Page 53 of Michael's Awakening
My hands were in my pockets as I looked around, not knowing what to do.
“Michael, please have a seat,” David said and motioned toward one of the chairs.
I obliged and sat down. “Thank you.”
“Fancy chairs, huh?” The lines around David’s eyes creased as he smiled. “They were Elizabeth’s, my wife. She loved the Victorian era and lived for antiques. She was always dragging me to antique shops and garage sales, trying to add to her collection.” He patted the arm of the chair he was sitting in as a sad smile appeared on his face. “After she died, I didn’t have the heart to get rid of ‘em.”
“Gabriel has spoken very highly of her. She sounds like an extraordinary woman and you have my condolences.” After I spoke, we sat and watched the fire for a few minutes, both of us in deep contemplation.
David broke the silence. “Gabriel is a lot like Elizabeth, in both their attitudes as well as actions. She passed her love for the cello down to him when he was just a boy. I needed a pair of earplugs when she first started teaching him how to play.” He chuckled at the memory. “But she was so patient with him, and told him that he could be whatever he wanted to be and do whatever he wanted to do. The sky was the limit.”
“Well, you definitely don’t need earplugs now,” I said with a small grin.
David beamed. “No, I don’t. I couldn’t be any prouder of that boy.” His smile faltered a little. “When my wife passed away, I had moments where I thought being a single father to two growing boys was just too hard. Especially with one of them beingdifferent. I didn’t know how to handle Gabe at first. When Elizabeth was alive, she supported Gabe completely and told him to follow his heart and not change for anybody. She even took him clothes shopping and let him buy clothes from both the girls and boys departments, as well as buying him makeup and other girlie products. When she left, I wanted him to be normal. Growing up in a small, country town where everyone is set in a certain way of living can be challenging on a boy like him.”
He looked at the fire and took a deep breath. “I was terrified, to be honest. I wanted him to change, not because I didn’t love him… but because Ido. People didn’t understand him and I knew he would be bullied, and that just tore me up inside. I didn’t want my boy to have to endure that kind of hatred. And when his hormones kicked in full-swing, I was at a loss on how to act. Thankfully, those thoughts didn’t sit long with me. Being a parent, you accept and love your child no matter what. So I did. It wasn’t easy, but I honestly wouldn’t want him any other way than how he is now.”
From the other room, I heard Gabriel squeal and my lips curved up in a smile. What the hell was going on in there? David looked at me, obviously thinking the same thing. We both started laughing and shook our heads.
After sitting quietly for a few more minutes, David started talking again about his wife. “When I first met Elizabeth, she was a member of the Fort Smith Symphony and I had never seen anyone more beautiful in my life. It didn’t matter that she was in a group of other performers on that stage, she was all I saw.” His eyes misted over as he talked.
I knew the exact feeling he was describing, I had been the same way when I first laid eyes on Gabriel.
He continued. “We fell in love quickly and all of our friends told us it wouldn’t last, that we were too young and that it was too soon. We didn’t listen to our friends and thank the good Lord for that.” David’s blue eyes shifted to me and he regarded me with a thoughtful expression. “When it’s true love, though, time is not an element. There is no scientific formula for love; it is a thing of mystery that has astounded even the brightest of minds throughout the course of history.”
I held his gaze, unsure of exactly what he was trying to tell me.
“Michael, I can see the love in my son’s eyes when he looks at you. He stares at you the same way my Elizabeth stared at me. I have also seen that same look in your eyes when you watch him. I know you two haven’t been together long, but don’t let what is consideredreasonableget in the way. And definitely don’t let bigoted people come between you two. Love is too precious a gift to be thrown away.”
I was unable to speak for a moment as his words registered inside my head. He was giving Gabriel and me his blessing to be together.
“Thank you, David,” I finally uttered. “I love Gabriel more than I could ever express with words. He is everything to me.”
“Then you keep him safe.” He eyed me.
“I will,” I promised, and I meant it.
I would do everything in my power to keep my word.
