Danny & Steve [Completed]

Part 12

Next morning, it time to go to the same old grim home situation for Danny. He wasn't bothered, though. His parents' silence suddenly seemed so temporary. When he told Mandy the plan to move in with Steve, she squealed with glee and threw her arms around him, then made him promise to let her visit.

Christmas came and went. It was just the four of them. Danny had broken down and gotten his parents each a little something, a tie for his father and a box of chocolates for his mother. He received from them a bible and a book on overcoming homosexuality. Mandy loved her shirts, and she got him a Deadpool coffee mug, which he adored. It wasn't the happiest Christmas of his life, but it wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be. Knowing that he would be spending next Christmas with Steve kept him going through this one.

Then it was back to work at the grocery store. One day, Ben came in. "Hey Danny," he said as Danny bagged his groceries. "I meant to come by and see you."

Danny shrugged and said, "It's fine. How was your holiday?"

Ben studied Danny with an odd look. "You okay, man?"

Danny blew a loose strand of hair off his face and said, "I just don't understand why you told."

Ben shook his head slowly. "I didn't say anything to anyone."

Danny paused, then hurried to catch up as more groceries headed down the belt. He believed Ben. Ben had one of those open and guileless faces. Truth be told, it was a relief to find out Ben hadn't done it. The betrayal was what hurt the most, and now he knew there was none. "Who else could have?"

Ben shook his head. "I wish I knew. I'll ask Lashonda if she has any ideas. She hangs out with the Ziva crowd sometimes."

Danny grinned. "How are you two doing?"

Ben's expression went dopey. "She's the one, man."

"Better hold on to her."

"I intend to."

Danny got the groceries bagged and put them in the cart. "Good. Hey, I'll see you around, okay?"

"Yeah," Ben said. Then, in a lower tone, "I'm really sorry this happened, man. Sucks."

Danny nodded. "Yeah, it does. Take care, man."

Danny felt better knowing Ben didn't rat him out, though he wondered who did. Xian? Maybe. Xian acted like he only barely tolerated Danny, though he seemed nice while he was explaining the way the community worked. Danny thought Xian had warmed to him. Apparently, he wasn't as good a judge of character as he thought. Still, how did Xian manage to tell his parents?

In the end, it didn't matter. It changed nothing. They day after New Year's, Danny gave his two weeks notice and started to pack. Mandy had had the clever idea of having Steve mail one of her friends, then she would get the letter and bring it home to Danny, so he and Steve were able to make plans.

The date was set, and on the sixth, Brad's F-150 came rumbling up the driveway. Danny came downstairs with two of his packed bags, and Mandy came along with a third.

"Where do you think you're going?" his mother said.

Danny stopped at the door, turned to look at her, and he said, "I'm going to move in with Steve, get a job and do community college, then transfer back into uni. It'll be tight, but we'll make it work."

She drew her lips into a tight, thin line. "When your father hears about this..."

Danny had no idea where his dad was and didn't much care. Danny said, "I'll be long gone."

Her nostrils flared, and she said, "If you leave this house right now, don't even think of setting foot in it again."

Danny paused, then set down his bags so he could hug his mother, who stood stiffly. "I love you, Mom." Then he picked up his stuff, and, as Mandy cast a glare at her over her shoulder, they left the house. He had left the book on overcoming homosexuality in the trash, and on his pillow, he'd left another book. It was called Coming To Terms. It was about figuring out how to be a parent to an LGBTQA child, including a glossary of the words Xian had taught him that night at Cafe Ziva.

~ ~ ~

Danny thought he'd be happy on the trip back to the city. He was in the truck with Brad, his favorite pseudo-brother, there were tunes playing, and he was leaving the misery of home behind. It was much to his mortification that, a few minutes into the trip, tears came unexpectedly, and they came hard.

Brad glanced over, then put his gaze back on the road. "Hey, bud. You okay?"

Danny nodded, but the tears kept coming. He wiped them on his sleeve. "I just wish my folks understood."

Brad nodded and said, "Yeah, me too. You're going to be okay, though. They'll come around, and if they don't, it's their loss. As long as we're around, you won't lack for a family."

Danny appreciated the thought, and it did warm him, but they wouldn't be his original family, the one he grew up with, the one he'd loved all his life. It was like a floodgate had opened. Danny must have cried for fifty miles. Brad rubbed his back with one hand once in awhile, his other on the wheel. All the emotions pent up from being at home boiled over. He even cried because he would miss the horses.

Once he had cried himself out, Danny looked out the window, watching the scenery pass him by. "You know, I'm pretty lucky to have somewhere to go."

Brad nodded and said, "Yeah, not everyone has that."

Danny bit his lip, then said, "You know, for the first time, I know what I want to do with my life."

Brad said, "Oh, yeah?"

Danny nodded. "I'm going to get into advocacy for LGBTQA kids. I want to use my good luck to help people who don't have the privilege of friends and support."

Brad grinned. "My little brother can pick 'em. Let me tell you something, he's popular, but he never dated much. He said he was waiting for the right guy. I'm glad to see he found him."