Chapter 6
It had been a long night, but Darren had actually slept the whole night through. As had Giovanni. It was a small miracle, but one he was thankful for, when Giovanni stepped into the bathroom to grab a shower only for his phone to ring.
Darren grabbed it from the bedside table and accepted the Skype chat with Jaime. “Morning, sunshine. How are things?” he asked, trying to be nonchalant, while wondering what the hell was going on back home. First Rhett and Eddy surprised him with the hook up, so early in his schemes, and now Jean and Jaime.
His friend, however, wasn't smiling. He sighed and raked his hand through his bed hair. “Okay, I guess. I didn't get much sleep last night. And, before you say it, not for the reason you think,” he complained, shaking his head at himself with a faint smile. “This whole thing with Jean is confusing. But, I really don't want to talk about that, so how are things going with you?”
That made things plain enough; Jaime was conflicted, but probably willing to take his advice and wait out the tension until he'd spoken to Jean about his ex-boyfriend situation. Darren was glad, because it meant he was putting himself first for once. He didn't know anything about the run up to the snogging he'd seen on their Skype chat, that one or the other had accidentally taken a snapshot of, but he knew by Jaime's tired eyes and quiet voice that it hadn't solved anything.
Which was good. Snogging and not talking never solved a thing, in his experience. Hell, it had been part of the reason he and Giovanni had never properly talked about their relationship and where it was going, in the early days.
“Well, I think it's going okay, to be honest. Konnor is holding it together, Lachlan is standing by as support and we're all trying to function as a group,” he admitted, not seeing any problems, yet. But it was still early in the visit and there was every possibility that things might implode before they left. “Oh, Konnor and Grayson are engaged. They told us the other night, and everyone seems quite happy to let old grievances stay in the past. Lord knows there are enough stories about this lot to breed resentment, but Tam and Konnor are getting along fine, Konnor and Cormag are being civil to each other and Tam and Giovanni are like brothers,” he explained.
It was all a little overwhelming, at first. To see them all coming together, trying to function as friends, while ignoring the fact that half of them had reasons to hate each other as well as justifications for storming out at a minute's notice.
“And you?” Jaime asked, raising an eyebrow at him that said he'd noticed the avoidance to talk about himself.
Darren shrugged and thought about how he felt. “It was hard, when we first got here. I had no idea how anyone was going to act. I mean, academically, I know that Tam and Casen accept Giovanni now and don't hold the past against him. But it's one thing to know it and another to see it in action, for a week of confinement.” He sighed and shook his head, turning to gaze out of the window of their room. “It's been better than I expected. Casen and Lachlan are here, so I have someone to talk to that I actually know, and Giovanni isn't shying away from Tam or the others. It's all very civilised.”
Jaime smiled softly and asked, “Did you talk to Rico about the visit?”
“Yeah. We went over breathing techniques, what to say if anyone asked probing questions,” he replied, still surprised that no one had asked any. He'd thought Levi or Mack, at least, would have asked about his therapy or his past, because he didn't know them as well as he knew everyone else.
“You look relieved,” Jaime pointed out. “I take it no one has asked anything?”
“Nope. I can't decide whether that means I can relax now or if I'm just waiting for the penny to drop,” Darren confessed, since that was part of the reason he hadn't been sleeping well in the run up to the visit. “Are they waiting for me to relax before they bombard me with questions or do they really not care?” he wondered aloud.
His best friend chuckled lightly. “Honestly? They do care, but they care enough to know that asking isn't going to do you any good. They've got experience with therapy stuff now, thanks to Tam and Konnor. They won't ask you, in case it makes you feel uncomfortable,” he claimed, as though he knew all about it.
And, considering everything, Darren guessed that he did. Hadn't that been what he and Giovanni had done, after all? When they first met Jaime, they were both well versed in the ins and outs of therapy and what it meant; they'd never asked Jaimewhyhe was in therapy, because they knew it was something he had to choose to do in his own time and his own way.Ifhe even wanted to. It was perfectly within his rights to never bring it up and, if he'd chosen that option, Darren and Giovanni would never have asked, because they knew what it was like to have a secret they didn't want to share.
Was that what the others were doing? Had Konnor and Tam's brief experience of therapy given them the insight to not ask about his own? Lachlan and Casen knew enough and claimed they didn't need to know more and, what with Lachlan's research for his psychology books, he knew the likely answers to whatever questions he might have. Darren was pretty sure that both of them knew more than he would ever tell anyone else, about why he was in therapy and what it meant, but he didn't mind all that much. Half of what they knew had come from his own mouth. The rest was just natural instinct and their own intelligence filling in the dots.
“Darren?”
“Hmm?”
“You okay?” Jaime asked quietly.
Turning back to the Skype screen, he smiled and nodded. “Yeah, I actually think I am. You make a lot of sense in the morning, you know that? I'm still half asleep, but I think I know what you mean,” he admitted, needing some time to ruminate over the possibilities before he came to a conclusion.
“Well, I guess I better go and let you get back to the reunion,” Jaime said, with a small sigh. “I'm going to talk to Jean before you guys get back. Maybe even today. He needs to know the truth and I think I'm finally ready to tell him.”
That was more than Darren had expected to hear, so he smiled and tried to offer encouragement. “That's great. Just remember to do what feels right, to trust that he'll listen with an open mind and, if you need us, we're on the other end of the phone. Call or text if you need me, any time.” That was a promise. In the middle of dinner, the middle of the night or any other time of day or night, he was ready to jump and help Jaime any way he could.
“Okay. I will.” His friend smiled and nodded his thanks. “Right, bye then. I'll see you when you get back,” he promised, before hanging up.
Darren sat and stared at his phone for a while, hoping things worked out for the best. Jaime was still in a delicate, vulnerable state. He'd only started opening up to Rico just before he and Giovanni had left for Italy, thanks to the friendship and support they and Jean offered him. But it had been a long road; he started talking about small things, like everyday life and his friendship with Jean, taking nearly three months to admit that he had a past history of abuse.
From what Jean had told Giovanni, Jaime spoke in riddles a lot; that he'd suffered things, but never saying what; that he'd lost trust and faith in men, but never saying why. The confessions were enough that Rico swore he was making progress, but after two years, he hadn't mentioned specific details about who, why or when. He'd only just delved into the 'what' and Darren was proud of him for that. Every step forward was a victory.
If only Jean could stay strong and supportive long enough for Jaime to tell him everything.
