Second Chance, Chapter 38
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Chapter 38
Rob, Blake, and Robbie were the only ones in the house who went to church on Sunday morning. Ben and Scott stayed home to make a late breakfast for the boys, most of whom left shortly after 11:00.
Garret and Luc were the exceptions. They stayed later and asked to use the room they usually slept in to take a nap. They were permitted to do so, but no one figured that sleep was what was on their minds.
With just Eric, Josh, and their dads downstairs, they adjourned to the den where Scott and Ben gave Eric birthday cards with a couple of gift certificates inside.
"You didn't have to do that!" Eric exclaimed seeing the sizeable monetary value of his gifts. "Having the party was enough."
"We wanted to," Ben said. "We were supposed to give this to you yesterday, but Josh rushed you out of the house before we got it done. Then we didn't think it was appropriate to do it when the other guys were here, so it had to wait until now. Sorry about that. I don't want you to feel like you're forgotten in this blended family."
"Ben, I love having you for my other dad. You never make me feel left out. I'm so glad you and Dad had the chance to get back together. It's transformed my life!"
"Mine too!" Josh grinned putting his arms around Eric.
Luc and Garret came down after about 45 minutes declaring how refreshed they felt. From their grins, the other boys were sure that they knew what the "refreshment" was.
Rob and Blake returned to the house looking pleased. They had talked to Dr. Mann after service to set the date for Robbie's baptism.
"I've decided that Mothers' Day would be best and I'm inviting my mother and sibs to witness it. Since Blake will be finished with exams by then, he can stand up with me without chancing repercussions from school."
"Please let us host brunch after church for your mother and the kids in honor of Robbie's baptism," Ben said. "We can rent or borrow an extra waffle iron and put out a variety of toppings so everyone can fix them as they like. If we do the sausage ahead of time, we can warm it back up in the oven."
"I could make up that egg casserole and set the oven on the timer so it would be almost ready when we get back to the house," Scott offered. "While that's finishing and the sausages are warming, we'll start making waffles."
"I actually have a waffle iron," Blake said. "It's a decent one with non-stick surface, so you won't have to look for another one."
"Great, I think we have it under control." Scott smiled. "Now you'd better make sure your family is available."
Rob was delighted that his dads would go to that much effort for his son. It would have required less effort to reserve a table at the country club, but this would be more meaningful. He hugged both men and high-fived his bros as he got out his phone to call his mother.
On channel 2 at 10:00 there was breaking news about two area teenagers who were apprehended in New Mexico. They were identified as Jacob Hall and Dalton Jones. The authorities were working out the particulars for their extradition to Minnesota to face charges of kidnapping, aggravated assault, grand theft auto, and possession of a controlled substance. More details would be forthcoming as they were available.
"Well, it looks like Aaron's nemesis is going to be out of circulation for the foreseeable future," Eric declared. "Since he's a senior anyway, there's no chance that he'll be back at school. I wonder if they'll give him his diploma early or if he'll have to go for a GED in prison."
"It's a pity that he messed up, especially this close to graduation," Ben interjected. "I guess that's what happens when kids experiment with heavy drugs. I assume that everyone here is smarter than that."
"You're right, Dad. We don't even do pot." Josh assured him. "I'm not saying that I've never tried it, but I honestly didn't like the feeling."
"We didn't either, did we Scott? We were afraid that we'd get so laid back that we'd flunk out of college. Neither of us wanted to chance that."
"I hope nobody will pick on his little brother because of what he did." Eric said. "From what Aaron says, Casey's a nice kid. A guy's freshman year is enough of an adjustment without something like this. At least he's had time to make his own friends and establish his own reputation with his teachers."
"We could watch out for him," Josh suggested. "We'll spread the word to the guys we know. He seems to have latched onto Sam and Aaron already anyway."
Casey was a bit apprehensive about school on Monday knowing that the news about Jake had likely spread more than it had the week before. That and the heavy downpour of rain made him feel like he wanted to pull the covers over his head and stay in bed.
He felt better after jacking off in a hot shower and eating his favorite breakfast. His mother had arisen early to make him pancakes, bacon, and eggs. She had been treating him extra nice since the horrible ordeal with his brother and Dalton. It was as if she were trying to make up for the years that Jake had been her obvious favorite.
Casey was also greatly relieved to see Aaron and Sam waiting for him in the foyer before classes started.
"They just announced track practice is canceled after school because of the condition of the field," Sam said to him. "So if you want to join Aaron and me to begin self-defense training, I'll ask Coach Landis if we can use the wrestling room. Those mats would work fine to break our falls. Do you have gym clothes in your locker?"
"Yeah, I do. I'll see you then if not before."
"Sit with us at lunch if you want," Sam offered.
"Cool, I will."
Casey's lunch companions included Dylan, Eric, and Josh as well as Aaron and Sam. There were also some other students that Casey didn't know. He felt great being in friendly company.
As he was on his way to his first class of the afternoon, a couple of his brother's close buddies stopped him in the hall.
"You'd better hang with us instead of those losers. You don't want to be seen with them. At least two are queers for sure and the rest are queer-lovers."
"They're my friends."
"Jake's gonna be pissed when he hears about it."
"Jake's going to be in jail for a long time. I'm going to do what I want, not what Jake wants whether he's pissed or not," Casey insisted, hoping that he wouldn't get smacked around for saying so.
"Do whatever you fuckin' please you little fruit. We were gonna look out for you, but now you're on your own. Good luck when those guys find out about Jake and quit being your friends."
"They already know about Jake and they'er still my friends."
"You'll probably end up being a wuss just like them!"
Casey sincerely hoped that he would be more like his friends than Jake's.
Sam was pleased with his pupils. Both of them seemed eager to learn and didn't complain at how hard he was working them. At the end of their training session, they all went to the locker room to shower. Sam was also pleased that Aaron didn't say or do anything suggestive.
Casey was happy about that too because he had been a bit apprehensive about being naked with Aaron given the boy's reputation among some of their peers.
When Jake and Dalton were returned to Minnesota, they were held in a detention center without bond. The judge felt that, given their previous actions, they would likely be flight risks.
In addition, Jake's parents were not eager to have their son at home again. The scene of Dalton pointing a gun at Casey's head was still fresh in their minds. They had given Jake a lot in the way of attention and material goods and he had turned on them. Casey had often taken second place, but had proved to be the better son.
Robbie's baptism was a beautiful event. Sophia had brought Rob's baptismal gown for his son to wear. It fit him well and made him look like a cherub.
Blake stood with Rob and repeated the vows that parents make to raise their child in the faith. Josh and Eric were there as his godparents. Since this was a gay-friendly church, no one really gave more than a passing thought that there were no females with the baby.
For his part, Robbie didn't cry at all when the water was placed on his head and he allowed Dr. Mann to carry him up the aisle to show him off as the newest member of God's family with no fussing either. The congregation couldn't help but smile as he was carried by.
Ben and Scott were taking discreet photos without using the flash so as to record the rite without taking away from its sacredness. Many more pictures would be taken during the day.
Sophia had brought the makings for mimosas as her contribution to the celebratory brunch. The younger children were given orange juice, but the teens were allowed to have the real thing. Since she made them fairly mild, no one got silly from imbibing.
There were little gifts to mark Robbie's baptism. His aunts and uncles went in together on several books and a soft, washable teddy bear which he quickly latched onto.
Sophia gave him a card that described the college scholarship fund she was starting for him. Even with moderate contributions over the years, it should multiply to enough to pay for most, if not all, of his costs. She privately told Rob that she would be helping him with his higher education expenses as well.
"Your father has funds put away for all the kids except Luc and you. He cancelled them after... I'm going to make sure that neither of you gets left out."
Rob hugged his mother.
"Thanks Mom. I love you."
Sophia beamed at him through her tears. She felt as if she finally had her firstborn back.
"Hey Josh, I'll bet you'd like to paint this!" Luc exclaimed as the two met in the hall on Tuesday.
"Whoa, Bud, you'd better erase this before someone sees it!"
"Why? Isn't he the cutest thing?"
"Yeah, Garret's cute, but a photo of him buck-naked on your phone amounts to child pornography."
"How can that be? He sent it to me. Isn't that an impressive shot?"
"Mr. Mancini," Dr. Parsons called. "You know the school's policy about not using cell phones during the school day. Please hand it over."
"But Sir, I'll need to call my mom to pick me up after school," Luc lied.
"It will be waiting for you in my office and I'll return it after we have a little chat."
Luc looked ashen as he stood there after Dr. Parsons left.
"Oh shit! I'm in big trouble now. I'll bet he'll look at my pictures and then Garret will be in for it too!"
"He may overlook one picture of Garret naked. After all, it's not like he has a hardon in that photo."
"Yeah, but there are some close-ups where he does," Luc gulped.
"I know a good lawyer if you need one," Josh offered. "Let's hope that it doesn't come to that."
"Can I use your phone to text Garret to warn him?" Luc begged.
"I'm afraid that Dr. Parsons might come around the corner again and take mine as well. Besides, why should you upset Garret until you have to?"
"Please, please let me use it. I'll take it into the restroom."
Just then, Dr. Parsons came back down the hall and Luc hurried off to his next class.
When the end of the day finally arrived, Luc was both thankful and apprehensive. He'd been so distracted all afternoon, that he feared he'd probably failed the quiz in math. Shit! Why hadn't he listened to Josh in the first place? Well he'd have to face the music.
"Thank you for coming in promptly, Mr. Mancini" Dr. Parsons said as Luc entered his office.
"You're welcome. I'm sorry about breaking the rules. Uh how did you know my name when you saw me in the hall?" Luc babbled.
"I know Rob pretty well because of the transformation he's gone through this year and because of his petition to bring his baby to the parenting class. And, if you'll pardon a little joke, you look enough like him to be his brother."
Luc smiled nervously at the principal's humor. He was hoping that the worst was over.
"Luc, do you know the term "sexting"? It's been coined recently to describe the sending of illicit photos by teens to their friends. Sometimes they are pictures of themselves or of their girlfriends or guy friends in, let us say, unclothed and erotic poses."
"Uh, I've heard about guys doing that, but I didn't know what it was called." Luc said hoping that his unsteady voice didn't give away his guilty conscience.
"Relax, Son. I'm not accusing you of doing it. I'm warning you not to get involved in anything like that. If you have questionable material on your phone, I'd suggest deleting it. I make it a practice not to snoop into students' phones. I remember being a teenager. We didn't have them in my day, but I do know that we passed notes and I got caught. I'm not sure if Sister Mary St. John read the one I passed to the young lady who was my girlfriend at the time, but she never said anything so I'm guessing she didn't. When I became a teacher, I vowed that I'd never do that either.
Now, here's your cell back. Please remember not to use it during school time again. If I catch you a second time, it will mean a conference with a parent. Otherwise, this meeting is just between you and me. Have a good evening."
"Thank you, Sir. I appreciate being treated like a grow-up instead of a punk kid."
"You're welcome, Luc. I feel that my students will be more likely to act mature if they're treated that way. I'm assuming that you're a responsible young man and that you've learned your lesson."
"Yes Sir; thank you Sir."
Luc met Garret in the foyer because Garret was driving him home.
"What took you so long?"
"Wait until I tell you what happened and how lucky we are! I'll explain on the way home what we need to do."
Author's note: Thanks to the following who wrote to me since last posting: Rutabaga, Bill K, John McD, Tom A, Carroll, Caleb H, Simon P,
Terry, Jim We, Paul R, Jim C, Baruch, Caleb, Polar, Tim P, and Karserus.
You guys keep me going!