▲▽John Laurens' P.O.V.▼△
★Modern AU★
★・・・・・・★ ・・・・・・★
"Father, are you sure you want me to bring my friends along with me to our Thanksgiving dinner?" I asked nervously, one hand holding the phone up to my ear while the other ran through my hair as a nervous habit.
"Of course, sweetie!" My mother cut in, a smile could be heard on her face. "We want to make you feel comfortable here."
"Thank you, mom," I reply, a smile growing on my face.
"Any ladies yet, son?" My father spoke up.
"Uh, no, sir," I told him, straightening my posture, even if he wasn't there to see me.
"Hm," his hum sounded disappointed, but no one made a comment about it. "We will see you in two days, then." With that, he hung up.
I sighed and placed my phone on my bed, sitting down next to it. I looked at the door to see Hercules there, his eyes full of worry but his smile trying to hide it. "I was about to come get you to say food is done," Hercules spoke up.
"I'll be out in a second," I tell him, trying to wave him off. Hercules opened his mouth to speak, but closed it and left the room. I rubbed my face with my hands in a frustrated manner, trying to figure out what to do with my family.
After a bit of silence, I got myself up to my feet and walked to where the other three boys waited. They were all sitting there, talking to each other. Their food was untouched, as was mine, sitting at the table in an empty spot. When the boys saw me, they all turned to me with bright smiles.
"We wanted to wait, mon amour," Lafayette spoke first, his smile not faltering. I noticed Hercules still had that same emotion in his eyes, but didn't show it. "Come, sit! Dinner is all done!"
I sat down in the empty seat and noticed the amount of food on my plate was double of what I usually got. Hercules was looking at his food as he began eating. Alex looked at me in anticipation. I picked up my fork and ate some of the food given to me. Alex was satisfied with that, beginning to eat as well as Lafayette.
The dinner was mostly filled with forks hitting plates and small talk. "How was your day?" spread around the table quite quickly before it landed to me.
"How was your day?" Hercules asked, his eyes finding mine as I was quieter than I usually was.
"Filled with the usual business of the shop," I explained to the boys. "The dresses you put up today sold quite quickly."
"That's wonderful, Hercules!" Lafayette celebrated, his hand finding Herc's. "You sold more dresses!"
"I also got a special order from Angelica. She needs a new dress for Christmas and she needs it before December 20," I explained, handing Herc the index card that was in the back pocket of my pants.
Hercules took the card and nodded. "Anything else today?" Hercules pushes a bit, his eyes not leaving mine.
"Nope!" I quickly replied, my eyes losing his contact and going to my mostly empty plate.
"Are you sure?" He pushes more.
"Hercules," Lafayette warned, his tone sharp.
"I don't think you're so sure, John," Hercules spoke again. "That conversation you were having with your father seemed quite important. Care to explain?"
"Hercules, that is enough!" Lafayette stood from his seat, the whole table shaking at the sudden movement. "That is none of our business."
"It is now," Hercules found my eyes that started to water. I stood up and excused myself from the table without another word. I went to my room and shut the door very gently. I sighed and went to my bed, laying down very slowly.
I heard a quiet knock at the door, but I didn't reply to the knock. "John?" A quiet voice echoed through the room. "John, can I come in?"
"Leave me alone, please," my voice was muffled because of my bed. I let my arms stay beside my body as I laid face down on my bed that was a mess of pillows and blankets.
"John," a gentle hand on my back made me jump. "John, it's just me."
"Alex, please," I begged, moving my head so I was facing away from the man who looked at me.
"I'm just worried for you," the Caribbean male spoke. "You are never usually this secretive."
"It's none of anyone's business," I sat up abruptly. "Especially not Hercules'."
"He isn't in the room, baby," Alex sat down on my bed, his hand finding mine. "It's just you and me. And you don't have to speak if you don't want to. I just want to know if you're okay."
Alex's soothing voice made me hesitate on telling him a lie. I looked at the brown eyes that held only one emotion: assurance.
"My father called," I murmured, my eyes never leaving his. "He said he wanted my friends to come over for Thanksgiving."
"That's great," Alex spoke quietly, a smile appearing on his face. "We can all go with the sisters and-"
"Alex," I interrupted. "My father is homophobic."
Alex's smile instantly dropped. He opened his mouth, trying to find the correct words to say. "So he doesn't know of us?" He spoke softly, his hand not leaving mine.
"How could I tell him anything?" My voice suddenly rose in volume. "He already thinks I'm a disappointment for working at a store that sells mostly dresses and not finding a 'real job'," I put air quotes around real job. "He'll disown me."
Alex stayed silent for a few seconds before his hand found my cheek. "It's okay," Alex mumbled. "We will get through this. All four of us are going to the Thanksgiving dinner and we're going to be your friends."
"Alex."
"I'm serious, John," Alex quickly said, his eyes searching mine. "I want to meet your father. We will figure this out. Together."
I looked at my Alexander as his brown eyes moved from mine to the door. "Alex," I mumbled. "I really don't want to go. I'm scared."
Alex's eyes found mine once more. "You have nothing to be afraid of, baby," Alex murmured, kissing my forehead. "You are going to be okay. We will protect you."
I smiled a bit. "Thank you, Alexander."
"We should tell the others, so they know," Alex spoke quickly.
"Can you?" I ask softly, moving away from his touch. "I just don't think I could do it."
Alex stood up as I did. "Let's do it together," he suggested. I was about to disagree, but he quickly added, "I'll do the talking. You stand beside me."
I hesitated accepting this offer, but nodded anyway. "Okay," I breathed out, looking at the door that was closed. This is going to be a challenge.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
My eyes widened at the sight of my old home, wondering why it hasn't changed ever since I moved out all those years ago.
I felt a gentle hand take mine and I looked over at Hercules. He smiled at me and quickly pecked my cheek before we saw the view of my father and mother, standing at the door. My mother was smiling while my father stood very formally.
As soon as Lafayette parked it, we all got out and I walked over to my mother. She bounded over to me and hugged me tightly. "Oh, how I missed my boy," she murmured, kissing my cheek quickly before letting me free.
I straightened my posture after the hug was finished and walked up to my father, who had a sharp eye on me, like an eagle would. "Hello, son," his tone sharp as well as his personality.
"Hello, Father," I spoke back, but less confident and more shy. His eyebrow twitched up a bit before he spun around and walked into the house. My mother smiles nervously at me and my friends before inviting all of us in.
My mother smiled at the boys who stood behind me. "I'm Mary, it's wonderful to meet you all," she spoke. "My husband is James. Please don't mind him."
"It's all alright, Mrs.Laurens," Alex replied, a smile on his face. "We're glad to be here."
"Please, call me Mary," my mother laughed cheerfully. "Jacky," my mother turned to me. "Could you show the boys to the spare rooms?"
"Of course, mom," I replied, hugging her quickly before letting the boys follow me up the steps. "Thank you for coming with me," I murmured to them from in front.
"It's no problem, mon a-ami," Laf's voice cracked a bit. "It will be okay."
"Thank you," I told Laf before opening the door to one of the bedrooms that held two beds. "This is an extra room for two of you to sleep in. And the one across from my bedroom is another extra room for one of you to stay in."
"I'll stay in the other one," Alex offered and the other two looked at each other. "Just try to sleep tonight," Alex murmured to the two without speaking too loud. "I know it'll be hard, but it's only for tonight and tomorrow."
"This is for John," Hercules murmured before entering the room with the Frenchman.
I led Alex to the other door and opened it. "If you need anything, I'm right across the hall."
Alex didn't speak for a moment before I felt a hand catch my arm. I looked at Alex who was looking at my eyes. "Just know I love you," Alex mumbled into my ear and I smiled.
"You know I return that," I replied softly before he let go. I left to my own room for some silence, sad I won't be able to sleep with the boys tonight. Sighing, I took my laptop out and distracted myself for now.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Thanksgiving dinner was difficult. The dinner the night before was easy because my father had to leave to go pick up his sister and her kids. It was easy to relax and talk to my mother and my so called 'friends'.
But tonight, all of my family was there. My aunt with her kids, Anastasia, Louis, and Jolene. My father and my mother. My uncle from my mom's side of the family with his wife and one kid. His kid was Timothy, his wife, Martha.
It was a not quiet dinner, the plates around us full of food I know we never do finish. My boyfriends all ate and answered questions that was thrown their way. Then the usual question came up.
"Did you find anyone?" My uncle asked, everyone's eyes flying to me. I almost dropped my fork, but gently set it down on my plate with shaky hands.
"Uh, there are no ladies in my life, no," I hated lying to my family. My uncle was okay with all of the LGBT+ business, along with my aunt, but not so much my father.
"No ladies, hm?" My uncle hummed, a smirk playing on his lips. My aunt looked at him with a worried expression, hoping he wouldn't say anything. "Any other lovers?"
"Joshua!" My mother spoke up, her tone very high. "That is highly inappropriate!"
"Answer the question, son," my father spoke suddenly, my eyes landing on him.
My eyes widened as my brain rushed for a different answer, hoping to avoid this question. "We don't have to discuss this," Mom interrupted the silence. "We can speak of this later-"
"No," my father said, his eyebrows furrowing. "Answer the question."
The silence drew on as I suddenly stood up. My confidence seem to grow, as did my frustration with my father. "You know what?" I exploded finally. "Yes, I do have lovers! They are these three wonderful men sitting with us right now. They are all caring and sweet and better than anything else anyone could give me. I am happy with these men and I'm glad I don't have any lady to replace them because I'm gay."
The whole table was silent. Alexander was smiling, but Hercules and Lafayette looked quite worried. My father stood up and slammed his hands on the table. "Get out of my damn house, you-"
"You will not finish that sentence, asshole!" I screamed out. "I'm so glad I told you I was gay, you really aren't worth this trouble." I turned to the boys and smiled. "Let's go grab our things, shall we?"
The boys nodded and got themselves up, heading up the stairs. We grabbed our suitcases and wished everyone a goodbye before leaving. Once we were on the road back home, I could finally breath easy.
I felt the weight on my shoulders lift and I leaned on Alexander who sat next to me in the back. "I did it."
"You did it," he kissed the top of my head. "And I'm proud of you."
"You really have family problems," Hercules spoke up jokingly.
"Oh hush up, Herc," Lafayette smacked his arm before relaxing once more. The rest of the ride home was perfect with my boys.
★・・・・・・★ ・・・・・・★
Word Count: 2208
Published: 5-5-18