Ethan wished he and Gene could apply for a marriage license, but that wouldn’t ever be able to happen.
And it sucked.
“Does your family know?” Will asked, trying to get to know the man. While they were living with them, Ethan was very quiet more times than not.
He didn’t overly share.
Will knew the basics, but not everything about him. It always seemed rude to just ask.
Ethan shook his head.
“My mother died young—when I was twelve—and my sperm donor is a raging alcoholic who knocked another woman up while I was a newborn. So as you can imagine, he’s not exactly on my radar for caring what he thinks. I could be fucking half the reservation, and he’d not care. He might try to outdo me.”
Will was curious.
“So you have a sibling? Or aren’t you close because he’s the product of an affair?”
He laughed.
“Nah. When you grow up on a rez, you’re accustomed to a few things. Baby daddies, poverty, and alcoholism—none of those three really make you want to not know your blood relatives. Everyone is in the same boat.”
That was sad.
Will had a good life.
His parents were relatively normal, and the family had money. So he didn’t have the same experiences that Ethan had.
Ethan did explain why he wasn’t part of his brother’s life. It would come up at some point.
“My brother and I aren’t close, but that’s because he had sex with my girlfriend, and it blew us apart.”
Will blinked.
That surprised him.
He wasn’t sure why, but it did. Maybe it was because Ethan was very much into Gene, and he couldn’t imagine him not being gay.
“Oh, so you go both ways?” he asked.
The tone said it all.
Now, Ethan was amused.
“I go one way, as of late. Once upon a time, I went the other way. I like this way better. Gene would never hurt me in any such way. I’ve been burned too many times in my life.”
He believed that.
Gene was a good person, and so was Ethan.
Now that the man was talking about his personal life, it seemed like a good time to get some advice about his own relationship.
“Can I ask you a question?” Will inquired.
Ethan just waited.
He wasn’t sure what the question would be, but he’d answer if he could.
Blackhawk genuinely liked the man.
