My father took my sister (Kelly) and I to visit my Uncle and cousin at their new apartment this one particular day. My uncle had just gotten custody of his son, Steve, and the courts made him get a new place that would be more suitable to raise a child in. So he got a huge three bedroom, three bath, loaded, fifth floor apartment on the water. I don't know what the rent was, but I wouldn't have wanted the bill, I'll tell you that. It was great.

I really liked my Uncle. He was a fun guy. It was my cousin I couldn't stand. He had this thing about him that managed to get into some _s_h_i_t_. He could find trouble anywhere, and usually did, especially when I was around him. It was always the same.

I think our first problem was that we were both very competitive with each other, and being about the same age and related didn't make it any easier because we would always hear about each other from someone in the family. Be it our grandmother or aunts, or even parents. I even heard the dreaded "Why can't you be more like Steven." a time or two. God did that really suck.

Our biggest thing was to prove our bravery to each other. We would always challenge each other to do things, sometimes crazy or dangerous things, to prove our man hood over the other. Pretty dumb I know, but we couldn't help ourselves. I know I couldn't. It was like I knew that even if I failed what ever it was I was dared to do, as long as I tried to do it and didn't back out I was being brave and knowing this Steve would take advantage and get me into some real fine messes.

After Uncle Adam gave us the tour, he and my father sat down at the kitchen table and each had a beer and talked as my Cousin, Sister, and I went out on the balcony to get a good view of the water which backed the apartment complex. There were two huge piers down there. One for boats and one for People to fish, or sit or what ever they wanted.

"My Father said he's going to get a boat and we'll dock it right out there. He even said that I could get a wave runner if I wanted." Steve told Kelly and I with a little bit of arrogance to his voice, and with that I knew the competition had begun.

"That's cool." Kelly said.

"Big deal." I mumbled under my breath.

"I know." He said with his nose in the air.

I tried to look uninterested by looking over the balcony. For only being on the fifth floor, we were pretty high up. "We're pretty high aren't we?"

"Not really......Why? Are you afraid of heights or something?" He said giving me a grin.

"No, not at all. Just saying that we were pretty high up."

"I can't believe you're afraid. What a fag." He laughed then. So did Kelly.

"I'm not afraid of heights asshole. I was just saying.........."

"Saying what......that you're a _f_u_c_k_ing Puss?" He said still laughing.

"Look dick head. I am not afraid of anything, much less being up on the fifth floor of this _s_h_i_t_ty old place."

"Oh yeah, prove it."

"What do you mean prove it." I asked giving him a strange look. "I'm standing here aren't I?"

He looked over his shoulder at the opened French doors. Seeing the coast was clear he went on. "Get up on the rail and, with no hands, walk across. From end to end."

"Are you crazy?" Kelly said looking at him as if he had lost his mind. "Only an idiot would do that."

"Shut up. I did it the fist day I got here and it was..........." He started, but Kelly cut him off.

"Well see there. I rest my case." She said giving him a wicked smile.

Steve ignored her and turned his eyes to me. "Well Mikie. What will it be? Will you do it, or are you chicken?" He asked.

"I am no chicken _s_h_i_t_ head...........and if I have to do this to prove it then fine." I said and started to remove my jacket.

"Mike, what are you doing. Don't even try it." Kelly said as she watched me pull a chair over to the balcony rail and stand up on the seat.

"Just shut up and let me concentrate Kel." I said coldly keeping my eyes on the rail.

"If you set one foot up there I'll go tell Dad." She threatened.

"Yeah, you go get him......" I yelled and threw one leg over. "........and you'll be sorry."

"Oh my god. I can't believe this." She said and placed both her hands over her mouth and nose.

Steve just grinned.

I grabbed onto the rail in front of me with both hands and slowly pulled my feet up and raised myself into a standing position using my arms to balance myself. Kelly was pleading with me to get down, as Steve urged me on, but I was concentrating so hard that I didn't hear either of them. I didn't even see them really. It was only me and that rail.

Step by step, slowly placing one foot in front of the other, I walked the whole length of the rail (about fifteen or so paces) till I reached the wall on the other side. As soon as I touched the wall everything around me came back to life and I could hear Steve and Kelly once again.

"All right, you did it, now get down from there before you fall." Kelly said, sounding quite panicked by now, and I probably would have done just that, but Steve had to open his mouth again.

"Now you have to go back again." He said.

"No you don't just get down." Kelly said quickly.

I looked at Steve and gave him a grin. "I'll go back. It ain't any big thing." I told him and with one hand on the wall I turned around.

"Mike don't!" Kelly said.

"Shut up!" I snapped then started on the route back, doing it exactly the same. One foot in front of the other.

I had gotten about half way when suddenly there was this booming voice that seemed to come out of no where. It was my father. "JESUS CHRIST!!!."

I jumped about a foot, which caused me to loose my balance and I slipped right off the rail.

There was the loud outburst of screams from everyone except my father who, always managing to keep his head in a crisis, snapped into action. He got to the rail in a flash and managed to catch me by the arm. I remember looking up into his face as he hung over, holding onto me as I dangled there. He looked so scared and panicked, but still managed to keep control.

"Oh my God." Uncle Adam started yelling. "Pull him up! Jesus Christ pull him up!"

He sounded like a total lunatic.

My father ignored his brother and just concentrated on getting me up safely. "Grab onto my arm and don't let go for anything, you hear me." He said looking me right in the eye.

"Yes sir." I said and grabbed on tight.

As he pulled me up I could feel every muscle in his arm bulging and straining, but I guess his adrenaline was pumping pretty good by now enabling him to pull my one hundred and five pound body up and back over the rail quite easily.

When my feet hit the ground he pulled me into his chest and hugged me like there was no tomorrow, and started thanking God that I was all right, but then suddenly things changed. He went from hugging me to screaming and shaking me, demanding to know what the hell I thought I was doing up on that rail.

I tried to think of something to tell him, but my mind was blank. All I could think to say was "I'm sorry Dad. It was just a dare."

He snatched me up by my arm suddenly and yanked me into the apartment telling me that he was going to let me have it big time. "You are going to be the sorriest kid in all the world when I get threw with you!" He yelled as he sat down on the couch and pulled me in front of him. The next thing I knew he was working on getting my jeans unbuttoned. "I am going to beat your ass blue!" He yelled.

"No." I yelled and threw my hand down to try and stop him, but he slapped the top of my hand.

"Get your hand out of there!" He yelled and within two seconds my pants and underwear were yanked down around my knees and I was flipped over my fathers left knee and held in place with his left arm wrapped around my chest.

"No Dad, don't." I cried as I frantically tried to get out of that dreadful position he had me in, but I wasn't going anywhere.

"I will teach you never to pull a stunt like this again for as long as you live." He yelled, then POW!! His big hand came down hard causing this loud SLAP to echo threw the whole apartment. I arched my back and let out a yell.

TO BE CONTINUED.............