said. "It's me... Kyle."
A pause for a second. I hoped he wasn't trying to remember who that was.
"Oh yeah... hey Kyle. What's up?" He asked.
"Not too much," I said. I began to go through my plan, step by step. "I was just about to send over these videos you took, but I think the files are too big for me to E-Mail."
"Oh..." He said. "Oh that sucks."
"It's no big deal," I continued. I was amazed how easy it was getting to talk to Parker. "I can just pop over your place and upload them to your computer with the camera."
That seemed harmless enough.
"Tonight?" He blurted, sounding panicked.
"Oh no," I quickly backed off. "Just, y'know, anytime that's convenient."
Parker let out a breath on the other side of the phone. "Yeah, that'd be good."
Did he sound down about not seeing me tonight? I thought so. The split second that thought was completed, I almost let out a whoop. He wanted to see me again, and was upset it couldn't be tonight.
Or I was totally misreading him, and he thought I wanted to see him again too badly to be healthy and got scared. Maybe that was a sigh of relief.
That was enough to get my hopes back down.
"Speaking of which, I had an idea I wanted to run by you..." I began, sounding as professional as I could. "Obviously, you're into vlogging... have you ever done anything else on camera?"
The question caught him a little offguard, which was okay. I was expecting that. "Like, what do you mean?"
Here goes nothing.
"Modeling," I said.
Silence on the other end. Silence I quickly filled up before it became awkward.
"You see, my mother works for an advertising agency that specializes in male fashion - both men and, y'know, boys," I was actually not lying, though man... I had to admit, now that I was speaking, this sounded so unbelievably corny. This would probably go down as one of these plans that sounded so much better in my head.
"The models she works with make so much money," I continued. "And so do the photographers. I've been thinking of getting a reel together... and when I was watching your video, I was sorta inspired."
The silence on the other end felt a little less awkward this time.
"You think I could be a model?" he asked.
"Oh absolutely," I blurted, and immediately winced.
Parker may or may not have picked up on my eagerness. "How much money do they make?"
I smiled. "Well, I'd probably get nothing for the reel, but if they decided to book you..." I shrugged. "Two-hundred dollars for an hour long shoot for a first timer. Since you're a kid, maybe a little less... but not much. Once you got experience and face rep, it could go as high as a thousand."
"Jesus..." Parker exclaimed, sounding really excited. "For real?"
"Yep," I said. Yes, it was a little bit of manipulation, but I was okay with this because I wasn't lying about any of it.
"Sounds great," Parker said, sounding so enthusiastic. "When do you wanna do it?"
"What are you doing tomorrow morning?" I asked.
"Oh, well, I was going to go skateboarding that afternoon... but I'm free in the morning. Where and what time?"
"Stetman's Lake. It's gotta be early, though," I warned him. "We wanna make sure we have the place to ourselves."
Oh shit, that could be taken many different ways, I realized.
"Um, yeah, sure... okay," Parker said. "What time?"
"Six?" I asked.
"In the morning?" Parker exclaimed. "Are you on drugs?"
"Maybe," I answered. "Just remember, the early bird catches the worm though."
"Say that to people who were late for the Titanic's departure."
I laughed. He was witty, and I liked that. It reminded me of... well... me.
"Okay, I'll have to ride my bike down," Parker said. "My father would shit bricks if I asked him to drive me that early. Can we make it like 6:15?"
"Sure," I answered.
"Do I need to bring anything?" Parker asked.
I thought for a moment. "Do you have a sweatshirt and jeans?"
"Um, sure... but it's going to be really hot tomorrow."
"You don't have to wear them, just bring them in a knapsack or something..." I said. "Modeling purposes."
Parker considered that for a moment, then agreed. "All right then. So, see you there."
"See you there," I agreed.
I hung up. I realized I was still naked from my jack-off session and my penis was pressing up against my belly button, yet again. The thought of having Parker all to myself tomorrow. I doubted I was going to get much sleep.
* * * *
My alarm woke me up at 5:30, and I nearly leapt out of bed.
Despite not being tired, it had been a late night. I had begun planning different ideas for shoots. I gathered a few odds and ends. I made sure to pack a football, a frisbee, and my father's old diving belt with three five pound weights on it. If we wanted to do some of the water stuff I had in mind, it was important that he be able to keep himself down. I also packed a snorkel and mask, as it was important that I see clearly for any shots I wanted to set up.
I was able to fit everything into my school backpack. It was heavy and tight, but I managed it. I quickly got into a t-shirt and bathing suit and gave myself a once over in the mirror. With exception to one insightly pimple on my cheek, I actually looked pretty good.
My hair was behaving today, hanging low over my eyes. My eyes were brown, framed by the glasses I wore. I thought for a moment, then decided to reach into my top desk drawer. I pulled out an old hemp necklace Jason had got me for my birthday last month. Birthdays and Christmas were the only three days of the year we called a ceasefire and became brothers.
It wasn't an expensive gift, but it had been a thoughtful one. It went well with my white t-shirt. There was love between me and Jason, but why it was so rare, I didn't understand. I think we were just too different.
I slipped on a pair of sandals and made my way down to the lake.
I arrived at 6:06, according to my phone. To my surprise, Parker was already there. This time, rather than leaning against the shed looking calm and beautiful, I saw him pacing slightly, clearly uptight and nervous.
The sight of him, as beautiful as he was, showing such fear... made me forget all about mine.
"You trying to dig a hole to China?" I asked.
Parker stopped pacing and looked at me. His pacing had made a very small ditch in the beach. He immediately relaxed a bit. "Stage fright, I think."
"Skatedude987 gets nervous on camera? Say it ain't so."
"Skateman847, thank you very much," Parker laughed, and it sounded like music. "That's totally different. I'm just myself, y'know?"
"That's all this is," I said. "You be yourself, and leave the rest to me. Okay?"
He stared at me for a moment, his blue eyes bright and wide. He looked a little younger than before, but nodded.
"Let's try over here..." I picked a location that would have a backdrop of lots of trees. I reached into my bag of tricks and produced a football, at least at first. He had a very thin, discreet golden chain around his neck. He kinda looked like a lifeguard. I went instead with the frisbee, and tossed it his way. He caught it on his finger.
I set up the shot, but then decided on something.
"Can you do me a favor, and take off your sneakers?"
It felt a little strange asking another boy to take off any part of their clothing.
Parker smiled, and complied. He sat down, removed his shoes, and then wiggled his toes my way. "Take a picture, it'll last longer."
"I plan to," I laughed. "Many, in fact."
"Oh stop, silly," He said, with a deliberate, exaggerated lisp. He began fanning himself rapidly. "You're making me all hot and bothered."
When my voice caught in my throat, I almost forgot to reply. I quickly spoke, just as it was in danger of getting awkward.
"Oh, we haven't even started yet."
Parker smirked skeptically at me and crossed his arms. I immediately had my first opportunity and took the picture, capturing that doubting smirk and his cocky body language while he was still sitting. Parker remembered he was a model, and immediately tried to pose, his smile became fake and his body rigid.
I laughed, I lowered the camera.
"Don't," I coached. "Just... pretend I'm not even here."
He dropped the pose immediately and glared at me, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "That's a little hard," he said softly.
I snapped another picture, capturing that sly smile and that mischievous twinkle as he sat on the ground, arms wrapped around his legs, bare toes digging into the sand.
I reviewed it. He was flat out hot. "Troublemaker" would be the title of this one. I felt the blood rushing from my face, and felt my bathing suit start to tent. Fuck me... I cursed inwardly, trying to hide my half-mast between my legs.
"Perfect," I said.
I had him pick up the frisbee, and I told him to actually throw it at me, gently. I captured the picture of the Frisbee oncoming, with him in the background, just before catching it myself. I went through a few other ideas. I worked my way up to the football.
All the while, I kept him talking, so that he'd think about anything other than the camera. The second he remembered he was a model in a photo shoot, he gave me absolute garbage.
The trade off was, the split second he forgot was always golden.
He tossed the football to no one in particular, and I snapped a sort of Heisman Trophy pose as he did. I was impressed how tight a spiral he was capable of throwing.
"Damn. Didn't pick you for the dumb jock type. I'm disappointed."
"Oh fuck you," He said, with a laugh. "Yeah. I'm going to try out for Varsity this year."
"Skipping the Frosh AND JV league?" I asked, snapping a few more pictures as he entered a sort of recovery pose, rubbing his hands. He forgot he was on camera, and it was great. "Ambitious."
"The coach already promised me a good shot at quarterback or running back if I try out... well, 2nd or 3rd string, anyway," Parker admitted with a shrug. "I won MVP in our Pop Warner league this year. I combined for 1500 yards in 8 games."
"Wow," I admitted. "You're pretty good then."
"I had lots of help... Jason, for example..." He smiled. "Jason protected my ass real well. I saw him knock down two linebackers and a safety in a single play where I ran for a touchdown."
"Well, since you aren't dead..." I said. "I guess he did a good job overall." I smiled at him. "No offense, but you don't strike me as the extremely durable type."
"Couldn't have done it without him," Parker admitted.
"Always knew Jason had a hidden talent somewhere. Guess smashing his body into things works."
Parker's smile faded. "He's my best friend, you know. You don't need to pick on him so much."
I snorted. "Screw that. He's my brother. I'll bash him as much as I like, thank you very much."
"I guess that's fair." Parker's smile returned, but it was reserved. "But, can you keep a secret?"
I nodded. Hell, I'd been keeping plenty for as long as I'd lived.
"Jason really looks up to you," He said. "We'd talk after practice, y'know... and he'd say how he wishes he was smart like you." Parker smiled, just a bit. "He really feels like the odd man out in your family - your parents are both smart too, and he, well... he struggles with most stuff."
I had to admit, I was floored. And here, I'd always thought I was the black sheep of the family. Both Jason and my parents were extremely social, friendly people who always had people calling them, wanting to do stuff with them.
"I thought you didn't even know Jason had a brother," I teased. "You said that yesterday."
Parker laughed. "I... guess I was just trying to tease you a bit." He gently punched me in the shoulder.
"Bully," I replied, just as gently.
"I try," Parker offered. "Besides, I can't really blame Jason - you're kinda intimidating."
I realized I had stopped taking pictures.
"Say what?" I asked.
Parker shrugged. "Yesterday, sitting on your towel... you were like T-1000 or something. Just staring at us. Why didn't you come in for a swim?"
"I didn't think Jason would like me playing with his friends," I said.
"He would have liked that a lot, I think," Parker said. "I asked him if we should ask you, and he told me that you didn't want to hang out with us."
I snorted. "That makes me antisocial... how do you get intimidating though?"
Parker shrugged. "You just seemed so smart and unapproachable, I guess... like you wanted to be anywhere else." He smiled. "Took me about an hour to work up the courage to ask you about your camera."
"Well, I did want to be anywhere else... but then I saw you."
I think both our faces went pale at the same time. It was out before I realized it. Good God. What had I just said? *How* could this kid have made me that comfortable, where I thought that would be a good thing to say.
Parker looked dumbstruck and lost his smile. He had a true deer-in-headlights look. "Um... uh..."
I immediately cut him off. "You wanna... do some swimming shots now?" I was desperate for a distraction.
The look he gave me was one of pure distrust and fear.
"Okay," he all but whispered back to me.
My statement had rattled him, no doubt about it, but he didn't let it slow him as he made his way over to the shore and took off his shirt.
Again, with his beautiful figure, however this time, I was much closer. His golden chain complimented his light tan well. As my eyes went to his chest, I noticed his nipples also seemed quite hard and firm.
I couldn't help but notice his bathing suit had tented up just a little.
He looked at me, and I quickly turned to get my mask and snorkel out of my backpack. When I looked back, I could see he was no longer tented, but he had moved his legs closer together.
I smiled, trying to encourage him. Of course, Parker would have to walk to the water, which made his illusion very transparent. Apparently seeing me smile, he flushed and turned so his back was mostly to me and began walking. He was clearly scared.
I was tempted to tell him it was okay. I had one too. But that just didn't seem like it would provoke the reaction I wanted. To be honest, I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted right now, or what could possibly happen. All I knew is Parker was probably two wrong words away from running in the other direction, screaming.
Only when Parker got waist-deep in the water did he turn back. I kicked off my sandals and followed him.
"You going to take your shirt off?" He asked.
I usually didn't. My chest wasn't like his. It was skin and bone mostly. I was kinda embarrassed about it. But, after being asked point blank, it seemed stupid to keep it on.
"Thanks. Almost forgot," I covered quickly. I pulled my arms out of the sleeves and tossed the shirt over by my sandals and glasses.
"So, why do you get a mask and snorkel, and I don't?" Parker asked. He seemed to slowly be getting his stride back, his eyes gleaming mischievously.
"Because it's not my sexy body and face on camera," I teased back.
Parker laughed, and gently licked his finger and rubbed them on one of his nipples, putting on his fake lisp again. "How's this for sexy, baby?"
"Oh, that's hot..." I said. In truth, my boner was now trying to escape my bathing suit by busting through it. "That's really fucking hot. Too bad I'm sending these to my mother, not Hugh Heffner."
Parker smiled and dipped his head halfway underwater, so only his eyes were visible. He then pushed back up and sprayed me with water from his mouth.
"Do that again," I said, not even bothered with the water.
"What? Spray you?" he asked.
"No... just before... when you were mostly under."
Parker's smile widened, and he ducked back down low in the water again. I leveled my camera for an over-under shot. It took about five attempts, but I finally got it the way I wanted. His underwater smile with his eyes reflecting over the surface of the water.
"Nice," I said.
"Lemme see," Parker said, swimming over to my side. I showed him the camera, and he leaned his head over to view it. His shoulder pressed against mine as he did, and I forced myself to try and keep my breathing steady.
"Damn," He said. "That looks funky."
I looked at him, and realized our faces were about a foot apart. We held that look for way too long, standing literally shoulder to shoulder.
"Go underwater," I said softly.
He licked his lips slowly, a nervous reflex. He wasn't smiling anymore. "And do what?" he whispered.
"Just swim for now, looking at me."
"Okay."
He swam away from me then dove down. I could see the preview on my camera well enough through the mask, that I could snap well-centered pictures of him. The whole time, he kept his eyes on me, smiling, flipping. Once he swam under me, face up, bubbles drifting languidly up from his nose. He smiled, eyes twinkling, and waved.
I had one big advantage too - I had a mask on and could look at him with sheer impunity for the first time. He'd never know, since I'd just be a nondescript blur to him with his naked underwater vision. I looked long at his crotch. As he swam, his clearly erect cock was like a rudder to him, the bathing suit constantly catching and showing me almost its exact form.
I rubbed myself through my bathing suit, hoping he wouldn't catch the motion.
A strange calm began to fall over me. I felt like I could say or do no wrong right now. He was the model, and I was the photographer... and we were both gay and hot for each other. I was almost positive now.
He surfaced next to me, his bright eyes smiling. "Any more requests?"
"Anything you want," I whispered. I was almost positive we were in a good place right now. I even smirked. "Pretend I'm a hot girl and flirt with me... be a bad boy for the camera."
I was certain that would get a laugh. Instead, Parker arched a brow. I noticed he shivered again. "Huh?" he asked.
This time, I didn't back down. I put my hand on his arm. "Just be yourself."
He looked back at me, the confident twinkle was gone.
I'd gone too far, too fast. I knew it immediately. I'd misjudged huge.
"I..." He looked back at me, his eyes watering up slightly. He looked absolutely terrified, like some beautiful lost puppy.
"Hey," I said, removing my mask and looping the band of my camera around my neck. "Are you all right?"
"It's nothing... I just... um..." He pulled his arm away from me, and swam back a bit.
I felt so terrible. I had forgotten, we really didn't know each other. Before yesterday, neither one of us knew the other existed. Now, I was touching and flirting with him like we were at a dance. A gay dance. Where on some universe, it was okay for two boys to do this sort of thing.
This was Earth. That boring fucking place I always loved to escape through my books. That place that said I was a failure and less than human because I was a boy who liked boys. How dare I forget that, even for a minute.
"Yeah, sorry about this," I said, I shook my head, and began to get out of the water. "This was a mistake."
"No," he immediately said, stuttering. "It's... no, it's not... I just... it's just I've never done anything like this before."
I knew he wasn't really talking about modeling.
I was heartbroken, but I understood... and I had to respect it. I liked Parker too damn much already, and making him feel so uncomfortable around me felt even worse than outright rejection.
"Just forget it," I snapped. "No worries."
"No... I mean, no damn it," Parker said, swimming after me and grabbing my arm. "That's not what I..."
"Dude... it's fucking simple. Just pretend it never happened," I seethed. My back was to him, and tears began forming in my eyes. I blinked them away, angrily. "I know I will."
It was a bold-faced lie. If I lived to be 100, I would never forget this happened. I could never forget Parker.
Suddenly, Parker grabbed my shoulder and, with surprising strength, spun me toward him.
"For fucksake, can I talk?" Parker demanded. "Can I get a word in edge-wise?"
"I don't know, can you?" I snapped, annoyed by his stuttering and spluttering.
He could. And he did.
"I don't know what's going on here... but, I like it, okay? I really like you and ... I really want you to like me to. I just... God damn it... you gotta give me a chance to wrap my head around all this... okay?"
I had never seen him angry, and I felt my own anger fading fast. The way he unwaveringly made eye contact. I never thought ice could burn, but his blue eyes were on fire. Given how close he was, I could feel his hot breath on my face.
"You know what?" I just smiled back at him, sadly, but not angrily. "You're really cute when you're angry."
And just like that, his hostility began to fade.
"I thought I was always cute," he muttered.
"You are. Extremely," I said. This time, I sensed something different and didn't swim away.
Parker's anger melted away and smiled. He laid his hand flat on the water, as though reaching out to me. I took it, gently, as though to shake it... but didn't let go.
"How long have you known you were... y'know..." he asked.
"Pretty much all my life," I answered. "You?"
Parker lost his smile, but didn't shake or didn't look nervous at all. "Like two or three years ago," he answered. "I guess I just thought it would go away, y'know? Something that would vanish when I got a girlfriend."
"Yeah," I answered. "I used to think like that too."
Parker moved closer to me, his eyes hopeful... yet still a little distrusting and fearful. "I don't want you to go... I'm just scared."
He looked so vulnerable, I could never compare him now to that cocky boy I'd first seen leaning against the shed. I wondered how much of his confidence was just a show, and whether I was seeing the real boy underneath the beauty.
"I don't know how to do this, whatever this is..." He continued.
I smiled and gently flicked his nose with my finger. "Fuck, you think I know? How many boys you think know about me exactly?"
"I thought you had experience... y'know, the way you set this whole thing up..."
I shook my head. I was standing in the water, he was treading just slightly, being a few inches shorter. I reached around behind him and pulled him close, my hand running up his tense back.
"I haven't... the slightest fucking clue what I'm doing," I said, bursting out laughing halfway through.
Parker laughed, and melted in my arms. For some reason, that seemed to make him feel so much better. I had gone and done it again... intimidated him too much. Before today, I could have never imagined I could rub people like that... I thought I was particularly defenseless.
He ran his hand down my cheek. "We're screwed... aren't we?"
I pulled him close so our mouths were inches apart. "All I know is I really wanted to see you again, and this was the only way I could think of."
"A modeling gig?" Parker asked, smirking. "Kinda thin, no offense."
"None taken," I whispered. I leaned forward, so my lips hovered over his. "I promise you, we'll figure this out together."
I looked deep into his eyes.
"I'm not going to let you drown."
Obviously getting the reference to the video he had taken, Parker smiled.
I gently pressed my lips to his.
He tensed, but only for a split second, before he leaned into me with more force than I did with him. He closed his eyes, and opened his mouth to mine. It was as though we were both letting go of a massive weight that we had been holding onto for years, and all I felt was relief like I'd never felt before.
I gently slipped my tongue inside his mouth and rubbed it against his. He copied the motion a split second later. He moaned slightly, and ran his hand down my back. Our tongues made a sort of circular motion, as though one was always trying to chase the other.
And then suddenly, I was off-balance and stepped toward water that was over my head. I rolled over onto my back and we both splashed, breaking apart. I came up, as did he.
"Epic fail, man," Parker exclaimed, laughing, moving back toward shallow water. He splashed me. "Epic fucking fail."
I smirked and lunged for him, gently wrapping my hands around his waist. I took a deep breath, went under and picked him up. He protested playfully as I threw him a good six feet. He rose, spitting water at me.
"Is that all you got?" Parker taunted, that bright smile now without any bit of reservation or nervousness.
I was after him again, wrapping my arms around his neck this time. He didn't bother fighting, however. He just let me.
"Do you even need to ask me that, you dumb jock?" I whispered to him, as I kissed the side of his nose. I made sure we were standing in fairly shallow water this time.
"You kiss like a nerd," Parker retorted, but his eyes were laughing.
"Oh yeah?" I whispered and gently slid my way back down to his mouth.
This time, he was the aggressive one, trying to wiggle his tongue between my lips. I let him in, allowing him to explore my mouth and my teeth with his tongue.
I guessed he was a natural, because I was so goddam horny right now, that I was afraid I'd cum in my bathingsuit right then and there.
He broke off suddenly, a little concern reappearing. "What if someone sees?"
I smiled. "It's not even 7 yet... no one's gonna be here for hours."
"Yeah. You're right."
He kissed me again. I don't know how long he did, but the seconds began melting away as we swayed in the chest deep water, exploring each other's mouths. I could feel his erect penis grinding against my leg. I turned just slightly so he'd feel mine on him.
He turned even more, so that our cocks grinded gently together through our bathing suits. "En guarde..." he whispered.
I laughed, and gave his a bump. "Defend your honor."
Parker fixed me with a long, dour look. "I am Inigo Montoya... you killed my father, prepare to die!" He thrust against me, and I had to tap out... I began laughing too hard.
Accepting my surrender, he broke apart slowly. "Can I... touch it?"
I nodded.
He gently reached under the water, hand sliding down my chest, and over the front of my bathing suit. He passed his hand over a few times, making my cock bob up and down with a little pressure, he squeezed gently.
"It's big," He whispered.
"Why thank you," I answered softly, putting on a bit of the old snoot. "May I return the favor?"
Parker gave it right back to me, lifting his chin properly. "I was hoping you might ask, good man."
I let my hands trail from his shoulders, down his chest, passing his rock-hard nipples as I did. I gave one a little squeeze, which made him laugh. I then traced around his abs, and gently explored his belly button with my finger.
I went further down, to the sides of his legs, and finally my hands met in the middle, over his shaft. Hard as a rock, just like mine. I got the impression he was underselling himself, for I could fit both my hands on his bulge.
"I think you've been trying to flatter me," I whispered.
His smile was infectious. "My my, have you found something down there?" He looked down, and then back to me. "Great Scott! It appears you are holding my penis."
I burst out laughing again - that was just too random, even for my wit.
"I'm adding that to my list of things I never imagined another person saying..." I whispered tenderly in his ear. I gave him a tender squeeze.
Parker laughed. "There's something I want to tell you..." He leaned forward to whisper something. I tensed with eagerness.
He then stuck his tongue inside my ear, making me jump in surprise.
"Wet willy..." he whispered solemnly.
"I... hate you!" I said, cringing... laughing. I splashed him.
With his other hand, he gave my boner a squeeze through the bathing suit, and maintained a firm grasp. "Little Kyle disagrees, isn't that right, Little Kyle?" He then pulled my cock up and down underwater and mimicked a higher pitched voice. "That's right, Parker. Boners never lie! And I'm hard for yoooou."
I might have been angry, if I wasn't too busy laughing my ass off and... enjoying him handling me so much.
"Wow, that's awfully nice of you to say, Little Kyle!" He looked into my eyes, and lowered his voice to a soothing coo. "Personally, I think he's a big geek... but he could grow on me."
"I can live with that," I answered, giving Parker's cock a gentle rub through the suit.
This is where it began to get a little awkward. I didn't want to push him too hard, and actually, this was far further than I had expected this to go. I mean, to say I didn't know what to expect going in was an understatement, but it wasn't that, within a half-hour, we'd be holding each other's cocks in the water.
Fortunately, while I was out of ideas, Parker seemed to get one. "Put your mask back on, and get your camera ready. I think I'll take your advice."
"What was that?"
"You remember," He said, shifting his shoulders side to side, impersonating a sexy walk. "Pretend you're a hot girl and flirt with you. Be a baaaad boy for the camera?"
I laughed. "Would that really do it for you? The whole girl part?"
Parker leaned forward and kissed me on the mouth.
"Mmm... I'll improvise," he said, pulling back. He gave me a mischievous grin, took a deep breath, and slipped underwater.
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