Bringing Home Danny (14 page)

 
“
Explain to us, TJ, at what point you thought it would be a good idea to bring a child into our home?”
 

TJ took a deep breath. He wanted to get this right. “I...he didn't have any place to go. He told me he was eighteen. He needs someone to watch over him.”

“
And, you thought, what? You could keep him? Does this seem like a home for wayward boys?”
 

“
No, I just thought I…
we
could give him a place to stay until he got on his feet.”
 

“
I see, and when exactly did you discuss your plans with us before putting him on an airplane and flying him out here.”
 

TJ was stumped, and he knew his next attempt would be weak. “I called Antonio, and asked if I could bring a friend home.”

“
Really? He's a friend of yours? How long have you been friends? Because the last time you were in Florida he would have been what? Fourteen?”
 

“
I met him this weekend,” TJ admitted.
 

“
So, correct me if I'm wrong. When you chose to call Antonio, deliberately leaving me out of the equation, you were somewhat vague. Or, more accurately,
misleading
, about the details of who you were bringing home.”
 

“
I swear I didn't know he was sixteen 'til after I bought the tickets.”
 

“
That's your excuse? You didn't think you could get a refund, or we couldn't afford to eat the cost of the ticket?”
 

“
No,” TJ said quietly. “He was so pitiful, I promised I'd take care of him. I didn't know what else to do.”
 

“
You had a phone. You could have called either one of us.”
 

“
It was too much to explain over the phone. We didn't have much time.”
 

“
You didn't want to be told no.”
 

“
I thought we could figure it out together once I got home. I couldn't leave him there by himself. He was about to cry.”
 

The mood in the room softened, and Antonio spoke up. “TJ, I understand your intentions were good, but you don't seem to understand the seriousness of the situation.”

TJ felt pitiful himself. They were right. He didn't understand why they were so opposed to letting Danny stay with them.

His heart sank as Mitch explained, “How do you think it would look if it was brought to the attention of authorities that a minor was taken out of his home state, without the permission of his parents, and was staying with three gay men?”

“
He doesn't have parents worrying about him,” TJ said meekly.
 

“
How do you know that? He lied about his age, he could be lying about everything. What, if anything, do you know about this kid?”
 

All TJ knew for sure, was that whatever he said, he had to get them to see why he needed to bring Danny home.

“
I met him at a house party at Emmett's. He was sitting with a couple of drunken strangers. It was obvious he was uncomfortable and in over his head.” TJ described how his roommates kept supplying Danny with drinks, and how oblivious he was to all the leers and conspiratory whispers that followed. “I knew something wasn't right when I heard he was brought to a backroom after drinking too much. When I got there he was on a bed half naked. There were several guys on top of him. They were holding him down trying to take off the rest of his clothes...” TJ choked up, unable to finish.
 

“
Are you telling us if you hadn't have gotten there when you did, he would have been gang raped?” Mitch asked incredulously.
 

“
Yes, Mitch, that's exactly what I'm telling you!”
 

“
Some friends of yours,” Mitch said in disgust. “Is this a common occurrence at one of their parties?”
 

“
I told you, they weren't friends of ours. They were Danny's roommates and their friends.
The only reason they were invited was because one of them is the brother of Jerry’s
fiancé
e, and he wasn’t even there that night.
And, no, it is not a common occurrence. After I clocked one of them, Emmett kicked them out...”
 

“
Why didn't you call the police?” Antonio interrupted.
 

TJ refrained from rolling his eyes at the suggestion and said, “I let Emmett handle that part. I stayed to comfort Danny. He was a mess.”

“
Well, I would imagine, the poor dear.” Antonio was sickened by the image of an angelic boy being assaulted by monsters.
 

TJ knew this was his best chance for sympathy. “He was hurt.”

“
Is that where the cut on his mouth came from?”
 

TJ nodded slowly at Antonio's question. “He was sick and out of it from whatever drug they must have slipped him. He tried to be tough, and he held it together for a while. But after he threw up, he cried in my arms for almost twenty minutes. He eventually pulled away out of embarrassment, even though he was still pretty shaken up, and not just because of what happened. One of the men who tried to rape him was also his boss. The kid not only lost a part of his innocence, he had no place to go, no money, and no job. I offered to take him home to his parents, but he said he had no home to go to. I'm sure he would have taken me up on it if he did. He wasn't exactly thrilled with the prospects of staying at a stranger's house, particularly when it became obvious people were talking about what happened to him.”

Once he got it all out and was able to take a breath, TJ noticed the concern on both Mitch and Antonio's face, and he began to cry. He hadn't even realized how traumatized he had been until the tears started to flow.

“
Aw, come here, baby,” Antonio beckoned, with open arms. TJ fled to them. Sitting on his lap he tried to describe Danny's gut-wrenching sobs, and how he kept checking on him during the night, how he couldn't fall asleep until he got in bed with him.
 

“
The little bugger was so humiliated that the next morning he tried to slip out unnoticed. He had less than twenty dollars in his wallet, and no place to go. He didn't even know where he was, he just started walking – in no particular direction.” TJ snuggled in closer and said, “I was so mad, I wanted to spank him.”
 

His confession elicited empathetic chuckles from the Dominant men.

“
It took me forever to convince him to come back in the house. I kept thinking, I wish Mitch and Antonio was here, they'd know what to do. I had no desire to be there anymore. I just wanted to go home, and take Danny with me.”
 

“
If you felt that way then why didn't you call us?” Antonio asked.
 

TJ was quiet for a moment before admitting, “I was afraid you'd say no.”

“
You should have trusted us to make the right decision, whether you agree with it or not,” Mitch reminded him.
 

“
I couldn't leave him there. The stupid kid thinks he can take care of himself, but he can't. He's at the mercy of strangers, and he attracts the wrong kind of attention. At least with us he's safe.” After TJ finished his full confession everyone fell quiet again. TJ finally broke the silence by pleading, “Please don't send him back. He trusts me. I promised to take care of him.”
 

“
We can't send him back until we at least know where he belongs. But don't get excited, TJ, we're not keeping him. We will try to keep him safe, but like it or not, we're going to have to find out where his parents are,” Mitch lectured.
 

“
Did he say why he's not with them?” Antonio asked.
 

“
Not really, other than his mother is an alcoholic. He doesn't like to talk about them.”
 

“
We'll sort it all out. In the meantime, you need to remember your place in this relationship. You are not to treat Antonio or me with disrespect. I don't care how upset you are. Understood?”
 

“
Yes, sir.”
 

“
Why don't you go check on the boy? While he's here, he is your responsibility. I suggest you fill him in about the expectations we have in this house regarding respectful behavior.”
 

“
Yes, sir.”
 

“
And, TJ, don't get too attached. I'm sure the boy comes with a lot of baggage, and you're ill-equipped to be dealing with it,” Mitch warned.
 

TJ slumped in Antonio's arms.

“
I mean it. As soon as we find an appropriate place for him, he's leaving.”
 

TJ nodded. He wanted to defend Danny, but thought better of it. Now was not the time to try and convince Mitch to let him stay. TJ had always gotten what he wanted. Even as Mitch and Antonio set limits for him, it was essentially what he craved. He figured it was only a matter of time before he was denied something he really wanted, and he prayed that it wasn't going to be at the expense of Danny. TJ left with a heavy heart to check on the homeless teen. He found him fast asleep curled up in a fetal position. TJ had never doubted Mitch. Today, he prayed he'd know the right thing to do, and was willing to do it.

*****

Antonio and Mitch stayed in the office to process the ramifications of TJ's latest folly.

“
Don't be too harsh with him, Mitch. Danny's a darling little thing. It's easy to see why TJ's so protective of him.”
 

“
Don't you start, too. I don't care how darling he is, it is not a responsibility I want to have. Besides, I know teenagers. And he's one with a questionable history. If we let him get too comfortable, he's going to be trouble.”
 

Danny woke up three hours later from his long needed rest, and couldn't remember where he was or how he got there. He would have panicked if he hadn't been in this position far too often. It slowly occurred to him as he studied the clothes he was wearing that they belonged to TJ. It took him some time to orient himself and find the stairs. He was hoping to come across TJ along the way. Instead, right before he reached the bottom step, he saw the largest man he had ever seen up close. Towering above him, with shoulders as wide as Danny was tall, and arms the size of tree trunks, the man spoke in a deep booming voice.

“
You must be Danny.”
 

Danny was too intimidated to speak. He assumed this was Mitch, and he wanted to tell him his name was Dan, but he couldn't find his voice.

“
Is there anything I can get for you?”
 

All Danny wanted was to get around him, and head out the door. The tree wouldn't move. It just stood there leaning up against the stairwell taking up so much space. Standing on the second step, Danny still had to tilt his head up to see his face. The tree-man didn't look unkind, but he didn't have the friendly face of Antonio, the gentler slightly shorter giant. Danny felt his bladder tighten, and he realized he hadn't used the restroom since they left Florida. He wished he had remembered where TJ said the bathroom was.

“
I…I have t-to pee,” he stammered.
 

“
There's a bathroom around the corner to your left.”
 

Danny waited until Mitch stepped aside before muttering, “Thanks,” and sliding past him.

Mitch couldn't help but be amused by the nervous little pixie with bed head and a flushed face. “Oh, and, Danny, after washing up, why don't you met us in the dining room. We'll be eating shortly.” Mitch's strong voice startled Danny causing him to stumble once again.

 
"Damn baggy jeans," Danny muttered to himself.
 

"What was that?"

“
I said, yes, sir,” Danny managed to spit out before finding the bathroom and dashing in.
 

Danny surprised himself as he wasn't in the habit of calling anyone, 'sir.' There was just something about the man that exuded authority. Even though he worded his request as a choice, his tone clearly indicated he expected to be obeyed. After he had washed up, Danny wandered into the kitchen where he found Antonio working on the finishing touches of their spaghetti dinner.

“
Hello there. Did you rest well?”
 

Danny nodded. “Yes, thank you.”

“
Good, you seemed tired.”
 

Danny blushed. “I hadn't slept much lately.”

“
Would you like to help me stir the sauce while I drain the pasta?”
 

“
Okay,” Danny said, going over to the stove and peeking into the large bubbling pot. He picked up the big wooden spoon, and began to stir the contents.
 

“
Try it for me, and see if it needs anything?”
 

Danny put the spoon to his lips and gave it a taste. “It seems good to me,” he said shyly.

“
Great, then...”
 

“
There you are,” TJ interrupted, “I was searching all over for you.”
 

Danny smiled in relief at seeing TJ.

“
TJ, can you find Mitch and tell him dinner's ready?”
 

“
I'm on it,” he said, with a wink to Danny before turning to leave.
 

“
Danny, do you think you could you help me carry some things into the dining room?”