An Angel's Tail

Chapter 32

Soon, it was the middle of June, and my birthday had arrived. Dad and Michelle decided to host a little get-together at their house, and they invited Honey, Brad, Kitty, Shannon, Kelly, and Tyler to celebrate with me. Dad was cooking steak on the grill, and Michelle was baking a birthday cake. It was a beautiful cake decorated with shamrocks and musical notes, shocolate cake with buttercream frosting. Everyone brought side dishes and snacks, such as potato salad, macaroni salad, chips, mac and cheese, baked beans, and bread rolls.

As we all sat down to enjoy our meal, we talked about random things, such as our singing gigs and how they were going. Kitty talked about Cuddles and her babysitting job. Honey talked about being a voice coach. I was a little quiet for a while, because I was trying to muster up the courage to tell my parents about my sexuality. Why was I so nervous? I mean, they accepted Kitty when they found out she was gay. Why wouldn't they accept me for being bisexual? Yeah, I know why I was so nervous, but I still had so much evidence backed up against the worst case scenario.

"How's your steak, Maddie? Michelle asked.

"It's awesome," I said as I finished chewing my meat.

"Is everything okay, Sweetie?" Dad asked. "You've been awfully quiet."

"Well... actually... I... had something I wanted to talk to you about," I said so nervously.

"What is it?" Michelle asked. "Is it something you wanna tell us privately?"

"No. Everyone here knows about it already. I'm just..." I stopped myself before saying the word "nervous." I took a deep breath. "I'm... I'm bisexual."

Dad didn't say a word. Instead, he got up from his chair, came over to me, and gave me a big hug.

"What does that mean?" I asked. "Are you okay with it?"

"Oh, Sweetie, of course I'm okay with it. Why would you think otherwise?"

"Absolutely," Michelle agreed. "Sweetheart, Honey was born with a tail. Kitty is gay, and you're Autistic. Why wouldn't we be okay with your sexuality?"

I sighed in relief. "Oh, thank God! I guess I was just nervous, because..."

"Because of your mother's abuse," Dad guessed.

"Yeah."

"I can see why that would make you scared," said Michelle. "She really did a number on you."

"Yeah, she did, and honestly, I'm glad I never have to tell her."

"Oh, you don't have to tell anyone if you don't want. It's your life, no one else's. You especially don't have to tell her, even if she was still in your life. She may have given birth to you, but you don't owe her any information about your life."

Kelly scoffed. "You don't owe that woman shit."

We all laughed, as we completely agreed.

"Well, I felt that I needed to tell you guys," I said, "because... well... Kitty and I are in a relationship."

Dad and Michelle's faces lit up like a Christmas lights wonderland!

"Oh, Sweetie, that's wonderful!" Michelle exclaimed.

"Really?" I said with a big smile.

"Absolutely," said Dad. "Kitty's one of the nicest people any of us have ever met."

"Awwww," Kitty sighed.

"I think she's a perfect match for you."

"Awwww, thank you, Mr. Cassidy," Kitty said sweetly.

"Jason."

"Thank you, Jason. I want you to know that I love your daughter so, so much." She put her arm around me. "I'll take good care of her. I'll do my best not to hurt her, and I will never leave her. She's my everything." She kissed my cheek. "She's my baby."

"Awwwwwwwwww!" everyone else said.

"That's so sweet," Michelle sighed happily.

"We know you'll take care of our little girl," said Dad. "You always have."

"You've taken care of both our girls," said Michelle. "You've been a wonderful friend to Honey. She adores you."

"Awww, I do!" Honey agreed. "She's one of my sisters."

"Awww, you're my sister, too, Honey Muffin," Kitty said sweetly.

"See?" said Michelle. "You guys all love each other."

"All of us," added Brad.

"We know our girls are in good hands," said Dad.

I smiled with tears in my eyes. "Thanks, guys. You have no idea how much this means to me. I really love Kitty. She's the best thing that's happened to me since Honey."

"Awwwwww!" Honey and Kitty cried as they both hugged me tightly.

"Baby." Kitty kissed my cheek again.

"We love you so much, Sweetie-Pie." Honey added as she kissed my forehead. "You're our baby in different ways for both of us. You're my baby sissy... and I still wish I could've been your mother."

"And, you're my baby, too," said Kitty. "You're my one true love. I've loved you since the moment I met you."

"Awww, you're so loved, Sweetie," added Honey.

"And, none of us are going anywhere," said Kitty, "not me, not Honey, none of your friends, nor your dad or Michelle."

"Mrs. Cassidy," Michelle said with a smirk. Then, she snickered. "I'm just kidding."

We all burst out laughing.

"This is the best birthday I've ever had," I said. "Thank you so much, guys. I really love you guys a lot."

"We love you, Maddie," said Tyler.

"So much," added Kelly.

"And, your birthday's not over yet," said Dad. "You still have to eat your cake and open presents."

"Ohhh, yeah," said Shannon, "you can't forget about cake and presents."

We laughed softly as Michelle got up to light the candles on my cake. Instead of putting twenty four candles on one cake, which could potentially be a huge disaster, there were only two candles, a 2 and a 4 candle. Everyone sang "Happy Birthday" as Michelle brought the cake to the table, and placed it in front of me. I made a wish to myself, and then, I blew out the candles. Then, Dad cut the cake, and we all had large pieces. However, since I was the birthday girl, I got the biggest corner piece.

After we finished eating, it was time to open presents. Dad and Michelle bought me an empty sheet music book for me to write my songs. Kitty gave me a special bracelet she made with hearts and letters that spelled out "Kitty Loves Maddie." Kelly and Tyler bought me Apple cards, because I loved buying music on iTunes. Shannon gave me a pink blanket she'd knitted, because she knew that I loved sweaters and sweater blankets. Brad got me an Amazon gift card, and Honey gave me a photograph of the two of us together. The photo was in a frame with a big heart on top with "BFFs" engraved in big letters.

We all stayed pretty late, still stuffing our faces with junk food, and talking about anything and everything. I told Dad and Michelle about some of the dates I'd been on with Kitty, and she showed them her YouTube channel. The beautiful videos brought tears to their eyes. They loved her angelic singing voice, and the way she sang and connected with animals. We all agreed that she was like a mix of Snow White and a magical, musical forest fairy.

It really was an amazing birthday. I was so glad and relieved that I came out to my parents, and they accepted me. I was even more thrilled when they were excited that Kitty and I were together. I felt so much love from everyone–my parents, my friends, and of course, my girlfriend. It was the best birthday of my life thus far.