Chapter Five- Finding Comfort

Previously...

I opened it up and my jaw dropped when I saw what it said.

"What is it?" Mitch asked with a worried look on his face.

"Why can't he just leave well enough alone!" I shouted.

"Chase, what's wrong?" Hannah asked.

I handed my phone to Mitch. His draw dropped in disbelief when he read it. He handed the phone around the table to Nick who looked at it.

"He can't be serious!" He exclaimed.

He handed it to Hannah who read the message. She looked at me then to Mitch.

"What are you going to do about it?" She asked.

Mitch's viewpoint...

"Who the hell does he think he is?" I shouted angrily.

By this time, everyone in the restaurant was starting to look at us because both Chance and I were both being very loud and swearing like sailors.

"Let me see that again." I grabbed Chance's phone and read the message again.

`I'm going to tell everyone and by Monday morning everyone will know you are a fag'

"My mom will kill us both if she finds out." Chance said with panic in his voice.

I typed a message on Chance's phone.

`What are you talking about?'

A few seconds later.

`I'm going to paste it on my Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter that Mitch Mitchell and Chance Stevens are a bunch of fags'

`Why would you do that to your best friend' I typed

`It's done. I made the post thirty minutes ago. Now let's just see how fast it takes it to get back to your mom'

"What is his problem?" Nick asked. "Sounds a little like he is jealous to me. Kinda like he wants Chance for himself."

"Don't worry about it you guys." Hannah said. "I don't think anyone will really care. Especially if they are really your friends. And I don't think there are really homophobes anymore not since Bryce Nelms was sent off."

Chance looked at me. "No matter what. As long as we have each other. As long as I have you, then I can get through this."

"I love you." I told him.

"Awh. You guys are going to make me cry." Hannah said.

We finished up that night and went to see our movie and then went home. The rest of the evening flew by and then Sunday drug by. We hadn't seen Chance's mom all weekend because she had worked seven in the morning until seven that night, was in bed by the time we got home that night.

On Sunday we slept in until noon which was when Nancy had to be at work. We were both sure to be in bed that night at nine because that is when she got off work and neither one of knew what Jason had said to her.

Monday morning which both of us had been anticipating came before we know it. Chance put the blinker on in his red Hyundai Accent and pulled into the school's parking lot. He drove around the parking lot until he found and empty parking spot.

I looked at the clock in his car. It was 7:55. Five minutes until school started. We had both decided to wait until the last minute of school to leave so we wouldn't have to run into anyone.

He put his car in park, turned it off and looked at me. "You ready for this?"

"If I said yes, then I'd be lying." I replied.

Chance's viewpoint...

I grabbed Mitch's hand and looked into his deep brown eyes. "Everything is going to be okay baby. I have you and you have me."

"Promise?" He asked me.

"I swear on my life. I love you more than I have ever loved anyone Mitch and I would never do anything to hurt you."

"Ok."

I turned around and reached into the back seat of my car and grabbed my backpack. "It's now or never. Lets go."

I leaned over and kissed Chance on the lips. He smiled at me and kissed me back.

He grabbed his backpack out of the backseat and opened the door. We both got out of the car at the same time and closed the doors.

I walked over to Mitch and grabbed his hand. "I've had your back for four years now and I'm not about to turn my back on you now." I kissed him. "Lets go."

We walked up to the front doors of the main building where our lockers were. I looked at him then pushed open the doors.

I could feel people staring at us as we were walking down the hallway. I couldn't tell whether these were "firkin' faggot" looks or "oh how cute" looks.

We finally made it to our lockers. Nick and Hannah were sitting down across the hall from our lockers holding hands. This had been out morning routine since the beginning of that year. Mitch and I would meet Nick and Hannah at out lockers and we would chill until class started that morning. We did the same thing at lunch. As I thought about it more and how much time Mitch and I spent with Nick and Heather, it was almost like we had been boyfriends for awhile. We always did things together just the four of us. No wonder neither one of them were shocked when we told them about us.

"How's everything this morning?" Hannah asked.

"Good so far." I replied as I put in the combination of my locker.

I opened my locker to get the books out that I needed and to put the books that I didn't need back in my locker. A small envelope fell out of my locker when I took my English book out.

I didn't notice it. Mitch was the one that noticed it. He picked it up and looked at it.

"What's this?" He asked holding up the envelope.

"Fell out I dunno."

He opened it and then read what was inside the envelope. He handed it to me and I read what it said:

I'm going to tell everyone you dirty little faggot!!!!!

I handed it to Nick. He and Hannah read it.

"Why don't you take that to Mrs. Mayberry?" He asked. "He is never going to stop this crap."

I knew who Nick was talking about. The not was written in Jason's handwriting and I assume that he had put it in there this morning.

I looked down the hallway and could see Jason leaning against his locker, flirting with some cheerleaders. What a surprise.

I clenched my fist and my face turned bright red. I slammed my locker door and turned around towards Jason. I was going to show this guy that I wasn't someone that he wanted to mess with and he had better think twice.

I felt a strong hand grab my shoulder.

"Don't do it dude."

I turned around and saw that Nick had stopped me from going and beating Jason into a bloody pulp.

"You remember the anti-bulling campaign that Mrs. Mayberry did back when you guys were in the eighth grade. Right?" Nick asked.

"Sort of. It was right after Bryce tried to kill Mitch."

"Yeah. Well don't think it would be better if you go talk to her instead of taking things into your own hands?" He asked me.

I looked at him then nodded my head. "Yeah I guess you're right."

"Am I ever wrong?" Nick asked jokingly.

Hannah stood up off the floor and walked over to where Nick, Mitch and myself were standing. "How about we all take a little trip to Mrs. Mayberry's office?"

Hannah's viewpoint...

There the four of us sat in front of Mrs. Mayberry's office in front of her desk. She sat down in her large executive chair behind her desk staring at the four of us through her black plastic framed glasses.

She had shoulder length blond hair that was obviously died because her dark brown roots were starting to show.

"So what brings you four here so early in the morning?" She asked us.

"You know who Jason Hall is. Right?" Mitch asked.

"Yes. I do."

"He won't leave us alone." Mitch continued.

"I can't do anything to him you know that. I mean just because you don't want him to not be your friend anymore I can't force him away from you all."

Chance looked at the floor. "He's harassing Mitch and myself." He reached into his pocket and handed Mrs. Mayberry the envelope with the note in it.

She took the note out and read it and then looked at Mitch and Chance and smiled.

"The dude is a looser." Nick piped up. "The other day he sent him this text message saying that he was going to tell everyone about the two of them."

"Is this all true?" She asked looking at Mitch and Chance

They both nodded their heads.

"The guy has never liked me and now that Chance and I are boyfriends he has gone mad and made it his goal to turn everyone against us."

She looked at the note that had been in Chance's locker then looked at each of us.

"I am going to have to look at some handwriting samples, and if everything pans out then Mr. Hall will be looking for a new school because this school has a zero tolerance for this." She looked at Chance. "Do you still have the messages saved on your phone?"

He nodded his head.

"Can I hold onto your phone until this matter is all taken care of and I will try to have it back to you by the end of the day."

"Yes ma'am." Chance reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone and handed it to Mrs. Mayberry.

She took the phone and placed it in her top desk drawer. "You all can go back to class now. You boys have a great support system I can tell and if anyone here gives you any shit about your relationship let me know and I will deal with it."

Mitch's viewpoint...

The rest of the day flew by. No one said anything negative about Chance and I being boyfriends. Everyone was nothing but excepting. The one person that I figured would be the least excepting and be bashing us was Cody Hill.

Cody was a senior with us and was the captain of the football team. Very buff, probably standing at about six foot five and two hundred twenty pounds of solid muscle.

He was in my second hour class and had sat next to me in the back of the classroom. He grinned at me as soon as he sat down.

I knew that he was going to say something but didn't. He just kept grinning over and over showing his pearly white teeth.

Finally I had enough. "What is your deal?" I whispered. "Go ahead and make fun of me and get it away with."

"I'm not gona make fun of you." He whispered back. "I think its pretty cool that you and Chance took your friendship to a more intimate level. I always thought you two acted like you were more than friends."

The ride home was the worst part of the day. We were both anticipating the arrival of Nancy that evening. She was working until five that evening.

Chance pulled his car into the driveway and parked behind the garage knowing that he would have to move it when his mom came home.

We both got out of the car and walked to the front door, not even bothering to grab either one of our backpacks. Chance stuck his key in the front door, unlocked it and we headed down the hallway to our bedroom, Chance closed the door behind us.

I sat down on his bed and he sat down next to me.

"I'm scared." I told him.

He grabbed my chin and turned my head so that I was looking right at him. "Don't be scared of anything. I love you and that's what matters."

"I love you too Chance. I want to be with you forever." I leaned over and kissed him.

We both broke free of our kiss when we heard a door slam shut down the hallway.

I looked at him nervously. "You don't think your mom left work early. Do you?"

Right then our bedroom door flew open. It was opened so hard that the doorknob hit the wall behind it and put a hole in the wall behind the door.

There stood Nancy, Chance's mom. She was shorter than both of us about five foot four and about one hundred sixty pounds. She was a short round woman with shoulder length brown hair.

"What are you doing home so early?" Chance asked his mom.

She just stood there staring. Her glare was cold and harsh.

"I open my home to you and this is how you repay me!" She shouted looking over at me. She looked at Chance. "What would your dad think if he knew his son was a fag? He's probably rolling over in his grave."

"Don't bring dad into this!" Mitch shouted. "He was a good man."

Mitch was very sensitive of his dad. He dad had been a police office and was shot and killed when we were kids. Nancy always played guilt trip on him using his dad.

She walked into the room and over to Chance's bed and stood there staring at us. She raised her hand and slapped me across the face. It stung. I had never been hit so hard. I had never been hit at all.

Nancy turned to the other side and slapped Chance harder. I could see his face start to welt up and turn red.

She walked over to my dresser that had held all of my clothes in it four the past four years. She looked at me and pulled the top drawer out and dumped it out on the floor and then threw the draw down. She did it again with the second and third. She paused between the third and fourth drawers and looked at us. "Both of you get the hell out of my house! I don't want any abomination in here!" She emptied the fourth drawer out on the floor and threw it.

"Mom!" Chance exclaimed.

"Don't mom me. You made a choice and its going to cost you. Come with me." She motioned for Chance to get off the bed and follow her.

He obeyed and followed her out of the door.

I sat there on Chance's bed. I could feel the tears began to break out and roll down my cheek. I knew when she found out it was going to be bad I just had no idea that it was going to be this bad and we were going to get thrown out.

At least I have Chance. I thought. I can get through anything.

A few minutes after they left Chance and his mom came back in the room. His eyes were all red and I could tell that he had been crying. He walked over to the pile of clothes on the floor and picked them up.

"Get out of this house Mitch!" Nancy shouted at me. "You are no longer welcome here and I am having the locks changed."

Chance walked toward the door with my clothes.

"Chance where are you going?"

I followed him out the door and down the hallway to the front door, which he opened and threw my clothes outside.

"What are you doing?" I asked hysterically. "I love you."

"I don't love you!" Chance shouted. "Just stop fucking with my mind. I don't love you and never will. I'm not a fag like you. Just leave! Now!"

I raced down the hallway and into the bathroom. I slammed the door shut and locked it behind me.

I turned the water on and it began to flow out of the sink. I looked at myself in the mirror of the medicine cabinet.

My eyes were puffy from crying. My nose was running. My face was bright red.

It hurt so bad. I could feel the pain running through my body. My heart had just been ripped out and run over.

I cried some more.

I could hear Nancy shouting in the hallway. "Get out of my house fag! I don't want you anywhere near my son."

Where was I going to go. I thought. I had no where to go. I had no family and earlier when I thought Chance was going to be with me I was just fine. Now he had heart me so bad I just wanted it to be over.

I opened up the medicine cabinet and fumbled through it until I found something that I knew would take the pain away. I wanted it gone forever. I don't want to feel like this anymore. I hated this feeling.

How could everything change so fast? I was so happy a few minutes ago and now my felt like it was over and it was about to be over if I had my way.

I finally found what I was looking for it was a bottle of Valium which Nancy took. I took the top off the bottle and looked inside. It was full.

I began to pour the pills into my hand and then shove them into my mouth. I stuck my mouth under the sink with each handful to get some water to wash them down. I dropped the bottle to the floor when I had emptied it.

I fumbled for the bathroom lock and opened the door. Chance and Nancy were both standing there.

I looked at Chance. "Fuck you bitch. I don't need anybody!"

I staggered towards the door. I was feeling so dizzy and sleepy and so many other things that I couldn't describe.

I opened the front door, went out slamming it behind me. I walked down the street. I didn't know where I was going I just knew that I didn't want my last moments being at that house where I was just betrayed by my boyfriend and my best friend.

Finally I felt as if I couldn't walk anymore I looked over and saw a flower garden in front of one of the houses I had just passed. I walked over to it and lay there amongst the sweet and slowly fading smell of the flowers

To Be Continued...

Well I hope you all liked this chapter. I even hope it touched you in someway and made you feel what my characters are feeling. What do you think will happen? Send your comments/suggestions to wyatt.04.04@gmail.com