Paul and Adrian - 11. Chapter 11

“Adrian, what do you think about buying a car?”

“We don’t need one for school or work. Why are you asking?”

“When I turned the car in at the rental place, I heard them talking about taking one of the cars and putting it up for sale. When I asked about them selling cars, they said they check the car, make any necessary repairs, and then sell them at a discount. She said they buy new cars from the factory at a discount which they make up on rentals, and when the car is paid off, they sell it.”

“Did you see any you liked?”

“Yes, I saw a few in the lot, but they weren’t for sale. Although I think they could have got a similar car from one of the other rental places.”

“Let’s give it a thought. I guess a car might be nice over the holidays. We could visit your grandparents as well as Alex and Bill.”

“Let’s go to sleep.”

“Really. You want to sleep?”

“Well, not right away, but eventually.” I grabbed him and pulled him to our bed.

“Wait, let’s take a shower first.”

I was all for that as it was a good preamble to what would happen. As I washed his back, he had a fine ass that was all mine and only mine. “Hey, don’t stop, finish washing my back.”

“Sorry, but I had to stop to admire the view.”

“You can admire it in bed, and I’m sure you’ll get a different perspective.”

“Fancy words, college boy. I’ll get more than a perspective.”

“Just remember what happens will come around.”

“Hey, you can check my perspective anytime. You can do it now as you wash my back.”

“I need you to bend over a little so that I can wash your hair.”

I knew that wasn’t what he wanted, and sure enough, I felt a poking into my perspective. “You bad boy.”

“Do you want me to stop or continue to wash your hair?”

“Can you massage my scalp as well?”

“I’ll give you a deep massage.”

And he did. Making love is one thing, but adding a little humor never hurts. I knew that Paul loved me, and I also knew my turn would come before we fell asleep.

The next morning, “I wonder if we could make that fried chicken like the diner?”

“Let’s get some chicken and buttermilk and find out. You’ll need a cooking thermometer to be sure the temperature is right. If it works, we can make it for the Grands.”

We had to go shopping anyway as we were out of breakfast and lunch fixings. Walking to the supermarket, “Gene said that the bank was going to contact me concerning my trust fund. I don’t understand why Dad never said anything.”

“Maybe he was hoping you’d never find out. He certainly has made it rough on you going to college.”

“I was hurt by what my mom said. Do you suppose she would’ve gotten an abortion if she knew I’d be gay?”

“I don’t know, but I’m glad she didn’t. If she had, I’d never have found you.”

“If she gave me up for adoption, you still may have never found me. I wonder what my life would have been like.”

“It could have been worse, like mine. Suppose you grew up in a homophobic household.”

“At least you had your grandparents. I didn’t even have that.”

“Yes, you did, maybe you didn’t know them or remember them, but they did love you.”

I thought about that, “if it wasn’t for my grandfather, who knew where I’d be. I think Paul was right. Grandfather must have loved me to make sure I was taken care of financially. “Let’s shop.”

“Adrian, pick up two of those cloth shopping bags. They hold more and are easier to carry.”

“Look, lube is cheaper here than the drug store.”

“Get several tubes. We go through that stuff faster than toothpaste.” I just laughed as he dumped six tubes in our basket.

“Checking out was an experience with the lube. The check out guy looked at us and winked as he rang up the lube. My face turned red, but Paul smiled and winked back. That boy has no shame. He was in love and didn’t care what anyone said or did.

When we got home, as Paul put the groceries away, Emily called, “Adrian, Mom is worse. Jim said it’s just a matter of time. I know you were just here but could you come again. I need you and Gene. Regardless of how she treated you, she is our mother.”

“Paul, that was Emily. Mom isn’t going to make it, and she wants us to come back.”

“I think we should go. You’ll never forgive yourself if you don’t.”

“We have school starting next week. I Will miss the first few days.”

“Let’s go over and talk to our advisors and let them know what’s up. I’m sure they’ll help us.”

We had a quick lunch and headed to the administration building. I spoke to my advisor while Paul talked to his. My advisor told me to go and see my profs and let them know. He’ll follow up with them. When I met up with Paul, he said his advisor told him the same thing. ”

“The next morning, we made the rounds. Our profs gave us the handouts for the first week. We had our books. They told us we could send in our assignments while we were gone, and they would keep us up to date on the assignments.

“Paul, we don’t have computers. We have been using the ones in the library.”

“Let’s buy one. We should have one anyway.”

Buying one wasn’t a problem. Coming up with the money was the problem. “You need to go and rent a car while I pack.”

“Adrian, Dave dropped off our mail. There is a letter for you from a bank. I’ll see you later.”

I stopped packing and went to get the letter. When I opened the envelope, there was a letter and a check. The letter told me about the trust fund, the amount, and the check. The check represented the interest. I looked at the check, and I was sure there was a mistake. The letterhead included a phone number, so I called the bank. I asked for the man who signed the letter. When he answered, I told him who I was and received his letter and the check. “I think there has been an error. This is a large sum of money.”

“No, sir, your trust has been accumulating interest since the money was initially deposited. The interest on the account was placed in a savings account, per your grandfather’s instructions. It was available for you to use as needed. Since you didn’t withdraw any amount, it just continued to grow. I spoke to your brother, and he asked that I send that check to you.”

“I plan on being in town tomorrow. Can we meet? I need to discuss this with you, but before I do, I need to give this a lot of thought.”

“Certainly, why don’t we have lunch. We can meet at the bank and go from there.”

I agreed to lunch. Now I need to tell Paul. He won’t believe this.

“When Paul came in, I rushed to him and grabbed him. “You won’t believe this. Look”

When Paul’s eyes saw the check, he looked at me, then the check again. “This is real?”

“Yes, I spoke to the bank, and we have a meeting tomorrow. Paul, I can’t believe this. This means I can pay your grandfather back now.”

“I’m happy for you. To think that if your mother hadn’t got ill, you’d never found out about this.”

“I’m sorry she is ill, but I should have been told about this. All the worrying I did and imposing on your grandparents wouldn’t have been necessary. So out of my mom’s illness, I’m reunited with my sister and brother. I got grandparents. I now know my grandfather was looking out for me, and best of all, I got you. What started out as a major worry for me is now resolved.”

“You’re lucky, but I’m luckier. I got you.”

“We need to share this with your Grands. We owe them this.”

“When we come back, we can call or go and see them.”

I told Dave that I had to go home again as my mother has turned worse, and the prognosis isn’t good. He understood and asked to check the diner for any more good information.”

“The trip home was faster than last time since we now knew the way. “Drive to the hospital.”

As soon as we enter, I went to the receptionist and asked for Emily. We waited a few minutes when I saw her enter the waiting room. We got our hugs and kisses, “Mom isn’t doing well at all. She is awake, but Jim said it is only time. I’m glad you came.”

We followed Emily to Mom’s room. Dad was there, and by the looks on his face, he disapproved of me being there. I didn’t care what he thought. I was there for myself. I walked to Mom’s bed. She looked at me. I took her hand, she didn’t pull away, “Mom, I wanted you to know I forgive you. I love you and will always remember you. I hold no grudge, nor do I hate you. I wish you were better and we could talk. Just remember, I love you.”

“There were tears in her eyes and mine as well. Regardless of how I was treated, she was my mother. I felt a hand on my shoulder, thinking it was my dad. I turned around to say the same to him; it wasn’t my dad; it was Gene. He pulled me into a hug. He had tears in his eyes.

“Adrian, you’re a better man than me. I don’t know if I could have forgiven Mom if she treated me like she treated you.”

“Gene, forgiveness is easy if you focus on the positive. I never had to worry about food or clothes or money when I needed it. For whatever reason, I think, in her way, Mom loved me.”

I got a family hug. Gene, Emily, and Jim all hugged me. Dad stood aside, then left the room. Later, Paul told me he went and sat in the waiting room.

“Emily, I have a meeting with the bank. We’ll be back later. Is there anything I can bring you? Gene, how about you, lunch, maybe?”

“Adrian, if you go to the diner....”

“Say no more.”