Status: complete :)
Set on False Pretense
9
The next couple of weeks past relatively well. I spent a lot of my time with Chad whenever I could and when he could escape his parents and team members. I wasn't going to tell him, but I was hoping he would come out soon. I mean, I loved him so much, and it was getting so hard to hide it. I hated that I wasn't even allowed to look at him in the corridor without one of his team members snapping at me and calling me names. I didn't care about them, but it stung when Chad didn't come to my defence. He didn't even look at me when his friends all called me a faggot and shoved me around. I wasn't sure if I was glad he turned away from my humiliation or if I hated it.
But, I wouldn’t let myself think about it too much. I knew he liked me, he told me enough when we were together during our free periods. He'd also sketched me several more times while I had been playing my guitar. One afternoon, when we both had an afternoon free, Chad came and found me in the music room where we usually hid away from everyone else. "Hey," he said softly and kissed my temple.
"Hey," I smiled and continued strumming some notes.
"So...I was wondering..." he started and I looked up to see he looked somewhat awkward. I smiled encouragingly at him and he let out a breath. "Do you want to come back to my place this afternoon?" he asked and I grinned.
"Really?" I asked and he nodded. "Will your parents be there?"
"Only my mum," he said and I nodded. From what he had told me over the last few weeks, I guessed that his mum was quite similar to mine and already had an idea that her son was gay.
"Sounds great," I smiled and stood up and he took my hand. I noticed that he looked slightly nervous and as he turned away I pulled him back to me. "Chad, you okay?" I asked him softly and he turned back to me, biting his lip.
"I...Do you mind if I don’t introduce you to my mum as my...boyfriend?" he asked and I smiled.
"Chad, you don’t have to do anything until you're ready, you know that," I said softly and stroked his cheek.
"I know but...I feel like I should...I hate that...we're a secret," he said and looked down. I put my hand on his chin and lifted his hand.
"Are you ready to come out?" I asked him and he frowned and shook his head, tears in his eyes. "Then you don't have to. I don’t want you rushing yourself because of me." He smiled at me and kissed me tenderly.
"You're amazing," he whispered against my lips and I smiled.
"I know," I said and Chad laughed. "Now, let's go."
We arrived at Chad's house and I was aware of how nice it was in comparison to mine. However, when Chad reached over and squeezed my thigh just above my knee I relaxed slightly. "Come on," he smiled and we got out of his car. We walked round the car and Chad smiled at me and then we walked towards the house. Chad opened the front door and called out, "mum, I'm home!" I shut the front door behind me and stood awkward, unsure of what I should do.
Then a middle aged woman walked out of the kitchen. She was looking at Chad initially and then she noticed me and grinned even more. "Mum, this is Will, he's a friend from school," Chad said and she smiled at me.
"Hey, cutie," she smiled and I blushed slightly.
"Mum!" Chad said quickly and I noticed a red tint on his cheeks as well. I bit my lip as I tried not to laugh.
"What?" she asked defensively. "You don’t mind do you?" she asked me and I shook my head while trying to not to grin. No matter what Chad thought, it was obvious to me that his mum knew. She was acting like she was meeting his boyfriend.
"Whatever," Chad sighed and I grinned finally. I met Chad's mum's eye and she grinned as well. "We'll be upstairs. We've got homework to do."
"Okay, honey," she said. "It was nice to meet you, Will."
"You too, Mrs Tyler," I smiled and she waved me off.
"Please, call me Sandra," she smiled and then went into the kitchen.
I turned and grinned at Chad who rolled his eyes. "What?" I asked him as I followed him up the stairs.
"She's embarrassing," he muttered as he opened his bedroom door. I laughed as I walked through. I looked around. One wall was covered with sketches and paintings that I guessed he had done. He had a double bed against the far wall and a large desk opposite it, covered in paints, pencils and papers. I turned and smiled at him.
"She's nice, she's friendly," I said and Chad laughed softly and closed his bedroom door.
"Ok," he said and grabbed my wrist. He sat me on a chair in front of the window and I looked at him in confusion. "You have to stay there until I say you can move." I watched him walk across his room and pick up a drawing pad and pencil. He sat crosslegged on his bed, at a 90 degree angle to me so I couldn’t see him very well. "Turn your head towards me slightly," he said softly and I turned and looked at him. He smiled at me for a while and then started drawing. I loved watching the concentration on Chad's face when he drew. It was like he was getting sucked in to a totally different world. I wondered if I looked like that when I got deeply involved in my music.
While he was sketching I thought back to his mum. She had seemed thrilled to meet me, she probably knew Chad was gay and that I was his boyfriend. I mean, she was way too enthusiastic to meet me if she thought I was just a normal friend...and I seriously doubted she was that way around Max or any of the rest of the team. "What are you thinking?" Chad asked me after a while. I moved my eyes to him and saw him gazing at me.
"Does your mum like you drawing? Or would she rather you play football?" I asked him and he looked down at the paper in his hands.
"She just wants me to be happy," he shrugged and I smiled.
"She reminds me of my mum," I said softly. The way Sandra had looked at Chad was similar to the way my mum used to look at me. As though she was the only person in the world who would understand him. However, now he had me. And I understood him more than she ever could and, as much as it hurt to admit this, Chad understood me more than my mum ever could. I smiled softly and Chad noticed.
"You can't change position now," he said and I grinned but tried to hold it back. "Go back to pensive." I laughed, took a deep breath and then tried to go back to thinking. Maybe if Chad told his mum, his mum would be able to talk to his dad and help him live with it, like my mum couldn’t do. Maybe if Chad's dad was told it by his wife, who had accepted it, he might as well. Unlike my dad. "Hey," Chad said softly and I looked at him and saw him frowning slightly. "You've gone sad now. What were you thinking about?"
"My dad," I said and moved back into position. "If my mum was alive, do you think he would treat me better?"
"Hard to say," he said as he continued to sketch. "I don’t know your dad, and I didn't know your mum. But Will, you can't change what has happened, so don't get yourself upset over something you have to live with." I'm sure he didn't mean for it to sound so blunt, but it did and I turned away from him completely. I heard Chad climbing off the bed and then he knelt in front of me, cupped my face in his hands and turned me to him. "I'm sorry, Will, I didn't mean it to sound like that," he whispered and I smiled.
"I know," I whispered and he smiled.
"Besides, I'm here for you now," he said and stretched up and kissed me. "And as soon as I can do something about it, I am going to change it. I won't let your dad hurt you anymore." I looked down at him lovingly.
"Thank you," I whispered and he nodded and then went back over to the bed and continued sketching.
But, I wouldn’t let myself think about it too much. I knew he liked me, he told me enough when we were together during our free periods. He'd also sketched me several more times while I had been playing my guitar. One afternoon, when we both had an afternoon free, Chad came and found me in the music room where we usually hid away from everyone else. "Hey," he said softly and kissed my temple.
"Hey," I smiled and continued strumming some notes.
"So...I was wondering..." he started and I looked up to see he looked somewhat awkward. I smiled encouragingly at him and he let out a breath. "Do you want to come back to my place this afternoon?" he asked and I grinned.
"Really?" I asked and he nodded. "Will your parents be there?"
"Only my mum," he said and I nodded. From what he had told me over the last few weeks, I guessed that his mum was quite similar to mine and already had an idea that her son was gay.
"Sounds great," I smiled and stood up and he took my hand. I noticed that he looked slightly nervous and as he turned away I pulled him back to me. "Chad, you okay?" I asked him softly and he turned back to me, biting his lip.
"I...Do you mind if I don’t introduce you to my mum as my...boyfriend?" he asked and I smiled.
"Chad, you don’t have to do anything until you're ready, you know that," I said softly and stroked his cheek.
"I know but...I feel like I should...I hate that...we're a secret," he said and looked down. I put my hand on his chin and lifted his hand.
"Are you ready to come out?" I asked him and he frowned and shook his head, tears in his eyes. "Then you don't have to. I don’t want you rushing yourself because of me." He smiled at me and kissed me tenderly.
"You're amazing," he whispered against my lips and I smiled.
"I know," I said and Chad laughed. "Now, let's go."
We arrived at Chad's house and I was aware of how nice it was in comparison to mine. However, when Chad reached over and squeezed my thigh just above my knee I relaxed slightly. "Come on," he smiled and we got out of his car. We walked round the car and Chad smiled at me and then we walked towards the house. Chad opened the front door and called out, "mum, I'm home!" I shut the front door behind me and stood awkward, unsure of what I should do.
Then a middle aged woman walked out of the kitchen. She was looking at Chad initially and then she noticed me and grinned even more. "Mum, this is Will, he's a friend from school," Chad said and she smiled at me.
"Hey, cutie," she smiled and I blushed slightly.
"Mum!" Chad said quickly and I noticed a red tint on his cheeks as well. I bit my lip as I tried not to laugh.
"What?" she asked defensively. "You don’t mind do you?" she asked me and I shook my head while trying to not to grin. No matter what Chad thought, it was obvious to me that his mum knew. She was acting like she was meeting his boyfriend.
"Whatever," Chad sighed and I grinned finally. I met Chad's mum's eye and she grinned as well. "We'll be upstairs. We've got homework to do."
"Okay, honey," she said. "It was nice to meet you, Will."
"You too, Mrs Tyler," I smiled and she waved me off.
"Please, call me Sandra," she smiled and then went into the kitchen.
I turned and grinned at Chad who rolled his eyes. "What?" I asked him as I followed him up the stairs.
"She's embarrassing," he muttered as he opened his bedroom door. I laughed as I walked through. I looked around. One wall was covered with sketches and paintings that I guessed he had done. He had a double bed against the far wall and a large desk opposite it, covered in paints, pencils and papers. I turned and smiled at him.
"She's nice, she's friendly," I said and Chad laughed softly and closed his bedroom door.
"Ok," he said and grabbed my wrist. He sat me on a chair in front of the window and I looked at him in confusion. "You have to stay there until I say you can move." I watched him walk across his room and pick up a drawing pad and pencil. He sat crosslegged on his bed, at a 90 degree angle to me so I couldn’t see him very well. "Turn your head towards me slightly," he said softly and I turned and looked at him. He smiled at me for a while and then started drawing. I loved watching the concentration on Chad's face when he drew. It was like he was getting sucked in to a totally different world. I wondered if I looked like that when I got deeply involved in my music.
While he was sketching I thought back to his mum. She had seemed thrilled to meet me, she probably knew Chad was gay and that I was his boyfriend. I mean, she was way too enthusiastic to meet me if she thought I was just a normal friend...and I seriously doubted she was that way around Max or any of the rest of the team. "What are you thinking?" Chad asked me after a while. I moved my eyes to him and saw him gazing at me.
"Does your mum like you drawing? Or would she rather you play football?" I asked him and he looked down at the paper in his hands.
"She just wants me to be happy," he shrugged and I smiled.
"She reminds me of my mum," I said softly. The way Sandra had looked at Chad was similar to the way my mum used to look at me. As though she was the only person in the world who would understand him. However, now he had me. And I understood him more than she ever could and, as much as it hurt to admit this, Chad understood me more than my mum ever could. I smiled softly and Chad noticed.
"You can't change position now," he said and I grinned but tried to hold it back. "Go back to pensive." I laughed, took a deep breath and then tried to go back to thinking. Maybe if Chad told his mum, his mum would be able to talk to his dad and help him live with it, like my mum couldn’t do. Maybe if Chad's dad was told it by his wife, who had accepted it, he might as well. Unlike my dad. "Hey," Chad said softly and I looked at him and saw him frowning slightly. "You've gone sad now. What were you thinking about?"
"My dad," I said and moved back into position. "If my mum was alive, do you think he would treat me better?"
"Hard to say," he said as he continued to sketch. "I don’t know your dad, and I didn't know your mum. But Will, you can't change what has happened, so don't get yourself upset over something you have to live with." I'm sure he didn't mean for it to sound so blunt, but it did and I turned away from him completely. I heard Chad climbing off the bed and then he knelt in front of me, cupped my face in his hands and turned me to him. "I'm sorry, Will, I didn't mean it to sound like that," he whispered and I smiled.
"I know," I whispered and he smiled.
"Besides, I'm here for you now," he said and stretched up and kissed me. "And as soon as I can do something about it, I am going to change it. I won't let your dad hurt you anymore." I looked down at him lovingly.
"Thank you," I whispered and he nodded and then went back over to the bed and continued sketching.
♠ ♠ ♠
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