Goon - 4. Chapter 4

“You have more products in here than I do.” Karen Wilkerson, Billy’s girlfriend and soon-to-be fiancé said as she came into Micah’s bathroom. He had his own separate bathroom here, on the opposite side of the one that was Corey’s. If Corey’s mother had put him in the room on the other side of Corey, they’d have had to share. He knew the rather embarrassing story about the reason for that, but he’d never, ever mention it to a living soul.

“My mom worked at a day spa.” Micah said and then winced as he got the verb tense wrong. She still did work there. It wasn’t until after the news broke about his role in the Ikbu massacre that she’d gotten fired. “I mean, well she does still work there I guess.”

“You haven’t been home to see them yet?” Karen asked. She was a very pretty blond and he wondered if it was something about the Howard boys that they liked blonds. Their father was the only one in the entire Howard clan that had married someone who wasn’t a blond.

“We don’t get along too well.” Micah said as he found the bottle he was looking for and handed it to her. “Just use this in the morning every day for two weeks and it’ll clear up that discoloration.”

“Thank you, Micah.” She said with a smile. “It’s hard to believe you’re fifteen, you’re so tall and big-shouldered.”

“I’ll be sixteen soon enough.” Micah said with a smile.

“You better stop that or I’ll tell Billy you’re flirting with me.” She said coyly and Micah bit back the line that came to his head. That would only cause trouble. Not all couples were quite meant to be faithful, loving and absolutely exclusive.

“No chance of that.” Micah said with a smile, but making sure she knew the score quite well, even if she was older. Wait, a LOT older. “I play for the other team, ma’am.”

“Don’t call me ma’am.” She snapped with a little frown, grasping the bottle he’d handed her. “I’m not that old.”

“Sorry, habits with that military school I go to.” He said with another smile. She relaxed a bit and patted him on the shoulder.

“Yes, I heard you were quite the juvenile delinquent.” She said as she left the bathroom and he snarled at her silently where she could not see.

With any luck history would repeat itself and she’d be out of the family before the election year and the accident.

“Micah?” Corey’s voice from the doorway got a smile on his face and he left the bathroom to smile at his boyfriend. Three weeks of running around and sucking each other off or hand jobs, or frottage had been wonderful, and he was tempted to push for more. The only thing was, they were both just fifteen and a little too young for going all the way, or at least that was how Micah had felt. Right now he was hoping this was reality and that other life where he’d let Corey get away was just a dream.

He’d hate waking up without Corey smiling at him. Waking up with a colostomy bag and no arms would be better than waking up and seeing Corey married to that little queen. Last week, he’d realized it wasn’t his legs that would be amputated. After all he’d stuck his knife in that panel and he’d been holding the knife with his arm. Maybe he should have used his left arm so if he only lost one he’d still have his right one.

“You’re back.” Micah said with a smile as they kissed.

“Yes, and it’s your turn.” Corey warned him. “Mom insists on you going shopping with her. We got Dad’s present in no time so now you have to go pick out something to be from you and then she’s going to take you to the mall.”

“I really wish she wouldn’t.” Micah sighed.

“You know she could care less about money, right?” Corey asked him with a concerned look on his face. Micah was certain Corey was in the middle of another growth spurt. He’d shot up at least half an inch and was now the exact same height as Micah. At least Micah should be getting his next growth spurt soon. One nice thing was that he and Corey had ended up the exact same height and while there were times one was taller than the other, it was never by more than a half inch or so.

“I should warn her I’ll probably be growing a bit soon.” Micah said with a sigh. It had been her noticing that Corey’s pants were a little too high that had resulted in her noticing the quality, or lack thereof, when it came to Micah’s wardrobe.

“She’ll just tell you not to worry.” Corey warned him.

“Yeah, yeah, it’ll just be another excuse to take me shopping.” Micah sighed. “I swear you mom takes more pleasure in dressing us up like dolls. She even does it to Billy when he’s home.”

“The worst thing is the clothes usually look better on us than the ones we’d pick for ourselves.” Corey sighed. “You better not keep her waiting or she’ll spend more time picking out your clothes.”

“I know.” Micah sighed and trudged out of the bedroom, ignoring the sniggering that came from behind him. At least Corey wasn’t begging to come along so he could follow Micah into the changing rooms. That had happened one time and it had been very embarrassing for him.

He had to admit he liked shopping with Mrs. Howard. It was fun and she didn’t push him too hard to answer her questions about his family. She didn’t even bring up the things that had led him to being enrolled in Huntsville Academy. The only thing he didn’t like was the way she tugged at all the clothes he tried on, or the way she made him try everything on before buying. He did know better than to protest, at least until she directed Bill to take them to Sports Chalet.

“Why are we going there, ma’am?” He asked after she gave him the directions. The only clothes in the trunk were those that fit him well enough for her standards off of the rack, all bought from stores like Hollister and Abercrombie, or even J. Crew. The suits, the tuxedo, and even the other clothes were all being sent to be altered to fit by her standards. She’d even taken his warning about probably growing in size by having him buy pants just a little too long and then sending them to be hemmed up.

“I’ve seen the rags you wear to practice.” She told him with a sniff that indicated her exact opinions of the sweats he was wearing. “While you are staying with us, they will look at you and judge us by your appearance the same as if you were Corey or Billy and I would never let my boys out wearing clothes like that. I know your parents aren’t exactly wealthy, but even a person on welfare could afford better for their children!”

“I’m not exactly the favored son at home.” Micah admitted, slouching in his seat.

“Your mother cares for you somewhat.” She told him. “From what she has told me it is more that your step-father cares little for you.”

“My what?” He exclaimed and she frowned at him.

“Surely you knew?” She asked him.

“John Jericho is not my father?” He asked and she shook her head in surprise.

“Your mother did not tell me she had not informed you that your natural father was not Jericho?” She asked him in surprise. “She was quite straight forward with the information to me. From what she said your father was a criminal who died during an attempted bank heist before you were born. They did not have a relationship beyond a tawdry one-night stand and by the time she knew she was pregnant John Jericho had already proposed.”

“They never told me.” Micah said in shock as they pulled into the parking lot of the Sports Chalet.

“Yes, well, I am sorry I was the one who told you, but that is all in the past.” She said with a pat on his arm. “Do you wish a few moments to compose yourself before we go inside? I had your coach make me a list of everything you would need from proper practice attire to your fielding glove and your batting glove. He was quite specific on several items including your protective gear.”

“My protective gear?” Micah said weakly.

“Yes, dear, we would not want my son’s favorite possessions to be damaged the next time you two sneak into the pool house.” She said and he started choking. He could hear her chuckling under her breath as she patted his back. “Oh dear, I do seem to be saying things that are shocking your delicate sensibilities. I must be all a-flutter from the perfect shopping companion you have turned out to be. I do believe this was your first attempt at a protest. Normally my sons are constantly fidgeting and wishing to go home instead of letting me make sure everything fits perfectly. I was hoping we might even make it to the furniture store. If you are to be spending every summer with us, I think it best you pick out your own furniture?”

“My own furniture?” He squeaked out. She had never been like this when he’d stayed at their home before in those other world times.

“Yes, I find myself quite fond of you, Micah.” She said with another pat to his knee as she signaled Bill. He got out of the front of the car and opened the door for her. Micah found himself following her, too stunned to say anything in protest. “I do believe you are going to be my favorite child-in-law.”

“Yes ma’am.” Was all he could think to say as Bill held the door open for him, a smirk on his face as he watched Micah’s stunned face. All the other stores they’d gone to had been quite accustomed to dealing with rich customers demanding the undivided attention of a squad of sales clerks, but the sporting goods store wasn’t quite as prepared for Mrs. Howard’s patronage. Still, she managed to snag three sales clerks to help them, and Micah managed to keep his blushing to a minimum.

Their amused looks turned to looks of sympathy after she’d rejected the sixth pair of pants as being ‘not soft enough’. He would have been happy with any of them, as long as it got him out of the store, but he hadn’t stood at attention guarding places without being able to hide what he was feeling. By the time they got around to her finding acceptable materials for him to try on, he had regained control of his emotions, pushed the startling revelation about his parentage out of his mind, and played model for Mrs. Howard.

It really was like being dressed up as a doll, and while he’d been relatively sheltered from attention at the high-end stores, it wasn’t quite as isolated here. He found a few kids snickering as he ‘posed’ for her, wearing the pair of pants and stirrup socks she’d selected while pretending to stand in the batting cage. In the end they left the store with several sets of practice gear, some game uniforms (except the jerseys), and a set of three bats as well as four gloves. He was sure a couple of guys on the team could use the extra gloves and she hadn’t batted an eye at buying more than one.

The store manager had been a little put out at first, but while she waited for him to change out of the last set of clothes she’d had him try on (the Under Armor shirt was way too tight in his opinion and he knew he’d have nightmares of Corey’s mom perving on him in the gear) she found several pieces of workout equipment she didn’t have in her gym at home. As he came out with the gear folded neatly into a pile and handed it to one of the clerks to ring up he looked around for her.

“She’s in the equipment section.” The good-looking clerk said as he pointed with his head. Micah nodded, letting the clerk go add the set of gear to the pile that she’d already chosen for purchase. It wasn’t enough to try on one set of a brand, but she wanted him to have several practice outfits and she demanded he try on each one before they bought it.

“Micah, have you ever seen one of these before?” She demanded with a gleeful expression. She was on a ski machine that simulated cross-country skiing. It was a bit incongruous seeing the dignified, well-dressed woman on the machine, and she stopped as Micah stood next to her. He was dressed in what had been his best pair of jeans and t-shirt, but still looked nowhere near as classy as her.

“Yes, ma’am.” He said with a smile. “They wear a person out quickly.”

“That they do.” She said with a bright smile. She’d not done enough on the machine to do more than raise her heart rate a bit, not even a dot of sweat shone on her face. When she turned to the manager, his neutral expression turned very happy. “I will take two of these, my good man, and that pitching machine we discussed. Have them shipped to my address.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He said with a smile. As they walked towards the counter where the sales clerks were waiting she brought a handkerchief out of her purse and smiled at Micah.

“I have to say, I have not had quite this much fun in a long time.” She actually sounded cheerful and Micah decided that as embarrassing as it had been, it was worth the whole experience to make her happy. “The boys always insisted on going with their father or Bill alone when they had to buy sporting equipment. Neither of them were much of a fan of baseball either. Occasionally we buy a box and watch the Braves, but I fear I would be the gossip of the club if I let on how much I enjoy the sport.”

“I never imagined you would be so interested in it.” Micah said, genuinely surprised. He had known Mr. Howard and of course Corey a lot better than Corey’s mother. In fact he couldn’t remember ever having spent this much time with her. It was an enjoyable experience. The clerks managed to get everything put away into the gear bag she’d bought as well as two other large shopping bags, and helped carry them out to the car. Bill took the bags as they sat down in the car, and when she turned to give him a very serious look, Micah began to sweat.

“It is time we had a very frank discussion.” She said as Bill purposely took his time rearranging all the packages in the car. “I wanted to have this discussion away from all prying ears, most especially either of my sons.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Micah said.

“My husband has informed me of the work you have done keeping any further scandal from touching our family.” She said in a steady voice, her green eyes, so like Corey’s, drilling into him. “I wonder why you have gone from being Corey’s protector to being his boyfriend, to use the most common term.”

“I thought you were okay with us, with him.” Micah said in confusion.

“If you are referring to his homosexuality, it does not bother me in the least.” She said with an air of indifference. “It is quite the thing these days to have one of your children possess a quixotic quirk. Billy is quite well adjusted and will of course carry on the family name so Corey is quite free to go his own way. My husband and I have high political ambitions and certainly the liberal nature of our acceptance of our son will be helpful in garnering support in the north.”

“Oh.” Micah’s brain spun at all that, at the cool calculating tone she imparted.

“Do not misunderstand me.” She said firmly, her eyes softening a tad. “I love both of my sons and want to see them happy. For them and their companions I have only the highest of expectations. William and I met when we were barely older than you and Corey are right now, and we knew right then that we would not find a more perfect fit anywhere. It has proven true for all these years and our life together is everything either of us could ever have dreamed of having. You will not hear me say that either Corey or you are too young to know what you want in life.”

“Thank you, ma’am.” Micah said quietly, impressed by her forcefulness and the plain way she spoke to him.

“Now, what are your intentions with my son and why have you gone from being his protector to being his boyfriend?” She demanded. Bill had shut the trunk but made no move to get in the car.

“What better way to protect him?” Micah said. “I figured out why he was sleeping around so much.”

“Do tell.” She said in a way that warned him to not tell her too much. Being accepting of her son’s sexuality was different than hearing her fifteen year old son went from room to room at times.

“He wanted something he couldn’t have and decided to sample around to see if he could find it elsewhere.” Micah said.

“I take it this thing he wanted was you?” She asked and Micah nodded. “Why then did it take you this past year to figure it out? If I understand things correctly he has known you for quite some time.”

“It got worse this last semester, after Easter.” Micah admitted with only the slightest of blushes. “I realized I was enjoying leaning on those guys too much afterwards. It was because I was jealous of them.”

“Is that all?” She asked him in a tone that brooked no denials, no evasion.

“No.” Micah said with a sigh. “I imagined what it would be like seeing him in five years, marrying some clown instead of me and I realized I didn’t want that to happen. If he’s marrying anyone, I want it to be me.”

“Very good.” She said with a nod of her head as she pushed a button to roll down her window. A gesture and Bill was moving into the front seat of the car. “As long as we’re clear that you can be both boyfriend and protector and I expect you to deal genuinely with my son’s affections.”

“I promise.” Micah said with a sigh, leaning back in the seat.

“Then welcome to the family, Micah.” She said with a smile and to his surprise she ruffled his hair. “You should let that grow out some.”

“We have to keep it short for school.” Micah protested.

“Not that short.” She said with a counter-smile and he knew this was another argument he was going to lose. Well, he could cut it before they got back to school.

“Do you always get your way?” Micah asked her as Bill pulled out of the parking lot and began the drive back towards home.

“No.” She said with a laugh.

“Just most of the time?” Micah asked and she laughed.

“You are such an adorable young man!” She laughed with pure delight. “Yes, I nearly always get my way. It’s part of having a strong personality. If you just push your way through any situation like a bull in a china shop, the owner of the shop will do almost anything to get the bull to go somewhere else.”

“Huh, I never thought of it that way.” Micah said with a frown. He remembered the way Corey had pushed his way into Bagram when his father wasn’t even the President yet, and he’d managed to push men whose careers would eventually be ruined into throwing themselves on their figurative swords for him. If the media had ever gotten wind of it, they’d have crucified Mr. Howard before he ever got into office, but they hadn’t. He also remembered how Corey hadn’t done more than ensure Micah was treated well and got a fair hearing. He had a strong suspicion that Mrs. Howard worried less about what was legally and morally right than Corey did, a trait Corey likely got from his father.

“Now, tell me, who is the best player on your team?” She asked and Micah smiled with the change in topic. Tim Duncan was the best, their short stop. With Micah at second they got to interact a lot and he loved hearing Tim talk about going to the Little League World Series a few years ago.

“You should invite him over to dinner some time.” Mrs. Howard said and Micah’s eyes got wide at that suggestion. She smiled at him again. “I always have the boys invite a team mate or two over for dinner when they’re home. If William would let them attend school closer to home I’d get to see them a lot more and have them bring their friends over more, but we have to pack as much into just a few months as we can. It really is a shame. The house gets awful quiet during the year when the boys are gone.”

“It must get lonely during the year.” Micah said, surprised at how he’d never thought of it before.

“No, not really.” She said with a smile. “Washington is not so far that I do not see William a few weekends each month, and there is always one society or another holding a function, and I sit on the boards of a few non-profits so I am kept busy with meetings and the like. It is nice of you to worry, though. Letters from school would be very appreciated or even emails once in a while. I fear with all the ways we have to communicate these days that children still forget their parents back home.”

“I’ll make sure Corey writes more.” Micah said with a smile.

“Such a dear child.” She said, patting his head again and he felt like a rich lady’s lap dog for a moment.

“Thank you for everything today.” Micah said as the house came into sight.

“You are most welcome, Micah.” Mrs. Howard said with real pleasure in her voice as Bill turned into the driveway. “You are a real treat to take shopping. We will have to do this again before summer is out. I could barely get Corey to model his swimwear and he disappeared back into the changing room almost immediately.”

“He does get embarrassed easily.” Micah said and almost sighed when he saw both Corey and Billy standing on the front porch. The look on Corey’s face told Micah they were there to not only help with the packages, but to tease Micah at the same time.

“Did you leave anything in the stores for them to sell to others?” That was the opening sally from Corey as Bill opened the trunk, and after their mother had kissed both of her sons on the cheek right before she disappeared in the house. Bill began lifting bags out and setting them on the ground while Corey gave Micah a hug.

“Mrs. Howard was quite pleased with how good of a shopping partner your boyfriend proved to be for her.” Bill said to Corey with an admonishing gaze. Corey blushed a bit and frowned at Micah.

“You’re going to make her think we don’t appreciate her shopping sprees.” Corey said with a grimace before taking an armful of bags. It was then that Bill was lifting the equipment bag out of the trunk.

“Don’t tell me you let her take you to the sporting goods store!” Billy moaned as he saw the bag.

“He modeled quite a few ‘outfits’ for her to observe.” Bill told him, a smug expression on his face as Billy paled slightly, turning to look at Micah with his arms full.

“You do know what you’ve done, don’t you?” Billy demanded with a pained look. “She will expect us to go with her and model all the gear we buy. Do you know how embarrassing it is to have your mother comment to the clerks about how your ass looks in tight pants?”

“Yes, I do.” Micah said with a blush and he frowned at Billy. “If I wasn’t supposed to go to the sporting goods store with her, you should have made sure I had better gear. You know her better than I do.”

“He has you there, young man.” Bill laughed and Billy glared at him in mock anger before turning on his heels. When Micah bent to pick up the heaviest of the items, the equipment bag, Bill stopped him with a hand on his arm. “You did well by her today, Mr. Jericho.”

“She’s a good lady.” Micah said, not sure what the man really wanted.

“I’ve known Corey since he was five and I started working here.” Bill said. “They may have forgotten it, but she spoiled both of the lads the way she spoiled you today. I hope you won’t forget to be as appreciative of her time as you were today.”

“I won’t.” Micah promised and Bill nodded.

“Very well, I shall leave you to carry the rest of these in yourself.” He said in a slightly louder voice. Micah was a little jealous at all the good fortune Corey had to be born to such a great family, and a rich one. There were other rich guys at the school, but none of them were as nice and honest as Corey or his family. It proved that the old saying about rich people and kindness wasn’t necessarily true.

Then again, Micah reflected as he hefted the equipment bag and two of the other bags of equipment, he knew the Howard family from their good side. Those that crossed them found out just how ruthless the whole lot of them could be, and Micah knew because he’d been the one to do some of their dirty work. Sure, the President hadn’t called him once since he started working at Trasker Labs, but Micah knew as certain as day that he was expected to call the President if he saw anything that would be dangerous to the Howard Family.

That was the reason he’d gone into that lab, and he nearly stumbled as his head spun slightly. For a while there, he’d almost forgotten the extra five years of memories and experiences he seemed to have. Sometimes it felt like a dream more than reality, but other times, like this moment, it felt very real, like a world just on the other side of a foggy mist. He could almost hear voices calling his name, and he wondered again if this was all just a dream, a what-might-have-been like that Christmas Carol story.

Well, no ghost of a Christmas Past showed up when he set the bags down in his room. Corey and Billy had already dropped the bags they’d carried near the bed, and he smiled at the fact that neither of them were there to help him unpack the bags and put them away. That was a task he set about doing right away, and was a little surprised when, a few minutes later there was a tisking sound.

“You need to have them washed before you hang them away.” Corey said in a sing-song voice from the door.

“I never did that at home.” Micah said with a frown. He was always the ‘tear the tag off and put it on’ type of guy.

“Don’t ever let mother hear you say that.” Corey said with a fake shudder. “You’ll lose your place as her favorite son. I heard her downstairs on her cell phone telling Dad he needs to get either a skybox or tickets for all of us behind home plate because you’ve never been to a Braves game.”

“She likes baseball.” Micah murmured as his cheeks flushed.

“Not really.” Corey laughed. “She wouldn’t know a ball from strike when it comes right down to it. My mother’s a perv and likes to watch the guys in the tight pants.”

“I know.” Micah said, blushing some more and was relieved to find Corey inching closer to him.

“She made you model a whole bunch of stuff, huh?” Corey said with a smile. “She told me I have fine taste in young men, you know.”

“Oh God!” Micah groaned and sat down on the edge of the bed amidst a set of bags that had come from Niemen-Marcus. He didn’t dare tell Corey that he’d enjoyed the whole day, even if his boyfriend’s mother was perving on watching him model clothes. She was paying for everything and if she wanted a little eye candy – that was fine by him.

He’d heard that term from a couple of the scientists at Trasker Labs when they would see him on duty somewhere. It had only taken a few times to realize the phrase “Oh look! The Eye Candy is on duty” actually referred to him. The look of longing from one particularly old and past-his-prime scientist had finally clued him in to that fact. It didn’t bother him, as long as they just looked, and the fact that he’d gotten all these nice clothes for showing off today wasn’t a bad price to pay.

“You’re not really embarrassed, are you?” Corey asked him and Micah gave him a shy smile.

“I have to do something to earn all these clothes.” Micah said with a shrug. “You’ve told me there’s no free lunch, right?”

“No, but I didn’t think you were so mercenary you’d let my mom perv on you in exchange for some clothes.” Corey said with a frown.

“It wasn’t just the clothes.” Micah said with a more serious look. “She was curious as to why I’m here now as your boyfriend instead of just a friend. I think she was worried that I was just trying to use you.”

“Are you?” Corey asked as he moved to sit in Micah’s lap. Micah smiled and put his arms around Corey’s waist and nuzzled against him.

“If I am, are you getting your money’s worth?” Micah asked him in a teasing tone and Corey relaxed against him.

“Not yet.” Corey said with a wicked smile. “You’ve got about a hundred years to pay off the debt you’ve incurred. No breaking up with me until then.”

“Deal.” Micah laughed, and they kissed briefly before Corey stood up.

“Let’s get to work on these clothes before she sends Bill up here to check on us.” Corey said as he stood up.

“God, I try to seduce you and you storm away.” Micah said with a laugh and smiled again as Corey kissed him one more time.

“We’ll sneak out to the shed later.” Corey promised and Micah blushed. “What?”

“Yeah, um, she’s figured that one out.” Micah said as he began to crack up in laughter. Corey had a stricken look and then smiled.

“That’s okay, I’ll figure out another place.” Corey said smugly.

“What?” Micah asked as he saw the smirk on Corey’s face.

“I suggested to Billy he take Karen there since he’s tired of getting interrupted.”

“You should warn him.” Micah suggested.

“Nah, this will be fun to watch.” Corey said with an evil smile. Micah just shook his head and began to remove the tags from a pair of designer shorts. It was a good thing they’d stopped kissing because Mrs. Howard herself showed up a minute later to supervise their work.