Henry really needed to stop driving under the influence of his own frustration. His road-rage was off the charts, but even with his chittering nerves, he was able to make it home without regretting his decision to drive. Everyone was home when he went inside, and it didn't take long for him to find the one person he was looking for. Henry needed to see his brother, because the only thought keeping him from totally breaking down right now, was the mere idea that London could make all of his problems go away. Even though he was sure that wouldn't be the case, he just...he needed his brother.
In the kitchen while London and Marbell were getting ready to cook dinner together, Henry was spotted by his elder brother when the man turned around, confused by the look in Henry's eyes before he was bombarded.
London stumbled a little, the small of his back hitting the counter beside the stove when Henry flung himself into his brother's arms. "Everything is so fucked up," the twenty-one-year-old confessed, voice choking up as a waterfall drenched down his face.
Shit, London thought to himself, "What happened?"
"I'm worthless now," Henry sobbed into his brother's shirt. "I'll never amount to anything but a fucking loser."
London glanced towards his husband and then pried Henry off of him. "What happened? Was it between you and Daniel again?"
Henry gasped, remembering the scene in the hallway at Northwest, "Oh, god, you should have seen his face. I – I scared the shit out of him."
"Henry," Marbell interjected, "What happened at school?"
"I got...expelled."
"What!?" the husbands said at once, and then London went on, "For what? Did you get into a fight with Sun, with Daniel?"
"One of my Professors is banging Sun and they ganged up on me, turned my essay in as one I didn't even write. They said I plagiarized the shit out of my own work when it wasn't mine and the Dean expelled me."
"Plagiarism?" Marbell said, knowing of the harsh punishment that could follow a student if they were caught doing such a thing. With this kind of allegation hanging over his head for the rest of his life, Henry would never make it back into another school on his own. "That's a serious accusation," the man said, fixing his glasses on the bridge of his nose. "And, you're going to hate me for asking this, but you're sure it wasn't your paper?"
"It wasn't mine," Henry said, wiping his eyes, "They even showed me that mess and I tried to tell them, but what Dean in their right mind would believe the son of a known convicted felon over their own staff? You should have seen the way they were looking at me, like I was some kind of fucking idiot. I wrote my own paper, Marbell, you know that, I asked you about my thesis statement and everything. I wouldn't – I wouldn't do this."
"I believe you Henry," Marbell nodded his understanding, "Can you prove they got rid of your other one. Like, do you have it saved on your laptop still?"
"No..." Henry sighed, "I deleted it off of my jumpdrive after I printed it out because it was taking up room. The only copy is the one I handed in because I didn't think I'd need it again, especially for something like this. Fucking Professor Mullen, I should have kicked his ass too."
At that, London asked, "So you did get into a fight?"
"I kind of fought Sun in the middle of the hallway, people were watching. Fuck...and Daniel saw me that way, I almost hit him when I turned around." With the feeling of everything crumbling down around Henry, he covered his mouth and darted for the bathroom on the other side of the stairwell. "I'm gonna be sick!"
He raced into the bathroom and bent over the toilet and threw-up, London coming in quickly after him to hold his hair back. When his brother spit, he said, "We'll do something," London said. "Those assholes aren't going to get away with doing this to my brother. Marbell's got lawyers, I'm sure–."
"Just forget about it," Henry sat back against the bathtub, "Without my other paper as proof, or any cameras in the professor's office, no one will ever find enough evidence to win my case. My academic career is fucked, and after that shit I pulled with Daniel, now my relationship is fucked, too."
"You're kidding, right?" London said, backing up when Henry approached the sink. "You're going to let them get away with this. Well, you might be okay with someone coming along and screwing everything up, but that's not how I do things. What happened to the Henry that doesn't take any bullshit?"
After rinsing his mouth, Henry dried off, and said, "He went out the window when he realized he couldn't win. Its fine, I always knew I'd never amount to anything in life anyways."
"Henry, we can–."
Stepping around London out of the bathroom, the boy just headed for the stairs and climbed them to the second floor. "Just forget about me, London. I'm not worth of your constant worry."
In his bedroom, Henry closed the door, his back sliding down the surface before taking a seat on the floor. His head lulled back against the door then and he grabbed his phone from his pocket. He had missed calls and unread messages from Daniel. Without reading them, he deleted each, and just stared at the name of the person he loved most.
In the past, Daniel had been there for him when no one else was. He was Henry's peace of mind, his second home, a place to go when all he wanted was to get away. Only able to see his fist nearly striking someone like that, it built a fortress of uncertainty inside of him. Henry didn't think he was strong enough to hold back his anger, especially since it was so potent when he was provoked, and it scared him thinking about someday taking all of that anger out on Daniel.
Always, he would love Daniel always, but...
5:46pm – Henry: I can't do this anymore.
Henry almost didn't send the message, but as he watched the sending line race across his screen, it was official in that moment that him and Daniel were no more. He couldn't see the possibilities, couldn't take the fact that his dream of joining a professional career was ruined. What's more, without the ability to do anything with his life now, he wouldn't even be able to support a marriage between them. He felt wholeheartedly that there was no hope for them, no hope for him.
_
Daniel read the words on the screen of his phone, and he suddenly felt like all the air had been knocked out of him. I can't do this anymore. What – what did that mean? His heart pounded as he sat up in his room. His parents were in bed early since they were so jetlagged, leaving the rest of the house quiet, but his heart beat so loud he was sure anyone would be able to hear it.
I can't do this anymore.
That couldn't mean what Daniel was afraid it meant, but as he tried texting Henry back, tried calling him and each message was rejected, and each phone call was dismissed, it only went to prove that Henry had blocked his number. Daniel's breathing became harder and he covered his mouth when he almost cried out. Henry had broken up with him through a text, and Daniel was anything but ready to deal with it. He tried calling again and again, but every time he tried, there was no getting through to the other side to talk to the boy he loved.
This couldn't happen! They were supposed to–
Although Henry wasn't aware, Daniel knew the other boy had plans to propose to him after they graduated. The information slipped a couple weeks back when Marbell forgot it was a secret, but all this time Daniel made sure not to mention it. He'd been so excited for the next fall semester to end, so happy to finally marry the person he's had a crush on since middle school, and loved more than anything since high school. Him and Henry were supposed to start brand new together, get a house of their own, maybe even have a couple children when the time came, not this, this wasn't supposed to happen.
Daniel's whole body shook, terrified not being able to contact Henry, to ask him what was going on, to get through to him better. Was it all over because the other boy had been expelled? Was it over because Henry nearly punched him?
Crying his eyes out, Daniel sat up in his bedroom, sobbing his sorrows into his hands as a puddle of tears began to form. With a shaking voice, Daniel then got an idea and quickly dialed London's cellphone. After a minute of ringing, it was answered by the man, and he said, "London, y–you have to let me t–talk to Henry, he won't answer me!"
"Whoa, calm down," London said, "What's going on now?"
"He br-broke up with me."
"Holy shit, are you serious?"
"Please, L–London, you have to put him on the phone."
"I – uh – I'll try, okay?"
"Please, thank you."
Daniel waited, listening to the other side for any sign of Henry, and when he heard London's failed attempts to get his brother to open the door, he knew then that there was no getting through to him. "He won't open up," London said then, "I'm sorry, Daniel. I'll see if I can talk him into calling you himself."
"London, please, I can't lose him."
"I'll talk to him," the other man promised, "Just, don't do anything stupid in the meantime."
_
London tucked his cellphone away and knocked on the bedroom door. Since Henry had shut himself inside not that long ago, London thought his younger brother just needed a little time to think. He couldn't imagine what could be going through either of Henry's or Daniel's mind. He didn't have experience going to college, hell London hadn't even graduated from high school. He'd gotten his GED after moving back in with his siblings, but there was never any drive in him that steered him towards furthering his education. For once, he couldn't relate to his brother, and that alone worried London. Was there anything he could say?
Or, maybe Henry wouldn't want to talk to him about it. With that in mind, London went downstairs to the kitchen. Marbell had started steaming the vegetables, dressed down in a black tank top and olive yoga pants, his brown hair a little tousled. "Hey," London came up behind him, "I need a favor from you. It has to do with Henry?"
Stirring the veggies, Marbell said, "You want me to call in a lawyer, I have him on speed-dial."
"No, that has to be Henry's choice. I want you to talk to him about what's going on. You have more heart when it comes to schooling, and I feel like he might open up more to you talking about his relationship. He kind of broke up with Daniel just now, and Daniel is panicking."
"Oh, my god," Marbell stopped, facing London then, "He's throwing everything away."
"I know, please, can you try to talk some sense into him? Daniel called me crying his heart out. He's desperate and Henry won't talk to him."
"Yeah, of course, I'll talk to him."
"Thanks," London kissed Marbell's lips, "I'll take over down here."
Stepping out of the kitchen then, Marbell was stopped when Ozzy came running for him from the living room. He and the twins were playing with their new little indoor slide, and the small boy said, "Look it, Papa, look it us!"
"Hold on, sweetie, Papa's got to talk to Uncle Henry for a minute, okay? I'll come look in a little bit."
"Otay, Papa, hurry!"
Climbing the stairs then, Marbell went for Henry's bedroom, pausing outside the door. If he was in Henry's position right now, the devastation would be oh so consuming. To lose any chance he had at getting a degree, especially after years of long nights and hard work, especially since he knew how much schooling had already stressed Henry out. Every semester, Henry needed a push to stay focused on his goal, and Marbell was always happy to give him that extra nudge. And this last semester Henry had coming up, it was the one he knew his brother-in-law looked forward to most. With the idea that all of that was going down the drain now, Marbell was sure it was heavy enough to drag Henry down.
Finally knocking on the door, Marbell waited for it to open, but when it didn't, he said, "It's me, Henry. Please, open up."
A moment later, Henry unlocked his door and let the man in before closing it behind him again. He was dressed down in a black t-shirt and his boxers, hair sitting on his shoulders and he took a seat on his bed.
Marbell noted the redness in his brother-in-law's eyes when their gaze met, and he sat down beside him, rubbing a comforting hand at the small of his back. "There's no way," Marbell started, "There's no way in hell I could ever understand what you're going through right now. I mean, when I was going to school in Oxford, I studied my ass off. I didn't make friends, well, except for that one mistake, but let's not talk about her. During that time, I was a shut-in with one goal, and that was to get my PhD in math. By the way, PhD's are so useless. But, anyways, my dream was to teach children in school, be a helping hand to the youth in the world by doing something, and I took that very seriously. As you can tell, though, I'm not a teacher anymore. I sit behind a desk, walk around a company building, and keep up with things that are going on with my father's business. But you know something else, I was one-hundred percent ready to throw all of that away to be with your brother. I didn't need the money, the fancy CEO title, all I wanted was London, and I would have been satisfied with my choice to abandon my father's company just to keep something that was more important than a job."
Henry ran his hands under his eyes, wiping away his tears that just kept coming, and Marbell went on. "I've watched you push yourself through school knowing what you wanted out of it. I've watched your relationship with Daniel blossom from the start of it. Even when you two were still in high school, just seeing the kind of unbreakable friendship you both had with each other was amazing. I watched you defend him, because he meant something to you, and even though neither of you knew the relationship you had then would turn into something like this, I don't think you quite understand what you'd be throwing away if you end it now, end it like this. I can't speak for Daniel, Henry, but that boy loves you so much."
"It doesn't matter," Henry said, "I'm nothing."
"Don't say that–."
"Why, it's true. I don't have any proof that Sun and Professor Mullen are fucking, and I turned in the only copy of my essay this morning. I don't have to be a genius to know they destroyed it before assigning that other one under my name. Marbell," Henry's voice cracked, "I knew exactly what I wanted to do after I graduated, I finally knew where I was going with my life, and now I can't do any of that."
"I can help you, Henry. Let me call in the best, or if that's not what you want, you can always–."
"I'm not going to live under your money for the rest of my life, Marbell. You've paid for everything I've ever wanted since you married London, you covered my schooling that's now ruined, and even bought me an expensive car just for babysitting for a night. I'm done taking handouts, and Daniel is better off without some lowlife who nearly knocked him out today." Henry shook his head, looking up at the ceiling then, "I can't believe I almost hit him."
When Marbell met the other boy's glazed eyes, he sighed, and said, "I'm trying, Henry, I'm trying to stop you from doing something you'll regret."
Henry shook his head, "I can't be with him, not right now, not until I can pull myself out of this shit. I really do appreciate you coming up here and talking to me, but there's nothing that can be done. I'll figure something out on my own, but until then, I don't want to be that disappointment."
Marbell stood then and tucked a hand under Henry's chin, making him look up, "You know your family will always be here for you, whether you want our help or not. You're like the little brother I never had, Henry. I love you."
"I know..."
There.
Marbell tried.
Without Henry's will to comply, though, there really wasn't anything he could do. A lawyer couldn't do their job if the defended doesn't want the defense, so no matter how much he wanted to fight this case for Henry, it was impossible.
He went back downstairs to London who was just finishing up in the kitchen. "There's no getting to him," Marbell said, "I'm sorry."
"It's fine," London said, worried for his brother. "I just want him to know he's not alone."
"I told him we're here for him," Marbell made certain. "I'll call Daniel to give him the run down." He went into the backyard with London's cellphone since it was quieter outside, shutting the door behind him and walked out onto the patio.
The call was answered on the first ring, and Daniel said, "What did he say?"
"Hey, Daniel, this is Marbell. I tried to talk to him, tell him everything was going to okay, but he doesn't feel up to being in a relationship with you right now." He heard the other boy breaking down on the other line, "That doesn't mean it's completely over between you, though. Just, give him some time, and I'm sure he'll come around."
"How much time?" Daniel cried through the phone, "I can't do this, Marbell!"
"Daniel, please, he loves you still, and I know he'll never stop loving you, but he needs this time to gather his thoughts."
"We were supposed to get married!"
Marbell remembered how he let that secret slip, and now he felt horrible for letting it happen. Knowing that only made this harder. Talking Daniel down was harder than Marbell imagined it would be, but by the time the conversation was over, he was satisfied that the other boy at least stopped crying for the meantime. He hoped, however, that his brother-in-law didn't leave such a beautiful love he had with Daniel slip too far away.
_
Henry tried listening to music to get rid of the silence in his room, but every song in his phone did nothing to take away from the reality that he was no longer in a relationship. He kept thinking on and on about how much he loved Daniel, about how their love was realized, and, of course, about how much he wanted what they had to prosper into the future.
But, now all of that was ruined.
Never would Henry stop loving his best friend, never would Henry forget how perfect they were together, but until he could come up with something else, until he was confident enough to build their love back up, Henry would put this distance between them himself.
He could only hope now that Daniel felt the same when he was ready.
If he would ever be ready.