After work, he took the train to his apartment to gather his toothbrush and pack a bag with necessities before walking to Alex’s apartment, their new shared home. Alex had arrived a few minutes before him and was dishing up some food from the restaurant for dinner. They ate and watched a movie together, and then made love and fell asleep in each other’s arms.
When Nephi woke up late Wednesday morning, he called Stacy to share the news.
“What? You’re married?” she asked. “Why didn’t you tell me? I totally would have come to Vegas with you.”
“I figured you would want to be there, but with complicated family situations and all, we figured we should just go for it, just the two of us. No judgement, no stress.”
“I can’t blame you and I seriously want you to know that I’m happy for you. You deserve to be happy.”
“I didn’t know how I would feel, but I am happy. I’m happier than I’ve ever been.”
Nephi told her all about the road trip, the stop in Beaver, the hotel, and the wedding chapel. Stacy filled him in on Chloe’s preschool group and all the trouble Wyatt was getting into with his newfound mobility. One or two good friends, Nephi thought to himself, that’s all you really need.
Nephi’s next call was to his mother who congratulated him although the tone of her voice showed some hesitation. He enjoyed catching up with her just the same. Nephi let her take care of sharing the news with the rest of the family.
Before long, Alex woke, and the newlyweds spent their day off the way you would expect them to – having a lot of fun while hardly leaving the bedroom. So far, married life wasn’t so bad.
The following day, Alex begged Nephi to take one more sick day to stay home with him but between Pride and calling in sick to get married, Nephi felt obligated to work.
Soon after Nephi got to work, Jerry came into his office.
“I have a favor to ask. An emergency meeting came up and I can’t get out of it, but I have a shift manager candidate here for a job interview. Will you please handle the interview for me?”
“Right now?” asked Nephi.
“Yes, right now. I’m sorry about the short notice, but like I said, it’s an emergency.”
“I haven’t had a chance to review a resume or anything. How do you want me to approach it?”
“Just ask behavioral interview questions about past job experience. Get a feel for cultural fit and call center management competency. If he does well, I can have him back for a second interview.”
“Ok, sure. I can do that.”
“Thanks a lot, Nephi. He’s waiting for you in the small conference room.”
A little annoyed at the lack of notice, Nephi went to the small conference room and opened the door.
“Good afternoon,” he said with a smile.
“Nephi?” replied the voice.
Nephi’s heart sank when he realized that the shift manager candidate was Mark Stone. Seeing him brought a flood of memories of the bullying and abuse at Brower. Visions of the security guard and Officer Williams flashed through his mind, requiring him to direct focus to his breathing to collect himself. Once he was over the initial shock, he took a seat.
“Mark, what brings you here? A shift manager job seems like a step backward for a General Manager.”
“I should leave,” said Mark as he started to stand.
“Sit down, let’s talk for a minute,” requested Nephi.
“The truth is, I’m no longer at Brower. I’m looking for something new. After some false allegations about gender discrimination and harassment, they forced me out.”
“Oh,” smiled Nephi. “That’s a shame. It’s terrible when false allegations cost you your job.”
“Listen, I know that there is history between us but I want you to know I’m not above stepping down to the shift manager level. I would be good in this job.”
“Alright, I will ask some questions to assess that but I’m curious, who is running the reservation center at Brower now?”
“They gave my job to that Monica. Can you believe that? They’ll be sorry when she gets pregnant.”
“Actually, Mark, I can believe that. Monica is good at her job. I hoped that the loss of your job might have humbled you, and that maybe you would have changed change, but I see that you’re the same old Mark.”
“What does that mean?” asked Mark.
“It means that I will escort you out of the building now and we’ll be in touch if we determine you are a good fit.”
“But I…”
Nephi interrupted him mid-sentence, “Let’s go.” He opened the door and led Mark toward reception.
“Oh, Mark, I also want to let you know that I am now married and yet somehow, the Lord still blessed me with this job that pays nearly twice what I was making at Brower. Funny how things work out.”
They arrived at the lobby where Nephi said goodbye and wished him luck. Mark left the building and Nephi turned around to find Jerry standing there with a satisfied smirk on his face.
“You knew who that was all along, didn’t you?”
“Maybe I did,” Jerry replied. “I just figured that would do your heart good. You know that karma, she really is a bitch.”
They had a good laugh before returning to work. Nephi smiled through the entire shift.
The week wore on while Nephi and Alex settled into their new routine, getting used to living together. They were happy and in love. Sunday morning came and Nephi prepared for church.
“You’re still going, huh?” asked Alex.
“Did you expect me to stop?”
“No, I know who you are and I love you for it, but part of me maybe hoped you would stay home with me.”
“You’re welcome to come with me if you want.”
“No, I’m good, enjoy yourself.”
“Thanks, I will,” replied Nephi.
Rainbow pin on his lapel, Nephi went to church and sat with his friends in the Rainbow Squadron. He thought it strange to attend a singles ward now that he was married, but he was never really there to meet people in the first place, and it’s not like the church recognized his marriage, anyway. In their view, even though he saved himself for marriage, he was committing homosexual sin.
He sang his heart out and listened to the talks, same as every week. After sacrament meeting, a member of the congregation that he didn’t recognize approached him.
“What are you and your friends doing here?” he asked. “You clearly don’t believe in the doctrine of the church. Why even bother showing up?”
“You know,” replied Nephi, “that question used to bother me, but I don’t really mind it anymore. I now understand that I am who God made me to be. He wants me to be happy and who am I to argue with God? I used to reject a part of myself but I now embrace every part of who I am. I love myself. Why do I come to church, you ask? What it comes down to is that I know who I am. I am a son, I am a brother, an uncle, and a friend. I am a gay man. I am a husband. I am all of those things, and I am also a Mormon. That, my friend, is why I come to church.”
“Okay, well, have fun in hell I guess. I just don’t understand why you can’t follow the counsel of the apostles to trust in the Lord with all your heart. Trust that if you obey all the commandments and stay celibate that he will take care of you in the end.”
“See, the thing you don’t understand is that I do trust in God with all my heart. In fact, I trust him more than that. I trust that he made me the way I am and I trust that he won’t hold that against me when I am judged. I trust God more than you will ever know.”
The man shook his head and walked away. Nephi raised his head high and walked toward Sunday school class.
While he walked, Nephi thought about how everywhere we look, people are stuck in boxes. Active and inactive, gay and straight, twink and bear, liberal and conservative. There are too many boxes to count. He wondered if anyone really fits into a box. We are all God’s children, individual members of the human race, with complicated thoughts
and feelings and restless souls.
Nephi thought that maybe if we forget about the boxes, and look for opportunities to include one another, to compromise, and to love, we might find more peace. That maybe, just maybe, if we focus on love and leave the judgement to God, we would all be better off.
He continued to Sunday school where he found the class discussing the Book of Mormon. The teacher explained that the Zoramites wouldn’t believe any of the words of the prophet Alma because his son Corianton was consorting with a harlot. It reminded Nephi of Alex and he smiled.
Church ended and Nephi returned home to the apartment he shared with Alex. There, waiting for him in the kitchen, were a sandwich, a cup of cocoa, and a kiss.
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