The People in Rossford

The Marvel of My Life

Continued

But they had to figure out who would hold the baby while they rode in the car, and then Tom decided the baby needed a car seat, and there was no car seat. So Lee would have to stay home. Meanwhile Tom was looking for his coat and keys and Lee was telling him, as he left, “Well, it’s too late now. I’m sure she’s gone.”

Tom came out of the complex and drove around for a while, wondering how he would know what car had the woman he had seen for all of five seconds, who had dropped a baby off to him. And then, because he didn’t know what else to do, he got on Birmingham, hit Dorr and drove north till he got to Versailles.

He came into the house just as Adele and Simon were arriving with a bag of groceries and Adele said, “Everyone out of the kitchen. You too, Tom. I need my space while I cook.”

And then she looked at Simon.

“Does that mean me?”

“Of course it means you.”

“I can give up a lot,” Todd was saying as they left the kitchen. “But I won’t give up Christmas.”

“Todd?”

“Hey, Tom. Take your coat off,” Todd reached for it.

“Not just yet.Where’s Fenn?”

“Fenn!” Tom bellowed up the stairs.

A moment later Fenn came down the stairs, ribbons and rolls of paper hanging from his arms.

“I gotta talk to you. The weirdest thing just happened?”

“That woman?” Fenn said.

“Yeah!” Tom said. “Oh, she came here first.”

Fenn lowered the rolls of paper to the stairs and came down, head cocked.

“Yeah,” he said, “she did.”

“She’s gone now.”

“Her and that poor baby,” Fenn said. “She shouldn’t have that child.”

“Well, she doesn’t,” Tom said.

“What!”

“She left it with me. It’s with Lee.”

“What the he—?”

“She said… It was mine. She said I gave my sperm to her.”

“That’s crazy!”

“I know. She knew everything about me, and she said that I had given her my sperm and this was my baby.”

“That is…” Fenn said in a quieter voice, “just… nuts.”

And then he said, “I’ll be right back. I need to… I have something for Lee. Just wait right there.”

“I’ll come with you,” said Tom.

“No! I mean, no. I mean… Todd!”

Todd poked his head in the kitchen where Adele was saying: “I just told you to get out!”

“Todd,” Fenn said in a quieter voice, “I need to talk to you.”

Todd nodded and followed Fenn up the stairs. Tom watched them from the base, curious, but respectfully keeping his distance. Todd followed Fenn to their bedroom and Fenn said: “Do you remember when I told you about that woman with the baby?”

“Yeah. The crazy one you sent to Lee and Tom’s.”

“Right. Well, she dropped the baby off and told Tom it was his, and then left.”

“That’s nuts! That’s the nuttiest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“But not the nuttiest you will hear,” Fenn said.

When Todd looked at him, Fenn said, “Oh, shit shit shit shit shit shit shit shit shit.”

“Fennnnn,” Todd said, touching his shoulder.

“She said the baby was Tom’s,” Fenn said. “She said that Tom had donated his sperm, and this was his kid and she didn’t want it so here, have it.”

“But that’s not even possible. I mean, unless Tom donated his sperm—”

“He didn’t. He wouldn’t.”

“Well, then it’s not his baby.”

Fenn caught Todd’s face in a desperate grip, and shaking his lover he said:

“Yes, Todd. It is!”

“Where is Danny?” Lee said when he and Tom came into the party, Tom with the sleeping baby.

“With Noah,” Naomi said.

“But where is that?” Lee began, as he took the baby from Tom.

“What is that?” Paul said, approaching.

“Uh… Tom’s baby.”

“What?”

“Oooh, there’s a priest,” Lee said. “Maybe we can get him baptized.”

“Or cast in a porno,” Naomi said.

Lee looked at her.

“Naomi!” Paul said.

“Ooops,” she put a finger to her lips. “We’re not talking about THAT.”

And she moved away with a chip in her hand.

“This is some party,” Kirk said.

“We try,” Todd’s voice came from behind Paul. “Booze is in the fridge. I think Fenn wants everyone to go to midnight Mass drunk.”

Todd mixed into the rest of the crowd and Kirk said, “Dad made a decision. We’re going to sell one of the car lots.”

Paul refrained from saying “Aww,” or anything else truly stupid.

“And what’s more, it’s mine that’s going to be sold.”

“Kirk!”

“No, everyone’s agreed that I can work with my sister or my brother. Turn it into a partnership.”

“But you don’t want that,” Paul guessed.

“I didn’t want to have a car lot on my hands.By myself. I’m sick of cars,” said Kirk.

He fidgeted with the drink in his hand.

“Now I just need to get up and find a dream or something.”

“Paul,” Claire interrupted them. “Dena sent me to find more of the punch glasses.”

“They’re in the kitchen. Top cupboard over the sink,” Paul said.

Claire patted him on the shoulder, winked at Kirk and then nearly bumped into Keith McDonald.

“Sorry, Father.”

“No matter. I just would like to talk,” he gestured to Paul, “with your brother for a moment.”

Claire shrugged, moved away. Kirk shrugged and said, “I’ll get some punch.”

Paul approached Keith and the smile instantly fell from the priest’s face.

“Now you know who I am and I know who you are,” the priest said, tightly. “And if you and Noah think about running off at the mouth about it, I swear I’ll make you pay.”

Paul blinked at him, startled.

“The past,” Keith said flatly, “is the past.”

With that he turned and left, heading back into the crowd.

“What was that all about?” Kirk said when he returned.

Dazed, Paul took the drink and said, “Fucked. Fucked, fucked if I know.”

“All right now. Take the dip out to the living room,” Layla said, handing it to Brendan, “And don’t get carried away. Cookies are coming out in a minute.”

“Cookies!” Brendan said.

“Yeah, Bren. Now,” Layla patted him on the cheek, “go take that out.”

Brian came into the kitchen. Layla looked at him.

“You seen your uncle?”

“Fenn’s downstairs,” Layla said. “Fenn!”

“I gotta go,” Layla told him. “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas, Layla,” Brian said, weakly, as she departed.

Fenn came up the stairs. “What’s going…Brian? Brian.”

“I wanted to talk to you,” he said.

Fenn raised an eyebrow and gave a strained smile.

“All right?”

“I… Come here,” Brian gestured to him. “Sit down. And I’ll sit down too.”

Fenn followed directions and sat down across from Brian, saying, “You’re really strange today.”

“I’m really… And I’ve been thinking about this… I’m really in love today.”

“Okay,” Fenn said. At the look in Brian’s eyes he added: “If you’re about to declare your love for me—”

“It’s weird, but not that weird,” Brian said.

“Cool,” Fenn said.

“Not that you’re not completely lovable.”

“Thank you.”

“And sexy too. I find you very sexy, Fenn.”

“Brian.”

“Stop?”

“Please.”

“All right,” Brian said, taking a breath. “I… And I feel that we’re friends, right?”

Fenn nodded.

“And that means a lot to me. I mean, it really means a lot to me. Our friendship, so—”

“Brian, are you going to tell me?”

There was a bump on the kitchen door. “Before someone comes in.”

“He’s younger,” Brian said. “And you know younger. I mean Todd is younger.”

“How much younger?”

Brian ducked his head.

“He’son vacation right now. I can’t wait till he gets back.”

“He’s a student?” Fenn started.

Brian looked shocked, as if he hadn’t known it until Fenn said it.

“He’s a very… grown up student. He’s twenty-one.”

“You’re thirty-five. You’re a professor.”

At once the kitchen door flew open, and Brian jumped up as Claire Anderson stood before him.

“You son a bitch!” she said.

“Claire?” Fenn said, unfazed.

“Chad! How could you?” Claire said. “He’s a… ” Claire turned to Fenn and said, “He’s screwing Chad North!

“You don’t have limits do you? You just… You’ll do anything.”

“Claire,” Brian said, the old coldness returning. “I don’t have to explain anything to you. You are the last person in the world I have to explain anything you think you may or may not have heard.

She folded her arms over her chest.

“Would you be that high and mighty, Professor Babcock, if the whole school found out about you and Chad? Or even all of his friends? And,” she added, “would you be so high and mighty if the Dean found out about that little tape you made? That you sent to my house? With my mother’s name?”

Brian opened his mouth. Tom came in through the back door, opened his mouth, and Fenn put up a hand to say to halt him.

“No,” Claire said, quietly to Brian. “No one will find out. I’m not like that, but I just want you to know, no matter how… vain you get, and stuck up you are, and no matter how many times you think that tone of voice and that little look on your face intimidates anyone else… it doesn’t do anything for me. Because I don’t forget,” she whispered, putting her fingertips to the door, “I never forget.

“And you better not either.”

Momentarily choosing to ignore that drama, Fenn turned to his own.

“Tom, could I speak with you?”

“Yeah, sure.” Tom rocked the baby and said, “There you go. There you go. Oh, it’s a little man. It’s a little bitty man!”

“Claire, don’t kill Brian. Brian, don’t kill Claire. Tom, put the baby down. We need to talk.”

Tom’s expression changed, and then he called for Lee and went to him with the baby.

As the baby began wailing disconsolately, Lee despaired: “I don’t know what to do with this… baby…”

Tom followed Fenn into the parlor where Fenn slid the doors shut.

“Okay,” Tom said. “What’s up?”

“The baby—”

“Yeah, he’s a cute little guy, isn’t he? Still, I guess we need to call social services and…”

“Not necessarily,” Fenn said.

“Huh?”

“Sit down,” Fenn said. “Or… Stand up. I don’t know. Sitting won’t make it any better.”

“Fenn, what are you talking about?”

“Remember that summer…? When we were together again?”

“Oh…” Tom said. “That was… Nice.”

“Yeah,” Fenn said slowly.

“Wasn’t it?” Tom said. “That’s how we became friends again. That’s how we became each other again. Unafraid to touch each other.”

“Yes,” Fenn said. “I agree. I remember. But…I didn’t tell you everything.”

“What the hell do you mean?” Tom said suddenly.

“I might have… accidentally-not-so-accidentally while having sex with you jacked you off and sold your-sperm–on-the black market.”

Tom looked at Fenn for a long time, and then he said: “Repeat that.”

“No,” Fenn said.

“Are you…?” Tom sat down in an old chair. “Shitting me?”

“I should be, but no.”

Tom looked at him in disbelief and said, “Explain.”

“I was having difficulty with the mortgage. I saw a woman at the store one day. I was taking out my wallet. She saw your photo—”

“You had a picture of me of me in your wallet.”

“I have a picture of you in my wallet. But… that’s not the point. The point is she saw you, thought you were nice, and I might have worked out an arrangement for her.”

“You might have?”

“I did.”

“Fenn!”

“I know.”

“Why?”

“I… I was still angry at you, I think. And angry at myself for sleeping with you, and trying to pretend it didn’t matter. And… I felt bad after I did it, but… I figured nothing would happen. What the hell were the chances of…?”

“How did you do it?” Tom said, almost amazed.

“I… you know how I did it, Tommy! And then I put it in an old medicine bottle and froze it. I mean, in the freezer downstairs.”

“God you’ve hidden a dead body and frozen semen in that basement!”

“Yeah… Not so loud, Tommy.”

“Well… how does she know me?”

“I had to give her something on you, proof you were real. And… it was a long time ago. So… you’ve been on ice for a long time. I mean, I didn’t think it was even possible. Maybe it’s not, Tom. Maybe the bitch was crazy. But…”

Tom stood up, shaking out his hands. And then he shook out his legs. He walked around the room in a slow circle, speaking.

“I should be so mad at you,” he said, amazed.

“Well, now I did give you the gift of life, Tom.”

Tom said, dismissively, with no rancor, “Shut the fuck up, Fenn.”

Fenn nodded.

“This… baby… could be… probably is…. Mine?”

“You should DNA test.”

Tom nodded.

“This baby is mine,” Tom repeated.

“Am I out of the doghouse?”

Tom looked at Fenn sharply.

“I… You drove me crazy when we were together!” Tom said. “You always did shit like this.”

“Not quite like this.”

“And then when we broke up, you took the house. You… managed to take this house.”

Fenn held his breath.

“You…” Tom walked up to him, caught Fenn’s face in his hands and said, “You are the biggest son of a bitch I know. I can cheat on you, obviously. But I… can never be angry at you. You have never given me a dull moment.”

Tom kissed him hard on his mouth and then stood looking at him in something between awe and exasperation.

“You are, and always will be the marvel of my life.”

And join us sunday... or monday depending upon when it gets published,... for the conclusion of the people in rossford