Date: Sun, 3 Dec 2006 20:39:04 -0500
From: ronyx <ronyx@woh.rr.com>
Subject: Love on Trial   Chapter 3

The following is a work of fiction. Any similarities to anyone are purely
coincidental. The story is intended for a mature audience. It may contain
profanity and references to gay sex. If this offends you, please leave
and find something more suitable to read. The author maintains all rights
to the story. Do not copy or use without written permission. Write Ron at
ronyx@woh.rr.com with your comments.  Ronyx is a Nifty prolific writer.


Love on Trial           Chapter 3


"Ladies and Gentlemen." Mrs. Mason said tersely. "Come in quickly and
take a seat."

I walked into the room and she smiled warmly at me. I also noticed a man
sitting on her desk inspecting us carefully as we walked in. He was
dressed sharply in a gray business suit. His hair was jet black with
graying temples. He appeared to be about forty years old. I was
immediately struck by his distinguished features. It was apparent he was
the defense attorney that Mrs. Mason had mentioned the day before.

Jason was already seated in the front row. I walked around the opposite
side of the room and sat in the middle Jason turned and gave me a
quizzical look. I knew he wondered why I hadn't taken my usual seat
beside him. Mrs. Mason also noticed his reaction and gave me a concerned
look.

"This is Mr. Bernard Anderson." She walked over and stood beside him as
the class became quiet. "He is one of the country's leading defense
attorneys. We are very fortunate to have him help us on our mock trial."

Mr. Anderson began to speak immediately. He spent the next thirty minutes
talking about his law career. I sat mesmerized by him. I had never heard
anyone talk so eloquently. I could understand why he was successful. I'm
sure he could charm any jury into believing anything he said.

He talked about attending Harvard Law School and the challenges facing
students who wanted a law career. He told us he had been practicing law
for eighteen years, and was one of the senior partners in a very
prestigious law firm. I always imagined lawyers to be like the ones in
movies. They were usual old and wore wrinkled suits. Mr. Anderson was
nothing like that.

He told us of some of the most challenging cases he had been involved
with. I think everyone in the room was stunned when he talked about them.
Most of us had heard about them in the news. One had involved a local
congressman who had to resign because he was charged with money
laundering. A jury later acquitted him. It had been in the paper for
months.

"Any questions?" He asked when he had finished his presentation.

Jason threw up his hand. "Do you make a lot of money?" The class
laughed, because we had all been thinking the same thing.

"As if its any of your business, yes." Mr. Anderson responded with a
smile. "I make seven figures a year."

I watched as Jason counted out on his fingers, then suddenly burst out,
"You're a millionaire!"

"Duh!" One of the students sitting beside Jason remarked loudly. This
caused everyone to laugh, including Mr. Anderson.

"And you're going to help us?" Jason said in disbelief.

"Yes, young man." He responded. "I think I have a responsibility to
help young people discover themselves." He turned and looked at Mrs.
Mason.

"Isn't that right, Sis?" The class gasped at this remark. I looked at
Mrs. Mason, who stood along side the wall blushing. Mr. Anderson was her
brother!

They next had us break into groups and discuss the case. Jason looked
over at me, but I pulled my chair up beside three other students near me.
A few times I looked over at his group to see him watching me.

The bell was getting ready to ring when Mrs. Mason told us that anyone
interested in working on the case should remain after school. She looked
over at me and I nodded, indicating I would stay. She gave me a smile.

When the bell rang, Jason looked my way, then exited the room. Only a few
students remained. Most were going to their locker and then return.

"Bernard." Mrs. Mason approached with her brother. "I want you to meet
Taylor White. He's going to participate in the mock trial." Mr.
Anderson extended his hand to me.

"Hello, Taylor." He said with a smile. "My sister has told me about
you. She says you're interested in law."

"Yes, Sir." I replied shyly. "I've considered it."

"Excellent." He said. "What area are you interested in?"

"I'd like to be a civil rights lawyer." I responded. "I'd like to
work for a group like the ACLU."

"That is very admirable." He seemed impressed. "Most young people want
to go where the money is, like corporate law. Any reason why you're
interested in civil law?"

I was embarrassed to tell him that I had been doing some reading on gay
rights. I thought that there were a lot of problems involving
discrimination in the work place and the legal rights of partners in a
gay relationship. I felt that I wanted to do something to help gays and
lesbians achieve equal rights.

"It just sounds interesting." I simply said.

"You need to talk to my partner, Thomas." He said. "He's an attorney
for a gay rights organization in Washington, D.C."

I think my mouth must have dropped to the floor when he said this. I just
stood wide-eyed staring at him. I looked over and saw Mrs. Mason smiling
at me.

She walked over and whispered in my ear, "I have a gay brother, too."

They both started to laugh when I walked weakly over to a desk and sat
down. Mr. Anderson walked over and sat in the desk beside me.

"I hope you don't mind, but my sister told me a little about you before
you came in." I looked up and met his brown eyes. "I understand you're
going through a rough time. If there's anything I can do, don't
hesitate to ask."

All I could do was nod, as other students began to come back into the
room. Jason entered with Stephanie and Cynthia in tow. I watched as Jason
took a seat. Mr. Anderson followed my eyes to see who I was watching.

"Is that him?" He asked. My face began to blush. I wasn't aware that
he had been watching me so intently.

"He's cute." He commented as he stood back up.

He and Mrs. Mason spent the next half hour going over the case we would
be working on. The more they talked about the mock trial competition, the
more excited I got. They said that we had to learn the case completely,
because, like in a real trial, we would not know what the other team
would bring up. We had to be prepared.

"Who would like to audition first?" Mrs. Mason asked. Jason quickly put
up his hand.

"I want to try out for defense attorney." He stated. He looked over at
me and grinned. "Tay wants to be attorney for the plaintiff."

For our auditions, Mr. Anderson had arranged the room so that there would
be a jury box. He sat at Mrs. Mason's desk and pretended to be the
judge. We started laughing when Mrs. Mason retrieved a worn out cloak she
kept in her closet in case it rained. He smelled it and wrinkled up his
nose before putting it on.

I have to admit it, but Jason was very impressive. He must have stayed up
all night reading the case. I was worried because I had only read it
briefly during my second period class.

I got confused with the names of a few of the witnesses, but other than
that I did well. Cynthia and Stephanie's performances were also very
good. In a way, I was hoping that they would mess up so that they could
not participate.

After all the students present had auditioned, Mr. Anderson stood before
us and smiled widely.

"I have to hand it to you." He said. "You guys are good. You were well
prepared and very enthusiastic. I think you will do well in this
competition." The class erupted in applause as Mrs. Mason stood behind
her brother beaming with pride.

"Now as you know," She stepped forward and began to speak. "There are
limited roles. However, we will still need other students to prepare as
understudies, just in case something comes up unexpectedly. My brother
and I will discuss your performances today, and I will let you know
tomorrow after school what roles we will assign you."

The class let out a moan. "I won't get any sleep tonight." Jason said
as the class broke out in laughter.

"Then I suggest you rent several long movies for the evening." Mr.
Anderson told him.

"I'll just rent the Titanic and watch it once." Jason responded
quickly.

"Very good, Mr. Morris." Mr. Anderson laughed. "Witty too. I like
that." Jason looked over at me and grinned. He knew he had scored points
over me.

We were dismissed. As we were walking out, Mr. Anderson stopped me.

"I meant it, Taylor." He whispered. "If you ever need someone to talk
to, don't hesitate to ask."

"Thank you, Mr. Anderson." I replied.

"Bernie." He replied. "Call me Bernie."

"Yes, Sir." I said as I walked out. Jason had been standing in the
hallway watching our exchange.

"What are you trying to do?" He said snidely. "Score brownie points
with the judge?"

"You tried to." I said smugly, and then walked off.

Jason wanted me to go home with him, but I wanted to go home instead. It
was becoming increasing difficult to be around him. Besides, any time I
went to his house, he'd just sit at the computer and message Stephanie.

I wasn't in my room an hour when Jason came bounding in, jumping on the
bed beside me.

"Hey, Asswipe." He said as pounced on me, pinning me to the bed.

"Get off me!" I shouted. He had his face inches from mine, smiling down
at me. I had an impulse to kiss him. Instead, I kneed him in his nuts. He
grabbed his crotch and started rolling around on the bed.

"Damn it, Tay." He moaned. "What the fuck's wrong with you, Man?"

"I told you to get off me." I said angrily. I walked over to the mirror
and combed my hair back into place.

"I was just playing around." He spat. "We used to do that all the
time."

"We're not little boys anymore." I said. "Things have changed."

"They sure have." He said, getting off the bed and walking to the door.
"You're a bigger jackass now." He walked out, slamming the door behind
him.

Depression suddenly overwhelmed me. The one person I most cared about was
becoming a stranger to me. I didn't want him around, reminding me of
what I could not have. Our friendship had taken a turn. I knew he was
clueless as to what was going on. What was I going to do? Sit him down
and say, "I'm in love with you. I hate the sight of you because I know
you'll never love me back."

There was a knock on my door. My father opened the door and peeked in.

"Hey, Champ." He said. "May I come in?"

"Yeah, sure." I responded. I could tell by the serious look on his face
he had something he wanted to talk about.

"I just got through talking to Jason." He said. "Why don't you want
to be his friend anymore?"

"Who said I didn't want to be his friend?" I asked. I really didn't
want to have this conversation. I knew the more he delved into my
feelings, the greater the risk of him discovering that I was gay.

"He feels you don't want him around anymore." He stated. "Is that
true?"

"He's got Stephanie now." I tried to say it to sound like he had
turned away from me, but after I said it, I realized that it came out as
sounding like I was jealous. My father stared intently at me. I was
becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

"You've got Cynthia." He said.

"Yeah, I've got Cynthia." I replied nonchalantly. Again, he studied my
face.

"Is there something you want to tell me?" He asked almost in a whisper.
I looked up into his face. I felt he knew. This was my opportunity to say
something, but I couldn't.

"No, Dad." I got off the bed and headed to the door. "If you'll
excuse me, I have to go pee."

I walked across the hall to the bathroom. I locked the door and fell to
the floor, pulling myself into a tight ball. I didn't even feel like
crying. I can't explain it. I just felt tired. I was tired of living a
lie. I was tired of getting up each morning and acting like everything
was alright. I was tired of going to school each day and being the
perfect student. I was tired of coming home at night and being the
perfect son.

I wasn't the perfect son. I was gay.

After giving my father time to leave, I went back to my room. My mother
yelled up the stairs that dinner was ready. I walked over to the mirror
and looked at myself.

"Ok, Tay." I said. "Go down there and be the perfect son."

Dinner was tense at first. I could feel that my parents had been
discussing me. I had a feeling they were always talking about me. Every
time I'd enter a room, they'd stop whatever they were discussing and
give me a phony smile.

"How is the mock trial going?" My mother asked.

"I think it will be fun." I tried to sound enthusiastic. "I'm going
to learn a lot. Mrs. Mason brought in her brother, Mr. Anderson, to help
us."

"Bernie Anderson?" My father asked.

"Yes." I replied. "Do you know him?"

"Of course." He said. "I put in the plumbing for their new home. He
and his partner are wonderful couple."

I was taking a drink of milk when he made this statement. I suddenly
started choking. I was surprised that my father had said he found Mr.
Anderson and Thomas a wonderful couple. Again, I looked over and saw him
studying me carefully.

He knew. I could tell he knew. That was why he had made the statement. He
wanted to see how I'd react. I just sat there as my face reddened with
embarrassment.

"Well that's nice, Dear." My mother said, breaking the tension.
"You've talked about becoming a lawyer. Maybe this will help you
decide."

"Lawyers make a lot of money." My father laughed. "Bernie and Thomas
are filthy rich."

Again he pointed out their relationship. He was trying to get me to
question him about them. There was no way I wanted to bring up the issue
of homosexuality with my parents. Instead, I tried to make a joke.

"So do plumbers." I looked at him and grinned. "When are you going to
buy me my BMW sports coupe?"

"Honey." He looked over at my mother. "Would you go turn on the
Weather Channel and check the temperature?"

"Why?" My mother looked at him questioningly.

"See if it's cold enough for Hell to freeze over." We all burst out in
laughter. The rest of the meal was a little more comfortable. They asked
me a few more questions about school, but he never mentioned Mr. Anderson
or his partner again.

When I went back to my room, I got on my computer and checked my
friend's list to see if anyone was online. I noticed that Jason was. He
was probably chatting with Stephanie. I decided to IM him anyway.

Tay89: hey u there?

I waited a minute for him to reply. He didn't so I figured he was away
from his computer; or he was still mad at me and was refusing to answer.
I decided to check a sports page when the chat box suddenly appeared.

Kooljay: hey ass wipe

I grinned. I knew when he came on like this he wasn't mad at me.

Tay89: wat cha doing?

Kooljay: I was talking with Steph but she left

I felt my heart sink again. He had only signed on to chat to me when his
girlfriend wasn't online. I knew he had ignored my first attempt to
chat.

Tay89: thats good

I was now trying to figure out a way to get out of chatting with him
without making it obvious. I knew I had hurt him earlier when I kneed him
in the balls.

Kooljay: we gotta talk man

Tay89: so talk

Kooljay: not here

Tay89: why?

Kooljay: its kinda personal something Steph said earlier

My heart stopped when I read what he had written. I knew what he was
talking about. Stephanie had probably mentioned to him her suspicion
about me being gay.

Kooljay: u still there?

I thought about signing off and turning off my computer. My hands were
shaking so bad I could hardly type. I knew he was going to ask me if what
she said was true. This was something we had never talked about. It was
probably something he had never even considered until this evening. My
mind was whirling as to what I would say if he did ask.

Kooljay: BUZZ!

Tay89: yeah I'm still here

Kooljay: good I thought u left u ok?

Tay89: yeah

Kooljay: so can we talk tomorrow?

Tay89: yeah sure

Kooljay: cool see ya then

Tay89: bye

Kooljay: bye

I kept going back and rereading our conversation. This was finally it.
This was the moment of truth. How was I going to handle this? Stephanie
must have told him she suspected I was gay. She had let me know it today
in class when she said that Jason was hers. She was now making sure that
she exposed me to Jason to protect her property.

I was doomed. Jason could always tell when I was lying; and there was no
way I could tell him the truth.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

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