The Ties That Bind

Chapter 14

     The boys left Penny and Bernice at their dorm with their parents. All the stuff they brought with them was unloaded and hauled up to their room by their friends. The girl's mothers were struggling to say goodbye, and both girls were embarrassed by the emotional display. At least they weren't the only ones whose parents were getting emotional, there were a number of similar displays playing out anywhere you looked.

     Davy's luggage had been settled in his dorm room earlier; he shared his room with three other boys, and they'd left his stuff there before heading to the apartment that Kasden and Luke would be renting. It was a terrific location, within walking distance of the campus, as well as both of the boy's new part-time jobs. That was one of their requirements since neither of them had a car of their own. 

    Luke's parents helped the three boys carry everything up to the small, but comfortably furnished apartment. There was a living room separated from a small kitchenette by a countertop that also served as the eating area. It was ideal since there wasn't room in the apartment for a dining table. Just off the living room was a short hallway with two doors on one side and one door off the other. The first door led into a small bathroom and the others led to two medium sized bedrooms.

     "Now, which bedroom is yours, Luke?" Luke's father blithely queried, knowing full-well that the boys planned on sharing a room. "I'll just put your stuff in there, and Kasden's in the other one."

     Mick loved teasing his son, and he was well aware that his son was now all grown up, and this was one of the last times he'd be able to tease him quite so easily. Luke rolled his eyes and grinned briefly at his dad but didn't say anything.

     "Wow, this is nicer than I thought it would be." Davy announced, poking his head into each room as he wandered through the apartment. "Maybe I should have stayed with you two instead of at the dorms."

     "You said you wanted to be closer to all the action." Luke smirked.

     "Well, I like it." Luke's mother announced.

     "We need to go buy you boys some groceries before we leave, though." She said, opening the empty refrigerator and cupboards. "If we don't, you're going to starve, I just know it."

     She wiped her eyes to keep any unshed tears at bay; she wasn't going to be one of 'those moms'. She quickly shooed everyone back out to the cars so they could go have one last meal together at a nice restaurant before doing the shopping she was determined to do before she and Mick returned to Wattston.

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     "It feels weird having a place of our own." Luke told Kasden after everyone had finally left.

     "Yeah," Kasden replied. "It's so quiet, even in my room back at St. Jerome's, there was always the background noises of the other kids. I'm excited and nervous, all at the same time."

     The two young men were snuggling on the couch watching a show on Netflix, relaxing after the long day. Luke laid his head on Kasden's shoulder and sighed in contentment. Kasden gently stroked the back of Luke's hand with his thumb; their fingers intertwined. They were both nervous; it was their first night alone together and they'd never gone further than a little bit of heavy petting before.

     "It doesn't feel like a Friday night when it's just the two of us, does it?" Kasden said - it was more of a statement than a question.

     "Uhm hm." Luke muttered. "On a normal Friday we'd be eating burgers with all our friends at the diner. I wonder what they're all doing right now."