Blessing in Disguise

I paced anxiously, watching the front door, waiting for him to get home. I had to do it the second he came in or I wouldn’t do it at all. Despite the fact that I had been waiting on him, I jumped in shock when the door swung open and he walked in, grinning with end of workweek joy, until he saw my expression and stopped in his tracks, his grin dropping to a worried frown.
“Jack? What’s wrong, babe?” He asked softly; as I bit my lip, then let the words slip from my lips.
“I’m pregnant.”

I never saw Caleb Turman again after that day. He yelled for over an hour after I told him, before promptly packing his stuff and leaving. When my parents found out that I was nineteen, pregnant and alone, they suggested an abortion, but when they saw the look of outrage on my face, they realised they had made a mistake, and announced that they would fully support me and their first grandchild in any way we needed.

My pregnancy was long and hard. Instead of morning sickness, I had all day sickness, which came every single day until I finally went into labour in the early hours of December 19th, ten days after I was supposed to. I was ecstatic to be a daddy, and quite glad I wasn’t pregnant anymore, until baby Alexander-James, AJ for short, was five weeks old, and I realised that he never cried; only emitting soft, weak whimpers when he needed me for something.

A trip to our paediatrician and a referral to a specialist later, and the problem was revealed. I sobbed uncontrollably when the specialist gently explained that AJ’s vocal chords hadn’t developed properly, and chances were that he would never speak. We were living with my parents at that point, and when I got home, I thrust AJ into my mom’s arms and rushed upstairs; locking myself in the room I was currently sharing with my baby boy.

After three hours of my parents trying to coax me out of my room, I heard a different voice murmuring with them, then scuffling, followed by a click as the door swung open, revealing my older brother, Joe, cradling AJ with his left arm, his right arm held aloft, brandishing a paperclip in triumph.
“Works every time!” He told AJ with a grin, then came and sat on the bed with me, holding AJ out to me, but I shook my head and turned away.
“Mom told me you took him to the doctor, what happened?” Joe asked softly, correctly interpreting my reluctance to hold my son.
“He’ll never talk. I’m never gonna get to hear him call me daddy.” I told him hoarsely, fighting the tears that were threatening. Joe sighed, shuffled over so he was right beside me, then forced me to lift my arms and take AJ from him.
“That shouldn’t matter, Jack, He’s your son and you should love him regardless.” He told me sternly, and I sighed, nodding as I looked down into AJ’s deep amber eyes.
“I do love him. It doesn’t matter that he won’t talk, I was just shocked is all...” I murmured, watching as AJ’s hand curled up, and he put his thumb in his mouth, quickly falling asleep.
“Dad’s been trying to get him to go for a nap for over an hour. He needs his daddy more now, Jacky, so pull yourself together and do it.” Joe insisted, then got up and left.

A few days later, I had an idea. The night before, AJ had whimpered to be fed for almost two hours before I woke up and heard him. So I found some ribbon and a little bell, and tied it loosely around his ankle. That way, if he woke up in the night, I would hear the bell jingling when he wriggled. Thanks to my idea, he gained the nickname ‘Tinkerbelle’ instantly, which we used as much as possible, because when he heard it, he would giggle and kick his legs, jingling even more.

Time flew past, and before I knew it, we were only a few months away from AJ’s 18th birthday. When he had gotten old enough, the entire family had learned sign language, and he had no problem communicating with us, even though he was still to utter a single word. We still called him Tinkerbelle, and even though he no longer needed it, he still wore his bell around his wrist, a small smile gracing his face every time it jingled.

At the age of eleven, he had began to pester me about the fact that I was terminally single, which had never really bothered me. I had AJ and I felt that I would never need anyone else. He was adamant, though, and six and a half years later, he still hadn’t relented. That was why I was sat beside him at the kitchen table, watching as he made an account for me on some website called Friends Reunited.

When he was done, he clicked on the search box, looking at me expectantly, silently asking for the name of an old friend I wanted to find. I thought for a moment; then remembered my sort-of best friend from high school.
“Rian Dawson, he probably won’t be on here, though.” I told him, and he nodded, typing it in. I was surprised when several results came up, and AJ clicked on the first one. He looked like I thought he would at this age, was from Baltimore, and had graduated Dulaney High the same year as me. AJ scrolled through his profile, and it all pointed to him being the Rian I was looking for, and we both laughed as we got to the last sentence of the ‘About Me’ section. “I know I don’t sound too enthusiastic, but I’m only on this site because my son talked me into it.”

Before I caught on to what he was doing, AJ started typing a message to Rian, explaining who I was and if he remembered me. He was online when the message sent, so we only had to wait a few minutes for a reply, and his instant enthusiasm told me that he did in fact remember me, so we arranged to meet in the ice cream place that we spent so long hanging out in when we were younger. We also decided to bring the boys, after finding out that they were the same age, with only a few days between their birthdays.

Saturday came quickly, and before I knew it, the two of us were sat in a booth, eating ice cream and waiting for Rian and his son Alex. I had almost changed my mind, after AJ had found Alex on Facebook, and he came up as Alex Gaskarth-Dawson. I knew AJ wanted to set me up with Rian, and if he was married and only wanted to be friends, I’d rather know that before making a fool of myself. AJ had talked me down though, insisting that he’d let us become friends again before he turned into cupid, so that if Rian was married, at least I’d have fair warning.

We only had to wait a few minutes until Rian came bounding into the store, dived into the booth beside me and hugged me tightly.
“Jacky!” He yelled, and I laughed as I hugged him back just as tightly. After the necessary introductions were over, Rian got up to get him and Alex ice cream, offering to get us refills while he was there, but both he and Alex frowned in confusion when AJ signed his reply.
“He said ‘Yeah, bubblegum again, please.’” I translated, and Rian got over his confusion, nodded and disappeared over to the counter.
“Are you deaf?” Alex asked AJ, signing it as he said it aloud. AJ smiled and shook his head, then signed that he was mute. Alex nodded as he thought it through for a moment, then started having a rapid, detailed conversation in sign language with AJ.

When Rian came back with the ice cream, we started talking about what had happened to us since high school. AJ had never asked about Caleb, so when I started telling Rian about how I ended up a single parent, AJ ended his conversation with Alex and started listening intently. When I finished, AJ gave me a soft, sad smile, and started signing.
‘Don’t worry, we didn’t need him then and we don’t need him now.’ He told me, and I nodded; then turned to Rian, who held up his right hand to show a wedding band. When I gave him a confused look, he returned it with a sad smile.
“Widower. He died when Lexxi was five.” He explained softly, and I nodded. I wasn’t sure about letting AJ play cupid anymore, he still seemed hung up on his husband.

I was home alone; we spent two hours eating ice cream and talking, until Rian had to go to work, but Alex and AJ had decided to hang out some more, disappearing in the direction of the local park. It was now ten at night and I was getting worried. AJ never stayed out this late. I sighed and called him, deciding to admit to my role of over protective parent. He picked up after a few rings and clicked his tongue to let me know he was listening.
“AJ, you better have a good excuse for staying out this late, or you’re gonna have hell to pay!” I snapped at him, and I heard him gasp slightly. I had never snapped at him for anything before. Then again, he had never done anything wrong before. After a few moments, I heard some shuffling; then Alex’s voice filled my ear.
“Hey, Jack, listen, it’s totally my fault, I have an eleven o’clock curfew, and I just figured you’d be cool with AJ staying out until then because he was with me.” He explained, and I sighed, quite pissed off at his assumption.
“Just tell him to get home right now.” I told him sharply, then slammed the phone down.

The next afternoon, I found myself at the kitchen table with Rian and Alex. I had decided a discussion was needed last night, after AJ came home forty-five minutes after I called, and I snarled at him to go to bed, grounding him for three weeks as he ran sobbing to his room. After a few minutes of silence, I looked at Rian, who looked quite confused as to why he was here.
“You need to teach your son how to have some consideration.” I told him quietly, and the confusion flared to anger instantly.
“How fucking dare you tell me how to raise my son!” He snarled, and I sighed, rubbing my face in an attempt to stop myself rising.
“Well maybe if he didn’t keep my son out until ten at night, without thinking to call and tell me, then convince him to ignore specific instructions from me, I wouldn’t be making suggestions!” I snapped, and Rian scoffed.
“I highly doubt that Alex is the only one to blame! AJ’s not as innocent as you seem to think!” He snapped scornfully, and Alex raised his eyes from where they were burning a hole in the table.
“No, dad, it was all me. I really am sorry, Jack, I was trying to help him.” Alex told me softly, and I scoffed.
“Help him how?” I snapped, just as AJ appeared in the doorway, his eyes bloodshot, the skin underneath vivid red from crying.
“Show him.” Alex instructed softly, and AJ bit his lip, then began humming softly, making my jaw drop.
“H-he’s never done that before...” I stammered softly, and Alex nodded.
“That’s what we were doing last night. He hates speech therapists, so I said I’d try and help him.” Alex murmured, and I sighed.
“I’m sorry, I just... I worry too much about him.” I murmured, and they both nodded, smiling softly.

As the months flew past, Alex and AJ kept up AJ’s ‘therapy’, and Rian and I became really close, with a little help from the boys. Apparently, it had been Alex’s intention to play cupid too, and we ended up dating, and then engaged.

It was now June 23rd, our wedding day, and it all went perfectly. The one thing that worried me, though, was that Alex and AJ spent the entire day with an air that they were hiding something. It turned out, though, that I had no reason to worry, because it turned out to be the best wedding present I could have asked for.
They unveiled it just after the ceremony, when we were standing outside the church, and they both came over to us. AJ held back slightly as Alex hugged and congratulated us, but the second he was done, AJ launched himself into my arms, hugging me as tightly as he could, before leaning up until his lips were right next to my ear.
“I love you, daddy.”