I followed Roy inside his house and waited at the entrance to the kitchen while he washed his grease covered hands.
“So, what do you have to say to me about my son?” he asked, wiping his hands on a kitchen towel.
And suddenly what I had wanted to say to him wouldn’t come out. I just stood there for a moment, looking at Roy, my mouth frozen.
“Well? It must be important to you, or you wouldn’t have come all the way out here just to tell me.”
“I think what you’re doing to him is wrong,” I blurted out.
Roy looked at me and laughed. “Well, I think what you’re doing to him is wrong too.” I could feel my face heating up, but I knew I had to keep talking.
“He’s your son, Roy.”
“Not anymore,” Roy said quietly, bitterly.
“So you can just stop having a son? Is that it? Well, let me tell you something Roy, you can’t. Just because you don’t agree with his life doesn’t stop him from being your flesh. Your blood.”
Roy shook his head, but he didn’t say anything.
“You know that deep down inside you love JC with all your heart, and you miss him. Why are you doing something that just hurts you both?”
Then Roy whirled on me, and suddenly his face was in mine. “This is your fault, you know? You made him this way!” Roy said angrily, almost shouting. I shook my head, trying to keep my cool. “No, Roy. It wasn’t me.”
He pulled away, a look of disgust on his face. “Why, Lance? Why did you ruin my family?”
I shook my head again. “I didn’t ruin your family Roy. You did.”
“Get out of my house,” Roy said, his voice a dangerous whisper.
“What bothers you more, Roy? The fact that JC is gay or the fact that he’s with me?”
“I said get out,” Roy repeated.
“Okay, I’ll go. I just want to tell you one more thing. JC loves you, so much it makes me sick, because someone as cruel to their son as you are doesn’t deserve his love.”
If that didn't get through to him, nothing would.
*
Once I was outside, I called for a cab. Then I called Joey.
“Man, where are you? JC is freaking out, he keeps talking about something he said that he didn’t mean and how much he loves you and how he’ll never get to tell you because you hate him now and-”
“Joey, I’m okay. Tell JC that I’ll be home in a little while.”
“Where are you?” he asked.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon,” I said.
“Lance, can’t you just-”
“Listen Joey, I have to go, my cab just got here. I’ll talk to you later. Bye.” I hung up my cell phone and started walking over to the cab.
“Lance! Wait!”
I looked over to see Roy jogging over to me, a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. He stopped once he reached me.
“Is there room in your cab for one more?” he asked.
“Why?” I questioned, fighting back my smile.
“I want to go back with you,” he said. “I want to talk to my... son.”
*
