Who: Jared and Ty (Cindy Solomon cameo) When: Sunday, Nov 12, morning, afternoon Where: Jared’s place, out and about Warning: turns NSFW Status: Complete
The weekend had been exhausting. There had been everything Friday with Jared, and then more bullshit all of Saturday with the flooding and power outages and people being idiots as usual. Ty had been looking forward to that square on the schedule calendar with their names not on it for what felt like forever. They both had a Sunday off, and he’d intended to enjoy the shit out of it. As much as possible while they rested up, anyway.
It was still raining out -- which was actually kind of nice when one was cozied up in a warm bed with one’s lover. The morning light coming in through the windows a steely gray, and the tapping against the glass was keeping Ty lulled into a deep sleep. He was pressed up against Jared’s back, his arm slung over his big boyfriend’s waist while they both breathed deep and peaceful. At least until Ty’s phone started to ring on the nightstand. He winced in his sleep at the high-pitched trilling and his arm tightened instinctively around Jared. He didn’t want to be awake, and he definitely didn’t want to move. But the phone was insistent about dragging him back into consciousness.
With a little groan of protest, Ty rolled over and groped around until he found the offensive plastic rectangle. He swiped to answer the call without looking and put it to his ear, already dreading hearing Grady’s voice saying he needed Ty to come into work after all. “H’lo?” he grumbled.
“Tyrone? You still in bed? That why you’re not answerin’ your door?” It was his mother. Even worse.
Ty lifted his free hand to rub at his forehead. “Yeah, Mama, I’m still in bed. I’m not at my place, though. What do you want?”
Jared woke up to the phone but like Ty he tried to fight it. He was happily asleep and even that little space between wake and sleep was nice and warm and without thoughts. He wanted to cling to that. It wasn't his phone, not his ring tone, so he could ignore it. Unless it was Grady trying to steal Ty away from him. Ty was a pretty important part of this nice place Jared was in, warm against him in a way Jared might have described as weirdly protective. Then he was gone and Jared let out a small complaining grunt. He wanted to tell him not to answer it but it was too late. He woke up faster than he wanted to when Ty said 'mama' because fuck. That was always bad news. Ty's voice sounded so gravelly, he sounded about as sleep drunk and groggy as Jared felt. Turning around, Jared squinted at Ty worriedly over his shoulder, though the worried look came off more annoyed with how not-awake he was.
Cindy hummed in a way that said she’d already known that, and highly disapproved. “You’re with that man,” she accused. “That man just lost his wife and you’re over there rolling around in sin, and on the Lord’s day too!”
Ty took the phone away from his ear and pressed the face of it into the comforter draped across his waist. He glanced at Jared, took a deep breath, and held it for a few heartbeats, closing his eyes and trying to keep his sanity. He could still hear his mother going on, but it was muffled at the moment. With a heavy sigh, Ty sat up and uncovered himself to get up. “Mama,” he said into the phone as he stood. Jared didn’t need to overhear her bullshit first thing in the morning, even if Ty was genetically obligated to. That was how he felt anyway. “What do you need? What is the purpose of this phone call? It’s my day off.” He shuffled out of the bedroom to take this to the kitchen.
Jared's chest tightened with sympathy annoyance and he couldn't sleep now that Ty had gotten out of bed. What a start to a day, what time was it anyway? Too damn early, that was for sure. He listened to Ty's muffled voice from the hallway for a few seconds, then got up to go to the bathroom. His eyes felt sandy and he was a bit groggy but washing his face helped a little before he headed to where Ty was, leaning against the doorframe and watching him with a little frown. 'What does she want' he mouthed, tempted to take the phone away from Ty and giving his mom a piece of his mind.
It took that long for Ty to even get his mother to tell him why she’d called him. Ty had started up the coffee maker and listened to her and rolled his eyes much more than they wanted to be rolled at this hour. He’d heard all about how he needed to go back to church and talk to Jesus more and ask for forgiveness and change his ways, as usual. Cindy told him that she’d heard from some of her church friends that Ty had been with Jared at Sadie’s funeral, and she just couldn’t believe he’d had the gall to just be out in public like that. He was leaning tiredly against the edge of the counter when Jared appeared. Ty tuned his mother out for a beat to register the silent question, and he shook his head and rolled his eyes again. “Wait, what?” he asked a second later, frowning down at the floor as he realized Cindy had switched topics. “When? ... Mama, it’s my only day off this week, can’t Mae take you? ... okay, fine,” he conceded with a sigh. “Okay, see you at three. All right, yeah. Okay. Bye.” Ty hung up and let his phone clatter to the counter with another sigh.
"Jesus," Jared muttered, stepping closer to wrap his arms around Ty from behind. They both slept naked and neither of them had gotten dressed but if any of the neighbors were peering into Jared's kitchen that meant they were really trying. "You have to go?" he asked, rubbing his nose against Ty's head, the short hair tickling him a little. Every time Ty's mom came up in conversation he wanted to somehow manage to convert her, to make her see it wasn't a big deal, that her son was gay and that was okay! That probably wasn't going to happen and it broke his heart for his boyfriend.
Ty gave a little groan and huffed a laugh as he leaned back against Jared. “Don’t even say that name,” he murmured, closing his eyes. He laid his own arms over Jared’s and hummed. “Not for a while, and it’s just to take her somewhere ... she says she can get a ride home. But my auntie’s under the weather and can’t drive her. I don’t wanna go.” That was a vast understatement, but Ty didn’t want to get too heavy about it. It was too early for that shit. “I’ll come straight back, promise,” he added, shifting his head to drop it back against Jared’s shoulder.
Jared frowned. It might have been a playful pout but he was honestly displeased with the idea of Ty going out. "She should take a cab," he grumbled, kissing Ty's temple gently. "Would it be a muffler or an amplifier if I came with you?" He wasn't exactly dying to meet Ty's mom but he still wanted to, if only so Ty felt less alone in dealing with her judgment and maybe Jared was holding out for hope that he could melt her a little, unrealistic as it might be. Homosexuality aside he had a feeling race also played into it, that Ty's mama was not at all pleased that her boy was dating a white guy.
He just chuckled over the idea of his mother coughing up money for a cab when she had a perfectly healthy son who could drive in town. Even if she called to berate him for his love choices first thing in the morning. If he made her do that, he would be hearing from every church friend she had, to boot. Still grinning faintly, Ty gave a little hum. “Not sure ... is it bad that I wanna find out?” he murmured. If he’d been spending the day with a girlfriend, he would’ve taken her along for the short ride, so why not Jared? It was his car, he could have whoever he wanted along, right? And it might be worth it to make his mother stew. “You feel up to being silently judged for twenty minutes?” He rubbed lightly at Jared’s arms. “We can hope for silence, anyway.”
"I'll dig up the old manners my mama taught me and fill that silence with love," Jared chuckled and while he wasn't exactly looking forward to meeting Mrs. Solomon, he was glad Ty wasn't opposed to the idea. He would have understood, of course. Ty was stuck in a difficult situation with his homophobic mother and Jared didn't want to rock the boat too much. "I'm gonna have to meet her sooner or later," he added warmly. "Since I'm not about to let you go." That was a thing young people rarely realized, going into a relationship involved a lot more people than just two; families, friends, co-workers. It was a clashing of two lives with all the problems and joys that involved.
Jared was right -- it had to happen eventually, a formal introduction. They couldn’t avoid his mother for forever, and Ty honestly didn’t want to. He was so tired of trying to lie about who he was in order to please her. Maybe the best way to normalize it and make her shut up was to just live like he would if it wasn’t an issue. Actually share space with his family and his partner. He could just ignore the disapproval. Ty smiled and let out a warm little hum, feeling a happy dip in his stomach at that, as always happened when Jared said stuff like that. Stuff that promised this would last. “Sounds like today’s your lucky day then,” he murmured with a tiny huff. “Just keep the ‘bless your heart’s to a minimum, she knows what that means.”
Jared snickered at that. "Bless your heart is a perfectly nice thing to say," he protested, letting go of Ty just enough to turn him around in his arms. "Unless you start adding adjectives." It and could take on a lot of meanings; thankful, pitying, derisive. Jared didn't say it but he had relatives who did and more often than not there was no way of knowing what they meant without context or other clues. He had wrapped his arms around Ty again, pulling him in close. "I won't say it though and I'll try and keep the dramatic eye-rolling to a minimum."
Ty was more than happy to be pulled close, slipping his arms around Jared’s waist and leaning into it. It felt so damn good to be pressed fully skin-to-skin with him, and it made Ty want to abandon the coffee (and his fucking phone) and go back to bed. He rubbed his hands idly against Jared’s back and gave him a faint sleepy-eyed smile. “It’s appreciated,” he murmured. “At least it won’t last long, maybe she’ll get used to you in small doses.” He wasn’t holding out much hope, but it was too early to be a total pessimist, so he could keep that to himself. Ty tilted his head up to give Jared a soft kiss. “You’re the best boyfriend in the universe,” he added against his lips.
"No, you," Jared murmured back a bit playfully because they could really play the 'no you' game for a while if they set their minds to it. They were good together, that was what it boiled down to. "I'll try and worm my way into her heart," he added with a little smile. He hadn't been sure how he wanted to handle meeting Ty's mother. Ty was keeping things civil with her and Jared didn't want to undermine that but he was angry at her for the way she treated her son. His man. Being too nice could feel like a betrayal of sorts, but if it helped? Yeah, he'd settled on that approach for now, play it sugar sweet.
“Worked on me,” Ty said with a smirk of his own. Jared hadn’t had to do much worming at all, of course, and they both knew it. Ty had essentially tripped over a friend’s curiosity and fallen madly in love like the happiest idiot ever. He supposed nothing could be perfect, so he had to be saddled with a homophobic mother. Ty rose up on his toes and moved his arms from Jared’s waist to around his shoulders and kissed him with a bit more feeling. Not too deep, because he was aware of his morning breath situation, but he did want more than a peck. “Now I don’t wanna think about her again ‘til we’re leaving,” he murmured.
"We have a few hours," Jared said, more than content to drop the subject until it was time to put on his sweetheart face. He didn't care about their breath, his was no better. They'd been dragged out of bed reluctant and irritated and now it was time to make the best of it. "Not until three, right?" Why'd she have to call so early, he wondered. Moms could be so sadistic. "Time for coffee, showers, sex, whatever you want." He was still a bit sleepy but at this point he knew he wouldn't fall asleep if he went back to bed.
“Mmm, all of the above?” He grinned lazily. The bitter, petty, kinda gross part of him kind of liked the idea of going to see his mom with a load of Jared’s cum in him. He would never be so crass as to throw that in her face, but it would be so satisfying just to know. He was living his life how he goddamn well wanted to now, and nothing she said could stop him. “In any order you want, though.” Ty wasn’t going to push to have a bunch of sex before they’d had coffee and woken up some. He was kind of hungry, himself.
"All of the above," Jared agreed with a smile. "Let's start with coffee." He was still a little groggy so that seemed like a good place to start: coffee and some food, then lazy Sunday morning sex and then a shower. All of those things combined would make it easier to put on a pleasant face but those hours went by too fast.
Jared was not as nervous about meeting Cindy Solomon as he thought he might be. Meeting his boyfriend's mom would usually have him worried that she wouldn't like him but... that was kind of guaranteed this time so the pressure was weirdly enough off. She'd hate him no matter what he did and if he managed to change her mind then that was a small miracle. He and Ty got cleaned up and dressed and left before three in a timely fashion. "Did you tell her I'm stealing you away for Thanksgiving?" he asked when they got to the car.
They made it as good of a morning as they could, and while Ty could feel some anxiety growing in the back of his mind about this meeting, he did his best to ignore it while he enjoyed Jared’s company. He was just glad this was going to be a brief encounter and not some dinner-long event or something. Baby steps. Ty just hoped that Cindy wouldn’t be outright rude to Jared. They got all kinds of abuse from the general public in the course of their work, but getting it from someone close was different, and he felt pretty protective over his man.
He glanced over at Jared as he pulled out of his drive and started his slow way out of Seaview. “Uh, no, not yet,” Ty admitted with a sheepish look. “We haven’t exactly been chatting about holiday plans much lately.” They’d barely been talking at all. Ty supposed he shouldn’t announce it in the middle of this car ride, but now he was kind of tempted to, to challenge her to cop an attitude about it with Jared right there.
"I'm gonna tell her," Jared sing-songed to the tune of bratty kids everywhere picking on their peers. It did make him wonder where that song came from and whether it was actually a song but it wasn't a terribly deep thought process, or a long one before he laughed and shook his head. "I'm not, I'm not," he promised, though it was kind of funny in his head. Being bratty to Mrs. Solomon. Your boy is my boy now, neener neener. He fully realized it was just nerves drawing out an imp side of him he didn't often see, especially lately with all the grief. Better that than just being nervous. "Man, she's gonna hate me even more," he mused, though he managed not to sound too torn about it.
Ty groaned and shot Jared a warning look, though it was halfway amused. That would be a disaster, of course, so he was glad it was just a tease. Really, he thought his mother might ultimately be too pissed at him to care much if he wasn’t there for Thanksgiving. Or that would be what she claimed, at least, as she held it against him for forever. But Ty couldn’t honestly care much. He wanted to spend the holiday in Texas with Jared, so that was what he would do. “Yeah, probably,” he agreed with a smirk. “Not much you can do about that. Don’t sweat it though, she hates me the most, no matter what.” He gave a faint chuckle, but it was more bitter than anything else.
"Well, if she'd behave I'd totally invite her too," Jared said and as far as he was concerned, Mrs. Solomon was missing out. "Plenty of space at my mama's house, lots of bedrooms." Even without Cindy's hostility that sort of big family get-together was probably a thing people did after dating for over a year; a marriage sort of thing. Meeting the parents was a big step, having the parents meet each other was huge. He hadn't had to deal with that on that level ever before. Sadie's parents had both died and his other relationships had never reached that level of commitment. Maybe the only reason he thought of it now was the slight hope that his mama might charm Ty's mama and show her that being a good christian could go hand in hand with being accepting of her son's lifestyle.
He couldn’t imagine that happening in a million years, and it was kind of sad. Even if everything went well and Cindy finally accepted that her son was gay and in love and with someone, Ty couldn’t picture her making friends with Jared’s mother. A Southern white lady who accepted who her son was without question? It just seemed impossible. But maybe she would surprise him. Ty wasn’t going to hold his breath, but who fucking knew. He just grunted in answer to what Jared said, eyes on the road as he drove them toward his mama’s house. Out of the family he had left, he really needed to introduce Jared to Mae. Whenever she felt better, that was. He hoped it was just a quick flu or something. For the moment, Ty just drove and tried not to think about how unsettled his stomach felt.
Jared reached over and gave the back of Ty's neck a little massage. He wasn't oblivious to how tense he was and the fact there was nothing he could do to fix it bothered him. He let his hand drop down below Ty's neck, resting it there for a little while as they drove. This was going to be tough and his own mood started dropping the closer they got to their destination. It wasn't fair and he couldn't help but wonder how hard it would have been to introduce Ty to his dad if he was still alive. Family was so important and it could be so damaging.
Ty appreciated the physical show of support, and he tossed a grateful glance over at Jared. He was quiet for the rest of the drive, second-guessing the decision to do it this way the whole time. On one hand, it should be just a casual, matter-of-fact thing because Jared was part of his daily life now, and that was it. Cindy hadn’t been gracious enough about any of this for him to owe her some grand introduction. Ty didn’t want to make an Event out of it, that would be a fucking farce. So she got this. All too soon, he pulled into his mother’s driveway. Ty put the car in park and looked over at Jared again, reaching over to give his thigh a squeeze. “Ready for this?” he murmured.
Jared squinted at him, tilted his head and said nothing that his expression couldn't convey. Was he ready? Probably not. Was he going to do this anyway? Of course. His smile went from pained to amused and he gave Ty's arm a squeeze. "Let's do this. After we drop her off I'll treat you to anything you want to make up for... whatever disaster might happen. Do you want me to sit in the back while we drive her?" There were unwritten rules in dealing with moms but none of them was something Jared could take for granted with Ty's mom.
At the very least, it wouldn’t be a long ride, Ty was grateful for that. And he had the rest of the day to look forward to with Jared, and his boyfriend could most likely wash the bad taste about it all out of his mouth. Jared could be very distracting when he wanted to be. Not that Ty was thinking in that vein at the moment. “Yeah, please,” he answered, grateful for the question. Cindy would definitely take offense to having to ride in the back. “Hop out and I’ll go get her,” he added as he pulled his door open and climbed out of the car. “Wait here.”
The instruction turned out to be needless, as his mother’s front door opened as soon as Ty’s sneaker hit the bottom step. His stomach clenched uncomfortably -- he’d meant to tell her who was waiting in the driveway, but she was already on her way out, both hands full with a large plastic food container. “Tyrone, give me a hand--” she was saying, but the words stopped when Cindy looked up beyond her son and saw Jared by the car.
Oh this was so much worse than what Jared had imagined, maybe because he was somewhat hoping that she'd feign nonchalance around someone she didn't know but no. She already had a disapproving look on her face and Jared hadn't even said hello yet. He put on a smile anyway and strolled closer. He'd never actually met Ty's mom though he easily knew who she was in such a small town. Now he almost wished he was a regular at church or something - anything to make her approve of him more. "Hello Mrs. Solomon," he said as he got closer. "It's really nice to meet you." It wasn't, it so wasn't, his stomach was clenching uncomfortably and he was feeling a lot like a gangly and awkward fifteen year old meeting his girlfriend's parents for the first time. Cindy was tiny and yet she managed to make him feel small.
Cindy didn’t immediately launch into something scathing, so Ty counted that as an initial win. She was behaving herself. She had just lost control over her facial expressions years ago, and never bothered to try to regain it. She eyed Jared as he approached, her lips pursed more than a little. Ty knew she knew Jared on sight, it was that kind of town, but he was pretty sure they’d never been formally introduced. Maybe this whole thing would’ve been easier if they had been. He glanced warily between them, silently willing his mama to be cordial, at the very least.
She didn’t even look at Ty as she held the tupperware out for him to take. He did so, trying to handle it gingerly in case there was something smoosh-able in there. Cindy looked Jared up and down assessingly, taking her time about answering. “Hello, Officer Gaines,” she replied, and while her tone wasn’t the warmest, she didn’t sound like she wanted him to drop dead, either. That was progress, Ty thought.
“Jared’s gonna ride with us, come on, mama,” he said gently, trying to prompt her to get moving. He knew Cindy Solomon couldn’t be rushed, but the longer they drew this out, the worse it would probably be for all of them. Cindy started down the steps, still giving Jared the eye.
"I'll take that," Jared said to Ty and nodded at the container. It made sense since Ty was driving and Jared wasn't. It'd be safer if he held onto it than if they put it in the backseat or the trunk. "Are you going to a party, Mrs. Solomon?" he added a bit cheekily when he took the container and spotted the deliciousness within, shooting Cindy one of his more disarming smiles. The mom-softener. He had a feeling it wouldn't work on her. In an alternative dimension he might one day get fed by Ty's mom but he wasn't going to hold his breath for it in this one.
Ty passed the tupperware to Jared with a bit of relief that he wouldn’t have to juggle it into the backseat or anything, shooting him a grateful glance. While Cindy gave Jared a wary look for the question, Ty skirted around her and hurried to the car to open the passenger side door for her. She liked having doors opened on her behalf, and he wanted to make sure she knew she would be sitting up front, so she wouldn’t even bring it up.
“It’s a potluck supper and bake sale for a lady at church,” she said, her voice still a bit curt as she walked to the car -- slower than Ty knew she could. “Do you attend church, Officer Gaines?” Cindy knew he didn’t, at least not any of the few churches in town, so the question was rather pointed. It made Ty’s skin crawl, but he didn’t let it show as he waited, then offered his arm to help his mother into her seat.
The odds were just stacked against him, Jared thought as he smiled patiently. "No ma'am, just weddings and funerals," he said politely. She knew that already, of course, the question was designed to make him feel uncomfortable but he refused to let it affect him. If there was one upside to her hating their relationship already it was that there was nowhere to go but up. Once Cindy was seated, Jared got in the back seat, putting the container on the seat next to him while he got his belt on. The back seat was never his friend in any vehicle although it wasn't too bad in Ty's car. It still felt weird to sit there, he'd been riding shotgun for years now if he himself wasn't the one doing the driving. Back seats were for kids and perps. "She alright? The lady from church?" he asked casually, picking up the precious cargo again.
Ty was very aware of his man’s long legs, so he scooted his seat up a bit when he got in, since Jared got in behind him. He knew Cindy wouldn’t even make the offer, so that was probably smart positioning on Jared’s part. And then there they were, a car divided, and Ty did his very best not to give off as many uncomfortable vibes as he was actually feeling. Cindy hummed a ‘mmhmm’ that sounded unsurprised at Jared’s answer about church attendance. Ty glanced over at his mother, taking in the familiar tightness in her jaw and how she wouldn’t look straight at him. He was going to get an earful for this later, he had a feeling, but that would’ve been coming no matter what.
“She’s been in and outta the hospital,” Cindy answered Jared’s question. “Colon cancer. It’s put a burden on her family, so we’re gonna help.” Irrational as it was, Ty had a feeling that she was thinking of him when she said ‘burden.’ “Terri Childers. Keep her in your prayers if you’re the prayin’ type,” she added, though she sounded like she knew Jared wasn’t the praying type. How could he be with such a sinful lifestyle?
Jared could so easily have let this dog him down, gone quiet for the rest of the ride and let her stew. He was not a man of faith and he was used to people judging him for it coming from a fairly religious little town. The fact that this was Ty's mother didn't need to change his attitude about it but religion was definitely a topic he tried to avoid with most people. "My daddy was a cynical type," he said in idle chatter. "Guess it rubbed off on us boys." Oh she was going to hate that but he reminded himself - yet again - that she already hated everything about this and that likely couldn't be fixed. "I learned early on to get my hands dirty and try and fix it myself instead of prayin' so to me this bake sale is going to go a lot further than any prayer I might have." Which was ironic because right now he was sending a silent and apologetic prayer Ty's way but at least he knew Ty was real.
Cindy’s lips pursed tighter and she turned her head just slightly to give Ty a pointed look. Not only was Jared a man, he was an atheist. A gay-or-whatever atheist. Giving a slight grunt, she shifted around in her seat a little bit, turning her body slightly more to face the car door. She turned her gaze outside once more and Ty felt like he could practically feel the temperature in the car drop. “God still hears the sinful, Officer Gaines, and He can fix things man can’t. Perhaps you should give prayer another try.”
Ty closed his eyes briefly, his hands tightening on the wheel. “Mama,” he murmured, a bit of a warning in his tone. “Don’t start.” While he still went to church every now and then to placate her, he’d stopped being a believer a long time ago, but he knew better than to have that discussion. Cindy knew how he felt and what he thought about it and they were both happier avoiding the subject.
Jared could have argued with her until they were both blue in the face but he felt bad for Ty and he had wanted this to go a lot more smoothly. He smiled faintly and quieted the nagging disbeliever in his head. Cindy Solomon was not about to give up her deathgrip on her faith at this age and Jared had nothing to gain from trying to convince her otherwise. "Maybe I will," he said in the warmest voice he could muster. It wasn't like he didn't ever pray, it wasn't aimed at a particular god but every human being prayed at some point when fear took over, when someone close to them was suffering. "I'll certainly keep Childers in my thoughts. Her son works at the bank, doesn't he?"
Cindy didn’t answer for a moment, and Ty could practically feel her disdain for Jared -- or really, what he represented -- warring with her ingrained manners. Cindy could be rude as hell when she felt the need, and felt like she had some back up, and neither of those applied here. The really sad thing was, Ty knew that it wasn’t Jared that was the problem. If Ty had been a daughter instead of a son, bringing Jared home, Cindy might’ve had a few reservations about him being white, but the rest of it would fall into lovely place and Ty knew his mother would’ve been charmed by the big Texan. But because they both had dicks, Cindy couldn’t be happy for them or even give Jared a chance. The longer he was in the same space with the two of them, the lower Ty felt about it. “Yes, Billy Childers,” Cindy finally said after a long pause. There was no thanks in her tone, and Ty was sure she wasn’t convinced that Jared gave two shits.
Ty cleared his throat and shifted in his seat a bit, glancing over at his mom’s profile. “So what’s Auntie Mae come down with?” he asked, determined to move the conversation away from the value of prayer and how sinful they all were. After another, shorter pause, Cindy told him his aunt had bronchitis and it was making her feel wretched. She sounded a bit more normal, talking to him, and he guessed that was a small mercy. “Give her my love when you get home again,” he murmured. “And let me know if you need me to pick anything up.”
Jared was mentally beating himself up a little as they pulled up at their destination but it wasn't like he could have outright lied to Mrs. Solomon's face. He wasn't religious and even if he was, he certainly wouldn't be nearly as devout as she was. He got out of the car and circled around with Ty, standing back as he let her out. "It was good meeting you, Mrs. Solomon," he said once Cindy was out. "Best of luck with the bake sale." He'd barely spoken when he realized she might not think luck had anything to do with it, maybe luck was a filthy heathen thing because God would oversee her bake sale. He was beginning to realize that he was never going to be in her good graces and it stung a little.
Cindy used her son’s arm to help her get out of the vehicle and gave it a pat -- the only sign of affection Ty suspected he would get as they parted ways. She reached out and took the pie container from Jared’s hands, only giving an ‘mmhmm’ hum to what he said to her. “You call on your auntie,” she told Ty instead, her tone a bit fussy even though he’d just learned that she’d been sick that very day. Cindy started to shuffle toward the front of the building, then glanced back at Jared. “Officer Gaines,” she said coolly as a parting acknowledgement.
Ty watched her continue on. “Bye Mama,” he said, and Cindy waved one hand over her shoulder. He waited until she had gotten the front door open on her own, then turned to walk back around the front of the car and climb into the driver's seat again. He sighed and rubbed at his face. Well ... at least it was over and nobody had screamed. That was something, right?
Jared got in the passenger seat, giving Ty a pained expression, half expecting him to be irritated with him. "I am so sorry," he mumbled. "You should've gotten yourself a nice christian man." The problem went far deeper than that and he knew that. Ty's mother would have only been happy if he got himself a nice christian woman and that just wasn't in the charts for him. Bad joke aside, he shouldn't have taken the bait. "You okay?" he asked quietly and it was probably weird to feel guilty that his own mama was so accepting when Ty's wasn't.
A little bark of a laugh bubbled up at Jared’s words. As if Ty would’ve been any sort of happy with a ‘nice Christian man,’ nevermind how hard they were to find. Jared was right that it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. “Yeah,” he murmured, leaning his head against the back of the seat for a moment. He looked over at Jared and gave him a wan little smile. “Fuck that, though. A nice Christian man couldn’t keep up with me. I need a dirty heathen, like me.” he grinned a little and reached over to scritch in Jared’s beard a little. “Least she didn’t cuss you out or anything,” he added in a murmur.
Jared relaxed a bit, grinning at the beard scratching and then laughing incredulously. "Wait..." he murmured. "-Wait, that was not the worst case scenario?" He couldn't imagine Cindy Solomon cussing anyone out, or cussing in general. She'd been plenty scary without any sort of foul language and Jared was pretty sure he would have died inside if she'd actually told him to his face the things she'd obviously been thinking.
Ty had seen his mother in the throes of some hardcore fire and brimstone judgement, and she could let the language fly when she wanted to. Most people around her just fell in line without her having to, was the thing. Ty’s father had been the quiet one, Cindy had a volcano inside of her that couldn’t stay dormant if she was unhappy with what was happening in her life. He chuckled over Jared’s question and shook his head. “No, this was not the worst-case scenario. She got in the car and actually spoke to you and all.” He gave Jared a wan smile. “Maybe just ... with time ... I dunno. But you’ll be sticking around, so she’s gonna have to get used to you.” He started the car up again to get them out of there, sure there were several pairs of old lady eyes peeking at them through the windows.
"Oh you bet your ass I'm sticking around," Jared said stubbornly as he fastened his seat belt. "We'll wear her down." He wasn't so sure that was possible but if he didn't joke about it, it would just add to his misery. "She hasn't changed your mind so far so I won't let her get to me." That really was the one thing he worried about, that all this negativity could impact their relationship. Ty had lived with it for years now and no matter who he brought home this was what he was getting. Jared couldn't imagine dealing with that. He could imagine it from his dad but never his mama who'd tried to be supportive even if it rubbed her the wrong way.
Wearing her down was the best plan that Ty had, effective or not. He wasn’t going to stop living his life how he wanted, and he staunchly refused to cut Jared out of it for anybody for any reason. If that meant sacrificing his relationship with his mother? Then so be it. That would be her choice. Ty was sure he would have guilt if she cut him off, but he knew that ultimately that would be Cindy’s call. He couldn’t wait around for her to listen to reason or change her mind, he just wanted to live and not be lonely anymore while he did it. Once they’d pulled out of the lot and were on the road again, Ty reached for Jared’s hand. “She’s not changing my mind,” he assured him quietly, seriously. “Ever. She’s in the wrong and I’m not bending. You’re my favorite part of my life, so she can get used to you or just not be a part of it.” It was a shitty thing to have to say, but that was how Ty felt now.
Ty had told him he loved him plenty of times but hearing he was the favorite part of his life was somehow so powerful in that moment it actually made Jared feel a little choked up. He watched him with a warm and appreciative smile, giving his hand a little squeeze. "You're my favorite part of my life too," he said softly. If this was a movie he'd get to save Cindy's life in some dramatic fashion that would open her eyes to how wonderful he really was and how good for Ty but alas, Cindy Solomon might go to her grave hating him and that was just a damn tragedy. It made him wonder if anything at her house needed fixing, if he could worm his way into her good graces somehow. It wasn't for his own sake as much as it was for Ty. If she could accept this part of her son's life, it would mean the world to him. "Maybe I'll take up bible studies, start quoting scriptures at her about love and acceptance."
It was all so exhausting to think about, Ty kind of just didn’t want to anymore. He’d been through all of this angst before, when he’d been outed to his parents, only then he’d been alone and a teenager. Ty had much more experience and support and confidence in himself now, and he felt like he could handle the rejection better. His parents had fucked up their end of taking care of him, but now he could take care of himself and do it right. He chuckled over Jared’s idea, bringing their hands up to kiss the backs of his big knuckles. “She goes to Bible study all the damn time, you better get started then,” he murmured, tossing Jared a bemused glance. “Believe me though, I’ve tried to talk it out with her. She’s just convinced that a couple verses in Leviticus and Romans or whatever are enough to damn us forever.” He sighed and shrugged.
"Breaks my heart," Jared said quietly before smiling again and pulling Ty's hand over to do the same for him - kiss his knuckles and then playfully gnaw on them. "You deserve good things, baby and I'm not gonna let her ruin your day. We've got the day off and we oughta have some fun with it." It might be easier said than done to shake the gloom but Jared would be damned if he didn't try. Everything was still so raw and painful with Sadie gone and Ty's mama spreading toxic feelings, they needed to take pleasure where they could. "How does a massage sound?"
The feel of Jared’s teeth against his hand made Ty grin a little. He quirked an eyebrow and glanced over at his boyfriend curiously, more than happy to put the whole issue behind them in favor of more positive things. They weren’t going to solve it today, that much was obvious. “A massage from you, or a professional?” he asked, his tone teasing. While the latter sounded nice for actually working the physical kinks out, he had to admit that getting naked and rubbed down by Jared sounded even better. And then Jared could fuck him within an inch of his life, and anybody who didn’t approve could die mad about it, as far as he was concerned.
Jared laughed. "Me," he said with a little shake of his head. "I know, I know, I should have seen this coming and made an appointment with someone great for you but I didn't so you're stuck with me oiling you up." He was having similar thoughts, a bunch of sensual oil to rub into Ty's skin starting with his shoulders and working his way down his body with a nice focus on his ass before he started teasing his hole. Sex or no sex, it felt good to get a massage and if it had a happy ending with the guy he loved, even better. "I'll oil you up good though," he murmured. "Bet I can make you melt a little."
Ty laughed a little and took his hand back so he could make a turn on the way back to Jared’s place. “You’re the only one I really want oilin’ me up,” he murmured back with a lazy sort of grin. He would take a pro massage some day, of course, and now he had the idea that they ought to get a couples massage sometime, but at the moment Ty wanted only Jared’s hands on him. And other parts of his anatomy. “You know I’m chocolate in your hands, baby,” Ty added with another chuckle. “I’ll melt all over you.” It was cheesy and dumb, probably, but he felt like he needed some of that today.
Jared laughed because yes, it was very cheesy but that didn't mean he didn't like it. "That's okay. I'll lick you all up," he drawled and all the bad feelings were subsiding for now, that was the effect Ty so often had on him. He was already imagining his hands all over Ty's beautiful body, squeezing and kneading his muscles and ass, coaxing soft moans out of his boy. It did not leave him unaffected and he cleared his throat as he shifted in his seat and adjusted himself. "Got me thinking all sorts of naughty things now."
It always helped to flirt. At least it did with Jared. Ty was feeling uplifted with pleasant thoughts of Jared’s tongue against his skin. They had each other, and what else did they really need? Not that Ty wasn’t happy that Jared’s family was more receptive to their relationship, he was. He just knew now that Jared would still be with him even if they weren’t. He glanced over with a half-grin. “Oh yeah?” he murmured. Ty reached over again, though he bypassed Jared’s hands this time to cup his crotch for a second instead. “Don’t get carried away, daddy, I want that massage.” Ty straightened back up to drive, smirking out at the road.
"Oh you're getting a massage," Jared promised huskily. "All over." Horny or not, he couldn't stop smiling now, watching Ty's profile as Ty focused on the road, drinking in that little smirk of his. "Fuck, you're so beautiful," he blurted out and ran his hand over Ty's arm, appreciating the curves of his muscles. "I'm going to make you feel so good, baby. We should turn off our phones."
Ty flexed a little as Jared stroked his arm, not even really intentionally. He grinned, glad that they were nearing Seaview again. It was time to turn this day around and spend the rest of it just basking in his boyfriend. “Oh we’re definitely turning off our phones,” he agreed. “And not wearin’ any more clothes, the rest of the fuckin’ day.” He arched a brow. “You want some liquor or anything?” Ty felt like they ought to get drunk, since it was their day off and they wanted to fool around, but he was fine with not, too.
"I got some drinks at the house if we get thirsty," Jared replied. He didn't need it, not for this, already feeling a little drunk just off the thought of all the things he wanted to do when they got back. No clothes was definitely part of that plan and so was oil. He was going to need to change the sheets after but it was all worth it. "I can mix you up something sweet if you want," he offered, loving the way Ty's muscles tensed under his touch.
He was good with not drinking, Ty was sure they could make one another feel drunk with pleasure, and that would be more than enough. “Baby, everything you give me tastes sweet,’ he practically purred, giving Jared another smirky glance. Ty was starting to feel a little warmer with all this innuendo, a pleasant weight in his stomach. He felt like they’d left all of the family bullshit far behind, and god did he need that. Ty slowed down and pulled into Seaview, trying not to drive too fast to Jared’s house.
Jared beamed at him, then laughed softly. "Now you just make me wanna fuck your mouth and here I'm planning on giving you a massage," he protested jokingly, shaking his head and tut-tutting. "I'll mix you something sweet instead and fuck your face later." It was the sort of banter that was a combination of funny and hot because he definitely knew how hot it was when Ty sucked his cock, but that was not the plan for today - not to start with at least. He wanted his boy sprawled out and melting with pleasure as he rubbed him down.
“Promises, promises,” Ty murmured and gave a little cluck of his tongue. He chuckled as he pulled up in front of Jared’s place and put the car in park. Before he pulled the key out, he turned and reached for the front of Jared’s shirt. Ty flashed him a little smile as he pulled him in closer and pressed their lips together. “You can fuck any part of me you want,” he murmured against Jared’s mouth, letting his hand roam over that big chest. Ty knew that Jared knew that, but he did love to say it.
Jared did love to hear him say stuff like that, especially when it came paired with that kind of touching. "Oh I'm going to fuck you," he said with a lazy grin before nipping lightly on Ty's bottom lip. "It'll be a very thorough massage." He'd been getting harder since they started talking about it and by now it was noticeable, straining against his jeans. He was just glad he hadn't been the one driving. "But not just yet," he added teasingly because he was going to take his damn time. It was a lazy Sunday, they had the day off, he was turning off his phone and closing the blinds. As far as anyone knew they'd gone for a hike and left the cars behind. They did not need to be reached today.
Ty let out a soft titter, happy that ‘thorough’ meant inside and out. Not that he’d expected anything less. Ty kissed Jared one more time, then let him go, more than on board with closing the door behind them and pretending the rest of the world didn’t exist anymore. They deserved that on their day off, at the very least. He climbed out of the car and locked up once Jared was out too, then headed for his boyfriend’s front door.
For a second Jared thought Ty might unlock the door before he remembered his brain had been too foggy lately to actually take care of the whole 'getting Ty a key'. It was something he didn't really want to think about in the moment as that led down a road of 'why' his brain had been so foggy during the last miserable week. No, he definitely didn't want to think about that but he did file away the key thing since he seemed to be feeling a little clearer. He fished his own out of his pocket and stepped up next to Ty to unlock the door, then patted Ty's ass to send him on in ahead. "Let me survey my work area, hm?" he teased, pointedly looking him up and down.
He laughed as he walked into Jared’s house, shaking his head. “Like you don’t know it already,” he said. Ty gave his ass a little wiggle before he made room for Jared to come in behind him. He stepped aside to shrug out of his jacket and get his shoes off. Even if it didn’t last too long, he was actually looking forward to this massage that was being talked up. Ty carried a lot of tension in his back, and he always loved Jared’s hands on him, no matter the reasons. As soon as Jared was inside and had shed his outerwear too, Ty moved in close and slid his arms around his man’s shoulders. “Thanks for goin’ with me,” he murmured.
"Anytime," Jared replied. He almost apologized again for getting in a tiff with Cindy about religion of all things but it didn't feel necessary. He'd already said it and it didn't need hammering home. "You know I'd go anywhere with you. Hell and highwater. Even church! Wherever." He wrapped his arms around Ty's chest and pulled him in close, an easy smile playing on his lips.
Ty snorted and shook his head, rolling his eyes. “Fuck no, no churches, ever, I’m swearing to you right now. Our asses are gonna get married on a fuckin’ beach, and we’re having funerals outside,” he declared with a laugh. He realized a second later that he’d said they were getting married, even jokingly, and it had felt ridiculously natural. Like they’d already decided. He rose up on his toes to kiss Jared, hand cupping the back of his neck for a moment. “C’mon, rub me down, big boy,” he murmured against Jared’s lips.
Jared laughed and he didn't even think twice about what Ty had said. To him that seemed like a logical conclusion. Not yet, of course, but in a year or two they were definitely getting married on a beach. Their outdoor wedding faded quickly from his mind though because Ty's next words put entirely different scenarios there, stuff more reminiscent of a wedding night. "Oh I'll rub you down," he drawled and kissed him again. "Get naked, baby."
He grinned, feeling that familiar pleasant flutter in his gut as arousal sparked back up in it. “On it, officer,” he murmured, and gave Jared’s bottom lip a playful little bite. Ty pulled away and turned to head for the bedroom, peeling his shirt off on the way. He tossed it into the hamper in the bedroom -- because they mixed their clothes together now -- and started stripping the rest of the way. Ty stood there naked for a moment as he put his phone on silent and lightly tossed it onto the dresser, then crawled up onto the bed.
Jared drank in the sight of him as he trailed after him to the bedroom, loving the way he moved and stripped down. It was casual and at the same time it felt like a show just for him. "Never getting over how gorgeous you are," Jared all but purred as he leaned against the doorframe and looked Ty over. He could take a moment to enjoy the view before he got naked too, that was just boyfriend privilege and Ty did look delectable, stretched out on his bed.
Ty never minded the audience. He grinned a bit as he settled on the bed, pulling the pillows behind him up a bit so he was reclined against the headboard. Since Jared was taking his time getting ready to join him and all. “Really? Never ever?” he teased, cocking an eyebrow at his man. He spread his legs a bit, drawing one knee up as he slid a hand down the front of his body. Ty teased his fingertips over his cock, gazing right back at Jared. “That’s the idea, I guess.”
"Never ever," Jared said with even more conviction as Ty started teasing him with the hottest imagery ever. He'd promised him a massage but it was tempting to just jump on him and sex him up good right away. Jared took a deep breath, shaking his head as if to clear it and then stepped inside the room, shutting the door behind him. "Look at you," he said quietly as he turned off his phone and set it on the dresser. "Good enough to eat."
He leaned his head back and let his eyelids slip half-shut as he watched Jared come into the room. Ty liked watching him strip too, and his cock was starting to get hard just with the anticipation of it all. And because of his own toying with himself, of course, but it was mostly Jared. Six months ago, he would’ve stewed for the rest of this kind of day, but now he was doing this, and it was so much better. “I’ll be even better once you butter me up,” he murmured with a lazy grin. Ty gave his cock a couple of light strokes.
Leaving the house had been the worst, even without all the drama, and Jared was more than happy to be home and heading back for bed. He started stripping, his gaze fixed on Ty who was a sight to behold, like his own private quality pornography, interactive and perfect. "How about you flip over and show me that cute butt of yours," he said with a little grin. "I'll butter you up real good." He stepped out of his jeans and pulled his socks off, leaving his briefs on for now.
They never could seem to resist ogling one another, and Ty was more than okay with that. He loved to watch Jared take his clothes off, revealing all those freckles and lovely muscles. It really was pretty amazing that he’d managed to keep his crush in check for so many years. Knowing ‘for sure’ a guy was straight would do that, he guessed. But now he knew better. For sure. Grinning a bit himself, Ty shifted down on the bed a bit and turned himself over to stretch out on his stomach. He lifted his hips for a moment to arrange his dick comfortably, then settled again with a sigh. “This okay?” he murmured with a smirk, twitching his ass cheeks.
Jared laughed a little at the idea that any of this was just okay. "Perfect," he said before hunting down the massage oil he'd bought just a couple of weeks ago and still hadn't had a chance to use. Until now, at least. He scanned the information on the side of the bottle, then shook it a little as he got onto the bed on his knees and shuffled over to Ty. Getting a massage was amazing but giving one was just as great, at least when it was on a body he loved so well. Before opening the bottle he lightly tapped Ty's ass cheeks with the palm of his hand, not quite spanking but teasing it. "Damn, you are fine."
Ty folded his arms and rested his cheek on them, getting comfortable while Jared got stuff together. The little pats on his behind made him giggle, and the compliment just made it all feel even more warm. Ty knew he was hot, he’d heard it a million times in his life, but he always liked hearing it from Jared the best. While Ty knew he hadn’t ‘converted’ his man away from women, Jared had been bi all along, he still liked to kind of entertain those smug feelings in himself. “You’re one to talk ... but yeah, yeah I am.” He grinned with his eyes still closed.
That made Jared chuckle softly. "Yeah you are," he echoed and rubbed Ty's ass playfully before he moved to straddle his thighs, letting some of the oil drip on his own arm to make sure it wasn't cool against the skin before pouring a bit of it onto Ty's back. "And you'll be even finer when I get you all oiled up." Oil did tend to flatter an already beautiful body, accentuating the curves of muscles and giving the skin an added shine. Jared pressed his palm against the puddle of oil and spread it slowly around Ty's back, humming contently at the faint scent of herbs.
The oil was room temperature, but the first drop of it still made Ty twitch a little. He relaxed again quickly, and went even more limp when Jared’s hands started to work. God, that firm touch felt so goddamn good. He’d thought more than once that he could only play straight with really butch women, because he loved the strength and size of men’s hands too much. You could buy a dick, you couldn’t buy that pressure into tired muscle. Ty gave a little groan and heaved a content sigh.