Danny & Steve [Completed]

Part 9

Danny stared out the window of his dad's SUV as it carried him back to Borderton. He and Steve barely had time to say their tearful goodbyes. Danny's father had watched as Steve insisted on hugging Danny. Dad wouldn't scowl, oh no, but that look was colder than ice.

No one spoke. Not Danny, not his tight-lipped mother or his staid father. Mandy stared out the other window, inscrutable. Danny hoped he'd have at least one ally at home, but she wasn't letting anything show. Danny watched the trees go by, and he was out of tears. Damn it, Ben. He said he wouldn't tell. Maybe it just slipped out. He wasn't mad at Ben, just... damn it.

The day before leaving, Danny and Steve skipped classes and did it in every way they could imagine. It was desperate, emotional, and maybe a little spiteful. It wasn't fair. They'd only just found one another. The ache lingering in Dan's body brought a small smile to his lips. He would never forget Steve. He knew his parents would be checking his texts, if they let him keep his phone at all, and any mail addressed to him would be opened first, but they couldn't take away the memories of that perfect weekend.

When they got home, nothing went back to normal. There was no normal. His parents didn't speak to him. When he went to his room to unpack, there were brochures on his pillow for anti-gay camps to get him 'cured.' He tossed them in the trash. Not in this lifetime. He stayed in his room the first few days, reading a lot, crying a little. Maybe more than a little. He had no appetite; dinner was a silent, joyless affair, anyway.

When Sunday rolled around, they went to church. Everyone there looked at him, but no one said a word. He sat through the sermon that just happened to be about carnal sin. He was numb. Had his parents told the pastor? Probably. Now everyone knew. Nothing moved faster in a small town than the speed of gossip.

On the way out of church, there were more than a few worshippers who came up to Danny's parents to say they would pray for them. For them, not for Danny. For their humiliation, not his salvation.

Back at home, Danny went back to his room and picked up his old Bible. He read the part on Corinthians about love being patient and kind. How it held no record of wrongs. It was a nice thought.

There was a rap on his door, and he called quietly, "Who is it?"

"It's Mandy, can I come in?"

Danny relaxed a little. He set his book aside and sat up. "Yeah, sure."

Many slipped in. Like Danny, she had dark hair. She wore it long, with natural curls giving it body. She was, objectively, a pretty girl. However, she was Danny's sister, and that made her gross, and if any guys so much as looked at her sideways, they were going to get it. He knew it wasn't very enlightened, but the instinct to protect was strong. She had changed from church clothes to jeans and a t-shirt that had a unicorn on the front with rainbow words reading 'I'll cut you.' She smiled a little as she came in, and she closed the door behind her. Gingerly, she sat on the edge of the bed next to Danny and asked, "How are you holding up?"

Danny shrugged and said, "I don't know. About as well as can be expected."

Mandy was quiet a moment, then she threw her arms around Danny. "I'm so sorry!" she said as she buried her face against his shoulder.

Danny hesitated, then wrapped his arms around her. He couldn't remember the last time he'd hugged his sister. Any human contact was a relief from the relentless loneliness, and he hugged her tighter. "Why? You didn't do anything."

Mandy sniffled. "I know, but it sucks so much, the way they're treating you, the way everyone at church is being. I don't care what they say, Danny. I don't care if you like boys. You're my brother, and I hate Mom and Dad for doing this."