Page 50 of Yours To Save

He gave her a confused look but couldn’t bring himself to reciprocate the gesture. His eyes quickly found Michael, who had refused to acknowledge him whatsoever. The angry blond Harry Potter looking young man had his hoodie up, probably headphones in his ears as he continued ignoring them. Michael was furiously glaring at Sarah, his hands balled into fists so tight his knuckles were white. His knee was bouncing under the table in a nervous manner. Even though he was of delicate stature, he looked like a ferocious fireball.

What the hell is going on?

Sarah didn’t seem too hurt by his refusal to shake her hand. “Please take a seat. People are staring at us. There is no need to cause a scene.” She glanced at Logan for the second time since their arrival. She still hadn’t bothered to introduce herself or address Logan in any way. Sammy decided not to amend that, as Sarah didn’t deserve to know his name if she wasn’t willing to be respectful to his lover. “I didn’t realize you would be bringing a friend.” She gave Logan another annoyed look.

Sammy wasn’t having it. “You were quite vague what this meeting was about. If you had wanted me to come alone, you should have specified that.”

Sarah being standoffish was making him question this whole situation all over again. He didn’t waste too much time dwelling on it, as Michael had his full attention. Something was definitely wrong with the kid. He remembered meeting James’s parents and how eager he had been to talk to them. This boy acted like Sammy was the plague. They sat down, Logan pulling his chair closer to Sammy. He turned to Michael and waved lightly to get his attention. “Hi, Michael.”

Without skipping a beat, the boy spat out, “Fuck off!”

Sammy looked up at Logan, but he seemed just as confused as he was. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”

Sarah cleared her throat. The sound brought him back to his childhood years. She’d always done that. Perhaps it was a nervous tick of some kind, when she was about to throw him under the bus and blame shit on him while their parents had still been alive. “I asked you to meet with us because I was hoping you could talk to Michael and share your experience as a homosexual man.”

Her entire delivery made his skin crawl, alarm bells ringing all throughout his brain. He felt Logan’s hand tighten on his thigh and he knew his lover was waiting for a signal to get them both out of there. He was pretty sure, that Logan had already slipped his card into the pocket of Michael’s big winter jacket that hung over his chair. His eyes darted to the boy that was now openly glaring at him.

“What’s your problem, kid?” he snapped, suddenly feeling uncomfortable.

“I can’t believe you agreed to this! To come here with your boyfriend, nonetheless, to talk me out of beinggay!” His voice had climbed, and his chin had begun trembling. Michael may have been slight of stature, delicate and fair, but he was burning hot with the injustice he’d clearly been put through. It broke Sammy’s heart to notice the signs of physical exhaustion on him – dark circles under his eyes, hollowed cheeks, blotchy skin and chapped lips. His cuticles were bloodied around his nails, and the tremors of his hands were easily noticeable. Michael never took his eyes from him. “She said, you were dead to her.”

Sammy was completely taken aback by this statement. Before he could scramble to come up with something to say, Michael went on.

“I wasn’t allowed to talk to you. The dirty homosexual that lives in New York – that’s how my parents refer to you. She calls you sodomite for fuck’s sake! But I fucking hoped to meet you one day. I hoped you could…” He choked on a sob, that was absolutely heartbreaking. Logan leaned over to the boy and placed his hand on his shoulder to try and soothe him. Sarah was observing them with obvious discomfort. She scanned the restaurant, clearly worried his outburst had attracted more attention. It certainly had.

Sammy snapped at her, “What the hell is going on?”

She may have been uncomfortable, that they were effectively causing a scene, but she went on with her planned agenda, without ever batting an eyelash. “I wanted Michael to meet you so that you could tell him about your negative experiences living as a homosexual man. It is important to me and his father, he understands that his choices are not healthy, and they will only lead him down a path of destruction and mental health degradation.”

Sammy was looking at her in complete shock. “What the fuck is wrong with you? Choices? You think Michael just woke up a week ago and decided he was into dudes just to spite you?”

She didn’t answer him. Her lips formed a thin line. Sarah looked at him with disdain as if to say, that yes, she truly believed this was all a silly game Michael was playing.

Sammy turned to the boy. Michael had begun trembling, and Sammy could clearly see his skin had gone ashen and damp. He was physically feeling sick from this whole ordeal, and there was no way Sammy would put him through any more suffering.

He spoke to Michael, reaching for his hand. “Buddy, I had no idea this was a setup. I would never do this to you or anyone else. Please believe me when I tell you, I would love nothing more than to be your family and your friend.”

Michael looked hesitant but reached out and clasped his hand.

Sarah scoffed. “Wow! Really, Samuel? Grooming a minor?” She turned to Michael. “This is what awaits you, Michael. Perverted old men taking advantage of your weak mental health.”

Sammy felt Michael stiffen in his seat, but he didn’t withdraw his hand. Instead, he turned to Sarah and spat out, “You’re insane. I can’t believe I thought––”

His sister hissed, leaning forward, “What? That I want to be associated with you? There’s a reason why I drove three hours away from my home to meet you in this Podunk town.”

Logan rolled his eyes, chuckled then stood up. He had clearly had enough of Sarah. He took Michael by the elbow, gently pulling him up to his feet when he hesitated a bit, then exchanged a quick look with Sammy. “I’m taking Michael out for some fresh air.”

“Get your filthy hands off him!” Sarah demanded, struggling to keep her voice low.

Logan ignored her, then turned to Michael. “Michael, how old are you?”

He looked at him confused, but then mumbled “I’ll be twenty in two months.”

Logan grinned. “Come on dude, let’s go. She can’t tell you shit.”

Michael hesitated for another moment, but Logan’s confident kind face finally convinced him, and he got up and followed him out of the bistro, ignoring Sarah when she hissed after him to get back. Sammy just watched, feeling disappointed and hollow, as his sister’s carefully curated façade began to crack. She hissed after them, “Michael!” But Logan had thrown his arm over Michael’s shoulders and was safely guiding him out, quietly murmuring something in his ear.

When Michael and Logan were finally out of sight, he watched her face twist into an angry grimace as she hissed at him, “I’ll call the police!”

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