Love To Luv (17 page)

             
Dennis drove back to the hotel to pick everyone up.
Aretha texted Monique to let her know that they were on their way back.
Mattie jumped in the front seat because Aretha was in the back with me. Teddy drove Monique’s car back to Meridian.

             
Aretha tried to get me to talk. I was completely exhausted and dysfunctional.

JACOB

Auntie I don’t know. I remember walking to Manny’s house for a gathering. I saw Gerald…

ARETHA

Your ex?

JACOB

Yeah. He fixed me a drink and then this other guy gave me a drink. That’s all I remember.

MATTIE

They drugged you.

ARETHA

How do you feel?

JACOB

Ok just tired.

ARETHA

Did you have any valuables on you? Money, rings, anything?

JACOB

No. I just want to sleep.

ARETHA

Go to sleep baby.

I laid my head over in the car. I started to dose off when I heard Aunt Aretha talking. My head was thumping.

             
Jeremy and Ian went to his mother’s house to pack the rest of his things. No one was there but one of his sisters. Jeremy walked into the house and yelled out.

JEREMY

Is anyone here?

NIKE (Jeremy’s sister)

I am in the kitchen.

JEREMY
What’s
up?

NIKE

Nothing just fixing me something to eat.
Oh hey Ian.

IAN

Hey.

NIKE

Have a seat.

JEREMY

Where’s mom?

NIKE

At work, she should be on her way back. Are you moving back in?

JEREMY

No I come to get the rest of my clothes.

NIKE

Look, my favorite brother…

JEREMY

I am your only brother.

NIKE

Still you are my favorite. Mom is only concerned about you. You know that she means well. Personally I don’t want you to go into the military either.

JEREMY

It is more than that.
Something that happened some time ago.

NIKE

You mean when dad caught you and
Damion
?

JEREMY
What
are you talking about?

NIKE

C’mon now. We all know about that.

IAN (looking surprised)

I don’t know.

NIKE

Can and will you be a silent partner for right now.

JEREMY
Don’t
talk
to him like that.

NIKE

I wasn’t trying to be
mean
. But he is part of the problem with you right now.

Nicole’s walks into the kitchen when she heard Jeremy’s voice.
She was happy to see him until she saw Ian seating at the bar.

NICOLE

Jeremy, how are you?

JEREMY

I am good mama. How are you?

NICOLE

I am good. Ian it is nice to see you.

IAN

Same here Ms. Nicole.

NICOLE

Are you
staying
the night?

JEREMY

No I came to get the rest of my things.

NICOLE

What!? Where are you going to be living?

JEREMY

I am moving in with Ian and his folks. They all agreed that it was ok.

NICOLE

It’s not ok. Who is going to take care of you?

JEREMY

I have a good part-time job. School is about to be out. Military here I come.

NICOLE (crying)

Why are you doing this to me?

JEREMY

I am not trying to hurt you. I have got to live for me and be happy.

NICOLE

What do you know about trying to be happy? You are only eighteen.

JEREMY

Mom, you don’t agree with me. I would rather us not live together and get along than to be in this house and we are always arguing.

NICOLE

You know something…every since your father caught you and that boy together nothing has been right.

Ian’s eyes got big. He thought that he was Jeremy’s first same sex encounter. Nicole turned the stove off and stood with her arms folded. Jeremy was in complete shock. Inside he knew that this was the time for him to confront this issue.

JEREMY

What do you mean nothing has been right? You ran daddy off.

NICOLE

Yes trying to protect you.

JEREMY

I didn’t need protection from him. I could handle myself.

NIKE

What happened? I know about Jeremy and
Damion
but what protection did he need from Daddy?

NICOLE (tears falling from her eyes)

Your father caught Jeremy and
Damion
in the old storage house having sex or whatever it was. Your father beat him and told
Damion
that if he ever caught him at this house again he would kill him. Yes I know about all of that.

Jeremy eyes began to water. He leaned against the wall with his hand on his head.

NICOLE

It wasn’t long after that when I was doing the laundry I found blood in your brother’s underwear.

JEREMY

Mom shut up!

NICOLE

No. It is time that I stop carrying this. I need to say this. I asked Jeremy was there anything going on. Do you remember that?

JEREMY (in a huff)

Yeah.

NICOLE

Your answer was no. But I am not stupid. Not by a long shot. I came home early one day. You girls were at school. I smelled weed and heard someone moaning and crying sniffles. I went into my bedroom and I didn’t see anything. I pecked in you girls’ room – nothing. I walked into Jeremy’s room and I found your daddy fucking his own child and that bastard of an uncle, Ray, had his penis in my son’s mouth. I took the lamp beside the bed and burst Ray’s face up when I hit him. Your dad jumped on my back when I went to get a knife. That is why he
don’t
live with us. That is why I am so protective of you. That is why I don’t want anything to happen to you.

Nike was crying herself sick. Jeremy ran out the door and Ian followed him. Jeremy stopped on the grass and sat down. Ian stooped down side him.

IAN

I didn’t know that you went through all of this. Are you ok?

JEREMY

I don’t like to think about it much less talk about it. How could she bring this up again? I had to relive all of that just then.

IAN
She said that she was getting it off of her chest. You got to understand that she is hurting too.

JEREMY

I was only fourteen when that happened. I have hated my dad and my uncle for that.

IAN

What a minute? Not to change to subject but is
Damion
the guy at school?

JEREMY (with a slight laugh)

Yeah. I see him every day. It’s hard not talk to him. I guess you can say I lost my frontal virginity to lose. I cared a lot about him. After my dad threatened to kill him his parents put a restraining order on all of us.

IAN

Do you think that you could care about me like that?

JEREMY (looking into Ian’s eyes)

I love you more than you know. I cared for him but I am in love with you.

Jeremy took his hand and put it on Ian’s cheek. He pulled him over to kiss him.

IAN

Do you think that you can go back in and talk to your mother?

JEREMY

What would I do without you in my life?

IAN

I don’t want to find out. I think I love you more now than I did before we got here.

Jeremy gave Ian another long kiss in the front yard. Ian helped Jeremy get up. They brushed themselves off and walked hand-in-hand into the house.

             
Nike was sitting at the bar talking with Nicole. Jeremy walked over and gave her a hug. Nicole returned the hug and started to cry again. Nike grabbed Ian hand.

NIKE (whispers to Ian)

You take care of my little brother. If anything happens to him I am coming for you. Understood?

IAN

Yes ma’am.

NICOLE

I had to finally get that off of me. I never told anyone what really happened. I feel like a ton of bricks has been lifted off of me.

JEREMY

Mom I am glad that you feel better. I guess I do too.

Jeremy took Ian by the hand and walked him over to Nicole.

JEREMY

Well I guess I can say this out loud. This is my lover, mom.

IAN

I can’t believe that you did that.

JEREMY

I want the world to know it.

IAN

Wow. Ok.

JEREMY

There is one more thing.

NICOLE & IAN

What?

Jeremy ran out to the car and quickly back into the house. He had a smile on his face as wide as the Mississippi River. He pulled a chair out from the table and forced Ian to have a seat. He got down in front of Ian and opened a box.

JEREMY

Will you marry me?

IAN

What the hell?

JEREMY

Not the response I that I wanted to hear. But seriously, will you marry me? Love, honor, cherish
me,
forsake all others for only me? Oh yeah obey me too.

IAN

I will love, honor, cherish you, and forsake all others for only you.

JEREMY

What about obey me?

IAN (laughing)

I will compromise with you.

JEREMY

So……

IAN

Yes I will marry you Jeremy Isaac Whitfield.

Nicole and Nike jumped up with joy hugging each other. Jeremy grabbed Ian and gave him a hard long kiss. Nicole embraced Jeremy and Ian at the same time. She was ecstatic. All of a sudden Nike interjected.

NIKE

You can’t get married in Mississippi. Mississippi has law a DOMA banning same-sex marriages, and in November, 2004, passed a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

Now if we go to
the
Netherlands
,
Belgium
, Spain, Portugal, Iceland, or Argentina. I am down. Even i
n Mexico same sex marriage is recognized in all 31 states but only performed in Mexico City. In
Nepal
, their recognition has been judicially mandated but not yet legislated.
Here i
n the United States, although
same-sex marriages are not recognized federally
, same-sex couples can marry in five states and one district (
Connecticut
,
Iowa
,
Massachusetts
,
New Hampshire
,
Vermont
, and the
District of Columbia
) and receive state-level benefits. The states of New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Rhode Island do not facilitate same-sex marriages, but do recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions. Additionally, several states offer civil unions or domestic partnerships, granting all or part of the state-level rights and responsibilities of marriage.
Thirty-one states have constitutional restrictions limiting marriage to one woman and one man. President
Barack Obama
is officially opposed to same-sex marriage,
although he "supports full civil unions and federal rights for LGBT couples", a full repeal of DOMA, and called
California's Proposition 8
"unnecessary. The subject of how the legalization of same-sex marriage affects public education is a source of
controversy. An argument sometimes used by supporters is that teaching about same-sex marriage in schools will help children to be more open minded by exposing them to different types of families. There is concern from opponents of same-sex marriage that it will undermine parental rights over their children's education.
Same-sex marriage opponents express concern that the information being presented in schools might not be accurate, might omit medical, psychological and legal impacts of homosexuality, and might be age-inappropriate. There has also been concern that educators who disagree with same-sex marriage curricula could be punished
. Gay adoptions are
illegal in Mississippi.