Because of You

by David Horne

  Sadly, just like the other phone calls, it just rang until he got to the voicemail tone.

  Tom swore silently under his breath. Neither Brenda nor John had the heart to call him out for swearing.

  Half an hour went by with everyone having taken their drinks and sipping on them occasionally, Tom trying to call Zack every ten minutes. All heads snapped up at the stairs when they all heard two sets of feet coming down the stairs.

  Greg and Rebecca would have looked ordinary, had it not been for the hair weighed down by sweat paired with Rebecca's almost guilty looking expression. Added with the glaringly massive love bite on her neck.

  Before either John or Brenda could utter a word, because it was obvious what had happened between the two young adults, Tom exploded.

  "What the actual fuck Rebecca?" Tom hissed as he rose from his seat. The young woman flinched slightly.

  "After everything you put Zack through, how an incredible boyfriend he has been for you, the gifts, the dates. All the times he canceled with us so that he could go on a date with you. He has never treated you bad but you just go and sleep with someone, but not just anyone, you go and sleep with this guy?" Tom was near growling at the end of his sentence, pointing with an accusing finger at Greg.

  "I bet Zack caught you two." Tom hissed at them both, this time both of them flinched.

  "Greg, how could you?" John asked in a low voice, hurt by his nephew's actions toward his son.

  "It just happened!" Rebecca yelled, tears starting to form and stick to her smudgy mascara coated lashes. The girl clearly felt guilty, but if it was because she was caught or what she did, Tom couldn't figure out.

  "I made it happen." Greg said, there was a small air of glee in his voice as if what he had done made him very happy.

  John looked at Greg with a look that made Greg's once near cocky look melt into something of a mix between fear and wanting to go to the bathroom. It would have been funny if the circumstances were different.

  "Explain yourself right now, Greggory." John clenched his teeth as he spoke, his hands were shaking fists.

  Greg looked around the room.

  Rebecca had done the same and noticed that Zack was missing.

  "Where is Zack?" Rebecca asked, wringing her hands. She was clearly eager to talk to Zack to possibly try and save their relationship. Brenda had had enough, almost jumped up from her seat on the couch and pointed at the door.

  "You little skank get out of my house and don't even think for one second that either John or myself will allow Zack to continue to be in a relationship with you!" Brenda screams at Rebecca, every other person gawked at Brenda, the ordinarily peaceful 'talk it out' woman, was now screaming at someone.

  No one did anything, no one said anything.

  "Get OUT!" Brenda yelled at the top of her lungs.

  Greg watched as Rebecca clutched at her bag and ran for the door.

  "How is she going to get home?" Greg asked and made to go after her, but John stepped in front of him and shoved him onto the one-seater couch chair.

  "Explain now why you did what you did and know your mother will be hearing about this." Greg stiffened and knew he had fucked up. His mother adored Zack, she knew that Brenda couldn't have children and had decided that whatever child they would adopt, she would show the child the love of an aunt.

  "I was jealous." Greg said too softly at first.

  "Speak up!" John yelled, getting more and more frustrated with Greg and Zack still being missing.

  "I was jealous! Zack has everything I want and he doesn't even enjoy it! He was a beautiful girlfriend who loves to do the things I do, but he doesn't go out and be with her, he has an opportunity to become popular with famous people, I mean…" Greg scrunched his face up, anger and frustration clear on his face.

  "And you thought to sleep with his girlfriend?" Tom hissed at him.

  "Oh come off it, you would have slept with Zack at the drop of a hat!" Greg yelled back. John looked shocked, he looked at Tom and then at Brenda, who gave a small nod and a look that said she would explain later. Tom bared his teeth and stalked closer until he was towering over Greg, even when he leaned down.

  "Not if he was in a relationship. That's just filthy, disgusting and a downright fucked up thing to do." Tom rose to his full height and glared down at Greg. "That being said, Rebecca is just as much to blame, she opened her legs for you knowing full well she's Zack's girlfriend. You know what? You two deserve each other." Tom growled his last sentence and went to sit back on the couch, next to Brenda, who patted his back.

  "Don't you talk about Rebecca like that!" Greg started to get up.

  "Greg." John said in a low voice.

  Greg looked at his uncle and he saw that the man was mad and hurt, the expressions warring on his face.

  "You could have talked to Rebecca or, better yet, even Zack. I guarantee you that Zack would have been levelheaded about it. He never loved Rebecca but, you just had to go and sleep with her. He's family Greg, does that mean nothing to you?" John asked, sitting down on the coffee table in front of Greg.

  "Zack isn't family, he's just a stray you picked up." Greg said with his arms crossed.

  The ringing sound of a hand meeting a cheek echoed in the silent room. For the second time in an hour, the men in the room were shocked when Cody's girlfriend Maria stood up and gave Greg a slap using the full weight of her body.

  "How dare you!" Maria yelled, her whole body now shaking with anger. Her mousy hair falling into her face, brown eyes alive with rage, her chest heaving up and down as she breathed.

  "How dare you say that an adopted child isn't part of a family, you're sick. You're a pathetic excuse of a man! How dare you degrade children who had no one and were accepted into loving families? How dare you even look at Zack and think that way about him when he's more of a man than you will ever be!" She ended her tirade is small hiccups.

  Cody was by her side in an instant, holding her close.

  "How dare you say that we adopted kids aren't family when that's all we want to be." Maria half said from her position between Cody's chest and the room. Her eyes were filled with hate, all of it aimed at Greg.

  The room was silent apart from the occasional hiccup from Maria, the girl was distraught and Cody had asked her if she wanted to go home. Maria shook her head, she wanted to know where Zack was and if he was okay.

  "Go get your dinner and go to your room Greg." John said with an emotionless voice, his eyes burning with anger was all that gave his emotional state away.

  Wisely, Greg made a quick detour to the kitchen, plated for himself and got a drink before going up the stairs, eight pairs of eyes glaring holes into his back as he went.

  There was no word from Zack for a while longer. Brenda had gone to the kitchen to beef the dinner up, and soon everyone was sitting at the dinner table. No one said a word; besides telling Brenda that her food was delicious and to thank her.

  Once dinner was over, Tom and his friends helped carry the dishes to the kitchen, Brenda chased them out when they wanted to help put the dishes in the dishwasher but Brenda said she needed something to do.

  A total of four and a half hours later, they heard the sound of the car driving up the driveway. John being the mechanic, recognized that the car was Zack's car. They all came together in the living room.

  They all listened as Zack parked his car, got out, got something out of his trunk, and then locked the car. It took Zack a few minutes to get to the front door.

  There was a jingle of keys, the metal grinding of the key slipping into the keyhole.

  What was only a matter of a few minutes felt like hours to those inside the house. The door opened and Zack stood at the doorframe, a blank look on his face.

  He had a duffel bag slung over his shoulder, a file with papers in his other hand.

  Zack looked at the group in the living room.

  A corner of Zack's mouth attempted to move up in what looked more like a grimace than a smile. He came i
nto the house and closed the door behind him.

  The duffel bag was dumped on the ground showing that it was empty as it went flat when it hit the ground.

  "I'll explain where I was in a bit, I'm starving." Zack had a sheepish smile on his face. Brenda gave a watery sigh, tears in her eyes. She stood and led Zack to sit where she sat and walked to the kitchen. The microwave door was opened and closed before the familiar hum started and a ping followed after a few minutes.

  They all watched as Zack ate, he tried to eat as fast as he could but knew that if he ate too fast, he'd have hiccups later.

  With the plate taken from him when he was done and a beer in its place. Zack rubbed the back of his neck before he took a sip. Tom watched as that honey-colored skin of Zack's neck shift as he swallowed.

  Zack held the beer between his hands, with his elbows perched on his knees.

  "I'm guessing by the looks I'm getting you guys found out." Zack looked up at his dad, John just gave a sad smile and nod, a pat on his shoulder.

  Zack looked at his mom, then at Cody and a look of concern appeared on his face when he saw Maria. She just gave him a tired smile. Steve and Taylor just gave him a relieved smile each.

  Brenda gave him a side hug. Tom had an unreadable look on his face, but his eyes told him that he was relieved that he was okay.

  Taking a deep breath, Zack whipped the condensation from his right hand and reached for the file he had in it when he arrived. Slowly he flipped the top of the file open to reveal the papers inside.

  Brenda gasped when she saw the logo for the army first, slowly her eyes trailed down.

  Zack drank his beer, watching as they all read the files, his friends having had moved so they could read the file too. The silence was starting to get to Zack. He studied the expressions on everyone's faces.

  His mom looked confused and scared. His father just looked confused. Cody and Steve had a look of disbelief written all over their faces. Taylor looked utterly shocked, while Maria had a mildly horrified look in her face, her hand covering her mouth.

  Tom looked heartbroken.

  "You can't be serious, Zack; you're joining the military?" John looked at Zack, who just looked back, straight in the eye, before nodding.

  "Why?" Brenda asked, her voice even more watery, she was close to crying.

  There were more outcries from all around him. Zack merely listened to the bits he could make out. He looked at Tom, the man was silent, the only one to not say anything.

  Tom was, however, frozen in his shock. He felt like he couldn't breathe, his head pounded as if his brain was whacking itself around in an attempt to figure out what was going on. He looked at Zack to see the man was looking at him, a look that Tom had never seen and couldn't figure out what it meant.

  The yelling got silent after they all said their piece.

  "I'll explain tomorrow, I just really want to sleep." Zack said and stood up. They all watched as Zack got up, got his duffel bag, and walked up the stairs.

  They listened as Zack opened the bathroom door, and leave shortly after, enough time to do his nightly routine.

  The door to Zack's room opened and closed.

  "Steve and Taylor can sleepover at my house and if it's okay, Cody and Maria can sleep in here?" Tom asked after a few silent minutes, Brenda nodded. John got up and helped Tom get the sleeper couch in the study ready for Cody and Maria, it was silently agreed that they all would just go to bed. The day was just too long and they all just wanted it to end.

  When the room was silent, with people getting up to go to where they would spend the night.

  Zack's phone ringing with an obnoxious ringtone made everyone flinch as it was Rebecca's ringtone. What surprised them was how it only rang for a few seconds before it stopped, no voice followed after. Zack had declined the phone call.

  John sighed and hugged his wife.

  "Everything will be okay. We'll see if we can try and see how serious he is about this, if it was an emotionally driven decision or if he had thought it through." John rubbed her back as she started to shake.

  Tom bit his lip before saying goodnight.

  Once in his house, he told her parents what happened as they were still up. They were just as shocked at the turn of events and was more than happy to allow Steve and Taylor to sleep in the guestroom.

  Alone in his room. Tom held his hand to his heart, the pain in his chest had yet to subside.

  Chapter Five

  The next morning was all sunshine and bird song, cheerful and full of promise to those who woke up. Unless one was from the Miller and Mason household. Tom woke up earlier than usual, the sun wasn't even fully up. Looking out of his window, Tom saw Zack exit his house and stretch.

  Tom watched the lean, strong body stretch and shift into a multitude of stretches.

  Zack was always so attractive to Tom and many nights he had dreamed of Zack, in more than one way. It started off innocent, with hugs and cuddles, but soon turned to kisses and then make-out session that got steamy and heated fast with heavy petting. Handjobs and blowjobs soon started to take center stage. Tom had stared at Zack and at photos of Zack, studying his lips, wondering how they would stretch around him, how soft his hair would be between his fingers. He even dreamt of giving a blow job to Zack, and of course, the famous 69 position made an appearance once or twice.

  His heart panged; Tom knew that Zack would soon have to leave unless he changed Zack's mind. He had an opportunity to finally reveal how he feels, and he was going to take it.

  Tom watched as Zack gave one last calf stretch and started his jog. Taking a deep breath, Tom made his way to his bathroom to take a shower. It took longer to find the right words to say, which turned to hopeful daydreams of holding Zack in his arms, resting his chin on Zack's shoulder as they lay on a couch. Of them watching one of their favorite movies.

  How good it must feel to run his hands over the smooth honey skin and rigid stomach muscles he had seen every time they went camping, swimming, or even at school when they had to change in the locker room.

  This all came to heel when the daydream became steamy, Tom's hand slowly making their way down his chest, running down his stomach before he gripped himself in a relaxed manner.

  The whole daydream, however, came crashing down when he heard his dad open the door to his and his mom's bedroom.

  Cursing under his breath for getting caught up. Quickly finishing his shower and brushing his teeth, Tom went down to the kitchen and had a piece of toast and a cup of coffee before kissing his mom goodbye on the cheek.

  He was out the door and on the sidewalk walking to the Mason house. Everyone's cars were parked in the garages last night before everyone went to bed, but John didn't blame Zack for not parking his car, as both his and Brenda's cars were in the way.

  Tom knew by now, John would be getting ready for work and Zack would have been back. When he got to the front door, it opened before he had a chance to knock, the door opened and John blinked at Tom before he smiled a small sad smile.

  "He's in his room." John said and patted Tom on his shoulder as he passed him.

  Making his way inside, Tom waved at Brenda, who gave the same tiny blue smile from where she stood in the kitchen drinking a cup of coffee.

  Climbing the stairs, Tom stopped in front of Zack's door. Another deep breath filled his lungs before he knocked twice.

  "Come in." Zack said, Tom did so and saw Zack sitting on his bed, his hands clasped and his chin resting on them, his elbows resting on his knees. His whole torso leaning forward, the duffel bag from yesterday on the floor at his feet, filled and zipped up.

  Zack looked oddly peaceful where he sat on his bed.

  "Hey." Tom said and sat next to Zack, the bed shifting from his weight.

  Zack looked his way and smiled. "Hey."

  "You okay?" Tom asked looking into those golden-brown eyes, the dark lashes framing them. They looked tired now, a little bit on the hurt side but there was an intense look of determina
tion there as well.

  "Yeah, I'll be fine. It's kinda funny actually. I'm not that surprised that she cheated on me. We weren't happy, well I wasn't really happy. I was just with her because I got used to her." Zack sounded annoyed when he said that.

  "It's so stupid that I still can't deal with changes and here I am going off to the army." Zack snorted.

  "Are you sure this is the right thing to do?" Tom asked turning to face Zack more. Zack mirrored him and gave him a soft smile.

  "Yeah, I mean, I can't predict what will happen, but I really want this." Zack said and ran his finger over his leg.

  "How come you never talked about it then?" Tom asked confused, he wished Zack had at least brought it up once, then maybe it wouldn't have come as such a huge surprise. After all, no one just wakes up and decides they want to join the military.

  Zack shrugged and looked at Tom, his best friend. The one who always understood him and never judged him, the gentle giant who could win the heart of anyone with his gentle personality or his fantastic food.

  "I've been thinking about joining since junior year, it was a wisp of a thought, but as I thought about it more and more, the idea stuck. I told Rebecca that I wanted to join the army after school and she flipped. She went crazy, saying that I would be a lousy soldier and that she would never be with someone who's in the army. I told her I wouldn't enlist but, well the idea stayed in my head. I really want to join the army. I want to help people; I want to protect the country I love and the people in it. Is that really so bad?" Zack looked at Tom, pleading with his eyes for Tom to tell him the truth.

  Tom swallowed around the lump in his throat. He had come here with every intention to try and change Zack's mind but seeing and hearing the man speak about it. He knew there was no way he could.

  "It's not bad at all, Zack. You want to do something that means something. You want to protect what you love." Tom said softly, watching Zack's face light up like a Christmas tree.