Lorne & Logan, 10

(Sort & sweet? - last one)

They all walked together around to the carpark, talking about the great show they'd just seen.

Karen said, “Your father must've been an interesting character, Dan.”

“He certainly was, and he had a wicked sense of humour. Once upon a time, he and his company were doing a North Island tour of small towns. They drew a very poor house in Te Awamutu and that p'ed him off, for some reason. So before moving on to Whangarei, he booked the same theatre for two weeks later and prepared a newspaper advertisement inviting the locals to come to a FREE show featuring his newest illusion “Gone with the Wind”. Come the big night the place was chocker, the pianist played the overture from the side of the stage, the curtain went up and all there was on-stage was a simple sign which read - Gone with the Wind.

He paid for the theatre, the newspaper ad, the sign writing, and hotel costs just to have his utu and say 'Up you Te Awamutu'.”

“Revenge is a dish best served cold, or so they say.”

“Certainly is. There's more to the story, when he and his wife ordered breakfast, in the hotel next morning, it arrived in covered dishes and all that was on the plates under the covers, was a note saying, “Gone with the Wind.”

“Oh, sweet!”

Lorne didn't even smile, he was quiet and surly and his father was looking daggers at him. Logan tried, one more time.

“What did you think of 'the Great Benyon', Lorne? Great, wasn't he?”

“He was okay.” Lorne looked the other way.

Logan gave up and Karen tried. “Well I loved every minute of it. Do you guys want to come around home for a coffee before you go?”

Dan looked at Lorne and said, No, I don't think so. Thanks, Karen, but not this time. I think His Nibs here and I have got some serious talking to do.”

“Oh? Okay. Dan, don't be too hard on him.”

“I'll do what I have to.”

Lorne was quiet, but he was thinking, 'You'll try.' His mind was made up and he was doing what he had to as well.

Karen and her boys said thanks and goodbye and left for home in their own car. Dan and Lorne got into the ute and started for their place.

“So, do you want to tell me what's going on. Lorne.”

“Not really. Nothing's going on anyway.”

Dan jammed on the brakes and stopped the truck on the side of the road, under the last streetlight on the way out of town. He sat there, looking straight ahead and thinking. Was he ever as stubborn as this little shit here next to him?

He really liked Karen, and he liked her boys too - she'd done a good of raising them - better than he had! He didn't know, but he'd thought that, one day, they might get together permanently and make a go of it as a family. Was Lorne going to stuff that up for all of them? He seemed to be doing his best to.

“Right, Lorne, that's it! I'm sick of this bullshit and it ends right now! I want the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. What is up with you, and what has gone wrong between you and Logan?”

“You really want to know?”

“I just said I did, didn't I? Spill it!”

“All right then. You won't like it, but I'll tell you. I'm gay. I'm gay and I'm in love with Logan. I think he's falling in love with me and he can't, so I have to let him go.”

Dan blinked. He didn't see that coming, but he had asked. “You're gay? You sure about that?”

“Very sure.”

“And you love Logan, so you can't talk to him anymore?”

“Right.”

“That might make sense to you, but I'm dammed if it does to me!”

Lorne said nothing and they both sat there thinking their own thoughts.

“All right!” Dan snapped out of it, started the truck, turned around and hurried back into town. He pulled-up outside the Greene's house and got out.

“You stay right where you are," he growled. "You won't move if you know what's good for you. I will be back.”

He went inside and Lorne sat there wondering what he was doing and trying not to care.

After a few long minutes, Dan came back out with Logan following him. He opened the driver's-side door. “Get in, Logan. You sit in the middle.”

He got in after him and drove home in an awkward silence. Not a word was said all the way there. They arrived and quietly filed into the house. Lorne was heading for his room, but Dan stopped him.

“Oh no you don't! You're going nowhere, Mister. Sit down on that couch. Logan, you sit next to him.”

Dan sat in the chair facing them. “Right. It's time for some honest talking. I'll go first.

Lorne, you were not planned. You were an accident and I didn't want you for a start. I'm ashamed to say that I actually suggested that your mother have an abortion and I would pay for it.”

“Well thanks!”

“Shut up, Lorne. You'll get your turn. Right now, I'm speaking. You can be thankful that your mother was made of stronger stuff than me and she refused to abort you.

She gave you life, and you should be grateful for that. I know that I am – very, very grateful. I soon did an about-face and I wanted a son to raise – really wanted one.

I know it's stupid and it's not right, but I think most young men prefer sons to daughters. Prefer the idea of them anyway. Girls are people too. Good people, most of them, but a man likes the idea of a son to raise in his image and to carry on after he's gone.

That's stupid too and you're not much like me at all. You are your own person and you always have been. However, no matter how old you get, even if I'm still around when you're an old-age pensioner, you will always be my beautiful baby boy.

You are, without doubt, the most important thing in my life. You're all I've got and I love you very much!”

“Even if I'm gay?”

“Of course! So what if you are? It's just a label. You are my boy. I love you and want you to be happy. That is all that matters.

Now, explain, if you can, why you have to break up with Logan because you think he might be starting to love you?”

“Well. Okay. We were getting too close and people were starting to notice. We had sex and everything, last weekend. Some kids saw us here, when we were in the river, and they knew.”

“You had sex in the river?”

“No! We were just playing around, wrestling and everything, but they saw us and they knew how close we were getting. We went back to school on Monday and the rumours started. The story spread around in notes and whispers and everyone was saying that we were gay.

I didn't care about me. I can look after myself, and I haven't got much to lose anyway. But Logan has got a lot to lose. He's the best at everything he does, he's well liked and he's got lots of friends.

I couldn't see him lose all that just because of me, so I finished it.”

They were quiet for a minute, then Dan said, “Logan? You told me that you loved my boy. Are you going to tell him that, or is the cost too high?”

“No,” Logan replied. He turned and looked in Lorne's eyes. “I mean, no it's not too high. I love you, you Bloody Idiot! I totally love you and I don't care what it costs. I only want to be with you – now and always with you. I love you and you can't stop me.

Any friends I lose are not real friends anyway. Real friends will be friends no matter who I'm with and if I'm not with you, I won't be happy – ever!”

Lorne whispered, “You really mean that?”

“Every word of it. Do you love me, yes or no?”

“Yes, of course yes! Oh, Logan, I love you so much!”

They hugged and cried on each other's shoulders. Dan wiped the tears from his own eyes and stood up.

“Now that's much better. Well done, Boys.”

“Oh Dad!” Lorne leapt up and hugged him. “Thanks, Dad.”

“You're welcome. Thanks for being who you are. I'm going to bed and so are you. Don't keep me awake or I'll smack the pair of you.

Logan, thank you. I'll take you back in the morning, or you can stay all weekend and I'll take you home on Monday. It's entirely up to you.”

“I think I already am at home now. Thanks, Dan.”

“You're welcome too. One way or another, you're going to be my son as well.”

“G'night, Dad.”

“Have a good night, Boys.”

“Oh, we will!”