The Ties That Bind

Chapter 48

Chapter 48

     Despite the challenges in Kasden's life, he was a fighter; he never gave up. He was grateful that things hadn't been worse, as they certainly could have been. There were times though, when he got caught up wishing he could go back and change his past, and there were other times where he felt so much happiness, he couldn't contain it all. The ups and downs, the good and bad, he'd been taught that it was all part of God's grand plan - if this was God's plan, he hoped God was done messing with him; he was in need of a break.

     His most cherished dream had come true, he now had a relationship with both of his parents, even if the relationship with one of them was shaky at times. He was now better at letting go of the hurt he'd felt from his mother's rejection; she had shared her regrets, and apologized to both him and his father, and while he still couldn't completely forgive, he thought he was able to understand her more now. It had taken Luke, asking him how he thought he might have handled things if he'd been her back then, for him to try to look at things from her point of view. It helped; only a little, but it did help.

     He'd accomplished one of his biggest goals by getting a scholarship to university, and he'd done well for his first year. He planned to continue to focus on finishing his degree and do his best to get his dream job. Things may have changed in his life, some of those changes were quite drastic by any measure, but his dream job was still to teach. He would follow his therapist's advice for the time being and continue to attend therapy sessions weekly; the sessions helped more than he'd thought they would. Taking each day one day at a time was the most anyone could do, and he was getting better at that.

     "Kasden? Earth to Kasden?" Luke called from the kitchen. "What are you thinking about so hard? I've called your name, like five times already."

     Kasden jumped slightly, startled out of his thoughts. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you. I was just thinking about this year, and well, everything - you know. What were you saying?"

     "I was asking what you thought we should have for dinner." Luke rolled his eyes at his boyfriend. "Spaghetti sounds tempting to me, but pizza sounds good too. What do you think?"

     "Pizza is less work and there'll be less to clean up afterwards." The boy answered.

     "I want to go for a walk afterwards, I feel like I'm being lazy, not doing any homework right now; I'm almost looking forward to the start of the semester already."

     "Bite your tongue!" Luke punched his shoulder. "I, for one, want to enjoy the time off before our days are back to nothing but work and studying. Don't you dare take that away from me, you hear me?"

     Kasden laughed at his boyfriend's faux outrage. Luke had a way of adding humor to any situation, even dinner preparation. They cooked a frozen pizza (they were cheap) and ate it with a beer each while the television aired a game show in the background. Kasden reached across the counter and swiped some pizza sauce off the corner of Luke's mouth, popping his finger into his own and licking it off.

     "You had some sauce on your face." He said by way of explanation, waggling his eyebrows at the other boy.

     "There's a movie playing at the student union building tonight." Luke suggested. "It might be fun to go, and that could be our walk - walking over there. What do you think?"

     "Do you know what the movie is?" Kasden asked, his curiosity piqued.

     "I'm not sure, but I think it's a Hitchcock movie. Something about a back door? Or maybe it was a window, I don't remember exactly, but I heard it was good.

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     Davy, Bernice and Penny had all gone back to Wattston for the summer. Luke and Kasden stayed in the city since Kasden had no home he could go back to, although Luke's parents had said the boys could stay with them. They decided to remain in the city since there was no sense in paying the lease on an apartment that sat empty, and there was no way they were giving up the apartment.

     They had friends they knew in the city now, as well. Kasden's stepbrothers lived in Trenton, along with his mother. His cousin Margaret lived just on the outskirts, as did Oliver and Stephanie, and many other friends they'd made during the previous year. It wasn't like they were alone here, besides they both wanted to keep their part-time jobs, and had taken on more shifts for the summer.

     They got together with their friends a few times each week to hang out. Kasden had even gone to his mother's house one evening since the party; Aletha had invited he and Luke over for dinner one day out of the blue. They'd been nervous but had accepted the invitation anyway; the evening had turned out to be quite pleasant. Most of the conversation revolved around school, and which courses the four boys were taking for the next semester and Larsen's swimming; there was no talk of religion. Kasden took it as a sign that she was making an effort to improve their relationship, and he appreciated that. There was still a long way to go, but given time, Kasden hoped better times lay ahead.

     His first year on his own (with Luke, of course) had been a real roller coaster ride; Kasden had never thought to ever see his mother again after that night at the banquet. If anyone had suggested that he'd be sitting at the same table with her, dining together cordially, he'd have said they were crazy. If they'd told him he'd have had paparazzi following him or his life story splashed all over the tabloids, he'd probably have had them committed to an institution for the mentally unstable, but all of it was true. It had happened. There were still times he had to pinch himself to remind himself that he wasn't dreaming.

     He'd begun the year with his closest friends, people he'd known almost all his life. They loved each other with an unbreakable bond that only grew stronger over time. He'd added new friends to his circle, and they loved him as much as he loved them; it was a big surprise, but also a plus that two of them turned out to be quasi-related as the stepsons of his mother, with whom he'd actually begun to have something of a relationship. Most importantly, in his mind, he'd also found his father, someone he'd missed more than he'd even realized. He had new siblings and a new stepmother himself, and he'd grown to love each of them as well.

     This is what Kasden thought made a family; it wasn't blood that made someone family, it was love. Who you chose to love, and who chose to love you back. Some of the people you loved were close, and you saw them often, while others were distant, but there was love just the same. There were those you loved that you would never see again in this life, but who were never far from your thoughts. These were the people you called 'family', love was the key, love is what creates the ties that bind.

The End

A/N: This is the end of The Ties that Bind. There are an additional 5 side stories that I will post next as bonus chapters. I hope everybody enjoyed reading this book.