Confounded: Part II - 41. Chapter 41

CHAPTER 41 --==Tom’s POV==--

Mom and dad stayed for quite a long time, leaving around midnight. The evening had turned into one that I couldn’t remember ever having had with my parents. It was fun. Well, most of it. They treated me like an equal for the first time, listening to what I had to say. And sometimes shooting me down in flames, which seemed to become a household sport around here all of a sudden, when the rest joined in. And I found that I didn’t mind them needling me back the way I had done for years. It was kinda funny to see them try, sometimes succeed, mostly not, when a retort of mine killed a try. Where they did succeed, they did it usually with the help from Kit, so I had his number. Oh, did I ever. He was going down!
My mind was already churning with ideas to make him suffer. But…in a good way.

There was only one instance in the evening where it was less fun, a moment alone with my dad, when he followed me outside as I went for a smoke.

“I wish you didn’t need those, Tom,” he said quietly stepping up beside me.

“Thank Jay, he got me on them.”
He remained quiet for a while.

“That is another reason that it might be better for you to work at BSL. Jay works at grandpa’s too. He just started, at my…insisting he do so. I thought it was a good way to get you boys back to talking, but I spoke to Mitchell and he told me it would be a bad idea.”

“Unless you want bloodshed…”

“Exactly.”
A glance sideways showed my dads’ jaw working fiercely.
“We didn’t know…all this time, we thought it was just you…”

“I know,” I answered, taking a long drag, exhaling slowly.

“I’ll sort him out, you can count on it, son. I’m…sorry we weren’t there for you.”

“It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not. Not by a long shot. It will take time, and I hope you’ll forgive us, someday.”

“Dad…”

“Please let me talk. You’re my son. I love you. I did not ever want to see you hurt, and you were. That young man…the biker…Miguel…”
I stiffened and he went quiet again, a long full minute of uncomfortable silence.
“Did you love him?” He then asked.

“Yes.”

“Like you love Kit?”

“No.”

When he didn’t say anything else, I took another drag and flicked the cigarette away.

“They’re very different. Kit’s…well, he’s younger. He’s had an upbringing that’s like…the polar opposite of Sandro.”
When he frowned, I smirked.
“Miguel. I called him Sandro.”

And as I said it, it came to me that I could actually talk about it now, even with my dad, without the images flying straight into my head of him on that gurney, blood dripping everywhere. The images didn’t come.

“You thought Sandro was bad news, and I guess, to you, he was. But he also was a decent guy. He wasn’t all bad.”

“But he was a criminal,” Dad pointed out, his voice schooled to not sound accusatory.
I shrugged.

“Yes. But also a person. To me, he wasn’t a criminal…”

“You were too young for him.”

“And you were how old, when you met mom? And how old was she?”
My mom is a good 8 years younger than my dad.

“That’s not the…”
He sighed and raked a hand through his hair, impatiently. And then he stilled.
“Dammit, when you put it like that…”

“Dad, it was like that. Age didn’t get into it, only…”

“Feelings,” he finished when I halted. “I get it. But the way you behaved, whenever he was near, or phoned…you became a different person. Add to that, that he was a criminal…can you understand that I wasn’t happy that you were with him? That we weren’t? You didn’t listen to us anymore. You attacked Jay, your sister all but disappeared from your attention…all you did was sneak out, return home whenever you liked, skipped school…”

“And the fact that I’m gay didn’t even play into it, huh?” I challenged.

“Oh, don’t be absurd,” Dad sighed. “Really? I raised you better than that, I hope. I want all of you to be happy, and if that’s with a man or a woman, that’s yours to decide. You think me that small minded? Look inside this house and let the answer speak for itself.”

Okay…I had known that was a stupid remark as soon as it left my mouth. He’d never discriminated towards people’s sexual preference.

“Sorry…”
It was his turn to still now.

“That’s the first time in two years that you’ve said that you’re sorry…”
I bit my lower lip.
“As well you should be. That was uncalled for, son.”

“I know. As soon as I said it…”
I swallowed and produced another cigarette, lighting it, while he watched me doing it.

“Taylan tells me you’re going to see a psychiatrist, someone Mitchell recommended?”

“Yes.”

“Good. I hope she cures you of those too, while she’s at it.”
He pointedly looked at the cigarette and I couldn’t help but smirk.

“Me too. Kit doesn’t like it.”
Dad held my gaze until I looked away.

“You really do love him…”
He said it as a fact, not a question, and I nodded.

“Yeah…”

“Make sure you deserve him. Don’t be…yourself with him…”

“Right. Dad, have you met me?”
It caused a smirk.

“I guess that’s too much to ask for. Just don’t be an ornery shit, okay? But something tells me he already knows how to handle you.”
I raised an eyebrow when he narrowed his eyes at me. Wasn’t he supposed to be in my court? Him being my dad and all that?

“Oh, thank you so much.”

“And that answer tells me that he does. You wouldn’t be here, otherwise. You’d get…bored.”

“Can we talk about something else?” I asked, exasperated. I wasn’t going to discuss with my dad how my boyfriend handled me.

And in that moment it hit me. Boyfriend. Oh shit…

I had asked Kit if he really wanted to be that, but I’d never said it out loud or thought it, to myself. Not in its real meaning. When I asked if he wanted to be that, it was more a thing of warning, tell him what to expect. But actually being one to him and him to me?
And he’d already done a lot to prove it. In many ways.

He really was.

Boyfriend.

And I had yet to show him what it really meant to me.

He was in for a surprise then. But not before he suffered a little, for showing the others the way to get to me. I owed him for that, still.

The thought actually made me grin, causing dad to frown. So I wiped it off my face but continued to grin.

Inside.

**********

We’d stayed out a little longer, in which dad extracted a promise from me to call my older sister, India, just to let her know I was still alive. And my youngest sister, Alia, every day and, if it wasn't too much to ask, not hang up after talking to her, but maybe talk to mom as well. Those were easy promises to make. And call him, if I wanted to; maybe not every day, but at least twice a week? There were a lot of things still unsaid, some I wasn’t ready to talk about with him, nor he with me. And then there was the matter of Jay.

I really hated him, with a vengeance, and if I never laid eyes on him again, it would be too soon. Sometimes, people say they hate someone but don’t actually hate. This, though, was hate. And it was wasted. So I did the next best thing. I banned him from my mind. He would not exist there, any longer.

**********

Once back inside, the evening continued until my mom and dad left. In the meantime, though, I began my…punishment. Of Kit. I deliberately steered clear of him, instead sitting with my mom. Then I mingled along to sit next to Tay. Then my dad, than back to Tay. Looking anywhere but at Kit. It was fun, in a disturbed sort of way, but at the same time, while I’d have liked nothing more than to actually sit with stretch, it was denying myself as well. As said; fun. And as the evening progressed, I noted that Kit was getting the message. His eyes narrowed at me and I raised an eyebrow. He sent me a bleak look in return, clearly not understanding. And bingo; then it dawned on him. The narrowed eyes again.

“Dad?” he suddenly spoke up, training the blues on me.

“Yo!”

“When do you know you’re somehow in the doghouse?”

Uncle Mitchell exchanged a look with dad. Then they both said, at the same time, “when you’re being ignored.”

“Ah.”
Mom stifled a laugh. Tay winked at me. And I just…innocently got up to use the bathroom, inwardly grinning. These were fun games, I’d forgotten.

Kit cornered me coming out of the bathroom. Well, cornered. More like I walked straight into an arm as his hand slammed on the door as I exited.

“Hello.”

“Hey,” I answered, ducking underneath. He just moved it lower.

“Not so fast. Why are you ignoring me?”

“Oh wow, you noticed?” I asked, feigning shock.

“Ahuh.”
He smirked.
“This is because I helped them get the better of you, earlier, isn’t it?”

“And who said you wouldn’t make it past pre-school. Silly people,” I answered, keeping the bite out juuuuust a tad.

“Listen here, hobbit…”

“What’s that, boyfriend?”
He stared at me and then straightened, crossing his arms over his chest, trying to look bossy. And pretty much succeeding, if it wasn’t for the grin that formed on his face and he desperately tried to not fully form. I had a little trouble myself in that regard, too.

“That’s my line!”
I shrugged.

“Mine now.”

“Oh, I see. So this is how it’s going to be?”

“Yup.”

“I’m the man.”

“Sure you are, baby,” I cooed, softly padding his arm in that belittling way.
If he could’ve straightened any stiffer, any taller, he would’ve as he huffed.

“Now you’re just showing off. That’s my line again!”

“Nope. Mine now. Don’t you have to run along to daddy now, sweety pie?”
He growled softly, his eyes dancing with humor.

“Oh, you’re funny. Desperate measures must be taken. I am the Kit!”
I couldn’t really keep a straight face after that, so I burst out.

And he didn’t. He just looked at me, strangely, tilting his head in a way that was just too…meh…cute.

“What,” I asked, hiccupping.

“Wow,” he said then, softly. “You laughed.”

“And?”

“Never seen that live before. That’s just…wow!”
Then he grinned the widest smile and pumped the air with his fist.
“Yay me! I did it!”

“You’re a moron,” I said, shaking my head. “Loser.”

“Yeah, well…I’ve only seen it once, and that was on a picture, so…bite me. I got that out of you, so I win. Hah!”
And with that, he unfolded his arms and raised them to the ceiling in triumph, letting out a loud howl. Christ!

"WINNER! WOOHOO!"

Stupid guy. He really was a moron.