Zach
We graduated today. I’m so damn happy I don’t even know how to deal with it. We graduated. High school is over.
My mom didn’t show which I’m not at all surprised by at this point. How people can make babies and just forget about them is beyond me, but I was surprisingly okay with her not being there today.
I was very happy Elliot wasn’t there. So there’s that. But the Bates family cheered for me just as hard as they cheered for Adam and I’ve never felt so loved in my life.
Mr. Bates has been showing Adam and I more and more how to run the farm over the last few months and yesterday, we finished up the house.
It’s done. We’re moving in tonight. We don’t have much to move in, but we’ll grab some stuff here and there, maybe at some garage sales or something. But all I really need is Adam.
Hell, I’m going to miss our little camper I think.
“What are you grinning at?” Adam asks as he wraps his big arms around me and we stand back looking at the house we built together.
“We have a house.”
He nuzzles my neck and holds me close, “We do.”
I don’t argue with him and say that it’s his house. He doesn’t tell me it’s his because I’ve become to understand that it was always ours. Even when I felt helpless and alone, desperately in love with my best friend who I was convinced was straight, I was never alone.
It was never just me. It was always me and Adam.
“You ready to move in?”
I nod my head, “I was thinking how much I’ll miss the little camper, but the truth is,” I turn in his arms and face him, “Someone promised me some filthy time in that big ole shower that I can’t wait for.”
He’s smiling so damn wide now that I need to kiss him, but before I can a deep throat clears and we both turn to see Jameson and Garrison standing there, J’s arms draped over Garrison. “Aw. Aren’t you two so cute.”
“Fuck off, Jameson.” Adam says but there’s absolutely no venom in it.
“Can’t. Mom wants to talk to you all at the house.”
We share a look and I can’t help but feel worried before we both rush toward the house. My sisters were fine at graduation and if anything were seriously wrong, Garrison and Jameson wouldn’t be looking so happy.
But maybe they aren’t aware of what she wants to talk about. What if my mom is causing trouble?
Adam and I are both going to start full time work at the farm this week and we have the house, but all a judge is going to see right now is likely two best friends who are eighteen and too immature.
As far as I know, no one knows about Adam and I in town. Chloe won’t say anything. My mind is racing when we go into the house and I see Mr. and Mrs. Bates sitting with my sisters in the living room.
“Boys, sit.” Adam’s mom directs and I feel like I’m going to throw up as we take a seat on one of the sofas.
“What’s wrong?” Adam asks for me because I can’t seem to form words.
Mrs. Bates looks at the girls and then at me, “Zach, I want to talk to you about something and to be honest I’m a little worried about how you might react.” That does not help, but the fact that my sisters seem calm does relax me a little bit. “I talked to your mother last week.”
“My mom.” My stomach roils.
She nods, solemnly, “Elliot got a job in Colorado. They’re moving.”
Yeah, I might actually throw up right here. I feel dizzy and can barely manage to sit upright. “They aren’t taking the girls.”
Fuck. I need to get my ass moving. There’s so much I need to do.
Will farm work be stable enough? We talked a little about salary, it seems to be more than enough to support us, but I don’t know if they have some certain number.
And if I want to include Zach’s salary we would probably have to come out as a couple.
Then deal with bigots.
Fuck!
“Zachary.” Adams says, placing his hand on my thigh. “It’s going to be okay.”
“It is.” We’re both pulled to Adam’s mom again, our eyes on her. “Zach, your mom doesn’t want to take the girls.” My sisters both look stoic and my heart breaks again for them. “She’s agreed to sign over custody to us.”
“Us?”
Adam’s dad nods his head at us and speaks, “Us.”
The Bates. “You want to adopt my sisters?”
“Well, it would be guardianship.” Mrs. Bates says, “Zach, I know that you want to adopt them, but honey, you’re eighteen.”
“I can take care of them.” I say firmly and Adam squeezes my thigh gently. “I mean, I know you all have been and you’ve done amazing. I appreciate it all….”
“Sweetheart,” Adam’s mom’s voice is so calming I finally shut up.
“We didn’t do it just as a favor, we care about all three of you.
We wanted to do this and we can take care of them too.
No doubt that you can also, but what I mean is you deserve to be eighteen.
” She smiles at me sweetly and looks at Adam, “You both do. You deserve to travel when you want to. To be in love. To just be.”
I look at Anna, “You want this?”
She nods her head so fast I’m worried she might hurt herself, but then she turns solemn, “I don’t want to hurt you. I know you wanted to raise us….”
“I just want you guys to be okay.” I say because I didn’t mean to put that on them.
“We like it here.” Mary says and hugs onto Mrs. Bates. “A lot.”
I smile at that and then turn to look at Mrs. Bates, “I’ll help you in anyway that I can.”
She nods with a smile, but doesn’t look worried at all. Adam squeezes my leg again and looks over at his parents and my sisters. “They’ll have a room in our house too. Any time anyone needs a break or just wants to stay there.”
They all nod at that and I sit there trying to process this.
This was my goal. I was going to graduate and then find a way to get custody of them, keep them safe.
I needed to protect them and even if this isn’t at all how I saw this going, I think somehow I ended up doing just that.
“Are you okay?” Adam asks me and I nod my head, looking at Mr and Mrs. Bates who are the best parents I’ve ever known.
“Thank you. You don’t have to do this, but thank you for wanting to.”
And they do. I can see it on their faces. They want this. They’re more than okay with this. “Go enjoy your new house.” She says like it’s the easiest thing in the world.
Like she didn’t just take on this huge thing, but to her, it’s not. It’s family. It’s simple.
People think simple is some sort of bad word, but it’s not. There’s something absolutely beautiful about simplicity.
I stand up, give my sisters and Mr. and Mrs Bates a big hug before taking Adam’s hand and walking to the home we built together.
“Are you really okay?” He asks now that we’re alone.
I unlock our front door and pull him inside, before closing and locking it again. “More than. It’s….” I sigh softly, feeling bad for what I’m about to say, but I know he’ll understand, “It’s this huge weight off of me that maybe I didn’t even know was sitting there.”
He smiles and brushes hair out of my eyes, “You take a lot on.”
I laugh at that and shake my head, “Yeah. You would know all about that.”
He just grins and kisses my nose, “But your mom seems to be fully invested in this.”
He nods, “She always wanted more kids. She loves the girls.” He kisses my nose again. “And you.”
I grin, “And this means that we don’t have to hide.”
He kisses my lips now. “Nope. We sure don’t. Not ever.” He kisses me softly and my back hits the wall of our foyer, “But if you want to get custody of the girls in a year or two or three, we’ll figure it out.”
I nod my head in agreement, although I think that maybe they’re right where they were supposed to be now.
And so am I.