Green Eyed Monster

Chapter 5

Chet was sitting by himself under a tree in the yard. He was watching all the people who were talking and laughing, sitting in groups while he was all by himself. He wondered why his parents had decided that they would come here. They didn’t know anybody except Patrick and his fathers … and that girl.

Chet couldn’t help but think about that ill fated soccer game against Bree. It was humiliating to have the soccer ball taken away from him by a little squirt of a girl. Chet frowned and gritted his teeth. He watched the adults playing softball. He wished he had waited and played that instead of that stupid soccer game. Baseball was his game … and Patrick’s. He wondered where Patrick was.

“All by yourself?” a voice said from beside him.

‘Shit!’ Chet thought. ‘It’s the father of that annoying girl.’ He looked up into the kind eyes of Bree’s blond father. “Yeah,” he replied tersely to the man.

“Mind if I join you?” Justin asked. Chet shrugged, so Justin pulled a chair over and sat down beside the boy. “You don’t look like you’re having much fun.”

“I’m not,” Chet replied quickly and firmly. He wanted to go home, but his mother was talking to some old lady. She looked like she was having a good time, so they wouldn’t be leaving until that was over.

“Well, the Labor Day party is supposed to be fun,” Justin continued.

“It’s not,” Chet said ungraciously.

Justin frowned. He knew Bree didn’t like this kid, but it wasn’t right that Chet was sitting all alone looking very forlorn when the yard was full of people. “Did you get something to eat?”

“Yeah.”

“Would you like some lemonade or some snacks?” Justin asked hoping he’d find something the kid would enjoy.

“No thanks.”

Justin studied the young boy for a minute. The kid was staring intently at the softball game that was being played. Justin remembered that Patrick had met Chet at baseball camp. “Would you like to play?” he asked.

“It’s all adults,” Chet said peevishly.

“I can get you in,” Justin said confidently.

“You can?” Chet brightened up for the first time.

“Sure. Hey, Bobby,” Justin called to his brother-in-law who had gone back into the game. “How about letting Patrick pitch for you? Maybe Chet could take over for somebody too.”

“That’s a good idea,” Bobby agreed taking the lead from Justin. “You play shortstop, don’t you, Chet?” he asked.

Chet was up and out of his chair. “Yeah, I do.”

“Drew, can Chet take your place?” Bobby asked the big man who had been playing that position on his team.

“Great, I could use a break,” Drew agreed. He walked off the field.

“Hey, Patrick, come pitch for me,” Bobby called to his son. “Your old man’s arm is getting tired.”

“Sure, Poppa,” Patrick said with a smile. He was glad to see that he and Chet would get a chance to play against the big guys.

The boys took the field hoping to showcase their skills against men some of whom had played softball much longer than the boys had been alive.

*****

Rachel walked out from behind the Wendy house as she returned from the stream. She looked over at the baseball game where Patrick was now playing. She smiled and waved at him when he noticed her.

She looked around for Cindy and Brett, but they didn’t seem to be anywhere around.

“How did it go with the girls?” Bobby asked as he approached her.

“Okay, I think. We’ll have to wait and see.”

“I hope Bree will feel better about Chet,” Bobby replied. “I don’t like tension between Bree and Patrick.”

“None of us do,” Rachel replied. “Have you seen Cindy?”

“I saw her and Brett heading for the greenhouse a little while ago. Maybe they’re having that much needed talk.”

“I hope so,” Rachel said with a sigh. “Is there any wine around? I could use a drink.”

“Follow me, sister dearest, and I will fulfill your every request,” Bobby teased.

“Oh stop!” Rachel laughed giving her brother a swat. “But get me that wine.”

They headed for the sun porch.

*****

Cindy and Brett were sitting on the edge of the pond in the greenhouse. Since it was such a nice day no one was using the greenhouse at this point so they had privacy. They had been making small talk. Cindy was waiting for Brett to come clean with her, but so far he had been acting like nothing was wrong. Cindy had begun to wonder just how stupid he thought she was.

Cindy drew in a deep breath as Brett stopped talking about some play he wanted to see in the near future. He had even asked if she wanted to go with him.

“Do you want me to go to the play with you as a friend or as your girlfriend?” Cindy asked deciding that she had had enough of the meaningless chitchat.

“Huh?” Brett responded.

“You know what I mean,” Cindy said getting exasperated. “You’ve been hitting on Gus and drooling all over the other gay men here. What does that make me --- your beard?”

“Cindy!” Brett yelped shocked by Cindy’s words.

“Stop pretending, Brett. I can tell that you’re either gay or would like to try it out. I don’t need to be involved with someone on the down-low.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Brett protested.

“Of course you do.”

Brett ran his fingers through his hair as he tried to think of what to say. “Cindy, I…”

“Don’t!” Cindy ordered. She held up her hand to stop him from saying anything more. “I don’t want to hear more lies.”

“What do you want me to say?” Brett asked in a worried tone.

“The truth would be nice.”

“I … I … don’t know what the truth is,” Brett stammered. He stood up quickly and ran from the greenhouse.

Cindy’s mouth dropped open and she stared dumbstruck after her so-called boyfriend.

*****

Patrick had loaded the bases in the softball game. He wasn’t having a good day and he was worried. He didn’t want to blow the lead that his father had been protecting. He checked the bases and where all the runners were. He had to make this pitch count. There was only one out so far. A deep fly ball would tie the game. A base hit would score a couple of runs. If he could just strike out this batter, his team would be in a much better position. They would only need one more out and they could salvage the one run lead that they had.

Patrick got ready for his pitch. It was against Ben who was very strong, but not a particularly good baseball player. Patrick threw his pitch. It was another ball. Now the count was full at 3 balls and two strikes. He did not want to walk home a run.

Patrick shook his head, stared at the ground and tried to compose himself.

“Bear down, Patrick,” Bobby called.

“You can do it, son,” John piped up.

“Go get him, Little Red,” Brian shouted.

Patrick smiled when he heard his Uncle Brian cheer him on. That made him feel better.

“You can get him, my Patrick,” Bree called as the girls emerged from the path to the stream. They had returned just in time for this tense moment in the softball game.

Patrick let his pitch go. It would be a strike, he knew it. However, he didn’t know if Ben would manage to hit it. The crack of the bat answered that question. It was a ground ball far to the right of Chet who was playing shortstop. Chet sprang into action. He raced to his right, flung out his glove and dove for the ball. He felt it hit the center of his mitt. He closed the glove around it, and from his knees tossed it to Owen Jr. who was playing third base.

They got one runner out. Meanwhile, another runner scored and the game was tied.

Patrick frowned and looked crestfallen, while the other team celebrated. He felt bad about letting a run score. He looked over at Chet who was still on his knees. He could tell Chet felt bad too even though he had got an out.

“Great play, Chet,” Patrick said, giving his friend a thumb’s up.

“But they scored,” Chet said dejectedly.

“They would have scored a lot more runs if you hadn’t been able to get to that ball,” Bobby called from the sidelines. “Good job, Chet. That was a good pitch, Patrick. Big Ben just got lucky,” Bobby yelled towards first base where Ben was trying to catch his breath.

“Hey, that was skill not luck,” Ben protested to a round of laughter.

“You saved at least one run, kid,” Carl said. He had been in the outfield. “I hate chasing down balls. You probably saved me from a heart attack.”

Everyone laughed more and made new jokes about Carl’s weight and age. Chet listened to the good humored teasing. They should be mad about the run that scored but it didn’t seem to matter to any of them. They were more interested in their friends and having fun.

“Hey, you motley crew,” Brian called out. “How about ending this game with a tie? I’m ready to sacrifice myself and start up the grills for dinner.”

“Great idea!” people responded.

“We appreciate your sacrifice, Boss,” Ted said. He was glad to get out of the baseball game which was not exactly his element.

Chet was amazed. Nobody seemed to care about the game. He hadn’t heard his mother or father either praise or criticize him. That was what he usually got when a game was over. It was like the world was upside down in this strange place.

“That was a good pitch,” Bree said as she crossed the playing field to where Patrick was standing still upset with himself.

“How do you know?” Patrick asked still in a funk.

“I heard your father say so, and he knows everything about baseball.”

Patrick had to smile at that. “Yeah, he does,” he said with a little grin. He looked over at Chet who was dusting off his jeans from his slide after the ball. He turned to look at his cousin. He nodded toward Chet hoping Bree would understand what he wanted.

Bree made a little face, but then shrugged and walked over to Chet. “I got back from the stream just in time to see you make that play,” Bree said. “Did you hurt yourself?”

“No, I’m okay.”

“That was really amazing the way you dived after the ball. I could never have caught it,” Bree said sincerely.

“You play baseball?”

“Not really, but sometimes I practice with Patrick. He helps me.”

“Oh.”

“You’re a really good player.”

“Thanks,” Chet said and he smiled a sincere smile for the first time that day.

“I have to go change before dinner,” Bree said. “Want to eat at the table with us?” Bree asked.

“Sure,” Chet said surprised at the invitation, “but I should check with my parents.”

“Okay,” Bree said before Chet trotted off to find his parents.

“Thanks, Bree,” Patrick said as he fell in step with her as she headed inside.

“I didn’t do nuthin’.”

“Yes you did, and you were great.”

Bree flashed one of those Taylor smiles at her cousin before they went into the cottage.

*****

Brian had just finished grilling the last tray of meats when he noticed that the yard had lost a few guests. Not that any had left the lane but that many had wandered toward the other cottages on the lane to visit and catch up with family. Brian turned off the grills and took the tray into the sun porch to place on the long table which held all sorts of picnic fare. As he turned to go back out Brian noticed John running toward the porch with Beau herding in several of the guests.

“Thunder clouds rolling in fast!” John shouted. “We better get everyone in until the storm passes. It should be short but a loud one,” John stated with confidence. With just a look passed between them, the brothers Kinney ran back out to check for stragglers.

“I’ll take the stream,” Brian said as John nodded then ran toward the greenhouse. When the brothers were sure that the family on the lane was safe and secure they ran back to the sun porch.

A loud crack echoed as flashes of light brightened the sky. “Just in time,” John said as he ran through the door with Brian on his heels. “We haven’t had one of these in a long time,” John commented as Danny handed him and Brian towels. They weren’t too wet but wet enough.

“Look at that sky,” Danny murmured as he looked out. “Is everyone indoors?”

“Yes, either here or somewhere else on the lane. We should be getting check in calls now,” Brian said as he took his cell phone out of his pocket. John grabbed one of the house phones. In moments each house on the lane checked in with Brian or John. The few that had taken shelter in the greenhouse called in as well.

“That’s some system you have here,” Seamus commented as he took the towels then handed John and Brian a couple of beers. “Do you send up flares if the power goes out?” Seamus asked in jest.

“We’ve been lucky, we’ve never lost power unless it was a major countywide blackout, but each house has a backup generator just in case,” John explained.

“We’ve chosen not to have streetlights but each house has light in front,” Brian went on. “Not that we need them and we always know who’s here or not so we check up on each other.”

“And are you the only permanent residence on the lane?” Albert asked.

“Us and Rachel and George,” Brian further explained. “We like them even if they are straight,” Brian said with a smirk.

While everyone mingled and passed around food and drinks, Bree had another idea how to pass the time.

“Mr. Riley, will you play the piano with me?” Bree asked with large eyes and her most coy smile. Riley smiled, nodding his consent. After years of avoiding playing the piano, except when tuning it, it was Bree who woke up Riley’s passion for making music again.

Bree took Riley’s hand to lead him into the living room. Reverently they lifted the keyboard cover then adjusted the bench to accommodate the two of them. They began to garner an audience as they started to play their first duet.

“She plays the piano too?” Chet whined to Patrick as they came into the room to join the others. Patrick had taken Chet into his room to play video games. They came out when they heard the music.

“She takes lessons and practices all the time,” Patrick said with a hint of pride in his voice. “She’s very good.”

“I guess so,” Chet conceded. They sat on the floor near the fireplace and listened with the rest of the family.

*****

“Are we safe in here?” Brett asked Cindy. They had gotten stranded in the greenhouse with a few other guests.

“Yes, Uncle John made sure this building could withstand practically anything,” Cindy replied flatly.

“Oh. Are you still mad at me?”

“What do you think?” Cindy spat back.

“Yeah, I guess you are. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

Cindy walked away toward one of the raised beds that held orchids. “You could have told me the truth from the beginning. I have lots of gay friends. My Uncle Bobby is gay.”

“Yeah, I sort of knew that but lots of people have gay relatives; it still doesn’t mean much.”

“You’ve heard me talk about my family and how great they are. You should have trusted me. My mom and uncle are very special people. And my dad, well he’s just as special if not more.”

“What do you mean?”

“My mom and Bobby are more than just brother and sister.” Cindy spent the next few minutes explaining Patrick’s origins.

“Wow, that’s…”

“Yeah, it is, so you see, you didn’t need to lie. If you want a friend, that’s fine but not just now. Give me a few days to get over it first.”

“I’m really sorry. Do you want me to leave? I mean after the sky stops falling.” The thunder was still loud.

“No, but I think you should talk to someone.”

“Like a shrink?”

“No, like one of the guys out there.” Cindy pointed toward the lane. “And I don’t mean flirting with them, I mean talk. And stop messing with Gus! He has a boyfriend. “

“Who should I talk to?”

“Let me ask.” Cindy thought about it for a second then took out her cell phone and punched in a number. “Hi. No, we’re okay. We’re in the greenhouse. Is that Bree? She’s good. Oh, yeah, um, if somebody wasn’t too sure about their orientation and they wanted to talk to someone or find a center, who on the lane should they talk to about it? Why didn’t I think of him? Thanks, Justin. See you later. Yeah, after it lets up. Bye.”

“You called Justin?” Brett was embarrassed to have his host and renowned artist know his business.

“Justin’s cool.”

“What did he say?”

“For you to talk to Emmett.”

“Emmett?”

“Emmett Honeycutt, he’s Drew Boyd’s partner.”

“He’s Drew Boyd’s partner? He’s hot, for an old dude.” Cindy rolled her eyes. “What’s so special about Emmett?”

“Lots of things but he’s on the counsel of the Pittsburgh LGBT Center, he can refer you to anyone.”

“Oh. Thanks. Cindy, when I figure out things, can we start over? I really like spending time with you.” Cindy glared at Brett, a glare worthy of Brian Kinney. “Or maybe not,” Brett added sadly. He turned then walked toward the opposite end of the building.

*****

“Mitchell, why did you bring us here?” Anne asked. She and her husband had been drawn toward the living room with everyone else when Bree and Riley began to play. Anne had to acknowledge to herself that Bree was an exceptional child, almost as exceptional as her own. Anne needed a break so she went to the porch with Mitch in tow.

“We were invited,” Mitch replied dryly. “You’re not having a good time?”

“These people…”

“Are nice,” Mitch said before his wife could say anything he didn’t want to hear. “I like them. They’re down to earth and diverse. Not those same snobs you try to align yourself with. Even Mrs. Kingsley seems to be enjoying herself.”

“Where did she go?” Anne asked, ignoring her husband’s reproach.

“I believe the Brenners took her to their cottage when the storm came. I’m sure we’ll see them again when the rain stops.”

“Sharon Brenner is very nice,” Anne commented as she looked out toward the garden. Even through the gloom of the thunderclouds and rain, the flowers and foliage were beautiful.

“Hello, we haven’t been formally introduced,” an elegant blond woman came up to Anne with an extended hand. “I’m Jennifer Harris, Justin’s mother.” Anne took Jennifer’s hand.

“Anne Larkin. My husband, Mitchell.” Jennifer smiled at the handsome man as he took her hand.

“Can I get you anything?” Jennifer offered; she was used to playing hostess.

“No, thank you,” Mitchell replied. “I’m so full, I’m sure I can’t eat another bite.” He smiled as he patted his stomach.

“Oh, but you must leave room for dessert,” Jennifer stated. “But you have plenty of time to digest. When the storm blows through, take a walk down the lane. I found that always helps.”

“Mrs. Harris,” Anne began. Mitch closed his eyes, waiting for his wife to put her dainty foot in it again.

“Jennifer, please.”

“All right, Jennifer, you have an interesting family,” Anne said carefully.

“That’s one way of putting it. We can be a loud and scary bunch and I don’t think you’ve met Debbie yet.”

“Debbie?”

“Now I know you haven’t met her,” Jennifer laughed. “You’d certainly know who I was talking about if you had. I’m sure you’ll meet her eventually. She’s sort of an earth mother to the boys.”

“Boys?”

“Brian, Ted, Emmett, Michael and my son.”

“Pardon me, but aren’t they a little old to be called boys?” Anne asked.

“Not to Debbie. It’s a very long, complicated story and not for now. Relax, this is a party,” Jennifer suggested. Anne nodded; she did feel a bit tense, not used to “relaxing.”

“Briana is your granddaughter?” Mitchell asked, putting two and two together. Jennifer beamed. Bree and Riley were still playing together and playing Chopsticks. She could hear Bree’s laughter as they played. Her laughter was infectious.

“Yes, my first. Taylor is Molly’s son.” Taylor was with Molly at her cottage with the Brenners and Sarah. “I think she’s very talented,” Jennifer said with a grandmother’s pride.

“Yes, she is,” Mitch agreed. Anne looked a little green but she had to admit, if to herself and not out loud, that Bree did have some talent.

“Anne, you look a little uncomfortable here. I’ll admit, this family could make anyone feel uncomfortable at times. When I was first thrust into this group, I felt lost and uncertain. They certainly weren’t like any of my friends at the country club,” Jennifer admitted.

Anne nodded vigorously. Aside from the Brenners, Mrs. Kingsley and possibly Jennifer, none of the people she had met so far would be a member of her club.

“Just keep in mind that sometimes the best of people and the dearest of friends aren’t found in the best of country clubs,” Jennifer stated as she poured two glasses of one of Brian’s fine white wines. She handed the glass to Anne then gently clinked their glasses together before leaving to go back inside the main house to listen to her granddaughter play.