Second Chance, Chapter 79
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Second Chance, Chapter 79
Swimming season wound up with the state finals in early February. The team did very well and several of the seniors were offered scholarships to state universities or colleges.
Josh felt greatly relieved that he wasn't preparing for a gallery opening this year when Valentine's Day rolled around. This time he was ready with a dozen red roses for Eric. When he got home with them, he found that Eric had purchased roses for him as well. Their thoughts and actions were becoming more and more alike by the day. They had a good laugh over being an old married couple.
"That's one of the problems we gay couples have," Josh said. "We can't tell which one is supposed to play the part of the dashing young prince courting the lovely maiden."
"It's cool that we can both be dashing, and lovely," Eric quipped. "I love you, my prince. I'm glad I didn't have to kiss a bunch of frogs before I found you."
"I love you too. How much time do we have before they call us down to dinner?"
"We have all night. Don't you remember our dads are going out?"
"I'd forgotten. Does that mean we'll have to fend for ourselves or starve?"
"Nope, but it does mean we really DON'T have all night until after dinner because we need to help cook. Rob has it all planned. Jay and Isaac are eating with us and Luc and Garret have been invited too. Let's take some of our flowers down to share."
They divided up the roses so that there would still be six from each of them and put the other dozen in one of the vases before descending to the first floor.
Some adults wouldn't think that dinner prepared by a group of young guys would be excellent, but they'd be wrong. Rob was a good organizer and also a good cook. The other guys were willing to do their part and didn't quibble over their assignments.
As they ate, several of them mentioned that they had plans for the night. No one went into detail, but the grins on their faces suggested that it wasn't a Monopoly tournament they had in mind.
Right after the leftovers were put in the fridge and the dishwasher started, the guys went their separate ways. Luc was staying over with Garret and Jay was going with Isaac to his dorm because his roommate had plans to get lucky with his girlfriend at her place. Josh and Eric went directly to their apartment.
Ben had arranged a special night out for Scott and him. He felt that Scott didn't get out enough what with working from home and taking care of Robbie while Rob was in classes. This was a chance for a romantic evening to break up the late winter season.
It began with a quiet dinner at the country club and ended with attending a very well done drag show at a local gay bar. Clubbing was something that neither had done much of. They both enjoyed the entertainment, but were annoyed by a couple of men who didn't seem to understand the meaning of the word "NO!" Eventually, two rather imposing bouncers asked the "pests" to leave. The club manager brought over a couple of drinks and apologized for the aggressive behavior of those patrons.
"We often have friendly flirting. I think that's part of the scene, but I don't condone people forcing themselves on others when their attention is not welcome. I see by your matching rings that you're partners. No doubt others can't miss that either."
"Yeah, we married in Iowa last summer. It's been a little over six months," Ben smiled.
"That's great! There's movement afoot here to legalize same-sex marriage, but I'm not holding my breath it will happen anytime soon. Since it's election year, even the more liberal members of our state government aren't willing to stick their necks out too far – what with the Tea Party movement and all."
"Of course they'll all court our votes even if they don't plan to carry through," Scott said in disgust.
The men spent several more minutes discussing the difficulties of being gay in a straight world. All agreed that things were getting better even if there was a lot further to go.
When Ben and Scott were ready to leave, the manager gave them a discount coupon and invited them to return often, saying they were the kind of people he wanted to frequent his establishment.
Scott took a deep breath of the crisp fresh air as he and Ben made their way to the car. He wasn't paying attention to anything or anyone but Ben. He thought about how lucky he was to have been given the chance to be with his lover again.
Ben saw the glint of steel in the hands of the man who lurched toward Scott. In the nick of time, he pushed Scott out of harm's way, but in so doing took the full force of the knife himself. Just as it entered Ben's abdomen, the man shouted, "God hates fags!"
For a moment, Scott didn't realize what had happened, but reacted quickly when he became aware. First, he kicked the attacker squarely in the groin as the man made another lunge toward him. Someone who witnessed the incident had the presence of mind to call out the bouncers who expertly disarmed and held onto the man while the police were being summoned.
Scott had little experience with severe injuries, but kept his cool in this emergency. Ben was losing blood rapidly. Scott assumed it probably wasn't from an artery because it wasn't spurting, but he also felt he had to staunch the flow as best he could. He asked someone in the crowd to get clean towels and soon was handed a bunch that the owner had brought from the kitchen. Using a couple of them, he put pressure on the wound in an attempt to slow the bleeding.
The minutes that it took for an ambulance to arrive seemed like hours. Ben was conscious, though in shock. Scott kept talking to him and reassuring him that he'd be okay even though he wasn't at all sure it was the truth.
Finally the medical team took over.
"Is this a friend of yours?" one of the paramedics asked.
"He's my husband," Scott answered.
"Do you know his blood type? It will help if you do."
"It's O positive like mine."
"You've done a great job of first aid. I'll take over from here. You're welcome to ride in the ambulance as long as you stay out of the way while we work on him."
"Thanks, I'll do whatever you say!"
One medic continued to apply pressure while a second started an IV. They hooked up monitors so that information about Ben's vital signs could be transmitted to the emergency room in real time on their way to the hospital.
University Hospital was the closest and there was no time to waste. The driver covered the distance very quickly.
Once there, Ben was whisked away for surgery before Scott could do anything more than give him a quick kiss.
Scott's hands shook so badly that he couldn't use his cell phone. A nurse saw that he was in shock and had him lie down in one of the examining rooms. She covered him with a blanket and talked soothingly to him to help him calm down. After a few minutes, he felt much better.
"Thanks," he said.
"No problem," she responded. "I want you to sit up slowly and we'll ease you into a chair. I don't want you passing out. Stress like you've been though can do bad things to your body."
"I'm sorry to be such a baby," he said.
"From all the blood on you, I can understand why you've reacted as you have. Actually for a layman, you've held up remarkably well. I overheard them say that you probably saved his life by your quick actions."
"I hope to God that he'll make it," Scott sobbed. "He's everything to me."
A few minutes later, Scott managed to pull himself together enough to make the call that he dreaded, but knew he must make.
Josh and Eric were cuddling in the afterglow of their private Valentine's Day celebration when Eric's phone rang.
"I suppose I need to answer. I did tell Dad that we'd be available to drive them home if they overindulged at some nightclub. You know how little they drink and how responsible they are if they've had even a drop too much."
Eric noticed it was his father's cell number making the incoming call.
"Yo. ...Okay what's the deal? ... Shit! Okay, we'll see you in a few minutes."
"So the old guys can't hold their liquor?" Josh snickered.
"Uh, it's serious Josh. Hear me out before you jump to conclusions though."
"Oh God, it's Dad isn't it?"
"Yes, he's in surgery for a knife wound. Some crazy person stabbed him. I'll take you to the hospital as soon as we can get dressed."
"Mom was taken from me way too young. Dad can't die!" Josh moaned as tears filled his eyes.
"We have to pray he'll be okay." Eric responded as he held his husband in a tight hug. "I have a definite feeling he's going to be alright. We call them `old guys,' but in reality they're fairly young and fit."
Eric took Josh into the shower and cleaned them both up before getting out clothes for them to wear. He practically dressed Josh because the latter couldn't seem to concentrate on anything at the moment.
On the way to the car, they stopped on second floor to break the news to Rob and Blake. Before they could get out of the house, Eric's phone rang again. He hoped it wasn't bad news.
"I can't have Josh seeing me like this with his father's blood all over me." Scott said as he became aware of how he looked. "Maybe I can catch them before they go and have Eric bring me clean clothes."
"I'll take you to a shower you can use and lend you a set of scrubs to put on until they get here," the nurse offered.
When Josh and Eric arrived with the sack of clothing, they were taken to the surgical waiting room. Scott hugged them both, beginning with Josh.
"What's the word?" Josh asked quickly.
"He's in the recovery room and his vital signs are all holding well. I won't lie to you; it was frightening because of all the blood he lost. But, the doctors are confident that he'll make a full recovery. The surgeon talked to me a couple of minutes ago and he wants to talk with you as well."
The receptionist broke into their conversation to escort Josh to the conference room.
"Would you like to see Dr. Rankin alone?"
"No, I'd like my husband and father-in-law with me," Josh said without thinking how she might react.
"Okay, please come this way, gentlemen," the receptionist said with a smile.
The surgeon told Josh basically the same things that Scott had, but he added a bit more information.
"Your father is very lucky. A half inch over and the blade would have hit a major artery. He probably wouldn't have made it to the hospital in that case. I also understand that Scott here did an amazing job of first aid before the medical team got there. He's a hero in my eyes." Dr. Rankin said.
"The real hero is Ben," Scott demurred. "He pushed me out of the path of the attacker and got stabbed instead of me. I'm the one who should be in the recovery room or possibly dead."
"That's my dad," Josh smiled proudly through his tears. "You know he loves you more than life itself."
"Greater love has no man than he lay down his life for his friends," Dr. Rankin quoted. "Well, let's go see if Ben is awake."
As a precaution, Ben was going to be kept in the intensive care area where he'd be monitored continually until the doctors were satisfied that he was completely out of danger. When the guys got closer, Josh held back.
"You need to see him first," he said to Scott.
"But you're his son," he replied.
"He needs to see his soul-mate first. I know I'd want to see Eric before anyone else. I'll give you a couple of minutes before I come in."
"Thanks! Don't be long."
Scott tiptoed into the room and Ben opened his eyes.
"I see they've recognized your value and put you on staff," Ben quipped, looking at Scott in hospital attire.
"Not likely! You know I'm not good in emergencies."
"I know you ARE." Ben insisted. "I was conscious. I'll bet I ruined all the clothes you had on. I love you!"
"I love you too. Clothes can be replaced; you can't! By the way, Josh is waiting in the hall."
"Send him in!"
"Dad, you gave me a scare!"
"I didn't intend to!"
"I know. It's really frightening. I kept thinking about Mom and hoping I wasn't losing you too."
"I'm not going anywhere soon. You're stuck with me."
"Cool!" Josh said as he gently hugged his father.
The guys all stayed for a while, but Ben couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. Scott said he would spend the night with Ben. Since the boys didn't have school the next day because of teacher workshops, Robbie wouldn't need him tomorrow but Ben would.
"Could you guys go to the parking lot by the club to take our car home? I hate to leave it there all night because it might be vandalized. Here's the address to put in your TomTom."
"No problem," Josh said. "Now that I know Dad's out of danger and you'll be with him, I can concentrate well enough to drive home safely."
On the way to retrieve Scott's car, Josh texted Rob to let him know Ben was okay. While he was writing, big tears of relief streamed down his face. He knew that he had Eric and Scott as family if the worst had happened, but he still needed his dad.
In Isaac's dorm room, he and Jay were heading for their second orgasm of the evening. Jay was using a vibrator on Isaac's virgin ass with positive results. Isaac was moaning like a bitch in heat.
Just as Isaac blew his load all the way to his forehead, the door opened and his roommate, Ron came in.
"Well, the dumb cunt left me with blue balls again! I'm through with her. Oh shit! What's going on?"
"Uh I didn't expect you home tonight." Isaac said in a shaky voice.
"No shit! What the fuck? You've probably been perving on me all term, you disgusting fag. Get the fuck out of my room and take your queer-boy with you."
"No!" Jay spoke up. "It's his room just as much as yours. He told me he's walked in on you screwing some chick."
"That's different; that's normal! This is an abomination in the sight of God!"
"Oh get off that hypocritical soapbox. If you're so godly-minded, how can you justify laying everything but the carpet on the floor since fall! That's fornication, plain and simple," Isaac shot back. "We're staying here tonight and if you don't like it, you can go somewhere else and crash with a buddy or one of your easy girlfriends."
"Yeah, well I'm getting Greg and he'll throw you out."
"Who's Greg?" Jay asked after Ron had stormed out. "Is he big and tough?"
"Nah. He's the RA and he's a sweetie. I think he's been getting it on with the RA from one of the other dorms. They have private rooms of course and I've seen Terry coming out of Ron's room in the early morning heading for classes. I don't think they studied all night unless it was for a test in anatomy."
Ron came back a few minutes later accompanied by Greg.
"So are you guys trying to hit on poor Ron?" Greg asked.
"Nope, he just came in at an inopportune moment," Isaac answered. "I had the `do not disturb' sign on the doorknob like he does when he's entertaining in the room. We started that after I walked in on him screwing like a rabbit a couple of times."
"Well then, Ron, I guess you should have known that Isaac might be in bed with someone, and you might have waited or at least knocked."
"It wouldn't have been a big deal if he'd had a chick in here."
"How would that have been any less embarrassing?"
"Because that's what guys do. In college we're supposed to get as much pussy as we can – not cock!"
"You can file a complaint if you like," Greg told him. "Of course he can file a complaint about you too. This university will not discriminate against Isaac because of his sexual orientation."
"I'll move out then!" Ron decided.
"Wait, I have a better idea," Isaac spoke up. "You pay me for my half of the room for the rest of the term and I'll move in with Jay. I'll have to double check with his friends first, but I know what they'll say."
"I'll do it. How soon can you get out? Can you leave right now?"
"No, we're sleeping here tonight. You're welcome to sleep here too, but please leave us alone for about 45 minutes so we can finish what we started."
"No way am I sharing a room with queers! I'll find someplace else to crash." Ron said as he grabbed a few things and threw them into his gym bag.
After he left, Greg smiled at the two lovers.
"Have a great night! Let me know if you need anything..."
Author's notes: Hey everyone. I got home in the wee hours this a.m. from by trip to Brazil. It was a good trip and I will have many great memories as well as lots of pix.
Thanks to those who wrote since last posting: Rutabaga, Bill K, Tom A, Jim W, Chris B, Jim C, Jacob T, Walt S, Paul R, and Six.