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When You Least Expect By Josh Blake
Chapter 24
The doctors called my recovery a true miracle. The paramedics, emergency room nurses, doctors, and surgeons all expected me to die from the injuries sustained from the gunshot I received when I stormed the Albright house in order to rescue Trey from Lucas's father.
Trey and family were eternally grateful for my actions that day. Although it almost cost me my life, I would have gladly done it all over again to save the life of one of my students. That incident caused me to grow even closer to the small group of students I had been so close to for the last few months, elevating them to almost extended family status.
The fallout of the incident outed me to anyone who didn't already know about my sexual orientation. While I had stopped hiding who I was, I wasn't waving the rainbow flag for the world to see. I just wanted to live my life with the man I loved and my family. This incident ended any possibility of living a quiet life. News outlets from all over the country wanted an interview with me. The story quickly evolved from one about a principal saving the life of one of his students to headlines about a gay principal making a stand. I had become somewhat of a media sensation.
David and Robert really came through for me during the recovery process. Knowing how far away I lived, he approached me with an idea before I was discharged from the hospital.
"Josh, Robert and I have been talking. We want you to come stay with us while you recover."
"I couldn't impose on you like that," I said. "I'll be okay at home."
"You are going to be going to doctors appointments and you need to be close to the hospital here in case you need them," David reasoned. "And then there's Lucas. When Mark and Bonnie agreed to take him in, the idea was he would ride to school with you each day. You aren't going to be driving for a couple more weeks, at least. So that makes it hard to get him to school. If he stays here with you, then Robert or I can make sure he gets to school and back each day."
"What about the foster parent situation?" I asked. "How can Mark and Bonnie be his foster parents if he is here?"
"It'll only be for a couple weeks, most likely," David said. "I think I can persuade the social worker to look the other way for that long," he said.
"I can't argue with you," I said. "I greatly appreciate this, David."
So, I left the hospital the day after New Year's Day and went to David's house. When I got there, I was surprised to see the whole family there to welcome me. Mom and Bonnie had made use of David's huge kitchen to cook a great meal. We all sat around the huge dining table and enjoyed the meal.
I noticed that Austin and Lucas had bonded. They were laughing and carrying on with each other like they had known each other their whole life. If I didn't know better, I'd think they were into each other. At one point, I looked at Braden and cut my eyes toward them. He just smiled and shrugged his shoulders.
Lucas and Trey were also outed as a couple in the fallout from the whole ordeal. There was some initial discomfort from other students about changing with them in the locker room during baseball and track practices. Some of the other players would avoid them just because they were uncomfortable. One day, after having about as much of it as he could take, decided to make a stand. I told him afterward that he was crazy, but it worked out, I guess.
Lucas came back into the locker room a couple minutes after the rest of the team. He went to his locker, stripped off his uniform, wrapped a towel around his waist and headed into the showers. Almost as soon as he entered the showers, the other naked players all scattered, leaving him alone in the showers. Fed up, Lucas took a deep breath, turned off his shower, grabbed his towel, and walked back out into the locker room.
"Alright, let's get something straight," Lucas said as he entered the room. Boys in various stages of undress stopped what they were doing and made sure their private parts were covered.
"Yes, I am gay. You all know that. Some of you are really good-looking guys, too. But I am not perving on you in the shower. So, you can stop acting like I'm going to rape you every time we are in this room! In case you didn't hear it in the news, I have a boyfriend. He loves me and I love him. I'm not in here trying to get some dick from any of you! So, stop acting like I'm some pervert who's going to make you gay! And furthermore, I'd be shocked if I'm the only queer in this room."
The guys all looked around nervously at each other.
"That's right," Lucas continued. "I guarantee you that there are several more of you in here who are gay, and you are just too scared to say anything. I get it. I wouldn't have ever come out if I wasn't forced to by my asshole father who attacked my boyfriend and tried to kill the one other person in my life who gave a fuck whether I lived or died. If you decide you want to talk to someone about it, call me. I'm here for you. You guys are better than this. I've known most of you since elementary school. This is not who you are. You are just scared. I'm going to finish my shower now."
Lucas turned around and walked back into the shower. When he finished and returned to the locker room, everyone was gone with the exception of one boy. Craig was a senior who had played baseball his entire life. He stood about 6'1", muscular, with fair skin and blonde hair that he kept buzzed short. He was one of the more attractive boys in the school, and the girls were crazy about him.
"Hey man," Craig said as Lucas entered the room. "That was really brave, what you did just now. But..."
"But what?" Lucas said, his guard up. "Did the team nominate you to stay and beat my ass for being a faggot?"
"No, dude, it's nothing like that. I left with them, but then I snuck back in. I want to talk to you. For real. I swear, I'm not going to hurt you. If I wait outside while you get dressed, will you go somewhere with me to talk?" Craig asked.
"Where?" Lucas asked, still on guard.
"You name the place, man. I know you are staying with Mr. Patterson, so go ahead and call him and tell him what's up. Tell him you're hanging out with me. I'll take you home afterward. I swear I'm not trying to hurt you, dude."
"Okay, let me get dressed," Lucas said.
Lucas got dressed and called me.
"Hey, Mr. P, so do you know Craig Bentley?"
"Yeah, he's a good kid, as far as I know. He's never been in any trouble, stays on honor roll, good family. Why are you asking?" I said.
Lucas filled me in on the locker room incident and told me how Craig was sitting there when he came out of the shower.
"Lucas, that probably wasn't the smartest thing to do," I said. "But I think Craig is harmless. Maybe he just feels bad for everything that happened and he wants to apologize."
"I don't know," Mr. P. "Where should I go with him?"
"Tell you what," I said, "tell him you'll walk to Starbucks with him right down from the school. I'll call Devin and get him to drive down and sit in the parking lot and make sure you're okay."
"I can do that," Lucas said.
"And keep your phone on at all times. That way I can track you," I said. After everything that had happened, I had put Lucas on my phone plan and got him a new phone. That gave us all the ability to track each other in the event of an emergency.
Lucas walked outside, fully dressed in his jeans and a pullover sweater. He caught Craig quickly look him up and down, but then dismissed it as just a reaction.
"Okay, let's go to Starbucks," Lucas said.
"Cool. My car is right here. Let's go," Craig said.
Lucas got into Craig's car, and they drove the few blocks to Starbucks. They went through the drive thru, ordered drinks, then parked so they could talk.
"This is good," Craig said. "I don't come here much. Do you?"
"No, not really. Sometimes Trey and I come by here."
"Yeah, your boyfriend. Right?" Craig asked.
"Yeah. Although things are a little weird between us right now. Everything that happened has put a little strain on our relationship?"
"Oh? I hate to hear that man. I hope everything works out for you. You're a good guy," Craig said.
"So, what did you want to talk about?" Lucas asked.
"When did you know you were gay?" Craig blurted out.
Lucas laughed. "The better question would be when did I not know I was gay? Seriously, I think I've just always known. I remember when I was a little kid thinking other boys were pretty. Then, when all my friends started talking about girls, I didn't care about the girls. I wanted to see what my friends had in their pants. But I knew that was wrong. My dad always got mad whenever he saw gay people on TV and always told me that he'd kill any son of his who was gay."
Craig nodded. "So how did you end up with Trey?"
"Trey and I got to be good friends in middle school. We both played sports and neither of us is at all feminine, so Dad never had any reason to suspect anything. My house wasn't very nice, so we didn't go there much. We spent more time at Trey's house. One night, when we were in eighth grade, I stayed over on a Friday night. Trey went to the bathroom and I sat down at his desk and opened his laptop. I was going to see what games he had on it, but he forgot to close the last thing he was looking at. When I opened the browser, it was the gay section of Pornhub. About that time, Trey came back in the room and saw what was on the screen."
"What did he do?" Craig asked.
"He said `oh, shit!' then ran over and slammed it shut. He kept saying that it wasn't what I thought. He was frantic. I finally got him to calm down by just forcing my lips on his and kissing him. I had no idea what I was doing, but I had wanted to do that for a long time. He just looked at me like his mind was blown. He asked why I did that. I told him because I wanted to, and I had wanted to for a long time. He then put his arms around me and kissed me again. We made out for a while. Neither of us really knew what we were doing, but we got better over time."
"Shit. Did you do anything else?" Craig asked.
"Yeah, but I don't know if you want to hear those details," Lucas said. "I mean, you're straight and all, right?"
"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I can't talk to any of my friends about it. I date girls all the time, but whenever I'm with one, I have to imagine that I'm with...someone else."
"Oh, I see." Lucas said. "Is this other person you think about a boy?"
"Yeah." Craig said, staring straight ahead.
"Is it anyone I know?" Lucas said.
"Yeah." Craig said.
"Who is it? Is it another gay guy?"
"Yeah. It's...it's you." Craig said.
Lucas didn't know what to say. He was flabbergasted.
"Craig, I..." Lucas said.
"Don't say anything," Craig said. "I know you're with Trey. I swear I'm not trying to break you guys up. I just wanted to talk to someone who would understand. You're the only person I've ever confided in like this. I always kind of thought you might be like me. I caught your glances in the locker room because I was doing the same thing to you. I know you said you're not perving on anyone, but it's just human nature. Maybe it's gaydar. I don't know. What do I do about it?" Craig said.
"About me?"
"No, I know I can't have you," Craig said. "Trey is a lucky guy. And like I said, I have no desire to break the two of you up. But what do I do about me?"
"The first step to being gay is coming out to yourself. That may sound crazy, but every gay person has to admit it to themselves and realize that it is a part of who they are." Lucas said. "Do you want to be out? Do you want people to know?"
"I don't know," Craig said. "I'm graduating in a few months. I could just keep it to myself and wait until I'm in college."
"Would your parents accept it?" Lucas asked. "You don't want to end up like me."
"Yeah, I think so. Mom's sister is gay, and they love her and her wife. It's just I've always been the athlete. The jock. No one would ever think I'm gay. But then again, you're the same way."
"That's why I said what I said in the locker room," Lucas said. "I guarantee you we aren't the only ones. There are others who are afraid to say it."
"You're right," Craig said. "I guess I really don't care anymore for real. Think about it. Mr. Patterson is out, you and Trey are out, it's kind of like we're staging a revolution and telling the world that we're here and we don't care what people think."
Lucas laughed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. But don't do anything crazy. If I were you, maybe try coming out to your family first. Then see what happens."
"You're right," Craig said. "Can I have your number? Just as a friend?"
"Yeah, I'd love to be your friend," Lucas said. They exchanged numbers, then Craig drove Lucas home. Devin, who had parked close by and was watching them, followed from a safe distance until he was sure Craig was going to drop Lucas off at David's house.
I was waiting in the den when Lucas came in.
"So, how did it go?" I asked.
"Fine. Except that he's gay. And he's into me," Lucas said.
"But he knows about you and Trey?" I asked.
"Yes, and he's not trying to break us up. He just wants to be my friend," Lucas said.
"Mmmhmmm. And how do you feel about Craig?" I asked.
"I mean, he's cute, he's smart, he's funny, he's everything a gay guy would want in a boyfriend. He's going to make someone very happy. And I mean very happy. I've seen him in the showers," Lucas said.
We both laughed. "And how do you feel about Austin?" I asked.
"He's so sweet," Lucas said, catching himself right after he said it. "What I mean is..."
"Lucas, is there anything going on with you and Austin? He's my brother-in-law, so I know he can be sweet, but has anything else happened?"
"No, he flirted with me a little bit, but he stopped and said he was sorry, and he knew I had a boyfriend."
"So, you have found yourself in the middle of a love triangle, it seems," I said. "Where does Trey fit into all this?"
"I don't know," Lucas said. "I love Trey, but since everything went down, he hasn't been the same. He's distant. Even when we're together, it's like we're miles away from each other. He hasn't kissed me or anything. His jaw was busted and that was the reason to begin with, but even now that he's better, he just won't kiss me. I don't know why, but it hurts."
"Have you tried talking to him?" I asked.
"Yeah, I have. But he won't talk about it. He just says everything is fine, then goes on with whatever he was doing," Lucas said.
"Give him some time," I said. "He went through a lot, and he may still be sorting everything out."
The next week, the doctor cleared me to go back to work. I had to take it easy for a while, which meant I'd be spending more time in my office and less time on my feet around the school. Lucas and I were still staying at David's house. Braden and Mom would come over with Jackson on the weekends. I was thankful for David's hospitality, because I don't think I would have been up for the hour drive each way.
Many of the students were excited for me to be back. Sabrina and Sam came to see me and brought me a card and some candy. Of course, I got hugs from both of them. Lucas stopped by between every class to make sure I was okay.
"Lucas, I'm fine, you don't have to keep coming by to check on me," I said. It was the fourth time today he had been by.
"I just want to make sure you're fine," he said. "Afterall, all of it was my fault."
"Lucas, nothing was your fault. You have to understand that. Your father is to blame for it all. It was just a terrible situation, but it's better now. I'm fine, you're fine, and Trey is fine. We are all going to move on. Now, get yourself to class!"
"Yes, Dad!" Lucas said with a smile. As soon as he said it, his smile faded. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."
"What are you sorry for?" I asked.
"I called you Dad. It was just for sarcasm, I swear. I know you're not my dad...".
I stopped him. "What if I want to be your dad?" I asked. "What do you think, son?"
"I think I'd like that a lot!" Lucas said, tearing up. He put his books down and came over behind my desk to hug me.
"I love you, Lucas."
"I love you too, Dad," Lucas said.
"Now, get to class for real this time. Wait, have you seen Trey today?" I asked.
"Yes, but he's still not really speaking to me. I mean he speaks, but he's just distant."
"Okay, go to class. I'll see you after school."
I went to my computer and looked up what class Trey was in. I found him, then took a walk down the hallway. It was a short walk to his classroom, and thankfully it was on the main floor. I didn't have to worry about stairs. I opened the classroom door with my key. It was the computer lab classroom.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, Mr. Jennings, but I need to see Trey Briggs for a moment," I said.
"Sure thing," he said.
Trey looked up, and the look on his face said he was not exactly excited to see me. Nevertheless, he got up and followed me out into the hall and back to my office.
"So, how have you been, Trey?"
"Okay."
"You look like all of your injuries are healing well. That's good. Is there anything you want to talk to me about? You know you can talk to me about anything, Trey."
"No."
"Are you sure? Lucas is really worried about you, and so am I. You went through a lot, Trey. So did I. But we have to move forward. Sometimes talking about it helps."
"I'm fine," he said, clenching his fists. I could see he was on the verge of either breaking down or exploding, so I decided not to push the issue at that moment.
"Trey, my job is to make sure my students are okay. And right now, I don't think you are okay. If you don't want to talk to me, that's fine. But right now, I can't let you go back to class. I'm going to have to call the guidance counselor in so we can have a conversation."
"WHY WON'T YOU JUST LEAVE ME ALONE?" Trey yelled. Tears were streaming down his face. I moved the box of Kleenex over to his side of the desk. I waved Anita away when she appeared in my office door to make sure everything was fine. I picked up my desk phone and called Mrs. Ford, the guidance counselor and asked her to come over. I then called Trey's mom and asked her to come to the school. She was there within half an hour and joined Mrs. Ford and me with Trey in my office.
Mrs. Ford asked Trey some questions about the events that had transpired over the last several weeks. At first, he was stoic and refused to answer the questions. After his mom arrived, he started to cave in. As it turns out, Trey was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder caused by the assault he suffered at the hands of Lucas's father, and from the trauma of seeing me almost die right in front of him. He literally had my blood on his hands after crawling over to me after I was shot. In his head, pushing Lucas and everyone else away from him would keep him from getting hurt like that again. Mrs. Ford put Trey's mom in touch with a therapist who specialized in such situations, and we sent him home with his mom.
The rest of the week went by smoothly. Trey didn't come back to school that week, and Lucas couldn't get him to answer the phone. I told him just to give it time. By Thursday, though, I had to know what was going on. I called his mom and found out that Trey had fallen into a deep depression and had been admitted to a psychiatric facility. He had actually tried to slit his wrists. His mom cried on the phone because she didn't know how to help him. I assured her that she did the right thing by taking him to the hospital. I just prayed that he would get the help he needed.
I waited until we got home that night to talk to Lucas about Trey.
"It's all my fault!" he cried. "If I had just been more careful about my phone this would have never happened!"
"Lucas, you have to stop. None of this is your fault. I've been working with teenagers a long time, and when something like this happens, there's usually an underlying cause. I'd be willing to bet that Trey was already depressed or had some other issues going on before any of this happened. You just didn't know. He probably didn't know it either. Mental illness is a disease. With the right care and medication, Trey can overcome it," I said.
"You really think he'll get over it?" Lucas asked.
"I sure hope so, buddy. I can't guarantee it, and I won't tell you he will for sure. I'll never lie to you," I said.
"Will you just hold me for a while?" Lucas asked.
"Sure, son." I opened my arms and he leaned against me. I put my arms around him and just held him. Soon, he was asleep. I didn't want to move for fear of waking him up.
"Isn't that the sweetest thing you ever saw?" David said as he and Robert entered the room.
"You were made to be a dad, Josh," Robert said.
"I would have never dreamed a year ago that I'd be here right now like this. But I wouldn't trade it for anything," I said.
Finally, Lucas woke up and I sent him to bed. I got myself ready to go to bed as well.
The plan was for Lucas and me to head back home at the end of the day on Friday. The day went by quickly, and Lucas and I got in my truck to go home. I was thankful for David allowing us to stay with him, but I missed Braden and Jackson and wanted to be back with them. Since Mark and Bonnie had the extra room for Lucas, I dropped him off at their house.
"I'm really going to miss being with you," Lucas said.
"I know, buddy, so am I. But this is just temporary until we get everything worked out. I'm just a couple blocks away, and Mark and Bonnie will take great care of you. And you get to hang out with Austin.
"Yeah, that is a good thing," he smiled. "Can I call you before I go to sleep?" he asked.
"You better call me!" I said. I hugged him, then he grabbed his bag and walked to the door. Bonnie met him there and hugged him. She waved at me, then walked out to the truck.
"Austin has been so excited about Lucas coming back," Bonnie said. "You don't think..."
"I wouldn't rule it out," I said. "I have so much to fill you in on. But right now, I want to go home and see Braden and Jackson."
"Let's do lunch tomorrow," Bonnie said. "Just you and me. It'll give us time to catch up and sort all this mess out."
"Sounds good! Mom is going to take Jackson over to see Mrs. Roberts, Hunter's grandmother, so it'll just be Braden and me at our house. I'm sure you don't mind him being there," I said.
"Goodness no! I'll see you tomorrow around noon. Don't worry about fixing anything. I'll bring pizza."
I pulled into the driveway, and Braden ran out to meet me. He threw his arms around me and hugged me tight. "I've missed you so much!" he said. "Now come inside. Someone else has missed you, too!"
I went in the house to find Mom in the kitchen making my favorite dinner, meatloaf with mashed potatoes.
I walked up behind her and kissed her on the cheek and pulled her into a hug.
"It's so good to have you home, baby," Mom said. "Now go get ready for dinner. We'll eat in about half an hour."
I went toward the bedroom but stopped in Jackson's room. He was asleep but I couldn't resist picking him up and holding him. He stayed asleep as I sat down and rocked him. Braden appeared in the doorway.
"It's so good to have you back," he said. "Is this how you felt when I got hurt and was in the hospital?"
"Yes. I was so afraid I was going to lose you."
"I felt the same way. I just kept thinking about our life together and Jackson. I was so afraid I was going to have to raise him by myself. I kept replaying what you looked like in the emergency room when the nurses told me to come in. I knew they don't normally do that. They thought you were going to die, and they wanted me to be able to say goodbye." Braden started crying.
"I remember," I said. "I still don't know how I remember, but I do. I just couldn't respond."
"Have you heard from your dad?" Braden asked.
"No, I've tried to call him several times, but he won't answer."
"Give him time," Braden said. "He gave you his blood. Part of him cares, even if he can't figure it out."
I put Jackson back in his crib, then went to wash my hands for dinner. Mom, Braden, and I enjoyed the wonderful dinner Mom had prepared and enjoyed getting to sit down together and catch up on all that had transpired. I told them about Trey and his situation. I filled them in on how Lucas was doing and about him calling me "Dad."
"You really care about him, don't you dear?" Mom asked.
"I really do, Mom. He's just like a son to me. I just don't want anything bad to ever happen to him again. I know he's in good hands over at Mark and Bonnie's, but I really want him with us."
"We just don't have the room in this house," Braden said. "Josh, don't you think it's time we think about moving? You said yourself that being close to work this week was a blessing."
"It really was," I said. "But moving is such as huge undertaking."
"Yes, it is. But I went out on a limb and did something to start the process," Braden said. "I called a real estate agent my mom knows and got an appraisal on the house." Braden handed me a piece of paper. I unfolded it and my eyes got big.
"Our house is worth this much?" I asked, surprised.
"Yeah, and she thinks in this housing market that it may even start a bidding war and we might get more," Braden said. "Let's just think about it. We don't have to make any decisions tonight."
"No, tonight I just want to be with you," I said.
Braden and I hadn't been intimate since before I was shot. I know I had some pent-up energy, and I'm sure he did as well. We both knew we needed to take it easy, though. I was well on my way to recovery, but I was still on the mend.
We didn't have sex that night, but we made love. Slow, passionate love. Braden lowered himself down on my hard cock, enveloping it with his tight ass. He rode me, allowing me to lay there passively while he did all the work. He was jerking his cock in rhythm with his up and down motions on my cock. I wasn't going to last long, and I knew it. I started spraying Braden's hole with my huge load, and he sprayed me with his. He leaned down to kiss me, then got up and got a towel to clean us up. He turned off the lights, then got into bed. I spooned him from behind, nuzzling my face into his hair.
"I love you so much," I said to him.
"I love you more," he said.
We drifted off to sleep, both content and peaceful.
The next chapter in this series will be published soon!
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