Watching Brad

[upyrkilt469]

that was a beautiful wedding. I wish I had been there. Will wait for the next one to find out if the caller was Connie.
Vic

 

[BlueD]

OMG, another deadly cliff, I bet it is Connie the B!$@h stalking Ted right there at the hotel, gggggrrrruuuu...
I am going to die from waiting...

Thanks Neil for the new great installment....

-Blue Dragon

 

[White Eagle]

another great chapter, thanks Neil
I don't think Connie is going to do anything bad. We'll see, huh.

 

[arogersb]

Thanks for yet another wonderful chapter. So the much-awaited wedding of the millenium is now officially over and Brad is now a de Villiers Hayes. I'm glad it went off without a hitch ... until this mysterious caller at the end. My first thought was Connie too, but then again probably not. If she wanted to cause trouble I'd say her chance was over.

(By the way I noticed Brad has a cousin named Connie, Peter and Kay Hayes's daughter )

 

[kcm17480]

Very, very nice indeed. Now what?

 

[gsdx]

After spending one whole week of near enough non-stop reading, I have finally caught up. 160 chapters read and i have loved every minute of it.

I am going to miss not having to catch up..

Well done. That's more than I've done, actually. I've never sat down and read it.

However, if you don't already know about it, here is a link to my other stories I've posted in this forum:

http://www.justusboys.com/forum/showthread.php?t=107877

 

[gsdx]

WATCHING BRAD
Part 161​

I clenched my eyes and teeth for a moment and rolled my fingers into balled fists. My entire body tensed up before I took a deep, calming breath and forced myself to relax. I knew she was waiting for me so I took one more calming breath and turned around to face her. She still wore the same clothes, complete with wig and glasses and such, that she had worn in the church.

"If you're here to make trouble for us, Connie. . ."

Her smile was disarming as she slowly approached me. "I'm not here to make trouble, Ted," she said calmly. "I just want to talk to you."

"In case you missed it, I just got married an hour ago," I told her bluntly with undisguised annoyance. "My family and my friends and my new husband and our kids are waiting for me."

"I know, Ted," she replied, "and I appreciate it, but this is important. Please. I only want to talk to you."

I gritted my teeth, looking first one way then the other as if I were trying to find an avenue of escape. In truth, though, I was so annoyed at her interruption that I was doing my best to avoid looking at her lest I punched her lights out.

"Please, Ted," she said sadly.

There was something in her voice which drew my eyes back to her face. Our eyes met and I saw in hers the same thing that I'd heard in her voice, something which had once been an integral part of her but had disappeared from her several years ago when she fell in love with the almighty dollar. Sincerity.

We stared at each other in total silence for several excruciatingly long moments, waiting for something to happen - waiting for one of us to break. Nothing happened. The sincerity never left Connie's eyes and I could see an almost-desperation there. The fear and reservation left me right then and there, and I suddenly found myself wanting to talk to Connie as well to bring our relationship to a complete and proper end.

"Come with me," I told her as I offered my arm to her. She took it and walked along beside me to the hotel lobby where we found a rather secluded and cushioned bench which offered a modicum of privacy where we could talk without being disturbed. We sat, angling ourselves toward each other. My knee touched hers. Neither of us pulled away from the other.

My eyes flashed up to her hair. "Can you take that off, please?" I said as I looked back into her eyes.

She glanced briefly back down the hall as if to find someone there and walking toward us. "No," she replied. "Someone might recognize me and tell Lindsay I'm here."

"Okay."

"Are you happy, Ted?" she asked after a short pause. "I mean, are you really happy?"

"Yes, Connie. I'm happy."

She smiled at me and patted my knee, then left her hand there. I looked at her hand and then at her face and she pulled her hand away. "Sorry," she apologized. She sat back against the wall and said more as a statement than a question, "You really love him, don't you?"

"Who?" I said. "Brad?"

She nodded.

"Yes, I do," I answered. "I love him very much."

"More than you loved me when we were married?"

This made me sit back against the wall. "That's not a fair question, Connie," I told her abruptly and, perhaps, a little too forcefully.

"Yes, it is, Ted, and you know it. Please, answer me. Do you love Brad more than you loved me?" There was no anger in her voice and there was no anger displayed in her face or her eyes. There was only. . . how can I describe it? . . . a ‘need', I suppose. Not quite desperation, but a need to know.

And so I told her the truth. "Yes, I suppose I do."

The ‘need' turned to ‘hurt' as her eyes quickly filled with tears. They flicked rapidly from side to side as they looked into my own eyes, and then she slowly and gently nodded her head in understanding. Her voice was pained and strained and very soft when she spoke: "So, everything we had together was a lie."

This I hadn't expected and it shocked me into action. I leaned forward, putting my right hand on her shoulder for a few moments as I said quietly, but urgently, "No, Connie! No! Oh, God, no!" I pulled my hand away from her and gasped a deep breath before continuing. "It was very real, Connie. You have to believe that."

"I want to, Ted, but being gay isn't something that happens overnight. I mean, it's not like you're straight all your life and then you just wake up one morning and decide you're going to fall in love with another man."

"I know, and I don't understand it myself," I explained, "no more than I can understand how you can wake up one morning and love money more than you love me."

"Touché," she replied.

"Look, Connie. I don't know why I fell in love with Brad any more than I understand why I fell in love with you. It just happened. You know me almost better than anyone. Did I ever give any indication that I was interested in men? If I was really gay, if I was hiding in the closet, I think I would have known about it, but there was never any indication."

She looked at me quizzically.

"Believe me, Connie," I continued, "until Brad came along, I never had any desire to be with another man let alone to fall in love with one and marry him. I was never attracted to another man, sexually or otherwise."

"Was it because of. . . um. . . I mean, was it his. . . ?"

"His ‘endowment'?"

Connie's face turned a deep blush and I knew that I had guessed correctly. "If that's what you think I fell in love with, you couldn't be further from the truth. It was a curiosity at first. Trust me, it's a ‘guy' thing. But it scared the hell out of me. If anything, it should have prevented me from falling in love with him. And, if something like that were important to me, I would have gone after that friend of yours. What was her name? The one with the purple fingernails and the really big. . ."

"Cheryl," Connie interrupted abruptly, her face hard and bitter and her voice filled with disdain. "And don't let's talk about her, please. She still owes me for a pair of shoes I bought for her." And then her face softened as she spoke again. "But I don't understand, Ted. I never saw any signs or anything. I never saw any indication that you might be gay, or even turn into one."

"Just like I never saw any signs in you that you'd fall in love with money. Love is one of mankind's greatest mysteries, Connie. No-one knows when it will happen, or with whom or with what. It's something inside the heart that makes you feel good when the other person is around and it hurts when that person isn't around. So we fall in love just so we can be together always. It just happens. It's what happened with us - I mean you and me - and it's what happened with me and Brad as well. There's no explanation for it, Connie, but there's no stopping it once it starts to happen."

I could see the light of understanding beginning to shine in her eyes and I leaned forward again and took her hand in mine. She was tense, but soon relaxed into it and closed her fingers around mine. "Listen to me, Connie," I told her softly. "Forget about what happened between us at. . . well, you know. . . at the end. Forget all that. I only want you to remember everything that happened before that. Before we moved here. I want you to remember our little apartment and all our dumpster dives and all the Kraft Dinner and brown bag lunches. I want you to remember all the nights we sat alone just holding each other because we didn't have a television and all those years we spend sleeping in our little bed because a bigger bed wouldn't fit in the room. Those were the most happy years of my life, Connie, and I wouldn't trade a single moment of it for anything. And, if it hadn't been for you, I never would have had the most precious thing in my life."

She softened then and she smiled a tiny smile. "Lindsay."

I nodded. "Whatever else you thought there was between us, Connie, whatever else you think there is between us now, the love I felt for you when we were together was real. The love I still feel for you is real. I have no regrets for the life we shared, and now I have no regrets whatsoever in sharing my life with Brad."

Connie blinked at the moisture in her eyes and swallowed deeply. "You still love me?"

Again I nodded, and I smiled at her this time. "It's easy to hate someone, Connie. It's not as easy to stop loving them."

"But how can you still love me after what I did to you? After what I did to Lindsay?"

"You're still her mother, and you always will be. Some day she may want to get to know you again and, if she does, neither of us should stand in her way."

"You'd let her do that?"

"If that's she wants to do," I told her honestly. "It will be her decision. Not ours."

Connie smiled weakly, but she smiled nonetheless. After a moment, she asked, "Does she ever ask about me?"

"No," I said as I shook my head back and forth. "Never. And we don't talk about you around her. But, I promise you, if she ever asks about you, I'll tell her everything she wants to know. I won't stop her from seeing you if that's what she decides she wants to do, but I won't broach the subject with her. Until she's ready, if she ever is, I don't want you to. . ."

"You have my word, Ted," she promised. "I'll leave her alone. But I want to ask you a big favour. Will you send me pictures of her so I can at least see her grow up?"

"Sure," I said, nodding my head. "Are you still going out west?"

"Yes," she replied. "As soon as I get my parole sorted out and they say I can go." She fell silent then, silent and pensive. "Is she really happy, Ted? Will she be okay?"

"You saw her at the wedding, Connie," I told her. "You tell me if she's happy."

Connie remained silent knowing that my question had been rhetorical.

"She'll be okay," I told her. "She loves being a big sister. What about you? Will you be okay?"

"I'll be fine. Don't worry about me. You have a wonderful family, Ted. Those boys are adorable. You just concentrate on taking care of them." Connie paused for a long moment and squeezed my hand in hers. I had forgot I was still holding it. "Can you forgive me, Ted?"

"For what?"

"For what I did to you and Lindsay."

"For me, I can forgive you, and I do. For what you did to our daughter, I can't. Only Lindsay can do that."

There was a heart-wrenching sadness in her smile as she nodded slightly. "Maybe some day I'll have the chance to ask her myself."

"I hope so," I told her.

She squeezed my hand once more and placed her left hand over it. "Take care, Ted," she said gently. "I truly hope your new life is everything you dream it to be."

"Thank you."

"No," she said. "Thank you." She leaned toward me, tilting her head and kissing me lightly on my left cheek. "Goodbye, Ted," she said finally as her left hand slipped off mine and the fingers of her right hand unwrapped themselves and released me. With one final, sad smile, she stood up and began her exit.

"Connie?" I called after her. She stopped and turned toward me. For several long moments we looked at each other, and then I spoke: "See you later, eh?"

And, with a simple nod, she turned and walked away.

* * * * *

"Daddy!" Justin yelled when he caught sight of me. He broke away from Brad, who was walking much to slowly for him, and ran toward me and leapt the final distance into my arms. He gave me a huge hug and a kiss and then said, "We thought you got losted."

"No, my Sonskyn," I told him. "I had to talk to a friend, that's all. She's going away and she wanted to say ‘goodbye'."

Jeremy and Brad arrived as I spoke to Justin. Brad was holding Jeremy in his right arm and wrapped his left arm around my back and pulled me close. "I missed you," he said.

My free arm slid around Brad's back and I pulled us all into a group hug. "I missed you, too," I said as Brad whispered softly in my ear.

"Any trouble?"

"No," I told him. "She just wanted to say goodbye."

Brad nodded and we broke the hug, but we still held each other as we walked back to the table where I'd set my bottle of beer. It was still sitting there, faithfully guarded by Warren and Bill.

"How are you holding up, Warren?" I asked after I took a long swig of my beer.

"A little tired, but I'm good."

"Just don't overdo it, eh?"

"I'll see to it," Bill assured me.

With one twin firmly attached to each of us, Brad and I began making our rounds of the guests, mingling and posing for photos and such, or just talking with them before moving along. The twins were delighted with all the attention they were getting and soaked up all the compliments and pinched cheeks that they could.

We had just finished talking to JW and my workmates when Brook came up to us and caught us before we moved on to the next group. "First off," he said enthusiastically, "I missed the reception line. Congratulations."

We offered him our thanks and he gave both me and Brad a kiss on both cheeks after which Justin shouted excitedly, "Me, too!"

"Alrighty, then," Brook said with a delighted grin and gave the twins a double-cheek kiss as well. "Jeff is just about set up with the sound, Ted," he added when he was finished. "Any preferences for music before dinner?"

"Nothing loud or bouncy," I replied. "Soft and slow. Easy listening, if you know what I mean."

"I'm on it," Brook said with the ever-present curl of his lips which gave the impression that he was never, ever, unhappy. "Oh, by the way," he added excitedly, "Jeff's reservation for tonight cancelled on him yesterday. Apparently the groom discovered he liked the bridesmaid better than the bride and called off the wedding. Jeff's already got their deposit, so he said he'd hang around tonight and do the music for you. He's a lot better at it than I am."

"Just tell us how much and. . ."

"I already told you," Brook interrupted me. "He's got the deposit and his time is his own now. It's already paid for."

"At least we can feed him and buy him a few drinks," Brad offered.

"I think he'll be happy enough with that." Brook said and he turned to leave, but I grabbed his arm.

"Hang on, Brook," I told him. "There's someone I want you to meet."

Brook followed us to a small group of our friends who were standing and talking together off to one side of the room. They turned to greet us.

"Brook, I'm sure you remember Nathan and Barry," I said. "And these are our friends, Lori and Brad." Greetings were exchanged and hands were shaken before I continued. "And this is David. David? This is Brook."

David stepped forward and immediately grasped Brook's offered hand. "I'm very pleased to meet you," David said with a wide, ecstatic grin as he looked up into Brook's face.

"The feeling is mutual, I'm sure," Brook grinned back.

"You have a magnificent voice. I enjoyed listening to you singing."

"Well, thank you."

"And, if I'm not out of line," David added, "might I say that you're an extremely handsome man?" David had stopped shaking Brook's hand but he continued to hold onto it.

Brook laughed his deep, baritone laugh. "Yes, you may. And might I say that you're pretty cute for a short little white guy," Brook said, his voice dancing with laughter.

"Do you have any objections to short little white guys buying you a drink?"

"None whatsoever. I'll have a Blue."

"A blue ‘what'?" David asked, and then understanding suddenly flooded his face as he looked at his beer bottle. "Oh! A Blue! The beer! I'll be right back." He pulled his hand free and off he went toward the bar.

Brook watched as David made his way through the crowd, shaking his head slightly, and then he turned to me. "Damn, he's funny," he said. "Cute and funny. I like cute and funny."

"And one helluva nice guy," I told him.

Brook turned back to face me. "Is he here with anyone?"

"No," I replied.

"Well, then, is he seeing anyone?"

"I don't think so, but you could ask his niece," I said as I indicated Lori with a sweep of my hand.

Brook whipped around toward her. "Oh, God! I'm sorry! I hope I didn't. . . Oh, God! I called him a. . ."

Lori gave him a large, reassuring grin and quickly placed a calming hand on his arm. "Relax, Brook," she said. "David's my favourite uncle and I know he's gay. He's not seeing anyone right now and he thinks that he never will again because he's so short. I do know, though, that he hasn't been able to stop talking about you since he saw you and heard you singing at church this afternoon. But, most of all, I know that it's been a long, long time since I've seen him so happy and excited."

"So, you wouldn't have any objections to David and I getting to know each other?"

"Not at all," Lori told him firmly. "In fact, I would welcome it. Uncle David deserves a better life than he's had. It's hard enough for him being so short, but it's even worse that he's gay, too."

"Short is good," Brook smiled finally. "Short and gay is even better." Brook looked back toward David where he was standing and trying to figure out what colour of bill he should hand to the bartender. "Nice hair," Brook added. "Wouldn't want to scrap with him, though. Man, he's got a grip."

"He's in construction. Throws concrete blocks around. Barry and David arm wrestled a week ago," my Brad said.

"Really?" Brook asked curiously as he looked at Barry. "Who won?"

Barry simply smiled and said, "Stalemate."

Brook's eyes flew open. "Are you kidding me?" Then he looked at me. "Is he kidding me?"

"Nope."

"Damn," Brook whispered as he turned to watch as David returned with their drinks.

* * * * *

The twins were running on pure adrenaline. They had been awake since that morning and hadn't stopped. I knew that, when the crash ultimately came, it would be sudden and they would drop like rocks and be down for the count. Still, the excitement and the energy of the day kept them going and going and going - just like that pink little bunny with the big bass drum in the television commercials.

Despite our best efforts, Brad and I couldn't separate ourselves from them and they went everywhere we went. We continued our mingling and noted with some delight that Brook and David were getting along famously and rarely left each other's sides. Nathan noticed as well and I watched as he approached one of the catering staff who was making a final check of the tables before dinner was served and whispered something in her ear. Moments later, a place setting, complete with name card and chair, was moved from one table to another table where David would be eating with his niece and her husband and one other couple they didn't know. The table which once sat five now sat six.

David would no-longer the ‘odd man out'. He would not have to eat his dinner alone and, when the time came for the toasts, he would have someone with whom he could clink his glass of champagne.

It suddenly crossed my mind, however, that Brook probably didn't yet know that David lived thirteen hours away by bus and would be going back home within a week.

The thought was brief and fleeting, though. My mind was busy thinking about how surprised Brad was going to be when he finally learned where we were going on our honeymoon. If all went as planned, he would know before we cut the wedding cake.

I couldn't wait.

To Be Continued​

 

[BlueD]

another great chapter...make me happy for the day...thank you Neil

take care,
Blue

 

[ronboy]

Bravo Neil! Bravo!

 

[upyrkilt469]

Loved it Neil. Another great chapter, looking forward to the next one. Thanks for another great read.
Vic/COLOR]

 

[Caedmun]

Dear Neil:

I've been following your story for some months now, and look forward to sharing my first cup of coffee on Saturday mornings with you, Brad, and Ted.

I certainly appreciate the story you have written, and have been moved to tears, laughter, arousal, and anger many times, but I also appreciate how you've reached into your readers' lives and created a sense of community around your work.

I hope you will continue your excellent writing.

 

[Just4fun2]

Hi Neil! Well done! I just love my expanded family and you. I look forward to reading this wonderful story. I don't believe that a day goes by that I don't think about you, Ted and Brad and there wonderful family. I even think Connie is a better person now. I felt sorry for her, that is the first time for that.

Take care of yourself Neil and enjoy your life.

Thinking of you, always,

Chris

 

[Kyanimal]

Neil ...

You have Surpassed! Gone "Above and Beyond"!!

I don't have HALF of Your Talent! So ... please, understand, when I find it difficult to put into words, how THRILLED I am that this "Story" (I use quotes because it has become so Real!) is obviously destined "To Be Continued"!!

Keep smilin'!!
Chaz

 

[gsdx]

Thanks for your comments, my friends, (including you, Caedmun )

I hope this brought a satisfying conclusion to Connie. It had never been my intention to bring her back into the story, and I really had no idea what was going to happen with her when I brought her back.

When I started writing her return, though, and she began being all 'nicey-nice' to Ted, I was as much in the dark concerning her intentions as you were. Was she being sincere and honest in her 'change' or was she still 'acting' so she could get out and make Ted's life a living Hell? I didn't know. It wasn't until I began writing this chapter that I finally had my answer. I'm happy with the way it turned out and I hope you are, too.

Hugs and kisses to all of you!
Take care, always.
Neil

 

[DeafFoxDemon]

i am a big fan of this story, how many chapters are u planning to write??

 

[gsdx]

i am a big fan of this story, how many chapters are u planning to write??

As many as it takes to tell the story.

I really have no idea. My original plan was maybe 10 chapters or so. I missed it by a few.

 

[DeafFoxDemon]

kool, i am looking forward for the many more chapter u can write!!

 

[mpdan]

Has anyone out there in the land of JUB taken the time to print out this thread, comments and feedback included?

As a formerly hetero-married, recently out Gay dad of two (whew, that's a mouthful!) I have found the "Watching Brad" series to be enlightening, articulate, mood elevating and suspenseful - often at the same time. It has hit home more than once.

I have a straight sister who is compassionate but curious as to how her brother could suddenly "flip teams" in the mid-point of his life. GSDX manages to explain it to perfection. Yet my home printer is broken and while I'm sure she could handle the details of gay sex described in this thread, she would not be able to handle the porn pictures on the JUB homepage, much less the embarrassment should her teenage children find this address within the "history" folder. Come to think of it, there are several others I would love to share this story with.....

I would gladly pay printing and shipping costs, as well as compensation and/or a donation to the charity of your choice for time spent. Please PM me for contact info

Regards,
Dano

 

[BlueD]

@mpdan: I don't think you need to print out the whole thing. The only thing you need is the last chapter when Ted explains to Connie about their relationship. That gave us almost a perfect answer...Or you can select certain chapters and just print those. The thought of trying to print the whole story out, in my opinion, is ...painful. Good luck with that

 

[gsdx]

The thought of trying to print the whole story out, in my opinion, is ...painful. Good luck with that

Not only 'painful', but very expensive and somewhat impossible. There are, to date, 161 chapters and each chapter, when written, were anywhere from 7 to 15 printed pages (according to WordPerfect) and average between 9 and 10 pages.

When you do the math. . .