Summer - 20. Prove It All Night

I thought I’d be nervous, but all I feel is happiness. Could the lack of nerves be because this is my second go-around? Has it really been seventeen years since that fiasco? What a mistake that was. And all because I wasn’t strong enough to fight against church lies and pushy parents. I can hear my father’s comments: “You’re an Army veteran, and you’ve just graduated from the Police Academy―it’s time for you to get married and start having kids.”

A couple of bright spots, in those otherwise miserable years, while I denied who I truly was. I wasn’t able to enjoy them for long, the pain of that loss is a constant companion. Okay, Tommy, enough with the melodrama. Today is about the last five years and the next fifty, or so. How is it possible a man could turn my life around so quickly, and so perfectly?

The kid was supposed to be a fuck for the night, but he was a pit bull; he grabbed on, and wouldn’t let go of me. And here we are now, about to get married. Damn, he’s gorgeous. Fucker actually laughed at me when I mentioned I was too ugly and too old for him.

“Officer Kennedy, you’re the most handsome man I’ve ever met. The seven years you have on me will soon seem insignificant. And I plan to be around long enough to see it happen.”

Big balls on the Aussie. Well, his balls aren’t the only thing big about him as I found out later that night. Over the following week, he made a pest of himself, I fought him off for a while, but it was a losing battle. The damn stud wasn’t going to let go. And I’m so damn glad he didn’t. JP makes me happy like I never was before I met him. I’ll never be able to repay him for giving me back my life, but I’m sure as hell going to try, for as long as I live.

Detective Thomas John Fitzgerald Kennedy, it’s a great day, top o’ the morning to ya!

¡Coño! Que año. First I get a son, and now I’m getting married. Ha! Talk about doing things ass-backward. And I have idiots to thank for both events. Rich overreacts when he finds out CJ’s gay, and I hit the jackpot. My son comes to live with me permanently, something I’d never thought could happen. It’s just been a couple of months, but I can’t imagine life without having him around. Fuck! Tears are supposed to come during the ceremony, not before…

Then there are the jerks who rushed to pass discriminatory legislation, which led to legal challenges, and the Supreme Court decision. Let the fundies stick to their hateful playbook, they’ll keep fucking themselves over, and normal people we’ll find silver linings. CJ and Brett are my silver linings.

The jarhead and I should be the poster boys for the love-at-first-sight club. From the moment I saw his blue eyes, and his high and tight haircut, I was a goner. Yeah, it may have been lust-at-first-sight, but love followed real damn quick. Our first conversation, while having drinks at the bar, left me wondering how anyone could be so gorgeous, so smart, and so nice at the same time.

I wasn’t a virgin when we met, but I was over my promiscuous period by then. Turning thirty the year before had changed something within me; I was looking for more than a quick bj or fuck. Sure I still went out and looked to get laid, but I was also looking for a bit more. When he asked me if I’d like to walk back to his place with him, I was a pushover―hell, I was easy. If the marine wanted my body, I was willing to show my support for our troops. I didn’t care if he was a top or a bottom, all I knew was I wanted to go home with him and stay there.

He looks like a fucking GI Joe: rugged, handsome face, and muscles in all the right places. Thankfully, unlike the dolls, he’s anatomically correct. Oh yes, very anatomically correct.

César Marcos Abelló, hijo de puta, te sacastes la lotería!

Bloody hell? Why the fuck am I sweating? And why are my hands shaking? I have no reason to be nervous. It’s just a damn piece of paper. Okay, there may be some legalities involved, but those are shit. At some point, we’ll have to figure out my citizenship and employment, but that can wait. Nothing we do today is going to change what we already have. What we’ve had for the past five years.

When I moved from Australia to California to study at UC Berkley, I never imagined I’d end up with a rich kid as a friend. Or that the rich kid would help me find love with a furry, Irish-American cop. The big fucker had the gall to resist me at first. But after the time spent at the bar the day we met, and what we did in his bedroom later that night, I knew I belonged to him. There was no way he was getting rid of me.

It’s a shame our rellies couldn’t be here with us today. But we’ve talked about it and realized we have our new family with us. Our friends are that family. Having our two besties standing by our side is going to make today a bit more special. And the damn kid, what a treat. CJ’s wormed his way into our lives and our hearts in no time at all. I hope he’s there for as long as I live.

Five years on and Tommy still takes my breath away. Look at him all spiffy. Who’d think my mountain man would clean up so well. Ha! That’s all most people see. A big man, a scruffy face that rarely smiles, a rough and tumble guy, and a cop with a hard stare. But I know the real Tom Kennedy. A sweet, honest, considerate man. A man dedicated to those he loves, and loyal to those he respects. The man I’m spending the rest of my life with.

John Paul Smith, g’day to ya, mate. It’s gonna be a bloody great one!

Grandpa would have loved César. And CJ! Wish he could have lived long enough to see me become a marine and to marry the love of my life. Even mom and dad, although we didn’t often see eye to eye, would’ve probably approved of my choice of partner. They might’ve had a problem with me being gay at first, but grandpa would have straightened them out. Fuck! I miss the old man.

I’ll always try to love César the way Grandpa loved Grandmother. After she died, he claimed a part of him was gone. And I’ll try to be as good to CJ as Grandpa was to me. Hell, he’s going to inherit the Davenport money one day. We’re gonna have to spend some time with the attorneys. I need to ensure none of my relatives can ever screw around with my will.

Damn, I’m about to get married! I’m about to become the husband of that hunky Cuban man. I never get tired of looking at him. Funny how his Latin blood is supposed to give him a hot temper, yet I’m the one who usually blows up. And he’s always there, cool and collected, ready to calm me down. Grandpa would have appreciated the yin and yang of our relationship. All-American looks meets tall, dark, and handsome. California meets Florida. Left coast meets right coast.

Guess in a way I hit the jackpot, I won the two greatest men in the world. The father legally becomes a part of my life today, and I’ll make sure the son does too, as soon as possible. Our son! He and his father are the best things that ever happened to me. I’d give up all the Davenport money in a New York minute for the two of them.

Captain Brett Andrew Davenport, dude, like for sure you won the lottery!

Stop it, CJ! You’ve gone over the damn to-do list a million times. You’ve planned for everything you could think of. Short of an unexpected raid by the police, for some unknown reason, you have nothing to worry about. Even then, they’d be faced with Uncle Tommy and his partner. And I bet Walter’s carrying a gun. The Marines storming the place wouldn’t fare much better. They’d have to face Sergeant Reardon and Colonel Edwards. And Mrs. Edwards! He, he, he.

Fuck! Guess I’m nervous. If I come up with any more stupid scenarios, I’ll start thinking I’m nuts. Okay, one more look at the bags with the rings. I just want to make sure I have my dads’ in the right pocket and my uncles’ in the left one.

Come on, Adriano. Hurry up and text me already. That man’s incredible. His wife’s so pregnant, she was big as a tank last time I saw her; yet he volunteered to supervise everything today, instead of staying home with her and their twins. Claimed he’s the token straight boy in the group and he couldn’t miss seeing his friends get married. Too bad Mrs. Tomassi decided not to come at the last minute. It would have been fun to have the twins running around. I hope she feels better.

I wonder who or what we’re waiting on? I mean, it’s not like we’re running late or anything, we still have forty-five minutes. Ooops, forgot Uncle Trip and his photographer friend. They still need to come in here and take pictures. I gotta remember to ask for some of me with my dads. Using the warehouse’s rough brick and cracked plaster walls as a background is insane! Those are gonna be sick! And I definitely want a picture of myself, dressed-up, in front of Uncle Danno’s Mustang. The car screams S T U D, stud! Can you say Facebook profile pic?

Dad and Papa don’t look nervous. I’m gonna puke if they start getting all sappy out there. I can’t believe they wouldn’t let me read what they wrote! I mean, I know it’s their wedding and all, but I’m in charge. Right? Uncle JP looks nervous. Maybe he should have had a second shot of tequila to help him calm down. It was pretty cool when Papa said I could have one with them. Maybe I should’ve had a second one since I won’t be able to drink inside the bar. Nah… one’s enough.

César Marcos Abelló Junior, calm the fuck down. Do something useful. Go get the shirts and pass ‘em out.

“CJ, these are great shirts, mate. Thank you for sorting out our outfits.” The four grooms, and their best man, were getting dressed in the downstairs playroom, in Danno’s warehouse loft, next to Rogo’s. The space conveniently had large mirrors, leaning against the original outside brick and the new curving walls of glass block.

CJ was stripping off his gray Bondi Beach Rescue t-shirt, his reply was muffled until he finally pulled it overhead. “You’re welcome. Let me get your sleeves, Uncle JP.” The fitted, long-sleeved, white shirts the boy bought as a present, had accents of colorful fabric on the inside of the collar, placket, and cuffs. CJ was turning those cuffs up, to show off the paisley print on the reverse side. The offsetting fabric was different for each of the grooms; his own had solid black contrasts, with the entire collar being made of the alternate color material.

“They’re so damn cool, buddy. Where did you find them and who the hell is the designer? Never heard of him.” Brett was helping turn up Tommy’s cuffs, after watching CJ do it for JP, while the boy moved on to do the same for César.

“Internet, Papa. Jared Lang is a Canadian guy from Montreal, but his company’s in Miami. I saw a friend’s dad wearing one back in Florida, and thought it was sick, so I just ordered five different ones for us. Oh, and I paid for them with my debit card. Sorry I didn’t mention it in advance. He, he, he.” CJ looked at himself in the mirror wanting to make sure he looked alright. And for the umpteenth time, touched his charcoal slacks to make sure the rings were still in his pockets. Each one was in a velvet bag, tagged with the proper name.

“Come here, champ.” César grabbed his son’s hand and pulled the boy towards him, wrapping him in a gentle hug, trying not to wrinkle either one of their shirts too much. CJ melted into his dad’s embrace and rested his head on the taller man’s chest. “I want to thank you for all you’ve done for us, son. I was thinking earlier what a great year this has been already. I have you living with me full time and now I get to marry your other dad. The two of you are the most important people in my life. I love you both.”

CJ, Adriano, and Danno had worked together on the setup for the ceremony inside Rogo’s. They kept it looking natural; no effort was made to disguise the fact the place was a bar. The tables had been removed, and replaced with several rectangular ones, arranged in the shape of a U. Bright, white tablecloths and dark, wood chairs had been added. Four place settings at the head were for the grooms. The other assigned seats were for CJ―to the right of his dads, and for Brian Sims―to the left of his uncles.

Representative Sims had been asked to officiate the ceremony; he was someone they had met together and whom all liked. The marriage licenses were obtained, signed, and filed during the week; the ceremony and reception were a public acknowledgment of the men’s new status.

The main bar was staffed by two college students, a guy and a girl, part-time employees of Rogo’s. Adriano asked them to work the wedding so they wouldn’t miss out on the tips a busy Saturday would bring. With his manager overseeing the food service and the bar, Danno had little to do and could enjoy himself. The grooms had requested the meal be kept simple and served family-style. There would be large platters placed on each table when the time came.

“Any others, gents?” Trip stood smiling, in front of the four grooms and CJ. His friend, the photographer, was next to him, playing with the camera he’d just used to take pictures of the five men together, and in all sorts of groupings.

“I think that’s enough, bud.” César looked around at the rest of the men looking for confirmation, they all nodded in assent. “Plus I think CJ’s ready to get this thing over with.”

“Hey! That’s not true, Dad. I’m just a little nervous, hoping nothing goes wrong.”

“Nothing will go wrong, mate. You’ve got it all planned very well.” JP put his arm around his nephew and gave him a reassuring hug.

“Great! CJ, we’ll give you the memory card with all the pictures once the whole thing’s over. You guys look at them and let me know what you want printed. We’ll get them done. Let me go out to the bar, and I’ll text y’all when we’re ready to start.”

“You gotta text me, Uncle Trip. I turned off all their phones.”

“Control freak, eh? You got it, CJ. When you’re ready to walk out, reply to me, and we’ll start the music.”

When Blue October’s “18^th Floor Balcony” began playing, the two couples walked into the room, preceded by CJ. The boy moved to the head of the table and positioned himself next to Representative Sims. His dads followed and stood to his right while his uncles did the same to the left of Brian.

The short ceremony played like a slow-motion film to CJ. He heard Brian welcome the guests, and introduce the grooms. The boy watched as the men turned toward their partners, and each, in turn, spoke. He handed each one their ring when prompted to do so. Then it was over, and CJ was surprised it had been so quick. Brian pronounced the couples married, and invited the new husbands to kiss. CJ glanced at Adriano with a slight look of fear in his eyes, but the man winked at him, letting him know the music he had selected was ready to play.

As McFly’s “Love is Easy” began, the two couples kissed, as Brian and CJ stepped back smiling, and turned to move to the sides, out of the way of the newlyweds. César reached out with one of his long arms, pulled his son back into the center, and the four men wrapped him up in a group hug. CJ hid his face so no one would see his eyes brimming with tears. He was happy.

“¡Tío Rico! ¿Como estás? I was worried you weren’t going to make it.” CJ stepped into his uncle’s embrace and smiled.

“So was I. The damn flight was delayed another hour after I called you guys. I thought we would never take off from O’Hare” César’s older brother lived in Chicago, with his wife and twin sons. “Your cousins are pissed to no end. They threatened to tie me up, so they could come represent the family.”

“Yeah, they told me the same thing on Facebook. Kept saying how crappy it was only one Abelló was allowed to attend.” César had explained to the family why he had only asked his brother to be at the ceremony; none of the other grooms had relatives able to attend. He didn’t want the Abellós outnumbering all the other guests.

“They’ll get over it. They’re dying to see you. I promised you’d visit in the fall. I’d swore we’d make plans for the trip this weekend.” The cousins kept in touch by phone and through social media, but they had not seen each other for a while. In the past, it only happened when they visited Miami for Thanksgiving. And it hadn’t been every year they did.

“I’d like that. I need to get permission from my dads.” After three months in Washington, the boy automatically spoke of his dads as a joint unit. He knew they both had to agree before he was allowed to do anything out of the ordinary.

“Your father already told me he and Brett would be fine with it. Since you and I will be at the house alone tonight, we’ll figure out a good weekend for you to come up and book the flights.” César and Brett were spending the night aboard the PP with Tommy and JP. Neither couple felt they needed a honeymoon after living together for so long. One night out on the water, each couple with their cabin in separate pontoons, would be sufficient. Any noise would be muffled by the sound of the waves.

“That’s gonna be weird.”

“What’s that, CJ?

“It’ll be the first night since I moved I don’t sleep under the same roof the dads do.”

“Fair dinkum, mate, this party’s mint!”

“Yeah, what he said.” Tommy slapped JP’s butt laughing, his husband brought out the Oztrayan whenever he got excited. “No, seriously, Danno, this went above and beyond.”

“My pleasure, guys. And to be honest, it was CJ and Adriano who did all the work. It’s the least I could do. The four of you are very dear to me and Trip.”

“Speaking of… what’s up with you guys? Getting serious?” Tommy was unconsciously twisting his wedding band as he spoke; it had been a long time since he’d worn one.

“Not sure how serious it is, but we are spending a lot of time together. We’ve not made any commitments. I still have a couple of buddies I spend time with.” Danno was trying to play down the appearance of any sort of serious relationship. Newlyweds always thought everyone should get married. And he didn’t want any pressure from his friends

“Mate, when the two of you decide to get married, we’ll do it right. Sunset on our dock, and you can take the PP out for a few days afterward.”

“Hi, Helen, are you having a good time?” Brett had snuck up on her while she waited for a drink at the bar.

“Oh, hi, Captain. Yes I am. Chatri and I were very happy when you invited us.”

“Our pleasure. Chatri’s become a good friend to CJ, and we enjoy having you guys over to the house for dinner. How’s working with Doc going?” César had joined them and ordered a refill of his Bacardi Coconut and pineapple juice.

“It’s fantastic. And you guys made it happen, by introducing me to him. Something else I’m thankful for.”

“Adriano, y’all did a great job today. Ahm sorry, mah manners have all gone to hell. Have you met Walter? He’s Tommy’s partner on the police force.” Doc was standing at the bar, getting a refill on his bourbon and water. “Walter, this gentleman is Adriano Tomassi, Danno’s right-hand man here at Rogo’s.”

“Great to meet you, Adriano. Doc’s right, you did a fantastic job.” The bearded man smiled and extended his hand in greeting. “The food was awesome!”

“Glad you liked it, Walter. I think I’ve seen you here before, having lunch with Detective Kennedy. It’s great to meet you. If you guys will excuse me, I need to get champagne from the cooler for the final toast.”

“So, Doc… Tommy tells me you’re recently single?” Walter took a sip from his beer and turned his wide shoulders around to face the physician.

‘Yep, and ah can tell y’all it’s a weird feeling. Not used to it yet.” Doc had lost count of how many bourbons he’d had. He wasn’t drunk, but he wasn’t sober either, and his Southernese was becoming more pronounced.

“I know exactly how you feel. When I came out to my wife last year, and she moved out―she let me keep the place in the divorce―I rattled around the house for a couple of months. It was strange to have all that space to myself.”

“CJ, César, and Brett helped heaps. Ah spent a month living with them right after the breakup. Now ah live so close, CJ pops in for a visit all the time. Gotta love the kid, our entire circle of friends has adopted him as our nephew.”

“I just met him today, but he seems like quite a young man. I thought he was getting ready for college and then found out he’s fifteen years old. Blew my mind.”

“Don’t let the rascal fool you, Walter, he’s fifteen going on thirty. That boy is wise beyond his years.”

“So listen, Doc, if you’re not seeing anyone right now, could I take you out to dinner sometime?”

“Butter my buns, and call me a biscuit! A hot guy just asked me out on a date. Hot damn. That there’s pretty damn cool. Sure thing, bubba, Ah’d love to go out with you.”

“OKAY, FOLKS! Time for a little toast. CJ, the floor’s all yours.”

“Thanks, Adriano. So stop me if you’ve heard this one before: a cop, an accountant, a diplomat, and a marine walk into a bar…” CJ’s opening line was met with loud laughter from the guests.

“Don’t give up your day job!” Dragon’s voice boomed over the laughter before he joined in.

“Hush!” whispered King, loud enough for everyone to hear, as he elbowed his partner.

“Seriously? That’s exactly how it happened. Really. It is. On February fifteenth, two thousand and eight—that’s two thousand and ten days ago in case you’re wondering… Hey! I’m not kidding about that either, the accountant’s my father, and I may have inherited his addiction to numbers.”

“Great, our kid’s gonna grow up to be a stand-up comedian,” César whispered in Brett’s ear as he moved behind him, wrapping his arms around his husband’s waist. Brett placed his hands on the arms holding him and leaned back against the slightly taller man.

“One of my dads, and one of my uncles, went out that night to have some fun. My other dad and my other uncle did exactly the same thing. The four of them ended up at some place in Georgetown, which they’ve told me is no longer around. Of course, they ended up meeting. And they’ve been together since.”

“You’re such a wanker, mate. You actually made me chase you before you realized it was meant to be.” JP’s whispered comment made Tommy grab his hand, interlace their fingers, and give his husband a small squeeze. Brett smiled at his friend’s remark and the resulting gesture.

“And so here we are, two thousand and ten days later, making their relationship formal and legal. The four of them have honored me by asking me to stand with them on this special day. For that, I thank them. I’m lucky I have them in my life. My uncles, all of them, are very special men, and I love my dads more than words can say. Please grab your glasses and raise them in celebration of the love they have for each other. May they enjoy a long life together, may they show each other how much in love they are at all times, and on their wedding day, may they prove it all night. Cheers!”