Chasing Rusty Parker - 25. How Many Kids Does Rusty Parker Have?

Chapter Twenty-Five – How Many Kids Does Rusty Parker Have?

Guys and gals of Sunny Hill, did you know that while you were getting ready for your end of the week smash or pass, your beloved king was doing nothing of the kind? Or the usual, we dare to add.

The regular royal haunts miss Rusty Parker these days. And there’s an explanation for it. Because the king of Sunny Hill spends his now-a-days being a doting father. We have an enigma to solve, and anyone who knows the answer is eagerly invited to step up and grab the mike. Here’s the case at hand.

Sexually-accomplished Mr. Parker was spotted shopping for toys at one of the local stores. Yes, you heard us. And they weren’t the crib toy type, either! No, obviously, the selection picked from thousands of products was very much intended for a much older kid than one who’d still need his or her pacifier.

Color us shocked. Does this mean that our king has sowed his wild oats more than once, while inconveniently forgetting about the basic use of a French letter? My, my, the quest to identify the heir apparent announces itself as a complicated issue. We’ll be on it, and that’s a promise.

Rusty munched on his lower lip, not knowing whether to laugh or get pissed at Xpress’ latest account of his so-called family life. If he needed any proof that those idiots were talking out of their asses, it was right in front of him. Let them gossip all they wanted; it wasn’t like anyone could make them shut their pieholes, so the best thing to do was to ignore them. Plus, all that shit kept him relevant in the weirdest of ways. What other student could brag about being a father of at least two kids? This also justified why he wasn’t hooking up like he used to, another thing that Xpress had lunged at like a stray dog at a bone.

And that meant, very conveniently, that no one was looking into the budding bromance developing between him and Matty. Sure thing, there was not much romance in that bromance, but he liked that word and had always wanted to try it for himself. Too bad Maddox, during the times when he had still thought himself straight and had been Jonathan-less, had never played into the enticing traps he had laid out. He had had more success with Dex, who was as straight as they came and didn’t give a shit about gossip since he knew he only had to stare at anyone yapping their mouths and make them shit their pants.

Hmm, could that mean that Maddox just didn’t find him attractive as a dude? That would be a bummer, and he would have to ask. Because Maddox was now gay, and Matty was also gay, and if he, Rusty, didn’t have something essential that gay dudes liked, he was in big trouble.

He put his phone back into his pocket and leaned against the car. He had a lot more pressing matters to mull over, such as impressing a ten-year-old so much that some of all that impression-ing would seep into the powers that be, with the result of Roy Parker giving his eldest a break for a change.

Matty hurried out of the dorm, but he wasn’t wearing his superhero costume just yet, something that Rusty was willing to overlook since the guy could change once they reached their destination.

However, he thought as his eyes narrowed of their own accord, Matty did look like he was wearing a costume of sorts. His hair was brushed neatly, parted on one side, and those weren’t his usual glasses. Also, he wore a very nerdy costume that somehow made him look very sexy in, well, a very nerdy way. The initial irritation was replaced quickly by something a lot more irresistible.

Matty was hot, while wearing the nerdiest clothes in existence, but in a fashionable way. What he also wore was a guilty apologetic expression on his cute face, and Rusty forgot why that was there.

“Rusty, I’m so, so sorry,” Matty hurried to say. “Apparently, I’m sharing a room with a complete idiot. He tore through my Nightwing costume as if it had killed his dear mother. And this is all I could come up with in such short notice.”

Rusty grinned and pulled Matty close, resisting the impulse to kiss him then and there with much difficulty, in broad daylight, with Xpress and its minions lurking about, or ruffle the hair that he had so neatly and probably painstakingly arranged in Superman’s alter ego’s fashion. “Don’t tell me you woke up like this,” he joked.

By how Matty shivered and looked away, he wasn’t the only one having a small embarrassing moment by pitching a tent at inappropriate times. Since he was wearing his superhero costume, that would be hard to hide, pun intended. Matty, the way he looked in his costume of choice, had better means of concealment, and yet, Rusty was dying to check.

He shook his head. This particular Clark Kent wannabe was so going to be ravished later. “Wait,” the info Matty had just delivered caught up with him, “that roommate of yours destroyed your Nightwing costume?”

“What I said,” Matty confirmed. “Let’s go and forget about idiots. And don’t worry,” he said, his hand already on the car door, “I gave him a shaking he won’t soon forget.”

Rusty grinned. Matty on a warpath? He would have to place a special request for that to happen when he had time to admire the guy at leisure and observe him from all angles.

***

He felt relieved. Rusty hadn’t looked disappointed in his last-minute change of costume, but now, his handsome face had acquired a somber look as the car rolled smoothly on the interstate.

“Tell me about your siblings,” he said, wanting to break the silence.

Rusty shrugged and his frown deepened. Maybe that choice of topic wasn’t that inspired, after all. “They’re kids. Like light years away from everything I know.”

“But I think you’re a lot like a kid,” Matty joked.

That earned him the usual signature smirk that flashed for a moment on Rusty’s lips. “I suppose I can fake it for one lousy afternoon.”

What was with that self-deprecating tone? Was it really that? Or Rusty was only attending his brother’s birthday party out of obligation? No one bought a bag of toys to rival Santa’s just out of obligation.

“I bet your brother’s going to be over the moon when he sees you. Did you let them know we’re on our way?”

“Nah. Mr. Parker expects me to play nice as long as he pays for my education. A lot of good that is doing me,” Rusty added under his breath.

“Have you thought about what you’d like to do after we finish college?” Matty maneuvered the conversation slightly away from the touchy topic of family.

“Not really. I’m not the kind to get stuck in some corporate job, running up and down ladders while kissing ass. Not that there’s anything wrong with that,” Rusty said. “Just in case you want to become a little mouse in the rat race.”

“A little mouse?” Matty smirked and crossed his arms, giving Rusty a confident look. “You’re underestimating me.”

“Yeah.” Rusty laughed, and while it wasn’t his full laughter that could be heard from the other end of the campus, he was getting warmer. That was enough for a win, in Matty’s book. “I guess I shouldn’t. What are you going to become, professionally wise, Mr. Han?”

“I’ll work my way from the ground up. I’m not the kind to be that much into marketing, but product design might be my thing,” Matty explained. He suspected that Rusty wasn’t that interested in his post-college plans, but it was only polite to offer a reply.

Rusty gave him an encouraging smile. “You’re a bit of a brainiac. Are you going to use your powers for good?”

Matty pointed at his disguise. “Doesn’t my costume tell you that already?”

“Good point.”

The conversation stalled again. Matty wanted to ask a million questions, but he didn’t want to blunder into any touchy topics once more.

“Are you worried that I might become a bum on the streets?” Rusty asked suddenly.

“It hadn’t crossed my mind.”

“You don’t have to worry. If nothing comes through, I’ll just become a busker.”

“I see. You could be an actor,” Matty said. “It’s clear that you can slip into any costume you want with ease.”

Rusty quirked an eyebrow and then groaned for show. “Stop talking dirty, Matty boy. The only costume I want to slip in right now is yours, and it’s really not the time, nor the place.”

That was enough to give Matty pause. For the remainder of their trip, he chose silence, and it no longer bothered him. The thought that Rusty wanted him, even while dressed in a nerdy suit, was enough to keep him company.

***

He had been there several times, and each of those times, his only thought had been to get out as fast as he could. This house looked so well-maintained compared to the unkempt sorry state of affairs of his mom’s property. Sure, if he put his mind to it, he could whip the place into shape, but after trying that twice or thrice, when he had still been a kid, he had given up. His mom just didn’t care.

It was time to get this over with. He climbed out of the car and waited for Matty to do the same, before going to grab the big bag of toys from the trunk.

“Rusty, Rusty, Rusty, Rusty,” someone shouted and rolled out the front door like a force of nature.

He turned and received his baby brother’s blunt force right in the ribs. The little one didn’t know how hard his melon was. He quickly grabbed Gabriel and threw him up in the air once. That was the kind of thing the boy used to like.

When he was five. Or seven? However, he didn’t appear to protest too much as Rusty made him straddle his shoulders. Matty hurried to grab the toy bag and followed quickly.

“I am not Rusty,” he announced in a thunderous voice, “I am Hawkeye!”

“You’re totally Rusty,” Gabriel said promptly, showing that he didn’t intend to be fooled by the cosplay thing. “But who’s he?”

“Don’t you know? Kids these days,” Rusty let out a sigh. “That’s Clark Kent.”

“No, he’s not,” Gabriel contradicted him again while swinging his legs from overwhelming excitement without realizing that he was kicking his brother in the ribs again, but from another angle.

“Yeah, you’re right. This is Matty, my friend,” he explained. How fast they grew up, right?

“No,” Gabriel protested once more, even more vivaciously, “he’s Superman!”

That was probably a ten-year-old’s logic. And it meant that Matty was rocking his cosplay as he should without even trying. No wonder he was such an accomplished student.

They were at the door, and his dad was blocking the entrance. His face was unreadable as his eyes set on Rusty. “You’re here. Good. Get inside.”

“Dad, Rusty brought Superman with him!” Gabriel shouted.

When had been the last time he had seen Roy Parker smile like that? Rusty was tempted to say ‘never’, but it wasn’t true. His dad opened his arms wide and took Gabriel from his brother’s shoulders to get him down. “I hope Superman’s going to like the cake,” he said.

“Hello, Mr. Parker,” Matty said politely.

“This is Matthew – Matty, my friend,” Rusty explained while Roy held Gabriel with one hand and extended his other. “He has like the second-best GPA score in the whole school.” He had no idea why he was saying things like that. As if he wanted to impress his dad with another guy’s accomplishments.

“Who’s first?” Roy inquired, in his usual fashion, while shaking Matty’s hand.

“Maddox’s fiancé,” Rusty said promptly. He had mentioned that before.

Roy’s lips pursed for a moment, but then it looked like he forgot to be pissed about the ‘homosexual boy’ as Maddox had been reduced to ever since Rusty had told his dad about his friend’s choice in a better half.

“Come inside, boys. Anna will love to see you two, all dressed up like this.”

Curiously, there wasn’t a hint of disdain in those words. Rusty looked around for his little sister. Unlike Gabriel, Anna was a lot more composed, and even at eight years of age she liked to be considered a little lady. Apparently, from what Roy had said about her, she was a prodigy, reaching for the higher shelves of the bookcase already. Reading books she probably not entirely understood, had to be having an impact on her recent development.

She wore a pretty dress, but not the usual frills kids her age seemed to become victims of at the whim of their parents. Her hair was combed neatly, but all the pretense of being a little lady was gone as soon as she saw him. Her eyes grew wide and her mouth turned into an amazed and genuine ‘o’. “You’re a superhero!” she exclaimed. She probably couldn’t name which one he tried to pass as, but she knew what he was aiming at.

He opened his arms and she rushed to him. Gabriel showed his admiration and love by kicking him in the ribs. Anna was a different breed; she kissed him on the cheek and held him by the neck, wrapping her skinny arms tightly around it, probably aware that she was a bit too high from the ground.

“Rusty, come, come,” Gabriel said impatiently and began dragging him by his free hand, as he had gotten down from his dad’s arms somehow. “Let’s meet everyone!”

***

Matty lingered a bit back, as he enjoyed watching Rusty with his siblings, who were obviously mad about him, superhero costume or not. Then, he noticed that Mr. Parker was looking at him. He offered the bag of toys. “This is Gabriel’s present,” he said.

The man nodded shortly. Matty realized he was being weighed and measured but had no idea to what end.

“What is a smart kid like you doing with my Rusty?”

The voice was gruff, the choice of words strange, but Matty thought he could read something more into it. Maybe it was better if he kept things simple. Somehow, he doubted that telling Mr. Parker something along the lines of he and Rusty being special friends would sit well with the man. Plus, that wasn’t the kind of thing one told parents.

They were hiding, he realized at that very moment. Not that he didn’t know it, but it made him a tad sad to realize that their relationship was too complicated to be exposed to sunlight too much.

“Rusty’s awesome,” Matty offered. “We get along great.” He paused, not knowing what else to add. “I’m tutoring him,” he added quickly.

That seemed to please the older Mr. Parker. “I see. That means that I can entertain hopes he’ll graduate, right?” The question sounded lighter than the previous interrogation, but Matty didn’t want to make the mistake of believing that Rusty’s dad was capable of joking about serious stuff.

“He will, sir,” he said with conviction and using his most tutor-like voice.

Mr. Parker patted him on the back and took the bag from him. “It looks like there’s more than just one present in there.”

“We might have overdone it a bit.”

“It’s all right. Kids deserved to be spoiled on their birthdays.”

Matty felt Mr. Parker’s hand on his shoulder, heavy and warm, and he wondered when the last time was Rusty had been spoiled on his birthday by his father.

***

Rusty looked around, completely satisfied. All the kids were tired by now and had been carried off one by one by their parents. He had almost run out of ideas. What a crowd. Not a tough one, but actually the kind who asked for encore after encore. But in the end, he was the last man standing.

Even Gabriel’s head lolled on his mom’s shoulder and only power of will still kept his eyes open and set on Rusty. There was so much admiration in them that he had no idea what to do with it.

If anyone asked if he wanted kids, he’d say what any other college student would say. A big fat no. But there were rewards in having some mini-selves around, so much in awe of you. He had to admit that.

“I’ll take you to bed,” Gabriel’s mom said firmly.

Gabriel looked like he wanted to protest, but Roy made a small gesture, and the kid got the message. “Say goodbye to your brother and his friend.”

Gabriel mumbled, his eyes dropping, “That’s not his friend, that’s Superman.”

The adults laughed a bit. Rusty let his brother hug him for a while. That bag of toys had sealed the deal. He was, officially, even if on this day only, the best big bro in the universe. He also had to thank Matty for all the help. Mr. Clark Kent had been throughout his number one fan, igniting the audience during each number Rusty had come up with. That counted as loyalty.

“Thank you for coming, Rusty,” Gabriel’s mom said as she took Gabriel’s hand.

“No problem,” he said and almost believed it.

He was alone with Roy and Matty now. Why did it look like a Mexican standoff? He was getting kind of used to this stuff lately.

“Matthew here tells me he’s tutoring you,” Roy said.

“Yeah. He’s a good teacher.”

“Good, that’s good. I should let you boys hit the road then.”

Another short conversation, in the unmistakable Roy Parker brand of short conversations. Damn, it wasn’t like he was expecting thanks, but still. He got to his feet. He was beat after entertaining a bunch of kids for hours. If Matty hadn’t been there, maybe he would have been in the mood to fight a little just for the sake of it, but he could drop it for once.

For any onlooker, there was no reason for him to fight with his dad. But that was only because strangers didn’t know what lurked under the surface. He and his dad, they didn’t even have to make an effort to find something to disagree about.

“Is there anything you want to tell me, son?”

The question took him by surprise. Matty had excused himself to use the bathroom before they got into the car and on their way back home, so he was alone with dear ol’ dad.

“Nope. I’m good,” he said.

“What’s this story about you having a kid?”

That was the last thing he’d expected his dad to bring up. “What?” he asked, too dumbfounded to even understand what Roy was asking.

“I was curious about what kind of hiring opportunities your college offers after graduating, and there’s this site where they report everything you do in that campus of yours.”

“Do you read Xpress? I thought you weren’t into gossip rags.”

“It’s not called Xpress. And it doesn’t seem to be a gossip rag. It’s something,” Roy seemed to make an effort to remember, “about their calling themselves a college team? I think. But it appears to be respectable, the opposite of a gossip rag.”

Rusty smacked his forehead. “Fuck my life,” he moaned, “for real?”

“Language, son,” Roy said sternly. “When were you going to tell me you fathered a child?”

“I haven’t fathered any child,” Rusty said.

“Are you sure?”

“I’ve never been surer of anything more.”

Roy examined his face. “Do you always use protection?”

“It’s a bit too late for the two of us to have this conversation. Yeah, dad, I always use protection.”

That seemed to convince the man. Half-convince him, at least. But then, he had to wag the finger at him, of course. “If you ever do such a thing, do right by the girl.”

“Thanks for the advice,” Rusty said, pouring as much vinegar as he could over those words.

“Don’t play the smartass. It makes you a dumbass.”

Rusty bit his lower lip to stop the comeback that was creeping up his throat, ready to shoot. Better not cause a big scene, when everything had worked out so great. “Stop reading whatever S.H.I.T. thinks it has to say about me.”

“I told you to watch that language,” Roy warned.

“That’s not on me, it’s on them. That’s what they’re called. The Sunny Hill Implacable Team. I bet it’s their little publication you’ve been reading.”

His dad stared at him nonplussed. Then, he took out his phone and frowned as he convinced himself of what Rusty was telling him. Then, he shook his head, disgusted. “You kids today. You go to any length to, what’s that word, troll?”

“Yeah, you got that right,” Rusty said. “But these aren’t trolls. They’re not living under a bridge. They try fucking with me in broad daylight.”

His dad sighed but didn’t get another chance to correct his language again. Matty was back, and they could hit the road.

So, S.H.I.T. really thought themselves to be ‘the shit’. And their idiocies were more dangerous compared to Xpress, because, apparently, parents thought they looked respectable.

And now they even had their own little online media outlet. Go figure.

***

Matty listened closely to Rusty ranting about Connor and his new following, while the evening was setting in fast. “I can’t believe they just took some piece of gossip from Xpress and talked about it at large,” he said, as he browsed through the new campus publication on his phone.

“Yeah, I thought they were just some fuckers with no lives, but it looks like that only motivates them to go after other people’s lives,” Rusty said with rancor. “The last thing I needed was to have my dad scold me for irresponsibly making him into a granddad.”

Matty didn’t comment on how much Rusty looked like he cared about what his dad thought. From his point of view, it was also interesting that Mr. Parker took such close interest in his eldest son.

“Read,” Rusty demanded. “I want to hear what those fuckers have to say about me.”

“Is that a good idea? They’re just idiots,” Matty said, trying to downplay Rusty’s reason to be angry at Connor’s little organization.

“No. I was just doing something good and--” Rusty stopped abruptly. “Please, Matty, read.”

“Only if you promise that we won’t end up in a ditch,” Matty replied while keeping his phone close to his chest.

“Maddox would have my ass if I return this baby with as little as a scratch on it. Spoiler alert. I don’t want Maddox to have my ass.”

Joking was a good way to diffuse the tension. “Who do you want to have your ass, then?”

Rusty snorted. “Isn’t it obvious? You, of course. Just read. I have a thirst in me to be righteously pissed.”

Matty stared at the handsome profile. What had Rusty meant by that? He shook his head to pull himself out of whatever fantasies his mind was capable of conjuring based on those three words alone.

He cleared his throat and began. The title was enough to make him roll his eyes.

About Collective Responsibility And How Individuals Can Contribute To The Greater Good

For too long, campus life has equated with pursuing a type of living that has nothing in common with academic endeavors. We strongly believe in collective responsibility, which is why we bring forth one of the most troubling developments faced by one of our students. Rusty Parker, celebrated as he continues to be some sort of poster boy for our college, is said to have recently behaved in a manner we can only describe as beyond reprehensible.

Getting into sordid details is not our modus operandi. There are others who take care of that, much to our chagrin. But the truth remains: Rusty Parker and one female student that shall remain unnamed will be parents, not because they made a responsible decision, but because they played too close to the fire.

Who is guilty for the new life that will be brought into the world by young people who are not even capable of looking after themselves? First of all, the would-be parents, you will feel tempted to say.

But we’re not here to play righteous and point fingers. No, far from it. We’ve started our organization and our publication to elevate and help the student population here at Sunny Hill. What happens within the borders of our campus is our collective responsibility.

It is our role, our duty, to help those of us who make mistakes. So, using this particular case as an example, this is our call to arms. Let’s help Rusty Parker. Let’s make him understand why becoming a father, while being so obviously unprepared, will have an impact on the new life that will soon be brought into this world, and not a positive one. How you decide to do that is up to you.

We’re a community, Sunny Hill. We can be better. And we will. We trust in ourselves.

“Fuck me sideways,” Rusty groaned.

Matty pondered and looked over the text again. No wonder John thought it was perfectly okay for him to grab other people’s things and destroy them. The idiot thought he was helping, and it was Connor Williams who was putting ideas of that nature in his head and not only.

“I’m afraid you’re going to have to prepare for all the help you’re going to get.”

“This Implacable Team is starting to get on my nerves.” Rusty munched on his lower lip, and he looked pissed, but he wasn’t tearing his eyes off the road, which was a good thing.

“Don’t let it ruin your day,” Matty suggested. “Gabriel loves you to bits, and I bet all his friends are going to say that his birthday party was the best they’ve ever gone to. For at least three days,” he added with a smile.

“Yeah,” Rusty admitted.

“Your brother admires you. Do you visit them often?”

“Once in a blue moon or so. Less if I can help it.” Rusty shrugged, but Matty could tell that his very special friend wasn’t completely comfortable with that particular choice of his. “It makes you wonder why the hell he holds me in such high esteem, right?”

“No, it doesn’t,” Matty contradicted him. “You make an impression everywhere you go. And I guess that Gabriel is at that age when having a brother in college makes him the coolest kid on the block.”

“Maybe,” Rusty agreed half-heartedly.

There was a lot lurking under the surface. Matty could tell, but he couldn’t say that he understood everything. “And your sister grabbed your arm and didn’t let go for hours. She’s a stubborn one. I’ve never seen so many young kids getting the boot while trying to get close to someone. She’s fierce, I have to say. I wish I had siblings.”

Rusty turned his head slightly to give him a half-crooked smile. “I’d say that it’s not all that it’s cracked up to be, but I’d sound like an asshole. They’re great kids. It’s not their fault their dad is an asshole.”

Matty hesitated. He wanted to learn more about Roy Parker, but he wasn’t sure that he wouldn’t sour the mood even further.

“You should have heard his reaction when I told him that Maddox’s totally gay now.” Rusty smirked. It looked like he liked getting on his dad’s nerves as often as he could.

“Is he a homophobe?” Matty asked and frowned.

Rusty shook his head. “Not in the way that he’d burn people at the stake or something. But you know, it’s like he thinks it’s such a disappointing thing for a parent to discover that their kid is gay. He even said that to me. He said that Maddox’s parents must be so disappointed right now. Flash news. They’re not.”

“Did you tell him that?”

“Of course. He didn’t have a comeback to that. Not really. He just said something about the Kingsleys having plenty of children to give them grandchildren anyway.”

“He does sound a bit like an asshole,” Matty admitted.

“Just a bit?” Rusty snorted. “If a guy doesn’t excel at something, it’s like he’s worthless in his eyes.”

“Is that why you’re the king of Sunny Hill?”

“What?”

Matty looked away. The question had come to him unbidden, like it was a logical conclusion that Rusty was trying to impress his dad in his own way.

“How about we get something to eat? There’s a place halfway home. I’m buying, obviously,” Rusty said quickly as if he wanted to change the subject.

“Can you still eat after all that?” Matty asked.

“No. But I just want us to enjoy a little break from driving before heading home.”

“Why?”

Rusty grinned and winked at him. “I was today years old,” he said in a silly robotic voice, “when I found out that I have a deep need to ravish a Clark Kent cosplayer.”

Matty stared for a moment. Then he blinked. “For real?”

The look Rusty gave him left no room for guessing.

“Should we find a comic con in the area then?” Matty teased.

Rusty laughed, tipping his head back briefly and looking his usual carefree self. “No need for that. I have the cosplay winner riding shotgun with me.”

TBC