Chapter 12

With only two days left at the cabin, Konnor felt a little better knowing that the whole Levi issue had been sorted. Not that he'd thought it was as serious an issue as everyone else did, but he understood why they'd worried about it. Levi had never really been level-headed when it came to Tam.

“How are you feeling?” he asked Darren, as they set the table for lunch.

He looked up with a faint smile and shrugged. “Okay, I guess. Mostly tired. That happens after a migraine,” he admitted, looking a little shy.

Nodding, Konnor accepted that he wasn't okay and probably wouldn't be, but he was putting on a brave face regardless.

“How are you?”

He smiled and realised he should have expected the question to come back to him. “Same. Just trucking along,” he said, offering a glance to prove that he was better than before but not quite there yet. “I'm actually kind of relieved that it's all out there. I mean, it's been obvious that there's no baggage between Tam and Giovanni, but Gray's been expecting some huge blow out and it's finally over,” he confessed, feeling a little giddy now that he knew the worst was over.

Darren chuckled and grabbed the water jug from the centre of the table and poured two glasses, as they took a seat beside each other. “I'm glad you're relieved. I felt the same; that it was almost inevitable that something terrible had to happen. I'm just sorry that I was part of the final meltdown.”

Konnor smiled and patted his hand, as he lay his glass back down after a sip. “You didn't do anything wrong,” he soothed, firmly believing that. “You reacted to Levi the way that any one of us would have. I mean, hell, I'd have decked him had he said it to me before Gray and I got engaged. It's just not an expectation we should have for each other,” he reasoned, knowing that more than anything else.

Seeing Darren and Giovanni together, he saw that they were as much a team as he and Grayson had become. They were madly in love, but able to function as individuals and be without each other when it was necessary. They didn't fall apart the minute they were separated, though he wouldn't blame them if they did, considering the issues they were dealing with. Instead, they became stronger together, not weaker. Stronger because they knew that no matter what happened, they had each other's backs and nothing would change that.

They didn't need a certificate to prove they loved each other. They certainly didn't need anyone else to come along and validate their relationship. They had each other and that was all they would ever need. It made Konnor envious.

“Honestly, Darren, I wish I had your courage,” he admitted, only to realise how that came out when the kid lowered his gaze to his glass and tensed. “I told Grayson I wanted to marry him after six months of dating. Six months! And he was still struggling with being with a guy for the first time. Getting married was just something I'd always thought was needed in a relationship, because it validated us, because it proved to the world that we were sticking together no matter what,” he rambled on, hoping to cover up his initial mistake, before Darren could feel worse.

“I think part of it was even a 'fuck you', giving the finger to the straight couples who surrounded me, especially my parents,” Konnor confessed, without any shame on that part. “They always made it seem like I'd never be happy, that I wasn't normal or that I'd never get married because of who I am. I guess I wanted to prove them wrong. But, seeing you with Giovanni, I realise that I might have been happier if I'd never thought that way.”

“Because,” Darren licked his lips and peeked up at him, “you would have been happier in your relationship? Because being together would have been enough?” he guessed.

Konnor grinned, relieved that he'd caught his point, though he wasn't sure he'd explained himself very well. “Exactly. I wish I'd taken the pressure off us, off Gray. I mean, he's known since the beginning that I wanted to get married. But I'm glad that he didn't feel rushed or pressured into it, just because of that. That he waited this long and told me why he wasn't ready,” he admitted with a smile. “I like that he stood up for himself, even when I was single-minded about it.”

With a shy smile, Darren nodded and leaned in to whisper, “It was the same with Gio. He came into our relationship so convinced that it could never, would never be anything real or substantial. I guess we're just lucky that I'm as stubborn as he is,” he said, chuckling just enough to let Konnor know he felt better. “You and Grayson are the same, I think. Both strong and opinionated. It's good that one doesn't drown out the other. I like that you can disagree and argue, the way Gio and I do, without it becoming something to be concerned about.”

When Giovanni approached, with a tray that he placed on the table, only to wink at his boyfriend, Darren flushed and beamed a bright smile. It was nice to see and it made Konnor realise something.

He needed to thank Grayson for being a stubborn mule and kicking his ass into this reunion. He was glad to know Darren, glad to see that they'd alleviated some of his apprehension about meeting them, and even relieved that they'd revealed Levi's secret. Depression wasn't easy to deal with, he knew fine well. But if he could have Tam and Casen, and Mack, supporting him, then he'd do much better.

The hardest lesson Konnor had ever learned was that he couldn't do everything alone. Lachlan and Grayson taught him that and he couldn't be more grateful. Because, he knew for sure, the best thing he'd ever done was ask for help.

And they gave it. Without a second thought.

He was so damned lucky!