Coming Out To my Parents!

[Janice Johnson]

This is a new Dave story. I thought it was kind of ridiculous that Dave waited over two years to tell his parents about his boyfriend, Max. I wrote that when Dave was still a background character. Even when I wrote that when he was a background character, I was thinking, 'Dave, that's a REALLY long time to hide max from your parents. I even had darryl vocally say what I was thinking........So, I decided to cut that time in half, to one year!

Here are the first two paragraghs of my story(it's not even a first "part", I only have a few minutes left, damn time restraints!)


I was on Summer vacation from my school Marshall Johnson Academy for boys. I was now at home in sarasota in my Victorian House, with my parents, Andrew and Alice Winston.


I had a deep rooted secret to tell them, but I wasn't sure how to tell them. I'm gay, and have known i was gay ever since I was 10.

[Janice Johnson]

I have a LOT more time today, and here is the REAL first part!


I was on Summer vacation from my school Marshall Johnson Academy for Boys. I was now at my home at Sarasota, in my Victorian House with my parents, Andrew and Alice Johnson.


I had a deep rooted secret to tell them, but I wasn't sure how to tell them. I'm gay, and have known I was gay since I was 10.


My name is Dave Alexander Winston, and i'm a 15-year-old boy with brown hair, brown eyes, am 125 pounds, and 5'8.


I didn't know how to tell them that I like guys, and even have a boyfriend, Max Cartwright, who is 17. I prefer using the term, 'boyfriend". I find something "icky" about "partner." I find "lover" a bit icky too.


This secret was eating away at me. I hated hiding this big a 0part of my life from my parents. I felt distant from them. I wanted to come out to them, but they are conservative people, and I had an inkling that they might disown me or "switch" me to The Alexanders for being gay. The Alexanders are the "bad" side of our family. The Winstons are the "good" side of our family. You see, a long time ago, there were two half-brothers, Walter Winston and John Alexander. John was the "bad" brother who cheated, lied, and stole. Walter was the "good" brother who was very honest and never drunk. They ended up fighting and then separating. The separation was so huge, the family literally split in two. The Winstons and The Alexanders. The Alexanders are so dysfunctional, it's not even funny. They take after John Alexander. They make Malcolm In The Middle's family look like The Cosby Show. but they all love each other dearly.


Sure, The Winstons and The Alexanders are realated(to some extent), but we really don't associate with each other. We even have different family reunions. The only time the Winstons and The Alexanders associate with each other are at funerals and weddings. Or when "switching" happens. Switching a Winston with an Alexander is very uncomfortable and awkward. We barely know each other from Adam. I hoped my parents wouldn't "switch" me to the Alexanders.


I almost was "switched" when I was little because of my name. Dave Alexander Winston. The Alexanders argued that because I had "Alexander" in my name, I should be raised as an Alexander. Mom and dad argued that "Alexander" in the case of my name is a middle name, not a last name. They told The Alexanders that I was born a Winston, not an Alexander. What was mom thinking naming me Alexander(not as a first name?) didn't she know that name would cause confusion? The Alexanders reluctantly agreed that mom and dad had a valid point and dropped it(after my uncle Andy Alexander pointed out that since my dad and mom were Winstons, not Alexanders, I was a Winston ).


Back to the present. We were eating lunch. We were having oxtail, white rice, tomato sauce, and drinking juice and water.


I felt REALLY distant from my parents. The guilt was really weighing me down.


"Dave, you look like you've got something on your mind," Dad said, thoughtfully. "What's going on, Dave?" He asked.


I swallowed my food. "Can you, mom, and I all talk a litttle later about something around 5:00?" I asked, I wanted to talk to them about my secret around 5:00, for some reason.


"Sure," they both said.


"So, how's school going?" Dad asked. "Fine," i said.


"I'll bet you don't get this kind of good food at Johnson," mom said, with a teasing smile.


"No," I don't," I told her with a smile too.


Soon, lunch was over. Dad, mom, and I all chatted about school and my vacation. I was feeling nervous about coming out.


I soon went up to my room. "Oh, God, give me a sign this is something I should do" (I was praying about coming out). The radio was on, and the next song the radio station played was "Reflections" by Christina Aguilera! I had never paid much attention to the song before, but I paid extra attention to it today.

[Janice Johnson]

“Look at me, you may think you see who I really am, but you’ll never know me. Everyday, it’s as if I play a part. Now I see if I wear a mask, I can fool the world, but I cannot fool my heart.


Who is that girl(okay, in my case, boy), I see staring straight back at me? When will my reflection show who I am inside?


I am now in a world where I have to hide my heart and what I believe in. But somehow, I will show the world what’s inside my heart and be loved for who I am.


Who is that girl(boy) I see staring straight back at me? Why is my reflection someone I don’t know? Must I pretend that I’m someone else for all time? When will my reflection show who I am inside?


There’s a heart that must be free to fly. That burns with the need to know the reason why.


Why must we all conceal what we think, how we feel? Must there be a secret me I’m forced to hide? I won’t pretend that I’m someone else for all time. When will my reflection show who I am inside? When will my reflection show who I am inside?


I thought this song related on what I was feeling about being in the closet to my parents. Especially the “mask” part. I could very well put on a “straight” mask. I pass very well for straight. If I don’t tell someone I’m gay, they assume I’m straight. I have a baritone voice and don’t speak with a “slur” and I walk in a normal way. I am not effeminate either. I do not wear makeup and or dresses, nor do I want to. I am not the stereotypical “gay” person. Oh well, back to the present (again).


I took a nap, and soon, it was 4:58. My stomach flip-flopped uncontrollably and I had butterflies in my stomach too.


At 5:00, I met my parents in our study. I sat in front of them, like a child. I think I was subconsciously trying to look small, submissive, and vulnerable.


“What’s going on, Dave?” Dad asked. Mom wondered too.


I took a deep breath. “Mom, dad, I’ve been keeping a secret from you for 5 years,” I said, slowly and reluctantly.


I paused. I think I subconsciously wanted them to urge me through to the secret.


“Go on, Dave,” Dad urged.


“What’s your secret?” Mom asked.


“Mom, dad, I love you and I know that you love me, and I want you to still love me after the secret gets said. Please don’t disown me for the secret,” I begged them. I’m still going to be your son forever,” I continued. “I’m still going to be Dave Winston, your child,” I said.


“What’s the secret?” Dad asked, sounding frustrated.


“Promise me you won’t disown me! Please! I begged them urgently. “I don’t know how I’d live through life without your love and support.”


“If you’re not ready to come out with the secret, maybe we should wait,” Dad said.


I blushed when he said, “come out.”


I took a deep breath. “Do you promise not to disown me?” I asked them.


“We don’t even know what the secret is!” Dad blurted out, looking frustrated again. “Is it really bad? Did you get someone pregnant?” Dad asked.


“I’ve had this secret since I was 10. What 10 year old impregnates people?” I asked, incredulous.


“Then what is it?” Mom asked.


“I write with my left hand. I’m left handed,” I told them. To me, left handed is considered “not normal” by society. And right handed is considered “normal” by society. Just like “gay” was not considered “normal” by society. Straight is considered “normal” by society.


Mom looked confused. “Dave, you write with your right hand! You’re not left handed!” She exclaimed.


“How do you know I write with my right hand? I could have just been pretending to write with my right hand so that you guys wouldn’t think I was a freak. I’ve actually been comfortable using my left hand to write and hold things with since I was 10. Society doesn't want to accept left handers, though." I sneered.


Dad asked, "Wait a minute. Is "left handed" some kind of metaphor?"


I looked away uncomfortably.


"Answer your father!" Mom said.


"Yes," I answered slowly.


"Oh God," Mom said, crying softly. "No, no, no." she exclaimed, crying harder now.

[Janice Johnson]

My heart wretched seeing her cry. "Mom, don't cry," I told her sadly.


"Alice, what's wrong?” Dad asked her.


“I think Dave is gay,” Mom said, still crying.


“Mom, how did you get gay from “ left handed?” I asked. “I just said that “left handed” was a metaphor,” I continued.


“So, you’re not gay?” Mom asked, her eyes drying up a bit.


I couldn’t bear to see my mother cry. “No,” I said. “I’m not gay.” Lie! An angry harsh voice screamed in my head. “Come out!” It hissed at me. My heart wretched with pain, from making my mother cry, to my gay secret.


“Oh, thank God,” Mom said, sounding and looking relieved.


I gave her a hurt look. “Thank God?” I repeated. “You mean if I were gay, you wouldn’t accept me?” I asked, hurt.


Mom laughed uncomfortably. “I didn’t mean it in a bad way. It’s just that gays are abnormal,” she said.


“You know, gays are people too. They shouldn’t be judged on who they like to bring to their bed,” I said, enraged.


Dad said, “You seem strongly about this. Did those homos at that all boys boarding school try to poison your mind to make you think that they’re normal?”


“Homos?” I sneered at him. “You really want to say, “Queers, Fa…., and buttfu….”, don’t you,” I sneered even deeper.


“Yes, I do,” Dad said. “You know, those queers are not normal. They’re freaks. Who likes to be rammed in the back by other boys? I’ll bet those gays at the Johnson School like that they go to an all-boys boarding school and want to do all their schoolmates.” Dad sneered.


“Gays don’t like EVERY boy they see,” I said, feeling hurt. “Gays shouldn’t be stereotyped like that,” I said, feeling flushed in a bad way.


Dad basically ignored me and. “Watch your back around those gays when you shower with them in the locker room,” Dad said. “They all want to sexually assault you.”


“Dad, you’re stereotyping again. Gays just want to be accepted like straight people. They aren’t doing anything wrong by liking other guys. They just want to be free to love who they love, without being judged,” I said.


“Society is not going to accept gay people. Gay people are all man hungry freaks,” Dad said, sneering.

[Janice Johnson]

"You know, 10 gay people had a gay rights protest to fight for their rights at Johnson. Gays were being shunned just for being themselves,and one guy got books thrown at him and his dorm was completely trashed because he came out of the closet. They won their rights to be treated as equally as the straight people," I said.


"Were you in this protest?" Dad asked suspiciously.


I looked at the ground. I wanted to lie, but my heart was telling me to tell the truth. "Yes, Dad, I was in the protest," I answered reluctantly.


"Dave, why did you do that? You supported those queers?" Dad asked. He looked appalled.


"Dad, gays should never be shunned just because of their same sex sexuality. They're humans too, with thoughts and feelings," I answered him.


Mom looked upset. "Maybe we should pull you out of Johnson. Those queers will try to take over that school. We should put you in a co-ed school, with lots of nice girls."


I was petrified! I loved Johnson so much! Sure it had its crappy moments, but it was still my second home. I didn't want to leave it.


"No! I don't want to leave Johnson! I love that school so much!" I exclaimed emotionally.


Dad sneered. "You want to stay in Johnson so that those gays can turn you into one of them? They all ready got you to support their protest. Next, they'll have you in an all-night male orgy," He said, sneering even deeper.


Mom said, "God doesn't like homosexuals. He said in the bible, "A man should not lie with another man, as a man lies with a woman." "We have to heed that. The bible also says, "God detest homosexuals." Mom seemed adamant.


Dad said, "Homosexuals will not get into the kingdom of God. These homosexuals have all turned their backs on God." He looked adamant too.


"No wonder so many gay people are in the closet, afaraid to get out of that stuffy closet, into the fresh air! Because of people like you guys who shun them!" I yelled, frustrated.


Dad said, "Gay people should all be forced into a chamber that will make them into normal, straight people."


I got enraged. "You see, that's why I've been hiding that I'm gay since I was 10!" I shouted.


Mom and Dad looked shocked. "God, I KNEW it!" Mom said, crying hysterically.


Dad said, "No Winston is going to be a queer," He looked disgusted.


"Dad, no, you're hurting me when you say that," I begged him.


"Queer, queer, queer!" Dad said, making me suffer.


"Dad, no more," I begged him.


"Queer, I'm going to keep calling you that until you go straight, queer," dad said, seeming to enjoy the obvious torturing he was doing to me.


My stomach twisted into knots.


Dad, why are you purposely torturing me like this? Stop calling me that," I begged him.


"No, you queer!" Dad said. I continued to wince.


Mom looked a little sympathetic towards me. "Andrew, stop. You're obviously hurting Dave by calling him that name. It's tearing him apart," mom said, gently.


Dad's face changed. "I'm sorry, Dave. It's just that I'm scared of what people will think knowing that you're gay," he confessed.


"Why do you care about what other people think?" I asked him gently. "I'm your son. The only opinion that should count is my opinion."


Dad said, "I'm also scared because I won't have any grandchildren. The Winston name will end with you." He sounded sad.


"No, you have Ryan," Mom pointeed out. "He's straight, and can bring us grandchildren." Ryan is my 19 year old brother.


"That's right," Dad said, brightening up a little.


"And, I can still adopt kids," I told Dad softly. "Or I can get a girl to be a surrogate mother for me," I said.


Dad looked a little more relieved. Then he looked worried again. "But, I'm afraid that society will hang you for being gay," Dad said. "Don't tell anyone else besides the people who already know."


"Society really doesn't hang people anymore for being gay," I said. "This isn't 1954. It's 2004. Since the "gay" 90's, people are rapidly warming up to the fact that there are guys who like other guys," I said. "And I think in 2049, gay people will be fully accepted, just like straight people!" I said, with a huge smile.


Dad(who generally spoke a LOT more than Mom did), said, "And when you were 10, you realized that you were gay?"


"Yes, " I said, blushing.


"How did you figure that out?" Dad asked.


"I figured it out when I realized that I had a huge romantic crush on a boy in my class named Jimmy in the fifth grade," i confessed. "That's how I knew i was attracted to boyss," i said.


"Oh, Dad said.


Mom said, "And you couldn't have told your Dad and I that you were attracted to Jimmy?" She asked.


I looked at her knowingly. "You definitely would have had my head examined or had me exorcised," I told her half teasingly.


She blushed. "We would have found it very weird that at 10, you liked a boy," She confessed.

[Janice Johnson]

It was soon 6:10. Dad said, "You want to go get some Dairty Quuen buddy?" He smiled at me.


I smiled at him. He called me "buddy" when he was happy with me. I said, "Sure," and soon, Dad and I were at Dairly Queen, eating Brownie Earthquakes. Dad said, "It's going to be hard, but I accept you the way you are. You didn't ask to be gay," he said, looking sedated and happy. I felt sedated too. (Don't tell anyone this, but we Winstons LOVE chocolate, but it sedates us. The Seratonin really is like a sedative to us). The chocolate fudge, Oreo cookies, and brownie were rerally working our sedatation. The BE is great!


We chatted about my coming out very openly. The Seratonin helped us talk freely about the "outing." After we were done, we went home, still feeling the sedative effects of the Seratonin. Damn, that was good chocolate!


Mom noticed how serene we looked. "Hmm, you guys ate a chocolate dessert, didn't you guys?" She said, teasingly.


"Yep," Dad said. "We saved you some," I said, serenely.


Mom tried to resist, but we knew she wanted it. "No thanks, guys," she said, unconvincingly.


"Okay, we'll just throw it down the sink," I said.


"No!" Mom said. "I'll eat it!" Mom said.


"Aha! We knew it!" dad said, triumphantly.


Chocolate is our Kryptonite. And we love it! We can't resist it.


Mom ate the Brownie Earthquake, and had the serene look too. We chatted freely about my liking guys. We sounded and looked stoned. But, we knew we weren't.


After about 10:00, the Seratonin wore off and we were normal again.


"That was great," Mom said. "We were all open about Dave coming out." Mom smiled.


Dad agreed.


He said, "Dave, we're not sedated by the chocolate anymore, but we can still chat freely about your "coming out."


"Dave, society will be tough, but don't let that get you down. There's nothing wrong with being who you are. Be proud of yourself." he smiled at me.


Mom said, "We accept that you're gay. Just don't tell anyone in church. They might shun us."

[Janice Johnson]

"So, do you have a boyfriend?" Dad asked.


I blushed. "Yes, I do. He's a really sweet guy," I answered.


"What's his name?" Dad asked.


"Max," I answered. "He's adorable, and if you saw him, you'd like him too," I said, happily.


"Can you introduce us to him?" Mom asked.


"Sure, next break," I told her. "He's in Arizona right now, with his family," I continued.


"Oh," both of them said.


The next day, we had a fun-filled day at the beach. I felt free with the burden of hiding the secret from them.


"You know, I had an inkling that you were gay," Mom said.


"How?" I asked.


"You never seemed intrested in girls. You never wanted a girlfriend," Mom said, knowingly.


I looked at her shyly. "That IS a big clue," I said.


Soon, we ate lunch. Then we went back to swimming.


After the beach, we went home.


An hour later, dad got a call from his brother, Drew Winston. Uncle Drew announced that we were having a family reunion next week. Dad agreed.


After the phone call, Dad told Mom, and they both looked at me imploringly.


Dad said, "Please don't tell anyone what you told us. Let's just keep it between us three. Your mother and I aren't ready to tell our other family members about you yet." He looked pleading.


Mom said, "Let's keep it our little secret." She looked pleading too.


I reluctantly agreed. For the next week, we did family things, such as going to the mall together, movies, swimming pools, and ice-skating. We had fun on my vacation.


The week flew by fast, and soon, the family reunion day came. We were shocked to see who we saw. The Alexanders! What were the Alexanders doing at the Winstons family reunion?

[Janice Johnson]

Dad marched up to the hotel manager. "How did these people end up in our family reunion? We're the Winstons, and these people are the Alexanders."


"Oh, I seem to have double-booked two different families together," the manager, 30-something guy with red-brown hair and hazel eyes said, apologetically. "I can refund some of your money for my mistake," he said, apologetically again.


Dad said, "No, thank you. But, if you could just make sure we are separate from that family, it would be great."


The manager agreed, and separated us.


"How did the Alexanders get into this place? They are poor," Dad said with a bit of a snobby sniff.


They probably pooled their momey together to be able to come," I said.


"I really don't want to see the Alexanders at a Winston Family Reunion," Dad continued to sniff. "They're the Black sheep of our family. They are thieves, liars, and cheaters."


Dad was acting like a p rick. "They are stilll our family, even if we are separated," I told Dad.


"Andrew, you're being a bit of a jerk. They are our family, like Dave said," Mom said.


"Alice, they'd steal our family valuables if they got a chance too. They'd pawn them to the local pawn shop for money," dad sniffed.


Mom looked upset. "They are family. Please stop talking about them like that," She said, bothered and pleadingly.


Dad continued to talk bad about the Alexanders.

[Janice Johnson]

Dad needed some chocolate, STAT!


"Andrew, have some chocolate!" Mom said. She gave him some of her Hershey bar.


Dad reluctantly ate some chocolate and calmed down. He was soon sedated.


A while later, a hotel worker asked if Dad was allright.


I told him, "My Dad's fine. He just had a weird reaction to chocolate that made him sedated," I answered. Mom confirmed this.


The worker looked at Dad worriedly, but seemed to belive us.


Dad really did look stoned. But, in about 10 minutes, the Seratonin wore off, and he looked normal again.


"Dad, please. Let's just have a nice Family Reunion without hassling The Alexanders. Now, we just have two Family Reunions," i told him calmly.


Dad reluctantly agreed, and he became civil towards The Alexanders. The Alexanders were civil towards us too.


Soon, we were chatting happily like one big family, not like two separate families.


I danced with my Alexander cousins, Matt and Aaron. We had fun dancing.



Soon, it was time to eat. We had chicken, white rice, tomato sauce, potato chips, potato salad, and green vegetable sald. We drank Coca Cola.



Soon, Erick Winston, my uncle, went to the front of the lobby and started cracking rude jokes about gay people. I felt uncomfortable.



Most of the Winstons laughed. Dad looked at me sympathetically.


"Dave, do you see why we don't want you to come out to the other Winstons?" Dad asked.


I nodded.


Lenny Winston, my uncle said, "All gays are the same. They all want every guy they see."


Mary Winston, Lenny's wife and my aunt, said laughing, "If you put a gay in a room full of guys, all he will be thinking of is banging each and every one of them. Don't bring a gay around your sons. The gay man will try to bang all of your male children."



There was more laughter from the Winstons.


I was fed up. I got up. "Listen up, not all gays are stereotypes. it hurts them when you use stereotypes like that. It hurts them more when you laugh at those stereotypes and make fun of them." I said, passionately.


"Dave, you're probably one of those fas too. You do go to an all-boys school. Don't tell me one of those fas didn't try to turn you to their side," my much older cousin, Harry Winston said, with a smirk.


"Fas?!" I spit back at him. "How would you fell if you were called that just because of who you loved?" I asked, firely.


"I'm Straight," Harry said. "I don't have to wonder about that," he sneered.

[Janice Johnson]

“Okay, Harry, how about the fact that you like the movie To Wong Foo?” I sneered. “How would you like me to call you “fruity?”



Harry held up his hands in surrender. “I’m not fruity. I just happen to like that movie,” he said, nervously.



“A movie about drag queens,” I quipped wryly.



Harry looked uncomfortable. “It’s just a really good, funny, movie,” he said, seeming to be trying to defend his movie preference.



“Okay, Harry,” I said. “You see, you don’t like the term “fruity,” so how would you feel if I called you a fa for liking a “girly” movie?” I asked.



“I’d hate it,” Harry said, looking at the ground.



“You see my point,” I said with a small smile.



“I do,” Harry said.


“So, can we please stop bashing gays?” I asked. Harry didn’t answer. I was sure he wasn’t completely ready to stop bashing gays.



I looked at my cousin Warren Alexander. He looked shy and uncomfortable. He was very meek and afraid to stand up for himself.



Uncle Andy Alexander put his arm around his son. “Warren’s been out for a couple of years and we accept him,” he said. He smiled at Warren. Warren shyly smiled back. “I think we Alexanders don’t have a problem with gays.” He looked at the Winston tables with emphasis. “I don’t know about the other side of the family,” he said, emphatically.



Some Winstons sniffed snobbily. “You Alexanders are freaks. You WOULD accept a gay freak like Warren,” Uncle Jerry Winston said.



Uncle Andy was upset. “You wanna fight right now, bitch?” He asked Uncle Jerry angrily.



“Let’s go, weirdo,” Uncle Jerry said.


They begun to lunge at each other, but Uncle Shawn Alexander jumped in the middle, and stopped them from fighting. “Come on guys, we’re a family,” he said, pleadingly. “Stop fighting.”



“We’re related, but not a family,” Uncle Andy said, coldly. He glared at Uncle Jerry. Uncle Jerry glared too.



I called the manager over. “We Winstons cannot be together with the Alexanders,” I told him. “There’s bad blood between us. If you want World War 3 to occur today right before your eyes, keep us in the same room. If you want peace, keep us separated.” I said, simply.



The manager looked at The Winstons and The Alexanders glaring angrily at each other.



“I see your point, but the whole hotel is booked now,” the manager said, with deep regret.



“How about the basement?” I suggested. “Can we Winstons have our Family Reunion in the basement?”



Lenny looked at me as if I were crazy. “The basement. Nino eso loco,” he said. He obviously had been watching too much of The George Lopez Show. George Lopez on the show sometimes spoke sentences half in English, and then finishes the sentence with Spanish. I think it’s Spanglish.



Some of the Alexanders laughed. So did some Winstons, and then a few minutes later, The Alexanders and The Winstons all became a little more relaxed and happy again.


“No, the Winstons don’t have to go to the basement,” Uncle Andy Alexander said, smiling. “They can stay right here with us,” he told the manager. The manager looked relived.


Lenny Winston said, smiling, “Yes, we can have one nice big Alexander/Winston reunion.



The other Alexanders and Winstons agreed. We went back to chatting amicably. We actually had FUN together.



The family feud is over! I thought happily to myself.



I took a seat next to Dad. “Should I tell the other Winstons and Alexanders about me being gay?” I asked him.



Dad looked at me thoroughly. “No, don’t. Don’t tell anyone yet. Please,” he replied.


Mom asked, “Do you want to start up another feud?”



“But, Warren’s openly gay!” I yelled in a hushed tone.



“Yes, he is. But, he’s an Alexander,” Dad said. “The Alexanders are the Black Sheep of this family. Of course they accept Warren as gay! But, we’re the White Sheep of the family.”



I looked at the ground. “Oh,” I said, softly. “So, I should stay in the closet from our families?” I asked.



“Just for now,” Dad said softly.



Soon, the reunion was over, and we each had the other family’s phone numbers.



We went home.


At home, Dad asked, “How long have you and Max been dating?”



“A year,” I said.



Dad whistled. “You kept a big important part of your life from us for a year?” Dad asked, incredulous. “That’s a long time to keep it in.” He sounded a little disapproving of my hiding the secret from him and Mom.



“I kept a secret for 5 years. One year isn’t that bad in comparison,” I said, wryly.



Dad agreed.


Over the next weeks we had more family fun time, and quality time.



On August 16th, I called Max’s cell phone, and he told me that his family was in Sarasota too. I was excited. I could introduce Max to my family! We made plans.

[Janice Johnson]

“Mom, Dad, I have a friend from Johnson coming over,” I started, tentatively.


“What’s his name?” Mom asked.


“His name is Carter,” I lied.


“Sure, he can come over,” Mom and Dad said. “As long as it’s okay with his parents.”


So, Mom, Dad, Max, and Max’s parents spoke and they agreed that Max could come over.


On August 18th, Max showed up. His parents dropped him off.


“Hi, Carter,” I said, giving him a big smile. I called him “Carter” because of his last name. Cartwright. I wanted my parents to meet him NOT as Max.


He smiled back. He smiled at my parents. My parents welcomed him with BIG smiles.


“Come on in, Carter,” Dad said, graciously.


Max (Carter) smiled demurely and walked in. He took out a box of chocolates and handed it to my parents.


“I got these for you as a house-warming gift,” Max/Carter said, charmingly shy. Max was really on his best behavior.


My parents eagerly took the box. I could see the real happiness as they eyed the chocolate.


“Thank you, Carter!” Mom and Dad both said.


“You’re welcome, Mrs. And Mr. Winston,” Max said politely. “You’ve got a lovely home.”


Mom blushed happily. She seemed to like Max a lot.


“Thank you, Carter,” she said again, happily.


“You’re welcome, Mrs. Winston,” Max said again.


“So, how did you two become friends?” Mom asked.


Max blushed this time. “I had to escort Dave to Dean Riley’s office for an Honors Award that he had gotten, and we seemed to hit it off well as friends. We just clicked,” Max said, amicably.


Mom had cooked lunch, and we set the table and sat down and she served us potatoes, rice, chicken, tomato sauce, and orange soda.


We said grace before the meal, and then begun eating. “So,” Dad started, “What are your hobbies, Carter?” He smiled.


“I love swimming, playing on my computer, and reading books,” Max/Carter said.


“Funny, Dave loves those same three things, “Mom said. “You two would make a really good couple,” Mom said, with a big smile.


Max and I looked at each other knowingly.


“But, he’s dating someone named Max,” Mom said. “He says that Max is a really sweet and adorable guy.”


Max looked at me knowingly and teasingly. “Dave said that, huh,” Max said, with a happy, teasing smile.


“Yeah, he did,” Mom said. “Would you happen to know Max, Carter?” Mom asked.


Max said, “I’ve seen Max a couple of times before around school, and sometimes with Dave. He seems nice, and we’ve talked a little to each other but I barely know him.”


“Do you think Max and Dave make a good couple?” Mom asked suddenly.


“MOM!” I cried in shock.


“He and Dave seem really happy from what I’ve seen of those two. So, from what I’ve seen, yes I do,” Max said softly. He smiled at me warmly.


“That’s good to hear,” Mom said, happily. Mom sure was being talkative today. Mom seemed to warm up to Max.


Dad said, “So, let’s talk about you, Max.”


Max said, “I’m Carter,” while blushing.


Dad blushed too. “I’m sorry. It was a slip of the tongue,” Dad apologized.


“It’s okay, Mr. Winston,” Max said.


“So, what do you want to be when you grow up?” Dad asked.


Max/Carter said, “I want to be an engineer when I grow up.”


“So, how old are you?” Dad asked.


“17,” Max answered.


“Oh. Do you plan on going to college anytime soon?” Dad asked.


“I’ve applied to Stanford and Harvard,” Max answered.


Mom said, “That’s wonderful!” She smiled enthusiastically at him.


If I didn’t know any better, I would assume Mom had a crush on my boyfriend. EEW. She seemed smitten with him
.

“So, do you have a girlfriend, Carter?” Mom asked. No! Stop! I thought in my mind.


“No, “Max said, uncomfortably.


I could have sworn I saw Mom’s eyes light up. “Any girl would be lucky to have you as a boyfriend,” Mom said, with a wink.


Dad looked at mom with suspicion. “Alice, are you hitting on Carter?” He asked in a weird tone.


The same thing I was thinking.


“Mom! Carter is 25 years younger than you!” I yelled, appalled. “And he’s my boy…..,” I started. I was about to say, “Boyfriend”, but caught myself.


Mom blushed. “I wasn’t hitting on Carter.” She was obviously flustered. I had a feeling she was lying.


Dad looked at me in suspicion. “Carter is your “boy” and you obviously were about to say something else. Finish it,” Dad said, pointedly.


Everybody stared at me. I was in the hot seat.


I decided to lie. “Carter is my boyfriend’s best friend,” I said, unconvincingly.


“So, he’s Max’s best friend, yet he barely knows him?” Dad asked, suspiciously.


“I….I….uh, forget I said anything,” I said, uncomfortably.


Are you and “Carter” dating?” Dad asked.


I wasn’t completely ready to come out about Max yet.


“No, Carter and I aren’t dating,” I lied again.


“Let me hold your cell phone,” Dad asked. “I need to check something.”


I reluctantly gave Dad my cell phone. He called Max’s number! Max’s phone rang, of course.


Max looked around uncomfortably.


“Aren’t you going to pick up your phone, Max?” Dad asked with a knowing look.


“I’m Carter, not Max,” Max lied feebly.


“Why do you have Max’s cell phone then?” Dad asked.


“Uh, Max let me borrow his cell phone because he’s in Arizona, and he has a Florida based phone, Mr. Winston,” Max said, unconvincingly again. Max was sweating.


Mom said, “But you just said you barely knew Max. Yet he’s your best friend and would let you borrow his phone.” She looked suspicious too.


Max and I are different people, really!” Max said, obviously being over convincing.


“Why don’t you bring Max over one day?” Mom asked me. “With Carter?” She continued.


Max visually squirmed uncomfortably. “Max is in Arizona. No way can come over here on a whim,” Max said, uncomfortably.


“So, how do you and Dave feel about each other?” Mom asked.


“We’re just friends!” Max/Carter said, defensively.


“Mom, stop badgering Max!” I told her, in Max’s defense.


“I’m Carter!” Max said.


Everyone stared at me.


“Did you just call Carter Max?” Mom asked, with a weird gleam in her eye.


“I made a mistake. I meant to call him Carter,” I said, unconvincingly.


We finished eating. Max offered to clear the table, wash the dishes and I agreed to rinse them and dry them and put them up.


Mom and Dad happily agreed. They went to their room.


While we were washing, rinsing, drying, and putting away dishes, we chatted.


“You know, maybe it’s time to come out about our relationship. The Carter disguise is wearing thin,” Max said.


“I don’t want to yet,” I said.


“I want to meet your parents, not as Carter, but as Max,” Max said, plaintively.


“I want them to meet you as Carter first,” I said again.

[Janice Johnson]

"Max can come later," Max said, mischievously.


"What do you mean by that?" I asked, confused. "Why are you saying, "Max" in third person?"


"You'll see," Max told me wickedly.


We finished washing the dishes. Then we went up to my room. Max and I lied in bed. Max gave me a deep tongue kiss. Which meant that he wanted sex. "No, Max, no sex," I told him, turning my head away.


"Why not?" Max asked, looking perplexed.


"I wouldn't feel comfortable doing it in my parents' house. Especially when they're here," I answered.


"Okay," Max said, petulantly. He gave me an upset frown. I knew it wasn't "okay" with him.


"Look, when we get back to Johnson, we can do it. But not now," I told him, compromisely.


"What am I supposed to do without it?" Max asked.


"Go please yourself, by yourself," I told him.


"But, my hand isn't as good as you," Max whined. Max was getting on my nerves.


"Max, go to sleep! I don't want to do it!" I yelled at him.


Max begged, "Please?"


"Max, no!" I said, loudly.


I begun to get up and leave. Max gently put a hand on my arm to stop me.


"Okay, don't leave. I won't ask you for sex anymore," Max begged me. "We can just cuddle and kiss if you want to," he told me. "We don't HAVE to do it," he told me.


I reluctantly went back on the bed. Max and I kissed and cuddled. The kisses were soft at first, and then Max's kisses got greedy and hungry, as if he couldn't get enough of me.


It turned me on, but at the same time, I felt he was going to fast for me.


"Max, stop," I begged him.


Max, with a frustrated growl, got off of me. He looked at me upset.


"You're such a tease," he told me angrily. "You get me hot and bothered, then tell me to stop," he said angrily.


"I....I....I....think you should go back to Arizona," i told him, uncomfortably.


"Fine! Who do you want to go back to Arizona? Max or Carter?" Max asked me with a sneer.


"Max," I said, hotly.


"Fine! Maybe Carter should go tell your parents about your cocaine addiction," he threatened.


"No, please don't!" I begged him. I was a cocaine addict a few months ago,, then beat it in two weeks at drug rehab. Max knows, but my parents don't.


Max took a deep sigh and looked at me throughly. "Dave, I'm sorry," he said. "I'm just frustrated that we're not having sex," he confessed.


"Max, I love you, but I do not like to be ruhsed into these things," I told him.


"It's not as if we haven't had sex before," Max said. "Remember, you gave me your virginity," he said, looking at me deeply.


"I know," I said. "I just don't feel comfortable having sex now. Speaking of virginity, who did you give your virginity to?" I asked him.


"Do you want to hear the truth or do you want to hear, "You?" Max asked me.



"The truth!" I said, a little frustrated.


"It was a boy named Alan. It was before you came to Johnson," he confessed.


"So what happened to Alan?" I asked.


"We broke up a few months later," Max answered.


"Oh," I said.


I got off the bed.


"Where are you going?" Max asked.


"I'm going to take a shower," I told him.


"Oh, can I shower with you?" Max asked. I paused, looking at him throughly.


"I'll be good," Max promised, hoding up his fingers in a Boy Scout way.


"Okay," I said, reluctantly.


Max gave me a huge smile. We were soon showering and soaping each other. Max hugged me in the shower and I felt so comfortable. Then he gave me a kiss on my mouth.


"Max, you promised!" I protested.


"What? It's just an innocent kiss," Max defended himself. I kissed him back, and then we rinsed off and toweled ourselves off.


We put on new clothes, and went back to my room. We sat in silence on our bed. I could see that Max was still lusting after me.


"You wanna play video games?" I suggested. I wanted to do something other than look at Max lusting for me.


"Sure," Max said.


We played Mario Brothers on my N64. I played Mario and he played Luigi.


We had fun playing Mario Brothers. I was better at my character, Mario, then he was at playing Luigi.


After playing, we watched some T.V, and then we ate dinner, and Max told me out of respect to my parents, that he would sleep in our guest room.


"Okay," I said.


Max and I kissed a quick goodnight kiss and then went our separate ways for the night.


When we awoke, it was time to shower, dress, and eat breakfast. after this, Max had to go back to his parents' hose for a while.


Mom and Dad told Max it was a pleasure to meet him. they told him he was very polite and charming.


He blushed shyly.


He told us "goodbye" and we said it too. Five minutes later, Max's parents picked him up and he went home.


"So, Carter's a very nice person, huh," Dad said with a wink.


Mom said, "I can't wait to meet Max," happily. "If he's as nice as Carter was, I'll be happy.


I blushed again. I'm prone to blushing.


"Max is in Arizona," I lied.


"Well, get him out of there and let us meet him," Mom said, jovially. Dad agreed too.


I called Max's cell phone a little while later.


"Max, my parents want to meet you," I told him.


"They already did," Max said wryly.


"No, they want to meet you, as in Max, by boyfriend Max, not my "friend" "Carter"," I told him.


"Okay, I'll meet them as Max," Max said, reluctantly.

[Janice Johnson]

“I just didn’t think it would be so soon,” Max continued.


“What do you mean?” I asked him.


“I thought I’d have more time,” Max said.


“Okay, you lost me, Max,”I said.


“Never mind. Max is coming,” Max said.


There he went again with that “Max” in the third-person.


“Stop using third-person!” I yelled.


“Okay,” Max said.


We made plans again, and a week later, Max had his much older cousin drop him off.


Max lied and said that was his legal guardian. Richard wasn’t his legal guardian.


Max looked SHOCKING! Max had put on some black leather clothes, some chains on his shirt, vest, and he had dyed his hair Pitch Black and had a sneer on his face.


My mouth opened up in shock! So did my parents’ mouths.


“Hey, I’m Max,” he said, and came right in without being asked to, and plopped right on my parents’ living room couch. My parents were horrified! I didn’t blame them. Max looked like a cross between James Dean and Marilyn Manson. He looked bad ass and like a Goth at the same time.


Mom said, “It’s nice to meet you.” She was obviously lying through her teeth.


“It’s nice to meet you, Mom,” Max said, audaciously. What audacity! I thought.


“I’m not your Mom!” Mom said in a biting tone, very unusual for her.


“Hey, when we gays win our rights to marriage, you will be,” Max said, with a smirk.


Mom got really angry. “Young man, show me some respect!” She snapped.


“Okay, MAAM,” he said with sarcastic emphasis.


Dad said, “Young man, you may be dating my son, but you’re acting like a jerk.” He was upset by Max.



“Yeah, I am dating your son,” Max said, with another smirk. “And he likes me the way I am.” Max walked over to me and gave me a deep French kiss on my mouth, right in front of my parents! Disrespectful! I gave Max a glare.



Mom and Dad were even more shocked and angry.


“Young man, there will be none of that!” Dad shouted. Mom said, “You’ve gotta be one of the rudest people I’ve ever met!” She was livid!


“What’s rude about showing affection to my boyfriend?” Max asked. “We kiss each other a lot.”


“We don’t wanna see you and Dave making out in front of us!” Mom yelled.



Max’s face changed. “This isn’t the real me. I’m sorry,” he said. “These aren’t my real clothes. The piercings are fake and so is the hair color. I usually do not wear spikes, either. I’m usually very respectful.”



“So, let us know the REAL you,” Mom said, smiling now.



“I’m Max Cartwright, a 17-year old student who applied to Harvard and Stamford,” Max said, smiling.


“Did you say your last name was is Cartwright?” Mom asked, suspiciously.



Max blushed. “Yes, my last name is Cartwright,” Max answered.


“Hmm.” Dad said.


Max blushed even deeper.


“Are you Carter?” Dad asked.


“No,” Max said, lying.


I blushed too.


“Carter said that you and he were best friends, but then claimed to barely know you,”` Dad said, suspiciously.


“Yeah, Carter is contradictory like that,” Max said, unconvincingly.


“Why don’t you bring “Carter” over here, and we can all chat?” Mom asked, clearly not buying it.


“Uh, no, Carter can’t come,” Max answered. “He’s in Arizona.”


Dad asked suspiciously, “Aren’t YOU the one who’s from Arizona?”


Max turned beet-red. “Uh, yeah. I am the one from Arizona. I got us mixed up.” Max said, unconvincingly.


“You got yourself and Carter mixed up?” Dad asked, suspiciously. “That’s pretty hard to do. Why don’t we call Carter and chat with him,” Dad said, with narrowed eyes.


Max stammered, “Carter doesn’t have a phone.”


Dad said, “You know, when I called your number off of Dave’s phone, the phone that Carter had rang.” He looked suspicious.


“I gave Carter my phone because I didn’t need it, and he needed it,” Max was uncomfortable.


“So, he’s got to be a good friend for you to do that for him,” Dad said, suspiciously.


Max squirmed. “Can we please stop talking about Carter?” He looked a little more uncomfortable.



We went to the kitchen table.


Mom asked, “What are your hobbies?”


“My hobbies are swimming, playing on my computer, and reading,” Max answered.


Dad and Mom exchanged glances. Finally, Mom spoke. “That’s the same exact hobbies that Carter liked too,” Mom said, softly.



Max looked at the ground. “We have the same hobbies,” he said, uncomfortably.



“What a coincidence,” Mom said, dryly.


“Carter and I really ARE different people!” Max said, over convincingly again.


“Hmm. Where have I heard THAT before?” Mom asked, teasingly. Dad gave a teasing smile too. I KNEW that they knew what was going on. I nodded to Max to come out.



Max blushed. “Okay, okay, I was Carter,” he finally confessed.



Mom and Dad gave each other knowing looks. “We’re SO shocked!” Mom said, obviously being wry.


Max asked, “Are you guys gonna start looking at me with distrust from now on?”


Mom and Dad both said, “No.”


Max looked relieved.


Mom said, “But please change your clothes and your appearance. You look scary.”


Max took off his fake tongue ring, the chains, the spikes, washed the dye out, took out the fake nose ring, and put on some of my clothes, and went back to looking like Max.


Mom looked relieved when she saw Max looking normal again. “That’s much better,” she said, smiling appreciatively.


Max shyly blushed.


“So, you want to be an engineer,” Dad said.


“Yeah,” Max said.


“What interests you in Engineering?” Dad asked Max.



“I want to be a car mechanic,” Max told Dad. “I want to study how to fix cars.”


“That’s your life plan?” Dad asked with a bit of a snobbish tone.


“Well, having a degree in Engineering can open so many doors for me. I can have so many field opportunities, such as fixing computers, fixing T.V’s, fixing washing machines, and fixing DVD players,” Max answered.


“So, you want to be a Handyman,” Dad said dryly.



Max said, “Yes. I want to help people who want their broken precious sentimental things to be fixed so they can continue to cherish them.” He looked shyly earnest.


“You seem to be a very earnest person, Max. I appreciate that about you,” Dad said, sounding impressed.



Max and I held hands under the table secretly. I loved how comfortable my hand felt in his hand.



Soon, we let go of each other’s hands, and smiled at each other.



Dad asked, “So, which one is your number one preference out of Stamford and Harvard?”



“It’s Stamford,” Max answered.


“Why?” Dad asked.



“They have a better Engineering program,” Max said, looking down at the table.



“Why are you looking at the table?” Dad asked.



“Because a lot of people prefer Harvard over Stamford,” Max said, reluctantly. “But, I prefer Stamford.”



“It shouldn’t matter what other people prefer. It should only matter what YOU prefer, Max,” Dad said, pointing to Max.

[Janice Johnson]

This is a VERY short part, but NOT because of a time restraint(Aha, you guys didn't see THAT one coming, did you?) It is a short part because this is where I stopped in my notebook with the story. This was actually supposed to be part of Part 12, but I ran out of time)..

I stared at Dad pointedly.


“Maybe you should take your own advice, Dad,” I said, pointedly.


“What do you mean, Dave?” Dad asked me.


“I am talking about our families and me being gay.” I answered.


Dad blushed. “The other Winstons would have a hard time accepting you as gay,” Dad said. “The Alexanders accept gays. But the Winstons have a much harder time accepting gays. “He continued.


“But, I’m a Winston, and I not only accept gays, I am gay myself,” I contradicted.


Dad looked at me thoroughly. “You’re a very unique Winston,” Dad said softly.


He turned to Max. “How do your parents feel about your homosexuality?” He asked Max.


Max answered, “They know that I’m gay, but don’t bring it up. I guess that they are indifferent.” Max continued.


“Oh,” Dad said.


Mom said, “I’m sorry for how I behaved towards you the last time you were here.” She looked remorseful.


“It’s okay,” Max said.


Max got to stay over for the weekend. He once again slept in our Guest Room. On Saturday, we ate breakfast, and got ready for the day. We all went out, and we went to the amusement park, and had a lot of fun on the rides. We all went on the roller coaster, and Max won me a giant pink stuffed bear at a mini game. He gave me a huge smile as he handed it to me.

I thanked him, and after the amusement park, we went home.


On Sunday morning, it was time to go to church. Mom asked if I wanted to bring Max with me to church as my friend.


I said, “Okay,” and we got ready for church.


At church, I introduced Max as my friend, and Max blushed. Max had to stand up and talk about what brought him to church today, and he basically introduced himself ,and the church clapped for him and welcomed him. Max smiled shyly and sat back down.


Max and I had a good time in church.