Prison School

Authors Note: Chapter 26 contains no hot steamy sex, sorry!

(At the tail end of Chapter 25, Mike's parents were visiting him at the school, and the following took place.)

Dad's cell phone suddenly chirped, and he looked to see an unfamiliar calling number.

"Hello?" Dad answered.

"Hello, is this Mr. Hamlin, Mike's father?" the voice said.

"Speaking."

"This is Luke, Luke Johnson, a friend of Mike's."

"Friend?" Dad responded, warmly, "I was led to believe you two are practically husbands. How is everything going?"

Luke, choking, "To be honest—not well, not well at all. Would it be possible to speak with Mike?"

"Certainly, Luke, hold on." Dad responded, "Mike, it's Luke, and he sounds terribly upset!"

Chapter 26—W6 – Sunday afternoon

Dad handed the cell phone to Mike.

"Hey, Baby," Mike said, "What's happening?"

Luke, via Phone, "Dad wants me out of this house by midnight! I don't know what to do, or where to go." Then, choking, "He said he won't have no faggot son living under his roof!"

"Oh my god, baby! I didn't think you were going to tell them yet."

"I didn't, they figured it out when they realized how badly I was missing you. Mother said I shouldn't miss a friend this bad, unless you were more than just a friend. Then they asked if I loved you, Mike, I couldn't lie, then they convinced me to admit that I was queer."

"Luke, whose phone are you using, and can you receive calls on it?"

"It's the same phone I had before I was arrested. I used the VISA card that Ruben gave me, to go to the phone store and get my account re-activated. And I can receive calls."

"OK baby, I have a plan. Sweetheart, don't do anything stupid or rash. Give me a few minutes to talk with Mom and Dad, and I'll call you back from Dad's phone. Just sit tight for a few, maybe 15 or 20 minutes, OK?"

"OK Mike, I'll wait. You know I love you."

"I love you too, bye, baby, I'll call you in a few."

This was too much, Mike burst into tears, and like all good mothers, his Mom salvaged some tissues from her purse and handed them to Mike.

"OK son," Mike's father spoke, "What's going on, fill us in!"

Mike, trying to gather himself together, blurted out, "Luke's father is kicking him out, he wants Luke out by midnight! He says he won't have a faggot son living under his roof."

"Oh my God," Mom wailed, bursting into tears. "How could—any parents—be so cruel!"

"Dad, Mom, I hate to ask this," Mike begged, "Is there any way you could go to his parents house, and pick Luke up, and take him home with you?"

"I don't see where we have a choice," Dad responded, "We're certainly not going to leave our son's future husband to be homeless on the streets! I guess maybe we'll get to meet him today after all!" Dad smiled.

Dad brought up a GPS application on his phone, and put in some addresses, calculating distance and times for the trip.

"It's going to take about two hours to get to Luke's, and then three hours to travel from there to home. I know we'll want to stop and have dinner someplace along the way. I hope Luke likes Cracker Barrel!"

Mike, tears sliding down his face, "Mom, Dad, how was I lucky enough to have the best parents in the whole wide world! I can't thank you enough for what you're doing for Luke and me." Then added, "Something of interest you could maybe surprise him with, Luke will turn 20 on my 21st birthday, the 16th of next month. But don't tell him I told you!"

"Well son, we've got a five hour drive ahead of us, so we probably need to hit the road soon. I think you promised someone a return phone call?" and handed the cell to Mike.

Mike placed the call, and Luke answered on the first ring.

"Hi baby. I have a couple of quick questions. Will all your stuff fit in the back of a Honda Pilot? And how long will it take you to pack everything you own?"

"Mike, are you sure you want to do this? I hate to take advantage of your parents."

"Luke, I have some awesome parents, and they want to do this, for us! I know you haven't met them yet, but you will love them, and they already love you, sight unseen!"

"I don't have all that much, Mike. Mostly clothing. I can probably have everything packed in an hour. It's like about three large trash bags, and a few DVD's and CD's, and a boom box."

"OK baby, don't forget papers, like your SS card, graduation diploma and birth certificate. Try not to leave anything behind that you might want or need in the future." Then, "My Dad figures it'll take two hours to get to your house, and they're leaving in just a few minutes."

"Mike, if my parents want to know who is picking me up, what should I tell them?"

"Does it matter? They're kicking you out. If you want to really rub it in, tell them it's your future in-laws!" Mike laughed. "Just be ready, baby. And know that I love you with all my heart! Bye for now."

They both hung up and Mike handed the phone back to his Dad.

"I sure wish we could have cell phones here. I know it was just yesterday that Luke left here, but it was just awesome to hear his voice, even over the phone. It feels like he has been gone for a month already."

"What does Luke look like?" Mom asked.

"Well, he is about my height, a little more slender, shoulder length brown hair and soft brown eyes. Do you remember Dennis DeYoung, of the rock group Styx? He reminds me very much of Dennis. He is quite shy, but I think, once he gets to know you, he'll open up more."

"Styx was a good band," Mom replied, "Your father and I saw them in concert once, many years ago." Then, "I think having Luke in our home, will be like having an extension of you there with us."

"We need to go, Mike," Dad said, "We've got a lot of miles to cover tonight. I have to say it's been a really interesting afternoon. Your Mom and I will be very happy to show Luke a home where love abounds and there is no bigotry. I'm glad we could help you two."

The senior Hamlin's hugged their son, entered the Pilot, and left, on their way to pick up Luke. A few short miles from the school, they stopped at a gas station fueled up and used the badly needed restroom facilities.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

About 6:15 PM the GPS guided the Hamlin's to the address where Luke was supposed to be. A young man rose from the front steps when he saw the Honda Pilot pulling up in front of the house, and walked toward the curb. There were several black trash bags, along with a couple of boxes sitting at the end of the sidewalk that led to the front steps.

"Luke?" Mr. Hamlin questioned, extending his hand.

"Luke Johnson," he extended his hand and they shook.

Mr. Hamlin opened the rear door of the Pilot and Luke started to put the bags and boxes inside, with the help of Mr. Hamlin. Mrs. Hamlin had also exited the passenger side of the car, and stood watching the men load the stuff in the back.

"Mrs. Hamlin, I presume?" Luke addressed the woman.

Mrs. Hamlin, giving Luke a hug, "I'm so happy to finally meet you, Luke."

"Who are you two?" a man's voice demanded.

"Mr. Hamlin, sensing an altercation, "And who are you to ask?"

"If you're picking up our son, we have every right to know who you are and where you are taking him."

"Excuse me!" Hamlin retorted, "My understanding is that you told Luke you wanted him gone from your home by midnight. It is now 6:30 and he is leaving. I think, since you are booting him out, it is his prerogative to inform you of his whereabouts, if he so desires."

"Luke, it's up to you," Hamlin spoke, "if you want to tell them where you are going to be staying."

Luke, shaking his head, "They don't need to know."

"Luke is not welcome here because he is a faggot, and he had a faggot boyfriend he met at prison school that has his head all messed up."

"Sir," countered Hamlin, "I find your language very offensive. Only ignorant bigots use that term. Love doesn't have a gender, and not everyone just happens to be born straight." Placing his hand on Luke's shoulder, "C'mon son, let's get out of here."

Luke climbed into the back seat with the Hamlin's in the front, and they took off.

"Boy, Mr. Hamlin," Luke exclaimed, "I only just met you, and I like you already. You sure put my old man in his place! I've come to really hate him."

"Luke, that's not a good attitude to have, you shouldn't hate your father, but I think it's perfectly normal to hate some of the things he has done. I didn't see anything of your mother. How does she feel?"

"She's a bible thumper, you know, all homosexuals will go to hell. That's the indoctrination I had growing up. As a teen I was comfortable hanging out with the guys, but my Dad said I should be hanging out with the chicks, and that only queers hung out with other guys."

"Mike got to me. He said I was listening too much to my f'd up brain, and I needed to listen to my heart. My heart and my brain had some battles, but I finally let my heart start winning. That's when I started acknowledging the feelings I had for Mike. Feelings I thought I shouldn't have for a man."

"I'm just curious, Mr. Hamlin, "How did you find out Mike was gay?"

"I think maybe we can get over this Mr. & Mrs. Terminology, Luke." Mr. Hamlin said, smiling. "I'm George and my wife is Anna, and if that doesn't feel right, you could call us Mom & Dad. We kind of feel like we're adopting another son, anyway. Do you like Cracker Barrel restaurants?"

"I don't think I've ever been to one."

"In that case, it'll be a first time for you. Anna and I are starved, but we wanted to wait to eat until after we rescued you. Now we can enjoy our first meal together, as a family."

"I'll—just wait in the car," Luke stated.

"That, is not an option, son!" Mom stated, sternly, "It wouldn't be a family dinner without you."

Once they were seated, and all looking over the menu, Luke was checking for the cheapest items. Dad told him to look at the selections, not the prices. They all ordered, and while waiting, Mom told a story.

"When Mike was about 7 or 8 years old, one night during dinner, he popped a question. 'Dad, what's a queer?' and Dad answered that it was a derogatory term for a gay person. Of course, that prompted another question, 'what does gay mean?' So we explained that sometimes girls like girls, and boys like boys, and it is just a different lifestyle, and not all boys and girls are born to like the opposite sex. And that those people that do like others of the same sex are called gay."

"To answer your question, Luke," Dad responded. "We didn't think anything when Mike asked if some boys could stay overnight when he was 9, 10 or 12 years old. Kids do that. We got a little concerned when he was 13 or 14, and had a couple of different boys that slept with him frequently."

"So," Mom picked up the topic, "We just came out and asked him, if he was gay. He answered in the affirmative. We accepted it, and we support and love him just as much as if he was straight. I'm just so thankful that we were in a position to help you out today!"

"It seems kind of strange," Luke commented, "that I feel closer to my best friend's parents, than I do my own. Mike is right, he is lucky to have some awesome parents. I don't know what I would have done, without your help. I don't want to take advantage of you though."

"You're not just our son's friend, Luke," Dad said, "You're future family. I did tell Mike, however, that we're not going to support a freeloader. There is no free ride, we expect you to carry your own weight, but we are willing to help you to get on your feet." Luke nodded in agreement.

They all finished their dinners, Dad paid the tab and they returned to the SUV and headed toward home. It was about 10:30 PM when they pulled into the driveway. Mom unlocked the front door, and released Buddy, Mike's Siberian Husky, who immediately started to investigate Luke, and Luke froze, about to piss his pants.

"Oh!" Dad exclaimed, "We forgot to tell you about Buddy. He's harmless."

Buddy sniffed Luke, then ran over to a tree and relieved himself, having been shut up in the house since about noon that day. Then Buddy returned to Luke, wagging his tail. Buddy reached out to Luke's hand and started to lick Luke's fingers, and Luke gingerly petted Buddy's head.

"Buddy has a keen judgement of strangers," Dad said, "and I can tell he likes you, Luke."

Luke and Dad carried the bags inside from the Pilot, and set them on the living room floor, and Dad locked the car. Mom then told Luke he could start to carry the stuff upstairs, and led Luke to Mike's bedroom. The room appeared to be a typical young man's room, except for maybe the rainbow flag fastened to the wall.

"Does that," Luke questioned, pointing to the flag, "have a significance?"

Mom, somewhat shocked, "You don't know what that is?" Luke shook his head. "The rainbow flag is likely the most prominent symbol of the LGBT community. Mike displays it with pride."

"What is LGBT?"

"Wow, you really are misinformed. LGBT stands for Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender." Mom stated, "You boys have your own bathroom, right there. Go ahead and bring the rest of your stuff up here, and we can figure out where we'll store it in the next couple of days."

"The bed has clean sheets, and you'll find clean towels on the towel rod, for when you want a shower." Mom said. "It has been a long day for all of us, and I'm about ready for bed. Luke, you're home now, so make yourself comfortable. Is there anything you need before I leave?"

Luke shook his head. Mom put her arms around him, and kissed him on his cheek.

"Welcome home, son! You may have a bed partner, I hope you won't mind if Buddy decides to sleep with you, he always slept with Mike. Good night and sleep tight." She left the room, closing the door behind her and leaving Buddy in the room with Luke.

Luke got ready for bed, and removed most of his clothes, leaving his boxers on. He was really used to sleeping naked, but being here, in a strange house and a strange bed, he thought better, and left the boxers on. It felt good to go to bed in his boyfriend's bed, even without Mike being there.

Mom was right, within seconds, Buddy leaped up on the bed, lying next to Luke. Missing Mike, Luke instinctively wrapped his arm around Buddy. It was surprising to Luke, how comfortable he felt, with Mike's dog lying so close to him. He actually fell asleep without crying.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Back at the school, Mike has gone to bed, to sleep for the second night alone in his assigned bed #11. He is concerned about how his parents made out, and if they picked up Luke without any problems. He knew, also, that Luke is shy, and is hoping that they are all getting along ok. He finally cried himself to sleep, knowing that he and Troy were to open in the morning.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Monday morning about 7:00 AM Luke was awakened by the unfamiliar feeling of a wet tongue licking his forehead and face, and opened his eyes to see a pair of green husky eyes staring at him anxiously. He arose from the bed, and, after making a quick morning trip into the bathroom, got dressed.

He groggily made his way downstairs to the aroma of freshly brewing coffee, and then found his way into the kitchen. Buddy started whining at the back door.

"Good morning, Luke," Mom said, cheerfully, "coffee is ready. You do drink coffee, don't you? Will you please let Buddy out?"

Luke, walking to open the back door for Buddy, "yes, Ma'am, thank you."

Mom, pouring Luke a mug of coffee, "I hope you like quiche, I have a frozen one in the oven, baking. I'm a little too lazy to make one from scratch."

"I do. Sometimes they offered it on the line at the school, for Saturday or Sunday morning brunch. I'd never eaten it before then." Luke answered, "Is Dad gone already?"

"No, he's shaving. He should be out here shortly."

Luke heard Buddy scratching at the back door and got up to let him back in.

"Good morning Luke," Dad said, as he walked into the kitchen and hugged and kissed his wife.

"You sure about that?" Luke responded, grinning.

"Of course I'm sure, It's a good morning because you're here. Luke, what plans do you have for today?"

"I want to try to get a job, ASAP. I was hoping to land a job delivering pizza. I don't have a car, but Mike told me I could use his, until I can get one."

"That makes sense," Dad replied. "Is your drivers license still valid?"

"I'm not sure. They may have suspended it when I got arrested, or when I went to prison. I need to get to a DMV office and check it out. My license says it expires a year from next month on my birthday."

"Luke, I am in an elevated position at work, and I can go in later. I will be happy to take you to the DMV. Even if it is valid, you would need to change your address."

The three enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, then Dad and Luke prepared to leave. They got into the Pilot, and Dad drove them to the local DMV. Luke was informed that his license was valid, and he applied for a replacement, with the new address. They were done there in about half an hour, and headed home.

Mom had taken the Vue and had already left for work when Luke and Dad returned. Dad went to a key cabinet that hung on the wall and retrieved a key fob with four keys on it. The fob was the rainbow symbol. Evidently Mike wasn't one to hide his sexuality.

"These are Mike's keys," Dad stated. "This key fits both the front and back door of the house, and these are the ignition and trunk keys for the Cavalier, and this key, I think, is to the work shed in the back yard. Let's check out the Cavalier. It hasn't been driven for a few weeks."

They went out toward the back end of the drive, where the red 98 Cavalier was parked. Luke unlocked the driver's door, and pulled on the hood release. Dad checked the water level and oil, indicating that they were ok and told Luke to start it up. The battery seemed a little low, but it turned over and started to purr.

"I think we better let if run a few minutes to charge up the battery," Dad said, "How is the gas?"

Luke, looking at the gas gauge, "Less than a quarter full."

Dad reached into his wallet and pulled out a $20 and handed it to Luke.

"Better put at least $10 in the tank, and hold on to the rest, just in case." Dad said, then, "Anna should be home around 4:00, and if you get hungry, I'm sure you can find something in the fridge to eat. I'm gonna head on in to work. See you later. Oh, by the way, the registration and insurance cards should be in the glove box."

Luke returned to the house and got his phone, then googled Pizza Hut, Papa Johns, and Domino's Pizza to see where they were. All were within about 3 miles of the Hamlin address. Using the GPS on his phone he drove to Papa Johns, noting the sign in their window 'Hiring Drivers'.

He walked in and asked for an application, which they handed him quickly. The manager on duty informed him that, if hired, he would need to get a haircut, which was not something he desired to do, but would comply if hired. Luke was proud of his hair.

On his way to Pizza Hut, he spotted a marquis at a NAPA car parts store that said 'Delivery Driver Wanted'. The store manager told him that the job was open, and they needed to fill the position immediately. It would pay $8.50 and hour and was 9-5 weekdays, plus 8-12 on Saturday, which was time and a half. Also, he would be driving the company van, rather than Mike's car.

Luke filled out the application, and the manager interviewed him immediately after examining the application. The manager asked him how well he knew the area, and Luke was honest, explaining that he had just moved here and didn't. Jed (the manager) then said he would, soon. Luke would mainly need to learn where all the auto repair shops were, both in the city as well as the surrounding area.