Juniper Blue (NaNoWriMo2023; manxman)

Chapter 20

Gabriel

Juniper deserved something I'd never given anyone before. I never even considered it. I was afraid someone would try to steal him from me. That was my insecurity. He was younger and attractive. Who wouldn't want him? Every day, I told him how much he meant to me. I wanted to do something to prove it.

After multiple rafting and camping adventures, I realized I couldn't bring myself to ask him if he'd consider moving to Brooklyn. Not only would he have to say goodbye to his father and sisters, he'd have to say goodbye to his horses and chickens and everything else he knew and loved. He was a loyal brother and son. I wasn't loyal to anyone except to Juniper.

I liked the idea of buying a house with Juniper once the housing market rebounded. It was something I looked forward to. It's been awhile since I looked forward to anything.

If I I was going to build a future with Juniper, it was time I told my parents. They knew I moved out of my apartment in Bangor, yet I hadn't disclosed Juniper wasn't a woman.

I was glad to see my mother hadn't declined too much over the past few months. She was a little more irritable, but I'd seen long irritability growing up due to her fluctuating moods. I'd never seen her talk to herself, though. During this visit, I'd overheard her talking to an invisible person in the living room. I was aware that people with Parkinson's often experienced delusions and hallucinations as the disease progressed. While she was in the living room, I decided it was time to have that talk with my father.

"Dad, I need to talk to you about Juniper."

"Good, because I need to talk to you first."

His reaction confused me. I kept my personal life well hidden. He'd only overheard me speaking to someone named Juniper. I let him believe what he wanted to believe about him, which meant I let him believe Juniper was a woman. Tonight I planned on correcting his mistake, or assumption.

"I know things have gotten serious with you and this Juniper," he said. "I was hoping to meet her by now, but we'll deal with that at a different time. Anyway, it's crucial I have this talk with you. It has to do with your mother," he sighed. "She just wanted to protect you. She didn't want you to worry needlessly and we were both convinced that you were happier as a bachelor with no plans to have children or a family of your own. Your mother's not making very good decisions lately, but I can't entirely blame her. It was wrong of us to lie. It goes against everything we believe and what we stand for. It goes against what I try to instill in others. I am truly, deeply sorry."

"What are you talking about? Sorry about what?"

"I don't know why we've never talked about it. It's like a big family secret. Your mother doesn't have Parkinson's disease. She had symptoms for awhile; we just ignored them because she was older. We wanted to believe it was Parkinson's, which doesn't make a heck of a lot of sense since it's also a horrible, progressive disease."

"Dad, tell me. You're beating around the bush. It's ridiculous."

"Your mother has Huntington's chorea. Her brother had it as well as her mother. She was forty-seven when she died. There was no genetic testing when you were born. We didn't want you to know because we didn't want you to worry. We didn't want you to spend your life wondering if you're going to get it, too."

I'd never been angrier and more shocked in my entire life.

"That would have been helpful information, Dad. How could you keep this from me? How could you lie?"

"Your mother doesn't know I'm telling you, but if you and Juniper choose to have children, I would think you would like to be tested to see if you're a carrier."