Rejects (Ashton Irwin)

Epilogue Part 2

~16 Years Later~

Joey's POV

"Mum and dad are gonna kill me, John!" I screeched hysterically as I paced the length of our shared room, my brother watching me from where he sat on his bed, probably texting his girlfriend, Milly Clifford.

"They won't. They'll be accepting, and you know it. You're gay, so what?" He said, easing my unsure mind slightly.

"You're sure that they're not going to disown me!?" I asked, feeling the panicking blush creep its way up my neck onto my cheeks.

"I'm sure! If anything they'll be happy because you are truthful with them, and you can't get anyone pregnant!" He said with a chuckle, and I nodded, opening my phone to see a text from my boyfriend, Peter Sivan-Oakley.

"K! I'm gonna do this!" I cheered as I left the room, making my way down the stairs to find my middle-aged parents making out in the kitchen.

"Woah! Try and not do that while we're still in the house!" I screamed, covering my eyes as they looked over at me with identical amused smirks on their faces.

"Shut up, where do you think you came from!?" My dad chuckled, wrapping his arms around mum's waist. Sometimes they were just too embarrassing.

"I need to tell you both something," I said, once more grabbing their attention as I was hoping for.

"What's wrong, hun?" My mum asked, walking over to me and cupping my face with her hand. Her green eyes searched my own hazel ones, concern clear in her stance.

"I'm gay," I said after an excruciating silence, not seeing the point in holding it in any longer. I looked between my parents expressions, almost identical looks of shock running through their facial features.

I knew they would hate it. Mum always talked about how much she couldn't wait until we had little families of our own, with our own kids running around.

"Please don't hate me," I whispered, tears springing to my eyes. I was confused to say the least when I felt my mum's small arms wrap around my middle.

"Son, we could never hate you!" Dad reassured me, joining the hug with us.

"So, you don't mind?" I asked, unsure that this was even real life. They were taking this too well.

"Why would we!? Love is love, no matter what," Mum sighed happily, and I smiled widely, wiping some happy tears from my eyes.

"So, got a boyfriend?" Mum asked, wiggling her eyebrows, and I chuckled, nodding.

"Peter," I replied, feeling the embarrassed blush flush my cheeks. Both my parents smiled widely, jumping in excitement.

"I guess this is as good a time as ever to tell you that I asked Milly to marry me," I heard John say from behind me at the doorway, and I turned to him with my parents, looking at him firstly in shock, then happiness.

"That's great!" Dad cheered, giggling slightly as John came forward and joined us in a massive group hug.

"My two babies, you're growing up!" Mum cried happily.

This was it, the beginning of my own life, just as John was beginning his own life too. It was time to be independent.