Fic: Acceptance
Acceptance
first part - 400 words, second part - 100 words (500 words total, for the mathematically challenged)
warning: angst. duh. *g*
disclaimer: this is so not real
Dominic hid at the top of the stairs, his knees pulled protectively to his chest. Leaning over, he could peer through the spindles of the banister at his parents downstairs. The position was one often visited in youth, and Dom felt very small now.
His parents didn’t yell often, at each other or at their sons, but when they did raise their voices, it was usually because of Dominic.
“Your son had detention today for knocking out a boy’s tooth.”
“Your son broke the window with his football.”
“Your son got caught stealing a video from the store.”
“Your son wants to-to… marry a man!”
“Isn’t it odd,” Dom thought detachedly, “that parents blame each other for their children’s actions? They say ‘your son,’ but how can that be true, really? It took both of them to create me.”
He had hoped that they would be supportive, even happy for him and Billy. He tried to tell himself that he didn’t care, it didn’t matter.
He didn’t need their blessing.
But…
He wanted it.
Dom rubbed his eyes roughly. He wouldn’t let himself cry over this. He wouldn’t.
If he was truthful with himself, Dom knew that his parents would never understand his lifestyle. He remembered coming out to them; they had grudgingly accepted that he was “experimenting” with his sexuality. Dominic was an adventurous boy, but he could be counted on to conform to tradition in the end.
“I couldn’t,”Dom whispered sadly.
Dom was suddenly glad that he hadn’t brought Billy with him. As much as he needed Billy’s support and reassurance, Dom didn’t want him to hear this. Hell, Dom didn’t want to hear this.
He slowly stood up, staying out of sight of his parents. Dom was also relieved that his brother was in Austria and not here, because creeping silently past Matt’s room had always been the hardest part of sneaking out. He reached the end of the hall and spared a glance at the staircase. Dom could hear his father’s low voice, muffled and distorted by the walls, then his mother’s higher-pitched reply, although he couldn’t make out what they were saying.
Dom put a palm against the cold glass. With his other hand, he unlocked the latch. The window was still as silently smooth as it had been when he was a boy.
Dominic swung down from the tree branch and ran.
***
Billy paced the small hotel room. For all his smiles about the visit, Dom hadn’t been optimistic about telling his parents about their plans. Dom’s vaguely concealed reluctance was what convinced Billy to stay behind.
Billy knew Dominic felt he had to prove something to his family. Prove that he was serious or that he was in love.
Or maybe he needed to prove to himself that he could stand up to them.
Billy waited.
When Dom slipped in with faint tear-streaks on his cheeks, Billy didn’t say anything. He didn’t need to.
It was enough just to love him.
first part - 400 words, second part - 100 words (500 words total, for the mathematically challenged)
warning: angst. duh. *g*
disclaimer: this is so not real
Dominic hid at the top of the stairs, his knees pulled protectively to his chest. Leaning over, he could peer through the spindles of the banister at his parents downstairs. The position was one often visited in youth, and Dom felt very small now.
His parents didn’t yell often, at each other or at their sons, but when they did raise their voices, it was usually because of Dominic.
“Your son had detention today for knocking out a boy’s tooth.”
“Your son broke the window with his football.”
“Your son got caught stealing a video from the store.”
“Your son wants to-to… marry a man!”
“Isn’t it odd,” Dom thought detachedly, “that parents blame each other for their children’s actions? They say ‘your son,’ but how can that be true, really? It took both of them to create me.”
He had hoped that they would be supportive, even happy for him and Billy. He tried to tell himself that he didn’t care, it didn’t matter.
He didn’t need their blessing.
But…
He wanted it.
Dom rubbed his eyes roughly. He wouldn’t let himself cry over this. He wouldn’t.
If he was truthful with himself, Dom knew that his parents would never understand his lifestyle. He remembered coming out to them; they had grudgingly accepted that he was “experimenting” with his sexuality. Dominic was an adventurous boy, but he could be counted on to conform to tradition in the end.
“I couldn’t,”Dom whispered sadly.
Dom was suddenly glad that he hadn’t brought Billy with him. As much as he needed Billy’s support and reassurance, Dom didn’t want him to hear this. Hell, Dom didn’t want to hear this.
He slowly stood up, staying out of sight of his parents. Dom was also relieved that his brother was in Austria and not here, because creeping silently past Matt’s room had always been the hardest part of sneaking out. He reached the end of the hall and spared a glance at the staircase. Dom could hear his father’s low voice, muffled and distorted by the walls, then his mother’s higher-pitched reply, although he couldn’t make out what they were saying.
Dom put a palm against the cold glass. With his other hand, he unlocked the latch. The window was still as silently smooth as it had been when he was a boy.
Dominic swung down from the tree branch and ran.
***
Billy paced the small hotel room. For all his smiles about the visit, Dom hadn’t been optimistic about telling his parents about their plans. Dom’s vaguely concealed reluctance was what convinced Billy to stay behind.
Billy knew Dominic felt he had to prove something to his family. Prove that he was serious or that he was in love.
Or maybe he needed to prove to himself that he could stand up to them.
Billy waited.
When Dom slipped in with faint tear-streaks on his cheeks, Billy didn’t say anything. He didn’t need to.
It was enough just to love him.