Blending Into Gray

Chapter 20

Giana sat down, suddenly looking years older, worn out and tired.

"How much do you know about your father's life when he was younger?"

I shook my head at the question.

"He never told me, and I never asked."

Giana pulled off her gloves, folding her hands together on the table.

I felt something brush my hand.

It was Roman, sliding his hand into mine, his fingers lacing with my own. He met my eyes, raising an eyebrow. There was a now-familiar tint to his cheeks, but he was still checking if I was alright.

I nodded, folding my fingers around his.

Giana noticed something was going on, whatever it was, but thankfully didn't seem concerned enough to comment.

"When your father was younger, he was friends with both myself and your mother, Illianna. We knew he was a Villain, but neither of us cared. What did it matter, anyway, when he was just such a good person?

"We never paid attention to his title. But things were a little bit different when we were younger, because often both the Hero and Villain would meet purposefully to hash out their differences. I think it was supposed to help them get along, maybe agree on some things, who knows?

"So yeah, your father knew Geoff from the time they were teenagers. And by the time we were in our twenties, Geoff and Damian would meet up all the time. They didn't agree on much, but what they couldn't agree on they would fight out. Oftentimes it was a draw, and if it wasn't, the ratio of wins to losses evened out quite well.

"Your father himself helped me fill in the gaps after that. He told me everything, and I'm glad he did. Who would've told you, otherwise?"

Giana stopped, and gave me a wry smile.

"I'm sorry. I know this must suck, hearing everything from me that he should've told you himself."

I shook my head, feeling her apology and Roman's concern.

"It's fine," I stated, squeezing Roman's hand.

"Just keep going, please."

Giana nodded.

"Well, apparently, this is where things get interesting.

"They both believed that they should do what they could to make things better for the city, they agreed on that, at least.

"So Geoff and Damian were spending more time together in an attempt to hash out details as a means of saving the city from any types of dangers.

"And somewhere along the way, your father fell in love with Geoff."

What?

"And according to Damian, the feeling was reciprocated."

The fuck?

Why the hell didn't I know this?

Why didn't he ever tell me?

It did, at least, explain why he allowed me to be so fluid with my sexuality, since I never actually declared one.

"The fuck?"

That was from Roman, who looked utterly confused and a bit vaguely horrified.

"I mean, I never much cared about my dad's opinion of me being gay, but he was always very much against the concept of gay marriage. I'm not following. What the shit?"