This chapter is also in Hunter's POV lmao. I dislike that we have had so many chapters that haven't been in Noah's POV but right now Hunter's POV is important so.
We will get back to Noah soon I promise :,)
(Hunter's POV)
A few hours pass since the end of dinner, and dad still hasn't come home yet. Mom tells me she has left him voicemails and texts before she realized he left his phone at home.
I was worried. I'm worried that dad doesn't accept me. What if he doesn't love me anymore? All because I am gay?
I also don't want him outside at night for that long. I trust my dad, and he can take care of himself, but I'm worried something could happen to him during the night.
"I'm here, if you want to talk." Noah says, turning onto his side so he can face me.
We've been laying in my bed for hours now, just sitting here and enjoying each other's company. I like moments like these, because I can sit here and think and have Noah beside me all at once.
"I'm just worried." I tell him, moving so I am also sitting on my side and facing him.
I sighed, and Noah laced our hands together.
"What does he think about me? Is he disgusted with me? Does he want me to move out? If he does will mom let him tell me that? Will I unwillingly be the cause of a divorce between them? What if-"
"Hunter, babe." Noah says, placing the hand that wasn't holding mine on my cheek, stopping me from speaking. "Don't overthink this right now, okay? This is scary for you. It's scary for me cause I'm worried about you." He says, caressing my face.
"Whatever happens, I'm here for you, okay? And so are Clara, Jason, and Brody. We will all make sure you are okay. No matter what happens." He places a kiss on my lips.
"Thank you. I love you." I smile at him.
He smiles. "I love you too."
I was about to say something else before I heard the faint sound of the front door opening and closing. I looked over to Noah and he looked over at me, and we both knew.
It was my dad.
I could hear voices, probably my mom talking to my dad. They weren't very loud, but I could tell mom's voice was louder than dad's.
The two of them talked briefly before I heard steps coming up our stairs. I looked over to Noah and he squeezed my hand reassuringly.
My bedroom door opened and there was my dad, looking as tired as ever. His whole body was screaming exhaustion and nervousness all at once. I kinda felt bad for him.
"Hey, son. Can I talk to you for a minute?" He said, looking at me calmly.
I looked over to Noah and he nodded his head, encouraging me to go. What could he want to talk to me about?
I slowly and carefully got off of my bed and approached my dad. He showed me a small smile and turned to Noah.
"He'll be back soon, I promise." He said, before leaving the room. I followed him, since I think that's what I'm supposed to be doing.
We walked down the stairs and to the living room, approaching the front door. Before we could leave though, mom stopped us.
"Jacob, what are you doing?" She asked, giving my father a stern look.
He looked guilty. "I'm sorry Serise, okay? We'll talk about it later. I just want to talk to him."
Mom looked from me to dad, and sighed. Finally she waved us off, sitting back on the couch reluctantly.
Dad opened the front door and I followed, shutting the front door once we were both out. He walked over to his car and got in the driver's seat, and I got into the passenger's seat.
We were both silent as my dad put the car into reverse and backed out of the driveway. He backed out onto the road and began driving, to where I wasn't sure.
It was silent for a few minutes. Dad looked very nervous, and it occurred to me for the first time that he still called me son in my bedroom.
"I truly do just want to talk to you." Dad said, running a hand through his messy hair. "Give me a minute to gather my thoughts for conversation. I'm not ready yet."
I wanted to chuckle at that, because dad was always ready for conversation.
After a minute of silence dad sighed, and I looked over at him. "I'm sorry. For leaving dinner so abruptly. I didn't mean to make you think I was doing something drastic."
He glanced at me and I nodded. "It's okay."
"It's not though." He put his hand back on the steering wheel so now both of his hands were focused on driving. "Son, I still love you. Nothing could change that. I know it probably scared you when I just completely ignored everything and left."
"Why did you?" I asked, a little cautious.
He was silent for a minute. "When I was your age, being exactly who you were just wasn't an option. You had to be perfect, or as close to perfect as you could possibly be." He sighed. "Your grandparents never thought anything different. Whenever there was something on the news about someone...like you," He paused, "They shielded me away from it as much as they could. I was taught growing up that you were straight, whether you wanted to be or not. There is a reason why you only see your mother's parents around here anymore."
I thought about that. I think I've only seen my dad's parents once or twice in my years of living. Dad never really wanted them over. The only grandparents I truly knew were my mom's parents.
"When I was in my senior year of high school, I had this friend. We were close, but not nearly as close as Noah and you." He looked over at me. "One day, this friend...came out to me. He told me he was gay, and that he hadn't told anyone else about it."
He was silent, so I spoke. "...What did you say to him?"
He let out a humorless chuckle, turning back to face the road. "What do you think I said? I told him I thought he was disgusting, and I left."
It was tense in the car now. I didn't really know what to think.
"I regret it every single day of my life." Dad told me, looking almost on the verge of tears. Almost.
"What happened?" I asked, absorbed in his story now. Dad had more drama in his life than I previously thought.
"I couldn't tell you." He said, sighing. "I haven't seen him since."
We were both silent for a moment, and I looked out the window. You could see the lights of downtown flashing by as we drove through it, all the lights on and as vibrant as ever. I looked towards the sky, covered in stars. They resembled freckles on a person's face.
"When I met your mother, she had much more accepting parents. She changed me, from being homophobic to accepting. But sometimes I still struggle with it, and I hate that." Dad said. "When you came out to us tonight at dinner, my old roots came back to me. I wanted a minute to myself. To process, and think about things."
I looked over at my dad, and he looked over at me apologetically before looking back at the road. "I know that I haven't always been the best with you and Brody. I've always focused on making you two the men I thought you were supposed to be, and not the men you wanted to be."
He continued. "I'm sorry for that. I want you to be whoever you want to be, whether that means playing football or playing no sport at all. Whoever you want to be."
He looked over at me and smiled. "And if the man you want to be is gay, then that is who you want to be, and I accept and love you regardless."
I smiled at him. This changed my thoughts on my dad a lot, but I loved him a lot. "Thanks dad. I love you too."
I turned back to the road and frowned. "By the way, where are we going?"
Dad looked back at me in confusion before he chuckled. "We aren't actually going anywhere. I just thought the atmosphere that a moving car gives is nice to have a deep chat, I suppose."
I laughed also, glad that the mood in the car wasn't so tense anymore, and was now light and happy.
I was loved. By my dad, the man I've looked up to for a lot of my life.
I was happy.
~~~
Not sure if you guys noticed but I'm almost always writing in past tense.
Qotc: Have you ever been to a concert?
Aotc: Yes, I have been lucky enough to have gone to two concerts so far in my lifetime :)
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!
Bye fellow Wattpadians!