{"sf1_id":1120214,"sf2_id":null,"title":"Untouchable: Chapter 48: Reversion: Sean","author":"Dars","words":2473,"posted_at":"2017-01-08T08:24:00.000Z","tags":["Anthropomorphic","Border Collie","Cat","City","Family","Gay","Interspecies","Male","Novel","Plot Development","Relationships","Romance","Story Series","Tiger","Wolf"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1120214-untouchable-chapter-48-reversion-sean","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/1120214","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=1120214\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"","content":"\"Sean are you ok,\" Jessi asked just outside Mr.\nFrank's office.\"Yes, no, I don't know I'm just sleepy, I was in the\nhospital my allergy meds had an interaction with something else,\" Sean said\nthen thought, why didn't I just call in sick and go home.\"You have no\nhome you don't belong,\" his shadow said.\"If you need to get rest, I can tell Franks you had\nto go home sick,\" Jessi said.\"Maybe, I don't know, I'm already here... So who's\nhe talking to in there?\" Sean asked while he tried to ignore his stomach\npains and other thoughts.\"Oh, some Pack big wig Franks knows came in,\"\nJessi said.Sean got out of the pleather chair then he said,\n\"Oh... I think I'll go home sick Jessi, can you let Fr-\"\"Sean office now!\" Franks barked the office\ndoor flew open.\"Alpha, I hate this day,\" Sean thought.\"He knows and\nmade it just for you, as you deserve.\"Sean walked into the office noting with satisfaction and\nshame his dads swollen eye, then sat in the chair Mr. Franks indicated.\"Karl stopped by to see if you had made it into work\ntoday, Sean are you alright... cause you don't look or smell it,\" Franks said.\"I'm fine, I went to channel five and the debate\nthey are planning is getting a bit personal, I think I might not be able to do\nit,\" Sean said. Dad sat up ears raised he asked, \"What do you mean\npersonal?\"\"George Hastles from camp is a participant,\" I said.Dad wilted, \"Oh...\"\"Why is that a problem?\" Franks asked.\"Dad do you want to explain?\" I asked.\"Yes, make him\nexplain it, what he did. He should say it in front of his friend.\"\"Mr. Hastles ran a camp in Montana, that I never\nshould have sent my son too,\" Dad said staring at me with his one open\neye.\"Well a Vivian e-mailed me that there was a conflict\nbetween you and this Hastles, guy, but I think we should have the full debate, Sean\nI want you to do it, can you put your personal matters aside?\" Franks asked.\"Don't get\nforced into it, you're sick of being forced, made to do everything everyone\nelse wants you to do.\"\"Excuse me! If George wasn't making demands that it\nbe face to face, maybe I could, but I will never be in the same room as that\nman, Alpha so help me,\" Sean growled then stood.\"Sean wait I'll talk to him,\" Dad said.\"Stay out of this dad,\" Sean snapped,\n\"Franks, you're my boss, but you don't have to be, I told you I won't work\nwith George, you have two options have me on the project or some random\nbigot.\"Franks said, \"Well as your boss I want you on the\nproject debating that bigot, you have been working against what he stands for,\nfor years, but as a family friend I think you-\"\"I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU THINK! I will not be in the\nsame room as that man, Good day!\" Sean said then rushed out of the office.\"That's right\nyou don't need them, you don't need anyone.\"\"Sean what's wrong?\" Jessi asked.Sean just kept up his pace leaving her question behind.He decided he wanted to visit the University district,\ndespite it being a long walk, in a daze he marched onward to the front doors.\"Xander is a\nsin, Oliver is a sin, Paul is a sin. Xander you play games with, Oliver you\nbate, and Paul you will ra-\"\"Shut up, I don't want to sin anymore, I don't want\nto hurt, I won't hurt anyone anymore,\" Sean thought.\"Sean,\" Dad called behind him, \"Please let\nme help.\"\"What makes you think you get to help me now, you\ncaused this, and you weren't there when I needed it,\" Sean said paws\nclenched.\"I'm sorry Sean,\" Dad said.\"You're not sorry it's been ten years why do you\nwant to talk about it all now,\" Sean said.\"He just wants\nyou to be the son he didn't have.\"\"Because you need to talk now I can tell, I... I\ndidn't know what to do, I failed you Sean,\" Dad said.\"You did and you did nothing to fix it,\" Sean said.Dad moved closer, Sean yelled, \"Stay away from me,\ndamnit!\"Then Sean ran from dad and his coworkers' shocked\nexpressions scattered around the lobby.He sniffled barely navigating his way up 4th Ave, passersby\nasked if he was ok but he brushed them all off. He tried and failed to get\ncontrol of himself.He took a wrong turn on Denny and ended up walking the\nedge of Aurora towards Fremont, he walked north, his destination forgotten,\nremembering only the first time home wasn't home anymore.  \"Honey, Xander's\nhere do you want to come down?\" Mom asked outside my door. Her nails\nclicked at the door while she waited.\"Fine I'll\ncome down, I like the O'Connell family, well most of them,\" I snapped.Before I could do\nanything Xander burst through the door.\"Sean I... I\nwanted to talk to you,\" Xander said.\"Mom close the\ndoor, Xander and I need to talk,\" I said paws clenched.Xander nervously\nlooked at my paws, \"What do you want to hit me again.\"\"No I'm sorry,\nit just hurts to see you,\" I said.\"Oh... I can\nleave, I missed you... a lot, I'm sorry Sean,\" Xander said ears drooped,\nthen turned to the door.\"I missed you\ntoo,\" I said while I avoided looking at him, it made me feel weird, kinda\nprickly, like my paw fell asleep being near him.Xander's ear perked\nup, \"You did? I was worried you'd hate me now.\"\"I don't hate\nyou, I just feel differently now,\" I said, I felt guilty but knew it was\ntrue.\"I don't Sean,\nI'll wait till you feel the same again,\" Xander said.I said, \"You\ncan't do that, you need to-\"\"You said I\nshould ask if you are still you... Are we good, Sean?\" Xander said.\"I...I don't\nknow,\" I said, \"Does it matter at this point?\"\"You always\nmatter to me, you're my best friend,\" Xander said while he shuffled back a\npace.\"I don't know\nwho I am anymore, but I'm not attracted to you Xander,\" I said, but wished\nit weren't true.\"Oh well\nthen... I'll just be your best friend,\" Xander said and shivered.\"We can be\nfriends if we still have things in common,\" I said.\"Ok, did you think\nabout me at camp?\" Xander asked.\"Yeah, but I\nspent most of my time trying not to think about you because it's not\nright,\" I said.Xander choked,\n\"Are you glad to see me now at least?\"\"Not really...\nlike I said it's weird.\"\"Oh... we were\ngoing to the creek and-\" Xander dashed from the room when he started to\ntear up.My eyes burned but\nI wouldn't cry. I did the long slow breaths they showed me at camp, then went\ndown stairs.Mr. O'Connell and\nDad were in the living room fighting, \"Karl I don't want you telling my\nson he is or isn't ok, I lost so much trust and respect for you, if he does go\nyou keep him safe nothing else,\" Mr. O'Connell snapped.\"I don't tell\nyou how to raise your pups,\" Dad growled.\"If you had,\nI'd have known what you were doing wrong,\" Mr. O'Connell snapped back.\"Well I can't\nhave them in the same room,\" Dad said.\"I'll find a\nway to pay for his room if you're going to be like that we offer to have Sean\ncome camping with us and you assume, it's so our son can cavort in a tent, you\nignorant jerk!\" Mr. O'Connell snapped.I saw mom and Mrs.\nO'Connell outside and slipped out the front door.\"Mom is Xander\ncoming, dad and Pa are arguing about it,\" I asked.\"Yes honey I think\nso, Right Erin?\" Mom asked Mrs. O'Connell, while she glanced at me like a\nfallen Wasps nest.\"Yes, he wants\nto go, do you want him to go?\" Mrs. O'Connell asked.\"I guess it's\njust weird going on a vacation when I haven't seen anyone in three\nmonths,\" I said, then asked, \"Where did Sam and Sharron go?\"\"Oh, they went\nwith Xander off to the creek,\" Mom said.I debated going\nover but decided if I was stuck with them all till school started I should be\nnice.I wandered down the\nstreet to the trees that led the way down to the creek.I walked quietly,\nsniffed and listened for them. Their scents came from the left, further down\nthe creeks flow. When I got closer, I heard splashes, they were probably making\nanother rock dam.\"So you're\ncoming even if you guys aren't friends anymore,\" Sam asked.\"Well he is\ncoming even though he doesn't want to be family anymore,\" Sharron said\nthen there was another splash.I wondered if I\nshould turn back and leave, but Sam sniffed the air scenting me.\"Sean I know\nyou're there,\" Samantha said.\"Hey,\" I said\ncoming to the bank standing eye to eye with Sharron and Sam who stood in the\ncreek.\"Finally\ntalking to us?\" Sharron asked.\"I guess, we\nhave this last summer all together, so I guess we should make the best of\nit,\" I said paws in my pockets.\"Fine... How\nwas camp?\" Sharron asked.\"...I think\nI'll go back to my room,\" I said then turned.\"No, Sean if\nyou don't want to talk about it that's fine, we'll talk about something\nelse,\" Samantha said.\"I never want\nto talk about that place again,\" I said.\"Fine I'll\nnever bring it up,\" Xander said.\"Good, so you\ntwo went out of state,\" I said.\"I got a\nbetter offer in Colorado,\" Samantha said with a shrug.\"That's good,\nstill planning on medicine?\" I asked while I looked for a rock to pass to Sharron.Xander passed one\nto Samantha, then said, \"I wish we could all go together.\"\"Well you made\nyour choice didn't you,\" Sharron growled at Xander.\"It's not a\nchoice,\" Xander said.\"Everything is\na choice, it's just a matter of how often you have to make that choice,\" Samantha\nsaid.\"And you think\nI chose to be gay or that Sean chose to be gay?\" Xander asked.\"I don't know,\nit feels like you're picking him over me, we made all these plans...\" Sharron\nsaid.\"We all made\nplans like that but we are different now,\" I said, then asked, \"Why\nare we doing this I me it's passing the time, but it's a pup thing?\"I could tell\neverything was pretty around me and this could be an idyllic memory but\neverything felt muted and dull.\"Because we do\nthis every year before heading south,\" Samantha said.\"-We have to\ngrow up, but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy things anymore,\" Xander said.\"So if we\ncan't talk about camp what are we supposed to do pretend you weren't gone for\nmonths?\" Sharron asked.I thought about\nNeal's letter, how everyone ignored his absence. I'd prefer that to talking\nabout it, then said, \"I didn't want to be at that camp, it was either\nthat, or not go to college. So yeah, pretend I wasn't gone, for all I\ncare.\"I watched all their\nears drop, the silence lingered, then I asked, \"How was prom?\"Xander drifted\nupstream on the bank to find more rocks. Sharron did the same downstream.\"Sean, I went\nwith Xander... and Sharron went with a pack member, you know Zach right?\" Samantha\nsaid quietly.\"But they were\ngoing together, or planned to... before,\" I said.\"Yeah she really\ndidn't know,\" Samantha said.\"That he's\ngay, really?\" I asked then pulled a stone from the dirt for Samantha.\"No she really\ndidn't, she moped for a week then started hunting a replacement,\" Samantha\nsaid.\"So she chose\na program at the school Zach's going to right?\" I asked.\"Yeah they\nhave been dating for three months now,\" Samantha said.I said,\n\"That's different, well what can we expect when-\"\"Hey gang we\nare loading up the car in thirty,\" mom called down the creek.\"We're almost\ndone mom,\" Samantha called back.\"Good, see you\nsoon,\" Mom said.Sharron and Xander\nreturned with large rocks.I passed Samantha a\ncinder block I found in the brush.\"So what's\nnew?\" I asked.\"Muse came out\nwith a new CD,\" Xander said with a shrug.\"Yeah that one's\nok, but you should listen to the new Sanctus Real, Toby Mac and ReliantK,\nalbums,\" Sharron said setting the last stone needed to finish the dam. We\nstood on the bank as the creak rose filling the small pool we made a few\ninches. Then it made a small waterfall four inches tall over the top of our\ndam.\"I'm glad\nyou're here Sean, I missed you,\" Samantha said which got agreement from Xander\nand Sharron.\"...I missed\nyou all too. I'm sorry, I didn't want to see you or talk to you when I got\nhere. I keep feeling jealous of the time you got to have together without me,\nright before we all leave,\" I said then clenched my teeth as my arm\ntingled with phantom ice.Samantha took my\npaw and then grabbed Xander's. Sharron took my other paw, then we stood and watched\nthe creak, while we heard it tell us the stories of year after year of games,\nadventures, and dams in its gurgling burbles.\"Come on, we\ncan't keep all those lines at the airport or in the park waiting,\" Dad\ncalled down from the sidewalk.We lingered a\nlittle while longer then Xander said, \"I really hope this isn't the last\ntime we do this, even if we become crotchety old farts lets promise to do this\nagain.\"\"Crotchety Sharron\nand Sean are pretty much there,\" Samantha said then dashed back toward the\nsidewalk before we could retort.I ran after her but\nwas quickly out paced by Samantha and Sharron's longer legs, Sharron said,\n\"Take that back or you're sitting with Sean.\"\"Why is\nsitting with me a bad thing,\" I said while I huffed and puffed to keep up\nwith Xander just a bit behind me.\"Well you are\nthe old one, we are worried you be farting soon,\" Xander yelled.When we got to the\nhouse Mom and Dad, and Mr. and Mrs. O'Connell were chatting somewhat stiffly.\"So Xander\nyou're welcome to come, your parents say it's ok,\" Mom said.\"Ok, I'll grab\nmy things from the car,\" Xander said then ran to his parents minivan tail\nwagging.I went up to my\nroom and quickly finished packing, then I programmed Neal's number into my phone.We loaded the car\nand got on the road. Xander sat with Sharron in the middle row and Sam and I\nhad the back. She was reading some medical magazine while Sharron and Xander\nbickered about raising pups and being gay.I rested my head\nagainst the glass. I'm a stranger in my own family, Xander's more their son\nthen I am now.  A car honked at Sean while he crossed the street onto the\nAurora bridge walkway. Chipped concrete ground under the soles of his shoes\nwhen he jogged onto the bridge, then slowed to watch the boats and seagulls\nhundreds of feet down below.\"If only you could\nfly, you'd be free.\"\n\"I wish I was free, that would be nice,\" Sean thought.","previous":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1119286-untouchable-chapter-47-steadfast-xander.json","next":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1120738-untouchable-chapter-49-as-good-as-damned-oliver.json"}