A New Kind of Denial

I stared out the plane window as the scenery flashed by, trying to concentrate on something that would give me a hint as to where we were even at. All I could see through the clouds was a lake and some fields. That sure was interesting. A voice cam over the loud speaker saying, “Hello, this is your captain speaking. I’d just like to let everyone know that we’ll be arriving at our destination in about five minutes. Please fasten your seatbelts if you haven’t already as we start our decline. I hope you’ve had a nice flight.”

Oh, I’m having a great flight, Captain Peachy! The fat lady next to me is the best part, what with her snoring and fishy stench. I’m so glad you care so damn much!

If you can’t tell, I’m not in the greatest mood. My dad’s have shipped me off to the fricking Canadian Wilderness to stay with some family friends while they’re off on their eighteenth anniversary vacation having load of fun without me. I mean, I understand that it’s their anniversary and all that, but they didn’t need to send me to Canada to be babysat. I’m 17, but they still see a need in not leaving me home alone. Granted, they were going to be gone for two months, but I’m going to have to learn to live on my own at some point in time soon. Unless they want to lave me living at home the rest of my life, which I highly doubt. Also, it’s not like the people I’m staying with are boring or anything. In fact, they’re great guys. They used to be in Reese’s band karma before they split up, and Reese has known the one since forever anyways. Jason and Ianto Mendez are some of the best family friends you could have, and I’m sure spending two months with them is going to be great, but Canada? Really? Why they chose to live in the Canadian Wilderness, and live someplace near a mall of some sort, maybe.

~~~

“Gavin! Our favorite friends’ kid!” Jason exclaimed as he spotted me in the sea of people coming from the luggage carrousel. I sped up to a slight jog when I heard him yell and followed his voice to him and his husband Ianto.

“So are you saying that I’m the favorite kid of a friend or the kid of your favorite friends?” I asked, smirking at the couple I haven’t seen since last year.

“You know you’re the favorite, Gav, but so are your dads, so I could say a bit of both, actually,” Jason answered, starting to babble.

I turned to Ianto and laughed. “Can you shut him up somehow?”

“Gladly,” he chuckled, his English accent still seeping through his voice. He turned towards Jason and grabbed his head, kissing him hard on the mouth, stopping the flow of unnecessary words.

“Not quite what I had in mind, but it worked. Now come of you two rainbows, let’s get going.”

“Rainbows? Really? Come on, Gavin, I know you can insult better than that,”

“Oh, shush up. My brain is half fried right now; I can’t think up any good insults. I just flew from New Kersey to the friggin’ Canadian Wilderness,”

“Canadian Wilderness, you say?” Ianto asked, laughing. He pointed to a window at a huge city, lights shinning in the darkness of dusk. “Then what’s all that?”

“Alright, well, maybe where you guys live isn’t quite the Canadian Wilderness,” I mumbled, sort of embarrassed at being showed up by the quiet British man. “But it’s still Canada.”

“What do you have against Canada?”

“I don’t know…it’s Canada. Isn’t that reason enough?”

“You are so odd, little boy,” Jason chuckled, ruffling my hair a bit as they led me to the front doors and to their car.

~~~

So what’s out first order of business here in the great wonder that is Canada, eh?” I asked, leaning forward into the middle of the front seats. “See what I did there? Eh?”

“One day soon, I’m going to find out why you don’t like Canada,” Ianto laughed, turning around in his seat to look at me as I fell back against my seat. “I don’t see what’s so bad about it.”

“It’s not really that I don’t like Canada, it’s more the fact that most of the native Canadians I’ve met have been rude and, well, kind of douchey. Most that I’ve met have had little to no manners, have started fights over barely anything, or have just been flat out rude to me, and other people. So it’s really not so much Canada that I don’t like, it’s just the people that inhibit it that I don’t like,” I explained, shrugging.

“Well not all Canadians are like that,”

“Yea, I know that. But most that I’ve met have been,”

“So that’s the only reason you’re so negative about it?”

“Ah, basically,” I shrugged, chuckling.

“Alright, well, now that I know that, I’m going to make you believe differently by the end of your stay,” Ianto said.

“Okay then,” I laughed. “You can try all your little heart desires. Now, what is it that you two have planned for my first day here?”

“We’re taking you on a shopping spree,” Jason answered, a smile plastered on his face.

“Ooh, every gay guys’ favorite thing!”

“Now there’s the loving insults I know and love from you! You’re getting better at this whole sarcasm thing, Gavin,”

“Hmm, I wonder why. Could it be maybe because I live with a certain Camron and Reese that belong to the royal family of sarcasm?”

~~~

I’m going to stop in here really quick and then I’ll be right with you guys, yea?” I asked theold married couple, pointing at a little chocolate store.

“While you’re in there, would you want to get us a couple things? Like some chocolate covered strawberries?”

“Where’s the money coming from for these? A magical fairy land?”

“No, it comes from my wallet, silly,” he chuckled, pulling out his wallet and handing me some money. “And I was meaning for all three of us too; not just me and Ianto.”

“Alright, I’ll be right there,” I said, stuffing the bills in my pocket and waving to them as we walked in different directions. I walked through the door of the shop and went to the counter, looking through the display case to try and figure out what I wanted to get. It all looked good, but it was all hand made so it was all pretty pricey. I was trying to decide between a caramel and chocolate covered apple, chocolate covered nougats and chocolate covered pretzels. I could have sworn I’d heard my name being called, so I turned around. When I did, I accidentally known someone over. I gasped and dropped down to his level, holding out my hand to help him up. “Oh my God! I’m so sorry!”

“Don’t worry about it,” the guy chuckled, grabbing my hand. I helped him get back on his feet and he brushed himself off.

“Yea, but I feel bad,”

“Well, don’t,” he laughed, his smile shining. He flipped some of his brown hair out of his eyes and said, “I’m Mason, by the way.”

“Gavin,” I said, a slight blush dusting my cheeks. “Sorry again for knocking you over. I thought I heard someone say my name.”

“I told you, it’s fine,”

“I know,” I chuckled, still sort of embarrassed.

“Hey, do you want to go get something to eat?” he asked, folding his arms over his chest casually. That little question and the tone he used to ask it led me to guess that he was also a liker of the fellas, if you know what I mean. Obviously, I have no problem with that, plus, he was really cute, so I almost said yes. But then I remembered something.

“mason, I would love to, but I have to meet by dads’ friends in the food court in about negative five minutes,” I said, biting my lip, hoping he didn’t think I was lying or anything.

“Oh crap…you’re straight, aren’t you?”

“No! No, I’m bi, but I promised Jason and Ianto that I’d meet them a few minutes ago. I just can’t seem to decided what I want chocolate-wise,”

“Wait; Jason and Ianto Mendez? As in the Jersey boy and the Londoner that used to be in Karma?”

“Yup, those are the ones,” I smiled, at first thinking that he was just a big fan of their old band. “One of my dad’s is Reese Karman, too, and I’ve know Ianto and Jay since I was adopted basically.”

“Oh! You’re that Gavin!” he exclaimed, throwing me completely off track. “I could have sworn they said you were coming next week!”

Wait, what?