Good morning and Happy Hump Day ! If it's Wednesday, then it must be time for more flash fiction from the Wednesday Briefers! We're a group of authors who bring you our finest flash fiction every week, 500 to 1000 words, inspired by one of our prompts.
Vinnie and Ethan listen as Ethan's Uncle Benny tells his story... of a love gone wrong. See what's going on in this week's chapter of Rose and Thorne 6. Don't forget to visit the other Briefers and see what's up with them! Their links follow my tale! Enjoy!
“I was twenty-one and quite naïve when I first met
Connor. From an early age, I knew I liked other boys, not girls, but that was
not the time to be out and proud. Especially not in the Bible belt. Dad, God
rest his soul, meant well, but I knew he wouldn’t understand something I barely
understood myself. And Mom followed him in everything. I can’t really blame
her, it’s what women did back then. So I kept my feelings quiet, at least
around them. And the kids at school. But even closeted, you can get an idea of
who might feel the same way. There’s a lot can be said with a wink and a smile.
So I did manage to learn something about gay sex, because you know, where
there’s a will, there’s a way.” He chuckled.
I couldn’t believe how upbeat he sounded, in spite
of everything he was telling us. How hard it must have been to grow up like
that, unable to be yourself because society wasn’t ready to handle the image of
two men or two women being together. Even so, he’d certainly acquired more
experience than I ever had at any time when I was in school. Not even after I
reached college. In fact, I was a virgin until I met Ethan. He’s my one and
only. Thank goodness he had a little experience, or we would have been two
clueless guys trying to figure things out.
Benny turned toward Ethan. “You probably don’t
remember your grandparents, do you? You and Sarah were just babies when they
died, and Joey was pretty little himself.”
I couldn’t imagine Joe Jr as a child. Was he always
mean and spiteful? What did he put his younger siblings through as children? I
could never imagine calling him Joey, either. The nickname didn’t suit him.
Ethan shook his head. “No, I have no memory of them.
And not too many of Dad’s parents. They moved years ago, and we didn’t see them
very often. And then they both died in an accident.”
“I remember.” Benny fell silent for a moment. “Well,
I met Connor when I was at college. I was sitting out on the quadrangle,
getting some sun and studying, when this utterly cute boy walked up to me and
asked if I was in pain. I told him I didn’t know what he meant and he said
something like didn’t I get hurt when I fell from heaven because I was
obviously an angel.” Benny gave up a sheepish grin. “Yeah, I know. Very cheesy
and not very original. But, in my defense, I’d never heard that line before. I assumed Connor was a student, as I was..
Only later did I figure out he just trolled the campus for innocents like me.”
I couldn’t believe how honest and forthright he was
being. I gripped Ethan’s hand tightly, suddenly grateful we hadn’t come of age
during that same time. He gave mine a reassuring squeeze in return.
“To be honest, I’d never met anyone like him. I
thought he knew everything about everything. Such a smart man. So good-looking.
And he certainly had the gift of gab. Connor McKenzie knew no strangers. I was
drawn to him from the moment he talked his way into my life. He stole my heart.
It wasn’t until later that I figured out how much stealing was a part of his
very nature.”
Oh yeah, Benny went to prison for bank robbery,
didn’t he? I didn’t know any more than that. In fact, that much knowledge had
only come fairly recently. Around the time Ethan told me the truth about his
family.
As if he could read my mind, Benny continued. “I
guess it’s no secret that I did time for bank robbery. Five years, to be exact.
Could have been a lot worse, but it was my first offense. Only offense,
actually.”
I stole a glance at Ethan. He was listening with
rapt attention to everything his uncle said. I suspected most of what Benny was
telling us was news to him as well.
“I’m not gonna lie, I was there,” Benny said. “At
the bank. And I was wrong for being there. But in my defense, I had no idea
what was going down until it happened. In fact, I never set foot inside that building.
My mistake was that I was driving what became the getaway car.” He took a deep
breath. “Young and in love… and incredibly stupid. If I’d had any idea what
Connor was planning….” He shook his head. “But that was the point, wasn’t it?
He took advantage of my love for him, and my blindness to his true nature. A
pretty package with a rotten interior.”
“I’m so sorry,” I blurted out without thinking.
Damn. Had I just spoken out of turn?
“Thank you,” Benny said softly. The next moment he
had enveloped both Ethan and me into his becoming familiar bear hug. Normally,
I didn’t care for the touch of strangers, but there was something comforting
about Benny. I found myself liking him more and more. And wishing I could do
something to help.
But that was what came before. Ancient history. What
had happened that Ethan’s Uncle Benny needed protection from now, and how did
it relate to what happened in the past?
to be continued
Now see what the other Briefers are up to!
No comments:
Post a Comment