Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 13:34:00 EDT From: Bwstories8@aol.com Subject: The Castaway Hotel - Book 7, chapter 13 Legal Notice: The following story contains descriptions of graphic sexual acts. The story is a work of fiction and has no basis in reality. Don't read this story if: **You're not 18 or over, **If it is illegal to read this type of material where you live, **Or if you don't want to read about gay/bi people in love or having sex. The author retains copyright to this story. Placing this story on a website or reproducing this story for distribution without the author's permission is a violation of that copyright. Legal action will be taken against violators. I wish to extend my thank you to Emoe57 for his editorial assistance with this chapter, and Art, the real Vinnie and John for their additional input on each chapter. E-mail responses to the stories, story suggestions, or other 'constructive' comments or advice may be sent to: bwstories8@aol.com. * * * * * * * * Although the boys in these stories have unprotected sex, I strongly urge all of you out there to be smart and protect yourselves from various sexually transmitted diseases by using condoms when having intercourse. * * * * * * * * The Castaway Hotel-Book 7-by BW (Young-Friends). Copyright 2004 by billwstories Chapter 13 - May we all be truly thankful. January 2004 Once Steve and Mary Shay, Sally, John and Margaret Spence, Mark's mother (Susan), and the O'Hara's (Brandon's parents), showed up, we explained to them about my phone call with the Beckers and they were all deeply moved and understanding about their situation. Everyone expressed their concern and support for them, even though Susan and the O'Hara's didn't know them very well, and it was obvious this was truly a family, even though we weren't blood related. Jake and I put some appetizers out for our guests to nibble on and gave each of them a drink, hoping that would hold them over until the Beckers arrived. We didn't really have to wait that long, however, as Albert's car pulled in the driveway slightly before 3:00, making dinner less than an hour late. They must have flown through their preparations to get here, and I'm sure Albert pushed the speed limit a bit along the way too, probably because he was concerned about making us wait. I hoped he and Richard could relax and enjoy themselves, now that they were here. I went over to greet them, as they entered. "We're all glad you could make it," I told them. "Come in, sit down, and relax. Would you like a drink?" Albert was just about to speak, when his wife spoke first. "Albert, who are all these people and where are we?" There was a deep look of concern on both Albert and Richard's faces, as they studied Arlene. "Arlene, this is Josh Currie and we're at his house," Albert explained. "I don't know anyone by that name," she stated, which caused a pained expression to show on Richard's face. "Sure you do," Albert assured her. "He and his boys are very good friends of ours. Surely you must remember how they helped us get Richard?" She didn't respond and Albert gave up on trying to convince her that she knew us. After asking Richard to watch over his mother, Albert walked away, and I knew he was dealing with the pain of seeing his wife like this. I followed him, to see if there was anything I could do to help, but I didn't want to be too pushy about it. He didn't notice me behind him when he stopped, so I walked up and put my hand on his shoulder, which caused him to turn and look at me. "Josh," he confided, "I don't know what I'm going to do. We can't possibly leave her alone any more, as she might wander off or do something inappropriate. She's so out of it that she's become a danger to not only herself, but to Richard and me too. Did I tell you she almost set the house on fire on several different occasions?" "Yes, you did," I conceded, "and I can see that she's getting worse. You'll have to not only consider her welfare, but your own and Richard's too, when you make your decision." I added that to let him know that he couldn't just worry about his wife, but he must also consider how it would affect the two of them as well. Albert's health was not the best and I'm sure this was emotionally draining on Richard, but I wanted to make sure they didn't all go down hill together. "I know such a decision won't be easy," I admitted, "but we both know you're running out of options." After listening to what I had to say and thinking about it for a few moments, Albert finally looked up at me and spoke. "Josh, I hate to do it, but I'm going to have to put her in a home." Tears began to stream down his cheeks as he said this, as if he felt he were betraying his wedding vows, but what else could he do? "She needs to be supervised 24-hours a day," he added, "and we just can't do that for her. As it stands now, I hardly dare to fall asleep at night, fearing she'll get up and do something, and it's just wearing me out." He hung his head after saying this, and I wasn't sure if this was do to his regret, embarrassment, or because he was just so totally exhausted. I was tempted to hug him at this point, but I wasn't sure how he'd respond to something of that nature, so I held off on that urge and only put my arm around his shoulders, instead. "I know, Albert, but from what you've told me, it has to be done. Otherwise, she's liable to do something that might also be harmful to you and your son. She could start a fire or forget who you are and think you're intruders trying to harm her or something. She might even attack you, thinking she was defending herself. What else can you do, besides try to get her in a safe, supervised environment?" "I know," he agreed, "but you don't know how much it hurts me to even consider that option. Richard and I have talked about this possibility several times, but neither of us wants to have to do such a thing. It would scar Richard worse of all, as he already fears he's lost another mother, and making such a move would force him to accept it as a done deal." "Do you think it might help if I spoke to him, Albert?" Mr. Becker thought a minute about this before responding, and then he nodded slightly. "It might," he conceded, "but I'm not sure how much. Thing is, it can't hurt." I acknowledged his observation and told him I'd do what I could, but that would have to wait until after we ate. He said he understood and agreed that we couldn't make the others wait for dinner any longer, so I had the boys get everyone moving to the tables, so we could sit down and begin. Once everyone was seated, but before we brought the food out of the kitchen, we did our traditional Thanksgiving observance, with each person telling why he was giving thanks this year. As we went around the table, we heard many different reasons, from being thankful for family and friends, giving thanks for all we had, and being thankful for our health. However, this year there were a few new twists to our typical list. Many of us, including the O'Hara's, gave thanks for the boys' vindication in court. Mark's mother gave thanks for her son and his urging her to move here to be closer to him. I gave thanks for having Cody for the time we did and for being able to love and enjoy him while he was here, but there was one other surprise that I wasn't expecting. When it came Richard's turn to give his reasons, he hesitated at first, but then he swallowed hard and began. "I'm most thankful for my mom and dad, because they have been wonderful to me and have given me so much love and a happy home. I'm also thankful for the times when my mother is herself," he said looking at her and smiling, "though I know that seems to be happening less and less every day." He paused again, as his emotions choked him up and a couple of tears sneaked their way down his cheeks, but he quickly regained his composure. "I am also thankful for all of you, because you rescued me from the loneliness I had been living with, helped me meet my parents and find love and acceptance, but I am also thankful just knowing you are here, to help us whenever we seem to need it most. I don't think Dad and I could have kept the farm going without all of you coming out and helping with the work, and there's no way we could ever repay you for all you've done, so I hope my offering our thanks will be enough. I know it's not much, but right now it's all I have to offer...that and my telling you I love you all." We all sat in stunned silence for a few moments after he finished, all moved by what he had said, but too overcome to reply. Finally, before I was able to pull myself together, Frankie spoke up first, showing a level of maturity I wouldn't have expected from him a couple of years ago. "Little Ricky, you don't have to thank family," he told Richard. "Dad has pointed that out to me many times," he added, glancing over at me. "He brought me here and gave me a second chance, even after I screwed up so badly, but Dad says we do whatever we have to so we can keep the family together and help it survive. You guys are family, so we just did what we had to. We don't need or expect thanks, though we're glad you appreciate what we've done to try to help, but we'll always be there for you, no matter what happens in the future." After a few more seconds of silence, as everyone digested Frankie's words, I finally found my tongue. "Frank, that was well said," I acknowledged, "but I think I need to add something else. You've all heard me say that friends come and go, but family is forever, and that's why those of you who are not blood or legally related are still considered family, and not friends. You will never come and go for us, you too are forever, and as Frank said, we do whatever it takes to keep the family going and staying together. That's why I have reconsidered something I was discussing with a family member earlier." At this point, I turned and faced Albert. "I hope you will forgive me for being presumptive, but I am going to do something along that same vein right now. Tomorrow I will call and make arrangements for Arlene to get around the clock care at home, so none of you will have to be separated and you won't need to worry about her wandering off or doing something inappropriate." Albert began to object, saying it would cost too much and things of that nature, but I cut him off. "I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but Frank's words hit me like a bolt of lightening, and I suddenly realized what I need to do. We keep the family together, at all costs, so I'll not hear another word." Before anyone else had a chance to say anything, Arlene spoke up. "What is all this fuss about?" she wanted to know. "And why do you think I need help?" Obviously, she was now in one of her more lucid states, and Albert and Richard tried to reassure her and address her concerns, while Jake and I went to fetch the food. Soon, the various dishes were being passed around the tables and everyone was helping themselves to the treats we had prepared. Once our plates were filled, we said grace and then began to eat. The meal went smoothly and everyone was soon stuffed. We all excused ourselves from the table, so we could go and relax a bit and allow the food to digest, and everyone started to go in their own direction. Some of the boys went to the rec room, to watch football games on TV, while others went to play games or just lounge about. The adults moved into the family room, where the chairs and couches were much more comfortable, and we planned to just sit and visit. As I followed the others there, Albert and Richard stopped me and pulled me aside. "Josh, we just can't let you do this," Albert insisted. "Yeah, Uncle Pop," Richard chimed in, "it's way too expensive. We know, cuz we checked out how much it would cost ourselves. We thought of doing that too, but it's just too much money." "Don't worry about that," I advised them, "and money is never an issue around here. Somehow, we always seem to get what we need and we DO take care of our own. You three are as much a part of this family as anyone else, so end of discussion. Now, let's go enjoy ourselves and we'll work out the details as we go along." They didn't look convinced, but they didn't continue to argue with me. Albert did comment that he never expected anything like this to happen when were talking earlier, but knowing me, he should have expected the unexpected. Once we were alone, he also admitted it would definitely take care of Richard's concern, about losing his mother, at least for now. He also insisted I allow him to contribute to the caregivers' bills, which I reluctantly did, not because I needed the money, but to give him the satisfaction that he was helping to care for his wife too, something his pride demanded. That way we'd only be assisting them on this endeavor, not providing it all, and that would give him and his son the emotional reassurance they needed, so they wouldn't feel they had abandoned Arlene completely. We spent a couple of hours unwinding and relaxing, but by then everyone was ready for dessert, so that's when we had Dion's sixteenth birthday party. It had been his choice to have his party today, rather than on the weekend, as he felt it would be easier on our guests, so they wouldn't have to come here twice. Although I explained to him that no one would mind coming back on the weekend as well, he was adamant about having the party today. "Besides," he told me, "I'm not a little kid any more, so I don't need a big party and I don't need to invite anyone other than family." I didn't argue with his logic and agreed with his request, so we had planned to have his party when we were ready for dessert. Of course, Dion received many presents, but I had something special planned for him too. Once he had opened all his other gifts, I handed him a very flat package, no bigger than a large manila envelope, which he carefully unwrapped. After pulling out what was inside, it took him a few minutes to read the certificate and have its meaning register, but soon he lit up, and that special smile of his spread across his face. "Thanks, Dad. This is great," he told me, simply. "What is it? What did you get?" one of the other boys wanted to know. "It's the driver's manual, so I can study for the written test, and the other paper tells me the date and time of I can actually take it." I had set this all up in advance for him, so he could get his permit as quickly as he wanted, and that way he could take his driver's test six months later. He had confided in me a while back that he felt awkward that Trey had to drive every time they went somewhere alone. He said he didn't have a problem with Trey being older, but it made him feel more like a little brother than a lover, because he always had to be the passenger. Knowing how he felt, I decided the most special gift I could give him would be to help correct this situation as soon as possible, so they could equally share the driving responsibilities and he could begin to think of himself as an equal partner in the relationship. Of course, that wasn't the only present I gave him, but I think it was the most appreciated of the lot. Once all the gifts had been opened, we were ready for the sweets. Not only did we offer the traditional cake and ice cream for Dion's birthday, but we also had an assortment of pies, apple crisp, and some pudding based treats. I think everyone sampled a small portion of at least three different goodies, and I believe the boys all had a little of everything there was. I am still amazed at how much these young men can devour. Everyone stayed for at least another hour after the party ended, and during that time Richard sought me out and sat down on my lap, as I sat relaxing in the family room. "Hey, Little Ricky...I mean Richard," I greeted him, correcting my error. "Nah, I don't mind you calling me Little Ricky," he advised me. "I only went to Richard at home, to let mom and dad know I was getting older and could do more of the work. They tended to think of me as a little kid most of the time, so by changing what they called me, it made them realize I was growing up. I did it more for Dad, so he'd let me do more of mom's work and not try to do it all himself, and I think calling me Richard made him look at me differently." "Ah, I wondered about the change, but now I understand. That was very clever of you to even think of that." He grinned. "Thanks, but it wasn't that big of a deal." He studied my face for a second, before he said anything else. "I hope you don't mind me just coming over and sitting on your lap like this," he added. "Heck, no! I love it when you boys do this," I told him, pulling him tightly against my chest. This brought another smile to his face. "I'm not too heavy and breaking your legs or anything, am I?" he wanted to know. I made a grimace, as if I were in pain, but then quickly made like I was trying to hide my suffering, before I answered him. "Nope," I answered, in kind of a subtle grunt, causing him to giggle again. "And you don't think it makes me look childish?" "Absolutely not! Even my college boys come over and sit on my lap from time to time. It's a special bond we have between us, but with them, I actually think they do it so they still feel like they're my little boys." He giggled even more. "I do too," he admitted. "And I love you as much as I do mom and dad." That was totally unexpected and caused me to blush. "Well, thank you," I offered, deeply moved by his comment, "and I love you as much as I do any of the other boys. You're always welcome here, no matter what." This time his face just seemed to glow, but then a serious look began to replace it. "You know, I was really worried we were going to have to put mom in a nursing home, especially after this morning." "Do you mean because she wandered off?" "Yeah, that was like the breaking point for dad. He was afraid she'd get lost, hit by a car, or maybe something worse." "He told me that," I admitted. Richard looked at me thoughtfully again. "We don't have to do that now," he acknowledged, while looking me straight in the eye. "With you making sure someone is there to watch her all the time, we can keep her at home and not have to worry about what she might do next." "I know, and that's why I suggested it." "You always seem to think of everything," he told me, with a look of true admiration on his face. I knew this was a sincere compliment, but I felt I had to set the record straight. "Actually, I didn't think of it, as I mentioned early, at least not until Frankie said what he did at the table. I had already discussed this with your father, before Frankie gave his little speech, and we had agreed it would be best to put your mother in a home, for her own safety. I was going to pull you aside and talk to you about this after dinner, but Frankie's comments gave me a different perspective. So, if you want to thank anyone, go thank him." "I'll do that a little later," he informed me, and then he hugged me and leaned his body back against mine. We sat like that for quite a while, sometimes just enjoying each other's company, but at other times talking about different things. We talked about the farm in general, his mom and dad in particular, and what he saw in his future. It was informative for me, cathartic for him, and enjoyable for both of us. I saw Albert look over at us and smile on several occasions, as he knew his son needed this type of release and a chance to discuss things with someone other than his father. It was also good for me, as I enjoyed this special bonding with Richard, and it always makes me feel good when I can help someone out, especially when that person is part of our extended family. After giving his son all the time he thought he needed, Albert came over and told us they should probably leave. He felt they had to get home, so he and Richard could do the rest of their chores, but they both thanked me for the great day. I reminded them I'd call about the around-the-clock help tomorrow and then I'd let them know when I had the specific information about when someone would be able to be there. They both thanked me again, made their rounds to say good-bye to everyone else, and then they were on their way. Their departure got the others thinking about returning to their own homes as well, so slowly, but surely, they all bid us farewell. Before they left, they offered their support, both emotionally and in the form of financial commitments to help cover the costs of Arlene's care. I thanked them for their offers, told them I'd let them know if it was needed, and then they departed as well. Once the others had gone, the rest of us began to clean up the house, before we zoned out for the rest of the night. However, before that happened, Frank asked to speak to me in private. We went to my room, but I wasn't sure what he might have on his mind. "What's up, son?" I asked him. "I need to talk to you about something," he began, looking a little uncertain as how he wanted to proceed. "You know I haven't had much luck finding a job in law enforcement," he continued. "Yes, I know, but it will happen soon enough," I tried to encourage him. "Maybe and maybe not, but I have another idea," he admitted, making me more than a little curious. Was he thinking about giving up on his dream? "And what might that be?" I asked him. "I'm thinking about enlisting in the service," he announced, while studying my face carefully, to gauge my reaction. "I see. So you don't want to be a police officer any longer?" "Oh, I do, but I thought this would be one way to do just that." I wasn't sure what he meant by this, and my expression must have told him that, without me having to utter any words. "I want to enlist in the military police," he added. "Oh," I muttered, still not sure what he had in mind. "It will give me the experience I need, plus I hear that veterans are given a preference when applying for those types of positions." "And where did you hear that?" "From some of the cops I've met. That's how some of them started too. You don't need experience to enlist, but it helps to get a job in my field after you get out." "It sounds as if you've thought this out and know what you want to do, so I will support any decision you make." "Thanks, Dad. I knew you would, but I still needed to talk it over with you. Do you think I'm doing the right thing?" he asked, showing he still needed my support and approval. "If what you told me is accurate, it seems that enlisting will allow you to get where you want to go. Are you sure this is what YOU want to do." "Yeah, it is. I've been thinking this over for a month." "Well, in that case, all I want to know is when are you going to go?" "I think I'm going to wait until after the New Year. I'd like to be home for Christmas, and then I can leave after that. Maybe I'll be lucky and they'll send me somewhere warmer for training," he grinned. "Do you have an idea of which branch you want to enlist in?" "I haven't got that far yet," he admitted, "I was hoping maybe you could help me choose." "Okay, how about tomorrow, after I arrange for Mrs. Becker's care. Then you and I can go talk to some of the recruiters, to see what they have to offer. "That sounds fine to me, Dad." He started to turn to go, but then he stopped after a couple of steps. "Hey, thanks for always being here for me," he added, before coming back to give me a hug. Frankie had not always been one to show a lot of physical affection, so this had tremendous meaning for me, and I hugged him back, to let him know I appreciated him as well. Once we broke our embrace, we both went about our business, but now we were more assured about the other's affection. The next day I made a multitude of phone calls, in an attempt to set up care for Arlene, but I immediately discovered this was not going to be an easy task. They needed a great deal of information, some of which I'd have to get from Albert, and they were going to check to see how much Albert and Arlene's insurance would cover, before they would quote me a price. They said all of this would take between seven to ten days to complete, and then it would be a couple more days to insert her into the care schedule. The woman told me they might be able to have the coverage set up to begin two weeks from Monday, which wasn't too bad. I called Albert one more time, to tell him that's the time frame we were shooting for, and he said he and Richard would be able to cope until then. After thanking me once more, that part of my day's work was over. Now, I could turn my attention to Frankie, and he and I drove down to talk to some recruiters. I was quickly overwhelmed by all the information presented to us, but Frankie seemed to be absorbing every detail. Seeing he had a two-year criminal justice degree, he understood much more than I did, so I just sat back and left everything up to him. After talking to representatives from the four major branches of the service, we were ready to head home, but Frankie began quizzing me the moment we got back to the van. "What did you think, Dad? Which one would one you suggest I choose?" He was looking intently at me, as if he were watching a commercial on television. "I don't know, Frankie. A lot of that was more than I really understood. They all sound as if they have decent programs, but you know more about what you're looking to gain from it than I do." I felt as if I were almost letting him down now. "Yeah, I was afraid of that, especially when I started asking each of the recruiters about the details of the training. Actually, only the Army recruiter was familiar with those parts of the MP training." He seemed to be looking at me for a response. "I'm glad you said that, because I wasn't sure if it was them or me who was out of the loop," I joked, "but maybe we should go home and see if we can find more information online." "Hey, I never thought about that," he commented, giving me a look that told me he was impressed by this simple suggestion. "I didn't even think about them having a website. That might even have better information than the recruiters did. Now, I can't wait to check it out." As soon as we reached the house, Frankie raced inside and jumped on one of the computers, immediately doing a search on 'military police.' He was gone for a couple of hours, before he came back to talk about what he'd found, but it must have been good, because he was grinning ear-to-ear. "Dad, can you come look at this? I really want to know what you think." "Sure, Frankie. I just hope I can be helpful," I answered him honestly. He took me in, showed me the website for the Army's military police school, and we checked out the various phases of both the Basic Training and Advanced Individual Training for that branch. Frank not only seemed impressed by the training descriptions, but he was also excited about some of the advanced specialized training he might be able to get into later. After discussing this with him for many minutes, he seemed to make up his mind. Monday he was going back to see the Army recruiter and enlist. The only thing he wasn't thrilled about was that he'd probably be going to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri for his initial training. I believe he thought it might be a bit chilly there at this time of year, seeing it was located in the Ozarks, and I think he was hoping to go either to a warmer climate or closer to home. Seeing neither of those options was in the cards, he would just have to cope. * * * * * * * * If you have enjoyed reading this story, you will find other stories by me at 'BW's Rainbow Youth Connection,' at http://bwsryc.gayauthors.org/ You can also locate my stories by clicking on the Nifty author link and scrolling down to "BW". This will give you the links for everything I have posted there. I also love to hear from my readers and get their reaction to my stories. If you don't mind, please share whatever information you feel comfortable with, because it helps knowing my readers better when I decide what to write or how to gear it. Please email me at bwstories8@aol.com and let me know what you thought, so I can do even better in the future. Thanks, Bill.