“Yep, I mentioned to my older brother, he’s a daddy, how bad Kodi was, and we got to talking.”
Bowie’s mind was reeling from the casual way Lennon talked about his brother being a ‘Daddy’ like it was nothing, and by how Isley stared at Lennon, he was just as surprised.
“He said that Kari fulfilled a need in Kodi. Them being twins is maybe part of it, but Kodi acts out and usually it’s Kari who calms him down.” Lennon nodded, almost as if to himself as he continued. “My brother thinks something has shifted the balance for Kodi and that’s why he’s acting out more because Kari is giving his attention to someone else.”
He was giving it to Bowie…
Oh, was this why Kari was behaving differently, because of his brother?
“How come you never said anything about your brother being a Daddy?” Isley asked softly.
Lennon shrugged indifferently. “He’s always had a boy since as far back as I can remember. It’s who he is, so I don’t think about it. He’s just my older brother Jonny.”
“Do your parents know?” Bowie hadn’t intended to join in the conversation, but the question popped into his head when he thought of how close Kari was with his parents. Did they know what he was into? He could not quite recall if Kari had mentioned it before.
“They know. I think they found it hard in the beginning, though I can’t say for sure. I just remember things being awkward when Jonny brought his boyfriend home and did stuff that many would think he should do for himself.” Lennon nodded at Bowie. “You know, same as Kari sometimes does things for you.”
He couldn’t quite catch his breath as it registered what Lennon was implying.
“Me?” he croaked, feeling very warm when Isley focused on him, too.
“Now you mention it, Kari is very attentive to your needs Bowie. Haven’t you noticed?”
Bowie was never good at lying, and the very idea of lying to his friends didn’t sit well with him. Talking to Ziggy and not mentioning Kari’s name in a conversation about what he liked was one thing, this was something else entirely. Especially when he didn’t know if Kari would approve.
Lennon isn’t judgy of his brother’s choices,his animal side quickly pointed out, when the lie was burning his tongue.
“I… it’s like…” Bowie buried his head in his hands and groaned in distress.
“It’s alright Bowie, honest. You don’t need to talk about whatever is going on with you and Kari.”
His head popped up at how Lennon already knew there was something. “He’s my Daddy,” he blurted out before he could stop himself or overthink it, like he always did.
“I thought he might be.” Lennon was more astute than Bowie, that was for sure.
“Is that why you talked about your brother?” Isley reached back and offered his hand to Bowie, which he took and clutched at. “We’re all friends—family—Bowie, nothing is gonna change that.”
His chin wobbled at Isley’s reassurance of the fear that had kept him quiet. “Are you sure, ‘cause I like… I like teddy bears,” he confessed tearily, sniffing.
Isley giggled and glanced down at Bowie’s lap. “We already know that, silly. I have several of my own, and I have toys I like to play with. Does it matter what we like to do that makes us feel better?”
Bowie gave that some thought before he shook his head.
Isley squeezed Bowie’s fingers. “See? You have nothing to worry about when it comes to us.” Isley looked at Lennon who shook his head.
“I’m never gonna judge you. What you and Kari do, does it make you both happy?”
Again, Bowie thought about Lennon’s question, taking the time to consider his reply. Happy didn’t fit what Bowie felt inside when he thought about Kari. Kari took away the dark from inside Bowie and made everything sparkle. It didn’t matter how bad his day was, all he had to do was think about Kari and everything felt better, and he said so.
“You’re in love with him.” Isley sniffed loudly and ran his free hand over the end of his nose, his eyes big and bright.
“I do. I love my Daddy.”
“Go you.” Lennon grinned. “I bet you all my kitchen appliances Kari loves you, too.”
Did he? Before the trip to the ranch, Bowie would have agreed, but the change he felt in Kari made him doubt.
“I… I’m not sure,” he finally said.
