Sir (Burr X Washington)

George, Martha, and Freedom

Aaron's uncle never showed up to pick him up. So he had two options. One, get a ride home from George and then go home to his probably drunk, abusive uncle. Or two, stay here with him and pray his uncle doesn't get an idea of what's going on.

George had his arms cross, keys in hand. He had asked Aaron what he wanted to do and Aaron had been silent for two minutes now, still thinking about what was a good idea. Going home to his uncle was a bad idea already, he was drunk and abusive enough when sober. It was ten times worse when he was drunk though.

But staying with George an entire night in his home sounded pretty illegal. Really illegal. And neighbors would suspect things. Especially since that's pretty much a young adult taking a teenager into his home and letting him sleep there for a night in a way that is highly suggestive. Aaron was 19 and George was...

How old is he?

Aaron looked at George and studied his features. He definitely looked much older than what he really was. The stress of having several jobs was a lot on him, and he looked exhausted ¾ the time. The other ¼ he was finally getting 30 seconds of sleep before getting right back up to work again. He realized how pleasing it must have been to watch Aaron clean up the house and yard instead of him, which is what would have happened if he had bolted like Charles did.

Why didn't I run? Was it fear? Anger? Shock? Maybe I wanted him to catch me. Maybe I wanted him to bring me inside and punish me and spank me-

"Aaron have you gone brain dead?" George joked, tilting his head up. Aaron blushed, blinked, and then blurted out, "How old are you?" George stared for a moment before answering, "29. I'm 29 years old. I'm going to be 30 in February." It was January at the time, Aaron had completely forgotten what month or day it was.

But, that wasn't the point. Aaron was going to be 20 in February. George was going to be 30 in February. That was a ten year age difference between them. There was no way that could be good. Maybe it wasn't illegal, but surely it was wrong in some way. George gently caressed Aaron's cheek, snapping him out of his thoughts. Aaron took a moment to process what he wanted to say, and then spoke, "Is this wrong?" George stared for a moment and pulled his hand away.

"A ten year age difference..." Aaron breathed. George nodded a bit, understanding that it was a bit shocking to him. He looked at Aaron with worry. There was no telling how Aaron would react to this new information. He could break down in tears, get scared, get angry. It was always a surprise with Aaron. This time though, Aaron seemed to be a bit too calm. He took a couple deep breaths, sign languaged some things that George would have to look up later, and then gave a nod.

"Could I stay here for the night if it's not too much to ask? My uncle is... is probably... you know." Aaron muttered, scratching the back of his neck. George smiled and agreed, "Of course you can stay the night. I wouldn't want you going home to that piece... Heh, let's get you some sleep clothes, yeah?" George brought him upstairs to his bedroom and began searching for some clothes he could wear to bed. Eventually, he got a loose tshirt and some sweatpants. Aaron went to the guest bedroom and tried the clothes on.

When he looked in the mirror he burst out laughing. The clothes were way too big on him, that was clear as day, and it was worse that the collar was cut off the shirt. He walked back into George's room, still giggling a bit. George was lying on the bed with his reading glasses on and a book in hand. He looked up at Aaron and turned red. Slowly, he put his book away and set it aside, staring at Aaron.

I knew the low collar was a good idea.

George stood up and walked over to Aaron, admiring his figure. He tilted his head up and kissed his cheek, a smile on his face. "You know where the guest bedroom is, Aaron. If you need anything go ahead and call for me, ok?" Aaron nodded and skipped away to the guest room. George got back in bed and continued reading.

Aaron found out one thing about the guest bedroom and that was that it wasn't always a guest bedroom. He realized this when he turned on the light and saw that the sheets were not pale red but in fact a light pink color. Everything in the room was pink actually. Except for the curtains and wood, which seemed to be black. This hadn't always been a guest bedroom, and he finally realized this when he picked up a framed photo of George, a woman in a purple dress, and a little girl in red and blue.

He has a daughter, or maybe had a daughter would be a correct term. Aaron had a bit of fear in him. Was this daughter currently living with him? Was the woman in purple his wife? Ex wife? Divorce? Death? Did the mother AND daughter die?

Aaron clutched the framed photo to his chest and looked out the window. George's house had a great view of the city, and he loved it more than anything. He sighed and walked to George's room, still holding the frame tightly to him. When George looked up, he recognized the pink and black zebra print frame before he even saw the photo. He frowned and sat up, knowing that he would have to explain a few things.

Aaron climbed up onto the bed and laid next to him, laying his head on his leg. George gently caressed Aaron, wondering who would have to break the silence first. The photo laid on the bed, the smiles in it almost too venomous to be a birthday party photo.

He sighed and explained, "We're divorced now. My daughter still visits sometimes though. I know that's a bit awkward when you come into the situation, and I'm sorry for that." Aaron shook his head and answered, "It's fine. I just didn't know if she was dead or if she left you or whatever else might have happened..."

It was quiet once again, and neither of them liked it very much. Aaron spoke, "What're their names?" George didn't answer. He picked up his book and continued, "Her name is Martha, my little girl's name is Freedom,"

Aaron smiled, knowing very well that that is definitely something that George would name his kid. George thought about Freedom for awhile and suddenly remembered that he was going to be taking care of her for the weekend. He looked forward to it and smiled, thinking about her and how proud he was of her.

When Martha dropped her off, he knew that she wouldn't be pleased to hear about his new boyfriend visiting as well. But, George had already told himself to invite Aaron over, and he couldn't reschedule any of those things.

"I love you..." Aaron mumbled, looking at the photo of Martha and wondering what could have happened between them. George smiled and responded, "I love you too."