Phil and James: Getting Wet
#10 of Phil and James
"You got some lettuce on your face." James blushed and wiped off his snout, smearing a little mayonnaise into his gloved paws as he padded through the grass. His free-diving mask was hanging around his neck, and his fins were in his left paw as he looked up at the older male, who was similarly equipped. "Better?" Phil set down the heavy box of lead weights on the shore and smiled at him. "Better... how's your chastity device? Good fit?"
"Sometimes it hurts when I think about what we were doing back in the house." Phil chuckled as he stood back up. "That's good. It means you are still excited." He looked over the large pond and sighed contentedly. When he had inherited the 16 acre property from an uncle 4 years ago, it was nothing more than a wet hole in the ground. It was a labour of love and friendship by he and Fred that had turned it from the eye-sore it was into his on private pool, in which he trained new divers.
From an early age, the pair loved the water. This facet of their friendship had quickly become symbiotic in nature: Fred's appreciation of fish encouraged Phil's desire to take up diving. Conversely, Phil sharing his new-found hobby cemented marine biology as a career choice for Fred. Eventually this spread to Alice, as well, who would have joined her mate in the field of biology, were she not already on the fast track to a law-school scholarship. It did, however, lead to Alice focusing on environmental law. So when Phil asked his friend if he wanted to help him with the pond, he was on his way over within minutes.
They began by releasing a few fresh-water oysters and grasses into the pond to suck up the algae. Then next summer came the fish. Soon the pond was teeming with life and nearly crystal clear. Finally, they brought in a few old tires, barrels, and benches to create a small artificial reef. "Plenty of places to tie up a pup" he thought to himself as he kneeled in front of his boy, latching a 5 lb weight belt to his waist. "See, the wetsuit makes you float, so this helps you sink a little easier." He stood up and donned his own belt, weighing 10 lbs. The leopard then pulled out a small, thick neoprene hood and handed it to him. "Have you ever used a snorkel face mask before?"
James shook his head as he pulled the hood onto his head, his little ears poking out the perfectly placed holes. Phil smile and placed his paws on the kit's mask, pulling it over his face and tightening the straps. "It covers your face, like a gas mask, but it only lets air in when you inhale. Just don't try to breathe underwater or it'll fill up, and things could get ugly." He tugged on it to make sure it was snug as the kit took long, slow breaths. He reached down and scritched the kit's rubber head. "Good boy." James smiled and padded into the water, churring softly as he felt the cool water fill his wetsuit. Phil followed shortly, wearing his own mask and hood, his tail swishing softly as he got a good look at his boy's bum until the kit was up to his shoulders in the water and Phil was up to the middle of his abs.
The adult spoke loudly, his voice muffled by the mask, each breath accompanied with the *click* of the airlock opening and closing. "Now here's the tricky part. You gotta take a deep breath, then flop onto your butt. When you hit the bottom, put your fins on, and swim back up. Got that?" The fox nodded excitedly, his mask clicked, and he was under, all within 5 seconds. Phil kneeled and lowered his head into the water, watching James expertly follow his instructions. The kit kicked off the ground and spun around gracefully, giving his boyfriend two thumbs up, before rocketting to the surface, taking a few deep breaths. "How.... *click*... was that?" Phil smiled at him, though it was hidden under the mask "Very good, buddy. Now my turn. *click*" Phil propelled himself downwards and looked up to see the kit watching, his slender legs kicking to keep him aloft.
Always the showman, the leopard decided to entertain the kit as he did a hand-stand with one paw. He used his other paw to slide his boots into his own split fins, before pushing himself off, rolling into a ball, and swimming to the surface. James giggled softly into his mask and swam over to him, barking playfully. "That was cool, sir!" Phil smiled and took a moment to catch his breath. "Alright.... *click*... you ready to go see some fish?"