This time a moment of silence was shared by all.
“I can’t believe he had nobody he could talk to,” said Pippa. “Maybe not family, but a helpline. Or why didn’t he pick up the phone and call one of us. I don’t understand.”
Adrian sighed. He had lived through the same time, although under very different circumstances.
“I think I understand. I’ve been that low once or twice when I was younger. And you know, sometimes it takes no more than a kind word or a sympathetic listener to bring you back from the edge. But you have to remember, this was back in the mid-eighties. AIDS had ravaged the gay community and homophobia was rampant. Lenny knows that I would have been around seventeen and living on the streets of London. And there were only a few gay support groups back then, the LGBT Foundation being one of them, and certainly no helplines that I knew of specifically aimed at gay men and women. Stonewall wasn’t established until the end of the eighties. And even though we’ve still got a long way to go, many people are more socially aware today, especially with the emergence of global movements like It Gets Better, The Trevor Project and LGBTQ+ Lifeline. Today we can be openly gay and aspire to become an athlete, or a film star or even a prime minster of a country. We can get married and have kids. We even have gay characters appearing in daily soap operas and gay-themed films where the gay men or women actually have a happy ending. Back then, as a gay young man, if you had described the world we live in today, I would probably have laughed at you. I hope that if there are any Lukes out there today, they know they are not alone and only have to pick up the phone to get not only a kind word and a sympathetic listener but someone to provide practical help.”
“Hear, hear,” said Lenny, nodding and smiling proudly at Adrian.
* * * *
By six o’clock a few of the guests had started to leave. Adrian found Toni helping to load up the dishwasher in the kitchen while Jack had decided to help Maggie’s friends collect up glasses and plates from around the garden. He noticed Lenny in the garden, laughing with his work colleagues, a silver tray in his hands, and felt a fresh wave of love fill him. Just as he turned away to check on the living area, someone tapped him on the shoulder.
“Adrian,” said the man Lenny had introduced as Kennedy, a close friend of his. Adrian had instantly warmed to him and his husband, as well as their two somewhat exuberant boys. “Can I have a word?”
“Of course,” said Adrian.
“In private?” asked Kennedy. “Maybe in the study?”
“Lead the way,” said Adrian, as much wary as intrigued.
As they opened the door and entered the large room, he realised Lenny had already made the double sofa bed to allow Kieran and Kennedy to stay the night. Their boys would be sleeping on an inflatable mattress on the floor with their dog. But Adrian hadn’t noticed what else Lenny had done with the room. Apart from a desk and the bookcases filled with Luke’s books and others Lenny had brought with him, there were also figurines and a framed collage of photographs showing the complete renovation of Bryn Bach to its current state, which hung in pride of place above the mantelpiece. More of Toni’s smartphone photography handiwork.
“Don’t worry,” said Kennedy. “It’s nothing serious. I just wanted to say thank you.”
“For what?”
“For giving my friend a new lease on life. He doesn’t stop talking about you.”
“Honestly, I think you’ve got that the wrong way around. Lenny’s done so much for me.”
“Well, I just wanted to say thank you. Kieran will tell you that I’ve always had a soft spot for Leonard, so I’m overjoyed to see him happy finally. You know—and I shouldn’t be telling you this, because he won’t thank me—but a friend of ours, Pete, nicknamed Leonard ‘Any Day’. When someone asked why, he replied, ‘Because any day is better than Lenny Day.’ Then went on to call him a walking misery. Of course, I stepped in and gave the friend a piece of my mind. But looking back, Leonard had become pretty sullen. He’s a different person today and I can’t help but think that’s because of you. So if you ever fancy a weekend up in Scotland, I’ve acquired a lodge on the banks of Loch Arkaig that overlooks Ben Nevis. You can either have the place to yourself, or join us for Christmas. We have a gathering each year and the two of you would fit in perfectly with our other friends.”
“Have you run the idea past Lenny?”
Kennedy laughed.
“What?”
“I can’t believe he allows you to call him Lenny. And the answer is, no, I thought I’d leave the idea with you. And only if you can spare the time.”
“Let me talk to him. But that’s really kind of you.”
“And now you’re in his life, you have to come to Sunday lunch at ours. We don’t live far away. And Lenny tells me you’ve got some work through a friend of ours.”
“You know Tom Bradford?”
“We know his husband better. Marcus Vine? He’s a celebrity chef. He catered our wedding.”
Adrian shrugged. He didn’t follow the tabloids.
“That’s nice. And maybe you can come and have lunch at Lenny’s place while I’m staying there.”
Kennedy laughed, not unkindly, but there was definitely a dubious quality to the laugh.
“That would certainly be a first,” he said eventually.
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t think anyone’s seen the inside of Leonard’s house. Kieran has a conspiracy theory that he lives in a hotel. In all the years I’ve known him, he’s never had a dinner party at home, let alone a full-blown party like this.”
“Something else that’s going to change,” said Adrian.
Before he could fully process what Kennedy was saying about Lenny, one of Kennedy’s boys burst into the room, looking as though some tragedy had befallen him, as only young children can.
“Dad! There you are! Link’s lying across the seat cushion, being selfish, taking up all the space in the begonia. He won’t let me sit down next to him.”
“In the what?” asked Adrian, puzzled.
“He means the pagoda,” said Kieran, breathless, catching up with his son, placing a hand on either shoulder and looking apologetically at Kennedy. “Sorry, Kennedy. It’s a pagoda, Clinton. A begonia is a flower. And why can’t you play nicely?”
“Dad!” said the youngster, shaking out of Kieran’s grasp and blatantly ignoring him.
“Clinton James!” said Kennedy in a voice that had even Adrian standing straight and taking notice. “Don’t you ever let me hear you being rude to your papa again. Do I make myself clear?”
Yes,” said Clint, his bottom lip plopping out. “But Link—”
“Remember what we said, Clint?” said Kennedy sternly. “What we all agreed?”
“Yes,” said Clint, quieter now, folding his arms and looking down at the floor.
“Then tell me and your papa. What did we agree?”
“That we would always be kind to other people and look out for one another, no matter what, especially our family.”
As he had been speaking, behind him an almost identical version of Clint had appeared at the door, followed by their cheeky ginger Cockapoo, who poked his head from between the new arrival’s legs.
“And?”
“And brothers should be friends.”
“Good.”
“I’m sorry, Clint,” said the newcomer Adrian assumed to be Link. “Come back and play. Uncle Len’s got a tray he’s saved specially for us. Mini sausages rolls, sliders, cheesy puffs, marshmallows, chocolate ice cream and, your favourite, stringy French fries with cheese. Health food for kids, he says.”
“Yaaaaay!” said the two of them, racing away with their yapping dog, all animosity evaporated.
“Let’s go back into the main room, too,” said Kennedy, leading them back through, putting his hand on Kieran’s shoulder. “I was just saying to Adrian here how grateful we are to see Leonard so happy. You have no idea what a world of difference you’ve made. I wanted t
o say thank you. He means a lot to us.”
“He gave me a job when nobody else would hire me,” said Kieran.
“Okay,” said Adrian, raising an eyebrow. “That’s not quite the way Lenny tells it.”
“Out of interest—I mean, you two click so well—what is it you see in him?” asked Kieran.
Nobody had ever asked that question before, and Adrian had to think it through. How on earth did he even begin to talk about all of Lenny’s outstanding traits?
“I suppose, for me, it’s simple,” said Adrian, before smiling and peering across the room to where the pair’s twin boys clambered around a laughing Lenny, who lowered a tray piled with food onto the coffee table.
As Lenny met his gaze and winked, a sudden thought came to him. Were they too old to be thinking about starting a family? Or maybe adopting a child?
“And?” prompted Kieran.
“You said it’s simple for you,” said Kennedy, nudging Adrian’s arm.
“It’s the exact opposite of what your friend on the cruise said. Any day I get to share with Lenny makes me realise how lucky I am.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Lockdown, two years on
Maybe everything was fated.
After all, Leonard knew Adrian was not a fan of surprises. And COVID-19 social-distancing measures across the UK had effectively scuppered all plans for Leonard’s huge second-anniversary surprise party, two years after they had finally gotten it together in Wales. He had wanted to invite all their friends and family to his—to their—newly refurbished semi in Balham.
Instead they would be having an intimate dinner party at home with Toni and Jack.
And, of course, Tommy.
“Can I at least get out the Christmas lights? Hang them up above the table?” asked Tommy, hand on hip, head tilted to one side. Late afternoon and he’d already showered and donned his makeup, and now dressed as a New Romantic wannabe, like a member of Duran Duran in their heyday. Not that fourteen-year-old Tommy would get the pop reference.
“It’s almost June, Tom,” said Leonard, trying to find his mobile phone.
“They’re just lights, Len. Your squad’ll love ‘em. Haziq at school says his mum uses them all through Ramadan. Praveen has them at their temple all year long. And I know for a fact Patrick has tons strung up in the Barbie boudoir he calls a bedroom. They’re just lights.”
Leonard finally found his phone beneath Tommy’s discarded schoolbook, left open on the kitchen counter despite Leonard’s request for him to take his study-from-home video call classes into their actual study. After placing a bookmark inside, he closed and set the book onto a sideboard, clearing the work surface. They would need space for Jack.
“Patrick’s boudoir, huh? And how exactly do you know all this?”
Leonard noticed a message from Jack to say they were almost there and would arrive around five-thirty. As usual, the man had everything prepped and ready to go, but also left instructions about getting pots and pans and cooking oil prepared for his arrival.
“Oh, come on. I’m not the only gayster who’s been invited into the travesty that is Princess Paddy’s Plastic Palace. Talk about environmentally unfriendly tackarama.”
Leonard couldn’t help chuckling. Tommy had not always been so open and relaxed. He had been in numerous foster homes during the five years before Leonard and Adrian had lucked upon him. Tommy’s mother had died from pneumonia when Tommy was seven. His father had put him straight into care, essentially washing his hands of the boy, before returning to his native Poland. Even now Adrian got angry every time he raked over the injustice of Tommy’s past.
But these days straight-faced Tommy had a habit of making everyone laugh, even when Leonard wanted to have a serious chat with him. He had been their first ever attempt at long-term foster care, eighteen months ago, and had transformed their lives. Twelve back then, he would be theirs until he turned eighteen, or for as long as he was happy living with them. The choice was down to him and the social workers who regularly came to check up on him. Being unashamedly gay had meant him being subdued in the past, often placed in homes with other kids who either ridiculed or shunned him, ones that stifled his more creative side. Not so with Leonard and Adrian. When the opportunity to foster him had arisen, they had jumped at the chance.
“Are you being serious?”
“No cap, Len.”
Adrian was better at Gen-Z speak than Leonard, but he knew the words ‘your squad’ and ‘no cap’ meant something like ‘your friends’ and ‘I’m totally serious’ respectively.
“Fish them out, then. The lights. And be careful putting them up. The last thing I need is you falling off the table or electrocuting yourself tonight before we’ve even eaten a thing.”
Leonard peered over to see Tommy already rummaging through the cupboard on one side of the table just as the phone rang in his hand. Adrian’s name popped up on the display.
“Hey, babe. What’s your ETA?” asked Leonard.
Throughout the pandemic, Adrian had been trying to limit the amount of work on-site, and his boss, Tom, had been fully supportive. But this latest venture had been for an LGBTQ+ housing project—a couple of charities coming together to provide secure housing for gay kids thrown out of their homes or already on the streets. Tom had mentioned the cause to them, and Adrian had jumped at the chance to help. Ever since their house-warming in Wales, they had both agreed to devote more time to various gay charities.
“Around seven. Sorry, love, we’re running behind finishing up tiling the roof while there’s still daylight. And what with tomorrow being Saturday, we don’t want to chance bad weather over the weekend and end up having to mop up a whole lot of mess on Monday morning.”
“Totally understood. Any preference for dinner tonight?”
Dinner was already arranged but he needed to keep up the pretence.
“Have you checked with the flexitarian?”
Tommy’s diet included fish but also occasionally chicken. In his case, this usually meant once a week at the most. Fortunately, tonight’s three-course meal ticked all his boxes.
“How about Thai? Something for everyone?”
“Perfect. You know me. I’ll eat whatever you’re ordering as long as you order lots. Got to go.”
Great, thought Leonard, because Jack would be cooking his delicious Thai food tonight. Tom Kha Het, vegetarian coconut soup with mushroom for starters, with his fabulous prawn cakes, while the main would be his version of Panang chicken curry with deep-fried vegetable spring rolls, Thai mixed vegetables and jasmine lemon steamed rice. Adrian and Tommy adored Jack’s variations, but those got the largest number of likes in the Day-Lamperton-Piotrowski household. Dessert would be a simple store-bought cheesecake with summer berries and ice cream, followed by a special anniversary cupcake served with coffee.
“Is that the smacks we’re having tonight, Len? Takeout? Why all the fuss?”
“I told you. It’s our unofficial anniversary,” said Leonard, realising Jack would shortly be there. He’d told Tommy about the secret anniversary dinner, but he’d managed to keep the surprise about Jack cooking to himself all afternoon. “And Jack’s on his way right now. He’s tonight’s chef.”
“Jack?” said Tommy, appearing wide-eyed from where he had been rummaging around in a lower cupboard, the lights in his hand. “Shut! Up! Tell me he’s not cooking me his savage Thai.”
“Just a quick FYI. This is our show tonight. Not everything’s about you, Tommy.”
“You didn’t answer my question, Leonardo.”
Once again Leonard had to snort out a laugh. If any of the social workers ever tried to take Tommy away from them, they would have a serious fight on their hands. The blockade at their front door would put any production of Les Misérables to shame.
“Yes, Tomasz,” said Leonard, pronouncing Tommy’s name in its original Polish form, which always had Tommy cringing and pulling a face. “Jack is cooking his special Thai dishes. For all of u
s.”
“Fuuu—” Jack stopped, slapped a hand over his mouth before throwing a panicky glance at Leonard. “Funtastic news.”
Although they never punished Tommy for the occasional expletive—apparently some families had—they didn’t encourage him either. But Tommy had sometimes been overcareful around them, not wanting to spoil a good thing. He knew only too well that foster parents could give up on kids they felt they couldn’t handle. Leonard shuddered at the idea of such a lovely kid being passed from pillar to post.
“Fucking fantastic news, you mean,” said Leonard, which managed to get a grin and an eye-roll from Tommy. “And I bought the salted caramel cheesecake, the one you like, from your favourite cake shop. Now, let’s get these lights up, and then I want you to lay the table for five while I chop vegetables with Jack.”
“My choice of—?”
“Everything, including place settings and centrepiece. Make the table shine.”
“Seriously?” asked Tommy, a glint in his eye.
“Shine, Tommy. Shine and sparkle, but no glitter, please. Makes too much of a mess.”
“Gucci.”
* * * *
Half an hour later, as Leonard opened the front door to Jack and Toni, the table already looked spectacular. Christmas lights faded in and out around red and white feather boas that Tommy had somehow magicked up, the table laid with matching red and white table decorations and cream-coloured candles.
Any Day Page 31