Telling his mothers he might want to stay in Connecticut until he finished high school had thrown them. They were expecting David to still be moping around, making the best of it until they returned. The only upside to the conversation was the two of them taking comfort in knowing David was happier than he expected to be. He was doing well in school, enjoying an active social life, and developing a good relationship with his father and Steve. He hadn’t told his moms he thought of Steve as a second father. David assumed dropping one bomb on them at a time, when they were so far away, was plenty. Asking for their approval to continue living with his dad and Steve as a birthday gift was a low blow, but David felt like he’d found a life he loved more than he could have imagined when he first left New York.
The one thing David had not done was ask his fathers if they wanted to be full-time parents. His mothers told David he needed to ask them before they had their discussion with his dads. Not sure how to broach the subject, David had avoided it for two days, but the parental conference was due to take place the next day.
With the days getting longer, and slightly warmer weather in the air as spring was finally taking hold, David enjoyed running outside before school. It helped him wake up and clear his head. He also took the time to think about anything of concern. That week David’s morning runs were filled with thoughts of staying in Connecticut, his birthday, and celebrating with Kevin for his birthday, but even more so, hoping they came home with gold and silver medals from the upcoming meet.
Running had become far more important in David’s life than he ever dreamed was possible. It was a method to gather and sift through his thoughts, think through problems, and even solve dilemmas, such as what might happen if John didn’t meet his end of the bargain with Kevin. Would one or the other, or even both, have to deal with the consequences of their inappropriate deal and unethical team spirit? David shook the thought from his mind. Running wouldn’t be half as satisfying without Kevin leading the way, and Kevin needed running far more than David. For Kevin, running was the ticket to his future at a number of colleges offering scholarships. Without a track scholarship, Kevin would be resigned to getting his college degree at a local school, one close enough for him to live at home, and none of which had world-class track teams.
David smiled. He knew he could run fast and for long distances, but Kevin was Olympic material. It would be a disaster if Kevin couldn’t pursue his dream. Running the final block toward his apartment building, David shook his head. Who was he kidding? He wanted to run right alongside Kevin—all the way to the top.
AFTER SHOWERING and hurrying to get ready for school, David bolted into the kitchen, backpack in one hand and his jacket over his shoulder. He knew he had left enough time to speak with his fathers, but chickened out, unable to find the right words to ask if he could live with them. They had never bargained on full-time parenthood, and he didn’t want to back them into a corner.
Maybe his mothers were right and this was, and should remain, a one-year plan. He would have agreed but felt a bond building between his fathers and himself, and a strong attachment to Kevin also bolstered his determination. Yet, despite his desire to stay in Connecticut until he finished high school, David couldn’t figure out how to make the request. He knew his fathers loved having him around, but as a permanent fixture was a whole different ball game.
“I probably only have time for a power bar this morning. Sorry I’m so late.” David didn’t look either of his dads in the eyes.
Using his peripheral vision, David noticed Rob and Steve sharing a look. He wondered if they were onto him, although he knew they had not spoken to his mothers yet.
“I had a great run this morning. It was cold, but good for a long, fast run. I’ll probably be charged all day, even at practice this afternoon.” Trying to make small talk, David grabbed one of the power bars, opened the wrapper, and took a bite. It was delicious, and David knew it would help keep his energy up throughout his morning classes. He planned to have lunch with Jesse, at which time he would have the opportunity to sit for thirty minutes and enjoy a meal.
“Listen, kiddo, I’m glad you had a good run, but I’m more interested in this evening.” Rob looked at David, his eyes narrowed.
“What are you talking about?” David knew his response was lame, but he was running on autopilot and it obviously wasn’t functioning up to speed.
“I’m talking about the e-mail I received from Gail. She and Rena scheduled a call with Steve and me tonight. It seems there’s something important they want to discuss.” Rob crossed his arms across his chest. “Care to fill me in before I’m talking directly with your mothers?”
“Steve and I have to get to school. We don’t want to be late.” Lame again. David shook his head, knowing he was stalling unsuccessfully.
Steve gave a small smile. “I’m pretty sure you still know how to tell time, and we both know we don’t have to leave for another fifteen minutes.”
David nodded. He knew it was now or never. Taking a deep breath and squaring his shoulders, David finally opened the door to the topic he could no longer avoid. “It’s about next year.”
“I see.” David’s dad sat down and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I know I haven’t been the father you hoped I’d be, but I’m sorry you’re already talking to your moms about going back to the city. I had some ridiculous fantasy that—” Rob stopped speaking and lowered his head.
“You had a fantasy about what, Dad?” Did he have company in his wish for the coming year?
“I don’t want to back you into a corner, son. Forget it.” Rob sighed. “I’ll arrange to drive you back to New York City and your mothers as soon as their mission abroad is complete. It should only be another few weeks.”
“No!” Without thinking, David finally let go and allowed himself to express his true wishes.
Steve smiled broadly, looking from Rob to David and back again. “I told you it was the other way around. Both of you are so afraid and insecure about revealing what you really want you could risk losing the best thing that’s ever happened to you in the name of your lingering Cowardly Lion imitations. There must be some sort of genetic mutation in your DNA causing you both to misread what’s really going on.”
“David.” Rob looked up slowly, his eyes surprisingly moist. “Do you want to stay with us?”
“Do you want me to stay?” David watched as Steve scrubbed a hand through his freshly washed hair, obviously frustrated by the behavior of father and son. “Forget I asked; what I really want to know is, can I stay? When I first came here all I wanted to do was go home, but then, well, this started to feel like home.” David didn’t wait for a reply, knowing this was his chance to share how he truly felt. Accepting Steve’s challenge, David bravely continued. “It started with Steve and Jesse, but it’s about Kevin, my friends at school, especially those on the team, and most of all you, Dad. I want to stay with you.”
David took a short pause, looking at Steve. “I want to stay with both of my fathers. Hell, you’re about to get married. I want to see how this all plays out. Maybe I’ll actually marry someday and who would be better examples?” David shook his head. “That’s not it; I love you both. I love Kevin and Jesse too. I love it here. For the first time, I feel like I make a difference. Hell, I even love writing for the school paper. It’s great seeing Steve bang out an article and submit it to a newspaper or magazine. I kind of think that’s what I want to do.” David chuckled. “I’m babbling, but I hope you both know it’s all true.”
Glancing at his fathers, David was taken aback. Despite some of the emotional arguments Rob and Steve had endured during the year, David had never seen either shed a tear until now. Both of them seemed to be silently allowing their feelings to flow. He wasn’t sure what it meant, but David didn’t have to wait long to find out.
Steve and Rob both stood from their seats at the breakfast table and embraced David in a group hug. After a moment, they both stepped back. Steve patted David on his
arm and remained silent as Rob spoke first. “We want you with us more than anything. You make us a family. Please stay. It would be the best wedding gift you could give us.”
David nodded, feeling his own emotions welling up and not wanting to give in right before school. The last thing he wanted was to show up with red puffy eyes, looking emotionally drained when he was actually happy and relieved.
“We love you, son.”
“Both of us.” Steve squeezed David’s shoulder.
Without thinking, David pumped his fist into the air and yelled, “Yes!” But then his eyes widened in embarrassment over his reaction.
He and his fathers all broke into a chorus of chuckles.
“I hate to put a damper on this celebration, but now it is time to head for school.” Steve grabbed his messenger bag from the counter.
“I’m right behind you.” David was tempted to call him Pop but decided it wasn’t the time for that just yet.
Unable to wipe the smile off his face, David followed Steve to the car. The only hurdle left was the upcoming track meet. He needed to make his desire in that area known too, even if it meant outrunning the guy he knew, without question, he’d fallen for.
Chapter 30
“HEY! CUT it out,” David squeaked as Jesse held him tighter than he imagined her capable of. You’re choking me to death.”
“You’re staying! I was so bummed about losing my new best bud it was killing me not to feel sad every time we were together, knowing our time was coming to an end.” Jesse finally released her hold on David and bounced on the balls of her feet.
“You are such a drama queen! If you start cheering here, I’m running the other way and never speaking to you again.”
Jesse snickered. “You are so full of it, David. You love the attention. Admit it.”
“Okay. I like knowing you’re so happy about me staying around, you look like you could take off and fly. I just hope your brother is equally thrilled.”
Her eyes wide, Jesse glared at David. “Are you out of your mind? He’s crazy in love with you and has been dreading the day you’d tell him it was time for you to return to New York.”
“Really?”
“Oh my God. How insecure and clueless can one guy be? Even Craig can tell how much Kevin’s gone over you, and he’s got as much empathy for other guys’ emotions as he’d have for a pencil sharpener.”
David chuckled, thoroughly relishing Jesse’s obscure analogy. “I’m going to fill Kevin in on my plans today, after practice. We had plans to go out for dinner anyway, hoping to relax before Saturday and Sunday’s big event.”
“I wish I could be a fly on the wall when you tell him, but I’ll just wait to revel in his good mood at breakfast tomorrow morning.”
“If I play my cards right, he’ll be staying at my place tonight.”
Jesse snickered. “You’re so selfish, but I guess I’ll forgive you this once.” Jesse poked David in the ribs. He jumped backward. It tickled more than he expected.
“Enough abusing my poor body. I need to be in good shape for the meet.” David smiled.
“You need to be in good shape for tonight.” Jesse winked and David blushed. “Besides, now I have more time to abuse you until we graduate. Two more years, my friend.”
“I hope I’ll survive it.”
Before the two could continue to enjoy playfully planning for the upcoming two years, the bell rang throughout the building, alerting them their lunch break was over.
AFTER A long and grueling practice, Steve offered David several strategic pieces of advice to focus on as the meet approached. “Are you getting tougher on me because of the meet or because now that you’re going to be stuck with me you’re not letting me get away with anything?”
Steve smiled. “I’m getting tough on you because I think you’ve got the goods to go all the way, and I don’t want to miss a thing when it comes to coaching you the best way I know how. And on a personal note, I don’t mind living in the shadow of pure running brilliance when you receive all the medals you’ll be earning in the future.”
“Wow, that’s quite an expectation from a coach. I hope I can live up to it.” David looked at Steve.
“It’s an even bigger expectation from a parent.” Steve smiled broadly.
David nodded. He would have given Steve a big hug, but there were still a few members of the team lingering on the track and he didn’t want to cross any lines, making it appear that he was being favored over the rest of his teammates. There would be plenty of time for celebration later.
With renewed energy, David jogged toward the locker room to shower and get ready for his night with Kevin.
As soon as he entered, David heard the showers running. He stripped out of his practice uniform, grabbed a towel, and made his way to the shower stalls, wanting to make sure there was still plenty of hot water when he arrived. He had learned the hard way that waiting too long after practice to hit the showers might mean the hot water had already been used up.
“Just a couple of days and our deal will be complete.” Through the spray of water, David heard John’s voice as he approached.
“Good. I hope you don’t even place. That’ll give us all a break.” David wasn’t sure if he should smile or be concerned as he overheard Kevin’s response.
“Don’t sell me short. I’ve been working hard. And I know your boy toy won’t be here much longer. Maybe it’s time you thought about giving me a second look.”
Knowing both Kevin and John would be naked, David felt the hairs stand up on the back of his neck.
“Just cause he’s leaving doesn’t mean we won’t still be together.”
“He’ll be back in the great Big Apple. Do you think he’ll even make plans to visit our little New England world?” There was a short pause. “Watch me. This may be something you want to handle sooner rather than later.”
Alarm bells went off in David’s mind. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what John was doing, putting on a performance for Kevin, his Kevin!
“Get the fuck away from him!” David hadn’t used such fierce language with John. His bold assertiveness surprised David. He had never felt comfortable enough before to confront John so forcefully, despite being both literally and figuratively exposed with just a towel wrapped around his waist.
“If it isn’t the lost boy from New York City. Leaving soon? I’ll take care of your friend after you’re gone, make him feel a lot less lonely.” The smirk on John’s face as he continued to stroke himself in front of both Kevin and David nearly led David to strangle the asshole.
Instead, David took a moment to think, and a grin crossed his face before he spoke. “If he wanted anything that small, he might have been interested in you sooner, but he knows what he’s got in me—pun intended.”
Kevin burst out laughing. “Get over here.” He gave David a quick kiss. “Now save all the rest for me, for later, and get cleaned up. We have plans.” Turning off his shower nozzle, Kevin shook his wet hair and then glared at John. “And as for you, when David leaves you’ll be the last person in the world I’d allow to fill his shoes.” Kevin looked directly into David’s eyes. “Let’s face it: no one can, but I’ll figure out how to deal with his absence on my own. I don’t need or want your help.”
Fortunately, none of the other teammates who had lingered after practice had entered the locker room yet. Without missing a beat, David wrapped his fingers around Kevin’s wet locks and drew him in for a toe-curling, heated kiss. When they finally parted, Kevin’s smile was broader than any David remembered seeing. “I was going to tell you this later, but after everything you just said to that ungrateful jerk, I’m not going to wait.”
David heard John turn off his shower and knew he was eavesdropping, but he didn’t let that stop him. “I’m staying here until I graduate from high school. My moms and dads will be talking about it tonight. I’m staying!”
“Woo-hoo!” Kevin sent a fist pump as high as he could extend his arm.
“I’m glad that was your reaction. If it had been anything else, this might have been very embarrassing.” David could feel the heat rising from his chest to his cheeks.
“Are you kidding? I kept blocking out the fact you’d be leaving in less than a couple of months. It was the only way I could cope. But now you’re stuck with me. I don’t plan to ever let you go.” Kevin kissed David again and then swatted him on the butt. “Now clean up so we can get out of here and celebrate.”
“Oh yeah.” David positioned himself under a vacant shower head and started humming an old dance tune his mothers liked to listen to, “Celebrate good times, oh yeah.”
Chapter 31
THE MORNING of the meet, David felt queasy. He knew he needed to eat a healthy breakfast but his stomach was too busy doing flip-flops to allow him to swallow, let alone enjoy, a single bite.
Although he had tried to get a good night’s sleep, David kept waking, plagued with nightmares about falling just shy of the finish line, placing last, and ironically, worst of all, crossing the finish line after John.
The track meet was a two-day event. All the high schools in the state had sent in their best runners’ times in the hope that most, if not all of them, would be invited to the event. Many of the members of the West Hartford team had been accepted. Kevin, John, and David had all qualified for both the 5,000 and 10,000 meter races. Fortunately, the 5,000 would be run on day one and the 10,000 would be the final event on day two, giving all the distance runners time to recover. While West Hartford wasn’t the only team with runners qualifying for both races, they were one of two having the same three runners qualify in both.
The other school vying for top honors was Trumbull Academy. Like the runners from West Hartford, they intended to outperform their opponents, demonstrating skills far beyond their ages, all in the hope of attracting the attention of the college scouts. David wondered if any of the assholes who had threatened him and Kevin in the fall were back on the team. While the school took quick disciplinary action after the incident, David wouldn’t be shocked if their parents, who paid exceedingly high tuitions to the elite prep school, pressured the school administration into backing off from permanent dismissal from the team.
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