I was always close to my Uncle Brad, the age difference between my Dad and Uncle Brad, lets just say Brad was an accident. Brad was fun loving, he liked all the things I liked, from when I was a small child Uncle Brad was the highlight of any visit. I wanted to be at his side all the time.
Uncle Brad and Dad had a falling out, I was never privy as to why, my Mom said "It's was an adult thing not for young ears." I never questioned it, but I did miss my Uncle. After years of no contact a death in the family brought us all back together. I could not wait to see Uncle Brad once again, after all I was eighteen now, no longer just a boy.
I had Dad and Uncle Brad end up close to each other in the same small room, they would have to finally talk, or yell if need be, but I needed my Uncle back in my life. They exchanged pleasantries, finally talking like two adults, I was to go to university this year and I wanted to stay at Uncle Brad's to save money with housing.
Brad came over after the funeral, it was so nice to have him back in our home, he looked different but the same. He was always a very attractive man, perfectly coiffed hair, the dark beard and his tanned complexion, his body always in shape, the man impeccably dressed. I had never seen it before but now I was curious, was my Uncle gay?
Mom and Grandma always said he was a confirmed bachelor, he was not one who would ever marry, the man had his own home. I never saw him with a woman on his arm, and if I had really noticed Uncle Brad always checked out the men in public places. I always wondered would I be a confirmed bachelor as well, I never had a girl in school, I never fancied a single one of them.
I now looked at my Uncle in a different light, he and Dad so different, Dad was serious all the time, Uncle Brad the life of the party even in small social gatherings. Dad sat Uncle Brad down and asked him about me being able to live in his house with him while I went to university, Dad would pay him rent and groceries.
Uncle Brad was delighted to have me come stay with him, but at the same time I could see I would be dampening his style a bit. Uncle Brad left, Mom and Dad would drive me over to his place, get me settled, I so looked forward to being with my Uncle on a daily basis. His house so well decorated, it was the certain touches that caught your eye, the man was talented when it came to decorating.
After Mom and Dad left, my Uncle and I sat and talked over a glass of white wine, Dad would have had a fit if he had seen his good Christian son drinking in the middle of the day. He set ground rules for me to follow, a time to be in each night, he would not invade my privacy and I was not to invade his. I was a lot like my Uncle in that I was very upfront, honest, I asked the questions others were afraid to ask.
"Uncle are you Gay?"
I caught him totally off guard, he was so flustered, shocked at how open, how upfront I really was, he mulled it over before he responded.