Meeting The Parents

Reed gets to meet William's parents.


Series: Navigating the World and Relationships



Reed glanced at his directions again. He hadn't realized that 
William's parents' home was this far from the conference hotel. William 
had assured Reed that the house was easy to find. Of course William 
didn't drive, and he wouldn't realize that the rustic wooden road signs 
were hidden behind the abundant foliage. This wasn't a new subdivision 
plunked down on a former cornfield but a wealthy and historic residential 
area. Reed kept expecting a child and a pony to pop out from behind one of 
the hedges groomed to give the impression of a natural hedgerow. Reed 
knew William had a financially comfortable childhood, but he'd had no 
inkling of their obvious wealth. This was far beyond the ranch house and 
the shared bedroom of his childhood.

"William, what did you say your father did?"

"He was a trader."

"As in stock exchange?"

"No commodities. The commodities market is based in Chicago. This is a Chicago suburb."

"Right," Reed said, gritting his teeth at the petulance in William's voice. 
His partner had become increasingly testy as they approached his parents' 
home. Reed peered at the numbers on the mailbox; it should be the next one.

Reed turned sharply left, almost missing the drive hidden by the oncoming 
bend in the road. The house was large, but not palatial like some of the 
houses he had passed earlier and even from the outside had the feel of a 
house truly loved by its occupants with a perennial bed surging toward 
its borders and old trees dotting the lawn.

"Your parents' house is beautiful.  Is this where you grew up?" 

"Yes," was William's short and crisp reply.

"Hey, are you all right? Did you get car sick?" Reed looked closer at 
William's face.  He seemed a little pale but didn't look sick.  

"No, I'm fine. Let's just go in," William voice was clipped.

"William, if there is a problem, talk to me. Don't keep things that 
are stressing you inside.  That's what we`re working on.  So, tell me, what 
has you upset."

Reed saw William take another deep breath, his hands flexing around the 
folded cane.  Reed now recognized the flexing of William's hands as a sign of stress.

"I know we're both new at this, but I'm learning to read you. You're radiating stress. Talk to me."

"I'm just nervous.  This is the first time I've introduced a boyfriend to my parents."

"Did they know you were gay before you told them about us?" Reed 
could understand why William was nervous. Reed had been little nervous when 
he had introduced William to his own family, so it was only natural 
that William felt the same.

"Yes, they've known for years. That was a non issue. They had bigger 
worries than if I was gay."

Reed wondered at William's phrasing but marked it down to William's nervousness.

"Come on, I'm sure they heard the car and are wondering what we're waiting 
for. This will be fine, we have each other."

As William and Reed walked up the sidewalk, a beautiful woman with 
lightly graying hair opened the door. 

"William, oh it's been so long." Her voice sounded as cultured as she 
looked. William's mother was wearing a light peach skirt with a 
matching sweater. Reed's mother had been as welcoming as William's 
mother appeared to be; however, Reed's mother had worn comfortable blue 
jeans and had her hair pulled back in a ponytail.

Reed could see where William had gotten his looks.  William very much 
resembled his mother with his lithe build.  

"William, I've opened the door for you and your friend," the woman 
called out. "Now be careful of the second step; the wood has warped. I 
told your father we needed to get it replaced."

"Hi, Mom," William leaned to kiss his mother after walking up the steps. 
"The step doesn't feel warped."

"Oh, it is. We've had terrible rains this year.  Now, is this your new 
friend? Hello, I'm Amanda, William's mother."

Reed reached over to shake her hand. 

"Hello, Mrs. Richardson. I'm pleased to meet you."

"Oh, please, call me Amanda.  And William's dad is Lloyd."

Reed reached over to shake the man's hand who was now standing next to Amanda.

"Yes, just call me Lloyd. Come in, come in. Amanda's been in a frenzy, 
cleaning house and making supper.  William, you're looking well."

"I am, Dad. You know I can look after myself. I'm not going to starve living 
on my own," William snarled to his father, as they walked inside.

"Oh, sweetie, here let me take you sighted guide," Amanda said, 
grabbing William's arm. "I've changed some of the furniture around. I 
don't want you to trip over anything."

"Mom, it's OK. I won't trip, I'll use my cane."

William's father spoke out, "William, let your mother help you. Remember 
the time you were using your cane and tripped over the ottoman.  You 
knocked out your two front teeth." 

"Dad, I was five years old.  I've learned to use my cane a little better now."

Reed ran his tongue over his own front teeth.  His own father reminded 
him often of when he'd knocked them out the first time, trying to rescue a 
cat from a tree when he was five.  He'd fallen when the cat had jumped on 
him instead of in his arms.  Reed had again lost his two front teeth 
playing football in high school. His mother had taken him to an oral surgeon, paid for the implants, and 

had bought him a better mouth guard.  As the youngest of three rowdy boys, his parents had taken bumps,

bruises, and the occasional broken bone in stride.

Lloyd's voice broke Reed out of his musings. "It's better to be safe than sorry.  Let your mother help."

Reed watched as William adjusted his mother's hand so that he was holding on 
to her instead of her leading him.  Reed observed William's body 
language. William's posture portrayed reluctant acceptance of the help that 
was forced on him.  William's mother led William to a delicate looking sofa.

"Here William I've sat you on the sofa, so your friend can sit beside you."

Reed took the hint and sat next to William.  He could feel the stiffness 
in William's body.

"So, please, tell us how you met William," Amanda said, sitting in a 
floral print arm chair.

"Mom, I told you. I met Reed at that Italian restaurant. The one with 
the outdoor seating," William said quickly.

Reed looked at William's tense face and decided to play along, but when 
they got to the hotel, he was going to have a long talk with William 
about truthfulness or at least warning Reed when he was involved in a lie.

"Yes, that's right. You told me that Reed introduced himself as an 
orientation and mobility instructor," Amanda said. She turned to Reed. "Was 
he having difficulties? You know he only has light perception. He wouldn't 
be able to go around all those tables without some help."

Reed struggled to come up with an answer. He didn't like lying, but he 
also didn't want to call William on his lie in front of his parents. Reed 
also wanted to defend William's navigating skills.

"William does very well with his cane.  I've seen him navigate those tables 
at the restaurant several times without any incidents." Reed felt some of 
the tension ease out of William's body.  

"You should have seen him when he was first learning.  Oh, he was 
always tripping over furniture. The bruises on my poor boy.  And we had to 
be very careful because of his heart problems too." Amanda said.

"Yes, you do know he has heart problems too, don't you?" 
Lloyd questioned. "When William first learned to use the cane in 
residential areas, we had to talk quite sternly to the orientation and 
mobility instructor.  William kept getting his cane stuck in the cracks in 
the sidewalk.  He had bruises where the cane jabbed him in the stomach. 
Too close to the heart for my comfort," 

"That's common.  The best cane users will often get the tip stuck in 
uneven sidewalks. William doesn't seem to have a problem with it.  I 
thought the heart troubles were corrected when he was little?" Reed asked. 
Reed had little experience reassuring parents.  He worked with adults.  His 
own parents had been loving, supportive, and had encouraged their children 
to spread their wings and fly a little.  Reed was feeling his way 
around William's over protective parents.

"Yes, he had surgery, but you can never be too careful.  He was just so 
small when he was born, so fragile." Amanda said.

"Mom, do I smell dinner? Is it burning?" William said.

Reed knew that William was trying to distract his mother. Reed wanted to 
kiss William and reassure him. Instead, he stood up when Amanda stood. "I 
would love to help you.  Can William and I set the table?"

"Yes, you can help me, but William can stay out here and talk with his 
father.  William tell your father about your new position, what all you will be doing."

Reed followed Amanda to the kitchen.

"I can't tell you how relieved we were when William told us that he'd met 
you.  William needs someone to help him. His father and I were not happy 
when he chose to move to another city and live on his own. I tell you, 
I'm sleeping better at night just knowing you are there to take care of
 my son," Amanda placed her hand on Reed's arm.  

Reed placed his hand on Amanda's. "Amanda, your son is OK.  He doesn't need 
me to take care of him; he's a smart, capable man. You and Lloyd did a good job."

"Well all the same, it's a comfort to us. You don't know how happy we were 
when William told us he was gay."

"I'm glad you were supportive.  Many men find their families aren't so 
happy," Reed was a little taken aback.  His own parents had accepted 
the announcement he was gay, but it hadn't been met with celebration, more 
with an acknowledgment of the inevitable. His mother wasn't naive. She 
admitted later that she'd been bracing for his announcement for several 
months.

"It took the worry and burden of having grandchildren away.  I would have worried so much if William 

had children.  The strain on his heart, and of course his blindness."

Reed took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Reed knew many blind parents 
who did a wonderful job raising their children.  Reed was admiring 
how independent William had become despite his parents' over 
protectiveness.  William had fought for every bit of freedom he had.

********

"Thank you for a wonderful meal, and I'm so glad we were able to meet," 
Reed said, as he and William were inching out the front door.

"It was such a pleasure. Are you sure you can't come back tomorrow?" 
Amanda asked, walking with the men out onto the porch. 

"Mom, we only have tonight free.  The conference is a two day event, and 
it will go on late tomorrow.  We want to get home at a decent time on 
Wednesday after it's done," William snapped.

"OK, sweetie, but please have Reed bring you up again. We don't get to see 
you very often since you moved."

Reed wondered if William's parents ever called him out on his manner 
of speech.  All night William had snapped and snarled at his parents, using 
a tone of voice that would have had Reed's own mother reaching for a bar 
of soap. William's parents had seemed to ignore the way William spoke.

Once in the car, safely buckled in, Reed turned to William. "I think that 
once we get back to the hotel you're going to have to tell me the story of 
how we met.  I don't think I know the same version as your parents."

"You wouldn't have understood," William snapped.

"Hmmm, maybe, maybe not. But I want you to understand me," Reed said 
and watched as William bristled. Reed leaned over in the car and 
kissed William's cheek. "I love you."

Reed watched as that simple statement affected William's posture, 
William relaxed marginally.
 
The parking garage was busy and crowded. The hotel where they were staying 
was also hosting the assistive technology conference, and it looked like 
many of the attendees had the same idea as William and Reed and had come a 
day early.  Reed parked on the third tier of the garage. As they gathered 
their luggage from the back of Reed's SUV, Reed said, "William, this place is 
a zoo. Let's go sighted guide, I think it would be safer."

Reed stared in shock as William's cane went flying through the air.

"I don't know why I have the damn thing if people think the only way I'm 
safe is hanging on to someone sighted," William shouted.

Reed placed his bag on the ground, grasped William's arm, turned him and 
landed a swat on his backside. William stilled instantly.

"Go get your cane," Reed said sternly. 

"I don't know where it is," William admitted. "I didn't hear it land."

"No, I'm sure you didn't. The tantrum you were throwing was taking up all 
your senses. Stand here. I'll get it. Then you will take my arm and we will 
go into the hotel without any more tantrums. Understood?"

"Yes," William said repentantly.

Reed retrieved the cane, walked to William, let William take his arm, 
and walked across the parking lot to the stairs.  Once they had descended 
to the first level, Reed continued into the hotel.  The check in was 
quickly done. With William still holding Reed's arm, they continued in 
silence to their room. In their room, Reed took William's hand off of his arm.

"You can put your bag on the dresser; it's directly to your right. When 
you've done that, I'll take you to an empty corner. You can stand in it and 
get yourself together," Reed said, keeping his voice stern.

Reed had William stand in the corner longer than he had before. Reed 
wanted William to calm down, but he also wanted to get his own thoughts 
in order.  There were many things that needed to be addressed, and Reed 
wanted to make sure he didn't exacerbate the situation.

"William, come sit on the bed. We need to discuss quite a few things," 
Reed said once he'd thought through all that they needed to cover."I would 
like to take this night in order, starting with the lie you obviously told 
your parents. Do they not know that you were hit by a car?"

"No," William said quietly. "You saw them, Reed.  Do you have any idea 
what they would have been like if I'd told them? They would have moved in 
with me and pushed until I gave in and moved back home."

"You're probably right.  They love you very much, and they seem to worry a 
lot about you.  I understand why you lied.  That doesn't make it right, 
though. I was walking on egg shells, making sure I didn't slip up. You 
won't need to lie again. We are together, and I'll help you stand up to 
your parent. So, let me make this very clear. You don't lie, not to me and 
not to your parents."

"I haven't lied to you," William protested.

"I hope not, but once you've lied it's hard to gain trust back. I trust 
that you haven't lied to me, and I trust that you won't lie to your 
parents again. Understood?"

"Understood," William snapped.

"That's the second thing. There was no reason to snap and snarl all 
night. William, did your parents never wash your mouth out with soap?" Reed asked.

"No." That comment seemed to startle William. "We agreed that I didn't 
need help with my language, that you didn't need to wash my mouth out."

"You're right, but it's not the language. It's the attitude, and we did 
agree that you needed help with that. I think a little soap might help clean 
up the tone that you use. Not tonight, we haven't agreed on it, but in 
the future.  Writing lines doesn't seem to be helping."

"I'm not sure, Reed. I've never had that done to me before."

"It's not pleasant, but holding a bar of soap in your mouth can help. I 
know, that was my mom's way of disciplining us when we got what she called 
a smart mouth. All of us kids learned pretty quick to talk in a respectful 
tone to Mom," Reed told William.

"But not tonight, right?" William asked.

"No, I'll never use a type of discipline we haven't agreed upon first," 
Reed assured William.

"OK, if I snarl at you again, we can try washing my mouth out."

"All right," Reed agreed. "We have already agreed what happens when you throw 
a temper tantrum, haven't we?"

"Reed, you can't mean--you're not going to--we are in a hotel!" William exclaimed.

"I know we're in a hotel, but William, you threw your cane. You can't tell 
me that you expect me to just let that go? You were very lucky it didn't hit someone."

"But, but,…" William stuttered.

"Yes, on your butt," Reed said and then helped William to stand. "Go ahead 
and take down your pants."

Reed watched as William obeyed his request.  Reed knew William was 
consenting to this spanking as he lowered his pants. Reed turned on the TV 
to mask the noise he was sure his hand was going to make.

"Underwear, too."

Once William had lowered his underwear, Reed placed his hand on William's 
back and gently pushed William over his lap.  Reed tilted William so his 
butt was in better alignment with his hand.

"William, I will not let you get away with throwing a tantrum.  Every time 
you do, I will spank you." Reed said and brought his hand down on 
William's bottom. Reed continued to spank William thoroughly.  William jerked 
a little with each swat. As his brat's bottom darkened from pink to crimson, Reed tightened his grip as 

William shifted, trying to escape the punishing hand.

Reed knew this was painful for William, but he didn't want William to get 
so out of control again. There were so many changes in William's life 
right now. Reed knew that William needed to know that Reed would be 
consistent. As Reed finished the spanking with a few hard spanks to the 
crease where butt met thigh, William's quiet tears turned to sobs.  Reed 
let William sob over his lap, rubbing his back and telling him that he had him.

"I'm sorry, so sorry," William gulped.

"It's OK; I've got you. We are going to be all right. One thing we're going 
to work on is you talking to me more; telling me how you feel. I think 
you've learned to not tell anyone your feelings because when you told 
your parents they tried to help too much."

"Yes, they always wanted to do for me. I don't want you to think I'm not capable."

"William, you can do anything, but I need you to tell me what you are 
feeling before the feelings become tantrums."

Reed gently pulled William's boxers back into place, but took off the 
pants that had become tangled at his ankles. Reed kept his hand on 
William's arm as William stood.

"Come lay down with me," Reed coaxed. He wanted to hold his brat, comfort 
him after all the scolding and the spanking. Reed lay back on the bed, 
drawing William down with him. 

"OK, now how in the world did you keep your parents from finding out about that car hitting you?"

TBC