The Castaway Hotel - 1 - 37. Chapter 37 - A Bump In The Road Of Life

Although the boys’ transition from their previous lives to living as part of our new family had been basically without incident, it didn’t mean there weren’t any problems. This became quite evident the week after Labor Day, when we suffered our first, major school incident. It occurred when Danny was walking down the hall at the high school, while speaking with Brandon. They were so engrossed in their conversation that they didn’t even notice when they strolled past one of Brandon’s old nemeses. He just happened to be walking in the opposite direction, as they made their way to their next class. However, the boy didn’t miss seeing them and immediately stopped and turned toward them.

“Hey, I see our little fag’s got a new boyfriend,” the young man announced, loudly enough for everyone else in the hallway to hear. He wanted to make sure he drew their attention to the pair. The boys tried to ignore him and keep walking, but the kid persisted. “Why don’t you give your lover boy a big sloppy kiss, so everyone can see how f**king fairies make out.”

That immediately drew a response from Danny, who couldn’t ignore such a blatant insult. “Why don’t you go to hell,” Danny shot back, extremely agitated. He was especially bothered by the boy’s smug arrogance, which seemed to grow after he noticed he was gaining an audience to listen to his bigoted ranting.

“Oooooh, did I hit a sore spot,” he teased, hoping his comment would cause Danny to back down and prove that all gays were wussies.

“Look, asshole, we’re not bothering you, so f**k off and get lost,” Danny shot back, while taking up a defiant stance in front of him. He hoped this kid would see he meant business and just walk away, like most bullies do when they don’t have a supporting cast behind them.

“Well, a faggot with balls, how unusual,” he smirked, “because your boyfriend never seemed to have a pair.”

“And what makes you think either of us is gay?” Danny challenged him. “Do you have a proof or any witnesses to back up your big mouth?”

“I don’t need any proof or I certainly don’t need anyone else to convince me about what I can see,” the boy barked back. “Everyone around here knows he’s gay, just from watching how he talks, moves and acts.”

“And everyone knows you’re a f**king asshole,” Danny shot back, “and the proof of that is how you’ve been carrying on for the last few f**king minutes. Now, go crawl back under that rock you came out from under, before I lose my temper.”

“Is that the best you can come up with?” the young man challenged, in an effort to mock Danny.

“No, and you’ll find out what I’m capable of, if you continue your shit,” Danny warned him. “I suggested you get out of here, before you regret your big mouth and small brain.”

“Oh, I’m scared. I think you’re all talk,” the boy taunted. “You may be brave with words, but I still think you’re all talk and no action.”

“Then you’re even dumber than you look,” Danny retorted, hoping this insults would be enough. “I’m warning you to shut up and keep moving, before I do something you’ll regret.”

“Oh, and what are you limp-wristed gay boys going to do to stop me?” the boy challenged, but obviously without quite the same amount of bluster he had displayed previously.

“Something that you may not be ready for,” Danny warned, just before he smashed his right fist squarely into the middle of the kid’s face, knocking him on his ass. As the bully lay sprawled out on the cold tiled floor, Danny moved forward quickly, straddled his chest and grabbed him by his shirt, so he could drag the loudmouth’s upper body toward him. “If I ever hear you say anything like that again, I won’t stop beating your sorry ass until you aren’t able to get back up, even with help.”

At that moment, a teacher came out of his room, to see what all the noise and commotion was about. He got there just in time to see Danny holding the shirt of the boy who was bleeding profusely from his nose and mouth. The teacher immediately took hold of both boys and announced he was escorting them to the principal’s office.

A crowd of students followed them there, and once in the principal’s office, Danny stated his case, while the other boy was taken to the nurse’s office to be tended to. While he was away, the principal also questioned several of the students who had witnessed the incident and then followed the boys to his office, as they were interested to see what was going to happen next. Most of them were eager to support Danny’s account of the story, especially Brandon, but the principal still wasn’t about to condone the physical assault on another student. That’s why I received a phone call, a few minutes later.

It was brief and too the point. I was told my son had been in a fight and had hurt another young man, but I wasn’t given any other details. Even though I felt this was totally out of character for Danny, I knew I had to go there to discover the rest of the story. I hurriedly arranged for coverage, confidently relying upon my secretary and the assistant principal to pick up the slack while I was out. I drove directly to the high school, parked in a ‘visitor’s’ parking space and walked as quickly as I could to the principal’s office.

When I got there, everyone was still seated around the principal’s desk, including the other boy. He had gauze stuffed up his nose and his shirt was still covered in blood, but he wasn’t quite what I expected. He was taller than Danny and weighed considerably more, although much of it was flab, rather than muscle. Looking at the young man, I began to wonder if I had underestimated Danny’s physical attributes and his potential to harm someone else, if he so desired.

After listening to the principal, and then to the teacher who had brought both boys to the office, the other boy was given a chance to speak. He told me, in very nasal tones, that Danny had sucker punched him, for no reason. Hearing his altered speech, which was caused by the gauze pads protruding from his nose, almost made me chuckle. He sounded as if he were the main speaking part in a ‘cold’ commercial, where the poor ailing victim asked the pharmacist where the cold medicine was located, but the severity of the charges prevented me from bursting out in laughter.

Once the other boy had finished, Danny was given a chance to tell me his side of the story. He told me precisely what happened, directly contradicting what that other young man had said. I was impressed that he never hesitated in accepting responsibility for his part in the fight, if you could call it that, and also willingly accepted his detentions, without a word of protest.

After Danny finished, the principal advised me that several other students, who had witnessed what had happened, had supported Danny’s account of what had taken place. He said, other than the detentions, no further action would be taken against Danny. The other boy would serve the same amount of detention time, but they were waiting for one of his parents to arrive, since they had to also be called at work. I thanked him for his handling of the situation and then had Danny get his things, so he could go home with me. It was close enough to the end of the school day that I thought it would be best for him not to be the center of attention for what time was left.

As we walked to the car, I thought about how I was going to approach this with him when we got home, since neither of us said a word to the other after we left the principal’s office. Although he had been provoked, I would make it clear to him that it still wasn’t acceptable behavior to fight during school hours and on school grounds, no matter the reason. I think Danny was fearful about how I was going to respond once we were alone, because I saw him keep glancing at me, out of the corner of his eye, as we finished walking to the car and drove home. I went there, because I wanted some time alone with him, before we picked up the rest of the boys.

As we sat down in the living room, we began our discussion. “Danny, I can understand how you might lose your cool in such a situation, but that’s still not an acceptable excuse for your behavior. I think you need to work on developing better self-restraint, so you can avoid similar situations in the future. Most of all, I sincerely hope you never display that kind of violence at home.”

I think this comment totally shocked and hurt Danny. He looked up at me, through his sad, dark puppy-dog eyes, and spoke. “Dad, I’d never do anything like that, but this guys really pissed me off. He just wouldn’t quit, even though I gave him several chances to shut up and walk away. Please, Dad, you can’t blame me for this. I had to stand up to him or it would have gotten worse. If you don’t stand up to guys like that, they and their buddies will just make your life a living hell. He’s been doing that to Brandon forever.”

“I understand, Danny, and I certainly don’t blame you or love you any less now,” I assured him. “I may be a little disappointed in your actions, but at the same time I’m proud of the way you stood up for your friend. I guess it’s one of those times when I can’t feel just one way or the other about what happened, but you can’t continue to fight on school grounds.”

“I know,” he admitted, “but I’ll bet he won’t bother either of us again. And I bet the rest of those guys will think twice before they make a comment about us being gay.”

I agreed and gave him a hug. I also doubted there would be any further incidences of this nature, now that everyone knew Danny also packed a hell of a wallop. “Danny, I just ask that if there is a next time, will you trying using your head to outwit whoever is bothering you, before resorting to your fists.” A small grin broke out across his face.

“Sure, Dad, and thanks. I was so worried you might want me to leave after this, especially after you wouldn’t speak to me on the way home. I was sure you were going to tell me to pack my things once we got here, while you called Aunt Sally.”

“Never, Tiger. I will always love you and be there for you, even if you sometimes disappoint me with your actions. If you truly love somebody, you will love him no matter what, even if at times you don’t like what he may do. Do you understand that?”

“I think so,” he answered, but his smile told me he was relieved that his worst fears weren’t going to come to pass.

Once we finished our little discussion, we drove back down to pick the rest of our brood up. The little ones were cheerful, but confused as to why I had left and why I had Danny with me already. I told them that something had come up, but that was the only reason I gave them. However, when we reached the high school to pick up the older boys, everything became quite evident.

“Way to go, Danny,” Kevin yelled, as he jumped in the van. “I bet he won’t ever say things like that to you again.”

“You were there?” Danny asked, surprised.

“Heck, no, but everyone in school’s been talking about it, ever since it happened,” Kevin told him.

“Yeah, I think you changed a lot of people’s minds about their gay stereotypes,” Dustin added, “because all afternoon everyone kept talking about how you certainly didn’t hit like a fag. Oops, sorry about the fag part, but that’s what they were saying.”

“It’s okay,” Danny assured him. “I know how they talk about us.”

“Not any more you don’t,” Dustin corrected him. “You’re kind of a hero now, for standing up to that fat ass like that. I think everyone was quite impressed. I think Brandon’s problems would have ended long ago, if he could have done that for himself, but I don’t think either of you have to worry any more. I think people will be looking at both of you in a whole new light.”

Although Danny was pleased about the newfound respect, I think he was also a little chagrined to think that it took something that drastic to get the other students to realize that gays weren’t really that different from them. Yes, some could be a little swishy or effeminate, but so could some straight guys, but they were now beginning to appreciate, that other than whom they chose to love, they were all basically the same.

After a conversation filled dinner, when the older boys filled the younger boys in about what had happened earlier, I tried to get them all to settle back down. I didn’t want them spending the entire evening rehashing the details of the big fight. Ricky, however, keep things going, as he would pretend to shadowbox with Danny, and then fall down, like he had been knocked out. It got a lot of laughs and kept the others wound up for a while longer.

Later that evening, things had just begun to quiet down, when Brandon’s father drove over to our house, with his son in tow. I greeted them at the door and invited them both inside. Mr. O’Hara was quick to get to the point and explained he had heard about what had happened at the school, earlier in the day.

“I don’t know if you realize this or not,” he told me, “but that young man has been harassing my son for nearly a year now. He goes to our church and was in the same scout troop as Brandon, and that’s why I think Brandon stopped going to either place. I’ve done everything I could think of to try and stop it, but nothing has worked. I spoke to his parents, but their attitude was that boys will be boys and it was their problem to work out, not ours.” Mr. O’Hara was looking very exasperated, but I knew he wasn’t finished yet.

“When it also began happening when Brandon went to the high school this year, I brought it to the attention of school officials, but they only told me they’d keep an eye on the situation, but couldn’t do anything unless the boy attacked Brandon physically. I guess they didn’t feel verbal assaults were enough. When that didn’t work, and since Brandon couldn’t stop going to school, I filed a complaint with the police. Their response was to tell me to have Brandon call them the next time it happened and they’d talk to the boy then. I’ve been so frustrated and Brandon has remained the brunt of his taunts.”

I assured him I understood how he felt and couldn’t understand the school’s handling of the situation, since the district did have a strongly worded harassment policy spelled out in the student and administration’s handbooks. It was put in a few years before, to deal with racial and religious slurs that were becoming quite frequent. I was sure it applied to sexual harassment as well. He asked me to look into it for him, as he turned to Danny.

“I want to thank you for what you did for Brandon today,” he told him while reaching out to shake Danny’s hand. “Today you accomplished what I haven’t been able to do over many months. You shut the bastard up.” His choice of words made both boys look at each other and grin. “I could never have hoped for or selected a better friend for my son. You, and your family, are truly the best thing that has happened for Brandon in a very long time. You will always be considered a friend and welcomed in our home.”

Danny blushed at the praise, but he appreciated Brandon’s father’s kind words. I think Danny understood that now Brandon and he would never have to worry about Brandon’s parents trying to come between them in the future.

At that point, I invited Pat to have coffee with me in the dining room, so we could talk some more. He agreed, so while we were talking and sipping our java, Brandon and Danny snuck away for some private time alone. Brandon wanted to make sure he had an opportunity to show Danny his personal gratitude for defending his honor. And people say Chivalry is dead.

After the boys came back to join us, Brandon’s father announced it was time for them to go back home. Once they had departed, I had time to reflect on all that had been said. I now knew our families had become inseparable, bound together by the love these two young men felt for each other. Although both families had been close prior to this, mainly because Brandon’s parents appreciated everything we did for their son and how much Brandon enjoyed himself when he was in our company, I think today’s events help to forever cement that bond. Over time, I knew our strong relationship would prove advantageous for all of us.

The next morning, as they were having breakfast, the boys wondered what might happen when they returned to school. They weren’t particularly worried about any sort of retaliation, but more curious about how everyone else was going to react to them throughout the day. It wasn’t very long before they discovered that fate was smiling kindly in their direction. As it turned out, the kid who had started the trouble didn’t show up for school that day. In fact, he never set foot in that high school again. A few days after the incident, the young man’s parents transferred their son to another nearby school district.

For most of that day, Danny was hailed a conquering hero, for his handling of the situation. Just to make sure it didn’t go to his head, I brought him back to earth by warning him about the consequences he would suffer, should another such action ever occur. Looking at my expression and listening to my harsh tone, he knew I meant business, but that didn’t completely prevent him from enjoying the attention of his peers.