Acceptance ~ Sequel to Perceptions & Deceptions

[harry113]

Oh Dear. Poor Dylan appears to be on the receiving end of all the violence!!
Thanks arogersb
Looking forward to the next chapter
Harry

 

[Craiger]

Justin,

Great chapter. But you have to feel sorry for Dylan that he gets confused with his evil twin. I think he is gong to have to wear a big sign around his neck informing everyone who he is...lol

I hope you rested up because the anticipation for further chapters is much greater now...

Craiger

 

[arogersb]

Thanks guys for the compliments.

The next chapter will be due in a day's time. I've come up with a little difficulty fitting everything I wanted to into this one chapter, so there are 2 possibilities: An extra-long chapter or 2 short chapters.

Anyway here's a taster of my next story, "Doing Hard Time" which I will start posting once "Acceptance" is over. It's in a different vein from this one, mainly because it's set in a prison. But don't worry, there will be the usual twists and a healthy dose of love as well. ;-)

Harrison Ridgeway, the young, handsome but misguided son of a wealthy and influential family, finds himself far from home when he ends up in a maximum-security prison for a crime he didn't commit. It's a harsh and cruel world behind the prison walls, until Harrison finds a protector - but is his new friend really what he says he is? For that matter, is everything Harrison tells us the truth? A tale of an unlikely alliance, which leads to something more, set against the backdrop of a maximum-security prison.

 

[arogersb]

~ Chapter 9 ~
Tears and Triumphs​

Dylan hadn’t expected Jake’s punch, so he didn’t do anything to avoid the fist which landed on his face. He staggered slightly, but remained standing, a look of absolute shock on his face.

Martha yelled at her brother to stop. I managed to grab Jake’s hand before he could hit Dylan again.

“Stop it,” shouted Martha. “This isn’t the guy who got me pregnant.”

“What?” Jake stopped struggling against my grip. He looked astonished. “But … I saw him … he looked exactly …”

“They’re twins. He’s not on Deacon’s side.”

I interrupted, “Are you going to hit him again?” He shook his head mutely. I let go of his hands and turned to Dylan, feeling concerned. He hadn’t said a word since before Jake had punched him. He was backing away from us slowly, towards the door. A trickle of blood ran from his nose.

“Dylan, are you okay?” I asked. He mumbled something I didn’t catch, and then he turned and practically ran out of the house.

“Dylan!” I ran out after him. By the time I got to the car, he was already inside and had locked the door. He had his head in his hands, with his knees drawn up to his chin. His body was racked by sobs.

“Dylan, please, let me in,” I asked gently, tapping on the window. He didn’t seem to hear me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Martha come out of the house, looking anxious. I signaled to her that we needed some time. I repeated my request to Dylan, a little louder this time.

Without lifting his head, he reached out and unlocked the car. I got in beside him.

“What’s wrong? That was all just a misunderstanding. Jake is probably feeling very sorry right now. And Martha looks worried too.”

There was no reply. He just continued to sob with his head down. Seeing him like that made me feel like my heart was being torn out of my chest. There had been many times when Dylan had comforted me, and he’d seemed to know the right things to say. Now our roles were reversed, and I wasn’t sure I could do the same. But I wanted to. I wanted to make him feel better, to return to the man I loved.

“Please, Dylan. Say something,” I begged.

“I deserve it … I deserve it that they hate me,” he cried.

“No,” I said loudly. “No one hates you. No one can possibly hate you. Everyone who knows you well enough loves you – I do, so does my family …”

“They would hate me if they knew the whole story … if they knew what Deacon did to you.”

“It’s not your fault. You can’t blame yourself for what your brother does,” I told him.

“If … if I’d told what Deacon did to me … when we were 18 … none of this would have happened. I ruined your life, and Martha’s, and God knows how many others by keeping silent. How can you still love me when I must remind you of Deacon?”

“Dylan, look at me.” Reluctantly, he did so. “I love you … I can see in your eyes something which I never saw in Deacon’s. Before you came along, I’d lost faith … that I’d ever fall in love again. It hurt too much to think how I’d been used. But then you happened. And what I saw in you … it wasn’t the resemblance to Deacon. It was how different you both were. I knew we were destined to be with each other. And if my family does find out someday about Deacon, I will tell them the same thing.”

Dylan’s sobs slowly became quieter. He buried his face in my chest. “You won’t …” he choked. “Promise that you won’t ever leave me?”

“Never,” I assured him. “I love you too much to let you go. Now please, can we go back into the house? Martha is looking anxious, and Jake probably wants to apologise.”

Dylan just kept his face against my chest. “I love you,” he said, his voice muffled by my shirt.

“I love you too,” I told him. “Otherwise, I would be having a fit over your blood spotting my shirt.” Dylan looked up guiltily. “Don’t worry, I believe it washes off with saltwater, and you’ve certainly provided a lot of that,” I joked.

This comment managed to elicit a weak smile from Dylan, and he leaned closer to pull me into a passionate kiss.

***​

“Are you okay? Oh my god, you’re bleeding,” said Martha.

Dylan put a finger tenderly beneath his nose, where there was a smear of blood. “It’s nothing,” he assured Martha. “I’ll be fine.”

“Jake is so sorry. I don’t know what came over him. I tried to tell him …”

At this point, Jake came out of the house, holding the baby. He was very ashamed of himself and repeating his apology.

“I’m really sorry, Dylan. I thought …”

“I know what you thought. It’s okay. I don’t blame you. Next time I should wear a sign around my neck,” said Dylan jokingly.

Jake looked at him uncertainly. “You’re … you’re not upset?”

“I was … but not at you. Anyway, my boyfriend can be very persuasive.”

Jake smiled tentatively. “So you forgive me?”

Dylan nodded. “Water under the bridge.”

“Great. I’m sure you want to meet your niece. Come on in.”

***​

“I’m glad that Molly can have two of her uncles around, even if she won’t know her father,” Martha told me as we sat on the couch. Dylan was enthusiastically playing with Molly on the carpet. Jake had left after getting a call from work – he was a police officer.

“I’m happy that it worked out. How long are you going to stay with your brother?” I asked her.

“I’ve applied for a couple of jobs. Jake’s offered me this place to stay until I can get back on my feet. I guess he feels lonely too, since his boyfriend broke up with him a few months ago. He used to live here.”

“What happened?” I asked.

Martha shrugged. “He doesn’t tell me everything, but I believe his boyfriend found another guy. He’s been rather depressed lately. If you know anyone, you can set him up on a blind date,” she said.

“I’m afraid I don’t,” I laughed. I looked over to Dylan, who was watching his niece with a delighted expression on his face. Looking at this scene, I felt content.

***​

But I still had some unfinished business to take care of when I returned to work the following day.

I went into Luke’s cubicle. “Luke … I have to talk to you, privately.”

“Sure, what’s up?” he asked.

I shut the door. “Do you remember our graduation party?” I asked him.

“Um … yeah … well, sort of.” There was a guilty look on his face.

“Do you remember anything in particular – involving me?”

Luke’s face turned red with embarrassment. He mumbled, “I thought you didn’t remember.”

I was shocked. “So … you’ve known – all along? That I was gay?”

“What? You are?” Luke looked confused. “I thought … well, I didn’t know. You never talked about it again. I thought you were ashamed about what you did while you were drunk.”

“Are you trying to tell me … that you’re gay too?”

Luke took a deep breath. “Jon, I always knew I was gay. I just couldn’t come out … especially not to you.”

“You could have. We’re friends, Luke. And besides, I’m gay too.”

“I didn’t know that then. I thought you’d beat me to a pulp if you thought I’d taken advantage of you when you were drunk. But I swear, it wasn’t like that. You were the one who offered. Please, believe me.”

“I do. I may not remember that night, but back then, I was all too willing to give blowjobs to random dudes. Luke, be honest. Did you … did you have feelings for me?” I was a little scared of what the answer might be.

Luke replied, “I guess I might have – I’m not sure. But now you mean more to me as a friend. I’m sorry,” he said apologetically, mistaking my look of relief for disappointment.

“That’s okay. I already have a boyfriend. His name’s Dylan. And you’d probably recognize him. He’s Deacon Sullivan’s twin brother.”

Luke’s eyes practically popped out. “As in identical twin? No wonder you were asking all those questions about Deacon.”

I didn’t correct his misconception. “They’re as different as night and day, before you ask.”

“That’s great.” He looked sad though. “I wish I had a boyfriend though. I’ve never even been on a proper date before.”

That gave me an idea. “Luke … have you ever thought of going on a blind date?”

He looked uncertain. “I don’t know … do you have someone in mind?” He sounded hopeful.

“I don’t know if this guy is ready for it either. I’ll have to check. But if he agrees, are you game for it?”

Luke seemed to come to a decision. “Sure, why not?”

“He’s a police officer, by the way.”

“I love men in uniform,” grinned Luke. “Okay, so maybe I prefer them out of it.”

I playfully punched him on the shoulder in reply.

***​

A phone call later, it was all set. With Martha’s help, we managed to persuade Jake to agree to the date. Well, it was more of a double-date. Dylan and I were going along as well. I’d told Dylan about it and he’d come up with the idea of the double-date. I hoped it would work out, because then two of our friends would be a couple. I love happy endings.

On the day of the date, I returned home to our apartment early.

“Dylan?” I called, looking for him in the living room. “Oh, there you are.”

He was standing in the doorway of our room.

“Aren’t you getting ready?” I asked as I approached him.

“What’s the hurry, baby?” he smiled. I stopped in my tracks. Something was definitely wrong. Dylan never called me ‘baby’. And the way he was smiling was creeping me out.

Something must have shown on my face. He moved so fast I didn’t even see what he hit me with.

Darkness descended upon my conscious mind before I hit the floor.

To be Concluded ...​

Sorry for the long delay - I faced some computer problems. Anyway the final chapter will be published within the next few days. I hope you enjoy the cliffhanger until then.

Comments appreciated.

 

[smile86]

ahh, a twist! is it deacon? looking foward to the next chapter, even if it is the final one :-(

 

[botboy03]

Oh wow, that hit me about like Deacon I assume hit him there in the end. I can't wait to read the next and final =( chapter.

Zac

 

[kcm17480]

Wow, is Dylan/Deacon one of those dual personality situations? Stay tuned for the next chapter.

 

[harry113]

Oh Dear, Where is Dylan????
Could kcm be right//
Surely not???
Looking forward to the next chapter
Thanks arogersb .... btw the next story looks promising
Thank you
Harry

 

[Craiger]

Thanks guys for the compliments.

The next chapter will be due in a day's time. I've come up with a little difficulty fitting everything I wanted to into this one chapter, so there are 2 possibilities: An extra-long chapter or 2 short chapters.

Anyway here's a taster of my next story, "Doing Hard Time" which I will start posting once "Acceptance" is over. It's in a different vein from this one, mainly because it's set in a prison. But don't worry, there will be the usual twists and a healthy dose of love as well. ;-)

Harrison Ridgeway, the young, handsome but misguided son of a wealthy and influential family, finds himself far from home when he ends up in a maximum-security prison for a crime he didn't commit. It's a harsh and cruel world behind the prison walls, until Harrison finds a protector - but is his new friend really what he says he is? For that matter, is everything Harrison tells us the truth? A tale of an unlikely alliance, which leads to something more, set against the backdrop of a maximum-security prison.

Wow! That is some teaser. I hope this isn't from real life experience...lol

Craiger

 

[wyndhampaul]

You've captured the very essence of the difficulty of coming out, especially to parents, with panache and style. Good story, well told. Thank you. Am now eagerly awaiting the next chapter.

 

[Craiger]

OK, Justin, this is really a cliffhanger. I don't know if I can wait, but I will be a good boy and twiddle my thumbs (or something else...lol) until you post the new chapter.
I like the "sign around his neck" and "Cubicle" bit... you are funny!

Craiger

 

[arogersb]

~ Chapter 10 ~
Aftermath

=====================================​

A Message from the Author:
It has been a great joy to write this story. But, as they say, all good things come to an end. I would like to dedicate this chapter to the faithful readers who have encouraged me to keep writing. I hope to see most of you again in my next story.
=====================================​

When I regained consciousness, I found myself tied to a chair in the living room of my apartment. Standing over me was a familiar face – the face that I saw every night before I went to sleep, but also the one that haunted my dreams. The startlingly green eyes, the chiseled jaw, the beautiful blond locks – they were identical in every way, but I knew the man I loved well enough to note the minute differences. I wasn’t looking at Dylan; it was his twin brother, Deacon.

A year ago, before I’d ever met Dylan, I had been in love with Deacon, and he with me – or so I’d thought.

Deacon saw that I was awake and smiled. It was not a nice smile. There was a gun in his hand.

“I see you’re back in the land of the living.” The smile was turned off like a light switch. “But probably not for long.”

There was a crazy glint in his eyes which I didn’t like. I struggled to stay calm and not show my fear. I quickly glanced around the room for Dylan. The first thing I saw was the digital display on the clock: 7.07. I must have been out for almost an hour.

Then I looked towards the floor and saw Dylan’s prone body, facedown. He wasn’t moving, but the fact that his hands and feet were bound told me that he was still alive. Besides, there was no way Deacon would kill his own brother. What the hell was I thinking? He just wanted revenge.

“What do you want, Deacon?” I asked him.

He didn’t seem to hear my question. He paced around the chair I was tied to.

“Does this remind you of anything?” he said, gesturing to the cord which tied my hands to the back of the chair. I remembered.

He looked at me. “You humiliated me. You made me lose my job. You played me.”

My fear was replaced by anger. “I played you? You were the one who used me … for sex. You told me that you loved me, but you never did. You’ve been screwing around with other people for who knows how long. Think about what you did to your own brother.”

A look of understanding passed across his face. “Ah, he told you about that. I’m surprised you would hook up with him after that – my twin brother.”

“Dylan is nothing like you!” I spat. “He never wanted to have sex with you. You forced him. You knew he couldn’t say anything even if he didn’t like it.”

“That’s what he told you, huh.” Deacon looked amused. “I suppose he never told you how he’d beg me to fuck him harder.”

I was thrown for a moment, and then I said, “You’re lying.”

Rage contorted his handsome features. “I used to work at one of the best firms in the country. Now I have to scrape together a living. I couldn’t even show my face in this city for a year. Then when I finally decide to pay my little brother a visit, guess what I find there. They told me he doesn’t live on campus anymore. He lives with his boyfriend. They gave me a forwarding address – your address. You are the one responsible! And you’re going to pay for this.”

He was breathing heavily. I came to the sickening realization that he was unhinged. I had to get myself and Dylan out of here before he did anything to either of us. I quietly tried to undo the cord tying my hands, while trying to reason with Deacon.

“Deacon – you can’t blame me for what happened. And doing this won’t help either. Please, let us go – both of us. I promise I won’t say anything.”

Deacon laughed nastily. “You’re not in the position to bargain for anything. You can’t you’re your own pathetic life, let alone my brother’s.”

“You wouldn’t. You wouldn’t do anything to your brother.”

“Wouldn’t I?” he asked. He looked down at the unconscious Dylan. “You worthless piece of shit! You think you’re better than me? I used to fuck you. And now you’re fucking the guy I screwed.”

He kicked Dylan in the ribs. There was no response from Dylan. He kicked him again. I felt a chill. Why hadn’t he regained consciousness? He must have been out longer than me. Was that blood soaking Dylan’s blond curls?

I couldn’t take it anymore. “Stop it!” I yelled. Amazingly, Deacon stopped. He turned to me. “I thought I made it clear, that you should keep QUIET!” He hit me across the face with the gun. The pain was excruciating, but I was glad I’d stopped him from kicking Dylan.

“You know what else I’ve missed?” Deacon was rubbing his crotch with his free hand. “You know, you were good for something.” He unzipped his pants. “Suck it,” he ordered me.

I stared at him in disgust. His hard-on was barely inches away from my face.

“No,” I said firmly. “There’s no way you’ll get me to give you a blowjob.”

Deacon looked annoyed for a moment, and then the fake smile was back. “Alright then, I’ll just get my gratification another way.” He dragged Dylan’s body in front of me and flipped him over. He reached for Dylan’s belt and started to unbuckle it.

“What are you doing?” I asked, although I already knew.

“What does it look like? You can watch me fuck him.”

“You can’t!” I said, horrified. “He’s your brother. You can’t fuck him while he’s unconscious.”

“Well, you only have yourself to blame,” he told me as he pulled out the belt. I realized that if I didn’t do what he asked, I would have to watch him rape the man I loved.

“I’ll do it,” I said, helplessly. “I’ll give you a blowjob.”

Deacon grinned as he stood up. “I knew you’d come around.”

I glanced at Dylan. Please forgive me, I begged silently. Maybe if I did this, Deacon would let us both go. Then I saw a movement behind Deacon. It was Jake. How the hell was he here? Then I realized it was past 7.30. We were supposed to meet him for our dinner date at seven. I hadn’t locked the door earlier when I’d come in.

Jake’s eyes swept the room quickly. I remembered that he was a police officer. He took in Dylan’s body on the floor, me tied to the chair and the gun in Deacon’s hand. He signaled to me to keep quiet. I nodded, very slightly.

“Okay,” I said, pretending to be resigned to my fate. Deacon’s back was to the doorway. He shoved his cock in my face, waiting for me to take it into my mouth. But just then, he realized something was amiss.

“What the …” he exclaimed as he whirled around to point the gun at Jake. Luckily, Deacon wasn’t experienced at handling a gun. Jake’s police training took over. He quickly managed to overpower Deacon and wrest the gun from his grip.

Throwing him to the floor, he pointed the gun at him. Deacon started to get up, but Jake barked, “Stay where you are, or I swear, I’ll shoot.” I expected him to disobey, but the fight seemed to have gone out of Deacon.

Keeping the gun trained on Deacon, Jake yelled out, “Luke, can you get in here?”

I was surprised to realize that Luke was also in my apartment. He came in and edged around my chair. He untied the cord binding my hands.

“Are you okay?” he asked in concern.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I said impatiently. I was more worried about Dylan. I rushed over to him and felt for a pulse. To my relief, it was a strong pulse. I parted his blond locks and discovered a superficial graze on his scalp. “It doesn’t look serious. I still think we need to call an ambulance though.”

“Jake already called the police. They’ll be here soon,” said Luke.

I looked at Deacon, who was glaring malevolently at us. I pulled Dylan closer to me.

***​

“Thank God you came to the apartment to check on us,” I told Luke and Jake as we waited in the hospital.

“We got worried when you were more than half an hour late. You said you’d be there early. We tried calling your phone, but it was switched off. And the apartment phone was disconnected,” said Luke. Deacon must have disconnected the phone.

“I saw Deacon in Pinewood City last weekend,” said Jake. “That’s why I mistook Dylan for him that day at my house. I thought you also knew he was back in town. I’m sorry I didn’t mention it to you.”

“Don’t be. If it wasn’t for you, God knows what he might have tried to do to Dylan and me,” I said gratefully. “I’m sorry your date was ruined, though.”

Luke and Jake looked at each other. “Well, we did have half an hour to get to know each other. Plus we had to save a couple of our mutual friends from danger,” said Jake.

“Yeah, now I know I can trust a certain policeman to rescue me,” joked Luke. We were interrupted by the doctor.

“I’m glad to say Mr. Sullivan has regained consciousness. He’s suffering from a concussion and a couple of bruised ribs, but he should be fine. You can go and talk to him now.”

Luke said, “You need some time alone. Go on. We’ll wait here.”

I nodded my thanks and went into the room. Dylan was sitting up in bed.

“How are you feeling?” I asked as I sat on the bed.

“Awful.” He looked at me. “I put you in danger. I promised your father I’d take care of you. Instead I was out cold on the floor while Deacon could have done anything to you.”

“I was the one who endangered our lives. It was me he was after, not you,” I told him. “Besides, you couldn’t have predicted that Deacon would come back bent on vengeance.”

“What’s going to happen to him?” he asked, quietly.

“Well, Jake says he’s got a lot to answer for. Breaking and entering, assault, battery, attempted rape …”

Dylan interrupted. “Attempted rape?”

“Yeah, he tried to … force me to give him a blowjob.” I’d left out the part about how Deacon had been about to fuck the unconscious Dylan in my police report. They didn’t need to know about that. It was too painful to dredge up the past, especially for Dylan. I loved him too much to make him go through that again.

“He hurt you,” said Dylan, gently tracing the outline of the bruise on my chin where Deacon had pistol-whipped me.

“It’s nothing,” I assured him. “I was really worried about you. You were unconscious for more than a couple of hours.”

“He must have hit me hard.” He tried to sit up and groaned in pain.

“Careful, you have two bruised ribs,” I informed him. “Look, the police want to take down a statement. Are you sure you’re up for it? Or can I get you something first?”

“I know what you can get me,” he grinned. I knew what he meant. I leaned over the bed to kiss him. He returned the kiss passionately. I reluctantly broke off the kiss.

“I’ll ask the doctor when you can get out of here, okay? I’ll come back in with Jake and Luke once the police have left.”

“Okay.” He smiled at me. “Don’t worry about me. I’m fine.”

I smiled back at him. “I think that, from now on, everything’s going to be fine.”

***​

I was right. Deacon was sentenced to imprisonment. Jake told us to apply for restraining orders when he eventually gets out. We hope this will truly be the last we see of him.

In due course, Dad came to accept my relationship with Dylan, even going so far as to let us sleep in the same room while in his house. My brother Tony and his wife are expecting their second child in the summer. My sisters, both now eighteen, have got boyfriends. Tina told me that Jesse found a boyfriend in college.

Jake and Luke are also going strong, despite the strange beginning to their relationship. They plan to move into an apartment in Pinewood City, as soon as Martha’s life is settled. She’s engaged to a nice guy who works with her and doesn’t mind her being a single mother.

As for me and Dylan … I’ll just say that I have yet to be separated from him for more than 24 hours and I hope that day will never come. Even now, my head is lying on his chest. Both of us are spent after our nightly sex session.

“Have I told you that I love you?” I look into those bright green eyes. I could lose myself in them. Oh right, I already have.

He runs his hand through my dark hair and whispers, “Only a million times. But it gets better every time.”

~ The End ~​

Stay tuned for my next story “Doing Hard Time” – coming soon (in a new thread).

P.S. Craiger, it’s not from personal experience!

 

[Craiger]

Justin,

That was a great story. As I've said before, I wish it wouldn't end, but at least we know everyone is happy now, except Deacon. But, who knows, maybe he found his "true love" being someone's bitch in prison...lol

I eagerly await "Doing Hard Time". And I am glad to hear that it isn't from personal experience.......lol

Craiger

 

[bcwang]

Thank you for this very nice story.

 

[smile86]

i enjoyed your story a lot, thanks. i'll definitely check out your next story

 

[botboy03]

Very nice ending. You had me worried there for a bit. Is Deacon in Doing Hard Time??

 

[miaplacidus]

Great story!

Looking forward to the next one.

 

[arogersb]

This is the end of the "Perceptions & Deceptions" series; there will be no further sequels. I think (hope) everything is wrapped up neatly.

And no, Deacon does not appear in "Doing Hard Time". It's an entirely new story, which I hope to finish writing by the end of this week.

Thanks again for all your responses.

 

[harry113]

Justin, Thanks for a great series, very nicely wrapped up!
Looking forward to your next story (s?)
Harry

 

[kcm17480]

That is a great story. I really enjoyed it. I'll be looking forward to read your next story.

Thanks
Ken