Suddenly, my body started crashing probably from the mix of drinking last night and the high emotions I was currently experiencing. I walked around my dad and sat on the couch, and tried to get my breathing under control, getting into the same position my dad was in when I arrived.
After a moment, I felt my dad kneel in front of me, staying close for mutual comfort. “I’m sorry I made you feel like you were caged because of me. I guess, I was doing it to protect myself too.” I looked up at him,seeing the truth. “Even if you weren’t the way you are, being a homophile, I still would have had a hard time letting go.”
“Because of mom,” I stated.
“Yes,” nodding in agreement. “Losing her made me see how easy it was to lose anyone. And now that there is this extra layer of judgement against you that could lead to danger,” coming to a sudden stop and he shook his head, looking at his knees. After a moment's pause, he looked back up at me with a questioning expression. “Where were you last night? Where did you go when you couldn’t find your way back?”
“Jim’s,” I simply stated while trying to tell him that it was okay with my eyes, but he didn’t get the message because his eyes widened and he leaned back in surprise. “Dad, he made sure I was safe. The entire night he made sure I was okay. He stayed with me and then took me back when I got turned around. It’s okay.” Nodding, like me moving my head would completely convince him.
When the silence went on too long, it seemed to push the statement fully into his head as he relaxed. “He really is a good guy, Dad. So is David.” I smiled at some of the memories I remembered from last night after the chaos at the start, which I continued to fully avoid on purpose. “After their initial shock, and even though Jim didn’t really loosen up much, they made sure I was comfortable. I had fun. And I felt safe with them.”
“They let you drink,” he said with irritation.
“Excuse me,” I said with finality. “They didn’t let me do anything. If they had it their way, I would have left right after I arrived,” but not giving him a moment to question any of what I just let slip, I quickly moved back to his statement. “But yes, I did drink. And myhead is pounding. Even more now that I have been crying. Sorry about your shirt, by the way.” I gave him a small smile, and I waved my hand to his shoulder. He looked down at the mess I left behind, hoping the distraction would get him off topic.
He snorted, and shook his head in amusement then looked back at me. “I love you, Charlie,” with so much humorous affection a quiet and moody father could give their only son. “We will figure this out. We will loosen up, as long as we are able to keep you safe,” getting back his calmer yet serious tone. I gave him a small smile and nodded. He opened his arms and I fell into them for a tight hug. “Okay, go shower. You smell like what you drank last night. We will spend the day relaxing. Maybe tomorrow, we can go explore the city a little.”
That idea thrilled me and I was surprised he was already suggesting public activities. “That sounds amazing, Dad.” I got up, leaving him kneeling on the floor and headed to the stairs to get cleaned up, wishing it was already tomorrow.
eleven
Setting Fire To My Heart Of Coal
Jim
-Bang bang bang bang bang-
“Jesus Christ,” glancing at the clock, saying it's thirty minutes after ten. Opening the door, not even having a shirt on yet, I caught David about to bang again. “You’re early,” I growled, then turned around leaving the door open so he could welcome himself in.
“You are even grumpier than you were yesterday morning. You should be excited,” as he bounced in place like fucking Tigger from that child’s book, a giant smile showing all his teeth, hyper as hell.
The bruise seemed darker now on his cheek, with brown-reddish splotches in the center. It extended up to his temple and up into his eyelid, lightning the farther up it went. The swelling had gone down but still looked a bit puffy. His look didn’t match his currentpersonality, between his menacing size and current injury and his excitable character.
“I read in thePittsburgh Post-Gazettethis morning a review of the movie and it sounds so good.” Then quickly changed the topic, “Do you have coffee made?”
“Help yourself, it just might not be hot anymore,” as I walked out of the kitchen to go hunt for a shirt so we could leave. Containing David here while being this excited won’t have a good outcome, especially after he guzzles down probably his third or fourth cup of coffee of the day in my kitchen.
When I returned fully clothed, David practically had coffee dripping down his chin, cup tilted in a drinking position not paying attention. “Want a straw?”
Startling him, he bounced, the cup hitting his face and what little of the coffee that was left ending up on the floor, barely missing him. “Ouch! You jagoff! I already have a bruise.”
“Oops,” smirking that I finally did to him what he usually does to me. “Speaking of the bruise, how did your mother react?” I asked, while I cleaned up his spill.
As he was pouring another cup of coffee, “She almost didn’t let me leave the house this morning to go to the city. Not because I was hurt, which was a whole different overreaction in itself,” swinging the coffee kettle in his hand, needing to add a hand gesture to make his point, “but because it could ruin my father’s reputation at the court house if anyone saw me.” He rolled his eyes.
His father worked in the courthouse as a Custodian, maintaining the building, so David’s sarcastic reaction is understandable. Who is going to care that a janitor’s son had a black eye?
“Chug that coffee, and let’s get going. I don’t want to get into the movie when it’s already too far along. That drives me insane,” I said, as I grabbed my key and wallet from the counter.
Living on top of a mountain isn’t all it’s cracked up to be if you don’t have a car because it makes getting to the city a long trek. Either we would have to walk down the terrifying mile long, one thousand step Indian Trail Stairs or take the Monongahela Incline down for a nickel, then another fifty cents to hop on a trolley at the station at the bottom that would take you to the middle of the city.
David and I were going to take the Incline down. Fuck the stairs. Other than occasionally going out with David after a day at the mine for beers, I rarely do anything, so affording the fares isn’t a problem.
In all, it took us forty minutes to get to the beautiful and massive Stanley Theatre on Seventh Street. It holds thousands of people. David was vibrating with joy, acting like this was his first movie.
After paying the forty-cent balcony ticket to see ‘Rebel Without A Cause’, starring James Dean, and treating myself to popcorn and Coke-a-Cola for ten-cents each, we walked into the movie right in the middle of the action.
James Dean’s character was being confronted by some jerk it seemed, wanting to race him all because he was the outcast new kid in town and had been flirty with his gal. David plopped down in an aisle chair, bouncing, making me have to slip by him to the next seat.
