100% Straight

Part 12 (Jackson)

Jackson sat at the table surrounded by his family wondering why he thought bringing Matthew was a good idea.

The tension in the dining room between every family member was a grenade waiting to have the pin pulled. This wasn't an ideal place to bring your friend-enemy-acquaintance-one night stand whom you haven't talked to in forever.

At first, having Matthew here was a good plan to deflect conversation from him, but now, Jackson could help but feel responsible for the scrutiny Matthew was feeling from his overbearing family.

"My name is David, Matthew. It's nice to meet you." His father shook Matthew's hand before taking his place at the head of the table.

"So, you're Jackson's friend, correct?" Jackson's father, David Williams, glanced up over his plate at Matthew.

Jackson could instantly sense Matthew tensing up from beside him. They were sitting next to each other in Jackson's pathetic attempt to make him feel more at ease.

In contrast, sitting next to Jackson probably made Matthew feel less comfortable and more alert. Jackson couldn't decide if this was a good thing or not.

"I'm a colleague of Jackson's from work." Matthew picked at the green beans on his plate with his fork.

"So you're his friend from work?" His father repeated himself. Jackson knew that his father hated repeating himself. He only hoped that Matthew was careful with his next words.

Matthew looked at Jackson briefly. Jackson mouthed, "Be careful."

Matthew nodded with a gulp, picking at his nails from under the table, and said to David, "Yes."

His father laughed. Jackson could never tell if it was fake or forced. His father's laughs always sounded like he was on his deathbed.

"Well why didn't you say so in the beginning? Jerking me into a long fucking conversation when I asked you a simple question." His father barked, "Your like those damn gays. Always trying to make things more difficult than they need to be."

Matthew looked like he needed to puke, so Jackson diverted the conversation, "I heard you were having a kid, James."

Jackson never purposely wanted to talk about anything involving James, and he was sure that his brother knew that.

However, Jackson was also sure his brother James was vain enough to not give a shit about why Jackson had averted the conversation between Matthew and his father if it meant an excuse to talk about himself.

"Yes! Me and my beautiful darling wife Evelyn are going to have a kid! It was confirmed that she was pregnant with a boy!" James boasted.

His brother James was always boasting about a thing he had that Jackson didn't. Whether it was because he was competing for their fathers live or was generally an ass, Jackson didn't care.

James had always been like that, especially when he was in high school. Despite being 24, two years younger than Jackson, James still found ways to make him miserable.

In high school, he stole Jackson's three year long girlfriend. This old girlfriend of his was actually James's current wife. He could tell James didn't love Evelyn and was only doing this to get back at him.

It just goes to show you the length James is willing to through to make Jackson miserable.

He wasn't miserable, despite James being with his ex. He and Evelyn had broken up two days before she and James had gotten together.

At first, it had been funny pretending to be annoyed with him, but now he wished that he had done something.

Evelyn and him had broken up in good terms. She was a nice girl; kind, polite, compassionate.

He was always angry at himself for allowing James to marry her. He could tell that she was unhappy, but there was little Jackson could do now.

Janie interrupted his thoughts and James's monologue with a bitter comment, "James, we get it. Your life is great. You don't have to be a dick about it."

Jackson and Matthew both looked at each other and shared a small grin.

James didn't share their sentiments. He was angry; his face a beet red shade with the spoon in his hand being shaken around like a madman, spaying his plate with mashed potatoes.

"Janie." His father's stern tone rang through the awkward silence.

The graveness of his words was palpable; he could tell, despite Janie's seemingly tough exterior, that that one simple word hit harder than any rude comment James could have said.

"Janie." His father repeated, "We have guests over. What you said to your brother was quite rude. Apologize."

It wasnt a question, it was a request.

Matthew tugged on Jackson's suit sleeve and whispered, "Is this what every dinner with your family is like?"

Jackson wished he could say no. He wished he could laugh and smile, recalling all his previous dinners that were nothing like the one they were stuck in.

He wished with all his might that he had one great dinner to compare to this one, but his mind was drawing blanks.

"No." Jackson said back, in a final tone, "No. This is usually what happens. We all end up wanting to mail each other like wild animals."

He was disgusted with his family, but he could remember many lunches where he was the problem.

It was a losing battle; he hated his family and himself in an equal amount.

Now all he could hope for was his parents forgetting all about him and his "colleague".