Revised version copyright 2007 by the author.
*
My employer switched health insurance carriers again a few months ago. Soon afterward we all got a memo informing us that we had the option of switching to a new plan with a lower premium. In order to qualify, an employee would have to undergo a complete physical exam to make sure there were no pre-existing conditions.
I wasn't too happy about this. Since I'm gay, I'd always had my own physician for my "special" health problems, in order to avoid dealing with the company doctors. If I wanted the price break on the insurance, though, there was no getting around it. I reluctantly scheduled the appointment and arrived at the scheduled time, fully expecting to be kept waiting.
To my surprise a nurse called my name just five minutes after I got there. I was weighed and measured quickly, then asked to wait in a small examination room.
The doctor entered about ten minutes later. I discreetly checked him out and was favorably impressed. He was a handsome man, medium height, with black hair lightly flecked with gray and wire-rimmed glasses. Somehow he seemed familiar, but at the moment I couldn't place him.
"Hello, Mr. --Wallace? Steven Wallace? I'm Doctor Smith, Carl Smith. How are you today?" he asked, extending his hand.
"Hi, Doctor, thanks, I'm fine." I said. Actually, Dr. Smith was attractive enough that the thought of undressing in front of him was making me nervous.
"Ready for your exam?"
"Yes, I am."
"Let's begin, then. I'd like you to get undressed down to your shorts," Dr. Smith said. "Why don't you tell me a little bit about yourself too. I see you are thirty-two years old. Notice any health problems lately, Steve?"
"I don't think so, Doctor."
I decided to make it quick. Less than a minute passed before I was standing before him in my bikini briefs and dress socks. I felt like a dork, but I knew the linoleum floor would be cold and I didn't want to take them off. Why are examining rooms always so chilly anyway?
"Please sit on this examination table." Dr. Smith said. I obeyed and he approached me with a lighted device in his hand. "I'm going to flash this light in your eyes. Try and follow it with your eyes only, OK?"
After a moment, Dr. Smith said, "Looks good." He took another instrument with a light and put it in each of my ears, bending so that his head was very close to mine. I caught a whiff of his aftershave and felt his breath against my temple. The doctor continued methodically, getting the tongue depressor and making open my mouth and say "Ah" in the time-honored fashion.
"Now I'm going to examine your neck for any swollen glands. Tell me if anything hurts."
His big hands were surprisingly soft and gentle as he did this. Somehow this was a turn-on and I felt myself begin to get aroused. I willed myself not to let it happen.
"Looks good," Dr. Smith said. "Are you cold?"
"A little," I replied, truthfully, though that was not the only reason why I was shivering.
"I can tell. Your nipples are erect." I looked up at him, surprised he'd noticed. Dr. Smith's face was impassive. He continued, "I'm going to listen to your heart now."
"Okay." The closeness of his presence was having an effect on me that I could not deny. I still had the distinct feeling that I had seen him somewhere before.
Dr. Smith smiled apologetically. "Sorry it's so cold in here." He placed the stethoscope on my bare chest. I gasped as the cold metal touched my skin. "I know this isn't exactly comfortable, but try and relax. I'm not going to hurt you."
I had to respond to his attempts to put me at ease. So I swallowed and managed to say, "I know, Doctor, I appreciate it." I desperately hoped he wouldn't look down and see the bulge in my briefs.
"Turn your back toward me now." I obeyed, relieved not to have to face him for a while. He tapped on my back several times, then said, "Now I'm going to listen to your breathing with the scope. Take a deep breath. Good. Exhale."
He repeated the requests, moving the scope each time. "Good, you're doing very well," Dr. Smith said. "Now please lie on your back on the table."
"Okay," I said, my nervousness returning. I lay on the table, staring at the fluorescent light on the ceiling, and tried to make my mind a blank.
Dr. Smith said, "I'm going to palpate your abdomen, looking for any swelling or abnormality." He began to push in various places on my bare stomach. I was ticklish, and despite my nervousness I couldn't help smiling a little--it was a most peculiar sensation, this combination of arousal and discomfort.
"Am I tickling you?" Dr. Smith asked. His hand was below my navel now, approaching my groin area.
"Uh, yes... not too bad," I managed to get out. What would happen when he discovered my erection? The head of my penis was now very close to the waistband, and the bulge had to be unmistakable. As I thought this, Dr. Smith said, "I'm going to pull down the waistband of your underwear just a bit, okay?"
He suited the action to the words, and of course the head of my dick popped out. I was blushing and could not help letting a strangled "mmph" escape through my clenched teeth.
"Is something the matter?"
What did he think was the matter? "Uh... well, just embarrassed, I guess. You know... this." I waved my hand vaguely downward.
Dr. Smith smiled. Despite my humiliation, I had to admit he was a hot guy. "No need to be embarrassed, Steve. Erections are very natural occurrences. I see them all the time during medical exams. It's just an involuntary reflex."
He patted my stomach, and to my surprise, let his hand rest there. "You're a fine looking man." I looked sharply at him, but there was only professional reassurance in his smile. "Why don't we take a moment to let you relax? Take a few deep breaths and let them out."
I tried to obey him, and it did seem to work a little bit. His hand resting on my stomach stopped being erotic and became strangely comforting. At last I felt my erection start to go down.
"Feel better, Steve?"
"Yes, better, thanks, Doctor."
"Call me Carl," Doctor Smith smiled at me again. "Feel like you can continue?"
I nodded.
"Good. Now, I'm going to examine your testicles for any abnormalities that might mean cancer. Have you ever done this procedure yourself?"
"Uh, no." Oh God, he was going to be touching my private parts again.
"You really should do this yourself every month, you know. Look closely at what I do so you'll know how to do a self-exam, OK? If you're ready, stand up and drop your shorts."
Carl stepped back to give me room. I slowly stood up, willing myself to stay calm and in control. Not meeting his eyes, I put my hands under the waistband of my briefs, skinned them down my thighs to the floor and stepped out of them. I resisted a strong desire to cover my crotch.
Still looking down, I saw his big hand reach out and gently take hold of first one ball, then the other, rolling the nuts gently between his fingers. "Just relax," Carl said again.
I grinned weakly. "I'm trying."
"Okay, the testicular exam is done. Looks fine." Carl continued to look at me with a somewhat quizzical air. After a moment, he said, "Now I'm going to check for hernias."
He placed a hand against my left groin. "Turn your head and cough."
I obeyed. Switching to the other side, Carl said, "Again. Good, everything seems fine. Now, I'm going to raise your penis and look at the underside of the shaft for any sores or abnormalities." He suited the action to the words.
By now I was in agony again. I was naked in front of a really attractive man who was gently touching all of my private parts, and I could do nothing to respond. When was this ordeal going to be over?
"You seem to be getting another erection."
Through gritted teeth I replied, "Sure looks like it."
"Steve, there's no need to be embarrassed. Especially since you have quite a nice endowment." I heard the smile in his voice and quickly looked up into his face.
In an instant it all came back to me, why Carl seemed so familiar.
It was a Saturday night a few weeks ago. I had gone to one of the bathhouses in town, an activity I still indulged in occasionally, with caution. It was crowded but the pickings were slim.
After an hour or two, though, I noticed a man catching my eye as we both wandered around. He was in his early thirties, medium height, slender but toned, with a hairy chest. He was wearing wire-rimmed glasses that gave him an appealingly intelligent air.
I followed him, but every time I moved nearer, he drew away and melted into the crowd. At first I was annoyed. Then I shrugged. Maybe this was his first time and he was just shy. He certainly didn't look like a regular. I decided to bide my time. It was just bad luck that I had chosen not to rent a room.
Finally at one point during the night I found myself alone with him in the semidarkness of one of the common rooms. I decided to play it cool and let him make the first move. For a moment we simply stood still. I was elated when he finally moved toward me. I caught his eye and nodded, not wanting to scare him off by coming on too strong.
"Crowded tonight, isn't it?" he said.
"Sure is."
"I didn't realize it was going to be like this. I'm a bit overwhelmed."
"First time?" I asked.
"No, but I can't remember the last time I went to the baths," my companion replied.
He fell silent. I was afraid he was going to walk away so I made the first move. I reached up and began to stroke his bare chest with the back of my hand, very gently.
"Is this all right?" I asked.
A pause, then he said, "Feels nice." I looked down and saw his erection jutting up behind his towel. I knew mine must look the same. The next moment I felt his hand reach through the opening in my towel and find my hard cock. He squeezed it gently and began to stroke it.
He said, "You have quite a nice endowment."
His words were so formal that I almost chuckled, but his touch was exquisite--soft and sensuous. I felt myself grow hard.
We stood there side by side, silently caressing, for a few more seconds. Then to my dismay a pair of barfly types strode into the room, conversing in loud voices. He was gone in a flash. Just my luck. I thought of following him out, but somehow I knew that the moment had passed and we wouldn't make contact again that night.
Thoroughly pissed off, I put my clothes on and left ten minutes later.
All this passed through my mind in a flash, triggered by the sentence he had spoken. The hot man I had lost that night in the baths was standing in front of me, holding my dick again. Now, though, he wasn't an anonymous trick, but my doctor.
I made a split-second decision to continue playing dumb. I wasn't sure that he knew who I was, and I knew already he was shy. A sudden come-on from a patient might startle or even offend him.
So all I said was, "Thanks."
Despite myself some change must have been audible in my voice, because Carl's smile widened and became something more than professional. I was now sure we were both on the same wavelength.
