Coming of Age

Jeff and Seth stepped into the circle, and Jeff took the lead – “AJ, I understand you are starting Medical School on Wednesday, how did you narrow your school selection down to Duke here in Durham?”

AJ and Scott were a little unsure where that came from given the conversation with Chase and Brent. “Jeff, I’m not sure how much your mom and dad shared with you about me, Scott, and the boys so there is a bigger story at play here. Suffice it to say, that my wife and I had narrowed our search down to Duke, Harvard, and Stanford. We chose Duke and were set to go but then she was killed in a car wreck and I knew I could not go to Duke without her, so afterward was set to go to Harvard.

Now about me and Scott – I met Scott the night Syd died, we eventually got together and he wanted to finish Law School and Syd convinced me that Duke was the right choice for both of us, so here we are – Duke. It is a great area, with decent tuition, and very prestigious Law and Medical Schools. What are you thinking about after high school wraps up?”

Jeff looked around the room – “Hold up, you said your wife Syd is dead, how did she convince you to go to Duke with Scott?”

Scott took this one – “Sydney Marie O’Reilly O’Brien is a force of nature and my fiancé can communicate with those that have crossed over. That said, Syd is not to be trifled with, she was able to get through to me as well. Let’s just leave it as she is a force of nature you don’t want to be on the outs with.”

Jeff looked at the two of them cautiously – “You can’t say anything to our parents, agreed? Okay, good. We are accomplished competitive swimmers and we want to skip college for now so that we will be ready for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.”

Seth smiled – “Jeff has a better chance than I do but I want to give it a shot and a 2-year delay is nothing in the grand scheme of things. I’m wondering if you guys would be willing to talk to us about gay relationships.”

AJ chuckled – “There it is…” Seth tried his darndest to deflect – “I’m not sure what you mean AJ.” AJ shook his head – “Cut the shit, you two are gay and in a relationship and you are hoping the four of us can help you tell Amelia, Sean, and Brandon. I would be willing to bet that Emily has already asked you about it and to be honest, I would be surprised if Amelia did not suspect if she hasn’t come out and said it yet.”

Jeff tried to bail Seth out – “AJ, you’re right about a couple of things. My mom does know as she flat-out asked me just before Thanksgiving and I couldn’t lie to her. I’m pretty sure my dad suspects what’s going on but as far as Seth’s parents we have been really careful as his dad isn’t very tolerant. So why we wanted to talk to you four is – you all are around other gay and straight couples and might be able to help us figure out how to talk to Seth’s parents.”

Scott started before AJ could speak – “Honestly guys, when I came to terms with being head over heels for AJ, I was scared shitless to address it. Syd’s Aunt is the first one who called me out on my attraction to AJ, when I told my Dad, he wasn’t shocked by the conversation. That said for the 3 months that followed he was ready to bury me in the backyard because I talked non-stop about this fabulous, wonderful, guy I had fallen for. He forbade me from talking about AJ for three weeks before I declared my intentions to AJ. When I went to AJ’s house to talk with him, I knew I was walking into a house full of ten people –his siblings and their spouses as well as Syd’s Aunt and her partner. Then my siblings, their spouses, AJ’s Mom, Dad, Grandma, Syd’s Mom, Dad, and Grandma for a total of 20 people. We also found out in the conversation that our brothers had fooled around in college as well as their spouses.

Brent and Chase have been a couple for almost 3 years and I’m sure they have a different perspective as they have been out for much longer than either AJ or I but we are here if I can help.”

The six young men found a corner to carry on their conversation, which did not go unnoticed by the boys’ dads. Seth and Jeff asked all sorts of questions – from sex to intimacy to being in public as a couple, telling your family, how to handle the reactions, and building your core group of friends. Jeff and Seth asked great questions and were listening intently throughout the night.

Seth asked Chase, Brent, Scott, and AJ if they would consider a group thing with both him and Jeff. Chase was intrigued but Scott shut it down immediately – “Listen, you two are attractive young men however you are both under 18 and there is no way that is going to happen, don’t try to bring into account that the age of consent in North Carolina is only 16. I am 8 years older than the two of you and that is a bit creepy in my mind.”

Seth started to protest but Jeff got him to stop talking – “Seth, drop it. It has been asked and answered and you need to accept the answer and move on. Thank you all for answering questions and being open to talking with us about all this stuff. I guess we need to bite a couple of bullets here, no college for now and I guess we should also address the gay thing.”

The guys all laughed at Jeff’s attempt at humor. Emily and Amelia approached the group and sat down with them. Emily jumped in feet first – “Jeff, Seth were you bothering the guys with a bunch of questions about being gay and telling your family and friends?” Seth and Jeff looked like deer caught in the headlights, so AJ being AJ – “I like it, blunt and straight to the point. Emily, yes, your son and Seth were asking great questions and trying to work up the courage to talk to you and your husbands. Amelia, please don’t take this the wrong way but they are VERY concerned about Sean’s reaction to the news and honestly after our interaction at the airport, I believe they have a valid reason for concern. What do you ladies think they should do to get this on the table?”

The moms were equally impressed with AJ’s directness and talked with the group of young men for the next thirty minutes regarding strategy and timing. At a point in the conversation AJ suddenly got out of his seat and moved quickly to the kids’ area catching the group off guard. Scott sat for a split second and was quickly moving to catch up. When Scott rounded the corner what he saw caused him to panic, there was blood everywhere.

AJ was shirtless, he had Caleb in his arms with said shirt pressed to the back of his head. He instructed Carrie and Maddie to stop crying and get Conor to Scott. Scott pulled himself together, swooped up Conor, and guided Carrie and Maddie to find their mom. AJ was on the phone with 911, he had to yell at Sydney – “What is the address here? He repeated it into the phone.” The dispatcher told him it would be 20 minutes to get an ambulance there, he disconnected the call, slid his phone into his back pocket, and picked up Caleb, holding him tightly to his bare chest.

He was now yelling for Chase and Brent; he needed them to drive him to the emergency room. Scott was on his hip, telling him that Conor was with his mom and dad. Scott moved in front of AJ, pushing people out of the way on the way to the front door.  Emily got in the front seat with Brent driving giving directions to the nearest emergency room.

AJ was holding Caleb tight, talking to him to try and get him to stop screaming. Caleb stopped screaming but was bawling as he wrapped his arms around AJ’s neck and hugged him tight. As they pulled up to the doors, AJ jumped from the car before it stopped as Caleb had stopped crying and was lying limp in AJ’s arms. He ran through the doors of the ER and yelled for help which he got immediately as both he and Caleb were covered in blood. Scott was hot on his heels and let the nurse know in no uncertain terms that he would go to the room with their son.

When the doctor removed AJ’s shirt from the back of Caleb’s head, he began screaming at the top of his lungs again as the pain intensified and the blood started to flow more freely. AJ stepped in and held Caleb’s head, looking directly into his eyes he told his daredevil son that he would be okay and that he was being a big boy. When the doctor stuck the needle in Caleb’s scalp the volume of screams went up again with the little guy trying to get away from him. When AJ held him still, he started yelling for Papa, Scott stood straddle AJ as tears ran down his face – “Cale, baby you are doing so good. We need to get you fixed up; I know it sucks but please hold still for the doctor.”

AJ felt the tears falling on his neck and running down his back but they worked together flawlessly to distract the little guy from what was going on behind him. He was no longer screaming but he was terrified and crying. AJ asked the doctor to please keep the stitches as small as possible, to which he replied – “Young man, y’all lucked out that I was walking through the ER when you came in, I’m a plastic surgeon and am never in this part of the hospital but could not leave this tough little guy to have a bigger scar than needed. Do you know how he wound up with this cut to his head?”

AJ shrugged his shoulders but Scott stepped in – “One of the kids at a New Year’s Eve party was swinging a golf club around and connected with Caleb’s head.”

Dr. Donnely shook his head – “That child needs a bit of talking too as well as the person in charge of the kids. That about does it, Nurse Stevens will you please clean up that wound so we can make sure we got all the bleeding stopped and then get it bandaged.”

The doctor removed his gloves, and washed and dried his hands. He pulled a business card out of his pocket and handed it to Scott – “Make sure you or your husband calls my office on Monday and schedules a follow-up appointment.”

Dr. Donnely shook Scott’s hand and placed his hand on AJ’s shoulder – “I’m Stephen.” AJ didn’t shake his hand but bumped elbows due to all the blood – “I’m AJ, thank you so much for helping so quickly. We are truly grateful.”

Stephen smiled – “I’m glad I was here, why don’t you come with me…” Caleb started screaming and yelling – “Daddy no leave, no leave me…”

Stephen apologized and let Scott and AJ know he was going to go to his locker and grab a t-shirt so AJ could also get cleaned up. Your little guy is not going to let you out of his sight. Scott offered to go grab the shirt but Caleb started in with Papa no leave me. Stephen chuckled and let the two young men know he would be back in less than 5 minutes with a shirt.

Another nurse brought AJ some gauze and warm water to wash the blood off his body. Caleb was not letting go of AJ so Scott took the supplies and started cleaning his husband up. He did his best to get him cleaned up but there were places on AJ’s stomach he could not easily get to so he slid into Caleb’s grasp while AJ finished cleaning himself up.

Scott was holding a sleeping Caleb while he watched AJ finish cleaning up, he was thinking to himself, ‘damn that man was fine and he picked me’. AJ was facing away now – “Sam, I love you too, and thank you for choosing me.” “Babe you are hot but you look so much better when you are not gawking with your mouth hanging open. I told you before I’m intuitive when it comes to you and I can sense your feelings, and moods and generally know how you are doing all the time.” AJ was halfway across the room when Stephen walked into the room with the shirt.

Scott was watching Stephen as he approached AJ, his eyes were all over his fiancé and it was clear that he was interested. As he handed AJ the shirt his hand trailed a bit longer than was necessary, Scott smiled to himself as he knew AJ was aware, a bit flattered but not at all interested. AJ slid the t-shirt on and shook Stephen’s hand – “Stephen, would you and your significant other like to come over to our house tomorrow for a send-off brunch? My parents are in town, we bought them a 4-week vacation to Europe for Christmas, and they leave tomorrow night. We would like to thank you for all you did tonight as well.”

Stephen accepted and let AJ and Scott know that he and his husband, Johan would love to stop by with their two kids, Ashton and Brittney. The nurse came in with the release paperwork and aftercare instructions for Caleb. AJ signed the paperwork, took the instructions, and thanked everyone profusely as they gathered up everything to leave.

When they made it to the waiting room there was a complete room full of people – JR, Miranda, Eva, JJ, Elliot, Gran, Nanny, Chase, Brent, Emily, Amelia, Jeff, Seth, and Sydney were all there to greet them. AJ thanked everyone for sticking around and let them know that Caleb was going to be okay, he had 27 plastic surgical stitches in his head and would need to be careful until the stitches came out. Nanny took Caleb from Scott so they could say their goodbyes.

Sydney was in tears as she looked at Caleb – “Mr. O’Brien I’m so very sorry that this happened under my watch. I don’t know how you were there so fast – I hadn’t had time to even get to him when you showed up in the room. I’m…”

AJ hugged her tight – “Sydney, you remind me of their mother and we both know you did not cause the situation, kids were playing and having fun. Not sure why a ten-year-old would be swinging a golf club in a room full of kids but that is not on you. He will be fine and back to normal in a few days. We do appreciate you being here to make sure he was ok. We must watch for a concussion and make sure he doesn’t get overly wound up but he will be fine.”

Emily and Amelia hugged and kissed AJ and Scott’s cheeks, letting them know they were going to get to the bottom of the golf club but they had to be here to make sure the little nugget and his dads were fine. Jeff and Seth hugged both men and let them know they would call in tomorrow to check in on Caleb. Jeff let AJ know that his dad would have been there but they had kids at home still and that he wanted to make sure AJ knew if there was blood in the vehicle to bring it to the dealership and they would either get it cleaned out or order a new seat. AJ thanked the Deveraux and Rutherford families.

AJ went to take Caleb but Nanny let him know the little monkey was just fine where he was now. The gang loaded up and drove back to AJ and Scott’s house, which was only a few blocks away. Chase drove while AJ and Scott sat on either side of Caleb in the back seat. JJ was on the phone with Evie in the front seat, he let her know that they would be back in less than 10 minutes. AJ asked for the phone – “Mama, put Conor on the phone I can hear him in the background. Hey big guy, what’s going on? Con we’ll be home in a few minutes and you can see Cale when we get there. He has a big bump on his head and we must be careful with him until he is better. It will be a few weeks before he is better. No baby, it wasn’t your fault. Con, please hand the phone to Mimi. Mama we are pulling into the driveway, please pick him up so he doesn’t run out of the house. Thank you, I love you.”

Scott was carefully extracting Caleb – “Taz, I’ll take care of Caleb, he’s asleep but it sounds like Conor needs you.” AJ was out of the car before it was fully stopped. He ran to the door and took Conor as Evie and he stepped onto the porch – “Buddy, you need to listen to me – Caleb is fine, he is VERY tired and his head hurts but he will be fine. I need you to be a big boy and not rough house with him or touch his head, can you do that for me?” “Yes, Dada. Want to see my Cale.”

AJ turned toward the car and met Scott halfway up the walkway. Conor placed his hand on his brother’s face, leaned in, and kissed him. “Yous ok Cale. Sawy you hurt.” Caleb woke up when Conor touched his face – “Head hurts. Wuv you Con.” “Wuv you Cale.”

AJ and Scott made their way into the house and handed the boys off to their grandmothers. AJ asked where Carrie was, she was outside on the patio and refused to talk to anyone. AJ went outside and when Carrie saw him, she burst into tears, she was hysterically apologizing for not taking care of the boys. It was her job and she failed at it.

AJ scooped her up and hugged her tight – “Nut, you didn’t do anything wrong, it was an accident and Caleb will be fine. He has stitches and will heal in a couple of weeks. Please don’t worry, you did a great job. You had Conor away from Caleb and were making sure he didn’t see the blood. You know those two boys love you sooo much. Will you come with me so you can see he is, okay?”

Carrie was still crying – “Unc he is going to hate me. I was supposed to keep him safe and he got hit with something that made him bleed.”

Scott had joined them on the patio – “Carrie, Caleb is asking for you to sit with him while he eats a popsicle.”

AJ kissed her head and carried her into the house. Scott followed them into the breakfast room where Caleb, Conor, and Maddie were eating popsicles. Caleb and Conor walked to Carrie and hugged her, which made her cry even more. She apologized to Caleb who handed her a popsicle. The kids all sat on the floor and finished their popsicles.

While the kids were on the floor, AJ slipped out onto the patio – it was time to let out the emotions. He stripped and dove into the pool, while he was underwater, he screamed out at the top of his lungs. He surfaced and dove under again to let out another scream, when he surfaced this time, he was embraced by his fiancé, cousin, and friend. AJ clung to Scott with Brent and Chase holding him from the side – “Skeeter, in case you didn’t know, you are naked in the pool.” Everyone laughed, with Brent gaining composure quickest – “Chase you are a nut but you did break the tension. AJ, how are you doing and how did you know Caleb needed you?”

AJ regained his composure – “Yes Cuz, I’m naked but I didn’t have a change of clothes so here we are. I heard Caleb scream so I bolted.”

The other three guys were floored as they had heard nothing. Scott had followed AJ as he knew something was wrong based on the look on his face. AJ let them know he had tuned his hearing to those two little monkeys and he was always on the watch. The four friends floated around the pool and talked about the situation and how Scott and AJ were feeling. It was clear that the two were very relieved but worn out with all the stress. Scott complimented AJ on his level head and focus but he also let him know he was certain that he would hold it together for everyone in the family.

Evie and JJ stepped out onto the patio and Evie was direct with AJ – “Skeet, I’m sure tonight was not easy but you are a natural – father, husband, doctor, and anchor for your family. There was no panic visible, you dealt with the situation at hand and took care of not only Caleb but the rest of us. Thank you for making sure Carrie was taken care of, she felt horrible. All of that said, how are you holding up?”

AJ got out of the pool, grabbed a towel, wrapped it around him, and hugged his parents. What was said between the three of them was too quiet to hear but they all kissed each other’s cheeks, Evie and JJ went back into the house and AJ sat on a lounge chair. The other three men got out of the pool, grabbed towels, dropped their underwear on the deck, and stepped over to where AJ was seated. Eva joined them on the patio.

AJ shared that the grandparents just wanted to make sure he was doing okay, which he was after he released the beast with two underwater screams. AJ asked Eva how the girls were doing, which brought a heartfelt thank you and hug. Eva thanked AJ for making sure Carrie was okay because she was feeling extremely bad about the situation. All the guys let Eva know they would continue to bolster Carrie as there was no way she could have prevented what happened. Eva was staying the night and Nanny was going to the hotel so the girls could stay close to their cousins. The plan was for Carrie and Maddie to share the sofa and for Conor and Caleb to share the loveseat. AJ and Scott were supportive but skeptical that the boys would make it through the night.

AJ shot up from the chaise and was inside before anyone else moved. He was at Caleb’s side just as Mimi picked him up. He had been screaming but now was just limp in Mimi’s arms. AJ called Stephen – “Hey there, this is AJ from earlier tonight. You probably regret giving me your card but Caleb was screaming a minute ago and now is just kind of limp in my mama’s arms. He is complaining that his head really hurts. Shit, he just threw up. Ok, thank you.”

AJ went to the kitchen and grabbed the bag of peas and a dish towel to wrap them in. He placed that under Caleb’s head, kissed his forehead, and let him know he was going to get some medicine for his head. AJ asked for someone to head to the store and grab a couple of ice bags so that they could use them on Caleb as well as more liquid Tylenol and liquid Motrin so they could get ahead of the pain. Conor was buried in Scott’s neck, crying so AJ kissed his forehead and let him know Cale was going to be ok.

Elliot and JR headed to find a store open at 12:30 a.m. They wished everyone a Happy New Year as they left the house. Shortly after they left there was a knock at the door, which AJ answered. Stephen stopped short as AJ stood in a beach towel and what appeared to be nothing else. His husband Johan intervened – “I’m Johan, you must be AJ. Stephen described you to the last detail, he did miss the tattoo. Darling, close your mouth it isn’t a good look on you. Where is our patient?”

AJ was amused – “Johan, it is great to meet you. I’m assuming you are a doctor, either neuro or pediatrics.” “Good observation – Pediatric Neurology, so I’m here to see if we have any issues or if this is just a good hard knock on the head.”

“Johan, thank you for confirming. I feel like I’m looking in a mirror that will show me what I will look like in a few years.” Scott was now standing next to AJ in a similar state of dress. It was now Johan’s turn to be a bit taken aback.

AJ chuckled – “So Johan, I take it you have a type as well. If I’m being honest your husband looks like an older version of my fiancé. Johan, this is my fiancé, Scott, Scott this is Stephen’s husband Johan. Our son is in the family room, so will you join us there?”

The four men made their way into the family room where Caleb was now lying on the couch with the bag of peas behind his head. Conor was sitting on the edge of the couch protecting his little brother. AJ introduced the newcomers to the family, Johan got down on his knees in front of Conor – “Hey there, you must be Caleb’s brother, I’ll bet you are his older brother. Will you help me take care of him? Good I need you to let your Daddy pick him up and we can go to a bedroom where we have a bit more room to maneuver.

AJ picked Caleb up, he was still very lethargic but he did grab the sides of his head and closed his eyes tight as tears fell from them.

When they made their way to Scott and AJ’s room, Scott slipped into the closet to put on sweats and a T-shirt. Johan asked Conor to sit next to Caleb and hold his hand, and he asked for his Daddy’s help to get on the bed.

When everyone was where Johan wanted them, he did his examination, starting with the retinal, then on to the wound, temperature, and extremities all the while explaining what he was doing, why, and what Caleb should expect. He was upfront when he knew something was going to hurt and when something should not. He made sure Caleb was as ready as he could be for the bright light. As he was wrapping up, he let Caleb know he was going to give him a shot to help with the pain and it would pinch his skin a bit. He was done by the time Caleb figured out he had been poked.

While all of this was going on AJ and Scott swapped places and AJ came back out in the Levis Scott wore on their trip down here and the T-shirt he wore. Both Scott and AJ were standing at the foot of the bed when Johan finished his work. He asked Conor to lie down with Caleb to make sure he did not get frightened. Both boys were asleep before the adults started talking.

Johan let AJ and Scott know that there was nothing wrong with him, other than a big bump on the head and some concussion-related items Caleb was dealing with. He had given him a bit of a painkiller that would wear off around 8 – 9 in the morning. He let them know that they should start the Tylenol as soon as he woke up and the Ibuprofen an hour later and repeat that as the box directs for the next 48 – 72 hours depending on how Caleb reacted.

There was a knock on the door, Carrie and Maddie had been pacing the hall and wanted to know what was going on. The girls climbed into bed with Caleb and Conor, Carrie stretched out behind Caleb and Maddie was behind Conor. Johan asked them to be extra careful with Caleb’s head but let them know that being next to the boys would be a great way to keep them calm.

AJ quipped at Scott – Well, we lost our bed for the night. Eva overheard and let the guys know she would sleep on the couch and the guys could have her room which went nowhere as AJ and Scott would be sleeping with the kids.

The five adults left the bedroom and made their way to the rest of the family where Johan explained what the situation was and to make sure everyone knew Caleb would be back to his normal self in a matter of days. Everyone thanked Johan and Stephen for coming by and they deflected any praise and let the family know they were looking forward to the send-off for Evie and JJ.

Everyone was exhausted so Elliot, Charlene, Gran, and Nanny decided to stay at the house. Elliot and Charlene took Nanny’s room and the Grand Dames and Eva took Scott and AJ’s room to watch all of the kids so AJ and Scott could unwind. Chase and Brent tried to give up the pool house but AJ and Scott wanted to stay close to the kids so they took the extra deep 9 ft. sofa putting sheets and blankets on it while removing the back cushions.

With everyone in their assigned room, AJ crawled onto the sofa with just athletic shorts on and slid back as far as he could go. Scott crawled in front of him pulling the covers over both. AJ wrapped Scott in his arms and pulled him in tight – “Sam, I love you to the moon and back. Thank you for being with me tonight.”

Scott smiled – “Always and forever my Taz. You are stuck with me for eternity.” AJ kissed the top of Scott’s head and he was out. Scott pushed his ass back into AJ’s crotch, wiggled and flexed it a few times, and drifted off to sleep.

At 6:30 AM AJ extricated himself from the warm bed and Scott’s body so he could go and wake Caleb for his Tylenol. It was a good thing that AJ had made up the 8 ft. sofa because Conor was tucked snugly into that bed with a note on the coffee table – ‘Skeeter, Conor woke up and wanted to be near his Daddy. Was able to convince him to sleep here but it was a chore. Love you, Nanny.’