It took several seconds after waking the next morning before Dylan remembered where he was. Between the stress of the long trip and the events of the night before he'd all but collapsed onto the guest bed Betty Jo had shown him to. She'd proven to be a gracious hostess. Between his exhaustion and the awkwardness of being in such close confines with someone they'd both only just met the previous night's conversation had been rather limited. But after he'd awoken the next morning and showered Dylan was to find himself the center of attention of the portly woman who'd come to his rescue.
The day had dawned bright and clear, and half to Dylan's relief, half to his perturbation, Betty Jo announced to him over his enormous breakfast of bacon, sausage, eggs, toast, grits, jam, cereal, bagels, and fruit that she expected Aidan and Mason to be able to make the trip from their own home to meet him. She smiled, seemingly more to herself than to him, as she nattered on. "Oh, I'm sure you'll get on just great with the both of them, especially Mason. Something about your personality reminds me of him. He is a dear. But then again, Aidan's quite a charmer himself! Do You life sports? If so you and Aidan should get along perfectly! He's a sports and fitness fanatic!"
Dylan listened for over half an hour, half wanting to plug his ears, as Betty Jo McManus chattered and prattled about her son and his friend Mason. But the more he listened to Betty Jo's description of the two young men the more ill-at-ease he found himself becoming. Was this woman implying that his half-brother was gay? Were these two people in some kind of crazy relationship? From where he sat it sounded like Aidan and Mason were two fags! He dared not repeat it to Betty Jo, but several recollections of his dad's explicit opinions of homosexuals ran through his mind.
( "They make me sick, absolutely sick!" "There's nothing worse than two sick men or women kissing and sucking face, like two normal people should be doing!" "I'll tell you one thing, there'll never be.........")
Eventually, whether from realizing that Dylan wasn't quite paying as much attention as he should've been, or from being distracted by the sudden beeping of a car horn in the drive, the talkative woman rose from the table and peered out the window facing the street. "Oh good, they're here! Well, come along young man; time to meet your new family!" Dylan felt his stomach knot and twist as he rose to follow Betty Jo McManus through her house into the front hall. This was it; he was about to meet his family, family he'd never known existed.
But did he want to meet them? After the description he'd been given of this man and his "friend," did he really want to live with someone like that? A surprisingly strong hand gripped his own and pulled him along behind as the portly woman waddled through the house. He didn't have a choice!
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Mason felt his stomach twist a bit as Aidan brought the Mustang to a halt in the drive and honked the horn. He'd put every ounce of effort he had into being supportive of Aidan during the past few days, after having learned about Aidan's supposed half-brother. This wasn't an easy situation to be put in! But try as he might to hide his own nerves for Aidan's sake he was more than a little uneasy about the young man he knew waited somewhere beyond Betty's front door. He and Aidan hadn't actually been together all that long. And this was a big deal; practically being asked to raise someone's kid was a huge deal!
For a couple of seconds they sat in silence, both staring at the stately colonial Aidan had once known as home. It seemed neither of them were that willing to face what they knew waited beyond the car door. But eventually Mason felt a large, rough hand take his own and bring it to two supple lips. Two blue eyes met his gaze as he turned to face Aidan. For some time the crystal blue orbs merely stared into his own gaze, but eventually the silence between them was broken.
"Mason I don't know how this is gonna turn out. If this kid is truly my father's child then I sincerely hope we can all get along together. But whatever actually happens, I want you to know now that I love you more than I can say for putting up with all this. This is way too much drama for two people who've only been together a few months to have to deal with, but here we are, and you've not said a word. You've been so very understanding about this whole thing, and I need you to know that I love you for it. I just hope we can give this a chance to work. "
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Aidan wasn't sure what he'd expected before entering his mother's house to meet his would-be brother, but the young man before him was it. Though he was sure the young man would hate him for saying it, Aidan could only describe him as "cute." He was rather small in stature, even for his young age, hardly as tall as Mason. He had a round face with freckled cheeks that, though beginning to show signs of adolescence, still gave him a childlike appearance. His green eyes sparkled brightly from behind a small pair of glasses that fit neatly upon his small nose, the earpieces disappearing behind two ears that stuck out and appeared a bit too large for his head.
His mouth wasn't fixed in a frown, but it was clear by his expression that he was more than a bit uncomfortable with the situation. He shuffled from foot to foot as he stared up at Aidan's own form that towered over him. Occasionally his eyes shifted from Aidan to Mason who stood by his side. Aidan couldn't help but get a distant impression of both he and Mason being sized up. But wanting to give the situation the best chance at a pleasant start possible he offered his hand to the diminutive boy.
"Hello. I'm Aidan. What's your name?" "Dylan." "Nice to meet you Dylan. I'm so very sorry for the mixup last night. I'm afraid we've....." "Yeah, your mom told me there'd been bad weather, and you weren't able to make the trip last night." "That's right. I hope you were able to get some rest last night, after my mom brought you here." "Yeah, I slept." "Good. Well Dylan, why don't we sit down and you can tell me a little about yourself."
The next few moments proved to be some of the most awkward Aidan could remember ever having sat through. This kid was either one of the most shy people he'd ever met, or had the personality of a wet mop! Time after time Aidan, Mason, and Aidan's mom made attempts to offer civil conversation to the young man who sat fidgeting in the seat by the window.
"So Dylan, how old are you?" "Fourteen." "That's nice. Well, are you into sports or hunting or anything, or are you more of an indoor man?" "I like inside." "Have you ever been hunting or fishing?" "No. My.......I mean our dad never took me." "Well, we'll have to remedy that, won't we? I know a great spot down by the river no-one else ever goes to. Caught a 20" last year in there! We'll see about heading down that way later in the summer." "Okay."
Aidan tried desperately to ignore the impatience he felt beginning to bubble deep within him. He had to try and give this kid a chance! He might appear to be some kind of nerd or brainiac, or maybe he just didn't have a great personality, but he was his brother! But chancing a glance at Mason only confirmed his fears. He too stared at the boy in amazement as the one-liner answers piled one atop the other. Finally giving up on conversation altogether Aidan gave his mother a nod.
"Well I suppose we should be heading back up the mountain. They've only got one lane open, and I want to be back home before the road refreezes overnight. Thanks again for picking Dylan up last night."
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The ride back home was immensely uncomfortable. Mason couldn't decide if he believed the young man who sat in the back seat of Aidan's Mustang was truly that shy or if he was just being difficult. Either way it was clear to see that Aidan was more than a bit flustered. He drummed his fingers tensely on the steering wheel as they climbed the road back toward home. Chancing a whisper between them Mason attempted to offer some word of comfort. "Perhaps he's just nervous. We are strangers after all." "There's more to it than that."
Mason stared at Aidan for a moment. "What do you mean?" The look Mason received when Aidan answered didn't bring him any comfort. "I know that look he gave you and me back at Mom's. I've given that look! He's not just shy. He knows, knows about us............and he doesn't like it." Mason stared at Aidan. "Are you sure? Maybe he's....." "Mason I wasn't even sure I really believed the kid and I were related when we walked into the house. But like I say, I know that look. I've seen that look; not just from myself, but from someone else. I've seen that look cross Brad McManus' face countless times. He's my brother all right, and he just thinks he's gonna be a little ass!"
Mason stared aghast at Aidan as he drummed his fingers harder. "Aidan! I can't believe you said that. What if the kid hears you?" "Let him. If we're gonna make this work I think we need to know where everybody stands from the start! I'm telling you I've seen that act before, because I've done it! I don't want this to be any harder than it has to be, but I'll be damned if I'm gonna let some wet-nosed kid come into my home and make me feel guilty, or bad, or whatever, over the way I live my life on the first day!"
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Dylan sat watching the two men in the front seats of the car. They were talking back and forth in hushed tones, just low enough to prevent him from hearing. But having caught more than one glance toward the back where he sat, he had a pretty good idea what they were talking about. He ground his teeth. Let them talk! He didn't care about what they thought of him. It was probably no better than what he felt toward either of them. Fags! Anyway, he was just here long enough for his dad to get better, and then he'd be back home away from this stupid mess!
After what seemed an eternal ride the road eventually wound its way through a forest of evergreens that gave way to a vast clearing atop the mountain, as if Mother Nature had forgotten to top off what she'd started in the valleys below. In the middle of the vast fields sat a large timber house with soaring windows that faced the eastern horizon. After some bumping and sliding along the still-icy drive that left the public road the car came to a halt directly in front of the massive house. Aidan turned from the front to gesture between Dylan and the large house. "Well, here we are, home sweet home!"
"Home sweet home" was nothing short of massive! The huge front room had windows that looked out onto the open fields surrounding the house, and a massive fireplace that Dylan imagined would've burned half-logs at a time. As Aidan left for the kitchen the smaller young man, Mason, picked up a bag and gestured for Dylan to follow. "Okay guy, let's get you settled in a room."
Mason led Dylan to the second floor of the house where it seemed door upon door opened into waiting bedrooms. Mason smiled kindly. "Just take your pick. They're all available, except the one that's got Aidan's workout stuff in it." Dylan roamed to the bedroom at the farthest end of the house, where he hoped he'd be farthest away from those two! Mason said nothing, merely bringing the bag and following. Dylan allowed his gaze to travel the room he'd chosen. What digs! This place was huge! It seemed every bedroom had its own private bath, so at least he'd have privacy from these two!
Had Dylan expected Mason to simply drop the bag he'd brought up for him and leave, he was disappointed. It seemed this one was bound and determined to butter him up. Before Dylan could protest Mason had already set to work, pulling clothing from bags and stowing them in their appropriate place. "Now then, let's get you unpacked and, at least hopefully, comfortable. I wanted to ask you if you had any particularly favorite food. I'm not chef, but I try my best. If there's something you really like I"ll...." "I don't care. Fix whatever you like."
The young man stared at Dylan for a moment, clearly taken aback. "I see. Well we'll see what we can fix. Do you have any kind of allergies or anything, any kind of religious obligations to certain things?" Dylan's attention sprang to life, jumping on a perfect chance offered him. "No, I can eat whatever. Nothing really bothers me.............except all this gay stuff you see on TV nowadays. It's sickening."
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Mason felt his throat tighten at what he'd just heard as his heart thundered within him. He knew he had to keep calm. He was baiting him. This kid was baiting him into an argument the first day! But he wasn't a fool; he'd not go there. Mustering every ounce of self-control he possessed he willed himself to remain silent to the remark and busy himself working. From the corner of his eye he caught sight of the young boy eying him closely. It couldn't have been more clear that he'd hoped to receive some negative reaction from Mason.
For some time they continued in silence. Mason began to relax a bit. Perhaps the youngster really had simply spoke before thinking. Perhaps he didn't really know the truth about Mason and Aidan! Mason mentally shrugged. He'd leave that bit of information and disclosure to Aidan. It was his brother after all! They worked on in silence until every article of clothing was unpacked and placed in drawers and closets. Mason took one last sweeping glance round the room to see if he'd forgotten offering or explaining anything to Dylan and turned for the door. And that was when he heard it.
"You're gay, aren't you? You and my brother, you're both queer."
Mason stopped dead in his tracks, his breathing hitched halfway between his mouth and lungs. He turned to face the young man, finding a smirk spread across the young face. "I knew it!" And that was the final straw. He couldn't explain it. It should've been nothing to him! But there was something about that self-satisfied smirk spread across the young man's face, something that brought a hot, bubbling anger from deep within he'd not felt in a long time. Attempting to force his anger into submission and remain calm Mason forced himself to meet the younger boy's gaze.
He was surprised at his own voice when the answer came in a whisper. "Yes, I suppose you would say your brother and I are gay. That's the traditional term applied to two men who love each other, instead of loving a woman. We've been together for a while now. I hope this isn't going to be an issue between us." Nothing short of a sneer curled across the young man's lips. "An issue? You're kidding, right? You're standing there admitting to me that the two people I've been sent to live with are in some kind of messed up gay relationship,' two fags, and you hope it's not going to be an issue?' How stupid are you? Do you know what my dad would...."
The reply came spewing out of Mason's mouth before he could control himself. A foul river of hateful words, however true, came flooding from his mouth, leaving a shocked young man in its wake. "Your father was nothing short of an ass! He spent the better part of twenty years being a two-timing jackass with Aidan's mother, wound up getting your own mother pregnant while he and Betty Jo were still married, and then left Aidan for you! He's spent the better part of ten years now pretending as though Aidan has never even existed, not even bothering to pick up the phone and call! And now that he's left with nothing but the consequences of his selfishness he's had to take even what peace of mind Aidan's managed to create for himself away by throwing you into Aidan's lap, so I will thank you to keep your father's opinions to yourself!"
The distance between them was closed before Mason realized he'd even moved, and he found himself staring into green eyes that shown with surprise and fear. "You may not like me. You may hate me, and that's your prerogative. But I will be damned if I allow you to come into this house, the house of your brother who's been gracious enough to take in a boy he's never even met, and be disrespectful of Aidan! He has more heart and dignity than Brad McManus has or will ever have! If you despise me, then so be it, but at least give your brother a chance!" The door slammed and Mason was fuming halfway down the hall before returning for one final admonition. "Dinner is at seven. Be there, and be ready to be civil with your brother!"