Chapter XIX

       In the days that followed, things returned more or less to normal.  For the most part, the guys at school accepted David and me, and our popularity didn’t suffer much at all.  In fact, being the school’s only openly gay couple brought us some celebrity.  I decided to use my position in the student government to make some lasting changes to the school.  With Brian as my ally on the student council, we passed our own version of the Civil Rights Act, banning discrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, or sexual orientation.  We also passed a bill, which allowed same sex couples to attend the prom.  David happily signed both into law, and I could now attend the prom as his date.  I finally spoke to Tony, and he turned out to be a really nice guy.  I introduced him to Jack and Danny, and we all became his friends.  I was determined to see to it that nobody would ever abuse him again.  I spoke to Brendan Nelson, and he agreed to protect Tony as well as me. 

            The months went by quickly, uneventfully, and happily.  David and I attended the St. Patrick’s Day dance and hardly raised an eyebrow when we walked onto the dance floor.  Tom and Danny also danced in public that night with no repercussions, and Brian planned to take Jack to the prom.  David and I had blazed the trail.  The one sad note was that Jason didn’t hang around with us much anymore.  We told him repeatedly that we didn’t blame him for what Steve had done, but he blamed himself anyway.  The poor guy could barely look us in the eye when he spoke to us.  He was just one more victim of Steve’s cruelty. 

            As it turned out, Steve paid dearly for what he did to us.  In addition to being expelled and having to repeat freshman year at his new school, Jason punished him by giving him to Matthew Johnson.  Now a guy he didn’t want would have the right fuck him with his nine-inch dick any time he felt like it, which was the exact fate he tried to condemn David and me to.  Justice had been served!  My only regret was that Matthew Johnson got away as easily as he did.  A week’s suspension was a slap on the wrist for what he did.  Unfortunately, too much time had passed to prove that he raped David even if David had wanted to tell anyone, which he didn’t.  Years later, I learned that he went to prison for the attempted rape of a sixteen year old boy.  Knowing how they treat child molesters in prison, I would like to think that the other inmates made him suffer exactly as he had made David suffer. 

            The weather grew warmer and David and I took our weekend strolls in Central Park under a canopy of cherry blossoms.  I started to prepare myself for a long separation from him.  Although he had decided to attend NYU and remain in his apartment even before he met me, his mother had decided that he would spend the summer at her country estate in England.  I was dreading the summer as much as everybody else was looking forward to it. 

            One Friday afternoon in May, David told me to go with Tom and Danny to Danny’s apartment after school and he would see me at eight o’clock.  When I asked him what it was all about, he just smiled and said I would find out later.  Tom and Danny were acting strange too, smiling, and winking when they thought I wasn’t looking.  Finally, at seven o’clock, they told me it was time to get dressed and took a tuxedo out of the closet.

            “Dave wants you to wear this,” Tom informed me. 

            Tom had to help me dress.  Since I had never worn a tux before, I had no idea what to do with the shirt studs, cummerbund and suspenders.  They put me in a taxi and sent me to David’s apartment.  James greeted me at the door. 

            “Mr. Michael, how elegant you look this evening!”  He said.

            “James, what’s going on?”  I whispered.

            “Mr. David is waiting for you on the roof.”  He smiled.

            As I walked out to the roof, David stood to greet me.  He was wearing a tux, too.  We just stood there staring at each other for a moment.  We had taken each other’s breath away.

            “Dave, you look...”

            “I knew you would look good, but...”  He said. 

We both laughed, and then kissed.

            It was then that I noticed that the roof resembled a rose garden.  The table was set with the good china and silver, and Nat King Cole was playing on the stereo.  Now I knew.  He was going to propose to me!

            As if he could read my mind he said, “Mike, I know you’ve figured something out by now, but humor me and pretend you haven’t.  I might still have a surprise or two up my sleeve.”

            “Everything looks so beautiful.”  I said to change the subject.  “I actually got a hard on when I saw you standing there in that tux.”

            David laughed.  “I did too when I saw you.”

            The dinner was wonderful.  David and I reminisced about that first day in the locker room and all the good times we had had together all year.  After desert, James brought out a bottle of Dom Perignon and two glasses.  David got up, stood in front of me, and got down on one knee. 

            “Mike,” he paused.  “I had a romantic speech all memorized.  I must have rehearsed it a hundred times this week, but I can’t remember a word of it now.  I’ll just have to speak from my heart.  Mike, you’re the most wonderful person I’ve ever met.  We fell in love at first sight, and we’ve already been through more together than a lot of people go through in a lifetime.  You’re the only one in the world I could ever imagine spending my life with.  If you’ll marry me, I promise that I’ll devote the rest of my life to making you happy.  Mike, I love you.  Will you marry me?”

            “Dave, my life began the day I met you.  You’re my soul mate, my one true love, and the only guy I would ever want to spend my life with.  I’ll devote the rest of my life to making you happy, too.  Yes, I’ll marry you.” 

David reached into his pocket and withdrew a velvet box.  He opened it, and inside was the most beautiful ring I ever saw.  The diamond must have been at least two carets.

            “This ring belonged to my father, and I’ve never worn it.  I’ve saved it for the love of my life.”  He put the ring on my finger and we kissed.

            “How do you feel about short engagements?”  He asked.

            “The shorter the better,” I said.

            “There are no rules about two men getting married.  We don’t need anybody to perform the ceremony; the government and the church won’t recognize it anyway.  We can’t live together full time until you graduate from high school and turn eighteen, and we could renew our vows then, if we want a wedding with all the trimmings.  I would like to marry you now.  All we have to do is make our vows to each other, and I bought these at Tiffany’s.”  He pulled another box out of his pocket containing two simple gold bands.

            “Marry me now, Dave.”  I said with tears in my eyes. 

He took my hands in his. 

            “I David, take you, Michael to be my wedded husband, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, to love, honor, and cherish, forsaking all others as long as we both shall live.”

            “I Michael, take you, David to be my wedded husband, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, to love, honor, and cherish, forsaking all others as long as we both shall live.” 

            David put the ring on my finger and said, “With this ring, I thee wed.”

            I put the other ring on David’s finger and said, “With this ring, I thee wed.”  We kissed.

            “Let’s have some champagne.”  David said.

            David opened and poured the champagne.

            “My name is Michael Donovan!”  I said with wonder in my voice.

            “You want to take my name?”  He asked, visibly moved.

            “If you’ll let me; I can’t legally change it until I’m eighteen, but I do want to.”

            “It’s the best wedding present you could have given me.  I’d be honored to share my name with you.”  He said.  “I have one more surprise for you.”

            “Oh Dave, another surprise?  In less than fifteen minutes, I’ve been proposed to, been engaged, gotten married and changed my name.  What else could you possibly have in store for me?” 

He handed me an envelope.  I opened it and saw two first class tickets to England aboard the QE2.

            “You didn’t think I forgot, did you?  I promised you a voyage to England for our honeymoon back on our first date.  I’m finally going to see those stars in your eyes.”

            “Dave, it would be my dream come true, but my parents will never let me go!”

            David smiled.  “I would never have given you those tickets if I wasn’t sure.  I asked my mother to call your mother and invite you for the summer.  Your mother said yes.”

            I just stared at him in a state of shock.  David smiled, lit two cigarettes like Paul Henreid in Now Voyager, and handed me one.

            “Oh, Dave!”  I exclaimed as I flew into his arms and kissed him.  He laughed.

            “My little brother can’t wait to meet us.  He thinks we’re cowboys because we’re American.”

            “YOU A COWBOY!”  I laughed uncontrollably. 

            “Hey, you’re not exactly John Wayne either, you know.”  He laughed.

            “We can’t disappoint him.”  I said.  We’ll have to buy a couple of cowboy hats and western shirts and wear them the first time we meet him.  Hey, that’s the first time I ever heard you call him your brother or even speak kindly about him.”

            “Now that I know you’ll never leave me, I’ve been able to let go of my anger.  None of what happened to me is his fault, and I’d like to have a little brother.”

            “I never knew I could be this happy!”  I said.

            “The only way I could be any happier is if it was three years from now, you had my name, and we could live together full time.”  David said.

            I thought of the last line of Now Voyager and smiled.  I couldn’t resist.

            “Oh Dave, don’t let’s ask for the moon.  We have the stars.”

The End