The writings I submit are true experiences from over the past twenty-five years. Though they are not all of my experiences, they are my most memorable ones. Names have been changed to protect their identities.
Also i would like to Thank HotandHollow for helping with the editing.
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It was 1994. My brother, cousin and myself all lived together in a three-bedroom duplex while we all went to college together out of state. We had all been close growing up. My cousin, Glenn, moved out of state for school first since he was two years older than me and four years older than my brother, Ryan.
For the first two years it had been just Glenn and I living together. We hung out quite a bit the first six months. Sometimes it was just us two, and then it was with some of the friends he'd met his first two years. His friends were a pretty cool and pretty diverse bunch. One was a heavy equipment operator who loved to hunt; another was a corporate vendor inventory specialist who loved movies; and another was a teacher who hung wallpaper on the side.
Quite often, Glenn would go out with his friends, as he said, "to get togethers that he couldn't invite me to because it wasn't his function." I had made some friends at school and the golf course. My new friends and I would do the normal college parties, bar hopping, etc., so it didn't really bother me much being left out of Glenn's weekend functions.
My brother arrived two years after I did. We had all invested together in a newly constructed duplex. Each side had three bedrooms — we were on one side and we rented out the other.
My brother's beginning of living out of state started like mine did. We all hung out together or with Glenn's friends for the first six months and then Glenn started doing his thing with his friends. Glenn started going to suit-and-tie functions, bought a new Honda, spent weekends out of town, took expensive trips, etc. My brother and I, having grown up together, did a lot of things together. Golfing, going to football games, basketball, playing in a beer fast pitch league, and of course, partying.
After the first year of all of us together, Glenn had graduated and was going to start work at city hall. We were doing pretty good with our duplex investment. Ryan and I, while golfing one day, talked about buying the duplex that was nearing completion next door. We just needed to speak to Glenn. We got home and he was about ready to go on one of his out of town weekend trips. We mentioned it real quick in passing. He said, "Let me think about it and we'll talk Sunday when I return."
On Sunday, Ryan and I had a fast pitch game. We arrived home around 5pm and Glenn was already home. We walked in and he asked if we wanted pizza. "Sure," we said. He ordered pizza while we went to get cleaned up after our game. By the time each of us got downstairs, the pizza was there.
After eating pizza and having a beer or two, Ryan and I started talking about our plans to buy the duplex, talking about the income projection and what we could do later with more construction. Glenn did not say anything but as he stood up, he asked both of us if we were done with our plates and took them into the kitchen.
Glenn walked back in with two beers and a glass of wine. He handed the beers to Ryan and me while taking the wine to the corner chair. He took a sip. Then he said, "I cannot do another duplex."
"It'll pay for itself easily and then some," I said.
"It's a no-brainer," Ryan pleaded.
"There are three things I have to tell you guys. One, I can't do another duplex. Two, I went home to my mom and dad's and I am bankrupt. And three, I am gay," Glenn explained.
Silence hung in the room for minutes.
"Say something, you two. Ask whatever questions you have," Glenn said.
Ryan sat there like a stone.
"It's no surprise to me," I explained. "I had a feeling you were, growing up with you the past twenty years."
"What do you think?" Glenn said.
"Nothing I can think will change you. I have to accept you for you," I said.
He spoke more with us, and then asked us to do him a favor and go to the gay bar with him tonight to meet his friends to see that gay people are not what people portray them to be.
We arrived at Ron's Place around 9:30. The parking lot was fairly empty. We walked inside behind Glenn. He talked to the old door lady taking money and checking IDs. She then waved us on. We stopped just beyond her and Glenn asked us where we wanted to sit.
It was dark with only the stage lights moving to the loud music, the tables lined up and fanned out from the stage. We walked to the nearest table from the door. The waiter came over and Glenn introduced us and explained it was our first time there or any bar close to a gay bar. He pleaded to him not to hit on us. The waiter agreed and asked for our order.
I ordered Ryan and myself a beer and a shot of Jack each. Shortly Randy, Ronnie, and Nathan (the teacher, the corporate vendor, and excavator) showed up.
Wow, I thought. Nathan the excavator and I had hung out a lot, fishing and golfing together. I never would have thought.
He walked over and said, "Surprise!"
"I would have never thought anything," I said.
