A Tale of Three By J.C. Vascardi
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Legal Disclaimer: This story is fictional, as are the characters featured herein, which are solely the product of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, either living or dead, is entirely coincidental. If you are under the age of eighteen, offended by male/male material, or if such material cannot be legally viewed where you live, then you should be leaving now. Otherwise, please enjoy the story.
Character Profiles: http://jayson.worldofslash.com/a-tale-of-three/profiles/index.htm Yahoo Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/storiesbyjayson Writing Journal: http://jaycolin.livejournal.com
This story is ©2004-2010, 2011 by J.C. Vascardi. This story is the sole property of its author and may not be copied, in whole or in part, posted on any other website, or included in any form of book or media, without the explicit written permission of the author.
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Chapter Seven, Part One James' Perspective Thursday, January 6, 2005
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There are times when I just can't help but think that Drew and I can be way too nice sometimes. It was bad enough when Kevin and our step-cousins showed up unannounced on our doorstep, but then for us to do what we did next was probably being just too nice. Kevin had made some calls and was unable to find any suitable lodgings. Kevin's definition of suitable is a five-star luxury resort, preferably the Ritz-Carlton. There is no Ritz-Carlton in Wilmington and, try as he might, Kevin was unable to find any resorts in Wilmington that lived up to his incredibly high standards. So, reluctantly, Drew and I offered to sleep on the sofa bed in our living room, thus allowing Tiernan and Tristan to take Drew's room and Kevin and Trevor to take mine.
If they felt at all strange about staying in our hovel of an apartment, they didn't say anything, possibly because of the fact that despite the outward appearance of the building and the low rent, Drew and I have furnished the apartment with many of the luxuries that Kevin and the triplets are used to. For example, feather beds with three-hundred-thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets. Drew and I have never thought of our apartment as a hovel, but we both knew that Kevin and our cousins did, because they've always been stuck-up spoiled brats. Of course, that isn't really their fault I guess.
I've mentioned that I slept with Kevin, but it was after our night of passion that we fell asleep in the bed and he had a nightmare. After I woke him up and comforted him a bit, he told me about his dream, and I have to admit that I think I would be pretty messed up myself if I had lived Kevin's life. You see, the dream was actually a running collection of real events that happened throughout his life. What could possibly be so wrong with Kevin's life? I mean, one look at him and you think, "He has everything anybody could ever want." Of course, that's not actually true, because one thing that he desperately wants but has never gotten is the love and approval of his parents. From early on, Adam and Gladys Perry have told Kevin point blank that they never intended to have children and that they consider him to be one of the biggest mistakes of their lives.
As for my step-cousins, they spent their entire childhood being raised by nannies. To say that Victor and Blanche Carmichael were loving and caring parents would be the biggest lie of the century. My uncle has always been consumed with making money and running all of the family businesses, to the point that he probably spends half an hour or less a month with his kids. They're twenty-three years old and, to this day, Victor can't tell his own children apart. As for their mother, well, my Aunt Blanche has always been much too busy hanging out at the country club with all the other society wives, sipping cappuccino, playing bridge, and exchanging gossip. To be honest, I think my aunt feels that she did her part in raising Tiernan, Tristan, and Trevor by carrying them for nine months and giving birth. After that, she basically just pawned them off on a nanny because actually raising her children couldn't possibly have been her job, could it?
Growing up the way that they did - Kevin being told from early on that he was a mistake and the triplets being raised by nannies - I suppose it isn't all that hard to understand why they grew up to be spoiled brats. The only thing their parents ever really gave them was their monthly trust allowances and the occasional lecture on making sure to not embarrass their respective families or they would regret it. Eventually, even having them in the same house became too much for Victor and Blanche and Adam and Gladys to deal with, so as soon as they turned thirteen they were all shipped off to boarding school in Edinburgh, Scotland. They were never given a choice in the matter, and their parents didn't even say goodbye to them, but considering the lack of interest they'd shown previously, why on earth would they have shown any interest then?
It's really a miracle that Drew's and my step-mother, Victor's younger sister, Veronica turned out the way that she did. Unlike her brother, she's always taken an interest in Drew's and my lives and has done her best to be a good step-mother, in the absence of our late mother. Although she can still be a royal pain in the ass when she wants to be, such as her being upset with us for not coming home to Atlanta for the annual Yuletide Ball this past Christmas. Our dad was often busy at work, although he did still make a whole lot more time for us then Kevin and our cousins ever got from their parents. When Drew and I decided that we wanted to go away to boarding school, the same school that Kevin and our cousins went to, our dad and Veronica fought with us. They didn't want to send us out of the country, but eventually they did because they knew it was what we wanted. We were very happy in Atlanta, but we were also like so many teenagers who desperately wanted to get away from their parents and have a little more independence. This was also around the time that Drew and I were coming to terms with the fact that we were both gay, so the idea of attending an all-boy boarding school was extremely appealing.
Anyway, I guess what I'm saying is that despite the fact that Kevin and our cousins come off as being stuck-up and spoiled, I understand why they turned out that way. That isn't to say that I don't find them to be royally annoying at times, but both Drew and I tend to cut them a lot more slack then the average person would. I know that some people would say that a bad childhood is no excuse for acting like stuck-up and spoiled brats as adults, but most of those people probably never had childhoods or parents like theirs.
I woke up around a quarter to eight, sat up, and stretched. Drew was still fast asleep, although I had to wonder how he managed to sleep so soundly on that sofa bed. Even having furnished our apartment with very nice furniture that, as Kevin had said the previous day, "fit our social class," the sofa bed was never that comfortable. Of course, they're not really supposed to be comfortable, because one has to remember that the mattress of a sofa bed does have to give up some comfort in order to be thin enough to fold into the sofa. Between the two of us, Drew has always been the one who can sleep through almost anything. We may be identical in appearance and share many of the same personality traits, interests, and hobbies, but that doesn't mean that we're exactly alike in every way. Drew is a sound sleeper while I've always been a light sleeper.
Swinging my legs onto the floor, I reached down and quickly pulled on my discarded socks before standing up and going down the hall to the bathroom to take care of business. Usually both Drew and I sleep completely naked, but since we had guests and were sleeping in the living room, we went to bed wearing sweatpants and t-shirts. Before heading into the kitchen to start making breakfast, I couldn't help but press my ear against my bedroom door and listen for a moment. I was happy to hear no noise coming from inside my bedroom, because quite frankly the thought of my step-cousin Trevor and my ex-lover Kevin having sex in my bed wasn't very appealing to me.
About half an hour later, I had finished making breakfast, which consisted of apple cinnamon muffins, ham and cheese omelets, and assorted fruit, with fresh squeezed orange juice and coffee to drink. The smell of food woke Drew up and he set the table while I went over to my door and, after pounding on the door, said, "Breakfast is ready, so if you're hungry get out here and eat."
I was just about to go a little ways down the hall to pound on Drew's bedroom door when it opened. Tiernan and Tristan walked out of the room clad only in black silk boxers and black ribbed athletic t-shirts. They nodded to me when they saw me and then followed me into the kitchen, where we all sat down at the table to eat breakfast. Kevin and Trevor appeared a few minutes later, with Trevor, as usual, dressed like his brothers, and Kevin wearing his customary black bikini briefs, opting to not wear a shirt so as to leave his muscled chest showing. I'll certainly say one thing for Kevin and even my step-cousins - they certainly were endowed with nice bodies. Now, if only they had nicer personalities to go along with their good looks, they might actually stand a chance of getting a relationship. Well, Tiernan and Tristan might anyway, considering that from what I could tell, Trevor and Kevin were, and still are, totally devoted to one another.
After breakfast, Drew and I cleared the breakfast dishes and loaded the dishwasher before we came into the living room to find our guests all lying on the pulled out sofa bed watching television. Not having anything better to do, Drew and I sat down in two nearby armchairs and began watching television as well. At some point over the next hour or so, Kevin and Trevor lost interest in the movie that we were watching and began kissing each other passionately. I was just about to say, "Get a room you two," when the phone rang. A voice in my head then said, "Saved by the bell, because had you said that, they'd probably have gone and done it in your room."
Drew reached over and answered the phone. After a brief exchange with the person on the other end, he put his hand over the receiver and said, "Hey, Tech, Alex, Will? Your dad is on the phone - says he wants a conference call. I'll transfer him to my private line in my bedroom so you guys can go in there and have some privacy."
"Thanks," Tiernan mumbled as the three of them got up from the sofa and headed into Drew's bedroom.
I could tell that none of them seemed very enthusiastic about talking to their father, but then again, since they only see him for half an hour or less a month, it would stand to reason that they really aren't that close to him. In fact, if it wasn't for his blood running through their veins, one could even call them total strangers.
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Chapter Seven, Part Two Tiernan's Perspective Thursday, January 6, 2005
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Tristan, Trevor, and I walked into Drew's bedroom and I began readying the phone as they sat down on Drew's bed. This particular telephone was actually developed by a subsidiary of Phillip Carmichael Industries, of which my father, Victor Carmichael, is the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board. The phone is like any normal telephone, except that it includes five jacks in its base that can be used to plug in a variety of components such as tape recorders, answering machines, or Caller ID displays as well as supporting the use of headsets, thus allowing up to six people to talk on the phone without the inherent sound distortion problems of a speakerphone.
Even though it's just the two of them living in the apartment, Jay and Drew bought enough of the headsets so that every phone in the house would have three of them at the ready. It might seem like a wasteful way to spend one's money to some people, but considering that Jay and Drew's family was worth close to three billion dollars at the time, it wasn't that big of a deal. I plugged the three headsets into the phone, placing one on my head before handing the other two to Tristan and Trevor, and then pressed the button on the phone to initiate the conversation.
"Hello Father," I said as I sat down in Drew's desk chair.
"Are all three of you there?"
"Yes, Father," Tristan, Trevor, and I replied in unison.
"Good, I don't want to waste time having to repeat myself," Victor replied. "I'm calling to inform you of some changes which are going to affect you three in a major way."
"What kind of changes?" Trevor asked.
"Well, you may remember that I mentioned something about it already," Victor replied. "Although the three of you probably thought it was an idle threat that I made after having a bit too much to drink, I assure you that it wasn't."
"You cannot be serious," I remarked, remembering our father's threat to cut us off completely unless we went to college and got jobs.
"If there's one thing you three should know by now," Victor asserted, "it's that I don't make idle threats."
At that point, I honestly felt like saying, "We've only seen you for about a hundred and thirty hours in twenty-three years; how in the hell do you expect us to know anything about you? You sure as hell don't know anything about us - you can't even tell us apart for crying out loud!" However, I knew that if anything would make Father angry it would be that, so I didn't say it because I figured that if he became angry he might do something worse then cut us off, although at the time I couldn't think of what could possibly be worse.
"Yes, Father," Tristan, Trevor, and I droned in unison.
"Effective immediately, the three of you are officially cut off," Victor continued. "This isn't necessarily a permanent situation, but I sincerely doubt that three lazy playboys like yourselves can meet the conditions to have access to your trust funds reinstated."
"What are the conditions?" Trevor asked.
"Find gainful employment and maintain grade points of 3.5 or higher in college."
"So we're supposed to get jobs and enroll in college in the fall?" I asked.
"No, you're supposed to get jobs," Victor replied, "and start college four days from now. I called in a few favors and got the three of you enrolled for the spring semester at the University of North Carolina, Wilmington campus. That's where you are right now, isn't it?"
"Yes, that's where we are," Tristan replied, even though he knew that father considered the question to be rhetorical. "Visiting James and Andrew."
"So where are we supposed to live?" I asked.
"Well, at first I was tempted to tell you to stay in a hotel," Victor replied, "but that would be more expensive in the long run, so I decided to be nice and take care of the security deposit, first, and last month's rent on the four bedroom, four bathroom apartment across the hall from James and Andrew's apartment."
"Doesn't James and Andrew's father own this building?" Tristan asked.
"Yes, he does," Victor replied. "Don't expect to get free rent though because you won't. James and Andrew don't even get free rent. Now, I have a board meeting to attend in a few minutes, so I want to wrap this up. I've bought each of you a laptop computer, which will be delivered in a day or so. Everything else you'll have to buy yourselves and, to prove that I'm a nice guy, I will be wiring you each $5,000 in cash to buy furniture and other necessities."
"What about college tuition and books?" Trevor asked.
"Money from your trust fund will pay for your tuition," Victor replied. "As for books, I will pay for your books this semester, but after this I expect you three to pay for them yourselves. You will also have to buy all your own food and clothes. For clothes, you can keep whatever you took with you to Wilmington, but everything you left at home is being packed up and donated to charity. Oh, and I'm selling your cars."
"You can't sell our cars!" Tristan said before asking, "How are we supposed to get around?"
"Actually, I can sell your cars," Victor answered, "because they were never yours to begin with. I bought them and, while I did allow you to drive them, I never put the titles in your names, so I'm well within my rights to sell them and get back close to half a million dollars. As for how you're supposed to get around, I'm sure Wilmington has a bus system. Use it. I have to go for my board meeting now. Goodbye."
Victor hung up without even giving Tristan, Trevor, and I the chance to say goodbye. Removing the headsets, Tristan and Trevor handed theirs back to me as I took mine off and placed them back on the rack that Jay and Drew had them on.
"So what do we do now?" I asked.
"Well, as much as it sickens me to even say it," Tristan replied, "I guess we should start looking through the employment section of the newspaper and start applying for jobs."
"Jay and Drew live here in Wilmington," Trevor added, "so maybe they might have some idea of what's available."
"Yeah, that's true," I said. "I hate the thought of even telling them that we've been cut off, but we probably don't have a choice because they'll know as soon as we show up for college classes and move in across the hall."
"Damn Father for doing this to us," Tristan said. "Of course, we're not totally out of money because I'm sure Kevin will help us out."
"Yeah, thank heaven for Kevin," Trevor said. "I don't know what I'd do without him, and I'm sure he'll help us out."
"Actually, I won't be."
The sudden voice startled me a bit as I turned around to see Kevin standing in the doorway with a letter in his hand.
"What do you mean?" Trevor asked.
"While you were in here the mailman came with the mail," Kevin replied. "Usually he'd just put it in Jay and Drew's box downstairs, but because there was a registered letter requiring a signature he had to bring it up. The letter is from Lord and Lady Perry and they've cut me off without a cent, saying that I have to get a job and go to college. They said I'm supposed to move into the apartment across the hall with you and that they were nice enough to buy me a laptop computer even though I don't deserve it, since I'm the biggest mistake of their lives and have brought them nothing but misery since the day of my conception."
"The letter actually said that?" I asked, noting that, as usual, Kevin referred to his parents as Lord and Lady Perry, the titles which they bought the right to use, instead of calling them Mom and Dad.
"Yeah, Tech, it did," Kevin replied as he handed me the letter. "Here, read it yourself."
Tristan and Trevor leaned over and read over my shoulder as I read:
Dear Mr. Perry:
This letter is to inform you that, effective immediately, your trust fund is officially frozen for at least one year. In that time you are required to get a job and attend college at the University of North Carolina in Wilmington, starting in the upcoming spring semester, where you must consistently maintain a 4.0 grade point average. If after one year's time you prove that these goals are possible, you will begin receiving a monthly allowance from your trust totaling $250 a month. If, however, you are unable to meet these goals, your trust fund will be frozen to you until your thirty-sixth birthday.
College tuition will be paid for by your trust fund. In terms of living arrangements, you will be sharing the apartment across the hall from James and Andrew Matthews with Tiernan, Tristan, and Trevor Carmichael, who are now under the same restrictions as yourself.
You will have to pay for all food, clothes, college textbooks and transportation costs yourself. You should also know that we are selling your Ferrari, which was never really yours to begin with. You may keep any and all clothes that you took with you to Wilmington, but everything you left at the house has already been boxed up and shipped off to charity.
Signed, Lord Adam Perry, Esq. and Lady Gladys Emerson-Perry
P.S. Even though you don't deserve it, seeing as how you are the biggest mistake of our lives, we were nice enough to buy you a laptop computer which will be delivered in a day or so. To be perfectly honest, we fail to see why we're being so nice to you, seeing as how you are a lazy bum that has brought us nothing but misery since the day of your conception, but you will also find enclosed a check in the amount of $5,000, which is to be used for furnishing your new apartment and buying other necessities.
"Sheesh, can you get anymore impersonal?" Trevor asked. "Our father at least took the time to call."
"Yeah well, your parents may not seem to care about you," Kevin replied, "but at least they haven't been telling you that you were the biggest mistake of their lives ever since you were three."
"If it's any consolation," I said, "our parents rarely take the time to talk with us at all."
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Chapter Seven, Part Three Taylor's Perspective Thursday, January 6, 2005
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Unlike my brother Matt, I chose to live on campus since I didn't have a girlfriend and hence had no real need of privacy. Of course, a need for privacy is not the only reason that Matt lives off campus. The main reason is because cohabitation is not allowed in any of the university residences and Matt was certainly not about to give up having sex with Jordan and Kyle for their entire college career. I can certainly understand that, because while I'm straight and thus not into men, it didn't mean that I couldn't appreciate that my brother's boyfriends were good looking. I also knew that they were more than willing to have sex pretty much whenever Matt wanted, so, I couldn't blame him. At least one of us was getting laid regularly.
It was about noon and I was on my way down to the Hawk's Nest, one of the on-campus dining areas in the student union, when my cell phone rang. Quickly pulling it out of the pocket of my khaki shorts, I took a quick look at the Caller ID display before answering. "Hey John."
"Hello, Taylor," said the voice of Matt's and my older half-brother, Dr. John Alexander Lawson, an obstetrician/gynecologist who lives with his wife and young son in Asheville. "I hope I didn't catch you at a bad time."
"You didn't," I replied, "I'm just on my way to the Hawk's Nest for lunch. What can I do for you, bro?"
"Well, Matt invited us down for the weekend," John answered, "for Jake's birthday party."
"Oh, cool," I said. "It'll be nice to see you."
"Well, unfortunately you won't be," John remarked. "I tried calling Matt, but I keep getting the answering machine at his apartment and his cell phone must be turned off because I keep getting his voice mail. Anyway, I have a full schedule of appointments this weekend, so I really can't get away. However, Alexis and Zane are going to drive down for the weekend."
Alexandra, or Alexis as she prefers to be called, is John's wife and Zane is their nearly three-year-old son, whose first name is actually Nickolas, but we all call him by his middle name.
"Well, you'll be missed of course," I noted, "but it'll be nice to see Alexis again and I'm always up for seeing my nephew."
"Well, he's certainly anxious to see his Unca Tay," said John, saying Uncle Taylor the way his son would say it, "not to mention being anxious to see Unca Matt, Dan, and Ky. He's a regular ball of energy, that kid."
"You don't have to tell me that," I said with a laugh. "He's a spitfire all right. He must get it from Alexis 'cause you certainly never were that hyperactive as a kid."
When I said that a rather long silence followed and I couldn't help but wonder if I had somehow upset John, but then he said, "Yeah, that's true. I wasn't, though from what her parents tell me, Alexis was quite the ball of energy as a child, so you're right - Zane must get it from her. Anyway, I have to go now because I have a patient in a few minutes."
"Okay, nice talking with you, John," I said as I pressed the end button on my cell phone, put it back in my pocket, and headed into the Hawk's Nest, deciding to get a chicken sandwich and waffle fries from Chick-fil-A.
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Chapter Seven, Part Four Nick's Perspective Thursday, January 6, 2005
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It was pretty strange, but the day seemed to go by a lot faster than normal. Usually when I was in school, the days seemed to drag by and take forever to end, but before I knew it the bell signaling the end of classes for the day was ringing. I hung back with Aaron in our last period study hall, waiting for the mad dash of students in the hallways to subside a bit as they all rushed to get to their lockers, get their stuff, and get out to their respective busses or cars to go home for the evening. Normally Aaron and I are among the crowd of people racing to go home, but today we both had to stay after school because it was Thursday, which meant it was time for the weekly meeting of our high school's Gay-Straight Alliance, which Aaron and I were founding members of.
Usually the meetings dealt mostly with discussing matters having to do with sexual orientation, providing a safe haven for the gay, bisexual, et cetera students of the school; educating the staff, parents, and students about orientation issues; and working to end homophobia in the school. At our last meeting before winter break, however, we were told by our faculty advisor, science teacher Mrs. Beverly Armstrong, that she was planning something for this first meeting of 2005 which she hoped the entire group would enjoy, even though it wasn't in the realm of what we normally did at meetings.
"So what do you think this new activity is that Mrs. Armstrong has planned?" I asked Aaron as we stopped at our lockers to put our books away.
"No clue," Aaron replied as we entered one of the stairwells and started walking up the stairs to the third floor.
"I suppose one of these days Mrs. Armstrong will probably have to go on maternity leave," I pointed out off-handedly as we reached the second floor landing.
"Yes, I suppose she will," Aaron said. "To be honest, I'm a little surprised she hasn't already. She is eight months pregnant now, so I have to wonder what's going to happen with the GSA after she goes on leave? I'm sure you'll remember that it wasn't exactly easy to find a teacher who was willing to serve as our faculty advisor."
"Yeah, I remember," I said. "They were all either too busy conducting after-school tutoring sessions, running other after-school clubs and activities, or they just didn't want to for whatever reasons. We had just about given up hope of even finding an advisor when Mrs. Armstrong volunteered."
"Well, she's always been very dedicated to the group," Aaron remarked as we reached the third floor and exited the stairwell, heading down the corridor to the library. "I'm sure she has been making inquiries with the staff to find herself a replacement for when she goes on leave."
"You're right, I'm sure," I agreed, "and I'm also sure she won't give up until she finds someone. Just like she wouldn't give up last November when we had to move our meetings from the science office to the library due to increased interest and membership. I remember the fight the librarian put up because she didn't want us meeting in the library, but eventually Mrs. Armstrong convinced her."
"Yeah, that's true," Aaron said "although that was only after Mrs. Armstrong secured Dr. Webber's help."
"Well, whatever works," I said as we reached the library. "It's pretty nice to know that we have the school principal on our side. I mean, having one of the administrators on board is something every GSA should have in order to survive, but it's a very nice coup when you can get the principal on your side."
"Yeah, that's definitely true," Aaron admitted as he tried the doors to the library, which were locked, but that was normal because the library was always closed during the last two periods of the day on Thursdays. It's when the librarian and her assistant put returned books back on the shelves, checked the computer for overdue books, and wrote reminders to the students who had checked them out that if they didn't return them by the end of the year, they'd have to buy them.
"I guess we're the first ones here," I said as I leaned against the wall outside the library door.
"Not for long," Aaron observed as he pointed down the hall to where our good friend and fellow senior Jayden Travis had just come around the corner with three of our more recent members who had just joined up before winter break: a freshman boy by the name of Phillip and two junior girls who had transferred to our school last October, Katie and Alicia.
"Hey Aaron," Jayden said as he reached us, "and Nick."
"Hi JC," Aaron replied, calling Jayden by his nickname.
The six of us stood around making small talk for the next several minutes as more of the members arrived, including Aaron and my friends Caroline Jenkins and Brian and Antonio Foster. At around ten minutes past three, the elevator doors opened and Mrs. Armstrong got off, walked over, and said, "I'm so sorry for being late. I was in the middle of my prep period seventh hour and I started having contractions, so I went to the hospital. Turns out it was just Braxton Hicks, but I figured I had better head to the hospital just in case."
Mrs. Armstrong pulled out her keys and quickly unlocked the library door before ushering everyone into the large room. The nice thing about the school library is that a school alumnus from a few years back had donated money to make the library look and feel like an upscale bookstore with comfortable sofas and chairs dispersed throughout the room. Originally, when we had outgrown the science office, there had been talk of moving our meetings down to the cafeteria in the basement, but Mrs. Armstrong really pushed for the library because it was so much more comfortable then the wooden benches in the cafeteria.
Once everyone sat down, Mrs. Armstrong started the meeting by saying, "Okay, well, as most of you will remember, before we went on winter break I mentioned that I was making plans for an activity that we could do as a group which I hoped everyone would find enjoyable. I suppose the suspense of wondering what that is for the last week has been quite hard on some of you."
"Yeah, I have been wondering," Antonio said. "I'm sure we all have. So, what's up?"
"Well, as those of you who went here last year know," Mrs. Armstrong began, "one of the history teachers, Mrs. Bates, retired last year after nearly fifty years of teaching. She was also the chairman and faculty advisor for the student committee responsible for planning the Junior/Senior Prom. When she retired, I was offered the position and, not yet knowing that I would be on maternity leave come prom time this year, I accepted the job."
"So what does this have to do with the GSA?" Jayden asked as he looked up from the notebook that he was recording the minutes of the meeting in.
"As some of you may have heard or know from experience," replied Mrs. Armstrong, "in years past the prom has never been open to the gay and lesbian population of the school because of the fact that Mrs. Bates was homophobic and in turn would always select homophobic students to be on the prom committee. Now, this is where you come in, because this year instead of issuing a school-wide announcement that anyone wishing to join the prom committee should come see me, I'd like all of you to join and help me in making the Junior/Senior Prom open to the gay and lesbian students for the first time in this school's history."
"Wow," Caroline said. "I'd love to take part. I think planning the prom would be fun."
"Well, I can't even go to the prom," Phillip said, "without a junior or a senior as my date."
"While that is normally true, Phillip," Mrs. Armstrong explained, "when I got clearance from Dr. Webber to do this, I also asked her for permission to allow any and all members of the GSA who were not juniors or seniors to attend the prom without junior or senior escorts. I'm happy to say that I did get clearance for that, so you can attend the prom without the normal requisite escort."
"Count me in then," Phillip said with a smile.
Within the next ten to twenty minutes each and every one of our GSA's fifty members had expressed an interest in helping to make the prom inclusive to the gay and lesbian students of the school. Personally, I was very happy by this turn of events because, while I do consider myself to be bisexual, I tend to have a preference towards men, so I remember being pretty upset last year when Aaron and I were barred from attending the prom when we expressed interest in going together. Aaron and I are as close as brothers, so we could never get romantically involved, but we had thought it would be nice to attend the prom together as friends. Mrs. Bates and the planning committee however said that only male/female couples were allowed to attend and refused to sell tickets to Aaron or me.
"All right now, before we adjourn for the day," Mrs. Armstrong said just as the meeting was winding down, "I want to make a quick announcement. As all of you are well aware, I am very much pregnant. I had planned on staying a bit longer, but with this most recent bout of false labor, I've decided it's time to start my maternity leave, so tomorrow will be my last day. That means, of course, that I will not be around for the next few months for prom committee or GSA meetings. Now, I have been actively making inquiries with other staff members about a replacement and I have found a teacher who is willing to take on the responsibilities of both prom chairman and faculty advisor to the GSA."
"Who?" Brian asked.
"Mr. Bradley," Mrs. Armstrong replied as my heart began doing flip-flops, "the US History and World Geography teacher."
Aaron immediately looked at me with a concerned look on his face, knowing that the thought of having to spend even more time with my crush would be very hard on me, and oh boy was Aaron right.
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To be continued.