Running (Part IV)
Monday, June 28, 1999 - @ 10:45
AM.
Will and Bart can't believe their luck. The blues festival, that
Todd, Shelley and Zack we're going to, was in Kansas City. They now have
a way to get there if Zack and Shelley don't mind.The tricky part comes
from them staying at Gary and Ted's place. They're going to have to set
this up with the rest of them. They have to get their stories straight.
But they have to let Todd in on some things first.
"Bart, I think it's time to come clean." Will looks to Bart and
then when he's sure that he has caught Bart's eyes, he glances to Todd.
Knowing what he means, Bart nods, and begins "Listen, Todd. We
haven't exactly told ya everything. ... Ya see, Will and I ..." He
pauses.
Will cuts in, "Yeah, ... we're more than ... just friends."
Looking at Todd, he notices that it's just beginning to sink in what
they're telling. The slighest hint of disappointment crosses his face.
'Well, we can't have everything', he thinks, still it woulda been nice.
"Bart ... and Will, I ... I really am ... happy for you. Thanks for
letting me know, anyways." At least, they would still be friends, if not
'playmates'. Speaking of which, "Hey you guys, as a favor to me, could
you start calling me 'TK'. It's what my family calls me, and I'd like
you to, too."
Bart starts looking around, as if searching for something, "TK,
that's not all. ... A couple of weeks ago, Zack found out about me. ...
We had this big fight ... shit ... we're still trying to get over it.
Then last Friday, he found out about Will. He acted real cool about it
and all. ... But you probably heard by now, stuff he and his friends
did. ... At first, I didn't know what to do. But Will convinced me to
give him a second chance. And it really does seem to be getting better."
Todd had heard about Zack, and those other fuckers. So Zack's
little brother is gay, talk about screwy. "That's ok, Bart. Maybe he
really is changing."
"We got one last thing," Will says, "This trip to the birthday
party is going to be the first time me and Bart are ... gonna have a ...
place, er, room of .. to just ourselves, ... and we've been looking
forward to it, in MAJOR way."
Bart's turn, "Tod ... TK, we still you think should come to the
party with us, jeezus, could be some hot guy for you there" poking him
the ribs, "you never know." Will adds, "You could skip the first night
of the festival, and come with."
The problem was that Shelley bought him the ticket as a birthday
present, and he wouldn't want her to think he didn't appreciate it. But
a night out with Bart and Will at a party sounded really great. "Fuck
it! I'll go! Now how do we get, Zack and Shell to help us out? It's
going to be a bit more complicated than I thought."
It's pretty obvious to them that no one has a plan. Then Will says,
"We might wanta try something radical. ... the truth. TK you said
Shelley knows about you, and Zack knows about me and Bart. Well, if you
guys agree, why don't we start a straight auxiliary to 'The Club'."
Things do seem to be tumbling around Todd today. He came out to
friends, discovered that two of his friends were gay also, had a fantasy
shattered when he found that Bart and Will were a couple, got invited to
a party, and now they wanted him to tell who, he thought was biggest
homophobe in the county, that he was gay. What the hell - "I say go for
it."
For Bart, he was still a little worried about Zack. Shelley didn't
worry him, she was always great. Despite the nagging doubts about his
own brother, he figured that since Todd was Shelley's brother, and he
was dating her, Zack could be trusted with this one. "Me, too."
Now, this is where it gets interesting Will thought, "How and when?
We're gonna havta do it soon, the party's in two and a half weeks."
Bart responded, "Let's get it over with. When we stop to get Will's
bike and Shelley's car, we talk to them." Both Will and Todd nodded.
They looked up to see that Zack was about a quarter mile from Shelley's
car. Todd said "Into the valley of death rode the..."
Zack and Shelley had had a pleasant talk coming back from the
clinic, one of those little chats where inconsequentials were discussed
and discarded. They had fun listening to the sound of each other's
voices. But they finally got back to 'the scene of the crime'. Zack
pulled over and turned off the engine. He and Shell got out and went
round to the back of the pick up, Zack thought that something's up. The
three of them were just sitting, not making any attempt to get out of
the truck. Well he lowered the truck's tailgate then looked up to see
Bart. When Bart saw Zack was looking at him, he started. "Could you two
sit up here for a little while we want to talk to you? Please, before
you say no, this really important to us."
Shelley could see that the three of them all had these serious
expressions on their faces. Before Zack could say anything, Shelley
said, "Okay, if you really want us too, come on Zack." she motioned for
her and Zack to sit down on the tailgate, "What's this all about?"
Trying to relieve the tension a little, Will said, "I call this
meeting of 'The Auxiliary' to order." Which got chuckles, from Bart and
Todd. "Anyway, since this was my idea, I'll start. ..."
To Be Continued ...
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back to "stray e-mail, part one"