Jacob Finding His Way - 44. Chapter 44

After Dewayne stormed out of work yesterday, he couldn't help but think that he may have made the wrong choice. Dewayne has had his fair share of creeps in his life not unlike the store assistant manager and some even worse than him. Dewayne should not have allowed him to get under his skin like he did yesterday.

Here Dewayne is barely out of high school and the only job he can get is flipping burgers at his local McDonald's restaurant. There is nothing wrong with that but Dewayne wants more for himself. There has to be something better than working at a McDonald's.

All through high school Dewayne played soccer and was very good at it. Since their school didn't have much of a soccer team they didn't play in any kind of league in their school district. As a result, Dewayne lost out on any chance on getting a scholarship to college. He knows there are better players than him. He also knows if he practices more and played more in competition he can get even better.

Now it is just a dream that will never become a reality for Dewayne. His reality is working at a minimum-wage job and living here at home with in his parent’s house. By the way, they don’t want him around. They have said many of times they have done their job of raising him and Dewayne needs to get out on his own.

One day they made it clear to Dewayne when he was at work, working the night shift. They walked in all angry that they couldn't go on a vacation and making a big scene at his job. The same manager that was giving Dewayne a hard time yesterday was on duty that night and heard the entire thing.

Dewayne’s parents came in demanding to speak with him. He took his break and walked out to the parking lot with them. As their conversation went on they started getting louder and louder to the point anyone around could hear what was being said. That includes everyone in the restaurant.

Dewayne tried to calm his father down, but he wouldn't hear anything of it. At first he was just yelling that Dewayne needed to move out, but eventually they got back into the same old fight they have been having for years. Dewayne really believes that is the main reason that his father is angry with him and has been for years.

Dewayne noticed during middle school he was different than all the other guys. So different it scared him to death. That is when he finally decided to go to their family priest and ask for some guidance. Instead, their priest started to preach the gospel to him and tell him the sins that he’s committing.

After that, he closed himself off from everyone around him afraid that they will find out his deepest the ugliest secret. Once they found out, he knew would lose his friends and family over his secret. The funny thing is he lost them all anyways.

Because he closed himself off so much, his parents went to his friends thinking he was doing drugs. His friends believed his parents about him doing drugs, so they walked away from him. They thought that he might actually make them into drug users.

By the time Dewayne reached high school, he had lost all his friends and pretty much his entire family. They looked at him as if he was guilty of doing drugs when they had no proof of that. Still, his parents and friends didn't need proof; all they needed is assumptions about the truth.

As he reached his sophomore year his parents finally had enough and sat him down. He was in his room and they walked in with the same priest that he had spoken with years before. The minute Dewayne saw the priest walk in, he jumped up from his bed and demanded the priest to leave his room. The priest looked stunned, but he left.

Dewayne’s parents tried to do an intervention on him that night. They already had him committed to a drug rehab center in order to kick his habit. He kept telling them he had no drug habit, but they wouldn't believe him. They opened the door and two guerrilla guys walked into his room with a straightjacket and some rope.

As one of them threw Dewayne on the bed, and the other was trying to put the straightjacket on him! He kept yelling and crying out that he had no drug problem. Dewayne got free and ran into his bathroom for safety.

That is when he told his parents through the locked door of his bathroom the ugliest secret he had been keeping from them these last couple years. Through tears and fear of what his parents would think of him. Dewayne told them that their only son is not a son at all. He blurted out, through the fear of going to a rehab center, that he is gay.

Ever since then his parents would not look at him the same way. The message he saw in their eyes from that day forward was that they had no longer a son. No matter the grades that he brought home or any accomplishments he accomplished in school. They wouldn't acknowledge him in any way. Dewayne at this point is pretty much like a piece of furniture taking space up in his parents’ house until they could get rid of him.

Anytime they get into an argument, it always ended up going back to the fact that Dewayne is gay. That is what happened that night and his manager heard the entire thing. Ever since then, he gave Dewayne a very hard time. Whenever they worked together he got the worst jobs possible during shift.

The phone worked as his alarm clock this morning. It woke him up several times. He lost count of how many times the phone rang. Dewayne finally turned around and looked over at his alarm clock. Realizing he actually slept in and that his parents had already left for work. Pulling him self out of bed he walked over to look at the caller ID. There are several missed calls from McDonald's.

After deleting all the missed calls, Dewayne went to prepare something to eat. Many of the cabinets have locks on them, and including the refrigerator. His parents told me that this is their way on teaching him a lesson about supporting himself.

They gave him a couple cabinets to put his food in and a small refrigerator with freezer in the laundry room. Dewayne is to buy his food, and only eat from what he buys. He is also responsible for paying rent to his parents every month.

After warming up a pizza in the microwave, he headed back to his room. Just as he reached the door the phone started ringing again. He turned around and headed back to the phone to see the number on the caller ID.

Dewayne picked up the phone to see who it is. “Hello, how may I help you?”

“Yes, this is Alfred Serna; may I speak with Dewayne Sheppard please?”

“This is Dewayne, how may I help you sir?”

“Mr. Sheppard, I am one of the new owners of the McDonalds you work at. My grandson is the other owner and was present yesterday when everything happened with you. He was actually eating there during his lunch break and saw the whole thing.

We would like you to come down to the main office and speak with either myself or my grandson today. My grandson's name is Jacob Hernandez and again, my name is Alfred Serna. We need to speak with you urgently. Let me make this clear: You aren’t in any way in trouble with me, Jacob or your managers.”

“Um, Sir, um, I kind of, um walked out on his shift yesterday. I have always understood if somebody walks out on their shift, they have abandoned their job.”

“Mr. Sheppard, with what Jacob witnessed, you didn't abandon your job. Look, come on down and speak with us about the whole thing. I promise that we will correct what went wrong. We need to know what occurred between you and the assistant manager in order to make sure it doesn't happen again.”

“E-yes sir, um, um, I will get their as soon as I get a ride.”

The owner gave Dewayne instructions how to get to the new office before he hung up with him. He didn't know that one of the new owners is a teenager. This guy actually saw the entire saga played out yesterday. How embarrassing can that be for anybody to have the owner of the business witness you storming off like a little kid?

Dewayne walked into his room and sat down in front of his TV thinking on what to say. As soon as he finished up his pizza, he went and took a shower and got dressed. After that, he headed down to the bus stop to catch a bus to the office.

Due to all the stops and transferring from one bus to another, it took him an hour and a half to get to the office. Dewayne walked in to find the store manager and assistant manager, sitting in the lobby. He didn't pay any attention to them. He just went to secretary to let her know that he was here to speak to the owners.

After checking in at the desk, Dewayne walked back to the lobby to take a seat. As he sat down in the seats facing the windows, he saw a young kid get out of a new Chevy. He has seen him several times before eating at his job, but could not believe he could be one of the new owners!

Jacob looked at Dewayne as he walked in and almost stumbled to the ground. Jacob scanned the room before he looked at Dewayne again. He smiled at him before heading to the secretary’s desk.

Jacob couldn’t believe he almost tripped on the carpet when he saw Dewayne sitting there in the waiting room. He quickly regrouped; at least he hoped he did. He tried to play it off when he walked to secretary desk to let her know that he was in. She told him that his grandfather is waiting for him in his office.

Immediately after checking in with the secretary he went straight to his grandfather’s office. He walked in to see what the plan is with these three people in their lobby. He already knows that he will be doing most of the talking in the meetings.

The reason for that is that his grandfather told him that he set up the meetings with the store manager and assistant manager. He instructed him as soon as his school day is over; he needs to come straight to the office. Jacob really doesn’t want to deal with this guy, but it comes with the job.

“Good Jacob, you arrived just in time. I have the store manager, the assistant manager that you let go. Dewayne, the abused employee is also in the lobby waiting for you. I will sit in all the meetings, but you will run them. You need to learn how to deal with things like this because they will come up, sadly, more often than you think.”

His grandfather got up from his desk and walked over to him with a couple files in his hand. Jacob looked down to see the names on the file folders, and neither of the files are Dewayne’s. They walked over to the conference room and called Shirley to send the three in the lobby into conference room ‘A’.

Moments later, all three of them walked in and sat down at separate ends of the table. Jacob looked at Dewayne and you can tell that Dewayne isn’t comfortable being there. Jacob then looked over to the assistant manager that he terminated yesterday.

“Before we begin, I will make it clear to everyone in this room. I witnessed the entire event yesterday, excluding what occurred in the restroom. I won’t make any assumptions on what had happened in that bathroom prior to the outbursts. I will address only what I saw in the dining area between the two employees of our company.”

At that moment the store manager handed Jacob Dewayne’s employee file. He opened it up and looked it over, and then handed it over to his grandfather. His grandfather took a few moments to look it over. Before handing it back to Jacob, he jotted down a few notes and handed it back to him.

“We will have separate meetings, with all three of you. The only thing I want to say in front of all three of you is what occurred in your restaurant yesterday, is totally unacceptable and can’t ever happen again. Even if an employee is in the wrong, you won’t discipline them on the main floor and make a scene for all the customers see.

More than likely I won’t change my mind on what I decided. Still, I will listen to all parties concerns about this matter.”

With that, both of them walked out of the conference room and over to Jacob’s office. This is the first time that Jacob has seen his office. Just as they sat down, the store manager and her assistant manager walked into the office.

“I won’t make any excuses for my management staff. I agree with what you have said dealing with disciplining our employees. That is a standing policy that all managers must follow and I don’t understand why Freddie here didn't follow those policies yesterday.”

“Well, because Freddie didn't follow the policies, he has lost his job, and really there is nothing he can say that will make me reconsider the decision on that matter. Just the way he is right now, tells me he thinks he has won.”

“With all due respect sir, you're just a kid and don't know what it is to manage people like Dewayne. As you can read in his record we have had incidents involving Dewayne. There have been plenty of outbursts from Dewayne and his family. We let them all go because we felt bad for the guy.”

“I may be a young kid, but I have worked as employee at a fast food restaurant. I know when a manager dislikes an employee. They will do anything to make that employee quit or have every hour they work be a living hell.

Let me ask you this; do you think you were wrong on disciplining your employee in front of the customers yesterday? I would like you to think about it before you answer this question because I would like the truth.”

“I don’t need time to think about the answer to this question. The manager and I spoke about this several times and decided to go with company policy and force Dewayne to quit so that he can’t collect unemployment benefits.”

“Excuse me Freddie, where is it written that this is the company’s policy? I may be new to fast food ownership, but I'm not new to respecting a fellow human being. The way you treated this employee was completely disrespectful.”

“Mr. Serna, you are right you are new to the fast food industry. It is an unwritten rule that all fast food restaurants follow. We can't afford to pay out unemployment benefits to every teenager we let go because they are too lazy to work.

Dewayne wasn't lazy, but he did not fit in with the rest of the crew. His presence at work made everybody very uncomfortable. It got to the point; no matter what shift Dewayne worked, we had a lot of call-ins from the other employees not wanting to work with him.”

“What made everyone feel uncomfortable working with him?”

“Come on, it is documented in his file we handed you when we walked in to the conference room. The other owners told us to document everything about him so when he does leave, he can’t sue us.”

Jacob opened up the file and started going through it again. He couldn't understand what is so bad that the rest of the employee staff refused to work with him. As he got to the last page. There was nothing that caught his eye until he looked at the back cover of the file. There in big bold red letters is written ‘GAY: MUST LET GO’.

Jacob handed the file to his grandfather and pointed to the back cover. He took a look at it and threw the file against the wall. He got up and walked out the door. Jacob looked at the manager and assistant manager and didn't really know what to say at this point.

His grandfather walked back in a couple minutes later and sat back down. Jacob’s grandfather whispered in his ear and Jacob agreed with what he had to say.

“Number one, forget number one, I am just going to lay it on the table! You have no right to discriminate against any person no matter the gender, skin color, belief, or their sexuality, or anything else that is outlined in our Constitution. The state of Texas isn't its own nation, it is part of the United States of America and we must follow the laws of this land.

By you documenting this on his record, you have just set up this company for a major lawsuit. You may not agree with his lifestyle, but you don’t have the right to terminate him or run him off because of his lifestyle.

As far as action on this, I leave it in the hands of my grandson. Whatever he decides to do here today, I will back him up. Not only because he is even owner of the company but also, his beliefs on this matter. I back up one hundred percent.”

Jacob sat there, gathering his thoughts, making sure that whatever he says is right. He doesn’t want to say the wrong thing, out of anger or disgust. At the same time, he couldn't help but be a little bit happy to know about Dewayne. Jacob’s belief is that it should be always left up to the person to tell another about their personal lives.

“Look, we have been at this far too long already. Freddie, the termination stands, and there'll be no change on that. Mrs. Berg, you will be suspended without pay until we get in touch with corporate lawyers and see what kind of mess you have created for the company. For the meantime the store supervisor will run the store.”

Mrs. Berg interrupted Jacob as he was talking. “Wait a minute; this isn't fair at all for neither of us. We were only following unwritten rules that were passed on to us to execute. Before any of this was written down we ran it by the owners and our supervisors. They are the ones that instructed us to document in a fashion we did.”

“Yeah, well, they left you holding the bag on the whole thing. You should've used common sense, and you should've known this was wrong. I'm sixteen years old, and I know it is wrong to discriminate like this.

You both have years on me and experience that should have told you not to do this. No, Mrs. Berg, you will be suspended until we reach the corporate attorneys. At the same time, we will speak with our private attorneys about this.”

Jacob got up from his desk and walked around to escort the two managers out of his office and out of the building. As they reached the front door of their offices, Jacob asked for the store keys from Mrs. Berg.

“Before you two go, I would like to let you know that I am gay and proud of it. This kind of discrimination is over as far as this company is concerned. Trust me if I find any other store manager following the same policies they are gone as well. So if you want to warn them, be my guest.”

As Jacob turned away, he couldn't help but take away satisfaction by the looks on their faces. He is tired of hiding who he is from all the bigots in this world. Jacob figured it is high time for people like him to let every bigot and hater know that he is not going to take their crap anymore.

Jacob found his grandfather, escorting Dewayne to his office. When he walked in, he found them sitting down. Jacob couldn't help but look Dewayne over and imagine how cute this guy is in swimwear of any kind. Jacob walked around his desk bumping into it as he took his seat.

“Good afternoon Dewayne, I am sorry for the delay. Right now we are trying to figure out what we are going to do about the situation. Let me first start off by saying that you were not in the wrong. Even if you did something wrong yesterday, you should not have been disciplined in front of the customers. What Freddie did trumps anything you did.

We want you to stay on board, but I need to know where you stand on that.”

“Um, I, um, really need his job and I'll do anything to keep it. I am so sorry for walking out on his shift yesterday. I normally never let anyone get underneath my skin like that. But over time, I just had enough.”

“I can understand what you are talking about Dewayne. You don’t have to make excuses or apologize to us. There'll be changes being made at that store immediately, and the changes will be for the good. I just want you to be comfortable in your working environment. It doesn't matter if you having a hard time from a manager or an employee, I want you to report everything.

I know it isn't cool to be a snitch but what has happened to you in the past isn't cool either. So if you are comfortable, I would like you to return back to work tomorrow on your scheduled hours. I will check in on you and make sure everything is going alright.”

Dewayne agreed with going back to work tomorrow with a big smile on his face. Dewayne’s gorgeous smile made Jacob all tingly inside. Dewayne got up and shook Jacob’s hand, and then turned and shook Jacob’s grandfather’s hand. Jacob looked at Dewayne as he walked out the door. Jacob couldn't get his eyes off of Dewayne’s butt. ‘Man, Dewayne has one nice set of butt cheeks’, Jacob thought to himself.

“Oh Dewayne, if you were scheduled to work today, I will make sure you get paid for the hours you were scheduled for.”

Dewayne stopped and looked back and smiled again. “Thank you very much. I really do appreciate everything you're doing for me.”

Dewayne turned back around and walked out of his office. Jacob looked over at his grandfather as he got up from the chair. He slapped him on the shoulder and told him he did a great job on handling this situation. He will get a hold of their attorneys about what just happened and see what they need to do in order to protect themselves.

They immediately instructed Shirley to write out and enter office memo to all managers and store supervisors. The memo is to instruct them about the Constitution and the rights that all citizens have under it. If any employee, manager or supervisor is caught in any way, violating the civil rights of another working for the company, they will immediately be terminated from their employment.

All night long Jacob dreamed of having sex with Dewayne in different places. He couldn't believe how detailed his dreams were from the sex to the way Dewayne looked naked in all his glory. He is really falling head over heels for this guy. He just hopes it isn't him trying to find somebody to replace Joey temporarily.

When Jacob woke up in the morning, he had to take off his bedding and throw it into the wash machine. He didn't want Franseca to come up and make his bed and see all the cum stains on his sheets. That would be way too embarrassing.

Once Jacob finished throwing his bedding into the washer, he ran up and jumped in the shower. He kept chiding himself over the dream he had of Dewayne. He can’t keep thinking of Dewayne in that way, because it isn't right.

Jacob got out of the shower and looked at himself the mirror. The face looking back at him was not his own. Jacob is turning into someone that disrespects others in his dreams. He started mentally hitting himself again, in order to punish himself for the dreams he had.

Once Jacob got dressed, he headed to school thinking about so many things. The one thing that kept dominating his thoughts is his dreams. He can’t continue dreaming that way. He quickly changed his thoughts over to another issue.

Tonight is the mid-year drill meet, and Jacob is really not looking forward to it. He will have to spend several hours with a young lady that he doesn’t respect or want to be around. He will deal with her, with respect, and get through the night.

Jacob heard a voice calling for him as he headed to the cafeteria. He turned around to see who was yelling for him and found it is Greg. Looking at Greg as he runs over to him, he couldn't help but notice that he looks scared.

“Jacob, thank you for stopping and be willing to talk with me, I know what you might be thinking of me. I swear I didn't know what my parents, mainly my father, were planning to do. When I found out on Monday it was a surprise to me.

None of what had occurred in your home would've happened if I didn't walk in. You and I made peace with it and moved on. I was fine with that, but not my parents. I am glad that the district attorney put his father in his place. I just hope that it didn't ruin the friendship we are putting together.”

“Greg, you are a very nice person and I know if we met under different circumstances we would be friends without a doubt. My grandpa told me what happened and I don't hold it against you. I have lost too many friends and loved ones. I don’t want to lose any more friends.

That night we were both in the wrong, and I am sorry for doing what I did to you. I should've apologized to you a long time ago. I am glad that the district attorney handled it the way he did. Otherwise we both could have joined a friend of mine in juvenile hall.”

They both laughed and continued to the cafeteria. Jacob doesn’t hold anything against Greg. Maybe his father, but not him! Jacob knows that Greg likes his sister, and he isn’t going to let this little thing screw that up. He knows his sister deserves some happiness, and probably Greg does to. Everyone deserves happiness that only love brings.

In every class in the morning the teachers went over the student’s semester grades. After that, the students either watched movies or just sat there and talked amongst each other. This is the final day before Christmas vacation, and they are all looking forward to being out of school for a month. No more homework or teachers trying to cram a lot of information into them. At least for one entire month of freedom!

At lunch, they all jumped into three different cars and headed over to McDonald's. Some of the guys are starting to get suspicious on why Jacob wants to go to McDonald's every day. Jacob thinks they are actually figuring it out. They just don't know which guy Jacob really likes.

When they walked in, Jacob found Dewayne immediately. He looks so damn hot behind the counter smiling out at the customers that he is serving. Jacob got a hard on the minute he flashed his awesome smile.

Jacob told Chase what he wants and headed to the restroom. As soon as Jacob walked in, he locked the door. Jacob walked over to the urinal and used it before looking at him self in the mirror. Jacob walked over to the sink and looked at himself in the mirror.

“You dumb fuck, you need to stop thinking this way.” Jacob told himself as he started hitting himself over and over again. Jacob has to find a way to stop thinking of Dewayne in a sexual manner. He likes this guy so much, but he knows it isn't right.

After washing his face and making sure no one could notice the bruises on his body. Jacob walked out and joined the guys and Heather. All through lunch, they sat there talking about what they are going to do during their vacations.

Pretty much everybody lives at Jacob’s house so all of their plans are the same. Jacob didn’t notice Dewayne walking over to their tables until he was patting him on the shoulder. Jacob turned around to see his smiling face looking down at him.

“Mr. Jacob, I wanted to come by to thank you again for everything you did for me. It means a lot that you believed in me over the managers. I really, I mean REALLY need this job and I won’t let you down!”

“Dewayne, you don’t have to call me ‘mister’ or keep thanking me for doing what was right. Call me Jacob and I'm glad I could help you. You still have my numbers and if you need anything, don’t hesitate to call me.”

Dewayne kneeled down to talk with him. “If you don't mind me asking, what grade are you in high school? Also, I was wondering what school you are attending. I graduated just last year from Coronado High School across the street.”

“I'm a junior right now and in fact that everyone at the table is a junior. We are attending Newman High School up the street from here.”

“Wow, that is awesome and I'm glad that you decided to come down here to eat your lunch. I hope to be working the days you come down during lunch. I need to get back before the next rush comes in.”

Dewayne got up and shook his hand with that same gorgeous smile. As he walked off towards the counter. Jacob tried to steal a couple glances of Dewayne’s backside. Then it dawned on him that it is wrong for him to be doing that. Jacob was trying to figure out a way to get away from the table to go to the bathroom when Chase brought him out of thought.

“Now we see why you want to come down here so much. You have a good eye for the two guys. It looks like he might like you as much as you like him. You should go forth and ask him out,” Chase said teasing him as he threw fries at him!

“No you guys got it all wrong about the guy. He is the one that got embarrassed the other day by his manager. I stepped in and fixed it all. That is what he was thanking me for. Even if I like him, he doesn't like me like that,” Jacob retorted.

Almost everybody started throwing fries at him at the same time and calling him stupid. Heather spoke of before anybody else had a chance to.

“Look Jacob, after dating one of you guys, I learned something. I learned to look for the hidden signs. You, Tom and Dewayne over there, have learned to play the straight part pretty good but not good enough for somebody like me who’s looking for the signs.

The minute he walked over here, I looked at him as he talked to you. He didn't look at or talk to any of us. He only talked to you and wanted to know your age. He didn't ask you straight out but he got it by asking what year you are in. The entire time he was checking you out.”

“No, you guys have it all wrong about him. He only talked to me because I'm the only one he knows at this table. As for him asking me what grade I am in, that was just a way for him to get away from talking about the past.”

“Come on Jacob, you aren’t that blind man! This guy likes you and was checking you out like Heather said. Then he leaves saying that he hopes that he is on duty whenever you come down to eat. He is trying to let you know he likes you” Tom interjected underscoring Heather’s points.

Jacob looked straight into Tom's eyes as he said that. The rest of their time at McDonald's everyone took turns on trying to talk Jacob into asking Dewayne out. Jacob kept saying no and finally he told them to drop it.

As they walked out, Jacob looked back to find Dewayne looking their direction. When both of their eyes met Dewayne actually winked at Jacob and followed up with a smile. Jacob couldn't help but smile back at Dewayne when he did that.

Due to Jacob looking at Dewayne, he wasn't paying attention to the others in front of him. Jacob walked right into Chase and David on the way out. They started laughing and pulling Jacob by the neck to the car.

“You need to ask him out Jacob. You both seem to like each other and that’s a good thing. Don’t keep holding yourself back. I know it is scary being back in the dating world, but boy, you deserve to be happy.” Chase teased Jacob as he got into the car.

The minute Jacob arrived back at school, he ran right into Greg. “Jacob, I'm looking for your sister. By any chance have you seen her?”

“No I haven't, I just walked in from lunch. She is normally up in the library at this time. You might want to try up there and see if she's there.”

Greg turned quickly reconfirming the information Jacob had given him. Jacob couldn't help but think that Greg looks frustrated about something or someone. He hopes whatever it is that Greg needs to talk to Marie about that he gets the chance to do so.

As Greg walked to the library, he couldn't help but think how wrong he is. Jacob isn't dodging him at lunch; he's just going out to eat. Here Greg has been thinking that Jacob is saying one thing and meaning another.

Sure enough, Marie is studying here in the library. Greg walked over to the table where Marie is sitting at and sat down. She looked up from the book that she is reading. Marie placed a bookmark in the place and closed the book.

“Unless you spoke with Jacob and everything is cleared up. I don’t want you coming around. I know it's not your fault but I value my brother too much.”

“Marie, I spoke with Jacob this morning. Everything is cleared up and there aren’t problems between me and Jacob. He understands that it wasn’t me that wanted the District Attorney to put him away or even sue him.”

“What was his response when you guys talked this morning?”

“He told me that he understood everything about had happened. In fact Jacob apologized to me about that night. He said that we both were in the wrong! I agreed with him and told him that it would not have happened if I would have used common sense.”

Marie took Greg at his word on what had happened between Jacob and him this morning. There is no reason for Marie to think otherwise. To this day, besides, what had happened between Greg and Marie’s mom, Greg hasn’t lied to her.

Both of them walked out of the library in to talk without others asking them to stop. They walked out to a corner in the hallway in order to talk in private. Marie sat down on the floor after Greg cleared a spot for her.

“Look, I want to be able to spend more time with you after school but you living at home is going to make it very difficult.”

“I know mom hasn't been too happy ever since grandfather came down on Monday and spoke with her. He really laid down the law with her and she knows that this time, grandfather really means it,” Marie said thoughtfully.

Marie and Greg sat there under the stairs trying to figure out a way to spend more time with each other. They keep running into brick walls with every idea. They know they can’t go to either of their houses because of what happened at Jacob's house.

Greg is really kicking himself in the butt for getting involved with Marie’s mom. He realizes that he should not have ever stepped into a family issue. At the time, Greg didn’t know he would fall in love with Marie like he had.

“I have an idea, but I need to run it by Jacob first. Since my mom works no matter what time of the year it is, I told her that I want to spend as much time at Jacob's house as possible, because it will be way too boring being at our house all alone.

What I'm thinking is, if Jacob agrees with me, we can meet and spend time with each other whenever I am at Jacob's house. Since you guys are getting along and have no problems I don't see a reason that he will say no.”

Greg smiled and agreed with what Marie came up with. He started thinking this might actually work out for them. Just then it dawned on Greg. He knows that Jacob doesn't have a problem with him, but he wonders what about the others.

“Wait a minute Marie. What about your grandfather and the others that live in the house. They have to have some kind of thoughts about me. Not so much about me dating you, but being in Jacob’s house after what happened.”

“I really think the others will fall in line with my brother if they see he doesn't have a problem with you. The only one I worry about is grandfather. He is the one that we need to somehow convince that you acted on behalf of his mother and you have no problem with my brother and who he is.”

Greg kept stressing to Marie that he doesn’t have a problem with Jacob. Marie understands that and told Greg. Still, Greg thinks that Marie’s grandfather can never look at him in a different light. He will always see Greg as the guy that almost got his grandson arrested and thrown in jail.

The day rolled on without anymore problems. When Jacob walked into his ROTC class he saw the drill teams in the small classroom. Jacob ignored them and walked to the back of the large classroom.

He already has way too many problems on his plate right now dealing with the ROTC newsletter. Jacob needs to find a new place to print the programs newsletters, but he knows is going to be difficult.

When Jacob started the newsletter he called every print shop in town. There is no way the program can afford to pay the prices these other print shops charge. He lucked out when he found out about Tech High. Now, he needs a go to Major Moore and let him know the bad news.

The only problem with that is Major Moore is running around with only one thing on his mind right now. Jacob learned in his first year of high school to never bother Major Moore on the day of a competition. On those days, Major Moore is in an even worse mood then he is normally. Jacob can barely deal with him when he isn’t anxious about a meet!

Jacob decided to speak with Major Moore about this issue when they returned back from the Christmas holiday. Hopefully by then, he will have a new print shop at or near the price they are paying with Tech High. So much for no ROTC work during the holiday break!

Jacob did speak with Major Moore about the drill meet. He confirmed with Major Moore that he will be at the drill meet tonight. It is part of his duties as Battalion Commander to be present whenever his Battalion is competing even if he isn't part of the teams that are competing.

As Jacob left school at the end of the day he couldn't wait to get home. Jacob decided to take the route home that passes by McDonald's. As he is driving down Mesa Street he spotted Dewayne at the bus stop. At first, Jacob was just going to drive by but decided to offer Dewayne a ride home.

“Dewayne, would you like a right instead of taking a bus?”

Dewayne looked at Jacob and smiled as he got up from the bench. He knelt down so he is at eye level with Jacob.

“Are you sure it isn't a problem giving me a ride home? I don't want to take you out of your way or make you late for something.”

“I'm sure. Please hop on in and tell me where we are going.” Jacob replied to Dewayne as he unlocked the passenger door.

Dewayne got into the car and shut the door. The only thing that was said between the two was directions at first. Both of the boys seem to be nervous being with each other. Each of them liking the other but not knowing the other likes them. Finally, Jacob broke the silence in the car.

“Dewayne, you are getting off at a weird time. Did you work your full eight hours?”

“Um, yes, they gave me eight hours today. The supervisor is actually running the shift. He didn't tell anyone why he is there, but rumors are floating around.”

“I’ll bet there are, and most of them are probably not correct. I really hope that none of them are blaming you for what had happened. Both of those managers are so wrong and I hope you understand that we had no idea it was going on.”

“I know Jacob. You guys didn’t know. You guys barely took over the restaurants couple weeks ago. There is no way; you can know what is going on in the stores right away. It's going to take time for you guys to catch up.”

The boy started laughing, and finally the ice was broken. They didn't talk anymore about the restaurants and what had happened. Dewayne wanted to know more about how Jacob and his grandfather got where they are.

Jacob didn't lie to Dewayne about anything in his past. On the way to Dewayne's house, Jacob talked about the last couple years. He told Dewayne about getting together with Joey and what had happened at Austin high school. Jacob explained everything including the breakup and taking over the restaurants.

“I am sorry to hear that you have had such a bad couple of years. I can actually see where you're coming from, except for being sick. I have had a couple bad years myself. Now I can see that I am not the only one having a rough go of it.

I was a junior in high school when the shooting happened at Austin high school. We heard about it through announcements, and then his fifth period teacher actually kept the news on for us to watch. I never knew or met anyone that got hurt during a shooting.”

“Well, I think of it as a blessing in disguise to be honest with you. If I didn't get shot, I wouldn’t have been in the hospital with such great doctors. They found his cancer and got rid of it early on.”

The boys kept talking about that day and got more comfortable with each other. By the time they reach Dewayne's house they seem to be at ease with each other. Still they don’t know that they both like each other.

“Hey Dewayne, I was wondering if you are busy tonight, or you have to work tomorrow? If I'm overstepping his bounds, please let me know and I won’t take offense to it.”

“No Jacob I’m not busy and no, you aren’t overstepping any lines. I actually work, mid-shift tomorrow, and so I have no plans for tonight.”

“I was wondering, you can you tell me no, if you would like to join me tonight. I have to attend his ROTC made your drill meet. I have no choice, because I'm the Battalion Commander and all I am going to be doing is standing around.”

“Of course Jacob, I would like to go with you to the drill meet. I would need a ride though, if that's okay?”

“That is fine Dewayne! I was planning to offer you a ride anyways. How about I come around six or so to pick you up? That way we have time to grab something to eat before we head on over to the Coliseum.”

“Sounds like a plan to me and thank you for inviting me Jacob. I will be ready by six when you come to pick me up.”

The boys shook hands and smiled at each other as they said goodbye. All the way home, Jacob couldn't help but be happy. For the first time in almost a month, Jacob isn't thinking about Joey or the past. He is actually happy.

As Jacob drove up to his house he noticed the vehicle that belongs to his father parked on the curb. He parked his car in the driveway and got out to get ready for tonight. Just as Jacob reached his front door, he heard his father calling out for him. Jacob turned around to see his father about ten feet away from.

“Jacob, please give me a minute to speak with you.” Andy Sr. said as he walked up to Jacob on the sidewalk.

Jacob couldn't move or talk. He just stood there looking at his father and wondering why he wants to talk with him now. For sixteen years Jacob hasn't seen his father, and now his father just reappears after being gone so long.

“Jacob, I know this looks strange and you don’t trust me. I don't blame you at all for not trusting me. I haven't been in your life, and that is my fault. I won’t blame it on anything except my being stupid and young. “

“Why is it now, after sixteen years, you want to talk with me? If you think you're going to get anything from me, you're wrong. I have been burnt way too many times to get burned again.”

“No Jacob, I don't want anything from you except your time. I don't care about your money or your property; I am being honest about that. I just want a chance to get to know all of my sons. You are my youngest and I have a little bit of a better chance with you than I do with your brothers. They are already all grown up.”

“If you want to get to know me, you need to also get to know Jeremy and Andy. They may be grown up already, but none of us are ever too old to get to know our father. But before you do anything. You need to fix everything between you and grandfather. I won’t make a move until you resolve all of your issues with grandfather.”

“Fine, I have no problem with talking to Al. In fact I planned to speak with him no matter what, because I know without his approval I won’t get a chance to spend time with his kids. He stepped in when I ran away from you guys.”

Jacob and his father stood there in front of the house talking with each other a little bit longer. Nothing of importance was discussed between the two. They agreed to meet tomorrow at Denny's for breakfast. That is neutral ground for everybody. Plus if anyone doesn't want to go, they don’t have to.

After Jacob's father left, Jacob rushed upstairs to get ready. David saw Jacob running to his room like a little kid. He started thinking that there is something up. Jacob hasn't been a good mood or a playful mood since Joey left.

David decided to find out what has gotten into Jacob. He walked over to Jacob's room to find him actually whistling with a big smile on his face. Now David knows for sure there is something going on as he walked into Jacob's room.

“Jacob, what are you so happy about? Don't get me wrong, I am happy that you are finally happy, but please share what has gotten you so happy.”

“I took your guys advice. On my way home I drove by the McDonald's and found Dewayne waiting for a bus. I stopped and offered him a ride and he accepted. All the way to his house we talked about different things. When I left I asked him if he wanted to join me tonight at the drill meet.”

Jacob stopped talking as he pulled his shirt over his head. David stood there wanting to hear what Dewayne's answer is, but Jacob continued to undress and walked to his bathroom to take a shower.

“Come on Jacob! What was his answer? Don’t you DARE leave me hanging like this, not knowing what he told you!”

“He said yes! O-man, I can’t believe it! He said yes to me! It isn't a date, but it is pretty close to one. I still can’t believe he said yes! I don't know if he likes me, but at least I have a chance to see.”

“Jacob there is no question about him liking you. We all saw him at lunch today and there is no doubt in any of our minds that guy likes you seriously! You don't try very hard because you already have him. Just be yourself tonight and I can pretty much guarantee that you will see what we all saw today at lunch.”

Jacob jumped in the shower as David finished talking. David walked out of the room with Jacob singing in the shower. David couldn't help but think this is a good thing for Jacob. It will be hard to see Jacob with somebody different, but he was left with no other choice.

Jacob got out of the shower and walked to his closet to grab his uniform. As he put it on his bed he wished that he didn't have to wear it. Not on the first date, if you want to call it a date, with Dewayne. Jacob fears that this might scare him off because Dewayne may think that he is a nerd or something.

Already poor Jacob is fighting an up hill battle dealing with the age difference. Put aside the age difference for right now there is the worry that Jacob has about being who he is. People take people like Jacob in two different ways. Either they use them for the money or get scared off because the money. Either way, Jacob doesn't know how Dewayne will react.

Before putting on the uniform, Jacob finished up in the bathroom. The only thing he has left after getting dressed is combing his hair and splashing on some cologne. Once he finished, he headed downstairs to see who is going to the drill meet.

Tom and David volunteered to bus anyone else that wants to go, since they had already planned to go. Jacob felt relief after Tom volunteered his car. He is already nervous and he fears that the others might judge him for wanting to date somebody so fast after the breakup with Joey.

As Jacob left to pick up Dewayne he thanked Tom and David for their help. He kept thinking all the way to Dewayne's house about how to handle the dating world again. Jacobs is scared, because he knows that he doesn't have the experience of dating.

He turned onto Dewayne’s street and immediately saw Dewayne standing at the curve. Jacob did a double take as he drove up to him. His mouth almost dropped to the seat of his car as he looked at Dewayne.

Dewayne is standing there dressed in a leather coat covering his polo shirt, which is tucked in to his black jeans that fit him snug in all the right places and topped with black Nike shoes. Jacob wiped his mouth in case there was any drool rolling out of it.

The minute Jacob came to a complete stop he unlocked the door to let Dewayne in. Just like before, Dewayne smiled and greeted Jacob as he sat down and shut the door. The two boys shook hands as Jacob started to talk.

“I am sorry for having to wear my ROTC uniform. Since it's an ROTC event, I have to be in uniform throughout. But I did bring a change of clothes that I can change into after the drill meet.”

“Don't worry about it Jacob, I think, you look pretty cool and cute in uniform. I have to tell you that I have no money for tonight. Although I live with my parents, I still have to pay rent to them and as well as my groceries. That wipes me out, pretty much every payday paying those bills.”

Jacob just looked at Dewayne and couldn't help but want to touch him. He has these curls in his hair that he tries to straighten out with gel, but in certain areas you can still see the curls.

“Now it's my turn to tell you not to worry about the money. You need to understand that I'm not trying to flaunt my money in any way but whenever I invite you to go somewhere with me I normally will pick up the bill.”

The boys talked about being in high school. Although there's only a year and a half age difference between the two boys, they really don't see a difference between themselves. They like almost the same thing in music, clothes and many other minor things.

Jacob really wants to take Dewayne to a nice restaurant but he doesn't want to scare him off. He left it up to Dewayne to choose where he wants to eat. He picked the Village Inn for dinner.

Almost immediately the boys were sat in a non-smoking area of the restaurant. The waitress took a drink order, as she handed them the menus. While they are looking at the menus, they didn't say a word to each other. The waitress came back with the drinks, and the boys gave her their order.

As waitress collected the menus and left the table, Jacob looked straight into Dewayne’s beautiful brown eyes. Neither the boys blinked for a couple minutes until Dewayne broke the silence between the two.

“So tell me what to expect to see tonight. I never paid much attention to the ROTC kids in high school. I really believe that our school doesn't have a ROTC program, but I might be wrong on that.”

“No you're not wrong; this is their first year with the program. They wanted an Air Force program; not an Army one. But since the rest of the school district is Army ROTC they had to finally settle on being an Army ROTC unit.

As far as, what to expect tonight I won't lie to you; it will be boring. Some of the schools really don't try to compete and that makes it very boring during their drill formations. Trust me; I have fallen asleep at these meets.”

Dewayne chuckled at what Jacob just said. You can see Dewayne is slowly letting down his guards and defenses. He never would have chuckled or even complemented Jacob on how he looks in his uniform.

The food arrives in both of the boys inhaled their plates of food. The only time they stopped eating is to take a drink of their soda. Every so often one of the boys would say something to the other that only required the other to nod their head up and down or back and forth to answer.

They got up and Jacob paid the bill as they walked out to the car. They started to talk once they got on their way to the Coliseum. At first they both just talked on general topics as if they just met at the bus stop waiting for a bus.

“Jacob can I ask you a question and will you please be honest with me.”

Jacob looked up Dewayne and nodded his head up and down with a worried look on his face. He started to fear that he might have said something or done something that is scaring off Dewayne.

“How much do you know about me? What I mean is, what did my manager and assistant manager tell you they think of me personally and professionally?”

“I won’t lie to you Dewayne, they did tell me things. But I can’t repeat them for several reasons and I think you know why.”

“Don’t worry about me doing anything to you or the company. You guys corrected what was going on wrong almost immediately. You can’t be held responsible for what they did under the old ownership.

Please Jacob, I would like to know what you think of me. I know, they said some ugly things about me.”

“I don't care what they said about you, Dewayne. All I care about is getting to know you. I will learn everything about you through you telling me and your actions. Until then, I don’t form any opinions about you or your family or your past.”

Dewayne wiped his eyes, trying to hide the tears that were about to roll down his cheeks. He doesn't want Jacob to see him crying. He wants Jacob to respect him and hopefully one day believes in him as he did in his past relationship.

“Before we get to the Coliseum, I feel I need to be honest with you. You put your cards on the table with me this afternoon, and I wasn't honest with you. I will feel better by telling you the truth about me. I only hope that I don’t scare you off or you stop coming around. I really enjoyed the last couple days talking with you.”

They pulled into the parking lot of the Coliseum. Jacob parked and left the engine running for the heater to keep the boys warm while they sit in the car talking. Dewayne cleared his throat and wiped his eyes one more time before he started talking.

He sat there and told Jacob, everything about himself. Jacob just sat there listening to Dewayne as he talked about his past. Jacob thought to himself that there isn't much of a difference between them. They both have had hard knocks as they were growing up and even thereafter. They are both trying to stay above water right now, and not drown.

“So you see Jacob, I liked you the first time I saw you walk in. I tried every time to be on the counter and hope that you would come to my register for service. You never did, and I thought maybe you thought badly of me. At least until yesterday, that is!”

Jacob just looked at Dewayne again not knowing what to say. His friends are right about what they were telling him, and now the ball is in his court. Jacob is afraid to take another chance on a relationship again.

“I'm going to be completely honest with you, and please don't get upset with me. The first time I walked into that McDonald's I saw you in the kitchen I just couldn't stop wanting to see you again. So I dragged my friends every day to the restaurant so I could get to see you for at least a couple of minutes.

I never thought I would actually have a chance to get to know you. Now here we are telling each other our personal thoughts and feelings. I really do want more with you but I leave that up to you. I have been in a relationship and you have not.”

Dewayne looked at Jacob and raised his hand to brush his fingers across Jacob's cheek. Jacob, in return, did the same thing to Dewayne. They got out of the car and headed in to the Coliseum for the drill meet.

Both of the boys started thinking to themselves as they walked into the building how lucky they are having a chance with each other. They both thought the other was out of their league and never had a chance with the other.

TO BE CONTINUED………………………..

WRITER’S CORNER:

(Hold on, everybody. It is still me writing this story. I know when you open up this chapter you found it being written in a different format. You thought you got into a different writer or story. Don't be afraid. It is still me. I decided write the story in a different format.

When I first started posting this story, several of you readers wrote to me and told me that the story may sound better being written out all the points of view and in this setup. I found it smoother, as I wrote out the story this way. I hope you guys enjoy it and that you find it a smoother read.

Some new twists and turns in this chapter, I threw at you. By the time you read this chapter. You should have a ready read at least the first couple chapters of the new spinoff. It will give you more freedom to let Jacob move on. If you have not read the new spinoff yet, it is called “Regrets and Heartaches”. Please go to it and start reading it. You won’t regret it.

Jacob handled a very tough situation pretty well. I know we don't want to believe this, but people still have the wrong opinion about gays. I worked at a job, and somehow they found out that I'm gay. Weeks later, I was fired from that job. I can’t say one hundred percent that is why, but I just got a promotion a couple months earlier.

People do stupid things when they don’t know everything or are taught hatred and bigotry. Again Jacob did the right thing by keeping that assistant manager terminated and suspending the store manager. He needs to get with his lawyers and find out where they stand legally on what those two guys did.

I was very hesitant on writing in a new relationship between Jacob and an employee that works for the company he owns. My editor told me quite strongly to not to let Jacob date a person that works for his company. {My exact words were; ‘you don’t dip your pen in the company inkwell.’ ED} I believe, as long as Jacob is not directly in charge of him there should be no problem with this relationship.

Jacob can’t show any kind of favoritism towards Dewayne at work. I don't believe Dewayne will ever put Jacob in that spot. We got to know him in this chapter, a little bit. What we know about him so far, he isn't that type.

The piece I wrote about Dewayne's parents locking up cabinets and the refrigerator is true. It did not happen to me, but it did happen to a friend of mine. I did put my two cents in, but it didn't help because he got used to being treated that way.

Jacob's father reappeared in this chapter. According to him, he wants only to get to know his kids. He doesn't care about Jacob’s money or what he owns. I think that only time will reveal the truth. I truly hope that his father isn't lying to him.

I am planning a weird twist to that part of the story. Trust me; you will want to continue to read on to see what I plan to do with Jacob's father. I'm not killing him off, but I'm doing the next best thing.

Grandpa Al is allowing Jacob to pretty much run the business. He's sitting there in the background making sure Jacob is making the right decisions but he isn't the front man of the company. This is another plot you want to stay tuned for. I am not writing off Grandpa Al at all. He is going to be a major part of this story for a very, very long time. He is just simply allowing Jacob to take the reins of the company and learn by doing.

So many open plots, and I keep saying this at the end of every chapter! I know I have stayed away from David and Tom and I plan to bring them in the next chapter. I also plan to bring in Toni, Gloria, Andy and Jeremy into play again. Andy in the next couple chapters will be somewhat written off, but will be back. I don't want to give his plot away, but it isn't anything bad. It is something good and we will look in on him time to time.

As always I can go on and on about the open plots in the story! If I do that, I can actually write several more chapters. There are so many plots that can take a turn at anytime. You might think it is going to go one way, but is ends up going another. Don’t miss out on anything, or you will be kicking yourself for it.

There is a so much to answer in the chapters to come. Stick around and keep reading the future chapters, and enjoy! Please email me and let me know how I am doing at jacobmillertex@aol.com, Thanks!}

EDITOR’S CORNER:

Jake is sure getting his “boot camp” in business with Grandpa Al as the drill sergeant. Jacob’s being at the McD’s when Dewayne had his confrontation with Freddie was fortunate timing and Jacob reacted to the situation perfectly.

I’m interested to see what all the legal ramifications are for the two managers. I’m curious who it was that wrote the “gay/terminate” notation in Dewayne’s employment file. If I were Jake and Grandpa Al, I would pull all the employee files into the main office for a full audit of the files and then have them held there for safekeeping.

I hope Jacob can keep a tight rein on his romance with Dewayne and let it develop solidly over a period of time. I hope there’s no rush to them becoming a cohabitating couple should things continue to develop as positively as they are at the moment. I hope both guys will keep their big heads in control. Both of them come into the situation with baggage that needs to be dealt with. It is sure a relief to see Jacob acting like a love sick puppy, showing some happiness for a change. Jacob can sure use come relief from heavy responsibility and drama for a bit. He needs some time to just be a happy teenager here and there.

What drama will unfold at the drill meet? Lorraine is still around and she’s a wounded cat; dangerous.

Major Moore is going to have a litter of kittens when he finds out that the Tech High is closing down the printing program and that costs are going to rise. I’m sure he won’t be the only one having kittens either! My bet is that Jacob will find a solution that will be of benefit to all the clients of the Tech High print shop.

Like you, I’m anxious to see what all develops. I’m sure going to be sticking around watching things closely as I suspect you will be.

Until next time,
“Daddy” Rick