A Heart To Heart
#13 of Hockey Hunk Season 3
Lions and coffee.
Hehhey, and welcome to the Hockey Hunk!
Here's something for you guys! For this chapter, I am launching the HOCKEY HUNK LURKER CHALLENGE. This story gets a lot of reads, and I am most curious to hear from all of my readers. That's why I have decided, that if I get TWENTY NEW COMMENTATORS giving their opinion on this chapter or the story in general, I will be posting a Wednesday chapter next week.
That's right, if TWENTY (20!!) (XX) people whom I decide are not regular commentators leave a note, I shall be most pleased and will reward this activity with an extra chapter next Wednesday. How do you know that you're not regular? Well, IF YOU HAVE NOT COMMENTED ON THE PAST TWO CHAPTERS OR NEVER AT ALL, then you count as a newbie, and you will count towards the Lurker Challenge win. All you have to do is to leave a comment of a couple of lines, giving your thoughts. I'm sure that's not a problem! : )
Now, 20 may sound a big number, but considering that about 2-3 dozen people comment regularly on the story, and there are still hundreds of regular readers to begin with, I'm sure that we can fill that quota up in no time! We'll all be winners, too, considering that everyone gets an extra chapter, and I get to hear from my vocal readers.
So, let's work that peer pressure a bit and see the comments flood in. *chuckle* Either way, you guys are always awesome and show so much interest in the story that it's just fantastic. You really make this into something special for me. A very big cheers for that!
Have fun reading, y'all, and we'll see you on Monday, and hopefully, on Wednesday as well!
Cheerio!
*
I was well into my second mug of coffee, enjoyed over looking up some random news from Dad's computer, when my mother appeared in the doorway into the kitchen, shower fresh and encased in pink fluffy bathrobe and matching slippers that had little smiley faces on them. She even smelled of pink, which must have been due to some very ladylike shampoo she had lathered herself with. Mom was smiling, and her tail swayed from side to side pleasantly as she stood there, watching me sit there by the table in my wheelchair.
"Hey," mom grinned.
"Hey," I said, my eyes flashing over the edge of the computer screen in front of me.
Mom gave a huge yawn and then headed for the alluring sight of the coffeemaker on the kitchen island, which, at least to my knowledge, still contained some of the liquid black love that was called coffee. I chuffed and smiled at mom's eager look.
"When did they leave?" mom asked.
I ran the numbers through in my head and then gave the answer.
"Maybe forty-five minutes ago," I replied.
Mom made a clatter when she searched for a mug from the overhead kitchen cabinet. Her round ears flicked amiably.
"I hope dad remembers the paint he was planning to buy," mom mused cheerfully. "He was talking about all evening yesterday. He thinks the garage is going to rot if he doesn't fix that little patch on the side."
I snuffled.
"If we believe dad, the house has been tumbling down for the past 30 years," I replied.
Mom laughed cheerfully. It was a warm sound that made me smile, too, happily. It was a very mom-like feeling, of course, one that could not be replicated under other circumstances.
"Well that's dad," mom declared while pouring herself a mugful.
Mom was practically purring by the time she reached the table and sat herself down comfortably. Mom liked her coffee black, and thus she only had to stir it a little to make it cool down to her taste. Her paw went around in a gentle circle over the steamy mug. She was still rumbling a little, and softly.
"I can't believe how dad managed to convince Justin to go to Sears with him," mom chuckled.
I smiled and took a sip from my own half-full mug. It was nice enough to make my tail flap about pleasantly.
"I think I heard the words 'new' and 'iPhone' in the same sentence amidst the general convincing dad chatter," I replied with a lopsided grin well plastered on my lips.
Mom snickered.
"Ohhh he knows how to pull the right strings with Justin alright," mom sounded as cheerful as ever. "What is it with you boys and your gadgets?"
I shrugged theatrically.
"I dunno," I smiled.
Mom smiled back.
"Well, as long as he also manages to get Justin to choose some clothes he likes, we can call it an early birthday present if he does end up buying a phone as well," mom said.
"I'm sure he won't mind," I flicked an ear in her direction.
"I'm more worried that your dad wants a new phone," mom grinned. "You've seen how he is with the one has now."
"I have," I nodded, with plenty of experience over the past couple of weeks to concur that mom wasn't just having a bit of fun at my dad's expense. "It was quite fun to see how he acted when he thought he had lost the recharge cable."
Mom shook her head and chuffled.
"I wish Justin would have filmed that with his phone," mom chuckled.
I snuffled and smiled. Mom's sense of humour had not really changed over the years, and I was glad to make that discovery once more.
Mom stretched out her paws up high over her head and then purred deeply, obviously enjoying the gesture.
"Enjoyed your run?" I inquired.
Mom chuckled.
"Sure," she says. "I feel like I'm going to have a coronary by the end, but after the shower I feel like I'm reborn!"
I smiled.
"Still doing the old five miles every morning?" I asked curiously.
"Of course," mom replied. "I wouldn't have it otherwise. Gotta keep in shape if I want to keep barking orders at those 20-something boys that call themselves police officers."
Mom puffed out her chest and adopted a stern face which I suspected was close to her "barking orders" face she employed at the police station, and she kept it up for a moment before it melted into a playful smile again. I smiled back.
That was Captain Gliese for you, I guessed.
"Yeah," I smirked.
Mom stirred her coffee some more before she took a thirsty sip and then smacked her lips in approval.
"I can't believe you still put milk in yours," she pointed her paw towards my own mug.
I snuffled.
"Guess I got that habit from dad," I mused.
"Like you got the lactose intolerance I bet," mom snickered.
I chuffed.
"Yeah," I rumbled.
"Well as long as it's got caffeine in it."
"Hear hear," I tapped the floor with my tail for emphasis.
"Did you sleep alright?" mom asked now. "Did dad and Justin wake you up?"
"Yeah," I replied. "They did, asking me if I wanted to go shopping with them, and I said no."
"Awwww..."
"It's fine," I smiled. "Can't sleep until twelve every day, after all. Gotta keep trying to get into a bit more normal rhythm and all that."
"Still having trouble sleeping?" mom asked.
I snuffled a bit.
"Yeah, a little bit."
"Is it the leg?" mom asked instantly.
It wasn't the leg, not anymore. I was still stiff and I wasn't allowed to put my weight on it, but it no longer felt like someone had just smacked a hammer at my thigh. I hadn't even needed the Vicodin for a couple of days anymore, to get a proper sleep when I did finally get to sleep, so I guess I was well on the mend.
No, there were other reasons to my insomnia, namely, Victor Holden, Peter Sinclair, and Haakon Kjerulf.
It was the lack of Victor that was mostly on my mind, most deeply, of course. We had a stilted discussion over the phone on Wednesday, and now it was Saturday, and we still hadn't had the Talk of All Talks, which I had envisioned would be the one where we would settle things and then proceed onwards in our relationship, for the good or the bad. The problem now was, as indicated by the conversation on Wednesday, that Victor wasn't in the mind to talk with me AT ALL for the moment. His reasons had been good, I supposed, but still...I was still worried.
"I'm a bit sore."
_ _
"I'm tired, sorry."
_ _
"Can't let Cobb hear."
_ _
"Not sure if this is something you want to talk over the phone, Rory."
_ _
"I need to think about it."
_ _
"I need some time."
_ _
"I'm sorry, Rory."
_ _
Well I was sorry too. I wanted to tell him as much, and I did, again, by telling the Dobie that I was sorry about everything, about all the omissions and the incident with Haakon and about not telling about Colin and everything surrounding that unhappy event in the life of Rory. I told him all that, and that I would wait for him to be ready, and Victor...well...he said that he was sorry, too, and that...that there would be the need for some more time.
How much time, that I didn't know, and that worried me on a daily basis.
I had talked about it with Peter, whom was now accommodating my late-staying habit and appeared online to talk with me, but he was obviously most determined to cheer me up, and rather wanted to talk about funny things. Life. College years. Something funny he saw on the news. Something funny George said, at some time. Something fun that happened with me and him, during our wild years of beret-wearing, wine, song and anal sex. Back when it seemed to be so simple and life wasn't filled with so many mistakes. Peter was doing a good job, though, he made me smile, and that was good. It felt normal. Simple. Good.
A bit like Haakon...
Surprisingly, the lynx had appeared on three nights now, twice after that momentous late hour when he popped THE question at me just like that and made me almost shit my pants. He seemed to be in the habit of staying up late, too, because I had only seen the frat boy in the hours between 11 pm and 2 am, chatting up a storm with me of all furs. We'd speak about a few college things, maybe he'd have a question about something I tried to answer, and he'd ask how I was doing, and tell that that Mason was wondering when I would be getting back to work.
We were quiet, though. I didn't ask him about the mess with Mason that was still fresh in my mind, thinking that it was something I probably should ask from the wolf himself, considering that I could not be sure just how much the lynx had talked about it with Mason. I didn't want to tell Haakon about the man-date, since I thought that it was definitely a possibility that the whole punch affair had been an attempt to distract the lynx from the fact that Mason had been out drinking with a dude, and someone whom Haakon even at that point would have 99% certainly been suspecting to be a gay man. I had to sort that particular thing out myself. Conversely, Haakon had not made further questions about me and Victor, which was a relief since there was always the chance that I might have spilled out about the fact that I was in severe trouble when it came to my relationship with the friendly Dobie, and that was not something the frat dude needed to hear. I was glad for his discretion, and surprised, too, considering that pretty often my discussions of homosexuality with straight guys had ended up being somewhat... unfortunate.
It wasn't the leg.
"I just..." I stared at the wall instead of looking mom in the eye, and caught sight of the calendar there.
"Yes?" mom caught with me immediately.
My years flicked sharply. My chest tightened a little. I knew I had to offer some explanation now, and make it good for mom, because moms always knew if you didn't speak the truth. I wasn't about to lie to her, either, though. I had no need to for that kind of mess, anyway.
"Just kinda wish I could get back to my normal life," I rumbled.
Mom clapped her paws together once and gave me another mommy smile.
"Ohhh I know, Rory," she sounded so concerned that I had the instant urge to give her a hug, just to tell that I was alright, on the most basic level. "It's so terrible that you can't walk and you can't be with your friends in your own home. Not that we have minded you here, no, of course not! We've loved you being here again with us. Justin's been all over you."
I smiled a little to myself at the idea of my gloomy brother being all over me.
"Yeah," I spoke through the thin smile on my lips.
Mom reached over the table and caught my paw. Hers was warm from the coffee mug, a bit fluffy on the top from the shower, and just like I remembered, big enough to easily cover my own. Mom was smiling still, though her eyes were somewhat serious.
"It'll be alright," mom said. "You'll get that leg back into business, and then you'll be back to doing all your usual things, Rory."
"I know," I rumbled.
"And you've got that boy waiting there, too," mom grinned. "I'm sure that...Victor...can't wait to see you again!"
I felt a pang of guilt in my heart. My misinformation campaign had been going full steam ever since my family had barged into my hospital room in Kirk City. I had told them as little as possible about my relationship with Victor, which had felt like the best way to go considering the precarious and fluid status of the said relationship to begin with. I had answered the basic questions, of course. Had we known long. What did he do for a living. Was he good-looking. Did he have a job. Did he smoke? Was he flaming?
All the usual. At least dad hadn't asked if we use condoms or not when we had sex. Wouldn't have been the first time.
"Yeah," I rumbled. "I can't wait to see him."
Those words were as true as they'd ever be.
Mom smiled.
"Well that's nice," she said, and sounded she meant it. "I hope that when you both have the time off, you'll be coming over together. I'm sure Justin would love to meet Victor...not to mention us!"
There was a certain amount of Cobb-like enthusiasm in her demeanour that made me wonder whether the Family Gliese could offer such an...interesting welcome to someone who in their eyes was seen as a potential new family members. They were certainly old-fashioned enough to think that bringing someone home meant that it was a serious affair, and that of course was what they had in mind. That's what mom had in mind, at least. They wanted me to be happy, settle in, not be a flamer, meet someone nice, and have a quiet, ordinary life that would make me happy, and wouldn't make them worry about me.
Sometimes I wondered if they'd worried me about as much if I'd been normal.
"Thanks, mom," I said.
What else could I say? It could've been worse. I could have been kicked out. I'd met furs like that, those whose families pretended they didn't even exist. If I'd ever felt my family had ever had a really bad reaction to it, then I would have been exaggerating matters. Yes, there were reactions, and consequences, but nothing that had shattered the very composition of the four of us. I felt I was lucky, and I felt good for that, if there were good things to feel good about, that certainly was one.
"You haven't brought anyone home since Graham," mom added.
I wanted to bristle a little. I knew that she meant well, in her own way, but the mention of the leopard was still something that probably could have been without. It had all ended up becoming such a mess, after all, and to have my family involved like that...I was sure that it probably wasn't such a good memory for them either.
I swallowed and recomposed myself.
"I haven't had anyone since Graham, mom" I said calmly. "You know that."
Mom's paw was still on mine, and remained there as a gentle presence.
"Oh I know," mom said. "I'm just saying."
"I know," I tried to smile a little, to assure her that I didn't think she had overstepped my comforts. "It's fine."
Mom patted my paw and then returned it to her coffee mug.
"He sounds really nice," mom mused.
I nodded softly.
"He is very nice," I replied. "He's got a great family, too."
YEAH YEAH I WONDER WHY RORY THINKS THAT MY HUNKY BROTHER VICTOR'S GOT A GREAT FAMILY OF COURSE ITS GREAT BECAUSE ONE MEMBER OF THAT FAMILY IS JACOB HOLDEN AND THAT'S COBB AND HES GONNA MAKE SURE THAT WHEN HE GETS TO MEET RORYS FAMILY HES GONNA MAKE THE BEST IMPRESSION AND MAKE SURE THAT RORYS FAMILY WILL WANT THAT VICTOR AND RORY CAN STAY TOGETHER FOREVER AND THEY WILL BE SUPPORTED BY COBB YEAH!
"That's good to hear," mom nodded, happily oblivious to the presence of the RORY-COBB threatening to raise his strange head within my mind.
"Yeah," I smiled quietly.
I bought time by sipping my coffee, and mom did the same. I wondered whether she, too, needed a moment after this...sensitive discussion, and whether she needed time to consider everything that had been said. This probably wasn't the usual All American mother-son conversation you would expect to hear.
"I'm sorry, too, Rory," mom spoke once she had her mug down on the table again.
My ears flicked curiously. Mom looked a little bit tense, and I was definitely feeling it myself, though I couldn't quite place the feeling. My own tail flapped in a brief bout of nervousness as I waited for it.
"What for?" I asked.
Mom rubbed her arm and looked at me for a moment as she obviously was composing her thoughts into a form she thought due.
"I'm sorry it took this long before we could have this talk," she said. "You've been home for two weeks now and I've been so busy with work that I've felt like I've...neglected you, Rory."
Oh.
"Oh," I said, too.
Mom hugged herself, practically, while she watched me across the table.
"I feel I could've done more."
"It's alright," I hurried to speak up. "You've all been helping me out a lot! Dad's been around as much as he can, and even Justin's been really helpful."
Mom smiled a little.
"Well I'm glad about that," mom said.
I smiled toothily.
"Like the old times, mom," I replied, hoping to enthuse her a little after this sudden bout of gloominess on my mom's part. "Except maybe that Justin no longer needs to have his diapers changed."
Mom gave a good hearty cat snuffle-chuckle.
"It does him well to have his big brother around," she said. "It's a bit new to him, all told, but I can see how it's affecting him. Having someone to look up to."
I wondered she was meaning that literally or in the sense that I might be someone Justin could grow up to admire, as a person and a brother, of course. What a funny thought. I might have been many things, but being worthy of acting as a role model to a growing lion? Weeell....
"It's new to me too," I replied.
Mom smiled.
"What did you have for breakfast, Rory?" mom's eyes surveyed the kitchen.
My ears flopped briefly.
"Uhh..." I snuffled. "Nothing yet...uh...dad and Justin had already eaten when I came over and..."
Mon chuffed loudly.
"Well that won't do!" mom declared and got up from her chair. "I'm going to make porridge for both of us!"
My eyes widened a little.
"Porridge?" I exclaimed.
Mom stormed over to the stove and was already in a flurry, going around the place to find a suitable pot.
"Of course," my mom's tail was busy painting number eights behind her pink-hued back. "We gotta get that strength of yours back up, and for that you need lots of fibre and long-lasting carbohydrates."
Now wasn't this going to be interesting?
*
Thank you for reading my story!
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