That made sense.
“And you tried looking for him,” his father added. “I’m not sure you ever stopped until…” His face paled as his voice trailed off.
“I hope he’s all right,” his mother said through tears. “I really do. He deserved so much more than his parents put him through.” She hissed in a breath. “They put you both through hell.” She wrung her trembling hands together. “Theonlygood thing to come out of your accident was that you were free of the guilt and grief you’d been carrying around.”
“It’s a sad story,” Jared said quietly. “But I can’t grieve for Jeremy any more than I’ve been able to grieve for Grant.” He looked to Kyrone. “The guy I was in the car with that day,” he explained because he realised he’d never said Grant’s name out loud. “I can’t remember either of them.” He didn’t want his parents to worry or feel guilty for causing him pain, even though he felt more than he was letting on. “Thank you for telling me. I’m tired. I’m going to lie down for a while.”
“Jared…” His mother reached out to him, her eyes full of concern.
“I’m all right,” he promised her. “Just tired and overwhelmed. Do you mind if Kyrone comes with me?” He thought his parents might object, but they both shook their heads. “We’ll come down for dinner.” He stood but then paused. “I do understand why you only told me good things.”
Then he did something he hadn’t done since he’d woken up from his coma. He leant down and hugged his father and then walked over to embrace his mother.
“Thank you,” he told them both. “For everything.”
26Kyrone
Kyrone wasn’t sure how long they’d been lying together on the single bed in Jared’s old bedroom before his boyfriend finally spoke. Jared had been staring up at the ceiling the whole time, his eyes bright with unshed tears. Kyrone hadn’t pushed. He’d just been there, holding Jared. The things they’d heard about Jag had upset him too. Even though he’d known a lot of it, finding out the other half of the story had been difficult.
“It was weird listening to all that,” Jared whispered.
“What do you mean?”
“It was like being told a story about someone else’s life. It was a bit more real than being told about the accident, but only because I’ve spoken to Jag.” He twisted onto his side. “You know it doesn’t change anything, don’t you?”
Kyrone lifted his eyebrows.
“I still have no memory of him. I still have no feelings for him.” He ran his hand over Kyrone’s jaw. “I still love you.”
Kyrone caught hold of Jared’s hand and kissed his palm. “I know.” But it definitely felt good to hear Jared say it. “I’m sorry if I pushed you into that conversation.”
Jared shook his head. “You gave me an opening. I chose to take it.” A small smile crossed his lips. “I don’t think I needed to worry about keeping my promise to Jag, though. My parentshatehis.”
Kyrone nodded. “I definitely got that vibe too. Do you blame them?”
“God, no.” Jared moved his hand to play with the neckline of Kyrone’s T-shirt. “Will you tell Jag what we found out, please?”
Kyrone breathed in deeply. “I think you should.”
Jared’s eyes widened. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“I do. It’s your story to tell.”
“Hardly.”
Kyrone gave him a stern look. “Of course it is. I’ll go with you if you want, but it’s a conversation you and Jag need to have.”
Jared snuggled up against him. “If you think it’ll help Jag heal…”
“I think it will help you as well.”
Jared sighed but didn’t raise any more objections.
They cuddled up together, holding each other until Bianca came to fetch them for dinner.
Dinner was less strained, mostly because there was only light conversation to be had. No one brought up Jared’s past. His parents didn’t ask him to move home again, which Kyrone was glad about. He was more than prepared to stand up for Jared’s right to choose where he wanted to live, but was glad he didn’t have to.
Afterwards, Jared’s mother delighted in showing Kyrone old family photo albums and recounting stories of Jared’s childhood. Her love for her son was palpable, as was her grief at losing the person he’d been.
