Date: Fri, 20 Oct 2023 01:00:00 -0700 From: John Henry Subject: Growing Up Ry Chapter 14 (Gay/Incest) DONATION: Nifty is a not-for-profit organization that heavily relies on our donations to keep the site free and accessible. Your donations pay for web hosting fees and other day-to-day activities for the wonderful staff of editors/publishers. You can donate on the website at http://donate.nifty.org/ Every little bit counts. DISCLAIMER: This story is a work of fiction, and contains explicit, sexual content involving adults over the age of 21 and minors under the age of 18, with scenes of incest involving step-parents/step-children, and sibilings. If viewing this material is illegal where you live, OR you're a minor under the age of 18, please stop reading this. If you're not sure about this legatilty, please stop reading until you have looked into your own, local laws. Any likeness or similarity between persons, places, products or concepts are purely coincidental. If you would like to leave any positive feedback, please let me know. Thank you. Chapter 14 The following few days were tense. Charlie and Ry barely talked and Ronda went about trying to find out why. Joey had gone home early the next day, not wanting to be caught in the crossfire. Charlie moved his belongings out of Ry's room and into the nursery. His old bed was still there, so he made it up and quietly sobbed. Ry busied himself with work, both at the restaurant and at home. He badly wanted Charlie back in his room, but he didn't know how to handle everything. Charlie was no longer the little boy who looked up to and depended on him. Charlie might as well be a grown man, since he pretty much had those responsibilities. The idea of Charlie being a man didn't make his baby brother less attractive; in fact, it made things much worse, as Ry was attracted to people with drive and commitment. Eventually, they found a happy medium, but still wouldn't say anything about their issues to either each other or Ronda, who ended up just letting things go for the moment. Ry went to work with a lot on his mind. Normally, he processed things better when he was cooking; an old coping skill from his childhood before the Bartons, but on this particular day, it was only proving to be a distraction. Luckily, he worked in a diner and not some Michelin rated restaurant. His employees, however, were the ones having to pick up his slack or deal with angry customers. "Ry, can I talk with you for a moment, please?" Marcus asked. He didn't sound happy. "Sure thing." He gave some orders and went to the office and closed the door behind him. "I'm really sorry, Marcus. My head isn't in it like it should be. I'm trying really hard to make up for everything, and--" "--Ryland," Marcus said, cutting him off, "I know you're having an off night. That's not what I called you in here for." "Oh. What's up?" "I'm letting Tony go. I think he's been stealing. Whenever he's on, stuff goes missing. How do you feel about that?" "I'm fine with it," Ry replied, still taken aback. "He's not a great worker, either." "Good, please tell him he can go home, then." Ry hated that part of his job. It was one thing to be bossy or pushy, but he hated firing people. There were usually hard feelings that came with it. One time, however, a guy actually thanked him, since it spared him from quitting. The last Ry heard, the guy went to Harvard. Just before Ry walked out, Marcus said, "I know you have a lot going on, and that it's affecting your job performance. To be honest, I'm surprised that it doesn't happen more often. If you ever need to talk, more time off or a change in your schedule, please let me know. I'd rather move things around or take time for you than lose you." The complement was welcomed but also poked at his anxiety and insecurity even more. "I promise I will, and thank you very much Marcus." Ry looked around the kitchen and couldn't find Tony anywhere. After asking some of his crew, he found Tony jerking off in the bathroom. The toilet stall door was wide open, and Tony was fully exposing himself to anyone who walked in. When he saw Ry, he hastily pulled up his pants, but not before Ry caught a glimpse of the man's very unimpressive dick. "You're fired. Get your shit and go. I'm calling the cops. I know some kids have already been in here as long as you have, you freak." Tony shoved passed his former boss and out the front door. Ry had no clue if any kids had been in the bathroom, but by Tony's reaction, there probably were. After informing Marcus of what happened, Ry went back to work feeling a little better. "Hey Ry," one of the waitresses, Jessica, called out through the service window, "there's a guy here looking for you. He's pretty cute, too," she added with a wink. Confused, Ry looked out the small window and groaned. "That's my brother," he told her, not sounding thrilled at all. "Is he single?" She asked. "He's gay." "Aren't you all," and with that, she took her next order and left. Billy hung around until Ry came out, which was quite a while. Billy figured he was being snubbed, but he wasn't going to let Ry win out. "What are you doing here, Billy?" Ry asked, finally taking a break. "It's nice to see you again, Ry. It's been forever," Billy said sarcastically. "It's been about a week, so I'd hardly call that forever. Again, what are you doing here?" "Fine, whatever," Billy relented. "Rebecca is no longer in family law, and recommended another lawyer. We have the documents to transfer custody, but Dad still hasn't heard from you about the meeting with Charlie." "Shit," Ry said. "I honestly forgot." "Sure you did," Billy replied, sounding agitated. "I did forget, Billy. Joey came over that night, and Charlie and I had a fight later. I totally spaced it." "Whatever. How about you give me Charlie's number, and I'll contact him myself." "No," Ry said flatly. "If Charlie wants to talk to you, he'll get your number from me, but I'm not going to just hand over his number." "I'm his brother, too." "Yeah, and he still doesn't want to talk to you. That's not my fault. I don't know why you and Rick are having such a difficult time understanding this. I will not force Charlie to do something he doesn't want to do. He's 14 fucking years old, Billy. He'll be 15 in March. He's almost an adult and needs to be treated like one, since he's already lost most of his childhood. Hounding him won't get what either of you want, and might actually do more harm than good. I said I'd talk to him, and I will. Thank you for reminding me, but next time, you can send a text." Billy took a deep, settling breath. He had been working on breathing techniques with his dad, and thought they might come in handy at the moment. "Ry," he said, much calmer, though it still came off as forced, "I love you, even if you hate me. Dad loves you, too, even if you hate him. We all love Charlie, even if he doesn't feel the same way. Please, can we just get along? Even if it's for the baby's sake?" "I don't hate you, Billy, nor do I hate Rick. I have issues that I'm trying to work through, and I don't know how yet. As far as Charlie goes, I can't speak for him. I honestly hope he comes around, but it'll have to be on his terms on his time." Billy noted that Ry didn't say, "I love you, too." Though it had been many years, it still stung. "Okay, I'll back off, again, as I always do. It's hard for me to make things right, though, when I don't even know what I did to piss you off." "Goodbye, Billy. I'll pick up your check," Ry said as he walked away. ***Coming Soon, Chapter 15***