CH 23

The next few weeks flew by and suddenly, the schools disgorged their contents for two whole months. It was finally summer break, and Gareth was relieved to put the tumultuous school year behind him. It would be so much easier to finally settle everything when he didn't have to worry about the constant grading and parent phone calls nagging at him every evening on top of his family responsibilities and developing relationship with Phillip.

He spent a few extra minutes after his final students had left tidying his room so that the custodians could buff the floors over the break, and loading his van with items and gifts to take home. There were the requisite 'Best Teacher' mugs, some gift cards, and a few boxes of chocolates. Giving Abby a quick hug, he again agreed that the two couples would do something over the summer aside from Phillip's possible court case. With a final once over, he turned out the lights and shut the door to his classroom for the last time of the year.

Once arriving home, Gareth relaxed on the couch with his children who had been excitedly showing off their report cards to Phillip. They quickly turned their attentions to their father. Daisy's grades were, as always, impeccable, Franny's report from kindergarten was glowing, and for once, Gabe was exceedingly happy with how well he'd done.

"Look Daddy, I did good! I improved a whole grade in my reading and writing, and I even got an A minus in science!" He was beaming from ear to ear, waving his official papers.

Since starting the special program to help him deal with his dyslexia, Gabe's competency in school had improved a lot. As much as he faced some teasing about being withdrawn from regular classes to meet with the special education teacher a few times per week, it had obviously helped. It's not like the learning disability was cured or anything, but Gabe had developed coping strategies, or "tricks" as Gabe was fond of saying, that helped him decode the jumble of letters on a page. He would still require more help, but even the little he'd received so far had made a huge difference. This proved what Gareth always believed, Gabe wasn't stupid, in fact he was quite smart, he just needed the right tools to learn effectively. The additional confidence in the classroom made for a better attitude towards learning and Gareth wished Gabe could have started the program earlier--but it was yet another regret that he had from the years he'd spent with Leeann.

"How about for all the great reports and to celebrate summer, we order a pizza and have a movie night?" Phillip suggested, after realizing that Gareth was exhausted from dealing with his own students on the last day, and neither man wanted to cook.

"Really?" Franny gasped, excitedly. "You mean I can stay up late?" She was literally bouncing, her curls jiggling wildly around her head.

Gareth held his hands out in mock surrender. "Well, not too late, but you guys can all sleep in tomorrow. Phillip is the only one who has to be up for work," he said, stifling a yawn.

"Awesome!" Gabe began scrolling through the movie options for rent on the tv screen while Daisy started discussing topping selections with Phillip. Gareth just closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the sofa cushions letting everything go on around him.

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As the two men cuddled in bed, Gareth lavished Phillip's collarbone with kisses, luxuriating in his partner's taut muscular shoulders. He was sure Phillip was getting more buff than they'd been even a month ago due to all the work he'd been doing, and Gareth wasn't complaining. Instead he nibbled at his boyfriend's shoulder. Phillip groaned regretfully, pulling away. "I have to work in the morning, Gareth."

"I know, I was just enjoying the way you taste." Gareth ran his nose up Phillip's neck to his earlobe, taking a deep breath, then whispering, "and the way you smell, too. Honestly Phillip," he wrapped his lean arms around the other man and snuggled in tight, "I can't believe I met you."

"Me neither." Phillip placed a light kiss on Gareth's head, then asked quietly, "So, what's the plan for summer?"

Gareth took a deep breath and shifted slightly, "Well, you know we have to visit my parents for a few days, the kids and I...I mean you're welcome, too. Leeann never came, but they'd love to meet you. They're expecting us on Monday."

"Oh, uh, I have to work, Gareth," Phillip answered hesitantly, feeling like a complete heel. "butIwouldgoifIcould," he added quickly, spitting the words out breathlessly, hoping that Gareth wouldn't hate him. He knew Gareth and the kids had been talking about this visit, and Phillip was worried. He'd never had to deal with a meet the parents kind of thing, and his own parents had been gone for so long that Phillip wasn't sure how he'd react in that kind of a situation.

Gareth sighed and hugged Phillip tightly again. "I know you would, Phillip. I know you aren't trying to avoid them." His reassuring words had the result he was hoping for as Phillip seemingly relaxed again, even though he was sure there was more to Phillip's reaction than the stoic man let on.

The two men settled in for sleep, Gareth's slightly longer form making the big spoon, while Phillip held Gareth's arm tightly against his chest. It was secure and comforting for them both.

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Monday came sooner that Phillip expected, and before he knew it, the Lewises were gone.

When he'd left to start his rounds in the morning, the kids were already up, laying around in front of the television watching cartoons and eating cereal. Sunlight flooded in through the front curtains illuminating Franny's messy curls in a most angelic way, while Daisy devoured yet another novel and Gabe hummed along with the theme song of the show they were watching.

Each, in turn, had come and given him a big hug and said goodbye; Gareth was in the shower, the two men having already shared a special goodbye before Phillip left their bedroom.

"We'll be back on Friday, okay, Phillip?" Franny had offered, when he'd knelt to give her a hug. "Don't forget us." Phillip shook his head, confused.

"He's not Mommy, stupid. He won't forget us," Gabe shot back at his younger sibling. Franny instantly balked at the insult, and Daisy stepped in to mediate.

"Franny, Gabe, stop it. You're going to make Phillip late for work. Besides he can't forget us, our stuff is here," she stated authoritatively. Phillip gave her a grateful smile and headed out the door to a day filled with digging and planting and pruning.

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Phillip installed a trellis and skillfully wound a vine of deep indigo morning glories through the opening, careful not to crush the easily bruised blossoms and corkscrewed clingers. It had been a difficult job, transplanting the established plant from alongside the house, where the greenery threatened the brickwork, to the other side of the patio. The homeowner loved the plant, but the previous landscaper had put it in a location where it was actually physically damaging to the house. Their home had developed an ant problem that led back directly to the plant growing into the mortar. Initially they'd asked Phillip to remove it entirely, even though it was obvious that Linda Hollings, the client and secretary at Gareth's school, was attached to it.

It took Phillip the better part of the day to get the building supplies, construct a sturdy structure, affix it to the fence, prepare the soil underneath for planting, then finally move the very large and delicate tendrils of vine. Of course he had to cut some of it back, but by the time he was finished, the bricks were bare and waiting for masonry repair to the cracked mortar, and the plant was gracing the far side of the patio, providing a wall of colour.

"It looks wonderful, Phillip!" Linda enthused, impressed with the job. She'd been complaining about her garden problem last week in the main office when Gareth overheard and suggested Phillip's services.

Phillip nodded while examining the finished product. "The roots and plant have had a shock with the movement, which is why I had to cut some of it back, but with regular waterings for the next while it should take root and do well. I made sure to put some fertilizer into the fresh soil to encourage new growth."

"Speaking of which, I should let you get home to Gareth." She gave him a sweet smile and patted his shoulder. While she wasn't sure if the two men were in a relationship, she had her suspicions when she saw how Gareth had talked about his friend and the gardening service he offered. And she was the one who had spoken to Phillip on the phone the day Gabe was injured. Either way, Phillip opening his home to the abused family spoke volumes to her. She'd also spoken to Leeann on the phone several times, so she knew the score. "What you've done for him and the kids..."

"They're away right now, visiting Gareth's parents," Phillip explained quickly, with a bit of a frown, thinking back to Franny's comment in the morning--he wondered if they would forget him. "But thank you," Phillip added politely when he realized he might have sounded rude.

He tidied up the mess at the Hollings' house, received his pay--slightly more than he'd requested, but Linda said he deserved it--then went home. For the first time in months he was coming into his empty house without expecting any disruptions to his evening. There was no noise, no meals to plan, and as he surveyed the kitchen, no mess to clean up. It looked like the Lewises straightened up before they left, and although Phillip appreciated the gesture, it also...hurt, too. Kind of like they were trying to erase themselves from his life. At least the children's drawings were still tacked to the fridge.

Phillip took a long, uninterrupted shower, where he used up all the hot water, his muscles aching from the extended workday. Then he walked through his house with just a towel wrapped around his waist as he ran his laundry. He heated up a single serving meal, read his gardening magazine and watched the news, all while lounging on his couch in his boxers. When it was late he made his tea, back to using a single cup again instead of preparing two, and sipped it on the couch with a news program playing in the background. It didn't seem as soothing as normal. Nothing seemed as soothing as normal. His shower had been too long, his meal had been soggy and tasteless, and he'd scalded his tongue on his tea. Nothing was normal anymore. His normal had changed.

Phillip thought hard about that unsettling thought as he climbed into the big empty bed, in his big empty room, in his big empty house, arms hugging Gareth's empty pillow to his bare chest.

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"So, tell us about this Phillip fellow?" Gareth's mother, Beverly, asked after the kids were in bed, placing a steaming cup of tea in front of her son. She had a wide smile, showing seemingly all of her age-yellowed teeth, cracking across her gently wrinkled cheeks. Beverly was thrilled her son had finally rid himself of Leeann--an evil witch in her mind--and found someone who seemed to make her son and grandchildren happy.

Beverly and Jack Lewis had always lamented how their son's life had taken a turn. At 29 he was saddled with so much, heck, at 23 he became saddled with so much. While they loved their grandchildren, all three, they had always been worried for Gareth. He was such a kind boy; while growing up he often naively found the best in people, getting himself into all sorts of scrapes by just trying to help, and it seemed he was prone to be taken advantage of. Leeann had recognized that trait right away and run with it. While Beverly knew that Gareth couldn't have been completely faultless to father, not one, but two children with the crass woman, she also recognized that something funny had to have gone on for her very definitely gay son to impregnate such a person.

They knew Gareth was gay--he'd come out to them when he was fifteen when he had a crush on a boy in his math class--and they were fine with it. As long as he was happy, they didn't have a problem with him being attracted to males. So it was more than a shock when he'd gotten someone in a family way. Especially someone who was so, so very different from Gareth.

Beverly and Jack worried further when Leeann did whatever she could to alienate and isolate Gareth from his family once Gabe was born. At first Leeann had accepted the presents they lavished on the children, but once they started talking about moving closer to offer more support, Leeann had all but cut ties. First she made it painfully obvious that they were no longer welcome for events at the couple's home, then Leeann made every excuse to prevent the family from travelling to visit, finally, she prevented the children from talking to their grandparents on the phone, as it was "too expensive, a hassle, and disruptive to their schedule." Gareth tried to include them, but Leeann's resistance had proven too difficult for him to stand against. After a few years of being thrust aside at every turn, eventually the elder Lewises stopped trying, instead just sending cheques for birthdays and Christmases and seeing the kids once or twice a year.

When Gareth had finally called to tell his mother what had happened between he and Leeann, and how they had moved, Beverly and Jack were overjoyed. And now to discover that Gareth had possibly found someone special who could appreciate her son, well, she was totally thrilled. Phillip's name came up often in the few hours the Lewises were at Gareth's parents so far, peppering conversations with the children, and it was obvious to Mrs. Lewis that Phillip, was indeed, someone important. Someone they needed, all of them.

"He runs his own gardening service and has a degree in botany, and he's really quiet and seems standoffish, but it's more because he's shy and used to being alone," Gareth's face flushed as he gushed about Phillip to his mother. She could tell her son was totally enamoured. "He would have come this week, but he's just getting his business started, so he really needs to be there for his customers."

"Oh, we understand, Gareth, Daisy's already given us the low-down. I just wanted to hear something about him from someone over ten. The kids really do seem to like him."

"Well, I think the fact that he's so much different than Leeann helps. He doesn't yell, and even though the children used to completely perplex him a lot of the time, he went out of his way to interact with them and build relationships with them. He and Daisy have hit it off the most, they're both so bookish, but he plays lego with Gabe, and Franny just seems to understand him. He's quiet, but they know he cares, and they care about him, too."

"And you?"

Gareth paused for a moment trying to put his feelings into words, he looked down at the teacup in his hand wistfully, while chewing on his lip. "He's just one of the best men I've ever met," he said with a heartfelt sigh and a grin.

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Tuesday and Wednesday, while fairly busy days at work, were equally unfulfilling at home as Monday evening was. Phillip had washed all the bedding on Tuesday night, just to keep busy, but was furious with himself when Gareth's pillow smelled like detergent, rather than the citrusy-pine smell that Phillip associated with his man. It was infuriating, really. There was no relief to be had in the potting shed, and Phillip couldn't even bring himself to make Wednesday's tea. To relax, Phillip even tried to masturbate, and he managed to reach completion, but it wasn't as fulfilling an orgasm without Gareth there to share in it. Even imagining the man next to him, urging him on, didn't really help. Not one for eloquence on the phone and worried about interrupting Gareth's family time, he couldn't call him, instead he just brooded and rolled fitfully on the clean bedding.

How could someone, well, all of them really, have changed his life so completely in such a short time? How had he never noticed just how lonely and unfulfilling his life was before? This longing was insane and completely intolerable. Sleep was a long time coming and not at all satisfactory.

Thursday morning was dreary. The sky hung heavily with clouds, mimicking the heaviness in his chest, feeling oppressive. His house was empty, and Phillip was so utterly and completely alone. He tried sniffing Gareth's shower gel when in the bathroom, but it was missing the rich Garethness that made it smell just right. After wallowing about in self-pity on the sofa for a while, Phillip got up and did something completely out of character. He picked up the phone.

"Can I come over?" One word into the terse sentence and Mel knew instantly who was on the other end of the line.

An hour later, Phillip and Mel were tramping in the woods alongside the heavy duty power lines watching her giant dogs gambol about on the well-trodden trails.

"What's the crisis?" Mel's spiky locks were almost puncturing the hood of her neon orange rain jacket as she craned her neck to watch her dogs fight over a large tree branch that one had picked up.

"I'm lost." He took a breath. "My routines don't work," Phillip stated, hating that he sounded so needy and pathetic, and not totally sure that he was making himself particularly clear.

Thankfully Mel had years of experience dealing with Phillip, realizing the problem almost immediately. "That's because you have new routines. It's totally normal for you to be missing Gareth and the kids. Your world has been turned upside-down this year, but you've coped. You lost your job, but managed to start your own business. You almost lost your house, but you took in a family in need. You got arrested for heaven's sake, but held your head up. All of that is because of breaking your old routines and making new ones. Ones that include Gareth, Daisy, Gabe, and Franny. You were existing before, but hardly living and, obviously, you can't go back to that. Since things have changed you've realized what you had wasn't enough," Mel pressed, flailing her arms emphatically.

Phillip stared off into the distance watching the dogs. "What can I do?"

"Call him. Tell him you miss him. Why wouldn't you do that?"

"Mel, I'm not a conversationalist," Phillip stated flatly.

"Newsflash!" She snorted derisively, rolling her eyes, and Phillip took a second before continuing.

"I'm not good on the phone. And why would I want to bother him?"

"Maybe because you love him?"

Phillip didn't want to examine the truth of that statement. It was just too big. "Why would he want to be with me? There are so many other people out there. Better people. People with more personality, more feelings."

Mel fought the urge to snicker. "You have feelings, lots of them." Then she took a deep breath, getting more serious. "What if Vernon leaves me for someone with a working uterus? The only thing he and I really want in the world is the one thing I can never, ever give him. I can't get pregnant, and it's my fault, yet he stays. We can't adopt, neither of us have the kind of careers that the agencies look for, and we can't afford a surrogate. I love our dogs, our fur-babies, but they are just dogs. Not children."

Phillip was confused by the turn the conversation had taken, his eyebrows furrowed together while he tried to work through her logic. "Genetically, your infertility is your parents' fault. Besides, Vernon loves you. You two are perfect together."

"Yes, and Gareth loves you. For the same reasons Vernon loves me."

Phillip's brow furrowed. "Because I have hair that looks like I put my finger in a light socket?"

"No, you idiot," she slapped his arm playfully, "because you're you. You're the one who makes him feel special and cared for. You're the one who makes him happy. Just call him and tell him you miss him. Now." Mel reached into Phillip's pocket and pulled out his phone, prodding him in the stomach with it. "NOW."

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Gareth pushed his fork around on his plate. It was great visiting his parents, finally allowing the kids to bond with their grandparents that they didn't see often enough. But something was missing. He was exhausted because sleep just wasn't coming easily. He missed cuddling, and the bed was too cold, too empty.

He'd tried his hardest to stick to Phillip's suggestion that they'd both be busy enough that they didn't need to call each other, but it was killing him. He didn't want to seem clingy. For whatever reason that was something Leeann had complained about early in their co-habitation--Gareth needing to know where she was going--and he didn't want to make the same mistake with Phillip. But to not talk to the man he'd seen on a daily basis for the past five months was just painfully difficult.

"Daddy!" Franny's voice broke into his thoughts. "Your phone is ringing." She pointed to it on the counter next to his keys where it was very definitely rattling around as it quietly played his ringtone.

The caller id showed Phillip's name and Gareth's heartbeat quickened as he swiped up to answer. He really hoped nothing was wrong. "Hello?"

"I miss you." There were none of the niceties that people expected on the phone, no 'hello' or 'how are you.' Just Phillip's voice, sounding tight, stressed.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Gareth responded, "Oh Phillip, I miss you, too. So much."

"Next time I'll come. Nothing's the way it's supposed to be, I can't even have tea. I miss you and the kids." Phillip's admission tumbled out.

No tea? Gareth knew it had to be serious. "It's okay, Phillip. We'll be home tomorrow and for sure you can come next time. There'll always be a next time," Gareth tried in a soothing tone, a wide smile playing across his face.

"I know." Phillip paused for a minute, then said softly, more relieved, "I just needed to hear your voice."

A/N: I hope this is a sweet chapter, but not too sickly. I wanted to show how they are realizing just how much they care about each other. There's maybe none of the lust of the other chapters, but there's passion, I hope. Also, maybe we get a bit more insight to what happened in Gareth's past.

Anyway, thank you to everyone! I can't believe how many of you are reading! :) Feel free to comment and I'll try to get back to everyone. Next update the story moves forward and it'll be on Friday. Read, vote, and comment :)

<3 JJ