The Adventure at Baskerville Hall & Other Cases

did not have friends of my own age when I was growing up, Watson. After a year or so at boarding school when I was a child, it became evident that I was far ahead of others in my year and my parents elected to engage a series of private tutors for me. Thus I have never had the usual set of experiences that I have since learnt are common to pupils at boarding schools sleeping in communal dormitories. Of course, when I slept, I would sometimes ... that is, it is a medical fact that in adolescent males nocturnal emissions are ... in short, there is no medical reason that would render me unable to function in that manner. I have simply never encountered anyone who could have inspired me to make the attempt, and without a definite idol in mind it has always seemed to me to be a frightfully messy and idiotic way to pass one's time.
    "In short, Doctor, I am well aware that I am a freak of nature, and now I really think that we have said enough upon this humiliating topic for one evening. If you do not wish to pursue carnal relations with someone who is so sadly lacking in knowledge and skills then I shall quite understand."
    He must indeed have found it a humiliating experience to recount such intimate details to me, for he was scarlet with shame by the end of his account and would not meet my eyes. I was heartily regretting my earlier candour in showing my amazement, and I tried to redeem myself by taking his hands and placing another gentle kiss on his lips. This time they moved softly against my own, and I took the opportunity to take his lower lip gently between my own and let my tongue brush it.
    "Holmes," I said softly, "I love you. I have loved you for many months now, and I am more flattered than I can say that I have inspired such feelings in you and given you the desire to explore this part of your nature. I apologise for my earlier clumsiness, and if you would still consider accepting me as your lover then you would make me the happiest of men."
    This slightly florid speech was met with an impatient huff – "Yes, yes, of course I would, may we get on with it now?" – as this time he took the initiative and leaned down to press his mouth against my own.
    For all that he had admitted to never having kissed anyone before, he was a remarkably quick learner, as he is with all things. It was not long before he was scraping his teeth gently along my upper lip and pressing his tongue into my mouth, after I had daringly nudged mine between his lips.
    Not since adolescence had I spent such a long time simply kissing someone with no rush to move to other activities, and it was somehow sweetly innocent. The first time I pressed a kiss onto the side of his neck his head tipped to one side and he murmured breathlessly at me, and when I reached down to cup my hand over his groin he actually startled and looked at me wide-eyed.
    "Is this all right?" I queried softly. He was already fully erect beneath his gray trousers, and as I brushed the heel of my hand ever so gently along his length, he actually looked down at my hand with an endearing air of amazement, as though he had never in all his long career ever seen anything so astounding.
    "Yes," he said eventually, but did not sound entirely convinced. So I removed my hand and opened his shirt to brush my thumbs over his nipples.
    "Oh God ," he breathed, involuntarily, watching my hands upon his chest. "In all the research I did, it was never mentioned that that could feel so exquisite..."
    The idea of him perusing medical textbooks for how to pleasure the male body had a devastatingly arousing effect on me even without him demonstrating the fruits of his reading.
    "What else did you learn during your research?" I asked huskily, leaning down to cover one of the small nubs of flesh with my mouth and delighting in the way he stuttered before he could reply articulately.
    "That intercourse between men is usually ... that is, it is facilitated by ... I bought some oil..." he murmured breathlessly.
    I raised my head slowly, hardly believing my ears. Almost incidentally, I brought my hands up to rub my thumbs over his nipples once more, my saliva easing their passage.
    "You bought some oil," I repeated. I slid one thigh between his legs, pressing lightly against the bulge at his groin and he made a small noise as he nodded, his eyes dark.
    "I thought you would want to ... I believe that the usual procedure is to–"
    I cut him off as I kissed him hard. If I had to listen to him