Ian - Chapter 3: Coming out
The bright light rushed into the room as Joey opened the black curtains in my bedroom. "What are you doing." I stirred awake, moving around and turned to face the wall next to my bed.
"It's time for you to wake up." He walked over to my bed and began to shake me. "Come on, it's two in the afternoon."
"Fine!" I pulled the blankets closer to my face, hoping he would go away.
"Come on." He yanked the sheets off of me, revealing my naked body to the cold air. As the cold rushed over me I felt some fabric hit my fur. Joey walked out of the room and I sat up. My legs dangled off the side of my large bed. I looked out the window at the bright white snow that fell last night.
I stood up and walked into the bathroom down the hall with the clothes in my paws. I turned on the shower and let the hot water build up. I stepped into the shower and started to clean my mane. I started to think about Alex. We have been dating for over a month now, and no one in my family knows. I thought Joey would find out first, considering that he is good at finding things out. But of course my parents will never know. I have dodged a few bullets recently, and if one hits me... I would never be able to return home.
I shook the possible thoughts out of my head and continued to shower. I stepped out and put on my blue and white pajama lounge pants on, and a white t-shirt. As I walked downstairs snow began to fall from the roof. It was getting close to Christmas, but I never really got anything. I just liked it because I was off of school.
I walked into the kitchen and you could smell the bacon Joey was frying. Mikey was sitting at the bar playing with a toy car and I sat down next to him.
"'Bout time you woke up." Joey didn't look up from the pan.
I yawned and looked back at him. "Because someone woke me up."
"It's two in the afternoon and you took a 45 minute shower."
"So." He put the bacon on the plate and set it in front of Mikey and I. I started to eat and I got half way though and the doorbell rang. "I'll get it." I stood up and grabbed another piece and started to eat it. I opened the front door and I saw Alex standing there. His white fur blended into the snowy background and his black fur stood out nicely.
"Alex!" I hugged the Husky and then noticed that he was a bit upset. "What's wrong?"
"I have to tell you something." It almost sounded like he had been crying. I stepped aside and he walked in. We walked up into my room and I shut the door.
"What's wrong, baby?"
"This is really hard for me to say." His eyes began to tear up. "I'm moving, next week."
My ears lowered, my eyes widened, and tears started to come to my eyes. "You're what?"
"My dad got a new job in Miami, Florida. We have to move." He grabbed my paw and looked at me. "I asked him if I could stay... If there was anyway... but there's not."
"You can't go... what about us?"
"We can keep in touch. We can talk on the phone, message each other over the internet."
"It wont be the same though."
"I know, but there's nothing I can do. Nothing we can do."
"But... I love you."
Alex smiled once I said that. "I love you too, Ian." He brushed his paw through my mane and pulled me closer into a kiss. When we pulled away he rubbed his paw against my cheek.
"I hate everything about you. Why do I love you." - Three Days Grace, I hate everything about you, started to ring from Alex's pocket. He pulled out the phone and answered it.
"Hey, Dad."
"You need to come home and pack, Alex. There's a snow storm on the way."
"Alright." He ended the call and looked at me. "I have to go."
"OK." We kissed each other for a minute.
"Ian." We broke the kiss and I looked over and saw Joey standing in the doorway. "Can I talk to you?"
"Yeah, Alex was just leaving." We both stood up from the bed and I whispered in his ear. "I love you."
He stopped and looked back at me. "I love you too." He walked out of the room and Joey looked at me.
"You're gay?" My face blushed and I looked down at the floor. I walked over and sat down on my bed. "Don't worry. I wont tell mom and dad."
"Thanks." I looked up at him as he sat next to me.
"I just want to see you happy, little bro." He put his paw on the top of my head and ruffled my mane. "So, how long have you two been going out?"
I actually thought it was strange that he cared. I thought that he wouldn't like the fact that I was a homosexual. "For over a month."
"Wow, I thought I would have found out,"
"Yeah, I did too." I chuckled a little.
"Have you two..." He seemed awkward saying that. I could tell that he wasn't quite comfortable with the idea.
"No, we haven't. We're taking it slow." I sighed. "It's not like it matters though." I started to tear up again.
"Why? You and him look happy together."
"He has to move... to Florida."
"Everything will be OK. You'll find another... male."
"It wont be the same." I started to cry.
Joey stood up and looked at me. "Come on. Lets go watch a movie, it will get your mind off of it."
"I don't want to."
"Come on." He pulled my off the bed and took me down stairs. He popped a movie in the DVD player and we started to watch. All I could think about was Alex, and what I could do to get him to stay. I went over everything over and over again in my head. I couldn't think of anything that had a remote chance of working.
When the movie finally ended my Dad walked into the room, home from work. I couldn't stand him, everything his way. "I'm home."
"Great." I was always sarcastic, especially when it came to my parents.
"Why the hell are you watching a movie, Ian." My dad always got on me about stuff.
"I was watching one with Joey, because there was nothing to do, Dad."
"Don't take that tone with me."
"Whatever." I stopped showing my Dad respect when he stopped showing it to me. I looked out the window and saw the dark night sky, it was pitch black out and the snow storm had already hit. I started to walk out of the room and Mikey ran in, to talk to my Dad.
"Daddy, guess what Ian did." I froze where I was. Did he see Alex and I? If he did... would he know what it was.
"What?" He sighed a bit, but he also seemed interested. He was probably excited to make my life hell.
"I saw him and Alex kiss." My heart just sank. I couldn't believe what I just heard. My body started to get hot, I started to sweat, get nervous... I had a hundred emotions running though me. I didn't know what to do.
I started to walk towards the stairs when I heard my dad talk to my brothers. "Boy's... head up to your rooms." Joey and Mikey started to walk up to their rooms. Joey looked at me with this look on his face, he looked sorry for me. I think a part of him knew what was going to happen.
Mikey looked up at Joey as they walked upstairs. "Did I get Ian into trouble?"
"I don't know, Mikey. I just don't know."
"Ian, come in here!" I heard my father roar from the other room. I started to shake I was so scared. I walked into the room and I saw my Dad standing there, he looked angry.
"Yeah... Dad."
"Are you gay." I lowered my head without thinking. "You're a faggot!" I felt a great force on my chest and I fell back. I hit the ground and I looked up at him. "You know... I think I'm going to enjoy this." I started to tear up. "Oh, look at the sensitive little Lion." He picked me up by my mane, I wasn't even touching the ground. "I always knew you were a reject." He clawed my face and knocked me back down to the ground.
I felt the cut and I knew I was bleeding a little. He walked over to me and kicked me in my torso. I winced at the pain, it hurt so bad. I knew that this might of happened if he found out.
"How long has your... deception been going on for."
"N... not long." I didn't know what to say. My mind was all over the place.
"I said how long!" He picked me up again but this time it was by my neck.
"A month." I struggled to say.
He roared again and threw me across the room into an end table. My right arm and sleeve cut in three places. I got a sharp pain in my back, I didn't feel any moisture though, so I knew I wasn't bleeding. He walked over to me again and grabbed my left leg. He yanked me across the room again, but when he let go, he ripped my left pant leg half way below the knee.
"I... I'm sorry." I tried to beg, anything to get this horrible beating to stop.
"Sorry isn't good enough, you piece of shit!" He spit on me and kicked me again. I started to stand up to at least get the kicking to stop. But once I stood up he punched me in the face. He then grabbed me by the shoulders and shoved me into the wall. I hit the wall so hard it put a dent into it.
"I'm so addicted to. All the things you do." - Saving Abel, Addicted, started to ring from my pocket. That ring tone always made Alex smile.
"Oh, I wonder who that might be." He reached his paw into my pocket and pulled out my phone and saw Alex shirtless on the front screen. "Go figure." He tossed the phone, but when it hit the ground it opened. My Dad then grabbed me by the neck again and tossed me into another end table, this one broke as if it were paper. I fell down to the floor along with the table making a loud noise and I screamed in pain. I could see my phone and I could hear Alex talking on it, but I couldn't make out what he was saying. I tried to reach for it, hopefully I could get a word out for help. But my dad walked over to it, picked it up, and snapped it in half. He looked over and saw me reaching for it. "There's not going to be any of that." He took one step and stood directly on my paw.
"Argh! Get off!" I screamed, I knew it wouldn't get him to stop, but I could try.
"How about this." He reached over and grabbed my tail and started to pull. I screamed louder than before. I was terrified, I didn't know what to do. I reached around and grabbed a wooden leg from one of the tables. I swung it and hit him in the arm, causing him to drop my tail. I stood up for a second and he shoved me again. I flew back and slid on the carpet and then tile. "Get out!" He roared louder than I have ever heard him before. "I never want to see you again!" He was so angry with me, I knew that I had to do what he said, or I wouldn't be here to see tomorrow. "Now! And never return!"
I turned and walked out the front door and into the cold, snowing night. I walked down the snow covered sidewalk. There had to of been at least six inches of snow on the ground, and more was falling. At some points I couldn't even see anything... well most of the time I couldn't see anything, due to the dark night sky. The thin fabric of my lounge pants and my torn shirt didn't help. I was freezing. The wind blew through the cuts on my face, shirt sleeve cut, and the snow covered my exposed left leg as I walked. It also didn't help that my fur was so closely trimmed.
I tried to make my way to Alex's house, but he lived three miles away. I wouldn't even make it past one mile in this cold. I was shivering, my jaw was shaking, my eyes were getting dry. The only light I had to go by was the few porch and garage lights that were on, and there wasn't that many at all. I lowered my head and continued walking, the wind blowing harder and harder and the snow falling more and more.
I saw a faint light up ahead, it looked like a car's headlights. Who would of been driving in this storm, but it didn't matter, it was a car. I stood still as the car came to a stop. I could barely see, but I saw a white figure run over to me. He grabbed me to put me into his car, but I could barely move. Once I got into the car he got back into the drivers seat and I slowly moved my head and I saw Alex.
"Alex." I faintly said, I couldn't speak, my whole body was frozen.
"Just stay with me, look at me, talk to me."
"I'm so cold." I could tell that hypothermia was setting in. "Alex... Thank you." My voice felt like ice, I had to of been outside for ten minutes or so. It also didn't help that it was 10 degrees Fahrenheit.
Before I knew it we had already arrived at Alex's house. He picked me up in his arms and carried me into the house. He carried me up the stairs and into his room. My whole body, my jaw, was shaking like crazy. He set me onto his bed and put three heavy blankets on me, then he climbed under the covers too, still wearing his thick clothes. I felt my back hit his chest and his arms on my chest. He was holding me, trying to get me warm. I felt my eyelids get heavy and my body still shaking in Alex's grasp. My eyes closed and I fell asleep