Second Chance, Chapter 41
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This story contains descriptions of love and sexual fulfillment between people of the same gender. If possessing or reading this kind of material is illegal where you live, please leave this site at once.
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Chapter 41
School would be out on Thursday and everyone was ready for a break. Rob, Eric, and Josh studied several hours on Monday night preparing for finals. They felt pretty confident about facing their exams, but it never hurt to review as much as possible.
Blake had been playing with Robbie and had put him to bed so that Rob would be free to concentrate. Robbie seemed fine with having Blake see to his needs. Rob was becoming more certain by the day that he and Blake had been destined to be together.
Blake's aunt Mary had been helping his mother get adjusted to the idea of divorcing Walter. Mary was not at all upset about the fact that Blake was gay. She was helping Ursula cope with that news as well. She seemed to be just the person needed to salvage at least a part of Blake's biological family.
Susan Bradley had taken Thursday afternoon off so that she could be home when her kids got out of school. She was particularly interested in having an hour or so with her son, Garret before his younger siblings arrived.
Garret breezed into the house not knowing that his life was about to change in a dramatic way.
"Hi Mom. What are you doing home at this hour? I was going to call Luc to see if he wanted to go to Mickey D's for lunch, but I see you're already preparing something."
"I thought that you and I could have a quiet meal before Tad and Meg get home. They both have a last day picnic, as you know.
I've been reading the interview with Adam Lambert. Did you know he's gay?"
"Uh, I'd heard the rumor, but I don't pay too much attention to those things," Garret responded feeling a bit uneasy.
"His mother sensed it when he was in high school and she asked him a few questions that I'm going to ask you."
Garret's stomach suddenly knotted up. His heart was racing. The moment he'd feared for the past year had arrived.
"Do you have a girlfriend?"
"No, Mom, you know I don't."
"Do you want one?"
"No."
"Do you want a boyfriend?"
Garret could not look at her and he couldn't seem to get his mouth going, initially.
"Are you trying to trap me into saying something that you'll use against me?" he asked quietly.
"Garret Bradley, how can you say such a thing? I don't have an ulterior motive."
"I can't believe that. I know how you've always felt about gays. Dad calls them fags."
"Your father and I have been doing some soul-searching since we took that seminar on alternative life-styles at church last month. We've had suspicions about you and we're trying to understand. Haven't you seen that your father has changed his comments about homosexuals?"
"Not really, I've been busy and haven't noticed if there are any changes."
"Well, there are some. Reverend Smithfield had been using a book by a religious leader named Jack Rogers. Would you believe that he started out to develop a curriculum for churches to use teaching against gays and made a complete 180 after he studied all the so-called `anti-gay' bible passages in the earliest existing texts? He says that we've had it wrong and it's time for the church to be inclusive to all of God's children."
"Are you saying that you'd still love me if I did turn out to be gay? I'm not saying I am."
"Of course! You're precious to me. I will love you as I always have."
"Who are you and what have you done with my mother?" Garret quipped, feeling slightly relieved.
"I take it that I'm not too far off the mark," She continued. "Is Luc your boyfriend?"
"Well he IS a boy and we ARE friends."
"But closer than most of your guy friends."
"Yeah we are."
"He certainly is a cutie. I think you're lucky."
"Mo-om! How can you talk like that?"
"Well, if you were going with a hot girl, I'd say so. What's wrong with noticing that you're going with a hot guy?"
"I didn't say we were going together."
"You didn't have to. Your whole face lights up at the mention of his name."
"Even if we were boyfriends, and I'm not saying we are, high school romances don't always last that long."
"You never know. You know that your father and I dated in high school, drifted apart in college, and got back together in our 20's. Don't be too sure that it couldn't happen."
Their conversation was interrupted when Tad came bounding in the back door. Garret was relieved. He had felt uncomfortable talking to his mother about his personal life. Even though he hadn't actually admitted to being gay, it was obvious that his secret was out.
He went to his room to text Luc in private. The two of them spent the next half hour discussing the ramifications of this seeming change in Garret's parents. Garret decided that he wanted to see Luc face to face.
"Mom, I'm going over to Luc's if that's okay."
"Of course it's okay. Why don't you invite him over for dinner and a sleepover? I'd like to get to know him better if he's got a chance of being in the family"
"You're not going to embarrass us, are you?"
"No, of course not! I'm serious about being okay with this and you're dad is too."
"That I'll have to see!"
Luc couldn't believe it either. He decided to accept the invitation to make sure that it wasn't a hoax. If things turned ugly when Garret's father got home, he'd invite Garret back to his house to stay – until the smoke cleared – or forever if need be.
Both boys were surprised and relieved at the welcome they got from Garret's father. He gave them both a shoulder squeeze that let them know he was okay with them.
Tad walked into the room in time to see it.
"Dad, how can you do that? It's so gay to hug other guys."
"Come here Tad"
"Okay, what?"
"This," Tom Bradley said as he drew his younger son into a bear hug. "I want you to know that I love you as much as I do Garret and Meg. I've been a fool not to show you kids more affection and I'm going to fix that. Now go into the den because we need to have a little talk about your language."
"Huh? What did I say?"
"You don't even know, do you? That's why we need to talk."
After Tad and his father left the living room, Luc and Garret just stared wide-eyed for a moment.
"Do you think my parents have been taken over by aliens?" Garret whispered. "He's gonna fuss at Tad for how he said gay'. I can't believe this is the same man that said Clay Aiken was a fag' not six months ago!"
"Whatever's happened, don't knock it! I'm chalking it up to an act of God. Our cook found a potato chip last week that she said was in the shape of the Virgin Mary and she's been looking for a miracle ever since. Maybe this is it!"
Dinner was delicious and all of the boys had healthy appetites. Meg ate well too, but tried to hold back because she wanted to impress Luc. It was cute to see what a crush she had on the teen who was at least five years older. At times Susan had to cover her smile with her napkin. She couldn't look her husband in the eye lest they both break out laughing.
After dinner, Luc and Garret went to Garret's room to play a video game. Tad tagged along and the older boys let him take a turn now and then. But by 9:30 they really wanted to be alone and feigned being sleepy.
"I can take a hint," the thirteen-year-old snickered. "It's time for me to leave. Are you going to use my sleeping bag?"
"No," Garret replied.
"You're gonna both sleep in your bed?"
"Yeah."
"Isn't that ga – uh strange?"
"Can you keep a secret?" Garret asked.
"Yeah, you can tell me anything. My lips are sealed!" Tad responded excitedly.
He and Garret had shared secrets at times and Garret had always kept his word, even when he got punished one time for doing so.
"Do you swear on your life that you won't tell anyone unless I give you permission?"
"Cross my heart and hope to die,"
"Okay. Luc and I are boyfriends. We know we're young, but we care for each other - kinda like you might feel about a girl."
Tad sat on the bed speechless for several seconds.
"Tad, say something! Do you hate me?"
"N-no. I'm just... I'm not sure what to say. I know guys are like that sometimes, but I didn't think my brother... Wow!"
"Wow–bad or wow-good?"
"Just wow! I guess it's okay. I mean you don't seem queer to me. I mean you guys are like ordinary guys. I'm not afraid of you..."
"Tad, I think you're beginning to understand what it means to be gay. We're not monsters and we're not all that different from anyone else," Luc said. "I wish more adults thought things out as well as you seem to have."
Tad smiled at the compliment. It made him feel grown up and it made him feel closer to his brother, having been confided in.
"Now I understand why Dad didn't want me to use `gay' like that. He said it might hurt someone's feelings. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that to you guys."
"No harm done, little Bro."
For the first time in ages, Tad hugged Garret before he left the room. Then he turned around to hug Luc before he left for good.
"WOW!" Garret exclaimed.
"Yeah. This is so cool. I'm thinking that potato chip has power!"
"Are you sure that you don't want a party like I had," Eric said to Josh. "I know we could organize it quickly. Most of the guys are free this weekend. I should have done it already but with exams and all I didn't get it going."
"No, I just want to go camping this weekend with you. I already told Dad that I didn't want a surprise party. We can take Rob and Blake along too and Robbie of course. We have all the equipment and Dad said he will let us use the crossover so we'll all fit easily and we can put the canoes on the rack. It will be fun. We can go skinny dipping, make out under the bright blue sky, and make love under the stars. That's what I'm looking forward to the most."
"It looks like you have it all planned out. What is our destination, birthday boy?"
"I think that lake up by where Blake's mom is. It has lots of private camping spots and there aren't any ski boats on it. It'll be just us and a few fishermen – even on the weekend. It may get a little chilly at night, but we can keep each other warm." Josh grinned.
"But if it's cold, that rules out making love under the stars."
"We'll have fun either way."
In the master bedroom, Ben and Scott were going over the details of the cruise they were going to take after the boys got home from camping. The cruise lines had been hit by the current recession and were offering deals that were just too good to pass up.
Originally, they had talked to Eric and Josh about going with them, but the boys thought their dads needed to have a kind of honeymoon on their own. Then too, their jobs at the country club started on Monday. They didn't want to begin the season by asking for a week off, especially since they had asked for time later in the summer to go camping with Dane and Colt.
"I think the Caribbean will be great this time of year. We can use some sun and heat after our long winter." Scott said. "I promise not to sign on to the Internet other than to contact the kids. I will leave work behind and relax."
"You do need a change of scenery. You've been stuck in the house a lot and taken on the role of a grandparent with Robbie. Ah, a change of scenery instead of a change of diapers," Ben quipped.
"You know I don't mind doing it." Scott smiled. "Robbie is such a good baby. You can't help but love him."
"Sure, but getting away is going to refresh you."
"Getting off always does..."
The boys had everything packed up and ready when Blake came home from work on Friday. Rob had made a picnic lunch for all of them so that they wouldn't have to stop for supper. It was a little less than a two-hour drive and they'd be able to arrive while there was plenty of daylight for setting up.
Rob had also packed sun lotion, mosquito protection, extra diapers, and anything else he thought they might need for Robbie. He was both excited and apprehensive at taking his son out for this kind of trip. In a way, he wished that they had taken a few short day-trips before embarking on a long weekend, but both of his foster fathers had assured him that little ones were more portable than most people thought – especially first-time parents.
The drive wasn't bad at all. Josh drove for over an hour. During that time, Eric ate his supper. When he had finished, they switched places so that neither would be driving with one hand and the other wrapped around a sandwich. They were serious about being safe behind the wheel.
Everything was set up at their campsite long before it got dark. Robbie was excited to see the campfire that they built to roast a few marshmallows over. It was going to be difficult to keep him away from such attractions once he learned to walk. So far, he was crawling and that presented enough of a challenge. The guys built a kind of fence with extra logs to prevent his making a dash toward danger.
There were a few canoes and a couple of fishing boats on the lake, but all was generally quiet. In one of the boats, someone was taking pictures of the sunset. Josh got out his camera to record the landscape and his companions around the fire.
It was unseasonably warm. Warm enough that they could sit around in shorts and no shirts without feeling uncomfortable. Their prediction of being so cold that they would have to cuddle to stay warm didn't seem to be materializing. Oh well, they could find some other excuse to snuggle. Besides, it would probably cool off before dawn.
Josh and Eric soon said that they were turning in and crawled into their tent. After zipping their bags together, they stripped and got in together.
"Okay, since your birthday isn't until Sunday, do you want to wait for your present or do you want part of it now." Eric asked.
"If it involves getting off, I'll be happy to open your package every day."
"How can you do that when I'm already naked?"
"Put this on and tease me," Josh answered.
Eric accepted the mesh jock that Josh handed him and slipped into it. He got hard just feeling the open-weave fabric against his skin. He got up on his knees, putting his crotch at about eye level with Josh who was propped up on one elbow.
"Mmm! That's what I like," Josh giggled as he ran his tongue over the pouch."
"Where did you get this?" Eric said between gasps.
"I found it online and bought a couple of them for playtime."
Neither of the guys talked for the next several minutes because they wanted to concentrate on the feelings they were experiencing. Pretty soon, Josh pulled the jock down Eric's legs and engulfed his sword to the hilt. Eric felt weak in the knees. They both got on their sides to nurse each other's cock more comfortably. That was the beginning of a very short trip to heaven. With shudders and moans, they entered bliss together.
After they ingested most of the sticky results, they kissed deeply. It was then that they heard giggling from the other tent.
"Way to go guys!" Rob snickered. "Happy birthday, Josh!"
"Hey were we that loud?"
"Yeah," Rob and Blake responded in chorus.
"His birthday isn't actually till Sunday." Eric reminded the others.
"Does that mean we'll be treated to those sounds for the next couple of days?" Blake asked.
"I certainly hope so!" Josh shot back. "Now, would you like us to take Robbie so you can do the same?"
"Nah, he's almost asleep. Once he's out we can do whatever." Rob said.
"Whatever!" Josh chuckled as he and Eric settled down to sleep.
Author's notes: The book that Garret's parents read is a real one. Jack Rogers wrote it after he started out to write curriculum for churches to use in preaching AGAINST gays. In his research, he found that what preachers were saying was based more on tradition than scripture and did a complete turn-around. I got to hear him speak and I bought his book.
Thanks to all who wrote since last posting: Caleb, Bill K, James K, Bertrand, Carroll, Rutabaga, Jim We, Jim C, Tom A. Chea, Wesley W, Paul R, Simon A, John McD, Paul L, Mike C, Carroll, Polar, and Mark H.
David