Chapter 15

Two weeks later Justin had come to a decision and had agreed to meet with Jennifer Taylor, if only to find out why she wanted to get in contact with him now after all these years. Maybe something was wrong with his sister or another family member and they wanted him to know.

He had to admit that Brian's reasoning had made sense and that the only person that would be able to give him answers was his mother, so he had reluctantly agreed to a meeting with her. He had refused to meet her at his place or her place and had insisted on meeting in a public place of his choosing. In the end he had decided on the Liberty Diner. He knew his mother would be completely out of her comfort zone coming there, but at least it would show him that she was serious about wanting to meet him. And it was a meeting on his turf in surroundings familiar to him. Debbie was working that day and Justin knew that Brian was only a quick phone call away. He knew that Brian had instructed the redhead to call him if things got heated or Justin was upset.

Justin smiled to himself as he sat in the booth, being a bit early. Brian had been so protective of him in the run-up to this meeting, he had even offered to join Justin in case he wanted him to be there. Justin knew how much Brian would have hated to meet with his mother and to have a reminder of his time with the Taylors sitting just a few inches away from him, but just the fact that he had offered to Justin to be there with him had shown the younger man how much his boyfriend cared and worried about him. In the end it had been Brian who had suggested meeting at the diner and who had insisted on letting Debbie know what was going on.

With him not being there, he knew that Debbie would make sure that Justin was okay and that his mother wouldn't upset him. Debbie was his surrogate mother, the woman who had taken care of Justin when he had first arrived on the Avenue and Brian knew that she would defend Justin like a lioness would defend her cubs.

“Sunshine, you okay?” the redhead asked quietly as she passed his booth, knowing that they were getting closer and closer to the time when Justin's mother was supposed to show up.

He nodded at her wordlessly and smiled when she sat down in the booth across from him.

“You let me know when you need me, alright? Don't let her upset you or get to you, you hear me?”

“I won't,” he promised quietly and smiled when she got up and left a kiss on his cheek. Yes, she could be loud, boisterous and over the top, but he knew that she cared a lot for all of her lost boys and loved him and Brian dearly.

“Alright, you just call me if you need anything,” she said quietly, before they were both interrupted by a quiet voice calling out for Justin.

“Justin?”

Justin looked up from Debbie to the blond, elegant woman standing behind her. His mother. If he was honest with himself, he was surprised she had really shown up at the diner. He wasn't sure why, but even though she had agreed to this location for their meeting, he had still had his doubts about her really showing up.

“Mom,” he greeted her quietly, before getting up and making the introductions. Okay, this was not really how he had wanted things to go, but since Debbie was still there, his Wasp education won over.

“Mom, this is Debbie Novotny. Debbie, this is my mother, Jennifer Taylor.”

“You better not hurt this boy any more than you already have, you hear me?” She threw a threatening glare in Jennifer Taylor's direction and then went back to work without a second glance at the woman or a chance for the woman to reply anything in greeting.

“Charming,” Jennifer muttered to herself and Justin felt annoyed by that. He didn't really know why, after all Debbie hadn't been nice and his mom probably had a right to feel offended by that greeting, but Debbie was the woman who had helped him and had raised him and he didn't feel too warmly about his mother anyway.

“She is very protective of her family,” Justin said quietly before he sat down in his earlier place in the booth and pointed to the empty seat across from him, urging his mother to sit down as well.

“And you are part of her family?” Jennifer asked with a raised eyebrow.

Justin nodded. “She took me in when I was 17 and she has raised me ever since. She's the Mother of Liberty Avenue, taking care of all the lost boys here. She's an angel of our community.”

“Your community?”

“The LGBT and anti-slavery community,” Justin replied, not caring that his voice probably sounded more hostile than it should. He didn't really care if his mother accepted him or not. He had closed that door years ago and her approval meant nothing to him at this point.

Jennifer nodded, then took a deep breath. “You look good, Justin and... I want to thank you for agreeing to meet with me.”

“Why?”

“Excuse me?” Jennifer Taylor asked, unsure of what Justin had meant with that question.

“Why did you want to meet?”

“Does a mother need a reason to want to see her child?”

“Well, you didn't seem to care for the last five years, why now?”

“Justin, please...,” Jennifer started, but stopped when she saw the furious eyes from which her son looked at her.

“If you can't answer my questions honestly, don't even bother. I have a life now and I only agreed to this meeting because I want to know why you so suddenly want to get in contact with me after almost six years.”

Jennifer nodded, knowing that Justin deserved that honesty.

“I have divorced your father...”

“Good for you,” Justin muttered, but didn't give her much more than that.

“Molly and I now live in a small little terraced house in Shadyside and I have gotten my realtor license and I am working as a realtor now,” she continued, knowing that this might be her only chance to explain to her son what she needed to tell him

When Justin didn't reply anything to that, she went on. “Your father... he was not an easy man to live with and... when... when you left... he would forbid me from trying to find you and from getting into contact with you and... I was so worried about you, Justin. You have to believe me. I was worried sick, wondering if you were alright. If you had a place to stay and if you were alright. I had these nightmares of you ending up dead one day and... he just didn't seem to care, he just... he forced me to not go looking for you and...”

“You didn't,” Justin replied angrily when she didn't continue.

She shook her head sadly. “I had Molly to consider. She was so young and... she needed her father... I couldn't go against him or he would have taken her away from me.”

“So you made the choice to stay with him and give me up instead,” Justin spat, not feeling the slightest bit of understanding for the woman sitting opposite him.

“Justin, please. Try to understand. You had run away and you had made your choice, but... Molly... she needed me.”

“I had made a choice? That choice was made for me when Dad sold Brian to those slave traders. When he assaulted Brian and hurt him, when he forced me to live a lie and a life that was not mine. Do you really think I wanted to be a 17-year old boy without means to support himself? Without a family that gave a shit about him? You think that was my choice?”

Justin saw the confused look on his mother's face during his statement, but she quickly covered it up. “Justin, please... I have always cared, I love you. You are my son!”

“And you're suddenly realising that after almost six years of silence?”

“When your father and I had the divorce, I... I needed to focus on myself and Molly. Your father didn't support us and he broke off all contact with me. He... He and I would often argue about you and... he called me a defector for wanting to find you... When I divorced him, I needed to make sure Molly and I would be okay, but as soon as we were, I started looking for you. I started to try to get in contact with you. You have no idea how relieved I was when I found your contact information and knew you were alright.”

“And now? What do you want now? You have seen me, you know I am alright. Is that it?”

“Justin, I... I know it's too early for that and I know that too much time has passed and too many things have happened, but... I want you to know that I have always loved and missed you and worried about you and... I just want to know that you're alright and that you have a good life and maybe... maybe one day you'll find it in yourself to let me and Molly back into your life.”

“Why would I do that?”

“Justin, we love you. We care about you and we are your family.”

“I have a new family. A family that loves me the way I am and doesn't want me to be someone else. A family that accepts me for myself and not the image they want me to portray to the outside world.”

“That's all I have ever wished for for you or Molly. I... I really only ever wanted you both to be happy and I know that I have failed you as a mother, but... I just want you to be happy. I don't care about anything else.”

“I am happy,” Justin replied after an awkward pause had settled over their booth. He didn't know why he had shared that with his mother, but it had felt like the right thing to tell her.

“Oh honey, that is great. I... I have seen your company on the internet and... you went into graphic design, not business?”

Justin shrugged. “Since Dad wasn't going to pay for my education anyway, I was free to do what I wanted to do. So I went to PIFA and got a degree there.”

“PIFA? Wow, that's... I am proud of you. And... you did it all on your own?”

“I had help... from my family and friends,” Justin replied evasively, not wanting to get into too much detail with this woman he hardly knew any longer.

“That's good...,” Jennifer nodded, then looked at Justin from sad eyes. “I am glad you have people that love you and that you're happy. You deserve it, honey...”

Another awkward silence settled over their table and this time it was Jennifer that broke it. “So... do you... is there... do you have a boyfriend? Is that what you would call it?” She asked awkwardly and Justin almost felt like laughing at her obvious discomfort when she asked that question.

“Yes, I have a boyfriend. Or partner. Both are fine, really.”

“You do? That is good, honey. Does he make you happy?” Jennifer asked and her discomfort at this line of questioning was still obvious.

“Yes, he does,” Justin couldn't help but smile even despite himself.

Jennifer smiled despite the awkward situation when she saw the happiness on her son's face. It was obvious that this boyfriend of Justin's was making him very happy.

“You seem to love him a lot,” she whispered, feeling happy for her estranged son.

“I do,” Justin replied and then he did something that he didn't really understand and he didn't know why he did it. He went on and told his mother about Brian. “You actually know him.”

“I do?” Jennifer frowned, wondering if she knew any other gay men besides her son. When she couldn't come up with any, she felt even more confused.

“Yes, you remember Brian? He has been my boyfriend for almost a year and a half now.” And when Justin said that, he couldn't believe that it had already been more than a year since he had freed Brian from Sapperstein and since he had come to live with him. What a year it had been... A crazy year, that was for sure.

“Brian?” Jennifer frowned, obviously trying to put a face to the name. After several seconds her face fell. “You don't mean as in... our slave Brian?”

“Yes, that Brian. It took me a long time to get the money and to find him, but when I did, I bought him and he's been living with me ever since,” Justin announced happily, not seeing the expression on his mother's face.

“You are dating our former slave?” Jennifer asked incredulously.

“No, I am dating my boyfriend, the man that I love,” Justin replied, slowly catching on to her tone of voice and not liking it one bit.

“Honey... A slave? Him? Justin? Why are you making your life harder than it needs to be? What will people think?“

“I don't care what people think. All the people I care about are anti-slavery and couldn't give a fuck,” Justin spat, not liking his mother's reaction one bit. “They want me happy and they know that Brian is the man that makes me happy.”

“But Justin... don't you think your life is already hard enough with you... being gay? Do you have to make it even harder on yourself by being in a relationship with a slave?” The last word almost sounded like she had spoken of an infectious disease and Justin couldn't believe his ears.

“Hmmm, so much for wanting me to be happy, huh? I guess you didn't really mean that after all,” he replied angrily as he got up from his seat and out of the booth.

“Of course I meant it, but... why are you making life so hard for yourself?”

Justin stared down at his mother from his place near the table, ready to bolt out of the diner any second now. “I am not making life hard for myself. I can't help who I love. I can't help who I have feelings for. Society is making our life hard. People like you are making our life hard... You know what? This was a mistake. I am out of here!”

With that Justin rushed out of the diner and both his mother and Debbie stared after him with worry and concern in their eyes.

Debbie carefully made her way over to the booth and sat down in the seat that Justin had occupied a few seconds earlier. “That doesn't look like this meeting went well,” Debbie said while chewing on her chewing gum.

“Excuse me?” Jennifer eyed the redhead across from her with obvious distaste.

“I couldn't help but overhear Justin's parting shot and I guess he told you about his relationship with Brian, huh?”

When the blond woman across from her just nodded, Debbie just went on.

“Honey, you're going to lose him for good if you can't accept Brian. Justin loves Brian against all odds and what you don't know, but I do, is that Brian loves Justin as well. They are fucking good together. They have built something amazing for themselves despite society making it anything but easy for them. They are trying to build a family and... if you ever want to have a chance of becoming a part of Justin's life again, you better accept his love for Brian. If you can't do that, you have lost him for good.”

With that Debbie got up from her seat and left the blond woman to her own thoughts.

***

“Who does she think she is?”

“Your mother,” Brian replied quietly, barely looking up from the book he was reading as he sat on the sofa.

“Can you at least pretend to give a damn about this?” Justin exclaimed frustratedly as he paced in front of his living-room windows.

“Justin,” Brian sighed, looking at the younger man from patient eyes. “You have been ranting for three hours now about your mother and how she fucking dare to be a fucking Wasp and how she is the fucking problem we're suffering from.”

When Justin threw Brian an angry glare, the older man just chuckled. “Yes, despite what you think, I have been listening to your angry ranting and your mutterings and your yelling and everything.”

“And you think I am overreacting?” the younger man asked, slowly walking over to where Brian was sitting and sitting down at his side, resting his head on his boyfriend's shoulder.

“No, I don't,” the older man replied calmly.

“But?” Justin asked, knowing that there was a but.

“But, I think you're not even trying to see any of this from her point of view.”

“And why the fuck would I? She is the fucking problem! People like her are what's wrong with society.”

“Hey, you don't mean that,” Brian said quietly, pulling the younger man closer.

“Yes, I do,” said younger man spat and Brian couldn't help but chuckle at that reaction. Justin could be so cute when he was angry.

“Why did you even tell her about me?”

“Hell if I know... Maybe because I wanted her to know that we had made it despite everything. Maybe because I wanted her to see that Dad didn't break us up. Maybe... I don't know. Maybe I just wanted her to know how happy I am...”

“You are not very happy right now,” Brian pointed out quietly, closing his book and putting it on the coffee table.

“Because of her.”

“How did you expect her to react to a bombshell like that?”

“To be happy for me, maybe? She is the one who claimed she only wanted me and Molly to be happy and then when I tell her how happy I am, she doesn't like it because it goes against her Wasp sensibilities.”

“Or maybe she's just worried because she's your mother,” Brian said calmly, not surprised when Justin just snorted, making it clear what he thought of that opinion.

“Just think about it for a minute,” Brian asked the younger man, turning to look at him from serious eyes. “She said she was worried for you all these years and just wanted to know that you're okay and happy and then she sees you for the first time in years and finds out you are happy. And then you share this happiness with her and tell her that her former slave is now your boyfriend. That must have been a shock to her... Especially with her background. You can't blame her for not jumping up and down with joy and happiness for her precious, blond angel dating a slave. A man that can offer her son nothing but trouble and problems.”

“Brian,” Justin started, but Brian effectively shut him up with a quick kiss. “I am not saying she's right or that's how you and I see it, but can you really blame her for seeing it like that from her point of view? A point of view where she grew up in households with slaves and has always owned slaves herself? She comes from a different background.”

“I came from the same background,” Justin reminded his boyfriend, not letting that excuse count. “I grew up with slaves as well. So did Lindsay. Doesn't mean we didn't see how wrong it was and didn't turn away from that.”

“Yes, you did and Lindsay did, but... she lived that life a lot longer than you and she had a lot less interactions with slaves the way you and Lindsay did with me. Can you really blame her for not understanding?”

“Yes, I can,” Justin angrily retorted. “Why are you making excuses for her?”

“I am not,” Brian said quietly. “I can just... kind of see her point,” he admitted.

“What?” Justin's eyes widened and he looked at Brian as if he had just seen a ghost. “Are you kidding me?”

“No, I am not. It's just... maybe it's because of Gus, I don't know, but... I do get her wish to just want you to be happy and... I can understand why she would see this as making your life harder than it needs to be... Can't you just accept that she wants you to be happy?”

“Not enough to look past her own nose and her own expectations for my life, apparently.”

“Maybe she just needs a bit of time to get over the shock of that revelation. Maybe you should give her a chance to prove herself.”

“Who are you and what have you done with my boyfriend?”

“I am your boyfriend and I am just trying to make you see that there is more than one side here,” Brian chuckled, running his fingers through his boyfriend's blond hair.

“You have a mother that loves you. Hell, she came to Liberty Avenue to meet you at the diner. I know your mother, Justin. That is huge for her. That must have already gone against everything she believes in, but she did it to see you and... I believe her when she says she loves you and wants you to be happy. She has always loved you and Molly.”

“I can't believe that you're taking my mom's side in this,” Justin muttered, looking at Brian from slightly hurt eyes.

“I am not taking anyone's side. Don't be a twat. I am just saying that I can understand her reluctance to be happy about us and... maybe you should give her a second chance... maybe we should meet her together so she can see us and how we are together,” Brian suggested.

“No way! I am not going to talk to her ever again. She had a chance and she blew it when she couldn't see past her Wasp beliefs,” Justin replied angrily to that suggestion.

“Justin,” Brian sighed, but stopped when Justin leaned over and ran his hand across Brian's chest. “Are you trying to distract me with sex now?”

“Would it work?” Justin smirked at Brian and raised an eyebrow in question.

“Maybe,” Brian admitted and then allowed Justin to take over. It wasn't often that Justin took control of their lovemaking. Usually he would let Brian call the shots as he knew how important it was for Brian to feel in control during sex due to his past and now that it was Justin initiating sex and taking control, Brian felt only too glad to go along.

Justin made short work of Brian's clothing and soon after they were dry-humping on the sofa like teenagers, kissing eagerly, running their hands everywhere they could touch each other. They didn't nearly do this often enough, usually moving on to blowjobs, handjobs or plain old fucking quickly enough, but this time they just enjoyed the lazy dry-humping until they both came all over each other.

Justin hid his head in Brian's chest and sighed happily as Brian ran his hand over Justin's backside.

“Precious, blond angel, huh?” Justin chuckled after a couple of minutes of comfortable silence, when he remembered how Brian had refered to him earlier, before he lifted his head from its place on Brian's chest and met the older man's gaze, looking at him from mischievous eyes.

“I take that back,” the older man laughed as well, pulling Justin closer for a quick kiss. “You are an evil devil.”

“Well, I guess I am still blond, so I have that going for me,” Justin winked and Brian could only chuckle at his boyfriend.

“The evil devil thing also works,” Brian admitted, pulling Justin close for another quick kiss.

“I'll keep that in mind,” Justin whispered, before he slowly got up and pulled Brian up with him. They headed over to the bathroom and had a quick shower before they settled in front of the TV, watching some mindless TV show that was on.

Brian was lazily running his hand through Justin's hair as his boyfriend rested his head in his lap. “Just promise me you won't write her off yet, okay? I think she really loves you and you're lucky to have a mother that loves you and worries about you like that.”

“I guess I have to work some more on my distraction techniques,” Justin muttered as he turned his head around to meet Brian's gaze. “Looks like they need some improvement.”

“Just try to understand her a bit, okay?”

Justin sighed, but in the end gave in. “I'll try. That's all I can promise.”

“It's all I am asking.”

They turned back to the TV after that, not wanting to talk about Jennifer Taylor any longer.

***

Over the course of the next two weeks, Jennifer had tried to contact her son a couple of times, but Justin had refused to answer any of her calls and had refused to even open the emails she had been sending him. He just didn't feel ready to face his mother yet.

Yes, he had promised Brian that he would try to see things from her side as well, but so far that hadn't worked out well for him and all he felt when he thought about her was anger at how she had reacted to the news about him and Brian being in a relationship.

Thankfully Brian had stopped bothering him about his mother and Justin knew that the older man respected whatever decision he would make. Brian might have his own opinion on the whole matter, but he accepted that in the end it was Justin's call and a choice that Justin had to make.

What neither men knew was that Jennifer had struck an unlikely friendship with someone both boys held dear to them. After her first visit to the diner, she had come back when Justin had started to refuse taking her calls or reply to her emails and she had begged the redhead working in that diner to help her build a relationship with her son. She had seen that this woman was an important part of Justin's life, Justin himself had told her that much and she knew that this woman knew her son better than she knew him by now.

She had appealed to that woman to please help her get closer to her son again, promising her that she meant no harm to him and in the end an unlikely friendship had developed between them.

Debbie had made Jennifer understand about the relationship between Brian and Justin and she had also helped her understand that to have a chance of being in Justin's life, she would have to accept Brian as part of his life.

With Debbie's help, Jennifer had started working on doing just that and she had been more than happy when the redhead had offered to take her along to meetings of her local PFLAG group and her LAAS group to see what her son believed in and what kind of life he was living now.