The Future Awaits
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Chapter 26
With the boys in and out, the time flies by. Even though Tor and I have been preparing for the fall semester, it hardly seems possible when Mike and Tommy begin to pack for their return to school.
We also have our work coming up, so before Tor has to begin taking the students out on the research vessel, we enjoy the quiet of our home. Tor surprises me the next Friday evening when he tells me to pack a picnic lunch.
"For what?"
"Dave told me he needed more than one person qualified to handle the boat, so he told me to take it out tomorrow."
"I thought you were qualified. Besides, don't they have a regular captain."
"They do, but he's part-time. It's been so long since I've taken the boat out I need to get checked out again. The captain will be with us, so fix enough for five. Dave and Martha are going along for the ride."
The day is perfect. It would be a little hot were it not for a gentle breeze. The surprise for me comes when we board and the captain calls, "Welcome aboard, Drew." It's Gary.
"Well, damn! When did you make captain?"
He grins. "Doctor Curtis asked me one day if I had my license. I got it soon as I could when I started going' out with my dad, so when I told him I did, he said he needed me for this."
I shake his hand. "Congratulations, Captain."
"Thanks. I'm gonna like working with Tor. Might even learn somethin'. He's a great teacher."
"He may be, but for sure he doesn't know these waters like you do. I feel a lot better knowing you're in charge."
I watch Gary and Tor preparing to get underway, not believing the change in Gary. There's no doubt who's in charge when he begins to order Tor around. I'm just as amazed that Tor doesn't give him some argument, but pays close attention to everything he says instead. After we're out in the sound, I wander back to the stern to sit with Dave and Martha.
"How are things going on the bridge?" Dave asks.
I shake my head. "I'm not believing it. Gary's in total control and Tor's not giving him any static."
Dave grins. "Neither of them know it, but this is a shake-down cruise for both of them. Gary's so quiet I wasn't sure he was hard enough to take charge, so I figured if anyone would give him a bad time, it was Tor."
I have to laugh. "Tor's not saying a word."
"Then I think I made a good choice in making Gary captain. Tor's thoroughly competent, but he needed to get the feel of this thing again."
Though it's a training session for Tor, the trip turns into an impromptu party. After Gary has made Tor take the boat through the inlet into the ocean, staying close in, Tor drops the small seine trawler over for a few minutes. When he brings it back up there are several nice flounder in it. Tor looks at Gary, who winks back. Dave opens one of the live tanks and flips them in then Tor dumps the rest of the catch back over. Once Tor has brought us back through the inlet, he drops anchor in the sound and we break open the picnic lunch I brought along. I have my little camera, so I get several shots each of Gary and Tor at the wheel, and of us all enjoying our picnic. I'll scan them to send to Mike.
Gary grins. "Ain't exactly legal to get flounder in a bottom net, but them will sure be good eatin'."
"Exactly," Martha says. "We'll be having them for dinner tonight, Captain. I hope you will join us."
"Thank you, ma'am. I'll get 'em cleaned and filleted while Tor's takin' us in."
I'm not a great lover of fish, but Martha has stuffed these with plenty of crab meat and broiled them with lemon butter – superb! With his new position as the official captain of the institute's research vessel, Gary is no longer as shy as I've always thought him. He entertains us at dinner with some stories of his experiences with people on charter boats.
Sunday evening I scan several of the photos and send them to Mike, getting an almost instant reply which amuses me.
Damn! Why'd you guys wait until Tommy and me are stuck in school to have a picnic on the boat? Looks like it was a lot of fun. With Gary as captain and Tor on board, the trips sure aren't going to be any pleasure cruise. Guess I'd better start studying up so I don’t catch any grief. Love you guys.
I begin work on another text, this one in my field. Mike and Tommy seldom come home, so I surmise they are happy to be back with their girls, but I am surprised when I get an e-mail from Stephan and Luc asking if they can come for a weekend.
"Wonder why they want to come without Mike and Tommy?" Tor asks.
I shrug. "Maybe they want one more chance at the beach while the weather's still warm."
Naa. Got to be more than that."
"Neither of them is in our field, so there's nothing we can offer them in the way of help." I glance at my watch. "Guess we'll find out shortly. What you want for dinner?"
"Don't bother with anything, we'll go to the pier."
The boys arrive about six. Tor and I both notice their serious expressions.
"It's awfully good of you to let us come, Doctor Torrence," Luc says as we shake hands. "Stephan and I need some advice and we didn't know anybody else to ask."
"It's good to have you again. Put your bags in your room and wash up if you want. No need to change, we're going to the pier for dinner. We'll talk after." Tor says.
Over dinner, the boys exchange a lot of looks, but never change their solemn expressions. Whatever it is they want to talk to us about is serious. After we're back home, I fix coffee and we settle down for the talk, the boys sitting side by side on the sofa. Luc looks particularly uncomfortable, so Stephan takes over. "We both realize this is awfully personal, sir, but Luc and I want to ask about your life with Doctor Drew."
Tor's eyebrows raise. "I assume you have a good reason for asking."
"Yes, sir. Luc and me … we're in love and we want to stay together after we graduate. We don't know any other guys who are," he blushes, "like, well, married."
"There's no need to be embarrassed, Stephan. Drew and I are married in every sense of the word. Our love for each other is very deep and lasting. Like you, I don't have my left hand, so the rings in Drew's ear and mine take the place of wedding rings."
Stephan smiles at Luc, as Tor continues. "We hadn't quite expected it, but having a couple of sons makes our love even stronger."
"How'd you get away with it?" Luc asks. "I mean Mike told us he was only ten when you adopted him, and you live so openly."
"We did some good lying and had some professional help in Mike's case, but I'm not going to tell you more than that to protect the people who helped us. As for Drew and me, he was in high school and I had just started at the U when we met. We were living with a pedophile who had a thing for amputee kids. When Drew finished high school, I had his tutor put Torrence on his school records so people would think he was my brother when he went to the U. Later he legally changed his name and we continue to let everyone assume we're brothers. There are actually only a few people who know the truth, so I trust you and Stephan to respect our privacy."
Luc looks down at the carpet. "I'm sorry, sir. We shouldn't have asked."
"It's okay. I wouldn't have told you if I thought you were going to spread this around. If you two plan to establish a lasting relationship, you're going to have to find some story to cover your life together. It won't be hard for you to pass as brothers because of the resemblance you share. The problem will be having different names. No, wait; you can be half-brothers. That should work nicely."
"You really think so?" Stephan asks.
"People will think you're brothers a hell of a lot faster than they would believe it of Tor and me. If I hadn't changed my name I doubt anyone would believe it."
"I wish I could change my name to Luc's, but we've both got families," Stephan says. He grabs Luc's hand and squeezes it. "I love you, Luc."
Luc glances at us then kisses Stephan. "I love you, too."
Tor grins. "You guys have just taken the first step toward true love."
Startled, Luc looks at us. "What do you mean, sir?"
"Simple. You kissed Stephan in front of other people."
Luc's face turns red. "Sorry, sir. But I figured with you all being gay …"
"Exactly. It's perfectly alright for you to do it in front of Drew and me, and you can get away with it in front of Mike and Tommy since they know, but you'd better be damned careful everywhere else. Same goes for touching each other, unless you have a good reason."
"I know it's hard when you really love each other, but being careful will save you guys a lot of grief." I add.
"I know what you mean, sir," Stephan says.
Tor's eyes bore into Luc's. "Now I'm going to ask you the toughest question of all, Luc, and I want a completely honest answer. If you want time to think, or want Stephan to leave the room before you answer, say so."
Luc looks at Tor, then at Stephan. "I don't have any secrets from Stephan, sir."
Tor nods. "That's the way it should be, but there are times when it's best not to tell the complete truth. I don't mean you should lie to him, but you may want to delay an immediate answer if it's going to hurt the person you love. Guess you could call 'em little white lies."
Stephan starts to get up. "I'll go outside."
Luc puts his arm around Stephan. "No, love. I'm not hiding anything from you. Go ahead, sir," he says to Tor.
Tor nods approvingly. "Good for you. Stay completely open with each other. Luc, how do you feel deep down about Stephan's prostheses? He'll always be dependent on them."
Stephan looks at Luc warily, but Luc looks into his eyes and answers, "I don’t give a damn about 'em, love. They're part of you and I love you." He kisses Stephan before looking at us. "I really don't give a damn, sir. I'm sorry he has to have them, but they don't change how I feel about him. I … I like it when he takes them off and lets me rub his stumps." His face is red again.
"I can't speak for Stephan, but I sure love it when Tor rubs mine. He likes me to love his stump, too."
"Damn, Drew, don't give away all our secrets." Tor's smiling.
"I love the way it feels," Stephan chimes in. "Luc makes me feel so special, when I never thought a great guy like him would ever look at me."
"Well, guys, it looks to us like you're going to make a great couple. Drew and I want you to feel free to come to us any time we can help you."
"There's one very important thing Tor left out."
"What?" Tor asks.
"Let your love for each other be based on trust. If one of you speaks to or goes somewhere with another guy, don't get in a jealous rage. That'll bust up a relationship faster than anything I know."
I can tell Tor hasn't forgotten. He looks at me sadly, then says, "Drew's right, guys. If he wasn't the kindest most forgiving man one could ever hope to find, our life together would have been over years ago. I was so in love with him I couldn't stand it when another guy made a move on him. I blamed Drew for it and it wasn't that way at all. Trust each other completely, or you'll never make it with all the other things you have to worry about."
Stephan and Luc go into a clinch. Finally, they separate and Stephan smiles at Luc. "See, dummy, I told you Mike's dads would understand."
Luc smiles at us. "You all are really great to lay it on the line like this. I've sure learned a lot, and I want us to have as good a life together as yours. I wish I knew how to thank you."
"You thanked us by trusting us enough to come talk to us. Tor and I want you to remember you can always come to us with any problem. We may not have all the answers, but we can talk things out with you guys like we've just done. There have been a few times we've needed help, too, and we're lucky enough to have a couple of good friends we can talk to. If you guys ever need any legal advice, let me or Tor know. We know a gay lawyer who knows most of the tricks."
Stephan's eyes are moist when he gets up and comes over to hug me. "Now I really know why Tommy loves you so much. Thanks, Doctor Torrence. Luc and I will make it now."
"That everything?" Tor asks.
"Just one thing you can't help me with," Luc says. "Stephan's taking me home with him Thanksgiving, but I can't take him home with me."
"Why not?"
"My parents don't know I'm gay, because I wasn't absolutely certain myself until I met Stephan. I mean I've dated some girls," he blushes again when he looks at Stephan, "fucked a few of 'em, too."
"When do you plan to tell your parents?" Tor asks. "Sooner or later it's going to come out."
"I was sort of hoping I wouldn't have to."
"That's not fair to them or you, much less to Stephan, if you really love him."
"I do love him, sir!" Luc cries.
"Then take him home with you for a weekend or a short holiday. If your parents raise any question, be honest with them. It won't be easy. Did Stephan tell you what happened to me?"
"No, sir."
"I got thrown out of my home before I was fifteen, because my old man is a raving homophobe. I've been back once and he slammed the door in my face. That's hard to take."
Luc's face is anguished. "That's what I'm afraid of, sir. If they throw me out I won’t be able to get my graduate degree, because they're paying for my education. If I don't get that, I won't ever get a good job teaching."
"Are you certain they'll feel that way?" I ask.
He shakes his head. "They don't ever mention anything about gays. My dad saw a little of a gay pride parade on TV and said they were pitiful. He's into sports a lot. He was proud as hell when I made varsity."
"I wish Tor and I knew what to tell you, Luc, but we don't. Maybe sometime when you're home you could say something about the gay students on campus and see what sort of reaction you get. At least that will give you some idea."
"I guess maybe I could."
"You know Drew and I are here for you if you need us."
"Yes, sir."
Apparently relieved, they spend Saturday on the beach, then Luc insists that he and Stephan will take Tor and me to dinner that night. He loves the food at the pier as much as we. After we've had lunch on Sunday, he and Stephan return to school.
"Well?" Tor asks me as the boys drive off.
"We've given them a lot to think about. I hope it works out for them, because they're good kids. Mike and Tommy can understand, so I'm glad they're sharing a suite together for Luc and Stephan's sakes."
"I don't envy Luc having to tell his parents. I hope they're understanding."
To be continued...
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