Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2006 18:59:55 -0700 (PDT) From: John Gerald Subject: Connections 12 Comments and suggestions always welcome, really glad to hear from you all. connectwriter@yahoo.com Next installment in 3 Weeks. The place was completely quiet until the guys burst in as they got home from class, laughing and carrying on with each other. In spite of the huge workload that they both faced, each felt that they were making progress, both on the graduate school front and in the day-to-day battles of their classes. The summer jobs were still an issue, but Brad had finally gotten an interview at the hospital, and Mike had heard from one of his professors that the firm he liked had gone to the effort of checking his references. Even the weather was getting nice outside, as summer was just around the corner. The kicked off their shoes in the small hall foyer and went into the bedroom to change clothes for the evening. Brad had "work clothes" that he like to use for cooking and was just starting to change when he caught the blinking red light of the answering machine out of the corner of his eye. Not expecting anything special, he quickly tapped the play button and sat back on the bed to take off his pants and socks. He froze when he heard the voice on the machine. It was his Mom. "Brad, please call me and your father when you get home. Bye," the machine spit out, spitefully it almost seemed. And that was it. "What is that supposed to mean?" Mike asked. There was a slight edge in how he spoke. Mike hadn't met Brad's parents yet, but already thought that they were about the lowest creatures on earth. From what he knew, anything having to do with them was bad news. But it was the first time he had actually heard their voice. "I don't know. She's been pretty curt the last few times we spoke, but this is even shorter than usual." He wasn't sure how to respond, whether to try to call them back immediately, or pretend that it didn't really mean anything and be non-plussed about it. "I guess I'll just call her back after dinner," he said, as he got up off the bed and started to dress, weaving the belt through the loops in his pants. Mike noticed that he immediately pulled it out, as in his distraction he had put it in upside down. "Hey!" Mike said, as he looked over at him. "What wrong?" Brad replied as he continued to fumble around, futilely trying to ignore the memory of his mom's voice in the room. Mike sat down on the bed and motioned for Brad to join him, patting his hand down next to him on the mattress. Brad could read Mike's mind on this one and wanted to assure him that he was all right as he sat down next to him for a moment. "Don't worry, I'm OK. It can't be anything big. I'll call her later." As he said this he put his hands on his hips and started to get off of the bed. "Sit!" Mike ordered. Brad paused and sighed. That tone was not to be trifled with. "OK," he answered, cocking a half-smile, and re-took his assigned seat. "Remember what I said earlier. I want to be around when you call her, OK?" He knew enough about human nature in general and Brad in particular that any encounter with that family could be very dangerous. "OK, I know your right. I guess I just want to pretend that it's not such a big deal. But I know it is." "How are you feeling now?" Mike asked with concern in his voice. Brad was sitting motionless. "I dunno, a little dazed I guess. Maybe numb is the right word. I haven't heard from them in awhile, so it's a little surprising. I doubt if anything has improved, though, so I won't get my hopes up." "I hate to say this, but I wouldn't get them up, either. You really shouldn't expect anything good, although I know it's hard not to hope. If you don't expect a lot, maybe you won't disappointed. OK?" he subtly nudged his shoulder into Brad, who sighed again and let out a breath of air. "Yea, you're right. I don't know if I can be a pessimist, or put hopeful things our of my mind. But I'll try." He then nudged him back. "Thanks." He said. "No prob. Just try not to get too distracted. There's enough really good stuff happening right now that you can't let this derail you, which could even be her intention for all we know. It's going to be real tough for you, though, babe, I know. But you have to somehow control this and not let it control you." "Your right." He acknowledged, but they both knew that this elephant in the room would be difficult to ignore. After dinner, Brad decided to make the call. Mike didn't want to actually tap the phone line, that would have been a bit over the top, although the thought had occurred to him. He ended up sitting next to Brad on the couch as he made the call. It sounded like he heard Brad's mom answer the phone, but it seemed like it was over almost before it began. All he remembers Brad saying were phrases like, "What do you mean? And "Why?" Brad didn't get nasty and confrontational, that wasn't who he was as a person. Even with someone as mean and unreasonable as the one on the other end of the line, Brad was always trying to understand someone else's point of view first and not try to get emotional. Mike only heard questions. Putting the receiver down gently, Brad bent his head over and put his face in his hands, rubbing up and down. Something bad had happened. Brad cleared his throat and swallowed hard as Mike saw his eyes blink rapidly. "They...." He paused for a moment. "They want me to get my stuff out of the house, everything. She said they don't want me back there anymore, and that I should take whatever I want or they would throw it out." Mike's blood was boiling, but he knew it was not the time to get angry, at least not yet. There'd be time for that down the road. And besides, Brad probably had enough anger for both of them already, and then some. It was demeaning and nasty and cruel, especially from your own mother, but in the scheme of things, Mike already knew that this was probably going to happen, sooner or later. He just had to get Brad through it. "When?" Mike asked. "When what?" Brad was obviously still dazed by the call, but quickly got his wits back. "oh...sorry. I guess I spaced out for a minute." He lifted his head up and looked at Mike, his eyes getting red. "They want me out by next weekend, so we need to go in a couple days. Is that OK with you." The response that Mike wanted to give was something like "NO!, it's not fucking OK that those pricks, who masquerade as parents want to....." But he continued to hold his tongue and they talked about the logistics of the next week and when they could do it. He kept himself pressed against Brad, and using his hand to gently stroke his back, periodically squeezing his shoulder. It was clear to Mike how traumatic it was going to be for Brad, potentially even devastating. No good was going to come out of this, he thought, but he did come up with at least some kind of strategy for damage control. It wasn't all worked out yet, but it would be a lot like how his parents treated him in his worst times with the epilepsy. No pitying or feeling sorry for him. Just make sure that he knew there were people who cared about him, and life would go on. Part of this for Mike was making sure that their routine didn't change. Brad would still cook, Mike would clean up and they'd keep close to their studying and gym schedules. He had to admit that he himself often founf this routine comforting. There were enough unknowns and contingencies in their lives, his own health being among them, that having this predictable schedule was something that he looked forward to. Mike assured him that they could whatever they needed to and store it at his parent's place. Brad's apartment was barely big enough for the 2 of them, and even if there wasn't a lot there still wasn't much extra room. And he didn't have any doubts that his parent's would want to help out, especially if they knew the circumstances. Friends would also be important, too. After they finished eating and cleaning up Mike called up Peter and Kate to set up dinner later in the week, and they were glad to oblige, even though they were busy themselves. Mike didn't tell them exactly what was going on with Brad, but he was sure that just having their company would be a good thing. They had decided to go over to clean things out on Saturday to get the whole thing out of the way. Sunday would be for recovery at Mike's parents. Before they went to sleep they tried to work out the final plans so that they would be prepared. There was enough stress over the event itself, let alone some kind logistical problem causing more anxiety. "What do you think we'll need, babe? Do we need to rent a trailer, or borrow another truck?" "We can probably just do it with mine. I'm sure they'll claim the furniture, so it's just my own personal stuff, clothes, school records, pictures, trophies..." Mike interrupted him. "Trophies?" "Yea, remember, I'm a jock. We were Little League champs for 3 years, made it to district finals when I was a senior, I was captain of the freshman team." "Wow, that's great. I'd like to keep some of those things here, nice memories of your accomplishments. We could put some of them on that crappy fake fireplace mantle. Make it more homey, which is weird to say for an Architect like me. I'm not supposed to like that stuff." Brad just laughed. "We don't have to do that. It's actually a little embarrassing, it's just kid stuff. Now, if we win the intramural league title, or at least get runner up, that would be worth celebrating. If we owned the place, we could add a special shrine, just for that." "I said that we should put them up because their important to you, not that we would create a cult around them," Mike said and smiled. "But if you'd like a cult, whatever you want, babe." Brad just smiled and grabbed his guy around the waist and drew his face close, rubbing their cheeks together as he loved to do and giving him a deep, passionate kiss that made Mike's head spin. When the evening rolled around for dinner with Pete and Kate, Mike just planned on getting a pizza to save Brad any cooking time. Mike picked it up while Brad and Peter and steadfast fan Kate were coming home from the intramural game. ` "Phew, guys!" Mike exclaimed to the jocks as they got in the apartment and he gave Brad a welcoming peck on the cheek. "Ever heard of showers?. Your guys are both so ripe!" "Yea, I used to," Peter replies, "but your boyfriend here stares at my big meat in the shower, makes me a little self-conscious, know what I mean," he said as he threw his backpack on the couch. "God, you must be kidding. I did try to look for it once in the showers, but the magnifying class got fogged up and ...." "OK, OK everybody," Kate interrupted, "Penis jokes, including both of yours, are banned for the night? OK." Everyone laughed as Brad continued their banter with action as he conspicuously kicked Peter's pack off of the couch onto the floor, placing his gently in the vacated spot. "Hey babe, seeing as you have some much energy, why don't you take a shower first so we can set up dinner, and then let our guest get himself cleaned up, OK?" Mike said, trying to get the evening moving. "No prob, sorry babe, I thought I got all the energy out, but I guess there's still some there. OK if I go first, Peter? Promise I won't....." "Don't promise anything, Brad!" Kate interrupted again, cutting off another penis joke before reared it's ugly head. "Just get in there," she said as she pushed him gently toward the bathroom.. "Don't use all the hot water, either, pal, or I'll have you heating it up with your...." "IN!" Kate ordered Brad, much to Mike's amusement, and he trotted down the short hall to the shower. It was great, Mike thought, that Brad was in such a good mood. While Brad was in the shower, he was debating whether to tell Pete and Kate about this coming weekend, and finally decided that he should. Outside of Mike, they were his closest friends, and could really help if things got as rough as he thought they could. As Mike explained the situation, Pete listened very attentively but without gestures, while Kate rolled her eyes, then pulled here hair back in the way she does when she's disgusted with something. "I met them once, Mike," she said as she pulled the hair tight. "You could tell right away that the gay thing was an issue. I think that they thought that I could change their son, so they were very nice to me, and intimated in a very crude way to Brad that this is what he should like. I think that in their minds I was potential therapy." "I think we'll make him happy tonight, don't worry," Kate whispered as Brad was coming out of the bathroom. Everybody seemed to enjoy the pizza, much to Mike's relief, as he had ordered some off the wall stuff, like eggs and fancy shitake mushrooms to spice things up a bit. Since it was coming up on the end of the semester none of them really had a lot of time to spare, so instead of watching a moving they all just chatted for a while, mostly about what they were all doing, or trying to do for the summer. For Pete and Kate, that also meant getting married before school started up again in the fall. Even though their state was a long way from allowing guys to marry each other, each of them was real interested in how the plans were going. Both the guys were fascinated when Pete and Kate explained how they have both been so turned of by the circus weddings of friends that they had changed their minds and decided to downsize their's significantly, with just a small wedding party, a few friends and family. Of course, the guys would be invited, which Brad especially was glad to hear. As they were planning to leave Pete looked questioningly at Kate for a moment, got a nod from her, and gave a nod back. Then he looked over at Brad. "Hey guy, before we go, I got a question for ya." Pete said very casually, as he helped Kate pick up the load of books that she had brought with her. "As long as it's not about borrowing money, go ahead." Brad replied and smiled. Pete then walked up to Brad and put his hand on his shoulder. "I don't want your money, old man. Someday I'll make more in an hours than you'll make in a year." he laughed, then got serious. "It's something else." "What's that?" Brad said, now seriously, thinking there might be some kind of problem. "Well, if you have some time to spare in August, I was wondering..." Pete paused for a second, and both Brad and Mike noticed by the look in his eyes that something was happening. He actually looked like he was getting emotional for some reason, but neither of them had a clue. Then Pete completed his question. "I was wondering if you would be my best man?" Brad was dumbfounded. He and Pete had been best friends for a while, starting with their mutual friendship with Kate, and it shouldn't have surprised him. But he just never "rated" himself amongst Pete's friend, they were just good buds. At this moment it really hit him, though, how close they really were. Now it was Brad's turn to be emotional. It had been a stressful week all around, and he frankly was out of energy for self-control any more. The gripped his buddy in a bearhug as Brad, and Pete, fought back tears. "um, uh I don't know what to say, man, of course. I'd be honored. Thanks so much, guy!" "Not thanks necessary, man, you're my best bud. As you know, we've decided on a small event and will just have a maid of honor and best man. So don't screw up. You won't have any back-up!" It has been the first time in a while that the two couples had done anything together, in fact only the second or third time since the guys had become a couple, at least officially. As they drove home, Pete mentioned to her how positively the relationship seemed to affect Brad. She agreed. "Even with this crap from his parents, he just seems so happy and content with Mike. Of course, you have to admit, I called it way back!" she boasted. "Yep, you were right. Once again," he laughed. "By the way, did you notice how Mike would poke him, or just wink at Brad every so often? What do you think that's about? Secret language." She laughed. "You noticed, too. I don't know if it's a secret language, you might be right. But he's even worse off than what I thought before. He's head-over-heels crazy about Mike, and I'm really glad, because Brad's going to need him this weekend when they go to the big bad witches house." "For sure. Wow, you know one thing I realized in there? Mike generally seems like sort of a mild mannered guy sometimes, but he's actually not. I mean, he is a really good guy, but the laid back part is a big smokescreen. He's actually very intense. And you really see it with how he feels about Brad. I can see that Mike's a friggen' pit bull when it comes to protecting Brad. If anyone can see him through this weekend, it's Mike." "I think that's true in a lot of ways. Remember when Mike told you a while back that story of how Brad stuck up for him at that party? With that guy who punched him?" "Yea?" "Even though Brad's a little taller and bigger, I think that Mike's actually the protector in that relationship, at least emotionally. He's the one who protects Brad." "hmm.....interesting...you might be right. But in the end, I think that they rally look out for each other, maybe just in different ways." Back at the guys place, as Brad was taking off his jeans and getting ready for bed he looked in the mirror and smiled at himself. Imitating a minister, he said, in a voice loud enough for Mike to hear in the bathroom, "Mr. North, as the Best Man, you have been custodian of the ring. Would you please hand it to me?" Taking the voice back to normal, he answered himself, "Sorry, Reverend, but I don't' have it anymore. I sold it to pay for my baseball season tickets. The team is supposed to be good this year." He could hear Mike spit out his toothpaste and laugh. "I think he'd cut your balls off then and there. After that probably nail them to the cross." They both laughed, but Brad then continued a little more seriously. " I think it's great that they're having a small wedding to save money and hassles, but then she is a finance major. Remember when she said that her folks would give her $25,000 toward a wedding or a house? She might be turned off by her friends becoming bridezillas, but you know where her real priorities are." "Probably a good thing, too. They'll need her to run the household and make sure it's solvent. Pete's a bit disorganized, and not exactly a numbers guy. He'd give his right arms to help somebody, though. I guess that's one of the things I've liked about him. Not selfish at all." Brad said. And he added, "she's pretty generous, too. It's just that she would want more proof-of-poverty than him," Brad chuckled. Brad then pitched Mike with a question he didn't expect. "If we could get married, would you want to have a ceremony and all that stuff?" He asked as he started to pull off the covers and crawl into bed. Mike paused for a moment as he was taking off his jeans before also getting in. He didn't know how to answer that one, and had never really thought about that particular issue. Like Brad admitted about himself when they first got together, though, he did think more and more about their future together. "Huh....You know, I've thought a lot about us, especially the kids part, but never about a ceremony or anything like that. Have you?" "Only since they were talking about it tonight. Part of me doesn't care at all, because it is just about us and it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. But part of me gets angry when I know we don't even have a choice." Neither of those is, I guess, that important, though." Brad continued, with a trace of anger in his voice. "What kind of worries me the most is the kids. I guess that's the future lawyer coming out. How do we protect them, and our own rights has parents? That's the biggest thing here, as far as I'm concerned." "Yea," Mike answered as he finally got into bed and laid down beside Brad. "However we make this family, we've got to do whatever we can to make it ironclad." Mike was now getting a little agitated himself and sat up for a moment. "This would be the only thing to make me want to not come back to this state, not having protection for the kids. If we had to do that, had to move, I'd see if my parents would want to move with us, hopefully Hanka, too. I want us all together in any case, if we can." "Me too. I hope it doesn't come to that, though. It's a few years down the road but we have to be thinking ahead and not find ourselves in some impossible situation someday." As he said this, Mike had laid back down and snuggled up next to him. After a few moments of silence, Brad spoke up again. "So you've been thinking about kids some more?" "Um, yea." Mike was a little embarrassed. It was so far in the future and there was so much that could happen between now and then. "I know it's a little premature and all, but when you first mentioned it that night It just made me feel great. I love to think about it, but I guess I should just control myself." Brad himself was in the same boat. "Names?" he questioned. He couldn't see that Mike turned red in embarrassment, but he could feel it, and just smiled to himself." "Poindexter first. Then maybe a Lancelot or something like that." Mike answered "That's not what your really thinking, though maybe you missed that opportunity for yourself." Brad teased. "So what are the real names?" "I'll tell you when the time comes. Then you can decide if you like them. OK?" "OK," Brad said as he pulled the covers over them both. Mike hadn't really planned it this way, but felt that it was great the they talked so much about their future family this evening, and also the surprise from Pete about Brad being his Best Man. It was clear to Mike that he had to anchor Brad as much as possible in the present and future, in his new family, and not the past. The past was going to end tomorrow, or at least be diminished to the point of irrelevance. Their relationship was his bridge to a different and better life that would be theirs together.