Date: Wed, 27 Feb 2002 19:48:12 -0800 (PST)
From: eagle 42 <eagle42scecp@yahoo.com>
Subject: Tanner & Robert, Chapter 10

Disclaimer:
This story is a fantasy of my own creation. The characters are not real;
they were born of my imagination. If a consensual relationship between
two of-age males bothers you, then do not read further. If you are
under the legal age in your area, stop reading now.

Any similarities between a character and a real person, living or dead,
are purely coincidental.  Any actions the reader takes as a result of
reading this story are not the responsibility of the author.  You may not
reproduce, post, or distribute this story in any way without the author's
expressed written permission.  You may print out one copy or save
one copy of this story for your own viewing and entertainment.  By
reading further, you implicitly are agreeing to the above guidelines.

Many thanks go to Hal, Jason & Cody for volunteering their time and
expertise to edit this story.

Comments from readers are encouraged. I appreciate your
constructive criticism and remarks. Enjoy --

Tanner and Robert

Deja vu
Tanner
"Dad, I want you to know that Kyle and I desperately want to accept
yours and mom's offer. But, there's something you need to know
about me before you make a final decision. I hesitated a moment and
with a voice choked with emotion, I looked him straight in the eye and
continued, "Dad, I'm ... gay ... I'm gay."

Dad's facial expression changed to one of hurt and despair as he
responded, "You're ... you're gay?" With that said, tears appeared in
his eyes. He got up off the sofa and went into the kitchen, leaving
Robert and me stunned!

Chapter ten

Robert
I don't know how long Tanner and I sat there. It seemed that life had
moved into some sort of slow-motion mode and time had no
relevance. For what may have been an eternity, or maybe just a few
seconds, he and I were lost in our private responses to Dad's
unexpected behavior.

My gut was wrenched apart! The man I respected most in the world
seemed a stranger at this moment, a stranger whose behavior was at
the same time devastating to Tanner and acutely foreign to me.

I thought, "This could not be the Dad who, through my childhood,
lovingly redirected me when I strayed, comforted me when I hurt,
consoled me when my spirits were down and lifted me up in my
moments of triumph and achievement!"

However, reality, like a mist, slowly returned and soon engulfed us.
Through my weeping eyes I could see the tears flowing down his
cheeks as Tanner began to understand the ramifications of our Dad's
reaction to his disclosure.

Tanner
I was devastated! The man I had come to admire and love in this short
time, the man I had fantasized about this past six months, the man I
had wanted to call "Dad" has just gotten up and left the room -- and
maybe my life!

My thoughts continued, "Damn, but to live with myself, I had no other
choice than to be honest with him and Dorothy. ... Yet, seeing his
reaction, maybe I should have continued my charade. ... Just maybe I
should not have pursued this quest for 'holy grail', my prodigal Dad.
SHIT! ... FUCK!"

Robert
I moved from my chair to sit on the floor in front of Tanner. Taking
his quivering hands in mine, I gazed into his face and said, "I'm going
in there and talk to Dad. His response definitely wasn't what either you
or I expected. I think there something else besides your coming out
that drove him to respond the way he did -- to just get up and leave the
room. I'll be right back.... You ok?"

Tanner nodded his head slowly, his eyes fixed on my face, and with a
trace of bitterness in his voice, whispered, "Go! Talk to him; I'll be
fine. I just need a few moments by myself here."

As I entered the kitchen I saw Dad looking out the picture window, but
he turned to face me upon hearing my footsteps. His face was flushed,
his eyes were red and he was still crying.

"Dad, what were you thinking ..." I began, but he interrupted.

"Son, come here," he said as he beckoned for me into his outstretched
arms. In a voice breaking with emotion he continued unsteadily, "I'm
sorry about the way I reacted in there. It wasn't fair to either Tanner or
you. I know that it seemed like I was rejecting him, that I'm upset
about his being gay, but that's not it, I assure you. I love both of you
unconditionally, and nothing you or he could do or say can ever
change that... Let me get myself together here for a minute. ... Go
check on your brother. I'll be right there. I have a lot of explaining to
do to both of you."

Dr. Worthington
When I returned the boys were sitting beside each other on the sofa,
Robert's left arm around Tanner's shoulders and his right hand on
Tanner's right knee. Both were silent, and neither looked at me as I
moved a chair over to be directly in front of them.

"Tanner, Robert, I'm sorry for the way I reacted a few minutes ago;
my behavior was uncalled for, and for that, I apologize." I reached out
and grasped Robert's hand that was on Tanner's knee and continued,
"I guess one might diagnose my reaction as being that of a flashback --
a result of 'posttraumatic stress syndrome'. It caught me totally by
surprise too. Let me explain."

I released Robert's hand, shifted back in my chair and began my story.
"Robert, you remember your mom and I talking about my younger
brother Todd who died before you were born? He was only 22.
Anyway, Todd dropped out of college his senior year and enlisted in
the military, much to your grandparent's displeasure. However, he was
unhappy in school and needed to 'experience the world', as he would
put it. So, he decided to 'be all that he could be.'

"There was one problem, he was gay. And to answer your question
before you ask it -- did the family know? 'Yes,' he came out to us
when he was 15. And to pre-empt your next question, if may be so
bold, 'Yes,' the family took it well and supported him."

"Back then -- the dark ages to you guys, I'm sure -- being gay in the
military required total secrecy. None of this 'Don't ask; don't tell' stuff.
They would toss you out without blinking an eye, and you had no legal
recourse whatsoever. Anyway, Todd successfully completed basic
training at Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina. In fact, he was
decorated as the outstanding basic trainee in the battalion at the
graduation ceremonies. After doing his AIT or advanced training at
Fort Dix in New Jersey, Private Todd Worthington wound up being
sent to Germany and was assigned to a tank battalion."

"I was in medical school at the time and was home during that summer
-- the first summer Todd was in Germany. Let me digress a bit -- you
know the bit about how people remember exactly where they were and
what they were doing upon hearing about President Kennedy's
assassination -- well, that's how I remember what I'm about to tell
you."

"It was a Thursday morning, and my mom and I were enjoying a late
breakfast and coffee. The doorbell rang, and upon my answering it,
was solemnly greeted by three military officials, one of which was a
chaplain. I knew immediately what that meant."

"Let me cut right to the chase. They informed us that Todd had been
beaten to death by a group of skinheads who were out to rid the world
of 'homos' as they so eloquently put it. The assailants were in custody
and would be tried for murder by a German court. They were
eventually found guilty and received life sentences which they are still
serving today, as far as we know."

Robert interrupted, "Dad, I never knew any of this. Why didn't you tell
me?"

"Robert, your mom and I just never could find either the 'right' time or
the 'right' circumstances. I'm just sorry you're finding out this way.
You too, Tanner."

I continued, "Tanner, when you came out to me, I had this flashback --
I was actually back there in that living room and reliving those horrible
moments of hearing my mother moan, of seeing my Dad later crying
uncontrollably at the memorial service, and my feeling so much loss
knowing that Todd and I would no longer have those wonderful times
we shared together.... I guess we were as close as two brothers could
be. He was two years younger, but we did everything together, got in
trouble together, played sports together -- even doubled dated when
we were in college. Dorothy and me and Todd and his boyfriend-of-
the-month." I chuckled out loud just thinking about those days, but
then returned to the present reality of dealing with Tanner and Robert.

"It wasn't that I was upset at your disclosure; I guess your coming out
to me just reminded me of all the hate and bigotry that you will face,
that possibly you could wind up like Todd. ... I'm sorry, please forgive
me."

Without saying a word, Tanner got up from the sofa, pulled me to my
feet and embraced me in a long hug. "Dad, I'm sorry that my coming
out to you brought you so much pain from the past, but I had to be
honest with you. And, ... and, I hope you'll have me as your son."

With tears of joy running down my cheeks, I responded, "Tanner,
nothing could make me happier than to have you and Kyle to be a part
of this family. How does your brother feel about it?"

"I can't speak for him, Dad, but, my guess is you and mom will soon
have 3 teenagers in the once quiet Worthington household," Tanner
answered.

I picked up on the comment and said with a smile breaking across my
tear-stained face, "There hasn't been a moment of quiet since Robert
entered our little world, and Dorothy and I wouldn't want it any other
way." I kissed Tanner on the cheek.

Robert interrupted, "Dad, there's something I need to tell you also;
you'd better sit down. ...  Dad, Tanner's not the only son you have
that's gay ..."

I broke in. "Robert, if you're about to come out also, your mom and I
already know. That is, we've suspected you were gay for a long time,
but we've been waiting for you to feel comfortable enough with your
sexuality for you to tell us."

The look on Robert's face was priceless as I continued, "Don't get me
wrong, Robert. I don't mean to imply that you act "gay", whatever that
means. I mean that you're more like Todd than me. Since you were
born, I've kidded your mom about the possibility of Todd being your
dad rather than me. You look like him; you talk like him; your
mannerisms are his and yet, you never knew him."

I grinned and quipped, "Don't worry, son. You passed the DNA test.
You're all mine. ...

"Thanks loads, Dad," Robert shot back, with a smirk on his
mischievous face and continued, "I guess Tanner and I must have
inherited the 'gay' gene from him somehow because it obviously wasn't
from you.  I mean, mom has told me about your being the "campus
stud" back in college and how she hesitated the first time you asked
her out because of your reputation with the ladies. Didn't think I knew,
did you?"

My face turned crimson as I realized that Robert had me good. "Your
mom and I need to have a little talk about what else she's told you,
young man."

Tanner smiled broadly and interrupted, "I think I need to spend some
'quality' time with mom also, Robert. It'll give a chance to know the
'real' dad."

Our conversation was interrupted by the phone ringing upstairs. We
heard Jason answer but could not make out what was being said.

In a few minutes, Jason walked into the room and announced, "That
was Dr. Gamac and Kyle. It seems that all the tests' results are in;
everything seems to be fine. Kyle's going to be released tomorrow
morning. We can pick him up anytime after 9 a.m. Dr. Gamac did say
that the only reason he's letting Kyle out so quickly is because I'll be
around to keep an eye on him. In fact, I'm not going back to the office
until next week. I guess Dr. Gamac still thinks of me as a doctor, after
all.

I responded, "That's great news, Jason. In that case, I need to get
back home --several cases pending that need my attention now. Let me
get on the phone here and book a seat for tomorrow afternoon."

Jason
"Bob, again that won't be necessary. One of our company planes is
taking four of our staff to Washington tomorrow afternoon. One more
passenger can get aboard easily, and they can drop you off right at the
municipal airport where we left from originally."

Bob responded, "Jason, are you sure about this? I don't mind taking a
commercial flight home."

"Not in the least. I'm glad we can be of assistance," I answered.
"We're just happy that you could come out in the first place. I know
Tanner and Kyle appreciate your being here. Now, what have you guys
been up to?"

Tanner
"Nothing much, Uncle Jason. I just come out to Dad and ..."

"Me too, Uncle Jason," Robert interrupted.

Jason responded, "Whoa, boys! When I asked what you had been up
too, I didn't expect all this. Now start over."

Dad, Robert and I related the whole scene to Uncle Jason. When we
finished he walked over to me, gave me a hug and said, "Tanner, I
think you've made the right decision to move in with Bob. I'm
assuming that Kyle's gonna be OK with this, of course. You know I
love you and Kyle like you were my own, but you two need a family
like Bob and Dorothy -- to be nurtured and loved and accepted."
Uncle Jason's eyes welled up a bit and became misty as he spoke.

Then turning to Bob, Uncle Jason continued, "Bob, I can't begin to tell
you how happy it makes me to know that Kyle and Tanner will
become a member of your family. It's a very loving and unselfish act
that you and Dorothy have committed to.  Tanner's mom always said
you were 'good people' and now I believe it. Not everyone would be
willing to take on two additional children to raise, especially teenagers
-- although Tanner won't be a teenager much longer."

Dad responded, "Jason, it's simply the right thing to do; they're
family," and let it go at that.
-
We spent the remainder of the evening -- well past 1 a.m. --
discussing the logistics of beginning our move to the East coast. And,
that was assuming that Kyle was OK with everything. Dad and Uncle
Jason suggested that we carry back with us what clothes we would
need for the next week or so and ship the rest by truck. Dad felt that
we should pick out any furniture that may have personal or sentimental
value, ship it, and donate the remaining to a local charity.

Turning to me Dad continued, "Tanner, Jason has filled me on the
insurance and court settlement. Let me establish up front that Dorothy
and I are taking on the financial responsibility of being your parents.
You and Kyle will not be expected to spend your inheritance, except
for your educational needs. Jason outlined to me that part of the
money has been earmarked for educational purposes and only for that.
We're hoping to be able to transfer your scholarship from Stanford to
Virginia, if that's where you wish to attend. Granted, if it's not spent
because of scholarships, then the funds are transferable for use at your
discretion once you and Kyle reach the age of 25. Even if these funds
were not available, you and Kyle would never have to worry about
paying for your college and post undergraduate work."

I interrupted, "Dad, Kyle and I don't want to become a financial
burden on you guys. After all, Robert's educational needs have to
considered."

Then nodding toward Robert and with a mischievous smile breaking
across my face, I continued, "After all, Robert's not scholarship
material like his half-brother genius here. He'll probably kill the college
money tree just trying to get his bachelor's degree."  I knew, of
course, that Robert was ranked number two in his junior class back at
his high school and that he had scored over 1450 on his SATs. No
one would take offense at my light-hearted comment.

That brought Robert's traditional response reserved for me lately.
Feigning a reaction of shock, I said, "Dad, my little brother just shot
me the finger. He just has no respect for his elders."

The moment lightened with more retorts and recriminations being
hurled between little bro and me until Uncle Jason broke it up.

"Enough guys! Cheez! Bob, I'll just offer this one last time. It's not
too late to reconsider. You do have time to sleep on it. AND, speaking
of sleep, I think it's time we all hit the sack. Tomorrow's going to be
an exciting and long day what with Bob returning to work and you
guys taking care of Kyle for a few days.  I have a feeling that Dr.
Gamac will give his approval to Kyle's flying out with you two and me
this coming weekend. Look out, Virginia!"

Robert
We said our goodnights and headed to our respective bedrooms.
Tanner called first shower so while he getting rid of the day's grime I
went about brushing my teeth and other necessary toilet duties.

"If you're ready, Robert, I'll just leave the shower running. Would you
hand me that body towel? I don't want to have to mop the floor after
we wrap up in here."

Without the slightest hint of shyness, He stepped out of the shower
naked as I marveled at his sculptured, sexy body -- that swimmer build
that projected bulges in all the right places, that beautiful cock and
muscular bubble butt. As my eyes locked on his, Tanner grinned and
asked, "Like what you see?"

I grinned too and nodded as he turned his gaze towards me and
responded, "Me too, little bro. I like what I see." (pause) A serious
look replaced the smile as Tanner continued. "But, bro, we need to
talk.  Our coming out to each other really changes the dynamics
between us, doesn't it? I don't want us to do anything that could
possibly become roadblocks to our being brothers first. (pause) Get
your shower, bro. Something smells in here and it ain't me! Then we'll
finish this conversation."

Tanner
I heard the shower noise end and shortly Robert walked into the room
wearing only his skin and a smile. He was towel drying his hair with
both of his hands semi flexing his firm arms, and showing me all of his
hard body.  Little drops of water were still dripping from his smooth
perfect frame.  It seemed like the cool air in the room made his nipples
harden right before my eyes. I thought, "Damn, what a sexy body!
Take it easy now, self; don't spring a woody right now. A serious talk
is more important at this moment. Down, boy, down!"

I began, "Robert, I commented a few minutes ago that I didn't want us
to do anything that has the potential of screwing up our newfound
relationship. To let you know where I'm coming from, I want to give
you a bit of my relationships history. I guess that's as good a way to
say it as any."

"When I was a senior in high school, I was very active on the student
council. One of my responsibilities was to ensure that all new students
were warmly welcomed, shown about the school and introduced to
lots of students and faculty. We had a committee of volunteers and I
chaired that committee. Anyway, when the rotation came around to
me, this new student named Michael became my charge for the day.
To make a long story short, we hit it off immediately. He was gay and
out of the closet. In a few short weeks, we became sexually involved
but very quickly the relationship hit rocky roads, and we parted in not
too friendly a fashion."

"The reason I'm confessing this is that Michael and I let sex get in the
way of developing a true friendship first. I look back on that
experience as just two horny teenagers in rut getting their rock off
using each other. That's all it was. We confused lust for love and sex
for intimacy."

"Robert, I don't want anything to fuck up our budding relationship.
We've got to learn to be brothers, and then friends. Your friendship
means too much to me for me to allow anything to jeopardize it. Do
you understand?"

Robert said, "Tanner, as much as I don't want to acknowledge that
you're right, I know you are. Thanks for helping me see that we've got
to take things slowly and cautiously. If it were left up to me, I would
have jumped your bones tonight! You're just so sexy and . . ."

I chimed in, "That's what I mean, bro. There's nothing I'd like better
right now than to hop into the sack and make the nasty with you. But,
we both know that we would just be fucking each other's brains out
and not making love. I don't think that's what either one of us truly
wants, is it.?"

Robert
Tanner, of course was right. We, then and there, decided to go the
harder route (no pun intended) and really develop our relationship as
brother and friend. I also pointed out that our relationship as brother
and friend had to include Kyle. If we were fucking our eyeballs out all
the time, what would that do to Kyle and his developing new
relationships with Mom, Dad and me. Damn, life just isn't so simple
anymore!

Sleep overcame our discussion since it was after 2 p.m. the last time I
had glanced at the clock. I must confess that we decided that
snuggling at night in the bed was permissible -- just as long as it didn't
lead to anything else. After all, we're not perfect!!

Dr. Worthington
We got to the hospital early the next morning. Dr. Gamac met with us,
outlined Kyle's care and released him to go home.  Once we arrived at
the condo, Kyle got settled in using the room I had used. That worked
because I was leaving this afternoon to fly back to Virginia.

Tanner, Kyle, and I talked before lunch and they "formally" accepted
our invitation to become members of our family. I called Dorothy and
filled her in on the latest news (except the "coming out of the closet"
stuff -- that was the responsibility of Robert and Tanner to tell their
mom).

It didn't take long for Kyle's energy level to drop to below zero and he
was soon fast asleep. I said my goodbyes to the boys and told them
that Dorothy and I would be looking forward to their arrival Saturday
afternoon. They would stay back at the condo with Kyle while Jason
took me to the airport.

The company plane was waiting for us to arrive. I thanked Jason for
his generosity and for all that he had and would be doing for the boys.
We hugged; he left the plane, and we were airborne in just a few
minutes.

Jason
I walked in the door of the condo and was greeted by gales of bawdy
laughter. All three boys were in the living room. Kyle was lying on the
sofa while Tanner and Robert were sitting on the floor in front of the
sofa. My well-trained ear told me they were in the middle of telling
dirty jokes when I walked in. "Well, guys, Bob's on his way and I'm
hungry; how about you?

We had just parked ourselves in front of a huge order-out pizza when
the phone rang. I answered it.

The boys looked up and saw that I had turned pale and was stuttering.
"When?". . . How long ago? . . . I'll be right down." I hung up the
phone, turned to them and said with a shaking voice. "Boys, that was
the office. The airport and FAA just called. Our plane was lost from
radar about 45 minutes ago and it seems to have gone down. Right
now that's all we know."