Friends and Lovers (28 page)

“Sure thing, BT. Sorry, Farmer.”

“I’ll do it,” Mr. Andretti said. “I… uh… was going to get a glass of water anyway.” He took the DVD out of the player and put it in its case, then left to go into the kitchen. “Anybody want anything?” he called back.

“Cokes, and a Dr. Pepper for Bobby Joe.”

Mr. Tom knew what kind of soda he liked? Farmer felt good about that. But he’d interrupted their evening, and he knew how much Daddy and Billy Ray hated when that happened.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to- You were enjoying that – ”

“Nah, it was just cheesy porn. We’d have had something else on if we’d known there was anyone else in the house.”

“But Miss Cath and Kira are here.”

“Oh, they’ve seen this one before, and they’ve laughed the hardest when we go the MST3K route.”

“That’s enough, Teddy. You’re going to destroy all of Farmer’s illusions about your sister and his girlfriend.” Josh grinned. He was still sitting almost on Teddy’s lap, and it didn’t seem to bother him in the least that Farmer was staring at them.

“Behave, both of you,” Mr. Tom said, but he was smiling at them with great fondness.

Farmer sighed. His Daddy didn’t believe in showing his children affection, the boys because he claimed it would make them soft, and the girls because it might give the neighbors the wrong idea.

Still, it would be nice if just once he looked at Farmer like that.

“I take it Kira neglected to inform you this was to be a girls-at-play evening?”

“No. I mean yes. I mean…” Farmer was distracted by the sight of Josh resting his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder. He knew they were going to have a wedding ceremony in December, and he guessed that made them engaged, but he hadn’t said anything about it at home. Daddy didn’t even know Mr. Jack was gay. If he ever found out, he’d make life hell at home, wanting Farmer to quit. Farmer really liked his boss, who was a fair man. So was Mr. Tom, if it came to that. He’d made sure there was an extra twenty in Farmer’s pay envelope for his birthday. “Um… Kira said she left a message with one of my sisters. Must have been Jenny. She’s a little scatter-witted and tends to forget things.” That was probably why she wasn’t doing well in school, but Momma and Daddy said it wasn’t important, since as soon as she turned sixteen, they were gonna pull her out of school so she could get married, like their older sisters had, like it said in the Bible she should. “She said I should get in touch with my friends and make it a boys’ night out.”

Although since he’d started dating Kira, his friends had kind of faded into the woodwork.

Mr. Andretti had returned and handed out the sodas, saving Farmer’s for last. “Well, why don’t you come join us?” he invited.

“Oh, no, I wouldn’t want to intrude,” is what he opened his mouth to say. What actually came out was, “Thanks, Mr. Andretti. I’d like that.”

“Great! I’ll find a DVD I think you’ll like!” Josh bounced up and went to a cabinet. When he opened it, Farmer was stunned by the number of DVDs it held. They didn’t have any DVDs at home, or VHS tapes, or even HBO, since Daddy said it was all a plot by the leftwing bleeding-heart liberals in Hollywood to corrupt the god-fearing people of this country.

“Come sit on the loveseat, Farmer,” Teddy said. When he hesitated, Teddy frowned at him. “You don’t think we have designs on your virtue, do you?”

Farmer blushed again. “No.” To prove it, he sat down next to Teddy, although not too close. Since he’d grown up with so many brothers and sisters, he’d learned early to treasure what space he had and not to crowd people.

“That’s an awful tight fit,” Mr. Andretti said. “Why don’t you boys take this recliner, and I’ll sit on the loveseat.”

“That’s a great idea, TJ!” Teddy jumped off the loveseat and plopped himself down in the recliner.

“TJ?” Farmer looked around, confused.

“Yeah.” Teddy grinned and hugged his fiancé closer to him. “Tom’sJosh.”

“Oh! I see.” Farmer smiled. He knew Mr. Andretti’s first name was Josh also, and he decided that made it easier to distinguish between the two Joshes. “May I… May I call you that too, Mr. Andretti? I know I’m not family, but – ”

“I’d like it if you called me TJ.” He said something under his breath, and Mr. Tom frowned at him.

“Josh.”

TJ just looked at Mr. Tom, who finally sighed and shook his head.

“Here. Have some popcorn.” TJ offered him a big bowl.

“Thank you.” Farmer took a handful. And then another handful, and another. “This is good!” he mumbled around a mouthful.

“Don’t sound so surprised. Haven’t you ever had white cheddar popcorn before?”

He shook his head, swallowed, and licked the salty goodness from his fingers. TJ was watching him, and for some reason he blushed. “Just buttered,” he murmured and ducked his head. And that was only at the movies.

Josh put the DVD into the player, gently pushed the door closed, and stepped aside so everyone could see the TV screen.

The obligatory FBI warning done, the screen lit up with various scenes from the movie. Across the bottom of the screen were the options.

“Josh, I’m not sure this is a movie that would interest Farmer.” TJ sounded worried, which made Farmer feel good. No one at home cared much about whether he would enjoy whatever Daddy or Billy Ray decided to watch.

“Oh, no, it’s okay,” he hurried to say. The characters seemed to be nicely dressed, in long-sleeved white shirts and dress pants. Porn movies didn’t start that way, did they? 

“Cool. I love this movie. C’mon back, Joshboy.” Teddy was holding his arms open.

Oh, God, they weren’t going to start making out, were they? Farmer stared hard at the screen, determined not to watch them like some hick boy who’d never been in the big city before. Which he wasn’t, since he’d grown up in Savannah.

But out of the corner of his eye, he saw Josh settle himself next to Teddy, and Teddy just put his arm around Josh’s shoulder. Still, if they wanted to make out, Farmer decided it would be okay.

To his surprise, he found himself drawn into the plot of the movie, about a young Mormon sent out into the big, bad city to make converts. He couldn’t help laughing when the gay neighbor and his female roommate, who was a little black girl, beat the Mormon and his friend at a basketball game.

It bothered him when a single kiss resulted in the young Mormon being sent home in Shame.

It should have bothered him when the gay neighbor followed the Mormon boy to the airport, but he was so caught up in the story that he didn’t even give it a thought.

‘What if you’re the one I’ve waited for my whole life, and I let you go?
’ the gay boy said to the Mormon boy.

NO! You can’t let him go!
Farmer thought, and it didn’t matter to him that they were two guys. This was how it should be.

The airport was snowed in, and they had to spend the night in a nearby hotel.

It’s all right, they’re going to be together, there’s going to be a happy ending!
Never mind that according to his family and his church that would
not
be a happy ending because they were sinners and would be going straight to hell.

Only when the gay boy woke up the next morning, he was alone, and all that remained to prove it hadn’t just been his imagination was a pocket watch the Mormon boy’s grandpa had given him.

Farmer’s chest started hurting.

The Mormon boy went home, willing to face the possibility of being excommunicated rather than stay with the gay boy. He was confronted by his daddy and the elders of their church, and when he faced them down, Farmer wanted to turn around and high-five TJ.

He was almost bubbling over with pleasure, sure this was the happy ending he’d been expecting. After all, in Hollywood movies, the good guy would explain why his way was the right way, and the people who were causing problems would hang their heads, admit they had it all wrong, and promise they’d seen the light.

But that didn’t happen. Farmer stared in disbelief as things became worse instead of better in the Mormon boy’s home. His daddy found more and more reasons not to come home, and his momma wouldn’t even look at him when she talked to him.

And then she slapped him...

Farmer didn’t realize tears were running down his cheeks.

“Farmer? Big Tom!”

“Bobby Joe, what’s wrong?”

“It’s… That’s the way it is at home; it’s just like my folks! I… I…” He bit his lips, but it was too late to prevent a sob from escaping. “They don’t hear me when I talk; they don’t see me when I’m sitting right at the table with them! I… I wanted to go to college, but Daddy wouldn’t let me. He said it would give me ideas and the next thing I’d be thinking I was better than my brothers and my sisters, and… I wouldn’t have! I … I…” But somehow he couldn’t make himself lie and say he loved them. He was fond enough of some of them, like Jenny and Jimmy Jack, who was the baby, but the others…

TJ pulled him into his arms, holding him and stroking a hand that was surprisingly comforting up and down his back.

“I’m sorry. I’m being a baby.” Billy Ray had always made fun of him when he cried, and so he’d stopped crying. He couldn’t believe he had lost control like this.

“No, you’re not,” Teddy said. “I know what you’re talking about.”

“How can you?” Farmer didn’t want to look up. He knew his face would be all spotted and blotchy, his eyes and his nose red. And it was so nice being held by someone. No one had done that since he’d been a little kid.

“Farmer, my Grandpa Caleb wants to see me and Cath, so he knows he’d better not say anything about Daddy, but Daddy isn’t welcome there any more. And BT never was. They all blame him for me and Daddy being gay. When I called Momma and told her about Josh and me, she screamed that I was damned and she didn’t have a son any more, and slammed the phone down.”

“Teddy, you didn’t tell me that!” Josh was pale, and his lower lip trembled until he took it between his teeth.

“I didn’t want you upset. Besides, Grandpa Caleb wasn’t going to try and smooth it over this time. How could he call and say she was just upset and hadn’t meant it? Even if he did and made Momma get on the phone, she’d just say she was going to pray for me.”

“Maybe – maybe we’d better postpone the wedding.”

“NO!” Teddy pulled Josh into his arms. “We’re not postponing it, we’re not canceling it, we’re not doing anything but getting married on December 25
^th
!”

“I’m sorry,” Farmer whispered into TJ’s chest. “I’ve made everyone unhappy.”

“You haven’t, Farmer.”

But he must have, because the big man gave a final, awkward pat to his shoulder, and then let him go.

Kira chose that moment to stalk into the room. “You’re still here, Farmer! Cool! Let’s go dancing!”

TJ handed him a handkerchief, which he accepted gratefully, and he dried the tears on his cheeks and blew his nose. “But I thought you were going to have a girl’s night with Miss Cath.”

“She’s bein’ a pain in the –” Mr. Tom frowned at her, and Teddy glared. Kira changed what she’d been about to say. “She’s a spoilsport, and I want to go out!”

“Farmer was watching this movie with us.”

“It’s almost finished.”

“Then you can wait – ”

Kira started to pout.

“It’s okay,” Farmer said, although it wasn’t. Up until he’d made a fool of himself by crying like a baby, he’d been enjoying spending the time with these men. “I’ll watch it another time.”

“You’re not going to find this at any Blockbuster in Savannah. Come over the next time we have movie night.”

“But you’ve seen this before.”

“We can watch it again. It’s a good movie.”

“Can we go now?
Please
?”

“Sure, Kira. Bye everyone.” His eyes went to TJ, who smiled at him. “I’ll wash your handkerchief before I give it back to you.”

“No rush. Keep it as long as you like.” TJ was looking at him as if he… as if he liked him!

“Thank you.” He smiled back at him.

“You’re welcome, Farmer. Take it easy.”

“Come
on
!” As Kira grabbed his arm and dragged him out, Farmer couldn’t help thinking she was acting like a spoiled brat.

He tramped down on that thought immediately, feeling disloyal to her. She wasn’t spoiled, and she wasn’t a brat. She actually treated him pretty well, most of the time. After all, her boyfriends were usually college boys who were smart and knew how to dress. He was so lucky she was willing to have him, a redneck boy who’d only gone as far as high school, as her boyfriend.

“We’ll take my car, sugar,” she told him and tossed him the keys.

And at least she let him drive.

8. Worries, Worries –

“Tom – ” Jack was alone in the work trailer, and he was grinning. He opened his mouth to say, ‘I’m gonna tell the men you’re having problems with the fax machine – ’ their code for ‘I want you, I’m on my way home, get the lube out and get naked,’ but before he could,

“I’m in a rush, Jack. Can this wait?”

“Uh…”

“Thanks, babe. Don’t hold dinner. I’ll see you when I see you. Bye.”