Angels To Fly

Angel to Fly

Joe wasn't sure if it was horrible timing or the most Hallmark moment to happen for the two men, but just as Ben and Joe made their way out of Ben's host family's house, Joe got an E-Mail alert on his phone. Strange. His phone never shows him notifications. He had most applications turned off the "Notifications" option. Yet, here it was, an E-Mail popping up on his screen. And it was an E-Mail he never expected. A consideration. A consideration by the theater to try out his re-write of the play he created months ago. He didn't tell Ben how many hours he spent re-writing the play to have the theater reconsider. To give Ben the chance to stay and Ben's little American siblings the chance to be a part of something.

"Ben...baby, wait." Joe stopped mid-way down the ramp, opening up the E-Mail fully. Not only were they willing to reconsider his play, but also apologized for sending Ben away so quickly after the initial gig tanked. This...this meant his love could stay? Truly the love of his life who made him feel free. Accepted. Loved. He might be able to stay.

"Did you buy your tickets...with a cancellation fee?"

Ben nodded, "Yeah...my host family covered it but also put down the fee, just in case they could convince me to stay...good job that did, eh?" Ben's voice was low and slightly raspy, obviously getting emotional over packing his life away. "But why do you ask?"

"Benny...I know this is shit timing but I don't know...shit happens in mysterious ways, I guess. I got an E-Mail that they are going to reconsider my play to produce...and that you can be one of the stars. That they were way too hard on you."

"Wait...so they'll hire me? I can be given another work visa...and stay?" Ben's face slowly lit back up, a smile creeping up on his cheeks.

"Yes! You are not going anywhere!" Even though Ben was slightly shorter than Joe, but had a lot more muscle on him, it didn't stop the blond from running back to his boyfriend and koala hugging him until the brunet was almost falling to the ground.

"Oh my god. I have to go back in and tell the family before they start trying to beat us to the van."

"May I join you?"

Ben didn't miss a step, placing his arms now around Joe's neck, "Of course. You're my family too, you dingus."

"Mmm...I love when you use my American vocabulary." Ben chuckled, though Joe stopped it with a sweet kiss before re-gathering Ben's suitcase and running to the kitchen to tell the rest of the clan the good news.

The next month and a half was a whirlwind for Joe and Ben. The two of them were amid rewrites and casting. Ben also had to book a plane ticket back to the UK to have his new work visa (via the theater) and general paperwork squared away so he didn't have to stay for an extended period. It was hell but it was also heaven.

Smack in between the final rewrite and casting, Joe suggested that he move out of his mother's house and find an apartment between Ben's host family's house (which they have allowed him to stay in as long as he paid rent) and Joe's. Ben thought it was a splendid idea, but they both agreed to save their money and make the move after the play debut.

The casting was easy. Ben was to be one of the stars. Joe also put Kenny and Analise in supporting roles, knowing that kids like them - different, whether it be sexual orientation or disability, needed a voice. Needed representation. Other members of the community flocked to the theater, thanks to Sami's idea to put it on Instagram. He agreed to be the teen socialite, notifying all who would follow what amazing new things the theater was going to do.

And Joe believed his script, this time around, would do amazing things. He had other pieces that he created. About baseball. About coming from a small town. About being single after 30. About losing a father. And all of those scripts were a part of him. He left his identity bare in these pages. But the scripts always felt...incomplete, hence why half his work never saw the light of day. Now he knew why they were incomplete. A huge part of his identity..was locked in his memory, closed until he was smacked in the head again by a shelf. Thanks be to god for that damn shelf.