Chapter 68
Levi pulled the car into Zeke’s driveway a few minutes after five. Jon had insisted they arrive early, and Levi couldn’t decide if he wanted to get it over with or if he was looking forward to reconnecting with his old friend.
“Jon, are you ok?”
“I’m fine, but I want to ask you something.” He cleared his throat. “You had a crush on him, didn’t you?”
Levi sighed. “A long time ago, but could you please not make a big deal about it? I don’t know how much about that Sarah knows, and I really don’t want to make this any weirder.”
Jon smiled. “I won’t. But I will say I understand how you felt that night. You know, when Robbie showed up. I had to resist the urge to show off all day. Didn’t want to be a hypocrite for making fun of you for acting like you did.” He leaned across the center console and kissed Levi. “Now let’s get inside. I want to hear all about little Levi.”
Levi’s eyes narrowed. “Maybe coming here wasn’t such a good idea.”
Jon laughed and hopped out of the car. He walked around and opened the driver’s side. “You coming? I’m going in with or without you. I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”
As they walked up the front steps, Levi felt Jon’s arm intertwine with his. Levi rang the doorbell. Sarah greeted them. She hadn’t changed since the day they had graduated.
She stepped onto the porch and embraced him. “Levi. It’s so good to see you again.”
“You too Sarah. It’s been too long.”
She smiled at Jon. “Levi, you’ve always had good taste in men. He’s quite the catch.”
She introduced herself to Jon while Levi wondered if she already knew he had a thing for Zeke when they were kids.
“Zeke’s in the shower. He’ll be out in a minute. Come into the living room. The kids are in their rooms…” She glared down the hallway, and Levi heard three doors slam. “… or at least they are supposed to be. Zeke told them he wanted to be in the room when they met you.”
Levi raised an eyebrow. Between what Sue had said at the bakery and how Zeke and Sarah were acting, Levi knew something was going on. Sarah had taken Jon and was showing him the kitchen. The house hadn’t changed since the last time he had been there. He stood in the entryway, taking in the old family photos on the wall. Most were from their childhood, and Levi smiled when he saw one of him and Zeke as children.
Zeke emerged from the master bedroom wearing jeans and a t-shirt. He smiled when he saw Levi. He held up a finger and peeked into the other bedrooms, one by one. When he had finished, he approached Levi.
“Do you like kids?”
“Honestly? Hadn’t really thought about them.”
Zeke shook his head. “They’re like little predators. They can smell fear. I assume Sarah stole Jon to figure out what you’ve been up to. We may need to go rescue him.”
They found them in the kitchen. Sarah was drinking a glass of wine, and Jon had a beer in hand. Zeke grabbed two more from the refrigerator and handed one to Levi. Sarah looked at Zeke. “How long do we have?”
He laughed. “I told them to give us a few minutes. Sam set a timer on her phone, so probably any minute now. You know she thinks five minutes is an eternity.”
Sarah laughed. “Alright, let’s head to the living room. Supper’ll be fine for a few minutes.”
Zeke ushered them into the living room and motioned for Jon and Levi to sit on the couch. Zeke and Sarah stood back like they were watching a movie. An alarm sounded down the hall, followed by the sound of running. Levi looked at Jon and gaped at the smile on his face.
A face peeked around the corner, and a boy stepped out first. His sisters stood behind him, using the boy as a shield. The boy looked at Levi, his head cocked to the side. He was in awe of how much the boy looked like his father, except he had his mother’s thick black hair. The boy looked at Zeke, who nodded with a slight grin. The boy’s gaze went to Jon, then back to Levi.
“Wait a minute! Are you two a couple?”
Levi’s eyes flew open. He wished he could see Jon’s reaction, but he was unable to break eye contact with the boy. He heard Zeke choke from across the room and Sarah running to the kitchen, laughing. The boy looked at his father. “What?”
“Manners.” Zeke said, struggling to hide the grin on his face.
The boy rolled his eyes. “Fine. Look, they think this is funny. You’re Levi, right? My name’s Levi too. They named me after you and they’re wanting to see your reaction. Anyways, you haven’t answered my question. Are you two together?”
Levi heard Jon giggle. He looked at the boy directly in the eye and gave a cautious nod. “Yeah, I’m Levi, and this is my boyfriend Jon.” He felt Jon’s fingers lace into his.
The boy grinned, and his eyes widened. “That’s so cool. Dad said I was too young for a boyfriend. How old were you guys when you had your first boyfriends?”
Levi’s mouth gaped, unable to find words. He could feel eyes on him, followed by Jon’s comforting voice.
“Come here, kid. I’ll tell you a secret.” He watched the boy approach Jon, who whispered into his ear loud enough for everyone to hear. “Twenty-one. No lie.”
The boy’s eyes narrowed. “Seriously? Dad said eighteen would be old enough.”
Sarah laughed again from the kitchen.
Jon was unwavering. “You don’t want to rush it. It took me a little longer to find the perfect guy.”
Levi gulped. “It took me even longer, but like he said, you just have to wait for the right guy.”
The boy smiled and jumped onto the couch between them. “I’m the only gay kid at school. Well, the only out gay kid. I guess I won’t even have a chance to meet somebody until I’m in college, anyway.”
“Levi, let your sisters talk.”
“Fine.” He whispered something to Jon about video games after they ate. Levi didn’t see Jon’s response, because the two girls stood ready to introduce themselves. They appeared to be close in age, a few years younger than the boy. He thought they might be twins. Even if they weren’t, they were identical except one had their mother’s jet black hair, and the other their father’s fiery red. They introduced themselves as Samantha and Bethany, and immediately ran to the kitchen to join their mother, giggling.
Levi looked at Zeke, hoping his face asked the questions racing through his head. Zeke smiled and mouthed the word ‘later’, and joined his wife and daughters in the kitchen.
He looked at the boy sitting between him and Jon. “So, how old are you, Levi?”
“I’m almost thirteen.”
Levi raised an eyebrow. “You’re lucky, kid. You’ve got two wonderful parents.”
“I know. Mrs. Ward told me that all the time. I’m going to miss her. She said she hadn’t talked to you in a long time, but it wasn’t your fault, so I shouldn’t hold it against you when I finally got to meet you.”
“She did?”
“Levi, it’s your turn to set the table.”
Jon chuckled as the boy huffed and headed towards the dining room.
“Are you ok?”
Levi took a deep breath. “Yeah babe, just a little shocked is all.”
Jon smiled. “Definitely not what I expected when I made the crack about learning all about ‘little Levi’ earlier.”
Levi scowled at him. It quickly faded to a smile. “I had no idea.”
Jon squeezed his hand. “I know. I can imagine you getting all flustered trying to explain that he wasn’t yours, but your first crush thought it was a good idea to name his firstborn after his gay best friend before we came to town.”
Levi coughed. Jon was right, but he didn’t want to admit it. Jon opened his mouth to speak again when Zeke came into the living room.
“Y’all doing alright? Supper’s almost ready.”
Jon smiled. “We’re fine. I’m just teasing Levi.”
Zeke raised an eyebrow. “I see. Well, why don’t y’all come on and join me and the kids in the dining room. Oh, and Levi is insisting you two have to sit by him.”
The meal flew by, filled with old stories and laughter. When everyone had finished, Sarah and the girls volunteered to clean up. Zeke’s son dragged Jon to another room, wanting to show off his skill in some new video game Levi hadn’t heard of before, and they were alone in the dining room. An awkward silence had settled between them.
Zeke spoke first. “It’s funny.”
Levi raised an eyebrow. “What is?”
“Levi is usually quieter than his sisters. All three of my kids are shy, but for some reason, he took to you two like nothing I’ve ever seen.” He sighed. “I guess partly because he feels like he already knows you from everything we’ve told him.”
Levi shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe we make him feel like he’s not alone. I know you’re here for him, and I can tell he knows you love and accept him no matter what, but there is a certain loneliness when you don’t know other people like you. We’ve basically tripled the number of gay people he knows in one night.”
“I hadn’t thought of that.”
Levi smiled. “It’s ok. It’s not something you would think about. Being loved and accepted doesn’t always keep you from feeling alone.”
“Tony said something similar.”
“How long has he been out?”
“A little over a year. He had been more withdrawn than usual, and it worried me. I thought he was getting bullied at school, and I had to do something.”
Levi cocked his head to the side. “What did you do?”
Zeke smiled. Tears were forming in his eyes. “I told him about you . About how you had come out to me when we were in high school, and how it didn’t change anything between us one bit, and how if you had just come to me that night, I would have tried to stop you from running.”
Levi sighed. “There’s more to what happened that night than you know. I was terrified and needed the distance.”
“I figured that, especially after what your mama said when she had apologized to me for running you off.”
Levi dropped his head. “So what did he say after you told him all of that?”
“Nothing. He just hugged me. A couple of weeks later, he came home crying. I asked what was wrong, and it was like a levee broke. Apparently, the boy he had a crush on started dating a girl. I could see the fear in his eyes as soon as the words came out of his mouth.” He sighed, a tear slid down his cheek. “I did my best to comfort him, but it didn’t do any good. He withdrew even more. We just gave him his space and let him know that we still loved him, and were here for him when he was ready. I talked to Tony, then took Levi there for breakfast on Saturday morning. Tony had a talk with him, and he was back to his normal self after that.”
Levi placed his arm around Zeke’s shoulder. “Why name him after me?”
“You were gone . My best friend just up and left without saying goodbye. We went to your house, looking for you the next day to tell you about the baby. Your mama said you were gone and you wouldn’t be back. I don’t know how, but I knew something had happened. I guess I took it a little hard, so when he arrived with that dark hair, we both knew. He would be Levi, so we could remember you, and always keep you in the front of our minds, and maybe in a way to make sure your mother didn’t forget what she had done to you.”
Zeke looked at him with a crooked smile as tears ran down his face. Levi hugged him. “I’m not running anymore. I’ve got it good in Derecho, but you’re the closest thing I have to a brother, and it took coming back here for me to remember that. We’ll visit as often as we can.”