Chapter
Twenty Three – Kyle’s Recovery
Kyle and
two of his friends were playing video games in his room. Brandon and Harrison were his very best buds
in the whole world. They were laughing
and joking as they talked trash about each other. Brandon won their game and he said, “Hey,
dudes, I need to get home. My Mom has
been ragging on me something fierce about spending time with my little brother,
Garrett. She says that it’s important
for us to bond as a family.” Brandon
rolled his eyes, “As if I want to hang out with a seven year old.”
Harrison
said, “At least you have a little brother to hang out with, bro. You could have an older sister to deal with
which is much, much worse. Alex is
always watching me. She rats me out to
Mom and Dad and thinks she is so superior because her grades are better than
mine.”
Brandon
said, “Kyle you are so lucky. Your Dads
are the coolest people I know. They
don’t rag on you and you have a great family.
Of course, David can be kind of weird sometimes but he doesn’t bother
you like Garrett bothers me all of the time.
Even your twin brothers are alright.
JJ asked me if I was a giant because I am so tall.” Brandon laughed.
Kyle and
Harrison laughed as well. Kyle said,
“Dad read them the story of Jack and the Bean Stalk the other day. Now they ask everyone if they are a giant.”
“Hey, can
we read stories to JJ and Josh?” Harrison asked.
Kyle looked
at his friend like he had two heads, “Why would you want to do that?”
Harrison
shrugged, “I don’t know. I just thought
it might be fun to read stories to little kids instead of going home to be
harassed by my big sister. Do you think
I could stay for dinner?”
Kyle looked
at Harrison and smiled, “Sure. You know
that my Daddy loves to feed us.”
“Yeah, we
do,” Brandon said. “He has got to be
the best chef anywhere. I told my mom
that we need to get his recipes because he makes such delicious things to eat.”
“I like the
chocolate chip cookies and milk that are always waiting for us when we come
over,” Harrison said. “You have it
made, Kyle. You have a parent that
takes good care of you. My Mom and Dad
both work and don’t have time to cook and Alex can’t be bothered.”
Brandon’s
cell phone rang. He answered it. His friends could hear his mother telling
him that he was late and needed to be home as soon as he could get there. He hung up and looked at Kyle and Harrison,
“I’m in big trouble guys. Can I get a
ride home, Kyle?”
Kyle stood
up and nodded his head, “Sure. Let’s
tell my Daddy and he will take you home.”
They
followed Kyle of his room and down to the kitchen where they found a plate of
chocolate chip cookies and glasses of milk laid out on the table. Kyle asked, “Daddy, can we take Brandon
home? He really needs to get there
soon.”
I nodded my
head, “Sure. Brandon, grab your cookies
and milk. You can take them in the car
so you won’t miss out on them.”
Brandon
grinned, “Thanks, Daddy.” Brandon had
decided that he wanted to be adopted by Kyle’s Dads so he had called them Dad
and Daddy from the beginning. He really
looked up to them as role models of what real Dads should be like. They spent time with their children, took
them to ball games, played sports with them, had dinner with them and talked to
them like they were real people. He
wished his parents would be more like them.
I smiled at
Brandon, “Okay, big guy, let’s get you home before I get a call from your Mom
telling me off again. She reminded me
that she expects you home right at six o’clock. She also told me last time that I was
encouraging you to become a juvenile delinquent because I give you too many
cookies and milk. She said she was
kidding but I think she was only half kidding.”
Brandon
laughed, “She likes your chocolate chip cookies. She says that she needs to hire you to cater
a party for her since you are such a good cook.”
I said,
“Okay, I won’t worry about it then.
Let’s go. Harrison, do you need
a ride home as well?”
Harrison
shook his head, “Actually, I wanted to ask you if I could stay for dinner.”
“You are
very welcome to stay for dinner. Just
make a quick call home to let your sister know where you are,” I said. I had come to expect Harrison to stay for
dinner most every night. I had no
problem with it but I always insisted that he let his sister know where he was
and what time to expect him home. I
knew that his parents were working two jobs to make ends meet and weren’t home
very often. I would rather that Kyle
and Harrison spend time at our home than spend time alone at Harrison’s home
where they would be unsupervised. Maybe
I was being over protective but I felt like there needed to be some adult
supervision where our teenagers were concerned.
Brandon had
collected his cookies in one hand and carried his glass of milk in the
other. He headed out the door. I grabbed the car keys which hung by the
front door and followed him out to the car.
Brandon was a tall, blond-haired youth.
He had gained his height early and stood about an inch or so taller than
Rick. He had piercing blue eyes and a ready
smile. His hands and feet dwarfed
mine! Brandon wore his hair down to his
shoulders. Usually, he had it pulled
back in a ponytail but today he left it loose and the wind blew it around him
forming a kind of cocoon. We climbed into the mini-van and I backed out
of the driveway. Brandon asked between
mouthfuls of chocolate chip cookie, “Daddy, What’s it like to fall in love with
a guy?”
I was a
little surprised at the question and gave Brandon a quick glance before answering,
“Well, it’s the most wonderful thing in the entire world. Nothing is better than falling in love with
your best friend. Why do you ask?”
“I was just
wondering if it was any different than falling in love with a girl,” Brandon
replied.
“I don’t
know if it’s any different since I have never fallen in love with a girl. All I can talk about is how great it is for
me to have a wonderful guy for a husband who loves me and I love him,” I said. “You can talk to my husband about falling in
love with a girl. He had a girlfriend
in high school and he fell in love with her.
He wanted to marry her when she got pregnant but she wanted nothing to
do with him. In fact, she got her
brothers to beat him up.”
“Do you
think Dad will talk to me about his girlfriend?” Brandon asked.
“I think he
will if you ask him, Brandon, but I need to tell you that Angie threatened to
kill us and destroyed our apartment in Atlanta. She is a very hateful person. I don’t know how the love she professed to
have for Rick could be turned into so much hatred,” I said.
Brandon
said, “Thanks for talking to me. I was
afraid you would brush off my questions like my parents do sometimes when they
don’t want to answer me.”
I pulled
into Brandon’s driveway and shut off the engine. I looked over at Brandon and said, “Brandon,
I will always try to answer your questions to the best of my ability. If I don’t know something, I will tell you
that I don’t know it. I expect that you
will be just as honest with me as I am with you. Is that okay?”
Brandon
grinned, “Sure it’s okay! Thanks for the
cookies and milk.” He jumped out and
ran across the lawn to the front door.
He turned and waved as I pulled away from his home.
I returned
home to find that Kyle and Harrison were in the family room reading stories to
the twins. Harrison looked up as I came
into the room, “Hey, Daddy, when will Dad be home? I want to hear him tell the story of the
three Cajun pigs.”
Rick had entertained
the twins with the three pigs story a couple of days ago. Harrison laughed so hard I thought we were
going to have to get him some medical attention! I replied, “He will be home late tonight. He left Washington, DC, about an hour ago.”
Harrison
said, “Can I stay until he gets home?”
“Sure but
you have to call Alex,” I replied with a grin as Harrison grimaced at the
thought of calling his older sister.
He pulled
out his cell phone and called Alex, “Hey, Alex. I’m going to stay over at Kyle’s
tonight. Is that okay?”
Alex
replied, “Sure, if I get to come over, too.
You shouldn’t be the only one who gets to hang out with your friend.”
“You don’t
like Kyle, anyway,” Harrison replied, not at all happy that Alex wanted to come
over to Kyle’s house. “Besides, he is
too young for you.”
“That has
nothing to do with it, Harrison. I hate
being home alone all the time,” Alex complained.
Harrison
laughed, “You are never home alone, Alex.
Your girlfriends are always hanging out at our house.”
“But they
went home and I want someone to entertain me.
I’m so bored,” Alex said.
Harrison
put his hand over the phone and asked, “Kyle, can Alex come over for a
while. She says she’s bored.”
Kyle
laughed, “Alex is welcome to come over.
Just tell her that her Jenny can come over, too.”
Harrison
made a face at Kyle, “Okay, Alex, you can come over and bring Jenny with you.”
“Be there
in a few minutes,” Alex said.
Harrison
ended the call and turned to Kyle. “Why
do you want Jenny to come over? Do you
like her or something?”
Kyle
shrugged, “I kind of like her. You have
to admit she is very pretty.”
“Kyle, she
is older than you. How can you be
interested in someone who’s a junior?”
“What’s
wrong with that?” Kyle responded.
Harrison
looked at his friend as if he had just grown two heads, “You are so weird!”
A couple of
minutes later, the doorbell rang and I opened the door to admit the two
girls. Alex smiled and said, “Hello,
Mr. Lernier. Kyle said we could come
over.”
I smiled,
“Kyle told me you were coming. The boys
are in the family room.”
Alex and
Jenny passed by me as I closed the door.
I returned to the kitchen where the twins were having a snack before
going to bed. When they were finished,
I said, “Time for bed, boys.”
I took them
by the hand and led them upstairs. I
knelt with them next to their beds as they said their prayers. Josh hugged me and said, “Good night,
Daddy.”
“Good
night, Josh,” I replied.
JJ asked,
“When is Dad coming home?”
“He will be
in about an hour. I will have him come
to your bedroom and give you a kiss when he gets here. Is that okay?” I asked.
JJ nodded
his head. “I love you, Daddy.”
“I love
you, too,” I said and tucked his blanket up around him. I got up and walked over and turned out the
light. I made my way downstairs to the
family room. Ashley and David had
joined the other four teenagers. They
were playing a board game so I sat down in the rocking chair to relax as I
listened to their conversation. I
watched Kyle and Jenny very closely. It
was obvious to me that they liked each other.
She had long straight blond hair that hung down her back to her
waist. Her hazel eyes twinkled when she
smiled. Jenny was tall and
slender. Kyle had asked me the night
before if it was okay to date a girl that was taller than he was. I had told him that it was okay as long as
it didn’t bother either one of them.
They finished their game and moved from the floor to the couches with
Jenny holding Kyle’s hand.
Jenny
asked, “Kyle, will you play Fiddler on the Roof for us just like you played for
our school musical?”
Kyle beamed
at Jenny and nodded his head. “I lucked
into that part. Mrs. Arrington asked me
to play the part of the fiddler the day of our first rehearsal, remember?”
Harrison
laughed, “I remember Mr. McCormick said we really needed to have a boy play the
violin and not a girl. He told Mrs.
Arrington that he would rather have a boy play the part and air bow to a
recording of the music rather than have a girl play the part of the fiddler.”
Alex said,
“I was the costume manager for that play and I was running around like a crazy
woman trying to find you a costume.”
“But you
managed to find him a jacket and a beret that looked really cool,”
Harrison. “It was better than the
costume you found for me.”
Alex
laughed, “That’s because you were playing the part of one of the villagers,
Harrison.”
Kyle as Fiddler on the
Roof
Kyle pulled
out his violin and started to play the pieces from the musical. When Kyle was finished, Jenny smiled and said,
“That’s was wonderful.” Kyle blushed at
her praises. He turned away from her to put his instrument
away. He returned to sit by her side
and she took his hand in hers, again.
Alex said,
“Kyle you need to join the drama club next year. I think you would be great thespian.”
Kyle said,
“I like acting. I had fun with the
fiddler part but I didn’t have a speaking part.”
“We will
help you,” Jenny said. “You already
know all the drama kids since you were school musical last month. If you sign up for the drama class, we will
have at least one class together.”
I almost
busted up laughing as I saw the wheels turning in Kyle’s head as he processed
that last bit of information. I saw the
question forming in his mind even before he voiced it, “Daddy, what do you
think? Should I take drama next year?”
I tried to
be serious as I responded to his question, “It’s totally up to you, Kyle. If you want to take drama that is fine by me
but you need to figure out how you will handle football practice and being in
the school play next fall. The
rehearsals are right after school just like football practice. Also, don’t forget that we are planning to
move to Virginia so you won’t be attending Hauppauge High School next year.”
Kyle looked
at Jenny who had a crestfallen expression on her face. “I forgot we were moving at the end of the
school year. Maybe I can sign up for
drama at my new school.”
I heard the
front door open and I heard Rick yell, “Honey, I’m home!”
I got up
and went to greet him. Rick grabbed me
around the waist and lifted me off the ground in a bear hug before setting on
my feet and kissing me on the lips. “I
missed you, Babe.”
“I’m glad
you’re home,” I said and kissed him again.
Rick asked,
“Who is here?”
“Kyle’s
friends: Harrison, Alex and Jenny.”
“The same
Jenny he has been talking about since he met her during rehearsals for the
music?” he asked.
“Yes, the
very same one,” I said with a grin.
Rick took
my hand and led me into the family room where the teens were still talking. When Kyle saw Rick, he jumped up and came
over to give Rick a hug. “Dad, I’m glad
you’re home. I wanted to ask you what
you thought about me taking drama next year.”
Rick said,
“I think that it would be okay if that is what you want to do. You should really sit down and look at what
classes you need to take to graduate and map out how many electives you
have. You want to keep orchestra,
right?”
“Yes, I
want to stay in the orchestra as well,” Kyle said. “Will you sit down with me tomorrow and help
me figure out my schedule?”
“Sure, we
can do it tomorrow afternoon,” Rick responded.
Harrison
said, “Hi, Dad.”
“Hello,
Harrison. Kyle, are you going to
introduce me?” Rick asked pointedly.
Kyle blushed
under his Dad’s gaze and said, “Sorry, Dad.
This is Alex, Harrison’s sister, and her friend, Jenny.”
Rick said,
“Nice to meet you both.”
“It’s nice
to meet you, Mr. Lernier. Harrison
never stops talking about how wonderful Kyle’s Dads are. I certainly agree with his assessment that
you are both very good looking,” Alex said smiling at Rick.
Rick
laughed and replied, “Why thank you, Alex!
I am glad to know I still qualify as good looking despite having a 14
year old boy for a son.”
“I was
beginning to think that we were getting too old and decrepit to even merit the
attention of young people,” I said grinning at Rick.
Kyle said,
“Well, now that you mention it…..”
“I wouldn’t
mention it if I were you, son,” Rick said laughing. “Don’t forget – I know where you sleep!”
Harrison
laughed and said, “I’ll protect you, Kyle.”
Kyle looked
over at this friend and shook his head, “What kind of protection would that
be? You would be helping them and you know
it!” Harrison guffawed but didn’t deny
it!
Alex
interrupted her brother and Kyle’s discussion.
She said, “Jenny thinks you are both good looking, too.” She looked over at her friend who nodded her
head in agreement.
Kyle sat
down next to Jenny on the couch and she took his hand in hers. “I think Kyle is handsome just like his
Dads.”
Before Rick
could say anything to embarrass the two teens, I took his hand and said, “I
have saved your dinner for you. Come
into the kitchen and I will warm it up for you.”
Rick smiled
at me and said, “If you will excuse me, please?”
We left the
Kyle with his friends and went into the kitchen. Rick pulled me into his arms and gave me a
kiss. I laughed as Rick released me, “I
knew what you had in mind to do next so I rescued Kyle from your evil ways!”
“You know
me too well, Babe. You know I wanted to
tease Kyle some more, especially with his girlfriend holding hands with him.”
I put his
dinner in the microwave and heated it for him.
Rick took a seat at the table and I served him his dinner. While he ate, I related to him the events of
the day and the children’s progress with their homework and grades. Lastly, I said, “I promised the twins that
you would stop into their room to kiss them good night.”
Rick
smiled, “I will go upstairs right now.”
He stood up and gave me a quick kiss, “Thank you for delicious meal. I promise you a great reward for your
efforts.” He squeezed my package as he
kissed me again. “I need you to fuck me
tonight,” he said smiling as he massaged me.
He kissed me and let me go.
I grinned
at him, “Go take care of the twins while I clean up in here.”
Rick left
the kitchen and peaked into the family room where the teens were still
talking. Alex saw him and asked, “Do
you think Jenny and I could come here after school with Harrison sometimes?”
“I don’t
have a problem with it but I need to talk to my husband to make sure he’s okay
with it, too,” Rick said. “I will let
you know before you leave tonight.”
Rick left them and made his way upstairs.
Meanwhile,
Alex turned to Jenny and said, “I love how Kyle’s Dads treat each other. You can tell they love each other very
much.”
Harrison
agreed, “Yeah, I wish Mom and Dad would act like they are friends instead of
enemies. They constantly fight. I hate it when they are home at the same
time. I can handle each one by
themselves but not together.”
Alex
nodded, “You are so lucky, Kyle.”
I entered
the room as Alex made her last statement.
I asked, “Why is Kyle so lucky?”
Alex
explained and I said, “I am sure that your Mom and Dad love each other,
Alex. They are just going through a rough
patch in their relationship. Every
couple experiences ups and downs in their relationship. Working as much as they do makes it very
difficult to maintain a loving relationship.
It takes a lot of extra effort to keep things running smoothly. I am sure they are often too tired to invest
the energy it takes to keep a relationship alive. The best thing for you to do is always show
them that you love them and help them so that they aren’t as tired by offering
to do things for them. You could suggest
that they take a weekend off of work and spend it together. You know, maybe going to the beach for the
weekend would be a great way to do that don’t you think?”
Alex
smiled, “I think it’s a great idea!”
Kyle said,
“Maybe we could rent a couple of houses at the beach and we could all go to the
beach.”
“What do
you think, Daddy?” Harrison asked.
“I think
it’s something we can discuss,” I said smiling at Harrison. “It’s getting late and I think we need to be
getting ready for bed.”
Jenny
looked at her watch and she gasped, “I didn’t know it was so late. My Mom will be upset that I didn’t call
her.”
“Call her
right now so she won’t worry and tell her that Alex will drop you off at home
in a few minutes,” I said.
Jenny
pulled out her cell phone and called her Mom.
She winced when she heard her mother’s voice. “I’m sorry, Mom,” she said. “Alex will take me home right now.”
She broke
the connection. She looked at Alex, “We
need to go.” She leaned over and kissed
Kyle on the cheek and then she got up and headed for the door.
Harrison
whistled and hooted, “Wow! Kyle!”
Alex
laughed, “I told you she liked you, Kyle.”
The girls
left and Harrison and Kyle went upstairs to Kyle’s bedroom. I walked around the downstairs turning out
lights and making sure that the doors were locked. As I walked up the stairs, Rick came to the
head of the stairs, “It’s time for your reward.” He grinned and took my hand as I drew even
with him. He led me to our
bedroom. He turned and locked the door. My reward was everything I expected it to be
and more!
*** ***
Harrison
lay on Kyle’s bed in his boxer shorts staring at the ceiling as he waited for
Kyle to come out of his bathroom. He
was the same height as Kyle but was bigger boned. He already showed signs that he was going to
be as tall as his father who was 6’6” (199 cm) and was built like linebacker. He wore size 13 shoes and his large hands
dwarfed those of his classmates. His
dark brown hair was cut short except for a three inch strip down the middle of
his head which he hadn’t cut for months.
Normally, he wore it sticking straight up in a Mohawk but tonight he
wore it down and it hung down in front of his eyes. He had deep, dark eyes that matched his
hair. He had a wide, generous mouth and
perfect teeth. Harrison was very proud
of the fact that he had lots of hair dark hair on his body. He knew he could pass for someone several
years older than he was. His treasure
trail started right under his belly button and widened as it approached his
groin. He had his dick out and was
playing with it when Kyle walked into the room.
Kyle saw
what Harrison was doing and said, “Don’t mess up the bed, Harrison. I just changed the bedding. I know how much you can shoot so you don’t have
to show off for me.”
Harrison
grinned and stopped stroking himself.
“You are such a spoil sport, Kyle.”
He put his dick back inside his boxer shorts where it tented the fabric.
Kyle shook
his head and said, “Harrison, you are such a pervert. You know that I hate it when you try to show
off your dick. I’m not gay like my Dads
and I am NOT interested in having sex with you.”
“But you
love me anyway,” Harrison responded with his usual goofy grin.
“Yes, I
love you, Harrison, but as a brother NOT your girlfriend,” Kyle said placing a
lot of emphasis on the “NOT” to make sure Harrison got it this time.
“Can’t we
just jerk each other off?” Harrison whined hoping that Kyle would give in to
him.
“No, I
don’t want you to touch me. Harrison,
we have talked about this before and I haven’t changed my mind,” Kyle replied
firmly. “Besides, my Dads have already
told me that I shouldn’t have sex with anyone until I’m ready and I’m NOT
ready.”
"How
about letting me suck your dick?” Harrison asked looking to see Kyle’s reaction. He really didn’t want to suck his dick but
he wanted to test Kyle’s limits to see if he really meant what he said about
not being ready to have sex with someone.
He had messed around with a couple of his football buddies in the locker
room last fall. It had been a contest
to see how far they could shoot and it had ended with that. However, since becoming friends with Kyle,
he had wanted to explore having sex with a guy. He didn’t consider himself gay or anything
like that but he was still curious about it.
Kyle gave
his friend a withering look, “Harrison, stop it right now. If you keep it up, I will make you sleep on
the couch downstairs so I won’t have to worry about you raping me while I
sleep.”
Harrison
finally relented and said, “I’m sorry.
I didn’t mean to make you angry.
I wanted to see how serious you were about not having sex with anyone.”
“What made
you think I was joking about it?” Kyle asked still angry at his friend for
pushing the issue.
“Nothing. I was just curious to see if you would have
sex with me,” Harrison said.
“Well, the
answer is never. I am not gay,” Kyle
said. He climbed onto his bed and
pulled the blanket up around his chin.
He put his back against the wall and looked at Harrison, “If you want to
continue to be my friend, you need to back off. Just because my Dads are gay doesn’t mean I
am. Don’t continue to insult me by
pressing the issue of having sex with me.”
Harrison
looked at Kyle in surprise, “Hey, don’t get all bent out of shape. I was just curious that’s all. I didn’t mean to make you mad.”
“Don’t give
me that crap, Harrison. You knew what
you were doing. So own up to it and
quit pretending you weren’t trying to push my buttons,” Kyle said.
Harrison
looked into his friend’s eyes and realized he had crossed a line he shouldn’t
have, “Okay, I’m sorry I made you angry.”
Kyle shook
his head, “You still don’t get it do you.
Harrison, when someone tells you they don’t want to have sex with you
and they get angry when you continue to push them, you need to learn to stop
and apologize for trying to force yourself on them. It isn’t just about being sorry you made me
angry. It’s about learning to treat
others with dignity and respect.”
Harrison
kind of got what Kyle was saying but he still didn’t understand what the big
deal was all about. It wasn’t like he
had tried to rape Kyle or anything like that.
He had just showed off his big dick and tried to get Kyle interested in
having sex with him. He had watched enough
porno videos on the internet to know what to do. He finally rolled over and went to sleep.
When
Harrison didn’t respond to him but rolled over and went to sleep, Kyle looked
at his friend’s back and thought about Harrison’s behavior. Harrison had started treating him
differently about a month ago when one of their friends had asked if Harrison
was Kyle’s boyfriend since they spent so much time together. Both had said “No Way!” and had laughed it
off. Since that day, Harrison had begun
to ask him about gay sex and what it was like.
Harrison had even talked to Daddy about it. Kyle was beginning to think that Harrison
was gay but he wasn’t sure because Harrison still showed a lot of interest in
girls.
His
thoughts moved on to his counseling sessions with the therapist. He had completed the last one yesterday and
he felt pretty good about himself. After
his Grandma died at the end of February, he had tried to shake off the
depression he felt. His Dads were great
but they just weren’t the same as his Grandma.
He had gone to grief counseling both by himself and with the
family. David and Ashley seemed to have
bounced back pretty quickly; however, Kyle hadn’t been able to pull out of his
sadness and grief. Of the three
siblings, he was closest to their grandmother.
Her death had really hit him hard.
When he didn’t seem to be able to return to normal, Daddy had sat down
with him one afternoon and they had talked one-on-one. He vividly remembered that conversation:
“Kyle, can
we talk for a few minutes,” Daddy asked.
Kyle had
looked at him with suspicion. He was
tired of being hounded about his sullen attitude and the anger he was
exhibiting towards everyone and everything.
He nodded his head and mumbled, “Okay.”
They had
gone into the study. Kyle had taken a
seat on the sofa. When Daddy had joined
him, he had moved as far away from him as he could without actually getting up
and moving to the armchair across the room.
Daddy had asked him, “May I hug you, Kyle? I don’t want to make you mad or invade your
space without your permission.”
Kyle had
looked into Daddy’s eyes for a long moment.
He saw the love and concern in his adopted father’s eyes. He finally grumped, “I guess so.”
Daddy had
placed his arm around his shoulders and pulled him close. Kyle had stiffened as his Daddy touched
him. Daddy said, “I’m sorry, Kyle that
you are suffering so much from the loss of your Grandma. No one was closer to her than you. Of all of us, you were the one who spent the
most time with her, who helped her the most and who caused her to laugh even
when she felt like crying. Kyle, your grandmother
truly adored you and I know that you felt the same way about her. It’s okay for you to grieve for her.”
Kyle had
listened and then said, “I miss her, Daddy.”
“I know you
do. I love you so much that I wish
there were some way I could take away the pain you feel at her absence. I have watched you become angrier and
angrier at the world. Is there some way
I can help you Kyle? I only ask because
I really do love you.”
Kyle had
replied, “You can bring her back.” He
knew that he was being unreasonable even as he said it. He looked into Daddy’s eyes. “I’m sorry, it’s not your fault that the
cancer took her away from me.” He had
started to cry and placed his head on Daddy’s shoulder. He hadn’t been able to cry or release his
grief until that moment as his Daddy held him close.
When he had
stopped sobbing, Daddy had wiped away Kyle’s tears with his thumbs as he held
Kyle’s face in his hands. He looked
deep into Kyle’s eyes and said, “Remember that I will always love you,
Kyle. You are very special to me. I remember the first day we met. You, David and Ashley all climbed on my lap
and I held you close that day as you all cried and I tried to comfort you. You have lost your parents and your
grandmother but you haven’t lost me or your Dad. We love you and will be here for you.”
Daddy had
released him and had put his arm around his shoulders again. Kyle looked at Daddy and asked, “Do you
really love me as much as you do the twins?”
Daddy had
returned his look and said, “Yes, Kyle, I do.
You are as much my son as the twins are. Remember I adopted them just like I adopted
you, David and Ashley.”
As Kyle
thought about what Daddy had said, he finally began to comprehend what he was
saying. “You mean to say that you
aren’t the twins’ birth father any more than you are my birth father?”
“Yes,
Kyle. I am not their birth father. I am their uncle since my sister is their
mother,” Daddy said.
“Do the
twins know that you aren’t their birth father?” Kyle asked.
“Yes, they
know because we have told them who their mother is. We have never withheld that information from
them,” Daddy said. “They know that Rick
is their birth father and that my sister, Nancy is their birth mother.”
“Does that
bother them that you aren’t their birth father?” Kyle asked.
“I don’t
know because we have never talked about it.
They know that I love them very much and that they are my children,”
Daddy said.
“I know
that you and Dad love me but I haven’t been able to think of you as I do my
birth parents,” Kyle said.
“That’s
okay, Kyle. We aren’t your birth
parents and we want you to always remember them. We never intended to replace them in your
heart. Our goal has always been to love
you and provide you with a home where you could learn and grow. We want you to reach your full potential as
a human being. Someone who loves his
fellowman, who will do great things for society and who will bring honor and
success to every endeavor. We know that
you have inside of you the makings of a great man,” Daddy said.
Kyle had
sat very still as he had let Daddy’s words sink deep into his heart. It seemed as if a great burden had been
lifted from his shoulders. He realized
that despite losing his parents and his grandmother that he still had people in
this world who loved him. He had always
known it but hadn’t let himself acknowledge that it was okay to love them
back. Kyle felt his heart soften
towards his adopted parent as he realized he had been wrong to blame them for
the loss of his grandmother. He wrapped
his arms around Daddy’s waist and hugged him.
He pulled back and said, “I love you, Daddy.”
From that
day forward, his depression disappeared and he had, once again, become the
happy young man he had been before his Grandma had passed away. He was thankful that his Dads had been so
patient and understanding with him. He
made up his mind to never do anything that would disappoint them. Kyle drifted off to sleep thinking about how
lucky he was to have two Dads who love him very much.
*** ***
Author’s
Note:
Important
information about protecting you and your loved one, please seek legal advice
to ensure that you are protected. This
might seem like an ad but in all seriousness don’t leave legal matters to
chance between you and your life partner.
When it comes to making medical decisions or any other type of interaction
with the government, you need to have your legal documentation in order. Reading about what you need to do to protect
yourself and your loved one(s) isn’t enough, check with a lawyer that specializes
in gay issues, specifically family law.
