The Prince of Punk Rock (32 page)

The man spoke with sophistication
and distinction.
 
It was clear that he
was the well respected head of the family.
 
Every word that rolled off his tongue was filled with class.
 
His accent was a little more detectable than
Angel’s mother, but his English was perfect and formal.
 
He was charming and debonair.
 
A true gentleman.

Maria, Angel’s sister, sat next to
Jessi and had her engaged in conversation about fashion since the moment they
sat down.

Nesto, Angel’s brother, seems
infatuated with Jessi and vied with his sister for Jessi’s attention.

“Let the girl enjoy her meal,” Mr.
Garcia scolded them.
 
“Do not inundate
her with your banter.
 
Let her eat in
peace.”

“I don’t mind at all,” Jessi
replied.
 
“Is it OK if I help myself to
more paella?
 
Out of all the wonderful
things on this table, it’s my favorite.”

Nesto promptly refilled her plate
with a serving spoon full of paella.
 
Jessi waved her hand, indicating she wanted more.

A commanding gust of air bellowed
from Mr. Garcia’s lungs and took the form of a short laugh. “It makes me happy
that you enjoy the food that I have prepared, Senora Jessica.
 
You eat con mucho gusto for such a skinny
girl.”

“Do you speak the language?” Mrs.
Garcia asked, taking a sip of her wine.

Both Jessi and Tommy shook their
heads.

“Well then, we only speak English
today.
 
We will not be rude to our lovely
guests.”

“You should learn Spanish,” Angel’s
father said. “It is the language of romance.”

“Yes, it’s very romantic. I love
when Angel speaks of me in Spanish.” Tommy put his hand on Angel’s knee,
concealed under the mighty table, and they exchanged a secretive smile.

“You have very beautiful hair,
Jessica,” Mrs. Garcia commented.
 
“Are
you a hair dresser?”

“No. I work at a fashion house. I’m
an associate designer.
 
Unfortunately, I
never finished my degree at FIT and it’s working against me, but they like my
designs.
 
They haven’t put their label on
any of my garments yet, but I give them input. Some they use, some they
don’t.
 
My designs are a little too edgy
for their aesthetic.”

“You are woman of many
talents.”
 
Mrs. Garcia seemed impressed.
 
“My son tells me of the hard work you do for
him and his band.
 
I hope you do not
perceive me as lazy.
 
I only teach at the
school and help the children with their Spanish.”
 
Her eyes scanned the feast on the table.
 
“And the men do all the cooking in the Garcia
household.”

“Lazy?
 
Never.
 
Your home is immaculate.”

Angel’s dad chuckled.
 
“You can’t leave a glass on the table
unattended for five minutes or my wife will dispose of it in the dishwasher.”

“Now I know where Angel gets it
from,” Tommy said with a smile.
 
“He’s a
lot like you Mrs. Garcia.”

Her dazzling smile mimicked
Angel’s.
 
“Thank you.
  
That is a very nice compliment since I am
always told what a good son I have raised.” She primped her flowing dark hair
with the palm of her hand.
 
“And I am Angelita,
by the way.
 
So, my son tells me he is
living in your house now.
 
This was
unexpected news to us.
 
It is unusual for
a young married couple to take in a grown man.”

“Angelita, please, we do not
interrogate our guests.”

Her eye twinkled at her husband.
 
“But I thought they were family now, mi
amor?
 
And you know that there are no
secrets between family.”

“Sometimes, even family needs a
little privacy.
 
And I thought we were
speaking English today.”

Angelita held up her wine
glass.
 
“Touché, my love.”
  
She giggled.
 
It was Angel’s adorable laugh, only lighter.
 
“Forgive me, I think that was French.”

Tommy admired Angel’s parents. They
were loving toward one another and it extended to all who entered their
home.
 
There was no judgment.
 
He almost felt compelled to tell them how
much he loved Angel.

While Tommy and Jessi waited for
him in the car, Angel stayed back to speak to his mother.
 
He already knew what she was going to say.

“You love this man.”
 
It wasn’t a question.
 
It was a statement.
 
“A mother knows her son.
 
He loves you too, but he also loves her.
 
He is a married man.
 
He will not leave his wife for you, muchacho.
 
And we do not break up a marriage. It is not
right.”

It was hard for Angel to
respond.
 
He wanted to explain, but he
was torn by his loyalty to Tommy.
 
He
couldn’t lie to his mother and he couldn’t betray Tommy’s trust.
 
He let out a deep breath.
 
“I don’t want to break up their
marriage.
 
I love Jessi.”

She raised one eyebrow.
 
“So now you love women too?”

“No.
 
I love her like family.”

“Yes.
 
But I still do not approve of this.”
 
She put her hand on his chest.
 
“Your heart is too big.
 
It will break.”

“Trust me, mami. I know what I’m
doing.
 
I can’t explain it now, but soon.
I promise.”

“I trust you, mijo, but a mother
still worries.”
 
She kissed his cheek and
patted his shoulder. “Go, your friends are waiting.
 
And tell Damien I want him at my dinner table
very soon.
 
Alyssa too.”

Angel slipped behind the wheel of
the car and waved to his mother who blew him a kiss from the front door.

Tommy also waved at her.
 
“She knows, doesn’t she?”

“Of course she knows.
 
Nothing gets past her.
 
We’d have an easier time putting something
over on Jessi than on my mother.”

Jessi stuck her head in between
them from the back seat.
 
She was munching
on leftover paella from a plastic container in her lap.
 
“Your parents are the most amazing and
extraordinary people I’ve ever met.
 
I
wish my parents were like them. You’re lucky they live in
Florida
and you can escape an
introduction.”
 
She started to sit back,
but stopped.
 
“Oh, and, just for the
record, I love your sister and your brother.
 
Why didn’t you give Maria any of my Immortal Angel corset tops?”

“I don’t know.
 
I guess I didn’t think of it. I will, next
time I see her.”

“What did you tell her?” Tommy
interrupted them.

“Tell who?”

“Your mother.”

“Oh.”
 
Tommy was still so anxious about anyone
knowing he was bisexual that thoughts were still bouncing around in his head.
“She was only worried about my heart.
 
She doesn’t want me to get hurt.
 
I
told her not to worry.
 
I would explain
it another time.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Jimmy and Damien knew something was
going on between Angel and Tommy right away, but they never said anything.
 
Tommy was most comfortable around them.
 
He was OK with an occasional arm around the
shoulder or kiss on the cheek in public, but that was it.  And sometimes,
depending on who was around, that was too much.

Jimmy brought his new girlfriend to
the house today.
 
Girlfriend was a loose
term.
 
Flavor of the month was more
appropriate.
 
Maybe it was because Jimmy
was the only single member of the band, but girls flocked to him.
 
He had a piece of practically every girl at
The Quadrangle.
 
Tommy didn’t recognize
Jimmy’s latest conquest, though, and her inquisitive eye made him
uncomfortable.
 
As the night went on, her
eyes were no longer inquisitive. They were passing judgment on him, harsh and
derogatory – at least that’s the way it felt.

 
Angel kept trying to put his arm around
Tommy’s shoulder, but Tommy kept maneuvering out of its way.
 
The annoyance started to show on Angel’s
face, which made Tommy even more self-conscious.
 
Angel was wonderfully patient, but Tommy knew
that he was tired of keeping their relationship a secret.

Tommy was embarrassed at his
behavior.
 
He was distant and pushed
Angel away for hours.
 
As soon as
everyone left, he apologized.
 
“I’m
sorry.
 
I didn’t know that girl, and I
thought she was fabricating shit about me in her head.
 
She kept watching us.
 
It made me defensive and uncomfortable.”

Angel glared at him for several
seconds before his face softened.
 
“I
understand.
 
But I think it’s a good idea
if we explain our relationship to Damien and Jimmy.  This way, the first
two people we tell, pretty much know already.
 
It’ll make it easier to—”

“No.
 
I’m not ready.  Why can’t you understand
how hard it is for me?”
 
Tommy’s stomach
flip flopped.
 
He couldn’t face the truth
– not out loud.
 
He was just accepting
that he was bisexual in his head.
 
He
couldn’t tell other people yet.
 
He
didn’t want to endure their ridicule.

“I know it’s hard, but it’s not
going to get any easier.” Angel was sympathetic and understanding.  “I’ll
be there with you.  You know that Damien and Jimmy already know, anyway.”

“I don’t care. I don’t want people
going around saying that I’m a faggot.”

“People are more open-minded,
now.
 
It’s the 21
^st
century.”

“Like no one still calls you a
faggot?  I’m not ready for that kind of humiliation.” 
 
It was an unintentional low blow, and by the
look on Angel’s face, it hit a sore spot.