Elation filled me. “He’s here? Where? With whom?”
I was a paradox of emotions. Relieved to find he was alive and well, and mad that he didn't get in touch with me just to let me know he was fine. I rose to my feet as Charlie pointed me in the direction. I rounded the wall which blocked the other side of the restaurant from me.
And there he was. That son of mine, casually sitting in a small booth all by himself. He must have sensed my presence because he looked up and when he saw me, he freaked out. He started to get up before he sank down in his seat and went back to his plate of cheesy fries and chicken fingers.
“Ol-” I choked on his name, unable to get it all out. “Ollie, thank God, you’re okay, son.”
He stared down at his plate. “Don’t call me that. I told you I wasn’t your son.” Something was strange about how he said those words this time. Regret laced his words.
“I was so worried about you,” I told him, sliding into the booth across from him. I couldn’t stop looking at him, checking that he really was okay and sitting across from me. “Why didn’t you call me?”
“I’m not your responsibility,” he replied. “I’ve nothing to say to you.”
“Well, I’ve a lot to say to you. I love you, son and I want you to come home. Things have not been the same without you.”
He glanced up then from me to Beau and Charlie who lingered back from us. “Seems you’ve got your family started again. You don’t need me.”
“You’re wrong. No one could replace you. Even when you’re old, you’ll never stop being my son.”
“But I’m not!” he snapped, and I could see his knees bouncing under the table. “I’m not your son, and you are not my father.”
“That’s right, Gordon. You should listen to him. He’s not your son.”
Conscious of the eyes in the restaurant observing us with curiosity, I stiffened at the sound of Eric’s voice. He sauntered up to the table, a smug smile on his face.
“Eric. What are you doing here?”
“I’m here, hanging out with my son,” he answered.
I got to my feet. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about the fact that Ollie isn’t your child,” he remarked with a smirk. “You sure had Barb fool you. Ollie never was full term, was he? Do you never wonder why?”
“He was just a preemie. Many babies are born prematurely.”
“Did he look premature to you?” Eric said with a chuckle. “Would they allow him to leave the hospital the next day if he was? Don’t be a fool, Gordon. After all these years, you should know the truth. Ollie is my kid. You see, Barb and I had been messing with each other way back, before you. When she got pregnant, I wasn’t ready to be a father yet, so she told you the baby was yours.”
I glanced at Ollie, the boy I’d raised as my own since he was born. He didn’t look at me, and I knew Eric had already discussed this with him. As much as Eric couldn’t be trusted, I couldn’t dismiss his claim. Ollie had been born just over seven months, and he never spent a day in the preemie unit at the hospital. Barbara also hadn’t been keen on us being a couple when I first tried, but then she had been willing all of a sudden. The next thing I knew she was pregnant.
“Is this why you’ve not come home?” I asked Ollie, diverting the anger I had by ignoring Eric. “You think you’re not my son?”
“He proved it,” Ollie answered.
“I don’t give a damn what any test says, Ollie. I raised you as my own. I loved you from the moment you were born and placed in my arms. Nothing will ever change the fact that I am your father.”
“Except you’re not, and I won’t let you raise my child!”
I almost lunged at him, but Beau held me back. “Gordon, don’t!”
“It’s too damn late for you to try to play father!” I shouted at him. “He’s my son, and you can’t change that. You can’t take that away from me.”
“Except he’s not and he’ll tell you he’d rather stay with me just as he has been doing for the past week and a half.”
Anger boiled inside me. “You had him all this time? I was worried about him. Your damn department is searching for him, and you had him all this time.”
I shook Beau off and was about to lunge at him again, but the manager who had been called to observe us situated himself between us.
“Sir, you’re causing a scene,” the manager announced, giving me his attention. “I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
“I’m not going anywhere unless my son goes with me!” I snapped, turning to Ollie. “Please, Ollie, you can’t stay with him. He’s not who you think he is. He’s not a nice person, and he will hurt you.”
“I’d never hurt him,” Eric stated. “He’s my son. Why would I harm him?”
Dry-mouthed, I glanced from him to Ollie. The words were on the tip of my tongue to blurt out that he would hurt the boy if he found out he was gay, but I couldn’t let out Ollie’s secret like that. His secret was not mine to tell. And what if I blurted out his secret and he walked out of here, deciding not to stay with any of us. I wouldn’t trust Eric to not go after him. I had to find a way to communicate with Ollie what he was setting himself up for with a man like Eric.
“Sir, if you don’t leave, we’re going to have to call the police,” the manager announced, pointing at me. “These two were here peacefully before you came along.”
“I’m not leaving!” I insisted.
“Gordon.” Beau clutched my arm. “It’s best for us to go.”
“I can’t leave Ollie with him, Beau. You know what he’s like.” I turned to Ollie. “You need to leave with me. Now. He’s not your friend.”
Ollie turned cold eyes towards me, his mouth set in a mutinous line. “I know. He’s my father.”
“You heard the boy,” the manager announced. “Come on, let’s go.”
Beau tugged at my arm. “Remember what happened the last time, Gordon. Let it go for now. At least we know where he is.”
“That’s right, Gordon. Listen to your boyfriend.” He spat the word at us.
I wanted to wrap my arms around his neck, and it hurt because he was supposed to be the brother I never had. But when it came to my children, I didn’t care who stood in my way, and this man was a threat to my son.
“If you so much as harm him, Eric,” I said, my teeth clenched. “I’ll find you, and I’ll make you pay for it. I already owe you one for what you did to Beau. If you hurt my son, it may very well be the last breath you take.”
“That’s it!” the manager announced. “I’m calling the police.”
I could have told him not to bother since we were leaving anyway. It killed me to leave Ollie inside the restaurant with Eric. Every moment he was with the other man, he was in danger of being exposed, and if Eric found out Ollie was gay, how much different would he act to when he had abused Beau?
I couldn’t let that happen to Ollie. Not over my dead body.
Chapter 34
Beau
“What time is your hearing?” Gordon asked as I walked him to the door, so he could go home and get ready for work. He’d come over last night sensing how nervous I was about today. He’d calmed my nerves by distracting me with sex. We’d loved on each other so hard last night I’d fallen asleep right after our shower. Last night had been a sweet reunion.
“At ten,” I told him.
“Okay, I’ll try to be there at that time. You did say it was an open hearing, right?”
I nodded and grimaced. “It is. I wish the board would just fire me in quiet, but they claim it’s a controversial issue that members of the school body should be welcome to participate in.”
He reached behind me to cup my butt. “You won’t be fired. You’re a good teacher.”
“Albeit a gay one.”
He pulled me into him at the door and plastered his lips on mine. I kissed him back and clutched at his arms, the hearing temporarily forgotten. All I wanted was to drag him back to bed an
d topple him onto his knees, so I could fuck him. Last night he had been inside me, and now I wanted to do the same to him.
“Everything will be fine,” he said. “I have to believe that, or I’ll go crazy. Ollie will be home soon. You’ll still have your job, and we’ll be one big happy family laughing at all this madness sometime soon.”
I chuckled. “You tell quite a happily ever after ending. I hope for both our sakes and the kids, you’re right.”
“You don’t think if I come there I’ll only be stirring up more trouble for you?” he asked me fretfully.
I shrugged. “Who knows? At this moment, I can’t even care enough to worry about it.”
“I do want to support you, but don’t want you to lose your job.”
“If only we got the opportunity to make that call.”
We kissed one last time before he left, and I closed the door behind me and leaned against it. We had found each other again despite the problems we had. I hoped for our sakes we would be able to overcome this hurdle too. Only two challenges remained for us, Ollie still refusing to return home and my job.
I went back to bed to lie down for a minute but fell asleep again, Gordon’s pillow clutched to my chest. When I woke up, it was almost eight thirty. I made breakfast, ate and straightened up the apartment before I showered. I found a pair of dress slacks and a nice shirt to wear along with my loafers. I hated that I felt I was about to be tried. Principal McLean had asked me to come prepared to have my final say before they signed off on their decision, but I had nothing to say. Gordon had volunteered to pay for a lawyer for me but I’d refused. I believed my work should have spoken for me. I’d contributed to the education of the school and also helped to build the community.
What more could they really want from me? To bleed the gay blood from my veins? Maybe then they would have seen it was no different from their own. I’d still die the way I entered this world. A gay man.
I drove to the school, and from the tension in the atmosphere, others anticipated the day. The parking lot was even fuller than usual. Even though I tried not to be nervous, I couldn’t help it. I was only glad that class was in session, so I didn’t get to run into any of my students to explain to them why I was here. If only their parents saw things the way they did.
At the principal's office, I was briefed about the format of the hearing. They would use one of the larger conference rooms to facilitate representatives of the school community who took an interest in the case. I felt like a damn bug under a microscope. Members of the PTA body were in attendance to voice their own concerns, I bet. I entered the room where the members of the board all sat, including stakeholders who had not been present the last time. I spotted the woman who tried to hit on me at the PTA conference, and she looked smug about the turn of events. I had no doubt which way her vote would sway.
Principal McLean called the meeting to order and gave an overview of my “crime,” which amounted to corrupting the morals of the institution. Before he could continue, there was a knock on the door. The closest person sitting to the door checked and turned to us dubiously.
“What’s going on there?” the principal asked, annoyed the meeting was interrupted.
“It’s some students, sir. They are asking to be allowed in the hearing.”
“Absolutely not! They should be in class.”
He stalked from the helm of the table where he was speaking and to the door. I couldn’t see outside the door based on my position, but his reaction was comical at best. His eyes bulged, and he clutched the door in a state of shock.
“Get to your classrooms at once!” he snapped. “Or the lot of you will be given a detention.”
“We have a right to be present if you want to dismiss our teacher,” a familiar voice said.
Charlie? I stood in surprise and peered over the principal’s shoulder. My knees went weak to find a group of students gathered outside the conference room. There had to be at least fifty of them as far as I could see.
“You listen to me young lady, I have no problem getting rid of you like I did your deviant of a brother! Now get to your classrooms at once!”
The principal slammed the door shut and returned to his position. “I apologize for the rudeness of the students. Now let’s begin.”
Mr. Gayle, the Chairman of the Board raised his hand. “I have a suggestion. Why not allow a select few of the students to sit in since they are so concerned about their teacher being treated fairly? It would do us good to listen to their voices on the matter as well.”
The principal wanted to argue, but two other board members nodded their agreement. Curious as to the events unfolding, I said nothing but waited until some of the students were admitted to the room. At first, I thought they were students from the play, but others were included in the mix, notably Adam Lacove who had testified against me before. An older woman who entered resembled him, and I groaned inwardly. She had to be the boy’s mother. I didn’t see this boding well for me at all.
“Now that’s settled, can we please get back to the matter at hand,” the principal stated. “The dismissal of Beau Moreau for improper conduct and corrupting the morals of this institution.”
What followed was nothing short of a judgment. The woman from the conference spoke up, referencing that evening she had returned to my classroom and found me talking to Gordon. “I thought it was very suspicious the condition I found them in,” she remarked. “We cannot have that around our kids. Not at all.”
I frowned and raised my hand, refusing to be accused wrongfully.
“Mr. Moreau, you’ll be given your time to address us,” the principal stated, dismissing my hand.
By the time he asked if I had anything I wanted to say, I was so overwhelmed that I shook my head. I didn’t know where to begin. Why should I have to defend who I was and who I loved? I couldn’t do it anymore. I stood to lose my job, but I wasn’t going to grovel with them like they wanted me to do. I had done nothing wrong. I had no reason to be here defending myself.
“Mr. Moreau, this is your opportunity to set the record straight,” a member of the board remarked. “Are you sure you don’t want to take this opportunity given to you?”
The door opened, and I glanced sideways at the newcomer. My heart skipped a beat to find Gordon had entered the room. He closed the door behind him, and his eyes found mine. Within their depths, he questioned whether I was okay or not. I gave him a nod, and a smile, then turned back to the members of the board.
“I stand by what I said,” I remarked. “I’ve done no wrong here. I’ve upheld the rules of this institution. If you’re going to fire me simply because of the gender of the person I love, then it’s your call.”
“If that’s all,” the principal announced, looking smug. “We’ll have the members of our board deciding on the issue.”
“We have something to say, Principal McLean.”
I gave Gordon a quizzical look at his daughter’s announcement. Did he know about this? His shrug told me he didn’t. He mouthed that he loved me, and I did the same, feeling better already. Regardless of what happened today, everything would be alright. Gordon and I would find a way.
“Make it quick, Miss Mattis!” Principal McLean snapped.
All eyes turned to Charlie with interest. I couldn’t take my eyes off of her even if Gordon stripped naked in the room. This was one show his daughter would have won. Before, I had thought of how much she had grown since I just met her, but this was another level. The grieving Charlie I had encountered was buried beneath this strong girl who was willing to fight for what she believed in. And she believed in me. That touched me.
“I’m Charlotte Mattis,” she introduced herself. “And almost a year ago my mother died. She committed suicide, and I found her.” I checked on Gordon to find out how he was handling the situation. His eyes were trained on his daughter, but I saw the way he was clutching at his chair, ready to go to her if she needed him. “I was devastated, and I didn’t know how to cope
. Then Mr. Moreau arrived here, and he started to teach me French. Outside of what he taught in the classroom, he was friendly, easy to talk to, and patient. He was so very patient. Where teachers didn’t notice my silence or ignored me because they didn’t know what to do, he tried to engage me in classes. Then he introduced me to the play he organizes at the community center. I watch kids like me go to the community center three days a week to be a part of that production. Kids who stand with me today that Mr. Moreau is being mistreated because he’s gay.”
She motioned for a student to stand who had entered the room with her. Matthew Brooks was another student who was a part of our play. He stood and glanced at me. “Mr. Moreau, I owe you a public apology,” he said. “If not for me, you wouldn’t be in this position today. I videoed you on my phone and sent it to a friend. I never meant for it to get out of hand. I didn’t mean any harm, and I’m sorry. I hope you can forgive me.”
I’d always wondered who had taken the video and now I knew, I was disappointed but, could see the kid’s remorse. I nodded to show him I accepted his apology. He sat and the kid I was accused of giving ill advise stood.
“I’m Adam Lacove,” the boy said. “And I’m the kid in question who Mr. Moreau spoke to.”
“I think we’ve heard enough from the kids today,” Mr. McLean said with a forced smile. “Why don’t we escort them out and have the adults settle this matter? Kids rarely have informed opinions.”
The woman I assumed was his mother rose to her feet. “My son has something to say, and I’d like everyone to hear it.”
“Go ahead, Adam,” the Chairman advised.
“Thank you.” And points for being polite. I couldn’t help but be proud. “I approached Mr. Moreau because I was conflicted about myself,” he continued. “You see, before I learned about Mr. Moreau, there’s no else I knew around who I could look up to and emulate. I’ve known I’m gay for three years now, and I struggled with it, trying to be what people consider normal. I didn’t feel like I was able to talk to my mom about it. I felt she would be disappointed. I’m glad I spoke to Mr. Moreau. He gave me the confidence I needed to come out to my mother. That day I was brought to the principal’s office, I was afraid of my record being spoiled, so I was not completely honest, and just agreed to whatever Mr. McLean wanted me to say.”
Easy Does It Twice Page 25
