Positive (a Solangelo AU)

A Cure

Date: December 1, 1981

"Tell me you're not a homosexual."

Nico clenched the phone as his father's voice asked for the truth he had been trying to hide for so long.

"How did you know?" Nico asked after a few moments.

"I saw you leave the wedding with that man," Hades said.

     Nico clenched his jaw. Thinking about Cygnus made him want to punch something or perhaps even throw up. Nico had spent so long renting who he was and who he was attracted to that under the influence of alcohol and the atmosphere of the wedding, he did something he normally would not have done.

    "Cygnus was a mistake," Nico said.

     "Is that his name?" Hades asked. "You could've snagged a cuter guy if you're going to date men."

       Nico stifled a sigh of relief. Was his father finally coming to terms with the fact that his son was gay?

      "I'm assuming your coworker Reyna is not actually going out with you?" Hades asked.

      "No," Nico said.

     The phone was silent for a few minutes. Nico inhaled the smell of the vanilla candle Hazel had made for him and tried to calm down.

       "Why didn't you tell me?" Hades asked.

         "Because I didn't want you to react like you are," Nico said. "I don't want to be lectured on morality by my funeral home owner of a father."

      "Nico," Hades said sternly. "You are the most obstinate child I have ever had."

      "I get it from you," Nico retorted.

      "Well, you probably do," Hades said with a hint of pride in his voice. "The di Angelo family is not known for conformity. We have a streak of stubbornness a graveyard deep."

     Nico chuckled.

     "So you're not going to tell me I'm going to Hell?" Nico said.

       "If you do, I'll see you there," Hades joked.

      The two laughed.

       "Listen, I gotta go, but I'll call you later," Hades said. "I love you Nico."

       "I love you too, dad."

      Nico could barely believe his luck as he hung up the phone. He had spent so long searching for a cure for his feelings that he never guessed his father would accept them. Yet, he still felt bothered by them.

     Nico had heard enough gossip about closeted men to know that plenty of men with wives secretly had affairs with other men. Nico knew that he could never do that. How could he vow to love and be there for someone if he was going to have trysts on the side? That would be unfair for everyone involved — him, his hypothetical lover(s), his hypothetical wife, and their hypothetical children. Nico had felt bad enough asking Reyna to pretend to be his girlfriend. At least she had known and agreed. Besides, that was a one day thing and marriage was supposed to be for life.

      As Nico brushed his teeth, he thought of the only gay men he had ever known: a couple named Achilles and Patroclus. They were both WWII veterans who now ran a history museum. Though Achilles was married to a woman named Briseis, everyone knew both men liked each other. And though Nico was glad they had each other, he couldn't help thinking that it wasn't fair for Briseis. He rinsed his mouth and went to sleep, thinking about how whether he should stay closeted or come out.