Gavin's family was not excited to stay in the house with him and Zeke. He didn't blame them. For all they knew, Gavin had moved in with Zeke on his own accord. They didn't agree with it, but he couldn't tell them anything.
They hadn't wanted to have anything to do with him when they arrived. They stayed in their rooms for the first four hours and when dinner was served, they only spoke to Zeke. He was an outcast in the Duquesne family, and it wasn't his fault.
He kept his cool through his grandmother's birthday party. Even when she didn't want to hug him, he didn't let it affect him. He smiled and went about his day. His mother cast him pitying looks but she didn't talk to him either.
That hurt more than anything. He needed his mother, but she wouldn't say two words to him. He watched her from the other side of the room as his mind desperately wanted her to ask him what was going on and how he was doing. He would have told her everything at that moment. But she refused to talk to him. He knew it was wholly his grandfather's doing because he had told them Gavin had left on his own accord.
The night of the gala, Gavin hadn't wanted to go. He'd gotten dressed even though his entire being told him to stay home. Zeke had asked him if he wanted to stay home, but he'd gone because he'd made a promise. So they'd gone in separate cars. Gavin had remained quiet the entire time. Even at the gala, he had only spoken when spoken to and had given nondescript answers.
Zeke and Raoul had stolen the show. They had made a big show of giving huge checks to the charity which would undoubtedly be shown in the society pages of the newspapers and all over the blogs. Raoul had schemed the entire thing. It had taken Gavin several months to realize that he was nothing more than a pawn in his grandfather's scheme to build his old money into new money.
The entire night had grated on his nerves. By the time they'd gotten home and gotten ready for bed, he was ready to pass out from exhaustion. Zeke hadn't touched him in the last couple of nights. It was concerning but he enjoyed the alone time. Even though he was still in the same bed, he didn't have to worry about pleasing him.
Emily honked her horn. Gavin looked up from his book and waved. He heard her doors unlock as he walked over. He opened the door and got in the front seat.
"Where am I taking you?" she asked.
Gavin gave her the address and sat back in the seat. It was in the middle of the day so Mr. Sampson wouldn't be expecting him to leave campus. He'd asked Emily to run an errand with him before his scheduled time to be picked up. She had wholeheartedly agreed because she hadn't had a chance to hang out with him lately.
"Do you want to get lunch after we do what you need to?" she asked. She merged into traffic as she followed the GPS. "It's my treat."
"Sure," he said.
She glanced at him. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Before you start asking questions, I'll explain everything as soon as we're done."
Emily was satisfied with that answer, and they lapsed into silence as they drove down the road. Gavin watched the city flash by, and it gave him time to think. He had chosen Emily because he knew how motherly she was, and he was going to need someone to lean on in the coming months.
They pulled up into the parking lot of the doctor's office. Emily cast him a concerned look. He gave her one that promised answers later before he got out and went into the building. He walked up to reception and gave his name.
"Gavin, what's going on?" she whispered. "Why are we at a hematologist?"
"I had a doctor's appointment two weeks ago. The doctor noticed some spots on my legs that hadn't fully healed so he did some blood work. He called me into the office last week to tell me he'd found some abnormalities in my blood and that he was referring me to a specialist, to an oncologist and a hematologist. He asked me to bring someone I trusted because he was sure the news wasn't good," he explained.
Emily didn't ask anything more. She wrapped her arms around his and rested her head on his shoulder. He was doing everything he could to keep his composure, and thoughts of Zeke finding out or seeing a picture was far from his mind. He would tell him eventually, but he needed to know what was going on.
They were called to the back. Anderson was there which made Gavin feel so much better. He smiled tightly at him and nodded when he realized the person he'd brought was not someone on Zeke's payroll.
"Gavin, it's a pleasure to meet you," the new doctor greeted. "I'm Dr. Angela Wright. Dr. Reed sent me your results and asked me to look over them."
"It's nice to meet you, Dr. Wright," Gavin greeted. "I wish things would have been on better terms."
"I agree." She looked at the woman beside him. "Is this your girlfriend?"
"No, she's my friend. This is Emily Ray, and I've asked her to come with me today."
"That's smart. We all need someone to support us in trying times like these."
Gavin's heart sank. "It's not good is it?"
Anderson shook his head. "No, Gavin, it's not. Dr. Wright confirmed what I told you in the office the other day. Your bruise was a clear sign. I just needed a second opinion. You have chronic myeloid leukemia."
The world spun around him, and somehow Gavin listened to it all. Somewhere in the middle of it, they had created a treatment plan that would help. The doctor had gotten him in for a biopsy, and once that came back, they could figure out a treatment. Their hopes were to get him in next week to begin chemo. That was a hit to his ego since his birthday was next week, but he had to do it. He had to get treated for this.
They did all the paperwork and got all of Gavin's insurance and other information in the system so it would be easier to come in and do what he needed to do. The doctor explained everything that was going to happen and the other doctors who would be involved. All of it was overwhelming, but Emily took notes.
Anderson had refrained from putting his medical records on his account because he hadn't wanted Zeke seeing it. But now that the prognosis was somewhat dire, he wasn't going to have a choice. He wanted to let Gavin know before he did it, and he wanted to talk to the patient before Zeke became all authoritarian like he was prone to doing. Gavin understood and didn't fault him.
Emily sat across from him at the restaurant. She watched Gavin as he looked over the menu for his food. She was glad he had called her to support him. She couldn't imagine what he was going through currently.
"Gavin, can you be honest with me?" she asked. He looked at her, brown eyes drawn in confusion. "What's going on? Why did you bring me instead of Davis, and why don't you hang out with us anymore?"
"I brought you because Davis would lose his shit," he said. He took a deep breath. "As for the rest..."
He told her everything. He told her of how his grandfather had wanted Zeke Daniels' money to keep his business afloat, of how in the contract he had essentially been sold to the highest bidder. He told her of Zeke's requirements for him and the rules he had to follow. He told her of how his family had ignored him over the weekend despite his best efforts to talk to them. He told her it all, and it felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
Emily stared at him as he stared at the table. She felt all of his emotions in those few moments when he was talking. His brown eyes had been a little wild as he had spoken. He was overwhelmed, but he didn't want anyone else to know.
"Why doesn't Zeke come with you?" she asked.
Gavin laughed, but he wasn't happy. "I don't want him to know right now. I want to figure it out on my own."
"Gavin, you can't figure things like this out on your own. You need a support system. This will wreck your entire body."
"Then maybe I won't do the treatment."
She slapped the table. The glasses and silverware clattered with the force of it. "Do not ever let me hear you say that again. You have to do the treatment."
He looked up at her. There were tears in his eyes, and his nose was starting to turn red. "Why? Why should I do the treatment? So people can look at me and pity me even more? If I wanted that, I would have stayed with my family and let them do it."
She understood what he was saying without him saying the words. "You're not alone in this. If you tell Davis and Zeke, I'm sure they would also support you."
He shook his head. "Zeke will kick me out because I can't fulfill his requirements. I'll basically be homeless."
"Did he say that?" He looked at her with blown out cheeks. He was doing his best not to cry, not to break down in the full restaurant. "Did he tell you that if you get sick that he will kick you out because he can't do what he wants with you?" He shook his head slowly. "Then why the hell are you thinking that? Because of what your grandfather did? Fuck him. He's a prick who only wants money. He agreed to sell you for that money."
"I don't want to burden him. Zeke's an asshole, but he's a good man. I don't want to be the one who burdens him. He has enough going on already."
Gavin sighed, and Emily realized how much he cared for the older man. She knew enough about Gavin's life in New Orleans to know he hadn't been as well taken care of as he was now. His grandparents didn't care what he did, if he came home, or who he was with as long as he didn't cause a scandal. On the outside, he was cherished, but on the inside he was craving love and attention. He just didn't show it or know how to ask for it.
Now he was living with a man who required him to have some sort of decorum, a man who had given him a purpose in life even if it was a hard thing to manage. Gavin was thriving living with Zeke, and he didn't want to lose that. He didn't want to lose the only sense of home he had known in quite some time.
They ate and headed back to campus. Emily parked her car in the lot, and they walked to the science building. They stood outside and chatted about that weekend. Gavin was still going to have his birthday dinner no matter what happened. He was going to need as much normalcy as they could manage.
"I think you need to tell him," she said. Gavin looked at her with an eyebrow raised. "Zeke I mean. I think you need to tell him. He may be better at being with you than I am."
"I will eventually, but right now I need someone else to lean on," he said. "Thank you for going with me today."
She smiled at him. "Call me any time and I'll go with you."
Gavin smiled at her in response. She waved at him as she headed across campus. He watched her until she blended in with the other students then he too went inside for his next class.