Chapter Twenty-Five
Life is going pretty damn good right about now.
I keep waiting and waiting for the other shoe to drop, but the longer I go without that happening, the more hopeful I become about it just never dropping.
Sure, not everything is perfect—that’d be a fairytale and this is real life—but it feels so close, like it’s something tangible that I can just reach out and grasp, at this point.
My house sold in just under two weeks of being on the market.
I want to say Lauren’s friend, Sarah, is a real-estate badass for that feat.
Cash! Ten thousand over the asking price!
I mean, holy shit, not only have I been able to put a retainer down on a half-decent lawyer this time, but I’ve also got something in the works for a family vacation—a cruise for when the kids are on spring break in April.
That part’s a secret I’m holding onto for Lauren and Marcus.
I can’t wait to surprise them with it for Christmas, which is the day after tomorrow.
Though, I have been teasing little nuggets about it here and there, trying to plan our excursions for when the boat is docked.
Marcus does want to go swimming with pigs, Lauren does want to try snorkeling, and Brody does love waterslides.
I already know Cameron enjoys zip-lining, so that was an obvious pick.
All of it sounds just badass enough to satisfy everyone’s tastes, but also safe enough to allow myself to breathe a sigh of relief that we all get to come back unharmed.
It’s been a long fucking day, and we’re headed back from the the traplines when Marcus suddenly tells Gannett, “You’re awfully quiet today. Trouble in paradise?”
Gannett snorts. “Caleb’s quiet all the time, but I don’t hear you asking him what’s wrong.”
I flip him the bird, one of the few signs Gannett has managed to pick up throughout our time together, and he smarmily blows me a kiss back.
Marcus huffs, “Well, pardon me for giving a shit. Was just wondering if everything’s alright with you, Cap.”
Bullshit. Marcus is fifty percent caring, fifty percent fishing for information regarding our bet about Gannett’s sexual awakening.
I’m about to become twenty dollars richer soon, I can just tell.
There’s no way Gannett, being as laid back as he is, will freak out about discovering that he likes some dick.
Gannett sighs hard. “Not really, no.”
Oh shit. Wait, am I about to lose this bet?!
He continues, “I’m going to be alone for Christmas.
I’m temporarily living out of my houseboat, since Gordy’s fuckin’ pissed at me.
I went out on a date with a guy last night, had this whole big epiphany about my sexuality, but I totally flopped in the connection department.
I just—gah, I want a drink so fuckin’ bad.
I won’t though. I need to stay sober for my girls. Set a good example and whatnot.”
Marcus appears just as wide-eyed as I am as Gannett finishes his bout of verbal diarrhea.
Finally, I puff out a huge breath. I turn to Marcus and sign, “Looks like you owe me some spending money, big guy.”
Marcus grumbles, fishing a twenty dollar bill out of his billfold, and slaps it in my hand.
Gannett rolls his eyes. “Which one of those things did you lose a bet on?” he asks Marcus.
“The fact that you aren’t having some epic, dramatic existential crisis over your epiphany,” he replies matter-of-factly.
“The rest was all pretty much inevitable. You’re stubborn as shit, so staying sober, despite the craving, is pretty much a given.
You share custody, so that’s how holidays are usually run—you take turns.
Gordy being pissed at you isn’t anything novel, since him being pissy is pretty much his entire personality—”
“That’s what I said too!” Gannett chirps, snickering.
Marcus continues, “And you having some sort of revelation about your sexuality? I can’t say as I’m entirely shocked.” He turns to me. “Did it surprise you?”
I shake my head.
“Yeah, no. There’s no surprise there,” Marcus reiterates with a chortle.
“Seriously?” Gannett squabbles.
“Seriously. You don’t think we can’t spot one of our own out in the wild?”
I’m so stunned by Marcus’ sudden admission, that all I can do is laugh—because that’s how he chose to come out with our relationship? It’s ridiculous just how casually Marcus tossed that out there! Truly and epically ridiculous.
I love it, and there’s so much more I want to expand upon that, but I’m stopped by two things. One, Gannett’s struggling right now, so I don’t want to overshadow that by hitting him with our own admission, and two, what if Marcus didn’t actually mean to let that slip?
Instead, I simply sign, “newbie” as a joke, unsure if Gannett even understands that particular sign.
He sighs, rolling his eyes again. “Whatever,” he mutters. Ah, so he must have understood me, I guess.
Then, it appears he really takes in what Marcus said before. “Wait, does one of our own mean you’re hooking up too? Kinda suspected that about you, so I guess we’re even. Although—wait, don’t you both have girlfriends?” He gasps. “Oh daaamn, you guys are cheating on your women, together?”
Marcus snorts. “We’re a throuple, Cap. Caleb and I are both with Lauren, and we’re together.” He gestures between me and himself.
Gannett nearly spits out his swig of water. “Whoa, that’s fuckin’ wild. Now that, I had no clue about.”
We joke around a bit more after that, but all the while I’m left reeling over the fact that Marcus Antonucci just came out to someone, all the while knowing that word of our very unique relationship may very well flood throughout Ternbay in no time flat, and had no existential crisis about it himself.
In fact, he seemed rather proud to admit it.
He showed no fear or shame. He just worked it into casual conversation, and look—
Nothing bad came from it.
Only good reception. Is it realistic to think that it’ll be like that one hundred percent of the time?
Fuck no. Ternbay is full of conservative-minded people, but I do have hope that the tides are changing.
I think the more people we can get who are brave enough to live authentically and out loud, the better.
The folks around here? They could stand to see that there are others in their midst who they’ve been too blind to see, and they could benefit from accepting them and making space for them.
Marcus’ admission is cause for celebration. How? I’m not quite sure, but I think I have an idea…
I’m just pulling the cake out of the oven when Cam arrives home after drama club.
Lauren arrives right after, having just put in another day at her new job—which she is pumped about, by the way.
I love that she is finally getting a chance to feel a little at peace by doing the work she does now.
She feels like she’s helping those who are hurting in silence by offering them hope that someone they’re working with has been through what they have.
Brody pops out of his room, nose high in the air. Pepper follows suit, his little nose also sniffing out the prospect of some tasty treat. “Is that cake?” he asks me. “Who’s that for?”
I smile, setting it out to cool. Then, I sign, “It is cake, your nose does not deceive you. And it’s for your dad.”
Brody’s brows knit. “It’s not his birthday…”
I chuckle. “And this isn’t birthday cake,” I note, pulling out a few tubs of wildly colored frosting from my shopping bag. “Do you want to help me frost it after supper? That way the cake has had time to cool?”
“Yeah!” Brody cheers.
“What’s it for then?” Lauren asks me, wrapping her arm around my waist and pecking me on my cheek. “All of our Christmas goodies have already been made…”
“I figured Marcus deserved a little congratulatory treat for coming out today.” I beam.
Lauren leans over and spies the several dishes with leftover bits of rainbow colored batter in them, soaking in the sink. She giggles. “Oh my god, Caleb. Is this a Pride cake? Is that even a thing?!”
I pop a shoulder. “If it wasn’t a thing before, it is now. It's something that Gannett joked about once, and the idea stuck with me, I guess.”
She smiles at me. “He’s going to love it. Where is Marco, anyway?”
“I made up some lame excuse about forgetting something at the grocery store when we were there earlier and sent him back out for it so I could surprise him when he got back.”
She leans in and whispers in my ear, “I hope it was lube, because we’re nearly out.”
I blink. “No. You might want to text him quickly and let him know to grab that too.”
She grabs her phone and sits down at the island, multitasking by slipping out of her heels at the same time. “So, fill me in. How did Marcus come out? Who did he tell? Did he just admit to you two, or me as well?”
I tap the counter, noting that she is still looking at her phone. She glances up at me. “Oh, sorry,” she says sheepishly.
“He told Gannett at work today. He told him we’re a throuple.”
Lauren bites the inside of her cheek nervously. “And how did he take it?”
“Really well, actually. Took him a minute to wrap his head around it, but—”
Lauren snorts. “Only a minute? Come on, this is Gannett we’re talking about…”
I smirk. “He’s not as stupid as everyone seems to think he is, Lauren. Sometimes, I think it’s all just an act so he can avoid getting out of more serious conversations or something…”
Her head wobbles. “Fair, I guess. I really only have his ex-wife’s side of things when it comes to him. Like it or not, Sarah’s a bit biased.”
“He’s changing lately. Really making strides to show up for his girls. Trying to stay sober. I gotta hand it to him, he’s putting in the work.”
“That’s good. That’s awesome, really,” she muses.