Tristan's High School Life - 26. Chapter 26

I was surprised Xander wanted to talk, but I led him to the counseling area and asked for a private room, which they provided. I noticed Xander was shaking and appeared nervous.

"What's on your mind? We can talk about anything," I said
"I...I wannnt to tell you, but I'm scared," Xander said with his anxiousness showing.
"It's ok, take as long as you need," I said, channeling some inner peace.
"Ok, here goes; Dominic or Dom is my baby brother, and he's been super protective of me since the event," Xander said, looking at me, and I nodded that he could continue. "Our father was super abusive towards me when he found out I was gay. He made sure never to leave a mark our mother would see. It went on for over three years, and no one in the house was wiser. Dom was dad's favorite because he is athletic and played all kinds of sports. I tried to do anything to shift my dad's attention, but nothing seemed to work. Finally, one day I was changing, and Dom walked in seeing the bruises on me, and he lost his cool. He went and confronted dad, and arguing and fighting ensued. Somewhere during the fight, Dom admitted he too was gay, and dad flipped out. Mom walked in after a long day at the hospital working and wanted to know what was going on. Dom explained the situation, and Mom demanded to look at my bruises. When I lifted my shirt, mom let out a gasp and ordered Dad to leave. He went to the room, and we wrongfully assumed he was packing. Mom called the police to report the abuse when dad returned with a gun." Xander stopped, and I saw the tears flowing

'It's ok, Xander," I said and tried to comfort him.

He sniffled but continued, "Dad said there was no way in hell he was leaving his home to a bunch of fags. Mom had Dom, and I get behind her, but as we were moving, a shot rang out, and mom dove over blocking the shot; he wanted to shoot me," Xander said, visibility shaking.

"Oh my god, I am so sorry, Xander," I replied and pulled him into a hug and held him while he cried. We sat there for quite some time, and I could tell he needed to tell someone this story.

"The police arrived just as mom fell to the floor, and they kicked the door open. A battle between them and Dad ensued, with dad eventually being killed by the cops. The paramedics rushed to work on Mom and recognized her as one of the ER doctors from the local hospital. They were not able to save her, though. We refused to go to anyone in our father's family out of fear, and Mom was an only child, and her parents were too old to take care of us. They did have a recommendation, though, Mom's cousin Rory. We had never met Rory, and when we did, we fell in love with him and Mack. Rory made sure that mom got the burial she deserved and that dad burial plot was somewhere else. Dad's family contested the adoption as Rory and Mack are gay. The lawyer Rory hired uncovered evidence that dad's family knew about me being gay and what dad did, and none of them stopped it. Mack took excellent care of us while Rory was working and told me about your family and how he helped raise your siblings before moving to California."

Safe to read

"Xander, first, thank you for sharing your story. I cannot imagine going through what you did. I had a tense relationship with my dad and grandfather. My dad was heartbroken when TJ ran away and cloned his DNA and got me. My dads recently died after a battle with Hunter," I said

"Hunter? The kid that spun Dom around?" Xander asked
"Yes, that's him, the spunky non-nonsense boy," I replied
"What's his deal?" Xander asked
"He loves his family and hates when people underestimate him because he's young. I was the same way, but I am learning," I said, chuckling.
"I want to be your friend as I noticed that a lot of people shunned you when they found out who you were. I'm a rich kid too; I don't tell anyone," Xander said
"Yeah, my family is always in the news, so it's hard to keep my identity a secret," I replied
"We were in the news too, and Rory made sure our names stayed out since Dom, and I are minors," Xander said
"They are great guys," I said
"They are. So you have your own place?" Xander asked
"I do; when you live with that many people, privacy is a little hard," I said
"I can imagine. Living with Dom and my parents, we had some privacy, and my dad said I had too much privacy, especially when he caught me with the neighbor," Xander said
"Parents and their nosiness. So you may think this is weird, but my family has some special abilities like telepathy and teleportation." I said
"I figured something was up when Hunter spun my brother around," Xander said with a chuckle.
"Yeah, I guess that gave it away," I said and laughed.

We left the room as friends, and I felt so bad for Xander and Dom. What a way to lose your parents. I stayed at the center, did some tutoring with the younger kids, and then went to TJ and Jackson's apartment.

"What's wrong, Tristan?" Katie asked when I walked in
"Nothing you can help with," I replied
"You know I can help, right?" She asked
"Katie girl, yes I do but not in this situation," I said sadly
"You ok, Tristan?" TJ asked, coming over to the couch
"I talked to Xander," I said, watching the emotion on his face
"How did that go?" He asked
"Did you know?" I said, hoping he did
"I did when Rory called me looking for advice on a lawyer," he replied
"So, did you help them?" I inquired
"I did, and Jackson and I made sure that Rory and Mack had everything they needed to fight the case and get custody," TJ replied
"I can't believe that it happened to them," I said
"Look, Tristan, some people don't handle things well, and this was that situation. The one thing I can tell you is he trusted you with this information, and that's a big step for him, so be there as a friend," TJ said.
"That's all I plan on doing," I replied.
"Good, now help your brothers set the table," He said and left the room.

I helped my brothers set the table for dinner, and we had a light conversation. Jackson was doing better with therapy and moving around more. I decided to stay in my old room as I felt safe there, and it had me wondering if Xander felt safe anywhere. I just needed to be a good friend and be there for him.