Kenmore Park, near Solstice Hearts...

Thump-thud. Thump-thud.
Thump-thud. Thump-thud.

My name's De'Andre Beckham.

And right now, my heart's beating a mile per minute since I was now finishing up my usual morning run in the park while I take in yet another stroll down memory lane to when I was ousted from the family after my older sister Treniece outed me on the fateful day during high school.

It seemed so far away when I think about it: me and Joshua (my god-brother and best friend as well as him being the one guy who owns my heart and soul) being lost in each other's wicked passions when Treniece caught us having sex in my room. And it didn't take her long to start blackmailing me into doing what she wanted.

"Think how much it would kill Momma and Daddy if they found out that their altar boy is living in sin with his best friend- his god-brother, no less," Treniece had taunted after kicking Joshua to the curb. "You'd be kicked out of the house in minutes flat if they don't ship you out to Reddick's Camp for the Sinful Souls in Boston! But it doesn't have to be that way. All I ask is that you date one of my friends from the cheerleading squad, break things off with your crew, and start being a real man. I'll keep the tape on hand if you decide to go funny on me. Because I will break you one way or another."

I knew she was serious. She knew that no closeted kid would ever want to go to that extremist camp to "cure him or her of their 'wicked ways' so they can be good Christian kids." Dad had one of his friend's sons go there once. Poor guy killed himself on the day he got home. No one attended his funeral. Treniece said that she would do anything to make sure that I either played by her rules whether I went there to be reprogrammed or caved in.

"Choose wisely, De'Andre. I'm only doing this for the good of the family. If you don't want to end up being scorned or sent away, you'll do what I want and when I want."

But the thing is, I had suffered enough from doing what she wanted yet ended up being on the raw end of the deal: having her male friends use me as a punching bag, doing her chores while she messed up the house from her endless parties, running errands that Momma told her to do while she (my sister) got to talk on the phone. It got too tiresome and I knew that the line had to be drawn.

"I'm not doing it, Treniece. I put up with your childish bullshit for the longest. If you think about outing me, then you can consider me gone from the family. I'll take my chances."

Well, folks? Treniece made good on her threat that night after Mom and Dad watched the video. And in two hours, I was out on the streets with only the clothes on my back and a little bit of money that I had on my debit card (not to mention the cash that Grandma Ellestine and Grandpa Joseph left for me in a savings account). I was disowned by my parents and Treniece was now their favorite (and only child).

Funny how that turned out since most of my relatives (both sets of my living grandparents included) knew that I was gay and hated Treniece for outing me like that. They turned their backs on her, my aunt Denise inviting me to stay with her nearby.

Now, here I was with my own place as I was now still exiled from my parents' home (I wasn't allowed back into the immediate family unless I did what Treniece wanted, as Dad had said) and yet having my own network of family: my best friends and their supportive families, Naomi and La'Shawn as well as the former's therapist of an uncle, and even Joshua.

And speaking of which, Joshua and I were mainly playing it cool about our...well, things were complex since his family was still harassing him to be like them while mine wanted no part with me whatsoever. Now, don't get me wrong. Joshua and I were still friends, fellow models, co-designers, and owners of Pacifica West Menswear alongside Cameron and Franklin. But we were also occasional lovers with no strings attached. Sometimes, we ended up spending more time with each other.

Still, it would be nice if we were more than that. Josh and I knew each other way back when things were cool with our families and our mothers knew each other back when they were attending high school. Josh and I lost our virginities to each other back in eighth grade as we knew that we didn't favor girls as everyone hoped. And despite all that, he and I knew what we were thinking: our hearts beat for each other and we needed to shed our inhibitions before we ended up losing each other for good.

Thump-thud. Thump-thud.
Thump-thud. Thump-thud.

My cellphone buzzed. Treniece. I stopped mid-run, frowning at her number that flashed on the screen. "What the hell does she want now?" I muttered, pressing the ANSWER button. "What, Treniece?"

"Hello to you, too," the voice of my self-righteous sister sneered from the other end. "I just wanted you to know that Mom and Dad's wedding anniversary is coming up and all the family's going to be at the house- oh, wait. You ain't invited, though."

I rolled my eyes. "Tell me something that I don't know," I remarked bitterly.

"Don't start," Treniece barked before changing her tone. "Look, I just wanna know if you want to give them a beautiful gift, something that can unify this family once more after you left."

"And let me guess, you still want me to take up on your offer to renounce my friends, marry one of your female friends, and attend church?"

"Exactly."

"Sorry, Treniece. I can't do that."

Now my sister was pissed again. "You mean you won't," she spat. "I don't get it, De'Andre! You're a fine-ass brotha with a lot going on and you end up being some kind of homo! Don't you know that Momma cries herself to sleep every time she steps into your old room at night? Or that Daddy wishes that he had his own grandson?"

"He has your son as his grandson," I rebutted.

"Yeah, but he's with his daddy and his family. Come on, De'Andre! You owe this family some loyalty! I expect that you will be at the house by next month to make things right or you can forget about the family and never show your face around me or my parents at all!"

I sighed, ready to put this all to bed. "Then I guess you'll never see or hear from me again," I said in a clipped tone. "You accuse me of caring about myself, even when I did all that you wanted back then. Well, maybe it's time that I started putting myself first for a change. And if that means being a gay man and being disowned by you and our parents, then so be it. Don't call my phone, don't bother contacting me, and don't you come by my apartment. If I hear wind of you doing so or trying to reach me through Joshua's parents, I will have a restraining order against you. And if you try anything reckless or even threaten to have me harmed or killed, I will press charges."

"UGH!" Treniece screamed in frustration, the sound of something hitting against a wall echoing in the background. "You know what, De'Andre?! You ain't even worth my time anymore! Fuck you! I hope you burn in hell!"

A calmness fell over me as I smiled faintly. "Likewise, sister. Likewise. I'm blocking your number, just so you know. I meant every word. Try harassing me again, and I will end you. Goodbye and good riddance to bad trash." And before she could get in a word, I hung up. "What a witch," I muttered sotto-voce as I blocked her number.

Before I could place my phone in my pocket, I saw Joshua's number flash on the screen. I smiled as I pressed the ANSWER button. "Hey, there," I said.

"Hey, D.," I heard the musical accent of my friend/lover's voice. "Listen, things are getting hot again and let's just say that my parents have sunken to a new low. Can you and I meet?"

"Sure," I replied. "I'm just finishing my run at Kenmore. I'll see you over at the cafe?"

"Got it."

We disconnected.

As I began the trek back to my apartment, I knew that Joshua sounded tired and exasperated. Given that he was coming from another family brunch, I had a giant hunch that he was ready to give his family the boot completely. Let's hope so because I wanted him to be mine without anyone else harassing us ever again. And as for our friends, I believed that they needed to find love with Jamal Oglethorpe (for Cameron) and Tyler Chandler (for Franklin).

If we played our cards right, love will blossom during Fashion Week in New York City. I could hardly wait for that week to arrive!

I bet! But it's not going to be easy for our boys since Treniece and Josh's family will still be around to harass them! So you can expect a lot of drama to take place, folks!

Anyway, it's time to check in with Tyler once again in the next chapter as we do a time skip before we see Tyler finally sit down for promising job interview featuring one Franklin Romero! Oh, how I know you're going to love this, folks! And don't worry! We'll hear from Romero soon enough! Who knows? We might hear from him in the next chapter as well! All the same, this story is about to get very spicy and juicy! Don't miss out!

Media: "Behind the Mask" by Michael Jackson. Dedicating this chapter to TeodoratheScholar and goncalobooks.

Vote.
Comment.
Share.
Follow.
Add.
FAN!