House of Boys

Chapter 15

Moses

Dinner was shocking, and even though I wish he had warned me, I get it.
I also don't feel it's my place to say anything, we haven't been together for even a week. Are we even together?
Jordan and I just aren't there yet, so it makes sense he never told me I guess.

"Are you upset with me?" Jordan asks taking me out of my trance.

"No," I reply, then eat another spoonful of ice cream.
Everyone is inside with their dessert except Jason who went upstairs.
Jordan and I are alone on the porch, my Dad's suggestion, sitting on the bench enjoying the cool night air and eating ice cream.

"My Dad probably won't let me go," Jordan moves his spoon around the melting bowl of glop he's holding hunched over with a disappointed look.

"But you really want to go, right?" I don't want to hear the answer but I ask anyway.

Jordan gives me a sad look and nods his head, "There's talks that the company could expand to South Korea."

I nod my head, "You want to go there too."

"I was supposed to travel the world with Greg, my friend from college," Jordan puts his bowl down then continues, "Mom and Dad were getting the paperwork ready so that he could be my guardian while we trek the globe." Jordan suddenly stops and I realize he is crying.

"Your mom died?" I wipe away Jordans tears and lean in and hold him.

"I had to take the job at MDev and help dad with the bills, I'm fifteen, I should be having fun and being a kid."

I put my ice cream down and hold him with both hands leaning in to kiss him on his forehead.

"This way you can help with the bills and travel," I squeeze Jordan tightly and take in the smell of his expensive cologne, " I feel like a child when I'm around you."

Jordan pushes me away and wipes his eyes, "What do you mean?" he asks between sniffles.

"You're all responsible and have a full time job, you always smell nice and all your friends are adults."

Jordan smiles at me and bites his lip, I can't avoid gazing at them. I lean in and kiss him and he kisses me back, putting his hand around my waist and pulling me in.

The backdoor opens and we pull apart to catch my Dad pulling Mr. Joseph back into the house.

"Mario, seriously!"

"They can't do anything while we're watching them."

"But you didn't even want them dating," we hear Mr. Joseph say right before the doors close.

We both laugh and our lips meet for another kiss, our second uninterrupted kiss, but who's counting.

-------------------

Monday I have to meet Coach Windsor, and I'm nervous. I want to spend the day working on free throws but my Dad thinks I should take the weekend off.

"All week you've been working out and shooting ball, it's time to rest," He said this morning as he took my running shoes and basketball and put them in his room.

I can't sit still so I'm pacing the living room, aka my bedroom, trying to focus on anything else. My Dad sits at the kitchen table drinking his second cup of coffee and watching tik tok videos, laughing away enjoying his day, but my mind can't focus on anything except for what Mom said.

"Dad?" I join him at the table but my leg won't stop jumping.

"Yes kid," he shuts off his phone and puts it on the table.

"Does Mom know you're gay too?" That wasn't the question I planned to ask but the thought has been on my mind for a while. I join him at the table and wait for his answer.

Dad takes a moment as if he is thinking of how to answer the question, "I don't want you to hate me," he takes a deep breath, "she knows."

I can tell there is more but I don't know how to ask about it so I reach out and hold my Dads hand to encourage him to go on.

"I cheated on your Mom, and she caught us."

My jaw drops and I back away from my Dad, I don't know what to say right now.

"We decided to just try," he continues, "I was afraid she would take you away and I wouldn't see you again, so I agreed to her terms."

I pause and try to process what my Dad just said, "When was this?"

"Maybe six or seven years ago," he takes a deep breath, "it was before your tenth birthday."

"The one where we went to Alabama to see Mom's cousin," I try to remember all the details of that birthday, "Mom says you were busy finding a job so you couldn't come with us." I look over at Dad and I can tell he has a different story.

"I had no idea where you were that year, she wouldn't answer my calls." A tear rolls down my fathers cheek and he quickly wipes it away, "She proved that she could take you away without a trace, so I behaved."

I feel a tear rolling down my face too and rub at my eyes, "So when she found out about me, she already knew about you."

My Dad's eyes flash open, "What she said to you after she caught you." Dad jumps from his chair then throws his arms around me holding me tightly, "I keep failing you, I'm sorry."

We cry together.