Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2024 13:10:27 -0500
From: ronyx@woh.rr.com
Subject: Seth on  the Road to Chaos  Chapter 26

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Seth on the Road to Chaos    Chapter 26



I couldn't believe I had been reunited with my father. Even though I
hadn't seen him in ten years, some of his features hadn't changed. He
still had his dark hair and blue eyes. When I was a little boy, I used to
sit in his lap and point at his eyes and ask, "Are my eyes like yours?"
He'd laugh and tell me they were.

Craig approached and asked, "What's going on, Seth?" Ty was standing
nearby with a puzzled look on his face.

I put my arm around my father's waist and told them, "This is my
daddy."

Craig gave me a puzzled look and said, "I thought you said your Mom told
you your father lives in Alaska."

"Alaska?" laughed my father. He pointed to the house and said, "I've
lived here for eight years." He looked at me, frowned and said, "Your
mother has been lying to you."

I gave him a hug and said, "I know that now. I'm just glad I found
you." He embraced me tightly.

He threw his arm around my shoulder and asked us to go over to his house.
He pulled me into a hug and said, "We've got a lot of catching up to
do."

I turned when Craig said, "Uh, Seth?" He held out his hand. "Can I
have your car keys so Ty and I can go back to the hospital?"

"Hospital?" asked Dad. "Who's in the hospital?" I told him I would
explain later as I handed Craig my car keys. "Come back in an hour and
pick me up. Okay?"

"There's no need for that," responded Dad. "I'll make sure you get
wherever you want to go." He started smiling and said, "I still can't
believe it's you, Seth." He pulled me into a tight hug.

Craig and Ty gave me a quick hug and left. "Nice boys," Dad said with a
smile. He threw his arm around me and pulled me toward the house.
"Let's go make up for lost time."

Dad's house looked like Mrs. Bowen's, only it was better furnished.
Everything appeared newer, and there was a large screen television in the
family room. I also noticed some women's and girl's clothing strewn
about.

I looked at Dad and asked, "Are you married?"

He pointed to a leather sofa and asked me to sit down. He left for a
minute and returned with two sodas. He then sat down beside me. He smiled
and said, "I'll go first. Yes, I'm married. I married Holly two years
after your mother and I got divorced." He looked around the room and
continued, "We bought this house eight years ago. We have a daughter,
Emily, who is seven years old."

I was surprised that I had another sister. I looked at a picture on the
wall of a young girl I assumed was Emily. Another picture was of Dad
standing beside a woman who was probably Holly. Both were pretty with
long blonde hair and blue eyes. "Is that them?" I asked as I pointed to
the pictures. Dad walked over, took them off the wall and handed them to
me. "Yes," he replied. "This is Holly and Emily." He smiled when I
remarked that they were pretty.

I looked around at the nicely furnished room. I said, "This is a nice
house. Where do you work?"

He replied, "I'm an air traffic controller at the airport." When he
left, I didn't remember him working at the airport. I wasn't sure what
he did, but I remember him leaving every day in work clothes.

He put his hand on my leg and said, "Now you, Seth. Fill me in on what
I've missed."

I shrugged my shoulders and said, "Not much to tell. I'm a junior in
high school."

He frowned and asked, "Is that all? Surely there must be more?"

Tears welled up in my eyes. "Things haven't been too good for me
lately." I tried to stop crying, but I couldn't. Dad pulled me into a
hug as I cried on his shoulder. I muttered, "Mom hates me, and Stacy
wants to kill me."

"Jesus, Seth," he responded angrily, "What is going on?"

Tears welled up in my eyes. "It's been horrible," I replied as I
fought back tears. I was trying to stay strong. I didn't want my dad to
think that I was weak. I wanted to make a good impression. However, it
was becoming increasingly harder to do.

He shook his head and remarked, "I guess your mother is the same old
bitch she used to be."

I couldn't suppress a laugh. "Yeah," I giggled. "I guess she is."

Dad reached down and gripped my hand. "God, Seth," he apologized.
"I'm so sorry I wasn't in your life. It really wasn't my fault."

"I know," I said. "Mom told me she wouldn't let you see me. We had a
terrible fight."

He squeezed my hand tighter and said, "I tried, Seth. God how I tried.
But she got a lawyer, and a judge issued a restraining order that I
couldn't come anywhere near you or Stacy."

"Why?"

"She was afraid I was going to take Stacy from her," he replied.

I said, "That's what she told me."

He gave me a puzzled look and asked, "Just how much do you know?"

"We got in a really bad fight the other day," I replied. "I told her I
hate her." Dad smiled, but he didn't say anything. "She tried to make
up, and she told me why Stacy is so hateful. All it did was make me hate
her even more."

My father shook his head and asked, "So Stacy turned into a mini-me?"

"It's awful, Dad," I replied. "It's like living in the house with
two monsters."

"I was lucky, I guess," he laughed. "At least I had to only put up
with one monster." He studied me for a minute and then asked, "It
sounds like this just came up recently. Why now?"

I looked away and replied, "I kind of made some mistakes."

He squeezed my hand and asked, "Want to tell me about it?"

I removed my hand, sat back and sighed. I wasn't sure I should tell him,
but I had nothing to lose. If he hated me too, then I could call Craig
and tell him to come get me. He waited patiently for me to respond.
Finally, I looked him in the eyes and said, "I'm gay, Dad."

He smiled warmly and replied, "I'm not your mother, Seth. That doesn't
bother me."

"It doesn't?" I asked surprisingly. "You're not mad at me?"

He took my hand and squeezed it. "Why should that make me mad? It's who
you are." He sat back and explained, "I'm the supervisor for air
traffic control. I have many people working for me. One man is gay, and
another is a lesbian. When we are directing a plane in, do you think I
care for a minute what they are? All I want them to be able to do is
safely land a plane." He squeezed my hand tighter. "In fact, Mark, the
gay controller, got married last year. I attended their wedding."

I leaned over, embraced my father and said, "I love you, Dad."

He hugged me tightly and said reassuringly, "I love you too, Seth."
When we broke the embrace, tears filled both our eyes.

Dad stood and told me he wanted to show me around the rest of the house.
He showed me the pictures of Holly and Emily. He told me that Holly was
an elementary school principal. Emily was seven and was in the second
grade at the same school.

The house was nicely furnished. It had four bedrooms and three baths. He
took me outside where there was a large deck with a swimming pool. "This
is cool," I remarked as I walked around. I sat in a lounge chair, and
dad sat down beside me.

"You're welcome to come swimming anytime you want," he said. "Bring
your friends, too. They seem to be nice boys." He laughed and elbowed me
in the side. "Is one of them your boyfriend?" He laughed when my face
reddened. "So, one of them is?" I didn't know how to respond. How do
you tell your father that you are in love with three boys? "Well," he
laughed, "I'm waiting."

I smiled and replied, "Something like that."

He laughed and said, "It has to be Craig. That boy is built. I can see
why you have a crush on him."

"Dad!" I laughed. "You're a pervert."

He elbowed me and said, "Tell me you don't then."

"Okay," I smiled. "Maybe just a little."

"Does he play sports?" I nodded. "Football?" I nodded again. He sat
up and looked excitedly at me. "He isn't Craig Gates, is he?"

"Yes," I replied.

Dad said excitedly, "I follow local sports closely. I've read several
articles on how great a running back he is. I didn't know who he is
until now. How did you two meet?"

I frowned and said, "He's the reason I'm in so much trouble at home
now."

"Why?"

I sat back and sighed. So far, Dad had been very understanding. He
didn't get upset when I told him I was gay, and he agreed that my mother
is a bitch. We even laughed about it. I wasn't sure how he would react
when I told him about Craig.

But I told him. He listened quietly as I told him about how Craig and I
became boyfriends. He didn't even seem upset when I told him that Craig
had been Stacy's boyfriend, and that is why she wanted to harm me now.
When I finished, he simply stated, "That's quite a mess."

We sat quietly for a moment before he spoke again. "What about the other
boy? I forgot his name."

"Ty," I replied. "His name is Ty?"

Dad looked over and smiled. "Is he a boyfriend too? I noticed how
closely he seemed to be standing to you." He laughed and added, "I had
to look to see if you two were hooked together."

"Dad!" I said excitedly. "That's not funny."

"So," he said. "He is a boyfriend." I shrugged my shoulders and said
nothing. I didn't want to confuse him more. He waited a minute before
asked, "Who is the boy in the hospital that Craig and Ty went to see?"

"He's Blake," I said.

Dad asked, "Why is he in the hospital?" It took me several minutes to
explain what had happened to Blake. By the time I finished, I was crying.

"It's good he's going to be alright," he said. "If there is anything
I can do, let me know." I smiled and nodded my head. "I'm glad Steven
and Marie stepped in to help him. I always did like them. They are good
people."

"I'm happy for Blake," I replied tearfully. "He's finally going to
have a safe place to stay."

"I was watching your face when you talked about Blake," said Dad. "You
seem to be in love with him too."

I smiled and confessed, "I am, Dad."

Dad laughed and asked, "Are there anymore boys? You've been quite
busy."

"No, Dad," I responded tearfully. "My life has been filled with so
much chaos the past couple of weeks. It's really hard to deal with it
all."

"I can imagine," he replied as he took my hand and squeezed it. "But
now you have something you didn't have."

"What?"

"Me," he replied tearfully. "I'm here to help you now." I leaned
over, and we embraced again. We started laughing when my chair collapsed,
and I ended up falling on him.

"Umph," he groaned. "You certainly haven't been starving?" He helped
me up, and we embraced again. I couldn't get enough of his hugs. I guess
I was making up for all the years we had been apart. He looked at his
watch and said that Holly and Emily should be getting home soon.

"Do you want me to leave before they get here?" I asked. I wasn't sure
how Holly would accept me just showing up unexpectedly.

"Nonsense," he replied. "I can't wait to introduce you to her and
Emily."

When we entered the kitchen, they were sitting at the counter. Holly
looked up and exclaimed, "Oh, there you are Jim. I saw your car in the
driveway, but I didn't see you." She gave me a puzzled look and asked,
"Who is this?"

"Yeah, Daddy," chimed in Emily. "Who is he?"

Dad told me to sit at the counter, and he explained who I was. He told
them how I had just unexpectedly showed up next door to help Mrs. Bowen.
Holly asked me how she was doing. I told her that she appeared to be
okay, but that she needed someone to take care of her cats.

Dad said, "Those boys did a damn good job. Her house hasn't looked this
good in a long time." Holly asked me several questions. Most of them
were about school. She never once mentioned my mother.

She looked back and forth between my dad and me. "I've never seen Jim
so happy," she exclaimed. She reached over and took my hand. "I'm so
glad you two have been reunited. He's regretted for so long not being
able to see you." She grinned and added, "You two look so remarkably
alike." I smiled because I thought Dad is a handsome man. I can't wait
to be able to grow a beard like him.

Dad rose and said, "I'm going to take Seth back to the hospital."

Holly asked worriedly, "Is everything all right?"

"Yes, Honey," replied Dad. "Seth has a friend he needs to see.
Everything is okay."

She rose from her seat and hugged Dad and me. "It was so nice to finally
meet you, Seth."

From behind her, I heard Emily ask, "Mommy, can I have some more milk
and cookies?" Dad laughed, put his hand on my shoulder and led me from
the house.

We talked all the way to the hospital. Dad wanted to know more about my
life the past ten years. Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot to tell him.
I get good grades in school, and the only thing I do at home is play
video games. He asked about Stacy, but there wasn't much to say. I told
him how Mom had spoiled her rotten, and that she got away with murder. He
confirmed what Mom had said about her birth. He then told me how it had
ruined their marriage. He didn't seem surprised that Mom was still
obsessed with Stacy's mental health. He said Mom feared that he would
someday get a court to release Stacy to him so he could get her
professional care. He said after a few years, he got tired of fighting
Mom, so he gave up.

I expected Dad to drop me off at the hospital entrance, but he parked the
car in the parking garage and went with me to Blake's room. When we
entered, Aunt Marie and Uncle Steve were sitting in chairs. They jumped
up when they saw Dad with me. "Jimmy," cried Marie. "The boys told me
that Seth was with you." She hugged him tightly and said, "It is so
good to see you again." Uncle Steve held out his hand, and they shook.

Dad walked over and looked down at Blake. "You must be Blake," he said
with a smile. "Seth has told me so much about you." Blake glanced
quickly at me. Dad laughed and patted Blake's arm. "It was all good."
He turned and spoke briefly to Ty and Craig.

He walked over and started talking quietly to Aunt Marie and Uncle Steve.
Craig whispered, "How did it go with you and your Dad?"

"Really well," I replied. I grinned and added, "He thinks you're a
wonderful boyfriend for me." His eyes widened as Ty and Blake started
giggling. I noticed that Ty reached down and gripped Blake's hand.

Craig asked, "You told him you're gay?"

"Yep," I beamed. "And he's okay with it."

Blake muttered softly, "Lucky shit." I reached down and took his other
hand. "He says if you need anything, he'll be glad to help." Blake
looked at Dad and smiled.

As I looked around the room, my life seemed complete. I had reunited with
my father. There was also Aunt Marie and Uncle Steve, two of the people I
trusted the most. I was also with the three boys I loved more than
myself. I knew there were still a lot of hurdles I would have to jump,
but at least I had a roomful of people who would help me along the way. I
was no longer a lonely boy who sat alone in his bedroom without his
mother and sister's love. Chaos had vanished from my life, and it was
now filled with love.

We had been standing around talking for about fifteen minutes when a
nurse entered and said that they were going to take Blake for more tests.
Dad looked at his watch and said it was almost four o'clock. He asked,
"I'm starving. How does Longhorn Steakhouse sound to everyone? My
treat." Craig and Ty instantly said they were in. Blake was disappointed
because he wanted to go, but Dad assured him that he would bring him back
the biggest piece of pie they had. It took a little coaxing, but Aunt
Marie and Uncle Steve finally agreed to go.

They rode with Dad, and I drove Craig and Ty to the restaurant. They were
excited about my reunion with my dad. "He's really cool," exclaimed
Craig. He blushed when I told him that Dad thought he was a great
football player. I told him that Dad always follows the team in the
newspaper after each game.

Craig shook his head and replied sadly, "I guess that won't be
happening anymore."

"Maybe you should reconsider," said Ty.

Craig shook his head and said, "I don't think my coach and the team
will want me back."

"You never know," I said. "No one really said anything yesterday, did
they?"

"No," he replied. "A couple of guys made some wisecrack remarks, but
no one challenged me."

"I think you should think about it," said Ty. "You've worked too hard
to be a really great player. You don't want to give in now."

Craig replied somberly, "We'll see."

Dinner was fun. I sat beside Dad, and he kept touching me all during the
meal. I think he thought he was caught in a dream, and he wanted to touch
me to see if it was real. We laughed and had a good time. I learned a lot
more about him because Aunt Marie and Uncle Steve kept asking him
questions. I learned he had traveled all over the world. I guess as an
air traffic controller, he was given discounts and sometimes free
tickets. I smiled widely when he told me that he would take me on his
next vacation. Of course, Craig and Ty asked if they could go.

Aunt Marie also filled him in on my mother. It embarrassed me that Craig
and Ty listened. I hadn't told them how my life had been at home. Craig
said he had no idea. He knew that Stacy and I didn't get along, but he
didn't realize that the situation was equally bad between me and my
mother.

When we finished, it was nearly seven. We hurried back to the hospital to
spend more time with Blake before visiting hours ended. His face beamed
when he opened the food container with a huge slice of pecan pie inside.
We laughed as he greedily ate it all.

No one seemed surprised when Craig and I kissed Blake before we left. We
softly told everyone to leave so Ty could say goodbye to Blake alone. His
face reddened when he came out of the room, and we were staring at him.
We were heading to our cars when Dad grabbed my arm and stopped me.

"Seth," he said. "Take Craig and Ty home, and then meet me at your
house."

"What?"

"I'm going to stop and get a cup of coffee while you take them home,"
he replied. "I'll be waiting for you outside your home."

I gave him a puzzled look and asked, "Why?"

"Because you're going home with me tonight," he insisted.

"What if Mom won't let me?" I asked.

He replied angrily, "You're sixteen now. You have a right to make your
own decisions. If she doesn't like it, then too bad." I started to walk
away, but he grabbed my arm and stopped me. "You do want to go home with
me tonight, don't you?"

I didn't say anything. I reached out and gave him a tight embrace. He
pushed me away and said, "I'll see you in about twenty minutes."

At that moment, I felt the cloud of chaos leave my body.

 **********

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