The Preacher's Kid: High School - 12. Just Another Day at the Mall

"All rise! The United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina is now in session. The Honorable Judith Franks presiding. Case number 21487-44NC.”

The judge was different than the one we originally had. The lawyers explained something about the first judge refusing—no—recusing—himself after we let him know what we were going to do. I guess it really doesn’t matter. Our decision was made, and all of us, including Matty, were on board.

“Please be seated.” We sat. Matty was behind us, and he leaned forward, putting his hand on my shoulder. When he gave me a light squeeze, I knew everything was gonna be okay.

“There are several items which the court will be addressing that are related to this particular case. The state, as well as the victim, have been informed of the court’s decisions. Mr. Brashear, as the representative of the State, in this case, do you and the parties involved agree with and accept the court’s rulings?”

“Yes, Your Honor—we accept all rulings.”

“Thank you. You may be seated.”

“Mr. Donald Harper, please rise.”

Damn! Donald must’ve lost twenty-five pounds. He looked like Hell.

“Mr. Harper, you have been charged with aggravated third-degree assault with the intent to kill Mr. Clayton Edward Hamilton III. How do you plead?”

“Guilty, your honor.”

“Thank you, Mr. Harper. Before I declare your sentence for this crime, I must inform you that this sentence requires the full and active participation of a parent or guardian. After a complete review and investigation of your family situation, the state has ordered that Mr. Randall Everett Harper be stripped of all parental rights. Mrs. Caroline Smathers, your mother, has agreed to the terms of your sentence and has been awarded full parental and guardian rights. Mr. Harper, do you understand the familial issues the court has addressed?”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“Thank you, Mr. Harper. The court wishes to recognize the unusual circumstances in this sentence. Rarely does the victim and his family show great compassion when asking the court to accept an alternative sentence for such a violent crime. The court is also aware of Reverend Hamilton’s position and standing in the community. After spending a significant amount of time listening to the reverend and his son—the victim in this case—I have never been so moved and compelled to accept the alternative sentence requested by the Hamilton family—and, consequently, the State of North Carolina.

“Mr. Donald Isaac Harper, you are hereby sentenced to a minimum of two years in the WinGate Wilderness Therapy Program located in Southern Utah. During this period, you will complete the basic behavioral program, followed by specialized training to become a program counselor. You will finish your time at WinGate after completing a minimum of one calendar year as a counselor. In the event you are unable to complete this sentence, you shall immediately return to this court for a traditional prison sentence.

“In the event that you complete the prescribed sentence at WinGate Wilderness Therapy, you shall be returned to the custody of your mother, Mrs. Caroline Smathers, and you shall receive the additional sentence of five year’s probation. The terms and conditions of your probation shall be determined upon your successful completion of the WinGate program. Mr. Harper, do you have any questions?”

“No, Your Honor.”

“Excellent. Now then, it is my understanding that you wish to address the court?”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“Fine. You may approach the podium.”

Wow. Donald walked the best he could. He had chains on his feet and his hands. When he got to the podium, his attorney unfolded a piece of paper and placed it in front of Donald. He took a deep breath and started reading:

Your Honor, Matty, Reverend Hamilton, and—most importantly—Eddie:

Four weeks ago, I was told by my attorney that Eddie Hamilton had requested a one-on-one meeting with me. I can’t begin to tell you how my emotions went from confused to scared, to angry, and then back to confused. I mean, why would the boy I nearly killed want to see me—let alone talk to me face-to-face?

We talked for just fifteen minutes. In that short time, I figured something out that changed my life. Eddie Hamilton, his family, and Matty Jordan are good people. Plain and simple—good people.

After that meeting, I was returned to my cell. Only this time, I was taken to a private cell, and I was given extra protection. My attorney told me that Reverend Hamilton and the Assistant District Attorney arranged for that after discovering that I had repeatedly been assaulted in the three weeks I had been in the county jail. For the first time since I had been sent to jail, I felt safe.

Donald turned to face me and thanked me. Dammit! I could feel the tears building up in my eyes. I definitely didn’t want to look like a big baby!

The thing about being alone in a jail cell is it gives you a lot of time to think. All I could think about was the Hamiltons being good people. I knew that I wanted more than anything to be one of those good people, too.

I even started praying to God—this God that I never knew, never spoke to, never had a relationship with. But after hearing what Eddie had said to me in that short conversation, I hoped beyond all hope that his God would listen to me—and help me.

Two days ago, my attorney came to me with the news that the court had accepted the alternative sentence suggested by the Hamiltons. Now, don’t get me wrong—I’ve not become this born-again religious fanatic. But I know that there IS a God, and He listens to people—even low-lifes like me.

I promise the court—and especially the Hamilton family—that I will do more than serve my sentence at WinGateI will EXCEL and become a contributing member of my community. I promise to become a leader with a positive outlook on life. Most importantly, I promise to become one of those good people. And maybe—someday—I’ll have the chance to show someone the same care and compassion and possibly change his or her life.

Donald turned to face me again and smiled at me—even though I was bawling like a fool. Jesus! Donald-fucking-Harper smiled at me. I’ve never seen that before! I don’t know why, but I stood and walked over to Donald. I held out my arms just enough and waited. He nodded yes, and I wrapped him in my arms.

We were both sobbing like little girls, but Donald whispered in my ear, “I’ll never be able to thank you enough, Eddie. But I promise to make you and your dad proud.”

We were interrupted by the judge banging her gavel.

“Please return to your seat, Mr. Hamilton.” I did.

“Mr. Harper, your flight to Utah leaves in two hours. You will be escorted to WinGate by a North Carolina State Trooper, and your sentence shall commence upon your arrival at the WinGate campus. Young man, say goodbye to your mother, and you will be on your way. This court is adjourned.”

The Bailiff led Donald out of the courtroom, and Mrs. Smathers came up to Dad and me. “I can’t begin to thank the two of you enough. You have quite literally saved my son’s life. Because of the information you gave the court, my ex-husband is no longer a part of Donnie’s life—and I’m going to get my boy back. Please keep him in your prayers so he will succeed. I’ll be praying, too—just so you know. And speaking of that, would It be okay if I started to attend your church, Reverend Hamilton?”

“The people who attend my church call me Pastor Clay. I guess you should start calling me that, too. I would be honored to have you join us—on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“When Donald returns home in two years, you bring him with you.”

“Well then, I’ll see you on Sunday. And again, thank you both for saving my boy’s life. You really are good people!” Mrs. Smathers dabbed her eyes and left the courtroom. We weren’t too far behind. I was so happy this whole thing was over—and I was feeling pretty good about things.

I truly believe that we did the right thing for Donald Harper. Even Matty told me he was proud of how we handled the whole thing. He even admitted I was good people—and then he told me I was a good lay as he plunged his cock into my happy ass!

 

 

MATTY

Well, I have to say that seeing all the changes in Eddie kinda freaked me out at first. But then, when I actually saw how fucking remarkable he was with the whole Donald Harper thing, I was blown away. Like Harper said, my boyfriend is “good people.”

How in the fucking world did I end up with such an amazing boyfriend? I mean, I’ve always thought there was something special about Eddie Hamilton, but shit! Having him in my life makes me want more than anything to be one of those “good people,” too. Honestly, I don’t think I’ll ever come close to the good that Eddie is, but I’m sure going to give it my best shot!

I kinda snuck myself into Eddie’s story so I can tell you about my promposal. I had my entire musical theatre class in on it, but even they didn’t know what was going to happen!

It was the Saturday afternoon after all the court shit, and we told Eddie’s parents that we were going to the mall. Nate wanted to tag along, too. Now usually, we would do everything possible to keep Nate away while we went out for some alone time, but this was perfect! Eddie wouldn’t suspect a thing.

We decided to head to South Park Mall. It’s a little further away than some of the others, but it had the best stores. When we arrived, we had about twenty minutes to kill before the big moment. I don’t think I’ve ever been more excited (or nervous) in my entire life. I mean, c’mon—Eddie’s going to the Prom with me. There’s no question there, but it’s the last part that has me feeling all jumpy on the inside.

Nate wanted to go to Spencer Gifts so he could get a new Minecraft poster. Man, I wanted to get a couple of the hot Shawn Mendes posters. That boy! Whew! Yeah, his music’s pretty good, too—especially the new shit.

Finally, it was time to start everything. I’m glad we were on the first floor since that’s where everything was going to happen. You see, Nordstrom has a grand piano on the ground floor right next to the escalators.

As soon as the pianist saw me getting closer, he stopped what he was playing and played the three-chord introduction to one of our favorite songs—from Dear Evan Hanson.

Right on cue, my favorite kid Nate started filming on his phone (yeah, he was in on the whole thing and has been totally cool about it). Nate held Eddie back a bit as I went up to the piano and started singing You Will Be Found.

Have you ever felt like nobody was there?
Have you ever felt forgotten in the middle of nowhere?
Have you ever felt like you could disappear?
Like you could fall, and no one would hear?

Well, let that lonely feeling wash away

Maybe there's a reason to believe you'll be okay
'Cause when you don't feel strong enough to stand
You can reach, reach out your hand

And oh, someone will come running
And I know, they'll take you home

Even when the dark comes crashing through
When you need a friend to carry you
And when you're broken on the ground
You will be found

So let the sun come streaming in
'Cause you'll reach up, and you'll rise again
Lift your head and look around
You will be found

As I was finishing that verse, the rest of my musical theatre class started coming down the escalator and started singing in awesome harmony! Yeah, we were creating a flash mob for my promposal! And it was going great!

You will be found
You will be found
You will be found
You will be found

Now this part of the song, there are a bunch of people talking about the Connor Project, which is a huge part of the show but makes no sense for my purposes—so everyone in the class wrote their lines and started saying them while the piano kept playing:

“Eddie Hamilton is one of those rare people who makes going to school enjoyable.”

“Eddie Hamilton? Really?”

“Yeah. Since he came back from the hospital, Eddie’s changed.”

“He always has a smile for me when we pass each other in the hall.”

“No matter what, Eddie always finds something positive in every situation he’s in.”

“He has over 900 followers on his Instagram.”

“And Eddie takes the time to respond to each and every comment.”

“He’s also the reason the baseball team is heading to the playoffs.”

“He’s awfully cute, too!”

During the lines about Eddie, I watched him turn 100 shades of red. Nate turned the camera to Eddie while I spoke the last line. That’s when the tears started.

The rest of the class was standing around me and the piano, and we all sang the rest of the song:

There's a place where we don't have to feel unknown
And every time that you call out
You're a little less alone
If you only say the word
From across the silence
Your voice is heard

Even when the dark comes crashing through
When you need a friend to carry you
When you're broken on the ground
You will be found

So let the sun come streaming in
'Cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again
If you only look around
You will be found (You will be found)
You will be found (You will be found)
You will be found

Out of the shadows
The morning is breaking
And all is new, all is new
It's filling up the empty
And suddenly I see that
All is new, all is new

You are not alone
You are not alone
You are not alone
You are not alone
You are not alone (You are not alone)
You are not alone (You are not alone)
You are not
You are not alone (You are not alone)

Even when the dark comes crashin' through
When you need someone to carry you
When you're broken on the ground

You will be found!

So when the sun comes streaming in
'Cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again
If you only look around
You will be found

Even when the dark comes crashin' through
You will be found
When you need someone to carry you
You will be found
You will be found

So, the song's last line is nice and soft—repeating one final time the “You will be found” line. Instead, I walked over to Eddie, got down on one knee, and held up a small black box as he was completely shocked and blown away! Yes! It’s working!

Go with me to prom?

*You Will Be Found from the Broadway musical DEAR EVAN HANSON

Music & Lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul

“Of course I’m going to prom with you!”

I opened the box, and Eddies tears wouldn’t stop. The crowd that had gathered was going crazy, too. I took the ring and put it on Eddie’s right hand. “It’s a promise ring. I promise to be yours until the day you marry me, Eddie Hamilton!”

I stood up, and Eddie wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug. There were at least 100 people standing around, and they were all chanting, “Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!”

With our heads close together, we could talk and still hear each other in spite of the crowd noise.

“I love you, Matty Jordan!”

“Can you believe that crowd?”

“They want us to kiss. You okay with that?”

“It’s not like they would be surprised or anything. I just prom-posed you in front of everyone!”

“And that was awesome! Fuck it! Let’s give ‘em what they want—no tongue, though—Mom and Dad will probably see this!”

“Let’s do it!”

Eddie moved his hands to either side of my face and moved my head from his shoulder to right in front of him. He told me he loved me and pulled me in for an incredible no-tongue kiss.

The people standing around us let out a cheer that would make someone think someone just scored a winning touchdown. To be honest, I’ve scored winning touchdowns before—and none of them felt anywhere close to how awesome it feels to show the world how much I love Eddie Hamilton!

 

EDDIE

Wow! I don’t know how the fuck Matty pulled that off. I really had no idea what was happening. When he went up to the piano and started singing, all I could think about was how ballsy Matty was being.

I’m so glad Nate was with us. He filmed the whole thing on his phone. I couldn’t wait to see it—I barely remember what happened after they started talking about me. That embarrassed and shocked the fuck out of me.

But damn! When Matty got down on his knee and asked me to go to prom, the first thing I thought of was he didn’t have to go to all this trouble to ask me to prom! I mean, we already started making plans.

But the ring! Thank Jesus and Mary! It was a promise ring. At first, I thought he was going to ask me to marry him. Mom and Dad are finally getting used to us being gay and together. I’m 99.9% positive they are in no way ready to think about us getting married. But hey—don’t tell anyone this, k? I think about marrying Eddie a helluva lot! Shhhh!

While we were driving home, Nate was punching away at his phone. By the time we pulled into the garage, that little shit had posted the video on YouTube, Matty’s Twitter feed, and to my Instagram. When we walked into the kitchen, Mom turned around from the stove. “Let’s see the ring!”

I held my right hand out to her and proudly displayed my new bling. “The right hand? Aren’t you supposed to put the ring on the left hand?”

“No, Mrs. H. It’s a promise ring—not an engagement ring. I don’t think any of us are ready for that!”

“Matty has one, too. He wanted us to have matching rings, so he got one for himself. I gave it to him before we left the store.

“And what does a promise ring mean?”

“Mom—it means that Matty and I have promised to be there exclusively for each other until the day we decide to get married. And don’t worry—that’s probably not going to happen until after college!”

“Well, that’s a good thing to hear!” Dad walked into the kitchen with his iPad. “You guys are about to break the internet!”

“What do you mean, dad?”

Nate was sitting at the table with a shit-eating grin on his face. “I posted your video on YouTube fifteen minutes ago, and that already has over 800 likes. Matty, it looks like the video will be trending soon. I made the hashtag #justanotherdayatthemall. That’s also the title of the video I posted on YouTube and on Eddie’s Instagram—which is kinda blowing up, too.

“Matthew, I have to say that your flash mob was absolutely perfect! I’m so happy my son has you in his life. And that kiss! I guess you boys don’t have very many secrets left!”

“Well, Mr. H.—Eddie and I know that we aren’t what a lot of people think of when they think of gay teens. A lot of people are surprised to see a couple of high school jocks as a couple. We want to make a difference. We want to show people that pretty much anyone might just be gay. And then we want to show everyone that it really doesn’t matter.”

“Yeah, what matters is who you are—not what you are.”

I had to see what Nate had posted on YouTube that was making the video so popular. I pulled it up on my phone and smiled at the title, “Just Another Day at the Mall.” But it was his description of the video that blew me away. Can this kid really be only twelve??

“On its own, this is a pretty awesome Promposal. But when the proposer is the high school’s quarterback, and the proposee is the school’s shortstop (and my brother), it makes the whole thing even cooler. It just goes to show you that you might be surprised by the people you find out are gay. But I was surprised that it didn’t seem to matter to the crowd that watched the whole thing!”

 

Wow! I mean, Nate was tuned in to exactly what Matty and I have been saying for a while now. I watched the video and was feeling all that happy shit again.

Matty and I both had shitloads of homework this weekend, so we went upstairs and tried to put a dent in it. That was a hard thing to do since our phones were exploding. It seems everyone was watching and sharing the video.

We finally decided to turn our phones off so we could get some work done. A couple of hours later, Mom came up and told us dinner was ready.

We headed downstairs to the kitchen when Dad came in with a strange look on his face. “Everyone needs to silence their phones so we can eat in peace. My phone hasn’t stopped ringing for the last hour. Boys—I think you are going viral.”

Nate was beaming. “Yep! Last time I checked, there were over 10,000 views on YouTube, and it’s trending on Twitter! It’s not even been up for three hours!”

Mom put a casserole down in the center of the table and told us to take our phones into the family room so we could at least have a quiet family dinner.

Dinner was excellent as usual. Matty and I helped Mom put every away. We were watching television and chilling when Nate looked at his phone and got excited. “Guys! The video has over 100 thousand views! You’re famous!”

“What? How did that happen?”

Matty got his phone and pulled up his Instagram. “I think I know. Nate, what hashtags did you use on the video?”

“Ummm—I did hashtag justanotherdayatthemall, hashtag promposal, and hashtag dearevanhansen. Why?”

“I follow Andrew Barth Feldman on Instagram. He’s the kid starring in the show on Broadway now. He saw the video and shared it. Wow! This whole thing is just so freaking surreal!”

I never in my life thought I would hear Dad say this, but he did! “Boys, I think it might be best if you didn’t go to church tomorrow morning. I’m afraid you being there will be too much of a distraction.”

“Really? Are you sure?”

“Yes, son. This whole thing is getting a little crazy, and I want church to be a place where people can get away from the craziness in their lives. For you two, I don’t think there’s going to be an escape for a few days.”

The next morning, Mom and Dad took Nate to church. Matty fucked me when they left—then I fucked him in the shower. We went back to bed, and within an hour, we found ourselves in a sixty-nine and got each other off again before everyone came home.

Matty checked YouTube, and holy shit!! 1.5 million views! This was insane! Even more insane was that a lot of the comments were literally from all over the world! We read some of the comments, and it was amazing how positive and supportive they were.

Sunday night, we were watching Celebrity Family Feud when Dad got a call from the church answering service. Now that happens all the time, but I knew this was something different when I saw how wide his eyes got.

“That was the answering service. I have to call this number in New York as soon as possible. It’s a producer for Good Morning America. I don’t know what they want, but if it’s what I think it is, I need to know—are you boys willing to go on the show and talk about the video? I’m sure they’ll want to talk about your relationship as well. But—if you’re not comfortable telling your story on national television, I’ll just tell them you aren’t available.”

Matty and I looked at each other with wide eyes and started laughing. I mean—what else can you do when a national television show might want to interview you?

“Mom? What do you think?”

“Well, I’m not going to tell you what to do. If you decide not to be on GMA—or any other show—I will support you 110%. On the other hand, should you decide to share your stories with a national audience, you need to think about the impact you’ll have on thousands of gay teens all over the country. You boys would be a pretty incredible example for so many.”

“Wow, Mrs. H., when you put it like that, I think we should do it. What do you think, Eddie?”

“Yeah, you’re right. It’s kinda scary, but if we can go on a show like that and show people that it’s okay just to be yourself, then I think Mom’s right—we should probably do it. But—we don’t know what they want yet. Let’s see what they tell Dad, okay?”

Dad made the call, and we watched his every expression. Before he ended the call, he gave the person everyone’s name. He thanked the person and ended the call.

“Well, well, well! It turns out that Good Morning America wants the entire family to be on the show Tuesday morning. We’re flying to New York City tomorrow!”

While we were all excited about the idea of being on national television, Nate was about to explode! “I guess I did a good thing, huh?”

Dad looked at Nate with a fake look of seriousness. “Nathan, the next time you do anything with your brother and Matthew, please leave your phone at home? Everyone else—let’s pack our bags! And be sure to pack your Sunday church clothes for the show.”

Mom turned off the television, and we all headed to our rooms to begin packing. Holy shit! We’re going to New York!