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- 03/31/2018
- 469 Words
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Dinner is Prompt-ly at Eight - 24. Chapter 24 - The Petition
The Petition
Prompt - What is the most offensive thing you have ever heard anyone say?
“You know, your relationship isn’t real, not really,” the man said, grimly smiling in a condescending sort of manner.
Bryan didn’t know how to respond. He could feel Darren’s anger vibrating next to him. There was a wash of blood to his skin, that immediately raised his temperature in the air-conditioned room, a place cooled with wafts of fresh air blowing in from the ceiling.
“Our relationship is as real as anyone else’s,” Darren said, a little more loudly than he usual spoke. Darren was soft-spoken, calm, courteous to a fault, and unflappable. Hearing his trembling voice revealed the rage he was obviously holding inside.
“It’s simple biology,” the man continued, brushing his moustache absently, almost professorially. “Nature provided male and female with attributes that would complement and complete the formation of a family. Those include the kinds of bonding experiences which make them codependent on each other during the times when children need it.”
“My relationship with my husband is as strong as any straight couple,” Bryan said, in a kind of pronouncement that brokered no discussion. He was an attorney, and knew how to use tone, inflection, and charisma to sway his audience.
The solicitor’s skin was blushing now, as he realized what the two men were to each other and how adamant they felt it. “Don’t get me wrong,” he said hurriedly, almost breathless. “Male and female relationships are bound to fail as well, eventually. No two people are ever going to make a permanent relationship model work. It goes against human biology to bond solely with another person for life.”
He was fiddling with his coat, showing off the rainbow pin on his lapel, like a talisman warding off the evil looks from the two men. It seemed to defy them as did his sad countenance.
“Relationships are work, and it doesn’t matter if it’s a man and woman, two women, or two men,” Darren said sharply, each word bitten off in a staccato manner. “It takes commitment, patience, and effort to make a marriage last.”
The other man’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed and listened. His eyes darted about the room, then finally he cleared his throat.
“I’m sorry you don’t agree, but it’s simply scientifically provable. Studies have shown that outside of child-rearing dynamisms, long-term, exclusive relationships, especially amongst same-sex couples, are bound to fail. The numbers don’t lie.”
Bryan snorted his disgust. Darren shook his head and sighed.
Even with his face beet-red, the man with the petition fastened to a clipboard in hand, looked smug. “Will you sign?” he asked, pointing to the words; ‘Repeal of Civil Marriage’ bill. “It’s not natural.” He said defiantly, and with a sense of resignation.
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
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